What Brachos Will We Make When Moshiach Comes?

Rabbi Glatstein - The Rulings of Rav Chaim Filagi & Rav Shlomo Zalman

Sefiras HaOmer - What is a Stradivarius? {Torah Illuminated Series}

 Rabbi Glatstein [Premiered Apr 17, 2023 ]

"It Isn’t Enough to Say 'We Hear You'” By Tzvi Fishman

Dear President Herzog – It isn’t Enough to Say “We Hear You, We Care for You” to American Jewry. Words are important but this is a time for action.

Immediately we must send 100 “Aliyah Commandos” to 50 colleges and Jewish communities throughout America to alert Jewish youth of the new opportunities to receive college degrees in a variety of disciplines IN ENGLISH in universities in Israel.

The “commandos” will also shout out the message to American Jewry that it is time to come home! They will urge Rabbis and the Jewish leadership in America to face the writing on the wall that there is no future for Jewish youth in America. Assimilation is already a cancer which is devastating American Jewry at an ever-increasing pace. Now the spreading anti-Semitism is a malevolent genie which has escaped from the bottle and which no amount of TV and billboard advertising can ever contain.

Caring about the worsening situation in America won’t help the beleaguered Jews there. We have to act!

At last week’s Emergency Aliyah Conference in Jerusalem, some 20 grassroots Aliyah activists, including Jonathan Pollard and Rabbi Leo Dee, spoke passionately to a large gathering about the imperative to act now in order to help our brothers and sisters in America. New concepts in outreach and new strategies sounded from every corner of the hall. Grassroots Aliyah activists who have worked independently for decades to further the cause of Aliyah, activists whose websites and outreach in the social media cover several million Jews, are ready to fly to the United States to rally American Jewry around the flag of the one-and-only Jewish State.

Emergency Aliyah Conference in Jerusalem (can be viewed)

@ https://youtu.be/c8BJGdAK__s?si=4oKhondyLez3j2ve

An initial group of “Aliyah Commandos” will fly to New York this week to hand out pamphlets at the Israel Day Parade about new college opportunities in Israel and about the imperative of Aliyah. A recruitment drive for young activists willing to travel throughout North America during the summer to college campuses and Jewish communities to promote a deeper connection to Israel and to the eternal mission of Am Yisrael will soon, b’ezrat Hashem, get underway.

To our great chagrin, the Government of Israel has not met the challenge of providing an escape route for Jews still lingering throughout the Diaspora. Perhaps their absence at the conference, excluding the presence of Nefesh B’Nefesh, explains the sorry state of Aliyah to Israel and the pathetically small numbers of new Jewish immigrants. It seems that when it comes to Aliyah, we are a ship without any gasoline.

Indeed, Jonathan Pollard, who recently returned from Aliyah-related activism in France, expressed the apparently widespread opinion of French Jewry that the Government of Israel doesn’t care about their desire to make aliyah.

Even worse, other activists at the conference claimed that when it comes to a mass movement of Jewish immigrants from the West, the Governments of Israel for the past several decades doesn’t want them here. I pray that these accusations aren’t true. The fight for world Jewry is as vital as our victory over the enemies which surround us and those who dwell in our borders.

The war with Hamas fell on us like a meteor from out of the sky.

Today, the State of Israel is at a crucial crossroads.

When it comes to Aliyah we must not be caught unprepared like we were on October 7th. Plans must be formulated to evacuate the Jews from the Diaspora if such a need arises. Housing for the great numbers must be prepared in Israel. The urgency of the hours demands that we all act together, government agencies and grassroots soldiers. Together, with the help of G-d, we will prevail!

TODAY RIGHT NOW . . .NBN EXPO . . . 3 to 6pm

 

Just Six Days Ago...

 

 

 קטע מתוך

 השידור חי של מעמד הלל פסח תשפ"ד בירושלים

And a few days before that 

 כאן חדשות | לוחמי נצח יהודה נשמו לרווחה כששמעו שהממשל האמריקני חזר בו - ולא יטיל סנקציות על היחידה. בינתיים. השבוע, לוחמים ובוגרים של הגדוד החרדי, יצאו לקרב על השם הטוב שלהם. כשבדרך, שורה של אירועים בעייתיים שמטילים צל וביקורת בינלאומית על הגדוד. הכתבה של איטה גליקסברג מתוך חדשות השבת, 27.04.24

