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CHUMASH
Parshas Acharei - Shvi'i with Rashi
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We learned yesterday that a Yid’s marriage is very holy!
The Torah says that the goyim in Eretz Yisroel were not acting in a very holy way. This bothered Hashem so much, that they were pushed out of Eretz Yisroel! Now that the Yidden are about to go into Eretz Yisroel, they need to be extra careful that they are not acting the way the goyim were. They need to act differently, since they are Hashem’s special nation!
- Two men can’t get married to each other.
- People can’t get married to animals.
If someone does these aveiros, even if the Beis Din can’t punish them, Hashem gives them a kind of kareis, cutting off their chayus from Hashem so they will pass away young, without having children.
Keeping these mitzvos shows that we understand that Hashem is in charge of the world, and knows what is good for us. We understand that He will punish us if we chas veshalom do these aveiros, and we understand that Hashem will reward us for acting the way He asks us to!
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Did you know that the longest Kapitel (Kuf-Yud-Tes) has 176 pesukim, the longest Parsha in Chumash (Naso) has 176 pesukim, and the longest Gemara (Bava Basra) has 176 dapim? This shows us how the whole Torah is all connected!
Before the beginning of each of the 14 seforim of the Rambam, there is a posuk connected to what we’ll learn in that sefer. Some of those pesukim come from Kapitel Kuf-Yud-Tes!
In the beginning of Sefer Zmanim, which talks about Shabbos and Yom Tov, the Rambam brings a posuk from today’s Tehillim! “Nochalti Eidvosecha Le’olam, Ki Seson Libi Heima” — “I have your mitzvos as a yerusha forever, because they are what brings me happiness!”
The Rebbe explains why this posuk is connected to Shabbos and Yom Tov:
There are many mitzvos, like having emunah in Hashem and davening, that we understand are with us forever, because we do those mitzvos all the time! We would understand if the Rambam used this posuk at the beginning of one of the first two sefarim, which talk about these kinds of mitzvos.
But Shabbos and Yom Tov mitzvos, like bentching licht or making Kiddush on Shabbos, are only mitzvos at a certain time. They aren’t with us all the time!
But the Rambam uses this posuk specifically here, to teach us something! The Rambam is teaching us that even though we only DO these mitzvos at certain times, because we love them, they really are with us all the time! If we love Shabbos and Yom Tov, and think about them every day, these mitzvos will be with us forever, not only on Shabbos and Yom Tov! This way, we will have ALL of the mitzvos with us all the time!
(At the end of Shemoneh Esrei everyone says a posuk that starts with the first and last letter of their name. If your name is Nechama or Nechemya, this could be your posuk, because it starts with a Nun and ends with a Hey!)
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Mem-Gimmel
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Before we learn today’s Tanya, let’s review what we are up to:
For the neshama’s shlichus in the world, the most important thing is DOING the mitzvah — Laasoso. This could be in Maaseh (action — like giving tzedakah), Dibur or Machshava (speaking or thinking, like saying or thinking words of Torah). This is the main part, because only by doing the mitzvah will the Shechinah be able to rest within us.
But Hashem also wants us to have Kavana, so that the mitzvah will be complete! It will be full of chayus and able to go up to a higher Ruchnius world, which the neshama will be able to enjoy in Gan Eden!
This Kavana needs to start with Yirah.
What is Yirah? Being afraid to do anything against Hashem, Who knows and is watching over everything we are doing and thinking.
The second part of the kavana needs to be Ahava.
In today’s Tanya, we finish learning about Yirah and start learning about Ahava, which we will continue learning about until the end of Perek Nun.
There are two kinds of Yirah, Yirah Tata’ah and Yirah Ila’ah.
One way of Yirah Tata’ah is in a way of Katnus (small), which comes from our Emunah. Because we have Emunah that Hashem is watching over us, we think about the words Vehinei Hashem Nitzav Alav, and the words “Kabolas Ol Malchus Shomayim,” and they bring us to this kind of Yirah.
There is also Yirah in a way of Gadlus (great). This isn’t just from our Emunah, this is also from our Hisbonenus. When we think about the greatness of Hashem in creation, how everything in the world is like Hashem’s “clothes,” this brings us to a Yirah in a way of Gadlus.
But really, both of these kinds of Yirah are the lower kind of Yirah, Yirah Tata’ah. They are the lower kind of Yirah because we are thinking about Hashem only the way Hashem is enclothed in the world.
Yirah Tata’ah is what we need to help make sure we keep Torah and mitzvos properly!
