Naso

In reviewing the laws of the gifts that one is required to give to the Kohen, the Torah states ואיש את קדשיו לו יהיו איש אשר יתן לכהן לו יהיה , A man's holies shall be his, and what a man gives to the Kohen, it shall be his.

Rashi explains what  לו יהיו means: I might think that because one is obligated to give the Kohen gifts, the Kohen is allowed to forcibly take them, so the posuk tells us  לו יהיו that it is his, it is the owner’s right to choose the Kohen he wants to give it to.

The Chafetz Chaim explains a little differently & says that the Posuk is hinting at the main thing a person must remember his whole life; that a person’s true wealth is only what one amasses in the realm of holy pursuits, studying Torah, doing the Mitzvos, davening & doing chesed. These are one’s eternal possessions, the ones that will accompany you in life & in death.  רק, קדשיו לו יהיו only, one’s holy pursuits will be one’s own. All other pursuits are like fake friends pretending to be there for you. When you need them, they forsake you.

Chazal explain this concept by way of a parable. A person had three friends: one to whom he was very close & which was reciprocated; the second to whom he also felt close but just not as close as the first one while his third friend was more of an acquaintance, never really connecting with him.

One day, this man was called to come before the king. Frightened that someone might have slandered him, he decided to ask one of his friends to come with him as a character witness. He approaches his closest friend but is flatly turned down, so he turns to his next friend. After much pleading, this friend agrees to accompany him to the palace but no further. Left with no choice & little hope, he turns to his third friend who graciously agrees to go & assures him that he will do everything in his power to defend him.

In this parable, the close friend is a person’s money which was dearer to him than anything else. People think that their wealth can save them from any problem, but when the day of death comes, they see that it won't protect them anymore. The second friend is one’s family & friends who will be with him all the way to the grave. However, from there on, he's on his own. The third friend, though, is one’s Torah & good deeds. They will go with him all the way up to the heavenly throne & entreat on his behalf. Therefore, it is incumbent on all of us to get as many as these friends as we can.

With Shavuos a few days away, perhaps we could take the advice of רב יצחק זילברשטיין who says that the Chofetz Chaim refers also to the minute or two that we’re waiting on line or for davening to start as well as the countless other times we have a few minutes to spare. Instead of wasting them, rationalizing that it’s only a minute or two, so it’s worthless; take those few minutes to learn or to smile at someone making them feel good. Then those minutes, too, will be counted as  קדשיו לו יהיו & will be yours for eternity!

Bamidbar

The Torah describes how the Jewish people should encamp in the desert: איש על דגלו באתת לבית אבתם יחנו בני ישראל מנגד סביב לאהל מועד יחנו , The Bnei Yisroel shall encamp, each man at his division according to the signs of his father’s house, at a distance surrounding the Tent of Meeting shall they encamp.
The בן איש חי says we could learn the importance of doing the mitzvos with joy from here.

Two "shin's” are embedded on the Tefillin; one is a regular one with three heads & one with four. The one with three is to invoke the merits of the three Avos & the one with four to invoke the merit of the four Imahos. Now if one were to take the two Shin's & put them together you get the word שש, joy, teaching us that the mitzvos need to be done joyfully.
Only then will we merit the final redemption.  As the posuk says, כי בשמחה תצאו , with joy you will go out, meaning go out of the golus. In the same vein, Hashem admonishes the Jews אשר לא עבדתי בשמחה , because you didn't serve me joyfully;; since happiness is one of the most important aspects of the mitzvah.

Why put the word for joy specifically on the tefillin but no other mitzvah? Since the teffilin represent the readiness of the heart & head to serve Hashem, it is fitting for the tefillin to also hint to us the importance of joy.

Now, how do we see this from the posuk? Says the בן איש חי , when the Jewish people do the mitzvos  באתת לבית אבתם , according to the signs of their fathers’ house, meaning the אותיות that are embedded in the tefilllin that hint at the forefathers & mothers. If the Jews will take from them the knowledge that the mitzvos have to be done happily, then  מנגד, break up the word; the first two letters, מן “from”, the ג , three and ד , four  heads on the "shin" that symbolize our forefathers & mothers, then,  סביב לאהל מועד יחנו , surrounding the Tent of Meeting shall they encamp & we will have the ultimate redemption.  

