Transcript
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Good morning everyone. Thank you for
coming.
We continue to learn
this year of Ayeka the learning shmas
our dear precious friend
and soul sister Dalia
who continues to remain so part of so
much part of the pulse of the learning
the pulse of the shul of everything.
And just sending a lot of love and and
consolation to Eddie and the children.
You feel her presence in the room. Now
what we're going to be doing is we are
actually going to be finishing this very
long hakdamah. It's very long
introduction.
The Rav Sassoon has been learning Rav
Sassoon
for the hakdamah for the safer Ayeka.
And the pages that you in the safer
that you have it's from it's you got to
go
>> Unnumbered page.
>> It's an I know it's that's what's a
little bit complicated a little
confusing but it starts with the words
Al Anu Lehamtin.
If you go down a page or two Al Anu
Lehamtin and I'm going to explain where
we
where we starting from today.
Where today we're going to wrap up the
whole point of the safer.
And
what we've done until now and what we're
kind of jumping over a little bit over
here because it's a little bit
repetitive which is fine just for us I
want us to feel we're going forward. And
please God we will start the actual
first perek next week.
Today we're going to be on today we're
going to be going back to the initial
question of how does a person answer
Ayeka in this world?
And I'll give you the end of it already
right now.
But I want to just for the sake of
creating a full picture.
But we're going to look at it inside.
Rav Sassoon is explaining to us that
Ayeka
where are you at and what are you
personally doing about that question?
And how to answer it.
That is the tveah that is what this door
is asking. I'll give you an example.
Last night there was a group here came
from Yeshivat
What Yeshiva was it?
Torah Shraga. You ever heard of Torah
Shraga? The Yeshiva Torah Shraga.
So a bunch of the the the Yeshiva came
here last night.
And I wanted to see if like this type of
language is something that they could
that that could resonate with them.
Cuz they're not used to this type of
learning. I mean most Yeshivas most of
those types of Yeshivas aren't used to
that type of learning.
So it it sounds very
just like you know
talking about have you ever like really
thought about why
why you can't
ignore an inner calling? Why do you have
an inner calling? Why you Why do you
feel that Yeah, everyone in this
generation today is discovering wants to
discover the real them and they're going
to
great lengths and doing a lot of
different things today to discover what
is unique about them.
And I saw like you have to be very
patient. Slowly slowly and speak about
it with the name of with with gentleness
and pleasantness
that it does resonate with
[clears throat] them. It does resonate
that these kids today understand that
there is something lurking inside of
them to discover the real them, but they
don't talk about it so much cuz it
sounds you know when you're 18 and 19 it
doesn't sound that cool. It sounds a
little weird to start talking in that
language. We already
have gone have snapped out of the uh
uh you know uncomfort zone of speaking
like this.
But it is going to happen more and more
that Ayeka, the initial question asked
of man
is going to be a is is appearing by more
and more people because every
conversation that I'm having with anyone
these days is speaking exactly about
this. Not just how do I make a parnassa,
but what am I supposed to be doing here
in this world?
What am I supposed What do What do
Actually stopping and thinking Hashem,
what exactly did you think of me when
you thought of putting me in this world?
Which is an amazing question that
today is a given. Most of us have this
question, it was not like this until
Mamash
I'm not going to give a a time frame,
but it's it's now. It's happening now.
And the more, like we said, the more
distractions
that we have in our lives is just a sign
that it's the final battle over this.
It was funny cuz last night when what
what they do with this Yeshiva
is that they're all around me and then
there's a table where I'm sitting
and there was like 130
iPhones on the table.
Cuz they tell them all to put their uh
their phones on the table.
And I said, "Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey,
look, it's like the only reason the only
way I'm going to be able to even talk
over here right now is because this is
in front of you and it's not This is not
in front of you, it's on the table and
it's not your fault.
Understand, the more distractions, and I
quoted this, the more distractions
that are presented before us, the harder
it is to answer that question of the
self-discovery of who I really am.
So, you could look at the generation and
say nebach, we're in such bad shape
because we have so many distractions, or
you could tune in
with with with
with hopefully eyes of Pnimiyus of ears
of Pnimiyus and say, "Ah,
how do I discover what the greatest
goal of today is? Look at what the
greatest challenge is of today." And
that's how you know. So, instead of
getting depressed over it
at least there's there's a discovery of,
"Oh, this must mean
that there's something waiting there's
something screaming inside
because once a Jew has the ability to
begin to answer Ayeka
game over for the other side. It has
nothing on you.
It has nothing on you.
So, therefore, Rav Sassona is going to
tell us over here that we shouldn't
wait.
We shouldn't wait until it gets harder
and harder
to have any peace of mind, to have any
sense of direction, any sense of
conviction in our Drachim, any sense of
getting a a feeling that what I've
embarking on is really Shayach to my
Shoresh Neshamah.
Don't wait. Let's not wait for it
because we have medicine before the
final makeup. We have medicine today.
And we have to make use of this
medicine. And he's going to explain
today how this all adds up. All right,
so on the top of the beginning of this
page Alenu.
It's not for us. We should not be
waiting to see how heavy the all the
yoke of distraction can appear is going
to be appearing on the hearts. Sorry,
I'm changing this already now and I'm
going to change it in the system also
that it I don't know why
it starts off as a freezer already so
early in the morning.
