Purim – the two Avodas in Emunah in Purim

1 – The Two Avodas in Emunah

The Mishnah in Rosh Hashana (3:8):

“והיה כאשר ירים משה ידו וגבר ישראל וגומר וכי ידיו של משה עושות מלחמה או שוברות מלחמה אלא לומר לך כל זמן שהיו ישראל מסתכלים כלפי מעלה ומשעבדין את לבם לאביהם שבשמים היו מתגברים ואם לאו היו נופלין כיוצא בדבר אתה אומר עשה לך שרף ושים אותו על נס והיה כל הנשוך וראה אותו וחי וכי נחש ממית או נחש מחיה אלא בזמן שישראל מסתכלין כלפי מעלה ומשעבדין את לבם לאביהן שבשמים היו מתרפאים ואם לאו היו נימוקים”

“Regarding the war with Amalek, Shemos 17:11 says, “When Moshe raised his hand, Klal Yisroel prevailed… ” Did Moshe’s hands cause success or failure in battle? Rather, we learn from this that when Klal Yisroel would look up and submit themselves to Hashem, they would prevail; if not for that, they would be defeated. Similarly, Bamidbar 21:8 instructs Moshe to make an image of a snake and to place it on a pole so that anyone bitten by a snake who sees it will live. Does a snake kill or heal a person? Rather, when Klal Yisroel would look up and submit themselves to Hashem, they would be healed. If not for that, they would be harmed.”

In Shaar Gimmel Perek 12 the Nefesh Hachayyim explains that Klal Yisroel saw the koach ha’ra (power of evil) represented by the nachash (snake), and instead of being overwhelmed by it, they affirmed: “Even here, Hashem rules completely.” By doing so, they nullified the ra itself.

We need to understand how this idea fits with the first part of the Mishnah that discusses Moshe’s hands. The Mishnah asks: “Did Moshe’s hands save Klal Yisroel?” It answers: “Rather, when Klal Yisroel saw Moshe’s hands raised toward heaven, they placed their trust in Hashem, and He saved them.”

The Mishnah’s wording regarding Moshe’s hands is identical and parallel to the wording about the nachash. However, there is an obvious difference: In the case of the nachash, Klal Yisroel had to have emunah despite seeing something that appeared negative. But when looking at Moshe’s hands raised to the heavens, where is the challenge of emunah?

We must answer that when Klal Yisroel saw the hands of Moshe Rabbeinu—the very hands that had performed all the miracles in Egypt, the hands that held the Luchos, the hands of Torah and wonders—they saw in them the clear guidance of Hashem. These hands expressed Hashem’s direct involvement with us.

Thus, the Mishnah presents us with two distinct ways to recognize the Borei Olam:

1. Through the hands of Moshe—seeing clear miracles and experiencing direct hashgacha.
2. Through the nachash—perceiving Hashem in moments of concealment where ra appears to be present, affirming that Hashem still rules over everything.

Amalek vs. the Nachash

So we are left with the question: Why do we need Moshe’s hands when battling Amalek, yet we need the nachash when healing Klal Yisroel? Both serve to make us recognize that Hashem is in charge. When do these two different avodas apply? 

To begin to answer this point we must realize that the Nefesh HaChayyim brings this Mishnah to illustrate the point of our essential connection to kedusha.

The episode of the nachash occurs in Parshas Chukas, after 38 years in the midbar (desert). Klal Yisroel suddenly complained about the mann, saying, “our bodies cannot contain this intangible, lofty food!”  They were essentially expressing that they could not live solely connected to ruchniyus and wanted a domain for themselves. This is the very nature of ra—it asserts a separate reshus (domain), a reality that operates apart from kedusha. To combat this, we need the avoda of bitul, recognizing that Hashem is always fully present.

The fight against Amalek on the other hand occurred many years earlier and is an entirely different menace to ruchniyus. It is the evil epitomized by Esav who is a forgery of tzuras ha’adam (this concept of tzuras ha’adam – the spiritual makeup of man, will be elaborated on in the coming shiurim). To fight against Amalek—the distillation of Esav—we need the avoda of “we are shayyich to kedusha.” A forgery can only be exposed when compared to the authentic original. 

Esav comes and presents himself as a twin to Yaakov but is ultimately revealed as a forgery. We counter Amalek’s claim of legitimacy by declaring, “We know what it means to be a Jew!” The simple Jewish man is far more authentic than the so-called “greatest” Amaleki, no matter how sophisticated or accomplished he may appear!

Purim

This “real Jew” comes out through the drinking of Purim. Then it is revealed that the other option is a forgery. Of course, this work takes place all year long, but it manifests itself on Purim. The key point is that within us lies the true tzuras ha’adam. This is why people wear costumes on Purim—to express, “Even if I appear to have the ‘hands of Esav,’ at my essence, I am still Yaakov.” No matter what outer layers we put on, our core remains unchanged.

Amalek demonstrated its ideology by throwing the foreskins toward Heaven, essentially declaring, “You don’t need to remove anything from yourself; just embrace your natural state. Self-expression alone is the ideal version of man.” This is a tempting philosophy, even sounding somewhat spiritual and religious. But as we’ve said, a forgery must closely resemble the original in order to be effective.

Indeed, a Jew does have something he must remove—the orlas halev, the barriers that block his heart. A Jew does not simply embrace every inclination and instinct, nor does he nurture every desire. There is a part of himself that he must discard. For this reason the nations of the world despise the mitzvah of bris milah—because it proclaims that a Jew cannot live exclusively “naturally.”

The forgery of Amalek promotes the idea that self-fulfillment is the ultimate goal. This mindset stems from a deep desire to disconnect from Hashem’s domain and live without responsibility to something higher. The avoda to combat this is not simply rejecting the forgery, but affirming who we truly are as Klal Yisroel—this is what Moshe’s hands represent.

Unfortunately, within our own community, there is often a lack of resistance to forgeries. We accept ideas that seem appealing on the surface, without critically examining their roots and implications. We must remember that forgeries always appear good at first glance—they often sound like Torah, and their external presentation can be very convincing. One must become a specialist to discern between what is genuinely Torah and what is merely dressed up as Torah but fundamentally flawed.

We will expand on this mehalech in the next vaad in the series entitled “02 Purim -The forgery of Amalek in tzuras ha’adam”