The Yanuka Rav Shlomo Yehuda-חדש!! סגולות והנהגות לחנוכה - הגאון הינוקא

2:59 That is the Maggid. Oh my, oh my — it's frightening. When the Maggid would look — with every glance he took, he would see the Seven Shepherds at the same time. And whatever is said about the Maggid of Mezritch, one should believe it all. The kedushah of the Maggid of Mezritch — may his merit protect us. Yes. If He wills. Im yirtzeh Hashem — if Hashem wills. This is what the Tzemach Tzedek says: whoever wants his word to be fulfilled should take upon himself to say "Im yirtzeh Hashem" about everything, and then Hashem will surely grant him success.

3:29 This is from that Rebbe, the Tzemach Tzedek, may his merit protect us: "Im yirtzeh Hashem" — on every single thing, he writes, "Im yirtzeh Hashem." Saying "Im yirtzeh Hashem" about everything is a segulah that whatever you do, you will succeed — whatever you want to do. Come, let's see something beautiful. How beautiful. I don't know what to read, everything here is so special, it's truly wonderful things. I'll give you a little bit of an introduction to the Maggid.

3:55 His Torah is very, very deep. As you know, he was the Rebbe of the author of the Shulchan Aruch HaRav. He was his Rebbe. The author of the Shulchan Aruch HaRav, the Alter Rebbe, the author of the Tanya, was among the greatest of the Maggid's students. Among the greatest of the Maggid's students. The Maggid had several students who were very great, among them the famous Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev, all the famous ones, the Noam Elimelech — each one is something great in his own right: his kedushah, his level, his stature. Each one is awesome.

4:26 The famous Rabbi Zusha. When the Maggid taught Torah, every word he spoke — he would draw the word out. And whoever heard the Maggid's words could faint from the sheer deveikus in his Torah. Now, he would speak very slowly. His discourses are very, very deep. He spoke very slowly; he would speak very, very slowly, drawing out the words. So whoever was to understand him had to be a very deep thinker. As you know, he was the chavrusa, the study partner, of the Pnei Yehoshua, Rabbi Yaakov Yehoshua, on the Shas.

4:59 The Maggid was his chavrusa for many years, until he drew close to the Baal Shem Tov and left him. He was the Pnei Yehoshua's chavrusa. He was not the Pnei Yehoshua's student; he was his chavrusa. He had finished the Shas a hundred and twenty times by the age of twenty — about twenty. He said: "When I came to the holy Baal Shem Tov, I discovered that I had not yet begun to learn." So the Maggid — once, Rabbi Zusha heard him teaching, and during the Maggid's discourse, in the middle of the discourse, Rabbi Zusha began to scream from the Maggid's words of Torah. He felt that his soul was leaving him.

5:31 From the Maggid's words — every word the Maggid says, he feels his soul going out. There is something here... and his discourses are long. So here, good, let's see this. Let's see this one; it's something short.

5:59 Let's see. "Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth." The Maggid says: For behold, the father teaches his son Torah. A father teaches his son Torah. By the way, just to explain, so you'll know: there is direct light and returning light — Or Yashar and Or Chozer. There is direct light and returning light. Direct light and returning light. Direct light is given, and you want there to be returning light.

6:25 Returning light is a coming back, a return — like when you throw something and it comes back to you. Direct light is when it goes out with no condition that it come back to you. Direct light — without coming back. Returning light — the thing comes back. Where do we find direct light and returning light? An example, so you'll understand — one that is easier to grasp. Where do we find it? A father and a son. A father and a son are a wonderful example of direct light and returning light.

6:51 The father toward his son — that is direct light, right? The son loves the father — that is returning light. Now, this continues until a certain age. Until what age does it continue? As long as the son is with the father, growing up with him, there is direct light and returning light. When the son grows up and becomes independent, there is only the father's direct light, without returning light. The son does not want to give back.

7:16 Do you understand? There is the father's direct light, but there is no returning light coming back. Do you understand what this means? He cannot give to his father. How so? He cannot give to his father. He cannot give back to the father. There is direct light, which the father gives: the father is always giving him food, giving him things, everything. Afterward comes an age when there is no longer any returning light. The son doesn't give. He sees the father going about like that with nothing, without anything, and gives him nothing.

7:45 He doesn't help his father, he has no compassion for him. When he is small, he loves the father; he gives him love in return — children do. Afterward they grow up, and there is no returning light. The reason for this is that the returning light gets spoiled between them, and then there is no returning light, and the son does not give back to the father, does not cherish him. There are situations where, with some people, it actually does exist — people who have great love for the father, even when the son grows up, and he does many good things and helps the father more, or in everything — each one according to his own situation.

8:16 There is a closer bond between them: even when the father is already old, he helps him and takes care of him, does not leave him, and supports him. That is a sign that with that person there is direct light — and it may be that from the father there is no returning light. For example, when the father is on his sickbed, the father is dying, the father is in the hospital, not feeling well; he cannot give anything. That is called having no returning light to give back.

8:41 Have you understood this concept, more or less? That is: "Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth." For behold, the father teaches his son Torah, and his son answers in speech. And what arouses the speech is the father's delight in the son — that he should be a wise son. And sometimes the son, too, can grasp the father's delight that brought him to speak. And "kiss" means spurring on.

9:07 The meaning of the kiss — "Let Him kiss me" means "let Him spur me on." Spurring on. He will give it to him. "His mouth" — what does "His mouth" mean? It means His speech, blessed be He. The Maggid explains something very beautiful. He explains that, after all — what is the meaning of the learning of... Now, the father teaches his son. He teaches his son the Torah. What is the father's wish for the son? That he reach a certain goal: that he be a Torah scholar, that he be a gaon, that he have Torah, that he do mitzvos, that he fulfill the Torah. Right? He wants to spur him on to fulfill the Torah and the mitzvos.

9:42 Now, to understand this too, I need to lay out one more thing for you: the difference between the father and the son is that the father has acquired intellect, and the son has intellect in action. What does that mean? Intellect in action and acquired intellect — the difference is like heaven and earth. Because the father has acquired intellect. He already knows what he is about to teach his son. He knows. And the son has intellect in action; he doesn't know what the father is about to give him.

10:10 So he cannot take in much of it. He doesn't take it in. Anything a person does not yet know is called intellect in action. He is learning. It is intellect at work, in training. When a person has acquired the understanding, he knows the thing, he has a connection to it — that is called acquired intellect. Like any wisdom there is to attain: the wisdom of music, the wisdom of plants, the wisdom of the stars, astrology, calculations, Torah, science — everything in the world is called intellect in action and acquired intellect. The more you know, the more acquired intellect you have.

10:43 If you know less, you have less. Daniel the prophet, because he had the greatest acquired intellect there ever was — there was never acquired intellect like Daniel's. However many wise men there were among the Jewish people — King Shlomo, who was tremendous — but Daniel the prophet as well: he was wise in a way that no one was as wise as Daniel the prophet, in his wisdom. He was called Belteshatzar. Nevuchadnetzar called him Belteshatzar, which means the wisest of the wise, like his god, his idol — after Bel, and "shatzar" means wisdom; a very great sage — that is called Belteshatzar.

11:13 Daniel the prophet — why? Because of his wisdom. From the greatness of his wisdom, Daniel's, the lions were subjugated beneath him; they submitted, they were nullified before him, from the greatness of his wisdom. We are speaking of very great wisdom. That is called acquired intellect — he merited a very great level. That is what is meant by acquired intellect and intellect in action. When we speak of intellect in action, it means like the son speaking with the father — because the son is now speaking with the father. So the Maggid says here that he has to bring him to be spurred on at all, to connect, to speak at all — because the son does not yet grasp these things; he doesn't really know how to understand what the father wants to teach him. So the father has to bring him both to understand the things he is about to teach him and to be spurred on toward them, to have some connection to these things. Without that spur and that connection, he will never grasp them.

12:01 So that is the meaning of "Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth." What does "Let Him kiss me with the kisses of His mouth" mean? It means that a person needs both to be spurred on and to have connection and love for the Torah. Because the learning of Torah in itself is not enough if you don't have the zeal, the connection and the understanding for Torah. You need both connection and love for the Torah, and also zeal to fulfill the Torah, effort, good thoughts toward fulfilling the Torah — these are all the things a person needs for this.

12:29 Love of the Torah. Blessed are You, Hashem, our G-d, King of the universe, by Whose word all things came to be. How beautiful. This is a new sefer. They say that here it hadn't come out — only now has it come out. Truly new, from a manuscript; it has not yet been printed in any sefer. From a manuscript — that's what they say here. That this is a first printing. Here it mentions Rabbi Chaim Chaikel of Amdur, the author of Chaim VaChesed.

12:57 That too is a sefer that is not so well known. There are very, very wonderful things in that sefer. Look how beautiful. The Maggid says: "Draw me after You, we will run."

