A Lesson for the People of Rishon LeTzion at the Home of the Gaon and Tzaddik

A Lesson for the People of Tel Aviv ○ Summary from the Lesson

On Monday night, the 21st of Av, a group from our community in the central city of Rishon LeTzion arrived to hear words of the Living G-d from The Rav, Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a. The lesson took place in The Rav’s home, before the evening prayer (Ma’ariv). Below is a brief summary—only a drop from the sea—of some of the topics The Rav spoke about during the lesson:

The Rav opened the lesson with the matter of Shlomo’s wives, who turned his heart aside, and said that the older a person becomes, the more the yetzer hara strengthens. He then spoke about how Yosef HaTzaddik did not understand why his father buried Rachel “on the road.” He also spoke about the sale of Yosef, and said that a person comes into this world to cry out, “We are guilty,” over the selling of the Tzaddik in every single generation. Later, he spoke about traveling to Uman and what it accomplishes, saying that a person travels to Uman in order to unite Rachel and Leah—and this repairs the destruction that was caused through the separation of Rachel and Leah. The Rav then spoke about King David, and in the course of his words he mentioned the yahrtzeit of the Steipler, which falls on the 23rd of Av, and he mentioned the connection he had with him. Toward the end of the lesson, he spoke from the Aggados of Chazal regarding King David—that what he wanted was to kill one thousand, and not only eight hundred, with a single arrow; all of this is secrets. As he spoke, The Rav explained the secret of “He smote the corners of Moav”—that through a person growing peyos, he defeats all his enemies and those who hate him. After forty minutes of words of the Living G-d, The Rav concluded the lesson, recited Kaddish, and blessed the participants. Afterward, he went out to the Ma’ariv prayer with a great multitude.