75 and the Son of a Donkey – Acharei Mot - Kedoshim
וַיְדַבֵּר ה' אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר. דַּבֵּר אֶל כָּל עֲדַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם קְדֹשִׁים תִּהְיוּ כִּי קָדוֹשׁ אֲנִי ה' אֱ-לֹקֵיכֶם (ויקרא יט, א-ב).
The Mefarshim say that parshat Kedoshim was read as part of a Hakhel ceremony because in essence it is repeating the עשרת הדברות given on Har Sinai.
HKB”H tells Moshe to speak (דַּבֵּר) to all of עֲדַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל and say to them (וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵהֶם) – “Be holy, because I, Hashem your G-d, am holy”.
If you notice, this passuk has two different forms of communication דִּבּוּר and אֲמִירָה. Actually the Torah is rife with psukkim of this form. Myriad times we find the passuk וַיְדַבֵּר ה' אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר which also has the same format. What is the necessity for two different forms of communication and what is the difference between them?
When HKB”H tells us to be holy, the first image this conjures up in one's mind is “spiritual holiness”, that we should be doing things like staying up every night till past midnight to do תִּקּוּן חֲצוֹת, fasting every Monday and Thursday, living the life of a נָזִיר, studying Kabbalah, going to the Mikvah every morning, etc. However, if you read the following psukkim which detail the things the Torah requires from us in order to be holy, it is none of those, but a completely different and “unexpected” set of behavioral patterns.
You are all already familiar with the famous שִׁיטָה of the Tur who says that if an event occurs during the week, it is hinted to in the parsha preceding it. Although he lived some 600 years before the establishment of the State of Israel, I am sure the Tur would not object to references to contemporary events, events of the magnitude of what we hope and pray is the אַתְחַלְתָּא דִּגְאוּלָּה. In this shiur I would like to discuss Yom Ha’atzma’ut that we celebrate this Wednesday ה' אייר, an extra special celebration as it commemorates 75 years since the establishment of the State of Israel. I would like to explore the significance of the number 75 and how this ties in with current events going on in the world and with …. donkeys. Finally, we will tie this all in with this week’s parsha.
Let us begin with a short introduction.
In previous shiurim I described the ten things that HKB”H created in the twilight hours between the end of the 6th day of Creation and Shabbat. As described in previous shiurim, these “last minute” creations were a result of the sin of Adam and Chava and were the different components of the tikkun for that sin.
עֲשָׂרָה דְּבָרִים נִבְרְאוּ בְּעֶרֶב שַׁבָּת בֵּין הַשְּׁמָשׁוֹת, וְאֵלּו הֵן: פִּי הָאָרֶץ, וּפִי הַבְּאֵר, וּפִי הָאָתוֹן, וְהַקֶּשֶׁת, וְהַמָּן, וְהַמַּטֶּה, וְהַשָּׁמִיר, וְהַכְּתָב, וְהַמִּכְתָּב, וְהַלּוּחוֹת. וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים: אַף הַמַּזִּיקִין, וּקְבוּרָתוֹ שֶׁל מֹשֶׁה, וְאֵילוֹ שֶׁל אַבְרָהָם אָבִינוּ. וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים: אַף צְבָת בִּצְבָת עֲשׂוּיָה (אבות ה, ו) .
One of the things created was the mouth of the אָתוֹן. The Tanach uses three words for donkeys. The first is אָתוֹן – a female donkey, חֲמוֹר – a male donkey and עַיִר – a baby male donkey. It is interesting that the Tanach finds it necessary to be so specific about different types of donkeys. A donkey is a completely impure animal that has no סִימָנֵי טָהֳרָה at all. Even a pig has one סִימָן טַהֲרָה, a cloven hoof, but the Tanach does not find it necessary to elaborate linguistically what a female pig is called, a male pig, a baby male pig, it suffices with the single term חֲזִיר.
