|
|
CHUMASH
Parshas Beshalach - Revi'i with Rashi
|
|
The Yidden finally left Mitzrayim, after Makas Bechoros! Hashem hardened Paraoh’s heart again, and he chased after the Yidden, to bring them back to Mitzrayim. Hashem told Moshe Rabbeinu that the Yidden should not be afraid, because Hashem will save them. Hashem told Moshe to lift his hand over the water, and the water split! The Yidden walked through on dry land. The Mitzriyim didn’t stop chasing the Yidden, and followed them in. Hashem made the ground muddy and hot and the Mitzriyim saw that Hashem was fighting against them.
Hashem said to Moshe: “Pick up your hand over the sea, so the water will stop standing like a wall, and it will drown the Mitzriyim.”
Moshe did, and the water went back to being a regular sea. The Mitzriyim were so confused, they ran INTO the water instead of away from it! Hashem made the water throw the Mitzriyim around, so they would be punished for longer, and then they all drowned.
The Yidden couldn’t see what happened to the Mitzriyim, and they were scared that maybe the Mitzriyim came out of the water also and would start chasing them again! So Hashem made the Yam Suf spit out the bodies of the Mitzriyim, and then they disappeared into the ground.
When the Yidden saw this, they really believed in Hashem and Moshe, His servant! They sang a special song to Hashem, called Az Yashir (we say it every day in davening!) This song thanks Hashem for the nissim of Kriyas Yam Suf.
The women also wanted to sing to thank Hashem. Miriam took her tambourine and all of the women danced with their tambourines, singing to Hashem.
After singing and thanking Hashem, the Yidden collected the gold and silver decorations from Paraoh’s chariots. There was so much, it was even more than all they got before leaving Mitzrayim! The Yidden were so busy taking the gold, Moshe had to force them to leave when it was time to travel.
Then the Yidden began to travel in the Midbar.
For three days, the Yidden walked in the desert without finding any water. Finally, they found a stream called Marah, but the water was very bitter! Instead of asking Moshe to daven for them, the Yidden complained, “What should we drink?”
Moshe davened to Hashem, and Hashem showed him a tree. Moshe threw a branch of the tree into the water, and it became sweet!
Near Marah, Hashem gave the Yidden some Torah to learn, including about the Parah Adumah. Hashem said that if the Yidden do the mitzvos, even the ones they don’t understand, Hashem won’t bring any of the sicknesses like He gave the Mitzriyim during the makos. If they ever do get sick, “Ani Hashem Rofecha” — “I am Hashem Who heals you” — if you do the mitzvos, Hashem will make you feel better.
|
|
|
|
Today’s shiur Tehillim are Ayin-Beis through Ayin-Vov.
When we say Kapitel Ayin-Daled (74), one of the things we think about is how much we want the Geulah. It speaks to us about how the Mishkan and Beis Hamikdash were destroyed, and we don’t see nisim from Hashem anymore. We need the Geulah so much, and we cry out to Hashem “Ad Mosai!”
One of the pesukim in the kapitel is “Ad Mosai Elokim Yechoref Tzar” — “Hashem, Ad Mosai? How long will You let the goyim say chutzpa’dike things?”
Still, even in Golus, there are times when Hashem shines in the world and we can see real nissim!
These kinds of nisim remind us that Hashem is WITH US in Golus and that the Geulah is coming very soon!
|
|
|
TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Chof-Daled
|
|
The Alter Rebbe is explaining to us how a Yid is capable of having Mesiras Nefesh to stay connected to Hashem and not to give up their Yiddishkeit, with the koach of the hidden love (Ahava Mesuteres) that every Yid has. The Alter Rebbe helps us understand that really, every mitzvah is an opportunity to be connected to Hashem — to become one with Hashem, and that every aveira separates us from Hashem. Therefore, we can bring out our ability to have Mesiras Nefesh to do every mitzvah that we can, and to hold ourselves back from doing an aveira, no matter how difficult it may be!
In the previous perek, we learned that Torah and mitzvos makes us one with Hashem. In this perek, we will learn how an aveira separates us, chas veshalom, from Hashem in the worst possible way.
