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LIKKUTEI SICHOS: VOLUME 20

Likkutei Sichos, Vol. 20: Parshas Toldos (Part 5)

Locating within the Avos themselves the root of a Yid's struggle to conquer the yetzer hara.

Part of Likkutei Sichos: Volume 20 · 24:30

This session continues tracing the source for kevishas hayetzer within Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov's own avodah, framing the difficulty in terms of the Rambam's two categories of divine service. The discussion opens with a sharp aside on distinguishing a truly holy melody built on words of tefillah from a merely "Israeli" song, before moving into a technical analysis of how a get can validly be written on a shard of earthenware, and why an erasure on clay is treated differently than one on parchment.

Audio Transcript
Recap: Locating Kevishas HaYetzer Within the Avos

Over here the page, page 10, the second column. The question that we learned was that the Rebbe asked a shaila that since the Rambam says that there are two types of, two ways of a Yid to serve Hashem. One is 讞住讬讚 诪注讜诇讛, the one that automatically, the one that automatically, automatically is directed, he only wants to do what's, what's considered a good thing. And then we have the case of people that always have, have to fight the 讬爪专 讛专注, that their 讬爪专 讛专注 is very strong and they have to fight the 讬爪专 讛专注. Since, like, 诪注砖讛 讗讘讜转 住讬诪谉 诇讘谞讬诐, everything that happen, happens to the Yidden is comes from the 讗讘讜转, has to be somehow by the 讗讘讜转. Where do we find by the 讗讘讜转 such a thing that they had a 讬爪专 讛专注 and they have to fight it? It seems that there's an avodah of fighting the 讬爪专 讛专注, there's still, there's something like that by the Yid. And the emes is you don't find. The 讗讘讜转 were the merkavah. Merkavah means that they completely never wanted to do bad. They don't, they're given over to Hashem so much. One of the faults of the speaker is, he says, and I'm quoting, and he writes it in Hebrew:

An Aside on Real Kedushah Versus a Merely 'Israeli' Song

讜讗驻讬诇讜 砖讬专 讞讚砖 讬砖专讗诇讬 谞砖诪注 讘转讜讱 讛拽诇讟转. And even a new Israeli song is heard on the tape. And that song, and on that tape, it was about a year and a half ago, the background music was 讜讻讜诇诐 诪拽讘诇讬诐 注诇讬讛诐 注讜诇 诪诇讻讜转 砖诪讬诐 讝讛 诪讝讛, which was sung, I believe, by Dedi. Now, I have nothing against Dedi, but wait a minute! Dedi Graucher sings a song with the words 讜讻讜诇诐 诪拽讘诇讬诐 注诇讬讛诐 注讜诇 诪诇讻讜转 砖诪讬诐 讝讛 诪讝讛. The talmid chacham says this is 砖讬专 讬砖专讗诇讬?! Dedi Graucher sings about Israel, about politics, about army, about kibbutzim? It's a pasuk! It's from the siddur! 讜讻讜诇诐 诪拽讘诇讬诐 注诇讬讛诐 注讜诇 诪诇讻讜转 砖诪讬诐 讝讛 诪讝讛! What makes it a 砖讬专 讬砖专讗诇讬? Because Dedi lives in Israel? Because Dedi has an Israeli accent? Because the tune was composed by someone in Israel? Does that make it a 砖讬专 讬砖专讗诇讬? Are you crazy? If you have an Israeli accent, that means it's an Israeli song? You have a good tune, you have words from the siddur! It's a, it's a, it's a song of kedushah, of yirat Shamayim, of 砖讘讞 诇讛拽讚讜砖 讘专讜讱 讛讜讗, and a great talmid chacham... [Non-speech audio]

