The Day of Liberation

Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

 If you would want to describe the Yom Tov we celebrated this week in one word, what would it be?

I would say liberation.

Purim is the day of liberation, because that is what it does: it liberates us from the things we are regularly forced to do, whether because of financial considerations or those of a social variety.

On Purim, it’s all different. Yes, of course we behave appropriately at home and in shul and don’t – or shouldn’t – run around making fools of ourselves and a chillul Hashem. But we are freed from obligations that, while they keep us and the world going around, are not always enjoyable.

We celebrate Mordechai, who the Megillah describes as a Yehudi, and we do so by behaving as Yehudim, observing the Torah and mitzvos as we run around celebrating.

I am fortunate enough to live in Lakewood, NJ, and on Purim night I was at the Bais Medrash Govoah Bais Aron Bais Medrash where the yeshiva’s large mesibah took place. On the way out, at 2:30 a.m., I passed through one of the side botei medrash and saw hundreds of people sitting there, lost in concentration as they were learning with their chavrusos.

What I saw inside the large bais medrash watching thousands celebrate the neis Purim caused my heart to pump with extra Yiddishe pride, but seeing that side bais medrash pulsating with Torah was a reminder of what being a Yid is all about. It was a realization of why the neis was made back in Shushan, a realization of the ancient promise of “netzach Yisroel lo yeshaker.” Why don’t we say Hallel on Purim? Besides for the other reasons, it is because living a Yehudi life is the greatest expression to Hakadosh Boruch Hu, who saved us then and provides for us every minute of every day.

People who mock us and our way of life would do themselves well to visit Lakewood, or any Torah community, on Purim, or any day of the year for that matter, and see the joy and satisfaction everywhere. They would see the camaraderie and be astounded by the amount of tzedakah that is given by generous Jews and collected by humble volunteers. There is no other community in the world that gives as much charity as the Torah community, and there is no day that generates as much giving as Purim. It is a day of sharing and caring, of love and devotion. It is a day that brings out the best in our people.

On Purim, we put aside our regular daily considerations and responsibilities and spend the day reveling in the joy. We mask our everyday preoccupations and concerns. The four mitzvos of Purim, including simcha and mishteh, take precedence over everything. The simcha shines from each face you encounter. Whatever covers the Yehudi characteristics and middos the rest of the year is peeled back on Purim and the inner goodness shines through.

This is brought about because Purim teaches us a supreme lesson about life. As we read the Megillah, we see how a hopeless situation is alleviated. We see that the feast that caused the catastrophe gave birth to the salvation that they all enjoyed.

Apparently, the people of Shushan were like the people of today. They read and followed the news and viewed everything that was going on through the eyes of the media. One day there were big headlines, as there are today, that the Jews are neither loyal nor subservient to the wishes of the person considered the most powerful man in the world. They read that the secretary of state delivered a speech against them, warning them that if they refrained from bowing to him and his wishes and commands, there would stiff penalties and punishments. With time, the threats were ramped up and they were all threatened with death. The threat was serious, as the Jews feared for their lives.

Those who saw things through the media mentality blamed the mess on Mordechai and his obstinate refusal to play the game and do as the administration wanted. They were unhappy with the old-fashioned Yehudi who wouldn’t bend. But as the story played out, they realized that it was in the zechus of Mordechai and listening to his eitzos that they were saved.

As the people davened and repented, they realized that things were not as they appeared and certainly not as they were reported. They recognized that there was more to the events in the kingdom than their eyes could see. As they began appreciating that everything that happened was coming from Hashem, things started turning around and, eventually, they triumphed over the evil ones who sought their destruction.

Life gets complicated, especially when we forget that everything is coming from Hashem.

The Megillah ends with the words, “Vedover shalom lechol zaro - Mordechai spoke peace to all of his children.”

Rav Yisroel Eliyohu Weintraub explains in his sefer that in life, there are ups and downs. There are times of great elation and success and there are others of depression and loss.

People who don’t recognize that everything that happens is from Hashem have mood swings. When things appear to be going well for them, they are happy, and when things don’t look so good, they are sad. Their mood on any given day depends on the news, or the doctor, or their job, or their business, or their spouse, children and parents.

But when a person finishes reading the Megillah, he sees that although Hashem is hidden and His name doesn’t appear at all in the entire Megillah, it is evident that He was everywhere, pulling the strings of His human puppets. Nothing happened randomly, and nothing that happened did so for the reasons the media and most of the world thought.

