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Rav Itamar Schwartz on Why Hashem Saved Am Yisrael on Purim, But Queen Esther Needed to Stay with a Jew-Hating Idol-Worshipping Menuval

5/3/2023

 
A lot of people rightfully feel disturbed by the fate of Queen Esther.

The rest of Am Yisrael experiences joy, unity, salvation, triumph, and celebration — but Queen Esther does not seem to. 

We want the happy ending in which Mordechai HaYehudi rescues his wife from the Zoroastrian harem and the horrible king who had her kidnapped and forcibly married to him.

But that desired ending never arrives.

Why not?

What really happened with Queen Esther after that first glorious Purim?

As usual, the answer is complex and deep...and not all is as it seems.

Here's Rav Itamar Schwartz of Bilvavi on the topic:
The Geulah on Purim was a preparation for the Geulah shelaimah (complete Redemption), but it was not yet the Geulah shelaimah itself.

The Gemara says that “We are still the slaves of Achashveirosh” (Talmud Bavli Megillah 14a).

Mordechai was only favored by “most” of Klal Yisrael, but not to all of them, and the Gemara says that this was because he had to be involved with the government, so he was not accepted by everyone after that.

And, similarly, Esther remained as Achashveirosh’s queen.

However, the Zohar says that Esther took control of Achashveirosh’s power and of his entire kingdom.

Esther represents the spiritual point of malchus d’Atzilus, and Achashverosh was the Zeir Anpin on the side of impurity.

According to the Zohar, she sent a demon in her stead to be with Achashveirosh, and this is unlike the view of the Talmud Bavli, which states that Esther was forced to be with Achashveirosh.

The sefer Magid Meisharim writes that because the Jewish people sinned by marrying gentile women, they were punished with Esther being forced to be married a rasha.

The sefer Chemdas Yomim says that Esther represents the Malchus D’Atzilus, the Shechinah, which was placed into exile, for she was forced to be married to a wicked person, like a rose among the thorns.

The Ramchal also writes that Esther being forced to be with Achashveirosh represents how the Shechinah is currently exiled to the Sitra Achra, to the side of evil.

Achashveirosh wanted to control Esther – the Shechinah – but Mordechai made the demon swear that it would take Esther’s stead and go to Achashverosh instead.

So even when she had to go willingly to Achashverosh, she never actually was with him, because she sent a demon to be with him instead, so she never actually stayed with Achashverosh for the rest of her life.

It was only in the beginning when she was first taken as queen, that she had to be with Achashverosh – but she did not actually remain with him.

https://question.bilvavi.net/blog/2021/02/25/deep-insights-into-megillas-esther/

Rav Itamar Schwartz Explains the Secret behind the Success of the Tzaddik who Falls 7 Times before Succeeding

22/8/2022

 
This is from a recent Bilvavi email regarding teshuvah and Elul.

According to the text below, one prime difference between a tzaddik and a regular person is the tzaddik believes Hashem gives him the koach to fix himself; he knows he doesn't have it on is own.

But that's okay in the tzaddik's eyes because HASHEM can grant him success.

​A regular person relies on himself, on his abilities & strengths, which brings despair after the first couple of falls.

"I can't do it," he says. "So there is no hope. I simply don't have what it takes. It's not who I am."

But the one who eventually becomes a tzaddik says, "I can't do it...but HASHEM can! I don't have what it takes...but HASHEM does! It's not who I am right now...but HASHEM can change that!"

Here are the words of Rav Itamar Schwartz (boldface my addition):
From where does a tzaddik have the power to fall and get up and fall and get up again?

A regular person, if he falls once or twice, says to himself, “I fell and tried to get up but couldn’t do it, so the next time I will fall, I will not be able to get up either.”

If he fell twice and couldn’t get up, on the third time he will feel that now he has a chazakah, and for sure will not be able to get up.

But a tzaddik believes that Hashem gives him koach to fix himself.

With the power that Hashem gives, one can succeed in anything.

​If it was my own power, it is limited and I can’t succeed, but if I receive every day a new power, the question is Who gave me the power?

On this Chazal say:

“Hashem li b’ozrai — Hashem is my helper.”

