Pinchas - Just Say Thank You

You're listening to the weekly para podcast with Ari Goldwag recorded with Hashem's never ending assistance in Roma Israel 5785 2025. This week's para is paras at the end of our para this week we have carbon and featuring largely something that we read every single month be reading next shabas. We read it every day in our davening speaking about the carbon t the constant offering which was brought each and every day one in the morning one in the afternoon and correspond to these two carbonas to these sacrifices. I'd like to share with you a medish and the medish speaks about the concept generally of carbon and it starts off as the refers to the carbon as my sacrifice. Hashem asks us to bring Hashem says to us bring my sacrifice my bread for my fire offering. It's a it's a beautiful smell. It's a fire offering to Hashem. And the message is going to bring and I'd like to actually read the chapter in chapter in Psalms chapter nun chapter 50. And it brings some sukin from that peric which are very interesting. I'd like to read it to you actually the whole peri. It says like this. Listen up. Listen carefully. It's very interesting. It's a song of elimiting everything into existence. Hashem has spoken and he calls the land. from the sun's rise until the sun sets. It talks about Jerusalem, the beautiful place God appears from there. Just like the sun rises and sets, you want to have an experience of Hashem. You want to see the light of Hashem, go to your Hashem's appearance there. Hashem will come. Hashem will appear. Our God will appear. He won't be quiet. The fire is in front of him and it consumes around him. It's very fiery. Mean you don't have to go very far. Just look in the news about what's happening here in Israel, around us, in Gaza, in Syria. There's a lot of fire. Hashem calls to the heavens. Interestingly, from above, he calls to the heavens and to the earth. And he judges his nation. Gather to me, oh righteous ones, those who have a covenant with me in regards to their corbonus. Listen, because this is this is our subject. We're going to talk about carbonus. We're going to talk about the sacrifices. What are they? Does God need our sacrifices? We could talk about whether Hashem needs aris. It's really the same conversation. Knows what we need. Why are we domining to him? Hashem doesn't eat food. Hashem doesn't need an animal of mine for me to bring it as a sacrifice on the altar. He's going to, you know, it's a carbon the carbon is completely burned. God does not need my animal to be burned in in for him. It's not something that he needs. Maybe we need to learn deference and we'll talk about that. The heavens speak of God's righteousness. Okay, so let's let's be clear. Says God is a judge. Hashem is judging Israel. And what that means is let's not get all all nervous here because Hashem loves us. Hashem cares about us. Hashem wants the best for us. But there's a reality if we don't uh what's the word? Dubstep or uh cowto to God's will. If we're not aligned with reality, which means that there are relationships between us and others, between us and Hashem. If we're busy being selfish, if we are busy involved in our egos, if we're not living aligned with the reality, which is that we're interdependent with our surroundings and with Hashem. So there's there's a knee-jerk reaction there. There's a natural consequence. Shima. So uh it's it's not clear what's the what are the sukum talking about. It's definitely saying that there's something to do with carbonas and there's something to do with sadikim doing what's right and being aligned with hashem and there being justice and hashem is has all these aspects. He's k he's yuk vke he's got judgment and he's got power and he's got he's the the driving force and the animating force of all of reality. But it has to do with carbonus. What's that have to do with carbon? Listen up. Listen, my nation. Let me I'm going to speak, oh people of Israel. I'm going to testify about you. I am God. I am your God. Now when you bring a carbon when you come to Hashem and you ding three times a day you do the d whatever how however your uh yiddeskite looks. So it's easy to think look I'm doing my dues I'm paying my dues. Hashem like now you got to give me whatever I want right I I bring my carbon Hashem you forgive me for my aa now you know show me the money where's the parnasa where's the where's the good life where's the health where's the good kids show me show it to me I'm doing I'm I'm doing my part says hold on step back okay you know we can talk about it from our perspective of of mitzvah and and learning and dabbing. But here the puss is talking about what at that time was the main service of Hashem and that was the carbonus. So Hashem says if you're not bringing your carbonus uh that's not that's not the issue. I'm not going to look at or or judge you based on the carbonus that you're bringing or not bringing. That's not what's in front of me. far. I don't need the bull, the animal out of your house. I don't need that which comes out of your of your corral. Says, I don't need these animals. Let's be clear. All the animals in the world, all the wild animals in the in the forest, they're mine. I've got them. They're under my jurisdiction. Baharf, I have animals on thousands of mountains. I don't need your animals. I know all the birds in the in the in the mountains. Not sure exactly what this means. It's the animals that move from place to place that are in the fields. They're with me. They're mine. If I was hungry, I'm not going to leave my hunger for you to satiate my hunger and I don't need you to help me. I I own everything. I've got it all. Hashem's like, I don't need your carbonus. I don't need your service. I don't need your I don't need your mitzvah. Just Just be clear. Just be clear. When I do something for Hashem, Hashem does not