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CHUMASH
Parshas Ki Savo - Sheini with Rashi
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We are continuing to learn the words of Moshe Rabbeinu about the mitzvos the Yidden will be doing when they come into Eretz Yisroel.
On Erev Pesach in the fourth year of Shemitah, a person needs to check and make sure that he gave all of the Terumah and Maaser he owes.
He has to make sure that none of it is left in his house! Then he says the Vidui Maaser, telling Hashem that he did his job! He gave all of the presents he was supposed to, in the right order, the way Hashem wants. He didn’t make it tomei, or use it for the wrong things. He used the Terumah and Maaser to make people happy, like Hashem wants!
At the end, he says: Hashem! I did what you asked me to do! Now You should do what You promised — to give the Yidden brachos!
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Today’s kapitelach of Tehillim are Samach through Samach-Hey. We also say another three kapitelach for Chodesh Elul, kapitelach Lamed-Alef, Lamed-Beis, and Lamed-Gimmel.
One of the Kapitelach we say in today’s Yom of Tehillim is Kapitel Samech-Gimmel.
In this kapitel, Dovid Hamelech says how his neshama wants to be close to Hashem. He compares himself to a person who is thirsty for water in a place where there is none: “Tzoma Lecha Nafshi!”
The Rebbe explains that when a person is VERY thirsty and doesn’t have any water, when he finally gets the water it tastes so delicious to him, much better than any other water!
The same thing is when the neshama feels like it’s not close to Hashem, and it’s really “thirsty” to feel close.Then, when it DOES learn Torah and do mitzvos and feel close to Hashem, the Torah that it learns and the mitzvos that it does are much more geshmak!
That’s why Dovid Hamelech says in the next posuk, “Kein Bakodesh Chazisicha” — “If only I would see You like this bakodesh,” even when I feel holy and I don’t feel far away. Even then, I wish I would feel the same geshmak in the Torah and mitzvos!
When Moshiach comes, we will all be able to see Hashem! Halevai that then we should feel the geshmak in Torah and mitzvos like we do when our neshama is “thirsty” during Golus.
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TANYA
Igeres Hakodesh Siman Yud-Beis
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If we give tzedakah even when it’s hard, Hashem makes the Yetzer Hara stop bothering us for a long time!
In today’s Tanya, we are finishing Igeres Hakodesh Siman Yud-Beis. Before we finish learning today’s Igeres Hakodesh, we will review a little bit.
The posuk tells us about two ways we can give Tzedakah:
1) Maaseh Hatzedakah — We like to give tzedakah, since Hashem made the neshama of a Yid want to give tzedakah!
2) Avodas Hatzedakah — This is when it is hard for us, and we don’t really want to. Maybe we aren’t in the mood, it is someone who makes it hard for us to help, or it’s more than we expected to give. It takes Avodah to do it!
Anytime we do a mitzvah, something special happens in the world — in Gashmius and Ruchnius! This is any time we do the mitzvah of tzedakah, and it is even MORE with Tzedakah that is hard!
Today the Alter Rebbe teaches us that when we do Maaseh Hatzedakah, we bring shalom between the Yetzer Tov and the Yetzer Hara. During davening, Hashem will help us make the Yetzer Tov stronger so we can tell what we need to stay away from. Then the Yetzer Hara will have a harder time ruining our Avodas Hashem!
But MAASEH Hatzedakah only stops the Yetzer Hara from confusing us for a little while, during the time of davening. Afterwards it will start trying to trick us again, and we don’t have complete shalom in ourselves until Moshiach comes.
AVODAS Hatzedakah, giving even when it’s hard, is so precious to Hashem that this lasts longer! Even after davening it will be harder for the Yetzer Hara to confuse us!
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In today’s Hayom Yom, we learn a story that happened with the Tzemach Tzedek on Parshas Ki Seitzei, which teaches us about the job we have in Olam Hazeh.
