Orach Chayim Way of Life - Jewish Life - Torah Insights - Current Events

Faith in G-d cures our spiritual blindness.

The name of the parasha, "Va'era", can be read two ways: "I showed Myself" and "I show myself" - both past and present.

Torah Ohr says that G-d's revelation of Himself was not an isolated incident relegated to the distant past but is happening now, too. We demonstrate our ability to see past the facade to spiritual truth every time we use the strengths we inherit from the Forefathers:

• the kindness of Avraham in the world's "dog eat dog" mentality
• Yitzchak's strength and self-control in a generation that demands abandonment of values
• the mercy of Yaakov, in honest appraisal without self-aggrandizing influences.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe relates this to when G-d instructed Moshe to tell the people they will be redeemed, (Shemot 3:17), and Moshe answered, "But they won't believe me". (Ibid. 4:1) Moshe worried that after 210 years of exile, the Jews were not only physically exiled but also mentally stuck.

G-d answered, "I have shown Myself to Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov" (Ibid. 6:3) "...I have also heard the groaning of the Jewish people". (Ibid. 6:5) G-d was saying that the children of Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov are incapable of being stuck. All you have to do is tell them I am coming - "And I will take you out". (Ibid. 6:6)

We are no different even after this last exile of almost 2000 years. Deep down, we have not sold out. We just have to be reminded.

- KabbalaOnline.org

--------------

Parashat Va'era

Shemot 6:7 "And I will take you to me as My people, and I will be to you a G‑d; and you shall know that I am HASHEM your G‑d, Who brings you out from the under the oppression of Egypt." 

This commandment [to know G‑d] is the first of all the commandments. The knowledge of G-d falls into two categories hinted in this verse. First is the general understanding that there is one supernal force that supervises the world. Next is the realization that this supervision and influence devolves into the finest particulars of this world.

The beginning of every mitzvah is to know G-d in His generality. What is this generality? It is to know that there is a ruling force above Who is the Master of the world. He created all of the worlds [Atzilut, Beriyah, Yetzirah and Asiyah], the heavens and the earth and all of their forces. This is [knowledge of Him] in general [consisting of six parts]:

• To know that there is [understanding this reality];
• A ruling force [that commands all the forces of the universe];
• Above [the higher reason to all reasoning];
• Master of all the worlds [and active in them, not leaving them to secondary controlling forces];
• Creator of all the worlds [from nothing to something - ex nihilo];
• And all their forces. [Not to believe that the works of Creation are somehow self sustaining].

All this is the beginning to arriving at a true belief in G-d in general.

The end of all [knowledge and belief] is in the particular, to know Him in particular [details].

We find that a person in this world deals with the general and particular [in arriving at faith in G‑d]. In this world a person himself consists of the general and particular. [In generality he exists as a physical body made up of particular limbs]. This is the reason that the beginning of all is to know that there is a Controller and Judge in this world and that He is the Master of all the worlds. He made man from soil of the earth and breathed into his nostrils the soul of life.

In Hebrew the word for "man" is "adam"; the word for "soil" is "adamah"; the word for "breath" is "neshima"; the word for "soul" is "neshama". The act of breathing gives life to the body, which is the container of the soul, ultimately sourced in the original breath of G-d into the first man. In Hebrew, the actual words for "man" and "soul" clearly relate to these concepts. This is one of the reasons Hebrew is called the Holy Tongue, since the very letters and words express divine hidden meanings.

When the People of Yisrael left Egypt they didn't know G-d.

The deepest exile is not to know of the existence of G-d - in general or in particular. Egypt was the essence of all exiles and this lack of knowledge of G-d was the darkest aspect of that exile. We constantly remember coming out of Egypt because that was essence of the struggle in our own lives - to leave the darkness and to know G-d.

When Moshe came to [redeem] them, this was the first commandment he taught them as is written;

"And you shall know that I am the HASHEM your G d, who brings [note the present tense!] you out from under the sufferings of Egypt."

The word for Egypt in Hebrew is "Mitzrayim"; it is related to the word "maytzarim", meaning "constriction". The first commandment in leaving constricted consciousness is to recognize the Divine.

If it were not for this commandment, Yisrael would not have believed in all the miracles and mighty deeds that were done for them in Egypt. When they understood this in general, miracles and wonders were done for them [in particular].

From here we see that a person needs to understand and believe in He who is making history in order to merit the miracles connected with redemption from exile.

- Zohar, Parashat Va'era, pg. 25a; translation and commentary by Simcha-Shmuel Treister; Chabad

-------------

Parashat Va'era

Shemot 2:1 A man of the house of Levi went and married a daughter of Levi.

Burial in Eretz Yisrael

Burial in the Holy Land confers a great advantage for six reasons:

