Charity Can Save Your Life? King Solomon Reveals the Secret - Rabbi Zamir Cohen (AI)

Let us contemplate today a wonderful piece of advice, guidance that King Solomon gives to a person who wishes to give, who wishes to bestow. Every human being when born is naturally a taker, not a giver. He does not initiate acts of giving to others. He only receives. He receives from his parents, from his surroundings. Part of a person's maturity is when he begins to change. From one who takes to one who gives to one who also provides for others. True human perfection is when a person feels my entire being exists only to give. Of course by the nature of life he also receives from others, from his wife, from friends. But his inner essence, his will, his yearning, his desire is to give. And when a person gives, he is granted great heavenly assistance. The verse says, "Charity saves from death." When a harsh decree stands over a person, even if he is unaware of it, and he gives charity, that charity can save him from death. But King Solomon teaches that one must know there is a condition to giving. One must know how to give. And this rule applies not only to charity but also to marriage, to every form of giving, whether through money, through help or through any act of kindness. Let us read Solomon's words. The ransom of a man's life is his wealth, but the poor he has no rebuke. Meaning, a person's wealth can serve as a ransom for his soul. If there is a harsh decree against him and he gives charity from his money, it is as if he has given a ransom for his life and through that act of giving the decree is nullified. However, Solomon adds, "Know that this only holds true when the poor person, the one you help, does not hear rebuke. You did not talk down to him. You did not insult him. There are situations when a person is financially secure, well-dressed, respected, with a fine car, and he sees a poor, unfortunate man who needs his help. He may feel superior, even look down on him. When the poor man asks for assistance, he gives, but with a sense of, "I'm above you." He might even throw in a hurtful remark, especially if he feels that the man is a nuisance that he already gave him once and now he's coming back again. The reaction might be, "Be thankful I'm even giving you whether he says it outright or only through his body language." It conveys disrespect. King Solomon teaches perfect giving, the kind that serves as a ransom for one soul and cancels decrees, is when you give in such a way that the poor man does not hear rebuke. He must not feel insulted or humiliated by you. And this is true not only with money. Sometimes a person asks a friend for help. The friend agrees to help, but he cannot resist adding a sting. At home, for example, a wife asks her husband for help. He gets up to help her, but says, "You never let me rest. I just sat down and already you're calling me." Why say that? Those words cause pain. If she asked, it means she truly needs your help. Even if you're tired, get up and say, "For you, anything." Change the words. What does it cost you? Even if you feel otherwise inside, give her the good feeling. The sense that you're glad to help. Then your giving becomes whole and genuine. The same applies in raising children. A child comes and says, "Dad, buy me a bicycle." And you see that it's right to buy it. Then give it to him with a smile, with a pleasant expression. A wonderful child like you, of course, you deserve it. What does it cost you to add a few kind words? By doing so, you uplift him. You can even give more examples. Say to the child, "I saw you yesterday or the day before. You helped your mother so much. You put in effort. You did this and that. You deserve much more than this. We'll buy it for you. You'll get it." In this way, you raise his spirit. It's not without reason that King Solomon said, "Life and death are in the power of the tongue." The way we speak, not only the action itself, makes all the difference. King Solomon is teaching us. It's not only what you do, but also how you do it to such an extent that he ties even the special power of charity to this point. The ransom of a man's life is his wealth. The ransom that cancels harsh decrees from a person. That's your money when you give charity, but on one condition. And the poor does not hear rebuke. That's the condition. Give it pleasantly with a smile in a good atmosphere with warmth. Make him feel good at heart. And indeed our sages were extremely careful to give in a way that would not cause the recipient any pain or embarrassment. The Talmud in Kubot 67b tells a story about Ma, one of the leading sages of his generation. The sages describe how immense his wealth was. He had a neighbor who lived on the same street, a poor man whose family often had no food for the children. Every day as Mar Ukva passed by, he would quietly slip four golden coins under that man's door. In those days, that was enough for the family's daily needs. The man was unemployed. His wife also didn't work, and there