HaRav Moshe Sternbuch Shlit"a on Bereishis (Part 2)

DOUBTS

“But of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, Hashem said, "You shall not eat of it, and you shall not touch it, lest you die” (3:3). 

The snake said, “lest you die”, as if the matter was open to doubt, whereas Hashem had said, “… for on the day that you eat from it, you shall surely die” (2:17).  The evil inclination’s main power lies in its ability to cast doubt and blur the truth, until eventually its victim sins due to a lack of clarity and lack of conviction about the reality of sin and punishment.  Amalek has the gematria of safek, and indeed his method is to sow doubts in our hearts. The importance attached to removing doubts from our consciousness is evident from the very first sentence of the Mesillas Yesharim: “The foundation of piety and the root of perfect service [of G-d] is for a man to clarify and become convinced of his obligation in this world.”  If a person clarifies and becomes convinced of his duty in this world, the evil inclination will not be able to persuade him to sin. During this time of year, following the Yamim Nora’im, it is incumbent on us to follow up on the resolutions that we had adopted, and not allow the evil inclination to sow doubts in our hearts.  

WICKED INTELLECTUALS

“And He said, "Who told you that you are naked?  Have you eaten from the tree (HaMin Ha’Etz) of which I commanded you not to eat” (3:11)?

The Gemara (Chulin 132b) says, “Where is Haman mentioned in the Torah?  HaMin Ha’Etz.”  What is the connection between the wicked Haman and the Eitz HaDa’as?  Contrary to the common assumption that intellectuals, scientists, artists and so on, are incapable of immoral behavior, in reality even someone who has imbibed wisdom from the Eitz HaDa’as is still capable of being a base murderer like Haman.  In fact, an intellectual will only use his intellect to justify base character traits and evil actions. Hence, Chazal are telling us, “from where did Haman, the arch-murderer, who set out to annihilate the Jews, receive his wickedness?  He received it “from the tree,” meaning from the intellect, which the Eitz HaDa’as symbolizes.  Not only did his intellect not prevent him from his desire to annihilate an entire nation, but he used it to justify and rationalize it.

In recent times too, Germany, the cradle of the Enlightenment, turned into a nation of cruel murderers, killing six million Jews, including two million children.  The vast majority of the German population, hitherto considered to be the epitome of enlightened intellectuals, cooperated with the Nazis, or, at the very least, were willing accomplices, without uttering a word of protest.  Clearly then, wickedness is completely divorced from intellectual knowledge or ability.

DIFFICULTIES 

“… and dust shall you eat all the days of your life” (3:14). 

Dust is readily available, so this seems more like a blessing than a curse.  However, in truth, a trouble-free existence is not the type of life Hashem intends for us.  Rav Sternbuch recalls a bachur who asked the Rosh Yeshivah, Rav Schneider, for a brachah before his wedding.  Rav Schneider asked him what blessing he wanted, and the young man replied, “That everything should go smoothly in life.”  Rav Schneider responded that that was no brachah, and he blessed him instead that when he would be faced with difficulties, he would overcome them successfully.  Something attained without effort has little value, and it is only by surmounting difficulties that a person becomes elevated and realizes his potential.

PARNASSAH

Moreover, someone who has all his needs taken care of loses his connection to the Almighty, since he feels that he no longer needs to pray to Him.  Accordingly, before the curse, the nachash had some intellect and was dependent on Hashem—like man—but, after the curse, he lost his connection to the Creator. Sometimes a wicked person finds it easy to make a living and becomes wealthy quickly, whereas a righteous person may find it difficult to even make ends meet.  At a superficial glance, it looks as if the wicked person has been rewarded by Hashem, and the righteous one has received a punishment.  However, the opposite may be the case:  the wicked person may have been rejected by Hashem, and therefore been granted wealth as a punishment, so that he will not feel any connection to the Creator; and the righteous person may have been sent financial difficulties so that he will merit forming a connection with the Creator through his prayers. Hence, those who have been granted wealth should live with the constant awareness that we are all equally dependent on Hashem, and without His constant Providence, we would not enjoy any sustenance even for a moment.

EASIER TO LOSE MONEY THAN ONE'S HONOR

“And Hashem said to Kayin, "Why are you annoyed, and why has your countenance fallen” (4:6)? 

