There is a saying that, to paraphrase, reading the week's parasha is not just an exercise of obedience or the intellect - that it speaks to the soul because the parasha is always perfectly designed to match with the times.
Nothing could be truer, as always, but it is especially true this week since Tzav coincides with Purim, which has now officially begun at sundown. Namely, in relation to the importance of clothing.
With my reading of the parasha now complete, perhaps I will have, b'ezrat H', something to say on Purim tomorrow night. For now, one of the themes of the holiday I've been studying this week is the importance of clothing in that story. From rending garments to being paraded around in the king's clothing (to midrashim discussing how King Ahashuverus donned the clothing of the kohen gadol at the party described at the beginning of the story), clothing plays a central, tangible part of Purim's telling. One mystical teaching brought down by Rabbi Shmuly Botnick is that the clothing -- in this story and perhaps at all times -- actually comes to symbolize the internal of human nature, as opposed to the external of human nature which has affected humanity since we learned of our own nakedness in Gan Eden. For this reason, the clothing described in Purim is much more than just practical adornment -- it may, in fact, symbolize the very essence of each character (Queen Esther, Mordechai, Haman, Vashti, etc.).
This teaching is especially relevant considering the procedure described in VaYikra 8:30, in which Moshe takes "the oil of anointment" and part of the "blood on the altar" and sprinkles it upon Aharon and his clothing and Aharon's sons and their clothing. The fact that, while the clothing is discussed extensively in prior portions, the Torah makes mention of clothing twice in the same verse as part of this critical, sanctification process must mean that clothing is so much more than just a way of covering ourselves up.
What if we took that mystical idea regarding clothing representing essence and the internal and applied it here? Well, the idea fits perfectly. Of course, Aharon and his sons -- their bodies -- must be "holified" since their actions are so incredibly integral to the sacrificial services, whether it is shechting the animal, cutting it into pieces, placing it on the altar, removing a bit of the ash each morning, lighting the menorah, washing their hands and feet at the "laver," or any number of other highly physical tasks, perhaps most importantly including eating some of the meat and meal offerings to close the teshuvah/atonement loop.
But the Torah cannot come and say that their "insides" must also be sanctified. What would that even mean? So the Torah, in its genius, makes this part of the sanctification crystal clear by stating that their clothing -- which, as kabbalah teaches, is the essence of an individual -- is also sprinkled with oil and blood and sanctified as a result. Long the song says, "clean on the inside, clean on the outside" -- and ready to perform these holiest of tasks.
A final note - I will continue to meditate on why this sanctification process had to be repeated and kept for seven days. Why this time period specifically? Perhaps one day I, too, will have the opportunity to undergo an intensive, seven-day purification period and touch, perhaps every so slightly, what my direct ancestor Aharon experienced before assuming his holy duties.
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