All right, rabotai (gentlemen), welcome. It’s erev Shabbat kodesh (holy Shabbat eve), and we get to spend some time together delving into the secrets of the Torah portion. Of course, time is short, so we’ll have to limit our words. But we cannot say nothing. We have to say something, lefachot (at least), about such a beautiful portion, Parashat Toledot. We’re in Toledot, but we’ll begin with the Gemara in Berachot (blessings), daf lamed-heh (page thirty-five), a sugya (Talmudic discussion) that we studied a few times in the daf hayomi (daily Talmud study). It’s talking about the special berachah (blessing) we make on wine. The Gemara says that wine kove'a berachah bifnei atzmo (establishes a blessing for itself). The wine gets its own blessing.
Seemingly, we have general rules. If you make the blessing on a fruit, the fruit gets borei peri ha'etz (Who creates the fruit of the tree). If you turn it into juice, it becomes shehakol nihyah bidvaro (everything came to be through His word). Grapes are the exception. We make borei peri ha'etz, and then, when you turn them into juice, the blessing is elevated: all of a sudden it becomes borei peri hagefen (Who creates the fruit of the vine).
There’s a whole Gemara going back and forth: Why is that? What gives yayin (wine) its special status? The Gemara says, “Number one, yayin is sa'id (satiates)—chamra sa'id.” Chamra sa'id, it satiates. So it has the qualities of bread. Just as bread is sa'id, we call a meal a se'udah (meal). Ein se'udah ella befat (there is no meal except with bread). So the Gemara says that wine has a quality, chamra sa'id, unlike, let’s say, oil. Oil does not satiate.
The Gemara asks, “Does wine satiate? Veha Rava—Rava used to drink wine on erev Pesach (Passover eve).” Rava used to drink wine on erev Pesach because we don’t drink enough wine on Pesach night, so he had to drink some more wine on erev Pesach. Why would he drink wine then? Ki heichi dengareirei lelibeih. He wanted to get an appetite. It seems that if you drink wine, it gives you an appetite; it opens your appetite. He wanted to eat more matzah (unleavened bread), so he would drink wine. It seems that wine is an appetizer. It opens up your appetite. But you just told me chamra sa'id.
The Gemara answers, “Tuva garir, purta sa'id.” A lot of wine makes you more hungry, and a little satiates. That’s what the Gemara says. Then the Gemara says something else about wine: veyayin yesamach (and wine gladdens). The Gemara says, “Chamra it beih tartei”—wine has two qualities. Number one, sa'id (satiates), and umesame'ach (and gladdens). Beautiful! Wine has all the qualities. It satiates like bread. To a certain degree, it’s even better than bread, because it also gladdens.
The Gemara asks, “I hachi nevrich aleih shalosh berachot”—so we should make Birkat Hamazon on wine! It’s such an item; it satiates and gladdens. The Gemara says, “Lo kav'ei inshei se'udateihu alaveih.” A person doesn’t make a meal on wine. It doesn’t have established meal status.
Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak said to Rava, “I kava alaveih se'udateih mai?” What if a person does establish a meal on it? Let’s say a guy comes along and says, “We’re having a meal here on wine.” They have wine tastings today. The main item on the table is the wine. The only reason they’re eating the other stuff is that they don’t have the wine on an empty stomach. Really, it’s all wines. They go from one wine to another. So the Gemara asks, “What if they establish a meal on the wine?” The answer is, “Lichsheyavo Eliyahu veyomar”—when Elijah comes and says whether it is kevi'ut (established meal status).
“Hashta miha batlah da'ato etzel kol adam.” That’s the Gemara’s opinion about wine tasters! As of now, his opinion is nullified among everyone. That’s not a normal thing, to sit down and just drink wine. If Elijah comes along and wants to change it, all right, we’ll listen to Elijah about whether it has established meal status. But until Elijah comes, what’s the view? This becomes a she'eilah for Elijah. We’ll put that in the teiku box. Is wine considered an established meal or not? It’s an interesting thing: You need Elijah to answer such a question. If you stop just to sit down and drink wine, establishing a meal, you have to ask Elijah if that’s called an established meal. Otherwise, his opinion is nullified among everyone. That’s not considered normal behavior.
Anyway, that’s the discussion of wine in the Gemara. What does it have to do with the portion? That’s a very good question. I was waiting for one of our members to ask it. I’ll ask it for you. We’re reading in the portion the very dramatic story of Ya'akov Avinu (Jacob our forefather) and the blessings. The Torah goes out of its way to tell us exactly how this went down, as we would say.
The Torah tells us, “Vayehi ki zaken Yitzchak” (And it came to pass when Isaac was old), in perek kaf-zayin (chapter twenty-seven). Yitzchak was not able to see very well. “Hinei na zakanti lo yadati yom moti” (Behold, I have grown old; I do not know the day of my death). “Go take your hunting equipment, vetzudah li tza'yid”—game, which is venison—“and ve'aseh li mat'amim,” make me the delicacies I like, “ka'asher ahavti.” “Vehavi'ah li ve'ocheilah,” bring it to me and I’ll eat, “ba'avur tevarechecha nafshi,” so my soul may bless you.
Rivkah (Rebecca) overhears the conversation. She actually heard it through prophecy; she wasn’t eavesdropping. We should never cup by the door. In the old days, they put a cup by the door to try to eavesdrop; they didn’t have that. “VeRivkah shoma'at”—Rivkah hears because she had ru'ach hakodesh (divine inspiration). So Esav (Esau) goes out, and Rivkah says to Ya'akov, “Hinei shamati”—I heard, through divine inspiration, your father speaking. “Havi'ah li tza'yid ve'aseh li mat'amim.” He asked for game, delicacies, and he’s about to give a blessing. “Ve'atah beni shema bekoli la'asher ani metzavah otach”—now, my son, listen to my voice and do what I command you. “Lech na el hatzon vekach li misham shenei gedayei izim”—go to the flock and take two young goats for me. I think they said it was Passover, so one was for the korban Pesach (Paschal offering) and one for the korban chagigah (festival offering). Good ones. “Ve'e'eseh otam”—I’ll prepare them.
Ya'akov Avinu makes lentil soup, but he doesn’t know how to make Chateaubriand. Rivkah is going to take care of it. “Ve'e'eseh otam mat'amim”—I’ll prepare the delicacies. I know how your father likes them. “Ka'asher ahev.” “Veheveita le'avicha”—you’ll bring them to your father, “ve'achal”—and he’ll eat, “ba'avur asher yevarechecha lifnei moto”—so he may bless you before his death.
Ya'akov says to Rivkah, “Esav ish sa'ir, anochi ish chalak.” Esav is hairy, and I’m smooth. He’s going to feel me and know right away. She tells him, “Alai kilalatecha.” Don’t worry; he’s not going to give you a curse. I have a prophecy. He’s going to give you the blessing; it’s all going to work out.
He went, took the food, and brought it to his mother. His mother prepared the delicacies as his father liked them. Rivkah took Esav’s clothes—that’s for the hair—the precious ones, and dressed Ya'akov, her younger son. She put the goatskins on him and gave him the delicacies and the bread she had made. I guess the bread was matzah, because if it was Passover, it was matzah. So you’ve got the shemurah matzah (guarded matzah), the korban Pesach, everything. All you’re missing is the charoset (Passover fruit mixture). It’s finished; then you’ve got the whole the seder mince, all you’re missing.
