Elul is starting tonight! Can you feel it?

[muman613]

It is hard to believe that time is passing so quickly. I vividly remember last Rosh Hashanah and still have many good memories of the time I spent with my minyan. Tonight, Monday August 29, is Rosh Chodesh Elul. The sages have taught that once Elul begins a Jew should begin the introspection and 'Cheshbon HaNefesh'/Accounting of the soul in preparation for the Holiday of Rosh Hashanah.

On Rosh Hashanah the whole world is judged. Rosh Hashanah is the celebration of the first day of creation of Adam. We believe that Hashem judges us for the entire year. Whether we will live or die in the next year, and in what manner we may die {by fire, by flood, etc.}.

My Rabbi over last Shabbat reminded us all of the Chassidic concept of the 'King in the field'. During the entire year Hashem is busy with big issues and does not have the time for intimate connection with his creations but during the period of Elul Hashem takes special care to make himself available to the average Jew by coming out of his 'palace' and meeting his beloved creations in the 'field'.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe said that when Elul started that the air changed and you could sense the coming of Rosh Hashana:

Quote:
“In the shtetl of Lubavitch, on the Shabbat preceding the month of Elul, though summer still lingered and the day was bright and sunny, there was a change in the air; one already smelled the Elul-scent, a teshuvah-wind was blowing” -- Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak [1]

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/314509/jewish/Adams-Birthday.htm

Were Adam and Eve Jewish?

The reason I ask is that the Jewish calendar seems to be exclusively about Jewish history and the Jewish experience: Passover celebrates our liberation from Egypt, Shavout our receiving the Torah at Sinai, Yom Kippur is when G-d forgave us for the sin of the Golden Calf and Sukkot recalls the divine protection during our wanderings through the desert. The list goes on: Simchat Torah, Chanukah, Purim, Lag BaOmer, Tishah B'Av--virtually all our holy days, festivals and special dates are distinctly Jewish affairs, concerned with our lives as Jews.

One very significant exception: the festival of Rosh Hashanah, which marks the birthday of the first two human beings, Adam and Eve, who walked the earth some 2,000 years before the first Jew was born and nearly 2,500 years before we were proclaimed a people at Mount Sinai.

And Rosh Hashanah is clearly more than a token "Goyim Appreciation Day." As its name proclaims, it's the head of the Jewish year. And as the Chassidic masters point out, the head of a thing is its primary and most encompassing component.

We Jews have a reputation for being an insular lot. We stand before G-d as Jews, relate to each other as Jews, study, pray, and do acts of kindness as Jews, are born, marry, die and are buried as Jews. And we keep our Jewishness to ourselves: unlike most other religions and isms, we have no interest in converting non-Jews to Judaism. If people show interest, we try to talk them out of it.

So why is the very "head" of our year the one festival which relates to humanity as a whole?

http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/4399/jewish/Day-of-Judgment.htm

Day of Judgment
By Eliyahu Kitov

Rosh Hashanah is the Day of Judgment for all of mankind. On this day man is judged for all of his actions, and all that will transpire and occur during the coming year is recorded.

The Talmud (Rosh Hashanah 8a) derives this from the verse (Deuteronomy 11:12) that states: The eyes of G-d, your L-rd, are upon it [the land] from the beginning of the year until the end of the year - i.e., from Rosh Hashanah, the world is judged as to what will transpire throughout the year.

Our Sages said:

On Rosh Hashanah all of mankind pass before Him like sheep -they pass by Him one by one, one after the other, yet He scrutinizes them all with a single glance. Thus, the verse (Psalms 33:15) states: "He created all of their hearts together and understands all of their actions"; G-d, Who is the Creator, sees all of their hearts together (with a single glance) and understands all of their actions.

R. Cruspedai said in the name of R. Yochanan: Three ledgers are opened on Rosh Hashanah: one for those who are entirely wicked, one for those who are entirely righteous, and one for those who are in the middle. The entirely righteous are immediately inscribed and sealed to live. The entirely wicked are immediately inscribed and sealed to die. The fate of those in the middle is held in balance between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

If they have merit [i.e., if they repent), they are inscribed to live. If they do not have merit [i.e., if they fail to repent), they are inscribed to die (ibid. 16 a,b).

