A Simple Jew

Identity: A Year Later

2012-01-19T07:39:00.003-05:00

Answering the question I posed a year ago, I would now say,

"I am not a chassid, but my Rebbe says that I am. That said, my Rebbe also says that he is not a chassid."

Do you really believe He hears you?

2012-01-13T14:00:00.005-05:00

I have been taking a break from regular posting for the last two years in order to devote time to my book project, yet I have still been receiving numerous requests to post something over the past few months - both while I was in Uman and also during my annual visit last month to Boro Park to meet with the Sudilkover Rebbe.

In response to all of these requests, I would like to share the contents of a letter I received from the Rebbe:

Before Rosh Hashanah, the Sudilkover Rebbe sent out a letter containing his blessing for the new year along with a request that each person resist the urge to talk to others in shul during davening. It is known, the Rebbe wrote, that our main avodah in Elul and Tishrei involves the mitzvos bein adam l'chaveiro (mitzvos pertaining to our interaction with our fellow man). Indeed, these mitzvos should be the focus of our generation for the rest of the year as well in order to rectify the sinas chinam that destroyed the Beis HaMikdash.

Yet, how are these two ideas connected? If mitzvos bein adam l'chaveiro should be the focus of our generation, what is the purpose of placing our primary focus on a mitzvah that appears to fall into the category of bein adam l'Makom (between man and G-d)?

The Maggid of Koznitz wrote that a person who talks to others during davening can be compared to a person speaking with a king and suddenly diverts his attention to say, "Your Majesty, I can no longer speak with you, I must speak with someone that I desire to speak to." This, the Maggid of Koznitz taught not only causes the Shechinah to depart from him but also prevents the tefillos of the entire congregation from being received. From this story, the Sudilkover Rebbe said that it is apparent that talking to others during davening is not just an aveira bein adam l'Makom, it is also an aveira bein adam l'chaveiro.

The Sudilkover Rebbe wrote that he heard from the previous Lelover Rebbe (Rabbi Shimon Noson Nuta Biderman of Lelov) that that the words "this time" (בעת הזאת) in the verse, "For if you remain silent at this time, relief and rescue will arise for the Jews..." (Esther 4:14) refer to the time of prayer. And as such, the Lelover Rebbe said that this verse teaches that if a person makes himself silent during davening, relief and rescue will come to the Jewish people both in gashmius and ruchnius.

Furthermore, the Sudilkover Rebbe pointed out that the word "this" (זאת) has the same numerical value as the three things that the Machzor says averts an evil decree, "Fasting, Voice, Money" (צום קול ממון). With this in mind, the verse from Megillas Esther can now be read to teach that when people take it upon them selves during this time of teshuvah not speak to others during davening, then relief and recue will certainly arise for them and their descendants.

After reading and reviewing the Rebbe's letter and also the advice of the Degel Machaneh Ephraim, I resolved to put it into practice. I davened each day not to be put in situations where someone would try to talk to me during davening or the reading of the Torah.

I was fortunate to speak with the Rebbe this week on this topic at length. During this time, the Rebbe told me some amazing personal stories and stories from other tzaddikim regarding the importance of not talking to others during davening. At the end of our conversation, he asked some questions that have remained with me and given me pause,

"If we are given 22.5 hours a day when we are permitted to speak with others, why must we encroach on the 1.5 hours that are set aside solely for our conversation with Hashem? Isn't it He alone who provides for all our needs? If we really believe Hashem hears the words we say, how could we ever even think of speaking to others when we are standing before Him in His house? We need to stop speaking to others when we are speaking to Him!"

The Sudilkover Rebbe finished by saying that if we are to display any type of chutzpah before Hashem, it should only be the type of chutzpah that the Degel Machaneh Ephraim wrote about - chutzpah to hold a strong conviction in the efficacy of prayer at specifically those times when we may have doubts.

אמרי פי והגיון לבי

2011-06-24T06:53:00.002-04:00

Hisbodedus – a practice simple to perform but difficult for me sustain for any significant period of time. Time after time, I renew my efforts to make time to incorporate it into my schedule, and time after time I end up back where I began; and the years pass with much the same result.

I have read and re-read numerous books on the topic and understood that there was indeed great value in just sitting and saying the words “Ribbono shel Olam”, yet I still found it difficult to devote any significant amount of time to hisbodedus.

Earlier this year, I read the following words in Shevachay HaRan #14, “He [Rebbe Nachman of Breslov] initially found it very difficult to sit alone in a special room for several hours, devoting himself to Hashem. At first this was next to impossible for him. But instead of merely giving up, he forced himself, overcoming his basic nature by spending many hours meditating in his special room.”

Inspired, I retreated to a locked file room at work and began to dedicate a few lunch breaks each week to sitting quietly in the dark and occasionally asking Hashem to give me words to speak to Him. I reasoned that over time this practice would lead to me practicing hisbodedus in earnest.

I was able to maintain this practice for a few weeks without difficulty before I was suddenly besieged with months of unrelenting high priority and urgent taskings at work. Almost overnight I found it close to impossible to escape to the file room. The time I devoted to hisbodedus once again slipped through my fingers.

With the increased workload, my stress level increased exponentially. I began to suffer headaches, tension in my shoulder muscles, and back pains that would last the entire work week and relenting only on Shabbos. Earlier this month, I went out running and very quickly began experiencing pains in my chest. After a mile and half, I could no longer breathe and was forced to stop and walked home. This had never happened to me before in all the years I had been running routinely.

“You really should go see a cardiologist if it happens again,” my father advised. Two days later, it happened again. I had to stop running after running only half a block because the pressure in my chest inhibited my breathing. I then called a cardiologist and went in for an appointment. The doctor assured me that he was 95% sure that it was nothing serious, however, he wanted me to come back for another visit for the treadmill stress test and echo cardiogram in order to cover all the bases.

I returned to the cardiologist’s office earlier this week and was given a clean bill of health after both of these tests. The echo cardiogram, however, did wonders for my emuna. It literally changed the way I looked at the world. In utter amazement, I stared at the screen and watched what was occurring within my chest. Although I already knew that Hashem caused my heart to beat and was familiar with how the heart functions, I had never seen my own heart. I never knew that Hashem was this close to me! He was not overseeing the world from afar, He was right here orchestrating every beat of my heart! Wherever I am, wherever I go, He is there keeping me alive each and every second. I left the doctor’s office and cried; overwhelmed with this new realization – inspired to spend time in hisbodedus again.

And I returned to the file room the next day. Sitting in the darkness, I first concentrated on the beating of my heart and immediately I felt Hashem’s closeness. Opening up my mouth, I was finally able to speak to him longer than I had done in the past. This time it did not feel labored and the time flew by. Hashem was right here in the darkness of the file room with me, right now with each beat of my heart.

First Ever Pathways Weekly Newsletter – Parshat Korach

2011-06-24T06:50:00.001-04:00

Received via e-mail from Breslov Research Institute:

The Breslov Research Institute has decided to go in a whole new direction with our weekly emails. For the first time this week we have published the new Pathways Weekly Newsletter - a weekly publication for print! This will allow you to take it along with you wherever you may be. Please feel free to place it in shuls and all other public places. We hope you enjoy.

Download it here.

אַשְׂכִּילָה בְּדֶרֶךְ תָּמִים

2011-04-06T08:09:00.002-04:00

I don’t know where I am in the world. All I know is how distant I feel from You, and how much damage I have done. From the time I was young until today, I’ve not had a single day I could call perfect and flawless. Even on those occasions when You helped me arose myself and start trying to serve You, I was never able to persist and keep following the path of holiness for more than a short while. Even when You have helped me, I’ve not had pity on myself. I’ve not tried to stand firm for even a single day. (Likutey Tefillos #13)

In Tribute to a Breslov Pioneer in America

2011-03-10T13:31:00.002-05:00

(Click on the image above)

איזהו חסיד, המתחסד עם קונו

2011-02-14T09:13:00.002-05:00

This teaching from the Baal Shem Tov appears to encapsulate Chassidus in just two sentences:

Whatever you do, have in mind to give gratification to your Creator, blessed be He, and do not think - even a little - of your own needs. Even the expectation of personal delight from your avodas Hashem is an ulterior motive for one’s own concerns.

(Tzava'as Harivash #11)

How does one become a Breslover Chassid?

2011-02-14T06:22:00.001-05:00

Excerpt from Questions and Answers about Breslov:

How does one become a Breslover Chassid? Through hard work! There is no standard admissions procedure and no membership card. Chassidism is by its very nature a voluntary movement. It is up to the individual Jew himself to decide if he wants to be a Chassid, and if so, how much of a Chassid. Every good Chassid would like his children to follow in his footsteps. Yet even those born and brought up in a Chassidic family are ultimately free to choose if they want to carry on the tradition or not. Essentially a Breslover Chassid is someone who has made Rebbe Nachman his guide in life. He looks to Rebbe Nachman's teachings for insight about how to live, and endeavors to carry out his advice in practice. Following the Rebbe means accepting his ideas even when they are contrary to ones own initial thinking. This means having faith in the superior wisdom of the Rebbe. It is like taking medicine on the recommendation of a doctor. You take it without necessarily understanding how or why it works: you have faith that the doctor has a better idea about medicine.

What prompts someone to become a Breslover Chassid?

If you went to all the Chassidim who have come in from outside, you would hear a different story from each one about the unique chain of events which brought him to hear about Rebbe Nachman and become involved. There are people from all kinds of backgrounds. Those brought up as Orthodox Jews include people from Chassidic and non-Chassidic backgrounds. Those from non-Orthodox backgrounds may have been anything from Conservative and Reform or their equivalents to non-affiliated, assimilated or even anti-religious. There are Ashkenazim and Sefardim as well as converts to Judaism. The range of personalities is equally diverse. There is no evidence that any one personality type is more likely to get involved than any other. People hear about Rebbe Nachman and his teachings in many different ways: some from friends or acquaintances, others from strangers or `by accident.' Some have had contact with Breslover communities or with individual Breslover Chassidim. Others found out about Rebbe Nachman from books.

And there are as many ways of being a Breslover Chassid as there are Breslover Chassidim. Rebbe Nachman's writings cover every aspect of Jewish life and open up an enormous variety of different pathways -- more than anyone could hope to explore in a single lifetime. There is no standard Breslov path applicable to everyone, with all the Chassidim b eing required to conform. Rebbe Nachman's appeal is to the individual, to relate to God in his own unique way. Thus a Breslover is not a Jew who happens to be a Chassid as well. His Chassidism is his way to be a Jew -- as best he can.

Each individual Chassid must work out his own way of applying the Rebbe's teachings in the context of his own life. Some do so through their own study of Rebbe Nachman's writings, others in conjunction with a friend, study partner or teacher or through consultation with a manhig. Each Chassid is free to lead his life the way he chooses, and the community makes no efforts to influence anyone in a particular direction. Some devote themselves entirely to Torah and prayer; some are scribes, some teachers, others active in community affairs. Still others are engaged in the whole array of occupations from science and engineering to law, accountancy, business, industry and the arts, etc.

For some Breslover Chassidim participation in the community is an important part of being a Chassid. Someone wanting to pray in the intense way taught by Rebbe Nachman may feel best able to do so in a minyan, prayer-meeting, of others trying to do the same. Many find the community the best focus for study of Rebbe Nachman's writings, and regular shiurim, classes, are arranged.

The community can also be a powerful source of support and encouragement for those trying to practice regular hisbodidus and other practices taught by Rebbe Nachman. On the other hand there are Chassidim who live very far from the major communities and yet are as strong as any in their commitment to the Rebbe's teachings. Even some who live in close proximity to the community may not feel that their connection with the Rebbe requires close involvement in community activities.

What does it mean to call oneself a Breslover Chassid?

It is perfectly possible to study Rebbe Nachman's writings, follow his guidance and interact with Breslover Chassidim without calling oneself a Breslover Chassid. Some are comfortable saying they feel closer to Breslov than anything else. Even if someone does call himself a Breslover Chassid, does that make him one? Who decides?

There is no such thing as a community decision to admit new members, nor is there any kind of initiation making one a fully-fledged Breslover Chassid. Breslover Chassidim do believe that Rebbe Nachman's way is very good and would like to share it with others, so they may try to influence people they think likely to respond. But it is still impossible to make someone else become a Chassid. It is up to the individual himself.

Indeed, the more one grasps Rebbe Nachman's message, the more evident it is that to be a true Breslover Chassid is a very high level. Many would consider it a great achievement to be worthy of the name. Rebbe Nachman demands nothing less than that we be ourselves! That is why being a Breslover Chassid takes hard work! For this reason there are some who do reply that they are Breslover Chassidim when people ask them, but only because they know that most people find labels convenient. In their own hearts they are deeply aware that calling themselves a Breslover Chassid is not a description of their state of being. It is a declaration of intent: `Yes, I study Rebbe Nachman's teachings and I would like to try to be the Jew I should be.'

Becoming a Student of the Degel Machaneh Ephraim

2011-02-04T05:59:00.011-05:00

"...and I wrote this for perhaps Hashem will provide that one of my sons or my students will come and understand and expound upon this."

(Degel Machaneh Ephraim, Parshas Beshalach)

* *

"Anyone who listens to a tzaddik of former times and follows his ways is considered as though he was that tzaddik's student."

(Chovos HaTalmidim, Perek 12)

New Website - Compassion for Humanity in the Jewish Tradition

2011-02-02T12:21:00.003-05:00

Received via e-mail from Rabbi Dovid Sears:

There is now a web page for my anthology "Compassion for Humanity in the Jewish Tradition," published by Jason Aronson in 1998.

The website includes a number of new additions, both original translations and those of others:

http://compassionforhumanity.blogspot.com/

There are only 200 copies left of the book, which is now distributed to Judaica shops by Moznaim Publishing and will be sold online by another friend in the near future.

Please visit the new website!

Identity

2011-01-26T18:16:00.003-05:00

This afternoon, an African American woman on the subway asked me if I was a Chassidic Jew. I hestitated for a moment and replied that I was just an Orthodox Jew.

How could I quickly explain to her that although I am not a chassid, I aspire to be one; that I learn Chassidus everyday, am connected to a Chassidic Rebbe, and adhere to a number of Chassidic practices and yet I am still not a Chassidic Jew?

This leads to a deeper question: At what point can I call myself a chassid? It is a both a level and also identity. It is something that can be defined, and yet no amount of words can properly define it.

Guest Posting by Rabbi Dovid Sears: Two Metaphors From the RaMaK

2011-01-16T16:25:00.005-05:00

Photo © Dovid Sears

In his classic work of kabbalistic ethics, Tomer Devorah (“The Palm Tree of Deborah”), Rabbi Moshe Cordovero (1522-1570, also known as the RaMaK) explains how each of the ten sefiros, or Divine powers in creation, instructs us about character traits and behaviors, which we should try to cultivate. The underlying is the well-known principle of Chazal that one should emulate God: “Just as God is gracious and merciful, so you should be gracious and merciful” (Sifre, Devorim 49; Sota 14a).

In his discussion of the sefirah of Keter / Crown (Chapter 2), he offers much advice. One of several points he mentions is that one should respect all creatures, recognizing in them the exaltedness of God, Who created them with wisdom. If one were to disparage any creature, this would reflect on the Creator of All.

Then he goes on to say that one should love all humanity—even the wicked. One should say in his heart, “If only they would renounce their evil and become tzaddikim, they would all be great people and find favor before God!”

How should he awaken this love for them?

The RaMaK suggests that he tell himself two things: 1. “If this poor, despicable person were extremely wealthy, I would delight in his company, as I delight in the company of so-and-so. 2. If he were dressed in the finest garments like so-and-so, there would be no difference between them. If so, why should he lack esteem in my sight?”

