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CHUMASH
Parshas Mikeitz - Shishi with Rashi
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In today’s Chumash, we start to learn what happens after the Shevatim bring Benyamin to Mitzrayim.
When Yosef first saw Benyamin with the rest of the Shevatim, he told his head servant to go shecht some animals and invite the brothers to come eat the first meal of the day with him.
Yosef’s head servant brought the brothers into Yosef’s house. Since usually Yosef did not invite people who came to get food to his house, they were afraid they were going to be punished. They thought that now they would be blamed that they stole the money that was found in their bags, and they would all be taken as slaves.
They went out and spoke to the head servant and said, “We came to buy food and we found that our money was in our bags when we left! We don’t know who put it there! We brought back the money, and we brought other money to buy the food.”
The head servant said, “Don’t worry, Hashem gave you that money as a present. Maybe it was a reward for something good that you did, or something your father did. The money you paid for food last time we already got.”
The head servant then brought Shimon out of jail, and let him join his brothers. Shimon told them how he had been treated well.
The brothers weren’t so afraid anymore. The servant brought them back in, and gave them water to wash their feet and food for their donkeys. Since they knew Yosef would soon be coming to eat with them, they set up their present in fancy bowls.
When Yosef came home, they showed him the present and bowed down in front of him.
Yosef asked them, “How is your father? Is he alive?”
They answered, “Yes, our father is alive,” and bowed down again.
Yosef looked up and saw his brother Benyamin, and asked “is this the youngest brother you told me about?” Then he told Benyamin, “Hashem should be kind to you!”
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Today’s kapitelach are Yud-Ches through Chof-Beis.
Dovid Hamelech wrote the Sefer Tehillim with Ruach Hakodesh, for all of the Yidden. He gives us words to praise Hashem, to ask Him to help us when we need Him, and words to ask for forgiveness when we want to do teshuvah. Each kapitel has a message!
In the Tehillim called Ohel Yosef Yitzchok, before most kapitelach there are a few sentences explaining the message of that kapitel.
In the first kapitel of today’s Tehillim, we are given words to say when a neis happens to us! We praise Hashem, and remember the many nissim that Hashem did from the time He created the world. We ask that the One who did all of the nissim should continue to make nissim for Yidden!
Dovid Hamelech said this kapitel towards the end of his life, thanking Hashem for being saved from so many different troubles. He was saved from many enemies, and from Shaul who was chasing him.
The message of the next kapitel, Kapitel Yud-Tes, is how to see the greatness of Hashem. When we look at the Shomayim, and when we look at the Torah, we are looking at the wonders of Hashem. Like one of the pesukim says, “Hashomayim Mesaprim Kevod Keil.” (“The sky tells about Hashem’s kavod.”) Seeing the incredible things Hashem created helps us to speak about Hashem’s glory and honor.
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Daled
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In today’s Tanya, we will learn how the neshama has such a special way to become one with Hashem, through learning Torah and doing mitzvos! We will see that the STRONGEST way to become one with Hashem is through learning Torah.
We learned that Hashem gave the neshama the Levushim, which it can use for learning Torah and doing mitzvos, which connect a Yid, together with all of his kochos, with Hashem!
This helps us understand the Mishnah in Pirkei Avos, which tells us how important it is to grab every chance to do a mitzvah: The Mishnah says that one chance to do a mitzvah in this world is better than EVERYTHING a neshama can get in Olam Haba!
We now understand this Mishnah, because we know how a mitzvah makes us one with Hashem, and a mitzvah can only be done here, in Olam Hazeh!
But aren’t the mitzvos all in Gashmius? How can we say it’s so close to Hashem?
It’s true that the mitzvos are wearing “clothes” of Gashmius, but that doesn’t make a difference! We can understand why with a mashal:
Let’s say someone wants to hug another person. It doesn’t matter if that person is wearing a shirt, or a coat, or a sweater! The main thing is the hug, it doesn’t matter how many layers that person is wearing. You won’t say, “I just hugged my friend’s sweater!” You know that you hugged your friend!
When we do a mitzvah, it’s like a hug with Hashem! The gashmius things we use to do the mitzvah are like Hashem’s “clothes.” So even though Hashem is “wearing” all of these “clothes,” when we do mitzvos, we are still hugging Hashem!