13:21 A parable: a father sees his son amusing himself with little children at childish things. And the father goes and shows himself to his son. And when the son sees his father, he runs after him. And once the father sees the son running after him, he then goes on his way. And then the son calls out to him all the more, in a loud voice, "Father, Father!" and runs after his father until he reaches him.

13:45 Now, at first, when the father showed himself to the son, it was so that the son would leave his childish amusements and run after him, and from this he would have great delight — that his son is wise, that he understands — like what people generally do today when they see their little children whom they haven't seen for a long time, and he plays a little game like this — that nothing counts in his eyes against the love of his father. And when he saw that the son had cast aside all the childish things, left them and ran after him, he then hides his face and goes on his way, so that the son will come to despise all the more the childish things, and will long all the more for his father's love.

14:31 And then the father's delight will increase, and from that delight he will draw compassion and delight to the son as well. So it turns out that from the great delight the father had afterward, delight was drawn to the son as well. A story about the Maggid. The Baal Shem Tov said to the Maggid once: "The difference between me and you is in just one thing. You need to have the will, and to pray; and I need only think of it, and it comes to be."

15:06 With Hashem's help, when do we light the first candle? Sunday night. Sunday night. Sunday night? May it come to us for good, right? Sunday, may it come to us for good. May the Holy One, blessed be He, grant us a good lighting, with joy and gladness of heart. With joy and gladness of heart. Amen. How many words are there in the blessing? In the blessing — no, in the blessing.

15:34 In the blessing there are thirteen words. In the first blessing there are thirteen, in the second blessing there are also thirteen. Together, that comes to twenty-six, the numerical value of the Name Havayah. At the time of the blessing one should have in mind the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy, as our master the Arizal explains in Pri Etz Chaim. Our master the Arizal also explains about Chanukah — discourses for Chanukah.

15:59 In Pri Etz Chaim he writes — have you learned this? — about the Thirteen Attributes that flow down? You haven't learned it. And there are thirteen mechilin d'rachamei, measures of mercy, that awaken on Chanukah. On Chanukah thirteen mechilin d'rachamei awaken; attributes of mercy shine each and every day. Each and every day, attributes of mercy shine before the Holy One, blessed be He, and we can draw close to the Holy One, blessed be He, through the blessing we recite; this light shines — the hidden light — on Chanukah.

16:34 What we pray each day to the Holy One, blessed be He, when we do the lighting, the candles, everything, what we light — we say: "These candles we light for the miracles, for the wonders, for the salvations, for the consolations." The source for this is Tractate Sofrim, chapter 20, halachah 4. That is the source of HaNeiros Hallalu, that we say: "These candles we light for the miracles, for the salvations, for the wonders and for the consolations." Now a person stands by the Menorah; he does the lighting, prays and has his kavanos — each person with his own kavanos.

17:04 Rabbi Tzvi Elimelech of Dinov — on Chanukah he would receive light. Rabbi Tzvi Elimelech of Dinov would receive a very great light on Chanukah. His light was a tremendous light. It was impossible even to comprehend the light he would receive on Chanukah. On Chanukah he was in such great deveikus with the Holy One, blessed be He, that when he was a small child his mother would watch over him so that he wouldn't send the Chanukah Menorah flying, every time, because he was so...

17:31 And every time, every year on Chanukah, there is a very great darkness — the kelipah of the Greeks. They came to power in the year 3442; that was when the rule of the Greeks rose over the world. The Greeks began to reign, their rule; they began to impose all their madness, and that whole chain of events, that whole kelipah, the Greeks, the kingdom of Greece, the wicked one, the wicked one, and all of it — everything about them.

17:57 And every year, on Chanukah, we make a Tikkun for the great darkness that the Greeks brought into the world. Every year we make a Tikkun for that darkness, on Chanukah. On Chanukah the light begins to sparkle, and then the Jewish people begin to shine with all the good things, with all the wondrous things. So we stand by the Menorah, we light, and we say the psalm Yoshev B'seser Elyon — "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High." We read the psalm Yoshev B'seser Elyon, "in the shadow of the Almighty he shall abide" — we say this psalm.

18:25 This psalm — there is a tradition from the holy Baal Shem Tov, that they had the custom of saying it 91 times. 91 times. Rabbi Chaim Palagi, in the sefer Moed L'Chol Chai, siman 27, writes to say it seven — as people say it, seven times. In principle it is better to say it eight times: seven times aloud and once in a whisper. When you reach the verse "With His pinion He will cover you" — that is verse 4, verse 4 in Yoshev B'seser Elyon — verse 4, the fourth verse; remember, verse 4 — we say "With His pinion He will cover you." What is "With His pinion He will cover you"? "With His pinion" means that the Holy One, blessed be He, will shelter you; the holy Shechinah will envelop the person, and then, in effect, all his troubles and all his problems are nullified from upon him.

19:14 There are several places in this psalm where one must have kavanah. This is written by the Yimalet Nafsho — in the sefer Yimalet Nafsho by Rabbi Avraham Chamoui, may his merit protect us. He has a tremendous sefer. In siman 1 he writes about Yoshev B'seser Elyon, about this psalm, on the psalm he writes a very beautiful piece: that this psalm is a segulah for memory, for being saved from enemies, from persecution, from evil decrees, from many bad things — all kinds of virtues. And he writes there several more things for which this psalm can be used.

19:40 Now, in the psalm itself, when we say "With His pinion He will cover you" — "lach" — one should have the person's name in mind. The name — at "With His pinion He will cover you," have yourself in mind, as it were: you, son of your mother. Have the name in mind at "He will cover you." "And under His wings you will take refuge; His truth is a shield and armor. You shall not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day. A thousand will fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; to you" — at "eilecha," "to you," have your name in mind as well. "It shall not come near" — have it in mind there too: "to you it shall not come near" — at "to you" too, have the name in mind.

20:07 "For You, Hashem, are my refuge" — at "machsi," "my refuge," too, have your name in mind. So you have three times to have your name in mind. Three times. So a person should have his name in mind, so that nothing will harm him, so that he will not suffer any harm or anything like that. So it is good in general to do these things at the lighting of the candles. When a person stands by the candles, to say this. Also to say chapter 67 of Tehillim, "Lamenatze'ach binginos, mizmor shir" — "May G-d be gracious to us and bless us, may He shine His face upon us, selah; that Your way be known on earth," and so on — to read Lamenatze'ach in the form of the Menorah, to read it in the form of the Menorah, so that it corresponds to the person, so that it will illuminate your soul as well.

20:40 The lighting of the Menorah — when we do the lighting, it corresponds to this. Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev says — this is a very beautiful thing — he says, in his discourse for Chanukah — he has a discourse on Chanukah — he explains that, look: even on the first day we light the candles and say "These candles" — and there is one candle, or one with the shamash. There is all the Jewish people lighting candles. And he also says that corresponding to this are the candles above: for every candle that is lit here below, a candle is lit above.

21:07 In Heaven there are candles. And along the lines of what is written in Tractate Shevuos, page 39a — the Sages said, "All of Israel are responsible for one another" — they all join together, and then all the candles of all the Jewish people are included together, and then it is, as it were, "these candles." So a great light flows to all the Jewish people. The Imrei Emes of Gur — there is also something from the Imrei Emes of Gur, may his merit protect us. The Imrei Emes also writes something beautiful. He explains that within the candle itself, within the flame — for within the flame, we know, there is the hidden light.

21:37 The miracle — if, say, a person has nothing to light with, and he isn't anywhere where they light, and so on — wherever he is, he recites a blessing on seeing the candle. It is not only the one who lights who recites a blessing, on the lighting; one who sees recites a blessing on the seeing. That is to say: what is there within this seeing — "Who performed miracles for our fathers... at this time"? Within a person's seeing, within the flame that he sees, with connection, the revelation of the miracle takes place within the flame. That is to say, all the great miracles are concentrated within the flame.

22:02 Within the flame that we see — there lies the virtue. There is — we say Ana B'Koach, "Ana b'koach, gedulas yemincha, tatir tzerurah" — that is eight, because there you have seven, plus "Baruch shem kevod malchuso l'olam va'ed" — that corresponds to Zos Chanukah. Zos Chanukah is the eighth; you see — "Baruch shem kevod malchuso l'olam va'ed." The Minchas Elazar of Munkatch, may his merit protect us, had the custom of saying what we say: "V'yatziv, v'nachon, v'kayam, v'yashar, v'ne'eman."

22:28 When it is said, it is sung — there are those who sing it. It is a segulah — saying it with kavanah — to be saved from sudden death. The Yimalet Nafsho also writes this, in siman 22 of his sefer. He writes that it is a segulah to save a person from sudden death. If suddenly, Heaven forbid, something is decreed upon a person, and something could, Heaven forbid, happen to him — he can be saved from a sudden death. To be saved from it, so that it will not happen to him: to say "V'yatziv, v'nachon, v'kayam, v'yashar." So the Minchas Elazar of Munkatch said to say it every year at the end — when one finishes the lighting of the candles — that is, from "V'yatziv, v'nachon, v'kayam, v'yashar" until "Oseh feleh," and also "Ezras Avoseinu" — there are eight times "emes" there.