I'm sorry about this. Yeah.
>> Can we Can we dedicate our learning for
the wish line of Schwartz?
>> Of Schwartz Yisrael Schwartz?
Uh that was
Uh now I understand. I got a message
yesterday to dive in for someone.
But then they didn't tell me who it was.
The Belvavi.
>> Yes, it is.
>> That's who it is. Oh, I got a horrible I
mean I don't know.
One second. I got his name here.
Now I understand. Rav Itamar Ben Tova.
He's the author of the Belvavi.
>> Yes.
>> And he had It seems that he had a stroke
yesterday.
And is in critical condition. We have to
talk talk about someone that's given us
access to what we're going to be
speaking about today. That's just
unbelievable.
>> Itamar Ben
>> To- Tova I think I said. Tova.
>> Itamar Ben Tova.
>> Okay. Let's Let's try to take the choir
we have right now and put it for the
for the opening of gates of which is
what we're going to be speaking about
today. We should not be waiting until
things get harder and harder. We
shouldn't be waiting
to until more and more distractions are
in front of us.
The sparks the rays of light of people
asking for atzmi for finding out who
they really are.
You could see everywhere.
We got to be part of the chevra
that present a work present this and an
offer
>> [snorts]
>> first to ourselves obviously, but to the
rest of the awakening generation
generation that is actually
going to invest time in not just
figuring out how to become a talmid
chacham
that knows a lot of information,
but people that understand that learning
Torah
without discovering who I really am,
yesh sham ba'aya, there's a problem
there. It can only go
it can only reach a certain
spot, you know?
And we have so many teachers today that
understand
that this this integration of both
is vital and necessary.
That's why l'chein ra'ui lanu lihiyot
mesay'im be'hofa'atah.
Now, where is the refuah going to come?
The refuah means the removal [snorts] of
distractions.
Where will it come from in order for us
to get a sense
of calmness when we meeting meet
ourselves? And I and not that there's
chalila anything wrong and I myself have
participated in what I'm going to say,
but we we shouldn't feel the need that
only when we go to retreats
for a few days,
that's where it shows up.
The retreats are important to get
boosters,
but not to set it as that is our only
place where we could find answers to
these types of questions.
Zeh me'od chashuv.
So, he says here, where's the refuah?
And Tisha says it straight out, third
line. Ha'refuah ta'vo mip'tichat
sha'arei ha'Torah p'nimit.
P'nimiyut ha'Torah.
The healing is going to come from there.
Because what does p'nimiyut ha'Torah
teach us?
Ha'melamedet et kiv ha'bakasha. Wow.
This is so beautiful.
He says, Pnimiut HaTora teaches
>> [clears throat]
>> a person
how precious and valuable
their request to discover themselves
really is.
Some people, you see this in a lot of
lyrics of different artists. Like I'm
I'm thinking now of like uh
Evitar Banai has one song.
I'm always scared to become a shuga.
Become a shuga from what? To become a
shuga from It looks like I'm the only
person in the world that's like
Everyone has this at a certain point. Am
I the only crazy person over here
that that is walking around saying, I
have everything
but yet I'm still not satiated and
satisfied. What's wrong with me? Like we
spoke about last week.
So he's saying over here, Pnimiut HaTora
teaches us
tiv habakasha
how how good
>> [clears throat]
>> how really filled with goodness it is
that bakasha to feel like that. And not
that you It's not that you're crazy.
You're
You're tuned into the greatest channel
in the world.
That's what Pnimiut HaTora does.
Mesaperet lanu et sod atzmiutenu.
Pnimiut HaTora teaches us the secret of
what makes us us.
De
potachat befanenu et heichalot haor
chambers of light that are right now in
us, but they're concealed.
Bikach This is amazing. You know, I get
asked this question all the time. What
is Pnimiut HaTora? It's like these three
lines here
cover it all.
Bikach hi ma'avira lanu
Through this
it makes it clear to us
maim chalomotenu ha'amiti'im what are
our real dreams vechisufey omek
shebekirbenu
and the deepest depths of the longing
that we feel inside of us
that we're not crazy, that it's good
that even though it's maybe painful
because you wish you could just be
normal like what you think everyone else
is like.
You know, you think you could be normal
just like what everyone else is like. I
I had a drive this week
with an old friend that I haven't spent
a long time for a very long time.
And we used to be very very close.
Nothing bad happened, just life. He
doesn't live around here.
And and he has kids, but I have kids.
But it happened this week that we had an
hour drive together.
We we planned it like this. We were
going to an event and I said, you know,
I'm going to come, put my car by you,
then we're going to drive up to there
and then we'll come back and I'll take
my car from you.
And cuz this is in my head, I said to
him, tell me tell to get me my shoe.
And he's like, "Lama gam ata?"
Right away, you know.
>> [laughter]
>> I'm like, "Yeah, but listen, let's let's
unpack this, right?"
I said [clears throat] to him, "Tell me
something.
You are a He's an artist, of course.
You're an artist.
And he hasn't really made it.
He hasn't really made it,
right? The way that like artists would
say making it.
I said to him, "You're married with a
few children.
Tell me something, the fact that you
have relative showman bias
and that
there's enough parnassah in the house to
get by, but you don't live large.
