Sweet Intentions

"No evil descends from above." - (Shelah P. 106B)


This week's Torah portion, Ki Tavo, is one of the few places in Torah where the Jewish People are told of "curses" that will befall us if we don't keep the Torah & Mitzvot that G-d Commands us. It ain't pretty folks. But Jewish Mysticism teaches, that Torah contains layer upon layer of meaning. And that in this case, these are not curses at all, but rather blessings in disguise, for "no evil ever descends from above." It may appear to be a curse, but it's really a great blessing.

There's a famous story brought down in the Talmud (Berachot 60b) that involves the great Rabbi Akiva. One afternoon, he was traveling on the road, and the sun began to set. He entered a nearby town and searched for a house to stay the night. One by one, he was refused! But Rabbi Akiva's mood was not shaken. "Kol ma she'asah Hakadosh Baruch Hu, l'tovah oseh - All that G-d does, He does for the good," he said. So Rabbi Akiva left the city walls and found a place in the nearby field to sleep. He had with him, as per usual, his donkey, his rooster (which would crow & awaken him at midnight for his special prayers of lamentation), and his lamp (which he would light in order to learn). As night fell upon him, Rabbi Akiva lit his lamp and began to learn. All of a sudden, out of nowhere, he heard a loud noise as a lion came and pounced on his donkey, killing it and dragging it away! Shaken, Rabbi Akiva barely had a minute to recover, when a cat came and dragged his rooster away. If that wasn't enough, a strong gust of wind followed shortly thereafter, blowing out his flame and leaving him in total darkness. Rabbi Akiva smiled & said: "All that G-d does, He does for the good."

The next morning, upon awakening, Rabbi Akiva walked to the town and saw a startling scene. It was clear that the night before, the town had been ransacked by a hoard of bandits! The whole place was pillaged and destroyed! If he had slept there the night before, he would have been attacked. And if his donkey or rooster hadn't been eaten, or his light not extinguished, the bandits would have surely noticed him & captured him.

There is always good hidden in the "bad" things that happen in life. Most of us are not as lucky as Rabbi Akiva to be able to see the fruit that blossoms from the bad event. But it's there. Ultimately, we can & should ask G-d that all that happens to us should be revealed good, and trust that it will be so. Not merely good that's hidden within bad. That's called bitachon - trust. Emunah - faith, is believing that after the fact, even the apparent bad was really for the best. That there's a good reason behind it, and that good will sprout forth from it.

May we only see good, and merit to see the ultimate goodness with the coming of Mashiach, when all the bad that has happened to us & all of our people throughout history, will be shown to somehow have been all for the best.

Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel

You Have Consoled Us

~ This e-mail is dedicated to the success of a new Hebrew High School I'm beginning :) See more at JewishYouthsd.com ~

As you wind through the narrow streets and tunnels in the majestic old city of Jerusalem, you may just happen to stumble upon a large, open square where children run around kicking a soccer ball, yelling with joy. On a discreet wall in the corner of that square, is inscribed (in Hebrew) a few words from the Prophet Zacharia, which read: "And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets."


There's a powerful story in the Talmud where this exact verse from Zecharia is brought: 'Again it happened that Rabban Gamliel, Rabbi Elazar ben Azaria, Rabbi Joshua and Rabbi Akiva went up to Jerusalem. When they reached Mt. Scopus, they tore their garments. When they reached the Temple Mount, they saw a fox emerging from the place of the Holy of Holies. The others started weeping; Rabbi Akiva laughed... Said they to him: "A place [so holy] that it is said of it, 'the stranger that approaches it shall die,' and now foxes traverse it, and we shouldn't weep?" Said he to them: "That is why I laugh... the Torah makes Zachariah's prophecy dependent upon Uriah's prophecy. With Uriah, it is written: 'Therefore, because of you, Zion shall be plowed as a field; Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the Temple Mount like the high places of a forest.' With Zachariah it is written, 'Old men and women shall yet sit in the streets of Jerusalem. And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets.' As long as Uriah's prophecy had not been fulfilled, I feared that Zechariah's prophecy may not be fulfilled either. But now that Uriah's prophecy has been fulfilled, it is certain that Zechariah's prophecy will be fulfilled.' With these words they replied to him: "Akiva, you have consoled us! Akiva, you have consoled us!"

As you watch the boys & girls happily playing around this Jerusalem square, this verse and the accompanying story begin to hit home. How amazing it is to see with our own eyes the source for Rabbi Akiva's laughter!

