|
|
CHUMASH
Parshas Bo - Revi'i with Rashi
|
|
Moshe warns Paraoh about Makas Bechoros. Hashem gives the Yidden the mitzvah of Korban Pesach.
Moshe and Aharaon were still standing near Paraoh. Moshe told Paraoh that Hashem was going to do the next makah Himself — not through a malach! At about midnight, Hashem would make all of the oldest boys, and even the oldest animals, die. (Moshe told Paraoh that it would happen “at about midnight” so that Paraoh couldn’t say that Moshe was lying if his stargazers didn’t tell him the right time!) There would be loud crying all over Mitzrayim, so loud that it would scare all of the dogs! But no dogs would bark in a scary way at the Yidden, which will show that the Yidden are different.
“Your officers will come and tell me that all of the Yidden should leave Mitzrayim — and we will go.” (Moshe meant also Paraoh himself, but he said “officers” out of respect for Paraoh as a king.)
Then Moshe left Paraoh’s palace, showing that he was upset that Paraoh had so much chutzpah to say (like we learned in yesterday’s Chumash) that Moshe, the messenger of Hashem, should never come back again!
Korban Pesach
The Yidden need to DESERVE Yetziyas Mitzrayim, which will happen very soon! So Hashem gave the Yidden two mitzvos to do: The Korban Pesach and the Bris Milah.
On Rosh Chodesh Nisan, Hashem showed Moshe and Aharon the new moon. Hashem told them that this would be the first month of the Jewish year.
They should tell the Yidden today that on the 10th day of this month, each family from the Yidden needs to choose a young lamb or goat for a Korban. They should make sure the animal is big enough so everyone can have a kezayis but small enough that there won’t be any leftovers.
Hashem tells Moshe Rabbeinu the details of this mitzvah, for example if there are any leftovers, they will need to burn them. They can make groups to share one korban if a family is too small to eat the whole thing themselves. The animal shouldn’t have anything wrong with it — no mum, nothing missing or broken.
On the 14th day of Nissan, in the afternoon, the Yidden should shecht their animals, and put some of the blood on the top of the doorpost and on the sides around the doors of their houses. They should cook the animal over a fire, and eat the meat with matzah and maror. They should be wearing their shoes and all ready to go!
Hashem will kill all of the firstborns, but He will skip over the houses with blood, and not kill any of the Yidden in these houses.
The day the Yidden will come out of Mitzrayim, the 15th of Nissan, will become Pesach, and the Yidden will keep it as a Yom Tov forever. For seven days they will eat matzah. They may not eat chometz or even have any chometz in their houses.
|
|
|
|
For today’s Shiur Tehillim, we say kapitelach Yud-Ches through Chof-Beis.
In Kapitel Yud-Tes, there is a posuk that talks about Torah: “Toras Hashem Temimah, Meshivas Nafesh.” “The Torah of Hashem is complete, it makes the neshama feel good.”
The Alter Rebbe uses this posuk to show why he was so happy to hear that the Chassidim learned the whole Shas (Mishnayos and Gemara) in many places during the year. When the Torah is temimah, complete (when the whole Torah is completely learned) it makes the neshama happy!
|
|
|
TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Yud-Tes
|
|
In today’s Tanya, we learn that the level of Chochma in the neshama of a Yid won’t let a Yid do an aveira. The only way a person can do an aveira is if he has a Ruach Shtus which puts the Chochma to sleep and in a Golus inside of him.
We learned yesterday in Tanya that a neshama is like a candle, whose flame is always trying to go up. The neshama also always wants to be together with Hashem. It doesn’t make sense for the neshama to want this, because the closer it becomes to Hashem, the less important it becomes! Still, the neshama wants it anyway. This comes from the “Chochma” part of the neshama.
In the Chochma of the neshama, Hashem isn’t hiding at all. Since Hashem can be felt there, it makes the neshama have bittul. Bittul is when we don’t want anything for ourselves. Instead, we are ready to follow whatever Hashem wants from us!
This is a general difference between kedusha, holiness, and the opposite, kelipah: Kedusha has bittul to Hashem, and kelipah is always interested in getting something for itself.
When the Chochma of the neshama is working, it makes a difference in the whole body, so the person can use it to do what Hashem wants.
But if a Yid lets the Yetzer Hara take control of his body, then the Chochma of his neshama falls asleep and is in Golus inside of him. Even though it is still there, it isn’t doing what it is able to.
