ואמר רב חסדא בתחילה קודם שחטאו ישראל היתה שכינה שורה עם כל אחד ואחד שנאמר (דברים כג, טו) כי ה' אלהיך מתהלך בקרב מחניך כיון שחטאו נסתלקה שכינה מהם שנאמר (דברים כג, טו) ולא יראה בך ערות דבר ושב מאחריך
And Rav Ḥisda says: Initially, before the Jewish people sinned, the Divine Presence resided with each and every one of them, as it is stated: “For the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp” (Deuteronomy 23:15). Once they sinned, the Divine Presence withdrew from them, as it is stated in that same verse: “That He see no unseemly matter in you, and turn away from you” (Deuteronomy 23:15), teaching that when there is an “unseemly matter” among the Jewish people, the Divine Presence no longer resides among them.
אמר רב יהודה בר אידי א"ר יוחנן עשר מסעות נסעה שכינה מקראי וכנגדן גלתה סנהדרין מגמרא עשר מסעות נסעה שכינה מקראי מכפרת לכרוב ומכרוב לכרוב ומכרוב למפתן וממפתן לחצר ומחצר למזבח וממזבח לגג ומגג לחומה ומחומה לעיר ומעיר להר ומהר למדבר וממדבר עלתה וישבה במקומה שנאמר (הושע ה, טו) אלך אשובה אל מקומי מכפורת לכרוב מכרוב לכרוב ומכרוב למפתן דכתיב (שמות כה, כב) ונועדתי [לך שם ודברתי] אתך מעל הכפורת וכתיב וירכב על כרוב ויעף וכתיב (יחזקאל ט, ג) וכבוד אלהי ישראל נעלה מעל הכרוב אשר היה עליו אל מפתן הבית וממפתן לחצר דכתיב (יחזקאל י, ד) וימלא הבית את הענן והחצר מלאה את נגה כבוד ה' מחצר למזבח דכתיב ראיתי את ה' נצב על המזבח וממזבח לגג דכתיב (משלי כא, ט) טוב לשבת על פנת גג מגג לחומה דכתיב והנה ה' נצב על חומת אנך מחומה לעיר דכתיב (מיכה ו, ט) קול ה' לעיר יקרא ומעיר להר דכתיב ויעל כבוד ה' מעל תוך העיר ויעמד על ההר אשר מקדם לעיר ומהר למדבר דכתיב (משלי כא, יט) טוב שבת בארץ מדבר וממדבר עלתה וישבה במקומה דכתיב אלך אשובה אל מקומי וגו' א"ר יוחנן ששה חדשים נתעכבה שכינה לישראל במדבר שמא יחזרו בתשובה כיון שלא חזרו אמר תיפח עצמן שנאמר (איוב יא, כ) ועיני רשעים תכלינה ומנוס אבד מנהם ותקותם מפח נפש וכנגדן גלתה סנהדרין מגמרא מלשכת הגזית לחנות ומחנות לירושלים ומירושלים ליבנה ומיבנה לאושא ומאושא ליבנה ומיבנה לאושא ומאושא לשפרעם ומשפרעם לבית שערים ומבית שערים לצפורי ומצפורי לטבריא וטבריא עמוקה מכולן שנאמר (ישעיהו כט, ד) ושפלת מארץ תדברי רבי אלעזר אומר שש גלות שנאמר (ישעיהו כו, ה) כי השח יושבי מרום קריה נשגבה ישפילנה ישפילה עד ארץ יגיענה עד עפר א"ר יוחנן ומשם עתידין ליגאל שנאמר (ישעיהו נב, ב) התנערי מעפר קומי שבי:
§ Rav Yehuda bar Idi said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: The Divine Presence traveled ten journeys, i.e., it left the Temple and Eretz Yisrael in ten stages at the time of the destruction of the First Temple, as derived from verses. And corresponding to them the Sanhedrin was exiled in ten stages at the end of the Second Temple period and after the destruction of the Temple, and this is known from tradition. The Gemara elaborates. The Divine Presence traveled ten journeys, as derived from verses. The ten journeys are: From the Ark cover to the cherub; and from one cherub to the other cherub; and from the second cherub to the threshold of the Sanctuary; and from the threshold to the courtyard; and from the courtyard to the altar; and from the altar to the roof; and from the roof to the wall of the Temple Mount; and from the wall to the city; and from the city to a mountain close to Jerusalem; and from that mountain to the wilderness; and from the wilderness it ascended and rested in its place in Heaven, isolated from humanity, as it is stated: “I will go and return to My place” (Hosea 5:15). The Gemara cites the sources for each of these stages: From the Ark cover the Divine Presence traveled to the cherub, and from one cherub to the other cherub, and from the second cherub to the threshold, as it is written with regard to Moses in the Tabernacle: “And there I will meet with you, and I will speak to you from above the Ark cover, from between the