A person then recognizes that in his personal life as well as in life in general, nothing happens arbitrarily. His product selling or not selling, the beds in homes filling up or sitting empty, a grumpy spouse, or a tough teacher are not that way just because. These things happen because Hashem causes them to happen for deeper and longer-lasting purposes than we can ever perceive.

The person is then at ease. His life is no longer a series of ups and downs, because he has learned that if he follows the word of Hashem, life is a constant up and everything that happens to him occurs for a good reason.

He is at peace no matter what is going on.

When a person understands that he is with Hashem and under His control, then not only is he at peace with himself, but because he is, he can develop proper middos, study and grow in Torah, and learn to love every Jew.

In the time of Shushan, their teshuvah brought Klal Yisroel closer to Hashem, which gave them the ability to appreciate all that He was doing for them. That enabled them to learn and appreciate Torah, which in turn brought about a tremendous achdus. When they were together, me’uchodim, they merited their redemption.

Therefore, Chazal gifted us with the Yom Tov of Purim and fortified it with four mitzvos that bring us together b’achdus, so that we, too, can merit being redeemed. The mitzvos are only on that day, but their impact on us can last throughout the year.

When things don’t feel right and we start getting down; when we worry about the nations of the world and their antagonism towards us; when we have fears, pressures, or challenges; remember the Jews of Shushan. Remember the Megillah and how you felt on Purim. It’s not a cliché. It’s real.

If you enjoyed Purim - and who doesn’t?  - take the lessons of the day to heart so that every day of the year we can be b’shalom, at peace, appreciating what Hashem has given us as we joyfully await the ultimate redemption soon in our day.

It’s All Good

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

Many nations have risen up to battle us, subjugate us, and torment us, yet Amaleik is singled out for eternal derision. Many of those who fought us succeeded in their battles, killing many of us, crushing us, and evicting us from our land. Amaleik, though the first to fight us, did not succeed in his mission and was beaten back by the Bnei Yisroel under the leadership of Moshe and Yehoshua.

Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv explained that the behavior of Amaleik is diametrically opposite that of the Jewish people. The posuk (Devorim 25:18) states regarding Amaleik, “Asher korcha baderech vayezaneiv becha kol hanechesholim acharecha - They came upon you while you were traveling and attacked those who were weak” and tired from traveling.

“They respected strength, denigrated weakness, and supported the rodef, the attacker,” said Rav Elyashiv. “The Torah teaches to love the outsider and to support him, to hate the bully and to support the nirdof, the victim.

“This battle is eternal because Am Yisroel is always tired and always on the move in the desert.”

Rav Elyashiv likened this to the famous story (Melochim 3) of the two women who went to Shlomo Hamelech quarreling over ownership of a child, each one claiming that she had given birth to it. The Medrash (Shir Hashirim 1) states without explanation that the women involved were sheidim, not human.

The Vilna Goan explains the Medrash. Chazal teach (Avos 5:10) that there are four types of people: “The one who says, ‘What is mine is mine and what is yours is yours,’ is a beinoni, and some say that is middas Sedom. The one who says, ‘What is mine is yours and what is yours is mine,’ is an am ha’aretz. If he says, ‘What is mine is yours and what is yours is yours,’ he is a chossid. And the one who says, ‘What is mine is mine and what is yours is mine,’ is a wicked rosha.”

Says the Gaon, from here we see that to destroy something when there is no purpose or gain from its destruction is not a human trait, and therefore, since one of the women agreed to cut the baby in half, the story must have occurred with sheidim.

Such is the attribute of Amaleik, battling Am Yisroel just for the sake of fighting them, with no gain in it for themselves. They continuously battle us, but they never win.

In our day, time and again, we see enemies of the Jewish people seeking to destroy us. Although Hashem continues to protect us each time and allow us to win over our enemies, they continue attacking even though they know that they will lose and often die in the process.

Israel recently suffered an awful attack and has been working desperately to defeat a despicable terrorist enemy who threatens us and the world. However, the Amaleiki nations of the world and some like-minded Jews target Israel for derision and seek to prevent it from winning the war, even if that means empowering their own worst terror enemies. They seek to present the terrorists with the gift of a state on Israel’s doorstep, as if it were a reward for perpetrating a monstrous attack on the innocent people of Israel.

Although they have nothing to gain from battling and hindering Israel, and only stand to lose, they persist in their campaign to hobble Israel and its leadership.

