Week 8 (Book 5): Lovesick

SONG OF SONGS:

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.

                       

70 SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Jamin

TALMUD SHEVUOTH: Daf 8 – atonement for grave sins and abominations

BOOK OF JEREMIAH: Chapter 8

Week 8 in the Jewish calendar is the nearing the last week of Cheshvan. The Song of Songs verses for this week include two verses from the People of Israel to G-d, and one verse in which the Jewish people address the other nations.

As explained in Book 1, as we go deeper into the month of Cheshvan, deeper into the year, we feel ourselves getting more entrenched in our daily affairs, and we become “sick,” yearning for spirituality, and fighting not to lose our connection with Hashem. This attitude, again is expressed in Rashi’s comments to the first verse:

Sustain me: now as is the manner of the sick, with flagons of grape wine or with cakes of pure white flour.   

spread my bed: Spread my bed around me with apples for a good fragrance, in the manner of the sick, for I am sick for his love, for I thirst for Him here in my exile.

The second verse reminisces of a time when G-d’s kindness towards us as we fight to make a living, was even more evident. Here’s Rashi again:

His left hand was under my head: in the desert.   

and his right hand would embrace me: He traveled a three-days’ journey; to search out a rest for them [as in Num. 10: 33], and in the place of the rest, He brought down manna and quails for them. All this I remember now in my exile, and I am sick for His love.

G-d’s left hand represents his attribute of discipline (under our head, perhaps to mean that he was keeping us in line), while his right hand symbolizes kindness, in an embrace. In Book 1, this is the week of Chesed shebeGevurah, kindness within the context of discipline and severity, marking the beginning of the cycle of seven weeks connected to Gevurah.

The third verse also points to a more confrontational attitude towards the other nations. As we feel perhaps the greater weight of the physical world, we make clear that we are not willing to give up our special relationship with Hashem.

The above verses also appear to hint to the events of the Flood. For example, when Noah leaves the Ark and “re-enters” the world, he is overwhelmed. He plants a vineyard, and falls in a similar manner as Adam. In the Talmud, one of the major opinions is that the grape (wine) was in fact the Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge.

Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the eighth mentioned is Jamin. Jamin in Hebrew is “Yemin” – right, or right hand, representing kindness as mentioned above. As also mentioned above, this is a time of the year where we feel that we must rely more and more on his kindness.

Daf Chet (Folio 8) of Shvuot continues to discuss the atonement of the goat offering, whose blood was sacrificed in the Holy of Holies. The sins mentioned in this daf are much more serious, and include the greatest sins of all: idolatry, certain sexual sins (such as incest) and murder, although the Talmud clarifies that it is discussing when these sins were committed unwittingly. It also mentions atonement for certain impurities, as well as the atonement of the goat offered outside the Temple. As Israel is more steeped in exile, it requires more atonements.

Chapter 8 of the Book of Jeremiah contains similar themes to the above. The chapter shows how, when steeped into exile, the sins begin to mount, even greater abominations, but we start to fail to see the severity of the sins we commit. They become second nature and even acceptable in our eyes. We even come to believe that we are doing G-d’s will. It is interesting that this chapter includes references to various birds that sing around this time of the year in Perek Shirah (See Book 1). The crane and the swallow both sing in the month of Cheshvan.

7. Even the stork in the heaven knows her seasons, and the turtledoves and the crane and the swallow await the time of their coming, but My people do not know the ordinance of the Lord.

8. How do you say, "We are wise, and the Law of the Lord is with us"? Verily, behold it is in vain, he made a false scribes' pen.  

9. Wise men were ashamed, they were broken and caught; behold they rejected the word of the Lord, now what wisdom have they?

10. Therefore, I will give their wives to others, their fields to those who possess them for from the smallest to the greatest, they all commit robbery, from prophet to priest, they all deal falsely. 

11. And they healed the breach of My people easily, saying, "Peace, peace," but there is no peace. 

12. They shall be put to shame since they have committed abomination. Neither are they ashamed nor do they know to feel disgrace. They will, therefore, fall among the slain; at the time I have visited upon them, they will stumble, says the Lord.

