Completion of Tractate Bava Batra and a Lesson for the 'Daf Yomi Group in our

On Monday night, the 14th of Teves, Parshas Shemos, a lesson was held at the residence of the Gaon and Tzaddik Rabbi Eliezer Berland shlit"a for the Daf Yomi (daily page of Talmud) group of our Beis Medrash (study hall), which is delivered daily by the son-in-law of the Rav, the Chassid Rabbi Natan Rubinstein shlit"a. Before the lesson, Rabbi Natan Rubinstein completed the tractate being studied in the Daf Yomi cycle—Tractate Bava Batra. After the Siyum (completion ceremony), the Rav delivered a lesson to the group—presented below is a summary of the lesson given by the Rav shlit"a, which lasted approximately forty-five minutes.

Everything that happens to a person consists of miracles. In Gaza, there are infinite miracles, yet people are killed there every day; even today, people were killed. Trump said he would eliminate Hamas; meanwhile, Shimon and Levi are associated with "Chamas" (violence), as it says, "weapons of violence (chamas) are their kinship" (Genesis 49:5). This is because they took Dinah back by force, and Yaakov Avinu (our forefather Jacob) cursed their anger. I once had an American passport because we wanted to travel to Uman. They tested us on "Yoreh Yoreh" and "Yadin Yadin" (advanced sections of Jewish Law required for Rabbinic ordination), and we passed the exam, received a Rabbinic certificate, and thus were able to obtain a Green Card. Trump was elected on the yahrtzeit (anniversary of passing) of the Rambam (Maimonides) because he holds like the Rambam—that if a Jewish girl is harmed, the entire city must be held accountable; the Ramban (Nachmanides) disagrees with him. Aner and Eshkol gave advice to Avraham Avinu (our forefather Abraham) regarding the Bris Milah (circumcision). However, they died because they acted out of social pressure. Only Mamre did not die, and he was later reincarnated as Abba Umna, who would receive a greeting of "Shalom" from Heaven every day. A person who is close to the Tzaddik receives Shalom from Heaven every day. This is because when they took all of Abba Umna's furniture and asked if he wanted to buy it back, he said no. When they asked how much it cost, he simply answered them without resentment.

Rebbe Nachman was also among the "captives" (during his journey to Israel); the captain of the ship was a descendant of the Philistine lords [here the Rav begins to recount the entire story of Rebbe Nachman’s journey to the Land of Israel from the book Chayei Moharan; see there for details].

Abba Umna never took anything from anyone. Despite being a physician, he maintained a separate treatment room for men and a separate one for women. He would make a hole in a curtain and insert the needle through it so as not to look at the women. He was the reincarnation of Mamre. Therefore, one can never truly know the status of a gentile who helps a Jew; in the end, he may merit to be reincarnated as such a Jew who receives Shalom from Heaven every day. They asked him, "How are you not upset that we took all your furniture?" and they told him, "Here, we are returning it to you." He replied, "I am not willing to take it back; I have already dedicated it to Tzedakah (charity)." This was the spirit of Mamre, who stood by Abraham "on this very day."

Korach came home without his Peyos (sidelocks) and beard. His wife asked him, "What is this?" He told her, "Moshe (Moses) cut the beards and Peyos of 22,000 men." It is understandable why she was angry with him, as the verse says, "but the foolish woman tears it down with her own hands" (Proverbs 14:1). The person who discovered nuclear fission was a Jewish woman named Lise (Meitner). When the first bomb was dropped on Japan, the war ended on the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Elazar (the son of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai). On the eve of Lag BaOmer, the Hillula (celebration of passing) of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, Hitler committed suicide. The Rebbe did not want to perform the Hadlaka (ceremonial bonfire lighting) until they saw the new moon. People did not understand why, but then at ten o'clock at night, the telegram arrived that Hitler had committed suicide and the war was over. And on the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon, this occurred after the two bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and they were already prepared to drop the third. Then Hirohito, who they claimed was born from the sun, decided to sign the surrender agreement—and this took place specifically on the yahrtzeit of Rabbi Elazar son of Rabbi Shimon.