It was at a Shabbos meal, where the Tzemach Tzedek’s sons and many Chassidim were present. The Tzemach Tzedek said that the world is a world of sheker, full of good and bad mixed together, that we need to fix up. But Olam Haba is a place of emes, truth. There, there is nothing bad that needs to be fixed up!
The Tzemach Tzedek started a niggun, and made a sign that the Chassidim should sing too. The sons of the Tzemach Tzedek joined first, and then everyone sang along. The niggun made everyone feel very uplifted!
When the Tzemach Tzedek stopped singing, he gave an example: In the Gemara, it talks about someone who doesn’t learn Torah properly, and only learns Torah “liprakim,” once in while, which is NOT the right way to learn.
In Gan Eden, this is learned differently! The word “liprakim” can mean once in a while, but it also means “to take something apart.” In Gan Eden, “Halomed Torah Liprakim” means that the Torah “takes apart” the neshama who is learning it. This way, the Torah can reach every part of it!
This is only the way Torah is learned in Gan Eden. But in Olam Hazeh, where we have a Yetzer Hara, the Torah has a different meaning, to help us fix the things that aren’t the way they should be.
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Today we learn two mitzvos about who is not allowed to eat Terumah, which is holy!
1) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #133) Anyone who isn’t a kohen is NOT allowed to eat Terumah or Bikurim.
This Mitzvas Lo Saasei includes not only Terumah or Bikurim which belong to the kohen, but also not to benefit from anything that belongs to the Beis Hamikdash or from korbanos, called Me’ilah.
2) (Mitzvas Lo Saasei #134) Even someone who works for a kohen is still not allowed to eat Terumah.
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In today’s Rambam, we continue learning the halachos about who can’t eat Terumah.
Perek Zayin: Now we learn about the mitzvos we’ll learn TOMORROW in Sefer Hamitzvos — that a kohen without a bris or a kohen who is tamei is not allowed to eat Terumah.
Perek Ches: The daughter of a kohen is allowed to eat terumah… unless she gets married to someone who is not a kohen! If a girl from a non-kohen family gets married to a kohen, she is allowed to start eating terumah because of her husband. We learn more halachos about this.
Perek Tes: Even though someone who lives in the house of a kohen can eat Terumah, that doesn’t last forever. If the kohen is not married to his wife anymore, she can’t eat Terumah anymore. If the slave goes free, he can’t eat Terumah anymore either. Animals also can only eat Terumah when they BELONG to the kohen.
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Since a person is not allowed to even let his animals do melacha on Shabbos, the Rambam teaches us the halachos of what an animal is not allowed to go out with on Shabbos. He also teaches us the rest of the halachos about not letting our animals or our servants do work on Shabbos.
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Today is the day of the chasunah of Rebbe Rashab and Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah!
The Rebbe Rashab and Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah were cousins, who both lived in Lubavitch. When they were 5 years old, their Zaidy, the Tzemach Tzedek, said that they should get married! So their parents signed a paper saying that they would get married in ten years, when they were 15.
Before they got married, Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah’s family moved to Avrutch — so that is where the Chasuna was. Rebbetzin Rivkah came to the chasuna in Avrutch, but the Rebbe Rashab’s father, the Rebbe Maharash, didn’t come. He explained that there was a Ruchnius reason why.
After the chasuna, the Rebbe Rashab and Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah moved to Lubavitch. When they came, Rebbetzin Shterna Sarah saw that all of her cousins were very tall, and she was short! The Rebbe Maharash said, “Don’t worry — short trees grow good fruit!”
And that’s what happened — they had a very special “fruit” — the Frierdiker Rebbe!
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On Shacharis of Rosh Hashana, we start with the regular Shabbos and Yom Tov davening. Then, in Pesukei Dezimra, we say something different.
Right before Yishtabach, there is a line that says, “Hamelech Hayosheiv Al Kisei Ram Venisa.” We are praising “the King Who sits on the high and uplifted throne” on the holy day of Shabbos and Yom Tov.
But on Rosh Hashana, we aren’t just talking about something that Hashem sometimes does. We say, “Hamelech YOSHEIV,” “the King IS sitting” on His throne!
