Parashat Ki Tavo is always read two weeks before Rosh Hashanah.This is based on a Gemara in Masechet Megillah, that Ezra HaSofer made a takana
( enactment)that we should read this Perasha now, because it talks about a long list of 98 curses, lo alenu, and we want to say:
תִּכְלֶה שָׁנָה וְקִלְלותֶיהָ:
תָּחֵל שָׁנָה וּבִרְכותֶיהָ:
“Let the new year and its curses end, and let the new year and its blessing begin.”
So we end the year by leaving the curses behind, and after Simchat Torah, we start with Zot HaBeracha, with a new year and the blessings beginning
What’s the secret of the blessings and curses? Why did they come?
תַּ֗חַת אֲשֶׁ֤ר לֹא־עָבַ֙דְתָּ֙ אֶת ה׳ אֱלֹקי ךָ בְּשִׂמְחָ֖ה וּבְט֣וּב לֵבָ֑ב מֵרֹ֖ב כֹּֽל׃
“Because you didn’t serve G-d with happiness and with a glad heart, as if you had everything in the word. “therefore everything else happens.
We see from here that the way to stop the negativity is to have simcha/happiness in our Avodat Hashem. That’s the antidote. That’s why before the Torah lists the curses, we have the Bikkurim, which gives us the secret for how to be happy. At the end of Bikkurim, after we read the declaration, it says, ושמחת כל הטוב אשר נתן לך ה׳
“Be happy with all the goodness that G-d gave you.”
The question is raised: Not everyone had a bumper crop. In fact, it says in Masechet Bikkurim, that the wealthy brought their Bikkurim in gold and silver baskets, spilled their fruit out and brought back their baskets, whereas the poor brought their fruit in baskets of made of reeds, and just left them there, because they were embarrassed by the contents.
So, it’s clear that not everyone had a great crop, and not everyone was proud of their fruit. So how can we tell the person at the end of the year “be happy” ... ושמחת בכל הטוב
The secret lies in the proclamation that was made at the Bikkurim, which is the same pesukim say on the seder night.
אֲרַמִּי֙ אֹבֵ֣ד אָבִ֔י וַיֵּ֣רֶד מִצְרַ֔יְמָה
“Lavan the Arami tried to destroy my father and he went down to Egypt” .... we go through the whole story, and in the end, here we are in Eretz Israel.
Why is it that when we bring our basket of fruit, we have to go back to Lavan?
The rabbis tell us that it’s because Yaakov Avinu was swindled by Lavan many times. He was swindled with his wives; he was swindled with his money. He seemingly had much to complain about, but Yaakov Avinu went through those 22 years by Lavan knowing that everything happening was for his benefit. Everything that happened was good. Had Yaakov Avinu just married his first choice, Rachel, he would’ve had only two children. We wouldn’t have had the Jewish people. It was only because he was swindled by Lavan that he married Leah, Bilha and Zilpa, that he had the twelve shevatim. Furthermore, the swindling with the sheep brought him more money.
So, his difficult situations and challenges gave him all that he needed to have.
Going through Mitzrayim also brought us blessing. Therefore, at the end of the year, every person is asked to look back and say, “Whatever happened, happened. Whether I understand or not, like it or not, at the end of the day, Hashem is doing it for my good.”
That is a key point. At the end of the year, it’s not enough just to go forward with a laundry list of requests for Hashem. We want our children to get married, we want to buy houses, we want good parnasa, we want the sick to be healthy, those that don’t yet have children should have, ...we have a long list of wants. We are allowed to do that, but we can’t do it without looking back at the past year with Hakarat Hatov/appreciation, seeing all the blessings we got this year and thanking Hashem for these blessings.
This is one of the important mindsets of Rosh Hashanah. It’s not enough just to ask, we have to appreciate what we had. Adam HaRishon sinned on Rosh Hashanah (and was eventually judged and acquitted). One of his sins was that he said,
האשה אשר נתת עמדי״
“The wife that you gave me.” The Gemara says about this, that he wasn’t grateful. He should have appreciated her. That’s part of the problem. When it comes to Rosh Hashanah, we have to appreciate, and be happy. That appreciation and happiness have the power to ward off the curses, and
תָּחֵל שָׁנָה וּבִרְכותֶיהָ:
let the year and the blessings begin!