Parah (5718)

The Alef Kabbalah group (25 March 2008) explored the (unedited) Chassidic-kabbalistic discourse taught by the Lubavitcher Rebbe on Shabbat Parshat Parah in 1958. Parshat Parah is an extra passage read on Shabbat from a second Torah Scroll, concerning the ashes of the 'Red Heiffer' which are used to purify the Jewish people. In Temple times they would be so purified in preparation for going to Jerusalem for the Pesach festival. The discourse explores the contrast between the Red Heiffer, which is prepared outside the camp, and the normal offerings which are brought in the Sanctuary. This leads to a discussion of the nature of the Garden of Eden, which expresses the Divine Name, and is manifested by the Jewish people serving G-d, there being a Divine Name within each individual.This service expresses the observance of the Mitvot and the ordinary offerings in the Temple. On a higher level is the Red Heiffer which reaches the realm of the impure and transforms it into something pure and holy.