The Secret of the Dreidel
BSD
HERE IS A TEACHING FROM THE BENAI YISSASSCHAR ON THE MYSTERY OF THE SEVIVON, THE DREIDEL. MAY YOU HAVE AN ILLUMINATED CHANUKA
LISTEN HERE
http://www.mediamax.com/kolrena/Hosted/chanuka%20dreidel%2
UPCOMING SHIURIM IN NY
BSD
I am pleased to announce a series of Shiurim on Chanuka and Emuna which I will give in New York.
Sunday DEC 2 at 9:45 AM
SHEEFA SEMINARY
Young Israel of Far Rockaway
716 Beach 9th Street
Wednesday DEC 5 at 8:15 PM
Home of the Frishman Family
329 Beach Ninth Street
Far Rockaway.
718 471 3223.
Thursday DEC6 at 8:00 PM
Home of Atanelov Family
141-23 72nd Avenue.
Kew Garden Hills
917 239 0046
I WILL ALSO BE IN TEANECK FOR SHABBOS CHANUKA
PLEASE JOIN US!
I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO SEEING YOU. IF YOU WOULD LIKE A PRIVATE APPOINTMENT, PLEASE EMAIL ME AT
KOLRENA@YAHOO.COM
PARSHAT VAYEITZEI 5768
B’H PARSHAS VAYETZE 5768 YERUSHALAYIM IR HAKODESH
In this week’s Parsha, the Jewish Nation is born. The Shiftei Kah, the tribes that testify to the existence and involvement of Hashem in the world, come into being. The children were born in the exile of the house of Lavan. With the birth of the first son of Rochel Emainu, the command to leave exile is given and the Bnai Yisrael begin the ascent to Eretz Yisrael. This departure from the first galus was not simple, and Lavan, the personification of exile, runs after the family, accusing them with all sorts of lies. Yaakov Avinu is finally able to express verbally the frustration he has lived with as Lavan cheated and manipulated him, accusing him of ridiculous imagined crimes. This is the frustration we feel as our nation suffers from the hands of the enemy and hears the voices of so called friends admonishing self control and diplomacy. The outright lies of Lavan, coming from the Bayit Lavan, the White House, totally shamelessly uttered echo the double standard treatment of terrorism that condemns the world to its fate.
The people mentioned in the Torah are not just private individuals living a personal life. They are also not limited to their midos and tafkid. The Torah personalities were the very personification of higher spiritual concepts. The seven sefirot are symbolized in the seven fathers. Avraham Avinu is the paradigm of Chesed, Yitzchak Avinu is Gevura, Yaakov Avinu is Tiferes, Moshe Rabbeinu is Netzach, Aharon Hakohein is Hod, Yosef Hatzadik is Yesod and Dovid Hamelech is Malchus.
On a deeper level, Avraham Avinu became the Tzinor, the pipeline, the channel through which Chesed is brought into the world, and the same with all the Seven Shepherds.
Rochel Emainu and Leah Emainu are similarly used throughout Talmudic and Kabbalistic literature as archetypes, but their symbolism is not quite as clear cut as the men.
Rochel Emainu is referred to as the Olam Hanigleh- the revealed world, the Torah, the world prior to Mashiach and the teacher and mother of all the tribes. She is called Akeres Habayis and Eim Habanim Semaycha, the glorious world of joy.
Leah is referred to as the Olam Hanistar- the hidden world, the power of Tefilla, the world after Mashiach and the mysterious world of tears.
What is Rochel Emainu all about? Why was she beloved? What was wrong with Leah Emainu?
The students of the Baal Shem Tov all explain that the revealed beauty of Rochel Emainu/ Torah satisfies all souls. An inspiring Dvar Torah, a satisfying shiur, a beautifully written sefer are accepted by Jews as part of who and what we are. The inner work that Leah/ Tefilla demands, the humility, the time and effort and its lack of direct results are what make Tefilla come in second on our list of Avoda. We don’t hear people who come to hear a shiur talking as the teacher teaches, but we are not as careful in shul. The eyes of Leah are sensitive from her tefilos, but we are not always zocheh to cry in tefilla. Our distancing ourselves from tefilla is often a function of our feeling discouraged at our apparent inadequacy.
Yet, the main teaching of the Baal Shem Tov was that every word uttered in tefilla is accepted, answered, and beloved.
Dovid Hamelech, the first Mashiach, was as misunderstood and relatively unloved as his ancestor Leah. The pouring of the collective Jewish heart into Tehillim will hopefully correct this and enable us to accept his descendant, the upcoming Mashiach, without machloket.
There is, of course, much more…
Rochel Emainu represents Hashem in His revealed state, and Leah Emainu represents Hashem in His concealed state. What does this mean?
The Torah teaches that when a Jew fulfills Torah and Mitzvos properly, he and she will have a good life. If we keep Torah in
For such a perfect family, we would expect, want and demand perfect results. We want to see the children turning out well, holy, cheerful, well adjusted and balanced. When we see these results, it is a revealed Chesed, a revealed miracle. It is a revelation of Hashem in a direct, clear unambiguous and revealed way. This is the Rochel Emainu way. This is what she represented. Truth, perfection and clarity. We love to see a happy ending to a story- it is beautiful in our eyes when things go right in this world. Rochel Emainu represents that beauty, that fairness, that happy ending.
Leah Emainu is a different story altogether. She represents doing the hard work of changing your bad midos, of fixing your self, or of being fixed, sometimes against your own will. Hashem is often and perhaps more frequently concealed in our lives. We don’t always see His Hand, His Kindness, His perfect reasons for everything. If our perfect family has Chalila illness, or a child isn’t behaving as properly as he should, or parnassa is a challenge, then our faith is also challenged. How can this happen to such god people, we wonder. And we, and they, have to begin the deep inner work of Emuna, of Bitachon, of trust in Hashem, of making ourselves B’Simcha. When challenges happen to good people, it is not apparently and outwardly a beautiful picture.
The world of Leah, and what she represents, is often times unloved- and not by Tzaddikim who understand the value of inner work, but by us regular Jews. We understand the need to grow, we understand that there is no real reward without effort, yet we pray to be spared the tests that push us higher.
More on Rochel and Leah next week, BSD.
Have a great and sweet Shabbos!
Parshat Vayaitzai- Rochel and Leah
BSD YERUSHALAYIM IHK
The Torah tells us that Leah was ‘Snuah’- hated. How can this be? Is it possible that the Bechir Haavot, the perfect Tzaddik Yaakov Avinu failed in the fundemental Mitzva of loving a fellow, especially his wife? Could he have overlooked the Torah teaching of not hating another Jew?
What is the deeper difference between Rochel Emainu and her sister Leah Emainu? Listen here…
http://www.mediamax.com/kolrena/Hosted/ROCHEL%20AND%2
Geula, Emuna and Current Events
Recognizing that we are in the Geula process can give us the necessary tools to deal with our Emuna challenges. Listen here to help relieve your yearning heart….
Parshas Toldos
BSD
Why does the Torah talk about the wells that our forefathers dug? What does this have to do with our present lives? Listen here…
Chayai Sara
BSD
How can we learn to enjoy every moment of life? Listen here…
Chayai Sara- The Place of Love