Does it drive you crazy and do you feel
like you're a failure because you're not
content with your life?"
So he said, uh
he said, "Absolutely, yeah.
Yeah, but I've just felt guilty to say
that out loud." I'm like, "Why? You
didn't say that out loud. I I said that
out loud for you, but now you're welcome
to say it out loud. Let's discuss why."
And we were talking about the fact that
an artist, no matter how much success
they have,
their metziyut, their atzmi, what makes
them them, is creativity.
And it's not be it's you're not able to
look at one of your creations and just
look at it and be like, "Wow. Wow." for
more than just a few minutes cuz you
have a drive to do much more, much much
more. So that's true, but galui, like in
a revealed manner by actual artists.
They're like this, they're driven like
this.
But each of us are artists in this door.
Because to be able to drop the the
Kaylim to hear Ayeka and then begin to
compose an answer, you have to be an
amazing artist.
And and we all are.
All of us.
No matter what we're doing, we all are.
But understand something. The art the
the art of creativity has a little bit
of this like other piece that we're not
so happy with it. And that's that it
doesn't really leave us
with the ability to chill.
Because
my what's next? What's next?
So,
the the the way that Rav Sasson is
addressing now this whole Inyan of
answering Ayeka is like
through Pnimiyus haTorah, what we'll see
is
when you're more when you're more in
touch with the beauty of your drive as
opposed to the meshugas of your drive,
that's that's the healthiest way
forward.
The healthiest way forward.
It's actually in like harmony.
Mamish harmony.
>> Can you say that again?
>> [clears throat]
>> No.
Absolutely not.
It
makes it clear to us what our real
dreams are and why we long for what we
long for.
It's from these dreams and yearnings and
longings
actually real happiness that you really
want will only come through this. And
you could say to yourself, how could
happiness come from this?
Happiness is something like happiness
should should should always mean
I have something. And here I'm I'm
saying no, the world that I'm tuning
into is
I have something and I don't have it.
And that's got from that Osher will
come? Yes.
Real happiness will come from there. Let
me just finish the line and we'll we'll
go there. A chirus v'ha chofesh amiti,
which is what this book is really all
about, freedom, real freedom.
Real chirus v'ha chofesh, v'chol
ha'osher v'ha'mili'us, all riches and
things that really fill us.
And the true simcha of life will appear,
the type of simcha, the type of
happiness of life
that this dor
needs.
This generation needs.
>> [snorts]
>> It seems to me that this generation
the level of simchas ha'osher and
simchas ha'chaim mitbakashes b'doreinu,
the simcha of life that's being asked in
our generation is more chazak than it
ever was before.
Mamash.
Cuz people really seem to be a little
bit more content with much less back in
the day.
Now, back in the day means any other day
besides this this generation.
You also understand that all the cheap
imitation and substitutes for satiation
of the soul
einan mevi'os l'adam es ushro, they do
not bring man
or woman to their true happiness. Ela
lahefech.
On the contrary, all the cheap
imitations, meroknos, you know what that
means? It empties out es me'at ha'ruach,
the little bit of spirit she'od nosra
b'kirbo.
What do you think he's referring to here
about cheap imitations that are offering
like life?
>> [snorts]
>> Basically almost any subscription we
have to anything.
You know? What's that?
>> The iPhone.
>> That's an easy that's just the easiest
one. Yeah, but there's so many. There's
so many different things. Yeah, what did
you want to ask?
>> You answered it because you were talking
about happiness and I was thinking more
like contentment because we could be
happy but without the satiated feeling.
But you did
>> So, Pnimi'us ha'Torah amazing thing of
like redefining these words. Can you
imagine being content
via a drive for something that you don't
have yet?
>> That would be nice. That's interesting.
>> [clears throat]
>> But that But that That's what he's
saying.
The fact that I don't have something
fills me.
Because it produces the world of
of longing.
Things that fill things that cause me to
want things but they don't fill it with
a longing for something
don't make me feel content and that's
why I need more and more and more of
that thing and that thing. But what he
calls it he calls it cheap substitutes.
>> [clears throat]
>> A very interesting choice of language.
You got your hands up? Some hands up?
Okay.
These precious teachings. Where do you
learn this Torah?
We have it.
It's in the of me mate shall I miss
well.
Why does it say in the book of Zohar?
Why does it say in the book of Zohar
that from this manuscript and in this we
understand that to mean all the the of
Torah that comes from the Zohar
of
but why is it that it says through this
a person will come out of it?
Because it over here means in this
context I think
I'm just going to give you my best way
I'm the way I'm
hearing it here is that
a state of exile is a place where
there's no and
you never feel free cuz you always feel
bad to your
you always feel enslaved to that which
you want to get the more that you want
to get. However, in the real way, like
the most beautiful thing is to become
one with your ratzon, with with wanting
to be close to Hashem.
And when that becomes developed more and
more and more,
you realize you're further and further
away from slave mentality and from galus
consciousness. And here I'll say, so
far, but I'm not going to it's not going
to appear again,
is that this can happen to you after
you're the
chairman of the board of Zionists of all
Zionists living in Israel. Cuz it has
nothing to do God bless you. It has
nothing to do
>> [clears throat]
>> with looking at life through that prism,
meaning like this.