The אָתוֹן, the female donkey referred to in the Mishna above, is the donkey of Bilam. HKB”H, בְּעֶרֶב שַׁבָּת בֵּין הַשְּׁמָשׁוֹת, created the “mouth” of Bilam’s donkey. We are all familiar with the story of Bilam and his donkey (which some Mefarshim say was not simply a beast of burden, but Bilam’s “wife”). While Bilam accompanies the dignitaries of Balak to go curse Am Yisrael, HKB”H sends an angel three times to stand in the donkey’s path. The donkey can see the angel but Bilam cannot. Three times the donkey veers from the path and three times Bilam angrily strikes the donkey. Eventually HKB”H opens the “mouth of the donkey” (created on the 6th day of Creation) and the donkey speaks to Bilam. Quite a spectacle – a speaking donkey!
Pirkei de’Rebi Eliezer (31, 4) says that the (male) donkey that Avraham loaded up and rode to the Akeida, וַיַּשְׁכֵּם אַבְרָהָם בַּבֹּקֶר וַיַּחֲבֹשׁ אֶת חֲמֹרוֹ וכו' (בראשית כב, ג), was the son of the legendary אָתוֹן, above. This (male) donkey was the same חֲמוֹר that Moshe Rabbeinu rode to Egypt to redeem Am Yisrael וַיִּקַּח מֹשֶׁה אֶת אִשְׁתּוֹ וְאֶת בָּנָיו וַיַּרְכִּבֵם עַל הַחֲמֹר וכו' (שמות ד, כ). This is the same (male) donkey that the Mashiach will be riding on when the HKB”H brings the Geulah עָנִי וְרֹכֵב עַל חֲמוֹר וכו' (זכריה ט, ט).
That’s a pretty “old” donkey. When Avraham rode on it, it was 2083 years old. When Moshe rode on it, it was 2448 years old and when the Mashiach arrives, it will be close to 6000 years old. If only we could get that kind of mileage out of the cars we drive these days! (Each year the new, “improved” models seem to have a shorter lifespan). Obviously this “mythical” donkey is referring to something deeper than the “fur and the fleas”.
After the donkey opens its mouth and speaks to Bilam, the angel, wielding a sword, also reveals himself to Bilam and reprimands him. The angel asks Bilam “Why did you hit your אָתוֹן these three times (זֶה שָׁלוֹשׁ רְגָלִים)? Did you not know that I came out to impede you (הִנֵּה אָנֹכִי יָצָאתִי לְשָׂטָן) because you did not heed HKB”H’s will. Chazal and the Mefarshim do not say which angel it was, however the Zohar (וירא תפו) says that it was a defending angel of Am Yisrael and as we know Michael is Am Yisrael’s defending angel (although the Zohar does not come straight out and say it was Michael).
Then the angel says to Bilam –
וַתִּרְאַנִי הָאָתוֹן וַתֵּט לְפָנַי זֶה שָׁלֹשׁ רְגָלִים אוּלַי נָטְתָה מִפָּנַי כִּי עַתָּה גַּם אֹתְכָה הָרַגְתִּי וְאוֹתָהּ הֶחֱיֵיתִי (במדבר כג, לג).
“The donkey saw me and “veered” from before me these three times (זֶה שָׁלוֹשׁ רְגָלִים), if the donkey had not “veered” from before me, I would have killed you instead of the donkey”.
The Mefarshim learn from this that after the donkey spoke, it died. HKB”H did not want to let a talking donkey live, to be used for avodah zarah. The Mefarshim also explain the strange phraseology זֶה שָׁלוֹשׁ רְגָלִים to mean “How can you (Bilam) possibly curse Am Yisrael who celebrate the שְׁלֹשֶׁת הָרְגָלִים?” זֶה in gematriya is 12, referring to the Twelve Tribes.
I would like to bring a different perush for this passuk. There are different opinions in Chazal regarding how many galuyot there are. According to the first opinion, there are three – Bavel (which also includes Madai), Greece and Edom. The second opinion says there are four – Bavel, Madai (distinct from Bavel), Greece and Edom. The third opinion says there are five – Bavel, Madai, Greece, Edom and Yishmael. The Midrash (Eicha Rabba, 4, 14) says that HKB”H had mercy on us when he destroyed the Batei Hamikdash, because by rights, it should have been us, Am Yisrael who were destroyed, as punishment for our sins. However, HKB”H had mercy on us and took his fury out on “wood and stone” and did not destroy Am Yisrael.
