Have you ever contemplated or wondered the deeper meaning of the very cryptic Torah portion, which extends for nearly two whole parshas, that describes in detail the spiritual cleansing and atonement process for the metzora? This mystical procedure involves taking some of the blood, from the korbon that is offered, and placing it on the right ear, the thumb of the right hand and the big toe on the right foot. Then the procedure is repeated applying (olive) oil at these very three same places?  (Metzora  14:13-30). Let us ask a few more questions. What could be the possible significance of these specific locations and is there any way to relate to this supernatural “therapy” that not only heals the physical tzaraas but most importantly “heals” the blemish on the soul?

              Lastly, why does this holistic healing therapy literally need to extend from the “head to the toe” rather than focusing just on the actual place of the physical tzaraas? Perhaps the Torah is teaching us here that “healing” always needs to be holistic for true rebalancing. Here the Torah guides the sincere penitent through a non-invasive esoteric transformation that has the power to not only revitalize the life force of the body but to “heal” the underlying blemish at its root.

               Rav Hirsch explains beautifully that the blood that is placed on these places of the body to symbolize that from now on the metzora must improve himself in mind – which is located opposite the ear, deed – the thumb representing action and effort – the big toe representing forward movement.

                    Perhaps from this we can add the following: The (olive) oil, which alludes to the illuminating wisdom of the Torah, was specifically put at the same place as the blood – which corresponds to the nefesh – to teach us that Divine healing and illumination comes through “applying” the Torah to all of our faculties and phases of life: as it is written “Nar mitzvah – Torah ohr”. 

                Therefore let us take this golden opportunity, of the reading of these two Parshas of Tazria and Metzora to help us to always “hear” our inner calling of what is the best thing to “do” at each “step” of our lives, thereby bringing closer the footsteps of the final redemption. 

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                     In parshas Terumah 25: 8 – 16  states: “They shall make a Sanctuary for Me – so that I may dwell among them – like everything that I show you, the form of the Tabernacle and the form of all its vessels; and so you shall do. They shall make an Ark of acacia wood, two and one half cubits its length; and a cubit and one half its width; and a cubit and one half its height. You shall cover it with pure gold from within and from without you shall cover it, and you shall make a gold crown all around. You shall cast for it four rings of gold and place them on its four corners, two ring on its one side and two rings on its second side. You shall make staves of acacia wood and cover them with gold; and insert the staves in the rings on the sides of the Ark, with which to carry the Ark. The staves will remain in the rings of the Ark; they may not be removed from it. You shall place in the Ark the Testimonial-tablets that I shall give you.”

               Pusack 8 sets the foundational tone of the purpose of the making a Sanctuary for Me: that being – it is made for the purpose of fulfilling Hashem’s will of being a place where the (Shekina) Divine Radiance dwells and is revealed. “That I may dwell among them’– teaches each of us that in order to have the Divine Presence reveal itself within us we need to prepare ourselves a sincere pure place in our personal Sanctuary – that being are our transformed physical bodies allowing for the Divine Radiance connected to our (Neshoma) Soul to dwell within us. ‘Like everything that I show you, the form of the Tabernacle and the form of the vessels; and so shall you do’. That I show you is written in the present tense to teach us that continuously we must strive to build our Tabernacle and vessels anew, never resting on our laurels or being content with our past actions or efforts. The service of Hashem should always be seen and experienced as an ongoing inspirational growth and formation of renewing our personal Tabernacle. This requires us, in order to allow the presence of Hashem to be revealed within us, to break free of the bonds of physicality in both time and place transcending the finite thereby allowing ourselves to be unified with the Infinite.

               “They shall make the Ark of acacia wood…”– The Ark which is the vessel containing the Torah was gold plated inside and out with the center made of acacia wood. Acacia wood symbolizes growth and development which parallels our need to be constantly striving to rise upward, however this species of trees was not fruit bearing perhaps symbolizing that it is not our work that makes us fruitful but only the blessing from Hashem. Gold plaited inside represents the sincerity and purity of our thoughts. The gold plaited on the outside parallels the sincerity of our efforts.

