So, Rabotai (gentlemen), we are in the Yesod VeShoresh HaAvodah. We are in Sha'ar HaKolel, on the bottom of amud taf-resh-lamed-chet (page 638). In Zohar Chadash, this is its wording: “Be'od shehaneshamah beguf, vehaguf omed bechocho,” so long as you're alive, “hi teshuvah me'alyata” (It is an excellent repentance). Then you can make teshuvah. “Velo besha'ata delo yachil.” Obviously, once a person leaves this world, it is too late. “Ked'amar Rabbi Pinchas.”
It's amazing. All the Gemara's teshuvah, and now we get to Yesod VeShoresh HaAvodah: more teshuvah. “Mashal lemah hadavar domeh: le'adam omed al shulchano”—a guy's at the table. “Vehayah ra'ev veta'ev le'echol”—he has an appetite; he is hungry. “Uv'od shehayah ochel,” as he is eating, “amad ani al hapetach”—so an ani comes to the door. “Sha'al mimenu leha'achilo”: he says, “Do me a favor, could you feed me?” “Velo hechezir lo panim”—he doesn't pay attention. “Halach oto ani befach nefeish”—so the ani leaves all upset.
“Achar sha'ah,” “higishu od lefanav le'echol”: after another hour, they're bringing more food. “Vehayah bitno malei mikol”—he's full. “Keivan shelo hayah yachol le'echol od,” he couldn't eat anymore. “Amar”—you know what? “Tenu le...” Give the rest of the food to this ani. “Hayah chacham echad omed alav, amar lo, ‘Shoteh’”—a wise man was standing by him and said, “You fool! ‘Ilu yacholta le'echol, lo natata lo; atah she'ein becha ko'ach le'echol yoter, atah notno le'ani?’” If you could eat, you didn't give him any; now that you don't have the strength to eat any more, you're giving it to the poor person?
Now you're going to give it over here? Which means you only gave it to him after you couldn't eat anymore. That's not considered tzedakah. The ani already left. Tzedakah is when you still have a nisayon (test), but not after there's no nisayon. So that would be, I guess, the mashal. “Kach hu adam ba'olam hazeh, holech behavalav, ra'ev le'echol, leharvi'ach mamon”—a person in this world goes about his vanities, hungry to eat and to make money.
“Ba ani,” which is the yetzer tov, “ve'omer, ‘Bevakashah’”—please make teshuvah, “vela'asok baTorah.” “Ve'eino machazir lo panim.” “Leave me alone.” The guy's ra'ev; he's hungry to make money, he's hungry to eat, leharvi'ach mamon. “Achar zman,” tofsim oto bemichla'ah. Dam bar bar minan: he's sick. “Kishero'eh shelo yachol leharvi'ach”—now he's sick; he can't make money anymore. So now what does he say? “Okay, echezor beteshuvah.” “Shema yitnu lo sha'ah lekach”—maybe Hashem will give him some more life—“o shema lo yitnu lo.”
“Amar lo Hakadosh Baruch Hu, ‘Shoteh’”—God said to him, “You fool! ‘Achshav she'ein lecha yachol od leharvi'ach yoter, atah omer echezor beteshuvah?’” Now that you can no longer make money, you're saying, “I'll return in repentance”? “Ah, de'ilu hayita yachol leharvi'ach od”—if you could have made more money, you wouldn't make teshuvah. Which means, lo hayita chozer beteshuvah. “Ve'odo kach,” and while it was still like that, what happened? “Yatzetah nishmato.”
So basically, don't wait. You're not doing me a favor now; you're not making teshuvah. You just can't make money anymore, and that's why you're making teshuvah. Like we said yesterday from the Noda BiYehudah: the reason the guy didn't go with an eshet ish (married woman) was not that he didn't go with an eshet ish; it was that he had his wife. That means there's no re'ayah (proof) that he's a ba'al teshuvah (penitent); he wasn't under the same circumstances. So what are we saying over here? Now you're sick in bed, and you want to make teshuvah? Too late.
Parashat Mishpatim: “Le'am nochri lo yimshol lemochrah.” It says, “Man am nochri? Aluvata hi nishmata.” How shamed is the Jewish soul “dechad nafkat mehai alma”—when it leaves this world—“uvar nash astei orcheih behada,” when the person who had that neshamah made aveirot (transgressions) and didn't make teshuvah. “Hi ba'at lesalqa le'eila, go mashreyan kadishin”—it wants to go back up to the holy camps. “De'inun demashreyan kadishin kaymin behahu orcha deGan Eden”—that's where Gan Eden is. “Umashreyan nochra'in kaymin behahu orcha deGeihinnom”—but there's another camp, a foreign camp of malachei chabalah, standing on the road to Geihinnom.
