Go back. You may die in the war, and somebody will take over. The Torah has other things that are meforash (explicitly), and the officer will add another mention to the nation: mi ha'ish hayare (who is the man afraid), who's afraid from the war, verach halevav (and fainthearted), soft heart—go back. These exemptions are brought down in the Gemara, Sotah (the suspected adulteress), daf mem-dalet (page forty-four). The Gemara discusses the last one: that you are scared of the war, that you are afraid. What are you afraid of? The bombs? The missiles? What are you afraid of? Everybody is afraid, no? Nobody wants to go to war.
By the way, when the Gemara discusses Milchemet Midyan (war against Midian), when Moshe drafted a thousand soldiers from each tribe, right? It says vayimasru (they were handed over), shenayim asar elef (twelve thousand), 12,000 soldiers, but all of them are called anashim. Anashim, ya'ani (that is to say), tzaddikim (righteous people). When the Torah says the word ish, ya'ani, outstanding leaders, tzaddik, qualified. The re'ayah (proof) is David HaMelech (King David). In his will to his son Shelomoh (Solomon), he told him, vechazakta (and you shall be strong), to be courageous, vehayita le'ish (and be a man), to be a leader. Ish, ya'ani, tzaddikim. Those people were 100% tzaddikim; they had nothing to worry about from anybody.
So there is a machloket (dispute) in the Gemara: Why is this person scared? Somebody said probably he committed an avon (sin) min haTorah (from the Torah), a biblical violation, and has something to be scared of.
Let’s go one step further. When Yosef (Joseph)’s brothers went to see Yosef, the pasuk (verse) says, vayir'u ha'anashim ki huve'u beit Yosef (the men were afraid because they were brought to Joseph's house)—all the tribe was scared because they were taken to go to Yosef. Zohar HaKadosh (the holy Zohar), in Parashat Miketz (portion of Miketz), daf resh-chet bet, asks the question: I don’t understand. The 12, the 11 or 10 brothers of Yosef—are they scared? Of whom? Yosef? A young man? Enough! Shimon (Simeon) and Levi, two of them, destroyed the whole town of Shechem. Are you afraid of Yosef? Shimon and Levi destroyed the whole town of Shechem overnight without any problem! Now you’re scared of Yosef?
The Zohar HaKadosh says, “No, no, no, no. They’re scared, you know why? Ah, now they realized maybe we did wrong when we sold Yosef. Avon!” Now they wake up. At the first stage, they said, “Oh no, he’s guilty. He’s chayav mitah (liable to death).” The pasuk says, vayeshvu le'echol lechem (they sat down to eat bread). They made a party, a se'udah (feast)—lechayim! They did the right thing. After they went through the process and Shimon was in jail, and now Binyamin (Benjamin)—oh, mah nitztaddak (what can we say in our defense)? We have no justification anymore. Now we are wrong. Now we realize we are mistaken over here. That’s why vayir'u (they were afraid). It’s the same thing over here.
According to one tanna (early rabbinic authority), they committed an avon min haTorah. Other rabbis say, “No, no, no, no. Definitely nobody committed a violation from the Bible.” He committed an avon derabbanan (rabbinic transgression), something from the chachamim (sages), very simple, minor, something you might not even pay attention to.
The Gemara in Sotah, daf mem-dalet, the introduction to Tikkunei haZohar (Rectifications of the Zohar), and also the Gemara in Menachot (Meal Offerings), daf lamed vav amud alef (page thirty-six, side one), say: Which avon did we commit over here? Sach bein tefillah letefillah (you spoke in between you put the tefillin of the hand, before you put the head, you spoke in between). That averah hi beyado (it is a transgression in his hand), that counts as an avon, and you go back from the war. Vechozer aleha me'orchei hamilchamah (he returns from the ranks of the army), you go back from the war, you are exempt. Is your question clear now? Clear, right? That’s the question. We need an answer. You’re right. Before being—first you have to understand it. Do you understand the question first?
“No.” No? We have two problems now. I told you, his story is Mr. Tawil’s story in the Bible, by the way. It’s not a mistake; they made a big book.
And Par'oh (Pharaoh), when he saw dreams, saw the seven fat cows and the seven skinny cows. He woke up confused. The pasuk says, vattipa'em rucho (his spirit was troubled). He was confused. But if you read the book of Daniel, when Nevuchadnetzar (Nebuchadnezzar) and Belshatzar (Belshazzar) saw the dream—“It’s his wife.” Kadosh? That’s probably 859, no? 2880, no? “How do you know my wife’s number? I thought we were friends.” “I know another one too: 7688997.” “You got that right.” “I love it.”
So when it came to Daniel, when he saw the writing on the wall—that’s from the book of Daniel, the goyim phrase, that’s from our book, “the writing on the wall”—over there it says, vatitpa'em rucho (his spirit was greatly troubled), double confusion. The chachamim ask: Why does it say vattipa'em rucho for Yosef, but when it comes to Daniel, it says vatitpa'em, double? He says, “Par'oh at least remembered the dream. He didn’t know the interpretation. The other one forgot the dream and didn’t know the interpretation. We have a double problem.”
So Mr. Tawil has a double problem over here. In fact, I forgot the question already. I’m waiting for the answer.
Victor asks a good question: The Torah didn’t find any other avonot? What about speaking in the middle of the chazarah (repetition of the Amidah)? Speaking in the middle of the kaddish (sanctification prayer)? Speaking during birkat kohanim (priestly blessing)? We have hundreds of avonot. You didn’t find any other avonot? Is everything perfect over here? Only that avon? It’s unlikely to happen, by the way. How many people speak in between? How long would it take you? One minute? It’s not that. A few seconds, no? Not even. Not even 15. So that already—he committed an avon, and because of that avon, he goes back? It doesn’t sound so strong. Do you have a problem with that?