Therefore even if in the past you failed, a person knows that Hashem helps him.

Therefore there is never a place of despair because he knows that Hashem will help him even if he fell many times.
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Roses in bloom in Eretz Yisrael

Inspirational Quote from Bilvavi

1/8/2022

 
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The Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Eretz Yisrael by Tel Aviv
"The influences in this world are very strong.

The values are all wrong and our thinking can become distorted.

The proper way is to discover the truth on your own.

Then you will receive your own life from your own neshamah.

Then you will merit being like Adam before the sin.

He had no one to emulate other than Hashem.

The Geulah will come when we don't copy others,

​but live from our own discovered truth."

bilvavi.net/english/be-yourself-0

Rav Itamar Schwartz of Bilvavi Deletes the Mystique behind Psychic Powers, Teleportation, Astral Projection, ESP (In other words, these people lack the superiority inferred upon them by themselves & others.) Also, How to Defend Yourself against Them

7/7/2022

 
In Parshat Balak, we watch as Hashem takes control of the world's mightiest occultist at that time.

All Bilaam's power and genius ultimately led to him doing the opposite of what he and King Balak plotted to do: Rather than cursing Am Yisrael, Bilaam blessed them.

While rationalist thought attributes other explanations for Bilaam's power and considers any apparent occult powers as wholly 3-dimensional tricks of illusion, the majority of sources throughout Chazal acknowledge the powers and abilities we now term as supernatural.

Unfortunately, when people display psychic powers or supernatural abilities, others see this as evidence of deeper wisdom & elevated spirituality—and this assumption is simply not true.

One can access these powers and still lack the wisdom of knowing there is One Source for everything, One Power, One God.

A truly spiritual person recognizes the One & Only God.

A truly spiritually enlightened person, whether Jewish or not, realizes that God gave Am Yisrael the Torah at Har Sinai—and that the Torah is True.

In contrast, these people with special powers almost always lack the wisdom to know how to behave morally and with integrity.

They possess brazenness, but no courage.

​When push comes to shove, they fold.

In a fascinating Q&A, Rav Schwartz briefly explains how this works, its limitations, and the halachic boundaries when using psychic abilities (boldface & underline my own additions):
https://question.bilvavi.net/blog/2022/06/20/intruding-into-anothers-privacy-through-esp/
INTRUDING INTO ANOTHER’S PRIVACY THROUGH ESP [#18926]

QUESTION:
I want to know if it’s “permitted” for a person who has “spiritual powers” [of ESP, extrasensory perception] to penetrate into another’s privacy [i.e. reading his thoughts and feelings and seeing into his spiritual level].

Assuming that we are talking about a person who has indeed been gifted with a spiritual ability to “see” certain things in others, is such a person allowed to make use of his ability to “see into” others, without asking their permission first?

There are some people who are able to leave their physical body, which is called “teleporting” – are such people able to have some kind of control over others or harm others?

Does G-d approve of such behavior, and will such a person be punished by Heaven for doing such a thing?

Are these people “allowed” to do this because they possess a high soul level?

​And, how can a person protect his privacy from being invaded by such people (since he can’t see them)?

ANSWER:
In our world of action, we are obligated in the 613 mitzvos of the Torah and in the 7 primary Rabbinical mitzvos, and in all of the commandments which we have received through tradition, as well as in all of the decrees and prohibitions that the Sages have enacted.

The more a person grows spiritually, the more “obligations” he will discover, which are on a more spiritual level, in addition to all that he is obligated in from the perspective of this lower world, the realm of action.

In the lower world, the world of action, it is forbidden for us to enter into another person’s property without permission – it is forbidden because it is stealing.

It is the same in the more spiritual dimensions:

Whenever a person enters into another’s “privacy,” this is called stealing, on a spiritual level.

As an example, a person gains spiritual merits as a result of doing mitzvos and positive deeds on this world.

These become his spiritual acquisitions.

Therefore, if a person is genuinely spiritual and he is truthful, he will not enter into another’s private “world,” and he will only do so within the context of halachah, integrity, and kindness to another.

However, there are some people who are found in the spiritual dimension, but they are only in the lower realm of the spiritual dimension, where there is a mixture of good and evil.

