Chodesh Adar | Rabbi Anthony Manning | February 18th 2026

Morning everybody. Thank you Josh for your introduction. I'd like to thank the sponsors for the Wednesday morning programming here in Bed Kesset Hani which is dedicated for this year. Leilu Nishm Daniel bin David um and Limudbat Abraham Strauss and Morai bin Mosha and Razil Ysef May Marcus Ira who are the parents of Julie and Marcus. I'd like to thank very much our sponsors for the year for my shuishmas brand and Zelik Ben and specific for today the shir is dedicated by Bob Dale in memory of his father Schlomman Mosher whose side is Rashadesh Adar which is very timely um because today of course is Rash Khadesh Adar Khadesh um there is a discussion in Nigarian McGill as to uh how long before a you should start discussing the laws of that. Is it 30 days? Is it two weeks? Well, today is two weeks. Two weeks from now, please God, will be Rashk will be shush and purim. And I'm sure you'll all be uh hopefully celebrating uh with your friends and family in Shalim. I will be pleased God recovering from Purim the day before in Allon Shut. But we are now on the cusp of purim. And of course it is my job to ease you gently into pes as well. Which brings us to the first source. Okay. So a very famous saying just like when a comes in says the Mishna we reduce we have a mitzvah to increase when adar arrives and this a very important rashi why why are we increasing says because these we are entering days of miracles and it's important that our excitement on Rashadesh Adar is not just because of the month of Adar but because of the month of Adar and the month of Nissan which of course is a month of Nissim as well and for us in the modern world the month of Ear which is also a month of Nissim. as well. And it's important to remember um that Adar is not the only celebration here. Adar is a is a celebration of guula in the sense that we got the opportunity to finish off uh a lot of the anti-semitic uh Persians of the time who were uh plotting against us. And please God, that will be an opportunity that we have uh to repeat at some point in the future. It should be Israel. Um but Nissan also was the month of Gulan. Not only which of course everybody always talks about but which people also talk about but was also of course Nissan and our entry with Yeshua into Erit Israel which was in Nissan and the and the crossing of the Yarden. Okay. um which we celebrate in halal when we sing about the yard and went backwards was in Nissan and the defeats and the miracle of the battle of Vero which was in Nissan. So there are many many things which we are focusing on over the coming months and uh daring for repeated Nissim for the Jewish people. Now I want to today focus on a specific issue. >> What's that? The missiles from I believe missiles from Iran last year. >> Oh yes, the missiles from Iran last year were in Nissan. And I remember and many of you will remember that the Gulf War finished just before Purim in 1991. Do you remember that? I remember that very distinctly everybody was it was paral everybody was focused on that. So uh it's very very interesting times. Now I want to suggest to you something about Purim which is an important preparation for PES in that the gula of the Jewish people is dependent on the unity of the Jewish people and the unity of the Jewish people is difficult to achieve. Um I've just spent uh three weeks running around the world um and looking for students. Well the world not really the world England, Canada and America. It's not the whole world but it's a little bit. I did drive 1,900 miles, not kilometers, miles um around England and then from Toronto I drove down to Philadelphia step by step stopping in different places to uh to meet students. And one of the challenges along the way, not so much with the students who are usually in their own kind of slightly clueless world, u but in the with the families that I met uh is the challenge of Jewish unity where people were taking quite extreme stances on the issues of today um both extremely to one side and to the other side and where people were becoming very again very upset and annoyed and surprised and shocked at how other people are very extreme. So we need to we need to bring this all together. Um we need to make sure we don't focus on the extremists who take the law into their own hands uh on any side of the debate because they do not represent most people clearly and we need to work on unity and I want to suggest to you about seven or eight ways in which celebrating the laws of of Purim and the miters of Purim are focused specifically on this goal. The goal is to bring Jewish people together to together because unless Jewish people come together, the Jewish people as a whole cannot unite with God and have that sense of which is ultimately what brings the and therefore I want to focus on a few of these um mitzvah which will ease us into let's start with number two says these are the days the 14th and the 15th um that the Jews rested from their enemies the and the special month that's why theesh is flagged because thees of is pointed out just like theesh of the is pointed out there's a mitzvah to have a celebration don't forget a mish means from the word a mishta is where the the the the central focus of the meal is on drink not food. That's why it's called a not auding gifts each person to their friend and giving gifts also to the poor. So