We Jews are ancient, expert travelers in time.  We are given special times, from our holy Torah and wise Sages, in which we can help mend, renovate and elevate the entire creation. The whole month of Elul along with the first twenty two days of the month of Tishrei are a case in point. To the rest  of the nations these days are merely times on a calendar that hangs  on a wall, destined  to be marked off and discarded. For us, these sanctified days are our “time machine” that transports us to new levels of holiness (kiddusha). If we program this “time-craft” of opportunity carefully according to the laws (halachas) and  customs (minhagim), fill it with the fuel of enthusiasm and adjust our trajectory by keeping our proper spiritual focus, we can strive to reach into the “stratosphere” of kiddusha undeterred by the pull of  the atmosphere around us.

THE COUNT DOWN  – T minus 30 Days:[1]

ALL CHODESH ELUL : Take on board sefarim on Musar and Chassidus to inspire thoughts of teshuvah. Sefardim begin saying Slichos and blowing the shofar, Ashkenazim blowing the shofar and many are reciting additional Tehilim. We now have a unique opportunity to prepare for our new journey:  (The space shuttle is launched in two stages.  At liftoff, it uses boosters and main engines.)

T minus (minimally) 4 days: (Main engines ignite in staggered intervals.)  Ashkenazim begin to say Slichos the Motzei Shabbos before Rosh Hashanah which can fall no less than four days before Rosh Hashanah in order to allow for final countdown preparations. A small reminder of the power of these days:  {These engines provide 1.2 million pounds of thrust and the boosters provide 6,600,000 pounds of thrust.} 

T minus I day:   (Main engines commanded to lift off position.)

EREV ROSH HASHANAH.  It seems that there could not possibly be sufficient time to achieve what needs to be accomplished before we set off.  However, through various minhagim and halacot such as:  hataras nedarim, fasting until chatzos, toveling in the mikvah and other Yom Tov preparations culminating in halacot narot, we are then able to reach the necessary level of energy and preparedness for our holy mission. Erev Rosh Hashanah is the last moment before take-off :{In order to attain orbit,  the space craft has to accelerate  from zero to eighteen thousand miles per hour and travel at an altitude higher than most of the Earth’s atmosphere.}

T minus 0 seconds: Rosh Hashanah seen as the lift off for the New Year :       ( Onboard computers ignite solid rocket boosters; three main engines at 100 per cent thrust level. Ground launch sequence terminated, lift off.) 

ROSH HASHANA:  All of the external preparations – the Yom Tov clothing, the festive meals and the internal preparations of introspection, learning halachas, making resolutions- are done, and here we are.  We lift up our machzorim and feel the weight of the awesome and spectacular task that lies ahead of us.

Rosh Hashanah, the – rosh – head, is truly the beginning of the new year, setting the trajectory which in turn sets the course for the whole year.  Using delicate instruments consisting of  halachot and minhagim, it fine tunes the three essential dimensions of  person-nefesh, place-makom and time-z’man.

The first tikun in the dimension of nefesh is when upon concluding our tefillos on Rosh Hashanah eve we greet and bless our friends and families with the wish that they be inscribed for a good year.

The tikun achieved for the dimension of time—z’man is through the sounds of the shofar.  The sounds of the shofar are halachically regulated by the length and number of the notes which help to rectify the dimension of time. These holy customs and laws are infinitely more powerful than the following moshal: {At lift off the shuttle with its boosters and fuel weighs 4.5 million pounds and takes eight seconds to accelerate to a speed of one hundred miles per hour.  After one minute,  the craft is traveling at 1,000 miles per hour and has used more than one and one half million –pounds of fuel.}

T plus 2 days: Solid rocket boosters separate.

ASERES YIMAI TESHUVA: Rosh Hashanah with its stirring tefillos,  awe inspiring melodies and soul searching shofar blasts proclaims Hashem’s Kingship. Now it is the fast day – Tzom Gedalia, the third day of the ten days of repentance. Even during the fast we are still continuing to ascend:  {When it reaches an altitude of twenty eight miles, and is traveling at 3,000 miles per hour, it jettisons its boosters.} 

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T plus 9 days:  (The three main engines continue to fire.)

EREV YOM KIPPUR. Sometimes we feel distant from the process, as if the judgment is going to happen to someone else, but as Erev Yom Kippur arrives we all become very involved, feeling the day of awe and hope is soon to be with us. This dichotomy within us also exists in the creation:  {The engines burn liquid hydrogen – which at  minus 423 degrees Fahrenheit is the second coldest liquid on earth – with liquid oxygen. When they unite and burn the mixture can reach a temperature of 6,000 degrees Fahrenheit – higher then the boiling point of iron.}

T plus 10 days:  Space Craft  attains preliminary orbit.

YOM KIPPUR.  We are now shaping the path and direction of the coming Year. We are accelerating very quickly because we must break out of the physical atmosphere and move into a very unique spiritual zone.

To do this we need let go of those habits and thoughts that have weighed us down and taken their toll upon us in the past year. This is a critical moment, allowing for our final stage of being freed from the past:  {After that period of time, the space craft, in an ovoid (oblong) orbit, reaches a speed of five miles per second.  The engines shut down, the external fuel tank is jettisoned and the shuttle will have consumed more than 3.5 million pounds of fuel}.

T minus 14 days:  (Orbital maneuvering system engines are fired.)

