The Physical Form of Renewal
Somehow, I had always assumed that Hashem gave us the mitzvah of Rosh Chodesh so that we would know how to properly calculate the months, so our holidays would come out at the right times, and specifically, so that we would know the date for the Korban Pesach. However, Rav Schorr points out that in Mitzrayim we already possessed the astronomical knowledge to be able to figure out a combined lunar and solar calendar. We were fully aware of the lunar and solar orbits, and equally aware that the moon does not really diminish and grow bigger each month, it merely appears to do so. All of which raises the question, what exactly was Hashem conveying to Moshe when he showed him the new moon, and told him, “When the moon renews itself, you will have a new month”? (See Rashi to Shemot 12:2.)
In order to understand what was being expressed, we have to start with an important principle about the nature of the world we live in. The physical phenomena that we experience in this world are not isolated events. Originating in the highest worlds, spiritual influences travel down through the spiritual worlds until they reach our reality and are clothed in the physical garments of this world. That physical expression tells us something about the spiritual force behind it, which is also entering our world. For example, we can notice that rain and dew cause growth in this world, and from this we can understand that rain, at its spiritual source, is a force of vitality. As this force comes down into this world, it is constrained by the boundaries that Hashem put into the physical world. In this world rain causes plants to grow. At its spiritual root it has the power of techiat hamaytim. For this reason the chachamim placed “mashiv haruach umorid hageshem,” the prayer for rain, into the second paragraph of Shemone Esrei, which deals with techiat hamaytim.
Rav Schorr compares this to an interesting halacha in Shabbat 10b. We learn there that a person who gives a gift of food to a child must tell the parent about the gift, because this increases love between Jews. Since this was well before the age of cell phones, the giver would put a mark on the child, for example by smearing a bit of the food on him, so that the mother would see it, ask the child about it, and discover the gift. The phenomena of nature are similar to this mark on the child. Like the rain, each is a sign from Hashem, a request to notice a spiritual gift that is being given to us.
When Hashem showed Moshe the new moon, He was informing Moshe that the renewal of the moon was an indicator of the spiritual influence of “hitchadshut” which enters the world on Rosh Chodesh. Hitchadshut literally means renewal or newness, but the idea is constant renewal of our connection to Hashem. Our ability to access this spiritual reality was the beginning of the geulah. In fact, if we look carefully at the start of the slavery, we see that it begins with the words, “And there arose a new king (Shemot 1:8).” Shemot Rabbah (1:10) explains that when Yosef died, the Jews in Mitzrayim decided to stop keeping the mitzvah of brit milah. They disconnected from the force of hitchadshut, from their unique Jewish identity, and this gave the Egyptians the power to grasp hold of it and use it for their own needs. Consequently, a new Egyptian Pharoah arose. The beginning of the geulah happened when we re-established our connection to hitchadshut.
The moon is the symbol of Hitchadshut because it consistently renews its relationship to its source of light. The midrash tells us that at the beginning of creation, the moon’s light was as bright as the light of the sun. This was because the moon was in perfect connection to the sun and reflected its light source perfectly. That the moon’s light was subsequently diminished was a result of a loss of connection to the source. The renewal of the moon is a renewal of connection to the Source, to Hashem. When we are in Hashem’s presence, there is no concept of getting old, or getting stale. The lechem hapanim, which stayed fresh from week to week in the Beit HaMikdash, was an expression of this spiritual concept. Similarly, in the kadosh hakedoshim the mahn, which would normally spoil if left overnight, was able to remain fresh for generations.
The moment of reconnection to hitchadshut was not just the start of the geulah, it was also the moment of the birth of our nation. Rosh Chodesh Nissan in Mitzrayim was an echo of the original Rosh Chodesh Nissan, which was the date of the creation of man. On that day, Hashem blew the breath of life into Adam, and gave him the power of speech, the ability to express his inner essence and purpose in the world. As slaves in Mitzrayim, we lost part of that power of expression. “Dibbur,” the spiritual aspect of speech, was in galut with us. However, on Rosh Chodesh Nissan Hashem blew the breath of life into us as a nation, and collectively gave us the power of speech, the power to express ourselves as Hashem’s nation. The natural result of this was Pesach, literally peh-sach, the mouth that speaks. The avodah of Pesach is to express our connection to Hashem through words, which we do at length on the Seder night.
Each month, the renewal of the moon is a sign of the spiritual force of hitchadshut entering our world. There is a very unique quality to kedusha of Rosh Chodesh. The Shem MiShmuel explains that unlike Shabbat, about which we learn that, “he who works on erev Shabbat, eats on Shabbat (Avodah Zarah 3a),” the kedushah of Rosh Chodesh is independent of our actions. The light of Rosh Chodesh is given to us at the start of every month, before we’ve earned it, before we’ve done anything at all. Each month, at the beginning of the month, we are given an influx of spiritual strength to help us with whatever avodah we wish to accomplish that month. May we all be zoche to open ourselves up to notice this chizzuk from Hashem, renew ourselves, and enjoy the connection.