The
Cherubs:
Symmetrical Innocence in Union
The
Symbol of Consummate Love
between God and Israel
(Notes from a lecture
by Harav Yitzchok Ginsburgh)
The
Torah portion of Terumah
discusses the details of the
Sanctuary in
which God dwells.
The first vessel related to in detail
in our portion is
the Ark of the
Covenant,
above which are the two cherubs.
While the Holy Ark contains
the Torah--God's eternal wisdom--
His voice
and
ongoing directives
emanate from
between the joined wingtips
of the two
cherubs,
who symbolize
the consummate love of delights
between God and the people of
Israel.
Male Symmetry and Female Symmetry
The two vessels
in the Temple
that reflect perfect symmetry
are the Menorah and the Cherubs.
The menorah's symmetry
is relatively male,
while the symmetry of the cherubs
is relatively female.
Male symmetry is a well-defined axis
of 1 in the middle,
with an
identical number of elements
that are present
on each side of the
axis.
In this type of
symmetry,
there will always be an
odd number of elements,
another sign of the male state.
The Menorah perfectly
illustrates
this type of symmetry.
Female symmetry has no defined axis,
but is rather an even number of
elements
arranged
in a perfectly symmetrical manner.
The
female-symmetrical cherubs
are in the Holy of Holies.
The epitome of beauty
and the symmetry of coupling
is female.
Cherubs at the
Garden of Eden
The first place
that the cherubs
appear in the Torah is
after Adam and Eve are evicted
(in Hebrew, the
word for
"eviction," gerush גרוש,
is the same as the word for divorce)
from
the Garden of Eden.
The cherubs assumed a
fearful role
at the entrance to the Garden,
along with
the fiery, turning sword.
Their role was to
ensure that Adam
would not re-enter the Garden,
eat from the Tree of
Life
and eternalize the primordial sin.
In this context, the
cherubs
are a type of angel.
Maimonides
classifies
ten types of angels.
According to Kabbalah,
these
ten types of angels
correspond to the Ten Sefirot.
The lowest
level of angels,
Ishim, ("men") אישים
are those that converse
with
prophets or people
imbued with the holy spirit.
Ishim correspond to
the
sefirah of malchut.
The next level of angels,
kruvim-cherubs,
correspond to the
sefirah of yesod.
They represent
the
spiritual power of union
between man and wife,
and symbolize the union
between God and Israel.
Baby Face
Our Sages
explain
that the Hebrew word
for cherub, kruv כרוב,
is from Aramaic
and
means "as a baby."
The cherubs had baby faces.
A
baby face
represents innocence.
The loving
touch of the cherubs
in the Holy of Holies
reflects the epitome
of
pure, innocent love.
This innocence exists
in the Holy of Holies,
in a realm that predates
the primordial sin.
After the
primordial sin,
the cherubs also assumed
the role of fearful angels.
The Inner Essence
of Innocence
The Biblical
commentator,
Abraham Ibn Ezra,
defines the word kruv as
formless matter that
can assume
any form
whatsoever.
This is the exact property
of the cherubs,
who can
assume the
form of fearful angels and
also of consummate lovers.
Innocence lends
itself
to this amorphous state,
which can assume opposite forms.
This
amorphous quality is also
reflected in a baby's face,
which assumes
a more certain form
only after the baby matures
and manifests
his power of
free choice.
Thus, this
ability
to strip away one form
and to wear another is
the inner essence
of innocence.
The Ibn Ezra bases
his definition of kruv-cherub
as a formless being
on
the Workings of the Chariot
in the first chapter of Ezekiel.
The prophet
initially
describes four figures:
a lion, an ox,
an eagle and a man.
Later, Ezekiel
replaces the ox
with a description of a kruv.
Subsequently, Ezekiel
describes
all the forms as kruvim-cherubs.
The Ibn Ezra
concludes from this
that the kruv is an amorphous state
that can assume
any form.
To Innocence and
Beyond
The amorphous
state of innocence
can mature positively,
but it also has
potential
to mature negatively.
The state of
innocence
of Adam and Eve
prior to the primordial sin
was not meant
to be their final state.
God intended
that
they mature spiritually.
However, their innocence
took a negative turn.
Likewise, our
Sages say
that Esau and Jacob
were relatively unformed
until they
received da'at
at the age of 13,
allowing each
to make
his life choices.
The cherubs, as
well,
had to be made according
to most exacting instructions,
out of
one solid piece of gold.
Our
Sages say that
even the most minute imprecision
in the form of the
cherubs
would render them as idolatry.
Our goal is to strip
away
our present form,
and to re-adorn ourselves
with a more mature
spiritual form.
When we meditate
on
the cherubs,
we can return to the
amorphous, innocent state
of female
symmetry.
Link to recommended site on Kabbalah:
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