Korach took…

We never do find out what Korach took. Which leads to the famous comment that Korach tookhimself to stand apart from the main body of the Bnei Yisrael. Just how he abstracted himself – and from exactly whom he was disconnecting – requires more thought.

Chazal help us through their observation that the Korach story follows directly from the text about the mitzvah of tzitzis. They tell us that Korach had 250 distinguished leaders stand with garments made entirely of techeles, and issue a challenge to Moshe: “Do the garments we wear require an additional strand of techeles to be hung from the corner?” Moshe responded affirmatively. They mocked this. “How does that make any sense? If we can halachically potentiate an ordinary garment with a single strand of techeles, a garment made entirely of it should require no further addition.”

The Korach rebellion was an enormous tragedy, and the most serious challenge to Moshe’s leadership in his career. Clearly, more was involved than the laws of tzitzis. What was Korach’s point?

It may be this. Korach et al wore a garment of techeles to symbolize an elevated neshama, which they believed they possessed. They argued that such people are on a fast-track to spiritual growth and accomplishment, without having to expend endless effort, as others do. They did not seek to unburden themselves of practicing mitzvos, but they thought that the aspect of avodah-constant attention, struggle, focus, work- in their service of Hashem was not relevant to them. The word avodah means both service, and toil. They believed that their servicewas obligatory, but not the toil.

This was mistaken, of course. The special, gifted soul must still toil to achieve real elevation.This is hinted at in the halacha that a child born circumcised -which alludes to a lofty soul, already freed of obstacles to its development- must still have blood of the covenant drawn from him.

“This is the workmanship of the menorah: hammered-out gold, form base to its flower 1t is hammered out.”‘ The menorah had to be beaten into shape, rather than its gold cast into a preformed mold. The seven-branched menorah is symbolic of those whose neshama is

‘ Adapted from Be’er Moshe, by the Ozherover Rebbe, zt9l

² Bamtdbar 16:1

³ BamidbarRabbah 18

Bamidbar 8:4

sourced in a very high place. The word mikshah/hammered-out is repeated to underscore the idea that even those people need to work and toil to achieve perfection.

Here we arrive at Korach’s pitch to the nation as a whole, beyond his collection of elites. “All of the congregation – all of them are holy, and Hashem is in their midst.”⁵ Chazal⁶ explain: All of them stood at Sinai and heard the voice of G-d. I.e., all of them have become people of distinguished rank. They should not need work and toil to achieve further perfection.

This was a fatal error. Everyone must toil in his avodah. As R. Elimelech of Lizhinsk put it,7 “A person must cry out for long periods of time: ‘Please, Hashem! Help me that I should merit to serve You in truth.’ Only then will his voice be heard – but not over a short period of time.”

⁵ Bamidbar16:3

⁶ Bamidbar Rabbah 18

7 Noam Elimelech, Vayishlach