Then he concludes with still another concept: “Since this person is crushed with poverty and suffering, which cleanse one of sin, this shows that God cares about him and is bringing about his purification. Therefore, I should regard him as superior to myself, in that he is beloved of God.” Thus, I will see the other in a positive light.

These two metaphors for the wicked need explanation, as does the last paragraph.

The first mashal, or metaphor, is based on the dichotomy of rich and poor; the second, to well-dressed and badly-dressed. When I first read this paragraph, I was troubled by both meshalim. Should one honor people because they are rich or well-dressed, and dishonor them if the opposite is the case? Certainly not. But the RaMaK seems to be addressing the ordinary reader, and we see all around us that these attitudes are commonplace. Therefore, he is using them to point out a deeper truth in his present context, namely how one should regard those whose spiritual and moral condition is one of poverty or shabbiness. His point is that we need to look beyond such externals.

What is the difference between the two metaphors?

Spiritual poverty refers to one’s lack of higher knowledge; one doesn’t know what life in this transitory world is all about. As Chazal state, “Ein oni eleh bi-de’ah . . . The only pauper is one who lacks knowledge” (Nedarim 41a). The RaMaK is telling us that as great as this knowledge is, in a sense it is external—because each one of us is a “work in progress,” and our ignorance can be corrected. Thus when we encounter this lack, we must not pass final judgement. The next year or day or moment, the lights may go on, and everything will be different.

As for the second metaphor, our spiritual garments are mitzvos and ma’asim tovim, our good deeds. In this case, the other’s behavior is deficient, not his wisdom. This, too, is an external factor that may be corrected in time.

Anybody who has gone through big changes in life knows this truth: a person is much more than simply his or her present condition. We all have our ups and downs, and we all are constantly changing. Therefore, we should judge others with a good eye and seek what Rebbe Nachman of Breslov calls their “good points” (Likutey Moharan I, 282). And he assures us that by viewing others this way, they will sense it on some level and be moved to change for the better in actual fact.

This brings us to the third paragraph, which states that God cleanses a person through poverty and suffering—for despite all appearances, the wicked suffer constantly. (“Who is the rich man? He who rejoices in his lot,” Avos 4:1—which leaves the wicked in a perpetual state of mental poverty.) This cleansing process indicates that there is always hope, and that the internal factor is not affected by our outer vagaries. Something within us is indestructible, beyond change.

One last observation: In his second mashal, the RaMaK says that if the shabbily-dressed man wore the same finery as the handsomely attired fellow, “there would be no difference between them.” On the simple level, he seems to mean that they would look the same and make an equally good impression. But maybe we can read this in a deeper sense: If we all were to garb ourselves in mitzvos and ma’asim tovim, we would all enter the domain of kedushah and goodness. And there, all is one.

The Obligation to Write A Book

2010-12-24T07:47:00.001-05:00

Sefer Chassidim #530:

Hashem preordains the number of books a person will write during his lifetime. He may decree that a person will write one, two, or three books or whether a person will discover new insights in the Talmud, detect ancient manuscripts, decipher foreign languages, or solve other mysteries. And if Hashem reveals something to a person and he does not publish it, he is, in fact, robbing the One who revealed it. Hashem revealed it to him only that he publicize it, as it says, “The secret of Hashem is for those who fear Him, so that they will make known His covenant” (Tehillim 25:14). The same idea is expressed in the verse, “Your springs will gush forth in streams in the public squares” (Proverbs 5:16).

The Rebbe - A New Book by Rabbi Dovid Meisels

2010-12-24T07:40:00.005-05:00

(Click on the image above)

Chovas HaTalmidim - A New Printing

2010-12-24T07:39:00.000-05:00

(Click on the image above)

Please Help Eizer L'Shabbos

2010-12-24T05:04:00.001-05:00

Last year, Eizer L'Shabbos was fortunate enough to give out food to hundreds of needy families. Hundreds of children celebrated Chanukah with hearts full of joy, due to the packages Eizer L'Shabbos gave out. Unfortunately, this year there was only enough money for a small number of families.

The Zohar teaches, "One whom Hashem loves, He sends him a gift: A poor man, so that he can acquire the Mitzvah of helping him."

Please give what you can.

http://www.eizerlshabbos.com/

Tax deductible contributions may also be mailed to:

Eizer L'Shabbos
5014 Sixteenth Ave., Suite 319
Brooklyn, NY 11204

Evidence of Your Purpose

2010-11-19T07:43:00.004-05:00

Excerpt from Shabbos Secrets:

When eating Shabbos meals, both the body and the soul share in the mitzvah. But how can we discern whether the meal was eaten l'shem Shamayim, for the sake of the mitzvah, or for the physical pleasure of tasting the savory dishes and fine wines?

Singing zemiros during the Shabbos meal is evidence that your primary purpose is to fulfill the mitzvah of oneg Shabbos.

(Yeitev Lev, Parshas Bo)

New Website: Chassidic Books & Their History

2010-11-18T07:21:00.001-05:00

Received via e-mail from Rabbi Tal Zwecker:

Announcing the launch of a new blog that should interest anyone who enjoys the study of Chassidus, Chassidic Rebbes and Tzadikim; Chassidishe Stories and Ma'asim:

Chassidic Books & Their History

Each week I will add a new post describing some of the classic Chassidic Seforim and Sippurei Tzadikim books, periodicals and what they contain, usually I will choose a sefer or seforim available online for free in PDF format so you can actually download the sefer and study it!

So stay tuned for the launch this coming week...

A Musical Interlude

2010-11-16T11:07:00.006-05:00

"One of the greatest inventions"

2010-11-15T09:37:00.003-05:00

Anyone who knows me knows that I really don't care for cellphones. This piece of technology has single-handledly changed the pace of life as we know it and robbed many people of the ability to live in the present. Today, it is not an uncommon sight to see a person checking their cellphone while walking in a park, or even while wearing tefillin in shul. There once was a time when a person gave their full attention to the event they were attending and not checking their cellphone under the cover of a table.

Last week, my wife and I finally upgraded our aging cellphones which had almost ceased functioning. Although I began by looking for a cellphone with basic functionality, I begrudgingly ended up upgrading to a Blackberry.

Using the Blackberry for the first time, I called the Sudilkover Rebbe to speak to him before he returned to Eretz Yisroel. I asked him what, based upon his life experience, had helped him the most in his avodas Hashem. The Rebbe answered with one simple word, "Tefilla".

He explained to me that a person should talk to Hashem on numerous occasions throughout the course of the day for everything large and small; before learning, before eating, while sitting at their desk at work, and even before routine errands.

The Rebbe then said me something that I didn't expect to hear from him. He told me that in his opinion the cellphone was one of the greatest inventions in the past few decades. The reason for this was because it gave a person the ability to walk on the street and talk to Hashem without giving the appearance that he was insane.

On one occasion, the Rebbe said that he desperately needed to make it to the bank to deposit a check. As he walked briskly towards the bank, he turned off his cellphone and started speaking to Hashem out loud, "Please help me get to the bank before it closes! Please help me to deposit this money and keep the other check I wrote from bouncing!" The Rebbe made it to the bank with one minute to spare and successfully deposited his check. Walking out of the bank, the security guard looked up at him and remarked, "You know you sure were lucky this time."

Cutting Through Solid Rock

2010-11-09T12:28:00.004-05:00

“The samech mem would love to get his hands on this”, a friend warned me last month; reminding me to make backup copies of my book.

Although I have copies saved in online storage, the thought of losing more than a year’s work was enough to give me pause and nudge me to go out and buy a thumb drive to save another copy on. I simply couldn't imagine what I would do if I lost everything at this point.

As I continue making slow but steady progress with my book, I have observed that each step is now becoming exponentially more difficult. I have an internal schedule of how I would like things to progress, yet it seems as if my schedule is constantly being thrown out the window. On numerous occasions when I sit down to work on a new section or edit existing sections, I am overcome with a lethargy that I hadn't felt up to that point. I am forced to summon up all my internal reserves in order to continue on and cast the lethargic feelings aside. More times than naught, I am successful.

Yet, it remains a daily battle.

In order to keep the long range nature of my book project in perspective, I recall the following advice from another friend,

“Hashem wants the book to come out at a specific time; He may have you working on it slowly for lots of reasons, such as learning and experiencing many things that the book needs that you don't have yet.”

For Him Alone

2010-11-05T10:03:00.003-04:00

Received via e-mail from a friend:

In the year 1573, there lived a simple Jew in the holy city of Tsfat. He knew how to pray, but never learned to study Torah. Despite his lack of formal religious training, he was exceptionally pure in his deeds and modest in his ways. One night, when he had completed tikkun chatzos, Eliyahu HaNavi knocked at his front door.

When the man asked, "Who's there?" a heavenly voice responded, "Eliyahu HaNavi, may he be remembered for good." The man opened the door, Eliyahu entered, and his home was filled with light and joy. Eliyahu explained that he had come to teach this man the sweet and blessed secrets of Kaballah. Eliyahu even proposed to reveal the most sought-after mystery of all, the secret of what will be in the end-of-days, and when and how Moshiach will arrive. All this Eliyahu offered with one condition: The man must share with him what he did on his bar mitzvah day that was so meritorious that it earned him the reward that Eliyahu was delivering today.

The man sat for a moment and considered how to proceed. Less than an instant passed before he spoke, but these are the thoughts that raced through his heart in that split-second:

On one hand, this was the greatest gift a person could possibly receive, there was no greater honor, and nothing his own neshoma desired more than to learn with Eliyahu HaNavi and be initiated into the mysteries of Moshiach.

Yet his bar mitzvah deed was something that he had done in complete concealment to avoid any ego gratification so as to keep it utterly pure and for Hashem's sake alone. How could he break his silence now?

But, he would only be telling Eliyahu and not the world. Surely, Eliyahu had his best interests in mind. Surely, Eliyahu wouldn't ask such a thing if it wasn't the right response.

But, as he moved to speak his secret, his neshoma screamed, "No!" Even this would tarnish the purity of his deed. Even this would detract from the act as a pure and selfless offering to Hashem. If he now used that private moment for self-gain, even at the behest of Eliyahu HaNavi, it would betray the intimacy with Hashem created by that deed.

"No, I cannot fulfill your request," said the simple Jew. "What I did then I did only for Hashem's glory. How can I reveal it to others? If for this reason you can't tell me what you were sent to reveal, so be it; it's not necessary. I have a tradition that what a Jew does for Hashem should be hidden from the eyes of humans. It is just for Him alone."

A Child's Perception

2010-11-04T21:03:00.002-04:00

At his wife's suggestion, a friend of mine recently brought his four year-old son along with him on a visit to go see a tzaddik. He had hoped that he would be able to give his son a better understanding for just who a tzaddik is with this first-hand experience.

During the car ride in route to the location where the meeting would take place, my friend tried to explain the importance of going to see a tzaddik in a way that his young son could understand. "It is going to be great. You are going to get to see a tzaddik!", he said.

When the time came and the two of them were ushered into the room where the tzaddik was meeting with people, my friend's son took one look at the tzaddik and then said in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear, "Ok Tattie, I have seen the tzaddik, now we can go home!" My friend tried to speak with the tzaddik for a few minutes, but his son kept pressing to leave, "Nu, nu, Tattie. Let's go already", his son said as he pulled on his pant legs.

Realizing the predicament my friend was in, the tzaddik bent down with smile and gave the little boy a lollipop. The little boy was thrilled, but in his mind it was still time to go. He had accomplished what he had come to do. He had now seen a tzaddik and now it was time to go home to mama'le.

Not a Tzaddik

2010-11-03T09:02:00.005-04:00

In the process of editing sections of my book, I sent a short piece to the Sudilkover Rebbe that contained a story about himself. Noticing that I used the term kvittel, the Rebbe suggested that I remove this word.

The term was not appropriate he told me. He then returned the following written edits:

“He is not a tzaddik and therefore it’s not a real kvittel; just a working tool.”

"There is no need to search for specially strict practices to take upon yourself"

2010-11-02T06:14:00.005-04:00

Although I recognize that I have a propensity for them, I need to always remind myself of this.

Fighting The Dictates of My Stomach

2010-11-01T02:27:00.000-04:00

Rabbi Chaim Vital taught that if a person wants to attain greater perceptions in his learning he needs to be extremely careful in saying brochos with great kavana before eating or drinking. His whole learning, in essence, is dependent on this.

Part of my daily learning seder is devoted to learning hilchos brochos and also how we say them, and yet every time I pick up a piece of food or a cup of coffee a whole new battle ensues with my yetzer hara, demanding that I quickly and mindlessly mumble a brocha.

I often disregard the yetzer hara's advice, however, there are times when my actions reveal that I am actually heeding its advice. The cognitive understanding of what I should be doing is pushed to the back of my mind and once again I follow the dictates of my stomach.

Opening Minds

2010-10-29T07:36:00.001-04:00

The neshoma yeseira comes down on Shabbos to open minds of people and make them understand the Torah topics that stumped them all week.

(Me'am Loez)

Davening At Home

2010-10-28T06:14:00.002-04:00

"I am sorry I couldn't make it to minyan yesterday, my yetzer hara got the best and told me to stay inside where it was warm and dry", Yosef explained.

Hearing this, the rabbi responded, "Yosef, don't you understand that the same G-d who tells you to come to minyan is the same G-d who makes it rain?"

Never Overly Strict

2010-10-27T07:30:00.002-04:00

(Picture by Jack Klein)

Rav Ada bar Ahavah's students asked, "In what merit did you receive a long life?" He answered, "I was never upset and overly strict in my home."

(Taanis 20b)

Message in a Dream or Coincidence?

2010-10-25T19:56:00.004-04:00

Feeling exhausted from the onset of cold, I went to bed early on Erev Shabbos. On Shabbos morning, I woke up early and learned the halacha in Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 192:1 that states, "If a person has a headache he should view it as if he were put in chains. If he becomes ill and confined to his bed, he should view it as if he were placed onto a scaffold for trial. Anyone who is placed onto the scaffold for trial, if he has great advocates, may be saved. But if he has none, he cannot be saved."

My constant hacking cough persisted through Shabbos and left me feeling extremely weak by Sunday evening. On Sunday night, I had a dream in which I was walking through a non-Jewish neighborhood. As I made my way down the streets, I noticed a group of men following me. I tried to evade them, but eventually they caught up with me and confronted me, "Who do you think you are to wear that thing on your head in this neighborhood?", they asked. I explained to them that my yarmulke was not worn as a brazen display to offend them, rather it was something that I, as a Jew, wore to display my allegiance to God.

Not caring for my answer, the men quickly found a rope to place around my neck. They hoisted me up over their shoulders and went looking for beam in which to tie the other end of the rope to.

....and then I woke up.

A few hours later, I sat down with my seforim and continued my slow-pace learning of Tanya. I was given pause when I came across a teaching in Chapter 6 that dealt with the capacity of every Jew for surrendering himself before G-d, through martyrdom for the sanctification of G-d's name. Although I could not decipher what the message was for me, it certainly seemed that there was a connection between the timing of my learning these teachings in Kitzur Shulchan Aruch and Tanya and that of my dream.

I know that the skeptic will claim that all of this is merely a coincidence. However, the word "coincidence" is not a word that is in my vocabulary.

"Let Shabbos be your Rebbe."

2010-10-22T09:14:00.000-04:00

Excerpt from Shabbos Secrets:

The Chidushei HaRim compared the Shabbos to a chassidic rebbe. A chassidic rebbe's study is guarded by a gabbai who selects the people who are allowed to come in to see the rebbe. The same is true with Shabbos. Not everyone is admitted to partake of the kedusha of Shabbos. So what should you do? You should stand at the door and pray for the door of kedusha of Shabbos to open.

