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CHUMASH
Parshas Ki Savo - Rishon with Rashi
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Today we learn about the mitzvah of Bikurim.
Let’s review: On Rosh Chodesh Shevat, only a few months before Zayin Adar (the end of Moshe Rabbeinu’s shlichus as a neshama in a guf), Moshe Rabbeinu gathered the Yidden together and made a long farbrengen with them. In it, he rebuked them for the not such good things they did in the Midbar, so they won’t do them again, reviewed the mitzvos they had already learned, and taught them new mitzvos they would get to keep in Eretz Yisroel. Moshe Rabbeinu was making sure the Yidden were ready for their shlichus in the next generation and in the future generations to come.
This week, we will learn many more mitzvos, and also be inspired to do all of the mitzvos, by hearing about all of the brachos we will have for doing them.
Bikurim: When you will come into Eretz Yisroel, you will send out all of the nations who live there now, and give out the different parts of land to each of the Shevatim. Then, once all of you have a part of Eretz Yisroel, you will be able to do a very special mitzvah — Bikurim!
You will do this mitzvah by bringing the first fruit from the Shiva Minim — the seven kinds of fruit that Eretz Yisroel was given a special bracha for: Wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates.
When you will see that one of these kinds of fruits is starting to get ripe, you should tie a string around it to remember which one it is. When it is ready to pick, you should put it into a special basket, and bring it to the Beis Hamikdash!
In the Beis Hamikdash, you will go to one of the Kohanim, and thank Hashem for giving you Eretz Yisroel. Then together with the Kohen, you should wave the basket of fruit (like a Lulav!) in front of the Mizbeiach.
If you are bringing the Bikurim during the time of the harvest, after Shavuos but before Sukkos is over, you should say a special paragraph (that we also say in the Haggadah!) to thank Hashem that you are in Eretz Yisroel, where you are safe — not like Yaakov in Lavan’s house, or like the Yidden in Mitzrayim! Then wave the basket of Bikurim again, this time by yourself, and bow to Hashem. Then the Kohanim will be able to take the fruits home to eat.
The inyan of this mitzvah is Hakoras Hatov, appreciating good things that are done for us. Hashem tells us not only to feel it, but to say thank you!
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Today’s Shiur Tehillim is kapitelach Nun-Hey to Nun-Tes. For Chodesh Elul, we also say kapitelach Chof-Ches, Chof-Tes, and Lamed.
In today’s Tehillim, we say Kapitel Nun-Hey, which Dovid Hamelech said to thank Hashem for saving him from people who wanted to hurt him. Dovid Hamelech talks about how we need to have bitachon in Hashem!
He says, “Hashlech Al Hashem Yehovcha, Vehu Yechalkelecha” — “Give Hashem your problems, and He will take care of you.”
Chassidus explains that sometimes, we know where to go for help. We know which doctor is the best expert, which teacher has good advice, or how to earn the money we need. We have bitachon that Hashem will help that what we do will be successful, and things will be good.
But sometimes, we have NO IDEA what to do. We don’t know who to ask or where to turn to for help. Even then, we also need to have bitachon that Hashem will help us to come up with the right idea of what keli to make!
All of the things we do — like asking a doctor — are like taking out a cup (a keli) to catch the bracha of Hashem. But even if we don’t know what keili to use, because we have no idea what to do, “Hu Yechalkelecha” — HASHEM will make a keili for us! We should of course try our best, but we need to have bitachon that Hashem will help us even when it looks like there is nothing we can do.
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TANYA
Igeres Hakodesh Siman Yud-Beis
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We are continuing to learn a letter, where the Alter Rebbe encourages Chassidim to give tzedakah, especially when it’s hard!
When someone comes to us and asks us for a favor, we get excited! We know that we are helping another person, and it’s good for us too, and it brings Moshiach closer! Usually we LIKE to do nice things for other people.
But what if it’s someone who is annoying, or you’re busy or tired now, and you don’t want to do the favor? Of course we should still try to do the favor — we’ll still be helping another person and bringing Moshiach closer!
The Alter Rebbe tells us that when you DON’T want to help, that is one of the most special opportunities that there could be!
In the posuk the Alter Rebbe used at the beginning of this letter, there are two ways the posuk describes the mitzvah of Tzedakah:
1) Maaseh HaTzedakah (DOING the tzedakah)
2) Avodas HaTzedakah (tzedakah with AVODAH)
Maaseh Hatzedakah means you give because Yidden like to give! Avodas Hatzedakah is that even when you DON’T want to give, you will — because that’s what Hashem wants. That takes Avodah, doing things that aren’t comfortable or easy for us.
