tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28926810845180567742024-03-12T18:46:30.199-07:00A Chassidishe farbrengen“Reb Avrohom, we have to bring the Rebbe back”
(<i>Igros Kodesh</i>, Vol. 4, p. <a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=152&ilSC=40&nBookId=8&cPartLetter=b">156</a>).Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.comBlogger406125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-28342369258141124362022-08-16T15:55:00.005-07:002022-11-16T22:42:05.917-08:00Supernal Unification Versus Refining the Sparks<h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhxHUDp93P8zqi5gHt_1YfG3837KvWynKGsGWngCNlmby90meGlz5blTwZKOtPNNqRY3IDd2B9nmqjClR_Q04hAtqucxG2h_hyL_dFV7UDGOh6o1gYGuV7Kk31db-G1M16SmI54ICMDRjw0A-zwrhbpOie4wBUBqF-_t_smYeLKTsIbihrXM2LXQlPr" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="343" data-original-width="247" height="399" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhxHUDp93P8zqi5gHt_1YfG3837KvWynKGsGWngCNlmby90meGlz5blTwZKOtPNNqRY3IDd2B9nmqjClR_Q04hAtqucxG2h_hyL_dFV7UDGOh6o1gYGuV7Kk31db-G1M16SmI54ICMDRjw0A-zwrhbpOie4wBUBqF-_t_smYeLKTsIbihrXM2LXQlPr=w288-h399" width="288" /></a></div></span></h2><h1><div style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: xx-large;">Supernal Unification</b></div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Versus Refining the Sparks</b></div></b></span></h1><div style="text-align: center;"><h4><span style="font-size: large;">Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver </span></h4>Adapted from the teachings of <b>Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneersohn זצ"ל</b></div><div style="text-align: center;">in honor of his yahrtzeit on 20 Av</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>“Yitzchak loved Esav because he would eat from his prey,[1] while Rivka loved Yaakov”.[2]<br /><br />Although Yitzchak surely loved Esav as his son, how could Yitzchak have felt so favorably toward Esav that the Torah tells us that he specifically loved Esav, while it doesn’t declare that he loved Yaakov? Clearly Esav possessed some worthy quality that Yitzchak valued, and even more so than he valued the qualities of Yaakov!<br /><br />Yitzchak’s divine service specifically resembled that of Esav, so he felt a special affinity with Esav.<br /><br />Yitzchak was involved with “sowing” in “the field”, as it is written, “Yitzchak <b>sowed</b> in that year,”[3] and “Yitzchak went out to pray in the <b>field</b>”.[4]<br /><br />The field, where plants grow and from which food is harvested, represents the spiritual task of birur hanitzutzos, refining the sparks of holiness trapped in physical objects. We accomplish this by being actively involved in the physical world and using it to serve Hashem. This was the focus of Yitzchak’s avodah—divine service.<br /><br />Esav, too, was “a man of the field”,[5] whose main task was to be involved in the material world. (Unfortunately, he did not merit to do so by refining the sparks of holiness, as did Yitzchak.)<br /><br />Moreover, the reason Yitzchak loved Esav was that “he would eat from his prey”, as Esav would bring him food from the field. In fact, Yitzchak desired not the food itself but the sparks of holiness hidden in the food that Esav would bring him.<br /><br />Yaakov’s path was different. He had no connection to working in the field,[6] to active involvement in the physical world for the sake of refining sparks of holiness. He was a “man of simplicity who would sit in tents”.[7]<br /><br />Rashi interprets that the plural “tents” refers to the two academies of the righteous Shem and Ever, where Yaakov would study Torah.[8]<br /><br />Along these lines, the Medrash states that “tents” refers to “the tent of the Written Torah and the tent of the Oral Torah”.<br /><br />Another interpretation is that a tent alludes to one’s wife and the mitzvah of marital relations, as in when Moshe instructed the Jewish men to “return to your tents”,[9] which our Sages explain[10] as granting permission to return to marital relations after a period in which it had been prohibited. Thus, Yaakov would “sit in the tents” of his wives, Leah and Rachel.<br /><br /><b>Modes of Malchus<br /></b><br />On the kabalistic level, a wife corresponds to the sefirah of malchus of Atzilus, the feminine aspect of the divine. Thus, “sitting in the tents” means that Yaakov’s divine service was focused on malchus.<br /><br />Yet we also find that the field, associated with the divine service of Yitzchak, alludes to malchus. How can this be, if the divine service of Yitzchak and Yaakov are different?<br /><br />The “tent” and the “field” correspond to different aspects of malchus.<br /><br />The “field” refers to the way malchus descends into Beriyah, Yetzirah, and Asiyah (b’ya for short) in order to refine the sparks of holiness found in the kelipos, negative spiritual energies, found there.<br /><br />This is the meaning of “she gave teref—prey to her house”,[11] a reference to malchus. Teref (טרף) has the numerical value of 249, which corresponds to the 248 general sparks of holiness plus one (im hakolel).[12] Malchus descends to refine the sparks, which are then elevated to their supernal source.<br /><br />In contrast, “tents” refers to marital relations, as above. Thus, “sitting in tents” represents ze’ir anpin, the masculine aspect of the divine, as it influences and unites with malchus, the feminine aspect of the divine. On this level, malchus remains in its original state in the utterly pure realm of Atzilus and is completely detached from the lower worlds of b’ya, where G–dliness is hidden in successively greater concealments.<br /><br />Thus, a field alludes to the way malchus gives (shov)—the divine service of Yitzchak; while a tent, to the way it receives (ratzo)—the divine service of Yaakov.<br /><br /><b>Earth Versus Yerushalayim<br /></b><br />This distinction parallels the difference between the earth (aretz) and Yerushalayim, which are also both said to refer to malchus.<br /><br />The earth is the same concept as a field—it brings forth food.[13] Food represents refining the sparks because produce grown in a field contains an edible part—ochel and waste matter—pesoles. Eating involves birur—refinement, separating the useful part from what is to be discarded.<br /><br />Thus, the earth/field is an analogy for the way malchus descends into b’ya in order to separate and refine the nitzotz, the spark of holiness, from the energy of kelipah in which it is encased there.<br /><br />In contrast, Yerushalayim is called “the good [city]”,[14] which corresponds to the way malchus exists in Atzilus in a state of sublime purity.[15] The destruction of the physical city of Yerushalayim is merely a reflection and consequence of the “destruction” of the spiritual Yerushalayim, which is the estrangement between ze’ir anpin and malchus.<br /><br />Rebuilding Yerushalayim means bringing ze’ir anpin to reunite with malchus, which we accomplish through Torah study.[16] Torah possesses this power because Torah, too, is pure goodness and holiness and is thus able to rebuild the spiritual Yerushalayim, which is similarly pure. This leads naturally to the rebuilding of the physical Yerushalayim as well.[17]<br /><br />This is the deeper meaning of Yaakov, who corresponds to ze’ir anpin,[18] “sitting in the tents”—i.e., engaging in marital relations—with Leah and Rachel, who correspond to malchus. On a deeper level, this alludes to Yaakov’s Torah study, which effected the supernal unification of ze’ir anpin and malchus.<br /><br />This fits nicely with the literal meaning of Yaakov “sitting in the tents”—Torah study.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;">Adapted from <i>Yalkut Levi Yitzchak al HaTorah</i>, Vol. 1, pp. 467-469.</div><br /><br />________________________________<br /><br />[1] This translation follows Onkelos.<br />[2] Bereshis 25:28.<br />[3] Ibid. 26:12<br />[4] Ibid. 24:63<br />[5] Ibid. 25:27.<br />[6] “לא היה שייך לשדה”.<br />[7] Ibid.<br />[8] Bereshis Rabbah 63:10.<br />[9] Devarim 5:27.<br />[10] Shabbos 87a.<br />[11] Mishlei 31:15.<br />[12] Cf. Sefer HaMaamarim 5663, p. 51.<span face=""trebuchet ms", sans-serif"></span><br />[13] Berachos 49a.<br />[14] Berachos 48b.<br />[15] Cf. Likkutei Torah 15:3-4.<br />[16] Ibid. 29:3 ff.<br />[17] Ibid. 31:1-2.<br />[18] Cf. Reshimos vol. 169.</div>Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-45568209983916203582022-07-31T05:11:00.009-07:002022-07-31T14:30:46.706-07:00The Significance of Seventy<div style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: xx-large;">The Significance of Seventy </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">by Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>in honor of the seventieth birthday of my mother, <br />Zipporah Oliver (Chana Feiga bas Reizel)</i><i> </i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgPMGiC8hXAKz6K2JmMPtPCNLCnKgycaCIKfVdZT38X7YYl5Sy7B8hQ1tOLwWdJsnz3dhwuiNyyb11iUoMmbB5C9en6bK418ULa9mJ2LTM_3yHdUpjqRwPxV1evezIkuFY6clGlLuVSvSGn55foCKtBQ3TA3tgFtbKPZWUI_zuJQ7bsb3DnKSwQHjr5" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="711" data-original-width="712" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgPMGiC8hXAKz6K2JmMPtPCNLCnKgycaCIKfVdZT38X7YYl5Sy7B8hQ1tOLwWdJsnz3dhwuiNyyb11iUoMmbB5C9en6bK418ULa9mJ2LTM_3yHdUpjqRwPxV1evezIkuFY6clGlLuVSvSGn55foCKtBQ3TA3tgFtbKPZWUI_zuJQ7bsb3DnKSwQHjr5" width="240" /></a></div></span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Seventy
is a very significant age, for it represents the full span of a lifetime, as
David Hamelech says in Tehillim: “Our days are seventy years”.[1]</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">But
how does this fit with the fact that some people lived for much longer? In
particular, the Avos—Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov—lived for far longer than
seventy years. It would seem clear that David included all mankind in his
statement, including the Avos, so why did they live for so long?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">The
answer is that in fact, this emphasis on the age of seventy is not referring to
a physical age but to a spiritual age. As is known, the number seven represents
the seven middos, the emotional character traits. Seventy represents perfection
in each of these traits, as they each contain ten, corresponding to the three
levels of intellect and the seven emotional traits as they exist within each
trait. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">We
find a similar expression of perfection within the seven traits in the custom of
counting the forty-nine days of the Omer, when we specifically mention how each
day corresponds to one of the seven traits within each of the seven traits. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Seventy
represents an even higher level of perfection, because it includes the three
levels of intellect within each emotion as well. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Thus,
the reason that a lifespan lasts for seventy years is that our task is to
refine our character traits and reach the spiritual level of seventy, which
represents perfection in the refinement of one’s character traits.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Thus,
the greatness of the Rambam is expressed in his lifetime of seventy years,
which emphasized that he reached perfection in his self-refinement and this
perfection also expressed itself on the physical level, in the length of his
lifetime in this world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">But
since this number represents spiritual accomplishments, it could also be
accomplished by someone who is not seventy. Indeed, we find that in the
Hagadah, Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya says “I am <b>like</b> someone who is seventy
years”, which means that spiritually he had reached the age of seventy even
though he was physically a young man.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">But
if this level of perfection can be reached in seventy years and even less, why did
the Avos live for longer? <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">The
answer is that even after a person has reached perfection in his divine
service, that does not necessarily mean that one’s life needs to come to an
end. One may be given the opportunity to rise to an even higher level of
perfection, by involving oneself in a completely new endeavor, one that is
higher than his previous form of divine service. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Although
this task is based on his previous divine service, it is far superior to it,
and it adds further perfection to his previous divine service. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">All
human life is divided into stages and each stage has its own task. When one
stage is complete, because one completed one’s mission in that stage, then a
new stage begins with a new task. As the Mishnah puts it: “At five, one studies
Chumash; at ten, Mishnah”,</span>[2] and so on. The same applies to the end of the age of preparation for mitzvos,
at 12 for a girl and at 13 for a boy.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Likewise,
at the end of a period of seventy years, corresponding to the seven character
traits, comes a new level of divine service in order to reach an even higher
level of perfection. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">We
find this also regarding Torah study, and Hashem “looked into Torah and created
the world”.</span>[3<span style="color: #0563c1;">]</span> Torah study comes in stages: Chumash, and then Mishnah, and then Gemara. Each
stays follows and builds on the accomplishment of the previous stage or stages.