23:03 From "V'yatziv" — there are eight times "emes," truth, there; remember, corresponding to the eight candles — for each day there sparkles: emes, emes, emes. Another thing: there is, in the sefer Eretz HaTzvi — have you heard of Eretz HaTzvi? Also — you haven't heard of it? A sefer — there is another sefer, Binas Yisrael; have you heard of it? Have you heard of the author of Binas Yisrael? He was a holy gaon, something tremendous. He was one of the grandsons of the Maggid of Kozhnitz. His name was Rabbi Yisrael, son of Rabbi Chaim Meir Yechiel Shapira, a grandson of Kozhnitz. He has the sefer Binas Yisrael; on page 67 he writes something very beautiful there. He says that all of a Jew's preparation — one who goes to buy oil for Chanukah — by the power of the kedushah of buying the oil for Chanukah, a great light flows down that will bring all of creation back to the good.

23:46 Not only at the lighting of the candles. A person goes to buy oil, he is only going to buy the oil, only going to buy — we spoke of saying "V'yatziv, v'nachon, v'kayam," So we saw, for a moment, to say it — that it's altogether a great thing to sing it, to chant it and say it — "V'yatziv, v'nachon, v'kayam," all of it. Now there's another thing: in Eretz HaTzvi he writes that there are eight, corresponding to the requests we say.

24:12 "Sim Shalom" — bring the siddur for a moment, so we can count. A siddur, one moment, a siddur. Here — if there's a siddur with Shacharis. Let's look: "Sim Shalom." How many do we have in "Sim Shalom"? Count together with me. How many do we have? Peace, goodness and blessing, life, grace and kindness, righteousness and mercy — eight, corresponding to the eight candles. Here too there are the eight candles.

24:38 Now there's another eight. We have another eight — for example, here. Here: "Po'el gevuros" — "He performs mighty deeds." That's the first. On the first day one can annul — annul gevuros and harsh judgments. On the first day there is the flow from Binah. Binah bestows — Binah is the mother of all the middos — and after that, the day of the second candle: Chesed, Gevurah, Tiferes, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, Malchus, until Zos Chanukah, which corresponds to Malchus.

25:05 On the first day it is "He performs mighty deeds." On the second day, "He makes new things." On the third day, "Master of wars." On the fourth day, "He sows righteousness." On the fifth day, "He makes salvations sprout." On the sixth day, "He creates healings." On the seventh day, "Awesome in praises," "Awesome in praises." On the eighth day, Zos Chanukah, "Lord of wonders." That's why it is a segulah for all wonders — Zos Chanukah.

25:30 About Zos Chanukah, the Bnei Yissaschar writes in the ma'amarim on Kislev, in ma'amar 2, section 10. You're thinking? I see that you're thinking. All right, we'll stay with the segulos. He writes there, the Bnei Yissaschar of Dinov — he says that on Zos Chanukah, kedushah flows down for the whole entire year. On Zos Chanukah, all the kedushah flows down, for the whole entire year.

25:55 The Sfas Emes of Gur says another beautiful thing that's worth doing on Zos Chanukah. It's an expression from the Gemara — that is, what the Admorim, the Chassidim, have the custom to do. There's a discourse in the Sfas Emes from the year 5640. The Sfas Emes of Gur writes to take all the wicks, all the oil — what people do. There are those who burn it, the Admorim, and they do it before the burning of the chametz. The Sfas Emes of Gur says to do it at the end of Zos Chanukah: to make some kind of meal, a celebration, and to burn the oils and the wicks, everything that's left. As we see, oil that burned within the half hour is forbidden to benefit from.

26:30 As it's written in the Shulchan Aruch, siman 677, se'if 4: one doesn't make use of the candle, of the oil of the lighting, within the half hour of the lighting. If a person saw the candle, he can make the blessing on seeing it, as we said. If it's within the half hour of the lighting, then one makes the blessing on seeing the candle. What the Imrei Emes of Gur innovates — his chiddush is that within the candle, within the candle itself, as much as a person's gaze takes in the candle, he can draw down all the miracles and wonders through the connection of seeing.

27:00 That is, just the connection with the flame can bring Tikkun to the whole nefesh, ruach, neshamah and yechidah of a person. He can merit all the Tikkunim, every one, just through his seeing. "By mere seeing, he acquires" — he can merit everything just through seeing alone. A person only has to see the candle; he can attain all the Tikkunim, every one, by seeing the candle. Now another one, for example — say, asking for children. Rav Huna said — Rav Huna, in Tractate Shabbos, page 23b: Rav Huna said: whoever is careful with the candle will have sons who are Torah scholars.

27:30 Now, Rabbi Yitzchak, the son of the Raavad, writes that people didn't understand this at all. He says that's not what it means. He says it's only for one who fulfills it in all its details and fine points, according to halachah — then Rav Huna's segulah will take effect for him. What does "in all its details and fine points, according to halachah" mean? What's meant? One has to understand that this requires learning siman 263 and siman 264 in the Shulchan Aruch, to understand the lighting: how do we do the Shabbos candle, how do we do the lighting?

27:55 The Kaf HaChaim, in siman 263, brings a story: there was a man who didn't deserve to be granted life, because of all the deeds he used to do — until they found one merit for him, to give him long life: that he was particular to light the Shabbos candle with olive oil. Only because of that they gave him long life as a gift. He would see to the oil for the lighting. He would bring oil home — buy it at a high price, bring it home, he didn't skimp — and bring it to his wife to light.

28:24 That was his virtue: that he brought plenty of olive oil for the lighting. Here we see that there is a great virtue in olive oil. So if a person wants to do it in the finest way, so that it's truly in all its details, in all its fine points — that it truly be pure olive oil, fit for eating, that it be good — then of course, both the Shabbos candle and the Chanukah candle, there's a very great virtue in it, because this one is good and that one is good. And these are several great virtues: it counts for Shabbos, it counts for Chanukah. There are several things; these are good things.

28:48 Another thing that's important — for example, Erev Shabbos. This is a bit of a chiddush; I don't know if it's... One can see a kind of chiddush here that can be tied in, and then it will also be a segulah. I'm thinking of this for the singles — that we really must make an effort for the singles. All the singles need to work at this, to pray for it, to make an effort with every shidduch, with whatever there is, to ask — and the Holy One, blessed be He, will make the shidduchim. Let's help the singles — not leave anyone single, Heaven forbid — let's help with every effort to match up all the single men and single women who need a match.

29:19 You know that it's written, "For the Jews there was light." This is a segulah for singles, now, on Erev Shabbos: every single should go on Erev Shabbos and ask the Holy One, blessed be He — on Erev Shabbos of Chanukah, if it's Erev Shabbos Chanukah. Next week, with Hashem's help, it will be Shabbos Chanukah. The single should go on Shabbos Chanukah, and ask on Erev Shabbos Chanukah, before the Holy One, blessed be He, to give him a worthy match. Where is the idea from? It's written, "For the Jews there was light," right? In Megillas Esther.

29:45 It's in the Megillah, toward the end of the Megillah. Chapter 8, verse 16. Do you know it? "For the Jews there was light and gladness, and joy and honor." What is "For the Jews there was light and gladness, and joy and honor"? "For the Jews there was light." What is "light"? "Light" is Torah. But where do we have "light"? On Erev Shabbos Chanukah. "And gladness" — what is "and gladness"? It's a wife.

30:11 Right? It's a wife. So it's written, right, in Tractate Yevamos, page 62b: Rabbi Tanchum said in the name of Rabbi Chanilai: one who lives without a wife lives without gladness, lives without a wall. He has nothing — without blessing, without a wall. A person can...

30:35 ...a wife will be a helper for him. So from here one can see that if a person does this, pays attention — to ask on Erev Shabbos Chanukah, to ask on Shabbos Chanukah — for all the singles — to ask the Holy One, blessed be He: "Master of the world, give me light in my home. Master of the world, please have mercy on me, give me light in my home. I want to have light, I want to have blessing. Please help me. Holy One, blessed be He, have mercy on me."

31:01 To ask the Holy One, blessed be He, to give light, light, light. Then surely the Holy One, blessed be He, will give — He will give more light, He will give more gladness. Chanukah — that's the mitzvah of Chanukah. Ask the Holy One, blessed be He, for your requests. And of course, be careful on Chanukah not to complain, all the days of Chanukah. One doesn't complain at all. It's forbidden to complain on Chanukah. These are days that have such a great light in them, that anyone who complains during them, or who comes with grievances, Heaven forbid, whether against Heaven or against people — it's very dangerous, a very great danger.

