Category: Parsha

Rav Avigdor Miller on the Secret Power of the Korbanot of Parshat Vayikra

14/3/2019

The idea of korbanot sounds strange in our times. We’ve never seen it, so it’s hard to imagine its healing power, kedushah, and effect on us.

Yet we have the capability of sincere tefillah in place of korbanot today — so why do we need actual korbanot?

And why, despite their current absence in our lives, are korbanot still such an important aspect of Torah today?

The Hidden Imprint of Korbanot

Rav Avigdor Miller explains that the emotions aroused by properly given korbanos can elevate a person to true knowledge of Hashem and excellence of character.

This elevation causes Hashem to tell you:
“My beautiful child, I’m so happy with you, I love you.”

Avraham Avinu set the stage for all future korbanos.

He loved his son Yitzchak more than his own life. But when he thought Hashem wanted him to offer up Yitzchak Avinu as a korban, Avraham Avinu was willing to sacrifice his precious son — and in a sense, sacrifice his own self and his future — out of his great love for Hashem.

Fortunately, Hashem stopped the Akeidah of Yitzchak just in time. Yet Avraham still wanted to make a sacrifice and offer up something to Hashem.

So he took another ram — ayil acher — in place of Yitzchak. Yitzchak was the original “ram” for the korban, so the Torah makes sure to say that Avraham Avinu took another ram instead.

This engraved within the Jewish people a passionate devotion for Hashem, which overrode all else — including their own lives.

This is why you have a history of Jews of all backgrounds and levels willingly sacrifice themselves to the sword rather than accept upon themselves the emptiness of Christianity.

It’s with THAT devotion that Jews brought korbanot to the Beis HaMikdash.

The Meaning of Life

Rav Miller zeroes in on the pasuk in Vayikra 1:2: “אדם כי יקריב מכם קרבן להשם. This means: “A man of you, when he offers an offering…”

The word adam, a man, isn’t used in this way with any other mitzvah.

So why here?

Rav Miller explains:

“The word adam signifies the source from where Mankind first came, adamah, the earth. And it intimates, it hints, to the place where all of Mankind will one day return.”

To really earn the title of adam, a person must feel gratitude toward Hashem. Eating, breathing, running, writing, seeing, speaking — the more you appreciate every single thing about even your most basic physical existence, the more of an adam you are.

How vital is hakaras hatov for being a good, frum Yid? Rav Miller states:

“If you’ve never once turned to Hashem and said ‘Thank You Hashem for bringing me into this world and keeping me alive,’ then you haven’t even taken the first step in serving Hashem. Don’t be ashamed. You should say it.”

This wields tremendous power — as Rav Miller continues:

“Of course, when you come to the Next World, you’ll see that even that tiny little step, talking to Hashem, thanking Him for life, is really a tremendous step, but it’s still only the beginning. Because gratitude to Hashem for being alive is what you’re alive for.”

How Did the Korbanos Work?

Yet as everyone already knows, Judaism despises human sacrifice.

So instead, Jews offered up a korban to Hashem out of gratitude.

That’s why the owner needed to lean his hands on the animal prior to shechitah; this leaning woke the owner to the fact that this korban was a literal representation of him! And everything the Kohen did to the animal in front of the owner further ingrained within the owner how this korban should actually be him.

So the whole process essentially says, “Out of my tremendous love and gratitude for You, Hashem, I wish I could offer You my very self. So here’s a korban instead.”

Yes, tefillah has always been very, very important. You can change yourself through tefillah. You can change fate. You can change world events. You can even save lives — all through tefillah.

But as powerful as tefillah is, offering a korban with the right kavanah is even more powerful.

How to Achieve Greatness without Korbanot

Yet without korbanot today, we can still achieve greatness and find favor with Hashem in This World and the Next.

How?

Rav Miller recommends focusing on the following:

There are so many things — so many processes, so many organs, so many bones and limbs that are functioning just as they should right now in your body.

You’re not strewn out on the floor waiting for an ambulance to come…

Did you ever stop to think about how many millions of things have to function perfectly for you to be a basically healthy person? Your chromosomes, your DNA molecules, your enzymes… You don’t have cerebral palsy, right? You don’t have multiple sclerosis, or muscular dystrophy. You don’t need dialysis on kidney machines. You don’t have a tumor on the brain?

There are tens of thousands of disorders and you have been exonerated, you have been exempt from all of them.”

Yishtabach Shemo for all that chessed and more!

Note: If you'd like to understand more about the process of the korbanot and the powerfully transformative effect they had on a person & why on earth we still yearn for them, it's a great idea to go read Rav Avigdor Miller's original booklet with all that information inside:
Parshas Vayikra — Animal Sacrifice: The Pillar of the World

(All quotes used with permission from Toras Avigdor)

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Rav Avigdor Miller on Parshat Ki Tisa

18/2/2019

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This week's dvar Torah by Rav Avigdor Miller, Parshas Ki Tisa 2: Thinking by Torah, is so current and applicable to our times, it's hard to believe it was written in 1980!

