4-AV 5784 Year of Months Dec 3

Shabbat Chazon, also known as Shabbat of the Vision, is a day where the prophetic reading focuses on Isaiah's vision of the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash. Hasidic teachings emphasize that all Jewish souls are granted a vision of the Third Holy Temple, motivating them to perform mitzvot. The 15th of Av is recognized as a significant festive occasion, with connections to the full moon and transformative insights. Tu Ba'av symbolizes rebirth after destruction and is a day for new beginnings. It was a day when the daughters of Yerushalayim would go dancing in the vineyards to attract potential grooms. The 15th of Av is considered the greatest festival of the year, second only to Yom Kippur, as it embodies the promise of future redemption. There are no specific observances for this day, but Tachannun is omitted from prayers and Torah study is increased. So, Shabbat Chazon. Shabbat Chazon translates to Shabbat of the Vision. On this Shabbat, the prophetic reading begins with the words Chazon Yishayahu, referring to Isaiah's vision about the destruction of the Beit HaMikdash. Hasidic teachings emphasize that each Jewish soul is granted a vision of the Third Holy Temple. Really, when we say Jewish, it really means any soul of Israel, of Am Yisrael, is granted a vision of the Beit HaMikdash, motivating us to perform mitzvot to help bring this vision to fruition. The 15th day of the Hebrew month of Av is recognized as a significant festive occasion. So, the Mitzvot or the Sages that are more in the Kabbalistic arena that are seeking deeper meanings and uncovering the hidden significance behind the scriptures and the festivals and Shabbat and the practices of the scriptures of the Bible and of Judaism. These Hasidim suggest that its uniqueness is linked to the full moon. We're talking about the 15th of Av, that is. Much like the holidays of Pesach and Sukkot. So, it's really interesting you have these three days. Pesach, Sukkot and... Sorry, that's not in order. Pesach, Hamishah, Asar, Ba'av, the 15th of Av, and Sukkot all fall on full moons on the 15th of the Hebrew month. They uncover a transformative insight inspired by the full moon. So, we find that the 15th of Av is also a significant and auspicious day where unique events continue to occur and build into a theme in certain ways. I'll try to connect them for you. Tu Ba'av, the 15th of Av, symbolizes rebirth after destruction and marks a day for new beginnings. By the way, Tu is just the... In Hebrew, you have a phenomenon that you don't really have in English or any other language that I know of where letters are used to represent numbers. So, they turn them into acronyms or words. So, Tu is Tet, Vav. And the reason we don't use Yud and He for 15 is because that is an abbreviated form of the most sacred name of God. So, instead we use Nine and Six, which is Tet and Vav. So, Tu Ba'av symbolizes rebirth after destruction and marks a day for new beginnings. On this day, the daughters of Yerushalayim would borrow linen garments to avoid embarrassing those who lacked beautiful clothing and go dancing in the vineyards to attract potential grooms. Now, I did say Tu Ba'av, not Tu Bishvat. That is a totally different month. Many months have a significant event or festival or anniversary or demarcation on the 15th as well as the 1st. So, I'll go through it quickly here, but you can find some in Leviticus 23, which are the two main ones. Tishri 15 is the first day of Sukkot and Nisan 15, like I said a moment ago, exactly six months apart, on the exact opposite side of the calendar, is Chag Hamatzah, Day 1. In modern times, basically known as Pesach or Passover. We also have Tu Bishvat, which I mentioned a second ago, the new year for trees in the 11th month, counting from Nisan, and that is Shavuot on the 15th. This is expounded on in the Mishnah. And the 15th of Av, so you really have four months with a significant celebration or observance of Samkhan on the 15th. Now, what is the 15th of Av and why is it important? Okay, so the Talmud regards this day as the greatest festival of the year, second only to Yom Kippur, as its essence embodies the promise of future redemption. So, the 15th of Av, known as Tu B'Av, is a particularly mysterious day, celebrated this year on August 19th, 2024. A look through the Shulchan Aruch, which is the code of Jewish law, reveals no specific observances or customs for this day, apart from the instruction to omit Tachannun, which is the confession of sins, and similar sections from daily prayers as is customary on festive days, and to increase Torah study, as the nights begin to grow longer since the night was created for study. The Talmud recounts that many years ago, the daughters of Yerushalayim would go dance in the vineyards, like we said, on the 15th of Av, attracting those without wives to come and find brides. Men, obviously. The Talmud even, and I mean men, that women were attracting those men without wives to come and find brides, among the women. The Talmud even considers this day the greatest festival of the year, with Yom Kippur coming in, a close second.