“No.” How many people speak in between? It’s unlikely. Imagine, alav hashalom, Rabbi Yedid, a chacham and all, when there was a discussion regarding Shavuot (Weeks) night. Some people pray early, and some people wait for the temimot—perfect, inside complete and perfect—and you know, the discussion went back and forth. The Chacham always had a sharp mind. He said, “Come over here. Temimot in Hebrew means perfect, right? The community is 100% perfect; it only has a problem with temimot? Okay, everything is perfect with us; only temimot is the issue, right?” That is the issue. Over here, we have no problem; only he spoke in between.
Pay attention. Maran HaChida (the Chida) wrote 83 books. HaChida was a great Chacham. He wrote 83 books. He passed away about 210 years ago. In Livorno, Italy, he was a shaliach (emissary) of the chachamim. In 1965, the Rishon LeTzion, Rabbi Yitzchak Nissim, ordered Chacham Mordechai Eliyahu, who would later become Rishon LeTzion, to go to Livorno and bring the body from Livorno to Yerushalayim (Jerusalem). I’m not going to tell you the story; we’re just quoting HaChida.
In his book Chasdei Avot (Kindnesses of the Fathers), there is also another section called Zero'a Yamin (Right Arm). It’s a very simple book, an interpretation of Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers). A simple book. Not halachah (Jewish law) books, not Kabbalah, not the Zohar. A simple peshat (plain meaning) on Pirkei Avot.
“Ben Ish Chai (Son of the Living One) or HaChida?” HaChida. Ben Ish Chai, by the way, also has the same book, also called Chasdei Avot. You’re right. There are two Chasdei Avot: one by Ben Ish Chai, one by HaChida. HaChida’s is a bit smaller than Ben Ish Chai’s, a very small book, and it also has a section called Zero'a Yamin.
He explains the Mishnah: Hevei zahir bemitzvah kalah kevechamurah (be careful with a light commandment as with a weighty one). But don’t say, “I will choose, I will pick.” There is no picking and choosing, because you never know the reward of each mitzvah (commandment). We have no concept and no clue how Hashem counts this, or how Hashem counts the reward. We have no idea.
So he quotes that Gemara you asked about in that book. He says, “I don’t understand. That simple avon—I spoke in between—and I’m not qualified to be in the war? Why?” He says something very powerful. We say in Parashat Ki Tavo (portion When You Come), Vera'u kol amei ha'aretz ki Shem Adonai nikra alecha veyare'u mimeka—the nations of the olam (world) will see the name of God proclaimed over you, and they will be scared of you.
In the Gemara in Berachot (Blessings), daf vav (page six), and also in Sotah, daf yud-zayin, the Gemara says, “Amar Rabbi Eliezer HaGadol” (Rabbi Eliezer the Great): The pasuk is referring to elu tefillin shebarosh (these are the tefillin of the head). Those tefillin on your head—people will see the tefillin on your head, so kadosh, and they’ll be afraid of you.
It’s written in the books that the more the tefillin are written bikdushah (with holiness), with kavanot (mystical intentions), and the more you don’t talk when you wear tefillin, the more kadosh your tefillin become, and people are even afraid to look at your face.
Alav hashalom, I met Rabbi Aharon Monsonego a few times. He passed away recently and was the chief rabbi of Morocco, appointed by the king. His father was also the chief rabbi of all Morocco, Rabbi Yedidiah Monsonego, the one who wrote Kol Shavat (Voice of the Cry) and Teshuvot Pe'at Yam (Responsa Edge of the Sea). He invited me a few times to speak in his synagogue, called Neveh Shalom (Oasis of Peace). Who is Neveh Shalom? Isaac Shalom. He showed me his picture with Isaac Shalom. A few huge buildings were established by Isaac Shalom, and Rabbi Monsonego was responsible for Otzar Hatorah (Treasury of Torah) in Morocco.
A few times I spoke in his synagogue for a long time, between Minchah (afternoon prayer)—what is a shiur (Torah lesson) here, at least half an hour, 45 minutes—and he interpreted into French. He told me a story: One of the big chachamim in France—they have many yeshivot or a yeshivah in France—was young when they saw him with tefillin. He said the Rosh Yeshiva was scared. The Rosh Yeshiva told him, “Come over here. Where did those tefillin come from?” He told him, “My father, Rabbi Yedidiah Monsonego, was a great, huge Chacham. He bought tefillin from a special rabbi. Who? Rabbi Yaakov Chaim Sofer, the author of Kaf Hachaim (Palm of Life).” Kaf Hachaim, so he was a sofer, and he has a book, Chukei Yaakov (Laws of Jacob), all the laws of safrut (scribal law). He said, “He wrote those tefillin for me.” Meaning, there is very powerful kedushah (holiness) in tefillin.
In Parashat Vezot Haberachah (portion This Is the Blessing), when Moshe Rabbeinu (Moses our teacher) blessed each tribe separately—Yehudah (Judah), Binyamin, Zevulun (Zebulun), Yissachar (Issachar)—we come to Shevet Gad: “Ule'Gad amar, baruch marchiv Gad” (And of Gad he said: blessed is he who enlarges Gad). Gad means the army; they go to fight the war. They run very quickly, and they win every war, Shevet Gad.
Pay attention to what the pasuk says: “vetaraf zero'a af kodkod” (He tears the arm, indeed the crown of the head). Meaning, the soldier of Gad, in one shot, has the sword in his hand and cuts the enemy’s zero'a—the arm—with the head, in one shot. So Maran HaChida writes, “Bizchut tefillin shel rosh veshel yad” (By the merit of the head and hand tefillin), you have the power. When you speak in between, you lose that kedushah. That’s why the Zohar HaKadosh says you go back from the war.
“Clear now, Mr. Tawil, or do you have a problem?” “I have a problem, Rabbi.” Keep the problem until you put your hand. Until the person asked the question, he had a problem. Good answer. No. Does anybody have another question like that? No, no. No question; go on now. We’ll leave the question for tomorrow. Okay, you close that? Okay, finished. I surrender, I surrender. Huh? What? I surrender. What? You win; your father rests his case? Okay.