In the language of the Sages, this is referred to as “the world of exchanges.”

In such people, the “animal” layer of their souls (their nefesh habehaimis) is mixed into their spiritual powers [which causes their spirituality to be unrefined and lacking in truthfulness].

They have two problems:
​
They are found in a spiritual dimension which is unrefined, because they are at a dimension where there is a mixture of good and evil.

In addition, their very souls are unrefined: the “animal” layer of their soul has not yet been refined, so it is mixed into their spiritual world, and this causes them to be misled, according to their various interests.

Just as it is possible in the physical world to steal from another person, so is it possible to “steal” on a spiritual level from another person, by intruding into his privacy [i.e. entering into another’s thoughts and feelings without permission], when one is living at an unrefined spiritual place of existence.

And just as in the physical world each person has his own boundaries and capabilities, according to his own level, so does a person have emotional boundaries and limitations, physical boundaries and limitations, and financial boundaries and limitations.

And just as a person in the physical world can be harmed by another, so can a person be harmed by another, in the unrefined spiritual plane of existence.

However, the more that a person becomes attached to the Creator and believes in His total Divine Providence, to that extent, no created being can harm him on his own accord.

A person can only be harmed if G-d wills it.

The power of free choice that is given to a person is essentially if he will choose to connect or not to the lowly and unrefined forces in Creation, entering into a world where the “Destroyer” [the destroying angel, Satan] is given permission to destroy as it wishes.

For this reason, it is possible for a person to be harmed by one who has unrefined spiritual powers.

The other choice that a person has is the choice to connect himself to the Creator, and to have the pure belief in Him that “only He can do, has done, and will do, all actions.” 


https://question.bilvavi.net/blog/2022/06/20/intruding-into-anothers-privacy-through-esp/
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A Free Downloadable Graphic with a Quote from Rav Itamar Schwartz on the Correct Way to Work on Your Middot

20/5/2022

 
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You can find the quote within the following parsha PDF (Bechukotai 5782) at the Bilvavi site: [link will be posted – if I don't forget – when available].
For your convenience, here it is in the body of the post in case it's hard to read in the graphic (plus a bit more): 
​One also has to reveal, repair, and balance, any of the abilities of the soul that haven’t yet been revealed, repaired, or balanced.

But this should not be done with a perspective of a war against the evil within oneself.

Rather, it must be done with a positive perspective, from the understanding that every part of ourselves, every ability of our soul, is a gift from Hashem and a part of us.

After we have revealed, balanced, and repaired the abilities we aren’t making use of, we need to become connected with them and utilize them properly, and we will get vitality and joy from these abilities no less than how we can get vitality and joy from our strong and good abilities.

​This is the inner perspective to have on all self-recognition and self-actualization, and to the extent that we view our soul and its abilities in an inner, positive way like this, our ability to recognize our soul and work with our abilities will be refined, and we will be much closer to repairing our souls and reaching self-perfection in this world.

Lag B'Omer Links, Plus Excerpts from Bilvavi Q&A

17/5/2022

 
For Lag B'Omer, please see last year's beautiful poem by Nechumelle Jacobs here:
www.myrtlerising.com/blog/a-poem-for-lag-bomer-by-nechumelle-jacobs
And please see the PDF by Bilvavi, compiled from various lectures by Rav Itamar Schwartz (who himself no connection to the website or anything else Internet-related):
https://bilvavi.net/files/Bilvavi.Lag.Ba'Omer.Talks.pdf
A separate PDF provides a thought-provoking & enlightening Q&A with Rav Itamar Schwartz. While it mostly concerns last year's tragedy, it also answers general existential questions regarding suffering, mussar, teshuvah, and dealing with others' needs regarding individual responses to suffering:
https://bilvavi.net/qanda-weekly/eng/Bilvavi_242_Bilvavi%20Q&A_Bechukosai-Lag%20B'Omer_5782.pdf

Here are some excerpts (boldface my own addition):
ROCKETS & MERON TRAGEDY: IS MASHIACH COMING?

QUESTION

Are the rockets now in Eretz Yisrael a sign of the “war of Gog and Magog” and that Mashiach is coming?

