Hadran Mishnayos Shas on Shloshim of my Shviger A'H 29 Kislev

We have now completed Shas. As we look back at the tremendous amount of knowledge and we realize the holiness of our Torah, we start to think, the Tzadikim who learned all this with the proper intent and attitude, what's their reward for all this. The last Mishna in Shas in Mesechta Uktzin tells us as it starts with a maamar of Rebbi Yehoshua ben Levi. In the future Hakodosh Boruch Hu will cause each Tzadik and Tzadik to inherit three hundred and ten worlds. Following after is a maamar of Rebbi Shimon ben Chalafta. Hakodosh Boruch Hu found no vessel that could properly hold the Brocho, blessing for Yisroel save Sholom, peace. Both of these very interesting maamorim are found in one Mishna, their juxtaposition suggesting that they belong together. The question asks itself, what is their connection? And why does Rebbi Yehoshua ben Levi state “each Tzadik and Tzadik”? Why the redundancy? And a final question, what is meant by inheriting 310 worlds? Wouldn’t each Tzadik actually deserve these worlds in Olam Haboh for all the Torah he learned and Mitzvos he did in Olam Hazeh?

The word “Yesh” with a gematria of 310, connotes the concept of metzius, the yesh of Hashem’s creating and bringing metzius of creation on a constant basis. Each Tzadik, through his Torah and Mitzvos, brought his own “yesh” into his Olam Hazeh. However the rewards for the merits of his work will be received in Olam Haboh. The Tzadik’s corporeal body deserves these rewards because they were earned through his materialistic deeds such as putting on tefilin and learning Torah, but the actual spiritual payment to the neshomoh, received in Olam Haboh in the form of 310 spiritual worlds, comes as an inheritance to the neshomoh from the body.

The maamar states that Hashem will give this inheritance to each Tzadik v’Tzadik. The next maamar states that Hashem will give His brochos to Klal Yisroel, to the Tzadikim, through a vessel of sholom, peace. If we take the number 310 times two, for each Tzadik and Tzadik, two Tzadikim, we arrive at 620. This connotes the 613 mitzvos in the Torah plus the 7 mitzvos of the Rabbonim. If there reigns sholom between the Tzadikim and in Klal Yisroel, then the Torah and mitzvos become one since the adding together the inheritance of the two Tzadikim is 620.

Today was the 5th light of Chanuka. It is well known that the 5th day of Chanuka can't come out on a Shabbos, the only day of Chanuka that can't be on a Shabbos. The Lubavicher Rebbe ztzl said this means that each of us has to bring an additional lechtigkeit into the world to make up for the lack of the Shabbos ohros shel kedusha. My shviger a'h did that each day of her life. With her smile and warm character she would bring lechtigkeit into a room when she entered. Her smiles and laughter lightened up everybody's life. And we can remember how she so warmly and with a smile took care of her own shviger, Ohma. My shviger a’h was not just the epitome of an Eishes Chayil, a woman of valor, a woman of integrity. She was a woman of sholom in everything she did. Whether it was so many years ago in bringing together people to found the Bais Yakov of Montreal or in the fact that she rarely rarely spoke loshon hora on anybody. All her life she strived for sholom between the people around her. It is only fitting then to recognize that Ho’Ishoh Frimit bas R’ Shimshon Menachem a’h should be categorized between Tzadikim and given an inheritance of 310 worlds. My shver, R’ Yehuda ben R’ Yitzchok Shraga z’l, as the Bobover Ruv ztz’l called him, mein tyere Leibele, was also an ish sholom, a person imbued with a love for yiddishkeit. These two tzadikim surely merit the zchus of inheriting their 310 worlds each, L'Chol Tzadik V'Tzadik, and together they have earned the 620 worlds connoting Torah and mitzvos and yiddishkeit. Eishes Chayil mi yimtzo? The answer is, komu boneho v’yashruho, baaloh v’yehaloh. Her daughters and sons in law will exalt her, her husband will laud her. May they both be malitzei yosher for our families.

Hesped for my Shviger A'h 1st day of Rosh Chodesh Kislev

VaYetzei Yakov M’Beer Sheva VaYeilech Choronoh. Yakov Ovinu, the Bechir SheBeOvos, the symbol of Klal Yisroel, left Beer Sheva. Yakov left the Kedusha, the Heilikeit of his holy father Yitzchok’s house, the holy atmosphere that Beer Sheva was in the days of Yitzchok Ovinu. Rashi says, when a tzadik leaves a place, its glory and its fame also leave. Yakov-Klal Yisroel left the holy Yiddish streets that were Poland and Galitzia in general and the city of Cracow in particular before the terrible war. Holy streets filled with yeshivas, batei medrash, shuls, the daily holy life of the Yidden of Cracow. And the Glory of pre-war Cracow left with its Yidden. Klal Yisroel left all this and they went to Choron. Places filled with sheker, with corruption, with tzoros rabos and trials and tribulations that Klal Yisroel in 2,000 years had never before suffered. And yet through all this, all of Yakov’s problems – Hashem assured Yakov that Hashem would be with him and watch over him and return him to his father’s house. Hashem returned Klal Yisroel after the horrendous sacrifices that we encountered and Klal Yisroel again slowly rose up the holy ladder to its lofty status. Klal Yisroel started over again, building holy Yiddishe families, in accordance with the paths that our fathers and grandfathers had walked before the war, in accordance with the holy paths established by Yisroel Saboh, Yakov Ovinu.

My shver and shviger were brought together by Der Eibishter and with much sacrifice and toil and tears rose up Hashem's ladder and built their family along the lines of their holy heritage. They guided us, my brother in law and sister in law and my wife and me to build our families, doros yeshorim me’voruchim, along these holy ways, the paths of our holy ancestors. The foundation of our families, the Yiddishkeit and chasidus of our children and grandchildren, came from the mesiras nefesh of my shviger, the ikeres habayis, through her daily toiling as a true Yiddishe Momma. The Satmar Rebbe Rav Yoel Z'tzl said soon after the war, you don’t have to go to a Rebbe with a kvitel for a blessing. Find Holocaust survivors with numbers on their arms. These are holy people, ask them for a blessing. I say that these people with numbers on their arms, these numbers are a First Class ticket into Gan Eden.

