Bayis - A person's Home - Part 9

00:01 Behem zich in continuation to the earlier installments where we discussed the Rebbe's insights on the woman in the house and what role she plays. We continue now with installment number nine, discussing the role of the woman in adding stability in the world. We'll first begin with a quote from the Talmud in the tractate of Masechta Shabbos, page 118b, on which the Rebbe elaborated. And this is on the quote of Rab Yesi, one of the sages, that said, From my time, I did not refer to my wife as my wife, but referred to my wife as my house. The Rebbe asked the question, what unique quality is expressed in this conduct of referring to his wife as his house? And the Rebbe explains, very brilliant insight and a deep insight, what was the perspective of Rab Yesi when he thought about his wife. The Rebbe says, and this conduct of Rab Yesi expresses itself his derech, his way in serving Hashem, the way he saw the entire creation. Not only did he see that there is a balabos, someone running the whole world, not only did he see that everything that Hashem created was created for the honor of Hashem, but in everything he saw the priority and the goal of every entity in the world. And not only as it is in its own right, but the way he saw it in his world. Therefore, he did not refer to his wife, my wife, because he didn't see only the title wife, but he saw

02:17 my house. Because the ultimate result of marriage is an introduction and a preparation to the goal and priority, which is basically to begin a new family, build a house, Bayis B'Yisrael. And therefore, when he was referring to his wife, he referred to the potential and what will be the gain and what will be the potential, what his wife has. And therefore, he referred to her as his house. Building a Jewish home and a beginning of many more generations to follow. In a sicha from the Rebbe on the 25th of Elul, Tov Shin Lamed Vo, 1976, as the Rebbe would customarily address the neshei u'vnei Yisrael, the women and the daughters, before Rosh Hashanah, the Rebbe spoke a sicha of stability in the world and how it is accomplished in the Jewish home. The Rebbe says the basics of Judaism is gimel dwarim she'aleim ha'eilam eymet, the three pillars on which the world stands. In general, it expresses itself in three general concepts in avedus Hashem and serving Hashem. As the Mishnah, the Talmud tells us in Masechta Oves, Ethics of Our Fathers, chapter 1, Mishnah 2, that it is Torah, avedah, gemilus chasadim, studying Torah and prayer and doing acts of loving kindness. The inyan that a person studies Torah and remembers Torah and Torah becomes the guide on a daily basis in a person's life. The second concept is the inyan of tefillah, prayer. The inyan of davening is that we daven, we request by Hashem everything that we need and we know that

04:52 our Father in Heaven will fulfill the request when we will turn to Him. And then we mispallel in the sense of thanking Hashem for the blessings that He gave us. And the third inyan is gemilus chasadim, acts of loving kindness, which this is the inyan of ve'ahavta l'reicha kameicha, love your friend as yourself. Just as it is when we want something for ourself, in the same sense we also should want and do whatever we can do in our potential that the second person should have the same share. These are the three pillars, the three basic concepts on which the world stands. The whole world holds itself and holds on through Yidden building their world and through every Akeret Sabayis, every woman, the homemaker builds up her own small world, her family life, her house, that it should be permeated with these three concepts. Torah, prayer and acts of loving kindness. And the Rebbe continues and begins concluding that this shows that we have a lot of work that we took upon ourselves. We need to conduct with the house and we need to make sure that the house remains a kosher house in all its aspects. And we need to take part with our full heart in raising the children in the Jewish path that the outside world should not have any influence on them. Im Yirtzeh Hashem, in an upcoming installment, we'll discuss more in detail the three concepts on which the world stands on and which needs to be reflected in every house.

07:16 The Rebbe elaborated on this theme, dedicated many sichas in the late mems, the late 80s, to even applying it that when a person buys a house or builds a house, he should make sure that the three concepts are intact in order that it should have a solid foundation.