This is the second class of an ongoing series.
Notes on the first session.
In the previous class we looked at Tefilah - the service of the heart, Avodah s'b'lev - as built in to creation - necessary for creation to function. This is unique among Mitzvot - that it is an activity that is essential.
We looked at the second telling of Maaseh Bereshit.
(ד) אֵ֣לֶּה תוֹלְד֧וֹת הַשָּׁמַ֛יִם וְהָאָ֖רֶץ בְּהִבָּֽרְאָ֑ם בְּי֗וֹם עֲשׂ֛וֹת יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהִ֖ים אֶ֥רֶץ וְשָׁמָֽיִם׃ (ה) וְכֹ֣ל ׀ שִׂ֣יחַ הַשָּׂדֶ֗ה טֶ֚רֶם יִֽהְיֶ֣ה בָאָ֔רֶץ וְכָל־עֵ֥שֶׂב הַשָּׂדֶ֖ה טֶ֣רֶם יִצְמָ֑ח כִּי֩ לֹ֨א הִמְטִ֜יר יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהִים֙ עַל־הָאָ֔רֶץ וְאָדָ֣ם אַ֔יִן לַֽעֲבֹ֖ד אֶת־הָֽאֲדָמָֽה׃ (ו) וְאֵ֖ד יַֽעֲלֶ֣ה מִן־הָאָ֑רֶץ וְהִשְׁקָ֖ה אֶֽת־כָּל־פְּנֵֽי־הָֽאֲדָמָֽה׃ (ז) וַיִּיצֶר֩ יְהוָ֨ה אֱלֹהִ֜ים אֶת־הָֽאָדָ֗ם עָפָר֙ מִן־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה וַיִּפַּ֥ח בְּאַפָּ֖יו נִשְׁמַ֣ת חַיִּ֑ים וַֽיְהִ֥י הָֽאָדָ֖ם לְנֶ֥פֶשׁ חַיָּֽה׃
Hazal point out that the אלא invalidates the original telling. The first telling uses the "Elohim" name of God exclusively. It was creation in דין. The world couldn't exist that way - there's no room for participation, etc. (See notes on Elul, Rahamim, Teshuva)
בְּהִבָּֽרְאָ֑ם
A very odd word - a passive gerund - "In their being created".
The ה here is a written small.
Hazal read this as "with ה created" - that the world was created without a bottom. It's possible to fall out. It's also an invitation to come and create the ground.
Falling out the bottom - it's falling out the bottom to death - little deaths. Life is a series of mortalities. Every moment.
But the ה also allows coming in, through the side, birthing. Not to come back in where you fell out, but to create anew - a new format - which integrates that which seems to have died and been lost. Constantly creating a perspective beyond the givens of the moment. Moving upwards.
Creation involves an unfolding.
The creatures are participant.
Even when you have many obligations, external obligations, the place for creative input and dynamism is vast. The דין is critical, through. The Rahamim is given precedence, but with no structure, with no womb, there's no context for רחמים.
Note - that as creatures become more complex, there's more structure needed to hold them together, and they show the greatest freedom. The more highly structured the context, the more advanced the emergent phenomena that can be realized.
Highly structured brain patterns are problematic - they're usually a sign of an epileptic seizure. For an organism this complex to be functioning - complexity and openness is the sign of health.
All of this is related to מחשבה מועלת
As for עבודה שבלב...
(ד) רבי אליעזר אומר העושה תפלתו קבע אין תפלתו תחנונים. רבי יהושע אומר המהלך במקום סכנה מתפלל תפלה קצרה. אומר: הושע השם את עמך את שארית ישראל, בכל פרשת העבור יהיו צרכיהם לפניך. ברוך אתה ה' שומע תפלה.
(4) Rabbi Eliezer says: One who makes his prayer "set" [as though it is burdensome to him], his prayer does not constitute "pleading" [for Divine mercy]. Rabbi Yehoshua says: One who is traveling in a dangerous place should offer a brief prayer [and] say: Save, Hashem, Your people, the remnant of Israel; at every period of transition let their needs be before You. You are the Source of all blessing, Hashem, Who heeds prayer.
