Issur Melacha & Teshuva. Sukkos Mamash.

After elaborating on Rashi al pi Chazal, so the Ramban here on ach be'asor says ve'al derech hapshat, ach, ta'amo achen, ule'ameit ha'inyan. Achen noda hadavar. Achen ke'adam temutun. So how do we how would we translate again the phrase from the pasuk achen noda hadavar? Indeed, in fact, right? le'ameit ha'inyan, right? Indeed, in fact, noda hadavar. אכן בעשור לחדש יום הכיפורים הוא הבטחה באמיתת הענין. Ve'omar—excuse

me—יאמר באחד לחדש יום הדין, אמנם בעשור לחדש יום כפור.

It's like a lashon havtacha here, doesn't mean promise. I don't think it translates here as promise. Well if Hakadosh Baruch Hu says something it's not enough, he has to promise? Havtacha be'amitat ha'inyan? So kamedomeh that what it means is as follows. Let's say the shoresh betach: vishavtem labetach, וישבתם על ארצכם לבטח, וישכן ישראל בטח בדד means secure, strong. So havtacha, okay, so when you want to make someone feel secure about their future, you give them a promise, you give them a guarantee and and that gives them a sense of again of security about their future. But havtacha is again lashon again strength, security. So what it means in a conceptual sense is is if you strengthen a point, right? You accentuate a point. Like achen noda hadavar is is a way of accentuating. What's the difference between saying noda hadavar or achen noda hadavar? Noda hadavar means it's known and achen noda hadavar means in fact, indeed noda hadavar. Right? You're accentuating. And often what accentuating does, that's what the Ramban says is when you accentuate something is you're highlighting a contrast. And that's what that's how the sentence reads: that אכן בעשור לחדש יום הכיפורים הוא הבטחה באמיתת הענין, right? That is, what does that mean? יאמר באחד לחדש יום הדין and now we're accentuating the the contrast, right? Whereas Rosh Hashanah is is a Yom Hadin where the where the emphasis is on din, אמנם בעשור לחדש יום כפור. But Yom Kippur again is is a day designated for for Kippurim. So that's what what the lashon means. על כן תענו את נפשותיכם וכל מלאכה לא תעשו. So the Ramban clearly clearly indicates that the both the inuyim and the issur melacha of Yom Kippur correlate with the fact that it is Yom Kippur. Well again as he said in the first half according to Chazal potentially Yom Kippur. So let's take each each one separately be'ezrat Hashem bli neder first the ta'anu and then the וכל מלאכה לא תעשו. The famous Rambam in the beginning of Hilchos Ta'anios, the Rambam says that there's a מצות עשה מן התורה lizok ulehari'a bechatzotzros על כל צרה שתבא על הציבור. mitzvah of blowing chatzotzros the Rambam says but is thereby lizok u-leharia u-vachatzotzros. It's a form of tefilla.

שנאמר על הצר הצורר אתכם והרעותם בחצוצרות. על הצר הצורר אתכם,

so what should your, what what should your reaction be? v'hareioson bachatzotzros. Halacha beis. Skipping down to halacha beis.

ודבר זה מדרכי התשובה הוא שבזמן שתבא צרה ויזעקו עליה ויריעו ידעו הכל שבשל מעשיהם הרעים הורע להן

kakasuv avonoseichem hitu וזהו שיגרום להם להסיר הצרה מעליהם. So the mitzvah d'Oraisa of blowing chatzotzros b'eis tzara is midarchei hateshuva. Midarchei hateshuva. The Rambam then adds in halacha daled u-midivrei sofrim

להתענות על כל צרה שתבא על הציבור עד שירוחמו מן השמים.