SUKKOS.  We now are dwelling in our Sukkas.  For an entire week we live inside this unique mitzvah where we rebalance ourselves and establish our course for the year, free of the gravitational pull of our daily lives.  We wave the lulav, esrog and two other species in all six directions suggesting an empowerment over all of the spatial orientations and also symbolizing the Heavenly gift of freedom from attachment to the – teva – nature through our deepening connection with the Creator. Our avoda on Succos is essential for our spiritual growth in the upcoming year.   :  {If nothing more was done, the space craft would begin to descend and re-enter the atmosphere.  However, about a half hour after the main engines have shut down, usually as the shuttle reaches the highest point in the ovoid orbit, the two orbital maneuvering system engines, are fired for about three minutes. This causes the spacecraft to travel in a circular orbit that stabilizes it at a safe altitude above the atmosphere.}

From this elevated position which spiritually parallels Shimini Atzeres/ Simchas Torah we are truly free of  the gravitational pull of this world.  We enter a euphoric / blissful state of “free fall” sustained and supported by rapturous song and ecstatic dance while embracing the holy Sefer Torahs.

These first twenty-two days have been given to us as a blessing to assure our proper and safe “take off” directing us properly to our new set of goals for the New Year.   May we all travel together, returning in joy and peace to our land, with the advent of the Mashiach soon in our days.

[1]  The data for the space shuttle reported here is provided by the National Space Agency. It is in no way meant to minimize our days of holiness or limit them to the physical world. These figures are only here to help alert us to the awesome power of these days and the (advoda) myriads of opportunities in them.

             Chanukah, unlike the Yomim Tovim, seemingly requires very little of us; we are not asked to refrain from most of our daily tasks. We achieve this zeman’s spiritual goal by lighting the menorah on each of the eight nights of Chanukah, at the appointed time, and in so doing we declare the ability of the compassionate Creator to rekindle our (neshamos) souls even as we experience the depths of galus.

            What is the theological “technology” that enables a relatively small flame that burns only for a brief period of time to light up the “spiritual darkness” that envelops the world?

           It is well documented that light and sound can have a profound effect upon the human psyche, affecting health and mood. Alternative medical practitioners, utilizing these principles, have developed light-wave and sound-wave therapies which are growing in popularity. It is claimed that these therapies allow the body and psyche to “re-balance and realign” themselves.

            To us, as Jews this should come as no surprise as we have been blessed with the holy Torah that has guided us with the inner secret wisdom of spiritual rectification at its source– at the level of soul. Thus we begin our year on Rosh Hashanah with a unique (mitzvah) commandment in that through listening to the sounds of the shofar we become spiritually retuned in harmony with the Creator’s “blueprint”, in plan and purpose, for our neshamas. This supernal “sound wave therapy” helps to guide us in our spiritual journey throughout the New Year.

             Due to the harshness of the long galus, Chazal have added to our “prescriptions” of spiritual antidotes, a subtle but highly effective “lazer light wave therapy.” The precisely directed (neiros) lights of Chanukah possess the inner illuminating power to dispel even the most obscurant darkness.

               Through this mitzvah of kindling the light of Chanukah beginning from 25^th of Kislev, (which is alluded to by the 25^th word of the Torah being – ohr – light) we our privileged to tap into the “light from Above” – the (Ohr ha-Ganuz) hidden light. This supernal beneficence at this auspicious time brings with it insight, clarity and purification.

                   Oh yes, before we conclude, let us also not forget to enjoy and appreciate the latkes or other fried foods that will be served on Chanukah. This custom celebrates the role of the flask of pure oil found in the restored Bais Hamikdash. Shemen zayis symbolizes wisdom. Perhaps by eating these foods fried in shemen zayis on Chanukah we are simultaneously proclaiming, as well as benefiting from the plentiful flow of Divine wisdom that is available at this auspicious time.

                    (Shemen zayis is the desirable component of one of the praised seven fruits of Eretz Israel (shivas ha-minim). It is obtained by squeezing the olives with intense pressure. A well know (moshal) example compares the potential within each Jew to the untapped value with the olive, in that our best achievements are often produced when we are under pressure to meet a challenge.) May our eight day dosage of ner Chanukah’s “supernal illumination” revitalize us, helping to dispel the “darkness” of (galus) the exile and ushering in the long awaited final (Geulah) redemption, shining in radiant splendor, soon in our days.

When thousands of katyusha rockets were falling in Eretz Yisrael, there were many I’m sure who wished there was some way to put a “protective roof” over the entire country.  In the last few years we have lost life and land all in the name of “security” and yet have found it to be an illusive goal. It continues to elude those who try to achieve it in a natural way, but if we seek it under Torah guidance, we will find direction as well as assistance from a mitzvah that defies all of our concepts of security. What is that mitzvah, you may ask?   It is the mitzvah of sukkah.

Through the year we dwell in homes that are solidly constructed to provide us with insulation, protection and privacy. The security we experience in these dwellings is a paradigm for the external reality of  nature, which cloaks the Creator‘s essence within it.  When we leave our homes to dwell in the Sukkah, we are proclaiming that we desire to relinquish our man-made “security” for true Divine protection.

The succah is a conduit of holiness affording a unique and incomparable spiritual shelter with its halachic dimensions and regulations designed to effectuate that goal.  One of the fascinating halachas of the succah (lavud) declares a wall to be kosher even when there exists a gap of up to three tefachim between the wall and the ground as long as the remaining halachic requirements for the walls are met.  Our Sages inform us that a space of three tefachim or more would enable a (g’di) a kid goat, to be able to creep underneath the wall. What is the significance of the fact that the standard of measure is  a g’di?   A possible explanation may be found in understanding the attributes of the g’di and in the seemingly unconnected “assaults” upon Yerushalayim that occurred a few years ago. Yes, that’s right, the attempted assaults against Jerusalem as we will soon see.