The Infamous White Papers

 THE WHITE PAPER OF 1939

During World War I, the British had made two promises regarding territory in the Middle East. Britain had promised the Hashemite  governors of Arabia, through Lawrence of Arabia and the McMahon–Hussein Correspondence, independence for a united Arab country in Syria in exchange for supporting the British against the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Caliphate had declared a military jihad for the Germans, and the British hoped that an alliance with the Arabs would quell chances of a general Muslim uprising in British-held territories in Africa, India and the Far East.^[11] Britain had also negotiated the Sykes–Picot Agreement to partition the Middle East between Britain and France. […]

THE 2024 WHITE PAPER

Elisha Yered, one of the Israelis sanctioned today by Britain for his role as the unofficial spokesman of the Hilltop Youth movement, commented on the actions against him. 

''I was informed today that I have been included in the new White Paper. Eighty years ago the British Mandate authorities hunted down the heroes of the underground, and today the British continue to fight against the pioneers of settlement in an attempt to bring about the establishment of a Palestinian state in Judea and Samaria,'' he posted.

'The British have a great deal of experience in trying to prevent the return of the Jewish people to their land. They failed at it in the past and they will fail at it in the future. The hysteria of the nations of the world teaches that something great is happening here, and for the first time the settlement is breaking through the White Paper boundaries that have been imposed here for years and succeeding in bringing about a reversal of the situation on the ground. As then - so today. History will prove who will win in the end.''

Yered was one of four individuals sanctioned by Britain, along with the Hilltop Youth and Lehava movements.

Sources:  

[White Paper of 1939 Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WhitePaper_of_1939

https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/389371

Bereaved Parents:

 There is a limit to how much the Chief of Staff ..... and Defense Minister ..... can spit in the faces of the bereaved families."

Bereaved parents who lost their loved ones in the Hamas attack on October seven are threatening to petition the Supreme Court against the appointment of Brigadier General Shlomi Binder, head of the Operations Division, for the position of head of the IDF Intelligence Directorate.

"Our sons fought for long hours against terrorists and eliminated many of them, without the senior IDF officials, including Brigadier General Shlomi Binder, head of the Operations Division, who is responsible for IDF force preparedness for such situations, being seen on the horizon," the parents wrote. They added: "We intend to petition the Supreme Court along with other bereaved parents from Golani against the scandalous appointment of Brigadier General Binder as head of the IDF Intelligence Directorate, before his part in the failure is clarified through a national investigation committee. There is a limit to how much the Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant can spit in the faces of the bereaved families."

The move to petition the Supreme Court is led by Yehoshua Shani, father of the late Lt. Uri, and Yoel Dagan, father of the late Sgt. Shlomo. Shani said that, "After we examined Binder's part in the failure of October 7 - we, parents of Golani soldiers who with their bodies stopped the attack, know that the system that should have given them the support did not function for long hours. My son fought for nine hours in a hideout with five soldiers, and eliminated dozens of terrorists. The four who survived the day reported that there was nothing, no air force, nothing until 16:00."

He noted that "Binder, by virtue of his role, has a part in it. Appointing him as head of the IDF Intelligence Directorate - there is no delusion greater than this. It's not personal. We expect that if we're forced to make appointments, they will take into account what happened on October 7. At least wait for an inquiry committee to see what his part was before being appointed to such a significant position." 

https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/389367

Virtual [techias hameitim] Resurrection?

 Deepfakes’ of Holocaust victims beamed onto Habima for Remembrance Day

‘Resurrected’ project at central Tel Aviv square features visages and voices of six people who perished at hands of Nazis, including Anne Frank, Janusz Korczak

isn’t this eerie?

The outer walls of Tel Aviv’s Habima Theater were illuminated Wednesday night with giant AI-generated footage of Anne Frank and other Jewish Holocaust victims telling passersby about their lives and fates.

The projection, beamed for a single night Wednesday ahead of Holocaust Remembrance Day on May 6, used so-called “deep fake” artificial intelligence technology to manipulate images and recorded voices of the six victims of various ages to make it seem like they are speaking about themselves in Hebrew.

Aside from Frank, the diarist who perished at 15 at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, “Resurrected” also featured the likeness and story of educator Janusz Korczak, who ran a Jewish orphanage in Warsaw through 1942 and was killed in the Treblinka death camp at age 64.

