Tefillah 8 – Tefillah & Purim

We'll try both to continue Inyanei Tefillah as well as Inyanei Deyoma. The Pesukim in the Megilla:

ובשנים עשר חודש הוא חודש אדר בשלושה עשר יום בו אשר הגיע דבר המלך ודתו להעשות ביום אשר שיברו אויבי היהודים לשלוט בהם ונהפוך הוא אשר ישלטו היהודים המה בשונאיהם.

Later Pasuk Chaf-Beis:

כימים אשר נחו בהם היהודים מאויביהם והחודש אשר נהפך להם מיגון לשמחה ומאבל ליום טוב לעשות אותם ימי משתה ושמחה ומשלוח מנות איש לרעהו ומתנות לאביונים.

The Megilla tells us that the the essence of Purim, Purim is a Yom Tov again, not Yom Tov in its technical sense, there's no Isur Melacha me'ikar hadin, but Purim is a Yom Tov of v'nahafoch hu. V'nahafoch hu. החודש אשר נהפך להם מיגון לשמחה. So let's try to understand a little bit what what this inyun of v'nahafoch hu is and and how it came about. The Rambam gives us a a different seemingly perspective, a very very novel perspective on on the Yom Tov again, not in its technical sense, of Purim. Generally we associate it with Kabbalas Hatorah, Kimu v'kiblu. Rambam emphasizes a different dimension. In the hakdoma to the Minyan Hamitzvos al seder Hilchos HaRambam, so the Rambam explains why mitzvos d'rabbanan don't involve a violation of bal tosif. So the Rambam says in order for a mitzva d'rabbanan to avoid being a violation of bal tosif, there are two things we two criteria which have to be met. First of all,

על מה הזהירה תורה להוסיף ולגרוע שלא יהיה נביא רשאי לחדש דבר ולומר שהקדוש ברוך הוא ציווה במצווה זו והוסיפה למצוות התורה או לחסר אחת מאלו השש מאות ושלוש עשרה מצוות אבל מוסיפין בית דין עם נביא שיהיה באותו הזמן מצווה דרך תקנה או דרך הוראה או דרך גזירה אין זו תוספת שהרי לא אמרו שהקדוש ברוך הוא ציווה לעשות עירוב ולקרות המגילה בעונתה ואילו אמרו כן היו מוסיפין על התורה.

So first of all, Chazal have to be very upfront about the fact that this is a mitzva d'rabbanan. They can't they can't try to pass off basar ohf b'cholov as a din d'oraisa. They have to be very open and and very clear about the fact that it's only a d'rabbanan. Fine.

אלא כך אנו אומרים שהנביאים עם בית דין תיקנו וציוו לקרות המגילה בעונתה.

Okay, meaning it's Nevi'im with Beis Din, it's not not mi pi hagevura.

כדי להזכיר שבחו של הקדוש ברוך הוא ותשועה שעשה לנו והיה קרוב לשוועתנו כדי לברכו ולהללו וכדי להודיע לדורות הבאים שאמת מה שהבטיחנו בתורה כי מי גוי גדול אשר לו אלוהים קרובים אליו כהשם אלוקינו בכל קראנו אליו.

It's also necessary to explain how every d'rabbanan links up to a d'oraisa. How every d'rabbanan is intended to facilitate, to reinforce, to bolster some din d'oraisa or some concept d'oraisa, some basic emunah d'oraisa. There's no such thing as an independent d'rabbanan. So it's not enough that Chazal tell us krias hamegilla ba'onasa is is only a d'rabbanan or a divrei kabbala whatever, but they also have to explain that krias hamegilla ba'onasa comes to reinforce the fundamental emunah in koach hatfilla.

אמת מה שהבטיחנו בתורה כי מי גוי גדול אשר לו אלוהים קרובים אליו כהשם אלוקינו בכל קראנו אליו.

