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In Parshas Vaeira, we are starting to learn about the story of Yetziyas Mitzrayim! But first we will learn about the people who Hashem chose to be the ones to take the Yidden out of Mitzrayim: Moshe and Aharon. The Torah tells us about Moshe and Aharon’s family. They were from Shevet Levi, an important shevet. They were also from Amram’s family, the leader of the Yidden at that time. This made the Yidden able to respect them. Moshe and Aharon grew up in a house of Torah, a house of Yiras Shomayim, and a family that had Mesiras Nefesh to help other Yidden. Now that the Torah tells us that both Moshe and Aharon were the right people to have this special shlichus from Hashem, we are ready to learn what happened next. |
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Today’s kapitelach are Kuf-Ches through Kuf-Yud-Beis. In kapitel Kuf-Yud, Dovid Hamelech asks Hashem, “Mateh Uz’cha Yishlach Hashem Mitziyon,” “Your stick of strength Hashem should send out from Yerushalayim, “Redei Bekerev Oivecha,” “to rule over your enemies.” Dovid Hamelech fought many wars, and was asking Hashem to show His strength so that the enemies will not bother the Yidden! The Medrash says that there was a Mateh, a stick, that was used by great tzadikim throughout the generations. It was the same stick that Yaakov Avinu used to cross the Yarden. It was the same stick that Yehuda gave to Tamar. It was the same stick that Moshe Rabbeinu had, like we are learning in Chumash! It was the same stick that Aharon used to make some of the Makos. It was the same stick that Dovid Hamelech used when he went to fight Golias. It was the same stick that every Jewish king had, until the Beis Hamikdash was destroyed, and then it was hidden. This same stick will also be given to Moshiach, to control the world! This is the Mateh of strength, the stick which Dovid Hamelech is speaking about, asking Hashem to send from Tzion. See Yalkut Shimoni, Tehillim |
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In today’s Tanya, we learn about how important davening is in the avodah of a beinoni, helping us stay in control of our behavior during the day. We learn how Moach Shalit Al Halev should be used both for things that are Bein Adam LaMakom, and Bein Adam LaChaveiro. We learned that during davening, we feel more Ruchnius’dik and more aidel. This makes our Nefesh Habehamis become sleepy — but it wakes up after davening. Even though that Ruchnius’dike feeling and aidelkeit doesn’t stay all day, the Alter Rebbe tells us that it does leave a mark! We still remember how we felt and how we decided to act while we were davening. This helps us stay in control of what we do and what we choose to think about, that they should only be the way Hashem wants, all day! Being this way isn’t only in mitzvos between us and Hashem, Bein Adam LaMakom. We also need to act this way when it comes to how we think about and act with other people. As we learned, acting the way Hashem wants us to isn’t only in the things we do, but the things we think. For example, when a taavah comes into our minds, an idea of something that we want but shouldn’t have, we shouldn’t think about it. We should use our koach of Moach Shalit Al Halev to push away the idea! This is also true in the way we think about other people, Bein Adam LaChaveiro. It is not enough to be in control of the things we do or say to them, we also need to be in control of the feelings that come into our mind. If someone does something that upsets us or makes us angry, we shouldn’t think about it! We push away the not good thoughts that we have, and remind ourselves that everything comes from Hashem, not from what that other person did! Then we can treat the other person nicely, no matter what he did. This is just like Yosef HaTzaddik, that even though his brothers sold him, he understood that it was from Hashem, and was nice to them in Mitzrayim! |
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Today’s Hayom Yom teaches us that when we notice problems in Yiddishkeit around us, it’s not enough to complain about them — we need to try to fix them! The beginning of today’s Hayom Yom is a correction in the Torah Ohr of Parshas Shemos, in a posuk, “Mi Sam Peh L’Adam.” This maamar explains according to very deep Kabbalah why Moshe didn’t want to take the Shlichus and how Hashem answered him. A krechtz (groan) by itself will not help us! Our krechtz is only a beginning. It is supposed to make us realize that something needs to be changed! After that, though, we need to think about how we can help fix the problem. Every person can figure out a way how they can be part of this — to teach more Torah and help more Yidden to do mitzvos. One person can do this through writing, another person by giving speeches, and a different person by giving money for strengthening Yiddishkeit. What can YOU do? What special kochos do you have to be able to strengthen Yiddishkeit? |
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Today’s mitzvah is the same one as yesterday: (Mitzvas Asei #107) When a neshama leaves a body, the body becomes tomei. Someone who touches, carries, or is in the same house as the body gets some of this Tumah too, called Tumas Meis. There are many halachos about how a person can get this tumah, and how the tumah is passed on to other people or things. Today’s mitzvah is to follow all of these halachos! |
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In today’s Rambam, Perakim Tes, Yud, and Yud-Alef, we learn more about Tumas Meis. When someone gets Tumas Meis, he is tomei for a week, and he needs to have the ashes of the Parah Adumah sprinkled on him to become tahor again. One halacha is that all of the earth outside of Eretz Yisroel is tomei with Tumas Meis. The chachomim also said that the AIR outside of Eretz Yisroel makes a person tomei! The reason for this is that outside Eretz Yisrael, people are not careful with Tumas Meis. (The earth, though, gives a person Tumas Meis, which is a tumah for 7 days, and the tumah from the air outside of Eretz Yisroel only makes someone tomei until that night.) |
