Ahmedinejad - Learning from Haman

It seems to many that Ahmedinejad is Haman. He certainly is in the right country for the part. He certainly has been threatening to annihilate Israel and is working steadfastly to accomplish that goal - sort of like building the tree 50 Amot high and going to the king early in the morning.

In fact, the Rabbis tell us that we had already broken through the heavens earlier during the night he arrived at the king (first night of Pesah) and subsequently Haman's downfall began. It is interesting that we made Birkat HaChama just 1 day before Haman announced to the world that Iran is now a nuclear nation. Always, the Refuah (medicine) comes before the Makah (disease).

But if we can learn anything from the story of Haman, is that his wife and family were in on the secret - that is, it's fine to attack Jews and be on top, but once you begin to fall, it all ends quickly in the Jews' favor.

Haman still is second in command in his country just as in the days of Shushan. But as he spoke today at the Durban II anti-Israel conference, a mass of people exited during his speech, causing him to pause his rant and surely embarrassing him. This comes on the heels of Israel releasing word that they are ready to strike Iran within several hours or days of getting the "green light". All adding up to at least the beginnings of a downfall.

But once it starts, it goes really fast....hold on!

Getting used to things

Just a quick perusal of the headlines on any given day, a staggering number of headlines about Jews and Israel are seen. We all know the phenomenon, but we're used to it. Getting used to things has a numbing effect on our minds. Only when things quickly depart from what we're used to, we say 'hey, what's going on here?'.

Today's news about Israel, durban, ahmedinejad's speech, etc. are something we're used to. It's something we've all come to expect from the world. The shock that should come at a tiny nation's constant position in the limelight is nothing new for us. A people whose number is so small, we should expect to be in the news once or twice a year at most, winds up being mentioned numerous times a day -- and is commonly the feature article.

I'm not saying anything new, this is all known to us already. What I am discussing is our numbness to it. When things happen slowly, we tend to not realize. As the old saying goes 'a watched pot never boils', because the effects are so slow nobody realizes. As we see the blossoming spring outside, it is exactly the same. We don't notice the tiny activity on the tree until it's a big bright-colored green or pink. Maybe that is why Hashem precisely asks of us to say "Birkat HaIlanot" at this time of year. He wants us to notice the new blossoms, but more precisely to pay attention and ask ourselves, 'when/how did this happen?'.

We were taken out of Egypt in Nisan. I quoted an article by Rabbi Avigdor Miller (whose Yahrtzeit is today) several weeks ago discussing how Hashem purposely took us out during the spring-time to increase our joy and happiness - something that we need to still thank Him for even though we would have gladly come out in the rain.

We pray thrice daily 'Et Tzemach David Avdecha Mehera Tatzmiach" - the seed of David Your servant - please make sprout quickly. Our Rabbis explain that the Geula is exactly that, a sprouting. It's hardly noticed. It slowly creeps out of the ground at a rate that the subtle changes are not realized. Nobody pays attention, since it basically looks the same as yesterday. But before long, it is fully grown and blossoming.

We're living it today. It has begun blossoming. We're just too used to it to realize it. If we take a step back and look at the overall picture, it suddenly becomes clear to us. But to everyone who is not paying attention it will come as a complete shock - where did this come from? That's what I think it means when our Rabbis tell us that Mashiach will only come when we are not paying attention (HeSeach HaDaat). Let's learn from Birkat HaIlanot - and be aware of what's transpiring under the surface.

Durban - Churban

I've been thinking about the "Durban" Conference that is coming up. Several thoughts came up, but they were not so "powerful", so I was reluctant to write about it. Until now... Chasdei Hashem, He sent me an unbelievable insight:

The only difference (as the letters are written) between Durban (דורבן) and Churban (חורבן) is the additional Vav on the Dalet of Durban.

Vav = 6 = Yesod. We are here to fix the Yesod - in the 6th Millennium

Not sure what it means, but it sure is interesting. A conference where they want to make a Churban of us once again....Maybe Hashem is showing us that they can't -- He won't let them. The Vav is missing!

Other thoughts:
רדו בנ = They descended into the Nun (50) - meaning the 50th level of Tumah

דור בנ = The generation is in the Nun (50) - again the 50th level of Tumah

There may also be significance in the fact that רדו was the words used to calculate the years in exile in Egypt = 210 years. I would definitely appreciate any thoughts you guys might have in the comments. Thanks!