|
|
CHUMASH
Parshas Ki Savo - Chamishi with Rashi
|
|
Moshe Rabbeinu is getting the Yidden ready for when they come into Eretz Yisroel. Today we learn what the Yidden will do on Har Grizim and Har Eival when they cross the Yarden. (We learned about this in general in Parshas Re’eh, and now we will see exactly how it works!)
When the Yidden cross over the Yarden, they will have to go straight to Har Grizim and Har Eival, two mountains in Eretz Yisroel.
Half of the Shevatim will stand on Har Grizim, and the other half on Har Eival. The Leviim, with the Aron, will be in the middle. Then the Leviim will say certain things to tell the Yidden to do what Hashem wants.
The Leviim will first look at Har Grizim and tell the Yidden that they will have brachos if they do things the way Hashem wants, and then look at Har Eival and tell the Yidden that not good things will happen if they DON’T listen to what Hashem wants.
Even though they are only looking at some of the Shevatim at a time, really they are talking to every Yid. Every time they say something, all the Yidden should answer “Amen!”
Most of the things that the Leviim will remind the Yidden about are aveiros that other people won’t always see, so nobody will tell the person to stop doing them.
The first thing the Leviim will say is:
Looking at Har Grizim: “Brachos will go to the person who doesn’t make an idol and doesn’t secretly set it up!” — and all of the Yidden will answer “Amen!”
Looking at Har Eival: “Curses will go to the person who makes an idol and sets it up secretly.” — and all of the Yidden will answer “Amen.”
Here are all the rest of the things the Leviim will warn the Yidden about:
- Not to treat parents with the opposite of kavod
- Not moving a fence to steal land in a tricky way
- Not hurting someone by giving them bad advice (Lifnei Iver)
- Not to judge a Ger, a Yasom, or an Almanah (convert, orphan, or widow) unfairly
- Not getting married to people in your close family (these were each said separately)
- Not getting married to an animal
- Not to speak Lashon Hara
- A judge not taking a bribe to have someone killed by Beis Din
Then the Leviim will say, “Brachos will go to someone who keeps the Torah!” and “Curses will go to a person who doesn’t keep the Torah.” Again all the Yidden will answer Amen.
Now Moshe Rabbeinu gives the Yidden his own brachos and curses. Today we see some of the brachos:
If you listen to what Hashem wants, you will have lots of brachos! You will have brachos in Gashmius things, and also Ruchnius things — you will pass away without any aveiros, just like you were born without any aveiros.
|
|
|
|
Today’s kapitelach are Ayin-Beis to Ayin-Vov. We also say kapitelach Mem, Mem-Alef, and Mem-Beis for Elul.
In Kapitel Ayin-Gimmel, there is a posuk “Mi Li Bashamayim Ve’imcha Lo Chofatzti Ba’aretz.”
The Tzemach Tzedek tells us that the Alter Rebbe used to say that this posuk means, “Do I need Shomayim? And I don’t want what’s with You in the world.” The Alter Rebbe was saying that he doesn’t want what’s WITH Hashem, like Gan Eden or Olam Haba. He just wanted Hashem Himself.
What does that mean for us? When we do a mitzvah, we shouldn’t think about how we will get a reward from Hashem — even a special Ruchnius’dike reward! The only thing that should be important to us is that we become connected to Hashem and fulfilling the shlichus He gave us to make Hashem’s kedusha felt in the world.
|
|
|
TANYA
Igeres Hakodesh Siman Yud-Gimmel
|
|
In this letter, so far, we learned about two kinds of Yidden. One is very strict and makes sure to do everything EXACTLY right, so he always gives just the amount of Tzedakah just like the Halacha tells him to.
There is also another kind of Yid that is not always thinking about being strict — he’s thinking about how to give and do MORE, and that’s how he acts.
Because both of these midos come from Kedusha, everyone needs to have both! It just depends which one is the MAIN one, and which one is usually hiding.
Hashem shows a special Chesed to Yidden when WE act with a special Chesed! When we give tzedakah without making a cheshbon how much we should give, then Hashem will give us Chesed without making a cheshbon if we deserve it or not!
Since ALL Yidden have this koach at least hiding inside, we all need to use it when it comes to Tzedakah. Then we can ask Hashem to protect us, and give us what we need with this Chesed that has no limits!
|
|
|
|
In today’s Hayom Yom, we learn to be careful with what we use our energy for: Helping make Yiddishkeit stronger, not wasting time proving we are right!
