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CHUMASH
Parshas Korach - Revi'i with Rashi
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In today’s Chumash we learn about a big sickness that causes Yidden to die, and how Aharon Hakohen uses the ketores to stop the plague.
Hashem saw that the Yidden were complaining about what happened to Korach. It seemed that all of the Yidden agreed with Korach.
Hashem said that Moshe and Aharon should move away, and Hashem will punish ALL of the Yidden. The Yidden started to pass away from a terrible sickness! Moshe and Aharon didn’t know what to do! What could they tell Hashem so He wouldn’t be upset with the Yidden?
Suddenly Moshe remembered that the Malach Hamoves told him (when he was up on Har Sinai) that Ketores can stop this kind of sickness. Moshe quickly asked Hashem if he could use it, and Hashem agreed. So Moshe told Aharon to go run and get Ketores and fire from the Mizbeiach to save the Yidden.
Aharon got the Ketores, and ran into the crowd of Yidden — and the sickness stopped.
At first, the Malach Hamoves was upset that Aharon wasn’t letting him do the job Hashem gave him! But Hashem gave instructions to the Malach Hamaves that people should stop dying from the sickness.
Before this happened, people thought that the ketores was just dangerous. Nadav and Avihu died when they brought it, and the 250 people who listened to Korach did too. But now the Yidden could all see that the Ketores wasn’t dangerous — in fact it saved them! They understood that it is the AVEIROS that are dangerous!
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Today’s kapitelach are kapitel Yud to Yud-Zayin.
Kapitel Yud-Gimmel in Tehillim is a tefillah for the long Golus. In the paragraph before this kapitel, it says that a person in a time of tzaar should say this kapitel.
The last posuk is full of bitachon that Hashem will help us and save us from this Golus!
Va’ani Bechasdecha Votachti — I trust in Your kindness, Hashem
Yagel Libi Biyeshuasecha — My heart will be happy because of You saving me
Ashira LaHashem Ki Gomal Alai — I will sing to Hashem because Hashem has given me kindness!
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TANYA
Shaar Hayichud Veha'emunah Perek Yud
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In today’s Tanya we learn an example of how Hashem made the world using all of the different sefiros.
Today in Tanya, we learn about how Hashem made the world using ALL of His holy Sefiros! Since Hashem is one, everything Hashem does uses all of the Sefiros together.
The Alter Rebbe gives us some examples of how parts of the world were made with ALL of the Sefiros. For example, on the first day of Briyas HaOlam, Hashem’s Chesed was very strong! Hashem said “Yehi Ohr” and made light, mainly using His Chesed! But Hashem’s Chesed also has Gevurah, which made the light a Gashmius’dike light that can be used in this world. (Chesed has no limits, but Gevurah gives it limits.)
On the second day, Hashem’s Gevurah was shining strong! Hashem said “Yehi Rakia” and made the sky to split the world into Gashmius water and Ruchnius water. Separating something shows Hashem’s Gevurah. But this also shows Hashem’s Chesed, since Hashem needed to split the water so we could have a place to live!
PEOPLE can have Midos separately, but Hashem’s Midos are ALL together. So Hashem’s Chesed isn’t just Chesed, and Hashem’s Gevurah isn’t just Gevurah! We call it “Chesed” when Chesed is the strongest, but with Hashem they are all one.
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Today we learn in Hayom Yom that Ahavas Yisroel gives us the zechus we need to have our tefillos answered!
In our Siddur, at the beginning of davening (after morning Brachos), it says “Nachon Lomar Kodem HaTefillah: Hareini Mekabel Alai Mitzvas Asei Shel VeAhavta LeReiacha Kamocha.” That means — It is the right thing to say this before davening: “I am ready to do the Mitzvah of Ahavas Yisroel!”
Why did the Alter Rebbe put this in his siddur?
Because having Ahavas Yisroel is like opening up a “door” for our davening to be able to go inside. When we have Ahavas Yisroel, our davening will be able to go straight up to Hashem — and Hashem will listen to our Tefillos.
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In Sefer Hamitzvos, we again learn the mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #171) of giving a half shekel every year to the Beis Hamikdash. We will IY”H get to do this mitzvah again when Moshiach comes!
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Ki Sisa: וְנָתְנוּ אִישׁ כֹּפֶר נַפְשׁוֹ לַה׳
The details are explained in Mesechta Shekalim.
We also learn another mitzvah (Mitzvas Asei #153): That the Beis Din needs to make a calendar, and decide the right time for each month to start.
We learn this mitzvah from a posuk in Parshas Bo: הַחֹדֶשׁ הַזֶּה לָכֶם רֹאשׁ חֳדָשִׁים
The details are explained in Mesechta Sanhedrin perek Alef, Mesechta Rosh Hashana and Brachos.
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RAMBAM
Hilchos Shekalim - Kiddush Hachodesh
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In Rambam, Hilchos Shekalim perek Daled, we finish learning the halachos about the Machtzis Hashekel, about what kind of things the money can be used to pay for.
Now we start to learn the halachos of Kiddush Hachodesh, Perek Alef and Beis. We learn how the Beis Din decides when the new month starts. Because a month can be 29 days or 30 days, depending if we see the new moon. If someone sees the moon, they come tell the Beis Din! The Beis Din asks them lots of questions to make sure that they are telling the truth.
How does the Beis Din know they are telling the truth?
There are ways to figure out how the moon should look at different times of the year. The Beis Din knows which part of the sky the moon should be in, and which way it should be pointing. They know how wide the moon should be, and when you should be able to see it.
After we learn about the witnesses in the next few perakim, we will be learning about how the Beis Din figures all of these things out! This way they will be able to be sure that the eidim are telling the truth.
