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CHUMASH
Parshas Shemini - Shlishi with Rashi
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At the beginning of today’s Chumash, we learn something very happy! Hashem was happy with the korbanos that Aharon brought, and Hashem made a fire come down onto the Mizbeiach to burn the korbanos, and show the Yidden that Hashem WAS “resting” in the Mishkan!
The Yidden were so happy! They sang praises and bowed to Hashem.
Then, we learn a very sad story.
Two of Aharon’s sons, Nadav and Avihu, wanted to be very close to Hashem. They knew that one of the most special parts of the avodah in the Mishkan is to burn the ketores. So they took pans of ketores, and went into the Mishkan. They knew that they weren’t supposed to do this without asking, but they wanted so much to be close to Hashem that they did it anyway. Their neshamos got so close to Hashem that they couldn’t stay inside of their bodies anymore, and Nadav and Avihu passed away.
In Chassidus this is called “Ratzo without Shuv.” When a person wants to come very close to Hashem (Ratzo), he needs to remember that Hashem wants Yidden to do mitzvos here in this world (Shuv). Even when we want to be very close to Hashem, we need to remember that Hashem wants us to learn Torah and do mitzvos in the world and make it a Dira BeTachtonim.
Moshe told Aharon that Nadav and Avihu were tzadikim. Aharon was quiet and did not complain to Hashem about the very sad thing that had happened.
Kohanim are not allowed to become tomei, so Moshe sent other relatives, Mishael and Eltzafan, to bury Nadav and Avihu. Moshe also told the kohanim (Aharon’s other sons, Elazar and Isamar) that they couldn’t sit shivah for Nadav and Avihu, because their job of being a kohen couldn’t be stopped.
After this happened, Hashem told Aharon that the kohanim need to remember not to drink wine before they work in the Mishkan.
Rashi tells us that we see from here that Nadav and Avihu went into the Mishkan without permission because they drank wine. That’s why afterwards Hashem told Aharon the mitzvah not to drink wine before going into the Mishkan.
Even though usually Hashem spoke to Moshe, or Moshe and Aharon together, Hashem now spoke ONLY to Aharon! This was a reward for accepting what happened to his children without complaining.
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In Kapitel Kuf-Tes, Dovid Hamelech says “Ki Oni Ve’evyon Anochi, VeLibi Cholal BeKirbi.” “I am like a poor person, and my heart is empty inside of me.”
What does Dovid Hamelech mean? What is an empty heart?
The Gemara explains that Dovid Hamelech was saying that half of his heart is empty — the part where the Yetzer Hara usually is!
Dovid Hamelech had no Yetzer Hara — he “killed” it by fasting! (Hashem made Dovid Hamelech with a Yetzer Hara that COULD be killed, but not everybody’s can be.)
In Tanya, the Alter Rebbe teaches that that’s what a Tzadik means — someone who doesn’t have a Yetzer Hara.
Most of us DO have a Yetzer Tov AND a Yetzer Hara, and we have to fight all the time for the Yetzer Tov to win.
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Lamed-Ches
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We learned that doing a mitzvah without kavana is like a guf without a neshama.
To understand this, we need to understand the mashal of neshama and guf better. Everything in the world has a neshama and a guf. The guf is the physical part of it, and the neshama is what gives it chayus. Even a rock has a neshama that gives it enough chayus to exist. (When we say neshama here, we are not talking about the Nefesh Elokis, we are talking about the Ruchnius’dike Nefesh that gives it chayus.)
What’s the difference between a guf and a nefesh?
The Gashmius of the world gets is chayus from Kelipas Noga. The chayus of Hashem that hides in Kelipas Noga is the same everything in this world, both the guf part and the nefesh part. Here is a mashal for the way Hashem hides in Kelipas Noga:
If you hang a big heavy curtain over a window, most of the sunlight cannot shine into the room anymore. Whatever light comes inside is a different kind of light. The curtain filters the sunlight.
But even though in general there is the same hidden chayus in both the guf and the nefesh, there can be different amounts of this chayus.
We can understand with a mashal from the same window. If we put up a big board with a tiny hole in front of the curtain, not much of the light will shine through. If we cut a big hole in the board, more light will shine through.
Still, none of the light is brighter than before, it is just different amounts of light.
Even though Hashem is hidden from everything in the world, in the guf there is less chayus than there is in the nefesh.
(IY”H later we will learn the nimshal for this in the difference between a mitzvah that is done just as guf, or also with a “neshama,” meaning that it is done with kavana.)
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This Hayom Yom talks about a Rav’s job:
A Rav has a very big responsibility! He can help so many people to do mitzvos… but if he tells them to do the wrong thing, he can make many people do an aveira, Chas Veshalom.
Being Mezakeh Es HoRabim, helping many people do a mitzvah, is a TREMENDOUS thing! It is a huge mitzvah!
But making many people do the wrong thing is a TERRIBLE aveira.
A Rav needs to recognize how every decision is a very big deal, and take his responsibility very seriously!
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Today we learn 3 mitzvos in Sefer Hamitzvos:
1) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #63) We are not allowed to make a Chillul Hashem. This includes:
- A Yid must give up his life Al Kiddush Hashem for ANY mitzvah or minhag if someone is trying to destroy Torah and Yiddishkeit, called a Shaas HaShmad. If he doesn’t, that is a Chillul Hashem.
- If it is not Shaas HaShmad, a Yid must give up his life not to do three serious aveiros: Avodah Zarah, Gilui Arayos (marrying someone we are not allowed to), and Shefichas Domim (killing another person)
- If a person does an aveira for no reason, not because he had a taavah for it, but just to show Hashem that he doesn’t care, that is called a Chillul Hashem.
