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CHUMASH
Parshas Pinchas - Revi'i with Rashi
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In today’s Chumash, we finish the story of the daughters of Tzelofchad. Hashem tells Moshe Rabbeinu that he will pass away, and Moshe makes sure that there will be a good leader for the Yidden in the next generation.
As we learned yesterday, Tzelofchad’s daughters loved Eretz Yisroel very much. They wanted their family to also get a part of the land. Moshe Rabbeinu asked Hashem what to do.
Today’s Chumash continues that Hashem told Moshe that Tzelofchad’s daughters are right!
Every family gets a piece of Eretz Yisroel. Usually, if the father passed away, it goes to his sons. But if there are no sons, it should go to his daughters! And if chas veshalom there are no daughters either, it should go to his brothers, or to his closest relative.
So Tzelofchad’s daughters WILL get his piece of Eretz Yisroel, and it will stay with his family forever.
The Torah also tells us now the mitzvah of Nachalos, how to pass on a yerusha in any family after someone passes away.
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Moshe Rabbeinu was hoping that since Hashem told him about giving a part of Eretz Yisroel to the daughters of Tzelofchad, maybe Hashem’s decree that he wouldn’t be able to enter Eretz Yisroel is gone, and he would also be able to go in! But Hashem told Moshe no. Soon he will go up on Har Nevo, where he will be able to SEE Eretz Yisroel, but he won’t get to go there. He will pass away on Har Nevo, like Aharon did. (When Moshe Rabbeinu saw how Aharon passed away, he hoped that his neshama would be returned to Hashem the same way. Hashem told him now that this would happen.)
When Moshe heard he would pass away soon, he was worried about one thing: Who would take care of the Yidden? He wanted to know, will this leader take care of each person? Will he go out with them when they fight, and have enough zechus to keep the Yidden safe?
Hashem told Moshe that his son will not become the next leader, but his Talmid, Yehoshua bin Nun, will.
Hashem told Moshe to put his hand on Yehoshua, and give Yehoshua some of his special kochos. Moshe should show the Yidden that he respects Yehoshua, so they will listen to him when he becomes their Nasi.
Still, someone from Moshe’s family will be very important — Yehoshua will need to ask Elazar the Kohen Gadol, Moshe’s nephew, before going to fight any wars.
Moshe did even more than what Hashem asked — he put BOTH hands on Yehoshua, giving him many more kochos and making his face shine!
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Today’s kapitelach are Tzadik-Zayin to Kuf-Gimmel.
At the end of today’s first kapitel (which we also say in Kabolas Shabbos, and in the Machzor before Kol Nidrei), the posuk says “Ohr Zarua LaTzadik” — “Light is planted for the tzadik.”
The Medrash teaches that when Hashem made the world, there was a very strong light, but it was too hard for the world to live in it! So Hashem hid it for the Tzadikim when Moshiach comes.
That’s what the posuk is telling us — Hashem “planted” this light of Moshiach for the Tzadikim! When you plant something, it grows — and this light will grow too. The Navi says that when Moshiach comes, even the light of the sun will be 7 times as strong as it was during Sheishes Yemei Bereishis!
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TANYA
Igeres Hateshuvah Perek Zayin
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The Alter Rebbe explained the mitzvah of teshuvah and how we can connect back to Hashem in the first three perakim of Igeres HaTeshuvah. The next three perakim were about the ruchnius and “neshama” of Teshuvah. Now, the Alter Rebbe will teach us how to make sure our Teshuvah “stays.”
How do we make sure that our Teshuvah stays, and we don’t do the aveira again chas veshalom?
The Alter Rebbe tells us that we need to think about two things!
1) Think about our neshamos. They came from being SO close to Hashem, and now are in a body where they feel so far away from Hashem. It’s like a neshama coming down from a tall building and ending up in a deep, dark hole in the ground!
When a person thinks about not-good things, their neshama, which is a part of Hashem, is stuck in that not-good thought too. It’s very embarrassing and hard for the neshama to be in a place like that!
This should make us feel very bad for our neshama. By thinking about this, it will help make sure our Teshuvah stays strong. We don’t ever want the neshama, which is part of Hashem, to be stuck in a place like that!