And not only that, Hashem is hugging us too! (We know this from a posuk, “Viyemincha Techabkeini” — Hashem’s right hand, which Chassidus teaches means Torah, hugs us!) IY”H we will learn more about the special connection we have with Hashem through learning Torah in the next perek!
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In today’s Hayom Yom, the Rebbe brings two corrections which the Rebbe Rashab noted in the Torah Ohr of Parshas Mikeitz, where most of the maamarim of Chanukah are printed.
One of the corrections is an extra word that was printed by mistake. It was in the part talking about how happy the neshama is in Gan Eden, and that it’s worth it to even have hard things so we’ll get it.
Another mistake was where it says that the lights of Chanukah are connected to Moshiach:
The Moshiach’dik light of the Menorah shines out to the whole world, which is why we are supposed to make sure that the Chanukah lighting is public. The Alter Rebbe brings a posuk that talks about the greatness of Moshiach, and explains the Ruchnius level where Moshiach comes from. There is also a correction there in a letter that was printed, where an Alef was put in instead of a Samach.
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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. But we actually LEARN the mitzvos based on the order of the halachos the way they are explained in the Rambam, so that we learn the same thing (be’achdus) with all of the Yidden learning the halachos of Rambam in the Mishna Torah. 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 first 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.
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In today’s Rambam, we learn about what kind of keilim can get Tumas 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.
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This perek teaches us halachos about giving a get through a shliach.
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Today is Zos Chanukah.
Zos Chanukah is the last day of Chanukah. Parents need to chap arein and give their kids Chanukah gelt!
The Rebbe says that even if the kids already got Chanukah gelt, the parents should give more! Since their kids bring them lots of Chassidishe nachas, and IY”H will bring them even more Chassidishe nachas from the Chinuch they are getting, the kids DESERVE to get more Chanukah gelt!
At the end of Chanukah, we also farbreng about what we learned from Chanukah, so that we can use these kochos throughout the year!
One important lesson we learn from Chanukah is that every day we need to add more in our connection to Hashem and Yiddishkeit!
See Hisvaaduyos 5750, chelek beis, p. 92; Halachos Uminhagei Chabad p. 117
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Before the war with Yericho, Yehoshua bin Nun warned the Yidden not to take anything from the city for themselves! It was all going to be given to Hashem.
But one of the soldiers, a man named Achan, wasn’t able to overcome his Yetzer Hara. He took some of the treasures of Yericho for himself.
Hashem was upset at the Yidden, and in the next battle, with the city of Ai, many soldiers were killed.
Yehoshua tried to find out why Hashem made this happen, and learned what Achan had done. Yehoshua took Achan to Beis Din, and they paskened that he was chayav misa, that he needed to be killed as a kapara for his aveira.
Before Achan received his punishment, he wrote the second part of Aleinu, Ve’al Kein. We see this hinted to in the first words, “Al Kein Nekaveh.” The first letters of each of these words spell the name of Achan.
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When we take off our shoes, there is a halacha for that too!
We see that the Torah gives kavod to the right side, for example when it speaks about the kohanim during the Yemei Miluim. We learn from this that we should also give kavod to the right side of our body.
In order to give kavod to the right side, we take off the left shoe first. This way the right side is still wearing a shoe.
See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman beis
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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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Today is the last day of Chanukah, also called “Zos Chanukah.”
The words “Zos Chanukah” mean “this is Chanukah.” Why do we call it that?
One reason is that the Kriyas HaTorah for the last day of Chanukah starts with the words, “Zos Chanukas Hamizbeiach.”
But there is also another reason!
One of the mitzvos of Chanukah is to light a menorah to remember the neis of the oil in the Beis Hamikdash that lasted for eight days. We only do this mitzvah completely when we actually light all eight lights.
According to Beis Hillel, the day we do this is on the last day of Chanukah, Zos Chanukah! That’s why THIS is Chanukah, because this is the day we actually DO the mitzvah!
This teaches us an important lesson about bringing Moshiach!
We can get rid of the darkness of Golus by learning lot of Torah (which is compared to a candle) and doing many mitzvos (which are compared to light). We need to make sure to actually LEARN the Torah and DO the mitzvos, like on Zos Chanukah when we actually light all eight lights. When we actually have so much of the Torah and mitzvos light, the darkness of Golus will turn into the light of Geulah!
See Likutei Sichos chelek Chof-Hey, sicha Zos Chanukah
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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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