A chassid once asked the Sanzer Rebbe, "How should I conduct myself when I am on the road, far away from the Rebbe?"

"Let the Gemara be your rav, and let Shabbos be your rebbe," replied the Rebbe. The rav answers halachic questions, and the rebbe, the holy Shabbos day, gives advice and chizul on spiritual matters.

(Kerem Shlomo, 1938)

Question & Answer With Rabbi Micha Golshevsky - Reviewing One's Learning

2010-10-21T04:30:00.002-04:00

A Simple Jew asks:

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov taught, “When a person reviews his learning, the Torah itself asks of Hashem that He reveal the Torah's reasoning and secrets to him.”

How are we to understand this amazing statement?

Rabbi Micha Golshevsky answers:

There are infinite levels of depth to every concept -and every word -of Torah. This emerges from the Zohar which states "The Jewish people, the Torah and Hashem are one." Every Jew has vast hidden depths of spiritual potential. Like molten lava, this passion often pour out of him at unexpected moments, causing him to do things that are truly amazing. This is why we find so many Jews -even completely estranged from Jewish tradition - that do inordinate amounts of chessed or give much more charity than the average non-Jew. For some Jews this fire comes out in their taking up a civil cause with tremendous self-sacrifice, while for others it is expressed in working to find a cure or help others through science, arts or any number of fields. Jews excel on average much more than non-Jews because we have "activated neshamos" which are acutely aware and yearn for things spiritual. (This comes out of the Maharal in a few places.)

Just like our souls are multi-layered, so too the holy Torah can be understood or connected to on many levels. To quote another Maharal, the Torah only affords a person holiness if he believes that it reveals the will of Hashem. If not, it does no more for him than learning about mundane matters. Of course if one even wants to come to this level, he accesses mitoch shelo l'shma ba l'shmah and he will eventually get there. But if not his Torah will be lifeless (of course if he does teshuva he can always revive it, since the potential connection to Hashem through what he has learned is there, but only if he believes in it ).

But lets say a person does believe the Torah is the Will of Hashem. After he has learned something, how is he to access the deeper meaning of the Torah? How can he understand it better and internalize more of its message? Perhaps the best answer to this question can be summarized in one word: review.

The Talmud tells us that it is easier to learn new material than to review what is already familiar. But of course, without review one cannot possibly master Torah. Rebbe Nachman is telling us here that one who arouses love of Hashem and Torah his fiery neshamah and reviews what he has learned is given wondrous insight and understanding as a result of this.

Now Rebbe Nachman -and Rav Shach - advocated learning through a mesechta (or more) and then coming back to it with a fresh eye. Others held differently. The Steipler explained that one should force himself to review since this is a bigger atonement for sin than any self-mortification.

However we review we must never lose sight of the immense depth of Torah and our desire to understand it. We must review with as much enthusiasm as we can muster, with great joy and yearning. Let us repent when we learn as we recall the words of Rebbe Nachman, "The Torah is Hashem Himself calling us back to Him."

Breslov Seforim Online

2010-10-20T13:59:00.002-04:00

From Breslov Center's website:

Rabbi Moshe Yaakov Rosen of Monsey, founder of Sifrey Breslov many years ago, now has a website: Everything Breslov

This site is a real "first," in that it makes a wide range of Breslov publications available online from a Breslov bookseller who knows every item in his catalog and can answer any questions the customer may have.

Rabbi Rosen is a respected member of the Breslov community, who recently retired from teaching in a local yeshivah. (If you are ever in Monsey, he also would be an interesting person to meet, especially since he knew many of the now-legendary figures in the Breslov world, both in America and in Eretz Yisrael.) We wish him great success in his new venture.

Help Replace Stolen Tefillin

2010-10-20T13:32:00.001-04:00

New Tefillin Fund

A Diplomatic Response

2010-10-20T06:09:00.000-04:00

Excerpt from "The Prime Ministers":

"Gentlemen, of dear! I see you did not eat the bird. Lyndon arranged for a special shoot this morning so that it would be fresh."

"Our friends observe kosher," remarked the Secretary of State good-naturedly. "Evidently, protocol forgot to tell you."

"No, no, they did, they did.", said the troubled First Lady. "But they told me it was only meat they weren't allowed to eat, but fowl they may. How stupid of me. Forgive me, please." She was genuinely upset.

"There is nothing to forgive," said Yaakov Herzog tactfully, and in hushed tones explained to her the rudiments of the kosher dietary laws.

"But I see your prime minister has no problem eating the bird," said Lady Bird, her chin pointing in the direction of her guest of honor.

Dr. Herzog assumed an innocent expression, and said artlessly, "May I share with you a confidence, Mrs. Johnson?"

"Of course, of course."

"The prime minister has one secret vice. He cannot resist fine gourmet. So you may take his lapse as a great compliment to your chef."

"Oh, I shall, I shall," said a charmed Mrs. Johnson, and off she went to greet her other guests. And thus ended my first tutorial as a novice diplomat on the niceties of kosher savoir faire in high places.

Water Under The Bridge

2010-10-19T07:18:00.002-04:00

From time to time an uncharitable thought or memory may arise in my mind regarding the actions of a fellow Jew. If I cannot push it out my head immediately, I ask myself, "When did this event occur? Did it just happen, or did occur before Yom Kippur?"

If it occurred before Yom Kippur, I remind myself to assume that this was an action the person did teshuva for. If I truly believe that Yom Kippur wipes away my aveiros, I must believe that it wiped away this person's aveiros as well.

"Greater than an Angel"

2010-10-18T06:51:00.000-04:00

The cashier's eyes lit up. "The Rebbe is greater than an angel!", he exclaimed in Yiddish when he saw the Sudilkover Rebbe enter his store.

The Rebbe, however, did not appreciate these praises and corrected him, "No. A Jew is greater than an angel!!"

The cashier once again repeated his statement about the Rebbe, and the Rebbe firmly repeated what he had said previously but this time with a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye, "A Jew is greater than an angel!!"

I witnessed this brief interchange when taking a walk with the Rebbe in Boro Park during my last visit. I am still trying to internalize its lesson of how to view a fellow Jew and how to view myself.

לֶךְ לְךָ

2010-10-15T07:39:00.004-04:00

From an e-mail received from David Friedman:

ויאמר ד׳ אל אברם לך לך מארצך וממולדתך ומבית אביך אל הארץ אשר אראך – “And Hashem said to Avram: Go for yourself from your land and from your birthplace and from your father’s house, to the land that I will show you”.

One may think that if their father was a great tzadik, they were raised in a neighborhood of great tzadikim or they lived currently around tzadikim, then they would be much better people. Or the other way around, someone who has all the above may think that he doesn’t need to do much and may become complacent. Therefore the posuk teaches us לך לך- go to “yourself” because Hashem gives every individual the tools they need to reach their full potential. Reb Nosson of Breslov explains that going to "yourself" means to go to your neshama, which is all spiritual. The Ramchal in the first perek of Mesilas Yeshorim quotes from Koheles Rabbah that the neshama is completely spiritual and therefore can never be satisfied by material things. So, even if a Yid was raised in a completely not frum environment, he still has a lofty neshama and can reach the greatest heights. The brocha of she'osa li kol tzorki that we say every morning can also mean that Hashem gave us all that is necessary for us to reach our potential.

The posuk continues: מארצך – “From your land”. This teaches us to stop thinking that if we would live in a particular neighborhood we would be able to be much better people. Conversely, if one lives in a very “frum” area, it teaches to go away from an attitude of thinking that living there is enough.

וממולדתך – “From your birthplace”. This is telling us that we shouldn't think that had we been raised in a different neighborhood we would be better. Conversely, if we were raised among tzadikim we shouldn't think that we are better because of that.

ומבית אביך – “From your father’s house”. This teaches that we shouldn't think that if our father would have been great tzadik then we would be better people. If our father is a great tzadik, we shouldn't think that we can just rely on our yichus.

אל הארץ אשר אראך – “To the land that I will show you”. Hashem will guide us where to go. We can't change what happened in the past, but we can put in effort to improve the future. The main thing is for everyone to know that they can reach their greatest potential no matter where we come from and no matter where we live.

"The soul rejoices with its companion"

2010-10-15T06:36:00.000-04:00

Excerpt from Shabbos Secrets:

It is customary to sing zemiros during the Shabbos meals. The Baal Shem Tov explained it with a parable:

A royal prince was abducted and taken into captivity to a distant land, where he suffered greatly living among crude peasants. One day, a message from his father the king reached the prince in his place of confinement. He wanted to jump for joy, but he was afraid to show his hapiness to the coarse peasants around him. The prince came up with an idea. He treated everyone to wine and whiskey, and before long all the peasants were dancing, singing, and cavorting. This gave him the opportunity to dance for his own personal reason. The peasants danced for drunkenness, while he danced because of the message from his father.

On Shabbos the soul receives a message from Above - the neshoma yeseira. The soul wants to rejoice, but it is inhibited by the body which does not understand spiritual joy. Therefore the Torah decreed on Shabbos and Yom Tov the body should be treated to food and drink. The body can revel in physical pleasure, while the soul rejoices with its companion, the neshoma yeseira that came down from Heaven.

(Toldos Yaakov Yosef)

"I'm Sorry."

2010-10-14T04:30:00.009-04:00

Upon learning that his friend had just lost a loved one, Yossel tried to offer his condolences and sadly said, “I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?”, replied the friend, “Don’t you know that Hashem runs the world?”

Although the words, “I’m sorry” in this context are not said to apologize for the way that Hashem runs the world, perhaps they can be misinterpreted as such.

What then should one say when he hears this type of news from another person? Should he try to offer words of consolation, should he ask how the person is holding up, or should he just be silent?

I don’t think there is an answer to these questions. Death is always something that makes others uncomfortable.

A Compendium of Citations

2010-10-13T04:48:00.005-04:00

Shortly before Rosh Chodesh Elul last year, I concluded that the the best way to learn Chassidishe seforim was to start on the first page and not feel pressured to complete the section related to the parsha of the week. I removed the bookmark from my Degel Machaneh Ephraim and returned to the first page; slowly, slowly going through each paragraph until the time that it clicked in my mind. As I continue at this snail pace, I have found that sometimes I must review a paragraph numerous times before I am given a glimmer of understanding. Sometimes I remain on a short paragraph for days and only begin to understand it after toiveling in the mikva or reviewing on a Shabbos or yom tov.

Taking the cue from this new sefer, I have recently started making a compendium of the citations from Tanach, Midrash, Zohar, etc. that are noted in Degel Machaneh Ephraim. I am hoping that the process of putting together this compendium will increase my understanding and serve as a useful reference for this sefer that I regard as my lifelong companion.

A Guide for How We Say Them

2010-10-13T04:28:00.000-04:00

Kavanas HaBrachos - Rabbi Daniel Frisch

The Bus Driver's "Mesiras Nefesh"

2010-10-12T09:14:00.011-04:00

At the beginning of the summer, the bus driver turned around to look at me and said,

"I want to let you know this is the last day I will be the driver for this route. Tomorrow, I will be transferring to a route this is closer to where I live. I am psyched because now that this warm weather is here, I will be able to get out on my motorcycle more often!"

"Do you ride on the highway or on a track?," I asked.

"On a track. But right now my bike is in the shop and I will have a $4000 bill to pay when it is ready", he replied.

"$4000!? Can't you buy a motorcycle for that much", I inquired.

"Yes, however, I have a specialized racing bike and I am having something added to it so it can accelerate from 0 to 60 in just seconds", he responded.

When I asked him what the top speed he had reached on his motorcycle, he said he had once reached 240 miles per hour racing on a track. The bus driver then proceeded to tell me the story of an accident he had one day racing,

"I was going about 100 miles per hour and all of a sudden I hit something on the track and went flying over my handlebars. My leather racing suit protected me from skin lacerations, yet I suffered from a number of broken bones all over my body. I picked myself up and went to inspect the condition of my bike. Looking down at the ground, I noticed a trail of red circles. Just then, one of my buddies came over, put his hand on my shoulder and said, 'Hey man, I think you better sit down'.

I looked down and realized that my left foot had been completely severed off and that the red circles were made when I was walking with the bloody stump where my left foot had once been. My first thought though was, 'Is my bike ok?'.

I had my friend go over and take a look. Inside the wreckage of my bike, my friend discovered my severed foot. He immediately called an ambulance and at the hospital the doctors were able to reattach my foot to my leg with the help of titanium rod. Afterwards, I had to endure weeks of physical therapy. That was the most painful part!"

"After all of this you are still riding your motorcycle?", I asked.

"Nothing can keep me away. I just love riding my bike!", he responded.

"You are telling me that you lost a foot and had to have it put back on and your only thought was getting back on your bike?", I asked once again.

"Man, that's nothing, my friend. There is a guy in my racing team who was in a coma for 12 years after an accident and now he is back on his bike racing alongside me!!", he responded.

As I got off the bus that morning, I realized that this conversation raised an important question that everyone should honestly ask themselves:

Do I have an equal amount of determination in my avodas Hashem as this bus driver has for riding his motorcycle?

Who They Should Accept

2010-10-11T06:39:00.001-04:00

Kehal Chassidim:

The holy Rebbe Elimelech of Lizhensk, author of the Noam Elimelech, told his students when they asked him who they should accept as Rebbe to go to the Degel, the Baal Shem Tov's grandson, author of the Degel Machaneh Ephraim.

Study of the evolution of a Chassidic Tale

The Minhag of Smelling Spices and Hadasim on Erev Shabbos

2010-10-08T04:55:00.000-04:00

Excerpt from Law and Custom in Hasidism:

There were tzadikim who had the custom of reciting blessings on smelling spices and hadasim (myrtle leaves) before they made kiddush on Friday night. The source of this custom is in the Talmud (Shabbos 118b), which relates the story of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai who saw an old man running with two myrtle twigs. Rabbi Shimon asked him, "What is the purpose of these?" The man replied, "In honor of Shabbos."

"Wouldn't one be enough?" The man answered, "One represents zachor and the other represents shamor." (In the first listing of the Ten Commandements, in Yisro, the Torah states, "Remember -zachor - Shabbos to keep it holy," while in the second listing, in Va'eschanan, it states, "Observe - shamor - Shabbos to keep it holy.") The kabbalists regard this minhag as being a very important one, based on Kabbalah (Chemdas HaYamim I:41c).

Gerim & Chassidus

2010-10-07T07:30:00.001-04:00

Special Request for Personal Stories

Infantile Evasions

2010-10-07T02:58:00.000-04:00

As a father with small children, I have noticed that there is a manner of argumentation which is used by both children and adults alike.

For example, if a child spills out a toy box all over the living room floor it is a reasonable request on our part to ask our child to clean it up. Invariably, the child will resist doing do so and then claim that they cannot do so because their brother or sister is not helping them either. This is the famous old line, “But he or she isn’t doing it!”

Although this line of argumentation is known as “infantile evasion”, it persists into adulthood. Many of us don’t seem to outgrow using it. You may have even heard it this week in the office when a boss asked one of your co-workers to perform some task and was subsequently fought tooth and nail in your co-worker’s attempt to get out of it.

Or, you may even have heard it outside the office in relation to a person’s rationalization why this or that mitzva was not required of them because “he or she isn’t doing it.”

When we stop for a second and analyze this, I think most people would agree that it is an invalid argument for both children and adults to use. After all, if we are directed to do something, what does it matter what another person is or isn’t doing?

Avraham Avinu was the first person to understand that what another person was or wasn’t doing simply didn’t matter.

Of Avraham, it is said, “Avraham was one”. What this means is that Avraham served Hashem as if he was the only person in the world. Avraham knew what needed to be done and did it despite the fact that his generation was full of those who diverged from doing Hashem’s will and those who outright opposed him.

