A Compilation of Elul Thoughts

Way back in 2008 I wrote a series of posts called "Elul thoughts". Most of them, if now all of them, are still relevant. It is hard to believe that 12 years have passed since I wrote these posts:

Elul Thoughts #1

Elul Thoughts #2

Elul Thoughts #3

Elul Thoughts #4

Elul Thoughts #5

Elul Thoughts #6

Elul Thoughts #7

Getting Into the Elul Mood

Here is an excellent lesson from Rabbi Avraham Shapira zt"l called The Power of Preparation. I think that it can help us get into the Elul mood:

Each year, in the month of Elul, I call to mind how the Hafetz Haim used to conduct himself at this time of the year. I used to attend prayer services in Zichron Moshe. Many great rabbanim who had come to Eretz Israel from Russia had made Zichron Moshe their home and place of prayer and study. Among them was the Rav of Radin (Poland), R. Zalman Sender, who was also a relation of HaRav Herzog. He would tell me about the Hafetz Haim who used to live in Radin. The Hafetz Haim was not the Rav of Radin. He served as Rav for a time and then resigned, and lived there as a simple member of the community. And from this too - from the manner in which the Hafetz Haim lived as a simple member of the community - there is much to be learned.

Years later when R. Sender was in Eretz Israel, he would tell me how, each year, on the Shabbath preceding Rosh Hodesh Elul, when the blessing for the new month was said, and the hazan announced: "Rosh Hodesh Elul will be on this and this day..." the Hafetz Haim would begin to tremble and shake! It was not yet Elul, but the mere mention of the month was enough to cause the Hafetz Haim to be filled with trembling.

Read the rest!

More Elul Stuff

Here is a look at Elul from a hassidic perspective:

Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi explains the paradox of Elul with the following metaphor: The king's usual place is in the capital city, in the royal palace. Anyone wishing to approach the king must go through the appropriate channels in the palace bureaucracy and gain the approval of a succession of secretaries and ministers. He must journey to the capital and pass through the many gates, corridors and antechambers that lead to the throne room. His presentation must be meticulously prepared, and he must adhere to an exacting code of dress, speech and mannerism upon entering into the royal presence.

However, there are times when the king comes out to the fields outside the city. At such times, anyone can approach him; the king receives them all with a smiling face and a radiant countenance. The peasant behind his plow has access to the king in a manner unavailable to the highest ranking minister in the royal court when the king is in the palace.

The month of Elul, says Rabbi Schneur Zalman, is when the king is in the field.

Read the whole thing!

Elul -To Learn the Entire Tanach

Rabbi Dovid Sears mentions an interesting Elul custom among Breslov hassidim:

Reb Nosson praises the custom of reading the entire TaNaKH during the days of Elul and Tishrei, finishing on Hoshanah Rabbah (See Otzar haYirah, Teshuvas haShanah, Elul).

Here is Reb Nosson in his own words:

בִּימֵי אֱלוּל וַעֲשֶׂרֶת יְמֵי תְּשׁוּבָה וְיָמִים נוֹרָאִים עַד הוֹשַׁעְנָא רַבָּא, צִוָּה לְכַמָּה אֲנָשִׁים לוֹמַר אָז כָּל סִפְרֵי תַּנַ"ךְ מִתְּחִלָּתָם וְעַד סוֹפָם, וְגַם הוּא בְּעַצְמוֹ נָהַג כָּךְ כַּמָּה פְּעָמִים. גַּם הָיָה גּוֹמֵר כַּמָּה סְפָרִים בַּיָּמִים הַלָּלוּ, וְאֵינִי זוֹכֵר לְבָאֲרָם הֵיטֵב

This is quite a hefty task to finish the entire Tanach in 40 days. Why should one learn Tanach at this time of year in particular?

It's Already the Tenth of Elul!!!

10 Elul 5770

Will the month go by without any serious Teshuvah?





Here's a link to some posts on Elul. Some of them IMHO are even worth reading!!!: [click]

A Post For Rosh Chodesh Elul

Elul is a time for seriousness. Here in Israel things have been very serious lately. Those that sat in bomb shelters and those that fought the enemy have had a lot of time to think. Even those that were not personally affected by the war have no doubt done some serious thinking and soul searching lately.

I thought that I would start the month with a joke I just heard. A young student arrived at one of the “mussar” yeshivot (Rabbinic Academies) in Europe during the month of Elul. These Yeshivot put a great emphasis on eliminating bad character traits, such as hautiness. He entered the Beit Midrash (Study Hall). He saw a student learning one of the books of ethics and quietly repeating to himself, “Ich bin a gournisht, Ich bin a gournisht!” (I am a nothing). He sees another student sitting with his head in his hands saying, “I am a worm and not a man.” Yet another student is standing by the window saying, “I am dust and ashes.”