Once we are already doing what we are supposed to with Yirah Tata’ah, we can reach a higher level of Yirah, Yirah Ila’ah! This kind of Yirah is thinking about the Pnimius of Hashem, how Hashem creates the world Yesh Me’ayin.
Then the Alter Rebbe starts to tell us about two different levels in Ahava, loving Hashem.
1) Ahavas Olam: This is a love for Hashem which comes through Hisbonenus. We think about the greatness of Hashem, like the Alter Rebbe explains here and in other places in Tanya. Then we will realize that our true love and enjoyment should be to Hashem, the source of all of life and the source of all of the pleasures.
So if we love chocolate, good books, or dancing on Simchas Torah, we can easily see why our REAL Ahava should be for Hashem, Who is the source of all of these things!
We will learn many ways to have and feel this Ahava.
2) Ahava Rabah: This is a higher level of Ahava. But it’s not something we can get by ourselves! When we do what we should and work on our love for Hashem as best as we can, Hashem can give us this very special and strong love for Hashem as a gift.
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Today is the eleventh day of the Omer!
In today’s Hayom Yom, we learn about Avodas HaTefillah according to Chassidus Chabad. First we need to work ourselves to get rid of our not-good habits that are not the way the Torah teaches (mikvah), and then to learn Chassidus and make time to think Chassidus before davening (Bigdei Kodesh).
On Yom Kippur, the Kohen Gadol needs to change his clothes many times. Every time he puts on different clothes, he needs to go to the Mikvah first.
In our Avodas Hashem, we also need to “go to the Mikvah” when we “change our clothes!”
We learned in Tanya that the neshama has “clothes” (Levushim) — Machshava, Dibur, and Maaseh (what we think, what we say, and what we do).
Chassidim get special clothes for their neshama — thinking Chassidus (machshava), saying words of Chassidus (dibur), and making time before davening to think Chassidus (maaseh).
Before we use these special “clothes”, we need to “go to the mikvah”! How?
We “wash off” the things that we got used to doing, just like water washes us off. We fix up the things that we aren’t doing right yet, so that our neshama is ready to use our special Chassidus clothes! Then we can feel close to Hashem when we daven.
That’s what the Alter Rebbe had Mesiras Nefesh for — so Chassidim can daven in this special way.
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Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #320) is that we are not allowed to do melacha on Shabbos.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Yisro: לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה כָל מְלָאכָה
The details are explained in Mesechta Shabbos.
This is the matching mitzvah to the one we just learned yesterday and the day before. Hashem often gives us TWO mitzvos for one thing so we get double rewards — one for the Mitzvas Asei, doing what we are supposed do, and one for the Mitzvas Lo Saasei, not doing what Hashem told us not to!
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Perek Vov: In this perek, we learn that the Chachomim made it asur to tell a goy to do something for us on Shabbos, so that we won’t treat Shabbos lightly and come to do the melacha ourselves. There are some times we are allowed to ask a goy to do something, like if someone is even a little bit sick or if it is important for another mitzvah.
We are not allowed to have any benefit from melacha that was done on Shabbos when it is asur, even if it was done by a goy.
Perek Zayin: We now start to learn the 39 melachos of Shabbos! The Rambam lists them, and teaches us the difference between an Av Melacha and a Tolda. The Av Melacha is the way the melacha was done to build the Mishkan. A tolda is something that accomplishes the same thing, but in a different way.
Perek Ches: In this perek, we learn the first 10 melachos, from plowing the earth to kneading the dough. The Rambam tells us the halachos of each of these melachos.
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Now we learn the first three mitzvos of this set of halachos, which are: separating Terumah, separating Terumas Maaser, and doing the Terumos and Maasros in the right order.
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This week in Sefiras Ha’omer, we are working on the midah of Gevurah.
One of the main differences between the first week of Chesed and this week of Gevurah is that chesed is the way we share of ourselves or what we have with others. Gevurah is the opposite — the way we hold back from something we want to say or do, and DON’T share with others.
One of the ways we show our Gevurah is by being stronger than our Yetzer Hara who might want us to say something, but we hold ourselves back.
Let’s say that a girl named Sarah sees a group of her friends. She wants to tell them that her Morah says her project is the best in the whole class!
But Sarah can “rechen mit a tzveiten,” think about how another person will feel.
She can stop and think: How would I feel if another girl told me that the Morah said it about HER project? I would feel bad that Morah didn’t like MY project more.
Then Sarah will use her Gevurah! She WON’T tell her friends about what her Morah said. She decides that she will tell her parents about it later, since it will make them proud. For now, she will ask her friends to all play with her instead — that way EVERYONE will feel good!
