Chabad - Today in Judaism - TODAY IS: Tuesday, 4 Cheshvan 5775 • 28 October 2014

Chabad - Today in Judaism - TODAY IS: Tuesday, 4 Cheshvan 5775 • 28 October 2014 
Today's Laws & Customs:

Today in Jewish History:
DAILY QUOTE:
A person's emissary is as the person himself(Talmud, Berachot 34b)

DAILY STUDY:
CHITAS AND RAMBAM FOR TODAY:
Chumash: Lech-Lecha, 3rd Portion Genesis 13:5-13:18 with Rashi
• Chapter 13
5. And also Lot, who went with Abram, had flocks and cattle and tents. ה. וְגַם לְלוֹט הַהֹלֵךְ אֶת אַבְרָם הָיָה צֹאן וּבָקָר וְאֹהָלִים:
who went with Abram: What brought about that he had this [wealth]? His going with Abram. [from B.K. 93a]
ההולך את אברם: מי גרם שהיתה לו זאת, הליכתו עם אברם:
6. And the land did not bear them to dwell together, for their possessions were many, and they could not dwell together. ו. וְלֹא נָשָׂא אֹתָם הָאָרֶץ לָשֶׁבֶת יַחְדָּו כִּי הָיָה רְכוּשָׁם רָב וְלֹא יָכְלוּ לָשֶׁבֶת יַחְדָּו:
And…did not bear: It was unable to supply enough pasture for their cattle, and this is an abbreviated expression, and an additional word is needed. [It is to be explained] as: “And the pasture of the land could not bear them.” Therefore, וְלֹא נָשָׂא is written in the masculine gender.
ולא נשא אותם: לא היתה יכולה להספיק מרעה למקניהם, ולשון קצר הוא, וצריך להוסיף עליו, כמו ולא נשא אותם מרעה הארץ, לפיכך כתוב ולא נשא בלשון זכר:
7. And there was a quarrel between the herdsmen of Abram's cattle and between the herdsmen of Lot's cattle, and the Canaanites and the Perizzites were then dwelling in the land. ז. וַיְהִי רִיב בֵּין רֹעֵי מִקְנֵה אַבְרָם וּבֵין רֹעֵי מִקְנֵה לוֹט וְהַכְּנַעֲנִי וְהַפְּרִזִּי אָז ישֵׁב בָּאָרֶץ:
And there was a quarrel: Since Lot’s herdsmen were wicked, and they pastured their animals in fields belonging to others, Abram’s herdsmen rebuked them for committing robbery, but they responded, “The land was given to Abram, who has no heir; so Lot will inherit him, and therefore this is not robbery.” But Scripture states: “And the Canaanites and the Perizzites were then dwelling in the land,” and Abram had not yet been awarded its possession. [from Gen. Rabbah 41:5]
ויהי ריב: לפי שהיו רועים של לוט רשעים ומרעים בהמתם בשדות אחרים, ורועי אברם מוכיחים אותם על הגזל, והם אומרים נתנה הארץ לאברם, ולו אין יורש, ולוט יורשו, ואין זה גזל, והכתוב אומר והכנעני והפרזי אז יושב בארץ ולא זכה בה אברם עדיין:
8. And Abram said to Lot, "Please let there be no quarrel between me and between you and between my herdsmen and between your herdsmen, for we are kinsmen. ח. וַיֹּאמֶר אַבְרָם אֶל לוֹט אַל נָא תְהִי מְרִיבָה בֵּינִי וּבֵינֶךָ וּבֵין רֹעַי וּבֵין רֹעֶיךָ כִּי אֲנָשִׁים אַחִים אֲנָחְנוּ:
kinsmen: meaning relatives, and according to the Midrash Aggadah (Gen. Rabbah 41:6), they resembled each other in their facial features.
אנשים אחים: קרובים. ומדרש אגדה דומין בקלסתר פנים:
9. Is not all the land before you? Please part from me; if [you go] left, I will go right, and if [you go] right, I will go left." ט. הֲלֹא כָל הָאָרֶץ לְפָנֶיךָ הִפָּרֶד נָא מֵעָלָי אִם הַשְּׂמֹאל וְאֵימִנָה וְאִם הַיָּמִין וְאַשְׂמְאִילָה:
if [you go] left, I will go right: Wherever you dwell, I will not distance myself from you, and I will stand by you as a protector and a helper. And he ultimately needed him, as it is said (below 14:14): “And Abram heard that his kinsman had been captured, etc.”
אם השמאל ואימנה: בכל אשר תשב, לא אתרחק ממך ואעמוד לך למגן ולעזר. וסוף דבר הוצרך לו שנאמר (יד יד) וישמע אברם כי נשבה אחיו וגו':
I will go right: [Grammatically, this means] “I will go towards the right,” like וְאַשְׂמְאִילָה, “and I will go towards the left.” Now if you say that it should have been vowelized וְאַיְמִינָה, we find the same in another place (viz., II Sam. 14:19): “if anyone can turn to the right (לַהֵמִין),” and it is not vowelized לְהַיְמִין.
ואימנה: אימין את עצמי, כמו ואשמאילה אשמאיל את עצמי. ואם תאמר היה לו לינקד ואימינה, כך מצינו במקום אחר (ש"ב יד יט) אם יש להימין ואין נקוד להימין:
10. And Lot raised his eyes, and he saw the entire plain of the Jordan, that it was entirely watered; before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as you come to Zoar. י. וַיִּשָּׂא לוֹט אֶת עֵינָיו וַיַּרְא אֶת כָּל כִּכַּר הַיַּרְדֵּן כִּי כֻלָּהּ מַשְׁקֶה לִפְנֵי | שַׁחֵת יְהֹוָה אֶת סְדֹם וְאֶת עֲמֹרָה כְּגַן יְהֹוָה כְּאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם בֹּאֲכָה צֹעַר:
that it was entirely watered: A land with streams of water.
כי כלה משקה: ארץ נחלי מים:
before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah: that plain was:
לפני שחת ה' את סדום ואת עמורה: היה אותו מישור:
like the garden of the Lord: for [growing] trees.
