How The Mighty Fall

 

The son of Rabbi Yeshua Halevi went up to heaven and then came down. It doesn’t mean he went up physically. He went “up” in consciousness. He had ruach ha’kodesh -- holy spirit - so he could see into the world of Yetzira. 

When he came back, he was asked what he saw up there. He uttered the famous statement, “olam hafoch hu”--it’s an upside-down world. Whoever was great here is, basically, almost a nobody up there, and whoever was nobody here was an incredible godol--a person of great stature up there. 

How could that be? How could we not see who’s really worth something? 

The answer is: the critical determinant of who you are is not your physical act; it’s the yegiah--hardship, the darkness of the klippa that you undergo and yet remain G-d-fearing, to believe and trust in G-d that we cannot see. You could have Mr. A who is unbelievably diligent in doing mitzvahs, and Mr. B who hardly does any, but Mr. B may have a terrible struggle to do the few mitzvahs he does. This makes him much greater than Mr. A.

The above text is an excerpt from Rabbi Mendel Kessin's "The Model for the Redemption"

click here for full transcription and lecture

So who is the Judge?  Only Hashem.  Our eyes cannot judge anyone.  We think we know, but we don't.

Those who are mighty one day, may fall the next day.  A lot of the time, their fall is due to narcissism, greed and corruption.  Greed for money and power.  The more money they have, the more they need to feel fulfilled.  Many times, a poor person can be far happier than a rich one, simply because his needs are less.  He doesn't expect so much.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe was legendary for treating every single person he encountered with profound dignity, noticing even those passing by or waiting just to catch a glimpse.  Stories frequently shared within the Chassidic community  illustrate that the Rebbe made it a point to always greet others with a warm, personal "hello" and a radiant smile, teaching that no individual is ever invisible. 

Beware the trap of thinking you are at the top, because the next day you may find yourself at the bottom.  

How does it happen?  Through greed and thinking yourself better than the other person. But maybe the other person is far greater than you, and you have just insulted on a true Tzadik.

Time is Running Out

H/t Elisheva

Rabbi Isser Weisberg - from 2022 - a calculation based on Sefer Daniel

We discussed how I came to the conclusion that the final Redemption must occur before the closure of the Hebrew year 5787 (corresponding to October 1, 2027), and why I surmise that the Lubavitcher Rebbe deliberately left us clues supporting my calculation.

"When the Messiah Comes and You Meet With Him"

Let's clear up the mis-understandings once and for all.   Here is the video of Rabbi Moshe Ben-Tov, the Holy Mezuzah man, putting up the mezuzot in Netanyahu's office, and he is telling him "when the Messiah comes and  you meet with Him and you hang the key of completion"..... see for yourself.

I also suggest you check out the latest comments at Dov bar Leib's blog by clicking here although you may have to scroll down to the end as there are a lot of comments there. I'm speaking about the latest comments written by Dov bar Leib regarding Netanyahu.

ROME is NEXT. End Time Prophecy Happening Now.

Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff

Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff went to Rome searching for the menorah... What he discovered connects directly to end-time prophecy.

Two Suns Captured

As I told you, the second sun [aka Kochav Yaakov, sometimes wrongly called Nemesis or Nibiru or Planet X - even though it's not a Planet] has been here since 2010.  Nibiru IS a planet, and it is just one of the seven planets orbiting the second sun.  "Nibiru" means "planet of the crossing" because our system crosses over into their system.... or their system crosses over into ours, take your pick.   

So people asked if it's mentioned in the Torah.... yes the Kochav Yaakov is mentioned in the Torah.  Parshat Balak : "A star shoots forth from Yaakov." 

The second sun has been visible for quite a few years and here are a few examples.

Note the two lens flares

Again note the two lens flares

The Star of Moshiach is Closer Than Ever

At 2:43 on this video you can clearly see two suns.  A big one and a small one.  I've been telling you we have two suns for a long time now....  some people don't believe it, seeing is believing.... how about the heat in the Northern Hemisphere....  the fires all over the world from the heat.... it's not normal.   Yes, we have two suns.   Is the second sun the Kochav Yaakov?  I have always believed that this second sun is something special, and is connected to Geula, and possibly the Kochav Yaakov.  The second sun has seven or eight planets orbiting around it which can clearly be seen from earth and are photographed on a daily basis from various places by a team of dedicated sky watchers.  

Rabbi Ovadia does not know much about the second sun, apart from thinking it is the Kochav Yaakov.  I, on the other hand, have spent about five years following this second sun and it's planets, so I know quite a lot about it.   Unfortunately, the only person who has been talking about this on the internet [Samuel Hofman] mixes up the truth with a lot of nonsense and therefore it's a mish-mash of truth and fiction.  

Yes, we have two suns.  One of them, the red star, is quite possibly [probably?] the Kochav Yaakov, as Rabbi Ovadia is mentioning in this video.  And yes, the Kochav Yaakov is RED.  

The Kochav Yaakov is predicted to appear on the 25th day of the sixth month, which is Elul.  We are currently in Elul, and we are about three weeks away from that date.  

It will either happen, or it won't.  We've been waiting a long time..... but it's here, and it's been here for many years, since 2010 to be exact.  That was the Hebrew year 5770.  An auspicious number if ever there was one.  So let us pray that it happens, and we don't have to wait any more.  

Rabbi Yuval Ovadia - watch on You Tube if you want the video to auto-dub into English: click on the You Tube logo bottom right of the video to take you there.

Words That Kill

"Gossip: - Norman Rockwell

From the writings of Hacham Yosef Hayyim of Baghdad -the Ben Ish Hai


"All the gates are locked except for the gates through which cries from onaah enter..." [Bava Metzia 59a, Rashi]

The Torah forbids us to wrong one another through onaah [Lev 25:14-17] of which there are two types: cheating by overcharging or underpaying, and speaking hurtful words.

The second type is worse. The first hurts the pocketbook, the second hurts the person himself. Moreover, money can be refunded, words cannot be taken back. [Bava Metzia 58b]

Worst of all is to insult a person to the point that he is shamed. Calling him by an unflattering nickname, even if he is used to it and does not feel embarrassed, is onaah if the intention was to embarrass him. [Ben Yehoyada - Ben Ish Hai, Shannah 1, Ki Teitzei]

Whoever hurts his friend even verbally must appease him, as it is written: My son, if you became a guarantor for your neighbour... if you are caught by the words of your mouth... do this, now, my son, and save yourself.... Go, humble yourself and appease your neighbour. [Proverbs 6:1-3]

What does a guarantor's financial obligation have to do with verbal abuse?

A person who guarantees a loan through speech alone, without so much as a handshake, is legally bound to pay if the friend defaults. [Shulhan Aruch, Hoshen Mishpat 129:2] This shows that words have consequences. So a person who hurts his friend verbally cannot say "What does it matter? It was only words." [Ben Yehoyada]

Whoever shames his friend in public, it is as if he sheds blood. [damim, literally: bloods] [Bava Metzia 58b]

Why does our Gemara speak of shedding "bloods" in the plural?

Shaming a person in public even once sheds his blood several times: each time he recalls the incident or sees those who witnessed it. [Ben Yehoyada]

Whoever shames his friend in public to the point of making him turn pale, is as if he sheds blood.... for we see that the red drains out of his face and is replaced by white. [Bava Metzia 58b]

A person should enter a fiery furnace rather than shame his friend publicly. How do we know? From Tamar, as it is written: "She was taken out." [Genesis 38:2] [Ketubot 67b; Sotah 10b]

Tamar was found guilty of immorality and taken out to be burned. She could have saved herself by revealing that Judah was responsible for her pregnancy, but chose to die rather than expose him to public disgrace. At the last minute, Judah realized that he was responsible, admitted it publicly, and saved her.

From Tamar we learn not to publicly shame others regardless of personal consequences. It is better to enter a red fire than to make the red leave a friend's face by shaming him.

In the Holy Land, they are particularly careful to avoid shaming people and causing them to turn pale. [Bava Metzia 58b]

Why is this specific to the Land of Israel?

There are two angels in charge of death. The one in charge of the Diaspora is from the Side of Evil; the one in charge of the Holy Land is not. [Hesed L'Avraham]

Bloodshed evokes the jealousy of these angels. "Taking lives is my craft" they say. "How dare man encroach on my domain?" And shaming people is akin to shedding their blood.

The Jews of the Holy Land were afraid that the evil angel might say "The inhabitants of the Holy Land have encroached on my domain; I will encroach on theirs and enter their Land." Therefore they were particularly careful to avoid shaming people. [Ben Yehoyada]

An Exact Calculation

Who remembers the first night of Chanukah last year?  Bondi Beach.... the murder of 15 people..... have I jogged your memory?

15 is one of the numbers of Hashem's Name: it is a Yud Heh : Yud is 10, Heh is 5 = 15.

The Talmud finds an allusion to the period of time for a full-term pregnancy in the Hebrew word, “harayon” הריון –which also means “idea.” The numerical value of “harayon” is equal to 271, which is equal to nine full months [Niddah 38a].

Now, let's count nine months from the date of the Chanukah attack... in fact let's count the number of days of a pregnancy, as specified in the Talmud - 271 days.

From the first night of Chanukah 5786 until the first day of Rosh haShanah 5787 is 271 days or nine months... the exact duration of a pregnancy. 

You can see it for yourself by clicking here.

What are the chances?   Coincidence?   We don't believe in coincidences.  In Jewish thought and the Torah, a literal "coincidence" does not exist. Instead, what looks like random chance is viewed as Hashgacha Pratit [Divine Providence]—a hidden signal or deliberate moment orchestrated by G-d.