But we have to remember, we're not fully there yet. While it is true that we are nearing redemption, we still have to put the finishing touches on our lives and in the world around us to fully realize it. We can take heed to the saying of the great Tzemach Tzedek (in Yiddish): "Mach da Eretz Yisroel" - Make here Israel. Elevate your life. This means that even if we're found in CA, NY or Paris, we can live like we're on the streets of Jerusalem. Kedushah - holiness, can be brought into our lives wherever we find ourselves. One coin in a charity box, one smile to a neighbor, one Shabbat candle lit, can transform the darkness of our exile into the light of redemption.

And through living our lives in such a way, may we merit the complete & ultimate redemption, when there will be no more pain and only joy, and all of our children and elders will play and laugh in the streets. May it happen now!

Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel

Like Fish in Water

The Talmud relates a very special story: There was a time in Israel, under Roman occupation, that if anyone were caught teaching Torah -
they would surely be put to death.
Yet the great Rabbi Akiva persisted teaching Torah to children. Those around him tried to reason with him, saying:
"If you continue, you'll surely be killed! Those you teach might be killed as well! If you stop though, at least there's a chance of survival!?"
Rabbi Akiva smiled and replied: "Let me explain with a parable.
There was once a fox resting by a river. Peering into the water, the fox saw a group of fish looking very worried. "What's the problem?" asked the fox. The fish answered: "There are fishermen waiting to catch us by the edge of the river!" "OK," said the fox after some thought, "I have a plan. Jump on my back and I'll secretly take you to the other end of the river, and drop you back in past the fisherman." The fish laughed at him and said: "I thought you foxes were sly?! If we leave the water, we'll perish for sure! We can't survive without water! If we stay in the water, at least we have a chance at survival..."

Torah, explained Rabbi Akiva, is the water of the Jewish people. It's our spiritual life force; strength for survival as Jews during a dark exile.

As we all know too well, there are many distractions and hardships for the Jew of 2011.
But this time it's unique. Instead of the usual physical hardships, like the threat of death for being a Jew, today there is a different challenge.
A spiritual, existential one.
The "fishermen" today are much more inviting and open armed.
We Jews are accepted into all areas of life in the modern world. And of course we excel at it!
But as Rabbi Akiva taught us, at the same time - we have to remain in our water.
To live as Jews and maintain our Jewish identity. To learn Torah and study our heritage.
Today it is easy to forget we are "fish" who depend on "water." Going out onto land looks like fun!
It's interesting that when fish are out of water, they do look like they're having fun! Not lying lifeless, dying, but flopping and dancing around!
But in truth they are dying.
Our soul, all souls, need spiritual nourishment. And that nourishment for a Jew is found in Torah, Mitzvot, prayer - spiritual growth.

Let us get involved in the world and succeed, influencing it in the proper direction.
But let us always stick to what's kept us existing as a strong Jewish people throughout history: the Torah.

Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel

Realizing Redemption

B"H

'Jerusalem received 9/10's of the world's beauty.' -the Talmud

Earlier this afternoon, my friend Yoni took my brother & I on a tour of the old city of Jerusalem. After praying the afternoon service at the Western Wall, we met Yoni at the top of the stairs and proceeded on our tour.
Ascending up a few pairs of narrow stairs, we were suddenly faced with a gorgeous view of the old city.
"There's the direction in which King David came & conquered Jerusalem.
Over there's where we won the hard-fought battle in 1967.
Every inch of this holy city is layered with thousands of years of history; of joy and suffering,
destruction & salvation."

As we wound through the narrow streets & tunnels of this majestic city, we emerged into a large, open square.
As the sun set, we stood together talking while children ran around us kicking a soccer ball, yelling with joy.
My friend motioned to look at the wall next to us, which had inscribed in it the words (in Hebrew):
"And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets." (Zechariah 8:5)

There's a powerful story in the Talmud where this verse is brought:
'Again it happened that Rabban Gamliel, Rabbi Elazar ben Azaria, Rabbi Joshua and Rabbi Akiva went up to Jerusalem. When they reached Mt. Scopus, they tore their garments. When they reached the Temple Mount, they saw a fox emerging from the place of the Holy of Holies. The others started weeping; Rabbi Akiva laughed... Said they to him: "A place [so holy] that it is said of it, 'the stranger that approaches it shall die,' and now foxes traverse it, and we shouldn't weep?"Said he to them: "That is why I laugh... the Torah makes Zachariah's prophecy dependent upon Uriah's prophecy. With Uriah, it is written: 'Therefore, because of you, Zion shall be plowed as a field; Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the Temple Mount like the high places of a forest.'
With Zachariah it is written, 'Old men and women shall yet sit in the streets of Jerusalem. And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets.' As long as Uriah's prophecy had not been fulfilled, I feared that Zechariah's prophecy may not be fulfilled either. But now that Uriah's prophecy has been fulfilled, it is certain that Zechariah's prophecy will be fulfilled.' With these words they replied to him: "Akiva, you have consoled us! Akiva, you have consoled us!"

