Parshat Vayeishev: World of Action Chanukah: Sfas Emes Part 2

Dedicated in memory of Rachel Leah bat R' Chaim Tzvi
Volume 6 Number 43
Brought to you by Naaleh.com
Parshat Vayeishev: World of Action
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Mrs. Shira Smiles
There is a famous Yalkut Shimoni in Ruth
Rabbah that relates to Parshat Vayeishev.
Rav Yitzchak said, the two essential components of doing a mitzvah b’shleimut
(completely) are to do it whole-heartedly and
with joy. Had Reuven known that the Torah
would record his attempt to save Yosef from
his brothers, he would’ve put him on his
shoulders and run home with him. If Aharon
would’ve known that the Torah would record
that he rejoiced in his heart when he went out
to greet Moshe, he would have welcomed him
with drums and dancing. If Boaz would have
known that the Megilah would record that he
gave Ruth some parched grain to eat, he
would’ve given her a royal banquet. The
Midrash concludes that when a person does a
mitzvah, Eliyahu Hanavi and Mashiach write it
down and Hashem signs in affirmation.
This midrash implies that the only impetus for
a person to do something good is if it’s
recorded. How can we understand this
perplexing midrash?
Rav Leff notes that throughout Torah we find
that completion and wholeness as related to a
mitzvah takes precedence over quantity. Thus
a small complete loaf of bread takes
precedence over a much larger broken piece.
This runs counter to Western mentality which
says the bigger the better. Judaism doesn’t
look for grandeur, but for quality and perfection. If a person accomplishes a tremendous
amount but doesn’t invest his entire being, to
a certain degree he’s accomplished less than
someone with less capability who gives his
whole heart to a task. Hashem is the essence
of perfection. We are obligated to emulate Him
by reaching our highest level of perfection. The
main consideration when doing a mitzvah is to
do it with joy, intent, and perfection. The
Midrash discusses examples of people who
were unsure if what they were doing was
correct. Therefore they didn’t do the deed
wholeheartedly and the results were flawed.
Yosef was sold into slavery, David’s lineage
was questioned, and Moshe’s initial mission to
Paroh failed.
Every one of us is challenged moment by
moment to reach perfection. We have to strive
to go beyond where we’re at. We have to ask
ourselves, “How can I invest a little more in
this mitzvah? How can I do this with more
shleimut hanefesh?” Chazal say a Jew must
say, “When can my deeds reach that of my
forefathers?” And he must believe he can do it.
How do we move from a level of rote to a level
of sheleimut and simcha? Hitbonenut,
(contemplation) having a positive environment,
or having a strong role model can push us to
grow. Rav Wolbe quotes a famous line from
the Sefer Hachinuch, “A person is affected by
his actions.” His mindset and heart are a
reflection of his actions. The Mishna says, “It
all goes according to the majority of one’s
actions.” Therefore the Rambam rules that it is
better to give a little bit of charity many times
than a to give a large amount once. The
repetitive act of giving develops the quality of
generosity in a person.
Lofty intentions are good but the medium to
grow and reach sheleimut is to translate them
into action. When you give your entire being
for something, not only do you develop
yourself, but the quality is passed down for
generations. Yehuda who sanctified Hashem’s
name in public passed down that trait to his
descendants. Nachshon ben Aminadav, a
descendant of Yehuda, jumped into the water
of Yam Suf first. Another descendant, Chur,
tried to stop the Jews from worshiping the
golden calf.
In Maarchei Lev, Rav Moshe Schwab says that
if it suffering was decreed on a person, he can
atone for it by doing mitzvot with joy. The Bach
writes that during the time of Chanukah there
was a weakness and laziness in the Jewish
people’s avodat Hashem. The passion and
mesirut nefesh of the Chashmonaim rectified
this and triggered the Chanukah miracle.