31:29 The Yesod VeShoresh HaAvodah writes, in Gate 12, chapter 1 — he writes there that a person should take upon himself to engage in mitzvos. He says: to engage in tzedakah, to support those who learn Torah, to give tzedakah to the poor, especially to those who learn Torah, especially at this time — he says, more than the whole year. This time of Chanukah — whoever takes this upon himself, he says it brings Tikkun to all the blemishes of the soul. All the blemishes of the soul. Why all the blemishes of the soul?

31:53 We know that now, on Chanukah, the side of kedushah gains strength against the Sitra Achra. Now, a person is choked by the Sitra Achra, and, Heaven forbid, he sins and falls throughout the year; he doesn't gain strength on the side of kedushah. So this means that if a person... on Chanukah there is the strength, with siyata diShmaya, to rise up against it — to defeat the Sitra Achra, and for kedushah to be victorious.

32:18 There's the Zohar — Zohar, Shemos, page 9b. It's written in the Zohar — Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai says that the Jewish people were in Egypt — and then it brings there, in the Zohar, that the Jewish people were in Egypt, and afterwards the Jewish people were, for a time, under the Greeks, among the Greeks. The Greeks came upon them and ruled over them and wanted to defile them, and the Holy One, blessed be He, gave siyata diShmaya and turned the strength over to Mattisyahu. He stirred the spirit of the Chashmonaim, and after that they overpowered them and conquered them. That is, the Chashmonaim overpowered the wicked kingdom of Greece.

32:49 There was an overpowering. When was this overpowering? On the 25th of Kislev. That is the time of the overpowering, of the victory. If there is the time of the victory, then on Chanukah there is an overpowering, in which one can still annul the Sitra Achra — annul the whole kelipah, annul the Other Side, so that the Sitra Achra has no control at all. So one needs to learn Zohar every day. And Rabbi Pinchas of Koritz said: whoever learns five dapim of Zohar every day — of course, this is the Tikkun from our master the Arizal — will have parnassah in abundance.

33:18 Every day, five dapim of Zohar — every day. A daf, I mean — but it's like the daf... In the writings of the Ari there are columns: there's a daf, and there's amud alef, amud beis, amud gimmel, right? There are the columns, and it's divided into four: amud alef, amud beis, amud gimmel, amud daled. In the Zohar it's divided into amudim — it's like in Shas, there's an amud. In the Yerushalmi it's chapters and halachos. But here it's dapim. Five dapim takes a bit of time, but one has to learn.

33:44 Zohar, Vayechi, page 238b: Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai says: what is "clothed in scarlet" — levush shanim? What does "levush shanim" mean? He says: don't read it "shanim," scarlet, but "shnayim," pairs. What are the pairs? They are tzitzis and tefillin, milah and periah, mezuzah and the Chanukah candle. These pairs, which accompany a person. Mezuzah and the Chanukah candle — you see, the mezuzah on the right, the Chanukah candle on the left. Tzitzis and tefillin, milah and periah. These are the main things, the foundations that accompany a Jew all his life. When a person is born, he has milah and periah; after that he clothes himself in tzitzis and tefillin; and after that, all his life he lives under... in a home, with a mezuzah, until he goes up to his eternal home.

34:27 That is, these are levels that a person climbs. And the highest level, when a person rises, baruch Hashem — he is at the level of a home, where he has his own home for tefillah, for Torah, for light. So they say that in Chanukah we find the support for this — to understand the importance of lighting the Chanukah candles. Now, we said to sit by the light of the candles and read for half an hour, to pray, to read "A psalm, a song for the dedication of the House, of David: I will exalt You, Hashem, for You have drawn me up, and You have not let my enemies rejoice over me" — to read Psalm 91. As we said, there's a very beautiful Midrash Tehillim, the Midrash Shocher Tov, on chapter 91.

35:08 Something very beautiful is written there, said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan. Rabbi Yochanan says: before the Mishkan was set up, when there was no Mishkan, the mazikim, the harmful spirits, would go and clothe themselves in people; they would harm them. The mazikim. There was no Mishkan. From the day the Mishkan was set up — then, "on the day of kalos," the completing of the Mishkan — kalos: the mazikim were finished, annulled from the world. All the mazikim were annulled from the world. So Chanukah, in practice, we see is a remembrance of the Menorah, a remembrance of the Beis HaMikdash, a remembrance of something — of the ultimate purpose, of things that are lofty matters, standing at the very height of the world.

35:41 These are things that stand at the very height of the world — Chanukah. They are not things one can take lightly. It is the holy Shechinah, it is cleaving to the Holy One, blessed be He. There is no light like it — in the whole year, on no day does such a light flow down as on Chanukah. So this means that at that time, when we pray, when we are there... It's written there that the Jewish people are not answered — they call to the Holy One, blessed be He, and He doesn't answer — because they don't know the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He.

36:07 They don't know the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He; they don't know the Names at all. How so? It's "I will raise him up, for he knows My Name" — yes. So there's the sefer Sodei Razaya: according to Kabbalah, the whole explanation of "I will raise him up, for he knows My Name" is that it means knowing the names of Matat. One has to know the names twice over: one has to know all the names of Matat, and also to know the Names of the Holy One, blessed be He — the Name of 72 — to know the explanations. There's a sefer by Rabbi Yaakov Tzvi Yalish, the author of Melo HaRo'im, a disciple of the Chozeh of Lublin. He has chiddushim on Shas — they're printed throughout Shas, on many of the tractates of Shas — Rabbi Yaakov Tzvi Yalish, the author of Melo HaRo'im.

36:39 And he has his work, Kehillas Yaakov. It's on Kabbalah — all the secrets of Kabbalah, arranged by entries, the kinuyim, the kabbalistic names for things, all kinds of things. Did you know of the Kehillas Yaakov, of Yalish? It's an amazing sefer, this sefer. A big sefer, full of kinuyim. There are people with a very old edition of this sefer. It's maybe 70 years old, maybe 100 years. What's in there — things from manuscripts are there.

37:04 So it's because they don't know the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He. Now, it's written there: "You will tread on lion and viper; you will trample young lion and serpent." What's written there in the psalm? Do you know about whom this was said? "On lion and viper." "On lion and viper" was said about Noach. Noach — the twelve months he was in the Ark, he trod on snakes for twelve months, and they didn't harm him. He was inside the Ark for twelve months, right? In the Flood.

37:29 He was among snakes in the Ark — vipers here, vipers there, venomous ones, mambas, I don't know, all the kinds. And he would walk on them, and he wasn't harmed. "You will tread on lion and viper; you will trample young lion and serpent" — that was Noach, who was saved. The Holy One, blessed be He, saved him; only a lion struck him. In the end it wasn't the snake that struck him, but the lion struck him. In the end, not from the snake — "on lion and viper." "You will tread on lion and viper; you will trample..."

37:53 So Noach was saved. So here, in this psalm, it speaks about the rescue of the entire Jewish people, for all the generations — this psalm. There are awesome secrets in this psalm. It's a tremendous psalm. Holy of holies. There are great kavanos in it. Look in the Yimalet Nafsho — see what things he writes about the kavanos of the psalm. He also says to write it on parchment, with its Name, with the Names that one needs to understand first.

38:17 He says to learn it every morning. The segulah of the psalm, in general, is to learn it in the morning. In the morning, read the psalm. Maran the Chida writes that learning Tehillim, in general, can lift up a person's soul. He said to do it in the morning. A person sits and learns in the morning, and he keeps rising higher, and this rises along with it. He can be elevated with this learning, with this psalm; it can also serve as a segulah for memory, and it saves from murderers. So the Sfas Emes of Gur — what we said, that he said in the discourse of the year 5640 — where he writes that one takes all the wicks and the oil: he says that when one burns it, it saves a person the whole year from accusations,

38:50 from evil illnesses, from bandits and all kinds of calamities, and he will not die at the hands of murderers. If murderers come to harm him, he won't die by their hand. It's a segulah to be saved from murderers and such things. Let's go back for a moment to the Midrash Shocher Tov. So it's written there at the end of the midrash, the end of the chapter, that the salvation of Israel is the salvation of the Holy One, blessed be He. However much we are saved, so too is He saved. The Holy One, blessed be He — what He wants from us is that we be saved.

39:16 He too, as it were, is saved. The problem is that we don't call to Him in truth. Do we call to Him in truth? Rather, we don't call to Him, to the Holy One, blessed be He, in truth. No connection is made, no true closeness to the Holy One, blessed be He, is made, because we don't call to the Holy One, blessed be He, in truth. We don't call to the Holy One, blessed be He, in truth. If we call to Him in truth, then it is heard. But you don't call in truth, so there's no connection with the Holy One, blessed be He. That's why, on Chanukah — when they said, "Write for yourselves on the horn of the ox" — why?

39:42 To plant heresy in them, so that already from a young age, while they are still nursing, when the babies look, they'd see heresy, they'd see denial, and through this they'd come to denial. That they'd come to denial, get used to denial, that from this they'd get, Heaven forbid, some notion, they'd think to deny. And when do we light the candles? We light the candles at night, in the dark, at a time when the whole world, now — there's no sun, there's no light in the world.

