1. Saying Thank You for the Affliction?
We open the Seder with “Ha Lach Ma Anya – this is the bread of affliction,” and the question many want to know is, why start with that detail? Why are we opening with the discussion of suffering? The Beis HaLevi (writing on Parshas Beshalach) writes to this point. We know that a sick person who recovers from a sickness makes a Seudas Hoda’ah (Meal of Gratitude). The question is, what is the gratitude for? If expression of gratitude was only for the yeshua (salvation), we know that it’s the same Hashem who put us in this predicament to begin with. Well, why did Hashem have to put us through this?
If we only focus on end product, are we truly incorporating the intended message? The reason one should feel gratitude is due to the closeness that one has developed with Hashem because of going through this challenge. It was due to the distress that one felt the need to reach out and bond with the Holy One. In a sense, one is thanking Hashem for the new relationship and the awareness of seeing Him. Therefore, if the focus is wholly on the Yetzias Mitzrayim - going out of Egypt, we’re missing the whole point. We open the Hagaddah by thanking Hashem for going through the affliction that takes place, because that's what brought us to being close to Hashem, which is the purpose of life.
2. Dipping Twice on This Night – The Great Symbolic Significance
We are all yearning the Geulah (Redemption). As the Talmud (Rosh Hashanah 11a) writes: "In the month Nissan we were enslaved, and we will go out. Every year, we realize that sadly, it didn’t happen. Where did we go wrong and how can we make it happen? We are taught that the Destruction of second Beis Hamikdash was due to Sinas Chinam (baseless hatred), and if that’s the case, then it certainly wouldn’t be rebuilt due to the continuation of it. In the Haggadah, we find ourselves performing the act of dipping. The Ben Ish Chai (on the Haggadah) writes: the original reason we were placed into Galus (exile) was due to selling Yosef and dipping his coat in blood (Bereishis 37:31).
In other words: the beginning of exile was due to baseless hatred. On the flip side, the beginning of the Redemption from Egypt is traced in the verse (Shemos 12:22): “You shall take an Agudas Eizov (collection of hyssop) and dip it in the blood that is in the basin.” Rav Matisyahu Solomon, ZT”L, explains that the Agudas Ezov symbolizes all of Israel being together in submission and humility. In short, separation creates exile, and the togetherness brings Geulah. Furthermore, the Rema (684:2) instructs one to eat an egg to remember the Temple before Tisha B’Av. We know that Tisha B’Av falls out on the same day as Pesach. What's the connection between the two?
Rav Solomon says if we fix our relationships on Pesach, that has an effect on Tisha B’Av. It's not for nothing that this worldwide epidemic is happening right before Pesach. We don't know for sure what Hashem has in store and moreover, why it's happening. However, we see how distant our interactions have become due to the virus: no kissing, hugging, shaking hands or even getting within six feet of each other. We are losing all real connections. Maybe, the message is for us to put baseless hatred aside and to yearn for closeness with others. Yearning for reuniting with our brethren is yearning for the Geulah and the coming of Mashiach in the earnest.
3. What’s the Problem with a Little Extra Dessert?
The wise son asks his father: “What’s Pesach?” The answer to the wise son is given: “Don’t eat dessert after Afikomen.” How is that a relevant answer? In a nutshell, perhaps this is the concept of “stretching the taste of Matzah on one’s mouth," in order to teach how to prolong and not interrupt inspiration. The father explains that Seder night is not just about Seder night. It’s about the Emunah/Bitachon we’ll speak of, everything we learn has to remain. The Ramban (on Parshas Bo) writes that this is why so many Mitzvos are reminder of Yetzias Mitrayim.
This event is so crucial that it’s always our focus and all the concepts of Emunah (such as that Hashem is above nature, the wicked will be punished, and Divine Providence). On Seder night, we fill ourselves with Chizuk/inspiration for the entire year to come. We see the concept of Shemirah - preserving something - throughout our Pesach ideas (Shmurah Matzah [see Shemos 23:15], Le’il Shimurim [Shemos 12:42] and "guard the month of Nissan" [Devarim 16:1]). All of this underscores the idea of "capture the moment.”
Similarly, we find that the wicked Haman was annoyed with the Jews (Talmud, Megillah 13a) because they always say "Pesach today, Shabbos today." What happened to other holidays - did the Jews not keep them? The answer is only days we say "Shemirah" is Pesach and Shabbos (Shomer Shabbos). Shabbos inspiration for the coming week, while Pesach gives us the strength for whole year. We Jews live Pesach year-round. Interestingly, the Sefardim say the phrase in the Pesach prayers (from Tehillim 107) that states, "The wise person will guard these." What does that mean? Some people walk away from Pesach with larger bellies or hours of fun and entertainment, while others takeaway tremendous baggage for their minds in terms of wisdom to last them for the year!
