Electrifying Insights Into the Structure & Spiritual Energy of the Haggadah {Pesach}

This Torah class is brought to you by tora anytime.com. Good evening everyone. Shalom. It's a real honor to be here in this renowned kyo. Thank you the ro kao for the warm introduction. Thank you for the opportunity to share some deta tonight in preparation for the pestober for extending the invitation to me. I have to tell you the truth. This is not the first time that I've spoken publicly, but it's the first time that before I spoke and I was going to share with you what I thought was original material, the one who gave me the introduction stole my thunder. Sorry about that. You shouldn't just told me. But I know you're saying good. I know. Exactly. So, it's a good springboard to jump right into the topic. I would like to talk about as the Ro mentioned the famous in the stencil there's a mitzvah every single night of the year. So then what's special about the mitzvah of the night of the in fact just to highlight the question you know if you're about to do something special the best way to burst someone's bubble is to say oh you think you're going to do something some uh special now we actually do this every single day so if you had to pick seemingly the very worst way to begin the should be by citing the That would be the worst way to start the cuz basically you're starting the night by saying we do this every night and that's how we start the and not until today was to over to Dar that we need to do this every single night. So what exactly is special about the night of the sedar? As Raj Kalo mentioned, three main things, question and answer. Number two, we have to do it in a way of expounding upon the story. We have to go through all the gory details and we have to explain the reason for the mitzv and the briskar brings actually in the he quotes from the brisk that this is exactly the format of the hagada the hagada starts we do this every night so the implicit question is what's special about tonight and the answer is number one number two and number three so actually the format of The is answering this very question. Actually the briskar said that this is annunciated by the rabb begins that's question and answer the ko mentioned a beautiful answer to's question. Aside from these three distinctions, there's a fundamental fourth distinction and that is while every other night of the year you just tell the story but there's no particular obligation to express gratitude like the auam says the meaning of the word is to thank. So every other night of the year you just relay the facts the night because asks you know we have this principle the night of the harsh. Really? They've never told that to a a rabbi. By the way, the longer you speak tonight, nobody ever told me that. In fact, that doesn't even apply when you praise Hashem. You know the Garra says ine you know when you could keep on praising and praising Hashem if you could relate every praise of Hashem but if you can't relate everything you got to um stick to the script. So then how could we apply this rule the night of the sedar talk and talk and talk and talk that implies that when you finish you've exhausted everything there is to say but that can't be the case famously says that there's an important difference the night say because like said to daru you know imagine a guy he's down and out he's a schlamaz and a he has both mileas he has nothing in life. He has no job. He has no family. He has no He's wallowing. He's languishing in a pit. And somebody schles him out of the pit and gives him nice clothing and finds him a job and finds him a wife and helps him build a family, builds him up. And the guy turns to his benefactor and he says, "It's a Russia. That's all you have to say." No. Like people like to say, you know, I don't want to begin to start thanking because I might leave someone out. Well, pal, start. Give it your best shot. Do your best. That's the least you could do. The night of the sed we're not just praising Hashem. We're thanking Hashem. And therefore, we have to do as much as we can. By the way, the Same says that's why the Rambam in codifying the mitzvah of says there are two things we have to talk about a lot. The night of the sedar aside from speaking about all the miracles, the Rambam also says there's this very unusual addition we make to the Sedar where we have to expound upon the para of Mikraim. So we have to go to left field find a para in which references the events of and expound on that para I don't understand there's not enough content in to expound upon we have to go to and expound upon where did the ram get this from that you know the Ram has two par that by expounding upon it aside from the events of the Ram says if you're so says we know that Matzah has a very important description Dian that the definition of matzah is that it's bread that you say a lot of words about. What does Rashi say? Which just as a side point, you know, everybody wants to know are women in the mitzvah of many say no. Why should they be in the midst of it's a mitzvah as but the and the wonders why should women be in the midst of m so many suggest I believe the stipler as well that the reason women would be in the midst of is because the mitzvah of matzah is to speak about the matzah what do you say about the matzah the and since women are in matzah as a component of the mitzvah of matzah women would be in the that's an approach that's how rashi learns the words says or the raam has a different definition of the word when you hear the word where in the tora do we find an expression of an