Overview
of the Torah Reading
To be
read on Shabbat Ha'azinu, Shabbat Shuva,
8 Tishrei 5787/Sept. 19, 2026
Torah: Deut. 32:1-52
Haftorah: Hosea 14:2-10, Michah 7:18-20
Ha'azinu
is the 10th Reading out of 11 in Deuteronomy and it
contains 2326 letters, in 614 words, in 52 verses
Ha'azinu (Deuteronomy 32:1-52) is the song that Moshe,
along with Yehoshua Ben Nun, sang to the People of Israel before he
passed on. He warned the people to pay close attention to the words
of this song, so that they would be able to live long in the land. G-d
then told Moshe to climb the mountain and look at the land which the
Jewish people were about to enter but Moshe was not, as he broke faith
with G-d's word in the desert, with the Waters of Dispute. It was on
Mt. Nevo, that Moshe was to pass on.
An
Essay from
Rabbi Shaul Yosef Leiter, Director of Ascent
(for a free weekly email subscription, click
here)
In
Keter Shem Tov, an important collection of the Ba'al Shem Tov's teachings,
on the verse in parshat Behar, "If your brother becomes poor and
his hand waivers, you shall strengthen him." [Vayikra/Leviticus
25:35], the Ba'al Shem Tov explains, just as we fulfill the commandments,
so also G-d fulfills the commandments [see Midrash Tehillim
on Psalm 18:31 and Talmud Sotah 14a]. The Torah commands us to
help a person who is poor and weak. So also G-d must help us when we
are poor and weak. And on Yom Kippur more than any other day! Even if
we were sinners, have we not found that G-d judges a person where he
is, rather than where he was or where he will be? [See the reading from
the first day of Rosh HaShanah about Yishmael when he was dying, and
the angel said, "Because the L-rd heard the cry of the child, from
where he was" [Bereishit/Genesis 21:17 with Rashi - from a letter
of Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneersohn, the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe]. Particularly
now that I am in a place of "returning to You" [doing teshuva]
and confessing. This is what Iyov [Job] the prophet told us to say,
"If I have committed iniquity, I will not add [to it from now on]."
[Iyov/Job 34:32].
In a letter
(Vol 10, p. 109), the Lubavitcher Rebbe shared
what he believed was the ultimate purpose of mankind and in particular
of the Jewish people. Our mission as humans is to consistently achieve
the dominance of form over matter. Is a person a machine or an animal
with needs? Or are we an intellect and soul whose body is our chariot
to transform the world into a positive reality? The dominance of form
over matter means that we use our essential reality, our "form",
our intellect and soul to transform and uplift the physical reality,
starting with our body and including all physical matter into a vessel
for the Divine.
Examples:
The dominance of form over matter is clearly expressed in terms of food.
What is the purpose of eating? For pleasure or to gain strength to transform
the world for the better? Money: To buy toys and gadgets and "have
a good time"? Or to fund acts of goodness and kindness and activities
which will reveal G-d in this world? Why do we strive to succeed? For
our sense of self or pride? Or to ensure that our good deeds will truly
make a difference?
The Rebbe
explained that we can learn about this from a verse in this week's Torah
portion, Ha'azinu. "He will make you ride on the high places of
the earth" [Devarim /Deuteronomy 35:16].
Rashi teaches that this is referring to the Land of Israel which Judaism
believes is the highest place on the planet [Bereishit Rabah 16:4, "Israel
is higher than all the other lands"]. Since physical and spiritual,
form and matter, are totally intertwined and connected, this means that
Israel is not just the highest place physically, but also the highest
place spiritually. Every Jew is naturally connected to our Land. Being
connected to the highest place spiritually obligates us to use all of
our capabilities for form to dominate matter.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Reb Mendel
Futerfas was a dedicated chasid who spent eight harsh years in a Siberian
prison camp for the “crime” of disseminating Judaism in Russia.
When he left Russia, he immediately travelled to New York to meet the
Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, whom he had never
seen.
After
leaving his private audience (echidut) with the Rebbe, he entered the
yeshiva and saw some young men studying a chasidic discourse [ma'amar].
"What
are you studying?" he asked, and in the process, he saw the words
Cheshbon HaNefesh [soul accounting/spiritual reckoning] in the discourse.
"Well,
do you know how to do a Cheshbon Nefesh?" he asked.
The
young men did not answer. They waited for him to speak.
Reb
Mendel continued, "Well, the accounting that is done on Yom Kippur,
you know how to do it. You think about all the transgressions you committed
throughout the year—what you did in [the Hebrew months of] Cheshvan,
in Kislev, and so on—and you repent. Isn't that right?!"
The young men nodded in agreement. "Right, that's how you do a
Cheshbon Nefesh."
Then
Reb Mendel surprised them and said disparagingly, "Phe phe..."
"On
the holiest day of the year, to sit and recall all those transgressions
again is disgusting!"
"I
will tell you how to do a Cheshbon Nefesh.
On
Rosh Hashanah, during the Ten Days of Repentance, and on Yom Kippur,
you think about all the kindnesses that G-d did for us throughout the
year.
What
He gave us in Tishrei, in Cheshvan, in Kislev...
And
how, despite how we behaved, He continues to bestow all good upon us.
And
finally, at Ne'ilah [the concluding prayer service of Yom Kippur], when
the heart is melted and full of gratitude to G-d, may He be blessed,
for what He does for us, you stop and think, 'And what did I do for
Him? What did I return to Him in exchange for all the good?'
And
you repent and decide to improve. That's how you do a Cheshbon Nefesh,"
Reb Mendel told them.
[A famous
story – retold many times]
Gmar Chatima
Tova – a meaningful and comfortable fast and Shabbat Shalom, Shaul.
(for
a free weekly email subscription, click
here)
For last year's essay by Rabbi Leiter on this week's Reading, see the
archive.
FROM
THE SAGES OF KABBALAH ON KabbalaOnline.org
Specifically, for
an overview of the recommended articles in the columns:
Holy Zohar, Holy Ari, Mystic Classics, Chasidic Masters, Contemporary
Kabbalists, and more,
click to Ha'azinu
one sample:
Mystical Classics
.jpg)
The Extraordinary
Beauty of Jacob
By the Ohr HaChaim
G-d did
not deliver all the nations into the hands of a single "deputy,"
i.e. a minister appointed by G-d to deal with them.
To
continue, click
here.
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