tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11366983830031869592024-03-06T03:17:01.495+02:00New HorizonsFrom the Heart of the Moshav!TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.comBlogger64125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-13745444040555900252013-03-11T00:20:00.001+02:002013-03-11T00:27:31.903+02:00Pesach Egg Noodles!<h2>
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><u><b>Rebbetzin Rachel's Recipes...</b></u></span></h2>
<br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">Mix well:</span><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">1 egg </span><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">1 C water </span><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">2 T potato starch </span><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">2 T matzo meal (or 2 T more potato starch for non-gebrochs) adjusting to have a thin batter depending on egg size. Add 1/2 t salt </span><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">1/4 t each black pepper & ground ginger (my little secret) to taste. </span><br />
<a href="http://content0.tastebook.com/content/photo/user_photo/w8xWfgVZ13c28383031313231oqQcAQm_1348091585.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://content0.tastebook.com/content/photo/user_photo/w8xWfgVZ13c28383031313231oqQcAQm_1348091585.jpg" width="148" /></a><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">Heat 1 T olive oil oil in frying pan, pour into batter, fry thin pancakes by pouring small amount of batter with a ladle into the hot pan and swirling the pan quickly to coat the bottom - cooking till the edges come away and slightly brown on the bottom. When you tip the pancake out of the pan onto paper towels you make this clickety clack sound which is part of our pre-Seder background percussion music. When cool enough to handle you have to taste a few just to make sure they came out all right, and with whatever is left roll up and slice for noodles. </span><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #222222; display: inline !important; float: none; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">You can also fill the pancakes for blintzes! </span><br />
<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">one more gate</span></div>
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King.</span>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-80676886881349494512013-03-05T22:48:00.000+02:002013-03-05T22:48:21.458+02:00Creation, Israel, and Humility<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">On the Torah’s first verse, Rashi makes the
following comment: “Rabbi Yitzhak said: ‘The Torah should have started with
‘this month will be for you the first of the months,’ because this was the
first mitzvah<i> </i>commanded to Israel.” In essence Rabbi Yitzchak seems
to be stating that the Torah should not have begun with the creation story, but
with the story of the Jewish people as they received their first mitzvah and,
in so doing, “officially” became a nation. Since the purpose of the Torah is to
give instruction (the word “Torah” stems from the Hebrew root meaning “to
instruct”), Rabbi Yitzchak is proposing that it should have started with the
first mitzvah given to the Jewish people and not the account of creation. Rashi
explains that the Torah did in fact begin with the creation account in order to
teach the nations of the world that God has the right to give the Land of
Israel to whatever nation he wishes. The same God who created heaven and earth
decided to take the Land of Israel from its former inhabitants and give it to
the Jewish people in perpetuity. Thus the Torah ultimately begins with the
account of creation so that no one can claim that the children of Israel stole
the Land.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Rashi’s explanation
solves the apparent dichotomy between the Torah’s beginning with the universal
creation story and continuing with the particular story of the Jewish people.</span><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Furthermore, in light of the Talmudic opinion that the world was
not actually created until Rosh Chodesh Nisan, both the universal act of creation
and the particular birth of the Jewish people occurred on the very same day.
This confluence profoundly alludes to a very deep truth: Israel’s birth as
a nation is intrinsically connected to the creation of the world. This
understanding is explicitly voiced by the Midrash which reports that when God
“thought” to create the world “the thought of Israel arose first” (<i>Bereishit
Rabbah</i> 1:4).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> This correspondence between
creation and Israel’s birth and redemption is also unveiled in other ways by
the mystical tradition. Israel’s slavery in Egypt (a county whose name in
Hebrew connotes a sense of narrowness or constriction) is analogous to the
tzimtzum preceding creation, while the exodus corresponds to the primordial ray
of light piercing the void (see “The Small Alef in Vayikra” above). Israel’s
redemption begins on Rosh Chodesh Nisan and finds its ultimate expression on
Shavuot with the Giving of the Torah and the Ten Commandments. The Ten
Commandments are themselves intrinsically linked to the ten utterances of
creation, thus an even deeper fundamental connection between “the day of the
ten crowns” – the day that God invites Moses to enter the Tabernacle and gives
Israel its first mitzvah – and creation is manifest.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The <i>alef</i>,<i> </i>written
especially small in the word “vayikra” in traditional Torah scrolls, also
connects creation and Israel’s birth, as mentioned in the first section of <i>Vayikra</i>.
However, it furthermore alludes to the fact that Moses, who originally felt
inadequate to fulfill the mission of redeeming Israel, was truly humble, so
much so that the Torah testifies that Moses was “the most humble person on the
face of the earth” (Numbers 12:3). According to the Midrash, when God told
Moses to write the word “vayikra,” Moses objected to God couching his
invitation in endearing language and asked that the word be written without an <i>alef</i>,
so that it implied that God only by happenstance invited Moses. God told him
that this was impossible as the heathen prophet Balaam would later be addressed
in the Torah in that manner. A compromise of sorts was reached and God allowed
Moses to write the word with a small <i>alef,</i> to illustrate his
humbleness (<i>Tosafot Harosh</i>).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> In some deeper sense,
the small <i>alef </i>also alludes to God’s humility; for when God
invited Moses to enter the Tabernacle, he could not because God’s glory filled
the entire structure. God, as it were, humbly contracted His infinite presence
– alluded to by the small <i>alef </i>– to allow Moses to enter. This
contraction on God’s part to permit Moses to enter the Tabernacle mirrors God’s
initial act of tzimtzum which created space for finite reality to come into
existence. For this reason the Talmud states: “In every place you find God’s
greatness there you will see His humility” (<i>Megillah</i> 31a). </span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"> The paradox
of the small <i>alef</i>, as discussed throughout this portion, is in fact
related to all of the mitzvot, each of which allows us to experience God’s
infiniteness within finite time and space. It is as if every mitzvah contains a
contraction of God’s infinite essence into a time and space bound action. One
who performs a mitzvah with a pure heart and proper intent thus connects not
only to God but to the very purpose of creation.</span>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-63884869456838559392013-03-05T22:46:00.002+02:002013-03-05T22:47:04.526+02:00The Creation of the World, the Ten Crowns, and the Ten Utterances<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A new perspective on the connection between the
small <i>alef</i> of <i>Vayikra</i> and Rosh Chodesh Nisan,
discussed in the precious section, emerges if we place it in the context of the
Talmudic debate over which month the world was created in: Tishrei, the month
in which Rosh Hashanah, the New Year of years falls, or Nisan, the month in
which Pesach falls and which is the New Year of the months (<i>Rosh Hashanah </i>11a).
Both sides make numerous arguments, but the Talmud reaches no definitive
conclusion. Rabbeinu Tam, a later commentator, explained the underlying unity
of both opinions: the world was created in potential in Tishrei and in
actuality in Nisan. This sheds a totally new light on the significance of Rosh
Chodesh Nisan, as according to this explanation the erection of the Tabernacle
occurred on the same day in the calendar that God created the world!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Indeed, Rosh Chodesh Nisan’s
“ten crowns,” the ten rituals first performed on the day the Tabernacle was
erected, are a manifestation of the ten utterances through which God created
the world. (See “The Ten Divine Utterances of Creation” above.) This
correspondence is alluded to by <i>Vayikra</i>’s (“and He called”) being,
quite literally, an utterance. Serving God gives us the strength and creative
ability to renew ourselves again and again, thus connecting our service of God
with the power of creation itself.</span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">
Furthermore, building on this confluence between creation and the Tabernacle,
the mystical tradition teaches that the Tabernacle’s construction and contents
were intended to reflect the upper spiritual worlds. On Rosh Chodesh Nisan, God
clarifies the offer He made at Mount Sinai: “And you shall be to me a kingdom
of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:6). At Mount Sinai, the Jewish people
were passive, but in the Tabernacle, they took an active role in partnering
with God in the creation and maintenance of the world, and even in influencing
the upper worlds. The service that God invited Moses and all Israel to partake
in on the day the Tabernacle was inaugurated is reflected in the prayer we
recite every morning: “In His goodness He renews daily, perpetually the work of
creation.” By serving God we assist Him in this endeavor.</span>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-69014658112178904592013-03-05T22:46:00.000+02:002013-03-05T22:46:01.398+02:00Rosh Chodesh Nisan and the Small Alef in Vayikra<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In Hebrew, the book of Leviticus is called Vayikra,
which means “and He called.” The book of Leviticus begins with the word
“vayikra,” as God calls to Moses from the Tabernacle inviting him to initiate
the Tabernacle service, the model or template for all future Divine service.
God’s call to Moses on Rosh Chodesh Nisan (the first day of Nisan) is related
to the Sage’s statement, “Who is the wise one? One who sees that which is born”
(<i>Tamid </i>32a). In context, the answer refers to one who comprehends
the birth of the new moon, but in a broader sense, it refers to one who
discerns what consequences an initial act may lead to.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The Midrash calls Rosh
Chodesh Nisan “the day of the ten crowns,” a phrase alluding to the ten
rituals that were performed for the first time on this day, for it was on this
day that Moses erected the Tabernacle in the desert and the cohanim began
performing the Tabernacle service on Israel’s behalf (<i>Bereishit Rabbah</i> 3:12).
