NEWS
To Be a New Creature
by HaRav Arye Levi
Chazal note that the forty days during which Moshe ascended to Heaven to receive the second Tablets which were then given on Yom Kippur, constitute a reason why these are considered days of placation and goodwill.
HaRav Arye Levi explains that the difference between the first luchos which were broken and the second which still exist, is that the first ones were the 'handicraft' of Hashem so that no man could claim affinity to them, while the second ones were the handicraft of Moshe Rabbenu by Hashem's command, to serve as the implements or tools by which the Torah would be given. This is why the Torah is called 'Toras Moshe.'
This is the nature of these forty days of goodwill, days of preparation to receive the Torah in the manner that the second luchos were bequeathed, of which it is written, "Sculpt for you." Preparation for this is not only on Rosh Hashonoh but is also the very purpose and goal of Yom Kippur when Israel received them.
Since receiving of the Torah is a time of creation for all of Jewry, as is explained in the verse, "And you shall be unto Me a chosen People from all other nations," by the same token Yom Kippur is a time of creation of each and every Jew, independently, as part of Hashem's command to Moshe to "sculpt for you..." A person must prepare himself thoroughly so that on Yom Kippur he will become a new entity.
This is also why Rosh Hashonoh precisely precedes Yom Kippur since in order to be recreated as a new being, one must sever himself from the past and begin afresh.
These forty days are comparable to the forty days of the forming of the fetus. A person must change himself entirely and become a new creation, striving to ascend, to elevate himself spiritually so that he be fit to receive the Torah.
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