כגן ה': לאילנות:
like the land of Egypt: for [growing] seeds (Gen. Rabbah 41:7).
כארץ מצרים: לזרעים:
as you come to Zoar: Until Zoar. And the Midrash Aggadah interprets it unfavorably: it was because they were lascivious that Lot chose their region for himself (Tractate Horioth 10b).
באכה צער: עד צער. ומדרש אגדה דורשה לגנאי, על שהיו שטופי זמה בחר לו לוט בשכונתם במסכת הוריות (י ב):
11. And Lot chose for himself the entire plain of the Jordan, and Lot traveled from the east, and they parted from one another. יא. וַיִּבְחַר לוֹ לוֹט אֵת כָּל כִּכַּר הַיַּרְדֵּן וַיִּסַּע לוֹט מִקֶּדֶם וַיִּפָּרְדוּ אִישׁ מֵעַל אָחִיו:
plain: Heb. כִּכָּר, the plain, as the Targum renders it. Note that according to Rashi, כִּכָּר is not the generic term for a plain, but the proper name of the Plain of the Jordan. See below (14:5).
ככר: מישור, כתרגומו:
from the east: He traveled from beside Abram and went away to the west of Abram; hence, he travelled from east to west (Targum Jonathan). According to the Midrash Aggadah (Gen. Rabbah 41:7), he distanced himself from the Ancient One (מִקַּדְמוֹנוֹ) of the world. He said, “I care neither for Abram nor for his God.”
מקדם: נסע מאצל אברם והלך לו למערבו של אברם, נמצא נוסע ממזרח למערב. ומדרש אגדה הסיע עצמו מקדמונו של עולם אמר אי אפשי לא באברם ולא באלהיו:
12. Abram dwelt in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain, and he pitched his tents until Sodom. יב. אַבְרָם יָשַׁב בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן וְלוֹט יָשַׁב בְּעָרֵי הַכִּכָּר וַיֶּאֱהַל עַד סְדֹם:
and he pitched his tents: He pitched tents for his herdsmen and his cattle until Sodom.
ויאהל: נטה אהלים לרועיו ולמקנהו עד סדום:
13. And the people of Sodom were very evil and sinful against the Lord. יג. וְאַנְשֵׁי סְדֹם רָעִים וְחַטָּאִים לַיהֹוָה מְאֹד:
And the people of Sodom were…evil: Nevertheless, Lot did not hesitate to sojourn with them. And our Rabbis (Yoma 38b) learned from here that (Prov. 10:7) “the name of the wicked shall rot.” [Having mentioned them, the Torah speaks of their evil.]
ואנשי סדום רעים: ואף על פי כן לא נמנע לוט מלשכון עמהם. ורבותינו למדו מכאן (משלי י ז) שם רשעים ירקב:
evil: with their bodies.
רעים: בגופם:
and sinful: with their money. [from Sanh. 109a]
וחטאים: בממונם:
very… against the Lord: They recognized their Master and intended to rebel against Him. [from Sifra, Bechukkothai 2]
לה' מאוד: יודעים רבונם ומתכוונים למרוד בו:
14. And the Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, "Please raise your eyes and see, from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward. יד. וַיהֹוָה אָמַר אֶל אַבְרָם אַחֲרֵי הִפָּרֶד לוֹט מֵעִמּוֹ שָׂא נָא עֵינֶיךָ וּרְאֵה מִן הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה שָׁם צָפֹנָה וָנֶגְבָּה וָקֵדְמָה וָיָמָּה:
after Lot had parted: As long as the wicked man was with him, the Divine speech withdrew from him (and above, when Lot was with him, and it is written (12: 7):“And the Lord appeared to Abram,” [we must assume that] at that time, he was righteous, and this is easy to understand). [from Tan. Vayeze 10]
אחרי הפרד לוט: כל זמן שהרשע עמו היה הדבור פורש ממנו:
15. For all the land that you see I will give to you and to your seed to eternity. טו. כִּי אֶת כָּל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתָּה רֹאֶה לְךָ אֶתְּנֶנָּה וּלְזַרְעֲךָ עַד עוֹלָם:
16. And I will make your seed like the dust of the earth, so that if a man will be able to count the dust of the earth, so will your seed be counted. טז. וְשַׂמְתִּי אֶת זַרְעֲךָ כַּעֲפַר הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר | אִם יוּכַל אִישׁ לִמְנוֹת אֶת עֲפַר הָאָרֶץ גַּם זַרְעֲךָ יִמָּנֶה:
that if a man will be able: Just as it is impossible for the dust to be counted, so will your seed not be counted. [from Targum Onkelos]
אשר אם יוכל איש: כשם שאי אפשר לעפר להמנות, כך זרעך לא ימנה:
17. Rise, walk in the land, to its length and to its breadth, for I will give it to you." יז. קוּם הִתְהַלֵּךְ בָּאָרֶץ לְאָרְכָּהּ וּלְרָחְבָּהּ כִּי לְךָ אֶתְּנֶנָּה:
18. And Abram pitched his tents, and he came, and he dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which is in Hebron, and there he built an altar to the Lord. יח. וַיֶּאֱהַל אַבְרָם וַיָּבֹא וַיֵּשֶׁב בְּאֵלֹנֵי מַמְרֵא אֲשֶׁר בְּחֶבְרוֹן וַיִּבֶן שָׁם מִזְבֵּחַ לַיהֹוָה:
Mamre: the name of a man. [from Gen. Rabbah 42:8]
ממרא: שם אדם:
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Daily Tehillim: Psalms Chapters 23 - 28
• Chapter 23
When King David was in the forest of Cheret and nearly died of starvation, God provided nourishment for him with a taste of the World to Come. David then composed this psalm, describing the magnitude of his trust in God.
1. A psalm by David. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall lack nothing.
2. He lays me down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters.
3. He revives my soul; He directs me in paths of righteousness for the sake of His Name.
4. Though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff-they will comfort me.
5. You will prepare a table for me before my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; my cup is full.
6. Only goodness and kindness shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the House of the Lord for many long years.
