Close To Torah

After two hundred and nine years of slavery, Moshe Rabbeinu appears to his brethren in Egypt, telling them of their impending freedom. The Torah tells us that they didn’t believe him, due to the hard work the slavery imposed on them. They were so immersed in the idea that they were slaves; they couldn’t break out of the mentality. Why did the whole freedom process take so long? A full year of ten plagues! Hashem is so powerful and he could have freed them with the “blink of an eye” so what is the whole idea of this lengthy process?

Hashem wanted to let the Jews know that he is still here, and that he was there all along, that there is none like him in all the land. This is a process that takes time to digest, especially when dealing with a nation that has been enslaved for such a long period of time. Someone that is born a slave, who has never known freedom a day in their lives, is going to need time adjusting to the idea. There was also as we see, a lack of Emunah (belief) in the people, due to the hard work they had no time for anything else. There were no breaks, it was just work work and more work. The year of the plagues was an adjustment period, and a cocoon in which Klal Yosroel was placed in, in order to reach the level of being able to receive the Torah and finally become a nation. The plagues proved to Egypt and the world at large that Hashem is above nature, and that all beings must answer to him, and to him alone. There are no other gods, for the plagues destroyed them all. The Egyptians were taught that they are not in control of anything, no matter how much they would have liked to think so. They were only able to enslave the Jews because Hashem allowed it to be so, but the second the time came for redemption, nothing would stop their immediate departure. Klal Yisroel took all of this in, realizing that there is a divine providence in this world. It built up their belief system, and brought them to high spiritual levels. Now after having lived and seen a full year of plague in Egypt can they come to the realization that Hashem is in control, and that there is none like him in all the land. They were finally ready to leave, and to become a nation.

There are many times in our lives when things don’t go exactly the way we planned or hoped for them to go. There are situations that are not always the most comfortable to be in. We have to know though, that Hashem is with us in whatever the situation is, and that he is holding our hands, guiding us, doing what is best for us. Even though it may be “dark” there is always the “bright side” somewhere along the way. We just have to work a little to seek it out. Hashem is the one that is in charge of the way things turn out, and we have to put ourselves into his hands, he knows what he is doing. If a person feels that he knows what’s best for him, and he doesn’t need Hashems help, g-d forbid then Hashem will leave that person to “take care of himself”, so to speak. That’s when the real trouble will start. When we realize that we aren’t in control, and we become ready to hand over the wheel to the master driver, can be speed away from the bitter golus (exile) that we are stuck in. We need to find that Emunah (faith) in Hashem that there is none like him in all the land. He is our father and our king, and he wants to bestow upon us the greatest gifts. We just have to let him, and they will come pouring in…………

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Parshas Bo

והיה לך לאות על ידך ולזכרון בין עיניך… (יג:ט).

“They (the Tefillin) shall be a sign on your hand and head….” (13:9).

This week’s Parsha discusses the Mitzvah of Tefillin. By wearing Tefillin we are affirming our belief in Hashem and the fact that He runs the world and took us out of Egypt.

We place the Tefillin on our arm and head, to connote that we dedicate our heart and mind to Hashem.

We place them on our head to state that we will use our head to work on gaining knowledge and understanding of Hashem. We place the Tefillin on the arm, slanted towards the heart, in order to connote that we dedicate our heart, our passions and desires, for the service of Hashem.

One of my 7th grade students asked me during class, that according to this, why don’t we wrap the arm Tefillin around our torso and thus place it directly on our heart, instead of just slanting it on our arm?!

I was very impressed by the question and gave him much acknowledgment for listening so well and striving to understand.

This is how I then explained it to the class. Imagine if all the adults that you knew got together and decided that from now on, whenever you do something good which deserves recognition and reward, they will only do so by means of verbal expression. You will never receive prizes, rewards, money, toys, candy or tickets, only a sincere statement of “job well done”. Imagine a world like that! The classroom filled with moans of disapproval! “No, that would be terrible”, they stated in unison.

The kids then explained to me that it is insufficient to just say, “I am proud of you”! Though that is the main point, us physical human beings need to have a physical expression of recognition as well. We need tangible messages.

“So let me get this straight,” I asked them, “you need me to act in order to fully show my approval and recognition towards you?” “Yes!!”, they all said, as I walked around the room dispensing prizes as a reward for what they just taught me.

