Latest Essays

• Why the community of the ancient Jerusalem was destroyed?

  Nov 3, 2025 Admin 0 Comments

  The 9th of Av is the most horrible and darkest day in Jewish history. Thousands of Roman troops came to the walls of Jerusalem, and on the 9th of Av, Jerusalem was on fire. Why? What did the Jews in the community do, so this happened to the nation?
  
  The Talmud, Gittin 55–56, says that the Second Bet Hamikdash was destroyed due to an argument between two people—Kamtza & Bar Kamtza. The story goes like this: a man threw a party and asked his servant to invite his friend Kamtza. The servant went, but instead of going to Kamtza, by mistake, he invited his enemy, Bar Kamtza. Already at the party, as the host went from table to table, he noticed his enemy sitting and having a good time with the rest of the guests. The host came over and asked him, "What are you doing here?" Bar Kamtza politely answered that his servant had invited him. That's when the host realized that his servant had made a mistake and called the wrong guy. Furiously, he asked the guy to leave the party, but Bar Kamtza offered to pay for his meal and asked him not to make a scene and humiliate him in front of everyone. But the host refused again and asked him to leave. Bar Kamtza offered to pay half the cost of the party, then the full cost, but the host refused and threw him out.
  
  The Talmud says that people present at the party, especially the Torah sages, sat quietly and didn't get involved. The Talmud rebukes this behavior and says at the end, that this incident was the reason for the destruction of the Second Temple.
  
  Any argument is accompanied by gossip and rumors.
  
  The same thing happened many times in our history, and every time, Hashem's reaction was very severe. 
  
  - Yosef was saying about his brothers to his father, and for that they hated him. Because of this, the brothers sold Yosef, and later the whole family emigrated to Egypt (Bereshit Chapter 37, and Bereshit Rabah 84:7)
  
  - Moshe was puzzled as to why the Jewish people had such a hard life being slaves in Egypt. But when he found out that amongst them were people who spread rumors, he understood why this was their fate. (Shemot and Rashi 2:14)
  
  - When the spies came back and slandered Eretz Yisrael, those who believed paid with their lives - all the adults died and were buried in the desert. (Parashat Shelach)
  
  - Doeg, the Head of Sanhedrin, was solely responsible for the killing of the City of Kohanim. (Shmuel 22:9)
  
  - The armies of Shaul HaMelech were losing battles with the Philistines because people were spreading rumors about (already anointed and future) King David. (Midrash Shocher Tov 7:8)
  
  There are lots of other stories of people being slandered, and all of them have one thing in common: they break one commandment —the Commandment of Lashon Hara, which means saying something bad, even though it may be true. (Shulchan Aruch, Orach Hachaim 156:10)
  
  - It is forbidden to repeat something about someone, even though this may not be negative; this is called Rechilut. (Vayikra 19:16, Mishneh Torah, Chilchot Deot Chapter 7)
  
  - It is forbidden to listen when someone says something negative about someone. The person should admonish the speaker, and if this is not possible, he needs to remove himself from his presence. (Chafetz Chaim 6:2, based on Talmud Ketubot 5A and many other sources)
  
  - And even if the person heard something negative about someone, he is not allowed to believe it; on the contrary, he needs to give him the benefit of the doubt and justify his actions, and always judge a person for good. (Talmud Pesachim 118A, also in the commentaries of Rashbam in Perek HaMekabel)
  
  In the Book of Shemot, Parashat Vayera 18:1 - 18:33, it talks about Avraham Avinu: right after he made a brit, the three angels came to him. One of the angels said that he came to destroy the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. When Avraham Avinu heard that, he began praying to Hashem and asked Him whether fifty righteous people were living there, so that He would not destroy the cities for their sake. Hashem told him, There are not. Then he asked him to save the cities for forty-five, and again He said they are not there. Then he asked for thirty, and twenty, and still he got a negative answer. Then, once again, he approached Hashem in prayer and asked to save the cities for ten righteous people, but Hashem said that even ten righteous people don't exist in those cities. Rashi says that the lawyer —Avraham Avinu — fell silent, and Hashem left his presence, since there were not even ten tzaddikim to save the cities in their merit.
  
