Today: Recite Parshas Hamon

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parshas-hamonn[Links below.] Today, Tuesday of Parshas Beshalach, is a special day. Seforim tell us that it is extremely prudent to utilize this day to pray for parnassah, livelihood, for the next 12 months.

It is a widespread and accepted custom to recite “Parshas Hamonn,” the portion in the Torah that describes the way Hashem provided monn (i.e., parnassah from heaven) for the Yidden in the Midbar. This can be found in Sefer Shemos, Perek 16: 4-36. It is customary to read the pesukim twice and the Targum once, and also to recite a short tefillah for sustenance beforehand. (Click here for the tefillah as well as for the ArtScroll English translation of these pesukim. Click here for the parsha, including the Targum Onkelos.)

Reciting this parsha reminds us that just as Hashem sustained the Jews then, so too, He – and He alone – provides for each and every one of us now.

With Hashgacha Pratis, Divine Providence, Hashem looks after our every need down to the most minute and seemingly mundane detail.

The following is a short yet powerful essay by Rav Yissocher Frand, which teaches us an important lesson:

One Who Cheats In His Business Doesn’t Believe in G-d

By: Rav Yissocher Frand

Parshas Mishpatim begins “And these are the statutes that you shall place before them.” There is a very famous Rashi on the words “And these”. Normally “these” would mean “to the exclusion of others”. But Rashi says that the conjunction “and” adds to what came before (vov mosif), in Parshas Yisro.

In Parshas Yisro, G-d gave us the Ten Commandments. Rashi here says that just as the Ten Commandments were given at Sinai, so too the laws that are recorded in Parshas Mishpatim were also given at Sinai.

The truth of the matter is that this Rashi requires understanding. There is another famous Rashi [Vayikra 25:1] on the words “On Mount Sinai” (mentioned in connection with Shmita) which asks, “What is the connection between Shmitah and Mount Sinai?” Rashi there answers that just like the laws of Shmita were given with all their rules and intricate details at Sinai, so too all other commands were given with their rules and intricate details at Sinai.

If that is the case, what is Rashi adding here, by telling us that the laws of Parshas Mishpatim were given at Sinai? We know that — the whole Torah was given at Sinai!

The Ramba”n says a very interesting thing. According to the Ramba”n, Parshas Mishpatim and the Parsha of the Ten Commandments were said together at the initial meeting of G-d with Moshe on Sinai (prior to the 40 day period when Moshe learned the rest of the Torah). Subsequent to that, Moshe Rabbeinu came down, taught the Jewish people what he had learned from G-d and then went back up to Mount Sinai to learn more.

What emerges from this Ramba”n is that the laws of one ox goring another ox, of digging a hole in the public domain, or paying workers on time, all the mundane intricacies of life have the same status and were given at the same time as the Ten Commandments. Therefore, Rashi is stating something significant.

But, is it not peculiar that almost in the same breath as G-d spoke “I am the L-rd your G-d who took you out from Egypt…”, the foundation of Judaism, He also told us about our responsibilities when we borrow our neighbor’s car?

Why does Parshas Mishpatim rate the same session as “I am the L-rd your G-d”?

Rav Moshe Feinstein, zt”l, said that this comes to teach us that if a person does not keep Parshas Mishpatim (monetary laws), he doesn’t believe in “I am the L-rd your G-d” either.

“I am the L-rd your G-d” is the theory — I believe. But the other side of the coin, the practice, is do you cheat in your business? If you cheat in your business, you do not believe in “I am the L-rd your G-d”.

Rav Moshe continues, if a person believes in G-d with more than lip service, then the person believes that G-d provides him with a livelihood. If a person believes that G-d provides the livelihood, then what reason is there to cheat? “A person’s livelihood is fixed for him from Rosh HaShannah” [Beitzah 16a]. If one believes that, there is no need to cheat. Anyone who cheats, does not believe it.

That is why “I am the L-rd your G-d” is in the same session as the law of how to pay one’s workers.

There was recently a meeting in New York of the Association of Jewish Certified Public Accountants; an organization appropriately called Cheshbon. Rav Schwab told this group that a person who is dishonest in business is a Kofer b’Ikkar (He denies G-d). For the same reason that we just mentioned — that if a person really believed, he would not need to cheat. One cheats because he thinks — “this will get me the parnossah”. Cheating indicates that he does not believe that G-d will take care of him.

Then Rav Schwab continued by saying the following. “You will ask that we see people who cheat a tremendous amount and are nonetheless, successful. Now if parnossah comes from G-d, how can that be?”

