I’m Cold
Just hearing the word Noach makes me want to cuddle up in a warm sweater, and wrap a wool scarf around my neck.
The winter is here, I’m cold. The clock is going to change, leaving me in the dark at ten to five in the afternoon.
I get home and look at the Parsha, it’s even more depressing. The water, the flood, the destruction. I guess that will make for a gloomy weekend.
Until I open the Torah Or.
“Great waters will not be able to extinguish the love and rivers wont be able to wash it away”. I hear the Alter Rebbe explain: the water – the distractions, the coldness, cannot extinguish the flame of love burning in the soul. The waters? They intensify the fiery love. The force of the river forces the soul to intensify it’s flames.
Just as the waters of the flood lifted Noach’s ark so do our floods elevate our ark, our sanctuary of words of prayer and study.
I put down the Mamar, and an entire weeks worth of coldness disappears. I’ve got the warmth to make it through the winter.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Praise
"And this is the blessing that Moshe blessed the children of Israel before his death. And he said: Hashem came from Sinai and shined from Seir onto his nation, He appeared from mount Paran and came with some of the holy myriads of angels, from his right hand (he gave) a fiery law to his nation".
Moshe began his blessings to his people by offering praise to Hashem.
Based on Moshe’s example the sages instituted that we too offer three blessings of praise in the Amidah prayer prior to the blessings requesting our needs.
There is one exception. On the first ten days of the year, from Rosh Hashonah to Yom kippur, we add “Remember us for life king who desires life and inscribe us in the book of life for your sake living G-d” to the first blessing.
Why? Aren’t the first three blessings reserved for the praise of Hashem?
Another interesting point: toward the end of the prayer we ask Hashem to “inscribe all the children of your covenant to a good life”. Why don’t we ask for a “good life” in the first blessing when we ask for “life”?
The life of a Jew is praise to Hashem. Jewish survival, like a sheep among seventy wolves, is the greatest testimony and praise to Hashem.
The Jew dedicates his life to praising Hashem by living a moral life, a life filled with dedication and service to Hashem
So when a Jew asks “remember us for life”, he is asking for the opportunity to praise Hashem. That isn’t a personal request for personal needs. We ask for a “good life” at the end of the prayer, in the beginning we are asking for life for his sake.
No one could put it better then king David who wrote “what gain will you have if I go to the grave? Can dust praise you? Can it proclaim your truth?”
Moshe began his blessings to his people by offering praise to Hashem.
Based on Moshe’s example the sages instituted that we too offer three blessings of praise in the Amidah prayer prior to the blessings requesting our needs.
There is one exception. On the first ten days of the year, from Rosh Hashonah to Yom kippur, we add “Remember us for life king who desires life and inscribe us in the book of life for your sake living G-d” to the first blessing.
Why? Aren’t the first three blessings reserved for the praise of Hashem?
Another interesting point: toward the end of the prayer we ask Hashem to “inscribe all the children of your covenant to a good life”. Why don’t we ask for a “good life” in the first blessing when we ask for “life”?
The life of a Jew is praise to Hashem. Jewish survival, like a sheep among seventy wolves, is the greatest testimony and praise to Hashem.
The Jew dedicates his life to praising Hashem by living a moral life, a life filled with dedication and service to Hashem
So when a Jew asks “remember us for life”, he is asking for the opportunity to praise Hashem. That isn’t a personal request for personal needs. We ask for a “good life” at the end of the prayer, in the beginning we are asking for life for his sake.
No one could put it better then king David who wrote “what gain will you have if I go to the grave? Can dust praise you? Can it proclaim your truth?”
Thursday, October 16, 2008
The Music of the Song
"Listen heavens and I shall speak and let the earth hear the words of my mouth".
This is the opening verse of the song that Moshe spoke to his people on the day of his passing.
The song is poetic, powerful and pointed.
It begins with an introduction followed by a description of Hashem’s kindness to the Jewish people. The song continues “And Yeshurun became fat and kicked”… “You forgot G-d who made you”. You began to serve idles that are new “Your fathers never imagined them (- trembled from them)”. Hashem says “I will hide my face from them I will see what will be their end”. What follows is a story almost as sad as Jewish history. Ultimately “The nations will cause His (- G-d’s) nation to rejoice, for he will avenge the blood of his servants… and he will atone his land, his nation.
Interestingly this song was sung by the Levites in the Holy Temple as The Kohanim would perform the Musaf Service on Shabbat afternoon. They would sing one of its six parts per week, completing the song every six weeks.
You must ask yourself isn’t this the wrong song for the occasion? Granted the beginning and end are inspiring, but could you imagine standing in the temple, the Levites trying to create a joyous atmosphere by singing “I said I will cause them to be forgotten, their remembrance will be destroyed from mankind”?!
In truth, the Levites were sending a powerful message.
The Levites were teaching you how to find joy in the midst of a tragic stanza of your life.
You must be patient until you discover the big picture, allow the song to unfold.
Don’t expect to wake up on a given day and hear a happy song playing in your ears. The song can be heard only if you come back next week for more.
Remember you are in the middle of a song. If you keep singing, keep playing the notes, you’ll discover the music. You’ll discover that there was music all along.
(Ha'a'zinu vol. 24)
This is the opening verse of the song that Moshe spoke to his people on the day of his passing.
The song is poetic, powerful and pointed.
It begins with an introduction followed by a description of Hashem’s kindness to the Jewish people. The song continues “And Yeshurun became fat and kicked”… “You forgot G-d who made you”. You began to serve idles that are new “Your fathers never imagined them (- trembled from them)”. Hashem says “I will hide my face from them I will see what will be their end”. What follows is a story almost as sad as Jewish history. Ultimately “The nations will cause His (- G-d’s) nation to rejoice, for he will avenge the blood of his servants… and he will atone his land, his nation.
Interestingly this song was sung by the Levites in the Holy Temple as The Kohanim would perform the Musaf Service on Shabbat afternoon. They would sing one of its six parts per week, completing the song every six weeks.
You must ask yourself isn’t this the wrong song for the occasion? Granted the beginning and end are inspiring, but could you imagine standing in the temple, the Levites trying to create a joyous atmosphere by singing “I said I will cause them to be forgotten, their remembrance will be destroyed from mankind”?!
In truth, the Levites were sending a powerful message.
The Levites were teaching you how to find joy in the midst of a tragic stanza of your life.
You must be patient until you discover the big picture, allow the song to unfold.
Don’t expect to wake up on a given day and hear a happy song playing in your ears. The song can be heard only if you come back next week for more.
Remember you are in the middle of a song. If you keep singing, keep playing the notes, you’ll discover the music. You’ll discover that there was music all along.
(Ha'a'zinu vol. 24)
Monday, October 6, 2008
Letters from Chochma
You understand something very well and then you write it up. Like this thought here. There are many ways I could have written it. Binah is compartmentalized and dry. With Binah the explanation would also be dry. Chochma is the Ohr the light and art of the concept.
So articulating comes from Chochma it was gives the art in the lettering, which makes the concept alive.
So articulating comes from Chochma it was gives the art in the lettering, which makes the concept alive.
Essence
In the inner battle between the G-dly soul and the selfish-animalistic soul every part of the G-dly soul has a counterpart.
Your G-dly soul has a will power, intelligence and emotion. Well, so does your animalistic soul.
You sit in the Shul on Shabbat morning, you meditate and try to awaken a feeling of love to Hashem, you succeed. On Saturday night you discover that your animal soul has it’s own set of emotions, you are left with two sets of emotions battling. To be victorious the G-dly soul must find a better tool.
You use your intellect. You certainly understand what the right lifestyle is. You understand that true and enduring meaning can only come from cleaving to the true and enduring G-d. Well, the animalistic soul has its own intelligence, with a long list of reasons for following the pleasures of the physical world.
So you fall back on your most powerful recourse, your will power. Nothing can overcome the will power, it has complete control over all area’s of the personality. Not surprisingly the animal soul has its own powerful will power.
So what do you do?
On Yom Kippur the essence of the soul is revealed. The animal soul can’t counter that. Thats not will, intelligence or emotion, its who you really are. You connecting to G-d not because you want to, or understand it to be the right thing, or it makes you feel good. You connect to Hashem because thats who you are. Anything other than Hashem is inconsistent with the essence of your soul and ultimately will not address your essence.
Now the essence of the soul doesn’t show up whenever you call it. It is not will power that can be awakened with a little bit of resolve. It has it’s own ideas of when it decides to reveal itself in your life.
It shows up on Yom Kippur.
No matter haw you feel, understand or want, on Yom Kippur you know where you truly belong.
Saver the feeling and hold onto it, it’s the most powerful thing in your life.
Then on Sukkos [- when the reveleation of the “smoke” of the “Kitoret” becomes the Sechach of the “Sukkah”] you take that feeling and make it part of your life.
Your G-dly soul has a will power, intelligence and emotion. Well, so does your animalistic soul.
You sit in the Shul on Shabbat morning, you meditate and try to awaken a feeling of love to Hashem, you succeed. On Saturday night you discover that your animal soul has it’s own set of emotions, you are left with two sets of emotions battling. To be victorious the G-dly soul must find a better tool.
You use your intellect. You certainly understand what the right lifestyle is. You understand that true and enduring meaning can only come from cleaving to the true and enduring G-d. Well, the animalistic soul has its own intelligence, with a long list of reasons for following the pleasures of the physical world.
So you fall back on your most powerful recourse, your will power. Nothing can overcome the will power, it has complete control over all area’s of the personality. Not surprisingly the animal soul has its own powerful will power.
So what do you do?
On Yom Kippur the essence of the soul is revealed. The animal soul can’t counter that. Thats not will, intelligence or emotion, its who you really are. You connecting to G-d not because you want to, or understand it to be the right thing, or it makes you feel good. You connect to Hashem because thats who you are. Anything other than Hashem is inconsistent with the essence of your soul and ultimately will not address your essence.
Now the essence of the soul doesn’t show up whenever you call it. It is not will power that can be awakened with a little bit of resolve. It has it’s own ideas of when it decides to reveal itself in your life.
It shows up on Yom Kippur.
No matter haw you feel, understand or want, on Yom Kippur you know where you truly belong.
Saver the feeling and hold onto it, it’s the most powerful thing in your life.
Then on Sukkos [- when the reveleation of the “smoke” of the “Kitoret” becomes the Sechach of the “Sukkah”] you take that feeling and make it part of your life.
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