Sunday, May 31, 2015
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Friday, May 22, 2015
Thursday, May 21, 2015
Shavuos - Discourse given to Kollel students by Rav Eliezer Berland Shlit"a
A
discourse given to Kollel students in preparation for the Holiday of Shavuos
Transcribed
and translated from previous recordings of
HaRav
Eliezer Berland Shlit”a
Matan Torah is coming; on Shavuos we are all going to hear the Aseres
Hadibros (The Ten Commandments)! We’re going to hear the sounds! There were
Tzaddikim who heard the Aseres Hadibros every minute, especially on Matan
Torah, on Shavuos. The Rebbe (Rebbe Nachman) heard all of the sounds of Matan
Torah! On the morning of Shavuos, the Rebbe went to immerse in the mikvah and
he heard all of the Aseres Hadibros! He heard all of the sounds! He was certain
that everyone else heard them too! He was sure they also heard the Aseres
Hadibros, the sounds, the thunder of Matan Torah. He kept asking the man accompanying
him, “Do you hear that? You hear the sounds? Do you hear sounds? What, you
don’t hear it?! How can you not hear? What do you mean, you can’t hear? Here,
listen! The Ten Commandments! Sounds! Thunder! The worlds are exploding! Listen
to those explosive sounds and thunder throughout the worlds! You don’t hear
it?” The Rebbe held himself so humbly and lowly, lower than any other Jew in
the world! He was sure that if he himself hears the sounds of Matan Torah,
certainly everyone else does as well!
We are now right before Matan Torah and we must prepare the tools
with which to enter this holy day and receive the holy Torah. A person must
prepare himself for attaining Chochma ilaeh, Chochmah, tataeh, Eden ilaeh,
Eden tataeh - supernal wisdom and lower wisdom, supernal paradise and lower
paradise. Man must prepare himself to start understanding the holy Gemara and
to knowing the fact that aside from the Gemara and aside from the Torah and Sifrei
Hakodesh he needs to know nothing else at all in the world. An ear that
heard the Ten Commandments at Har Sinai, an ear that is going to listen to the
reading of the Ten Commandments on Shavuos in shul, an ear that hears the
words, “I am Hashem your G-d… Who took you out from slavery,” – from slavery!
Such an ear is now going to become a slave of slaves?! Going to be occupied with
radio and media?! He will listen to nonsense?! A person does not need to be occupied
with anything besides Gemara and the holy seforim – all of the greatest
Tzaddikim never looked up from their Gemaras. They never stopped learning! They
never straightened up and raised their heads! That is “naaseh venishma!
(We will do and we will hear)” That is Matan Torah!
Learning Torah is greater than serving in the Beis Hamikdash, as it
says, “It is more precious than pearls (Mishlei 3;15); greater than the Kohen
Gadol (High Priest) who enters the Holy of Holies.” It is taught that a talmid
chacham that is a mamzer is greater that a Kohen Gadol am haaretz
who knows nothing, even though he is a mamzer he is greater! Even though
he was born unlawfully! He was born from terrible sins! Yet, if he learns Torah
day and night, he is greater than a Kohen Gadol! For, one cannot escape his
Yetzer hara (evil inclination) if he does not study properly. A person must
work at this till death! He must work so hard to learn Torah to the point that
he would willingly die for it! The verse “A man that passes away in the (study)
tent” is taught to mean that a person must die for the Torah. One must toil and
work hard for the Torah! He shouldn’t just learn Torah in a daze, out of
comfort and pleasure; Studying Torah is not comfort! People have so many
worldly desires including a desire for comfort and leisure. All of the lusts
and desires are hinted to from the alufim (soldiers in command) of Esav
and one of them is called, “aluf nachas - of leisure.” People like to walk
leisurely, to be comfortable, to learn with leisure. Yet the true comfort and
rest is only the Torah! About Yissochar is says, “He saw a resting place, that
it was good, and the land, that it was pleasant, and he bent his shoulder to
bear [burdens].” Rashi says these burdens refer to the yoke of Torah.
The real leisure – menucha, is menuchas hanefesh, leisure of
the soul. Through studying Torah, one polishes up his soul and cleans it,
scraping away all the pollution and then he merits menuchas hanefesh –
that his soul is at peace.
Man must understand that he is responsible for the maasei
breishis (creation); every day we must recreate the world. The world runs
according to those who study Torah. Torah learning creates the world, as it
says, “all of the innovations of creation which are recreated daily by Hashem
Yisborach, is all through Torah… that sometimes there is a lot of rain and
sometimes a lot of land and here it is cold and damp, etc. and so on regarding
all the changes.” Reb Nosson explains (Likutei Halachos, Yibum 3) that all of the changes that happen throughout the world concur to
your Torah study. When a Jew learns Torah, the whole world turns favorable to
the Jewish Nation. That’s why with the nations of the world; sometimes they
like us and sometimes they hate us. Whoever studies history knows that one year
they liked us and another year they hated us and wanted to annihilate us.