ANSWER
It is not a sign – it is a part of the war of Gog and Magog, for we are already
amidst it.



LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM THE MERON TRAGEDY

QUESTION

When more people told me about it, I said Hashem wants us to do teshuva.

To my surprise, people had strong negative reactions to that!

One wanted to be in the moment of grief feeling for the families of the victims and absorbing the shock, basically calling me unsensitive to the pain of others.

Another did not want to be blamed and told me I was burning up the world.

And both felt very strongly that telling people to do teshuva was too harsh on people who cannot take it, who have gone off the derech hearing those crushing messages about Hashem’s anger at us and becoming hardened and cold to Him.

A third person told me that she is so numb from everything that the tragedy simply has not registered in any way.

I realize that the galus has been long and we are storm tossed and we need Hashem to be gentle with us. Is the message that Hashem wants the Yidden to do teshuva applicable here?


ANSWER
Speak to each person on their own level and in their "language."

Any one lesson that can be learned from something will not be understood by everyone equally.


QUESTION
Is the [negative] reactivity to that all a kelipah in which the very light Hashem wants to come into the world being concealed?

ANSWER
Yes, but before giving over the message to others, first see if the message will be taken positively or negatively by the other.

QUESTION
If it is indeed a message to do teshuvah, what is a way to respond so that those experiencing a push back to doing teshuva can recognize Hashem and “do the work” of opening their hearts?

ANSWER
...You need to figure out what the individual in question needs to hear, based on his on her personal soul and what you think they need to hear.
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Enhance Your Pesach (including the cleaning!) with Bilvavi

23/3/2022

 
Let Rav Itamar Schwartz of Bilvavi help you get practically & spiritually ready for Pesach:
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Hebrew-English
Please click on any image above to access its PDF for free download.

Please note: Rav Itamar Schwartz lovingly opposes all forms of the Internet & has no connection to the Bilvavi website.
Rav Schwartz has no more connection with the Bilvavi website than Rav Kanievsky ztz"l did with all the websites that post videos & quotes of him.
For more explanation, please see the Disclaimer here:
https://eng.bilvavi.net/opinion/

Here is some biographical information on Rav Itamar Schwartz (copied from here: 
bilvavi.net/back-issues/eng/Bilvavi_234_Shemini_Taking%20Shelter_5782.pdf):
The Rav attended the Pachad Yitzhak Yeshiva of Rav Yonasan David, Shlit"a and graduated from the Ponovitch Yeshiva of Rav Gershon Edelstein, Shlit"a.

The earliest of more than 50 sefarim of the Rav where enthusiastically endorsed by Rav Gamliel Rabinovitch, Shlit"a, Rav Moshe Sternbuch, Shlit"a, Rav Yitzchak Zilberstein, Shlit"a, the Tolna Rebbe, Shlit"a, Rav Moshe Mordechai Karp, Shlit"a, amongst others.

Using an eclectic approach, the Rav's teachings speak to the hearts of Jews from all walks of life.


Insights & Advice for Women on Purim from Rav Itamar Schwartz

13/3/2022

 
Before we get to women on Purim...do you ever suffer from niggling Purim questions to which you never found the answer?

(Like, if Purim exemplified salvation, then why did Queen Esther need to stay intermarried to such a repulsive menuval? How much & what should I drink on Purim? And what's the deal with Haman's grandchildren learning Torah in Bnei Brak—how did THAT happen? And more...)

Then please see this Purim Q&A:
https://bilvavi.net/files/Bilvavi.Purim.QandA.pdf
(It includes the following for women too.)
​
Here are some practically & spiritually helpful advice & insights from Rav Itamar Schwartz, as published on the Bilvavi website (with which Rav Schwartz holds no connection), as excerpted from a lecture by Rav Schwartz (much of the following apply & benefit men too):
There are a lot of aspects to Purim. The halachah of intoxication applies only to men, and the parameters of this halachah is explained by the Poskim.

But there are many other aspects of Purim as well which apply to both men and women.

Here are some of those points to think about, and each person should try to do them on his or her own level, according to his or her personal capabilities – and not based on any reasons influenced by factors that are either social, or emotional, or family-based, because there are many times where people act based solely on “what’s normal”, and this uproots any serenity and joy that they could have on Purim.