Now we go into Midrash Eichah (Lamentations Midrash). I promise every year not just to teach you Midrash Eichah, not just to read the Midrash. Our way is always, be'ezrat Hashem, to go in depth and understand the Midrash very deeply, not just read it. We read it, and then we go in depth to explain it to you from every angle possible.
We have site bet. Last, we’ll explain only one part for a long time. Today will be bet. Rabbi Abba bar Kahana. Where are we? Daf gimmel (page three). You see daf gimmel? Mickey? Got it? Do you have it? We’ll go to the Midrash now.
Rabbi Abba bar Kahana patach (Rabbi Abba bar Kahana began). In Midrash Rabbah (Great Midrash), Midrash Eichah—it doesn’t make a difference—when the Chachamim want to discuss a subject, their style is always to bring a pasuk as an introduction to the subject. That is the Midrash’s style: You present a pasuk from the Torah, the Nevi'im (Prophets), or the Ketuvim (Writings), and then, after digging and digging and digging to get to the subject, you go back and understand the Midrash by putting the pasuk together. That’s the Midrash.
He opens with a pasuk from the haftarah (prophetic reading) we read this morning, from the prophecy of Yirmiyah (Jeremiah). Yirmiyah himself witnessed the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash (Holy Temple). The Midrash says that Eichah is written four times in the Bible. The first is in the Torah, which we read yesterday: Eichah esa l'vadi torchachem u'massa'achem v'rivchem (How can I alone bear your trouble, burden, and strife). Moshe complains to Hashem, “How is it possible to carry your burden, responsibility, and all the obligation? It’s impossible to handle a million people.” Yesterday we read it: Eichah esa l'vadi.
The second time, we read it in yesterday’s haftarah, from Yeshayah HaNavi (Isaiah the prophet): Eichah haytah l'zonah kiryah ne'emanah (How has the faithful city become a harlot). He rebukes Bnei Yisrael (Children of Israel) very bitterly and says, “Hey, pay attention! Yerushalayim, the holy city, has become, chas v'shalom, a prostitute over here.” That’s a very heavy expression in yesterday’s haftarah.
The third one is Yirmiyah HaNavi (Jeremiah the prophet) composing Eichah: Eichah yashvah badad (How lonely the city sits). How did this town, Yerushalayim, become destroyed and ruined? The Midrash Rabbah says that before going to the fourth one, there are three classifications and three different leaders. Moshe Rabbeinu saw the highest class: that entire generation, the dor hamidbar (generation of the wilderness), was a dor de'ah (generation of knowledge), knowledgeable people. They saw Hashem; they knew everything about Torah. The most Chachamim were in the dor hamidbar. There will never be a generation like the dor hamidbar until Mashiach (Messiah) comes. HaKadosh says clearly in Parashat Shelach Lecha Anashim (portion Send Men) that the dor hamidbar was a dor de'ah. The greatest Chachamim: they saw Hashem, the miracles, Moshe, Aharon, and Miryam. Clear.
Yeshayah saw the nation already starting to become corrupted, involved in robbery, immorality, and so on. Yirmiyah HaNavi saw the actual destruction, the lowest part. Those are the three Eichah. Now go to the subject of Kabbalah, the Midrash Eichah, the Zohar Eichah. The Zohar digs inside: di ashkachan d'nafkat d'alef (that we find it issued from aleph). He says, “Where does Eichah begin? Where? Who started with Eichah to begin with?” He says it was before Moshe Rabbeinu. He says Adam HaRishon (Adam the first man). When he ate from the fruit, Hashem called, “Ayeka!” He says, “Don’t read it Ayeka; read it Eichah.”
In the Torah there are no dots. You know that. In a Sefer Torah (Torah scroll), mafi dots. In fact, it’s forbidden to write any te'amim (cantillation marks) in the Torah, or any dots. Only in ten places, as written in Masechet Soferim (Tractate of the Scribes), must there be a dot. Sometimes there could be one, sometimes two, sometimes eleven. Each time there is a dot, there is a derashah (interpretive teaching), as you know. Every dot in the Torah means pay attention; there is something to teach you.
Vayomer lo, Ayekah (And He said to him, Where are you?)—Eichah, you brought a curse to the olam. The founder of the Lubavitch movement, Ba'al HaTanya (author of the Tanya), says Hashem didn’t speak only to Adam and ask him, “Ayeka?” He speaks to every Jew after the holidays, after Rosh Hashanah (New Year) and Kippur (Day of Atonement). That’s why we read Bereshit always after Simchat Torah (Rejoicing of the Torah), right? Why? He says normally every Jew behaves himself and is scared when Rosh Hashanah and Kippur come. He doesn’t know what’s going to happen. We ask Hashem, “Please, Avinu Malkeinu (Our Father, Our King), inscribe us in the Book of Life. We don’t know what’s going to happen next year. We need yeshu'ot (salvations).” So everyone accepts one thing upon himself.
As soon as Kippur is over, he forgets. By Simchat Torah, already, with the arak and the wine, everybody has forgotten what happened a few days before on Kippur. They’re looking for bagels and breakfast; I don’t know what they want. They’ve been laughing since Kippur. So Hashem comes to you and says, “Hey, Ayeka? Where you at? Where are you? Do you remember Rosh Hashanah? Do you remember Kippur? Do you remember what you promised? Are you up? Do you remember what you promised Hashem or not? Ayeka, where are you?” That’s why He says Ayeka.
Yirmiyah HaNavi, in the pasuk we read this morning in the haftarah, says, Mi ha'ish hachacham, veyaven et zot (Who is the wise man who can understand this?). What does the pasuk say? The pasuk says, Al mah avdah ha'aretz (Why has the land perished?)—why did we lose Eretz Yisrael (Land of Israel)? The Chachamim say in the Gemara, in Nedarim (Vows), daf peh-alef (page eighty-one), that the Gemara says, Al ozvam et Torati (because they forsook My Torah). They forgot the Torah. The Gemara says they asked the Chachamim and the nevi'im, and nobody had the answer. Hashem Himself said, “Al ozvam et Torati—you forgot the Torah.” That is the main avon of the churban (destruction).