The sefer Siach Ish quotes a letter from Rav Elyashiv that was apparently written in the 1940s. This is what he writes: “In normal years, we read the parsha of Amaleik on Purim and on the Shabbos that precedes it. The past few years, we read the parsha of ‘Vayavo Amaleik’ every hour of every day. And even in this, we see the trait of Amaleik in that he comes upon us ‘baderech,’ when we are on the way to build and strengthen the Jewish people in Eretz Yisroel.

“It is possible that the Sar of Eisov knows that if we are able to realize our goal and arrive at our final destination, we will be on the way to kabbolas haTorah, as we were promised by the novi (Yeshayahu 11:9) that at the End of Days, ‘Umolah ha’aretz dei’ah es Hashem.’

“This is the same Amaleik that five years ago spread his hand on the seat of Hashem, destroyed our Botei Mikdosh, and killed gedolei Torah.

“What can we do to combat the Amaleik that threatens us now? We can follow the same advice that Moshe gave to his talmid, when he said at the outset of the fight with Amaleik, ‘Bechar lonu anoshim - Go choose for us strong men to fight him.’

“Although in our days we don’t have a general such as Yehoshua, who didn’t leave the tent of Moshe, we have to find and choose men who are ‘yerei cheit,’ who will climb the mountain and hold aloft the hands of Moshe, seeing to it that Hashem’s nation turns its gaze upwards, towards Hashem, knowing that their salvation will come from Him.

“The Gemara in Makkos (10) states, “Rabi Yehoshua ben Levi taught: The explanation of the posuk (Tehillim 122:2), ‘Omdos hoyu ragleinu bishorayich Yerushalayim,’ is as follows: Who caused our legs to remain upright in battle? It was those behind the gates of Yerushalayim who were studying Torah.”

“This is compounded when talking about a battle with Amaleik, whose main strength emanates when Klal Yisroel is weakened in Torah, as the posuk (Shemos 17:8) states that Amaleik battled the Jewish people in Refidim. Chazal (Tanchuma, Shemos 25) explain that Refidim hints that “rofu yedeihem min haTorah,” the people became weakened in Torah.”

When we don’t study Torah as we should, Amaleik is given the power to attack us. Therefore, the way we combat Amaleik is by strengthening our study and observance of Torah. In our day, as well, as we contend with Amaleik and seek to turn him back and rid our people of the threat he presents, the ultimate weapon we have is Torah.

When we seek to explain defeats, victories and tragedies in natural terms, we cause trouble for ourselves and are not able to obtain victory and comfort.

Rav Gedaliah Schorr (Ohr Gedalyahu, Purim 4) says that if we examine the Megillah, we will see that the very same occurrences that brought on bad omens for the Jewish people were turned into omens of geulah, when the people did teshuvah.

The cause of the decree against the Jews was because they joyfully participated in the feast of Achashveirosh. At that feast, the story with Vashti took place and Haman was given his big promotion.

At the root of the sin of participating in Achashveirosh’s feast that caused the decree of their destruction was that they were opposed to the position of Mordechai, who would not bend or bow to the king and his men. They believed that all their problems were caused by Mordechai not being subservient to the leader. They felt that if they would ingratiate themselves with the king and lobby him as the laws of nature would dictate, the king would like them and they would be able to work things out.

But the opposite happened. Going to the feast immediately awakened Amaleik and empowered Haman to go after them. It was when they repented and did teshuvah that they realized that they were wrong for going to the feast and Mordechai was correct in his position of not bending to the kingdom. When they then began following Mordechai and his instructions, everything turned around and that same feast that caused them so much trouble now caused good things to happen to them. The feast that caused the demise of Vashti triggered the selection of Esther to be the new queen and the salvation was brought about through her.

This is hinted at in the posuk (Yirmiyohu 30:7) which states, “Eis tzorah hee l’Yaakov umimenah yivosheia,” that when Yaakov is in a tzorah, when things aren’t going right and tragedy threatens, the deliverance will come from the tzorah itself. 

We see from this analysis of the Megillah that the outcome of a precarious situation is dependent on us. If we understand what is happening according to the natural way of cause and effect, then it will end poorly for us. But if we go beyond the superficial cause and effect method of comprehending current events and things that plague us, appreciating that everything that happens is because Hashem arranged it so, then things that appear to be bad turn out to be good, because Hashem arranged His world that way.

In our time, when we see things that are happening and hear things that world and political leaders are saying, it seems as if the world is closing in on us and there is nothing but gloom and doom ahead. However, we have to know that if we do teshuvah and recognize that Hashem is manipulating everything that is happening, then those very same speeches, attacks and actions that appear so threatening and dangerous can be at the root of our deliverance and ultimate victory. We mustn’t get sucked in and frightened by things that we see and read and hear. We have to know that there is a deeper meaning behind everything that transpires.