40:08 The only light there is, is the candles. And we don't light in the morning. In the morning we don't light; there's no lighting in the morning; in the morning we don't light candles. Have you ever seen anyone who lights in the morning? We don't light — right or not? In shul they light, true. I don't mean that lighting; I mean the lighting that we light in the public domain. People going now and lighting candles — you don't see that. You see it in shul, that they light, but there's no source for it in the Shulchan Aruch, nor in its commentaries — lighting in shul.

40:36 There's something on it only in the Pri Megadim. Only the Pri Megadim speaks about it, in siman 670. The Pri Megadim writes that they light — it's understood from the words of the Pri Megadim, in the sense that they lit it so that the candle kept burning — they were large candles, they lit them for the whole night, and until morning they stayed lit. That's what's understood from the Pri Megadim. In the Rema, in siman 672, in se'if katan 1, the Rema writes that they were careful, in lighting large candles, not to come to a fire.

41:01 That's how it's somehow understood from the wording — to understand from this that there was indeed some lighting, that it's good to light in the morning in shul. It's even good to light. But it's not that there's some Shulchan Aruch on this, the way you're jumping in. Right — but once again, it isn't in the Shulchan Aruch. You won't find a source for it; only the Pri Megadim is the source. Siman 670 in the Pri Megadim — that's where he writes it. Now, lighting in the morning — if a person lights anyway — what I'm saying is: when is the Chanukah candle noticeable?

41:33 At night the candle is noticeable, right? By day we don't light it. It's not... I'm not talking about what's done in shul, what you're jumping in about. I mean that a person lights now, at night — that's the beauty of the light, right? When is the beauty of the light noticeable? At night. At night everyone sees the light, everyone; there is pirsumei nisa, everything. When is the beauty and the splendor? When does the Holy One, blessed be He, want us to shine? Precisely now — in exile, in the dark.

41:58 When is it an achievement to shine? To shine now, in exile. It's no achievement to shine afterwards, once Mashiach has come. After all — there's the Rebbe of Vilednik, may his merit protect us. The author of She'eris Yisrael, of Vilednik: Rabbi Yisrael Dov Ber, son of Rabbi Yosef, a disciple of Rabbi Mordechai of Chernobyl, the son of Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl, who was a nephew of Rabbi Nachum Shustik. He's a hidden tzaddik. He knew where the Tribes are; he knew almost everything — one of the hidden tzaddikim, the holy ones and the geonim.

42:27 The Meor Einayim — he has the sefer Yismach Lev on Shas. His uncle, Rabbi Nachum Shustik, was a mighty gaon. He knew all the secrets there are; he knew almost everything, all the secrets, where things are — the Sambatyon, he knew. He knew where the Sambatyon River is, where the Tribes are. He was the uncle of Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl. He knew. There are many writings of his scattered about; there's no sefer of his at all. It's just that I researched him many years ago — ten years ago I went through all kinds of sefarim to get hold of all kinds of things, information about his teachings. There are all kinds of rare things that he knew.

42:57 Almost no one knew of this tzaddik. Have you ever heard of him? Rabbi Nachum Shustik? Yes, he's a great tzaddik — something awe-inspiring, something great. A tzaddik. There are so many awesome tzaddikim among the Jewish people. People don't know of them, don't learn. One has to learn a lot, to understand — see what this is. He was greater than many. The Chozeh of Lublin said which sefarim are the important ones in the world: the holy Zohar, the holy Or HaChaim, he said, and the Meor Einayim.

43:23 "These are sefarim that never leave my table," so he said — the Meor Einayim. And Yismach Lev on Shas. Chiddushim on Shas by Rabbi Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl. Now, Rabbi Yisrael Dov Ber, son of Rabbi Yosef, the author of She'eris Yisrael, of Vilednik — may his merit protect us, amen — he said that at this time — the Seven Shepherds: when you write "zayin ro'im," Seven Shepherds, it comes to the gematria of "ymei Chanukah," the days of Chanukah. Each day, he says, one of the Seven Shepherds shines, as with the Ushpizin — for each day, one of the Seven Shepherds shines. So one should mention them: pray in the merit of that one of the Seven Shepherds, and light — like the Ushpizin: Avraham, Yitzchak, in the order of the Ushpizin; each day of Chanukah, to mention them, something from the learning about them. So who is the eighth?

44:00 Mashiach Tzidkeinu, writes the Rebbe of Vilednik. A great one — he was a gaon of the world. He would finish a tractate in a night. Every night — he makes a siyum on a tractate in the morning; at night he learns a tractate. And Rabbi Mordechai of Chernobyl said to him: "Make me a siyum on a tractate." He said to him, "Which would you like?" He said, "Shabbos." In the morning he made him the "Hadran alach." So he said: did anyone see him learning? Did anyone see him learning at all? "Did they see you learning?" There were people there, at the public audience — did they see him learning? They said that no one saw him learning; he was receiving the public. And yet he made a siyum. How did he learn?

44:35 These are stories — these are giants of the world, these are levels... so that you understand what this is. If only we had a drop of it. There was the holy Rav, Rabbi Meir of Korostyshev — have you heard of him? The author of Meir Einei Chachamim, a sefer on Chanukah. Rabbi Yitzchak of Rozla — have you heard of him? He too has a commentary, a sefer... the whole sefer is on the kavanos of Chanukah. You haven't heard of him? How have you not heard? He was a Chassid.

44:59 I won't read his sefer to you if you don't know of him. You don't have much material... but why is it like that? What is this? He was a tremendous gaon — tremendous, tremendous. The author of Meir Einei Chachamim. He has a sefer on Chanukah, Meir Einei Chachamim, may his merit protect us. He... how did he compose the sefer? He was a disciple of Rabbi Zev Wolf of Zhitomir, the author of Or HaMeir. How did he compose the sefer Meir Einei Chachamim? Once he came to Rabbi Zev Wolf of Zhitomir.

45:24 He went in to him and saw him spend six hours preparing the candles. In the preparation, he saw his face — there was a fire in his face for the Holy One, blessed be He. He went back home and began to compose his whole sefer on Chanukah. He called it Meir Einei Chachamim, "Lighting Up the Eyes of the Wise" — as if to say that the Holy One, blessed be He, lit up his eyes. There's a nice story about Rabbi Yonasan Eibeshitz too — it's a bit funny. Rabbi Yonasan Eibeshitz, when he was small — by nature he was always on the move. Rabbi Yonasan Eibeshitz — there are stories about him, that he was always moving, wanting to move, to get out, to go.

45:54 So he said to him: "You're not leaving here. Today you're not going out. So tell me: how many candles do we light altogether, over all of Chanukah?" So he said to him: "'The snare is broken' — pach, snare, is 88. Break the pach in half and it comes out to 44 — 'and we have escaped'!" And he ran off. That's Rabbi Yonasan Eibeshitz — he was sharp. He had a dispute with the Pnei Yehoshua — do you know that? A hard dispute with the Pnei Yehoshua. He disagreed with the Pnei Yehoshua, he went against him; he disagreed with the Pnei Yehoshua, he summoned the Pnei Yehoshua to the Heavenly Court, and from his displeasure the Pnei Yehoshua passed away.

46:26 What is this... it's no simple story. It's not simple, this story between them. There was a dispute between them over the amulets he wrote; the Pnei Yehoshua came out against him, and he summoned him to the Heavenly Court. The Pnei Yehoshua is something great, and Rabbi Yonasan Eibeshitz is something great. This is a dispute between tzaddikim; we don't need to get into it. We'll never understand it; we won't deal with it. Rabbi Tzvi Elimelech of Dinov writes — he says that... What's that — besamim?

46:50 Yes. He says that smelling besamim, fragrant spices, every day can bring Tikkun to a person's soul. Every day. The author of Ginzei Yisrael, of Chortkov — Rabbi Yisrael of Chortkov would go around with a box of besamim on him all the time. He would smell them. He has a sefer, the collection "Torascha Sha'ashu'ai." He too was a holy gaon. Commentaries, chiddushim of his. "Blessed..." — is it "atzei"? "isvei"? What is this? "Blessed are You, Hashem, our G-d, King of the universe, Who creates fragrant trees."

47:17 So where were we? The holy Rav, the Meir Einei Chachamim. The Meir Einei Chachamim. So he went out and composed his commentary on Chanukah, his discourses on Chanukah. He composed this discourse on Chanukah, which came out — this discourse. Okay. Now, we said to pray by the light of the candle, to read by the candles, to pray, to make one's requests, to put in as many requests as possible, to come to the candles prepared — to come with all the requests, everything in order; to write down all the requests I need, all the salvations, everything a person wants to ask for — to write it down for himself: this, and this, and this — and to persist, every day by the candles; not to waste the time.