2) We need to think thoughts that make the Yetzer Hara not be so proud of itself. The Yetzer Hara gets us to do an aveira because it has chutzpah! How else could it make us think of doing something Hashem doesn’t want? By having a Lev Nishbar, a broken heart, by feeling bad about the aveira that was done, it will break the spirit of the Yetzer Hara. When we take away the pride of the Yetzer Hara, it won’t be able to convince us to do an aveira again, and our teshuvah will be strong and lasting!
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Today the Rebbe shows us how to feel close to Hashem through hisbonenus.
Every Yid has a neshama which is a part of Hashem. Because of that, sometimes a person can feel very close to Hashem without even needing to try!
But other times, we need Avodah so we can feel close to Hashem.
What is Avodah?
Davening while thinking about Chassidus. This is called hisbonenus, and it takes three steps so we can feel Hashem inside us:
1) After we learn something in Chassidus, we should think about it until we are SURE it makes sense in our mind! This is called Hisbonenus Limudis.
2) Before davening, think about this same Chassidus again. This is a special time and it will help us have chayus in what we learned before, not just to get it in our minds. This is called Hisbonenus Shekodem HaTefillah.
3) While you are davening, we should think about this Chassidus a third time. When we daven, we are very close to Hashem, and when we think about the Chassidus then, we will feel Elokus in the inyan that we learned. This is called Hisbonenus ShebeTefillah.
These are the three steps needed to feel and have a derher in the Elokus which is in the Chassidus that we learn.
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Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #73) is that if someone does an aveira (Chas Veshalom!) they need to do teshuvah, to decide not to do the aveira ever again and feel bad about what they did. They also need to SAY to Hashem what they did and ask Hashem to forgive him. This is called Vidui.
There are some mitzvos where we bring a korban to be forgiven, but even for these mitzvos, we still need to say vidui when we bring the korban.
We should use our words the best way we can, to tell Hashem what we did wrong.
The Rambam shows us how this is for EVERY kind of mitzvah, and in all places and times.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Naso: וְהִתְוַדּוּ אֶת חַטָּאתָם אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ
The details are explained in the end of Mesechta Yoma.
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In Hilchos Teshuvah, the Rambam explains the halachos of teshuvah, and certain basic ideas in Yiddishkeit that we need to know in order to do the mitzvah of teshuvah right.
Perek Alef: If a person does an aveira, they need to do teshuvah and they need to say to Hashem what they did. For some aveiros, Hashem will then forgive the person right away, and sometimes will forgive the person on Yom Kippur.
Perek Beis: The Rambam teaches us that a person knows he did true teshuvah if he is in the same situation as before, and still doesn’t do the aveira again.
We also learn that if someone asks us for forgiveness for something he did to us, we should forgive him!
The Rambam tells us that even though Hashem accepts our teshuvah ALL the time, in the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, ending with Yom Kippur, Hashem accepts our teshuvah right away!
Perek Gimmel: In this perek, there is a very famous halacha that the Rebbe would repeat often! The Rambam says that Hashem judges every person and the whole world together based on the things that people do.
Since we don’t know exactly how we deserve to be judged, the Rambam tells us to always imagine that the world is on a scale that is equal, perfectly balanced. If a person does even one mitzvah, it will tip the scale to the side of good (or chas veshalom the opposite). We need to realize that every choice we make is so important, it can bring a Yeshuah V’hatzalah for ourselves and for the whole world!
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We learn about two kinds of Kilayim, things we are not allowed to mix. There are Kilai Zeraim, different kinds of seeds or plants which are not allowed to be planted together, and Kilai Ilanos, different kinds of trees that are not allowed to be forced to grow into one tree.
The mitzvah of Kilai Zeraim is only in Eretz Yisrael, but Kilai Ilanos, forcing two kinds of trees to grow into one tree, is asur everywhere. But even though we can’t GROW those kind of trees, we ARE allowed to eat fruit that grew from them!
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In the Three Weeks, the Rebbe tells us that we should learn about the Beis Hamikdash, which will weaken the feeling of the Churban which we are remembering during this time. It will also speed up the building of the Third Beis Hamikdash, which will be rebuilt very soon!
In the halachos of the Beis Hamikdash, the Rambam writes that there is a mitzvah to guard the Beis Hamikdash. We don’t guard it because we are afraid of robbers or enemies, we guard it to show honor for the Shechinah that rests in the Beis Hamikdash!
