Chapter A: What is a Eulogy?
I. It is the way of the world that when people deal with the image of a great man, they recount his praises and virtues. Usually, these praises are interpreted in a general way—such as his knowledge of the Torah in all its parts (Talmud, Halacha, Kabbalah); or his character traits: a "good eye," generosity, kindness, standing guard over religion, etc. The reason most eulogies are built this way is that a general description seems more encompassing and characteristic.
However, we did not find this to be the case with our Master [the late Rabbi]. When he delivered eulogies for great men, he never entered into general descriptions. On the contrary, he always focused on a few very specific points, upon which he established his thoughts and built his speech.
What was his reasoning?
The Master was asked this himself, and he replied that a eulogy is a "matter of Honor (Kavod)," as the Sages say: "Is it the honor of the dead or the honor of the living?" Since honor is the subject, honor is always found only in the place where the person is unique. That is where his honor lies, for it is there that he is distinguished from others. Therefore, the Master preferred to explain specifically those points that constituted the uniqueness of the deceased, thereby establishing his honor.
II. Of course, the intention here is that a person's uniqueness is not an additional limb added to the rest of the body. Uniqueness is not an add-on, as if one could say: "He did this and that, and he also had uniqueness in a certain point."
Rather, the opposite is true. Uniqueness is not just a small point; it is the essence of the person—everything else revolves around it. A person's uniqueness is what defines them—their "all," the entire scope of their actions.
Example: The Maharal [Rabbi Judah Loew] asks: Why does Tractate Shabbat open with the labor of "Carrying" (Hotza’ah), when all the labors are listed together in the seventh chapter? Why was "Carrying" singled out at the very beginning of the tractate?
The Maharal answers: To clarify "What is Shabbat," we must first find what is most similar to it, which is the Festival (Yom Tov). Then, we must clarify how Shabbat is unique compared to a Festival. Once we find the uniqueness of Shabbat, we find its essence. Since the labor of "Carrying" is forbidden only on Shabbat [and permitted on Festivals], it is what defines Shabbat. In the place of uniqueness, the essence resides. Therefore, Rabbi [Judah the Prince] opened the tractate with it.
Similarly, the difference between male and female is expressed in the organs of procreation, where the core definition of male as "giver" and female as "receiver" lies.
We learn, then, that the uniqueness of a thing is the center of its being; its essential definition is found there. Other matters are, at best, branches of that center.
This concludes the introduction: What we must clarify when standing before the image of a person, especially a great man in Israel.
III. Now, we must apply this question to our Master: In what way was he unique? It is not for a "small one" like me to grasp the foundation of the matter. A student cannot fully grasp the essence of his teacher. The true relationship between a teacher and student exists only because there is an unbridgeable gap between them......a teacher never reveals to a student more than the student has the capacity to grasp.
This is true in general, but in our case, it is even more so. Our Master was a personality unique in kind, sublime in character. He was unique in his very personhood. Everyone who knew him would testify that his ways were much higher than ours, and he revealed a different "hue" of himself to every student. Therefore, the attempt to define or describe him borders on arrogance.
The Perception of Honor – A Perception of "Existence"
IV. Nevertheless, as students, we are obligated to learn from his ways. He himself taught us that Honor is the perception of a "fraction," and from that fraction, the understanding that there are sublime parts far beyond us.
If a "small one" perceived a "great one" perfectly, they would be equals, and there would be no "Honor." Conversely, if the student perceives nothing at all, there is also no Honor, for Honor is a relationship, and a relationship requires some grasp or connection.
To make the "attribute of Honor" possible, the small one must grasp the lowest part—the lowest edge—of the great one, which the great one lowered intentionally to reveal a tiny bit. From that "tiny bit," the small one perceives that there is an infinite "naught" above it.
This is the subject of Honor.
V. Since a eulogy is called Yeqara (Honor/Glory), we can try to establish the subject of Honor through the small part we grasped. We do not use our own definitions, but the Master's definition of himself.
Uniqueness as a Defining Body
VI. When dealing with a eulogy in a general sense, the subject is: How was this person unique?
In every eulogy, the speaker deals with the virtues in which the deceased was unique. The subject is that specific virtue. For example, one might say a person was the greatest "Baal Chesed" (Master of Kindness) of his generation.