two cherubs” (Exodus 25:22). And it is written: “And He rode upon a cherub, and flew” (II Samuel 22:11), which indicates that the glory of the Divine Presence can rest upon one cherub. And it is written: “And the glory of the God of Israel had ascended from the cherub, on which it was, to the threshold of the House” (Ezekiel 9:3), i.e., the Divine Presence moved from the cherub to the threshold. And from the threshold of the Sanctuary the Divine Presence went to the courtyard, as it is written: “And the House was filled with the cloud and the courtyard was full of the brightness of the Lord’s glory” (Ezekiel 10:4). From the courtyard to the altar, as it is written: “I saw the Lord standing on the altar” (Amos 9:1). And from the altar to the roof, as it is written: “It is better to dwell in a corner of the roof than in a house together with a contentious woman” (Proverbs 21:9). From the roof to the wall, as it is written: “And behold, the Lord stood upon a wall made by a plumb line” (Amos 7:7). From the wall to the city, as it is written: “The Lord’s voice cries to the city” (Micah 6:9). And from the city the Divine Presence arose to the mountain nearest the Sanctuary, i.e., the Mount of Olives, as it is written: “And the glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain, which is on the east side of the city” (Ezekiel 11:23). And from the mountain to the wilderness, as it is written: “It is better to live in the wilderness than with a contentious and fretful woman” (Proverbs 21:19). And from the wilderness it ascended and rested in its place in Heaven, as it is written: “I will go and return to My place until they acknowledge their guilt” (Hosea 5:15). Rabbi Yoḥanan said: For six months the Divine Presence lingered in the wilderness, waiting for the Jewish people, hoping that perhaps they would repent and it would be able to return to its place. When they did not repent, the Divine Presence said: Let them despair and be lost, as it is stated: “But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall have no way to flee, and their hope shall be the drooping of the soul” (Job 11:20). This concludes the discussion of the ten stages of the exile of the Divine Presence from the Holy of Holies. And corresponding to these ten stages, the Sanhedrin was exiled in ten stages at the end of the Second Temple period and after the destruction of the Temple, and this is known from tradition: From the Chamber of Hewn Stone, its fixed seat in the Temple, to Ḥanut, literally, shop, a designated spot on the Temple Mount outside the Temple proper; and from Ḥanut to Jerusalem; and from Jerusalem to Yavne; and from Yavne to Usha; and from Usha it returned to Yavne; and from Yavne it went back to Usha; and from Usha to Shefaram; and from Shefaram to Beit She’arim; and from Beit She’arim to Tzippori; and from Tzippori to Tiberias. And Tiberias is lower than all of them, as it is in the Jordan Valley. A verse alludes to these movements, as it is stated: “And brought down, you shall speak out of the ground” (Isaiah 29:4). Rabbi Elazar says: There are six exiles, if you count only the places, not the number of journeys, and a different verse alludes to this, as it is stated: “For He has brought down those who dwell high, the lofty city laying it low, laying it low, to the ground, bringing it to the dust” (Isaiah 26:5). This verse mentions six expressions of lowering: Brought down, laying it low, laying it low, to the ground, bringing it, and to the dust. Rabbi Yoḥanan said: And from there, i.e., from their lowest place of descent, they are destined to be redeemed in the future, as it is stated: “Shake yourself from the dust, arise, sit, Jerusalem” (Isaiah 52:2).
