Morris was passing by a florist when he saw a sign in the window saying, “Say It With Flowers.” He went into the shop and said to the assistant, “Wrap up one rose for me.” “Only one?” the assistant asked. “Yeah, just one,” replied Morris. “I’m a man of few words.”

* * *

Balak: One and Only

“All letters have a partner,” says the Midrash,[1] “the Alef is partnered with Tes, the Beis with Ches… except the Hei and Nun, which have no partner (see the diagram,[2] below.)” The Midrash continues, “Says A-mighty G-d, just as these two letters cannot partner themselves to any of the letters, so too, the Jews cannot cleave to the nations of the world. Rather, they remain alone. For even if their enemies will decree that they must break the Shabbos, nullify the bris (circumcision) or serve idols, the Jews will be willing to give up their life instead. The Jews will not assimilate with them, as the Torah states: ‘See, they are a nation that will dwell alone and will not be reckoned among all the nations.[3]‘” The verse, quoted here by the Midrash, appears in this week’s Torah portion.

What is the connection between the aloneness of the Jew and the aloneness of the letters Hei and Nun?

PAIRS
Another Midrash tells us, “G-d says: ‘All that I created in the world, I created in pairs. Heaven and earth are a pair, the sun and moon are a pair, Adam and Eve are a pair. But My glory is One and Only.’”[4]

How does Torah define ‘pair’ or ‘partner’, and what does it mean, that G-d is ‘One and Only’? When there are two parties, one must be a giver and the other a receiver. Kabbalah describes the giver as ‘light’ and receiver as ‘vessel’. In order for the vessel to receive the light without shattering or becoming overwhelmed, the light must be dimmed as it passes through colored filters. If the recipient is so overwhelmed that it cannot receive, or if the white light is so strong that the filters cannot color it, then the light and the vessel cannot meet and they both remain alone. No partnership is formed, and they are not considered a pair.

YECHIDAH
“One” means first in number and in greatness, it implies a connection to a ‘two’ and a relationship with others. “Only” means ‘unique’, implying ‘alone’; “Only” has no affiliation with anything else. “One” and “Only” represent two general aspects of G-d: 1) G-d is “One”–He is the Giver of light and energy, the One who dims Himself, as it were, to partner and nourish all of Creation, and 2) G-d is “Only”, He is the overwhelming Light, the Transcendent Essence that can never fit into this finite world. G-d remains alone, for if He would project His unfiltered light into Creation, everything would instantly shatter or evaporate.

The Jewish soul is similar. It has five levels, and these are divided into two general aspects: 1) The aspect of “one” consists of four levels, and these levels of the soul fit into the human body, creating a partnership between spirituality and physicality; 2) The fifth level of the soul, the yechidah, the ‘only’ or the ‘unique’, transcends time and space. It remains unblemished, and unscathed by the nations of the world.

HEI AND NUN
This explains why the letters Hei and Nun are alone.[5] The letter Hei has the gematria of five, alluding to the fifth level of the soul, which stands alone, not intimidated by its surroundings. The letter Nun has a gematria of fifty, alluding to the fiftieth level of Torah, which stands alone and transcends human logic and the laws of nature.[6] Therefore, when Jews reveals the fifth level of the soul, and tap into the fiftieth level of Torah,[7] they are “a nation that will dwell alone”. How can we accomplish this?

LIGHT OF SHABBOS
There are times when the Jewish People do partner with the nations of the world, for example, when we work and play. At these times we must be givers of light, nourishing the nations by teaching them the Noachide Commandments and the importance of charity. At other times, we must transcend those around us, such as when we’re keeping Shabbos or performing a circumcision.

Keeping Shabbos is a real challenge for some of us, especially if we were not raised with Jewish observance. It is a day when we are to ‘transcend Creation’ by refraining from creative labors, such as turning lights on or off.[8] Those among us who emigrated from Russia, and did not have the opportunity to be circumcised as infants, have a challenge regarding the mitzvah of circumcision. This mitzvah represents a bond of love between man and G-d that transcends logic.

No matter what our challenges may be, we must remember that we are ‘a nation that dwells alone’. Ultimately, no one in the world can force us to assimilate or remain assimilated. We can always return and reveal the ‘Hei’, the fifth level of our soul, and live by the ‘Nun’ of Torah. When we do so, we stand alone, unique and unassailable.

OUR PARTNER
Finally, another Midrash tells us,[9] “Shabbos says before G-d, ‘I am alone. Every weekday has a partner–Sunday has Friday, Monday has Thursday, and Tuesday has Wednesday. I have no partner!’ G-d responds and says, ‘The Jewish people will be your partner for they, too, are one and alone.’”[10]

May we merit a world where everyday we experience the light and joy of Shabbos through the ultimate Redemption of our Righteous Moshiach.

A STORY [11]

In a large country, rebels attacked the king and his army. As the battle drew on, many lives were lost on both sides. One of the generals of the king ran with his troops to a faraway hideout, and stayed there until the war ended. When at last the king was victorious, this general returned to the king. The king said, “I always considered you my faithful general. Why did you leave me during this difficult battle?” The general answered, “My king, I always knew that your highness would be victorious. However, when I saw how many lives were being lost, I was concerned. I considered that when your highness would reestablish his kingdom, he might not have enough trustworthy and beloved soldiers to strengthen his rule. Therefore, I hid with my troops, so when victory came, we could return with renewed vigor to better strengthen the reign of the king.

When Rebbe Yissachar Dov of Belz (1854-1926) told this story, he added, “So will it be before the arrival of Moshiach. In those days there will be a unique man who will hide out with several thousand of his loyal ‘soldiers’. In their merit, Moshiach will be revealed and Redemption will come.”

ACTION: Partner another person in the performance of one good deed, in honor of the One and Only G-d.

FOOTNOTES
[1] Midrash Shemos Raba, 15:8; see also Talmud Sukkah, 52b, Rashi on ATBACH.
[2] It’s interesting to note that each pair of numbers in the first line of the diagram adds up to a gematria of 10. Each pair in the second line adds up to 100, and each pair in the third line adds up to 500.
[3] Numbers, 23:9
[4] Midrash Devarim Raba, end of Parshas Va’eschanan
[5] Lekutei Torah, “Song of Songs”, p. 51d; Sefer Ha’archim Chabad, Section on ATBACH, p. 578 & 638. See also Sefer HaSichos 5752, p. 421.
[6] Hei spelled-out () = 10; Nun spelled-out ( ) in the “small gematria” (dropping the zeros) = 16. 10 + 16 = 26, which is the same gematria as , the Tetragrammaton, the name of G-d that transcends nature.
[7] When we tap into the fiftieth level, we’re not necessarily living on that level, but we’re receiving a taste of it.
[8] See footnote in our essay on Parshas Vayakhel, listing the 39 labors that are prohibited on Shabbos.
[9] Midrash Raba on Genesis, 11:8
[10] We can view Shabbos as either a ‘giver’ or a ‘receiver’. As a ‘giver’, Shabbos blesses the weekdays; as a ‘receiver’, Shabbos benefits from our weekday preparations (e.g. cooking on a weekday for Shabbos meals).
[11] Adapted from Umeivi Go’el, p 41