We will see in tomorrow’s Tanya, IY”H about the special opportunity we have with Avodas Hatzedakah!
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Today we’ll learn what happens when a Chossid goes into Yechidus!
The older Chassidim of the Alter Rebbe showed us that the word Yechidus has three meanings in Torah — and all of those meanings are things that happen to a chossid when he goes into Yechidus by the Rebbe!
1) The word Yechidus can mean CLEAR: We see the word Yechidus used this way in the Mishnah. It says that people knew something “Beyichud” — it was so clear, they knew it for SURE!
When a Chossid goes into Yechidus, something becomes CLEAR to him! He is able to see clearly where he is holding in Avodas Hashem, and where he needs to do better.
2) The word Yechidus can mean DESIGNATED (chosen for a certain job): The word Yechidus is used this way in Gemara! The Gemara says that Moshe was “Meyuchad” — designated for a special shlichus that only HE could do!
When a Chossid goes into Yechidus, he realizes that he is designated to do a special shlichus. The Rebbe shows him what special avodah he needs to do!
3) The word Yechidus can mean UNITED: We see Yechidus used this way in the Medrash! The Medrash says that the Yidden are “Meyachadim” — that we show that Hashem is UNITED and one with the world.
When a Chossid goes into Yechidus, he becomes UNITED with Hashem! He will be ready to even have Mesiras Nefesh, giving up the things HE wants to do, so he can do his special shlichus in the world.
Even now, there is a way for these things to happen to us! When we learn the Rebbe’s Torah, go into the Rebbe’s Yechidus room, and go to the Ohel, we can also CLEARLY see where we are holding in our Avodas Hashem, realize that we are DESIGNATED for a special shlichus, and be UNITED with Hashem so we are ready to do that shlichus no matter what!
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Today’s mitzvah is that we are not allowed to bring the Terumos and Maasros in the wrong ORDER! Here’s the right order:
1) Bikurim
2) Separate Terumah for the Kohen
3) Separate Maaser Rishon for the Levi
4) Separate Maaser Sheini to eat in Yerushalayim, or Maaser Ani on the third and sixth year of Shemitah
For example, let’s say that my wheat field ripened, and I set aside my bikurim. I harvest the field and separate the wheat kernels, piling them up carefully. Now my wheat is Tevel, and I need to bring the presents the Torah tells me to!
First I set aside 1/50th of the wheat for Terumah Gedolah. Then I take 1/10th of what is left, and put that aside for Maaser Rishon. I take 1/10th of what is left from that and set it aside for Maaser Sheini or Maaser Ani. I give the Terumah to a kohen, the Maaser Rishon to a Levi, and eat the Maaser Sheini in Yerushalayim, or give the Maaser Ani to the poor.
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Perek Daled: We are learning more about the person that separates Terumah. If someone can’t do it himself, he can have someone else do it for him — this is called making a shliach. If someone doesn’t officially make a shliach, another person can’t separate the terumah for him. So his workers can’t just do it for him without him asking them to!
Perek Hey: Now we learn about what part of the food to use for Terumah. We are supposed to take from the BEST of our fields for Terumah! But if there are no kohanim around, it is better to take food that won’t get rotten before we can bring it to the kohen — like raisins, even if the grapes are better.
Perek Vov: In this perek, we start learning about who is not allowed to eat Terumah. It has many mitzvos, that we will IY”H learn over the next few days in Sefer Hamitzvos!
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We are allowed to wear things outside on Shabbos, and it isn’t a problem of hotza’ah. In this perek, we learn what is considered wearing and what is considered carrying. One halacha is that if you wear a box over your head to keep your clothes dry, it’s called carrying, because a box is not a regular kind of clothes! Only normal clothing is not called hotza’ah.
The Rambam tells us to make sure to check our pockets before Shabbos so we don’t carry by mistake!
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The month of Elul is a time for teshuvah and fixing up the past year, and also getting ready for the coming year.
The Rebbe teaches us that each day of the month of Elul can fix up that day of EVERY month of the past year, and prepares us for that day of each month in the coming year! (Since there are only 29 days in Elul, Chof-Tes Elul also includes Lamed of every month, the same way that in a month of 29 days, we say the shiur of Tehillim for Yom Lamed also on yom Chof-Tes.)
So on Yud Elul, we should think about all of the “Yuds” of the year.