Rav Miller talks a lot about socialism and how it's affecting America - very interesting stuff.

Plus, he makes a point I'd never considered: The other religions of the world have been so willing to swallow all sorts of bizarre ideas and customs - what's the big deal about accepting Torah?

"They didn't live by the strict ideas, the strict precepts of the mind. They lived with a hodge-podge of emotions and arbitrary ideas, different gods for different situations; there wasn’t much seichel there, and I’m being gracious when I say that."

He doesn't flesh out the answer much, but the main idea is that the Jewish people stood out as a group of independent thinkers and that is exactly whom Judaism is for.

Na'aseh v'nishma is a challenge to independent thinkers, but at the same time, the Torah way is also exactly what an independent thinker needs.

Likewise, history shows that people attracted to authentic Torah are often those who think outside the box. (Or, as Rabbi Wallerstein puts it, those "who color outside the lines.")

And then Rav Miller delves into the mystery of how the same people who crossed the Yam Suf and experienced Ma'amad Har Sinai and the leadership of Moshe Rabbeinu could suddenly start frolicking around an idol of shiny gold veal.

Very compelling stuff.

So what's the main nugget here?

This:

"Anochi Hashem Elokecha, 'I am Hashem your model,' is the command of the Torah; not only that you should know that I am Hashem your G-d, but you should know what I think, and think along with Me.

"That was what Kabolas HaTorah really meant. We give up our own thoughts, our baby thoughts, and we rise to the thoughts of the Supreme Intelligence and think His thoughts. And those are the attitudes and ideals we adopt as our own."

Throughout, Rav Miller discusses socialism, erev rav, child discipline, vegetarianism, and Torah hashkafah, and how Am Yisrael went from the heights of spiritual purification to the depths of spiritual pollution.

Definitely worth a read.

The Sinai Desert at sunset

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You Can't Have Spirituality without Law & Justice

31/1/2019

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A famous story is told of an apprentice walking around with his master of Eastern mysticism.

Seemingly detached from the material world and free of human vice, they spy a lost wallet lying on the ground.

The master slips it into his pocket.

“Shouldn’t we find the owner?” worries the apprentice.

“No,” says the enlightened master with a smile. “The gods have smiled on us today.”

You can’t have spirituality without justice & laws, without mishpat & mishpatim.

This is why all these countries bursting with Eastern spiritual practices and so-called rejection of worldly desires and vices also host terrible human rights abuses and deplorable living conditions with little hope of escape.

People grumble (or at least wonder at) the myriads of detailed laws within Judaism. It seems so nitpicky! And who needs all that...especially after the astounding spiritual experience at Har Sinai?

Yet Parshat Mishpatim imprints upon us the dire importance of creating a society based on justice. If you want real spirituality, then you absolutely must care about damages – even the most minor.

You can’t do a mitzvah through speeding, double-parking, breaking something, or stealing (like taking a Gemara to study without permission from the Gemara’s owner).

Talking loudly in divrei Torah while walking through the streets late at night when people are sleeping is not okay.

Even something like sharing a holy word with another while suffering from halitosis is not okay.

For more, please see Rav Avigdor Miller’s dvar Torah:
Parshas Mishpatim: Preface to Chassidus

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The Secret to Fulfilling Na'aseh V'Nishma

24/1/2019

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For Rav Avigdor Miller's full dvar Torah on the parsha, please see:
Parshat Yitro 1: Na'aseh V'Nishma
Parshat Yitro 2: Hearing Hashem's Messages

In Parshas Yisro, Am Yisrael bursts onto center stage by virtue of one statement:

Na’aseh v’nishma.

But how could they promise such a thing? How can you do something BEFORE you ever hear it?

Unless you’re psychic, you have no idea what you’ll be asked to do.

So you can’t do it.

Except that you can.

The secret to na’aseh v’nishma is revealed through Avos 3:12:

כל שמעשיו מרובין מחכמתו, חכמתו מתקיימת

“Anyone whose good deeds exceed his wisdom, his wisdom will endure.”

What does that mean? Rav Avigdor Miller explains:

“If a person does more than he knows about, more than he learned, that’s a man whose wisdom endures and has eternal value.”

How can you possibly do more than you know?

“If you know ten halachos, you can fulfill ten halachos. And if you learn one more halacha, then you’ll be able to do that one as well, and you’ll have eleven.

"But you won’t be able to fulfill twenty. You can’t fulfill what you don’t know about.”

Exactly.

So what’s the solution?

You say, “Na’aseh v’nishma” about anything Chazal says.

“Whatever you’ll learn in the seforim, whatever the chachmei haTorah will tell you is necessary to do — right now, even before you heard their words — you accept upon yourself to do it.”

And what happens when you do that? Hakadosh Baruch Hu says:

“That man is marked by Me as a man of success. He’s a man who I consider to have already fulfilled these mitzvos that he doesn’t even yet know about.