Everything has always been dependent upon our Torah study; not on the
politicians or anything else.
The Gemara says in Nedarim, 1, “Why are there Talmidim chachamim
whose sons are not talmidim chachamim… because they did not first bless the
Torah.” Sometimes, a man goes to learn Torah and says, “Why not? Why shouldn’t
I go learn Torah? It’s fun! What have I got to lose? The Kollel pays me $500! So,
what’ve I got to lose? I earn $500, learn a bit, pass the time, what’s wrong
with that? What, I should go work in some print shop or woodshop?” Such
thoughts and intentions will lead to nothing! Man must study Torah with kavonah
(deep intention) and holiness, LeShem Shamyim, for the sake of Heaven.
He must believe that every word he studies affects thousands of souls. Every
word he says causes people to wake up and do teshuva!
The Rebbe said, in Tora 14, “Why do talmidei chachamim have sons
that are not talmidim chachamim? Because they did not bless the Torah first.
Every man, particularly a talmid chacham needs to bless and enlighten the shoresh
- root of the souls with his Torah learning, because that is where our shoresh
is… but when he does not make brachos and enlighten with his learning…. Because
of this, his son will not become a talmid chacham.” The person must know that
all of the letters he recites correspond to neshamas (souls). Through
his learning he must enlighten the shoresh of the neshamas and
have the intention in mind of doing so when he’s learning Torah. Before he even
opens up his Gemara, his Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah, he must say the following:
“I have in mind that with every single letter that will come out of my mouth,
each letter will correspond to the specific soul it is connected to and will
arouse it to do teshuva. The neshama that is connected to that letter will
shine!” That is the meaning of “blessing the Torah first”; the person has the
intention that his learning will bless and enlighten all of the neshamas
of the Jewish people.
If a man would merit listening to the Tzaddikim and believing in
the chachamim who say that through each and every letter people do teshuva, if
he would learn Torah not because it’s fun and not because there’s nothing
better to do, nor because it’s better than going to work somewhere else or in
order to pass the time and not simply because he is charedi and is obligated to
learn Torah or because he is Chassidic with a long beard and long peyos and its
‘respectable’ to go out and learn Torah… Nowadays, it is only a materialistic
difference, being respectably religious or respectably secular. If the person
would learn Torah truly for the sake of Heaven – LeShem Shamayim in
order to arouse Jewish souls, through each letter of every word he recites, he
intends that it should enlighten shorshei haneshamos, the root of all
souls, he would shake the roots of the neshamas to their core! He would shake
up the neshamas that have abandoned the Torah altogether and bring them to
doing teshuva.
Through every letter he can arouse distant and forgotten neshamas.
Through each letter he can truly draw down a new neshama into those long
lost neshamas and bring them to repentance.
Why do the secular Jews not keep Shabbos? Why are they not doing
teshuva? It is all because they lost their neshamas! They are living
like non-Jews! If you were to tell them to keep Shabbos they won’t have a clue
what you’re talking about! They’ve lost
their neshamas! They’ve lost their neshamas from all their
abundance of pgam habris (sinning of the covenant)! Now we have to draw
down for them new neshamas; we must draw down for all the left wingers and
anti-religious new neshamas! This can be done by learning Torah with the
intention that each and every letter we say will go and enlighten that long,
lost neshama connected with its corresponding letter (from the Torah)
and arouse it to do teshuva. Don’t abandon those lost souls! This is what
Rabbenu said, “Why are there talmidim chachamim whose sons are not talmidim
chachamim – because they did not bless the Torah first! They are not learning
with the proper kavana! They are not learning with the intention that it should
enlighten the shoreshei neshamas, the root of all souls! They are not learning
bidchilu urechimu, with love and awe! They don’t believe that with every
letter spoken people are waking up and doing teshuva!
Therefore the punishment is that “their sons are not talmidim
chachamim.” They get sons who don’t want to learn, don’t want to daven, don’t
want to go to Cheider, don’t want to go learn in yeshiva, they run away
from the yeshiva! They just pass the time. The Rebbe says in Tora 14 that these
sons are given sleeping neshamas, in the aspect of “I am asleep, but my heart
is awake”. The boy wants to sleep a lot, eat a lot, he’s slow to get going,
can’t wake up early in the morning, thinks he’s doing a favor by even keeping
shabbos, his father has to go through extensive suffering to get him married,
tons of suffering! Tons of specialists! Endless suffering! All this the father
must endure because he did not first make brachos of the Torah before learning;
he did not have the kavanah with each and every letter that his learning should
enlighten the shorshei neshamos. Particularly Talmidim Chachamim must be
more careful and be sure to enlighten the shorshei neshamos. Contrarily, he who
has the proper kavanah with the letters of the Torah, he who has the kavanah to
enlighten the shorshei neshamos most certainly merits bringing down a
pure and gentle neshama for his son and that is middah keneged middah, measure
for measure! Just as he learned the letters of the Torah with the kavanah of
drawing down neshamas into all the long lost neshamas, so does Hashem
give him a gift of embedding his son with a gentle and pure neshama that
will want nothing else but to learn Torah, to get up early in the morning -
wake up even before his father does! The father will wake up at 5 am and this
neshama will wake up at 3 am! His son will receive such a pure neshama
that is drawn only to holiness.