Avraham, in essence, provided us with the roadmap of how to approach our Yiddishkeit with simplicity. Just as he served Hashem as if he was the only one, so too should we.

Too often our personal growth is hindered by the nagging voice in our head that tells us “You don’t have to that! Afterall, he or she isn’t doing it. Don’t you know that we are living in ---- and not in Meah Shearim?” Yet, as we said before, this isn’t a valid argument. It has nothing to do with us and what we have been directed to do.

So, when approaching each mitzvah, we need to honestly ask ourselves just two questions:

1) Is there a G-d who created and continues to run the world?
2) Did G-d give the Jewish people the Torah and command me to do this mitzvah?

If the answer to these two questions is yes, we then have only two recourses:

1) Do the mitzvah, or
2) Daven that we be able to do it since our present circumstances prevent us from doing so.

If we use any other line of argumentation we are simply skirting the issue.

As Tishrei Departs

2010-10-06T09:40:00.005-04:00

What new practice or mitzva did you take upon yourself during Tishrei? How do you plan to make 5771 any different than the year before?

Starting From The Beginning

2010-10-06T06:31:00.001-04:00

Excerpt from an e-mail:

"In my experience people who learn seforim according to the parsha seldom if ever finish them. It is my humble opinion that to understand any sefer you need to have the whole picture if front of you. As the Gemara says "Torah teachings are poor in places and rich in other." This is specially true of the early Chassidishe seforim where the authors keep sending you to earlier or later references."

Why am I a "Weekday Vegetarian"?

2010-10-05T06:49:00.002-04:00

Why am I a "weekday vegetarian" (i.e. a person who only eats meat on Shabbos and Yom Tov)?

This is a question that doesn't have a simple answer. If I refrained from eating meat solely for "ethical reasons", then I certainly could not justify eating meat on Shabbos and Yom Tov.

I am a weekday vegetarian primarily as an attempt to eat in a more refined manner; as a reminder that eating should be done for the sake of the soul and not just to fulfill the cravings of the body.

It is taught that a person is able to elevate and extract the sparks of holiness found within the food he eats by ensuring that is food is kosher and by saying blessings with concentration before and after partaking of the food. The actual process of eating separates the food's spiritual component and nourishes and strengthens the soul. That which cannot be elevated and refined is expelled from the body as waste.

Numerous Kabbalistic and Chassidic works teach that it is exceptionally difficult to properly elevate the holy sparks contained within meat because the true quality of meat is dependent upon the moral character of the shochet and the intentions that he has when slaughtering the animal..

While I can be confident that the pack of boneless chicken breasts that I purchase from the kosher butcher is indeed kosher, I can never know just how pious the shochet was or what was in his heart and mind at the moment he took this chicken's life.

This leads me to the question, "Who am I eating this chicken for?" Am I eating it to fulfill the craving of my body for the taste of meat, or am I eating it to strengthen my soul?

It is obvious that I can also eat for the sake of my soul by eating vegetables, grains, and fruits. So why must I eat this chicken? I would be dishonest if I did not acknowledge that I chose to eat chicken solely because my body desired the taste of chicken.

As a Jew who desires to put the needs of his soul above the needs of the body, I no longer chose to end the life of animal simply to fulfill a bodily craving and thus refrain from eating meat during weekdays.

Isn't it hypocritical, however, to sanction the death of animal to fulfill your bodily craving on Shabbos and Yom Tov? Death is death no matter what day of the week it is.

I don't dispute this last statement. However, Shabbos and Yom Tov are imbued with a quality that is not existent during regular weekday. The spiritual component of food eaten on Shabbos and Yom Tov does not need to be separated or refined because it is transformed into food that is completely spiritual; food that nourishes the soul alone.

On Shabbos and Yom Tov a person is supposed to eat foods that he enjoys eating as a way of celebrating the day. A person's bodily craving for meat is no longer just a bodily craving since the character of the food has been transformed into something that is purely spiritual. His bodily craving is now a spiritual craving. Meat, with all the issues surrounding it, becomes something that a person is permitted (and even required) to partake of because it serves to nourish the soul. Since the intrinsic holiness of Shabbos and Yom Tov spiritually elevates both the act of eating and the food we eat, the act of shechita becomes not just a concession, but an act that brings about eternal benefit to all concerned.

And it is for this reason that I permit myself to eat meat on these days.

Openings in the Darkness

2010-10-04T09:52:00.005-04:00

Over Sukkos, I found this piece in Kitzur Likutey Moharan I:9, that illuminates what I wrote about here.

"Even though he cannot pray at all because of the deep darkness that surrounds him, he should nevertheless be certain just to speak his words honestly, however low a level this may be. For example, he might say truthfully, "G-d, save me!" And even though he cannot even say that with appropriate enthusiasm and arousal, he should nevertheless force himself to at least say the words sincerely and simply, according to who he is. Then he will merit to see the openings in the darkness."

"Do His will as if it were your own will..."

2010-10-04T08:29:00.003-04:00

I woke up and left the sukkah at midnight one night during Chol HaMoed after feeling a light rain on my face. Yet, the very next day I ran five miles outside despite the fact that it still hadn't stopped raining.

In the midst of my run, I couldn't help but be struck by the thought of how easy it was for me to put aside the discomfort of the rain when I was engaged in something that represented "my" will.

Segula to Rectify Davening Without a Minyan

2010-09-28T14:04:00.002-04:00

The Lev Simcha of Ger says in the name of the Rebbe, Reb Simcha Bunim of Peshischa that davening properly with a minyan on Shmini Atzeres is a “tikkun” for the times one davened without a minyan and it raises up all the tefilos of the previous year, even those davened without a minyan.

Gematria In Vezos HaBrocha

2010-09-28T13:48:00.001-04:00

From an e-mail received from David Friedman:

Here are some fascinating remazim to the offsprings of the Baal Shem Tov's daughter, Udel.

The Baal Shem Tov named his daughter, אדל, which he said stood for the words, אש דת למו, at the beginning of וזאת הברכה (Devarim 33:2). She had two illustrious sons, Reb Moshe Chaim Ephraim, author of דגל מחנה אפרים, and the Rebbe, Reb Boruch’l of Mezhibuzh, whose teachings are found in ספר בוצינא דנהורא. She also had a daughter, Faiga, the mother of Reb Nachman of Breslov. The Degel Machaneh Ephraim on the posuk זה ספר תולדת אדם (Bereishis 5:1) says that ספר equals the gematria of שם – “name”. Based on this, the posuk can mean that the “name” contains the children of the person (תולדת אדם). The name אדל is the first letters of אש דת למו, which contains remazim to all of her children.

אש is equal to מוהר״ן, the term often used for Reb Nachman of Breslov. He also said that his אש - “fire" will burn till Moshiach comes.

אש bimilui, אלף שין, equals 471 – the gematria of דגל מחנה אפרים.

Also, 471 is equal to the gematria of רבי ברוכ׳ל with the kolel.

אש דת למו is equal to 781, the gematria of משה חיים אפרים.

781 is equal to ספר בוצינא דנהורא with the letters and kolel.

מו bimilui מם ואו, with the kolel, equals פיגא.

אדל bimilui אלף דלת למד, plus the letters and kolel, equals נחל נבע מקור חכמה.

The last letters of אש דת למו, which are שתו, equal 706 - the gematria of שלמה אפרים.

אש דת with the kolel also equals 706

706 is also equal to נחמן בר שמחה with the 3 words.

שתו bimilui שין תיו ואו with the kolel equals 790, the gematria of נחמן בר שמחה זי״ע.

The letters of אש דת למו in א״ת ב״ש are: תב קא כיפ – equal to 613.

"...and the rains from heaven were restrained"

2010-09-28T07:56:00.002-04:00

Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 135:10:

With regards to sleeping in the sukkah when it is raining, even a small amount of rain constitutes distress for sleeping, on account of which one may leave the sukkah. If he left the sukkah to his house because of the rain, and he lay down to sleep, and then the rain stopped, or he initially lay down to sleep in the house because of the rain and the rain stopped, we do not trouble him to return to the sukkah all night; rather, he may sleep in his house until morning.

Did I really mean what I said?

2010-09-27T07:41:00.002-04:00

How is Sukkos a logical continuation of Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur? Sukkos is a continuation in that it is the first opportunity to have my actions validate my words.

On Rosh Hashana, I pledged my allegiance to Hashem; proclaiming that He is my one and only King. On Yom Kippur, I spent the entire day in shul apologizing for all the times I did what I wanted to do rather than what He commanded me to do. I begged, I pleaded, I didn't eat or drink anything, hoping that I could convince Him that my words were indeed honest reflections of my true self.

And then just five days later, Hashem puts my true loyalty to the test on Sukkos with a variety of mitzvos that are both difficult to observe and to comprehend. He tests me to determine whether I will we put aside my personal sense of comfort and convenience to fulfill His will by eating, drinking, and even sleeping in the sukka. He tests my modern mind by asking me to perform a mitzva that is seemingly irrational; shaking a fruit, palm branch, and some twigs that are bundled together.

If I am honest with myself, I will acknowledge that my observance of the mitzvos of Sukkos provides a good barometer of my relationship to Hashem. How I approach these mitzvos reveals whether I am obediently following His commandments, or just serving Him out of habit and routine during the rest of the days of the year.

Seeing the Ushpizin

2010-09-22T13:18:00.002-04:00

I don't actually see the ushpizin, but I believe they are present in my sukkah. And believing is greater than seeing. Emuna itself creates a reality more powerful than anything perceived with the physical eye.

(Kotzker Rebbe)

"Most of the people are mistakenly lenient in this..."

2010-09-22T06:36:00.000-04:00

Yesod V’Shoresh Ha’avodah:

The second part of the commandment of “you shall dwell in the sukka” is to sleep in the sukka. Most of the people are mistakenly lenient in this.

This is a matter that is brought in the Mishna and Beraisa, that even a casual sleep is forbidden outside the sukka. Even though the Rema brings two reasons why we are lenient with sleeping in the sukka, certainly the first reason that he writes, because of the discomfort of the chill in cold climates, doesn’t apply in our country because it’s not that cold on Sukkos. It also doesn’t apply to those that have heaters and blankets.

Also the second reason he writes, that dwelling in the sukka should be the same as we do all year round doesn't apply for one taking a nap during the day. It also doesn’t apply to one who sleeps in his house at night alone. For the person who has even a little fear of Hashem in his heart, how is it possible to exempt oneself from a positive Torah commandment with these reasons?

How can one not be embarrassed and humiliated before his Creator? How can fear and dread not fall upon a person for the nullification of this positive commandment, when one sleeps even a casual nap outside the sukka?

וטהר לבנו לעבדך באמת

2010-09-21T07:25:00.000-04:00

Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year, and I just could not connect.

My whole life revolves around avodas Hashem, and I sat in shul for hours uninspired with the realization that I was allowing precious moments to escape. I tried to focus on just a few words in the Machzor: וטהר לבנו לעבדך באמת ("and purify our hearts to serve You in truth"). I repeated them over and over throughout the course of the day and hoped that Hashem would open my heart to Him before Yom Kippur was over.

....and I continued to sit there as the hours passed, and the sun began to descend.

Neila arrived and I was determined not to let Yom Kippur pass by as if it were just any other day. I put everything I had into my davening and once I reached the words וטהר לבנו לעבדך באמת tears suddenly began to fill my eyes. After two years, I experienced a feeling of Hashem's closeness that I had since longed to re-experience.

I left Yom Kippur this year reinvigorated; energized to face a new year of strengthening my connection to Him and energized to try to bring chizuk to His people.

New Breslov Center Website

2010-09-21T07:24:00.001-04:00

After many years of kind sponsorship and assistance from Nachal Novea Mekor Chochma, the umbrella organization of the Breslov community Tzefat, the Breslov Center for Spiritual Growth will no longer be using their server. Instead, the Breslov Center is recreating their website in blog format, with several pages linked on the sidebar—including the new "Solitude/Hisbodedus" archive of essays and translations. It will take time to complete the transfer, but the new site is already up and running:

http://breslovcenter.blogspot.com/

Many changes should take place during the next few weeks, as work on the site continues.

The Year That Passed, The Year That Is To Be

2010-09-20T11:11:00.002-04:00

"What is the mitzva I should concentrate on during 5770?", I asked the Sudilkover Rebbe.

The Rebbe paused and thought for sometime before responding, "Do you give ma'aser properly?"

"...well, I certainly give tzedaka throughout the course of the year...", I admitted.

With a look of disapproval, the Rebbe then said, "Every Jew gives tzedaka!!! What I am asking is whether you have a separate account devoted to for ma'aser."

To this, I admitted the truth: I did not. The Rebbe suggested that I review the halachos of ma'aser and set up a separate account for this purpose. He reminded me that the Torah says that a person will benefit financially from giving ma'aser and suggested that perhaps I would be able to work less as well.

Returning from this meeting with the Rebbe in Cheshvan 5770, I reviewed the halachos of ma'aser, calculated what my annual ma'aser amount would be, and opened a ma'aser account that included a function to automatically transfer a set amount from each paycheck into this account.

The results from my observance of the mitzva of ma'aser proved to be amazing. Within the course of the year, I received a substantial raise in salary and permission to work from home one day a week. This second benefit has aided me greatly in my avodas Hashem. Not only do I have more time during the week to learn, but I also have more time to devote to my book project. Looking back now, I realize that my observance of this mitzva helped create the nonexistent spare time that I was seeking last year.

Three days before Rosh Hashana this year, I was fortunate to meet with the Sudilkover Rebbe once again in Boro Park. I asked him what area in my avodas Hashem I needed to concentrate on during 5751 and also asked him some remaining questions that I had regarding my book project. I have since written up his responses pertaining to my book project and I hope to have a completed manuscript within the next month or two. The next stage will be to send the manuscript out to a number of people for their review and editorial comments before I approach a publisher.

G-d willing, I hope to be able to return to posting here on a more frequent basis and perhaps one day even announce the release of my book on this site.

Nonexistent Free Time

2009-10-22T07:45:00.001-04:00

I have been working diligently on my new project over the past two weeks since the time of my last posting. Even though I am waking up an hour and half before going to work each morning, I have found that I still don’t have as much time as I would like to. I devote the first hour to my daily learning seder and the last half hour to working on this project. While occasionally I am able to find small amounts of “free time” here and there throughout the course of the day, for the most part I am limited to just 30 minutes a day.

Yesterday, I was zoche to speak with Rabbi Tal Zwecker on the phone for the first time. In the course of our conversation, Rabbi Zwecker related to me how he had completed his translation of Noam Elimelech in his "nonexistent free time". Hearing this was a tremendous chizuk to me and also a reminder of the words of the Piaceszna Rebbe:

If you are willing to exert yourself, you will find storehouses of hidden time.

The New Tactics Of My "Holy" Yetzer Hara

2009-10-06T07:39:00.001-04:00

My yetzer hara let me enjoy a few days of unbridled enthusiasm and energy as I started my new project before he unleashed his latest campaign against me. Understanding that I usually see him coming a mile away, this time he decided to approach me with an ingenious new guise; instead of attempting to stop me, he tries to shove me forward.

When I am davening, he will lean over and whisper a new citation from a sefer that I should immediately go look up. When I am learning, he will encourage me to put aside all the seforim that make up my daily learning seder and devote myself solely to my new project since working on it can also be considered as "learning". When I am at work, he tells me that I should ignore all the "profane" tasks assigned to me and use the time to work only on my "holy" project.

It has taken me a few days to finally understand that the "whispers" I was hearing did not originate from my yetzer tov. I resolved to push these whispers out of my head with both hands and to focus fully on whatever I was engaged in at the moment.

With Hashem's help, by doing this I will be successful and proceed with my project with the proper perspective.