for speaking in the par of mikuram The ana you will declare and you will say the understands refers to which anur that means reading is a critical part of the hagada. Why? as the Rho mentioned because the word means gratitude and the quintessential para that is an expression of gratitude in the Torah is he says what so that you're not a therefore part and parcel of the mitzvah of is the mitzvah which is an expression of gratitude so actually what am I doing here tonight cuz Raj K already said that. So I would like to share with you two additional answers to Kasha. Two new answers, two novel answers that I never saw anywhere. And if I would have let the R introduce me longer, he probably would have said them. So it's a good thing we cut it short. two new answers to kasha of what is different about the mitzvah of the night of the more than any other night of the year and I found these answers I base these answers on very exotic sources the first one comes from tarumlas you're going to answer with a tarum I think that's got to be a first I would like to present to you an Answer to kasha from tarumlas friends. What does the word hag mean? So in the hag of the sheamish actually my father's mother's father was the last rav of the city of sakuchav was the last. He weren't by the shamishma was the rebba of the city. He was not the RV. The Azar was the Reb of the city. My great-grandfather was the last RV of Sav. He was killed in the warto. He was the of Ram Shapiro. But in any event, the Shamishmo brings down from his illustrious father. What does the word mean? You know what says or on the vikavi means to point to demonstrate to show. In other words, there is no mitzvah to say the okay. Where are we up to? We're up to and you say every word with me. There's no mitzvah to say the mitzvah is not recitation. The mitzvah is demonstration where you clarify and you bring to life the events in such a way where you could say mata zoo mar zoo where you bring the story to life. similar to the gears of the Rambam. You're not speaking, you're not saying, you're not telling, you're not relating, you're demonstrating. I think that is a fundamental difference between the mitzvah of the night of the sedar and the mitzvah of every night of the year. The night of the sedar, you have to bring the story to life. You have to point to it. You have to be so illustrated. You have to say it in such a vivid way where it's like they see it. They It's your That's the of the night of the I want to share with you another approach. This approach comes from a really exotic source. I'm almost afraid to say it. This approach comes from Rashi. Yeah. Rashi and Kishh. It's a rashi I saw dozens of times. Two years ago, I decided I'm going to learn Rashi with Kish, which I tried to do for a couple of years already, but I'm going to learn Rashi with Kumish with Rashi and with my pen. Somehow when you learn with a pen, you see things that weren't there before. I want to just share with you the simple words of Rashi. It's Rashi is not found on the he's found on the before. Listen to the words of Rashi. By the way, there's an amazing says You should open up for him with words of I said that Rashi so many times and then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Rashi is defining the word hagada. Hagada doesn't mean to talk. It doesn't mean to speak. It doesn't mean to tell. It doesn't mean to relate, relay, to point. Is a of you know the brings a god. Gazera god is it wet the appetite. You ever hear of the clout good ais? You have a wall. It doesn't extend all the way down. You have a wall. It doesn't go all the way up. You use a principle. Good. You extend something. You draw something. Good. Good. Ais says rashi means you need to pull on the drawstrings of the heart and the imagination and the curiosity of your child. Don't open up somera book and say, "Okay, now I'm going to say thera that I've been saying for the last 40 years. The point of it is not to say a good v. The point of it is to somehow figure out what gets your kid to tick. What draws him what is the mitzvah is not that's every other night the mitzvah of the night of the sedar. I would humbly suggest aside from the three reasons of and the reason of the of gratitude and the reason of demonstrate and I think this is a very important and fundamental and perhaps the most fundamental interpretation of the word is a of drawing the heart and imagination and interest of your child. So you'll ask didn't know that didn't know didn't know rashi he didn't know that hagod is fundamentally different because hagod means to thank and hagod means to point and hagod means to draw knew all of the above answers but wanted to know in sense how what is the difference between zer and thanking or and demonstrating or zer and drawing. And says the differentiation is the way we fulfill thanking and demonstrating and drawing is through three halic tools. Number one, question and answer. Number two, you got to tell the story with all the gory details from beginning to end and you have to explain the reasons for the mitzvah knew the philosophy. The question is how does it play out? I want to share with you a very interesting and original presentation on the format of I think it's a gift from heaven. Those are the most dangerous when you think that let's go back to the original question. Why does the begin with the statement That is not relevant to the night of the sedar. The whole purpose of the sedar is why tonight is different. Why would we start how tonight is the same? One of my favorite stories in the Hagada. Msa rebelar Yeshua rebelary