The Rebbe says in Tora 101 that if a man doesn’t learn Torah be’iyun,
in depth, and doesn’t study Gemara then the torah for him is considered “sam
hamaves”, the drug of death. It is anpin chashuchin, as it says, “he
has placed me in the dark like the dead ones of the world.” He goes around with
a dark face; his smile has no meaning, it’s just there, a smile of a gentile
not the smile of a Yid. The smile of a Yid is one full of Torah and tefilla as
it says, “The wisdom of the person lightens up his face.” He enters his house
full of light and joy, he brings peace to the home; he fills his house with
holy light. His wife sees him how calm he his, his children see how happy he is,
so they are also calm and happy. And once home he opens up a sefer, he takes
the Gemara, learns Gemara, reads from the Rambam or the Shulchan Aruch, the
Tur, etc., then his wife sees how hard he’s working, she watches him learn!
She’ll stand at his side watching in awe; she won’t demand anything else of him.
If she would see how holy he is, learning Torah, burning with a fire for the
Torah, learning Gemara, working hard at it, his face is lit up and the Shechina
dwells in him, then she’ll stand firmly at his side! They will have peace in
home. She’ll get her entire satisfaction from just watching him! She’ll be able
to witness the Shechina Hakedosha (Divine Presence) resting upon him.
Some people mistakenly think that it is hard for them to learn
Torah and they prefer to go drive big trucks all over, schlepping heavy boxes
from place to place, travelling from one end of the country to the other; from
Metulah to Eilat. They’re prepared to spend hours in traveling, just so they
don’t have to learn! If a man would sit and learn he would receive all of the
abundance in the world! For, every letter is a goldmine! Every letter is wells
filled with oil from millions of barrels! Sit and learn and you’ll see what
abundance you will have! You won’t even need to go out and work! However, the
Yetzer Hara is so strong he literally drives the person to madness. The person
becomes a madman like one who constantly bangs his head against the wall. Why
do you insist on banging your head against the wall? Schlepping truckloads of
merchandise; why are you torturing yourself? Why schlep anything? Sit in
Kollel, learn Torah and enjoy life. When the man learns Torah b’iyun,
learns Gemara, focusing his mind completely on the Torah, he is creating new
worlds! He is creating a new reality! All of a sudden he has made new laws! Suddenly
he has abundance in ruchnius and even abundance in gashmius
(materialistic needs). Why does he have all this? Through his learning he has
created a new world! Until now he was in a world that lacks abundance and money
but now he is in a new world where now he has money! It became a whole new
world! Every moment man is creating new worlds. If a person is learning Torah
he is creating new worlds by the second.
Man has apikorsus (heresy) in his heart; he doesn’t believe
that Hashem is right in front of him every second. When a person does not have kavanah
in Tefilla, pure intention in prayer, when he doesn’t sense that Hashem
is right in front of him it is because he has apikorsus in his heart. He
doesn’t believe that Hashem is here. When a person speaks to his friends he is
very careful about every word that leaves his mouth. If he speaks to a king
he’s even more careful! He is constantly on guard making sure not to say the
wrong thing or something that makes no sense. When he talks with a friend he
doesn’t talk pointlessly. He can talk for 10 hours straight because he sees the
person in front of him; he sees a person with a face, hands and feet. Hashem is
chay vekayam (alive)! He’s right in front of us! Yet we don’t feel that
He is here. That just proves that we have no sechel! When a person does
not sense Hashem’s presence and does not daven with kavanah it is
only because he has no sechel! Just as there are illnesses that cause
the person to lose his mind and suddenly he doesn’t even recognize his own
parents, so it is with the person who doesn’t have Torah and doesn’t have sechel;
he doesn’t recognize his mother and father who is Hakadosh Baruch Hu, The
Blessed Holy One. If the person could, he would implant a new sechel
into his head but no one has yet discovered how to transplant a new sechel.
Rabbenu Hakadosh says that in order to gain sechel, man must learn
Sha”s; he must learn Torah. A person cannot pray with pure intentions, feeling
Hashem right in front of him, if he doesn’t learn Torah.
A person must realize that Breslov and Gemara are one! The essence
of the Breslov chassidus is that you do everything that is written in the
Torah! You don’t just go according to your own feelings and opinions or
whatever’s comfortable. “Go out in the footsteps of the cattle and herd your
goats by the dwellings of the shepherds.” We must heed the shepherds! We must
heed the Tzaddikim! We must heed the Likutei Moharan! In the first Tora of
Likutei Moharan it says that a person needs sechel! A man must study Gemara!
That alone is called temimus (wholeheartedness). You must know that the
Breslov Chassidus does not nullify even the tiniest little detail (in the
Torah) chas vehsalom, G-d forbid! No minhag of Am Yisrael! It
only comes to add! It comes to add more Yiras Shamayim, more tefilla
with kavanah and more shmiras einayim, etc.