Not simply to blow chatzotzros when that mitzvah is applicable, but midivrei sofrim to be mis-aneh when you have a tzara. So you see klar that the p'shat in Ta-anis, right? What this Rambam reflects and what this din d'rabbonon reflects is that Ta-anis is, is me-nihugei v'darkei hateshuva. Right? And that's why Chazal, that's why Chazal saw fit to be misakein Ta-anis in an eis tzara because the din d'Oraisa is that eis tzara demands a response of teshuva. Right? That's what the mitzvah of chatzotzros is, that the Torah says that an eis tzara must elicit from us darkei teshuva. So Chazal then said, so in addition to blowing the chatzotzros, we'll also be mis-aneh because Ta-anis is, is me-darkei hateshuva. And it's klar that that's what the p'shat in our Ramban is also, right? When the Ramban says יום הכיפורים הוא על כן תענו נפשותיכם because it's a day of Yom Kippur. But again, Yom Kippur l'shavim, so it's a day, it's a day of teshuva. So m'meila, al kein, it's the day of teshuva, so על כן תענו נפשותיכם because the Ta-anis is me-darkei hateshuva. That l'chora is the first part of what the Ramban means. Then the Ramban says also, על כן תענו נפשותיכם וכל מלאכה לא תעשו. So it's kind of intuitive that a Ta-anis is me-darkei hateshuva. You know, when a person is mis-aneh, so what that represents is a withdrawal from the physical and the focus on the spiritual. It's also something that most people by the end of the day feel somewhat weak, and that sensation is machnia a person. That puts a person in touch with the reality of his absolute dependence and vulnerability. The mi-ut chelvo v'damo is nidon k'korban and so on. All of those levels the Ta-anis is intuitive that it's me-darkei hateshuva, that it's a nihug of teshuva. How does issur melacha come into the picture? So k'midumeh what the Ramban has in mind is the shita of... If you have the Ramban in Parshas Yisro, Perek Kaf, Pasuk Ches, Perek Kaf, Pasuk Ches, what where it begins, Vataam l'kadsho. And again, taam in the Ramban means the the meaning, right? So Ches, no, Kaf, Ches, right? Twenty-eight, Kaf, Ches, here in Shemos. Vataam l'kadsho, זכור את יום השבת לקדשו. So what does it mean l'kadsho? Says the Ramban, שיהיה זכרוננו בו להיותו קדוש בעינינו, k'mo shenemar, V'karasa lashabbos oneg, Likdosh Hashem mechubad. V'hataam שתהא השביתה בעינינו, the hasvisa of of issur melacha, right? The the the the abstention from melacha. V'hataam

שתהא השביתה בעינינו בו בעבור שהוא יום קדוש להיפנות בו מעסקי המחשבות בהבלי הזמנים ולעשות בו עונג לנפשינו בדרכי השם וללכת אל החכמים ואל הנביאים

