Rabbi Kalman Flacks "The Hidden Magic of Hoshana Rabbah"

[Music] You see your tomorrow [Music] I [Music] I [Music] How did I I [Music] >> Yeah. So may all of our Torah be a be a protection all over over all of the Jewish people all over all of Am over all of our should bring the all home soon and should bring in to all the families of those who are lost and I'm so honored that we get to spend this special special sukis ocean rabba night together the holy holy night of the pitka when our final letter is sent out in the heavenly chambers. And uh no better way to start it than singing nigunim just like David writing in the middle of the night learning Torah. Some of us may stay up all night. This is the minhug alabets. But however long we can stay just learning Torah, singing, serving with our full veus with our all of our intellect, all of our emotions. Um probably Malik also ate pizza. I know Shanaba makes sense. Um, so >> for sure maybe it was sushi, but it should be a special night together with so I guess we're going to just we have to mention Oshana Rabba. Uh, but I actually want to talk about Rabba and Torah tonight. >> Yeah, I hope so. Um just to mention that the Shan Rab is such a holy night, such a special night. The 21st day of the year. The 26th day from the creation of the world v 21 the midra says is also there was a 21st generation of au. So that's when salvation came into the world. So on Hosana Rabba, Shana Rabba I believe is also the day that um we hung um >> the 10 >> the 10 the 10 Nazis and that was on that should come home >> and we should hang all the all the enemies of the Jewish people by their neck. >> Amen. Amen. Amen. We should we should we should uh we should hang all of the enemies and we should hang on to with all of our might all night long just like so sharaba is a night which is mysterious you know in the olden days the garra says people used to go out there's min people go out and see if they had a shadow raba and if they had a shadow then they would have a good tidings and if not o So we're not cabalists. At least I'm not. So I don't know how to go and see our shadows. But a shadow means that you're affecting other people. And uh should look down and realize that we're all affecting one another and and give us a good pitka and inscribe us in the book of life because after all look at us. We're in the suka and we're learning Torah. This is the min of Ashana. Spend extra time learning. spend extra time davening, staying up late at night learning. And who does that of course connect us to? Which sadic in our tradition was known to use his nights, capitalize on his nights? The bra wouldn't go to sleep. He would do little base naps. Unclear exactly was that 60 breath, but he didn't sleep much. He spent his nights learning Torah, ding, writing safer, doing chuva for all of us. And so here we are in a taking the same energy of not being any time. And the Ram says the time to be to bring the upon oneself is at night. At night time when everyone else went to bed. We take and we grab extra time to learn Torah and connect ourselves to that's uh that's the of in fact Rabbi Gladstein suggests that you know is a day of kapara for the Jewish people. The midra says yum kiper is a day of kapara yam kiper is a day of kapar for the days and is a day of kapara for the nights. This might explain why throughout Jewish history wasn't such a known thing. Wasn't such a big thing. Like even when I grew up, I don't know you guys remember like 20 years ago people did such an Indian for Oshana Rabba >> probably >> there were probably some people out there >> maybe Tashik. Okay. >> I don't know. I don't know if it was with it was part of the mainstream but nowadays it's getting stronger and stronger and stronger bigger and bigger and bigger. So go ahead. >> So you have these people that have coals that stay up the whole night during the year. They're sitting and learning Torah and there's glowing reports about what their Torah is like. They get up at night about time and they're up through the night. >> Wow. Fantastic. actually there in the in the Bhisha that was they would have that they would learn all nightm tonight and they were doing the Mishna Torah but it wasn't quite as popular as tonight with all these different sharim and pizza sushi >> so we're glad to suggest in the olden days you know they didn't have electricity so most of the sins were being done during the day at night you went to sleep so they didn't need as much of sharaba nowadays These people stay up late and you know there's a lot of aos that we might be able to do. So we need to it and what's the night that we're making our aosa. So it's a big night. It's a big night to stay up to sing to bench to welcome. We should do it together jungle. the mighty jungle. The lion sleeps tonight. >> I'm trying to understand the deeper depth, but it's