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CHUMASH
Parshas Bechukosai - Sheini with Rashi
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Hashem is telling us even more brachos we will get by learning Torah and following the mitzvos it teaches us:
Hashem promises us that our fields will grow a lot of food — and He promises that we will feel safe and be able to enjoy it!
Hashem will send away the wild animals so we don’t have to worry, and make other armies stay away from us. If we go outside of Eretz Yisroel to fight, we won’t even have to kill the enemies — they will kill each other! Even the weakest of the Yidden will be stronger than five of the enemies, and the more careful Yidden are with the mitzvos, the more enemies they will be able to win over — even one Yid will be able to chase away more than a hundred enemy soldiers!
Hashem will give us many healthy children, in reward for working hard to learn and follow the Torah. In fact, Hashem will help us by making the mitzvos so much a part of us that it will even be hard to make a mistake!
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In today’s Tehillim, we thank Hashem for miracles. Kapitel Kuf-Zayin (107) talks about how we thank Hashem for the four very dangerous things that a person is saved from:
- coming out of prison
- getting better from being very sick
- crossing an ocean
- crossing a desert
The Rebbe explains that these four things also mean four hard challenges a person has to deal with during his life, but Hashem helps us every time!
One of the things we thank Hashem for is coming out of prison:
Sometimes the Yetzer Hara can be very strong. It can even be so strong that it becomes in charge of the person, and won’t let him even do things he knows are right! For the Yetzer Tov, this is like a prison. It is trapped by the Yetzer Hara and can’t do what it wants.
Of course, Hashem is everywhere, and is with us even in those times. This makes us feel hopeful, and when we do our best, Hashem will help and get us out of this prison!
This is one of the challenges we thank Hashem for helping us with in this kapitel.
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Nun
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The Alter Rebbe has been showing us, over the last perakim, different ways to have Ahava and Yirah — how to love Hashem and do what He wants.
For example, we can think about how Hashem gives us life, and that Hashem is our father Who takes care of all of our needs. We can think about how Hashem loves the Yidden so much that He chose us to be so close to Him, and we love Hashem back.
One thing is the same in all of these ways of loving Hashem: We feel what Hashem does FOR US, what He gives TO US, and that makes us love Hashem.
Today the Alter Rebbe tells us about a different kind of love for Hashem — a kind of love that has nothing to do with us! In fact, when a Yid has this kind of love for Hashem, he doesn’t want anything for himself — he wants his neshama to become one with Hashem, even though that means he won’t have any chayus or any of the things that Hashem usually gives to people!
Once the son of the Maggid, R’ Avraham der Malach, was learning some very deep Chassidus. It made him want Hashem so much that his neshama almost left his body! The Alter Rebbe saw him, and realized what was happening. He forced R’ Avraham der Malach to eat a piece of bagel with butter to save his life!
The kind of love in this story shows this second kind of ahava. It’s not thinking about what Hashem does for us to make us special, it’s just thinking about Hashem and wanting to be together with Hashem!
(We know from Chumash that Nadav and Avihu also had this kind of love for Hashem, which caused them to become close to Hashem, and their neshamos left their bodies.)
Just like in the story of R’ Avraham der Malach, the Alter Rebbe will show us what we need to do to make sure that we have a “bagel with butter” so our neshama will stay inside of us and help us do mitzvos! It is called shuv, and we will be learning more about it tomorrow IY”H!
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Today is thirty-seven days of the Omer!
One time there was a farbrengen with the Chassidim of the Alter Rebbe (not too long after the Alter Rebbe became Rebbe — sometime between 5544 and 5547), and this is what they were talking about:
The Alter Rebbe did something very special that never was before! There is a hiskashrus between Chassidim and the Rebbe that makes us never feel alone. For people without a Rebbe, even if they had a Rosh Yeshiva or a teacher, their NESHAMOS weren’t connected. But with Chassidus, a Chossid and Rebbe are connected with their neshamos, so they will never feel alone!
We learned yesterday that this week we are working on the midah of Yesod, which is Hiskashrus. Like we saw in the story of R’ Meir of Premishlan, when we are connected above, we don’t fall down. We see in today’s Hayom Yom that now, in the dark times of Golus, we have the special hiskashrus with the Rebbe that helps us overcome the Golus and prepare for the Geulah! (See sicha of Chof-Daled Iyar Tof-Shin-Yud-Alef)
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In today’s Sefer Hamitzvos, we learn the very first 3 mitzvos!
1) (Mitzvas Asei #1) We need to know that there is an Aibershter, Hashem, Who is the Creator of everything that exists!
We learn this from the first of the Aseres Hadibros in Parshas Yisro: אָנֹכִי ה׳ אֱלֹקֶיךָ
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #1) We are not allowed to think that anything else can be like Hashem.
We learn this mitzvah from the second of the Aseres Hadibros in Parshas Yisro: לֹא יִהְיֶה לְךָ אֱלֹקִים אֲחֵרִים עַל פָּנַי
3) (Mitzvas Asei #2) We need to know that Hashem, Who makes everything exist, is ONE. We say this in Shema every day, and knowing this and thinking about it is also called being Mekabel Ol Malchus Shomayim.
We learn this from where Shema is said in the Torah, in Parshas Vaeschanan: שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל ה׳ אֱלֹקֵינוּ ה׳ אֶחָד
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RAMBAM
Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah
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Now we’re going to learn the first halachos in the whole Rambam!