lishmoa divrei Hashem. So the Ramban says the pshat in זכור את יום השבת לקדשו is that the way we're supposed to frame the issur melacha is that it's a day which is kadosh, which is consecrated to disengage from preoccupation b'havlei hazmanim with everything which is transient and ephemeral, ולעשות בו עונג לנפשינו and to delight our souls b'darkei Hashem, וללכת אל החכמים ואל הנביאים lishmoa divrei Hashem. So the Ramban says an extraordinary pshat here in issur melacha. He says the pshat in issur melacha is that really, really the the goal of issur melacha, again, like with all mitzvos, it's not our choice to try to, you know, design an alternate path to this goal, but the goal of issur melacha is is that a person shouldn't be distracted and should be able to focus. That's what the goal of issur melacha is. להיפנות בו מעסקי המחשבות, if I'm gonna be planting and plowing, so then I'm gonna be thinking about planting and and plowing. If, however, the the person is liberated from doing melacha through issur melacha, right? He's liberated from doing melacha by issur melacha, so then that allows him להיפנות מעסקי המחשבות בהבלי הזמנים and to focus on lishmoa divrei Hashem, which is why they would go to the hachachamim, to hanevi'im to hear to hear divrei Hashem. So what do you see from the Ramban? That that the pshat in issur melacha is that ultimately issur melacha is that a person should be, again, disengaged so that he can focus. How does the Ramban know that's the pshat in issur melacha? Okay, that's a pshat, it's a beautiful pshat, but how does the Ramban know that that's the pshat in issur melacha? What thought the pshat was, answers the Ramban, he knew how to learn Chumash. But what what does it say in in Aseres Hadibros? לא תעשה מלאכה אתה ובנך ובתך עבדך ואמתך, what's that? U'vehemtecha. U'vehemtecha. Okay, so there's an issur shvisas beheima. What's the issur shvisas beheima? That that behemas Yisroel, even if the Yisroel's not going to be the one doing melacha with the behema, let's say for instance a nochri wants to borrow the behemas Yisroel, so he can't lend out his his behema to do melacha on Shabbos. Okay, there's din of shvisas beheima. Okay, I understand that also. But in the same breath as לא תעשה מלאכה אתה. How can the Torah present them beneshimah achas? לא תעשה מלאכה אתה ובנך ובתך עבדך ואמתך? Right? The company that would be put in is not too- not too flattering here. How can the- how can the Torah mention the issur melakhah for a person and the issur shevisas behemah beneshimah achas? But if the issur melakhah of the person is ultimately that he should be disengaged so that he can focus, so then I understand. So then there is a commonality, there is a continuum between that and issur shevisas behemah. If issur melakhah of adam is what we thought, I don't know for some reason, no a person can't do melakhah on Shabbos, okay, a person and a behemah is not a- that's not on one- one spectrum, it's not one continuum. But if the issur- but no, but the issur melakhah is to liberate a person from melakhah so that הוא יהיה להיפנות בו מעסקי המחשבות. A person lends out his animal, he's worried about the animal. He's worried about maybe the guy's working him too hard when he's doing the charishah. Maybe he's loading too- too heavy a load on- on the donkey's back. Maybe he's not going to return it, maybe I shouldn't have trusted him vekhulu vekhulu. Right? Did you ever lend out your car to someone? So you- so people worry when they- when they, understandably, when they- when they lend out, when they lend out their car. So that's how the Ramban knows lichora. I think the Ramban himself, one second, and that's what the Ramban says the next line: וזה טעם שביתת הבהמה. Right? So that's what the Ramban is- is revealing to us again. He's not by saying וזה טעם שביתת הבהמה שלא תהיה בלבינו מחשבה עליה, the Ramban's point is not only to explain to us what the yesod of issur shevisas behemah is, but it's to tell you how he knows. That's how he knows what the pshat issur melakhah is. So lichora, our Ramban is leshitoso that where you have issur melakhah and again Yom Kippurim is- אין בין יום הכפורים, the Yom Kippurim is- is like Shabbos in terms of issur melakhah. It has the same comprehensive issur melakhah as Shabbos. So the Ramban is saying no, the pshat Yom Kippurim, the issur melakhah is also להיפנות בו מעסקי המחשבות. The end of the sentence is different, right? The end of the sentence is not necessarily liheyoso oneg lenafshenu and- and ללכת אל החכמים והנביאים, but to be focused on doing teshuvah. And- and that's what- that's what the Ramban's al ken is. That- על כן תענו את נפשותיכם וכל מלאכה לא תעשו. Okay good. Maybe that's- take a look a little bit at the Ramban on- on Basukkos hoshavti on pasuk mem gimmel. So khaf daled mem gimmel. כי בסוכות הושבתי את בני ישראל. Leshon Rashi, it's a machlokes tannaim in- in Sukkah, in the Toras Kohanim between Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Akiva whether the ki basukkos are as Rabbi Eliezer says I think, anane kavod, or no it's sukkos mamash. So Rashi says anane kavod. והוא הנכון בעיני says the Ramban al derekh hapsat

כי צוה שידעו הדורות את כל מעשה השם הגדול אשר עשה עמהם להפליא ששיכנם בענני כבוד כסוכה כענין שנאמר וברא השם על כל מכון הר-ציון ועל מקראיה ענן יומם ועשן ונוגה אש להבה לילה. כי על כל כבוד חופה וסוכה תהיה לצל יומם מחורב וגומר ומפני שכבר פירש ענן ה' עליהם יומם ועמוד האש לילה ואמרתם