let's focus on what that means. Now a matana I know what a matana is. It's I give something to someone else. But what is a mana? A mana usually means a portion of something. So let's have a look. Ask the true theat of Israel is living in the 15th century in Europe in Vienna I believe or in Austria rather people who want to send a gift on some nice bed linen a couple of uh shirts a nice pair of pants you know I'm thinking of you here's a nice gift for you know your bedroom for your lounge something can They do that on love. Are they or not? could be a very beautiful set of linen says the Nope that's not you're not because the reason the whole point is that we need to make sure people have um enough food to eat the suda we're worried people are poor people have very little we live in a world where not everybody has what they need but a lot more people have access to basic provisions and food than used to back in the day. So we need to worry maybe uh the people down the road don't have what to eat for poor sudas. So I'll give them food. Maybe they'll give me food. We'll give each other food. If I give them bedlinin well they're going to chew on the bedlinin that's not going to help them for sudas purim. So he says no you're not yet modus you have to give food and we'll see in a minute with the of course pas this way that you have to give food you have to give food usually to items of food to a friend etc. But the males hvi rashloma halevi alchabets a very very interesting person um who lived of course slightly shortly after the trumasen he was one of the great mukbalim of the time. He was from a family which was exiled from Spain and he was in Turkey. He was there at the famous um night uh tikun le where they were sitting there in Turkey in Adrianopole I think um him and Ravosseph Caro and a whole group of them and all of a sudden the maggot the maggot starts speaking out of Rav Yosph Caro's mouth and everybody's looking around what's happening and Ravi Caro goes into this kind of trance which he frequently had for many decades afterwards and a magnet voice starts speaking out of his mouth And what does it tell the group? It tells the group, you guys are doing great here in Turkey, but you need to make aliyah and you need to do it soon. Very important. And and they were very shocked at this night uh you know phenomenon. And they did did it the next night as well. They tried to bring back this maggot because of course second night they were in Turkey. They had another tickle l and the same thing happened. They said it's all very well. You're sitting here learning Torah but make aliyah. This was the nephesh benef. Okay. You know, it's very so so and and raets did he picked up and he went and he left and Rav Caro was a little bit after him but Ravias Caro and him were very very close all the way through their lives. We know of course Rashma and Navy alphabets for composing but he he wrote way way way more than that many many many works. He was the um teacher of Rava Basher Cordo who was one of the greatest cabalists of all time. So one of the one of the things he wrote was a a commentary on the McGiller which I believe he wrote for his fiance before they got married or something like that. I was going to check that before I came but it was something like that. So look at what he says in number four. What does it mean sending gifts? Because this is was their issue right then. They had to unite everybody. They have to unite everybody with their other Jewish friends. So they can do the opposite of what? the opposite of what Ham accused them of of when he said when he tricked he saidar the Jewish people are scattered they are disunified they he says to this is their weakness and of course what happens Esther then turns around and says to bring them together so says the reason for is not to give people food. It's to show people that you care, to show people that you love them, to show people that you want to connect to them. So if you want to give them some beautiful bedlinining and then matav how lovely. You don't have to give them food. It's not for the suda. It's to show that you appreciate them and they think of you. And by the way, I always try to make an effort. May my rebim advised me of this that when you give Mishl Manasty or whoever you give to on Purim, don't just give to your friends who you know all the time and you see all the time and they say, "Ah, that's nice." They know that you like them because they're your friends. And don't just give them the candies that you just got from the last people that you're trying to shove up, you know, you know, you know, whatever. And so it's like when the music stops, whoever at the end of Purum is left with a bag of candies that they have to throw out with them, you know, whatever. So always try, I was told, always try to find somebody that will feel a sense of surprise and warmth when they receive a gift from you. They never thought that you even knew they existed or that you cared. Somebody that'll be surprised and moved to to know that you love them because that is really what it's all about. It's about unity. And if you look here in number five, the Gomorrah migillah, very very interesting story. Rabi Yehuda Nia, Rabbi Yehudhuda Nia was the grandson of Rabuda Nasi or the great-grandson. He was a Nazi. He was a very rich man. He was the president of Israel effectively. Shelby, he sent Rebi Oshia, one of the