"And even the mitzvos that he will never hear about.”

Of course, this works if you are actually trying to accomplish more; it’s not a loophole for lazy learners.

But if you strive to increase your observance, then accepting upon yourself to do whatever the chachamim command will ultimately earn you schar for any future mitzvos — including those you may never have the opportunity to learn.

“If a person will say with sincerity, ‘I know there’s much to learn still and a lot of things that I’m not doing correctly.

"But I’m making up my mind that I want to fulfill everything, without any hesitation,’ then all of the Torah laws and details that he has accepted upon himself — everything — are considered his ma’asim already.”

How to Really Want It

“If you want to succeed in this world, it’s not enough to just get by.

"You have to feel a yearning, a desire, that Hakadosh Boruch Hu should lead you in the right way. And you should be crying out in your heart. It has to be coming from your heart!

אחלי, 'I hope to You Hashem, that I should be able to do those things'.”

So how do you achieve this ideal of hope and desire?

Step 1: Fill Your Mind with Torah Ideals (by reading, listening to, and pondering the right things).

Many people daydream of what they’d buy if they could. Others daydream of popularity, fame, the ideal vacation, and all sorts of goals unrelated to their neshamah’s real needs.

These kinds of daydreams are a waste of time. They’re no more than a fake escape because you’re still exactly where you were when you started — maybe even lower.

But once you get your heart focused on the right things, then you’re on your way to daydreams that aren’t only pleasurable, but also productive.

Step 2: Start Dreaming.

What’s the best way to build up your heart to where your mind knows it should be? Let your imagination get to work. Stare off into space and free your mind to start flowing in the right direction.

Rav Miller gives the example of a person with no money who dreams of building an even bigger Torah community than that of Lakewood. Such a person fantasizes about everything that goes into creating a fantastic new yeshivah community in New York or Eretz Yisrael.

You can also fantasize about helping other Jews with your imaginary wealth or the ill people you’d heal if you could. You can fantasize about shalom coming to Jews suffering from either the thugs on the American streets or the terrorists in Eretz Yisrael. You can also fantasize about Jews living affectionately with each other.

“ ‘Ohhh,’ says Hashem, ‘You’re hoping to Me. You’re not just going through the motions and trying to get by. You’re really hoping in your heart.

"If so, then I consider that as if you are actually participating in those things that you desire to do’.”

Step 3: Verbalize Your Hopes and Wishes

Start wishing out loud (but not necessarily where others will hear you).

Rav Miller suggests the following:

A frum woman who walks down a street full of atheists and tumah can say to herself, “Ah, if I could have lived in the good old days. If I could have lived in the days of the Beis Hamikdash and watched the Kohanim bring the karbonos onto the מזבח with the fear of Hashem on their faces.”

When you pass by a yeshivah and see bachurim streaming out, say, “Ribono Shel Olam, give a bracha on the roshei yeshivos and their rebbetzins, and on their sons and daughters. And on their eidim and their daughters-in-law. And on their einiklech as well. And the same is for all the Kollel people too. And all the bachurim, all the youngsters in the cheder and in the mesivta, should all live long.”

A working man who dedicates some precious time to the beis medrash can end his learning session by detouring over to the Shas on the seforim shrank and say, ““Ribono Shel Olam, how I wish I could stay here all night, every night, and learn through Shas. I have such a desire to sit over a daf of Gemara and slowly absorb the sweetness of the words of Chazal. But what can I do already? I have to get to sleep tonight so that I can get up for work tomorrow.”

Actualizing the above 3 steps ensures the following:

You forge increasingly deeper layers of sincerity within your heart.
You earn schar for your desires as if you actually did them.

Yet Rav Miller understands that initially, you might feel fake. You’ll feel silly. Walking around in stiff new shoes makes for awkward steps — at the beginning.

“Now, the first fifty times you don’t mean it. You don’t mean it all. But one thing you do mean – you want to mean it!

"‘I hope that someday I’ll mean it.’

"So Hakadosh Boruch Hu says: הבא לטהר מסעיין לו — ‘If you’re taking the first step, then I’m going to help you,’ says Hashem.

"And little by little, you become a man who sincerely desires to be goimel chasadim toivim l’amo Yisroel [one who bestows good kindnesses for His Nation Israel].”

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How to Love Different Groups of Frum Jews & Why You Should (Plus, How to Choose a Path for Yourself)

17/1/2019

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Rav Miller’s dvar Torah for Parshat Beshalach is one very close to my heart:

Appreciating different groups of Jews.

Ever since our inception, Hashem has kept the Jewish people divided-yet-united into very different Tribes.

Rav Miller insists that having a wide (halachically legitimate) variety of different Jews makes life more fun.

And it does!

Some Nice Stories

One of my fondest memories of Shabbat in Tzfat was going up the unending staircase (Tzfat is built on a small mountain) and hearing Lecha Dodi sung in several different nusachs, depending on what shul I happened to be passing at that moment.