The same is true in our private lives. When we face challenges, and sometimes they are so crushing that we see no escape and no way to overcome them, we must know that they were placed there by Hashem, and when we turn to Him, those very aggravations will bring about our recovery.

The Rama finishes the halachos of Purim and Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim by quoting the posuk in Mishlei (15:15) which states, “V’lev tov mishteh tomid – A good heart is always celebrating.” There are many different interpretations for what the Rama’s intention was in citing this posuk. The Mishnah Berurah understands that he is saying that it is a good thing to increase the celebration of the miracles that took place at this time.

Rav Tzadok Hakohein explains (Pri Tzaddik, Rosh Chodesh Adar 1:1) that in the World to Come, we will recognize that everything Hashem did and does is for the good. But a person who is described as a “lev tov,” someone who has cleansed his heart of the yeitzer hora that dwells on the left side of the heart, now has one heart, which is filled with good and is dedicated to Hashem, for the left side of his heart also becomes filled with good upon the banishment of the yeitzer hora. Thus, he is always happy, always filled with simcha. This person is able to appreciate that everything Hashem does is for the good and there is no “ra,” something that other people will only see in the World to Come.

This lies at the core of the Purim miracle, which was the defeat of Amaleik, who is at the root of the yeitzer hora, as it says in the Zohar. At the time, everyone appreciated that all that Hashem does is for the good, because they had feared what would happen as a result of Haman’s decree. They realized that without Haman’s decree, it would not have been possible for Esther to ask Achashveirosh to destroy Amaleik and kill the citizens of his nation. The decree caused the Jewish people to overcome their enemies, and thus they saw that “hakol letovah,” everything that Hashem does is for the good. The evil decree itself was their salvation.

This is why the Rama quotes the posuk from Mishlei, for someone who lives in this world with a “tov leiv,” meaning the understanding that everything Hashem does is for the good, does not become depressed when things don’t go the way he thinks they should. Rather, he knows that everything is designed from Above and will turn out in a positive fashion.

We get to that level only by increasing our study of Torah, for only with Torah and teshuvah can we defeat Amaleik. We cannot beat him with conventional arms and battle plans. Studying Torah and performing its mitzvos properly and with diligence purifies our hearts and souls and brings us closer to Hashem. Look at the people who do nothing but learn Torah and you see pure souls and good hearts. Each one is a leiv tov who is one with his Creator and always b’simcha.

When you encounter someone like that, with the sublime smile on his face and satisfaction in his heart, know that it is in his zechus that the world exists, that we exist, and that it will be in his zechus that Amaleik will be defeated.

Know one more thing: You can also be like him. There is nothing preventing anyone reading this column from becoming a leiv tov, who only sees good and who is one with Hashem. That is the lesson of Purim. Look around and see Hashem everywhere. See the good. See the good people and become one yourself so that you will be good and happy.

May we merit vanquishing all of our enemies and all who want to do us harm, and beating Amaleik very soon.

Ah freilichen Purim.

Open the Door

In this week’s parsha of Pekudei, the posuk states, “All the work necessary for the Mishkon was completed, as the Jewish people did everything Hashem commanded through Moshe. They then brought the Mishkon to Moshe, the tent and all its utensils...” (Shemos 39:32-33).

Rashi (ibid.) quotes the Medrash Tanchuma, which explains that the people brought the Mishkon and all its keilim to Moshe because when they had finished constructing everything, they were not able to set up the Mishkon. The keroshim were too heavy to be lifted into place.

How was this accomplished? Hashem told Moshe that he should lift the heavy wooden beams. Moshe demurred, saying that it was physically impossible to stand them up. Hashem told Moshe, “Get to work with your hands. Act as if you are lifting them and they will lift themselves.”

The Medrash, in essence, is answering an enduring question. Often, we see a completed enterprise, a difficult plan that is realized, and we marvel: How could one person, or even a few people, manage to erect such a massive organization or building? From where did they get the strength to erect that edifice? Who was bright enough to devise that plan?

Chazal reveal the answers to these questions. When man accepts responsibility, rolls up his sleeves, and is prepared to do the work that is necessary, Hashem enables the impossible to happen.

Hashem completes man’s efforts. We start with good intentions and He brings our efforts to fruition.

Learning this Rashi led me to contemplate the wonderful work of so many individuals and organizations that have impacted our world more than anyone thought possible.

The visionaries blazed trails, setting for themselves very high goals. Upon seeing their commitment, the Ribbono Shel Olam assisted them in completing their visions.

