Weekly Cycle



Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Book 5 in a Nutshell


Song of Songs
Seventy Souls 

Talmud, Shevuos
Book of Jeremiah
Rosh Hashanah
1. The Song of Songs, which is Solomon's.
2. "Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth, for your love is better than wine.
3. Because of the fragrance of your goodly oils, your name is 'oil poured forth.' Therefore, the maidens loved you.

Reuven
Portion of Shevuos Torah reading

Chapter 1
Yom Kippur
4. Draw me, we will run after you; the king brought me to his chambers. We will rejoice and be glad in you. We will recall your love more fragrant than wine; they have loved you sincerely.

5. I am black but comely, O daughters of Jerusalem! Like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon.

6. Do not look upon me [disdainfully] because I am swarthy, for the sun has gazed upon me; my mother's sons were incensed against me; they made me a keeper of the vineyards; my own vineyard I did not keep.

Hanoch
2
Chapter 2
Sukkot
7. Tell me, you whom my soul loves, where do you feed, where do you rest [the flocks] at noon, for why should I be like one who veils herself beside the flocks of your companions?"

8. "If you do not know, O fairest of women, go your way in the footsteps of the flocks and pasture your kids beside the shepherds' dwellings.

9. At the gathering of the steeds of Pharaoh's chariots have I silenced you, my beloved.

Pallu
3
Chapter 3
Shemini Atzeret
10. Your cheeks are comely with rows, your neck with necklaces.                     
11. We will make you rows of gold with studs of silver."            

12. "While the king was still at his table, my spikenard gave forth its fragrance.

Hezron
4
Chapter 4
Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan
13. A bundle of myrrh is my beloved to me; between my breasts he shall lie.                     

14. A cluster of henna-flowers is my beloved to me, in the vineyards of Ein-Gedi."           

15. "Behold, you are comely, my beloved; behold, you are comely; your eyes are like doves."
               

Carmi

5
Chapter 5
First Week of Cheshvan
(Potential 3rd Temple Holiday)
16. "Behold, you are comely, my beloved, yea pleasant; also our couch is leafy.

17. The beams of our houses are cedars; our corridors are cypresses."

1. "I am a rose of Sharon, a rose of the valleys."

Simeon
6
Chapter 6
Second Week of Cheshvan
(3rd Temple)

2. "As a rose among the thorns, so is my beloved among the daughters."                                               
3. "As an apple tree among the trees of the forest, so is my beloved among the sons; in his shade I delighted and sat, and his fruit was sweet to my palate.                                           
4. He brought me to the banquet hall, and his attraction to me [was symbolic of his] love.

Jemuel
7
Chapter 7
Third Week of Cheshvan
(3rd Temple)
5. Sustain me with flagons of wine, spread my bed with apples, for I am lovesick.

6. His left hand was under my head, and his right hand would embrace me.

7. I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the hinds of the field, that you neither awaken nor arouse the love while it is desirous.


Jamin
8
Chapter 8
Fourth Week of Chesvan or Rosh Chodesh Kislev
8. The sound of my beloved! Behold, he is coming, skipping over the mountains, jumping over the hills.

9. My beloved resembles a gazelle or a fawn of the hinds; behold, he is standing behind our wall, looking from the windows, peering from the lattices.

10. My beloved raised his voice and said to me, 'Arise, my beloved, my fair one, and come away.

Ohad
9
Chapter 9
Rosh Chodesh Kislev or 1st week
11. For behold, the winter has passed; the rain is over and gone.  

12. The blossoms have appeared in the land, the time of singing has arrived, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.   

13. The fig tree has put forth its green figs, and the vines with their tiny grapes have given forth their fragrance; arise, my beloved, my fair one, and come away.:

Jachin
10
Chapter 10
Yud Kislev

14. My dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the coverture of the steps, show me your appearance, let me hear your voice, for your voice is pleasant and your appearance is comely.'
15. Seize for us the foxes, the little foxes, who destroy the vineyards, for our vineyards are with tiny grapes.
16. My beloved is mine, and I am his, who grazes among the roses.

