i am the zanav le'aryos - just ask yehuda!

PARSHAS VAYECHI:

''vayechi yaakov be'eretz mitzrayim' - yaakov avinu found a way to live in mitzrayim - after years of 'seeking to live in tranquility' (see rashi at the begining of vayeshev) he finally realised that life isn't supposed to be perfect, it's not if only xyz happens - then i can make the best of myself etc... our set of circumstances are tailor-made for us by Hashem and He wants us to make the best of ourselves in that very situation - even in mitzrayim.

1) - He put us in 'mitzrayim' (ie gave us the addiction) on purpose - it's all for our good so we can be the best of what He wants us to be.

2) - all of live's troubling episodes are also orchestrated by Hashem and all He wants from us, is the best we can be in that particular circumstance.

wow, beautiful, thanks!

Chavrusa is here. 

an honest mouse wrote on 14 Dec 2010 22:12:


Mitzraim is called Ervas Ha'aretz!

Thanks reb Yosef!

PARSHAS VAYECHI:

'b'cho yevoraich yisroel - yesimcho Elokim k'ephraim v'chimenashe' we bless our sons that should grow up to be like ephraim and menashe. Why not the other shevatim, why dafka these 2?

I heard (i cant remember from who, maybe r'yaakov kamenetzky??) that these 2 are the ones who grew up in lowly, depraved mitzrayim and still became shevatim! In the long golus, where we are surrounded by tempting, depraved cultures - we bless our sons that they should thrive spiritually, just like ephraim and menashe, in spite of the difficult of the difficult surroundings.

That is our prayer for our children and so too for ourselves - let's take chizuk from ephraim and menashe and realise that these 2 were chosen because this is the nisayon we are supposed to live through - and yet, we can still raise to the greatest heights we can possibly reach!

PARSHAS VAYECHI:

'pachaz kamayim al tosar' Yaakov avinu told reuven that he lost his firstborn privileges because he was too hasty with the incident of yaakov's bed. He was quick to react, without first digesting the information and weighing up the alternatives. Surely he should've asked yaakov. Yosef, on the other hand - who got reuven's privileges (2 shevatim) was able to stop and ponder his father's image and the consequences of his actions before he would fall with eishes potiphar. Perhaps that's why yosef was zoiche.

The moral of the story is that, when we react quickly to life's situations ie resentments and fears we will do the wrong thing and we will most likely turn to lust to escape from our frustration. Reuven's fault was haste - we need to learn (as duvid chaim stresses on his call) pause - to not react so quickly to life, but to be more aware of why we are motivated to act in a certain way -whats our negiah - only then, as yosef showed, can we remove ourselves from the clutches of lust.

PARSHAS SHEMOS/VAYEIRO:

we see a very similar idea 2 weeks running. When Moshe comes to the s'neh, the possuk says Hashem spoke with him because he turned to see. I was wondering why that seems to have been the test whether he was fitting for the job.

I think the answer is, that moshe was so in tune with the fact that Hashem runs the world that he saw the yad Hashem in everything, so here, he was looking at a bush on fire which wasn't burning, Hashem was changing the tevah and moshe wanted to know what the message was. This is a type of person that is zoiche to speak ponim el ponim, face to face, with Hashem. (someone later showed me that the seforno explains that moshe turned 'to understand the matter' - ken sein).

In vo'eiroh, Hashem says He appeared to Avrohom, Yitschok & yaakov, on the word vo'eiroh, rashi says 'to the avos'. What did he add? I heard a vort that 'av' also means to want, like as in pharoh was 'lo avoh leshalcom'- he didn't want to send them away. Rashi is explaining that the Avos became who they were and merited to speak with Hashem because they wanted it - they sought it out.

The lesson from both, is that in order to establish a relatioship with Hashem, all we have to do, is to want one badly enough and take steps to see Him in our lives and cultivate a relaionship with Him. Thats why A&W moments are so important.

PARSHAS BO:

I heard a beautiful vort from my Rov this past week.

The sedra starts of 'come to pharoh because i have hardened his heart'. Wouldn't it have been better to say 'go' rather 'come'. And why is the hardening of the heart a reason to go, surely it's a reason to not bother?!

He answered b'derech derush (although the same logic applies in p'shat). The word 'oilam' comes from the word 'ne'elom', which means hidden, or lacking. The world is named this way, because the manifestation of G-ds presence is lacking. Pharoh is the prime example of the lack of manifestation of Hashem, as he said, 'who is Hashem that i should listen to Him?".

Hashem is hinting to us (through this possuk) come to the world (pharoh = the world) ie, come = with Me, not go which = on your own. Come with Me to the world, because it is a place which hardens hearts - it is a material and flashy place, which numbs and desensitises the heart, so take Me with you, hold Me close, cultivate a relaionship with Me and then you will be successful.

PARSHAS BESHALACH:

Chazal tell us that the sea split in the merit of Yosef Hatzadik. I was wondering, what is the connection between running away from zenus and klal yisroel meriting to go through, why should one have a bearing on the other?

I think a possible explanation is that klal yisroel were in danger at that time, as chazal say - in shomayim the angels were asking, "what is the difference, they both serve avoidah zarah, they'll never serve You, their alleigance is elsewhere, just like the egyptians".

Yosef Hatzadik is example of the potential within each and every jew - he was able to live with the egyptians all by himself, as a teenager, no support, no yeshiva, no family, no nothing, all the temptation day in, day out - against all odds, he was able to hold firm in his alleigance to Hashem.

Hashem was able to answer the melochim, no - they're different, look at the potential within them - look what a 18 year old jewish boy was able to do against all the odds. His example of what a jew can do will kill the debate. They will be saved!

(If what im suggesting is true..) the lesson here is that we have the potential of yosef hatsadik within all of us . Presumably, we are being compared to the 'mitzrayim of our day - the western culture' whilst we are steeped in our addiction - "look they are no better than the non-jews!"- but, we too are capable of running away from the shmutz and then, with Hashem on our side, we will be zoiche to our own kriyas yam suf and get to recovery on the other side!

an honest mouse wrote on 12 Jan 2011 22:39:

That's right!  ;D

i thought you might comment... 

Wouldn't DARE disappoint you.

PARSHAS MISHMPOTIM:

we see that a mephateh has to either marry the girl in question, or pay her father a considerable amount of money.

What does this show? I believe it shows us that there is no such thing as pleasure for free or taking without giving. We cant just seduce a girl and then get on with our lives as if nothing happened. Everything has consequences and Hashem wanted the 'act' to be done in a state of union not a one time fling.

Bekitzur - we dont get away with it for free - we must pay for it somehow by giving.

great vort, brings home a very important idea
thanks for that!

PARSHAS TETZAVEH:

Rav Yakov Kamenetsky points out in emes leyakov that it is a loh saseh to disconnect the choshen from the ephod. A deeper look at this shows us a yesod in avodas Hashem.

The ephod is mechaper for avodah zorah, the choshen for the pervesion of/distorting justice. This shows us that straight & honest thinking prevents us from veering away from Hashem, only someone who isn't thinking straight can place power somewhere else.

Taking this further, he says that aharon was zoche to the choshen coz of good midos (rashi in shemos says that when he saw moshe appointed to gedulah and was sameach bliboi he became zoche to wear the choshen over his leiv).

In other words, a prerequisite to having clear, straight thinking is having good midos!

Good midos lead to straight thinking, which leads to a genuine service of Hashem!