Using the above principles, one can understand the above pssukim in another way. The above discourse of the angel with Bilam is an allegory of the discourse between HKB”H and Am Yisrael (the angel is simply a messenger of HKB”H).
אָנֹכִי, (as in אָנֹכִי ה' אֱ-לֹקֶיךָ), HKB”H is saying to Am Yisrael אָנֹכִי יָצָאתִי לְשָׂטָן כִּי יָרַט הַדֶּרֶךְ לְנֶגְדִּי, I came to “impede” you, to take the side of the prosecuting angel, the שָׂטָן, because you, Am Yisrael, did not heed My will, you sinned. וַתִּרְאַנִי הָאָתוֹן The donkey (of the Mashiach) saw Me. The Mashiach saw HKB”H’s מידת הדין resulting from Am Yisrael’s sins. וַתֵּט לְפָנַי זֶה שָׁלֹשׁ רְגָלִים The Mashiach “veered” away three times - the final Geulah was postponed three times and in its place we had exile. אוּלַי נָטְתָה מִפָּנַי כִּי עַתָּה גַּם אֹתְכָה הָרַגְתִּי וְאוֹתָהּ הֶחֱיֵיתִי If I (HKB”H) had not postponed the Mashiach three times because of your (Am Yisrael’s) sins, the alternative would have been to destroy Am Yisrael instead.
In other words, Am Yisrael’s sins were so severe that we were deserving the death penalty, but in His mercy, instead of wiping us out, HKB”H instead took His fury out on wood and stones and made us suffer three galuyot, allowing us to remain alive and be מְתַקֵּן. That is the deeper meaning of the above passuk.
What does all of this have to do with the subject of this shiur? Very simple. The gematriya of the passuk -
וַתִּרְאַנִי הָאָתוֹן וַתֵּט לְפָנַי זֶה שָׁלֹשׁ רְגָלִים אוּלַי נָטְתָה מִפָּנַי כִּי עַתָּה גַּם אֹתְכָה הָרַגְתִּי וְאוֹתָהּ הֶחֱיֵיתִי
is 5783. This year, תשפ"ג, is intricately connected with this passuk.
There is another passuk in the navi Micha (5, 2) –
לָכֵן יִתְּנֵם עַד עֵת יוֹלֵדָה יָלָדָה וְיֶתֶר אֶחָיו יְשׁוּבוּן עַל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל.
The Gemara (Sanhedrin 98b) explains this passuk –
אָמַר רַב: אֵין בֶּן דָּוִד בָּא עַד שֶׁ....תִּתְפַּשֵּׁט הַמַּלְכוּת הָרְשָׁעָה עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל תִּשְׁעָה חֳדָשִׁים, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: "לָכֵן יִתְּנֵם עַד עֵת .... וכו'" (מיכה ה, ב)
Rav says “The Mashiach will not arrive until the מַּלְכוּת הָרְשָׁעָה (referring to the dominion of Edom) spreads over Israel for nine months” and he quotes the above passuk from Micha referring to nine months of childbirth עֵת יוֹלֵדָה יָלָדָה. After that, the “remaining brothers” will return to Bnei Yisrael.
Incredibly, the gematriya of תִּתְפַּשֵּׁט הַמַּלְכוּת הָרְשָׁעָה עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל תִּשְׁעָה חֳדָשִׁים, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: לָכֵן יִתְּנֵם עַד עֵת is also 5783.
This year, 5783 is the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the State of Israel, which we hope and pray is the אַתְחַלְתָּא דִּגְאוּלָּה. However, the year תשפ"ג really began in Tishrei - in the 74th year.
