The Secret of Guarding the Home, the Light of the Tzaddik, and the Virtue of the Woman
Lesson No. 74 | * Motzaei Shabbos Parashas Vayeshev, the eve of 27 Kislev, the 3rd candle of Chanukah 5757 - A lesson for the young men of the group in the Kloyz in Beis Yisrael
An in-depth article explaining how the Mezuzah guards the home and draws into it the light of the Tzaddik Yesod Olam (the Tzaddik who is the foundation of the world). Through stories of Divine Providence from the Gulf War, the secret of yearning for the tzaddik, and the Kabbalistic connection between the woman and the secret of Tefillin, it is revealed how the Jewish home is built in perfection.
We must have mesirus nefesh (self-sacrifice) for every single child, whether they come from the aspect of Rachel and Leah or from the aspect of the children of Bilhah and Zilpah. The educators and community workers who sacrifice themselves to help Jewish children spiritually and materially merit to be in the aspect of Yosef HaTzaddik, who is the head of the tzaddikim. Through this self-sacrifice of all those engaged in this holy work, we will merit to bring the complete Geulah (Redemption) to the Jewish people, speedily in our days.
The Power of the Mezuzah in Guarding the Home
When a Mezuzah is affixed to the entrance of a home, all impurity is nullified and the person is protected. We see this tangibly, as was the case during the Gulf War when missiles were fired from Iraq. At that time, only two people were killed from all the missiles. One of them was an Arab girl named Fatima, and the second was a man in Ramat Gan, on Sokolov Street.
That man from Ramat Gan had refused to sign onto religious matters and mocked them. When Chabad Chassidim came there and checked the Mezuzahs in the building, they found that he had an invalid Mezuzah that cost one shekel. Instead of fixing it, he yelled at them, "Religious thieves, a Mezuzah for five shekels!" At that exact moment, he walked out of the bomb shelter, and a missile fell on the entrance of the building, crushing him against the Mezuzah.
The Mezuzah conceals within it awesome secrets; it guards the home and illuminates it with the light of the tzaddik. Through the Mezuzah, the light of the "Tzaddik Yesod Olam" shines in the home.
Yearning for the Tzaddik Yesod Olam
All souls in all generations come from the tzaddik, from Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. Every Jew is a spark of the Rashbi, and therefore every Jew feels an inner desire to travel to him. The journey to the tzaddik is meant to renew one's intellect and awaken new yearnings.
Rabbi Nosson of Nemirov lived eighteen kilometers away from Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, and similarly, Rabbi Nachman of Tulchin lived at the same distance. This distance created a vessel for them to receive the light through their yearning. A person must always yearn for the tzaddik, because the tzaddik is the root of the generations and the root of all souls.
The home must be filled with the light of the tzaddik, because in truth, who manages the Jewish home?
"Who is the manager of the home? It is only the tzaddik, it is only our holy Rebbe Nachman. He is the manager of the home, the foundation of the world, the head and the glory."
The Waiting of the Defender of Israel
Thus we see with all the tzaddikim that they are the root of everything. Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev passed away on the 25th of Tishrei. When Hashem came to him on Rosh Chodesh Elul to inform him that his time had come to depart from the world, he asked to be allowed to remain for the month of Elul, in order to hear the prayers and weeping of the Jewish people.
Afterwards, he passed through Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkos. After Sukkos, Hashem allowed him to remain for Isru Chag as well, and in the Diaspora, Isru Chag of Sukkos falls on the 24th of Tishrei. Immediately after that, on the 25th of Tishrei, he passed away. From all the tzaddikim we learn how their light must illuminate the Jewish home.
The Secret of the Woman and Tefillin
The essence of the home is the woman. The woman is the aspect of the esrog, the aspect of Malchus (Kingship) and Rachel Imeinu (our Matriarch). On one hand, she is nullified to her husband, but on the other hand, she is an entity in her own right; she has free will and serves Hashem herself.
The spiritual connection in the home parallels the secret of Tefillin. The hand Tefillin correspond to Rachel and Malchus, and the head Tefillin correspond to Zeir Anpin (the Small Face, a Kabbalistic configuration representing the emotional attributes). When the woman works in the home, cares for the children, and performs mitzvos, her spiritual lights become enclothed in her husband's hand Tefillin.
Through this, the husband illuminates her in return, and her lights ascend and become enclothed in the head Tefillin. Thus, in the upper third where the head is located, the entire home receives the abundance and lights from the head of the home, through the aspect of Rachel.
Part 3 of 3 — Lesson No. 74