According to the Vilna Gaon (as he writes in his book Adaret Eliyahu) Four of the Five Books of Moses correlate to The Four Hebrew Letters of The Name of G-d, Y-K-V-K. They are as follows: Berashis to The Yud, Shemoth, The 1st Hey, (Vayikra has no letter, which I will explain), Bamidbar, The Vav, Devorim, The 2nd Hey. What is truly amazing is that if we look carefully at King Davids Twenty Six Ki Liolom Chasdos we will see that King David also saw this connection! Start with the first ten of the twenty six Ki Liolom Chasdos, being that ten is the numerical value of the Hebrew letter Yud of G-ds Name and look at these first ten of the twenty six Ki Liolom Chasdos, what we see is that the theme of basically these first ten Chasdos tell of the stories of The Book of Barashis, just like the Gaon said! Basically, the next five, the numerical value of the Hey-the stories of Shemoth, the next six, the numerical value of the Vav-Bamidbar, and the last five, the numerical value of the Hey (2nd Hey)- Devorim! It is then clear to us that King David also knew that The Five Books of Moses correlate to The Name of G-d, and therefore my question is, did the Gaon himself also see this pattern in King Davids Ki Liolom Chasdos?
I asked this question to Rev Moshe Shapiro, he gave the question some thought and the next day he answered me by saying; This is idea was known.
The importance of knowing which letter of G-ds Name correlates to which Book of The Torah, is that at that exact time of year as we are reading each of These Books we are in turn developing within us the quality of its associated letter. For example, the onset of the Jewish Year as we begin the Book of Barashis, the first Book of The Torah, initiates the new development of the Yud of G-ds Name. The Yud of G-ds Name represents the quality of G-ds attribute which we call, Chochmah-Wisdom. Rashi tells us by Betzalel (Shomoth-/)that Chochmah, Wisdom, is new information, and therefore not yet understood, meaning that Chochmah is a light of intellect which is beyond the scope of ones present conscious mind. Our Sages also tell us (Menachos- ) that with the Yud, which is Chochmah, G-d created the beyond this world, Olam Habah. With this we can deduce that at the onset of the Jewish Year as we prepare once again to read from The Book of Barashis, that we in turn at that time are beginning our new connection to a light which is beyond this physical world, and that the development of this light as we complete The Book of Barashis results with this years new formation of the Yud in G-ds Name. Still beyond the world, though now ready to enter. This is the concept of The Returning Light, that as I have explained; that exactly in sync with the time period in which we are reading from the Book of Barashis, we are in essence at that very same time, connecting to and developing the new light of The Yud of G-ds Name-Chochmah, the light from beyond. As will be illustrated, this new light, is essentially the Light of Blessing which during each new year, reaches once again from beyond in heaven to this world.
The Jewish People experience within their souls the conception of this new light of blessing a good three months before this new light reaches into our conscious selves. During these first three months which begins with the twenty fifth day of the Hebrew month Elul, which according to The Tana Rebbi Eliezer is day one of the creation of world with the sixth day on Rosh Hashanah the creation of Adam, we are forming the new Yud. The conclusion of these first three months is at the twenty fifth of Kislev, Chanukah. Chanukah begins a new reaching of light to this world, we call Bina, The Light of Understanding, and correlates to the second letter of G-ds Name, the Hey. This is also the date of the completion of the Holy Mishkan. The Mishkan then is ones inner development of the light of the Yud, Chochmah. [please refer to my chart on the Tribes around the Mishkan.] Our celebration of Chanukah centers around the light of the Menorah called the Lihava. Throughout the next six months of the Jewish Year the full body of the Menorah is developed and in recognition of the eight days of Chanukahs thirty six lights, the Parsha of the Menorah itself, Behalatcha is exactly the thirty sixth parsha of our Torah! How about that! this new light of Chochmah, the Yud, is depicted by the actual flame of the menorah called in Hebrew the lihava. So too at this time in the Parshiyote we are reading about Yoseph whom Rashi quoting -tells us is the Lihava, the flame of the Menorah. (for this reason at this time the world calls it Year-New Yeara New Light! and This new LIght is actually the New Yoseph in each of us!) So too Paro says referring to Yoseph In just a few more weeks from Chanukah and the formation of the Yud we begin the Second Book of The Torah, the Book of Shemoth, which as we have mentioned, correlates to the Hey of G-ds Name-Bina, Understanding. Rashi tells us (also Shemoth /)that Bina, Understanding, is ones ability to now use the new Wisdom which previously was beyond their scope of understanding. The way in which new Wisdom is used is by ones ability to take what they have learned and with it, formulate new ideas. This ability to formulate new ideas shows that what was once beyond them, is now known in his/hers heart. This means that the information in the form of the light of Chochmah-Wisdom, which was once beyond ones scope of thought has now reached to from the beyond to this world and is thusly now a workable part of their conscious mind. So to our Sages tell us that with the Hey of G-ds Name G-d created this world. It is for this reason that New Years begins exactly as we are entering the Book of Shemoth for at that time the new light of reaching to the Hey which denotes this world and therefore not only the Jews can connect to this new light but the non-Jews as well. We also see this in the fact that the Hebrew word Year-יאר actually does mean to shine light and therefore a New Year is a new light reaching to this world, and when the rest of world exclaims Happy New Year they are actually proclaiming that the new light of blessing has now begun to reach to this world.
