¶ The Mystery of Torah's Special Letters
Out of all of the 304,805 letters inside of the Sefer Torah , a handful of them are created just different , that is to say some are miniature , some are larger and some are just regular size .
And this week we have one of the prime examples of a smaller letter inside of the Torah by Yikra el-Moysheh v'idaber Hashem el-Avm , one of the circumstances , the novelties , the rarities that one will find inside of a Sefer Torah , where one of its letters inside of a verse is created smaller or , like we find in other places , large .
There's certain halachos of how the scribe is to transcribe the Torah , as he the sofer , is engaging in the Hilchos Ksivas Esefer Torah , the Rambam codifies in his Mishnah Torah . There's a tradition that goes back from scribe until scribe , until the very first scribe , moshe Rabbeinu , as to how the Savior Torah must be written and to the size of each letter .
And lurking mysteriously behind each one of these novelties , the small letters and the large letters , are certain hidden meanings , there to be dredged , there to be drawn from the ever-deepening waters of the Torah .
Some of the most famous examples will begin all the way back in , say , for Brachios , behibarra'am , the famous small hay inside of the word that Hashem created , behibarra'am . We have that famous large yud maybe you're aware of from when Moshe Rabbeinu was davening after the 10 spies debacle , when he said Hashem yigdal be great .
Trying to reference an attribute of Hashem . And the large yud is there for us to ponder . And how about ? Who could forget the large , the enlarged , the ginormous ayin and dalid of Shema Yisrael , hashem Elikinu , hashem Echad , with the enlarged ayin at the end of Shema and the large dalid at the end of Echad .
Together they actually spell and reference , maybe something that we can come up with as aid , because kriya Shema , there's a witnessing and a testimony , or maybe it's da like knowledge , that one should know the sovereignty of the Almighty and accept it .
But today's conversation is that curious , tiny , inconspicuous and unassuming letter aleph , at the end of the first word of Sefer Vayikra . Spoiler alert that's this week's Parsha . The little Aleph . Why ,
¶ The Little Aleph of Vayikra Explained
why should the scribe write it this way ? Because it's a halacha . But why did the Almighty organize the Torah to be written this way ? Well , obviously Torah means instruction , it's obviously instructing , something , telling us a message .
And we are not left groping in the dark trying to discover the MS , because the great Rebbe Yaakov Ben Usher , who you may know of as the Holy Arbaturim , the author of the most important halachic book of all time .
Maybe you know of Rebbe Yaakov Ben Usher from his summarization of his father's Pesachim the Rush when he wrote the Kitzer Pesach HaRosh , or maybe you're familiar with his Pirish Al-Hatorah . Either way , what you need to know is that the Baal HaTurim , reb Yaakov ben Usher , also wrote the Rimzei Baal HaTurim , the Pirish Al-Hatorah .
That is kind of short appetizers to warm you up for his commentaries that often use gematrias , acronyms , other kind of peculiar findings inside of the Torah , sofei , tevos , numerical values that all show a deeper level of Torah . And the balaturim explains to us right on the point , right on the dot .
He raises the curtain on the literal Aleph and says what's going on here is that there is a bit of a conundrum that Moshe Rabbeinu finds himself in , because Hashem is now calling to the prophet and about to introduce the laws of Karbonos . And before one calls someone , before one educates them , they call them , they summon them .
I'd like to speak with you and , as Rashi points out to us , when you call somebody with a Vayikra , that is a very significant calling . It is one of pride , one of glory and prestige . But when you call someone with a Vayikar , without an Aleph . It's the way that God spoke to Bilaam without an aleph , it's the way that God spoke to Balaam .
That kind of signifies and typifies a encountering Not a glorious here he , here he , but just a happens , chance , happens , stance . Oh , just bumped into you . Good to see you , balaam , but probably won't see you again and definitely wasn't calling you . Good to see you , balaam , but probably won't see you again and definitely wasn't calling you .
Hence Vayikra is the word here . Hashem is calling Moshe and it's a very prestigious calling .
