Channels of Prayer

Source: "Not Just Stories" by Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski MD


Why is prayer effective? Does one cause G-d to change His mind by praying? Why does the Talmud indicate that the prayer of a tzaddik is more effective?

Among the various answers that are given is that there are constantly emanations from G-d to provide for all peoples' necessities. These emanations flow along channels which can be affected by peoples' actions. Thus, there are things that people do that can cause obstruction of, or diversion from, these channels, so that the Divine emanations do not reach their intended targets.

Prayer may correct these defects in the channels, thereby allowing the nurturing Divine emanations to proceed to the persons in need. Tzaddikim have special knowledge just where the existing defects or obstructions may be, and they are therefore in a better position to rectify them.

But, we may ask, what is all this about channels and diversion of flow? Why does G-d not simply respond to people directly and give us our needs?

The answer is provided by an understanding of Divine truth and justice. Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto in his works, Derech Hashem (The Way of G-d) and Daas Tevunos (Wisdom of Understanding) makes it clear that G-d created the world with a system to which He adheres. While there is room for forgiveness of sins in the system of justice, there is no overlooking of transgressions, great or small.

The Talmud is sharply critical of anyone who says that G-d "overlooks" any transgressions [Bava Kamma 50a].

It is not really a testimony to anyone's greatness that he is a beneficiary of an unplanned-for miracle. When prayers are answered, and the results appear to be miraculous, it is because there were defects in the conduits for the Divine emanations, and these were rectified by the prayers, allowing the Divine emanations to reach their original target. Thus, this is not actually an alteration of nature.

The greater skill of tzaddikim in restoring these channels accounts for the special efficacy of their prayers. The faith in the tzaddik is not in any magical powers he possesses, but in his knowledge of how to direct his prayers so that they are more effective.

A Terrible Decree

It once happened in the times of Rebbe Elimelech of Lizensk that there was a terrible decree issued against the Jews. All the people's eyes were trained on the Tzaddik, looking to him to pray that the decree should be nullified. The Rebbe answered them thus:

"I am from the World of Truth and no secret is hidden from me. I know the reason behind all things, and I too have agreed to this decree. How can I go back and pray for nullification of a decree that was issued with my consent ?

"You should instead look to a Tzaddik who doesn't know the reasons behind the decree, since this decree was issued without his knowledge or consent. Such a righteous Tzaddik can call out and pray to Hashem, and maybe his prayers will be answered."

Source: Sifrei Tzaddikim

Was the fire in Haifa predicted in Midrash Rabba?

Parsha blog responds to Rabbi Lazer Brody's post about the Carmel fire:  Was the fire in Haifa predicted in Midrash Rabba?

"Summary: Absolutely not! Only if you don't know how to read a midrash, or willfully misinterpret it, can it say what some are proposing."

I am sorry if I have mislead anyone by leading them to Lazer Beam's post yesterday. (I have now removed yesterday's post).  I suggest you all go to Parsha.blog and read what Josh has to say.

Sigh.

I wish people would stop playing games with predictions.  It's very damaging to all of us.  I am often naive, perhaps this has again been one of those times.  Thanks to Josh for the explanations. 

Praying for Another

When one looks deeply and intently at someone else, that person will turn around and return the look, because the penetrating gaze awakens the core of the soul. You have made a "connection". A spiritual connection.

Thought has the same effect. Bringing someone to mind has the effect of arousing that person's innermost powers. Bringing someone to mind when praying is beneficial to both parties: to the one doing the praying, and the one being prayed for. "We pray for Rachamim, for Compassion. The Gemara says, "Even if the sword is on your neck, don't refrain from Rachamim. " This is usually interpreted, "Don't stop praying, asking G-d for compassion."

Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach zt"l wrote: Reb Berish Aushpitziner interpreted it differently, "What do you do at the last minute if the sword is on your neck? At that moment the only thing you can do is have compassion on somebody else. Then you open gates in Heaven for compassion, and it can come to you too. HAVE Rachamim, don't ask for it."

Rachamim is on the level of prophecy. If I have compassion on somebody who is in bad shape, then I have a vision of how that person could be. I compare what he is to what he could be and I say, "Oy Vey, I have to help you to get there." This is very important for peace, because sometimes we don't want to make peace with someone because we lost the vision of how that person could be. The highest peace between people is when they know how each other could be, and how they will be.

A person has to live in two worlds. We have to live in a world where there is evil and we are fighting it, and we have to live in a world where there is no evil, like after Moshiach has come. The highest combination of these two worlds is Rachamim. That means I see you the way you are, but I also know how you could be on the Moshiach level.

When someone has pain, and I feel that pain, that means I love the person. If someone hurts himself and has a little bit of pain, deep down it brings back all the pain he ever went through. If you are connected to him on the level of Rachamim then you feel with him all the pain he ever felt, in this lifetime and in other lifetimes. If you feel that pain, you have to make peace with the other person, and you also know how to do it. "

To pray for someone else, visualize that person, have them in mind as you pray. The compassion that you are asking Heaven to show them, will also be shown to you. If you Daven for someone else, that which you Daven for will be given to you first.

