Three Thirds Of Sefira - 5769

There are no special Halachos for Lag Ba’omer except that we don’t say Tachanun that day. The Ohr Gedalyahu says, the 49 days of Sefira are divided into three parts. The three parts are K’neged 1) Torah, 2) Avoidah, and 3) U’gmillas Chasadim. Each of the three is during one third of the Sefira. That is, the first third that include the days of Pesach is K’neged Avoidah. Pesach is of course a Yom Tov of Avoidah, as the whole Klal Yisrael brings a Korban. The second third is K’neged Gemillas Chasadim. Pesach Sheini falls during the middle third. It was a Chesed that Hashem made it that you could make up a Mitzvah that you missed. The last third is K’neged Torah because we lead up to Matan Torah. Lag Ba’omer marks the end of the second third. We enter into the time of Hachanah in the Derech of Kabbolas Hatoirah. One of the Shittos is that the Man started to fall on Lag Ba’omer. For 30 days there was Matzah and it took another 3 days for the Man to fall. Chazal even say, Loi Nitna Toirah Ela L’oichlei Hamon which is sort of Merumaz that the Man started then and was a Hachanah for Kabbalas Hatoirah. This may explain why the Talmidim of Rabbi Akiva stopped dying. The Talmidim might have had some faults in other areas of Avoidas Hashem, however, that certainly could not be said regarding their Torah learning. So during this third of Sefira that corresponds to Torah the Talmidim didn’t die. Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai who is known as the Meyaseid of Torah Hanistar, has Lag Ba’omer as his Yahrtzeit. This makes a lot of sense based on what we are saying that it is at the beginning of this third that is K’neged Torah. There are seven Sefiros during the seven weeks of Sefira. Chesed, Gevura, Tiferes, Netzach, Hoid, Yesoid, Malchus. An easier way to remember this is again dividing the days of Sefirah into thirds. The days with Pesach in it, corresponds to Chag, Chesed & Gevurah. This is the period of Avoidah. The middle period, which corresponds to Gemilas Chasadim have the Sefiros that spell the word Tena meaning give, Tifferes, Netzach, and Hoid. The last third which correspond to Torah spell Yam, Yesoid and Malchus which is the Yam Shel Torah.

Concretizing Inspiration - Beshalach 5772

The word Man, the name of the Man is a strange name. As it says in the Posuk 16:15 (מָן הוּא--כִּי לֹא יָדְעוּ, מַה-הוּא). The Rashbam explains (של מה ולפי שהוא לשון מצרי ובאותו לשון היו רגילין שהוא כמו מה) that Man in the language of the Egyptians is the same as the word Mah in Hebrew. Mah as in what is this? The Torah gave the word Man because the Jews called it Man. That is strange. Why refer to the Man with the name that has no intrinsic meaning, no meaning on its own. Man what is this? So you give it the name Man.

To answer let me share with you an idea that is found in the Sichos Mussar from 5733 the 6^th Sichah. There is a Posuk in Yechezkel 46:9 which teaches us that in the Beis Hamikdash there was a rule. The rule was (הַבָּא דֶּרֶךְ-שַׁעַר צָפוֹן לְהִשְׁתַּחֲו‍ֹת יֵצֵא דֶּרֶךְ-שַׁעַר נֶגֶב, וְהַבָּא דֶּרֶךְ-שַׁעַר נֶגֶב יֵצֵא דֶּרֶךְ-שַׁעַר צָפוֹנָה: לֹא יָשׁוּב, דֶּרֶךְ הַשַּׁעַר אֲשֶׁר-בָּא בוֹ--כִּי נִכְחוֹ, יצאו (יֵצֵא).). If someone entered the Beis Hamikdash with one gate of the many gates he would have to go out with a different gate. This is found in the Haftorah of Parshas Hachodesh.

Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz explained that when one entered the Beis Hamikdash he would feel the awe of the place. It would be a tremendous feeling that overcame him, a sense of holiness and majesty of the place that he entered. It is important that that initial sense not go away and disappear. Although a human being is a human being and gets used to anything. Even if someone is in an awesome situation and setting, eventually if he is there long enough it loses that very special sense. The symbolism of not going out through the gate which you entered in the Beis Hamikdash was symbolic of the fact that it should not undue that which happened when we entered. We entered the Beis Hamikdash and the individual who entered felt overcome by awe. Don’t walk out that entrance.