Week 9 (Book 5): Beloved

SONG OF SONGS:

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.

                       

70 SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Ohad

TALMUD SHEVUOTH: DAF 9 - Atonement and Rosh Chodesh

BOOK OF JEREMIAH: Chapter 9

Week 9 in the Jewish calendar is either the last week of Cheshvan or already includes Rosh Chodesh Kislev. The Song of Songs verses for this week are all from the Jewish people, singing of Hashem, and they all share the same second word, Dodi, my Beloved. The theme of the verses is G-d’s salvation in a way that was above nature (skipping over mountains, jumping over hills). That is the theme of the Maccabees and Kislev, G-d saves us in miraculous ways. The verses also point to the difference in the Jewish a Greek belief systems. While Jews strive for a close relationship with G-d, seeing Him as their Beloved, the Greeks at the time only believed in the cosmos, and the laws of nature, not in a Divine Judge.

The later part of the second verse, “standing behind our wall, looking from the windows, peering from the lattices,” is also a known reference to Birkat Kohanim, the blessing of the high priest. As mentioned previously, Kislev and Chanukah are particularly associated with the Kohanim.

Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the ninth mentioned is Ohad. Ohad, spelled Aleph Heh Dalet, appears related to the word “Echad,” Alef Chet Dalet, which means, “One.” Again, one of the main distinctions between Jewish and Greek cultures was monotheism itself. It is also remarkable that Rashi specifically notes that the Ohad family was one of the few families that were wiped out altogether, when, along with other clans, they attempted to return to Egypt and were chased back and militarily confronted by a grew of zealous Levites (similar to the Chanukah story, which also had aspects of a Jewish civil war between those that wanted to remain true to Judaism against Helenist assimilationists). Regarding the Ohad family, Rashi states as follows:

However, the family of Ohad [mentioned in Exodus] died out… I found [the reason for this] in the Talmud Yerushalmi [Sotah 1:1]. When Aaron died, the clouds of glory withdrew, and the Canaanites came to fight against Israel. They [the Israelites] set their hearts on returning to Egypt, and they went back eight stages of their journey… However, they turned back, and the Levites pursued them to bring them back, killing seven of their families. The Levites lost four families [in the battle]… R. Tanchuma expounds that they [the seven Israelite families] fell in the plague in connection with Balaam [see 25:9] (Mid. Tanchuma Pinchas 5), but [this cannot be, for] according to the number missing from the tribe of Simeon in this census compared with the first census [which took place] in the Sinai desert, it would appear that all twenty-four thousand who fell [in the plague] were from the tribe of Simeon. - [Mid. Tanchuma Vayechi 10][1]

Even according to the opinion of the Midrash Tanchuma, that the family was lost during the plague in connection with Bilaam, the parallel with Chanukah and Kislev still holds. The plague of Ba’al Peor, associated with Bilaam, was one in which the men were assimilating and behaving immodestly with Midianite women. Pinchas, a Levite, and later made a Kohen, zealously kills a prince of the Tribe of Shimon (related to Ohad’s family), stops the plague and brings the Jews back to the path of proper behavior.

Daf Tet (Folio 9) of Shvuot continues to discuss the atonement of the goat offered outside the Temple. It also speaks of the goats offered on Rosh Chodesh and festivals. Rosh Chodesh, along with Shabat and circumcision, was also a main contentions between the Jews and the Greeks, and one of the practices the Greeks tried to prohibit altogether.

Rosh Chodesh symbolizes God's never-ending role in the lives we lead as Jews.  Although we now use a fixed calendar, the Jewish ideal of how to mark the passage of time is epitomized by the manner in which we once determined the day of Rosh Chodesh: we looked heavenward for the first appearance of the New Moon, the first tiny hint that the moon's natural cycle of renewal had begun. Rosh Chodesh is a constant reminder that the rhythm of our lives -- even that part which is tied to the cycles of nature -- is in God's hands.[2]

Chapter 9 of the Book of Jeremiah contains a similar theme to the above. After continuing the description of the desolation mentioned last week (still related to Cheshvan), Jeremiah turns to a what are today very famous lines, which contain a theme very much related to Kislev and Chanukah:

22. Thus says the Lord: Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, nor the strong man boast of his strength, nor the rich man boast of his riches.  