The Rebbe said “I want my ideas to spread into litvish hearts”
(siach sarfei kodesh 2:257). The Rebbe said ‘Be Litvaks’!
Start to learn! With the Rebbe there is nothing new! The Rebbe says “My way is
the old way yet it is completely new”. In Tora 101 the Rebbe explains “Whoever
accepts upon himself the yolk of Torah” – that is the study of torah in depth, b’iyun.
The “yolk of Torah” is in depth study - torah b’iyun, gemara and poskim.
We have nothing other than what the Rebbe tells us. If a person wants something
new let him compose a new Likutei Moharan! Let him create a new Breslov! We go,
however, according to the original Breslov – what is written! The original
Breslov is to learn torah in depth, to learn gemara and poskim. The Rebbe says “the
yolk of Torah is torah b’iyun”. If a person comes and says that he has a
new Likutei Moharan, has created a new system, then he may have certainly received
some kind of new revelation. But the Rebbe says “there are no new revelations!”
The Rebbes way is the completely old way while simultaneously it is completely
new! People come and distribute segulot charms and coins with “spiritual
powers”, or blessed Matza. So many new ideas. May the new ideas continue! But
it has nothing to do with Breslov! The Rebbe says, by me there is nothing new!
My way is the old way, the original way. We need to follow the herd. Look at how
the Chazon Ish studied Torah! Look at how the Steipler studied Torah! Be a
Breslover! There is nothing new here!
To advertise, dedicate
an issue, or to receive a blessing from the Rav please call:
(Israel) 052-718-6265
(US) 917-284-9657
(UK) (+44) 238-228-0223
(Netherlands) (+31) 202170893
shuvubanimint.com (hebrew site)
Donate through PayPal and help us build the
English Website
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Watch what the Kabbalist says about Rabbi Berlands journeys
Purim night 2015. A few students of Rabbi Eliezer Berland after returning from Holland were walking with the Mekubal Rabbi Dov Kook from Tveria in Ramat on at midnight. They related to him a little bit about what the people are going through there how they have to travel from village to village, and also mentioned how Rabbi Berland attracts a following wherever he goes and many people help them including non-jews. The kabbalist smiles and says "There will be tremendous Divine Providence, he will return and redeem us, his return will usher in the redemption."
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
Arriving at the new village!
In preparation for the great holiday of Shavuot we have arrived at a new upgraded location. Holiday resort in Holland.
Tuesday, May 12, 2015
Monday, May 11, 2015
Watch the video documentary: Lag BaOmer 2015 - Shuvu Banim with Rabbi Berland in Holland and in Meron
Lag BaOmer 2015 with Rabbi Eliezer Berland in Holland! Shuvu Banim in Holland and Meron. Watch the shiur that was broadcast worldwide during the traditional shooting of the bow and arrow.
Watch Rabbi Berland today giving a shiur in Amsterdam while walking to the car.
Posted by הרב אליעזר ברלנד שליט"א - מהנעשה בעולמו של הצדיק Rabbi Eliezer Berland on Monday, May 11, 2015
Sunday, May 10, 2015
Live broadcast: Shachris with Rav Berland in Holland
To listen to the broadcast call +97258328777 ext 11
Friday, May 8, 2015
Parshas Behar – Trust and Faith by Rav Eliezer Berland Shlit"a
Parshas
Behar – Trust and Faith
Transcribed and translated from previous recorded
shiurim of
Rav
Eliezer Berland Shlit”a
“And if you will say: What will we
eat in the seventh year?” (25:20)
The
questions, “What will we eat?” and “What will we drink?” are always in the back
of a person’s mind. “And if you will say: What will we eat in the seventh
year?” You want to know what will there be to eat? Hashem said, “You will have
the best of everything. You will have abundance. You will lack nothing.” Hashem
said you will have the best of everything. Hashem promised that you would have
the best of everything! And you ask, “What will we eat?” Is this called having
faith in Hashem? The holy Zohar expounds the verse in Parshas Behar, “If you
will say: What will we eat…,” with a story: Rebbe Chiya and Rebbe Yosi were
standing on a high mountain and they had an abundance of food with them. They
had taken with them several donkeys full of food, and they stood on the
mountain and witnessed a horrifying scene: two people were walking in the
middle of the desert, and they came across a man who had gotten lost who had
been sitting in the same spot for two days without food. He was dying of
heatstroke, just seconds from death. And this man said to them, “It’s been two
days and I haven’t had anything to eat or drink.” So one of the men gave him
something to eat and drink. The other man shouted at the first, “What are you
doing? Don’t give him anything. It’s forbidden! ‘You should guard your souls!’
This is a matter of life and death. I don’t allow you to do this. Let him die!