Parenthetically, this service was also performed in the Temple and even became
the basis for synagogue prayer after both Temples were destroyed. (For
further elaboration, see “The Tabernacle, the Temple, and the
Synagogue.”) </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Rosh Chodesh Nisan is also
significant for several other reasons. The first mitzvah the Jewish people
received as a nation was to establish Nisan as the year’s first month and to
set up the Jewish calendar according to the secrets that God taught Moses. This
first mitzvah<i> </i>is publicly recited once a year before Rosh Chodesh
Nisan as part of <i>Parashat Hachodesh</i> one of the four special portions
read between the new moon of Adar, the last month of the year, and Pesach,
which occurs in the first month of the year, in Nisan. We learned above that
the ability to become masters of time, signified by being in tune with and
realizing the deep secrets contained in the calendar, was a prerequisite to the
redemption from Egypt. (See “Four Perspectives on Time and the Mastery of
Time.”)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Rosh Chodesh
Nisan is also one of Judaism’s four New Year’s days. Kings in the biblical era
would count their reigns from this day. Furthermore, according to one rabbinic
tradition the world was created on this day (this will be discussed at greater
length in the next section). And, finally, the cycle of the three major
Pilgrimage Festivals of Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot begins in this month. Rosh
Chodesh Nisan obviously manifests its importance in many different ways, and
therefore we must attempt to determine how all the various aspects of this
auspicious day are connected.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> A hint to this
connection may be discovered in the letter <i>alef </i>being written
especially small in the word “vayikra” in traditional Torah scrolls. The
mystical tradition teaches that the 600,000 men between the ages of twenty and
sixty who left Egypt represent the archetypal root soul sparks of the entire
Jewish nation. As the introduction to this book discusses, these souls are
further connected to the 600,000 letters of the Torah, as each Jewish soul
spark has its own letter, its very own unique gate or pathway to understanding
the Torah. Thus, one might suggest the following: Who is the wise one? One who
sees the whole Torah shining through every portion, verse, word, and even
letter in the Torah. Rosh Chodesh Nisan, the day on which Moses was called with
a small <i>alef</i>, possesses great significance for each individual Jew
in every generation, as the small <i>alef </i>represents the service
of God to which all Jews ultimately aspire. Furthermore, the small <i>alef</i>,<i> </i>as
we will see, alludes to the process of creation, its purpose, and the prospect
of human beings relating to an Infinite Creator within the temporal parameters
of a finite world.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The <i>Zohar</i> (2:161b)
teaches that “God looked into the Torah and created the world.” The
Torah’s depiction of the seven days of creation not only recounts the unfolding
of the Divine creative process, but also is the very blueprint that God
employed before speaking the world into existence. Just as scientists designate atoms,
particles, molecules, and elements as the building blocks of energy and
creation, Jewish tradition relates to the Hebrew letters as prototypes of
spiritual energy, the building blocks through which the world is constructed
and maintained. As we learned in the portion of <i>Bereishit </i>(“Blessed
is the One Who Spoke”), God’s speaking the world into existence teaches us the
connection between Divine speech and the creative process.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The first letter
in the Torah, a <i>beit</i>, is written especially large in our Torah
scrolls, and has the numerical value of two. This is a <i>remez</i>,
a hint, to the dualistic nature of the world: infinite and finite, spiritual
and physical, soul and body, life and death, day and night, man and woman, sun
and moon, and so forth. The question naturally arises: why does the Torah begin
with the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet, <i>beit</i>,<i> </i>and
not the first letter, <i>alef</i>?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The <i>Zohar</i> answers
with the following parable or <i>derash</i> (Introduction to the <i>Zohar</i>,
23)<i>.</i> When God decided to create the world, all the letters came to
Him asking for the merit of being the first letter in the Torah. Each letter,
beginning from the end of the alphabet, came before God and argued that it
should be first since a certain word with positive connotations started with
it. God countered these arguments one by one by explaining that certain words
with negative connotations also started with these letters. God disqualified
all the letters until the letter <i>beit </i>successfully argued that
the people of the world would praise their Creator with the word <i>baruch</i> (blessed).
Since the first letter of the alphabet, <i>alef</i>, had still not made
its case, God now offered it a chance to argue, even though He had already
accepted the <i>beit</i>. The <i>alef,</i> instead of
complaining that it had not been given a proper chance, answered that since the <i>beit </i>was
already chosen, it would forego making an argument. God replied that since the <i>alef </i>displayed
such humbleness, it would merit becoming the first letter of “anochi,” the
first word in the Ten Commandments.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The two tablets
containing the Ten Commandments were kept in the ark in the Tabernacle’s Holy
of Holies, and later in the Temple’s Holy of Holies in Jerusalem. Even before
Moses inaugurated the Tabernacle, God had told him that He would speak to him
from between the two cherubs on top of the ark. The Holy of Holies in the
Temple represents the central point, the spiritual vortex, around which the
entire world revolves. Alluding to the <i>alef</i>’s crucial role, God
calls (“vayikra”) Moses on Rosh Chodesh Nisan from this place. The <i>alef </i>instead
of appearing at the beginning of the Torah, as the first letter of creation,
adopts a central role on this day in the holiest of places.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The <i>alef</i> being
written especially small<i> </i>in the word “vayikra”<i> </i>also
alludes to the great secret of tzimtzum revealed by the Kabbalah. When God
“thought” of creating the world, an existential problem became immediately
apparent. Since no reality can exist beyond (or outside) the infiniteness of
God, where could a finite, “independent” world possibly find “space” to exist?
The Arizal explains that God “contracted” Himself, as it were, in order to
create, a “vacuum” or womb-like space in which a finite world could then be
created. Into the “vacuum” God shone a ray of light and the world came into
being. The letter <i>alef</i>, which has the numerical value of one,
represents the oneness and unity of God, while the second letter of the Hebrew
alphabet, <i>beit</i>, signifies the duality of the world and God’s
seeming act of contraction to make “space” for the world. (See “One Becomes Two
in Order to Become One” above.)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="direction: ltr; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm; text-align: justify; unicode-bidi: embed;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The act of tzimtzum,
which allowed the world to come into existence, is the <i>sod</i>, the
foundational secret, of the Temple in Jerusalem. Just as God contracted Himself
in order to allow the world to come into existence, He likewise</span><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">contracted His infinite presence, as it were, in order to allow
the Jewish people (and the world) to perceive Him in a finite place. The small <i>alef </i>alludes
to our ability to actually experience and comprehend this paradox.</span></div>
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: HE; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"> In a
sense, we spend our lives trying to live within the paradoxical context of God
both revealing and hiding Himself in the world. Jacob called the ladder –
stretching from the earth to the heavens, in the very place where the Temple
was eventually built – the “gate to heaven” (Genesis 28:10-17). A Jew must
constantly be a ladder between eternal and temporal time, between infinite and
finite space. “Who is the wise one? One who sees that which is born.” The small <i>alef</i>,
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<![endif]-->TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-3546828447489147542012-12-11T16:09:00.001+02:002012-12-11T16:09:18.570+02:00The Light of Redemption<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; font-family: arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The first all encompassing vision of world-wide redemption, universal peace and true harmony among nations is attributed to the great prophet Isaiah. God chose him and all the other prophets recorded in the Bible to reveal a divine message regarding the ultimate potential and destiny of mankind. These words echo the loftiest dreams and aspirations of all peoples and have profoundly influenced thinkers, writers and leaders in every generation. In fact, the words of Isaiah (2:4) - “…and they shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore” - are prominently inscribed near the entrance of the United Nations.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> It is not surprising then that the symbol of light plays such an important part in so many of these prophesies, as universal redemption is envisioned as a great and permanent revelation of God’s light. For the individual as well, personal redemption is associated with the revelation of light and freedom from darkness.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> In the first chapter we mentioned the central theme of Israel being a “light unto the nations” and its importance in the collective Jewish consciousness throughout the ages. For according to all the prophets, Israel plays a critical role in the unfolding of the final redemption and the messianic era. The Jewish preoccupation with light in its rituals, customs, laws and teachings, especially of the mystical nature, is indicative of both the fascination with light and its integration into Jewish consciousness. The desired result is to inculcate and prepare the individual Jew and the entire people to fulfill their mission on behalf of the whole world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> From the moment of the primordial “breaking of the vessels” when the divine light could not be contained, the progression of the worlds and human consciousness has been directed towards a time of rectification when this exalted light will be able to be contained, integrated and unified in man’s consciousness. In the terminology of Kabbalah, we need to make ourselves into proper vessels, transparent and pure, in order that the light of God may shine into us, and from us. Similar to how the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>sefirot</i>, the channels of divine emanation, serve as both vessel and light, we as well need to make ourselves worthy of emanating God’s light into the world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> The Messiah, who will serve as the main catalyst in the unfolding final redemption is intimately connected to light.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i>, the Hebrew term for Messiah, means literally “the anointed one.”<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>is referred to as<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Melech HaMashiach,</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>the king Messiah, as he is expected to be, along with being a warrior and teacher, the ultimate leader and king. In ancient Israel kings were anointed with pure olive oil, thus the designation of the awaited redeemer as the “anointed one.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidu9u5tWc9ZDh4Lol_xNfi8fevQwaDqUvhGaI6HU06cqqbIgLgv1djV4dcn8sGaKqHYr-l-17cTOwH0wwc_4eA_edqx5LkS0ITCEJyRQFdg7IrkZFBSkLpl4vmgNpMct0uiu9sQm_O0g/s1600/200px-Menorah_0307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidu9u5tWc9ZDh4Lol_xNfi8fevQwaDqUvhGaI6HU06cqqbIgLgv1djV4dcn8sGaKqHYr-l-17cTOwH0wwc_4eA_edqx5LkS0ITCEJyRQFdg7IrkZFBSkLpl4vmgNpMct0uiu9sQm_O0g/s320/200px-Menorah_0307.jpg" width="226" /></a> There is a deep parable associated with olive oil as the means to anoint the ultimate leader of the Jewish people and all mankind. The olive in order to give forth its oil must be beaten and crushed. Therefore the Jewish people are compared by the prophets to olives, and its history is one episode after another of being beaten and crushed by the nations of the world. Yet, like the olive, the more it is beaten the more oil it gives forth. This oil has not only enriched Jewish life through the ages, but has had a profound and pervasive influence on virtually every area of human thought and achievement.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> The miracle of Chanukah is that the oil, enough for but one day, burned eight days. Yet on an even deeper level there is the hidden “miracle” of how a physical fruit, turned into liquid, burns at all. One time right before Shabbat it was discovered that vinegar had been put in the oil lamps. Rebbe Chanina Ben Dosa exclaimed that the same God who makes oil burn can make vinegar burn as well - and it did! (<i>Taanit<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>25a).