1) Consider the aspect of reading the Megillah on Purim.

Both men and women are obligated to hear the Megillah on Purim.

And on a more inner level, both men and women can reflect on the events in the Megillah and see how there was Divine Providence laced throughout this story, because the word “Megillas Esther” means to “reveal” the “hidden”, to turn the concealment (hester) into giluy (revelation of Hashem’s Divine Providence).

A person can go through all of the details in the Purim story, from beginning until end, and he can see how it was all an unfolding process of Hashem’s Divine Providence - as opposed to a bunch of random details that have no connection to each other.

On an even deeper level, each person, whether man or woman, on his or her own level, can see Hashem’s inner mode of conduct hidden in the Creation, as explained in sefer Daas Tevunos, and how every event in the world can be seen through the lens of Hashem’s carefully planned Divine Providence, His goodness, and the revelation of His Oneness.

2) Consider the mitzvah of sending Mishloach Manos on Purim.

The purpose of this mitzvah is to increase love and friendship.

On the obligatory level, everyone is obligated to send two portions of food to someone. On an inner level, one should also think about whom he will make happy by giving Mishloach Manos to.

Then one should think, “What can I put into this Mishloach Manos package which will make the other person happy? What would that person really enjoy?”

One should put thought into how much Mishloach Manos to send, what the quality of it should be like, how nice it should look, and what kind of nice messages he can send with it.

Everyone should do this only according to her personal capabilities, and not to over-do it.

Even more so, when giving the Mishloach Manos, it should not just be an act of giving motivated by logic alone, but it should be given from the depth of one’s heart, with love and joy, to make the other person happy.

Included in this aspect (gladdening other people on Purim) is to make the children happy, with costumes and the like.

But again, one should do this only within her actual capabilities, and only if she can do it with joy.

3) Consider also the mitzvah to give Matanos L’Evyonim (gifts to the poor) on Purim.

One should look for a person who needs it the most, and who would be the happiest to receive it – and one should strive to give Matanos L’Evyonim specifically to this kind of person.

A woman usually needs to ask her husband about whom she may give Matanos L’Evyonim to, mainly so that her husband should agree with her decision.
​
4) Regarding the seudah of Purim, try to serve good food to each person who is dining by you, fitted to each person’s particular tastes.

The main point of the seudah on Purim is to think about and discuss Purim-related matters and what Purim is all about, and to stay away from words that disparage people, which only awaken the most impure forces in one’s soul.

5) The purpose of the day of Purim is to reach a deep place in one’s soul that is above one’s daas (logical reasoning and understanding).

For men, whose main mitzvah is to learn Torah, their main work on this world is to develop the power of their logic throughout the year, by studying Torah.

That is why men need the intoxicating effects of wine (or the dulling effect of sleep) in order to “nullify” their logical understanding and reach a place that goes beyond logical understanding.

However, women, who are exempt from Torah study, are therefore closer to the concept of nullifying their understanding and to more easily reach a place that goes beyond logical understanding. This is the point known as temimus (non-intellectual simplicity or earnestness).

Thus the main avodah of the day of Purim is, “Be wholesome with Hashem your G-d”, to walk with Him in temimus (simplicity), without any intellectual thinking.

It is about sensing His unlimited love for us, just as the people in the time of Achashveirosh re-accepted the Torah out of their great love of Hashem that they saw through the miracles of Purim.

It is about feeling how He always give to us, out of His great love for us, by saving us from trouble, and by bestowing good upon us.

From this understanding, we can come to feel the sweetness and pleasantness of being close to Him.

This is the root of true simchah on Purim, because by feeling close to Hashem a person feels physically lighter, in the body in general and specifically in the feet, and that is why one can easily sing and dance on Purim – just as by the song of Miriam.

And that is why the miracles on Purim happened precisely through women [Esther].

It is because women are closer to this temimus (simplicity and earnestness).

Men need to drink as a means to reach this place of temimus, whereas women are closer to reaching it, without the means of drinking.

​It only requires a little bit of reflecting and calm silence, and to enter into the deepest place of one’s soul – each person on her own level.