That’s why this kind of love that comes from the Chochma is called Ahava Mesuteres, a hidden love. Even though it’s always there, it can be hidden in a Yid. The Yetzer Hara has permission from Hashem to try and trick the person into thinking that an aveira won’t make a difference. This is called a Ruach Shtus, and it is what causes the Chochma of the neshama to be in Golus which allows the person to do an aveira.
(We will learn tomorrow how the Ahava Mesuteres can be woken up so that the person will be able to do what Hashem wants.)
|
|
|
|
In today’s Hayom Yom, we learn about how the Torah Ohr and Likutei Torah were printed.
Nine years after the Histalkus of the Mitteler Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek printed the maamorim of the Alter Rebbe for the first time.
In a letter written by the Tzemach Tzedek on Gimmel Shevat (5597), the Tzemach Tzedek writes about this Sefer, called Torah Ohr. The Sefer has the Alter Rebbe’s maamorim on Chumash Bereishis and Shemos (and a few Yomim Tovim). In the letter, the Tzemach Tzedek also writes about the second chelek of the Sefer, which IY”H will be printed later, with maamorim on the other Chumashim, Shir Hashirim, and the other Yomim Tovim.
Unfortunately, it took 11 years (!) until the second chelek was printed! Why did it take so long?!
The Russian government was very mean to Yidden, and there were many big Resha’im who didn’t want Yidden to be learning Torah. One of the things they did was to close down many Jewish printhouses, including the one in Kopust, where the sefer Torah Ohr was printed, so they couldn’t make any new books of Torah.
The second chelek was finally printed in 5608, in a different city — Zhitomir. Instead of calling it “Torah Ohr Chelek Beis” it got its own name, Likutei Torah.
In the Tzemach Tzedek’s letter, he also connects the name of the Alter Rebbe to the Chassidus he teaches: The Alter Rebbe’s name is Shneur, which is the words “Shnei Ohr,” two times light. The Gematria of the word “ohr” (light) two times, is 414, which is also the Gematria of the word Ve’ahavta. In the Alter Rebbe’s Chassidus, he teaches us how to love Hashem, “Ve’ahavta!”
|
|
|
|
Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #265) is that we are not allowed to figure out a way to get something that we are jealous of, that belongs to another person.
If I see my friend’s new pencil case, and I am jealous of her, I am not allowed to buy it from her — even for $100! I can’t try to convince her that mine is better, and she should switch, and I’m not allowed to get someone else to tell her to give it or sell it to me.
This aveira is only if someone DOES something to try to get what he wants.
We learn this from a posuk in Parshas Yisro, from the Aseres Hadibros: לֹא תַחְמֹד בֵּית רֵעֶךָ
|
|
|
RAMBAM
Hilchos Gezeilah VaAveidah
|
|
In today’s Rambam, we learn about how a robber can make up for what he did.
Perek Zayin teaches us the halachos about how a person does teshuvah for making a not true promise in a Beis Din that he doesn’t owe someone money. When he admits the truth, he has to pay back the amount he lied about, plus an extra fifth.
Perek Ches explains what a robber should do if the person he robbed from passed away. The halachos are also different if the person he robbed from was a Ger.
Perek Tes has the halachos about doing teshuvah for selling a stolen field. We learn what happens if the field gets ruined, sold, or taken away by the king!
|
|
|
|
This perek teaches us about how to divide a yerusha when there is a sofek (doubt) if a certain person should get part of the yerusha. The halacha is usually that if one person gets the yerusha for sure, and the other person is a sofek, we give all of it to the one we are sure about. If there is more than one person who is a sofek, we divide it between them.
|
|
|
|
Today is one week before Yud Shevat.
One of the minhagim of Yud Shevat is to learn through the maamar of the Frierdiker Rebbe that he gave to Chassidim to learn on the day of Yud Shevat in the year of his histalkus, in Tof-Shin-Yud (1950). We learn part of the maamar after Maariv, the next part after Shacharis, and the last part after Mincha. This way, we finish the whole maamar on Yud Shevat.
This maamar starts with the words “Bosi Legani,” which is what Hashem said at the time of Matan Torah, “I came to My garden.”
In one of the sichos on Yud Shevat, the Rebbe explained why the posuk compares the world to a garden: Sometimes the world looks like a scary place. But a Yid needs to remember that it’s really a special place, it’s Hashem’s world that Hashem watches every second! It’s just that the Yetzer Hara tries to get us to think it’s scary, so we won’t be brave to act the way Hashem wants us to.