Tanimma. He sent a leg of a very choice uh calf, very nice piece of meat. and a bottle of wine. Very nice for poor for and he got a note back from Rabenu Rabenu. You have fulfilled the mitzvah of matim. Meaning that's what you call a gift from the president of Israel. Aickle flesh and a bottle of bartura. You know like what? Okay, that's nice if the people down the road give me that. You're the president of Israel. You can't just give that to somebody and say, you know, that's enough. So he got the message. He got the message. He said back to him, an entire calf of meat and three bottles of wine. And then he got a note back from him. Oh, that's what I call. Okay. Meaning it it has to make sense. It has to make an impression on the other person. um a a a perfectly reasonable normalsiz gift from a very wealthy person is less exciting than the same gift from a less wealthy person. And therefore again the Gmorra is is stressing the fact it's not just about giving something. It's the impression and the feeling that that has on the person who receives it. That's very very important. And if you look in the number six says You have to send to your friend two portions. Two portions of meat. Two portions of something else. Plural portions to your friend. Now he says meat. He says food. Like the two portions to one person. Okay. If you send some more friends, okay, good. You can give as many as you like. If you don't have really any food, so you'll switch with your friends. Clearly, he passes like the trumas. Okay, even though the waskenazi and of course was he, he often passes like the truma and he says it has to be food because really it's for the suda. comes along the ram the Ashkanazi and Pascans like alabets the okay let's have a look the beyond the okay that's a different point you should give by day all the mitzvah main are by day what if you sent to your friend who and he says no it's fine thank you I I I really appreciate it I don't want to receive it He says that's good. Meaning if you send to somebody and they say, "Oh, very sweet of you. Thank you. I have enough." And send it back. That's good enough. Why? Because he pascans like the mani that what matters. It's the thought that counts. It's not that they have what to eat. They have what to eat. Probably loves to eat. But they need to know that you're thinking about them. That makes the unity. The unity is made by the offer. He doesn't need to accept the gift. He knows that you made the offer as long as he's not going to insult the other guy by sending it back. It's done in a nice way. So that's that's the point here. The rema is passing that it's not really the focus on the food. The focus is on the reuses. The focus is on the friendship that it creates between them. And consider the following question. Um what about if you want to give anonymously? Here is your mishloas from a secret admirer. Okay. it doesn't really do the trick. It has to it has to connect two people together. Look at the following number seven says um the what if you ran out of the house and you were busy and you were uh you know you got a train out of town and you'd forgotten to give mash manus and it was you know you hadn't you just hadn't separated anything just just just completely went out of your mind. Can your family when they realize that you forgot to give manus say oh Abba forgot to give manas let's give let's send something down the road to his friend can they do that says the it doesn't work if someone gives from your family on your behalf that doesn't work it works maybe for because at the end of the Today Martan Levonim is for a different reason. We'll see. Mannus Levon we'll see right now is so that the poor people feel appreciated that they haven't been forgotten about. They don't care so much who gave the $20 that they got. They don't care really. They care they've got the money. They've got what they use for pes for it. But with it's not it's not right. If it's not personal, it's nothing. What what they got? They got a gift from you. You didn't even know you gave it. You'd forgotten to give it. So it doesn't it doesn't do anything. Okay, it's half. They they think that you like them, but you don't really because you forgot all about them. So So it only works if you gave it and and and they know you gave it. Maybe they don't want to receive it. That's fine. But you have to make rees between the people. And therefore is designed specifically to create this sense of of friendship of unity of of love between Jews and other Jews. And therefore it has to be it has to achieve that. Okay, that's what about says the it's better to give more money for it's better that you should spend more money on the poor than spend on the suda because you know you don't need more food. You've probably eaten plenty in the last few weeks for most people. And to give and to give to your friend. Again, giving to your friend, it just has to make the impression. It just has to create the bond. It doesn't have to be valuable. I mean, we saw with Rabier, if you're a very rich person and you give something which is not valuable, then it doesn't make the impression. But the point is you have to give the money to because the poor, they don't care so much about the sentiment. They need the cash. Okay? There's no better. There's no more beautiful to to to to make people happy. But who? Not just the poor. People who are missing their family. The almonus