The next day the new yeshiva student sat down in the Beit Midrash and started saying to himself, “I am a nothing, I am a nothing!” One of the older students heard him and rebuked him, “You are a Ba’al Ga’avah (a haughty person)! You’ve only been here for a day, and you already think that you are a nothing?

Chodesh Tov!

1 Elul 5769





Here's a link to some posts on Elul: [click]

Elul Thoughts #1

I thought that I would share with you all some Elul related thoughts. These are things that I think about, and I thought that others may also benefit from my contemplations:

The spiritual uplift that I will receive from the High Holidays is dependent on how much I invest in preparing for them. When I hear the sound of the shofar, it is, as the Rambam explains, a wake up call to return to God(Laws of Teshuvah ch. 3).

The trials and tribulations of life often prevent me from examining my ways. There is no time! I am too busy! However, I must find the time for introspection. Where am I, and where was I last year at this time? Where do I stand in regard to the commandments that guide the interaction between myself and my fellow man? Have I been good to my wife and my children. Is my behavior in monetary matters up to Torah standards? Have I done anything to help Klal Yisrael? How am I doing in terms of fulfilling the other precepts of Torah? I must examine my behavior! I have to make an accounting of what I have done from the time I get up in the morning until I go to sleep.

Elul Thoughts #7: The Secret of Happiness

18th Elul, 5768

Berl is the man who has everything. He has a nice wife and wonderful children. He is well respected at work and he provides well for his family. He has plenty of time to devote to his various interests. Nothing is lacking.

However a deep look into Berl's eyes reveals a tinge of sadness. What's wrong? What could be bothering the man who has everything?

A lot of things are bothering Berl. When it comes to food Berl is a connoisseur. Unfortunately his wife Mindy isn't such a good cook. She's lucky if she can cook za'atar eggs without burning them. On the other hand, Shirley, the wife of his best friend Shmerl, cooks up a storm. How could it be that Berl who is so particular about what he eats could end up with such a klutz in the kitchen?

But that is not all. Although Berl has a good job, his friend and colleague Shmerl was recently promoted instead of him. Berl doesn't understand why he was passed up for the promotion. He's been in the company a year longer than Shmerl!

Berl doesn't always have nachas from his children. They don't always listen to him. Sometimes they are downright insolent! Chutzpah! Shmerl's children seem to honor their father so much! They obey his every word like soldiers!

Berl is jealous and that jealousy is eating away at him. King Solomon said, "A tranquil heart is the life of the flesh; but envy is the rottenness of the bones (Proverbs 14:30)." Berl is the embodiment of this verse. Jealousy is a terrible character trait: Rabbi Eliezer HaKapar says, "Jealousy, desire, and honor take a man out of the world (Avot ch. 4)."



Berl has to change the way he views the world. Instead of pouting about what he lacks, he should be happy with what he has. Instead of looking at others, he should count his blessings. Baruch Hashem, I have a wife! Thank God I have children! What a blessing! Not everybody merits this! The same goes for all of the other issues that Berl is brooding on. "Who is rich? He that is happy with his portion, as it says, 'When thou eatest the labour of thy hands, happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.'(Avot 4:1)"

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I think that this is especially true at this time of year when we reflect on what we are lacking spiritually. One can become depressed when he thinks of all the things that he has done wrong: the sins, the bad character traits, etc. Regretting our bad deeds is an important part of teshuvah. Happy is he that takes an honest look in the spiritual mirror, regrets his sins, confesses them and changes his behavior for the better!

However one must be careful not to develop a distorted picture of oneself. Our soul searching should also include a look at all of the good we did! This is not in order to lay back on our laurels, God forbid. A look at our good deeds helps give us a positive self image in order to continue such deeds, and to increase them in quality and quantity!

We must serve God in happiness (Deuteronomy 28:47, Psalms 100:2). That includes teshuvah.

Elul Thoughts #5: The Hebrew Calendar

As we approach the New Year 5769, it is fitting to discuss our calendar. The Hebrew calendar is cool when you think about it. The months of the Hebrew calendar are real lunar months. Months really should have something to do with the moon shouldn't they? Isn't it cooler to count the years from the Creation and not from the birth of you know who? Think about it!

Here in Israel you can write the Hebrew date on checks. Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't. Perhaps that will be one of my New Year's resolutions: to use the Hebrew date as much as possible, to be as conscious of the Hebrew date as much as possible. Today is the 16th of Elul, 5768! A Simple Jew has got the idea. My children were born here in Israel have almost no knowledge of the Gregorian calendar. Sometimes they will ask me questions like, "When is March?" I answer them and say that March is around the time of Adar.

