Divrei Torah Ki Sisa
Torah Table of Contents
Excuse Me - That's No Way to do Teshuva, Nechmad MiZahav Heads Up!, Divrei Yisrael Closeness To Hashem, Divrei Yisrael Mordechai Bows - to ONE, Divrei Yisrael A Dvar Torah from Reb Motti Rosen z"lbased on a ma'amar in Nechmad MiZahav, Parshas Ki Sisa
"Behold, these people have committed a terrible sin..." [Shemos, 32:31]
Adam HaRishon's attempt at teshuva [repentance] for the first sin, eating from the Tree of Knowledge, was unsuccessful. In comparison to the sin of the Golden Calf, however, this sin was relatively "light." Indeed, the Midrash tells us that Adam's wife, Chava, put him up to it - she persuaded him to eat. Yet here with the Golden Calf, Moshe Rabbeinu admits that it was a terrible sin - and yet the people were able to achieve atonement. How are we to understand this?
Rebbe Yechezkel of Kuzmir points out that a fundamental aspect of teshuva is to realize that one has indeed sinned against G-d. This is indicated by the verse, "Behold, I judged you for your saying, 'I did not sin'" [Yirmiyahu, 2:35]. One who is fully aware that he has sinned will not easily repeat his mistake. But one who rationalizes away his sin with various excuses, hasn't really done teshuva. Today he has one excuse, tomorrow - another.
Adam HaRishon, instead of acknowledging his sin, offered an excuse: "The woman that You gave me, gave me from the tree, and I ate" [Breishis, 3:12]. Since this wasn't teshuva, there was no atonement for his sin. But in the case of the sin of the Golden Calf, the people fully recognized their sin, and offered no excuses. They thereby did a pure and complete teshuva, which resulted in atonement.
This, then, is the meaning of Moshe Rabbeinu's words: "these people have committed a terrible sin." For one might question this - we know that Moshe Rabbeinu always defended the people, so he should have minimized the sin, instead of maximizing it. In light of the above, however, we can see that Moshe Rabbeinu's words were indeed advocating for the people - that they have done complete teshuva, without any excuses. On the contrary, they are aware - and admit themselves - of the gravity of their sin. Since this was real teshuva, their sin deserved atonement.
Translated by Reb Yitzchak Dorfman of Yerushalayim, a Modzitzer Chassid
Based on the Divrei Yisrael, Parshas Ki Sisa
"Ki Sisa Es Rosh B'nei Yisroel Lifkudeihem - When you make a (head)count of the Jewish People (30:12) [Literally, 'when you raise up their heads for an accounting'.]
The second pasuk of this week's parsha gives us a valuable lesson in prioritization of values for the average working Jew. The Divrei Yisroel points out that the word choice is significant. "Sisa" is associated with raising something up. And "pekudai" can mean accounting or (Torah) laws.
When a person is at risk of drowning in the ocean, as long as his head is above the water and hasn't sunk below the surface, he is still alive and [at least temporarily] safe. His body may be fully submerged, but as long as the head is above water, he's breathing. Similarly, we are familiar with the Medrash that describes the efforts in earning a living as being as hard as "crossing the Red Sea" (kashe mezonosav shel adam k'kriyas Yam Suf). The problems and complexities of "making an honest buck" are the same as the waves of the ocean that threaten to overcome one who is at risk of drowning. The key is to keep one's head up, to keep from sinking under the relentless waves. This is done by reserving time for Torah study and Tefilla (prayer), which help us to lift our heads from the drudgery of the daily grind.
This then is the lesson of our pasuk as well - When you want to lift up the heads of Bnei Yisroel, do so "Lifkudeihem", with (or for the sake of) their Pekudim - the Torah. The Torah will lift them up as well, and even if their bodies and actions are submerged in the workday environment, their heads will be free to rise aloft. And it's the head that counts most!
Translated by Reb Eliezer Weger of Rechovot, a Modzitzer Chasid
From the Divrei Yisrael, Parshas Ki Sisa
Vehaya Kol Mevakesh Hashem Yetzei el Ohel Moed Asher Michutz LaMachane (Anyone who shall seek Hashem shall go out to the Tent of Appointed Meetings, which is located outside of the Camp).
Situating the Ohel Moed outside the Camp of Yisrael teaches us many lessons. The Divrei Yisrael teaches us that this pasuk hints at a central idea of how the average Jew can successfully draw closer to Hashem.
Since the Destruction of the Beis HaMikdosh, the Ohel Moed is replaced in miniature by the Beis Medrash - where a Jew learns and davens. This is where we have our "appointed meetings" with Hakadosh Baruch Hu, and the "agenda" is learning Torah and Davening. The Ohel Moed is to be located outside of the Camp, i.e. outside the confines of our worldly pursuits - business, negotiations, the marketplace. Now, for one who spends his time solely in the Beis Medrash and has no worldly pursuits, this pasuk is rather obvious. He's in his Ohel Moed, "outside of the marketplace" all the time. The pasuk isn't adding anything for him.
The Divrei Yisrael explains that this pasuk's message is to the average Jew who finds himself in the marketplace, in the "camp" of worldly pursuit. Such a Jew is burdened by countless issues, decisions and factors that, if left unchecked, could stand between him and his growth in Torah and Closeness to Hashem. For such a Jew, the key is to be able to shift himself away from his worldly pursuits (to leave the "camp"), at the appropriate times, and to focus on Torah and Tefilla (davening). To yank himself out of the hustle and bustle, and despite the difficulty, to make that critical shift from the "camp" to that which transcends the camp, that leads us above and beyond the worldly.
