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CHUMASH
Parshas Lech Lecha - Rishon with Rashi
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Hashem tells Avram “Lech Lecha” — to go to Eretz Yisroel and get many brachos there, and he goes. There is a famine there and he needs to leave Eretz Yisroel and go down to Mitzrayim. He tells Sarai to hide.
Hashem spoke to Avram for the first time when he was 75 years old. (Hashem gives the name Avraham later, but now the Torah calls him by his original name, Avram.) He told him “Lech Lecha! You already went with your father away from where you were born, to Charan (as we learned in the end of last week’s parsha). Now, go even further away, and leave your father, Terach. Go to the land that I will show you.”
(Even though Terach believed in Hashem, he pretended to do Avodah Zarah because he didn’t want other people to know. Hashem wanted Avraham to go away from that.)
Hashem didn’t tell Avram where, for two reasons. The trip would be harder and he would get an extra reward for the mitzvah, but also the end would be more exciting and special. This would make him love Eretz Yisroel even more!
Hashem promised Avram many brachos for going there, and said he would be happy and understand that it is good. This is what Lech Lecha means, “go for yourself” — it will be good for you too!
Here are some of the brachos Avram would get:
- He would go away from the Avodah Zarah in Charan
- He would have children, even though where he is now, he can’t have children
- A big nation would come from him
- He would become rich
- Even though he is going to a new place, he would become famous, so he can teach more people about Hashem
- He would have the koach to give other people brachos
- He would become one of the Avos that would be mentioned in Shemoneh Esrei, and the bracha would even be ended with his name (“Baruch Ata Hashem, Mogein Avraham”)
- Everyone who gives him a bracha will get a bracha — and the opposite too
- People will give brachos by saying “You should be like Avraham!”
Avram went, like Hashem told him. He took his wife, Sarai (later her name would become Sarah), and his nephew Lot came too. Avram followed Hashem’s directions, and they came to Eretz Yisroel (which was called Canaan at that time).
Avram stopped in Shechem (which is also called Elon Moreh). There, he davened for Shimon and Levi who would later fight with Shechem, and Hashem also showed him Har Grizim and Har Eival there, where the Yidden would promise to follow the Torah when they came into Eretz Yisrael.
Avram saw that the Canaanim were capturing Eretz Yisroel then, from the children of Shem. Hashem appeared to Avram in a nevuah and promised that He would give Eretz Yisroel back to his children, the Yidden, who are from Shem!
Avram built a Mizbeiach to thank Hashem for the two promises he just got — that he would have children, and that they would get Eretz Yisroel!
Then they went further, and traveled past Beis-Keil. When they got between Beis-Keil and a place called Ai, Avram set up the tents. First he set up his wife’s tent, out of kavod for her, and then set up his own tent. Then he built another Mizbeiach. Avram had a nevuah that someone would do an aveira here and the Yidden would be in danger, so he davened for them. (The danger happened in the time of Yehoshua, with a man named Achan).
Avram kept going closer and closer to the place where the Beis Hamikdash would be built!
That year, there was a famine in Eretz Yisroel (food didn’t grow, so there was nothing to eat). Hashem made this famine only in Eretz Yisroel, to test Avram. Would he doubt Hashem’s words, that Hashem told him to come to Eretz Canaan and now he is already forced to leave?
He decided to go to Mitzrayim in the meantime, since there was no famine there.
On the way, Avram saw Sarai in the water, like a mirror. Usually, he didn’t think so much about how pretty she was, but now he realized that people would think she was VERY beautiful! He was afraid that the Egyptians would want to kill him and take her away to get married to her. So he told Sarai to hide in a box, and that if they find her, she should say that she is Avram’s sister, so they won’t kill him. They will instead try to be nice to Avram, and give presents so they can take her. This would be a keili for Hashem’s bracha that he would become rich.
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In today’s Tehillim, it says “Haysa Li Dimasi Lechem Yomam Valayla, Be’emor Eilai Kol Hayom Ayei Elokecha.” “My tears were like my food all day and night, when they say to me all day ‘Where is Hashem?’”
The Rebbe explains that this posuk is saying that for a person to really be close to Hashem, we need to be crying for Hashem ALL the time. We shouldn’t want to be close to Hashem just on Shabbos or only when we’re davening, but even when we’re eating or playing on a regular weekday!
