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                         L'CHAIM - ISSUE # 863
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                 Lubavitch Youth Organization - L.Y.O.
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             THE WEEKLY PUBLICATION FOR EVERY JEWISH PERSON
   Dedicated to the memory of Rebbetzin Chaya Mushka Schneerson N.E.
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        March 25, 2005            Tzav          14 Adar II, 5765
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                           Reading Backwards

When discussing the laws of Purim, the Talmud states that if one reads
the Megila (Scroll of Esther) backward, the reading is invalid. In the
simple sense this means one can't skip around. If you read the Megila
out of order, whether the chapters, verses or words, it doesn't count.

To fulfill the mitzva of reading the Megila on Purim, we have to read it
in the right order - the sequence has to be right.

But on a deeper level, the Talmud teaches us an important lesson about
our approach to the holiday of Purim, and to its mitzvot.

In a larger sense, we cannot read Purim backwards. We cannot read the
story of Purim as if it's backwards. "Backwardness" here has two
meanings. First, we can't read Purim as if it's "backwards" - primitive,
old-fashioned, antiquated, etc. Too often we treat Purim as "just a
children's holiday," as if we are too sophisticated, too "mature," to
put aside our judgments and judgmentalism and rejoice "until we don't
know" - until our intellects fall silent and we admit our knowledge is
ignorance.

The second sense in which reading Purim "backwards" invali-dates the
reading - and, in a sense, our celebration of it, is to read the story
of Esther and Mordechai as a story of "back then," a story that may be
of historical interest but has no current relevance. Or worse, to read
it as a "back then": "back then (in the times of Esther and Mordechai)
they had to tell stories like this because they didn't know better, but
really things like that just don't happen - not 'back then' and not
now."

Such a "reading" has of course no historical support. And such a
misreading of history has only one purpose - to make Purim into a story
of "back then" and so dismiss its message from our lives.

And what do we miss, what message is lost by reading backwards? The
power of the everyday miracle. For the miracle of Purim differs from the
miracles that we will celebrate a month later, the miracles associated
with Passover and the Exodus. Those miracles were open and obvious to
all. But the miracle of Purim was hidden, invisible, so to speak, for
quite some time, until the "role reversals" revealed the hand of G-d
behind the events, proving that the Guardian of Israel never sleeps.

Which brings us to another lesson of Purim, one that, like all the
events related in the Megila, is eternally true, a lesson that cannot be
"read backwards." After the victory, the Megila relates that "the Jews
had light and gladness and joy and honor." The Talmud tells us: "Light,
this is Torah; Gladness, this is the holidays; Joy, this is the brit
mila (circumcision); Honor, this is tefilin." That is, the miracle - the
revelation of Divine Providence, of G-d's guidance leads to - mitzvot,
and specifically, those mitzvot that distinguish the Jewish people, that
draw attention to our uniqueness.

May we celebrate Purim by "reading forward" - forward from the
Redemption of Purim to the Redemption of Passover to the ultimate
Redemption with the revelation of Moshiach.

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           LIVING WITH THE REBBE  -  THE WEEKLY TORAH PORTION
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A little history lesson: Haman was the Persian viceroy, the most
powerful man in the empire that ruled the world. Mordechai was the
leader of the Jews; he "sat at the King's gate," serving as one of the
royal counselors.

Haman had the king agree that all the people in the empire should
worship him. Mordechai refused to comply.

Now why didn't Mordechai bow down to Haman? Mordechai was a realistic
person. He could have foreseen the consequences of his refusal. Why was
he willing to risk everything - not only his own life and position, but
that of the entire Jewish people?

So Haman was asking to be worshiped like a god. Big deal. Bow down to
him and go further. Why waste more time about it? It definitely doesn't
make sense to give up one's life - and risk those of one's entire people
- not to bow down.

But that's the point. There are some things that are above making sense.
There are immutable rules which G-d wove into the very fabric of the
universe. There is no way they can be broken. If a man tries, he will
break himself against them.