Why does the Torah seemingly repeat itself, saying:  Why are you annoyed, and why has your countenance fallen?  Rav Yisroel Salanter pointed out that when a butcher’s animal is declared treif he will likely accept such a psak willingly, acknowledging the righteousness of divine judgment, but if the same person has a judgment handed down against him by a Beis Din, this is very difficult for him, to the extent that he may even curse the dayan.  It is much easier for him to accept a monetary loss than to accept a situation in which someone has won a dispute at his expense and impugned his honor. Accordingly, Hashem was asking Kayin, “Why are you annoyed?”  Are you really bothered by the fact that I did not accept your offerings, or are you more concerned that your countenance has fallen, and that your brother Hevel has gotten the better of you, and impugned your honor? 

BOOK OF GOOD DEEDS 

“This is the narrative [literally, “book”] of the generations of man; …” (5:1). 

Rav Chizkiyahu Yosef Mishkovsky told Rav Sternbuch that Rav Chaim Eliyahu Meisels of Lodz once visited Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, and the latter gave him a copy of his sefer “Achiezer” as a present.  Rav Chaim Eliyahu was very pleased and Rav Chaim Ozer said to him, “When will we merit to have the Rav put out a sefer?”  He replied that he had one, and when Rav Chaim Ozer asked to see it, he told him to follow him, and he showed him promissory notes in which he had undertaken to support talmidei chachamim, widows and orphans in the city of Lodz.  Rav Chaim Eliyahu said that this was his book, since it says, ‘This is the book of the generations of man’, which refers to the good deeds a person has performed, and I am so busy with this book that I do not have the time to write a book like Rav Chaim Ozer”.

Rav Chaim Ozer did not respond, but on his deathbed, he asked Rav Chizkiyahu Yosef Mishkovsky to come closer, and he told him that he now sees that Rav Chaim Eliyahu was right, the main book a person takes with him for eternity is the book of his good deeds.

HaRav Moshe Sternbuch Shlit"a on Bereishis (Part 1)

DA'AS TORAH

“In the beginning, Hashem created …” (1:1)

The Torah starts with the letter “בּ”—beis, which is open to the left, to allude to the message that Torah she’bichsav should not be taken as something locked and sealed, but rather has to be “opened” in order to derive da’as Torah from it regarding issues which are not expressly addressed in it.  This concept is also known as the “Fifth Shulchan Aruch”.

Of course, this process can only be undertaken by outstanding talmidei chachamim who have toiled in the holy Torah for many years with purity, employing the 48 means for acquiring Torah.  The intellect of such exceptional individuals has become so pure, and their hearts so devoid of any personal interests, that they have become privileged to acquire da’as Torah.

This idea explains the juxtaposition between the last pasuk of the Torah and the first pasuk.  The Torah ends with “… before the eyes of all Yisroel.” (Devarim 34:12), which, according to Rashi (ibid.), alludes to the incident where Moshe’s heart stirred him up to smash the luchos before their eyes.  Moshe’s greatness in doing this lay in the fact that he used his da’as Torah to make a kal vachomer from Pesach (see Shabbos 87a).  This sevara, which did not stem from anything contained expressly in the Torah she’bichsav, was based exclusively on Moshe Rabbeinu’s da’as Torah, and was powerful enough to overcome the luchos and smash them, with Hashem approving his act (see Gemara, ibid.).

HERETICS

“In the beginning, Hashem created …” (1:1)

The Gemara (Megillah 9a) says that in the Septuagint (the Targum HaShiv’im), when 70 Sages were forced by the Greeks to translate the Torah, the words Bereishis Bara Elokim were rendered as Elokim Bara Bereishis in Greek lest anyone should think that Bereishis is one divine power who created another one called Elokim (see Rashi, ibid.).  Why, in fact, did the Torah at the very beginning use an ambiguous phrase, which seems to leave open the possibility for a heretical interpretation?

Someone who used to be religious once met Rav Chaim Brisker and told him that he had various questions about Hashem's conduct in this world.  Rav Chaim replied that if he had questions, he would be willing to answer them, but he suspected that these so-called questions were not genuine ones, but rather excuses justifying his own conduct and lifestyle, and for such excuses he had no answers.  In other words, heretics do not usually become what they are because of intellectual or theological doubts.  It is rather a matter of character traits.  Preferring to live an unbridled lifestyle without the yoke of Torah, they come up with supposed problems in order to justify their neglect or abandonment of religion.

Hashem wanted to start the Torah with a “בּ”—beis in order to teach us various lessons, and that was more important to Him than the danger of misleading potential apikorsim, because such psukim are in any case not the real cause of their heresy. Similarly, it says “… Let us make man …” (1:26), on which Rashi comments:  “Even though they [the angels] did not assist Him in His creation, and there is an opportunity for the heretics to rebel, the Torah did not hesitate to teach proper conduct and the trait of humility that a great person should consult with and receive permission from a smaller one.” 

