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CHUMASH
Parshas Netzavim-Vayeilech - Rishon with Rashi
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Now, it is Zayin Adar, the day Moshe Rabbeinu will pass away.
Moshe Rabbeinu is talking to the Yidden about making a promise with Hashem, to keep the mitzvos.
He tells the Yidden that EVERYONE is ready to make the promise, from the Nesiim to every Yid — men, women and children, and even the woodchoppers and the water carriers of the Yidden.
But why do they need to promise that they will keep the mitzvos? Didn’t the Yidden already promise Hashem BEFORE that they will keep the Torah, by Har Sinai?
First of all, only the Yidden who were there made the promise (even though EVERY Yid got the Torah!). Second of all, that promise could be broken if the Yidden did Aveiros, like the Cheit Ha’egel.
This new promise is such a strong promise, it stays no matter WHAT the Yidden do! And, it’s not just for the Yidden standing here, it’s for their children and grandchildren — all the way until Moshiach comes!
Moshe tells the Yidden another reason why they need to make a new promise with Hashem: Because this promise is for all the Yidden TOGETHER — that we now have to make sure that EVERY Yid does the mitzvos. Before, every Yid only had to worry about what HE was doing — now we need to make sure that everyone is doing what Hashem wants.
This is very serious — Yidden can even get punished if someone else does an aveira! If someone thinks about the idols he saw from the Goyim, and decides he wants to do it — and even worse, if he wants to make other Yidden do it too — Hashem will punish him, and anyone who listens to him, with the scary things that it says in the Tochacha. Everyone will see that, and know that Hashem is punishing them for the Avodah Zarah.
But how can we know if someone is secretly doing Avodah Zarah? Will we get punished even though we had no idea? Don’t worry, Moshe tells the Yidden — “Hanistaros LaHashem Elokeinu” — whatever is hidden, Hashem knows. We only need to worry about what we DO see and what we DO know about, to make sure that all of the Yidden follow the Torah.
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Today’s Tehillim is kapitelach Pey-Gimmel to Pey-Zayin. For Elul we also say kapitelach Mem-Tes, Nun, and Nun-Alef.
Every single kapitel in today’s Tehillim has a special niggun which was made in honor of the Rebbe’s Yom Huledes! Can you find the niggun in each one?
In Kapitel Pey-Daled, the posuk says “Yeilchu Mechayil El Choyil, Yeiro’eh El Elokim BeTzion.” This means that people who trust in Hashem go from strength to strength, and they go before Hashem in Yerushalayim.
The Rebbe tells us that Yeilchu Meichayil El Choyil, when we are always doing better than before, brings Yeiro’eh El Elokim Betzion, that we will be able to go to the Beis Hamikdosh! When we keep trying to do better, every single day and every single hour, we will bring Moshiach!
Chassidus says that there is a new chayus from Hashem that comes into the world, not just every day, but every hour! When that chayus comes, we get more opportunities to grow in Yiddishkeit! We need to make sure to use that new energy to do more!
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TANYA
Igeres Hakodesh Siman Tes-Vov
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In this letter, the Alter Rebbe will help us understand the Eser Sefiros, by learning about our neshamos!
Hashem gave Yidden the greatest present. Do you know what it is?
The Torah!
Why is it so special? Because when we learn Torah, we learn how Hashem wants us to act.
But that’s not it — Torah also teaches us ABOUT Hashem. Of course we are Gashmiyus people and we can’t REALLY understand Ruchniyus’dike things until Moshiach comes and Hashem will let us SEE Elokus! Still, the more we know about Hashem, the more we will love Hashem and want to act only in a way that makes Hashem happy!
When we look outside at the beautiful things Hashem made, like the sky and the stars and the waterfalls and trees and birds... we can see how amazing Hashem’s creation is! But there are things we CAN’T see. Just like we can see the special things we do but can’t see our neshama inside of us, we KNOW that Hashem makes the world, but we can’t see that.
There is a part of Torah that teaches us about the things we can’t see, called Kabbalah. But for most people, it’s too hard to understand Kabbalah!
