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In today’s Chumash, we learn about the end of Yosef’s life. He passes away, and his Aron stays with the Yidden in Mitzrayim. Before he passes away, Yosef tells the Yidden that Hashem will take them out of Mitzrayim! The Shevatim were worried that maybe Yosef would be mean to them, now that Yaakov passed away. “Don’t worry,” Yosef told his brothers, “I will take care of you and make sure you have food.” Still, Yosef didn’t have as many family parties as he used to while Yaakov was alive. When the Mitzriyim saw that, they stopped treating the Shevatim as nicely. Now the Shevatim realized that soon the Yidden would become slaves, like Hashem told Avraham. Yosef lived in Mitzrayim his whole life, 110 years. He was able to learn even with his great-grandchildren before he passed away! Yosef told his brothers that he would pass away, but that Hashem will remember them and take them out of Mitzrayim. Hashem will bring them to the land promised to Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov — Eretz Yisroel. Before he passed away, Yosef asked his brothers to make sure the Yidden take his Aron along when Hashem takes them out of Mitzrayim. Until that happened, the Aron of Yosef stayed with the Yidden in Mitzrayim! Chazak, Chazak, Venis’chazek! We have just finished learning the entire Chumash Bereishis! |
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Today’s shiur Tehillim is kapitelach Ayin-Beis through Ayin-Vov. In Kapitel Ayin-Gimmel (73), there is a posuk “Mi Li Bashamayim Ve’imcha Lo Chofatzti Ba’aretz.” “Do I need Shomayim? And I don’t want what’s with You in the world.” The Tzemach Tzedek said that the Alter Rebbe used to say that this posuk means that he doesn’t want what’s WITH Hashem, even the most special Ruchnius things like Gan Eden or Olam Haba. He just wanted Hashem Himself! How does a person connect with Hashem Himself? By doing a mitzvah in this Gashmiyus world! The Chachomim say that one hour of teshuvah and Maasim Tovim in this world is better than the whole Olam Haba! In Olam Haba, neshamos enjoy the light of Hashem, but through a mitzvah in this world, the neshama connects with the ESSENCE of Hashem. In today’s Geulah U’Moshiach, we will see how we learn from the Alter Rebbe’s Ahavas Hashem that we shouldn’t want even the most special things from Golus, we should ask Hashem to bring Moshiach now! |
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In today’s Tanya, we start to learn about the Beinoni. What is a beinoni? The word beinoni means “in the middle,” because the beinoni is right between a tzadik and a rasha. In a way the beinoni is just like a tzadik, because he makes sure that only the Nefesh Elokis is allowed to control what the body does! But the way the person really feels inside isn’t like a tzadik at all. In fact, he feels like a rasha! The Nefesh Habehamis has a lot to say! It constantly makes the beinoni feel that it wants or needs things (taavos), and makes him aware of feelings that can lead him to think, speak, or do something against what Hashem wants. The beinoni will never LISTEN to what the Nefesh Habehamis is saying if it is against the Torah. He will never do — or even think — anything that would let the Nefesh Habehamis have control of his body. He can’t ever do an aveira! There is even a way for the beinoni to make his love for Hashem much stronger, almost like a tzadik! It can become so strong that the Nefesh Habehamis will be overwhelmed and fall “asleep,” and it won’t even be able to come up with any feelings! This can only happen during special times, like the time of davening, when a powerful koach called Mochin Degadlus shines in Shomayim. The beinoni is able to use Shema (with the brachos before, which are a preparation for it) to make his love for Hashem strong enough to put his Nefesh Habehamis to sleep. When the special koach of davening goes away, then the Nefesh Habehamis wakes up again, and again he can feel inside like a rasha. So the beinoni is in the middle. He feels like a rasha, and acts like a tzadik. He is always fighting with the feelings of his Yetzer Hara inside, to keep his Nefesh Elokis in control of his body. In his behavior, he always wins and acts like a tzadik. The Rebbe explains that it doesn’t mean that if we did an aveira we can never be a beinoni. It means that the way we are now, it’s impossible for us to do an aveira! We want to do what Hashem wants so much, that it feels now like we could never do an aveira. |
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The Shpoler Zeide was a talmid of the Maggid of Mezritch. Once he visited the Alter Rebbe, and told him about when he saw the Baal Shem Tov. He was just 3 years old, and the Baal Shem Tov put his holy hand on the Shpoler Zeide’s heart. “Since then,” the Shpoler Zeide said, “I have always felt warm.” We learn from this that whatever a tzadik does, and especially seeing and hearing him, leaves an impression on us forever. |
