Rising Sparks | Rabbi Aaron Goldscheider | December 17th 2025

And uh it's very very beautiful to uh to be together this morning. You know, one of the things that they say about Kaneka that we say is part of the we say that one of the things that the Greeks wanted to do was uh to affect the Jewish people in such a way that they would forget the Torah that they would not be studying Torah. Many of the edicts uh that they put in place made it difficult for the Jewish people to study. So one of the beautiful ways of of observing the days of Kaneka is to study Torah is to uh to be engaged in the study of Torah. So it's beautiful especially this week as people are uh people tend to be busy and family events and everything that's going on to take the time to study Torah at this time is really uh very very beautiful and uh it's just to be together to do that this morning. Let me just announce the uh the sponsor. We have sh for the week of Kaneka which are dedicated to the memory of Jakob Abese and Elazar bin Khas Abraham Hakohen whose yard sites are N rael Kaneka by Rivki Rosenberg and J Shapiro and this morning's learning is also dedicated loving memory of Usher Zelica Akoen Zelig Eisenberg who passed away on the third day of Kaneka by Rifki and Sammy Mark and the sheer one other dedication and this is a regular dedication for our year of learning is okay beautiful. So those are our sponsors and our learning should be leoy nisham. Um we continue now with our learning of the safer called midoay which are the character traits that RVuk focuses on and um muser teachings teachings that relate to how uh how in a very practical way in a very real way that we can enhance our spiritual lives and our relationship with Hashem relationship to one another. Adam and I was looking especially this uh for this year today. I wanted to find something that would relate to Kaneka. Uh the safer mida have 18 different mido that Rkook teaches and uh one uh stood out in my mind as I kind of went through the list of the 18. And actually it's a it's a cabalistic idea but we're going to bring it uh we're going to bring it down to earth. The uh the name of this uh this mida is what's literally it means to um to bring up to elevate so sparks elevating sparks. Now I would say that's a bit out of the ordinary for a uh for a muser work and talking about midot certainly not one that comes to mind when I think about midot in terms of character traits that we are to uh to elevate and to work on. What does that even mean? And it's one of the topics. It's one of the 18 topics that is that's found in this work. So literally the words and again so when I saw that I thought of I thought of Kaneka I thought that would be appropriate for Kaneka are sparks and we're you know we're we're lighting the candles we're lighting the lights of Kaneka kindling the lights. So a nit so it's a spark I thought would be appropriate but it it doesn't have a direct relationship to Kaneka per se even though we'll see as we'll move towards the end of the the year this morning that it'll relate to something a particular minhug that we have on Kaneka that we'll get to. So, so one of the areas that the Cababala speaks about and certainly I'm not a uh I'm not a Bucky or that knowledgeable in this area is in the in the way that a Jew eats. We're going to talk about eating, which is really a fascinating topic, something that we enjoy doing as Jews. Um, and when we eat that, we should eat in a way in which we are lifting up the sparks. Okay. So, you know what? Let us go right into the words of RV cook and we'll see. And I think for many of us and for me as well, that's that's that's a new idea. I mean, that's a that just the language to speak about raising sparks in the the act of eating um is something that is uh that's a new idea. So let's take a look at RV cook. So this is in mida the section it's peace v and uh there's a translation below of this piece as well. Um so we can we can make use of that um if we like. So here I'm going to read we can all follow along and we learn the piece from cook. So when we eat in a way that is a measured way of eating and in holiness, it sanctifies a person in the world and it brings joy to life. So [snorts] when you think of a kdish in shul, so do you think of eating in mida with measure and in a holy way? Is that what come is that come to mind when people uh have the kittish after shul? Maybe or maybe not. But Ravkuk says that when we eat, we should think about eating in a measured way and we should think about eating in a holy way. And when we do that, it sanctifies a person and it brings joy to life. And then he writes the following. But when we are sad, when we are depressed, often that brings a person to eating beyond the uh a measured way of eating and then eating becomes something that's heavy, right? Something that's uh that's not uplifting. It brings even a certain anger and we give up. Now here this is now we get into the cabalistic language virim and by the way if you look at the the translation below they translate this as holy sparks but beurim is like the word borer what is bo rare like on chabas the mitzvah that's right it means to to extract so we have an isra on chabas of extracting the the bad from the good so in other words extracting the positive element of of of eating it goes to a darker place and a shama now becomes sad. It saddens us. So there are two ways of eating. there's eating in which we can uplift the act of eating and I think again in a simple way I think there are deeper ideas what it means the uh the raising of the sparks but for um you know for for for myself and in order to to understand this and and to bring it to uh on a level that I think we can all appreciate so it means that we have the option when we eat to bring that eating to a place that is sacred that we sanctify eating that it's something