The project also included lesser-known victims, such as Hannah Levin, who saved dozens in the Warsaw Ghetto and was killed at age 19; David Berger, a member of the Akiva Zionist youth group who was killed in Vilna at age 19 after writing to his girlfriend about his wish to be remembered; and Moshe Flinker, a deeply religious teenager from Brussels who kept a diary in Hebrew and was killed at 16 at Auschwitz.

Franceska Mann, a Polish Jewish ballerina who sparked a female uprising at Auschwitz and was killed at age 26, is also included as one of the six profiles projected on the theater’s walls.

The installation was organized by the Shem VeNer non-profit organization, which works with Habima and the Tel Aviv municipality to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive.

The projections face Habima Square, a large public space outside the national theater which has become a central gathering place for activists and others in the center of the city.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/deepfakes-of-holocaust-victims-beamed-onto-habima-for-remembrance-day/

eerie! what will be next?

Visiting A Tzadik’s Grave

 

Rav Avigdor Miller on Visiting The Grave of A Tzadik

Q:
What is the function of going to a kever of a Tzadik? 

A:
And the function is what we spoke about today. And that is, in order to advertise to the world that the greatest thing in the world is to be a tzadik. And in the zechus of you going there and demonstrating that you appreciate the greatness of a tzadik, Hashem will reward you and listen to your tefilla. But you’re not praying to the tzadik, chas v’shalom.

Hakodosh Boruch Hu says, “If you understand how much I love this man, and not only him, but I even love his body because his body was kadosh. And now you come there, where his body was placed, for that purpose of showing that you appreciate the greatness, the holiness, of his body, then I’m going to reward you by listening to your tefilla.”

That’s the purpose of kivrei tzaddikim.

TAPE # E-8 (May 1995)

This upcoming Sunday, the twenty-seventh of Nissan, will be the 23rd yahrzeit of Rav Avigdor Miller zt"l. Join us for the aliya l'kever and demonstrate your appreciation for the greatness of the tzadik!

Can't make it? DON'T WORRY! You can express how great the tzadik is in your eyes by simply helping to spread his Torah across Eretz Yisroel & the entire world.

DONATE NOW l'iluy nishmaso and send in names for tefilla at the Rav's kever on the yahrzeit 

-- 
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כדי להציג את הדיון הזה באתר, היכנס ל-https://groups.google.com/a/torasavigdor.org/d/msgid/toras-avigdor-ey/CAMKZFXtV6KohpEBHUS%2BLzfzO%2BfurPCgMLXPWm9i4ODhKc_hGbQ%40mail.gmail.com.

"A three-stranded cord will not quickly be broken"

 

(Ecclesiastes 4:12)

Nisan 25, 5784/AMay 3, 2024

Today is Ten Days of the Omer

Parashat Acharei Mot - "After the death of of Aharon's two sons" - takes us back to the dramatic events of the day of the dedication of the Tabernacle in the wilderness, when Nadav and Avihu, Aharon'stwo eldest sons brought an unauthorized offering to the Mishkan and were consumed by fire. The incident is mentioned now to serve as a warning to Aharon "that he should not come at all times into the Holy within the dividing curtain, in front of the cover that is upon the ark, so that he should not die, for I appear over the ark cover in a cloud."(Leviticus 16:2) The Torah then enters into a splendidly detailed description of the service performed by the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) on Yom Kippur, the one day of the year when the Kohen Gadol is, in fact, commanded to enter into the Holy of Holies to perform an incense offering while standing before the Ark of the Covenant, as described in the following verses:

"And he shall take a pan full of burning coals from upon the altar, from before HaShem, and both hands' full of fine incense, and bring it within the dividing curtain. And he shall place the incense upon the fire, before HaShem, so that the cloud of the incense shall envelope the ark cover that is over the tablets of Testimony, so that he shall not die." ((ibid 16:12-13)

This is one of the many dramatic, tension-filled moments of the Kohen Gadol's service on Yom Kippur, as the fate of the entire nation rests entirely upon the purity of his intentions and the absolute precision with which he performs every aspect of the Divinely mandated choreography of his service. Yom Kippur was, and remains to this day, a day of coming clean with HaShem, making atonement for the nation of Israel. And while today Yom Kippur also focuses on personal introspection and commitment to improvement, as well as asking forgiveness and making amends between people, the day itself and the prayer service which adheres as closely as possible to the description of the service in the Holy Temple, including a dramatic retelling of the service of the Kohen Gadol, is an intimate conversation between the children of Israel and the G-d of Israel, culminating in a loving embrace.