Great, now we have answered the original question. We don’t just put the Tefillin on our hearts, for that would only focus on the idea of having feelings towards Hashem. Rather, we put them on our arm. The hand represents action! We will express our love and dedication towards Hashem by actively following His commandments.

This is what Chazal (Makkos 10a) meant by, “one learns the most from his students!” I thank you from the depth of my heart!

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Parshas Bo

The first Rashi in all of Chumash states that the Torah should have really began with a verse in our Parsha. “החודש הזה לכם, this month is for the Jews”. This should have been the beginning of the Torah.

The question is, what is so special about this Mitzvah that it should have came first?

I heard from my dear Rebbe, Reb Asher Zelig Rubenstien shlit”a the following idea. “HaChodesh HaZeh Lachem” signifies that the month is specifically for the Jewish people. It connotes that we are separate from the other nations. The defining factor of the Jews and the merit which helped them exit Egypt was precisely their recognition of the their separateness and specialness as Hashem’s Nation! This is the foundation of the entire Torah.

This is why the Torah should have started with this Mitzvah. The lesson of our special mission is the theme of the entire Torah!

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Parshas Bo

This parshah captures the remaining three makos that are to be afflicted upon the people of Egypt. Having already dispensed the nine makos the still stubborn Pharoh is given warning of the final makah that will be administered. The Torah then says that yet again Pharoh refuses to free the people of Yisroel. The next parshah written in the Torah is the famous “החדש הזה לכם”, or “this month will be for them”. As is known by many Chazal tell us that really the Torah could have began from this very pasuk. This pasuk is the true beginning of the people of Yisroel and their relationship to HaKadosh Boruch Hu. It is interesting to note that this parshah is found right in the middle of the final makah, before the actual makah is carried out. The mitzvah of Kiddish HaChodesh is the beginning of this binding relationship between Yisroel and Hashem. The outline of the mitzvah of the Korban Pesach is found directly following the mitzvah of Kiddish HaChodesh, it is unquestionably connected. Following the detail of the Korbon Pesach and some obligations to be carried out on Pesach as well, comes the final makah, makas b’choros. Up until the seventh aliyah the Torah discusses the beginning of the long awaited Yitzias Mitzrayim. Except for the point of difficulty that I already mentioned regarding the seemingly awkward break between the warning of the makah and its carrying out I understand the flow of the parshiyos. Comes the seventh aliyah and I am lost.

The seventh aliyah begins with the mitzvah of Kedushas B’chor. We then find the Torah going back to further discuss the mitzvos of Pesach, with the addition of the mitzvah of Sipur Yitzias Mitzrayim. Following that the Torah discusses the mitzvah of Tefillin then reverts to discussing the mitzvah of Kedushas B’chor. Then the Torah goes back to discussing Sipur Yitzias Mitzrayim and finally ending with Tefillin. This back and forth is of course precise and the best way to bring out the points mentioned. We must remember that if the Torah wanted to write these pasukim in a straight flowing fashion it could  have. The reason that these different ideas are placed next to each other must of course be to teach something about each one of them. B’ezras Hashem we will look into these pasukim and try to clarify some of the mysteries that lye below them.

As for the first question we asked in regards to the seeming interruption between the warning of the makah achronah and its execution. The Torah discusses the mitzvah of Kiddish HaChodesh which leads into the laws of Pesach. There is a direct connection between the concept of B’chor and Kiddish HaChodesh. The B’chor is the first of the children that are born. The B’chor is of course the argument found between Yaakov and Esav. It is also found between the shvutim, as Yosef is regarded as b’chor. The b’chor is the legacy of the family, he is destined with continuing the name of the family. Through the act of murdering the b’chor the legacy of the family is also destroyed. The first fruit is always the most dear. That is possibly why Hashem opened the rechem of Leah in order that she be deemed the bearer of the b’chor. The idea of Kiddish HaChodesh is that it is also the first of the year and the first of the months. The difference is that we determine the chodesh. The chodesh is the bechinah of Olam L’matah, b’chor is the bechinah of Olam Ha’elyon. We declare the kedushah of the chodesh and infuse it with kedushah. The b’chor is born kadosh and we simply declare its nature of kedushah. I have not yet discussed the parallel between makas b’choros and the mitzvah of Kedushas B’chor, that is in the second answer. The point I want to bring out here is that the makah of b’chor is complete nullification of all that you have been given.

Says the pasuk, “ויהי כי הקשה פרעה לשלחנו ויהרג ה’ כל בכור בארץ מצרים מבכר אדם ועד בכור בהמה על כן אני זבח לה’ כל פטר רחם הזכרים וכל בכור בני אפדה”(Shemos 13, 15-16). What is the reason that we keep the Kedushas B’chor, because Hashem killed all of the b’chorim in the land of Egypt. It seems to be the fact that the b’chorei mitzrayim were all killed that we have such an obligation. Perhaps the emphasis of the pasuk is the other way around, it is because Hashem killed the b’chorim therefore we have b’chor. At first I wanted to say that the emphasis was on the fact that Hashem hardened the heart of Pharoh. Why would that make a difference? I would suggest that it was due to our needs that the b’chorim had to be killed as they provided the necessary lessons of Imunah that we needed. It is a nice thought but it is difficult to say that would be the sole reason for the mizvah of b’chor. All the faculties of the world are here for us to worship Hashem properly, it is a zchus to have such a purpose,  not the opposite. I would like to suggest another understanding of the pasuk. This will explain the connection between Tefillin and b’chor.

The nature of Tefillin is that they are a sign of rememberance. The ose that they contain binds us both through our minds ands our hands. An attribute of the tefillin is that they are to be placed in between the eyes. Our eyes are the tool that enables us to direct ourselves. Every single magnificent detail of the body is for a purpose both practicaly and in their representation as well. Practically speaking, if you try to walk in a straight line and turn your head you will find yourself drifting off the path. The nature of man is that he walks in the direction that he faces. The place in between our eyes is what we define as the central path. The path in which we aspire to go is the one that we face. When we put the tefillin in between our eyes we are placing the will of Hashem ahead of us guiding our path. This is also the nature of the tefillin shel yad, as it binds our actions to be under the guidance of Torah. We see that the tefillin are there to impose a control on our physical and metaphysical life. We also find that they are supposed to provide a reminder to the miracles of yitzias mitzrayim and all of its wonder. The way the tefillin acheive this in addition to being our central focus point of life they also provide us with a constant connection to kedushah. As the pasuk says that the tefillin will be למען תהיה תורת ה’ בפיך, that means that the tefillin will provide you with Torah constantly. Most specifically it will be in your mouth. I asked my Rebbi, Rav Nochum Lansky Shlit”a if that meant that through the ose of the tefillin will be zoceh to constantly having Torah in our mouths? Meaning to say that through the reminder of the tefillin we will become involved in the study of Torah. Rebbi responded that it is more than that – tefillin provide Torah in your mouth! That means that tefillin which is an ose is the words of Torah in your mouth, meaning it brings the ose of the shel rosh and transforms it to the level of speech which is found in Torah. It is interesting to note that the language ose is found by the shel yad and zikarone is found by the shel rosh, where the ose that is added on the outside of the tefillin is found on the shel rosh not the shel yad. This idea of tefillin bringing the connection of the tefillin to a level of speech is very much connected to the chag of Pesach and of course to b’chor.

It is well known that the Arizal says that the word Pesach can also be broken up as the words Peh Sach (פה סח). This idea is found throughout the chag of Pesach, the idea of speech. This concept is also found by the seder with the mitzvos of sippur and hagadah. As I already explained this is found in the tefillin as well. Lastly, this is found in regards to b’chor. The b’chor is born kudosh but there is an obligation to either redeem it or bring it to the mizbeach (Depending on which type of b’chor.) It is clear to me that by b’chor adam is redeemed by five slayim, which is connected to the Five Books of the Torah. The redemption of the b’chor adam is in order that he may be able to do mundane actions, otherwise he would be kudosh. The b’chor behaymah is born kudosh but you still must declare its kedushah prior to it being brought to the mitzbeach, that is the idea of speech found by b’chor. The idea of the five slayim by the b’chor adom is the idea of tefillin being a constant connection. We take the kedushah which could have been given to work only for kedushah in exchange for the attempt to bring ourselves to kedushah. The idea of Kiddish HaChodesh was explained to be the power of the Olam L’Mata which is the strength of Oral Torah. This is why the b’chor adom is redeemed with five slayim because he is being brought into a world where we decide upon the kedushah. The outcome of our actions is revealed in the kedushah that we reveal to ourselves and the world.

There is much more of this topic to discuss but it really past the scope of this parshah. I want to conclude by saying over what I heard from my Rebbi that the gematria of אדם בהמה is the same as זמן. That is the idea that tikkun of behaymuh is through time, meaning that through time we may be able to fix the nature of Man and rid him of his animal-like natures. That is through the toil of Torah and a strong observance of Mitzvos. Through placing the tefillin in between your eyes, where you can direct your life. With the learning of Torah every moment you have as that is your life. Through the realization that the whole yitzias mitzrayim was in order for us to keep the Torah today. The idea of time is to change. That means the Torah is only acquired through change. Change of yourself and of your actions. Through the binding of your actions to the yolk of the Torah. We will all be merited to bring in Mashiach tomorrow. The chance is before us, we need to grab it and change from chol to kedushah!

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Parshas Bo Karbonos, Kedusha, Limud HaTorah, Ruchnius / Gashmius, Yashrus, Zman

כל המרבה לספר ביציאת מצרים הרי זה משובח (הגדה של פסח).

“One who elaborates upon the story of the Exodus is highly praiseworthy” (Haggadah of Passover).

The question is: why are there so many Mitzvos revolving around remembering the Exodus? Why can’t we just simply say “Hashem took us out” and stop there, why is there a Mitzvah to perform so many symbolic acts throughout the year and to constantly mention and describe the Exodus from Egypt? The following thought is meant only as an introduction to this vitally important principal of our faith.

The Gemara (Berochos 32a) asks, if someone prayed and finds that his requests were not fulfilled, what should he do? The answer: He should pray again! The Mabit explains this perplexing Chazal. He teaches us that the essence of prayer is not to let God know what you lack and thus desire, He is well aware of what you have and what you miss! So what then do we accomplish through our prayers? The answer is: Our objective is to recognize with full cognizance that only Hashem can provide us with our needs and wishes. In short, prayer is not intended ‘to tell God what you need’, it is rather: ‘to tell yourself that you need God’! Therefore, if one’s prayers seem not to have been answered, he must push himself more, to focus on how Hashem is the only provider, thus making himself a more elevated person and more worthy now to receive what he needs.

Rabbeinu Bachayah says that prayer (תפלה=515) has the same numerical value as song (שירה=515). Let us understand this connection. Rav Shimshon Pincus zt”l, (Shabbos Malkisah 3:9) explains that there are two forms of song to Hashem called 1)Shira and 2)Zemer.

1-Shira means to express the praises of Hashem with words and telling over stories of salvation like the Shiras HaYom and the songs of Chana and Devorah.

2-Zemer means an emotion filled melody and musical tune to Hashem, which words cannot express, only a tune.

R’ Shimshon points out that in Psalms we find the expression “Shir Mizmor”, a combination of both words. This means that Dovid’s emotions began with words (Shira) and then rose to an inexpressible depth of simply Zemer, tune. Now, this order is understandable, it builds in level, however, how can one explain the expression also found in Psalms of “Mizmor Shir”? Dovid seemingly started with the inexpressible (Mizmor) and then shrunk down to finite words of Shira?! Is this not a negative thing?

He explains a tremendous concept here. In the beginning of Shemoneh Esrei we say that Hashem is “Konei HaKol, the cause of everything”, so why then do we have to continue throughout Shemoneh Esrei and specify all the branches of Hashem’s gifts, “intellect, redemption, health, livelihood etc.”?

The answer is because general statements are like a seed, one can only benefit from them when he plants the seed and cultivates it, then it will bear fruit. Therefore, there is a danger in having an inexpressible song for Hashem, for the feeling can be lost as fast as the spiritual whirl came! The only way to keep it and reap its’ benefits is to plant it and let it sprout out into specific words in your heart, this is Shira, expression!

With this we now understand why prayer and song are the same numerically. Prayer is to recognize and articulate our deep conviction that all is from Hashem. The only way to internalize this is to give expression, song, verbal enumeration to all that Hashem does, with as many details as possible!

Thus, the more one expresses a concept, the more it becomes part of his heart and soul! This is why there are so many varieties of expressions and reminders of the great Exodus. The foundation of our faith must be expressed in words and details of details and this will truly help sprout the great seeds of faith inside our hearts.

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Parshas Bo