Had the three individuals mentioned in the
Midrash valued what they were about to do,
they would’ve done so much more. If they
would’ve known their actions could have such
far reaching effects, they would’ve acted
differently. If we would recognize the
importance of our mitzvot we would do them
differently. Ultimately, it is our small good
deeds and actions that will bring Mashiach
closer.
Chanukah: Sfas Emes Part 2-Section I
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller
The Sefat Emet writes that a person’s mind is
his sanctuary. Wisdom is symbolized by oil.
Just as it is possible for oil to be defiled, so a
person’s wisdom can be trapped in impurity.
There was a wall around the Beis Hamikdash
and the Greeks broke through it. Likewise, we
all have an inner wall, a level of consciousness, which prevents us from indulging in all
sorts of destructive thoughts. How do we
develop this wall? How do we protect our
thoughts? How do we keep our inner life
pure? The verse in Shir Hashirim says, “I
have a young sister, she hasn’t yet
developed, what shall I do when they speak of
marriage for her?” This hints to the Jewish
people, who will be unprepared for redemp-
tion. Shlomo Hamelech writes, “If she is a wall,
build on her.” Our power to be redeemed
comes from Hashem who commits Himself to
act as a wall for us. He will preserve the part of
our inner life that can never be defiled.
Emunah is the way we strengthen the wall
within us. We should believe that Hashem
surrounds us, and that there is a place within
us that is untouchable.
Emunah has three facets. The first is that
everything in existence comes only from
Hashem. He is the source of all reality. The
next is that everything we experience in this
life is there to give us the opportunity to draw
close to Hashem and to improve ourselves. If
a Jew has emunah and makes Hashem his
wall, he won’t be afraid or broken by life. The
chukim (laws that do not have a rational
reason) reflect our surrender to Hashem’s
higher wisdom. This protects us. People often
say that Jewish observance doesn’t make
sense. What they’re really saying is, “If you
could reduce emunah to something that fits in
my mind, if you can take infinity and make it
size 9B, then I’ll take it. But if it’s bigger than
me I won’t go for it.”
The Torah is compared to a pillar. It could be a
million feet tall but the top always connects to
the bottom. There’s always some area in which
human insight has at least some degree of
Continued on Page 2
Help support Naaleh by searching the web! For more information visit www.iGive/Naaleh.com & www.iSearchiGive/Naaleh.com
visit us online at: www.naaleh.com | for questions, suggestions, or dedication opportunities, email [email protected]
1
Dedicated in memory of Rachel Leah bat R' Chaim Tzvi
Brought to you by Naaleh.com
Volume 6 Number 43
Chanukah: Sfas Emes Part 2-Section I
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller
Continued from Page 1
access. The problem isn’t that we don’t have
all the answers. It’s that the question presupposes that the Torah should fit our puny little
subjective minds, that we can’t grow into
Torah, and that it somehow has to fit us.
Mishlei says, “Chachma m’ayin timza,”
Wisdom comes from ayin. The more a person
can say, “I don’t know,” the wider the doors of
wisdom will open for him. Jewish wisdom
comes from a higher source, while Greek
wisdom comes from a place within the heart.
It keeps us small, blocks our vision, and leads
to evil and the concealment of Hashem.
When the Chashmonaim overcame Yavan,
emunah was reinstated. This is hinted in the
word Chanukah, chanu chaf heh. Chaf heh
spells the word koh, thus. Hashem said, “Koh
Hashem through His Torah. This takes us to
knowing that in every single thing in this world
there’s a spark above nature through which
Hashem relates to us. This cannot be
described by Greek wisdom. It requires the
Oral Torah, the power of the chachamim,
whose strength comes from ayin. The Oral
Torah elevates us and the world above the
external expression of physicality.
ta'asu.” This is how to do it. And we must
follow His directives even when our puny
human minds can’t grasp them.
This sort of emunah specifically relates to the
Oral Law. Speech comes from the point where
the physical self and the spiritual self combine.
A person’s speech is reflective of his self. This
is why the Oral Torah is the place of malchut
(kingship). It’s where we use our speech and
self to find Hashem. Chanukah is about
emunat chachamim, belief in the Oral Torah.