On a practical level, how do we get to this level of simcha for mitzvos?
Reb Aharon of Karlin says that the first words of the Posuk איש על דגלו teaches us that each person was born to fulfill a specific role; there was no one ever like him, nor will there ever be one like him that could do what he could do. Each person is special; designated as the one & only that could fulfill the plan that Hashem has set for him.

Therefore, each person has to camp under his banner doing what he is supposed to do & not try to do what someone else is doing. If each person would just try to do what he is good at, without looking at what other people are doing & feeling the need to live up to others, then everyone would be truly happy with his/her service to Hashem. No one would feel lacking because he’s not accomplishing what the other person is , and that joy will merit the coming of Moshiach speedily in our day!

Bamidbar

The Torah describes how the Jewish people should encamp in the desert: איש על דגלו באתת לבית אבתם יחנו בני ישראל מנגד סביב לאהל מועד יחנו , The Bnei Yisroel shall encamp, each man at his division according to the signs of his father’s house, at a distance surrounding the Tent of Meeting shall they encamp.
The בן איש חי says we could learn the importance of doing the mitzvos with joy from here.

Two "shin's” are embedded on the Tefillin; one is a regular one with three heads & one with four. The one with three is to invoke the merits of the three Avos & the one with four to invoke the merit of the four Imahos. Now if one were to take the two Shin's & put them together you get the word שש, joy, teaching us that the mitzvos need to be done joyfully.
Only then will we merit the final redemption.  As the posuk says, כי בשמחה תצאו , with joy you will go out, meaning go out of the golus. In the same vein, Hashem admonishes the Jews אשר לא עבדתי בשמחה , because you didn't serve me joyfully;; since happiness is one of the most important aspects of the mitzvah.

Why put the word for joy specifically on the tefillin but no other mitzvah? Since the teffilin represent the readiness of the heart & head to serve Hashem, it is fitting for the tefillin to also hint to us the importance of joy.

Now, how do we see this from the posuk? Says the בן איש חי , when the Jewish people do the mitzvos  באתת לבית אבתם , according to the signs of their fathers’ house, meaning the אותיות that are embedded in the tefilllin that hint at the forefathers & mothers. If the Jews will take from them the knowledge that the mitzvos have to be done happily, then  מנגד, break up the word; the first two letters, מן “from”, the ג , three and ד , four  heads on the "shin" that symbolize our forefathers & mothers, then,  סביב לאהל מועד יחנו , surrounding the Tent of Meeting shall they encamp & we will have the ultimate redemption.  

On a practical level, how do we get to this level of simcha for mitzvos?
Reb Aharon of Karlin says that the first words of the Posuk איש על דגלו teaches us that each person was born to fulfill a specific role; there was no one ever like him, nor will there ever be one like him that could do what he could do. Each person is special; designated as the one & only that could fulfill the plan that Hashem has set for him.

Therefore, each person has to camp under his banner doing what he is supposed to do & not try to do what someone else is doing. If each person would just try to do what he is good at, without looking at what other people are doing & feeling the need to live up to others, then everyone would be truly happy with his/her service to Hashem. No one would feel lacking because he’s not accomplishing what the other person is , and that joy will merit the coming of Moshiach speedily in our day!

Bechukosai

After the Torah tells us all the great things that will happen to us if we toil in Torah & perform the Mitzvos, it proceeds to tell us what will happen if we don't keep the Mitzvos. ואם לא תשמעו לי ולא תעשו את כל המצות האלה , but if you don't listen to Me and will not perform all these commandments. The Torah then goes on to enumerate many ways that Hashem will abandon us just as we abandon Him and He will leave us to our enemies.


Rashi explains that not listening means not toiling in Torah; if one is not learning the Torah, he will come to not performing the Mitzvos too. The אור החיים explains that if one would experience the sweetness of Torah, he would abandon the greatest worldly pleasures just to fulfill one Mitzva. Therefore, the only way one could come to not performing the Mitzvos is if one wouldn't toil in Torah.