בעון שפיכות דמים בית המקדש חרב ושכינה מסתלקת מישראל שנאמר ולא תחניפו וגו׳ ולא תטמא את הארץ אשר אתם יושבים בה אשר אני שוכן בתוכה הא אתם מטמאים אותה אינכם יושבים בה ואיני שוכן בתוכה: בעון גלוי עריות ועבודה זרה והשמטת שמיטין ויובלות גלות בא לעולם ומגלין אותן ובאין אחרים ויושבין במקומן שנאמר כי את כל התועבות האל עשו אנשי הארץ וגו׳ וכתיב ותטמא הארץ ואפקוד עונה עליה וגו׳ וכתיב ולא תקיא הארץ אתכם בטמאכם אותה ובעבודה זרה כתיב ונתתי את פגריכם וגו׳ וכתיב והשמותי את מקדשיכם וגו׳ ואתכם אזרה בגוים בשמיטין וביובלות כתיב אז תרצה הארץ את שבתותיה כל ימי השמה ואתם בארץ אויביכם וגו׳ וכתיב כל ימי השמה תשבות: בעון נבלות פה צרות רבות וגזירות קשות מתחדשות ובחורי שונאי ישראל מתים יתומים ואלמנות צועקין ואינן נענין שנאמר על כן על בחוריו לא ישמח ה׳ ואת יתומיו [ואת] (ו)אלמנותיו לא ירחם כי כלו חנף ומרע וכל פה דובר נבלה בכל זאת לא שב אפו ועוד ידו נטויה
Due to the sin of bloodshed, the Holy Temple is destroyed, and the Divine Presence leaves Israel, as it says: “So you shall not pollute the land wherein you are; for blood, it pollutes the land; and no expiation can be made for the land for the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it. And you shall not defile the land which you inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the Lord dwell in the midst of the children of Israel” (Numbers 35:33–34). However, if you defile the land, you will not inhabit it, and I will not dwell in it. Due to the sin of prohibited sexual relations, and idol worship, and failure to let the land lie fallow during the Sabbatical and Jubilee Years, exile comes to the world and they exile the Jewish people from their land, and others come and settle in their place. As it is stated with regard to illicit sexual relations: “For all these abominations have the men of the land done, that were before you, and the land is defiled; that the land expel not you also, when you defile it, as it expelled the nation that was before you” (Leviticus 18:27–28). And it is written: “And the land was defiled, therefore I did visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land expelled her inhabitants” (Leviticus 18:25). And it is written: “That the land expel not you also, when you defile it, as it expelled the nation that was before you.” And with regard to idol worship it is written: “And I will cast your carcasses upon the carcasses of your idols” (Leviticus 26:30). And it is written: “And I will bring your sanctuaries unto desolation, and I will not smell the savor of your sweet odors” (Leviticus 26:31). “And you will I scatter among the nations, and I will draw out the sword after you; and your land shall be a desolation, and your cities shall be a waste” (Leviticus 26:33). With regard to the sin of failure to observe the Sabbatical and Jubilee Years it is written: “Then shall the land be paid her Sabbaths, as long as it lies desolate, and you are in your enemies’ land; even then shall the land rest, and repay her Sabbaths” (Leviticus 26:34). And it is written: “As long as it lies desolate it shall have rest; even the rest which it had not in your Sabbaths, when you dwelt upon it” (Leviticus 26: 35). Due to the sin of vulgar speech, troubles abound, and harsh decrees are renewed, and the youth among the enemies of Israel, a euphemistic reference to Israel, die, and orphans and widows cry out for help and are not answered, as it is stated: “Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall He have compassion on their fatherless and widows; for everyone is ungodly and an evildoer, and every mouth speaks wantonness. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His hand is stretched out still” (Isaiah 9:16).
תניא ר"ש בן יוחי אומר בוא וראה כמה חביבין ישראל לפני הקב"ה שבכל מקום שגלו שכינה עמהן גלו למצרים שכינה עמהן שנאמר (שמואל א ב, כז) הנגלה נגליתי לבית אביך בהיותם במצרים וגו' גלו לבבל שכינה עמהן שנאמר (ישעיהו מג, יד) למענכם שלחתי בבלה ואף כשהן עתידין ליגאל שכינה עמהן שנאמר (דברים ל, ג) ושב ה' אלהיך את שבותך והשיב לא נאמר אלא ושב מלמד שהקב"ה שב עמהן מבין הגליות
§ It is taught in a baraita: Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai says: Come and see how beloved the Jewish people are before the Holy One, Blessed be He. As every place they were exiled, the Divine Presence went with them. They were exiled to Egypt, and the Divine Presence went with them, as it is stated: “Did I reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt?” (I Samuel 2:27). They were exiled to Babylonia, and the Divine Presence went with them, as it is stated: “For your sake I have sent to Babylonia” (Isaiah 43:14). So too, when, in the future, they will be redeemed, the Divine Presence will be with them, as it is stated: “Then the Lord your God will return with your captivity” (Deuteronomy 30:3). It does not state: He will bring back, i.e., He will cause the Jewish people to return, but rather it says: “He will return,” which teaches that the Holy One, Blessed be He, will return together with them from among the various exiles.