Shviger, Moras Frimit A’H bas R’ Shimshon Menachem Hy’d, when your holy soul arrives at Beis Din Shel Maloh, raise your arm, show them your numbers. Surely they will immediately take you to the holy Heavenly palace of the shver z’l and you’ll again be with him, but now with peace and serenity, looking down at the holy Yiddishe families that you built and enjoy the nachas that your children and grandchildren give you through their daily Torah and Yiddishkeit lives. Shviger, Moras Frimit A’H bas R’ Shimshon Menachem Hy’d, in the name of our families, my brother in law and sister in law and my wife and me and our children, we want to ask your forgiveness if we didn’t treat you properly. May you be a malitza yosher for our families, may we be zoche to Moshiach soon and Bilah Hashem dimoh me’al kol ponim omein.

Noach - Tzadik Tomim

As we begin learning Parshas Noach “Noach tzadik tomim hoyo be’dorosov”, Noach was a perfect tzadik in his generation, we see the well-known Rashi that many of Chazal interpreted this l’shvach, as kudos and many interpreted this l’gnai, as denigration. Had Noach been in a generation of greater tzadikim he would have grown greater. Or alternatively, had he been in a generation of greater tzadikim he would not have been noticed at all. At the end of the posuk it says “es Elokim his’halech Noach”, Noach walked in the path of Elokim. Rashi comments that when talking about Avrohom the Torah places Avrohom before Elokim, but when talking about Noach the Torah places him after Elokim. Rashi says that Noach required succor and strong support from Hashem to be a tzadik whereas Avrohom was able to do it all on his own.

The Sfas Emes in 5639 comments that “be’vadai”, surely if the Torah states that he was a tzadik, Chazal are not trying to demean his stature. Rather, the Sfas Emes states as a seminal concept, this is the way things work out in the passing of generations. The world first required a limited type of tzadik who required G-dly support, such as Noach, before being able to live with an exalted tzadik such as Avrohom who did not need Heavenly support. Creation was not ready for the leadership of Avrohom until it had gone through a tzadik like Noach.

In other words, humanity could not grow spiritually on its own until Avrohom. Humanity as restarted by Noach required Heavenly support to grow spiritually. Avrohom was able to institute and establish the ability of humanity to not only grow but to become causal effectors of spirituality throughout Creation, as evidenced by his children Yitzchok and Yakov. Along with Avrohom they are called Ovos, Founders. The question then presents itself, why? Why couldn’t humanity, as founded by Noach, grow spiritually without G-d’s support? Stick around.

Hashem created the universe along three fundamental categories or principles, Olam, Shonoh, Nefesh: World or Humanity in general, Year or Time in general, and Soul or individuals. The general underlying principles guiding these three categories are similar within each category. So too is the concept that these categories are guiding principles within each individual of Klal Yisroel. An individual begins life as a small baby and then child, along the lines of how Creation began, “sohu” chaos, no ability to function on its own. The child requires constant supervision and support from its parents.

The next phase of Creation was the generations from Noach to Avrohom. This phase required the support of Hashem in order for them to grow spiritually, much like the adolescent who requires the support of an education system. During this period in an individual’s life Hashem closely watches the spiritual internal holy core, the pintele yid, of a person. From this pintele yid the person grows into his phase of adulthood, analogous to the phase of Creation after Avrohom, that of the Ovos or Founding Fathers of Klal Yisroel. In this phase the individual is able to grow on his own, developing his midos character traits as a foundation for Torah, as it says in Pirkei Ovos, derech eretz kodmoh l’Torah, exemplary character traits are required as a foundation for Torah. Then the individual can enter the final phase of Creation, Torah, as Klal Yisroel did after the founding efforts of the Ovos and the 12 Shfotim.

Now we can understand why Creation required the initial efforts of a tzadik as Noach who required the support of Hashem and then Avrohom who was able to become a Founder of an integral part of Creation, Klal Yisroel. Just as in Creation there was the primeval chaos followed by human endeavors, albeit falling apart and destroyed, and then Noach who with heavenly support grew and finally the Ovos and the beginning of Klal Yisroel. And going along further in the developing life of an individual; the initial phase as a child and later a young adult, and finally a mature adult. The world could not function spiritually with an Avrohom type of tzadik in its young state. First the world needed a Noach type of tzadik, with heavenly support, as the young child has parental and then educational support in its growth.

What can we learn from this? My readers are mature adults, who expect to be in their final phase of development. Yet throughout an individual’s life the person can somehow find themselves in a period of “sohu” spiritual chaos. The Torah teaches us don’t worry. Raise your head and open your spiritual eyes towards Hashem and look to Him for support. Start again and persist forward. Relook at your character, your daily life. And through Torah learning and Torah living you’ll again get back on the right path and the spiritual growth of the mature adult, the final Torah phase of Creation.

Confession - Leaving Our Spiritual Hideouts

The central underlying concept of the Yom Kippur liturgy is constant Vidui or Confession. The “oshamnu bogadnu” Vidui, the constant “al cheits” again and again, and “sholosh esrei midos of Hashem Hashem”. What is the purpose of all these verbal confessions? I know what I did! Hashem knows what I have done! Why is verbalization of what I have done wrong such a critical requirement in the Yom Kippur process of T'shuva Repentance and Slicha V’Kaporoh Forgiveness and Atonement? One simple understanding is that Vidui helps a person to clearly express his mistakes and to clearly accept his wrongdoing as fact, in order to strengthen one's commitment for change, the raison d’être for T’shuva.

But there is another deeper understanding of a verbal Vidui. The Rambam in discussing halachos of T'shuva asks how does one know if he has successfully undergone the process of T'shuva? The Rambam says the ideal way is if a person undergoes the same situation and an opportunity shows up to transgress and the person overcomes and does not transgress. But the question is what happens if the test does not occur? Does the person need to actually live through the same temptation and overcome it in reality or is it enough that he has reached a level of T'shuva that if such a situation would occur he would not transgress? The Rambam answers that as long as Hashem can say testimony that a person has built up the strength to resist the temptation this is sufficient and you do not need to relive it. The Rabeinu Yona says something similar. When a person develops an awe of Hashem that can contain his negative inclination it is sufficient for T'shuva.