A guy I know in Jerusalem is very strict about using only the Hebrew date. This calendar is his handiwork:

Elul: The Thrill of Victory and the Agony of Defeat

Elul is a time of introspection, a time when things long forgotten are remembered. As the month progresses and we approach the new year, I remembered something that I saw on television many years ago. I even found it on YouTube:



A very special verse comes to mind: "He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city" (Proverbs 16:32).

It is interesting that King Solomon saw a similarity between spiritual and physical valor. Someone who is able to overcome his evil inclination is truly a hero. Our Rabbis saw this as being the utmost degree of heroism (Avot 4:1).

Who is not familiar with the "thrill of victory"? Almost everyone has seen the celebrations after a baseball team wins the World Series or a soccer team wins the World Cup. The thrill of victory in the spiritual realm is a bit different. A person doesn't open bottles of champagne every time he beats the Yetzer HaRa. It is a totally different feeling, a delicate inner happiness where one feels that he has improved himself, improved the world and has come closer to God. This is the ultimate victory.

And then there is the "agony of defeat". Here I think we get a little bit closer to the world of sport. You feel like a boxer that has just been knocked down on his back. You look up and you see the Yetzer HaRa standing over you, smiling. You wonder how you got into this fight. Didn't you know who was going to win? How did the Yetzer HaRa fool you, little by little, to enter into the ring. You are ashamed of yourself for falling for the same tricks, for letting emotion and desire rule over reason.

As the year heads towards its conclusion we examine our victories and defeats. We look to strengthen the good deeds, and to distance ourselves from the not so good ones. We regret our errors, confess them before God, and take upon ourselves not to be fooled again by the Yetzer.

May we merit to feel the thrill of victory, and may we be spared the agony of defeat!

Getting Into The Elul Mood

Yesterday my younger daughter and her friend were doing their mathematics homework together in our livingroom. I grabbed my shofar (ram's horn) and blasted away. They looked at me as if to say, "Can't you see that we are trying to study here!"

I said, "What's all of this x and y nonsense? It's Elul! Wake up sleepers from your slumber!"

They smiled.

The Seventh of Marcheshvan

Today is the day we that start to request rain in the silent prayer, at least here in the land of Israel. Although the rainy season officially begins on Shemini Atzeret, when we start to say "Mashiv HaRuach U'Morid HaGeshem", we waited until now so that all the American Jewish tourists Babylonian Jews could return safely to their dwellings in America Babylon without being rained upon.

Perhaps this is a good time to look back at the holiday season that was. Here are a few observations:

1) You get out of it what you put into it. If you made an effort to get up early in Elul to say Selichot, if you devoted time to really reflect on your deeds, if you made an effort to change, if you fulfilled the mitzvot of Sukkot properly, I have no doubt that you were spiritually uplifted.

2) I had the opportunity do daven in the rebuilt Churva synagogue in the Old City of Jerusalem. It was really special. They have an interesting custom of not saying "Baruch Hu U'Varuch Shmo" during the repetition of the silent prayer. This I was told, was in keeping with the custom of the Gaon of Vilna. There is a certain atmosphere of splendor and honor that gave me a slight idea of what it might be like to daven in the Temple, may it speedily be rebuilt!

3) The Old City was packed with tourists from all over the world. BDS is a real big failure!

4) The Western Wall was packed with worshipers. The facilities available here have greatly improved over the years.

5) I was also in the City of David. That place has changed so much since in the almost three decades that I have been here. The more they dig there the more they reveal the ancient city of Jerusalem, much to the chagrin of the Arabs and the leftists. The City of David, like the Old City, was packed with tourists.

7) We are progressing towards full redemption, little by little. So I say to you Jews living abroad what Moses said to his father in law, " 'We are journeying unto the place of which the LORD said: I will give it you; come thou with us, and we will do thee good; for the LORD hath spoken good concerning Israel.' "

Israelis Smell a Rat and His Name is Obama

8 Elul 5769

Jpost reports:

The number of Israelis who see US President Barack Obama's policies as pro-Israel has fallen to four percent, according to a Smith Research poll taken this week on behalf of The Jerusalem Post.

Fifty-one percent of Jewish Israelis consider Obama's administration more pro-Palestinian than pro-Israel, according to the survey, while 35% consider it neutral and 10% declined to express an opinion. The poll of 500 people representing a statistical model of the Jewish Israeli population had a margin of error of 4.5%.

