Perfection of Hebrew

 

Moshe Ben-Chaim


 

 

We continue our theme of the Kedusha, by observing a direct parallel between the three ideas in Kedusha, and the Hebrew equivalents for each idea. Astonishingly, one, single root word conveys all three ideas of the Kedusha. A man whose name escapes me informed me of the word’s three meanings.

 

The first idea of the Kedusha is that the entire world manifests God’s wisdom. The Hebrew word for “world” is “olam.” The second idea of Kedusha is that God is unknowable. The Hebrew equivalent is the same three Hebrew letters, A,L, and M (Ayin, Lamed, and Mem) which spell “alam”, meaning “hidden”. The third lesson of the Kedusha is that God is eternal, which in Hebrew is the word “l’Olam”.

 

The Hebrew language thereby displays perfection, in that these ideas, which are intrinsically connected, express their intrinsic nature by sharing the same root word. How exactly are these three ideas intrinsically connected?

 

The idea that God is eternal, with no beginning, means that he is also the Creator. And the way God was Creator was by creating matter from nothingness, an idea our minds cannot grasp. Hence, He is thereby unknowable.

 

God’s eternal nature defines Him as the Creator, Who is in fact, unknowable. Kedusha embodies these three ideas, as does the single word “olam”.