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Sunday, November 10, 2019

Week 7 (from the Book): To Recognize and Reveal the Divine Presence within Us and the World

The swallow is saying, "So that my soul shall praise You, and shall not be silent, G-d my Lord – I shall give thanks to You forever." (Psalms 30:13)

They would each say three things. Rabbi Eliezer would say: The honor of your fellow should be as precious to you as your own, and do not be easy to anger. Repent one day before your death. Warm yourself by the fire of the sages, but be beware lest you be burned by its embers; for their bite is the bite of a fox, their sting is the sting of a scorpion, their hiss is the hiss of a serpent, and all their words are like fiery coals.

Malchut shebeChesed (kingship within the context of kindness)

On the seventh week of the year, still in the month of Cheshvan, the swallow sings in Perek Shirah of how it cannot be silent, but rather must sing to Him of His glory and thank Him forever (Psalm 30: 13).
The Hebrew word for forever is l'olam, which contains the word olam, which means world. Olam comes from the word ehelem, which means “mask” or “hidden.” It is through our involvement with the world during this month that we reveal G-d’s presence in the world, which until that point had been hidden.
In Pirkei Avot, Rabbi Eliezer teaches that the honor [kavod] of your neighbor must be so precious [chaviv] to you as if it were your own, and that one should not become easily angered. (II:10). Rabbi Eliezer also teaches that one must repent one day before death. However, as no one knows when he or she will die, everyone must repent daily. Rabbi Eliezer further cautions us regarding our behavior in front of sages in order not to be harmed by their reactions.
We know that the Flood began on the seventeenth of the month of Cheshvan, which falls either during week seven or week eight. This unfortunate phenomenon would not have taken place had the people of the time repented one day before their death and properly treated their neighbors and sages. The Torah also holds Noah accountable for the Flood, because he did not pray for the rest of the people. In this sense, the honor of his neighbors was not precious to him – he thought only of himself.
For Rabbi Eliezer, in order to follow a just path, it is very important to have a “good eye,” and to avoid an “evil eye” at all costs. We also know that one of the main causes of the Flood was stealing. Such criminal actions usually begin by looking at someone else’s possessions with an evil, jealous eye.
The sefirah combination for this week is malchut shebechesed. This week marks the yahrzeit (anniversary of passing) of our matriarch Rachel, who represents malchut. Aside from malchut, she also displayed a strong attribute of chesed, and perfectly exemplified the above mentioned teaching in Pirkei Avot: she helped her sister Leah secretly marry her beloved Jacob, just so that her sister would not be publicly embarrassed. Jacob agreed with Rachel’s father, Laban, that Jacob would work seven years to marry Rachel. After seven years passed, Laban placed Leah under the canopy instead. The Talmud teaches that Jacob foresaw the possibility that Laban would try to trick him, and so he had given Rachel certain signs so that he would be able to recognize her on their wedding night. When Rachel saw Leah under the canopy, she could not bear to see her sister be so humiliated and gave her the signs.[1]
As mentioned previously, King David represents malchut, and is connected to the idea of ​​repentance and return to G-d. As also mentioned, malchut is associated with the power of speech, like the swallow which cannot be silent.
The Alter Rebbe explains that malchut, which means kingship, is closely related to the concept of kavod, honor or glory, a word also used in the song of the swallow. The connection between malchut and kavod can be gleaned from the phrase we say right after reciting the Shemah: “Baruch Shem Kvod Malchuto L’Olam Va'ed,” “Blessed be the Name of the Honor of His kingdom forever and ever.” Cheshvan is also a month that is closely related to the Temple, where the glory, kavod of Hashem rests.
We extract from the swallow a very important lesson in self-improvement and daily living: to always recognize and thank G-d. The swallow recognizes the greatness of G-d and constantly shows its gratitude. The swallow also teaches us that when praising G-d it is not enough to simply use instruments (as in Week Six); it is also important to sing using our own voice.


[1] Bava Batra, 123a.
[Gematria Thought:  The number seven has many meanings. Our sages tell us that “Kol haShvi'im Chavivim,” every seventh is precious/beloved. Seven represents the seven days of the week, and particularly the beloved seventh day, the Sabbath. The number seven and the Sabbath are both connected with the idea of ​​returning to G-d. There are seven emotional sefirot, and the number seven is represented by sefirah of malchut.]

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Tishrei

Week 1

book-1-to-raise-our-heads-choose.html

Week 2

book 1-to-relate-well-to-others-and-to.html

Week 3

book 1-to-be-happy-balanced.html

Week 4

book-1-to-take-responsibility.html

Cheshvan

Week 5

book-1-to-use-all-tools.html

Week 6

book-1-to-impact-world-laying.html

Week 7

book-1-to-recognize-and.html

Week 8

book-1-not-to-lose-focus-on.html

Week 9

book-1-fighting-darkness-with.html

Kislev

Week 10

book-1-to-trust-in-g-ds-mercy.html

Week 11

book-1-fighting-evil-and.html

Week 12

book-1-revealing-warmth-to.html

Week 13

book-1-book-to-publicize-miracles.html

Teveth

Week 14

book-1-book-to-believe-in-our-own.html

Week 15

book-1-giving-proper-value.html

Week 16

book-1-to-use-adversity-as-way-to-grow.html

Week 17

book-1-to-pay-attention-to-g.html

Shvat

Week 18

book-1-to-live-in-harmony.html

Week 19

book-1-to-feel-that-g-d-is.html

Week 20

book-1-to-be-solid-and.html

Week 21

book-1-to-keep-things-in.html

Adar

Week 22

book-1-to-complement-each.html

Week 23

book-1-to-be-happy-even.html

Week 24

book-1-to-live-above-our.html

Week 25

book-1-to-have-self.html

Nissan

Week 26

book-1-to-be-humble-and-let.html

Week 27

book-1-to-purify-ourselves.html

Week 28

book-1-to-recognize-our.html

Week 29

book-1-after-initial.html

Week 30

book-1-to-know-that-world.html

Iyar

Week 31

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Week 32

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Week 33

book-1-to-recognize-spiritual.html

Week 34

book-1-to-work-in-focused.html

Sivan

Week 35

book-1-to-thank-g-d-in-unison.html

Week 36

book-1-to-have-emunah.html

Week 37

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Week 38

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Tammuz

Week 39

book-1-to-see-world-in.html

Week 40

book-1-to-fight-for-truth.html

Week 41

book-1-not-to-become-corrupt.html

Week 42

book-1-to-be-loyal-and-pursue-justice.html

Av

Week 43

book-1-to-pursue-enemy-and.html

Week 44

book-1-to-recognize-our.html

Week 45

book-1-to-raise-ourselves-up.html

Week 46

book-1-to-know-our-place-in.html

Elul

Week 47

book-1-time-for-teshuvah.html

Week 48

book-1-to-fight-coldness.html

Week 49

book-1-to-bring-more-light.html

Week 50

book-1-to-know-that-there.html

Week 51

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Week 52

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