Bereishis

1) Repentance and Catharsis - The Rosh tells us (Taanis 1,20) that the joyous festivity of the holidays can be a catalyst for frivolity and sin. A precedent for this is found in Eyov 1,5. “When each cycle of feast days ended, Eyov...would rise early in the morning and bring burnt-offerings...for Eyov said, ‘Perhaps my children have sinned and blasphemed Hashem in their hearts.’” Similarly, the Gemarah in Kiddushin (81a) quotes Rav Avin as saying, “The most susceptible time of the year for sin is the holidays.” Rashi explains because men and women gather to hear the drasha, creating an environment for sin.

2) Environmental Concerns - Rav Yehuda Hachasid writes (Sefer Chassidim 227) that we fast after Succos in order that the rains of MarCheshvan fall adequately and beneficially. We fast after Pesach in order that the heat of Iyar should not parch and decimate the wheat. This is also the opinion of the Raviyah (Mordechai, Taanis, 629).

3) Health Concerns - The Mateh Moshe (716) is of the opinion that due to the change in seasons immediately following the Holidays, the body, while acclimating to the new conditions, is susceptible to illness. Therefore, we fast as a preventative measure to ward off sickness. The latter two reasons categorize these fasts as requests for salvation from trouble rather than a fast of Teshuvah.

Most people don’t fast BaHab as they find fasting taxing and often counter-productive. It is advisable, however, to follow the unique fast of the Ravad z”tl, “Let one not refrain completely from eating meat or drinking wine, for what the Torah prohibited is enough! Rather, while one is eating and still desires to eat, let him, in honor of the Creator, set aside some of his desires and not eat according to his appetite. This method will prevent one from sinning…” (Foundation of Teshuvah Rabbeinu Yonah). The custom in our Shul, as in many Kehillos, is to recite Selichos before davening. We therefore will begin 10 minutes earlier this coming Monday-Thursday-Monday to accommodate the extra Tefillos. May the Almighty respond to our sincere repentance and requests and shower us all with His blessing.

Upon smelling the pleasing aroma of Noach's sacrifice, the Almighty resolved never to obliterate Mankind again. The Torah records the logical underpinnings for Hashem's resolve, "For the inclination of Man's heart is evil from his youth (Noach 8,21)". The commentators raise the following question: At the conclusion of Parshas Breishis (6:5), we are told that the Almighty regretted the creation of Man, because "Every inclination of his thoughts was evil, all day long". How is it possible that the very argument advanced to decimate Mankind is used to defend its unconditional existence? Do not our chachomim teach, "The accuser cannot become the defense (Berachos 59.)?

HaRav Shneur Zalman of Ladi offers the following answer in his profound sefer, "Torah Ohr". The aromatic fragrance of Noach's sacrifices inspired the Almighty's attribute of loving-kindness. Although the inherent evil of Mankind was originally the reason for its destruction, this is only the case when the attribute of Justice is the arbiter. Loving-kindness, on the other hand, has a completely different attitude to the very same inherent failings of Mankind and concludes a diametrically opposite reaction of tolerance and forbearance. This is reminiscent of a Rashi in Parshas Vayeira 18:16. Whenever the word "Hashkafa" i.e. gazing, is mentioned in the Torah, it denotes a scrutiny which precedes punishment and evil. The only exception is the blessing the Almighty showers upon the Jewish People upon allocating our tithes. The Torah affectionately blesses us with, "Gaze down from the heavens and bless the Jewish People (Devarim 26:15)". The same language used for evil is transformed to a blessing in the merit of the largesse and loving-kindness of the Jewish People.

