Take Torah and Mitzvos Seriously - Rabbi Asher Goldenberg (SIYUM MASECHET)

1:15And he describes again a little later that: what does it mean to bring shalom to the world? He says, he continues, and he says, which means to bring shalom. And they also build. Where is the Talmid Chacham building? By the Talmid Chacham learning Torah consistently, constantly, they are building worlds. They are building spirituality. And the result of the spirituality is that it affects us in a physical way as well. And the Nefesh HaChayim describes this in a very, very clear way. The Nefesh HaChayim in Sha'ar Aleph, Perek Gimel, he says, the Nefesh HaChayim in Perek Gimel says,

2:35He fulfills and gives strength, with many strengths, to Olamot Elyonim and HaKedoshim. He gives strength to the worlds, the upper worlds. A person who does the right thing with his mouth, with his words, with his speech, he fulfills and gives an everlasting strength to the Elyonim, HaKedoshim. And then he continues and he says, and he quotes the Gemara that we have here. And he says: Someone who learns Torah on a consistent basis is like someone who builds and gives order to the world, similar to constructing and organizing a structure. The Nefesh HaChaim continues and describes the strength of someone who learns and observes Torah mitzvot. Now, the Nefesh HaChayim is a sefer that talks about a lot of holy things, and it doesn't seem so relevant to us. But in my learning, I discovered other places where the things that are taught, the mitzvot that you do, and the Torah that you learn, have direct relevance to us. And you can see it in a very, very clear way. Every girl in Bais Yaakov knows the famous line, "Kol kevudah bat melech penimah," which highlights the inner honor and dignity of a Jewish daughter.

4:04All the honor of the daughter of the king is inside. That happens to be, it's not just a line from the same place, Yaakov. It's a line from the Gemara Yerushalmi. Okay? And it's not, that's not the whole line, there's more to the line. With some sort of golden clothing or whatever it is. He says that a woman who dresses seriously, in the proper way, Hashem gives them reward. Okay? And it's not, that's not the whole line; there's more to the line. With some sort of golden clothing or whatever it is. He says that a woman who dresses tzniusly, in the proper way, Hashem gives her reward. For Rachel Imeinu, for her reward for tzniut, she had a descendant, Shaul. Shaul is from the tribe of Binyamin. And from Binyamin, Shaul's reward for tzniut was having Esther. You know, Esther is a very, very famous queen of the Jewish people who saved them. She's a very, very special person. And, you know, a woman who dresses with tzniut is going to merit to sit in the highest place in heaven.

5:18And not only that, a woman who dresses modestly means that she's zocheh to have Kohanim, tremendously quality people. That's a very real picture of the quality of tzniut. You do it right, and you have your reward for tzniut. I'll give you another example, one that is very easy to relate to. We know that Shabbos is a very holy day. Hashem created the world in six days, and He ceased creating on Shabbos, the seventh day. The Chofetz Chaim, in his sefer "Shem Olam," describes that Shabbos is like the heart from which life flows. If Shabbos is damaged, then the week is damaged.

6:25That's why every single day of the week, we mention Shabbos. We discuss Shabbos every week because it is such a holy day. And if a person is able to be Mekadesh Shabbos by learning Torah and doing mitzvot, it will affect, he says there, the hidden light. It was something that was created, and it was such a good thing that Hashem wanted to save it for Tzaddikim. A person who keeps Shabbos in the proper way is And the pleasure that a person gets from keeping Shabbos, that was created on day one. The pleasure that a person gets just for doing good deeds was created on day six. So we see another real example of things that we do having a very real effect on what happens in this world and in the next world. The Nefesh HaChaim describes inyonim hakadoshim, and it affects us here in this world as well.

7:26And that's really, I think, a big part of what Masechet Berachot is saying. When you're learning Torah and doing mitzvot, it's not an abstract thing that you just do and get rewarded for. It affects us here and now, every single day, and you'll receive tremendous reward in Olam Haba. And that's what Rebbi Akiva talks about, and Berachot is the Masechet that talks about Emunah. and Gerasa also talks about Emunah, and they're both at the beginning, and you know, hopefully, if we understand that this is really where it's all at, is that you're learning Torah, doing mitzvot, and you're building your connection to Hashem with everything that you do. It affects us here in this world and the next for both positive and negative. And now I'm going to make the Siyum. First, I'm going to say the last part of the Gemara, and then I'm going to make the Siyum. Okay? Now, we're going to navigate through here the whole Gemara. Amar Rabbi Chiya bar Ashi amar Rav. Talmidei Chachamim, ein lahem menucha. Talmidei Chachamim, do not have any rest. Lo ba'olam hazeh v'lo ba'olam haba. It's not a negative thing. They don't have rest because they're doing good things. Shene'emar yeilchu me'chayil el chayil.

8:42They go from multitude to multitude, appearing before Hashem in Tzion. They learn in Yeshiva when they leave here. They learn in Yeshiva up in Yeshiva Shel Ma'alah. They bring peace to the world. They make it a better place. They add spirituality to it. And with the spirituality comes an additional benefit in physicality. It's no small thing. Being a Jew is a very special privilege that you get to affect worlds up there and down here. It's not an opportunity that you want to miss. That includes all your actions, all your thoughts, all your speech, and all your behavior. It all affects everything. Your thoughts, your speech, your action. Don't take it lightly. It's very important. And all your sons will be disciples of Hashem, and abundant will be the peace of your sons. They bring shalom because the children of Tamir and Cham are great people. Not just sons, but builders. To those who love Your Torah, and there will be no obstacle for them. For the sake of my brothers and comrades, I will pronounce peace upon you.

9:42Not just sons, but builders. To those who love Your Torah, and there will be no obstacle for them. For the sake of my brothers and comrades, I will pronounce peace upon you. For the sake of the house of Hashem, our God, I will seek good for you. Hashem will give strength to His nation. Hashem will bless His nation with peace. May Hashem bless you and grant you peace. May Hashem bless you and grant you peace. May Hashem bless you and grant you peace. May Hashem bless you and grant you peace.

10:44Hanina Bar-Papa, Rami Bar-Papa, Nachim Bar-Papa, Achai Bar-Papa, Abin Bar-Papa, Rafram Bar-Papa, Rakhish Bar-Papa, Surkha Bar-Papa, Ada Bar-Papa, Daro Bar-Papa. Chai Rav Noha Adonai, L'hanas, Tiv'e Sorozocha, B'finu uv, B'vefiyos, Am l'cha Bnei Yisrael. V'nih'yeh kulonu ha'nachonim v'ta'ateinu v'ta'ateinu v'ta'ateinu am l'cha Bnei Yisrael. Kulonu yod'ei sh'mecha v'lam'dei yisra'hasecha l'shma. Me'or yiveit echa akim me'yim y. I am praying for you to be happy. I am praying for you to be happy. I am praying for you to be happy. I pray for you to be happy. Ana ameilim v'hem ameilim. Ana ameilim u'mekablim sachar v'hem ameilim v'einam mekablim sachar. Ana ratzim v'hem ratzim. Ana ratzim l'chayei ha'olam habah v'hem ratzim l'v'er shachat. Shlema, v'ata Elokim toridem l'v'er shachat. Anshei damim u'mirma lo yechetzu y'meihem v'ani evtach bach. Yehi ratzon milfanecha Adonai Elohai, k'shem she'atzarta lahem so areikhem.

12:06Do you believe? You believe? Six? Alright. Thank you for listening.