          Pusak 12: ‘You shall cast for it four rings of gold and place them on its four corners…and insert the staves in the rings on the sides of the Ark, with which to carry the Ark. The staves shall remain in the rings of the Ark; they may not be removed from it.’ Rav S. R Hirsch expresses beautifully that the permanent presence of the staves symbolizes the concept that the Torah is not tied to any one place; wherever Jews go, willing or otherwise, our Torah goes with us, for the means of its transport is always attached to it. We also need to feel this way in our connection with the Torah that we are always attached to it no matter in what place or circumstance we find ourselves.

              The Cazal tell us that the Ark carried itself and those around it only looked like they were carrying it. This message travels with us through every moment of life. The Torah is eternal and emanates directly from her Infinite source. When we willingly accept upon ourselves to walk in the ways of the Torah – meaning guarding its precepts and fulfilling its commandments then Hashem will help us see who really “carries” us through life. May we merit to come close and travel with the Torah of Hashem that will light up the darkness paving a clear path leading to redemption, love and peace.  

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               This world is filled with treasure hunters—people looking for riches in all of its forms –wealth, power, position and glory.  They search high and low for clues and directional signposts to show them the way. A recent article reported on the activities of one of the most successful hedge fund managers in the world whose fund returns a whopping 36% a year (net before fees).  To accomplish this he uses  a  vast array of sophisticated computing equipment reputed to be worth over 600 million dollars and 150 employees who hold doctoral degrees in fields as diverse as  astrophysics and linguistics rather than in finance.  All of this combined brain power is used to sift through huge amounts of raw data eliminating what appears to be irrelevant information or “noise”  and  scrutinizing what remains for patterns with the goal of  discerning   investment trends and directions.  If we think about it, the tools for this search may be  new, but the methodology is not. It is the age old process of mining for minerals and gold by clearing through tons of dirt and rock  to reveal the riches within, using computers rather than digging tools.

            So much of mankind is on a seemingly never ending search for success and fortune, however, at best, their endeavors  produce only transitory gains. This is in contrast to the enduring legacy of our nation which we acquired 3300 years ago when we merited to receive the durable, eternal wealth of our holy Jewish teachings (Torah).

            At the giving of the Torah, we were not asked to be searchers seeking out subtle clues and vague directives.  We did not have to explore the heavens and plumb the depths of the seas.  We did not even have to climb to the top of the lowest mountain upon which it was given in order to receive it. It was brought down to us—by our leader and emissary, Moshe Rabbeinu. The question then as now was not how to find it,  but rather how are we to comprehend, appreciate and incorporate its treasured value into our lives?  There are maps and guideposts that are available to help us with this exploration.  All it requires is for us to take a fresh look at some old familiar landscapes.

              To start we might wish to consider the place of its presentation. The desert is a place that is separated from the busyness of the world—a place where the world’s standards and distractions do not impinge—a place where we lacked the ability to be self sustaining, but in fact had to rely upon the Creator’s (Hashem’s) kindness and protection.  In this place, greatness is measured in humility rather than in power and wealth for ones’ very survival depended upon the willingness to humbly accept the direction of the Creator of the Universe.  And thus we find our first  prerequisite for “mining” the treasure that is our Torah—that is the ability to allow the Torah to guide us rather than us making determinations that impose our own limitations upon it.

          Another key for accessing the Torah’s eternal wisdom and guidance is derived from the fact that it was given from above but was received below.  This alludes to the fact that the Torah emanates from a place that is “above” natural law, but in order for us to benefit from the wealth of our Torah these teachings need to descend into all facets of our lives.

             How does this happen? Ordinarily, it is difficult to evoke changes in habits and behavior, therefore perhaps the intense roaring thunder and streaking lightening bolts at Har Sinai may have been much more than just an introduction of the giving of the Torah but actually served to “jolt” the whole nation out of their old mind set in order to elicit the new spiritual revelation that was to follow.  For us it can serve as a lesson reminding us that  before valuable growth in the service of Hashem) can occur, there often comes a challenging “storm” – ie: a difficult situation or person that  jolts us and in so doing actually helps us to realign with Torah directed sensibility and sensitivity. 

