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CHUMASH
Parshas Behaalosecha - Shlishi with Rashi
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Today we learn about Pesach — and Pesach Sheini!
The Mishkan was put up on Rosh Chodesh Nissan. Hashem told Moshe to tell the Yidden to bring a Korban on Erev Pesach. Even though Moshe told them about this before, he reviewed it with them again when they actually had to bring the korban!
On Erev Pesach, the Yidden did exactly what Hashem asked, and brought the Korban Pesach.
But not ALL the Yidden. Some Yidden were tamei and couldn’t bring the Korban. They were very disappointed! They tried to give a reason to Moshe that they could bring the Korban Pesach even though they were tamei. “Lama Nigara?” they asked. “Why should we be left out? We also want to bring the Korban Pesach!”
Moshe asked Hashem what he should do.
Hashem told Moshe that these Yidden were wrong, they CAN’T bring a Korban Pesach when they are tamei. But they CAN still bring one later!
One month after Erev Pesach, on Yud-Daled Iyar, anyone who didn’t have a chance before can bring the Korban Pesach. They still need to keep the same halachos, eating it with matzah and not leaving any over until the morning. The only difference is that they are allowed to have chometz, and to do melacha on Pesach Sheini.
The Torah warns us not to say “I’ll bring the korban later”. If we CAN bring the Korban Pesach on time, it is an aveira to push it off until Pesach Sheini on purpose.
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In the end of Kapitel Ayin-Gimmel, Dovid Hamelech starts the posuk with the words “Va’ani Kirvas Elokim Li Tov” — “and for me, being close to Hashem is good for me!”
Chassidus explains that there are two levels in a Yid serving Hashem:
The higher level is that a person should feel that “Kirvas Elokim Tov” — being close to Hashem is good. We don’t think about what is the best thing is for ourselves, we have Mesiras Nefesh only to bring Hashem nachas.
But in the beginning of a person’s avodah, they are supposed to think “Kirvas Elokim LI Tov” — “being close to Hashem is good for ME.” We think about what’s good for our own neshama, how Torah learning and mitzvos will help US be closer to Hashem and bring brachos into our Gashmius lives too.
This posuk tells us that even though the highest level of Avodas Hashem is not to think about ourselves, only what brings nachas for Hashem and to bring the Geulah for all Yidden, we need to start off our avodah with the knowledge that living according to the Torah as best as we can will bring the Geulah for our own neshama and guf too!
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TANYA
Shaar Hayichud Veha'emunah Perek Daled
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There is a halacha about wearing a yarmulka which can help us understand what we are learning about now in Tanya, how Hashem hides in the world.
If a boy’s yarmulka falls off when he is playing, the halacha is that he can put his hand on his head and go quickly to pick it up.
But this only helps when he is going to get his yarmulka, as a sign that his head needs to be covered. But he can’t just put his hand on his head INSTEAD of a yarmulka and go make a bracha!
Why?
Because he needs a YARMULKA to cover his head in order to say a bracha. But his own hand isn’t counted as a cover because it isn’t a separate cover — it’s part of himself!
This helps us understand how even though Hashem is hidden in the world, there really is nothing that can be separate from Hashem!
Even though Hashem is hidden, that is just the way it looks to us. But what “hides” Hashem is really not separate at all!
The way that Hashem makes the world exist comes from Sheim Havaya, and the way Hashem hides comes from Sheim Elokim. These two are both names of the same Hashem.
Even though to us it may seem like Hashem is hidden and the world exists on its own, the truth is that there is really nothing separate from Hashem at all!
(In today’s Tanya, the Alter Rebbe explains this according to Kabbalah.)
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In today’s Hayom Yom, we learn how make the bracha on Tzitzis:
1) Make sure our hands are tahor! Did we wash negel vasser?
2) Make sure we can say a bracha here! We shouldn’t be in a bathroom, or have negel vasser that needs to be poured out or something smelly in the room.
3) Put on the Tzitzis.
4) Say the bracha “Al Mitzvas Tzitzis!”
We can’t say the bracha “Lehisatef BeTzitzis,” “to be wrapped in the Tzitzis,” because regular tzitzis are not big enough to wrap ourselves in! We can only say this bracha once we can wear a Tallis. That’s why boys say the bracha of “Al Mitzvas Tzitzis.”