Chapter 24
If the fulfillment of one's prayer would result in the sanctification of God's Name, he should pray that God act for the sake of the holiness of His Name. One should also invoke the merit of his ancestors, for we know that "the righteous are greater in death than in life"
1. By David, a psalm. The earth and all therein is the Lord's; the world and its inhabitants.
2. For He has founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the rivers.
3. Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord, and who may stand in His holy place?
4. He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not used My Name in vain or sworn falsely.
5. He shall receive a blessing from the Lord, and kindness from God, his deliverer.
6. Such is the generation of those who search for Him, [the children of] Jacob who seek Your countenance forever.
7. Lift up your heads, O gates, and be lifted up, eternal doors, so the glorious King may enter.
8. Who is the glorious King? The Lord, strong and mighty; the Lord, mighty in battle.
9. Lift up your heads, O gates; lift them up, eternal doors, so the glorious King may enter.
10. Who is the glorious King? The Lord of Hosts, He is the glorious King for all eternity.
Chapter 25
The verses in this psalm are arranged according to the alphabet, excluding the letters Bet, Vav, and Kuf, which together equal the numerical value of Gehenom (purgatory). One who recites this psalm daily will not see the face of purgatory.
1. By David. To You, Lord, I lift my soul.
2. My God, I have put my trust in You. May I not be put to shame; may my enemies not gloat over me.
3. Indeed, may all who hope in You not be put to shame; let those who act treacherously without reason be shamed.
4. O Lord, make Your ways known to me; teach me Your paths.
5. Train me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; I yearn for You all day.
6. O Lord, remember Your mercies and Your kindnesses, for they have existed for all time.
7. Do not recall the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions; remember me in accordance with Your kindness, because of Your goodness, O Lord.
8. Good and upright is the Lord, therefore He directs sinners along the way.
9. He guides the humble with justice, and teaches the humble His way.
10. All the paths of the Lord are kindness and truth for those who observe His covenant and testimonies.
11. For the sake of Your Name, O Lord, pardon my iniquity, for it is great.
12. Whoever is a God-fearing man, him will He teach the path that he should choose.
13. His soul will abide in well-being, and his descendants will inherit the earth.
14. The secret of the Lord is to those who fear Him; He makes His covenant known to them.
15. My eyes are always turned to the Lord, for He releases my feet from the snare.
16. Turn to me and be compassionate to me, for I am alone and afflicted.
17. The sufferings of my heart have increased; deliver me from my hardships.
18. Behold my affliction and suffering, and forgive all my sins.
19. See how numerous my enemies have become; they hate me with a violent hatred.
20. Guard my soul and deliver me; may I not be put to shame, for I place my trust in You.
21. Let integrity and uprightness guard me, for my hope is in You.
22. Redeem Israel, O God, from all its afflictions.
Chapter 26
In this psalm King David inundates God with prayers and acts of piety, because he envies those who are his spiritual superiors, saying, "If only I were on their level of piety and virtue!"
1. By David. Judge me, O Lord, for in my innocence I have walked, and in the Lord I have trusted-I shall not falter.
2. Try me, O Lord, and test me; refine my mind and heart.
3. For Your kindness is before my eyes, and I have walked constantly in Your truth.
4. I did not sit with men of falsehood, and with hypocrites I will not mingle.
5. I detested the company of evildoers, and with the wicked I will not sit.
6. I wash my hands in purity, and circle Your altar, O Lord,
7. to give voice to thanks, and to recount all Your wonders.
8. I love the shelter of Your House, O Lord, and the place where Your glory resides.
9. Gather not in my soul with sinners, nor my life with men of bloodshed,
10. In whose hands are schemes, and whose right hand is filled with bribes.
11. But I walk in my innocence; redeem me and show me favor.
12. My foot stands on level ground; in assemblies I will bless the Lord.
Chapter 27
King David acknowledges and praises God, placing his trust in Him because of his victories in war. "Nevertheless, it is not wars that I desire, for I cannot gain perfection with them. Only one thing do I ask: to abide day and night in the study hall studying Torah, to gain perfection so that my soul may merit the life of the World to Come."
1. By David. The Lord is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life-whom shall I dread?
2. When evildoers approached me to devour my flesh, my oppressors and my foes, they stumbled and fell.
3. If an army were to beleaguer me, my heart would not fear; if war were to arise against me, in this I trust
4. One thing I have asked of the Lord, this I seek: that I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the pleasantness of the Lord, and to visit His Sanctuary.
5. For He will hide me in His tabernacle on a day of adversity; He will conceal me in the hidden places of His tent; He will lift me upon a rock.
6. And then my head will be raised above my enemies around me, and I will offer in His tabernacle sacrifices of jubilation; I will sing and chant to the Lord.
7. Lord, hear my voice as I call; be gracious to me and answer me.
8. In Your behalf my heart says, "Seek My countenance"; Your countenance, Lord, I seek.
9. Do not conceal Your countenance from me; do not cast aside Your servant in wrath. You have been my help; do not abandon me nor forsake me, God of my deliverance.
10. Though my father and mother have forsaken me, the Lord has taken me in.
11. Lord, teach me Your way and lead me in the path of righteousness, because of my watchful enemies.
12. Do not give me over to the will of my oppressors, for there have risen against me false witnesses, and they speak evil.
13. [They would have crushed me] had I not believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
14. Hope in the Lord, be strong and let your heart be valiant, and hope in the Lord.
Chapter 28
A prayer for every individual, entreating God to assist him in walking the good path, to prevent him from walking with the wicked doers of evil, and that He repay the wicked for their wickedness and the righteous for their righteousness.
1. By David. I call to You, O Lord; my Strength, do not be deaf to me; for should You be silent to me, I will be like those who descend to the pit.
2. Hear the sound of my pleas when I cry out to You, when I raise my hands toward Your holy Sanctuary.
3. Do not draw me along with the wicked, with evildoers who speak of peace with their companions, though evil is in their heart.
4. Give them according to their deeds, and the evil of their endeavors; give them according to their handiwork, render to them their just deserts.
