Nesivos Shalom Kiyor-Tetzaveh

 We're commanded to make a sink/basin and all it should be of bronze.  And its purpose was to purify Aharon and his decendants and keep them alive in their service.

Trumah speaks of the large vessels/furniture of the Mishkan, Tetzaveh was (with one exception) about clothing of the Kohanim.  But this portion goes back to a piece of furniture, which seems like it should have been in Trumah.  And why is it juxtaposed after the command to give a half a shekel to be counted.

The Mishkan/Beit haMikdash corresonds to the standing form of a person with high - brain - Kodesh Kodashim, middle - heart - Heichal, lowest - Chatzeir - place of outer alter - lower organs. The Beit haMikdash flowed influenc to the part of a person it represented.  Thus, a fire always burned on the outer Mizbeach, fighting with holy fire the desirous fire of a person. 

The Kiyor provided preparation before approaching the altar of the Beit HaMikdash.  It seems impossible that a human could approach The Divine.  Preparation is needed.  Pre-service a kohein's hands and feet were purified.  On YK the KG, before entering the KK had to immerse 5 times and make himself holy 10 times. Just like the intense purifying of YK changed the KG so too every day it transformed the Kohanim.

We need teshuvah in our lives, and the kiyor represents this, that preparation is needed before we can approach G-d. The Divrei Shmuel explains that cleansing with water represents teshuvah.  he says that we need to do teshuvah on our teshuvah.  There's teshvah for doing something wrong.  Then there's teshuvah for a whole person head to heart to full body.  Each part of the body needs to be purified of the negativity inside us.  This is the idea of washing, purifying from top to bottom before approaching and entering the Beit haMikdash.  The other keilim were a mitzvah, and the kiyor was a hechsher mitzvah, so it stands alone in its own section.

The Rebbe of Kobrin (ZYA) says hands represent midot and raglayim represents the habits we rest on.  Learning Torah. praying - our versions of approaching the Mikdash and the Misbeach: Before we approach we need to purify our midot and our actions.

It is said by true tzadikim that preparation is a primary principle. And Chasidim have stated that in a way preparation for a mitzvah is greater than the mitzvah itself. Before we put on Tefilin and pray and say our intentions in doing the mitzvah we need to feel deep in our soul how it can be that a lowly human stands before The Holy One Blessed Be He in prayer and with the Tefillin to crown all the holy realms that are under their auspices.  At least we should have the intention of a low and broken heart knowing that "G-d will not despise a broken and downtrodden heart." In the absence of any other preparation this in itself serves as preparation. There's the concept that rashah is asked by G-d, "Who are you to speak of my di=octrines (and we each know if this is applicable to us). Howereer, after the breaking down of the heart and having charatah - regret one is essentially no longer a rashah. 

Chasidim would go deep into preparation, preparing for an hour before prayer, which corresponds to the washing before entering the Ohel Moed or approaching the altar. And we wash before eating because our table is like an altar and we must purify ourselves before we do things in the physical realm as well.  This is what is meant when in this context of washing, here, the Torah says that this is for all generations, is eternal. It applies in life and time without a Beit HaMikdash before entering into purely spiritual and also spiritual matters. 

Nechoshet - bronze is related to the word nachash - snake, things that are in the grasp of klipah - negative forces...