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Take Aharon and Elazar his son…strip Aharon of his vestments and dress Elazar his son in them; Aharon shall be gathered in and die there. (20:25,26)

Aharon merited a unique and exalted departure from this world. The ritual of stripping him of his clothes, so that his son Elazar could don them seems a bit enigmatic.  What really is the significance of removing Aharon’s clothes prior to his death?  If the underlying purpose had been  that Aharon could see his son attired in the priestly vestments of the Kohen Gadol, it could have been accomplished  without Aharon being dressed and then having his clothes removed. Apparently,  the actual removing of Aharon’s vestments plays an important role. Horav Zaidel Epstein, Shlita, cites the Talmud Shabbos, 153A, wherein…

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Hashem said to Moshe and Aharon…by the border of Edom saying…Aharon shall be gathered to his people…(20:23,24)

Rashi explains that the Torah juxtaposes Aharon’s death upon  Klal Yisrael’s unfruitful dialogue with Edom because of a distinct relationship between the two.  When Klal Yisrael attempted to join Eisav’s descendants,  they created a breach in their activities which resulted in the loss of Aharon.  Why?  How is Aharon’s death associated with their attempt to establish diplomatic relations with Eisav?  Horav Nissan Alpert,zl, cites the pasuk in Devarim 32:4, “The Rock, His work is perfect, for all His ways are justice.”  Hashem’s rectitude in justice is manifest in that He will not punish a person if it will cause undue…

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Regarding this the poets would come to Cheshbon, let it be built and established as the city of Sichon. (21:27)

In the Talmud Bava Basra78b, Rabbi Yochanan understands this pasuk differently.  He contends that the word “moshlim,” “rulers,” refers to those who rule  over themselves/their yetzer hora, evil inclination, while “cheshbon” means “reckoning.”  Those who govern  their passion —  who are not controlled by their yetzer hora —  say, “Let us make a reckoning of the world: the loss that a mitzvah entails against its reward; the profit from a transgression against the loss it brings.” In order  to progress  spiritually,  one must triumph over the formidable challenge presented by the yetzer hora.  The key to success is making a…

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And the people settled in Kadosh, and Miriam died there…there was no water for the congregation…the people quarreled with Moshe. (20:1,2,3.)

The people followed a pattern that has regrettably become typical: When events did not proceed in their favor, they either complained or protested.  The Alshich Hakadosh notes that the Torah does not mention that they  expressed grief over Miriam’s loss, as it does regarding the deaths of Moshe and Aharon.  Thus, he infers that they did not shed tears when Miriam died.  Because they did not acknowledge her merit as the source of their water supply, they lost it.  Being surrounded by kedushah, holiness, has  little effect if one does not recognize and appreciate it. We must address  Klal Yisrael’s…

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