The modern-day coming together of different groups and their customs always makes me feel like we truly are different links (or pearls!) within the same necklace.

If one is missing, the whole strand falls apart.

And I’m far from being the only one who feels this way.

Many, many frum Jews enjoy an opportunity to connect with other frum Jews from different ethnicities and nationalities.

In fact, I have a Yerushalmi chassidish neighbor who loves hanging out with Sephardi neighbors and lately, she’s also been inviting Russian baalei teshuvah couples for meals. She’s very makpid with her own children that they should never denigrate another group. I can tell that it’s all fun for her (and because I’m Sefardi by marriage and American by birth, I end up being part of her fun too).

After she came back from a trip to different holy graves of Rebbes in Eastern Europe, she enthused about how a Breslov woman on the bus inspired her with a steady stream of Breslov thought throughout the ride to Uman. “I said Tikkun Haklali at the grave of Rebbe Nachman!” she bubbled. “And I saw orot (lights/spiritual illumination)—yes, really!”

And she is part of a chassidus reputed to oppose Breslov (although Rav Levi Yitchak Bender insisted that this wasn’t true, as stated by the Rebbe of that chassidus himself).

My son, who learns in a standard Sefardi charedi yeshivah, spent Shabbat in Kiryat Arba-Chevron and enjoyed every minute of the warm, vibrant Judaism of his Kahanist hosts. Everyone was really nice to him and no one agonized over why he was in yeshivah as opposed to the army (a scenario that sometimes occurs outside the charedi community). He experienced a lot of warmth, acceptance, and good old-fashioned ahavat Yisrael combined with tremendous ahavat Torah—the divrei Torah never stopped flowing.

He doesn’t want to join that community; he’s happy where he is. But he received tremendous enjoyment and inspiration from frum Jews who are living a very different life.

A Litvish charedi kollel guy from America spent his first month of Shabbosim in Eretz Yisrael davening in a different shul for each tefillah. He experienced different kinds of chassidus and different kinds of Sefardi, and he thoroughly enjoyed himself. If you saw him, you’d think he is a very quiet serious-but-nice conventional Litvak. And he is! But that doesn’t contradict his healthy appreciation for other frum groups.

But other than providing us with lots of fun, there are other reasons why Hashem insists on the “Divided-Yet-United” paradigm…

Serving in Hashem's Army

The only way to learn how to truly love others is to be forced to love people who aren’t exactly like you. And not only that, people whose attitudes are very different than yours—maybe even at odds.

For example, some frum communities are very into insulating themselves against non-Jewish society and building a kind of self-imposed to ghetto around themselves. Other frum communities march out into the world, spreading Torah to the darkest corners and lovingly gathering in as many lost souls as they can.

You might personally find one much more appealing than the other. But in reality, both are vitally necessary. Both are in service of Hashem.

Rav Miller gives some practical examples:

So when a person from Dan was passing by and a boy from Yehudah saw him, he might have a yetzer hara to ridicule and say, “Tatty, look at that man. Look at his funny clothing.”

So his father scolded his son, “Oh no, don’t laugh at him. He’s our brother from the holy Tribe of Dan. Have respect. Every Tribe is holy.”

The Tribe of Ephraim pronounced the letter shin as sin. So instead of saying “Shabbat Shalom,” they said “Sabbat Salom.” Rav Miller imagines the following scenario:

And when a boy of Shevet Reuven said, “Look, Abba! Isn’t that strange how this person from Ephraim is speaking a queer language—he can’t pronounce the words,” so his father said, “Shh, we don’t talk that way. Shevet Efraim is holy. It’s a very holy Tribe. They’re our people, our brothers.”

As Rav Miller explains: A military needs an army, a navy and an airforce. We need foot soldiers, soldiers in tanks, and soldiers who are sitting behind a computer in Intelligence.

The Jews are in Hashem’s Army.

As Rav Miller explains:

Among ourselves, we have to be the best of friends. Because no matter where you are—you could be a Jew in Australia, a Satmerer in Williamsburg or a Jew in Tel Aviv—we’re all in this world for one purpose: to serve Hakadosh Baruch Hu.

When we feel that we’re all fighting together for one cause, to serve Hashem, we’re all marching together in the same regiment, so it’s much easier to have a love for your fellow men.

How much of an affection are you supposed to feel for brothers who are of one mind with you!

Learning from Everyone

Another reason for the divisions is in order to learn good things from each other.

Each halachically legitimate group emphasizes another important aspect of Torah. If you bury your head in the sand of your own group all your life, you might miss out on some very important aspect of avodat Hashem.

One group davens late because they spend so much time arousing their hearts toward passionate tefillah. Other group davens right a sunrise to catch that special time and start their day off right and exemplify zerizut for a mitzvah.

We need to learn from both of them.

Practical Tips to Get Started

Practically speaking, Rav Miller advises that when you walk into a frum shul, you should say, “This is my nation, my brothers! And we all share the common purpose of serving Hashem.”