4. How the Wise Son Became Wise
Rabbi Avigdor Miller, Z”TL, (in the name of the Malbim) says that it seems as though the wise son doesn’t know basics, as he is asking an elementary question, “What’s Pesach?” At best, he is a Pikeach (smart). Chochma (wisdom) is used to describe someone who has developed a certain level of knowledge. It’s a higher form of praise for one’s efforts. So, how do we know that this child is wise? The answer is that the will to know is the beginning of wisdom. The Alef-Beis is the thirst. The Rabbeinu Yonah (on Avos 4:1) states: “someone who loves Chochma, even though he doesn’t know anything, just by the virtue of the pursuit of asking he already is considered wise.
Since nothing stands in the way of one’s will, he will make it. He is willing to ask anyone to learn more, even a smaller person than him.” When the Torah discusses the difference between Yaakov Avinu and Eisav it says that Eisav knows how to hunt, whereas Yaakov sits in tents. The Targum Yonosan explains that this means Yaakov seeks to learn (perhaps the plural term of “tents” is used, as Yaakov travelled from tent to tent in search or wisdom).
Also, Rav Yeruchem Olshin asks: the contrast should be Eisav knows the field, and Yaakov knows Torah. We see that Yaakov is praised by “sitting,” as there is a dedication in the pursuit of wisdom. He adds that Rav Baruch Ber Leibowitz, ZT”L, used to call his students “Mevakshei Hashem” (searchers of Hashem), to remind them that success comes only from being a searcher, and teaching them to develop their thirst. In the portion of Mishkan (Tabernacle), the great architect of the project, Betzalel, looked for people who were Chachmei Lev (Shemos 31:6). How does the heart have wisdom; isn’t it the mind that is the seat for it?
This means that Hashem is looking for people who are passionate to learn, as “Hashem gave wisdom to the wise.” The first wisdom is one that a person gives himself. After that, Hashem opens the mind and helps a person accomplish greatness. Rav Chaim Kanievsky (quoting the Chayei Olam said over by the Steipler Gaon, ZT”L) relates that a young man once went to learn by the Chasam Sofer, Z”TL, and he was an extremely weak student who forgot everything he learned.
However, because of his perseverance, he became one of the Rabbanim (Rabbis) and Poskim (Halachic deciders) of the city. What’s more, we find that the Torah predicts (see Devarim 4:25-28) that in the future, sadly some Jewish children will go “off the Derech” How do we combat that horrific prediction? Rav Aharon Kotler, ZT”L, explained that the solution to the challenge comes just a verse later (bid. 4:29) with the word, “U’Bikashtem,” - “and you shall search.” In other words: a father who creates that “spirit of searching” will serve as a guarantee that Hashem will protect the family. That is the incredible power of being a searcher!!!
5. How To Get Our Prayers Answered – A Guaranteed Formula!
There are two parts of the Hagaddah. Part one is about the suffering, and part two is about freedom. The turning point from the bitter enslavement to the salvation is the verse that we cried out to Hashem, “Vayiza’aku,” “they cried out from the work.” The Sifsei Hachachim (Re’em) asks, why did they cry out to Hashem? They cried because the King of Mitzrayim had died (Shemos 1:23). Rashi explains that he didn’t die; rather, he got Tza’aas and he decided that the blood of Jewish children would heal him. Yet, it doesn’t say anywhere that those tears were effective. The prayers that worked are of when the Jews reached Hashem from their labor (Min Ha’avodah), because in a simple interpretation, they were working too hard. If it worked, why did the tears of Avodah break through (Shemos 2:23), as opposed to tears about their children?
Rav Yaakov Kamenetzky, Z”TL (in the Emes L’Yaakov) answers: We see in the Targum Yonoson, Pharaoh gave the order to kill the First-born. They knew that the Avodah would come from them, so they wanted to destroy the Jewish Avodah (The Chida adds that the agenda for the Egyptians was to transform the Jews into hedonistic idol worshippers) When Hashem saw that the main bitterness came from the nullification of the Avodah, even more than the predicament of their children, that level of commitment to Hashem triggered the Redemption. The Shach on the Torah (on Shemos) says we know Yehudah made a Beis Medrash first thing when they came to Mitzrayim.