The rule that a great person must consult with a smaller one is not limited to the judicial context.  It teaches us that we should not live a self-centered existence, since we were created with talents, abilities, and positive qualities in order to share them with our fellow human beings, and assist them to the best of our abilities.   Hashem considered this principle to be so important that it had to be emphasized, even at the risk of misleading potential heretics.

THE ORIGINS OF HERESY

The very existence of the sun and the stars, as well as the entire science of astronomy, points toward a Creator:  see Rambam, Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah, end of chapter 4, but apikorsim (heretics) will still clothe their views with an intellectual veneer.  In reality, the source of their outlook is negative character traits.  Deep down they feel the emptiness of their lives, and seek to justify licentious behavior by citing sundry intellectual “problems” they claim to have detected with regard to leading a religious lifestyle.  Rav Yehoshua Leib Diskin noted that heresy, which denies the existence of Hashem, claiming that the only reality is nature, is so irrational that it can only be explained as a supernatural phenomenon created by Hashem. Rav Diskin added that much siyata diShmaya was needed to keep our distance from apikorsus, especially in the final period prior to the coming of Moshiach, when the powers of tumah increase, as they know that their end is near. 

This week’s parsha teaches us that the entire creation is the handiwork of Hashem, Who supervises our lives with individual divine providence.  We are totally dependent on Him, and must do our utmost to acquire immunity to the heretical views that are so pervasive in modern society, and to non-Jewish and anti-Torah views as a whole, and live with the awareness that we are constantly creating ourselves and continuing Hashem’s initial work of creation.

RIGHTS TO ERETZ YISROEL

In the beginning of G-d's creation (1:1).  Rashi:  “Said Rabbi Yitzchok:  It was only necessary to begin the Torah from ‘This month is to you’ (Shemos 12:2), which is the first commandment that the Jews were commanded, so why did He commence with ‘In the beginning?’  Because of the pasuk ‘The strength of His works He related to His people, to give them the inheritance of the nations’.  For if the nations of the world should say to Jews, ‘You are robbers, for you conquered by force the lands of the seven nations,’ they will reply, ‘The entire earth belongs to Hashem; He created it and gave it to whomever He deemed proper.  When He wished, He gave it to them, and when He wished, He took it away from them and gave it to us.’” 

Since the Gentile nations in question deny the validity of the Torah, why would they listen to this argument?  It would therefore appear that the answer cited by Rashi is not directed towards them, but rather towards us.  When the nations will come to quarrel with us, we must strengthen our own faith in Hashem and realize that Eretz Yisroel belongs to Hashem, Who gave it to us in order to keep His mitzvos.  If we remain strong in our faith, their arguments will automatically fall away, because their power to oppose us depends on the degree of our faith, and if we remain strong and cleave to Hashem, they have no power to do us any harm.

Rav Elchonon Wasserman said that based on natural premises it is very dangerous to live in Eretz Yisroel, surrounded as we are by enemies who hate us and thirst for our blood.  Only by leading a life of Torah and kedushah can we live without fear, and be saved from their machinations.  If, however, we follow the advice of our erring brethren by living the lifestyle of the Gentiles, then we have no right under the Torah to live here, and will be exposed to great dangers from our enemies.

STORIES ABOUT GEDOLIM

The above Rashi seems to belittle the importance of relating stories that have no halachic significance. However, Rav Moshe Schneider (Rav Sternbuch’s Rosh Yeshivah) would often relate stories about the Chofetz Chaim and other gedolim.  Dayan Abramsky opposed this, arguing that learning Torah on its own was sufficient to acquire fear of Heaven.  Rav Schneider responded that all of Sefer Bereishis consists of stories with moral messages, and we too should tell stories about gedolim, which arouse the desire to emulate them.  However, Dayan Abramsky responded that the stories in Sefer Bereishis have halachic significance.  In any case, Rav Schneider told Rav Sternbuch that he was still of the opinion that it was important to relate stories of gedolim which strengthen yiras Shamayim, and he continued with this practice.

FAITH AND HUMAN EFFORT

“And G-d made the two great luminaries:  the great luminary to rule the day and the lesser luminary to rule the night, and the stars” (1:16).  Rashi:  They were created equal, but the moon was made smaller because it brought charges and said, “It is impossible for two kings to use the same crown.”