So according to the Rambam, mitzvas megilla, which is the... The central mitzvah of Purim of course is to reinforce our emunah in koach hatfilah. When the Gemara in Megilla on daf daled

אמר רבי יהושע בן לוי חייב אדם לקרות את המגילה בלילה ולשנותה ביום

shene'emar אלוקי אקרא יומם ולא תענה ולילה ולא דומיה לי. So the pasuk which רבי יהושע בן לוי quotes is a pasuk of tfilah. The pasuk that he quotes for kvi'as krias haMegilla not only bayom but balaila as well is a pasuk of tfilah, אלוקי אקרא יומם ולא תענה ולילה ולא דומיה לי. What's more, itachen that על פי דרכו של הרמב"ם the lashon of רבי יהושע בן לוי uleshonosa bayom lich'ora is superfluous. רבי יהושע בן לוי should have said חייב אדם לקרות את המגילה בלילה וביום and then I would have figured out for myself if I'm reading the same Megilla bayom as well that I'm repeating it. So what's the point? So itachen again לפי דרכו של הרמב"ם that krias haMegilla bein hayeser comes to reinforce our belief in koach hatfilah. So by tfilah there's an inyan of ribui tfilah, inyan of ribui tfilah. The Gemara in Brachos at the end of the fifth perek, if a person davens and sees that his tfila lo na'ana, yachzor v'yispallel, yispallel v'lo na'ana, yachzor v'yispallel. קוה אל ה' חזק ויאמץ לבך וקוה אל ה'. It's an inyan of ribui tfilah. So that's what the emphasis is that חייב אדם לקרות את המגילה בלילה ולשנותה ביום. You're repeating it. That's the whole point. The whole point is to recognize that there is a repetition. What was the turning point in the events which are recounted in the Megilla? So the turning point is when Esther tells Mordechai:

לך כנוס את כל היהודים וצומו עלי אל תאכלו ואל תשתו שלשת ימים.

So the Targum spells out what lich'ora is clear, is something that we should all understand. The Targum adds: utzalu, and daven. What's the point of a ta'anis? The point of a ta'anis is that it's a yom tfilah. So לך כנוס את כל היהודים, tsumu, but utzalu, and daven. So the turning point is tfilah. The Gemara says in Yevamos on samech daled commenting on the pasuk of vayetar Yitzchak l'Hashem: Amar Rabbi Yitzchak למה נמשלה תפלתן של צדיקים כעתר? Eser is a pitchfork.

מה עתר זה מהפך את התבואה ממקום למקום כך תפלתן של צדיקים מהפכת מדותיו של הקדוש ברוך הוא ממדת רגזנות למדת רחמנות.

So the Gemara says a very big yesod. The Gemara says koach hatfilah, it's a segula of tfilah, the tfilah can be mahapech. And that's what's indicated in the lashon of vayetar, vayetar is a pitchfork, what you take a pitchfork and you turn over the tvua or you turn over the soil. Tfilah is mahapeches. And that's what the Gemara says. That the koach of tfilah, the yesod of tfilah is that tfilah is mahapeches. Right? Rashi in Parshas Noach quotes from Chazal on

ויזכור אלהים את נח ואת כל החיה אשר אתו בתבה

and Hakadosh Baruch Hu is merachem on them. So why does it say the shem Hashem which signifies midas hadin? So Rashi says because על ידי תפלת צדיקים the midas hadin misapeches lihayos rachamanim. Right? We're all familiar, it says in the sefarim that through shofar which is a kiyum tefillah, so as it were keveyachol Hakadosh Baruch Hu goes from kisei shel din to kisei shel rachamim. Again tefillah is mehapachess. Tefillah is mehapachess. So Purim is a Yom Tov of venahafoch hu,