The "Chachmei Haloshon" (scholars of the Hebrew language) make the following observation. The Hebrew word for affliction is "neggah", a composite of the three letters: nun, gimel, and ayin. Interestingly enough, the Hebrew word for pleasure, "oneg", has the same letters but in a different order: ayin, nun and gimel. The significance of this can be understood with an insight of Shlomo Hamelech. In Koheles we read, "The wise man has his eyes in his head (2:14). One can interpret "eyes" to refer to the Hebrew letter ayin (ayin in Hebrew means eye), and "head" as meaning, in the front. The wise man has a positive and constructive attitude, which allows him to interpret what many see as "neggah" (affliction and negative): nun, gimel, ayin as "oneg" (pleasure and positive), by placing the "ayin" up front and reading ayin, nun, gimel (oneg) instead. What is crucial in life is our attitude, i.e. our "ayin", the way we look at things and interpret them
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This, I believe, is the lesson of the Mabul. Instead of attempting the Herculean feat of changing the many unfortunates realities of life, we must, instead, attempt to alter our personal approach and attitude from strict justice to mercy. Then, the same stimuli that inspires others to react with anger and hostility will elicit from us tolerance and mercy. We must acquire an "Ayin Tov" - a positive attitude that will transform our very afflictions into personal gratification and pleasure.

The Torah describes Noach as "A perfect Tzaddik in his generations". Rashi comments on the word "generations": "There are those of our teachers who interpret this as a praise - 'how much more righteous would Noach have been had he lived in a righteous generation', and there are those who interpret this as a critique - 'only in comparison to his decadent generation was Noach considered righteous, however, in a virtuous generation, Noach would have been insignificant'". It is interesting to note that Rashi only mentions our "teachers" in conjunction with those who praise Noach, but in connection with the critical opinion, Rashi leaves it generic, "There are those who are critical", neglecting to refer to them as our teachers. This salient inclusion of the word "teachers" is Rashi's way of saying that we must emulate and be students, only of those who choose to see the praise and positive qualities of others.

A similar concept is found in the sixth chapter of Avos. "Rebbi Meir said, 'Whoever learns Torah for its own sake, merits many things. Furthermore, the creation of the entire world is "kdai" i.e. worthwhile, just because of him'." An alternative understanding of "kdai" is that an individual who learns Torah properly and is imbued with "Da'as Torah", the Torah weltanschauung, views this world in a positive and complimentary way, in which everything is "kdai", worthwhile and has virtue. The Rambam in Hilchos Deios 5:7 describes an authentic Torah scholar as one who “judges all people favorably and always speaks the praise of others, never focusing on their flaws.”

The late Mashgiach of the Lakewood Yeshiva, HaRav Nosson Wachtfogel zt"l would inspire his students to be, not just "Torah learners" but "Torah builders". He would constantly encourage them to create out-of town Kollelim spreading the light of Torah upon untilled soil. He promised great success to those who would venture out-of-town but was emphatic in warning the following - "Beware of denigrating or belittling the realities of your new environment. The infrastructure of chinuch, kashrus, and modesty will not be the same premium level that you are accustomed to, but be careful not to focus on the negative, rather only see the positive and praise their accomplishments.” The Gemara in Brachos 62b tells us that because King David denigrated the royal garments of King Shaul, clothing would not warm Dovid HaMelech in his older years. When we disrespect an item, we no longer can enjoy its blessings. If one is to succeed in building Torah in a community, one must be able to harness the community's blessings and talents. If one vilifies the community, he will not be able to be "warmed" by its indigenous blessings.

On the pasuk, “Noach went into the Ark because of the waters of the Flood,” Rashi comments that Noach was a man of diminished faith; he believed and yet he didn’t believe that the flood would occur. Rav Yitzchak Isaac of Ziditchov alters the punctuation of Rashi, upholding the faith of the great Tzaddik Noach. “Noach believed in those of diminished faith,” and was confident that they would repent before Hashem unleashed the flood. Therefore, “he did not believe that the flood would come.” Noach chose to see the positive qualities of the evil and decadent generation in which he lived and believed in their ability to rehabilitate. There is a Chassidic tradition that when the holy soul of Rav Yitzchak Isaac went up to Heaven, Rashi himself greeted him and proceeded to commend him for this beautiful interpretation.

We are enjoined to emulate the approach of our "teachers", who are always praising and finding what is "kdai" (i.e. worthy) in others. By relating to life in a positive way, we will merit to enjoy the many gifts and good fortune to be found in the people and institutions in which we share our lives.