In the words of Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz (translated into English). A person has to work on maintaining his first Hisorerus his first inspiration, a feeling that a person has. If at the Siyum Hashas a person is moved to learn Shas he has to keep that original inspiration and he will be able to keep it going. Many many people lose it, but keeping that inspiration is a very important step in Avodas Hashem.

We can take that idea that Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz says and explain with that the naming of the Man with the word Man. When the Man fell people were amazed. Man Hu, what is this, food coming down from heaven? Food that has this unbelievable property of being able to have any taste that a person desires. It is incredible. Of course, with time, one gets used to anything. To the Dor Hamidbar the Man falling every single day was the same thing as water which falls from heaven in the form of rain, which is something we see as ordinary and not miraculous. In order to get that Hisorerus they named it Man. To remind themselves of the original amazement, the awe, the fact that it was such an incredible miracle. To keep that Hisorerus the name Man remained.

Of course the message is important for us. To try to keep the feeling of a Hisorerus that we get sometimes when something happens in our lives or sometimes when we are inspired by another individual. To try to keep it, to watch it. To have some sort of a reminder whether in a name or in an object to remind us of our original Hisorerus.

Rav Chaim Shmulevitz says as well that Palti Ben Laiyish used this tool. Chazal tell us that after Michal was married to Dovid, Shaul declared the marriage invalid and gave her instead to Palti Ben Laiyish. Naturally, Palti knew that she was an Aishes Ish and that he was not permitted to touch her. Shaul the king insisted that they were married, so Palti couldn’t show publicly that they were not married. So they lived in the same home and they had a bedroom, but the Gemara says in Maseches Sanhedrin 19b (6 lines from the bottom) says (כתיב פלטי וכתיב פלטיאל אמר ר'יוחנן פלטי שמו ולמה נקרא שמו פלטיאל שפלטו אל מן העבירה מה עשה נעץ חרב בינו לבינה אמר כל העוסק בדבר זה ידקר בחרב זה) that he stuck a sword between the 2 beds and said if I touch her I deserve to be destroyed by the sword. Rav Chaim Shmulevitz asks what is the purpose of the sword, the day he pulled out the sword it meant something, however, he left it there between the two beds for a number of years. What does that do?

The answer is the same idea. He had a Hisorerus and he wanted to concretize it on something, so he put in a sword in between the two beds and the sword was a reminder of the original Hisoreus. If you have a Hisorerus for something, do it and make it happen. So that is our Vort on the Man.

The Spoiled Mon - Beshalach 5771

16:20 ( וְלֹא-שָׁמְעוּ אֶל-מֹשֶׁה, וַיּוֹתִרוּ אֲנָשִׁים מִמֶּנּוּ עַד-בֹּקֶר, וַיָּרֻם תּוֹלָעִים, וַיִּבְאַשׁ; וַיִּקְצֹף עֲלֵהֶם, מֹשֶׁה)When the Man came and Moshe Rabbeinu said don’t leave over any Man until the next day which Dasan and Aviram did. So the Man became wormy and spoiled. Moshe was angry with them. When the Torah says (וַיִּקְצֹף) there was something significant for Moshe Rabbeinu to be angry about not just that they didn’t listen to him. Here it would seem that for Klal Yisrael this was a good event that took place. Here Klal Yisrael saw that if they don’t listen to Moshe and they leave over Man until the next day that it turns wormy and spoiled. Isn’t that wonderful?  Why did Moshe Rabbeinu become angry over it?

Rav Druk brings an insight based from a Meshech Chochmo. Why was it so that they only had one days worth of food each time the Man fell and of course it was two days worth of food on Friday or Erev Yom Tov? The reason was to make Klal Yisrael Maminim in that since they don’t know where their food would come from the next day they would rely on the Borei Olam for their sustenance.

