It's Purim, Be Happy!

It saysin the Tikkunei Zohar (57b) that Purim is like Yom HaKippurim; The Piaseczner Rebbe writes that this alludes to a fundamental similarity in the two days. On Yom Kippur, we fast and do teshuvah whether we want to or not because it is a gezeirah from HaKadosh Boruch Hu. So too by the simchah of Purim, it is not that if a person is already happy on his own or is in a situation where he can make hismlef happy that he must be mesamei’ach on Purim. Rather, even if a person is in a lowly state and has a shattered heart, his mind and spirit downcast, it is a mitzvah that some spark of joy must enter his heart on Purim.

By Yom Kippur, the day itself atones for our aveirot, even if we have not done a complete teshuvah. So too on Purim, even though a person may not be as happy and joyous as he should be, thus resulting in an incomplete avodah of Purim, the day still activates yeshu’ah and simchah over Bnei Yisrael.

Tetzaveh: The Ketoret and the Bechina of Aharon

I don't think I spent enough time writing this properly but I like this devar Torah anyway, enjoy it if you so desire. 

The last aliyah of Parashat Titzaveh speaks about the commandment to construct the Mizbei’ach HaKetoret, the mizbei’ach upon which the sacred incense was offered inside the Mikdash. The Rishonim point out that this part of the parshah seems out of place, Parashat Terumah being a more fitting location alongside the other klei Mishkan. Why is it that the Torah listed the instructions to build the keilim (the Aron, Shulchan, Menorah…), then seemingly interposed a parashah about the Bikdei Kehunah, and then afterwards reverted back to speaking about the keilim with the Mizbei’ach HaKetoret? The Meshech Chachmah resolves this question of the Rishonim based on the Gemara in Zevachim 59a which says that if the Mizbei’ach HaKetoret were to be in some place other than its fixed spot in the Mikdash, the avodah of the ketoret would still be performed upon it. The structure of the mizbei’ach is not an essential component of the ketoret process in and of itself to extent that its displacement from its regular makom kavua disrupts the ability to perform the avodah. Rather, it is apparently only a means to offer the incense. Therefore it was written separately in the Torah from the other keilim. By the other keilim, they themselves are integral in the performance of the avodah associated with are necessary for the Hashra’at HaShechinah as well.

Rav Gedalyah Schorr offers a different explanation to the separate placement of Mizbei’ach HaKetoret. From the arrangement of the pesukim it seems that the main Hashra’at HaShechinah was already upon the Mishkan with the completion of the keilim listed in Parshat Terumah. Before the portion dealing with the Mizbei’ach HaKetoret, the Hashem says:

”וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְהָיִיתִי לָהֶם לֵאלֹקִים. וְיָדְעוּ כִּי אֲנִי ה' אֱלֹקֵיהֶם אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִי אֹתָם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם לְשָׁכְנִי בְתוֹכָם  אֲנִי ה' אֱלֹקֵיהֶם. “

This would appear indicative that all of the preceding mitzvot were prerequisites to this point of  Hashra’at HaShechinah and that once they were complete the hashra’ah took effect, even before the Torah mentions the Mizbei’ach HaKetoret. The division shows us some sort of special quality unto itself. This mizbei’ach created a unity between Hashem and Bnei Yisrael in some way unique from the rest of the keilim.

Chazal say in the Gemara in Shabbat 89a that when Moshe Rabbeinu went up to Shamayim, even the Malach HaMavet gave something to him, because when there was a plague going through Bnei Yisrael, Moseh told Aharon to bring ketoret, which caused the plague to stop. If the Malach HaMavet hadn’t told him about the power of the ketoret, how would Moshe have known? But how is it that that Moshe learned this from the Malacha HaMavet? Of Moshe it is said בכל ביתי נאמן הוא, how could he not know such a thing and only be able to receive it from the Malach HaMavet?

Rav Tzadok HaKohen M’Lublin explains that at the beginning of Creation,  all of the Beri’ah gave something in contribution to the creation of Adam HaRishon, as the Torah says, נעשה אדם וכו' “Let us make man…” So Man basically contained some portion of everything in the Beri’ah. The purpose of this was so that Man should have the power to maintain dominion over all the land. However, the Satan did not give any of his chelek in Creation to Man, for if Adam HaRishon had possessed such a thing, he would immediately have turned this chelek rah into good and Man would rule over bad (i.e. the Yetzer HaRah, Malacha Hamavet, etc.). So in order to maintain free will this was not allowed to happen until the coming of the Mashiach when Hashem will obliterate everything evil.  At Har Sinai, when Bnei Yisrael were at a level like that of Le’atid Lavo, they had freedom from the Malach HaMavet and Yetzer HaRah, so at that point in time the Malacha HaMavet gave his chelek in the Beri’ah to Moshe – the ketoret. The ketoret gave Moshe the strength to overpower evil and convert it to good; that is its yesod in being the contribution of the Malach HaMavet from the Beri’ah.