The Alter Rebbe started something called “Chassidus Chabad.” The word Chabad stands for three words (Chochma Bina Daas) that mean to understand. Chassidus Chabad teaches us how we can UNDERSTAND these things that we cannot see about Hashem.
One very important thing we learn about in Kabbalah is called the Eser Sefiros. When we understand the Eser Sefiros, we will understand these things a lot better! In this letter, the Alter Rebbe will help us understand the Eser Sefiros, by learning about OUR neshamos! Because our neshamos are part of Hashem, they also have the Eser Sefiros.
When we learn about our Neshama (which is much easier for us), we can understand Ruchnius things about Hashem and be excited to live the way Hashem wants us to, with a lot of chayus!
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In the Chumash of Friday in Parshas Ki Savo, we read “The Tochacha.” It is where Moshe tells the Yidden all of the not-good things that can happen to the Yidden if they chas veshalom don’t keep the mitzvos.
In today’s Hayom Yom, the Rebbe tells us that these Klalos, which seem like curses, really have hidden brachos inside of them!
The Alter Rebbe was the Baal Koreh in his shul in Liozna. Once, though, in the week of Parshas Ki Savo he was traveling, and someone else leined the Torah.
The Mitteler Rebbe, who wasn’t Bar Mitzvah yet, was in Shul. When he heard the Kriyas HaTorah, with the very scary words of the Tochacha, it made him feel very upset! He got so sick from hearing it, that the Alter Rebbe was worried that he wouldn’t be able to fast on Yom Kippur, a few weeks later!
Someone asked the Mitteler Rebbe why he got so upset when he heard the Tochacha. It wasn’t his first time hearing it — we lein this parsha every year!
The Mitteler Rebbe answered, “When my father (the Alter Rebbe) leins the Tochacha, I don’t hear not good things — I hear the brachos hiding inside!”
In Chassidus, the Alter Rebbe teaches us the pnimius — the way things REALLY are, even though we don’t see them that way. When we learn Chassidus, we will be able to see how EVERYTHING is really a bracha!
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In Sefer Hamitzvos, we learn the mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #171) of giving a half Shekel every year to the Beis Hamikdash.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Ki Sisa: וְנָתְנוּ אִישׁ כֹּפֶר נַפְשׁוֹ לַה׳
This mitzvah is explained in Mesechta Shekalim, and we only keep it when the Beis Hamikdash is standing.
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In today’s Rambam, Hilchos Shekalim perakim Alef, Beis, and Gimmel, we learn lots of halachos about the Machtzis Hashekel. Here are some of them:
On Rosh Chodesh Adar, they would start to remind people to give the Machatzis Hashekel. They had two of a special kind of pushka that they used for this — it was shaped like a shofar! This way you could put money in easily in the small part, but it wasn’t easy to take the money out. Every man had to give a half shekel, even if he was very very poor.
The money from the Machtzis Hashekel was used for buying Korbanos.
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In the first perek of Hilchos Kriyas Shema, we learn about the mitzvah of say- ing Shema in the morning and at night. The Rambam tells us that Yaakov Avinu asked his sons, before he passed away, if all of them believed in Hashem. They all answered, “Shema Yisroel,” “listen, our father Yisroel,” “Hashem Elokeinu, Hashem Echod!” “We all believe in Hashem!” When Yaakov Avinu heard this, he said, “Boruch Sheim Kevod Malchuso Le’olam Va’ed!” to thank Hashem.
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Tonight is Chai Elul!
From Chai Elul, there are twelve days until Rosh Hashana. The Rebbeim tell us that each of these 12 days match up to one of the twelve months of the year that we should do teshuvah for!
So on Chai Elul we look back at Chodesh Tishrei, on Yud-Tes Elul we look back at Chodesh Cheshvan, and so on.
How do we do teshuvah for that month?
We think back to what happened during that month of the year. That way we can think about anything that happened during that month and make good hachlatos that this month in the coming year will be better. We should think about the hachlatos we made during that month, and see if we are keeping up with what we decided to do.