23. But let him that boasts exult in this, that he understands and knows me, for I am the Lord Who practices kindness, justice and righteousness on the earth; for in these things I delight, says the Lord.  

24. Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, when I will punish every circumcised one with his uncircumcision.  

  

25. Egypt, Judah, Edom, the children of Ammon, Moab, and all those cast off to the corners, who dwell in the desert, for all the nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are of uncircumcised hearts.

The Greeks were well known for their wisdom, and in fact inextricably related to it. However, it was a kind of wisdom devoid of G-dliness. Also, at the time of Chanukah, the Greeks were quite strong and rich, and yet, as we state during the Shemoneh Esreh prayer, G-d delivered "the strong into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and the provokers into the hands of those who involve themselves with Your Torah."[3] The verses speak of the importance of circumcision (mentioned above), the difference between those that are circumcised and those that are not, as well as the need for the circumcision of the heart.

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[1] http://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9954/showrashi/true/jewish/Chapter-26.htm

[2] http://www.jewishphoenix.org/page.aspx?id=53568

[3] http://torah.org/learning/lifeline/5760/chanukah.html

Week 10 (Book 5): Connecting to Holiness

SONG OF SONGS:

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.

                       

70 SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Jachin

TALMUD SHEVUOTH: Daf 10 - Holiness

BOOK OF JEREMIAH: Chapter 10

Week 10 in the Jewish calendar is more definitively related to Kislev, sometimes including Rosh Chodesh Kislev. The Song of Songs verses for this week are still all from the perspective of the Jewish people. The theme of the verses is also G-d’s salvation, from spiritual “winter,” to spiritual “spring.” Rashi draws a greater parallel between the exile of Egypt and the Passover redemption – the redemption of Chanukah has many parallels with that initial redemption as well.

The opening verse states that the rain has passed (Cheshvan again being related to the Flood). The second verse describes how it is now the time of pure devoted singing (like that of the turtledove) associated with the singing and praise of the pure Kohanim, and the Maccabees. The third verse is associated with a certain cleansing and defeat of those that wished to assimilate, associated with “darkness” (one of the names of the exile of Greece). Rashi states:

Another explanation: “The fig tree has put forth its green figs” -These are the transgressors of Israel, who perished during the three days of darkness.   

and the vines with their tiny grapes gave forth their fragrance: Those who remained of them repented and were accepted. So it is interpreted in Pesikta (Rabbathi 15:11, 12; Pesikta d’Rav Kahana, p. 50).

Figs and grapes are two fruits for which the Land of Israel is praised. After our salvation and the defeat of the Greeks, life and in the Land of Israel started to return to normal.

Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the tenth mentioned is Jachin. Jachin means “to establish,” or “to prepare,” a verb which is actually part of our prayer for the restoration of Jerusalem.

This idea is expressed in our daily prayers. In the [blessing] of rebuilding of Yerushalayim, we petition God "return and dwell in Yerushalayim" and then we add "ve'chise David meheira le'tocha tachin" - “and install within it soon the throne of David”. Though there is a separate beracha which pertains to the reestablishment of the kingdom of David, we mention it alongside the return of God in the petition to rebuild Jerusalem. The Mikdash and the throne of David mutually make up the ideal Jerusalem. Jerusalem is a city united by worship of God and governance of Am Yisrael.[1]

Jachin was also the name of one of the pillars of Solomon’s Temple. The other pillar’s name was Boaz.[2]

Daf Yud (Folio 10) of Shvuot continues to discuss the atonement of the goat offered during festivals, as well as Rosh Chodesh and Yom Kippur. The daf also includes a discussion of whether the holiness of certain items of the Temple can vanish. These discussions are all connected to Kislev as already discussed above.

Chapter 10 of the Book of Jeremiah contains a similar theme to the above. It continues to draw a distinction between the idolatrous ways of the nations and Israel’s portion in G-d. It also describes G-d’s vengeance for the desecration of His Temple:

16. Not like these is Jacob's portion, for He is the One Who formed everything, and Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; the Lord of Hosts is His name."

