Welcome to Shabbat M, where we explore the wonders of the Torah and uncover its hidden secrets. Today, we're going to delve into one of my favorite Parashas, Paruma, which contains a profound message that has stuck with me for years. As I sit in this quiet car, trying not to make it a habit, I find myself lost in thought as we break down the code of Hashem's words.

There's a particular passage in the Torah that has always fascinated me, and it's located within Paruma. It says, "Hashem says let us break it down, let us crack the code on this amazing PUK." But what is this PUK, and why should we be interested in cracking its code? To answer this question, I want to share a story that R. Wallerstein Zal told many years ago.

The story goes like this: there was once a king who had three daughters, and he loved them more than anything in the world. When his oldest daughter got married, the king tearfully went over to her and said, "My dear daughter, you are everything to me. Name anything from my kingdom that you want, and I will give it to you. I love you so much." The oldest daughter thought for a moment before responding, "I've always loved your crown, Daddy. It would be the best way for me to remember you as I leave this place and start my own journey." Without hesitation, the king removed the crown from his head and handed it to his oldest daughter. He said, "Your wish is my command."

This scene repeats itself with the second daughter, who asks for a portrait of her father in the hallway. Again, without question, the king removes the portrait from the wall and hands it to his second daughter. But when it's time for the third and final daughter to get married, something different happens. The king's heart is broken as he watches his last child leave his kingdom. He goes to her and says, "My crown is gone, my portrait is gone... what can I give you as you embark on this new journey?" The youngest daughter looks at him with tears in her eyes and says, "I want the blueprints of your castle. That's all I want."

The king is perplexed by this request, wondering why his child would want something as mundane as a blueprint. But he doesn't question it. Instead, he sets out to find the dusty blueprints to the palace and brings them down for her. As he hands them over to her, he tearfully says, "Of everything you could have, why do you want the blueprints?" The youngest daughter responds with a tender smile, "I don't want a piece of you, I want you to live with me. I want you to be with me, and I want to build a home exactly like yours, so that we can dwell together and be comfortable in each other's presence."

This story is more than just a simple anecdote about a king and his daughters. It holds within it a profound message about the nature of Hashem's relationship with us. The Torah teaches us that Hashem wants to have a dwelling place among us, a home where we can be comfortable in His presence. He doesn't want us to be separate from Him, but rather, for us to be with Him in spirit and in deed.

As we reflect on this message, we realize that building a "mikdash" – a dwelling place for Hashem – is not just about constructing a physical structure. It's about creating an atmosphere of spirituality and connection with the Divine. It's about making space in our lives for Hashem to dwell among us, to be present with us, and to guide us on our journey.

So, how can we build this "mikdash" in our own lives? How can we create a space for Hashem to dwell among us? The answer lies in the simplest yet most profound acts of devotion. It's about setting aside time each day to pray, to reflect, and to connect with the Divine. It's about creating an environment in our homes that honors Hashem's presence. And it's about making room in our hearts for love, compassion, and kindness.

As we conclude our journey through Paruma today, I encourage you to take a moment to reflect on your own "mikdash". What is the physical space where you spend most of your time? Is it a sanctuary or a distraction? Are there areas in your life where Hashem is absent, waiting to be invited in?

Let us strive to build a dwelling place for Hashem in our hearts and in our lives. Let us create an atmosphere of spirituality and connection with the Divine. And let us make space for love, compassion, and kindness to flourish in our world.

