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CHUMASH
Parshas Tetzaveh - Chamishi with Rashi
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Hashem tells Moshe more details of how to get the Kohanim ready to work in the Mishkan during the Shivas Yemei Hamiluim, when the Mishkan will be first set up. (The Torah will tell us how this actually happened in the second half of Parshas Tzav.) We learned that Moshe Rabbeinu would need to bring three korbanos, a bull and two rams, and we started learning how these korbanos should be brought. Today we learn what Moshe should do with the second ram.
Moshe should bring the second ram as a korban, and put some of its blood on the right ear, right thumb, and right big toe of the kohanim. The rest of the blood gets splashed onto the lower half of the Mizbeiach.
Then Moshe should take some of the blood from the Mizbeiach, together with the Shemen Hamishcha, and this should be sprinkled onto the kohanim and onto their clothes (Bigdei Kehuna).
Some parts of the korban, and one of each of the kinds of matzah should be taken and waved (like a lulav!) in all directions. Then they should be burned on the Mizbeiach.
Other parts of the korban, and the rest of the matzah, are for the kohanim to eat, but they need to stay inside the chatzer of the Mishkan!
This korban will also be a kapara for the Mizbeiach, in case some stolen things were used to build it, or to build other parts of the Mishkan.
Moshe should do this every day for the 7 days of Chanukas Hamishkan. Hashem tells Moshe that through the avodah done during these days, the kohanim will become appointed as kohanim to do the Avodah, and the Mizbeiach will become ready to be used.
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In the last posuk of Kapitel Nun, Dovid Hamelech says: “Zoveiach Todah Yechabdaneni” — “a person who brings a Korban is bringing Kavod to Hashem.”
Just like when we bring a korban to shecht it brings kavod for Hashem, shechting the Yetzer Hara also brings kavod for Hashem.
How do we bring our Yetzer Hara to be shechted as a korban?
Just like when we shecht an animal, the animal loses its chayus, when we shecht our Yetzer Hara, the Yetzer Hara loses its chayus too. Instead of getting excited about Gashmiyus things that we like or want (like computer games or nosh), we get excited about Kedusha things — like davening or doing mitzvos!
By getting excited about things for Avodas Hashem, and less excited about things for the Yetzer Hara, we are also bringing kavod to Hashem!
See Tehillas Menachem kapitel Nun
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TANYA
Likutei Amarim Perek Lamed-Beis
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When the Alter Rebbe first wrote the Tanya (Mahadura Kama), it was different than the Tanya we have today! One very big difference is that this whole perek wasn’t there at all! The Alter Rebbe added it to the final version, and chose to put it right here, so it would be the 32nd perek. “Lamed-Beis” (32) is the Gematria of “Lev,” “heart.” Just like the heart sends the blood with chayus to all the parts of the body, this perek gives chayus to everything we learn in Tanya!
There are three kinds of love: Ahavas Hashem (love for Hashem), Ahavas HaTorah (love for Torah), and Ahavas Yisroel (love for another Yid). In the Yud Shevat farbrengen of Kabolas Hanesius, when the Rebbe officially accepted to be Rebbe, the Rebbe said that we need to make sure that our love for Hashem and the Torah BRINGS us to Ahavas Yisroel! In this perek, the Alter Rebbe shows us how to do that.
In the last three perakim, we have been learning about a hisbonenus with many parts. First we think thoughts that make us feel humble. Then we realize that even though as a person we may not have what to be so proud of, we have a neshama like every Yid has, and the neshama can come out of the Golus of the guf through Torah and mitzvos! Through learning Torah and doing mitzvos, we can even make the guf and Gashmius things we use more aidel, which is why Hashem put the neshama in the guf in the first place! That will bring us to decide to make it our life’s mission to connect our neshama with Hashem and elevate our guf and the Gashmius to kedusha through Torah and mitzvos!
When we think about OURSELVES this way, that the neshama is the main thing, we will look at another Yid the same way too! This is how we will be able to have true Ahavas Yisroel for EVERY SINGLE YID, no matter who!
How does seeing the neshama as the main thing bring us to love every Jew?
First, let’s think about why it’s hard to have Ahavas Yisroel: People look, sound, and act differently. Some people are tall and some are short, some are loud and some are quiet, some are smart and some are talented. Some people are mean, and some people are nice. There are people who like to play, others like to read. Some like to give presents, and some like to get presents! Different people like different kinds of things and we all have different personalities. That makes it very hard to love everyone the same!
But all these differences are only because of our guf. Our neshamos, though, are all the same — they are all a part of Hashem!
So if we are able to look at ourselves and see that the main thing is the neshama (through the hisbonenus we just learned), we will be able to look at every other Yid also in the same way! We will see that for them too, the main thing is the neshama! Then, there are no differences, and we can have Ve’ahavta Lereiacha Kamocha to every Yid equally, no matter how big or small they are!
In fact, this won’t only help us do ONE mitzvah (the mitzvah of Ahavas Yisroel) — if we can truly feel this way, that is the main point of the whole Torah and ALL of the mitzvos!