Viewed from this prospective, two incidents which occurred in the summer of last year take on a very different coloration.  One was a scheduled event that did not, Baruch Hashem, take place and the other was an unscheduled event that did occur. R’l.  The scheduled event was a march and rallies planned and promoted by the proponents of certain lifestyles that brazenly defy Torah law. This rally was to take place in Yerushalayim for seven days in Chodesh Av.  The “unscheduled event” was the military conflict which escalated into a war during the same period which was ostensibly launched against Hezbollah for the  return two soldiers that they had abducted. The month  long conflict ended with a cease fire, but without the return of the captured soldiers. On the surface the entire military engagement may seem to have been futile; however the conflict did achieve at least one unforeseen goal as it served as the catalyst  for the cancellation of the march and rally.

The holy city of Jerusalem, like the sukkah, is (when we merit it) surrounded not only by physical walls but also is privy to Divine protection. However, these spiritually protective walls do not tolerate the encroachment of anyone who attempts to defy their sanctity. Our Sages have given us the gauge for measuring such abhorrent behavior through the symbolism of the g’di , a young goat (az) whose trait arrogance (azut).

Hence the attempted intrusion of the holy city of Yerushalayim by the ultra liberal left was fortunately cancelled. Nothing less than the withdrawal from Gaza was the rational cause for the cancellation of the march and rally at that time. Last year they again attempted to breech the holy “walls” of Jerusalem; because of the “redeeming” factor of the war this rally too was cancelled.

How was the war with Hizbullah connected to the spiritual “war” with the marchers and the halachic boundaries of the Sukkah ? The s’chach that covers our Sukkah  must be thick enough to provide more shade than sun, yet not loose its halachic porous quality. This perhaps indicates that we should always remain under the “shade”/ guidance and protection of only Hashem and give no credibility, power or independence to ideologies that may offer some perceived glimmer of “light”.

The Torah clearly warns us that the power of our enemies derives not from their tactics or military might but from our failure to uphold the honor of Hashem by keeping His Torah properly. This breach in Eretz Israel can only exist if our “walls of faith”, which supports the protective s’chach, becomes weakened.  What is the solution for us in the future to prevent such a tragedy? By keeping our “walls” of faith and purity intact by not allowing any unholiness to breach our lives then the spiritual “s’chach” of Divine protection will become impenetrable to any potentially harmful forces.

Each of the seven days of succah is a unique time to connect with the different aspects of kedusha ,exemplified through the seven shepard’s of the Jewish nation (Ushpizin). Each of our righteous forefathers continues to positively influence all the future generations aiding us to bend (dofin ha-koma) towards the altruistic service of Hashem thereby drawing down holiness as well as protecting us from all negative influences.

Our adversaries scheduled a seven day rally as a statement of “defiance”, whereas we dwell in the succah for seven days as a proclamation of “compliance” May we merit the building of Sukkas David  soon in our days.

              It’s the night (lay’l) of Pesach with all the family and guests joined together around the Seder table. After Kiddush on wine the head of the household (Bal HaBais)divides the middle matzah, wraps up the larger piece for the end of the meal (Afikomin) and puts it snugly  behind his pillow.  Later in the evening (seder) someone points to the place of the afikoman and whispers to the child, “Take it now, quickly, while he’s not looking.” The child hesitates, feeling quite shy having been brought up with proper values of respect and honesty. This night everything at the house looks so different. The table is much longer than usual filled with relatives and guests — it’s white and beautiful with lots of shiny glasses, sparkling silver. But then with a little more prodding and a burst of courage he moves closer to the treasured hidden away afikomen, hesitating, until some one prompts him, “Quick, grab it and run.”

  For a second, he feels afraid, but as soon as it is in his hand, he feels an exhilarating surge of excitement and exuberance. Even after hiding it he continues to feel energized and successful. Much later, when the child is asked to return the afikoman, he doesn’t give it right back, being prodded by others to first ask for a nice prize.

    Doesn’t this conduct seem a quite odd?  Here we are seemingly allowing our small untainted children to take something that doesn’t belong to them and on top of that extort a reward for their efforts on one of the holiest nights of the year. How can we possibly understand this conduct?

  Perhaps we can explain this unusual behavior as follows. Usually the selfish inclination (yetzer hara) tries to lure a person into improper behavior through offering feelings of ephemeral thrills and excitement. Even though we want to avoid such conduct, the problem we face is that we simply cannot discard the yetzer hara.  As in the well known book of Medrashim, when the Sages davened to remove the yetzer hara and Hashem answered their tefillos, even the chickens stopped laying eggs. The yetzer hara is necessary but needs to be controlled. The challenge to us is to sur mei ra, avoid evil, yet preserve our enthusiasm and direct it to our ma’asim tovim.  But how do we do this? 

   Perhaps, this is precisely what we are achieving when we encourage our children to take the afikomen.  We are allowing our young pure children to experience the excitement that is usually motivated by the yetzer hara when engaged in risky, dangerous and thrill seeking conduct.  We do this by giving them a controlled dose of the “taste of desire.” As the child grows up, that spiritual inoculation that was administered l’shem Shamayim with love will then continue to act as an antidote against the infectious negative powers of the yetzer hara.  Indeed, that dose of controlled enthusiasm, experienced by the child on lay’l Pesach, will enable him to rekindle those exuberant feelings throughout the year directing them in a positive mode while learning Torah, performing mitzvos and ma’asim tovim.

But how can experiencing this “controlled taste of desire” both act as a vaccine shielding the child from learning mis-conduct, while at the same time inspiring the him with enthusiasm for all things that are Holy? It is because of the setting in which this “taste” is given. Let us remember, the seder night is referred to as – lay’l shemurim, the night of Divine protection – the perfect night for this process to take place as it is a time when negative forces are subdued. 

    You may be wondering, how can this spiritual “inoculation” continue to protect us into our adult years?   Possibly the answer is we use “booster shots”!  Oh, we are not suggesting that this Pesach we grab the afikoman, however we should watch the one who is taking it and allow that “small child” inside each of us to relive and rekindle our own feelings of inner joy and exuberance, thereby rekindling our youthful enthusiasm in the service of Hashem.