Ya'akov came to his father and said, “My father.” Yitzchak said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?” That’s like the Akeidah (binding of Isaac) story. Ya'akov said to his father, “I am Esav, your firstborn.” We know the whole story. “I did whatever you told me.” “Esav? Your firstborn?” Pause. Very good, exactly. Yitzchak said to his son, “How did you come so quickly?” He said, “Hashem was with me.” Yitzchak said to Ya'akov, “Come close, please, and let me feel you, whether you are Esav or not.” “Hakol kol Yaakov vehayadayim yedei Esav” (the voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are Esau’s hands). He did not recognize him. Yitzchak said, “Are you really my son Esav?” He said, “I am.” Good. I am I, and Esav is Esav.
Yitzchak said, “Bring me the game of my son, and I’ll eat.” A se'udah, rabotai: netilat yadayim (ritual handwashing), yallah, se'udah, Shulchan Orech (the set table). “Ba'avur lema'an tevarechecha nafshi”—so my soul may bless you. Now here’s where we start the lesson, gentlemen. Here’s where the whole story opens up. “Vayagesh lo vayochal”—he presented it to him, and he ate. What did he eat? We know what was on the menu. It was very clear: two young goats and some bread, meaning some matzah. Anything else on the menu? Nothing else. That’s exactly what Rivkah ordered.
But I continue reading: “Vayave lo yayin vayesht”—he brought him wine, and he drank. Oh! All of a sudden, the verse says Ya'akov Avinu brought him wine. First of all, where did the wine come from? It wasn’t part of the menu Rivkah offered. Rivkah said, “Listen, the plan is two young goats, and you also need to bring some bread for the matzah.” Why do we suddenly see this matter of wine? Where did the wine come from? Is there a Rashi on this? If there is, I’d love it. I feel Rashi… Unbelievable. By the way, I love that answer! That’s what I would have said too: four cups! And he needs the bitter herbs and everything else. The bitter herbs—that’s Esav. Esav had the bitter herbs.
Chizkuni says something very interesting: “Vayave lo yayin, shehayayin me'arbev ketzat da'ato shel adam”—wine somewhat confuses a person’s mind—“velo yedakdek im hu Esav im lav”—and he won’t examine whether he is Esav or not. So, according to Chizkuni, that’s a very straightforward explanation. He wants to take the edge off his father a little. He gets his father a little disoriented because he wants to get the blessing. In Yiddish they say he has to make hishtadlus (effort). You can’t just go in and—so that was his effort: “Give my father a sip of wine. He’ll drink a little; he’s not used to it. The righteous man doesn’t drink that much wine. Once he drinks a little…” Gentlemen, I’m reading Chizkuni. I’m telling you what Chizkuni thought; I don’t really know. “Shehayayin me'arbev ketzat da'ato shel adam, velo yedakdek im hu Esav o lav.” Good.
I saw that Alshich has a different explanation. Rabbi Moshe Alshich, peace be upon him, says: What did Ya'akov ask Esav to bring him? “Vetzei hasadeh vetzudah li tzayid.” Do you know what tza'yid is? Tza'yid is game, which is venison. Venison is deer. That’s what he wanted: deer. Delicious, huh? You have plenty of them, yeah. It’s true. You’re right.
What does Rivkah tell Ya'akov? “Lech na el hatzon vekach li misham shenei gedayei izim.” Goats! What do you mean? That’s a giveaway! Rashi says, from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, “Ki ta'am hagdi keta'am hatzvi”—a young goat tastes like a deer. Close enough! So he won’t know; give him the young goat. Alshich says that in order for him not to tell the difference between the young goat and the deer, give him a little wine. After some wine, everything tastes the same. After the first cup, a young goat, a deer, spinach, mjaddara (rice and lentils)—anything you give him will all taste the same.
Rabbenu Avraham, beno shel haRambam (Rabbi Abraham, son of Maimonides) explains why Ya'akov offered him wine. Listen: one of the main things about giving a blessing is that you have to give it with joy. That’s why Yitzchak Avinu said, “Give me the food first; we’ll eat, and I’ll be in a proper mood.” In order for the blessing to come with joy, Ya'akov Avinu offered some wine. “Yayin yesamach levav” (wine gladdens the heart). “Veyayin yesamach,” as the Gemara we just read says: one of the properties of wine is yayin mesame'ach (wine gladdens).
I actually saw a beautiful diyuk (textual inference). When the verse says that he brought the food to his father, it says, “Vayagesh lo vayochal.” For the meat, it says “vayagesh.” For the wine, it says “vayave lo.” Why doesn’t it say “vayagesh”? The explanation is that “vayagesh” means his mother prepared the food, and all he did was—oh, Baruch haba, bo shev (welcome, come sit). Rabbi Friedman, welcome! Hello, Rabbi. I don’t think they’re going to sit. Hello, Rabbi. Honor. Maybe that’s why they didn’t have food before the blessing over bread? Yeah. Yeah, right. Rabbi? I’ll say a few words, and then I’ll hand it over? No, no, say what you need to say. I’m done.
Beruchim haba'im (welcome) to the great righteous man, Rabbi Pinchas Friedman, the great righteous man and author, who gladdens God and man. We’ll say a few words because we started, and then we’ll have a back-and-forth with the great righteous man. We made a textual inference here: “Vayagesh lo vayochal.” When it came to the food, the verse says “vayagesh”—he presented it to his father. When it comes to the wine, it says “vayave lo.” Based on what we’re learning, that makes very good sense. Rivkah prepared the food for him, so all Ya'akov did was present it. But Rivkah didn’t put the wine on the menu, so he had to bring it. He had to do it himself. The wine was Ya'akov’s own idea. It’s not “vayagesh.” “Vayagesh” means it was prepared by others, as it were, and he just presented it. The wine, however, was Ya'akov’s idea to bring, for the reasons we explained.
There’s an interesting halachah. We’re coming to Chanukah (Hanukkah) soon, may it come upon us for good. In the Shulchan Aruch, chapter 670, laws of Hanukkah, it says, “Ribui hase'udot shemarbim bahem hem se'udot hareshut”—the added meals are optional meals. There’s no real mitzvah (commandment) to have a meal. “Shelo keva'um lemishteh velesimchah”—they did not establish them for feasting and joy. There’s really no drinking on Hanukkah.
The Taz, if you remember the famous Taz, explains why. He says the reason there’s no drinking on Hanukkah is, “Perush ein ela lehallel ulehodot”—it is only for praise and thanksgiving. Chanukah is Hallel (praise), hoda'ah (thanksgiving), and Al Hanissim (For the miracles). “Vezeh hata'am shelo kave'u kan lesimchah kemo beFurim, debeFurim hayah hanes befirsum hatzalat nefashot.” On Purim, they were coming after our bodies, and there was joy in this world, so you have to have a celebration of the body. What is a celebration of the body? Drinking. But on Hanukkah it was a battle of the soul, so the soul has to celebrate. How does the soul celebrate? “Halleli nafshi”—let the soul praise God. So we celebrate spiritually, through joy. “Ki beFurim hayah hatzalat nefashot uvChanukah lo hayah hatzalat nefashot ki haYevanim lo bikshu nefashot, rak hachna'ah veha'avarat hadat.” On Purim there was the saving of lives, and on Hanukkah there was not, because the Greeks did not seek lives, only submission and the abolition of the religion. Fine. That’s the distinction the Taz is making.