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TANYA
Igeres Hakodesh Siman Chof-Vov
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Yesterday, we said that even though the halachos of the Torah are very holy, still the Torah is called the “Eitz HaDaas Tov VaRa” — “the tree of knowledge, with good and bad.” This is because the things that the halachos talk ABOUT have not good in them.
Today the Alter Rebbe explains that even though the Torah itself is from Malchus D’Atzilus, a very high level in Ruchnius, it puts on the “clothes” of lower levels when it goes there. Since the Gashmius of the world is mixed with good and bad, it makes it look like Torah is mixed with good and bad too.
Really, the source of Torah doesn’t have these things! But for us to understand it, the Torah needs to wear this kind of “clothing.” The Torah comes down to this world in a way we can understand it, so we can connect to Hashem by learning Torah.
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Many people think that to become close to Hashem and live the way a Yid should, we should first think about how the Torah is the right way to live, and how good it is. Then we should discuss it with other people too. After that, we can start to do the mitzvos and live that way.
That USED to be the way to do it, but not anymore!
Avraham Avinu, when he was a very young boy, thought about how Hashem must be the One Who created the world, and that people need to act the way Hashem wants. Then he went and taught about Hashem to everyone in the world!
Finally, he had a Bris Milah. He did a mitzvah in Gashmius so his body would be connected to Hashem!
But after Hashem gave us the Torah, doing the mitzvah itself comes first. That’s why now we do the opposite order: First we do a Bris Milah, and only afterwards do we learn Torah, and only then do we think about why we do it, and how the Torah is the true way a Yid needs to live.
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SEFER HAMITZVOS
Shiur #183 - Mitzvas Asei #54, Lo Saasei #156, #229, Asei #16, #79
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Today we learn many mitzvos about being happy on Yom Tov!
1) (Mitzvas Asei #54) There are three mitzvos connected with the Shalosh Regalim. Two of them we learned yesterday (the Olas Re’iyah and the Korban Chagigah), and today we learn the third mitzvah: We need to be happy with Hashem on the Yomim Tovim! In the times of the Beis Hamikdash, this mitzvah was kept by bringing Shalmei Simcha, a korban which we are able to eat from. Eating meat makes a person happy!
Nowadays, there are other ways we do this mitzvah of being happy on Yom Tov. Each person needs to get the things that make them happy! Some of the things the Rambam tells us about are for men to drink wine, for women to get new clothes, and for kids to get treats.
This mitzvah also includes making sure that poor, sad, or lonely people, and gerim, are also able to be happy on Yom Tov!
The Simchas Beis Hashoeiva that was done in the Beis Hamikdash was also part of this mitzvah of simcha.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Reeh: וְשָׂמַחְתָּ בְּחַגֶּךָ
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #156) We can’t come to the Beis Hamikdash without presents (korbanos) for Hashem!
(This is the Mitzvas Lo Saasei for the mitzvos of the Shalosh Regalim, which are the korbanos we bring when we go to the Beis Hamikdash on these Yomim Tovim.)
This mitzvah comes from a posuk in Parshas Mishpatim: וְלֹא יֵרָאוּ פָנַי רֵיקָם
The details of this mitzvah are explained in Mesechta Chagigah.
3) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #229) We are not allowed to forget about the Leviim — we need to give them their presents, and make sure that they have what they need to be happy on Yom Tov!
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Reeh: הִשָּׁמֶר לְךָ פֶּן תַּעֲזֹב אֶת הַלֵּוִי
4) (Mitzvas Asei #16) This is the mitzvah of Hakhel! On the second day of Sukkos in the year after Shemitah, all of the Yidden need to come together and be inspired by seeing and hearing the king read from Chumash Devarim! Even though Hakhel has a specific time, which usually means that women don’t need to keep it, this mitzvah is an exception, and it is for EVERYONE — men, women, and children!
This mitzvah comes from a posuk in Parshas Vayeilech: הַקְהֵל אֶת הָעָם הָאֲנָשִׁים וְהַנָּשִׁים וְהַטַּף
We also learn one mitzvah from the next set of halachos, Hilchos Bechoros:
5) (Mitzvas Asei #79) Firstborns (bechor) are special for Hashem. This mitzvah is to separate our firstborn animals and say that they are holy to Hashem. This is true for kosher animals, and also for donkeys, even though they are not kosher.