ונהפוך הוא החודש אשר נהפך להם מיגון לשמחה ומאבל ליום טוב,

so the peshat is Purim is a Yom Tov of tefillah is haynu hach. Is it that Purim, Purim again came about through the koach hatefillah, and koach hatefillah is למה נמשלה תפילתן של צדיקים כעתר because it's mehapachess. Tefillah is mehapachess. Dehaynu, it could have been, it could have been that Haman would have, would have planned and plotted rachmana litzlan to exterminate all, all Jews. It could have been that his attempt would have been foiled, but it wasn't only that, right? It's החודש אשר נהפך להם מאבל ליום טוב. That there was a, there was a venahafoch hu and that comes about through koach hatefillah. Koach hatefillah is tefillah's mehapachess. Let's try to understand a little bit more. So this then appears to be one of the midos through which Hakadosh Baruch Hu governs the world, a mida of venahafoch hu, a mida of venahafoch hu. What's, what what are we to understand? How how do we understand this mida? Lichora the peshat is like this. Hakadosh Baruch Hu is kulo tov. How do we reconcile that with manifestations that we see as din, as strict din, as as harsh din? How do we, how do we reconcile that with Hakadosh Baruch Hu being kulo tov? So obviously one answer and and absolutely correct, the Gemara says that that the punishment for reshaim is נוח להם ונוח לעולם. That that's good to, that there should be a middas hadin which counters the ra of people. So that's tov. So it's not a kasha. But the emes is it's it's deeper than that. Even when, even when our actions necessitate as it were a middas hadin, even then the emes is, the emes is latent within that din is kulo tov even from our vantage point. Latent within that din even when our actions, even when we go and we נהנה מסעודתו של אותו רשע, even when our occasion when our actions precipitate a middas hadin, even then when the middas hadin comes from Hakadosh Baruch Hu who's kulo tov within that middas hadin is the potential that it should be venahafoch hu. And that's, and that's, and that's at least a little bit of a havana in this mida of venahafoch hu from Hakadosh Baruch Hu who's kulo tov, so only tov emerges. Only tov emerges. And that's why again in addition to the fact the din... The din is tov, the din is tov because ra has to be countered. But in addition to that, within, within the din is latent again the ability that it should be converted letov, that it should be nithapech letov. Again Rashi quotes in Parshas Noach ומי המבול היו על הארץ, that when the gshomim came down, so they were gishmei bracha. They were potentially gishmei bracha. And if only, if only the dor hamabul had hachzor bitshuva, so they would have been gishmei bracha. And then once they came down al ha'aretz and still there was no tshuva, so then again why couldn't it have been that if they had done tshuva, so Hakadosh Baruch Hu would have stopped it and only people's basements would have flooded and it wouldn't have been the all things considered it would have been a better better result than ארבעים יום וארבעים לילה. No. If there had been tshuva, it's not only that the tragedy would have been averted, but they would have been gishmei bracha. The same yesod that even when even when Hakadosh Baruch Hu imposes midas hadin, within that midas hadin ra gufa lurks the rachamim which has to be nithapech, which has to be nithapech. Lichora, there is a medrash here in beginning of Parshas Bechukosai

שכן ישעיה אמר עזבו את ה׳ ניאצו את קדוש ישראל.

Al tomar azvu which is an intransitive, ella izvu kavyachol. Lama? Ella Hakadosh Baruch Hu amar

אני נקראתי ה׳ ה׳ א־ל רחום וחנון ומפני עונותיכם עשיתם אותי כאכזרי והפכתם מדת רחמנותי לאכזריות.

V'chen hu omer

והמה מרו ועצבו את רוח קדשו ויהפך להם לאויב הוא נלחם בם.

So the emes is so Hakadosh Baruch Hu is ה׳ ה׳ א־ל רחום וחנון. Rachmana litzlan avonos kavyachol הפכתם מדת רחמנותי לאכזריות. Kavyachol rachmana litzlan v'yeihafech lahem l'oyev. But Hakadosh Baruch Hu is ה׳ ה׳ א־ל רחום וחנון, which is why even when there's a even when הפכתם מדת רחמנותי לאכזריות, but the midas rachmanus is still there. Midas rachmanus again is latent within the midas hadin waiting to be nithapech back, waiting to be nithapech back. And in that process of being nithapech, tfilah has a special koach, tfilah has a special sgula. The mitzvah is

לבסומי עד דלא ידע בין בין ארור המן לברוך מרדכי.

Both Rashi and the Rambam say that it means b'yayin. Okay. So al pi pshuto al pi halacha the pshat is where does the Gemara get this this new mitzvah from? It made up a new mitzvah. You read the Megillah, the Megillah tells us what the mitzvos hayom of Purim are, and the Gemara makes up a new one of לבסומי עד דלא ידע. So what's the pshat? Pshat is no, the Megillah tells us it's yemei mishte v'simcha. Yemei mishte v'simcha so אין שמחה אלא ביין. The Gemara's telling us what the shiur of that mitzvas simcha is. That's what the Magen Avraham says, that seudas Purim should be basar. So the Gemara is not making up a new din, it's a shiur. And that's how Rashi and the Rambam know that it should be yayin because the whole makor is that it's a shiur in simcha and simcha is associated with yayin, not with any. So what's the inyan that a person should become so so confused that he doesn't know ארור המן וברוך מרדכי, the pshat is like this. After Yaakov receives the brachot and and Esav bitterly complains to Yitzchak הברכה אחת היא לך אבי ברכני גם אני אבי, so Yitzchak tells him והיה כאשר תריד ופרקת עלו מעל צוארך. Rashi explains what what do the words mean vehaya ka'asher tared when you'll have legitimate reason to complain that Yaakov received the brachot because Yaakov is not living up to his to his end of the bargain because Yaakov is not keeping the Torah. So then ופרקת עולו מעל צוארך. So then it will no longer be that הן גביר שמתיו לך but then you'll you'll gain the upper hand. Similarly the Gemara says in in Megilla that it can never be, the Gemara quotes what's that pasuk in Yechezkel kesari viyerushalayim