that's that's uplifting Or it can be an eating that is that's negative, an eating that's very physical or even animalistic. But he says even if you eat in a way that is uh that's not the ideal way of eating, we can so at the end of the day we could bring it to a place of of joy. Ravkuk is always finding, you know, the positivity and the potential. Even if we didn't eat as in in a way that's an uplifting way, spiritually uplifting, we can find a way to kind of turn that around to and with that deeper understanding of the heart. Okay? We can always find the good. We can always bring out the light and the positivity even when we ate in a way that's not an ideal way of eating. And nevertheless, the next time that we eat that we engage in eating, we should do it in a way that is sat sacred that's sanctified. And he quotes a from to eat that we satisfy our soul that we're not overeing. It shouldn't be with an overindulgence, but it should be with mida in a measured way. It should be in a way that is uh that is sanctified. It should be in a joyful way. But it shouldn't be with sadness that we're eating and and you know there that we're we're reaching for that pint of ice cream because we're depressed and somehow we feel that that's going to assuage that sadness. It should be in a with positive with positivity and in this way we uplift and again he uses this is really a cabalistic term beim which means again they he translates it here as the holy sparks be meaning extracting from that eating from that act of eating to extract that which is positive in a way that's straight in a way that's not uh translates below in a in a roundabout way. Okay. So, what do we have here? I think we have something that is relatively a simple idea which is really very also a very prof profound idea and that is how do we eat as Jews? You know, I was just in America last week and um I was in a home where on a sun what do you do on Sunday in America? By the way, Sunday's not a work day for those that to remember the the good old days, right? Sunday was not is that but what do you what do you do on Sunday? So there are three football games back to back to back, right? And you you watch about seven to nine hours of football. And what do you do? You don't you didn't do that, but a a lot of people do that in America. That's what they do on Sunday. And but and what do you do when you're watching football for many hours? You're eating, right? There's and you're order there's pizza and there's beer and there's and that's that's that's the experience of you know of eating of of of what it what it means to uh to have a Sunday for millions of Americans that's that's what they're doing on a on a Sunday the way that they're eating. So Judaism and Rif Cook says that Judaism has a very different way of thinking about eating and that is how can we extract in other words it is a physical act other words we are eating right which is a physical act that's that's the material world but how do we extract how do we bring to that experience or how do we take from that experience the holy sparks this is the language of cabala that there are holy sparks in other words there is potential to lift up that experience again This is, you know, using kind of that that allegory of sparks. And I was thinking about the idea of sparks. What does it mean sparks? Sparks are something that they they you know it they're not easy to uh to grasp. In other words, they're something that they kind of like fade away. They're just the sparks that come from that fire and they fade away. In other words, you can easily miss out on extracting the beauty and the sanctity of eating. Okay. So that is uh that that is how Rkook speaks about and the cabala as well the language of the cabala how they speak about the uh the the act of eating and I'll just read one more um one more short excerpt from in the same section of the where he also speaks about eating this is gimmel the bottom of the page and here he uses that language the language of these holy sparks that's found within eating. He says that the way that we eat also relates to really every area of life and in every area of life. The question is how do we lift up the sparks? How do we find the the potential the positivity and the spirituality in everything that we do? Oo means in all of our actions at in all of our in all of our talkim in everything that we're involved in. So here it sounds like Rav Cookook is referring to really a very holistic life that we are living that in everything that we do in in all of our interactions in all of in our professional life in the way that we speak in the things that we and that we're always looking to uplift to sanctify to bring kaduca to uh to to to those engagements and that's true in eating as well every time that we eat that we eat in a way and by the way this is I would say this is a very high level of uh of eating. In other words, that we're eating in a way that there's that there's sanctity in that eating. And the way that we bring that holiness to every area of life, we then are to bring that to our experience of eating as well. Okay. There was a I answered too. Yes, please. Uh they I thought that the examples that you gave were all very physical >> emotion talk. Um >> yeah to elevate the physical. >> That's right. It's really about right. It's elevating the physical. And here in this piece he says the more that we do that in our life. So that also is true in the area of eating as well. The way that we engage in the physical act of eating that we are to find the spirituality in that. Okay. Yes please. wants to say that making >> ah okay excellent excellent so so how do we do this now Rafuk doesn't write he doesn't spell out how this is done you got cabalistic idea Rafuk is speaking about is speaking about this idea as well that when we eat when we engage in a in eating every