What do you care if he dies? Your life comes first!” So the first man answered
him, “What do you care if I give him?” And the other responded, “If you give
him all your food, in the end you will ask me to give you from mine. You will
want me to give you food, but I won’t give you anything at all!” Rebbe Chiya
and Rebbe Yosi witnessed this whole scene from afar. They could understand from
their movements what was going on, how one man shouted at the other not to give
the man any food, and how the other man kept on feeding the weakened man,
giving him to drink, strengthening and reviving him, until he recovered. He
ended up giving him all his water and food and he was left with nothing at all
for himself, not even a drop of water. As soon as the two men started back on
their way, after only a few minutes, the one who had given away all his food
and water started getting sunstroke. There they are in the middle of the desert
at noon and the sun is beating down, and it’s 120 degrees out, and he collapses
and passes out under a tree. His friend screams at him, “You see! I told you
that you would pass out. I told you that you would die without food and water.
And now, I am going to leave you here. I couldn’t care less about you. I am
going to abandon you here in the middle of the desert.” When Rebbe Chiya and
Rebbe Yosi saw how he lay there under the tree too weak to move, Rebbe Chiya
said to Rebbe Yosi, “We have plenty of food. Let’s give him from ours. Let’s
run over there quickly: we have to save him! Rebbe Yosi answered him, “Wait a
while, let’s sit and see what happens. Certainly HaKodosh Baruch Hu is going to
do a miracle for him. Certainly there will be a great miracle. We have an
ongoing story here. Don’t’ jump in in the middle of it. Don’t run to give him
the food. The world is not hefker! A person gives away all his food and now he
is going to die? It’s impossible! A great miracle is about to take place!” They
stood there and watched how he was lying there weakened, when suddenly a giant
snake appears and starts slithering towards him—a huge snake that could swallow
him whole. Rebbe Chiya said, “That’s it! He’s going to die now for sure! This
poor man has to die such a terrible death?” Rebbe Yosi responded, “Don’t
despair. He gave away all his food and water. He trusted completely in Hashem,
for sure Hashem won’t abandon him now. Wait and see what a great miracle is
about to take place.” Suddenly, they see an even bigger snake come slithering
down the tree—much bigger than the first snake. He kills and swallows the first
snake, and the man remains unharmed, under the tree, fast asleep in the middle
of the desert. Immediately Rebbe Chiya and Rebbe Yosi ran quickly to him, woke
him up from his slumber and gave him to eat and drink. And then they told him
the story of the great miracle that had just happened to him.
A
person must believe that before he comes to this world, Hashem prepares for
each and every person all the help he will need, people to save him, and people
to strengthen him. Wherever a person goes, with each and every move there
stands a person to help him. Whether you are in the middle of the desert or the
middle of the sea, there will always be someone there beside you. You are never
lost. Hashem is found in every place—in every situation He is there with you.
Every moment, the salvation is ready for a person. He just needs to cry out to
Hashem one time—one real cry—and salvation is at hand. If you will only cry out
“Shema Yisrael Hashem Elokeinu Hashem Echad!” or “Ana Hashem, Hoshiah Na!”, “b’zchut
Rabeinu”, then Hashem will immediately save you.
A
person must have faith, trust in Hashem. He needs to sing a little, to pray
with kavanah and not worry about where he is going to get money from. For He
who created you also created money and everything else. He created you even
before He created money. All the money in the world is ready for you. Hashem
wants only that you should learn Torah. A person transgresses, so the money
doesn’t come pouring into his pockets—it doesn’t just descend from the ceiling.
But
what are you so worried about? Everything has already been announced in Heaven!
40 days before a person is formed, it is decreed in Heaven that on such and
such day he will acquire a home, on such and such day he will buy a field. What
a person’s income will be—everything—has already been decreed in Heaven, even
before he was born. The salvation can only come when a person really trusts in
Hashem. His eyes should be turned to Hashem: “The eyes of all look expectantly
to You, and You give them their food in its proper time” (Tehillim 145:17). In
its proper time! Everything in its time. Everything that a person deserves
comes to him at its determined time: an apartment, furniture, etc. Everything
happens at its specified time, because the essence of physical existence is
dependent on money, but worrying about money will distance a person from
salvation, from an apartment—it will push away his income. A person thinks his
whole life long about money, but he doesn’t realize that the moment that he
will stop thinking about money, then the money will come to him—it will race
towards him. What is income—“parnasa?” It is “par” (a cow) “nosea” (goes). You
run after the cow, and the cow goes, it runs away. “Nosea” spelt with an ayin! The
more you run after money the more it will run away from you.
The
Rebbe said in Torah 225 that trusting in Hashem is infinite. There is no limit
to trusting. “Trust in Hashem infinitely” (Yeshaya 26:4). Trust is an unlimited
thing—there are no boundaries to faith and trust. The essence of perfect trust
is when the mind is bound to Torah. Trust comes from intelligence! If you don’t
have any intelligence, you don’t have any trust or faith. If you learn Torah
then you have faith, but if you don’t learn Torah then you don’t. The Rebbe
said that if you would just learned Torah, then you would have the intelligence
to know that everything is from Hashem. So a person needs to learn a lot of
Gemara in order to straighten out his mind, because according to the level of
intelligence, so is a person’s faith. The more intelligence a person has, the
greater mind he has, the more faith and trust he has.