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Why You Need to Acknowledge the Sincerity behind Personality Disorders & the Erev Rav

6/2/2022

 
Because of the short-cut language we use when speaking about consistently dysfunctional people, whether we identify them as personality disordered or Erev Rav, the terminology implies an awareness on their part, which doesn't usually exist (or doesn't exist to that extreme).

Psychopaths generally mean to do what they do.

But most other people don't.

For example, a narcissist doesn't think, "Oh-ho, I will now engage in my beloved activity of triangulation!"

No, they simply feel victimized in some way, and naturally turn to others in a way that plays one person against the other.

They seek to feel supported & protected.

The fact that an innocent person gets badly hurt along the way doesn't register with them.

After all, the narcissist considers himself the victim and, in the narcissist mind, the person getting hurt either deserves it (if the narcissist feels victimized by that person) or is simply an unavoidable casualty (which again, is not the narcissist's fault in the narcissistic mind because he views it as an unavoidable casualty—and "Hey, what did you expect, that I would sacrifice myself to avoid harming such an insignificant person? Anyway, if you really cared about me, you wouldn't mind sacrificing in yourself for me.").

I used the example of a narcissist, but it applies to any personality disorder.

Same thing when a personality-disordered person slanders another.

Again, they felt victimized in some way.

They believe they are simply protecting themselves, perhaps even protecting others by warning them, or they justify their slander as emanating from irrepressible pain that must find a release.

If they genuinely mean to take you down via slander, it still emanates from the perception of themselves as victim and you as persecutor. So once again, they believe you deserve it; they see it as the best & most effective way to defend themselves.

They believe their slander to be true...or close enough to the truth to be true ("That's how I feel"), or they believe the lies & exaggerations popping out of their mouth because those justifications sound & feel so good...so they must be true, right?

​Or, even if they know they twisted the truth, they feel it advances an important agenda, so the ends justifies the means...and that's also a kind of "truth" (to the disordered mind).

Those are just a couple of examples.

And the above is why a PD (personality disorder) can be so shocked, hurt, outraged, and vengeful when confronted with the truth of their motivations, beliefs, and actions—and also how badly they've hurt others, plus the destruction that results from their behaviors.

Most experts addressing personality disorders speak as if the PD knows and plots every step of their behavior.

(I speak/write like this too sometimes. It's a short-cut to describe the behaviors. But really, I think it's a bit misleading, so I'm trying to be more careful. On the other hand, some people really do believe PDs are wholly aware of every step they take. But that's not true.)

For example, they say:
​"This narcissist can't handle being wrong, so she engages in twisty arguments to manipulate the discussion."

But the narcissist probably thinks she's right!

​And she doesn't consider her arguments twisty nor does she consider her methods manipulative; she thinks she's being clever and self-protective. She believes what she's saying and genuinely thinks YOU are being mean.

Having said that, sometimes they do knowingly engage in hurtful argumentative tactics. And again, they do that because they think YOU deserve it.

They consider you pathetic, bad, or stupid and feel justified in playing mind games during a discussion.

They consider themselves cute, clever, or funny.

So if you get angry or hurt, they consider you oversensitive. (Or manipulative.)

Why?

Because you were the whole problem in the first place! Why are you bothering them by being pathetic, bad or stupid?

YOU are pathetic, bad, or stupid. THEY are cute, clever, funny...and the real victim here.

So why are YOU getting upset?

You have no right!

That's how they honestly see things.

And as long as you don't realize how sincere they are in their disordered thinking, it's hard to deal with them and also to identify them. You can also be used by them to hurt others when they rope you into "helping" them in their pain (which feels very real to them).

So to sum up:

  • The knowingly evil Voldemorts tend to be psychopaths.
 
  • The other dysfunctional people tend to be sincere in their disordered, dysfunctional, unhealthy way of thinking.

​And the same is also true for the Erev Rav.

Erev Rav Sincerity

Note: All quotes from Rav Itamar Schwartz are from here:
​https://bilvavi.net/files/Bilvavi.Erev.Rav.Talks.pdf

Since their inception, the Erev Rav lacked a conscious intent to destroy Am Yisrael.

They simply wanted the best of both worlds.