It obviously Rav Sasson would never tell
someone, "Listen, you could stay in
chutz l'aretz and experience all this."
And we'll see that that's actually not
the story.
However,
most many people in previous
generations,
they were
they were really okay with their
self-discovery
being answered by just making aliyah.
It really worked for a long time.
Like it actually really did. People
>> [clears throat]
>> when I when you we moved here in the
'80s, like people I remember this, like
people really sensed that just making
that move
perhaps was enough of an answer to
ayeka.
And it's not and it's I'm I'm talking to
the preaching to the choir here cuz we
there's no other reason why you keep on
coming back every week. You're all olim
or olot at a certain point at a certain
point.
Where does that come from? It's because
it's the next level
of the galut of Torah Torah pnimiyut of
Eretz Israel.
Pnimiyut of Torah and Eretz Israel
achdut, it's one. It's it's one. It's
not two separate things. It's one.
Rav Kook speaks about this extensively.
I'm going to reading again from the
second paragraph.
V'itachen she'achat hasibot hagdolot
l'ma mashmaut
>> What is this Torah? Torah is a nation.
The Torah of the soul.
It's own soul.
It's depth.
And it's
What makes
I'm Israel.
Actually recognize our own value.
It will remember the greatness of its
God.
And it will return to God. And I feel
like the last two words here are the
most important words of this paragraph.
And how will the true the movement? How
will we know? That the true the movement
that appears from the Torah is for real.
Is it
Through love. Through a lot a lot of
love.
There's so much to say on this
paragraph. I'm just going to choose one
thing for now. This there's a lot to say
on this paragraph, but
I think it's very clear that when we
talk about the Torah of the soul, that
it will restore to I'm Israel its own
soul.
Like we see without it's very sad that
whenever we speak about these types of
things, it starts to sound political.
Really. Even though it's the cloud.
The cabana not his for sure.
>> [cough]
>> How much not mine, but
What does it mean that the soul of I'm
Israel be restored to its people? We
wouldn't be able to say bad things about
other people.
We just wouldn't be able to.
We would know our own value and we'd see
our own value in another person and we
wouldn't be able to get caught up in the
hype.
Of differences of opinions causing us to
have differences, you know, different
feelings about other people that are
negative.
We're speaking about other people in
other ways. Both the ones that live here
and the ones that live outside of here.
If the Torah of the Zohar Kadosh, the
Torah of Baal Shem Tov is really
is really coming through you
in a way that we're saying is answering
the Ayeka call,
then you wouldn't Am Yisrael's soul
being restored to them means
that
I only come back to you Hashem with with
a tremendous amounts of love.
And I see that in everyone that I, you
know, and the way that I come back means
that I also feel closer to everyone.
Cuz I'm coming back to you b'ahavah
rabbah.
And we speak about this in shul every
single Shabbos.
But to speak bad about other Yidden does
not go it can't and you could have all
the haskados in the world, all the
justifications in the world, but it will
never [clears throat] ever ever ever be
the emes of your neshama.
The emes of someone's soul is never a
place of I find it okay to speak bad
about other Jewish people and the lashon
hara.
It can't be.
Sod guf echad dun, that's what our Rebbe
says. It's the secret of one body.
Like honestly, did you ever burn your
hand while you were making something on
the stove? It's happened to everyone,
right? So, do you start looking at your
fingers and say, "You stupid moronic
fingers?"
You stubbed your toe on the wall. Start
cursing out your toe?
No.
But Pnimius HaTorah, we're we're we're
laughing, but Pnimius HaTorah makes that
analogy something very to to be
something very tangible and real about
this. Yeah.
>> [snorts]
>> What about the concept of
disappointment?
In other words,
I've I've come from a level of being
disgusted by my relatives in America.
Disappointed.
Being disappointed, is that any better?
>> I I think so. I mean,
you went from disgusted to disappointed.
Yeah, I I yeah.
>> [laughter]
>> Just a tad. Yes.
>> Okay, but
>> [clears throat]
[laughter]
>> is there anything tangible that I can
grab onto to go a little higher?
>> We're only in the Hakdamah. We're only
in the
We're only in the introduction. But you
realize even But even this is a great
example. I'm sorry you're being the
scapegoat for this, but
But but it's an amazing example. Like it
started off
by like by saying disgusted three
two seconds later it went to
disappointed. So now what would be two
seconds later after that?
>> Compassion.
>> Let's again
>> Well, not yet. Compa- We still have
another maybe two more shlavim till
compassion. What else? Let's keep on
going up.
>> Empathy.
>> Disgusted, disappointed
sad
>> Sad.
>> Okay.
>> Accepting.
>> Well, is angry in there?
>> The angry Anger was more in disgusted.
Anger is more in disgusted. Keep on
going up.
>> Feel badly for them.
>> So that's more compassion. That that
That that's already compassion.
But then what do you But then and then
what do you But what's waiting What's
the revelation? What are you waiting to
reach an understanding of? Love.
Well, wait a second. I love them.
I love them.
>> But
>> No.
>> No buts.
>> I love them and that's why I experience
what I experience.
Now let me go back to re- relating to
them.
>> Okay.
>> So I've also been hard on myself.
>> And then cuz of course I love them.
Otherwise, why would I care?