1. When a person dies, the soul leaves the body.  If this occurs in Eretz Yisrael, the soul ascends directly to heaven.  The abode of souls is under G-d's כִּסֵא הַכָּבוֹד (Kissey HaKovod - Throne of Glory), and this Throne is in direct spiritual proximity to Eretz Yisrael.  The בֵּית הַמִקְדָשׁ (Beit HaMikdash - Holy Temple) on high is also in direct proximity to the place where the Temple in Yerushalayim stood on earth, and it is through this place that souls enter and leave the world.  During the first 12 months after a person's death, the soul descends to its grave every Shabbat and Rosh Chodesh(New Moon) to visit the corpse of the body with which it was previously associated. (Yeshayahu 66:23.  Cf. Shabbat 152b)  If the body is buried in Eretz Yisrael, the soul can descend and ascend through a direct route, without any delay. When a person dies outside Eretz Yisrael, the soul has great difficulty in ascending to the heavens.  It must go in roundabout ways and pass through all the Mekatrigin (Denouncing Powers) associated with the evil Sitra Achra (Other Side).  It is as if the soul were a person who suddenly found himself in the midst of an army of tens of thousands of armed warriors.  It must undergo much anguish until it can pass through them all. (Bachya, Lech Lecha; Zohar, Terumah; Yafeh Toar, p. 518; Chesed LeAvraham 3)  Many Jews therefore wanted to go to Eretz Yisrael to die, so that their souls would have a straight path when leaving the body, without any opposition.   One who is worthy of dying in Eretz Yisrael has great merit. (Zohar, Achrei Mot)  When a person dies in Eretz Yisrael, immediately after his death the soul goes directly to Machpelah Cave, and from there it goes to its proper place. (Zohar, Chayei Sarah)  Being buried in Eretz Yisrael is just like being buried beneath the Mizbeach (Great Altar), which was a focal point of the Temple in Yerushalayim.  It is also just like being buried under the Throne of Glory.
2. When people die outside Eretz Yisrael, they die by the hand of a destroying angel, Samael, otherwise known as the Angel of Death.  When a person dies in Eretz Yisrael, on the other hand, he dies through the hand of Gavriel, who is a merciful angel.  The only exception to this rule were Moshe, Aharon and Miriam, who died outside the Holy Land but were not given Sama'el. (Zohar, Terumah; Chesed LeAvraham, loc. cit.)  
3. If a person dies in Eretz Yisrael and is buried on the same day he dies, before nightfall, no unclean force has power over him. (Zohar)
4. The agony of the grave חִבּוּט הַקֶבֶר (chibbut ha-kever - literally "beating of the grave") is even worse than death itself (some say that chibbut ha-kever is the psychological anguish of seeing the decay of one's mortal remains).  When a person dies outside Eretz Yisrael, there is no way he can escape this fate.  In Eretz Yisrael, on the other hand, if a person is buried on Friday after the fourth hour of the day (around 10 a.m.) he avoids this anguish.  This is speaking of someone who lives in Eretz Yisrael and dies on a Friday.  Then the holiness of Eretz Yisrael and the holiness of the Shabbat join to protect him.  When a person dies under such conditions, it is an indication that he does not deserve such punishment.  Providence therefore arranges that he die on the day before the Shabbat.  Obviously, if he was a sinner, these two elements of holiness would not protect him from the agony of the grave.  Rather, the very fact that he died on a Friday indicates that he is a virtuous person.  Our sages taught that there are a number of good habits that can protect a person from the agony of the grave.  These include giving charity, accepting correction, enjoying good works and taking in guests, and saying one's prayers with כַּוָנָה(kavanah - concentration), without any external thoughts.  However, it is not enough to do such things when one has the opportunity; one must make an effort to create opportunities.  He must keep them with heart and soul, and not merely as an obligation, since heartless observance cannot protect one from the agony of the grave.  A man once died on Thursday. His relatives gave instructions that he should not be buried until late Friday afternoon to avoid the agony of the grave.  This was done, but the sages said that they had done wrong.  They had violated the mitzvah,"His body shall not remain out overnight" (Devarim 21:23).  Obviously, such delay will not help the individual avoid the agony of the grave at all.
5. When a person is buried outside Eretz Yisrael, his flesh decays and becomes maggoty.  Our sages say, "A worm in the flesh of the dead is like a needle in the flesh of the living." (Berachot 18b; Shabbat 13b, 152a.)  Since the soil of Eretz Yisrael is like lime, one's flesh does not become maggoty. (Yad Yosef:  Mevakesh HaShem)
6. Outside the Holy Land a person dies twice.  At the time of Techiyat HaMetim (the Resurrection), the soul cannot return to the body unless it is in Eretz Yisrael.  At the time of the Resurrection, G-d will personally open the graves; it will not be done by any angel (cf. Yechezkiel 37:13).  This cannot take place outside Eretz Yisrael, since other places are considered unclean. (Bereishit Rabbah; Yafeh Toar)  Of course, this does not mean that people buried outside Eretz Yisrael will not be resurrected.  Obviously, many great tzaddikim are buried in other lands.  The meaning, however, is as follows:  There is a small bone in man, at the base of the neck, known as the לוּז(Luz). This bone does not decay in the ground.   This bone is like the yeast in a batch of dough; from it the body is reconstructed.  The soul, however, cannot be returned to the body except in Eretz Yisrael.  After the bodies are reconstructed, G-d will provide underground passages through which they can be transported to Eretz Yisrael.  Until they reach Eretz Yisrael, they will remain bodies without souls.  Only there will G-d grant them souls so that they can come to life.  This is alluded to in the verse, "[G-d] gives a soul to the people in [the land]" (Yeshayahu 42:5).  This indicates that G-d will provide a soul for the resurrected dead when they are in the Holy Land. (Ketubot 111a)  According to another opinion, the archangel Gavriel will bring the bones of the dead to Eretz Yisrael and there they will be resurrected. (Zohar, Chayei Sarah; Ketubot, loc. cit.)  Furthermore, people buried in Eretz Yisrael will be resurrected before those buried elsewhere.  Others will have to be brought to Eretz Yisrael, and their resurrection will therefore be delayed.  This is alluded to in the verse, "Your dead shall live, my corpses shall rise, [awake and sing you who live in the dust]" (Yeshayahu 26:19).  "Your dead shall live" refers to the dead buried in Eretz Yisrael, while "your corpses shall rise" refers to those buried elsewhere.  They will merely rise and have their bodies reconstructed; then they will be brought to Eretz Yisrael, where they will be given souls that will bring them back to life. (Zohar; Ketubot)  There is a tradition that people buried in Eretz Yisrael will be resurrected 40 years before the dead buried elsewhere.  If a person buried outside Eretz Yisrael has been concerned with and has supported (to the best of his ability) a relative - either male or female - who is buried in Eretz Yisrael, that relative can see to it that he is resurrected at the same time as the dead in Eretz Yisrael.  All reward is measure for measure.  This person supported his relative so that he could live in the Eretz Yisrael, which is considered the same as ransoming captives (discussed in Lech Lecha).  Such a person therefore has very great merit, and he will partake in the resurrection long before the other people buried outside Eretz Yisrael.  This shows us that someone buried in Eretz Yisrael has two advantages with regard to the Resurrection.  First, he will be brought to life before people buried elsewhere. Second, he avoids the agony of having to travel through the underground passages, which involves great anguish.  Our sages say that all these advantages are accrued only by one who lives in Eretz Yisrael for a while and is then worthy of dying there.  However, if a person dies elsewhere and is brought to Eretz Yisrael, it is not proper to bring him there for burial.  Regarding those who do this it is written, "You came and defiled My land" (Yirmeyahu 2:7).  G-d complained because people came only after they were dead, and a dead body defiles, as it is ritually unclean (BaMidbar 19:14) (Yerushalmi, Ketubot 12:3; Zohar, Terumah, Achrei Mot)  

