לזכות גילה שושנה בת נעכא גיטל
The sefarim talk a lot about חומר [raw matter] and צורה [form]. Reality is perceived by us through our 5 senses. When an object changes from one reality to another, that brings in its wake a change in the perception of our senses. Conversely, when the perception of our senses changes, that means that the object changed from one reality to another. When we see that an object changed its color, texture or smell, we understand that the object changed from one reality to another. That doesn't mean that it is a completely different reality because we understand that there is a connection between the object now and what it was previously. These are not two completely different objects.
So we must say that that every object has something that never changes. This is not perceived by the 5 senses but we know that it is true. [One might think that the gasoline you put in your car is simply burnt, and disappears. Not so. The process of burning gasoline simply strips out all the energy bonds holding different chemical particles together. The bonds in gasoline are particularly strong, hence the energy release is intense – which is the reason it has been so useful for humans. The chemical elements are transformed into gases and small particles with the same weight and mass as the gasoline that was burnt. These particles are difficult to see (and so easily overlooked) and almost impossible to contain once released into the air. The same applies to liquids that are washed down the sink, or chemicals that are sprayed on the garden, or garbage buried in the ground. So while we may think we’re throwing things ‘away’ when we put them in the garbage or anywhere else, the truth is – there is no ‘away’. Nothing disappears.This principle is captured in the first law of thermodynamics, otherwise known as the principle of conservation of matter. This agreed scientific law recognizes the fact that matter cannot be created or destroyed, it can only be transformed from one form to another as its chemical elements are reorganized]. Also, every object has something that is liable to change and that is perceived by our 5 senses.
It emerges, that every object has a חומר and a צורה. The חומר is the existing object that is not perceived by the 5 senses. The צורה is what impacts and shapes the חומר giving it the צורה which is perceived by our senses. In other words, through the צורה that is מוטבעת בחומר [embedded and imprinted on the material], we can perceive the חומר. [Example: when we touch an object and feel that it is hard, this means that we are connecting to the חומר of the object via the צורה which is the hardness.]
The Torah says that at the beginning -
והארץ היתה תהו ובהו - Now the earth was astonishingly empty.
Rashi:
תהו לשון תמה ושממון שאדם תוהא ומשתומם על בהו שבה:
The word תֹהוּ is an expression of astonishment and desolation, that a person wonders and is astonished at the emptiness therein.
Ramban:
ועתה שמע פירוש המקרא על פשוטו נכון וברור. הקב״ה ברא כל הנבראים מאפיסה מוחלטת. ואין אצלנו בלשון הקדש בהוצאת היש מאין אלא לשון: ברא. ואין כל הנעשה תחת השמש, או למעלה, הווה מן האין התחלה ראשונה. אבל הוציא מן האפס הגמור המוחלט יסוד דק מאד, אין בו ממש, אבל הוא כוח ממציא, מוכן לקבל הצורה ולצאת מן הכוח אל הפועל. והוא החומר הראשון, נקרא ליוונים: היולי. ואחר ההיולי לא ברא דבר, אבל יצר ועשה, כי ממנו המציא הכל והלביש הצורות ותיקן אותן. ודע, כי השמים וכל אשר בהם – חומר אחד, והארץ וכל אשר בה – חומר אחד. והקב״ה ברא אלו שניהם מאין, ושניהם לבדם נבראים, והכל נעשים מהם.
והחומר הזה, שקראו היולי, נקרא בלשון הקדש: תהו, והמלה נגזרה מלשונם (בבלי קידושין מ׳:): בתוהא על הראשונות, מפני שאם בא אדם לגזור בו שם, תוהא ונמלך לקוראו בשם אחר, כי לא לבש צורה שיתפש בה השם כלל. והצורה הנלבשת לחומר הזה נקראת בלשון הקדש: בהו, והמלה מורכבת, כלומר: בו הוא, כמלת: לא תוכל עשהו(שמות י״ח:י״ח), שמחוסר הו״ו והאל״ף, עשו הוא. וזהו שאמר הכתוב: ונטה עליה קו תהו ואבני בהו (ישעיהו ל״ד:י״א)׳ כי הוא הקו אשר בו יתחם האומן מחשבת בניינו ומה שיקוה לעשות, נגזר מן: קוה אל י״י (תהלים כ״ז:י״ד), והאבנים הם צורות בבניין. וכן כתוב: מאפס ותהו נחשבו לו (ישעיהו מ׳:י״ז), כי התוהו אחר האפס, ואיננו דבר.
וכך אמרו בספר יצירה: יצר מתהו ממש ועשה אינו ישנו. ועוד אמרו במדרש רבי נחוניא בן הקנה: אמר רבי ברכיה, מאי כתיב: והארץ היתה תהו ובהו, מאי משמע היתה, שכבר היתה תהו. ומאי: בהו, אלא תהו היתה, ומאי תהו, דבר המתהא בני אדם, וחזרה לבהו. ומאי בהו, דבר שיש בו ממש, דכתיב: בו הוא.
We see from the Ramban that the very first creation was "יש" [existence], the creation of חומר, from "אין" [non-existence]. This is תהו where a person is תוהה ומשתומם what to call it because it is not perceived by the senses. On top of that came בהו - which is the giving of צורה to the חומר.
The מהלך of the creation of the world was בריאה יצירה עשיה. First בריאה – the creation of יש מאין, the creation of חומר. Then יצירה – the creation of צורה [you see the relationship between the two words צורה-יצירה]. And then עשיה - the finishing and polishing of the object to its final established form.
The Abarbanel asks many questions on the Ramban and his primary question is: The Torah tells us how to live our lives and doesn't engage in abstract philosophy. What lesson is there for us in the knowledge that Hashem created the יש with a צורה? How does that information help us serve Him better??
The נפש החיים [at the beginning of the sefer] explains that צלם א-להים means that man is a creator. The world was given as an unfinished product and our job is to complete it. To explain more: A child sees his toy and views it as an independent entity. Then he sees it in the context of the rest of his toys. Then he sees those as part of his room which he then perceives is part of his house. He can then expand his vision and view the house as part of the block and the block as part of the neighborhood which is part of the city, which is part of the country, which is part of the world. In this way the "world" of the child expands. To see the order of things is to create a "world".
We "create" our world based on our perception of reality. If we choose to disregard True Reality and live in a make believe world where existence is completely material with no spiritual basis and root, then that is the world we will inhabit. After the sin of Adam, we were given the option of living in such a world of שקר. The punishment for such an attitude is גיהנום. That is an existence of [as the Maharal explains] "העדר". Complete lack. A void, a black hole. Nothingness. The pain we have in this world always stems from a lack of something, be it food, drink or [if you are in Manhattan] a parking spot. The world sinners and deniers created for themselves is a non-existent world. So that is what they get in return - non-existence. Koheles [12-8]: "הולך אדם אל בית עולמו" - Man goes to the house of HIS world. If Hashem is part of your world then you inhabit the real world and when your time is up here, you will be transferred to the world that you created for yourself that really exists. One where the only existence and reality is Hashem and what connects to Him.
THAT is what the Ramban is telling us. This world is on the surface - חומר. Raw, meaningless material and mass. Our task is to give a צורה, form and meaning to that חומר. That is what Hashem did when he created the world and so we must create our world.
So how fascinating - perception is a creative faculty!! 😊😃
[עפ"י זה השער]
