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Friday, February 25, 2011

vayakhel

The Posuk says כל מרים תרומת כסף ונחשת whoever will set aside silver & copper for the Mishkan should bring it to 'ה. However, two Pesukim before, when it talks about bringing the Gold to the Mishkan, it says כל איש אשר הניף תנופת זהב- whoever raised up an offering of gold to 'ה. R' Shloima kluger asks, why the change in Loshon?
Chazal tell us that the gold of the Mishkan was Mechaper for the sin of the עגל. Therefore, he answers that the gold which was Mechaper was said with a Loshon of Tenufa-waving, which is what was done on all Korbanos that were Mechaper. 
If the gold was only brought as a Kapara on the עגל, why then, asks the Klei Yakar, does it say that the women came & brought their gold jewelry? They weren't part of the sin of the עגל & didn't need a Kapara. And not only did they bring their jewelry, the Ramban says that they were the first ones to come; even before the men. What motivated them?
The Posuk says that the women came & spun the wool with extraordinary wisdom.  Rashi says that they spun the wool while it was on the animal.
The אדמו"ר מאוסטרובצה explains what the extraordinary wisdom was. The women really weren't included in the command to build the Mishkan at all because it was a מצות עשה שהזמן גרמא, being that it couldn't be built on Shabbos. So in order to get themselves obligated, they spun the wool on the sheep which is not the normal way to do it so that makes it a D'rabunan which is not forbidden in the Mishkan. So then it comes out that it could be built on Shabbos which fully obligates them.
We see from here how much the women wanted to be part of the Mishkan that they figured out a way to obligate themselves.
Much in the same way that now too, the women share in the Mitzva of Limud HaTorah even though they're not obligated in that mitzvah.  As the Gemara says, they do this by staying up late to wait for their husbands to come home & encouraging their children to go learn Torah. They get the same Sechar as if they were learning Torah too.
Maybe that's why they ran first to give the gold even though they didn't need the kapara; to show their husbands & children what's important & where they should be running, to serve 'ה!

Friday, February 18, 2011

ki Sisa

The Posuk says that you should watch the Shabbos כי קדש היא לכם for it's holy to you.
Asks רבי, נחומק'ה מהורודנא that it seems the word לכם is extra. כי קדש היא because it's holy should be enough. Why do I need the word לכם?
The Posuk says, ושמרו בני ישראל את השבת לעשות את השבת - the Ohr Hachaim asks, what does it mean לעשות את השבת?
How can we make Shabbos? We don't make it, we keep it; 'ה made it.
He answers that when we add to Shabbos on friday, & keep it going longer, then we're adding some hours from friday & Sunday to Shabbos, & 'ה considers it Shabbos.
That's man made Shabbos.
The Medrash says that when the Posuk says את שבתתי תשמרו, it spells שבתתי without a Vav to teach us that whoever observes Shabbos to its fullest will have a Bracha that the 6 days of the week will be without toil.
The Chafetz Chaim brings down a Zohar that says a similar concept, that all six days of the week get their Bracha from Shabbos, so if we make the Shabbos longer, we are increasing our Bracha for the week.
So maybe that's why we need the לכם- to tell us that if we keep the Shabbos קדש, and as the Ohr Hachaim says, we wait all week for it to come, & as the Chafetz Chaim says, we get ready early & are ready when it comes, then it will be לכם, since the whole week will be toil free with increased Bracha for us because of our commitment to making the most out of Shabbos!

Friday, February 11, 2011

tetzaveh

The Posuk says that the מעיל had pomegranate shapes & gold bells all around it.
The Gemara says that רב ענני בר ששון says the reason the Parsha of the בגדי כהונה is next to the Parsha of the קרבנות is to teach us just like the קרבנות were מכפר so too the בגדי כהונה were מכפר on certain sins.
The מעיל was מכפר on Lashon Hara, for let something that makes noise be מכפר on the noise of Lashon Hara.
Rav Dimi says that one shouldn't even speak good of his friend for once your talking about someone you'll end up saying bad too.
Rav Yehushua ben Levi says that one of the things that we don't find any Kapara for in the קרבנות is Lashon Hara, but it has a Kapara someware else, namely the Ketores. For let something that's done in private atone for a sin that's done in private.
So which is it? Is the Ketores מכפר on Lashon Hara or is the מעיל? Why do we need both?
The Gemara answers that the מעיל is מכפר on Lashon Hara that was said in public & the Ketores is מכפר on Lashon Hara that was said in private, for let something that's brought in private be מכפר on a sin that's done in private.
Why do we need 2 different Kaparos for the same sin? What's the difference where its done?
The Medrash says that we learn from the noise the bells make that one shouldn't walk into someone's house without announcing himself in some way, such as knocking .
Why is it so bad to walk into someone's house suddenly, that as the Medrash says, a person is considered hated by Hashem if he does so?
Also on the מעיל are the pomegranates that don't make any noise, so what are those for?
Rav Dovid Feinstein says the reason we need the Ketores to be מכפר is because the Ketores is alluding to even speaking nicely about someone, for the ketores smells nice, alluding to talking nicely but then something bad is bound to come out. So it's better not to say anything at all about people.
Maybe that's why we need both, the Torah is telling us let's focus on the מעיל which has the pomegranates, as the Chafetz Chaim says teach us that when it comes to talking about people it's better to be silent like the pomegranates.
That could also be what's so bad about barging in on people, for the only reason someone would come into a house unannounced is to find some gossip that he could go spread to other people. So the מעיל is saying, look at the bells & knock, then look at the pomegranates & keep your mouth shut. In this way we'll have all the Brochos of wealth & prosperity that the Ketores brings.

Friday, February 4, 2011

terumah

The Posuk says וצפית אתו זהב טהור מבית ומחוץ תצפנו that you should make an ארון out of Shittim wood then cover it with gold inside & out.
Rashi says that Bezalel made three different ארונות - one of wood, & two of gold, & the wood one went into one of the gold ones & then the other gold one went into the wood one totally covering the wood.
The Gemara in Yuma says that we learn from here that a Talmid Chacham has to be תוכו כברו ; his essence needs to reflect his image.
The Maharsha says that the word תצפנו-you shall cover it, at the end of the Posuk, teaches us that in addition, a Talmid Chacham can't be two faced - אחד בפה ואחד בלב Just like the inside & outside of the ארון was pure, so too, he has to be pure.
Rav Lieff asks, how do we see from the ארון that one must be תוכו כברו? The center of the ארון was wood not gold - its inside wasn't the same!?
The Medrash asks, once the ארון was covered from both sides in gold what was the point of even having the wood?
R' Bloch says that the wood represents Gashmius while the gold represents Ruchnius.
The Medrash says that the wood represents the yetzer hara & in order for one to acquire the Torah he has to combat the yetzer hara.
Maybe the way we could combat the yetzer hara & be able to acquire Torah is by understanding what Rav Lieff says is Peshat in תוכו כברו. The way we learn תוכו כברו from the ארון is because its center is wood which represents the mundane, but it's surrounded by gold that represents the spiritual. We have to be able to take the wood, the mundane, & cover it with gold, the spiritual, to make it complete. The physical & the spiritual have to complement each other to become one entity, תוכו כברו are one. Once we internalize this and our focus is on the gold, we'll be able to conquer the yetzer hara and acquire our share of the Torah!