Sitting In The Plate

2009-10-06T07:18:00.003-04:00

Excerpt from Opening the Tanya:

It is told of the Saba Kadisha of Radoshitz that in his youth before he became rebbe, he was terribly poor and often had nothing to eat. One year, after he had eaten nothing from Yom Kippur to the day before Sukkos, his wife sold a jewel she had and bought candles, challah, and potatoes for the festival. When he saw the candles and challah on his return from the synagogue, he was very happy, recited the Kiddush, washed his hands, and sat down to eat. Being very hungry, he ate ravenously, until he stopped and said to himself: “Berl, you are not sitting in the sukkah but in the plate!”

Someone can be tending to the most basic needs of his body and with conscious intent be observing the mitzvah of eating in the sukkah, yet still be sitting in the dish and not in the mitzvah.

Eizer L'Shabbos - Sukkos Campaign

2009-10-01T19:19:00.003-04:00

Secure online donations may be sent via the Eizer L'Shabbos website here.

New Book Releases From Breslov Research Institute

2009-10-01T11:19:00.010-04:00

Rebbe Nachman and the Knights of the Rosh HaShanah Table

The Fiftieth Gate: Likutey Tefilot - Volume 3

What Is Going On Behind The Scenes?

2009-09-30T14:49:00.003-04:00

On Erev Yom Kippur, after receiving the Sudilkover Rebbe’s brocha, I began to devote the majority of my “free time” to a new project that I pray will serve as a great source of chizuk to others.

The more that I work on this project, the more my ratzon to complete it increases. Unfortunately, with this increased ratzon, my ratzon to continue blogging has decreased. I honestly believe that the whole purpose of my “A Simple Jew” blog was to develop my knowledge, writing skills, and contact network to the point where I could take on this new project. In a sense, my last five years of blogging has served as a springboard for this project.

I certainly do not intend to pull the plug on my blog with this posting; just to inform my readers why my postings have been more sparse recently.

Guest Posting By Rabbi Perets Auerbach - “In the Wilderness”

2009-09-29T04:30:00.000-04:00

(Picture by P. Gillet)

“Bamidbar” (“in the wilderness”) is the name of an entire book of the Chumash (Pentateuch). The Torah was given specifically in a wilderness, away from civilization. Fields, forests, and mountains share this quality, but each one has its special nuance that makes the practice of hitbodedut in it have a unique taste.

“For Dovid, in the wilderness of Yehudah” (Psalms 63:1). “If only I had wings, I would distance... I would stay over in the wilderness, selah” (ibid. 55:8). Dovid HaMelech wandered through the wilderness expressing his longing for God in hitbodedut. What is its special quality?

The city at night is empty after a day of the masses pursuing materialism. Their “somethingness (yeshut)” is embedded in the sidewalk and lingers on. Fields, valleys, and forests are full even at night with sparks, light, and souls in the grass, trees, and flowers. The unique quality of the wilderness is that it is devoid of all of this. It is accordingly the best setting in which to attain bitul (nullification of ego). With not even positive energetic distractions, one is left to dig within and face himself. From this to nullify ego and sprout, flower, and blossom from amidst surrounding desolation into inclusion in the Ein Sof (Infinite One). Dovid HaMelech appreciated this so much that he was happy to abandon his royal accommodations in order to have the special Divine communion that only the ‘unfriendly’ wilderness provides.

In Rabbi Nachman’s story, “The Lost Princess,” the Viceroy follows a side-path through forests, fields, and wildernesses in search of the Lost Princess. Tefilah (prayer) is a quest of searching for the Shechinah (Divine Presence), which represents the sefirah of Malchut (“Kingship”). It catapults the soul to Keter (“Crown”), the ultimate source of Malchut.

“Triple-header.” Keter expresses through three heads: RaD”LA (“Unknowable Head”), Atik (“Primordial One”), and Arich Anpin (“Vast Countenance”). Arich, from which arises our deepest feeling of yearning, is called the “root of the emanated.” One connects to it through yearning – through “tree-hitbodedut” in the forest. Atik, which is the root of delight (oneg), is the “end of the Supernal Emanator.” One links to it through meditation in the delightful “field of holy apples” (another symbol for the sefirah of Malchut/Kingship). RaD”LA, which is related to bitul, remains aloof. One accesses it through hitbodedut in the wilderness–the place of complete ego-nullification.

The seder ha-hishtalshelut is the order of the worlds. The Divine flow is transmitted below through this order. In Rabbi Nachman’s story, the Master of Prayer would entice people to leave material pursuits and go after spirituality. He would take them out of civilization. Civilization is a metaphor for the seder ha-hishtalshelut. The ultimate meaning of taking them “outside of civilization” is that he would take them outside the seder ha-hishtalshelut. They would beat the system. “Mesirat nefesh iz gohr andererish—giving up one’s life is something completely different.” That is, one who puts his entire self into spiritual pursuit and gives everything for it accesses the light that surrounds all worlds. This light jumps past the order (hishtalshelut) and is a direct gift from God, coming without any intermediaries. It affords special closeness. It is reserved for those who are totally dedicated.

--
From Rabbi Perets Auerbach’s “The Science, Art and Heart of Hitbodedut.” This work-in-progress may be purchased by contacting the author by email: peretsz@gmail.com.

5770 = שְׁעַת

2009-09-24T07:03:00.000-04:00

Last night, the Sudilkover Rebbe told me that 5770 (תש"ע) will a year in which Hashem will express His rachamim (compassion) and ratzon (desire). He explained that this is hinted to in the fact that the letters that make up this year תש"ע can be rearranged into the word שְׁעַת that is found in the tefilla of Avinu Malkeinu:

אָבִינוּ מַלְכֵּנוּ תְּהֵא הַשָּׁעָה הַזּאת שְׁעַת רַחֲמִים וְעֵת רָצון מִלְּפָנֶיךָ

Without Understanding - Selichos

2009-09-24T07:02:00.000-04:00

I understand very little of what I am saying with the Selichos that I recite each morning. As I am saying them, one part of me tells me that my time would be better spent if I recited the entire Sefer Tehillim that day instead. Yet, I know that saying Selichos during this time period is what I am supposed to do and that avoda that I am supposed to engage in.

Ultimately, it is not about what "I" want to do, rather what Hashem wants me to do that is important.

Rabbi Itche Meyer Morgenstern: Explorations In Tanya

2009-09-23T04:30:00.000-04:00

“I speak, however, of those who know me well...”

As explained earlier, any person who believes in the holiness of the tzaddik has a connection to him and these words are meant for him. It is especially clear that one is a student of the Baal HaTanya if he feels the deep G-dly light that is imbued in his works. One who grasps the inner holiness of Torah without love, fear, and dveikus through the Da’as afforded by this holy work can be sure that his soul is deeply connected to the author.

The fact that the Baal HaTanya reveals a dual path of entering the avodah of toiling in serving Hashem while at the same time feeling the light of the unity of Hashem is alluded to in the Baal HaTanya’s name, שני-אור, which can also be read as “two lights” or a dual illumination. Of course, when the Tanya discusses the aspect of toil, this is also included in the light of the yichud.

On a simple level, the Baal HaTanya wrote in his great humility that this was merely a work for those who were close to him. But on a deeper level, this is because there are some great souls who do not follow the path of the Baal HaTanya. Rav Avraham Kalisker did not hold like the Baal HaTanya, for example. In addition, the entire path of Slonim in Chassidus is not like the way of the Baal HaTanya. Many great luminaries held that the Baal HaTanya was mistaken. These greats argued on the entire pathway of revealing the depths of Torah in this manner, even citing as proof that the Maggid had taught that the Mishnah that one whose wisdom exceeds his deeds ultimately loses his wisdom also refers to developing too much Chochmah in Chassidus.

This opinion is the path of those neshamos that are rooted in judgment, such as the Be’er Mayim Chaim, a student of the Maggid of Zlotchov who was also rooted in judgment. [Rav Michel Zlotchover died while singing a melody of his own composition during the third meal of Shabbos.] He explained the Talmudic dictum that one who does not understand the laws of divorce and marriage should not administer them metaphorically. One must first master the subject of “divorce,” that is how to distance evil, before one can focus on doing good.

Of course, these are completely valid paths in avodas Hashem, since they hold that a person first build his spiritual level before focusing on understanding the depths of Torah. According to these greats, one should only learn that which is really suited to him. But the focus of the Baal HaTanya—like Beis Hillel explained above—is to shine the light of G-dliness into a person even if he is still in an aspect of mochin d’katnus, of immature and constricted consciousness. The reason for this is similar to the Talmudic axiom that a little light dispels a great deal of darkness. This path of teaching wisdom even to small neshamos is rooted in the side of Chessed.

אתה

2009-09-21T08:41:00.002-04:00

I have resolved that this one word, comprised of just three letters, is going to be the focus of my avodas Hashem for 5770. I have rushed over the word אתה so many times, whether it was in the siddur, machzor, Tehillim, or in the brochos that I say each day, that it is questionable whether my davening at times was truly davening or just the rote recitation of some Hebrew formulaic phrases.

Beginning with the new year, I have made it a practice to slow down anytime I encounter this word and ensure that I am directing my thoughts and speech to the Ribbono shel Olam. It is my sincere hope that by doing this that my kavana and deveykus will increase significantly over the course of the next year; allowing me to come even just a small step closer to shleimus hatefilla (perfected prayer).

Please Help Eizer L'Shabbos Before Rosh Hashana

2009-09-17T19:34:00.005-04:00

Secure online donations may be sent via the Eizer L'Shabbos website here.

Guest Posting By Michoel - Tikkun Yuck

2009-09-15T11:23:00.000-04:00

There is an old minhag to have a rosh keves (ram's head) on the table on the first night of Rosh Hashana and to say the yehi ratzon when we eat from it. In the US, the very prevalent minhag is to be yotzei with a fish head, for those that even do all the simanim. I was surprised to hear recently from a friend that the only siman he does is the tapuach with d’vash and he says that he thinks most people do only that. Feh! We go all out. My wife was m’chadesh a few recipes that she only makes Rosh Hashana for the purpose of saying yehi ratzon’s on them and we say them with hislavus.

Anyway, the highlight of our tish is a Rosh Keves. I started buying one soon after we had children. My original impetus was simply that I wanted to keep the minhag in the most authentic way. Being a baal t’shuvah, I didn’t really have a mesora one way or the other so we took on this minhag (bli neder). But another kavana in buying it is what I call Tikkun Yuck. (it has nothing to do with Rebbi Nachman zt”l). Tikkun Yuck has to do with purging “Yuck” from my kids (and my own) personalities. Yuck is an American musag that I consider antithetical to true Yiddishkeit. We don’t kasher beef, we don’t work the land, we don’t even see blood on chickens that often. We sit in front of our PC screens and live highly sanitized lives. I consider it spiritually unhealthful. We should be in touch with ourselves and the world around us. We shouldn’t be so terrified of getting dirty and doing hard physical work. There is something about seeing the head of an animal sitting there on the table, with empty eye sockets, buck teeth, skull showing and gooey membranes that stretch out when you pull off a piece with your fork, that helps straighten out a person’s thinking.

There is another aspect of modern America that I am trying to fix in my kids. It is the perverted idea that killing animals for food is not nice. What shtus! And this ties into all the other nicey-nice wacky hashkafos that leak into the frum community. I want to get across to my kids and myself that we need not be so hypersensitive. We need to live with a little azus d’k’dusha. Animals are here for us to use al pi Torah. An Ish is an Ish, A Yid is a Yid, v’chulu, v’chulu. I don’t want my kids to be wimpy Jews. And the severed head of an animal, something that was commonplace in earlier times, helps to knock out some of that hypersensitivity.

In days before Yom Tov, our very frum block becomes something of a carnival. One family with a fig tree has their kids running around giving all the neighbors fresh figs to make a she’hechiaynu on, wives borrowing last minute cooking items from each other, some people beginning to put up their succos. So in the middle of all this, our rosh keves has become one of the central “tourist attractions”. Kids from the block know that they can come in and chop a peek at “the head”.

So far I am not certain that my tikkun yuck is actually accomplishing what I intended. My kids seem more or less on the same level in these inyanim as their friends. I am not even sure that it is accomplishing what I want in myself and my wife. But one thing I do know for sure. It’s geshmack.

A chasiva v’chasima tova by the blog owner, readership and all the Yidden.

Guest Posting By Rabbi Y.Y. Bar-Chaiim - Beyond Satan

2009-09-14T04:10:00.003-04:00

“We blow the Shofar for an entire month before Rosh Hashana– right?” I asked the kids, with a suspicious twinkle, during one pre-Rosh HaShana Shabbos meal.

"Na-uh!" a few quickly corrected me, glad to catch my all too typical mistake from the outset.

“Alright, alright" I groan, pretending to mope for losing that round. "So we blow it every weekday morning throughout the month of Elul and then, on the last day, suddenly stop. WHY is that?”

“Oh, that’s eeeasy,” squeal all five in unified, contagious enthusiasm as they vie for getting first shot at the answer.

“Okay sweetheart,” I say to my seven-year-old girl, getting her all excited to become the leader of the pack.

“Because we want to m'arbev es HaSatan,” she bellows triumphantly, quoting a famous statement from the Sages. It means to mix-up the force of evil.

“Very nice. Now, how does that actually work?" I surprise them with my determination to get to the bottom of this fairytale-ish tradition.

“OH, OH... I KNOW!”

I nod to my pensive looking ten-year-old son.

“Well, when we blow the Shofar we’re trying to arouse ourselves do t’shuva (spiritual return; repentance), and so the Satan becomes worried that we just might succeed!"

"Yes, yes, go on…"

"Well, eh, I mean, when he sees us get all this help then he works exxxxtra hard at distracting us. But when we stop with that help, then he loses interest.”

“Aha. I see. Pretty good," I respond, pedantically. Then, after noting that they're thoroughly off their intellectual guards, I zoom in for the jugular. "So tell me, kids: We do this every year. Doesn’t he ever catch on?!”

Giggle, giggle, giggle.

“Nu, Dovidy. What do you think?”

My youngest, our sweet little five-year-old, scrunches up his face and ponders. “Mmm, ummm. Well... eh… that’s just how Hashem MAKES him!”

The giggles now become loud chuckles. They apparently like the idea of the big bad guy a buffoon.

“What do you mean, Dovidl? Hashem makes His k'neged (adversary) stupid?!”

“No, NO!” he fervently protests.

The entire family now bursts out in laughter. Not at but with him. He's so right. How dare we flaunt our faith when there are real forces out there bent on puncturing it. At the same time I've got a very real and holy agenda brewing here. My kids must understand that Torah life is not some sort of mythical mumbo jumbo about one-upping a nefarious other.

"Okay, okay. So let’s try again. What I'm asking is that if there's really a big bad guy out to get us, why doesn't he catch on that every year we trick him the same way?

Our little yiddle now straightens up, determined to meet the challenge:

“Isn't it, like, well, with all malachim (heavenly messengers), that he can only do one thing at a time?"

"Yes, I guess so …"

"So maybe Hashem made him so that he can only hurt us when we blow the Shofar but he has nothing to do when we're not blowing it. It's not that he's stupid but bored! That's why we have to be extra careful when we sneak it in on the chag (holy day) to do it just at the right time, fast and good, because if he gets re-interested before we're finished he's gonna really hurt us!”

Whew. The laughter has subsided. The kid is talking straight.

“Alright, Dovidy," I finally respond. "That makes a lot of sense. But now I’ve got a really BIG kasha (query)............ ready?”

All eyes are riveted. The motors of curiosity are revved up as I'm finding myself feeling nice and proud about having successfully prepared my kids to learn the unvarnished, anticlimactic halachic (legal) truth that the "real" reason not to blow on Erev Rosh Hashana is in order to distinguish between tekios d'reshus u'd'chova, blasts that are optional and those that are obligatory (Shulchan Aruch 581:3).

“If the main thing the evil one’s looking for," I now sing out with a rabbinic lilt and upturned thumb," is to keep us from doing tshuva upon hearing the loud cry of the shofar, and the whole point about diverting his attention before Judgment Day is to hush up our tshuva… well then, what on earth are we doing crying out, with all our might, the longest Slichos (supplication prayers) of the year on that day?!"

Ha. Got 'em!

My ten-year-old girl, the twin of the pensive son, suddenly rockets up her hand. She seems oddly calm. There's an eerie energy emanating from within her, as if I can't NOT call on her. In all honesty, though, I'd rather not. I'm afraid she's going to spoil my fun…

“Well, it's really quite simple," she begins, on her own initiative. "It’s like having two kids. They each want to give a present to their Abba. The first saves all her pennies and buys him a nice pen. The second takes a pencil and paper and draws him a picture. Nothing particularly outstanding. But it’s from her heart. Which do you think he’ll like best?”

“Hmm. Okay, let me guess," I offer indulgently. "The Abba would like both, equally. Because everyone gave what he could."

“NO!” she bellows emphatically, barely concealing her holy glee. “The Abba will appreciate the second one most. Know why?"

Well, quite frankly – no.

"I'll tell you. Because the first, as nice as it is, can never be something he couldn’t get himself. But the second comes purely from the heart. Nothing on the outside to speak of; just a desire to say ‘I love you’. That’s a gift he could NEVER get on his own! So, too, the shofar and Slichos. The shofar is the pen and Slichos is the drawing…"

Pshhhhhhh.

I'm blown away. Literally speechless. All the kids notice and smile from ear to ear. They beat Abba at his game! In the meantime I keep staring at this little chachama (sage) to see if she’s serious.

She is!

UNbelievable.

I jump up and give her the biggest hug. She has done exactly what she was speaking about: given her Abba a tremendous gift!

Ever since then, for about ten years now (the picture above is of "little" Dovidy this year), this truth has perennially impressed me; haunting in its beauty, shaming in its simplicity. This year, however, in light of my delving into a couple of related halachos, the message has sunk in especially deep.

For one, the Rema brings down that those whose custom is to fast a combination of ten days in preparation for Yom Kippur (starting on the first day of Slichos and skipping over the two days of Rosh Hashana and Shabbos) should begin it from the time they sleep until the end of the day except on Erev Rosh Hashana – which should begin only from alos ha'shachar, dawn. That is, they should get up before dawn and drink something. The reason, says the Rema, is in order to not imitate chukkas ha'amim, the superstitious ways of the nations who make a point of doing major fasts before their holy days. Furthermore, such pietists shouldn't worry about making up the lost fast-hours; this one duly qualifies as a whole fast (Haga on Shulchan Aruch 581:2, and commentaries).

The second halachic issue is with the Mishna Berura which informs us that the prohibition against shofar blowing on Erev Rosh Hashana does not apply to individuals who need to practice for tekios d'chova. Nevertheless, in deference to the tradition about the Satan, we should refrain from practicing in the synagogue, and some say it should only be within a closed room (Mishna Berura 582: 3, s.k. 24).

Now I ask – could it be that the all-threatening Accuser doesn't see behind closed doors?? And if we're serious about preventing him from making a case against our superficial tshuva, what in the world are we doing legislating a partial fast as a substitute for a full one??

Indeed. The point is that genuine tshuva is not dependent on external actions, whatsoever. Neither the tekios nor the fasts nor any other behavioral mitzvahs are going to do it – no matter how long and loud. Their job is merely to prepare us; indispensably so, but still mere preparation for something that must occur deep inside.

It's called tshuva pnimi, inner repentance; the kind that produces a unique divine gift – a "drawing" straight from the heart.

Slichos, especially on Erev Rosh Hashana, is one of the segulos, blessed means we have for entering that straight-hearted, divine gift world. When we do so, our Father above undoubtedly responds with the greatest of Hugs. And when we respond to that Hug – UNbelievable! – in there lies our salvation. As the Psamist says and we repeat twice daily throughout the holyday season (Psalm 27): "Hashem is my light and my salvation, from whom shall I fear?"

My light = that Hug.

My salvation = the hug we give back.

The "whom" we shall no longer fear = the big bad guy.

Rabbi Itche Meyer Morgenstern: Traveling To A Tzaddik

2009-09-11T08:12:00.002-04:00

Rebbe Nachman writes in Likutei Moharan: “Know that one must travel to the tzaddik to seek what he has lost. Before a person enters the world, he is shown and taught everything he needs to do in his Divine serve and everything that he must grasp during his sojourn in this world. But the moment he enters the atmosphere of this world he immediately forgets everything. Now, forgetting is an aspect of a lost object, as we see from the way our sages describe a forgetful person: ‘Quick to hear and quick to lose.’ It is our task to search for what we have mislaid. The tzaddik of the generation searches for what he has lost until he finds it. He then begins to search out what others have mislaid and finds their ‘lost objects’ as well. For this reason one must go to the wise man to search for and recognize what he has lost so that he can recover it.

“However, the tzaddik does not restore lost objects to their claimant until he checks the seeker to ensure that he is not a lying trickster. As our sages learn from the verse: 'עַד דְּרֹשׁ אָחִיךָ אֹתוֹ, וַהֲשֵׁבֹתוֹ לוֹ'—“And [the object] shall be with you until your brother require it [literally, ‘until you investigate your brother’] and you shall restore it to him’—the object will remain with you until you have checked carefully to ensure that your brother is not a fraud.’”

The meaning of Rebbe Nachman’s words is that every Jew comes to the world to prepare and grasp his proper spiritual inheritance through serving Hashem. But since he lost what he was taught [in the womb, and even later; that is, his spiritual direction and deep connection, it is as though he had lost] a part of his neshamah. But he can recover it by going to the tzaddik. However, the tzaddik can only restore what each person has lost in accordance with how connected he is to the tzaddik. One can only connect to the tzaddik inasmuch as he sanctifies his limbs and sinews. When a person is not careful to sanctify himself, he is filled with doubts about the tzaddik until he [either does teshuvah or] incites controversy against the tzaddik. [Of course, this takes time and there are many levels to sanctifying oneself, but at the very least one must wish to attain holiness with his entire heart. As Rebbe Nachman writes, if one yearns to be “absorbed” by the holiness of the tzaddik he will merit this, but if not then he is not truly close to the tzaddik.

Guest Posting By Chabakuk Elisha - Ratzo V'Shov To Lubavitch

2009-09-08T04:30:00.005-04:00

A hirhur teshuva is a common thing; it’s that feeling that I should improve and stop doing what I know is wrong. We all have them, but what’s interesting is that they’re selective – there are many things that I don’t feel the slightest bit guilty about while other things I am consciously regretful for. For example, it’s a universally accepted halacha, cited by the Beis Yosef and the Rema, that we must never go a moment without a conscious recognition of G-d’s presence. Yet, I dare say that a very high percentage of religious people have moments that pass without this conscious focus on Hashem – and nevertheless there is seldom a hirhur teshuva for this. The reason is simply because this is something that we consider beyond us.

There is little regret for things that we don’t think we can do – each person on their own level. One person may feel terrible that he didn’t go to shul on Yom Kippur, but it doesn’t bother him that he doesn’t keep Shabbos – because to him attending shul on Yom Kippur is something that he knows he can do, while keeping Shabbos is something that he can’t imagine; it’s beyond him. Someone else may feel guilty for speaking during davening, but he isn’t heartbroken that he transgresses the issur of bittul Torah many times throughout the day. There are things we don’t even consider possible, so they don’t show up on the hirhur teshuva radar.

So what does get the teshuva bells ringing? Things that we know we can achieve. In fact, anything that we feel a hirhur teshuva for is, by definition, something that we can definitely achieve. We know it – that’s why we feel remorse. It’s a simple truth that if we are remorseful then it’s clearly within our conscious ability to achieve, and therefore, with this knowledge we should feel empowered to overcome the obstacles that we place in front of ourselves to improving. We just need to employ that empowerment and we’re most of the way there – and I’ll tell you what I mean:

A Simple Jew asked me why it was that I left and returned to Lubavitch. It’s hard to answer such a question, because the answer is only going to focus on specific elements, when, in truth, there are always many reasons why things happen or develop – but I’ll try anyway. Life is a journey – no doubt about it – and while we weave in and out of traffic, we’re homeward bound; the question is: Where is home?

I grew up with a Lubavitcher identity – we davened in a Chabad shul; I attended a Chabad Cheder, came to the Rebbe, learned some Chabad Chassidus, etc. But in my teenage years I drifted away from Chabad and joined a different group, becoming a chossid of a different Rebbe. It was around 1990, and for various reasons Lubavitch had lost its appeal to me. I felt this strange feeling that by moving away from Chabad I had joined the rest of Klal Yisroel – probably because in Lubavitch there was a strong “us vs. them” mentality that created a sense of exclusiveness and isolation. In many ways it was like a breath of fresh air, and I still remember the feeling. Everything seemed new and exciting – the different attitudes, pronunciations, minhagim, stories, histories, clothing, ideas, points of view, you name it. I had joined a small group and I enjoyed it. My friends and peers were great there; the community was very appealing and the Rebbe was a very special man – what more could you ask for?!

Time passed and things became stale. I got married and struggled. Sure, the people were great; the Rebbe was special; the community nice. But I couldn’t help but be bothered by this little voice that gave me no rest – it continuously whispered in the recesses of my brain, “Is this all there is? Shouldn’t there be something more? I grew a more demoralized and more cynical as time went on. I moved away and was going about my life very much in tune with a bumper-sticker that I once saw: “Life is what happens while you’re busy doing other things.”

I had fully realized that I was going nowhere; even worse, I didn’t even think I was capable of getting anywhere. I felt that, although I was in my early twenties, I would never be able to “be a contender.” Everyone else seemed to have a better head, everyone else knew more, everyone else was more successful, they were better husbands, they were better people, they were more inspired, they were more ‘tuned in.” Me? Well, I was a living dead man on a road to nowhere.

By this time I had two children. I really had remorse – I didn’t think I was capable of doing anything meaningful with my life in the first place. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t wallowing in self-pity or anything like that – I was just out of the running. But one day I said to myself that I have to do something about the situation. I needed to at least try to have a relationship with G-d, and so I made a decision:

I decided to move back to New York and try to get into the fast lane; attend shiurim; daven more often with minyan; try to focus – to give it my all and see where it goes. I undertook to give it a year. For one year I would throw myself full-force into being the best Jew I could be. If by the end of the year I would feel that I was getting somewhere then I’d be a new man. But if at the end of the year I still felt like I had gotten nowhere, and felt no joy or relationship with Hashem, then obviously I wasn’t made of the material to make it and it’s simply not for me.

It wasn’t an easy year. I began with Rosh Hashana, but by Purim I still felt like I was putting in energy with no return. I made sure to stay the course and keep my commitment to try to “hear the music” but I was beginning to think that it wasn’t going to work – soon Pesach was on the horizon. Half a year had passed.

Now, it was about 7 years since I had left Lubavitch. I don’t know if I had even thought about Lubavitch for ages at that point. I was sitting there in my shul next to a friend of mine who liked Chabad and I asked him about something that had come up:

My boss had invited us to eat with his family for Acharon Shel Pesach. But, he said, I should be aware that they don’t eat gebrokhts (matza that comes in contact with a liquid) even on the last day. Now, as far as I knew, everybody ate gebrokhts on Acharon Shel Pesach, so I asked him why, and he said: “Because it’s illogical. If gebrokhts is a problem on Pesach, it should be equally avoided on the last day. So, while my parents and grandparents may have done so, I don’t – as you’re allowed to be stricter than your parents – so we added this chumra on our own.”

It didn’t sit well with me. I knew the general reasons why most people eat gebrokhts on the eighth day, but they weren’t compelling – something bothered me about this added chumra. So, there I was. I mentioned the matter to a friend of mine sitting there in shul, and he reached into his pocket and handed me a sicha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe that he had just been learning about this specific question. Aside from my amazement at this unlikely occurrence, I was excited by the analysis of the matter – and the message that the Rebbe emphasized in it, basically:

On Pesach we are being transformed from slaves to free men, and we begin on the lowest rung - the 49th level of impurity - with the goal of refining ourselves to the point where we can receive the Torah on Shavuos – and being as we are on that low level, we are at great risk of being damaged as we are still as yet unable to refine by leavened products, thus, we abstain from all chometz.

Gebrokhts is an added stringency – lifnei meshuras hadin – signifying our seriousness about avoiding the risk of chometz at this precarious time. However, once we reach Acharon Shel Pesach we have completed the first set of sefira (the sefira of chesed), and we’re out of the most serious danger. Now, while we outside of the land of Israel still must avoid chometz for another day, the risk is far lessened – therefore we eat Kosher L’Pesach food prepared in other people’s homes and lessen many of the added stringencies that were maintained until this point – as we are now more capable of elevating this food – and therefore gebrokhts is not the issue it was. And, what’s more, since we are capable of elevating this food, a sincere person is obligated to take part in this avoda – and not disregard this ability granted to us by G-d in completing our mission in this world.

The sicha hit me just right at the right time, and I was immediately overwhelmed by a deep desire to return to Chabad. From that day on I began to go through sicha after sicha, maamar after maamar and sefer after sefer of Chabad Chassidius. It didn’t take that long and I was a Lubavitcher again (albeit, perhaps not a typical one), and things very quickly began to change for me. I began to enjoy every mitzvah. Worlds opened up for me. A few minutes with a sefer became my greatest pleasure – It was like the lights went on. It was amazing to me that I had once felt so alienated and lost.

That was ages ago, almost 15 years, and while life still has its challenges, the empowerment and joy that Chabad gives me is what keeps me going. And while I know that all is not perfect in Lubavitch, nevertheless, as the saying goes: “Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like home.”

Rabbi Itche Meyer Morgenstern: Parshas Ki Savo

2009-09-04T04:30:00.001-04:00

The holy Zohar writes: “Who is the face of the Shechinah? Rashbi — Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai.” In Likutei Moharan, Rebbe Nachman writes — and Reb Nosson elaborates on this in Likutei Halachos — that one’s main spiritual work is to connect to true tzaddikim. This is actually just the fulfillment of the very beginning of Shulchan Aruch:"שויתי ה' לנגדי תמיד שהוא כלל גדול בתורה ובמעלת הצדיקים אשר הולכים לפני האלקים"—“’I have placed Hashem before me always’ is a fundamental principle of Torah and it is an essential element of the greatness of the tzaddikim who go before Hashem…” As the Gra explains it: "וזה כל מעלת הצדיקים" –““This is the entire greatness of the tzaddikim.”

In this light, the Degel Machaneh Ephraim explains the verse in our parshah, "והיו חייך תלאים לך מנגד ופחדת יומם ולילה ולא תאמין בחייך"—“Your life will hang in suspense. Day and night, you will be so terrified that you will not believe that you are alive.” The word teluim [תלאים] means ‘hanging.’ the Degel explains: If the Source of all life [חי החיים] is always “suspended” before you, then you will merit fear of heaven by day and night, and you will not believe in your life—you will not place your faith in your own power to sustain your life. You will realize your dependence on Hashem and the influence of His tzaddikim.

"Staggering Social Pressure"

2009-09-04T04:29:00.000-04:00

A Diet Anti-Zionist Living In Israel commenting on A Conversation About Zionism & Anti-Zionism :

My understanding of what Chabakuk Elisha said was that the medinah should be accepted because Hashem has sent it here and therefore it must be His will. Now this is an interesting theory. I am not sure I agree with it either, since a kanay (anti-Zionist) would reply that if a plague broke out, chas v'shalom, this shows us all that Hashem wants us to daven and work in whatever way we can to be healed, not to accept it as Hashem's will that people be killed.

