Saturday, December 31, 2005

"TODAY'S DAY": Sunday, January 1, 2006

B"H

Tevet 1, 5766 * January 1, 2006

=======================
"T O D A Y ' S D A Y"
=======================

Wednesday, Tevet 1, Rosh Chodesh, 6th Day of Chanuka 5703

Torah lessons: Chumash: Mikeitz, Revi'i with Rashi.
Tehillim: 1-9.
Tanya: Now these three garments (p. 13)...in these three
garments (p. 15).

It is customary that one not Davening with a minyan says the opening (p. 241) and closing (p. 245) b'rachot of Hallel even on days when "half Hallel" (1) is said.

In the concluding paragraph, Yehal'lucha (p.245) omit the word "Al. All Tefillin (2) should be worn (then, later, taken off) before Musaf (p. 245), but the daily Torah lessons are studied after concluding the entire service.

Footnotes: (1) See instructions, Siddur p. 241.
(2) See Menachem Av 19.

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Chanukah is here!

Our extensive Chanukah website has how-to’s, stories, lessons, games and even recipes! It's sure to make your holiday more meaningful and insightful! All this at:

http://www.Chanukah.org

Tip: Join a public menorah lighting or Chanukah event in your area too!

http://www.chabad.org/103839

Send Chanukah Greeting Cards to friends and family:

http://www.chabad.org/225487

New! Featured Chanukah Videos:

SEASONS: A Chanukah Thought: http://www.chabad.org/335975
MIRACLES: A Chanukah Film: http://www.chabad.org/329867
MIRACLE LIGHTS: An Animated Production: http://www.chabad.org/339352

Wishing you and your family a Happy Chanukah!

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Compiled and arranged by the Lubavitcher Rebbe in 5703 (1943) from the talks and letters of the Previous Lubavitcher Rebbe. Note: day of week and Torah lessons indicated are from 5703 (1943).

For a glossary of terms used in "Today's Day" please click here:
http://chabad.org/article.asp?AID=95867

© Copyright
Kehot Publication Society
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Brought to you by Chabad.org

To view this lesson online with its many features please visit: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/hayomyom.asp

For more daily Torah study, please visit: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/

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LESSONS IN TANYA: Sunday, January 1, 2006

B"H

Tevet 1, 5766 * January 1, 2006

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L E S S O N S I N T A N Y A
===============================

Today's Lesson:

Likutei Amarim
(Conclusion of Chapter Five)
--------------

This is the distinctive, infinitely great and wonderful superiority of the mitzvah of knowing and comprehending Torah over all the mitzvot involving action, and even over those performed through speech; indeed, even over the mitzvah of oral Torah study.

[The precept of Torah study may be performed by reciting passages of Scripture, even if one is ignorant of their meaning. Such study, however, lacks the infinitely superior quality of comprehending Torah, namely]:

For through all the mitzvot performed in action and speech G-d clothes the soul, and envelops it with His light from "head" to "foot", [i.e., from its highest level to its lowest]; while in the case of the knowledge of Torah, apart from the intellect's being clothed in [i.e., enveloped by] Divine wisdom, the Divine wisdom is also within him, so that he envelops it, through his intellect's comprehending, grasping and encompassing whatever Torah knowledge it is capable of grasping and comprehending, each man according to his intellect and his capacity for knowledge and understanding in Pardes (2) - [the four modes of Torah interpretation]: Pshat, Remez, Derush and Sod.

[Thus, apart from the effect that Torah shares with other mitzvot, namely, that a mitzvah when performed envelops the soul in Divine light, Torah study has the additional effect of filling the soul (internally) with the light of Divine wisdom contained in the Torah that the soul grasps and encompasses.]

Since through the knowledge of Torah the Torah is absorbed in the soul and intellect of the person and is encompassed within them, it is therefore called the "bread" and "food" of the soul.

