Chad Gadya

ONE KID ONE KID

One of the hymns sung by many at the end of the Seder is Chad Gadya. Although it is not included in the Chabad version of the Hagada, it is nevertheless considered to be a holy hymn with deep symbolic and spiritual overtones.

The Jewish people have been likened to a kid, a goat or a lamb. They are said to be “one lamb amongst 70 wolves.”

The repetition of the phrase “one kid one kid” is an expression of love and affection. G-d showers us with His love and the promise that we will survive all of the existential threats and ultimately be redeemed with the coming of Moshiach.

On a deeper level, the repetition expresses the dual nature of the oneness of the Jewish people. Israel is called “one nation on earth.” And, Israel is the nation that declares G-d’s oneness, as the Talmud (Brachos 6a) describes the content of G-d’s T’fillin: “Who is like your nation Israel, one nation on earth.” This parallels the Shma, contained in our T’fillin, which declares G-d’s oneness.

THAT FATHER BOUGHT WITH TWO ZUZI

“Father” here refers to G-d, who acquired us at Sinai with the Torah which is comprised of both the Written Torah and the Oral Torah. 

More specifically, G-d “acquired” us through our acceptance of the Oral Torah. Throughout history, it was the Oral Torah that our enemies sought to suppress. And it is our self-sacrifice for the Oral Torah that made it ours. Once the Torah is ours, we become G-d’s people. This is similar to a purchase; as soon as we pay for the item, the item becomes ours. When we acquired the Torah from G-d, we were sold to G-d.

Alternatively, the two zuzi refer to the double expression the Jews used when they accepted the Torah: “naaseh v’nishma-we will do and we will hear.”

Indeed, when the Talmudic Sage Rava was once studying Torah and was oblivious to blood dripping from his finger, a heretic exclaimed: you are part of an impulsive nation, one that proclaims “we will do” before “we will hear.” The term for impulsive nation is p’ziza. The word p’ziza contains the letters of the word zuzi. The root of both words is zaz, to move. Zuz is a form of currency whose value is determined by its circulation. This is related to the idea of impulsiveness, which indicates fast movement.

The plural of zuzi can also be a hint to the two words of zeh (“this” masculine) and zu (“this” feminine). These are the words that represent the harmonious relationship between husband and wife.

Torah likewise possesses both a masculine part (the Written Torah) and a feminine part (the Oral Torah)

It is noteworthy that the Mezuzah we place on our doorposts is a composite of these two words zeh and zu and is the source of G-d dwelling in one’s home to bring peace between husband and wife.

It may be suggested that the two opinions concerning the positioning of the mezuzah on the doorpost relates to the two parts of Torah. A Torah scroll, which is the Written Torah, is usually kept in a vertical position in the ark. When it is read it is laid horizontal. The question is: which is a more dominant aspect of the Mezuzah? One opinion states that we should affix the Mezuzah vertically, and the other opinion requires that it be placed horizontally. The compromise reached by many authorities is to place it diagonally, combining both approaches contained within the Mezuzah, the zeh and the zu, underscoring the symbiotic relationship of the two zuzi-the Written and Oral Torahs.

REPETITION

Why does the hymn repeat “one kid one kid?”

Even after we sinned and alienated ourselves from G-d, we still remained a single kid. G-d did not lose His affection for us. The Talmud declares: “Israel, even if he sinned, is still Israel.” G-d cannot exchange Israel for another nation; its people will always remain G-d’s beloved children.

The question for us today is: how do we make the transition from the period of exile, where G-d’s love for us is hidden, to the time when that love will be on full display?

The answer comes in the next stanza:

AND THE CAT CAME AND ATE THE KID

The Aramaic word for cat is shunra. The Talmud (Brachos 57b) states: “If one sees a cat in his dream, he shall anticipate a beautiful song.” This is based on reading shunra as a contraction of Shira no’e – a beautiful song.

This refers to the fact that the Jewish people attached themselves to G-d and were worthy of His redemption because they sang a beautiful song when they crossed the sea.

Therefore, we are also worthy of redemption from the present, final, exile because we too sing joyously in anticipation of our redemption.