for from Alicia. I'm sure is a beautiful beautiful teaching from the Hale Lion King. So, so good. So, Shan Rabba is a huge night. What's he avoid of a Shaaba Sha? We have the Arabos. You would think that we would if we want to show a We would show the adrog maybe the lul someone who represents Torah and mitzvah or at least Torah or the hadas just mitzvah according to the midrash. Why the heck would we focus on the arava? It's a bit strange. The arava according to the midrash does not represent someone who says dereft of Torah of mitzvah. Why would we da showem we're arobos? It's strange. Yeah, it's a good kashio. Yeah. Anyone have a suggestion? Why we dapka show the arovas? Yeah. >> Between the four the ara represents no taste, no smell. And so it represents the person that really doesn't do any good. >> Exactly. That's what I said. So why does that represent why would we want to highlight that to Hashem? When we when we like on in the morning when we tap it on the floor, we're trying to tap him like a little nooge. We're not supposed to rip off all >> ah you're saying we're we're we're not represented by him where we're saying no no no get up. >> Okay. It's an interesting shot. Yeah. >> I heard I saw I saw last night from um um from the holy from the holy s of he said that two things. Number one, I I didn't understand 100% but it seems the source of the quality the Gmorra mentions the quality of the Arava is that the Arava is it grows together with a lot of things with they grow together there's a lot of unity >> interesting so the you can find it growing everywhere >> but the main thing is is that after seven days of the Arava with no taste and no smell being being the um being together with the Lula and the estri with this fragrance with the smell so you think these would rub off and would start to, you know, pick up some >> errors, but we take new special arobas that have that are that are not from the L of an estric. >> M >> and they're not from the whole combination of all the everybody's qualities. And it's the same simple no tasting, no smell. >> And it's the simple simple the utmost simplicity or the utmost simplicity of the simplicity of the Jew connected to the utmost simplicity of Hashem that that is the that is the straw that is the thing that sweetens the gen and brings the is the simplicity of the Jewish people. Is he saying it's aimus? It's aimus which is represented >> by the ara. >> That's the general idea. >> Beautiful. Beautiful. >> Beautiful. Like a says the tom is actually on the highest level uh in terms of the four children. So it's not it's it's the fact that he has a lack of arrogance because of his lack of Torah mitz. So we want to tap into that simple level of tumimos when uh on this holy night. Beautiful. Yeah. One more idea. Also the arava of the formina is the only one. Put it in a cup of water. It will rroot and you plant to grow more aromomas. >> So it regenerates itself to the >> we burn the esra. It becomes a shrinking brown you know our >> smelling. People might smell it whatever. The adasum becomes sabra. And this little the little we put on top of the our kite and this little if you plant it >> it regenerates itself. >> So maybe when you're humble you can always get up and start again. >> Right. >> Beautiful. Beautiful. Oh, one more. >> So I share >> say that it's the lips >> the power of speech >> connected to mouth >> and that's the power of speech we admit our sins do but we have >> we messed up but we use our speech and we start again beautiful so I'll mention two ideas that I heard First idea is that the there's there's a place in the heavens called the ara the seventh heaven. I don't really remember but they say it's on the seventh heaven. It's the highest level. What's in the seventh heaven? Free gifts. And how do you tap into that those free gifts? By recognizing that it's a free gift. As soon as you think that you deserve it, you don't get the >> but as soon as you are humble and recognize that it's all a gift from so we're saying Hashem I don't think I deserve listen yeah at the end of the day I don't know how much I deserve this but out of your love because I am the child of simply from the fact that I amishelim which is the gamach 248 of suko if you okay we'll get into that soon but the point is mish today is the day when we recognize we are so powerful just ourselves just the fact that I'm I'm aid and that's the not because I deserve it not because my we're begging just because I'm the child of They do. They do. >> You don't say. No. No. >> No. Second beautiful idea I want to share from one of my favorite stories. The story goes that by the he needed a barber. Everybody needs a barber once in a while. Yeah. Otherwise, you know, the wife drives you crazy. Otherwise, you need how you going to get a sh? We all need a barber except for the nikim but even them for