{"id":10338,"date":"2014-05-10T00:07:08","date_gmt":"2014-05-09T21:07:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ph.yhb.org.il\/en\/?p=10338"},"modified":"2020-09-15T13:22:32","modified_gmt":"2020-09-15T10:22:32","slug":"15-10-07","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ph.yhb.org.il\/en\/15-10-07\/","title":{"rendered":"07. The Incense"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Alongside the daily <em>tamid <\/em>sacrifices the <em>kohanim<\/em> offered each morning and afternoon on the outer (copper) altar, they offered incense on the golden incense altar each morning and afternoon as well. The <em>korban tamid <\/em>was meant to express the overt bond between God and the Jewish people. Its blood was sprinkled and its limbs burnt on the outer altar, visible to all, thus concretely binding every creature to God. In contrast, the incense expressed the deep inner connection between God and the Jewish people. It was therefore ethereal, expressing the spiritual bond with God, and it was offered on the inner altar, within the Sanctuary.<\/p>\n<p>The incense was made up of eleven ingredients, finely ground so that they would mix thoroughly and produce an even, pleasant fragrance. This alludes to the idea that fully uniting all the energies of the Jewish people in the service of holiness perfects the world. Ten of the ingredients correspond to the ten levels of holiness which were used in creating the world. The eleventh ingredient was galbanum, which smells bad, corresponding to the negative aspects of the world. However, once the galbanum was ground up and mixed with the other ingredients, not only did it not ruin the incense \u2013 it actually improved its fragrance. This teaches us that when all the energies of Israel are united in the service of holiness, the inner positives of Israel\u2019s sinners are revealed; they join with the rest and help repair the world. (See <em>Olat Re\u2019iya<\/em>, vol. 1, pp. 136-138.)<\/p>\n<p>On Yom Kippur, the Kohen Gadol had a unique mitzva to perform: offering a handful of incense in the <em>Kodesh Ha-kodashim<\/em> on behalf of all Israel. It is only for this mitzva that he may enter the <em>Kodesh Ha-kodashim<\/em>. As we read, \u201cThe Lord said to Moshe: Tell your brother Aharon that he is not to come at will into the <em>Kodesh<\/em>, beyond the <em>parokhet<\/em>, in front of the <em>kaporet<\/em> that is upon the Ark, lest he die; for I appear in the cloud over the <em>kaporet<\/em>\u201d (Vayikra 16:2). Only once the smoke of the incense filled the <em>Kodesh Ha-kodashim<\/em> could he sprinkle the blood of the bull and goat on the <em>kaporet<\/em>, to atone for the defilement of the sacred. (See section 10 below.)<\/p>\n<p>To grasp the meaning of this cloud of incense smoke, one must first realize that this was patterned on how God revealed Himself to Israel \u2013 in the opacity of the cloud. Thus, we read, \u201cThe cloud covered the mountain. The Glory of the Lord dwelt on Mount Sinai, and the cloud hid it for six days. On the seventh day, He called to Moshe from the midst of the cloud\u201d (Shemot 24:15-16). The cloud connotes an exalted and sublime divine revelation, beyond human comprehension. Yet through the fog and cloud, one can reach an understanding of the divine, albeit only partially, in accordance with his capabilities. Thus, we read that after the <em>Mishkan<\/em> was completed, \u201cThe cloud covered the <em>Ohel Mo\u2019ed<\/em> and the Presence of the Lord filled the <em>Mishkan<\/em>. Moshe could not enter the <em>Ohel Mo\u2019ed<\/em>, because the cloud had settled upon it and the Presence of the Lord filled the <em>Mishkan<\/em>\u201d (Shemot 40:34-35). Similarly, when the First Temple was dedicated, we read, \u201cThe <em>kohanim<\/em> brought the Ark of the Lord\u2019s Covenant to its place underneath the wings of the <em>keruvim<\/em>, in the Shrine of the House, in the <em>Kodesh Ha-kodashim<\/em>\u2026. When the <em>kohanim<\/em> came out of the <em>Kodesh<\/em>, the cloud had filled the House of the Lord, and the <em>kohanim<\/em> were unable to stand and serve because of the cloud, for the Presence of the Lord filled the House of the Lord\u201d (1 Melakhim 8:6, 11). First was a sublime, exalted revelation that no human being could endure, and only afterward, from within the cloud and fog, would the divine idea become revealed gradually, according to the abilities of the <em>kohanim<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The incense offered by the Kohen Gadol on Yom Kippur in the <em>Kodesh Ha-kodashim<\/em> expressed the connection of all Israel with perfect faith, rooted in what lies beyond comprehension. Its first manifestation is hidden and concealed by the opacity of the cloud, but from within the cloud it gradually becomes clearer, in accordance with our ability to grasp it. Understanding this, the Kohen Gadol could enter the <em>Kodesh Ha-kodashim<\/em> to achieve atonement for all Israel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Alongside the daily tamid sacrifices the kohanim offered each morning and afternoon on the outer (copper) altar, they offered incense on the golden incense altar each morning and afternoon as well. The korban tamid was meant to express the overt bond between God and the Jewish people. Its blood was sprinkled and its limbs burnt [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[193],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10338","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-15-10"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>07. The Incense - Peninei Halakha<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ph.yhb.org.il\/en\/15-10-07\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"07. 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