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Olive oil in allegorical terms represents a profound secret: that from physical matter leaps forth light. In relation to what we learned in the chapter on light and science this is actually no allegory; matter is energy, and they are both just different degrees of “thickened light.” What is true of olive oil is in effect true of all things.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b>At the most common denominator, all that exists is actually the light of God.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> This profound understanding of physical and spiritual reality is intimately bound up with the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>and his task in the world. For the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>will initiate an irreversible process and sea-change of human consciousness. At that time all mankind will perceive the divine unity behind all reality, and the consummate union between the physical and spiritual realms. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> This idea is symbolized in an intriguing commentary on the verse: “And Moses took his wife and his sons and put them on a donkey and he returned to the land of Egypt…” (Exodus 4:20). Rashi comments that this is no ordinary donkey, rather it is the same donkey that Abraham saddled before the binding of Isaac, and it is the same donkey that the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>will ride upon in the future.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Obviously this donkey is not thousands of years old! Rather it symbolizes an idea that has gone through a number of progressions. Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh explains that the letters for donkey (<span dir="RTL" lang="HE">חמור</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>) are the same as for “physicality” or “materiality<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>"<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span> (<span class="Apple-converted-space"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">חומר</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>). The mastering and transformation of the physical in the service of the spiritual is the ongoing mission of man and especially the Jewish people. Abraham symbolically began the process by saddling the donkey, while Moses went further by placing his wife and children on the donkey. The<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>will complete the process by riding on the donkey himself, symbolizing the mastery of the material in the service of the spiritual.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> It is taught that the “first redeemer will be the last redeemer,” alluding to the connection between the souls of Moses and<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>(<i>Shemot Rabbah</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>4:2). The first two letters of both names are actually the same (<span class="Apple-converted-space"></span><b><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">מש</span></b><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">ה-<b>מש</b>יח</span>), and their basic mission of leading people from slavery to freedom and from exile to redemption, through the revelation of God’s light and message, will also be the same. Moses was born surrounded by light, he taught the Torah which is called light, and from the time he came down from Mount Sinai he radiated light all the rest of his days. The<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>will likewise radiate the light of Torah and God, first to the Jewish people and then the entire world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> As we have seen, the idea of spreading light in the world is a common theme and goal throughout Jewish history. The Baal Shem Tov when he came into a room had a custom to request more lights to be lit and he was known to particularly love the abundance of lights on the holiday of Chanukah. This also reminds us of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach urging people to unite together to express their love and praise God with “more fire!”</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> The expression of joy is very connected to the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i>, for when changing the order of the four letters of<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(<span class="Apple-converted-space"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">משיח</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span class="Apple-converted-space"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>(</span></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>it spells “he will be joyous” <span class="Apple-converted-space"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>)</span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span lang="HE"><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span dir="RTL">ישמח</span></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span><span dir="LTR"></span>). Joy is associated with light in many verses as discussed above. The soul of the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i>, like his prototypical ancestor King David, will have the ability to facilitate and draw others into a state of light and joy beyond all boundaries, yet expressed within the defined limits of this world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> The secret of drawing infinite light into finite vessels was the theme of an historic talk about what was needed to bring the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i>, given by Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn. This concept is referred to in Kabbalah as<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>orot d’tohu b’kalim d’tikun</i>: taking the lights of the world of<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>tohu</i>, the world that shattered in the “breaking of the vessels” and integrating them into the vessels of the present state of the world of rectification.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> The word <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>tohu</i>, is sometimes translated as “confusion,” but the confusion was not in the essence of the light of this primordial world, rather in the damage caused by the inability of the immature vessels to contain such a powerful and pure, divine light. Therefore, he explained, that in order to draw the Messianic days closer it is incumbent upon us to create proper vessels in this world to hold such powerful and holy light, for the new reality to be inaugurated by the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>will entail a powerful revelation of divine light. The more we are able to make vessels for this light, the more we draw the future into the present, enabling the energy of the Messianic era to be revealed.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Each day in many versions of the morning prayers we add the following plea: “Let a new light shine on Zion and may we soon merit its light.” The new light referred to indicates an entirely new revelation of Godly light in the world, not just quantitatively, but even more so, qualitatively. According to Kabbalah and Chassidut this new light will emanate from the very essence of God, a revelation beyond that of transcendent and immanent divine light, as discussed previously.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Throughout this book we have attempted to reveal the divine paradox inherent in the nature of both physical and spiritual light and in the existential reality of creation itself. In the very essence of God, where all paradox is seen to be in fact no paradox at all, there exists a state of total unity. It is only from our limited perspective that opposites seem to be irreconcilable. The new light, the revelation of God’s essence, will reveal the inherent unity of all reality. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> Along with direct revelation of this new light of God, the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Mashiach</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>will expound upon and reveal an entirely new dimension of the Torah. In as much as Torah is the explicit revelation of God’s will, a new manifestation of divine light will naturally be accompanied by a new revelation in our understanding of the Torah. For this reason it is written in the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Zohar</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>that on the merit of learning the inner dimensions of the Torah, redemption will come to the world. Similar to how expressions of true and pure joy draw the future into the present, so too, learning the deepest secrets of Torah reveals a future light even now in the present.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> As the world prepares itself for the approaching Messianic era it is not surprising that there has been an explosion of interest in Kabbalah, among Jews and non-Jews alike. As the Z<i>ohar<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>predicted, the final redemption is intrinsically linked to the revelation of the inner dimensions of the Torah.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> We learned previously how light exhibits the mystical quality of transcending time. All activities that bring us into contact with divine light facilitate redemptive energy for not only an individual, but that energy once introduced into the world has a way of producing more light in ways we can barely understand. This light transcends time and can not only alter the present but can mysteriously change the past as well.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> In this book we have touched briefly upon many of these activities, such as meditation, prayer, study of Torah, the fulfillment of mitzvot, redeeming sparks of light and rectifying the world around us, all the while maintaining an attitude of joy, healing and love. The light of God is all encompassing and deep within the soul, and is revealed in every point of time and space. Its manifestations are as infinite as is the source of the light. The more we experience and integrate divine light, the more our consciousness and our very bodies become a vessel for this light. Ultimately, by unifying ourselves with this light we become a true image of God and thus fulfill the Creator’s purpose in creation.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> The prophet Isaiah (60:19) wrote that at the time of the final redemption it will be revealed that in essence all that exists is the light of God: “You shall no longer have need of the sun for light of day, nor for brightness the moon to illuminate for you, rather God shall be unto you an eternal light…” </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"> May the entire world merit the appearance of this new light, and the experience of bliss, peace and harmony that will be revealed at that time. May it be soon and in our days. </span></div>
TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-36118720061448664612012-12-04T23:09:00.002+02:002012-12-04T23:09:50.098+02:00Chanukah and the Light of Creation<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;">It is explained in Kabbalah and Chassidut that the lights of Chanukah represent and ultimately reveal the hidden divine light of creation. This idea is based on many different reasons. Firstly, the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>chanukiah</i>, the eight branched candelabra that we light on Chanukah, is clearly connected to the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>menorah</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>in the Temple. We light eight nights to remember the lighting of the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>menorah</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>in the Temple, and just as the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>menorah<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>radiated divine light, so too do the lights of Chanukah.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMLV4DS8JMETx4RTvO8Em9QjBy3hoAergh0uyXh_9kqsdryksXBXe7fuOjtmll1sSupQHpfJr-kHSrdQvU1esuocIKYcepP4qqvKy-7mXqv_um8NB-cNp-M__76vNrjWUFJjPbZOq7NA/s1600/993.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMLV4DS8JMETx4RTvO8Em9QjBy3hoAergh0uyXh_9kqsdryksXBXe7fuOjtmll1sSupQHpfJr-kHSrdQvU1esuocIKYcepP4qqvKy-7mXqv_um8NB-cNp-M__76vNrjWUFJjPbZOq7NA/s1600/993.JPG" /></a> Yet, there are other allusions to the infinite divine light clothing itself in the finite light of the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>chanukiah</i>. The Talmud quoted above relates that before the light of the first day was hidden away it was made available to Adam and Eve. It is further stated that they used it for thirty-six hours before they were exiled from the Garden of Eden.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> After Adam and Eve sinned they tried to hide from God, but He confronted them with one powerful word that has reverberated throughout the ages –<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>eicha<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>– where are you? This question is of course not in the physical sense, rather it is a much deeper existential challenge as to where have you gone; what have you done; who are you? The word<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>eicha</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>(<span dir="RTL" lang="HE">איכה</span>) significantly equals thirty-six, alluding to the divine light that would soon be hidden.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> This same word is the first word and the name in Hebrew of the book of Lamentations which we read on<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Tisha B’Av</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>to the light of candles. In anticipation of the destruction of the Temple, the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>menorah</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>was hidden away where it awaits discovery in the future. Here is an instance of divine light being revealed in the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>menorah</i>, only to be subsequently hidden.