The essence of piety

G-d's Immanent Presence






Chapter 2, Mishnas 10-11(c)



Mishna 10



"Rabban Yochanan ben (son of) Zakkai had five [primary] students. They were: Rabbi Eliezer ben Hurkenos, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananya, Rabbi Yossi the Priest, Rabbi Shimon ben Nesanel, and Rabbi Elazar ben Arach."



Mishna 11



"He used to enumerate their praises: R. Eliezer ben Hurkenos is a cemented pit which never loses a drop; R. Yehoshua ben Chananya - fortunate is she who bore him; R. Yossi the Priest is pious; R. Shimon ben Nesanel fears sin; and R. Elazar ben Arach is as an increasing river."



In the previous class we discussed the trait of R. Yossi -- piety / chassidus. As we saw, the chassid is one who goes beyond the letter of the law in his service of G-d. He does not do only what he is told but looks for ways to fulfill G-d's will. This requires intelligence and planning; one must anticipate just what G-d wants of him and how he can maximize his talents and abilities in service of his Creator.



As we also saw, this stands in direct contrast to the mock-chassidus prevalent at some points in Jewish history, consisting of fasting, wailing, constant immersions, rolling in the snow, etc. G-d has no interest in senseless service -- that we do things just because they're hard (and get us a lot of notice). Piety is not doing things which hurt. It is careful, planned and responsible service of G-d. We are not supposed to sacrifice ourselves for G-d with self-destructive acts of devotion; we are to live for Him -- as responsible, thinking beings who make intelligent choices in our religious service. We are to maximize our potential -- our health, our wealth, our brains and abilities -- and use that potential in service of our Creator.



(As we also pointed out last week, by "chassidus" we are not referring to the movement of Chassidus which began in the mid 18th century. We are talking about the spiritual quality -- whose name the movement adopted as a way of defining its objective.)



There's a fascinating additional insight related to chassidus. It will more fully introduce us to the true level of chassidus. It is in truth an entirely new level of reality -- one a person does not simply adopt but must achieve.



The Talmud (Brachos 32-33) records two incidents which occurred to chassidim. The first goes as follows: A chassid was standing by the roadside in prayer. A Roman government official passed by and greeted him. The chassid, engrossed in his prayers, did not respond. The Roman waited until the chassid completed his prayers and then berated him: "Fool! Doesn't your Torah state 'Be very careful with your lives' (Deut. 4:15)? [Author's note: In Talmudic times, wicked people always seemed to be experts in Scripture. Either that, or that's just the way the Talmud tells a story. :-)] If I would cut off your head right now who would have any grounds to complain?"



The chassid requested a moment to explain himself. He calmly responded: "If you were standing before the Emperor and your friend came and greeted you, would you respond?" Roman: "No." Chassid: "And if you would, what would result?" Roman: "They would cut my head off." Chassid: "If this is so for a flesh-and-blood king, isn't it all the more so for me who was standing before the King of kings, the Holy One blessed be He?" The Roman went off appeased and they all lived happily ever after (as traditional stories always end).



The second story involved the holy Jew Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa. There was a venomous "aroad" (a snake-like creature) in the environs of R. Chanina which was wreaking havoc. R. Chanina asked to be shown its lair. He came to the hole and put his bare heel next to it. The aroad came out, bit him, and died. The rabbi then put the dead creature on his shoulders and brought it to the study hall. He announced: "See my children, it is not the aroad that kills; it is sin that kills." From then on people used to say: "Woe to the person who meets an aroad, and woe to the aroad who meets R. Chanina ben Dosa!"



There is an obvious difficulty with both of the above stories. We know the Torah does not allow us to unnecessarily endanger our lives (as the Roman himself reminded the chassid). Therefore, from the standpoint of Jewish law, it is not correct to ignore a Gentile official carrying a large sword -- no matter how intently you are praying, and certainly to purposely stick your ankle in front of a poisonous snake. If so, what gave the heroes of our stories the right to act differently? They broke Jewish law! Did they just assume they were so "pious" G-d would perform open miracles for them?



The answer is hinted in R. Chanina's very response. How could he so blithely state that an aroad does not kill; sin does? What about the very real chemical properties of snake venom? The answer is that R. Chanina's remark was for him a statement of reality; it was not an act of faith. He was on such a level of belief in the workings of G-d that he could have an aroad stick its fangs into him, and he knew full well that since he had done no sins deserving death its venom could not affect him.

