"Room" two hundred and thirteen in the hall of Hayom Yom.
Monday, 25 Sivan 5703.
Shiurim: Chumash, Korach, Sheni, with Rashi's commentary.
Tehillim, 25 of the month, we say the first half of chapter 119 - from the opening verse of the letter Aleph "Ashrei" until the end of the letter Lamed, which ends with the words "rechavah mitzvatecha me'od".
Tanya, we continue learning chapter 7. The daily shiur is on page 166, from the words "Vezehu shekasuv baTikkunim" until the words "demilalon".
The daily teaching is short, and is taken from a letter by the Rebbe Rayatz from 24 Nissan 5698. The Rebbe Rayatz writes to a Jew as follows: The verse in Mishlei (chapter 12) says "De'agah belev ish yashchena".
And he cites: "And Chazal offered two interpretations". Where do Chazal say this? It appears in the Gemara in tractate Yoma (page 75a), at the top of the page, in a dispute between Rabbi Ami and Rabbi Assi. One - that is Rabbi Ami - says: What is "yashchena"? "Yasechena mida'ato", meaning he should dismiss it from his mind, he should forget about it. And the other - that is Rabbi Assi - says: "Yesichena la'acherim", meaning he should discuss it with others.
And what will happen if he discusses it with others? On this Rashi says there, "Perhaps they will give him advice" - do you have a worry? Share it with another person, and it is possible that person will give you good advice and you will be rid of the matter. This is the simple meaning in the Gemara. And in the words of the teaching: "He should dismiss it from his mind, or - discuss it with others".
"And the Tzemach Tzedek explained" - this is what the Rebbe Rayatz cites in the letter - that the Tzemach Tzedek explained the opinion in the Gemara that "yesichena" means with others, and "others" means another person. And he offers an interesting derush: "Others only in body - but they are united with him, feeling his situation". In other words, this means you are discussing the matter with a person who in his body is an "other" - he is not you - but is united with you; that other whom you are conversing with and to whom you convey your anxiety is one who is united with you, who feels you and your situation, and cares about you.
And what happens when you meet such a person? The allusion to this, as in certain places, like a Jew writing a letter to the Rebbe and the Rebbe answering him - is that he is sharing his problem with the Rebbe, who is united with him and feels his situation.
Further in the letter, the Rebbe Rayatz writes that the moment one discusses it with others, and that other is a good friend - and he specifies: a person who fulfills mitzvos, who fulfills the Rebbe's directives, etc. - then by discussing it with a good friend, this leads to "yasechena mida'ato" (dismissing it from his mind). Thus we find here a fusion of the two interpretations: when a person discusses it with others, he dismisses it from his mind; and instead of the anxiety he had previously - he concludes in the letter - he will have great joy, because he will be filled with hope and bitachon that the Holy One, blessed be He, will do a great kindness with him, and then he will have no anxiety at all, but rather very great bitachon and strength. And all this is as a result of the conversation with a person who is very close to you.
This teaching has an allusion in the order of the Yad Hachazakah of the Rambam. In the recent teachings we have been in Sefer Tohorah, and even in the previous teaching we saw an allusion to Hilchos Tumas Ochalin; and also in the daily teaching one can see a certain allusion in one of the halachos in the first chapters of Hilchos Tumas Ochalin. It says there, what causes something to become susceptible to tumah - if it comes into contact with water. And we also mentioned in the previous teaching that if the thing is attached to the ground, if its root is attached to the earth, it does not contract tumah even if it comes into contact with water.
There is a discussion in halachah regarding a flowerpot made of an earthen vessel, such as earthenware, which is unperforated, and inside it are seeds, and water is poured on it. Seemingly, since it is not attached to the ground, and it is unperforated, and it came into contact with water - it should have contracted tumah. The halachah says that if it is such an earthenware vessel that the roots destined to grow inside it have the strength to pierce the flowerpot and emerge outside to the earth, then even though it is currently still unperforated, the very potential that they could pierce it and touch the earth - means they are considered to be attached to the ground from this moment, and therefore the seeds within it do not contract tumah even if they come into contact with water. This is the halachah.
And the connection to the content of the daily teaching: It speaks of "others". Seemingly, that person appears as an other and a stranger to you, like that flowerpot that appears unperforated, closed, and separated from the earth. But since he is someone to whom you can feel a connection, this ability that he feels you transforms him from a separate entity into a connected entity - and thus, in halachah, it does not contract tumah. And here the meaning is that he causes your anxieties to diminish, and in their place will come bitachon, joy, and good hope.