time that we eat ideally that we are uplifting the sparks that we are making that an uplifting experience as we eat so how do we do that so I think the hala gives us a a context for that or gives us a formula of how we uplift our eating. I think a great example of that as you just mentioned is that we're making a braha before we eat something. So we have uplifted that's already uplifting this experience of taking a cup of coffee and that we're already we're thanking God that we recognize for that you know those few seconds that this is a gift from Hashem. So that's one and then after eating mazone so we have it on both sides. We also have, you know, certainly like at a meal that the Mishna speaks about the importance of of dra Torah, right, of sharing words of Torah. And so we have within this again just to kind of that contrast to the way describing a Sunday afternoon of sitting in front of, you know, the TV and watching football and eating and the way that a Jew eats every time that we eat, just going to a coffee shop, right? is going to the cafe and they were making a braha beforehand. They were making a braha afterwards that within that meal as well that ideally you know to to bring words of Torah we have uplifted sparks those those potential that's found within something that's very physical and something mundane that we have now uplifted that experience. That's a you know that's a that's a profound it's a profound idea and a profound way of eating of kind of like changing the um you know the whole act of eating that it's not anim animalistic it's something that is that can be sacred. Yes, Har. >> So, I was just thinking also to reinforce what you said. Um, when you look at the food, assuming you're not having bread, you're thinking now what are you having? >> Nice. Very nice. That's right. Right. Often we have to take them out, right? >> Yes. Yes. So I think I think that's a um it's a very very beautiful idea and a beautiful way of of um of engaging in an act that can be a very that can be a physical act and often it is and it's not always not always easy you know to to kind of reach that level that the act of eating is is a becomes a sacred act becomes a an act of kaduca as well. So, what I'd like to share with you are three examples, maybe a fourth example as well of of this idea of uplifting the sparks of taking an act of eating and making it a more sacred act of eating. And um with three which I think were or three yeah three areas that we may not be as familiar with. Okay. So, if you want to turn to page two, I'd like to look at the following. There is a which is called there's really one word for it. It's called toameha. Does anybody by a show of hands how many people are familiar with a halaka which is called toameha. Okay. Interesting. So it's become a very popular or minhug. We'll see in a moment. And that is eating that is done of the food that's being prepared for shabas. That one tastes one eats food from the food that is being prepared for shabas. So look at the following. This is Shabas and it begins with a way and the this is the how we begin our day on Friday and our preparations for Shabas. It says it says Shabbat how we are to prepare our sudas for Shabas. And the first shabas. So when you get up on Friday, Friday morning, and I think all of many of us can appreciate this here, especially in Israel, that Friday is a day already from the morning, right? As we're getting up, we're we're we're preparing for Shabas. And the says this is what one should be doing on Friday. As soon as you get up in the morning, the first thing that you should be engaged in are the preparations for Shabas. The Mishaburu writes the following. Look at the mishaburum. This is number two. Two words or three words in where it says mitzvah mitzvah the air of Shabbat writes the in the mission bur that there's a mitzvah to taste all of the foods on air of shabas that you're preparing for shabas. Has anybody ever heard of this or done this? So let me tell you the following which is really fascinating. were you to go to like a bar mitzvah or to an event in like Muny or Lakewood and they'll give out like the schedule of like davening and like over a bar mitzvah whatever it may be. So on Friday afternoon 5:00 it'll say toameha. Now to from the word tam to taste and we'll see that that's quoted in a moment in the in the mission bura that there's a mitzvah and again I'm just I'm reading the words of the m of the mission bura mitzvah that there is a mitzvah to taste of shabasan to make sure that they're prepared properly for shabas >> what >> do they put out >> what do they put out they actually put out food. It's become again this is I I don't I I don't remember hearing this or that people were doing this like 20 30 years ago somehow in the last like 10 years or whatever. So and there are shs actually that are doing this as well that they're putting out cougal that there's as as you're coming to shul on on Friday afternoon before shabas that food is already available. Now the question is if that is what >> the opposite >> right >> ah very good excellent excellent so so this is yeah this is like this is what's interesting about this halaka now the question is does it mean that you're supposed to be eating before shabas I mean really eating now it's really tasting now there's the idea that you're supposed to be tasting before shabas but somehow it's like it has like grown it you know it grown to this like idea of of actually having food that food is available before shabas for eating. >> Yes. >> That seems to that also opens up a whole subject of >> quantity. What do you make before such a little >> after such a small >> Okay. So that Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yes. No. No. Those are all Yeah. >> Yes. What? We never we didn't want to be flat. [laughter] >> Okay, that's another issue. All