We see this in a story from the Gemara, about Hillel Hazakein:
Once a goy came to Hillel and asked to become a Yid — but he said that he is only willing to learn about Yiddishkeit while standing on one foot. So Hillel told him, “Things you don’t like other people to do to you, you shouldn’t do to other people. That’s the whole Torah. Everything else just explains it. Now go learn the rest.”
Hillel was saying that the mitzvah of Ahavas Yisroel is the whole Torah!
Why?
The whole point of the Torah is to make our neshama stronger than our Guf, and to connect it to Hashem!
When we do Ahavas Yisroel after going through this whole hisbonenus, which brings us to feel that a person’s neshama is really the main thing, we are doing the whole point of Torah!
When Yidden have achdus with each other, then Hashem also wants to have achdus with us! This way, Hashem’s Shechinah can be felt among the Yidden.
And this is also the point of the whole Torah!
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The Hayom Yom was first written for a Shana Me’uberes, a year with TWO Adars. This year is a Shana Peshuta, with only ONE Adar. We don’t want to miss any Hayom Yoms, so we learn TWO Hayom Yoms every day of Adar!
Tes Adar Alef
The Frierdiker Rebbe came to America on Tes Adar Beis 5700. This Hayom Yom talks about a mivtza that the Frierdiker Rebbe started when he came to America, to make the air pure with words of Torah — Taharas Ho’Avir.
What do you think about when you are walking outside?
We shouldn’t go out in the street without a plan of what we’re going to think about, and just think about whatever comes into our mind. When we walk in the street we should be thinking TORAH, like Tanya or Mishnayos!
If we are sitting around somewhere where we can use a sefer, we should also have a plan — to say words of Torah, like Chumash or Tehillim (which are usually said from inside a sefer).
Especially nowadays, when there isn’t as much Torah in the streets as there used to be, it is even more special when we think or say words of Torah there!
Tes Adar Sheini
Nusach Chabad: When we say Borei Nefashos, we should be careful to say “KOIL Mah Shebarasa” (with a cholam), and not “KOL Mah Shebarasa” (with a komatz).
A chossid wants to be mekushar to the Rebbe.
How can he do it?
It’s not enough to just to see the Rebbe’s face (or to see videos or pictures). To have proper hiskashrus, we need to learn and understand the Rebbe’s Chassidus!
On Tes Adar, the Frierdiker Rebbe arrived in America. You can imagine how excited the Chassidim were to see the Frierdiker Rebbe, many of them for the first time ever!
In today’s Hayom Yom, we see that this excitement is not enough to be hiskashrus by itself. Chassidim also need to study and understand the Rebbe’s Chassidus in order to be mekushar.
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Today we are starting a new sefer in Rambam, called Sefer Mishpatim! The first set of halachos in this sefer is called Hilchos S’chirus, which talks about a “shomer” and a worker.
Today’s mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #243) is that we need to follow the halachos about a Shomer Sachar and a Socher, someone who is responsible to take care of something that belongs to someone else with payment. Either they paid to use something (Socher), or they were paid to take care of it (Shomer Sachar).
Even though there are four kinds of Shomer, there are only three mitzvos, because two of them have the same halacha, as we learn today!
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Mishpatim: כִּי יִתֵּן אִישׁ אֶל רֵעֵהוּ חֲמוֹר אוֹ שׁוֹר אוֹ שֶׂה וְגוֹ׳
The dinim of this mitzvah are explained in Perek Vov and Perek Tes of Mesechta Bava Kama, Perek Gimmel and Perek Vov of Mesechta Bava Metziah, and Perek Ches of Mesechta Shevuos.
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In today’s Rambam, we learn about being a shomer:
In Perek Alef, the Rambam explains what a shomer is. “Shomer” means guard — it’s a person who is “guarding” (is in charge of taking care of) something for another person. Of course ׳ק have to be very careful with something that isn’t ours!
There are four kinds of Shomrim:
1) Shomer Chinam: Someone who isn’t paid to take care of something (like a friend who asks, “Will you watch this for me?”)
2) Shomer Sachar: A person who is paid to take care of something
3) Shoel: A person who borrows something
4) Socher: A person who pays someone else to use his thing (renting)
One halacha is that if you borrow something, you can’t just lend it to someone else — even if it’s a Sefer Torah and you are lending it for a mitzvah!
Perek Beis: This perek teaches us about who can be a shomer. It has to be a person who is allowed to do business according to Torah, because the halachos of shomer and regular business share many of the same halachos. The Rambam tells us that just like with buying something, there has to be a kinyan, to show that the shomer started taking care of it.
In Perek Gimmel, we learn what happens if the thing you were watching got lost or broken. If it happened because you weren’t careful, even a shomer chinam has to pay for it!
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Chassidus teaches the ruchniyus meaning of these halachos, how a neshama is given to the person to watch. The different kinds of shomer are different ways the person has responsibility to take care that the neshama should be successful in its shlichus in the world.