So after one has study Chumash well, then one progresses to studying Mishnah,
and so on.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">But
on the other hand, the study of Mishnah adds to the understanding one reached
at the previous stage, when one had only studied Chumash, and so is it with all
the further dimensions of Torah that one learns. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">So
those who have been blessed by Hashem with a life longer than seventy years
have merited to be able to open a new page and start a new form of divine
service. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">As
mentioned, we find this in the case of the Avos, who lived for longer than
seventy years. Once they reached the age of seventy, they began a new kind of
divine service. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">“The
deeds of the forefathers are a sign for the sons”</span>[4]:
Every single Jew is granted the ability, through the Avos, to complete the
divine service of seventy years and then to start a new, higher form of divine
service.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">Conversely,
one can attain this perfection before the age of seventy and then start a whole
new level of divine service, and then another, and so on.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">We
see this in the age of the Rambam, who </span>lived for seventy years. Although he lived for exactly seventy years,
he managed to accomplish many different tasks during this time, which would
have taken a lot more time for someone else.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">The
lesson is that everyone should constantly grow and increase in their
divine service, and with renewed vigor, in all the three areas of Torah
study, prayer, and charity.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 106%;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: DE; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;">____________ </span> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"></p><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;">
</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0in;"><a name="_ftn1"></a>[1] 90:10.<br />[2] Avos 5:21.<br />[3] <span lang="EN-US">Zohar
1:134:1<br /></span>[4] Tanchuma, Lech Lecha 9.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: right;">Adapted from the Rebbe's <i>Hisvaduyos </i>5749, vol. 2, pp. <a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=163&ilSC=50&nBookId=36&cPartLetter=B"><span style="color: #0563c1;">163</span></a>-<a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=165&ilSC=50&nBookId=36&cPartLetter=B"><span style="color: #0563c1;">165</span></a>.</p><br /></div>Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-58388313742828401332020-03-10T00:31:00.001-07:002022-03-17T11:36:08.595-07:00The Victory of Purim Through Yaakov’s Havayeh Powers<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: "trebuchet ms", sans-serif;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="Wiki Commons: Tomb of Esther and Mordecai - Hamadan - Western Iran – 02 Uploaded by mrjohncummings" height="360" src="https://www1.cbn.com/sites/default/files/styles/video_ratio_16_9/public/esthermordecai-wikicommons_hdv.jpg?itok=ZKAY2RIU" width="590" /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Tomb of Esther and Mordechai - Hamadan, Western Iran</div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;"><b>The Victory of Purim Through Yaakov’s <i>Havayeh</i> Powers</b></span></h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: large;">Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</span></b></h3>
<br />
Mordechai and Esther correspond to Avraham and Sarah, respectively. <br />
<br />
The Medrash[1] teaches us about the parallel between Mordechai and Avraham:<br />
<blockquote>
[The Scroll of Esther describes Mordechai as] “<i>ish Yehudi</i>” (lit. a man of Judea) for he was equal to Avraham in his generation. Just as Avraham our forefather hurled himself into the fiery furnace and went around bringing people to recognize Hashem’s greatness, as it is written, “and the soul that they made in Charan”[2], so, too, Mordechai in his days brought the people to recognize Hashem’s greatness, as it is written, “and many of the nations of the land became Jews”[3] and he declared the unity of Hashem’s Name and he sanctified it. Therefore, he is called “<i>Yehudi</i>”, as it is written, “<i>ish Yehudi</i>”; do not read “<i>Yehudi</i>”, but “<i>yechidi</i>” [literally, “the man of the Unique One”, for he publicized Hashem’s unity].</blockquote>
On the other hand, Haman’s spiritual opposite is Avraham. This is the reason that the mothers of Mordechai and Haman shared the same name, Amtilai.[4]<br />
<br />
Since Haman is the spiritual opposite of Avraham and Mordechai parallels Avraham, Haman is also the opposite of Mordechai.<br />
<br />
Likewise, we see the parallel between Esther and Sarah in the teaching of Rabbi Akiva[5] that just as Sarah passed away at 127, so did Esther merit to rule over 127 countries.[6]<br />
<br />
Thus, we see how Mordechai and Esther are spirituality connected to Avraham and Sarah.<br />
<br />
However, there is a difference between them, and this is expressed in the gematria, the numerical value, of their names.<br />
<br />
The gematria of Mordechai (מרדכי) is 274 and of Avraham אברהם) 248). The difference between them is 26, which is the same value as the holiest of Hashem’s names, the four-letter name referred to in Kabbalistic literature as <i>Havayeh</i> (הויה).<br />
<br />
Likewise, the gematria of Sarah (שרה) is 505 and of Esther, אסתר) 661), with a difference of 156, which is six times <i>Havayeh</i> (26).<br />
<br />
26 and 156 add up to 182, which is seven times <i>Havayeh</i>.<br />
<br />
182 is also the numerical value of the name of Yaakov. The reason for this is that the key to defeating Haman is the spiritual energy of Yaakov. Haman was descended from Esav,[7] who was also descended from Avraham and Sarah.[8]<br />
<br />
It was the fact that Mordechai and Esther were descended from Yaakov that granted them the power to defeat Haman. This is related to Hashem’s promise to Avraham, “for your seed shall be called be’Yitzchak—with Yitzchak”.[9] Our Sages explain this odd expression as being exclusionary: “<b>with </b>Yitzchak, but not all of Yitzchak”, for Esav is not considered the true seed of Avraham.<br />
<br />
Therefore, Esther and Mordechai were endowed with an additional seven times the name of <i>Havayeh</i>, to allude to their inheritance of a unique spiritual strength from their ancestor, Yaakov, with which they were able to defeat Haman. Yaakov’s ability to overcome Esav enabled them, in turn, to overcome Esav’s descendant, Haman.<br />
<br />
The Zohar explains[10] that Yaakov overcame Esav by bowing down to Hashem seven times while in Esav’s presence: “And he went ahead of them and he prostrated himself to the ground seven times, until he came close to his brother [Esav]”.[11] The Zohar explains that “And he went ahead of them” refers to a revelation of the Divine Presence, which went before Yaakov in order to protect him. When Yaakov saw this, he bowed down. Indeed, the verse doesn’t say that he bowed down to Esav but simply that he bowed down.<br />
<br />
This relates to the gematrias of Yitzchak and Esav. The gematria of Yitzchak is 8 times <i>Havayeh</i> (26)—208.<br />
<br />
Yitzchak split his amount of this revelation between his sons. He bequeathed seven portions of <i>Havayeh</i> to Yaakov, and one to Esav. It is on account of this one portion of <i>Havayeh</i> within Esav that he is considered a brother to Yaakov, as it is written, “isn’t Esav the brother of Yaakov?”[12]<br />
<br />
But the gematria of Esav (עשו) is 376. The remainder of Esav consists of the exact opposite of <i>Havayeh</i>, <i>tamei</i> (טמא), which means impure and has a gematria of 50. This is the dominant aspect of Esav, and therefore, he contained it seven times: 7x50=350. (So in total, 350+26=376.)<br />
<br />
The seven times <i>tamei</i> within Esav are the direct antithesis of the seven times <i>Havayeh</i> within Yaakov. This is the reason that Esav so despised Yaakov, on account of the seven times <i>Havayeh</i> within him.<br />
<br />
But through Yaakov’s act of bowing down to Hashem seven times in Esav’s presence, the seven times <i>Havayeh</i> within Yaakov removed the seven times <i>tamei</i> within Esav. Once this was complete, the one time <i>Havayeh</i>, the good aspect hidden within Esav (which was swallowed up in the seven times <i>tamei</i>), was revealed, and therefore Esav “embraced him [Yaakov] and kissed him”. According to the Rashbi,[13] Esav did so with all his heart.<br />
<br />
Yaakov’s victory granted his descendants, Mordechai and Esther, the power to defeat Esav’s descendant, Haman. This is apparent in the above Medrash where it says that Mordechai’s title <i>ish Yehudi</i> could also be read <i>ish yechidi</i>, which means “the man of the Unique One”, for Mordechai publicized Hashem’s absolute unity.<br />
<br />
The lesson for our time is that the forces of impurity and evil related to the spiritual energies of Esav and Haman are still in existence. We overcome them by increasing in our faith and submission to Hashem as He reveals Himself in the name of <i>Havayeh</i>, which represents G-dliness that transcends nature. We accomplish this through increasing in our observance of Torah and Mitzvos in general, and specifically through studying the teachings of <i>Chassidus</i>.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
Based on the teachings of the Rebbe’s father, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneersohn, <br />
in <i>Toras Levi Yitzchak, Chidushim U’biurim Be’shas</i>, pp. 97, 214.</div>
<br />
<br />
_____________________________<br />
[1] <i>Esther Rabbah</i> 6:2.<br />
[2] <i>Bereshis</i> 12:5.<br />
[3] <i>Esther </i>8:17. This could mean that they converted to Judaism (as Rashi explains), but in the context of this Medrash, it appears to mean that they accepted the faith in one G-d, just as Avraham’s “converts” didn’t literally convert.<br />
[4] Avraham’s mother was Amtilai the daughter of Carnevo, while Haman’s mother was Amtilai the daughter of Urvesa—<i>Bava Basra</i> 91a.<br />
[5] <i>Bereshis Rabbah</i> 48:3.<br />
[6] <i>Esther </i>1:1.<br />
[7] Haman was descended from Amalek. Amalek’s father was Elifaz, whose father was Esav.<br />
[8] Esav was the son of Yitzchak, who was the son of Avraham and Sarah.<br />
[9] <i>Bereshis</i> 21:12.<br />
[10] <i>Bereshis</i> 171b.<br />
[11] Ibid. 33:3.<br />
[12] <i>Malachi </i>1:2.<br />
[13] <i>Sifri Behaaloscha</i> 59.<br />
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Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-39022421983272667012015-08-10T15:13:00.003-07:002015-08-10T15:13:56.690-07:00Television: The Ruination of a Generation<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Television: The Ruination of a Generation</h2>
Below is the Rebbe’s famous letter about television, translated in full. Every individual can draw their own conclusions about this letter’s relevance to more modern technologies.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Television is an unparalleled breach of standards. Even the non-Jews have now come out with a campaign against television, which is devastating for children. They are considering how to restore the situation as much as possible.<br />
<br />
How shameful it is that in this case, Jews must learn from non-Jews. Moreover, we can see [how much of an effect it has had on the Jewish community] from the case of the four Jewish boys [who were recently involved in a murder], and other similar cases of killing and murder. Everyone admits that one of the causes of this is television and movies, where killings and shooting are viewed.<br />
<br />
Moreover, even if one thinks that he will only view the “pious” programs on television that one is allowed to view, how can the parents guarantee that the children will not view other, forbidden programs as well? The children will argue that if the parents view television, they may also view whatever they want – and especially here in America, where children aren’t so obedient to their parents.<br />
<br />
And who can guarantee that the parents themselves will not fall into sin? Today they will view a permitted program, tomorrow they’ll sneak a peek at another program, and little by little, everything will become permissible to them.<br />
<br />
An obvious argument: How could the world have existed ten years ago, before television was introduced? Didn’t the world function just the same in all areas?<br />
<br />
[Owning a television] will also result in another detrimental effect on others: When one knows that so-and-so, who has a full beard, has a television, and one doesn’t know whether that Jew only views permissible programs, he will view all the programs, even those that are forbidden to view, relying on that person’s conduct as permission.<br />
<br />
One may ask, so why does so-and-so have a television? Are there not pious and even Chassidic Jews who have one? One should disregard them.<br />
<br />
This is comparable to the 248 physical limbs. Not all the person’s limbs are healthy. One person’s eyesight is weak, while another is weak in anothare limb, and so on. Would it be reasonable for one to say that since another is sick in his eyes, he also wants to be sick in his eyes? So, too, with regard to spiritual matters: No one is perfect, and everyone does as much as he can in observance of Torah and Mitzvos. Why should one learn a fault from someone else?<br />
<br />
Of all those who have a television, none will say that he bought it to increase his fear of Heaven or fine character traits. Everyone has an excuse for it – it’s a piece of furniture for his house, or for his wife. Or he says that he received it as a gift – should he throw it out?!<br />
<br />
Once people were careful not to pass by a church; one would go around. A mother would not allow her child to go near a church or see a crucifix. Yet nowadays, through television they bring the church, the priest, and the crucifix into the house, <i>Rachmana litzlan </i>(may Hashem save us).<br />
<br />
A young rabbi – in fact fine and G–d-fearing, from a pious yeshiva – related that he listens and watches television every day from twelve o’clock to one o’clock. At that time a priest speaks, and from the priest’s sermon, he gathers material to speak about from the pulpit in his synagogue! He said this sincerely, and he thinks he’s doing it for the sake of Heaven, so he will have what to sermonize about in his synagogue. He is oblivious to the tremendous sin that this involves.<br />
<br />
Once, people would give up their lives not to hear a priest speak, but now, through television, they bring the priest into their home, and they even vest this in holiness, as being for the sake of Heaven.<br />
<br />
This was the way of the early followers of the Enlightenment movement, whose motto was: “Be a Jew at home, but a mensch outside” – and some of them were even qualified rabbis.<br />
<br />
Really, what was wrong with this approach? The Code of Jewish Law does not forbid this. Indeed, one shouldn’t go in the streets screaming, “I am pious!” So what was forbidden about their motto?<br />
<br />
But did we not see from experience what happened to them? And among their children and grandchildren, no trace of Judaism remains.<br />
<br />
We once related the story of a <i>shochet </i>(ritual slaughterer) in the village of Lubavitch who wore boots and was then fired from his position.<br />
<br />
What was the prohibition? My father-in-law himself wore boots. Rather, in the time of this shochet, boots were a new thing, and only the Jews who dressed and acted like the <i>pritzim</i> [sing. <i>poritz</i> – the wealthy non-Jewish landowners], took part in their wild parties, and the like, would dress that way. If someone dressed like this, people knew that he had strayed from the proper path. In the end, it became known that this shochet and his family had indeed strayed from the proper path.<br />
<br />
In Lubavitch a Jew once came to his father and asked him: “Is it an accomplishment to sit in Lubavitch, closed in one’s room, and be a fine Jew? If one walks on the street in Petersburg, and doesn’t sin there – that’s an accomplishment.” He continued: “Even that is no accomplishment. Being in Petersburg, going inside the theater, sitting with one’s eyes shut, and not sinning – that’s an accomplishment.” Then the Jew went further: “Even that is not enough. Sitting inside a theater in Petersburg with one’s eyes open, and not sinning – that’s an accomplishment.” He continued further: “Even that is not enough. Entering the theatre, sitting near the stage where the performers perform, and then not sinning – that is a great accomplishment.” In this way he detailed an entire list of activities, and one can readily imagine how such a calculation can lead the person to fall to the lowest depths.<br />
<br />
You should see to correct this in your own city, and you can even start doing so in New York, because here the need to correct this is very great.<br />
<br />
<div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<i>Likkutei Sichos</i>, Vol. 18, pp. 459-461.
</div>
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-17932066711197824112015-07-22T14:14:00.001-07:002015-10-21T12:38:22.303-07:00The Different Origins of Bodies and Souls<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<h2>
<span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-large;">The Different Origins of Bodies and Souls</span></span></h2>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<h3>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</span></b></h3>
</div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The body and the soul—not only those of <i>medaber,</i> but of </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">domem</i><span style="font-family: inherit;">, <i>tzomei’ach,</i> and <i>chai</i> as well—stem from completely different levels in the supernal realms.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Chomer</i> vs. <i>tzurah</i></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Some necessary background: Everything that exists possesses both <i>chomer</i> and <i>tzurah. chomer</i>, “matter,” is the raw substance of the entity, while <i>tzurah, </i>“form,” refers to the specific shape and properties that the <i>chomer</i> assumes.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In terms of the relationship between body and soul, <i>chomer</i> corresponds to the body, while tzurah corresponds to the soul.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Memalei</i> vs. <i>Sovev</i></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><i>Memalei Kol Almin:</i> </b>This is the G–dliness that sustains <i>Seder Hishtalshelus.</i> The energy of <i>Memalei</i> descends in a gradual, systematic manner known as “ilah ve’alul”—“cause and effect.” The cause begets the effect, which in turn acts as the cause to a level further down, and so on.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The tzurah, the individual properties of each and every level within Seder <i>Hishtalshelus,</i> stems from the life-force of <i>Memalei</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><b>Sovev Kol Almin:</b></i> Also referred to as <i>Ohr Ein Sof</i>, Hashem’s infinite light. This kind of G–dliness completely transcends the vast, complex series of limited levels in <i>Seder Hishtalshelus</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Sovev</i> is endowed with the power to create “<i>yesh mei’ayin</i>”—ex nihilo. In Chassidus, creation ex nihilo does not mean that the created being came literally from nowhere, for Hashem is the source of everything. Rather, it stands in contradistinction to <i>ilah ve’alul,</i> where it is obvious how the effect evolves from the cause. In the case of <i>yesh mei’ayin</i>, however, one sees no comparison whatsoever between the level below and the level above it, and thus no way in which the lower level could have emerged from the higher one.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The reason that <i>Sovev</i> is the only force with the power to create something from nothing is that Hashem’s very Essence is vested in it. As the Alter Rebbe famously states, only Hashem’s very Essence, which has no previous cause, can create physicality, an entity that feels as if it has no previous cause.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The <i>chomer</i>, the raw matter of all the levels within Seder Hishtalshelus, was created <i>yesh mei’ayin</i> from <i>Sovev</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Memalei:</i> The source of souls</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">All souls stems from <i>Memalei</i>, and more specifically, from the four “faces” of the Divine Chariot,[1] located in the world of <i>Beriyah.</i> Each “face” is the origin of a different kind of soul in our world: [2]</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">“The face of the ox, to the left”[3]: The origin of the souls of all domesticated animals. Like oxen, domesticated animals possess the quality of raw strength, and so “Much grain [can be produced] with the power of an ox.”[4] However, domesticated animals may lack the quality of agility and keenness that wild animals possess. This is also the source of the Jew’s <i>Nefesh HaBehamis.</i></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">“The face of the lion, to the right”[5]: The origin of the souls of all wild animals. Like lions, wild animals in general have the quality of <i>zerizus</i>—they are much more energetic. This is the reason that wild animals are called chayos, which is related to the word <i>chayus,</i> vitality and energy.[6] However, wild animals may lack the quality of raw strength that domesticated animals possess.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">“The face of the eagle”: The origin of the souls of all fowl.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">“The face of the man”: The origin of the souls of all humans, i.e., the <i>Nefesh HaSichlis,</i> the intellectual soul that both Jews and non-Jews possess.</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Above them is the “man” who is “sitting” astride the “chariot”: “On the likeness of the throne was the form of the likeness of a man.”[7] This level is the origin of the Nefesh HoElokis. Thus it is written, “You are man,”[8] which is interpreted to mean “You [the Jewish people] are called man”[9]—“because you resemble the Supernal Man”[10]—the “Supernal Man” that sits astride the Divine Chariot.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The Jew’s 248 limbs correspond to the 248 “limbs” of the Supernal Man from whence his soul is derived. He connects his limbs to the G–dliness within the 248 “limbs” of the Supernal Man by observing the 248 Positive Mitzvos of the Torah, which are also compared to a man—“This is the Torah of man.”