The Midrash Rabbah brings something interesting. It says, tani Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai (Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai taught). Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the author of the Zohar, is a great Chacham. What does he say to explain why the churban took place? Im ra'ita ayarot (If you have seen towns): If you see towns in Yisrael shenitleshú mimekoman (torn from their place), uprooted and destroyed in Eretz Yisrael, da (know), ya'ani, be aware and remember: shelo hecheziku bisechar soferim (they did not support the wages of teachers). They didn’t pay the teacher to teach Torah.
Soferim doesn’t mean a sofer (scribe). No. Soferim, ya'ani, means you teach the child to start holding the book in his hand; that’s called soferim. When you start teaching elementary alef, bet, ayin, it’s called soferim. To know how to read the book is called soferim, okay? Uvsechar mashnim (and for the wages of those teaching Mishnah), meaning to teach mishnayot (Mishnah teachings). Al mah avdah ha'aretz? Al ozvam et Torati.
Any question, Mr. Tawil, over here? “Not yet.” Well, that is a question over here. Simple, right? Simple Midrash, no? “Nothing is simple.” You’re right. That’s why we stop over here. We’ll explain to you: What does not supporting the teachers of Torah have to do with Al ozvam et Torati? What does it have to do with each other in that portion? Where is the similarity? We’ll start first from the simple Gemara, and then we’ll go on.
In the Gemara, in Makot (Stripes), daf kaf-gimmel, the Gemara says that in our Torah we have 613 mitzvot (commandments): 248 positive commandments and 365 negative commandments. The Zohar HaKadosh, in Parashat Vayishlach (portion And He Sent), daf kuf-ayin, says that the 248 positive commandments correspond to the 248 limbs in your body. Every mitzvah you do keeps one thing. The 365 negative commandments correspond to the 365 veins in your body. And, by the way, each avon corresponds to something and sometimes affects the body physically. Sometimes it affects the body.
With that avon you have, the Chachamim can tell you, “That avon is why you have that problem.” There is a story about the Ari HaKadosh, also based on the Gemara. In the Gemara in Berachot (Blessings), daf mem-bet amud alef, the Gemara says there are three times techeif (immediately). In the morning, when we say the Amidah, we say Ga'al Yisrael, and immediately the Amidah, right? Adonai. Meaning, geulah tefillah (redemption and prayer). Ga'al, Hashem sefatai tiftach (God, open my lips), without interruptions, even chas v'shalom to say Kaddish. It’s assur to interrupt with Kaddish. Ga'al straight into Hashem sefatai tiftach, no interruption. Techeif, immediately.
The other one is in the Beit HaMikdash. When you come with a korban (offering) to offer, you have something to say, a confession. You put your two hands on the head of the animal, and after you finish the confession, you slaughter the animal immediately: techeif lismichah shechitah (immediately after the laying on of hands, ritual slaughter). Immediately after you put your hands, shechitah, you slaughter the animal.
The third one is techeif lintilat yadayim berachah (immediately after washing the hands, a blessing). The moment you wash your hands, immediately berachah. Here there is a machloket about how to understand the Gemara. The Gemara is referring to a berachah—which berachah are you talking about? Which berachah? Right? Gemara daf mem-bet. Which berachah? Rashi, in this part, says we are referring to Birkat HaMazon (Grace after Meals). Netilat yadayim, meaning mayim acharonim (final washing of the hands), immediately followed by Birkat HaMazon. That would be berachah.
Do you agree with Rashi’s interpretation? No. The Ba'alei HaTosafot (Tosafist commentators) and Rabbi Akiva Eiger, Ba'al Gilyon HaShas, say, “No, we are not referring to mayim acharonim and Birkat HaMazon. We are referring to netilat yadayim and HaMotzi lechem min ha'aretz (Who brings forth bread from the earth).” The Talmud Yerushalmi, Berachot—no, leave this one right now—the Gemara Berachot also says that some say Birkat HaMazon and some say HaMotzi lechem min ha'aretz.
My understanding is like Rashi. I’ll tell you why. If you study the Gemara be'iyun (in depth), we are really referring to the subject before that, mayim acharonim. If that’s the case, obviously the Gemara has to mean mayim acharonim. That’s my understanding, my simple opinion. I’m not saying I’m right, but Rashi is right in this case.
They said Chacham Ovadia and Chacham Baruch used to talk between netilat yadayim and hamotzi. Okay, I don’t know about that. I’m not so sure. Chas v'shalom, I’m not going there. Chas v'shalom. They make netilat yadayim and then hamotzi? Chas v'shalom. I’m not so sure. I’ll tell you—oh, one minute, one minute. Could be, could be, could be. No, no. Could be. No, not Sephardim, not Sephardim. I don’t know.
As far as I can say, all the Ashkenazim are divided into two parts, as you know: the Lita'im, like Lakewood, and Chasidim. The Chasidim do mayim acharonim, that Kabbalah concept, today. The Lita'im don’t. They have a source, they have a source, because why do we say mayim acharonim chovah (final washing is obligatory)? Why is it chovah? Why is it an obligation? Because melach sedomit (Sodom salt). That’s the shoresh (root). The Gemara in Eruvin, daf yud-zayin, and the Gemara in Chullin (Non-sacred Animals), daf kuf-heh, say melach sedomit. If you touch your eyes with that melach sedomit, chas v'shalom, it can make you blind. That’s why you have to wash your hands, to get rid of that salt. That’s what the Gemara says.