We, by contrast, might accept this on a conceptual level -- that the dangers of this world harm only those deserving -- but for us it is a matter of faith alone. We live in the world of physical reality -- poison kills -- and only accept upon faith that it is really G-d behind it all that wills the poison to kill. But for someone on the level of chassidus, G-d is the only true source of punishment -- much more so than His physical messengers. And in that universe, R. Chanina was not even endangering himself allowing the aroad to bite him.




Similarly for the chassid of the first story. When we pray, we believe -- again, on the level of faith -- that G-d stands before us and hears our prayers. Thus, we have such laws as that we take three steps forward at the start of the Shemoneh Esrei prayer and take three steps backwards at its conclusion. We are -- at least in the eyes of Jewish law -- approaching and standing before our Maker. But for us it is a theoretical and at best a legal concept. Our thoughts would hardly wander the way they do if we really felt we were standing before G-d. But the chassid was standing before G-d -- no less so than had the Roman been standing before the Emperor. And so, his interrupting his prayers would have been no different than the Roman interrupting his conversation. And that he could not do -- not because he felt he could ignore the Torah injunction not to endanger his life, but because he *really was* standing in front of G- d -- and so how could he interrupt?



There are two important lessons from the above stories. First, it's nice to know that there are really people on such a high level of reality -- who live with G-d. And when one is there, he can run his life knowing that G-d is with him. If a person recognizes G-d as an immanent Presence, he can rely on that closeness -- not because he is relying on miracles, but because he knows G-d is really there caring for his every need.

(In the same vein, there were Jews at times great enough to receive the revelation of prophecy. If G-d is entirely real to you even before the revelation, an encounter with G-d will not really alter your basic perception of reality. For most of us, however, who believe in G-d on the theoretical much more than the practical plane, seeing G-d would be a mind- jolt from which we'd never recover.)




The second lesson for us is that chassidus is not a level one can simply adopt at will. If a person has reached it, if after a lifetime of dedication he has come to know G-d to the degree that G-d really dwells with him, then he can act upon it. If, however, you are not there, you cannot force it. If you're not really standing before G-d, you had better interrupt for the Roman. If you feel your own efforts bring in your paycheck rather than G-d's beneficence, you had better keep working. That is the reality within the vast majority of us live, and leaps of faith beyond that are just leaps into the unknown.



Of course, there is very little we can learn practically from the above stories as well as from R. Yossi's level. But it is important at times to get a glimpse of the true depth of Judaism, of the levels of devotion the truly great can achieve. Judaism is not only a religion of faith and belief. G-d exists and can sometimes be sensed by us on the level of the practical. In fact, we all have those moments in our lives in which we recognize that G-d had really been working things out for us all along, that in spite of our best efforts to the contrary, G-d was directing us where we needed to go, and only G-d's guiding Hand could have been behind it all. (A good friend once mentioned to me that years earlier, when he was searching for work, he found a job only in city #1 while he was really trying to find work and settle down in the much larger and more commercial city #2. The end result was that he met his future wife shortly after moving to city #1 -- as well as getting inv olved in a Jewish learning program there.) And so, we all get our occasional glimpses of the level of chassidus. For some, G-d is always there. But all of us can live with the deeper realization that G-d really is there -- and will pitch in for us when we really need Him.

Parshas Netzavim

Parshas Netzavim










Yeshaya 61:10



This week's haftorah marks the climax of a seven week series of reflection on Jewish redemption. In this final presentation, Hashem announces His personal return to the Jewish people. Now that every other dimension of redemption is in place, the time has finally arrived for Hashem to rest His Divine Presence amongst His people. Eretz Yisroel has been revived,Yerushalayim has been rebuilt, the exiles have returned en masse, but the ultimate objective has yet to be seen. In response to this, the prophet Yeshaya quotes the Jewish people saying, "I will be gladdened by Hashem, My soul will rejoice over My G-d." (61,10) Chazal in Yalkut Shimoni (505) view the Jewish people's response to be specifically related to the return of Hashem to Yerushalayim. The Jewish people respond to all the magnificent prophecies of their glorious future and proclaim that their true source of happiness is but one, the return of Hashem to His beloved pe ople. They sorely long for the privilege of sensing the presence of Hashem amongst them and feeling the closeness and love He has for His people. They resolve that they will be gladdened and happy only through His return to them.

The prophet continues and describes the proportions of this return and the extent of Hashem's cherished relationship. "No longer will you be referred to as forsaken because about you it shall be proclaimed, 'My desire is in you'." (62, 4) Hashem pledges to fully identify with His people and to display His true desire in them. His relationship with them will be so encompassing and evident that a newly gained identity will be conveyed upon the Jewish people, "Hashem's desirable one". But a worry crosses the minds of the Jewish nation concerning the nature of their forthcoming relationship. After all, weren't they previously associated with Hashem in similar proportions before being rejected by Him? If so, they reason that although Hashem will truly return to them it will only feel to them like a remarriage. Their long awaited association will have a nostalgic air to it and won't bring them the true happiness they seek.