Burning Desire

Art by Olga Levitskiy

Rebbe Nachman taught: "One's heart always yearns and burns. Sometimes that yearning is for holiness, at other times for physical desires, for example: for avarice. There is a ruach (spirit) which can descend and "cool off" that burning heart. This ruach is compared to the Divine Presence and is drawn into the heart through the giving of charity". [Likutey Moharan I 13:1]

Craving and longing are embedded in human nature. Everyone feels pangs of want, but it is the nature of a person's deep desires that will determine whether he yearns for spirituality or for material gratification. Furthermore, a person's desires might grow and become more than he can handle. Even spiritual urges can be dangerous when a person seeks more spirituality than he is intellectually or emotionally prepared for. Thus Rebbe Nachman taught "A person's spirit must be regulated in order for the heart to burn properly (for G-d)".

Rebbe Nachman teaches that a person's heart will sometimes burn for spirituality, while at other times it will burn with desires for the mundane: Torah study has the power to regulate both these types of burning desires. Furthermore, when someone has a burning desire for G-d in his heart, if he wants to study Torah or pray, but is for some reason unable to (in an unsuitable place, or without books), then this burning desire alone inscribes a [new] Torah teaching on High. One's burning desire for Torah and spirituality enables one to draw from the spirituality of the Supernal Heart [Binah].

The Torah consists of Five Books, which correspond to the five lobes of the lung. Since the lungs have a "cooling effect" upon the heart, it follows that the study of Torah can help "cool down" and control one's burning desires, whether they be for materialism, or for a degree of spirituality which is as yet beyond one's grasp.

The Rebbe also teaches that charity has the same power as the Torah in helping to overcome one's lusts. He illustrates this with the case of a person who is filled with avarice, the burning desire for wealth and material possessions. If this person gives charity, he displays his faith in G-d, that it is He Who provides. By giving charity, he temporarily overcomes his material lusts and merits assistance in achieving true spirituality.

Perhaps the most powerful emotion of all is Love. Love can be so all-consuming that nothing can stand in its path. King Solomon understood this well when he said [Songs 8:7] "Many waters cannot extinguish love". This is because human love is rooted in the Divine attribute of Chesed (lovingkindness). Since G-d is constantly bestowing His kindness upon creation, feelings of kindness and love always abound in the world. They can drive man to incredible heights, or to the lowest depths.

Love of money can drive a person to risk his own life - or the lives of others who stand in his way. Sexual immorality is a perversion of love; and love of power has all too often in the annals of history led to open warfare and large-scale bloodshed. Conversely, that same attribute of love, when properly applied, can propel a person to creative heights for the benefit of all mankind.

Thus the awesome power of love - both its constructive and its destructive aspects - is best explained by Chesed's approximation to Binah [it immediately follows Binah]. The higher Sefirot [Keter, Chochmah and Binah] are concealed. The very first manifestation of those awesome powers in the lower Sefirot is through the Sefirah of Chesed, which indicates reaching out towards others and extending oneself on behalf of others. Seen in another light, Chesed is higher than Gevurah, indicating that it is "above and beyond" restraint, which is evidence to the great power of love. A parallel exists between good and evil - whatever power exists for good can contain the very same potential for evil. Thus, if love is not harnessed properly - through Gevurah, i.e. awe and fear of G-d - it can be most destructive.

If love is properly controlled, it is the most effective tool for the building of humanity and peace. Thus the verse states "The world is built through Chesed". [Psalms 89:3] One who spreads love and brings peace between people effects great rectifications Above [Likutey Moharan I, 75:4] Rebbe Nachman of Breslov

Source: "Anatomy of the Soul" - Chaim Kramer - from the teachings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov

It's All Good

Now Yosef could not bear all those standing beside him, and he called out, "Take everyone away from me!" So no one stood with him when Yosef made himself known to his brothers. [Vayigash 45:1]

Yosef could not bear that Egyptians would stand beside him and hear his brothers being embarrassed when he would make himself known to them. [Rashi]

We can learn from the example of Yosef towards his brothers that one should never seek revenge against a person who causes him any form of distress or damage.  Rather, one should repay even a guilty offender with kindness. [Tanya ch.12]

Why should we be kind to guilty offenders?

Because whatever that person did to you ultimately stems from G-d.  The person was merely an agent from G-d, Who decreed that this thing should happen to you.

Thus, since "everything that G-d does is for the good", you must repay the person - who brought this "good" to you - with kindness.

Source: Likutei Sichos Lubavitcher Rebbe: Gutnick Chumash

Rabbi: Violent husbands should be ostracized

On the same day that the Jerusalem District Court convicted self-proclaimed rabbi Elior Chen for a long list of abuse charges, Ramat Gan Chief Rabbi Yaakov Ariel published a ruling asserting that a man who abuses his wife should be barred from participating in a prayer or any other Jewish activity.