“Farewell to Succos”

Upon leaving the Succah for the last time, it is traditional to say the following farewell prayer, “May it be Your will...that just as I have fulfilled the mitzvah of Succah, so may I merit in the coming year to dwell in the Succah of the skin of the Leviathon.” The Leviathon were a pair of monstrous sea-giants created on the fifth day of Creation. Their imposing size forced Hashem to kill the female, (preserving her for the future as a meal for the righteous) lest they multiply and inundate the world. If I were to compose a farewell to the Succah, I would request to sit in the sublime and spiritual Succah of the Gaon of Vilna or of Rabbi Levi Yitchak of Berditchev. Why ask the Almighty to dwell in a Succah constructed out of the most physical and corporal being ever created?!

We must first understand the essence of the mitzvah of Succah. The Succah is unique in that we enter the mitzvah with our entire body, clothing, and even the mud under our shoes. King David captures this idea in Tehillim when he says, “Then his Succah was in Shalem and his dwelling in Zion (76:3)”, juxtaposing Succah and Zion. The mitzvah of Eretz Yisroel is to sanctify our physical existence through living, plowing and building in the land. As the Kotzker termed it: to transfer “Eretz” the physical into “Yisroel” the sublime. So too, the mitzvah of Succah is to eat, sleep and talk in its lofty shade, elevating the physical and infusing sanctity into the mundane. Immediately after Yom Kippur, the day of total physical negation, we are enjoined to begin construction of our Succah. This urgency is to dispel the notion that we are at war with the physical. To the contrary, our battle lies only with the need to elevate and define the physical as a vessel for spirituality. The Almighty created the world ex-nihilo, “Yaish” i.e. something, from “Ayin” i.e. nothing. Our mandate, say Chassidic thinkers, is to revert the “Yaish” back into “Ayin”. The purpose of a servant of Hashem is to squeeze spirituality and meaning from the imposing “Yaish” of the cosmos - exposing the “Ayin”, the sublime essence of creation. This puts the traditional farewell prayer of sitting in the mundane Leviathon Succah back into focus. Our greatest hope and prayer is to show that even the most ephemeral and mundane institution as the Leviathon can be transformed and channeled into a holy vessel.

A story is told of the great Torah scholar, Rav Avraham of Kalisk, who after mastering the Talmud and Poskim, chose to isolate himself from the physical world in a secluded attic, to intensify his scholarship and service of Hashem (see Chasdei Avos). After seven years of seclusion, a colleague of Rav Avraham’s, R’ Ahron burst into the attic with an insight from a nascent teacher, The Maggid - Rav Dov Ber of Mezritch, that forced Rav Avraham out of isolation. The Maggid taught a novel interpretation of the words of Dovid Hamelech, “the earth is full of your possessions” (Tehillim 104:24). The earth i.e. the physical and mundane, abound with infinite opportunities to possess and acquire the Almighty. This concept was a turning point in the life of Rav Avraham, challenging him back into the world, with a new quest to turn the “Yaish” back into “Ayin”. The story continues that Rav Avraham immediately committed 1,500 blatt to memory, verbatim, packed his bags and went to learn the Maggid’s ways in Mezritch.

The Holy Zohar tells us that as the holiday of Succos/Shmini Atzeres ebbs away and the Almighty’s presence is still overtly felt, “Shial Ma Debaei, Veyahivna Lach” “Ask whatever you want of G-d, and He will give it to you!” Rav Yehoshua Sagal Deutch explains that the word “Shial”- ask is to be understood as “Borrow” “Shiaylah”. We implore the Almighty for wealth, in order to use our wherewithal to serve Hashem, and good health, to have the stamina and vigor to be able to do His will. Please bless us with material success so we can ultimately return the blessing back to you in the form of spiritual accomplishments.

On Shmini Atzeres we began saying the prayer “Mashiv Haruach, Umorid Hageshem” “Make the wind blow and make the rain descend”. This is more than a prayer for good weather but the “motto of the Jew”. If one intensifies the “ruach” i.e. the spiritual, one can tame and place the “Geshem” the Gashmius - the mundane, in its correct place. Through our dedication to ruchnius, Torah learning, prayer and loving kindness, we can harness the giant Leviathon, the physical monster of the secular world, infusing it with meaning, dignity and purpose.