So Tosafot in the Gemara Berachot, daf nun-gimmel amud bet, says, “Why don’t the Ashkenazim have mayim acharonim?” Since we don’t have melach sedomit anymore, there is no need for mayim acharonim. That’s what Tosafot says, nun-gimmel amud bet. However, it is a Kabbalah concept, though. You have to do mayim acharonim to give something to the sitra achra (the other side), tum'ah (impurity). That gives their share. This is always a Kabbalah concept. By the way, that’s not a small subject; it’s a very big and deep subject. Some in our community follow that, and Chasidim are very strict about it, especially the rebbes.
The Zohar HaKadosh, in Parashat Bereshit, daf yud and daf yud-alef, discusses an interesting, very deep subject. Satan came to Bore Olam (Creator of the world) to complain that Avraham Avinu, alav hashalom, when he made the party for Yitzchak, didn’t give any charity. That is brought in the Gemara Sanhedrin, daf peh-tet, but we’ll go in depth into what Kabbalah says about this subject.
Everybody knows the Gemara; we know the story. The Zohar HaKadosh says that Avraham in our Torah is an ish hachesed (man of kindness), right? His trademark is kindness, and now you’re telling me Avraham didn’t do chesed? And Satan came to complain to Hashem? Wait a minute. We say in our prayer, Magen Avraham (Shield of Abraham), the first berachah every day in the Amidah: Magen Avraham, the shield of Avraham, because Avraham is the man of kindness. HaKadosh Baruch Hu says he is a man of chesed, but that day, at the party, he didn’t give anything to Bore Olam, to Satan. What does he say? Also Iyov. What did Iyov say? He'elah olot (he offered burnt offerings). Why does the Torah say olah, and not other korbanot?
With other korbanot, you give a share to the altar, a share to the kohanim (priests), a share to the Levi'im, and you spread it around. For example, shelamim (peace offerings). What is shelamim? From the word shalom, peace. Why peace? You, the owner, have a share; the kohen has a share; the altar has a share. Each one has a share; everybody’s happy. Olah (burnt offering)—nobody gets anything. It goes purely to Hashem. Satan says, “Hey, I need my share too. Where’s my share over here? I need something.” That’s why after brit milah (circumcision), we take that piece. What do you do with it? According to Kabbalah, and we also follow this, you bury it in the afar (earth). Why the afar? Because the pasuk says, venachash afar lachmo (and the serpent’s food is dust). Give it to the nachash (serpent); that is his share. Keep quiet. That is the Zohar HaKadosh, Pinchas, daf resh-nun-zayin.
“It’s true when he said he gave both of them, olot and shelamim.” Right. He learned his lesson. So the question over here: That’s the source in this subject. When you have farach, when you have farach, when you have a bar mitzvah, sponsor tefillin for somebody, a poor person. You have a wedding; give a few thousand to aniyim (poor people) who have no money for the wedding. That way, it’s a good segulah (auspicious practice) to have good luck and simchah tamid (constant joy). It’s written in the Zohar HaKadosh to do this at every farach, to give something to the aniyim in order to prevent that discussion, that fight.
So we said over here the Gemara says techeif, right? Immediately? The Ari HaKadosh had a student who came to him and said, “Chacham, he has a problem in the shoulder, katef (shoulder), look.” He told him, “You have a problem because you didn’t do mayim acharonim?” He told him, “I did mayim acharonim.” He told him, “Yes, you did, but you spoke in between.” “Ah, mazbut.” He told him, “Why?” He told him, “It’s written techeif. Techeif, the same letters as katef. The shoulder. So do mayim acharonim correctly and don’t talk; you’ll be okay.”
We see over here that the negative commandments are connected with your body, and the 248 are connected too. That’s why the Gemara says that when you read Shema every single day, Shema Yisrael—248—that is a segulah for protection the whole day.
So now they’re doing mayim acharonim mide'oraita (as a Torah-level obligation)? Mide'oraita, because it’s connected to the katef, so it has to be. Okay, we haven’t started our subject over here yet. I’m just on the introduction. I haven’t started giving the shiur yet. I haven’t started yet. I’m reading today what these two lines say. Yeah, but that’s—give Victor his own quiz. I’m also giving Mr. David his class ahead of time.
We said that in Parashat Vayishlach, when the Torah describes Ya'akov Avinu (Jacob our forefather) fighting the mal'ach (angel), the pasuk says, Vaye'avek ish imo ad alot hashachar (A man wrestled with him until dawn). The man was fighting with Ya'akov, struggling the entire night. The pasuk says, Vayar ki lo yachol lo (He saw that he could not prevail against him). He realized it was impossible to win the case with Ya'akov. Therefore, the pasuk says, vayiga bechaf yerecho (he touched the socket of his thigh). He touched him only in his hip, right? The pasuk says, because of that—al ken (therefore)—there is a halachah (Jewish law) that Bnei Yisrael should not eat the sinew, right? Because of the mal'ach’s struggle with Ya'akov. What does one have to do with the other? Why, if I struggled with Ya'akov and realized I couldn’t overcome him, did I touch the sinew, and therefore we can’t eat the sinew? That’s not the way we understand it simply. It’s not.
I’ll read to you as an introduction, before we go to our subject. In the Gemara, in Megillah (Scroll), daf heh, it says that one of the rabbis, whose name was Rebbi, planted a tree on Purim (Lots). “A Chacham? Are you allowed to do melachah (labor) on Purim? You’re the rabbi, no? The rabbi knows that on Purim it’s a day off, right? We don’t work on Purim.” What can you do? He planted a tree. He also tried to cancel Tish'ah Be'av (Ninth of Av). Pay attention to what the Gemara says.
