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CHUMASH
Parshas Vayechi - Sheini with Rashi
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In today’s Chumash, Yaakov begins to give the bracha to Efrayim and Menasheh.
Yaakov couldn’t see so well anymore because of his old age, so Yosef brought his sons in and brought them close to Yaakov. Yaakov hugged and kissed them! He said to Yosef, “I didn’t even think I would be able to see YOU, and Hashem even showed me now your children!”
After Yaakov kissed them, Yosef had his sons move away a little, and bowed to the ground before his father. Yosef then put Efrayim and Menasheh in the proper place to be bentched by Yaakov. He put Menasheh, who was older, near Yaakov’s right hand, and Efrayim near Yaakov’s left hand. This way, the older son would receive a bracha from Yaakov’s right hand.
But Yaakov purposely switched his hands, and put his right hand on Efrayim!
Yaakov bentched Yosef about the children. “May Hashem, Who Avraham and Yitzchak followed, and Who has always taken care of me and sent me a malach to take care of me, give these boys a bracha. They should be known with my name and the names of the Avos, and they should have many children like fish do, without being afraid of an Ayin Hara.”
The Rebbe tells us another reason why Yaakov bentched them that they should be like fish. Fish can’t be separated from the water, where they get their chayus. Yaakov was giving a bracha for Menashe and Efrayim that they should also be one with the source of their chayus, Hashem. By always being connected to Hashem’s Ratzon and avodah, they will always be a good keili to get brachos from Hashem. (Likutei Sichos chelek Chof-Hey p. 11)
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Kapitel Mem-Tes is a lesson to everyone, especially about the “small” aveiros that people think aren’t a big deal.
One of the pesukim in this kapitel says “...Avon Akeivai Yesubeini” — “the aveiros of my heels surround me.” Dovid Hamelech is saying that a person should not only be worried that he’s not keeping the “big” mitzvos that are written in the Torah or taught by the Chachomim. He needs to think about the “small” mitzvos, which he might not be keeping as carefully.
The Rebbe teaches that when we say this posuk in Tehillim, we are referring to the Chassidishe minhagim — like saying Chitas or having Ahavas Yisroel for a Yid you never met. Even though we are careful about keeping Shabbos and davening, we might not be as careful with our “small” mitzvos. We need to make sure that we are keeping ALL of our mitzvos properly!
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Tes
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In short: We learn that the Nefesh Habehamis has its “home” in the left side of the heart, while Nefesh Elokis has its “home” in the brain and the right side of the heart. From there, they can influence the whole body.
The Alter Rebbe taught us that a person has two nefashos, a Nefesh Elokis, and a Nefesh Habehamis.
To do their job, they each have tools — 10 kochos of sechel (understanding) and midos (feeling). These kochos are all inside, and we can’t see them! We can see them in action only when they use their levushim — the koach to make us think, talk, and act (machshava, dibur, and maaseh) in their own way — the Nefesh Elokis in Torah and mitzvos, and the Nefesh Habehamis in Gashmius with no purpose to serve Hashem.
Today the Alter Rebbe teaches us how this works:
Even though these two nefashos are ruchnius (we can’t see them or touch them — even with an x-ray), they work inside of us! They are part of the blood, which brings ruchnius’dike AND gashmius’dike chayus to every single part of the body.
The Nefesh Habehamis has a “home” in the left side of a person’s heart, and the Nefesh Elokis has a “home” in a person’s mind and then in the right side of the heart.
(The heart is hollow. It has two main parts: One side is full of blood that already went around the body and now needs more oxygen (the Alter Rebbe calls this side “empty” of blood). From there it gets oxygen from our lungs and is pumped to the other side, which spreads that chayus’dike blood all over the body.
The Nefesh Habehamis is in the side that’s full of oxygen-full blood. The Nefesh Elokis is in the “empty” side.)