If we couldn’t say a bracha when you put on our Tzitzis on (like if we got dressed in the bathroom), then before we daven, we move around the strings of our Tzitzis (so it is as if we are putting them on now) and then bring them together to say the bracha.
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Today we learn three more mitzvos about judges:
1) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #315) We are not allowed to curse a judge.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Mishpatim: אֱלֹקִים לֹא תְקַלֵּל
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #281) A judge shouldn’t believe non-true things. We tell a judge that he is not allowed to start hearing about a court case until BOTH sides are there. Otherwise he might believe something that isn’t true!
This mitzvah also includes something for everybody: not to say Lashon Hara, not to listen to Lashon Hara, and not to say not true eidus.
We also learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Mishpatim: לֹא תִשָּׂא שֵׁמַע שָׁוְא
3) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #316) It is asur to curse a Nasi — a leader of the Yidden. This includes both a king and the leader of the Sanhedrin.
We also learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Mishpatim: וְנָשִׂיא בְעַמְּךָ לֹא תָאֹר
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In Perek Chof-Beis, we learn how things are done in Beis Din. We learn that if someone knows a reason why the psak should be a certain way, he should say so, even if he is worried about what others will think — because the Torah says Midvar Sheker Tirchak! We need to stay away from letting something not true be said.
We learn that the best thing for a Beis Din to do is to try to get both sides to agree to compromise! This is the way of shalom.
In Perek Chof-Gimmel, we learn more about yesterday’s mitzvah not to take a bribe. Bribes aren’t just money — if someone is a friend of a judge, or did him a favor, it will be hard for the judge to listen to the other side, since he already likes one person.
Perek Chof-Daled teaches us what a judge should do if he is sure that someone is lying, but he can’t prove it. He is not allowed to pasken if he doesn’t feel that the psak is correct, so he should keep asking the witnesses questions until he feels sure, or else he should ask another judge to pasken.
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This perek has many halachos about a Shevuas Hapikadon. A person is only chayav for a Shevuas Hapikadon if he is lying to avoid paying money. But even if he is not chayav for a Shevuas Hapikadon, he may be chayav for another kind of false promise.
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In today’s Chumash, we learn about the Korban Pesach.
The Korban Pesach is an unusual korban! Usually, a korban can be one of two kinds: A Korban Yochid, or a Korban Tzibur.
A Korban Yochid is a korban that a person brings for himself — like a person who had a neis happen to him, who brings a Korban Todah.
A Korban Tzibur is a korban that is brought together for all the Yidden — like the Korban Tomid that is brought every day in the Beis Hamikdash on behalf of all of the Yidden.
But the Korban Pesach is BOTH! It is a Korban Yochid, because each Yid has a mitzvah to bring one. And it is also a Korban Tzibur, because it needs to be brought by all Yidden at the same time!
The Rebbe shows us how we can learn from here a very important lesson in Ahavas Yisroel:
When we hear about or meet a Jew, we have Ahavas Yisroel for them like we do for every Yid, because we know they are part of Klal Yisroel! That kind of Ahavas Yisroel is like a Korban Tzibur, one that is the same for all of the Yidden.
But it is not enough to have just that kind of Ahavas Yisroel. We also need to love every Yid in a way of a Korban Yochid, by seeing what is special about just that person!
For example, we can look at how they make other people happy, or how they are careful to kiss the mezuzah when they come into a room. We can look at how excited they are to light Shabbos candles, or how much tzedakah they give!
When we look for the special maalos that each Yid has, we will feel Ahavas Yisroel especially for them!
This is one part of a discussion that explains the halachic opinions about bringing the Korban Pesach on Shabbos (like we would have needed to do this year). The Rebbe spoke about this at three farbrengens, and the tochen was put together into one sicha. The sicha was published in Likutei Sichos chelek Yud-Ches, second sicha for Parshas Behaalosecha. (This sicha is being learned this week b’Achdus by many Chassidim around the world, as part of Project Likutei Sichos.)
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The Rebbe taught us twelve pesukim and Maamarei Razal that we should learn and understand well, so we can live with their lessons all the time.
The Rebbe first taught six of the pesukim on Rosh Chodesh Iyar, and then another set of six pesukim on Lag B’Omer. We can imagine these pesukim set up in two columns, like the two Luchos! The pesukim that are next to each other have a special connection to each other.