Kosher animals are given to the kohanim. The kohen brings part of the animal on the Mizbeiach and can keep the rest. A firstborn donkey is redeemed, like we learned in Shiur #142.
This mitzvah is only kept inside of Eretz Yisroel when we have a Beis Hamikdash. Outside of Eretz Yisroel, and everywhere nowadays, we do not give the animal to a kohen — we wait until it gets a mum, and then we allowed to use it.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Bo: קַדֶּשׁ לִי כָל בְּכוֹר פֶּטֶר כָּל רֶחֶם בִּבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בָּאָדָם וּבַבְּהֵמָה
The details of this mitzvah are explained in Mesechta Bechoros.
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RAMBAM
Hilchos Chagigah - Bechoros
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In today’s Rambam, we finish learning about the special Korbanos of Yom Tov!
Perek Beis: We learn the rest of the halachos of the korbanos everyone needed to bring when they went up to Yerushalayim for Yom Tov!
The Rambam explains the reason for today’s mitzvah not to forget about the Leviim when we come to Yerushalayim. Since the Leviim don’t have a place in Eretz Yisroel, and they don’t even get the gifts that the kohanim do, we need to make sure that they will also be happy on Yom Tov!
Perek Gimmel: We learn about the mitzvah of Hakhel! The Rambam tells us exactly what happened in the Beis Hamikdash in a Hakhel year, and how the king would inspire all of the Yidden to strengthen their Yiddishkeit!
Then we start a new set of halachos, about the Bechor, the firstborn!
Perek Alef: In this perek, we start learning about how a firstborn animal has a special kedusha.
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Now the Rambam starts to tell us what the halachos are when there are no Sanhedrin. We don’t decide based on eidim anymore, but we follow a calendar. We learn about the second day of Yom Tov, which we keep nowadays because of a gezeira of the Chachomim.
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In the times of the Beis Hamikdash, all of the Yidden had to travel to Yerushalayim to be Oleh Regel for Sukkos.
The Yidden didn’t start asking for rain until the last Yid got back home from Yerushalayim. That could take a long time — from Sukkos until today, Zayin Cheshvan!
Even nowadays, the Yidden in Eretz Yisroel don’t start asking for rain (Vesein Tal Umatar Livracha) until today!
(Outside of Eretz Yisroel, we wait until the time rain was needed in Bavel — this year, it will be Ohr L’Chof-Gimmel Kislev.)
The Rebbe tells us that we can learn a very big lesson in Ahavas Yisroel from this! Really, ALL of the Yidden in Eretz Yisroel needed rain right away for plants to grow. Only a few people who lived very far from Yerushalayim had such a long way to travel that they wouldn’t get home until today. Still, ALL the Yidden waited to ask for what they needed, so that even these last few people could get home from Yerushalayim easily, without having to go through a rainy and muddy path. This shows us how much we need to care about the pain of even one Yid, because all Yidden are really one.
See Likutei Sichos chelek Chof, p. 378
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One of the special things about Zayin Cheshvan is that by then, every Yid from Eretz Yisroel came home from spending Yom Tov in the Beis Hamikdash! Now everyone was able to use the inspiration they got from Yom Tov in their homes.
The Rebbe tells us that nowadays too, Zayin Cheshvan has a special koach to help us use everything WE got during the month of Tishrei every day!
What does that mean?
All of the Yomim Tovim of Tishrei are different. They each have their own mood and their own Avodah.
On Rosh Hashana, we were very serious. We realized that we wanted Hashem to be the King of the whole world, and we wanted to show Hashem that we are ready to do whatever He wants. We said a lot of Tehillim, showing that we are ready to give Hashem all of our time.
On Yom Kippur, we felt like Malochim. We spent the whole day feeling close to Hashem, and not even doing the regular things we do for our body! And we knew that Hashem was happy with our Teshuvah and would forgive us for anything we did wrong during the year.
During Sukkos we felt safe in Hashem’s hug, the Sukkah! We showed how we are connected to all other Yidden, and danced together on Simchas Beis Hashoeivah!
On Simchas Torah, we felt so happy to have Hashem’s special present, the Torah! We danced and sang the whole day, showing how much we love the Torah and want to live with it all the time!