Zohar
11
Chapter 11
Yud Tet Kislev
17. Until the sun spreads, and the shadows flee, go around; liken yourself, my beloved, to a gazelle or to a fawn of the hinds, on distant mountains."

1. On my bed at night, I sought him whom my soul loves; I sought him but I did not find him.
 
2. I will arise now and go about the city, in the market places and in the city squares. I will seek him whom my soul loves; I sought him, but I did not find him.

And he prostrated himself there to the Lord.
Saul the son of the Canaanitess
12
Chapter 12
Chanukah
3. The watchmen who patrol the city found me: "Have you seen him whom my soul loves?"
4. I had just passed them by, when I found him whom my soul loves; I held him and would not let him go, until I brought him into my mother's house and into the chamber of her who had conceived me.
5. I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles or by the hinds of the field, that you neither awaken nor arouse the love while it is desirous.

Levi
13
Chapter 13
Chanukah/Rosh Chodesh Tevet
6. Who is this coming up from the desert, like columns of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, of all the powder of the peddler?

7. Behold the litter of Solomon; sixty mighty men are around it, of the mighty men of Israel.

8. They all hold the sword, skilled in warfare; each one with his sword on his thigh because of fear at night.

Gershon
14
Chapter 14
10th of Tevet
9. King Solomon made himself a palanquin of the trees of Lebanon.

10. Its pillars he made of silver, its couch of gold, its curtain of purple, its interior inlaid with love, from the daughters of Jerusalem.

11. Go out, O daughters of Zion, and gaze upon King Solomon, upon the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his nuptials and on the day of the joy of his heart.

Kehath
15
Chapter 15
Third Week of Tevet
1. "Behold, you are fair, my beloved; behold, you are fair; your eyes are [like] doves, from within your kerchief; your hair is like a flock of goats that streamed down from Mount Gilead.

2. Your teeth are like a flock of uniformly shaped [ewes] that came up from the washing, all of whom are perfect, and there is no bereavement among them.

3. Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your speech is comely; your temple is like a split pomegranate from within your kerchief.

Merari
16
Chapter 16
Fourth Week of Tevet
4. Your neck is like the Tower of David, built as a model; a thousand shields hanging on it, all the quivers of the mighty men.

5. Your two breasts are like two fawns, the twins of a gazelle, who graze among the roses.

6. Until the sun spreads and the shadows flee, I will go to the mountain of myrrh and to the hill of frankincense.
  
Yocheved
17
Chapter 17
Rosh Chodesh Shvat
7. You are all fair, my beloved, and there is no blemish in you.

8. With me from Lebanon, my bride, with me from Lebanon shall you come; you shall look from the peak of Amanah, from the peak of Senir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from mountains of leopards.

9. You have captivated my heart, my sister, [my] bride; you have captivated my heart with one of your eyes, with one link of your necklaces.

Judah
18
Chapter 18
Yud Shvat

10. How fair is your love, my sister, [my] bride; how much better is your love than wine, and the fragrance of your oils than all spices!

11. Your lips drip flowing honey, O bride; honey and milk are under your tongue, and the fragrance of your garments is like the fragrance of Lebanon.

12. A locked up garden is my sister, [my] bride; a locked up spring, a sealed fountain.
               
Shelah
19
Chapter 19
Tu B'Shvat
13. Your arid fields are as a pomegranate orchard with sweet fruit, henna and spikenard.

14. Spikenard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with all frankincense trees, myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices.