The moon’s punishment was measure for measure, because the basis of its sin lay in not having accepted Hashem’s conduct with unquestioning faith, and wanting the world order to correspond to its own understanding.  Therefore, Hashem made the moon smaller in order to show what the world looks like when created beings do not accept Hashem’s conduct.  However, although it became diminished, this punishment itself was its rectification, because its diminution led to a sanctification of the divine name, serving as a symbol that the world must be conducted solely on the basis of Hashem’s desire. Even today, several millennia after creation, scientists have still not managed to get to the bottom of all the wisdom inherent in creation, and each generation reveals new details of Divine wisdom. 

GRATITUDE 

“And the stars”:  Because He diminished the moon, He increased its hosts, to appease it (Rashi, ibid.).

Even with the addition of the stars, the moon’s stature was still insignificant compared to the sun, so how was it appeased?  The Ksav Sofer explains that by contemplating how small the stars are compared to itself, the moon was inspired to thank Hashem for not having been made as small as the stars.  From now on, instead of feeling sorrow at its small stature compared to the sun, it felt grateful for not having been made as small as the stars.

Rav Moshe Schneider told Rav Sternbuch that he still remembered how, when he (Rav Schneider) was young, approximately 120 years ago, the students of the Vilna Gaon’s disciples would learn in the Vilna Gaon’s kloiz day and night.  Their wives agreed that they would only come home on Shabbos.  These great talmidei chachamim lived in abject poverty.  Every Friday they would all visit the local hospital.  In addition to praying for the recovery and welfare of the patients, and seeing how they could help them physically, the visitors also wanted to be exposed to people suffering from various diseases in order to increase their gratitude to Hashem for their own health, and thus strengthen their desire to pray fervently to Him to be spared such suffering in the future.

(continued)

MrMBB333: Map of the Worldwide Flooding

 ARE WE LIVING THE DAYS OF NOAH?

 

The above is a Map. But he is working on a comprehensive video about all the flooding that has been and continues to happen across the World

Bereishis: WEDDING IN PARADISE

 

Sound Familiar? FLU Attack?

 

FLU? Israeli Hospitals Report Rising Hospitalizations And Severe Complications Before Winter

Recently the weather people have informed us that the “AIR” was not clear and “sensitive” persons should  be careful. 

What made that air toxic to some? Really to all of us. Were they spraying again? Or did it blow in from elsewhere?

Last Succos i believe a similar situation occurred. Most of Israel were in Succot and out celebrating. A petfect opportunity. Do why not this Succot?

All of a sudden (?) everyone is getting sick and being hospitalized? Especially Pneumonia. Coincidences? Nah! Weather fluctuations are unpredictable.

Heard This Story Before??

Scare tactics are just that…….to SCARE

However, be aware and forewarned

Due–diligence is necessary

Sometimes the news feels almost too insane to believe. The plague – yes, the Black Death that wiped out 25 – 50 million people in Europe in the Middle Ages – is back in the news.

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According to our friends at The Gateway Pundit:

A 28-year-old technician at Russia’s Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute is dead, nearly 200 people are under medical observation, and five hospitals in the region have been reportedly slammed shut for quarantine, while the Kremlin’s health agency insists this is nothing but “pneumonia of unknown origin.”

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The Moscow Times identified the dead woman as Darya Shipilova, a laboratory worker at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East.

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She was hospitalized in Shelekhov on September 29 with severe pneumonia, placed on a ventilator, and died on October 1, overnight into October 2, by some accounts.

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The account that set off the alarm: Shipilova told medical staff she had accidentally broken a test tube of live Yersinia pestis, the bacterium that causes plague, while handling samples on September 25. That is four days before she was admitted, DW reported.

A woman is dead, 200 people are in quarantine, and the globe waits with bated breath concerned that another pandemic could engulf the globe, all because a government worker in a shady biolab dropped a test tube. A test tube that just happened to contain the pneumonic plague in it.

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This incident, whether it develops into a full-blown global crisis or not, is yet another reminder that the next pandemic is just one accident away from once again paralyzing humanity.

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We know how dangerous these biolabs are, the same kind of biolab that Anthony Fauci secretly funneled US taxpayer dollars to in Wuhan, can be found all over the globe.

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Governments and globalists continue to play God. Manipulating and experimenting with deadly viruses like the Black Death.