was nothing to eat at home, no welfare, no assistance of any kind. So every morning the poor man would find the four coins under his door, buy food, eat, and rejoice day after day, every day, until one day the poor man said to himself, "I must find out who this person is, who cares about me so much, who does me such kindness." He decided to hide behind the door, and the moment he saw the money being slipped in, he would open the door and catch him. But Marukva knew if that man ever discovered that he was the one giving, he would want to bury himself from shame. He believed no one knew of his poverty. And to find out that the great sage and wealthy leader was personally supporting him would have humiliated him deeply. Therefore, Mahal Uka always made sure to place them and leave immediately. That day, however, his wife happened to be with him. Usually he went alone, but this time they were together. He slipped the coins under the door and suddenly the door opened. He and his wife ran. They were wearing long cloaks that covered their heads so the poor man couldn't recognize them. He only saw two figures running, a man and a woman. He began to chase them through the narrow alleys. They ran from one alley to another until they reached a dead end. They realized he was about to catch up and see them, which would cause him great shame. They quickly entered a nearby bakery. No one was there, and saw the oven still hot from the fire that had just been cleared. The Talmud says they both hid inside the oven, pressed to the side, where the heat was still intense, but not burning, just to avoid embarrassing him. The poor man peeked inside and saw no one. It never occurred to him that there might be people hiding inside the oven. He left, looked around, couldn't find anyone, and went back home without discovering who it was. The Talmud tells that when Marukva entered the oven, he felt his feet begin to burn. His wife said to him, "Put your feet on top of mine so that you don't get burned." He did so, and afterward, when they came out, the gimar says that he felt troubled. He said to his wife, "I don't understand. My wife is more righteous than I am. Why did she not feel the heat of the oven while I couldn't bear it?" She answered him, "It's true. You also give charity, and I do as well." "But you give money to the poor, and until they go and buy food, they remain hungry. When they come to me, I serve them a plate of food right away. They eat immediately and no longer feel hunger. So the difference is that when they ask me, they receive at once. Then she comforted him and said, "But don't be upset. You two are righteous and good. Everything is fine." Still he felt in his heart that his wife's merit was greater than his. She merited miracles and he did not. The gamarra continues and asks, "What is all this? Why such an extreme reaction? So the poor man saw you. What's the big deal? You gave charity. You didn't steal or do anything wrong? Why risk your life just so that the poor man wouldn't see you giving him charity?" The Gamarra answers with a well-known teaching. It is better for a person to throw himself into a fiery furnace than to embarrass his fellow in public. Marukva took this teaching literally. Even though the oven was not burning with fire, only hot enough to cause a burn to his feet. He entered it willingly, accepting that small injury just to avoid shaming the poor man. For it is taught, it is better for a person to cast himself into a fiery furnace than to embarrass his fellow publicly. And the Gumarra says this lesson is learned from the story of Tamar. Judah did not know that Tamar was his daughter-in-law. Before the giving of the Torah, the law of Yibum, levate marriage already existed. that when a man dies without children, his brother should marry the widow so that children will be born in his brother's name. Later, the Torah established that if the brother does not wish to marry her, he performs halitar instead. But before the Torah was given, the one to perform yum did not have to be the brother. Even the father could do so. Judah could have fulfilled the yum himself, but he did not know that the woman was Tamar and she conceived from him. When he was told that his daughter-in-law was pregnant by another man, he ruled, "Take her out and burn her." As she was being taken to be burned, she sent him the personal items he had given her as a sign. And she did not say outright that he was involved. She simply said, "Please identify whose these are." Because she knew that what happened was permissible according to divine law, she left it to him to admit or stay silent. Judah recognized them and said, "She is more righteous than I," and the decree against her was canled. She then gave birth to Perets and Zerak, as the well-known story tells. The Gamarra explains that if Judah had not admitted, Tamar would have been willing to be burned together with her unborn twins rather than publicly embarrass him. From this, the sages learned it is better for a person to