[11]</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Sovev:</i> The source of bodies</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The above describes the origin of the souls within our world. However, bodies cannot stem from the higher spiritual realms in <i>Seder Hishtalshelus.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">To explain this, we must define the difference between the physical and the spiritual: In the higher spiritual realms, one naturally senses the presence of a Higher Force to which one must submit to some degree. In the physical world, however, one does not sense this reality naturally and automatically; only through inquiry and contemplation can one reach that awareness (as in the famous story of Avraham, who deduced logically at age three that a single Creator must exist).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This fundamental difference between the physical and the spiritual makes the gap between them so vast that no matter how far down spiritual levels evolve and descend in a manner of <i>ilah ve’alul,</i> they can never develop into a physical entity, even an exceedingly refined one. A spiritual entity can only ever beget another spiritual entity.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This gap between the physical world and the higher spiritual realms means that the former can only come forth from the latter by a process of <i>yesh mei’ayin</i>. As we explained, it is the G–dliness of <i>Sovev</i> that brings something forth <i>yesh mei’ayin</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">So since souls are spiritual entities, the souls in this world can descend in a systematic, gradual manner from higher spiritual levels. The bodies, however, since they are physical, cannot, and they must be formed <i>yesh mei’ayin</i> from the spiritual.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Since the <i>neshamah </i>stems from the divine energy of <i>Memalei</i>, while the body stems from that of <i>Sovev</i>, and <i>Sovev</i> is higher than <i>Memalei</i>, it emerges that although in our world, the soul is higher than the body, in the higher realms, it is the reverse.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">The power of food</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Since body and soul are so different, they need an external force to bring them to unite, to join the physical and the spiritual. This is known as “the power that performs wonders,”[12] and this is the power vested in food.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The main purpose of food in joining body and soul is not to give vitality to the soul per se, but to enable the soul to give vitality to the body. The soul has vitality independently, for before the soul becomes vested in the body, it exists in the higher spiritual realms in a constant state of love and fear of Hashem. This is alluded to in the verse, “By the life of <i>Havayeh,</i> the G–d of Yisrael in front of Whom I stood,”[13] and “standing indicates prayer.”[14] This alludes to the way that the <i>neshamah </i>prayed to Hashem Above, before it descended into a body. Likewise, when the soul departs from the body, it rises to <i>Gan Eden</i> and takes delight in the G–dliness that it evoked through its Torah study in this world.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Since the soul can exist without the body, while the body depends totally upon the soul, the main purpose of food in binding body and soul together is for the body’s sake.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The reason for this is that both the body and the food (i.e., the physical matter of the food) stem from <i>Sovev</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">But how then can the food help the body, if their source is identical? Because although they both stem from <i>Sovev</i>, there are numerous levels within <i>Sovev</i>, and food stems from an even more sublime level in <i>Sovev</i> than that from which the body stems.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This also explains the fact that food must lose its life before it may be eaten—an animal must be slaughtered and a plant must be severed from the soil. For it is the raw <i>chomer</i> of the food that holds the <i>Sovev</i> energy that combines the physical and the spiritual; in order to reveal this <i>Sovev</i> energy, the external <i>Memalei</i> energy of the animal soul in the animal, or the plant soul in the plant, must first be removed.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Toras Menachem, </i>Vol. 33, p. 372 ff.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[1] <i>Rav Chaim Vital, Ta’amei HaMitzvos, Vayikra</i> s.v. <i>Mitzvas korbanos.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[2] <i>Sefer HaMa’amarim Admur HaZakein</i> 5566, p. 395.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[3] <i>Yechezkel</i> 1:10.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[4] <i>Mishlei </i>14:4.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[5] <i>Yechezkel </i>1:10.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[6] <i>Ohr HaTorah Devarim, </i>Vol. 5, p. 2131.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[7] <i>Yechezkel </i>1:26.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[8] Ibid. 34:31.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[9] <i>Yevamos </i>61a, beg.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[10] <i>Asarah Ma’amaros, </i>sec. <i>eim kol chai, </i>2:33.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[11] Bamidbar 19:14.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[12] In Hebrew, <i>“ko’ach hamafli la’asos.” </i>Based on the <i>Asher Yatzar </i>prayer. Cf. <i>Ramo </i>on <i>Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim </i>6:1. Cf. <i>Sefer HaMa’amarim </i>5649, p. 233.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[13] <i>I Melachim </i>17:1.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[14] </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Berachos </i><span style="font-family: inherit;">6b.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
Dedicated by Zvi Rona and family <i>l'ilui nishmas</i> Shlomo ben Pesach, whose <i>yahrtzeit</i> was on 8 Tammuz.<br />
<br />
Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard) and Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin).<br />
<br />
<br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>~~~~~~~</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span>Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-26356984710826204372014-07-13T14:19:00.001-07:002023-09-05T02:18:19.586-07:00On Marital Harmony II<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QDhlQMUB2Yc/ThwqDL7G5WI/AAAAAAAABhs/D7eXDKb0HWQ/s1600/Wedding+ring.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QDhlQMUB2Yc/ThwqDL7G5WI/AAAAAAAABhs/D7eXDKb0HWQ/s1600/Wedding+ring.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">On Marital Harmony II</span></h2>
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<b>(See On Marital Harmony I <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/05/on-marital-harmony.html">here</a>)</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<b>Impact of Awareness of the Imminence </b></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>of Moshiach on Relating to One’s Wife</b></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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When one considers the fact that we find ourselves at the end of the age of exile, close to the true and complete redemption (may it happen speedily in our days) when the feminine aspect will be dominant over the masculine, this very awareness fosters respect and care towards one’s wife.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Igros Kodesh,</i> Vol. 6, p. 202.</div>
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<b>Exerting a Positive Influence on One’s Husband</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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When it seems—sometimes perhaps with justification—that one’s husband could be “on a higher level,” one should take into consideration that Hashem has already decided upon this match long ago. Thus, just as when one detects a fault in oneself, the solution is not to cause oneself pain, but to seek painless ways to rectify the fault, so should it be—and to an even greater degree—between husband and wife. For ultimately it is hard to know what the other person is going through, and the difficulties that he went through in past years.<o:p></o:p></div>
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However, when he sees his wife’s softness and firm sense of trust in Hashem, the husband will then regard the entire world in a different light, and see that Hashem is the master of the entire world, and of their personal home in particular, and its environs. This will then put one in a good, joyful mood.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Experience shows how worthwhile this approach would be even for your own sake, for this approach brings warmth and calmness to a degree that far outweighs the effort required to compromise and forgive. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Igros Kodesh,</i> Vol. 9, pp. 119-120.<br />
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<b>Torah Observance Bolsters Peace in the Home</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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You must found your home on true foundations of Torah. This is not only important for the <i>neshamah</i> to succeed, but also for the body to succeed, and it makes no difference whether you understand this. This is comparable to one who obeys the directives of a great professor, and the person benefits from doing so even if he doesn’t know the reason behind the directives. This applies all the more to instructions from the Creator, Who is the Healer of all flesh. ... You should not forget the main point—that you must bring peace between the soul and the body, for this will immensely facilitate peace in the home.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Igros Kodesh,</i> Vol. 5, p. 224-225.</div>
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<b>Differences of Opinion between Husband and Wife</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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Our sages say that everyone has a different way of thinking.[1] This implies that despite this, true peace is attainable and necessary between every single Jew, and all the more so between husband and wife, for when they act according to Torah and <i>mitzvos</i>, our sages say that the Divine Presence rests in their midst.[2]<o:p></o:p></div>
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Only after the couple is blessed with children who reach the age of education does the concern that the couple may disagree about how best to educate their children become practically relevant—in other words, only after a number of years. But by this time their opinions will certainly have changed. Likewise, children bring tremendous emotional intimacy between their parents, and one cannot know at the outset the nature of this change and the extent of this intimacy. Based on our faith, one should harbor strong hope that this intimacy will occur to a great degree. Even if differences of opinion remain, they can reach a compromise between themselves, and their house will be an “everlasting edifice.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Likkutei Sichos,</i> Vol. 24, p. 467.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Conditions for Proper Family Life</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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A proper family life demands from the man, and even more so from the woman, more attention to be devoted and refined, which most cost much time and energy. ...<o:p></o:p></div>
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A proper family life according to Torah requires understanding, effort, devotion, patience, a good heart, cleanliness, calmness, an orderly appearance, a happy mood, a smiling face and friendly behavior. This is the way that both the husband and wife should behave, but in the majority of cases, this depends upon the woman, for “The wisdom of women built her home”[3]—the woman builds the home.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: right;">
<i>Igros Kodesh Admur HaRayatz,</i> Vol. 5, pp. 57-59.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Willingness to Compromise</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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We find that Rochel was ready to compromise [and give up being buried with Yaakov Avinu in the Me’aras Hamachpelah] in order to be of assistance to her children. This is the main quality that every proper Jewish woman should have, whose role is to serve as the “main part of the home.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Likkutei Sichos,</i> Vol. 30, p. 239.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />
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<b>One Who Encounters Many Obstacles Knows: </b></div>
<b></b><div style="text-align: center;"><b><b>This is One of His Main Tasks</b></b></div>
<b>
</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The very fact that you encounter so many obstacles to maintaining peace in the home demonstrates that this is one of your main tasks in life. It is implicit in the words of the Arizal, and explained in <i>Chassidus,</i> that the souls of these generations were already in this world, and they are coming back in a reincarnation, with the main purpose of rectifying areas that were lacking in the observance of the 613 <i>mitzvos </i>in previous incarnations.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Obviously, these souls are also obligated to follow all the 613 <i>mitzvos</i>, even those in which they did not fall short in a previous incarnation. The difference is that when it comes to <i>mitzvos </i>in which they did not fall short the previous time, the evil inclination does not mount as much opposition. It only presents enough difficulties so that free choice will remain, for in these matters, the person has already been refined in previous incarnations. In contrast, in areas in which they were lacking on previous occasions—i.e., in which their portion in this world and in the part of the soul connected to these worldly matters was not refined—the evil inclination fights with maximum force.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Igros Kodesh,</i> Vol. 5, p. 39.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Considering the Similarity of One’s<br />Wife to the Jewish People</b></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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When one thinks about one’s wife, one should always keep in mind that the entire Jewish people and every individual Jew is referred to as the wife of the King of all kings, the Holy One, blessed be He. When we offer requests from Hashem that He relate to the Jewish people—whom he refers to as “My beloved one”—by fulfilling their requests for the good, we should know that an “arousal from above” depends upon an “arousal from below.” Thus, this is also the way that one should treat one’s wife—as the Talmud says,[4] one should honor one’s wife more than oneself.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Igros Kodesh,</i> Vol. 6, pp. 201-202.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Opposition to Marital Harmony is <br />Much Greater at the End of Exile</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I would imagine that you will encounter the most obstacles [in the area of self-rectification] in the realm of peace in the home, for it is known that peace is great, and the ways of the entire Torah are pleasant, and all its paths are peace. This opposition is particularly great in this final exile, which, as mentioned in the Gemara[5] befell us because of lack of peace. The closer we approach the time of the end of exile, the greater the opposition of the other side to prevent peace in the world in general, and between husband and wife in particular, for they are comparable to G–d and the Jewish people, respectively. However, “the load is according to the camel,” and G–d surely grants one the strength to overcome this test.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<i>Igros Kodesh,</i> Vol. 4, pp. 422.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><br /></div>
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________________<o:p></o:p></div>
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[1] <i>Berachos</i> 58a.<o:p></o:p></div>
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[2] <i>Sotah</i> 17a.<o:p></o:p></div>
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[3] <i>Yeshayah</i> 44:13.<o:p></o:p></div>
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[4] <i>Yevamos</i> 62b.</div>
[5] <i>Yoma</i> 9b.<br />
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Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-79866351635112107752013-08-30T07:52:00.003-07:002015-01-13T00:09:29.979-08:00"Sharing the Burden" Through Torah Study <h2 style="text-align: center;">
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">“Sharing the Burden”<br />Through Torah Study</span></h2>
</div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h2>
<b>Complementary Roles</b><br />
<br />
The Gemara states:[1]<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: Were it not for David, Yoav would not have done battle, and were it not for Yoav, David would not have engaged in Torah. As it is written, “David performed justice and righteousness for all his people, and Yoav ben Tzeruya was in charge of the army.” What does it meant that “David performed justice and righteousness for all his people?” [He was able to,] because Yoav was taking care of the army. And what is the meaning of “Yoav was in charge of the army?” So that David could perform justice and righteousness for all his people.</blockquote>
Yoav and David HaMelech were partners who each valued the other’s contribution. David HaMelech knew that since the Jewish people had enemies, and since Torah instructs us “We do not rely on a miracle,”[2] he needed an army of soldiers led by a mighty general to lead the battles against the enemies of the Jewish people. This general was Yoav.<br />
<br />
But David HaMelech himself did not go to war, although he was fully capable of doing so. He chose, instead, to remain behind in order to study Torah and teach it to the people.<br />
<br />
Yet Yoav had no complaints. He knew that David HaMelech’s contribution was indispensable. “Were it not for David, Yoav would not have done battle.” He did not view David HaMelech’s choice as shirking responsibility, never mind as cowardice, G–d forbid. He knew that most fundamental principle of the Jewish faith: Success at any endeavor comes not from one’s efforts, intelligence, and strength, but from divine blessings—“it is the blessing of Hashem that gives us wealth.”[3]<br />
<br />
Yes, accomplishment require a human investment, for Hashem created the natural order and desires that we follow its laws. But one who relies on his own power and does not combine reasonable efforts with prayers for divine assistance denies the existence of Hashem as “the One Who sustains the entire world with His goodness, grace, kindness, and compassion”[4]—as the Provider of all our needs. The Torah warns us against this: “And you may come to say in your heart that your strength and the might of your hand made you this wealth, but remember that it is Hashem, your G–d Who endows you with strength to perform deeds of valor.”[5] In particular, “war does not belong to the mighty.”[6]<br />
<br />
So Yoav knew that in order to triumph over his foes, he needed divine blessings, and that this depends upon Torah study. But not the Torah study of the soldiers, for a soldier must focus his attention on the technicalities of warfare and cannot simultaneously analyze intricate Talmudic debates. Rather, the material efforts of the soldiers must be complemented by the spiritual efforts of the full-time Torah scholars, for “Torah protects and saves”[7]—Torah study brings protection and safety not only to those who study it, but to the Jewish people as a whole, and therefore to its protectors in particular.<br />
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<b>Foolish Bravery</b><br />
<br />
An analogy for this division of roles can be drawn from the army itself. Consider the chief general who sits calmly in his protected headquarters, poring over one classified intelligence report after another, calculating how the war ought to be fought—with what tactics, with which weapons, when to attack, how many soldiers to deploy, and countless other complex considerations. In the course of his duties, he instructs that others be dispatched to the battlefront, while he remains hard at work.<br />
<br />
One day, his son and best friend approach him in outrage and accuse him of hypocrisy and cowardice: “How can you do this?! You send us and many others to face mortal danger, while you remain far from harm’s way in your cushy office chair, reading all day? Shame on you! As the verse puts it, ‘Will your brothers go to war while you sit here?’”[8]<br />
<br />
Filled with guilt, the general concedes to the pressure, considering himself guilty of reprehensible double standards. He bows his head, clears away all the classified documents, closes down the headquarters, dons army fatigues and a gun, goes to the front, and fights.<br />
<br />
Not only would no one benefit from this “sacrifice,” but it would lead to certain defeat and horrendous loss of life, may G–d save us, for both the soldiers and the civilians whom they are protecting.<br />
<br />
So, too, on the broader, national level, in order for the army, the general, and everyone else involved in the material war effort to succeed, spiritual war efforts are necessary—devoted, full-time, G–d-fearing Torah scholars.<br />
<br />
<b>Spiritual Desertion</b><br />
<br />
But when the Torah scholar lacks fear of Hashem and forgets what his Torah study accomplishes, he can become so captivated with awe for the heroic soldier that he desires to quit learning. He wants to let everyone know that he, too, can wield a gun, earn a medal, and perform daring feats of military prowess.<br />
<br />
Just as one who is assigned to the front and abandons it is termed a deserter, so are Torah scholars assigned with the mission of studying Torah day and night who abandon <i>their </i>post, don army fatigues and a gun, and go to fight, also deserters. Since Jewish military victory depends upon the merit of Torah study, instead of benefiting the war effort, these young men jeopardize it and bring disaster upon the Jewish people, may G–d save us.<br />
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<b>Unsung Heroism</b><br />
<br />