and people who are thinking of their loved ones who are no longer with them on a holiday that they remember. The gayim and gaim people who don't have family. Remember the the safer says Gaim in the mitzvah of loving Gaim doesn't just mean converts technical converts. Of course, it does mean them because they they have no family. Everybody's going to their cousins and their brothers-in-law and their sisters-in-law and Nebach all their family is non-Jewish, but it also means strangers, baluva, people who come to town, people from out of town, people who don't have a network and who are sitting thinking everybody's having fun, but we don't really know anybody. That's the people. They're the people you need to focus on. Why sh What's he useim? People who are down, unfortunate people, people who are a bit depressed. It's psychological. Then you're like, okay, God supports the the spirit of the lowly and those who are depressed. God supports those and therefore the central feature of is to make those people feel that not just that you like them they don't need to know who it comes from but that somebody's thinking about them that they haven't been forgotten about that they're appreciated I brought you in this very number n when you're eating and drinking you also have to give food Here they are again. People who are poor, people who are down. Someone who someone who shuts the doors of their courtyard of their front gate. And they eat and they drink. Who? The family and the children. That's beautiful. But the and he doesn't give food to the again always focused on the psychology. people who are down and bitter. That's not of that's a of your belly. You like drinking wine on because you like wine, not because of because that would be giving wine to other people and the feeding your own belly. It's just a disgrace. It's just, you know, so one has to think very carefully of this. I brought um I brought Rav Desler here. Number 10. That which a person gives to another is never lost. It is an extension of his own being. He can see a part of himself in the fellow man to whom he has given. This is the attachment between one man and his fellow to which we give the name love. Um I uh I know a young fellow who was learning in Yeshiva Baltouva many years ago. He had a lot of money. He gave a lot of stucker and he lost all his money in financial ruin. And he said the only money which I still have is the money which I gave to the stalker. That's the money I still have. The rest is lost. So the feeling that what he'd given was very much part of him. So that's yonim. We obviously have to focus on that as well. Okay. To make this sense of that the poor and the needy feel very much part of appreciated and part of tannis. Now what's with tannis coming up very soon. So of course we know number 11. We saw this before. There's a scattered people sleeping like as if they're asleep. Obviously, it means there is, but like it's like they're asleep. They're asleep walking through life. To which Esther said, bring together all the people make it. Make it. Now, this psalm of course was not in Adar. This was in Nissan. Another reason why nissa kalamay another reason was it because she went to on seda night. So they but they did it for three days it included yeah included yansf as well. Correct. So the um the point here is as follows. Have a look in number 13 number page three gather together all of the Jews. What is the purpose here? From here you learn says a midrash the main purpose of of a is the is bringing the people together. It's the unity of the people. And so it says says you get together a a fast and call stop to all the work is and gather everybody together. And of course you have to do this across the community. You can't just call a nifa and anes for your people and everybody else is left out and say it's an act of unity for clalis. We tend to do that a little bit these days in this in this country. we call anifa but it's only for you know you love the people who are just like you that's that's the joke that they make about people who are like me that's that's the unity of Israel but all the people it's the people who are not there you know that's the problem it has to be everybody together in order to be anifa looking number 14 Israel any which doesn't have the sinners with them ain't nois that's not ais because look at the had a terrible stink this terrible smelling odorman but it's part of the meaning on its own it stinks it's terrible but together with the it makes the without terrorist is not valid. Okay, so you can decide based on your community which are the people you think are the stinkers, you know, that are poche Israel. Okay, these people think that those guys are the poche Israel and those people think that these guys are the poet. I don't care who you think the poche Israel are. You know, they've all got to be there. Everybody's got to be there. And and that's the you know the oldfashioned you know the the idea means it has to be all the people there said the word s is from the word sama sama is a braid yeah in modern Hebrews summit at summit is an intersection where every where the roads all come together like this that's because it braids together individual pieces into one unit says that's why is called a s because it is an interweaving of different parts of Kalis Israel in a way that they don't normally get together and they have to get together for the tong. So