(יג) רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן אוֹמֵר, הֱוֵי זָהִיר בִּקְרִיאַת שְׁמַע (וּבִתְפִלָּה). וּכְשֶׁאַתָּה מִתְפַּלֵּל, אַל תַּעַשׂ תְּפִלָּתְךָ קֶבַע, אֶלָּא רַחֲמִים וְתַחֲנוּנִים לִפְנֵי הַמָּקוֹם בָּרוּךְ הוּא, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (יואל ב, יג) כִּי חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם הוּא אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד וְנִחָם עַל הָרָעָה. וְאַל תְּהִי רָשָׁע בִּפְנֵי עַצְמָךְ:
(13) Rabbi Shimon says: Be careful in the reciting of Shema and praying. When you pray, do not make your prayer fixed, rather prayers for mercy and supplication before the Omnipresent blessed be He, as it says (Joel 2, 13), "For He is gracious and merciful, long-suffering and full of kindness, and repenteth Him of the evil." And do not be wicked in your own eyes.
The clear assumption here is that רחמים is the standard.
In Aramaic, prayer is called "Rachamei"
The question is asked if women have to pray, and the answer is of course, it's "Rachamei" - it's incument in every creature.
This defines what a creation is.
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וְכֹ֣ל ׀ שִׂ֣יחַ הַשָּׂדֶ֗ה טֶ֚רֶם יִֽהְיֶ֣ה בָאָ֔רֶץ
וְכָל־עֵ֥שֶׂב הַשָּׂדֶ֖ה טֶ֣רֶם יִצְמָ֑ח
These were the problems of the world, the man came to solve, that prayer came to solve (according to Hazal.)
There are two rebellions here - the grass, and the trees.
Already in the command - תדשא הארץ - it's an open road. He could have followed the pattern and said יהי דשא. This is already a description of a creation that has latent potentialities within it.
(Here minor polemic against creationism - cf. Torah, Rashi, Gra)
(א) ותוצא הארץ וגו' . אף על פי שלא נאמר למינהו בדשאין בציווייהן, שמעו שנצטוו האילנות על כך, ונשאו קל וחמר בעצמן, כמפורש באגדה בשחיטת חלין (חולין ס) :
(1) And the earth brought forth, etc.: Even though "according to its species" is not stated concerning the grasses when they were commanded, [nonetheless] they heard that the trees were commanded thus; and they brought up an a fortiori argument (kal vechomer) regarding themselves, as is explained in the aggadah (homiletical teachings) in Chapter Shechitat Chullin (Chullin 60a).
God is joyous when the grasses go their own way.
God's honor - כבוד - is increased when there is something new, when creation shares his creativity, when existence continues to unfold existence. It's not when people say "He's the greatest", it's when grasses say "it's amazing to be alive! I want to be what I am!" Creation has reached a point of development that only organic living realities have. Not water, light, etc.
Biologically here, we're at the point where the organism is self propagating.
This is real שמחה. If there is no כבוד, then there is no שמחה. Where do we see God being happy, in Tanach? It's not common - it's here.
Beautiful that we open Pesukei d'Zimra with that.
(א) תדשא הארץ דשא עשב. לא דשא לשון עשב ולא עשב לשון דשא, ולא היה לשון המקרא לומר תעשיב הארץ, שמיני דשאים מחולקין, כל אחד לעצמו נקרא עשב פלוני, ואין לשון למדבר לומר דשא פלוני, שלשון דשא הוא לבישת הארץ כשהיא מתמלאת בדשאים:
(1) "Let the earth bring forth grass (desheh esev):" Desheh is not an expression of esev and esev is not an expression of desheh, and [so] the expression of Scripture could not have [been], taasiv haarets [exchanging one word for the other]. Since types of deshaim are divided, each one by itself is called a certain esev. And it is not common parlance to say a certain desheh, since desheh is an expression of covering the earth when it is full of grasses.
עשב are unique species.
דשא is a different term, like "lawn".
עשב is very specific.
(א) טרם יהיה בארץ. כל טרם שבמקרא לשון עד לא הוא, ואינו לשון קודם, ואינו נפעל לומר הטרים כאשר יאמר הקדים, וזה מוכיח, ועוד אחר (שמות ט ל) כי טרם תיראון, עדין לא תיראון ואף זה תפרש עדיין לא היה בארץ כשנגמרה בריאת העולם בששי קודם שנברא אדם:
(ב) וכל עשב השדה טרם יצמח. עדיין לא צמח, ובשלישי שכתוב ותוצא הארץ, על פתח הקרקע עמדו עד יום ששי:
(ג) כי לא המטיר. ומה טעם לא המטיר, לפי שאדם אין לעבוד את האדמה ואין מכיר בטובתם של גשמים, וכשבא אדם וידע שהם צרך לעולם התפלל עליהם וירדו, וצמחו האילנות והדשאים:
What are they waiting for? That there be a human awareness of the needs of those grasses.
Awareness - in mind
Concern and care - in heart
יצמח -> ישמח