And THAT leads to destruction because, at their intrinsic root, the holy world and the profane world remain at odds with each other.
​
(The group with the conscious intent to destroy Am Yisrael both physically and at its soul-root is Amalek. And yes, Amalekite Erev Rav exist.)

To oversimplify, the Erev Rav followed Am Yisrael out of Egypt because they viewed Hashem as the biggest bully on the block, and they felt more secure aligning themselves with the most powerful entity.

Yet they were always looking back to see whether maybe the Egyptians would be the winners.

And despite all the palpable pure spirituality around, they constantly longed for their impure spirituality and materialism.

All the damage they committed (like the Golden Calf) resulted from a desire to protect their own interests.

They genuinely felt fear or anxiety or distress. Their motivation wasn't manipulation; that's how they honestly felt.

In other words, they believed in what they were doing.

And real Jews got swept up with them...because of the Erev Rav sincerity.

And it happens nowadays too.

​Here's Rav Itamar Schwartz (page 40):
In fact, those people [who are pushing for the draft] might not even be aware that the ‘Sitra Achara’ is controlling them, and they might even be earnest in their intentions.

Some of them actually are earnest, and they aren’t trying to be wicked.

​They simply don’t understand what they are doing to us.

But this is only concerning a certain amount of them.

The rest of them simply have wicked intentions.

And even those in the government who have earnest intentions to help us are accomplishing the same purpose as the totally wicked members, in spite of the fact that they don’t realize what they are doing: they are coming to uproot all of the Torah!!

And why are they trying to uproot the Torah?

Because they honestly view it as holding themselves and others back.

But WHY do they feel that way?

The Torah contains such amazing inspiration, guidance, and is the only way for a human being to achieve truly great heights of holiness & morality.

​Why is the Erev Rav view SO distorted?

Erev Rav Lack the Ability to Understand. Understand This Well!

Here's the answer on page 35:
They do not understand, and they can never understand, what Torah is.

They cannot understand what mitzvos are.

​They cannot understand the nature of the true bond that is between the Jewish people and Hashem.

This is why, by the way, the charedi rabbanim responded with such uncompromising opposition to the Erev Rav when they first invented & utilized the Zionist movement.

To regular Jews, the rabbanim DID explain their positions.

But when dealing with the secular Leftist anti-Torah Communist Erev Rav leaders, the rabbanim went just BAM! Full-speed opposition ahead.

Even nowadays, you can see there's no talking to them or explaining to them why this-and-such is important.

They CANNOT understand. It's simply impossible.

And that's sincere on their part!

They have NO ability to comprehend or relate to:
  • the essence of Torah
  • the essence of mitzvot
  • the bond between Hashem and Am Yisrael

The potential simply is NOT there.

Here's an analogy:

​Try and describe countries and their political systems to a toddler.

He can't see it!

What's a country? What's a political party? What's a budget? What's debt?

Yet would you allow the one-year-old to make policies?

If the toddler is screaming for his toy and his lollipop, would you say, "If you stop screaming, I'll let you decide the boundary of France! And you can also decide the fiscal policy for the coming year! Wouldn't you like that, shaifeleh?"

Or would you just ignore the screaming toddler (maybe just stick a lollipop in his mouth) and continue running the country to the best of your ability?

The Erev Rav Leaders of Today

Here's more explanation from Rav Itamar Schwartz (page 34):
The Vilna Gaon writes that in the final generations, the Erev Rav are the “heads of the Jewish people, who are the ‘leaders’, and they have control over the “sons of Leah and Rachel.”

They are also called ‘sapachas’ by Chazal – a kind of leprosy that forms over the skin, embedded into the skin and atop it, but not a part of it.

They came with us when we left Egypt and added themselves onto our nation, but they are not a part of our nation; thus they are called a sapachas\leprosy - a layer added onto the skin, which is not an actual part of the skin.

In the later generations, and especially in our current generation, the Erev Rav are wicked souls who lead the Jewish people towards evil.

Their agenda is to lead the Jewish people astray from Torah, from all holiness, from emunah, and from mitzvos.

It doesn’t matter if he [a member of Erev Rav] wears a kippah or if he doesn’t have a kippah; whether he has a beard or whether he doesn’t have a beard.