When a Yid does an aveira, it is like Avodah Zarah!
Avodah Zarah thinks it is separate from Hashem. When a Yid does an aveira, he also becomes separate from Hashem. But actually, doing an aveira separates a Yid from Hashem even MORE than Avodah Zarah!
Why?
Because Hashem CREATED Avodah Zarah that way. It’s just doing what it’s supposed to do. But if a Yid chas veshalom does an aveira, he is doing something he SHOULDN’T do, and therefore becomes separate from Hashem in an even worse way!
As we will see later, Hashem gives permission for the Yetzer Hara to try to convince us that an aveira is not so terrible. But when we understand what the Alter Rebbe is teaching us here, that every aveira SEPARATES us from Hashem, it will wake up our hidden love for Hashem! That will stop us from doing an aveira, no matter how hard that may be.
|
|
|
|
In today’s Hayom Yom we learn about the hiskashrus that a Rebbe has to Chassidim.
Tonight is Chamisha Asar B’Shevat, so we don’t say Tachanun when we daven Mincha.
All of the Rebbeim ask Hashem to help their Chassidim. Even more, they also make special times to think about each chossid, thinking about the chossid’s hiskashrus to the Rebbe, and connecting to them too in a similar way.
Thinking about a person brings out special kochos inside of them. We see this in Gashmius, that even by just looking very hard at another person — that it will cause the other person to turn around and look at you too. When a Rebbe thinks about his chossid, it also wakes up the chossid’s inner kochos to “turn around” and become closer to Hashem.
The Rebbe said in a farbrengen (Yud Shevat Tof-Shin-Chof-Alef) why it is important to know this: If a Chossid all of a sudden feels a strong feeling of connection to the Rebbe, it could be that this feeling came because the Rebbe is thinking about him then. So if it happens, he shouldn’t think that it came from his own hiskashrus! It could be it was because the Rebbe was thinking about him, and because it didn’t come from his own avodah, it won’t stay! So he should be very careful to DO something of what the Rebbe wants, so that this hisorerus will stay and become a part of him.
|
|
|
|
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 this tumah is passed on. Today’s mitzvah is to follow all of these halachos!
We also learn the first mitzvah about Parah Adumah:
2) (Mitzvas Asei #113) It is a mitzvah to prepare the Parah Adumah so its ashes can be used to make Yidden Tahor from Tumas Meis.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Chukas: וְהָיְתָה לַעֲדַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לְמִשְׁמֶרֶת
There is a whole mesechta of Mishnayos that deals with the dinim of Parah Adumah, called Mesechta Parah.
|
|
|
RAMBAM
Hilchos Tumas Meis - Parah Adumah
|
|
In today’s Rambam, we finish learning the halachos about Tumas Meis, Perakim Chof-Daled and Chof-Hey. There are many halachos that explain to us how tumah can spread in a house! We learn about a house that is split by a wall, and there is tumah in the house. Sometimes the whole house can become tomei, and sometimes just one part.
Then we start a new set of halachos — about the Parah Adumah! Many times the Rambam finishes a set of halachos with a lesson, but this time the Rambam goes right away from talking about Tumas Meis to talking about the Parah Adumah, which makes us tahor from Tumas Meis!
Perek Alef: The Rambam explains the words in the Torah that tell us to take a Parah Adumah. We learn from the posuk that it has to be a cow (not a baby cow), ALL red (without even 2 hairs that are a different color), and it can’t be used for ANYTHING else! If someone even just leaned on the cow, it can’t be used for a Parah Adumah anymore.
|
|
|
|
There are five fasts each year because of sad things that happened to the Yidden:
1) Tzom Gedaliah (Gimmel Tishrei) — when Gedaliah was killed. He was the governor of the Yidden, and they hoped he would help them live in Eretz Yisroel. When he was killed, the Yidden realized they were REALLY in Golus.
2) Asara B’Teves — When Nevuchadnetzar blocked anyone from going out or coming into Yerushalayim.
3) Shiva-Asar B’Tammuz — 5 sad things happened: The luchos were broken, the Yidden couldn’t bring korbanos anymore (in the first Beis Hamikdash), the walls of Yerushalayim were broken (in the time of the Second Beis Hamikdash), Apostomos the rasha burned a Torah, and he also put an idol in the (second) Beis Hamikdash.
