|
|
CHUMASH
Parshas Ki Sisa - Revi'i with Rashi
|
|
In yesterday’s Chumash, Moshe Rabbeinu asked that Hashem should only dwell between the Yidden. Hashem told Moshe He would do that.
Moshe saw that it was an Eis Ratzon, a special time when Hashem is accepting tefillos! So he asked Hashem for one more thing: He asked if he could see the kavod of Hashem.
Hashem accepted this request too! Hashem told Moshe that He would show him a special secret, the Yud-Gimmel Midos HoRachamim, so Moshe would know how to daven using them. Moshe will then be able to teach them to the Yidden. When the Yidden will daven and say the Yud-Gimmel Midos, Hashem will give them what they need even if they don’t completely deserve it!
Hashem told Moshe to stand near a certain rock on the mountain, and Hashem would pass in front of him and teach him how to say the Yud-Gimmel Midos. Hashem appeared to Moshe in the form of someone wearing Tallis and Tefillin and saying the Yud-Gimmel Midos HoRachamim. But Moshe could only see Hashem’s “back,” the knot of Hashem’s head Tefillin. Moshe wasn’t able to look directly at the “face” of Hashem.
|
|
|
|
In today’s Tehillim, we have the kapitel that the Leviim would sing in the Beis Hamikdash on Shabbos — the Shir Shel Yom for Shabbos.
One of the pesukim in this kapitel speaks about how everybody thanks Hashem on Shabbos. Chassidus explains on the words “Tov Lehodos LaHashem” (it is good to praise Hashem) that it’s the goodness of Hashem that makes people praise him. Of course Hashem is always good, but on Shabbos we can FEEL it more, so that’s why especially on Shabbos Hashem’s goodness makes us want to thank and praise Hashem!
|
|
|
TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Lamed-Hey
|
|
Every Yid needs to be like a Mishkan, so the Shechinah can rest in us.
We learned a mashal for this, from an oil candle. The body of a Yid is like the wick, the oil is the mitzvos we do, and the Shechinah is the flame that rests on us!
We also learned that the neshama isn’t enough to be oil, we need the mitzvos, the Ratzon of Hashem!
There are two kinds of mitzvos that make the Shechinah rest on us so we can shine.
1) When we learn Torah, using our mind and our mouth to learn the words of Hashem, that makes the Shechinah rest on our neshama! That way our neshama will shine.
2) When we do a mitzvah with Gashmiyus things, a MAASEH kind of mitzvah, that makes the Shechinah rest on our guf too! That way our whole body will shine with the light of Hashem!
|
|
|
|
Since the Hayom Yom was written in a year where there were TWO Adars (a Shana Me’uberes) we learn TWO Hayom Yoms every day!
Yud-Tes Adar Alef
In today’s Hayom Yom, the Frierdiker Rebbe is writing a letter to the hanhala of the Yeshiva Tomchei Tmimim, that he is upset that he sees that the bochurim don’t know Nach (among other things they need to know, like Lashon Kodesh, Kriyah with Trop, Divrei Yemei Yisroel, and proper writing skills). The Frierdiker Rebbe asks the Yeshiva to make a plan in their next meeting for how they can correct the problem.
The Frierdiker Rebbe describes how even the average Chassidim were boki in Nach:
All of the Chassidim used to know Tanach very well!
Tanach are all of the seforim of the Torah, Neviim, and Kesuvim. Neviim includes all of the stories of what happened with the Yidden starting from the time of Yehoshua, until the beginning of the second Beis Hamikdash, and Kesuvim are seforim written by the Gedolei Yisrael of those times, like Tehillim and Mishlei. There are 24 seforim in Tanach. How many of their names do you know?
Here’s the seder they used to have in reviewing Nach: After davening Shacharis, they would learn some Mishnayos, and then when they put away their Tallis and Tefillin, they would say parts of Tanach, so that they finished the whole Tanach every three months! (That means they finished a whole sefer every 3 or 4 days!)