5. For they pay no heed to the acts of the Lord, nor to the work of His hands; may He destroy them and not rebuild them.
6. Blessed is the Lord, for He has heard the voice of my pleas.
7. The Lord is my strength and my shield; in Him my heart trusted and I was helped; my heart exulted, and with my song I praised Him.
8. The Lord is a strength to them; He is a stronghold of deliverance to His anointed.
9. Grant salvation to Your people and bless Your heritage; tend them and exalt them forever.
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Tanya: Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, beginning of Epistle 26
• Lessons in Tanya
• Today's Tanya Lesson
Tuesday, 4 Cheshvan 5775 • 28 October 2014
Tanya: Iggeret HaKodesh, beginning of Epistle 26
The letters that comprise Iggeret HaKodesh were written over many years and assembled in their present order by the sons of the Alter Rebbe after his passing, as they explain in their introduction (“Approbation”) to Tanya (Vol. I, p. 19ff., in the present series). It is clear from internal evidence, as the Rebbe notes, that they were not arranged chronologically. Epistle XX, for example, was written just before the Alter Rebbe’s passing in the year 5573 (1812), while Epistle XXVII was written after the passing of R. Mendel of Horodok, about the year 5549 (1789).
Instead, the Rebbe suggests, one can sometimes seek thematic connections to explain the sequence of letters. The present letter, for example, manifests the following connection with Epistle XXV, the preceding one:
After the previous letter discussed how the Shechinah can sometimes be vested in kelipot, the present letter explains that this state of exile brings the Torah, too, to a state of concealment, as kelipot obscure its radiance. It is the task of the Jew to remove this concealment by toiling in the study of the Torah.
The above form of divine service in Torah study supplements another form — separating good from evil, the permitted from the prohibited, and the kasher from the pasul. For the Torah, too, is vested within good and evil, and it is the task of the Jew studying Torah to separate and purify the positive element from each of these dual compounds, and to elevate it to the holy “side” of the universe.
Accordingly, the Alter Rebbe begins the present letter by explaining a statement of Ra’aya Mehemna in the Zohar, which can give the mistaken impression that the revealed portion of Torah stems from the Tree of Good and Evil, while the esoteric portion of Torah, which in the main will be revealed in the Time to Come (with the arrival of Mashiach), derives from the Tree of Life.1
The Alter Rebbe explains how this is truly not so, for the entire Torah is called the Tree of Life. The intent of Ra’aya Mehemna is that the revealed portion of Torah descended and was vested within good and evil, and hence speaks of kasher and pasul, permitted and prohibited, and the like. With the study of Torah, a Jew separates the good from the evil, and elevates it.
ברעיא מהימנא, פרשת נשא: והמשכילים כזהר הרקיע
On the verse,2 “And the wise shall shine like the radiance of the firmament,” Ra’aya Mehemna on Parshat Nasso3 comments:
בהאי חבורא דילך, דאיהו ספר הזהר
“With this work of yours, i.e., of R. Shimon bar Yochai, which is the Book of the Zohar (lit., ‘the Book of Radiance’)
מן זוהרא דאימא עילאה: תשובה
from the radiance of Imma Ila’ah, which is teshuvah, —
Imma Ila’ah (lit., “the Supernal Mother”) is another name for the Sefirah of Binah in the World of Atzilut. This Sefirah relates to teshuvah ila’ah, the higher level of repentance, as explained at the end of ch. 8 of Iggeret HaTeshuvah,4 quoting the Zohar and Tikkunim.
באילין לא צריך נסיון
with those [who study this work] no trial is needed.
The Zohar previously states that at the time of the final Redemption the Jewish people will be put to the test; those who belong to the “good side” of the universe will withstand it, while those who belong to the “side of evil” will not. As it is written,5 “Many will be refined and bleached and chastened, but the wicked will act wickedly; none of the wicked will understand, but the wise will understand.”
The Zohar then states (as above) that those who study the Tree of Life, the Zohar, which is “from the side of Binah” (lit., “understanding”, alluding to the perception of the mystical essence of the Torah), will not be put to the test.
ובגין דעתידין ישראל למטעם מאילנא דחיי, דאיהו האי ספר הזהר, יפקון ביה מן גלותא ברחמי
Because eventually the Jewish people will taste of the Tree of Life, which is this Book of the Zohar, they will go out of exile with it, in mercy.
ויתקיים בהון: ה׳ בדד ינחנו, ואין עמו אל נכר
For them shall be fulfilled the verse,6 ‘G‑d alone will lead them, and there is no strange god with Him.’
In seeking their Redemption they will not have to resort to the favors of the gentile nations, whose patron angels are known as “strange gods.” Rather, G‑d Himself will lead them out of exile and redeem them.
ואילנא דטוב ורע, דאיהו איסור והיתר, טומאה וטהרה, לא שלטא על ישראל יתיר
And the Tree of [Knowledge of] Good and Evil, i.e., prohibition and permission, impurity and purity, will no longer dominate Israel.
דהא פרנסה דלהון לא להוי אלא מסטרא דאילנא דחיי, דלית תמן לא קשיא מסטרא דרע, ולא מחלוקת מרוח הטומאה
For their sustenance will derive only from the side of the Tree of Life, where there is no problematic query, which emanates from the side of evil, and no controversy, which emanates from the spirit of impurity;
דכתיב: ואת רוח הטומאה אעביר מן הארץ
as it is written,7 ‘And the spirit of impurity I shall remove from the earth.’
דלא יתפרנסון תלמידי חכמים מעמי הארץ, אלא מסטרא דטוב, דאכלין טהרה, כשר, היתר
Thus, the Torah scholars will not be sustained by illiterate people, but from the side of the good, who eat that which is pure, kosher and permitted;
ולא מערב רב, דאכלין טומאה, פסול, איסור
nor [will they be sustained] by the mixed multitude, who eat that which is impure, ritually unfit, and prohibited.”
ובזמנא דאילנא דטוב ורע שלטא כו׳
The Zohar continues: “While the Tree of Good and Evil dominates [the world],...