Prayer
Master of the
Universe, please help me to be courageous and resolute in my belief in You. I
shouldn’t be reluctant or hesitant to give away all my money in tzeddakah if
needed, worrying about what I will have for tomorrow. Help me not to put my
trust in other people, in order that I shouldn’t be in the category of
“accursed,” as it says, (Yirmiah 17:5), “Accursed is the man who trusts in
people and makes flesh [and blood] his strength, and turns his heart away from
Hashem.” Please help me to have complete trust in You my whole life long, to
believe and have faith in You alone and not to anticipate any kind of salvation
from anyone, as it is written, (Tehillim 60:13) “human salvation is futile.”
Please strengthen me in my belief that all my sustenance comes from You alone,
not from any person or through any other path. Fulfill in me the verses,
(Tehillim 60:13) “Help us against the oppressor; human salvation is futile.
Through Hashem we shall act valiantly, and He will trample our oppressors.” And
also, (Tehillim 61:7) “May You add days onto the days of the king, may his
years be like all generations. May he sit forever before Hashem; appoint
kindness and truth, that they may preserve him. Thus shall I praise Your name
eternally, to daily fulfill my vows”.
Sign
up to the weekly email list knishtachada@gmail.com
To
advertise, dedicate an issue, or to receive a blessing from the Rav please
call:
(Israel)
052-718-6265
(US) 917-284-9657
(UK) (+44)-238-228-0223
(Netherlands) (+31)202170893
Connect to us:
Connect to us:
shuvubanimint.com hebrew
site
rabbieliezerberland.blogspot.co.il english
blog
knishtachada.com hebrew
blog
www.facebook.com/RebbeNachman english
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
Live shiur tonight at 2am Israel time by Rav Eliezer Berland Shlit"a
In honor of Lag BaOmer the Rav will be giving a shiur by telephone which will heard through loudspeakers in Meron at the Shuvu Banim section behind the kever of Rabi Shimon Bar Yochai. All are requested to come early as traffic delays are expected. The traditional bonfire will be lit immediately following the shiur. Dancing will be through the night. Shachris vasikim. Refreshments will be served.
For those who can't make it, the shiur can be heard on the information line +972583287777 ext 11.
Tuesday, May 5, 2015
The Holiness of Lag BaOmer - By Rav Eliezer Berland Shlit"a
The holiness of Lag
BaOmer
Transcribed
and translated from previous recordings of
HaRav
Eliezer Berland Shlit”a
On the yahrtzeit of Rebbe Shimon Bar Yochai fire comes down from Heaven. 33
days after the Seder night, after Pesach, we merit a tremendous, awesome
occurrence; the revelation of the Shechina (Divine Providence), fiery
revelation. All of the mountains surrounding the gravesite of Rashbi are ablaze.
When the Kohen Gadol would enter the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur, even the Angels
and Seraphim would flee, they would get burnt from the fire [of holiness]. Likewise,
in the case of Rebbe Shimon Bar Yochai, who is the aspect of chesed I’la’ah (Supreme
Chessed), the aspect of the Kohen Gadol of all the generations from who’s fire all
the angels burn. No sooner would Rebbe Shimon open his mouth to speak words of
Torah than he would become surrounded with fire. Everything around him would
suddenly be set with fire (as is told in the Idra). If while he was alive
everything around him was burning with fire, you can only imagine how fierce
the fire around him has become since his passing, as it says, “Greater are the
righteous after they pass away than they were in their lifetime.”
Lag BaOmer is literally Yom Kippur; it is a day when all of our sins are
forgiven. It is truly like “Kol Nidrei”. Everything is forgiven. All the
judgments become sweetened, the highest and most glorious chassadim are
revealed on this day. On Lag BaOmer one can draw down all of the “mochin”,
all of the healing and salvations for the entire year. On this day every illnesses
can be healed; there is no type of healing that cannot be drawn down on this
day. This day can heal every type of Cancer. All who are barren can merit
having children, all who are single can merit finding their match. This is the
day of hataras nedarim, [lit. nullification of vows], everything is mitigated and everything is forgiven, all of the sins the
person has committed, the millions of aveiras that the person has done
from the day he was born until this holy day. Even the sins from all previous
generations are forgiven.
A person travels for three hours to Meron, gets pushed in the crowds
suffering between the thousands upon thousands of people; through this his sins
are all forgiven! All of his pgamei habris (flaws of the covenant), all
the sins he did throughout his entire life are now forgiven. This is the
meaning of what it says: “Chadi Rebbe Shimon”: Rebbe Shimon is delighted
when he sees hundreds of thousands of people, all of Am Yisrael, traveling to
his gravesite. Every year more and more people go. Truthfully, no one has any
idea what’s going on here, no one can understand it – the meaning behind this
trip to Meron. People don’t know why they are going, don’t know what they are
celebrating on Lag BaOmer, however “even though he doesn’t see his mazal sees”.