May we all merit soon to be able to fulfill the mitzvah of afikoman in Jerusalem at the final geula soon in our days.

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   (The attribute of exuberance and excitement was “stolen” (so to speak) by the negative powers (yetzer hora) through the errors of mankind. On the night of Pesach we are able to “re-capture” these sparks of holiness and use them to bring back Divine spirituality into this world Since the yetzer took it through “theft” we re-capture it, through an act that looks like theft, at this time of Pesach when the forces of darkness are vanquished.)

The rain  washed down the windshield in torrents undeterred by the wipers. The driver wiped his bleary eyes and the world swam. Only a few more miles, he thought and I will be able to deliver the medicine from the pharmacy and go home.  He glanced at the directions scribbled on a wrinkled paper.  Here’s the turn.  There’s the house.  He wearily unlatched the car door, hitched his jacket over his head and moved quickly through the Spring storm to the front door.  As the door bell rang , he heard   the sound of small feet running in his direction.

The door opened and he blinked to adjust his eyes to the dim light inside.  He looked and nearly giggled, “It’s nighttime, he thought, “do you know where your children are?”  If you don’t , they are probably here tiptoeing one behind the other in a long uneven line, following a man carrying a candle near to the ground, squinting as he stoops down and peers into the back of a sofa cushion.   No one paid attention to the stranger at the door, except for one small boy who seemed to be motioning him to join in. The young delivery man stood there awkwardly staring at this odd sight, early memories stirring deep within him.

What could he be thinking – this stranger? What could he understand of this Jewish law and time honored custom of (bedikas chumetz) – the searching for any grain product, such as bread and cake, that has risen.  Now, we know what it is all about, we are used to it, we understand it – or do we?

It is  Erev Pesach.   We have just spent weeks cleaning our homes from top to bottom, making certain that not one crumb of chumetz remains anywhere in our realm.  We have scoured  every crevice, turned each pocket inside out and emptied our children’s secret treasure troves of cookies and pretzels.  And just  as we have begun to feel that unique once- a -year feeling, that sense that we really have managed to rid ourselves of every crumb — at that  moment – we assign someone to secretly hide (the custom being ten) pieces of chumetz throughout our homes and possessions. Then specifically in the darkness of  the night we make a candle light “search”– and as we find each piece, we carefully sweep it triumphantly away with the help of a feather and a wooden spoon into a guarded place.

Why are we doing this?  Is it merely symbolic?  What is going on?

What would this soggy stranger think, if we told him that we were regaining our freedom with those ten pieces of bread?

Yet, it is actually true.  The night of bedikas chumetz,  like every other meaningful event in life has three components, the person, that is ourselves,  place and time.  The Creator is referred to as HaMakom , the

Place,  because there is no place devoid of His Presence.  However Hashem has made room for us and allows us and our possessions to exist in His world. When we do bedikas chumetz, we are proclaiming that  it is His world and we are his invited guests.  When we accept this upon ourselves and fulfill the commandment that requires us to  relinquish a kosher, ordinarily innocuous possession , that is when we begin to taste freedom.  This is because it  is difficult to pull away from the lures of this world which can enslave us, and addict us and  remove our freedom of choice. But when Hashem directs us to do so, and we comply, He provides us with the ability to let go.

The third component of this event is time which  plays the major role in our Pesach preparations.  It is only time that separates chumetz from matzah, for they both start with the same ingredients, flour and water.  Chumetz, leaven, is created through a process of fermentation that causes pockets of air to form in the flour and water mixture, expanding the dough and making it grow large.  Like dough, egos can also be inflated.  The leavening agents can be  money, power, vanity or fame, together with the flattery that catalyzes them into a bubbling brew that pumps up our sense of self importance. One extra moment can mark the difference between leavened and unleavened –one moment can be enough to transform  the mixture of flour and water from permissible matzah into forbidden chumetz. And it only takes but a moment of time for us to feel achieved and congratulate ourselves for our accomplishments thus improperly taking personal credit for that which Hashem has given to us.

So as we make our bedikas chumetz or any other mitzvah, we should try to do so with the un-self conscious innocence, inspiration and joy of a child.

Now with a better understanding of the need for the bedika, let us ask but why search in the darkness of night? We might think that it is not such a good idea as evening symbolizes the powers of the dark side- the sitra achra.  However, on this special night, we are given the assignment and ability to enter its realm on a “search and destroy mission”.  In those moments, that ner/candle is a holy spiritual beam that is able to penetrate deeply to expose any sign of ego inflation. In the esoteric tradition the Ner represents a vessel for the – shefa – the holy influence that channels the Divine Radiance thereby illuminating any dark or hidden places, allowing us find, identify and remove any impurities. Through the removal of any “excess baggage” we are then prepared  to receive  the special (kiddusha) holiness that permeates  the night of Passover.

One final thought on the multifaceted value of the bedikas chumetz. The ideal way to perform this minhag is to allow some member of the house or close friend to hide some small portions of bread or mezzonos. Many have the custom of  placing ten pieces for esoteric reasons and also to insure the finding of some chumetz in an already thoroughly clean home.  But this practical reason is not necessarily the only explanation.

This hunt for chumetz is a joint mitzvah that gets everyone involved in an effort to accomplish this task.       So in the years when my children were young, we would use this night to send a not-so-subtle message to them.  Chumetz  would be put in places where old battles were fought.  So, for the child who would leave his shoes in the middle of the room for others to trip over, chumetz would be put in that shoe.  For another

child, a messy closet was the battle ground and she would find a piece of chumetz there.  We would all end our bedikas chumetz laughing over things that frustrated us during the year. Pesach is a time of unity and what better way to nurture this idealistic state than making a bedika  from within and without.