  In the story of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza, there were no ten members of the community who thought well of Bar Kamtza, and who were willing to get up and publicly defend him and stop the host of the party. People have been gossiping about Bar Kamtza, and others have believed it and spread it further. This was an epidemic in a society that had laws against such behavior. People were so sure that Bar Kamtza was the guilty party that they took on the roles of observers at the party. They were judging Bar Kamtza unfavorably because they already had an opinion of him, influenced by all the gossip and rumors circulating before this incident at the party. And with all of this, laws of lashon hara and other laws were broken, which led to the destruction of the Second Temple, loss of millions of lives, and an exile till our time.
  
  We are in exile, which means this disease is still plaguing us. And suppose there's a person amongst us, about whom everyone is talking, and talking very badly, and people believe and spread rumors. Based on these rumors, he is being judged and treated differently, while being subjected to more and more new labels and accusations. In that case, this is called Lashon Hara—talking badly, spreading rumors, and gossip— which Torah calls in two words: sinat chinam or baseless hatred. 
  
  And if in that place you still have 50, 45, 30, 20, or 10 righteous people, who do not believe all that gossip, contrary to public pressure, then there's still hope that Hashem's fury can be turned away. We should always try to prevent the community from speaking and spreading rumors, using our influence and communal pressure, and squash this type of behavior right from the start. 
  
  And if not? And the rumors went far—then there's a job to do: he should be cleaning up. When he sees those who heard and those who might have heard, he needs to convince them that this is not true and ask Hashem for mercy. (Sefer Chafetz Chaim). Otherwise, as was said in the previous articles, our Small Batey Mikdashim—homes, synagogues, and social places — are at stake. 
  
  Our Sages taught, "Any generation in which the Temple is not built, it is as if it had been destroyed in their times" (Talmud Yerushalmi, Yoma 1A). Because that generation continues in the footsteps of the one who destroyed the Temple, they are not trying to fix the mistakes of the past generations, but continue doing the same destructive sins in the eyes of Hashem and the nation.
  
  Our goal is to build strong families and communities which have to live by Torah laws. Based on our life experience, we need to help people by giving them advice, guiding, and encouraging all those who fell in life - and to do this not because we owe them or they owe us, but just like that, as the Gemara says: Loving and helping another Jew without any reason, as Achavat Chinam or Baseless Love. 
  
  This action alone will grow, multiply, and strengthen the Jewish Nation and our communities while doing an unforgettable act of bringing peace between people and families, for which Hashem Himself will repay. This action will be responsible for many who have left, returning to Hashem and His Torah and mitzvot. And based on everything said above, we and our families will merit seeing Mashiach while doing our part to hasten his arrival and free us from this prolonged exile.
  
  Shmuel Katanov
  08/13/2025
  
  

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• The Rejected Trio

  Sep 10, 2025 Admin 0 Comments

  In Parashat Ki Tetzeh, we are told of a ceremony called Yibum, also known as levirate marriage. If the man does not want to marry his brother's widow, the ceremony that releases him from this obligation is called Khalitzah.
  
  As always, everything that is about to follow is strictly how I view the verses in the Torah, and is my opinion, and with that said, let's go!!
  
  So, why is the khalitza performed? And why does the woman take off his shoe and spit on his face? I assume you are familiar with the laws and details of this ceremony, so I will proceed directly.
  
  It may all be related to the incident involving The Brothers and Yosef. The Brothers sold the young Yosef and bought shoes with that money. Brothers denied Yosef the opportunity to have his own family, a bright future, and to leave sons after himself, so they sold him to Egypt at a young age. The same is the brother who doesn’t want to take the wife of his deceased brother-in-law, in the ceremony of Khalitzah, denies his dead brother an opportunity to continue his name and leave a descendant in his name, since the one who passed on died childless. 
  
  Why does the woman need to spit on his face? The Brothers didn’t - do the selling - with a smile; they did it through anger, screaming, and spit flying from their mouths. The same way a woman needs to spit on his face, as it says in the Parashat Ki Tetzeh 25:9, and in my opinion, this would atone in some way the anger shown by The Brothers, for their spits that flew onto Yosef's face.
  
  Since the whole nation comes from the Brothers, the whole nation needs to atone for this situation. Shoes are not worn during Tisha Be Av, as the money made from their sale was spent on them. 
  
  Problems between people often lead to someone "getting sold", or to put it more politely, being thrown out of the community, as happened to Bar Kamzta, which eventually led to the destruction of the Bet Hamikdash. But in reality, on Tisha Be Av, we atone for that same sin of The Brothers, which repeats itself centuries later - a similar scenario, only it played out a bit differently - but still the same old plot where we have failed once again.
  
