One Must Not Miss Any Lesson from the Tzaddik • The Daily Lesson from the Gaon

Before you is a summary from the daily lesson as delivered by our teacher, the Rav, Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a—yesterday after the Maariv (evening) prayer, Monday night, the 14th of Sivan, Parshas Behaaloscha:

In Parshas Behaaloscha, [it was prophesied] "Moshe (Moses) dies and Yehoshua (Joshua) brings [the nation into the Land]." This was a "lie" [in the sense that it was not immediate] because he lived for another forty years. But when Miriam heard the prophecy, she fainted on the spot—just like my sister, when she hears I'm in the hospital, she immediately calls the gabbaim (attendants) to ask what’s happening. So she [Miriam] immediately traveled to Uman and submitted the name—Moshe ben Yocheved... The prayers helped, and he lived for another forty years. But the People of Israel no longer wanted to enter the Land. Then, Eldad and Medad, because they spoke a prophecy that was not supposed to be delivered [yet], returned in a gilgul (reincarnation) as deaf-mutes, as mentioned in [Tractate] Chagigah. They knew the entire Shas (Talmud), all of the Sifrei and the Tosefta, and they always arrived first to the lesson and never missed a single class. One must never miss any lesson! Rabbi Akiva missed one lesson of Rabbi Eliezer the Great, and because of that, he had to undergo [the martyrdom of] iron combs. It is brought down that Moshe Rabbeinu (our teacher Moses) comforted Yocheved, who lived two hundred and fifty years, in the year that he, Aharon, and Miriam passed away.

In the desert, all the males died [of that generation], but not a single daughter died, because they would all come to hear the cries of the female converts in all the kibbutzim (settlements), and in that merit, they returned in teshuvah (repentance). There was a village near the Golani Junction called Ilaniya—Sejera. There were immigrants there from Russia who didn't understand why the Zionists didn't keep the mitzvos (commandments) after they had left everything to move to the Land. So they shouted at Ben-Gurion, and he fled from there. Thus, in the merit of the cries of the female converts, people returned in teshuvah (repentance).

Because the daughter raises up all the prayers; therefore, the Ezras Nashim (women's section) is located above, because the daughter always receives more than the son—just as if there are ten daughters, the daughters receive more than the son.

Today, Chatzos (the midnight prayer) is at 2:03. After the 30th of Sivan, it becomes 2:10 for a month. Now it is a "long Chatzos" until the 8th of Tishrei, except for Rosh Chodesh (the New Month) and Tisha B'Av (the ninth of Av). Whoever travels to Shechem (Nablus) should return by 4:30. The girls should go to sleep after Chatzos until 8:20, then they need to wake up for the seminars. The seminars continue until the 5th of Tammuz; after that, whoever wants a seminar should fly to America. The boys should study ten pages of Gemara (Talmud); they don't need to sleep. In another five minutes, everyone returns home, finishes the Tehillim (Psalms), and studies Shmuel (Samuel) I and II regarding Goren Kidon, Goren Nachon... and about Yoav, who was the "redeemer of blood" for Asahel and stabbed Avner. Even though Avner could have killed him back, the entire nation fell at his feet and begged that no Chief of Staff be left for the People of Israel, so he gave in and did not kill him. In that merit, he was buried in the Me'aras HaMachpelah (Cave of the Patriarchs). Everyone should travel today to the Me'aras HaMachpelah, and each person should study with his wife [the laws of] "Unloading and Loading" [chapter] 4.