Acknowledging G-d and refusing to acknowledge any other power are the
two most fundamental of these laws. Mordechai saw bowing down to Haman
as a challenge to the fundamental core of his existence. Of course, he
was not going to believe in Haman's divinity. But no one was asking him
a philosophical question. It was the deed that was most important.

Would he bow to Haman and thus show his acceptance of the Persian empire
as the most powerful force in his life? Or would he defy Haman's decree
and incur his wrath, but demonstrate his connection to G-d?

For Mordechai, it wasn't a question. Mordechai didn't separate his faith
from his life, or his principles from his day-to-day modus operandi. He
lived what he believed in; he believed in what he lived. There was no
dichotomy.

And this wasn't true only of Mordechai. The entire Jewish people stood
behind him. Even when Haman passed a decree calling for every Jew in the
empire to be executed, they did not try to hide their Jewishness. On the
contrary, they intensified their adherence to the Torah and its
commandments.

Abstract idealism? An impractical approach? Well, let's see what
happened. Haman was killed, Mordechai was given his position, and
instead of the Jews being slain by their enemies, they annihilated all
those who rose against them.  Not bad for idealism.

Because this was not just idealism, it was an awareness of the reality
of our existence. It's G-d's world. And when Mordechai and the Jewish
people affirmed that, they were successful.

One further point: When Mordechai and the Jewish people affirmed  their
Jewish identity and faith in G-d, they did not retreat into
isolationism. Mordechai became the viceroy; he - and his people - took a
far wider role in Persian affairs than before. And while doing so, he
proudly emphasized his Jewish identity; everyone referred to him as
"Mordechai, the Jew."

The two aren't contradictory. Since one Judaism and one's connection to
G-d are inherent facts of one's existence, affirming them makes one more
in sync with His order for the world, and more able to play a
significant role within it.

      From Keeping in Touch (S.I.E. Publishing) by Rabbi E. Touger,
                    adapted from the works of the Lubavitcher Rebbe

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                             SLICE OF LIFE
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                           Purim without Koby
                           by Sherri Mandell

I was asked to write an article entitled "Purim Without Koby." But I
can't write about Purim without Koby because even though Koby is dead, I
don't celebrate Purim, or anything else, without Koby.

In an article in The New York Times, Steven Flatow said that even though
his daughter Aliza was killed by terrorists, he was still her parent. I
am still Koby's mother. I will never not be his mother.

Trying to explain my relationship with Koby is like trying to translate
blindness to a sighted person. I speak a different language now.

It is like being a haunted house, or a hallowed one. There are times
when I feel horrible pain, and I feel that I will always be haunted. I
see how people look at me sometimes and remember the haunted house I
used to pass on my way into town when I was a kid. Unlike our modern,
shingled house, it was old, dark brick with spires and round windows.
Now perhaps, I would look at the house as curious, interesting, maybe
even beautiful. For what is haunted can also be hallowed, sanctified by
loss into something grander, more attached to G-d. It depends on how you
translate your experience.

Purim tells us that this world is one where meaning is hidden. The name
Esther, the heroine of the Purim story, is related to the Hebrew world
for hiddenness. And in the Purim Megillah, G-d is never mentioned by
name, though he is not absent from the story.

To encounter G-d, we have to move from our position of pride to a
position of humility, enhancing our own hiddenness. Only then can we
emulate Esther, who could have stayed in the palace, where she lived in
luxury, massaged and oiled and groomed, but chose instead to feel the
suffering of the people. Esther did not let her elevated status go to
her head.

That may be our job in this world: to connect more with other people, to
feel their pain and their problems, to act as one with them. Perhaps
that is what we should celebrate: our ability to help each other move
toward healing; to move from our limited sense of self to feeling one
with the people around us. Such unity can lead to healing.

Less than a year after our son was killed, my husband and I marked our
wedding anniversary by going out to dinner. I can't say we celebrated,
because we were too sad. When we walked into the restaurant, the smiling
waitress with her shiny, black hair had a spirit and effervescence I
could only admire. I thought to myself, "She has no idea of the pain I
am living with, the weight of what I carry."