>> But sometimes we just have to again
train ourselves to do this kind of
mahalakh and realize
See the the Torah of of It's not just
the Baal Shem Tov. Obviously he the way
he brings it down here is we see this
through the Gra, we see it through the
Kuzari, we see it obviously through the
Ramchal and the Ramak.
Like their Torahs are all there to get
us to a place that we
organically like by naturally
already start at the top.
And then we never even have to go down
to the disgusted, disappointed, sad,
far. We actually start at the 22nd my my
sense is that I I love them.
I love them. Rebono shel Olam have
rachmanus on all of us to bring us
closer together. That's what That's what
we're operating from.
See, the person like that lives with so
much more content. Even though he has
things that they're missing in his life,
there's such a sense of a fulfill a
fulfilling life like this. And this is
the light that shines bright through
Pnimiut HaSatara.
>> Yeah.
I I was also struck and I think
I think this is the whole point of the
safer, but like he starts from the
center saying, you know, first you have
to recognize your own value, and then
you go back to and then you remember
Hashem and then you go back to Hashem.
And I think also in our interpersonal
relationships, like a person who's
really feeling content and satisfied
with themselves is like you're saying
not going to be able to look at another
person negatively or or judgmentally.
So,
>> Hopefully.
I mean, be'ezrat Hashem.
>> know. Like fully fully
>> Full
>> [clears throat]
>> Listen, I'm It's It's a long road to get
there. Meaning, it's not like, oh,
start start a tiny issue. I'm going to
start to love everyone. It's Everything
is Everything shlavim.
But what do you have Are you struggling
with that with that
>> No, I'm just sitting [snorts] with that.
>> Sitting with Yeah.
>> I mean, I think especially in our day,
like it it always starts with us
with ourself and then
everything works out from there.
>> This is what it's about. It's about It's
about Yavin et Erkeinu. Yavin et
Erkeinu. Rebbe Nachman writes about
this.
Obviously based on Rebbe Nachman
is that
when a person starts to know what a Yid
is,
they'll realize that there's absolutely
no shaychus of aveiros by Yidden.
So, you'd say, "What do you mean,
there's no shaychus by Yidden? I mean, I
know Yidden are sinning all the time."
Like, "Yeah, but they're not shayach to
it at all. It's not their bag. It's not
what they're
They They got tangled up in it, but
they're not That doesn't make That's not
really who they are.
Wow, that's not really who they are.
That means that they're his the hoot.
Their identification is actually I can
stop identifying them or part of myself
as a sinner? Yeah. Do you know what kind
of freedom that is?
That is the beginning of hairut.
When I stopped identifying myself as a
sinner.
It's a It's a It's a mahalacha. It's a
It's a process. It's a law. It's a law
of beshoot. Yeah.
>> So I asked you
at the end of class last week
there difference between identity and
purpose. You said no.
And in my mind I've been struggling with
that like what are you saying? You know
cuz like I think like we're all like
thinking like what's my identity and
what's my purpose? And then
to really understand like to like what
what you were saying about how knowing
ourselves, you know? [snorts]
But I feel like love is so separate from
understanding our identity or our
purpose or having happiness. Like it has
to be separate. Like it has nothing to
do with us. And knowing what our
identity and purpose is first because
that having love for self or for someone
else is exist outside all of that. But I
feel like we we create this attachment
to knowing our identity and our purpose
to have happiness. And then I can
>> All right, listen. First of all, chas
v'shalom to what you said.
God forbid.
And I'll explain to you separately but
it's it's a it's very separate from
where we're going with the shiur so I
want to continue with where we're at
right now but just for the record it is
so not separate.
It is so intertwined and necessary for
every single shlav of the program.
But we can discuss it separately, okay?
I just want to continue with you. Yeah.
>> Several years back I remember asking you
um
>> I'm getting grilled today on on
questions. [laughter]
>> Is Natori
I was I said I don't think Natori Do you
think Natori Card is Jewish? You gave me
such a look that your wife had explained
to me what you like you were like
Like what are you saying? You know,
you're saying that don't you know, like
you were kind of disgusted by my
comment.
>> Or
>> disappointed.
>> Or
>> [laughter]
>> that you're
>> [laughter]
>> Listen, I'm disgusted with myself that
grew up thinking that Satmar was a bad
word.
Cuz even in religious Zionism they had
to also make things in boxes which is
all backfiring all of them cuz anyone
with anything real to say doesn't feel
at home in that party.
You're getting me on tangents and I want
to but but you No, no, but listen, just
to make my my my shock is that how how
could it be that
bless you that that
Obviously,
I don't think most of us identify with
the
mission statement of Neturei Karta.
>> [sighs]
>> And yet
Hashem says
they're part of Eden. So, they may feel
that I'm not a Yid.
And I've had conversations like that.
But that's their problem. They're stuck
with me.
>> And we're stuck with him.
>> But it's not stuck. It's like
stuck is not the
>> No, we we live we have to accept.
>> Yeah, but that the point of this year is
understanding that we're always so
focused on them.
It's got to be about us, you know.
It's got to first come from us answering
Ayeka
before [clears throat] we begin to think
that we can make sense of how everyone
else is running their own shows and our
our relationships and connections with
them.
It has to come first. Our Indian has to
come first of
cuz Hashem doesn't want me to answer
Ayeka on behalf of anybody else.