Rosh Hashanah was ordained as a Day of Judgment for two reasons: The first is that on this day the creation of the world was completed and it was the Divine intention that the world be ruled by the trait of strict justice. Hence, the commencement of the year was ordained as the Day of Judgment.

The second reason is, as we noted above, that on this day Adam was judged, he repented, and he was forgiven.

http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/56889/jewish/The-King-in-the-Field.htm

Elul, the last month of the Jewish year, is a time of paradox -- a time of what might be termed, "spiritual workdays."

The Jewish calendar distinguishes between two general qualities of time: "mundane" (chol) and "holy" (kodesh). Ordinary workdays are "mundane" portions of time; Shabbat and the festivals are examples of "holy" time. On "holy" days, we disengage ourselves from the material involvements of life to devote ourselves to the spiritual pursuits of study and prayer. These are also days enriched with special spiritual resources (rest on Shabbat, freedom on Passover, awe on Rosh Hashanah, etc.), each providing its unique quality to the journeyer through calendar and life.

In the latter respect, the month of Elul resembles the "holy" portions of the calendar. Elul is a haven in time, a "city of refuge" from the ravages of material life; a time to audit one's spiritual accounts and assess the year gone by; a time to prepare for the "Days of Awe" of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur by repenting the failings of the past and resolving for the future; a time to increase in Torah study, prayer and charitable activities. Elul is the opportune time for all this because it is a month in which G-d relates to us in a more open and compassionate manner than He does in the other months of the year. In the terminology of Kabbalah, it is a time when G-d's "Thirteen Attributes of Mercy" illuminate His relationship with us.

Yet unlike Shabbat and the festivals, the days of Elul are workdays. On Shabbat, the Torah commands us to cease all physically constructive work (melachah). The festivals, too, are days on which melachah is forbidden. Regarding the month of Elul, however, there are no such restrictions. The transcendent activities of Elul are conducted amidst our workday lives in the field, shop or office.
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Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi explains the paradox of Elul with the following metaphor: The king's usual place is in the capital city, in the royal palace. Anyone wishing to approach the king must go through the appropriate channels in the palace bureaucracy and gain the approval of a succession of secretaries and ministers. He must journey to the capital and pass through the many gates, corridors and antechambers that lead to the throne room. His presentation must be meticulously prepared, and he must adhere to an exacting code of dress, speech and mannerism upon entering into the royal presence.

However, there are times when the king comes out to the fields outside the city. At such times, anyone can approach him; the king receives them all with a smiling face and a radiant countenance. The peasant behind his plow has access to the king in a manner unavailable to the highest ranking minister in the royal court when the king is in the palace.

The month of Elul, says Rabbi Schneur Zalman, is when the king is in the field.

[muman613]

http://www.shemayisrael.com/parsha/kahn/archives/rosh65.htm

Who will die

On the High Holidays, we acknowledge in our prayers that these are auspicious times when every individual is being judged and everyone's future is being decided. In the Mussaf service, we say in the very moving prayer called the "Unesaneh Tokef": "The great shofar will be sounded and a still, thin sound will be heard. Angels will hasten, a trembling and terror will seize them - and they will say, Behold, it is the Day of Judgment … All mankind will pass before You like members of the flock … On Rosh Hashanah will be inscribed and on Yom Kippur will be sealed how many will die and how many will be born; who will live and who will die; who will die at his predestined time and who before his time; who by water and who by fire, who by sword, who by beast, who by famine, who by thirst, who by storm, who by plague, who by strangulation, and who by stoning …"

Why does G'd let this happen?

This past year has been filled with horrific tragedies and a rise of anti-Semitism worldwide. Although there has been a decline in the bombings in Israel, many peace-loving victims have been murdered and maimed. The pain of the destruction of so many innocent lives is fresh in our hearts. We question why does G'd let this happen?