Even if you can’t learn as much Tanach as the Chassidim used to, can YOU start learning stories from Navi? There are lots of books to make it easier for you! (Here are some ideas: The Family Midrash Says - Navi, Know Navi)
Yud-Tes Adar Sheini
One of the Alter Rebbe’s Chassidim was called R’ Moshe Meisels.
R’ Moshe Meisels told us something that the Alter Rebbe taught:
The “Alef of Chassidus” (the first thing we need to know, just like we need to know the letter “alef” first!) is to use the special kochos Hashem gave us to do our Avodas Hashem. One of the kochos Hashem gave all of us is “Moach Shalit Al Halev.” This means that our mind can control our feelings.
This koach needs to be used for serving Hashem! In Tanya, we learned two ways how we can use this:
1) We can do what we KNOW is the right thing, even if we FEEL like doing something else. Sometimes a person feels like doing something that he knows is not what Hashem wants. But his mind is able to decide not to do the aveira, no matter what he feels like!
2) We can use our mind to think about the greatness of Hashem and how special Torah and mitzvos are. This will get our heart excited too, so we will start WANTING to serve Hashem!
There is a famous story of how the chossid R’ Moshe Meisels used his koach of Moach Shalit Al Halev when he was doing the Alter Rebbe’s shlichus, and it saved his life! See today’s Inyana D’Yoma.
|
|
|
|
Since we are learning a set of halachos that doesn’t have its own mitzvah, Hilchos Keilim, we are reviewing other mitzvos from Sefer Tahara, since keilim can also get these kinds of tumah!
Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #96) is about the kind of tumah that comes from the body of a neveila — a dead animal.
The mitzvah NUMBERS that we have here are according to the order of the mitzvos the way the Rambam lists them in Sefer Hamitzvos. We actually learn the mitzvos based on the order that the halachos are explained in the Rambam, so that we learn the same thing (be’achdus) with all of the Yidden learning the halachos of Rambam. That’s why the mitzvah numbers don’t go in order — one day we will learn Mitzvas Asei #96, and the next day we will learn #109!
According to the list in Sefer Hamitzvos, today’s mitzvah, Mitzvah #96, is the last of 13 mitzvos about kinds of tumah. That’s why the Rambam explains in this mitzvah a general rule about tumah:
It is not a mitzvah that we need to become tomei, or to be careful not to become tomei. The mitzvah is to follow the dinim of how a person becomes tomei, and to follow the rules which are given for a tomei person, like not going into the Beis Hamikdash or eating from korbanos.
|
|
|
|
In today’s Rambam, we learn about what kind of keilim can get Midras. That means that if a Zav sits on something, stands on something, or leans on something, it becomes tomei with a tumah called Midras.
In Perek Chof-Daled, we learn about leather things that become tomei if a Zav sits on them. One thing the Rambam tells us is that a leather bib can become tomei!
Perek Chof-Hey teaches us about furniture that can become tomei with Midras. A baby stroller is one thing that can become tomei, because people sometimes lean on strollers. But a cane isn’t, because it only helps a person balance.
In Perek Chof-Vov, the Rambam tells us about when keilim that were broken, taken apart, or attached to other keilim can get the tumah of Midras.
|
|
|
|
This perek has halachos about sending a get through a shliach.
|
|
|
|
R’ Moshe Meizlish was a chossid of the Alter Rebbe. He was very smart, and knew how to speak many languages.
At that time, a French general, Napoleon, wanted to capture Russia. He promised to make Russia a better place for all of the people there.
The Alter Rebbe knew that Napoleon might make things better in Gashmius, but he would make things worse in Ruchnius! So the Alter Rebbe sent his chossid, R’ Moshe Meizlish, to be a spy for Russia and help them win the war.
R’ Moshe Meizlish did what the Alter Rebbe told him to. He spent time with the French officers, and they hired him to translate things from one language to another. This way, he learned all about their army’s plans. R’ Moshe later secretly told all of these things to the Russian officers.
Once, many of the highest officers in the French army were having a very important meeting. They were looking at maps and trying to figure out the best way to attack Vilna, since they would need to do it very soon.