need my mitzvah. He doesn't need my Tyra. He doesn't need my I'm not offering him anything in the actual thing that I'm giving him. I am going to offer him something and that's what we'll see. Let's be clear. I don't want to I don't want you to get your hopes down. There is something that I offer Hashem, but let's see what it is. Do you think that I need to eat these um distinguished animals that you bring to me? You think I'm interested in drinking the blood of these animals that you sprinkle on? finally comes and tells us what it is that Hashem is looking for. What does Hashem want from us? And once we get this, we know that the carbon, the concept, the basis, the foundation of what they were then is no different from what we need to do today. bring the carbon that you need to bring is your gratitude. Pay to Hashem your commitment. You make a nether. You promised Hashem something. That's the value. The value is that you committed to God something and that you did it. The value is that when you brought that carbon, you showed Hashem that you appreciate something that he gave to you. Don't bring don't bring your to Hashem and and and offer him something and say give me something back in return. The purpose of it is to to learn unselfishness to realize that what I have is his to realize that that the way of my growth is through making a commitment to Hashem and and and showing up for that commitment. You're going to call out to me on a day of difficulty irrespective of whether you you brought a carbon to me. Hashem says you're going to call out to me and I'm going to save you and you'll honor me. You'll appreciate the fact that I saved you. You know the classic joke, oh Hashem, help me find a parking spot. Oh, forget it. I found one. Right? No. You ask Hashem for something, he gives it to you. Appreciate it. Announce it. Put a mod, put a an advertisement in your local newspaper. Hashem helped me. I did this sigula. I asked Hashem for help. That's the sigula. And he helped me announce it to the world without your name. Anonymous. Listen to this. We have to be so careful that we're not the Russia, the wicked person of this. Hashem says, "Look, you want to talk Tyra and you want to think that you're righteous and you want your mouth is is full of it's it's just it's bouncing off your tongue. Watch out for this." The Russia says, Hashem says to the wicked person, don't be talking about Tyra. Don't be talking about spirituality. Don't be talking about everything good. And you don't say, you don't hear the message of what's it about? What is the purpose of the carbon? It's to show gratitude, not to get what you want. is to recognize that you got what you want. But the wicked person talks to but is not interested in actual being being actually actually being someone different. And says to the wicked person, you threw you threw away my word. You missed the point. You see a guy who dishonest in in money, in business, you're running after him. You're you're trying to join up with him. You're involved with all kinds of illicit behavior. On the outside looks great, talking spiritual, talking, but on the inside just it's all just a fraud. It's all a deceit. You sit with your brother and you speak and and you're busy fooling your friends and your and your and your siblings. This is what you did and I was quiet and you thought that I'm just like you. You created God in your own negative image. I'm going to you're going to see the truth. We start off talking about judgment. There's an honesty. The are asking us for honesty. It's not make a mistake. The puss says we're doing what's right. We're talking the right talk, but inside of ourselves, we're busy thinking all these selfish thoughts. How can I get what I want from my neighbor, from my friend, from my God? Is he my God, or am I his his man? Am I trying to make Hashem my God, my man to do my will? Or am I trying to make myself the person who who's willing to do Hashem's will? Am I something happens in my life that I don't like? Am I busy saying, "Hey God, why is my will not being done?" Or am I saying, "As you wish, Hashem, as you wish. It says says the the author of this paricum understand this those who have forgotten Hashem because you're added into disaster. No one's going to save you from this finishes off with the foundation. This is what a carbon is about. This is what our is about. It's not about getting what I want. It's not Hashem. Give me, give me, give me. It's Hashem. You're the one who gave me. You're the one who gave me. Then we could talk about asking for more. You're the one who cures. Please cure again. You're the one who has provided and provides for Am Israel. Provide again. The that's just about grab, grab, grab. It's not going to work. You want to know what the right path is? You want to know what the foundation is, bring a carbon, which doesn't have to mean literally bringing that sacrifice, but bring a bring the sacrifice of your ego by saying, "It's not me. God, you did this for me. My success, it's nothing to do with me. It's because you dropped the idea in my mind. Nothing to do with me. If I have parnosa, it's you. If I have success and recognition, it's you. And if I have nothing, it's you, too. I thank you. I show honor to you, Hashem. That's the foundational path. I will show you the salvation of Hashem. You want to get salvation. It's not it's it's counterintuitive. It's not by grabbing it. It's not by asking for it. It's by saying, "Thank you for what I already have. is by honoring and saying thank you. Thank you Hashem. Thank you. Because Hashem does not need my does not need my thanks. Even Hashem does not it's just for me to get out of my own grabbiness to get out of my own foolishness to get out of my own ego. That's the that's theim and we don't need to read much more than that. You know, once we got theukim theukim say enough, but I'd like to share with you what how the measures talks about it because it's beautiful as well. Hashem says to don't think that I need I don't need their sacrifices. Don't make that mistake. The whole world is mine. The animal that you're bringing, I created it. It brings us. It brings our if I be hungry, I'm not ask I don't I don't need to ask you for food. I don't even eat. I don't drink. So, so what's the concept here? Why is Hashem asking us to do? What is Hashem asking us to do? So, listen here like deepens the issue. Hashem is the most the greatest the most merciful. 