This concept of Hashem saying testimony as to the person's spiritual ability is uniquely reserved to T'shuva. The Gemora says that if a person resists doing an aveyra he gets a mitzva of Yiras Shomayim. But the Gemora says that this is only when a person actively resists. But if you don’t actively resist you do not get a mitzva. We do not say what the Rambam says by T’shuva that if a situation would arise and I would not transgress it is sufficient to earn the mitzva of Yiras Shomayim. Similarly in the beginning of the book of Iyuv we see that Hashem is testifying as to the deepest spiritual status of Job but nonetheless the prosecuting angel says "stretch out your hand and hurt him in his flesh and see if he will curse you". Hashem’s testimony of Iyuv’s alleged spiritual potential for not sinning was not enough. However, as the Rambam says, when it comes to the mitzva of T’shuva the occurrence of an actual situation is not a requirement. Why is T'shuva different?

What the Gemora cited above and the story of Iyuv illustrate is that even though Hashem is testifying as to the spiritual potential of a human being this will not carry a final verdict that the person is a Tzadik. The way Hashem set up our world with Midas Hadin Justice is that there is a requirement for real activity. The way Hashem set up this world is that the person must prove himself by living through it and in the face of a test actually point to his priorities. With all of person's potentials (even to the point where Hashem can testify as to the validity of his righteousness) the prosecution angel can still require the person to “prove it”.

Why then if we say that a proof in action is required in order for the person to be considered righteous but on the day of Yom Kippur Hashem's testimony is enough? The answer is that on Yom Kippur, Soton, the prosecution angel is absent. The Soton is simply not present on the day of Yom Kippur. The day of Yom Kippur has a unique quality. On Yom Kippur, as long as the person is in the process of doing T'shuva, Hashem's testimony to the person's deep qualities is sufficient. This is a phenomenal idea. The nature of Yom Kippur is not probation; let's see if the person will pass the tests in the coming year. But rather, as long as the person can build himself up inside on the day of Yom Kippur, Hashem will accept him and the prosecutor has no ability to challenge and demand “prove it”. This is what is meant in the Gemora that the word haSoton has a numerical value of 364 and that the Soton has no place on the day of Yom Kippur.

This is the tremendous gift of Yom Kippur. Even if I have blown the past 365 days I can in one short day build myself up and return completely. A person should not be discouraged by saying "how much can I pack in one day? I can't possibly have all the temptations of the year sitting in shul the whole day so I may as well give up. I have a whole year ahead of me to fail." This attitude is only true if the person did not build his spiritual potential on this day of Yom Kippur, then the person has not reached a level of true change. But if the person has absorbed the holiness of the day and built himself up then the return is complete. The person should never knock his ability to grow and return even in shoah achas, a very short period of time.

The source for this idea is in Hashem's response to Moshe after he has prayed with the Thirteen Attributes of Rachamim Hashem Hashem "hiney onochi koreis bris, neged kol amcho eh'ese niflo'os". The Ramban asks what Bris Covenant does Hashem refer to? What niflo'os are being referred to? And the Ramban answers the Bris is that "I will be with you in the hidden and deep". Hashem has defined the relationship with Klal Yisroel through T'shuva, a Covenant Bris which puts aside the part of Midas Hadin which requires the proof through action.

The question is what mechanism within the elements of T'shuva allows for this circumventing of the Midas Hadin requirement to "prove it"? There are various levels of justice but it must be consistent with truth. We can't just say that Hashem overlooks the requirements of Din. The answer is Vidui, a verbal confession of all his sins and wrongdoings. This is based on our understanding that Midas HaDin demands a test (“prove it”) to actualize the inner hidden spiritual potential of the person. The Beer Mayim Chaim in his seminal work Siduroh Shel Shabbos explains Midas HaDin that Din exists in order to force a person to live correctly, in accordance with the Torah life that Hashem has prescribed for Klal Yisroel. Therefore, we see that the purpose of Din is to bring out the hidden spiritual potential of a person to do Toiv Good into the open. When a person by his own free will confesses and admits to sinning and wrongdoing, the verbal confession brings upon him Din. And this Din breaks the barriers between the hidden and the open. If a person on his own will brings the hidden into the open then for such a person there is no need for the Midas Hadin to demand any further actualization, to “prove it”. The proof of actually withstanding a test is only to do just that, bring the hidden potential into the open. And the Vidui part of T’shuva accomplishes exactly that effect. May we all have a “Ve'Chasom l’Chaim Tovim".

Va'Ani Sefilosi and When I Pray

There's a famous Gemorah in Megilla daf 27b. Rav Huna came to Rav with a belt of rubber (some say grass). Rav asked him, where's your regular belt? Rav Huna was a respected Rosh Yeshiva and wore a fancy cummerbund. Rav Huna answered, I needed money to buy wine for kiddush so i pawned my cummerbund. Rav blessed him that he should be covered with silk. Some time after that Rav Huna's son was married. At that point Rav Huna had become wealthy. Rav Huna was lying on a bed resting and his daughters and daughters in law came in and didn't notice him. They threw their silk coats on him, fulfilling Rav's blessing. When Rav heard this he became angry. Why didn't you say: Ve'Chein L' Mar, and it should also be to the Master? Rashi explains, maybe that point in time was an Eis Ratzon, a moment of Divine favor and had you said Ve'Chein L'Mar I too would have been blessed.

Interesting story isn't it. The first Lubavitcher Rebbe, the holy Baal HaTanya ztz'l explains the concept of Eis Ratzon, a moment of Divine favor. He asks a question. The Ari Hakodosh ztz'l says that the third meal of Shabbos, seuda shlishis, or shalosh seudos, is a period of "Eis Ratzon", a Divinely favorable time. What does this mean? The time period when we in New York City are eating shalosh seudos, a favorable time, the Jews in Los Angeles are sleeping their Shabbos afternoon nap. Hardly an Eis Ratzon. The Baal HaTanya explains that this Eis Ratzon of shalosh seudos is not actually a time period but rather a concept of a spiritual state of being. Your spiritual essence is enveloped by a Divinely favorable aura.