I saw a book on the Shulchan Aruch called Erech Shai. Somebody made me aware of this book, with these beautiful little pieces on the Shulchan Aruch. He writes about this Taz, “Velo kave'u lahem mishteh be-Purim.” He says, “Be-agadot sheli”—in my notes, I found teachings. He wrote, “I looked for the root: Purim min ha-Torah minayin?” Everybody wants to know; all these holidays have a root in the Torah. Everything is in the Torah. I know Purim is mi-derabbanan (rabbinically ordained), but it has to have a shoresh (root) in the Torah.
He says you have to find a lot of things we have on Purim and then try to find a story in the Torah. First, what do we have on Purim? We wear costumes, so you have to find a story in the Torah where somebody got dressed up in a costume. You also have to find Mordechai and Haman in the same story, a good guy and a bad guy. And obviously Purim is all about wine: “Mechayev inish levasumei be-Puraya.” You have to find a story with a righteous man and a wicked man, a costume, wine, and a situation of confusion, where you’re supposed to drink on Purim until you don’t know the difference between “arur Haman” and “baruch Mordechai”—cursed is Haman and blessed is Mordechai. That means you have to find a situation where there was almost a case of saying, “Blessed is Haman” and “Cursed is Mordechai.” Do we have a story like that? He says, “Here—the story we just read.”
The story of Ya'akov going to get the blessings from his father is the root of Purim in the Torah. Why? He writes, “Shoresh ha-nes al yedei Ya'akov”—the root of the miracle was through Jacob, “she'asah se'udah.” That’s the Purim meal: he made a meal for his father. I know it’s Passover, but he’s saying that the root of Purim is there. “Vayave lo yayin”—remember, we asked why he brought wine? “Ve'al yedei zeh hayah mapalat Haman,” and through this came the downfall of Haman, who is Esav. Mordechai is in the aspect of Mordechai; Mordechai is Ya'akov. Esav is definitely Haman, right? So how did they bring Esav down? He says Yitzchak wanted to save Esav from hanging, because he saw that Haman was going to be hanged. That’s why he says, “Keshe-amar lo, sa na telyecha”—when he said to him, “Please lift up your hanging.” It means, “Listen, I have to save you from hanging. You’re going to be hanged one day, so come and let me give you a blessing.”
“Lachen be-Purim, osim se'udah u-mishteh u-mevusamim ad delo yada bein baruch Mordechai shehu Ya'akov le-arur Haman shehu Esav, kemo shelo yada Yitzchak.” Therefore, on Purim, they make a meal and a feast and become intoxicated until they don’t know the difference between “baruch Mordechai” (blessed is Mordechai), who is Ya'akov, and “arur Haman” (cursed is Haman), who is Esav, just as Yitzchak didn’t know when he blessed Ya'akov. That’s why they wear masks, as Ya'akov did when he disguised himself in Esav’s clothes. Beautiful.
Rashi says on the Gemara in Megillah (Scroll of Esther), “When Adar begins, joy increases.” He says, “Days of joy for Israel: Purim and Passover.” So here you have Purim and Passover on the same day. It was Passover, but you have all the allusions to Purim. So Purim and Passover—the root of Purim is in Passover, or Passover is Purim, however you want to connect it. They came together; they met at the same bus stop, at the same hotel. Purim and Passover, same hotel, same day. That’s an allusion Erech Shai brings.
Ya'akov Avinu, peace be upon him, decides to bring wine to his father. If you look at the cantillation marks, which are very significant, you see that on “wine” there is a cantillation mark next to it—or on “vayave lo yayin”—a mark we don’t have that often. Anytime you have a note that doesn’t appear much, you need to stop and say, “Hold it. What is this note?” For example, whenever you see a shalshelet (chain-shaped cantillation), the rabbis go to town. What is a shalshelet? There aren’t many of them. But this one is even less common. The Sefaradim (Sephardim) call it terei ta'amei, a double cantillation mark. You see a double mark underneath the letter. Normally we have a ma'arich (prolonged note), a ma'arich tarcha (prolonged tarcha note), underneath the words. But when you have two prolonged notes like this, that’s strange. So we call it terei ta'amei.
Which word is it on? On “lo”: “Vayave lo yayin vayesht.” Under the word “lo,” we read “vayave lo,” as if you’re reading it a few times up and down, “yayin vayesht.” So we ask, “What’s going on over there?” The righteous men come running and saying, “Hold it. What has changed? What’s going on with this double cantillation mark? What do they want from us here?”
One explanation is based on the Gemara in Pesachim. The Gemara says that when you drink wine, there is proper conduct in how to drink it. It says, “Shenayim derech eretz, echad gargaran.” What does that mean? They give you a cup of wine to drink; you don’t drink it in one shot. If you drink it in one shot, you’re a glutton, a guzzler. A rebellious son drinks like that. What’s the proper way to drink wine? Two sips. You sip it, and then you take another sip. So the verse is hinting to us: “Vayave lo,” two cantillation marks—he gave him two sips, two cups, in order to follow the proper conduct: two sips.
I also saw someone bring down that, as Chalfon mentioned, it was lel Pesach (Passover night). On lel Pesach (Passover night) you need to have arba kosot (four cups). Obviously, when he brought him the Paschal offering, this was already after the first two cups, because the Paschal offering is at the end of the meal. So he gave him the Paschal offering, and then “vayave lo yayin,” the double cantillation marks, meaning two cups, in order to have the last two cups for the Seder. Hence, the double cantillation marks. The first two? They were before Ya'akov came. Oh. “What’s this?” Oh.
The only question is, where did this wine come from? His mother didn’t give him wine. The wine must have come from somewhere. The Targum Yonatan ben Uziel is incredible. The Targum says that there was no wine with him. He didn’t have wine. What? There was no wine. Where did it come from? His mother gave him matzah and meat. Then a mal'ach (angel) appeared to him. They say it was mal'ach Micha'el (Michael), and he brought him wine that had been preserved in its grapes since the days of Adam Harishon (Adam the first). Wow, what wine! He gave it to Ya'akov, and Ya'akov brought it to his father.
So you see how the Targum says it was given to him on the way in by Michael. He told him, “Here, this is special wine from the time of Adam the first.” Aged wine, exactly. Then he told him, “You take it.” Ya'akov took it from Michael and gave it to his father. So they explain the double cantillation marks because it was a double taking: He took it from Michael, and then he gave it to his father. It hints that Ya'akov didn’t have anything when he came in; he got it from somewhere. Michael was standing at the door: “Before you go into your father, I have a gift for you here. Make sure he gives it to...” “What is this?” “Don’t ask questions. This is wine from Adam the first. Very good. But make sure your father gets a little sip of it before he gives you the blessing.” So he gave it to Ya'akov, and Ya'akov gave it to his father. That’s what the double cantillation marks hint at: the double matter. The double cantillation mark is on “lo”—“lo, lo, vayave lo.” Look under “lo.” “Vayave lo”—it’s only a tevir. Oh, it’s two! Strong and blessed, doctor! You got it. It’s all there.