In a sense, the Torah scholar is faced with a more difficult challenge than the soldier. Soldiers are lionized. They are given honorable mentions in the newspaper, awarded with marks of distinction, and their exploits and victories are publicly recounted and rhapsodized. They are national heroes.<br />
<br />
But far away from the action of the battlefield, the Torah scholar sits and learns without fanfare. His efforts to protect the Jewish people (studying Torah all day is very difficult, as anyone who has done so, or attempted to do so, can testify) confer upon him no elevated status and glory; he goes unknown.<br />
<br />
If anything, he is punished for his choice, subjected to constant insults and condemnation by his less religious brethren, who scream at him in self-righteous indignation: <i>“Will your brothers go to war while you sit here?”</i> And not only doesn’t his vital contribution earn him an honorable mention in the media, but the media regularly spews vitriol against the full-time Torah scholar and incites the populace to despise him, branding him a leech and a drain upon society, one who selfishly refuses to “share the burden.”<br />
<br />
<b>An Invisible Lifeline</b><br />
<br />
There is a response to their complaint, albeit one that some don’t appreciate because they don’t <i>want </i>to.<br />
<br />
The Torah is a “Torah of light”[9] in which Hashem reveals sublime, perfect teachings that illuminate our daily lives with moral clarity and direction. The Torah tells us: Look beneath the material reality.<br />
<br />
Even the soldier himself depends upon others whose involvement is not visible. For the soldier to stand and shoot, many other army personnel and others are required to assist the war effort from the sidelines by providing food, technical know how, logistical direction, discipline, funding, and so on.<br />
<br />
Likewise, the soldier needs spiritual help from behind the scenes in order to be alive. After all, all his training and weaponry will be of no avail if he is not alive. And the true source of life and safety is Hashem, Who grants us life through His holy Torah, which is “our life and the length of our days.”[10] So for the soldier to be alive, he must be infused with life through the life-giving studies of the Torah scholar.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<a href="http://www.sichos.com/5773/hanacha/10-25.pdf">Based on the Rebbe’s <i>sicha </i>of 6 Tishrei 5728.</a></div>
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______________________________<br />
[1] <i>Sanhedrin</i> 49a.<br />
[2] <i>Toras Kohanim</i> on <i>Vayikra</i> 22:32.<br />
[3] <i>Mishlei</i> 10: 22.<br />
[4] Grace After Meals liturgy.<br />
[5] <i>Devarim</i> 8:17,18.<br />
[6] <i>Koheles</i> 9:11.<br />
[7] <i>Sotah</i> 21a.<br />
[8] <i>Bamidbar</i> 32:6.<br />
[9] <i>Mishlei </i>6:23.<br />
[10] Evening prayer liturgy.<br />
<br />
<b>Addendum:</b><br />
<br />
See also this letter of the Rebbe posted <a href="http://crownheights.info/letter-and-spirit/467993/letter-spirit-chabad-and-israeli-politics">here</a>, which touches on the topic:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
You ask why Lubavitch Chassidim do not serve in <i>Tzahal.</i> Obviously you are misinformed, for many do and many have attained high rank in the defense forces on active duty; and not only in the Chaplaincy, as you thought. As for those who serve in the Chaplaincy, clearly that is where they contribute most to <i>Tzahal</i> and the security of the country, since keeping the morale of the defense forces on the highest level is of primary importance. It would be a poor judgment on the part of <i>Tzahal</i> to press one who is qualified to be a Chaplain into service as a private, as it would be to force one who is qualified to be a colonel to serve as private instead.<br /><br />While on this subject, let me mention a further point, though you do not refer to it explicitly, namely, the exemption of yeshivah students from military service. As you may know, this exemption was recognized and agreed to by the founder of <i>Tzahal,</i> the late D. Ben Gurion. It is based on the fact that a yeshivah student can accomplish more to the security of the country by continuing his Torah learning than by military duty. Anyone who is familiar with the <i>Sedra Bechukosai</i> and is not prejudiced can see this clearly.</blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>~~~~~~~</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span>Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-71657610248239440712013-08-26T23:33:00.003-07:002021-07-19T05:21:26.430-07:00Light Prepares for Darkness<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Light Prepares for Darkness</span></b></h2>
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<h3>
<b>Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</b></h3>
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I recently spent a few days in the country, where at night even the streets are much more poorly lit than in the city, and in the fields there is almost no light. Yet during my time here, I have not needed to walk around at night, only during the day.<br />
<br />
Last night, for the first time, I had to make my way across several large fields in order to reach my destination, with only some faint streetlights in the distance and a glimmer of moonlight and starlight to help me find my way.<br />
<br />
Although I did trip a few times and veered onto a minor detour, I managed. Why? I had gone down that path often enough during the daylight hours that the little light that shone was sufficient to direct me.<br />
<br />
Perhaps the lesson is as follows. When one is in an environment of spiritual light, of holiness and purity, such as a <i>beis ha'knesses </i>(synagogue) or a <i>beis ha'medrash </i>(Torah study hall)<i>,</i> the way is clear. In contrast, the outside world is a place of intense spiritual darkness (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/01/overcoming-world.html">here</a>), rife with fraud and deception, ignorance of Hashem's Word, materialism, hedonism, and apathy to faith and even ridicule of it (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/10/todays-is-ultimate-test.html">here</a>). In this "doubled and redoubled darkness" the Jew is prone to lose his or her way, G-d forbid.<br />
<br />
But when we are accustomed to devoting time daily to <i>davven</i> and learn in the <i>beis ha'knesses</i> and <i>beis ha'medrash</i> (and their equivalent as appropriate for women and girls)<i>, </i>we keep ourselves spiritually attuned and fortify ourselves (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/08/power-of-torah-to-transform-us.html">here</a>). Then even when we descend into the hostile environment of the outside world, we will not lose our way, for we remember the experience of being in an environment of G-dliness and purity.<br />
<br />
This also explains why it is so important for <i>bochrim</i> to attend <i>Yeshivah,</i> for girls to attend seminary, and for <i>chassidim</i> to go to the Rebbe (or, until Moshiach comes, the places where the holiness of the Rebbe resides--770 and the <i>Ohel)</i> at least once a year.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>~~~~~~~</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span></div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-16020065793538909772013-08-20T01:23:00.000-07:002020-03-08T00:58:09.689-08:00Teshuvah: Regaining Our Passion for Truth<h2 style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>Teshuvah:</i> Regaining<br />Our Passion for Truth</span></h2>
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Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h2>
The greatness of youth is its idealism. A resolute, unremitting, unashamed refusal to compromise one’s standards and principles, even in the face of tremendous hardship and opposition—nay, specifically in such circumstances.<br />
<br />
There are two kinds of compromise.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>1. Externally-imposed compromise.</b> This is when one is apparently forced into a compromise. He would never act this way otherwise, he says, but what can he do? He is left with no choice. His circumstances dictate that he lower his standards, cut corners, settle for less. Life is not a fantasy and he can’t live in the clouds. He must grow up and live in the real world, which means that sometimes he must do things he finds objectionable for the sake of some purportedly greater cause.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>2. Self-imposed compromise.</b> As time goes by, he starts slipping. He used to be careful to observe every single custom meticulously, every <i>dikduk kal,</i> but now it seems like so many ... minutiae. Of course, he’s still <i>frum,</i> but it no longer seems so crucial to be so ... <i>farfrumt</i> and <i>farchnyokt</i> as it did back when he was young, headstrong, and naïve. After all, almost no one else truly lives like that their whole lives, except for a handful of social outcasts, people who never grew up. He’s matured steadily over time, and maturity means mellowing out, being more “chill,” not taking yourself so seriously, and learning to have a little fun. And if it means cutting a corner, then no harm is done. No one else cares, nor will they find out, anyway. And as for Hashem? He’s all-forgiving, so He won’t mind either, surely.</blockquote>
Even in the first case, when the compromise was externally imposed, the person adjusts to his compromised state, and comes to feel that compromise is no big deal, and perhaps not even shameful. In any case, he learns to accept compromise as a normal part of life. And then, over the course of time, it is very likely that he will decline from the first kind of compromise to the second, G–d forbid.<br />
<br />
When we live a life in which we are ever-cautious not to fall prey to all-too-human weakness, and persist in maintaining our personal standards courageously regardless of how others around us are acting, and the direct or indirect pressures that they may be placing upon us, then we are truly alive.<br />
<br />
This is much more attainable when a person is physically young, because he has not yet gone out into the “real world” and had to spend all day in the company of spiritual sellouts, in external circumstances that test him, that play with his mind and wear him down until he starts to truly believe the lie that the materialistic society sells him from every direction that he has no choice but to compromise—to sin “just a little.”<br />
<br />
But there is no such thing. You can’t sin “in moderation.” Nor can you compromise “in moderation.” No, once you start down that road, know that you’re making deals with terrorists, dancing with the devil, and inevitably “one sin brings another in its wake.”[1]<br />
<br />
So then the relentless downward spiral—yes, the slippery slope—begins, and you go from being tainted to becoming slowly but surely corrupted. Our sages warn, “When one sins once, and again, he feels as if it is permissible.”[2] What he earlier recognized as a sin, he starts to view as a mere compromise, and then what he had previously viewed as a compromise becomes completely acceptable. And then he becomes even further desensitized, so that from feeling “as if it is permissible,” it becomes felt to be outright permissible, until it even becomes a Mitzvah! (See also <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/07/torah-key-to-our-survival.html">here</a> and <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2009/03/dont-fall-down-slippery-slope.html">here</a>.)<br />
<br />
Don’t fall into this trap.<br />
<br />
But if you are no longer in your early twenties, chances are that you have, and that your idealism has declined (assuming you were fortunate enough to go through a stage of youthful idealism in the first place).<br />
<br />
So now you need to uncorrupt yourself. Start with some brutal honesty. Idealism and truth-seeking always demand it, and honesty with oneself is needed first and foremost.<br />
<br />
Stop living in denial. Admit it, you sinned. You didn’t merely “compromise” or “make mistakes” due to “circumstances beyond your control.” You’re not a passive victim, a helpless object, a leaf blown by the wind. That’s nonsense. Hashem gave you free choice. You were tested, and you failed. Yes, the test may have been very, very difficult. But so what? You’re still fully responsible for your conduct. And when you compromised, you corrupted, debased, and dehumanized yourself.<br />
<br />
Now that’s not to say that everything you do is wrong; on the contrary, it is quite possible that most of your behavior is worthy. But that is neither here nor there. Grow up. <i>Mitzvos</i> don’t excuse <i>aveiros</i>.<br />
Once you have truly accepted that you sinned (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/08/an-unflinching-reckoning.html">here</a>), then you can do <i>Teshuvah</i>, be cleansed, and change your ways. Then idealism—and its corollary, unapologetic disdain for compromise in all its ugly and insidious manifestations—can return.<br />
<br />
Then your age no longer matters (as much). Passion for the absolute truth of the Torah of truth, and a willingness to fight for it, to sacrifice for it, to die for it and to live for it, to surrender oneself to it with every fiber of one’s being, to do everything in one’s power to live up to it and disseminate it to one and all with confidence and conviction—all these youthful feelings can then thrive again.<br />
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And when you translate this truth into your personal life, you are also able to lead and inspire others, to serve as a shining role model, a beacon of truthfulness, integrity, and joyful sacrifice for your family and community, filled with the enthusiasm and vigor of youth.<br />
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Adapted from the <i>sicha </i>of 13 Tammuz 5732.</div>
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[1] <i>Avos</i> 4:2.<br />
[2] <i>Yalkut Shimoni, Vayikra</i> 25:661.<br />
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<i><br />Dedicated in honor of the birthday of my dear son, Shneur Zalman ben Atarah Arielle, </i><i>on 29 Av</i><i>.</i><br />
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Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-82988457962023538602013-08-10T23:07:00.003-07:002022-10-12T16:12:49.333-07:00Lift the Veil<h1 style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Lift the Veil</h1><h2 style="text-align: center;"> Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h2>
<a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/05/two-categories-of-physicality.html">In an earlier post</a>, we explained the difference between <i>gashmiyus</i>—“physicality” and <i>chumriyus</i>—“coarseness.”<br />
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This also explains the lowly state of our world. In reality, within every being in our universe there is a <i>chayus Eloki,</i> a divine vitalizing force, that creates it as it is, maintains its existence, and without which it could not exist. Yet although it is right here within every single being, we do not feel it.<br />
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But it wasn’t always this way. In the world’s original state, before the sin of Adam and Chava, “the divine presence dwelt in this lowly world.” Then one could sense tangibly how the existence of every physical being stems from the <i>chayus Eloki,</i> and so one naturally submitted to that vitality, and therefore to Hashem.<br />
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But the sin of eating from the Tree of Knowledge tainted the cosmos as a whole. It created an intense veil over the <i>chayus Eloki.</i> <i>Chassidus</i> calls this veil <i>chumriyus,</i> and the <i>chumriyus</i> in our world is very great.<br />
<br />
However, during the period of exile, we are charged with the mission of rectifying the cosmos though our performance of Torah and <i>Mitzvos,</i> and this gradually diminishes the <i>chumriyus</i>. The veil of <i>chumriyus</i> will be completely lifted when <i>Moshiach</i> comes, and all will “see” the underlying reality of the <i>chayus Eloki</i> (may it happen now!).<br />
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This is true not only on a grand scale, but also on a miniature scale, even before <i>Moshiach</i> comes. We may not yet be able to refine ourselves to the point of literally seeing the <i>chayus Eloki,</i> but though hard work, we are all fully able to reach a far deeper level of inner sensitivity to G–dliness (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2009/12/seeing-is-believing-in-honor-of-yud-tes.html">here</a> and <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2010/11/daas-developing-g-d-consciousness.html">here</a>).<br />
<br />
The principle here is that the more a vessel is refined, the more it can contain. Consider the mind: The more one’s mental capacities are refined and sharpened, the deeper the concepts one is able to grasp. Likewise, the more the person engages in <i>avodah</i> (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/07/avodah-tough-job.html">here</a>) to refine the coarseness within of the Bestial Soul and the body, the more he becomes open and receptive to awareness of Hashem (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/07/iskafya-ploughing-soil.html">here</a>).<br />
<br />
This means that when he meditates upon Hashem’s greatness before prayer, his mind becomes much more receptive, and the concept he reflects upon is truly absorbed and integrated into his mind and heart. Likewise, when he studies Torah, he will sense the divine light within Torah (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2009/12/key-to-understanding-torah.html">here</a>).<br />
<br />
And then, when he goes out to engage with the outside world, not only will this interaction not adversely affect him by detracting from his sensitivity to G–dliness (as it would otherwise), but it will enhance it:<br />
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In the world at large, he will sense the world’s dependence on the <i>chayus Eloki</i>. On a personal level, he will be imbued with the awareness that all his blessings come from Hashem alone; he will notice Hashem’s guiding hand, intimately controlling every aspect of his life; and he will succeed at illuminating everyone and everything in his surroundings with an ever-greater awareness of Hashem’s presence.<br />
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Based on the Rebbe Rashab’s <i>Sefer HaMaamarim</i> 5678, p. <a href="http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pagefeed/hebrewbooks_org_31678_95.pdf">85</a>.</div>
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<i><br />Dedicated in honor of the birthday of my dear daughter, Shaina bas Atarah Arielle, </i><i>on 22 Tammuz</i><i>.</i><br />
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Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</div>
</div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-36310245700493244292013-08-07T06:27:00.002-07:002013-08-07T13:00:35.405-07:00Overcoming the Dangers of Intense Religiosity (pt. 4)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Overcoming the Dangers of<br />Intense Religiosity (pt. 4)</span></h2>
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Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h3>
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(This is the last installment of a four-part series. The previous posts: pts. <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/06/overcoming-dangers-of-intense.html">1</a>, pt. <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/07/overcoming-dangers-of-intense.html">2</a>, pt. <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/08/overcoming-dangers-of-intense.html">3</a>.)<br />
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We can also observe the phenomenon of well-meaning but misplaced religious feeling in a contemporary context, and on a far more basic level than was described in the previous installments of this essay.<br />
<br />
Secular attitudes combined with ignorance of and sometimes outright disrespect for Jewish law have led many to follow practices that are in violation of the traditions of our holy Torah. And although they outright reject the tenets, laws, and customs of the Judaism of their ancestors, they bizarrely claim to be following it.<br />
<br />
E.g., some people become enthusiastic about prayer—which is, indeed, a very sublime Mitzvah—but then pray in a mixed service without a <i>mechitzah</i>, or pray using a liturgy that they made up themselves while rejecting the divinely-inspired, required liturgy formulated millennia ago by the <i>Anshei Knesses HaGedolah</i>.<br />
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“Why do the fine points matter so much?” they protest. “The main thing is that we’re inspired in serving Hashem, and Hashem isn’t so petty—He loves us and hears us whether we follow a prescribed text or not!”<br />
<br />
One recent high-profile example of this may be the “Women of the Wall,” who insist on their “right” to violate the traditional synagogue laws adhered to at Judaism’s holiest site, the Kosel. (My hesitation in including them in this category is that it seems that for many of them, their fervor is in fact political, not religious.)<br />
<br />
This is comparable to approaching a human king or a prime minister with an impassioned plea that he spare one’s life, but with the qualification:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
I know that your majesty has issued certain edicts, but I’ve decided to flout them: For instance, although I know that you’ve declared that when we come before you, we should follow the dress code that you prescribe, I don’t care—I’ll dress as I please when I come to ask you for a favor. I also know that you’ve explicitly stated that you want us to present our requests to you using a prescribed text, but I insist on expressing my individuality, and asking you for what I want in my <i>own</i> way. Yet I expect your highness to grant my heartfelt request regardless, because after all, you are so very merciful indeed.</blockquote>
How outrageous. What human king would tolerate such a request, never mind accede to it? How much more so is such an attitude completely inappropriate when one approaches the King of all kings, Hashem.[1]<br />
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In conclusion, on every level, the Jew should be careful to ensure that his spiritual, inspired feelings for Hashem are not expressed inappropriately, whether in the form of somehow mistreating others, or violating Jewish law. He attains this by strengthening his acceptance of Hashem’s absolute sovereignty and authority—<i>kabolas ol Malchus Shomayim</i>. Then not only will these feelings not result in inappropriate behavior, but they will inspire one to much more careful observance of <i>halacha </i>and much more sincere devotion towards one’s fellow Jew.<br />
