ABSTRACT Lekutei Sichos

הוראה ענין פסוק חלק

• The avodah of Kabalas Ol has an advantage over the service of intellectual understanding, the foot completing the head. “From Asher, his bread shall be fat” (oil) “and he shall dip his foot in oil”; Oil refers to Chochmah, and foot the lowest body part utilizes the oil.
• The Previous Rebbe translated all the lofty spiritual truths communicated by the previous Rebbeim into terms that could be understood by those on the lowest spiritual levels.
• Yaacov initiated a new service and was one of the Avos; Yosef did not initiate a new service, yet he brought Yaacov’s potential into this world. The Avos are each connected to a Regel; Yosef is connected to Shemini Atzeres.
• How much more so by good intentions, that one should focus on helping another. Yaacov reproached Shimon & Levi for killing the people of Shechem, but did don’t reproach them for killing Shechem.
• The high level of unification of brother and sister can only cause harm in this world; before Matan Torah, due to their high nature, the brothers were able to receive this level. Two opinions whom the brothers married: One opinion is that they married their “half” sisters is obvious. Rashi explains according to the other opinion.
• By helping a fellow Jew to do Teshuvah, both obtain a portion of additional light that throws off the darkness. These 17 years were considered the best years of Yaacov’s life; he established a house of Torah study, which can lift a person above their worldly limitations.
• It is possible that our spiritually-challenged generation will merit the revelation of the coming Redemption, a revelation not merited by previous, much loftier generations. Yaacov desired to reveal the time of Moshiach's arrival, but was not able to do so; but his longing enabled the Jews to have revealed to them "the end of days" at least in an transforming manner, thus, allowing them to devote themselves to G-d entirely free from the servitude of the Nations and of the evil inclination.
• By the children (us) following Yaacov’s true life, even in Galus, can we fully appreciate that Yaacov continues to live. Only when Yaacov approached the time of his death, having meanwhile descended uncorrupted with his family to Egypt, it was revealed that his entire life, although externally filled with pain and suffering, was true life - "And Yaacov lived".
• A Jew in Galus needs to remember the past but also to draw out the current possibilities. In the service of Yosef, Menasheh (connection to prior) was more important; in the service of Yaacov, Efraim (elevation of current) was more important.