Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, known as the Alter Rebbe or Baal Hatanya, was the founder and first Rebbe of Chabad Hasidic Judaism. In his seminal work Torah Or, he asks an important question on the grammar of Vayeitzei
וְהָאֶ֣בֶן הַזֹּ֗את אֲשֶׁר־שַׂ֙מְתִּי֙ מַצֵּבָ֔ה יִהְיֶ֖ה בֵּ֣ית אֱלֹהִ֑ים וְכֹל֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תִּתֶּן־לִ֔י עַשֵּׂ֖ר אֲעַשְּׂרֶ֥נּוּ לָֽךְ׃
And this stone, which I have set up as a pillar, shall be God’s home; and of all that You give me, I will set aside a tithe for You.
On this verse he enquired: During Jacob's journey from his father's home, toward Charan outside the Holy Land, he famously fell asleep on a stone which he made into a monument (matzevah) and vowed that on his return he would declare it a house of God (Beit Elokim). Jacob made this vow contingent on returning peacefully to the home of his father, and on the fact that "Havayah" will become for him "Elokim". What does this mean and why would Torah write a stone would be a House of God?
A little background: Havaya represents The Name (usually spelled with letter Yud Heh Vav Heh - known as The Tetragrammaton). It is the highest spiritual Divine representation in a chain of descent from Infinite (Ein Sof) to finite. Elokim the lower representation, sourced in Havaya, is concealed in the physicality of the sub-atomic, atomic and emergence of the natural or finite world. Therefore, natures coexistence with the Infinite, is exclusively enabled by the ultimate Divine Being.
Explained in the Book of Creation (Sefer Yetzirah) Kabbalah expounds the spiritual idea of "stones" equating them with letters that build words and words build sentences etc. Letters are sourced in The Name (Havaya), the attribute of Divine Wisdom that ultimately leads to expression. A child is not taught how to coordinate breath to form a letter using the back of their throat, inner cheeks, tongue, teeth and lips, it's inherent. A string of letters makes words, through the attribute of Wisdom, imbued in souls at birth enabling mans command over physiological complexities to form words and express desire.
The Alter Rebbe explained Jacob's covenant of words also involved anointing the stone with pure, holy oil. In that action he sought Infinite Divinity, vested in The Name - Havaya, would descend into Elokim, concealed in nature, such that the physical world exemplified by the stone matzevah would be restored to the perfected state as it was in The Garden of Eden before the sin of Adam and Eve. Jacob, leaving Israel to find a wife, build a family and wealth, prayed God would return him to this matzevah. That would validate his prophetic statement, “how awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and that is the gateway to heaven”.
Jacobs stone was finally set by him some 3540 years ago, according to all commentators at the place he called Beit El (God's House) on Mount Moriah. It seems prophetic that the Jacob stone, which he used to commemorate God granting his name Israel, would recently be rediscovered, in tact after all this time. What is Havaya signalling for us? What was Jacob's intent? What does it mean for Israel, for us?
Israel's stone has been revealed at a time when we understand our quantum world is entirely dependent on the sub atomic background in which Elokim is vested. The Supreme Infinite Force transcendently suspends the atomic construct of our physical universe, everything we know, see, proove, hear and feel. We have arrived at Jacob's prophecy, now we must act with the souls highest levels of sensitivity and the strength that unifies man . We must choose and use our words carefully.