The prophet responds and reveals to them the indescribable proportions of their new relationship. Yeshaya says, "Hashem will rejoice over you like a groom over His bride." (62, 5) The Radak explains that Hashem's return to the Jewish people will possess all the freshness and novelty of a groom to his bride. Their relationship represents the epitome of happiness and appreciation as they begin forging their eternal bond with love and respect. In this same manner, Hashem's newly founded relationship with His people will possess similar qualities. It will be so complete and perfect that it won't leave room for reflections upon their past. The happiness and fulfillment that they will experience will be so encompassing that it will feel like a fresh start, a relationship never experienced before. The Radak adds an indescribable dimension to this relationship and explains that this sense of newness will actually continue forever. Instead of becoming stale and stagnant, their rel ationship with Hashem will always be one of growth and development and will constantly bring them to greater heights. Each newly gained level of closeness will be so precious and dear to them that it will be regarded as a completely new relationship replete with all of its sensation and appreciation.

But the most impressive factor of all is that the above description is not only our feelings towards Hashem but is, in truth, Hashem's feelings towards us. The prophet says that Hashem Himself will forever rejoice over us with the sensation of a groom over His newly acquired bride. From this we discover that Hashem's feelings towards His people are literally boundless. Even after all the straying we have done, Hashem still desires to unite with us in the proportions described above. He desires to erase the past and establish a perfectly new relationship, so perfect and new that it will continuously produce the heightened emotions of a bride and groom for eternity.




These emotions are, in truth the hidden message behind the tefillin which we don each day. As we wrap the tefillin strap around our finger we recite special passages expressing our betrothal to Hashem. This experience represents our placing the wedding ring of Hashem on our finger, portraying our perfect relationship with Him. But our Chazal (see Brochos 6a) inform us that Hashem also wears tefillin. In proof of this they cite a passage in this week's haftorah which states, "Hashem swears by His right and by the strength of His arm." (62, 8) Chazal explain that the words,"the strength of His arm" refer to the tefillin worn on the left arm. The Maharsha expounds upon this concept and explains that Hashem actually binds Himself to the Jewish people. Hashem's tefillin, like ours, represent devotion and commitment, His commitment to His beloved people. Hashem cherishes His relationship with us and as an expression of His commitment to us, He also wears a betrothal band. Event ually our boundless love for Hashem will find its expression together with Hashem's boundless love for us and together we will enjoy this indescribable relationship forever and forever.

Fear of sin

Pirkei Avos


by Rabbi Dovid Rosenfeld

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Religious Neurotics





Chapter 2, Mishnas 10-11(d)



Mishna 10



"Rabban Yochanan ben (son of) Zakkai had five [primary] students. They were: Rabbi Eliezer ben Hurkenos, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananya, Rabbi Yossi the Priest, Rabbi Shimon ben Nesanel, and Rabbi Elazar ben Arach."



Mishna 11



"He used to enumerate their praises: R. Eliezer ben Hurkenos is a cemented pit which never loses a drop; R. Yehoshua ben Chananya -- fortunate is she who bore him; R. Yossi the Priest is pious; R. Shimon ben Nesanel fears sin; and R. Elazar ben Arach is as an increasing river."



This week we are up to the quality of R. Yochanan's fourth student, R. Shimon ben (son of) Nesanel. R. Shimon was said to fear sin. He refrained from wrong acts not because he felt obligated to observe G-d's commandments nor because he was afraid of Divine retribution. Rather, R. Shimon feared the sins themselves. He recognized that a sin is in itself an inherently evil act, one which runs contrary to spirituality and personal growth.



When G-d tells us not to do something -- even an act not obviously morally wrong (eating lobster, wearing clothes containing wool and linen, shaving off one's sideburns, etc.) -- the act itself must be spiritually despicable. The G-d who created both the physical and spiritual worlds knows what is beneficial and what is harmful to our souls. And that in itself was reason enough for R. Shimon to distance himself from sin. As the commentator R. Yonah explains, R. Shimon created safeguards for himself so he would not come anywhere near sin. Most of us would probably not mind partaking in a few forbidden pleasures here and there, and only at best refrain because of the "imposition" of G-d's will. R. Shimon, however, grew to appreciate that no amount of pleasure or temptation could ever equal the soul-destroying severity of the evil of sin.