right. So the ala says and again a lot of people this is the mission brewer writing I'm reading I'm reading to you the mission burer which again has become sort of is one of these that people for whatever reason were they were not observing that has now become very popular again says take a look at the That having a taste from all them is certainly a mitzvah based on what we say in the ding that those that taste that they'll be z to life to a long life. So what is this idea of tasting? So the basic understanding the basic understanding which the mission buru says is that the food should taste good. In other words, that there's an obligation to taste it beforehand so that when you serve the food on chabas itself that you know you've tasted it. So it sounds like a very practical reason but then the and the mystics kind of step in and say that there's really more to it and that is that you are anticipating Shabas. In other words, to taste it at this point before Shabas is already it's an act of of love for the Shabas. anticipation anticipation for Shabas and also Friday afternoon has a little bit of shabas is already some of the on shabas the joy and the spirituality of shabas already begins to enter at that point how do we know that if you look at as you may be familiar with what do you say >> well you have kabala shabas beautiful and even before cababala shabas in mka on shabas there's one thing that we leave out in the dvening mka air of shabas it's still weekday it's still the mkha We don't say tan now which we say all week long but on Friday afternoon we don't say takan. Why are we not saying takan? It's not shabas yet. What's the answer? The answer is is already a little bit right a little bit of that taste of shabas in the afternoon that anticipation for shabas maybe even a little bit of the overflow of shabas that already enters into Friday afternoon. So what do we have here? Here we have an idea. Here we have a very beautiful idea of an eating which is an eating that's a spiritual eating a tasting that's a spiritual tasting that we are to taste the food of Shabas and this is if anybody needs like an excuse like to come in and and have a little piece of schnitzel beforehand and you if you can't wait so actually according to the you are doing a mitzvah it's actually a mitzvah to do that now the question is what again interesting that none of you haven't really been exposed to this but this has become very very popular. The question is how is it done? Is it being done in a way that you're eating all this cougle or having a scotch before shabas and is that would you say that's raising the sparks of in the food? Is that is that elevating the experience or not? So that's the question and that's exactly I think the point that Rkook and this idea of how are we eating? Are we eating in a way that we taste the food and there's anticipation and we're about to enter Shabas and we want the the food to taste just right on Shabas and now becomes a mitzvah at this point to taste it or do we turn it into something that's that's really not elevating and we're eating a lot and we're just you know having this kgle and all this stuff that doesn't really doesn't really elevate the shabas. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So has be done right. Yes, please. My mother-in-law recipes every Eric Shabas she would invite all of the children and grandchildren for kegle and she made something else a few things. Yeah. >> And the whole family all the kids and grandkids came to Bobby's air of shabas >> and they were eating. Yes. Yeah. And that was very elevated because we were with Bobby and >> Very nice. A lot of homes are doing this today that there'll be like a cougle something to eat before Shabas as well with a little bit of a taste of Shabas. >> Yes. Okay. So this is called toama. So take a take yeah keep your eyes open for that. You might see it. Yes. It hasn't really come to Israel. I don't know if it's like come to our simp >> particularly among families who are shabbat that they don't go to sata on Shabbat. >> That's right. >> And I when I saw that I thought in our house we didn't eat a major meal at lunchtime so that we should have >> appetite for Shabbat food and here they are having Shabbat. >> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. >> Very nice. >> Very nice. No, but that's No, no, no. The food that's exactly it. The food that's prepared for Shabbat is special food. And by fat, again, this this custom very popular in the world of having a little bit of a taste of it beforehand that we're anticipating Shabas. I want to bring that holiness into into those the few minutes of the hour air of Shabas as well. Okay, that's that's one idea to Ameha. I would say that's a it's a it's an idea of of lifting uplifting the sparks of taking food and using it in a way engaging in a way that it becomes a very spiritual experience. Um a second example that I want to share with you is um is is also fascinating. It's a it's a braha and we spoke about this actually those that have been uh that have been with the class for a bit. It's a bra that's added to that's called which is the blessing that's recited by if you are a guest at somebody's home that you give a blessing to the host. Now I would also interesting to this law was was not really people were not talking about it or really observing this law of to I would say this is also an example of a hala that many were not observing that has be sort of like made a comeback that people are are mocked to observe today. So I want to just read to you from the Rambam. Uh so the Rambam writes and this is found in as well. This is source number three. If you are a guest at somebody else's meal, if if you're at somebody else's table for a meal, this is during the week, but I would say often this happens over shabas or on yub where we're invited. So