Taamei Hamitzvos - Yom Kippur
by Rabbi Shmuel Kraines
“Study improves the quality of the act and completes it, and a mitzvah is more beautiful when it emerges from someone who understands its significance.” (Meiri, Bava Kama 17a)
Mitzvos #313-317
At the time of Creation, Hashem designated one day of the year for repentance and atonement: the holy day of Yom Kippur (Chinuch §317). When He chose the Jewish people as His nation, this gift became theirs. In contrast with other nations, whose sins accumulate from year to year, the Jewish people emerge from every Yom Kippur with souls as pure and white as a kittel. Yom Kippur is also a day of intense Divine favor. On this day, Moshe asked Hashem to be shown His glory, and Hashem complied, showing him the thirteen Attributes of Mercy that we, too, recite on this day (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, Higger ed., ch. 45). Every Yom Kippur, Hashem invites us to come to Him and make amends, and all the Mitzvos of this day aim toward this goal.
Fasting weakens the body, humbles the spirit, and removes physical desires that distract the soul from cleaving to its Creator (Rav Menachem HaBavli). Additionally, the suffering of fasting takes the place of punishment for sins, and the metabolic burning of fat takes the place of burning the fats of offerings on the Altar (Bamidbar Rabbah 18:21). On the Kabbalistic level, all physical pleasures are associated with impurity, and it is necessary to abstain from them in order to attain complete purity (Radvaz §95).
As an additional measure of affliction, we do not wear leather shoes (see also Yam Shel Shlomo, Yevamos 12:12). We also abstain from all forms of labor, so that our minds will not be burdened with worries and we can focus all of our energies on seeking Hashem’s favor and forgiveness (Chinuch ibid.).
We recite the Vidui confession ten times on Yom Kippur, once in each silent prayer and once in each repetition of the Chazzan. These correspond to the ten times the Kohen Gadol recites Hashem’s Ineffable Name and the ten times he immerses himself on Yom Kippur (Ran Yomah 6a and Maharil, Leil Yom HaKippurim). Similarly, the prophet Yeshayah instructed the Jewish people to purify themselves in ten ways; there are ten verses of Kingship, Remembrance, and Shofar; and there are ten days of purification between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur (see Yerushalmi, Rosh Hashanah 4:7 and Rashi to Yeshayah 1:16-17). Each confession raises us to another level of purity, the same way repeated scrubbing removes layer after layer of grime.
It is necessary to say the words of the confession and not just think them, because words are spiritual entities that have tremendous power — for good or for bad. Angels bring the words of confession before Hashem’s Throne of Glory and proclaim, “So-and-so has confessed to all his sins, and he has said that he regrets doing them!” Every time we recite the confession, the angels advocate again on our behalf. Though Hashem hears us and even knows our thoughts, He desires that the angels advocate on behalf of His people (Radvaz §75). Hashem is willing to reconcile with us on the basis of words alone — as long as they are sincere — and He even considers it as if we had brought an offering before Him (Yoma 86b). We beat our hearts, the seat of our passion, as if to say, “You, my heart, are the reason for these sins” (Matteh Ephraim 607:10 and Koheles 10:2).
The special Temple service of Yom Kippur must be administered by none other than the Kohel Gadol himself. In the absence of the Beis HaMikdash, we tap into the power of this service by reciting passages that describe it, substituting words and desires for actions (Bamidbar Rabbah ibid.). The Ketores-incense is particularly desirable, so to speak, before Hashem. On this day, the Kohen Gadol enters the Holy of Holies alone and places the Ketores before Hashem in the privacy of His innermost chamber, concealed from the gaze of the Accusing Angel, as it were, so that this essential offering be accepted favorably (Radvaz §310). We also silence the Accusing Angel by bribing it, so to speak, with the scapegoat, in the same way Yaakov appeased Esav with gifts (see Radvaz §379 at length).
The angels observe our every action on this decisive day, and they report back in the highest heavens. The Sages relate (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer ibid.): When the Accusing Angel sees that there is no sin to be found among the Jewish people on Yom Kippur, he declares before Hashem, “Master of the universe! You have one nation that is comparable to the angels in Heaven. The Jewish people abstain from eating and drinking, they do not wear shoes, they stand upright, associate peacefully, and are free of sin — just like the angels!” Hearing the Accusing Angel itself acknowledging the Jewish People’s righteousness, Hashem accepts their entreaty and atones for all their sins. Indeed, at the core, the Jewish people are angels, except that the evil inclination confuses them at times (see Berachos 17a).
At the conclusion of Yom Kippur, a Divine Voice proclaims: Go eat your bread with joy and drink your wine with a glad heart, for your actions have found favor before Hashem (Koheles 9:7). We celebrate that evening as a miniature Yom Tov (Tosafos, Yoma 87b) and we resolve to maintain our newfound purity throughout the year, as the wise King Shlomo advises (ibid., v. 8): “Keep your garments white at all times.”