But we would not say that this person was the "most unique man." His definition is "Master of Kindness" because that is where he was unique. However, regarding our Master, if we ask: "In what way was he unique?" the answer is: In his uniqueness. His virtue was the concept of uniqueness itself.
Every person has something unique about them. But our Master was not unique in a specific point like other people; he was "Uniquely Unique." In short: Everyone is "unique in something," but he was "something unique."
The Master's Words: "I am not a man of Love; I am a man of Honor."
VII. I will detail this principle using the Master's own words. He would testify about himself: "I am not a man of love, I am a man of Honor." This is a sublime statement. No one who knew him would fail to identify with this. "Honor" (Kavod) was his way of looking at creation.
Chapter B: Honor, What is it?
VIII. Honor is a fundamental concept in the Torah. The Sages taught (Ethics of the Fathers): "Everything that the Holy One, Blessed be He, created in His world, He created only for His Honor." Honor is one of the roots of creation and its purpose.
Honor is the Most Desired Thing
IX. Honor is highly coveted by people. The Mesillat Yesharim (Path of the Just) identifies it as the peak of human desires. He writes: "Honor is the ultimate pressure... it is impossible for a person to see himself as less than his peers." People are willing to endure any pain to merit a "drop" of honor.
Honor = Life; Shame = Death
X. The Master often quoted the Alter of Slobodka: "If you take all of a person's honor so that not a drop remains, he cannot continue to live."
We find this in the opposite of Honor: Shame. The Sages say: "One who shames his fellow in public is like one who spills blood." There is an intrinsic link between Honor and Life. Shame equals Death. Honor is the perception of Life itself.
Honor = Uniqueness
XI. Honor only applies in the place of uniqueness. If a person is just like everyone else, why should they be honored? People make great efforts to appear unique to merit honor.
As Rabbi Yitzchak Hutner wrote: "The core of the feeling of Honor sucks its vitality from this thirst for uniqueness."
Human Will – Essence – Stability
XII. Every person strives for the uniqueness that truly exists within them. Why? Because uniqueness is a matter of Essence (Atzmiut). When a person is unique, they are the center of reality; everyone needs them, they have meaning, and they are irreplaceable. They are a "stable and firm reality."
This desire stems from man being created in the "Image of God." Since the Supreme Being is "Necessary Existence" (Mechuyav Ha-Metsiut), man desires to feel this as well. This is the primary basis of our perception of Divinity, and thus the basis of our soul.
We want essence and stability. From this, we want recognition, honor, and uniqueness, because they are the direct causes of this basic feeling. When a person feels like "just a number," they feel redundant, accidental, and meaningless.
The Main Desire of Man – To Exist
The Master taught that the main desire of a man is to exist—to be a firm, living reality, not a passing accident. All other lusts (food, pleasure, etc.) stem from this—the desire to feel "Alive." Filling desires gives a sense of "Vitality" (Chiyut).
Honor – The Strongest Perception of Life
XIII. Honor is the strongest of all desires because it deals with the feeling of existence directly, without "garments." In other pleasures, the pleasure (like eating) causes the feeling of existence. But in Honor, the subject is the essence of the perception of existence itself. If I am unique, I am "necessary" in some way. I have value. I am alive.
The Soul is called "Honor" (Kavod)
XIV. This helps us understand why the Soul is called "Kavod." The Master repeated this many times. The Soul was created as a "piece of God from above," a "stable reality" of meaning and greatness. It is unique like its Creator.
The Soul is an essence of meaning. As Rabbeinu Bahya wrote: "It is called Honor because its root is in the Throne of Glory."
Honor is the greatest expression of life. This is why it touches the "place of life" in a person.
XV. There is a story about Rabbi Hutner regarding a student in a state of depression. The Rabbi said: "He needs to be given Honor." Depression is the absence of vitality; Honor is the giving of meaning and vitality.
Every Man is Created Unique [The Death of Abel]
XVI. Every person is created as a singular being. The Maharal explains that even with billions of people, it isn't that uniqueness is divided into billions of parts, but that there are billions of singular individuals.
We hear from the Master regarding the death of Abel: Why was he punished? The Maharal says his sin is in the verse: "And Abel also brought..." He imitated his brother. He didn't do something original. The Master said: "God has enough originals; He doesn't need carbon copies."
To be alive is to be original. The entire system of "serving God" is meant to establish a person who exists in their own right ("without the bread of shame"). One must bring out their uniqueness through Torah and Mitzvot. If one performs all commandments but fails to express their unique essence, they have missed the point.
