The Final Tikkun

Written by R. Yaakov Nathan

The generation of the desert, the Dor Hamidbar, was on a very high level. They were a "dor de'ah", a generation of knowledge, on the level of Bina. Yet they committed the sin of the Golden Calf [parshas Ki Tisa]. This sin was a direct result of their own intellectualization, their miscalculation of when Moshe should have come back from his spiritual elevation on Mount Sinai. [The verse says "boshesh Moshe" and Rashi from the Gemara explains that it means "ba shesh" - that they calculated that Moshe should have been back by the 6th hour of the day.]  It was their own intellect which brought them into trouble--they wavered in their trust of Moshe and over-intellectualized the situation.

The midrash states that the Soton showed them Moshe lying on his deathbed, which opened them up to consider the reasoning that Moshe should have already come down. The Ohr Hachayim explains that what they saw was "with the eye of the intellect"--they didn't hallucinate, but rather they misinterpreted the reality.

Amidst this confusion comes the Erev Rav, the Egyptian magicians who left Egypt with the children of Israel, demanding a new leader to replace Moshe -- since they saw that the Jews were wavering, open to the suggestion that Moshe was delayed and could not descend from the spiritual heights he had ascended to. This is the cause of the Golden Calf [see the Ramban--it was a replacement for Moshe, not Hashem].

When Moshe ascended the mountain, the Arizal states that he received 1,000 lights. This is the level of Moshiach. Moshe had been elevated to Moshiach on the mountain, but the people did not withstand the test; their faith in Moshe wavered, allowing the Erev Rav to bring about the sin of the Golden Calf. This caused Hashem to say to Moshe "Go, descend" [32:7], says Rashi: "Descend from your greatness", descend from the level of Moshiach.

The Arizal writes that the final generation is a reincarnation of the Dor Hamidbar. The Lubavitcher Rebbe said explicitly that this applies to us - we are literally the souls of the generation of the desert. In Rambam's "13 Ikkarim" he writes that we believe in the coming of Moshiach "even if he delays".

Why does the Rambam feel the need to mention a delay here? What's the connection between Moshiach and a delay? The first redeemer [Moshe] is the last redeemer [Moshiach] and perhaps our situation now - waiting in the confusion - is the tikkun for the situation the first time around?

The Rambam explains in Hilchos Tshuva that "Tshuva is completed when an opportunity to commit one's original transgression again arises but one doesn't and repents instead." We are the generation of the midbar--we are rectifying our sin by waiting for Moshiach. Despite what the eye of the intellect might think, our obligation is to trust in Moshe Rabbeinu, not to seek a replacement leader. Not to let the Erev Rav within us entice us to find a "new leader" of the Jewish nation, to make a new Golden Calf [G-d forbid].

Moshe Rabbeinu doesn't need to be replaced, and we are playing our role in the final tikkun. Hold on strong with emunah that goes beyond the intellect and "even though he delays, we wait for him every day".

David and Batsheva - A Mystical Love Story

Rabbi Efraim Palvanov

 

What really happened with David and Batsheba? Did David sin, or were the couple true soulmates destined to be together since Creation? And what does it all have to do with Adam and Eve, the Forbidden Fruit, and the forthcoming Messianic Age? 

Find out in this class, where we also explore the mechanics of soulmates, the origins of Lilith, the battle with Goliath, and conclude with a fascinating Zohar passage where the angel Dumah, the “warden” of Gehinnom, argues with God and attempts to incriminate King David.

Eclipse and a Planetary Line-Up

Let me be totally honest from the start.... I did not come up with this myself, I found it on a conspiracy site and investigated it, but I'm not an Astrology person, so feel free to do your own investigations and leave a comment if you find out anything important that I've missed. 

Apparently it's not an official "planetary alignment" but nevertheless all the planets will be in a straight line on the day of the Eclipse, which is April 8 - Rosh Chodesh Nissan.

You know about "birth charts".... people pay big money to Astrologers to discover things about themselves from the position of the planets on the day they were born.  Basically, you give over all your information to the Astrologer: time of birth, date of birth and city of birth, and they produce a chart of the positions of the planets corresponding to all that information and then they tell you things about yourself, and what may or may not happen in your life. [Note: Jews are above the Mazalot, our destinies are shaped by our actions, not by the stars]

So.... just now I was reading about the position of the planets on April 8 - the day of the Solar Eclipse - Rosh Chodesh Nissan 5784.  [The same day we will be able to see the Comet we believe to be the Kochav Yaakov]

A generated chart for April 8, using the city of Jerusalem as the "birth place" shows NINE PLANETS LINED UP and Pluto slightly more apart from them.   They are not "aligned" as per the official Space description of an alignment, but they are all in a straight line.  Usually, birth charts show planets all over the place.  Sometimes 4 or 5 may be aligned, but to get all of these appearing just like this is very very rare.  

The symbols are, from the base to the top: Uranus, Jupiter, Mercury, Chiron, the Sun, Lunar Node, Moon, Venus, Neptune, Saturn, Mars and then Pluto over to the right. [those other two squiggles on the other side of the circle are not relevant to this]

That chart was generated by Astro-Seek.com but there are many free astro chart sites out there, and you can generate your own -  if you enter in the date of April 8 2024 [time and city don't really matter, but I used Jerusalem] you will end up with something that looks like the picture above. 

The Retribution Before the Messianic Era

New shiur from Rabbi Mendel Kessin

The Fall of Gaza and the Rise of the Third Beis Hamikdash

There was a discussion regarding the post about Moshiach coming when Gaza falls..... and I did ask a Lubavitcher to investigate it for me, and today I received the following.

H/t NK

Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Schneersohn

*The Fall of Gaza and the Rise of The Third Beis Hamikdash* [Part 2 of 2] - note, I do not have Part 1

This translation was carefully researched and prepared by Rabbi Shmuel Pollen, Shlit”A

BS”D 

The father of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak Shneerson, makes a comment in his book “Torah of Levi Yitzchack” (page 452) that seems to imply that the fall of Gaza is a harbinger of the rebuilding of the 3rd Holy Temple and the coming of Moshiach. 

He writes that the “doors of Gaza” are 60 cubits and the sanctuary of the Beis Hamikdash is also 60 cubits. 

He further writes: “G-d created the world in such a way that, everything in the realm of good, has an opposing counterpart in the world of evil.” 

This would imply that if Gaza (the side of evil) were to be destroyed, the opposite of that would happen to the Beis Hamikdosh i.e. it would be built. And the Beis Hamikdosh will only be rebuilt with the coming of Moshiach. 

Gaza (in Hebrew: Azah) comes from the word “brazen (face)” As it says “the brazen faced go to hell.” And “dogs have a brazen soul.” Gaza corresponds to the rule of the evil side, Satan and impurity. 

The Talmud states in Tractate of Sotah 10A, “the pillars of Gaza which Samson knocked down were 60 cubits tall. This corresponds to the 60 tractates of Talmud. 

This also corresponds to the 60 mighty Jewish soldiers who guarded King Solomon. The sanctuary of the Beis Hamikdash was also 60 cubits tall. As it states: “The house that Solomon built for G-d was 60 cubits.” 

Once again, we see the fall of impurity leads to the rise of holiness. When Gaza falls, along with the 60 cubit pillars Samson knocked down, the Beis Hamikdash will be rebuilt with, G-d’s help. 

The Gaon of Vilna, peace be upon him, says, the impurity of the Philistines is preventing the Jewish people from meriting the messianic redemption today. 

*What is the connection between the Philistines and Gaza?* 

King David writes in psalm 83 that “within the Ishmalites (the Arabs today) we have mixed in, the Philistines and the Amalekites.” This means, all the evil forces, are together into Gaza: the children of Ishmael, the Amalekim, and the Philistines. 

Shortly before his death, the Philistines poked out both of Samson’s eyes. With no vision, Samson prayed to G-d for one final feat of strength to be able to knock down the columns of the building and thereby kill many Philistines. He asked for this act of revenge, in the merit of the loss of one of his eyes. Why did he ask only for one eye and not both? Many more Philistines were killed in Samson’s death than he ever killed in his lifetime. But the great Rashi tells us, that he wanted to leave the other eye so we can be rewarded with another defeat of the Philistines in the future (we have that merit on our side in our current war). 

When Gaza falls, the redemption will come. And we will build the Beis Hamikdash. And we will merit to see the face of the Moshiach, speedily in our days, with G-d’s help. Azah is related to the word “Azuvah” which means deserted, because “Gaza will be deserted.” Before the day is done, may all the enemies of G-d, be destroyed. 

*Translation by:* Shmuel Yitzchak Pollen 

Note: if anyone wants to email R' Shmuel Pollen, I do have his email address but I'm not publishing it on the internet.  Leave me a comment with your email address, which I will not publish, and I will send you his contact details.

Purim Katan

This Friday, 23 February, will be Purim Katan.

Purim Katan means “Little Purim.” Every year, the Jewish holiday of Purim is held in the Hebrew month of Adar. In Jewish leap years, a second month of Adar is added to the calendar and Purim is celebrated on the 14th of Adar II while the 14th of Adar I is acknowledged as Purim Katan. 

How do Jews Celebrate Purim Katan? 

The primary way to mark Purim Katan is to make one’s meal a little more festive. In addition, it is traditional to refrain from fasting, eulogizing or reciting Tachanun, a series of penitential prayers that are added to the Shacharit (morning) and Mincha (afternoon) prayer services. This is designed to ensure it is a happy day rather than a mournful one. [See the Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 697:1]  The major rituals of Purim — reading megillah, giving gifts, reciting Al Hanisim — are not observed on Purim Katan and are reserved for the full Purim celebration that will take place a month later in Adar II.

Source: My Jewish Learning

A Gaza Dialogue

Ben Shapiro with some truth

“You can stay here until the arrival of the Messiah”

In his memoir released in 2022, Benjamin Netanyahu shares his unforgettable encounters with the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

I went to see the Lubavitcher Rebbe. It had been more than four years since our first meeting, and I came to say good-bye. He was not happy with my decision and tried to dissuade me, while lamenting the situation in Israel.

“There are no good tidings from Israel,” the Rebbe said. “Action is key and there is no action, but maybe you can influence from here the leadership there.” 

“I intend to return to Israel and to try to influence things there,” I answered. 

The Rebbe insisted, “There is still much to influence here at the United Nations…. You know there is a Jewish mitzvah [injunction] to influence the gentiles. This is your job to do.” 

I dodged this diplomatically. 

“I haven’t forgotten our first meeting,” I said, “and I have acted as the Rebbe said, standing proud and strong. Yet I have been here for years.” 

Evidently, this length of service didn’t impress the Rebbe. “You can stay here until the arrival of the Messiah,” he said.

Source: Anash