One of the cardinal teachings of the Ba’al Shem Tov is that every process, whether material or spiritual, progresses through three stages: submission (hachna’ah), separation (havdalah), and sweetening (hamtakah). The first stage, submission, entails diminishing one’s ego in in the face of various types of circumstances that call for humbling the ego. The circumstances could be either positive or negative but in either case an overblown ego is totally out of place.
On a more practical level, this initial stage, calls for one to submit their will, energy, and time to achieving a specific goal or purpose. Only by devoting our energies to the task at hand will progress be made. We are often inspired to make a commitment but lack the ability to submit ourselves to a detailed plan of action, especially when the goal demands a considerable amount of dedication or time.
The second stage, separation, involves separating the essential from the extraneous and truth from falsehood when attempting to rectify a previous state of consciousness or to remedy a misguided attitude or action. The stage of separation is also essential when defining an orderly path towards the fulfillment of our goals. In this stage the day to day decisions are made. We must “separate” or distinguish between those activities, situations, people and attitudes that will further the attainment of the goal and those that will distract us from achieving it. This second stage of separation entails constant clarification and the steely determination to let nothing separate us from our sought-after goals or changes we hope to make.
The last stage in the Ba’al Shem Tov’s three-stage process is called sweetening. It is the stage when the hard work of the first two stages of submission and separation come to self-fulfillment and accomplishment. In this stage, we reach our goals and realize that it was worth the time and effort. So often we dedicate substantial effort to reaching a goal that turns out not to be exactly what we had hoped and longed for. The stage of sweetening offers us the sweet reward for a job well done and enables us to express our feelings of gratitude that our new reality has come about not only through our hard work but also through God’s constant assistance and guiding hand.
This three-stage model can be applied to virtually any circumstance whether in the material world or the realm of the soul and spiritual advancement. We will now take this paradigm and apply it to the portion of Metzorah.
The one who is afflicted with the “disease” of tzara’at is the subject of the previous portion of Tazria. In the portion of Metzorah, the manner in which the afflicted person is healed, purified and welcomed back into the community is described. We can see clearly the three-stage model of the Baal Shem Tov when applied to the one with tzara’at. First, the appearance of the disease on the skin triggers, or most assuredly should trigger, a profound feeling of existential lowliness and humbleness in the face of this new reality. Concurrently, the person must submit to the laws of the Torah and the process of healing that they will now have to go through.
Once the kohen sees the person and declares him suffering from this disease, the person must go outside the camp in isolation until the kohen pronounces him ready for the final stage of cleansing and purification. Being sent into isolation is the second stage of separation, where the person is not only physically separated from the community but the person themselves must go through the process of understanding and ultimately separating from the negative speech or actions that led to his or her present predicament.
The last stage of sweetening involves the dramatic ritual the metzorah, the one with the disease must go through in order to become ritually pure and accepted back into the community. This process is described in great detail:
“And God spoke to Moses, saying: This shall be the law of the metzora [the one afflicted with tzara’at] on the day of his purification: he shall be brought to the kohen. The cohen shall go to the outside of the camp and the kohen shall look and behold – the tzara’at affliction has been healed from the metzora. The kohen shall command; and for the person being purified there shall be taken two live, clean birds, cedar wood, crimson thread, and hyssop. And the kohen shall command and the one bird will be slaughtered into an earthenware vessel over spring water. As for the live bird – he shall take it with the cedar wood and the crimson thread and the hyssop, and he shall dip them and the live bird into the blood of the bird that was slaughtered over the spring water. Then he shall sprinkle seven times upon the person being purified from the tzara’at and he shall purify him, and he shall set the live bird free upon the open field. The person being purified shall immerse his clothing, shave off all his hair, and immerse himself in the water and become pure and then he may enter the camp; but he shall dwell outside of his tent for seven days. On the seventh day he shall shave off all his hair – his head, his beard, his eyebrows, and all his hair shall he shave off; he shall immerse his clothing and immerse his flesh in water and become pure.” (Leviticus 14:1-9)
Following these steps, on the eighth day, the metzora brought a number of sacrificial offerings accompanied by olive oil. The kohen took the sacrificial blood and olive oil and placed some on the metzora’s right ear, thumb, and toe. The remainder was placed on the metzora’s head. The sin and elevation offerings were then brought and with this the purification and atonement process was completed.
After having gone through so much one can only imagine the feeling of relief, even exhilaration when sending the live bird free. This last stage obviously corresponds to the last stage of sweetening, when the whole process comes to its culmination and rectification.
The sages teach us that the disease of tzara’at in the form described in the Torah no longer exists. Yet, like everything else in the Torah the fundamental principles that we learn are eternal and ever relevant. This statement is so important to understanding the Torah inasmuch as many of the mitzvot of the Torah are no longer practiced due to many factors such as the lack of the physical Temple in Jerusalem and the extensive service that took place there, the lack of a Sanhedrin and the application of criminal law, as well as many laws relating to the kohanim and levi’im there are not at present practiced. Yet, every one of these mitzvot are based on moral, ethical and spiritual principles that still apply. The sages and rabbis have given us a myriad of commentaries and explanations ranging from the practical to the mystical to teach us how to translate these mitzvot into a language that we can understand in every generation.
Another important subject toward the end of Metzorah describes the basic laws relating to menstruating women and the obligation of husband and wife to separate during that time are detailed. These laws are one of the only parts of the entire framework of ritual purity that is still highly relevant and practiced. These laws which are referred to as the laws of Family Purity dictate the rhythm and cycle of marital relations and are considered the foundation of Jewish married life and a Jewish home (See Orchard of Delights on this Torah portion for more on the beauty and positive aspects of these laws for a healthy and productive marriage).
Once again, we will see how laws of Family Purity also follow the three- stage process as taught by the Ba’al Shem Tov. When a woman first sees blood the couple separates until she completes the process of menstruating, the timeframe which is approximately five days, and a subsequent seven days which culminates in her immersing in a mikvah. Following this the couple renews marital intimacy.
After having been intimate the onset of menstruation brings with it the necessity of submitting to the laws of Family Purity and their need to separate from physical intimacy and even touching. Not only does the couple submit to the framework of the laws of family purity but there is a parallel emotional feeling of distance and an inner process of ego clarification and humbleness. The second stage of separation is quite literal and yet encourages relationships to go beyond the mere physical and to embrace a full range of emotional and intellectual facets of a well-rounded relationship. Mikvah night as it is popularly referred to is quite literally an ongoing opportunity to experience the joy, pleasure and thrill of wedding night. This is most certainly an experience of “sweetening” on a physical, emotional and spiritual level.
We have brought here but two examples of how the Baal Shem Tov’s model of submission, separation and sweetening can be applied. Yet, when processed correctly one can detect this paradigm being applicable in virtually every aspect of life.