The source which can determine the magnitude and the quality of this new light of blessing is of course G-d the source of all, however, because of Rivka Emanu who made sure that this light of blessing went to her son Yakov and not to her son Asav, the world is now fixed to work accordingly, meaning that the blessings come to this world by way of Yakov who represents the Torah Scholar. The idea is that being that this light of blessing reaches to this world in a physical form and since Yakov is as The Torah describes him a simple man living in tents, he therefore has a minimal need for the physical pleasures of the this world, just enough to enable him to be a servant of G-d and no more. He will therefore give in a sense, most of these blessings, all that he does not need to Asav his brother and in this way the physical world is greatly blessed. Rivka saw deeper, she saw that if the blessings (this is the blessings, the new light which we have been disscussing) passed down from Avraham to Yitzchak will now go to their son Asav, that being that the world of Asav, essentially, the physical world will be greatly blessed, then with that scenario, there will no longer be any need for the Yakov the Torah Scholar! Her goal was that both her two sons live harmoniously exhibiting love and brotherhood in a peaceful world. We therefore, on Rosh Hashanah initiate the arrival of the new light, the new year by praying for brotherhood and peace on earth.
For the religious Jew, Rosh Hashanah is two days of at least six hours of intense prayer followed by ten days of repentance, Yom Kipper, The Day of Atonement, and daily sacrifices for the Seventy Nations during Sukkot. We take this chance to begin once again to redevelop G-ds Name within us is as a huge gift from G-d. From Rosh Hashanah, and even before Rosh Hashanah with Selichos-prayers in which we ask forgiveness during Chodesh Elul. This month called Elul is our one month preparation in which on each day we blow the awakening sounds of the Shofar which pierces to the highest and deepest roots of our soul. This brings us to cry to heaven in teshuvah-repentance. Then on Yom Kipper we receive atonement later to be solidified on Hoshanah Rabbah. only after then do we then begin on the following day which is the eighth day, begin again from the Begining, with the Book of Barashis. The main prayer crying for G-ds mercy till we once again reach Barashis is G-ds thirteen attributes of G-ds mercy. In this prayer we call out Y-K-V-H twiceHashem, Hashem, which in my understanding means that yes, if we in a certain sense blew it last year and did not fully develop or re connect G-ds name to our lives which in essence stands for Yud-Chochmah, Wisdom, Hey-Bina, Understanding, Vav-Daat, integrated Knowledge, Hey-Malchut, G-ds Kingdom here on earth, which is us doing the right actions, then by recalling the second Hashem we are both declaring and insuring that a Second, New Name of G-d will once again reach to us from the beyond in heaven.
Our Jewish Year is what enables the progression of Y-K-V-K from the beyond in heaven to this physical world.
The Holy Zohar according to Rav Ashlags commentary called The Sulam, teaches that by saying that Berashis corresponds to the Keter, The Crown above the Yud, then this way Vayikra will also have a letter thus making use of all Five Books. When I learned of this I quickly went to have a discussion with a great rabbi who reaches this commentary on the Zohar. His name of blessed memory is(we recently lost him) Rav Avraham Brandwein. The Mamash Greatness of Rav Brandwein is that he was not stuck in what he has read in a book. He listened to how I understand this, even though it was not according to what Rev Shimon Bar Yochi seemingly and how the Sulam understood it, and he agreed with me.
I spoke to the Rav and said that even though it makes perfect sense for us to use all Five Books, that the Vilna Gaon sees things differently. I also shared with the Rav what I saw in King Davids twenty six Ki Liolom Chasdos and how King David makes no mention there of The Book of Vayikra. I then agreed and gave my explanation, that though I believe, that yes, the first six parshiyot of Barashis do indeed correspond to the development of Keter/the Kotz of the Yud, however, from the Seventh Parsha, Vayetze, begins the actual Yud itself. This explanation brings us to the idea that our Seven Week Sefirat HaOmer count exists on both sides of the Jewish Year, and that when we count 49/50 days from the sixteenth of Tishrei as we do from the sixteenth of Nissan, that we end up exactly as we are reading Parshat Veyetze. This happens during the week of Vav Kislev which is opposite/parallels Vav Sivon, Matan Torah-Chag HaShevuos. In Parshot Vayetze is the Yakovs dream of a Sulam-a ladder with its head in the heaven and its legs reaching all the way to the ground. Mysteriously, in all Torah Scrolls Sulam is spelled with out a Vav-Samech, Lamed, Mem. Our commentaries Tos:Zekanim and The Ball HaTurim both point out that with this spelling, Sulam then has the same numerical value as Sinai. Both commentaries elaborate and say that Yakov had a vision of his children receiving The Torah on Mount Sinai. Not only that but Chag HaShevuos/Matan Torah happens together with the Wheat Harvest and we also know that this very day of Matan Torah is also the Yortizite and Birth Day of King David. We therefore read on Shevuos The Book of Ruth. This, being that not only does the story of Ruth takes place during the Omer period of the Barley and Wheat Harvest but even more so, Ruth is the great grandmother of David. So too we also that in Parshat Vayetze Reuvain goes out during the Wheat Harvest and finds דודאים, the very letters !אם דויד-mother of David! This is David spelled with a Yud, symbolizing that after the Sefirot HaOmer count, we know have a new Yud. This spelling of David with a Yud we also see in Divri Hayamin which we say each day in Pesuki Dezimrote: Vayivarech David, to You Hashem is all the Seven Sefirot!
On Simchat Torah,exactly one week after we begin the Sefirat HaOmer, we begin reading Berashis. This understanding that there is also a Sefirot HaOmer count which begins seven days before Simchat Torah will shed light for us to understand the nature of the first six full weeks of The Book of Berashis.
What I discussed with Rav Brandwein sheds light for our understanding about why it is that Vayikra has no letter.