Hayom Yom: Tackling Life's Tasks - 13 Adar II

On the Shabbos before Purim,the second of the special readings known as the “FourParshiyos” is read for maftir, instead of the closing verses of the weekly Torah Reading. This passage — Parshas Zachor (Devarim 25:17-19) — takes its name, which means “to remember,” from the obligation toremember Amalek, Haman’s forebear.

Igros Kodesh of the Rebbe Rayatz, letter 4513, Heb. Vol. 12, p. 164.

In fact, this passage is a regular component of the prayer service at this point (Siddur, p. 232). The above directive is nevertheless called for because, according to certain authorities, this passage is omitted on each Shabbos on which one of the “Four Parshiyos” is read. (The sources are enumerated in Mishnah Berurah 685:18.)

Siddur, p. 266.

This passage is omitted whenever Tachanun would be omitted if this were a weekday — in this case, because the date of this entry is the eve of Purim.

Shmos 17:8, the verse that opens the Torah Reading for Purim (Siddur, p. 495).

In Sanhedrin 106a, on the non-literal level of interpretation known as derush, the placename Refidim is read as rafu yedeihem — “their hands became weak”; that is, they did not apply themselves to Torah study.

As hinted at in the metaphor, “their hands became weak.”

Speaking of Amalek, Devarim 25:17states, “…who encountered you on your journey.” In the Holy Tongue, the word for “encountered you” (קרך) shares a root with the word for “cold” (קר). Thus, the phrase may be understood to mean that Amalek cooled off the ardor of the Jewish people after the wonders of the Exodus.

Sefer Megaleh Amukos, Ofen 186. In a plain, literal sense, every sefer Torah in fact has 304,805 letters. One of the Rebbe’s explanations of this anomaly is that the number 600,000 is valid when, in addition to the letters in the actual script, one includes “the letters of thought,” i.e., the implied letters. For example: Though the letters אהוי also serve as vowels, they often do not appear in the Torah as such, and instead, we rely on the familiar vowels (kamatz, patach, etc.). The latter vowels, however, are never inscribed in the Torah scroll. Hence, when we see a word that appears in the briefer spelling that comprises consonants only, we read it as if it had appeared in its full hypothetical spelling — including whichever of the letters אהוי would be needed to spell it out in full. (See: Likkutei Sichos, Vol. 20, p. 419, footnote 12, citing Likkutei Torah, Parshas Behar, pp. 41b and 43d.)

The opportunity for this generally arises only when a Torah scroll is about to be completed, and members of the community are invited to write, or to commission a scribe to write on their behalf, one of its final letters. As an extension of this concept, beginning in 5741 (1980), the Rebbe proposed that entire Torah scrolls be written, in which every Jewish child — and later, every Jewish adult as well — would purchase a letter. Thus, in a concrete way, every individual would have a letter in the Torah. The fact that Jews everywhere, despite their apparent diversity, would be partners in a Torah scroll, would express their underlying unity in a genuine and eternal manner.

Shmos 17:9.

As implied by the phrase “for us.”

That is, an extension of Moshe’s soul is rooted in the souls of the towering Torah sages of every generation. See: Tikkunei Zohar, Tikkun 69 (p. 114a); Tanya, ch. 42.

Cf. Bamidbar 1:16.

Sefer HaMaamarim 5709 [1949], p. 41.

Sifra on Vayikra 26:14.

See Torah Or, p. 83d.

See the sichos of Shabbos Parshas Vayeishev, 5712 (1951), in Toras Menachem — Hisvaaduyos, Vol. 4, p. 224.