What is that? Strong and blessed. That’s why you came to the lesson today, so I’m teaching you. I always read it as darga tevir. No, it’s not darga. The mark under “vayave” is a darga, but under “lo,” it’s not a tevir. All right, blessed is Hashem. I learned it wrong all these years. Blessed is Hashem. Blessed is Hashem. “Lo ye'uneh latzaddik kol aven”—no harm will befall the righteous. Hashem doesn’t want you making any more mistakes, right, doctor? Excellent among doctors.
So here we have different explanations. What’s the secret? Da'at Zekenim, the Ba'alei HaTosafot, also say, “Where did he get the wine? We don’t find that his mother gave him wine, except that Michael brought him wine,” explicitly, from Gan Eden (Garden of Eden). “You find no wine of goodness and blessing except this one, and the wine of Abraham, as it says, ‘And Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine.’ He also blessed him after he drank.” So every time you see wine, there’s a blessing. They had wine with Avimelech and with Abraham our forefather and Malki Tzedek (Melchizedek). What happened after the wine was exchanged? A blessing. The same thing here: special wine.
Tzeror HaMor goes into a whole long discussion—not for now—by Rabbeinu Avraham Saba, among the exiles from Sfarad (Spain). He was exiled twice, from Spain and then Portugal. Unbelievable. His whole life was spent running away from governments, and he wrote a tremendous commentary on the Torah. It’s incredible that he could write such a commentary under those circumstances. I recommend Tzeror HaMor. An unbelievable book.
Tzeror HaMor says, “Of course he had to bring the wine from Gan Eden (Garden of Eden), because we know this was part of the tikkun (rectification) of the chet (sin) of Adam Harishon (Adam the first).” He says you can’t learn Parashat Toledot unless you go back to Parashat Bereishit. In Bereishit, there were players. One was called the serpent, one was called Adam the first, and one was called Eve. They were all involved in the sin of the Tree of Knowledge. According to the Gemara, the sin of the Tree of Knowledge involved wine, grapes, and therefore curses came into the world. Now we need to make a rectification.
The Zohar says, according to Tzeror HaMor, that all these players came back as different people, but they were the same people. Who came back as the nachash (serpent)? Esav. Of course, Esav played himself. Esav is the nachash; Esav is the trickster. The Gemara says that the beauty of Ya'akov Avinu and the beauty of Adam Harishon (Adam the first) were similar: “Deshufreih deYaakov me'ein shufreih de'Adam HaRishon.” Ya'akov represents Adam Harishon, and Rivkah represents Chavah (Eve). So all the righteous ones meet again. What’s going to happen now? The first time around, Esav, the serpent, brought the curses. How did he bring the curse? Through wine.
So now Rivkah, who is Eve, comes and says, “Gentlemen, we have to make a rectification here.” What happens? Ya'akov Avinu goes in wearing the special clothes, Esav’s precious garments, which were really the garments of Adam the first, whose fragrance was lost after the sin of the Tree of Knowledge. When he walked in, Yitzchak Avinu said, “The scent of my son”—this is the Garden of Eden! The rectification is beginning! We’re back in the Garden of Eden! That means that when he walked in, they weren’t in Yitzchak’s den or dining room. They were in the Garden of Eden. Now we’re making rectifications.
Micha'el said, “Do me a favor. If we’re making the tikkun (rectification), you have to bring the wine. This is the wine they drank from over there, from the Etz HaDa'at (Tree of Knowledge). Bring it there now. This wine brought you a kelalah (curse) last time; now bring it, and it will bring you a berachah (blessing). We need to make the tikkun. But listen, Esav is coming fast because he doesn’t want you to get the blessing. He wants the curse to remain.” Tzeror HaMor goes through a whole discussion of why the wine had to come, why Ya'akov had to bring it and drink it, and why he had to get “the scent of my son.” It’s all a rectification of the sin of Adam the first.
Of course! This wasn’t just—That’s why don’t feel bad for Esav, by the way. Some people feel bad: “He took the blessing from—” Wicked Esav! Do you want the curses? If Esav gets those blessings, that means we’re cursed forever. You’re going to feel bad for Esav? Some modern people say, “That wasn’t nice, what Ya'akov Avinu did. He stole the blessings.” Stole the blessings? He took them back! Who stole the blessings? Esav stole the blessings! We had blessings in the Garden of Eden. Who’s the thief of the blessings? Esav!
I want to ask you a question. If you steal, and then I come along with a heiter (permission) from a rabbi and take back what you stole from me, who’s the thief? Not me! I’m not stealing! I’m taking back what belongs to me. What is it, “gonev min haganav”? I went to the rabbi; the rabbi said, “That belongs to you. Go take it back.” I took it back! It belongs to me. Am I stealing from a thief?
So don’t take my word for it. You read the prophetic reading, Elliot? What does the verse say in the prophetic reading? “Ve'et Esav saneti”—but Esau I hated. God says, “I hate Esav’s guts.” You’re going to defend Esav now? God says, “I hate him.” Finished. After God says, “I hate him,” you never defend him. He’s wicked. Anybody who defends Esav is defending one who incites and misleads. You’re transgressing five negative commandments.
In any event, my point is that a lot of people come along and say, “It wasn’t right for Ya'akov to do…” What are you—You don’t even know what you’re doing. You didn’t even get out of your diapers yet. You don’t know what Ya'akov… Ya'akov Avinu is making the rectification of the sin of Adam the first for you! He’s helping you get out of the curse. Now you have claims against Ya'akov Avinu? Unbelievable. They don’t know how to open a Chumash (Pentateuch). They never opened one. They read the English Pentateuch on a superficial level and then say, “Yes, but it was a deception.” What deception? What are you talking about, the righteous ones? Ya'akov’s quality is truth. You’re going to say about “truth to Jacob” that it was deception? Really, it’s outrageous the way they talk. It shows how juvenile their explanations are, the way they interpret the Torah.
Fine. The Gemara says, “Kol ha'omer David chata eino ela to'eh”—whoever says David sinned is mistaken. How much more so Ya'akov Avinu. Who’s greater, King David or Ya'akov Avinu? We don’t measure the righteous ones, but Ya'akov Avinu is one of the forefathers. If you say David is mistaken, what are you going to say about Ya'akov Avinu? Anyway, don’t start with that, gentlemen. We know that’s one of our pet peeves: we don’t like when they speak against the forefathers.
The Mishnah in Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) asks who is considered a chacham (wise person) and who is considered a golem (unformed person)—a fool. It says, “Chacham omer al rishon rishon ve'al acharon acharon.” A wise person addresses each matter in order. When he talks, he talks in order. We give a lesson: number one, number two, number three. He talks in order, so you understand what he’s talking about. He answers the first question, then the second one, and the last one last. He goes in order. The unformed person does the opposite: he says the last thing first and the first thing last. He talks out of order, so you have to put it together. He talks like he’s throwing a hundred puzzle pieces, and now you have to—After the lesson, he said a lot of new insights, but there was no order.
I once saw Midrash Shemu'el explain the Mishnah. Do you know who a wise person is? The Gemara says, “Rishonim kemal'achim”—the early authorities are like angels. If you believe the early authorities are like angels, you can call yourself a human being. But God forbid you think the early authorities are like human beings, like us; you’re not even the donkey of Rabbi Pinchas ben Ya'ir. Even among donkeys, you didn’t reach the level of Rabbi Pinchas ben Ya'ir’s donkey.
