ויקחו לי תרומה The Torah contains 40 letters [I suppose this means when we consider the various vowels and semi-vowels in addition to the 27 consonants including the five final letters. Even Shoshan lists 13 vowels in his abbreviated grammar. Ed.] This is because the Torah was given over a period of forty days. The Torah is alluded to in the construction of the Tabernacle, since the purpose of building the Tabernacle was to house the Holy Ark which in turn contained the tablets inscribed by G–d Himself. Study of the Torah is something equivalent to all other virtues. Just as the 22 basic letters of the Torah are divided into three groups as explained in the ספר יצירה, namely the three letters א,מ,ש, and seven כפולות, i.e. ב,ג,ד,כ,פ,ר,ת, and 12 פשוטות, i.e. ה,ו,ז,ח,ט,י,ל,נ,ס,ע,צ,ק, so you will find during the construction of the Tabernacle that the holy vessels were made of three kinds of metal; they were made of gold, silver, and copper, corresponding to the three letters א,מ,ש. The seven lamps of the candlestick corresponded to the seven letters ב,ג,ד,כ,פ,ר,ת.

I have found the following in the book called גנת אגוז. Gold, silver, and copper respectively symbolise the elements fire, wind (air), and water. The first letters of these elements אש, אויר, מים are the same as the first three letters listed in the ספר יצירה. Gold is compared to fire, כסף חי, mercury, to air, copper to water. Mercury is also a medium, just like the wind; it does not usually perform a function in its own right. The seven lamps of the candlestick which give their light facing the centre-shaft symbolise the seven planets [a system believed in by astronomers in earlier days. Ed.]. They symbolise the 7 letters which we called כפולות, because they occur on different occasions both with and without a dot, דגש. On a still higher level, they symbolise the attributes of Justice and Mercy respectively. The 12 gemstones contained in the breastplate worn by the High Priest symbolise the remaining 12 consonants. It is evident that all the major parts of the Tabernacle symbolised the letters of the alphabet, of Torah. The universe was created for the sake of Torah, so that Torah could be observed.

We usually speak of four basic elements: air, water, fire and dust, (earth). The element earth is included in the other three elements since it is the result of interaction of the other three elements, as I have explained elsewhere. The number seven symbolises the number of the principal planets. The number twelve symbolises the twelve leaders in the physical universe, the twelve signs of the zodiac. On a still higher plane, they allude to the twelve permutations in which the letters of the Ineffable Name can be written. This name contains three letters, י-ה-ו. When you add the name itself, i.e. י-ה-ו-ה, you get the number seven. When you consider the different ways that name can be written you have twelve.

This symbolism is also found in connection with the people of Israel, the recipients of Torah. We have three patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Israel has seven בתי אבות, different levels of nobility. There is the ordinary Israelite, the Levite, the ordinary priest, the High Priest, the president of the Supreme Court, the נשיא, leader of the nation in the absence of a king, and the king himself. The number twelve symbolises the twelve tribes. Together this adds up to 22, i.e. the number of letters in the basic alphabet of the Torah. This is the meaning of: "the study of Torah is the equivalent of them all."

The details of the construction of the Holy Ark, allude to one's pre-occupation with Torah and those who study it, and how they should conduct themselves. All the measurements given for the Holy Ark are expressed in terms of fractions of cubits. Its length is two and one half cubits, its width one and one half cubits, and its height one and one half cubits. This is a hint that those who study Torah should practise modesty, humility, and that they should relate to it with a broken heart. They must not brag about their accomplishments as scholars. The combined length and depth of the Ark was four cubits, its height including the lid was ten handbreadths. This alludes to the Ineffable Name which is 4 (letters) wide; when you spell the name as words: יוד-הא-ואו-הא, you have ten letters. Our sages (Sukkah 5) have said that the שכינה does not descend to a within closer than ten handbreadths from earth. When it has descended to that level it can be presumed to rest over Israel. The mystical dimension of 4 cubits, is the four cubits of הלכה which are what G–d retains on this earth since the destruction of the Temple.

From the inside and the outside you shall overlay it." This is an allusion to the Torah student whose interior should match his exterior, i.e. he should not pretend to be pious when in truth he is not.

The staves by means of which the Ark was carried were not to be removed from the rings they sat in. These staves are symbolic of heads of households (non-scholars) who financially support those who study Torah. Our sages said אלמלא עליא, לא אתקיימו אתכליא, "without leaves the trunk could not continue to exist" (Chullin 92). Concerning this proverb the Torah says in Deut. 33,18: שמח זבולון בצאתך ויששכר באהלך, "Rejoice Zevulun when you depart (on your voyage to make a livelihood) and you Issachar within your tent." This means that those who support the ones who study Torah receive as much reward as those who study. This is the reason the staves were not to be removed from the Ark. Our sages went even further when they said that the reason Zevulun is mentioned first in the verse quoted, though he was the younger, is that it was he who enabled Issachar his brother to devote himself to Torah study on a full-time basis..

