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CHUMASH

Parshas Shemini - Shishi with Rashi

In today’s Chumash, we learn which kinds of animals are kosher! An animal that chews its food over and over again (Maaleh Gera, “chews its cud”) and has hooves that are split in half (Mafreses Parsa, “split feet”) is a kosher animal.

There are a few animals that have only ONE of these signs, and they are NOT kosher. One of them is the camel, which chews its cud but doesn’t have split feet. Another is the chazir, which has split feet but does not chew its cud.

We also learn about kosher fish. If a fish has “wings” that it uses to swim with (Snapir, fins) and hard circles over parts of the fish to keep it from getting hurt (Kaskeses, scales), then it is a kosher fish.

When the Torah teaches us about kosher birds, it only tells us which birds are NOT kosher! This is because most birds are kosher, and the Torah only needs to tell us which ones aren’t!

Since nowadays we don’t know the Torah names of all of the birds we see, we can’t be sure that they aren’t the ones that the Torah says not to eat. Because of this, we only eat birds we KNOW are kosher, either because we do know their proper Torah names, or because we know that our Bubbies and Zaidies ate them! (This is called a Mesorah, passed down from generation to generation. For example, one of the birds we don’t know the Torah name of, but we have a Mesora for, is chicken. Many people also have a Mesora for turkey.)

There is also a kind of kosher grasshopper (nowadays, only Sefardim eat these).

Touching a dead non-kosher animal makes a person tomei, and it can also make things tomei. They will need to be toiveled in a mikvah to become tahor again.

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TEHILLIM

97 - 103

Once when the Frierdiker Rebbe was a young boy, his father the Rebbe Rashab took him to a Chassidishe farbrengen. It was Sukkos, and the farbrengen was in the freezing cold Sukkah. The farbrengen went until very late, and the Frierdiker Rebbe fell asleep.

Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah (the Frierdiker Rebbe’s mother) came to take him into his warm bed, but the Rebbe Rashab said to let him stay! The Rebbetzin said, “It is cold for him! Doesn’t it say, ‘Kerachem Av Al Banim…’ — ‘Hashem has Rachmanus on us like a FATHER has Rachmanus on his child’? Where is your Rachmanus for your son? He might get sick from the cold chas veshalom!” (This posuk is in today’s Tehillim! We also say it many times in davening.)

The Rebbe Rashab answered, “Let him sleep close to Chassidim that are farbrenging, and that will keep him warm! This varemkeit (warmth) will stay with him for many generations.”

Many years later, the Frierdiker Rebbe told this story at a farbrengen with Chassidim. After the story, he said, “This is Mesirus Nefesh for Chinuch!”

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TANYA

Likutei Amarim Perek Mem-Alef

In today’s Tanya, we learn another kavana we should have in our Avodas Hashem.

The Alter Rebbe tells us that our mitzvos need to have a “neshama.” They need to be able to go up to Hashem.

When we think about how Hashem is watching everything we’re doing (Yirah) and how we want our neshama to be connected to Hashem (Ahava), then that kavana is the neshama for our mitzvos and can make them go up to Hashem.

Today the Alter Rebbe tells us that we have to have another very important Kavanah in the mitzvos that we do: To think about all of the other Yidden when we do our mitzvah. ALL of the Yidden should be close to Hashem through our mitzvah, and not just us!

How does this work? Our neshamos come from the Shechinah. The chayus of Hashem in mitzvos is from Kudsha Brich Hu. When we do our mitzvos, we are connecting the source of our neshamos (Shechinah), with the source of the mitzvos (Kudsha Brich Hu). Since EVERY Yid’s neshama comes from Shechinah, our mitzvah is connecting EVERY neshama with Kudsha Brich Hu!

When we think about this, it brings Hashem a lot of nachas — and that nachas is called “Yichud Kudsha Brich Hu Ushechintei!”

