by R. Nati at Mystical Paths

These are difficult times, scary times. Economic trouble affecting many of us deeply and personally, major political shifts in the U.S., war in Israel. Fear is normal, wondering what to do, which way to turn, is no surprise. Despair at a situation that we seemingly cannot control.

Yesh mah laa’sot - There is what to do!
Ain Shum Y'ush B'olam Klal - There is no such thing as despair in the world at all.

These are not just catchy phases, these are the very keys to our survival in the days...weeks...months to come. Yishaiyahu, Isaiah the (biblical) prophet tells us that there is what to do and he tells us 'straight up' what to do:

1) Todah V'Hoda'ah! 'Thank Him and praise Him!...(Isaiah 12) You will say in that day, 'I thank You, Hashem,... Behold, kEiL is my salvation'; 'I shall trust and not fear'. 'For Hashem, is my might and my praise'-"Hashem"!- 'and He is a salvation for me'.

And you will say on that day, "Give thanks to Hashem, declare His Name, makes His acts known among the peoples; declare that His Name is exalted, make music for Hashem,...Exult and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Tzion, for the Holy One of Israel is great in your midst!"

By thanking Him 'for everything' from the very midst of our troubles we prove our unwaivering faith in His divine providence. We thereby undo the power of Golus Edom/Yishmoel/Erev Rav by negating our own traits of arrogance, rebellion, and sorcery, thus nullifying heresy, spiritual impurity, man's belief that he and he alone controls all. This is the last and most difficult challenges of this golus (exile). The more we recognize this as a test with all it's impacts, the better we will understand our task "to strengthen ourselves against these physically based false beliefs".

By Hoda'ah! By declaring His Name and making His acts known to the peoples', Edom's arrogance, his heresy, his base nature, his attributing everything to his own power and intellect is nullified. (Sotah 49b) We nullify this when we attribute all that happens in the world to Hashem. Onkelos understands Yishmael's rebellion/sorcery as his base nature to rebel against all order. The Chofetz Chaim said (MiShulchan Gavoah, pg 78) "Even if the cultured nations of the world attempt to make him into a restrained character, they can not succeed because he in essence unrestrainable." Thus he can not restrain is desires. The Torah tells us that, "Rebellion is as the sin of sorcery"! Also this simultaneously nullifies the heresy/sorcery of the Erev Rav, along with all their fantasies and deceptions. They say as did Pharaoh, "I don't recognize Hashem". These are the very self satisfying arrogant rich who run after their own bodily cravings! You see sorcery frees a person from all restraints. He longer sees reality, causing rebellion against Hashem. This leads him to think that he can do whatever he wants. This is also the trait of Yishmoel 'Pere Odam', the unrestrained man. Total secular hedonism on one side, total disregard for others on the other side.

Thus we nullify the roots of all three of the kilpot (negative forces) that presently hold us, the last powers keeping us in golus (exile)! For at the moment we are under three powers at the same time: we are in the overall galut of Edom and inside this we are in the sub-galut of Yishmael, and we are in the final stages which is galut of the Erev Rav. These three represent the root of our base natures, they combined to show us how to do teshuva and are here because of our sins. They are only needed to show us how to return to Hashem! When and if we do teshuva Hashem doesn't need them anymore and the galut will end.

(to be continued, G-d willing, tomorrow)