But if we remember that all of the hard things we see are from Hashem, we try hard to find the good things in the world, and work to make the world a place for Hashem’s Shechinah to feel comfortable — we will for sure bring Moshiach, when everyone will be able to see that the world is Hashem’s garden!
The Rebbe also had a minhag to explain one se’if (section) of this series of maamarim every year. There are 20 se’ifim in the Frierdiker Rebbe’s hemshech Bosi Legani, so from Tof-Shin-Yud-Alef to Tof-Shin-Lamed, the Rebbe explained the entire series of maamarim. The Rebbe did the same thing again over the next 20 years, from Tof-Shin-Lamed-Alef to Tof-Shin-Nun, by either saying a maamar or editing a maamar for that year, and began the third cycle in the year Tof-Shin-Nun-Alef. Chassidim have continued the cycle the way the Rebbe started it. We learn the maamarim that the Rebbe said or edited for the se’if of each year.
This year we are learning the 13th se’if, for the 4th time since Yud Shevat (5723, 5743, 5763, 5783)! We learn the Rebbe’s maamar of Tof-Shin-Chof-Gimmel and Tof-Shin-Mem-Gimmel.
We will IY”H learn about some of things this se’if speaks about later!
|
|
|
▼ Jump to Coloring Books & Downloads ▼
|
|
|
|
The seventh bracha in Shemoneh Esrei is “Goel Yisroel.” In this bracha, we ask Hashem to free us from all of the problems that keep us from serving Hashem properly. We say “Goel Yisroel,” that Hashem is redeeming us right now!
There are many kinds of tzaros that can make it hard to do our avodah. There might be other people that bother us, feelings we have inside of us, or things we are afraid of. Hashem frees us from all of these problems so we can go do what we need to do!
We say this bracha after Selach Lanu, where we ask Hashem to forgive us. This fits with what it says in Tehillim, that Hashem forgives our aveiros, and then in that zechus redeems us from our tzaros: “Hasoleiach Lechol Avoneichi, Hagoel Mishachas Chayochi.”
Of course, when we have our personal geulah from things that keep us from doing mitzvos, we will be able to bring the Geulah for ALL of the Yidden!
|
|
|
|
From the time we are allowed to make Kiddush, we are not supposed to eat or drink anything (even water!) until after we make Kiddush.
When is the time of Kiddush? The time of Kiddush is from when Shabbos starts, or if we take in Shabbos early, from the time we accepted Shabbos. For a girl, this is from when she bentches licht. From that time, we are not supposed to eat or drink anything until we make or hear Kiddush.
What about kids?
The halacha is that we are not allowed to make kids uncomfortable or unhappy by making them wait to eat. If they are hungry, we should give them food!
But wait, isn’t there a mitzvah of Chinuch? And isn’t it asur to give children food that they aren’t supposed to eat?
That is only for food that is asur to eat ALL the time, like treif food. But if it is kosher food, and it is just not the right TIME to eat, we are allowed to give it to children.
So if kids are hungry before Kiddush, we do give them something to eat, and we are not allowed to tell them that they have to wait until Kiddush!
See Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch siman Reish-Ayin-Alef, se’if Tes, and siman Reish-Samach-Tes, se’if Gimmel
|
|
לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
|
|
|
|
The Navi Micha says: Kimei Tzeischa Me’Eretz Mitzrayim, Arenu Niflaos! At the time of the Geulah, Hashem promises to show us nisim like He did in the times of Yetziyas Mitzrayim!
This teaches us that Yetziyas Mitzrayim is very connected to the Geulah — it is like a mashal that helps us understand how the Geulah will be!
For example, as we see in Parshas Bo, one of the things the Yidden did that helped them deserve the Geulah was the Korban Pesach. The Yidden took the Avodah Zarah of Mitzrayim, and went to do what Hashem asked them to. They ignored whatever the Mitzriyim said, and did the mitzvah proudly.
This is also how we can deserve the Geulah: By being strong and proud with our Yiddishkeit, not worrying what other people say, Hashem will see that we are ready to do whatever He asks us to! Then we will be ready to have Moshiach now!
See Likutei Sichos chelek Alef parshas Bo
|
|
|
|
|
לע"נ התינוק זאב ארי' ע"ה בן יבלט"א הרה"ח ר' שניאור זלמן שי' גליק
נפטר ב' מנחם אב ה'תשע"ג
|
|
Give children around the world the gift of Kids Chitas!
KidsChitas.org/sponsor
|
|
|
