"It is a Mitzvah to give tzedakah with kindheartedness and joy, as Scripture writes (Devarim 15:8), "You shall surely open your hand to him." We need to be more conscientious with the Mitzvah of tzedakah than any other Mitzvah because giving tzedakah is a sign of a tzakid, a descendant of Avraham Avinu! As the verse writes regarding Avraham Avinu (Bereisheit 18:19), "For I have loved him, because he will charge his children...to give tzedakah." Quote from"Sefer Chareidim," written by Rabbi Elazar Azcari, of Blessed Memory.
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Grasp the Eternal Tree of Life \ Parashat Acharei - Kedoshim
"You shall observe My decrees and My laws, which man shall carry out -- and live by them, I am HaShem" (Vayikra 18:5).
One of the commentators qualifies the phrase "and live by them," as "and live by them in this world." Meaning, that there is a correlation between Torah observance in this world, and the gift of life in the World to Come.
All the creations, including man and the earthly beings, as well as the Heavenly angels, need the sustenance of HaShem, may He be blessed. In light of this, the Prophet Nechemia wrote, "You alone are HaShem; You made the heavens, the most exalted heavens and their legions, the earth and all that is upon it, the seas and all that is in them, and you give them all life, and the heavenly legion bows down to You" (Nechemia 9:6).
However, the "food" of the angels is fundamentally different than our material provisions. Their sustenance is spiritual, holy, and highly refined.
Just as HaShem gives life to the angels in the spiritual realm, so too, when He releases the soul from the earthly body, it will need sustenance.
During the period when the soul is concealed in the body, HaShem designates food that the earthy body can process. Yet, once the soul ascends to the spiritual realm, it cannot assimilate material food. Moreover, the provisions of material food are bound by time. Even nutritious provisions only sustain a man for a day or two.
The eternal soul requires sustenance that is spiritual and eternal. Therefore, HaShem, in His great compassion, gave us the holy Torah, which is also eternal. Through Torah study and observance, the Light of HaShem illuminates our souls with Divine Splendor. The Torah that we study and observe in this world, is the "Tree of Life" that will sustain us in the Eternal World to Come.
What's more, the Divine Splendor is the supreme pleasure, infinitely higher than all of the delights that exist in this world.
These profound insights shed light on the verse, "You shall observe My decrees and My laws, which man shall carry out -- and live by them, I am HaShem." On the merit of Torah study and observance -- in this world -- HaShem bestows Eternal Life upon us. As the Talmud states, "The righteous sit with their crowns upon their heads, and delight in the splendor of the Shechinah."
(Based on the commentary of Onkles, as explained by the Chofetz Chaim on the Torah)