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> During Chanukah we begin by lighting one light and each night add an additional one. Altogether we light thirty-six lights, a clear allusion to the infinite divine light of creation and a sign to us that it can be experienced even now.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Chanukah is celebrated on the twenty-fifth day of the month of Kislev. The twenty-fifth word of the Torah is the first appearance of the word light, (“let there be light”). The word Kislev<span dir="RTL" lang="HE"> כסלו ,</span>can be divided to read<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">כס-לו</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>, which means “36 (<span dir="RTL" lang="HE">לו</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>) are hidden (<span dir="RTL" lang="HE">כס</span><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>).” The thirty-six hours the divine light shone for Adam is hidden in the thirty-six candles of the month of Kislev.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> The miraculous flask of oil that was used to light the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>menorah</i>, was hidden away and was the only oil that had not been made ritually impure by the Greeks. The light of the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>menorah</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>is first revealed and then hidden, while the light of Chanukah is first hidden and then revealed. In this sense, the lights of Chanukah are a revelation of the hidden light of the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>menorah</i>, yet now residing in not just the Temple, but rather in every Jewish home.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> According to Jewish law the lights of Chanukah are meant to be lit publicly in order to advertise the miracle. It is the only Jewish ritual we are taught to do in such an open, revealed manner. The root of the word Chanukah is<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>chinuch</i>, which means “education.” Perhaps more than any other mitzvah, the lighting of lights on Chanukah represents the quintessential mission of the Jewish people – to be a “light unto the nations.” The light of Chanukah is not merely a physical light, rather it is a spiritual light that is meant to be shared and revealed to the entire world.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> There is a Jewish tradition that there are thirty-six hidden<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>tzadikim</i>, righteous people, in every generation, on whose merit the world exists (<i>Sanhedrin</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>97a). A midrash relates that when God said “Let there be light,” this refers to the acts of the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>tzadikim</i>” (<i>Bereishit Rabbah</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>3:8). In every generation there must be a certain amount of the original light of creation in order to keep the world in existence. The hidden<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>tzadikim</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>with their good deeds keep this light from going out.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> We are further taught that there is a spark of a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>tzadik</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>within each and every Jew, as it says “And your people are all<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>tzadikim</i>…” (Isaiah 60:21). The small flask of pure oil hidden away from the defilement of the Greeks represents the hidden spark of a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>tzadik</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>within each Jewish soul, no matter how far away one may wander from his or her roots. This spark is ready and waiting to be ignited and revealed to the world.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSDs4VB7-U5xkYRScdWU35WmFagZ0aWVgV50u3cVQ9rxfu9CinjPOxML31THiB-cgRQUddgGpxAOlE885UuEAXXeMtwOXchihqvBh41o5CSnfUDDzgN-dSUivLDzl_MI-00O1mnrNfIw/s1600/hanukiya.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSDs4VB7-U5xkYRScdWU35WmFagZ0aWVgV50u3cVQ9rxfu9CinjPOxML31THiB-cgRQUddgGpxAOlE885UuEAXXeMtwOXchihqvBh41o5CSnfUDDzgN-dSUivLDzl_MI-00O1mnrNfIw/s320/hanukiya.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> The clash of philosophies at the time of Chanukah was between a Greek world view based on cold logic and the superficialities of physical beauty and pleasure, and the Jewish world view that embraced not only logic, but a higher spiritual reality that is at times paradoxical and beyond human reason. The word for logic in Hebrew is<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">הגיון</span>, whose last three letters spell<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">יון</span>, Greece. It is very interesting to note that although we think of science as being the epitome of rationality and Greek logic, physics today is perplexedly counter-</span></span><wbr></wbr><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">intuitive and is based on one mysterious paradox after another, especially in relation to light, as we will discuss further on.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> In Kabbalah and Chassidut we are taught that it is an especially auspicious time to meditate when gazing upon the lights of Chanukah. Although there are many different explanations as to the various symbolism of the light, they all revolve around perceiving in the various elements of the wick, the dark light around the wick, the body of the light, the glow radiating from the light, and the oil or the candle itself, varying levels of God’s revelation of light, as well as the light of the soul. One particular verse is used meditatively in this context: “The candle of God is the soul of man.”</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Along with the thirty-six lights of Chanukah, each night we light a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>shamash</i>, an additional “servant” light, in as much as it is forbidden to use the lights for any direct benefit. Together there are forty-four lights. Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh explains that in the discipline of<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>gematria</i>, Kabbalisitc numerology, which reveals deep, inner meaning according to numerical equivalencies, one may add one for a word, or in this case an additional one for the overall concept of the Chanukah lights. Altogether, forty-five represents all the lights of Chanukah, the same number as Adam, man, in the above verse. Meditating on the lights of Chanukah and integrating the unity of the opposites the lights represent - physical and spiritual, infinite and finite, God and man - brings the heart and mind to great heights of awareness and a deep inner peace.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> When taking the forty-four actual lights and multiplying them by two, (their inner and outer dimensions,) it yields eighty-eight, which equals the word stream,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">נחל</span>. The Arizal, the great Kabbalist of Safed, when reciting the blessing for lighting the lights would say “who has commanded us with His commandments and commanded us to light Chanukah light (<b><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">ל</span></b><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">הדליך<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b>נ</b>ר<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b>ח</b>נוכה</span>) in order that there be thirteen words (other versions have fourteen words; to light the lights<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>of</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Chanukah) and that the first letters of the last three words would spell (not in order)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">נחל</span>, stream. He taught that one should envision when lighting the lights a stream of pure divine light coming from above washing over ones self like a waterfall.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> The unity of water and light in this image reminds us of the word for heaven,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">שמים</span>, being a combination of a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>shin</i>, the letter of fire, and<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>mayim</i>, the word for water. In heaven the opposites of fire and water commingle in perfect harmony, which is not the case on earth. The lights of Chanukah unify the paradoxical opposites of light: infinite and finite, hidden and revealed, physical and spiritual. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Thirteen corresponds to the qualities of compassion God revealed to Moses. The Arizal sought in the lighting of the Chanukah candles to draw down God’s compassion and mercy into the world and upon the Jewish people like a waterfall of light. The first letters of the eighth quality of compassion, “Preserver of kindness for thousands of generations” (and the number of days of Chanukah,) also spells<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">נחל</span>, stream (<b><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">נ</span></b><span dir="RTL" lang="HE">צר<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b>ח</b>סד<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><b>ל</b>אלפים</span>). Thirteen is significantly also the number of synonyms for light in the Torah.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"> One last idea revealing an intrinsic paradox of the lights of Chanukah is the well known disagreement between the House of Hillel and the House of Shamai regarding the order of lighting the lights. Hillel taught we begin with one and add each night till reaching eight on the last night, while Shamai taught just the opposite, to begin with eight the first night and to end with one. Although we follow the opinion of Hillel we are taught regarding this and similar types of arguments throughout the Talmud that “These and these are the words of the Living God” (<i>Gittin<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>6b;<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>Eruvin</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>13b). This type of paradoxical logic where two diametrically opposed opinions, mutually exclusive, are both seen to be correct is a particular Jewish way of looking at the world. </span></span></div>
TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-22848295798129357292012-10-10T23:32:00.000+02:002012-10-10T23:32:06.808+02:00Succot March of the Nations<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6ZTWxlq3VnSVAX7MZvWKfRo_D3na-kdmKsjOMPRKRiQkUw_NKwx7pkHtIuk3gfyzMuCPC9kCfHgSperR5AOt9CZVF5jia8-EX-pcRrPhQ7ZLFNaN5NdzTK3k5ZO3tbuI-OQNiGknwNw/s1600/100_2641.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6ZTWxlq3VnSVAX7MZvWKfRo_D3na-kdmKsjOMPRKRiQkUw_NKwx7pkHtIuk3gfyzMuCPC9kCfHgSperR5AOt9CZVF5jia8-EX-pcRrPhQ7ZLFNaN5NdzTK3k5ZO3tbuI-OQNiGknwNw/s320/100_2641.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
On Thursday October 4th the annual March of the Nations was held in Jerusalem. My wife and I went a few years ago and enjoyed it so much we went again this year.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj37aPDevh5JmOsmKTJBinY2RhRvSt8gaRbDBzurxj6ydrElO7Gfb9YGXbRCali1WEknaib4CYh6tavMiLkQwSUXPPzsAuljIX-WxjuzAF-eDgP0pSjqFRlObL0kWTO_UxFeXeEEKhhA/s1600/100_2644+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj37aPDevh5JmOsmKTJBinY2RhRvSt8gaRbDBzurxj6ydrElO7Gfb9YGXbRCali1WEknaib4CYh6tavMiLkQwSUXPPzsAuljIX-WxjuzAF-eDgP0pSjqFRlObL0kWTO_UxFeXeEEKhhA/s320/100_2644+-+Copy.JPG" width="320" /></a>The march is part of an annual effort by the Christian embassy in Jerusalem to bring supporters of Israel from around the world to Jerusalem each year on Succot. This idea is based on the haftorah read on the first day of Succot which declares that in the future after the final wars have been fought between Israel and the nations, those nations that remain will come up to Jerusalem every year on Succot. This year more than ten thousand people from sixty countries participated. Many of the marchers were dressed in their native attire and thousand waved colorful flags, blew shofars and proclaimed their love and support of Israel.<br />
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Sometimes the media portrays Israel as being alone and isolated in the world and there is some truth to this. Yet we should not forget that there <b>are </b>lovers of Israel in countries around the world who are prepared to go to great lengths to show that support. </div>