Chazal tell us that originally the Yetzer Hara is like a thin strand & in the end it’s like a thick rope, for as a person gets caught up in sin he finds it so much harder to battle with the Yetzer Hara & it gets stronger & stronger. That's the way the Yetzer Hara works; first he starts with little things; as the person fails, he gets him to do more & more until one is totally in his control.  

There's an interesting  story told by הגר"ח פלאג'י זצ"ל that once the בעל שם טוב was in deep concentration walking in the forest. After a while, he realized that he was far from where he started out in a vast forest all alone. As he was wandering, a huge frog came out of the swamp & approached him. The בעל שם טוב asked the frog who he was & was answered that he was a former Torah scholar who was reincarnated into this frog and has been this way for five hundred years. While the famous אר"י ז"ל had rectified all the reincarnated souls, this man was so bad that even the אר"י ז"ל was unable to help him. He was put into this forest where no people ever go, where he would have no chance at being rectified. The בעש"ט asked him what did he do that was so wrong?

He answered that it all started when he had once belittled the Mitzva of נטילת ידים and didn't wash properly. The Satan went to prosecute him in the heavenly court & was told that for just this one sin they couldn't prosecute. However, if you could get him to do more sins, then you could prosecute for this one too. The Satan went to work & pushed me. I did another sin & then another in a downward spiral until I had done every sin in the book. I became a drunk & never had a chance to do teshuva. Since all this was initiated by my laxity in נטילת ידים , I was sent back as a frog to live in the water.


Whether this story is actual or allegorical, it brings out a very important point. Sometimes we think that certain mitzvos are archaic & no longer relevant, so we brush them aside. However, we don't know what effect that has in heaven; if it gives a green light for the Satan to test us or it makes us more lax in general. Once you're lax in one thing, other opportunities will follow. This is the message of toiling in Torah. If you toil in it & appreciate it, then everything - even the so called archaic Mitzvos - will have more meaning & you will never come to falter!

Behar

Right after teaching us the laws of shemittah the Torah tells us the laws of ריבית, taking interest. The כלי יקר explains the juxtaposition of these two laws. The laws of shemittah, letting your fields lay fallow for a year every seven years, instill a great feeling of bitachon, trust in Hashem, that He will provide for you as you let your fields lay idle.

One of the main reasons one can't take interest is because it takes away the feelings of bitachon, trust in Hashem. For when one conducts business he looks to Hashem, for he doesn't know if he will profit or not. One relies on Hashem to help him succeed. However, one who takes ריבית has his profits cut out for him and has guaranteed money, so his reliance on Hashem is diminished. Therefore the Torah puts the two laws together to teach us the importance of bitachon.

The sefer טעם ודעת adds that the ultimate level of bitachon is when one doesn't worry about his livelihood at all and has total reliance on Hashem. If one could reach that level he won't even have to do anything and his sustenance will come to him. Once מהר"ם אלשיך was giving a class on this level of bitachon and said that everyone has the potential to reach the level of רשב"י , who without any work had his sustenance. There was one man there who took these words to heart and right then and there decided that he would have total reliance on Hashem. He sold his donkey and wagon to a gentile and sat all day and said tehillim without a care in the world.

One day he hears his donkey in the yard and goes out to look. The wagon is filled with dirt. A he starts to unload the wagon he sees that under the dirt there is gold treasure! The man who had bought the donkey and wagon had been digging a ditch and found this gold treasure. He put it in the wagon and covered it with dirt so no one would see, then went to fill up the hole. As he was filling it he fell in and was buried in the ditch. When he didn't come back to the wagon the donkey headed home the way he was used to, to his old master, who now because of his blind faith was set for the rest of his life.

When the talmidim asked the אלשיך why this talmid merited this and no one else did, he answered that this man has absolutely no question that Hashem would take care of him, therefore he merited.

There's another story told that when Reb Yisroel Salant gave this same class on bitachon, and said that if one has total reliance on Hashem he needs to do nothing more. One man came to him afterwards and asked if that's really true. Reb Yisroel answered that if you commit to have complete faith in Hashem, I will guarantee that Hashem will give you ten thousand ruble, a fortune in those days. The man went home, quit his job and said tehillim all day waiting for his ten thousand ruble. Days went by, then weeks, and still no money. Slowly every ruble he had was used up, but the man still kept his faith.

One day as the hunger was getting to his family, his wife came to him and said, why don't you go ask Reb yisroel why his guarantee hasn’t been fulfilled yet. Reb Yisroel told him that he still believes that it will come and is still guaranteeing the money. However, if he doesn't want to wait, Reb yisroel offered to buy the futures from him for five thousand ruble. Reb Yisroel would give him the money now, and when the man got the ten thousand he would give it to reb Yisroel. The man agreed.
Reb Yisroel turned to him and said, go back to your job for if you are willing to give up ten thousand ruble for five thousand, then you don't really believe wholeheartedly and it will never come to you.

Unfortunately, most of us are like the man in the second story. We believe that Hashem will take care of us, but don't have that ultimate faith of completely relying on Hashem without putting in our own efforts. With the laws of שמיטה and ריבית, the Torah is teaching us how to train ourselves to have complete trust in Hashem so that one day, we too, will merit immeasurable reward!

Emor

Before the Torah tells us about the Yomim Tovim, it once again tells us about Shabbos observance, וביום השביעי שבת שבתון מקרא קודש, and the seventh day is a day of complete rest, a calling of holiness.
Rashi asks, what does Shabbos have to do with the Yomim Tovim? He answers that it’s to teach us that when someone dishonors the Yomim Tovim, it’s as if he dishonored Shabbos. Conversely, When he honors the Yomim Tovim it’s as if he honored the Shabbos.
 
The Otzros Hatorah has a different reason why Shabbos is taught again right before the holidays. It’s normal for one to treat lightly something that they’re used to, but something that's not the norm will be more impressionable on a person. This is why the Torah put Shabbos with the holidays, to teach us that even though Shabbos comes to us every week we can't belittle it and make it inferior to the Yomim Tovim. Rather it’s even more prestigious and needs to be honored even more than the holidays.
 
The Ohr Hachaim says that the word ושמרוteaches us that we have to be waiting anxiously all week for the Shabbos and be happy when it comes. Similarly in Lecha Dodi we say לקראת שבת לכו ונלכה to welcome the shabbos go let us go. The word really should be בו, come instead of לכו, go. Rav Boruch Epstein explains that it changes the word to teach us that we are supposed to go out with enthusiasm and alacrity to greet the Shabbos and not just stumble into. Rather we should look forward and anticipate it and be ready for it.
How can we show that we are anticipating Shabbos and are anxious for it to come?
 
There's a story told about Rav Refael David Auerbach who once walked into the home of rav Chatzkle Abramsky early one friday morning and saw that the table was already set for Shabbos. The Challos, wine, and candlesticks were all laid out beautifully. Intrigued, he asked Rav Chatzkle if he always had the table set so early and was told the following story. The Ridvaz who was his wife's grandfather was once very sick and deteriorating quickly. The situation looked helpless, when the Ridvaz looked up to heaven and said, “Hashem what do you want from me?! I study your Torah, I do the Mitzvos, I even wrote a commentary on the whole Talmud yerushalmi! What more can I do?”
 
Then he remained silent and closed his eyes. After a long while he turned to his wife and said, would it be possible to accept upon ourselves to have the table set by the time I come home from shul on friday morning? That is very important in heaven and is what my recovery depends on. Of course she agreed, and he recovered.
Rav Chatzkle continued, this is the custom we have continued to follow. We always make sure to have the table set by friday morning.
 
Perhaps if we too take on this custom and set our tables on Friday morning, not only will it give our homes the Shabbos feel all day Friday, adding some calm to a hectic day, it will also show that we are preparing in advance and are eagerly awaiting and anticipating the arrival of Shabbos!