“Zachatah nishmata behahu netiru perishu delivusha yakira alah”—if the neshamah has a good levush, what is that? It was teshuvah. “Kamah mashreyan kadishin ka mit'atdin le'it'abara bahada ulme'al leih leGan Eden”—many holy camps are ready to bring him straight to Gan Eden. “Lo zachatah,” “kamah mashreyan nochra'in”—how many foreign angels—“mit'atda leme'aleh be'orcha deGeihinnom” will take him to the road of Geihinnom. “Ve'inun mashreyan demalachei chabalah, zeminin avid bah nokmin”—they take revenge on the soul. “Al da kara vetzavach: ‘Le'am nochri lo yimshol lemochrah’”—don't sell your soul to the am nochri! “Ilein malachei chabalah”: those are the damaging angels. “B'vigdo vah.” What's b'vigdo? With your beged, with the garment of, chas veshalom, aveirot.
“Ihu netira deKudsha Berich Hu avid lah netira dela yishlot bah am nochri”—Hashem tries to protect the soul so the am nochri shouldn't get it. “Behahu perisu dentir aleih”: a certain shemirah (protection) that Hashem gives to the neshamah. But what happens? A person's malbush on the neshamah becomes a malbush of aveirot, so then he's going to have to go into the am nochri. “Ve'im livno yi'adenah.” “Ta chazei, kama it leh levar nash le'izdahara dela yistei orchoy behai alma”: how careful you have to be not to sway off the road, on the road of religiosity. “Diyizkei bar nash behai alma venatir lah lenishmateih kedecha ya'ot”: if a person watches his soul correctly in this world, “hai ihu bar nash deKudsha Berich Hu itre'ei beh.” God has a ratzon (will) for such a person.
“Umishtabach beh bechol yoma befamalya dileih”—that's right, Hashem makes an announcement every single day in the heavenly assembly. “Ve'amar chamo bera kadisha de'it li behai alma”: “Look at this guy that I have in this world over here.” “Kach vechach avid kach vechach ovdoy metakanan,” and Bore Olam broadcasts the success in this world of the tzaddikim who overcome their ta'avot (desires). “Vechad hai nishmata nafkat mehai alma zaka'ah nekiah beriah”—when the neshamah leaves this world, it's pure and clean. “Kudsha Berich Hu anhir lah bekama nehorin”—Bore Olam brings many lights upon her. “Uvechol yoma karei aleih da hi nishmata defalanya beri”: every day in Shamayim they make an announcement: “This is the neshamah of my son!”
“Venatir lah venatir leh lehahu gufa deshavak”—and they'll watch even the body that was left behind. “Vehada hu dichtiv ve'im livno yi'adenah,” which Kudsha Berich Hu says: “Ya'ad vehizmin et haneshamah leguf tzaddik.” That “ve'im livno yi'adenah” means that sometimes God substitutes this neshamah for a good tzaddik. “Kemishpat habanot ya'aseh lah.” “Mai kemishpat habanot? Hacha it raza lechakimin, bego tinara takifa.” He says you have a rock that's referred to as Olam HaBeriah. He says it's because of the Binah. The Binah is the rock because the dinim (judgments) come from Binah, which is Beriah.
“Reki'a temiha”: that's the raki'a above Beriah—or below Beriah. That's where Olam HaYetzirah is, the world of the malachim. And then what? “It heichala chada de'ikrei Heichal Ahavah,” of the heichalot. That's a heichal called the Heichal of Ahavah. “Vetaman inun genizin temirin”: in that Ahavah Heichal, there are many treasures for the tzaddikim. “Vechol neshikin derechimuta demalka inun taman”: all of Hashem's affection for the tzaddikim is in that place. “Ve'inun nishmatin rechima demalka alin taman”: the neshamot, the ones that love the King, enter this Heichal of Ahavah after they pass away. They get into this heichal.
“Keivan de'al malka behahu heichala,” God visits Heichal Ahavah in order to establish the inyan (matter) of the yichud (unification) of neshikin (kisses) between Him and the Shechinah (Divine Presence). “Detaman ketiv vayishak Ya'akov leRachel,” which is the sod (secret) of the yichud of neshikin between Ze'eir and Rachel. “VeKudsha Berich Hu ashkach taman lehahi nishmata kadisha”: Bore Olam finds that neshamah in this place, and that neshamah aroused Hashem to make the sod of neshikin with the Shechinah.
