To Be Said On Gimmel Nissan, The Day Of Zevulun’s Nosi - Segula For Parnassah
יהי רצון מלפניך ה’ אלוקי ואלוקי אבותי שיהיו מזונותי ופרנסתי ופרנסת אנשי ביתי עם מזונות אנשי כל עמך בית ישראל, מוכתרים ומאומתים ומצדיקים בידיך. ואל תצריכני לידי מתנת בשר ודם ולא לידי הלואתם, אלא לידך המלאה והרחבה. עיני כל אליך ישברו, ואתה נותן להם את אכלם בעתו. פותח את ידך ומשביע לכל חי רצון. יהיו לרצון אמרי פי והגיון לבי לפניך, ה’ צורי וגואלי.
אַ תָּ ה הוּא ה’ הָ אֱ קִּ ים הַ זָּ ן וּמְ פַ רְ נֵ ס וּמְ כַ לְ כֵּ ל מִ קַ רְ נֵ י רְ אֵ מִ ים ﬠַ ד בֵּ יצֵ י כִ נִּ ים הַ טְ רִ יפֵ נִ י לֶ חֶ ם חֻ קִּ י וְ הַ מְ צֵ א לִ י וּלְ כָ ל בְּ נֵ י בֵ יתִ י מְ זוֹנוֹתַ י קוֹדֶ ם שֶׁ אֶ צְ טָ רֵ לָ הֶ ם בְּ נַ חַ ת וְ לֹא בְ צַ ﬠַ ר בְּ הֶ תֵּ ר וְ לֹא בְ אִ וּסּר בְּ כָ בוֹד וְ לֹא בְּ בִ זָּ יוֹן לְ חַ יִּ ים וּלְ שָׁ לוֹם מִ שֶּׁ פַ ע בְּ רָ כָ ה וְ הַ צְ לָ חָ ה מִ שֶּׁ פַ ע בְּ רֵ כָ ה ﬠֶ לְ יוֹנָ ה כְּ דֵ י שֶׁ אוּכַ ל לַ ﬠֲוֹשׂ ת רְ צוֹנֶ
וְ לַ ﬠֲ סוֹקבּ ְ תוֹרָ תֶ וּלְ קַ יֵּ ם מִ צְ וֹתֶ י וְ אַ ל תַּ צְ רִ יכֵ נִ י לִ ידֵ י מַ תְּ נַ ת בָּשׂ ָ ר וָ דָ ם :וִ יקֻ יַּ ם בִּ י מִ קְ רָ א שֶׁכּ ָ תוּבוֹפּ תֵ חַ אֶ ת יָ דֶ וּמַ שְׂבּ ִ יﬠַ לְ כָ ל חַ י רָ צוֹן
It is known that the day of the 3rd of Nisan is mesugol for parnossa. The source for this is Sefer Chaim V’Sholom (Vayeitzei), from the Munkatcher Rav (the Minchas Elozor) who says he heard from Rav Yechezkel Shraga of Shiniva (Divrei Yechezkel) that the day of the 3rd of Nisan, when the Nosi of Zevulun is read, is mesugol for parnossa and ashirus. This sounds like any one of the other numerous segulos for parnossa. That’s why I think it’s a disservice to tell anyone this without also telling him what it says before that on the very same page.
He starts off the page by explaining that ולזבולן אמר שמח זבולן בצאתך means that through Zevulun’s הוצאות (hinted by בצאתך) for Torah (his giving money to Yissochor so he can learn Torah) the Torah is his reward, but Zevulun will also be happy (שמח) in this world immediately since he needs to make more money in order to support Talmidei Chachomim. This seems to be the lesson we should take out of it. By supporting people who learn Torah – everyone according to his means – we can be worthy of getting parnossa. This should get those people who speak disparagingly of Talmidei Chachomim who are supported to stop speaking thus, as really the Talmidei Chachomim are doing the giver a favor.