A community rov went to the Chazon Ish looking for encouragement. He wanted to build a mikvah and was about to embark on a campaign giving speeches around town about the importance of having a local mikvah. He wanted the Chazon Ish’s brocha for his speeches to go over well.

The Chazon Ish told him instead that a thousand drashos about the importance of mikvah don’t accomplish as much as a beautiful, spacious mikvah.

“Get to work,” he told him.

The Chazon Ish instructed the rov to start building and promised to help, sending a representative to America to raise funds. They began construction, but the project dragged on.

Neighborhood residents went to the Chazon Ish, asking if they could begin using the facility before the construction was completed.

He answered in the negative and explained his reasoning. “This mikvah isn’t only for you and the other frum families in the area,” he said. “This mikvah is being built for the future as well and for families who are not yet religious. We need to make sure that the building will be done right, so that it will be attractive to them.”

Towards the end of his life, a weakened Rav Avrohom Pam told a Shuvu parlor meeting audience how a group of parents from Acco had heard about Shuvu and wanted a school for their children. Shuvu was having a hard enough time keeping up with its existing schools, and the administration wondered how they could undertake the opening and maintenance of yet another one.

The elderly rosh yeshiva banged on the shtender and said, “One-hundred-and-fifty parents want a Torah school for their children! How can we say no? There is no cheshbon in the world that can allow us to say no to these parents.”

Rav Pam was extremely frail. That night, he was quiet, gentle and soft, but he displayed the force and determination that have helped us persevere in golus. With all the strength left in his ailing body, Rav Pam emphatically declared, “There will be a Shuvu school in Acco and the Shechinah will be in that school.”

It breaks your heart to see the masses of kids out there waiting for us to reach them. There are so many people who will never know the brocha of a Torah way of life simply because there isn’t enough money to open additional schools and spread the Shechinah further. With pennies, their souls can be saved for eternity.

The Torah recounts that prior to selling him into slavery, Yosef’s brothers threw him into an empty pit. The posuk tells us that the pit was empty of water. Rashi famously adds that although the pit was empty of water, “mayim ein bo, aval nechoshim ve’akrabim yeish bo,” it was filled with poisonous snakes and scorpions.

The Vilna Gaon explains that this is the rule in life. In the absence of mayim, positive forces, nechoshim ve’akrabim, negative forces, take over.

Moshiach, we know, is rapidly approaching. But his arrival is up to us and how hard we work to rid the world of nechoshim ve’akrabim, all negative forces out there. There is much we can do on our own, but a most productive way to bring about the necessary changes is to join with others who seek to fill the world with an ocean of mayim, a sea of emunah and yedias Hashem. The opportunities are everywhere.

The world is like a desert, bare and parched, but a little bit of water can cure a long drought. Millions of Jews are dying of thirst. We have the water. Why aren’t we giving it to them? Why don’t we care about the people who lack the water of Torah? Why don’t we do more to help organizations and people who dedicate themselves to bringing them bottles of water to whet their appetites and satiate their thirst for meaning.

Rav Pam’s message is as valid now as it was when he delivered it so many years ago. This past Sunday, Shuvu held its annual dinner. Hundreds of people gathered to demonstrate that Rav Pam’s message still rings in their ears and motivates them to help Shuvu introduce more children and families to Torah.

But the problem back then is the same problem now. Money.

During the war years, Mike Tress would go around begging people for money. He would tell them, “All it costs to save a Jewish life is $100. Please help me help them.” Some people responded generously to his request, and he was able to save many lives. He brought them to these shores and set them up and helped them go on to lead fine, productive Yiddishe lives, giving birth to generations of ehrliche Yidden.

As an outgrowth of the terrible attack on October 7^th, secular Jews are looking for tangible ways to connect to Hashem and His Torah. People who never davened or kept any mitzvos have accepted upon themselves to wear tzitzis, put on tefillin, learn Torah, observe Shabbos, and bring themselves closer to Yiddishkeit.

Tiny embers flickering in thousands of lost souls have begun igniting small flames. It would be a great tragedy if we allow them to flame out.

We may not know why Hashem brought the terrible tragedy upon us at the end of Sukkos, but we can be sure that Hashem wants us to help those lost people find their way to Him.

There is a unique opportunity now to do just that.

In the days before electric door openers, a school bus driver and bus supervisor went to Rav Bentzion Abba-Shaul for a din Torah. They were fighting over whose job it was to open the door to let children on and off the bus.