Zot Chanukah!

THIS, THE EIGHTH DAY OF CHANUKAH – the fact that there are 8 days of Chanukah – ZOT CHANUKAH, this is what Chanukah means. It means EIGHT. EIGHT is our answer to the Greek challenge. They said nature is perfect. They said it is a mutilation of the body to be circumcised. And they forbid us to fulfill that great mitzva of ours, under pain of death. EIGHT represents the step beyond TEVA, beyond nature. MILA on the 8th day represents our challenge to go beyond how we were created and take charge of the completion of our physical and spiritual form. The Mikdash began to function on its higher spiritual level on the EIGHTH day. The Greeks tried to take that away from us too. Torah was given to us on the day following seven sevens. It is an EIGHTH too. And the Greeks tried to take that from us also. With G-d’s help, we prevailed over the Greeks and the triumph is celebrated with an 8 day holiday. This is Chanukah. ZOT CHANUKAH.

-Aish

It is said in the name of the holy Rebbe, Rav Yisroel Rhiziner that “what the tzaddikim of the generation accomplish through their lofty Neilah prayers on Yom Kippur, a simple Jew can ask and accomplish with his prayers on Zot Chanukah, the eighth day of Chanukah”.

Bereishit 39:2 "Hashem was with Yosef, and he became a successful man."

Harav Bunim M'Peshischa notes the Torah's emphasis on Yosef's "remembering" the source of his success. He realized that the success he had achieved was only because "Hashem was with Yosef." All too often, we pray to Hashem for various favors. Shortly after Hashem grants us His good will, we seem to forget the source of our benefaction.

Along these same lines, the Chofetz Chaim explains that in the tefillah that we say on the Shabbat prior to Rosh Chodesh, we implore Hashem to grant us a life replete with yirat Shamayim, fear of Heaven, and yirat chet, fear of sin. Once again, at the end of the tefillah, we ask for ahavat Torah v'yirat Shamayim, love of Torah and fear of Heaven. Why do we ask Hashem to grant us yirat Shamayim twice?

The Chofetz Chaim relates that after our first request for yirat Shamayim, we ask for a life of osher v'kavod, wealth and honor.  Once a person has "tasted" a life of wealth and honor, he seldom retains the yirat Shamayim he once had developed. Consequently, it is necessary to request yirat Shamayim a second time. (Peninim on the Torah)

---------------------------

Parashat Vayeshev

Vayeshev Pardes

Five miracles occurred with Jacob when he left Be'er-Sheva:

1. The day was cut short, and the sun set before its time, because G‑d wished to talk to him
2. When he awoke in the morning, he found that the four stones (depicting the four wives that he was destined to marry) that he had placed under his head when he lay down, had turned into one stone
3. He rolled the stone from the well - with one hand, although normally, it required the combined effort of all the local shepherds to remove it
4. The well began to flow and the water rose to meet him, and it continued to flow for the entire duration of Yaakov's stay in Charan (in verse 10, the Targum will add that it flowed for twenty years)
5. The earth 'jumped' before him, and on the same day that he left home he arrived in Charan.
   

Parashat Toledot

Toledot Pardes

And Yitzchak brought her [Rivkah] into the tent of his mother Sarah...and he loved her; and Yitzchak was comforted after his mother's death. (Bereishit 24:67)

Sarah lived on…in Rivkah's virtues.

The Midrash reports that as long as Sarah was alive there used to be a [sheltering] cloud over her tent. (Bereishit Rabbah 60:16) The doors were open to offer hospitality, the challah displayed signs of having been blessed, and a light burned from one Erev Shabbat to the next. All of these phenomena ceased when Sarah died; they now resumed when Rivkah moved into that tent.

Woman had been assigned three tasks to help repair the imbalance created in the universe due to the sin of Chavah. They are: the consecration of the first part of her dough [called "challah"], the observance of the laws of family purity, and the periodic kindling of a light [i.e. on Shabbat eve].