throw himself into a fiery furnace than to shame his fellow in public. And so, Maruka was willing to risk his life, he and his wife, just to avoid embarrassing that poor man. From this we must learn not only regarding charity how careful we must be never to shame another but all the more so in social situations. Sometimes people sit together in company and someone gets an idea, a witty remark that will make everyone laugh. But deep down he knows that the joke is at someone's expense that it will hurt another person's feelings just to make others laugh. People are sometimes willing to do that. And that says our tradition is something a person must avoid even at great personal cost. We must remember that one who embarrasses another in public is considered as though he has shed blood. The gamarra says it is as if he has committed murder, as if he has spilled his fellow's blood. What is the connection between embarrassing someone and spilling blood? The Gumara explains when a person is humiliated, the blood rises to his face and then drains away. At first he blushes red from shame and then he turns pale. This physical reaction, the movement of blood in and out of the face, is viewed by heaven as if the person's blood had actually been spilled. Therefore, one who humiliates another in public is considered as though he has shed blood. How careful we must be never to embarrass another. Sometimes within families during gatherings with relatives, a husband makes a joke at his wife's expense, embarrassing her in front of everyone, or the other way around. At times, even children are shamed. Someone mocks a child in front of others as though because he is young, he has no feelings, and it's permitted to humiliate him. But in truth, one must be extremely sensitive in in matters between man and his fellow. Here King Solomon adds another layer of teaching. Know that even when you give charity which has the power to nullify harsh decrees, that effect depends on how you give. If you give with warmth and respect, so that the poor man does not hear rebuke, the blessing remains. The same principle applies to honoring one's parents. The Gimara teaches that honoring parents must come from genuine respect, not merely from performing acts of service. There are elderly parents whose children already married with families of their own care for them. But the question is how? Do they do it only out of obligation? Or do they make their parents feel truly valued? Not just bringing food, medicine or arranging hospital visits, but offering kind words, giving them a good feeling. Sometimes that feeling is worth more to them than the food itself. After a lifetime of giving, a parent may feel like a burden. A few words of warmth can give them life. The Gamarra in Kaducinian 31a says, "There is one who feeds his father fattened feeasants, yet drives him from the world, and another who grinds with his father at the mill, yet earns for both of them life in the world to come. So one person feeds his father the most luxurious meals because he is wealthy and can afford it, yet he is punished for it, while another person sends his father to grind at the mill hard labor. Yet through that he earns eternal reward. How can this be? Rashi quoting the Jerusalem Talmud explains, "The one who fed his father delicacies was punished because he did so with resentment. He gave him fine food, but his attitude was harsh and disrespectful. In contrast, the one who sent his father to grind at the mill did so while speaking to him kindly, comforting him with gentle words, and that is what earned him the world to come. The Jerusalem Talmud tells the stories behind these two examples. There was a man who used to feed his father with delicacies, fine, expensive meals. One day his father asked him, "My son, where do you get all this from?" The father didn't know his son had become wealthy through business. He simply wondered, "Where do you get the money for all this food?" The son replied harshly, "Father, what does it matter to you? Just chew and eat." Meaning, don't ask questions, just eat. He belittled his father. How did the father feel at that moment? His heart was crushed. The food was exquisite. But the attitude was disgraceful. And the gamarra says, "He drives him from the world. He is punished for it." Then there was another case. A man who worked at a mill grinding grain with large stone wheels turned by a beam. sometimes by a donkey, sometimes by hand. It was hard labor. That man had an elderly father, and one day the king's officers came to summon his father for royal labor, forced work for the kingdom, such as building roads with no pay and no limit of time. The son could have let his father go, but he knew that if he went, there would be no food for the family, not for the father, not for the children. So he said to his father, "Father, you grind here at the mill, and I will go in your place to work for the king. Grinding is hard, but at least you know what you're doing there. Who knows? A man might go and