As my husband and I ate our meal, we realized that the restaurant was a
perfect place to commemorate what would be Koby's upcoming fifteenth
birthday. We wanted to take fifteen poor or disadvantaged people out to
dinner to mark Koby's birthday - to remember the dead by bringing joy to
the living.

We spoke to the manager about our plans. He said that he volunteered at
a nearby center that helped teens from poor, broken families, and he
thought that the teenagers would appreciate going out with us. The idea
was taking form almost on its own. We hadn't thought about taking
teenagers out for a meal, but it made sense. Koby was a teen when he was
killed. We thanked the manager for his suggestion. Before he walked
away, my husband said: "Do you know the Goodman family? They live around
here. They lost their 16-year-old son, Tani, this year in an accident -
we went to the shiva - and I wanted to know how they are doing."

"You can ask them yourself. Your waitress is their daughter."

I looked at her, at her beauty and her spirit, and I thought, "You never
know what's going on inside a person." I had misjudged her. When she
came over to the table, we told her of our loss, and she shared her own.

As we spoke, I realized how much of life is hidden. We don't see what's
inside of people.

As we shared our feelings, my husband and I felt less isolated. The pain
lifted for a moment. Healing may occur when we reveal what's hidden
inside of us. Then the pain doesn't haunt us but brings us closer to
others.

If we can't even see what's inside of other people, imagine how
difficult it is to see G-d in the world. But Purim tells us that even
when we can't see G-d, he is with us. Even when it seems otherwise, G-d
does not abandon us in our pain.

      Reprinted with permission from Kosher Spirit Magazine. Sherri
         Mandell is the author of "The Blessing of a Broken Heart."
           (Toby Press, 2003)  and co-founder of the foundation for
                       terror victims, The Koby Mandell Foundation,
                                                www.kobymandell.org

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                               WHAT'S NEW
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                            Celebrate Purim!

Jews from Amurzet, a remote village in the Jewish Autonomous Republic
(250 km. from Birobidjan, Russia)  have been rehearsing a Purim play
based on the Book of Esther. The performance, for Jews of the local
community, takes place this Purim, which begins on Thursday evening,
March 24. The Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS will be
distributing nearly a quarter of a million "mishloach manot" food gifts
in over 420 centers. To find out about events and celebrations in your
area call your local Chabad-Lubavitch Center.

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                            THE REBBE WRITES
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        Freely translated letter written in the years preceding
                         the Rebbe's leadership


                       Shushan Purim, 5706 [1946]

Greetings and blessings,

...With regard to the mitzvos [com-mandments] of Purim, our Sages
(Megillah 7a) seek to define the following two obligations: mishloach
manos ish lerei'eihu - "sending presents of food, one man to another,"
and matanos laevyonim - "gifts to the poor." Noting the plural and
singular forms of these terms, they rule that the mitzva is fulfilled by
sending at least two presents of food to one person and two gifts
usually of money to two poor people.

According to Chasidus, this can be explained as follows: As is well
known, the miracle of Purim involved the salvation of the Jewish people
both bodily and spiritually (in contrast to Chanuka, which involved only
spiritual salvation)...

The Jews merited this twofold salvation because of their self-sacrifice
in sanctifying G-d's Name. They devoted themselves to G-d with a simple
will that transcends reason and understanding. For had they just been
willing to sacrifice their faith, Haman would have done them no harm,
for his decree was only against Jews, as explained in Chasidus, in the
discourses on Purim.

The ultimate goal of mesirus nefesh [self-sacrifice] is that this
self-sacrifice should influence a Jew's day-to-day life; i.e., that his
G-dly soul alone should master his body and animal soul. The
intermediary that allows for communication between the two is the
intellective soul, as stated in the Chasidic discourse entitled Rava
Chazia (delivered by my revered father-in-law, the Rebbe Shlita, in 5690
[1930], when he first visited the U.S.), et al.

