Rush Not to Judgment written by Ozer Bergman | January 24, 2011 Generally speaking, we don’t think to connect the end of one parshah (weekly Torah reading) with the beginning of the next. The Midrash, however, does. The end of Parshat Yitro teaches us that the mizbeach (Altar) was to be ascended by a ramp rather than by steps. The beginning ofParshat Mishpatim begins with, and deals throughout, with civil and criminal law. Life being what it is, both will require learned judgment for mishpat (justice) to be served. What lesson is to be learned from the juxtaposition of these disparate areas of Torah-life? The Midrash (Tanchuma, Mishpatim #6) tells us that walking up (or down) a ramp takes more time than walking steps. Just as walking a ramp is slower and takes more patience than walking stairs, so too, judges must be patient and deliberate before deciding the verdict in a court case. And each of us as well, in the courtroom of his mind, needs to be careful and deliberate before making a judgment about himself or a fellow Jew. Dvar Torah for Parshat Yitro written by Ozer Bergman | January 24, 2011 Dvar Torah for Parshat Yitro Based on Likutey Moharan II, Lesson #24 There were many preparations the Israelites needed to make for matan Torah (the giving of the Torah) at Sinai. One which gets almost no mention at all is simcha (joy, happiness). In an unnamed teaching (unofficially titled “The Sad Tzaddik,” which is appended to Rabbi Nachman’s Stories), Rebbe Nachman tells us that Moshe Rabbeinu was incredibly b’simcha (joyful) when he ascended Mount Sinai to receive the Torah. The Midrash (Tanchuma, Yitro #13) tells us that on the eve of the Torah- giving the entire Jewish people cheerfully looked forward to accepting the yoke of Heaven. This goes hand in hand with a qualification the Israelites needed for matan Torah—good health. The purpose of having the Jews leave Egypt was that they receive the Torah. So, asks the Midrash, why the delay? It answers that when the Jews left Egypt they were a physically and emotionally broken people, unfit to be the bearers of God’s holy word. The 49-day interval from Exodus to matan Torah gave them time to heal. Three different Midrashim (Tanchuma, Yitro #8; VaYikra Rabbah 18:4; Shir HaShirim Rabbah 4:7) give us slightly differing lists of the ailments from which Israelites suffered when they left Egypt. The Egyptians had so mistreated and abused them that some were crippled, lame or missing limbs. Others were blind, deaf or mute. Some had become depressives; others had lost their minds. A number were of below average intelligence. Yet, came that great day, everyone was in 100% perfect health. Although some of my students have called me “Dr. Neshamah” (Soul), I am not an M.D. Nonetheless, I will not hesitate to share with you the following medical insight: happiness and health go together. Rebbe Nachman teaches, “If there is any sort of damage or flaw in [one’s] simcha, illness results” (Likutey Moharan II, Lesson #24). That’s not all. The Rebbe goes on to say that in the Future, the world’s simcha will be so great that there will be no illness at all. Suchsimcha results from a combination of desiring to live by God’s will and actually doing so when the opportunity arises. How happy are we to be getting the Torah? The difference between Egyptian-slavery which we’ve left behind, and the God- servitude which we have embraced is the freedom of spirit, the simcha, with which we perform our duties. In one’s personal history, as in Jewish history, something may happen to cause the joy of Judaism to leak out of life. If that happens, God forbid, one is likely to be frustrated and annoyed when thwarted to live a Jewishness that he must, rather than a Jewishness he wants. Matan Torah happens every day. To remain prepared, it helps to remember what the holy Baal Shem Tov said: part of his mission in life was to do away with thebyzeneh lamdan (irritable Torah learner/scholar). You can’t do all of the mitzvahs all of the time. But you can do some mitzvahs some of the time (and there are some mitzvahs you can do all of the time). Be b’simcha that you’ve been called upon—chosen—to receive the Torah and live by the mitzvahs. and be b’simcha whenever you do a mitzvah. Be happy! Be healthy! Be holy! Amen. agutn Shabbos! Shabbat Shalom! © Copyright 2011 Breslov Research Institute Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother written by Ozer