The cherubs which covered the Ark with their wings had the faces of children. This symbolised that they were sin-free, just as the young children in Torah schools are free from sin. It applies to older as well as younger children. This may be the reason the Torah speaks about שנים כרובים, rather than about שני כרובים as we would have expected.

ופניהם איש אל אחיו, "their faces facing each other." This is an allusion to the saying that one should face one's teacher.

The carpets which comprised the roofing of the Tabernacle were sewn together in 5 strips each, to allude to the two tablets containing five of the Ten Commandments each. The oral Torah consists of 6 sections. These are arranged so that they correspond to each other; the cherubs therefore also symbolise this correspondence.

There were three "crowns" as we mentioned earlier. The reason they are referred to as זרים rather than as כתרים, is to reflect the statement of our sages who have said that "he who merits a crown, זר, spelled with the vowel Tzeyreh, does not need to worry about the זר spelled with the vowel kametz. Of the latter the Torah has written: והזר הקרב יומת, "The stranger who approaches will be executed" (Numbers 1,51). What our sages meant was that he who studies Torah in order to observe its precepts, is fortunate and will be crowned with the crown of Torah. If, however, someone is a Torah scholar, preaching Torah values but personally not practising them, he will eventually become totally estranged and his punishment will be twice that of people who do not have Torah knowledge. The reason is that the Torah scholar used to be קרוב, close, whereas now he has become זר, estranged.

השלחן. Our sages have said that in the absence of the Table in the Sanctuary, seeing that to-day there is no Sanctuary, our own individual tables are the instruments for our atonement (Chagigah 27) when they serve as vehicles to feed the poor, i.e. when one is hospitable. I have elaborated on this theme in my article on קדושה.

When the Torah stipulates that the showbreads are to be on this Table on a constant basis (25,30), this is an allusion to the requirement to feed the needy at all times in a generous and friendly manner. Such hospitality must also bear in mind the dignity of the recipient. One should always remember that G–d provides food for all His creatures in a friendly spirit.

Rabbi Menachem Habavli has this to say on the subject: "You shall always place on the Table the showbreads before Me." The reason for this commandment is that even though bread is the food of the living creatures, it is not the actual bread which provides the nutrients but the blessing with which G–d has endowed it. Keep in mind that the priest who received as litle as the size of a bean as his share of this bread [on the Sabbath when all the בתי אבות shared in it equally. Ed.] emerged well satisfied after eating from it. His face glowed in satisfaction even when the rest of the world suffered from famine. This shows that the element which provided the nourishment was that this bread was לפני תמיד, "constantly in My presence."

המנורה. I have earlier described how the shape of the candlestick had much in common with the shape of man. It had to be of a single piece, not joined together. This alludes to the need that man's heart should be Heaven-oriented. At the same time a Jew's heart should also be oriented towards his people. The additional words in (25,31) "its base, its stem, etc,” all point out the lesson that a Jew must feel at one with all parts of his people, be they rich or poor, well learned or not. This same thought is also alluded to in the Torah's description of how the boards forming the walls of the Tabernacle are to be joined. The Torah speaks about ויהיו תואמים מלמטה, "they shall be joined at the bottom;" when this is the case there will also occur יחדיו יהיו תמים למעלה, that the Jewish people, i.e. the concept of כנסת ישראל in the Heavenly Regions will be whole.

והבריח התיכון מבריח מן הקצה אל הקצה, "The central bolt will extend from one end to the other end" This is an allusion to what Maimonides in his booklet שמונה פרקים, an introduction to Avot, has described in the fourth chapter under the heading of "good deeds." Good deeds are those which do not bear a characteristic of being extreme, fanatical, intolerant. They are what we call the "golden mean." Maimonides also explains there that if a person tends to extremity in one direction and wishes to compensate for this error he should not adopt a centrist position but rather make up for the former error by exaggerating the direction he had previously spurned. After a suitable period he must then adopt a middle-of-the-road path.

ועשית פרוכת והיה מבדיל בין הקודש ובין קודש הקדשים, "You shall make a curtain which will divide between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies." We have a lesson here on how man must proceed in order to advance towards higher levels of sanctity. When physical man on earth begins to sanctify himself, G–d will assist by helping him to perfect himself and contribute twice as much as man had already contributed towards this goal. One must never be satisfied and think that one has achieved as much as possible in this respect, but forever strive to advance towards still higher levels of sanctity.