  It feels like centuries come and go, but we have never graduated or fixed that situation. 
  
  But let’s take it a bit further:
  
  Hashem has made a way for us to atone for The Brothers through the couples that have a hard time bringing children into this world, but why through them?
  
  Since Yosef was denied by The Brothers to have a family and was sold to Egypt, Hashem puts the couples - the descendants of The Brothers, and denies them children for some time, thus atoning for what The Brothers did to Yosef HaTzaddik. They experience pain as if like Yosef, who went through his hardships during the time when he was alone and childless - the time before he got married.
  
  The wife in the Khalitza process spits at the brother, since the brother behaves as The Brothers did and causes her not to have a child, and she is in pain. She went through this childless marriage, just buried her husband, and now even this brother denies her a child, and brazenly continues to deny her this last opportunity.
  
  But you may say that Sarah and Rachel also didn’t have children, are they also atoning for Yosef? They are not. That’s why Hashem explicitly says - And Hashem remembered Sarah(Vayera 21:1) and Rachel(Vayetzei 30:22) and gave them children, after that Hashem didn’t remember anyone, He either spoke via an angel to Shimshon’s mother(Judges 13), or Chana - via a prophet (Samuel 1). The rest of the people are atoning for Yosef HaTzaddik till our time.
  
  Hashem hand-picks those couples and awards them to do an atonement for The Brothers, and in the process, Hashem draws them close to Himself. Besides the children, whether they get it or not, their spiritual leap in the process is unbelievably huge and is their highest spiritual reward.
  
  So, if you think about it, we have Yosef HaTzaddik, who was thrown out from the family, then Bar Kamtza was thrown out from the community, and there’s a third personality in the End of Days, the Son of David, with a similar plot. 
  
  Every day, the Nation has problems, and will continue to have problems for as long as the situation is not fixed with the Son of David. 
  
  There were significant mistakes made with Bar Kamtza and Yosef HaTzaddik.
  
  It says in the Book of Midrash, after the family has united in Egypt, Yosef ate separately from the rest of The Brothers, since Yaakov Avinu didn't make peace between The Brothers, thus Hashem made them go through a hard and bitter Galut later, and on top of it had to punish the ten rabbis in order to atone for The Brothers.
  
  Bar Kamtza had no one on his side - not a single rabbi, and he did what he did, where the Bet Hamikdash got destroyed, millions died, and millions were taken into captivity. 
  
  Same way is Mashiach - "He is despised, and isolated from men, a man of pains, and accustomed to illness. As one who hid his face from us; he was despised, and we had no regard for him." as it says in Prophet Isaiah 53:3, an outsider, despised and isolated from men and will be so until he is reinstated into the community. And then, and only then, the problems will stop, and the atonement of the Rejected Trio will be made - Yosef HaTzaddik, Bar Kamtza, and Mashiach Tzidkenu - and then The Brothers will be set Free.
  
  So, Gentlemen - Let's Find This Guy & Let’s Bring The Redemption!!
  
  
  
  

  - Part 2  -
  
  But as always, let's go even deeper.
  
  The question is, why does the widow need to remove the shoe from her Brother-in-law?
  The Parashat Mikeitz says that the brothers took off the Ketonet Pasim from Yosef, and now the widow - the descendant of The Brothers, needs to take off the shoe from the brother's foot, and he will be called as - the one whose shoe was removed, as if marking him with a title that he has behaved like The Brothers who took off the Ketonet Pasim from Yosef.

  
  But why Hashem makes the lady suffer, and why is she left without a child?
  The widow is atoning for Reuven, who suggested throwing Yosef into the pit, hoping to save him later; he should have saved him right then and there. When Reuven came back, the child, Yosef, was gone, and Reuven had no child to bring back to his father. So is the widow, at the mercy of her Brother-in-law, who refuses to marry her; thus, she walks away without a child.
  
  Why does her husband die childless?
  The husband dies, since The Brothers removed the Ketonet Pasim and sold Yosef with anger, they showed their evil side, and the atonement for this is death.
  
  Why, in all of this, does the widow seem to be suffering the most? 
  In a previous article, we discussed the mistake Adam made. (Below is just a snippet, but please refer to the full essay located at this address, for context and whole idea behind every word presented.)
  