The driver said that he had to concentrate on driving and couldn’t be busy getting out of his seat to open the door each time to let on a boy and to let him off at yeshiva.

The supervisor said that he had to make sure that the children were in their seats, and every time he went to open the door, the children moved around.

The chacham listened to their arguments and asked them a question: “How much does the honor of pesicha for Ne’ilah go for in your shul on Yom Kippur?”

“Thousands of shekolim,” they answered.

“Know this,” Rav Abba-Shaul said to the disputants. “Every time you open the door for a boy going to learn Torah, you are opening the aron kodesh. And you don’t have to pay for the honor. You should each want to be the one to open the door and get the zechut.”

If people who get inspired and begin performing certain mitzvos don’t send their children to a Torah school, the inspiration will likely be short-lived, as they revert to their previous behavior. When a child attends a Torah school, the child is changed, his neshomah comes alive, and he goes home and educates the family about what it means to be a Torah Jew.

Thanks to outside support, all it costs now to register a new child to be educated in the Shuvu school system is $1,200 a year. For most of us, that is a lot of money, but in the greater scheme of things, it’s a bargain, besides the fact that a Jewish neshomah is worth a lot more than $1,200.

The guarantee of a Jewish future for a child and their family is worth a lot more than $1,200.

We don’t have to give the full amount. Each person can give what they can afford and know that they didn’t miss out on an historic opportunity. Each Jew has a responsibility to other Jews. We are all obligated to do what we can to help each other spiritually and physically. Right now, we have a historic opportunity to help people who were perhaps previously unreachable make their way to lives of Torah and mitzvos. Let us not miss our chance.

There are other ways that we can help people. Read the Yated’s Chinuch Roundtable this week and feel the pain of good boys and girls who are not accepted into yeshivos, schools and seminaries for reasons that have nothing to do with them not trying their hardest and doing their best to live blessed lives. Feel the pain of their parents, who are shattered along with their children. Who are they to turn to? They need us to feel their pain and to help them push on so that they and their children can continue to live happy, wholesome Torah lives.

Life is so complicated these days and so many people have difficulty dealing with the many challenges. We need to be there for them, whether by listening, guiding or motivating them. We can inspire them to bring Hashem into their lives and think about how Hashem wants them to react to what is bothering them. We can encourage them to learn the sefer Chovos Halevavos, which teaches us how to live happy, proper lives. And if the Hebrew is too hard for you, there are plenty of translations available. And if you want one with extra spice that you can relate to, try the one with the commentary of Rav Avigdor Miller in English.

Good people feel empty and deep down are unhappy. Speak to them, cheer them up, and give them ideas of how they can introduce meaning and a sense of fulfillment into their lives. It will help them and it will help you.

The list of good causes is endless, and although we each have our own issues and are quite busy, we can help.

Show that you care and Hashem will help you with the rest.

Look at the great people of our nation and what they built and accomplished. Each one of them could have said that the hard work involved was not for them. They were too old or burdened, or didn’t have what it took to undertake such responsibility. But Hashem was part of their life, and they did what they knew He wanted them to do. They ignored the naysayers and the reasons to say no, and they did what had to be done to help and to build Yiddishkeit.

One of those heroic builders of Torah was Rav Yosef Shlomo Kahaneman, the Ponovezher Rov. Old and weighed down by the tragedy of the Holocaust, he went to Eretz Yisroel determined to recreate the world that was destroyed. He traveled the world raising funds to build and then maintain the yeshiva.

When Rav Chaim Leib Auerbach needed a speaker to motivate people to donate money to stave off the closure of his yeshiva, Shaar Hashomayim in Yerushalayim, he turned to Rav Kahaneman.

The rov made a special trip to be at the yeshiva’s emergency dinner and delivered a rousing speech about emunah, bitachon and love of Torah. The directors of the yeshiva were very upset. “For this we brought you all the way here to speak?” they told him. “We are desperate for money. We were expecting a moving appeal from the master fundraiser.”

The rov answered them, “I am not a good fundraiser. I do not know how to raise money. What I have is emunah that Hashem will help me maintain the yeshivos I established. The love of Torah that burns in my soul motivates me to travel from one end of the world to the other. These are my fundraising tools, so I shared them with your crowd.”

In all that we do and all that we accomplish, in good times and not such good times, the secret to survival and success is emunah, bitachon and the siyata diShmaya they engender. Let us all strengthen ourselves in those areas and display true achdus by showing that we care about others, so that we can each do our part in preparing the world for the coming of Moshiach speedily in our day.