Shabbat Shalom!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enwelcome back to another episode of Shabbat M from my car trying not to make this a habit it just happens to be a very quiet place and it's good for time management on my way to an event this week's par is paruma there's a PK within this par that has always been one of my favorite lines in the Torah Hashem says to us let's let's break it down let's crack the code on this amazing PUK via a story that R wallerstein zal told many many years ago there was once a king who had three daughters and he loved them more than anything in the world when his oldest daughter got married the king tearfully went over to his daughter and said my daughter you are everything to me name anything from my kingdom that you want and I will give it to you I love you so much I want you to have whatever it is you want for my kingdom and the oldest daughter says well Daddy I always loved your crown and I would love to have your crown so that I can always remember you as I leave this place and I start my own journey and the king without question removes the crown from his head and he hands it to his oldest daughter and he says your wish is my command and then his second daughter gets married and he goes over to her and he says I would do anything in the world for you I will give you whatever it is you want name anything from my kingdom that would make you happy and it's yours and the daughter thinks about it for a minute and she says you know I've always loved the portrait of you in the hallway and it would be the best way for me to remember you as I leave your home and start my own journey and the king without question removes the portrait from his wall and hands it to his daughter his last daughter gets married and he goes over to her and his heart is broken he's so sad to have his last daughter leave his kingdom and he goes over to her says my crown is gone my portrait is gone what can I give you as you embark on this new journey and just said I want the blueprints to your castle that's all I want and he's so confused he's perplexed why but he doesn't question he starts searching and he finds the dusty blueprints to the palace and he brings it down and he hands it to her and he tearfully hands at to her and said of everything you could have why do you want the blueprints and she said because I don't want a piece of you I want you to live with me I want you to be with me and I want to build a home exactly like yours so that you will dwell with me and you'll be comfortable being with me and that is the concept of hasem says build for me a mikdash a dwelling place and he doesn't say and I will DW dwell in it he says and I will dwell with you Hashem wants us to have him in our homes in our lives a relationship with Hashem he wants for us to be vessels through which Hashem can spend all of his time with us so let this be a reminder to all of us to build for ourselves a mikdash a holy place where we never forget Hashem and we keep Hashem with us always and make it a comfortable place for hasem to come and want to dwell within us shabbat shalomwelcome back to another episode of Shabbat M from my car trying not to make this a habit it just happens to be a very quiet place and it's good for time management on my way to an event this week's par is paruma there's a PK within this par that has always been one of my favorite lines in the Torah Hashem says to us let's let's break it down let's crack the code on this amazing PUK via a story that R wallerstein zal told many many years ago there was once a king who had three daughters and he loved them more than anything in the world when his oldest daughter got married the king tearfully went over to his daughter and said my daughter you are everything to me name anything from my kingdom that you want and I will give it to you I love you so much I want you to have whatever it is you want for my kingdom and the oldest daughter says well Daddy I always loved your crown and I would love to have your crown so that I can always remember you as I leave this place and I start my own journey and the king without question removes the crown from his head and he hands it to his oldest daughter and he says your wish is my command and then his second daughter gets married and he goes over to her and he says I would do anything in the world for you I will give you whatever it is you want name anything from my kingdom that would make you happy and it's yours and the daughter thinks about it for a minute and she says you know I've always loved the portrait of you in the hallway and it would be the best way for me to remember you as I leave your home and start my own journey and the king without question removes the portrait from his wall and hands it to his daughter his last daughter gets married and he goes over to her and his heart is broken he's so sad to have his last daughter leave his kingdom and he goes over to her says my crown is gone my portrait is gone what can I give you as you embark on this new journey and just said I want the blueprints to your castle that's all I want and he's so confused he's perplexed why but he doesn't question he starts searching and he finds the dusty blueprints to the palace and he brings it down and he hands it to her and he tearfully hands at to her and said of everything you could have why do you want the blueprints and she said because I don't want a piece of you I want you to live with me I want you to be with me and I want to build a home exactly like yours so that you will dwell with me and you'll be comfortable being with me and that is the concept of hasem says build for me a mikdash a dwelling place and he doesn't say and I will DW dwell in it he says and I will dwell with you Hashem wants us to have him in our homes in our lives a relationship with Hashem he wants for us to be vessels through which Hashem can spend all of his time with us so let this be a reminder to all of us to build for ourselves a mikdash a holy place where we never forget Hashem and we keep Hashem with us always and make it a comfortable place for hasem to come and want to dwell within us shabbat shalom\n"