Some of the “Yuds” that might be easier to remember are:
- Yud Tishrei — Yom Kippur
- Yud Kislev — the Chag Hageulah of the Mitteler Rebbe
- Yud Shevat — the day the Rebbe became Rebbe, and yartzeit of the Frierdiker Rebbe
- Yud Nissan — the day before Yud-Alef Nissan
- Yud Av — the day after Tisha B’Av
Those are some of the “Yuds” in the year that should be easier to remember!
We can try to think of anything we did very well that we should do next year too, or a hachlata we made that now we’re ready to start keeping. Or, we might be able to remember a mistake we made then so that we won’t do it again!
See Hisvaaduyos, Tof-Shin-Mem-Tes, chelek Daled, p. 236; Shaarei Hamoadim Chodesh Elul p. 66
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Starting from Rosh Chodesh Elul, all the way through Hoshaana Rabbah, we add a special mizmor to our davening each day, in Shacharis and Mincha. This is kapitel Chof-Zayin of Tehillim, which starts with the words Ledovid Hashem Ori.
Adding this kapitel is a minhag that goes back to the time of the Arizal! It is written that if we say this mizmor during Elul, it takes away any not good gezeiros, so that we will be judged only for good. In Ledovid Hashem Ori, there are many hints to the avodah of Elul and the Yomim Noraim:
We say, “Hashem Ori Veyishi,” “Hashem is my light and my salvation.” The Medrash explains that during Rosh Hashana, Hashem shows Himself in a way of Ori, as our light. On Yom Kippur, Hashem shows Himself in a way of Yishi, saving us.
Another hint is near the end of this kapitel, in the posuk “Lulei He’emanti,” “if only my emunah was proper.” The word Lulei is the same letters as the word Elul, only backwards! This hints to the avodah of Elul — looking back on what happened during the past year so we can work on doing better next year.
Chassidus brings that a very important posuk of this Mizmor connected to Elul is “Lecha Amar Libi, Bakshu Fanai” — “My heart says to search out the pnimius of Hashem.” When Hashem is like a king in the field, it is much easier to find the pnimius of Hashem! This is the avodah of Elul, to use the kochos of this time and connect to Hashem in this special way.
See Otzar Minhagei Chabad, Chodesh Elul and sources cited there
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There are many different minhagim about when to start and finish saying Ledovid Hashem Ori, what part of davening to say it in, and in which of the daily tefillos to say it.
Our minhag is to start early — on the first day of Rosh Chodesh Elul, even though it is still part of Chodesh Av. We continue saying it until Hoshaana Rabbah, the end of the time of din.
We say Ledovid Hashem Ori in Shacharis and Mincha, but not in Maariv.
In Shacharis, we say Ledovid Hashem Ori after the Shir Shel Yom, before the kaddish of the Shir Shel Yom.
In Mincha, we say it before Aleinu.
Even though this is our minhag, it is more important to follow the halacha of saying Aleinu together with the minyan. So if we are davening Mincha with a minyan that says Ledovid Hashem Ori after Aleinu, we should say Aleinu and Ledovid Hashem Ori afterwards, together with the minyan.
See Otzar Minhagei Chabad Chodesh Elul, os Hey, Igros Kodesh vol. 19 p. 30
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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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At the end of his sefer, the Navi Tzefaniah says a very famous promise from Hashem that will happen in the time of the Geulah! You might know these words from davening.
בָּעֵת הַהִיא אָבִיא אֶתְכֶם וּבָעֵת קַבְּצִי אֶתְכֶם כִּי אֶתֵּן אֶתְכֶם לְשֵׁם וְלִתְהִלָּה בְּכֹל עַמֵּי הָאָרֶץ בְּשׁוּבִי אֶת שְׁבוּתֵיכֶם לְעֵינֵיכֶם אָמַר ה׳
Ba’eis Hahi Avi Es’chem — At the time of the Geulah I will bring you back
Uva’eis Kabtzi Es’chem — And at that time I will gather all of you.
Ki Etein Es’chem Lesheim VeliSehilah — Because I will make the Yidden known and praised
Bechol Amei Ha’aretz — By all of the nations of the world.
Beshuvi Es Shevuseichem — When I bring back the Yidden that were captured
Le’eineichem — In front of your eyes (this is a hint to Techiyas Hameisim, because the Navi is telling the Yidden of his time that Kibbutz Galuyos will happen in front of their eyes!)
Amar Hashem — So says Hashem.
See Tzefaniah perek Gimmel posuk Chof
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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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