what should you do? should add a particular bra for the and what is that and this is the beginning of the bra and he just says he you kind of have to know the gamarra for the remainder of this but it's a special that's given to the now it's more than just saying it's a it's a paragraph it's a paragraph in which we give blessing to the I just want to add one more I'll take your comment the says the Rambam you can also add your own words to it this we don't usually find especially when we have we're very careful about text but the Rambam says when it comes to this braha so you can add your own words to the braha I was at two this week actually this is you were there as well so I find it interesting whenever I I take a benture I check if they if they have this braha because a lot of the old bentures didn't didn't did not include it right a lot of people have not seen it I pointed out then the are you familiar with the NCSY venture there was like a classic venture known as the NCSY venture which had like 30 40 songs in the back they added songs which was really nice and it was like a nice convenient way yet you had all the songs um in the first edition of that that came out I don't know either the 70s or in the 80s it did not have this braha what's known as the braha of the but when they reprinted the benture like 10 years ago 5 10 years ago they included a lot of the old bentures do not have it people somehow were not reciting it also another halaka that made a comeback so this I was at a bar mitzvah this week in the beautiful bar mitzvah in Daniel and uh always check happy to bring it with me yes they have the bira it's right here and I was at another event uh this week actually my son's school they just opened a new building so they gave adventures and there they also had the what's interesting it was in it was it was in a different place in the the question is where do you say it here it said later after the arkammans in the other benture they had it right before all the arkams okay so what do we have here we have a very beautiful braha and that is that when you are sitting at a meal and you're at somebody else's home that you should make a special effort to give a braha to the host and that we include in the benture that goes back to the gamarra itself and as the Rambam says if you want to add your own language which is really a bit of a if you want to you he says if you want to add the and you have permission if you like you can add you can lengthen that with your own words and uh and give a bra so I would say This is another example and we'll see and I'll and I'll share with you just in a moment what RF cook has to say about this. Another example of how to bring kaduca to a meal. To bring kaduca to a meal is thanking those people that have provided the meal. And by the way, I would say that's that's on a regular basis as well. Whether it's to a wife or to a husband or whoever it is to it's a lesson of giving thanks while we're eating to give thanks to others. And that is another way of raising nits of of raising the sparks of sanctifying the experience of eating. Now I just want to share with you the following cook has a beautiful comment. He talks about this braha and then at the very end he kind of goes through each part of this the and at the very end he says that you don't necessarily need to be at somebody else's meal in order to think about the message of now what does he mean by that? And let's let's let me read the following. Here's the language of cook from however even if you're sitting yourself and you're having a meal yourself or with your family, you don't have you're not a you're not a guest at somebody sitting at a at a host at somebody else's table. You can still think about this concept of being a guest at a meal. Now, what does that mean to think about the fact that you are a guest at a meal? If you're just sitting and eating yourself or sitting at your table, how are you a guest at the meal? Who are you a guest of? That's right. What you are a guest of Hashem. That's right. In other words, Hashem has provided this meal for you. Now, that's a moment of what I would call what they use a modern term today, mindfulness. Yeah. >> Or to mindfulness or to use the Hebrew term which is kavana to have a particular kavana to take a moment when you're sitting and eating and your kavana is what a gift this is from hashem. Now again that's true of a braha that's true of mazone. It's true within the meal itself. A moment of mindfulness that this is a gift from Hashem. I'm sitting at my table but it's not really my table. This this home this table this food is all is all a gift from Hashem. It's all and let me just read to you the words of if a person thinks of himself for a moment that you're the right who's the boss who's who's in charge. So you can think of yourself as being in charge and have that enjoyment and to think for the moment. Yes, the joy that this is my table, this is my food. He says says it's not bad to think that. In other words, think this is yours. I worked hard for this. This is my home. This is my food. That's not a bad thing. But then you have to kind of lift yourself from that. If you think about that for a moment, momentarily, you think this is my food, right? This is my home. This is my table. Enrah. That's not such a bad thing. But now you got to like step aside from that and realize, you know what? All of this is a gift from Hashem. All of this is a gift from Hashem. That I have what I need, that I have a home, that I have food, that I have the ability to uh to purchase food and to have beautiful food. that he recognizes that I the truth is I'm just an orah and he lifts himself up to a much higher vision or purpose to the real to the true light of of life and the true light of life is to recognize that you're in as well says something very beautiful here and that