The whole country is celebrating and no one knows exactly why.
People must realize that the Tzaddik is the root of all souls, he is the “even
shtiyah” (the foundation rock from which the world was created); he is the
root of everyone, of every single soul. Every neshama is a tiny spark of the
Tzaddik. The spark of Rebbe Shimon can be found within every Jew; the soul of
Rashbi is found in every Jew. It is a neshama that includes all of Am Yisrael,
surrounds the entire world, embraces all of the worlds and all of the sefiros.
That is why everyone goes up to the gravesite of Rebbe Shimon, in order to be
included within the neshama that includes all of Am Yisrael.
Traveling to Rashbi must be done with messirus nefesh (self-sacrifice).
Rebbe Shimon calls to us: “Come to me, just travel for two-three hours and you’re
already with me!” All of the abundance in the world, all the blessings
in the world, prayer, Torah, holiness, everything a person needs, he can get it
all, just come! Travel! You must first travel! The Tzaddik is chai v’kayam
(alive and well). You are not traveling to see a human being! So travel with
fear and awe! When you travel by car or by bus for two to three hours, make
your journey with holy awe, with sefarim to learn from, with prayer and
hisbodedus. Don’t act silly, joke around and talk nonsense. Travel leShem
Shamayim (for the sake of Heaven) in order to be purified and become holy. Then
Rebbe Shimon will be able to draw down for you endless salvations, endless
holiness and purity. He can give you a new soul; nothing is limited for him. He
has no limitations and can give you everything you need and everything you
think. Whatever you want he’ll give you, just make sure you go with sincerity, with
a true sense of awe and holiness.
The “Beis Aharon” says that the highest level of all of the verses in
Psalms is “Tzamaa lecha nafshi, kamhah lecha besari” – my soul thirsts for You,
my flesh yearns for You. This means that even the body, the flesh, turns into soul.
Even the flesh ceases to feel materialism or earthly desires. It burns out of abundant
love for Hashem. This level of “my flesh yearns for you” can be attained
through Rebbe Shimon, through the fire of Rashbi, the fire that burns all
around him day and night, for RAShBi is the letters of “Besari” (flesh). When a
person comes to Rebbe Shimon with sincere intentions, dances whenever they are
dancing, he merits that his whole body (flesh), and all of his worldly desires
and connections burn away and he reaches the highest level of “My flesh yearns
for You.”
Whoever merits on Lag BaOmer traveling with sincerity to Rebbe Shimon Bar
Yochay, whoever weeps on Lag BaOmer (with repentance and joy), whoever dances
with sincerity on Lag BaOmer – doesn’t just stand off to the side daydreaming,
but rather dances wholeheartedly and believes that Rebbe Shimon is ‘chai v’kayam’
(alive and well)… He shouldn’t just travel because of peer pressure or just
because others are going, but because he truly believes that Rebbe Shimon is
alive. He should pray with great passion, dance with passion and not just stand
about on the side while everyone else is dancing, as the Rambam says that
whoever sees that everyone is dancing but he just stands on the side is a
complete fool and apikorus (heretic), for he does not believe in the power of
the Tzaddikim, he does not believe in the power of dancing. He doesn’t believe
that the Tzaddikim can mitaber (enter and indwell) in him, for on his
Yahrtzeit, Rebbe Shimon needs to come down even lower and enter the bodies of
all those that come to him. Through this he nullifies all of the harsh decrees.
So whoever goes to Rebbe Shimon with sincerity, with his head in the holy books,
in Tehillim, in Gemaras, etc. keeping himself together and strengthening his
heart, truly yearning for Rebbe Shimon – he will merit that Rebbe Shimon will
plant himself inside of him and through that he will merit all of the
salvations. And through this may we all merit the complete redemption, speedily
in our days, amen.
To advertise, dedicate
an issue, or to receive a blessing from the Rav please call:
(Israel) 052-718-6265
(US) 917-284-9657
(UK) (+44) 238-228-0223
(Netherlands) (+31) 202170893
Connect to us: knishtachada.com
(hebrew blog)
rabbieliezerberland.blogspot.co.il(english
blog)
shuvubanimint.com
(hebrew site)
facebook.com/RebbeNachman (english)
facebook.com/KnishtaChada (hebrew)
Twitter @EliezerBerland
(english)
Monday, May 4, 2015
Boruch Hashem the Rav is out of the hospital after undergoing tests on his heart condition.
Prayers are still needed.
Prayers needed! Rav Berland brought to hospital in Holland.
Shortly after leaving the village where he was a sandak at a bris, Rav Berland wasn't feeling well and was brought to the hospital. Everyone is requested to say at least 3 Tikkun Haklali for the speedy recovery of Harav Eliezer ben Etya Shlit"a.