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<span style="font-family: arial;">So enjoy these pictures which show the exuberance and excitement of the March.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz9mfPl25bPM8c1g9jb8BHz818SvqeTC04zPw8OA-U9D1cVAedSHX8h9wKVGjOYJLq4H9pEDcj23LGHAYU4MH5IS2CuEttFFPgOhxt9zLa5SW-uCoVBGtpfV6g8tKgaHfZnI2YuGoa7g/s1600/100_2663.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz9mfPl25bPM8c1g9jb8BHz818SvqeTC04zPw8OA-U9D1cVAedSHX8h9wKVGjOYJLq4H9pEDcj23LGHAYU4MH5IS2CuEttFFPgOhxt9zLa5SW-uCoVBGtpfV6g8tKgaHfZnI2YuGoa7g/s320/100_2663.JPG" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS1mbOyLMS_-1ugVQsPtMdwunPUMr9LzFzmTAZiRJfgVHSXv4AIi9jYxov8eGAoiGLv2qv9GKFCP5HWATazLHSW4yCEqyua53VJ_oqrg9yCzuqKTcjFjOW7vR0mxILg_0XODKDijwE8A/s1600/100_2649.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS1mbOyLMS_-1ugVQsPtMdwunPUMr9LzFzmTAZiRJfgVHSXv4AIi9jYxov8eGAoiGLv2qv9GKFCP5HWATazLHSW4yCEqyua53VJ_oqrg9yCzuqKTcjFjOW7vR0mxILg_0XODKDijwE8A/s320/100_2649.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3t6FuMSXC4LIDQKef2dOw8JQJHmnN-dNkMEbaJsILR3u2B1_XS0qsa7EbNnHLX8GJ26PKysltuJTiGx3EWcM5SQ2W6G4ooogawOqQ2d4Zrjl2aKvWjvxKMV3jKPNviG9Ennl-Hqcn8w/s1600/100_2647.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3t6FuMSXC4LIDQKef2dOw8JQJHmnN-dNkMEbaJsILR3u2B1_XS0qsa7EbNnHLX8GJ26PKysltuJTiGx3EWcM5SQ2W6G4ooogawOqQ2d4Zrjl2aKvWjvxKMV3jKPNviG9Ennl-Hqcn8w/s320/100_2647.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTdCJGCRUJzk5dNfzn3f0xKviXCcQUCNd_wxssFYmyMVI8DrNfyCnG5YJ3ZRmGqXDlFU3JBNUPC2JwM12bZuXTz61af44UHzcy59VYXinN8kVI4j5j0O9-QmF0gDbheIWJQCrRDm-xyw/s1600/100_2651.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTdCJGCRUJzk5dNfzn3f0xKviXCcQUCNd_wxssFYmyMVI8DrNfyCnG5YJ3ZRmGqXDlFU3JBNUPC2JwM12bZuXTz61af44UHzcy59VYXinN8kVI4j5j0O9-QmF0gDbheIWJQCrRDm-xyw/s320/100_2651.JPG" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhErab1sEXAH3cNQcSjxoJ94CMn9Z37fytrPqVpeEWhqNqCbrUMMNw2GeCtaK14-DvPoDk2dEZPIiEO5goYpmjICErf3ws8Z2PDmWgwZ80uR9u7I73OsF5ALSTXX5BcYc72x6kjWFF_zg/s1600/100_2676+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhErab1sEXAH3cNQcSjxoJ94CMn9Z37fytrPqVpeEWhqNqCbrUMMNw2GeCtaK14-DvPoDk2dEZPIiEO5goYpmjICErf3ws8Z2PDmWgwZ80uR9u7I73OsF5ALSTXX5BcYc72x6kjWFF_zg/s320/100_2676+-+Copy.JPG" width="320" /></a>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-2991807100929565552012-09-14T15:23:00.002+03:002012-09-14T15:23:42.296+03:00Sweet Recipes for a Sweet New Year!<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Rebbetzin Rachel's [Sweet] Recipes...</span></div>
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In line with a “Sweeten All the Judgments” theme for all my Rosh Hashanah cooking I start the meal with a slightly honeyed version of standard dips for challah. Using the traditional round challah with raisins, “what goes around comes around…” we turn the feast into a prayer form asking, begging Hashem with every bite to please make it a sweet year for the whole world.<u><br /></u><br />
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<u>Sweet Techina</u> <br />
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Mix 1 C sesame paste with ½ C water add 3 T honey, 2T lemon juice, ½ t ground cumin, ¼ t salt. Mix thorougly adding water if needed to get a smooth sour cream like consistency. <u><br /></u><br />
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<u>Sweet Guacamole </u><br />
<a href="https://encrypted-tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRI0sQ1zpmGRsASFEujPE3wp7KkYu0asYwcvbqdymIRrY_KWbDO" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://encrypted-tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRI0sQ1zpmGRsASFEujPE3wp7KkYu0asYwcvbqdymIRrY_KWbDO" /></a>It almost sounds oxymoronic to have sweet guacamole, but try this it really works!<br />Scoop out the pulp of 3 ripe avocados, add 2 T lemon juice & 2 T honey & a pinch of salt. <br />That’s the base for each dip. Now you can get playful by adding chopped dates, or apricots, red grapes, nectarines etc., limited only by your imagination. This year I’ll probably add pomegranate seeds because we have a bumper crop of that jewel - like seven species specialty of Israel on our trees.<br />
The chunks of fruit will make it bumpy and lumpy, like the spicy standard guacamole eaten with corn chips while cheering for a favorite football team, like my favorites the Denver Broncos. They lost the super bowl several times but never gave up! Their fans painted the streets of the “Mile High City” bright orange. They came back again and again until they won.<br />
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As Shlomo Hamelech says in Proverbs “Seven times the righteous fall and still get up.”<br />
Let me know which combo is your winner. <br />
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TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-1895682445498624402012-09-05T21:41:00.001+03:002012-09-05T21:41:52.854+03:00Last leg of our teaching tour!This will be the last blog post from our amazing month-long teaching tour. Last post I left off in Vancouver. It was our first time visiting this beautiful city surrounded by water everywhere and majestic mountains. After our wonderful program with Chabad we were invited back the next night to the home of Rabbi and Rebbetzin Bitton for dinner. During that visit he shared how he had been a good friend and learning partner of Rabbi Gavriel Holzberg who was murdered along with his pregnant wife Rivki in Mumbai India 4 years ago. His center had recently dedicated a sefer Torah to their memory. He told how the shock had reverberated throughout the world of Chabad, especially the young shlichim around the globe and how it took a long time to integrate the events. Last week I wrote of my great esteem for the work Chabad does all over the world, sometimes at great cost - but this evening raised my esteem to a whole new level.<br />
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We left Vancouver for Chicago and the next day drove to South Bend, Indiana with my sister and brother-in-laws. Their daughter, (our niece) lives there with her husband and baby daughter. We did a full shabbaton with Carlebach davening, communal meals, divrei Torah, classes, discussions and singing. Saturday night we were invited to an impromptu music jam and played late into the night. Sunday morning I spoke and played music at a brunch, where the topic was once again The Mystical Power of Music. All in all everyone was very receptive and welcoming, a perfect way to end our teaching on this tour.<br />
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Next stop - home and a new year!!! May we all be blessed with the best one yet.TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-31108531230782527242012-08-29T22:06:00.002+03:002012-08-29T22:06:30.512+03:00Beautiful Northwest Country<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Continuing escapades as the Trugmans roam through the beautiful northwest country. We spent a beautiful Shabbat at sea. Somehow among 3,000 people aboard us 150 <i>Yidden</i> were able to pull off a peaceful, calm Shabbat. Davening was replete with singing, dancing, learning and of course kosher feasting... We disembarked in Victoria, British Columbia on Saturday night and bid farewell to a whole group of new friends whom with we shared the beauty of Alaska and God's handiwork. In Victoria we were hosted by a wonderful family who directed us towards the highlights of this absolutely charming city on Vancouver Island. We saw deer roaming freely in the city, went to the world famous Butchard Gardens where we marveled at the most gorgeous gardens, and visited the oldest China Town in Canada. But most important was our teaching at Chabad where people were wide open to hearing about the Mystical Power of Music. Many people who rarely come to synagogue filled the Chabad center.</div>
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The next day we took the ferry to Vancouver, a bustling city surrounded by water everywhere and majestic mountains. Once again we presented the Mystical Power of Music through Chabad. This time to a group of young professionals, including a nice number of Israelis. My appreciation and awe for Chabad has grown tremendously these last few years as we continue to work with Chabad literally all over the world. The absolute love, commitment and meseirut nefesh of the Chabad shluchim is a shining example of everything good and wholesome and genuine about Torah. We began the evening by blowing shofar and explored with them the powerful energy of music from the atom to the galaxies, from the mind to the heart.</div>
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Next stop Chicago and big Shabbaton in South Bend. Indiana!</div>
TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-76431640567474078332012-08-26T20:39:00.000+03:002012-08-29T21:05:39.853+03:00How great are your works Hashem!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtaOzHOVH4rFmy34zVE0E_x8NwoU2S2LxKgxcZ06P1pPYQt1dmCSZ1Z0Rcwl1ZKiZLENo0dxeYNU_SzJNE8IPUgqype1bYe5ESk0H8GPyV3uEpixKrlj3hyfQAcG3u41kPT5t-IR70dw/s1600/065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtaOzHOVH4rFmy34zVE0E_x8NwoU2S2LxKgxcZ06P1pPYQt1dmCSZ1Z0Rcwl1ZKiZLENo0dxeYNU_SzJNE8IPUgqype1bYe5ESk0H8GPyV3uEpixKrlj3hyfQAcG3u41kPT5t-IR70dw/s200/065.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheeFLht0eZZz9MVvf2Be8grzcv2i4XqarXDApY9In1BtoP08rX_Gpb8-ksI8IiksosZTWOyMcxdzOWlBqqrqiupajqqqnE-kYqetO3ak03eh1bPj7SZ7qx7gFlVRimijkKFEnDJBVwgw/s1600/003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheeFLht0eZZz9MVvf2Be8grzcv2i4XqarXDApY9In1BtoP08rX_Gpb8-ksI8IiksosZTWOyMcxdzOWlBqqrqiupajqqqnE-kYqetO3ak03eh1bPj7SZ7qx7gFlVRimijkKFEnDJBVwgw/s200/003.JPG" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXOUOEFA511A6xg8AwGJ5Ha7CxGDYApIt9dGJbBpHbUoLas1yqw8aipaWgl9s80lTgwEUbDwOkVqk33gO9UDnFDK5SsYqVge0AgbTlHpQt70xgfmTJxIbpYPHt-or83X8sa3lNs9O-Vg/s1600/080.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXOUOEFA511A6xg8AwGJ5Ha7CxGDYApIt9dGJbBpHbUoLas1yqw8aipaWgl9s80lTgwEUbDwOkVqk33gO9UDnFDK5SsYqVge0AgbTlHpQt70xgfmTJxIbpYPHt-or83X8sa3lNs9O-Vg/s200/080.JPG" width="200" /></a>Every morning we recite the following - "How great are your works Hashem, You have crafted them all with wisdom." The last week during our cruise to Alaska these words took on added meaning as we were privileged to see the grandeur of Alaska and Canada. There were so many highlights I will mention just a few of them. We saw a good number of glaciers, many from very close. Of course we were seeing only the end tip of them, some which stretched for 1,500 miles. To our amazement they had a beautiful blue tint, were mammoth and are constantly moving. For the first time I learned how much of the earths present geological makeup was formed by glaciers cutting themselves through mountains and forming the valleys and lakes around the world. These ice monoliths were truly awe inspiring. The mountains were majestic everywhere we looked and hundreds were still full of snow.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnsKaRa2PzlsIfiiUVN7CAkDEbELi1JFQPac0aKHKf_iBKOmPjhdybp6smkQjjKUfGVoK_WxXY-Eehn2QR-38CMOY6S3TueZteC6ygphKyw_FV0XluJUs5wb52fPE-MGng3mBna-o7BA/s1600/099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnsKaRa2PzlsIfiiUVN7CAkDEbELi1JFQPac0aKHKf_iBKOmPjhdybp6smkQjjKUfGVoK_WxXY-Eehn2QR-38CMOY6S3TueZteC6ygphKyw_FV0XluJUs5wb52fPE-MGng3mBna-o7BA/s200/099.JPG" width="200" /></a> We saw pods of wales, a brown bear catching salmon, salmon running up stream by the thousands, a bald eagle, a spotted owl, and sea otters. We heard personal accounts of people who lived in small Alaskan towns like 'Juno, Skagway and Katchakan and contemplated life in a very far away place. In all these places the sun rarely shines and constant mist, clouds and rain form their reality. I was so happy when the sun finally came out as we approached Victoria, British Columbia where we disembarked for our next series of teachings. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3QZmglbcOskTZT4-vELBk6Ulz2cj_NQdnEcJyKE-uFgwu_F88s9oLpOsQ6MWd5pddYaSL8-dH_-MXR_k7NFKXOALhheeDvtMbiB-Wdw6H4tm_08rfA3z2NsxN-1GE-p7SwoAcd3jxPg/s1600/013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3QZmglbcOskTZT4-vELBk6Ulz2cj_NQdnEcJyKE-uFgwu_F88s9oLpOsQ6MWd5pddYaSL8-dH_-MXR_k7NFKXOALhheeDvtMbiB-Wdw6H4tm_08rfA3z2NsxN-1GE-p7SwoAcd3jxPg/s320/013.JPG" width="320" /></a>While on board we had 3 minyans a day, daily teaching and an overabundance of great glatt kosher food.I lead Carlebach davening on Shabbat and in a very short time we befriended a whole lot of very, very, nice people. Although there were over 2,000 people on this mammoth floating hotel we were able with the cooperation of the boat line to live a normal Jewish life.<br /><br />There is so much more to tell but we will let the pictures tell their story.<br /><br />We are now in Victoria and will send more blog posts on the last leg of our trip.<br />
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<br />TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-49402378548699830542012-08-23T09:47:00.000+03:002012-08-23T11:53:53.555+03:00Rebbetzin Rachel's Alaska Cruise Blogging!The trip so far is an amazing combination of viewing the wonders of the natural world and praising Hashem for the glorious creation and deep connections with the wonderful people who have been hosting and attending our teachings and Shabbat experience. Today as we were sailing at 25 knots out at sea after leaving Seattle we were in the lobby where they were playing a "name that tune game". We correctly identified Bob Dylan's - the answer my friend in blowin' in the wind" when I spotted a whale spout and then a fluke (whale tails) up in the air above the rippling silver ocean waves and then more spouts until there were 40-50 flukes dancing in the air. All the people in the lobby ran to the windows to ooh and aah, us included.<br />
More to come soon!TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-18917424036412886852012-08-15T18:47:00.001+03:002012-08-16T09:34:31.328+03:00Modern Times and the Crises in RelationshipsIn
a recent discussion with my good friend George Gumbiner he pointed out a
certain crises in relationships and self identity that seems to exist in
society and in so many areas of our lives. This ambivalence manifests in
many ways: in the growing confusion surrounding sexual identity, the weakening
of family ties, the distrust in big government and organized religion and in
the soaring divorce rates. In the Jewish world this is further seen in the high
intermarriage rates and the disconnect that so many Jews have with their Jewish