With this story and the explanation of the Baal HaTanya we can understand a posuk in Tehilim that we say during mincha on Shabbos and every morning in the beginning of shachris in the Mah Tovu prayer. Before we take out the Torah on Shabbos at mincha we say the posuk, Va'ani sefilosi lecho Hashem Eis Ratzon, Elokim berov chasdechoh aneini b'emes yishecho. And as I pray to you Hashem, may it be an Eis Ratzon, propitious time. G-d in your abounding kindness answer me with your true deliverance. May we posit the following thought. Dovid HaMelech asked of Hashem that when a Jew prays to Hashem, that moment should become an Eis Ratzon, a Divine spiritual aura of favor and chesed. Va'ani sefilosi lecho Hashem, whenever I pray to you Hashem, the Holy Name of G-d that signifies rachamim, Eis Ratzon, I should be enveloped with an aura of Divine favor. And therefore, Elokim, the Name that signifies Din or justice, should become a G-d of abounding kindness, chesed, and answer all my prayers.

We can also homiletically interpret the posuk that we say every morning in Mah Tovu about Va'ani sefilosi that we ask for an eis ratzon at that time. If we start off each day by learning for a while, then we are enveloped in a spiritual aura that comes from our learning. As Chazal say that when we learn and quote a Gemorah of an Amora or Tanah that they come to us and learn with us. WE also say that be'mokom rinah som tehei tefilah. In the place that we learn we should daven. Because our learning brings an aura of eis ratzon over us and then our prayers will be accepted and answered for good. Ve'ani sefilosi lecho Hashem, when I dacen to you Hashem, let the Eis Ratzon that i brought on myself through my learning, Elokim be'rov chasdechoh, G-d please answer me with your divine grace. Omein.

Shoftim and Shotrim

Shoftim v’shotrim titein le’choh be’chol she’orechoh asher Hashem Elo’kechoh nosein lechoh. Judges and officers shall you appoint in all your cities (literally gates) which Hashem your G-d gives you. The Sfas Emes in 5631 tells us that the Chidushei Harim would say “the gateways that Hashem gives you”. The gateways to Hashem are also a gift from Hashem. The Sfas Emes goes on further to say that we should establish enforcers at the gateways to ourselves, i.e., our senses, our eyes and ears. We need to keep out corrupting influences.

A little elaboration on the Sfas Emes and this week’s parsha. We are commanded by the Torah to appoint or elect judges and officers, sheriffs marshals etc. The Torah uses the term “gates” rather than saying “in your cities”. Plain meaning is that the Sanhedrin of each city actually had its meeting place near the gates of the city. But the Sfas Emes explains that this can also mean gateways to our senses, to our own well-being and our lives. Every society institutes justice systems with judges and enforcers in order to protect the safety and well-being of the members of that society. So too should the Jewish nation. But we are more than just a society. Our society consists of individuals who constitute a whole, the whole made up of individuals and acting as a whole body so to speak and as an olam koton, a small world. And therefore many of the commandments which Hashem has given us to do as a nation can also be viewed as ways of individuals to live their lives, serving Hashem. The Sfas Emes constantly uses this theme.

As we go along in our lives we will encounter spiritual difficulties, situations which cause us to pause and think, what do I do now? Or real quandaries about where we’re going spiritually. Or simple temptations of the Yetzer Hora. As the Sfas Emes says our normal judgment can’t give us the correct answer. We need help. So one help is from what he says in the name of his grandfather, that the concept of “gates” to Hashem is also a gift from Hashem. And the concept of placing on yourself parameters in your life to protect you. So your first defense against the Yetzer Hora are these shoftim and shotrim you put up or that our sages have instituted for us. The second defense is just plain praying to Hashem to open the gates of His chesed to you so that you can enter and be protected.

And above all to always understand and to internalize this. There are two types of faith, emuna. There’s the intellectual faith (oxymoron? Not really, think about it). This is the faith In Hashem that you internally grow by learning Torah, which is chochma, knowledge. Then as you use your own intellect to understand this knowledge, you internalize it so that you can use the knowledge in various situations. This is binah, understanding. And as you grow further you gain an intellectual and deep insight into everything that you do and you realize that everything is from Hashem and that doing what He asks of you is real living. Now you have intellectual emuna, faith in Hashem. And after all this hard work to get where you are, to understand what you’ve learned and put it to work, you let go and you feel internally and strongly that you really don’t understand anything and you just believe in all that you learned simply because its there and Hashem gave it to you. Simple pure faith with no intellectual capacity at all.

This simple pure faith is the real shoftim and shotrim. Judges and enforcers are not supposed to have flexibility. They are by nature pure justice. Justice is blind, blind to any outside pressure or influence. Intellectual faith can be played with. The intellect by nature is flexible according to what your judgment tells you. But what if, as the Sfas Emes says, your judgment fails you? Or you don’t have enough judgment. Then your intellectual faith will fail you. Now you turn to your stoic judges blinded to outside pressure by blind justice, and that will protect you. No Mr. Yetzer Hora, you can’t convince me with your corrupted logic just because I have no answer. My answer is “because”. Because Hashem said so, because Chazal say so.

My father ztzl would say to me that as I go on in life, not always will I have a father or teacher or close friend to turn to for advice in spiritual situations where I’m not really sure what to do. The Yetzer Hora has its ways to convince you. But it doesn’t have a real clear argument when you bring up questions. His only “strong” argument - “what’s wrong with it?” Aha, you have no answer. Well then, so go do it, you have no answer, there’s nothing wrong with it. My father said, if you have no other answer but “what’s wrong with it”, DO NOT DO IT. Plain blind shoftim and shotrim in your life.

Pirkei Avos says “don’t believe in yourself”. Why? I learned, I grew in knowledge, I’m an intellectual, I’m a talmid chochom. Don’t believe in the inner yourself who tries to turn your head with just those factors, how much you know. You’re confused? Nobody to ask? Don’t ask yourself. Ask your shoftim and shotrim. The parameters which have been set up to protect you from the Yetzer Hora and its arguments. The parameters around your physical senses which are the gateways into your spiritual being. The parameters set up around the gateways to Hashem. Use your pure faith, the faith that is blind to outside pressure and influence, the blind judges and enforcers that our holy Chazal established. Then will your olam koton, small individual world, your own personal society, be safe and secure from outside corrupted influences.

Monday Morning Quarterbacking – Second Guessing Hashem

There’s a famous facetious adage, although somewhat heretical. If G-d would know what I know about this, He would have a different strategy or action plan. Basically it addresses second guessing Hashem. If we use 20-20 hindsight we’ll see that every situation in which the Jewish nation or a leader or an influential person had a lapse in judgment that led to an egregious transgression and ultimate failure or punishment, the beginning of it all was a second guessing of Hashem.

The Torah gave us a commandment, Lo Sosifu and Lo Sigre’u, we should neither add any commandments to the Torah nor subtract anything. We can understand the concept of subtracting from the Torah’s mitzvahs but adding. What’s wrong with adding mitzvahs? What’s wrong with becoming more frum?

Chazal tell us that in the case of Lo Sosifu, you should not add, that kol hamosif goreah, adding actually results in ruining the original. Chazal bring a well known example of this as the first time that a human second guessed Hashem. Hashem commanded Adom HoRishon not to eat from the fruits of the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge. Adom in his zeal to assure that this wouldn’t happen told Chava that Hashem commanded him not to eat and not to touch. Doesn’t this seem commendable on his part? Aren’t we actually commanded by the Torah to set up fences so that we don’t accidently transgress an original command? But the end result was a disaster. The primordial snake pushed Chava against the Tree, nothing happened and he said just like nothing happened when you touched the tree, nothing will happen if you eat its fruit. And the rest is history.

When the fledging Jewish nation approached the future Land of Israel they came to Moshe with the request to send a reconnaissance team to report back about the land and its inhabitants. Mistake number one, they should have had complete trust in Hashem, especially after experiencing all the previous miracles. Even so Hashem agreed to this request, actually making it into a commandment. The Sfas Emes states that making it into a mitzvah made these scouts messengers to do a mitzvah who would then have that added protection against the Yetzer Hora. But it didn’t work.

Many commentaries discuss what went wrong. Many also, while not condoning their action, tried to show a rationalization for why the spies tried to keep Klal Yisroel from entering Eretz Yisroel. The Yismach Moshe says that they clearly saw the high level of holiness that Eretz Yisroel, the Land itself, held. But, they also saw the concept of zeh le’umas zeh boroh Elokim, that there also existed a high level of spiritual corruption and impurity. The Meraglim were worried that the fledgling nation was not yet at the level of being able to withstand the temptations of this rampant corruption, idolatry and licentiousness. Especially if they had to become farmers to grow these examples of the fruit of this land and would become more concerned with materialism than spirituality.

The Meraglim second guessed Hashem. Hashem told the nation to get ready to enter the Land of Canaan. Hashem through Moshe stated many times that they had nothing to worry about. The Hand of G-d that took you out of Mitzrayim, that split the Yam Suf, that gave you Mohn to eat, would do all the fighting for you in Canaan. That also meant that Hashem who took you out of your physical Golus in Mitzrayim and took you out of the 49th level of impurity to Kedusha, would also protect your holiness and spirituality in Eretz Yisroel against the temptations of Eretz Canaan. Hashem states time and time again, trust Me. Yet they didn’t trust Hashem.

In the next Parsha we see Korach second guessing Hashem, even more egregiously. Korach actually came out against Moshe and Aaron, who he clearly knew and had seen their high degree of holiness. He questioned whether Hashem really did command all these things that he argued about, Tzitzis, Mezuza, Eiruv, etc.

And we can go on and on as we see in Tanach how the actions of the leaders and influential people were affected when they second guessed Hashem. Shaul HaMelech, when he decided not to slaughter the cattle and when he did not kill Agog. Shlomo HaMelech marrying more than a few wives and going against the Torah commandment not to marry too many wives. Yerovom setting up idols because he was worried about his nation rejoining Yehuda, the Davidic dynasty, even though Hashem told him that Yerovom would be the King of a new, separate nation. These aren’t just Biblical stories. These are all examples to us of how to react to our own situations. When confronted in real life with a situation when you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel, put your trust in Hashem. He is the Light at the end of your dark tunnel. When you know and you understand that the best path to travel is to follow the Torah and Yiddishkeit path, you don’t question what you’re doing but go ahead and trust in Hashem’s words. This includes not going overboard and reacting by being “too frum”, by saying that even though Hashem says to do a specific action, I’ll be frummer than that. The Gerrer Rebbe Shlita said that a holier than thou person doesn’t really mean serving Hashem. It means serving themselves, their own private idea of Yiddishkeit. Just walk a straight path. Hatznei leches im Hashem.

Eruv Shavuos - What Matters and what Anti-matters

There is an interesting article in the New York Times today concerning Creation, or what physicists generally believe, the Big Bang theory. The United States has spent billions of dollars in building the Fermi Lab accelerator, smashing atoms together to re-create the basic building block particles allegedly present at the exact point of the Big Bang. A European coalition has almost completed an even larger more powerful accelerator. A huge snag in the Standard Model of particle physics is that according to the basic precepts of Einstein’s theories of relativity and quantum mechanics, equal amounts of matter and anti-matter should have been created in the Big Bang and then immediately annihilated each other in a blaze of lethal energy, leaving a zero amount of matter with which to make stars, galaxies and us. And yet we exist, and physicists (among others) would dearly like to know why.

The Fermi Lab accelerator, in one of its high-energy collider experiments, found that the particle acceleration collisions actually produced two muon particles, a matter muon and an anti-matter muon. But the total of muons was slightly more than the anti-muons. The result is that matter has a slight edge against anti-matter and therefore we all exist. Whew nice to know.