As we did with the previous trait, piety, I'd like to take some time to describe what fear of sin is not. There's an easy trap to fall into here -- an empty, feel-good version of fear, perhaps even more relevant than the mock-piety we talked about previously (wailing, fasting, rolling in the snow), and which too has surfaced at times in Jewish history.



As we defined, fear of sin does not imply fear of not following orders or of punishment, but fear of the sin itself. It is a recognition that sin is inherently evil. This, however, carries within it a danger -- that the sin will assume a life of its own; the person will have become so accustomed to refraining from the act he will acquire a kind of neurotic fear of the action -- long forgetting what is actually wrong with it. An illustration will bring this out perfectly.



Rabbi Zev Leff (www.rabbileff.net), well-known scholar, lecturer and writer of Moshav Mattisyahu, Israel, describes how when he was a relatively young rabbi, one of his older congregants, a man in his seventies, had developed health problems which made fasting on Yom Kippur dangerous. The man's wife asked the rabbi to attempt to reason with her husband, who had no intention of eating on Yom Kippur. When the rabbi patiently attempted to explain the necessity of eating in life-threatening situations, the man responded something like this: "Rabbi, you're a young man." (I'm sure the congregant was twice the rabbi's age.) "It's easy for you to talk that way in an abstract sense. But I've been fasting on Yom Kippur for the past sixty years, and I have no intention of stopping this year."



I would have probably given up at that point. I have a rule in life never to argue with anyone twice my age (by now a dying breed). However, the story continues as follows, and concludes with a happier ending.



R. Leff took the following tactic, which surprisingly worked: "Well, I can't force you on the issue. But I will have to tell the synagogue gabbai (sexton) that you will no longer be able to receive any honors during synagogue services." Man: "Why not?" Rabbi: "Because you are an idolater." Man: "Huh?" Rabbi: "It's clear to me that you're not serving G-d but Yom Kippur. If you fasted on Yom Kippur when G-d said so and did not when G-d said not to, you would be serving G-d. But if you fast even when G-d says not to, it is clear that it's Yom Kippur you're worshiping and not G-d."



This unfortunately is the attachment to mitzvos (commandments) we often have. People develop an irrational fear of sin -- not because they understand that if G-d forbade it it is inherently evil, but because they've refrained from the act so long, they can no longer imagine transgressing it.



R. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, one of the directors of the Orthodox Union, once made the following observation: "There's sometimes a very thin line between meticulous observance of every detail of the mitzvos and just being a neurotic." The more religious a person is, the more obsessed he becomes with the nitty-gritty details of religious observance. And he can pay such painstaking attention to all the details he's liable to utterly forget what the Torah is all about.



The Talmud illustrates a "pious fool" ("chassid shoteh") as one who sees a woman drowning in the river and refrains from saving her because -- it's forbidden to look at a woman! (Sotah 21b). If we have the big picture, we can and should be serious about the severity of sin and the many details of religious observance. But if the sin itself is the fearful ends, we are worshiping actions rather than G-d.



(A more recent example is my beloved teacher OBM, R. Yaakov Weinberg. When he was growing up in the Holy Land, a tragedy occurred in his school (in Tiberius) in which a woman's clothes caught on fire and as a result she burned to death. Right after the tragedy R. Weinberg overheard his teacher saying to himself, "I just wasn't sure what to do. I couldn't touch a woman..." My teacher picked himself up and left the school that day -- to continue his education in Jerusalem. He was all of 8 years old, but he realized that his teacher was a "pious fool," and he refused to ever study from him again.)



There is an important corollary to this. If one has developed a fear of the action and not the Commander, it is really not so hard to break the ice. If once you slip and taste the forbidden fruit -- and lightning does not miraculously strike you -- all of a sudden the act loses its diabolical spell, and the irrational fear will quickly dissipate.



Likewise, if we tell our children to keep their tradition because that's just the way we Jews have always been doing things, then the next generation -- whose Jewish consciousness is that much less firmly rooted -- will be able to dispense with it without the nostalgic attachment. If, however, we introduce them to the G-d who created us and commanded us in the spiritually fulfilling life, then they will hopefully discover G-d on their own -- as every generation must.



This is the true message of R. Shimon. Fear of sin is not some kind of neurotic or nostalgic hang-up. It is having the proper sense of the severity of G-d's word. R. Shimon surely began with the proper fear of his Creator. And his respect for G-d made him appreciate just how despicable sinful acts are. Any act which is spiritually harmful and runs contrary to G-d's will cannot possibly be tempting or enticing. And thus his fear was not of "Sin" -- the entity incarnate -- but in truth of the One who forbade it.

love and desire in which the soul desires, loves and wishes to cleave to G‑d,

Today's Tanya Lesson


Iggeret HaKodesh, end of Epistle 18

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והשנית היא אהבה ותאוה, שהנפש מתאוה ואוהבת וחפיצה לדבקה בה׳



The second [category] is a love and desire in which the soul desires, loves and wishes to cleave to G‑d,



לצרור בצרור החיים



“to be bound up in the bond of life.”1



וקרבת אלקים טוב לה מאד, ובו תחפוץ



The proximity to G‑d is very dear to her, and that is what she desires.