ki basukot hoshavti שעשיתי להם ענני כבוד ככבודי לסוכות להגן עליהם. So these few lines it's clear what the Ramban is coming to explain that when we see the machloket tana'im as to whether it's Sukkot Mamash or Ananei Kavod, so we would say al derech peshat it's Sukkot Mamash and al derech drash it means that it's Ananei Kavod. And the Ramban is saying no, I think al pi peshat I'm inclined to Rabbi Eliezer's view that it's Ananei Kavod al pi peshat. Why is that the peshat, how is that the peshat in the word Sukkah? Mehecha tesei that that's the peshat in the word Sukkah? That's where the Ramban builds his case. He says first of all, what is there to commemorate in Sukkot Mamash? First of all, what is there to commemorate and second of all why is it attributable to HaKadosh Baruch Hu of ki basukot hoshavti? And what's there to commemorate here? Aye, how does lashon Sukkah stam mean Ananei Kavod? So he says no, look at the pesukim in Yeshayahu. The pesukim in Yeshayahu clearly when it refers to Sukkah is talking about Ananei Kavod, so you see that no in Kitvei HaKodesh a Sukkah is just something, right, a Sukkah is something which covers, something which provides protection. And we find that the lashon Sukkah is used in Yeshayahu in relation to anan. And that given that the Torah has previously told us ענני ה' עליהם יומם, so that's why I think that that's the peshat shel mikra. Again, so this combination of what are we commemorating, the fact that you do find lashon Sukkah associated with Ananei Kavod, and the fact that the Torah has previously told us כי ענן ה' עליהם יומם that in fact we did have that divine protection. Skipping for a minute the Ramban's comment about the timing of Sukkot. ועל דעת האומר סוכות ממש עשו להם Rabbi Akiva, no, it means physical Sukkot.

החלו לעשותם בתחילת החורף מפני הקור כמנהג המחנות ולכן ציווה בזמן הזה והזכרון שידעו ויזכרו שהיו במדבר לא באו בבית וישבו שם ארבעים שנה והשם היה עמהם ולא חסרו דבר.

So what are we commemorating if it means Sukkot Mamash? What does Rabbi Akiva think we're commemorating? Ramban says means despite the fact look at what the circumstances were and despite the fact you prospered, you flourished, despite the fact that there were no on a natural level you weren't in a good house that afforded protection and you weren't in a fertile area where you could plant and have food and you weren't anywhere where there were natural sources of water. Despite all that, so what the Sukkot represent is the absence of all the natural means to. To prosper, and אף על פי כן you prospered, and and that's what we're remembering, right? That Hakadosh Baruch Hu allowed us again of lo chasarta davar throughout the years in the midbar. First of all, said a few weeks ago by the Rambam in Talleil l'Mitzvos, exactly, so so the Rambam, exactly right, exactly right, so the Rambam lich'ora has a different answer to this this question of of the Ramban. The reason the Ramban, again, initially opts for Rabbi Eliezer that it's ananei hakavod is what are we commemorating? What what are we celebrating? What are we commemorating? And then the way he answers for Rabbi Akiva is it's sort of despite the fact that you were ba'Sukkos, אף על פי כן lo chasarta davar. And and the Rambam says no, the Rambam thinks that this he likes the pshat of Rabbi Akiva that it means Sukkos mamash, and the way he answers the Ramban's question is adaraba, we're supposed to remember what we were missing. We're supposed to remember that we were roughing it. We're supposed to remember that that we needed to make do with with very little. We're supposed to remember that we didn't have the comforts of living in bottim tovim. That that Sukka represents ki ba'Sukkos hoshavti represents remembering yemei hara when a person is biyemei hatova because of the the shiflus that that inculcates within the person. And and that's clear that the question that the Ramban, you know, sort of puts here front and center, that that's how the the Rambam deals with it and says adaraba, what is it to commemorate? No, that's gufa what we're we're commemorating. Why do we attribute it to Hakadosh Baruch Hu, ki ba'Sukkos hoshavti, if it's not something supernatural, it's not a miracle? Meila if it's ananei hakavod, so we're attributing it to Hakadosh Baruch Hu, but if if it's so על פי דרכו של הרמב"ם is that a person should know הן לטובה הן למוטב that our fate, our destiny is in the hands of Hakadosh Baruch Hu, that Hakadosh Baruch Hu is mashpil u'maromim and a person shouldn't think that that at times of of maromem, he shouldn't think that that it's kochi v'otzem yadi. He shouldn't let the affluence generate arrogance. And and the Rambam says that that there is a very, very real danger that the Torah highlights in Parshas Eikev of פן תאכל ושבעת ובתים טובים תבנה וישבת and then ורם לבבך ושכחת את ה' אלקיך and you'll think kochi v'otzem yadi. So ki ba'Sukkos hoshavti, again, not not that we're describing something supernatural, ki ba'Sukkos hoshavti Hakadosh Baruch Hu is mashpil u'maromim, and a person the same way a person doesn't experience a rush of gaiva when when he's in a rachmana l'tzlan in an external state of of shiflus, so he shouldn't experience that when he's in an external state of of prosperity either. Okay, so maybe we'll we'll shift to the Gemara now.