reserved for those whose souls have become so attached to their
materialistic body that they have become practically inseparable. The
departure of the נשמה therefore is comparable to a woolly garment
entangled in a thornbush. The clothing can be forced out but not
without tearing and leaving some of itself behind. This also makes the
deceased feel much more pain in the body's deterioration, as the soul
is still somewhat attached. The lightest form of death is מיתת נשיקה,
which resembles a hair being pulled out of a cup of milk. There is no
difficulty whatsoever, since that soul was never really attached to the
body in the first place.
Burial serves as a Kapparah and one should pray for himself in advance
to have this carried out peacefully, 'down to the last shovelful'!
Curiously, the Gemara gives credit to Mar Zutra's example of בית הכיסא
- the restroom - as the best subject for the passuk על זאת יתפלל כל
חסיד לעת מצוא . One explanation is that he was hinting to the very
delicate 'balancing act' of using and/or disposing of the מותרות
- 'extraneous matter' in our lives. Regarding this a chassid definitely
should pray for Hashem's guidance. Luxuries can endanger one's
spirituality greatly, yet so too, the inappropriate overdose of
minimizing one's pleasures can have a boomerang effect upon himself as
well. Another explanation for Mar Zutra is that he meant to say that we
must pray to Hashem for everything in life, not just the aforementioned
very important parts of our lives. Even asking Hashem to ensure we have
an available restoom for when the need arises!
After the Churban, the place Hashem 'likes' the most is שערים מצוינים
בהלכה . R' Tzadok says this refers to the ד' אמות of anyone who is
carefully fulfilling the halachah. The R'Y.F. explains this in
referance to a שער of Tefillah which is also used as a makom Torah.
Only if a person would be humbled by his Rebbi's presence, is it highly
reccomended that he take residence nearby. Otherwise, His Rebbi's
presence would serve as a קיטרוג against the Talmid.
One who eats the fruit of his own labor is greater than a ירא שמים . Of
course the laborer must have Yir'as Shomayim as well, however since his
fear of G-D is challenged more by his involvement in business, he is on
a greater level than one who has not been so challenged. The בני יששכר
offers an interesting pshat. A posek who labors to understand the
intricacies of Halachah, and is therefore capable of giving a reliable
lenient ruling, is much greater than he who is fearful to do so because
of his lack of effort or understanding.
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