4) Tisha B’Av — 5 sad things happened: The Yidden in the Midbar were told they wouldn’t get to go into Eretz Yisroel, the Beis Hamikdash was destroyed (both), a city called Beitar was captured and everyone was killed (including Bar Kochva, who many Chachomim said could be Moshiach), and the rasha Turnus Rufus plowed the ground of the Beis Hamikdash (this is something the Navi said would happen).
The Yidden also took the minhag of fasting one more fast:
5) Taanis Esther (Yud-Gimmel Adar) — we fast Erev Purim to remember how all of the Yidden fasted in the time of the gezeira of Haman.
We don’t blow the trumpets on any of these fasts.
If the fast days are on Shabbos, we fast after Shabbos instead — except for Taanis Esther, because if we fasted after Shabbos, we would be fasting on Purim! Instead, we fast on the Thursday before (because it’s not kavodik for Shabbos for us to fast on Friday). If the other fasts are on Friday, though, we fast on Friday. (This hardly ever happens because of how our calendar is set up.)
The Rambam tells us the halachos of Av and Tisha B’Av, which is the only one of these fasts that we fast also at night. We also learn about “Zecher LeChurban,” things we do to remember that the Beis Hamikdash was destroyed.
At the end of Rambam we learn something very happy! The same Navi that hints to all of these fasts also reminds us that they will all be very happy days when Moshiach comes!
|
|
|
|
We learned in today’s Hayom Yom that we don’t say Tachanun in Mincha, because it’s Erev Chamisha Asar B’shvat.
What is Chamisha Asar B’shvat? It says in the first Mishna of Mesechta Rosh Hashana that there are four “Rosh Hashanas,” four days in the year that are the beginning of the year for certain things.
Chamisha Asar B’shvat is the beginning of the year for mitzvos that have to do with trees, for taking off terumah and maaser, which need to be taken off for each year separately.
Even though some of these mitzvos aren’t kept nowadays, and none of them are kept outside of Eretz Yisroel, it is a minhag to celebrate on Chamisha Asar B’shvat!
The Torah says the words, “Ki Ha’adam Eitz Hasadeh.”
It is written in seforim based on this posuk that a person has things that are similar to a tree. Just like a tree grows and gives fruit, a person needs to constantly grow in Yiddishkeit and Torah and mitzvos, and also be an example for others so they will grow too.
In the year Tof-Shin-Chof-Beis, there was a group of students that came to the Rebbe for Yud Shevat. Before they left, they had a yechidus. (This yechidus was later edited by the Rebbe, and printed in Likutei Sichos.) The Rebbe spoke to them about Chamisha-Asar B’Shvat. The Rebbe told them that we need to learn from how a tree is always growing, to always make sure to make tomorrow even better than today!
The Rebbe gave them brachos, since they are learning in the Rebbe’s yeshiva, that Hashem should help that they should fulfill the horaos of the Rebbe and always grow in their Yiddishkeit! They should be a constant source of nachas to their families, their teachers, and the Rebbe.
See Mishna Rosh Hashana perek Alef, and Likutei Sichos chelek Beis, p. 518
|
|
|
▼ Jump to Coloring Books & Downloads ▼
|
|
|
|
There are three times that we mention the Rebbe in davening.
1) The first place is at the end of Shemoneh Esrei, where we say a posuk starting and ending with the letters of the Rebbe’s name.
2) The second place is right after davening, where we say the Rebbe’s kapitel.
3) The third place is in the place in bentching we are learning about now — the Horachamans.
When we ask Hashem for the things we need, Chassidim add a special Horachaman, asking for a bracha for the Rebbe!
There is a story about this Horachaman, from the Tzemach Tzedek:
The Tzemach Tzedek was also a Rav, and often was asked to pasken in very serious cases, like cases of an Agunah.
What is an Agunah?
A woman is only allowed to be married to one man. She is not allowed to marry a different person unless she is given a Get, and isn’t married to her first husband anymore. Even if her husband goes away, and doesn’t live in the same house anymore, she still can’t get married to anyone else until she gets her Get. She is called an Agunah.