Man is composed of 4 basic elements: matter [in Hebrew, "chomer"], life-force [Nefesh], spirit [Ruach], and soul [Neshamah]. Chavah had upset three [the most elemental] of these four elements; the soul, however, had not been damaged, being incapable of corruption at the hands of human beings, according to Kabbalah. A sin which would potentially corrupt the soul would result in the soul leaving man before he had a chance to commit such a sin.

Bereishit Rabbah 14 states that the mist rising from the earth prior to the first rainfall was like a woman who mixes water with the dough and separates the challah, the kohen's portion. Only after this process had been completed did G‑d create man from the dust which had been so treated.

Man is viewed as the "challah" of nature, in that just as challah represents the entire dough, so man represents the whole earth. Just as challah is holy, so man is the holy part of nature. Until sanctity was formed, one could not partake of any part of Creation, just as one must not benefit from the dough until challah has been separated from it.

Man may be viewed as having been created from the site of his eventual atonement, the site of the altar, the Temple. By having caused contamination of this most refined of raw materials in existence, Chavah caused eventual death. Therefore she had to make repairs, albeit of a symbolic nature.

Concerning the Nefesh, the life-force, she had to atone through the blood of menstruation [spilling some of her life-force - blood]. Concerning the contamination of the Ruach, spirit, she had been guilty of corrupting a spirit originating in the realms of angels; she therefore had to light the Shabbat candles which symbolize the enhanced spiritual nature of the Shabbat. Concerning the physical raw material, she had to set aside the challah, a portion of the most hard-won fruit of nature, bread.

By performing her part as the woman par excellence, Sarah's virtue was recognized through the blessing she spread and conferred on others. Her dough was blessed, her light never went out, her doors remained open for all to look inside and to see that there was no impurity concealed within her tent. The fourth phenomenon, the one which had never been absent, is the proximity of the Divine Spirit which rests on all that is complete and whole.

Although Sarah had had to correct only three imbalances, the author of that same Midrash credits her with having restored all four elements to their appropriate position and condition. The fact that all these phenomena ceased to be manifest after her death proved to one and all that their presence had been due to her merit. Yitzchak had wanted to test Rivkah's ability to restore these phenomena, i.e. to restore his mother's tent to its former glory. This is why he brought her into his mother's tent instead of providing new quarters for her. When he saw that the four "halos" of Sarah had been restored, he considered her presence the fifth such halo, the fifth ingredient. This is the allusion represented by the letter ה (heh), whose numerical value is 5, in front of the word "ha'ohalah" ["to her tent"].


Source: Torat Moshe by Rabbi Moshe Alshich of Tzfat-Safed, Chabad.org

--------------

Parashat Chayei Sarah
Chayei Sarah Pardes
Haftarah Chayei Sarah

Hachnasat Orchim - Hospitality

Avraham, by means of his hospitality and teachings, drew tens of thousands of people to Hashem's service. (Rambam)

A person must constantly ask himself, "When shall my deeds equal those of my forefathers, Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov?" (Tanna D'bai Eliyahu)

The lives of our forefathers are portrayed in the Torah to make us aware of our responsibility in life. Wherever we live, it is our duty to strengthen Yiddishkeit by maintaining Yeshivot and Batai Yaakov and helping to establish new ones. (Midrash Says)

-------------------

Parashat Veyera | Vayera Pardes | Haftarah Vayera |

How can one comprehend the fact that a Jew in the most miserable of situations nevertheless affirms, "Gam zu l'tovah! (It is all for the best!)"

It is a character trait inherited from our forefather Avraham who was unshakable in his bitachon (belief - trust) in Hashem. Even when exposed to famine, Avraham did not complain but trusted in Divine Providence. Hence his descendants in all generations were able to bear without despair the intolerable living conditions of the ghetto and the tyranny of the gentiles among whom they lived.

- Nefesh Hachayim

FOUR ACTIONS HAVE THE POWER TO CHANGE A HEAVENLY DECREE

• Tzedakah - Giving Charity
• Tefillah - Prayer
• Teshuvah - Improving one's deeds
• Shinui Shem - Being renamed

"He waited another seven days, and once again he sent out the dove from the Tevah. The dove came to him toward evening and there was a torn off olive leaf in its beak. Noach knew that the water had receded from the earth." (Bereishit 8:10, 11)

The world was still covered with water, but the dove brought an olive leaf from a tree in the Holy Land. Others say that it was from Gan Eden. (Bereishit Rabbah; Ramban, Cf. Yafeh Toar, Tetzaveh)

The account of the dove and Noah's ark alludes to the history of the Jewish People.

The dove's journey is recorded in the Torah as a prophecy for the future. K'lal Yisrael is likened to a dove. The nations are compared to water. Just as the dove found no resting place in the midst of the water, so too would K'lal Yisrael find no resting place in exile. Just as the dove returned home to the Tevah, so will Benei Yisrael in the future return to their land.

Rabbi Pinchas said: Every time the Jewish People were sent into exile, the Holy One blessed be He set a limit to the exile, and they were always aroused to repentance. But this final exile has no set limit, and everything depends upon repentance.

---------------

Source: Me'am Lo'ez; Zohar

During the twelve months' duration of the mabul, the Heavenly planets did not operate in order. The inhabitants of the Tevah therefore could not tell from sun or moon whether it was day or night. Only the precious stones which Noach had brought into the Tevah served as an indication of the time. When they shone, the tevah's inhabitants knew it was night; when they dimmed, it was day.