During the year, we talk about how Hashem is the kind of King Who sits on a high throne in Shomayim. That is very special. But on Rosh Hashana, Hashem’s Malchus (the koach of Hashem as King) is very strong and easy to see. So on Rosh Hashana we say that Hashem IS sitting on His throne! It is happening RIGHT NOW, just look!
In our Machzor, there is a story about one of the Maggid’s great talmidim, R’ Aharon of Karlin. One Rosh Hashana, when he started to say the word “Hamelech,” he fainted.
After they woke him up, the Chassidim around him asked what happened. R’ Aharon answered that he had been thinking about a story in the Gemara:
Before the time of the Churban, R’ Yochanan ben Zakai managed to sneak out of Yerushalayim to ask the enemy to let the Yidden survive. R’ Yochanan knew that Hashem would only let the emperor himself destroy Yerushalayim, not a regular general. He realized that the general now leading the siege against Yerushalayim would need to become the emperor. So when he spoke to the general, he called him, “the Emperor.”
The general was very angry at R’ Yochanan! He said, “You just called me the emperor, when I am not the real emperor! You deserve to die for not respecting the emperor!
“And if I really am the emperor, you also deserve to be killed! Why didn’t you come earlier to speak with me?” (A few minutes later, the emperor got a message that indeed, the king had died, and he was the new emperor.)
R’ Aharon of Karlin explained that he was thinking about what the general had told R’ Yochanan ben Zakai. “If I am the emperor, why didn’t you come earlier?” If Hashem is the King, why didn’t I come to Him earlier?
R’ Aharon of Karlin was asking — we are preparing ourselves and coming before Hashem on Rosh Hashana, but where were we the rest of the year? Are we ALWAYS acting in a way that shows that we know Hashem is our King?
In our Machzor, this finishes off by saying: If R’ Aharon of Karlin, such a great tzadik, felt this way, how should the rest of us feel?
We need to make sure that coming close to Hashem on Rosh Hashana should make a difference for our whole year!
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We learned that when we have many foods together with the same bracha, we say the bracha on the most important food.
There are a few ways for a food to be important, if it is whole and not cut up, if it is our favorite, or it is part of the Shivas Haminim.
If we have many fruits together, along with some of the Shiva Minim, we can either pick what we like most, or we can pick the most important one of the Shiva Minim.
Usually, it is best to make the bracha on a whole fruit, whether or not it is our favorite. But if we pick the Shiva Minim, they are more important than the other fruits, even if the Shiva Minim fruits are cut up!
(Of course, if we have two of the same Shiva Minim fruit that are the most important, it is best to make the bracha on the one that is whole. So for example, if the most important Shiva Minim fruit we have is a fig, it is best to choose a whole fig to make the bracha on.)
See Seder Birchos Hanehenin Perek Yud, Toras Menachem vo. 58 p. 3 ha’arah 1 (about shaleim in Shiva Minim)
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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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Chagai was one of the Neviim at the time that the second Beis Hamikdash was being built. He encouraged the Yidden to keep working to rebuild the Beis Hamikdash, even though it was hard.
This nevuah speaks about the second Beis Hamikdash, according to some opinions. But according to the Zohar, it is really about the third Beis Hamikdash, in the times of Moshiach!
גָּדוֹל יִהְיֶה כְּבוֹד הַבַּיִת הַזֶּה הָאַחֲרוֹן מִן הָרִאשׁוֹן אָמַר ה׳ צְבָאוֹת וּבַמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה אֶתֵּן שָׁלוֹם נְאֻם ה׳ צְבָאוֹת
Gadol Yihiyeh Kavod Habayis Hazeh Ha’acharon — The kavod of this last Beis Hamikdash will be greater
Min Harishon — Than the first Beis Hamikdash!
Amar Hashem Tzeva’os — So says Hashem.
Uvamakom Hazeh Etein Shalom — And in this place (Yerushalayim) I will give peace
Ne’um Hashem Tzeva’os — So says Hashem.
See Chagai perek Beis posuk Tes
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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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