The prominent rabbi, who heads Tzohar, a union of Zionist Religious rabbis, also ruled that a violent husband should be excommunicated – a tough and unusual punishment reserved by the Jewish law for those committing grave religious and moral violations.

"This is an explicit ruling in Shulchan Aruch (code of Jewish law), that a man who hits his friend is to be excommunicated," Ariel wrote on the Yeshiva website. "All the more so with a man who hits his wife."

The Tzohar rabbis announced recently the union's position on the matter, stating that the religious community is expected not to include a violent husband in prayers, to forbid him to participate in ritual Torah readings, and to prevent him from serving in any public position. Ariel's ruling provides Jewish law backing to their position.

'Stop ignoring domestic violence'

Rabbi Uriel Genzel, the director of the Tzohar Lehakika (Window for Legislation) initiative, which provides Knesset members with Jewish-focused opinion on issues relating to legislation, put together a document on the subject of family violence, and presented it during a recent meeting of the Knesset's Committee on the Status of Women.

"The attitude that calls every person to stop being indifferent to violence against women needs to be shown in every social circle, whether it's within the religious community of outside it," he wrote. "The community's treatment of a member who acts violently constitutes a test of the community's morality."

Source: Kobi Nahshoni Ynet News

Eliyahu, the Drought, Rain and Mt Carmel

A drought in Israel.... prayers for rain.... and fire on Mt. Carmel.

Note the similarities in the story of Eliyahu HaNavi and Mt. Carmel.  [Source and complete article at: Chabad

From Our People by Jacob Isaacs published and copyrighted by Kehot Publication Society 1946-1948]

Divine Revelation on Mount Carmel

Elijah's Challenge

In the third year of famine G-d ordered Elijah to appear before Ahab and to inform him that G-d would send rain upon the earth. Elijah went to Samaria. There he first met Obadiah and requested him to announce his arrival to the king. Ahab went out to meet Elijah and when he saw him face to face, he exclaimed: "Are you back, you troublemaker for Israel?" Elijah fearlessly replied that it was not he who had caused the trouble, but Ahab himself, and the house of his father, who had forsaken G-d and served idols. Then, challenging the king to stage a public contest between him, the only prophet of G-d, and the eight hundred and fifty prophets of the Baal and Ashtarte, Elijah promised to meet them on Mount Carmel.

The Contest

Ahab complied with Elijah's request. He understood the purpose of this gathering, and was eager to have a public contest of power between these two conflicting spiritual forces who claimed supremacy and exclusive control over the land.

The entire nation was assembled on Mount Carmel, and the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal came there also, proud and contemptuous and sure of their victory over Elijah. Ahab the king appeared too, eagerly anticipating the outcome of the momentous contest.

Facing the entire people, Elijah addressed them sternly: "How long will you waver between two sides? If the L-rd be G-d, follow him; and if Baal be G-d, then follow him!" The people did not reply, and Elijah's voice rang forth again: "I have been left as the only prophet of G-d; but the prophets of Baal number four hundred and fifty men; therefore give us two bullocks. Let the Baal's prophets choose one bullock for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the altar; but put no fire under it. I will prepare the other bullock and lay it on the altar without putting fire under it. Then they shall call on the name of their gods, and I will call on the name of the L-rd; and the G-d who answers by fire, shall be the true G-d!"

The people voiced their approval and immediately the prophets of Baal picked one bullock and prepared it for the altar. Then they prayed and called on the Baal from morning till noon. But there was no sign of an answer. Elijah ridiculed them and bade them call louder as their god might be asleep or engaged in other and more important business. Not realizing the irony of Elijah's words, the prophets cried louder and louder, and leaped wildly around the altar. They even cut their own flesh until their blood spurted forth, as was their custom. But cry as they might, Baal replied neither to their voices, nor to their wild and desperate gestures. Thus they raged furiously till late in the afternoon, yet there was no sign of an answer.

Divine Revelation

Then Elijah called upon the people to gather around him. In the name of G-d he built an altar of twelve stones, symbolizing the number of the Hebrew tribes, and ordered a wide trench dug all about it. Then he laid the other bullock on the altar and had water poured over it, till the trench was filled to the brim. Having completed all these preparations, he stepped before the altar and prayed to G-d. " L-rd G-d of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel! Let it be known this day that Thou art G-d in Israel, and that I am Thy servant, and that I have done all these things at Thy word. Hear me, O L-rd, hear me, that this people may know that Thou art the L-rd G-d, and thus turn their hearts back again."

Hardly had he finished praying when a flame of fire came down from G-d and consumed the offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the earth, and licked up even the water that was in the trench. Seeing this, the amazed and overawed people prostrated themselves and exclaimed: "The L-rd He is G-d! The L-rd He is G-d!" Then, at Elijah's command, they seized the prophets of Baal, led them to the brook of Kishon, and slew them,

End of the Famine

After bidding the king eat and drink for the drought would presently end, Elijah went to a solitary place on the mountain to pray for rain. Then he asked his servant to look in the direction of the sea for the first sign of a cloud. The servant did so, but reported that he had not noticed anything. Seven times Elijah repeated the order, till his servant returned with the news that a cloud no bigger than a man's hand had become visible. Immediately Elijah sent word to Ahab to have his horses harnessed and to return to his palace before the rains began to fall. Soon the whole sky became overcast. Strong winds drove large clouds and sent the rain down in torrents. The heavy rains drenched the parched earth of Israel, which had been craving water for almost three years.

Call for Tefillah: Prayers for Israel

Jews throughout Eretz Yisroel gathered to say tehillim tonight, the second of Chanukah, in regards to the horrific wildfire in Northern Eretz Yisroel. A large Atzeres tefillah was also held at the Kosel, and was attended by Rav Shlomo Amar and other Rabbonim. As of this posting (7:35PM EST) , at least one area in Haifa has been evacuated due to the fire approaching the city.

Source: Yeshiva World News

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]

Israel fire - NASA satellite photo

The fire is so big it can be seen above on this NASA satellite photo. You can see a red line on the outside of the fire drawn by NASA. Strong winds are fuelling the fire.

Israel: Carmel Forest Fire- 40 killed

The ZAKA rescue organization says at least 40 people died in the fire on the Carmel Mountain Thursday.

At least ten people - passengers on an overturned bus after it was caught in the fire, and possibly some of their rescuers - were killed after the fire broke out this morning in an illegal garbage dump in the Carmel Mountains. Forty other passengers were initially reported to be injured.

It is feared that another ten people are dead in other places affected by the fire.

Ongoing rescue and fire-fighting efforts are said to be nearly impossible given the physical conditions of the mountains, smoke, dry conditions and lack of accessibility. With darkness approaching, fears are great that the fire will rage out of control for many hours.

One witness said that two light planes were sent to the area to help out in the fire-fighting efforts, and "they simply disappeared."

The trapped bus is said to have departed from the Damon Prison, apparently as part of the attempt to evacuate the prison in the face of the fast-spreading fire. The residents of nearby Kibbutz Beit Oren and the Druze village of Usefiya were also evacuated, as were the students of Haifa University, which is somewhat further away. Several homes in Usefiya have been burnt to the ground

by Hillel Fendel and Gil Ronen

Israel National News

A Stain on the Soul

Art by Schnette

Source: "Not Just Stories" by Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski MD

It goes without saying that spirituality and dishonesty are mutually exclusive. Anyone who is in wrongful possession of the property of others cannot begin to be spiritual.

A person may engage in unfair business practises and rationalize that this is the way business is transacted. It is also possible that a person may inadvertently take advantage of others, and this too is sinful.

In Safed there was a tzaddik, a kabbalist, Rabbi Avraham Galanti, who once came to the Arizal with a request that he reprimand him and help him correct his misdeeds. The Ari refused, saying that he was hardly one who could give mussar to so great a tzaddik, but Rabbi Avraham persisted in his demands. The Ari then studied his face and said "I see that you have a slight defect and that you are in wrongful possession of others' property."

Rabbi Avraham was shocked and promptly went home to don sackcloth and accept a fast, with intense soul-searching as to where he might have been dishonest, but to no avail.

Rabbi Avraham operated a textile factory. He called together all his workers and asked "Am I in arrears to any of you? Have I inadvertently withheld wages from anyone?" The workers responded "Rabbi, whatever you give us is enough. The Divine blessing is in your money, and whatever we receive always goes far enough to cover our needs."

Rabbi Avraham said "Then that is the problem. I may have shortchanged you on your wages, but you have never complained. That is why the Ari found me sinful. Henceforth you must be specific and make certain you receive every cent that is due to you."

"But I must make restitution for the past" he continued. Rabbi Avraham then placed money on the table and said "Let anyone come and take as much as they feel is due to him. Then I wish you to say "Whatever Avraham Galanti still owes me, I forgive him with all my heart!"

Except for one woman who took a few coins, no-one touched the money on the table, and all recited the forgiveness formula as requested.

Rabbi Avraham later returned to the Ari who said "The stain has now been cleansed. It was the small amount of money due to that woman that had left its mark on your neshama."

Yours

That which is meant for you, can never be taken away.

The Ladder of Wealth

Art: Happiness in Perpetuity by Paul Bond

Jacob dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set earthward, and its top reached Heavenward. [Gen 28:12]

A wooden ladder with ten identical rungs was leaning against the side of a house.  The top rung looked down on the rungs below it - especially the lowest one.

"As you can see" boasted the top rung, "the owner of the house has set me above you because of my superiority."

A passer-by overheard and quickly turned the ladder upside-down.  Now the former top rung could boast no longer.  The new top rung, too, refrained from boasting - for fear that the same fate might befall it.

The ladder is a metaphor for money.  In Hebrew the two words (ladder) סולם and (money) ממון are numerically equal.

Don't let wealth make you arrogant. Remember that the ladder of wealth can be turned upside down in a minute.

The ladder is "set earthward" - it looks to people as if their efforts at business or professions bring them wealth.  But in reality, "its top reaches Heavenward" - it is G-d who decides whether a person will make money or lose it.

Source: from the writings of the Ben Ish Chai

It's All Good

When things go wrong.... there is usually a reason why.... do some soul-searching and try to work out why this particular thing happened and what Hashem is trying to tell you.

And they said to one another, "Indeed, we are guilty for our brother, that we witnessed the distress of his soul when he begged us, and we did not listen. That is why this trouble has come upon us." [Miketz 42:21]

The brothers realized immediately that when misfortune befalls a person, he must search his deeds to find a negative word or action that may have brought on such a punishment.  Then he should do teshuvah.

The brothers' teshuvah was remarkable in that:

1) They were able to feel remorseful about a bad deed they performed some twenty years earlier.

2) The fact that they could not find a more recent sin to explain their current misfortune shows that in the past twenty years they did not sin at all.

3) Their teshuvah was immediately effective in reducing the punishment: Yosef had promised to imprison one of the brothers, but after the brothers did teshuvah, Shimon was released [see Rashi to v.24].  Similarly, Yosef's harsh attitude towards them changed, for they were given food and their money was returned. And eventually, as a result of their teshuvah, Yaakov and their entire family were saved from hunger.

Source: Based on Sicha of the fifth day of Chanukah: Lubavitcher Rebbe

Rewarding the Wicked

Image: "Entrance to Gan Eden" by Menachem Kuchar

For Hashem admonishes the one He loves, and like a father, He mollifies the child... [Proverbs 3:12]

Often, when G-d loves someone, He causes him or her to suffer in this world in order to cleanse him or her of the slightest trace of impropriety, so that they will be absolutely flawless when they enjoy the rewards of the World to Come.

Conversely, G-d showers prosperity upon the wicked in this world, so that they will have no claim to reward in the Afterlife.

Last day of Spring....

.... or Autumn if you're on the other side of the world.

It's my birthday... another year older... my daughter made me this cake: (she's very talented... b"eh)

I just clicked onto my Stat Counter and saw that the 770,000th visitor had just visited Shirat Devorah.

Truly amazing! Thank you to everyone who clicks onto this site every day, and all the other occasional visitors, and all the commenters and emailers, I really appreciate your input.

Seeing Right Though You

The time has come when the truth is finally being exposed.

Both Hitler yemach shemo and Ahmadinejad are Amalek, we knew that.....  ages ago.

Now it's all over the news:   Ahmadinejad 'like Hitler'

The world of truth is seems to be arriving faster than we could have imagined.

And all those TSA body scanners at the airports are letting people know that the time has come when "we can see right through you".

All the lies are being exposed, people are being seen for who they really are. Secrets are being revealed.

It seems like the times of Moshiach are very very close.

Life is but a dream

Art: UKTara

"At the end of two years, it happened that Pharoah was dreaming....." [Miketz 41:1]

Pharoah's dream is the very beginning of the story of Egyptian exile.  The dream predicted a famine which eventually caused Yaakov and his family to settle in Egypt where, a generation later, they were enslaved.

In the times of exile, the Jewish people are forced to withstand the fluctuation between two contradictory modes of life: love of G-d at the time of prayer, and then total immersion into the physical world during one's business and private affairs the rest of the day. 

Chassidic teachings compare this situation to a dream, because in a dream two opposite, contradictory phenomena can co-exist simultaneously.

In order to hint to this idea, the precursor of the Egyptian exile - our current story - was recorded in the Torah as a dream.

Based on Likutei Sichos of the Lubavitcher Rebbe vol 15 p.346

Under the Jacaranda Tree

Springtime in Sydney

One Small Step... One Giant Leap

Art - The Garden of Melancholia: Mike Worrall

from the writings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, translated by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan

There was once a tzaddik who became very depressed and melancholy. This depression caused the tzaddik great difficulty, and it became worse and worse. He fell into lassitude and heaviness, where it was literally impossible for him to move.

He wanted to make himself happy and uplift himself, but it was impossible for him to do anything. Whenever he found something that would make him happy, the Evil One would find sadness in it. Therefore it was impossible for him to do anything to make himself happy, since in everything he found sadness.

He pondered G-d's kindness that "He did not make me a heathen" and realized that this could be a source of great joy, without any sadness.

{The main thing is to make a small beginning. G-d said "Open for Me like the eye of a needle, and I will open for you like the gates of the Temple" [Shir HaShirim Rabbah 5:3]. Thus, no matter how low a person is, if he makes even a single motion to serve G-d, it is something very great on high, and it can bring him back completely. [Likutey Halakhoth, Tefillin 5:43]  The main thing is to make the first move. If one begins even a little bit, one can go very high}

When a person tries to find joy in something that he himself did, it is possible to find sadness in every joy. No matter what he does, he can find shortcomings, and he will not be able to uplift himself and be happy. But in the fact that "He did not make me a heathen" there is no sadness. This is from G-d, G-d made him the way He did, and had pity on him, not making him a heathen. Since this was G-d's deed, there are no shortcomings in it, and hence there is no defect in this rejoicing. No matter what, there is an unimaginable difference between him and an idolator.

The tzaddik began to make himself happy with this. He rejoiced and uplifted himself little by little, continuing more and more, until he came to such a level of joy that he was on the same level of joy that Moses experienced when he went on high to receive the Torah. Through this uplifting and joy, he was able to fly many miles into the supernal universes.

He saw himself, and he was very far from the place where he had been originally. This bothered him very much. He felt that when he descended, he would be very far away from his original place. When it was discovered that he had disappeared, people would consider it a great wonder. The tzaddik did not want such publicity since he always wanted to "walk modestly with G-d". [Micah 6:8]

The joy came to an end, since joy has a limit. Therefore, joy begins automatically and ends automatically. When joy begins to end, it ends little by little. The tzaddik therefore descended little by little, coming down from the place to which he had flown during his time of joy. He eventually returned to the place from which he had ascended. He was very surprised, since he was in exactly the same place where he had been at first.

He realized that he had returned to the exact same place where he had been at first. Looking at himself, he realized that he had not moved at all, or if he had moved, it had been at most by a hairsbreadth. The hair on the head is the gate to the intellect. In Hebrew, the word sa'ar (hair) and sha'ar (gate) are the same. Therefore, if a person improves himself by a hairsbreadth, it can bring him back completely. Similarly, if a person strays from G-d by a hairsbreadth, it can do much damage [Likutey Halakhoth, Choshen Mishpat, Nezikin 4:3]

He had moved so little, that no one other than G-d could measure it. The tzaddik was very surprised at this. Here he had flown so far, through so many universes, and at the same time, he had not moved at all. This showed him how precious in G-d's eyes is even the slightest motion.

When a person moves himself even a hairsbreadth in this world, it can be considered more than thousands of miles, and even thousands of universes. This can be understood when we realize that the physical world is no more than the central point in the midst of the spheres. This is known to masters of astronomy. Compared to the supernal universes, the entire physical universe is no more than a dot.

When lines extend from a single point...

When lines extend from a central point, the closer they are to the point, the closer they are to one another. The further they extend from the point, the further such lines get from each other. Therefore, when the lines are very far from the point, they are also very far from each other. This is true, even though near the central point, they are extremely close to each other.

If one imagined lines drawn from the earth to the upper spheres (the orbits of the planets around the earth: a relativistic geocentric view of the universe) one would see that even if one moved a hairsbreadth, the movement would be reflected as a motion of thousands of miles in the upper spheres. It would be in the same ratio as the spheres are higher than the earth. The spheres must be very huge, since there are stars without number, and each star is at least as large as our planet.

This is all the more certainly true when one considers the supernal universe, compared to which, even the highest astronomical spheres are like nothing. Therefore, the distance between these extending lines in the supernal world is without measure. A movement of less than a hairsbreadth, so small that only G-d can estimate it, can consist of a passage through thousands of universes and thousands of miles in the supernal worlds. How much more so is this true when one travels a mile or more to serve G-d.

Feldman's Firey Friday Night

by Henry Benjamin 

A planned Shabbat dinner for twenty ended with unexpected guests for Rabbi Pinchus Feldman and his family…members of Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs Fire Brigades.

The remains of the kitchen

As the family was preparing to welcome special guests from London, a smell of smoke pervaded their Penkivil St home in Bondi…followed by billowing black smoke as an an inferno engulfed their special Pesach kitchen.

When the fire was put out, Rabbi Feldman was amazed to discover that in the charred remains of the special kitchen, the haggadas and siddurs on the bookshelved had escaped unscathed.

Rabbi Feldman told J-Wire: “It seems my granddaughter had wandered into the kitchen and had played with knobs setting the stove alight. It was covered in polythene and paper as the kitchen is in use only at Pesach. The family was in a state of panic for a few miunutes as Rosie could not be found but we found her unharmed in another part of the house. I cannot explain why the Haggadat were not damaged…I will have to leave that to others. We were waiting for our special guests Rabbi Rappaport and his family from London. They are in Australia is here for their son’s wedding in Melbourne this week. We smelled smoke and thought it might have been the food burning but suddenly there was this huge billowing cloud of black smoke. My daughter Chana closed the door to the back of the house. The fire brigade told us that her actions delayed the fire spreading by about five minutes…just enough time for them to get it under control. Otherwise, it would have engulfed the whole house. If the brigade had taken ten minutes longer, the house would have been gone.”

It will be some time before Rabbi Feldman and his family can move back into their home. Rabbi Feldman said: “The only serious damage was in that room but the rest of house had heavy smoke penetration. But it is just amazing that in that room everything was destroyed…except the Haggadahs and the siddurim…simply amazing.”

Rabbi Feldman with the Haggadahs

The Rappaports had their Shabbat dinner with their host, the Central Synagogue’s Rabbi Levi Wolff while the Feldmans relocated to family homes nearby. No-one was injured in the blaze.

In the meantime, they expect to have their kitchen replaced and functional in time for Pesach… but the Haggadahs are ready for action.

Mikeitz: At the End (of Days)

The word Mikeitz means "At the end" as in the saying "the end of days" [Daniel 12:13]

In Aramaic the word "days" is almost identical to its Hebrew equivalent, but the last letter switches from a mem to a nun    ימים = ימין

The Zohar notes that this Aramaic word  ימין is identical to the Hebrew word  ימין , meaning "right" and on this basis, the Zohar concludes: There are two 'ends', one on the spiritual 'right' and one on the spiritual 'left'.

In Jewish mysticism, "left" represents the side of evil.  So, the 'end of the spiritual left' refers to the day when evil will cease to exist, with the end of exile, i.e. "the end of days" (קץ הימים).

"Right", on the other hand, represents goodness and holiness.  Thus we refer to the "end of the right" to indicate that there is no dilution of values in the realms of holiness, so the end is as good as the beginning.  The term קץ הימים ("end of the spiritual right") is thus an allusion to the final redemption, when good will triumph over evil, and we will see how good is found consistently throughout the entire world.

We are thus left with the question: Which "end" does the word Mikeitz refer to - the "end of the left" or the "end of the right"?

In fact, both could be argued:

a) At the beginning of our Parsha, Yosef is released from jail.  This was the end of Yosef's exile, i.e. the "end of the left".

b) On the other hand, we then read how Yosef suddenly rose to power and became ruler over Egypt - his redemption, represented by "the end of the right".

How could the two opposite concepts of exile and redemption be alluded to by the same expression?

Chassidic thought explains that the inner purpose of exile is that the Jews should be scattered around the world in order to "rescue" sparks of holiness which had been lost in physicality.  Thus, redemption is not the elimination of exile, but rather, it is the goal of exile.  And therefore, both concepts are hinted to by the same word.

Source: Likutei Sichos of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Gutnick Chumash

Peace and Quiet

Image: Blue Mountains, Sydney Australia

R. Shimon ben Gamliel said" "The world endures on account of three things: judgment, truth and peace." [Pirkei Avot 1:18]

Man's body is a miniature world [Tikunei Zohar 69:101a].  One of the things that preserves this world is peace.

A contentious person is always in pain.  At work he gets embroiled in arguments; at home he fights with his spouse. There is friction at his table and tension in his sleep.

A peace-loving person, in contrast, is calm and secure.  Everyone likes him; no one makes trouble for him.  He is happy to see others, and others are happy to see him.  He eats in serenity and enjoys restful sleep.

That is why peace is called שׁלום  - shalom. The word can be broken up into שׁלו "tranquil" and ם for מנוחה - "rest".

from the writings of the Ben Ish Hai

The Rosh Hashanah of Chassidus: Yud Tes Kislev

The Alter Rebbe - Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi author of The Tanya

The 18th of Kislev  marks the completion of the annual cycle of daily readings from the Tanya. The 19th and 20th of Kislev are the "Rosh HaShanah of Chassidus".

On Yud-Tes Kislev we re-commence the annual cycle of daily readings in Tanya, as divided by the Rebbe Rayatz.

It is the anniversary of the release of the Alter Rebbe - Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi (Hebrew: שניאור זלמן מליאדי‎), the first Rebbe of Chabad, who was informed upon by misnagdim in Russia and arrested on trumped-up charges of supporting the Ottoman Empire.

His informers pointed to the fact that he would urge his followers to send money to the Land of Israel as "evidence" of his alleged insurrectionist aspirations (in fact, the money was sent to support poor Jews). At the time, the Land of Israel was a part of the Ottoman Empire, which was at war with Russia.

Rabbi Shneur Zalman was charged with treason, and released in the secular year 1798 on the Jewish date of Tuesday, 19 Kislev.

The 53 days of Rabbi Shneur Zalman's imprisonment are said to correspond to the 53 chapters of the first section of the Tanya.

19 Kislev is also considered to mark the day upon which Rabbi Shneur Zalman was conceived, for he was born exactly nine months later, on 18 Elul. [Shemu'os Vesippurim, Refoel Kahn, vol. 1, p. 39]

Rebbetzin Menuchah Rachel born (1798)

On the very day that Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi was liberated from prison, a granddaughter was born to him -- the daugher of his son Rabbi Dovber and his wife Rebbetzin Sheina. The girl was named Menuchah Rachel -- "Menuchah", meaning "tranquility" (Rachel was the name of a daughter of Rabbi Schneur Zalman who died in her youth).

In 1845, Rebbetzin Menuchah Rachel realized her lifelong desire to live in the Holy Land when she and her husband, Rabbi Yaakov Culi Slonim (d. 1857), led a contingent of Chassidim who settled in Hebron. Famed for her wisdom, piety and erudition, she served as the matriarch of the Chassidic community in Hebron until her passing in her 90th year in 1888.

The 19th of Kislev is also the yahrzeit of R. DovBer, the Maggid of Mezritch, who [as successor to the Baal Shem Tov] was the mentor of the second generation of the chassidic movement - from 5521 (1761) until his passing on the third day of the week of Parshas Vayeishev, Yud-Tes Kislev, 5533 (1772). His resting place is in Anipoli.

Rabbi Dov Ber was born in Volhynia in 1710, according to the Jewish Encyclopedia, though other sources say his year of birth is unknown. Little is known about him before he became a disciple of the Baal Shem Tov. A Hasidic legend states that, when he was five years old, his family home burst into flames. On hearing his mother weeping, he asked: "Mother, do we have to be so unhappy because we have lost a house?" She replied that she was mourning the family tree, which was destroyed, and had begun with Rabbi Yohanan, the sandal-maker and master in the Talmud. The boy replied: "And what does that matter! I shall get you a new family tree which begins with me!"

How aptly those words described the role he was later to play; for the boy was destined to become the successor to the Baal Shem Tov.

Source: Chabad

Testing Times

Everything in the world - whatever it is and whatever happens - is a test, designed to give you freedom of choice. Choose wisely.

Occupy yourself with doing good, and the bad will automatically fall away.

Rely on nothing and no-one but G-d. This is true simplicity. Anything else means pursuing a complicated course of action.

Pray, pray, pray.  Whatever you need... praying is the best way to get it.

Keep in mind that the essence of your prayers is the faith you have in them that they will be answered.

Remember: things can go from the very worst to the very best .... in just the blink of an eye.

from the writings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov

The Great Pretenders

Art: Mike Worrall

This world is a world of illusion.  The truth is hidden.  We are constantly bombarded by deception. People are not always who they appear to be.

There are some people who deceive everyone around them: they put on their masks to present themselves to the world, but if you follow them home, you will see them for who they really are.   It doesn't matter how many "good deeds" they do in public, if they behave like an animal in their own home, abuse their family.... manipulate their friends... they will be judged accordingly. They are the deceivers, the hypocrites, the mutton dressed up as lamb.

A time is coming when their deception will be obvious to all.

A time is coming where we will see the truth, and those who lie, cheat and steal, who abuse others less fortunate, who manipulate and terrorise, will be seen for who they really are.

The masks will fall, and the truth will be seen.

That time is coming, and it's coming very soon.

The Talmud [Bava Basra 10:] tells of what we now call a near death experience. Rav Yosef the son of Rav Yehoshua was 'dead' for a short period of time and then was resuscitated. To his father's question of what did he see, he responded: "I saw an olam hafuch (an upside down world). The elyonim ('high' people) were low and the tachtonim ('low' people) were high."

His father responded: "You saw an olam barur (a clear world)!"

Korea: Fulfilling the Prophecy ??

Flashpoint . . . smoke billows from houses on Yeonpyeong island after the North Korean artillery barrage. Photo: AFP

NORTH KOREA has burnished the leadership credentials of its 26-year-old dictator-in-waiting with a deadly artillery attack on South Korean territory, causing its neighbour to return fire and scramble F-16 fighters.
Two South Korean marines died, and at least 12 were wounded. There were reports of civilian injuries and houses were set ablaze as scores of shells fell on Yeonpyeong island.
A North Korea expert at Beijing's Central Party School, Zhang Liangui, told the Herald that Kim Jong-un was deliberately destabilising the environment in order to mobilise the military and consolidate his power.

[The following is authored by Dan S]

It is just beginning here in November 2010, the month of Kislev:  click to read North Korean Attack

Zohar Va'era

In the future the children of Yishmael will stir great wars in the world. And the children of Edom [the West] will gather against them, and make war with them, one on the sea, and one on the land, and one near Jerusalem; and each one will prevail over the other but the Holy Land will not fall to the hands of the Christian nations.

During that period of time, a nation from the "edge" of the world (note where North Korea is located geographically) will be awakened against wicked Romi. And it will make war against her for three months, and many nations will gather there, and they will fall by her hand, until all the children of Edom will gather against her from all corners of the earth. And after, G-d will awaken Himself against them, as it says, a "a sacrificial slaughter for the Lord in Batzra", and it says, "to shake the corners of the Land."

Zohar HaKadosh:

A nation will arise from one end of the world (North Korea) against the wicked Rome (Christian nations led by Obama) and will war against them for 3 months. Other nations will join in this war and will fall into the hands (of the nation from edge of the world), till all Edom will unite against this nation. Aterwards, Hashem will 'arise' against them, as it says, A gigantic massacre in the land of Edom.

Note: Immediately following this 3 month war, the evil leader of Edom (America) will spread out his rule over the entire world. Nine months into that move called the final tribulation and birthpangs of Mashiach, he will get up and destroy all the enemies of Israel and mankind.

[And thank you to Bramy for reminding me of this video below]