is the idea of the technically yes when you're sitting at some by the way this is something that I highly recommend doing if you were a guest at somebody else's table, make sure to say this. I have a feeling many of us don't say it cuz I didn't grow up with it either. And it wasn't in many bentures. They actually said that the brisk ruv, he was the rv here in Shalim, it wasn't in any bent. So if some if he had guests in his house, what would he do? He would go to the shelf, he would take the gamarra because the gamarra had the tax and he would put the gamarra in front of the person, you know, who was who was benching because he wanted that person to say this braha. You want to receive that braha as well. We believe in the power of a braha. And how beautiful that is to receive it, but how beautiful it is to recite it and to give thanks in this way, in a very beautiful way with a whole text. And I don't know if anybody I've never tried this, but what the Rambam says, add your own words afterwards. Say the text and then continue with your own language. I don't know if I've never seen anybody do that, but that's what the Rambam what the Rambam writes. So this is elevating. This is talking about when it comes to eating. So now we have a meal that we're not just you know not just eating food but now it becomes a very a very spiritual a very uh a very beautiful endeavor. Yes please >> in the case where a guest is invited to lead benching or >> that's a very good question. That's a very good question. So some of the posts say that that it relates to the one who's leading the benching. Others like the orulhan writes it's everybody at the table. It's men and women. It's it's anyone who is a guest. And um when we learned that we actually we had a shar about this not that long ago. I forgot who it was. He was the Bach and I remember one of the uh one of the far one of the mafarim of the uh of the writes that any even a child at the table of parents should should say it as well that that you should give that same braha. So it's it's everyone. I think the custom is that everyone everyone says it. So if you're a guest meaning not just the person who's leading the benching right that's the question that you ask right? No, not just the person in the benching, everyone around the table and men and women that everyone can say this braha. So, take a take a look in your in your bencher and uh and and I I recommend reciting it. It's a beautiful way of enhancing >> no not in your own home. But again, I one opinion says that even children that are sitting at the table that they say it as well that they should give this braha. They're in a ra to some degree as well. They're guests in the house. They're being supported by their by by their parents. So they should give a braha to their parents as a way of uh by the way there's nothing wrong with giving a brah I mean a braha you can you can give so there's a lot of a lot of flexibility here. Yes please. >> I think the is always here. >> Yes. Yes. The spard it seems. >> One of the key differences. >> Yeah. Yeah. Very good. That you're saying the sparard have this that Yes. >> Yeah. Very good. The spardom it seems somehow in the Ashkana circles it it it became less popular or again it wasn't even printed in many of the ventures. I think the sparard do have this. So this is this is Yes. Did you want to make a comment? >> Say it out loud >> please. Oh do you say it out loud? Yeah. There are opinions that say Right. The question is how do you say it? Do you say it just in the way that you would you'd say it in like the rest of your benching? I did see that some some of the uh the post say it should be said out loud. In other words, that you raise your voice because you're giving a braha and you want the the host to hear this braha so that you kind of yes to say it a little bit louder. And I've seen when we have guests, it has become very popular, especially like yeshiva guys. They somehow they know this and all of a sudden they're all like starting like a little bit louder and they're giving this braha, you know, this one that which is really beautiful that they're all like giving me a braha, you know, for having them uh having them for for a meal. Okay. So that I think is another beautiful example of and a practical takeaway of what we would call again the cabalistic term to raise up the uh the sparks. In other words, to find the beauty and to find kaduca in the act of eating of a meal. And that's uh that's a wonderful thing to do. Okay. One other one other example and we're going to come to uh we're going to come to Kaneka. >> It's not on these sheets that >> braha is not on this sheet. I mean the it's if source number three the Rambam has the very beginning of it and then he says vulle he assumes that you kind of know the rest or you can kind of look up the rest of it. Okay. One other example which I think is is really um um really a beautiful example for all of us especially those that are living in the land of Israel and we'll see it in the following. So here this is from the tour or where he speaks about the bra of alika. If you look at source number five and I'll read to you where there's a question of the text of the alamya um what to recite in that text and he says look at the Hebrew side and you have it in translation it says in the text of the alamea that we eat of the pir of the fruit of Israel the we are satiated from its goodness. says the Torah. He says those that language which by the way we do have but that language is better not to say that in the why that one should not desire the land there was if we have a bra and we're thanking Hashem for the land of Israel we shouldn't concentrate on this idea or emphasize the idea that we should enjoy the fruits of Israel. I mean, we should really be talking about the spiritual ideas of living in the land of Israel. In