596. Knowing, part 1

Last Shabbat morning, the rabbi spoke about God's promises to the Israelites in Parashat Vaera:

And I will take you out...
And I will rescue you...
And I will redeem you...
And I will take you to Me...
And you shall know (vidatam) that I am Adonai your God...
And I will bring you to the land...
(Exodus 6:6-8)

The first four promises are traditionally represented by each of the four glasses of wine at the Passover seder. What of the fifth? Some consider this an additional promise worthy of another cup. Writes Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin (1817-1893):

"... And it is the fifth expression of ascent: so much will you ascend in knowledge that you will reach the level of 'and you shall know' which is cleaving to and knowing God. It is understood that this will be fulfilled later than the previous promises, indeed this will happen at a time beyond the giving of the Torah..."

There is a difference, said the rabbi, between learning and knowing (da'at). The book of Shemot begins with the same loaded word: And a king rose up over Egypt who did not know Joseph. Knowing is an embodied learning, complex, and honest, and comes after one has truly lived and witnessed. I have to admit that I lost track of the rabbi's brilliant observations after this point, because I didn't really understand and wasn't sure if I agreed. The distinction seemed semantic, a gymnastic play on words. And I believe we can only speak for ourselves about the transition, if it does in fact exist. Not even the wisest observer can tell if we've reached a greater stage; our inner voices alone will judge. I think we drift in and out of deeper and shallower states of knowing ourselves, and God, as we grow and change, and they all seem true at the time.

But I do believe we are each attuned to different kinds of knowing, and are lucky if we figure out what they are.

( Continued here.)