לָכֵן יִתְּנֵם עַד וכו', the gematriya of עַד is 74. If the year 5783 began in the 74th year of the State of Israel’s existence, in Tishrei 5783, then nine months of "childbirth" from that is Sivan 5783 (Tishrei, Cheshvan, Kisleiv, Tevet, Shvat, Adar, Nisan, Iyar, Sivan). Beginning from Tishrei 5783 (the start of the election campaign, culminating in the actual elections on Nov 1, 2022), we have been experiencing something unprecedented in the history of the State of Israel, that cannot be described as anything other than תִּתְפַּשֵּׁט הַמַּלְכוּת הָרְשָׁעָה עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל a spreading and outpouring of the “dominion”, the influence of the culture and philosophy of Edom over Bnei Yisrael, the exaggerated intervention of Edom in the internal affairs of Israel. One need only switch on the TV to see the hundreds of thousands of lost souls who are under the dominion of the culture of Edom ranting and raving in the streets and bringing this country to a standstill. Any G-d fearing Jew cannot be anything but shocked at being faced with, and in such intensity, the extent that galut Edom has damaged so many in our nation.
When you read the psukkim in Balak, the Navi and the Gemara above and see the direct correlation to the year we are currently living in, you cannot help but feel shivers run down your spine.
In these short weeks between Pesach and Yom Ha’atzma’ut we have experienced a relative "respite" from the intensity of the prior weeks. I say “relative“, because it has not stopped at all. The right wing has received a sobering wake-up call and realized how deeply the influence of Edom has infected Am Yisrael and entrenched itself in our systems of power and every day lives and are starting to awaken from a prolonged slumber. Immediately following Yom Ha’atzma’ut, the right wing is planning a mass demonstration called the “Demonstration of the Million” in Jerusalem. 2.3 million adults over the age of 18 are not going sit idly by and watch a military coup topple the government that they democratically elected. If you think the weeks leading up to Pesach were pandemonium, “you ain’t seen nothing yet!”
According to the above calculation this will continue until Sivan, until Shavuot and then the “remaining brothers” will return to Bnei Yisrael וְיֶתֶר אֶחָיו יְשׁוּבוּן עַל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. According to the Malbim on that passuk (Micha 5, 2) –
"וְיֶתֶר אֶחָיו יְשׁוּבוּן עַל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל" - כָּל מֶשֶׁךְ הַזְּמַן טֶרֶם יִגְמֹר קִבּוּץ הַגָּלִיּוֹת שֶׁזֶּה נִמְשָׁל לְלֵדַת הַיּוֹלֵדָה, כְּמוֹ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר "כִּי חָלָה גַּם יָלְדָה צִיּוֹן אֶת בָּנֶיהָ", וְעַד עֵת שֶׁיֶּתֶר אֶחָיו שֶׁל יְהוּדָה יְשׁוּבוּן לְאַרְצָם, עַד הָעֵת הַהִיא יִתְּנֵם (לְאַלְפֵי יְהוּדָה) עַל בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל, רוֹצֶה לוֹמַר - לָכֵן כָּל עֵת שֶׁלֹּא יִגָּמֵר קִבּוּץ הַכְּלָלִי וְלֹא יִהְיֶה עֲדַיִן כָּל גָּלוּת יְהוּדָה מֵאוֹסְפִים בא"י, כָּל הָעֵת הַהִיא יִהְיוּ בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל (שֶׁהֵם עֲשֶׂרֶת הַשְּׁבָטִים וּמָשִׁיחַ בֶּן יוֹסֵף שֶׁהוּא מֵהֶם) הָעִקָּר, הֵם יִהְיוּ הַלּוֹחֲמִים וְהַמּוֹשְׁלִים וּבֵית יְהוּדָה יִהְיוּ טְפֵלִים לָהֶם.
Until the nine month period of “birth” is up, until the קִבּוּץ גָּלוּיוֹת is complete and the rest of the brothers (the influence) of the Tribe of Yehuda return to Israel. Until then, Beit Yisrael (the Ten Tribes and Mashiach Ben Yosef among them) will be the עִיקָּר, they will be הַלּוֹחֲמִים וְהַמּוֹשְׁלִים and Beit Yehuda will be secondary to them. However, after the nine months the influence of Beit Yehuda will take over.