Every day before Baruch She’amar, we think this kavana. We say, “Lesheim Yichud Kudsha Brich Hu Ushechnitei,” that we are davening in order to bring Hashem this special nachas. When we say this, we should have in mind that this kavana is for ALL of the mitzvos that we do the whole day!

(Some say Lesheim Yichud before EVERY mitzvah, but the Chabad Minhag is to say it one time for the whole day.)

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HAYOM YOM

Chof Nisan

Today is the fifth day of the Omer!

One Pesach, the Mitteler Rebbe’s brother (R’ Chaim Avraham) went to wish the Mitteler Rebbe a Gut Yom Tov.

He said that their father, the Alter Rebbe, said: “On Pesach, we don’t give food or drinks to our guests, but if the guest wants he can take.”

That’s because many people have different kinds of chumros on Pesach, and we don’t want anyone to feel embarrassed!

(Of course, if you know your guests don’t have any special chumros, you should offer them food as usual!)

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SEFER HAMITZVOS

Shiur #267 - Mitzvas Lo Saasei #251

Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #251) is that we are not allowed to hurt other people with our words (ona’as devarim). We aren’t allowed to say mean things, or things that will make someone embarrassed or feel bad.

For example, we aren’t allowed to remind a Baal Teshuvah about the aveiros he did, or tell someone who is sick that it must be a punishment for something he did. We also can’t ask questions that make people think that we are going to buy something when we aren’t really planning on buying it.

We learn this from a posuk in Parshas Behar: וְלֹא תוֹנוּ אִישׁ אֶת עֲמִיתוֹ וְיָרֵאתָ מֵאֱלֹקֶיךָ

The details of this mitzvah are explained in Perek Daled of Bava Metzia.

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RAMBAM

Hilchos Mechirah

In today’s Rambam, we learn more about selling and buying according to Torah.

Perek Yud-Gimmel teaches us what happens if someone trades or sells something for more than it is really worth. That is called ona’ah.

If a person is honest, and says how much each thing is really worth, then it is never called ona’ah, since both people agreed to the deal KNOWING that it might not look fair.

Perek Yud-Daled teaches us more about ona’ah. The Beis Din needs to make fair prices for things so that nobody will pay too much.

The second half of this perek teaches us the halachos of today’s mitzvah, Ona’as Devarim. We need to be careful how we talk, not telling someone to buy something in a store that doesn’t really sell it, or pretending that we want to buy something when we really don’t want to. This mitzvah is also important when we aren’t doing business, that we can’t say something that will hurt another person or end up leaving him feeling bad.

Perek Tes-Vov teaches us about “Mekach To’us” — when someone can say “I wouldn’t have bought this if I knew about this problem!” For example, if you knew that the bike seat is wobbly and sometimes falls off, you might have bought a different bike instead. You can go and get your money back from the person who sold it to you!

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RAMBAM PEREK ECHOD

Hilchos Isurei Biah - Perek Ches

This perek has more halachos about when a woman becomes tomei.

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INYANA D'YOMA

Sefiras Haomer

During Sefiras Haomer, we work on our midos so we’ll be ready to get the Torah on Shavuos! When we have good midos and we’re aidel, we will be able to have the Torah become a part of us.

During the first week of Sefira, we’re working on our chesed — making sure our chesed and ahava is in the best way. Chesed, being kind, comes from a feeling of love (ahava) in our heart.

One of the things we need to be very careful with when we have Ahavas Yisroel is “tzu rechenen zich mit dem tzveiten” — to think about how the other person will feel.

For example, if you want to be nice and share your favorite car or doll with someone else, think: Do they really want to play with your car or your doll? Maybe they would rather share your crayons?

We don’t just have Ahavas Yisroel because WE want to do something, we need to think about who we’re having Ahavas Yisroel for.

This last Golus came from Yidden not having proper Ahavas Yisroel. By fixing up our Ahavas Yisroel, not only will we be ready for Matan Torah, but we will be ready for the Geulah!