roots and their connection to the State and land of Israel.<br />
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Thinking
of these ideas surrounding the present state of affairs seems very appropriate
for this time of year as we are about to enter the month of Elul and the
holidays of Tishrei - Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Succot and Simchat Torah. As is
well known the acronym of the Hebrew words <i>ani l'dodi v'dodi li</i> (I
am to my beloved and my beloved is to me) spell the word Elul. </div>
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Although
we are entering into a period of deep introspection and judgment we should
always remember that it is the context of the love relationship between man and
God. In other words the key to Elul is a yearly review of our own
relationships: to God, to family and friends, to our commitment to Jewish life
and Israel as well as our relationship to the earth on which we live and the
greater society that surrounds us. On a deeper level this review demands of us
to probe the relationship of our inner selves and our outer persona, and
the correspondence between our dreams and goals and the reality
of our lives.</div>
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It
seems to me that the crises in relationships are directly connected on some
level to the amazing technological advances of the last hundred years.
Although these advances have brought great progress and blessing to mankind
they have also brought ecological disaster and exaggerated expectations of
what society owes us and the place of the individual in the bigger scheme of
things. Now-a-days if we have to wait an extra second for a computer response,
a fax to be sent, a phone call to go through, or an extra minute for
an international flight to arrive we are up in arms. We all have
hundreds of friends on Facebook but no one to really talk to when the chips are
down. So many people are connected to the whole world in cyber space but feel
more distance between themselves and others than ever. Our idea of
relationships is too often what is in it for me and not the true give and take
involved in a real relationship. More and more people are putting off marriage
to build a career and see the world and then, when they are finally ready to
make a commitment, they find they might have missed the boat.</div>
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So
here comes Elul and a new opportunity to look at ourselves in the mirror, to
examine our direction in life and where we are coming from and even more
important, where we are going. A new year is coming and we all have opportunity
to work on our relationships in all their manifold expressions and to renew
ourselves once again.</div>
TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-68361305296833253962012-08-07T02:00:00.000+03:002012-08-07T02:22:25.903+03:00L'Shana Tova!!!<div class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="direction: ltr; text-align: left; unicode-bidi: embed;">
According to tradition, one can begin to greet others with L'Shana Tova
(Have a good year) from Tu B'Av (the 15th day of Av). In as much as I am
writing this on Tu B'Av I want to bless everyone already with a year of good
health, spiritual growth, deep Torah learning, the highest Shabbeses, livelihood,
peace in the home, peace in our hearts and peace in the world<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>.</span></div>
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And now comes the question - why do we begin this greeting from Tu B'Av
which is 45 days before Rosh Hashana and not Rosh Chodesh Elul which may seem a
more likely time as Elul comes exactly one month before Rosh Hashana and the
whole month of Elul is considered preparation for a new year<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>.
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According to Chassidut and Kabbalah the fact that Tu B'Av is 45 days
before Rosh Hashana is very significant and is connected to the Talmudic debate
over which month the world was created in: Tishrei, the month in which Rosh
Hashanah, the New Year of years falls, or Nisan, the month in which Pesach
falls and which is the New Year of the months (Rosh Hashanah 11a). Both sides
make numerous arguments, but the Talmud reaches no definitive conclusion.
Rabbeinu Tam, a later commentator, explained the underlying unity of both
opinions: the world was created in potential or in thought in Tishrei and in
actuality in Nisan<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>. </span></div>
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The word for "thought" in Hebrew is machshava. When those
letters are permuted the spell choshav-mah, "to think of mah [the essence
of a matter]" Mah = 45; thus one can read this allegorically as: God began
to think of creating the world 45 days before Rosh Hashana<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>!!</span></div>
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What this tells us is that we too should already begin the process of
thinking about the essence of our lives and how we can be better, stronger,
deeper<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>.</span></div>
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L'Shana Tova<span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL" lang="HE" style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span dir="RTL"></span><span dir="RTL"></span>!!!</span></div>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-50767752908768230942012-07-31T21:15:00.000+03:002012-07-31T21:15:42.246+03:00The Conjunction of Time and Place Create a Holy MomentA few weeks ago my wife and I were in the holy city of Safed on the <i>yartzeit</i> (anniversary)
of the great Kabbalist of Safed, Rabbi Moshe Cordevero, known as the
RAMAK. He is the author of one of the most important Kabbalisitc texts -
<i>Pardes HaRimonim (The Pomegranate Orchard). </i>This book was the
very first attempt to take the entire Kabbalisitc tradition and to
organize it by subject and make it a cogent system of thought.<br />
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As we were getting ready to go down to his grave which is
in the ancinet cemetery of Safed a friend pointed out that the day of
his <i>yartzeit</i> is also the very day that Rabbi Yitzchak Luria
(known as the ARIZAL) revealed himself for the first time. In fact the
two incidents are closely related as the RAMAK had revealed to his
students that whoever saw the pillar of fire accompanying his casket to
the grave would be his successor. The ARIZAL who was new to Safed saw
the pillar and directed the gravediggers to the place where the pillar
stopped as the place the RAMAK should be buried. Thus his students
understood he was to succeed the RAMAK. Less than three years later the
ARIZAL passed away and was buried right above the RAMAK.</div>
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<div>
With all this in mind we went to the grave and for a
few minutes I was able to have one hand on the grave of the ARIZAL and
my other on the grave of the RAMAK. This was so very meaningful to me as
it was the mystic teachings of Judaism which brought me back to Torah
in the first place, and Safed had always played a very important part in
my life and spiritual development. In fact I proposed to my wife Rachel
in Safed.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
Then I had a very powerful realization: not only was
this the yartzeit of the RAMAK and I was not commemorating it from afar
but was at his grave AND that it was the very day the holy ARIZAL
revealed himself, but <u>it was in that exact spot that he revealed himself!!!! </u></div>
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<br /></div>
<div>
I cannot tell you how powerful it was
to experience the holiness that occurs when time and place come together
to create a holy moment of insight and realization.</div>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-35837586568109192602012-05-30T22:01:00.001+03:002012-05-30T22:01:33.870+03:00Evil Inclination, Tag Youre It!<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/dl9Q1xr3n0A?fs=1" width="480"></iframe>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-26454967802316629572012-05-23T16:26:00.001+03:002012-05-23T16:28:24.258+03:00In Memory of Rachel’s Award Winning Cheese Cake<br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b>Rebbetzin Rachel's Recipes</b></span></div>
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In the early days of the moshav we held a baking contest
judged by our local cake mavens – the guys. I was up against some stiff
competition as the moshav ladies are real pros. This first place cheesecake is
now impossible to make because one of the important crust ingredients is long
gone. We brought granola to Israel schlepping it literally on our backs in
packs to the few little health food stores that barely existed in the 70’s. The
Israelis were still eating herring for breakfast! We rented after-hours baking
time in a “conditoria” in the Talpiot industrial zone. </div>
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At our height our granola factory distributed 25 different
whole grain products to all the major supermarket chains including the cinnamon
flavored sugarless date bar cookies I used in my cheesecake crust. Then the
80’s hit when inflation was over 300% and we had to import oats from the USA,
pay for them in cash dollars on the barrelhead and only get paid from the local
stores in deflated shekels 3 months later, oh well. Now our granola factory is
being rented out by the Jewish Agency who owns the building to Adama - the
largest distribution center for organic food in the country. This alternative
recipe will just have to do…</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjnmfy6qJ8uuZWt49eyZh_D4TN97ISqs5rGbyxhgv0VswQJx5MMiolTmmx7ZB5-XVHFugg3SzK67cPkgfKMo67Ntr6mYPlD1JPcdGrW6hfYNuacxMqL09eC9TT3KBIRaQIm80cS1ATtQ/s1600/Cheese_cake_Jakarta.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjnmfy6qJ8uuZWt49eyZh_D4TN97ISqs5rGbyxhgv0VswQJx5MMiolTmmx7ZB5-XVHFugg3SzK67cPkgfKMo67Ntr6mYPlD1JPcdGrW6hfYNuacxMqL09eC9TT3KBIRaQIm80cS1ATtQ/s200/Cheese_cake_Jakarta.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Crust: Use any old cookies instead of date bars; my next
best alternative is chocolate coated Petit Beurre biscuits. Try not to grumble as you crumble
them with 3T butter 1-t cinnamon and add ice water until you get stiff enough
dough to press into a pie pan. </div>
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Filling: Plop a tub of 5% white cheese 3 eggs 1C white sugar
1-T lemon rind, the juice of one lemon and 1-t vanilla into your blender and
whiz splash whirr it up to frothiness. Pour the cheesy mess into the crust and
shove it in the 350 degree oven for ½ hour or till the top is set.</div>
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Topping: Stir 1-T white sugar into a container of sour cream
and spread it on top of the mostly baked cake and continue baking for another
10 minutes. </div>
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Eating: Stay up all night studying Torah on Shavuot to merit
eating this creamy rich delight in the morning with a steaming cup of café.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">Happy Shavuot!</span>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0Mevo Modi'im, Israel31.93385 34.98800131.9203745 34.968259999999994 31.947325499999998 35.007742tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-50027924245954547582012-05-16T14:33:00.001+03:002012-05-16T14:33:00.914+03:00Constant Renewal<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Rabbi Avraham Arieh Trugman's latest Torah Gems video.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Beautifully insightful!</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Please remember to SHARE this video after watching! It only takes a click or two!</span>
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/uxFQnnclI9M?fs=1" width="480"></iframe><br />
<br />TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-17421780004804641732012-04-12T18:46:00.000+03:002012-04-12T18:46:15.392+03:00Pesach Bourekas???<h2>
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Rebbetzin Rachel's (Exodus from Pesach) Recipes...</u></span></b></h2>
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<span style="font-size: 9.5pt; line-height: 18pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Now this one is for all our readers residing outside of Israel. It's now just a few minutes before candle lighting time, so Israeli's won't get the chance to make this. </span></span></div>
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<h3>
Taken from Wikipedia:</h3>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Börek</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> (also <b>burek</b> and
other variants i.e., <b>bourekas</b>) is a family of baked or fried filled </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pastry" title="Pastry"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">pastries</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> made of a thin flaky </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dough" title="Dough"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">dough</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> known as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yufka" title="Yufka"><span style="color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">yufka</span></a> (or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phyllo" title="Phyllo"><span style="color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">phyllo</span></a>). It can be