תניא אבא בנימין אומר אין תפלה של אדם נשמעת אלא בבית הכנסת שנאמר לשמע אל הרנה ואל התפלה במקום רנה שם תהא תפלה אמר רבין בר רב אדא אמר רבי יצחק מנין שהקדוש ברוך הוא מצוי בבית הכנסת שנאמר אלהים נצב בעדת אל ומנין לעשרה שמתפללין ששכינה עמהם שנאמר אלהים נצב בעדת אל ומנין לשלשה שיושבין בדין ששכינה עמהם שנאמר בקרב אלהים ישפט ומנין לשנים שיושבין ועוסקין בתורה ששכינה עמהם שנאמר אז נדברו יראי ה׳ איש אל רעהו ויקשב ה׳ וגו׳ מאי ולחשבי שמו אמר רב אשי חשב אדם לעשות מצוה ונאנס ולא עשאה מעלה עליו הכתוב כאילו עשאה ומנין שאפילו אחד שיושב ועוסק בתורה ששכינה עמו שנאמר בכל המקום אשר אזכיר את שמי אבוא אליך וברכתיך וכי מאחר דאפילו חד תרי מבעיא תרי מכתבן מלייהו בספר הזכרונות חד לא מכתבן מליה בספר הזכרונות וכי מאחר דאפילו תרי תלתא מבעיא מהו דתימא דינא שלמא בעלמא הוא ולא אתיא שכינה קמשמע לן דדינא נמי היינו תורה וכי מאחר דאפילו תלתא עשרה מבעיא עשרה קדמה שכינה ואתיא תלתא עד דיתבי:
It was taught in a baraita that Abba Binyamin said: One’s prayer is only fully heard in a synagogue, as it is stated with regard to King Solomon’s prayer in the Temple: “Yet have You turned toward the prayer of Your servant and to his supplication, Lord my God, to listen to the song and the prayer which Your servant prays before You on this day” (I Kings 8:28). The following verse concludes: “To hear the prayer Your servant directs toward this place” (I Kings 8:29). We see that one’s prayer is heard specifically in the Temple, of which the synagogue is a microcosm (Rav Yoshiyahu Pinto). It may be inferred that in a place of song, a synagogue where God’s praises are sung, there prayer should be. In explaining Abba Binyamin’s statement, Ravin bar Rav Adda said that Rabbi Yitzḥak said: From where is it derived that the Holy One, Blessed be He, is located in a synagogue? As it is stated: “God stands in the congregation of God; in the midst of the judges He judges” (Psalms 82:1). The congregation of God is the place where people congregate to sing God’s praises, and God is located among His congregation. And from where is it derived that ten people who pray, the Divine Presence is with them? As it is stated: “God stands in the congregation of God,” and the minimum number of people that constitute a congregation is a quorum of ten. From where is it derived that three who sit in judgment, the Divine Presence is with them? It is derived from this same verse, as it is stated: “In the midst of the judges He judges,” and the minimum number of judges that comprises a court is three. From where is it derived that two who sit and engage in Torah study, the Divine Presence is with them? As it is stated: “Then they that feared the Lord spoke one with the other, and the Lord listened, and heard, and a book of remembrance was written before Him, for them that fear the Lord, and that think upon His name” (Malachi 3:16). The Divine Presence listens to any two God-fearing individuals who speak with each other. With regard to this verse, the Gemara asks: What is the meaning of the phrase, “And that think upon His name”? Rav Ashi said: If a person intended to perform a mitzva, but due to circumstances beyond his control, he did not perform it, the verse ascribes him credit as if he performed the mitzva, as he is among those that think upon His name. The Gemara returns to Ravin bar Rav Adda’s statement: And from where is it derived that when even one who sits and engages in Torah study, the Divine Presence is with him? As it is stated: “In every place where I cause My Name to be mentioned, I will come to you and bless you” (Exodus 20:21); God blesses even a single person who mentions God’s name, a reference to Torah study (Iyyun Ya’akov). The Gemara asks: Since the Divine Presence rests even upon one who engages in Torah study, was it necessary to say that the Divine Presence rests upon two who study Torah together? The Gemara answers: There is a difference between them. Two people, their words of Torah are written in the book of remembrance, as it is stated: “And a book of remembrance was written”; however a single individual’s words of Torah are not written in a book of remembrance. The Gemara continues: Since the Divine Presence rests even upon two who engage in Torah study, is it necessary to mention three? The Gemara answers: Here too, a special verse is necessary lest you say that judgment is merely to keep the peace among the citizenry, and the Divine Presence does not come and rest upon those who sit in judgment as they are not engaged in Torah study. Ravin bar Rav Adda teaches us that sitting in judgment is also Torah. The Gemara asks: Since the Divine Presence rests even upon three, is it necessary to mention ten? The Gemara answers: The Divine Presence arrives before a group of ten, as the verse: “God stands in the congregation of God,” indicates that when the ten individuals who comprise a congregation arrive, the Divine Presence is already there. For a group of three judges, however, the Divine Presence does not arrive until they sit and begin their deliberations, as in the midst of the judges He judges. God aids them in their judgment, but does not arrive before them.