the purpose of talisa is unity. It's not a sad fast. Talis Esa is not there's nothing unhappy about talisa. It's not it's not about the bdash. It's a happy fast. It's a play music and dance around the street fast. But it has to be a a tannis or a psalm in which we somehow reach out to other people in the Jewish people who we don't normally reach out to and bring the Jewish people together. That is tannis esta. Look at sudas purim. Okay, we all know what sudis purim is. You sit, you eat, you drink and you uh do stick. Okay, no it's more than that. Number 15, these days says the says the will be remembered will be will be performed and remembered for all eternity. All the families will be gathered together these days. The purim will never leave the Jewish people. They generate it children. The descendants will never forget them. What does mean? Why does it add? So look at Rash number 16. We gather together again. You can sing later. Okay. That's what they accepted on themselves. It's not just that they remembered, they accepted they'll never forget a malik and they'll always drink wine, but there'll always be and they'll always gather. And therefore, the stress that Rashi puts on the is the unity bringing people together at the table who don't normally uh eat together or be together. Um that's very important. McGillis Esther, what's the purpose of McGillis Esther? So, Pisa, but have a look number 17. says when you read the migilla on the 14th and the 15th you should try and find 10 10 people meaning you don't need 10 people it's not laning it's not it's not a dasha that needs a minion you can you can read mcgilla on your own if you have a claf and you know what you're doing and you have someone to help you read it you can read it on your own but you should try for A million says the mission of 18 or traffic 10 not a million. The if at that time you have an opportunity if they're reading it down the road in the shore but you want to make a a reading in your house private mill reading reading. Even if you have a hundred people in your private home you shouldn't do that. take people to shul because when you get people the Jewish people together that gives more honor to for reasons we'll see very soon let's say your house is right next to the you can open your window and you can hear them like I don't even need to go to shaw I'll just sit on my armchair and open the window and I'll hear lying really and they have in mind to be me and they have in mind to be and no that's not right get out of your chair out of your house go to everyone agrees with this because of and it's not about a minion have a look at number 19 is a is a about um about um let's say someone needs to make a go because they've been in a dangerous situation or they want to give thanks. So you should get together 10 people to make a go because also because so look what he says what about women and the min is that women don't normally make this bra in the same way that men do and that's I think was true and still is when men come back from journeys on airplanes or whatever they they sometimes make depending on who you follow women don't do that women do it in certain situations they give birth or they've been in a dangerous situation Um I used to always be somebody who uh Benj coming back from an an airplane journey but then I went to live in Alen and they're all kind of raising their eyebrows because they follow up sack that like plane travel these days is not perfectly safe but it's not something which is in the same road >> it's safer than driving on the roads and if you if you don't bench when you go from the then so but I say you know something I bench it's okay leave me alone And everyone used to go okay whatever. In the last two years the all the guys who were benching go were 21 year old guys who've just done three months in Gaza like facing kamas. So they're going to bend and everyone's like I'm going to stand up and bench go because I came on delta from from I felt like I completely felt like a total fraud standing up for benching go. So I don't bench go anymore. Okay. I followed it from saga. So but I you know but nevertheless one should uh one should bench go on the certain situations that are posing in the same complaints. But look here for women. The reason the the women or men will bench go the reason women are less likely to do it says the is it should be in front of a group and it's and women sometimes feel uncomfortable gathering groups of men to start saying hakl or standing up in shul. That's why he thinks it's not done. He doesn't say it's osa. He said it's not done because women don't feel comfortable. But there are those that write but she should get a bunch of 10. I'll come why do you have to get 10 men? Let her She feels uncomfortable with 10 men. Let her bring 10 women and bench go the and one man. And there's a whole debate as to why you need one man. Does it mean it should be 10 women and a man or 10 women or a man? But let's leave the man out of it for now. And I brought you on the top of page four a an analysis of the the Shami tiger with the Hilas Purim. And he says as follows if if 10 women want to read McGill reading for each other for a women's migill reading that's not considered inappropriate. That's not the same as you might argue that a women's laning or about which we had all these class with all these discussions of say it's not the same thing at all. This