the hair you know and for the beard. So the point is we all need a barber to the need a barber. The problem is to cut the hair of the is not a simple thing. You know how do you say barber in Hebrew >> sapar >> sapar sapar means someone who knows mamish sapper to cut. When you're telling a story you don't tell every detail right or else we'd be here for millions of years. you tell the important parts. The barber, he has to know what to cut, what not to cut. It's a big. So the he had a specific barber, but the barber passed away. So they set up a put all the put up signs. Who's going to be the barber for the They brought this guy in. He's a real like fancy barber. Oh, the rabbit's arrived. Serious. >> Thanks, lovey. >> Thank you so much. Then the popcorn has arrived and kit the first guy gets in he starts cutting and the he didn't mean to but he starts giving oh it hurt and mam is hurt and mom is hurt and then and and it wasn't his fault but he just wasn't holy it wasn't on the level second guy gets in he starts going to the mikvah starts preparing ah no no no no not this guy not personal just you know And so it was every guy's this guy's he's trying to do this chuva. This guy's doing, you know, dancing and singing and doing somersaults. Nothing's working. And all the barbers are done. There's no more barbers left in Lublin. But there's one guy and he has a sign. You know, he's trying to raise some money. He says, you know, I I'll cut hair. I'll play guitar. Whatever you want. He's a hippie guy. So they bring him and they said, "Listen, we're desperate. Somebody's got to cut the the's hair. You know the are coming. So they bring him in there and he starts cutting and the is like ah give remember those commercials like for shampoo like oh he's like amazing he's like so fit. It's like it's a mam is delicious. So after the haircut's over they go to the this hippie guy you know they say no dude what's your what's the chat? Tell us the truth. you must be like learning all night long fasting Mondays and Thursdays like what's the real shot says nah just a regular die nothing they say all right all right yeah sure you are they follow him and they see that afterwards you know he goes to the catch goes to the he has they decided we know how to get to this guy so give him another start saying another after he said no tell us the truth after he had a couple why are you so holy that you could cut the's hair is you want to know the truth truth. He takes off his shirt and he shows them this deep scar, this wound >> welts. >> Mamesha welts and he says they say, "How did you get such a vvelt? How do you get that?" He says, "You see there was this a woman and a man and you know the casaks, they were going to take them to jail. You know, there was a thief. There's plenty of space." Plenty of space. Yeah. Bring some chairs in. And um doing some cherish for the holy brothers and you know I knew what they were up to. They they found a thief. They couldn't find the real thief. Where would they decide they in prison? The first Jew they could get. So they found the Jew and they were going to slept this Jew to jail and they were going to do beat him. And his wife and kids are begging. No, it wasn't him. It wasn't him. And this guy says, "Listen, I'm stronger than him. I see this guy. He's got a family. So he immediately said, "Listen, it was me. Whatever he did, I did it." So the Kaks look at each other and they say, "All right, what do we care?" They take him in. They start beating him. Boom. Boom. He's like, "I did this for you. I did this for you." And by the 39th lashing, he says, "Listen, holy brother," he says, "Please save my life. if you save my life, you know I only did this for you. I was neph for you. And he blacks out and not thought he was dead, >> but he was alive and he survived. And he looks back up to the says maybe because of that I was to cut the hair of the and would end the story and say, you know, we need the we need the we're just learning Torah day and night non-stoping. That's one side of what we need to bring the Mashiach. But the other side of what we need to bring the Msiah is those simple aros being beaten and beaten. The holy soldiers whoever they are are who are being moer nephesh for am is you know thank God nowadays so many holy Jews who are learning Torah and and taking a beating. Wasn't always like that. But we need both to bring the Msiah. We need the we need the ha guy who's willing to take a beating form is and we also need the we need them to hold hands and hug together. We need them we need them to understand that they're really one. So maybe when you beat the we can think to ourselves, okay, I beat myself up to stay up and learn Torah, you give me this to be nephesh for is this year and it doesn't have to be through joining the army but everyone to find your sometimes I myself find that my is