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Today we start a new sefer of Rambam, Sefer Korbanos! In the perek of Hilchos Korban Pesach, we learn the answers to the questions “What? Where? When? How?” about the Korban Pesach. (The Rambam usually doesn’t teach us the details of the WHY, which is explained in other places in Torah.) |
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The Rebbe teaches us that the avodah of shlichus, bringing people closer to Yiddishkeit, is what makes us into a Chabad chossid! Once when the Mitteler Rebbe was a child, he had a dream that bothered him. He came to his father, the Alter Rebbe, and told him the dream. (http://www.sie.org/2787712 — see section 15 and on) One part of the dream was that there were three men walking, one of whom was the Alter Rebbe. They came to two rivers: one was smooth, without any waves, and was flowing along and growing. The second river was colorful, and full of choppy waves. There was a board on each of the rivers. A man told the Alter Rebbe to cross the second river, and he did without a problem. The Mitteler Rebbe was very upset by this dream. The Alter Rebbe explained that the other men in the dream were the Baal Shem Tov and the Maggid. The two rivers were a mashal for the avodah of tzadikim, with is smooth and strong, and the avodah of Baalei Teshuvah, which is challenging, like choppy waves. The reason that the Alter Rebbe was able to cross this raging river was because he used the Torah he learned from the Maggid to help bring Yidden closer to Yiddishkeit — to make Baalei Teshuvah. This story was told over from Rebbe to Rebbe, and each one added something. When the Rebbe Rashab told the story to the Friediker Rebbe, he added that the Alter Rebbe gave this koach to make Baalei Teshuvah to whoever he gave it to... and now it is given to every chossid. The Friediker Rebbe told this story to chassidim on Yud-Tes Kislev, and the Rebbe told this story to chassidim also at a Yud-Tes Kislev farbrengen, in Tof-Shin-Chof-Ches. The Rebbe added that not only is this koach GIVEN to every chossid, but that only by working to make Baalei Teshuvah do we BECOME chassidim! This koach is even more strong by a person who wasn’t born a chossid and became a chossid through his own avodah (a “gevorene”), but is there too for someone who was born a chossid (“geborene”). We see from this that the avodah of shlichus and bringing Yidden closer to Yiddishkeit is the essence of being a chossid, as it was established by the Alter Rebbe. |
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When we daven, we are supposed to have kavana. We should know what we are saying to Hashem, at least to know what we are talking about. In Shulchan Aruch, it says that this is even more important when we say a bracha. When we say brachos, we should really know the meaning of every word. Each name of Hashem also has a meaning that we are supposed to be thinking about: When we say the name of Hashem of Ad-nay, spelled as Alef-Daled-Nun-Yud, we should have in mind that Hashem is the master of the entire world. There is a name of Hashem that is spelled Yud-Kay-Vov-Kay (or in a siddur sometimes as just two Yuds), that we pronounce as Ad-nay. When we say this name, we should think about the meaning of Ad-nay, which is that Hashem is the master of the world. We should also think about the meaning of Yud-Kay-Vov-Kay, that Hashem includes all times, past, present, and future. When we say the name Elokim, we should have in mind that Hashem is strong, and controls everything that happens in Ruchnius and in Gashmius! See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman Hey |
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When my parents are asleep, Part of the mitzvah of Kibud Av Va’eim is not to wake up our parents when they are sleeping. We can’t wake them up even when we will miss out on something by letting them sleep! BUT, if our PARENT will miss out on something by sleeping, we ARE allowed to wake them up! Since we know it will make them happy to be woken up, we can do it. We are also allowed to wake up our parents so they don’t miss doing a mitzvah — because that shows kavod for Hashem! Shmiras Mitzvas Hayom p. 270 |
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לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
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One of Moshiach’s main inyonim is to bring Shleimus in Torah and mitzvos. That’s why he needs to bring back the melucha of Dovid Hamelech, rebuild the Beis Hamikdash, and take the Yidden back to Eretz Yisroel! The Rambam tells us that Moshiach’s role according to halacha is to bring back the Torah and mitzvos to their complete state. That helps us understand the halacha where the Rambam says that Moshiach will bring back Malchus Beis Dovid to the way it is supposed to be. We understand why it’s so important, because many mitzvos are dependent on having a Jewish king! That’s also why it’s Moshiach’s job to build the Beis Hamikdash: So we can keep all of the mitzvos that have to do with the korbanos and the Avodah. Moshiach will also need to bring back all of the Yidden to Eretz Yisroel, because only when all Yidden live there can we keep the mitzvos of Shemitah and Yovel. See Rambam Hilchos Melachim Perek Yud-Alef, Likutei Sichos Chelek Yud-Ches p. 276 |
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לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
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