47:56 To sit by the candle, to pray as much as possible, to gaze at the candles, to look at the candles. The more he does, the more it will refine a person's level; it will bring him to a very, very great level. A person won't even know what level he can reach just from gazing at the candles. He brings Tikkun to his nefesh, his ruach, his neshamah, everything he has, all the gilgulim — everything receives its Tikkun just through the gaze, when he gazes at the light of the candle. Just the mere gaze, that he gazes — it will bring Tikkun to everything he needs, everything. He will bring Tikkun to everything.

48:24 Now of course, we said: as much as possible, to give merit to the many — that everyone should see, that there be pirsumei nisa, to give merit to the whole public, to all the people who come, wherever the guests who come are — to give the public there the merit that there be a lighting of the Chanukah candle. That is "in the multitude of people is the King's glory" — a public lighting, so that everyone always sees and knows of the miracle of our Master, the Creator, blessed be He, and of the Chanukah miracle that was done for the Jewish people. We also eat sufganiyos; there is great virtue in that too — to eat sufganiyos, and anything made with oil.

48:52 The Rebbe of Vilednik wrote this in the sefer She'eris Yisrael, Sha'ar HaZmanim, page 106. The Rebbe of Vilednik writes that it was the custom of the Rebbe, the author of the Mashmia Shalom — have you heard of the Mashmia Shalom? Rabbi Shalom Shachna of Prohobisht, the author of the Mashmia Shalom. Every year his custom was to take honey water, to mix a little oil into it and drink it; this sweetens the judgments. But oil — that is disgusting, with olive oil. I don't know; do it without olive oil — take a little water, a small spoonful — maybe a small spoonful of oil, a small spoonful of honey — and mix it. This too is a good segulah for many good things; there is healing and blessing in it too, as long as it is good honey. This is in the name of the Baal Shem Tov — the author of the Mashmia Shalom.

49:27 The Rebbe of Vilednik says that it is good to eat this thing, to eat sufganiyos, which can be made like that kind of mezonos that people make, right? On Chanukah it is good to take a little honey, or to eat sweet things. That is the sufganiyos. The source for this is not the Rebbe of Vilednik; it is actually from Rabbeinu Maimon, the father of the Rambam. He goes all the way back — the father of the Rambam; he is Rabbi Maimon.

49:56 The Rambam mentions him in several places; there are several places where the Rambam cites him as "my father, my teacher" — "my father, my teacher," "my father, my teacher ruled so, and I disagree" — and he rules not like him, he rules otherwise. There are several times in the Rambam where the Rambam mentions him and does not rule like him. So, the source of the sufganiyos: he says that this is what is fitting to eat, like this, in remembrance of that oil. A person should eat a sufganiyah — not more than one sufganiyah.

50:20 It is not healthy at all; it harms the arteries. Not healthy. Really — maybe one sufganiyah a day. In the end a person will look like a sufganiyah. Maybe eat a small piece of the sufganiyah. When eating a sufganiyah: on a sufganiyah the first blessing is Mezonos, and the after-blessing is Al HaMichyah. Do not eat more than the measure of 150 — 150 grams — so as not to enter the dispute between Rashi and the Rambam, three eggs or four eggs: three, 162, according to Rashi, and according to the Rambam it is four eggs.

50:54 So do not enter the dispute between Rashi and the Rambam. A person should say the after-blessing; on a sufganiyah one says Al HaMichyah. And if he eats too much — if he eats more than 150 — that already enters a doubt in blessings. And so, even if he has this doubt in blessings, he should say Al HaMichyah in any case. Don't we say the blessing on the... on the... isn't that...? No. It is a cooked dish, ma'aseh kedeirah. Absolutely not. A sufganiyah isn't? A sufganiyah is frying; it is altogether oil. Nothing is more fried. A sufganiyah is oil — and not to mention that a sufganiyah, not only is it all oil, the whole sufganiyah is oil — you are, on top of that, eating white flour and sugar and jams, and all the things that are really not healthy. So if today you have the possibility of making it in a healthier way and eating in a healthier way, then certainly that is better. But of course it is worth eating a sufganiyah, yes, because it has a source, and it is not right to make light of it; it is worth eating it. The Rebbe of Vilednik too was particular about this every year, and it is also a practice — many tzaddikim had the custom to eat such baked goods,

51:59 good ones — these sufganin, however one can make them. And that is what it is called in their words, sufganin; so there was already a source for it back then — sufganin, which they used to make, and it is a great virtue. With Hashem's help, bli neder, next week we will also read Megillas Antiochus — Megillas Antiochus, which also has a source. About Megillas Antiochus there is, in the name of Rav Saadia Gaon and the Geonim — who wrote Megillas Antiochus? Rav Saadia Gaon and the Geonim say that it was Yehudah, Shimon, Yochanan, Yonasan and Elazar, the sons of Matisyahu the Kohen Gadol, that they wrote Megillas Antiochus.

52:29 And we have the opinion of the Baal Halachos Gedolos. The Baal Halachos Gedolos, in Hilchos Soferim, in siman — I don't remember which siman it was — in siman 75. In siman 75 he writes that those who wrote Megillas Antiochus were the elders of Beis Shammai and the elders of Beis Hillel. There is such a megillah, Megillas Antiochus. And at the end of the megillah it is written that they accepted these days upon themselves — accepted them like the days of the festivals written in the Torah.

52:57 These days of the Chashmonaim, as they wrote — the whole miracle of Chanukah — are like the days of the festivals written in the Torah. So from here there is already a dispute among the Rishonim — whoever has learned it already knows: the opinion of the Rambam and the Mordechai. There is the long Mordechai and the short Mordechai. Do you know the difference between the long Mordechai and the short one? They are editions. There is the Austrian edition, the first edition, and there is the Rhine edition — that of the people of Germany — that is the short Mordechai. In the long Mordechai it appears; that is the opinion of the Mordechai.

53:23 There is an edition — whoever is familiar with it, whoever once learned it; I don't know. Well, there is the opinion of the Mordechai, the Rambam and the Raavyah. There is the Raavyah on Tractate Berachos, on page 133 — in siman 133 of the Raavyah — 134, sorry — of the Raavyah. He too writes, bringing it as halachah, that yes, it is a mitzvah meal and not an optional meal. And many, many Rishonim wrote so. So in their opinion it is a mitzvah meal, and one is obligated to eat and to make a mitzvah meal on the days of Chanukah, like the days of the festivals. There is the Tikkunei Zohar — Tikkunei Zohar Chadash, page 148a — Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai also writes that the Chanukah candle and the mitzvah of Chanukah — the Chanukah candle is a festival.

54:04 It is written in the Zohar that the Chanukah candle is completely a festival. And that is the opinion of these Rishonim who hold so — the Raavyah — except for the Maharam of Rothenburg. The Maharam of Rothenburg does not hold that way — it is in the Tashbetz Katan, for whoever knows — and that is how it was ruled in practice in the Beis Yosef; and likewise the Yeshuos Yaakov, the Shiyarei Knesses HaGedolah and other poskim — that in practice this was not the custom. So that is the halachah. In practice we sing some zemiros, songs, and make great joy — and so, when we do this, it is a mitzvah.

54:33 So it is an optional meal — that is the halachah; it is not an obligation to make a meal now. But of course it is good for a person to be stringent with himself and yes, make a meal every day, and yes, gladden his heart every day, because there is very, very, very great virtue in it — especially if a person also reads Megillas Antiochus, which we will read next week — that is the practice every year. We will gather here, with Hashem's help, we will sing zemiros and songs and niggunim, and right after that all of us together will read Megillas Antiochus, like every year, when we read Megillas Antiochus together.

55:02 We will have song and joy, everyone singing and rejoicing, so that there is a good atmosphere, and "in the multitude of people is the King's glory," as it should be. And then the Holy One, blessed be He, will bring forth for us from Heaven salvations, miracles and wonders. And this, as you know, is a great thing. So if you want, next week Megillas Antiochus will be handed out here; we will hand out a megillah to everyone, and we will all read it here together.

55:26 And it is a segulah, a very good segulah. If you want, there is also the Raavyah — there is another source in the Raavyah on Tractate Sukkah, page 44b; he writes that there are places where the custom was to read Megillas Antiochus, but he says there, in its place, not to say a blessing over it; there is also no basis for that. So I said: and why is there no basis for it with Megillas Antiochus? Because we have — on Purim we do not say the blessing, we do not say Hallel. On Purim there is no Hallel, right? On Purim we do not say Hallel.

55:52 So Megillas Esther itself — with the megillah we have already fulfilled the obligation of Hallel. Now, on Chanukah you have the lighting of the candle, pirsumei nisa, and you have the complete Hallel, where you already say the Hallel with a blessing. So there is no longer any need for reading the megillah; nothing needs to be reinforced by it. That is why he speaks of a place where the custom was not to read it — now the matter is well understood. The answer — Now, the Gaon of Vilna comes — the Gaon of Vilna says that there are eight days in the year on which we do not read the Hallel, on which we do not complete the Hallel.