In Perek Alef, the Rambam teaches us the first, most important thing we need to know before we learn anything else in the whole Torah: To know that there is only one Hashem, that He created everything, that He controls everything, and that nothing could exist without Hashem. We can’t see Hashem, but we know that He is always there!
Perek Beis has the halachos about loving Hashem, and having Yiras Shomayim! We need to think about how special everything Hashem created is. The more we think and learn about Hashem, the more we will love him and want to act the way a Yid should.
Perek Gimmel teaches us about outer space! The Rambam explains how there are different levels in the sky, with the moon, stars, and all of the planets. Did you know that the stars all know Hashem and say praises to Hashem? By knowing about the wonders of Hashem in creation, it will help us fulfill the mitzvah to love and fear Hashem!
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Today we learn more about when food is Muchshar Lekabel Tumah, able to become tomei. If food got wet by mistake with one of the seven kinds of liquid, but the owner was happy about it, it is able to become tomei. If he wasn’t happy that it got wet, it can’t become tomei.
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This week in Sefiras Haomer we are working on the midah of Yesod.
We learned that yesod is hiskashrus, and we use it when we connect to Hashem. That is Bein Adam Lamakom, the way we use this midah with Hashem.
But there is also another kind of yesod, the yesod that is Bein Adam Lachaveiro, the way we use this midah with other people.
This kind of yesod is also hiskashrus, connecting with the other person to think about how he will feel.
How do we use our yesod?
Ari notices that his friend Moishy is not very organized. Moishy doesn’t always do his homework, forgets to bring his Chumash, and eats all of his snack by morning recess. Ari wants to help Moishy so that he will be more organized and happier in school. He decides that Moishy needs to learn how to write things down so he doesn’t keep forgetting. Ari thinks that maybe he should buy Moishy a notebook just for remembering things. But first he stops, and uses his midah of yesod. How will Moishy feel if he gives him a notebook and teaches him how to use it? He realizes that Moishy will probably be embarrassed to hear about it from a friend. Ari decides that Moishy will probably be happier to hear about writing things down if his teacher tells him about it instead. Ari gives the notebook to the teacher privately, and asks him to show Moishy how to use it.
Here’s another example of using our yesod:
Mommy sees that the kids are going to sleep too late, and then they are kvetchy the whole day! She knows that they need to start getting ready for bed earlier. Her friend shares a chart that they use in their house, to get all the kids to sleep on time. But before Mommy hangs up the chart, she uses her yesod. Will her family like the chart and start going to sleep because of it? How will it make them feel? Mommy thinks about how her kids don’t like using charts so much. She realizes that for her family, it is better to read a bedtime story at 7:00 for everyone who is in bed in time.
When we do something for another person, we first connect to them and think about how it will make them feel. This way we can make sure that what we are doing will only make good things happen for the other person!
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The eighth posuk of the Yud-Beis Pesukim is Veshinantam.
This posuk tells us that parents and teachers have a responsibility to teach Torah all the time and everywhere!
Veshinantam Levanecha — You should teach the Torah to your children and your students
Vedibarta Bam — And discuss the words of Torah
Beshivtecha Beveisecha — When you are sitting in your house
Uvelechtecha Vaderech — And when you are traveling
Uveshachbecha Uvekumecha — And when you go to sleep, and when you wake up!
We might look at this posuk and think that we will do what the posuk says when we get older. We aren’t parents or teachers yet! We can ask our parents to do it, but we can’t do it ourselves.
But the Rebbe says that Veshinantam Levanecha IS for kids too!
When we share the words of Torah we know with another child who doesn’t know it, we are also teachers!
To be good teachers, we need to make sure to learn in a way of Veshinantam! The word Veshinantam comes from a word that means sharp and clear. We should make sure that the Torah we know is very clear in our minds, and that we are behaving according to what we know!
Der Rebbe Redt Tzu Kinder vol. 5, p.294
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We learned in Pirkei Avos perek Gimmel that it is very important to say words of Torah when we sit down to a meal. Those who do not say words of Torah at their meal, it is as if they are eating meat of Avodah Zarah (Zivchei Meisim). But those who sit at a table and DO say words of Torah, it is like they are eating at the table of Hashem (Shulchano Shel Makom)!
Based on this, the halacha is that we should say words of Torah when we are eating a meal.
According to some opinions, if someone isn’t able to say words of Torah, the words of Torah in bentching can be counted. But lechatchilah, whenever we sit down to a meal, we should really say words of Torah besides for the brachos we say during the meal.
See Shulchan Aruch siman Kuf-Ayin, Mishnah Beruruah se’if katan Alef, and Piskei Teshuvos there
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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, we will all want to praise Hashem for the nisim of the Geulah! The Navi Yeshaya told his generation this that this is what we will say to each other:
זַמְּרוּ ה׳ כִּי גֵאוּת עָשָׂה מוּדַעַת זֹאת בְּכָל הָאָרֶץ
Zamru Hashem — Sing to Hashem
Ki Geius Asa — Because Hashem has done great things!
Mudaas Zos Bechol Ha’aretz — This is something that is known about all over!
Everyone, all over the world, will know about the tremendous nisim of the Geulah! We will all be so excited to praise Hashem.
See Yeshaya perek Yud-Beis posuk Hey
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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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