The unique unification quality of the ketoret was its ability to bind to the evil and change that evil to good. This quality is specifically connected to Aharon, of whom Chazal said was אוהב את הבריות ומקרבן לתורה, he loved everyone and brought them closer to Torah. Aharon elevated Bnei Yisrael and connected them to the kedushah of Torah. Even those who were distanced from the Torah Aharon reconnected to their roots.

We find by Moshe Rabbeinu the Torah says ויעמד העם על משה מן הבקר עד הערב. Chazal pointed out that this is obviously not possible if taken literally, to say that people were coming to Moshe the entire day. Rather it comes to teach that one who judges truthfully is considered a partner with Hashem in the Ma’aseh Bereishit. Here in Parashat Titzaveh, by the Menorah, the Torah says יערוך אותו אהרן ובניו מערב עד בקר וכו', because there was a tikkun in of Ma’aseh Bereishit here by Aharon and the Menorah as well. However, there is difference between Moshe and Aharon here. By Moshe the Torah says boker (morning, that which is light and holier) then erev (evening, that which is darker and less holy), because his avodah was to bring the Shechinah down to the world. By Aharon the opposite is true. His avodah was to elevate the lowliness of this world to the loftiness of the Upper World. This is the avodah of the Kehunah. This is why the parashah of the ketoret is so relevant to rest of Parashat Titzaveh; the parasha speaks about the Kedushat HaKehuna of Aharon, and the Mizbei’ach HaKetoret and the special unity it creates between Hashem and Bnei Yisrael and directly connected to (the idea of) Aharon HaKohen. Aharon connected the lowly to the lofty, and this is the avodah of any person to make himself worthy of Hashra’at HaShechinah, to elevate the mundane and transform it into that which is kadosh.    

חייב איניש לבסומי

Purim is one of the most, if not the most, festive chagim of the year. As we all know, the Seudat Purim is a big mitzvah which noticeably involves the imbibing of large amounts of wine. The Shulchan Aruch (695:2) brings down l’halacha from the Gemara in Megillah 7b: חייב איניש לבסומי בפוריא עד דלא ידע בין ארור המן לברוך מרדכי, one is obligated to intoxicate himself on Purim until he does not know between “cursed be Haman” and “blessed be Mordechai.” Rama there adds וי"א דאין צריך להשתכר כל כך אלא שישתה יותר מלימודו ויישן ומתוך שישן אינו יודע בין ארור המן לברוך מרדכי, some say that one need not make himself so drunk, rather simply drink more than you would normally drink and go to sleep, and by going to sleep you won’t know the difference between ארור המן and ברוך מרדכי.

Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank (Mikra’ei Kodesh: Chanukah u’Purim siman 44) writes that some make the mistake here in explaining the words of Rama to mean two separate things; that A) you do not have to get so intoxicated, rather to drink more than normal is sufficient, and B) that the obligation of “עד דלא ידע” can be fulfilled through sleep, even if you go to sleep before drinking. But this is not the proper understanding. Rav Frank writes that Rama means that one should fall asleep as a result of the drinking. This is the lashon of Rambam (Hilchot Megillah 2:15): ושותה יין עד שישתכר וירדם בשכרותו. One need not go around in a state of bumbling drunkenness on Purim, but should rather drink whatever amount it is that he will drink, and out of resulting insobriety he should go asleep. 

In terms of whether this intoxication must be with wine specifically, or if any alcoholic beverage is adequate, it seems that we learn from the lashon of Rambam quoted above that one can only fulfill his Purim obligation with wine. So too, Rashi writes in Masechet Megillah 7b on the word “לאבסומי” (to become intoxicated), “להשתכר ביין” to become intoxicated with wine. The Eliyah Rabbah writes that the reason why Chazal required us to drink on Purim, even though throughout Tanach shichrut is mentioned as something which is an impediment in being a proper Jew, because all of the nissim that happened for Bnei Yisrael in the days of Mordechai and Esther were through a mishteh. First, Vashti was deposed through Achashverosh’s mishteh at the beginning of Megillat Esther, leading to Esther becoming queen. Later, on Esther’s mishteh which brought about the downfall of Haman. Therefore, in order to remember the great miracles that occurred for us through the drinking of wine, Chazal obligated us to become intoxicated. Rav Frank writes that we can understand from these words that the mitzvah is davka with wine, in semblance of the mishteh yayin in the days of Achashverosh. However, many people are not careful with the parameters of this mitzvah and get drunk on other alcoholic beverages. So, if drinking on Purim, we should use wine.

