Beha'alotecha 5771

The Zohar
	Far Out Man
	From the teachings of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai; translation & commentary by Simcha-Shmuel Treister

This Torah reading includes the premise that one who is unable to bring the Pesach offering is able to bring it one month later, on Pesach Sheini. One reason he may not be able to bring the offering is that at the time he was "far away" - in Hebrew "rechoka". The Zohar teaches that this man instead of cleaving to the final hei in the name Havayah of HaShem is given to cleave to the final hei of the word for "far away". Nevertheless, the Zohar emphasizes the fact that, like the above example, every person who sincerely makes an effort to purify himself becomes purified – even if in a roundabout way.

The Holy Ari
	Meriting the Land of Israel
	From the Writings of the Ari as recorded by Rabbi Chaim Vital; translated and edited by Moshe Yakov Wisnefsky

After Timna became Eliphaz's concubine, she bore him Amalek, the ancestor of the nation that became Israel's archenemy. The Sages state that this was because Jacob, in fact, should have married her. He could have elevated the good in her and nullified the bad in her that became manifest later as Amalek. However, because Jacob did not marry her, he merited to have both his body and skeleton buried in the Land of Israel.

Mystical Classics
	The Unity of the Menorah
	From Torat Moshe by Rabbi Moshe Alshich

This week's Torah reading includes the command to Aaron to light the Menorah, or candelabra, in the Tabernacle. Rabbi Moshe Alshich teaches that just as the Menorah was fashioned from a single chunk of gold, not a composite of various sections, so Aaron understood that his function was to create a unity here on earth that would parallel the unity in Heaven, described by the reference to "the seven lights". This he was to do by means of kindling the Menorah. Aaron realized that the manner of kindling the Menorah had to be such that the lights would merge into a single flame, just as the Menorah itself was a single unit.

Chasidic Masters
	Of Victory and the Seven Flames
	Adapted from the works of Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi by Yossi Marcus

A soul is called a flame. The nature of a flame is to soar upward; so too, the soul is driven upward in its yearning for G d. However, when the souls of the lower worlds descend into the physical world, their vision is obscured and they gravitate toward earthliness. Aaron is commanded to awaken and reveal the yearning and love that lies dormant within the lower souls - to "raise the flames" to their source.

Contemporary Kabbalists
	Blow Those Trumpets
	From the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe; adapted by Moshe-Yaakov Wisnefsky

The allegorical "trumpet" we sound in order to enlist God's help against the evil inclination is our heart-broken cry, the silent tears we shed over being so spiritually weak that we are vulnerable to the evil inclination's strategies. When we beseech G-d to have mercy on us, He comes to our aid and rescues us from our enemy.

Ascent Lights
	Friend of G-d, Friend of Mine
	By Shaul Yosef Leiter

Moses prayed that, as the Jews traveled in the desert, their enemies would not harm them. If we would each work on our divine service, every Jew according to his or her level, this would directly protect us from danger. The fact that the Nations may hate us is a reflection of our declining spiritual status.

But, in his prayer, Moses made it a non-negotiable issue - "Know that these nations are not interested in the Jews' spiritual perfection; they know that the Jews are Your people, and that is the reason they wish to antagonize us. If they succeed, it will be a desecration of Your Name!"

Mystic Story
	A Whisper in Time
	By Yerachmiel Tilles

The Baal Shem Tov helps a would-be thief repent.

Shabbat Shalom.