“Rabbi Avraham, do you remember that Gemara?” No, daf yud-tet amud bet? You agree? That Gemara, definitely. I’m not quoting it by heart; I’m reading inside. Don’t tell me I quote it by heart. I opened the Gemara and read inside. There’s no way to argue, huh? Am I creating a Gemara out of nowhere? I’m not creating a Gemara; I’m reading the Gemara. You don’t need it. Yeah, I know, but in case somebody—
Mr. Tawil reminds me of this story with Rabbi Elfandari, alav hashalom. Rabbi Elfandari was almost 120 years old. His servant was Chacham David Laniado, alav hashalom. He was also a great Chacham, but he was an assistant, whatever the rabbi needed. The rabbi was over 100, and he asked Chacham David, “Please get me glasses to wear from now on.” He asked him, “Now? At 20, 30, 40 you didn’t need glasses. Now, at 100, you need glasses?” “No, no, no, no, Chacham David, I don’t need glasses.” “So why do you need the glasses?” “Against ayin hara (evil eye).” And that’s mashallah. Mamma mia! Mamma mia!
So the question over here is: What is the Gemara really saying? Did Rabbeinu HaKadosh (our holy Rabbi) really want to cancel Tish'ah Be'av? If Tish'ah Be'av is from the nevi'im (prophets), does Rabbeinu HaKadosh override the Torah? What do you mean, cancel Tish'ah Be'av? I don’t understand. Some people try to answer, “No, it was already not a real Tish'ah Be'av; it wasn’t like today. Today, the actual Tish'ah Be'av fell on Shabbat, so it was postponed to Sunday. Since it was already pushed over, we don’t need it.” When it’s pushed over, like this year. “Like this year?” Very good. That’s what they’re saying.
But other Chachamim say, “No, that Tosafot opinion is not what the depth of the Gemara is saying.” Another topic for what? To understand the subject in depth.
When Yosef met the brothers, he told his shamash (attendant), “Yosef, right? Hava et ha'anashim habaytah (bring the men into the house), bring everybody home and prepare a se'udah, a festive meal, for the brothers,” correct? Yosef gave the order, put this one over here, the other over there, like magic. The pasuk says that they asked a question: How did the shevatim (tribes) rely on Yosef to do shechitah (ritual slaughter)? The pasuk says, utvoach tevach vehachen (slaughter an animal and prepare it), slaughter the animal correctly, and make it clear that it was clear shechitah, a kesherah shechitah (valid ritual slaughter). The pasuk says that.
The Gemara in Chullin, daf tzadi alef amud alef, gives two interpretations. One: He showed him that the shechitah was done correctly. The other is our subject: He showed him that he had already taken out the gid hanasheh (sciatic sinew). If I knew how to do that, then I did it right; I already took out the gid hanasheh. What’s the point? What do you want to teach us?
In the Beit HaMikdash, when Shelomoh built the first Temple, according to every Gemara, every Kabbalah, and every Zohar, it corresponded with the first letter heh of Hashem’s name, Yud-Keh-Vav-Keh (the four-letter divine name), the first heh. That was Bayit Rishon (First Temple), meaning a very high he'arah (radiance), a glow, a very big shining. The Shechinah (Divine Presence) was in that Beit HaMikdash. That’s why the Gemara in Yoma (Day), daf tet amud alef, says that they didn’t fast on Kippur in the first year of Shlomo HaMelech’s Beit HaMikdash. The celebration lasted 14 days. They saw the Shechinah; everything was perfect. There was no need for a fast. No problem.
It says that when he built the Beit HaMikdash, it stood on two big pillars, shenei amudim (two pillars). The two main pillars of Shlomo’s Beit HaMikdash: the right pillar was Yachin (He establishes), and the other was Boaz (In him is strength). The pasuk says that: one was called Yachin, one was called Boaz. The two pillars held up the Beit HaMikdash.
The question over here: Did the Beit HaMikdash need support? If you’re telling me there were ten miracles every day in the Beit HaMikdash, you saw heavenly fire from the shamayim (heavens), right? Aron noseh et nosav (the Ark carried its bearers). You saw the clouds of honor, you saw the korbanot (offerings), and you could tell whether the korban had been accepted or rejected. If you saw a lion of fire on the korban, it meant accepted; if you saw the image of a dog, it meant rejected. You saw ten miracles every day.
And the lechem hapanim (showbread) was hot for the whole week! After nine days, the kohanim, the next Shabbat, would share it and eat it, and it was still hot! Hot, keyom hilakcho (as on the day it was taken), still fresh and hot like the day they baked it nine days before.
The Zohar HaKadosh, and also Rabbi Moshe Alshich in his perush al Tehillim (commentary on Psalms), says, vayitosh Mishkan Shiloh, ohel shiken ba'adam (He abandoned the dwelling at Shiloh, the tent He placed among mankind). When Hashem left Shiloh, that was the Mishkan (Tabernacle), a movable Beit HaMikdash. The Mishkan at Shiloh lasted 369 years. That was movable again, and there was a kohen, the Kohen Gadol (High Priest), at certain times. After that, Shiloh was destroyed, and then it went to Shlomo HaMelech. But for 480 years it was only a Mishkan, a movable item from place to place; it was not a permanent Beit HaMikdash.
Maran Alshich asks, “What does ohel shiken ba'adam mean?” Ohel means tent. Shiken means dwelling; ba'adam (within a person). The Chachamim said, “No, ba'adam means the Mikdash (sanctuary), the Shechinah comes between us, between mankind.” Alshich says, “No. That’s not what the pasuk says.” He says, “The ohel, the Mikdash, is inside you, in every adam (person). Ohel shiken ba'adam. You are the Beit HaMikdash over here. Your body is the Mikdash, and the Shechinah is inside you. You are mistaken if you think the Mikdash is the place of the Shechinah and kedushah, and from over there it comes to you. It’s the other way around! You are the center of kedushah. From over there, from you, the way you act, the kedushah goes to the Beit HaMikdash.” That’s Moshe Alshich.
Why? He says because the adam is like an olam. Every adam is an olam; that’s the Gemara, Sanhedrin, daf lamed-zayin. So he says, “You are the Mishkan of the kedushah.” Your body is the Beit HaMikdash. Your body is the Beit HaMikdash, and the two legs, Yachin and Boaz—the two legs you stand on, carrying the body, the Beit HaMikdash—are called shenei amudim, Yachin and Boaz. Okay? In the Kabbalah concept, they are called Netzach veHod (Eternity and Majesty). That’s why we have two holidays from the Chachamim: Purim and Chanukah (Dedication). Purim is called Netzach, eter... Chanukah, Hod.