If reading that Malbim (who died in 1879) doesn’t give you goosebumps, I don’t know! It gave me extreme goosebumps, because it describes almost word for word what is going on in Israel as we speak.
I will not even begin to get into the whole sugya (Sanhedrin 97a) that says that Mashiach will come in the year after Shmita. We are currently in the year after Shmita.
Anyone who reads this cannot deny that something monumental is currently happening, something that was foreseen in the psukkim and the Mefarshim.
The main question is – “Where do I fit in with all this?”
I will not tell anyone what to do, each must follow their heart. All I will say is that we are currently in a critical period. We are right now in the period of Acharei Mot – Kedoshim, the death of two brothers, two sons of Aharon, followed by Kedoshim. We have just experienced a horrendous period of the deaths of pairs of brothers and sisters in vile terrorist attacks. The answer and response to Acharei Mot is - Kedoshim.
This week’s parsha tells us to be Kedoshim. How do we do that? Look at the list of things that the Torah tells us. Go down the list and pick the ones that are relevant to you -
It is not exactly what you might have thought. If you were thinking along of the lines of tikkun chatzot and fasting on Mondays and Thursdays – that is not what the concept of Kedusha in the Torah is (that is the concept of טָהֳרָה that we discussed in last week’s shiur). Kedusha is something else altogether. Notice any common thread between all the above? They are all “societal norms”, how to create a moral and just society! That’s what Kedoshim means.
We are in the critical last 2 months of the תִּשְׁעָה יַרְחֵי לֵדָה, the period of Sfirat Ha’Omer during which 24,000 pupils of Rebi Akiva died in a plague because שֶׁלֹּא נָהֲגוּ כָּבוֹד זֶה בָּזֶה. We commemorate Yom Hazikaron, remembering and honoring all the heroes who died defending Am Yisrael since the establishment of the State, including the countless victims of terrorist attacks. The number of קְדוֹשִׁים who have given their lives עַל קִדּוּשׁ ה' now stands at 24,213. Ribono shel Olam, we have paid the debt, חוּס וְרַחֵם עַל עַמְּךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל !
The Mashiach is definitely on his way. הִנֵּה מַלְכֵּךְ יָבוֹא לָךְ צַדִּיק וְנוֹשָׁע הוּא עָנִי וְרֹכֵב עַל חֲמוֹר וְעַל עַיִר בֶּן אֲתֹנוֹת (זכריה ט, ט). The meaning of עָנִי is humble עָנָיו. The word for a baby male donkey is עַיִר, which is the gematriya for בְּכוֹר בְּהֵמָה and נָכְרִי, hinting to Eisav/Edom. The meaning of רֹכֵב עַל חֲמוֹר does not literally mean riding on a “donkey”, but riding on (controlling) חָמְרִיּוּת, materialism. Just before the Akeida the passuk says about Avraham וַיַּחֲבֹשׁ אֶת חֲמֹרוֹ, from the lashon חֲבוּשׁ meaning “imprison”. Avraham left his two נְעָרָיו, Yishmael and Eliezer, behind with the חֲמוֹר, the materialism, while he continued with Yitzchak to the Akeida. Moshe left Midyan with his wife and two sons riding on the חֲמוֹר, not him. Moshe then sent Tzipporah and their sons back to Yitro while he continued alone to Egypt – without the חֲמוֹר, without the materialism. עָנִי וְרֹכֵב עַל חֲמוֹר means that the Mashiach will restore materialism to its appropriate priority and reduce it from the monstrous proportions it has assumed in modern times. Which generation in history has been more materialistic than the current culture of Edom? It is not incidental that the symbol of the progressive, liberalist, materialistic Democratic party in America is a – donkey and, amazingly, 75 is the gematriya of ג'וֹ בָּידֶן.