Further, this is the exact reason why the Soul is sent down into this world to occupy a physical body. The same is true for the Torah itself. The Torah commands us to be honest in business practices - what worldly business is there in Heaven? What hustle and bustle is there in Heaven that would block a Jew from drawing closer to Hashem? Only in a physical world, with a Yetzer Hara is this (and so many hundreds of other Mitzvos) relevant. By overcoming the physical world's constraints and barriers, in our fervent desire to come closer to Hashem and to do His Will, we not only fulfill the Torah and It's Mitzvos, but we lift that physical world up to a new plane, giving it a new purpose and value.
Translated by Reb Eliezer Weger of Rechovot, a Modzitzer Chasid
based on a ma'amar in the sefer Divrei Yisrael, Parshas Ki Sisa
And you should take for yourself the finest spices: mor dror [pure myrrh], 500 [shekels] , kinman besem [fragrant cinnamon], half its measure, 250... kida [cassia], 500... (Shemos, 30:23-24)
Regarding the cinnamon, Rashi explains that "half its measure, 250" means that its full measure is 500, like that of the myrrh. Why then is it described in half-measure? Scripture has decreed that it should be brought and weighed out a half at a time, so that there should be two hachraos [a hachra'a is when something is weighed out, a little extra is added to "tilt the scale"]. The Divrei Yisrael says that even though normally we don't seek a reason for a Scriptural decree, but here Rashi does give a reason. He therefore asks, why is it that only the cinnamon is brought in halves, and not the myrrh and the cassia, requiring two hachraos? After all, their measure [500] is equal, why shouldn't they be equal in hachraos? It seems obvious that there is a similar Scriptural decree that these spices should only have one hachra'a.
The Gemara (Chullin 139b) asks, "Where do we find a reference to Mordechai in the Torah?" The answer: our verse, for the spice "mor dror" is translated into Aramaic as "meira dachya", which resembles Mordechai's name. The Megilla (Esther, 3:2) tells us that "...Mordechai will neither bow down [Hebrew: yichra, related to hachra'a] nor prostrate himself [to Haman]." Says the Divrei Yisrael, the fact that the myrrh is not brought in halves, so that it should only have one hachra'a , hints at the fact that Mordechai will neither bow down [yichra] nor prostrate himself twice, but only once - only to Hashem. This is just what we say in the Aleinu prayer at the end of davening, "And we bow down and prostrate ourselves before the King of Kings, the Holy One, Blessed be He." The cassia spice, "kida," is also an allusion to bowing; therefore it, too, does not come in half-portions, and requires only one hachra'a.
With this we can understand a possible problem with the verse cited above in the Megilla. "All the King's servants at the King's gate bow and prostrate themselves before Haman, for that is what the King had commanded concerning him. But Mordechai will not bow down or prostrate himself." Apparently, the verse should read, "Mordechai did not bow down or prostrate himself." Why is it written in the future tense? We know that "the King" in the Megilla has a double-meaning: it refers to the King of Persia, as well as the King of Kings, the One Above. We can thus read the verse as referring to the fact that the King of the world commanded that Mordechai not bow down or prostrate himself. Where was such a command issued to Mordechai? From our verse, answers the Divrei Yisrael, "mor dror" [which refers to Mordechai] is not brought in half-portions, so there shouldn't be two hachraos [read: bows], but only one - to Hashem alone, the true King.
Translated by Reb Yitzchak Dorfman of Yerushalayim, a Modzitzer Chassid
What does Hashem Elokecha ask from you, but to fear Hashem Elokecha and to walk in His ways? (Dvorim, 10:13)
A Dvar Torah from Reb Motti Rosen z"l, grandson of Harav Shaul the Second Rebbe
"Ki Sisa Es Rosh Bnei Yisrael" (Perek 30:12)
In this Parsha Moshe is told to count Bnei Yisrael by asking each man to give 1/2 shekel. Rashi translates the word Sisa to mean counting. The Pasuk tells us "V'nasnu Eesh Kofer Nafsho" and each man should give a redemption for his soul.
The Baal HaTurim explains that the word "V'nasnu" read backwards or forwards is the same word. He says that this is to teach us that whatever a person gives to Tzedakah will come back to him.
We can see this idea laid out in the words of the Pasuk. Instead of reading it "Es Rosh Bnei Yisrael," read it "Es Raysh." The letter Resh in Chassidic seforim is always a remez to Tzedakah. This is because they have the same gematria - Tzedakah is spelled Tzaddik, Daled, Kof, Hey and you add 1 for the word - this gives you 200, which is the gematria of the letter Raysh.
So, what does it mean to count the Tzedakah of Bnei Yisrael? And what is it that we find when we count it?
The Gemara tells us "Kol Yisrael Arayvim Zeh LaZeh", all of Yisrael are guarantors one for the other. We see this very clearly in the Inyan of Tzedakah. The Gemara talks about two kinds of people. One is a person who has money and gives to Tzedakah but really does not want to. He gives, but he has no Ratzon, no desire. The second is a person who would love to give Tzedakah, but has no money. He has Ratzon, but nothing to give with. Chazal tell us that each of these people receives complete reward. The one who gives, but does not really want to gets reward for giving and the reward of the man who wants to give but can't. The one, who wants to give, gets reward for wanting and the reward of the person who gave.
When you look at the word Yisrael, you can see the whole Gemara clearly laid out. Yisrael is spelled Yud, Shin, Raysh, Alef, and Lamed. The Yud and the Shin spell the word "Yesh" which means has (desire or money) and the Alef and Lamed spell the word "Lo," which means does not have) desire and money). What is left over is the Resh for Tzedakah.
So, what to we see when we count the Tzedakah of Bnei Yisrael - we see that all of Yisrael are as one - he gives and I receive Reward, I give and he receives reward. When you give to Tzedakah - you will always receive a return on your money.
Submitted by Chumi Friedman, daughter of Reb Motti Rosen z"l
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