Even though the Yomim Tovim ended, we take them home with us after Tishrei is over!
When we daven every day, we should think about Who we are davening to. We can think about how we felt on Rosh Hashana, and we’ll be able to daven in the right way!
When the Yetzer Hara tries to get us to do something wrong during the day, we can think about how we felt on Yom Kippur. We can remember how much we want to feel close to Hashem, and say NO to the aveira!
When we get annoyed with a friend or our brother or sister, we can think about how much fun we had and how good we felt to dance with each other during Simchas Beis Hashoeivah! We can remember how glad we were to be together.
When it is time to go to school, we can think about Simchas Torah. We can remember how happy we are to have the Torah! We can feel a real simcha that we are able to go to school where we learn and keep the Torah.
Zayin Cheshvan has a special koach for us to start using all of the days of Tishrei to make our Avodas Hashem in the best way it can be!
Based on rally Beis Cheshvan Tof-Shin-Mem-Gimmel
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The second of the Twelve Pesukim is the first line of Shema! We all already know the words of this posuk very well, but we should also know what the posuk means, and what its lesson is for us!
At the end of the posuk we say, Hashem Echod — Hashem is one.
The word Echod shows us HOW Hashem is one! Echod is made of three letters, Alef, Ches, and Daled.
Alef — Alef is the first letter, so the Gematria of Alef is ONE! The Alef is the one Aibershter, the Alufo Shel Olam.
Ches — Ches is the eighth letter of the Alef-Beis, with a Gematria of EIGHT. The Ches reminds us of the seven levels of Shomayim, plus the one earth where we live — eight all together!
Daled — Daled is the fourth letter of the Alef-Beis, so it has a Gematria of FOUR. The Daled reminds us of the Daled Ruchos, the four different directions — north, south, east, and west.
And what letter is first? The Alef, of course!
The word Echod shows us that the heavens and the earth (the Ches), and all four directions (the Daled), are all like nothing on their own. They only exist because they come after the Alef, because Hashem, the Alufo Shel Olam, gives them chayus!
This is something even kids need to know!
When we look around, the world looks very big! There are many exciting things to do and places to go. There are fun trips to take and toys to play with. There are books to read, flowers to smell, and delicious foods to taste. There are so many different things in the heavens and the earth, and in all four directions.
But really, all of these things are like nothing on their own! They only exist because Hashem, the Alufo Shel Olam, gives them chayus! They are only here because Hashem Echod, because the ONE Hashem, wants them to be here!
That will make us realize that we shouldn’t just take our exciting trips or play with our fun toys because WE like them. We will realize that everything we do needs to be for Hashem!
We will want to do things that make Hashem happy all the time! We will want to use all of our trips, all of our toys, and all of our treats to bring us closer to Hashem and fulfill the shlichus Hashem put us in the world to do!
That’s what we say in the paragraph that comes after Shema, Ve’ahavta. We say that we should love Hashem, and that we are ready to use EVERYTHING we have to do what Hashem wants!
See Der Rebbe Redt Tzu Kinder chelek Hey, p. 249
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It is our minhag that Lechat’chila the first day we say Kiddush Levana is on Yom Zayin of the month.
The Rema writes that we dance and celebrate at Kiddush Levana the way we celebrate at a chasunah! Kiddush Levana is a sign for the Geulah of Yidden, when there will be the chasunah between Yidden and Hashem!
One of the last horaos we got from the Rebbe, in 5752, is to be extra careful with Kiddush Levana. We are careful to do it properly, at the right time, and if possible, we do it in a beautiful way — wearing nice clothing and together with other people!
See Shulchan Menachem, chelek beis, p. 206
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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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The Gemara says that when a person does Kiddush Levana at the right time, it is like he is greeting the Shechinah!
What does Kiddush Levana have to do with greeting the Shechinah?
During Golus, we are not zoche to greet the Shechinah. But every month, when the moon begins to grow large again, we are reminded that Yidden will also become great again when Moshiach comes. Then we will be able to greet the Shechinah!
That is why one of the things we say in Kiddush Levana is “Dovid Melech Yisroel Chai Vekayam!” The kingdom of Dovid Hamelech is compared to the moon. Like the moon, Dovid Hamelech’s melucha will grow great again — when Moshiach comes!
See Shulchan Menachem chelek beis, p. 205
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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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