The Central Location of the Tree of Life

 

Eliezer Meir Saidel: The Universal Solvent – Bereshit

 The Universal Solvent – Breishit
הַשִּׁעוּר מֻקְדָּשׁ לִרְפוּאַת שִׂמְּעוֹנָה בַּת שָׂרָה

 

וַיֹּאמֶר אֱ-לֹקִים יְהִי רָקִיעַ בְּתוֹךְ הַמָּיִם וִיהִי מַבְדִּיל בֵּין מַיִם לָמָיִם. וַיַּעַשׂ אֱ-לֹקִים אֶת הָרָקִיעַ וַיַּבְדֵּל בֵּין הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר מִתַּחַת לָרָקִיעַ וּבֵין הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר מֵעַל לָרָקִיעַ וַיְהִי כֵן. (בראשית א, ו-ז)

 

Simple question – "What did HKB"H create on the first day?" Most will answer – light, וַיֹּאמֶר אֱ-לֹקִים יְהִי אוֹר וַיְהִי אוֹר ... וַיְהִי עֶרֶב וַיְהִי בֹקֶר יוֹם אֶחָד.

 

However, things are not as simple as that. The Gemara says וְאָמַר רַב יְהוּדָה אָמַר רַב עֲשָׂרָה דְּבָרִים נִבְרְאוּ בְּיוֹם רִאשׁוֹן וְאֵלּוּ הֵן שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ תֹּהוּ וָבֹהוּ אוֹר וָחֹשֶׁךְ רוּחַ וּמַיִם מִדַּת יוֹם וּמִדַּת לַיְלָה (חגיגה יב, ע"א). Ten things were created on the first day - Heaven, earth, tohu, vohu, light, darkness, wind, water, the length of day, and the length of night.

 

Another question – is there anything above Heaven? We tend to think that earth is down here and Heaven is up there, where HKB"H sits on His כִּסֵּא הַכָּבוֹד, in the seventh layer of Heaven – עֲרָבוֹת (Rashi, חגיגה יב, ע"ב).

 

However, again, things are not simple. The psukkim say וַיַּעַשׂ אֱ-לֹקִים אֶת הָרָקִיעַ וַיַּבְדֵּל בֵּין הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר מִתַּחַת לָרָקִיעַ וּבֵין הַמַּיִם אֲשֶׁר מֵעַל לָרָקִיעַ וַיְהִי כֵן. וַיִּקְרָא אֱ-לֹקִים לָרָקִיעַ שָׁמָיִם וַיְהִי עֶרֶב וַיְהִי בֹקֶר יוֹם שֵׁנִי.. HKB"H created the רָקִיעַ which separates between "two waters" – the water below the רָקִיעַ and the water above the רָקִיעַ. And HKB"H called the רָקִיעַ – שָׁמָיִם, Heaven. Therefore, above Heaven is water??? In the second passuk in the parsha it says וְרוּחַ אֱ-לֹקִים מְרַחֶפֶת עַל פְּנֵי הַמָּיִם. But if HKB"H is in the 7^th layer of Heaven below the upper waters, how can His spirit be "floating" above the surface of the water?

 

Confused yet?

 

Many regard the first chapter of Breishit, the six days of creation, as a kind of "children's story" (1^st day - light, 2^nd day - Heaven and earth, 3^rd day - land and sea, etc.), but nothing could be further from the truth. Listen to what the Ramban says on the first passuk in the Torah –

 

שֶׁמַּעֲשֵׂה בְּרֵאשִׁית – סוֹד עָמוֹק, אֵינוֹ מוּבָן מִן הַמִּקְרָאוֹת, וְלֹא יִוָּדַע עַל בּוּרְיוֹ אֶלָּא מִפִּי הַקַּבָּלָה עַד מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ מִפִּי הַגְּבוּרָה, וְיוֹדְעָיו חַיָּבִין לְהַסְתִּיר אוֹתוֹ ... וְהַסִּיפּוּר בְּמָה שֶׁנִּבְרָא בְּיוֹם רִאשׁוֹן וּמָה נַעֲשָׂה בְּיוֹם שֵׁנִי וּשְׁאַר הַיָּמִים, וְהָאֲרִיכוּת בִּיצִירַת אָדָם וְחַוָּה, וְחֶטְאָם וְעוֹנְשָׁם, וְסִיפּוּר גַּן עֵדֶן וְגֵירוּשׁ אָדָם מִמֶּנּוּ, כִּי כָּל זֶה לֹא יוּבַן בִּינָה שְׁלֵמָה מִן הַכְּתוּבִים.

 

Breishit is anything but a "children's story". There is no way to understand it by just reading the psukkim, only by kabala that HKB"H revealed to Moshe Rabbeinu, and those who do understand it, are obligated to conceal it.

