Rosh Hashanah: The Pleasure of Knowing That Our Lives Are in His Hands
How to Feel on The Day of Judgment
Expecting a Miracle
As we approach the awe-filled days of Rosh Hashanah, it is an opportune time for us to reiterate the yesodos, the important tenets of bitachon—for a number of reasons:
The first reason is because although a Yid must always and constantly live with bitachon and learn and study its tenets, it is all the more important to do so when one finds himself in a time of a tzarah. An צרה עת is a time to clarify the yesodos of bitachon in one’s mind and heart—for at such a time, a person is liable to move away from thoughts of bitachon. And Rosh Hashanah is an eis tzarah in a sense... a time when we are judged before the Heavenly Court. And thus, we must draw upon the yesodos we draw upon when find ourselves in a time of difficulty, so that we remember the rules and don’t come to confusion.
The second reason is that the Tur in Hilchos Rosh Hashanah (Siman 581) clearly teaches us that we must exhibit bitachon over the days of Rosh Hashanah:
One must bathe and take a haircut, in keeping with the following words of the Midrash: ‘Rabbi Simon said... Rabbi Chaninah and Rabbi Yehoshua said; who is like this nation that knows the nature of its G-d; i.e., His customs and laws. For in the practice of the nations of the world, when a person has a court case, he clothes himself in black and wraps himself in black, and leaves his nails uncut, for he knows not how he will emerge from judgment....
But Klal Yisrael is behaves differently. They clothe themselves in white and wrap themselves in white, they trim their nails, and they eat, drink, and are joyful on Rosh Hashanah for they know that HaKadosh Baruch Hu will perform a miracle for them. For this reason, it is the custom to bathe, take a haircut, and prepare many foods for Rosh Hashanah.
If so, we must know how to fulfill the words of the Tur properly. It is true that knowing how to eat a meal isn’t very difficult... but we must study how to have the proper thoughts and attitudes in what we do; namely, we must learn the attitude of bitachon.
Feeling Bitachon
Furthermore, writes Rabbi Shlomo Kluger (Chachmas Shlomo, Siman 583) regarding the simanim that we eat on the night of Rosh Hashanah:
The reason for what is written (Horiyos 12a, Kerisos 6a; see also Shulchan Aruch) that we are to eat good and sweet things... it is not meant as a tefillah for a good and sweet year, but rather as an expression of bitachon and emunah, showing that we believe and trust that it will indeed be good and sweet.
Especially as I wrote in my drashos for Parashas Ki Savo of the year 1852, “On Rosh Hashanah, one should be joyful and say that everything that Hashem does is for the good, and with this, it will indeed be turned over for the good.” And for this reason, one should say on Rosh Hashanah after Shacharis, דעביד מה כל לטובה, זו וגם עביד לטב רחמנא everything that HaKadosh Baruch Hu does is for the good, and this too is for the good. And for this reason, it was...