So Bore Olam says, “Wow!” “Kedein miyad venashik lah”: Bore Olam kisses the neshamah! “Vegofif lah,” and hugs it! Unbelievable. Which means the neshamah of the tzaddik becomes part of the yichud. “Vesalik lah bahadeih ve'ishta'asha bah,” and Bore Olam is mishta'ashea in Gan Eden with the tzaddikim. “Vehada hu kemishpat habanot ya'aseh lah.” Banot is the Shechinah. The bat is the Shechinah. So if the neshamah is good, “kemishpat habanot,” just as God makes a yichud, Kudsha Berich Hu Shechinteih, with the bat, with the bat, He'll make a yichud also with the neshamah of the tzaddik. Wow!
“Denashik lah vegofif lah”—not only that—“veyahev lah matnan,” He gives it gifts. “Kach Kudsha Berich Hu avid lenishmata zaka'ah bechol yoma”: God does that to the holy soul of the tzaddik. “Kama de'at amar kemishpat habanot”—what, that's like the Shechinah—“ya'aseh lah.” “Hainu dichtiv ya'aseh limechakeh lo.” “Kad barata ashlimat asiyah behai alma,” when the neshamah finishes its work in this world, “of hachi Kudsha Berich Hu yashlim asiyah achara be'alma de'atei.” As it says, “Ayin lo ra'atah Elohim zulatecha ya'aseh limechakeh lo,” and here it says, “ya'aseh lah.” Beautiful.
Parashat Lech Lecha: Amar Rabbi El'azar, “Zaka'in inun tzadikaya de'azlei be'orchoy deKudsha Berich Hu begin lemeihach behu.” Ashreihem latzaddikim! What does ashreihem latzaddikim mean? They learn the ways from Hashem, “vedachla mineih”: they have fear of God. “Mehahu yoma dedina dezamin bar nash lemeihav dina vechushbana leKudsha Berich Hu”: there will come a day of reckoning, the day of din (judgment) and cheshbon (accounting).
“Patach ve'amar: Beyad kol adam yachtom, lada'at kol anshei ma'asehu.” You have to sign off on what you did. “Hai kra okmuha.” But, “ta chazei behahu yoma de'ashlemu yomoy devar nash,” on the day a person's life is over, “lenafka me'alma,” when he is leaving this world, “behahu yoma degufa ittebar venafsha ba'ya le'itparasha mineih.” When the soul wants to leave, “kedein it'yehiv.” At the end of his life, he gets to see things he was never able to see before. You ever see sometimes when a person passes away, they say, “Oh, I see so-and-so,” and we see so-and-so? They start to see things they weren't able to see, even though they're still alive.
“Uchedein kaymei aleih telat shelichan vechashbei yomoi vechovoi vechol mah de'avad behai alma”: they start showing him all the zechuyot he did and all the, chas veshalom, lo aleinu, the aveirot. “Vehu modeh al kuleihu befumeih”: he says yes; he cannot deny it. He says, “Yes, this is what I did.” “Uvatar da chatim aleih biyedeih”: then they say, “Okay, you have to sign off on it now.” “Hada hu dichtiv: Beyad kol adam yachtom.” “Uviyedeih kulu chatimin, mah dedan leh, ve'al kadma'ei, ve'al batra'ei”—and on the early sins, when he was young, and on the later sins. “Al chadtei,” on the new sins, by ourselves. Huh? That's right, by yourself. “Al chadtei ve'al atikei,” on the new sins and the old sins. There's no statute of limitations. “Lo itneshei chad mineihu”: they don't forget even one. “Hada hu dichtiv: Lada'at kol anshei ma'asehu.”
“Kol inun ovadin de'avad behai alma begufa uverucha, hachi nami yehav chushbana begufa uverucha ad la yipuk me'alma.” That's why you should make a cheshbon before you leave this world. Why? A person is going to have to give a cheshbon while he's still alive. That's when he signs it. Kivyachol (as it were), before he leaves, they're already preparing the judgment.
Parashat Vayechi, Rabbi Shimon patach ve'amar: before the neshamah leaves the body, a person already starts to see everything in front of him, and they bring him before the court to sign. So when he dies, the papers have already been filed; they filed them while he's still alive. “Hachi nami yehav chushbana begufa uverucha ad la yipuk me'alma,” before he leaves the world. Can he still make teshuvah? Yeah, 100%, 100%, 100%, 100%! As long as he still has his ruach (spirit) in him, there's teshuvah. That's right.