Now that we have the basics down, we can further explore a more precise definition of “עד דלא ידע” and the nature of this yedi’ah of the difference between ארור המן and ברוך מרדכי? Rav Shlomo Yosef Zevin (HaMoadim B’Halachah: Purim pp. 248-249) writes that there are innumerable explanations of this statement of the Gemara, be it in the realm of Halacha, Derush, or Chassidut. As stated above, Rambam writes that a person should drink until he falls asleep and then it will be that he doesn’t know between א"ה and ב"מ. Meaning, that on Purim one should drink and become intoxicated to the extent that he will fall asleep, and Rama writes the same. Another explanation offered by the Abudraham and brought down by the Magen Avraham and Darchei Moshe is that one must drink until he cannot calculate the gematriot of ארור המן and ברוך מרדכי (both are 502). Tosafot says it refers to the inability to properly recite the piyut of Shoshanat Yaakov (which includes “ארור המן” and “ברוך מרדכי”). The Taz (695:2) writes that one should not stop giving praise to Hashem b’simchah for the double-good bestowed on us – the fall of Haman and the rise of Mordechai – until he can no longer distinguish between the two and then he is patur from drinking more. Rav Zevin writes that according to the Taz, the focus is not the quantity of drinking but the amount of time spent doing it. One should not stop until he can no longer differentiate between Haman and Mordechai. This is similar to the Sefat Emet on Megillah 7b who writes that when the Gemara says חייב אינש לבסומי בפוריא עד דלא ידע, it does not mean that one must drink to the point of “לא ידע”, rather that up until that level of drunkenness one is still obligated to drink, even if that means drinking the whole day. However, even before reaching that level one is still yotzei for involving himself in the mitzvah.    

Rav Yehonatan Eibshitz (Ye’arot Devash) writes that ארור המן and ברוך מרדכי are seemingly two complete opposites and contradict each other. If Haman is cursed, Mordechai is not blessed, and vice versa. How so? If Achashverosh himself didn’t want the decree of l’hasmid l’harog u’l’abeid, but rather Haman in his evil lying ways convinced him to allow it, then certainly “cursed be Haman” for of his evil actions. If such was the case then there was no particular significance in Mordechai’s actions; even a lowly slave who made it clear to the king that Haman manipulated him to kill and innocent people would allow for Achashverosh’s wrath to come down on Haman. However, if Achashverosh was indeed acting of his own malevolent accord, then certainly “blessed be Mordechai” for his efforts to overturn the king’s desire. If such was the case Haman would not be specifically accursed for his wickedness for the king himself was wicked, and if Haman was not there to push for the decree against the Jews, Achashverosh had plenty of servants that could have acted and done exactly the same thing in his stead and the decree would have happened anyway. So, Rav Yehonatan writes that we should drink to the extent that we are no longer consciously bothered by this quandary of whether Haman is cursed or Mordechai is blessed.

Rav Shlomo Zalman Aurbach (Halichot Shlomo: Moadim 19:28) paskins that if one’s parents tell him not to get drunk on Purim, he must listen and he is still yoztei with Rama’s shita by drinking more than he would normally and going to sleep. It should be noted that grape juice is not a valid substitute for wine when it comes to this mitzvah. The Ran brings down that Rabbeinu Ephraim holds that we are not chayav to become intoxicated on Purim based on the Gemara of Rabbah who shechted R’ Zeira (See Megillah 7b). The Pri Chadash rejects this initially, but writes that due to the decline of generations it is proper to follow Rabbeinu Ephraim and not drink more than one would normally have on Yom Tov. With this one is yoztei since his intentions are l’shem Shamayim.

A Freilichen Purim!

Aish Kodesh on Parshat Yitro

וַיִּשְׁמַע יִתְרוֹ כֹהֵן מִדְיָן חֹתֵן מֹשֶׁה אֵת כָּל אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה אֱלֹקִים לְמֹשֶׁה וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵל עַמּוֹ כִּי הוֹצִיא יְקֹוָק אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל מִמִּצְרָיִם: (שמות יח:א)

Yitro, the minister of Midian, the father-in-law of Moshe, heard everything that G-d did to Moshe and to Yisrael, His people—that Hashem had taken Yisrael out of Egypt. (Shemot 18:1)