We stand here today, erev Shavuos Zman Matan Torah, and we should open our intellectual eyes to what Chazal call the “blueprint” for creation, the Torah. Our Torah and Gemoroh are not rule books or history books or story books. Our Shulchan Orech is not a set of restrictive regulations. 3300 years ago we stood at Har Sinai and received a way of life that was intended to establish the Jewish people into a holy nation, “Mamleches Cohanim”, a nation of priests. The Torah’s way of life, with its daily minutiae of rules, is as much restrictive as the rules governing physics Standard Model. Each atomic particle and sub-particle has a reason for being what it is and where it is and how it acts and reacts in its surroundings. The Yiddishe neshomoh does too.

Chazal tell us that when Hashem created the universe he created two opposite and conflicting concepts, kedushoh holiness and its opposite, tov good and its opposite. Zeh le’umas zeh boroh Elokim, one opposite the other did G-d create. For everything that Hashem created in our corporeal universe He also created a spiritual intellectual mirror image. Anti-matter seeks to destroy matter, just as tumoh and evil seek to destroy kedushoh and good. But just as Hashem created the slight edge of matter particles over anti-matter particles, He created the universe with a slight edge of kedushoh and good over their opposites. That edge is the yiddishe neshomoh.

Chazal tell us to view the world as being on a scale of judgment and constantly being judged. A person should view the scale as being balanced, equal amounts of kedushoh and zchusim merits on one side and tumoh on the other side. And the actions of the yiddishe neshomoh will now decide which side overwhelms the other. If we do mitzvos and maasim tovim, good deeds and tzedokoh, then we tip the scales to the good meritorious side and to a good judgment. Chas vesholom the opposite. If the Jewish nation adheres to the quantum regulations of a Torah’dik life, then the Standard Model of Creation will hold together and we will exist. The existence of the whole world is based on the Jewish nation and its holy values and the Torah.

The Roshoh Son

The following novel interpretation of a famous passage in the Hagodoh is from my friend, D0vid Braun.

Everybody is familiar with the second son of the Hagodoh, the Roshoh. Let’s analyze this alleged Roshoh. Why call him a “wicked” son? Is he not sitting at a Seder, ostensibly religious and observant of Jewish traditions? For an answer let’s analyze the passage and the actual words and juxtaposition of these words with each other.

"The wicked son expresses himself thus: What mean You (Lochem) by this service? By the expression You, it is clear, he does not include himself, and as he has excluded himself from the collective body of the nation he has denied the basis. You should retort to him and answer him: This is done because of what Hashem did for Me (Li) when I went from Egypt; for Me, but not for him; for had he been there, he would not have been thought worthy to be redeemed."

The Hagodoh expresses the Roshoh son as using the plural You, Lochem, instead of the singular Lecho. Why, isn’t he talking to his father? And doesn’t his father go on to answer him, Li velo Lo, for Me, in the singular? Further, the Hagodoh states that it is clear that he doesn’t include himself and therefore he has excluded himself from the nation. Why does his statement of Lochem exclude him from Klal Yisroel and what’s the meaning of this juxtaposition of Lochem with his denial of basic aspects of the Jewish religion? And why does this all make him so unworthy of the redemptive Exodus from Mitzrayim?

Further on the Hagodoh states, VeHi she’omdoh, And This is what stood with us throughout the generations. Which “This”? Many commentaries interpret this to mean that our Emunas Chachomim, faith in the authority of our sages, carried us through the generations. Our faith that our sages transfer our traditions and laws and interpret them in accordance with Divine-given and Divine-inspired authority. Where does this authority come from? Rashi states at the very beginning of Bereishis that the Torah should have started from Hachodesh Hazeh Lochem. Why, because this is the foundation of Klal Yisroel; the commandment that the onset of each month and thus the observance of each holiday are determined by the Rabbis.

What does this mean? That if the Beis Din determines that the month of Tishrei is tomorrow Monday, or the next day Tuesday, Rosh Hashonoh is on Monday or Tuesday. And that means that Hashem, the Almighty Omnipotent G-d, will not sit on His Throne of Judgment and judge the world until the day that the Jewish Beis Din has decided is Rosh Hashonoh. Some authority isn’t it?

Thus we see that the word “Lochem” means that the Rabbis were divinely granted the authority to interpret Torah laws. This is the basic concept of Torah Shel Baal Peh, the Oral Tradition. The Lochem commandment was given at the same time as the announcement to Klal Yisroel that they were to be redeemed this month of Nissan. Thus the Rabbis' Lochem authority is closely connected to the geulah redemption.

Now we can understand what is wrong with the Roshoh’s statement. The Roshoh truly is a “religious observant” Jew. If not he wouldn’t be sitting at the Seder. However he doesn’t feel the need to recognize the full authority of our rabbinical tradition. His question is what is this Lochem authority that you allege to have received? By asking this question he removes himself from the basic foundation of our nation, VeHi She’omdoh, this Emunas Chachomim that has carried us through the generations. And by denying the existence of the Lochem authority, as connected to the redemption, he has clearly indicated that just as he doesn’t recognize the Lochem, so too he isn’t worthy of the Exodus redemption.

Parshas Tzav - Lifting Up Your Ashes

Parshas Tzav starts off by commanding Aaron the Kohen Godol concerning the daily Mishkan service of Terumas Hadeshen, “Uplifting of Ashes”, taking a handful of ashes remaining from the overnight burning of the sacrifices on the altar and placing it near the altar in a special pile. This service was the first done in the morning and the last at night. However the actual language of the mitzvah begins with Zos Toras Ha’Olah, this is the law concerning an Olah sacrifice, which was offered as an entirely burnt offering. And then goes on to command that the fire on the altar should always burn, day and night. The entire section concerning the Mishkan service of Terumas Hadeshen must be connected. And I would like to posit that the connection concerns how we should act and serve Hashem, especially since the services and rites of the Bais HaMikdosh are no longer with us.