This captivating ritual of bedikas chumetz,  one of the many heart warming mitzvot of Pesach, transforms a mundane cleaning process  into a sacred and mystical rite. This creates the atmosphere in which Pesach is renewed each year – And as Pesach is renewed – so are we. As for the young delivery man who was standing at the entranceway, may that glimpse into the Pesach experience be just the right “prescription” for his transformation.

La Shana Haba bi-Jerusalem  –  La Shana Haba bi-Jerusalem

In a few impacting verses (pesukim) in the beginning of the Book of Exodus (Sefer Shemos) , the Torah sets in motion the political and emotional forces that were to keep the children of Israel in bondage for the next two hundred and ten years.  These same forces have operated as a snare throughout history and are present today, only the stage setting has been specially designed to lure this generations unwary into its web of spiritual bondage. The mindset that led to their subjugation in Egypt was their yearning to be like everyone else – to assimilate into the culture of whatever country they found themselves in. There are those who in their eagerness to be a part of the culture, may mistakenly replace their service of the Creator (Hashem) with loyal service to the governing regime in a manner far beyond and above that which is required by the ordinary dictates of good citizenship.

Pharaoh, who personifies the Jewish nemesis, the yetzer hara, understood that as long as the Jewish people were living in accordance with high standard of spiritual development referred to as the “Children of (Bnei) Israel,” he would not be able to subjugate them.  They were the beneficiaries of Hashem’s promise to Avraham our forefather (Avinu) In order to prevent their assimilation, Hashem transformed the appreciation the Egyptians previously had into a feeling that the Bnei Israel had become a threat to them. Pharaoh, then changed its form, face and presentation in order to subjugate the Israelites and turn them into servants of the state.

To induce the Israelites to participate in their building program, the Egyptians hung a brick kiln around Pharaoh’s neck, inviting the Jews to join him in brick making.  Each man went to work making as many bricks as possible, which thereafter became the expected quota. The Jews thus became willing accomplices in their own enslavement, wooed and won over by this appeal to “love of country.” This technique, oft repeated in Jewish history.

Modern society today poses a different but equally challenging test, by luring its citizens towards the ephemeral standards of the times. Their value scale of success is graded by such “yardsticks” as how wealthy and famous one is. The lifestyle that emerges from this philosophy can be as, if not more, detrimental to spiritual growth than the servitude imposed by the Egyptians.

Addicted to Bondage

By the time the Israelites began to see the futility and hypocrisy of their alliance with Pharaoh, it was too late. The Bnei Yisrael were given the task of building arei miskenos, cities, whose names were Pisom and Ra’amseis. The word miskenos has the same root as the word miskein which means misfortune or poverty.    Pisom means sudden or immediate.  It also can refer to the mouth of the abyss, pi tehom (Midrash Rabba I:10).  Ra’am means loud, like a thunderclap.

In our hectic lives, where sudden and immediate claims upon our time are an all too frequent occurrence, if we are not discerning, we may find that we are building Pisom.  We may also necessarily be building Ra’amses, since these calls to duty are usually loud and very difficult to ignore. One of the ploys of the yetzer hara is to persuade us that we must accomplish everything we have set out to do which can lead to feel overwhelmed. Pharaoh well understood that working without respite on purposeless tasks that could never be completed would weaken the physical, mental, emotional and most importantly spiritual health of the Nation.

Acting too quickly and assuming excessive obligations without enough considered thought as to their value and purpose can make a person feel as if they are enslaved.  The work was kasha, hard.  This word is related to the word for straw, kash, to hint to us that work is hard when it is like straw to us, that is, when it is commonplace and purposeless.   Mortar, chomer, which in Hebrew also means material, represents that which is stripped of spiritual content and inspiration.  Even without purpose and without inspiration we can still produce leveinim, bricks, but when one works under those circumstances they are reduced to field laborers (avoda basadeh) deprived of higher motivation, dignity and joy.

Salvation

But take heart; there is a way out.  There is an answer that may surprise us.

When we stop and take stock of our options and our strengths, the time we have, the things we must do in order to fulfill our obligations as Jews as opposed to those things that we may be doing to serve some other cultural demand, we may be pleasantly surprised by the result.  We may be able to simplify our lives and our goals and live in greater harmony then we ever thought possible.  The job of the Egyptian taskmasters was to maximize the burdens upon the Israelites which ultimately shortened their servitude and enhanced their purification in the caldron that was Egypt.  It is precisely when the “task masters of time” bear down upon us that we have the opportunity to cull the necessary from the unnecessary and focus upon those matters that are essential to our avoda can be reached by sincerely asking for Hashem’s help in the process.

This will actualize Pharaoh’s fear that we will  “go up [be raised up] from the land.”  “The land” which represents our physical and mental attachment to this world will no longer have a hold on us.  When we cleave to Hashem through His Torah, we will be elevated to a higher level of consciousness referred to as “the children of (Bnei) Israel.”

The Torah teaches us that the more the Jewish nation was afflicted the more they increased and spread out. This means that even during this period when we, as a nation, were far from reaching the perfect service of Hashem, His Divine Radiance was still with us.  In the dark and immoral environment of Egypt, Israelite slaves, who were deprived of all the benefits that culture and civilization are thought to bestow, were being forged into a holy nation.  The very harshness of the bondage actually strengthened the potential in each Israelite, so that when the time was ripe, Hashem would redeem us. The teaching here is very profound. We do not ask for tests, but if they come, they can inspire our best performances. From this spiritual plateau we will not only be free from Pharaoh and Mitzrayim but we will be able to fulfill the will of the Creator in the holy land of Eretz Israel.

May we merit this soon in our days.