Right?
Okay, let's
let's let's keep on going. We're only
doing a little bit more. It's not the
whole in second page. So, don't worry.
Hopefully, we'll get through it.
I'll Canada we had a voucher called by
live. Therefore,
it's it's the correct [clears throat]
thing for anyone that has a heart.
Hopefully.
Can you imagine someone closes the book
now? Oh, called by live.
I'll Canada we had a voucher called by
live. Call me tomorrow. Any educator and
teacher.
However, I'm Israel that loves I'm
Israel.
Even those that don't think like you or
even live here.
I'm a kid by my little thumb.
And recognizes their exalted level. I'll
be school at home I'm a good lover you
can have her.
And that's a cute way.
Talking about school at there cute, but
it doesn't mean in a in a
in a you know, belittling way. They're
special and precious school at what
makes us us.
Shall you allow me my lucky I'm lucky
him.
The diamonds of the king of kings.
Yeah, I school more than the baby root.
Me who had a dumb. I know you put in 5
hours of learning tomorrow the morning.
But you have to put 5 hours later in the
day
of also learning the tire of what is
man.
Me who had a dumb.
My name is my total at me what what is
a soul? What are these five levels of
soul? What are all these concepts that
uh many of us walk into showing we hear
these concepts and we think we're idiots
cuz everyone else we're assuming they
understand it, but everyone thinks the
same thing in the room.
To learn these things, to actually learn
what these
what these levels are.
How big this our souls are.
Where is it all good all come on board
what a great light exists within it. The
car
you might be a habit the moment you make
the good deal. We will train ourselves
to look out to the world
in in a manner of greatness and depth.
They are all little harsh the old man in
the show to the door.
I know I have a good game care hard then
you'll come to whisper
into the ears of the souls of this
generation both the younger ones and the
older ones.
Shek dolim anachnu, we are big.
Ruach Hashem bekerbenu, the spirit of
Hashem is within us.
Ve'or ein sof zarua begar ein
atzmiutenu.
An infinite light
is planted into the seed which makes us
tick.
Al na lanu leham it be'ar keinu. I could
hear him crying over this.
He's saying, "Don't belittle our value."
Value is not the greatest word here, cuz
value
erech, it mean [snorts] in this context,
it means more than value. Zava, what do
you think another word could be?
>> Preciousness.
>> Preciousness, maybe.
>> [snorts]
>> I don't know. Maybe we'll come back to
What? Our worth. Our worth.
Al ni ktanim be'einenu, don't make
yourself Don't We shouldn't be small in
our own eyes. We we we we did that
before when we were small in other
people's eyes, but we just made it up,
like in the
story of the meraglim that they said
that we're grasshoppers in their eyes,
even though that was their own
assumption. But we do that to ourselves
all the time.
>> I don't see just as erech orachim, like
values also.
Don't belittle your values.
>> Your values.
Yeah?
Hakara bigdula p'nimit.
Recognizing the inner depth of how great
we are. Hi ashuresh lehakir
ulahadedeitav.
Et chosher asheya chot el olam olamot
zarim. This is very important. Before
you turn the page, just look at these
words.
The greatness of recognizing that
recognizing the greatness in the deep
deep way
is the root to understand and to sharpen
for us why we really aren't shaya
to olamot zarim,
to foreign worlds.
Now, what are foreign worlds? What does
he mean over here?
Trends.
There's a lot a lot of trends in the
world.
Apparently, it's a it's a trend now to
to have jihadists run America. It's like
a trend. It's a trend in Europe. It's a
trend in America. It's like this new
thing. This
It's a trend. The whole world is doing
it. The whole world is doing it. It's
even touching upon us here and there.
It's a goyish.
But, it's not just those things. It's
It's also other goyish things, like
cultural things.
>> [snorts]
>> It's trends.
He says He says
when you recognize how precious and
valuable and how much your worth is and
all the other words we can find
to the word erech.
He's saying you'll understand you'll
sharpen the notion of
of thank God I feel so foreign to what
the world feels so at home with. You
know, the one of the
They say about Balak and Bilam that
Bilam's curses were from his mouth. You
could
You could know what Bilam's curses were
going to be based on the blessings that
ended what Bilam's
curses were going to be based on the
blessings that ended up coming out of
his out of his mouth, right?
So, what was one of the very I've
mentioned this before. One of the
interesting blessings where you can't
really understand that it's actually a
blessing is that he says
which
means a nation will dwell on its own and
won't take into consideration the
nations of the world. So, what would
have been the curse? Think about it.
Now, flip it over.
We will be the opposite. We will be
We will be among everyone.
Assimilation. Yeah. Meaning the the
curse would be full assimilation that
makes you feel
proper and right and and part of the
gang.
But, they never worked for us.
It never worked for us
in any in any way, shape, or form. But,
also Bless you. Also, spiritually it
never worked for us.
Finding our It never worked for us. You
know, the real the real Emma's liquor
people in India
the real ones [clears throat] in the
east
the real ones and sometimes they would
appear I don't know if it's still like
this, but back in the day they would
come out
that when they saw Yiddish and a Shama
that
they saw a little bit of it's Zohar. I
mean, I know people like this. Their
gurus told them
You go there.