  “In Parashat Bereshit, Chava gave Adam HaRishon a fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, and he ate it. In Bereshit 3:6 says, "וַתֵּ֣רֶא הָֽאִשָּׁ֡ה כִּ֣י טוֹב֩ הָעֵ֨ץ לְמַאֲכָ֜ל וְכִ֧י תַֽאֲוָה־ה֣וּא לָעֵינַ֗יִם וְנֶחְמָ֤ד הָעֵץ֙ לְהַשְׂכִּ֔יל וַתִּקַּ֥ח מִפִּרְי֖וֹ וַתֹּאכַ֑ל וַתִּתֵּ֧ן גַּם־לְאִישָׁ֛הּ עִמָּ֖הּ וַיֹּאכַֽל׃  - When the woman saw that the tree was good for eating and a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable as a source of wisdom, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave some to her husband, and he ate." 
  
  Per Oral Torah tradition, the word לְאִישָׁ֛הּ - Le Yisha is translated as to her husband, due to a dagesh in the Hey - a dot in the last letter Hey. But as you know, when the text is written in the Sefer Torah, it has no vowels and no dagesh is written there, and the word לאישה - Le Yisha could also be translated as To a Woman, as if Chavah passed the fruit to a woman.
  

   

  To me, it seems that Hashem belittled Adam HaRishon because he thoughtlessly agreed with his wife and went along with her, not standing up to her, not protesting, and eating when she offered him the fruit. That exact fruit from the tree that Hashem told him not to eat from. He had only this one commandment to keep, but he went along and sinned and went against the word of G-d.”

  
  The widow is atoning for Chava, since she was the cause of Adam's fall. Reuven has followed in the footsteps of Adam HaRishon and has fallen, just like Adam did. Adam HaRishon thoughtlessly, without giving it too much thought, has taken the fruit from Chava, while ignoring the word of Hashem. In the same way, Reuven thoughtlessly moved the bed of Yaakov Avinu, without thinking of his father's response and its consequences.
  
  I call upon all of the Reuvenites of Today, who thoughtlessly and carelessly break the word of G-d, be it towards them and G-d, or them and other people.  When or how will you atone for your thoughtless and evil schemes of the past? 
  
  How serious are these thoughtless sins, you ask? As a punishment, Reuven has lost it all - birthright, priesthood, and kingship.
  
  So, what do we stand to lose?? 
  
  Shmuel Katanov
  
  

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• Ayeka - Where Are You?

  Jun 8, 2025 Admin 0 Comments

  This is Part 2; please read Part 1 before proceeding with the content below.
  
  Recently, I heard a thought about Adam HaRishon and his eating of the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, as when one associates oneself with that sin, it limits one's growth. It is a nice idea, but please allow me to approach this from a different angle.
  
  In Parashat Bereshit 3:9-11, says: "וַיִּקְרָ֛א יה׳ אֱלֹהִ֖ים אֶל־הָֽאָדָ֑ם וַיֹּ֥אמֶר ל֖וֹ אַיֶּֽכָּה׃ - G-d Hashem called out to the Human and said to him, "Where are you?" 
  
  וַיֹּ֕אמֶר אֶת־קֹלְךָ֥ שָׁמַ֖עְתִּי בַּגָּ֑ן וָאִירָ֛א כִּֽי־עֵירֹ֥ם אָנֹ֖כִי וָאֵחָבֵֽא׃ - He replied, I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.
  
  וַיֹּ֕אמֶר מִ֚י הִגִּ֣יד לְךָ֔ כִּ֥י עֵירֹ֖ם אָ֑תָּה הֲמִן־הָעֵ֗ץ אֲשֶׁ֧ר צִוִּיתִ֛יךָ לְבִלְתִּ֥י אֲכׇל־מִמֶּ֖נּוּ אָכָֽלְתָּ׃  - Who told you that you were naked? Did you eat of the tree from which I had forbidden you to eat?"
  
  Let's stop here. As always, everything that is about to follow is just my two cents, my opinion, may be something to ponder about.
  
  So, what happened here?
  
  Adam ate the fruit, and Hashem is looking for him? I don't believe it's that simple; there must be more to it. Hashem knows where everyone is, and especially He knows where His creation is, right there in the Garden. By asking Ayeka - Where are you? I believe, Hashem meant something else. 
  