So pick a time for the next 12 days, maybe before Kriyas Shema She’al Hamitah, to think back to that month and make sure that next year will be even better!
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The ten days of Rosh Hashana through Yom Kippur are very important days. During this time, called the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, Hashem decides about what the year will be like for the whole world!
During the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, Hashem shows us that He is the King of the entire world.
When we speak to Hashem in davening in these special days, we say some things differently to show that we are speaking to Hashem as King, and we ask Him to bentch us with a good year.
In the third and eleventh brachos of Shemoneh Esrei, we change how we speak about Hashem:
- Usually, we say “HaKel Hakadosh,” the holy Aibershter. During the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, we say “HaMelech HaKadosh,” the holy King.
- At the end of the bracha of “Hoshiva Shofteinu,” we usually say “Melech Ohev Tzedakah Umishpat,” that Hashem is a King Who loves tzedakah and justice. During the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, we say “HaMelech Hamishpat,” the King Who judges fairly.
In the first and last two brachos of Shemoneh Esrei, we add 4 pieces to davening asking for a good year:
1) Zochreinu Lechaim (in the first bracha)
2) Mi Chamocha (in the second bracha)
3) Uchesov (in Modim)
4) Uvesefer Chaim (in Sim Shalom)
Like a person usually does when asking, we ask for something smaller first, then for something bigger. In the first two lines, we ask Hashem to remember us for life. Then in the next two lines, we ask for more — that Hashem should write us down for a GOOD life.
See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman Tof-Kuf-Pey-Beis
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The changes we make in Shemoneh Esrei during the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah are very important. Hashem’s relationship to the world is different during this time, and we need to show that when we speak to Him privately in davening. Hashem is always the King of the world, but now that inyan is the MAIN way we connect to Him.
If a person forgets to say HaMelech Hakadosh (the holy King) instead of HaKeil Hakadosh (the holy Aibershter), he needs to go back and say the bracha again. But because the first three brachos of Shemoneh Esrei are all connected, like one long bracha of praising Hashem, he needs to go back to the beginning of the whole Shemoneh Esrei. (If he remembers right away, before a few seconds pass, he can just say the right words then.)
If a person wasn’t paying attention, he probably said it the way he is used to davening, with HaKeil Hakadosh. If he can’t remember if he said it right, the halacha is that he probably didn’t. He also needs to go back to the beginning of Shemoneh Esrei.
Forgetting Hamelech Hamishpat has a different halacha. Since even during the year we speak about Hashem as a Melech (Melech Ohev Tzedakah Umishpat), if a person forgets to say the words Hamelech Hamishpat instead, he doesn’t need to go back. Still, because there are some opinions that we shouldn’t mention tzedakah during the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah, it is best for him to daven another Shemoneh Esrei afterwards as a nedavah (a present to Hashem).
All the other lines in Shemoneh Esrei were added by the Geonim, after the times of the Gemara. If a person forgot to add them, he doesn’t need to go back. But if he remembers before finishing the bracha they are said in, he can say them in the place he remembers.
See Shevach Hamoadim Kitzur Hilchos Yomim Noraim siman 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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When Moshiach comes, EVERYONE in the world will serve Hashem. But still, the Yidden will be Hashem’s special nation! The world will be full of brachos, but there will be special brachos just for the Yidden!
וְנִלְווּ גוֹיִם רַבִּים אֶל ה׳ בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא וְהָיוּ לִי לְעָם וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְתוֹכֵךְ וְיָדַעַתְּ כִּי ה׳ צְבָאוֹת שְׁלָחַנִי אֵלָיִךְ
Venilvu Goyim Rabim El Hashem — And many nations will join the Yidden in serving Hashem
Bayom Hahu — On that day of Geulah.
But, Hashem says:
Vehayu Li Le’am — “The Yidden will always be My special nation
Veshachanti Vesocheich — And I will rest only among you.”
Veyadat — And you will know
Ki Hashem Tzva’os Shelachani Eilecha — That Hashem sent the Navi with special nevuos for the Yidden!
See Zechariah perek Beis posuk Tes-Vov
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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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