13 attributes of mercy unconditional love. Learn the safer timing and div goes on and on about Hashem's unconditional love. The human being is the most cool, the most conceited, the most selfish, the most the most self-centered. Hashem, who's the most merciful, is going to ask the most self-centered, cruel creation to give him something that he needs. He doesn't need it. The purpose of it is so that you should get out of your self-centerness and your cruelty. It's not because Hashem needs it. He's already a raman. He doesn't need that. He doesn't need anything from me. He needs us to become like him. is saying if I would be hungry I wouldn't I wouldn't be asking you for it. I'm asking you for it because you need it. Interestingly says that Hashem Hashem you know when he if we look at the animals that Hashem asks for the different carbonas there's lots of kosher animals. There are 10 different kosher animals. Why why do we only have three different animals that are brought three animals that are domesticated animals that are that are under the the care of human beings? I didn't require of you, Hashem says that you go out to the mountains and find animals that you you don't need to bring an ibeck. You don't need to bring a l for your corban. You don't need to bring a giraffe. You don't need to bring a deer. Use the animals that you have. Use animals that you have. Hashem does not expect us to do something that's that's too difficult. Hashem wants us to serve him in a way that's within our grasp, within our means, easily attainable. The says look the refers to and we mentioned this all the way at the beginning but here we come back to it. It's my carbon. It's my bread. Hashem has it's Hashem needs to eat. Hashem needs Hashem needs our our wine libations. He's thirsty. He wants to he wants to have a nice drink. Right? What do we see? Look at the malim. Look at the angels. They don't eat anything. They're just they're called the mashim. They're called the the servants of Hashem. They're just fire. Where do they get their sustenance from? They don't eat anything. Right? We know the angels came down to Abraham. They they met with him. They ate quote unquote, but they don't really eat. So, where do they get where do they get their their existence from? says that where do the angels get their existence from? They get it from the light of Hashem, the face of Hashem. They don't need physical sustenance from food. They get their sustenance from Hashem. Spiritual things don't need sustenance like we do. So, Hashem doesn't need sustenance. In fact, Hashem is the one who provides sustenance. another aspect of it and we're going to tie it together and try to understand what's going on here what the measure is trying to say the says the carbon the it's an interesting thing it says it was the constant offering that's that was made on Mount Si now what carbonas were made on mount si there were carbonas that were brought adjacent to to hari but nothing was brought on hari what does it mean in What it means to say is there's something that's made on on Hari. You can see something you can learn something from what happened at Mount Si in regards to Mosher Rabain who stood on Hari for 40 days and 40 nights and then another 40 and another 40 120 days. Mosher Raenu was there on Mount Si. He went up to heaven. He was there with Hashem as it were. And what did he do? didn't eat anything. He didn't drink anything there. If in heaven there was such a thing as eating and drinking, so he would have eaten. He would have ate. He would have drank. That's not what happened there, right? Hashem does not need to eat anything. Hashem does not need to drink anything. Does not eat our carbon. What is it for? It's for us. One more piece of the very interesting a similar concept. Notice the concept because we're talking about where the carbonus we have. We have we bring this actual animal. We also bring wine libations. There's water libations. There's oil that's mixed into the into the flour offerings. Do you ever hear a farmer who has who has vineyards and they say, "You know what? If you want to make the vines grow really well, let's bring some wine. Let's bring the product of the vine. Pour wine abundantly upon the vines and you'll have even more grapes than ever." You ever hear such a thing? Ridiculous. O shan ar if you want the here this right behind me I know you can't see but right above me there's a an olive tree right could see the you can see the trunk you know let's bring lots of oil olive oil if we pour a lot of olive oil we'll make more oil better olives the product of the tree doesn't help the tree make more that's a mush what you I need my creations. You think Hashem who created the entire world needs his creations to to give him something that's going to make him better or greater? Of course not. Right? If a person is walking along, he's a little person. He walks and he needs a drink. He's standing by a river. He drinks a little bit of water. But Hashem fills the entire world. Hashem fills all of the oceans. Who can who can measure me in comparison to all the waves of the sea? I asked you to bring a bit of a bit of wine. Wine libations, a bit of water libations onus. So here's where it gets interesting and the thing that I really want to take out of the major explain