It’s just a just time before takeoff, friends have dropped off packages of gifts for their loved ones. We wondered how we were going to fit them all into our bulging suitcases. Before we knew it the car service driver was beeping. We quickly stuffed our cases closed and hoped the zippers would hold out. At the airport, bags in tow we followed an interminable line weaving towards the ticket counter. Upon reaching what was to be the first of many checkpoints the flight security attendant said with a polite, but serious smile:  “How are you today”? Passports and tickets please! Where are going? Is this your first trip there? Where will you be staying? Do you have any relatives there? Oh yes, who? Where do they live? ” He made light conversation but all the while his eyes were locked on ours without a flicker. They felt like x-rays and we got flustered. Somehow we even hesitated over the names of the places are relatives lived.

As the grilling continued all  that was needed was a strong white light focused in our eyes to turn  it  into a full blown interrogation. “Tell me, did any one pack your bags for you? Do you have any electronic equipment inside your bags? Where did you get it? Did you take it from a shelf of the store by yourself or did someone give it to you? Was the package torn? Did anyone give you anything?”

After the initial screening the security officer directed us over to yet another line to have our suitcases ex-rayed in what looked like a giant MRI machine. After our bags came out unscathed with a negative diagnosis, we proceeded to the check in counter. As we struggled to lift our suitcases onto the scales, they seemed to feel quite a bit heavier than they did at home – maybe it’s the gravity at the airport we chuckled. Miraculously the employee did not impose a fine for being overweight and with a sigh of relief we set off to scale our next hurdle.

Moving further along the assembly line we were required to place outer garments, hand bags and all metal possessions on a rolling conveyer belt which passed them through another x-ray machine. Now, hatless, shoeless, jacketless, feeling slightly vulnerable and somewhat intimidated, we walk through the metal archway, which will determine whether we will be “pat searched”. We fortunately passed with good marks but we couldn’t help but notice another frum passenger who was sent to the side for a full blown pat down. Admirably he never lost his pleasant smile as he chatted cordially with the officer, adding after he was exonerated his appreciation for the fine work that the security personal provided. This was a real Kiddush Hashem that both we and that guard will never forget.

Since everything that exists in the world is founded in the Torah, where can we find a Torah source for the interrogation and search of travelers? Yes. The first such search was conducted by Lavan – Jacob’s father-in-law.  When Lavan saw that (Ya’akov) Jacob has taken his family and left , he  chased after them,  bombarded them with a barrage of questions  and then, unsatisfied with the answers, made his own intrusive and thorough search of their possessions – (Parshas Vayeitzei). Some years later, the sons of Ya’akov are subjected to an interrogation and search at the hands of the second most powerful man in all of Egypt, not realizing at the time that that imposing personage was none other than  their brother (Yosef). (Parshas Mikeitz).

What lesson could we possibly learn from these two similar events?  Perhaps the key lies in the intentions of the searchers even more than the search itself. Lavan is the prototype of a clever swindler whose expertise lies in appearing to be superficially (lavan) pure even while his intentions were self-serving and even nefarious. We of course should do our best to steer clear of such people but when unavoidable we should always make the best out of the situation as our forefather Ya’akov did in the house of Lavan.

Of course when well intended loving relatives, true friends and dedicated people “question” our intentions and “search” into our motivations, like Yosef had done with his brothers, we should not resent but actually cherish their words and actions. Now also before Pesach, while we are checking very closely our homes and possessions, let us also check (bodek) every “nock and cranny” of our attitudes for any “leavened” behavior that has become “chumatz  or saor”. This vital search and removal mission is one of the hallmarks of the Pesach transformation that helps free us from the bondage of corporeal constraints and limitations thereby allowing us to travel vertically up the Pesach “ladder”.

On your way to (Pesach) Passover, don’t  pass over Purim.  Ah Purim, how we all appreciate you even though you tantalize us,  mystify us and  laugh with us as we struggle to understand you.   Like Yom Kippur, you help us to reach a destination called forgiveness but what a difference in the trip.  You allow us to atone for our sins with merriment and with eating and with drinking– a lot of drinking.    On Yom Kippur we abstain. On Yom Kippur we remove our shoes, while you get us to put on an extra pair of clown shoes. On Yom Kippur we refrain from anointing ourselves while you allow us to us smear our faces and bodies with extra creams and cosmetics. On Yom Kippur we stay awake and focused while you – Purim – lead us to take an extra drink and or a little extra sleep.  How does this happen?

Maybe we can find an answer using  your mitzvah of drinking wine –everything becomes clearer with a little wine and even clearer with more wine  . . .  Let’s see, where was I ? Oh yes, Drinking can easily bring a person to frivolity and nonsense, yet you, Purim, are (mehapech) the opposite,  you make a switch and the wine we drink takes us up the spiritual ladder towards purity and strivings towards kiddusha.

You’re really clever.  You  fool our (yetzer hora) negative inclination by giving  it just what it wants lots of wine and maybe even some more and then all of a sudden, it can’t connive or deceive any more because (nichnas yayin yotzei sod) once wine goes in, on this unique holy day, then the inner yearnings of our pure Jewish soul come out.

You put masks on us to strip our masks away. All of a sudden we may realize that our regular, ordinary, middle of the road conduct is really the result of our inner battle between these two forces. Now we get a chance to glimpse at our dark side and through the special loftiness of this day can actually laugh at it, with that laughter freeing us from its negative influence hopefully not just for this day, but forever.

When we see beyond the mask, we learn how not to judge. Throughout the year we may be guilty of too quickly evaluating and judging others on a very shallow level. On Purim when a (adel) sweet person puts on a scary mask, we are not frightened because we know that behind the mask is a precious soul.  So, too, in the real world, every Jew has good points which we should focus on and therefore not be so quick to judge anyone superficially.

