19 Tishrei Yarzheit Vilna Gaon

Painting of the Vilna Gaon from Yesodei Hatorah School corridor wall

Rabbi Eliyahu of Vilna - The Vilna Gaon - Leader of Lithuanian Jewry, Torah scholar and kabbalist. Born: Vilna, Lithuania, 1720 Died: 19 Tishrei Vilna, Lithuania,1797

Popularly referred to as the Vilna Gaon, the Gra (initials of Gaon Rabbi Eliyahu), or simply as the Gaon. Considered to be the greatest Torah scholar of the past two centuries.

Even as a child Eliyahu of Vilna amazed the congregation when, at the age of 7, he delivered a learned discourse in the Great Synagogue in Vilna. By 10 years of age he had surpassed all his teachers, and, studying by himself with total concentration, he acquired knowledge of the vastness of Torah in both its revealed and mystical aspects. Every minute of his life was devoted to Torah study. He never slept more than two hours in a 24-hour period; he never accepted any rabbinic post or leadership of a yeshivah. He taught few disciples, selected from the foremost Torah scholars of his time. He also mastered astronomy, mathematics and music.

Known for fierce opposition to Chassidut, which was initiated in 1736 by the Baal Shem Tov, he and his followers in this anti-Chassidic Movement were known as "Mitnagdim," or opponents. Their opposition was based on the beliefs, vigorously denied by Chassidic leaders, that Chassidut took liberties with the Oral Law, that it substituted emotion for intellect in the Study of Torah, that its form of prayer departed too far from the traditional form of prayer, etc.

The Vilna Gaon cleared a new path to Talmud study, focusing on gaining a clear understanding through keen analysis of the principals and approaches of the early authorities. His methodology stood in sharp contrast to the pilpul system of the Polish yeshivahs, an intricate system of creating a complex framework with which a series of questions would be answered. He toiled hard on emending the the talmudic and midrashic texts. Subsequent discoveries of ancient manuscripts confirmed the soundness of his corrections, which appear in the Vilna edition of the Talmud [Haga'ot Hagra].

His works which were recorded and published by his disciples, include Aderet Eliyahu, a commentary on the Torah; a commentary on Ecclesiastes; Shenot Eliyahu, a commentary on the Mishna, Order of Zeraim; Biur Hagra, a commentary on Shulchan Aruch; a commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, a kabbalistic work; and many other works.

His commentary on the Torah is filled with interesting allusions that show the oneness of the Written Torah and the Oral Law, demonstrating their common source in Divine revelation.

The Vilna Gaon was revered in Vilna and throughout the world for his phenomental knowledge and saintly character. One of his most outstanding disciples was Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin, the founder of the yeshivah of Volozhin. Following the Gaon's approach to learning, this institution spread Torah for more than a 100 years. Today most yeshivas follow the study pattern of Volozhin, keeping alive the approach to Torah pioneered by the great Vilna Gaon.

Where to see the Blood Moon Eclipse

In Australia we will not see a red moon, although most other parts of the world will see some of it.   The following regions will see all or part of the eclipse: Europe, South/West Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Pacific, Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Arctic, Antarctica. Click here for a map of where the moon will appear blood red tonight.

Wishing you all a chag sameach and happy moon-watching.

Ushpizin

An oldie but a goodie: Ushpizin the Sukkot Movie


 

Decoding the Time of the End

Torah codes, the number seven, Barack Obama, 5776 - which actually means we have now entered the 5777th year.
It's all coming together ... or maybe I'm just a dreamer.....



In the video below Rabbi Glazerson shows some interesting gematria from  Sefer Daniel Chapter 12

[4] But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.'

[9] And he said: 'Go thy way, Daniel; for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end.

ad eit ketz - until the time of the end - gematria 1400

Add together the following, and it also equals 1400:
190 קץ - Keitz [the time of the end]
434 משיח בן דויד - Moshiach ben David
תשע”ו  - 776 - this year 5776

In the verses below, starting from the א of the first נשיא [President], every seven letters spell out the name Obama in Hebrew:

Ezekiel 38
   - א ויהי דבר-יהוה, אלי לאמר. ב בן-אדם, שים פניך אל-גוג ארץ המגוג--נשיא, ראש משך ותבל; והנבא, עליו. ג ואמרת, כה אמר אדני יהוה: הנני אליך, גוג--נשיא, ראש משך ותבל. ד ושובבתיך, ונתתי חחים בלחייך; והוצאתי אותך ואת-כל-חילך סוסים ופרשים, לבשי מכלול כלם--קהל רב צנה ומגן, תפשי חרבות כלם.   And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying Son of man, set thy face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, and say: Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; and I will turn thee about, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed most gorgeously, a great company with buckler and shield, all of them handling swords

Another hint :
And he shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High; and he shall think to change the seasons and the law; and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and half a time." Daniel 7:25

That particular verse is thought to be referring to Barack Obama - ''he shall think to change the seasons and the law'' - 

I think that ''a time'' equals two years,  ''times'' equals four years, and ''half a time'' is one year, we then arrive at a total of seven years.  And as you can see in the Ezekiel quote above, the Obama skip is every seven letters, another hint.  Of course that means that Obama's reign will end around January 2016.  Speculation only !

The Essence

God's Portion: His People

The Baal Shem Tov taught: ''The quality of essence is such that as soon as one grasps a tiny part of the essence, one grasps the whole of it.''

Thus it follows, that since all Jews [''His people''] have a Godly soul which is ''literally a portion of God above'' [Tanya Ch.2] - ''God's portion'' - then even when that soul undergoes the long journey downwards to this world, it remains inseparably bound with the Essence of God.  [See Ha'azinu 32:9]

Based on Sefer Hama'amarim 5735 p.243 Lubavitcher Rebbe

The Difference Between Children and Adults

This is fantastic. Spend just 2.36 mins and watch this. From Rabbi Y. Y. Jacobson.

 

Want to see more?  Click here

Torah from Shamayim

Photo: Debra and Dave Vanderlaan

Listen, heavens...and I shall speak  [Ha'azinu: Devarim 32:1]

This can be explained based on a statement found in the holy Zohar "When the righteous Moshiach will come, speedily in our days, Moshe Rabbeinu will come along with him and teach the Jewish people Torah. He will reveal to them the secrets and explanations of the Torah."

Moshe said to the people "Listen, heavens" - calling the people "the heavens" because those who study Torah are called "shamayim" - heavens. Moshe commanded them that when they reveal novel original ideas on the Torah, they should do so in a manner of "listening". They should hear those ideas from above, for when they learn, the holy light shines upon them from above, and then they open their mouths to speak and say over the idea they receive.

Through their Torah learning, they can hasten the redemption, as Moshe implies with the words "I shall speak". When you learn Torah by being open to receiving ideas from above, then, says Moshe, you will be able to hear the secrets of Torah from me as in earlier days. You will be the direct cause of Moshe speaking with you in the future by learning in the manner described and thus hastening the redemption, may it be speedily in our days, Amen.

Source:  Mipeninei Noam Elimelech  Translated by Tal Moshe Zwecker

Trivial Pursuits

Photo Luis Beltran

by Rabbi Yisrael Bronstein

"For I know its inclination" [Vayelech 31:21]

A man's yetzer hara schemes against him all the days of his life and tries to make him stray from the path of Torah. It is man's duty to use every strategy at his disposal in order to defeat him.

To what can this be compared? The Chofetz Chaim offered the following parable:

There were two countries that had been waging war for many years. One day, the king of one of the countries declared that whoever could resolve the dispute between the two countries and achieve peace would receive a very great reward - an opportunity to enter the king's vaults and take whatever he is able to amass in the duration of one hour.

A short while later, a certain wise man approached the king and proposed a solution to end the warfare. The king liked the plan very much and decided to use it. Eventually, peace was restored between the two countries and, as promised, the wise man was invited to the king's vaults to collect his reward.

However, when the day of reward drew near, the king became concerned: Perhaps the wise man would take the most precious treasures in his vault. The king turned to his advisers for suggestions on how to protect his treasures.

"Your highness" said one of the advisers, "I happened to discover that this man loves music. Why doesn't the king simply place the kingdom's finest orchestra inside the vault? When the man arrives, the musicians will start playing music that will enrapture him; he will be so mesmerized by the music that he will entirely forget about the king's treasures!"

The king was very pleased with the idea.

When the wise man arrived at the palace, he was immediately taken to the king's vaults. The heavy gates to the vaults were opened, and the wise man took a step inside. But as he made his way to the riches, he was frozen in his place. For emanating from inside the vault was the sweetest sounding music he had ever heard.

The wise man awoke from his trance and reminded himself why he had come. He took another step in the direction of the riches and tried looking through the treasures, but the beautiful music kept distracting him.

"I will only listen to these beautiful tunes for one more moment." said the wise man. But one moment quickly turned into two, then three and four...

Do not forget why you came here! he shouted at himself. But the music was simply too enchanting.

"The time is up!" announced a royal officer. The hour had passed.

"But I haven't taken anything yet." said the man.

"Nothing you say will make a difference now" replied the officer. "Your time has passed!" The man returned home sad and despondent over the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that he had squandered. Everything had been in his hands, but he let it all slip away.

So it is in our own lives, said the Chofetz Chaim. Man receives a very special gift from Hashem. Over the course of his life he is given the opportunity to amass innumerable mitzvos.

However, the "evil adviser" - the yetzer hara - offers his "advice" and seduces man with trivialities that draw him away from Torah and mitzvos.

But then, when man reaches the end of his days and is summoned before the Heavenly court, he is painfully reminded of how he wasted his precious time, choosing to indulge in listening to worthless "music". By then, however, it will be too late.

It is incumbent upon every individual to constantly remind himself why he has come to this world. Let him not allow the yetzer hara to distract him from his true task.