After concluding the description of the Yom Kippur service, Acharei Mot then goes on to emphasis that all offerings made by Israel must be brought to the Tabernacle altar, and that consuming the blood of the offering us absolutely unacceptable, and that anyone who does, nevertheless, eat the blood of an animal, will sever his relationship with HaShem. This warning is then followed by a more general warning:

"And HaShem spoke to Moshe, saying: Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: I am HaShem, your G-d. Like the practice of the land of Egypt, in which you dwelled, you shall not do, and like the practice of the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you, you shall not do, and you shall not follow their statutes. You shall fulfill My ordinances and observe My statutes, to follow them. I am HaShem, your G-d. You shall observe My statutes and My ordinances, which a man shall do and live by them. I am HaShem." (ibid 18:1-5)

It was of supreme importance to HaShem that Israel, upon entering the land of Canaan, not be tempted into assimilating or adopting any of the corrupt practices of the Canaanite nations already residing in the land. They, like the Egyptians whom Israel had left behind, were immersed in perverse and immoral customs. This stern warning is repeated again, following the next recitation of forbidden sexual relationships, a long detailed list, which places Israel far above the detestable mores of the native nations, and guards them from becoming an abomination to HaShem.

Again, we are told: "For the people of the land who preceded you, did all of these abominations, and the land became defiled. And let the land not vomit you out for having defiled it, as it vomited out the nation that preceded you. For anyone who commits any of these abominations, the persons doing so shall be cut off from the midst of their people. And you shall observe My charge, not to commit any of the abominable practices that were done before you, and you shall not become defiled by them. I am HaShem your G-d." (ibid 18:27-30)

The land of Israel is like no other land on earth. It is charged by HaShem with an energy and a sensitivity that will not tolerate moral corruption and decadence. It was the perverse and decadent practices of the Canaanite nations which forfeited their continued existence in the land, paving the way for Israel's conquest. And the same shameful fate awaits Israel should she also sink to such unsavory practices. The land of Israel is the land upon which HaShem chooses to rest His presence and any moral obscenity performed by man imperils His presence. HaShem has tremendous patience and tolerance for Israel's foibles and not infrequent failings, but He does keep a tab. There is a certain tipping point in which Israel falls out of favor, G-d forbid, and we must never again arrive at that. Just as the blood of Abel, slain by Cain, cried out to HaShem from the earth, the land of Israel, which witnesses all we do, reports to HaShem. Our covenant with G-d, which we committed to at Sinai, is not just between Israel and HaShem, but also includes a third party, the land of Israel.

Israel is the land of milk and honey, a land blessed with "wheat and barley, vines and figs and pomegranates, a land of oil producing olives and honey," (Deuteronomy 8:8), a land of rivers and springs, valleys and mountains, iron and copper. But Israel isn't a land simply to be exploited for its rich resources. It is a land that must be loved and cared for, that must be nurtured and defended. The land of Israel is an essential, integral partner in our relationship with G-d. It is the land G-d chose for His people and for His presence to dwell upon. Woe to a people who forgets. As Kohelet son of David, king in Jerusalem wisely stated, "a three-stranded cord will not quickly be broken."(Ecclesiastes 4:12) May the people of Israel dwell in the land of Israel forever!

Rabbi Kessin – The Might of God At The END OF TIME

THE END OF TIME Is yr 6000 and we havent seen Techias HaMeisim yet!

Rabbi Weissman – What’s Your Red Line?

 This month's Amalek and Erev Rav program was filled with really important information and perspective, including:

• A religious Israeli soldier refuses orders to return to Gaza and explains why.  Is this the beginning of a trend?
• The miracle of three middle-aged joes fending off dozens of heavily armed terrorists on October 7...and how they were set up to be slaughtered beforehand by the very army that took 8 hours to arrive
• How Hamas gets much of its weapons and even the material to make rockets (you'll never guess)
  
• Why the nations of the world really hate the Jews...and the only way we earn their respect and admiration
• A new bill from your Republican "friends" in Congress that purports to protect Jews but does the precise opposite
  
• A wake-up call for American Jews who think the police will protect them when things get hot
• Practical advice for American Jews who still think it can't happen and plan on staying put, no matter what

Everything is sourced and jam-packed in less than an hour, no shtick.

The recording is available here.

__________________________

chananyaweissman.com/

rumble.com/c/c-782463

Buy my books on Amazon here or contact me to purchase in Israel.

Download Tovim Ha-Shenayim as a PDF for free!