Parashat Vayechi, Rabbi Shimon patach ve'amar: “Hanistarot la'Hashem Elokeinu,” “hanistarot la'Hashem Elokeinu.” “Ta chazei, kama it leh lebar nash le'izdahara mechovoi”: a person has to be careful of sin, “ulestakala dela ya'avor al re'uta demareih”: don't go against the ratzon Hashem. “Detaninan kol mah debar nash avid behai alma, besifra ketiv”: whatever a person does in this world is all written in the books. “Vesalik cheshbona kamei malka kadisha”: the cheshbon is before Hashem. “Vekula itgalya kameih.” “Hada hu dichtiv: Im yisater ish bamistarim va'ani lo er'enu ne'um Hashem.” You think you can hide? You can't hide from God.
“Ei hachi, heich lo yistamar bar nash melemechav kamei mareih?” How can a person not be careful about sinning? “Utninan, afilu hahu dechashiv bar nash be'istara desitrota kula ishtakach kamei Kudsha Berich Hu, velo tavid mineih.” Which means even what a person thought—even his thoughts, all these things—are registered before Hashem, and not one of them is lost. Okay, very uplifting today.
Parashat Vayechi: “Kol zimna denafil inash bevei mar'eh velo yachil letzala'ah.” Sometimes a person, God forbid, is sick and isn't able to pray. “Nishmata it'abrat vesalka mineih.” “Vechedein lo nahir rucha lenafsha dedaynin dina debar nash,” and then he has a ruach until they judge him. “Ve'i daynin leh lebar nash letav,” if they judge him favorably, “kedein nishmata ahadrat le'atrah”: they give him back his neshamah. So when a person is sick, his neshamah is being judged. If they judge him favorably, they return it.
“Ha bezimna dekayma mila bedina”: the time of sickness is a time of judgment. “Uvezimna dela kayma mila bedina”: sometimes it's not talui bedin. So what? “O telatin yomin akdimat nishmata lechola vetzulema it'avid mineih”: 30 days before, the neshamah already leaves him. Is that why he feels it, because his neshamah left? Yep, and he starts to lose his tzelem Elokim (image of God). The tzaddikim can look at a guy right away; they know when it's out of sight.
“Tana, besha'ata dedaynin lebar nash le'eila, salkin lenishmateih ledina vedaynin al meimraha”: at the time they judge him, they judge him on all the dinim. “Vehi as'hidat bechola, ve'as'hidat bechol ra'yona debar nash”: the neshamah has to testify; it tells all the hirhurim, all these things. “Ve'ovadin lo as'hidat, deha kulu besifra ketivin.” The ma'asim are written, so they don't have to testify; it's all there. “Vechulu daynin leh lebar nash.” The judges start to judge him.
“Uvesha'ata dedaynin lebar nash le'eila, kedein dochakta degufa ishtakach yatir mish'ar zimnin.” So when a person is being judged in Shamayim, then he feels the yisurim (suffering). That's how he can know when he's being judged. When a person feels the yisurim, he knows. “Ei daynin leh letav,” if he gets a good judgment, what happens? “Kedein arpein mineih vezei'a etpaka.” They let go! He breaks a sweat, and all of a sudden the fever breaks.
When the fever breaks, you know, okay, you got in and got out of the court. As long as the guy wakes up again and still has a fever, you know they're still on him, they're still on him, they're still on him. But that's what he says: “Ei daynin leh letav, kedein arpein mineih vezeia etpaka.” Zei'a is the sweat. “Al gufa”: he sweats, and then he gets better.
“What about when he's still going to die?” No, no, no, no, it's talking about a regular guy getting sick. A regular guy getting sick. Fever breaks... Right, once the fever breaks, you know, they let go of you. That's stam: “Oh, the amoxicillin is kicking in!” Don't be a fool. What is kicking in? That's what a regular guy says: “Oh, the medicine is kicking in; it takes three days. Ah, it's good I went to the doctor; you caught it.” No, all this is in Shamayim; they're judging. Sometimes the medicine doesn't work. All of a sudden, finally he breaks it, so, “Oh, he broke it! Nice, he's good, he escaped.”
“Nishmata ahadrat le'atrah mitaman hakol,” and they return his neshamah. “Velo salik bar nash mibei mar'eih le'almin ad dedaynin dineih le'eila.” A person does not get up from his bed and get cured until he gets exonerated by the beit din shel ma'alah (Heavenly court).