The Secret of Happiness

By Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz

This Shabbos, we announce the arrival of the second month of Adar, granting us another opportunity to take advantage of the obligation to increase our joy as Adar arrives.

Although the obligation of “mishenichnas Adar marbim b’simcha” is only mentioned in the Gemara (Taanis 29a) and is not cited in Shulchan Aruch, it is set forth universally in seforim, which discuss this period of the year, and is commonly accepted by all.

Yet, while many discuss the obligation, less discussed is what it entails. Marbim b’simcha. It seems so easy. Be happier. Who doesn’t want to be happier? But when you begin to think about it, the obligation gets complicated.

If we are to be happier with the advent of Adar, that means that we were supposed to be happy before this month came along. It’s just that now, we get happier. But we wonder: How happy were we supposed to be before Adar and how much happier are we supposed to be now during Adar?

The bigger question is that everyone has problems. Everyone has things that aren’t going the way they wanted or planned. How are they expected to be happy when things aren’t going the way they would like them to? And what is a person supposed to do to be happier? Is it really that simple? Adar comes and all our problems disappear? Just like that, we are happier or at least happy?

Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv was asked how joy is increased during Adar. He answered that it is accomplished through the study of Torah, as the posuk (Tehillim 19:9) states, “Pikudei Hashem yeshorim mesamchei lev. The laws of Hashem are just; they gladden the heart.”

The questioner pressed him that the obligation to study Torah is extant a whole year, not just during Adar. He responded that during Adar, there is an obligation to increase our Torah study and not to occupy ourselves with things that lead to sadness.

In his later years, the Ponovezher Rov was old and sick. Although he suffered a lot, the rov kept up his schedule traveling the world, raising money for his beloved yeshiva. Someone asked him where he derives the energy to work so hard from. How is he always so happy, seemingly never tiring as he goes from place to place and person to person asking for help to keep his yeshiva going?

The rov shared his secret.

“Many years ago,” he began, “when I was a very young boy, on Purim, my parents would send mishloach manos to the rov of our shtetel. Every year, my mother would bake a special cake for the rov and rebbetzin, and we would bring it to them together with a bottle of wine. I had a few brothers. My father would hold a raffle to choose which one of us would have the honor of delivering the mishloach manos.

“One evening before Purim, my father came home and was very happy. He said, ‘Every year, the mishloach manos that we send to our beloved rov and rebbetzin is basically from Mama. She bakes the cake, which is the main component of the package. This year, I will be contributing something meaningful!’

“He told us that a seforim peddler had come to town with a bunch of seforim for sale. He perused them on the table outside of the shul, and lo and behold, he saw there a Gemara Bava Basra from the Vilna Shas. In those days, barely anyone owned a complete Shas, let alone the beautiful Vilna edition, and even to have a single Vilna volume was a big deal. My father bought the Gemara to give to the rov on Purim. He was so happy, he was dancing.

“My brother won the raffle to bring the rov the cake and wine, and I was honored with carrying that heavy Gemara and giving it to the rov. As soon as I handed it to the rov and told him that it was mishloach manos from my father, he broke out in a wide smile. He held the Gemara high, as if it were a Sefer Torah, and began singing songs and dancing around the table with it, as if it was Simchas Torah.

“My brother and I stood on the side with the rebbetzin, watching in awe as he danced and sang with supreme happiness. We had never seen anyone as happy as he was. When he finished, he asked the rebbetzin if she would agree to serve the seudah an hour later than planned so that he could go into his room and study from the Gemara. ‘That will be your mishloach manos to me,’ he said to her. She readily agreed. He once again picked up the Gemara and began dancing.”

The Ponovezher Rov recalled, “I was but a child of nine years old and had no concept of why the Gemara caused the wise rov to be so happy, but I made up my mind then and there that if Torah can make the rov, who the town awesomely respected, that happy, I was going to dedicate my life to studying - and increasing the study of - Torah.”

The secret of happiness, the secret of satisfaction, the secret of accomplishment, is rooted in Torah. The more we learn, the happier and more fulfilled we are.

Also, perhaps we can add that by increasing our study of Torah, we strengthen our connection to Hashem, and the more connected to Hashem we are, the stronger our emunah and bitachon are. As we increase our emunah and bitachon, we become happier because we understand that everything that happened and happens to us is from Hashem and is for our betterment.

Even when Hashem afflicts us with something, it is because He seeks something from us.

The Chazon Ish once told Rav Shmuel Wosner that when a person becomes ill and davens, saying Tehillim and asking Hashem to heal him, and then he recovers, he thinks that his tefillos are what healed him.