When you’re walking down a street with many frum inhabitants, you should be thinking, “I’m walking among my people. B’toch ami anochi yoshevet. It’s my people and I love them. I don’t care what hat he wears or what group he belongs to—it’s all my people!”

And in a crowded kosher supermarket? Here’s what Rav Miller recommends:

…and it’s crowded and the lines are long—these are precious moments! You’re looking down the aisles and all you can see are your “brothers and sisters.”

Women, men, children—all buying kosher food. That’s a nation dedicated with a singular heart to Hakadosh Baruch Hu. "Yisrael ein lahem eleh lev echad l’Avihem sheh baShamayim—The whole Am Yisrael has but one heart devoted to their Father in Heaven" (Sukkah 45b).

It’s not just poetry; that’s actually the greatness of the Am Yisrael that binds us as brothers.

It all reminds me of Tzirel Rus Berger’s (The Mountain Family) wonder and nachat when she first moved her family to a frum neighborhood: “I have the descendants of Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov playing in my backyard!”

What a beautiful—and true!—way of looking at Jewish children.

Which Path is Right for YOU?

And here’s a big question:

How do you know which group, which hashkafah, which type of avodah is best for you?

Rav Miller says:

Hashem wants you to be the best that you can be.

Some people can be their best if they're chassidish.

Some people can be their best if they're litvish.

Other people can be their best if they're sefardi.

It's like asking: "What is the best diet for all of mankind?" The best type of diet depends on each individual person. People are different.

Some people are so different that their diets are radically different.

So whatever it is that you choose, you should make it a principle in your life to always choose whatever it is that will give you the most success in life--and success in this world means preparing for the Next World.

For example, Rav Miller recalls the story of a man who kept saying, “Dunu dini—Judge my dispute.” Every time there was a dispute between him and another, he didn’t want arbitration; he wanted to go to a frum judge and hear the halacha.

They checked his lineage and discovered that, indeed, he was from the Tribe of Dan, a Tribe which always wants to follow the strict letter of the law.

Another man used to go around saying, “I love the sea, I rejoice in seeing it.”

And what did they discover?

He descended from Zevulun! Zevulun was a seafaring Tribe.

“They were sailors with boats and they loved the sea.”

In a Nutshell:

So all in all, you need to love other frum groups not just despite their differences, but BECAUSE of their differences.

As Rav Miller explains, the directive is found in Kohelet/Ecclesiastes 9:4:
"Mi asher yechaber el kol hachaim, yesh bitachon—whoever is still connected to all the living, then there's still hope."

What does this mean, "all the living"?

All the different types of frum Jews who are really living a Torah life (or at least trying to)!

If you do that, then there's definitely hope.

Rav Avigdor Miller on Parshat Beshalach: Learning to Love All Types of Jews
(All quotes used with permission.)

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A Witty Program for Developing True Happiness

10/1/2019

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This week's dvar Torah from Rav Avigdor Miller ztz"l on Parshat Bo can transform your life.

He goes into the idea of how to be a truly wealthy person, a sameach bachelko--one who is happy with his portion.

And what is a "portion" anyway? Find out in The Guide to True Happiness: Parshat Bo.

He explains how to build yourself into a very happy person. Rav Miller's innovative take on happiness is that it's a science that needs to be studied and practiced. And he offers a weekly program, starting with appreciating air (including how to instill this in your children).

This reminds me of a story I heard about Rav Miller.

His child or grandchild walked into the kitchen when the venerable rav had his head in the sink with water covering his whole face. When he finally came up for air, the child asked him what he was doing and Rav Miller said something like, "Appreciating air."

People often complain that we aren't really told how great people become great. How can we learn from them? The truth is that real teshuvah & self-improvement is a private process. But here is one tip from Rav Miller: Dunk your whole face in water and stay there until you can't any longer. Then appreciate the great gift of air.

Rav Miller also declares his program to be a wonderful antidote to depression.

The Correct POV toward Any Holier-Than-Thou Resistance

One of the problems with trying to form authentic Torah habits is the response of other people -- which is why Rav Miller has stated that you shouldn't tell others what you're doing because they'll cool you off. (Of course, like-minded people are fine and will encourage you; it depends.)

Now, those of us who read Rav Shalom Arush's books and took them to heart, including doing some of the very difficult things he insists are part and parcel of authentic Torah Judaism (they are), know that you must be very careful when discussing this with others because they will say things like, "Avraham Avinu wasn't really b'simcha when he went to Akeidat Yitzchak" (even though Rashi clearly says he was--not because he was cruel, but because it was ratzon Hashem and Avraham Avinu was always happy to conform to Hashem's Will).

Or they'll insist it's "Breslov" -- which it is, but Rebbe Nachman didn't invent the concept; it's in the Torah and every mussar book that predates Rebbe Nachman emphasizes this. It's in the Gemara too.