The Mashiach Ben Yosef is probably already here (according to the Malbim), but the Mashiach ben David (from Yehuda) is totally different in personality, he is not a “politician”, but extremely humble and detached from worldly concerns, someone like Moshe Rabbeinu. This Mashiach has not revealed himself yet, but he is not far off.
The Gemara (Sanhedrin 98a) debates how the Mashiach will arrive - on a Heavenly cloud or riding on a donkey? The answer of the Gemara is that if Am Yisrael is worthy – on a cloud, if unworthy – on a donkey.
HaRav Kook zt”l (אגרות ראיה שלג) explains the secret of עָנִי וְרֹכֵב עַל חֲמוֹר. Even though a donkey has more סִימָנֵי טֻמְאָה than the other impure animals (pig, rabbit, etc. that have 1 pure, 1 impure), despite this, deep inside and hidden, the donkey does have קְדוּשָׁה, the fact is, it has holiness regarding the bechora (פֶּטֶר חֲמוֹר, referring to the עַיִר, the firstborn). This holiness is destined to emerge through the פִּדְיוֹן. Unlike Edom, the descendants of Eisav, who are impure, but have one pure sign, (the pig, for example) and are the root of bloodshed and destruction in the world, Am Yisrael at its heart is pure. Even if we see those in Am Yisrael who have adopted the culture of Edom and from the outside they look impure, like a donkey, deep inside they are pure, all they need is פִּדְיוֹן, the Redemption to allow this purity to emerge.
This is the difference between two different forms of communication דִּבּוּר and אֲמִירָה. The first, דִּבּוּר is a harsher form of speaking to someone, while the second, אֲמִירָה is a gentler way of speaking. In cracking the קְלִיפָה surrounding those who have become distanced from HKB”H, we have to know when and with whom to use the appropriate form of communication. For the hardline רְשָׁעִים instigating, fueling and funding this military coup in Israel, we need to use דִּבּוּר and for the vast majority of gullible demonstrators, who do not really understand what they are demonstrating about, the use of the gentler form אֲמִירָה is more appropriate.
Let us celebrate Yom Ha’atzma’ut, the 75th birthday of our Homeland, giving praise and thanks to HKB”H for the countless נִסִּים גְּלוּיִים we have witnessed in our generation, the ingathering of the exiles, the rebirth of our nation, the phenomenal explosion of Torah study in Am Yisrael, the רוּחַ הִתְקָרְבוּת וּתְשׁוּבָה that is sweeping over our nation. Let us offer our קָרְבָּנוֹת שְׁלָמִים on the barbeque, spend quality time in our סְעוּדוֹת הוֹדָיָה, strengthening bonds with our family, friends, brothers and sisters and doing פִּרְסוּמֵי נִיסָא. Let us devote a portion of the day to limud Torah and be makpid in the Tfilot to have extra כַּוָּנָה in the parts of the קְדוּשָׁה and the הוֹדָיָה.
And then Yom Ha’atzma’ut will be over and we will be thrown back into the deep end of the complex reality we find ourselves. The million dollar question is how we are going conduct ourselves in the next few critical weeks? Are we going to be Kedoshim, or not? Are we going to be worthy of Mashiach arriving on עַנְנֵי שְׁמַיָּא or on a donkey? Are we going to save nefashot in Am Yisrael or are we going to lose them?
75 is the gematriya of "הִנֵּה זֶה בָּא", "לִגְאוּלָּה", "יְהוּדִים", "אֲנִי אוֹהֵב", "לֵב גָּדוֹל", "בְּחָכְמָה", "הָאָדָם וְחַוָּה". B”H this will be the year of the tikkun and a reset of the world.
For sage advice what we should be doing in the next few weeks, read the continuation of the above Gemara (Sanhedrin 98b) –
שָׁאֲלוּ תַּלְמִידָיו אֶת רַבִּי אֶלְעָזָר: מָה יַעֲשֶׂה אָדָם וְיִנָּצֵל מֵחֶבְלוֹ שֶׁל מָשִׁיחַ? יַעֲסֹק בְּתוֹרָה וּבִגְמִילוּת חֲסָדִים.