"Bread of Shame" – An Essential Lack
XVII. This clarifies the concept of "Bread of Shame" (receiving for free). It isn't just an "extra" feeling of embarrassment. In the World to Come, shame uproots the entire concept of reward. Reward is based on being God-like—essential and singular. Shame is the feeling of "absence" (He'eder).
Chapter C: Honor – The Perception of the "Accident" in the "Essence"
XVIII. Honor is a relationship created by the Honored showing himself to the Honer.
Honor is a system of relationship created when the Honored appears to the Honer, expressing and maintaining the gap between them.
Honor is primarily toward the "Other." It is the perception of the Other (the Honer) regarding the Honored. The Higher Reality revealed a "small part" of itself to allow the Lower Reality to perceive it and thus create a relationship of Honor.
When we speak of Honor, the Honored is the "Essential Reality" (Etzem), and the Honer is the "Accidental Reality" (Mikreh).
Example: A Great Man stands in the center. Others stand around him because they see him as the "Essential Reality," and themselves (relative to him) as "Accidental." The accidental reality is nullified by the essential reality.
This relationship is called Honor.
The Truly Honored is Beyond the Honor Around Him
XXI. The Higher Reality does not need Honor, as it is self-sufficient. Rather, Honor is created for the sake of the one giving the Honer—to allow the lower being to attach itself to the center of reality and thus become "Essential" and "Alive" as well.
Note this principle: Honor is always for the sake of the Honerer, not the Honored.
By honoring, we become "stable" and "existent." This is the ultimate Good. God has no use for Honor, but He created the world "for His Glory" so that we might have a path to Him.
People often ask: "Why does God want Honor? Is He like a flesh-and-blood king who needs ego-stroking?" This is a gross error. True Honor never reaches the essence of the truly Honored. If someone "needs" honor, it proves they aren't worthy of it.
"Who is honored? He who honors others."
Completion: Love, Fear, Honor
XXIII. We can connect with God through three lines: Love (Right), Fear (Left), and Honor (Center/Middle).
Honor is the most essential connection. Love is dependent on the lover (if love fades, the commitment fades). Fear is forced (if fear leaves, the commitment leaves). But Honor is based on the Truth of the Relationship between Cause and Effect. It is an essential, permanent system.
This is the Reality of Truth.
XXIV. Summary:
Honor is how the Higher shows itself to the Lower.
Honor is for the recipient.
The Honored does not need it.
It is the path of essential connection.
Conclusion:
When we take something or someone who seems "meaningless" and find their point of "Honor"—their point of uniqueness—we make them a center. We give them Life.
One who does this is called "Honored," for only one who is truly essential can look at everything else through the lens of Honor and give it Life.
Chapter D: The System of Honor Among Human Beings
26. Just as honor exists between the Creator and His creatures, it exists between humans, who are created in the "Image of God." Every person possesses a hidden uniqueness that belongs to them alone. The "thirst for honor" is actually the desire to feel this hidden uniqueness. A person turns to their fellow, revealing themselves in the hope of receiving honor that validates their unique essence.
However, there is a paradox: the essence of a person’s uniqueness lies in being independent and self-contained. If so, how can one reveal their essence to another just to seek honor?
Our Sages addressed this contradiction: "Whoever pursues honor, honor flees from him; whoever flees from honor, honor pursues him." This is unique to honor; we do not say "Whoever pursues money, money flees from him." The terms "pursuit" and "flight" are specific here.
Seeking honor (out of a sense of greatness) is self-contradictory because it implies dependence on others. A truly "Great" person is independent and does not seek external validation. If they require an outsider's approval, they are not truly essential/self-contained. Therefore, honor "flees" from the pursuer because the very act of pursuing it proves they are unworthy of it. There is no greater "smallness" than a person harnessing the highest part of their soul—their essence—just to depend on the cheap validation of others.
A person’s desire to give honor to another is strengthened when they see that the recipient is truly uninterested in receiving it. That is when true honor begins.
The Honored is Fixed in His Place
27. Honor is a "fixed" expression. As it is written: "In His palace (Heichal), everyone says: Honor" and "Blessed is the Honor of Hashem from His place." A thing of honor is anchored in its place.