So who is a wise person? He knows the difference between the early authorities and a later authority. Later authorities don’t question the early authorities. Who is the unformed person? He treats the early authority like a later authority: “The early authorities are like a later authority, baby. Just as you can question a later authority, you question an early authority.” He mixes everything up. The biggest sign that a person doesn’t recognize the difference between early and later authorities is that he’s an unformed person.
Anyway, gentlemen, you see a big new insight here. I had my Tanchuma, but I must have misplaced it. Remember, we started with the Gemara in Berachot: Why do we make the berachah (blessing) of the gefen (vine) on yayin (wine)? It has a blessing of its own. We said it satiates and gladdens. Good. Look at the Midrash I found on the verse, “Vayecherad Yitzchak charadah” (Isaac trembled greatly). Esav walks in. Let’s continue the story: “Veyiten lecha HaElokim mital hashamayim umishmanei ha'aretz verov dagan vetirosh.” One of the books brings down: Why did he bless him with plenty of grain and wine? Measure for measure, because he brought him bread and wine! Since he brought him bread and wine, measure for measure. The righteous ones are appreciative: You brought me bread and wine; your blessing will be plenty of grain and wine.
After he finishes, Yitzchak says, “Who are you?” He says, “I am Esav.” Esav? “Vayecherad Yitzchak charadah gedolah!” All of a sudden, the entrance to Gehinnom opened up. At that point, he realized what was going on. By the way, Yitzchak didn’t feel bad. Yitzchak was very happy. He didn’t say, “I made a mistake, and therefore this is a mistaken transaction.” No, he didn’t say anything. He said, “Good. All good. Everything stands.” Understand?
On this verse, “Vayecherad Yitzchak charadah,” there’s a fantastic Midrash Tanchuma. “Yelammedenu Rabbeinu”—our teacher, teach us. Tanchuma is also called Midrash Yelammedenu. The Midrash asks, “Umah ra'ah hayayin shetehe birchato meshunah mikol hamashkim?” Why does wine get its own blessing? We know the reason; we read the Gemara: it satiates and gladdens. The Midrash gives a different reason: “Umah ra'ah hayayin shetehe birchato meshunah mikol hamashkim?” “Sheharei mitnasech al gabei hamizbe'ach”—for it is poured upon the altar.
First answer: We pour it on the altar. You pour it on the altar? You put meat on the altar too. Meat doesn’t get its own blessing. You put oil on the altar in the grain offering. Okay, that’s the first answer. Whatever. Now hold on to your seats: “Velo od ela shehu garam le-Ya'akov litol et haberachot.” Wine caused Ya'akov to receive the blessings. That’s where the blessing came from! Rabotai (gentlemen), when Yitzchak sent Esav to hunt game, Rivkah was told through ru'ach hakodesh (divine inspiration). Rivkah heard, “Go to the flock,” and Ya'akov brought the wine.
I saw a beautiful explanation from Chiddushei HaRim. Why does the Midrash bring this on the verse “Isaac trembled greatly”? It should have said, “You know why we make a special blessing on wine? Because he brought it in: ‘Vayave lo.’” But it brings it on the fact that when Esav walked in, Yitzchak became afraid. What happened? Chiddushei HaRim says something amazing. “Vayecherad charadah gedolah vayomer.” What does he say to Esav? “Mi hu zeh, mi eifo hu?” By the way, it sounds like Purim: “Mi hu zeh ve'eizeh hu.” “Mi eifo hu hatzad tzayid vayave li ve'achal mikol”—who was the one who brought me the game, and I ate? How come he didn’t say, “And I drank”? How come Yitzchak Avinu doesn’t mention the wine here? If he knows he drank the wine, he should say to Esav, “Who was the man who came before, brought me food, and I ate?” He should say, “I ate and drank.”
Chiddushei HaRim says something amazing. You know we’re very careful not to let non-Jews touch the wine. The righteous and the Hasidim are careful; they don’t even want a non-Jew to look at the wine. Have you ever seen that? When they make the wine, they don’t want that. It says on the label, “Belo re'ot akum”—made without a non-Jew seeing it. The non-Jews don’t look at it! Some even put it in dark bottles so nobody can see the wine inside. Why? Why isn’t it kosher? It’s kosher, obviously. There’s something to it: We don’t want the non-Jews to have any control over the wine we drink—not their touch, not even their eyes. Today wine is an important item, a highly important item.
Chiddushei HaRim says: All of a sudden, Esav walks in. The entrance to Gehinnom opens up. Yitzchak Avinu knows this man is wicked. So Yitzchak Avinu was not only stringent about not letting a non-Jew touch the wine; he was not only stringent about not letting a non-Jew look at the wine; he wouldn’t even mention wine in front of the wicked man! That’s a new stringency of the righteous ones. Yitzchak Avinu says, “Don’t even mention it. Am I going to mention the wine? Even mentioning it in front of Esav blemishes it! This is the guarded wine. This is the one we want to get away from Esav. Are you going to mention this wine in front of the primordial serpent? You won’t even mention it. Could mentioning it give him a hold on the wine just through speech?”
So that’s where you see how important wine is, from the verse “Vayecherad”! The verse is about the fact that Yitzchak doesn’t even want to mention the wine in front of Esav. There you see that wine must be very important. From there you see that it establishes a blessing for itself. Did you understand? You see how much Yitzchak Avinu didn’t want to say anything about the wine. It must be important.
Now, just to finish it up, gentlemen: What kind of wine is he bringing him? You really have to understand wine. Is this regular wine? Now we know this is guarded wine. This is not ordinary wine. I saw in the books—I think the Shlah brings it down, and the rabbi mentioned it in his talk a few weeks ago in one of the portions—that whenever the Sages mention wine, wine is an allusion to Torah. Torah is called yayin (wine): “Nichnas yayin yatza sod”—wine enters, secrets come out. The sodot (secrets) of the Torah are referred to as yayin.
The commentators say—I saw Rav Shimon Schwab bring this—that when he brought him the guarded wine, the holy books say that in the future there is going to be what the rabbi always talks about: a new Torah. What does “new” mean? God forbid, a new Torah? The Torah we have here is a little version of a bigger picture. We have a sample to keep us busy in this world. Listen, gentlemen, when Mashiach comes, they’re going to start bringing out a new curriculum. What is this here? What is this here? Blessed is Hashem, you’ll sit in the world to come forever. Now go, with honor. We can’t even finish this; it’s endless. But this is the Torah for—
We once gave a sermon on that. Didn’t we just say that Torah is considered like wine? The Creator says, “Purta sa'id.” A little wine in this world satiates, but “tuva garir”—in the future there will be much more. There’s a lot more wine to come in the future, gentlemen. The Creator gave you a sample, and, blessed is Hashem, we’re satiated. We come to the lesson and feel good, blessed is Hashem. A nice lesson: we read the Gemara, a page of Tosafot, a couple of Maharshas. A good lesson; you feel good. You come home satiated, and they don’t even know what’s going on out there. Wait till Mashiach comes; they’ll give you much, much more.