If a husband disappears, then she has a very big problem. If her husband passed away, she can get married to someone else. If he is still alive, then he needs to give her a Get. But if she doesn’t even know if he is alive or not, she is stuck!
It is very complicated to decide what to do in halacha. Sometimes we can say that he probably passed away, and she is allowed to marry someone else.
Once the Tzemach Tzedek was asked to pasken about an Agunah.
The Tzemach Tzedek, together with his sons, were discussing the case. The Tzemach Tzedek’s son Yisroel Noach was overwhelmed at how clearly the Tzemach Tzedek understood the complicated halachos. He said, “Now we can see the koach of the Chassidim with their strong Hiskashrus, who bentch the Rebbe with a full heart!”
“Yes,” the Tzemach Tzedek answered. “The love of the Chassidim to the Rebbe, and their brachos, make a very big difference in Shomayim! For example, the ‘Horachaman’ that is said by R’ Moshe Eliyahu of Vitebsk, brings good ‘fruit’ in Shomayim and we can see those fruits down here.”
R’ Moshe Eliyahu was just average in the Chassidus he knew and in his avodah. But he had a very strong Hiskashrus, and his bracha for the Rebbe in the Horachaman of bentching was accepted in Shomayim!
See Sefer Hamaamarim Tof-Shin-Ches p. 195
|
|
|
|
On Chamisha Asar B’shvat, we eat fruit from trees, especially fruits which Eretz Yisroel is praised for, and also bukser, or carob.
There are some minhagim kept by Sefardim, who say parts of Torah related to fruits, and in Kabbalah there are explanations for each of the fruits which are eaten. It is not our minhag to say these things.
From 5731 to 5752, the Rebbe made farbrengens almost every year and spoke about Chamisha Asar B’shvat. This was a new minhag for Chassidim! The Rebbe encouraged the following things:
1) Make sure to keep the minhag to eat fruits during Chamisha Asar B’shvat.
2) Make farbrengens in honor of Chamisha Asar B’shvat.
3) Speak about the meaning of the seven fruits of Eretz Yisroel in our Avodas Hashem, and the connection a Yid has to trees and growing. (We will learn a little bit about that tomorrow IY”H!)
4) Make hachlatos to grow in our Avodas Hashem, especially in a way that we’ll enjoy, the same way we enjoy eating fruits!
|
|
לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
|
|
|
|
One of the hardest plants to grow is a fruit tree. It needs a lot of care to make sure that it will grow strong and tall! Still, it is worth all of the hard work, because of the many delicious fruits that will grow from each tree.
The Rebbe teaches us that Torah learning is like growing a tree too!
In the year Tof-Shin-Lamed-Alef, on Chamisha-Asar Bishvat, the Rebbe told us that now is the time to change the world by working harder in our Torah learning. Besides for looking for more time to learn, we also should work harder on what we are ALREADY learning — by paying more attention, trying to understand it better, or reviewing more. This is called learning with yegiah, hard work!
Just like with growing a tree, this hard work in learning Torah is also worth it! Our working hard in learning Torah will bring us to have more hatzlacha! This is what we say in the Yud-Beis Pesukim, when we have Yagaata — we work hard, then Matzasa — we will succeed!
The Rebbe gives us a bracha that we will not even have to wait that long to see the hatzlacha!
When we plant a tree, usually it takes years for any fruit to grow. But it doesn’t always have to be that way. In the times of Moshiach, food will grow right away! We learn this from a Nevuah said by the Navi Amos.
The Gemara and Medrash tell us that there were even some times that this already happened, like in the times of the Navi Yoel, where things happened then in the world already in a way of Geulah, and things people planted grew right away!
The Rebbe tells us that our Torah learning will certainly also be in this way, and we will see hatzlacha from our yegiah in Torah learning right away!
See Likutei Sichos vol. 6 p. 312
|
|
|
|
|
לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
נפטר ב' מנחם אב ה'תשע"ג
|
|
Give children around the world the gift of Kids Chitas!
KidsChitas.org/sponsor
|
|
|