▼ Jump to Coloring Books & Downloads ▼

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TEFILLAH

Yetziyas Mitzrayim

In the Haggadah, we say the posuk of “Bechol Dor Vador,” saying that we need to see ourselves as if we are going out of Mitzrayim.

Chassidus explains that in Mitzrayim, the Yidden were stuck in tumah. When Hashem took the Yidden out of the land Mitzrayim, He also took them out of the tumah of Mitzrayim. Then they were able to connect with Hashem!

This kind of Yetziyas Mitzrayim, leaving tumah so we can connect to Hashem, doesn’t just happen when we relive the story on Pesach. Every day we are in a kind of Mitzrayim. Our body, that only thinks about what it enjoys, is a type of tumah. The world, that is always trying to get us to do aveiros, is also a kind of tumah. Every time we stop giving into the taavos of the body and the nisyonos the world gives us, we are leaving Mitzrayim!

This Yetziyas Mitzrayim happens every time we learn Torah and do mitzvos, when we break away from the tumah and connect to Hashem. But it is especially strong when we accept Ol Malchus Shomayim, when we decide that we are ready to do whatever Hashem asks us to. We are saying that the tumah of the guf and the tumah of the world is not in charge of us, and we only want to connect to Hashem!

When we say Shema every day, we are accepting Ol Malchus Shomayim. We say that Hashem is all that matters, and the rest of the world is only there to help us with that!

At the end of the third paragraph of Shema, Vayomer, we speak about Yetziyas Mitzrayim. Even though remembering Yetziyas Mitzrayim is a separate mitzvah from Kriyas Shema, since this is what Shema is all about, it is included as one of the paragraphs of Kriyas Shema! When we say Shema, we break away from the tumah of the world, accept Hashem’s gift of Torah and mitzvos, and connect to Hashem. That is Yetziyas Mitzrayim!

See Tanya Perek Mem-Zayin

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HALACHOS HATZRICHOS

Sefiras Ha'omer

Sefiras Haomer is a very important mitzvah! We are supposed to count sefirah as soon as we can after Tzeis Hakochavim.

Starting from a half hour before Shkiyah, we are careful not to eat more than a snack of Mezonos or Hamotzi so that we won’t forget to count on time. If we have another way to remember — like if we have someone who will remind us afterwards, or we usually go to a minyan where everyone counts together — then we are allowed to eat even a regular meal.

Women do not HAVE to count sefirah, but it is a mitzvah if they do, and they should also say a bracha.

A boy, even before Bar Mitzvah, needs to count Sefirah if he is already at the age of Chinuch.

See Laws and Customs of Sefiras Haomer, by Rabbi Shmuel Lesches

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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GEULAH U'MOSHIACH

Everyone Will Know Hashem (2)

The posuk says that Le’asid Lavo, “Kulam Yeidu Osi,” everyone will know Hashem.

Still, the same posuk continues, “Lemiktanam Ad Gedolam,” “from small to big.” This means that there will still be “small people” who don’t understand Hashem as much, and “big people” who understand Hashem better.

If everyone knows Hashem, why are there differences?

We can understand this from a mashal:

People and animals were created from the ground, but we don’t live in the ground.

The Gemara says that fish were created from water, and they live inside of the water, too! They live inside of the source of their chayus.

The same thing is with us nowadays: We get our chayus from Hashem, but we don’t “live inside of it,” we don’t feel that it is all around us.

But when Moshiach comes, we will be like fish! We will feel the source of our chayus.

Even with fish, though, there are different sizes and kinds! Some are bigger, and some are smaller. Some live in warmer water, others in colder water. Some live near the top of the ocean, and others live on the bottom.

Le’asid Lavo we will feel that everything is from Hashem, but not all of us will understand it the same way! Some people will understand more than others. We won’t need to teach people that Hashem is the source of their chayus, but we will still need to learn and teach more about understanding Hashem.

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