The Tevah floated securely like a ship in the ocean, while the world around it was transformed into a tremendous no-man's land of water. It rained heavily for forty days. Each raindrop which Hashem sent down was previously boiled in Gehinnom. The rain was so hot that people's skin peeled on contact with it.   The drops did not consist only of water, but also of fire. In addition to the rain from above, all the wells and fountains of the earth opened up and poured forth boiling hot water. The giants of the Generation of the Flood had believed that they could prevent the wells from overflowing by merely stepping on them, but the water was so hot that this plan failed. What did this cruel generation do? They took their smallest children and put them into the opening to seal it. When the water continued to gush out, they placed one child after another at the opening of the fountain to save themselves. Where it not for the fire and water from above, they would have survived.

The water reached fifteen amot (30 feet) above the highest mountain tops, because this generation had sneered, We are giants, fifteen amot high, and if there will ever be a flood, we will stand on the mountain tops and be safe!" Now the water level was above their heads and they drowned.

The water of the mabul wore down the heaviest substances. Only the fish survived, because they had not sinned like the other creatures. Some say, the flood did not affect the sea at all. This was because G-d had given the fish a special blessing, as referred to in Bereishit so they did not die in the flood. They escaped to the depths of hte sea, where the water remained cool.

The flood did not cover Eretz Yisrael, not even in inhabited areas. The residents of the Holy Land did not die by drowning, but from the heat of the waters of the flood. The water was boiling hot; it made the entire world like a furnace, killing all air-breathing creatures. (Zevachim, loc. cit.)  G-d wrought another miracle for Noach. The waters of the flood were boiling hot, since it had been decreed that many of the sinners should be boiled alive. But in the vicinity of the Tevah, the waters were cool and pleasant. This was done for the benefit of Noach. (Pirkei Rabbi Eliezer; Zevachim 113)

Of all the creatures on earth, man died last. G-d delayed his doom as long as possible, giving him a chance to repent. (Bachya)

All human bodies totally disintegrated. Not a single bone was left intact, not even the smallest luz at the lower end of the spine (some say at the top end, depending on tradition).

The emperor Hadrian asked Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananya, "From which part of the body will G-d in future revive the dead?" "From the spinal bone luz." answered Rabbi Yehoshua. "How do you know?" he questioned. "Bring me such a bone and I shall prove it," replied Rabbi Yehoshua. When the bone Luz was brought to Rabbi Yehoshua, he demonstrated to the emperor how although he ground it in a mill, it would not be crushed. He threw it into the fire and it did not burn. Neither did it dissolve in water. Finally Rabbi Yehoshua brought a hammer and struck the bone. The hammer cracked and the bone survived. (Bereishit Rabbah)

When a man dies, his bone luz is preserved, in order to form the basis from which the body will be reconstructed at the time of Techiyat HaMetim (Resurrection of the Dead).  But the Generation of the Mabul was so wicked that not one bone of their skeleton remained, net even the bone luz. None of them will be restored to life at the time when the dead will rise from their graves. They will not even be among those who will be revived to be judged and then doomed, the memory of the Generation of the Mabul was blotted out from the world.

-----------
Source: Midrash Says; Me'am Lo'ez

1. Generation of Enosh
2. Generation of the Deluge
3. Generation of the Dispersal

Although mankind no longer lived in Gan Eden, their life-style before the mabul (flood) still resembled Gan Eden. (Midrash Hagadol)

Life was good. In fact, it was too good. It was a life of uninterrupted serenity and enjoyment. For example, children were conceived and born on the same day. A newborn child was immediately able to stand and walk, and also had the ability to speak. Furthermore, no child would ever die during his parents' lifetime. In fact, all parents would live to see not only their children but also their grandchildren. (Bereishit Rabbah)

• The generation before the mabul possessed enormous physical strength, as the verse says, "There were giants on earth in those days" (Bereishit 6:14) They were able to uproot whole cedar trees and considered lions and panthers as harmless as fleas. Their strength did not diminish in old age, but, on the contrary, it grew with age. This strength only disappeared after the mabul.
• They lived a very long life, hundreds of years. Only when they sinned did Hashem say, "and his days shall be a hundred and twenty years."
• They knew no suffering of any kind.
• They sowed only one every forty years and the earth produced a sufficient amount for the following forty years.
• They did not have to endure excessive heat or cold since there were no changing seasons, but the weather was a continuous, enjoyable and mild spring climate. It was only after the mabul that Hashem said, "Seed time and harvest and cold and heat and summer and winter and day and night shall not cease."

 וַיְכַל אֱלֹהִים בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי מְלַאכְתּוֹ אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה וַיִּשְׁבֹּת בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי מִכָּל-מְלַאכְתּוֹ אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה
Vayechal Elokim bayom hashvi'i melachto asher asah vayishbot bayom hashvi'i mikol-melachto asher asah.
2:2 And on the seventh day, G-d finished all His work which He made. He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He made.

The world was established in its beauty and perfection, but an essential ingredient was lacking - Shabbat, rest! Only when Shabbat came to the world, did rest come to the world. It was the Rest which Hashem created on the seventh day! (Bereishit Rabbah)

Each day, when G-d commanded that something be created, the creative process would continue. Thus, for example, when G-d said, "Let there be a firmament," it came into being; until Friday evening, it continued to increase and spread out. (Bereishit Rabbah) It is for this reason that one of G-d's Names is Shakkai, coming from the word Dai, meaning "enough." If G-d had not said, "Enough," to the universe, commanding that the firmament stop, it would still be expanding. The same is true of the earth, since it did not know its destined size.

It therefore appears that the world continued to work all through the week. Although translated as "He rested on the seventh day," it can also be translated, "It rested on the seventh day," where "it" refers to the universe. This indicates that the universe itself had rest and repose on the Shabbat.