Or people will insist that such a hike toward emuna is only for "truly great people" or "not realistic for our generation."

And it's disheartening because I'm not Breslov (although I'm a big fan) and I'm discouragingly far from being a "truly great person" and as a firm member of "this generation," it's also discouraging to hear that such core concepts aren't for me.

But guess what? People also tried to discourage Rav Miller! He's not Breslov, nor was he quoting from Breslov, and he was a truly great person who was also in "this generation."

So what is there to say to him?

Here you go:

Here comes along a frum tzaddik and says to me, “You're teaching people to enjoy life?! The purpose of life is ta'anugim?! To be rodef ta'anugim, run after pleasures?!”

He was upset at me.

No joke.

It's so bizarre because Rav Miller is always talking about divorcing oneself from the materialistic non-Jewish aspects of This World. Rav Miller possesses a very Slabodka-like perspective on what people should not be doing -- a perspective that often isn't popular and even drove people away (although Rav Miller was right).

Yet he is suddenly accused of encouraging people to be rodef taanugim--a person who pursues pleasures.

How wacky is that?

But as always, Rav Miller demonstrated his incisive perspective on things. For example, he pointed out that his critiquer wore a wristwatch, while Rav Miller did not. His critiquer drove a car to shul while Rav Miller came on foot.

Then Rav Miller tells the "frum tzaddik":

"Who is running after pleasure, you or I? You're running after it, but you don't have it. I'm not looking for pleasures. They're coming to me. As I walk in the street with my “Rolls Royce” -- my two shoes, that's my Rolls Royce -- and I'm breathing the air of Hakadosh Baruch Hu, I'm enjoying life. I walk past the cemetery on Ocean Parkway, and I'm filled with happiness that I'm on this side of the gate.”

That kind of kosher ta'anugim is a chiyuv, it's a mitzvah gedolah to enjoy life that way.

You've got to love a person who considers his two shoes as his own personal Rolls Royce.

Then Rav Miller explains the irrationality of denigrating gratitude and appreciation:

I know that if you go to a kollel and you'll tell them these things, they'll laugh at you. That's because they're silly -- they don't begin knowing Torah.

And don't tell me that enjoyment and happiness is not for tzadikim.

Oh no, you big tzadik, you don't want to enjoy the sun and the wind. He's eating his chocolate cakes and ice cream -- but to be happy with the sun, that's too much.

I admit that I never thought of that dichotomy until I read it in this dvar Torah. Nice point!

(Also, it's important to note that Rav Miller didn't mean all kollels would respond that way. There are some which would really appreciate hearing such things. He was saying this to make a point about how divorced from authentic Jewish hashkafah even scholarly frum Jews can be if they allow the surrounding culture to overwhelm their better instincts.)

Shabbat Shalom & I hope you'll fully enjoy The Guide to True Happiness: Parshat Bo.

(All quotes used with permission from Toras Avigdor.)

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Some Heart-Warming & Mind-Boggling Words from Rabbeinu Bachya

9/1/2019

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Sometimes, I've got so much to write about that everything bottlenecks & I end up not writing anything at all.

So I'll start clearing up the bottleneck with something short yet powerful.

In Parshat Bo (Shemot 13:2), Rabbeinu Bachya says the following:

And therefore, we find that the Navi [Yeshayahu] likened the Love of the Holy One Blessed Be He for Yisrael to the love of the mother for the child.

As it says (Yeshayahu/Isaiah 49): "Shall a woman forget her suckling child, compassion on the son of her belly?"

And it doesn't say "Shall a father forget his son?"

And my teacher and rebbi, Shlomo of blessed memory [the Rashba], explained that this text which says "Shall a woman forget her suckling child?" comes to inform us of 2 things:

1) One is that there should be no doubt for Am Yisrael that they are the children of the Living God just as there should be no doubt for Reuven that he is the son of his mother...

2) ...And the second is that just as it's impossible for a mother to exchange her child for another, so it is impossible to exchange Yisrael for another nation.

Hashem is with us all the way.

Let's delve into the analogy of Hashem to a nursing mother.

A nursing mother literally cannot forget her suckling child, not only because of her natural love and concern for him, but also because her own body reminds her that her child needs to be fed. In fact, her body actually demands that she feed her child. ("More than the calf wants to suckle, the cow wants to nurse" - Pesachim 112a.)

It implies that not only does Hashem possess a Primal Need to nurture us, but that His Need to nurture us is stronger that our need to receive sustenance from Him -- which is an astounding statement because technically, Hashem has no needs!

But obviously, Hashem sent this nevuah to Yeshayahu so that we would understand in our own terms Hashem's Great Attachment to us.

It's mind-boggling, if you think it over. In fact, I can't quite get my brain around the concept.

But in short: God not only loves us, but He would never & will never give us up or exchange us NO MATTER WHAT.

And that's a pretty amazing thing.

Thanks, Hashem!

