BS”D
To my brethren and fellows; ”Hashem! About them (You said), They shall live”.
It is now the beginning of the winter time; a start of a new year rabbi pinto rabbi pinto; a fresh period. We have passed the holy holidays, we sensed a feeling of spiritual elevation, and a great strengthening, and this is the time now to pay off our commitments from the dreadful days; the days of forgiveness and atonement. We must fulfill all of our pledges and obligations and we must be very caution from the complacence and from the pride.
For many years, we had a strong problem: on the day of Yom Kippur, after forty days of strong devotedness to Hashem, and heart breaking, as this holy day ends, we recite on Maariv: “forgive us Hashem, for we have sinned, etc.” it ought to be questioned|: after forty days of forgiveness, and especially after the powerful day, Yom Kippur, why are we requesting Hashem to pardon us again? The very essence of Yom Kippur is to atone and forgive us, and surely, after all the supplemental prayers and pleas, we are pardoned. Why then we recite again “forgive us Hashem, for we have sinned”?!
This could be explained: after the holy day, the most elevated day of the year, when we pass such a day, a sense of pride penetrates our heart, and that leads one to lose supreme values which he has attained during the sanctified day. Consequently, just a moment after the holy day is over, we need again to request from Hashem: “forgive us, for we have sinned”. At the start of the winter days the human soul exists in an uneasy time and state. After an elevated period; holy days; days with strong enlightenment, we now enter the routine days; the upper light are diminished and it is the time to implement what we have took upon ourselves and pay off our commitments. The day time is short while the dark is longer, and people tend to fall into despair, which later might lead to sadness, disputes and pride.
A man shall protect himself and be careful during this time, and should encourage his soul, because one who enters these days in the wrong way, might find that he loses another year. He might enter a whirlpool of days, weeks and months, and eventually even years, when he assumes that everybody else is indecent and is to be blamed and only him- he is the poor and honest, however he is left with nothing and he bears a strong bitterness and despair. Therefore, we ought to make sure that we start these days wisely and with intelligence.
We must guard ourselves and move away from disputes; even though we are very often sure of our justice. Moreover, we shall be caution from the disputes which seem to be for the sake of heaven. Many times, the Yetzer Harah dwells specifically in there and hides inside them. For instance, the first human dispute from the time the world was created caused the first murder. This was the disagreement between Cain and Abel, about the place to build Beth Hamikdash. Sages say: Cain said: it will be built within my region, as I am the firstborn, Abel said: it will be built on my share. This dispute, apparently for the sake of heaven, leaded Cain to kill Abel.
The Gemara says: at the end of the days the truth will be absent. It further mentions: the truth will be in the form of flocks. Apparently, this is hard to comprehend; it seems like a positive prophecy that there will be many herds of the truth, so what is the reason for the sorrow about losing the truth? However, this could be explained: at the end of the days, there will be a repeating phenomenon; in each place there will be a group which will appear and claim that they are the only ones who represent the truthful truth; after some time, some individuals will separate from this group and establish another group, another flock, which will assert: we are the truth while the others are not. And on the same way there will rise another group, from which another herd will rise. And thus, the truth will separate into herds and flocks and it will be cut and sliced endlessly.
A person shall try will all his might to move away from the dispute, and that is the secret of every success and blessing.
Sages said: “It is Who makes your borders peaceful, and with the cream of the wheat He sates you”; only when there is peace, people are merited with livelihood, wheat and a truthful satiation.
Many years ago, we heard a story which bears a strong moral as of how to behave in life: two brothers used to live next to each other and there was a good affection and harmony between them. After many days though, the Yetzer Harah penetrated into their relationship and the brotherhood and friendship started to fade; it deteriorated into a strong hatred, when one did not even say hello to the other. One day, the older brother came to his home and found that his brother built a deep tunnel between the houses and filled it with water, so that each of whom would not be able to cross to the house of his brother. The older brother became very angry and he called a carpenter from the adjacent city and requested: please build for me a very very tall wooden fence, so that I will not see even the roofing tile of his house. The carpenter, who was a G-d fearing man, realized the situation, he said to the man: I understood your words, just show me where the storage with the woods is. The older brother showed him the storage and went for his arrangements in the adjacent city. In the evening, as he came back, expecting to see the wooden fortified tall wall, he noticed that instead of a fortified fence, the carpenter built for him a strong wooden bridge between his house and the house of his brother, and the tunnel and the water were no longer a divider between them. The older brother was looking and he saw his younger brother standing at the other side of the bridge, with tears, and with his head bent to the ground. The younger brother came near his brother and said to him crying: there will never be any border or a wall between us; I feel ashamed from you; I had built a fence and you built a bridge. The carpenter finished his work and was about to leave, however the older brother said to him: do not leave; I have many more jobs to give you. The carpenter replied: I have more works of this sort to do
May Hashem send His blessing and peace and love and harmony and may we get to see the salvation and mercy and vast success.
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