that what you see here is something very interesting. Hashem as it were does not need anything from us. Hashem as it were has everything already. He's not asking us pathetic human beings. Sorry to say that but in comparison to him he created everything. He's got it all. He doesn't need my offering. But they point out something cool, something interesting. Sh says, "Bring a shore. Bring a bring a uh a s bring a bull, an ox, a bull, bring a bring a sheep, bring a bird." Those are three very different things. If he's very, if Hashem is very hungry, he wants a big bull. He's very hungry. He wants to eat a lot of meat. So why why is it? He says all of them. He says that's how the marzu brings from the I think from the saf he said by all of them it's a beautiful smell I I enjoy the smell of your carbon what does it mean so he explains Hashem he doesn't it doesn't matter to him what you bring if you can't bring this you bring this if you can't bring this you bring that poor person brings a a ma he brings a flower offering it's not about what you brought it doesn't matter how big it is I just want your I want your ruts The thing the thing that Hashem wants, the thing that gives him that he enjoys is that we've given up something of ourselves. That's what he's looking for. That's what he's after. And Hashem is not I mean, it depends who you are, of course, because he's after us giving up our will, giving up a piece of ourselves. But for him, it doesn't really matter. He's got it all. It doesn't matter if it's a big thing, a little thing, a small thing. But Hashem has all the water in the world. Doesn't matter big thing, medium thing, small thing. He just wants us to give up something. He wants us to give up our egos like we saw in in the in he wants us to give up ourselves. He wants to give up our selfishness. That's what he's after. And if you think about it, you know, a human being, I have I want this. I want a house. I want five cars. I want 10 car. I have 10 car. I want 100 cars. because I don't want, you know, once you want, you want. There's no end to the wanting. And Hashem is saying, "Look, I could want. I'm a big God. I don't want. That's not it. All I want is for you to let go of what you want." Hashem is like, as it were, an example of not needing. It doesn't matter to him if it's a a big animal, small animal, a bird. It's not it doesn't matter to him. He's not about so to speak. He's not a He doesn't He doesn't need a lot. He just wants us to this one little thing. Just give it up. Just give it up. He wants us to just give it up. Yeah, it costs you money. Give it up. What you can afford, give it up. Give up what you want. Just say thank you. It's so hard to say thank you. It's hard to admit it. It's just Hashem. No. If I, you know, if I say thank you, so then maybe Hashem will give me what? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Just say thank you. Forget all the ulterior motives. Forget trying to get what you want. Forget having because you want to get what you want. First start off with saying thank you. This is what I know that this is what I needed. I know that everything that I have is what I'm supposed to have. Start with that. If I can start with that, I can get everything. You know, it's like I keep thinking about the idea that Shabas is as a as a day of rest. It's a pause. It's a pause. All week long, I'm running and I'm running and running trying to get what I want. But, but where do I really get what I want? It's only from Hashem. It's the It's the moment of reminder. Hara Kaplan talks about the lulv. We go in right we have six days of the week and we have the seventh day which is the pause the stop and then in in space you have six directions you move the lul back and forth and every time it comes back to the center which is here whenever you say hashem you pause you bring it back to the middle you stop movement and the center the shabas is the the reminder that it's hashem is is the root of it I can't accomplish anything unless the six directions are infused with the center which is Hashem. Unless the six days of the week are infused with the center which is shamas, which is the pause, which is the quiet. The carbonas are not there for us to try to grab what we want. Hashem's not interested in those carbonas. The carbonas are there for us to stop and acknowledge and say, "Thank you, Hashem. I don't need your cabbon. Hashem says, I don't need all. Bring me thousands of carbonas. I'm not interested. I've got all the animals in the world. I'm just interested in one thing. I'm interested in your heart. I'm interested in the place that you give up your belief that it's you. Safer opens to the right page. You open your sitter, it opens to the right page. Oh, it's coincidence. Oh, doesn't really care about me. Stop. Just give it up. Say, "Thank you, Hashem." A little thing. Just say, "Thank you, Hashem." Every little thing, it's all him. I just took a breath. It's you, Hashem. Thank you, Hashem. My heart is beating. Thank you, Hashem. I can talk. I can share a word of prayer. I can inspire. It's not me. It's you, Hashem. Thank you, Hashem. I want to bless you. I ask you to bless me. Sh should help us to realize what our carbonas are about. Realize what our tilas are about, what our mitzvah are about. It's not about me proving myself to anybody or anything. Should help us to recognize that it's just about saying thank you to him. It's just about honoring him. Should help us to be in that space of of gratitude, of admission, of dependence on him. Hashem should help us to have every success that Ma comes automatically comes from that recognition. Thank you so much for listening. Have a wonderful shamus. This podcast was made possible through the gracious donations of listeners like you. For more podcasts like this, please visit www.rigoldwag.com or search on iTunes Arig Goldwag. [Music]