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- Ein Aya
Ein Ayah: Fear of the day of death is meant to accompany the natural tendency toward justice and kindness that exists in a person if he guards its purity. A person with a rational approach realizes that he views things inaccurately when he is alive and is drawn to desires and improper physicality and that he suffers when he strays from the holy traits that Hashem bestowed from Himself on the human spirit.
This changes on the day of death, when he is rid of all his physical desires and his soul wants to return to its natural level but feels at once the pain of defilement. The healthy soul, sensing, while still alive, the pending problem, fears the upcoming day of death. It is sad to think that certain lofty things that the soul cannot sense while alive but can when he is dead will elude a soul because of his behavior during his lifetime. The greatest acquisition a person can lose is the light and completeness of his soul.
Wicked people, who do not focus on the splendor of knowledge and were not warmed by the light of Hashem, will not be afraid of the day of death. This is different from those who have made wrong decisions and have lost much of the light of Hashem, but their spirit still has yearnings for improvement and will thus fear the day of death. Wickedness is capable of polluting the heart to the point that the wicked will be insensitive to the disappointment of not attaining purity after death. Therefore, as they walk in darkness, they will be robust and unconcerned about what they may experience after death.
A person can lack knowledge and proper emotion, either because he has intellectually warped conceptions or because his feelings are occupied with other things. If the problem is intellectual, he can be taught the truth and be healed. Even if it is due to distractions, it does not have to be a permanent problem because they can pass.
However, wickedness can destroy all logic. Then, even if one should fear what will happen when he dies, he develops a rebellious nature that rejects the very idea of logic dictating how he should live his life. This is a moral disease that has no cure, because improvement is predicated upon the intellect being respected, which is missing when one knows that there is a day of reckoning after death but is not concerned about it. This is the fat covering the kidneys.
The situation would not be severe if the person temporarily forgot the day of death, but we are referring to one who remembers and ignores. It turns him into an animal-like person. He can know everything and not have it trickle down to practicality and actions.
In order to ward off such a horrible disease, Hashem gave us the Torah of truth which impacts the way we act. It enables us to be sensitive to sacred things so that we will not become lost in the turmoil of wickedness and the muddiness of iniquity. Thus, in response to the dangers of wickedness, Hashem, who created the evil inclination, created Torah as a remedy (Kiddushin 30b).
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
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P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Realtor’s Fee on Large Commercial Building – part I
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 85031 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: The Goal of an Agricultural Yeshiva – part I
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 263 (address at the laying of the cornerstone of the Yeshiva Chakla’it in Kfar Haroeh)
Re'e NEVER EXTREME EXCEPT ISRAEL
Parshat Re'eh
Judaism is against extremism, so how can we understand the seemingly extreme statements found in our sages in favor of living in the Land of Israel and against living in Chutz laAretz? The article deals with the seeming contradiction between the strength of Free-Will and the strength of being influenced by our surroundings.
Ekev DANCE FOR ISRAEL- FOR YOUR BENEFIT
Parshat Eikev
Description: The 7 Haftarot we read after Tisha B'Av ("Shiva D'Nichemta") surely get us excited that they're coming TRUE, and awaken us to yearn, dance & join the return to Zion! The short article also deals with the problems and solutions facing the American Jewish community as discussed at a recent panel, as well as the question why Jews come from America to Israel to help when we face problems, but Israelis don't come to aid Jews in America when they face anti-Semitism.
P'ninat Mishpat P'ninat Mishpat: Complaints about Contractor’s Work – part II
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
(based on ruling 83037.1 of the Eretz Hemdah-Gazit Rabbinical Courts)
Chemdat Yamim Moreshet Shaul: Twin Foundations
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
Based on Siach Shaul, Pirkei Machshava V’Hadracha p. 690
D'varim Judaism’s Social Vision
Re’eh
Giving is more than an act of generosity—it is an essential part of human dignity that belongs to everyone, rich and poor alike. The ultimate goal of help is to empower others to stand on their own.
Kuzari -Rabbi Ari Shvat Kuzari class 9 - "Seeing is Believing" (parag. 21-30)
These paragraphs elaborate on the theme that seeing and knowing is better than any attempt to prove logically, and begins explaining the difference between Israel and gentiles.