For example, a Shomer Chinam is someone who is watching the neshama “for free” — not thinking about the reward they will receive for keeping Torah and mitzvos. A Shomer Sachar is doing what he is supposed to, but thinking about the reward that Hashem will give for doing the shlichus properly.
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This perek teaches us more halachos about not being strict with the witnesses in a money case. For example, if the witnesses saw what happened from different places (like different sides of the street) and didn’t see each other, we still count them as good witnesses. Why? So the special mitzvah of Gemilus Chasadim (which includes lending money to others) will be easier to keep, and Yidden will have the money they need.
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“America Iz Nisht Andersh!” Today is the day that the Frierdiker Rebbe arrived in America, to live there. (The Frierdiker Rebbe came for a visit before.)
At that time, the Yidden in America had a very hard time being frum.
The first thing the Frierdiker Rebbe said was, “America Iz Nisht Andersh!” We shouldn’t think that America is different, that Torah is Chas Veshalom not the same here. The Torah and the mitzvos are the same for every time and for every place!
The Frierdiker Rebbe asked Rabbi Hodakov to come with him on the boat from Poland to America. On the boat, the Frierdiker Rebbe told Rabbi Hodakov that he should write up a plan what they would do to build Yiddishkeit in America, before they even get there.
Rabbi Hodakov wrote up a plan, and based on that plan, Merkos L’inyonei Chinuch, Machneh Yisroel, and Kehos were founded. The Frierdiker Rebbe gave these mosdos over to the Rebbe, and the Rebbe used these mosdos to spread Yiddishkeit all over the world!
The Frierdiker Rebbe specifically did not want to wait until they got to America and then figure out what to do. The Frierdiker Rebbe wanted it planned in advance! One lesson we can learn from this is that we shouldn’t wait until we get older to decide how we’ll live. While we are children, we should get the proper Chinuch and make decisions about how to do things right for the rest of our lives!
(For more details of this story, see Early Years, published by JEM, page 264)
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The Chachomim say that a person who is davening has to have his heart above and his eyes below! (“Hamispalel Tzorich Sheyihiyeh Libo Lemaala Ve’einav Lematah.”)
The Alter Rebbe explains that this means that even when someone feels close and connected to Hashem, they still need to remember the way they are during the rest of the day.
The Rebbe teaches us that practically this means that a person can’t walk away from davening only feeling inspired and Ruchniyus’dik. We ALSO need to use the time of davening to make general hachlatos for the day about how we should act in our “regular” work, like eating and exercise and playing and working.
Then, later in the day, we can think about what we’re doing, and if we’re acting the way we decided we would during davening.
Sichas Tes-Vov Shevat, 5739
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Every year, the Yidden would give a Machtzis Hashekel to help pay for things needed for the Beis Hamikdash. The Beis Din would start collecting it on Rosh Chodesh Adar.
Nowadays, even though we don’t have a Beis Hamikdash yet, we still give a Machtzis Hashekel to remember the one we hope to be giving soon!
We give it on Taanis Esther, right before Purim, because the Machatzis Hashekel is connected to Purim! The Medrash says that the Machatzis Hashekel the Yidden would give cancelled out the shekalim that Haman gave to Achashveirosh to bribe him to make the gezeira.
Since the Machatzis Hashekel was given for the Beis Hamikdash, it is best that ours should be used for a Mikdash Me’at, for a shul. Still, it can be given to any tzedakah.
The minhag is to give three half-coins of the place you live (like a half-dollar or half-euro). Usually they have these coins in shul, and people exchange them for their own money.
There is a minhag that everyone, not just adults, should give the Machatzis Hashekel. The Rebbe says that the best thing to do is for the parents to give money to the children, more than what we need for the Machatzis Hashekel. Then the children should give from their own money for the Machatzis Hashekel, but they should still have some left — so they will remember that we don’t lose out from doing a mitzvah!
If someone couldn’t give the Machatzis Hashekel before Purim, he can give it before the Megillah reading at night or during the day.
See Piskei Teshuvos and Halachos Uminhagei Chabad - Taanis Esther
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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 Gemara says that a person is judged every day (and according to one opinion, every moment) to see what will happen to him, based on how he acts. But aren’t we already judged on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur to see what will happen the whole year?
The answer is because when Hashem gives us something, it comes through many steps. So even though the brachos are there, the way we act makes the brachos come into Gashmius so we can see them.
But when Moshiach comes, whatever Hashem gives to us will come straight to us and right away!
All of the things that will happen when Moshiach comes are because of the way we act now. What can we do that will make this happen Le’asid Lavo?
We need to make sure that when we give Hashem HIS needs (the mitzvos he wants us to do), it doesn’t go through a bunch of steps!
Sometimes, like on special days or at special times, we make hachlatos. We decide we will do more or better mitzvos! But when it comes to actually doing them, it can take a while. We remember the hachlata, but don’t really do anything about it. Or we might decide later to do just part of the hachlata, and not the whole thing.
We need to start trying to do the WHOLE hachlata, and right away! When we act in this way, not only will Hashem start treating us that Moshiach’dik way now, it is also important to deserve what will happen Le’asid Lavo!
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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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