Chazal tell us that the Olah korban was generally brought to atone for impure thoughts. We learn this from the military campaign that Pinchos fought against Midyan after the Jews had sinned with the Midianite women. After the battle Pinchos brought sacrifices on behalf of the men in the army and said to Moshe Rabbeinu that they were being offered as atonement for any impure thoughts the soldiers may have had during the battle. Therefore all Olah sacrifices were to be burnt entirely on the altar, to connote that the impure thoughts were entirely rooted out of our minds.

The Torah teaches us how to lead our lives in a pure and holy fashion. Hashem knows that we are human with the frailties of a corporeal creature and an animal spirit existing together with a holy G-d created soul. And that this corporeal part may cause impure thoughts and actions. However we were provided by Hashem with the means of atoning and purifying ourselves. And we’ve been given the means to protect ourselves from impure thoughts, if we follow the dictates and life style that the Torah offers us. Chazal say that a person’s heart is a mini-Mishkan and mizbeach, altar. Besoch Libi Mishkan Evneh, within my heart I will build a personal sanctuary to Hashem and I will build a personal altar. The Torah that we learn, the mitzvos that we do, and our Torah lifestyle that we live, all of this can be compared to the wood that the kohanim placed on the altar during the day to ensure that the fire burns constantly.

Chazal tell us that we should make a cheshbon hanefesh, a daily accounting of our actions, each night before we go to sleep. Each morning we wake up and give thanks to Hashem for returning our souls. When we realize that we had impure thoughts, we should immediately do teshuva and “burn” these thoughts on our internal altar, in our internal mishkan. Burn, with what? With the daily Torah living and mitzvos that we’ve done, acting as the wood to burn away anything impure. And every morning as we wake up and give thanks to Hashem, we should also thank Hashem for giving us the means to atone. This is comparable to the taking of the ashes from the altar. We “lift up” the impure thoughts by replacing them with thoughts of Torah and yiddishkeit, actually “burning” away the impure thoughts. And the “ashes” that remain are then offered to Hashem as proof that we did teshuva.

Zos Toras Ha’Olah, the Torah that we learn and follow becomes the vehicle with which we can burn our impure thoughts. This is the Olah which burns on the altar all night with the flames of the mitzvos that we did all day. In the morning we can clothe our souls with the pure clothes of Torah living and then offer the “burnt ashes” of our impure thoughts to Hashem, who will then surely forgive us and provide us with the means to live a Torah life.

Egoz, Sin or Good?

There’s an old Polish Chasidic Yiddish adage, attributed to Rebbe R’ Binom of Przischa, oib m’leigt tzi en oihr tzum seder, hert men shofer bluzen. If you listen carefully at the Seder, you hear the blowing of the Shofer. Odd isn’t, makes no sense at first glance. Actually there are many Chasidic interpretations of this. I’d like to posit mine here.

A well known traditional taboo on Rosh Hashono is the eating of egoz, walnuts. The reason is that the Hebrew letter numerical value or gematria of egoz is chet or sin. Egoz is 17 and chet without the alef is 17. However 17 is also the numerical value of the word Tov or Good. Why are we concerned with the bad aspect of 17 being sin when we can look at the good aspect of 17, Tov?

Chazal state that the month of Elul is a time for teshuva, repentance. Elul is always referred to as a period of trying to increase one’s yiraas shomayim, fear of Heaven or fear of sinning. Elul precedes Tishrei which begins with Rosh Hashono and Yom Kippur and the intermediary Days of Awe, all filled with trepidation over the judgement of Hashem on Rosh Hashono and the hope for repentance and forgiveness on Yom Kippur. Chazal state that teshuva that comes through fear of G-d’s retribution for our sins results in the egregious or “meizid” sins becoming “shegogos” or sins of mere negligence rather than on purpose.

The month of Adar is a month of simcha, joy, the simcha of Torah and mitzvos. Following Adar is the month of Nissan, of geula or redemption. Chasidish commentaries interpret this to mean that the month of Adar precedes Nissan as Elul precedes Tishrei. As Elul’s fear of G-d brings the teshuva of Tishrei, so does Adar’s simcha and ahavo for Hashem bring teshuva from ahavo during Nissan. Thus the repentance of Nissan brings a higher degree of forgiveness, the level of teshuva from ahavo which turns meizid sins into actual mitzvos, rather than into sins of negligence.

This may be the interpretation of the saying, listen to the Seder and your hear shofer. Look at your Seder and the service that it involves. Seder means Order, there’s an order and meaning to everything we do at the Seder. We have Morror which is bitter and then becomes sweet to connote that the golus of Mitzrayim was initially terrible but resulted in our redemption and receiving the Torah. We have Charoses which connotes the mortar used to build the walls of the cities by the enslaved Jews. The Seder teaches us that throughout the golus we know that Hashem is watching over us and will redeem us.

Look at Rosh Hashono. Look at the minhag of not eating walnuts because it connotes 17 which also connotes sinning. But during Tishrei we still have the trepidation of our sins because we only have the level of teshuva out of fear. However on Pesach, in Nissan, when our teshuva is out of joy and love, we aren’t afraid of our sins because they’ve turned into mitzvos. And therefore we now can take the very same walnuts or egoz which we did not eat during Tishrei and actually use them as part of the charoses and as part of the Seder. We have turned the 17 of egoz into the 17 of Tov, Good.

Parshas Poroh

The Shabbosim between Purim and Rosh Chodesh Nissan are called Parshas Poroh and then Parshas Hachodesh. Various Chasidishe seforim explain the order this way. Adar is a month known for simcha or joy. We know that a major reason for the redemption and miracles of Purim was that Haman had chosen a month of simcha and actually ended up giving us an additional holiday or day of simcha in this month. Through simcha we can merit geula or redemption. Thus the month of Adar comes before the month of Nissan, the month of geula. Just as these months will ultimately result in the Final Redemption for all of Klal Yisroel, as it did at Yetzias Mitzrayim, so too does each individual Jew have the opportunity to merit an individual redemption from his own Mitzrayim, or subjugation to the Yetzer Horah. How? Through simcha and this simcha is the pure spiritual joy of Torah and Mitzvos.