filled with </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheese" title="Cheese"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">cheese</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">, often </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feta" title="Feta"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">feta</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirene" title="Sirene"><span style="color: #0b0080;">sirene</span></a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ka%C5%9Far" title="Kaşar"><span style="color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">kaşar</span></a>;
minced meat, or vegetables. Most probably invented in what is now Modern </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkey" title="Turkey"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Turkey</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">, in the</span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anatolia" title="Anatolia"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Anatolian Provinces</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> of the </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_Empire" title="Ottoman Empire"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Ottoman Empire</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> in its early era, to become a popular element of </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_cuisine" title="Ottoman cuisine"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Ottoman cuisine</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> A
börek may be prepared in a large pan and cut into portions after baking, or as
individual pastries. The top of the börek is often sprinkled with </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sesame_seeds" title="Sesame seeds"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">sesame seeds</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">. Börek
is also very popular in the </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottoman_cuisine" title="Ottoman cuisine"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">, especially in </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_African_cuisine" title="North African cuisine"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">North Africa</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"> and throughout the </span><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balkan_cuisine" title="Balkan cuisine"><span style="color: #0b0080; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Balkans</span></a></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">It
seems almost oxymoronic to eat bourekas, the ultimate flakey crumb producing
food on Pesach. Here is a recipe that I learned not from a cookbook but by
watching a former IDF chef in action. Omer had a virtual military operation
going in my neighbors the Frumin’s kitchen today. The occasion was the
engagement party of Chemla Frumin and her Chatan - Natan whose parents and
brother came down from Carmiel to meet the extended moshav family. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Warning!
This recipe requires soaked matzot which are broken in half hence the Yiddish
term “gabrocks”. Some people avoid gabrocks like the plague (pun intended) to
the extent of eating their matzo out of a paper bag like a wino (some use plastic bags), to avoid any
drop of liquid falling on the hand baked delicacy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9_AUNsWEzXjSnK4Gx-vPKVSqRx1nk24u325KKYrYFmiDMJBoOnkUSYni1wcnzhRWlqzMS6w4HDyxNRk51K4udvRp2_R7k-2o9-h4Qs68dVI189qX3NNMd4Ni9mU1PW5oSD0aUkIFUWw/s1600/matza+basket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9_AUNsWEzXjSnK4Gx-vPKVSqRx1nk24u325KKYrYFmiDMJBoOnkUSYni1wcnzhRWlqzMS6w4HDyxNRk51K4udvRp2_R7k-2o9-h4Qs68dVI189qX3NNMd4Ni9mU1PW5oSD0aUkIFUWw/s200/matza+basket.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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The wet halves of matzo are
placed in a plastic bag to make them pliable and when softened are rolled
around a filling such as mashed potatoes, crumbled salty cheese or sautéed meat
or vegetables. The possible fillings are practically limitless and where you
can get really gourmet style imaginative. Then the rolls are dipped in beaten egg and
fried in hot oil till brown. Who would have imagined but they were really good
and crispy and only half as crumbly as the year round variety. Unless you are
Sefardic you won’t be sprinkling sesame seeds on these Turkish delights but you
won’t be missing anything, the crunchy taste comes right through to the taste
buds.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Chag Kasher V'Same'ach AND Shabbat Shalom!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-23680862207481600112012-04-11T23:35:00.000+03:002012-04-11T23:35:09.953+03:00Two Great Recipes for Yom Tov!<br />
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<img height="195" src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ1cWgN9mPbtT4MDUmDTrG1gTJqECFR43ij907OW_q0v65zLjTVFQ" width="200" />
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<span style="color: #1f497d;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Broiled Eggplant with Veggies and Meat Sauce</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Since I have no rhyme or reason (Ask Eden Pearlstein aka <a href="https://www.facebook.com/eprhyme" target="_blank">EPHRYME</a>– he’s the Rhyme department, and my son in-law) for why this recipe is only for Rosh Hashanah let’s create a new minhag and make it for Pesach too. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">WARNING! This recipe is a “potchke” lots of steps but worth the effort. (Maybe that’s why I make it only once a year for family because to feed this to the Ohr Chadash hordes would keep me in the kitchen for an unexaggerated millennium</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">)</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">.<u></u><u></u></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Brush thick rounds of eggplant with olive oil sprinkle with kosher salt and granulated garlic then broil until browned. Prepare thin rounds of potatoes and zucchini while you make the sauce by browning ground meat, I often use turkey or veal, with finely chopped onions and parsley. I add one can of crushed tomatoes and some dry red wine, salt and pepper, and a dash of… SPOILER WARNING! – SECRET INGREDIENT ABOUT TO BE REVEALED -cinnamon. I start layering with onion rings on the bottom of the olive oiled baking pan then potatoes, then meat sauce then zucchini then more sauce and top it all with the broiled eggplant. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Over the top I pour some white sauce made by gently sautéing potato starch in olive oil and adding chicken broth stirring constantly until you have a creamy consistency breaking up the lumps as you stir. Bake in 350 degree oven till bubbly and the top starts to brown about an hour.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"><u></u> </span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Apricot Chicken</span></b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><u></u></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">This is a much easier and faster recipe. This is my general and preferred style of cooking except for the very few “potchke” recipes I allow through the radar. This one is good for an erev yom tov like the one we’re going to have </span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">tomorrow </span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">whe</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">n</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> we plan to galavant off to Jerusalem to enjoy FREE DAY at the Israel Museum and the Botanic Gardens</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">.</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> Chani (my daughter) and Eden (her D.L.H.) did this with us last year!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlZUUbal_70rRNBrIM0Z-dVkw27i_TnfxZ9MZwGD8yXYtX8HfaltLwmGhxYk-Suh4llBGlWn1JU-1CvovZaYCpj5_FvIFOsIdK_hf_LjvrAgB_cX4NAK2hIWlyzzWjSSXJB6Lm30_l3w/s1600/apricots.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlZUUbal_70rRNBrIM0Z-dVkw27i_TnfxZ9MZwGD8yXYtX8HfaltLwmGhxYk-Suh4llBGlWn1JU-1CvovZaYCpj5_FvIFOsIdK_hf_LjvrAgB_cX4NAK2hIWlyzzWjSSXJB6Lm30_l3w/s200/apricots.jpg" width="190" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">Plop some chicken pieces in a baking pan slosh some sauvignon blanc or other white wine over ‘em</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">,</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> shmear on some apricot jam</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">,</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> scatter some dried apricots all around</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">,</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">sprinkle on some salt pepper granulated garlic and paprika and you’ve got easy street</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">!</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">G</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">o jump in the shower while it’s baking at 375 degrees till brown and fragrant, about </span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">an </span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">hour and</span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> a half, and </span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;">you even have time to do your nails and get all gussied up for a really good relaxed Yom Tov.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Tasty and Kosher Pesach Everyone! </span></span><span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></div>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-30309952880645547572012-04-01T21:41:00.001+03:002012-04-01T22:50:31.080+03:00The Fifteen Steps of the Hagadah<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">An excerpt from <b style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.thetrugmans.com/trugman_order_seeds.shtml" target="_blank">Seeds and Sparks</a> </b>by Rabbi Avraham Arieh Trugman</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The <i>Hagadah</i> of
Pesach<i> </i>and all the rituals and <i>mitzvot</i> of the night are ordered
according to fifteen steps. These fifteen stages in which the S<i>eder</i> unfolds are also referred to as
“signs.” Our Sages tell us that signs and symbols have great significance (<i>Kritot</i> 6a). For example, we begin the
year on Rosh HaShanah night by eating all sorts of foods, each one symbolic of
certain blessings we hope for at the beginning of a new year. The steps of the
S<i>eder</i> likewise have great
significance and symbolize the process of personal, national and world
redemption. There is a custom of calling out the name of each step or “sign” at the <i>Seder </i>as if announcing a lost object which needs to be reclaimed
and redeemed (See The Chassidic Haggadah by Rabbi Eliyahu Touger).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> The fifteen steps of the <i>Seder</i> also relate to the fifteen physical steps in the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Holy</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Temple</st1:placetype></st1:place>,
on which the Levites stood while singing praises to God. King David wrote
fifteen “songs of ascent” to parallel the fifteen steps of the Levites in the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Temple</st1:place></st1:city>. The
correspondence of the fifteen steps of the <i>Seder</i>
and the fifteen steps of the Temple gives us the feeling of rising from one
level to the next during the <i>Seder</i>,
as if being carried on the wings of song to ever greater heavenly heights. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> Fifteen is the numerical value of the Hebrew letters <i>yod
</i>and <i>heh</i>, the first two letters of
the four~letter name of God, and a name of God in their own right. This name
significantly appears in the book of Exodus in the story of <i>Amalek</i>, the arch enemy of the Jews, when
God figuratively puts His hand on His throne and promises war with <i>Amalek</i> in every generation (Exodus
17:16). Rashi points out that only the first two letters of the name of God are
written and the word for throne is also written missing a letter. This, Rashi
explains, indicates that until <i>Amalek</i>,
the embodiment of evil, is wiped out, God’s name and throne are, as it were,
incomplete.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> The recital
during the <i>Seder </i>of Pesach of the
words: “ In every generation they rise up against us to destroy us…” reflects
the same archetypal reality as expressed in the story of <i>Amalek</i>. The primordial energy of good versus evil, as expressed
first in the story of Adam, Eve and the snake, and their final confrontation in
the prophesies of the “end of days,” is very relevant to the energy surrounding
<i>Pesach</i> and our present situation in
Israel.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> There are “signs”
all around us as <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>
and the world confront the terrorist threat so prevalent today. But, as in
every sign or dream, much goes after how we choose to interpret it. We are most
certainly being challenged and are being spoken to by God through the events
around us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> As much as we
need to react to evil and deal with the perpetrators, a more fundamental
spiritual accounting is called for. We are told that the month long search and
cleaning process for <i>chametz</i>,
unleavened products,<i> </i> preceding Pesach must be accompanied by the
realization that physical <i>chametz</i> is
but a reflection of the inner spiritual work we need to do to truly prepare for
Pesach. Each person, community and all of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region> needs to
look deeply within to see what we can do to rectify the present situation.