When Ya'akov Avinu came in, what did he want from Yitzchak Avinu? What are the blessings of the righteous ones? Torah. That’s the whole blessing, gentlemen, especially for Ya'akov. What does he want? Physical blessings? Ya'akov is Torah! Ya'akov is Torah! Exactly, perfect. So when he comes to Yitzchak, what is he asking for? “I want a car, a swimming pool, a Mercedes”? God forbid! He wants Torah. So what does he bring in? The guarded wine. The guarded wine is the Torah of—You know, the guarded wine: he wants a blessing in his Torah! I’m not saying that on my own; the Midrash says it, by the way.
Another explanation, when he blesses him—“Veyiten lecha HaElokim mital hashamayim umishmanei ha'aretz verov dagan vetirosh”—the Midrash on our portion says, “Davar acher: ‘Mital hashamayim’ is Scripture; ‘umishmanei ha'aretz’ is Mishnah; ‘dagan’ is Talmud; ‘tirosh’ is non-legal rabbinic teachings.” It’s all—You think they came in—That means Ya'akov Avinu came in and said, “Listen, Dad, secrets, secrets—have a cup of wine.”
Rivkah is pator (exempt) from Talmud Torah (Torah study). Ladies are peturah (exempt) from Talmud Torah. So, “Go take the—okay, go feed him, and I got a—” The angel says, “Listen, she’s exempt from Torah study. You’re obligated to study Torah. This is special wine. Go! Now create a mental visualization that you want these secrets!” When he tasted the wine, he understood right away: “Oh, now you’re going to get the blessings of the Torah.”
I saw that this is why the custom is, on Saturday night, after Shabbat is over, from the holy Ari, to say, “Veyiten lecha HaElokim.” Now, everybody thinks, What are you saying? Shabbat is over; you’re going back to work. That’s it—back to the money, back to the greenbacks. You have to go back to making money, so they say, “Mital hashamayim va'aretz.” I saw the tzaddikim say, “No. After you spent the whole day of Shabbat learning, now you say, ‘You know something? It’s unbelievable. With God’s help, we should have this learning all week! Veyiten lecha HaElokim mital hashamayim umishmanei ha'aretz.’”
After you went through a whole Shabbat, why do we love Shabbat? Because there’s no money; it’s all learning, it’s all Torah! So why can’t we do this all week long? Why can’t we have Shabbat every day? We start the week by saying, “Veyiten lecha HaElokim mital hashamayim verov dagan vetirosh.” That could be the secret. How do we end Saturday night? With wine. We take a Havdalah cup and pick up the wine. So, gentlemen, you finished the wine; now take the wine into the week—adding to Shabbat. Take the wine into the week, and take some more Torah, as Ya'akov Avinu did.
The point, gentlemen, and we’ll conclude with this: You see the holiness of wine. Wine goes on the altar. Wine represents the secrets of the Torah. Wine represents the guarded wine. Wine establishes a blessing for itself. The Gemara says that anybody who drinks wine finds that it satiates and gladdens. The Gemara says it should be kove'a berachah bifnei atzmo (establish a blessing for itself); it should be kove'a Birkat Hamazon (establish Grace After Meals). So what does the Gemara say? People don’t establish a meal on wine. What if a person does establish a meal on wine? The Gemara says, “Batlah da'ato etzel kol adam.” If a guy does it, we have to ask Elijah.
What does the Gemara say? In our generation, we don’t even know what wine is. Adults get together and establish wine tastings, wine drinking, wine nonsense. For what purpose? We’re coming together as adults instead of understanding what wine was made for. Wine really represents the taste of learning Torah. Not putting six bottles on the table and drinking: “How’s this one? This one is very good. Let’s try another one. Put another one, put another one.” I’m not saying you can’t drink a little wine at the Friday-night table, but to make such a fuss over it? I got a lot of flak. I spoke about this once, and all the wine guys called me up: “Hey, you’re making fun of us! You’re talking about…” They created a mob against me: “What are you making fun of? We’re doing it for the sake of Heaven. We have words of Torah; we say the first blessing; we make a blessing…” I’m not saying that, but to make such a fuss over it?
The Gemara says that anyone who establishes his meal on wine has his opinion nullified among everyone. When Elijah comes, are you going to ask him a question? Trust me, that’s the last question I’m going to ask Elijah. When Elijah comes, are you going to ask him something like that? “Elijah, I want to know if you can establish a meal on wine?” They always say, “When Elijah comes.” What does that mean? It doesn’t say “let it stand unresolved,” by the way. Normally it says, “All right, let it stand unresolved.” Here it says, “When Elijah comes.” That means once Elijah comes and they start to reveal the real secrets of wine, you won’t have that question anymore. You’ll understand very well, “Batlah da'ato etzel kol adam.” Wait till Elijah comes and shows you what this guarded wine represents. Then he’ll say, “By the way, do you have any questions?” “No, I’m fine. You answered my question.” Elijah will come at that time and show us the secrets. Let Elijah come, and then that question will fall by the wayside.
Nonetheless, gentlemen, we see that this wine was pivotal to the blessing of Ya'akov Avinu. Wine gladdens, and Rabbi Friedman also gladdens. He’s like fine wine; his words of Torah only get better through the years. I’ve been following the rabbi; I don’t know, it was a miracle how I found him. Once I found him, every week he sends us a bottle of wine through his words of Torah. Blessed is Hashem, this is guarded wine. This is not the current flavor of the words of Torah; this is the future flavor we’ll have in the days of Mashiach. We’re lucky to have him here with us today. Rabbi, give us some wine.
I have a custom not to prepare, but just to try to connect to the lesson of HaRav Mansour, and I really enjoyed every minute sitting here. It sounded like five minutes. I’m going to try to connect to the subject he spoke about, wine. Why did Yitzchak Avinu want to give the blessings to Esav and not to Ya'akov? What happened here? We’re going to begin at the beginning of the portion, and that will be the conclusion. “Rivkah, vayitrotzatzu habanim bekirbah”—the children struggled within her. They fought; they argued. Rashi says that when she passed the study hall, Ya'akov wanted to go out. When she passed the house of idolatry, Esav wanted to go out.
There’s a well-known saying of Rebbi Yissachar Dov miBelz. He said, “Mimmeyla (anyway), Esav wants to go out to do idolatry, but why does Ya'akov want to go out? Bime'ei imo (in his mother’s womb), the Gemara says an angel comes and teaches the child kol haTorah kulah (the entire Torah). Why?” He says, “Even the entire Torah—but sitting with Esav doesn’t pay. So he wants to go out.”
Rivkah doesn’t know what’s going on. She sees a contradictory situation: Ya'akov is kedushah (holiness). “Vatelech lidrosh et Hashem”—she went to inquire of Hashem. Hashem said to her, “Shenei goyim bevitnech ushnei le'ummim mime'ayich”—two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you. If you pray, they’re going to fight. “Ule'om mile'om ye'ematz”—it’s going to be a constant fight. But in the end, “verav ya'avod tza'ir”—the older will serve the younger. The bigger one will be under the younger one, Ya'akov Avinu.
So what was this, “Vatelech lidrosh et Hashem”? Let’s begin with the Ramban, whom the rabbi brought here. Yitzchak wanted to give the blessing. What’s going on? Let’s establish the foundations, and then we’ll proceed from there. There’s a well-known teshuvah (responsum) of the Chatam Sofer. He says something moiredike (remarkable). Abraham our forefather brought Yitzchak to the binding, and he establishes a foundation: Abraham, at the binding, represents Torah shebichtav (Written Torah), because he heard from the Holy One, blessed be He. The Holy One, blessed be He, told him, “Kach na et bincha et yechidcha asher ahavta et Yitzchak.” So he heard it from God.