What got Moshe Rabbeinu upset? Until this incident Klal Yisrael collected Man and every night they were obligated to finish it because they couldn’t leave over any until the next day (אִישׁ, אַל-יוֹתֵר מִמֶּנּוּ עַד-בֹּקֶר). They had to finish all of the Man. They had a Yeitzer Hora of where will they get food from the next day. This was a tremendous Nisayon for them and they passed the Nisayon. Klal Yisrael didn’t leave anything over and Moshe Rabbeinu said eat it today and have faith.

Dasan and Aviram come and leave over until the next day and it becomes spoiled. Moshe Rabbeinu realized that now Klal Yisrael will not have a Nisayon. Every night they will of course finish the Man as anything left over will anyway become spoiled and wormy by the next morning. Suddenly their Kiyum of this Mitzvah of finishing the Man each night will not be Lishma. It will not be because they have Bitachon or faith, it is going to be because there is no sense of them leaving it over. That is why Moshe got upset. Dasan and Aviram cheated Klal Yisrael out of a tremendous Maaseh that was a Zechus in the Middas Habitachon of Klal Yisrael.

Animal Food? - Beshalach 5770

16:3 וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֲלֵהֶם בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, מִי-יִתֵּן מוּתֵנוּ בְיַד-יְרוָר בְּאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם, בְּשִׁבְתֵּנוּ עַל-סִיר הַבָּשָׂר, בְּאָכְלֵנוּ לֶחֶם לָשֹׂבַע:  כִּי-הוֹצֵאתֶם אֹתָנוּ אֶל-הַמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה, לְהָמִית אֶת-כָּל-הַקָּהָל הַזֶּה בָּרָעָב When Klal Yisrael started receiving the Man they had really requested Lechem and Basar. The Gemara says in Maseches Yoma that Klal Yisrael had animals which they had taken out of Mitzrayim so they were asking Sheloi K’hoigen, however, Lechem they really didn’t have so they were asking K’hoigen. So the Man was received without any measurement of punishment. Since the measurement of Man that fell was only an Aisiris Ha’eifa which is not a whole lot of food, what did the animals eat in the Midbar as we already mentioned last week, everyone had at least 90 Chamoirim full of the booty of Mitzrayim? Animals don’t eat meat and Klal Yisrael had no way of growing bread.

How Much Kugel? - Beshalach 5770

A Pshat in the Parshas Haman: The Rama at the end of Siman 242 which is at the beginning of Hilchos Shabbos writes, there is a Minhag to eat a type of food that has a layer on top and on bottom to have a reminder of the Man which had a layer on the top and on the bottom of Tal. This is where the Minhag of eating Potato Kugel comes from. Potato Kugel has a layer on top and on bottom. This is a Zeicher to the Man. The one day of the week that Man did not fall on is Shabbos. Shouldn’t the Minhag of eating Kugel be the other 6 days and not on Shabbos? The Biyur Halacha actually brings this Kasha from Kadmoinim in Siman 242.

Toisafois answers that it is a Zecher that Man did not fall on Shabbos. The Toras Chaim offers another answer that we don’t have a Zecher to the Man of the past in the Midbar we are doing it as a reminder of the Man we will eat in the times of Mashiach when we will be Zoiche to a number of foods that are mentioned. K’negged the Livyasoin we eat fish on Shabbos. K’negged Shor Habor we eat meat on Shabbos. K’negged the Yayin from the Sheishes Y’mei B’reishis we drink Yayin on Shabbos. K’negged the Man that we will eat when Mashiach comes, we eat Pas(h)tida (something that has a layer on top and on bottom like Potato Kugel.)

There is actually a Nafka Mina between the 2. The Man fell 6 days a week. So the Friday night Seuda is a time that we had Man already in the normal way from Friday morning. So it is only a Chiddush on Shabbos day that no Man fell. According to the first Teretz that we said that we eat Kugel L’zeicher that Man did not fall, we should actually eat the Kugel Dafka by day and not Leil Shabbos. According to the second reason that Shabbos is a Mei’ein Yoim She’kuloi Shabbos which starts Friday night, you can eat Kugel on Friday night as well. Yisrael Kedoishim eat Kugel Friday night and Shabbos day. This would be a Nafka Mina between the 2 reasons brought here.