Just as physical bread nourishes the body when it is ingested and absorbed within it, and [when] it is transformed there into blood and flesh of one's own flesh, and only then will the body live and be sustained; similarly, through the knowledge and comprehension of Torah by the soul of a person who studies it well, with the concentration of his intellect, to the point where the Torah is grasped by his mind and is joined with him so that they become one, [the Torah thereby] becomes food for the soul.

It becomes inner life for it, from the Fountainhead of life, the blessed Ein Sof, Who is clothed in His wisdom and Torah that are in [the soul] of the Torah student.

This is the meaning of the verse, (3) "Your Torah is in my inner parts," meaning that Torah is food for the soul.

It is similarly written in Etz Chayim (Portal 44, ch. 3) that mitzvot are the "garments" of the souls in Paradise.

[In Paradise, souls enjoy the radiance of the Divine Presence. In order that the soul, a finite being, be capable of bearing the infinite radiance, it must be shielded by spiritual "garments". The mitzvot it performed during its life on earth provide the soul with these garments; for, as explained above, performing mitzvot envelops the soul in Divine light, as a garment envelops the body.]

Torah [on the other hand] is the food of the souls in Paradise which had engaged in Torah study for its own sake during their life on this earth. It is similarly written in the Zohar (Vayakhel, p. 210).

The meaning of [Torah study] "for its own sake" is [study] with the intent of binding one's soul to G-d by comprehending the Torah, (4) each man according to the capacity of his intellect, as explained in Pri Etz Chayim.

[We thus see from the above statement in Etz Chayim that Torah is the food of the soul and mitzvot are its garments.

But the question now arises: If Torah and mitzvot each have their own unique quality, why the superiority of Torah study over mitzvot?

The Alter Rebbe answers this by defining the terms "food" and "garments" in their spiritual context. From this explanation it will become clear that Torah has the qualities of both "food" and "garment" - hence its superiority.]

( (5) The "food" of the soul refers to the level of "indwelling light"; the "garments" refer to the level of "encompassing light."

For this reason, our Sages have said (6) that Torah study is equal to all the other mitzvot combined; for mitzvot are "garments" alone, while Torah is "food" and also a "garment" for the intellectual soul.

Torah serves as a "garment" because one clothes himself within it, by his soul's concentration on it and study of it. How much more so, if one expresses the words of Torah orally, for the breath of speech becomes a kind of "encompassing light," as written in Pri Etz Chayim.)

[We thus see that Torah study possesses the qualities of both "food" and "garment". It is thus superior to other mitzvot, which are "garments" alone.
Footnotes:

2. See beginning of ch. 4 for the meaning of the term Pardes.
3. Tehillim 40:9.
4. The Rebbe observes that the Alter Rebbe finds it necessary
to define the term Lishmah ("for its own sake"), lest we
misinterpret the Zohar to mean that the factor that causes the
Torah to become "food" for the soul is some other, incidental
meaning of Lishmah; rather, "The meaning .... is [study] with the
intent of binding one's soul to G-d by comprehending the Torah."
5. Parentheses are in the original text.
6. Mishnah, Peah 1:1.

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Chanukah is here!

Our extensive Chanukah website has how-to’s, stories, lessons, games and even recipes! It's sure to make your holiday more meaningful and insightful! All this at:

http://www.Chanukah.org

Tip: Join a public menorah lighting or Chanukah event in your area too!

http://www.chabad.org/103839

Send Chanukah Greeting Cards to friends and family:

http://www.chabad.org/225487

New! Featured Chanukah Videos:

SEASONS: A Chanukah Thought: http://www.chabad.org/335975
MIRACLES: A Chanukah Film: http://www.chabad.org/329867
MIRACLE LIGHTS: An Animated Production: http://www.chabad.org/339352

Wishing you and your family a Happy Chanukah!

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

© Copyright
Kehot Publication Society
770 Eastern Parkway / Brooklyn, New York 11213
(718) 774-4000 / FAX (718) 774-2718
http://www.kehotonline.com

Brought to you by Chabad.org

To listen to an audio version of today's lesson, please click one of the following links:

MP3: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/audio.asp?what=tanya&tDate=01/01/2006&format=m3u
Real: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/audio.asp?what=tanya&tDate=01/01/2006&format=rm

To view this lesson online with Hebrew text and formatting plus many features, please visit: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tanya.asp

For more daily Torah study, please visit: http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/

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TODAY IN JUDAISM: Sunday, January 1, 2006

B"H

Tevet 1, 5766 * January 1, 2006

=================================
T O D A Y I N J U D A I S M
=================================

* Laws * Customs * Jewish History * Daily Quote * Daily Study *

Today is: Sunday, Tevet 1, 5766
Chanukah Day 7 * Rosh Chodesh Tevet

======================
Today's Laws & Customs
======================

• Rosh Chodesh Observances

Today is the 2nd of the two Rosh Chodesh ("Head of the Month") days for the month of Tevet (when a month has 30 days, both the last day of the month and the first day of the following month serve as the following month's Rosh Chodesh).

The Yaaleh V'yavo prayer is added to the Amidah and to Grace After Meals, and the additional Musaf prayer is said. Because it is also Chanukah today, the "full" Hallel (Psalms 113-118) is recited (and not the "partial Hallel" said on the Rosh Chodesh days of other months).

Many have the custom to mark Rosh Chodesh with a festive meal and reduced work activity. The latter custom is prevalent amongst women, who have a special affinity with Rosh Chodesh -- the month being the feminine aspect of the Jewish Calendar [http://www.chabad.org/1208].

Links: The 29th Day [http://www.chabad.org/2764]; The Lunar Files [http://www.chabad.org/1209]

• Kindle Eight Chanukah Lights tonight

In commemorartion of the miracle of Chanukah (see "Today in Jewish History [http://www.chabad.org/225034]" for Kislev 25) we kindle the Chanukah lights -- oli lamps or candles -- each evening of the eight-day festival, increasing the number of lights each evening. Tonight we kindle eight lights. (In the Jewish calendar, the day begins at nightfall; this evening, then, commences the 8th and last day of Chanukah).

The icon below displays the ideal Chanukah lighting time for your location; the lighting can be done, however, later in the evening as well. For more on Chanukah lighting times, click here [http://www.chabad.org/224506]. (If no time is displayed, click on icon to set your location.)

For more a more detailed guide to Chanukah lighting click here [http://www.chabad.org/103868]. For text and audio of the blessings recited before lighting, click here [http://www.chabad.org/219029].

Additional Chanukah observances and customs are listed below:

• Hallel & Al HaNissim

Special prayers of thanksgiving -- Hallel (in its full version) and Al HaNissim -- are added to the daily prayers and Grace After Meals on all eight days of Chanukah. Tachnun (confession of sins) and similar prayers are omitted for the duration of trhe festival.

• Latkes, Sufganiot & Dairy Foods

On Chanukah we eat foods fried in oil -- such as latkes (potato cakes) and sufganiot (doughnuts) -- in commemoration of the miracle of the oil.

It is also customary to eat dairy foods in commemoration of the Judith's heroic deed [http://www.chabad.org/103019].

• Dreidel

It is customary to play dreidel -- a game played with a spinning top inscribed with the Hebrew letters Nun, Gimmel, Hei and Shin, which spell the phrase Nes Gadol Hayah Sham, "a great miracle happened there." (It is said that when the Greeks forbade the study of Torah, Jewish children continued the study with their teachers in caves and cellars; when the agents of the king were seen approaching, the children would hide their scrolls and start to play with spinning tops...)

• Chanukah Gelt

It is an age-old custom to disribute gifts of Chanukah gelt ("Chanukah money [http://www.chabad.org/search/keyword.asp?kid=228]") to children on Chanukah. (It was the custom of the rebbes of Chabad-Lubavitch to give Chanukah gelt to their children and other family members on the fourth or fifth night of Chanukah; more recently, however, the Lubavitcher Rebbe encouraged the giving of Chanukah gelt every day of the festival -- except for Shabbat, when handling money is forbidden.)