Can you think of a way that you can use the gevurah of your neshama?
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In the first bracha of Shemoneh Esrei, we praise Hashem using three words — HaGadol, HaGibor, VehaNora, saying that Hashem is great, strong, and awesome.
These three praises of Hashem come from the Torah, when Moshe Rabbeinu used them to praise Hashem, in Chumash Devarim. Since then, Yidden used to use these words also when they davened.
Needs Iyun: But at the time of the Navi Yirmiyahu, the goyim came and destroyed the Beis Hamikdash. Yirmiyahu felt that Hashem’s awesomeness was hidden if Hashem let such a thing happen. So he stopped using the word “HaNora” to praise Hashem.
Then, when the Yidden were being brought into Golus, the Navi Daniel saw and was very upset. He asked, how do we see Hashem’s strength if His children are being taken away by the goyim? So he stopped using the word “HaGibor” to praise Hashem.
Later, the Anshei Kneses Hagedolah came together to write down the nusach of davening. They decided that we SHOULD praise Hashem with all of these words!
Because even when Hashem lets His children be taken away, we can see Hashem’s strength! Hashem holds Himself back from punishing the goyim right away, and gives them a chance to do teshuvah.
And even when Hashem lets the Beis Hamikdash be destroyed, we can see Hashem’s awesomeness — because if Hashem was not awesome, how could the Yidden, who are so few, survive with so many goyim around them trying to destroy them?
R’ Yehoshua ben Levi says that this is actually why the Anshei Kneses Hagedolah are called by the name “great”: Because they brought back Hashem’s kavod by using these three words again to praise Hashem — HaKeil HaGadol, HaGibor, VehaNora!
See Gemara Yoma daf Samach-Tes, amud Beis
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The Chachomim made a takana called Muktza, which is things we aren’t allowed to move or carry, even inside of our own houses!
There are three reasons for this takana:
1) Shabbos is a day of rest. But if we can carry around whatever we want to in our homes, it won’t be very restful! We will be busy all day moving things around from one place to the next. So the Chachomim made the takana of muktza, so we won’t be able to be busy with all of these things, and will rest on Shabbos.
2) Muktza helps keep us from making a mistake and doing Hotza’ah on Shabbos, carrying outside of a Reshus Hayochid.
If we could just carry whatever we wanted all the time on Shabbos, even things we’re carrying for no reason, we would forget and carry things outside! That is the melacha of Hotza’ah, and the takana of muktza helps keep us from accidentally doing it.
3) The third reason why the Chachomim made the takana of muktza is to make sure that Shabbos feels different and Shabbos’dik for EVERY type of Yid.
Some Yidden don’t do much melacha during the week. If the only thing different on Shabbos was melacha, there wouldn’t be much different on Shabbos for them! It would feel just like a weekday.
The takana of muktza makes sure that Shabbos feels very different for EVERYBODY.
See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman Shin-Ches, se’if Alef
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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 Navi in Yeshaya (part of the Haftora of Acharon Shel Pesach) tells us about the qualities of Moshiach:
וַהֲרִיחוֹ בְּיִרְאַת ה׳ וְלֹא לְמַרְאֵה עֵינָיו יִשְׁפּוֹט וְלֹא לְמִשְׁמַע אָזְנָיו יוֹכִיחַ
Veharicho BeYiras Hashem — Moshiach will be so filled with Yiras Hashem
Velo Lemareh Einav Yishpot — That he will not need to judge based on what he sees
Velo Lemishma Aznav Yochiach — And he will not need to prove things based on what he hears.
The Chachomim, in Gemara Sanhedrin, connect the word “Veharicho” (and he will be filled) with the word “Reiach” (smell). They tell us that Moshiach will judge by “smell!” Usually a judge has to decide things based on what he sees and hears, but Moshiach will be so filled with the Chochma of Hashem that he will be able to judge by “smelling” what is right and what is wrong.
Fifty years after the Churban of the second Beis Hamikdash, a great man named Bar-Kochba, who fought for the Yidden against the Romans, came and said that he was Moshiach and would bring the Yidden back to Eretz Yisroel and rebuild the Beis Hamikdash. The Chachomim tested him based on this posuk: They checked to see if he could judge by “smell,” knowing who is right because of the Chochma of Hashem inside of him. When he couldn’t do this, the Chachomim knew that he was not really Moshiach.
But Moshiach will have this special koach to judge directly with the Chochma of Hashem!
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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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