tarfine and they're they're hanging out in benra it's a good place to hang out and they were talking about the whole night until the student said rabbis it's time for Krishna are you familiar with these five tanam rebelar Rabua, isn't there someone conspicuously absent from the sedar? Isn't the god Alad conspicuously absent? Shouldn't somebody else be there? What happened to Ranguml? Where where' the man go? Where is he? Everyone else is there. All the who's who of the tanom of that era, they're at the seda. What? He he he wasn't invited. He went somewhere else. The truth is we have one other famous account of a sedar in the times of tan. It's a tricepaur where the recounts that Ram Gaml also stayed up the whole night but Ramla was doing something totally different than these tan. These tanom were they were telling the story was learning right the briskarov is very busy. Could a person fulfill the mits? by learning. One of the main themes in the brisk is that one could fulfill the mitzvah of by learning the one of the sources of biscar derives it from this was learning the whole night. Could somebody please tell me why Ram Gaml was not at this seda? You know it's a misa you can ask he he didn't make it maybe his family. I don't know why. I think it's very telling that Ramo was not there and I think the answer is clear according to the Rambam's ga you know the Rambam aside from having he gives you the text of the Hagada did you know the Rambam adds one word to our text of the Hagada and that one word revolutionizes the Hagada we have we have I'm sorry it goes like this brazar Yeshua and it tells us the whole story and the rabbis came and they said he shak and then our reads Omar the Rambam's read differently the Rambam added a word to in the Rambam's it says what does that Rabbi that that fateful Sedar night where Rabbi Alazar and Rab Yeshua and Rabbi Nazar and Rab were sitting at that sedan you said you know hey friends I want to tell you something it's been a long time since I was able to establish this I would like to take advantage of this opportunity to establish this by the way I I'm alike I I feel like I'm 70 years When did this story take place? Then the gar the famous saga of the story of Aaria and Ram Gaml and Rab Yeshua. You know the famous story in braas. It's like the most famous story in the whole gamarra. It's my favorite story in the garra. Somebody comes into the base medish. They want to know do you have to d mar or is it a rish? So Yeshua says it's a rash. Ranglio comes in. That's a Ra says, "Anybody argue on me?" And Raishu said, "No, no, no, no. Argues." So they said, "What do you mean? You said, look, if I were alive and he was dead, I could deny him, but we're both alive, so I guess uh I guess I argue." And Gaml was upset with Rabishua. And he told Rabishu, uh, u, hey, Rabishua, you you continue to stand. And the raan in the base medish were upset with Ram Gaml. They felt Ram Gamla was abusing his power and not respecting Rab Yeshua. So they were a to the point where they decided to depose Rabin Gamliel. You know the story. And they deposed him and they wanted to know who should replace him. Rab Yeshua. No, it's too personal. Rab Yeshua, let's get Rebel Aaria. He has money. He has he's got what it takes. The only thing is he was young but as they say youth is a mumas you know that's not the biggest deal and rebelary became the ni and on that day rebar said hari kaben shim shana so if you want to know why rabama was not at that sedar according to the ra it's obvious why rang was not at the sedar that sedar took place on the very day that relesary became the nasi and ranging was deposed the Last guy they're inviting to the seder is Ram Gamla. Fine. Which means that the balhagada whoever he is you know there are many opinions. Who is the balhagada? The says the balaga is says the isi himself. The Rez is the first word they go you know h but there are many different opinions to the bal and the mal hagada he says it's rebi the only thing is the mammagada wasn't written by the malbum somebody plagiarized the malam hagada my grandfather my father's father his father's father was a raven lynchett in the 1860s when the malbum was running away and the malbum wrote the papus of the malb and lynch in the 1860s. So my grandfather who loves an album would he doesn't quote the Mum Hagada because it's not the Malum Hagada but anyway in the Mum Hagada he says Rebi wrote the Hagada there many different opinions there as many as 10 different opinions who the Balaga is but whoever the Balhagada is. Isn't it interesting that he begins say their night that what we deposi is the nazi and I tell you this is a very significant aspect of the hagada that ram gamiel has been deposed and rebel is the nasi cuz you remember in the story when they deposed ram gaml all of a sudden they had to expand the base medish and the garra says they had to add either 400 or 700 100 benches and Ram Gaml had Khalisha's had and the Gumar says Hashem came to Ram Gaml in a dream to make him feel better and the Gumar even says Ram Gam was wrong and Shamay really wasn't saying Ram Gaml was right but he's a sadic so they made him feel good even though he was wrong Gaml had a very strict policy he stood by the door of the ka he looked you in the forehead and he could tell whether you're a fake or a phony or you're a real guy. So anyone who was genuine, he said come in. Anyone who was a fake had to stay outside's policy was call the night of the sedar. Who's invited to the sedar? Only only children who are you think from the you could have a seda. How in the world