שמח זבולן is equal to באמת, hinting at dealing honestly. שמח זבולן is also meramez to simcha being mesugol for parnossa. Rav Nosson Breslover once told someone with financial troubles that simcha is mesugol for parnossa. The man replied that it was difficult to be happy in his present situation. Rav Nosson responded, “But what won’t a person do for parnossa?” (The same story is told over with the Yismach Yisroel of Alexander.) Rav Mendel Riminover says a remez to simcha being mesugol for parnossa is the last letters of פותח את ידך and והיית אך שמח are the same and they are a Name connected to parnossa. The first letters of שמח זבולן are equal to the first letters of והיית אך שמח. This is also meramez in the Mishna: איזה הוא עשיר השמח בחלקו. How does one become an עשיר? השמח בחלקו – by being happy with one’s lot.
זבולן equals המן reminding us of .פרשת המן Lea said regarding זבולן that Hashem had given her a זבד טוב. Rashi says that this means as Onkelos translates it, חלק טב – “a good portion”. The gematria of זבד is equal to הצלחה. The word זבולן in א״ת ב״ש is עשפכט, equal to 479 – the gematria of בזעת, as in בזעת אפיך תאכל לחם. The last letters of שמח זבולן בצאתך equal לחם. This pasuk teaches us that although there are people who seem to amass great wealth without breaking a sweat, the pasuk is teaching that if one thinks בזעת אפיך, meaning one’s own efforts are what makes – as the pasuk says: ואמרת בלבבך כחי ועצם ידי עשה לי את החיל הזה, then no matter how much one may have, it will never be enough (as Chazal teach that if one has a hundred he wants two hundred). Then despite all you may have, תאכל לחם, it seems like you only have bread. The gematria of בזעת with the kollel is equal to the last letters of ואמרת בלבבך כחי ועצם ידי. The posuk then says: עד שובך אל האדמה כי ממנה לקחת כי עפר אתה ואל עפר תשוב – which can be read as: until he does teshuva and realizes that he is just dust and powerless, as Avrohom Avinu said: ואנכי עפר ואפר – “I am but dust and ashes”. When someone comes to the realization that every single great idea and every single penny comes only from Hashem, (as is hidden in the pesukim, אפיך is equal to אלף, which alludes to Hashem who is One and the אלופו של עולם and the first letters of כחי ועצם equal twenty-six, Hashem’s Name) then even if he only has bread, he feels like he has everything, as the Mishna says: איזה הוא עשיר השמח בחלקו. He is then taken out of the curse of בזעת אפיך תאכל לחם. Hashem is saying אפיך, meaning “(by the sweat of) your face”. When you take the ךoff to make it אפי which would be referring to Hashem, then you have the first letters of פותח את ידך – we ask Hashem to “open His hand” since we can’t do anything on our own. We can then realize there is only One Who controls everything, as בזעת אפיך תאכל לחם with the kollel is equal to .שמע ישראל ד׳ אלקינו ד׳ אחד
Rashi on the words, בזעת אפיך, says: לאחר שתטריח בו הרבה – “after you toil a lot”. But many toil and barely put food on the table! לאחר שתטריח – “after you toil” can mean two things: 1) After you are done with thinking that your own toil makes parnossa. 2) Reading it with a comma לאחר שתטריח, בו הרבה. After toiling hard by working on your emuna, then בו הרבה. This doesn’t mean quantity, rather quality. There will be lots of shefa; the money will come from the side of kedusha, as opposed to one who thinks he gets money on his own, and has the money coming from the “other side”. A remez to this is that בו הרבה is the same gematria as .טהור
The Munkatcher Rav shows how the name of זבולן is equal to ninety-five, which will be equal to the Names of Hashem – י־ק־י־ק אדנ’ - when Moshiach comes. After he speaks about the segula for parnossa, he says that we should understand that Nisan is a time of Geula. As Rav Gamliel Rabinovitz constantly says, we need parnossa to live but we should remember that Hashem has no house, no wife (we are in golus), most of his children don’t know how to say Shema. He says that Hashem doesn’t even have bread, so to speak, as we say in korbonos:את קרבני לחמי . He says that besides constantly saying, “Give me, give me,” we should ask Hashem to rebuild His house.
We should all remember that the berocha of parnossa on this day comes from supporting Talmidei Chachomim. May we all be zoche to have parnossa berevach and do good things with it, and may we be zoche to realize what we are missing without Hashem’s House, so that we can daven properly for its rebuilding.