We learned the first two pesukim from each set, the pesukim from Torah Shebichsav. Now we will start learning the next two pesukim from each set, which come from Torah Shebaal Peh!
What is Torah Shebaal Peh?
One of the main things that Torah Shebaal Peh does is that it explains to us HOW to do what Hashem wants. In Torah Shebichsav it tells us WHAT is Hashem’s Ratzon, but only in Torah Shebaal Peh do we learn HOW to do those things!
For example, the Torah, Torah Shebichsav, tells us to put on Tefillin. But we only know the right way to actually do that, with all of the details, from Torah Shebaal Peh.
Now, in these next pesukim, we will learn HOW to do something that we learned about in the first pesukim!
In the first posuk of Torah Tziva, we learned about the precious treasure of the Torah. Then, in the first posuk of the second set, Bereishis, we actually started to learn that treasure!
Now in the third posuk of Bechol, and also in the third posuk of the second set, Yogaati, we will learn HOW to use our precious Torah:
One of the most important things the Yidden needed to do before Hashem gave them the Torah was to leave Mitzrayim! They needed to know that they were free to keep the Torah, and that Hashem was taking care of them. In the posuk of Bechol, we are told that we should also see OURSELVES as if we left Mitzrayim!
Bechol Dor Vador Chayav Adam Liros Es Atzmo K’ilu Hu Yatza Mimitzrayim — Whatever generation we come from, we need to see ourselves as if WE went out of Mitzrayim!
This posuk tells us that in order to learn Torah, we need to remember that we are also freed from Mitzrayim! Nothing can stop us from learning Torah. We are free, and Hashem gives us everything we need.
The posuk right next to it, in the second column, is the posuk Yogaati, which comes from the Gemara Megillah. It tells us that the only way to have hatzlacha in Torah is through Yegiah, working hard! If someone says that they were successful without really trying, we don’t believe them. But by learning Torah with Yegiah, we will have much more hatzlacha than the effort we put in — Yogaati Umatzasi Taamin!
Both of these pesukim, Bechol and Yogaati, show us HOW we are able to learn the precious Torah that we are given.
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Today in Hayom Yom, we learned some of the Chabad minhagim of tzitzis. Here are some more of our minhagim:
In the siddur, the Alter Rebbe writes that we are careful to sleep in our tzitzis.
There is one problem, though. How can we make a bracha on tzitzis if they’re the same ones we were wearing yesterday, when we already made a bracha when putting on this pair?
We can take care of this problem by having two pairs of tzitzis, and switching to the other pair every morning. This way, when we make the bracha, it is a bracha on putting on this new pair of tzitzis.
See the sefer “Tzitzis Halacha Lemaaseh, p. 139
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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 the Yidden left Mitzrayim, they had to rush and hurry! They didn’t even have time to bake bread, only to make dough for matzah. They had to leave right away, because Paraoh and the Mitzriyim were forcing them to leave.
The Navi Yeshaya says in his nevuah that in the time of Moshiach, Hashem will protect us, and we can calmly and happily come back to Eretz Yisroel!
כִּי לֹא בְחִפָּזוֹן תֵּצֵאוּ וּבִמְנוּסָה לֹא תֵלֵכוּן כִּי הֹלֵךְ לִפְנֵיכֶם ה׳ וּמְאַסִּפְכֶם אֱלֹקֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
Ki Lo VeChipazon Teitzeiu — Because you won’t need to hurry out of Golus, like you did by Yetziyas Mitzrayim, when you had to worry about the Mitzriyim
UviMenusah Lo Seileichun — And you won’t have to leave in a crazy rush!
Ki Holeich Lifneichem Hashem — You can leave Golus calmly, because Hashem will go in front of you
Ume’asifchem Elokei Yisrael — And Hashem will also be behind you, protecting you.
Chassidus explains the difference between the Geulah from Mitzrayim and the Geulah from this Golus. Because the Yidden were so deeply stuck in the tumah of Mitzrayim, they had to run out quickly. But when Moshiach comes, Hashem will first take away the tumah, so there will be no need to run away from the Golus. We will calmly and happily go straight to Geulah!
See Yeshaya perek Nun-Beis posuk Yud-Beis
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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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