are you supposed to get a tam a rasha into the sedar? The first step of sedar night is you cannot have a policy of benal. That's the foundation of the sedar. Foundation of the sedar is well every other night of the year maybe we use an element of discretion of who's allowed in not so the night of the sed. So the balag intentionally starts to say there it's the day Ram was deposed because not deposed the they're not all coming to the sedar but what's very striking and very compelling is the I think is composed in a way that is precisely parallel to the story in bra. Let me explain. So Gaml is deposed. Once he's deposed, he comes back into the base medish because he also has to learn. Ultimately Gaml comes to Rab Yeshua and he asks for forgiveness. And Rabishua says no. Rabishua says you don't understand us. You don't understand the hardship of making a living. And Ranglio says forgive me for the sake of the honor of my father's household. Who's Ranguml talking about when he says forgive me for the sake of the honor of my father's household? Most would say it means but I believe on the side of the gar says he's referring to take a look at the begins. Okay, Russia any come everybody in but also wants to come back in. Now when Raml came back into the base medish and Yeshua was mo they had this big dilemma in the base medish okay Ram Gum is coming back so what should be with Rebel Aaria Shabi who's going to don this week you know to do switch off every other week the Gar says it would be too contentious so let Gaml get his job back and Aario will go back to the kel no mal beesh So they came up with a formula gets three weeks gets one week. Look at the after we grandfather in the Russia and the and the gets guess who comes right back into the sedar and gam. You didn't you didn't hear one word from gam in the beginning of the sedar. That's because in the beginning we can't have him in command cuz then none of the kids are in but by the end of the like in the bra makes a comeback. How many does he get? Only got one says. So you'll say is it the same rabin? Which rabbl is ramg of yavn which ram gumlio is ragl the says it's not ragl of yn the rashbat says it is ramgl of yn so according to the rashbats it's look how parallel the stories are so you say but what one more thing ram gaml only made a comeback because he said forgive me for the sake of the honor of my father's household Oh, you want to come back in h also gets a mention. So it comes out all of the mentions of the specific tanoim in the hagada are exactly parallel to the story in brais. Let's talk a little bit about the format of the hagada. I got it. Rabb Schwab in his hagada says over from his father the most often you know how many times that is mentioned it's mentioned four times it's mentioned in the answer to the Russia it's mentioned in the answer to the we bring it in and we bring it in and it's very reasonable why this is the most oft comes from the fine sabw says if you break down the words of this by the way in the malam it also says this question and answer That's the man the story that's that's the that's so I I got a new Hagod last year. The Hagodi. I love the Sarmaji. I'm very into the Sarmaji. One time I had this crazy idea. I want to go to the Kevaji. Don't I wouldn't do it after October 7th, but that was I went to the Kevaji. He's buried in Ismir. He's buried in Ismir. Right next to him is the Shvet Moser. Turns out my children my wife is a direct descendant of the muser. I don't know how the sher rebel kind of is how he ended up in Ismir. Next to him is bya he writes piska alf by manano he writes piskab he's counting the paragraphs of the hagada. So I figure okay let me take this through you know here's a man who's counting the components of the hagada the final component of is the pisa nun fascinating there are 50 components of the and says there's a reason for that the quotes that 50 times in We have a reference to the GR is busy though really it says it 90 times. So the GRA says we don't count the mentions in Dvarim or in paras Balak the GR says very interesting because Balak and Dvarim is a similar type of status of Tyra perhaps. Why does it say Mim 50 times? You know there's an idea that had we remained in MR a moment longer we would have fallen to the point of no return. We would have fallen to the point of no. Now what is the point of no return? You ever hear of this concept the point of no return. So let's say the base brings some the point of no no return is the shaun. The ramach says the shaun and therefore had to extricate ourselves from the shaun. The brings from his great great-grandfather the every year 30 days before Pes Hashem takes us out each day from one element of the Shaun until on Pes we're at the precipice of Kadusha we've been extricated from all 50 levels by the way you know what the has to say about the Shaun it never existed there is no such thing as a shon there are 50 levels of kadusha but hashem the says K is 50. Hashem created 50 levels of kadusha. Vam Russia is gamach 49. There only 49 levels of tum. Be it as it may, just as an aside, I want to share with you a question that I had on this idea of that had we remained in a moment longer, we would have fallen to the point of no return. How much time do I have? They didn't tell me. So until pes what what's what's the minug keep on going a little bit more no no we'll wrap it up okay I want to share with you one very interesting question where there's this idea that at least the basi brings it that had we remained In the sad moment longer, we would fall into the point of no return. Could somebody