Perhaps most striking of the special garments of the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) was the Tzitz. This was a gold plate worn over the forehead, engraved with the words, "Holy to God." What was the significance of this priestly crown?
Rav Kook wrote that the Tzitz, fashioned out of pure gold, reflected the highest spiritual riches. The crown's placement on the forehead - the location of the ratzon, our inner will for good and holiness - symbolized the Kohen's aspirations for the most elevated good, as revealed within his inner soul.
The Talmud teaches that the Tzitz encircled the forehead from one ear to the other. What do the ears have to do with the Tzitz?
Two Types of Listening
The ear is, of course, an organ to hear and listen. One ear is directed above - a receptivity to the shining light of elevated thought. The Tzitz extended from the ear to the forehead, indicating that it transmitted this receptivity to his inner will. In short, it symbolized the Kohen's aspirations to actualize the highest goals, implementing them in life, traits and deeds.
The other ear is for a different type of listening - an awareness of the physical world below. This sensitivity allowed the physical world to acquire a new inner content, a content which cannot be attained in the spiritual realm alone. Here the spiritual is enriched by insight into the material world, its actions and emotions.
The Tzitz thus connected both types of listening - elevated thoughts from above, as well as understanding the physical world below. It provided a channel that linked these two realms, uniting a world with all of its disparate parts.
In this way, the Kohen Gadol became whole and integrated, aware how the physical can extend and enrich the spiritual realm. He could then serve as a unifying force for the people, who share this yearning for complete unity.
This ability corresponds to the essence of the mission of the kohanim. They are a conduit, connecting the Jewish people to God, and God to the Jewish people. The Talmud describes them as sheluchei dedan - our representatives, as they bring Israel's offerings to God. Yet they are also sheluchei deRachamana - God's emissaries, bringing God's blessings and Torah to Israel.
The placement of the Tzitz, encompassing both ears, indicated that the Kohen Gadol was not troubled by a disconnect between his spiritual and physical sides. A conduit between man and God, he needed to be attuned to the spiritual, while still in touch with the material world.
(Adapted from Ein Eyah vol. IV, Shabbat 6:72, p. 113 Sent to Arutz Sheva by Rabbi Chanan Morrison of Mitzpeh Yericho, author of "Gold From the Land of Israel". His website, ravkooktorah.org, is dedicated to presenting the Torah commentary of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook)