Spiderman Prepares for Purim

Reports: Israel has already decided to attack Iran

Channel 2 in Israel, sourcing a “senior American official”, says that the decision has already been made by the Israeli government to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities. “All U.S. intelligence officials are confident the Israeli leadership has already decided to attack Iran, unless a significant change happens in the coming weeks or months with the Iranian nuclear program...''

“All U.S. intelligence officials are confident the Israeli leadership has already decided to attack Iran, unless a significant change happens in the coming weeks or months with the Iranian nuclear program,” Channel 2 reports.

The report comes just hours ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech to AIPAC in Washington.

Source: Algemeiner


Video: Obama Netanyahu meeting March 2012

The Meaning of Your Name

The Talmud [Berachot 7b] teaches that a Hebrew name has an influence on its bearer. Therefore, it is extremely important to name children after individuals with positive character traits who led fortunate lives and helped bring goodness to the world.

The Arizal writes that the nature and behavior of a person, whether good or bad, can be discovered by analyzing his or her name. For example, a child named Yehudah could possibly be destined for leadership, for Yehudah, the fourth son of Jacob, symbolized monarchy and most Jewish kings descended from the tribe of Yehudah.

It is said that parents are actually blessed with prophecy when naming their newborn babies.

According to the Arizal, even the numerical value of the Hebrew letters in one's name can be indicative of an individual's character. For example the gematria of the name Elisheva is equivalent to the numerical value of the Hebrew words yemei simcha, meaning "days of happiness," perhaps portending a joyous life for a baby girl named Elisheva.

It is precisely because the fortunes and misfortunes of mankind are concealed in the secrets of the letters, vowels and meanings of Hebrew names that a seriously ill person is given an additional name like Chaim, meaning "life," or Rafael, meaning "God heals," in order to influence his destiny. We hope and pray that the new name will herald a new mazel, or fortune, for the stricken individual.

Rabbi Elimelech of Lyzhansk, writes in his classic work on Torah "Noam Elimelech" (Bamidbar) that there is a profound connection between the soul of an infant and the soul of the person for whom he or she is named.

When a child is named after the deceased, the latter's soul is elevated to a higher realm in heaven and a spiritual affinity is created between the soul of the departed and the soul of the newborn child. That deep spiritual bond between these two souls can have a profound impact on the child.

Zocher HaBris 24:4, who also quotes Noam Elimelech on Bamidbar: “If they give him the name of a tzaddik who has already lived in this world, this will cause him also to become a tzaddik, because it has aroused the soul of the departed tzaddik in the Supernal World.

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Slaughtering the Yetzer Hara

What will be the fate of the yetzer hara [evil inclination] in the future? The Talmud [Sukah 52a] explains:

"Rabbi Yehuda lectured: In the future, Hashem will take the yetzer hara and slaughter him in the presence of both the tzaddikim and the reshaim [wicked ones]. To the tzaddikim he will appear like a high mountain and to the reshaim he will appear like a thin hair. Both, however, will cry. The tzaddikim will cry "How could we have overpowered such a high mountain?" and the reshaim will cry: "How could we not have subdued such a thin hair?"

Rashi says that the tzaddikim will cry because they will see the yetzer hara and remember the difficult battles they had with him.

The Maharsha suggests that they will cry because in the past they received great merit for overpowering their yetzer hara, but now that he had been slaughtered, they will no longer get this reward.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe coments:

In the time of Moshiach the truth will be unveiled for everyone to see clearly. Then the tzaddikim as well as the reshaim will be able to see the yetzer hara as he really is. However, we need to understand:

1. Why will the tzaddikim and the reshaim see the yetzer hara differently? And what is the meaning of the hair/mountain metaphor?

2. Why was it necessary to say that Hashem will shecht [ritually kill] the yetzer hara? Why was it not enough to simply say that Hashem will destroy it?

The Talmud informs us how the yetzer hara operates. First, he entices a person to do a small sin [comparable to the thin hair], arguing that if the person indulges a tiny bit he will still remain as Jewish as before. A while later, the yetzer hara entices him to do another sin, and so on, until finally he leads him to avoda zara [idolatry]. To prevent this descent, the Jew had to hold firm from the very beginning, to stay connected to Hashem by not even crossing the first "thin hair".

"To the tzaddikim, the yetzer hara will appear like a mountain" - the greater a person is, the bigger is his yetzer hara. So the tzaddik's yetzer hara is symbolized by a mountain. Chazal say that a king has the power to uproot a mountain. Tzaddikim are called "kings" [Gittin 62a]. Therefore they have the power to uproot their yetzer hara even if it is as high as a mountain. This answers the first question.

To answer the second question, we have to understand what "shechting" an animal entails. When we ritually slaughter a live animal, we are elevating it to the level of a human by making it fit to be eaten by man. Another aspect of shechita is meshicha - drawing foward. According to halacha [Rambam Hilchot Mechira], the action of drawing is a means of acquisition. When an animal is purchased, the buyer acquires it through the action of drawing it towards him.

Hence, to shecht our yetzer hara means that we should acquire him and bring him into our domain. We should use the yetzer hara as our own property for the purpose of our service of Hashem. As it is written [Berachot 54a] "You shall love Hashem with your whole heart - with both of your inclinations" [see Igros Kodesh Vol.20 p.6]

We have the ability to shecht our yetzer hara. To do so, we have to apply the five main laws regarding the shechting of an animal to our own yetzer hara:

1. Shehiyah

We are not allowed to pause in the course of shechting an animal. Similarly, we cannot take a break while in the process of neutralizing our yetzer hara. We must be consistent. If on occasion we yield to our yetzer hara, the shechita is not proper and we have to start all over.

2. Chaladah

We are not allowed to cut the animal's neck without seeing what we're cutting. We cannot hide the knife. Similarly, we cannot hide our task of shechting the yetzer hara. We should not do mitzvos in hiding [in private], afraid to practice in public, nor should we be ashamed of performing the mitzvos "behidur" - with splendor - for fear of being sneered at. Furthermore, claiming to be so humble that one has to perform mitzvos secretly is false humility and can lead a person to sin.

3. Hagramah

We are not allowed to cut the animal's neck in the wrong places; we have to shecht the animal only in the right place [middle of the neck]. Similarly, it is not to our benefit to cut the yetzer hara where we are not supposed to. Depriving ourselves of necessities [such as food and sleep] in order to weaken the yetzer hara will only weaken our effectiveness in serving Hashem. By doing so we only fool ourselves into thinking that we are getting rid of our yetzer hara, when in fact it is still very much alive.

4. Derassa

We are not supposed to crush the animal's neck. We have to cut it gently. Analogously, we don't want to destroy our yetzer hara. Rather, we want to transform it and bring it to the service of our yetzer tov. We can use the yetzer hara's energy in the service of Hashem.

5. Ikur

We are not supposed to pull out the simanim [the esophagus and trachea]. Similarly, we can't just throw out our yetzer hara, but rather we have to turn it into a yetzer tov, as explained above.

If we shecht our yetzer hara properly, we elevate him to us and transform him into an ally. We should start this process now in order to prepare ourselves for the final shechting of the yetzer hara, which will be done by Hashem with the coming of Moshiach.

Source: Adapted from Sichos of the Lubavitcher Rebbe by the Students of Seminary Bais Menachem, Montreal Canada

Australia Floods: Thousands Homeless: Midda K'neged Midda ?

Last October, Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd ''made a serious mistake and misjudgment about the Israeli-Palestinian dispute..... reducing Australia's potential to play a constructive role, harming the relationship with Israel and damaging the Gillard government'' when he criticized Israel's approval of 1100 new housing units in Gilo, an area of Jerusalem. [See Rudd Shouldn't Join Chorus Line of Israel Bashers]

Rudd's misjudgment has continued: Last week he resigned his post as Foreign Minister in an attempt to take back his former role as Prime Minister. He lost the vote 71 - 31 and is now relegated to the back bench.

So Kevin Rudd himself is now professionally homeless: he is neither Foreign Minister, nor is he Prime Minister. Quite an embarrassing state of affairs for him.

But unfortunately, it seems he is not the only one to suffer from his foot-in-mouth disease, and many thousands of Australians are also ''homeless'' as the flood waters rise around their properties.

The eastern side of Australia is currently experiencing its worst floods for 125 years. Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes, with the flood waters rising, and more rain predicted to fall.

We can only hope that Bob Carr, the new Australian Foreign Minister, does not follow in Kevin's footsteps.

Esther and the 72- letter name of G-d

by Rabbi Shlomo HaLevi Alkabetz From "Manos HaLevi"

Translation by R. Carmel Kehati [words in brackets are the translator's additions]

"And thus I [Esther] will approach the king." [Esther 4:16]

Rabbi Yosef Gackon writes, concerning Esther's three-day fast, that Esther [in fasting for exactly three days] had the following kabbalistic intention. Namely, that three days and nights contain seventy-two hours, and "B'chen" ["thus", in 4:16] equals seventy-two numerically [in letter-gematria], corresponding to the [exalted 72-letter] Name of G-d hinted in the three verses [that begin], "Vayisa", "Vayavo","Vayet" [Exodus 14:19, 20, 21, each of which contain seventy-two letters precisely]. It was with the power of this Name that G-d split the [Red] sea and had the Israelites cross over, and He guided them in His protection and they had no fear [of the enemy].

From that Name, [the flow of] the Divine life-force comes to Esther's supernal [corresponding]sefira; for Esther [as our Sages say] was greenish [olive skinned] in complexion [green is a color associated with the sefira Chesed, Divine kindness, as the life-flow descends through the upper worlds]. Esther, with the power of these seventy-two hours, approached [G-d], King of the world, in her prayers; for she was sure of His help [that He would answer her and save the Jews]. Then, in this [lowly physical] world, she approached King Ahasuerus.

Much more at: Secrets in the Book of Esther

[With thanks to Miguel for this link]

''Netanyahu, Obama, Moshiach 5772'' - Torah Codes

Why We Cling to Tzaddikim

Last week there was a discussion in the comments about praying at graves of tzadikim.  Here is an article which will help to explain this. [Article written by Rabbi Dr. Abraham Twerski]

Every person has a direct line with G-d, and we are not permitted to pray to intermediaries. Indeed, the propriety of prayers where we appear to be asking for blessings from angels or for their intervention on our behalf, is the subject of debate, and must be interpreted in such a way that does not violate our basic belief that we relate only to G-d as the One from Whom everything emanates.

Yes, there is also the concept of faith in a tzaddik, which is derived from the verse in Exodus [14:31] "They had faith in G-d and in Moses, His servant". The sages derived from this verse that believing in the leader of Israel is equivalent to believing in the Creator [Mechilta]. In addition, the Talmud states that if there is a sick person in one's household, let him go to a chacham [a wise man] to pray for his recovery [Bava Basra 116a]. Inasmuch as everyone has a direct contact with G-d and we do not work through intermediaries, why is the prayer of a tzaddik more potent that one's own prayer?

There are several ways in which we can understand the concept of faith in a tzaddik. First and foremost is that the opinion of a wise man, a tzaddik, as a Torah authority, must be accepted and followed even if we are in disagreement with it [Sifri, Deut 17:11].

There is also a concept of receiving a blessing from a tzaddik and this has its basis in a statement from G-d to Abraham "And you will be a blessing" [Gen 12:2] which the Midrash interprets to mean that G-d gave Abraham the power to bless people, and that gift has been given to other tzaddikim as well. Nevertheless, a person must understand that even though the tzaddik conveys the blessing, the origin of the blessing is G-d.

A woman once came to Rabbi Mordechai of Chernobel, pleading for a blessing to have a child. To the amazement of the bystanders, the Rabbi, who was exceptionally kind and benevolent, said brusquely to her "I'm sorry, I cannot help you". The woman left the room tearful and broken hearted.

Noting the bewilderment of his chassidim, Rabbi Mordechai said "Just wait a few moments, then go find the woman and bring her back here." The chassidim did as they were told and when the woman came back, the Rabbi asked her "What did you do when you left here?"

The woman replied "I turned my eyes to Heaven and I said "Dear G-d, the Rabbi refuses to help me. Now You are my only hope. Bless me that I have a child."

Rabbi Mordechai said to the chassidim "This woman believed that I had magical powers, and she was trusting in me rather than in G-d. When I refused her request, she placed her trust in G-d where it belongs. She will now be blessed with a child."

The primary function of a tzaddik is to assist people in the proper service of G-d, to help them recognize their character defects and show them how to do teshuvah.

The power of a tzaddik is in his strong belief in G-d, and anyone who has that strong a belief can bring about similar results. When the tzaddik prays for a sick person, for example, and says that G-d is the healer of the sick, his belief is so strong that it actually brings down the Divine healing upon the person. In fact, said Rabbi Mordechai, the prime reason for having a relationship with a tzaddik is to learn how to perfect one's belief in G-d.

Extracted from "Not Just Stories" by Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski MD
Published by Shaar Press

Video: The Lubavitcher Rebbe would often answer requests by saying that he would pray for the person at the grave of his father-in-law, the previous Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak.