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Shabbos Chol HaMoed Pesach, Day 4 of the Omer

גַּם בְּשִׂמְחָה וּבְצָהֳלָה

[Whenever Shabbos coincides with Yom-Tov or (as in the present case) with one of the days of Chol HaMoed,] the wording [in the last stanza of the Lechah Dodi hymn in Friday evening’s Kabbalas Shabbos service] is gam besimchah u’vetzahalah (“both with rejoicing and gladness”).

שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם. אֵשֶׁת חַיִל. מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד. דָּא הִיא סְעוּדָתָא, וְיִתֶּן לְךָ — אוֹמְרִים בְּלַחַשׁ

[In the above-described situation,] the passages beginning Shalom aleichem, Eishes chayil, Mizmor leDavid and Da hi seudasa [that are recited on Friday evening], and the passages beginning VeYiten Lecha [that are recited after Havdalah], should be said in a whisper.

פַעַם פֵּרֵשׁ אַאַמוּ"ר

My revered father, the Rebbe [Rashab], once gave the following [mystical] interpretation [of the Four Questions]:

מַה נִּשְׁתַּנָּה הַלַּיְלָה — גָּלוּת שֶׁנִּמְשַׁל לְלַיְלָה — הַזֶּה — הָאַחֲרוֹן

Why is this night, this final exile (for exile is symbolized by night), different

מִכָּל הַלֵּילוֹת — גָּלֻיּוֹת שֶׁקָּדְמוּהוּ

from all the other nights, from all the exiles that preceded it?

שֶׁבְּכָל הַלֵּילוֹת אֵין אָנוּ מַטְבִּילִין — לְשׁוֹן מֵרוּק נִקָּיוֹן וְטַהֲרָה — אֲפִילוּ פַּעַם אֶחָת

On all [other] nights we do not dip (the verb מטבילין also means [immersion and thus implies] scouring, cleansing, and purification) even once.

לֹא נִגְמַר הַמֵּרוּק בָּהֶם, כִּי הֲרֵי הָיָה אַחֲרֵיהֶם עוֹד גָּלוּת

The process of cleansing was not completed in the previous exiles, as is evident from the fact that each was followed by yet another exile.

הַלַּיְלָה הַזֶּה שְׁתֵּי פְעָמִים — מֵרוּק גּוּף וְגִלּוּי הַנֶּפֶשׁ

On this night we dip twice, [once to] scour the body and [once to] reveal the soul.

שֶׁבְּכָל הַלֵּילוֹת אָנוּ אוֹכְלִים חָמֵץ אוֹ מַצָּה

On all [other] nights, we eat chametz or matzah.

הַיְנוּ כִּי גַם אַחַר הַגָּלוּת, הָעֲבוֹדָה הִיא מִצַּד נֶפֶשׁ הָאֱלֹקִית, מַצָּה בִּטּוּל

Following all the other exiles, our Divine service involves both the G‑dly soul, symbolized by matzah, which represents bittul (self-nullification),

וּמִצַּד נֶפֶשׁ הַבַּהֲמִית, חָמֵץ יֵשׁוּת

and the animal soul, symbolized by chametz, which represents yeshus (egoism).

הַלַּיְלָה הַזֶּה — אַחַר גָּלוּת הָאַחֲרוֹן — כּוּלּוֹ מַצָּה — שֶׁיּוּעֲבַר רוּחַ הַטּוּמְאָה

On this night, after this final exile, [we eat] only matzah, for the spirit of impurity will be removed from the world.

שֶׁבְּכָל הַלֵּילוֹת אָנוּ אוֹכְלִין שְׁאָר יְרָקוֹת

On all [other] nights, we eat other vegetables.

כָּל הַמְקַנֵּא פָּנָיו מוֹרִיקוֹת

[This recalls the popular saying that] “when a person becomes envious, his face turns green.”

וּבְכָל הַגָּלֻיּוֹת הַרְבֵּה בְּחִינוֹת בְּקִנְאָה: קִנְאַת סוֹפְרִים וְהַדּוֹמֶה

During all the exiles there were many kinds of envy, [including negative ones, such as envying another’s wealth, and a