Rav Berland arrived at the village for shachris
Live broadcast on the information line +972583287777 ext 11
Sunday, May 3, 2015
Friday, May 1, 2015
Parshas Emor
In praise of the Jewish woman
Parshas Emor Weekly Parshah transcribed and translated from shiurim of HaRav Eliezer Berland Shlit"a
"Emor – and you shall say, to warn the great about the small (Rashi 21;1)" "A woman who fears Hashem – she shall be praised" – The woman has fear (of Heaven), she has more fear than the man since the women did not participate in the sin of the Golden Calf nor did they take part in the sin of the spies. As soon as the women took upon themselves the Ten Commandments, as soon as they took upon themselves the yoke of Torah and mitzvos, nothing in the world could affect them (to go against), nothing could deter them or entice them – no claims or persuasions could convince them otherwise. This is because the woman's emunah is much stronger than the man's. That is the woman's nature. If she hears some sort of Torah lesson or law, nothing in the world can deter her from what she just learned. When the men had approached the women to demand their jewelry [for the Golden Calf], they tried persuading their wives by saying, "What?! You don't believe Aharon HaKohen? You don't have faith in tzaddikim?" Aharon HaKohen said to build a calf but the women simply replied: What do you mean 'he said to build a calf'? What, Aharon is changing the Ten Commandments? The Zohar Hakadosh said, "And they fell apart upon the people" – What does this mean, "And they fell apart"? The Zohar explains that the women refused to remove their earrings, no matter what! The grabbed their ears with their hands and would not remove them for the world. That's why it says, "And they fell apart," as in "he takes apart mountains and breaks rocks"; they simply took the matter into their hands forcefully. When the men suffered this attack of madness and wanted to create a Golden Calf, Hashem have mercy, the women, nevertheless, remained wholehearted and pure, faithful and modest, and nothing at all could convince them to change their minds. Nothing! The Zohar Hakadosh says that there are great halls in Shamayim, into which the righteous women merit entrance. There is one hall called, "Basya, Bas-Paroh". Thousands of women come up with chidushim (innovations) of the Torah, every day. There are thousands of women there who left their homes, their wealth, their careers, etc. Basya was a bas-Melech (daughter of a king) who left everything in order to become a simple Jewish woman. So every woman who could have become a big manager of a company but left everything behind in order to stay home and raise her children to Torah and sends her husband out to learn Torah, says Tehillim and prays at the kosel, etc., by merit of her actions she grows to such high spiritual levels unmatched to those any other woman can reach, even to the levels of Basya Bas Paro who entered alive into Gan Eden. Women are the aspect of a mizbeach (altar), because they sacrifice themselves for the sake of Hashem Yisborach, they make sacrifices, they raise the children, sometimes caring for ten kids at once… Mothers do everything; they devote all their time to the children, feed them and give them to drink, bathe them, and they do it all with messirus nefesh (self sacrifice). They sacrifice themselves to Hashem Yisborach therefore they can become prophets, like Devorah Hanevi'ah and Miriam Hanevi'ah. What is a house? A house is a Mishkan. The Hebrew letters Mi.sh.ka.n stand for "bed, table, chair and light" in Hebrew. The wife cleans the house, educates the children, the home is filled with Torah books because the children learn Torah and the husband can sit and learn Torah. When the wife washes dishes and lights candles, cooks and sets the table, she is building the mishkan. If she fulfills her purpose and mission in this world, she can certainly come to nevu'ah (prophesy). Although a woman is exempt from studying Gemora, she is not exempt from clinging to Hashem. From that there is no exemption; she can cling to Hashem while cleaning the house, cooking and washing dishes. There is a story told about the wife of Rabbi Yitzchak Drohovitcher, the mother of Reb Michel of Zlotochov. While sweeping the floors of her house she said, "holy, holy holy!" Reb Yitzchak, her husband said, "Why are you saying, "kadosh, kadosh, kadosh"? She replied, "I hear the malachim singing; they are now saying "kedusha". Rebbe Moshe Leib of Sasov had become blind. When asked the reason behind his blindness, he said, "Because of my wife I became blind. With everything she does, she says, "lichvod Shabbos, lichvod Shabbos". She kneads the dough and cooks and says, "lichvod Shabbos". With every "lichvod Shabbos" an angel is born. Angels are created out of every word said in honor of Shabbos, until the entire house was filled with a burning fire. The house was so filled with malachim that I became blinded from all the bright light." If the woman does her job properly and loyally with joy and mercy, for the sake of Hashem, then from the simplest things she can come to nevu'ah.
Sign up to the weekly email list knishtachada@gmail.com
To advertise, dedicate an issue, or to receive a blessing from the Rav please call: (Israel) 052-718-6265 (US) 917-284-9657 (UK) (+44) -238-228-0223 (Netherlands) (+31)202170893
Connect to us: knishtachada.com hebrew blog
rabbieliezerberland.blogspot.co.il english blog
www.facebook.com/RebbeNachman english
Twitter @EliezerBerland (english)
Twitter @knishtachada (hebrew)
The buses arrived!
About 60 families are moving with the Tzaddik Hador to a new village in Holland. There they will spend the week of Lag B'omer. Hundreds of guests are expected to join them.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)