15. A garden fountain, a well of living waters and flowing streams from Lebanon."

Perez
20
Chapter 20
Fourth Week of Shvat

16. "Awake, O north wind, and come, O south wind; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out; let my beloved come to his garden and eat his sweet fruit."                                
1. "I have come to my garden, my sister, [my] bride; I have gathered my myrrh with my spice, I have eaten my sugar cane with my sugar, I have drunk my wine with my milk. Eat, friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, beloved ones."                                                                   
2. "I sleep, but my heart is awake. Hark! My beloved is knocking: Open for me, my sister, my beloved, my dove, my perfect one, for my head is full of dew, my locks with the drops of the night."                           
Zerah
21
Chapter 21
Rosh Chodesh Adar

3. "I have taken off my tunic; how can I put it on? I have bathed my feet; how can I soil them?"

4. My beloved stretched forth his hand from the hole, and my insides stirred because of him.

5. I arose to open for my beloved, and my hands dripped with myrrh, and my fingers with flowing myrrh, upon the handles of the lock.

Hezron
22
Chapter 22
First Week of Adar
6. I opened for my beloved, but my beloved had hidden and was gone; my soul went out when he spoke; I sought him, but found him not; I called him, but he did not answer me.

7. The watchmen who patrol the city found me; they smote me and wounded me; the watchmen of the walls took my jewelry off me.

8. "I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if you find my beloved, what will you tell him? That I am lovesick."

Hamul
23
Chapter 23
Purim

9. "What is your beloved more than another beloved, O fairest of women? What is your beloved more than another beloved, that you have so adjured us?"

10. "My beloved is white and ruddy, surrounded by myriads.

11. His head is as the finest gold; his locks are curled, [they are as] black as a raven.

Issachar
24
Chapter 24
Third Week of Adar

12. His eyes are like doves beside rivulets of water, bathing in milk, fitly set.

13. His jaws are like a bed of spice, growths of aromatic plants; his lips are [like] roses, dripping with flowing myrrh.

14. His hands are [like] wheels of gold, set with chrysolite; his abdomen is [as] a block of ivory, overlaid with sapphires.

Tola
25
Chapter 25
Rosh Chodesh Nissan

15. His legs are [as] pillars of marble, founded upon sockets of fine gold, his appearance is like the Lebanon, chosen as the cedars.               

16. His palate is sweet, and he is altogether desirable; this is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem."                        
1. "Where has your beloved gone, O fairest of women? Where has your beloved turned, that we may seek him with you?"   

Puvvah
26
Chapter 26
First Week of Nissan
2. "My beloved has gone down to his garden, to the spice beds, to graze in the gardens and to gather roses.

3. I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine, who grazes among the roses."

4. "You are fair, my beloved, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, awesome as the bannered legions.

Iob
27
Chapter 27
First Day of Pessach
5. Turn away your eyes from me, for they have made me haughty; your hair is like a flock of goats that streamed down from Gilead.                                

6. Your teeth are like a flock of ewes that came up from the washing, all of which are perfect and there is no bereavement among them.

7. Your temple is like a split pomegranate from beneath your kerchief.

Shimron
28
Chapter 28
Pessach
8. There are sixty queens and eighty concubines, and innumerable maidens.

9. My dove, my perfect one, is but one; she is one to her mother, she is the pure one of she who bore her; daughters saw her and praised her, queens and concubines, and they lauded her;

10. Who is this who looks forth like the dawn, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, awesome as the bannered legions?"

Zebulun
29
Chapter 29
Fourth Week of Nissan
11. "I went down to the nut garden to see the green plants of the valley, to see whether the vine had blossomed, the pomegranates were in bloom.                  
12. I did not know; my soul made me chariots for a princely people."                               
1. "Return, return, O Shulammite; return, return, and let us gaze upon you." "What will you see for the Shulammite, as in the dance of the two camps?

Sered
30
Chapter 30
Rosh Chodesh Iyar/ 5 de Iyar
2. How fair are your feet in sandals, O daughter of nobles! The curves of your thighs are like jewels, the handiwork of a craftsman.

3. Your navel is [like] a round basin, where no mixed wine is lacking; your belly is [like] a stack of wheat, fenced in with roses.