never return." And so he went in his father's place, risking his own life while letting his father stay and grind. The Gimarra says, "One may grind with his father at the mill and merit eternal life." Because true honor is not measured by comfort or material gifts, but by respect, compassion, and a good heart. What was the goal here? To help his father to make him feel good, to bring him joy? to spare him from being enslaved in forced labor for the kingdom. Here too we see in the teachings of our sages that whenever a person gives his giving must be accompanied by self-education by working on oneself. How do we give? What is our approach, our message, our tone of voice? Even our body language has a powerful impact. The expression on one's face at the moment of giving makes a difference. And this applies not only to money. A person who works, for example, as a bank clerk, someone comes to him asking for help with a mortgage beyond what is usually granted. It requires extra effort. Contacting a manager getting special approval or someone who works at city hall. A person comes asking for help with property tax or another issue and you actually have the ability to help. There are two ways to do it. You can help but make the other person feel small. Treat him as if he's a burden, a nuisance, someone who's bothering you. In the end, you may help him, but why in such a way? Give him a pleasant feeling. Smile. He apologizes for troubling you. Show him that it's perfectly fine that you're happy to help. When you act with a pleasant expression, you elevate your good deed to an entirely higher level. And even when one gives charity, the verse says a gift given in secret pacifies anger. A means anger as in the anger of God. When you give in secret, in a way that spares the recipient embarrassment, you are cancelling harsh decrees. It is the same principle we saw earlier. The power of giving lies not only in what you give, but in how you give. Our sages hinted at this idea in the very letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Alf, bet, gimmel, dale. In the secret code, we elaborated on this, dedicating an entire chapter to each letter and the spiritual force hidden within it. Every letter has its own spiritual energy. The letters are not merely symbols for reading or pronunciation. They are the very instruments through which the Almighty created the universe. As it says, "And God said, let there be light." And there was light. How did light come into being? Because when he spoke the words, "Let there be light," he commanded the spiritual forces contained within the letters the alf and the vav and the r to join together like elements in chemistry producing light in reality. The book of creation, sepherzer explains that before the world was created, God first created the tools with which he would build it. Just as a builder prepares his instruments before construction, the creator formed 22 spiritual instruments. The 22 Hebrew letters through which he brought all of creation into existence. The very word ought in Hebrew means a sign. A sign of what? A sign of the spiritual power hidden within that letter. Therefore, when God said, "Let there be light," he was in essence commanding the inner spiritual forces of specific letters to combine and manifest that reality. This is why we find a phenomenon unique to the Hebrew language, something that exists in no other tongue. In Hebrew, all words that share the same letters always share a common conceptual root. Sometimes it's obvious, sometimes it requires reflection, but the inner connection is always there. For example, consider the letter pair. Why is the organ of speech called pear? The mouth. Which came first, the organ or the letter? The answer, the organ was named after the letter just as ayen, meaning I is named after the letter Ain because the power of sight was created through the spiritual force of that letter. In a Torah scroll, the letter in is even written with two small strokes at the top resembling a pair of eyes. The letter shin represents the power of change. And indeed, its shape with its three branches resembles teeth. The word shen tooth comes from shin because the tooth's function is to change food by grinding it. The letter pear embodies the power of opening. That is why the opening in our body through which we speak and eat is called Pere after the letter. Even the shape of the letter P as written in a Torah scroll resembles a human profile, a head with a nose and an open mouth. Thus, the very essence of the letter P is the force of opening that exists in the world. This is why every Hebrew word related to opening must begin with the letter pair. There is always a common spiritual thread linking them. The first letter of a word is always the most dominant and defining one. It carries the essence. The same applies to a person's name. If you wish to know which letter most influences your life, it is the first letter of your name. The second has less influence. The third even less. But the combination