56:18 We have six days of Pesach — we have the six days of Pesach, and we have the days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur — we know why it is not said: the books of the dead and the books of the living are open; it is not fitting to say Hallel, so Hallel is not said. Days of judgment, days of justice — it is not said. That is three days missing — two days, right? Rosh Hashanah — plus six days of Pesach. How many do we have together?

56:43 Eight — eight days. Now, on Pesach why is Hallel not said? Do you know what is said about Pesach? We know — What do you say? How's that? "The work of My hands" — correct. That reason appears in the Beis Yosef. So there are several reasons for this — the reason of the offerings. In the Beis Yosef it is also written, in siman 490 — in the Beis Yosef, in Orach Chaim — it is written in siman 490, in the name of the Shibolei HaLeket — that is siman 174 — he writes that in the place where there was — he brings Tractate Megillah, page 10b — what happened there: "The work of My hands is drowning in the sea, and you are saying song?"

57:14 How can it be — the work of My hands is drowning in the sea and you are saying song? So it was not something whole before the Holy One, blessed be He, to come and have everyone now say Hallel at a time when the work of My hands is drowning in the sea. And so it is not something that He would be pleased with. Now, on Chanukah we make up for all those days — all the days, both of Pesach and of Rosh Hashanah and also Yom Kippur. And it comes out that Zos Chanukah corresponds to Yom Kippur, says the Gra. That is why they say that the sealing is on Zos Chanukah — the sealing of Yom Kippur. It comes out as a kind of support for it; it comes out together.

57:50 Do you understand how beautiful? It is as if it is renewed — it comes out from here, it comes out corresponding to it — and then, in fact, a great Tikkun is made through this, and it is as if the request is accepted, as much as they ask. Our holy Rebbe too, Rabbi Nachman, explains in Likutei Moharan — and in the Sichos, in Siach Sarfei Kodesh, there are several places where it is written — that according to the request of "Selach na," "Please forgive," that they ask, they merit the kedushah. Yom HaKippurim is called... Chanukah and Yom Kippur have a great connection between them. So there is in this a great virtue. In general — Chanukah, Purim, Chanukah, all these things. So if a person said by mistake — he got confused in the prayer and said "Al HaNissim... in the days of Mordechai

58:27 and Esther in Shushan the capital, when the wicked Haman rose up against them" — on Chanukah — he has fulfilled his obligation. Chanukah and Purim are the same light. And the halachah: if you got confused and said "in the days of Mordechai and Esther in Shushan the capital," you have fulfilled your obligation; you do not need to go back. You have fulfilled your obligation. You see that it is so — they are together, Chanukah and Purim, and Purim in Chanukah, and they are the same light. The light of Chanukah and Purim is miracle and deliverance. Once I gave a shiur on Purim — on Purim I once gave a shiur about Chanukah, and when Chanukah came I gave a shiur about Purim, exactly the opposite.

58:54 I did it on purpose, in order to show it. Do you remember that shiur? I will give you that shiur, recorded — an interesting shiur, a shiur where throughout the whole shiur on Chanukah I showed how everything is hinted at in Purim, and on Pur... I expounded only on Purim: on Haman, on Mordechai, on that — this whole connection. And on Chanukah we spoke about... and on Purim, about Chanukah. On Chanukah, yes? The opposite. The opposite. Now, what actually happens on Chanukah?

59:21 On Chanukah all the lights flow down, all the kindness and the complete mercy, and one must have kavanah in them. When saying it, at the time of the blessing — you light with the blessings — one must have kavanah in all the words, word by word, and also to have in mind the thirteen "mechilin d'rachamei," as we said — the Attributes of Mercy — that it flow down to the person. And with this... at the place where one says the blessing, one sets the heart and blesses the Holy One, blessed be He — all these things — and from this great good comes to the person.

59:47 In the future to come, with Hashem's help, the festivals will cease, all of that will cease; Chanukah and Purim will not cease. It is in Midrash Rabbah on Parashas Beha'aloscha, in parashah 15, siman 6. It is written there — and the Maggid Meisharim also brings this, in Parashas Vayakhel, Rabbeinu Yosef Karo — that in the future to come Chanukah and Purim will remain forever, never to cease; Chanukah and Purim will remain all the time. Chanukah and Purim will always remain.

1:00:13 The Ramban too brought this, on Parashas Beha'aloscha. I have all kinds of sources. Now, what is written there? That at a time when there are offerings — when there are offerings, when the Beis HaMikdash is standing — the offerings are in practice. At a time when the Beis HaMikdash is not standing, the offerings are not in practice. But the lamp will be forever and ever. The Chanukah candles will always be; the lamps of the Menorah will always be. Now, the Chanukah candle that we light is the revelation of the Menorah, the revelation of the lamp of old.

1:00:41 Now when you come and light, you are lighting something new that never was in the world. And so from here one can see their greatness and their importance. Good. Yasher koach. May the Holy One, blessed be He, bless us, and may we merit the complete geulah, and may we merit the Beis HaMikdash, and may we merit the coming of Mashiach Tzidkeinu, and may we merit to see miracles and wonders, and may we all merit to see the light of the Beis HaMikdash, and may we all merit to light the candles with kavanah, and may the Holy One, blessed be He, accept all our prayers with mercy and with favor.

1:01:14 Amen, so may it be His will. So do not forget, with Hashem's help, at the lighting, to do all the segulos we spoke of: Ana B'Koach, all the verses, everything that needs to be said. What's that? "By that reckoning one has to stay awake all night," he says. By that reckoning one has to stay awake all night. But I will explain, just briefly. Just briefly, so that you remember. We said: to read Yoshev B'seser Elyon with its kavanah.

1:01:39 To read it with kavanah. Whoever has the sefer Yimalet Nafsho should read from the sefer Yimalet Nafsho, with the kavanos that are there. Siman 1 in Yimalet Nafsho. Whoever does not have the sefer Yimalet Nafsho should go and buy it — Yimalet Nafsho. What can I tell you? Buy this sefer; it is simple, it is not an expensive sefer. A sefer that is worth buying. In general, it has much great virtue. It is in the sefer Kav HaYashar, of Rabbi Tzvi Hirsh of Koidanov.

1:02:04 He writes in chapter 96 — he writes there to wash the hands before the lighting. He says why: at the time that you light — he too says — the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy flow down; thirteen words, corresponding to the thirteen. He explains everything that we said. He explains the thirteen words, and he says that the holy angels come to the house of the lighting. Angels come to your home. There are a few times when angels come: on Erev Shabbos they come, and on Chanukah angels come. On Chanukah angels come to the home.

1:02:29 So you must prepare yourself for this — to do the lighting properly, so that it is a fitting lighting. It is a matter of a person's level — each one according to his level; he is not obligated, but each one should do what he wants, what is needed. At the least, we said: to clean the Menorah, so that everything shines as it should, to check that everything is there — the wicks, everything — as it should be, that everything be in order, in the fitting way, so that it is accepted before the Holy One, blessed be He; to pray with kavanah, to mention the names, to make the list, to say Yoshev B'seser Elyon — we said eight times: seven times aloud and once in a whisper.

1:03:04 Seven times aloud, once in a whisper. Whoever wants to say it 91 times, let him say it. Each one should say it as he wishes. Vihi Noam — yes. Vihi Noam, certainly; its foundation is great and vast. "May the pleasantness of the Lord our G-d be upon us; establish for us the work of our hands — the work of our hands, establish it." It is enough to say it once. Its virtue is very, very great. Maran the Chida writes that a person must say it before every matter and act of kedushah.

1:03:33 Before every matter of kedushah one should say it. It is in his sefer Tziporen Shamir, with the booklets — Moreh BaEtzba — at the beginning of the sefer. There he writes that one should say "May the pleasantness of the Lord our G-d be upon us, and the work of our hands..." before every matter and act of kedushah. Before anything he does, he should begin by saying the — so he writes in Moreh BaEtzba. What is the beginning? Do not miss this, before every matter of kedushah: "May the pleasantness of the Lord our G-d be upon us; establish for us the work of our hands — the work of our hands, establish it."

1:03:57 Say it before every beginning one makes; whatever you do, come and say this, because mercy flows down through it. Moshe Rabbeinu himself said it. So there is very great virtue in saying Vihi Noam — in psalm 90. In Tehillim, at the end of the psalm — Moshe Rabbeinu said it. There is very great virtue in saying Vihi Noam — in general, before every matter and act of kedushah. Now, the Noda BiYehudah did not hold that one needs to say Leshem Yichud. He held against the Leshem Yichud. And Maran the Chida says: "It is good not to pay heed to those who say..." — he means the...

1:04:25 If you see that there are those who raise a dispute over it — let us say here: the Noda BiYehudah holds that the very doing of the act, the thing you do, already has its effect; one does not need to say a prayer for it. By the very act that you do, it will have its effect. He says: the saying itself will help. So it is good to read the text set by Rabbeinu Yosef Chaim, as it is read in the siddur — as he says the... the "Modaah veGiluy Da'as," which helps a person for every matter and act of kedushah, so that it benefits him. It removes many troubles from the world, you should know.