  If you read part 1, in my opinion, Rabbi Akiva ate the fruits from the Tree of Knowledge, and this propelled him to become one of the greatest teachers we have ever had, a person who taught the next generation of rabbis, who have passed on the Torah as we know it Today. 
  
  Similarly, Adam, by eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, gained knowledge of the Torah and its laws - halachot, which is why he was hiding, since the law says that one can't be naked out in the open. 
  
  But there's a problem. There was no Torah given to him yet. 
  
  So, in 3:21, "וַיַּ֩עַשׂ֩ ייה׳ אֱלֹהִ֖ים לְאָדָ֧ם וּלְאִשְׁתּ֛וֹ כׇּתְנ֥וֹת ע֖וֹר וַיַּלְבִּשֵֽׁם׃ - And G-d made garments of skins for Adam and his wife, and clothed them." And drove them out of the Garden of Eden. 
  
  But let's further develop this idea, because I feel we're on to something huge!
  
  In Talmud Bava Metzia 59a, we have an interesting story.
  
  The story begins with a halakhic dispute regarding an oven called "Tanur shel Akhnai" or "The Oven of Akhnai." This oven was constructed from separate tiles with sand placed between each tile. The main question was whether this oven, when disassembled and reassembled, retained its original status or became a new entity. This distinction was crucial for matters of ritual purity.
  
  Rabbi Eliezer ben Hurcanus argued that the oven lost its status, meaning that if it had been ritually defiled, it would lose that impure status.
  
  The majority of the sages ruled that it retained its original status throughout the disassembly and reassembly process.
  
  On that day, when they were discussing this matter, Rabbi Eliezer gave all possible answers to support his view, but the Rabbis disagreed with him. After he could not convince the Rabbis, Rabbi Eliezer said to them:
  
  If the law is according to my opinion, 'This carob tree will prove it'. The carob tree has uprooted itself and moved from its place one hundred cubits, and some say four hundred cubits. The Rabbis said to him: One does not bring halakhic proof from the carob tree. 
  
  Rabbi Eliezer then said to them, 'If the halakha is according to my opinion, the stream will prove it.' The water in the stream turned backward and began flowing in the opposite direction. They said to him, 'One does not bring halakhic proof from a stream.' 
  
  Rabbi Eliezer then said to them: If the halakha is according to my opinion, 'The walls of the study hall will prove it'. The walls of the study hall leaned inward and began to fall. Rabbi Yehoshua scolded the walls and said to them: 'If Torah scholars are arguing with each other in matters of halakha, what is the nature of your involvement in this dispute?' The Gemara says: The walls did not fall because of the respect due Rabbi Yehoshua, but they did not straighten because of the respect due Rabbi Eliezer, and they remained leaning. 
  
  Rabbi Eliezer then said to them: If the halakha agrees with my opinion, 'Heaven will prove it'. A Divine Voice, Bat Kol emerged from Heaven and said: 'Why are you arguing with Rabbi Eliezer, as the halakha does agree with his opinion in every place that he expresses an opinion?' 
  
  In response to the Divine proclamation, Rabbi Yehoshua rose to his feet and quoted Deuteronomy 30:12, declaring "Lo BaShamayim He" – "It [the Torah] is not in Heaven." This bold statement asserted that once G-d gave the Torah at Mount Sinai, its interpretation was entrusted to human scholars rather than through Divine revelation.
  
  Rabbi Yirmiyah explained this principle further, stating that since the Torah was already given at Mount Sinai, Jews are instructed to "follow the majority" in legal matters. This establishes the principle that halakhic decisions are made through human deliberation and majority rule, rather than through miraculous signs or Divine voices. After this incident, Rabbi Eliezer was boycotted or put in cherem.
  
  When Hashem came to Adam, and said: Ayeka - Where are you? G-d meant, Adam, where are you, in the Garden of Eden - in the upper world, or down there in the lower world? Your knowledge of Torah and its laws, the halachot, is not for the spiritual world in the Garden of Eden, but it is for the lower world of physicality - the Earth. 
  
  This is one of the reasons why Hashem gave the Torah to Moshe Rabbenu in Parashat Yitro, as angels cannot fulfill it because they lack parents and cannot show them respect, and are unable to keep hundreds of other commandments that only us, the humans can fulfill on Earth, down here in the physical realm.
  