Ah Purim, you don’t have us simply ask (mechila) forgiveness, of our friends, you tell us to say it with presents.  How so? We give two gifts to at least one friend and minimally one gift to each of two poor people. One of the great Rabbis makes an observation asking why are we obligated to give at least double to a friend and only minimally one gift to each of the poor?  He answers that the poor gratefully accept whatever we offer, but we might have offended our friends over the course of the year and they may continue to harbor resentment. On Purim we are commanded to make a special effort to repair these breaches in all relationships especially those which have weakened. Therefore we should  “redouble” our efforts with sincere gifts and send a clear message to both close friends and  estranged acquaintances  that we are sincerely interested in healing the past and rebuilding the future together. Also we give them gifts that don’t need preparation – ie. ready to eat – to hint to them that they do not have to make any – preparations – changes in themselves – in order for us to accept them as they are.

On Purim, the poor can make us rich.  One reason we are only minimally required to give one gift to each of at least two needy people is because as long as we don’t see the poor as our friends we ourselves are spiritually poor, however, if we see every Jew, including the needy, as our friends, then we will generously lavish them with gifts thereby taking them out of their physical poverty and ourselves our of our spiritual poverty.

Ah Purim, leave us with one more gift, leave us with your special smile which inspires our hearts as we prepare for the next stage of our journey that being the wonderful Pesach transformation.

From the metaphysical to the metaphorical, from the mechanical to the medicinal, trees are sources of wonder and joy, nourishment and nurture. Metaphysically speaking, the Torah teaches that the Tree of Life was a link to eternal existence. Metaphorically speaking, the Torah compares mankind to the trees in the field (Devarim 20,19), and indeed, we exist in a symbiotic relationship with them – so much so, that we speak of ourselves as being “rooted” in reality with ideas that “bear fruit.”

In their mechanical and physical aspects, trees are no less remarkable. Did you know that there are almost 247 billion trees of all sizes in the United States? That is a blessing because even a single tree produces some 260 pounds of oxygen per year, and thus two mature trees can supply enough oxygen per year to meet the needs of a family of four. Trees contribute to the water supply, as well, with our national forests serving as the originating point for drinking water used by some 3400 communities and 60 million individuals. Trees provide shade and wind buffering that reduce annual cooling and heating costs by 2.1 billion dollars, reducing the temperature in buildings some 20 degrees in the summer. Trees are an abundant source of raw material in the form of wood and paper. An average family uses about 750 pounds of paper every year, and 95% of the homes built in this country are made of wood. And these figures don’t even begin to speak of the food that comes from trees.

A Season of Silent Celebration

These statistics bear witness to the extremely productive role played by trees in the worldwide ecosystem, yet we celebrate their New Year during their deepest stage of hibernation, in a still and seemingly lifeless period in the midst of the winter when not a leaf is left to rustle or a fruit remains to be plucked. What is it that causes us to remember the tree at the nadir of its yearly cycle, and how can we understand human productivity in this context?

Indeed, lack of productivity makes many of us uncomfortable and is particularly difficult for the “movers and shakers” – the trendsetters and money makers – who spend their lives amidst the constant hustle and bustle of the fast-paced metropolitan hubs.

In this, the fifth or so generation after the birth of the “Industrial Age,” the goal has been and continues to be efficiency – cheap, mass-produced items whose worth is measured in quantity rather than quality. Indeed, progress in every area of life has come to be based upon that end. In this regard, fruits are plucked before they have ripened, and all sorts of services have been “outsourced” or computerized. The secular media mill is expected to churn out new material each day, and therefore often settles for banality and mediocrity in an effort to feed the voracious appetites of readers, listeners and viewers. Children are placed in a school setting which expects students to learn more and faster by bombarding them with an enormous amount of facts and figures, often at the expense of quality, sensibility and balance.

Growing up in this world, it is no surprise that many feel very uncomfortable when faced with periods of dormancy – times when life seems unproductive, torpid and inactive, and when creativity and inspiration are on the wane. Therefore, it behooves us to try to get to the “root” of the matter and then make concerted efforts to reach up to “pluck” potentially “fruitful” insights that can excite our “taste” for and appreciation of those periods in our lives that are relatively “passive” and appear less productive. Let us now discover from the “tree of life” how to reinvigorate our own lives by learning to view this phase of “cyclic hibernation” as an essential stage that prepares us for the next step in our growth and renewal

Growth Beneath the Surface

Although imperceptible to the external observer, on Tu BiShevat, the life-giving sap, hidden deep within the tree’s core, starts flowing upward, triggering the tree’s awakening. Although human growth is not necessarily tied to the seasons, we, too, undergo transformations – spiritual and psychological restorations that occur well beneath the surface, often hidden even from ourselves; and it is apparent that the winter months lend themselves to the kind of solitude and isolation that is conducive to contemplation and inner change.

As our Sages have informed us, “The greatest of blessings comes from that which is hidden from the eye.” Nonetheless, we have been instructed to begin proclaiming at this time the beracha of “Shehechiyanu,” expressing thanks and praise for this auspicious time.

If it is better to keep this transformative process hidden while it does its work, why do we forgo the benefits of concealment by openly declaring the greatness of this period through our berachos? Perhaps we can venture to say that our proclamation of gratitude and total acknowledgment of the true Source of blessing enables us to tap into an even greater beracha of renewal and growth than does our silence. The blessing of Shehechiyanu acts as a catalyst, catapulting us above and outside the realm of teva (nature), and therefore, we no longer need be concerned with remaining concealed. Now, all of our potential mitzvos and ma’asim tovim can unassumingly begin to be revealed, each in its ideal time and appropriate place.