The Gemara tells us that those who cause others to sin are worse than those who kill them physically. How many children speak flawless Hebrew but have never even HEARD of Shema Yisrael or virtually anything else that is relevant to Torah? Many many thousands. Do these children even feel that there is anything truly wrong with marrying non-Jews?

In any event, Rav Wolbe said that Rav Kook held that the medinah was a necessary stage towards the ultimate redemption since when the non religious mingle with the religious for long enough in the holy land, they will surely be drawn to keep Torah and mitzvos. (Halevai!) So this is not a necessary evil as much as one of the stages of the redemption. It is similar to a moth which must molt before it finally finds its wings.

If this is true the strongest questions of the kanayim do not apply.

Rav Wolbe pointed out that most of the Gedolei Yisrael held that this was unrealistic and incorrect. Quite the contrary, they held that the chilonim will be a force that will need to be reckoned with, since even very religious and connected Jews will have to work assiduously to ensure that they or their children are not influenced by the anti-religious here.

Unfortunately, we see that even those who are religiously observant here in Israel either move to the right or fall to the left by dropping mitzvos as a result of the staggering social pressure applied by the anti-religious here.

What can we say about those who are not religious? Most Gedolei Yisrael held that helping the non-religious is predicated mostly on the avodah of those who do know better, since all Jews are really one and if I move closer to Hashem, I move everyone else a bit closer too. Only teshuvah en mass will really help those of us who are most distant return.

Hashem should help all of His children do teshuva m'ahava in this most holy month!

Anne & Sue - Redux

2009-09-03T04:30:00.005-04:00

"Why do I have to deal with this nonsense!?", Anne thought to herself. Her strained relationship with Sue had not improved all that much over the past two years despite her repeated attempts to remain on friendly terms.

Anne's answer came late on afternoon when her realtor sent her a text message, "News flash! They are going to send you an offer soon."

This "they" referred to Sue's sister and brother-in-law who wanted to move into the neighborhood to be closer to their family. Anne and her husband had been trying to sell their house and move for many months so this news could not have come at a more welcome time.

Settlement day came and all the papers were signed. Anne then understood that there was a reason why Sue had been placed in her life and why she had to endue what she had to endure.

Sue was Anne's key out of the neighborhood and onto to the next stage in her life.

Uman Emergency Clinic

2009-09-03T04:29:00.001-04:00

(Click on image above)

"Surely, the introducer must have had me tested and evaluated..."

2009-09-03T04:28:00.000-04:00

וְהָיָה כְּעֵץ שָׁתוּל עַל-פַּלְגֵי-מָיִם

2009-09-01T10:05:00.001-04:00

A tall tree weakens and then comes crashing to the ground - missing a house by only a few feet.

All of the sparks of holiness have been uplifted; in this location, none remain.

The house's owner understands; he too is a tree.

After almost a decade, he must be planted in a new place where he can anchor himself into soil that continually nourishes and strengthens him.

12 Elul Links - יב אלול

2009-09-01T04:25:00.003-04:00

Divrei Chaim: Was the Divrei Chaim of Sanz a "rationalist"?

Sofer of Tzfat: Save your home

Heichal HaNegina: Of Shepherds, Doctors, Souls and Heaven

Dixie Yid: Bilvavi Mishkan Evneh Author Speaking Schedule

A Conversation About Zionism & Anti-Zionism

2009-08-31T04:30:00.005-04:00

A Simple Jew:

I have been told that the question of whether or not one can vote in Israeli elections should actually be a real halachic question, because by voting you are essentially saying that you know decisively that Hashem wants a secular Jewish government to run the holy land.

Chabakuk Elisha:

We know decisively that Hashem wants a secular Jewish government to run the holy land because there is one in place.

A Simple Jew:

Just like we know that Hamas should be in power in Gaza and Ahmadinejad in Iran. It must be Hashem's will that they are in power?

Chabakuk Elisha:

Indeed.

A Simple Jew:

So, given that fact, how can a Jew be against Obama's policies if Hashem put him in office?

Chabakuk Elisha:

These are two different issues - a person can oppose policies and fight for policies that he believes are good. At the same time, he doesn't think for a second that the legitimacy of Obama's presidency is in question or is sanctioned from Above.

A Simple Jew:

How would a Satmar chassid respond to the claim that we know decisively that Hashem wants a secular Jewish government to run the holy land because there is one in place?

Chabakuk Elisha:

The Satmar Rov held that the medina (State of Israel) was a nisayon (test).

A Simple Jew:

How is a person to know if any "reality" in Olam Hazeh is Hashem's will or a nisayon?

If a person finds someone to marry, it may not, in fact, be beshert, but rather a nisayon...

If a person finds a new house, it may not be what is best for him, but rather a nisayon...

Chabakuk Elisha:

Indeed and it would seem to be our job to deal with them the same way in either case.

A Simple Jew:

Why would we deal with them in the same way in either case?

Chabakuk Elisha:

This is the common example that is used for reality vs. nisayon:

It seemed that Moshe didn't come back from Mt Sinai on time. The Midrash says that the Satan showed them an image of Moshe's death - which we would assume means that it looked to them to be a true witnessing of Moshe's passing.

That was a nisayon - but there was no way to know. How should the Jews have dealt with it? By following what Moshe taught them regardless of if he had or had not passed away. Basically, it's irrelevant - were supposed to continue doing what were taught. We aren't supposed to "know" that its a nisayon or not.

A Simple Jew:

So if the medina, wife, or new house is really a nisayon we just need to keep our nose to the grindstone and keep plugging ahead with Torah and mitzvos regardless, correct?

Chabakuk Elisha:

Right, but that does not mean that we need to dispute the "facts." We continue as best we can under the circumstances. For example, the Yidden were not necessarily supposed to believe that what they saw had to be false. As in the old story that every Chabad yeshiva tells:

Scientists find out and the media reports that the entire earth will be flooded under water in one week. Some people laugh, others commit suicide, others pray, others curse their god, others climb the tallest mountains regardless of the fact that it wont help. A Chossid continues to follow Torah and mitzvos and knows that he has a week to learn how to live under water.

A Simple Jew:

But can't one say he is not disputing the facts, he just hasn't reached a conclusion whether it is Hashem's ratzon or a nisayon?

Religious Zionists are saying unequivocally that the medina is Hashem's ratzon. I am saying that I simply don't know and it could be either...

Chabakuk Elisha:

The real question is: what is the practical difference in daily life and why?

A Simple Jew:

True, but you are dodging my question...

Chabakuk Elisha:

Not dodging at all!

There is a well known story about the chassidim of the Maggid of Mezritch: Many of the lesser talmidim would take care if the furnace in the shul and were generally around the Maggid's Beis Hamedresh. At night they would talk among themselves and on one occasion the discussion turned to what would they do if they were running the world. Among them there were different ideas that were proposed to make the world a better place. After a while, they asked the future Baal HaTanya, who happened to be in the room at the time, how he would have do it if he was running the universe, and his reply: Exactly the way it is.

We accept that G-d wants it this way and our job is to do our best under the circumstances. As Rabbi Meir Schiller likes to use the mashul of a football game - specifically the famous "Ice Bowl" game - where the game goes on no matter what, and come rain, snow or ice, we march on.

So, is it a nisayon or ratzon Hashem? Is there even a difference between the two? I have no way to know, but I can know that my job is to play the hand we're dealt in the most effective way.

A Simple Jew:

So bottom line, what you are saying is keep doing what you are doing and keep your nose out of someone else's issue. If he chooses to spin his wheels for this or against that it should remain his business and not mine, correct?

Chabakuk Elisha:

What I mean is this: Do your part. Be the best Jew you can be. Try to make the world a better place within your abilities. And one more thing: Try not to outsmart yourself.

A Simple Jew:

Is what I am doing ubertrachten?

I thought I was trying to determine what my position on this issue was. I have, however, come to the conclusion that this is not something I need to have an opinion on.

That said, my final opinion is that the Zionists and the anti-Zionists are spinning their wheels with something they don't know 100%.

Chabakuk Elisha:

Well said - except instead of "don't know" I would say "can't know."

And a case of overthinking, would be saying that it's halachically problematic to vote since that sort of affirms the existence of the state.

Rabbi Itche Meyer Morgenstern: Acquiring The Torah

2009-08-28T04:30:00.003-04:00

A person who takes one tractate of Shas and learns it many times connects deeply with the Shechinah, since every tractate is an aspect of Malchus, the “queen” who is the crown of Her Husband. [This means that through learning Talmud vigorously one assumes the Kingship of Hashem and enables the Shechinah to connect with Hashem.]

But this does not mean merely knowing what the tractate says without connecting to the essence of Torah, which is Hashem Himself. As the Zohar states: “The Torah, the Jewish people, and the Holy One are one.” Through learning a tractate in this manner we connect to Hashem, since our supernal Source is accessible through the Gemara.

The same is true with all other areas of Torah. Each person must master them all so to renew and strengthen his connection with Hashem. This is our purpose in the world: to learn Torah as if we have nothing else to do so that we can connect to Hashem. At this level, “The breath of the Almighty gives them understanding.” Hashem teaches us feasible and effective strategies to truly change and repent.

Even if one only attains mastery in one tractate, he must recall that the Baal Shem Tov taught that one who grasps a part of holiness has really attained everything [since, in holiness, each aspect is inter-inclusive with the others]. Similarly, one who masters even one tractate can also connected to the Shechinah in a very powerful manner. Through studying Torah in this way, one accesses the light of ככ"ה—of כתר כל הכתרים, the “crown of crowns.”

Guest Posting By Chabakuk Elisha - Yichus

2009-08-27T04:30:00.005-04:00

I was once sitting with a very special man who happens to be a descendant of many early Chassidic Rebbes – such as the Baal Shem Tov, the Berditchever, R’ Shmelke of Nikolsburg, the Hafloh, and the Chozeh of Lublin. The topic of yichus (lineage) came up, and he said to me:

“Yichus is a big zero. A zero is nothing, but if you place a one in front of it you have ten.”

My first thought was: “Yeah – easy for him to say.”

Now, as far as yichus goes, it’s a great thing. A child is an extension of his parents and if this child is raised by great people (who were in turn raised by great people) this should set the child on a path towards greatness. There are statements in the Torah and by Chazal, as well as halachos and customs that all seem to take yichus very seriously. Yichus seems to be a real Jewish value.

That said, there can be a dark side as well. How many great people have had children who grow up with a sense of entitlement and undeserved haughtiness? How many people put on airs and think they’re the cat’s meow just because they may have had a grandfather or two that did something special? Is there not a more disgusting ego-trip? Isn’t yichus just representative of the archaic hyper-class-conscious, elitist, corrupt society? History has shown how many of our great institutions were derailed due to corruption that can be directly related to nepotism. We’ve all seen examples of it. I’ve seen some of these cases, and I can’t help but shake my head.

Furthermore, we often proclaim the greatness of overcoming hurdles. One who comes from humble beginnings but reaches greatness is a value that all people recognize – especially in Yiddishkeit. We are taught that the Baal Teshuva reaches heights beyond those of the Tzaddik. And let’s remember that when Chassidus initially came onto the scene, they were the anti-yichus movement. A great part of the appeal of the Chassidic revolution was its decided meritocracy as opposed to the status quo. Of course, all of that has changed, but we can still revisit the classic Chassidic tale of the Mezricher Maggid (later to be successor to the Baal Shem Tov, father of the famed R’ Avrohom the Malach and grandfather to the Rizhiner dynasty:

When he was five years old, a fire burned down his house. His mother, brokenhearted, looked upon the rubble in tears. When asked, she explained to her son that she was not crying because she had lost their house, rather, that the cause of her great grief was that their important shtar yuchsin (family tree) was destroyed in the fire. Tradition has it that the five year old, future leader of the Chassidic world, consoled his mother saying, "Don't worry mother, I am going to start a new 'yichus tree' beginning with me."

This is classic story with classic appeal – we have discarded the often disgusting claims of yichus and replaced it with self-made greatness. Yet, the story does maintain the value of yichus, as we are informed that Maggid really DOES have a great yichus – unknown as it is. Here we seem to have it both ways.

Contemporary society – especially American society – completely clashes with this attitude, and this is part of the problem. The very idea of yichus is somewhat of an anathema to us in the modern world. So what’s the real deal on yichus?

Let’s go all the way back to the Avos:

“Yitzchok entreated the Lord for his wife, because she was barren; and the Lord was entreated of him, and Rivka his wife conceived (Bereishis 25:21)” – Rashi tells us (based on Gemara Yevamos 64a) the power of yichus: “One cannot compare the prayer of a tzaddik who is the child of a tzaddik to the prayers of a tzaddik the child of a wicked person – therefore Hashem listened to Yitzchok’s prayer before Rivka’s.

And the obvious question is: That doesn’t seem fair; why is that so, and why should that be so? After all, doesn’t the very same Rashi earlier point out Rivka’s special merit that she was “a rose among thorns”? For Yitzchok to be great was a far lesser achievement!

And the answer may not be Earth shattering, but it remains true:

None of us stand on our own. At best, we are midgets on the shoulders of others. To understand yichus we must first understand that. An individual on their own has a very limited amount of merits; prayer – tefilla – is uniquely dependent on those merits, and for this reason we “cannot compare the merits of a tzaddik ben tzaddik to one who is not. For this reason we ask others to pray on our behalf. For this reason we ask tzaddikim to pray for us or those who we may be concerned about. For this reason, Jews visit gravesites of the righteous. Prayer takes merits.

This is also why Yaakov was afraid of Esav – because he suspected that he was lacking merits. This is why, Rashi told us in Parshas Shoftim, that there was an exemption from battle for those who were afraid they lacked the merits to succeed. And this is also part of what the concept of ibbur neshamos and gilgulim is about – a soul connection to individuals whose merits assist us today. This is what is meant when we are told how Rabbi Elazar ben Durdaya died a baal teshuva, but arrived in Heaven without any garments (merits) and he was given the garment of Yochanan Kohen Gadol.

Yichus is humbling – if it goes to our heads, it’s just a big zero…

"The Air Was Not Good"

2009-08-26T04:30:00.003-04:00

Earlier this year, I had the zechus of having a shiur over the phone with the Sudilkover Rebbe on a one paragraph mashul found in the Likkutim section of Degel Machaneh Ephraim.

"There is a parable of a prince whose father sent him to another country where the air was not good. He gave him a garment so that when he went outside he could wear that covering against the air that wasn't good. The characteristic of the air was that of deforming a person's body; and as the deformity entered the body, it also appeared in the garment. One had to keep watch against this. The moral is that the king's son is each person, and the garment is his neshoma. This is enough for one who understands."

The Sudilkover Rebbe explained this mashal word by word as follows:

There is a parable of a prince (בן מלך): This prince is every Jew. He must constantly remember that he is indeed the son of the King and not a commoner.

whose father sent him to another country where the air was not good: Our Father - the Ribbono shel Olam - sent our neshomas from under the Heavenly Throne down into this world; a world whose very atmosphere may be corrosive to us at times.

It is important to pay attention to the Degel's word choice when describing the air. He did not descibe it as "bad". Rather, he wrote that it was "not good" (לא טוב). He chose these words to remind us to always maintain a focus on that which is positive.

He gave him a garment so that when he went outside he could wear that covering against the air that wasn't good: Hashem did not create us like an animal, as a body that follows our natural inclinations and base desires. Hashem clothed our body with a soul comprised of five levels (nefesh, ruach, neshoma, chaya, and yechida). It is this soul that allows us to continue to live and exist in this world.