  The Sages teach us that when the baby is conceived, an angel teaches the entire Torah to a fetus in the womb. Then, just before he is born, the angel taps him on his upper lip (which leaves an indentation right under the nose). The baby forgets what he had learned, as it says in the Talmud Niddah 30b. I would also assume that the angel has given a tap on Adam's upper lip as well, so he should forget the Torah that he acquired by eating the fruit or by "using a shortcut."
  
  But what is this thing called: law or halacha? 
  
  This is the Word of G-d, which is interpreted and explained by the rabbis of each generation and passed on to the next. You can find it in the pages of the Talmud and the written works of the rabbis of each generation, which make up the Oral Torah. 
  
  Welcome to Orthodox Judaism, which is the Word of G-d. It is not in Heaven, but down here on planet Earth - interpreted, explained, accepted, and embraced by the millions. 
  
  When Rabbi Nathan encountered the prophet Eliyahu, and asked what G-d's reaction was to the argument of The Oven of Akhnai. The Prophet Eliyahu said that G-d smiled and said, "My children have defeated Me, My children have defeated Me," (Talmud Bava Metzia 59b), showing Divine pleasure in human interpretive authority.
  
  So, if what you have read so far makes sense, and since the law is made and changed by the majority, and if the majority of the Sages agree with me that Adam haRishon was hiding since he knew the halacha that one cannot be naked out in the open. And Ayeka - Where are you? - is Hashem's question to Adam, in which world is he - Upper or the Lower, and that the law can be practiced only in the Lower world and not in the Upper. 
  
  And if the majority of the Sages have agreed to my opinion above, then may I have the authority just for a second, to call upon the Sages of our Times, to release Rabbi Eliezer ben Hurcanus forever from the cherem/boycott and set him free, so that he may be allowed to sit in the Yeshivah Shel Malaa or The Bet Midrash in Heaven, together with the colleagues of the yesteryears. And just like it was in the olden days, may he state the law as equal, and go head to head with the Mighty of the Upper Worlds. 
  
  So, my friend, grab a book and learn the laws of Orthodox Judaism - The Shulchan Aruch. The laws that have been analyzed, debated, agreed upon, accepted, and embraced by millions throughout the history of the Jewish people. We have a lot of catching up to do. Since by learning the laws, we join the millions around the world who are living day-to-day by the Word of the Living G-d. 
  
  Shmuel Katanov

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• The Power of The Constant Drip

  May 22, 2025 Admin 0 Comments

  I am sure all of you have heard the story of Rabbi Akiva. I want to touch on just a small part of it.
  
  After Akiva learned the basic knowledge of the Torah, he and his wife agreed that he was to go to the academy of the great scholars of those days, headed by Rabbi Eliezer, to devote 12 years to intensive study. Thus, the two parted, and for 12 long years, Rachel worked hard to support herself, while her husband grew to become one of the most learned men that ever lived. At the end of 12 years, Rabbi Akiva returned to his wife, as he had promised. When he came to his house, and before he opened the door, he heard a conversation between his wife and a neighbor taunting Rachel for being foolish enough to wait and slave for her husband, who had left her to study Torah. 
  
  "As for me, he could stay away another 12 years at the Yeshivah to acquire more knowledge," was Rachel's reply.
  
  When Rabbi Akiva heard this from his wife, he turned around and did as Rachel wanted - he went back to Yeshivah.
  
  At the end of 24 years, Rabbi Akiva became the most famous living scholar. Youth came from all over Israel to study under his guidance. Rabbi Akiva was the rabbi of 24,000 scholars.
  
  Accompanied by them, Rabbi Akiva returned home in a triumphant journey from city to city, welcomed everywhere by the highest nobility.
  
  My question would be, how come Rabbi Akiva didn't even come to the house or say hello to his wife?
  
  Below, as always, is just my opinion.
  
  I believe that just like the young Yosef was atoning for Kayin, Rabbi Akiva has taken it upon himself to atone for Yaakov Avinu. 
  
  Why would Yaakov Avinu need an atonement for, you may ask? 
  
  Parashat Vayetzeh 29:18-30 says Yaakov came to Lavan and agreed to work for Rachel for seven years. Seven years had passed, and on the night of the wedding, Lavan switched the sisters, and Yaakov married Leah. Indignant, but determined to marry Rachel, Yaakov agrees to work another seven years for Rachel. So at the end of 14 years, Yaakov leaves Lavan's house with four wives, 12 children, and lots of livestock. Yaakov Avinu has become rich.
  
