In Yerushalayim this year, Purim is a three-day extravaganza. Shushan Purim itself is on Shabbat, so the Mitzvot are spread out from Erev Shabbat on Thursday night/Friday through Sunday. The reading of the Megilla and Matanot LaEvyonim are on Thursday night and Friday. Mishloach Manot and the meal are on Sunday.
But what part of Purim are they “doing” on Shabbat? The reading of the Torah includes the section we read for Purim, and the Haftara also reflects Purim. Davening and Birkat HaMazon include Al HaNissim. Finally, one is supposed to speak about Purim as one speaks about all of the Chagim on the actual day of the Chag.
This year, the Chag comes out on Parashat Tetzave, which contains an amazing connection to Purim. One can speak about the Parasha and touch easily on one of the major themes of the Chag. For those in Yerushalayim, it’s the issue of the day. For us, it’s part of the hangover from Purim as we go into Shabbat.
At the end of the Parasha, there is a surprise. Something seems to be quite out of place. Way back at the beginning of Teruma, the Torah listed the items of furniture for the Mishkan according to where they are placed. It began with the Aron, which goes into the holy of holies, and then continued with the Shulchan and the Menora, which go into the sanctuary (the holy). Then it listed the items like the altar which go outside in the courtyard.
Continuing with the holy parts of the MIshkan, this week’s Parasha moved on to the clothes of the Kohanim, which are also sacred, and the process by which the clothes and the Kohanim will be sanctified as they enter service. Then we learn about the daily service itself that is performed by these people in these clothes.
At this point, we are quite far from the furniture section of the Mishkan. But the Parasha ends with what seems like an afterthought. Suddenly, we hear about another piece of furniture for the Mishkan. Not a piece that goes in the courtyard. Rather, we learn about the altar for the incense, which goes into the sanctuary itself. Was this forgotten?
Indeed, in another two weeks, when we review the actual making of all of these items, this altar will be listed with everything else that goes into the sanctuary. It will be listed with the Shulchan and the Menora -- with which it belongs. So why was it left out before and only gets mentioned here?
Many commentators have noted this. Some have said that the altar’s placement here signals a Halachic distinction. The incense can be burned even without the altar, whereas the shewbread, for example, cannot be made unless there is a Shulchan. Similarly, the Kohanim cannot do the service without their clothing. Because the altar is not absolutely necessary for the incense, it is listed after everything else.
But the Ramban takes a different approach and says something startling. He says that the altar is chosen to go last in order to convey something quite remarkable about what it adds to the Mishkan itself: It signals the living deity dwelling there.
The essence of the Mishkan’s role is that it made the Har Sinai experience mobile. It continues the Har Sinai experience by continuing Hashem’s guidance. His formal revelatory speech, which begins with the 10 statements, takes place as a “living G-d” (Devarim 5:22). In order for that verbal guidance to continue, a sense of Hashem’s life must reverberate within the Mishkan.
The altar of the incense is the final stroke, what the Gemora calls the Makeh BaPatish, the final hammer blow of the artisan. It is central in creating precisely this aspect of the Mishkan. By putting it last, Hashem signals that the incense is crucial in keeping this sense of a living relationship.
What does the incense add? There are two aspects of a body that signal life: eating, which provides sustenance, and smell, which indicates that aspiration continues. Both eating and breathing preserve the bond between body and soul, and keep life going. The outer altar on which sacrificial offerings are brought is the eating aspect. Those offerings are called “Lachmi,” Hashem’s bread, so to speak. The incense is the other aspect, that of smell. It produces “Rai’ach Nichochee,” a pleasant smell. This sense of smell confirms life. The Ramban says that this is the secret of why the incense has such a crucial role in pushing back against death, and why it is deployed by Moshe Rabenu in stopping a plague.
This is how it worked at the time of the Mishkan. How does this connect to Purim? The Gemora in Chullin says that Mordechai’s name is hinted at in the Torah as the first of the sspice in the incense (30:23 and the Targum). As part of the incense, Mordechai creates the antidote that keeps the relationship alive in the face of Amalek.
The first time that Amalek appeared in the Torah was just before the Jews arrived at Har Sinai. The aim in attacking then was to stop Hashem’s guidance from taking full form. The attack of Haman in the days of Achashverosh was an attempt to stop the guidance from continuing in the form of the development of the Oral Law.
Purim is a celebration of the Jewish people’s survival. But what makes it more than a survival story is that the nation’s purpose was also preserved: The Jewish people carry Hashem’s living guidance. Haman threatened that. The events of Purim, led by Mordechai the living embodiment of the incense, allowed them to carry on.
Purim Sameach and Shabbat Shalom!
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