of letters creates your unique spiritual makeup. That is also why it is written that one should give a child a name of three letters or more. So that its spiritual structure will be rich and complete. No less than three letters. That is the ideal. So the child will have spiritual channels through which divine energy can flow. Unless of course the name is after a Zadic, a righteous person like God, one of the holy tribes or Dan also one of the tribes. In such cases is perfectly fine because the holiness of their name already provides spiritual strength. But when it comes to newly invented names used today, it is best that the name have at least two letters. And if it has only two, one should add at least another letter to give it greater spiritual power. Of course, there's no need to overdo it. You don't have to name your child a hash just to have many letters, but a name of three letters or more is already considered good. A name that provides the child with a solid spiritual foundation. In any case, every Hebrew letter contains spiritual power. For example, the letter P represents the power of opening that exists in the world. That's why every Hebrew word connected with the idea of opening begins with the letter pit breakthrough. Priha opening Peter meaning wound pituit explosion. Panak decoding pria blooming. The bud opens and becomes a flower. And so it continues. The par bull breaks forward with its head. Par rash. It bows its head and pushes forward. The papar a butterfly literally par twice breaks forth twice. Once when it emerges from the egg as a crawling lava and again when it breaks out of the cocoon spreading its wings and becoming a butterfly. Every word in Hebrew, every name of an animal has depth and meaning. All rooted in the essence of its letters. Now regarding our subject, the first letters alfet giml dalith. The beauty of the Hebrew alphabet is that not only does each letter have its own unique spiritual force, but even their sequence conveys a message, teaching us moral patterns and ways of life. The Talmud in Shabbat 104A mentions this briefly in just a few words because the Talmud deals mostly with the simple meaning, not with cabalistic secrets. But Sepharatz expands on it. The Zohar expands on it. And in the secret code, we compiled these ideas at length. The letter alf represents alufo shell olam, the master of the universe, the almighty. The letter bet from the word bayot house represents creation. Alf stands for oneness. The holy one blessed be he. While the world represented by bet is composed of many parts. That's why in Hebrew we say alfb bet not abc like in English. Each Hebrew letter is a word with meaning. Al if from alf master bet from bay house. By the way, the Hebrew alphabet is the root not only of the English ABC, but of every alphabet in the world, even Japanese, Thai, Indian, Chinese. All languages originated from Hebrew. At the time of the Tower of Babel, the Torah tells us that God said to the angels, "Come, let us go down and confuse their language." Until then, the whole world spoke Hebrew, the language of creation. Adam spoke Hebrew. He called his wife Harava Eve because she was the mother of all living. And he named his son Cayen saying, "Kaniti, I have acquired all directly from Hebrew roots." At Barbble, the languages became confused. Rabbi Samson Rafael Hersh writes that the word navla to confuse comes from the same root as navla something that has decayed. He explains that all the world's languages are actually the Hebrew language that has decayed like a flower that once was perfect but has withered and lost its form. Indeed, if you pay attention, you can see it in many words. For example, the Hebrew word perote fruits slightly distorted becomes the English fruit or sheesh six and sheva 7 compare with six and seven. The sounds have shifted but the roots remain. There are many such examples. In the secret code we presented an entire table of them. I once met a man in Beaosva who brought me a list of words in Hindi. His wife was from India and you could clearly see the Hebrew roots in many of them. Some words retained the similarity directly. Others changed through several linguistic incarnations. Now back to the letters. Alf from Aluf meaning master representing God. Bet from bayot meaning house representing creation. The shape of the alf looks as if it reaches in all four directions symbolizing the infinite representing the divine. The shape of the bet forms a house, a wide foundation, walls, and a roof. Its base is wider than the top, just like the foundation of a real building. But notice something. The bet's base extends only to one side. If the foundation is wider than the roof, shouldn't it protrude equally on both sides? Why does it extend only in one direction? I wondered about this for a long time until I found a midrash that addresses exactly this question. The midrash explains, since the letter bet represents creation, which is made of many parts, its numerical value is two. God is one alf, but