other words, we should the focus should be on the mitzvah, the mitzvot related to the land of Israel, not not the the taste of the fruit, enjoying the fruits of Israel. And he writes at the end and my father the rush to my teacher um loa he did not say those words. So in the itself the question is do you say the words and now the circus writes the following the cut um he writes second line down t he says I'm surprised to hear that this is his opinion not to say those words He says the following and you can look at the translation. He says when we talk about loving the fruits or enjoying the fruits of Israel, what are we really referring to? We're not referring to just the taste of the apples of Israel, the oranges of Israel. But what is it about these fruits in the fruits? That which grows in the land of Israel. He says you also have kaduca. is also theina that permeates the land of is Israel also is embedded that that holiness somehow is embedded in the fruits as well and that's what it means when we say that that we're eating that we're enjoying the fruits of Israel we're satiated and by the way we do include that so the the the lesson here I think is such a beautiful lesson about eating the fruits of Israel and that which grows in the land of Israel I say that's that it's a great example of of up of of lifting up the uh the sparks the holy sparks that are found in the fruits of Israel. And what that means is again on on a practical level is a kavana. Another was when you know when I when I have a bottle of wine Friday night at the table often I'll read the back you know and just to see like where the wine grows and it says you know grown in the Judean you know hills and and it's such a such a beautiful kavana just to be aware of that when one is eating the fruits of Israel. So this is another way of maybe actually when we say these words um to actually have that kavana that these are fruits of Israel that contain a holiness the land of Israel. Yes. >> I'm surprised at the store also because this bra is after the food. It's not about the land. Yeah. >> You're not making this because you're elevating the land of Israel. You're doing it after a food item. Yes. >> So why would he say take it away then you're not making the bra on the on the food you ate? Well, the Torah is suggesting not to say those words because why should we emphasize we should emphasize the spiritual ideas and that's more of a physical idea about the the fruits of Israel about all of that. >> Uh >> it is a braha on physical >> on the phys on the physical part. Okay, it's a okay it's a good question. We need to need to look through that. I that's his argument. That's what he says here that why would we why would we you know emphasize or concentrate on that aspect? We should concentrate on the mitzvah aspect of of the land. >> Just make us >> okay at the very end. Yes. Say if it's >> Yeah. >> And if it's Yes. Yes. Okay. Good. Good. Good. All right. Let's let's um let me add one more one more idea which is a uh I wanted to I wanted to end with uh with Kaneka. So there is a beautiful uh a beautiful minhug of of Kaneka of the eight days of Kaneka and something that we find here in Erit Israel and that is uh eating sufanote eating sufanote. So how do we I I would say it's quite a challenge like how do we uplift the uh the sparks of holiness in the suaniote >> do it with lkas >> you do okay so question number one where's when when did this minhug of sufaniode where where where did it begin how old is the minug of sughkani so I always thought I was always under the impression that it must it's like relatively new maybe you know in mahanhuda and the shook that somebody kind of came up with this idea of frying these donuts nuts or maybe 100 years old. So interesting, we find in the writings of the father of the Rambam, the father of the Rambam, which so we're going back at least 900 years, that the that he writes that we should make sure to hold on to the minhagim of the Jewish people. And one of the minhagim is having suani kanaga. That's what he writes. And he says it's a it's a minhug kadum. It's an old minog of the Jewish people that were eating sufaniot. So we're talking about at least a thousand year old mining having sufaniot which again I always thought of suaniote as now why did suf where did sufanote come from? In other words, why particularly that like this donut, right? This the >> Well, maybe the jelly. Okay. But where did where the donut like that that per se? Now, I think we would all answer because it it has oil. But oil, fried oil. That's right. But oil you can find in in a lot of foods, right? A lot of foods have oil. What? Because it's round. Okay. So, let me share with you the following. Let me share with you the following. It's you can take a look at this uh this source. It's on it's uh the last source on page three. >> What's it what >> children >> for children? Okay. But now you could come up with a lot of different foods that that children would enjoy. Why particularly the sufan? So let me share with you the following uh the following episode which the midrash kind of plays kind of tells this story. Uh the nim come this is at the end of para naso. They all bring a carbon as they are dedicating the Mishkan the very first time they're dedicating all the nim and they dedicate the uh they dedicate the mishkan with carbanod then we have the para right afterwards which is the para of bahala and bahalotka is about lighting the minora and it's actually a very strange place to talk about the lighting of the minora why there right after this story of of of naso in the nim so rash and Midash gives the following answer and says that Aon was upset that he was not part of the bringing of the carbonote in the dedication of the Mishkan. And according to the Midash, God says, well, you're going to do something that's even more