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Now the Rambam tells us HOW to say Shema. We need to make sure we have kavana when we say the first line of Shema, otherwise we need to say it again! If a person is working and realizes that he will soon miss say- ing Shema on time, he needs to stop working so he can say Shema properly.
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The yartzeit of a tzadik, especially of a Rebbe, is called a “hilula”. Why is it called that?
In Aramaic, the word “hilula” means a chasunah. We use a chasunah as a mashal to understand what happens on the yartzeit of a tzadik.
When a chosson and kallah get married, it isn’t just a simcha down here. When the chosson and kallah are joined together by the chasunah, they bring down a koach of Hashem which is Ein Sof, with no limits! Now that they are married, even though they are Gashmius’dike people with limits, they can use this koach of Ein Sof to bring children into the world, which will have children and grandchildren of their own — with no limits!
This is also like what happens on the yartzeit of a tzadik. On the day of the tzadik’s yartzeit, all of the things that the tzadik did all of his life go up, together with the neshama of the tzadik, to a much higher level than before! When it goes up so high, it makes a koach of Ein Sof of Hashem to shine!
There is a rule in Torah: Whatever is higher is able to come down to a lower level. So on the yartzeit of a tzadik, this new koach of Ein Sof of Hashem comes down into the Gashmius’dike world. It brings bracha without limits, in Ruchnius and in Gashmius, to everyone who is connected to the tzadik!
That is why the yartzeit of a tzadik is called a hilula. Because just like with a chasunah, it is able to bring down such a special koach of Hashem, a koach of Ein Sof!
Even after Moshiach comes, and the neshama of the tzadik comes back into a Gashmius’dike guf, the day of the hilula will always be this special day which brings bracha to everyone connected to the tzadik!
See (for example) farbrengen Yud Shevat 5718 and 5711
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The last part of Pesukei Dezimra before Yishtabach is Az Yashir.
The Zohar says many special things about how important it is to say Az Yashir in davening. One thing it says is that if we say Az Yashir during Golus, we will be zoche to say it when Moshiach comes!
The last line of Az Yashir is the posuk “Hashem Yimloch Le’olam Va’ed.”
After saying “Hashem Yimloch Le’olam Va’ed” twice, we say it one more time — but this time, we say it in Targum (translation), in Aramaic! This is something the Arizal taught us to do.
We also say then the posuk “Ki Va Sus Paraoh,” which comes right after the Shirah in Parshas Beshalach. This is also based on the teachings of the Arizal.
The Arizal teaches that this posuk, which is also connected to the Shirah, should also be said every day in davening.
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Today we are going to learn some of the minhagim that the Rebbe instructed should be done on Yud Shevat, the Yom Hilula of the Frierdiker Rebbe. Based on this, many Chassidim also follow these minhagim on Gimmel Tammuz.
These minhagim help us connect to the special ruchnius chayus of the day.
The Rebbe teaches us that the day of a hilula of a tzadik (especially a Nasi) is a time for tremendous brachos for all the chassidim that are connected to the Rebbe. These minhagim also help us make keilim to accept and benefit from these brachos. We hope that Gimmel Tammuz this year will be a day of big celebration in Yerushalayim Ir Hakodesh together with the Rebbe, and then we will keep special minhagim to connect to the immense chayus that this day will always have.
Here are some of the minhagim:
- We light a yartzeit licht. If we can, it is best to light one made out of Shaava (beeswax) — because the word Shaava stands for “Hakitzu Viranenu Shochnei Afar” — “the neshamos that passed away should wake up and be happy!” — a posuk about Techiyas Hameisim. This reminds us to ask Hashem that there should be Techiyas Hameisim right away, so the Rebbe can take us out of Golus, to the Geulah Sheleimah!
- We write a Pa”n. If we can go to the Ohel, we read our Pa”n there, if not we can put it inside a Sefer of the Rebbe until it is sent or brought to the Ohel. After we write the Pa”n, we close our eyes and try to remember a time we saw the Rebbe (if we had that zechus), or we look at a picture.
- It is the minhag to give tzedakah to one of the Rebbe’s mosdos.
As based on the Rebbe’s letter for Yud Shevat (Hebrew or English)
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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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Needing Moshiach isn’t a new thing. In all of the generations, Yidden have always davened for Moshiach to come, the time when we will be able to learn Torah and do mitzvos properly, the way Hashem wants us to!
Even Moshe Rabbeinu asked Hashem for Moshiach, when he was taking the Yidden out of Mitzrayim! He said, “Shlach Na Beyad Tishlach,” “Please, Hashem, send the person you will send later — Moshiach — to take the Yidden out of this Golus too!”
In Tehillim, we see many times how Dovid Hamelech hoped and davened for the Geulah.
So think about it: They needed Moshiach in order to keep Torah and mitzvos properly even in the times of Moshe Rabbeinu, in the Midbar, where Hashem took care of everyone’s needs, and they were able to learn Torah all of the time! If they needed Moshiach even then, we most certainly need Moshiach now, when the Golus is so dark!
We are in a long Golus, where we are not able to learn Torah and do mitzvos properly, and there is a lot of darkness and pain. Now we REALLY feel how much we need Moshiach in order to be the way Hashem really wants us to be.
Together, Yidden should call out “Ad Mosai!” We should tell Hashem that this Golus is too long! Hashem doesn’t turn away the tefillos of many Yidden together, and He will bring Moshiach right away!
The Rebbe spoke about this at a farbrengen in Tof-Shin-Mem-Ches. After saying this, the Rebbe cried out “Ad Mosai!” All of the Chassidim answered, “Ad Mosai!”
Then the Rebbe said, “To keep us from being too sad, we should call out Ad Mosai with a niggun.”
The Chassidim started singing Ad Mosai to the tune of a niggun.
See Toras Menachem 5748, vol. 1 p. 460
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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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