is why the reason why is because it's there's no relevance to it's not because you need a minion. It's nothing to do with a minion. The reason you're reading the migill and trying to get 10 people is to spread the good news, spread excite people, get people into Purim, that they love Purim, that they understand Purim, that they're grateful on Purim. about why do you need 10 men for that? You could get 10 women for that. It's nothing to do with a minion and many postk will rule the 10 women can certainly have a reading and can make the braha afterwards without it says oh you can only say this no you can this is not a you can only say this if there's with 10 people so 10 men 10 women what difference does it make so there is a very interesting discussion about that again about the idea of making Jews happy just because they know it's pur and it's very interesting many many years ago I uh we were living in London and my wife went down the road on pur morning to give a schlaf manus to an Israeli woman that we didn't really know we pass in the street whatever non-observant Israeli woman and she went to deliver schlak manus which is very nice because exactly like I said you know find people that did so she knocks on the door and the woman opened the door my wife was there I don't know dressed as a banana or something like that it's very very very unusual okay actually my son was born a week after Poorman that year she went as a pregnant nun. I'm not sure that's necessarily the best costume, but we were young. We were young and uh and foolish back in those days. But um she the woman said like hello. My wife said, "Hi, I've come to bring you a gift." She said, "Why?" She goes, "It's purin." So the woman starts crying. She goes, "It's purin. I didn't know it was purin. How did you how did how was I meant to know it was purin? She's not observant. She's not she doesn't she's not part of a community. She doesn't have the the the rhythm of of of a of of a cahila in Israel. She knew when Purim was because on the radio, on the television, the Porima Purima, she starts crying. She goes, "I love Purim. I would have got my children dressed up." It's a very interesting case study in what often happens to secular Israelis when they come to either they become bala and they join a cahila which they never felt the need to do in Israel or they just drift away and they assimilate and they become part of the general population which is very interesting because again means the bringing Jews together making sure everybody knows men women that it is purim and what purim means okay the last couple of ideas purim and kabala satra again a very important Unity idea number 21 says the migill. Now you'll know immediately you'll see immediately from the wording kiblu is a creek. It's written in the singular but it's pronounced in the plural that they established and they accept it etc etc. So the Gomorrah in number 22 Gmoran Shab is talking about Matra says that they this was just a couple of weeks ago in the para that they gathered at the bottom of the mountain that Hashem held the mountain over their heads could be translated as underneath the mountain. obviously shines by the bottom of the mountain and it says and he said to them if you accept the Torah then it'll go well for you and if not that you'll die here you'll die there if you don't accept the Torah and you march into Israel and we're living as a secular people ain't going to work for you you're just going to assimilate you're not going to you're not going to have connection. You're not going to you're not going to pass it on to your children. So you choose if you're going to accept the Torah that's going to be your success. So good. So they were slightly coerced as it were the mountain was above them midrashically. You know how could they say no? They've just been through the 10 m and and yams. Well, you that's a choice. That's not a choice. Who's going to say no? So too nevertheless they reaccepted it willingly at the time of they reaccepted it. They reaccepted what they had previously accepted. But the whole point is it's the it's the singular key move. And you wouldn't miss that if you weren't looking at the poset because look at 23 in the leadup to Mat Torah. You have plural plural midbar plural and they count singular singular. The Jewish people singularly count. >> Okay. And Rashi says that's the point. So when you when you read kimu immediately in your mind you're meant to think ah kiblu is pronounced plural and is written singular just like van is singular and not plural the Jewish people were together they as one person as it were they count at the at the arena and they repeated that unity on uh on purin and we've given shirim in the past here and and not here but back in the other place um and uh on the idea idea of Purim as as a new cabalis Torah as the oral law of the Jewish people accepting the responsibility of actually getting into the interpretation of the Torah and deriving it in their own way. That's why Purim is the end of prophecy. We had a whole she about this talks a lot about this. Esther Esther was the end of prophecy. She was the last of the prophets. Okay already there was no there was no because after Esther the Jewish people stepped up and said okay you know something end of prophecy we we're ready to accept it now we're ready to do says that when God originally offered the Jewish people the Torah