The Rebbe Rashab told Chassidim something very important:
There are people that laugh at Yiddishkeit sometimes. We might want to fight or argue with them, to prove that they are wrong and we are right!
This is not the right thing to do. Not because we can’t win or because we are scared to fight!
We can’t waste our time with arguing, because we have too much to do! We need to use ALL of our koach for what is important, to make sure that Yiddishkeit is strong, holy, and pure.
For this, we need to REALLY have Mesiras Nefesh! It’s not enough to just be READY to have Mesiras Nefesh. We shouldn’t think about what WE want — we just do whatever we can to help Yiddishkeit! There’s no time for anything else.
|
|
|
|
Now we have started learning a new set of halachos in Rambam, about Maaser.
(Mitzvas Asei #127) Today we learn the mitzvah of Maaser Rishon. We need to take 1/10th of the food that grows in our fields and give it to the Leviim. This mitzvah is kept only in Eretz Yisroel.
|
|
|
|
In today’s Rambam, we learn the first three perakim about Maaser Rishon, which goes to the Leviim.
One halacha is that Maaser is not as holy as Terumah, it is called “chulin.” It doesn’t have kedusha in it the way Terumah does.
Another interesting halacha is that even though Maaser Rishon is given to the Leviim, there was a time when it was given to the kohanim! Ezra Hasofer, who brought many Yidden back to Eretz Yisroel right after the second Beis Hamikdash was built, saw that the Leviim did not come! So he gave them a knas (like a punishment), and made a takanah that Maaser Rishon would go to the Kohanim instead of to the Leviim for a period of time.
|
|
|
|
Today we learn more examples of a sh’vus, something we don’t do on Shabbos either because it is LIKE a melacha we are not allowed to do, or because it might make us END UP doing a melacha.
One sh’vus we learn in today’s Rambam is that we are not allowed to toivel dishes in a mikvah on Shabbos, because it looks like fixing a keili.
|
|
|
|
Moshe Rabbeinu tells the Yidden in this week’s Chumash (the Chumash of Shabbos) that they saw all the Nissim that Hashem made for them, from going out of Mitzrayim until now — right before they will go into Eretz Yisroel.
Still, Moshe Rabbeinu says that Hashem didn’t give you a “Leiv Lodaas” — a heart to understand — until today. Until now, they felt things by themselves, but now, HASHEM will give them a special chayus in their neshama that they never felt before! They will need this special chayus so they can go into Eretz Yisroel!
The Alter Rebbe says that the same thing happens every year during the Aseres Yemei Teshuva. Hashem gives a special chayus into the Neshama of every Yid, so we have extra koach to do Teshuvah, come close to Hashem, and get a Ksiva Vachasima Tova — and a year of Geulah for all of the Yidden!
See Likutei Torah parshas Ki Savo, maamar Vayikra Moshe
|
|
|
▼ Jump to Coloring Books & Downloads ▼
|
|
|
|
A long time ago, one of the scariest things that could happen was a hunger. If, for a long time, there was no rain, nothing would grow. The fields would all dry up, animals would become sick and weak, and there wouldn’t be enough food for everyone. There were no refrigerators to store food, no big trucks to bring food from other places, and no big pipes to bring water from faraway places to water the fields.
If there was a hunger, the Yidden would all fast and do teshuvah. They would gather in the shuls and daven to Hashem, saying special tefillos and asking Him to have rachmonus and give rain.
In the times of Rabbi Akiva, the Yidden once noticed something incredible: Rabbi Akiva came to the shul during a hunger. He came to the Amud and said a new tefillah. Rabbi Akiva said, “Avinu Malkeinu, Chatanu Lefanecha!” “Our Father, Our King — we admit that we did aveiros!” When he said these words, it started to rain.
The Yidden realized that these words had a special koach to ask Hashem for rachmonus. They added more lines starting with the words Avinu Malkeinu, and made them part of the tefillos on fast days and during the Aseres Yemei Teshuvah.
On Yom Tov, we actually don’t say the first line of Avinu Malkeinu, “Chatanu Lefanecha,” because we don’t say Vidui on Yom Tov. Instead, we start with the next line, saying “Avinu Malkeinu, Ain Lanu Melech Ela Ata!” “Our Father, our King, we don’t have a King aside for You!”
On Rosh Hashana, we ask for Hashem’s rachmonus by saying Avinu Malkeinu. But there is another way that we get Hashem’s rachmonus! In the Zohar, it writes that the neshamos in Shomayim look for ways to ask Hashem to have rachmonus on the Yidden in this world, that Hashem should bentch us all with a good year.