Now we know that "The only poor man is he who lacks understanding and
the only rich man is he who possesses understanding." Therefore we
cannot describe the intellective soul (and certainly not the G-dly soul)
as truly "poor." The body and the animal soul, by contrast, can be
described in this manner.

This is the meaning of the mitzvos of Purim. After their self-sacrifice
in that era, the Jews were given mitzvos which indicate that the G-dly
soul must draw down its self-sacrifice both to the animal soul and to
the body. The gifts of money to the poor must therefore be given to two
poor people.

With regard to sending presents to one's friends: The intellective soul
is called a "friend" of the G-dly soul, and for that reason it can serve
as its intermediary, as explained in the above Chasidic discourses.
(This mitzva, too, involves two presents, for any genuine intellectual
idea is twofold. One arrives at a conclusion after considering both that
idea and the opposing concept; a perspective characterized by Kindness
and one characterized by Severity; a question and a resolution. This is
the nature of intellect, as is explained in many sources.)

Just as these distinctions exist within an individual, so, too, there
are parallel distinctions between people. There are people who concern
themselves only with bodily things; there are some who have a natural
feeling for others, or at least for their own relatives; and others who
devote attention to contemplating their deeds and consider logically how
they should conduct themselves; - but all this is based on mortal
reason. They are, for the moment, not interested in learning about the
Torah and G-dly reason.

Into this setting comes the holy charge, given to every individual
according to his potential - to see that all of the kinds of people
mentioned above are brought to the truth of the Torah and its mitzvos.
This constitutes the giving of a spiritual "presents of food" and "gifts
of money to the poor" to many people, as mentioned above.

This is the great merit that you possess - that, while living in a
spiritual wilderness where there are at present so few who observe the
Torah and its mitzvos, as reflected by your letter, you should be the
one who disseminates and endeavors to fortify the study of Torah and the
practice of Judaism through your personal example and speech, and by
bringing them the light of the Torah through various books, articles,
publications, and essays. The merit of the many is dependent on you.

I am certain that you will continue to advance your above-described work
with renewed energy and with the help of your family, and I conclude
with blessings for a kosher and joyous Passover.

With the blessing "Immediately to teshuva (repentance); immediately to
Redemption,"

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                            RAMBAM THIS WEEK
*********************************************************************
16 Adar II, 5765 - March 27, 2005

Positive Mitzva 57: Slaughtering the Second Passover Offering

This mitzva is based on the verse (Num. 9:11) "On the fourteenth day of
the second month, at evening, they shall do it" The Torah declares that
a Jew always has a second chance. If someone was unable to bring the
Passover sacrifice because of impurity or because he was too far away to
get to the Holy Temple, he is given another opportunity. This person is
commanded to fulfill this obligation, a month later, on the fourteenth
day of the month of Iyar.

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                        A WORD FROM THE DIRECTOR
                         Rabbi Shmuel M. Butman
*********************************************************************
This Friday we celebrate Purim, commemorating the Jewish people's
deliverance from Haman's decree of annihilation. As soon as Haman's plot
to destroy the Jews became known, Mordechai sent a messenger to Queen
Esther, asking her to go to the king on behalf of her people.

Esther hesitated; anyone who approached the king without being summoned
and did not meet with his favor forfeited his life. When Esther relayed
this message to Mordechai, the Megila tells us he responded:

"Think not of yourself.... For if you hold your peace now, the
deliverance will come to the Jews from elsewhere.... And who knows
whether you came to the kingdom for just such a time as this."

Esther understood Mordechai's message. As the leader of the Jewish
people of that generation, Mordechai knew, through Divine inspiration,
that the Jewish people would be delivered. Their deliverance was
certain; it would come from somewhere. The only question was who would
help actualize this Divinely inspired promise?

Esther accepted the mission and asked Mordechai to tell the Jews to fast
and pray for three days so she would be successful. That is what
happened and ultimately the Jews were delivered.