=======================
Today in Jewish History
=======================

• Esther made Queen (362 BCE)

"And Esther was taken to King Achashverosh, to his palace, in the tenth month, which is the month of Tevet, in the seventh year of his reign. And the king loved Esther more than all the women, and she won his favor and kindness more than all the virgins; he placed the royal crown on her head and made her queen in Vashti's stead" (Book of Esther 2:16-17). This set the stage for the miracle of Purim [http://www.chabad.org/search/keyword.asp?kid=141] six years later, on the 13th and 14th of Adar of the year 3504 from creation (356 BCE).

Link: Love in the Ice Age [http://www.chabad.org/2822]

• 7th Day of Chanukah Miracle (139 BCE)

On the 25th of Kislev in the year 3622 from creation, the Maccabees liberated the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, after defeating the vastly more numerous and powerful armies of the Syrian-Greek king Antiochus IV, who had tried to forcefully uproot the beliefs and practices of Judaism from the people of Israel. The victorious Jews repaired, cleansed and rededicated the Temple to the service of G-d. But all the Temple's oil had been defiled by the pagan invaders; when the Jews sought to light the Temple's menorah (candelabra), they found only one small cruse of ritually pure olive oil. Miraculously, the one-day supply burned for eight days, until new, pure oil could be obtained. In commemoration, the Sages instituted the 8-day festival of Chanukah, on which lights are kindled nightly to recall and publicize the miracle.

Link: The Story of Chanukah [http://www.chabad.org/102816]

===========
Daily Quote
===========

Darkness is not banished with a broom

- The sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn (1880-1950)

===========
Daily Study
===========

Chitas and Rambam for today:

Chumash: Vayigash, 1st Portion Bereishit 44:18-44:30 with Rashi
• English Text:
http://www.chabad.org/parshah/rashi/default.asp?tDate=1/1/2006&src=ds

Tehillim: Chapters 1 - 9
• Hebrew text:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tehillim.asp?tDate=1/1/2006&Lang=HEB
• English text:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tehillim.asp?tDate=1/1/2006

Tanya: Likutei Amarim, end of Chapter 5
• Lesson in Tanya:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/tanya.asp?tDate=1/1/2006
• RealAudio:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/audio.asp?what=tanya&tDate=1/1/2006&format=rm
• Windows Media:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/audio.asp?what=tanya&tDate=1/1/2006&format=m3u

Rambam:
• Sefer Hamitzvos:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/seferHamitzvos.asp?tDate=1/1/2006
• 1 Chapter: Mechirah Chap. 13
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/rambam.asp?tDate=1/1/2006&rambamChapters=1
• 3 Chapters: Kil'ayim Chap. 6, 7, 8
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/rambam.asp?tDate=1/1/2006&rambamChapters=3

Hayom Yom:
• English Text:
http://www.chabad.org/dailystudy/hayomyom.asp?tDate=1/1/2006

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Chanukah is here!

Our extensive Chanukah website has how-to’s, stories, lessons, games and even recipes! It's sure to make your holiday more meaningful and insightful! All this at:

http://www.Chanukah.org

Tip: Join a public menorah lighting or Chanukah event in your area too!

http://www.chabad.org/103839

Send Chanukah Greeting Cards to friends and family:

http://www.chabad.org/225487

New! Featured Chanukah Videos:

SEASONS: A Chanukah Thought: http://www.chabad.org/335975
MIRACLES: A Chanukah Film: http://www.chabad.org/329867
MIRACLE LIGHTS: An Animated Production: http://www.chabad.org/339352

Wishing you and your family a Happy Chanukah!

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Check out our other Calendar Tools:

Candle Lighting anywhere: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=6226
Zmanim - Halachic Times: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=143790
Jewish/Civil Date Converter: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=6225
Jewish Birthday Calculator: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=6228
Bar/Bat Mitzvah Calculator: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=6227
Yahrtzeit Calculator: http://www.chabad.org/article.asp?AID=6229

Copyright © Chabad.org, 2005

For more Torah study and inspiring articles, please visit:
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Web: http://www.chabad.org
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