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Adapted from <i>Sichos Kodesh</i> 5723, p. <a href="http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=4590&pgnum=74">54</a>.</div>
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[1] A truly courageous rabbi will find the words to make sure his congregants are aware of this. See a letter of the Rebbe on the responsibility of a congregational rabbi to object to changes in Judaism <a href="http://www.chabadinfo.com/images/originalsize/5203/520295.jpg">here</a>.<br />
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Read this essay in full on Scribd <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/158673037/Overcoming-the-Dangers-of-Intense-Religiosity">here</a>!<br />
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<i>Dedicated in honor of the ninth birthday of beni bechori, Shneur Zalman ben Atara Arielle, on 29 Av. May he grow lTorah, l'Chupah, ulemaasim tovim, and become a chossid, yerei Shomayim, and lamdan!</i></div>
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<i>Dedicated by Reb Yisrael Meir Raphael and family.</i></div>
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Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-941036130175450182013-08-04T01:01:00.000-07:002013-08-27T03:05:27.892-07:00Overcoming the Dangers of Intense Religiosity (pt. 3)<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Overcoming the Dangers of<br />Intense Religiosity (pt. 3)</span></h2>
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Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h3>
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Earlier (pts. <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/06/overcoming-dangers-of-intense.html">1</a> and pt. <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/07/overcoming-dangers-of-intense.html">2</a>), we explained the phenomenon of well-meant, otherwise worthy religious feelings being “hijacked” and being expressed in a counter-productive, even harmful manner.</div>
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Now for the big question: How does one avoid falling into this trap?</div>
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One root cause of spirituality going awry is the lack of the proper foundation of one’s service of Hashem.</div>
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To serve Hashem properly it is not enough to eschew hedonism, to think constantly about Hashem, to be spiritual, and to love Hashem. It is not even enough to fear Him. The same goes for fulfilling the <i>Mitzvos</i> that relate to the sphere of interactions with other people: It is not enough for a religious person to be generous and hospitable, to be humble and forgiving, to be devoted and tireless in serving one’s community. </div>
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Yes, these are all important and even vital elements of a deep, personal relationship with Hashem. Yet all of them can go awry, so none of them comprise the very foundation of one’s relationship with Hashem.</div>
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The beginning and foundation of serving Hashem is very (and perhaps even deceptively) simple: <i>Kabolas ol Malchus Shomayim,</i> submission to the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven.[1] This means that one is in a state of constant submission, such that all one’s behavior is part of serving Hashem, and is done with the intention of following His wishes.</div>
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With regard to emotional expression, this means that no emotion or desire, however worthy it may otherwise be, should be expressed exclusively because one feels that way.</div>
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Rather, even if the emotion coursing through one’s heart is fully appropriate, one should be conscious of its inner core. This very emotion is part of serving Hashem, for through it one fulfills a divine command—the command to feel certain feelings.</div>
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For Torah and <i>halacha</i> direct us not only in our actions, but also in proper thoughts and feelings, in “<i>chovos halevavos</i>—duties of the heart.” In this case, not only is it worthy to love and fear Hashem, but in so doing, we fulfill explicit divine commands[2] (which are, in fact, Biblical obligations no less binding than the obligation to keep Shabbos or kosher): “Love Hashem, your G–d”[3] and “Fear Hashem, your G–d.”[4]</div>
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This holds true not only for spontaneous, gut feelings (which are much more likely to be hijacked in the manner described above), but even for feelings that emerged, as they should, from a process of study, comprehension, and <i>hisbonenus</i> (“contemplation” or “meditation”). For intellect, emotions, and the (very worthy) process of intellect producing emotions all depend upon the firm foundation of <i>Kabolas ol Malchus Shomayim</i> for their success.</div>
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When a Jew’s life is based on this foundation, his entire relationship with Hashem is stable and strong, and then he is able to attain success in his spiritual strivings in all areas and on all levels[5]—intellect, emotions, and thought, speech, and action. Moreover, it ultimately also paves the way for Hashem’s blessings for material prosperity.</div>
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If, however, one gets carried away with a passion for a holy pursuit (in whatever area), but lacks the awareness that this feeling is not just self-expression, but a part of serving Hashem and fulfilling a divine command, then no matter how worthy and holy the passion, this person is at high risk. This passion may well devolve into inappropriate feelings and behavior, as explained in the previous posts in this series.</div>
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Thus, we find how Nadav and Avihu, who yearned to serve Hashem on a high level, were so intent on their desire to offer up the incense in the <i>Mishkan </i>that they did so when they were not supposed to. They then “came too close to Hashem, and died.”[6] The reason this happened was that their passion to come close to Hashem lacked <i>kabolas ol Malchus Shomayim</i>, the simultaneous desire to submit to Him, and so it ended tragically. Let us not make the same mistake<i>.</i></div>
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Adapted from the Rebbe's <i style="text-align: right;">Sichos Kodesh</i><span style="text-align: right;"> 5723, p. </span><a href="http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=4590&pgnum=74" style="text-align: right;">54</a><span style="text-align: right;">.</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: right;"><i><span style="text-align: start;">Read this essay in full on Scribd </span><a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/158673037/Overcoming-the-Dangers-of-Intense-Religiosity" style="text-align: start;">here</a><span style="text-align: start;">!</span></i></span></div>
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[1] Cf. <i>Tanya </i>beg. ch. 41.</div>
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[2] These are counted in the <i>Six Constant Mitzvos</i> binding on men and women equally, as enumerated in the introduction to <i>Sefer HaChinuch.</i></div>
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[3] <i>Devarim </i>6:5.</div>
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[4] Ibid. 6:13.</div>
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[5] Cf. <i>Likkutei Sichos,</i> Vol. 1, pp. 104-105.</div>
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[6] <i>Vayikra </i>12:1; <i>Ohr HaChaim</i> ad loc.</div>
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<i>Dedicated by Reb Yisrael Meir Raphael and family.</i><br />
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Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</div>
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Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-86163362403144750062013-07-02T22:30:00.000-07:002013-08-07T13:01:44.292-07:00Overcoming the Dangers of Intense Religiosity (pt. 2) <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Overcoming the Dangers of<br />Intense Religiosity (pt. 2)</span></h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h3>
In the <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/06/overcoming-dangers-of-intense.html">previous installment</a>, we discussed how good intentions and holy passions can go awry because of a lack of inner refinement.<br />
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A parallel phenomenon is found among the angels. As discussed earlier (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/05/of-angels-and-men.html">here</a>), although the angels possess vastly superior intellect, they are fundamentally emotional beings, whose core is filled with passionate feelings of love and fear of Hashem, and so they are not truly intellectual in the way that man is.<br />
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Starting from <i>Beriyah,</i> each level in <i>Seder Hishtalshelus</i> (the spiritual multiverse—see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.pt/2011/06/jews-mission-refining-sparks.html">here</a>) devolves directly from the one above it. So <i>Beriyah</i> devolves into <i>Yetzirah, Yetzirah</i> into <i>Asiyah,</i> and the spiritual plane of <i>Asiyah</i> devolves into our physical world, which is at the bottom of the world of <i>Asiyah.</i> This means that all the beings that exist in <i>Beriyah</i> also exist in <i>Yetzirah,</i> but in a lesser, more egotistical state, and so on.<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2892681084518056774"></a><br />
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So when the intense love and fear of Hashem of the angels in the higher spiritual realms (<i>Yetzirah, Yetzirah</i> into <i>Asiyah</i>—no angels exist in <i>Atzilus, </i>the world above Beriyah) devolves into our physical world, which is the lowest of all levels—“the lowest level possible as regards the concealment of divine
light, a double and redoubled darkness to the extent that it is filled with forces of <i>Kelipah </i>and
<i>sitra achra,</i> which are literally against Hashem, saying ‘I exist, and there is
nothing else but me’” (<i>Tanya</i> ch. 36)—these feelings go completely awry:<br />
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The angels’ love of Hashem turns into <i>chessed</i> (kindness and love) of <i>Kelipah</i>—the lusts and pleasures of the flesh that we (if we are G-d fearing, do our best not to) see in the secular society around us. (Once, <i>Reb Itcheh der Masmid,</i> a great <i>chossid,</i> had to visit the city of Manhattan (in the ‘20s, I think). His comment: <i>“Do hobn di malochim gut ongemacht”</i>—“here the angels really relieved themselves.”)<br />
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Likewise, the angels’ intense fear of Hashem turns into <i>gevurah</i> (strictness and fear) of <i>Kelipah</i>—all the forms of negativity, depression, conflict, hatred, and violence that so pervade the society and culture in which we live.<br />
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All these powerful and captivating negative energies that we perceive in the world around us are in fact the devolution—or, as <i>Chassidus</i> calls it, the <i>pesoles, </i>the “waste matter”—of that intense passion of the angels.<br />
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However, angels do not have free choice, so they cannot choose to refine themselves in a way that would prevent their passion from leading to anything undesirable. In contrast, although man<span style="text-align: right;">’</span>s capacity for emotion is infinitesimal when compared with that of the angels, he was endowed with overcome his emotions. He does this by choosing to choose to use his intellect in a way that refines himself so that his expression of emotions will not result in a negative outcome.<br />
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Stay tuned for the next installment!<br />
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Based on the Rebbe Rashab’s <i>Sefer HaMaamarim</i> 5660, pp. <a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=8&ilSC=40&nBookId=134&cPartLetter=B">8</a>-<a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=9&ilSC=40&nBookId=134&cPartLetter=B">9</a>.</div>
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Read this essay in full on Scribd <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/158673037/Overcoming-the-Dangers-of-Intense-Religiosity">here</a>!</div>
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<i>Dedicated by Reb Zvi Rona and family l'ilui nishmas Golda Ruth bas Moshe Zvi HaLevi on 22 Tammuz.</i><br />
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Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-89074803423790542192013-06-29T23:43:00.001-07:002023-09-22T01:30:00.920-07:00Overcoming the Dangers of Intense Religiosity (pt. 1)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Overcoming the Dangers of <br />Intense Religiosity (pt. 1)</span></h2>
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Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h3>
Whoa. Take it easy.<br />
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Is it good to be passionate and intense about goodness and holiness? Yes, undoubtedly. In fact, we are commanded to strive for this state, and not only is one who lacks passion neglectful, but he is at great risk of sliding into sin, for spiritual coldness and apathy lead one to all manner of evil, may Hashem save us.<br />
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Yet one must also take precautions to ensure that this intensity of feeling not go overboard and be expressed inappropriately.<br />
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The goal of learning about Hashem’s greatness is that this knowledge inspire one to genuine feelings for Hashem—<i>middos</i> (emotions) of <i>ahavah ve’yirah,</i> love and awe of Hashem (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/07/emotional-transformation-main-goal-of.html">here</a>).<br />
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Then instead of simply going through the motions—known as <i>“Mitzvas anoshim melumadah”</i>—one’s heart will be in it:<br />
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<li>Not only will he no longer view <i>Mitzvos</i> as an odious chore, but since he knows that performing the <i>Mitzvos </i>draws him into a close connection with Hashem, he eagerly looks forward to the opportunity to fulfill them, and does so with great gusto and joy. </li>
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<li>Likewise, his awareness that sin separates and distances him from Hashem makes the very thought of sinning repulsive and motivates him to do his utmost to avoid falling in sin. </li>
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The Torah states that this process of inner change is the mission of every single Jew.<br />
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To explain, <i>Chassidus</i> teaches that Hashem “made this one,” <i>Kelipah,</i> spiritual impurity, “opposite this one,” <i>Kedushah,</i> holiness. <i>Kelipah</i> and <i>Kedushah</i> (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/02/kedushah-versus-kelipah.html">here</a>) parallel each other. The same is true of the emotions that stem from these two cosmic forces, respectively: The unworthy emotions of the Bestial Soul parallel the worthy emotions of the Divine Soul (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2010/11/holy-vs-unholy-kindness.html">here</a>).<br />
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When one succeeds in this process of transforming one’s emotions, the holy emotions replace the unholy ones (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/01/on-developing-good-emotions.html">here</a>). In this state, love of physicality is replaced by its counterpart in holiness, love of Hashem. Fear related to one’s physical life (e.g., fear of pain, poverty, shame, and so on) is replaced with fear of Hashem.<br />
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However, by their very nature, emotions are egotistical. This holds true not only of the undesirable or at least selfish emotions of the Bestial Soul, but even of the holy emotions of the <i>Neshamah,</i> the Divine Soul.<br />
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Emotions are all about personal feelings and desires. One could desire to indulge in hedonistic pursuits or to attach oneself to the loftiest heights of holiness—either way, the ego is involved. Although in the latter case it is expressed in a constructive and virtuous way, it is still necessarily present.<br />
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This is especially the case when the emotion is felt tangibly. An emotion could be present but not felt, for it lies under the surface (cf. <i>Tanya</i> ch. 16). But when an emotion is tangibly felt, there is a strong egotistical component even in the holy emotions, and this is bad. This creates the serious danger that when the emotion is expressed, it may devolve into its counterpart in <i>Kelipah.</i> I will provide a handful of more common examples, with the caveat that this is only a very brief treatment of such behaviors, for this process can manifest itself in numerous forms:<br />
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<b>Love:</b> Love involves opening up and transcending limitations for the object of one’s love. So when love of Hashem goes awry, one loses a sense of boundaries, and then openness to and love of Hashem degenerate into dangerous openness and evil love—material indulgence and forbidden pleasures.<br />
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For instance, during prayer the Jew becomes aroused with passionate love for Hashem. After prayer, the intense feeling remains, but it becomes expressed in a more intense desire to indulge the senses, e.g., gluttonous eating.<br />
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<b>Fear:</b> Fear drives one to create limits and boundaries out of a sense of caution. So when fear of Hashem goes awry, the person becomes so filled with fiery passion or with a sense of self-limitation and inhibition gone too far that he succumbs to the negative emotions of the Bestial Soul. He may break out in sudden anger, sink into depression, inflict pain and torment upon others, or the like. </div>
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Another manifestation of this egotistical element of fear of Hashem is when the person shows off his intense desire to avoid sin. Even when he has no conscious desire to do so, and he is simply expressing his genuine emotion of fear of Hashem, the showiness is inappropriate. If his emotions were pure, this self-display would not occur, and this trait stems from his deep-seated condition of spiritual coarseness.</div>
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This is an example of what <i>Chassidus</i> calls <i>yenikah lachitzonim, </i>“giving sustenance to negative spiritual energies.” This means that when something holy lacks purity, it unwittingly gives strength to the forces of <i>Kelipah, </i>with often disastrous and tragic results. This expression is also used more broadly to describe anything good and holy that is done in a foolish, inappropriate, or otherwise inadvisable manner and therefore leads to an unfavorable outcome.<br />
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In this case, it means that the small element of ego in otherwise worthy and holy feelings is able to be grabbed and used by the evil inclination to feed undesirable emotions.<br />
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What is the key to overcoming these dangers? Stay tuned!<br />
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Based on the Rebbe Rashab’s <i>Sefer HaMaamarim</i> 5660, pp. <a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=8&ilSC=40&nBookId=134&cPartLetter=B">8</a>-<a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=9&ilSC=40&nBookId=134&cPartLetter=B">9</a>;<br />
<i>Sefer HaMaamarim</i> 5670, pp. <a href="http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pagefeed/hebrewbooks_org_31643_181.pdf">103</a>-<a href="http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pagefeed/hebrewbooks_org_31643_182.pdf">104</a>. </div>
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<span style="text-align: right;"><span style="text-align: start;">Read this essay in full on Scribd </span><a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/158673037/Overcoming-the-Dangers-of-Intense-Religiosity" style="text-align: start;">here</a><span style="text-align: start;">!</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-style: italic;">This post was dedicated by Rochel'e and Sholom Ber Odze in honor of the birthday of Yeshaya Yaakov</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> b</span><span style="font-style: italic;">as Rochel on 24 Sivan. </span><i>May he have a shnas hatzlocho begashmiyus u'veruchniyus!</i><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br />Also dedicated by Zvi Rona and family l'ilui nishmas </span><i>Shlomo ben Pesach, whose yahrtzeit was on 8 Tammuz.</i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), <span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Yaakov Yehuda ben Shaindel (Jacob Ostreicher), </span><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: -webkit-auto;">and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</span></span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span></div>
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Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-61886616476688889542013-06-03T23:08:00.000-07:002013-09-10T12:41:53.228-07:00Evil and Free Will<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Evil and Free Will</span></span></h2>