The word Kavod (Honor) is related to Kaved (Heaviness). A heavy object is hard to move; it is stable. Conversely, movement (walking/traveling) diminishes honor.
The reason is simple: the more "essential" a reality is, the more complete it is. If it is complete, it lacks nothing and therefore has no need for movement. Movement and action are results of deficiency. One only exits themselves to seek what they lack. A truly honored person is self-sufficient and stays in their "place."
Chapter E: Shabbat and the Intellect
28. This explains why Shabbat is defined by the prohibition of Hotza’ah (Carrying/Moving things out of one’s domain). Shabbat represents the "Ultimate Goal." We are "honored" in our essence on Shabbat. We are told: "Let no man go out of his place on the seventh day." We must feel as though all our work is done. We do not perform "creative labors" because they are "completions" of a lack. On Shabbat, we are in our essence; hence, "not leaving one's place" is the defining prohibition.
29. The intellect is called "the Honor of God." It is the most "essential" part of the human stature. Therefore, it does not "move." Movement is for the extremities—the hands and feet—which are "outside the body." The intellect, and its external representation (the forehead), is stable and does not "move" or react like the rest of the body.
The Flight from Honor
30. To pursue honor is to take one's internal qualities and "move" them toward the outside for recognition. This contradicts the very nature of honor. To "flee" from honor means to turn one's lights and qualities inward—leaving one's uniqueness only to God and oneself. Turning inward creates a sense of "Image of God" far superior to cheap external honor.
Chapter F: The Entire Creation is Alive
31. Our Master (the Rabbi) taught that the entire creation is alive. We usually think of a rock as "dead matter," but since God (the "Living God") sustains the entire world, every part of it—even the dust, the sun, and the moon—possesses a level of life. We only think it is "dead" because we perceive only a tiny fraction of the whole.
The Ant Metaphor: Imagine ants walking on a human body. They think they are in a forest with mountains and dry land. They have no idea they are walking on a living, breathing being. This is how we perceive the world.
The "Wicked" (Resha'im) strip the world of its meaning and essence, viewing even humans as mere "mechanical, deterministic machines." This is why they are called "dead even in their lifetime."
The Rabbi: A Man of Honor
32. The Rabbi looked at the world through the lens of Honor—seeing the life and meaning in everything. He was unique in five major areas:
Inner Torah: He revolutionized the understanding of Aggadah (Legend) and Kabbalah.
Return to Judaism: He was a pillar of the Teshuva movement.
Anticipation of Redemption: He lived the longing for the Messiah.
Faith: Faith was part of his very bones.
Torah Study: He revived neglected areas like the Order of Tahorot (Purity).
33. There are two types of honor: (1) The pathetic need for validation from others, and (2) Essential honor—the dignity of being a unique, independent being. The Rabbi hated "cheap honor" (fame, titles, praise). He lived in a sublime internal world.
36. A Story: A man once told the Rabbi he spent his nights on drugs and alcohol and his days sleeping, leaving only 3–4 free hours. He asked, "What value is there to my life?" The Rabbi replied: "You have 3–4 hours a day where you can stand and recognize your Creator—is that a small thing in your eyes?!" This gave the man meaning and dignity, and he eventually changed his life.
Chapter G: Summary of Principles
A summary of the points discussed:
Honor is the perception of the infinite through a small "edge" of greatness.
The soul is called "Honor" (Kavod).
The thirst for honor is actually a thirst for uniqueness and "existence."
Uniqueness = Essence. If you are unique, you are irreplaceable.
Movement and action stem from deficiency; Honor stems from stability.
To shame someone is to "spill their blood" because it denies their existence.
True honor is for the benefit of the honorer (allowing them to attach to something greater), not the honored.
Shabbat is the "domain of Honor" because it is a state of completeness.
Concluding Words: "Glory Has Departed"
The text cites the book of Samuel: "The Glory (Kavod) has departed from Israel, for the Ark of God was taken."
The Ark represents the Written Torah, and the Sages represent the Living Arks of the Oral Torah. When the Ark and the Sages are taken, "Honor" is gone.
True Honor is Hidden: The Ark sat in the "Holy of Holies"—the "Inside of the Inside." True honor and true greatness are found in the internal, hidden parts of the soul. When greatness "goes out" too much, it is no longer honor. The "Glory of Israel" is revealed when we understand the internal, essential dignity of the Torah and the human soul. [תורגם מהספר אור יקרות]