Here’s an example of how the Nefesh Habehamis works:
Let’s say someone took one of your things without asking first. You might start to feel angry! That feeling of anger is from the Nefesh Habehamis, who “lives” in the heart and comes up with different feelings. Now the Nefesh Habehamis can try to send that angry feeling all over your body: It can send it to your mind, so you can think about how angry you are or try to think of ways to get him back. Then you might decide to use that angry koach it sent to your face, and make a mean face. Or you might use the koach it sent to your hands, and try to hurt him chas veshalom!
The Nefesh Elokis, though, has a “home” in the mind. It uses the sechel tools of the mind — Chochma, Bina, and Daas — first. If the Nefesh Elokis comes up with an idea about how great Hashem is, we can use it in our mind, by thinking more about all of the things Hashem does. Then it can also send that chayus all over our body — even to our heart! That can make us have good feelings, like loving Hashem and loving another Yid, whose neshama is a part of Hashem!
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Our minhag in Aleinu is that we say “Sheheim Mishtachavim Lahevel Velarik” — that the goyim bow down to things that are really nothing. (Others have a minhag to say that they bow to nothing and DAVEN to Avodah Zarah that can’t help, but that’s not our minhag.) We also say Aleinu this way when we say it in the middle of Musaf on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur.
Our minhag is to spit after we say these words, because when a person talks, it brings saliva into your mouth. We don’t want to swallow saliva that came from saying these words, so we spit it out.
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SEFER HAMITZVOS
Shiur #154 - Mitzvas Lo Saasei #68, #165, Asei #31, Lo Saasei #77, #78
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Today we learn more mitzvos about keeping the Beis Hamikdash holy:
1) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #68) A Kohen is not allowed to go into the part called the Kodesh unless he has a reason to do avodah there. The Kohen Gadol also is not allowed to go into the Kodesh HaKodoshim even on Yom Kippur, unless it is to do the Avodah.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Acharei: וְאַל יָבֹא בְכָל עֵת אֶל הַקֹּדֶשׁ
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #165) A Kohen is not allowed to leave the Beis Hamikdash in the middle of his avodah. A Kohen Gadol is not allowed to leave the Beis Hamikdash during his avodah even if he finds out that a close relative passed away.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Shemini: וּמִפֶּתַח אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד לֹא תֵצְאוּ
3) (Mitzvas Asei #31) We need to take people who are tamei out of the Beis Hamikdash.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Naso: וִישַׁלְּחוּ מִן הַמַּחֲנֶה כָּל צָרוּעַ וְכָל זָב וְכֹל טָמֵא לָנָפֶשׁ
4) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #77) A person who is Tamei is not allowed to go into the Beis Hamikdash.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Naso: וְלֹא יְטַמְּאוּ אֶת מַחֲנֵיהֶם
The details are explained in the beginning of Mesechta Shevuos, and in Mesechta Horios, and Mesechta Kerisus, and in places in Mesechta Zevachim.
5) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #78) Certain people who are Tamei are not even allowed onto the Har Habayis, the mountain where the Beis Hamikdash stands!
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Ki Seitzei: לֹא יָבֹא אֶל תּוֹךְ הַמַּחֲנֶה
The details are explained in the beginning of Mesechta Keilim.
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RAMBAM
Hilchos Biyas HaMikdash
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In Rambam, we learn about today's mitzvos:
Perek Beis: A kohen is not allowed to go into the Kodesh without a good reason, and the Kohen Gadol is not allowed to go into the Kodesh Hakodoshim except on Yom Kippur to do the Avodah. We also learn what happens if a kohen is an avel, mourning for someone.
Perek Gimmel: People who are tamei are not allowed to come into the Beis Hamikdash. One halacha is that if a person who is tamei comes in by climbing over the roof, or in a box flying in the air, he doesn't get Kareis, but he does get Makas Mardus — malkos from the Beis Din.
Perek Daled: We learn about how a kohen who is tamei is not allowed to do ANY avodah in the Beis Hamikdash.