G'd's ways are not our ways

We cannot begin to understand the ways of G'd. The prophet Isaiah says, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not My ways - says G'd. As high as the Heavens over the earth, so are My ways higher than yours, and My thoughts higher than your thoughts" (55:8-9). The greatest prophets had difficulties understanding G'd's judgment. Our patriarch Abraham argued with G'd back and forth, at great length, in an attempt to try to save the wicked Sodom and neighbouring cities from destruction. Only when G'd explained to him that there were absolutely no righteous people worthwhile saving, besides Lot and his family, Abraham finally ceased to plead for mercy (Bereishis 18:23-33). Moses, at the Korach uprising, protested to G'd, "one man has sinned and Your anger struck at the whole congregation?" (Bamidbar 16:22). We cannot understand. The greatest could not understand. In Parsha Nitzavim, last week's portion, we learned that the hidden things in life are for G'd only (Devarim 29:28). Only G'd knows why He lets horrible things happen.

[muman613]

I'd like to share this music video of the famous Chassidic musician Avraham Fried:



Hat Tip : Carl in Jerusalem http://israelmatzav.blogspot.com/

[muman613]

I listen to shuirs on Naaleh.com... Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller discusses this month of Elul...


http://www.naaleh.com/viewclass/733/single/


The Sweetness of Tikun Hamiddot Part 2
Based on a Naaleh.com shiur by Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller
 
 
Last week, we described a process of self-discovery which should lead us to perfecting our midot, character traits.
 
How do we refine our middot?
 
The Baal Hatanya recommends meditating on ones deeds and where they stem from. Find a time to talk to Hashem, open yourself up to Him, let yourself feel regret and yearning to be nurtured only by his goodness, so that your character is directed towards where you want to go.
 
The Rambam's plan of action involves identifying your bad middot. Do a replay in your mind's eye, revisit the places you've been, be yourself, and see the gap between where you should be and where you are now. Then plan significant small concrete steps that will help you narrow the divide. You are a baal teshuva as soon as you start on the path to return, not when you finally succeed. Repentance itself draws you closer.
 
Another method is cheshbon hanefesh (self-introspection). You know the middah you need to work on. If you're aware of what doesn't work, don't try the same thing again. Read up on the problem, listen to a tape, speak to a mentor, and try to find a new approach. Deduce it to one sentence and then repeat it many times so that it becomes part of your self -conscious. At the end of the day, ask yourself, "Did I live up to the motto?" Divide a page in seven boxes for each day of the week. Mark off where you failed every day. If you do this conscientiously, you'll notice the marks dwindling because subconsciously we hate failing. Keep it up for a year so that it becomes a part of you. You can do this with a mentor who might recommend readings and offer guidance. You can also join a group. Members get together and select a mussar text to study that is relevant to a specific middah. Then a particular act of improvement is chosen for the week. Participants share their failures and victories. You're there to encourage each other, not to criticize.
 
A fourth and final method is hisbodedet and hisbonenut. Find time every day to think about who you are, what Hashem has given you, and how you can best use it. Speak to Hashem. The first few minutes will be difficult but push yourself to continue onward for at least five minutes, and it'll get easier. The more you open yourself to Him, the more He'll open up to you. The more freely you talk to Him, the more aware you'll become of Him throughout the day. This awareness will change you and in turn your middot, without you even knowing it.
 
Elul is a time of love. The King is in the field. He's close to us and we can ask Him for almost anything. However we cannot be forgiven by Hashem unless we ask forgiveness from the people we've wronged. Part of cheshbon hanefesh is recalling what's lacking in our relationship with others. The people we tend to treat worst are the people we're closest to. We must take note of what our patterns are and commit to change. Choosing what we want to be and clearing out the accumulated dross, is part of the process. Asking for forgiveness requires honesty. It means remembering the things we've done. Our goal is connection beyond the limitations of this world.
 
May it be a wondrous, uplifting, Elul.

 

[Sveta]

Great thread.

And wow do I love Avraham Fried! Chabad.org has his collection of music, I can spend hours there just listening to him and just putting up the volume in the niggunim.

[muman613]

Great thread.

And wow do I love Avraham Fried! Chabad.org has his collection of music, I can spend hours there just listening to him.

Indeed... I love Avraham Fried also...

[muman613]

[muman613]

Rabbi Richman gives another great Dvar Torah on this weeks Parasha of Ki Tzitzi. He discusses several of the concepts which I have brought up here ...