This is the exile we are in.

The exile we are currently in is the exile of the Erev Rav - who exercise ‘control’ over the Jewish people.

The ‘heads of the Erev Rav’ are the souls of Amalek; Chazal say that the Erev Rav is made up of five kinds of people, and at the head of all of them is Amalek.

This has been true about our current exile ever since it has begun, but it has particular relevance to today’s times.

We must understand the situation that we are found in.

​The exile we are in today is being headed by people who look like Jews - and they look like they are a part of the Jewish people.

So we see from here the actual main leaders of the Erev Rav are the Amalek Erev Rav who actively plot to destroy the Torah and Am Yisrael.

But the other types of Erev Rav (Nefilim, Gibburim, Refaim, Anakim) cause extreme damage because they can NEVER relate to Torah or the relationship between Hashem & His People.

It doesn't mean anything to them; they cannot wrap their head around it.

They have their own agendas & it genuinely bothers them when the Torah interferes.

So what do WE do?

Focus on 2 Aspects

We need to do 2 things:
  • Sur m'ra—Turn from evil
  • Aseh tov—Do good.

Learing halacha and mussar help so much with turning from evil and doing good.

How else can you know what is good or bad unless you learn it?

Learning the halachot of how to treat people (giving the benefit of the doubt, acting with compassion, guarding one's tongue, etc.) provide you with the tools to avoid acting like a dysfunctional person.

Learning halacha and mussar also helps you to differentiate between the truly dysfunctional people and others who are basically good but flawed and struggling, so you know who to avoid and who to embrace.

Also, there is no need to water down Torah truths.

Darchei noam—ways of pleasantness? 

Yes! By all means!

Be pleasant! Try to avoid fights with others! Focus on the Torah's beauty!

But please also realize that if you're dealing with an Erev Rav, he or she CANNOT see the beauty no matter how much you point it out or water it down.

So there's no point.

They're utterly sincere in their attitudes, beliefs, and agendas.

And that sincerity often knocks real Jews off balance.

That's why it's important to know their sincerity makes them neither redeemable nor changeable...and not convincible either.

​And so...

Just YOU be strong within yourself.

Part of doing good is davening.

Davening for Erev Rav to do teshuvah (from the Komarna Rebbe) elevates the sparks, getting rid of the Erev Rav.

Davening protects you & others. Davening also enhances the growth of you & others.

Connect to Hashem in a deep & meaningful way for even only 1 minute a day...

May Hashem please bring the Geula swiftly with rachamim.

For more insights into the the workings of the Erev Rav mind & soul, plus the Amalekite influence:
  • http://question.bilvavi.net/what-to-do-about-the-erev-rav/
  • www.bilvavi.net/english/erev-rav-005-amalek-exposed
  • www.myrtlerising.com/blog/the-ultimate-way-to-do-teshuvah-wipe-out-amalek
  • how-to-identify-overcome-the-amalekite-conspiracy.html
  • www.myrtlerising.com/blog/whats-the-message-of-the-erev-rav-for-us-on-17-tammuz
  • www.myrtlerising.com/blog/the-erev-rav-strategy-following-the-biggest-bully
  • www.myrtlerising.com/blog/the-kli-yakar-parshat-masei: Why the Erev Rav CAN'T Change Themselves
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English translation from https://www.sefaria.org.il/Sanhedrin.97a?lang=bi

Bilvavi Insights to Enhance the Hebrew Month of Adar

2/2/2022

 
If you'd like in-depth insights into:
  • Adar Alef
  • Adar Bet
  • Adar's Mazal of Dagim/Fish/Pisces
  • How the Tribe of Zevulun corresponds to Adar
  • Many Aspects of Purim
  • The Aspect of Laughter associated with Adar
  • Ta'anit Esther (the Fast of Esther)
  • An Enlightening Q&A
  • How to Fight the Sadness Caused by Amalek & Erev Rav...

...then please go to the Bilvavi Adar/Purim booklet crafted from transcripts of Rav Itamar Schwartz's shiurim:
https://bilvavi.net/files/Bilvavi.Purim.Talks.pdf
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