Through the give and take of the Talmud we
can discover Hashem in this world. Emunah is
affirming one’s belief in the transmission of
tradition through the generations. It’s believing
in the Torah sages who devote their lives to
using their speech and selves to know
We’re meant to go beyond the confinement of
humanistic Greek think to the spiritual think
that is emunah. When we commit ourselves to
do this and let Hashem lead us where He
wants us to go, we will be sanctified and the
world will be sanctified with us.
The Hidden Light of Chanuka
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rabbi Hershel Reichman
The Bnei Yissachar writes that Kislev contains
the secret of the ohr haganuz (the hidden
light). This is hinted to by the word Kislev,
which can be read as keis (concealed) lamed
vav (36). During the first three days of
creation, Hashem let this secret light shine for
36 hours before hiding it away for the tzadikim
in the next world. The 36 lights of Chanuka
signify the 36 hours that the ohr haganuz
shone during creation. It was this special light
that supplied the tiny cruse of pure oil with
energy to burn for eight days. It was also this
miraculous light that sustained the flame of
the ner tamid (western lamp) in the beit
hamikdash. Every year when we kindle the
Chanukah lights we can tap into this
otherworldly light again.
The mitzvah of lighting Chanukah lights
allows every Jew to touch eternity, to grasp
the ethereal light at the root of Hashem’s
creation, stretching through history to the end
of time. The Zohar says that the force of
techiat hameitim (revival of the dead) will
come from the ohr haganuz. Therefore, a Jew
who performs the mitzvah of ner Chanukah
with care, focus, and love will merit techiat
hameitim because he will already be
connected to its hidden source. The Rambam
writes that ner Chanukah is a very precious
mitzvah and one should be careful to perform
it in the best possible way. The general rule is
that if one would need to spend more than
20% of his assets on a positive mitzvah, he is
exempt from the mitzvah. However, for
Chanukah candles, the Rambam says one
should spend everything one has and if one
has nothing one should collect charity or
borrow money.
There’s a difference of opinions about when to
light the candles and how long the lights
should burn. The Bnei Yissachar, citting the
Zohar and the Rambam, tell us to be very
careful about the mitzvah. Therefore, one
should try to light as early as possible and
have the lights burn as long as possible. After
the Chanukah candles are lit, it is an
auspicious time to pray.
The Bnei Yissachar writes that the ohr
haganuz is also hidden away in the Oral Torah.
The Greek ideology worshiped humancentered wisdom. They denied revelation and
Divine Providence. In contrast, Judaism
teaches that Torah learning is a constant
evolving process involving both our own
thinking and divine inspiration. Every day we
say in davening, “Ha'melamed Torah l’amo
Yisrael.” Rav Soloveitchik points out that it’s
written in present tense to teach us that
Hashem is continuously transmitting Torah to
us directly and through our Torah teachers.
While a scientist may limit wisdom to physical
reality, a musician knows that music is not just
musical notes on a sheet of paper. There’s
something beyond definition, a measure of
divine inspiration beyond the physics of sound,
that makes great music. And Torah is the
greatest of all music. When the Chashmonaim
prevailed it was a defeat of Greek ideology.
The Bnei Yissachar says that the 36 hours of
the ohr haganuz correspond to the 36 tractates
of the Talmud. The words ner (lamp), ohr
(light), and meorot (lights), appear 36 times in
the Torah. The light of Hashem is concealed in
the Oral Torah and it is this eternal light which
will empower techiat hameitim, heal all
illnesses, and bring Mashiach.
The long nights of Chanukah are an
auspicious time to delve into the study of the
Oral Torah and halacha. May we merit that the
hidden light of Chanukah illuminate our hearts
and minds.
Help support Naaleh by searching the web! For more information visit www.iGive/Naaleh.com & www.iSearchiGive/Naaleh.com
visit us online at: www.naaleh.com | for questions, suggestions, or dedication opportunities, email [email protected]
2