- A Talmid Chochom or respected Jew can’t do anything that doesn’t look appropriate, even if it isn’t an aveira.
The details are explained in Mesechta Pesachim perek Yud-Alef, and the end of Mesechta Yoma.
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #65) We are not allowed to destroy any part of the Mishkan or Beis Hamikdash, or destroy Sifrei Torah or a shul. This mitzvah also teaches us not to erase Hashem’s name.
The details are explained in Mesechta Shevuos perek Daled.
3) (Mitzvas Asei #172) We need to listen to a Navi, even if he tells us to not keep a mitzvah for a certain amount of time. (If he tells us to never keep a certain mitzvah again, we don’t listen to him.)
The details are explained in the end of Mesechta Sanhedrin (Perek Yud).
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RAMBAM
Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah
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Perek Zayin: In today’s Rambam, we learn about nevuah. A Yid has to believe that there ARE neviim who hear things right from Hashem! A Navi can tell us these things so we know what Hashem wants from us at a certain time.
Perek Ches: We learn the signs of how we know someone is a Navi. One of the ways we know is if he predicts the future. But that is not why we listen to what he says — we listen to him because Moshe Rabbeinu gave us this sign in the Torah! That’s why, even if he does predict the future, there are times we wouldn’t listen to him anyway, like we see in the next perek.
Perek Tes: If a Navi tells us that a mitzvah isn’t important anymore, we know he is not a real Navi! All of the mitzvos of the Torah are FOREVER, and even if sometimes we might need to stop keeping a mitzvah for a short time if a Navi tells us to, no mitzvah ever goes away forever!
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At the end of a person’s Nezirus, he has to bring certain korbanos. The money he uses to pay for them, and the animals that he brings, get a special kedusha! So if he paid too much money in the Beis Hamikdash for his korbanos, the money has kedusha and he can’t just get change back!
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The Rebbe told this story to the campers in Gan Yisroel when he visited there in the year Tof-Shin-Chof:
The Maggid once went to the Baal Shem Tov, before he became a chossid. The Baal Shem Tov asked him how he understands a certain part of Eitz Chayim, one of the hardest seforim to learn in the Torah!
The Maggid answered the Baal Shem Tov, but the Baal Shem Tov wasn’t happy with the way he explained it. The Maggid looked inside the sefer again, but he didn’t see anything wrong with what he had said.
He said, “If the Baal Shem Tov doesn’t like my explanation, maybe he has another answer to give?”
The Baal Shem Tov told the Maggid, “Come, let’s learn it inside.”
Together they learned that part of the sefer Eitz Chayim inside. The Baal Shem Tov learned with such excitement that the Maggid got excited too! They were so involved in the learning that when they were learning about the malochim, the Maggid could actually see the malochim in the room!
When they finished learning, the Maggid saw that the Baal Shem Tov DID explain this part of Eitz Chayim the way he had said before. The Baal Shem Tov told the Maggid that the first time he had said the answer, he hadn’t used all of the kochos of his neshama, so the answer wasn’t complete!
The Rebbe told this story to teach us how important it is to use all of our kochos when learning Torah!
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TEFILLAH
Davening Shemoneh Esrei Quietly
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We daven Shemoneh Esrei in a quiet voice that no one else can hear. The Chachomim say that a person who davens loud shows that he doesn’t have such strong emunah, because he thinks he has to daven loud so Hashem can hear.
But that’s only if you’ll still be able to have kavana, because kavana is the main thing. If davening out loud will help you have more kavana, and won’t bother anyone else (like if you’re davening at home, and not with a minyan), then you can also daven out loud.
You are also allowed to daven out loud for chinuch, if you want your family to learn how to daven.
See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, Hilchos Tefillah, siman 101
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It says in Shulchan Aruch that from thirty days before Pesach, we start learning about the halachos of Pesach. In many houses, that’s when we start cleaning for Pesach too!
But that’s not enough.
The Rebbe tells us to make sure to give Maos Chitim early enough for people to use it, and to start giving out Shmurah Matzah. We also need to remember that learning about the Yom Tov also means learning about the Ruchniyus of the Yom Tov!
If you look at the Chassidus of the Rebbeim, it will seem that every Yom Tov, is the most special in the whole year! But how can every Yom Tov be the most special and the most important?
The Rebbe teaches us that there is a Ruchniyus chayus of each Yom Tov that shines in Shomayim during that time. When the Rebbeim say Chassidus of that Yom Tov, they are showing us the incredible light that is shining in the world at that time! That’s why it sounds like it’s the MOST special time of the year, because for that time, it really is!
Even though we can’t see this koach the way the Rebbeim do, we are still able to use it. By learning the sichos and maamorim about Pesach, we will be able to use the special chayus that is shining in the world!
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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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Chassidus teaches us that the way Hashem acts with the world is based on the way WE act.
So if we want Hashem to bring Moshiach, we need to act in a way that Hashem will bring Moshiach!
How do we do this?
Let’s first think about what Golus is: Before the Golus started, it was easy to see Hashem in the world. But because of our aveiros, Hashem went away from that and became hidden in the world. In the time of Geulah, Hashem will come back to the way things were before!
Since we want Hashem to come back to the way of Geulah, we need to come back too!
During the day, there are times that we are busy with Gashmius’dike things. Adults go to work, and kids have recess! But at the end of a day of working, or at the end of recess, we come back to learning Torah!
When we keep coming back to Torah and mitzvos, Hashem will also come back to the way things were and bring the Geulah!
See Likutei Torah Shir Hashirim, dibur hamas’chil Mi Yitencha
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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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