elevated, that's more special, and that is that you're going to light the manora on a regular basis on every day. Every day, you'll have the opportunity than the mitzvah of lighting the minora. And that's should assuage your your sadness or that you felt that you were not part of the of the bringing of the carbon. Now the question is why that of all things? Why the minora? Why did God why why did God not say well you're going to bring the carbon tid every day. You're going to bring a carbon every day or you're going to bring the ctorat or you're going to enter into the kodes kadashim. Why does God specifically say that you're going to be the one to bring to to light the minora every single day? So this is the answer that the orim the kadesh one of the great mafarim of the Torah gives the following answer and he says that there was something unique about the minora that every single day the minora had to be put together you had to affix the minora. Now after the minora that I don't know if you ever thought about it that way but after the minora was lit throughout the night the following morning they had to clean the parts of the manura that they would take they would take off the tops of the minora and they would clean the minora and then they would reassemble the minora. So God said just as this Mishkan is being assembled for the first time so I'm going to give you a mitzvah the reasssembly of the minora and that's in in that sense the minora stands out is unique because you have to assemble it. It's as if you're building the Mishkan every single day. And that's the way that the orim understands this idea that God said, "Okay, you didn't give one of these carbanote." That was in celebration of the building of the Mishkan. But you're going to have an aspect of building of assembling the Mishkan on a daily basis. Okay. Now we come to the punch line. Now we come to the punch line. So the orim quotes a gamarra gumar which is found in minos page 88. How would they clean the minora every single day? According to the Gamarra that there was a vogue, there was a sponge that was used every day that Aaron in the morning to prepare the minor that he would take a sponge. He would take a spog or maybe like like the word sufan, he would take a sponge and he would clean the minora as a way of preparing the minora. And that was part of the mitzvah and actually a very special part of the mitzvah to reassemble the manura to construct the manura every single day. So that sponge that was used that act of preparing the manura every day was a very special and a very significant act. And now the rabbis when they wanted to come up with a minhug a way of remembering the minora remembering the beta mikdash especially the miracle of minora. So they wanted to come up with a food right some food in which we would eat it. It would be filled with oil. Now it was filled with oil also when he would clean it every day. It got filled with oil and something that we would eat that would represent that would symbolize the minora would symbolize actually a very important part of the preparation minora and that is a sug or a sufan. So here we have quite an amazing an an amazing an amazing uh interpretation or understanding of what that's how did they come up with a sufan of all things like you could have any kind of food a kind of cookie a kind of pizza chicken that has a lot of oil right oil comes in many many different forms like why the vogue why the sufgi in particular so this could be this is one interpretation I think a very very interesting one um what The sufana represents it represents the sponge that was used by the cohen by the cohen gadal in preparing the minora daily in the beta mikdash. So how do we now uplift the sparks? How do we take that eating of a sufana and make it a more sanctified eating? So what do we do? So we think about in our hands I don't know if this isn't that simple to do because we all want to just eat the sufga but to take a moment and to think about the su gaya that this is the sponge like the sponge that the kohhen gut used every single morning in cleaning the minora in preparing manura for the for the lighting each day if we do that and it's not just an act of eating sufanote all week but we take a moment intentionality a mindfulness a kavana so this is and that's What Rafuk writes, Ravkook writes, we have to eat the mida that we have to eat in a measured way. We have to eat the kaduca that we have to eat in a holy way. And there are a lot of ways that we do this with making a bra with a dvar tora with giving a blessing to the balabayas and to have a kavana we bring it to kanaka this morning that when we have a sui to take a moment and to just think wow I'm holding a sponge that's very much like the sponge that the coen that the co that aon that he used every single day when he uh when he prepared the lighting of the minora so this I think is is a very beautiful concept it's part of the mid antidote what it really means to be a Jew. maybe what it really means to be a righteous Jew. a righteous Jew that we when it comes to eating as well every aspect of our life but eating that eating has to also be done in a way that we are to use the cababalistic that we're up that we're making it an uplifting experience that we're sanctifying that experience and we do that again in all these very beautiful ways that that Judaism um encourages us and gives us that guidance of how we eat with a braha with a braha with thinking about with being thankful to Hashem, thinking of ourselves of being in a that we're just a guest as we're eating. If we do this cook says he this is one of the mido that we should be thinking about and that we work on. We we all have work to do in that area of of uh of that we eat in a way that we sanctify our eating. All right, we will uh we will stop here. Yeah, we'll take a comment or two, but