A much-cited Post poll published on June 19 that put the first figure at 6% had been cited by top officials in both the White House and the Prime Minister's Office as the catalyst for recent American efforts to improve the American-Israeli relationship. But the new poll proves that those efforts have not improved Obama's reputation among Israelis.

Who are those four percent?

HH #184

28 Elul, 5768

Hear them yawp!

A Wild Beast Of An Ophthalmologist

Wikipedia on Bashar al-Assad:

Dr Bashar al-Assad (Arabic: بشار الأسد, Baššār al-Asad) (born September 11, 1965) is the President of the Syrian Arab Republic, Regional Secretary of the Baath Party, and the son of former President Hafez al-Assad.

Standing about 189 cm (6 ft 3 in), Assad has a distinct physical build. He speaks English from an intermediate to an advanced level [1] and is fluent in French, having studied at the Franco-Arab al-Hurriyet school in Damascus, before going on to medical school at the University of Damascus Faculty of Medicine. He then went on to get subspecialty training in ophthalmology in London's academic hospitals.

(Photo courtesy of The Syrian Embassy)








How can such an educated man be such a despot? Perhaps this is the answer:

The following story is brought down by the revered Rabbi Dichovsky, of blessed memory, in his book, "Neot Desha," on the Talmud. In the introduction, he recounts his visit to the Chofetz Chaim to ask him this very same question about moving to Israel at a time of clear and present danger. We quote:

"I saw it proper to record a statement made to me by the most pious of all of the kohanim, the Rabbi of all Israel, the glory of the generation, the holy of all Israel, may he be blessed in memory, in the matter of Aliyah. I asked him about this question, and the following are the details of our encounter.

"It was the beginning of the year, 1933. There was a group of Torah scholars who had organized themselves to go together to Israel to learn Torah. I too was amongst them, but I had many doubts, because I knew that many of the great gedolim (Torah scholars) of Israel were opposed. The heads of my yeshiva were especially opposed to the idea that yeshiva students would go to Eretz Yisrael, even for the sake of studying Torah. They said that the proper conditions had not as yet been established in order to facilitate Torah study with the proper diligence in the Holy Land, to the extent that we are able to study Torah in the yeshivot in the Diaspora. Therefore, I said in my heart, that I must not ask my rabbis in this matter, for obviously the answer will be no.

"Like Rabbi Zera, who ran away from his teacher, Rav Yehuda, when he wanted to make Aliyah to Israel (Tractate Ketubot, 110B,) I decided to go and ask the counsel of the righteous tzaddik of our generation, our revered master, and to receive his blessing before I departed. Therefore, just before the Day of Atonement, I journeyed to the yeshiva of the Chofetz Chaim in the town of Radin, where I stayed in the shadow of this great, righteous individual. This was, as is known, the last Yom Kippur of this special tzaddik, for at the end of the year, in the month of Elul, he was taken to the yeshiva Above, may his merit be a shield to us and all Israel.

"In spite of his great physical weakness, a Heavenly Providence was with me, and I merited to see him the day after Yom Kippur. I told him my situation, and that I had a good chance of making Aliyah to Israel as a Torah student, only I had lingering doubts if I would be able to learn Torah with the same diligence with which I was learning now. Immediately, he answered, in his famous sweetness of speech, that there was no room at all for my wariness. Why in the world would I not be able to learn Torah there with absolute diligence – just the opposite would seem to be true, for the Land of Israel, without question, was more conducive for steadfast immersion in Torah. He recited the verse, ‘The gold of the Land is good,’ on which the Midrash says, ‘This gold are the words of Torah, for there is no Torah like the Torah of Eretz Yisrael; and there is no wisdom like the wisdom of Eretz Yisrael.’

"Before I could express the rest of the doubts that I harbored - especially the fear of the danger in Israel because of the children of Ishmael who were marauding violently against the Jews, for only a few years had passed since the end of the Hebron Massacre in the year 1929, which made clear to everyone the wild, bestial nature of the Ishmaelites, who with savagery and unbounded cruelty massacred Yeshiva students and showed no mercy even to the women and children - before I was able to confess all of my apprehensions, the Rabbi answered the question himself.

"In the following words of Torah, he said: ‘The holy Torah tells us regarding Ishmael that he is a ‘perei adam,’ a wild beast of a man. It is know that our Torah is eternal, and if it says about Ishmael that he is a wild beast of a man, then Ishmael will remain forever a wild beast of a man. Even if all of the cultured nations of the world will gather together and try to educate Ishmael and transform him into a cultured individual, so that he will no longer be a wild beast of a man, obviously this will be impossible in every fashion or form. They will not be able to do this through any means whatsoever, because he is not capable of being a cultured individual, for behold, the Torah testified regarding him that he is a wild beast of a man. This means that forever, for all eternity, Ishmael is by definition a wild beast of a man. Even if Ishmael will be involved in intellectual endeavor, like being a lawyer, or some similar profession, then he will be a beastly lawyer. If he will study diligently to be a professor, then he will be a beastly professor. This means that the bestiality of Ishmael will never cease.’