But Moshe Rabbeinu says Rashi and , as the Balaturum will explain , he felt it to be awkward , he felt it to be too much prestige to write Vayikra in a way that everyone who learns the Torah hereafter will know that God called me , god called Moshe , in this honorable way . Moshe Rabbeinu did not want to write the Aleph .
He wanted to ditch the Aleph and just write Vayikar , because the prophet of Israel was so humble that he would rather be without the Aleph and be called the same way that the wretched Bilaam was called . In order to find peace , to make shalom , moshe Rabbeinu made a pshara , he settled and he decided he would write the Aleph , but he would write it small .
Zoktabala Turim , aleph devayikra za'ira Shem Moshe hayagadol v'anov . Moshe was great and he was . He wanted to just write . It was just a chance . Put the Aleph in the Torah , make it known that it's a Vayikra El Moshe . What did Moshe do ? The Kasva Katana ? He wrote it miniature .
He wrote it small In an act of anti-pride seeking , in an act of another humility . It's already remarkable to see Moshe Rabbeinu's humility and how he
¶ Rav Shach's Revolutionary Insight
cares very little about how he's addressed . I know that sometimes I get a little bit of a pit in my stomach if somebody will address their wedding invitation to my house and sometimes just write Mike Brook , sometimes write Rabbi , the great Rabbi , michal Brook I like it when they write that and sometimes they just write Mr Brook .
But it's interesting that we care how we're called . And Moshe Rabbeinu he would like to be called the same way that Bilaam was referred to and summoned . And summoned speaks to Moshe's unbelievable unassumingness and humility .
We also see another takeaway from the Bala Turim that Moshe Rabbeinu , in an effort to stay humble , he didn't just internalize a mindset , but he actually did an action , a writing of a small letter . It's kind of funny how that makes someone humble , but we see that actions .
This was definitely a tahbula , something that he did to remain humble , and we see that acting humble does seemingly bring to continued humility . But that's not today's topic .
Today's topic is one Incredible talks the kudos points ever delivered , and it came from the mouth of the great Rebbe Lozer , menachem man Shach , the great Haredi Rav , the Gadol Hadar , the leader of the Jewish people and the leader of the free world from the early 1970s until his death .
He was chairman of all of the Council of the Sages and one of the three co-Roshi Yeshivas of the Panovich Yeshiva in Bnei Brak .
Rav Shach , with literally hundreds of thousands of hours of Amelos Bat Toira under his belt , connected to God in a way that few have , and in his Sefer , machsheves Moser , which is the Moser discourses on the Parsha that he gave in Yeshiva , that his Talmidim transcribed . He asks the following question .
He begins by saying why is it that Moshe chose to write the small aleph here , the aleph Zair and the word Vayikra ? In order to remain humble , says Rabshach . Fantastic , but this isn't the only time that Vayikra is stated in regards to being called to Moshe from the Almighty . Why , punked here , in this situation , does Moshe say small aleph ?
What about the later instances or the earlier instances of a small aleph .
And I'll tell you something that perhaps I am unable to and I am not fitting to , and I maybe shouldn't even be thinking this , but Baruch Hashem , rav Shach tells us , continues Rav Shach to say that we think that when the Torah says that Moshe Rabbeinu was an ish on of Mikol Odom , he is the most humble of all men on the earth , that he was born that way
, that he never had a struggle in his life , that he was the perfect person from the womb and that his humility was well kind of natural and kind of grew , based on his incredible netios , his DNA . It was wired for such a thing . But Rav Shach warns us , he tells us that's not how we believe .
We believe that man was given a life , a soul , a body and , as Cholos HaLevovah says , if you're living , the Yetzirah never leaves a person , even for a moment .
He's constantly awake and watching you sleep , constantly throwing prideful remarks at you and constantly putting stumbling blocks in front of your growth , constantly putting blockades to inhibit your progress of getting closer to HaKadosh , baruch Hu and his Torah .