This then is the deeper meaning behind dreaming of a cat. The dream is a metaphor for the period of exile. Even while mired in exile we can sing a beautiful song because we have not lost our trust that G-d will bring the Redemption. And even before the Redemption occurs, we are already singing His praise. As our sages teach us, it is in the merit of our faith and trust in G-d’s deliverance that we will be redeemed.

What, then, is the meaning of the cat eating the kid?

Eating is a metaphor for the process by which something is completely enveloped within something else. The cat eating the kid thus means that the beautiful song (shunra) completely envelops us, “the kid.”

AND THE DOG CAME AND BIT THE CAT

The Talmud (Beitza 25b) declares: “The Jews are the most brazen of the nations and the dog is the most brazen of the beasts.” This brazenness, or chutzpah, has served the Jewish people well. Although it can be a negative trait, it is this ability to stand up against the forces that try to crush us that has enabled us to survive as a nation.

In terms of our future Redemption, we are permitted, nay, we are obliged, to employ holy chutzpah by demanding of G-d “ad masai-how much longer?”

This “holy chutzpah” has been the hallmark of the greatest Jewish leaders, from Moses through Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, and the Rebbe in our generation.

The meaning of the dog “biting-nashach” is similar to the Talmudic usage of the term, which describes having one thing touch and connect with another, as in two pieces of dough that “bite each other.” While the “beautiful song” in anticipation of the future is desirable in its own right, it must be augmented with pleas and even demands of G-d that He redeem us.

THE STICK CAME AND HIT THE DOG

The Aramaic word chutra-stick is also used in the messianic prophecy (Isaiah 11:1): “and there shall come forward a shoot (choter) out of the stock of Jesse…”

The Midrash uses stick here as a metaphor to describe the natural desire of people to return to their roots: “Throw a stick into the air it will return to its roots.” As the Rebbe said repeatedly, “No Jew will be left behind.” This directly contrasts with the first redemption, when those who did not want to be part of the Jewish people died in Egypt. However this exile is different.

The Rebbe applied this thought to the reply we make to the “wicked son” during the seder: “If you were there you would not have been redeemed.” The emphasis is on the word “there.” Now, we intimate to the wicked son, you have no choice, you will be redeemed. So why fight it?

In the most extreme cases, we must use tough love; by using harsh words to the wicked son, after all other methods fail, it can crack the hard nut covering a true soft and holy core and cause him or her to return to the fold.

THE FIRE CAME AND BURNT THE STICK

One may still ask the question how we, with all of our faults and deficiencies as a people, can still demand and expect to be redeemed.

The answer is through the realization that we were purified in the Mikveh of fire, as the Talmud states (Sanhedrin 29a): “The ideal form of immersion is in fire.” The Jewish people have been purged by the fire of Galus, by all the suffering we have endured throughout our long and arduous history in exile.

THE WATER CAME AND EXTINGUISHED THE FIRE

Water is the most prominent metaphor for Torah. While the fire of Galus has purged our iniquity and made us worthy of redemption, the immersion in water – Torah study – trumps immersion in fire and, as the Rebbe taught us, it is the straightforward way to bring Redemption. While suffering and pain can move us forward towards the Geula, that is not the desired and certainly not the straightforward way.

The Rebbe explained that Torah, besides its cleansing power, has the capacity to alter our nature and the nature of our minds so that we begin to see things through the eyes of Torah. This will change our behavior and bring us into the world of Redemption because we begin to live in a Moshiach-oriented way. This cannot be accomplished by suffering alone. Suffering will purge and get us ready for Geula, but Torah transforms us and brings us into the Geula mindset and atmosphere.

Immersion in the water of Torah prepares us for the fulfillment of the prophecy: “The world will be filled with the knowledge of G-d as the waters cover the sea.” We will be deluged in G-dly knowledge. The idea that water (read: Torah) will extinguish the fire means that with Torah we will no longer need the purifying power of suffering.

THE OX CAME AND DRANK THE WATER

The water of Torah transforms even our animal soul and energizes us even more. An aroused animal soul brings more intensity and force to one’s spiritual life which, in turn, makes the world with which the animal soul interacts more receptive to the divine.

