Welcome to Embrace Shabbat. Rashi, based on Chazal, famously teaches: מה היה העולם חסר, מנוחה, באת שבת - באת מנוחה, What did the world lack? Rest! Shabbat came — Rest came. The Alshich raises three questions on Rashi’s commentary: 1. מנוחה is not a form of מלאכה, so how could it be lacking in the world? 2. What do the words שבת וינפש refer to? 3. Why does the Torah use the term וינח ביום השביעי? It would be more gramatically correct to say ונח, and He rested, rather than וינח, and He caused to rest. Nothing physical can survive without a spiritual component. This can be seen most clearly with the human body, which immediately begins to decompose once its spirit leaves. Similarly, other living beings, such as flowers or trees immediately begin to rot once their spirit is removed. In the first six days of creation, the world was purely physical, without any spiritual component, and therefore would be destined to quickly decompose. HaKadosh Baruch Hu created Shabbat, the spiritual component to the world, which allowed it to continue to exist. This concept answers the three questions that Alshich raises. When Rashi states that the world was lacking menucha, he is referring to its ability to continue to exist without a spiritual component. Once Shabbat was instituted, the world could rest; it would not decompose. Additionally, the root of וינפש is נפש- G-d gave a “soul” to creation. The soul- Shabbat- was the holiness that was needed to keep creation going. Finally, this can explain the term וינח, and He caused it to rest. G-d didn’t rest; He gave creation spirituality- Shabbat- which allowed it to rest and stop decomposing. It had a state of relaxation and it stayed the way it was, no longer disappearing. This concept continues to repeat itself every week. If we would continue working non-stop, the world would decompose. Shabbat is what gives us and the world the ability to exist- everything needs a touch of spirit. In the outside world, “spirit” refers to alcohol. Some people need those kinds of spirits to stay alive. However, when we talk about spirits, we refer to kedusha, limud torah, and other spiritual actions- טוב להודות לה. These are the spiritual connections that we make over Shabbat - באת שבת - באת מנוחה Shabbat Shalom.