1:04:51 This text that Rabbeinu Yosef Chaim revealed and wrote, at the end — at the end of the morning blessings, the one that begins "Modaah veGiluy Da'as" — this text that he wrote saves a person from all the troubles in the world. Because if a person binds his da'as — I told you a story about Rabbi Yoel of Satmar, may his merit protect us, the author of the Divrei Yoel, the holy Gaon, Rabbi Yoel. When they said to him — they wanted to kill him then, they wanted to kill him — "And you are not afraid that they will kill you?"

1:05:19 He said: "Hashem is with me and I will not fear" — its initials spell Yoel. "Hashem is with me and I will not fear" — yes, that is what he said. Once, Rabbi Yoel, may his merit protect us — a certain chassan came to him and said: "Rav, I want you to bless me, with everything I am going through." He said to him: "You want to have no troubles? You were with me — did you hear how many troubles there are upon the Jewish people? If you have holy thought, you will be saved from all these troubles." That one should not have an impure thought, Heaven forbid. So a person should be careful not to have an impure thought, that he should have holy thought.

1:05:48 So this is something that can bring that about. About this Leshem Yichud, this saying that we say — "I am hereby ready and prepared" — it can bring about many salvations for a person. Even if he does not have kavanah, even if he does not think, it will count for him, it will work for him, it will lift him, it will give him kedushah of thought, it will refine him, it will raise him up. There is great virtue in it. So do not miss it. Say it right away; do not miss it under any circumstances. There is great virtue in it; its power is very, very, very great.

1:06:20 Our Rebbe, the holy Rashash, said that one must say all the time, aloud, "lishmah." Before every thing one does in kedushah — there is a kavanah in this. "Lishmah," he says, is "leshem Hei" — for the sake of the Hei. The Hei is the Shechinah in exile. It should be for the sake of the Shechinah — that is "lishmah": for the sake of the letter Hei, which is the Shechinah in exile, as is written in Pasach Eliyahu, which we say: "the Hei, which is the Shechinah in exile." One must say "leshem Hei" — for the sake of the holy Shechinah, to bring her out of the exile — one must say "lishmah." The holy Baal Shem Tov too, in Tzavaas HaRivash, where it is also written: all of a person's learning should be for the sake of Heaven —

1:06:51 to say "for the sake of Heaven," and this will be of benefit to the person. There are several levels. Heaven forbid, a person learns — it is mentioned in Tosafos, Taanis 7, side a: one who learns not for the sake of Heaven, Heaven forbid — that is, in order to provoke and to quarrel, Heaven forbid — a defect. ... leave it, show me — the Zohar. That is what you wanted, you said. Good — yasher koach. All night.

1:07:19 As much as you can. Whoever can sit, stay — as long as you want. Yes, yes, yes — unequivocally yes. In shul we light at sunset; at home we light at nightfall, tzeis hakochavim. On Erev Shabbos, put in oil that will burn until half an hour after tzeis hakochavim. Of course, everyone does this. Everyone does it in the finest way and lights with oil that will burn for half an hour after tzeis hakochavim. One lights the oil with hiddur — that the oil be of real use; the more a person makes it oil that is good for eating, the greater its hiddur. Look at the oil, and at its color too.

1:07:49 Real olive oil — if you look at it, its color is... it has a look; already in the look of the oil, it has the look of oil. Good oil — it shines. The oil has — anything reflected in it is like... there is light in olive oil. Oil that is not good looks like water. Oil that is not good looks like water, you should know. It looks like water. Real olive oil — you should see it alive; see it alive, that it is fit for eating. If you know that you could take this oil to eat, then it is good. If you know that you would not touch this oil for eating — not touch it — take a different oil.

1:08:29 However a person... some do it this way and some do it that way — wherever you want. Whatever is done in your place, do that. Pray — usually we pray in shul: we say the prayer, after that we do the lighting, and right after that, the Arvis prayer. After that each one goes to his home and lights the Chanukah candle — we do the lighting at home — and we pray, read all the prayers, all the kavanos, everything that is needed — all that the Kabbalists arranged for the Chanukah candle, and all these things.

1:08:56 Just half an hour is enough, and usually that is what it will take — the Yoshev B'seser Elyon, the eight times. The main thing is to say Yoshev B'seser Elyon: Yoshev B'seser Elyon eight times — seven aloud, and one, the last, in a whisper. That is the main thing — to say it beside the Menorah, to sit beside it and look at the candles as much as possible. As much as possible. It is fitting that the wife too sit for the first half hour, not do anything, and look at the candles — that everyone sit and look at the candle, because it is once a year that there is a revelation of the hidden light, which is revealed exactly at this time.

1:09:32 There is no other time. There isn't. Once a year there is this revelation. Holy angels come to your home. You can merit something that all year long cannot be merited. In particular, learning the halachos of Chanukah has a tremendous segulah: the learning alone works miracles and wonders for a person. Just learning the halachos of Chanukah. If a person just learns the halachos of Chanukah, it is a segulah that he will have miracles and wonders. In general, just the learning itself, learning the halachos of Chanukah — and especially on Chanukah itself — this certainly brings down upon the person all the miracles, all the wonders, all the good things.

1:10:04 There are many virtues in this. As you know, also in "In the beginning G-d created," the 25th word is "light." "In the beginning G-d created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep, and the spirit of G-d hovered over the face of the waters. And G-d said: Let there be light." "Light" — the 25th word. And that is true. This is the hidden light, which from the day of the creation of the world flows down precisely on the 25th of Kislev. So if a person wants to cherish this light, to keep it and to honor it, then what — will he go and busy himself with nonsense?

1:10:31 That is not derech eretz. Let him take this light, receive it — that's it. That is about it, more or less... The dreidel — there is great virtue in it. Next week maybe we will bring a dreidel, to speak about it too. There is great virtue in the dreidel in general. On Purim we make the turning toward above, and on Chanukah we do the opposite. Rabbi... the Rashab — have you heard of the Rashab? Rabbi Shalom DovBer, the Rambam of Chassidus, as he was called, the father of the Rayatz.

1:11:02 There are also many things — many tzaddikim who knew the kavanos of the dreidel. Not everyone knows the kavanos; there are real kavanos in the dreidel. It can bring about many good effects. It is good for a person to take the dreidel, give it a spin, and say: "in accordance with the intent of all the tzaddikim and holy ones who know how to have kavanah in this" — to spin the dreidel and say: "I hereby intend in accordance with all the tzaddikim and chassidim who truly know the true kavanah that there is in the dreidel." But really to give a spin of the dreidel. As we said about the candles themselves — just as a person does not throw a Shabbos candle in the trash, Heaven forbid — as we explained, one does not disgrace the mitzvos. One does not throw away Shabbos candles; also what she lit, the Shabbos candles, one does not throw away. One wraps them in two plastic bags

1:11:40 and then puts them in the trash. One does not just throw them out — these are things of a mitzvah. As we explained — in siman 21 of Orach Chaim, Maran in the Shulchan Aruch wrote: articles of a mitzvah may be thrown away, but one does not disgrace them. You cannot go and take an article of a mitzvah and disgrace it. To disgrace — no. To throw away, yes, but not to disgrace. There are differences. Like the schach of the sukkah, all these things — the many mitzvos there are. There is kedushah: there are articles of kedushah and there are articles of a mitzvah; one must know to distinguish between them, so that a person does not take every holy thing and come to throw it away, to toss it out of the house because "I don't like it." Make the check, give it thought, and then act.

1:12:09 On Chanukah, when standing before the candles, look, and draw in as much as possible from the candles. The holy Rav, Rabbi Chaim Mordechai of Nadvorna, son of Rabbi Itamar, the elder of Nadvorna, may his merit protect us — he would sit facing the candles for hours. He would gaze from one end of the world to the other through the candles. That is what they say about him — that he would merit to see, to bring about many wondrous Tikkunim through the seeing, to bring Tikkun to the eyes — a segulah for the eyes — to bring Tikkun to awesome things, real things.

1:12:34 It brings a person to a new light. The lighting of the Chanukah candle — new. New — by the very staying beside the candle, new. A person becomes a new creation. Ner, the lamp; shemen, the oil; and pesilah, the wick — that is nefesh. A wick, right? With the oil, when one makes this Tikkun of the... the Tikkun of the nefesh, which this has, with all the... when one puts in the wick, all these things. There are kavanos also for when one puts in the wick. All these things — so that a person has benefit, and so on.

1:13:01 Each one according to his own situation. Each one according to what he can, what he knows — and that's it. An awakening from below, and an awakening from above — there is a difference. On Chanukah and Purim, on Pesach and on Sukkos. There are times in the year when... The opposite. On Purim you made noise up above, in Heaven.

1:13:25 Whereas on Chanukah, it is already from Heaven that they turned you; we only spun around — the Holy One, blessed be He, turns everything.