But when the Torah says that Moshe Rabbeinu was the Ish'anov Mikol Ha'adam , that is to say that he was one of the most hard-working and smart individuals that would constantly come up with new techniques in order to drive home his anava , in order to take him to the next step . Every day was a new challenge .
We're told by Shlomo HaMelech that the Yetzir , it , is evil from his youth and every single day , every day , new tricks . He has every day new ways to make you stumble , and if you are to ever emerge victorious , then it's constant game planning , strategizing and scheming to counter his attacks .
Zokt Rabshach that when Moshe Rabbeinu got to Parshah's Vayikra , it was a new day in his life and it was a new trick of the Yitzhara . The Yitzhara put into Moshe's head hmm , vayikra , that's fancy . Wow , you really are something special . Prideful remarks from the Yitzhara were being shot like bow and arrows into Moshe Rabbeinu .
Marks from the Yitzhahara were being shot like bow and arrows into Moshe Rabbeinu . And Moshe Rabbeinu , with his mochemes ha'yitzer , with his stratagems and game planning . Today , parshas Vayikar , right when he's putting pen to paper with his godly infused pen , does he come up with a new strategy .
He has an idea , a new tachbula I know what I'm going to do to stay humble and he's mechadish . Today , he comes up with this new approach of small aleph . Take that Geitzahara . It's a fight back , because Moshe was human , but Moshe was human . But Moshe succeeded because of he knew how to counterattack the Yitzhahara .
And so Rav Shach answers why is it only Vayikra that we find that Moshe came up with the small Aleph and not the other Vayikras ? Because that was his newfound counterattack on that day against the Yetzirah . And he maybe came up with
¶ Being Shrewd in Your Fear of Heaven
different approaches on other days , which is on other days . What a chiddish from Reb Shach . And when I first saw it it knocked my socks off and my sandals off , or my Echo shoes off , quite literally . But then I thought wait a second , I've heard this somewhere . I heard this from Abaye .
Abaye , who is wont to say , accustomed to say , in the habit of saying Abaye was wont to say that a person should always be Arum Beira . What does that mean ? What does that mean ?
Arum is the same word that the Torah introduces us to the snake in Parshas , barashas , the Nachash was I'm definitely quoting that Pesach wrong , but it definitely says the word Arum there , conniving .
It means shrewd Shrewd in your fear of heaven , rashi says To be shrewd in all manners of shrewdness , to be game planning , in all matters of strategic game planning , liras , boro , tefir , hashem .
You hear this Shrewdness , Game planning , maybe even a bit of not God forbid cheating , but wiliness , guilefulness , craftiness , maybe a bit of even cunningness should be used to fear Hashem . It actually makes a lot of sense because we know that the Yitzhahara doesn't play fair .
I don't know if this to be true , but there are times that when , every once in a while , every couple months , I'll actually be in the mood to sit down and want to learn , then maybe I'll find myself with a stomachache and I'll often ask myself you know , that's not fair .
How can the Yitzhahara give me a stomachache on the one day that I now want to learn , and now I can't learn ? So I don't know if this is correct , but it definitely seems like the Yates Zahara has his fair or unfair cheap shots .
So can't we also conclude that if we aren't a step ahead of the game , if we are not at least counter-attacking him , then we have no shot ?
If he's staring at us while we're asleep and organizing his attacks to go from the south side , where we're still weak and our armor is leaving us exposed , is leaving us exposed , don't we have to be Arum Be'yira and be great in our scheming to be able to beat him and truly fear Hashem . I thought further , of course .
I know that this concept is somewhere deep in my brain . The Gemara says he told his disciples on his deathbed that , my dearest disciples , I give you a blessing on my final day that your fear of heaven should be like your fear of people . To which the bewildered disciples retorted and said Rebbe , how could that be Thus far , and no more .
That's all you're going to give us a blessing of that . We should fear God like we fear people . Rebbe Yochanan ben Zakkai responded with a rebuttal to their retort by saying I love I . If only you should fear heaven like you feared people , like you fear people . I think that's a perfect example of being Arum Begira .
You display and understand different mindsets in order to catapult your fear . Understand different mindsets in order to catapult your fear .