There is certainly a need for a renewal of commitment to personal spiritual
growth. To increase Torah learning and observance, to integrate sound Jewish
morals and ethics, to increase our love of our fellow Jews and humanity, to give greater
support to the land of Israel, and to recommit ourselves to Jewish collective
responsibility. Let no one be oblivious to the fact that if <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region> is
seriously weakened (God forbid), every Jew in the world will be affected in a
very negative way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> The Ba’al Shem
Tov taught that every Jew contains a spark of the Messiah deep within his soul and that the ultimate arrival of the<i>
</i>Messiah depends on each and every person activating his greatest
spiritual potential, thus creating a critical mass of redemptive energy. This
then will be transformed into the figure we call the Messiah. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> In <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Egypt</st1:place></st1:country-region>, when the
slavery became so unbearable, we cried out in unison from the weight of our
burdens and God heard and acted. Once again, we as a people need to feel the
suffering and danger surrounding us and shake off our numbness and complacency
in order to cry out to God to deliver us. There is no more auspicious time for
us all to do this than on Pesach. We as a people have suffered enough - We Want
Redemption Now!! </span><o:p></o:p></div>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-43619185564826352912012-04-01T20:53:00.001+03:002012-04-01T22:51:23.244+03:00Seder Night - A Poem from Seeds and Sparks<br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Yes my children -<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>I hear your questions<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>I too hear footsteps in the distance.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Listen!<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>To the story of life<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>As it unfolds.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Once we were slaves,<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Cried out in despair and God heard:<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>With an outstretched hand<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Nature took another course, <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Water turned to blood<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>And later seas turned on end<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>As we followed God faithfully<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Into the desert of our own rebirth.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>And now we have this holiday<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>To celebrate and remember,<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>To engrave once again<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>On our open hearts<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>That it was us who came out<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>And stood on the mountain and promised<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>To give over to the children<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Of the future<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>The wonders of the past.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>The collective unconscious<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Running through our blood.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Look!<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Upon the door post -<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>A reminder and a sign<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>To protect and pass over to generations<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>As yet born,<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>A promise delivered<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>But not yet fulfilled,<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>While between the lines <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Of history and precedent<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>The story of our people<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Defies logic<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Battles conquerors<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Lives on miracles and faith,<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>In new beginnings<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Tragic endings<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Sanctification and sacrifice on the alter<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Of human destiny<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>To be free!<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>A light unto the nations<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>In a world of darkness<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Where groping armies<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Are still pursuing us -<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Their wheels sinking in the sea.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>But we light candles<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>And make it to the other side,<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Where shining in the distance<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Is the prophet of the future.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Elijah come drink!<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Blow the shofar!<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Herald a new beginning!<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Redeem the first born!<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>And the last to be born<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Before that fateful day<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Will cry out from the weight <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>Of human bondage<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>And the misery of our self imposed doom.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>But here at our Seder<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>The light of hope is shining bright<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>The bush is still burning<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>And is not consumed.</i></span><o:p></o:p></div>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-9383857192802067322012-03-30T01:51:00.000+02:002012-03-30T01:51:10.289+02:00Parshat Tzav - The Bush That Burns Yet Is Not Consumed<div style="text-align: left;">
In Tzav’s six opening verses, the Torah sets down the laws about the elevation offering brought by the cohanim each morning on the Tabernacle and Temple altars. Over a span of only six verses, the</div>
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word fire occurs four times and the admonition not to let the fire on the altar be extinguished is repeated twice. Kabbalah and Chassidut teach that the Temple service is, among other things, a paradigm for each person’s quest to come nearer to God and find one’s purpose and the rectification one need’s to undergo in this world. Therefore it behooves us to look deeper into the symbol of the fire on the altar to glean constructive teachings for life.</div>
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In general the perpetual fire on the altar represents the obligation to continuously serve God and be constantly aware of His Presence and existence. Whether at work or at play, during the week or on Shabbat and holidays, whether feeling elevated or dejected, the service of God as defined by the Torah never ceases. Every situation in life affords the opportunity to experience God, perform mitzvot, and bring light, healing, and rectification to ourselves and the world.</div>
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On a deeper level fire represents the soul’s longing to flame upwards and express its passionate desire to be unified with God. Fire symbolizes an exuberant love of life and the yearning to serve God. When Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach was in the midst of teaching a class, leading a prayer service, or performing at a concert and he felt that the congregation or audience lacked enthusiasm, he would stop and plead with everyone by yelling out: “More fire!! More fire!!” This usually did the trick by “upping the voltage” and breaking the spell of complacency.</div>
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The idea of fire is also intimately connected to joy (simchah), which in Hebrew begins with the letter shin, the letter symbolizing fire. The Hebrew word for fire (aish) is comprised of the letters alef and shin. In the book of Deuteronomy (28:47), the Torah warns the Jewish people that future exiles would occur because “you did not serve Your God with joy.” The Arizal explained this verse quite literally, on both national and individual terms. This was precisely the point the Ba’al Shem Tov stressed repeatedly when he advocated the importance of inspiration in prayer, learning, the performance of mitzvot, and living one’s life in general.</div>
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A man once came to his rebbe and told him how sad and depressed he was because a whole series of things were wrong with his life. The rebbe, who knew him well, explained to him that the opposite was true: because he was always so sad and depressed, everything was going wrong!</div>
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Not only is joy necessary to channel the fire of the soul to “serve God with gladness” (Psalms 100:2), fire is also associated with holiness. The Hebrew word for holy (kadosh) is a combination of two words yikod aish, which means “ignited fire.”</div>
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On Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year, the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies with a pan of burning coals on which he would burn incense. The Holy of Holies represents the human soul’s innermost spark of holiness, where the soul is afire with love for God.</div>
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God first appeared to Moses in a burning bush that was not consumed by the flames. This powerful image embodies the secret of how to enthusiastically serve God and energetically pursue one’s purpose in life without “burning out,” as happens to so many people. Learning how to renew one’s zeal for life on a daily basis is one of Chassidut’s fundamental lessons. Without this renewal most people, at best, slide into a comfort zone of complacency and, at worst, stagnate.</div>
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When Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the founder of the Chabad movement, first came to his teacher, the Maggid of Mezrich, he was new to the Chassidic way of life and its teachings. The Maggid, who saw enormous potential in his young student, once called him into his private study and intently repeated the following verse from our portion ten times: “A perpetual fire shall remain aflame on the altar; it shall not be extinguished” (Leviticus 6:5). He explained that the words “lo yichbeh” (it shall not be extinguished) could also be read as “the no [symbol of all negativity] shall be extinguished.” He continued to explain that Chassidut and its deep teachings fan the soul’s natural tendency to ignite with a passionate love for God. As this fire burns, it “extinguishes” all the negative influences trying to derail the drive for holiness and the burning desire to be nearer to God.</div>
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As people attempt to build their inner altars where the fires of holiness and joy burn continually, they should remember the teachings of this portion and be inspired to fan the innermost sparks of their souls until they become flaming bushes that burn yet are not consumed.</div>
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<br /></div>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1136698383003186959.post-64549387683166892572012-03-30T01:27:00.001+02:002012-03-30T01:27:36.928+02:00Reb Shlomo and the Power of Love<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/hdkL_ajxtfM?fs=1" width="480"></iframe>TheTrugmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04119612460446513916noreply@blogger.com0