4. Your two breasts are like two fawns, the twins of a gazelle.

Elon
31
Chapter 31
Second Week of Iyar

5. Your neck is like an ivory tower; your eyes are [like] pools in Heshbon, by the gate of Bath-Rabbim; your face is as the tower of Lebanon, facing towards Damascus.

6. Your head upon you is like Carmel, and the braided locks of your head are like purple; the king is bound in the tresses.

7. How fair and how pleasant you are, a love with delights!

Jahleel

32
Chapter 32
Pessach Sheini/ Lag Ba’Omer
8. This, your stature, is like a palm tree, and your breasts are like clusters [of dates].

9. I said: Let me climb up the palm tree, let me seize its boughs, and let your breasts be now like clusters of the vine and the fragrance of your countenance like [that of] apples.
               
Dinah
Asenath daughter of Poti-phera Chife of On
33
Chapter 33
Fourth Week of Iyar
10. And your palate is like the best wine, that glides down smoothly to my beloved, making the lips of the sleeping speak."

Gad
Menasheh
34
Chapter 34
Rosh Chodesh Sivan/ Yom Yerushalayim
11. "I am my beloved's, and his desire is upon me.


Ziphion

Ephraim
35
Chapter 35
Shavuot
12. Come, my beloved, let us go out to the field, let us lodge in the villages.

Haggi
Bela
36
Chapter 36
Third Week of Sivan
13. Let us arise early to the vineyards; let us see whether the vine has blossomed, the tiny grapes have developed, the pomegranates have lost their flowers; there I will give you my love.


Shuni
Becher
37
Chapter 37
Fourth Week of Sivan
14. The pots [of figs] have given forth [their] fragrance, and on our doorways are all manner of sweet fruits, both new and old, which I have hidden away for you, my beloved."


Ezbon
Ashbel

38
Chapter 38
Rosh Chodesh Tammuz
1. "O, that you were like my brother, who sucked my mother's breasts! I would find you outside, I would kiss you, and they would not despise me.  

Eri
Gera
39
Chapter 39
Second Week of Tammuz
2. I would lead you, I would bring you to the house of my mother, who instructed me; I would give you to drink some spiced wine, of the juice of my pomegranate.    

Arodi
Naaman
40
Chapter 40
12,13 of Tammuz/ 17 of Tammuz
3. His left hand would be under my head, and his right hand would embrace me.
 
Areli
Ehi

41
Chapter 41
Fourth Week of Tammuz
4. I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem; why should you awaken, and why should you arouse the love until it is desirous?"

Asher
Rosh
42
Chapter 42
Rosh Chodesh Av
5. "Who is this coming up from the desert, embracing her beloved?" "Under the apple tree I aroused you; there your mother was in travail with you; there she that bore you was in travail."

Imnah
Muppim
43
Chapter 43
Tisha B'Av
6. "Place me like a seal on your heart, liked a seal on your arm, for love is as strong as death, zeal is as strong as the grave; its coals are coals of fire of a great flame!
Ishvah
Huppim
44
Chapter 44
Tu B'Av
7. Many waters cannot quench the love, nor can rivers flood it; should a man give all the property of his house for love, they would despise him.

Ishvi
Ard
45
Chapter 45
Third Week of Av
8. We have a little sister who has no breasts; what shall we do for our sister on the day she is spoken for?

Briah
Dan
46
Chapter 46
Rosh Chodesh Elul
9. If she be a wall, we will build upon her a silver turret, and if she be a door, we will enclose her with cedar boards.

Serah
Hushim
47
Chapter 47
First Week of Elul
10. I am a wall, and my breasts are like towers, then I was in his eyes as one who finds peace.

Heber
Naftali
48
Chapter 48
Second Week of Elul
11. Solomon had a vineyard in Baal-Hamon; he gave the vineyard to the keepers; each one brought for the fruit thereof one thousand pieces of silver.

Malkiel
Jahze’el
49
Chapter 49
Chai Elul
12. My vineyard, which is mine, is before me; you, O Solomon, shall have the thousand, and those who watch its fruit, two hundred.