Even after the Beis Hamikdash was destroyed, the kedusha stays. In the sefer “Mishkenos Laavir Yaakov”, it says that because of this kedusha, nowadays we should still keep the mitzvah of guarding the place of the Beis Hamikdash!
We don’t actually keep this mitzvah anymore, because it would be dangerous with all of the goyim that are there now.
Still, b’ruchniyus we do have a Beis Hamikdash to guard! The Shechinah rests inside our homes, and inside the Cheder Tzivos Hashem of every child. We need to guard our Beis Hamikdash and make sure it is kavodik for the Shechinah to rest there. We need to make sure that our Chumash, our Siddur, and our pushka are in the right place, neat, and ready to be used!
See Sichas Shabbos Parshas Shemini 5750
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After washing our hands for the second time in the morning, we say the bracha of Al Netilas Yodayim. In this bracha, we bentch Hashem for making us holy with the mitzvah the Chachomim gave us, of washing our hands.
The bracha finishes with the words “Al Netilas Yodayim,” “about the washing of the hands.”
Actually, there is a better word for “washing” in Lashon Kodesh, “Rechitzah.” One of the reasons why the word “Netilah” was chosen is because in Aramaic, it also means “to elevate (in kedusha).” (The words “Vatisa’eini Ruach,” “and a wind lifted me up” are translated as “Unetaltani Rucha.”) This washing of the hands is like the kohen who washes his hands to make himself holy to serve in the Beis Hamikdash! We too wash our hands to make ourselves holy to serve Hashem throughout the day.
This is also a good time to remind ourselves of the words of the Chachomim that the Rebbe would repeat very often, “Ani Lo Nivreisi Ela Leshamesh Es Koni,” I was only created to serve Hashem.
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We say Modeh Ani right away when we wake up, to remind ourselves that Hashem is watching us. When we remember that, we will wake up with zerizus to serve Him!
We still need to prepare ourselves before we continue with saying the Birchos Hashachar.
First, we wash Negel Vasser by our bed, using the water we prepared the night before. The reason for this is to take away the Ruach Ra which comes onto a person at night. The Zohar is very strict about this, and tells us that we should not touch the openings of our body or walk four amos before we take off this Ruach Ra.
We need to make sure that we have a clean body (Guf Naki) and a clean mouth (Peh Naki). We use the bathroom and wash out our mouths before we continue.
It is best to get dressed also before saying Birchos Hashachar. In some of the brachos, we will be praising Hashem for things that have to do with being dressed. Lechatchila, it is best to say these brachos when we already did those things.
Then, we wash our hands again and say the bracha. We can’t make the bracha until we wash our hands with a clean body and a clean mouth.
There is also another reason for washing this negel vasser: We are washing our hands like a kohen, who washes his hands and feet from the kiyor before starting his Avodah in the Beis Hamikdash. Just as the kohen washes his hands to do his avodah with kedusha and tahara, we wash our hands to start our day’s avodah with kedusha as well — to serve Hashem throughout the day, “Ani Nivreisi Leshamesh Es Koni.”
(Going to the mikvah also brings kedusha and tahara to a person. This is why many men go to the mikvah in the morning before davening. Because it isn’t always easy to get to a mikvah, the Chachomim didn’t make it a chiyuv. Still, it is an important minhag of Chassidim!)
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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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We are learning some of the pesukim from Torah Shebichsav that teach us about the Geulah.
Nowadays, we are all tomei. We can’t do anything about most of this tumah, because we don’t have the ashes of the Parah Adumah! But when Moshiach comes, Hashem will make us all tahor!
וְזָרַקְתִּי עֲלֵיכֶם מַיִם טְהוֹרִים וּטְהַרְתֶּם מִכֹּל טֻמְאוֹתֵיכֶם וּמִכָּל גִּלּוּלֵיכֶם אֲטַהֵר אֶתְכֶם
Vezarakti Aleichem Mayim Tehorim — I will sprinkle on you the water of the Parah Adumah
U’Tehartem — And you will become tahor!
Mikol Tumoseichem Umikol Giluleichem — From all of your tumah and from all of your Avodah Zarah
Ataher Es’chem — I will make you pure.
See Yechezkel perek Lamed-Vov posuk Chof-Hey
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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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