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Squeezing Out Your Greatness: Hashem Doesn't Want "Orthodox"

3/1/2019

2 Comments

Here's another gem of Rav Avigdor Miller from Parshat Va'eira: Hashem's Bitter Medicine:

There is a great kindliness that's most paramount, more important than all the chassodim [kindnesses] in the world - more important than parnasah, more important than shalom bayis, and good health.

And that's the kindliness called yiras Hashem.

Yiras Hashem -- which means to be Aware of Hashem -- that's the most important thing in your life.

Now, this might sound queer to the ears of those who live with materialism, but it's a fundamental principle that we must get into our heads.

We are here to gain Awareness of Hashem.

Now, if that's the purpose, then what a tragedy it is when people let their lives go by and fail to utilize the opportunities to recognize Hashem. You forgot about Him?! To forget Hashem is the worst ruination in life! To live without awareness is not a life worth living!

So Hashem sees that you're wasting your life -- of course you're a frum person -- you're doing mitzvos, you're ultra-ultra-Orthodox.

But that's not enough for Hashem. He doesn't want “Orthodox.”

He wants to squeeze greatness out of you!

He wants to save you so that your life shouldn't be wasted.

Hakadosh Baruch Hu wants to give you the gift of being Aware of Him.

That dvar Torah also elucidates:

why our prayers aren't answered right away
why Am Yisrael is so often compared to wine
the importance of praying to Hashem before bad things happen

You can also download/print out/read his other dvar Torah on the parsha here:
Parshat Va'eira: The 10 Makkos: Lessons in Awareness of Hashem

Avodah Ivrit - Jewish Labor (just so it's clear ;-)

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How to Break Out of being "Ordinary"

27/12/2018

5 Comments

Guess who recommends the following:

Try thinking about Hakadosh Baruch Hu for one minute straight...Think Hashem loves you. "Ahavti etchem ne'um Hashem" -- "I love you," says Hashem.

Do you think about that ever? Do you ever stop to think that Hashem loves you?

He loves you a thousand more times than your mother loves you and you never thought about it?!

You never once thought that Hashem loves you immensely, infinitely?!

That's a wonderful thing to think about in your one-minute excursion into solitude, your minute of being alone with Hashem in your thoughts.

So you're thinking..."Hashem, I know You're right here with me and that you're listening to me. You love me more than I can imagine. You love me more than my mother loves me, more than my father, more than my friends love me. You're taking care of me, everything You do to me is for the best and I love you too!"

Who recommends all that lovey-dovey hitbodedut?

Rav Shalom Arush? Rebbe Nachman? The Baal Shem Tov?

Nope! It's all a direct quote from Rav Avigdor Miller.

And there's a lot more where that came from. (Also, this uncompromisingly Litvish rav emphasizes the Baal Shem Tov as an example to follow in this dvar Torah -- Am echad, lev echad, one Nation, one heart.)

If you want to see the above inside, plus read more about hitbodedut & talking to Hashem with a Slabodka Litvish flavor, then please see Rav Miller's dvar Torah on Parshat Shemot: A Life Apart. (All quotes used with permission.)

Rav Miller possessed a unique wit that was dry, wry, and slipped in with brilliantly poker-faced manner. And if you're into that kind of wit and tongue-in-cheek humor, then it makes his mussar much more fun to swallow.

Here's an example of Rav Miller's makes-you-chuckle-out-loud wit from the same dvar Torah:

Ask Hashem that He should help you with everything:

“I am going for a walk, Hashem. Please help me I should succeed in gaining good health, and that I shouldn’t have any difficulties with rude people that bump into me. And while they are 'bumping into me,' they put their hand in my back pocket and take out my wallet."

See? He's so funny.

But really, he's giving us mussar about not wasting our time with mundane thoughts or gazing around at things we shouldn't. He's telling us that even a walk needs siyata d'Shmaya (especially if there are pickpockets around). He's reminding us to think about Hashem constantly.

But he makes us laugh as he does it.

A Woman's Kitchen: On the Level of the Baal Shem Tov's Forest or the Novardoker's Holy Hut - If She Wants It To Be

And this is from a different parsha on Toras Avigdor, but Rav Miller's speaks about how a woman in her kitchen can achieve the same as the Baal Shem Tov doing hitbodedut in his forest or the Novardoker in his hut:

When a woman is by herself in the kitchen, it’s a glorious opportunity.

Do you know what she’s doing?

She’s practicing one of the biggest virtues, the virtue of hisbodedus, solitude.

The old nevi’im, the old prophets, used to go out in the wilderness.

Even the gedolei acharonim, the Ba’al Shem Tov, went into a forest for weeks to be away from people.

Rav Yoizel Novardoker had a hut hidden in the forest. He had two huts. One that his wife knew about. He was unlisted. Nobody knew how to get him, but his wife knew. But there was another hut that even his wife didn’t know about. Only his talmid, Rav Yoel Boronsik, knew about that hut, the second one. Even his wife wasn’t told about that one.