             This perhaps explains the fact that the entire nation experienced a transposition of the senses in which they heard what they saw and saw what they heard. We, who are the beneficiaries of the Sinai revelation, can continue to benefit from this vital experience, if when hearing of some else’s difficult problems – we see what we can do to help them. Likewise when we see someone struggling – if we allow ourselves to hear our inner voice guiding us as to how we can react most sensitively to their needs, we will hopefully bring closer the final redemption (geula), may it be soon in our days.

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                 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.  

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                   All too many people in the world today have been led to believe that by filling their time with new exciting  activities and gadgets they will reach a state of  existential happiness, however statistics have clearly shown that  inner peace and  happiness has actually decreased throughout society, while at the same time prescription medication for depression and the need for psychological counseling have all greatly increased. If money, power, fame and thrills are not the kind of “currency” that can acquire true happiness, it behooves us to look into the Torah for an insight on how to merit inner peace and true simcha.

                  Perhaps we can derive a hint on how to achieve this awesome goal through looking into the D.N.A. of the land of Goshen, whose name is the exact numerical value of simcha. What could be a connection with the land named Goshen, where our nation was  “cultivated”, and simcha? Perhaps one lesson we can derive is just like a parcel of land needs to be cultivated, seeded and then tended until its produces the finest of “fruits”, in order to “harvest the fruits” of true simcha, the “soil” of our potential needs be “cultivated” through Torah, “seeded” with mitzvos and “nurtured” through misim tovim.

   As the Gemora Shabbos (30b) teaches us that the Divine presence rests on a person “… only through the joy of a mitzva”. And as David HaMelek informs    us  “Serve G-d with joy, come before Him with song”. – Tehillim (100:2)

            May we soon merit through our simchas shel mitzvos to transform the “draught” of galus into “bumper crop” of the final geula.

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       After Yaakov and his family crossed the Yabok River, Yaakov returned  to retrieve pachim ketanim — small flasks. There, the Sar of Esau confronted him; what followed was the definitive battle for supremacy between the forces of good and evil. This battle continued to rage throughout the night until finally, Yaakov emerged victorious at which point he was informed of what his new name would become.

           The stage was set for this momentous battle by Yaakov’s interest in recovering some small flasks. What could the Torah be hinting to when it informs us that the pachim were small? What relevance does their size have to the lessons in this episode?

             Although many people assume that “bigger is better”, sometimes we find that very low-key events or small items actually are the “key” to accessing new horizons of achievement and success.

             A key is a relatively small and inexpensive item, but it serves to open important doors. Without one’s keys a person could find oneself without entry into ones own home, car or office.

                Like keys that open physical doors, the words of holy Torah open mental and spiritual portals, therefore let us try to “key-in” on the meaning of the name uttered by the Sar of Esau when he announced: “No longer will it be said that your name is Ya’akov, but YiSRAL, for you have striven with the Divine and with man and have overcome.” (Vayishlach 32:29). 

         The Creator entrusted the “key” to insights and wisdom embodied in our holy Torah to Avraham Avinu. This tradition (“key”) was handed down to his son Yitzchok, who later gave it to his son Yaakov. Apparently at that time since the Bnei Yaakov were beginning their transition from a single family into a nation of millions, it was deemed the appropriate time for the Creator in His infinite wisdom to, so to speak, design within the developing Bnei Israel a tamperproof supernal combination lock for the Torah that only the Jewish people could access.

              What is this mystical combination code that binds us with our unbroken tradition all the way back to the Avos? We know that a person’s name reveals his or her spiritual essence, purpose and potential. Therefore it behooves us to unlock one of the deeper meanings within the name given by the Creator to the entire Jewish nation as well as this same name given for our holy land. The Ari Z’l  reveals in a few short words one of the mystical secrets of our national name by informing us that the five (osios) letters of the name Y’SRAL are the acronym – roshei teivos – of the names of our three Avos and four Imahos: The Yud of  Yitzchak and Yaakov is coded within the Yud of Y’SRAL; the S of Sarah within the Shin; the R of Rivka and Rachael within the Raish, the A of Avraham within the Alef and the L of Leah within the Lamed. Imbedded with our Nation’s name and the name of our land is the spiritual genetic combination of all our Avos and Imahos! The name Y’sral, the “key” – combination code – to our existence is an example of a single word in the Torah that contains worlds of meaning and value. 