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<b>Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</b></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This post comes in continuation to the previous two posts on the topic of angels: </span><a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/05/of-angels-and-men.html">Of Angels and Men</a> and <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/05/programmed-purity-vs-frail-freedom.html">Programmed Purity Vs. Frail Freedom</a>.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Earlier (in the latter link above) we discussed how man holds the entire <i>Seder Hishtalshelus</i> within himself in miniature, and that this also endows man with the quality of free will, of choosing between virtue and sin, righteousness and wickedness. No other creation has this ability.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">To explain, in the highest spiritual world, <i>Atzilus</i>, no evil exists. Even the divine attribute of <i>gevurah</i>, severity, which is apparently negative, exists there in a pure and holy state. However, in the worlds of <i>Beriyah,</i> <i>Yetzirah,</i> and <i>Asiyah,</i> what was the <i>gevurah</i> in <i>Atzilus</i> degenerates partially into <i>Kelipah,</i> an unholy force that conceals over the existence of Hashem. The lower the level, the further the <i>Kelipah</i> declines, until it assumes the form of the evil in our physical world. Likewise, the quality of goodness as it exists in our world stems from the divine attribute of <i>chesed</i>, kindness.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As mentioned, man contains all the supernal attributes within him. This includes both the attributes of <i>chesed</i> and of <i>gevurah</i>. Thus, he also contains that which evolves from <i>chesed</i> and <i>gevurah</i>, namely, the qualities of good and evil. These are the Good Inclination and the Evil Inclination.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">It is this dual nature that enables man to have free choice, the ability to choose to act as he wishes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In contrast, an angel exemplifies a certain pure quality—whether <i>chesed</i>, <i>gevurah</i>, or the like—and it possesses no evil side. As Moshe Rabeinu’s rhetorically asked the angels, “Do you have an Evil Inclination among you?”[1] Since an angel possesses no evil, it is simply unable to be attracted to and tempted by evil, and so it lacks free choice.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Although the verse speaks of the angels “knowing good and bad,”[2] the angels relate to knowledge of evil in a purely abstract, clinical way. This knowledge cannot excite angels with any desire for evil because they do not possess evil within themselves at all. In contrast, man’s Evil Inclination causes his very knowledge of evil in the world to affect him and excite him, and it may well bring him to stray after it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This is what enables man to have free choice. Since he has evil within him, he is free to choose to sin; thus, when he does good he is not following his natural programming, but acting out of truly free choice, with no compulsion whatsoever.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This is very precious to Hashem, and so one who chooses to do good and not sin is blessed with a sublime revelation of G–dliness. This explains further how <i>meluchah,</i> willing acceptance of divine sovereignty, is only possible for mankind, who possesses free choice, but not for angels.</span><br />
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Based on the Rebbe Rashab’s <i>Sefer HaMaamarim</i> 5660, p. <a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=11&ilSC=40&nBookId=134&cPartLetter=B">11</a><span style="text-align: center;">.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">_____________</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[1] <i>Shabbos </i>88b.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[2] <i>Bereshis </i>3:5.</span><br />
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<i>Dedicated by Rabbi Levi and Chana Kurinsky of Melbourne in the merit of the birth of their daughter, Shterna Sarah bas Levi Yitzchok Halevi, on Shabbos, 16 Sivan – Parshas Beha’alosecha. Yegadluhoh leTorah, l'chupah, ulemaasim tovim mitoch harchovoh!</i><br />
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<i>Dedicated by Tzvi and Yehudis Rona and family of Sydney as a merit for the yahrtzeit of Pinchas ben Yitzchok HaLevy on <span class="il">22</span> <span class="il">Sivan.</span></i><br />
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<i>Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives </i><i>Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), </i><i>Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</i><br />
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Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</div>
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Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-88549141851904093042013-05-27T18:30:00.001-07:002013-09-10T12:34:58.788-07:00Programmed Purity Vs. Frail Freedom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<h2>
<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Programmed </span></b><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Purity <br />Vs. Frail Freedom</span></b></h2>
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<b>Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</b></h3>
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(This post is a continuation of this earlier post: <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/05/of-angels-and-men.html">Of Angels and Men</a>)</div>
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Hashem’s creation is awesomely vast. It encompasses not only our world, but also the entire <i>Seder Hishtalshelus,</i> the awesomely vast system of higher spiritual worlds that ends with our physical universe (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2010/12/light-vs-ego-different-types-of.html">here</a>).</div>
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Yet all the beings that Hashem created possess a fundamental limitation: Each one is endowed with a very small repertoire of qualities and character traits. With these few traits each creature is equipped to carry out its individual role, but is unable to perform any other role.</div>
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In the animal kingdom we find that each species exhibits a distinct emotional tendency. For instance, the raven is cruel, while the eagle is compassionate, and so on.</div>
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So is it in higher spheres: The angels, which are compared to animals,[1] are also limited to the distinctive traits with which they were created. Gavriel, the angel of fire and strictness, is unable to deviate from its nature and be kind, while Micha’el, the angel of water and kindness, is unable to be harsh. Thus, of the supernal angels it is written that Hashem “established them forever and ever; He has established a decree that shall not be transgressed,”[2] for they are unable to change.</div>
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This is also the reason that “one angel cannot perform two missions”:[3] since its character is fixed, it is incapable of expressing itself in any other way.</div>
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In contrast, Hashem fashioned mankind as a microcosm of the <i>Seder Hishtalshelus,</i> and so his inner self encompasses all levels in miniature. Thus, he is endowed with the entire spectrum of character traits, ranging from the highest to the lowest and from one extreme to another.</div>
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We can observe this is in the classic episode of the binding of Yitzchak. Hashem asked Avraham, who personified kindness,[4] to deviate from his nature and act with such harshness as to kill another person—and not just anyone, but his only son. Yes, Avraham was ready to obey because Hashem requested it of him. But how <i>could</i> he have obeyed, if his defining attribute was kindness? The answer is that no matter how much a person excels in a particular trait, he always retains the ability to act differently. Thus, although Avraham excelled in kindness, he could still be cruel.</div>
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Conversely, even the criminal guilty of the most dastardly crimes, the sort whom all will agree belongs in an electric chair, is capable of being kind and loving.</div>
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This is the reason that when the Torah describes the creation of all the other creatures, Hashem is referred to in the singular—“And Hashem made the firmament”;[5] “And Hashem made the animals of the earth”;[6] and so on. Only in connection with mankind do we find the plural form—“Let <i>us</i> make man.”[7] This alludes to the unique multiplicity that Hashem implanted within the mankind such that his spiritual makeup parallels all the higher heavenly spheres, and thus runs the entire gamut of qualities.</div>
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Based on the Rebbe Rashab’s <i>Sefer HaMaamarim</i> 5660, p. <a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=10&ilSC=40&nBookId=134&cPartLetter=B">10</a><span style="text-align: center;">.</span></div>
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(To be continued, G-d willing.)</div>
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[1] <i>Sifri,</i> end of <i>Bahaaloscha</i>; <i>Bamidbar Rabba</i>, end of <i>Naso</i>.</div>
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[2] <i>Tehillim</i> 148:6.</div>
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[3] <i>Bereshis Rabbah</i> 3:2.</div>
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[4] Avraham is associated with love and kindness, as it is written, “Avraham, who loves Me” (<i>Yeshayah </i>41:9). Moreover, “The divine attribute of kindness said before the Holy One: ‘Master of the Universe, since the days of Avraham, I have not have to perform my job, for Avraham serves in my stead’” (<i>Sefer HaBahir</i> 191, cited in <i>Pardes</i> 22:4).</div>
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[5] <i>Bereshis</i> 1:7.</div>
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[6] Ibid. 1:25.</div>
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[7] Ibid. 1:26.<br />
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<i>_________________</i><br />
<i>Sponsored by Pinchas and Feygl Cylich (Pinchos Boruch ben Yeshaya Yaakov and Feiga Matl bas Freidl) in honor of their parents, aleihem ha'sholom: Yaakov ben Boruch, Rayzl bas Pinchos, Yaakov Yisroel ben Shamai, and Freydl bas Mendl.</i><br />
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<i style="font-family: inherit;">Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives </i><i style="font-family: inherit;">Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Alan Gross (Aba Chonah ben Hava Chana), </i><i style="font-family: inherit;">Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</i><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>~~~~~~~</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span></div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-13894318926710852262013-05-24T00:01:00.001-07:002023-09-03T15:49:29.692-07:00On Marital Harmony<div>
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<b>On Marital Harmony</b></h2>
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<b>Rabbi Y. Oliver</b></div>
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Below is a compilation of translations of letters from the Rebbeim concerning marital harmony. </div>
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<b>One Should Only Rebuke One’s Wife with Soft Words</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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Don’t speak to your wife with harsh words. This will cause dispute and strife, and your goal will not be attained. Rather, speak with soft, calm words, as one speaks to his friend, and explain how one should not act in this manner, all in a soft manner, and then you will have an impact, and the goal will be fulfilled. This is crucial and very fundamental.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Sefer HaSichos</i> 5703, p. 233.</div>
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<b>Promoting Family Unity through Joint Shabbos Meals</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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One of the first steps toward promoting family unity is to strengthen the custom for the entire family to eat a joint meal on the night of Shabbos.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Letters from the Rebbe,</i> Vol. 3, p. 135.</div>
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<b>Benefit of Compromise in Marriage</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I hope that over time you will you will reach the conclusion that [in marriage] sometimes one should compromise, and through a small compromise one can gain a great deal.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Igros Kodesh,</i> Vol. 5, p. 81.<br />
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<b>Don’t Emphasize Your Spouse’s Faults</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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Until Moshiach arrives, no one exists without faults. Thus, it is clear that just as one spouse has a fault, so does the other, and just as one would not want one’s own faults to be emphasized, so should one not emphasize and amplify the faults of the other. This is the way all Jews should relate to one another, but this applies all the more when relating to your husband, who is the father of your children.<o:p></o:p></div>
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My intent is not to criticize, but merely to draw your attention to the fact that your situation is not as forlorn as you present it, and it is not unusual, as it appears to you.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Each of you should ignore certain things, and it is preferable for each of you find ways to bring peace in the home. Once this is attained, this is the vessel through which Hashem will provide blessings and success, good health, livelihood, and <i>nachas</i> from children.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i>Igros Kodesh,</i> Vol. 5, p. 61.</div>
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<br />Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-38920217979340214792013-05-21T13:46:00.000-07:002013-09-10T12:10:36.467-07:00Of Angels and Men<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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(kudos to <a href="http://in770.blogspot.com/">in770.com</a>)</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Of Angels and Men</span></b></h2>
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<h3>
<b>Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</b></h3>
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<b><i>Meluchah</i> versus <i>memshalah</i></b><br />
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<i>Chassidus</i> distinguishes between two kinds of rule: <i>meluchah</i>, kingship, and <i>memshalah</i>, domination.<br />
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<i>Meluchah</i> exists when the people <i>voluntarily</i> appoint a certain person king, committing to comply with his every edict, as in the verse, “They accepted His Kingship willingly.”[1]<br />
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In contrast, <i>memshalah</i> exists when one party rules over another against or without that person’s will, typically through the use of force. Although the person submits, he does so begrudgingly. The domination of mankind over the animal kingdom is an example of <i>memshalah:</i> Only once duress is applied does the animal submit, because it lacks the intellectual ability required to choose to submit to man voluntarily.<br />
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This is the difference between mankind and angels. Man has free choice—the ability to consciously, freely choose to submit to and obey Hashem, or sin and rebel against Him, G–d forbid.<br />
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Angels, on the other hand, are referred to as animals,[2] and so just as animals can only be ruled through <i>memshalah</i>, so are angels only capable of submitting to Hashem’s rule through His <i>memshalah</i>.<br />
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To be sure, there is a vast difference between human <i>memshalah</i> over animals and divine <i>memshalah</i> over angels. Animals submit to humans out of fear of punishment, while angels submit to Hashem out of a passionate desire to connect to G–dliness. Yet the angels’ submission is still considered <i>memshalah</i> because it comes naturally and automatically, and the angels are incapable of consciously choosing to connect to Hashem.<br />
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Now, this is not to say that angels lack intellect. On the contrary, angels possess a level of intellect far superior to that of mankind.[3] This is even true of the lowest angels, but all the more so of the highest angels, those found in the world of <i>Beriyah,</i> the Seraphim (for more on these angels, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2010/09/seraphim-passionate-love-for-hashem.html">here</a>).<br />
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The world of <i>Beriyah</i> is suffused with a revelation of the level of <i>Binah</i> (“understanding”) of <i>Atzilus,</i> the world above it,[4] which grants the Seraphim, who reside in that world, a sublime understanding of Hashem’s greatness. Thus, the Seraphim declare “Holy, holy, holy is the L–rd of Hosts,”[5] because they truly grasp, with their powerful, sublime intellect, how Hashem utterly transcends all the spiritual worlds. This awareness inspires them to an all-consuming love for Hashem and a yearning to become subsumed in that level of pure G–dliness. This feeling is so intense that they become burnt up and cease to exist.<br />
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Yet although angels possess intellect, their primary form of relating to Hashem and serving Him is not intellectual, but emotional. Angels are endowed with a powerful ability to experience emotions of love and fear of Hashem. These emotions are not produced by the angels’ intellect, but exist as an inborn desire that defines their very being. This is why angels are compared to animals, which are also naturally programmed to follow their instincts and desires, without any need for or possibility of a prior intellectual process.<br />
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<b>Free choice</b><br />
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But if angels possess intellect, and their submission to Hashem results from their intellectual understanding of Hashem’s greatness, doesn’t that prove that they also have free choice?<br />
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No, it doesn’t. Yes, angels use their intellect to excite their emotions; however, intellect is merely the trigger. Understanding Hashem’s greatness to whatever extent is necessary for them sets off their existing inborn emotions of love and fear for Hashem, so that excitement is not in and of itself intellectually based.<br />
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In contrast, man’s <i>defining characteristic</i> is intellect, and he is capable of using his intellect to <i>create</i> emotions. These emotions exist and are defined entirely by the nature of the intellect that produced them.<br />
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This is also the reason that the emotions of angels—and animals—are so powerful. Had their emotions been created by their intellect, those emotions would be much weaker, because such emotions are inherently limited by the nature and depth of the intellect that produced them. But since the emotions of angels and animals exist independently of intellect, the nature and intensity of these emotions is not dictated and limited by intellect, and this enables their emotions to be intense and unbridled.<br />
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This explains further why Torah refers to angels as animals, why angels’ possession of intellect does not detract from their lack of true free choice, and why Hashem’s rule over angels is defined as <i>memshalah</i>.<br />
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<b>developing worthy human emotions</b><br />
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Although mankind’s core characteristic is intellect, this is not to say that emotions are unimportant. On the contrary, man must not suffice with his intellectual grasp of G–d’s greatness; rather, this knowledge should inspire him to openly-felt emotions,[6] as it is written, “You shall know today and set it upon your heart that Hashem is the L–rd”[7]—“You shall know” must lead one to “set it upon your heart” (for further explanation, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/07/emotional-transformation-main-goal-of.html">here</a>).<br />
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Such emotions (although weaker, as above) are settled and balanced, real and genuine, and will therefore also inspire the person to passionate observance of <i>Mitzvos</i> and good deeds, refined and loving treatment of others, and appropriate caution from falling into sin.[8]<br />
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In conclusion, These emotions are superior to those of animals—and in a sense, also to those of angels—because they are produced by the intellect.<br />
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Based on the Rebbe Rashab’s <i>Sefer HaMaamarim</i> 5660, p. <a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=8&ilSC=40&nBookId=134&cPartLetter=B">8</a>.</div>
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[1] Evening Prayer Liturgy. For an earlier post that elaborates on this topic, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/09/rosh-hashanah-willing-acceptance-of.html">here</a>.<br />
[2] <i>Sifri,</i> end of <i>Bahaaloscha;</i> <i>Bamidbar Rabba,</i> end of <i>Naso</i>. Cf. <i>Tanya</i> ch. 36.<br />
[3] Cf. <i>Mishneh Torah, Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah,</i> 3:9.<br />
[4] For more on the difference between <i>Atzilus</i> and the worlds below it, the first of which is <i>Beriah,</i> see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2010/12/light-vs-ego-different-types-of.html">here</a>.<br />
[5] <i>Yeshaya</i> 6:3.<br />
[6] Cf. <i>Tanya</i> ch. 16.<br />
[7] <i>Devarim</i> 4:39.<br />
[8] It is also possible for emotions of love and fear of Hashem to stem from the Jew’s natural, inborn love of Hashem (cf. <i>Tanya</i> chs. 18-19, 25, et al.), but that is beyond the scope of this essay.<br />
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<i>Dedicated by Avi Turner and family l'ilui nishmas Nechama bas Reuven a"h, and by Mrs. Rivka Katz and family l'ilui nishmas Reb Mordechai Meir haKohen ben Chaim Elazar haKohen a"h.</i><br />
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<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives </i><i>Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Alan Gross (Aba Chonah ben Hava Chana), </i><i>Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>~~~~~~~</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span>Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-65774339352323273092013-04-30T00:22:00.000-07:002023-12-10T13:55:42.896-08:00On Defying Anti-Torah Government Edicts<h2>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhay6Zv-pc4oujmX6cqpyzcqJuBsEe_ckag5kiUP85vN9GlYk1aoXvOLIR0TdwVIXLSQ32iIjKBwNzZg5FFIdOx2avsl46vxjatupgaRc2cH167n1BBXRN6N7bUPIKVT33LNbPAdLjx_fpxvpsAC3lydUIw_UOMwEX7SoqT15idoCxZhawldU7y8OVu5Fk" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="3072" data-original-width="4608" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhay6Zv-pc4oujmX6cqpyzcqJuBsEe_ckag5kiUP85vN9GlYk1aoXvOLIR0TdwVIXLSQ32iIjKBwNzZg5FFIdOx2avsl46vxjatupgaRc2cH167n1BBXRN6N7bUPIKVT33LNbPAdLjx_fpxvpsAC3lydUIw_UOMwEX7SoqT15idoCxZhawldU7y8OVu5Fk=w478-h319" width="478" /></a></div><br /><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-large;">On Defying Anti-Torah</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Government Edicts</span></div>