 

The Mishna (חגיגה ב, א) forbids studying מַעֲשֵׂה בְּרֵאשִׁית in a forum of more than two people. מַעֲשֵׂה בְּרֵאשִׁית in this context is not referring to physics, chemistry and the big-bang theory, but to elevated spiritual realms that require holiness, purity and full knowledge of the Torah, before one can begin to study them, as the prophets did (ספר דרך ה', רמח"ל).  

 

Since most of us (me included) do not fit the bill above, I will not pretend to understand anything that is written in this parsha, much less give a shiur on it.

 

Instead, I would like to discuss the subject of water with some sources from the Torat Hanistar, not chas vechalila to contravene the Ramban's directive, but to try understand two practical water-related נָפְקָא מִינוֹת regarding the halachot of – נְטִילַת יָדַיִם (מַיִם רִאשׁוֹנִים) performed before eating bread and מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים, performed after eating bread and before בִּרְכַּת הַמָּזוֹן.

 

Why davka these two mitzvot?

 

R' Yosef Karo, author of the שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּךְ, wrote another sefer called מַגִּיד מֵישָׁרִים in which he says –

 

מַיִם רִאשׁוֹנִים מִצְוָה, אַחֲרוֹנִים חוֹבָה ... כִּי הַמַּיִם הָרִאשׁוֹנִים רֶמֶז לְמַיִם עֶלְיוֹנִים שֶׁאֵין שָׁם שָׂטָן וּפֶגַע רַע אֶלָּא הַכֹּל טָהוֹר וְקָדוֹשׁ וְלָכֵן נִקְרָאִים מִצְוָה וְאַחֲרוֹנִים הֵם חוֹבָה רֶמֶז לְכְּנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל (סְפִירַת מַלְכוּת) שֶׁצָּרִיךְ לִדְחוֹת מִמֶּנָּה כֹּחוֹת חִיצוֹנִיּוֹת הַנִּקְרָאוֹת חוֹבָה. (מגיד מישרים, בחוקותי)

 

R' Yosef Karo says that נְטִילַת יָדַיִם is connected to the "upper waters" and מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים is connected to the "lower waters" mentioned in this week's parsha.

 

The reason water is called מַיִם חַיִּים, is because it is essential for life. The presence of water in our world enables life. About 71% of the earth's surface is covered by water. Water is the major element from which our bodies are made, varying between babies (75%), males (60%) and females (55%). Water has the highest specific heat capacity of any liquid, making it the ideal liquid for temperature regulation (e.g. in the body, in the car radiator). Water is capable of dissolving more substances than any other liquid, giving it the title "Universal Solvent". Even physically speaking, water is unique from other liquids.

 

Spiritually speaking, water, מַיִם, is a synonym for the Torah. The Torah is likened to water in many ways –

 

מָה מַיִם חַיִּים לְעוֹלָם, כָּךְ תּוֹרָה חַיִּים לְעוֹלָם.

מָה מַיִם מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם, כָּךְ הַתּוֹרָה מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם.

וּמָה הַמַּיִם מְטַהֲרִים הַגּוּף, כָּךְ תּוֹרָה מְטַהֶרֶת הַגּוּף.

וּמָה הַמַּיִם יוֹרְדִין טִיפִּין-טִפִּין וְנַעֲשִׂים נְחָלִים-נְחָלִים וכו' 

                                                                               (שיר השירים רבה א, יט)

 

Simply stated, the "upper waters" are rain (ילקוט שמעוני בראשית א, ז) and the "lower waters" are the sea (salt) water and river (fresh) water.

 

After HKB"H separated the upper waters from the lower waters, the lower waters cried to HKB"H (בראשית רבה ה, ד) "We want to be up in Heaven with the upper waters!" HKB"H replied "You will get your compensation in 2448 years-time, when Am Yisrael build the Mishkan". The sea water will be used to make salt to salt the korbanot on the Mizbeach and the fresh water will be brought in a special korban נִסּוּךְ הַמַּיִם on Sukkot (רש"י ויקרא ב, יג).

 

Rain is formed by an intermingling of the (left) male attribute of Gvura with the (right) female attribute of Chessed, שְׂמֹאלוֹ תַּחַת לְרֹאשִׁי וִימִינוֹ תְּחַבְּקֵנִי (שיר השירים ב, ו), making up the attribute of Tiferet. Avraham's mida was Chessed, Yitzchak's was Gvura and Yaakov was a combination of the two – Tiferet. The procedure of switching the cup between the left and right hands during נְטִילַת יָדַיִם is symbolic of this intermingling (see shiur Eikev 2022). The process of procreation also embodies the same principle. Both are derived from the מַיִם עֶלְיוֹנִים, which are pure and holy, over which the שָׂטָן has no control over. Thus, every child is born pure and holy.