אינון חכמים, דדמיין לשבתות וימים טובים
these Sages, who are likened to the Sabbaths and festivals,8
לית לון אלא מה דיהבין לון אינון חולין
have nothing except what is given to them by those who are called ‘unsanctified ones,’
כגוונא דיום השבת, דלית ליה אלא מה דמתקנין ליה ביומא דחול
just like the Sabbath day, which only has what has been prepared for it on a weekday.
ובזמנא דשלטא אילנא דחיי, אתכפייא אילנא דטוב ורע, ולא יהא לעמי הארץ אלא מה דיהבין להון תלמידי חכמים
However, when the Tree of Life will dominate, the Tree of Good and Evil will be suppressed, and the illiterate people will only have what the Torah scholars give them.
ואתכפיין תחותייהו וכאלו לא הוו בעלמא
They will be subjugated to them, as if they did not exist in the world.
והכי איסור והיתר, טומאה וטהרה, לא אתעבר מעמי הארץ
Accordingly, the prohibited and the permitted, the impure and the pure, will not be removed from the illiterate people.
דמסטרייהו, לית בין גלותא לימות המשיח, אלא שעבוד מלכיות בלבד
As regards them, there will be no difference between the era of exile and the days of Mashiach, except for [the Jewish people’s release from] servitude to the nations.9
דאינון לא טעמין מאילנא דחיי, וצריך לון מתניתין באיסור והיתר, טומאה וטהרה
For they will not have tasted of the Tree of Life, and will require the Mishnayot [which set out the laws] of prohibition and permission, impurity and purity.”
עד כאן ברעיא מהימנא
Here ends the quotation from Ra’aya Mehemna.
* * *
FOOTNOTES
1. These Kabbalistic terms are borrowed from Bereishit 2:9.
2. Daniel 12:3.
3. Zohar III, 124b.
4. Vol. III, p. 1089, in the present work.
5. Daniel 12:10.
6. Devarim 32:12.
7. Zechariah 13:2.
8. Zohar III, 29a, b.
9. Cf. Berachot 34b.
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Rambam: 
Daily Mitzvah N219, P244 Sefer Hamitzvot
Today's Mitzvah
Tuesday, 4 Cheshvan 5775 • 28 October 2014

Negative Commandment 219
Muzzling a Working Animal
"You shall not muzzle the ox when it is threshing"—Deuteronomy 25:4.
It is forbidden to prevent an animal from eating from produce upon which it is working—e.g., if it is threshing grain or carrying a bundle of hay. It is even forbidden to prevent it by verbally [shouting at it when it wishes to eat].
Muzzling a Working Animal
Negative Commandment 219
Translated by Berel Bell
The 219th prohibition is that we are forbidden to prevent an animal from eating from the produce it is working with as it works. If, for example, it is treading grain or carrying straw on its back, one may not prevent it from eating from the grain or straw.
The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement,1 "Do not muzzle an ox when it is treading grain."
It is explained2 that the verse [says "ox" rather than "animal" because it] refers to the most common case, but one may not muzzle an ox nor any other animal. So too, one may not prevent it from eating the food as it works whether it is treading or doing another type of work. One who does so is punished by lashes, even if done only verbally.3
The details of this mitzvah are explained in the 7th chapter of tractate Bava Metzia.4
FOOTNOTES
1.Deut. 25:4.
2.Bava Kama 5:7.
3.If, for example, one shouted at the animal in order to prevent it from eating. Although one receives lashes only for doing an action, nevertheless, the moving of the lips constitutes an action. Hilchos Sechirus 13:2.
4.87b ff.
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Positive Commandment 244
The Borrower
"And if a man borrows from his neighbor..."—Exodus 22:13.
We are commanded [to follow all the laws outlined in the Torah] regarding one who borrows an object from his fellow.
he Borrower
Positive Commandment 244
Translated by Berel Bell
The 244th mitzvah is that we are commanded regarding the law of a borrower.
The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement1 (exalted be He), "If a person borrows something from another..."
The details of this mitzvah are explained in the 8th chapter of tractate Bava Metzia and the 8th chapter of Shavuos.
FOOTNOTES
1.Ex. 22:13.

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Rambam:

• 1 Chapter a Day: Edut Edut - Chapter 8
Edut - Chapter 8
Halacha 1
The following law applies when a person signed on a promissory note and comes to testify with regard to his signature in a court of law. If he recognizes that the signature is definitely his, but does not remember the matter of concern at all and does not have any recollection that this person ever borrowed from the other, it is forbidden for him to testify with regard to his signature in court. For a person is not testifying about his signature, but instead about the money mentioned in the legal document, that one person is obligated to the other. His signature serves merely to remind him of the matter. If he does not remember, he may not testify.
Halacha 2
Whether a person remembers his testimony at the outset, remembers it after seeing his signature, or remembers it after being reminded by others - even if he is reminded by the other witness - if he in truth remembers, he may testify. If, however, it is the plaintiff who reminds him, he may not testify. For it appears to the other litigant that he is testifying falsely about a matter which he does not know.
Halacha 3
Accordingly, if the plaintiff was a Torah scholar and the plaintiff reminded the witness of the matter, he may testify. The rationale is that a Torah scholar knows that if the witness did not remember the matter, he would not testify. This is a leniency which was granted with regard to cases involving financial law. Even though a witness forgot a matter for many years and it was the written record that reminded him, he may testify.
Halacha 4
Since this is true, the following law applies when a legal document is presented to the court and the witnesses come and say: "These are our signatures, but we never knew anything about this matter. We do not remember that this person borrowed anything from the other or sold anything to him." The legal document is not validated; the witnesses are considered as deaf-mutes unless they remember their testimony. Whoever does not rule in this manner does not know between his right hand and his left hand with regard to matters of financial law.
If, however, there was other evidence of their signatures or there were other witnesses who recognize their signatures, we pay no attention to their statements that they do not remember the matter stated in the document. We suspect that they may desire to retract their testimony and they say: "We don't remember," in order to nullify the legal document. This is just as if they said: "We were minors," or "We were not acceptable witnesses." Their testimony is not accepted, and the legal document is validated independent of their testimony.
