Parshas Shmini:

It is brought in the name of the holy Ariz"l that a person should shed a tear on Yom Kippur upon hearing at Kriyas Hatorah mention of the death of Nadav & Avihu. The Sefer Yesod V'shoresh ho'avodah says that the tears should come through thinking that if the Midas hadin can reach these great tzadikim, then what will can WE do?

And what was the Chet of Nadav & Avihu?

V'el atzilei bnei yisroel lo sholach yado vayechzu es Elokim... _{(Mishpatim 24:11)} Rashi explains that they were Nadav & Avihu & the Zkeinim. They deserved to die then, but Hashem didn't want to disturb the simcha of Matan Torah, so He waited for Nadav & Avihu until the chanukas hamishkan.

The Chet of Nadav & Avihu was that they looked where they shouldn't have looked!!!

(Rashi comments _{(Shmini 10:5)} that even though their neshama was burned, their clothes remained untouched. Recently there has been some discussion in our Forum about some of us being choshuve bnei torah. Well, we know that a person can burn his neshama by viewing improper sights while still wearing his rabbinical garb.)




DISCLAIMER: We are not comparing ourselves to those great Tzadikim, chas v'sholom, but the Torah is for everyone, in every place, at every stage, in every generation. We ought to strive to find a connection in every single verse in the Torah.

Parshas Shmini / Re'ei:

Among the species of non-kosher birds listed in Parshas Shmini we find a bird called Da'ah _(11:14), in Parshas Re'ei it is referred to as Ra'ah {Reish Aleph Hey} _(14:13). Chazal tell that they are both names of a single species. Why is called by those names? Because it has great vision. Shehi omed b'Bavel u'roeh neveilah b'Eretz Yisroel_{(Chullin 63)}, it stands in Bavel and it sees a carcass in Israel.

This is an impure bird, it exhibits an impure behavior.

We just found the source for the famous quote of our holy Rebbe R' "Bardichev" Shlita:

[quote="bardichev ]

[size=15pt]SHE MAY BE A PROBLEM,[/size]


[size=15pt]BUT SHE IS NOT [size=20pt][i][b]YOUR [/b][/i][/size]PROBLEM!!!!!!!!![/size]


[/quote]

GEVALDIGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!

Parshas Sazria:

_{(Shmos 4-6)} When a Kohen examines a negah to determine whether it is tamei, if there are no white hairs in the midst of the negah, the person must be rechecked after a week to see if the negah will spread to a larger area. If the Kohen sees that indeed it did spread, he proclaims the man a Metzorah. A negah that grows is a sign of tumah.

If the negah did not spread after one week, the Kohen must take another look after a second week-long interval. At this point, unless the negah shrunk in size, it is ruled to be tamei. A negah that is stagnant is a sign of tumah.

BUT, if the negah did get smaller, even if just a tiny bit. The negah is tahor and its carrier is free to go home. Even if it shrunk only by the width of a single hair! A negah that gets smaller is a sign of TAHARAH.


All of us who came to this forum, members of the holy GYE Community, only joined because we saw a blemish on ourselves. We have a negah on our souls. If we were to ignore it, we would deserve the tumah label. After all, as BRIUT stated so eloquently:Briut wrote on 12 Apr 2010 23:15:

But we are not standing still. We are moving up and our negah is steadily shrinking. The mere fact that we sign on, causes it to shrink. We may still be imperfect, but we are in the process of minimizing the negah. THIS IS A SIGN OF TAHARAH! We are pure! We may still be carrying the signs of the negah, but we may return home!







The Chofetz Chaim said that many people constantly hope and pray for Moshiach's coming, but do we really want him to come NOW? Are we ready to present ourselves before him? When the word will get out about his immanent arival, we will all frantically look for a place to hide. A hole where we can bury ourselves so that he should not see us! We don't want to meet him before we had a chance to purify ourselves and wash up from all the dirt we dwell in. To dress our souls for this momentous occasion.

It is my humble opinion that all the proud partners who participate in the precious work of GUARD YOUR EYES have less to worry about. We may not be perfectly clean. we may still be in the mud pit. But we are headed in the right direction. We are on our way out, our way up, and on the way ahead. We can already identify with the label PURE! We may go  home!!!

Parshas Metzora:

V'ish ki seitzei mimeno shichvas zerah veruochatz besoro bemayim v'tamei ad ha'erev._(15:16)

After someone is nichshal, he must get out of the depressed mode. as long as he is not besimcha, he is guaranteed to fall into the Yetzer Horah's net again.

Even after he will purify himself from his emission, HE IS STILL guaranteed to be TAMEI again! UNTIL his outlook becomes SWEET. (Erev = Arev=sweet

Parshas Sazria:

Vera'a hakohen acharei hikabeis es hanegah v'hinei lo hufach hanegah es eino v'hanegah lo pasah tamei hu _(13:55)

The previous thought can be seen in this posuk too:

If after he cleans himself from his negah, his sins, he does not alter his outlook/perspective, even though the actual sin will not be spreading immediately, he is sure to be tamei again. As long as a person does not change his mindset, he still living with the eye of his past, he is still connected to his past.

Parshas Metzora:

Zos tiye toras hametzorah b'yom taharaso v'huva el hakohen. V'yatza hakohen el michutz lamachane. _(14:2,3)

Question: Who comes to whom? Where do they meet? First the posuk says that the Metzorah shall be brought to the kohen, and then the posuk continues that the Kohen should go out to the Metzorah?

Answer: The Metzorah must first take a (small) step towards the Kohen. Then the Kohen will come out to meet him. The Kohen will come all the way out, they will meet michutz lamachaneh, in the Metzora's home turf!!!!


Pischu li pesach kechido shel machat, v'ani eftach lachem peshach k'pischo shel ulom!


Adam mekadesh es atzmo me'at, v' Hakodosh Boruch Hu mekadesh oso harbeh!


We must first reach out to Him. We must take a single step towards Hashem. He will come down to meet us!

He is here with us, We took a step by joining GYE, He is also logged in to the forum!


V'heishiv lo ne'emar, v'yashuv lo ne'emar, ki im v'shav v'kibeitz!!!!!

Parshas Metzora:

V'nusati negah tzora'as b'veis eretz achizaschem. _(14:34) Rashi says that this is good news, because the Emorii'im hid golden treasures in the walls of their houses prior to Bnei Yisroel's conquering Eretz Yisroel and through the demolition that negah the obligates the new owners to, they find those treasures.

The discomfort, difficulties, and suffering that a person has to endure, may, at times, be the key to his success. It may be that only after going through his predetermined portion of affliction that can he find the buried treasure.

Furthermore, the residents of the home may have been living there for many many years completely oblivious to their potential wealth. It is only after they are actively engaged in eradicating the tumah that they found on their wall, that they merit finding the cache.

We, Holy Members of the holy GYE Kehilla, were going on our merry (?) way down our individual journeys through life. We answered Rabeinu Guard's call to arms, rerouted our direction toward a better goal, set ourselves some way-points to periodically adjust our bearings, and we now are headed for the GOLD!!!

We will find the treasures that are buried deep inside ourselves!

Parshas Metzorah:

V'hizhartem es Bnei Yisroel mitumasam v'lo yamusu b'timasam. _(15:31)

I heard from Harav Naftalie Jeager Shlita, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Sho'or Yoshuv: V'hizartem can be derived from the root Nezer, a crown, It is a glorious thing for Klal Yisroel to seperate themselves from all tumah. A Nazir separates himself. He wears a Crown.

In our personal struggles, we separate ourselves from our Yetzer Horah.The crowns that we wear are those that are to be found on the 90 Day Chart & the Wall of Honor.

We joined this group when we reached the realization that otherwise we will die from the tumah. Our death would be a living death. Externally we would still be walking & talking, but inside ourselves we would be dead. V'lo yamisu b'timasam!

Parshas Kedoshim:

Rashi: Kol makom she'ata motzei geder ervah, sham ata motzei kedusha, The Viener Rav Shlita explains: Every place that a person sets for himself a boundary & a fence before the ervah, That is where he will find kedusha. It is the small steps that a person takes to keep himself pure and holy that make Hashem proud.

Every time we perform a mitzva we say: asher kideshanu b'mitzvosav, who sanctified us with his mitzvos... Installing a fillter on a computer, signing up withan accountability software bring upon the person a MUCH GREATER level of kedusha!!! Even before it contrains him from an aveira, the installation itself is an act of placing a "geder ervah", a fence for averos. This is where YOU WILL FIND KEDUSHA!!!!!!!

The greatest fence may quite likely be joining GUARD YOUR EYES!!!

...and if you take a closer look at the wording of Rashi, you may see him alluding to us! Rashi writes Geder Ervah, Geder is spelled Gimel, Daled, & Reish. These letters, when rearranged spell:Gimel, Reish, & Daled, or GUARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A GUARD against ervah!!!!!

Parshas Kedoshim:


Daber el kol adas bnei yisroel v'amarta aleihem kedoshim tiyhu, Speak to the entire gather of bnei yisroel and tell them to be holy. _(19:2)

Leta'aveh yevakesh nifrad, or as I recently heard, this can be paraphrased as L'nifrad yevakesh ta'aveh. Lust and aloneness are partners. Wherever there is one there is the other. By banishing one of them, the other disappears too.

It is only when Bnei Yisroel gather that it is possible to command them to be holy. When we are alone in a room the Yetzer horah makes his way over to join us very quickly. [How many times were we 'saved' in the last minute by someone walking into the room?]

Another benefit from gathering is the strength that is in numbers. Here at GYE we all help each other, we are in it together! We do not attempt to go at it alone!

Parshas Achrei Mos;

V'lo sitamu bahem ani Hashem elokeichem, Do not deflie yourself with them, I am Hashem your god. _{(Last posuk in Parshas Achrei)}
Rashi comments, For if you do defile yourself, I am NOT your God for I will leave you.

The Gemoroh _{(Sanhedrin 31:)} mentions a letter wrinten to Mar Ukvah referring to him as "Mar Ukva who shines like Basya's son (Moshe rabeinu)" Rashi explains why he received this title: Mar Ukva was a Ba'al teshuvah. He saw a woman and his heart filled with lust to such a degree that he became physically sick. She was a married woman. There came a day that she needed to borrow funds from him. Therefore she agreed to submit to his desires out of desperation. Mar Ukva quenched his Yetzer, released her peacefully, and he was healed. When he went out to the street there was a heavenly candle burning on his head - like the rays of light that Moshe Rabeinu's face emitted.


The gemoro which states that "The level where Ba'alei Teshuvah stand, even complete Tzadikim can't reach" has been explained, to be based on the level of teshuvah me'ahavah, repentance out of love to Hashem. When a person reaches this level of repentence, his sins are turned into merits. (If he wouldn't have sinned, he wouldn't have reached this closeness to Hashem. like when two close friends have a disagreement and reconcile their differences, they end up much closer than before!)

The complete Tzadik will have in his account the merit of Shemiras Shabbos, but he doen't have the 'merit' of Chilul Shabbos. He doesn't posses the the 'merits' of z'nus, murder, idolatry, loshon Horah, and lusting after his eyes! it is only the true Ba'al Teshuvah that can claim these 'merits'.


Our posuk tell us that when we don't defile ourselves we have a connection to Hashem. Rashi adds that when we do get defiled we lose that connection. So when we return to Him with Teshuvah Me'ahavah, WE GET A DOUBLE CONNECTION TO HASHEM!!! The standard connection that every Yid has, plus the additional connection of a 'reversed defilement'.

Moshe Rabeinu attained those Karnei hod, the light rays from his face when he was with the Shechina. Mar Ukva reached that level through his 'reverse defilement'.

All of us here at GYE are striving in the right direction. we are headed toward a renewed connection with Hashem. Stronger and better than ever before!

Parshas Achrei Mos:

Achrei mos shnei bnei Aharon b'karvasam lifnei Hashem vayamusu _(17:1), Rashi quotes Rebbi Elazar ben Azaryeh that this is to warn him: Don't do this, so that you don't die like they died.

Chazal relate that the reason that the Tanna Achar, otherwise know as Rebbi Elisha ben Avuya, went off the derech was because at his Bris his father saw a heavenly fire surround the Tanna'im that were sitting and learning Torah & he said, " If this is how great Torah is, then I want my son to be a great talmid chochom." Since he had ulterior motives, he did not teach his son to learn for Hashem's sake, the results turned out the way they did.

I was thinking of suggesting an explanation of the difference between the two. To have someone refrain from transgressing, it does not matter that mush if he does exclusively for the sake of Hashem or if it is out fear of punishment. Either way he is not doing the misdeed because Hashem does not allow it. On the other hand, if someone does something only because he wants the reward associated with it. He may at times think that he prefers the wrong choice over the reward.

Just learning Torah because his father saw a heavenly fire descend, may have a hard time competing with the 'stuff' that the son's eyes see. If the only reason that we come to GYE is because we reached rock-bottom. We see that it is destroying our life. We decided that we cannot continue along this path, that we must give our struggles over. All that is basing it on our understanding. We can always decide that this is not rock-bottom, that I enjoy the other life better & I want to drop out of GYE, chas v'sholom.

For this purpose, it may be useful to see the film entitled "Seal of Truth". It may help jolt us to work out of fear of punishment. We should not die the way the Sons of Aharon /or the character in the movie (almost) died!





[I am writing this here and not in the thread devoted to this movie, because the others will vehemently disagree with me. Here almost nobody reads what I write.]

Parshas Kedoshim:

V'im haleim yalimu am ha'aretz es eineihem min ha'ish hahu. _(20:4)

Rabeinu Guard min hatorah minayin?

V'im haleim yalimu am ha'aretz es eineihem, If the people guard their eyes; It all comes min ha'ish hahu, from that man. It is due to him and to his eternal credit!!!!

Yosef Hatzadik wrote on 23 Apr 2010 16:58:


P-a-l-eeeeeze.

I just work here.

(The Boss hired me, and He pays my salary too)

Woops, sorry for commenting on this "locked" thread. I just couldn't let this pass, it's a bit of an affront to my Boss.

guardureyes wrote on 27 Apr 2010 12:25:


Melech poretz geder?