Rachel
Guni
Makkoth
2 - 8
Chapter 50
Fourth Week of Elul/Slichot
13. You, who sit in the gardens the friends hearken to your voice; let me hear [it].

Joseph
Yezer
Makkoth
9 – 16
Chapter 51
Slichot/Rosh Hashanah
14. Flee, my beloved, and liken yourself to a gazelle or to a fawn of the hinds on the spice mountains."1. A song of ascents about Solomon

Benjamin

Shilem
Makkoth
17 - 24
Chapter 52

B”H
 ותצחק רחל די

Book 4b

The second part of Bamidbar is about a darker side of exile. It’s about wandering in the desert, being so close to Hashem that sometimes it hurts; feeling so far from Hashem that it hurts even more. The tests of exile bring about tremendous tragedy; yet they also reveal our true nature, our Divine Essence. As much as Bamidbar is about seeing things spiritually and connecting to our essence, it’s also about connecting to the power of words, of prayer. That is the root of the very word Midbar (desert): Davar, the spoken word. It takes going through Bamidbar (Numbers) to get to Devarim (Deuteronomy), which literally means, “words.” The sets of 52 explored in this text are as follows:

The Song of Songs (Shir HaShirim) encapsulates the stresses and longings of exile more than any other work in the Tanach. Perhaps that is why Rabbi Akiva stated that if the entire Tanach is holy, the Song of Songs is the “Holy of Holies.” The work expresses tremendous longing for Hashem: tremendous remorse over the sins that caused Him to distance Himself, and the longing for they day we will return to Him.

The first description of collective exile in the Torah is the description of the seventy souls (descendants of Jacob) that descended into Egypt. Each one of the souls contains an essential aspect of the Jewish people, and also of that particular week in the Jewish calendar.

The Tractate of Shevuos, which like the Tractate of Sotah, contains 49 folios and is studied during the Counting the Omer, is all about the power of words.


The Book of Jeremiah, which has 52 chapters, describes one of the greatest tragedies  to befall the Jewish people: the fall of the First Temple. Yet, within what appear to be an extremely sobering and bleak descriptions, there is also a glimmer of light and many references to the deep and unbreakable connection between G-d and the Jewish people. Also, the example of Jeremiah himself, his prayers, inner strength, and his impeccable behavior during this time, are a source of great inspiration.

Sunday, December 27, 2015

Week 1 (Book 5): Song of Songs and Reuven, Oaths and Jeremiah

Week 1:

1. The Song of Songs, which is Solomon's.

2. "Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth, for your love is better than wine.
3. Because of the fragrance of your goodly oils, your name is 'oil poured forth.' Therefore, the maidens loved you.

Reuven

Shevuoth (Torah verses)

Book of Jeremiah: Chapter 1

Week 1 in the Jewish calendar is the week of Rosh Hashanah. Rosh Hashanah is literally the “head of the year,” a day that encompasses all days of the years.  The Song of Songs means the song that excels all songs – perhaps also the song that encompasses all songs; Rosh Hashana is the day that excels all days – it encompasses all days).

It is also known that every “Shlomoh” in Shir HaShirim is a reference to G-d. Solomon is the king; Rosh Hashanah is the day in which we make Hashem the King. Solomon also means “peace is his.” On Rosh Hashanah, we know that everything, including peace in our lives, is in the hands of Hashem. (Think of uNetaneh Tokef).

The second verse for this week makes reference to the closeness of the days of awe. (The verse “Search for him when He is close” is a reference to the days of awe.  The third verse, which speaks of “oil poured forth,” is a reference to how Hashem’s actions towards the Jewish people give forth a scent felt throughout the entire world, and that is why the “maidens” (the gentile nations) love Him as well. On Rosh Hashanah, all mankind is judged, not just the Jewish people, and the nations sense this to some extent. On Rosh Hashanah we recognize that He is King over the entire universe, including all of humanity. Wine and oil are signs of physical blessing received on Rosh Hashanah (See Book 1, Week 1, Chesed shebeChesed), and are also metaphors for knowledge, which is related to Rosh Hashanah (See Book 1, Week 52, Da’at).

Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the first one mentioned in Reuven, the firstborn. Jacob calls Reuven, “"Reuven, You are my first-born, my strength and the first of my vigor.” First, literally from the word, “Rosh,” head, like “Rosh Hashanah.

The tractate of Shvuot is based on various different verses in the Torah. Like the day of Rosh Hashanah and Shir HaShirim, Shevuah is an all-encompassing term.

Chapter 1 of the Book of Jeremiah also is all-encompassing as it describes the major theme of the entire book, the destruction that was about to befall Israel and Jerusalem. It also contains the idea of everything being included, and to some extent foretold from the very beginning, as Jeremiah is told that he had been chosen by Hashem while he was still in his mother’s woumb.

Sunday, December 20, 2015

Week 2 (Book 5): Yom Kippur - Entering the Inner Chamber, Enoch, Remembering the Love of Our Youth


SONG OF SONGS: 4. Draw me, we will run after you; the king brought me to his chambers. We will rejoice and be glad in you. We will recall your love more fragrant than wine; they have loved you sincerely.
5. I am black but comely, O daughters of Jerusalem! Like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon.
6. Do not look upon me [disdainfully] because I am swarthy, for the sun has gazed upon me; my mother's sons were incensed against me; they made me a keeper of the vineyards; my own vineyard I did not keep.

70 SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Enoch

TALMUD SHEVUOUTH -  Daf 2

BOOK OF JEREMIAH: Chapter 2

Week 2 in the Jewish calendar is the week of Yom Kippur. In the Song of Songs, the Jewish people sing about how, after getting a glimpse of G-d drawing us near, we now run after Him. On Yom Kippur is also the only time of the year when the Kohen Gadol, the high priest enters the Temple’s inner chamber, the Holy of Holies. The Talmud states that Yom Kippur, along with Tu B’Av, is the happiest day of the year. That is a remarkable statement, given that it is a purely spiritual day, with know festivity or wine (See Rashi who explains that “wine” in the above verse is a reference to all physical festivities).

Furthermore, the Jewish people sing of how they have sinned, but are beautiful in their essence – they can still do teshuvah. Rashi again comes to explain the verse in this manner: “and if I am black as the tents of Kedar, which are blackened by the rain, for they are constantly spread out in the deserts, I am easily cleansed to be like the curtains of Solomon.” (Verse 5, Rashi) The Jewish people exclaim that the exile has caused them to be unable to properly keep the commandments.We were meant to be a light unto the nations, help them guard their moral principles, yet our own morals we have not been able to uphold.

Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the second mentioned is Reuven’s firstborn, Enoch. Enoch has the same name as one of the first descendants of Adam, who was so righteous that Hashem took him alive, and he became an angel. That is the idea of Yom Kippur, to be like angels.
The tractate of Shvuot begins with the statement of the Torah that describes certain elements in Jewish law that “are two that are [really] four.” This points to the duality related to Week 2. Daf Beit (Folio 2) also spends a significant portion, perhaps the majority of its content on the ritual sacrifices of Yom Kippur!

Chapter 2 of the Book of Jeremiah begins with the exact quote used by Rashi to describe how the Jewish people felt in the verses of the Song of Songs above:

2. Go and call out in the ears of Jerusalem, saying: so said the Lord: I remember to you the lovingkindness of your youth, the love of your nuptials, your following Me in the desert, in a land not sown.
3. Israel is holy to the Lord, the first of His grain; all who eat him shall be guilty, evil shall befall them, says the Lord. 
Rashi again, links the verse to Yom Kippur, and the themes explored above, such as the nuptial room, and return to G-d. Shavuot is a marriage, and Yom Kippur, a second one (when the second set of Tablets were given):

I remember to you: Were you to return to Me, I would desire to have mercy on you for I remember the loving kindness of your youth and the love of the nuptials of your wedding canopy, when I brought you into the wedding canopy, and this (כלולתיך) is an expression of bringing in. Your nuptials (Noces in O.F.). Now what was the loving kindness of your youth? Your following My messengers, Moses and Aaron, from an inhabited land to the desert without provisions for the way since you believed in Me.   