"Then the Chofetz Chaim let out a long, painful sigh and said, ‘Who knows what this wild beast of a man is capable of perpetrating against the Jewish people in the end of days?’ "Concluding his words to me, he said, ‘Nevertheless, fear not. There is no reason for this to prevent you from making Aliyah to the Land of Israel.’
"Then he blessed me, saying, ‘Go in peace, and the L-rd will bless your path.’

"So I left him, and journeyed in peace to the Holy Land."

Elul Thoughts #2

Get ready, it's coming!:

1 And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt bethink thyself among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee, 2 and shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and hearken to His voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thy heart, and with all thy soul; 3 that then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the peoples, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee. 4 If any of thine that are dispersed be in the uttermost parts of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy God gather thee, and from thence will He fetch thee. 5 And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and He will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers. 6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live. 7 And the LORD thy God will put all these curses upon thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, that persecuted thee. 8 And thou shalt return and hearken to the voice of the LORD, and do all His commandments which I command thee this day. 9 And the LORD thy God will make thee over-abundant in all the work of thy hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good; for the LORD will again rejoice over thee for good, as He rejoiced over thy fathers; 10 if thou shalt hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which are written in this book of the law; if thou turn unto the LORD thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul.

Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu Passes Away

He was a great Rabbi, may his memory be a blessing:

Just as Jews around the country were preparing to gather to pray for Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, word of his death arrived.

Earlier in the afternoon, it was reported that his medical condition had severely deteriorated, and that prayers were sought.

Rabbi Eliyahu was the spiritual leader of much of the religious-Zionist sector. Hospitalized for nearly a year in Shaarei Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem, his condition was downgraded today to "critical,” and not for the first time. Family members were called to his bedside, and were by his side when he passed away.

No word on funeral arrangements has yet been announced.

The sage was in poor and very painful condition for several months. Two weeks ago, tens of thousands of people gathered in three different locations to pray for Rabbi Eliyahu’s health, following a similar deterioration.

His son, Tzfat’s Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, told Arutz-7’s “Preparing for Redemption” radio program at that time, “The situation is not good. Ever since last Elul [August], the rabbi has been in the emergency room, and is undergoing terrible suffering. The very fact of his long hospitalization leads to a slow deterioration; sores open, close, open... things are going backward instead of forward.”

Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu was born in 1929 in the Old City of Jerusalem; his mother was a granddaughter of the famed Ben Ish Chai. He served as Israel’s Chief Sephardic Rabbi - the Rishon LeTzion – from 1983 until 1993, together with the late Rabbi Avraham Shapira, and the two continued for years afterwards to lead the national-religious public in matters of Jewish Law and thought. He authored several works on both.

I'm Behind This Jew

26 Elul, 5768

I went to due my pre-Shabbat shopping at the Giv'at Sha'ul branch of Yesh this morning but I couldn't find parking. I decided to try something new. Earlier this morning my wife had mentioned that there is a supermarket called Sha'arei Ezra at 9 Yirmiyahu St. I decided that perhaps this is a sign from Heaven: I can't find parking where I usually shop and this very morning my wife suggested an alternative.

Finding the place wasn't difficult. I even found parking close to the entrance. Most of the customers looked the picture I posted here. I heard Yiddish flying around all over the place!

After filling my shopping cart with what was on my shopping list I headed for the checkout counter. Unfortunately the lines were long and it was hard to distinguish between the different lines. After examining the various lines, I chose one which I thought would be the quickest. Murphy's Law was in action as I saw the lines on both sides of me progressing much quicker.

In the meantime more people finished their shopping and lined up after me. Someone asked the lady behind me which line she was standing on. She gestured towards me and said, "Ani Acharei HaYehudi HaZeh (I'm behind this Jew)."

Now when a Jew in Jerusalem (or anywhere else in Israel for that matter) calls someone else a Jew it is a term of endearment. When I heard the lady say, "Ani Acharei HaYehudi HaZeh" I immediately thought of the following scenario: I'm in New Jersey waiting to pay at the supermarket and the guy behind me says, "I'm behind this Jew." A big smile crossed my face.

Shana Tova

29 Elul, 5768

May you all be written and sealed for a good year!


- Cosmic X in Jerusalem