For this reason, we validate all legal documents without calling the witnesses and asking them if they remember the matter or not. Even if they say: "We do not remember the matter," we do not heed their statements since it is possible to validate the legal document without their testimony.
Halacha 5

The following laws apply whether a person writes his testimony as a legal document or merely finds a note in his records in his handwriting, stating: "So-and-so had me observe testimony concerning him on this-and-this date with regard to these-and-these matters." If he remembers the matter on his own initiative or if others remind him and he remembers, he may testify. If not, he may not testify. The situation is comparable to one in which a trustworthy person tells him: "So-and-so owes so-and-so such-and-such an amount," and the listener goes and testified that one borrowed from the other although he has no firsthand knowledge of the matter, but instead merely heard from another person and testified.
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Rambam:
• 3 Chapters a Day: Sechirut Sechirut - Chapter 13, She'elah uFikkadon She'elah uFikkadon - Chapter 1, She'elah uFikkadon She'elah uFikkadon - Chapter 2
Sechirut - Chapter 13
Halacha 1
An animal should be given the opportunity to eat whenever it works with produce, whether the produce is still attached to the ground or has been harvested. Similarly, it may partake of produce from the burden it is carrying until it has been unloaded, provided that the person caring for the animal does not take the produce in his hand and feed it.
Halacha 2
Whoever prevents an animal from eating while it is working should be punished by lashes, as Deuteronomy 25:4 states: "Do not muzzle an ox while threshing."
The prohibition applies to an ox and to all other species of animals and beasts, whether a kosher animal or a non-kosher animal. Similarly, it applies with regard to threshing and all other types of work with produce. The Torah speaks about an ox threshing only to mention the most common instance.
An employer is not liable if he muzzles a worker. He is, however, liable for muzzling an animal. This applies whether he muzzles the animal while he is working with it or muzzles it beforehand and works with it while muzzled. He is liable even if he "muzzles it" with his mouth.
When a person rents an animal, muzzles it and then threshes with it, he receives lashes and must pay the owners the value of four kabbin of grain for a cow, and three kabbin for a donkey. Although generally a person does not receive both lashes and a financial penalty for the same transgression, an exception is made in this instance, because the renter was obligated to provide the animal with its sustenance from the time he pulled it after him, and he is not liable for lashes until he threshes with the animal while muzzled.
Halacha 3
When a Jew threshes with a cow belonging to a gentile, he is subject to violating the prohibition against muzzling. When, by contrast, a gentile threshes with an ox belonging to Jew, he is not subject to violating this prohibition.
If a Jew tells a gentile: "Muzzle my ox and thresh with it," a thorn becomes lodged in the ox's mouth and he threshes with it so it does not eat, he places a lion outside the threshing floor, he places the animal's son outside the threshing floor, he does not provide the animal with drink when it is thirsty, or spreads a hide over the grain so that it will not eat - all of these and similar acts are forbidden, but the person does not receive lashes.
When the produce with which the animal is working is bad for its digestion and will damage the animal's health or when the animal is sick and eating will cause it to become diarrheic, it is permitted to prevent the animal from eating. The rationale is that the Torah enacted this prohibition so that the animal would benefit, and in such an instance it does not benefit.
Halacha 4
When a priest is threshing grain that is terumah or grain that is definitely terumat ma'aser with a cow that belongs to an Israelite, he is not subject to violating the prohibition against muzzling them.
This law also applies when cows thresh grain that is ma'aser sheni and when cows veer from the path. Nevertheless, because of the impression that might be created, when the cows are threshing grain that is terumah or ma'aser sheni the worker should bring that type of grain and place it in the food sack hanging below their mouths.
Halacha 5
When a person muzzles a cow that is threshing produce that is ma'aser sheni which is demai terumat ma'aser which is demai or produce that grew from terumah he violates the prohibition against muzzling the animal.
Halacha 6
The owner of an ox is permitted to make his animal hungry and aggrieve it so that it will eat a large quantity of the grain that it is threshing. Conversely, the renter of the ox may feed it hay so that it will not eat a large quantity of the grain that it is threshing.
Similarly, an employer may provide his workers with wine so that they will not eat many grapes. Conversely, the workers may dip their bread in brine so they will eat many grapes.
A worker may not, however, perform work at night and then hire himself out during the day, or work with his ox in the evening and then rent it out in the morning. Similarly, he should not starve and aggrieve himself and give his food to his sons, because this leads to stealing from the work due his employer, for his energy will be sapped and his thinking unclear, and he will not be able to perform his work robustly.
Halacha 7
Just as the employer is warned not to steal the wage of the poor person or to withhold it from him, the poor person is forewarned not to steal from the work due his employer and neglect his work slightly here and there, spending the entire day in deceit.
Instead, he is obligated to be precise with regard to his time. The importance of such preciseness is indicated by our Sages' ruling that workers should not recite the fourth blessing of grace, so as not to neglect their work.
Similarly, a worker is obligated to work with all his strength, for Jacob the righteous man said Genesis 31:7: "I served your father with all my strength." Therefore, he will be granted a reward even in this world, as indicated by ibid. 30:43: "And the man became prodigiously wealthy."
Blessed be God who grants assistance.
She'elah uFikkadon - Chapter 1
The Laws of Borrowing and of Entrusted Objects
They contain two positive mitzvot: The first, the laws pertaining to borrowers; and the second, the laws pertaining to an unpaid watchman.
These mitzvot are explained in the chapters that follow.
Halacha 1
When a person borrows utensils, an animal or other movable property from a colleague, and it is lost or stolen, or even if it is destroyed by factors beyond his control - e.g., an animal is injured, taken captive or dies - the borrower is required to make restitution for the entire worth of the article, as stated in Exodus 22:13: "If a person borrows an animal from a colleague and it will become injured or die, and the owner is not with him, he must make financial restitution."