Bergman | January 24, 2011 “in order that thy days should be long” (Exodus 20:12). Besides Mom and Dad, the “father” and “mother” being referred to here are chokhmah/wisdom and binah/understanding. Chokhmah and binah parent all that we do. They beget our actions, our words and even our thoughts. (If you think what you think about, you might think differently!) Who are the parents of my thinking and of the way I live my life, of how I pray and how I behave towards my fellow human beings and towards God? What seminal ideas do I really hold on to and gestate/think about? Whose are they? Ideally, “Dad” would be the Written Law (aka TaNaKh) and “Mom” the Oral Law (aka Talmud and other Rabbinic writing). In Sichot HaRan (Rabbi Nachman’s Wisdom) #5, Rebbe Nachman tells us that thoughts are sent to us from two very large reservoirs, one holy, one not. From which reservoir a person receives depends on what he prepares to receive and how much. It’s too late to choose who will be your parents. It’s not at all too late to choose what you want to think. Honor your chokhmah and binah by choosing that they be holy, and preparing yourself to greet them. And may you live a long and honorable life. Amen. In Honor of Tu b’Shevat written by Ozer Bergman | January 24, 2011 The following is from the forthcoming volume of Breslov Research’s translation of Likutey Moharan. which, with God’s help, will see the light of day before Pesach 5771. Translated by Moshe Mykoff, annotated by Chaim Kramer and edited by yours truly. Those big numbers that show up here and there are footnote markers. I apologize for not adding internal links. If I knew HTML I would have. Translation and notes © Copyright 2011 Breslov Research Institute. LIKUTEY MOHARAN II #63 1 {“Take from the choice products of the Land in your pouches, and bring down to the man as tribute some balsam and some honey, and gum, resin, pistachio nuts and almonds” (Genesis 43:11).} Know! when our forefather Yaakov sent his sons, the ten tribes, to 2 Yosef, he sent with them a melody of the Land of Israel. This is the deeper meaning of “Take from the ZiMRot (choice products) of the Land in 3 your pouches…” —the concept of ZeMeR (song) and melody, which he sent through them to Yosef. This is as Rashi comments: me’zimrat—it connotes 4 zemer…. 5 For know! each and every shepherd has his own special melody, according to the grasses and specific location where he is grazing. This is because each and every animal has a specific grass which it needs to eat. He also 6 does not always pasture in the same place. Thus, his melody is dictated by the grasses and place he pastures. For each and every grass has a song 7 which it sings. This is the concept of Perek Shirah. And from the 8 grass’s song, the shepherd’s melody is created. This is the deeper meaning of the verse “And Adah bore Yaval; he was the father of tent dwellers with cattle. His brother’s name was Yuval; he was 9 the father of all who play harp and flute” (Genesis 4:20-21). As soon as 10 the world had a shepherd of cattle, there were musical instruments. Therefore, because King David, may peace be upon him, was “a skilled 11 musician” (1 Samuel 16:18), he was “a shepherd” (ibid. :11). {We find, 12 too, that humanity’s forefathers were all shepherds. } And this is the concept of “From the end of the earth we heard song” 13 (Isaiah 24:16) —i.e., songs and melodies emerge from the end of the earth, because melody is produced through the grasses which grow in the 14 earth, as mentioned above. And because the shepherd knows the melody, he instills the grasses with energy, and so the animals have what to 15 eat. And this is the concept of “The first blossoms have appeared in the Land, 16 the time of ZaMiR (singing) has arrived” (Song of Songs 2:12). In other words, the “first blossoms” grow in the Land as a result of their particular ZeMeR and melody, as mentioned above. It follows, that through the song and melody which the shepherd knows, he instills the grasses 17 with energy and there is pasture for the animals. The melody is also beneficial for the shepherd himself. Because the shepherd is constantly in the company of animals, it could happen that they draw and drag him down from the category of human-spirit to animal- spirit. The shepherd might end up grazing himself, as in “they went to pasture their father’s flock…” (Genesis 37:12), which Rashi explains as: 18 they went to pasture themselves.