אם יאמר לך אדם חרבו שתיהן אל תאמין ישבו שתיהן אל תאמין.

That both both Yaakov and Esav that they're both flourishing or that they're both desolate that they're both charve don't believe either of that.

חרבה קיסרי וישבה ירושלים חרבה ירושלים וישבה קיסרי תאמין שנאמר אמלאה החרבה אם מליאה זו חריבה זו אם מליאה זו חריבה זו.

If someone were to tell you that Yerushalayim is flourishing and the capital of the the Roman Empire is is desolate you can believe it. Or rachmana litzlan the opposite you can believe that also. רב נחמן בר יצחק amar mehacha you don't need the pasuk in Yechezkel it's a pasuk in Chumash ule'om mile'om ye'ematz. Apparently the mem the Gemara is darshaning that the mem is the source that one nation will become strong from not just stronger than the other nation but will become strong from the other nation. So what does all this add up to? The pshat is that that Esav Amalek is is mizerah Esav doesn't have an independent power base doesn't have an independent koach. It's not it's not the fact that there's this titanic struggle between the forces of of Esav of ra and the forces of Yaakov of tov between Haman and Mordechai no. No then it would the Gemara says it can't be yashvu shtehen. It can't be that they're both they're both flourishing. The pshat rather is as Yitzchak avinu said ve'emet everything is given to Yaakov. Everything is given to Yaakov but when that tov which is given to Yaakov is nithapech so that's where Esav gets a koach from. When that tov which is given which is given to to Yaakov is nithapech ra doesn't ra doesn't doesn't exist on its own. It's tov which goes bad like the Medrash we just mentioned here in Bechukosai. vehaya ka'asher tared when you'll have a legitimate opening to criticize Yaakov so then ופרקת עולו מעל צוארך then when Yerushalayim will rachmana litzlan deserve to be charve so then Kesari will flourish. So the emes is emes is in terms of the Ribono Shel Olam's briah everything is tov everything is tov.

חייב איניש לבסומי עד דלא ידע בין ארור המן וברוך מרדכי

means that A person understands the correct relationship. The correct relationship isn't that there are forces of evil and and there are forces of good. There's only forces of good. When the forces of good are nis'hapeich, when we're mehapeich midas harachamim to midas ha-achzariyus, so then there emerges a clash. Then then a force of evil comes into comes into existence. As long as there's no Vehaya ka-asher tarid, so there's no u-parakta olo mei-al tzavarecha. And and the the tefillah on Yamim Nora'im, so we say that וכל הרשעה כלה כעשן תכלה, that that all evil will will be consumed or will dissipate like smoke. Let's say there's there's smoke, so what do you do if if you have smoke? You put on a fan. And there's there's a gust of wind and the smoke just just it dissipates and and there's there's nothing left. Nothing left. It's it's very simple. Very simple. What do you mean וכל הרשעה כלה כעשן תכלה? No, it's it's it's a titanic struggle? The answer is no. Heim heim hadevarim. The emes is, emes is to overcome Arur Haman, so we just have to perfect the Baruch Mordechai. And then mimeila that that pulls the plug on on the Arur Haman. Because the Arur Haman is yonek from again what what's nis'hapeich what's nis'hapeich within the the Baruch Mordechai. And mimeila the tikkun which is why even when there's a midas hadin within it, within it, it's not just that it can be called back, but it'll be geishama beracha. Even when there was a midas hadin against the the Jews bi-yemei Mordechai ve-Esther, it it it was latent within it that it was going to be a yom tov. It was latent within it not just that the evil would be averted, but that it would it would end up as simchah. And the major, major factor in this process of being mehapeich is the koach hatefillah, the bechinah of Vaye'etar Yitzchak.