See Shaar Hakolel end of perek Mem-Beis
|
|
|
|
There are certain words in davening that we are very careful to pronounce the right way, so that the meaning isn’t chas veshalom changed to a not-good meaning. In Shema there are some places like this, for example making sure that even if we say the word “Echod” (“one”) slowly in Shema, that it doesn’t sound like Acher (“another one”).
Especially during the Yomim Noraim, when we are being carefully judged, there are some parts of davening where we are very careful to pronounce the words just right.
For example, we add the line “Zochreinu Lechaim,” asking Hashem to remember us for life. We are careful to say the word LE’Chayim, with a sheva, and not to say it as “La’Chaim,” with a komatz or patach. That is because “LaChaim” could sound like two words — La Chayim — which could chas veshalom mean NOT life!
Another place we are very careful is when we say the line in Avinu Malkeinu, “Kra Ro’a Gzar Dineinu,” asking Hashem to rip up the bad parts of our decree. We are careful not to pause between the words “Ro’a” (bad) and “Gzar” (gezeira). If we pause, it might sound like we are asking Hashem, “rip up the bad thing — our gezeira!” We don’t want Hashem to rip up our whole gezeira, chas veshalom, with all of its good parts — we only want Hashem to take out the not good parts of our gezeira for this year and we should be left with only what’s good!
See the Alter Rebbe’s Shulchan Aruch, siman Tof-Kuf-Pey-Beis and Shaar Hakolel end of perek Mem-Beis
|
|
לעילוי נשמת הרה״ח ר׳ דניאל יצחק ע״ה בן ר׳ אפרים שי׳ מאסקאוויץ
שליח כ"ק אדמו"ר נשיא דורנו למדינת אילינוי
|
|
|
|
In the nevuos of the Navi Zechariah, we see how Hashem showed things to him, like a mashal.
In one of these nevuos, Zechariah saw a malach with a measuring stick. He asked the malach what he was doing, and the malach said he was measuring Yerushalayim.
Another malach came over to the first malach, and told him to stop measuring! Now, Yerushalayim is a city with a wall around it, so it can be measured. But when Moshiach comes, Yerushalayim will be like the cities without walls. This way it will be able to grow as more and more Yidden come to live there!
וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו רֻץ דַּבֵּר אֶל הַנַּעַר הַלָּז לֵאמֹר פְּרָזוֹת תֵּשֵׁב יְרוּשָׁלִַם מֵרֹב אָדָם וּבְהֵמָה בְּתוֹכָהּ
Vayomer Eilav — The second malach said to the first malach:
Rutz Dabeir El Hanaar Halaz — “Run and speak to this young man (Zechariah)
Leimor — Saying:
Prazos Teisheiv Yerushalayim — ‘Yerushalayim will be lived in like a city without walls
Meirov Adam Uveheima Besocha — From the many people and animals that live there!’”
~
In Tof-Shin-Chof-Zayin, during the Six Day War, the Yidden captured Yerushalayim from the Arabs that were living there with great nissim. Finally we could come back and live in our holy city!
At the farbrengen of Yud-Tes Kislev in Tof-Shin-Chof-Tes (about a year and a half later) the Rebbe said a maamar which included an explanation of the words of this posuk, “Prozos Teisheiv Yerushalayim,” that we will be able to live in Yerushalayim as if it was a city without any walls!
After the maamar, the Chassidim sang a happy niggun!
After they had been singing for a while, the Rebbe told one of the Chassidim from Yerushalayim to sing the words “Prozos Teisheiv Yerushalayim” to this tune.
Then the Rebbe said a sicha explaining this posuk and what we can learn from it! The Rebbe also said that Hashem made many nissim to let us have Yerushalayim back, and that now that we have it back, we need to make sure to hold on to it! Then the Rebbe asked that the ones who are good at niggunim should sing the happy niggun again with the words Prozos Teisheiv Yerushalayim.
After the sicha, the Chassidim learned the new words to the niggun, and practiced singing it joyously for about 15 minutes.
The Rebbe liked this niggun a lot and would ask the Chassidim to sing it at many farbrengens.
Now this happy niggun reminds us that we will soon ALL be able to live in Yerushalayim in a way of Prozos Teisheiv Yerushalayim, with the coming of Moshiach!
See Zechariah perek Beis posuk Ches; farbrengen Yud-Tes Kislev 5729
|
|
|
|
|
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
|
|
|