tell me we believe in that concept? There's a point of no return. You could go, you could be such a rash that you're hopeless. It's helpless. Don't we say you always listen to unless he tells you things are hopeless, you could always return. What exactly is this point of no return? Whether it's the test, what does it mean? I think this is a real example that this so to speak mystical cababalistic tradition that had we remained in time a moment longer we had fallen to the point of no return. I think we need to read the simple words of the Rambam and explain this very rationally because when the Rambam um delineates the development of a Zara that in the times of Eno people began to forget about the creator and they started to attribute power to the celestial bodies and then it people began to forget about Hashem's creation and Hashem's control and Hashem's providence. until Ara came along. The Ram says, "And he planted in his children a shila a great planting and he imbued in us amuna and he taught it to Yitzk and Yitk taught it to Yakov and Yakov taught it to his children." But in mitim the planting of Abraham began to dissipate and the Rambam says if we would have remained there a bit longer then this planting that Abraina would have implanted and the genetics of the Jewish people would have vanished and dissipated. I think this is what this tradition means that had we remained in Mam we would have fallen to the point of no return. Doesn't mean we can never have returned. doesn't mean we can never have recouped and attached ourselves to Hashem. But one thing's for sure, had we remained in Mitim a moment longer, what Abraham Au put into us would have vanished and we would no longer be Ben Abra. We would be a new beginning. Did you ever notice there's only one mitz? The Tyra the father has to tell the kid. You know why the father has to tell the kid? Because what we're celebrating the night of the sedar is the continuity, the tradition that we preserve from Abrainu. What the Ram is articulating to us is this mystical tradition that we're so familiar with. But if you actually think about it, we need the rational explanation of the Ramdam to understand this mystical tradition. The point of no return means we would have been severed from. So the mitzvah of is to reconnect to the traditions of okay one more one more thing one more z. We counted the number of paragraphs in the hagada. How many words in the hagada? How many words in the Hagada? So I have a safer at home called Zman is very interesting. And in this he makes the of the number of words in shall pass from the beginning until Hashem goal is and he says there are 1,820 words in Hagada. Yeah. What are you going to do with that? He says it's the same number of yuds as there are in as the same number of words in the of rash 1,820. What exactly is the significance that the hagoda has 1,820 words? You know this parro he's a complicated guy. Very complicated guy. Is he a mammon? Is he not a Mammon? Is he a kifer? Is he not a kifer? You know the joke, the guy went to Warsa, he comes back. You Warsa is such a fascinating place. Yeah. What do you see there? I saw Sadikim Gym. I saw Krem Socialist Bundis Yiddishes Roy said yeah we have that in Minsk. No, no, in Warso is the same guy. So what exactly is par? He's a M. He's not a M. You know he says who said those words he said about and on the other hand he says and what's even stranger is that sayim and par says ohim I said your sorcerers just told you it's God and now you're hardening your heart. So the brings that par was had a reba his reb's name was said taught eloim is hashem created nature. He set into place a system of nature and par thought Hashem allows nature to run its course never taught par. The fact that Hashem could come and be mahav and override the system par didn't know that was a great but me [Applause] So Mosa takes the stick and on the stick it says havaya and he's constantly wagging the stick in front of get that thing out of here. I don't go for that. You know of a he says so you have the hashem starts with starts with a heyi starts with a hashem starts with hey but in between is the the an of parro was mafik and his ego did not allow him to accept the fact that hashem not only set into motion the forces of nature but hashem could override it at will. So the oftim was the purpose of is for us to recognize that Hashem did not set up a world and then things are just going the reason we're preparing now for a month. The reason we're going to stay up late reciting the Hagada is to drive home the idea that we all know but we lose focus of that it's not that every single detail that happens in our life is Hashem's active overriding all the forces of nature to give us every single moment of our life. The tlas of is 1,820. Every single word is to emphasize the role of the shame havaya in the world and in our lives. And therefore, not only are the piso and the proim of the hagada, the words of the hagada are. So it's a great honor to share uh some thoughts of preparation for the PES and my humble bra to all of us as we should be to take advantage of every detail of the to asem show gratitude demonstrate to our children draw on the heartstrings of our children that at least we have this night of the year we have the open door policy where wherever our children are holding they're welcome and we could utilize the opportunity to show them how we genuinely thank Hashem. We could demonstrate to them and thus Hashem draw upon their hearts to show them that is actively controlling every detail of our life. Thank you. brought to you.