Wow: An Emotional Conversation During the Visit of Rav Badani shlit"a to the Residence of Rav Berland shlit"a - A Comprehensive Summary

The esteemed Rabbi Shimon Badani, Head of the Torah and Life Kollel in Bnei Brak and a member of the Council of Torah Sages, visited yesterday for an emotional visit to the holy residence of the esteemed Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a. Rav Badani came with the declared intention of receiving a blessing for shidduchim (matches) for his grandchildren. During the meeting, an interesting conversation developed between the holy ones, words of Torah and insights which we will now present to you.

Rav Badani and Rav Berland spoke about the Rav of Brisk, with Rav Berland saying, "The main thing is after the age of 20 (the difficulty in maintaining Torah study), because until the age of 20 everyone studies."

During the conversation, Rav Badani shared with our teacher Rav Berland about the great distress he feels that in our generation there are hundreds of young men and women who are delayed in finding their match until a late age, and he very much wants to try to address this issue and sought the advice and blessing of Rav Berland to establish a matchmaking office to care for the young men and women of Israel. "Rav Badani wants to open a matchmaking office," said Rav Badani's assistant shlit"a.

Specifically Balaam's blessings are accepted

Rav Berland responds: "This is Balaam's blessing, Balaam's blessings are fulfilled while Moses' blessings were not fulfilled. Balaam's blessings were fulfilled because he is the Satan, he is the Angel of Death. Hashem arranged that the blessings of shidduchim and yeshivot would be said by Balaam - so that if there would be an accusation, they would say (to the accuser, to Balaam, to the Satan) you yourself blessed them, you cannot retract, "since he has said it, he cannot retract."

Rav Badani was amazed by this and Rav Berland continued to explain: "Hashem arranged for Balaam to bless us, "How goodly are your tents, O Jacob, your dwelling places, O Israel" (Numbers 24:5), with this the prayer begins."

Jacob receives the blessings as Esau

Rav Berland says: "Why didn't Hashem reveal to Isaac that it was Jacob? Because He wanted Jacob to receive the blessings as Esau, you received the blessings as Esau, what do you want? Isaac (as if) blessed Esau, not Jacob. The simple explanation is that Isaac did not know it was Jacob who came to receive the blessings, as the verse states, "And Jacob approached Isaac his father, and he felt him and said, 'The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau'" (Genesis 27:22), in thought he blessed Esau. There has been a three-thousand-year debate among the commentators whether Isaac knew or did not know he was blessing Jacob."

Rav Badani says: "Isaac knew right away!"

The reality of Israel is heavenly

Rav Berland answers: "It is written, "The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau". And he continues, "The difference between the blessings of Jacob and those of Esau is that Esau was blessed, "And Isaac his father answered and said to him, 'Behold, your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth, and of the dew of heaven from above'" (ibid. 27:39). The dew is from the fatness of the earth, this is an earthly blessing, but for Jacob the reality is heavenly, "And may Hashem give you of the dew of heaven and of the fatness of the earth and plenty of grain and wine" (ibid. 27:28). Even the physicality is spiritual, because if a person eats a piece of cake in order to study Torah, then it is spiritual."

The sanctity of thought is important for the birth of righteous children

Rav Berland continues: "Torah study builds the mind and children come from the mind, Hashem wants there to be a mind of Torah. Rabbi Meir asks Elisha ben Avuya how it could happen to him like this (added one of the students, Rabbi Yosef by name, Elisha ben Avuya, known as "Acher," denied the fundamentals, Kiddushin 39b)? A person who knew the entire orchard of Torah, pshat, remez, drash, and sod, there was nothing he did not know, so how did it happen that he became confused like this? He answered him, "Better is the end of a thing than its beginning" (Ecclesiastes 7:8), meaning if the beginning is good, the end will be good, and with Elisha the beginning was not good. Because Avuya was the greatest merchant in Jerusalem and he wanted to have a son who would be a bank manager."

Why does the Rav wear a tallit even at night

Rav Berland explains the matter of the tallit even at night: "We expound the Exodus from Egypt even at night ("Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah said, behold, I am like a seventy-year-old man and I did not merit that the Exodus from Egypt should be said at night until Ben Zoma expounded it, as it is said: 'That you may remember the day you came out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life' (Deuteronomy 16:3), 'the days of your life' - the days, 'all the days of your life' - the nights. Berachot 12b)."

Rav, when will Mashiach come?!

Rav Badani with the question of questions: "When is the Mashiach? When, Rav?"

Rav Berland: "Immediately after the Seder night."

Rav Badani: "This year? This year?"

Rav Berland: "Yes. 5779 is exactly the gematria of 'and the coming of Mashiach'."

Rav Badani: "Then we must prepare for it, we must prepare."

Rav Berland shows him the gematria calculation and says '779 is the year!'.

It is necessary to mention the halachic ruling of Rav Badani:

"Whoever speaks against Rav Berland will receive Gehenna".

Photo Gallery from the Emotional Visit of the Esteemed Rabbi Shimon Badani to the Residence of the Esteemed Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a

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