not easy you know and it's it's it's sometimes it's easy but sometimes it's not but we have to be willing to be moister nephish um for is because we have to know that's what's going to bring the mashia and that's what we're doing. We're beating those shas. We're saying I'm willing to take a beating for you and that's what's going to bring the ghoul. But I said I I said I I want to say a few words about it's um it's something so so very special, so very holy. And yet so many people we don't value it. We think yeah we'll have a little we'll sing we'll dance a little bit it'll be fun but I don't think we necessarily I don't necessarily remind know how special holy aid of recood of dancing is >> absolutely we don't we don't necessarily tap into it so I just want to say a few words that I heard from about the of you know is what we call sukus. Sukus is called in the Mishnas and they call is sukus. What does kag mean? So you might have thought it's related to bringing a special but the says an unbelievable is based on he says like this is actually a language of circling of dancing because sukus is a time set aside for dancing for circling for going crazy and that's the of suka. And it comes to its culmination once because dancing is not just fun. Dancing is a very very holy and special aid that we're do on sukus and we're even more privileged to do on you know by the whose yards I just passed. He would dance and go crazy on sukus. He would clap. He'd mamish be going nuts. He didn't make it up. Where did the girl get it from? This avoid of dancing from anybody guess exactly. I just came from David. I just finished a tour in the city of David. And from the city of David, I was telling the I always tell the that this is where he was dancing and singing and going crazy in honor of the Auron that was being brought into your some people we didn't like it but was doing it shim you know the vazer I don't know if you have learned the safet the spiritual journal of the ha the kodesh co who I'm named after and in the 27th mimer of the age kesh he writes something unbelievable it was 1925 or so and it was Torah and the Torah was being brought into somewhere in Poland and that wasn't an everyday experience. Okay? And he was so excited that the Reb decided he needed to express his excitement by doing a somersault, doing a dance, >> being mah, but he thought to himself, "Wait, I'm the Reb. I have a big beard. How what are people going to think? And maybe I'm doing it out of ga, you know, everyone's looking >> performative art. >> Exactly. But he said, I know I'm doing it shay. I'm doing to express my desire to get close to and he did the somersault. And you know later he was learning and he found out there's a midrash that says who was the first person to do the somersault in theem [Music] [Applause] [Music] Yeah. [Music] Melik's mish dancing and singing. And so could also dance and sing. Gav that was his inspiration in Warsaw. And you know every bar mitzvah I do bar mitzvah at the hotel. Yankee got a bar mitzvah. But we're all singing dove and he's here with us >> and his spirit his energy of using emotion in addition to intellect learning to non-stop but also dancing and singing that's for mish and he was mafar he was dancing with all his heart and the grow is dancing and if you look around the real they're not sitting on the sidelines onra they're singing and dancing because They understand this is part of the avoid. This is the avoid. You know the there were sadikim would command their legs couldn't move anymore. They would say get up. You'll you'll you'll you'll sleep in the next world and you got to dance right now. The za would say that that mish the avoid every up brings blessing from the the heavenly world and the down brings it down to this world. brings shea down to this world. The bells are so that when you dance, you're bringing all the that were stuck up to the heavenly worlds. Anything that you know you didn't quite have enough, the dancing on the joy imamish brings brings it up to the highest level. You know how do you say dancing in Hebrew? recode but it cod mameish it's it's one of the the it's one of the avoiders of of shabas there's ber and there's recood what's rud it's sifting it's sifting away more course and less course so what do >> bouncing >> yeah it's balancing it out what do we do when we're dancing I always feel like this at the kota when I'm dancing I'm getting rid of all the negativity, getting rid of all the energy and if I'm dancing all that unholy dancing the dancing shalom which got us into trouble on some and we're using that dancing the shame shim and we're dancing with all of our energy and we're using those we're using it to not not but to dance to singes that's the we're sifting away the negativity. We're joining ourselves to you know there writes a voidas on all of theos but by the dancing