 

The Tosefta does not say that נְטִילַת יָדַיִם is a mitzva, instead it says מַיִם רִאשׁוֹנִים רְשׁוּת (תוספתא ברכות ה, יד), i.e that it is "optional". In fact, washing your hands before eating bread is not a mitzva de'oraita, Sefer HaChinuch does not list נְטִילַת יָדַיִם before eating bread as a separate mitzva, but as an "offshoot" of the mitzva for the Kohanim to wash their hands and feet in the Kiyor (חינוך, מצוה קו). However, according to the Shulchan Aruch (אורח חיים קנח), since נְטִילַת יָדַיִם before eating bread is derived from the upper waters which are pure and holy, it is a mitzva de'Rabbanan, based on a Gemara (עירובין כא ע"ב), which says that Shlomo HaMelech instituted נְטִילַת יָדַיִם.

 

On the other hand, מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים is derived from the lower waters which is susceptible to external influences of the yetzer hara. Therefore, it is not a mitzva but rather a חוֹבָה (שו"ע אורח חיים קפא), which is another name for unwanted, external influences.

 

On a purely practical level, the purpose of מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים is to clean the hands of מֶלַח סְדוֹמִית, salt (derived from the lower waters) eaten in ancient times with bread (which is more astringent than modern day table salt), lest a person accidentally touch their eyes with the salt on their fingers and burn their eyes, perhaps even go blind. However, if you read through siman קפא in the Shulchan Aruch regarding מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים, the language there is "ambiguous" and could apply equally to removing a physical contaminant as well as a spiritual one.

 

Chazal were very makpid about performing מַיִם רִאשׁוֹנִים and מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים and the Gemara brings a stark warning of the severity of the outcome if these two mitzvot are not observed. מַיִם רִאשׁוֹנִים הֶאֱכִילוּ בְּשַׂר חֲזִיר מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים הָרְגוּ אֶת הַנֶּפֶשׁ (יומא פג, ע"ב) – failure to do מַיִם רִאשׁוֹנִים resulted in someone eating בְּשַׂר חֲזִיר and failure to do מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים resulted in murder.

 

The Gemara tells two disturbing "stories".

 

The first story tells that during a period of persecution when the goyim forbade Am Yisrael to observe the mitzvot, there was a Jewish restaurant owner who used to cook (separately) kosher meat and non-kosher (pork) so that the authorities would not think he was trying to observe kashrut. If a goy entered the restaurant, he would serve them the pork for 10 shekels. If a Jew entered the restaurant he would serve them the kosher meat for 8 shekels. How did he know if it was a Jew or a goy? The Jew would do נְטִילַת יָדַיִם and make a bracha before eating.

 

One time a Jew came into the restaurant and did not do נְטִילַת יָדַיִם, so the owner thought he was a goy and gave him the pork to eat. At the end when he came to pay, he was handed a bill for 10 shekels. The man said "Hang on, yesterday I came to eat and you charged me only 8 shekels?" The owner was flabbergasted and said to him "I saw you did not do נְטִילַת יָדַיִם and didn't make a bracha, so I thought you were a goy and I gave you the pork!"

 

The second story tells about R' Meir, R' Yehuda and R' Yossi who were travelling and decided to stop off at an inn for the night. The inn was owned by a man named Kidor. All three were carrying valuables with them and as is common when sleeping in a hotel, you ask the proprietor to lock your valuables in the hotel safe. R' Yehuda and R' Yossi were not makpid regarding a person's name and handed over their valuables. R' Meir, however, refused saying "There is no way I am going to hand my money over to someone named Kidor. The passuk says כִּי דוֹר תַּהְפֻּכֹת הֵמָּה בָּנִים לֹא אֵמֻן בָּם (דברים לב, כ), you cannot trust someone named Kidor!" R' Meir snuck out round behind the hotel to the cemetery and, making sure nobody was watching, dug a hole and hid his wallet.   

 

That night while Kidor was serving them dinner, he approached them "Rabbis, do you mind if I ask you a question? This afternoon, while I was having a nap, my late father came to me in a dream and said 'Kidor, you won't believe what happened! Someone just buried a large sum of money next to my tombstone'. Rabbis, do you think that there could be any truth to this dream?"