This is the wrong way to view it, he said.

The correct way to understand what happened is that the person who was sick was doing well with his life, but he forgot Hashem. As the posuk says, “Vayishmon Yeshurun vayivot shomanta oviso… vayitosh Eloka osohu.”

Hashem wanted to remind the person to remember Him, so He made him sick, causing him to return to Hashem and daven. When the person returns to Hashem and davens, there is no longer a reason for him to be sick, so the sickness leaves him.

The more we learn, and the closer we become to Hashem, the more we can appreciate that what is happening to us is not a cause for sadness, but rather a stimulus to improvement and joy.

Therefore, bitachon causes us to be happy when others are sad, and joyous when things don’t go the way we want.

Alef. Bais. Gimmel. The two months of Adar, Adar Alef and Adar Bais, lead to the geulah of Chodesh Nissan.

Mishenichnas Adar marbim besimcha. Step by step, we grow in our appreciation of the truths of life and thus develop the ability to be truly joyous.

People have many tzaros. They wonder why they suffer from illness, parnossah challenges, tuition bills, shidduchim difficulties, and so much more. They wonder why they are being challenged. Why me? Why is this all happening? What is the purpose? How will it all end?

When Adar comes and we learn more and are closer to Hashem, our bitachon is strengthened. And when things don’t go according to plan, we are comforted by the knowledge that we will live to see the purpose in all the sadness that we experienced. We begin to view life as a giant jigsaw puzzle, with pieces of all shapes, sizes and colors coming together, and when fit correctly, they form a beautiful picture. This realization brings us relief and joy.

The Ponovezher Rov further enlightens us about what we should be doing during these rough times of ikvesa d’Meshicha, as the nations of the world push us to lose an existential war against the forces of evil.

The Gemara in Megillah (16) states that when Haman followed the orders of Achashveirosh and went to fetch Mordechai to dress him, place him upon a royal horse, and parade him through the streets of Shushan, Haman found him in the bais medrash. Mordechai was sitting there surrounded by other talmidei chachomim, showing them how to perform the kemitzah required for the korban mincha.

Haman asked what they were discussing. They explained to him that when the Bais Hamikdosh is in existence, a kemitzah size of flour is offered as a korban and it forgives the sinner.

The wicked Haman was astounded and responded to them that their small kemitzah size of flour has the ability to push away his ten thousand kikars of silver.

The Rov explained that Haman had constructed the tall gallows and let it be known that he was going to hang Mordechai from it. He was sure that when he would arrive at the Jewish study hall, the Jews inside wouldn’t be studying. Rather, they would be fretting and crying over the impending death of their leader, Mordechai.

Instead, when he walked in, he saw the rabbis hunched around Mordechai, discussing the intricacies of the laws pertaining to something they couldn’t even do at the present time because they didn’t have the Bais Hamikdosh.

Astounded, he asked the children there what the laws of korban ha’omer had to do with a Jew dying al kiddush Hashem. They told him that the two had no connection. They explained that the Jews believe that Hashem will soon bring them their salvation. The Bais Hamikdosh will be rebuilt and we will resume bringing korbanos. It was those laws that they were studying.

The Ponovezher Rov explained that Haman said that Jews who know that they are about to be killed are not only not in mourning, and are not only not preparing for their death, but are so trusting of their G-d that they study intricate laws pertaining to their temple, believing that G-d will rescue them and they will rebuild their holy sanctuary.

And so has it been throughout the ages, said the rov, who had lived through the Holocaust and lost everything that he held dear. Despite what the nations of the world have done to us, despite all the horrible deaths, pogroms, deprivation and tyrannical laws, through it all we have maintained our faith in Hashem, and our hope for the imminent arrival of Moshiach remains strong at all times.

And what do we do? How do we spend our time? Studying Torah, the essence of our existence.

When we are attacked by savages, when the civilized nations of the world support the barbarians and condemn us for seeking to defend ourselves and rid the world of the plague of vile monsters and their paymasters, we need not fear the outcome.

We do not become broken, because we maintain our faith in Hashem. We don’t wallow in self-pity. Rather, we rededicate ourselves to Torah, because it rejuvenates us and brings us happiness and life.

We know that the story will end well. We know that it is all a preparation for the arrival of Moshiach very soon. And until that happens, we are suffused with the spirit of Adar, continuing to daven for the Jews of Eretz Yisroel, for ourselves, for our friends and neighbors, and for all of Klal Yisroel.

May we all be zoche to much happiness and the geulah sheleimah bekarov.