creation is two multiplicity. That's why the Torah begins with the letter bet, beresit in the beginning, because it speaks of creation. But the ten commandments begin with alf anohhi hash elloha. I am the lord your god. Because there the subject is the creator himself. And why does the bet extend in only one direction? The midrash answers when you ask creation represented by the letter bet. Who created you? The bet with the small tail behind it points back to the alf before it. the Alfaam the master of the universe and says he is the one who created me. That is why the letter bet shifts so that its small extension points toward the alf. What is the deeper idea behind this? When a person says prove to me that there is a creator. The answer is simple. Look at the creation itself. The very existence of the universe cries out that there is a creator. The creation itself testifies when you observe its complexity, its harmony, its wisdom, you recognize that there must be a divine source. These are the letters alf and bet. Alf for eloquium, god. Bet for bayot, the world, the house he built. Now we come to the next letter, giml. What does it represent? Gamal gad. A large camel. How do we know it's large? Perhaps it's small. In truth, Gimmel comes from the word glumel. One who bestows, one who gives. That is why the letter gimmel is shaped like a person. It has a head, a back, and two legs. But notice this person, this gimmel is not standing still. He is walking. He is stepping forward. If the two legs were equal, he would appear to be standing. But the letter gimmel as written in a Torah scroll clearly leans forward. He is walking toward the next letter, the Dallet D. And what does Dallet represent? The word Dal means poor, standing on one leg, unstable, needing support. It's important to know every Hebrew letter has both a positive and a challenging side. There is no bad letter. Each contains both potential and responsibility. The letter dallet, for example, might make a person worry. Does that mean I'm destined for poverty? Not necessarily. Dal can mean poverty. But it can also mean elevation, being lifted up as in the verse, you have lifted me up. The shape of the dallet even resembles a lever. Something that raises and elevates. A person who has dallet in his name often experiences extremes in life. Rarely in the middle. He is either down or up spiritually, emotionally, or even financially. That's why such a person should always strive to rise upward. Because if he doesn't aim high, he risks falling low. There's no neutral zone. For example, who in Tanakh has two dallet in his name? David the king. And what kind of life did King David have? At first he was at the lowest point, persecuted, hunted, almost killed. And later he rose to become the king of Israel. Always extremes, either very low or very high, both materially and spiritually. Therefore, a person with this letter should always aim upward. The same applies to every letter. Each has its light side and its challenge. The letter alf, for instance, represents the alf shell olam, the master of the universe. You might ask, what could possibly be negative about that? A person whose name begins with alf often has a powerful spiritual nature. Material things do not satisfy him deeply. He can enjoy them, but they don't truly fill him. Only spirituality, Torah, mitzvot, good deeds brings him real fulfillment. That's his strength. But his challenge then it's important to be aware of it is that he doesn't like being told what to do. He doesn't like having a boss. He doesn't like when someone even his spouse gives him orders. It's not arrogance. It's an inner sense of independence that reflects the spiritual root of alf to God. No one gives orders. So the person doesn't think that consciously. But it's as if his nature says you won't tell me what to do. When a person becomes aware of that, he can work on humility, learning to listen, to receive, to accept guidance. The letter bet from Bayet house indicates a person who is home oriented, family-minded. That's wonderful. He values family life and stability. But his challenge is that he can become overly critical of his loved ones because he wants his home to be perfect exactly as he envisions it. He may find himself correcting and commenting too often. He must learn to ease up, to be gentler, to focus on warmth more than perfection. The letter Gimmel symbolizing goal, giving, kindness, represents generosity. A person whose name begins with gimmel, such as Gabriel or Gamliel, has a strong drive to give. A deep inner generosity. That's a wonderful quality. But even giving must have balance. Too much giving can become harmful. When a person gives to the point of having nothing left for himself, that too is a flaw. As mymonades writes, just as stinginess is a negative trait, so too reckless generosity. Being wasteful is also negative. The ideal is neiot generosity of the heart, a balanced generosity, knowing how to give yet also how to preserve one's own well-being. Because