Shushan Purim 5781
Issue No: 483
זכור ושמור בדבור אחד נאמרו
[27:20]
וְאַ ָּתה ְתצַ וֶּה אֶּ ת ְבנֵי י ְִש ָּראֵ ל
And you shall command Bnei Yisroel
פרשת תצוה ה׳תשפ׳׳א
Instead of simply stating atoh – you, our parshah opens with the conjunctive vov – and you, in circumstances where its significance is not immediately apparent. The sefer Toras Shimon suggests that the inclusion of the vov was intended by Hashem to be an allusion to Moshe that he should always see himself as no more than an adjunct to Bnei Yisroel; indeed, as one who would be completely insignificant had the greater commune of the people of Israel not existed. How was such a degree of humility to be achieved? Through tetzaveh es bnei Yisroel – command the children of Israel, tetzaveh being an expression of attachment (based on the Gemoroh in Maseches Shabbos 30b). Attaching himself to Bnei Yisroel, was the way in which Moshe would never lose sight of his own insignificance. The possuk continues, ve’yik’chu eilecho shemen zayis zoch – let them take for you pure olive oil. The Toras Shimon says that oil is a symbol of wisdom; the word zoch – pure has a gematria of twenty-seven, being the total number of letters in the alef-beis (including final letters); kossis – beaten is an allusion to humility. All of these elements are necessary leha’alos ner tomid – to kindle the lamp perpetually. The word ner is an acronym for nefesh/neshomo and ruach, the component parts of the Jewish soul, which are set aflame by the wisdom of the Torah when taught and learned in selfless fashion. The sefer Toras Shimon adds how in the secular world, the more aggressive and assertive one is, the more materially successful one frequently becomes. True success in life, however, is achieved through humility, which brings spiritual success that lasts for eternity.
[28:2]
וּל ִת ְפאָ ֶרת ְ ית ִבגְ ֵדי־קֹ ֶדשׁ ְלאַ הֲ רֹן אָ ִחיָך ְלכָבוֹד ָ וְעָ ִשׂ
You shall make holy garments for Aharon, your brother, for honour and splendour When commanding Moshe personally in the tailoring of the bigdei kehunoh (priestly vestments) for Aharon and his sons, Hashem directs that they should be manufactured lechovod u’lisiferes (for the purposes of honour and splendour). Yet, in the very next possuk, when telling Moshe to convey Hashem’s bespoke clothing requirements to kol chacham leiv – all those wise-hearted artisans, who would create the finished products, Hashem states that Aharon’s garments should be made le’kadsho le’chahano li – to sanctify him to minister to Me. No mention is made of the earlier stipulation that they were to be redolent of honour and splendour. The sefer Iyunei Chayim quotes a beautiful explanation in the name of Rav Dovid Cooper זצ״ל. He explains a well-known principle; a person scarcely needs reminding of something that will inherently be obvious to him. Only that which might not come so readily to mind need be specified. Thus, to Moshe, who was so … page 2 We hope that these Divrei Torah, which are designed especially for use during the seudos, will בע״הenhance your Shabbos and may they hasten refuos and yeshuos to all who need.
The Levush writes that on Shabbos we can attain higher levels of wisdom as it is a day especially designated for this purpose. Therefore, we should seek ways to increase the amount of Torah that we discuss on this holy day.
גוט שבת/ שבת שלום ms
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[Esther 5:8]
ֱשׂה כִ ְדבַ ר הַ מֶ לֶ ך ֶ וּמחָ ר אֶ ע ָ
… and tomorrow I will do the King’s bidding One of the more puzzling aspects of the narrative in Megillas Esther revolves around Esther HaMalkah’s approach to saving Klal Yisroel. Having been persuaded by Mordechai HaTzaddik of the need to put aside her initial reluctance and for her to act, she risks her life by attending the king’s audience chamber uninvited. When asked what she has come for, Esther invites Achashveirosh and Homon to a se’udoh that evening. They attend as requested and Achashveirosh asks what it is that Esther wishes to request and it shall be granted (ad chatzi ha’malchus). Esther replies that her respectful request is that her two guests attend again the following night for a se’udoh when she will reveal her request. Why the two invitations and why the prevarication on Esther’s part? Rav Meilech Biderman shlit’’a brings in the name of one of the meforshim that we need to imagine just how happy Homon must have been to have received an invitation to a private soiree with only the king and queen present. Indeed, his joy is evident from the bragging to his friends about his wealth and success in which he engages when he gets home. Esther realised that the power of even such a rosho as Homon being be’simcha, being joyful, was such that she would not succeed in her endeavours at that point. Thus, she was left with no alternative but to postpone her uncovering of Homon’s evil plan and her connection to the people in the peril. By the following evening the novelty had worn off slightly for Homon, such that Esther could unmask him and undermine his plot. If the power of simcha is so great in such a rosho, notes Rav Biederman, how much more so must we be be’simcha to tap into the wealth of brochos that we can achieve, with Hashem’s help.
השבת-ישראל את-ושמרו בני השבת-לעשות את The Ba’al Shem Tov HaKodosh tells us that there is not a single possuk in the Torah that does not contain a message for every generation. This week’s parshah might pose a challenge for this dictum given the pesukim that simply list the names of the precious stones that formed the rows of the Urim Ve’Tumim worn by the Kohein Godol. The possuk [28:18] tells us that the second row contained the yahalom stone. The sefer Sh’arei Nisim notes that yahalom has the same gematria as the word ‘omein’. This is a hint to the Zohar Hakodosh which speaks of the greatness of a brocho to which omein was said when it makes its way to shomayim, where the gates are opened with the announcement to make way for the gift that such-and-such a person has sent for the King. Just as the Yahalom is set into the choshen so is the omein the jewel in the crown of every brocho. Mimini Michoel
Continued from page 1
… imbued with great holiness and whose every thought process was dedicated to matters of sanctity, Hashem had no need to mention the requirement for holiness to be embedded within the garments. However, when it comes to the need for external and material beauty as a factor in the construction of these garments, such a concept would never have occurred to Moshe. Hence the need for Hashem to decree such prerequisites when addressing Moshe on the topic of bigdei kehunoh. The creators of haute couture who were charged with making the garments, thought nothing of the required beauty of their stock in trade, sartorial elegance being a given. They therefore had to be instructed in the art of infusing holiness into their creations, which would not have come naturally to them. We would like to expand this vort by humbly suggesting that the adage of ‘clothes maketh the man’ (a modernised version of Shakespeare’s ‘for the apparel oft proclaims the man’) is one that we Jews currently misapply in many instances. Instead of seeing the external clothing and being quick to categorise another Jew accordingly, we should see beyond the physical and gaze upon the holy neshomo of the other person, that which binds us all together to the source of truth and life. Our regret is that those who, perhaps, most need to take this message to heart, may not be reading this d’var Torah.