Why Netzach for Purim? Because the pasuk says, if you pay attention, the haftarah we read in Zachor (Remember), before Purim, is the longest haftarah. It describes the war against Amalek, when Shmuel HaNavi (Samuel the prophet) rebukes Shaul HaMelech (King Saul): Lamah lo shamata bekol Hashem (Why did you not obey the voice of the Lord?)—why didn’t you listen to Hashem? He says, “Oh, I’m afraid.” What are you afraid of, the people? You have to listen to Hashem. Does Hashem need sacrifices? Do you need the oxen? What? HaChefetz l'Adonai be'olot (Does the Lord desire burnt offerings?) Does Hashem want sacrifices? Does He want to eat the blood? Does He want to eat the flesh? What are you talking about? I told you one mitzvah, to wipe out Amalek, and you didn’t.
The pasuk says that Shmuel rebukes Shaul HaMelech: VeGam Netzach Yisrael lo yeshaker (And the Eternal One of Israel will not lie). We, the nation of Yisrael, are eternal forever. Netzach. Purim is forever. They say that even when Mashiach comes, there will be Purim, because they say Purim Kippurim, right? Kippurim ke-Purim (Yom Kippur is like Purim). This is written in Tikkunei Zohar (Rectifications of the Zohar), Tikkun kaf-alef (Rectification twenty-one), that Kippurim ke-Purim, like Purim.
That phrase created a big discussion among the Chachamim, such as Rabbi Saadia Gaon, Rabbi Chaim Vital, Rabbi Shalom Buzaglo, and Benayahu. Each rabbi has a different interpretation of what Purim Kippurim means. Rabbi Shalom Buzaglo, in Kisei Melech (Throne of the King), alav hashalom, says, “Yes, Kippur will be like Purim, a day of celebration. You’ll eat and drink on Kippur; you won’t have to fast. When Mashiach comes, it will be similar to the first Beit HaMikdash. When Shlomo built the Beit HaMikdash, we no longer needed Kippurim. It will become like Purim: sit, eat, and drink. That Kippur.” That is Rabbi Shalom Buzaglo, in Kisei Melech, about 300 years ago.
However, Benayahu, in his perush, says no. He says, “I don’t agree with that interpretation.” He says the interpretation is this: When we have, baruch Hashem, semachot (celebrations), and you are the father, either the arus (groom) or the aris (groom), you are happy, extra happy, right? You welcome every single person. “Baruch haba, mabrouk, thank you.” You shake hands with everybody. Did you pay attention to whether you ate or not? You’re not paying attention. Did you eat that night, or were you really busy with the people? You’re busy greeting people, but you have no time to eat or drink.
He says it will be the same way when Mashiach comes: we won’t have to eat; we won’t feel the fast. We will be so happy that there will be no need for food, to drink or to eat. That is similar to Purim.
So the Gemara says that Rabbeinu HaKadosh nata (planted) a tree on Purim. It doesn’t mean he planted a tree. He wanted to turn Purim into a day of simchah (joy). He wanted to do that on Tish'ah Be'av too, because Tish'ah Be'av also stands on one leg. He didn’t succeed. Why? Gid HaNasheh. It is written in the Zohar HaKadosh that Bnei Yisrael don’t eat the gid hanasheh: Lo yochlu et gid hanasheh (They shall not eat the sciatic sinew). What is this et? It says that of the 365 negative commandments, each negative mitzvah corresponds to something, and Tish'ah Be'av corresponds to gid hanasheh. It says, “Et gid hanasheh”—what is this et? Alef, Av, Av Tisha, Tish'ah Be'av. The ninth of Av corresponds to gid hanasheh.
Why gid hanasheh? And why are the Yevanim (Greeks) doing that too? Because we're saying on Chanukah that the Yevanim came, right? You remember in Al HaNissim (For the Miracles)? Kshe'amdah malchut Yavan haresha'ah al amcha Yisrael lehashkicham Toratach (When the wicked Greek kingdom rose against Your people Israel to make them forget Your Torah). Lehashkicham Toratach—their intention was to make you forget the Torah, right? And it says gid hanasheh: nasheh in Arabic, nisyan, ya'ani, you forgot. When you eat that gid hanasheh, you forget Hashem. Gid hanasheh makes you forget what the Torah is all about, right?
Therefore, they say the supporters of the Torah are called Netzach veHod, the two legs. So the pasuk doesn’t say, “Ki lo yachol lo”—destroy the Torah? No way. The Torah will survive le'olam va'ed; nobody can touch the Torah. But you can hit the supporters of the Torah. You can hit the legs that the Torah stands on, the two legs. The supporters are called the legs. You can say, “Don’t give them the money,” and then there would be no Torah.
That’s what the Midrash Rabbah is saying, and we’ll study these two sentences from this morning. It says, why was this town in Eretz Yisrael uprooted? Because lo hecheziku—they didn’t support. Hecheziku means supporting. Sechar sofrim, to pay the teacher, to pay the Chachamim to teach mishnayot. That’s what the pasuk says, Al ozvam et Torati. Ozvam, ya'ani, neglected. Not leave the Torah. Ozvam, ya'ani, ni'ezab, ya'ani, neglected. Do you understand ni'ezab? “Yeah.”
So we go into the Midrash Rabbah. Rabbi shelach le-Rabbi Asi ve-Rabbi Ami (Rabbi sent Rabbi Asi and Rabbi Ami). He sent a message to these two Chachamim. They went up to look in Eretz Yisrael to appoint Chachamim to teach Torah. That is also written in Bava Batra (Last Gate), daf chaf-alef. The Gemara says that Rabbi Yehoshua ben Gamla established a Talmud Torah (Torah school) in every town. It says without Yehoshua ben Gamla there would be no Talmud Torah. Yehoshua ben Gamla made sure every town established Torah, and accepted all kinds of talmidim (students), with no exceptions. This one qualifies, that one doesn’t—they didn’t reject any student in the Gemara. Everyone was accepted.
