The Hidden Light of Darkness: Dark Energy, Chasidut, and Human Struggle.

I am going to present, in English, a free translation of a Hasidic discourse delivered by Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, in 1953. When you read (or listen) carefully to its structure and language, you will notice that it could almost be replaced by a conceptual explanation of dark matter and dark energy as discussed in modern physics. I hope you will hold on with me to the end. There is a very powerful and deeply personal message we can take from this.

There is also something I believe is scientifically very revolutionary, but I will leave that for another time.

This part of the discourse begins by asking: “What is the (spiritual energy) ‘light’ (oir) with which God created the universe? (As we know, Kabbalah and mysticism describe the energy with which the universe was created as Oir Ein Sof – the “Light which has no end”.)

On the deeper, underlying spiritual level, this “light” is understood as a revelation—a radiance, a flow—that emerges from a core essence. However, that core essence is intrinsically and essentially concealed. Its very identity is one of hiddenness; it does not reveal itself, nor is it defined by revelation.

Therefore, when we speak of (this spiritual) “light,” we are not referring to the essence itself, nor even to a direct revelation of the essence. Rather, it is something drawn from the essence—almost, relatively speaking, inconsequential—like a measured extension, a limited radiance that extends outward beyond itself. This is what we call “oir,” the light with which God created the entire universe.

Because this light is only an emanation and not the essence, the essence itself is completely unaffected by it. Whether the light shines or not makes absolutely no difference to the core source. This radiance causes no change whatsoever in the essence, because it is not the essence—it is only an indirect, almost incidental expression of the essence.

A useful analogy is the relationship between the soul and the body. The life-force that animates the body is only a “shine” from the essence of the soul. The essence of the soul itself is completely concealed; its nature is not outward expression, nor is it designed or defined by revealing itself. It simply exists in its own essential state. Yet from it emerges a flow—an energy that animates the body in a general way and also differentiates into specific powers that enliven each organ individually, each according to its function. That flow is what we call “light.” It is (merely) an expression of the essence of the soul, outside........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)