In Hebrew this verse is וַיִּשְׁבֹּת בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִי where the subject is implied, but not actually designated.  The verse does not say, "G-d rested on the seventh day," in the same manner as it says, "and G-d finished," or "G-d blessed." The subject of this phrase is creation as a whole, which rested on the Shabbat. (Ibid.)


"And G-d blessed the seventh day..." (2:3)

Shabbat was blessed above all the other days of the week in various ways:

1. In the Wilderness, the Benei Yisrael received a double portion of mann on every Erev Shabbat, providing food for Shabbat. The blessing of extra mann is but one example of the Divine guarantee that whatever a person spends in honor of the Shabbat is refunded to him by Hashem. (Shabbat 1:1 [2a])
2. Not only is a person recompensed for any financial loss he might seem to incur for the sake of Shabbat observance, but, in fact, one who honors this day is rewarded also with a good life and with wealth. (Bereishit Rabbah)
3. Hashem also blessed the Shabbat with tasty food.
4. Another blessing of Shabbat is that the wicked in Gehinnom are granted respite from their punishment and torture every seventh day. 
5. The primeval Light created by G-d was so intense that it shone from one end of the universe to the other, but because of the wicked, G-d stored it away for the righteous in the Olam Haba. This Light, however, was not put away immediately. Chazal taught that this light functioned for thirty-six hours, consisting of twelve hours on the sixth day, and twenty-four hours on the first Shabbat. As soon as Adam sinned, G-d wished to remove this remarkable Light, but He put aside doing so because of the merit of the Shabbat. This is the Extra Soul (Neshamah Yeterah) that every Jew has on this holy day, one more spiritual and holy than that of the weekdays. Because of this extra soul, we say each Shabbat in the morning service, the prayer Nishmat: "The soul of all life shall bless Your Name." (Levush 281)

Before the Beginning, There Was Nothing But Light, Infinite Light - Ohr Ain Sof

“When the King first desired a world, He engraved its forms in the pure Supernal Light.” (Zohar 1:15a)

The hollow engraved in the Supernal Light was the vacated space, in which all creation subsequently occurred.

This Constriction (tzimtzum) or hollowing of the Divine Essence did not occur in physical spakce, but rather, in conceptual space. It is "hollow" insofar as it contains the possibility for information, but not actual information. As such, it is the "Tohu and Bohu" (chaos and void) mentioned in the account of Creation, where the Scripture states, "the earth was chaos and void" (Bereishit 1:2). Chaos is a state where information can exist, but where it does not exist.

The hollow was made through 32 paths, since letters and digits are the basic bits of information. While random letters and numbers do not actually convey information, as long as they exist, it is also possible for information to exist. The Vacated Space is therefore the state where it is possible for information to exist, but where this possibility has not yet been realized.

These letters were subsequently combined into words, forming the Ten Utterances/Sayings of Creation. Each of these sayings brought information into the Vacated Space, through which creation could take place there.

The order was therefore first "engraving," and then "creation." The Sefer Yetzirah therefore states that the Creator "engraved...and created His universe." (Sefer Yetzirah; Bahir 2; Ramban on Bereishit 1:2)

Physical creation, as reported in the Torah, is not the beginning of the story, but the end of a process that began much earlier and which was totally spiritual at first. It is the essence of what true Kabbalah discusses at length. Kabbalah describes Creation as existing inside a Challal (hollow), a ball like structure in the "center" of the Infinite Light of Ain Sof, surrounded by Ohr Ain Sof on all sides.  The creation of the Challal was the first stage in making physical creation possible since it held back the powerful Ohr Ain Sof, which is far too spiritual to allow anything physical to exist. The next stage allowed a stream of Ohr Ain Sof, Kav Ain Sof, to enter the Challal in Divinely measured amounts, creating levels of existence on its way in. By moving towards the center of the Challal the Kav Ain Sof, in effect, was moving away from its Source, the Ohr Ain Sof beyond the Challal, allowing Creation to become increasingly more physical. Ohr Ain Sof resulted first in the Challal, then in the Kav Ain Sof, and eventually in the countless sefirot and partzufim, all just to make a world in which man could exist, exercise free will, and earn his portion in the Olam Haba (World to Come). (Rabbi Pinchas Winston, The Physics of Kabbalah, p. 3, note #10 quoting from Otzrot Chaim, p.5; and p. 17 of The Physics of Kabbalah)

In the beginning, a simple divine light filled the entirety of existence.  When there arose in His simple will the desire to create the worlds, He contracted His light, withdrawing it to the sides and leaving a void and an empty space in its center, to allow for the existence of the worlds. (However, this was not an absolute void, for there remained a residue of the divine light within the void.) He then drew a single line of His infinite light into the void to illuminate the worlds. In the teachings of Kabbalah, the act of creation is described as an act of tzimtzum—an act of contraction, concealment and withdrawal. In the beginning, the “light” of G‑d (i.e., the manifest expression of His omnipresence and omnipotence) filled the entirety of existence. A world such as ours—finite, self-defined and independent, with the capacity to turn away from and even deny its Creator—could not exist, for it would have been utterly nullified within the divine light. In order to allow for the existence of the world, G‑d “contracted” His light, creating a “void” and “empty space” within which His infinite being and power is not manifest. Into this void G‑d then allowed a single “line” (kav) of light to penetrate, through which flows a divine energy that is meted out to every level of reality in accordance with its capacity to receive it. (Chabad, Tzimtzum) 