The Mordechai of our generation, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, stated the
Divinely inspired words, "The time of your Redemption has arrived." The
Rebbe said that to prepare ourselves for the Redemption we should learn
about Moshiach and the Redemption. Now, as then, the Rebbe's message was
that the deliverance is coming, the Redemption will take place, it's
happening.

The only question is, "Who will help actualize this Divinely inspired
promise?"

The responsibility lies with each of us. We must do everything possible
to spread the Rebbe's message of the imminence of the Redemption and the
importance of learning about it. Then we will surely merit the total
fulfillment of one of the last verses of the Megila that, "there was
light and joy, gladness and honor," so may it be with us.

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                          THOUGHTS THAT COUNT
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He shall lift up the ashes remaining from the burnt offering. (Lev. 6:3)

The Kohein (priest) was commanded to remove the ashes left over from the
previous day's sacrifices. This act was symbolic of the fact that after
the sinner had brought his offering and truly repented of his sin, one
was not allowed to remind him of his transgressions. They are forgotten
and erased forever.

                                                (Otzreinu Hayashan)

                                *  *  *


A perpetual fire shall burn on the altar; it shall not go out. (Lev.
6:6)

Within every Jew there is a sanctuary dedicated to G-d - the eternal
Jewish soul which can never be destroyed. And within that "sanctuary"
stands an altar upon which a continual fire must burn. Chasidic
philosophy explains that the continual fire is the warmth, enthusiasm
and vitality with which a person infuses his Jewish observance. If this
fieriness is missing, even though the person might perform many mitzvot
and study much Torah, his G-dly service is lacking an essential
ingredient. A glowing passion toward Judaism must encompass every aspect
of our lives as Jews, thus transforming everyday acts into holy deeds.
And, of course, "spiritual deeds" too - Torah, prayer and deeds of
kindness (gemilut chasadim) - must also suffused  with a burning
enthusiasm.

                                            (The Lubavitcher Rebbe)

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                            IT ONCE HAPPENED
*********************************************************************
She was Esther, the lovely orphan; she was Esther, the lonely queen.
During their silence, her heart screamed for her people, and when she
spoke for them, it was with a quiet calm. In the palace, she had
everything, but she had nothing she desired - yet that was enough for
her, for she thought not of herself. Esther: her life-a paradox, her
story-a poem. And she asked only that she be remembered...

Her father died before she was born, and her mother, in childbirth. She
was totally orphaned, in every sense of the word. One would think this
would have relegated her to a position of powerlessness, and yet
somehow, from this utter aloneness, she drew strength. One day, she
would teach the Jewish people that though exiled and oppressed, like
her, they would never be abandoned.

Esther was raised by her cousin, Mordechai, a member of the Sanhedrin,
the highest Jewish court. He was a wise, kind, and  courageous man. When
she grew up, they married. It was the fairy tale ending for the orphan
girl.

And then, disaster struck. Achashverosh, the Persian king, having done
away with his wife, Vashti for disobeying him, sought a new queen. He
demanded every attractive female in the empire be brought before him so
he could select a suitably beautiful woman to be his wife.

Esther had the misfortune of being among them. For her, it was a fate
worse than death. She spent a year in the harem, waiting for her turn to
go before the king. Esther refused all the cosmetics offered her, for
she did not want to be queen - her dreams lay elsewhere.

Unobtrusively, she managed to preserve the traditions of her faith.
Finally, it was Esther's turn to stand before the king. It could not
have been only her physical beauty that caught his eye. There was an
inner glow, a deeper beauty that illuminated her face, and the king was
enchanted by the aura that enveloped her. And so, Esther was crowned
queen.

And Esther was silent. She told no one of her background. Everyone who
looked at her imagined her as one of their own kinspeople - for silence
speaks in all languages. And perhaps, that is why she was so beloved.

The years passed. Esther was a dove locked in a golden cage, and no
matter how the bars glistened and shimmered, all she longed for was to
be free. Mordechai still stood outside the palace gates each day to
inquire about her. And she waited for the day when they would be
together again.

