Two points of view on the world and the Torah: To learn about the world from the Torah and to learn about the Torah from the world. Two approaches to serving Hashem: From Heaven to earth and from earth to heaven.

The Korbon Omer of barley (on Pesach) was a Korbon against the animal, and the Shtei Halechem of wheat that was Chometz (on Shavuos) was the “Human” aspect of Korbon. These two Korbonos combined to allow the eating of Chudush.

The sounds, flairs and sounds of the Shofar are Chesed, Gevura Tiferes. As Hashem gives them they are from the top down and we apply them from the bottom up. How the Shofar “that is narrow at one end and wide at the other end” can apply “from the top down”. The Torah of Shavuos…

The Yidden in the Midbar claimed they are already doing birurim and “Pidyon Shvuyim”, but it was not enough. They needed to go into Eretz Yisroel and deal with lower and more challenging birurim there. Moshe was reason and they, as his disciples, followed reason and came to this conclusion. But Moshe gave the will…

Yerida Tzorech Aliya. The four categories that need to praise and submit to Hashem, how are they in spiritual and refined terms.

Based on the Frierdike Rebbe’s Maamar from 5685 (1925). The descent into Golus affects that the high become higher and the low lower. On the one hand that is bad but on the other hand, the fall on the lower end allows the elevation of the newly discovered lowliness. Mattan Torah raised Yidden up and…

We pray to be like our ancestors though we are [in our Avoda] on a higher level than they were. The reason for this prayer is because we are asking Hashem to allow us to feel the lofty levels we reach as a result of being born after Mattan Torah. Just as they felt the…

The meaning of the recalling the Masei- the Journeys of the Jews as they left Egypt and traveled towards Eretz Yisroel. Two different Chassidic interpretations, provide different versions of these Pesukim, one based on the idea that the Journey is about elevating God’s world with Godliness and the second is about the “Yerida Tzorech Aliya”…

Two interpretations in Tziyon BiMishpat TiPade ViShuvehu BiTzdaka: 1) Both Tziyon and Shaveha are redeemed by Mishpat with the help from Tzedaka, 2) Tziyon is redeemed by Mishpat (Torah) and Shuveha through Tzedaka. The second pshat reaches higher than it was originally while the first pshat simply brings things back to how they were before…

The 15th of Menachem Av follows the greatest Yerida (descent) and therefore ushers in the greatest Aliya. Thus, the great celebration. When one is coerced into doing Mitzvos (and the Rambam, of course, explains that this is a real mitzva, because this is the true desire of a Yid [and even a gentile in his…