Sunday, December 13, 2015

Week 3 (Book 5): Shepherds' Dwellings

SONG OF SONGS:
7. Tell me, you whom my soul loves, where do you feed, where do you rest [the flocks] at noon, for why should I be like one who veils herself beside the flocks of your companions?"
8. "If you do not know, O fairest of women, go your way in the footsteps of the flocks and pasture your kids beside the shepherds' dwellings.
9. At the gathering of the steeds of Pharaoh's chariots have I silenced you, my beloved.
SEVENTY SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Pallu
TALMUD SHEVUOTH: Daf 3
BOOK OF JEREMIAH:   Chapter 3
Week 3 in the Jewish calendar is the week of Sukkot. In the Song of Songs, the Jewish people ask  Hashem where He feeds His flock, the Jewish people. This is a reference to the Sukkah, where we eat and rest during this holiday. The Sukkah is a reference to Divine protection in the desert and in all exiles. This reference again becomes much more clear in light of Rashi’s comment: “Tell me, You Whom my soul loves, where do You feed Your flock among these wolves in whose midst they are, and where do You rest them at noon, in this exile, which is a distressful time for them, like noon, which is a distressful time for the flock?” In the Sukkah, we are exposed to the elements, and feel the heat of the sun at noon. The “companions” is a reference to the other nations, for whom we also bring sacrifices on Sukkot.
In the second verse, it is G-d’s turn to speak to the Jewish people. Because we have been judged and have repented, He now call us the “fairest of women.” G-d also speaks of the “shepherds dwellings,” perhaps a reference to the seven shepherds that visit the Sukkah during Sukkot. The Sukkot are also built as a remembrance of the redemption from Egypt, and the third verse of this week is a reference to that, to how Pharaoh’s chariots were thrown in the sea. All we needed to do at that time was be silent and have faith. This is connected to the faith we demonstrate on Sukkot as well, remembering how we were kept safe for 40 years and rejoicing in the holiday.
Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the third mentioned is Pallu. Pallu is related to the word peleh, miracle. This is perhaps a reference to the miracles experienced by the Jews during their forty years in the desert: the clouds of glory, the mannah, etc.
Daf gimmel (Folio 3) of Shvuot discusses primarily oaths relating to eating, as well as the laws of bringing things in an out of a home, a primary domain. These are clearly related to eating in the sukkah, and making the sukkah a home. The daf also discusses laws of lashes for inactions. This is similar to the sukkah, in which even if we do not do anything, just stay inside a sukkah, we are fulfilling a mitzvah.
Chapter 3 of the Book of Jeremiah contains a similar theme as the above ones in Shir HaShirim:
14. Return, backsliding children, says the Lord, for I possessed you, and I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.  
backsliding children: (Envasec in O.F.) That you perverted your way because of much good, that you enjoyed tranquility and pleasure, as Scripture states: They hum snatches of song to the tune of the lute (Amos 6:5), those who drink from bowls of wine (v. 6).   
for I possessed you: and you are called by My name, that I am your Master, and it is not honorable for Me to leave you in the hands of My enemies.   
15. And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, and they will feed you with knowledge and understanding.
The verse speaks of tranquility, as well as of shepherds.
Another verse of this chapter speaks of how the Jews are mingled among the nations:
19. And I said: How shall I place you among the sons? But I will give you a desirable land, an inheritance of the beauty of hosts of nations, and I said: Call Me 'my Father,' and do not turn away from following Me.  
How shall I place you among the sons?: i.e., how shall I place you, my congregation and My nation, among the other sons, mingled with the heathens. I, therefore, selected a handsome portion, and I gave you a desirable land.   
Here we see that all nations are called sons – we bring sacrifices for all of them as well.


