David Feldt. A trader transformed into a builder. Finding meaning in the noise. Proud father. Collaborator, cross-pollinator, entrepreneur.

Having trouble viewing this email? Click here > > Bound to Inspire > A Weekly Newsletter for Kehot Supportors > > October 23, 2009 / 5 Cheshvan, 5770 > Issue > 4Shabbat Parshat Noach > Dear Kehot Supporter, > > We hope you enjoyed receiving our weekly presentation of Bound to > Inspire. > > Although it’s a newsletter for Kehot donors, we have have emailed it > to our entire list during the month of Tishrei. The response has > been very gratifying. > > Please consider becoming a contributor to Kehot Publication Society. > As the not-for-profit publishing arm of Chabad-Lubavitch, we rely on > your kind contributions which help us produce the high quality > literature we produce. > > Like a museum or institution of higher learning, which rely on a > donor base despite charging admission or tuition, Kehot’s sales do > not cover the enormous cost of research, editing and writing. > > You can donate online by visiting our donations site: > http://www.kehot.org. > FINANCIAL WOES > > The Flood described in parshat Noach served not only as a punishment > but also as a spiritual cleansing for a world that had become > spiritually contaminated. This is why the waters of the Flood are > called “the waters of Noah,” meaning “the waters of [Divine] > pleasure and satisfaction [from the Hebrew nachat].” > > Inasmuch as spiritual defilement is associated with the concept of > death, spiritual purification is a form of rebirth. This is why the > flooding lasted for forty days and nights, since the number forty is > related to purification and rebirth: it takes forty days from the > time of conception for a fetus to become completely formed. > Similarly, the minimum amount of water that must be present in a > mikveh (a ritual pool used for spiritual cleansing), through which a > person becomes spiritually “reborn,” is 40 se’ah. (Indeed, precisely > due to the fact that immersion in a mikveh is an experience of > rebirth, many Jews have the custom to immerse themselves in a mikveh > before Shabbat, since on Shabbat we become “new” people. Similarly, > immersion in a mikveh is an integral part of the process of > conversion, in which the convert becomes a “new” person.) > > Metaphorically, the floodwaters correspond to our financial worries, > which likewise serve to purify us spiritually. In fact, the parallel > between financial worries and the mikveh goes much deeper. > > The waters of the mikveh represent Divine awareness. When immersing > ourselves in these waters, we are meant to envision ourselves > submerging in Divine awareness, such that our normative awareness > becomes swallowed up and submerged in Divine consciousness. (This > relationship between immersion and self-nullification is alluded to > by the fact that the letters used to spell the word for “to > immerse” [taval] can be rearranged to spell the word for “to > nullify” [vatal]). > > This is why a mikveh is required to contain a minimum of 40 se’ah: > this is the amount necessary to ensure that the entire body is > immersed in it at once. In other words, immersing oneself in a > mikveh means to transcend oneself and thereby rise to a level in > which one is able to become receptive to holiness. > > This is also the reason why G-d gives us financial worries. True, > they temporarily distract and confuse us, but they simultaneously > also break down our walls of self-assuredness, thereby enabling us > to go beyond our ego. It is then that we become receptive to holiness. > > Since the true purpose of financial woes is not, G-d forbid, to > punish us but rather to deflate our inflated ego, this can be > accomplished in one short moment: if we quickly extract the inner > message hidden in the financial worries, thereby enabling us to > transcend our egos, we no longer need the financial worries to > rectify ourselves, and can henceforth enjoy nachat (pleasure and > calm), both physically and spiritually. > > > Seeing Everything in its Pristine State > > G-d tells Noah to take kosher non-kosher animals into the ark. But > instead of referring to the non-kosher animals bluntly as “ritually > impure,” G-d refers to them indirectly, as “those that are not > ritually pure,” thereby adding eight seemingly superfluous letters > to the Torah. This teaches us that we, too, should go out of our way > to use only clean speech and euphemistic expressions. True, the > expression “ritually impure” (tamei) appears numerous times in the > Torah, but in these instances, the Torah is stating a law, and a law > must be stated clearly and unequivocally. Besides, the direct term > is not considered negative in such contexts, since the issue is the > law and not the impurity. However, in a narrative—even when the > narrative serves as the basis for a legal ruling—the euphemism is > preferred. > > The Kabbalistic explanation of this is as follows: When G-d first > had the thought to create the world, it immediately came into > existence, but only spiritually. Afterwards, when G-d spoke the > words of creation (“Let there be light,” etc.), the world came into > physical existence. The state of the world as it exists spiritually > in the realm of thought is called “rest” (menuchah). Noah’s ark also > expressed the concept of rest, as alluded to in his name, Noah > (Noach, related to menuchah, “rest”). Thus all the inhabitants of > the ark existed on the plane of “thought,” which is why they lived > peacefully together. > > This is the reason that the ark’s non-kosher animals are not > referred to as “impure.” When in the ark, each animal reverted to > its spiritual root, where impurity cannot exist. For example, the > terrestrial lion is a non-kosher animal, while its spiritual > antecedent is one of the holy beasts of the Divine Chariot! This, > then, is the deeper meaning of the instruction that one should seek > to use a clean expression: one should try to see everything as it > exists in its pristine state within its spiritual roots. > > > — Torah Chumash Bereishit > Gut Shabbos! > > Rabbi Yosef B. Friedman > on behalf of the Kehot Publication Society > Quick Links > More About Us > Donate Now > A CHUMASH LIKE NEVER BEFORE! > > > Chumash Bereishis > With an Interpolated English Translation and Commentary Based on the > Works of the Lubavitcher Rebbe. > > Editor-in-Chief: > Rabbi Moshe Wisnefsky > > > > This innovative Chumash features a new translation and commentary > which weaves Rashi’s commentary, explained according to the Rebbe’s > understanding of Rashi, together with the translation of the Torah > text. This forms one clear, smooth and easy reading body, accessible > even to the beginner and informative to all. > > Additional Features: > > *”Chasidic Insights” and “Inner Dimensions” > > *Chronological charts, maps, topic titles, illustrations, diagrams > > *Each sidra is prefaced by an overview > > *A study of the name of each sidra and its relevance to the > respective text > > *Fully vocalized Hebrew text of Rashi’s commentary > > > Available at: Kehot.com > > >