There is a time at sunset when it is neither day or night. This twilight period of the sixth day therefore pertained neither to the six days of creation, nor to the ensuing Shabbat. Chazal teach that the following ten things were created during this twilight period preceding the Shabbat (Avot 5:4)

1. The "mouth of the earth" which swallowed Korach and his followers. (Bamidbar 16:32)
2. The "mouth" of Miriam's well. This followed the Benei Yisrael throughout their wanderings in the desert.
3. The mouth of Balaam's donkey, which was destined to speak to him at the appointed time. (Ibid. 22:28)
4. The rainbow which was seen by Noach. (Bereishit 9:13)
5. The grave of Moshe. (Devarim 34:6)
6. The Shamir. This is a worm the size of a barleycorn, which has the power to split the largest mountains. King Shlomo made use of it to cut the stones of the Holy Temple.
7. The writing [of the Ten Commandments] on the two Tablets. This writing was miraculous, since it could be read from all four sides.
8. The Tablets themselves. These were two blocks made from the substance of the sun. Their length and breadth was six handbreadths (approx. 20 inches), while their thickness was three handbreadths (approx. ten inches).
9. The staff of Moshe
10. The ram that Avraham sacrificed in place of Yitzchak.

Before creating Adam, Hashem said, "Let us make man!" (Bereishit 1:26) Just as a human head of state confers with his cabinet before passing a law, so does Hashem take action only after having taken counsel with his Ministering Angels. When Hashem said, "Let us make man!" He was addressing the Angels to solicit their opinion in the matter.

The angels split up into different factions. Some of them were in favor of the creation of man while others were opposed.

Kindness affirmed, "Let him be created for he will practice kindness."  Truth protested, "He should not be created at all, for he will be full of falsehood."

Righteousness maintained, "He should be created, for he will practice righteousness." Peace opposed, "Do not create him, since he will be full of strife!" (Bereishit Rabbah)

The Torah protested, "Master of the Universe! Why do You want to create this man? His lifespan is short; it is full of tribulations. He will certainly sin, and unless You are forbearing, it will be far better for him never to have been created at all!"

Hashem prevailed over the objections of all the angels and of the Torah and voted in favor of the creation of man. His final word was, "I am kind and long-suffering and am ready to create man despite his faults!"

Hashem described man in terms different from all previous creatures. He said, "The human being will be made in Our image after Our likeness. He will possess the intellect necessary to comprehend Creation and serve the Master of the Universe like one of the angels. His mind will distinguish him as a human being.

Man is the most significant product of creation, and it was for his sake that the universe was made. Because he is the most precious and important, man was created at the end of the last day. G-d said, "I want each of you to give him a portion of what you have. This will give Me pleasure, since man will serve Me faithfully. I will then give him My portion, which is the greatest of all, and that is his divine soul."

When a person truly repents, all the angels, stars and planets therefore ask G-d to have mercy on him. They all have a portion in man, and they love him when he is good. Only the shedim (demons) have no portion in man, so they hate and harm him.

1:27 "G-d created man in His form. In the form of G-d He created him, male and female He created them."

Man's creation demonstrates G-d's infinite wisdom (Sefer Mitzvot Gadol, Positive Commandment #2):

• G-d made him two eyes with which to see the world 
• Over them are eyelids that can be closed when he must avoid looking at something improper, such as another man's wife. The yetzer hara tempts him to sin, and the only remedy is to close his eyes. The eyelids also allow a person to sleep and rest so that he will have health and strength to keep the Torah.
• G-d also gave man two ears to hear
• and two nostrils with which he can breathe and enjoy the various fragrances in the world. 
• a mouth with with to eat, drink and speak words of Torah.
• G-d also made man thirty-two teeth with which to chew his food, grinding it so that it should be digested and not cause him harm.
• He made him a tongue to move the food through his mouth, as well as to enunciate his speech. Without a tongue, it is impossible to speak.
• He made him a gullet with which to swallow food
• a windpipe, through which he breathes air into his lungs. 
• The windpipe also contains the larynx, which produces man's voice.
• He made man a heart, which is the king over all the organs, and which is the seat of the animate soul. 
• He made him a stomach, which digests his food and prepares it so that it can be used by the body. 
• He made him a liver and gall bladder to aid his digestion. 
• He made him intestines to reject the unusable portions of his food after they have been fully digested.
• He made him two kidneys, one on the right, the other on the left, to purify his blood. It is also taught that the kidneys "give advice." (Berachot, Chapter 9) The right kidney gives good advice, while the left one gives bad advice.
• He also made him the spleen, which produces black bile. The spleen also causes a person to be happy, and makes him laugh. (Ibid.)
• He made man the bones of the spine, as well as all the bones that are doubled, and arranged them in a perfect structure.
• He then covered them with flesh to protect them. 
• He made him blood vessels to bring blood to all parts of the body.
• G-d made man muscles to hold together his bones and limbs.
• He made him joints in his spine, as well as in his fingers, toes, arms, legs, elbows, knees, ankles, soles and neck. Man can therefore bow and stretch himself, or move on his feet as he desires.
• G-d gave man skin to cover his flesh and bones, protecting his body with a beautiful covering.
• He gave him a skull, which is the king of the limbs. 
• Inside it is the brain, which is the seat of the intellect. He provided a fluid around the brain to protect it and shield it from adverse substances in the blood.
• He placed hair on his head to protect it from cold, since the skull is not covered with flesh. 
• He also gave the male a beard to provide him with a majestic appearance, and to distinguish between man and woman.
• He made man hands with which to work. With these hands he can hold a book and study Torah, and can also earn his livelihood. 
• He made him feet, the pillars of the body, with which he can walk wherever he pleases.
• He also made man a navel, through which he receives nourishment when he is in the womb.  As long as he is in the womb, the embryo is nourished by what his mother eats and drinks. He does not pass anything from his body, since this would poison his mother. When he is born, that which has been closed is opened, and that which has been opened is closed. If not for this, he could not survive for even a moment. While a person is in the womb, a lamp shines over his head, and he sees from one end of the universe to the other. As long as he lives, he will never have better times than these. He is taught all the Torah and bound with an oath, "Be righteous, do not be wicked. Even if all the world tells you that you are righteous, consider yourself wicked." With this thought, one will always be concerned and repent. Bit if a person considers himself perfect, he can become so immersed in sin that it will be virtually impossible for him to change his ways.
• G-d gave man five fingers on each hand. The first is called the godel (thumb); the second is the etzba; the third is the ammah; the fourth is the kemitzah; and the fifth, the little finger, is called zeret (pinky). (Bachya on Tzav; Shevilei Emunah 4) Each of these fingers is created to fulfill a specific function. They are just like all the other parts of the body, which serve a necessary function. No part was created in vain.  The five fingers parallel the five senses: taste, smell, touch, sight and hearing. The fingers are pointed so that if a person hears forbidden speech or vain oaths, he can place his fingers in his ears and not hear them. (Ketuvot, Chapter 1)