When does the above apply? When the loss due to factors beyond his control does not take place while the borrower is working with the animal. If, however, a person borrows a colleague's animal to plow, and it dies while plowing, the borrower is not liable. If, however, the animal dies before he plowed with it or after he plowed with it, or he rode upon it or threshed with it and the animal died while he was threshing or riding, the borrower is liable to make financial restitution. Similar laws apply in all analogous situations.
Similarly, if a person borrows an animal to travel to a particular place and the animal dies under him on that journey, he borrows a bucket to fill water with it and it falls apart in the cistern while he is filling it, he borrows a hatchet to split wood and it breaks because of the chopping while he is splitting the wood, he is not liable. Similar laws apply in all analogous situations. The rationale is that he borrowed the article solely to perform this task, and he did not deviate from his original request.
Halacha 2
The following rules apply when a person borrows an animal from a colleague, it dies, and the borrower claims that it died while in the midst of work. If he borrowed it to travel to a place where people are commonly present, he must bring witnesses who testify that it died or it was destroyed by forces beyond his control while he was working with it, and he did not deviate from his original request. He is then freed of liability. If he does not bring proof, he is liable.
Different rules apply when a person borrows an animal to fill up the earth in his ruin, i.e., a place where it is not common for witnesses to be present, or he borrowed a bucket to fill the cistern in his house and the bucket was destroyed in the cistern. If he brings proof that the animal or the object was destroyed in the process of performing the task for which it was borrowed, he is not liable even to take an oath. If he cannot bring proof, he must take the oath required of watchmen that the animal died during the performance of the task for which it was borrowed. Similar laws apply in all analogous situations.
Halacha 3
When a person borrows a utensil from a colleague and it breaks, the utensil is evaluated in the same way as a utensil one damages is evaluated. We evaluate how much the object was worth while it was complete and how much it is worth in its present state. The borrower returns the broken utensil or the injured animal to the owner and makes financial restitution for the damages.Similarly, if the animal dies, he may return the carcass and make restitution for the animal's decrease in value.
Halacha 4
When a person borrows an animal, he becomes liable to provide it with food from the time he performs meshichah until the conclusion of the time for which he borrowed it. If its meat depreciates in value, he is liable to pay for that reduction. If its meat depreciates in value because of the work the animal performs, he is not liable. He must, however, take the oath required of a watchman, swearing that it depreciated because of the work.
Halacha 5
When a person borrows an article or an animal from a colleague without making any stipulation, the lender may require him to return it at any time. If he borrowed it for a set time, once he performs meshichah with it, he acquires it, and the owner may not compel the borrower to return it from his possession until the conclusion of the period for which it was borrowed. Indeed, even if the borrower dies, his heirs are entitled to continue using the borrowed article until the conclusion of the period for which it was lent out.
This concept can be appreciated by logical deduction. A purchaser acquires the body of the article he purchases forever in return for the money he gave. The recipient of a present acquires the body of the article he receives forever, although he did not give anything. Similarly, a renter acquires the body of an article for the sake of deriving benefit from it for a limited time in return for the money he gave. And a borrower acquires the body of an article for the sake of deriving benefit from it for a limited time without giving anything. Thus, just as the giver of a present resembles a seller in that he cannot retract his gift forever, so too, a person who lends an article resembles one who hires it out, in that he cannot retract in the midst of the term of the agreement.
When a father leaves his sons a cow that he had borrowed and it dies, they are not liable for the loss its owner suffers. If they thought that it belonged to their father and they slaughtered it and ate it, they are required to pay the price of its meat at a low price. If their father left them an estate, and the borrowed cow died or was slaughtered by them, they must pay its worth from the estate.
Halacha 6
When a person borrows a utensil for the sake of performing a particular task, the person who lent it cannot force the borrower to return it from his possession until the borrower performs that task. Similarly, if he borrows an animal in order to travel to a particular place, the owner may not compel the borrower to return it until he goes to that place and returns.
Halacha 7
When a person asks a colleague: "Lend me your spade to hoe this orchard," he is allowed to hoe only that particular orchard. He may not hoe another orchard with it.
If the borrower said: "to hoe an orchard" without describing it further, he may use it to hoe any orchard he desires. If he borrowed it to hoe his orchards, he may hoe all the orchards he owns. Even if the iron of the spade becomes entirely worn away while hoeing, it is sufficient for him to return the wooden handle of the hoe. Similar laws apply in all analogous situations.
Halacha 8
The following rule applies when a person borrows a utensil from a colleague to use and tells him: "Lend me this item according to your generosity." That expression implies "Don't lend it to me like others who lend out articles, but according to the goodness of your heart and your generosity, that you will not be concerned about the time, even if it becomes extended."
If a kinyan was established with the lender concerning this, the borrower may use the article without limit until it is no longer suitable to perform its function. He must then return its broken pieces or the remnants. The borrower may not, however, fix the utensil and thus make it useful again.
Halacha 9
When a person asks a colleague: "Lend me this stone tub of water," and it was destroyed, he may not rebuild it. If the borrower asks the owner: "Lend me a stone tub," without any description, and it is destroyed, he may rebuild it.
If he asked him: "Lend me the place of a stone tub," if a kinyan was established affirming this agreement, the borrower may build on the property of the lender until he constructs a stone tub that he may use to water his animal or irrigate his land, as he stipulated when speaking to the lender.
Halacha 10
When a person borrows an inn from a colleague "to spend the night," the intent is no less than one day. "To spend the Sabbath," the intent is no less than two days. "For marriage," the intent is no less than 30 days.
When a person borrows a garment from a colleague to visit a person in mourning, he may keep it for the time it takes to go and return. When a person borrows a garment to attend a wedding celebration, he may keep it for that entire day. If he borrows it for his own wedding, he may keep it for at least seven days.
She'elah uFikkadon - Chapter 2
Halacha 1
When a person borrows an article while the owner is working with him, he is not liable, even if the article that he borrowed is stolen or lost through negligence, as Exodus 22:14 states: 'If the owner is with him, he need not make restitution.' This applies, provided he asked the owner to work with him at the time he borrowed the article, as we have explained.