The illusionary forces of stagnation that correspond to the depth of winter only exist in those who don’t recognize from where the “fruit” of their actions evolves. By binding our souls to the Creator with cords (blessings) of praise and sincere appreciation, however, as through the beracha of Shehechiyanu, we can overcome all impediments, thereby clearly recognizing the great value of each and every stage of our existence, sustenance and development. A seed represents potential. Only after sprouting and undergoing a lengthy gestation period does the seed gradually grow and develop until reaching fruit-bearing maturity. So also do we grow and develop in a slow and gentle unfolding from birth to adulthood. Like trees, however, people cannot truly reach maturity until they actualize their potential by producing luscious “fruits,” which are their mitzvos and ma’asim tovim.

Individual Place of Development

There is another insight that can deepen our understanding and appreciation of the different stages of life. Most trees produce their fruits after relatively few years. One notable exception, however, is the olive tree, which does not begin to bear its highly praised and valuable fruit for many, many years. What can we learn from this phenomenon? Perhaps it is to make us cognizant of the fact that each person’s potential for development has a different timetable. Assuming that we are making our best efforts, we should never become frustrated or envious if we see our peers “succeeding” in ways that we have not. There are early bloomers and late bloomers, but if each of us develops our potential, we will, in the proper time and setting, merit to bear exquisite fruits.

In summary, let us approach this season of potential renewal realizing that even during the quiet, seemingly less productive, or even challengingly restrictive periods of our lives, there is hidden within us a reservoir of potential spiritual influx waiting to be tapped, bringing with it an elevating surge of renewal and inspiration. By acknowledging our belief in the absolute governance of the compassionate Creator, we can remove the personal impediments of imagined limitations, thereby enhancing our potential for rejuvenation, change and growth. May we all together raise our voices in thanks, proclaiming Shehechiyanu for our existence, veki’yemanu for our growth and sustenance, and vehigianu for developing and bringing us la’zeman hazeh – to this special moment in time.

Chanukah, unlike the Yomim Tovim, seemingly requires very little of us; we are not asked to refrain from most of our daily tasks. We achieve this zeman’s spiritual goal by lighting the menorah on each of the eight nights of  Chanukah,  at the appointed time, and in so doing we declare the ability of  the compassionate Creator to rekindle our (neshamos) souls even as we experience the depths of  galus.

What is the theological “technology” that enables  a relatively small flame that burns only  for a brief period of time to light up the “spiritual darkness” that envelops the world?

It is well documented that light and sound can have a profound effect upon the human psyche, affecting health and mood.  Alternative medical practitioners, utilizing these principles, have developed light-wave and sound-wave therapies which are growing in popularity. It is claimed that these therapies allow the body and psyche to “re-balance and realign” themselves.

To us, as Jews this should come as no surprise as we have been blessed  with the holy Torah that has guided us with the inner secret wisdom of spiritual rectification at its source– at the level of soul. Thus we begin our year on Rosh Hashanah with a unique (mitzvah) commandment in that through listening to the sounds of the shofar we become spiritually retuned in harmony with the Creator’s  “blueprint”, in plan and purpose, for our neshamas.  This supernal “sound wave therapy” helps to guide us in our spiritual journey throughout the New Year.

Due to the harshness of the long galus, Chazal have added to our “prescriptions” of spiritual antidotes, a subtle but highly effective “lazer light wave therapy.” The precisely directed (neiros) lights of Chanukah possess the inner illuminating power to dispel even the most obscurant darkness. 

Now let us examine more closely the flames of  Chanukah and their profound symbolism.  Chanukah represents a bonding of the spiritual with the physical, as seen through the menorah holding the oil and the wick as the flame hovers above. What is the significance of the flame always ascending upward above the wick, the oil and the menorah? This is a physical expression of a spiritual truth that reveals the relationship between the neshama and the (guf) body.  Even as the flame hovers over the wick and the oil unlocking their energy bringing  forth a radiant light into this world, so too the neshamah infuses the body with lofty goals that reveal spiritual treasures previously hidden within the creation. Without the fuel, the wick and the menorah – the flame would not exist but without the flame – the fuel, wick and menorah would remain inert elements.

To what does this compare?  When Moshe Rabbanu ascended to Heaven to receive the Torah, the angels protested saying that the Torah should remain  in Heaven.   Moshe responded that the mitzvoth of the Torah could only be fulfilled in this world by human beings that were given (bechira) freedom of choice.         This means that down here on earth there are certain “spiritually conducive atmospheric conditions” that don’t exist in the heavens.

Through this mitzvah of kindling the light of  Chanukah beginning from 25^th of Kislev, (which is alluded to by the 25^th word of the Torah being – ohr – light) we our privileged to tap into the “light from Above” – the (Ohr ha-Ganuz) hidden light. This supernal beneficence at this auspicious time brings with it insight, clarity and purification.

Oh yes, before we conclude, let us also not forget to enjoy and appreciate the latkes or other fried foods that will be served on Chanukah. This custom celebrates the role of the flask of pure oil found in the restored Bais Hamikdash. Shemen zayis symbolizes wisdom. Perhaps by eating these foods fried in shemen zayis on Chanukah we are simultaneously proclaiming, as well as benefiting from the plentiful flow of Divine wisdom that is available at this auspicious time.

(Shemen zayis is the desirable component of one of the praised seven fruits of Eretz Israel (shivas ha-minim). It is obtained by squeezing the olives with intense pressure. A well know (moshal) example compares the potential within each Jew to the untapped value with the olive, in that our best achievements are often produced when we are under pressure to meet a challenge.)                      May our eight day dosage of ner Chanukah’s “supernal illumination” revitalize us, helping to dispel the “darkness” of (galus) the exile and ushering in  the long awaited final (Geulah) redemption, shining in radiant splendor, soon in our days.