ורע לה מאד להתרחק ממנו יתברך, חס ושלום



It is most grievous unto her to become, heaven forfend, distanced from Him, blessed be He,



להיות מחיצה של ברזל מהחיצונים מפסקת, חס ושלום



by having an iron partition of the chitzonim, the forces of kelipah and unholiness, separate her [from Him], heaven forfend.



Thus, inherent in the soul’s love for G‑d is its anxious fear of being alienated from Him by a partition resulting from those things that are opposite His will.



Likkutei Levi Yitzchak, authored by the father of the Rebbe, explains that the four terms used above — “desires”, “loves”, “wishes” and “cleaves” — refer respectively to the soul-levels within the Four Worlds: “desires” relates to the World of Asiyah, “loves” relates to the World of Yetzirah, and so on.



ואהבה זו היא מוסתרת בלב כלל ישראל, אפילו ברשעים



This love is latent in the heart of all Jews, even in the wicked, as explained at length in Part I, chs. 18 and 19,



וממנה באה להם החרטה



and from this [latent love] derives their remorse, as in the phrase,2 “The wicked are full of remorse.”



The Alter Rebbe now answers the following implied question: If they indeed possess this love, why then are they wicked?



אך מפני שהיא מוסתרת ונעלמה בבחינת גלות בגוף, הרי הקליפה יכולה לשלוט עליה



However, because it is latent and concealed, in a state of exile in the body, it is possible for the kelipah to dominate it;



וזהו רוח שטות המחטיא לאדם



and this is the “spirit of folly” which causes a man to sin.3



The “spirit of folly” cloaks this hidden love (ahavah mesuteret), so that one loses the sensitivity to realize that through sinning he is jeopardizing his attachment to G‑d.



ועל כן עבודת האדם לקונו היא להתחזק ולהתגבר על הקליפה, בכל מכל כל



Therefore a man’s service to his Maker consists of strengthening himself and prevailing over the kelipah in all its manifestations.



דהיינו: מתחלה, לגרשה מהגוף לגמרי



That is, first to expel it completely from the body, so that it has absolutely no dominion over him —



ממחשבה דבור ומעשה, שבמוח ולשון ורמ״ח אברים



[expelling it] from the [faculties of] thought, speech and action that are in the brain, the tongue, and the 248 organs.



Expelling the kelipah means ensuring that one’s brain will harbor no thoughts that are contrary to G‑d’s will; that one’s tongue will speak no evil words; that one’s 248 organs will commit no evil acts.



ואחר כך יוכל גם כן להוציא ממסגר אסיר, בחוזק יד



After that he will also be able to4 “bring out the captive from prison” with a strong hand.



Once one has vanquished the kelipah by steadfastly5 “turning away from evil” — not thinking, speaking or doing those things that are contrary to G‑d’s will — he is then able to uncover the love that is latent within him, so that it will permeate his positive thoughts, words and deeds. His mind will thus ponder upon G‑d’s greatness, and his heart will then actively feel a love for G‑d. In turn, this love will result in his enhanced fulfillment of the Torah and its mitzvot.



דהיינו: להיות חזק ואמיץ לבו בגבורים



That is, he will be strong,6 “and his heart courageous among the valiant,”



להיות האהבה המסותרת נגלית בגילוי רב, בכל כחות חלקי הנפש שבגוף



so that the hidden love will become abundantly revealed in all the powers of the soul’s components in his body;



דהיינו: העיקר, בשכל ובמחשבה שבמוח



i.e., mainly in the mind and in the [faculty of] thought in the brain,



The mind serves to reveal this love, which then manifests throughout the rest of the person’s organs.



שהשכל יחשב ויתבונן תמיד, כפי שכלו והשכלתו, בבורא יתברך



so that corresponding to its intellect and understanding the mind will constantly think and contemplate on the blessed Creator —



איך שהוא חיי החיים בכלל, וחיי נשמתו בפרט



how He is the Fountainhead of life in general, and of the life of his own soul in particular.