You are cunning and you realize that I would never get caught red-handed stealing or speaking ill about somebody in front of them , steal from the store in front of the shopkeeper but maybe I would do it behind his back or speak ill gossip if they weren't paying attention or if it was only through text .
But Arum Be'yira means you understand and you use your incredible koyach of imagery and imagination to reframe your relationship with Hashem in a way that becomes very real , very tangible . What a brilliant scheme , what a brilliant way to live life .
Speaking from the heart , I'll tell you that when I started the Motivation Congregation , it came up it really came to be because of a scheme , no-transcript . But I did have some clarity that what I like in this world is prestige , or being told that I know rainbow to get to the pot of gold . On the other
¶ Writing Our Own Small Alephs Today
side of prestige and money , I said , if I make an obligation for myself that I have to teach and people will then listen to what I'm saying , because you can only teach if somebody listens . So then I would force myself daily to have to say something that made sense , because I am putting my pride on the line and sending this Torah video out .
So now it has to be good , otherwise someone will say that I am illiterate and dumb . So let's try to work hard and get better and better at it .
And I thought , well , maybe if I even do it long enough and I become strong enough in my learning , maybe even someone will want to financially commit to want to learn with me , maybe even try to book a speaking engagement , but all of it it was done in a little bit of a shrewd way and I hope it was approved by God , but it helped me to open the books
more times than not . A tachbula this , gemara , makes me feel better about myself . And this , rashi , that you should use zokt rashi , leharim b'chomine arma to use all types of shrewd calculations , some wily procedures . You asked Boro to come to fear of heaven .
People use meditation , people use intense graphs and charts and reward themselves with different things to push their fear of heaven . They tell themselves five more minutes and I won't go there . They'll know that if I do this , then that will lead towards this happening . So they three steps . Before they get near anything .
They come up with different schemes as to how they're going to refrain from it and never get close to it .
But today's conclusion is that if Moshe Rabbeinu needed scheming and , as Rav Shach puts , it came up with a new scheme , a new play , a play-action pass when the defense was blitzing , when the Yitzharah wanted Moshe to feel prideful about his connection to Hashem and his position of power , and Moshe came back with a small aleph as the flea flicker as the defense
fell right into the trap . And now we get a lesson in humility . And Moshe Rabbeinu came up with it on that day to counterattack the Yitzharah's quick and cheap move .
How much more so should we be on the lookout that every day Bechol Yoim , that the Yitzharah is miskaber against us , that we game plan , that we understand , that with tremendous foresight and hashkafa rabbo and tremendous planning , we too can prove triumphant against our formidable foe . Write our own small alephs , if you will .
I want to just conclude with a couple examples of what you could even think of doing . If you struggle to wake up in the morning , why don't you book yourself a chavrusa before shachars ? That's arum be'yira .
Book it with a rabbi , the rabbi of the shul , and ask him if you'll learn with him for 15 minutes , or he'll learn with you for 15 minutes before shachras , and that may trick yourself into having to wake up . If you want to have more kavana during Shemona Esrei , don't just tell yourself concentrate , concentrate , think , think .
But tell yourself that I'm going to pray with my finger on the place , or say every word out loud that I'm going to pray with my finger on the place , or say every word out loud .
If you want to stay till the end of davening , then think I'm just going to have concentration in one tefillah , or one paragraph for the whole davening , and that's going to be Elenu . And Elenu becomes your new favorite part of davening and , just by coincidence , you happen to be staying for the entire davening .
That's how you write your own aleph and that's what Rav Shach told us is how Moshe Rabbeinu continued to reach the top , but he
¶ Practical Strategies for Spiritual Growth
kept coming up with new strategies and he was totally Arum Be'yira . So the challenge awaits , because if Moshe Rabbeinu , he needed certain approaches to beat the Yetzirah and he did , how much more .
So that in 2025 , we also should be on the lookout , with Ashkafa Rabel and Shikol Adas , to also write our own small Alephs to prove triumphant against our formidable foe .