Yitzchak Avinu didn’t hear from the Holy One, blessed be He. He heard it from Abraham Avinu. They knew it wasn’t permitted to slaughter a human being; it was just a nisayon (test). So he could have said, “Abraham, Dad, I don’t know. You taught me that a korban (sacrifice) is only from a ba'al chai (living creature). I’m not going along with that.” But Abraham Avinu was a navi muchzak (established prophet), a known navi (prophet), so Yitzchak Avinu fulfilled the Oral Torah with self-sacrifice. From then on, Abraham Avinu represents Torah shebichtav (Written Torah), and Yitzchak Avinu represents Torah shebe'al peh (Oral Torah).
The Chatam Sofer uses this to explain why, when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat, we don’t blow the ram’s horn. The ram’s horn is an allusion to the binding of Isaac, to show the Oral Torah. When Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat and we don’t blow the ram’s horn to merit through the attribute of judgment, it is because we’re listening to the Oral Torah. That’s the greatest Oral Torah; that’s the greatest ram’s horn we follow with Yitzchak. That’s just for the foundation.
Now, the Ari HaKadosh gives a remarkable introduction. He says, “Vaye'ehav Yitzchak et Esav ki tzayid befiv.” Yitzchak loved Esav because he brought him food—that’s the simple meaning. But the holy Ari says that Esav had in his mouth the souls of righteous converts, the children of converts. Who were they? He mentions four of the greatest: Rabbi Akiva—if we start talking about him, we’ll never finish—Rabbi Meir, and Shemayah and Avtalyon.
I remembered this mnemonic I made for myself: Esav, the initial letters of Akiva, Shemayah, and Avtalyon. Rabbi Meir is missing here, but it says, “Vayira Ya'akov me'od vayetzer”—Ya'akov was greatly afraid and distressed. Rashi says, “Shemma yahorog acheirim”—perhaps he will kill others. The Gemara asks, “Who are the others?” Rabbi Meir. He was afraid Esav would kill Rabbi Meir. So wicked Esav had in his mouth the greatest Mishnaic sages of the Oral Torah. The rabbi will tell you who Rabbi Akiva was. It’s called the Oral Torah because all the students—“stam Mishnah Rabbi Meir” (an unattributed Mishnah is Rabbi Meir’s)—were his students. “Kuleihu aliba deRabbi Akiva”—they all follow Rabbi Akiva.
So when wicked Esav spoke, especially when he wanted to fool his father, Yitzchak Avinu heard the sound of Rabbi Akiva, Rabbi Meir, the Oral Torah. He wanted to give him the blessings. “He’s my continuation. He’s my heir.”
The rabbi spoke about Purim and Passover. Mordechai was a wonderful thing; it was worth coming just for this. I want to add something. We saw the rabbi’s struggle: What do we do here—Passover, Purim? His struggle, yeah? We all have that problem. Let me try to help, as someone who respects that the Gemara says, “Sho'alim vedorshim behilchot haPesach kodem haPesach sheloshim yom.” Thirty days before Passover, we’re already talking about Passover. That means the holiness of Passover begins thirty days before. Esav didn’t know that, but Ya'akov knew.
Ya'akov comes in and says to his father, “Look, Dad, you know about Passover. I’m going to reveal that I know something else. I know about wine. I know about putting on a mask—what we have on Purim today. We have a problem with that.” He lets Yitzchak know that he understands that from Passover there is another festival that will be influenced by Passover and connected to it: Purim.
How amazing is that? What happened on Purim? We’ll remind ourselves: “Kiymu vekiblu”—they upheld and accepted. The Gemara says that when the Holy One, blessed be He, gave the Torah, He kafa aleihem (held it over them). The Holy One, blessed be He, had to force them to accept the Torah. He put the mountain over them like a barrel: “Im tekablu et haTorah mutav, ve'im lav”—if you accept the Torah, good; if not—you’re going to be buried over there.
Tosafot asks: Why did they need to be forced? They said, “Everything Hashem spoke, we will do and we will hear.” There’s a well-known answer from Midrash Tanchuma Parashat Noach. The Midrash Tanchuma says that Israel said, “We will do and we will hear,” meaning they were ready to accept the Written Torah. Have one with few, you can put it in one volume; it’s easy. The Oral Torah—all the additions that Chazal (the Sages) add, that you cannot touch muktzeh (items set aside on Shabbat), all the gezeirot (rabbinic decrees)—they didn’t want to accept those, until the Holy One, blessed be He, forced them.
But on Purim, “Kiymu vekiblu”—they accepted the Torah. Why did they accept the Oral Torah? Because Achashverosh made a feast, “kirtzon ish va'ish” (according to each person's desire). There was a hechsher (kosher certification) from the Badatz (rabbinical certification court); they had a hechsher. But Mordechai said, “Guys, don’t go. Don’t go to the feast of that wicked man. It’s not allowed. We cannot connect with the non-Jews. They’re not for us; they have a different lifestyle. It’s not good for us.” They said, “What does Mordechai know? According to the Written Torah we have, we can go.”
What happened? They were drinking “to life” with the non-Jews, and the next day they got up to “lehashmid kol haYehudim”—destroy all the Jews! Then they saw that Mordechai saw something they didn’t see.
Now, HaRav shlita, a remarkable thing that the Chida brings from Rav Moshe Zakuta, Ramaz, a Kabbalist in Italy, a Sephardic man. This is amazing. He brings down that he had a tradition from the holy Ari that Rav Chaim Vital doesn’t mention. He says Mordechai was a gilgul (soul transmigration) of Ya'akov Avinu, and Haman was a gilgul (soul transmigration) of wicked Esav. Perfect!
How does he explain it? Why did Mordechai put himself in a situation where he was sitting when Haman came, and he didn’t bow? He could have gone home: “I’m busy. I have other things to do.” Ramaz, in the name of the Ari, says Ya'akov Avinu had to bring atonement for bowing to Esav seven times. The Zohar asks, “How did he bow to a wicked man? It says, ‘Elohim acherim’; ‘Lo tishtachaveh le'elohim acherim’”—you shall not bow to other gods. Why did he bow down? The Zohar answers that he saw the Divine Presence pass through. It’s a matter, but he had to have atonement for it.
Therefore, when Haman, the soul transmigration of Esav, passes, Mordechai says, “I want to sit there. I will not bow down. I want to get killed, to have atonement.” It fits fascinatingly. We learned that on Purim they upheld and accepted the Torah shebe'al peh (Oral Torah). How many masechtot (tractates) do we have in the Torah shebe'al peh? Thirty-six. Thirty-six masechtot of the Torah shebe'al peh. The Chatam Sofer says that’s why at the completion of the Talmud we say, “Kol hashoneh halachot bechol yom muvtach lo shehu ben Olam Haba, shene'emar: halichot olam lo.” The world is the thirty-six tractates of the Oral Torah. We know we have the Talmud Yerushalmi (Jerusalem Talmud) and the Talmud Bavli (Babylonian Talmud). The Jerusalem Talmud is missing some tractates, but it’s thirty-six.