A Gemara Digression: Writing a Get on a Shard of Earthenware

So how could Dovid kill him? Because if Dovid killed him, then Shlomo would have married 讘转 驻专注讛 right away. So he didn't kill him. So Dovid didn't kill him. Which brings us back to the earlier question: How was Rav Yosef able to derive that rule from this particular statement? Or, as the Gemara formulated the question: What did Rav Yosef come to tell us? 诪讗讬 拽讗 诪砖诪注 诇谉? What does it teach us? If he's coming to teach us that we can write a document on a 讞专住, on an earthen shard, 转谞讬谞讗, we already learned that rule, we already have a Mishnah in Masechet Gittin. The Mishnah states explicitly: 注诇 讛讻诇 讻讜转讘讬谉, you can write a document on almost anything, even on an olive leaf, and on a shard. And the question was, if we already knew you can write on a shard, then even if it was on a potsherd, we already knew that the document could be written on a potsherd. So what did Rav Yosef add? What did he innovate by bringing this as an example of a document? So the question was: 诪讗讬 拽讗 诪砖诪注 诇谉? What does he come to teach us? 讗讬 讚讻转讘讬谞谉 注诇 讞专住, 转谞讬谞讗: 注诇 讛讻诇 讻讜转讘讬谉, 讗驻讬诇讜 注诇 注诇讛 砖诇 讝讬转, 讜注诇 讬讚 砖诇 注讘讚, 讜注诇 拽专谉 砖诇 驻专讛. And that's a whole list in Masechet Gittin. So the Gemara had to ask: 诪讗讬 拽讗 诪砖诪注 诇谉? And what was Rav Yosef's answer? Rav Yosef's answer was that he wasn't teaching us that you could write on a shard. He was teaching us about the validity of a document that was written, that wasn't on a standard piece of paper or parchment, but on an earthen vessel, where there is a potential flaw. And what is that flaw? The flaw is that if you have words written on an earthenware shard, is it valid if it can be forged? And what does the Gemara ask? 讗讬 讘讞专住 讚诪讬讝讚讬讬祝, 讛讗 诪讬讝讚讬讬祝! If it's a 讞专住 that can be forged, then it can be forged! 讗讬 讘讞专住 讚诇讗 诪讬讝讚讬讬祝, 转谞讬谞讗! If it's a 讞专住 that cannot be forged, we already learned that! We already learned that in the Mishnah! So what is Rav Yosef coming to teach us? What did he add? And the Gemara answers: 诇注讜诇诐 讘讞专住 讚诇讗 诪讬讝讚讬讬祝. Really we're dealing with a 讞专住 that cannot be forged. 讜讻讙讜谉 讚讻转讘讬讛 讗诪讞讜拽, 讜专讘讬 讗诇注讝专 讛讬讗, 讚讗诪专: 注讚讬 诪住讬专讛 讻专转讬. 诪讛讜 讚转讬诪讗: 讚讬诇诪讗 讻转讘 诇讬讛 转谞讗讬 讜诪讞拽讜, 讜注讚讬 诪住讬专讛 诇讗 讗住讬拽讬 讗讚注转讬讬讛讜, 拽讗 诪砖诪注 诇谉 讚诪讞拽 讚讞专住 诪讬讚注 讬讚讬注. What does that mean? We are dealing with a case where the document was written on an erasure on a 讞专住, and it follows the opinion of Rabbi Elazar, who says that 注讚讬 诪住讬专讛 讻专转讬, that it's the witnesses to the delivery who effect the divorce, and not the witnesses who sign on the document. Now, you might have thought, 诪讛讜 讚转讬诪讗, that if it was written on an erasure, maybe the husband originally wrote a condition, a tenai, into the get, and then he erased that condition before giving it to the woman. And the witnesses to the delivery, the 注讚讬 诪住讬专讛, didn't pay attention, 诇讗 讗住讬拽讬 讗讚注转讬讬讛讜, they didn't realize that there was an erasure and that there was a condition that was erased. And therefore she would think she's divorced unconditionally, when in fact there had been a condition. Ka mashma lan, so Rav Yosef comes to teach us, 讚诪讞拽 讚讞专住 诪讬讚注 讬讚讬注, that an erasure on a 讞专住 is noticeable. It is recognizable, and therefore the 注讚讬 诪住讬专讛 would have noticed it. And if they saw an erasure, they would have questioned it, they would have looked into it. And therefore we have no fear that there was a condition that was erased, and the get is valid.

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