Shema Va'havta

Translation of words

100

וְאָהַבְתָּ אֵת ה' אֱלהֶיךָ בְּכָל לְבָבְךָ וּבְכָל נַפְשְׁךָ וּבְכָל מְאדֶךָ

And you should love Hashem your G-d with all your heart, all your soul, and all of your resources

200

וְשִׁנַּנְתָּם לְבָנֶיךָ

and you should teach them to your children

300

וּכְתַבְתָּם עַל מְזֻזות בֵּיתֶךָ וּבִשְׁעָרֶיךָ:

and you should write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates

400

וּקְשַׁרְתָּם לְאות עַל יָדֶךָ

and you should tie them as a sign on your hand

500

 בְּשִׁבְתְּךָ בְּבֵיתֶךָ וּבְלֶכְתְּךָ בַדֶּרֶךְ וּבְשָׁכְבְּךָ וּבְקוּמֶךָ

when you sit in your house and when you go on the way and when you lie down and when you get up

explanation of words

100

Why do we add the words ל מֶלֶךְ נֶאֱמָןk before shema?

1, First letters spell "AMEN" - testifying that Hashem is one

2. there are 245 words in shema + 3  = 248 mitzvot aseh

200

Which letters are enlarged and why?

Ayin and Daled because we are witness to

Hashem’s unity to all the world.

300

Why do we say "baruch shem..." quietly?

Moshe learned this praise

from the angels. It is "borrowed." On Yom

Kippur when we achieve the

same standard of the angels

we deserve to say it aloud.

400

What are the words

וְדִבַּרְתָּ בָּם בְּשִׁבְתְּךָ בְּבֵיתֶךָ וּבְלֶכְתְּךָ בַדֶּרֶךְ וּבְשָׁכְבְּךָ וּבְקוּמֶךָ: 

telling us?

We should always look for opportunities to talk about Torah and learn Torah

Intro and Background

100

How many times a day do we say shema?

2

200

Give an example of how we see how important Shema has been to the Jewish people

Story of R Breuer after the Holocaust

300

What should be the main focus when we are saying "Shema Yisrael Hashem Elokeinu Hashem Echud"?

Kabbalat Ol Malchut Shamayim - accepting the yoke of Hashem's kingdom

Translation of Rashis

100

: ה' שהוא אלהינו עתה ולא אלהי האומות

, הוא עתיד להיות ה' אחד

Hashem that he is our G-d now and not the G-d of nations

He in the future will be Hashem Echud

200

עשה דבריו מאהבה אינו דומה עושה מאהבה לעושה מיראה.

Someone who fulfills is words from love cannot be compared to someone who does them out of fear

300

אפילו הוא נוטל את נפשך

Even if He takes your soul

400

לא יהיו בעיניך כדיוטגמא ישנה שאין אדם סופנה

 they should not appear to you as an antiquated edict (דְּיוּטַגְמָא) which no one cares about,

500

 לשון חדוד הוא

, שיהיו מחודדים בפיך

, שאם ישאלך אדם דבר לא תהא צריך לגמגם בו

this is an expression of sharpness, 

meaning that these words should be sharply impressed in your mouth, 

so that if a person asks you something, you will not have to hesitate about it

Explanation of Rashis

100

What is the explanation of "Vahavta Et Hashem Elokecha...BCHOL NAFSHECHA"

One has to be willing to serve Hashem, even if it costs his or her life. (i.e. the Jews during the Inquisition)

200

What does Rashi explain

about

the words

אשר אנכי מצוך היום

The words of Torah should not feel outdated, like an old edict; rather we should feel as if we got them TODAY.

300

What does Rashi say about the word ושננתם

This word comes from the Shoresh of "Chadod" to be sharp like a "Shen" - tooth. The Torah should be sharp in your mouth like teeth - so that one does not have to hesitate when asked about it.

400

What does Rashi say about ודברת בם

The MAIN part (Ikar) of what we talk about and focus on should be Torah, and everything else is secondary (Tafel)

500

Where does the word טטפת come from?

טט = 2 in Coptic

פת = 2 in Afriki