         May we, the Bnei Y’sral, soon merit the final geula allowing all of us to once again live peacefully in our promised land – Eretz Israel.

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                 In the end of  Parsha Vayeira (22: 1 – 19) is the story of what is considered my most as the greatest of all Avraham Avinu’s ten tests. What happened? After many years of yearning and waiting to have a child who would carry on his life work of revealing the presence of the Creator to the world, he was finally at the age of ninety-nine blessed with a son named (Yitzchak) Isaac. The parsha beings with the malakim announcing the birth of Yitzkak, then changes directions and tells the story of Sodom and Lot. There is a brief mention of Yitzchak’s birth and weaning, with the parsha ending with the (Akeidah) was the bringing Yitzchak, who was then thirty-seven years old, onto the alter to be sacrificed as was the seemingly command of Hashem.

               Therefore both Avraham and his son Yitzchak  went to the Akeidah with total dedication to fulfill the will of the Creator. Both of them had a total appreciation of the value of life, not wasting a moment of it, yet were willing to follow the command of Hashem unquestionably. The commentators explain beautifully all the basic questions, for example: How if there is a commandment in the Torah not to murder and not to bring human sacrifices how could the command of the Akeidah exist? One explanation is that the same Creator that commands us to fast on Yom Kippur – eating being punishable by koras, commands those who are seriously ill to yes eat on Yom Kippur and even making Kiddush.

          Then this section of the Torah begins with the words: “And it happened after these things that G-d tested Avraham and said to him, ‘Avraham’, and he replied, ‘Here I am.’ And He said, “Please take your son, your only one, whom you love – Isaac – to go to the land of Moriah; bring him up there as an offering upon one of the mountains which I shall tell you.” Then in pusack 11 the Torah says: “They arrived at the place that G-d had spoken to him; Avraham built the alter there and arranged the wood; he bound Issac, his son, and placed him on the alter atop the wood. Avraham stretched out his hand, and took the knife to sacrifice his son. And an angel of Hashem called to him from heaven, and said, ‘Avraham! Avraham!’ And he said, ‘Her I am.’ And he (the angel) said, ‘Do not stretch out your hand against the lad nor do anything to him for now I know that you are a G-d fearing man, since you have not withheld your son, your only one, from me.’ And Avraham raised his eyes and saw – behold, a ram! Afterwards, caught in a thicket by its horns; so Avraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a offering instead of his son.”

         The bomb of a question is how could Avraham follow the command of the angel not to sacrifice his son, if he had originally been commanded directly by Hashem to bring him up as an (olah) offering? That would so to speak be like being commanded by the Owner of the business to do one thing and then being told by a employee not to complete what the owner requested. To answer this question let us first understand what is the power of a mitzvah and what is a angel. A mitzvah is a commandment of the Creator that is the life force of existence. Without the Jewish people fulfilling the will of Hashem, the universe would cease to exist. The main purpose for creation is so that the presence of the Creator would be revealed through our choosing to serve with our free will. With each high quality word or deed we create a good malak and unfortunately with each inferior word or action is created a poorer level malak. Therefore that very malak that spoke to Avraham was created by his efforts towards fulfilling the will of the Creator in bringing his son onto the alter.  

          Since Avraham Avinu had the ability to see this malak, he was able to discern its level of perfection. Therefore when it is stated in pusak 13: And Avraham raised his eyes and saw – behold a ram – afterwards caught in the thicket by its horns.” The simple meaning is that He raised his eyes and saw the ram, but we will divide the pusak to say first he raised his eyes and saw the malak which was perfect in form without blemish. From this perfectly formed malak Avraham understood that that the mitzvah regarding bring up his son was complete and he didn’t need to do more. Now look back at pusak 2 and you can see that in actuality it had only stated: “take your son and bring him up as an offering”. Since it didn’t actually say that he needed to be sacrificed it was now understood that an alternate offering would be brought in his place. So the pusak 13 continues: “…behold, a ram! Afterwards caught in the thicket by its horns.”  

