#yam_suf

אִלּוּ קָרַע לָנוּ אֶת הַיָּם וְלֹא הֶעֱבִירָנוּ בְּתוֹכוֹ בֶּחָרָבָה דַּיֵּנוּ - נוסח ההגדה 

If He had split the sea for us, but did not take us across it on dry land--it would have sufficed for us. (Hagaddah)

Abudraham explains that the alternative would have been to cross the sea in swampy and muddy land, but instead the seabed was entirely dry and firm when Bnei Yisrael crossed through.

Why does this detail deserve individual mention among the fifteen stanzas of Dayeinu which mark major milestones and events, such as the Giving of the Torah and the construction of the Beis Hamikdash?

Creations which live on dry land have a visible presence but are not visibly attached to the environment upon which their lives depend. Unlike land creations, the creatures which live beneath the surface of the sea are hidden from human eye, and can only survive within the water, their source of life. Accordingly, in Chassidic teaching, the sea represents a reality of conscious submission and nullification within our source of life; our own identities becoming "hidden" before G-d.

Despite our ego naturally being felt as the reality and our dependence on G-d seeming merely an abstraction, at Kriat Yam Suf  "the sea was transformed to dry land" (Tehillim 66:6), making the sea-creature like submission to G-d an attainable reality. No longer must this remain concealed “underwater”, as our conscious lives are not at all at odds with recognizing our utter dependency and nonexistence before G-d.

Herein lies the significance of the additional miracle. Not only was the surface of the seabed cleared of water, but even beneath its surface, the seabed was entirely dry, devoid of any moisture and water. A spiritual Kriat Yam Suf thus means that this void of ego is manifest not only in our actions “beyond our surface”,but within the depths of our feelings as well. There remains no area in our identity in which our complete submission to G-d cannot be manifest and felt.

וּבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הָלְכוּ בַיַּבָּשָׁה בְּתוֹךְ הַיָּם -שמות יד, כט

But the children of Israel went on dry land in the midst of the sea… (Shemot 14:29)

“Everything that exists on land also exists in the sea” (Chulin 127a). The difference between land and sea then is that all that is in the sea is out of sight to the human eye, while on land all can be plainly seen. Accordingly, the spiritual experience of Kriat Yam Suf, in which physically “the sea was transformed to dry land” (Tehilim 66:6), is interpreted by Chassidut as a moment when spiritual realities which are normally hidden became clear and visible (Torah Ohr 62b and elsewhere). This explains the statement of the Midrash that, “By the sea, a maidservant perceived what prophets did not perceive” (Mechilta, see Rashi, Shemos 15:2).

One practical application of this spiritual Kriat Yam Suf in our personal service of Hashem is bridging the gap between the experience of Tefilah, and the rest of the day’s activities. The focus of Tefilah is arousing conscious feelings of attachment and submission to G-d within ourselves, feelings that tend to recede and be hidden from our conscious minds during the rest of the day, when we are primarily occupied by mundane realities and pursuits. From Kriat Yam Suf we draw the ability that our “hidden world” of the sea can become a “visible world” of dry land. Even while engaged in our material responsibilities and activities we can and must maintain the feeling of submission before G-d that we each have stored within.