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In today’s Rambam, we learn many halachos about neighbors. There are some things you CAN do even if your neighbors don’t like it, and other things that you CAN’T do because they bother someone else.
We learn about upstairs and downstairs neighbors who share a house or part of a mountain garden. One halacha is that if the house falls down, the person downstairs HAS to build his part of the house so that the upstairs neighbor can build his. If he doesn’t, the upstairs neighbor can build the bottom floor and live there himself until his neighbor pays him back for all of his work.
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We know the Yom Tov of Hey Teves is when it was decided that all of the seforim belong in 770! But do you know that there are still many seforim from the libraries of the Rebbeim that still didn’t come back? There are seforim from the libraries of the Rebbe Rashab and the Frierdiker Rebbe, with things that the other Rebbeim wrote by hand, and many other seforim and books!
Recently, the Russian government gave permission for many of these to be stored in a Jewish museum in Russia, which IY”H is a step in bringing them back to the Rebbe’s library.
The Rebbe told us that there is a way for us to help get these seforim to go free! There are many seforim in the seforim stores that are where they don’t belong. By us buying them (for ourselves or others) and putting them on the shelves and shtenders and tables in our houses, we can set those seforim free! And when we set THOSE seforim free, Hashem will also help the seforim in Russia to go free!
See sicha Parshas Vayigash 5752
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▼ Jump to Coloring Books & Downloads ▼
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In the beginning of our siddur, there is a page with davening for young children. This is a short davening, with just Modeh Ani, Al Netilas Yodayim, Torah Tziva, the bracha on tzitzis (for boys), and Shema until Uvisharecha.
Why is the posuk Torah Tziva in davening?
The Gemara teaches that when a child starts to learn how to talk, we teach him the pesukim of Torah Tziva and Shema. These two pesukim are the first ones we should make sure kids know!
Of course, the Rebbe put these pesukim first in the Twelve Pesukim, and we see that they are also in the davening for young children!
Why is the posuk of Torah Tziva so important?
This posuk tells us that the Torah, which was commanded to us through Moshe Rabbeinu belongs to every Yid! The posuk says that it is “Morasha Kehillas Yaaakov,” a yerusha for Bnei Yisroel. A yerusha is something you get automatically, just for being! You don’t have to be a certain age, you don’t have to deserve it, or even know how to use it! The Torah is OUR yerusha, it belongs to each of us, no matter how old we are, just because we are Yidden!
The first thing we need to know, at the beginning of our chinuch, is that the Torah, which connects us to Hashem, belongs to every Yid from the day he is born!
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In our new books from Hey Teves, make sure to write “LaHashem Ha’aretz Umloah” — the whole world and everything inside belongs to Hashem — before writing your name!
Here is another halacha about seforim:
Seforim have Hashem’s holy Torah inside. We need to treat seforim with kavod.
If we see a sefer upside down, we shouldn’t leave it. We should turn it the right way!
See Kitzur Shulchan Aruch siman Chof- Ches se’if vov
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לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
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There are many ways to learn Torah! One of the ways is called “remez,” a hint. Even when Torah is talking about one thing, it can sometimes hint to something else too!
When we learn about Modeh Ani in a way of Remez, we see that it hints to Techiyas Hameisim!
How?
The Gemara teaches us that when a person sleeps, it is a small part (60th) of death. So when Hashem gives us back our neshama, it is a little bit like Techiyas Hameisim, when Hashem will make people who passed away become alive again!
When we learn Modeh Ani this way, it helps us have another kavana in the words: We say, “Shehechezarta Bi Nishmasi,” because You gave me back my neshama, “Raba Emunasecha,” we see that Your emunah is great — we can rely on Hashem to also give back every Yid’s neshama in the time of Techiyas Hameisim!
See Kuntres Inyana Shel Toras Hachassidus, os yud
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לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
נפטר ב' מנחם אב ה'תשע"ג
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Give children around the world the gift of Kids Chitas!
KidsChitas.org/sponsor
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