If you received this from someone else and want to receive future articles directly, please send a request to endthemadness@gmail.com.

Mayim Achronim – Pirkei Avot ...and... Sefirat haOmer

 

The Hidden Geometry of Pirkei Avot

Between the holidays of Pesach and Shavuot it is customary to read one chapter of Pirkei Avot on each of the six Sabbaths. While the plain text of the Mishnaic tractate Avot is already full of significant statements that can be meditated on at length, a closer look reveals much more beneath the surface. 

One thing that becomes clear is that each chapter has its own unique structure and essence. When it comes to Chapter One, we find an obvious pattern—a hidden geometry based on a fundamental Kabbalistic principle. As is well-known, the central concept of Jewish mysticism is the framework of the Ten Sefirot. These are arranged in three columns, and in three rows:

The most important of the three rows is the middle one; composed of Chessed on the right, Gevurah on the left, and Tiferet in the centre. In fact, mystical texts often see the entire right column as an extension of Chessed, and the entire left column as Gevurah, and the entire middle column as Tiferet. 

The dichotomy between Chessed and Gevurah permeates Jewish writings, both mystical and plain. For example, in Jewish law one must put on their right shoe first and their right sleeve first, and just about everything is done with the right side first—to favour the side of Chessed, kindness. 

This is also why the right tefillin strap is longer than the left, and why we wash the right hand first in netilat yadayim. We favour the right because the left is Gevurah, “restraint” or “severity”, also known as Din, “judgement”. The left is a more “negative” quality, and is also associated with the impure forces of the Sitra Achra, along with the evil inclination. We favour the right in order to overpower the left.

Balancing these two is Tiferet in the middle, also referred to as Rachamim, “mercy” or “compassion”, as well as Emet, “truth”. Too much Chessed is not good, just as too little Gevurah is not good. A person should judge themselves regularly in order to iron out their own weaknesses and improve. 

And a person should not be too kind and easy-going, for then they might become a pushover and get taken advantage of. The true path is Tiferet, where severity is mitigated by kindness—hence the term Rachamim, or mercy (for more, see ‘The Meaning of Tiferet’). This is actually where many practices in Judaism come from.

For example, it is customary to add a few drops of water to the Kiddush cup of wine. This is because the red, bitter wine represents Gevurah, while the clear, life-giving water represents Chessed. Adding water serves to “sweeten the judgement”, and brings balance to the opposing forces. For the same reason, Israel has three patriarchs: first came the overly hospitable and generous Abraham, who was Chessed; then came the tough, reclusive Isaac (whose relationship with God is described as pachad, “fear”), who was Gevurah; only then came the wholesome Jacob to balance the previous two. 

Due to his measured approach, it was Jacob who merited becoming “Israel” and fathering the nation. Abraham leaned just a bit too far to the right, while Isaac was just a bit too far on the left. In Jacob, God had the perfect balance. Fittingly, our tractate is called Avot, literally “patriarchs”, so there is an obvious allusion to our three patriarchs here. Indeed, we find that the first chapter is built all around such threes.

Truth in Threes

The Kabbalistic trifecta described above is not just a mystical idea, but is seen as the foundation for all of Creation. It represents the cosmic balance of thesis, antithesis, and synthesis. Three is a most special number, and the Talmud (Shabbat 88a) points out that God “gave a three-fold Torah to a three-fold people through a third-born, on the third day, in the third month.” 

There are three parts to the Holy Scriptures (Torah, Nevi’im, Ketuvim), and three parts to the Jewish people (Kohen, Levi, Israel), and Moses was a third-born child (after Miriam and Aaron), and the Torah was given on Sinai after three days of purification, in the third month of Sivan. All of these threes reflect the mystical trio of Chessed, Gevurah, and Tiferet.

Similarly, we see that many statements in Pirkei Avot are relayed in three clauses. In fact, every single verse in the first chapter of Pirkei Avot is split into three. When further examining each verse, we see how the Sages clearly paralleled each of their three clauses to one of the three Sefirot. The first teaching comes from the men of the Great Assembly who taught: “Be cautious in judgement, raise many disciples, and make a fence around the Torah.” 

The first explicitly speaks of din, “judgement”, referring to the Sefirah of Gevurah. The second is about having many students, just as Chessed represents abundance (while Gevurah is restraint), and just as Abraham was famous for having many students (while Isaac, our Sages say, only had one). The last clause is about the Torah, and the Kabbalists always speak of the Torah as emanating from the central Sefirah of Tiferet, or Emet.