endless giving with no boundaries can leave a person empty. And this doesn't apply only to money. There are people who simply cannot say no. Friends invite them somewhere and even though they know it's not good for them that it might harm them spiritually, they can't refuse. They go along even against their better judgment. That too comes from the same energy of gimmel. The desire to give to please which must be guided with wisdom and self-awareness. Why? Because such a person has a giving nature. But even generosity requires balance. One must know how to set limits. When to stop and when to say no. Every person must strive for balance in all areas of life. Now the letter Dallet which we mentioned has the shape of a lever. On one hand it represents dalut poverty but on the other dya elevation. The gamarra says look now at these four letters alfb giml dal everything we've said until now leads to this profound message. Take these four letters in sequence. Together they reveal a great lesson. How to give. There are people who are financially established, blessed with abundance. They have wealth, thank God, and they are even willing to give. But they sit at home and say, "If someone comes and asks me, I'll give." But people either don't know he has the means, or they don't know if he's actually willing to help. So the Torah says, "You initiate. Don't wait for others to come to you. Go out and look for ways to give. Where do we see this hinted in the secret of the letters? The letter bet meaning by house is opened toward the gimmel. That gimmel representing the giver is walking out of the bayet the house. Why? Because the alf symbolizing God says to the wealthy person represented by the bet, go out from your house, go to the dal, the poor man and give to him. When you read the sequence alf bet giml dallet you see the message clearly. The alf god tells the bet the person blessed with a home and abundance. Go to the giml the one who gives and let him to go out to the dalit the poor one who waits for your help. Don't wait for him to ask. If you know there is a coll in your neighborhood and that the scholars there need support, go yourself to the office and say I want to sponsor an avo student. If you can wonderful if not that's fine but if you can don't wait for someone to approach you before the holidays like Pesak you know there are families nearby struggling to afford food. Pesak involves many expenses. Don't wait for someone to come to you. Call a charity organization and say, "I'd like to donate this amount. Please distribute it to needy families." That is true giving. These same letters the Gimara teaches also reveal how to give. The Gimara asks, "If the giml represents the giver and the dallet represents the poor person, why does the dallet seem to turn its back to the gimmel? Its wider side faces the other direction. Shouldn't the wide side face the gimmel as if to receive? The gimar answers. Because when you give, do not give in his face. Give discreetly from behind. Give in a way that protects his dignity. Matameet a gift in secret. Find a way to help him without embarrassing him. Then the gimar asks another question. Why does the little ear of the dalelet tilt slightly toward the gimmel? The answer, because sometimes you approach someone you know is in need, a relative, a brother, a neighbor. You know he's struggling, maybe marrying off a child, maybe burdened with expenses. You want to help, you offer him a sum, a,000, 10,000, whatever you can. But he's embarrassed. He says, "No, no, I can't accept." You insist, "Please take it." But he refuses. And finally, he turns his back and walks away. You might think, "Well, I tried. I offered. If he doesn't want, it's his choice." But the gamarra says, "Notice that the ear of the dallet is leaning backward. It symbolizes that the poor man, even as he turns away, still tilts his ear back, hoping you'll find a way to help him without shaming him. He truly wants the help, but he's embarrassed. So find a way. Call after him and say, "You know what? Don't take it as a gift. Take it as a loan." This as well is written in halah. If a person is embarrassed to receive charity, you give it to him as a loan. And later you quietly cancel the debt. When he comes back in 6 months or a year to repay, tell him, "No need. everything worked out. But at the moment of giving, don't embarrass him. If he believes it's a loan, he'll feel comfortable accepting it, saying, "With God's help, I'll pay you back. And you, you never intend to collect it." That is the true way to give. Always seeking to help others with kindness and pleasantness. Up to this point, we've explained the simple meaning of the verse. A man's wealth is the ransom of his soul, but the poor hears no rebuke. The villagon adds another layer of meaning. He explains that sometimes a person's financial situation is difficult. He feels pain, even jealousy. Why does that man have so much money while I struggle to make a living? King Solomon comforts him. Know that even this has