From the 1st AliyahNow Korah son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and
Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth, who were Reubenites, took men and rebelled against Moses, along with some of the Israelites, 250 leaders of the community, chosen from the assembly, famous men.
And they assembled against Moses and Aaron, saying to them, "You take too much upon yourselves, seeing that the whole community is holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the community of the Lord?"
When Moses heard it he fell down with his face to the ground.
Then he said to Korah and to all his company, "In the morning the Lord will make known who are his, and who is holy. He will cause that person to approach him; the person he has chosen he will cause to approach him.
Do this, Korah, you and all your company: Take censers,
put fire in them, and set incense on them before the Lord tomorrow, and the man whom the Lord chooses will be holy. You take too much upon yourselves, you sons of Levi!"
Moses said to Korah, "Listen now, you sons of Levi!
Does it seem too small a thing to you that the God of Israel has
separated you from the community of Israel to bring you near to
himself, to perform the service of the tabernacle of the Lord, and to stand before the community to minister to them?
He has brought you near and all your brothers, the sons of Levi, with you. Do you now seek the priesthood also?
Therefore you and all your company have assembled together against the Lord! And Aaron - what is he that you murmur against him?"
Then Moses summoned Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, but they said, "We will not come up.
Is it a small thing that you have brought us up out of the land that flows with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness? Now do you want to make yourself a prince over us?" (
Numbers 16:1-13)
The Arizal taught that the final letters of the verse (
Tehillim 92:13):
TzaddiK
c'tamaR y'fraCH -
The righteous shall
blossom like a date palm - spells KoRaCH. Hence, this verse
reveals that Korach will ultimately receive a share in the World to Come.
Yet the earth swallowed up Korach when he dared to rebel against Moshe Rabenu. Why
does someone who led a sedition against the greatest person that ever lived
deserve a portion in Gan Eden?
The Midrash extrapolates the verse (
Bamidbar 16:39):
"And Korach took - meaning - his heart took him." Korach was swayed by his
emotions. Moshe appointed Korach's cousin, Elitzaphon ben Uziel, to lead the
Kohathite family. Korach felt slighted because he was older than
Elitzaphon. This inner hurt bred
jealously, which in turn, provoked Korach to challenge the authority of Moshe
Rabenu.
Korach was a
tzaddik and man of deep wisdom. How is it possible for a person of such
stature to succumb to his emotions? The jealously stirred in Korach's
subconscious - it was undetectable to him. Therefore, he mistakenly thought
that his challenge against Moshe was based on a pure motivation - his desire to
advance in Divine Worship. He didn't sense any jealousy, whatsoever.
We see from here the subversive power of the emotions, even over somebody as wise
and righteous as Korach. Yet, why is he accountable if his jealousy was
subconscious?
Through the study of Mussar one is able to purify his conscious, as well as, his
subconscious. That Korach was vulnerable to jealousy indicated that he was
slightly lacking in his mastery of the inner self. He hadn't sufficiently
engaged in Mussar; hence, the negative impulse surreptitiously slipped into his
heart. Nevertheless, Korach ultimately will receive a share in the World to
Come despite his tragic error.
Mussar has the power to cleanse our hearts from all impurities - both conscious and
subconscious. Through devotion to Mussar, the path of goodness will be
illuminated and we will walk in purity, truth, and holiness.
[Based on
Ohr RaShaz
by the Alter of Kelm, Rav Simcha Zissel Zev.]
- From
Parsha Insights\The Sages of Mussar,
The Salant Foundation, (June 27, 2005).