Suddenly, Napoleon burst into the room. He looked very angry. “Have you finished planning the battle yet? Did you tell the soldiers what to do?”
Before the officers could answer, Napoleon saw R’ Moshe, who was standing by the side waiting to help translate anything the officers would need.
“And who is this stranger?” Napoleon roared in a loud voice. Coming up to R’ Moshe, he screamed at him, “You are a spy for Russia!” Napoleon put his hand over R’ Moshe’s heart. He knew that when a person is scared, his heart will pound very quickly! If he felt that R’ Moshe’s heartbeat was very fast, he would know that R’ Moshe was really a spy.
But R’ Moshe Meizlish remembered the “alef of Chassidus” — that Moach Shalit Al Halev, the mind rules over the heart! His mind told his heart not to beat fast. In a calm voice, he answered Napoleon: “The generals and officers have hired me to translate for them, since I know all of the languages they need.”
Napoleon nodded and left the room.
R’ Moshe Meizlish continued to spy for the Russian army, and they won the war in the end.
|
|
|
▼ Jump to Coloring Books & Downloads ▼
|
|
|
|
Why do we need to daven every day? It makes sense that we need to connect to Hashem, but why don’t we just daven once a week, and we’ll be connected for a whole week? After all, we just have Shabbos one time a week, not every day!
The Alter Rebbe explains this in Likutei Torah: The Chachomim in the Gemara say that every day, a person’s Yetzer Hara wakes up with new energy and new tricks. So every day, we also need to get a new chayus and kochos to win over the Yetzer Hara! Since the Yetzer Hara starts fresh every day, we need to do the same!
Every Yid, and especially every child, is a soldier in Tzivos Hashem to win over the Yetzer Hara. We need new kochos every day to win over the Yetzer Hara and bring Moshiach now!
We get these new kochos every day when we daven!
See Likutei Torah parshas Ki Seitzei
|
|
|
|
Before the search for chometz, we first clean our house. We sweep up and straighten up the house to make it easier to look everywhere for chometz. We have to be extra careful to clean any parts of the house that might come in contact with our Pesach food.
One of the places we will need to search is under and behind heavy appliances, like the stove and refrigerator. Pieces of chometz end up under there very often! Because it can be hard to move them, we can do this before the actual night of Bedikas Chometz. We can move the refrigerator to clean behind it, and then search there with a candle (but without saying a bracha). Then we won’t need to move it again during Bedikas Chometz, if there was no chance chometz got pushed under there again since we checked.
See “Notes for Pesach,” by Dayan Raskin
|
|
לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
|
|
|
|
During World War II, the Frierdiker Rebbe started a new campaign about Moshiach: “L’alter L’Teshuvah, L’alter L’Geulah!” If we do Teshuvah right away, the Geulah will come right away!
At the same time that the Frierdiker Rebbe was telling everyone that Moshiach could come RIGHT NOW, the Frierdiker Rebbe was also working on spreading Yiddishkeit and setting up cheders — projects that take a long time.
People were confused! If Moshiach is coming right now, then we don’t need to worry about making a new cheder or sending a shliach to a faraway town! Moshiach will take care of it.
When they asked the Frierdiker Rebbe, they were told that there is an example for this in the Torah!
In the midbar, the Yidden traveled to many places. In one of these places, they stayed for 19 years. In another place, they left after just one day! But no matter what, they had to set up the whole Mishkan and the whole Machaneh as if they were going to stay for a very long time. The same thing is with Golus: Even if we will be here just for one day, we still need to set things up as if we would be here for a long time.
In Golus, we also have to keep these two feelings together. We need to have full bitachon that Hashem will make nisim and Moshiach will come RIGHT NOW! But at the same time, we need to plan things based on the way they are in Golus. Of course, we will be VERY happy if we don’t need to finish those plans, because Moshiach will take care of them for us!
See farbrengen Parshas Vayeishev, 5717
|
|
|
|
|
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
|
|
|