The extension of the fiery passion to the animal soul is expressed by the Shma in “you shall love G-d with all your heart,” which the Talmud states refers to both sides of the heart, where the G-dly and animal souls reside. 

THE SHOCHET CAME AND SLAUGHTERED THE OX

According to the Talmud (Chullin 30b), the word for slaughtering in Hebrew, sh’chita, actually means to pull upward.

This is hinted at in the enigmatic story in the Talmud (Megilla 7b) about how Rabba got intoxicated on Purim and slaughtered his colleague, Rabbi Zeira; the next day Rabba brought him back to life.

The Rebbe explained that Rabba actually caused him to die but not, G-d forbid, by using a knife.  Instead Rabba “pulled him up,” through revealing the deepest secrets of the Torah, which caused his soul to leave his body. When a person is exposed to these powerful teachings without having the requisite capacity to contain them, it can be fatal. These teachings have the ability to energize the soul’s natural desire to escape from this physical world.

This process can be connected to the second level of love of G-d, “with all your soul,” which our Sages of the Mishna state (Brachos 54a) means “even if he takes your soul.” This is the passion created by exposing ourselves to the deepest secrets of Torah, which can stimulate the desire of the soul to leave this world.

Rabba, whose name means “great,” can thus be a metaphor for the soul of Moshiach. Moshiach will raise the entire world to a higher level, but with the qualification that the higher world will be able to absorb the heightened G-dly light. The souls of the Jews will not leave their bodies despite their exposure to the loftiest G-dly light. In the Rebbe’s terminology, it will be the sublime and powerful (Rabba) light of Tohu (the spiritual world in which the light is too powerful for the vessels to contain it) which we will capture in the ample vessels of Tikkun (the Rabbi Zeira’s of the world).

This is reflected in the Gematria values of the words Rabba and [Rav] Zeira.  The gematria of Rabba is 207, the same as ohr-light and ein sof-the infinite one. Zeira has the gematria of yarei’ach-the moon, which is only capable of reflecting the light of the sun. However, in the messianic age, the moon’s light will become like that of the sun. We will be exposed to the highest level of G-dliness and be able to absorb it in full.

After Moshiach reveals the secrets of the Torah and uplift the souls of all the Jewish people, the next step will be:

AND THE ANGEL OF DEATH CAME AND SLAUGHTERED THE SHOCHET

The Midrash states that the word tov-good stands for the angel of life, and tov me’od stands for the angel of death. Chassidus explains that this means that the ultimate good comes when evil is converted into good.

The messianic age will see the transformation of all evil into good, through t’shuva.

The purpose of the Shochet – the pulling upward – is to elevate us to the higher levels within the realms of spirituality and G-dliness. The next and higher level is to elevate even the power of evil.

This parallels the third level of love, “and you shall love G-d with all your might.” The word “might-me’od” is the same word we have seen that can be interpreted as a reference to the angel of death. This is the level of love which can transform even the evil of the past into holiness through t’shuva. It is a more intense love that is engendered by the past sins that distanced one from G-d. And because the sins generated this incredible passion, the sin itself turns into a positive force because it led to a more intense love of G-d. This will be the level of love that we will all experience in the messianic age.

Indeed, one of Moshiach’s accomplishments is that he will grant even sinless tzaddikim the ability to achieve the exalted level of t’shuva.

AND THE HOLY ONE, BLESSED IS HE, CAME AND SLAUGHTERED THE ANGEL OF DEATH

The next step will be to elevate the power of the transformation of evil into good because there will be no more evil.  As the Torah says: “and the spirit of impurity I will remove from the earth.”

This is consistent with the simple meaning of the slaughtering of the angel of death. At that time, death will cease and the dead will come back to life. It is the age of eternal life. Since evil will cease to exist there will be no need and potential for death. The sin of Adam, which brought death, will have been rectified and hence eternal life will ensue. Moreover, we will all have our Yechida, or the essence of our souls, revealed. This dimension of the soul is beyond the concept of death in the first place. It will therefore bring the resurrection of the dead and eternal life in its wake.

Ad masai!