This leniency applies whether the borrower asked the owner to work for him as a favor or hired him, and whether he asked him to perform the same work as he performs with the article, he asked him or hired him to perform another task, or he had him perform any task in the world. Even if he told a colleague, 'Give me a drink of water,' and the person asking for the water asked to borrow his colleague's animal, if the owner gives him a drink and lends him the animal, it is considered as if he lent him the animal while 'with the owner,' and he is not liable.
If the borrower performed meshichah with the animal first, and afterwards the owner gave him to drink, this is not considered to be borrowing an article while the owner is working with the borrower. The same principles apply in all analogous situations.
Halacha 2
When a person lent or rented out his animal to carry a burden and went out to help the borrower or the renter to help him load his burden on it, this is considered to be borrowing an article while the owner is working with the borrower. If he goes out with him to inspect the burden and to see that he was not overloaded, it is not considered borrowing an article while the owner is working with the borrower.
Halacha 3
The following rules apply with regard to a teacher of young children, a person who plants trees for a city, a bloodletter for the city and their scribe. On the day any one of these individuals - or a person in a similar position - sits to perform the work of the city's inhabitants, if he lends or rents out an article to any of the people whose work he is performing, it is considered as if the owner is working with the borrower. Even if the watchman was negligent, he is not liable. If, however, one of these individuals borrowed or rented an article from one of the inhabitants of the city, he is liable in the event of damages. For they do not perform work for him.
Halacha 4
When a teacher reads to his students at will, at the time he desires, whichever tractate he desires, they are obligated to come to him at all times, and even if he has already started studying one tractate with them, he has the license to switch from tractate to tractate, they are considered to be at his command, and he is not at their command. On the day of public study, when everyone comes to hear about the matters that concern the festival, he is considered to be at their command, and they are not at his command.
Halacha 5
When a person tells his agent: 'Go out and work together with my cow,' it is not considered as if the owner is working with the borrower. This is intimated by Exodus 22:14: 'If the owners are with him, he need not make restitution.' The wording implies that verse refers to the owners themselves, and not their agents.
If by contrast a person tells his Canaanite servant: 'Go out and work together with my cow,' it is considered as if the owner is working with the borrower. The rationale is that a Canaanite servant is considered an extension of the physical person of his master.
If the servant goes to work for the borrower without his master's consent, it is not considered as if the owner is working with the borrower.
Halacha 6
When a person borrows an article from a woman, and her husband is performing a task for the borrower, it is not considered as if the owner is working with the borrower. The rationale is that the right to benefit from property is not equivalent to ownership of the property itself. And a woman's husband is entitled only to benefit from her property. He is not the owner.
Halacha 7
When a husband borrows property from his wife or when partners borrow property from each other, it is considered as if the owner is working with the borrower. If one partner says to the other, 'Lend me property today, and I will lend you tomorrow,' it is not considered as if the owner is working with the borrower.
Halacha 8
When a person borrows property from a partnership and also asks one of the partners to work for him, or if partners borrow property and one of the partners asks the owner to work for him, there is an unresolved doubt whether it is considered as if the owner is working with the borrower or not. Therefore, if the animal dies, the borrower is not required to make restitution. If, however, the owner seizes the value of the article from property belonging to the borrower, it should not be expropriated from his possession. If the borrower was negligent, he is required to make restitution.
Halacha 9
There is an unresolved doubt whether a person who borrows an animal to sodomize it, or to create an impression, or to perform work that is worth less than a p'rutah, or borrowed two cows to do work that is worth one p'rutah while the owner is working with him is considered as an instance when an object is borrowed while the owner is working with the borrower or not.
Halacha 10
If a person borrowed an animal while the owner was working for him, and before he returned it, rented it for an additional period while the owner was not working for him, he is not liable if the animal is not returned. The rental is dependent on - and considered as an extension of - the borrowing.
There is, by contrast, an unresolved doubt with regard to all of the following situations:
The person rented the animal while the owner was working for him, and before he returned it, borrowed it for an additional period while the owner was not working for him.
He borrowed an animal while the owner was working for him, and before he returned it, rented it for an additional period while the owner was not working for him and then borrowed it again while the owner was not working for him.
Or he rented an animal while the owner was working for him, and before he returned it, borrowed it for an additional period while the owner was not working for him, and then rented it again while the owner was not working for him.
Halacha 11
When a woman borrows an article from one person and then marries another man, her husband is considered a purchaser - not a paid watchman nor a borrower. Accordingly, if the borrowed article was an animal that died, the husband is not liable even though he used it throughout the time that it was borrowed.This ruling applies even if he was negligent. The rationale is that he is considered as a purchaser.
When the woman receives money, she is obligated to make restitution. If she notified her husband that the article is borrowed, he undertakes her responsibility.
In all the situations that we have defined as borrowing while the owner is working for the borrower, if a renter or a paid watchman were involved, it would be considered as a rental while the owner is working for the renter, and he would not be held liable. Conversely, in all the situations that are not defined as borrowing while the owner is working for the borrower, if a renter or a paid watchman were involved, it would not be considered a rental while the owner is working for the renter. And with regard to all the situations for which there are unresolved doubts whether it is considered to be borrowing while the owner is working for the borrower; so, too, there are unresolved doubts with regard to rentals.
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Hayom Yom:
Tuesday, 4 Cheshvan 5775 • 28 October 2014

"Today's Day"
Tuesday, Cheshvan 4, 5704
Torah lessons: Chumash: Lech L'cha, Shlishi with Rashi.
Tehillim: 23-28.
Tanya: XXVI. In R'aya (p. 549) ...R'aya Mehemna. (p. 551).
Torah-study every day is crucial to life itself. This applies not only to the soul of the one studying but also to the souls of his family. For then (through Torah-study), the atmosphere of the home becomes an atmosphere of Torah and piety.
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Daily Thought:
The Freedom Connection
No Repeats
If you are serving the same G‑d today as you served yesterday, whom are you serving but yourself?
Can G‑d be frozen and defined? Does He get older with each day? Does He eventually, then, become of a relic of the past?
Where there is love and where there is awe, each day brings a new discovery of wonder.(Tzion Bamishpat 5736.)
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