So what did the rabbi mention? “Vayave lo yayin.” “Lo”—you have “trei taman.” I have two: the Babylonian Talmud and the Jerusalem Talmud, thirty-six. Now, when Haman was hanged, what does Megillah say? “Vayitlu et Haman al ha'etz asher hechin lo”—they hanged Haman on the tree he had prepared for him. “Lo hechin.” The Gemara says, “Lo.” Haman prepared the Oral Torah, and therefore the Gemara says, “Mibnei banav shel Haman lamdu Torah beVnei Berak”—descendants of Haman studied Torah in Bnei Brak, because it was the Oral Torah. So he wanted to bless him; that’s the matter.
Ya'akov Avinu showed him that the Oral Torah is me, because I’m revealing Purim. Through Mordechai’s merit, the soul transmigration of Ya'akov, we accept the Oral Torah, and we’ll finish—excluding Esav, who tried to trick, who didn’t bring the Torah.
We’ll finish with Rivkah our mother. The rabbi mentioned that in the prophetic reading it says, “Ahavti etchem amar Hashem”—I have loved you, says Hashem. “Va'amartem bameh ahavtanu”—but you say, “How have You loved us?” The prophet Malachi says, “Halo ach Esav le-Ya'akov, va'ohav et Ya'akov, ve'et Esav saneiti”—Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? Yet I loved Jacob and hated Esau.
It’s a wonderful thing, and we’ll finish with this. The holy Ari says—we said the soul of Rabbi Akiva was in Esav’s mouth—it says, “Vayetzei harishon admoni kulo ke'aderet se'ar... ve'acharei chen yatza achiv veyado ochezet ba'akev Esav.” Why did Ya'akov Avinu hold Esav’s heel? He took the soul of Rabbi Akiva out of Esav. “Veyado ochezet ba'akev Esav”—his hand grasped Esav’s heel. Akiva is the letters of heel, the yud is Ya'akov, and the alef is “yatza nishmato be'echad”—his soul departed in unity. The holy Ari says Ya'akov Avinu took the soul of Rabbi Akiva out.
Now we’ll understand the entire shmuess. She sees she has two children. One is pushing toward idolatry, and one is pushing toward the study hall. She feels, “Who is the firstborn?” She feels that the older one goes to idolatry. The Gemara says, “Kabeid et avicha ve'et imecha”—honor your father and your mother—“ve'et,” to include your older brother. You need to honor your older brother. She says, “What? What’s going on? Why do You give me two children, one righteous and one wicked? Why is the older one wicked, and why does the younger one need to honor him?”
The Holy One, blessed be He, tells her, “Vatelech lidrosh et Hashem.” Rabbi Akiva expounded, “Et Hashem Elokecha tira”—you shall fear Hashem your God—“lerabot talmidei chachamim,” to include Torah scholars. The older one is the older brother, but the younger one is going to be a Torah scholar. Who is going to reveal that? Rabbi Akiva. How will Rabbi Akiva reveal that? Ya'akov is going to take the soul out from Esav’s heel. How will he take it out? Only by Esav being the firstborn. Then Ya'akov comes after him.
“Vatelech lidrosh et Hashem”—that’s what the prophet says: “Ahavti etchem amar Hashem.” I love you. “Bameh ahavtanu”—how do we see that? He says, “Halo ach Esav le-Ya'akov”—Esav is a brother to Ya'akov. Supposedly, because he’s the older brother, you’re supposed to respect him. No: “Va'ohav et Ya'akov”—I loved Ya'akov. “Ve'et Hashem Elokecha”—and Hashem your God—“ani ohev,” I love. “Ve'et Esav saneiti”—but Esau I hated. “Ve'et” includes; “ve'et Esav saneiti.”
We want to finish with a mazal tov for the rabbi. It’s crazy. Wow, it’s crazy. Strong and blessed! By the way, tell me you’re not drunk! Tell me you’re not drunk! We didn’t need the wine. Exactly, this is called “shikur velo miyayin”—drunk, but not from wine. Reb Tzadok HaKohen says: Why do we drink wine on Purim? Because the Zohar says bread is the Written Torah and wine is the Oral Torah. And yayin (wine), begimatriya (numerically), is shiv'im panim laTorah (seventy facets of the Torah), 70. So wine represents the Oral Torah. This is “Vayave lo yayin,” the double cantillation marks. We have to categorize today’s class: Purim secrets. Oh my gosh!
Gentlemen, we want to thank Rabbi Friedman for not preparing, because if we had prepared, we’d have to fix the roof! Blessed is Hashem.
Baruch Hashem le'olam amen ve'amen (Blessed is Hashem 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 make Israel meritorious, therefore He gave them abundant Torah and commandments, as it says: Hashem desired, for His righteousness’ sake, to make the Torah great and glorious).
Yitgadal veyitkadash shemeih raba (May His great Name be magnified and sanctified). Amen. Be'alma di vera chir'uteih, veyamlich malchuteih, veyatzmach purkaneih, vikarev Meshicheih (In the world He created according to His will, may He establish His kingdom, bring forth redemption, and bring near His Messiah). Amen. Bechayeichon uvyomeichon uvchayei dechol beit Yisrael, ba'agala uvizman kariv, ve'imru amen (In your lives and days, and in the lives of all Israel, speedily and soon; and say amen). Amen.
Yehei shemeih raba mevarach le'alam ule'almei almaya. Yitbarach veyishtabach veyitpa'ar veyitromam veyitnasei veyithadar veyit'aleh veyithalal shemeih deKudsha berich hu (May His great Name be blessed forever and for all eternity. May the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He, be blessed, praised, glorified, exalted, raised, honored, elevated, and lauded). Amen. Le'eila min kol birchata veshirata, 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 rabanan ve'al talmideihon ve'al kol talmidei talmideihon, de'askin be'orayta kadishta, di ve'atra hadein vedi bechol atar ve'atar, yehei lehon ulanah china vechisda verachamei min kodam marei shemaya ve'ar'a, ve'imru amen (Upon Israel, the rabbis, their students, and all their students’ students, who study holy Torah here and everywhere, may they and we have grace, kindness, and mercy from the Master of heaven and earth; and say amen). Amen.
Yehei shelama raba min shemaya, chayim vesava vishu'ah venechamah vesheizava urfu'ah ug'ulah uslichah vechaparah verevach vehatzalah, lanu ulechol amo Yisrael, ve'imru amen (May there be great peace from heaven, life, satisfaction, salvation, consolation, deliverance, healing, redemption, forgiveness, atonement, relief, and rescue for us and all His people Israel; and say amen). Amen. Oseh shalom bimromav, hu berachamav ya'aseh shalom aleinu (He who makes peace in His heights, may He in His mercy make peace upon us)... Israel, and say amen. Amen.
Wow. How do we answer the Bach? “Aber”—but Ya'akov, who bowed down so many times to knock off the head of the—Rabbi. Strong and blessed. Do you remember? Wow, beautiful. Do you remember with Esav, Ya'akov who went after him? He put, like—That was the one thing he didn’t check. He put, like, his… “Mah ani oseh” (what am I doing?). And it says, “Mi hu zeh”—who is this? “Mi hu”? Mordechai? “Mordechai hayah” (Mordechai was). “Mordechai hayah.” That’s what I said, yeah. Incredible. Rabbi. Beautiful.