(…)

25. Pour out Your wrath upon the nations that do not know You and upon the families that have not called in Your name, for they have devoured Jacob and consumed him and destroyed him, and have wasted his dwelling.

These last verses of this chapter are also quite famous, verses we state during the reading  of the Passover Hagaddah.

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[1] https://torahmitzion.org/pub/parsha/5773/behar-bechukotay-5773.pdf

[2] http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0011_0_09825.html

Week 11 (Book 5): Staying True to the Covenant

SONG OF SONGS:

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.

70 SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Tzochar

TALMUD SHEVUOTH: Daf 11 - Ketoret (Incense)

BOOK OF JEREMIAH: Chapter 11

Week 11 in the Jewish calendar is the week of Yud Kislev, which celebrates the release and redemption of the Mitteler Rebbe. The first verse from Song of Songs for this week is from G-d’s perspective. The second and third one are from the Jewish people’s. The verses continue the theme of this month: the spiritual and physical struggle against Greek domination, and the miraculous victory over it.

The first verse speaks of the Jews as a faithful dove, crying out to G-d in purity and despair, in the face of the enemy. Rashi interprets this to mean the crying out of the Jews by the Red Sea, which revealed the inner essence of the Jewish people. This is similar to the hidden flask of pure oil stamped with the seal of the Kohen Gadol found on Chanukah. (Interestingly, the voice of the Jewish people, which is the cry of the dove, is described as pleasant, Arev, which also spells the word for Orev, raven, the animal of Week 12 in Book 1)

The second verse speaks of little foxes who destroy vineyards. As explained in Book 1, the fox is a reference to the destruction of the Temple. Rashi makes a reference to the fact that the Egyptians would throw our male infants into the Nile. In the end, the Egyptians themselves were the ones inundated and drowned. Wine (like oil) is a reference to wisdom and Torah. The Greeks came to destroy our knowledge at a time when the people’s level of knowledge was lacking, like infants and tiny grapes.

The third verse speaks of the intimate and all-encompassing relationship between the Jewish people and G-d. Rashi states: “He demanded all His needs from me... All my needs I demanded of Him, and not of other deities.” This is something rationalist (as well as the pagan) Greeks could not understand.

Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the eleventh mentioned is Tzochar, spelled Tzadi, Chet, Reish. Tzochar also appears in the Torah as the name of the father of Ephron the Hittite, who sold the Ma’arat HaMachpelah to Avraham in Hebron in order for him to bury Sarah. Tzohar, with a Heh, was a light in the Ark. Perhaps Tzochar is mentioned here to represent the difficulties (similar to Abraham’s) of dealing with other nations occupying the Land of Israel, as well as the light of Chanukah. The Tzohar, like the Temple’s Menorah, not only served internal illumination purposes, but external purposes as well.

Daf Yud Aleph (Folio 11) of Shvuot discusses the holiness of the ketoret and of Hekdesh. The Ketoret is associated with the number 11 as explained in Book 1.

Chapter 11 of the Book of Jeremiah contains a similar theme to the above. In the verses, Hashem tells the prophet to speak to Jerusalem (See Week 11, Book 1, about speaking “to the heart of Jerusalem”) and mentions, again and again, the “fathers,” showing the continuity from generation to generation, similar to that of the Alter Rebbe and the Mitteler Rebbe. Another repeated term is“covenant,” Brit, which as mentioned before, is something the Greeks strongly opposed:

2. Hearken to the words of this covenant, and you shall speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

3. And you shall say to them, so said the Lord God of Israel; Cursed be the man who will not hearken to the words of this covenant,

4. Which I commanded your forefathers on the day I took them out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, saying: Hearken to My voice and do them, according to all that I will command you, and you shall be to Me for a people, and I will be to you for a God.

5. In order to establish the oath that I swore to yourforefathers to give them a land flowing with milk and honey as of this day. And I replied and said, "Amen, O Lord."

6. And the Lord said to me; Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: Hearken to the words of this covenant and you shall do them.