he said to them okay it's a package deal there's which I'm doing for you and there's pair which you've got to do for yourselves and the Jewish people pushed against that n I don't want to it's hard work and I don't like it it's an interesting question you know they accept nasma to say nas and Ishma they accepted so willingly so why did they have to be forced do they two madrashim go together we always quote them both but don't realize they contradict each other this says that they accepted only under coercion and nasvish they were so willing so said it's obvious nasvishma was on will take yeah I can finish in like you know it's not so hard gam you want me to learn Yomi, you want me to learn Gamarra and Midrash and and and I can't do I'm not doing that. So God's constantly telling them, you know, no, you've got to accept and in the end they say no. So Hashem says, okay, you know, something have it your way. I'm going to send you Nim. You want to be spoonfed, I'll spoon feed you. So he then he says to them and is it like you know you're getting more you shouldn't be needing this. You should be able to do this for yourself eventually when stopped when the last Esther and Kag and and um Zakaria and >> Mali thank you had a brain freeze there. Malaki the last Nv which is the uh which is the sign off of uh of a prophecy. So then you end up with pro with with terab starts already from the moments of Purim that they're actually willing to do it for themselves. I mentioned before Purim and Khaneka are the are the celebrations of Shabbal Pere because Purim is focused on wine. Khanek is focused on oil and wine and oil are the only fruits that where we process them as human beings. We upgrade them in spirituality not downgrade them. If you take an orange an orange is a beautiful creation. It's braver prehates. If you squeeze it and squish it to pieces okay I mean that's not what God created orange juice. But grapes, a grape is bravery. But you squeeze it and process it upgrades a go. How did you upgrade it? Because that represents to the human input in interpretation increases kadusha. Olives is interesting. The garra discusses in in brahas. What braha would you make on olive oil if you drank it just as a drink? It's a bit bitter, but you mixed it with something and drank it as a drink. So it it says well really you should make brahaziet because like wine you it's olive represents an upgrade but you can't say brahaziet because the word z is is unclear because ziet is the word for the tree and a z is a word for the fruit whereas with grapes the the tree is called a gean and the grapes called an you know an aim or whatever and uh and therefore you you don't have the uh the unclarity. So in the end we make breaker on olives but not shak on olive oil rather but not shak we still make bro priates so usually you don't make a bro on olive oil because you put it on your salad and it's like just a toy or or you drink it because of your throat whatever but the point here is that purim is this acceptance this which has to come from unity just like Sinai came from unity let's finish off with a few thoughts on the the mirroring of the unity of amrael in order to connect us with hakesh bar okay let's look at There's a story of a nonjew. He comes to sh says to him, "Teach me the whole Torah and convert me, but teach me the Torah while I'm standing on one leg." Okay, the guy's a nudnik. This whole uh dapgamora is a gammorra of different stories of nutnikim that come to hillel and shamai and hillel never ever loses his patience. All the stories there they came on of shabas when hill was in the shower and they scream is hill home is hill home and he comes with a towel on his head like what what what was an emergency and they're asking silly questions the bab why do babalonians have square heads you know and and and he won't lose his patience one of them even bets with the other one on the garra. Yeah, there that I bet you like $200 that I'll get him to lose his patience. And the guy gets angry with Hill. I've lost $200 because of you. And he said, "Better you should lose your money, but I should not lose my patience." Hill therefore was always patient. Shamai is a different story. Shamai is very nice. I mean, he's a smiley person. Remember Shamai is the one that says in always smile at other people before you they smile at you. Like you're never fully dressed without a smile. That's basically so. But but you can't ask him silly questions. You can't be a nunik. You know, there are certain professors or rabbon. They're very nice people, but you know, you don't ask silly questions because you'll get a sharp response. Okay. So, Shami says, "Get out of here." Okay. Says, "You pushed him out with a building ruler." Now, why is Shamai holding a building ruler? Is he a builder? Maybe it's because he's kind of midraically saying, "You don't measure up. There's millions and millions and millions of books to read. I'm going to do this in 25 seconds. So balik hill he comes to hill Gary of course he converts him he's always hil accepts everybody that by the way is the reason why every student house on campus is called hillel not sharma I'm serious it's so that every weird nutnik student can go there and feel that they have a safe space and they'll be with friends and they'll be accepted it's mish this it's this reason so but what did he say to him that I'm um I'm a liar. And he says to