Sunday, December 6, 2015

Week 4 (Book 5): The Crown of the Angel Metat

SONG OF SONGS:
10. Your cheeks are comely with rows, your neck with necklaces.       
11. We will make you rows of gold with studs of silver."     
12. "While the king was still at his table, my spikenard gave forth its fragrance.

70 SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Hezron

TALMUD SHEVUOTH: Daf 4

BOOK OF JEREMIAH: Chapter 4

Week 4 in the Jewish calendar is the week of the final days of Sukkot, Hoshanah Rabbah, Shmini Atzeret, and Simchat Torah. The verses for this week from the Song of Songs speaks of a tremendous closeness to Hashem.

The first two verses are said by Hashem to us. The plain meaning of the words reflect the elevation of the material. Rashi explains them as a reference to the spoils from the Song of the Sea, when Israel “emptied out Egypt” physically and spiritually, elevating its sparks. Regarding Simchas Torah, The Ba’al Shem Tov teaches, "The archangel Metat," boasted Michoel, referring to the most prestigious angel in the heavenly court, "ties crowns for G-d out of Israel's prayers. Today, I shall fashion an even more glorious crown for the Almighty out of these torn shoes."

Rashi explains that the rows also include a forehead plate. Hashem adorns us and we adorn Him on this day. The words of these first verses for the week also seem to allude to singing and dancing. Torim means rows, lines, and may be a reference to lines of people dancing, or lines from a song. Charuzim are beads, studs, but also rhymes, like the piyyutim such as those in the Hakkafot, Tefilat Geshem, and Mi Piel. Silver, as Chassidus explains, comes from Kissufim, desire, the desire to cling to G-d during these days.

Yet, perhaps the greatest of all indication of the meaning behind this verse, is the first one: Lehi, usually translated as cheek, but which also means jawbone, the crucial element one of the Tanach’s recorded stories of Samson defeating the Philistines. It was with a jawbone of a donkey (Chamor, material, a word repeated so many times in the story) that Shimshon struck a thousand Philistines, and from that bone water issued forth. One of the main dancing during Sukkot is with water, from which there would come Ruach HaKodesh, just like Hashem rested on Samson himself during that fight.

The third verse is also deeply related to this week, as it is well known that Sukkot is considered a festivitiy for all nations, but then, on the last day, Hashem has a private audience for the Jewish People alone. This is the idea of being at Hashem’s table just ourselves. There is some disagreement in the commentators over whether the spikenard fragrance is a good smell or otherwise. Either way, it represents our closeness to G-d, and even a certain sense of inadequacy, as we begin again the cycle of reading the Torah.

Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the fourth mentioned is Hezron. Hezron is also one of the descendants of Judah, the father of Caleb. As explained in Book 3, chatzer means courtyard, or enclosure. Here is seems to be a reference to the courtyard of the Temple (in which the dancing would take place). About the festivities of the day it is said that, “So abundant was the light that there was no courtyard in Jerusalem that was not illumined by the light coming from the place of the water-drawing.” (Mishnah, Sukkah 5:2)

Daf dalet (Folio 4) of Shevuoth discusses primarily punishments for inaction. In these days of Sukkot, Shmini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, actual deeds are required to perform the mitzvoth of the day.

The beginning of Chapter 4 of the Book of Jeremiah contains a similar theme to that of the above ones in Shir HaShirim:

1. If you return, O Israel, says the Lord, to Me, you shall return, and if you remove your detestable things from My Presence, you shall not wander.  

2. And you will swear, "As the Lord lives," in truth and in justice and in righteousness, nations will bless themselves with him and boast about him.

The verses speak of being in G-d’s presence, but having detestable things that need removing. They also speak of how the nations will see the special quality of the Jewish people. The verses speak of justice and righteousness, while the rest of the chapter mentions quite a few times about the need to heed the voice of the shofar, a reference to the period of judgment of Rosh Hashanah coming to a close. 


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