7. For I warned your forefathers on the day I brought them up from the land of Egypt until this day, warning early every morning, saying: Hearken to My voice.

8. But they did not hearken, neither did they bend their ears, and they went, each man according to the view of his evil heart, and I brought upon them all the words of this covenantthat I commanded to do, and they did not do.

9. And the Lord said to me; A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah, and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

10. They have returned to the iniquities of their first forefathers, who refused to hearken to My words, and they followed other gods to worship them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah broke My covenant that I made with their forefathers.

Week 12 (Book 5): Longing for G-d

SONG OF SONGS:

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.

70 SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Saul the son of the Canaanitess

TALMUD SHEVUOTH: Daf 12 – Hekdesh leftovers and the scapegoat of Azazel.

BOOK OF JEREMIAH: Chapter 12

Week 12 in the Jewish calendar is the week of Yud Tes Kislev, which celebrates the release and redemption of the Alter Rebbe, and is known as the Rosh Hashanah of Chassidut. All Song of Song verses for this week are from the Jewish people’s perspective. The first verse speaks of the sun spreading. After his redemption, the Alter Rebbe spread Chassidut throughout the land: to distant mountains, in one’s bed at night (ie. in exile); in the city, the market place and the city squares. There was no place in which Chassidut could not penetrate.

Overall, the verses for this week speak of a deep longing for G-d. The Alter Rebbe was known for having a tremendous longing for Hashem, to such an extent that he had a respiratory problem related to it. (Likkutei Dibburim)

Of the seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the twelfth mentioned is Saul the son of the Canaanitess. Rashi explains that this is actually the son of Dinah, who had been raped and taken captive by a Canaanite who intended to marry her. One of the main themes of Chanukah is the fight again intermarriage and assimilation. In the story of Dinah, Shimon and Levi act zealously (similar to the Maccabees) in order to save her.[1]

Daf Yud Beit (Folio 12) of Shevuoth discusses the idea of buying Hekdesh on condition that one can make use of what is left over, and discusses what to do with animals left over from sacrifices; it then discusses the atonement of the goat sent to Azazel, which atoned for anything for which the goat offered in the inner courtyard did not atone. Similar to the above, one of the innovations of Chassidut is that everything is holy and has a purpose. Every Jew is holy; even the animal soul can be made holy (which parallels the goat sent to Azazel).

Chapter 12 of the Book of Jeremiah contains a similar theme to the above. In this chapter, Hashem depicts tragedy after tragedy and rebukes the people for not following in His ways, yet all the while referring to the people as “My inheritance,” and “My soul’s beloved.” As mentioned previously, the Greeks wanted the Jews to abandon the belief that they had a portion in Hashem, that He was their inheritance; furthermore the Greeks could not understand or grasp the loving relationship that exists between Hashem and the Jewish people.

7. I have abandoned My House, I have forsaken My inheritance; I have delivered My soul's beloved into the hand of her enemies. 

8. My inheritance was to Me like a lion in the forest; she raised her voice against Me; therefore, I hated her. 

9. Is My inheritance to Me a speckled bird of prey? Are there birds of prey around her? Go, gather all the beasts of the field; come to eat.

(…)

14. So says the Lord: Concerning all My wicked neighbors who touch the inheritance that I have given My nation, Israel, to inherit, behold I uproot them from upon their land, and the house of Judah I will uproot from their midst.

15. And it shall come to pass, that after I uproot them, I will return and have pity on them, and I will restore them, each one to his inheritance and each one to his land. 

16. And it shall be, if they learn the ways of My people to swear by My name, "As the Lord lives," as they taught My people to swear by Baal, they shall be built up in the midst of My people.

The Midrash tells us that "darkness symbolizes Greece, which darkened the eyes of Israel with its decrees, ordering Israel to, 'Write on the horn of an ox that you have no inheritance in the G-d of Israel.'”[2]

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[1] Nevertheless, it is important to note that, unlike the heroic acts of the Maccabees, the violent and somewhat deceitful actions of Shimon and Levi were not appropriate, and strongly condemned by Jacob. The Tribe of Levi ultimately learns how to use its zealotry for the good.

[2] Genesis Rabba 2:4