him, "Okay, here's the Torah in 20 seconds. Whatever you don't like, don't do to other people." That is the whole Torah. The whole Torah is about not mistreating other people. The rest is a small prince and go and learn it. Meaning you have to do all the God stuff and all the Shabba stuff and all the rest of it. All the ritual stuff. Very important. But the core of the Torah is the way you treat other people. If you're not someone who is considerate and kind to other people, you cannot make any claim to be a religiously authentic person. You can walk the walk, you can talk the talk, but you can't be the real thing. So again, the unity of the Jewish people of people generally is absolutely fundamental to their connection to God. The God stuff will come, but the unity has to go first. That's what he says to him. Look at the basic POS number 26. What could be clearer than you have to have for other people? Look at what the mid says number 27. Who is your friend? It's Hashem means you have to develop love for God in God is your friend and the friend of your fathers. So what does that mean? It means that through doing the mitzvah with other people, you will do vertically with Hashem. It has to come that way and with other people has to come first and then that will be the love that is developed between us and the Jewish people. I brought you this beautiful this week's para coming up right now. The making of the Mishka number 28, the love of God for the Jewish people is like the love of a father for their child. How strong is this? But that's not the image that we create in the mikdash. We needed to represent this love in a stronger way than just our father and a child. We wanted to represent the greatest love there is which is can have no intermediary. A parents love for their children can be done through an intermediary that can send them something etc. But but not a love of a of of a man and a woman for who it's it's where of young people young men and women when they have this enormous this incredible passionate love for each other. says, "Love the the wife of your youth." That passionate love we have to know therefore God's love for us is such an enormous with no with no intermediary. He's talking about the are two young people, a man and a woman embracing each other. That's the image of God's love for the Jewish people. with the rest of the nations of the world. God loves them. God loves the non-Jewish nations as well. But there's a a system. They don't have the same hash. There's a there's a system of uh cause and effect. The God loves the whole world, but they they don't have a direct relationship. When he was telling the He has to give you this of the that is the connection that we have um with God. And of course this is a whole different sh but this is the we we make that creation through learning Torah as well. The kruvim are the entryway to theim. Just like in Ganaden that the krim are stationed outside the garden of Eden to show us the way home, show us the way back to the Torah with this rotating metal sword which the nitiv says every now and then we get a little glimpse of Ganeden as a reflection in this metal going round. That's how we can see inside Ganeden. So too, the Kruim are there to announce the way to the Torah. There on top of the Torah, but it's represented with incredible, incredible love. And therefore, the love of the Jewish people and uh and God is created through their love for each other. Look at number 29. That what just giving a herring to another person is even greater than communing with the Almighty. says to God and all the ask how can Abraham just just leave this uh this incredible prophecy this intimate moments of connection with God to go and serve dinner just wait here God and I'll be back when I've served dinner and Rabovitz told us I remember in K says that the connection with a human being is an even stronger connection with God it's not that I'm breaking They're at Eloim. I can have a much more real bond with God through bonding with the Salem Eloim in another person than I can from having this unbelievable transcendental experience which is great but how how bonding can it be people you can bond with people and you can see that Salameloim and that's why Ara is not breaking off from God. Ara is saying I can connect with God even more intensely if I go and treat these people with food. Um looking at number 30 alma the fillin of God meaning not that obviously God has fillin but if God were to wear fillin as it were what would be written in this filling well what's written in fill the oneness of God what's written in his fill art represent the oneness of God's fillin as it were if there were words filling would represent present the oneness of the Jewish people because at the end of the day they're all connected. If you look in number 31 the isu the zah says that at the end of the day the namas of the Jewish people the spirit the nama of the tora and uh and the the the essence of God himself um are all connected in a deep and and unbreakable way. And therefore I leave you with those thoughts on Purim that really the focus of Purim is to unite in very specific ways. Giving gifts to other people that show your love for them. Giving gifts to the poor. Getting family together for Suda etc. uh and together we will create the unity please God that will take us into Pesak um and lead to a shalom for the Jewish people. I'm having fun.