The characteristic of the air was that of deforming a person's body; and as the deformity entered the body, it also appeared in the garment: The neshoma may become blemished through the actions of the body in this world; though the gazing of an eye, the listening of an ear, or the speaking of a mouth.

One had to keep watch against this: The air of this world confuses a person and leads him to believe that it is governed by moral relativism and that there is simply nothing wrong with any action that contradicts the Torah; it tells him that deeds are deeds and nothing more.

A person, however, must know that there is no such thing as a meanlingless or futile day. Each one of us must remember every morning when saying Modeh Ani that we would not have woken up unless Hashem continued to need us and expect us to fulfill a unique and vital mission in this world.

A Dog In Elul

2009-08-25T20:30:00.006-04:00

Expecting Different Results?

2009-08-25T04:30:00.009-04:00

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Insanity is thinking that I can continue to fly on auto-pilot in my avodas Hashem; flying without remembering to maintain regular communication with the control tower.

Insanity is thinking that I can continue to think about, speak about, and speak to my fellow human being without full cognizance and focus on their nekudos tovos.

Insanity is thinking that my level of avoda during the month of Av was sufficient for serving Hashem in this month of Elul.

5 Elul Links - ה אלול

2009-08-25T04:25:00.001-04:00

The Blog @ Breslov.org: Likutei Moharan

Just call me Chaviva: Inauthentic: Laughing Off My Judaism

Daf Yomi: Evil Eye

A Simple Jew: All Of These Thoughts From A Cool Morning Breeze

CTC-Torah.org: Gid

Question & Answer With Yitz Of Heichal HaNegina - Learning Yiddish

2009-08-24T04:30:00.002-04:00

A Simple Jew asks:

How did you go about learning Yiddish?

Yitz answers:

Firstly, I have to admit that I have a distinct advantage of having a "good ear." My hearing is very sensitive, and I often hear things that others in the same room, even right next to me, don't hear. I once met someone whom I only had spoken to over the phone, I had never seen him face-to-face, but when I heard his voice, I knew who he was! So, that certainly helped me to learn Yiddish.

Another thing that I found helpful for us English speakers is that Yiddish is Germanic-based, and English is also, to a large extent. Yes, there are many words in English that are not so - they are based on the Romance languages [Latin-French-Spanish-Italian, etc.] - but I think the Germanic influence is stronger. So it didn't take to long to figure out that "breng" is Yiddish for "bring," or that "a hindred / hoondred" is "a hundred," and so forth.

Another advantage I had is that my dear wife is actually a native Yiddish speaker. That is, it was her first language, being that her parents are Holocaust survivors from Poland. So hearing her speak to her parents [or others], or just being able to ask her what a particular word meant, was a boon to my learning of Yiddish.

Of course, to learn any language, motivation is most important. The story goes that some American GIs in World War II were notified that they were going to be sent to Japan within a very short period of time – a number of weeks [maybe 8 or 9 at the most]. They were given a "crash course" in Japanese, and the motivation, knowing that their lives might depend on their understanding of the language, enabled them to learn it in this short time period.

So with my entry into the religious-Jewish-yeshivish as a baal teshuva provided me with an impetus and motivation to learn Yiddish. Let me say that it opens vistas one never has known before: whether it’s a shiur from a gadol baTorah, a Chassidic discourse from a Rebbe, or just plain, everyday conversation between Jews, Yiddish is an invaluable asset. In addition, the straight-from-the-heart nature of Yiddish conveys Jewish feelings and humor the way no other language can.

So how did I go about learning it? Actually, it was a rather simple process. Rather than taking a course, or memorizing the dictionary, I decided that it would be best to learn Yiddish from something I wanted to learn anyway. And what better source could there be than Chumash with Rashi? So I bought a set of “Beis Yehuda,” with the Chumash and Rashi translated into Yiddish, and learned the weekly parsha from it. Of course, the fact that I had been through Chumash-Rashi in both Hebrew and English many times before was certainly a big help.

So, already knowing what the Chumash and Rashi were ‘saying,’ it was only a matter of enriching my Yiddish vocabulary, that I could do by studying the Beis Yehuda. As I learned the pasukim and Rashi’s commentary, I would peek over to the Beis Yehuda to see how he translated this word or that. And reading through whole pasukim or Rashis in Yiddish also gave me a background of Yiddish grammatical structure, which is similar [but not always the same] to German.

So there you have it. We Americans have a distinct disadvantage in learning languages compared to most of the rest of the world. That is, since the American culture is pretty much the dominant one in the world, English is spoken [or at least, usually, understood] throughout the globe. Also, America being such a large country, and bordered to the north by another mammoth-size English-speaking country, Canada, the need for another language is virtually not there. Compare this to Europe, where there are so many countries, each with its own language [or two or three]…or to Israel, where, besides Hebrew, there’s English, Russian, Yiddish, French, Arabic, Ladino, Amharic, etc. spoken, and you can see that Americans have a disadvantage.

But don’t be taken aback - with a little bit of effort, and as mentioned, motivation, you can do it! A groise hatzlucha - may you have a big success!

Rabbi Itche Meyer Morgenstern: Elul

2009-08-21T07:11:00.004-04:00

With the advent of the holy days of Elul, a Jew tends to think, “Who will guarantee that this time I will return to Hashem? Days and months have passed and I have tried so hard to repent. Despite this, I am still very far from truly changing for the better…”

Although one is obligated to find workable strategies to return to his Creator by rectifying his actions every day, each person nevertheless feels that he cannot possibly overcome his evil inclination—which re-gathers force against him every day. How can anyone really stand up to such a challenge? By what stratagem can one finally rid himself of his yetzer hara?

Rebbe Nachman teaches that the first step through the gates of the repentance of Elul is to accept the embarrassment and shame that every Jew experiences in silence. For the main goal of of tesuvah is to reach the level of Kesser as symbolized by the letter alef. This is the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet and represents the towering level of Atikah Sesima’ah (literally, this is the “Ancient Hidden One” and refers to the level of Chochmah within Atik / Kesser—the higher level of Kesser). In terms of one’s personal spiritual work, this signifies a deep inner repentance that brings to true and lasting change.

There are two elements of teshuvah associated with the letter alef. The first is that one must feel ashamed and embarrassed that he does not yet serve Hashem as is proper and fitting. Failure to successfully navigate spiritual tests is the ultimate humiliation and should cause one intense pain. We petition Hashem during our morning prayers that He not bring us “to the hands of a test or a shaming”—which indicates that if one doesn’t stand strong in a spiritual trial, one suffers severe embarrassment. Feeling the pain of this embarrassment yet bearing it with dignity and patience, with the understanding that such feelings of pain and frustration are from heaven to expose one’s limitations and bring him to humility, is the primary step toward true teshuvah.

"The Service Of Hashem Of Such A Person Is Dependent Only Upon Intellectual Stimulation And Spiritual Excitement"

2009-08-21T04:25:00.003-04:00

The Blog @ Breslov.org :

“There are those who suggest, that immediately when people begin to get involved in the study of the Rebbe’s works, a great passion for Hashem arouses within them. The Rebbe’s Torah, after all, has within it an enormous power to kindle the heart. However, as great is their passion is the fall afterwards. From such great desire and yearning for Hashem, they become totally confused.”

How Could You Make Fun Of Him?

2009-08-21T04:21:00.000-04:00

Rabbi Tal Zwecker commenting on Trying To Understand The Younger Brother:

An excerpt from the Kedushas Levi that I am working on:

The Sincere Intentions of Reb Baruch Mezibuzher

The Tchortkover Rebbe would often relate the following story:

Reb Moshe’le from Zhvill, the son of Reb Yechiel Michel of Zlotchov, was once visiting the Rebbe Reb Baruch of Mezibuzh. At that time, the chassid Reb Yaakov Mohilliver, who was known by his nickname Reb Yakovka, was also visiting Reb Baruch. Reb Yakovka was the court jester and would entertain Reb Baruch by acting out the antics of the holy Reb Levi Yitzchak of Berditchever, how he would bow and prostrate himself during the shofar blowing or during the lighting of the Chanukah candles.

The Rebbe Reb Baruch would laugh out loud at these performances, and it appeared as if he was making fun of the holy Berditchever.

Reb Moshe’leh of Zhvill was present at Reb Baruch’s Shabbos table when Reb Yakovka performed his comedy act, mimicking Reb Levi Yitzchak’s bowing and gestures that he would make when he served the Creator. Reb Baruch laughed so hard it seemed that his stomach would burst! But Reb Moshe’leh was beside himself with anguish. How could anyone in the world could laugh and make fun of such a Tzaddik as the holy Rav of Berditchev?

The scene replayed itself at each of the Shabbos meals: Reb Yakovka acted out different antics of the Berditchever’s holy avodah, and Reb Baruch did not stop laughing during the entire meal.

Reb Moshe’leh’s hair stood on end and he felt chills run through his body as he observed the travesty going on before him. He could find no explanation for Reb Baruch’s shameful behavior. Although he had originally planned on spending another Shabbos in Mezibuzh, he immediately decided against it. On Sunday, he came to take his leave of Reb Baruch and return home.

“Why are you in such a hurry? Stay a little longer. Spend another Shabbos with us,” Reb Baruch entreated his guest.

Reb Moshe’leh could not contain himself. He burst out with a pained heart, “How can you make fun of the holy Berditchever Rav whom I know to be a saintly man of G-d!”

“Another good Jew who does not know what he is saying!” Reb Baruch exclaimed. “For several years now the holy Berditchever has in mind all the kavanos that the Kohen Gadol had in the Beis HaMikdash when he prays. In order to preempt the prosecutions of the satan, I have no choice but to mock and belittle the Berditchever’s avodah. This nullifies the prosecutions of the satan and hastens the redemption and the rebuilding of the Beis HaMikdash. I know the truth in my heart, that the holy Rav of Berditchever is great and awesome. My laughter is solely to cancel the satan’s evil intentions.”

Another Person's Mind

2009-08-20T04:30:00.003-04:00

Too often we speculate;

Imagining the thoughts that are going through another person's mind.

Other times we just scratch our heads;

Not understanding why the neurons in their brain travel along a different route.

A route seemingly without any rationale.

We attempt to relate, but we cannot understand.

The thoughts in their mind remain an enigma.

Our logic is futile in understanding the puzzle of another human being.

Helpless, we must request that the One who creates thought provide us a glimmer;

An insight on how we can formulate words that will leave our hearts and enter theirs.

The Yetzer Hara & Aleinu

2009-08-19T04:30:00.005-04:00

Whether at Shachris, Mincha, or Maariv, more often than not I absentmindedly rush through Aleinu. The fact that this tefilla is attributed to Yehoshua who composed it after toppling the walls of Yericho has remained for me just that - simply a fact.

While contemplating the subject of obstacles, my brain made the connection between the walls of Yericho and the walls in my mind. I finally understood why the yetzer hara fought me tooth and nail for so long in its attempt to ensure that I disregard Aleinu.

Aleinu contains within it the tremendous power to obliterate obstacles. The yetzer hara views it as if it were a nuclear weapon that is intended to be used against it. Thus, the yetzer hara works overtime and continually schemes to prevent a person from saying this tefilla at all, or at least without any bit of kavana.

With this new understanding and appreciation of Aleinu, I now try to view this tefilla as a beginning rather than an ending.

Guest Posting By Chabakuk Elisha - Ayin Hara

2009-08-18T04:30:00.005-04:00

Ayin hara (the Evil Eye) maintains a firm place in Jewish culture and practice. Dating back to Biblical times, the Jewish people have been concerned about ayin hara, and attempted to take steps to protect themselves to one degree or another. There are even individuals in contemporary times who are paid to remove the evil eye from people who are concerned that they may be a victim of it. It has its place in the Torah, in the Talmud, in Rishonim, Acharonim, Kabbala, Chassidus, and in Shulchan Aruch. We find it among Ashkenazic culture, Sefardic culture and everything in-between. There are also special sayings, amulets, red strings, fish eyes and other means of combating this unseen danger, but the questions remain: what is it?, should I believe in it?, why should it work?, and isn’t it just some kind of superstition that we should really be smarter than?

Indeed, the concept of ayin hara exists in many ancient cultures and it can very difficult to know what beliefs may have crept into Judaism that originated elsewhere – however, any concept or belief that we find mentioned in so many sources throughout our history cannot be merely swept away as some remnant of paganism that somehow clung to our clothing.

In Judaism we believe in the power of the human. We have been given serious power to build and to destroy on many levels – from hammers and nails, to procreation, to love and hatred, and to change the world with a thought. Jewish law takes speech – a simple word – so seriously that entire sections of Talmud and Halacha are concerned with words. Even G-d relinquishes his final say on matters to the human word in realms of Halacha. This is because words have power. Thoughts also have power. Positive thinking changes things. So does negative thinking. In the Ten Commandments we are forbidden to think or desire certain things – this is because thoughts are real in Yiddishkeit.

And this is all because G-d listens. He listens to our words, He sees our actions and He knows our thoughts. They matter. Life matters, as does everything in it. And that brings us to ayin hara.

To help illustrate the concept of ayin haram I’ll use an example from daily life:

I drive to work most days on the highway. It’s about a 45 mile commute each way, and the traffic signs post speed limits ranging from 45 MPH to 60 MPH. On most days I break that law and cruise along at the speed of traffic somewhere around 75 MPH for much of the time. On many a day I have seen some fellow pulled over at the side of the road with one of those colorful cars that have those flashing bright lights, parked behind him. I always feel terrible for him when I see it – some guy trying to get home is gonna pay dearly – why him?

And the reason why he’s pulled over is simple – wrong place at the wrong time. He simply got caught, while everybody else had the good fortune not to be in the vicinity of the man in uniform.
Similarly, we live our lives cruising above the speed limit – meaning that we benefit from G-d’s benevolence and undeserved goodness. We don’t deserve anything, yet we enjoy the pleasures of undeserved things. Suddenly Reuvain spots his friend Shimon buying a very expensive article, or simply owning a something that Reuvain would have rather owned instead. Reuvain’s a good guy, pays taxes, works hard – why does Shimon deserve it instead of Reuvain?

And he’s right. Shimon didn’t DESERVE it. So what happens is that Reuvain just sent a police car that catches Shimon and busts him for speeding – wham. Ayin Hara. But it doesn’t stop there. Shimon is negatively impacted – but so is Reuvain; Revain now has his own police cars to worry about. (For an interesting piece on the matter see here)

There is a way out though. There is a route that we can take to avoid ayin hara, which is of course, to drive through space instead of the highway. There are two remedies that we find discussed in seforim, which will at least give us some guidance:

1. Do something to deserve a pass. Yes, we all benefit from things that we don’t deserve, but if we add something in Torah and mitzvos, if we try to be a better person and a better Jew, we can offset the ayin hara. I guess we can say we get time off for good behavior.

2. Stay above ayin hara altogether. It is well known that “One who does not place himself under Ayin Hara cannot be harmed by it.” This is usually understood to mean that it’s like voodoo – and that if you don’t believe in it doesn’t work – but I once heard in the name of Rav Elazar Mordechai Kenig that this is an incorrect understanding, and that what the statement actually means is: if one doesn’t look at others with an ayin hara, than he cannot be harmed by it.

On My Wish List - Out Of My Price Range

2009-08-18T04:25:00.001-04:00

Degel Machaneh Ephraim - Koretz, 1810

Me'or Einayim - Sudilkov, 1830

More seforim for auction here.

28 Av Links - כח אב

2009-08-18T04:20:00.001-04:00

Modern Uberdox: When no one is home…

Lazer Beams: The Holy Rebbe Mattia ben Charash

Be'er Mayim Chaim: Bris of Shalom Yoel Zwecker