In the next verse, Shimon haTzadik teaches that “the world stands on three things: on the Torah, on the service of God, and on acts of kindness.” Once more, the parallel to the three Sefirot is clear: kindness is Chessed, service (avodah, literally “labour”) is Gevurah, and the Torah is Tiferet. Shimon’s student Antigonus taught: “Do not be as servants who serve their master for the sake of a reward; rather, be as servants who serve their master not for the sake of a reward; and may the awe of Heaven always be upon you.” 

The one who serves his master (or Master) only out of obligation and fear is in the difficult realm of Gevurah, while the one who serves his master out of love is, of course, in Chessed. Whatever the case, one should never forget the truth of who the real Master is, and have the awe of Heaven upon them (Tiferet).

Then comes Yose ben Yoezer: “Let your home be a meeting place for the wise; dust yourself in the soil of their feet, and drink thirstily of their words.” The wise, like the Torah, stem from the Sefirah of Tiferet. One should roll around in the dust of their feet (meaning to humble one’s self before them, which is Gevurah) and drink thirstily (evoking water and abundance, both symbolic of Chessed).

His partner, Yose ben Yochanan, taught: “Let your home be wide open, and let the poor be members of your household, and do not engage in excessive conversation with the woman…” To have one’s door open is to be hospitable—Chessed. To remember the poor, who are undoubtedly experiencing tremendous din upon them, is Gevurah. We have already discussed in the past the real meaning of not speaking excessively to “the” woman. Rabbi Yose explains that this will ultimately lead a man to “neglect the study of Torah”—Tiferet.

Yehoshua ben Perachiah then famously says: “Assume for yourself a master, acquire for yourself a friend, and judge every man to the side of merit.” One’s master will (hopefully) lead them to the balanced life and teach them truth—Tiferet; a friend is a companion in Chessed; judging others favourably is the right way to approach Din and Gevurah.

Nitai haArbeli speaks next: “Distance yourself from a bad neighbor, do not cleave to a wicked person, and do not abandon belief in retribution.” While one should always be kind to their neighbours, they should also be weary of the bad apples. 

Remember, too much Chessed is not a good thing! One should certainly distance from the wicked person (who is attached to that negative Left Side). And no matter how hopeless it may seem (especially now with what’s going on in the world), there will in fact be a great reckoning to come, just as the Torah promises—do not lose hope in this truth! The “era of Tiferet” will soon be upon us, so don’t abandon belief in divine retribution.

Yehuda ben Tabbai then says that one should not act like a lawyer (Chessed), and one should be neutral when judging (Gevurah), and once judgement is passed one should see both litigants as righteous since they have accepted the truth (Tiferet). His colleague Shimon ben Shetach similarly teaches that a judge should be diligent in questioning witnesses in order to reach the correct verdict (Chessed), though a person should be restrained in their speech and careful with every word (Gevurah), lest their speech lead to the proliferation of falsehood (the opposite of Tiferet and Emet).

One can continue in this manner for the rest of the chapter and unravel the three-part structure of every phrase, with clear allusions to Chessed, Gevurah, and Tiferet each time. The very last verse mirrors the first, and gives the most explicit reference to these three Sefirot. 

In the beginning, Shimon haTzadik told us that the world stands on three things, and now at the end Shimon ben Gamliel tells us the world endures through three things: Din, Emet, and Shalom, three alternate names for Gevurah, Tiferet, and Chessed, respectively. In this way, we can understand each line of the first chapter of Avot on a far more profound level.

https://www.mayimachronim.com/the-hidden-geometry-of-pirkei-avot/

The Spiritual Significance of Sefirat haOmer

The Torah commands that each day between the holidays of Pesach and Shavuot be verbally counted (Leviticus 23:15). Along with this counting, a bundle of barley was brought as an offering in the Holy Temple. The barley was measured in units of omer, with one omer being equal to approximately 3 litres. 

Today, we no longer have a Temple or barley offerings, but the mitzvah of counting the days between Pesach and Shavuot remains, and is referred to as Sefirat HaOmer, “the Counting of the Omer”. Since there are exactly seven weeks between the two holidays, there are 49 days which need to be counted. What is the deeper meaning behind this seemingly mundane practice?