Not all not
Not all not all of us ever
were bold enough to make such
statements.
But it's like what about us going to
that? So the brocha of Billam what ended
up coming out is that
is that thank God thank God and I'm
never that Yishkon
because if we were
if we were so together with other
nations of the world not in a peace and
harmony way, but in terms of the way
that our tarbut runs the way that our
our culture and society runs
then
we would never hear the word Ayeka.
It wouldn't be part of a of the program.
We would never hear that question and we
wouldn't have this drive and aspiration
that we're speaking about in this year
about figuring out the real me.
The danger becomes though that once I
hear Ayeka that I go to foreign places
to find the answers.
And he's saying over here However, it's
it's all This has been planned for many
many many many years. It's all here.
It's all It's all in the library.
And now we have to take the books off
the shelves and now we need help with
understanding what it says over here,
but it's all here. It's all here.
So thank God it makes us realize we
don't we're not shy of these foreign
worlds. Redudim ubsuyim and they these
these shallow and humiliating worlds
that have nothing to do with the soul of
a Yid. Nothing.
Ilabonhu which means
the olive it's an
To a person that the spirit of God
is standing within him.
Look at these words. Leo Sargon
Tarabotti.
You know what a Sargon Tarabotti means?
A cultural consumer of a culture that is
shallow and empty and cheap.
And cheap.
It's very strong.
Very strong words over here.
>> [clears throat]
>> I you know, I
I always say like
Actually, Nitsa, I was thinking about
this cuz of you and David. There's a I
know so many cool
people that are offering the goods of
all goods. For instance, I get a message
almost every week from Ruth Gershon.
Every week.
Just an an another
Neshama that showed up out of nowhere.
Actually, it's connected to my family
that my my brother married into. It's a
long story. We know him for many years.
Just him as an example. Just like
plopping out of nowhere and showing and
and talking in terminology
that if you if you didn't know what this
person looked like then you closed your
eyes.
And maybe it's the British accent. I
don't know what it is, but you you feel
like you're just on this cruise of
relaxation.
You know, you just like this
Pleasantville. It's an amazing thing,
but there's so many have it like this
today
that are offering
the opposite of what he just said right
now.
The opposite of being a consumer
of a culture that really is empty and
it's cheap. It's cheap imitations.
Cheap imitations.
And it's so painful. It's so sad. What's
that?
>> media feeds would be filled with people
like Ruth Gershon and not with people
that are trying to, you know, to sell us
things from Temu and like garbage from
China.
Then
>> [snorts]
>> I I think we'd all be in a better path.
And this is exactly what
>> He's saying that's that He's saying that
that's one level and the other level is
when
these Tyras
show up from foreign places as well,
meaning it it it it breaks my heart when
I see people that they've already
graduated from Temu. So, now what are
they What are What's their culture?
What's their Tzar Khan? What's their
consumer needs?
So, they they hear they do they hear a
calling they hear something that stems
with their soul
that's not coming from your desk height.
It's coming from other places.
And then people then
you know
the saddest thing is that if they ever
reveal that to someone in their circles
the person would start saying, "Ah,
you're a shake it's you you're
connecting yourself with somebody else
Zara."
And and they're crying inside their
heart saying, "And the Yiddish guide
that you offered me and you raised me
with
you think this that's that's an answer
to the calling of the soul? Of course
I'm going to be a consumer of foreign
cultures.
Of course I am.
We have stories like this left and
right.
So,
this is
this is the true fire that we keep on
going back to. This is the medicine that
Reb Sasson is describing in terms of
answering of the call of our door.
And he says
This
through learning Pnimius HaTora we can
give a person a shot a a cheerleading
a dude like a to cheer you about a
strong
and holy booster.
And [snorts] what How do I know that I
got the booster? This is how you know by
the next few words.
If I rise
and then demand
freedom
and light not freedom to be free from
keeping Torah and mitzvahs a fool just
that I feel free I feel light
both like light and like non heavy both
together.
In order to do what let's sit in a
massage at me a meeting to go out to
this journey of discovering the true me.
To
give birth to the special
[clears throat] light shin table a donor
mode
that the master of souls planted within
you reborn
so he's alluding to something here that
we find in other places of his writings.
We saw this come up one time and when we
were learning come me or a
I'm obviously not expecting anyone to to
remember exactly I also don't remember
exactly but I think this is what it was
like.
But so so says that many people live
full lifetimes in the state of being
an embryo.
What's an embryo?
What what status is an embryo? Like what
state of life are they is an embryo?
Not what's that not dependent
free?
Not fully developed
not fully developed free?
>> [clears throat]
>> No.
Existing?
Existing yes.
Actually content to say well but it's an
illusion.
And he says that there are people there
there are there have been the shamans
been souls for years and years they were
okay with that meaning they were okay
with their status of being in this world
just that
you know and that is not the story of
this generation.
This is not the story earlier this week
also in this kind of one night with a
bunch of these young Israeli brother
I just can't stop getting over this It's
I don't see it so much by the American
issue camera. You do have a little bit,
but by an artist Israel, it's something
else. This no art today.
This no art that I love that when you
see someone with a tattoo these days,
let's just say you see a man and you're
standing behind him in a coffee shop and
he's about and you just for whatever you
don't see the top of of of their head,
right?