                    This Torah lesson teaches us not to solely rely on own decisions based on our limited understanding but allowing the Torah to be our guide through the “maze” of this life’s challenges and experiences.

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 approach that uniqueness as if the success or failure of it is dependant on our efforts, with of course the help of Hashem.

         Perhaps another explanation of why specifically Yehoshua was designated to lead the Nation into the Land and then conquer it can be seen in his name. Yehoshua is a contraction of two words meaning: Hashem will save us. This is let us know that the battle for holiness can only be successful through our recognizing and accepting our dependence on G-d’s help. This means we have to make our best effort but simultaneously realize that all our power and success comes from Hashem, then He will guide and protect us in all our ways.

            May we all imbue our lives with the true strength of faith and courage of belief only in the Torah, thereby serving Hashem with all our hearts, with all our souls and all our possessions.

All articles appearing on this blog are copyrighted by Rabbi Yehoshua Binyamin Falk. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to share/download/copy this information as long as it is accompanied by the copyright. Separately authored/copyrighted materia

All articles appearing on this blog are copyrighted by Rabbi Yehoshua Binyamin Falk. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to share/download/copy this information as long as it is accompanied by the copyright. Separately authored/copyrighted materia

              Horses, particularly those connected with Mitzrayim, epitomize the symbol of strength and prowess on the physical level. These qualities parallel the attributes of the natural instincts of man (nefesh behamis). This potent nature if harnessed constructively can be a tremendous asset in the pursuit and fulfillment of one’s goals in life. However, such an energy must be used judiciously, avoiding “racing” too fast or recklessly. Thus the Torah has provided a “warning sign” not to acquire too much , so to speak, “horse-power” in order to stay safely within the spiritual “speed limit.”  

          Next, the Torah commands the king not to have too many wives. The husband-wife relationship belongs to the heart (lev), because it is motivated by the loftier emotions that emanate from the heart such as love, loyalty and devotion.  Too many wives symbolizes a lack of this unity.   

           Then the king is warned that he “shall not greatly increase silver and gold”. Besides its monetary value, silver corresponds to chesed which is rooted in wisdom whereas gold symbolizes gavurot whose roots are in understanding. Wisdom and understanding are crucial tools for positive growth, however, the single-minded accumulation of intellectual assets or material wealth without a corresponding accrual of humility and submissiveness in the acknowledgement of the Source of these blessings can lead to an unbalanced portfolio with insufficient resources allocated to spiritual values.

            Ironically, the Torah permits the establishment of a king and yet almost at the same time warns against the possible consequences. Now perhaps we can better understand the meaning of this seeming dichotomy by noticing the inverted order that is written in the Torah. Horses listed first, correspond to the liver (k)aved; then wives are listed paralleling the heart (l)ev; and finally silver and gold relating to the attributes of the mind (m)oach. The Torah is thereby teaching us that living a lifestyle that pursues “too many and too much”, chas vi-shalom, inverts/transforms the power of the kingship (m)e(l)e(k) to the state of  humiliation and disgrace k)e(l)e(m).                      

             To avoid this and dedicate his thoughts, words and actions purely to the service of  Hashem,  the king is commanded to write two Sefer Torah: “It shall be with him, and he shall read from it all the days of his life, so he will learn to fear Hashem his G-d, to observe all the words of the Torah and these decrees, to perform them, so that his heart does not become haughty over his brethren and  (so that he will) not turn from the commandment right or left, so that he will prolong his years over his kingdom, he and his sons amid Israel.” (Shoftim 17:18-20) 

                 Through following this prescription we coronate Hashem as the King of kings thereby bringing closer the geula and the rebuilding of the holy Temple (Beis HaMigdash), may it be soon in our days.

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