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CHUMASH

Parshas Tzav - Chamishi with Rashi

In today’s Chumash, Moshe Rabbeinu brings the Korban Chatas and the Korban Olah for the first day of the Yemei Miluim! He puts the blood around the Mizbeiach, and now it is ready to be used for more korbanos!

The Alter Rebbe teaches us something very special in the Likutei Torah of this week, the “Chassidishe Parsha!”

Do you remember learning Bosi Legani? In the maamar Bosi Legani we learn that the Shechinah used to be down here in the world, but because of aveiros it went up in Shomayim. Certain tzadikim were able to bring it down further and further, and when Moshiach comes the Shechinah will be back in the world to stay!

As we learned in the maamar, Moshe Rabbeinu, who was the seventh of these tzadikim, was the one who was able to bring the Shechinah all the way back to the earth. And when did he do this? During the Shivas Yemei Hamiluim, the seven days of preparing the Mishkan, that we are learning about now!

That was a taste of the way it will be when Moshiach comes, when the highest level of the Ikar Shechinah will come down into the world to stay!

 
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TEHILLIM

44 - 48

Two of the kapitelach in today’s Tehillim speak about the war of Gog Umagog before Moshiach comes. Afterwards, everyone will throw away their weapons, and there will be no more war!

During a war, soldiers have certain mitzvos to keep. In a Yud-Alef Nisan farbrengen, the Rebbe spoke about one of these mitzvos, and the lesson it teaches us in Ahavas Yisroel!

In a war, soldiers have the mitzvah of “Al Yerach Levavchem,” that they are not allowed to be afraid.

But how can we expect the soldiers to keep this mitzvah? How can we tell them not to be afraid? War is scary — they see so many people getting hurt, they see how dangerous it is! It is normal to be scared.

The Rambam explains that the mitzvah is in thinking. The soldiers are not allowed to think about the scary parts, they need to instead think about what they are supposed to be doing! That way they can do their part in fighting without getting worried or afraid.

The Rebbe tells us that the same thing is true with Ahavas Yisroel!

The mitzvah of Ahavas Yisroel is the mitzvah to love another Jew. But how can we expect someone to feel that they love someone? It’s normal not to like everyone we see. We only feel that we love certain people!

Like the mitzvah for soldiers, the mitzvah of Ahavas Yisroel is for us to think things that will make us want to love another Jew! We think about their maalos, how special it is that they have a neshama, and how Hashem loves them as His only child! Then, eventually, we will be able to fulfill the mitzvah of actually FEELING a love for another Yid!

See farbrengen Yud-Alef Nisan Tof-Shin-Lamed-Ches

 
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TANYA

Likutei Amarim Perek Lamed-Tes

We are learning about the kavana we have when we serve Hashem.

One of the types of kavana we can have can be compared to an animal: We do the mitzvah because Hashem made us in a way that we have a built-in love for Hashem and Yiras Shomayim! (That’s the Ahava Mesuteres, and the koach of Mesiras Nefesh we are born with. We only need to remind ourselves of it to be able to use it to serve Hashem!)

All of the things an animal does are just because that’s how Hashem made them. They run to get food, they run away from scary things, and they stay away from certain smells.

There is another type of kavana that is compared to a person, who has sechel and is able to think. For this kind of kavana, someone needs to spend time thinking about the greatness of Hashem. This will create a feeling of love for Hashem! This kind of kavana is usually the avodah of a tzadik.

Even though for most of us the main kavana is using the natural Ahava we have for Hashem, we shouldn’t feel bad — malochim feel that way too! They also serve Hashem in a natural way, just because that’s how they’re made.

But our avodah isn’t as easy — we need to work harder than malochim! We have to do iskafya to keep the mitzvos, NOT doing what our body wants. That gives Hashem a lot of nachas, and accomplishes great things in Shomayim! Because of that, on Shabbos and Rosh Chodesh, a neshama in Gan Eden gets to go up to a higher level of Ruchnius! There the neshama has great pleasure, because it can feel Hashem in a much stronger way.

(The neshama goes from Gan Eden HaTachton, which is the world of Yetzirah, up to Gan Eden HaElyon, the world of Beriyah.)

Our neshamos can only “visit” the higher levels of Ruchnius but our mitzvos actually BECOME part of these higher levels of Ruchnius! The neshama in Gan Eden is able to feel some of the kedusha that shines from the mitzvos it did!

 
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HAYOM YOM

Ches Nisan

In today’s Hayom Yom, we learn an explanation on a posuk in Tehillim, which is part of the Rebbe’s new kapitel this year, Kapitel Kuf-Yud-Tes!

Every neshama is sent down to the world with a special shlichus that it needs to do. We aren’t born just to do things that are easy for us — we need to find the things in ourselves that are NOT the way they should be, and our neshama should fix them.

How do we know which things need to be fixed? There’s a posuk from Tehillim that says, “MeiOivai Techakmeini Mitzvosecha, Ki Le’Olam Hi Li.” One of the ways to explain this posuk is, “From my enemies I become wise about Your mitzvos, because they (the mitzvos) are always with me.”

How do we become wise to figure out which mitzvos are our job to work on? By thinking about the not-good midos that we have, our “enemies.” When we see what is not good in our behavior and hard for us, we will know that those things are what our neshamos need to work hard to fix most!

 
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SEFER HAMITZVOS

Shiur #241 - Mitzvas Asei #109

Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #109) is the same as yesterday’s — to keep the halachos of Mikvah, where people and Keilim can become Tahor from most kinds of Tumah.

This mitzvah comes from a posuk in Parshas Metzora: וְרָחַץ בַּמַּיִם אֶת כָּל בְּשָׂרוֹ

The details are explained in Mesechta Mikvaos and Tvul Yom.

 
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RAMBAM

Hilchos Mikvaos

In today’s Rambam, we learn more about the Mikvah.

Perek Ches tells us when we can join things to make one Mikvah. For example, if there is another pool of ANY kind of water touching a mikvah, then EITHER of them can be used as a Mikvah! (That’s the way our mikvah is usually made today — there is a Mikvah with rainwater underground, and then the pool of water we actually dip into is connected with a hole to the rainwater underneath.)

Perek Tes teaches us six levels of Mikvah. The highest level is a spring of water. This level of Mikvah needs to be used for things like the water that gets mixed with the ashes of the Parah Adumah (Mei Nidah) which needs water with the highest level of tahara!

In Perek Yud the Rambam teaches us about times when we’re not sure about something. What if we’re not sure that there was enough water in the mikvah? What if we’re not sure that the water that fell in the Mikvah was enough to make it posul?

 
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RAMBAM PEREK ECHOD

Hilchos Malveh VeLoveh - Perek Yud

Usually we say that whoever has something, we assume that it is his. If someone else says it isn’t, that other person needs to prove it, or else the Beis Din won’t take it away. (“Hamotzi Meichaveiro, Alav HaRaaya”) But in this perek, we learn that we don’t always say that about an animal, who might wander off, or a servant who can walk around on his own.

 
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INYANA D'YOMA

Yud-Alef Nissan

On a birthday, the Rebbe tells us, it’s important to think about the reason why a person is born. In many of the Yud-Alef Nissan farbrengens, and also on Yud-Beis Tammuz, the Frierdiker Rebbe’s birthday, the Rebbe would explain about the reason why Hashem brought the neshama into the world, based on the posuk from Iyov, “Adam La’amal Yulad” — a person was born to work hard. Hashem made it this way so that we should have the zechus to be a partner with Hashem in making the world the way it should be.

There are four main kinds of hardships that people go through during their lives. They are hinted to in the four categories of people who need to bring a Korban Todah when they are saved from a danger:

1) A sick person who got better — We need to have a healthy Yiddishe head and heart. If we are sick, chas veshalom, we won’t be able to serve Hashem properly.

2) A person who gets out of jail — When the Yetzer Hara doesn’t let the neshama do what it wants, it is a kind of Ruchnius “jail.” Sometimes a Yetzer Hara can become so strong in the person’s mind or heart that it feels like he can’t control himself! This is another big challenge.

3) Going on a trip over the sea — Many years ago, people didn’t travel very much — usually they would only travel if they needed to for parnasa. A person might feel like they are drowning, because they are so worried about having enough money for things. Being worried about parnasa can make it very hard for a Yid to serve Hashem.

4) Going over the midbar — A desert is a place where nobody lives. The world can feel like a desert, because we can’t see Hashem in the world. Our job is to make sure that we CAN see Hashem, a Dira Betachtonim. But it can be a hard job to make our families, communities, and the world look the way Hashem wants.

These are struggles that every Yid has to deal with, but we can have bitachon that Hashem will help us! We need to work hard and do our very best, and feel sure that with Hashem’s help we will succeed. Then we will thank Hashem for the nissim that he has done for us to help us to be successful in our Shlichus and bring Moshiach now!

From Maamar Hagomel Yud-Beis Tammuz 5743

 

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TEFILLAH

Shabbos Davening

Hashem wants people to work for their parnasa. Because this is an important thing, the Chachomim were very careful in what they added to davening, to make sure it would not be too long and keep people from going to work (“bittul melacha”).

But on Shabbos, we don’t have to work! The Chachomim were able to add more pieces to davening, speaking for longer about Hashem’s praises and how lucky we are to be Yidden. There are extra paragraphs added to prepare before Boruch She’amar, mainly kapitelach of Tehillim. In some places, these are called Birchos Shabbos, the brachos of Shabbos! There is also a section added in Pesukei Dezimra, before Yishtabach, and in the brachos before Kriyas Shema.

That’s why the Shabbos davening is longer than the weekday davening, because we have more time to connect to Hashem in this special way.

One of the kapitelach added before Boruch She’amar is “Hodu LaHashem Ki Tov,” also called Hallel Hagadol. In this kapitel, we praise Hashem in 26 ways! (The holy name of Hashem, Havaya, has a Gematriya of 26!)

One of the lines in it is all about this Shabbos, Shabbos Hagadol! The posuk says, “Lemakei Mitzrayim Biv’choreihem, Ki Le’olam Chasdo!” It means that Hashem punished the Mitzriyim, through their own firstborns. The Yidden didn’t have to do anything! This neis happened on Shabbos HaGadol, when the firstborns tried to force Paraoh to let the Yidden go so they would be saved from Makas Bechoros.

 
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HALACHOS HATZRICHOS

Shabbos HaGadol

Don’t forget to say the Nasi! Today’s Nasi is for Shevet Menasheh.

~

The Shabbos before Pesach is called Shabbos HaGadol, the Great Shabbos.

The main reason why we call it Shabbos HaGadol is because a Neis Gadol, a great miracle happened on the Shabbos before the Yidden left Mitzrayim!

The Yidden tied their sheep to their bedposts, to use for the Korban Pesach. The Mitzriyim saw this, and asked them what they were doing. The Yidden told them that they were preparing the sheep as a korban. They would shecht them and put the blood on their doorposts before Makas Bechoros.

When the firstborns of the Mitzriyim heard this, they were very scared! They ran to Paraoh and told him to let the Yidden go free. When Paraoh and others said that they wouldn’t, the firstborns made a war in Mitzrayim! Many of the enemies of the Yidden were killed, by the Mitzriyim themselves!

On Shabbos HaGadol, there is a minhag to read through part of the Haggadah, from “Avadim Hayinu” until “Lechaper Al Kol Avonoseichem.” We do this because the nissim of Yetziyas Mitzrayim actually started on Shabbos Hagadol!

See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman Tof-Lamed

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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GEULAH U'MOSHIACH

Kimei Tzeischa Me'Eretz Mitzrayim (6)

In Sefer Micha, the Navi tells us a promise Hashem made about the Geulah: “Kimei Tzeischa Me’Eretz Mitzrayim Arenu Niflaos!” “I will show you wonders like in the days of Yetziyas Mitzrayim!”

According to the Zohar, really, the nissim of the Geulah will be much GREATER than the nissim of Yetziyas Mitzrayim!

So why does Hashem say that the nissim will be like then?

Before Yetziyas Mitzrayim, there was no such thing as Geulah. It was something impossible! But when Hashem took the Yidden out of Mitzrayim, Geulah wasn’t impossible anymore. At the right time, the Geulah could just happen!

So the Geulah we’re about to have is connected to the Geulah from Mitzrayim. It is only because of the first Geulah from Mitzrayim that it is possible for us to have the incredible nissim of the Geulah with Moshiach!

See the Maamar Kimei Tzeischa, Yud-Alef Nisan 5742 (Sefer Hamaamarim Melukat)

 
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