 

All three told him "You must have had too much beer for lunch and it has made you woozy. That is why you are dreaming such crazy dreams. Go to sleep early tonight and sleep it off". During the night, R' Meir hurriedly retrieved his stash.

 

The following morning, they met Kidor as he was racing out in the direction of the cemetery. They noticed he had lentil crumbs on his mustache from breakfast. "Kidor, we would like to head out, can you please return our money from the safe". "Money? What money? I never received any money from you to put in the safe!" said Kidor as he ran out to start digging around his father's grave. R' Yehuda and R' Yossi realized that R' Meir had been correct, but being talmidei chachamim, they knew how to outwit Kidor. With Kidor out of the hotel they approached his wife "Dear Mrs. Kidor, your husband said he had to step out and told us to ask you to get our money from the safe. So that you will know that we are telling the truth, he gave us a sign - he said to tell you that you both were eating lentil soup for breakfast!" Kidor's wife knew that to be true so she believed them and went to return their money". Later Kidor returned home full of mud and empty handed. "I gave those men back their money like you told me", said his wife. "Me? I told you? When did I tell you?" Kidor was so angry that he struck his wife and she died.

 

So far, the shiur seems to be a "hotchpotch" of different subjects and stories, but in fact they are all tied together and they all relate to the sin of Adam HaRishon.

 

The first rain occurred after Adam was created וְאֵד יַעֲלֶה מִן הָאָרֶץ וְהִשְׁקָה אֶת כׇּל פְּנֵי הָאֲדָמָה (בראשית ב, ו). After Adam was created, he prayed for rain and all the plants, which had not yet emerged from the ground (HKB"H created them on the third day, but they did not yet emerge from the ground on the third day) sprouted forth from the earth. This first rain was from the מַיִם עֶלְיוֹנִים which were pure and holy.

 

The Tosefta brings an interesting lashon מַיִם רִאשׁוֹנִים רְשׁוּת – which you could translate as "optional", but what the Tosefta really means by the word רְשׁוּת is "permission". Adam HaRishon ate from the עֵץ הַדַּעַת created by the מַיִם עֶלְיוֹנִים - without permission! This resulted in Adam essentially eating "treif" בְּשַׂר חֲזִיר (as in the story above).

 

Another name for the עֵץ הַדַּעַת is מַלְכוּת (זהר, חלק א, לה ע"א). R' Yosef Karo says וְאַחֲרוֹנִים הֵם חוֹבָה רֶמֶז לְכְּנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל (סְפִירַת מַלְכוּת) שֶׁצָּרִיךְ לִדְחוֹת מִמֶּנָּה כֹּחוֹת חִיצוֹנִיּוֹת הַנִּקְרָאוֹת חוֹבָה. By eating from the עֵץ הַדַּעַת through the "external influence" of the נָחָשׁ, Adam in fact committed murder. Before the sin, Adam was immortal, by eating from the tree without permission, he made himself mortal מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים הָרְגוּ אֶת הַנֶּפֶשׁ (as in the story above).

 

The tikkun for this debacle is the takanat Chazal to do נְטִילַת יָדַיִם before eating bread and a seuda – which is in fact asking HKB"H permission to eat.

 

While we are eating, we might mistakenly think that the food we have eaten comes from the kitchen and was created by our wife (it was, but that is only the "postscript"). We may allow foreign, "outside influences" to cloud our judgment regarding where our food actually comes from. Therefore, before we do Birkat HaMazon, to thank HKB"H for the food that HE created and gave us, we have to do מַיִם אַחֲרוֹנִים to clean our hands and minds of these "foreign, external" thoughts.

 

The water used for נְטִילַת יָדַיִם, is pure and holy, corresponding to the attribute of Tiferet, the upper waters. The salt that we add to the bread before we eat it, is from the lower waters. They are both tikkun for the sin of Adam HaRishon. We perform these mitzvot practically every day and whether we understand their purpose or not, they do tikkun for the sin of Adam HaRishon regardless. By understanding their purpose, we can now perform them with the appropriate kavanot and thus exponentially increase the effectivity of the tikkun.

 

The intended purpose of water is to be מַיִם חַיִּים, to give life. Babies are born pure and holy, with the highest percent of water (75%). Water is a very good temperature regulator, cooling down the heat of the desire caused by the yetzer hara. Water dissolves more substances than any other liquid, thus making it both the universal solvent, but also the universal cleanser, to wash away our sins and purify us.

 

 

Shabbat Shalom

 

Eliezer Meir Saidel

Machon Lechem Hapanim

www.machonlechemhapanim.org  

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