</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</span></h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Since the Jew’s observance of the civil law stems from Torah alone, if there is ever a conflict between Torah law and civil law, the Jew follows Torah faithfully in all its minutiae and refuses to even consider doing otherwise. Although, as discussed </span><a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/04/how-to-relate-to-law-of-land.html" style="font-family: inherit;">in an earlier article</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">, “The law of the land is [Torah] law,”[1] this only applies to matters such as “merchants’ customs,”[2] international relations, and the like,[3] which stem from the </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">mazal,</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> the constellation, and higher, the guardian angel, of each country.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">However,[4] only the Jewish people were sent into exile, but the holy Torah itself was never subjected to exile, for “The Torah will never change.”[5] Hence, non-Jews have no right to issue laws that somehow interfere with the Jews’ observance of the Torah, and Jews need not and should not honor and obey such laws (see also <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/04/how-to-relate-to-our-gentile-hosts.html">here</a>).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Not only are non-Jews and their legal system unauthorized to override matters of Jewish observance that are a strict obligation or prohibition, they may not even dictate to a Jew how to keep a <i>minhag Yisrael</i> (Jewish custom), or in any way detract from the observance of a <i>minhag Yisrael.</i> The Previous Rebbe made a daring public statement to this effect after he was released from prison and about to be sent into exile. He famously repeated the following timeless words of one of his predecessors:[6]</span><br />
<blockquote>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">All the nations on the face of the earth must know that only our bodies have been sent into exile and the servitude of [foreign] rulers, but our souls have not been exiled or enslaved. We must declare openly before all that in all matters relating to our religion, the Torah, the Mitzvos, and Jewish customs, we Jews have no one who can dictate to us, nor may any pressure be brought to bear against us.</span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In the same vein, the Previous Rebbe once related[7] a powerful story of how the Tzemach Tzedek courageously stood up to the government when it attempted to interfere in Jewish observance:</span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
...In the first session, the Minister of <i>Haskalah </i>instructed the secretary of the conference to present a plan for the curriculum of Jewish children that the minister and his assistants had devised, and he commanded the four who had been summoned—the Rebbe [the Tzemach Tzedek], Reb Itcheleh of Volozhin, Reb Yisrael Halperin, and the scholar, Betzalel Stern, to sign on the plan.<br />
<br />
...When the Rebbe [i.e., the Tzemach Tzedek] saw that the situation was dangerous, he stood up and said:<br />
<br />
“The government summoned us to hear our opinion, and not to sign on what others have prescribed. I refuse to sign, and resign from my participation in the meeting.”<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit, serif;">Lilienthal, who stood next to the Minister, whispered something into his ear, and
immediately the minister stood up in anger and said with great fury, “Doesn’t it
say that ‘The law of the land is the [Torah] law’?”</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit, serif;">The Tzemach Tzedek responded: “‘The law of the land is the [Torah] law’ applies
only to monetary matters, such as taxes and property rates. While ‘A Jewish custom
is Torah,’[8] and no one has the permission to nullify it.”</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit, serif;"> “The custom of women to cover their faces with their hands when they light the Shabbos
candles—is that also Torah?” asked the minister.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit, serif;">“Yes,” answered the Tzemach Tzedek, “that too is Torah, as the Talmud Yerushalmi
states: ‘The custom of [Jewish] women is Torah.’”[9]</span></span></blockquote>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Of course, we have suffered such persecution time and again from various oppressors through the course of history, and in the Jewish calendar, </span>most notably<span style="font-family: inherit;"> in the time of Chanukah (see </span><a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/12/on-greeks-demand-that-jews-write-heresy.html" style="font-family: inherit;">here</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This is of timely relevance in recent months and years, in which the age-old Jewish custom of </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">metzitzah be’peh</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <a href="http://www.collive.com/show_news.rtx?id=21548&alias=mohalim-voice-their-concerns">has come under attack</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">_______________________________________________</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[1] <i>Gittin</i> 10b.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[2] Cf. </span><i style="font-family: inherit;">Mishneh Torah, Laws of Selling,</i><span style="font-family: inherit;"> 26:8.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[3] <i>Shulchan Aruch, Choshen Mishpat,</i> 369:18.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[4] <i>Hisva’aduyos</i> 5744, Vol. 2, pp. <a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=612&ilSC=40&nBookId=20&cPartLetter=b">612</a>-<a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=613&ilSC=40&nBookId=20&cPartLetter=b">613</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[5] Ninth of Maimonides’ 13 Principles of Faith. <i>Mishneh Torah, Laws of the Foundations of the Torah,</i> 9:1.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[6] 3 Tammuz, 5627. Printed in <i>Likkutei Dibburim,</i> Vol. 4, <a href="http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=39165&st=&pgnum=231"><span style="color: blue;">692a</span></a>-<a href="http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=39165&st=&pgnum=232"><span style="color: blue;">692b</span></a>..</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[7] <i>Likkutei Dibburim (Ivrit),</i> Vol. 3, p. <a href="http://hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=39167&st=&pgnum=90&hilite=">610</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[8] <i>Menachos</i> 20b, <i>Tosafos,</i> s.v. <i>nifsal</i>. Maharil, cited in Rema on <i>Yoreh Dei’ah,</i> 376:4. See <i>Likkutei Sichos,</i> Vol. 22, p. 56.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[9] <i>Pesachim</i> 4:1.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Dedicated by Menashe Fleisher. Dedicated by Mrs. Rivky Katz and family in memory of Reb Mordechai Meir haKohen </span></span></i><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">z"l </span></span></i><i><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">ben Chaim Elazar haKohen z"l. May he</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"> have aliyas haneshama and be a gutteh better for all of us, especially to "convince Hashem" that we need Moshiach down here, "l'mata m'asara t'fochim," immediately!!!</span></span></i><br />
<i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></i>
<i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></i>
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<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), <span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Yaakov Yehuda ben Shaindel (Jacob Ostreicher), </span><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: -webkit-auto;">and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</span></span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">___________________________________</span></div>
<div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span></div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-3862080913896578062013-04-23T16:35:00.000-07:002013-08-28T10:14:15.417-07:00Going Beyond the Letter of the Law of the Land<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Going Beyond the <br />Law of the Land</span></h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h3>
Our holy Torah instructs a Jew to be scrupulously honest in his or her business dealings, carefully avoiding the Torah prohibitions of stealing and of violating <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2013/04/how-to-relate-to-law-of-land.html">the law of the land</a>. Moreover, since the Torah’s ways are “ways of pleasantness, and all its paths are peace,”[1] it follows that such conduct will affect one’s environment pleasantly and peacefully.<br />
<br />
Moreover, a Jew must set a living example for Jews and non-Jews of proper moral conduct. The Talmud[2] explains:<br />
<blockquote>
“You shall love the L–rd your G–d”[3]: The name of Heaven should become beloved through you. One should read Scripture, learn Mishnah, and serve Torah scholars, and his dealings with people should be conducted pleasantly. What do people then say of him? “Fortunate is his father who taught him Torah. Fortunate is his teacher who taught him Torah. Woe unto people who do not learn Torah. This person who learned Torah, see how pleasant are his ways, how refined are his deeds.” Of him Scripture says:[4] “He [G–d] said to me, ‘You are My servant, Israel, through whom I am glorified.’”</blockquote>
Thus, when one deals honestly in business, he sanctifies Hashem’s name in the eyes of all.<br />
<br />
Moreover, the Talmud tells of Rabbi Shimon ben Shatach,[5] who, upon finding a jewel hanging from a donkey he had bought from a gentile, returned the jewel to the gentile. His exceptional behavior created an unparalleled sanctification of Hashem’s name.<br />
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This teaches us that a Jew should not suffice with adhering scrupulously to the law of the land. Rather, as a Jew, it is proper for him to follow a higher standard than the minimum. He should treat others according to a standard beyond the letter of the civil law, and thereby sanctify Hashem’s name.<br />
<br />
This incident occurred during the era of the Sanhedrin, when the Holy Temple stood. Rabbi Shimon ben Shatach had already returned from his exile in Egypt, and was himself a member of the Sanhedrin. Nevertheless, he saw fit to emphasize that one should even sanctify Hashem’s name in the eyes of a member of the nation of Yishma’el. This story also holds a lesson for us, for it is a part of the Torah, which is etymologically related to the word <i>hora’ah,</i> “lesson.”[6]<br />
<br />
Moreover, stories have an advantage over other parts of Torah, for it is known that practical <i>Halacha</i> is not derived from the <i>Mishneh</i> and later halachic authorities, but only from an actual halachic ruling.[7] Thus, the very fact that this event occurred means that it serves as a very clear lesson.<br />
<br />
In fact, one of the questions that the soul is asked after one’s passing is, “Did you deal <i>faithfully</i> in business?”[8] This implies that even conduct that appears appropriate and just is insufficient; the Torah urges the Jew to act <i>“faithfully”</i> by going above and beyond the law of the land. The importance of such conduct is highlighted by the fact that even after one is no longer able to make amends—after one passes away—one is still asked this question.<br />
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<div style="text-align: right;">
Based on the Rebbe’s <i>Hisva’aduyos</i> 5744, Vol. 2, pp. 612-613.</div>
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[1] <i>Mishlei</i> 3:17.<br />
[2] <i>Yoma</i> 86a.<br />
[3] <i>Devarim</i> 6:5.<br />
[4] <i>Yeshayah</i> 49:3.<br />
[5] <i>Talmud Yerushalmi, Bava Metzia</i> 2:5.<br />
[6] <i>Gur Aryeh, Bereshis </i>1:1, in the name of Radak.<br />
[7] In Jewish law, the involvement of a great sage in an actual incident has greater force than the issuance of a theoretical ruling (see e.g. <i>Shabbos</i> 21a, also Rashi loc. cit.).<br />
[8] <i>Shabbos</i> 105a.<br />
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<i>Dedicated on the occasion of the birthdays of Rebbetzin Elka Malka Feldman (13 Iyar) and Shamai Elimelech Cylich (12 Iyar) by their loving parents Pinchos Boruch and Feyge Matl Cylich. May they be blessed with a sh'nas brachah ve'hatzlachah be'gashmiyus u'veruchniyus!</i></div>
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<i><br /></i>
<i><br /></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives </i><i>Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Alan Gross (Aba Chonah ben Chava Chana), </i><i>Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i><i><br /></i>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-14075911992943783812013-04-20T22:24:00.000-07:002013-08-29T03:24:19.111-07:00How to Relate to the Law of the Land<h2>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zVwg7gr7llk/TyCvgcedbPI/AAAAAAAACzM/T-vu9nfOLUs/s1600/Gavel-and-Scales-of-Justice1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /><img border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zVwg7gr7llk/TyCvgcedbPI/AAAAAAAACzM/T-vu9nfOLUs/s400/Gavel-and-Scales-of-Justice1.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<h2>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">How to Relate to </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">the Law of the Land</span></h2>
</div>
</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</span></h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">When Hashem sent the Romans to banish the Jewish people into exile outside the Holy Land, they became the guests of foreign nations. These nations have legal systems that are different from <i>halacha,</i> Torah law, and so residing in these countries means submitting to their laws, just as a guest must follow the house rules. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Torah itself recognizes civil law and even requires that a Jew abide by it when living in that country, as the Talmud rules: “The law of the land is [Torah] law.”[1] This[2] elevates secular law to a higher standard than it accords for itself, for according to this principle, secular law has divine authority, for by adhering to it, one adheres to a law in the <i>Shulchan Aruch,</i> the Code of Jewish Law. (This is comparable to the Torah’s words concerning a doctor’s instructions: Since the Torah prescribes that in circumstances of poor health one should consult with a doctor and obey his advice, it follows that by fulfilling the doctor’s instructions, one fulfills Torah law.[3])</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">However, this does not mean that the Jew submits absolutely to the civil law. On the contrary, the Jew’s Master and King is Hashem alone, and at Mount Sinai the Jew took a solemn oath to follow Hashem’s law—<i>halacha.</i>[4] <i>Halacha</i> is the only law that the Jew follows, it permeates every moment and aspect of his life, and he does not submit to any mortal king or ruler.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Yes, a Jew must follow the law of the land, but not in a way that is somehow detached from his absolute subservience to Hashem. His gentile hosts have no inherent power to dictate his behavior. Rather, he follows the law of the land because Torah itself requires that he follow it, as long as it does not contradict Torah, as part of Hashem’s decree that the Jew be in exile. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">On a basic and external level, the reason that Torah requires adherence to the law of the land is that this brings tranquility and peace in society. This is particularly relevant to Jews during their stay in gentile lands, because when gentiles are at peace, their Jewish guests can also live in peace, as the verse puts it, “Through its [the gentile city’s] peace, you [the Jewish people] will have peace.”[5]</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Similarly, Torah requires gentiles themselves to follow the law of the land, in the context of their duty to observe the Noahide commandment of <i>dinim,</i> establishing a justice system.[6]</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">On[7] a deeper level, this is also related to the way that Torah views nature. The reason that the Jewish people need the assistance and hosting of gentiles during the exile, which is accompanied by the Torah obligation to adhere to the law of the land, is that Hashem requires that the Jew follow the natural order. However, this does not mean that the Jewish people are inherently subject to the rule of nature, G–d forbid. On the contrary, since the Jew’s <i>Neshamah</i> stems from supernatural G–dliness, a Jew has the power to control the nature of the world. Rather, the Jews’ dependence on non-Jews stems from Hashem’s desire that the Jewish people follow the natural order during the age of exile. Thus, by doing so, the Jewish people comply with the command and will of Hashem.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">____________________________________</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[1] <i>Gittin</i> 10b.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[2] <i>Hisva’aduyos</i> 5744, Vol. 2, pp. 612-613.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[3] <i>Berachos</i> 60a. See <i>Taz, Yoreh Deah, </i>beg. ch. 237.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[4] In the Hebrew, the Jew is <i>“mushba ve'omed mei’Har Sinai”</i> (<i>Shavuos </i>22b).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[5] <i>Yirmiyahu</i> 29:7.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[6] Gentiles are “obligated to appoint judges ... to dispense judgment concerning these [other] six laws” (<i>Mishneh Torah, Laws of Kings,</i> 9:19). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[7] <i>Hisva’aduyos</i> 5743, Vol. 1, p. 170-171.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Dedicated in honor of my own birthday, Yehoishophot Yisrael Yehuda Leib ben Chana Feigeh, </i><i>on 10 Iyar</i><i>.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), <span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Yaakov Yehuda ben Shaindel (Jacob Ostreicher), </span><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: -webkit-auto;">and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</span></span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">___________________________________</span></div>
<div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span></div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-75675323712010775482013-04-16T22:21:00.000-07:002013-08-28T03:08:39.100-07:00How to Relate to Our Gentile Hosts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wztwBJNfuqE/T0AZBhFbSvI/AAAAAAAAAu4/wYpn9xNSKrY/s1600/Jewish+children.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="286" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wztwBJNfuqE/T0AZBhFbSvI/AAAAAAAAAu4/wYpn9xNSKrY/s400/Jewish+children.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
How to Relate to Our Gentile Hosts</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h3>
At times, when I express criticism of the institution of secular western democracy, I hear the response, “If you don’t like it, then leave!”<br />
<br />
With all due respect, such words can only come from a person who is stuck so deep in the mindset of <i>golus</i> (exile) that although he recognizes that he is a Jew, and even considers himself an Orthodox Jew, his words indicate that he identifies himself <i>primarily</i> as a citizen of his country. So to him, I’m being rude by questioning the perfection of the political institution upon which <i>his</i> country is founded. Since I’m disrespecting <i>his</i> country, he feels entitled to speak on behalf of that nation, and tell me that I should only stay if I agree to respect the rules.<br />
<br />
But the Torah teaches that the Jewish people fundamentally don’t belong in <i>golus.</i> Despite our citizenship, we have been merely guests in various host countries. Just as in the past we didn’t belong in Egypt, Babylonia, Greece, Rome, Spain, Poland, Hungary, Germany, Iraq, Iran, and Morocco, so do we not belong today in USA, South Africa, Australia, and Canada. And we don’t even belong in the secular state of Israel (note that Eilat, which is not part of <i>Eretz Yisrael,</i> is part of the state, but much of South Lebanon, which is not part of the state, is part of <i>Eretz Yisrael </i>according to its true Torah borders). The Jewish people belongs in only one place, and in only one state of being: In <i>Eretz Yisroel</i> in its true borders, with <i>Moshiach Tzidkeinu.</i><br />
<br />
Now, is it technically true that in western countries today, we enjoy much more freedom than that experienced in many other exiles? Yes, but that is not necessarily a good thing. The Alter Rebbe famously preferred persecution under the Czar to religious freedom under Napoleon, to the extent that he instructed his very own <i>chassidim</i> to put their lives on the line by joining the Czar’s army in the Franco-Russian war.<br />
<br />
Yes, in western society we are free to practice Torah and <i>Mitzvos</i> without persecution. But this freedom also makes us free to assimilate, may G–d save us, and spiritual death is worse than physical death (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2012/06/considering-our-impact-upon-others.html">here</a>). Do we wish suffering upon ourselves—no (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2010/02/tests-of-poverty-and-wealth.html">here</a>). But we dare not allow our awareness of the advantages of our current exile to blind us to its drawbacks, and to the difficult tests that we face (if anything, the challenges of our current exile are even more difficult than those of all previous times—see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/10/todays-is-ultimate-test.html">here</a>), for then we will surely succumb to these tests, G-d forbid.<br />
<br />
In other words, our hosts are not fine people who are kind to us and therefore deserve praise, nor are they nasty people who torment us and therefore deserve condemnation. They are simply the agents of Hashem to carry out the decree of exile in accordance with His detailed plan of where the Jewish people need to be in order to accomplish what they need to accomplish.<br />
<br />
Of course, viewing our hosts as merely channels for divine blessings does not mean we should take them for granted. The Jew should respect his gentile hosts just as any guest should respect his host. When they help us, whether materially or spiritually, we should thank them appropriately, in accordance with the basic Torah principle that teaches us to acknowledge favours and not be ungrateful.<br />
<br />
We should be particular to follow the civil law of the land, for “The law of the land is the [Torah] law”).[1] Moreover, we should avoid inappropriate behavior that would make a <i>chillul Hashem</i> (desecration of Hashem’s Name) and arouse our hosts’ <i>eivah</i> (hostility). On the contrary, we should pursue <i>darkei sholom,</i> ways of peace, and even pray for our hosts, as the Torah exhorts us, “Seek the peace of the [gentile inhabitants of the] city ... and pray for it, for through its peace, you will have peace.”[2] We should also do our part to influence them to follow the <i>Sheva Mitzvos Bnei Noach,</i> the Noahide laws.<br />
<br />
But living peacefully, and respecting and expressing genuine gratitude to our hosts, does not mean identifying with them. Thanking them as appropriate for their assistance does not mean forgetting that they are merely conduits for Hashem’s blessings, as the Talmudic adage says, “Although the wine belongs to its owner, one gives gratitude to the butler”[3]: The main gratitude must be felt to the true Source of the blessing. One should turn to Hashem in thanks for sending these nations to facilitate this freedom and prosperity.<br />
<br />
Likewise, when suffering befalls us from the nations, G-d forbid, we must know that the reason it occurred was not because some craven anti-Semite decided to hurt Jews (may Hashem save us), but because there was a divine decree, as part of the broader decree of the exile, for this suffering to occur. No one can inflict harm upon another unless Hashem so decrees it,[4] and its purpose is that we accept it as a divine punishment and turn to Hashem in sincere <i>Teshuvah</i> (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2009/10/tragedies-lo-alenu-goad-to-teshuva.html">here</a>), while at the same time doing our part in the natural order to protect Jews from harm as much as possible, whether through guards, the police, the army, and the like.<br />
<br />
So our response to persecution should not be “Islam is bad because of suicide bombers, etc.” or even “democracy is good because our rights are protected, we have freedom of religion, etc.” Our response should be: Everything that occurs during the exile comes from Hashem alone, and is a necessary part of the cleansing process of the exile. Now, how does Hashem want me to view this particular event in terms of its implications for how I should grow and change as a Jew, and bring <i>Moshiach </i>now?<br />
<br />
Fighting to recognize this is itself one of the tests we face in our current exile, and if you’re finding it difficult, don’t be surprised: Every test is difficult, because by definition, tests are supposed to be difficult. And the tests at the end of exile, right before Moshiach, are the most difficult of all.<br />
<br />
And in every exile, we are called to stay true to Torah and <i>Mitzvos</i> despite the myriad tests that we face. The purpose of all the difficulties, suffering, and tests of exile is to cleanse us and bring us to do <i>Teshuvah</i> (see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/09/refining-sparks-through-suffering-of.html">here</a>). When we do <i>Teshuvah</i> sincerely, the exile in all its various locations and manifestations will come to an end. May Hashem be satisfied with our efforts, and send <i>Moshiach now!</i><br />
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</div>
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_________________<br />
[1] <i>Gittin</i> 10b.<br />
[2] <i>Yirmiyahu</i> 29:7.<br />
[3] <i>Bava Kama</i> 92b.<br />
[4] Cf. <i>Tanya</i> 138b.<br />
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<div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">
<i>Dedicated in honor of the birthday of my dear sister, Hinda Zelda Bracha bas Chana Feiga (Bracha Tsap) </i><i>on 2 Adar by my parents, </i><i>ovi mori, Reb Kasriel Oliver and family.</i><br />
<br />
<i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), </span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">Yaakov Yehuda ben Shaindel (Jacob Ostreicher), </span><span style="font-family: inherit; text-align: -webkit-auto;">and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</span></i><br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">
___________________________________</div>
<div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">
Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-10910619046307286342013-04-11T16:48:00.000-07:002013-04-12T12:30:05.009-07:00Talking Like A Jew: Names Versus Ideas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Talking Like A Jew:<br />Names Versus Ideas</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Rabbi Y. Oliver</h3>
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The Rebbe once commented on two unfortunate trends in the
Modern Hebrew language, and this can also teach us how a Jew should approach
the written and spoken language he uses in any language. <br />
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When it comes to names, the secular originators of Modern
Hebrew sought to rearrange existing words in Classical Hebrew—or, better put, <i>Lashon
HaKodesh,</i> the Holy Language—to
describe secular things. For example, they used the word Knesset, lit. “gathering,”
to describe their newly-created parliament, when that word has traditionally
referred to a gathering of rabbinic authorities, e.g., <i>Anshei Knesses HaGedolah,</i>
and <i>Knesses Yisrael.</i> They referred to their newly-created secular President as <i>Nasi, </i>a word traditionally used to
describe the spiritual leader of the Jewish people, and a word also used in
reference to <i>Moshiach. </i><br />
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And, of course, they referred to their newly-created state
as <i>“Yisrael” </i>(or “Israel”) a word that in Torah tradition referred to our
forefather Yaakov. Although the word Yisrael was used in the context of the
Holy Land, it never had a political connotation. It referred not to a state,
but to a land, so it wasn’t ever referred to as “Yisrael” alone, but as <i>“Eretz
Yisrael.” </i>The word “Yisrael” in this context in Modern Hebrew is short for
<i>“Medinat Yisrael,”</i> the State of Israel, which was their newly-created secular
political entity based on the secular Ottoman and British law systems and on
the political philosophy of western democracy. These are just a few examples of
how they took words that had holy, spiritual connotations and attached them to
secular and in many ways even anti-religious secular entities.<br />
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Put differently, in their choice of names, they took the
holy and made it profane, and in that way desecrated those words. So if at all
possible, one should try to avoid using such names. E.g., speak of Jews living
in the Land of Israel, not Israelis, a term that may not even refer to Jews, because
non-Jews with citizenship are Israelis. <br />
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But when it comes to ideas, the opposite was the case. The
early Zionists shunned traditional words that expressed ideas from a Torah
perspective, replacing them with words from other languages that expressed similar ideas, but in a way that was associated with secular cultures and that was
stripped of the spiritual connotations of those words as they are found in Torah
tradition and thinking. They would either make up a new word based on existing
etymology, or simply adopt a non-Jewish word. So here they systematically rejected the holy in favor of
the profane, because, of course, they were secular and anti-religious themselves.<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
For example, take the word
morale, which was adopted as a word in Modern Hebrew (<span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Gisha","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-language: HE;">מוֹרָל</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>). Morale, according to the dictionary <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/morale">here</a>,
means “<span class="ssens"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">the mental and emotional condition (as of
enthusiasm, confidence, or loyalty) of an individual or group with regard to
the function or tasks at hand</span>” or</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> “</span></span><span class="ssens"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">a sense of common purpose with respect to a group.”</span></span> When a believing Jew speaks
about confidence of success, he uses different words<span style="line-height: normal;">—</span>words associated with his
awareness of his dependence upon Hashem for success. He speaks of <i>bitachon,</i> trust in Hashem, or <i>emunah,</i> faith in Hashem. When he speaks
of a sense of common purpose, he could speak of <i>achdus,</i> unity, or the like, which is associated with <i>ahavas Yisro’el,</i> love of one’s fellow Jew.
The word morale conveys none of these connotations.</div>
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To sum up: <br />
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When a Jew refers to secular
things, he should stick to secular words to name them, and not adopt holy words
to describe secular things. (Once the word has already been adopted, and that is
the word that people use in conversation, it seems that using that word might
be less objectionable; however, one should still try to avoid it when one’s
meaning will be clear using a Torah-based word.) <br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Conversely, his worldview should
be so permeated with Torah that the words he uses to describe ideas are taken
from traditional Torah-based vocabulary as much as possible, and he should
avoid using words that express a concept in a G–dless way. Of course, sometimes
this is not possible because a word in another language might be more precise,
but this is the preference that one should follow in general. This has nothing
to do with Hebrew; the same preference should be followed in English. As long
as he knows that he will be understood, regardless of the language one speaks,
one should intersperse Torah concepts into one’s vocabulary as much as possible,
so that it is clear to one and all that a G–d-fearing Jew is speaking.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
<div style="text-align: right;">
Loosely based on a <i>sicha</i> of 19
Kislev 5734.<br />
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives </i><i>Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Alan Gross (Aba Chonah ben Chava Chana), </i><i>Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</i></span></div>
<div style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><br /></i><i><br /></i>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~</span></div>
<div style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span></div>
</div>
</div>
Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-64666444773589902032013-02-13T01:41:00.002-08:002014-05-05T23:46:30.808-07:00The Fundamental Components of Existence<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xd5NNIhe_4o/TxmTN4oz3eI/AAAAAAAAAGE/OlJp3M1CMZk/s1600/light+vs+darkness.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xd5NNIhe_4o/TxmTN4oz3eI/AAAAAAAAAGE/OlJp3M1CMZk/s400/light+vs+darkness.jpg" height="305" width="640" /></a></div>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">
The Fundamental Components of Existence:<br /><i>Kedushah</i> and <i>Kelipah</i></span></h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h3>
All physical beings draw their vitality from one of two fundamental spiritual energies: <i>Kedushah</i>, holiness, or <i>Kelipah</i>, evil or unholiness.
<br />
<br />
<i>Kedushah</i> is a spiritual energy that is in a state of <i>bittul</i>, submission to Hashem,[1] while <i>Kelipah</i> is a spiritual energy in a state of <i>yeshus,</i> a sense of ego that arrogantly declares “I exist” and denies the absolute reality of Hashem.<br />
<br />
Although the <i>Kelipah</i> typically admits that Hashem exists, and even obeys His will in practice,[2] it feels itself independent from Hashem, and so it denies that He is the only <i>true </i>reality.[3]<br />
<br />
Thus, the word <i>Kelipah</i> literally means “shell,” for this force conceals over the reality of Hashem just as a peel hides the fruit within it.[4]<br />
<br />
The <i>Nefesh HoElokis, </i>the Divine Soul, stems from <i>Kedushah,</i> while the <i>Nefesh HaSichlis,</i> the Intellectual Soul, and the <i>Nefesh HaBehamis, </i>the Bestial Soul, stem from <i>Kelipah</i>.[5]<br />
<br />
More specifically, these two latter souls stem from the higher level of <i>Kelipah</i> known as <i>Kelipas Nogah</i>, which constitutes a mixture of good and evil.[6] However, the <i>Nefesh HaSichlis</i> stems from a higher level of <i>Kelipas Nogah, </i>while the <i>Nefesh HaBehamis</i> stems from a lower level of <i>Kelipas Nogah</i>.[7]<br />
<br />
Then there is the lower level of <i>Kelipah,</i> known by the collective title of <i>Sholosh Kelipos HaTemei’os,</i> literally, “The three impure <i>Kelipos</i>.” Aside from a minute spark of holiness hidden very deep down, this level constitutes total evil and selfishness, without any positive aspect.<br />
<br />
<i>Kelipas Nogah</i> also acts as the intermediary between <i>Sholosh Kelipos HaTemei’os </i>and <i>Kedushah</i>.[8]<br />
<i><br /></i>
(For an earlier article on this topic, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/01/kedushah-vs-kelipah.html">here</a>.)<br />
<br />
____________________________________________<br />
[<span style="font-family: inherit;">1] <i>Tanya</i> ch. 6: “The side of holiness is nothing but the indwelling and extension of the holiness of the Holy One, blessed be He, and He dwells only upon a thing that nullifies itself to Him.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[2] Ibid. ch. 24: “[The forces of <i>Kelipah</i>] are completely unable to contravene Hashem’s will, for they know and apprehend that He is their life and sustenance, since they nurture from the ‘hinder-most part’ of the blessed Supreme Will that encompasses them.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[3] Ibid. ch. 22.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[4] <i>Torah Ohr</i> <a href="http://chabadlibrary.org/books/adhaz/toraor/15/61d.htm" style="line-height: 115%;">61d</a><span style="line-height: 115%;">. </span><i style="line-height: 115%;">Sefer HaMa’amarim</i><span style="line-height: 115%;"> 5648, p. </span><a href="http://otzar770.com/library/display_page.asp?nPageNumber=220&ilSC=60&nBookId=132&cPartLetter=b" style="line-height: 115%;">220</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[5] In some sources it is explained that the <i>Nefesh HaSichlis</i> and <i>Nefesh HaBehamis</i> are in fact one soul consisting of two components, the former being the higher component, and the latter, the lower component (<i>Sefer Kitzurim,</i> p. 81, cited in <i>Tanya Betziruf Marei Mekomos, Likkutei Pirushim, Shinuyei Nuscha’os, </i>chs. 1-28, p. <a href="http://www.hebrewbooks.org/pdfpager.aspx?req=19787&st=&pgnum=41">37</a>). See also <i>Likkutei Torah, Tetzei</i> <a href="http://chabadlibrary.org/books/adhaz/lkutey/30/37d.htm">37d</a>, which states that “human intellect” comes from the <i>Nefesh HaBehamis</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[6] <i>Etz Chaim, Sha’ar Kelipas Nogah</i> ch. 3. <i>Tanya</i> ch. 1, end; ch. 7.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[7] <i>Sefer HaMa’amarim</i> 5700, p. 93.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">[8] <i>Tanya</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white; line-height: 18.90625px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> ch. <a href="http://chabadlibrary.org/books/adhaz/tanya/1/37.htm">37</a>.</span></span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<i>This post was dedicated by ovi mori, Reb Kasriel Oliver and family in honor of the yohrtzeit of Yehudis bas Dov Ber on 3 Adar.</i><br />
<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span></i><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit</i> of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span><br />
<br />Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2892681084518056774.post-54344148780463881772013-02-07T15:46:00.001-08:002023-06-09T00:33:39.064-07:00Two Kinds of Intellect<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ER9s2QIynYg/SUFU_5OBf6I/AAAAAAAAAVI/kwQqRG_13Ck/s200/brainComp.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ER9s2QIynYg/SUFU_5OBf6I/AAAAAAAAAVI/kwQqRG_13Ck/s400/brainComp.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<h1 style="text-align: center;">
Two Kinds of Intellect</h1>
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Rabbi Yehoishophot Oliver</h3>
One can understand a concept in two ways:<br />
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<b>Lowering the concept to the student: </b>The teacher lowers the concept into terms to which the student can relate by using analogies, concrete examples, and elaborate explanations that convey the concept on the level of the recipient. This simplifies and coarsens the concept, robbing it of the abstract purity of its original state. The recipient remains unchanged in his intellectual domain; all that is expected of him is to pay attention to the lesson. When he listens, he learns new information.<br />
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<b>Elevating the student to the concept:</b> The student invests tremendous effort to develop, refine, and purify his faculties until he is able to grasp the concept as is, in its unadulterated state. He may also make some use of analogies and the like during the learning process, but these methods are more “transparent,” and his primary focus is on bonding with the concept itself.<br />
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This is the difference between human intellect, the intellect of the Intellectual Soul, and divine intellect, the intellect of the Divine Soul:<br />
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Human intellect seeks to bring the concept it strives to understand down into its own frame of reference, and only then is it able to accept and assimilate it. This selfish focus dilutes and coarsens the concept, leaving the mind in its original lowly state. The mind has merely learned some new information on its own terms, but it has not fundamentally changed at all. On the contrary, the more one understands, the more powerful and self-confident the mind becomes.<br />
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In contrast, divine intellect seeks to rise out of its parameters, to use intellect itself to transcend the limitations of ego, lose itself, and become subsumed within G–dliness itself.<br />
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This explains the difference between the approaches of human intellect and divine intellect to faith in Hashem:<br />
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<b>Understanding leading to faith:</b> Human intellect starts without faith, with its own existence as its first premise. Then, through intensive study and comprehension, it comes to accept the existence of Hashem and appreciate His greatness and unity. However, no matter how much it learns, it views Hashem and G–dliness as external subjects of study, not as all-pervasive realities to which it ought to surrender and abnegate itself.<br />
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<b>Faith followed by understanding: </b>Divine intellect starts with faith, a faith that stems from its fundamental G–dly makeup, which endows it with an innate sensitivity to the transcendent, absolute reality of Hashem. Then the intellect strives to not only sense this reality, but to understand it intellectually by toiling in study of Hashem’s greatness and unity as explained in Kabbalah and <i>Chassidus. </i>However, the goal of this cognitive process is to bond with the G–dliness whose existence this intellect naturally senses.<br />
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This also reflects itself in the emotions that emerge from these two types of intellect:<br />
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<b>Selfish, uncooperative emotions:</b> Since human intellect relates to everything through a selfish focus, its intellect need not be translated into commensurate emotions. For instance, one can appreciate the virtue of humility well, but be conceited and obnoxious.<br />
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<b>Humble, pliant emotions:</b> In contrast, since divine intellect seeks to humble itself before the Truth of Hashem, it also has a humbling effect on the emotions, making them susceptible and open to becoming aroused with the emotions that divine intellect calls for—love and fear of Hashem, love of Torah, love of one’s fellow Jew, fine character traits as taught in Torah, and so on.<br />
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Adapted from the <i>Frierdikeh Rebbe’s Sefer HaMa’amarim</i> 5691, p. 186.</div>
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<i>Dedicated by avi mori Reb Kasriel Oliver (Kasriel ben Shmuel) and family in honor of the birthday of my dear sister, Bracha Tsap (Hinda Zelda Bracha bas Kasriel), on 2 Adar. May she be blessed with a sh'nas hatzlachah begashmiyus uveruchniyus!</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Dedicated in the merit of a speedy release for the captives </i><i>Yonasan ben Malka (Jonathan Pollard), Alan Gross (Aba Chonah ben Chava Chana), </i><i>Sholom Mordechai Halevi ben Rivka (Sholom Rubashkin), and Zeva Rochel bas Chaya (Wendy Weiner Runge).</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Like what you read? The articles I write take a lot of time and effort. Please contact me to sponsor an article for (at least) $36 in honor of the birthday, wedding anniversary, or <i>yarhtzeit </i>of a loved one, or for a <i>refuah shleimah</i> or the like. Also, see <a href="http://a-farbrengen.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-spreading-chassidus-in.html" target="_blank">here</a> concerning the tremendous merit of supporting the dissemination of <i>Chassidus</i>, and the blessings that one receives for doing so.</span></div>
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Yehoishophot Oliverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16906934928426540018noreply@blogger.com1