Seven years. Haman rises to power. Everyone bows when the evil prime
minister passes. Everyone except for Mordechai. He alone refuses to bend
before him, and Haman, enraged, plots to kill Mordechai and the entire
Jewish people...

Mordechai dons sackcloth and is not permitted near the palace gates in
such garb. Esther sends him fresh clothing and demands to know why he is
in mourning. Mordechai tells her of the wealth Haman has promised to
deliver to the king's coffers if Achashverosh agrees to kill the Jews.
And then Mordechai makes his request: "Go to the king and beg him to
save your people!"

For a moment she balks. "Anyone who enters the king's chambers uninvited
can be beheaded. Perhaps it is better that  I wait. Surely he will call
me himself soon, and then I can make my request without risking his
anger."

But Mordechai's answer is unequivocal. "This is why you were taken to be
queen. Do not think that you can escape the fate of all the Jews by
hiding in the king's palace. If you are silent now, help will come to
the Jews from some other source, but you will be destroyed and utterly
forgotten from among your people."

And so, Esther agrees to go, and in that moment, accepts her destiny -
and throws away her personal future. Now that she would be going to the
king of her own volition, she would be forbidden by Jewish law ever to
return to her husband. Aware of the loss she bears, she issues a
directive:

"Gather the Jews in Shushan. For three days, have them fast and pray to
G-d for the success of my mission, and I will fast with them. Then, I
will attempt to intercede with the king. And if I am meant to die, then
let me die."

On the third day, Esther cloaked herself in royal garb  and donned the
crown jewels. Her face shone, and she buried her fears in her heart. She
entered the king's inner chambers and stood before him as he sat on his
throne. He lifted his eyes, and saw Esther before him, and he was very
angry at her for having come to him unsolicited. Esther saw the rage
burning in his face, and she fainted into the arms of the maiden at her
side. And G-d saw and had mercy on the orphan girl who had placed her
trust in Him. And He multiplied her beauty and made her find favor in
the king's eyes.

Then  Achashverosh arose and said: "Tell me your wish, it shall be
done."

And Esther invited the king - and Haman - to a feast.

She knew that her fellow Jews would revile and despise her for inviting
their arch-enemy to a party, and would despair of her help. But she did
not want the Jews to rely on her, to feel that her influence would save
them. Better they look upon her as a traitor, and return to G-d with all
their hearts...

The end of the story we all know. And Esther? Perhaps the only thing
harder than those first years in the palace were the years that
followed. Initially, she may have been comforted by the thought that
perhaps she had been crowned so she could one day save the Jews. But
having saved them, knowing she could never leave, knowing that she was
forever relegated to an alien existence - that was a sacrifice far
greater. Despite that, she was unflinching in her dedication to the
Jewish people.

In return, she asked only that Purim be celebrated by us each year, and
that her story be recorded and heard. She asked only that she be
remembered - in our minds and in our hearts - for who she really was -
not the Persian queen, but the Jewish orphan girl who gave her life for
her people.

    A free adaptation based on Megilat Esther and Midrash Esther Rabba
    by Chana Silverstein. Reprinted from Aleph, a publication of the
    Chabad House of Ithica, NY.

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                            MOSHIACH MATTERS
*********************************************************************
The Talmud states that in the era of Redemption, all festivals will be
nullified except Purim. What does this mean? In the present era, the
festivals represent G-dly revelations that transcend ordinary (G-dly)
revelation, hence they stand out. In the Redemption, by contrast, G-dly
revelation will be ongoing and the festivals will not be considered
unique. They will be celebrated but the spiritual nature of the days
will not stand out. This is not true regarding Purim. For Purim came
about through the self-sacrifice of the Jews. Despite the challenges of
exile, they reaffirmed their commitment to their Jewish heritage.
Therefore they were rewarded with a festival whose light will continue
to shine even in the era of Redemption.

                                            (The Lubavitcher Rebbe)

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                 END OF TEXT - L'CHAIM 863 - Tzav 5765
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