On Tishah B’Av, we go through a process of aveilus (mourning), similar to the process of mourning a loved one. This seems to be an excessive response to the loss of a building—the Beis HaMikdash. However, the destruction of the Temple itself was merely the physical expression of a much deeper tragedy.
As we have previously discussed, the Beis HaMikdash was the makom (locus) of connection between Hashem and this physical world. The Beis HaMikdash was destroyed as a result of the disconnect that we, Klal Yisrael, created between ourselves and Hashem, between ourselves and our fellow man, and between ourselves and our own identities. We lost sight of the spiritual root of this world, shattering the connection between ourselves and Hashem. As the Nefesh HaChaim explains, once this connection was broken, the physical vessel that represented it—i.e., the Beis HaMikdash—was reduced to an empty shell that could easily be destroyed (Nefesh HaChaim 1:4).
The concept of death is the disconnect between a spiritual life force and its physical vessel. The death of a person is the process of one’s soul separating from one’s body. (Death is a stage of life, not the end of life.) When the Beis HaMikdash was destroyed, the world died. The soul of the world—i.e., Hashem—left its body, its vessel—the physical world—resulting in a cosmic spiritual chasm and a shattered reality. (True, Hashem is still manifest in this world, but only infinitesimally compared to the connection that once existed.) We mourn on Tishah B’Av not just for the destruction of a building, but for the death of the world itself. We yearn for the day when Hashem will once again be fully and clearly manifest in this world, revealing the spiritual essence of this physical reality.
Elul: Returning Home
This is why Elul directly follows Tishah B’Av. Tishah B’Av is the time of breakdown, exile, and death. Elul is the time of rejuvenation, redirection, and rebirth. As we transition from Tishah B’Av toward Elul, we pause, stop the negative momentum, and begin building anew. The low of Tishah B’Av becomes the impetus for growth throughout the month of Elul, and in this way, it becomes a yeridah l’tzorech aliyah—a breakdown for the sake of ascension. Elul, in the deepest sense, represents our journey back home to our proper makom, back to our unbreakable bond with Hashem. The goal of Rosh HaShanah is to fully and wholeheartedly anoint and embrace Hashem as our King. We yearn to return the world to its proper, higher state, to return the Jewish people to their elevated status, and for each and every one of us to return to our higher, true selves.
Our Struggle
The process of return is a joyous one, but it is also challenging. We often feel as though we are fighting an uphill battle, and we struggle to maintain momentum and continue gaining ground. Every year, as we approach Elul, there is an underlying sense of dread as we prepare ourselves for another year of “New Year’s resolutions,” writing down the same list of goals only to forget them two weeks later. For many, this is the unspoken dread of Elul—the feeling of despair and loneliness as we grapple with rebuilding ourselves and what feels like a broken connection with Hashem. This is why Hashem created the Ir Miklat.
Ir Miklat: A Place for Those Without a Place
An Ir Miklat is a place for those without a place. When a person loses his physical makom, he feels lost, abandoned, and hopeless. At exactly this moment, he is given a sense of hope. He may have lost his place, but there is still a place for him to go in the interim, until he can return home. This is what the Ir Miklat represents: hope for the hopeless, a home for the homeless, and stability for the unstable.
Hashem as the Makom of the World
There is an additional spiritual idea here that reveals the ultimate depth of this concept. Many people think that before Hashem created the world, there was nothing. On the contrary, before Hashem created the world, there was everything; there was only Hashem Himself. As the Arizal, Ramchal, and others explain, Hashem created the world by making a makom, a space, within Himself. Just as everything in the physical world requires space in order to exist, existence itself required a space in which to exist. If you have a cup completely filled with metal, you cannot pour any water into it. Only if there is space in the cup—if there is room for the water—can you pour water into it. Before Hashem created the world, there was no space for us to exist, as all of existence was occupied by Hashem. To create the physical world, Hashem made space within Himself for us to exist. This is why Hashem is referred to as the “Makom of the world,” the place of the world (Midrash Tehillim 90; Rashi, Avos, chap. 2). We exist within Hashem, so to speak; He is our makom.
This is the idea of an Ir Miklat. When a person loses his physical makom, he feels completely abandoned. We not only provide him with a different physical makom, but we also ensure that he realizes that he will always have an existential, spiritual Makom—Hashem!
Elul as Our Makom
This is the purpose of Elul. Tishah B’Av reminds us of how broken we can become and of the genuine difficulties and challenges of life. But there will always be an Elul, an Ir Miklat, a Makom. This connection between Elul and the Ir Miklat is alluded to in the Torah. The very first time the Torah mentions the Ir Miklat is in Parashas Mishpatim, with the words: “If G-d brought it about [meaning that the murder was unintentional], I will make a place for you…”. The roshei teivos (first letters) of these words spell Elul!
Elul is our Ir Miklat, reminding us that we will always have a place to stay until the chaos subsides. But even while in the midst of that chaos, we must remember that this is only a way station and that we must arise and journey back to our true makom, to our true destination. Elul is our shelter amid the storm, a lighthouse in the dark. It helps protect us from the darkness, but it also helps guide us back to our true destination.
When we pass by the month of Elul, Hashem covers every tree with white flags. Elul is Hashem’s way of saying, “There will always be a place for you.” In response, we must embrace that place and begin rebuilding from there toward our true destination.
This is the first step of teshuvah: recognizing that we are not where we need to be, but that through constant effort and the help of Hashem, we can get there. We can return to our true makom, and we can ascend to a true Rosh Hashanah. The foundation for this is our interim makom, our Ir Miklat, Elul—the place for those without a place. This allows us to gain our footing, create clarity and purpose, and begin our journey back home. May we all be inspired to pause, find our footing, and use this Elul to journey purposefully back to our true makom—i.e., Hashem.
Rabbi Shmuel Reichman is an international speaker, bestselling author, business coach, the CEO of SMA, and a TED Talk Speaker. His bestselling book, The Journey to Your Ultimate Self, serves as an inspiring gateway into deeper Torah thought.. Rabbi Reichman provides a unique 1-on-1 coaching program where he helps high-achievers, coaches, and business owners achieve their financial and personal goals. To learn more or to get in contact with Rabbi Reichman, visit his website: www.ShmuelReichman.com.