The Gemara says, “Oh, he’s not accomplishing anything.” It doesn’t matter. Leave him in the school, right? The Gemara says migras garis (he should at least read), let him absorb whatever he can. If not, let him just listen and absorb, listen to the Torah and the halachah. You don’t have to select: “This one is accepted; this one is rejected.” Everyone is accepted to study Torah.
There’s an interesting matter in the Gemara in Yevamot (Levirate Marriages). The Gemara says Yehoshua ben Gamla married one of the women at the time of the churban. She was a very wealthy woman of Yerushalayim, named Marta bat Baytos (Very wealthy woman of Yerushalayim). A very wealthy woman at the time of the churban. She was killed in the churban; she died. So he married her before the churban. But she was a widow. She was a widow.
The Gemara says, beha-hu sha'ata (at that time), a Kohen Gadol is not supposed to marry a widow, right? But the Gemara says, if he was already married before and then appointed to be Kohen Gadol, they leave him in the office; that’s okay. So the Gemara says, “Oh, on the one hand you’re telling me he built Talmudei Torah, right? Then they say, ‘Oh, his wife paid a lot of money to appoint him Kohen Gadol.’ Make up your mind. Is he qualified or not qualified?”
The Ba'alei HaTosafot say he was qualified. However, his wife was more qualified than him, because of the money—she bought him the position of Kohen Gadol. It wasn’t a raw deal, but he bought it.
So the Gemara says, who are they? They appoint people to go build Talmudei Torah, and they went to the town. They were unknown, and they asked them, “Show us over here the neturei karta (guardians of the city). Who is over here watching to protect the town?” What did they show them? The police. “Elu neturei karta (Are these the guardians of the city)?” And what’s that? The police watching the town? Elu—the police destroy the town, not the shomrim (guards). The police are not the shomer (guardian). The real shomer is the Torah. That’s why the Gemara says when you have Torah in the town, you don’t need shemirah (protection).
That Gemara is in Bava Batra. When the Gemara imposes taxes on every individual—one tax is for the city, and one is for whatever—the Gemara says one of them is for shemirah, for security. The Chachamim are exempt from that tax. Why? The Torah is protection; you don’t need to pay for security. That’s what the Gemara says. Ah, the Gemara in Bava Batra says that. Okay?
So the Gemara says, man inun (who are they)? It looks like they’re bachutz (outside); really, who are the shomrei ha'ir (guards of the city)? Sofrim, the Chachamim, and umashnim (and those who teach Mishnah), those people study Torah all the time, shehem hogim (who meditate), who study: shomrim et haTorah yomam valailah (they guard the Torah day and night). Shene'emar vehagita bo yomam valailah (as it is said, you shall meditate on it day and night). Study day and night. Vechen hu omer (and so it says), im Hashem lo yivneh bayit (If the Lord does not build the house), Hashem doesn’t want to build a house, shav shakad shomer (the guard watches in vain). The shomer won’t help it. Meaning, the Torah is the real shemirah. The Torah is the shemirah, not people physically watching the town.
Also, the Gemara says it doesn’t literally mean you study day and night. The Gemara in Menachot, daf tzadi tet, says if you read Shema (Hear) perfectly, with kavanah (intention), every day, it is as if you studied the whole day: Kriat Shema boker va'erev (recitation of Shema morning and evening). Even if you study Shema once a day, that counts as studying the whole day.
Baruch Hashem le'olam amen ve'amen (Blessed is the Lord forever, amen and amen).
Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya omer, ratzah Hakadosh Baruch Hu lezakot et Yisrael, lefikach hirbah lahem Torah umitzvot, shene'emar: Hashem chafetz lema'an tzidko, yagdil Torah veyadir (Rabbi Chananya ben Akashya says: The Holy One wanted to grant merit to Israel, therefore He gave them abundant Torah and commandments, as it is said: The Lord desired, for His righteousness' sake, to make the Torah great and glorious).
Yitgaddal veyitkaddash shemeh rabba (May His great name be magnified and sanctified). Amen.
Be'alma di vera chir'uteh veyamlich malchuteh veyatzmach purkaneh vikarev meshicheh (In the world He created according to His will, may He establish His kingdom, bring forth redemption, and bring near His Messiah). Amen.
Bechayeichon uveyomeichon uvechayei dechol beit Yisrael, ba'agala uvizman kariv, ve'imru amen (In your lives and days, and the lives of all Israel, speedily and soon; and say amen). Amen. Yehe shemeh rabba mevarach le'alam ule'almei almaya (May His great name be blessed forever and for all eternity). Yehe shemeh rabba mevarach le'alam ule'almei almaya.
Yitbarach veyishtabach veyitpa'ar veyitromam veyitnase veyithadar veyit'aleh veyithallal shemeh dekudsha berich hu (May the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, be blessed, praised, glorified, exalted, extolled, honored, elevated, and lauded). Berich hu.
Le'ela min kol birchata, shirata, tushbechata venechemata, da'amiran be'alma, ve'imru amen (Above all blessings, songs, praises, and consolations spoken in the world; and say amen). Amen.
Al Yisrael ve'al rabbanan ve'al talmidehon ve'al kol talmidei talmidehon de'askin be'orayta kadishta, di ve'atra hadein vedi vechol atar ve'atar, yehe lana ulehon ulechon china vechisda verachamei min kodam marei shemaya ve'ar'a, ve'imru amen (For Israel, the rabbis, their students, and all their students' students who engage in the holy Torah, here and everywhere, may there be for us and them grace, kindness, and mercy from the Master of heaven and earth; and say amen).