The Torah tells us that it was after Keri’at Yam Suf, when Bnei Yisrael had officially begun their journey to Eretz Yisrael, that Yitro all of a sudden came to join the nation, bringing Moshe’s wife and children with him . The pasuk which relates Yitro’s arrival is tells us that he heard of what Hashem did and afterwards he came. One of the famous questions amongst the mefarshim is what exactly was it that Yitro heard which enticed him to come join Moshe and become an oveid Hashem? Rashi explains that Yitro heard about Keri’at Yam Suf and Milchemet Amalek. HaRav Elimelech of Grodzhinsk asks, why does Rashi even have the question of what was it that Yitro heard that brought him to Bnei Yisrael? The pasuk itself says “that Hashem had taken Yisrael out of Egypt.” Also, if this is the case, why does Rashi answer Keri’at Yam Suf and Milchemet Amalek when the pasuk gives us the answer that Yitro heard of Hashem taking Bnei Yisrael out of Mitzraim?

The Torah says “שמע ישראל ה' אלקינו ה' אחד. ואהבת את ה' אלקיך בכל לבבך ובכל נפשך ובכל מאדך. ”(Devarim 6:5) Rashi explains that when it says to “love Hashem with all your heart,” it means to say that your heart should not be divided with Hashem (מקום= Omnipresent) – “שלא יהא לבך חלוק על המקום”. The Beit Aharon understands this to mean that one should not say “in this place (מקום) it is possible for me to serve Hashem and in this place it is not possible.” Rather it is incumbent upon a person to keep the Torah and serve Hashem in whatever place or predicament in which he may find himself. Bnei Yisrael received the Torah in the Midbar; the Piaseczner Rebbe, HaRav HaKadosh Reb Klonimus Kalman Shapira הי“ד, writes that had the Torah been given in Eretz Yisrael, Bnei Yisrael would have thought that it was only while they were in their native land, their home, the place where they belonged, that they could uphold the Torah. However, while in galut where they are missing the atmosphere of the comfort of home and are distracted by the world surrounding them, they would not be able to properly serve Hashem. Therefore, HaKadosh Baruch Hu gave Bnei Yisrael the Torah in the Midbar, while they were travelling and unsettled, in order to show that they must uphold it wherever they are, be it settled at home or struggling on the road. 

We can now refine our understanding of what Rashi’s question was in order to understand its purpose and how it is answered. Rashi asked on Yitro, “מה שמועה שמע ובא”, what was it that Yitro heard to make him come? The emphasis it seems, is on why he had the desire to pick up from his home and join Bnei Yisrael where they were. Had he so desired, Yitro could have simply sent a request to Moshe to send some person from amongst Bnei Yisrael to Midian to teach Yitro the Torah and to help him convert, just as Yitro later did himself for his own family. 


This is the logic behind Rashi’s answer of Keri’at Yam Suf and Milchemet Amalek. Amalek wanted to “cool down” Bnei Yisrael, even though it would negate all logic to have gone up against them right after Keri’at Yam Suf when they were on the level that “even a maidservant saw that which even Yechezkel and Yeshaya didn’t see.” (Mechilta Beshalach 3) But Amalek thought that since Bnei Yisrael were “on the road” at the time and not yet in Eretz Yisrael, they could overcome them chas v’chalilah, even though the nation was on such a high spiritual level. This this is the meaning of the pasuk by Amalek “אשר קרך בדרך... ”, that they happened upon Bnei Yisrael on the way, for they were depending on this for victory. But it was Bnei Yisrael who were victorious! It didn’t matter that they were in the midst of journeying, for they still kept the Torah and retained their holiness even while they remained in such a state outside the borders of Eretz Yisrael.

With this in mind, Yitro realized that it was not sufficient to simply receive the Torah while relaxing at home; rather he had to go into the Midbar and also receive it there while on the road, ba’derech, by which means he could be proper Jew at home as well. Meaning that when Yitro heard of Amalek’s absurd assumption and attempt to attack Bnei Yisrael, he realized that to truly receive and internalize the Torah in a way that would remain true and strong even in the face of adversity and even on foreign soil, he had to receive the Torah for himself as the rest of Bnei Yisrael did– on foreign ground, while in the midst of a journey, outside of Eretz Yisrael.

Bnei Yisrael in the Midbar were not just mekabel the Torah for themselves but for all future generations as well. If so, then the Torah we have today is rooted within us in the same manner. We cannot be divided on Hashem and say that only in such-and-such a place can we be proper ovedei Hashem; no matter where we are in galut we have the obligation to uphold our the mitzvot and fend off the attacks of “Amalek” which try to weaken us while we are away from home. May we soon return home to Eretz Yisrael where we will no longer have to face adversity against our Torah b’yemot HaMashiach b’meheira b’yameinu.