ועל כן יכסוף ויתאוה להיות דבוק בו וקרוב אליו כוסף טבעי



Consequently, he will yearn and desire to be attached to Him, and near to Him, with an innate yearning,



כבן הכוסף להיות תמיד אצל אביו, וכמו אש העולה למעלה תמיד בטבעה, למקורה



like that of a child who yearns to be constantly near his father, and like fire which by its very nature always rises upwards to its source, as explained in Part I, ch. 19.



וכל מה שיתמיד לחשוב בשכלו כוסף זה, ככה יתגבר ויתפשט כוסף זה גם בפיו ובכל אבריו



And the more he continues to set his mind on this yearning, the more will this yearning become correspondingly stronger, and will also extend to his mouth and to all his organs,



לעסוק בתורה ומצות, לדבקה בהם בה׳ ממש



so that he will occupy himself with the Torah and the commandments in order to really cleave thereby to G‑d,



דאורייתא וקודשא בריך הוא כולא חד



for7 “The Torah and the Holy One, blessed be He, are entirely One.”



This love will thus affect his brain, mouth and other bodily organs, motivating them to study Torah and perform the commandments with a greater degree of love.



ועל כוסף זה, שבגילוי רב, כתיב: צמאה נפשי וגו׳



Of this greatly manifest yearning, i.e., of this love, it is written,8 “My soul thirsts [for G‑d],”



כאדם הצמא למים, ואין לו תענוג עדיין כלל



like a person who thirsts for water and does not yet have any pleasure [from it].



This level of love for G‑d is likened to a state of thirst. At this stage the individual seeking to cleave to G‑d does not experience any delight, for he has yet to cleave to Him: all he feels is the pangs of thirst. In the previously-described level of love, ahavah betaanugim, the individual has already quenched his thirst, so to speak: his love for G‑d has been realized and he is now actively cleaving to Him.



וגם על כוסף זה ואהבה זו המוסתרת בנו, אנו מעתירים לה׳ להיות בעזרנו, להוציאה ממסגר



Also9 concerning this yearning and this love concealed within us we pray to G‑d, to help us bring it out from imprisonment,



It is indeed true that this lesser degree of love is attainable by man and need not be granted as a gift from Above; it is already possessed by every Jew and he need but reveal it through his spiritual service. Nevertheless we beseech G‑d that He help us reveal this love and liberate it from its concealment.



ושיהיה הלב מלא ממנה לבדה



so that the heart be filled with it alone,



ולא תכנס צרתה בביתה, שהיא תאות עולם הזה



so that its “rival-wife,” i.e., mundane desires, will not enter its house, i.e., our hearts.



רק שתהיה היא עקרת הבית, למשול בצרתה ולגרשה החוצה, ממחשבה דיבור ומעשה, על כל פנים



Rather, this [yearning and love] should be the sole mistress of the house, to rule over her “rival-wife” and to expel her at least from one’s thought, speech and action.



הגם שלא יוכל לשלחה לגמרי מלבו



Though one cannot expel her altogether from one’s heart, so that it should harbor no foreign desires at all,



For we are speaking here of the love possessed by the Beinoni, an individual who is unable to banish foreign desires from his heart; he is only able to ensure that they find no expression in his thought, his speech or his actions, as explained in Tanya, Part I, ch. 12.



על כל פנים תהיה היא מוסתרת, בבחינת גלות ועבדות לעקרת הבית, גברתה



she should at least be hidden, in a state of exile and servitude to the mistress of the house, i.e., to the love for G‑d,



להשתמש בה לדברים הכרחים לה, לבד, כאכילה ושתיה



who will make use of her for her own essentials only, such as eating and drinking,



If the G‑dly soul is to remain within the body and thereby be able to fulfill the requirements of the Torah and its mitzvot, the individual must eat and drink. He should therefore use the animal soul’s natural desire for physical things expressly for the spiritual purposes of the G‑dly soul. Thus, for example, his food and drink are intended to provide him with strength so that he will be able to study the Torah, engage in divine service, and the like.



כדכתיב: בכל דרכיך דעהו



as it is written,10 “Know Him in all your ways.”



“Your ways” clearly speaks of man’s corporeal activities. Yet even in these we are commanded to “know Him” — to bind oneself to G‑d through these physical actions, by utilizing them for the purposes designated by Him, in order thereby to “know Him.”11



FOOTNOTES

1. I Shmuel 25:29.

2. Shevet Mussar, sec. 25.

3. Sotah 3a.

4. Yeshayahu 42:7.

5. Cf. Tehillim 34:15.

6. Amos 2:16.

7. See Zohar I, 24a; II, 60a.

8. Tehillim 42:3.

9. Note of the Rebbe: “This [passage on the need for prayer in arousing the second level of love] had to be added here, [to the above passage on the role of meditation], in view of the statement in Epistle 4 that this [level of love] is revealed not by meditation but [only] by prayer and tzedakah. [The fact that both prayer and metitation are mentioned here makes it clear that the two epistles are not divergent but complementary.] In addition, it is thus apparent that tzedakah also plays a role in this manner of service.”

10. Mishlei 3:6. Note of the Rebbe: “Cf. the ruling in Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim, sec. 231, at length.”

11. Note of the Rebbe: “It still remains to be understood what, exactly, is the connection [of the foregoing] with the opening verse, ‘How beautiful and how pleasant....’ This could be clarified in the light of the discussion in Torat Chayim, which explains why there is wonderment at [this kind of] beauty and pleasantness. (This wonderment is expressed in the exclamation, ‘How beautiful and how pleasant...!’) Accordingly it is understood that ahavah betaanugim is as defined in the above letter. (The same is true of the latent love, for which reason its beauty and pleasantness do not arouse wonderment.)”

standing with power and strength, nitzavim

Standing Before G-d


Nitzavim

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By Eli Touger

Adapted from

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. II, p. 398ff;

Vol. XIX, p. 173ff



Who Blesses the New Month?



In explaining the custom not to recite the traditional blessing for the new month on the Shabbos before Tishrei, the Alter Rebbe relates:1



When I was in Mezeritch, I heard the following teaching from my master, the Maggid, in the name of his master, the Baal Shem Tov:



The seventh month is the first of the months of the year [to come]. [In contrast to the other months,] the Holy One, blessed be He, Himself blesses this month on. the last Shabbos of the month of Elul. And with the strength [imparted by this blessing], the Jews bless the 11 [coming] months.



It is written:2 Atem nitzavim hayom, "You are standing today." "Today" refers to the day of Rosh HaShanah, the day of judgment3 .. "You are standing," triumphant in the judgment.



On the Shabbos before Rosh HaShanah, we read the portion Atem Nitzavim. This is the blessing of the Holy One, blessed be He, on the Shabbos on which the seventh month is blessed. It is a month which is satiated and which satiates all of Israel with manifold goodness for the entire [coming] year.



With Unchanging Strength



More particularly, the word nitzavim the core of the blessing given by G-d does not mean merely "standing." It implies standing with power and strength, as reflected in the phrase:4 nitzav melech, "the deputy serving as king," i.e., G-d's blessing is that our stature will reflect the strength and confidence possessed by a king's deputy.



This blessing enables us to proceed through each new year with unflinching power; no challenges will budge us from our commitment to the Torah and its mitzvos. On the contrary, we will "proceed from strength to strength"5 in our endeavor to spread G-dly light throughout the world.



What is the source of this strength? Immutable permanence is a Divine quality. As the prophet proclaims:6 "I, G-d, have not changed," and our Rabbis explain that one of the basic tenets of our faith is that the Creator is unchanging;7 nothing in our world can effect a transition on His part. Nevertheless, G-d has also granted the potential for His unchanging firmness to be reflected in the conduct of mortal beings, for the soul which is granted to every person is "an actual part of G-d."8 This inner G-dly core endows every individual with insurmountable resources of strength to continue his Divine service.



To Maintain the Connection



Our Torah reading continues, stating that the Jews are "standing today before G-d" for a purpose: "To be brought into a covenant with G-d."9



What is the intent of a covenant?10 When two people feel a powerful attraction to each other, but realize that with the passage of time, that attraction could wane, they establish a covenant. The covenant maintains their connection even at times when, on a conscious level, there might be reasons for distance and separation.11



Each year, on Rosh HaShanah, the covenant between G-d and the Jewish people is renewed. For on Rosh HaShanah, the essential G-dly core which every person possesses rises to the forefront of his consciousness. Thus the fundamental bond between G-d and mankind surfaces, and on this basis a covenant is renewed for the entire year to come,12 including the inevitable occasions when these feelings of oneness will not be experienced as powerfully.



Oneness which is not Insular



The Torah states that this covenant is being established by "all of you," and proceeds to mention 1013 different groupings within the Jewish people.14 The establishment of a bond of oneness with G-d is also mirrored by bonds of oneness within our people. For the same spiritual potential that motivates our connection to G-d evokes an internal unity which binds our entire people together.15



In our prayers, we say:16 "Bless us, our Father, all as one." This implies that standing together as one generates a climate fit for blessing.17



May our standing before G-d "as one" on Rosh HaShanah lead to a year of blessing for all mankind, in material and spiritual matters, including the ultimate blessing, the coming of Mashiach.



FOOTNOTES

1. HaYom Yom, entry 25 Elul.

2. Deuteronomy 29:9.

3. See the Targum to Iyov 2:1.

4. I Kings 22:48. See Or HaTorah, Nitzavim, p. 1202.

5. Cf. Psalms 84:8. Herein lies a connection to Parshas Vayeilech the Torah reading which follows Parshas Nitzavim , and which is often coupled with this reading on a single Shabbos. This connection is highlighted in the subsequent essay, entitled "Looking Forward."

6. Malachi 3:6.

7. See Rambam, Guide to the Perplexed, Vol. I, ch. 68, et al.

8. Tanya, ch. 2. The word nitzavim is a passive form; literally, it should be translated as "you have been made to stand." For the ability for a mortal to possess such unchanging firmness is granted to him from Above, by virtue of his essential G-dly nature.

9. Deuteronomy 29:11.

10. See Likkutei Torah, Devarim 44b.

11. This is possible because a covenant establishes a connection that transcends intellect. Even when on a conscious level, one would sever the relationship, the covenant causes it to continue.

12. See the essay entitled "At One with the King" (Timeless Patterns in Time, Vol. I, p. 3ff) which discusses this theme.

13. Ten groupings are mentioned, because 10 is an inclusive number. As such, once a minyan (quorum) of 10 is established, the addition of other people to a congregation is insignificant with regard to the laws of prayer.

14. See Likkutei Torah, Devarim 44a.

15. See the essay entitled "At One with G-d; At One with our Fellow Man" (Timeless Patterns in Time, Vol. I p. 8ff) which discusses this theme.

16. The conclusion of the Shemoneh Esreh prayer, Siddur Tehillat HaShem, p. 60.

17. See Sefer HaSichos 5700, p. 157.

UFO Documentaries Close Encounters

Alien implants removed by surgery from abductees Dr Roger Leir 8 surgeries

Roswell incuident  7-47 govt alien coverup as "weather balloon" discovered  debris tested as of et origin

• Linda M Howe journalist
• Stanton Firedman Bob Lazar S4 facility his testimony
• govt research to get tch advantage
• 91 Guardian footage
• sighting around world glow lights in the sky
• probes in sky photographed  hovered round earth sometimes for hours --observing us?
• 91 probe Las Vegas
• "London Landing"
• "The Day the Earth Stood Still"

New Research on the Final Solution

Dr David Silberklang  Yad Vashem Studies    told story 8-1-41 Prippet Marshes   the final solution a developmental and slow process
change of orders   Oper Barbarossa   entd soviet union more thorough mass scale killing by 4 groups of Einsatzgruppen killing vans then 5th group added -anecdote of Jewis woman's letter to Judenrat to forward to forward to civilian authorities in Lublin permission to send for mother to care for her forwarded to population and welfare dept  (Richard Turk director) who approved permission to send for mother  ten days  3-10-42 to 3-20-42. Why so long ? ivilian administration busy coordinatng with SS in killing of Jews .Civilian adm planned and involved with the murders  coord w SS .  3-20-42 Maidanik blt near Lublin -deah train halted forced labor of young men--many civilian coordintors involved-a developing process-

Intentionalists v functionalists   Hiter decided to implement- no docs or orders ever found

Deception of the Jews  deliberate or incidental role of civilian bureaucracy

What can we glean from day to day oders of or given to field subordinates
Operation Barbarossa

• deeply imbued with ideology "destroying Bolshevism (another denomination of the Jews)
• Wehrmacht and SS negotiations
• Wehrmacht to carve out jurisdictional space  for Einsatzgruppen or murder units
• Wehrmacht logistically assisted sometimes with willing soldiers
• before units arrived locals carried out pogroms aplenty  local initiative  larger slaughters later when 5th unit and local auxiliaries were attched to these  and other units   18,000-25,000 men entered into Soviet Union  task forces were aided and made murder possible by the aid of: locals:
• local police and "neighbors"  (Nazis d have the manpower alone to do murders in number but supervised the willing locals --later witnesses to these collaborators  trials emerged after war
• auxiliry units of  batallion size  ie Ukranian auxiliaries
• When did murder go o/s Sovioet Union ? planned ? Romania- 280,000- > 400,000 Jews murdered
• Croatia -agenda-4/41 Serbs   gypsies   Jews
• Einsatzgruppe D Otto Ohlendorf
• New East discussed in Reich  Wansee discussons  no emigration evacuation  1941
• Odilo Globocnik ,Reinhard Heydrich, Wansee
• SS police colonies settlements in East
• Feasibility study by Odilo Globocnik ,Goering signed memo,
• Wansee postponed and later resumed-Jewish ? to be exterminated like partisans w/no compassion