So, because they cried due to losing the Avodah, that prayer reached Hashem’s ears. The Talmud (Berachos 50a): Hashem says “I elevated you out of Mitzrayim, so Daven for what you wish, because I can do it.” This promise is only when your prayers are directed for spiritual matters, for the Avodah that Hashem should give us the mind to learn, the energy to do Mitzvos, Hashem will answer. When we ask even for our material needs, if we can channel them for spiritual ends, Hashem will have them answered positively!
6. The Suffering was the Training Camp for us To Become Great
The Haggadah tells us to take the Marror and say, “(Shemos 1:14) ...they embittered our lives.” The Zohar (27:1) explains that: “the ‘difficult labor’ refers to questions in learning. V’Choimer (the material for bricks) means Kal V’Chomer (fortiori), the bricks are like the clarifying Halachah, work in fields – Beraisas, and then endless labor is the Teiku.” What’s the message? The Shelah Hakodosh (Parshas Lech Lecha), explaining the concept of the purifying furnace (for gold) that we went through, says that due to it we were able to emerge from the slavery.
He says that “the Jews got purified, they were servants, and Hashem took them from slavery that they should be His slaves. Hashem wanted to implant into our nature the concept of Avdus, so it would mold into Avodim Hashem.” The first of the Aseres Hadibros (Commandments) states: “I am Hashem, Your G-d, Who took out of Mitzrayim,” which the Shelah explains “so that you should be my Avodim.” This is what it means not to have our own will, but only our Master’s Will. To be able to bear tragedies and continue our schedule. Once we graduated slavery school, we simply exchanged bosses. Our boss is Hashem, forever! Based on this, we can understand the Zohar.
We find in the Talmud those who say, “I had this Kasha (question) for 22 years,” and we see how they were Moser Nefesh (sacrificed of themselves) to learn. Rav Yechezkel Abramsky’s, Z”TL, Chazon Yechezkel, was written in a concentration camp. He traded his rations for papers (that others used to smoke cigarettes) to write his Torah ideas. The special Sefarim are product of tremendous labor.
7. The Incredible Power of Pesach Time For All of Us
We say a Blessing in the Haggadah that Hashem redeemed us – He is Go’al Yisroel.” We mention the words Geuloseinu (freedom) and Pedus (redemption). What’s the difference? The Beis Halevi says that in Egypt there was a Geulah and a Pidiyon. When one sells a house (Vayikrah 25:31), one can redeem it (Geuloso) the first year. There’s no intrinsic change in the house, just in the owner. That’s one aspect of the Redemption – that we exchanged owners. It doesn’t suggest the change in the object. Then, there is “Pedus Nafsheinu,” as there is a transformation in the object (like in a Pidyon Haben – which changes the state of the child, and Ma’aser Sheini which becomes mundane when the Kedushah is transferred).
We became a new being in essence. In a similar vein, Rav Eliyahu Dessler, Z”TL, explains that the aspect of Geulah was more on the Guf of the Jewish nation, while the Pedus was on the Nefesh (soul). Rav Dessler explains that anything we see in the physical world is a symptom of what’s going on in the spiritual dimension. In the physical world, we see people suffering the lack of freedom, and enslavement to the Tumah (impurity), which was just a manifestation of a big spiritual limitation on their Nefesh. Pharaoh was in truth controlling and limiting our Nefesh. Rav Dessler speaks of Mitzrayim as an idea of Mitzorim (narrow boundaries) – which suffocated the Jews’ spiritual capacity.
The Me’am Loez writes: “A slave was never able to escape Egypt. There were 24 locks. Every entrance had a stone form of an animal. If one had a thought to escape, the real manifestation of the animal would appear and roar.” Then they couldn’t escape. This is just a symptom of how locked the Nefesh was. When Hashem came to the rescue, there wasn’t only a freedom of the body that took place, but the Nefesh (soul) became free and became unlimited. There was a freedom of mind to develop and grow, all the impossible aspirations in the spiritual realm became possible. The physical freedom was simply a manifestation of the spiritual redemption.
The Orach Chaim (on Balak) quotes the verse: “Bila’am said Hashem takes them out.” He says that the tense should be in the past. The Kabbalists say that every Pesach there’s a redemption that frees up each person. It wasn’t a one-time event, but rather a yearly thing. Even though today we are free, but we have limitations. “I don’t have the passion to succeed and I’m stuck in the addictions,” people complain. People who feel they are mired in the dirt must know that there is a redemption that is taking place. The impossible can become the possible on Pesach.
The big question is how to be redeemed. The answer is that we have to do every action we did in Egypt. Just like they did, we must scream out to Hashem and subscribe to the program, and we have to want to get out (as those who didn’t want, weren’t redeemed). May we utilize the incredible opportunity made available to us get out of the deepest rut into the era of the great achievements!
