יום ד Date: 21 Iyar, 5774 (5/21/14) – RoshHashana#13 {Eliezer}

LINES IN THE SAND

[13a Top] R’ Zeria: All measurements of our sages are exacting and precise [ie: Purifying oneself in a Mikvah which needs exactly (at least) 40 se’ah of pure water].

E’s Lesson#1: We recognize that limits must always be set. There must be Halachic concrete lines set to ensure protection of our laws and ideals. If we hold dear and strong in our beliefs in an upside assimilated culture, we will strongly survive and be the shining light to illuminate the world.

“FORTUITOUSLY, FORTUNATELY, FAVORABLY” FORTY

E’s Lesson#2: Numbers have great importance in Halacha, but also in understanding the workings of Hashem’s universe. 40 represents spiritual purification/cleansing [MEM = 40 and Mayim = water (מ-י-מ is like H-O-H)]. Here are a few more examples indicating the same relevance: 40 se’ah of water in a Mikvah, 40 days/nights of water that FLOODed the earth, The Jews arrived at Har Sinai as a nation of Egyptian slaves, but after 40 days they were transformed into God’s nation, Moshe went up on Har Sinai for 40 days/nights, 40 lashes are the maximum Malkus penalty (Devarim 25:3), King Dovid and King Shlomo (his son) both reigned for 40 years, The Kodesh in the Mikdash was 40 cubits long, Moshe “led them [the Jewish people] FORTY years in the wilderness,” (29:3-4), Hashem gave Ninveh 40 days to do Teshuva [Yonah 3:4], 40 days between the first day of Elul (when we begin to blow the Shofar to prepare for Rosh Hashana) until Yom Kippur (the end of the annual Teshuva period), at age 40 a person transitions from one level of wisdom to the next (Avos 5:26), In Kabbalah, 40 represents the four sides of the world, each side containing the ten Sefirot (esoteric powers).