He had two degrees of hisbodedus because that makes a man great.

A woman in a kitchen, all day long she’s alone. All day she has an opportunity. She can listen to Torah tapes. She can think noble thoughts.

It’s a great thing for a woman to be alone if you utilize it properly.

But maybe you aren't all day long in the kitchen.

He's taking the extreme example because this is something looked down on in society, something many women want to escape.

Yet Rav Miller sees this as an opportunity for the highest greatness.

Now let's look at something else many people want to escape...

How to Do Hitbodedut amid Raucous Music

Personally, I really dislike the unending blasting music at weddings.

But Rav Miller has a positive take on it.

He thinks you should use that opportunity to talk to Hashem. Seriously!

He advises you to use that opportunity to ask Hashem to bless the new couple with all sorts of good wishes.

He recommends davening amid the overpowering music in the following way:

You could say it with your mind and nobody's listening.

But even better, you can say it with your mouth - the music is so loud, nobody will hear you.

They think you're singing along.

Picture the above scenario in your mind, picture yourself sitting at a fancy table talking out loud to Hashem and looking like you're just singing along -- it's so funny!

I hope I can work up the guts to actually try it...

Also, someone at Toras Avigdor is a genius with titles & subheadings. For example:

Would You Choose Uncle Harry to be Your Rebbe?
Moshe Rabbeinu Doesn't Need the Movies
Getting Your Mind Cleaned at the Dentist
Great Men Skip Shul
It's Good to be a Hypocrite

So you end up getting some pretty heavy mussar, but it doesn't feel so heavy because you're chuckling through the entire thing.

Hashem Wants More Than Ordinariness

But here's some serious mussar from A Life Apart that is so applicable to our generation (especially against the popular yet erroneous idea that any level just one baby-step above the current one is "only for great tzaddikim," etc.):

Now, I know people will listen to me and they will just dismiss these ideas. They think that it's a middas chassidus, it's something that only very great people should do.

But that's wrong.

Don't think that what we're saying here is going overboard.

Just because ordinary people will often live like they do with hesech hada'as; they daven as ordinary people daven and mostly their minds are occupied with ordinary things, doesn't means that you have to do the same.

Hakodosh Boruch Hu wants more than ordinariness.

He wants you to be close to Him because those who are far away from Him will eventually go lost. And even though you seem to be a shomer mitzvos, but actually you're far away from Him if your mind doesn't concentrate on Him, if you're not living with Him in your mind.

And therefore, as much as possible you spend time talking to Hashem.

You can also read/print out another geshmak dvar Torah for Parshat Shemot here:
https://torasavigdor.org/parshas-shemos-the-real-test-of-life/

Also, if you wanted to know more about a certain someone, you can see:
Rav Miller on Yoshkeh

May we all merit to spend as much time as possible talking to Hashem.

5 Comments

Some Enjoyable Reading Recommendations

13/12/2018

6 Comments

There's an excellent article on how to grow from life's disappointments, included major disappointments.

It's all connected to Parshat Miketz, but it's applicable all year around & can be found here:
Parshat Miketz: Learning Bitachon

You can also find the geshmak davar Torah for Parshat Vayigash here:
Parshat Vayigash: That Fearful Moment

Now I just want to say that if you, like me, have a hard time reading divrei Torah online, please rest assured that this article is very readable and enjoyable. Rav Avigdor Miller's drashas on Parshat Hashavua are a wonderful exception for me because for some reason, I find them very easy and enjoyable to read online.

Anyway, there's some really good advice and life lessons in there & I hope you'll enjoy it.

(You can also print it out as a PDF to enjoy on Shabbat.)

View of the Kinneret

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<<Previous

Rav Avigdor Miller on the Secret Power of the Korbanot of Parshat Vayikra

The Hidden Imprint of Korbanot

The Meaning of Life

How Did the Korbanos Work?

How to Achieve Greatness without Korbanot

Rav Avigdor Miller on Parshat Ki Tisa

You Can't Have Spirituality without Law & Justice

The Secret to Fulfilling Na'aseh V'Nishma

How to Really Want It

How to Love Different Groups of Frum Jews & Why You Should (Plus, How to Choose a Path for Yourself)

Some Nice Stories

Serving in Hashem's Army

Learning from Everyone

Practical Tips to Get Started

Which Path is Right for YOU?

In a Nutshell:

A Witty Program for Developing True Happiness

The Correct POV toward Any Holier-Than-Thou Resistance

Some Heart-Warming & Mind-Boggling Words from Rabbeinu Bachya

Squeezing Out Your Greatness: Hashem Doesn't Want "Orthodox"

How to Break Out of being "Ordinary"

A Woman's Kitchen: On the Level of the Baal Shem Tov's Forest or the Novardoker's Holy Hut - If She Wants It To Be

How to Do Hitbodedut amid Raucous Music

Hashem Wants More Than Ordinariness

Some Enjoyable Reading Recommendations

Myrtle Rising

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