benefit. For when a person has no money, God does not send him troubles that must be redeemed through charity because he has nothing to give. But one who has wealth may sometimes face hardships so that through giving charity he can atone for his sins. As the verse says, "A man's wealth is the ransom of his soul." But the poor hears no rebuke from heaven. He is spared those trials. For how could he ransom himself if he has nothing to give? Therefore, says the Vil Nagayion, Solomon consoles the poor man, even if you have little, understand that you are also spared from certain afflictions. There is blessing even in that. The Ralbag explains similarly, but from a more social perspective. A wealthy person is often the target of jealousy, gossip, and resentment. But the poor man, no one envys him, no one troubles him. He lives in peace and quiet. So even that, says Solomon, is a blessing to appreciate. Up to now, we have discussed the literal meaning of the verse. As we know, every verse in Proverbs, as Rashi explains, is written so that both the parable and its inner message are true and meaningful on their own. The deeper allegorical meaning here is explained by Rashi, who interprets the verse, "A man's wealth is the ransom of his soul, but the poor hears no rebuke," as referring not only to material wealth, but to spiritual wealth. When King Solomon speaks about riches in the plain sense, he is indeed referring to money and all those lessons we discussed are true in that sense. But on a deeper level, he is talking about a person's spiritual prosperity. He teaches when you enrich your understanding of Torah, when you study Jewish law, ethics, and learn how to live properly, that knowledge itself becomes your wealth. It protects you from mistakes and from the consequences of sin. As the verse says, "A man's wealth is the ransom of his soul." Your spiritual wealth, your Torah knowledge redeems you from spiritual danger. A person who studies Torah knows how to act, how to observe Shabbat correctly, how to treat others, how to avoid harm in relationships and at home. This knowledge becomes a safeguard for his life. But someone who is poor in Torah, who doesn't study or learn, may easily stumble, not out of rebellion, but simply because he doesn't know what's forbidden or required. Take Shabbat for example. Many think that keeping Shabbat just means not driving a car or not turning on lights. But there are hundreds of laws and principles that govern every detail of Shabbat, and they must be learned and understood or considered to fill in. Many men put them on every day, but not everyone knows the precise way prescribed by Jewish law. The arm to fill in must be placed on the bulging muscle of the upper arm, slightly lower on the inner half that most people know. But the head to fill in must be placed starting from the hairline and upward, not on the forehead. If a person wears them too low, because the straps are loose or the knot at the back is too high, causing the box to drop, he feels he's fulfilled the commandment. But in truth, he hasn't fulfilled the mitzvah of the head to fill in at all. Only the one of the arm. It's like plugging in an electrical device. The plug must fit exactly into the socket for the current to flow. If it's off by a few millimeters, nothing works. So too, with mitzvot, precision matters. When you learn the laws, you know exactly how to do them. from the point where the hair begins to grow, the spot where a baby soft spot once was. That's the correct area for the head to fill in. I once attended a seminar of the Arakim organization, which holds educational weekends in Natana at the Park Hotel from Thursday through Shabbat. They're truly inspiring. Many young men who've attended such programs came back full of joy and insight. And yes, there are separate weekends for men, for women, and for married couples as well. At one of those seminars, Rabbi Lassri, whom many of you know and whose very name brings a smile, shared a beautiful story during Shabbat morning prayers. He was explaining the same halaha that to fill in must be placed from the hairline upward. One of the participants asked him, "What about someone who's already bald? Where does he put them? Rabbi Lassri smiled and replied in his characteristic way, let him remember fondly the days when he still had hair. That's Rabbi Lassri's humor, always joyful and full of light. In essence, this is what King Solomon means. Every person should strive to enrich his mind and soul with Torah, with halaka, and with moral teachings. When one possesses this wealth of wisdom, he knows how to live, how to act, and how to avoid countless troubles in life. And that says Solomon is the truest kind of wealth a person can have. Let us conclude with a blessing. May this lesson be dedicated to the success and well-being of everyone here and all who are watching. May God protect the people of Israel and the soldiers of Israel. And may they all return home safely in good health to long and blessed lives. Amen.