The Fifty Levels

There are a number of spiritual explanations for Sefirat haOmer. Perhaps the most popular is the idea that in Egypt, the Jews were so deeply mired in the immoral and idolatrous Egyptian society that they had descended all the way down to the 49th level of impurity.

It is said that there are 50 levels of impurity, rooted in (or at least suggested by) the numerical value of the Hebrew word for “impure” (tam’e, טמא) which has a gematria of 50. The Jews had stooped down to the 49th level, and had they reached the 50th, there would have been no hope of salvation for them. Thus, God cut short the 400 year period of slavery that was decreed upon them, and immediately took the Jews out of Egypt before they could fall any further.

Corresponding to these, the Jewish mystics teach that there are 50 levels of constriction in the world. Egypt represented these 50 constrictions. Again, this can be illustrated through Hebrew and gematria: Egypt is Mitzrayim (מצרים), the root of which is tzar (צר, meaning “constrict” or “narrow”) and the suffix of which is ים, numerically equalling 50. Egypt is the land of 50 constrictions.

Following the Exodus, the task of the Jews was to cleanse themselves of the 49 levels of impurity which they had acquired, and to break free from all those constrictions that were imposed upon them. This is why they needed a 49-day period – one for each impurity and constriction – before they were ready for the Divine Revelation and reception of the Torah at Mt. Sinai on Shavuot.

The Tree of Life

The Passover Haggadah reminds us that each Jew must envision themselves as personally coming out of Egypt. Though we are thankfully no longer literally slaves, the truth is that each of us is still mired in some kind of constriction, be it a constriction to time or work, money or health, stress, fears, and all those others things that “narrow” our lives and confine us into various forms of spiritual slavery. The Torah commands each of us to break free, to remove all of those impurities and boundaries, and to elevate ourselves over this special period of 49 days. Each day is associated with a unique energy to help us in this path.

The 49 energies stem from the Kabbalistic “Tree of Life”. This Tree is composed of ten Sefirot (a term not coincidentally related to Sefirat HaOmer). These Ten Sefirot are regarded as the spiritual building blocks with which God created the universe (together with the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet). It is said that all things in existence are permeated with these ten energies, and all things that are “ten” in the Torah correspond to the ten sefirot: the Ten Divine Utterances of Creation, the Ten Trials of Abraham, the Ten Plagues, the Ten Commandments, etc.

The top three sefirot are called the Mochin – the mental or intellectual faculties. The bottom seven are referred to as the Middot – the emotional and practical elements. During the time of the Omer, we are meant to focus on the purification of the bottom seven sefirot. Meanwhile, on Shavuot – having received the Torah – we are then able to rise further to the upper three mental sefirot and focus on intellectual development. 

Etz Chaim, “Tree of Life”, Showing the 10 Sefirot and the 22 Lines that Unite Them (Corresponding to the Hebrew Alphabet), as Depicted by the Arizal

Therefore, each of the seven weeks between Pesach and Shavuot is associated with one of the seven Middot. The first week of the Omer corresponds to the sefirah of Chessed – kindness. The second to the sefirah of Gevurah – restraint and self-control. The third to Tiferet – balance (also called Emet – truth). The fourth is Netzach – “victory”, or persistence (often associated with faith). The fifth, Hod – gratitude, and the sixth, Yesod – literally “foundation”, referring to sexual purity. Lastly there’s Malkhut, “kingdom”, which is associated with the faculty of speech.

Each of the seven days of the week is further associated with one of these seven sefirot. So, the first day of each week corresponds to Chessed, and the second day of each week to Gevurah, and so on. This gives each of the 49 days a totally unique quality which one should be meditating on, and more importantly, attempting to rectify.

For example, tonight we will count the third day, with the corresponding sefirah of Tiferet sh’b’Chessed, “Balance (or Truth) in Kindness”. This suggests developing a harmonious approach to kindness: being a more giving person; charitable, helpful, sympathetic, but also making sure not to be taken advantage of or tricked into false kindness. 

Unfortunately, misplaced kindness has become a staple of Western society. (How often do we see well-meaning liberals supporting the “poor and disadvantaged” terrorists?) Tonight’s sefirah might be summarized well by the old Midrashic teaching that “those who are kind to the cruel will ultimately be cruel to the kind.”

Similarly, each of the remaining 49 days has a powerful message to teach us, hence the tremendous importance of Sefirat HaOmer – counting and meditating upon each and every one of these very special days.

https://www.mayimachronim.com/the-spiritual-significance-of-sefirat-haomer-2/