he didn't have any aid cuz it's beyond any any any specific kavana because it's beyond it's beyond any specific kavana we all have to take our own personal kavanas and put them into the words of the simra dancings and according to mosha wolson the y that we're able to attain onra is higher than the that we're attaining. When we say Wolfson, we say we should know it's higher than when we say because we're integrating all of our lives. We're not angels. We're taking our bodies and our souls and we're putting it together and we're lifting up and that is the highest moment of the year. We say those we're bring by our energy and Torah celebrating the gift of Torah. We should know it's a very very holy aid. We should utilize it. Take the words that we're singing and mamish put our heart into it. No, it's not just a stick. And if there are no words, if it's a nai, put our put our shamas, our kavanas, speak extraas. You know the the kitugi and the prosecutor they know how to knock down tilos with our mouth when we're diving but when we're dancing and we're sneaking in extraos they they can't handle that. So sneak in extra tilos for am is sneak in sneak in extra tilos for the whole world. Sneak in extra tilos that we should be have an amazing year of Torah study. Maybe I'll end with one story unless another one comes. Was once doing a kafas and uh he was dancing and singing and um there was this guy who was known to be an anti-religious type of guy. he wrote in the newspaper and he was anti-religious but at the he was dancing and singing so uh so says after all the dancing he says no what's up and I know you're you're mahalik he says and at my brother's wedding I can't dance in other words it could be I'm not so connected to Torah but I can't dance for my brothers so it could be some of us sometimes feel like we're not as connected to Torah. We're not learning as >> but we could be push ourselves to be for the rest of the Jewish people. But Baba Jere said on a deeper level, the truth of the truth is that guy even though he pretended to be anti-religious in his he is connected to and story that comes out. Another story just came down from Slommo. There was a Yid in the war in 1973 and he was shot in a tank and and he was dying and he was a completely anti-religious Jew and he's trying to think of like his last moments. What should he think of? So he's thinking of Shakespeare. >> Really? >> Yeah. Mamr said the guy told and and nothing really lit his heart on fire and he was thinking of I don't know Kant didn't didn't do it and he's going back and he remembered dancing as a little kid on his father's shoulders back in Europe before he left religion singing on Simka's Torah and that's what filled his nama with sim okay another story just came town. Maybe we'll end with this one. But Pam used to tell this story >> that uh in the Holocaust there was a bunch of Yiddin on their way into the camps in Awitz and they were naked and they're about to be placed into the camps into the gas chambers. The guy Desh and one Yid remembered somehow he figured out that that day was Torah. says it's Torah. Let's die singing and dancing with us. And they say, "Are you crazy? We don't have a Torah. We don't have food. We certainly don't have any whiskey. Are you crazy? Going to sing?" And he said, "It doesn't matter. These Nazis, they could take everything from us. But our connection to Hashem, the moment of that we experience on Torah that they can't strip from us. And they started singing and dancing on their way to the chambers. And the Nazis were so overwhelmed and bewildered that they let them live. And these actually ended up surviving. That's the story. But the point is when we're dancing and singing on Sim Torah, celebrating our connection with Hashem, we're saying we don't need the lul and the on this day. No matter what happens, we've all experienced ups and downs. But even the downs, we still have a bar. We can dance. We can feel's presence in our nama. You know the suka we're mamish 365 and 248 parts of our body is in the suka. We're completely in the suka. Right says we're in the suka in mikvah. He didn't say and in the suka. But there's another mitzvah that we're completely immersed in mitzvah and that's when we're dancing. says all of our bodies immersed in the mitzvah when we're dancing and singing on and so we're using our body and our soul to connect to should bless everyone here have an unbelievable unbelievable dancing and singing the whole day long and in this of all the that we bring in these holy days of we should have a year full of and just a life full of because if you're always dancing Then then then nothing bad can really nothing can take you down. Even during the darkest times if you just keep dancing nothing can take us down. [Music] I n I I am I I Oh I I I Yeah. [Music] My name is your My birthday [Music] My God.