On the fifth day, G-d created all sorts of flying creatures. There are two opinions among Chazal as to how they were made. Some say they were created from water, just like the fish. In fish the influence of water is stronger, and they live in water. (Chullin 28; Abarbanel) Birds, on the other hand, also contain the element of air, so they can fly.

Others say that birds were created from the fine mud that is found on the bottom of the sea. According to some, this "mud" is the foam that is on the surface of the sea. This "mud" consists of a mixture of earth, air and water. Since birds were created from this "mud," they are halfway intermediate between creatures from water, and those created from earth.

It is therefore permitted to eat a fowl after only one of its two "signs" (the gullet and the windpipe) has been severed in ritual slaughter (Abarbanel; Toledot Yitzchak); while in the case of a mammal, both "signs" must be severed. This is because the element of earth is stronger.

Fish, which were created from water alone, do not need any ritual slaughter whatsoever. As soon as they are removed from the water, they may be eaten.

Every creature in the world has a purpose; nothing was created in vain. This is true even of creatures that seem useless, such as flies, lice and gnats. (Shabbat, Chapter 8; Bereishit Rabbah 10) Some harmful creatures were created to punish sinners. Lice and ticks were made to wake man from his sleep. He can then cure his soul through the study of Torah according to his ability, and not waste the entire night in sleep.

Bereishit 1:21 "G-d created the great dragons, along with every living thing that crawls, with which the waters teem, of its kind, and every winged flying creature of its kind. G-d saw that it was good."

Regarding certain great creatures the Torah says, "G-d created the great dragons." This is an expression that is not found with regard to anything created earlier, indicating that these creatures were unique. The Torah informs us that even these were created through G-d's word.

There is also an opinion that the "dragons" in this verse are the seventy guardian angels of the world. (Bachya) They are in heaven, overseeing the seventy nations.

Others say that these "dragons" are the angels which were created on the fifth day. Some of them made of fire, and some of water. (Bava Batra, loc. cit.; Zohar; Targum Yonatan)

Chazal also speak of a a great fish called the Levyatan, of which a male and female were created on this day. (Ibid. Cf. Zohar 2:34b) The abode of the Levyatan is the deepest parts of the ocean, where it supports the world on its back. It always keeps it mouth open, swallowing fish and eating them. Each day another large fish approaches the mouth of the Levyatan, happy to be its meal. Every seventy years, the Leviyatan lifts its fins and moves, causing earthquakes. ((Shevet Mussar 30)

The Leviyatan could not be allowed to remain with its mate, since if they had thousands of descendants, they would swamp the world. G-d therefore arranged that they should not mate. He killed the female, salted it, and set it aside for the great feast of the righteous in the Olam Haba (World to Come). In the Torah, the word תנינם (Taninim) is written without a י (yud) making the plural defective. This alludes to the fact that the female had been killed.

After the feast of the Leviyatan, people will cease to eat and drink, since these are mere physical pleasures. (Bachya) In the Future World, they will then only keep the Torah and delight in the radiance of the Divine Presence, which is the food of the soul.

G-d killed the female rather than the male because a female fish tastes better when salted than a male. (Bava Batra, loc. cit.)

The world was created to last for six thousand years. Each day of creation therefore represents a thousand years. Of these, two thousand years were "chaos and void." Then the world had to exist for another two thousand years after Yisrael accepted the Torah. The final two thousand years pertain to the Messianic age. If we are worthy, the redemption can take place during this last period.

This explains why the expression, "and it was so," does not occur here. On this day, the concept of war betwen nations came into being. The ultimate war will be Gog and Magog's battle, which will take place before the Messianic era. (Yechezkel 38, 39) This should occur on the "fifth day" of the world, that is, at the beginning of the fifth millennium. Because of our many sins many years have passed, and this has not yet taken place. Since the time is not exactly determined, the express "and it was so" is not used. (Bava Batra, loc. cit.)

It is in our hands. We need only walk in G-d's ways. But if we do not have any commitment to Judaism and do not keep the Torah, we will remain as we are, in exile. G-d does not wish to take responsibility for something that is in our hands. We must arouse our hearts to repent, and G-d will then accept it and give us strength to serve Him.

---------
Source: Me'am Lo'ez.