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By: Alexander Poltorak
The mezuzah is one of the few mitzvot (divine commandments) for which the Torah states its reward. In this case, the reward is long life for oneself and one’s children: And you shall inscribe them on the doorposts (“mezuzot”) of your house and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your children may be prolonged upon the land which the L-rd swore to give to your fathers for as long as the heavens are above the earth (Deuteronomy 11:20-21).
According to the Tosafot and the Shulchan Aruch, the main function of the mezuzah is to protect the house from evil. Because of this attribute, the mezuzah has been called “the coat of arms in the knighthood of G‑d.” To begin to understand the mechanism of this effect of the mezuzah, we must first delve into the concept of evil itself.
Evil was created ex nihilo just as the rest of Creation. It was not created for its own sake, however, but only as an instrument of free choice. It is tolerated to the extent that it serves this purpose.
In order to allow for the existence of beings that would not be absorbed and nullified in the Source, G‑d chose to conceal and withdraw His light to create, so to speak, a “vacuum” where created beings would feel their independent existence. This, in oversimplified form, is the fundamental concept of tzimtzum (the concealment and contraction of the primordial Divine light, which is the cornerstone of Lurianic Kabbalah). The concept of tzimtzum demonstrates how a monistic creation can lead to apparent dualism.
The absence of light, of course, allows the possibility for darkness — or evil. Our task is to discover G‑d hiding, as it were, behind a veil of darkness. Chassidic master Rabbi DovBer of Mezeritch once found his little son crying because while playing hide-and-seek, he hid but none of the children looked for him. Rabbi DovBer started crying himself and explained to his son that our Heavenly Father also is hiding from his children, as it is written, “You are a G‑d Who hides” (Isaiah 45:15), so that they should search for Him — but no one searches!
Evil, by definition is that which conceals the true source of existence, the Creator. The very term for evil in the Kabbalah, klipah, means “shell” or “husk”. It is something that has no independent value, other than to serve as a covering for the fruit.
Evil was created to provide us with the freedom of choice, which is possible only where there is an alternative to good available. Had there been no outer shell concealing the truth, we would be compelled to obey G‑d’s will. If denied free choice, we would also be denied reward.
Conversely, with no free will there is no evil. An animal killing its prey for food cannot be accused of committing an evil act since it has no choice in this matter. It was created by G‑d with a predatory instinct and no free will. Similarly, angels cannot be considered good because they were created to do so. Only humans possessing free will can rise above angels or fall below animals, depending upon the choices they make.
Thus we see that without evil there is no free choice, and without free choice there is no good or evil.