As we watched the boys & girls playing all around the square, these words and the accompanying story hit home.
How amazing it was to see with our own eyes the source for Rabbi Akiva's laughter!

But we have to remember, we're not fully there yet. While it is true that we are nearing redemption, we still have to put the finishing touches in our lives and in the world around us to fully realize it. Our sages teach us, that in order to ready the world for the complete Redemption, we need to start viewing our world in, and living with, a redemption mentality.

Now what in the world does that mean?

Well, let me ask you: Why is it that when people bump into each other on the street or in the office hallway, annoyance surfaces? I mean, when a call comes in to firefighters to get moving, and they're slamming into each other in every direction to get their gear and jump on the truck, no one is even close to thinking of getting angry?

The answer is simple. These men are on a mission. They each have a cause on their mind, a purpose that's higher than any pettiness or strife. We can start to live now in exile in a more redemptive way. In the messianic era, there won't be strife or hatred. Let's work on that now. In that time, we will see the good traits in one another. Let's work a bit on that now. In that era we will be occupied in attaining a higher recognition and building our relationship with G-d through learning about Him and connecting. Let's do some of that now. Now it only makes sense that G-d meet our redeemed perspectives with a revealed redemption.

As the 3rd Rebbe of Chabad once said (in Yiddish): "mach da Eretz Yisroel" -"Make Israel here."
This means that even if we're found in CA, NY or Paris, we can live like we're on the streets of Jerusalem. Kedushah, holiness, can be brought into our lives wherever we find ourselves. One coin in a charity box, one smile to a neighbor, one candle lit, can transform the darkness of our exile into the light of redemption.

And through living our lives in such a way, may we merit the complete & ultimate redemption, when there will be no more pain and only joy, and all of our children and elders will play and laugh in the streets, may it happen now!

Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel

Jerusalem

Adam Sandler & Spiritual Survival

B"H

This past week, at our yeshiva's end-of-summer banquet, Rabbi Shlomo Shwartz (fondly known by his Santa Monica faithful as "Shwartzy") spoke. Among other points, Shwartzy mentioned how he used to have a weekly learning session on Judaism with Adam "Chaim Rafael" Sandler. During the course of one of their discussions, conversation veered towards the subject of money. Adam told Shartzy: "Money?! I make lots of it and I'm depressed. The happiest day of my week is when I'm here learning with you..."

The Talmud relates that there was a time when anyone caught teaching Torah by the Romans would be put to death. Yet Rabbi Akiva persisted teaching Torah to children. Those around him tried to reason w/ him, saying: "If you continue, you'll surely be killed! Those you teach might be killed as well! If you stop though, at least there's a chance of survival!"
Rabbi Akiva smiled and replied:"Let me explain with a parable.
There was once a fox resting by a river. Peering into the water, the fox saw a group of fish looking very worried. "What's the problem?" asked the fox. "There are fishermen waiting to catch us by the edge of the river!" "OK," said the fox after some thought, "I have a plan. Jump on my back and I'll secretly take you to the other end of the river, and drop you back in past the fisherman." The fish laughed at him and said: "I thought you foxes were sly?! If we leave the water, we'll perish for sure! We can't survive without water! If we stay in the water, at least we have a chance at survival..."
"Torah," Rabbi Akiva concluded, "is the water of the Jewish people. It's our spiritual life force."

This lesson proves true for both Jew and non-Jew alike. We all have souls, and these souls need nourishment, just like our bodies need, albeit a more spiritual nourishment. Divine Wisdom, as found in our Torah works in abundance, both practical and mystical, is essential to our daily living as content, caring and purposeful human beings.

"But so many seem to be happy and content, as they exit the malls and clubs laughing together, w/out anything deeper?"

A fish looks happy when he's taken out of the water as well, jumping and flailing around. But he's dying. True joy and contentment is found when one nourishes one's soul; not just one's body.
May we all have much success, both in the physical and spiritual realms!
Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel
Nicè, France

P.S. To check out an artist who blends the spiritual well with today's world, see Matisyahu's new music video, very nice:
Matisyahu "One Day