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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 #100) is about the kind of Tumah that a woman gets when she has a baby, called Tumas Yoledes. These are the halachos about how she can make other people or things tomei. Even though it is important to know this mitzvah and its halachos always, as part of Torah, it was actually kept when we had a Beis Hamikdash, since someone tomei is not allowed to go into the Beis Hamikdash or eat from the korbanos! |
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In today’s Rambam, we learn more about Keilim and when they can become Tomei. Today we learn about ovens and stoves! In Perek Tes-Vov we learn about when an oven or stove is counted as finished and can become Tomei. Perek Tes-Zayin teaches us about when an oven or stove is broken — can it still get Tumah? Perek Yud-Zayin has the halachos about parts of an oven, or things that are attached — like a towel rack or a shelf for spices. If the oven is Tomei, do they become Tomei too? |
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If a person only agrees about a very little part of the money, less than a perutah, he doesn’t make a shevuah. He also doesn’t make a shevuah if the amount they are arguing over is worth less than two me’in. So if the two people are arguing over dates, and one person says “You owe me 100 dates!” but the other person says, “I only owe you 90,” they are only arguing about 10 of the dates. If 10 dates isn’t worth at least 2 me’in, the person doesn’t make a shevuah. And if someone says “You owe me $100!” but the other person says that he only owes him less than a perutah, then he doesn’t make a shevuah. |
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We learn in this week’s parsha, Parshas Vayechi, that the best years of Yaakov’s life were in Mitzrayim. How could Mitzrayim be better than in Eretz Yisroel? The Rebbe explains that this was because Yehuda set up a yeshiva there to learn Torah! That way, even in Mitzrayim, even in Golus, his life was able to be very good. We see from here that only through always learning Torah can we be living in Golus properly! We will learn a letter from the Rebbe about how important it is to always be connected to Torah: The Yetzer Hara came up with a plan called “vacation.” Unfortunately, even very frum Yidden accept it. They think that whatever is true during the rest of the year is different during “vacation.” This is the opposite of what the Torah tells us! The posuk says that the Torah is our life and the length of our days. We can’t take a break from living! The Chachomim compare a Yid to a fish. Just like fish can’t leave the water, a Yid can’t survive without Torah and mitzvos. Chas veshalom to think that during “vacation” or “break time” we don’t need to learn any more, or we need to learn less! A Yid always needs to be connected to his source of life — the Torah. See Shulchan Menachem vol. 5 p. 59, Igros Kodesh vol. 13 p. 302 |
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In the Gemara, the first bracha of Shemoneh Esrei is also called “Avos.” That’s because in this bracha, we mention each of the Avos. Why do we speak about the Avos here in Shemoneh Esrei? One of the reasons is because the whole reason we are able to stand here now, speaking privately to Hashem, about to ask Hashem for all of our needs, is because of the Avos! Our special connection to Hashem, as Hashem’s special nation, is a yerusha from the Avos. We ask Hashem that, in the zechus of the Avos, our tefillos should be accepted. |
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When we wash Netilas Yodayim, we first pour water over our right hand. To do this, we need to hold the kvort with our left hand. Based on Kabbalah, we are ALWAYS careful to start with our right. So even with HOLDING the kvort, we first pick it up with our right hand, before passing it to our left. That’s why we hold the kvort with our right hand when we fill it up with water. We only pass it to our left hand when we are ready to start washing our right hand first! See Seder Netilas Yodayim L’Seudah, se’if hey |
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לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
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We learned in Tehillim, “Mi Li Bashomayim” — The Alter Rebbe says that we only want Hashem. We are saying the same thing when we ask for Moshiach now! It may seem that there are many good things in Golus, in Gashmius and even in Ruchnius. A person could ask Hashem for riches, or health, or happiness. He could ask Hashem to be able to learn a lot of Torah, or to daven with lots of kavana. All of these things could happen in Golus. But we learn from the Alter Rebbe that this isn’t what we should want! Only when Moshiach comes will the etzem of Hashem be revealed. We say that these good things are not enough — we want the etzem Hashem to be revealed! We want Moshiach now! See Parshas Tzav, Shabbos Hagadol 5745, Chassidim Ein Mishpacha #331 |
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לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
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