Or you also can't see their waist, but
you see like let's say you just get a
glimpse of the back of their arm, right?
I love
that we're getting clue more and more in
a door. I don't love that everyone has
tattoos is I'm a boy. I love that we're
already trained to see to where to not
naturally assume
anything about this person other than
they may be the give up of all give up
and then quite often you'll see a yamaka
and you'll see tzitzit coming out.
>> The tattoo will be a plus.
>> Or yeah. Yeah.
>> That's crazy.
>> I'll I'll tell you I I wasn't going to
say this, but I'm going to say it now
because I don't think it'll it'll reach
them, but
you know, this earlier this week I was
privileged to do a chuppah
of a
an amazing couple
artists.
They were in uh
not here. And And more in the Americas.
And um
one's from Australia, one's from
Germany.
And um
it was so cool freeing
being doing a chuppah
with no rabbinim looking over my
shoulder to make sure I'm doing it
right.
There was no rav. There was like no no
rabbinim there.
And I was thinking about the experience
of that versus a chuppah I did a few
weeks ago where there was like five
rabbinim.
Every letter I'm writing in there
everyone's looking you know
everyone's looking. But here it's like
there was a chiyuv of like we're look
we're
all people were looking for there was to
feel
chibur and your job is to just make sure
it's done because of the show by Allah.
But there wasn't a sense of he's doing
it right, doing it wrong, doing it
right.
There's not a freedom of just like
Bonnie Abba, let let let's be in this
moment.
Let's be in this moment.
Now honestly, finding Adam wasn't simple
at this at this you understand? I'm not
saying that everyone there is like
everyone there is so holy and they're
they're holy of holies. Holy probably
not so much. Kodesh Kodashim yes, cuz
they're Eden.
There's a bar and it's
you know, Tel Aviv Yaffo of today it's a
it's a different world.
However, mamash mamash mamash
I felt there a tveya
a demand to be big.
From inside the people in the in in the
Hebron area. They don't even know
where to start or what it means. They
have no but they just their nishamas are
are giving bringing down a consciousness
of
we're destined for greatness.
Ayeka.
Okay? And our job is to make it
nagish. How do you say nagish?
>> Accessible.
In the most loving and inviting way be
ahava raba.
Because this is the calling of our
generation.
This is the calling of our generation
and it's getting clearer by the day.
Therefore, this safer
which is going to be a a journey, a
journey an amazing journey
is very much I what I've seen is like
the what he did over here is that he
gave us a chance
to actually feel close to Rav Kook.
But it's not just Rav Kook.
It's the world of pnimiyus haTorah from
so many different sources and angles
that we're not used to learning it like
this. However, it's it's right here. I
would say that it's a the goal is is
that if someone
I'll end with this. This is important.
This is it'll tie it all up. In 1967
or 1966
Yeah, in 1966
there was
before Rav had the house of
living prayer, there was no place to get
together. He came to San Francisco
and he basically asked all the kids that
were already following him,
"I'm going to get a few hotel motel
rooms and just come and and and it'll be
givald." Hundreds of kids came, way more
than the rooms that he had ordered. The
head of the motel, he was actually a
Holocaust survivor, he wanted to throw
them out in the middle of Pesach cuz
there was matzah all over the motel and
it's a whole story, but
Reb said that one time he waited
he wanted to know if all the tires he's
saying really are going into them.
So, he said that he kept the door
he said at like 3:00 in the morning
after the seder was finished or 4:00 in
the morning he said, "I kept the door a
little bit open cuz I wanted to see what
happens when I leave with these by this
young chevra."
And he saw that one guy that had just
showed up,
he
came to one of the chevra there
and pulled out a
big joint. He said, "Let's now really
get high."
So,
he said that one of the there was a
couple there he started to mekarev who
today are
great-grandparents to
hundreds of descendants in Yerushalayim,
Hasidim
that knew nothing.
He said that the woman said to this
person, "Oh, you think that's potent?
Check this out." And she pulled out and
he was like, "Oh, no.
Oh, no. She probably really is a big
druggy and I I I'm I'm not really
getting to them." And she pulls out this
beautiful piece of shmurah matzah
that she had saved that Reb gave
her. And he said, "You think that
stuff's strong? Try this."
And he went to sleep that night saying,
"This chevra, they're ready for the
highest.
You just have to give it to them.
You have to make You have to make it
accessible."
So, I give us a bracha
to stay I'm going to
as like a word of caution with this safe
and
we're not going to it's going to be a
we're going to do our own seder of it
cuz sometimes things do get repetitive
here and maybe very marked with that it
won't be for us. It has to be the way
that it will be working over here.
But I know that there isn't a soul in
this room in this shul. I want to say
all over this country
that can tolerate being foreign to
themselves anymore. We can't stand it
anymore.
We can't take it and and as much as it
hurts
I want you to say baruch hashem that I
can't take it.
As much as it feels uncomfortable thank
God it feels uncomfortable.
Be thankful for it. Be happy about it.
The local it's not easy but like Cliff
always says
it's worthwhile. It's mamish worthwhile.
It's because of hashem we'll continue
this year on
yeah, next Thursday. We're going to
start with perek aleph.
Finally, thank God. Thank you so much
everyone.
>> Thank you. Thank you.