  But during this time, he concentrated on his work; "he worked hard," as it says in Vayetzeh 31:6. One thing lacking in this effort was the study of Torah. I am sure he learned in his free time, but most of this free time was dedicated to diligently delivering work to Lavan, his employer. 
  
  So, centuries later, Rabbi Akiva comes and amasses many students. He fills the gaps that Yaakov Avinu left, where no Torah was learned. Rabbi Akiva has filled them with his years of learning, no matter the time and effort it took; thus, he has become the greatest sage with fame and fortune.
  
  When Rabbi Akiva was a 40-year-old shepherd, he saw drops of water falling on a huge stone – drip, drop – and directly where the drops were falling, there was a deep hole in the stone.
  
  "What mighty power there is in a drop of water," thought the shepherd. "Could my stony heart ever be softened up that way? Look what the little drops of water did to the rock. Suppose I began to study the Torah, little by little, drop by drop, perhaps my mind would soften up?"
  
  This motivated him to study Torah and become the greatest Torah sage.
  
  How about you? Are you still looking for your rock with a hole made by water drips to motivate or convince you to study Torah?
  
  Many have "used" Rabbi Akiva's rock and reached the heights in Torah and holiness.
  
  Drip, drop.. drip, drop.. Let’s..reach those heights!!

  
  Shmuel Katanov

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• For Out of Zion Shall Go Forth The Torah

  May 5, 2025 Admin 0 Comments

  There's a story in Masechet Chagiga 14b, "The Rabbis taught: Four Sages entered the Pardes or the orchard - the highest spiritual elevation, as explained by Rashi. They were Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, Elisha ben Avuya, and Rabbi Akiva.”
  
  The consequences of this journey were as follows:
  
  - Ben Azzai: He gazed upon the Divine Presence and died.
  - Ben Zoma: He glimpsed the Divine Presence and was harmed by losing his mind.
  - Elisha ben Avuyah: He became a heretic and was thus called Acher.
  - Rabbi Akiva: He entered and exited the Pardes safely.
  
  With your permission, I would like to examine why Rabbi Akiva exited safely. Was he safe after he came back? 
  
  Below are some ideas, and are only my opinion.
  
  If you look at his students' names, they are not the same people who went with him to Pardes. His students are: Rabbi Meir, Rabbi Yehuda bar Ilai, Rabbi Yossei ben Halafta, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, and Rabbi Elazar ben Shamua.
  
  He took with him a different group of people. His students were not on the level to travel with him into those realms, but the ones who went with him were on the same level as him to travel that far.
  
  After the journey, the other three rabbis met their fate, but Rabbi Akiva seems to be fine, as the Gemara above says, but why?
  
  Because after Rabbi Akiva buried 24,000 students, no Torah teacher was left in this world capable of transmitting the Torah to the next generation. So, Hashem has given a Master Teacher time to teach the next generation of Rabbis, who taught the five luminaries that have revived the Torah. After he had accomplished this goal and left the teachers behind, Rabbi Akiva was executed by the Romans.
  
  But what is this place, Pardes?
  

  It is a Paradise or an orchard, "a place of fruit trees".
  
  In Parashat Bereshit, we read that after G-d created man and woman, he placed them in the Garden of Eden. Adam was instructed that he could eat anything in the Garden except the fruit of one tree—the Tree of Knowledge.
  
  But Adam and Eve ate from that tree, and G-d punished them. Since then, we have been banished from the Garden for thousands of years. This act alone prevented us from understanding Torah and appreciating its depth.
  
  If you break down the word PARDES by letters it stands for four levels of understanding Torah: P'shat (straight, direct, literal), Remez (hinted-at), D'rash (inquire, seek) and Sod (secret, mysterious). 
  
  So, maybe one day when the time is right, we will be able to travel to Pardes and partake in all the fruits in the Garden of Eden, and even from the Tree of Knowledge—and this time, be ready and fit to understand Torah on all four levels - deep and wide, feel its sweet flavor ourselves, love it, appreciate it, and be able to share it with others.
  
  As the prophet Yeshayhu 2:3 says: "Ki MiTzion Tetze Torah uD’var Hashem Me’Yerushalayim - For out of Zion shall go forth the Torah, and the word of Hashem from Jerusalem."
  
  Imagine what a wonderful world it would be!!
  
  Click here to go to Part 2 of this essay.
  
  Shmuel Katanov

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