Rav Schwab explained that such people’s money comes from the ‘Sitra Achra’, from the forces of impurity in the world, not from G-d. No good will ever come out of the money that comes from the powers of impurity (Kochos HaTumah) in the world. He or his children or someone down the line will never see satisfaction (nachas) from that money.

The ‘test’ of earning a livelihood is not only a test of telling the truth, of not stealing, etc. It is a test of ‘I am the L-rd your G-d’. Daily, we are put to the ‘test’ of whether or not we really believe. If we really, really believe, then there is never a reason to be less than 100% honest in our dealings with other people and with ourselves.

{Shmiel Gellman-Matzav.com Newscenter}


12 COMMENTS

  1. It’s funny how this SEGULA from a Rebbe – Reb Menachem Mendel M’Riminov zt”l – has become a yearly ritual religiously kept by Jews all over the world (even by those who are otherwise lax in observing mitzvos). It’s even funnier how everyone forgets the words of the Rambam in the ninth perek of hilchos teshuva that we have a PROMISE from the Torah (and not merely a segula!!) that if we learn his Torah and keep his mitzvos with simcha, then Hashem will remove from us everything that takes away from keeping his Torah like sickness, war, and starvation and instead will bless us with all the good in the world so we can fulfill his Torah like satiation, peace, and MUCH GOLD AND SILVER !!!

    ???”? ?? ????? – ????? ????? ??? ? “???????? ????? ??? ???? ???? ????? ?????? ??? ????? ?????? ???? ????? ???? ?? ?????? ??????? ????? ??????? ???? ???? ?????? ???? ?????? ??? ?????? ??? ?? ?????? ???????? ?? ????? ????? ????? ???? ???? ????? ????? ??? ????”.

  2. People always run to do segulois yet basic principles of the Torah they have a hard time keeping. I am sure the very same people that engage in macholkes, loshon hora, speking during davening and other aveirois , are very particular in fullfiling this segualah. People should have kavannah during bareich elenu and be a good Jew, thats the biggest segulah for everything

  3. This minhag was invented less than 50 years ago.
    Rabbi Genut in his sefer Dvar Yom B’yomo, writes that he asked zkeinim from Riminov
    none were familiar with this Minhag.

  4. Of course the number one thing and segulah is limud Hatorah, what does that have to do with today’s segulah??? If people think that the segulah of today is more important than Limud Hatorah, then they are misinformed; that does not mean that reciting parshas hamon today does not help because limud hatorah does !There are hundreds of minhagei Yisroel that are supposed to benefit our parnassah. are we to throw away Minhag Yisroel Torah hu? In fact, learning Torah is the best segulah for health, wealth, children and the sort. Are you going to throw away practices performed by Gedolei Yisroel throughout the generations that were supposed to benefit a person in these areas? Efsher Likayem Es Shay’Hem. Your antagonistic rhetoric has no place in Yiddishkeit whatsoever

  5. Does anybody know where the source of this is (besides email)? I have heard in a public shiur by a well known Rosy Yeshiva that he serached and also searched in the CD program with all the seforim and there is no mention of this segulah other than it is a segulah to say everyday. He could not find anywhere that it is a segulah for b’davkah today.

  6. Why did you put the shem on your website. Is this a reform site that makes a Zilzul of Hashems name that they post it every where?

  7. Segulos are like vitamins. You only take them after a proper diet. Anyone who thinks that saying this parsha and they will get richer while at the same time not learning or doing mitzvos is fooling themselves. Rav Dessler says that whenever you emphasize one thing you will automatically demphasize another. All of these segolos are simple distractions from what our main goals should be.

  8. Repliying to Eli’s comment and Reply #1 and “No segula for me””s comments:
    What we need is Ahavat Chinam not Sinat Chinam or quick judgement. Anything small or big that we as Jews do can lead to us getting closer to Hashem. What matters its not what the rest is doing wwrong, but they do good. Moreover, what YOU do as an example of light into your nation and the others.
    So lets make positive statements and lets pray that Hashem should bless all those who recognize that He is who privides and May Hashem bless all of us, Am Yisrael!, amen.

  9. Very nice piece on a beautiful segulah. Black & white thinking doesn’t work. Everyone lives in the gray, which is where growth and progress happens. Why would I use this forum to say anything negative about reading shnayim mikra on a Tuesday? The people posting critically on here about focusing on keeping all the Torah and Mitzvot are missing the point. Maybe they should be learning right now? How did you find time to post on a website –> shouldn’t you be in Yeshiva? But seriously, It is a beautiful thing to do and will help bring people closer to G-D.

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