א"ל כופר לר"ג אמריתו כל בי עשרה שכינתא שריא כמה שכינתא איכא קרייה לשמעיה מחא ביה באפתקא א"ל אמאי על שמשא בביתיה דכופר א"ל שמשא אכולי עלמא ניחא ומה שמשא דחד מן אלף אלפי רבוא שמשי דקמי קודשא בריך הוא ניחא לכולי עלמא שכינתא דקב"ה על אחת כמה וכמה
The emperor said to Rabban Gamliel: You say that the Divine Presence dwells in any place where there are ten adult male Jews. He asked, sarcastically: How many Divine Presences are there? Rabban Gamliel summoned the servant of the emperor and hit him on his neck [be’appatka]. Rabban Gamliel said to him: Why did you allow the sun to enter the house of the emperor? The emperor said to him: The sun rests upon all the world; no one can prevent it from shining. Rabban Gamliel said to him: And if the sun, which is one of ten thousand attendants that are before the Holy One, Blessed be He, rests upon all the world, the Divine Presence of the Holy One, Blessed be He, all the more so rests upon the world.
Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz. Passover: The Festival of Freedom.
"In all the years of exile and wandering, Jews had to make peace with their inability to be masters of their own fate in many areas of life, but their exile was not complete because they did not regard themselves as inferior. As long as they retained and nurtured their inner core, their spiritual life not only consoled them, but also served as their homeland, a refuge that could be neither harmed nor diminished."
R. Kalynomous Kalman Shapira, Derekh Hamelekh, Bereshit
When a Jew comes to pray, they need first to reveal the aspect of the Shechinah that dwells among us in exile. For she is to be found also inside of us--it is only that she is covered in garments. And one can bring her forth and reveal her through one's prayer in the sense of "from the depths I called out to You YHWH," like Joseph did when he called out from the well. Similarly, I call out to YHWH from my depths. And [then] the Godliness that is revealed inside of me, prays to YHWH. And then the [quality of] prayer that is prayed is how the Kedushas Levi understands "And h/He called, YHWH, YHWH..," that, [in other words] YHWH calls out to YHWH.
Isaac Luria (1534 – July 25, 1572), "Ha'ARI" (The Lion), "Ha'ARI Hakadosh" (the holy ARI), or "ARIZaL" - born in Jerusalem, died in Safed
Luria’s new myth is concentrated in three great symbols, the tsimtsum, or self-limitation, of God, the shevirah, or breaking of the vessels, and the tikkun, or harmonious correction and mending of the flaw which came into the world through the shevirah.
Gershom Scholem, On the Kabbalah and its Symbolism, p. 110
פסקא כ אות ה (ה) כי רבים בני שוממה מבני בעולה אמר י"י (ישעיה נד א) א"ר אבא בר כהנא כת' ומדברך נאוה (שה"ש ד ג) אפילו נוה עשוי מדבר חייבין על מחיצתו והוא חרב כשם שחייבין על מחיצתו והוא בנוי א"ר לוי בבניינה העמידה לי רשעי' כגון אחז מנשה אמון בחורבנה העמידה לי צדיקים כגון דניאל וחבורתו מרדכי וחבורתו עזרא וחבורתו ר' אחא בשם ר' יוחנן הרבה צדיקים העמידה לי בחורבנה יותר מצדיקים שהעמידה בביניינה
Piska 20:5 - "For the children of the wife forlorn shall outnumber those of the espoused, said Ad-nai" (Isaiah 54:1). Said Rabbi Aba bar Kahana: it is written "Your speech is lovely" (Song of Songs 4:3)
Said Rabbi Levi: while it was built she gave me evil ones, like Achaz, Menashe, Amon. In her destruction gave me tzaddikim (righteous people), like Daniel and his companions, Mordechai and his companions, Ezra and his companions. Rabbi Acha in the name of Rabbi Yochanan: She established more tzadikim in her destruction than in [the times] she was built.