We know that Elul comes before Tishrei in the same way. Elul is a month of Yirah or Fear which comes before Tishrei, a month of Teshuva or Repentance and then Atonement. However this is a lower form of teshuva, repentance through the fear of punishment. Contrast this with the simcha of Adar which results in the geula of Nissan. This is teshuva from ahavoh for Hashem, and for Torah and mitzvos. This results in a higher level of atonement and thus a real geula or redemption from the Yetzer Horah.

In order to fully merit a higher level of teshuva and thus a higher level of atonement we need to purify ourselves. Therefore Chazal mandated reading the parsha of Poroh Aduma after achieving a level of simcha from Purim and prior to the parsha of Hachodesh. Poroh Aduma teaches us to achieve spiritual purification and be able to raise our souls and our minds to the level of Hachodesh Hazeh Lochem, this month of Nissan with a geula achieved through simcha, the simcha of Torah and Mitzvos, will imbue us with a hischadshus, complete renewal, as homiletically derived from hachodesh. As we know that teshuva from ahavoh results in the sins transforming into mitzvos and that we then become baalei teshuva who are on a higher level than tzadikim.

Moshe Rabbeinu remained in a spiritual heavenly state for 40 days and nights after Kabolas HaTorah receiving the whole Torah from Hashem. After Moshe destroyed the Golden Calf he again remained in heaven for another 40 days and nights. The Sfas Emes explains the need for Moshe to be in heaven for an additional 40 days and nights as his need to relearn the Torah on a new level, that of baal teshuva. Why baal teshuva? Moshe hadn’t sinned. But Moshe Rabbeinu was so attuned to Klal Yisroel that since they had sinned and done teshuva, he too was on this level of teshuva. And therefore he could only teach them Torah after learning it on this new level of baal teshuva.

Rashi cites Chazal on the concept of Poroh Aduma, “Let the mother or cow be sacrificed in order to clean up the sin of its child, the calf. This Poroh sacrifice is completely different than any other sacrifice. All other sacrifices have some concept of usefulness, and are all brought on the Holy Altar. Most sacrifices are eaten by the Kohanim and some also by their owners and any other Jews, as well as part of the animal being brought as an offering burnt on the Altar. Even the Korban Oleh which is completely burnt is brought to the Altar. The Poroh Aduma however, is completely burnt, meat and bones and blood, without any part offered to Hashem, so to speak. All that remains are seemingly dry unproductive ashes.

However it is these dry ashes that will purify anything that has become spiritually unclean by contact with a dead person. Death seems to be the end of the line and seems to connote a new level, an unproductive or dead state. Contact with this state brings a sense of despair to the individual. The person now requires a purification process to bring them back to a state of purity and a sense of renewed life. The mitzvah of using the ashes of the Poroh in the purification process is by adding the ashes to a vessel filled with “living waters” or water that has been taken from a water source that renews itself constantly, a water spring.

What can we learn from this in our current state of galus without a Beis Hamikdosh and the ashes of the Poroh Aduma? As I stated earlier, Chazal instituted the reading of Parshas Poroh before Parshas Hachodesh to purify ourselves before our accomplishing a redemption from our personal Mitzrayims. As we realize that we are in a state of subjugation or Mitzrayim to the Yetzer Horah through our sins, we can fall into a state of despair and thus fall into a rut of uselessness, without Torah and mitzvos. Through the simcha of Adar we achieve teshuva from ahavoh and we merit a full redemption. The Poroh's dry unproductive ashes, mixed with the living waters, purified the person. So too today can the living waters of Torah and mitzvos take away the dry despair of our sins and purify us. Chazal say that Ein simcha eloh Torah, Torah is the true source of simcha or joy. So again, through the simcha of Adar and the simcha of the living water of Torah will we earn the level of hischadshus, renewal, with the geula of Nissan and the higher level of baal teshuva from ahavoh, love for Hashem and His Torah.

Two Staffs - Three Stories

My friend Rabbi Dr. Sheldon Epstein said this at a sheva brochos. I'd like to post it here.

There are three instances in Tanach that relate the relationships of individual staffs, in Hebrew a "sheivet", to each other. The first is when Moshe and Aaron first come to Pharoah and tell him that Hashem the G-d of Yisroel wants His people to go out of Mitzrayim and serve G-d for three days. As part of their session with Pharoah, Aaron throws his staff down and it turns into a snake. The magicians of Mitzrayim do the same and their staffs also turn into snakes. The Torah then relates that Aaron's staff swallowed up the magicians' staffs.

The second occurance is after the revolt and downfall of Korach. Hashem tells Moshe to take Aaron's staff and a staff from each Tribe and to put them into the Mishkan overnight. Aaron's staff blooms and grows almonds. The other staffs remain plain wooden staffs. This proved to everybody that Aaron was the Holy Kohen Godol.

The third time is in Yechezkel 37 which is the Haftorah of Vayigash. Hashem sends a prophecy to Yechezkel and tells him to take two staffs and write on one Yehuda and Yisroel and on the second Efrayim and Yisroel. Yechezkel should bring the two staffs together and they will become united in his hand and be joined as one staff. This is to show that when Moshiach comes all of Bais Yisroel will again be united as one nation, not as two separate states of Yehuda and Yisroel.

Whenever Tanach relates various occurances with a common underlying theme we can learn a moral or musser haskel from this. When the story concerned Pharoah, one staff swallowed the others. Not a great situation. When the story concerned Korach, a moreid b'malchus, one staff bloomed while the others remained plain wood. Again not a great situation. The third time was to Yechezkel, a holy prophet and this time the two staffs were united, a good finale.

When two people are married, two separate staffs coming together to spend their lives together, three different situations can occur. One spouse can literally be so strong as to swallow the character of the other, not a good situation. One spouse can be so strong as to bloom and grow, leaving the other spouse in their wake. Again not a good situation. But if the two spouses, through the strength and holiness of the Torah, as symbolized by the holy prophet, unite and merge together and become one family unit, then this is a good situation and this is what Hashem says to Yechezkel, this is what I want you to accomplish. A union of two people who will thrive and grow al pi Torah and yiddishkeit.