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ב"ה
פניני לוי יצחק
חמש מיני מנחות
Five kinds of meal-offerings
In this weeks parshah the Torah teaches the details regarding the five kinds of מנחות[1]. The Gemara[2] quotes a teaching of רבי יצחק about these מנחות: Why is the מנחה distinguished (from other קרבנות) in that five kinds of oil dishes[3] are stated in connection with it? This can be likened to the case of a human king for whom his friend had prepared a feast. As the king knew that his friend was poor, he said to him ‘prepare it for me in five varieties of dishes so that I will derive pleasure from you’. The מנחות, which are the קרבנות brought by the poor, are divided into five different types for Hashem’s נחת רוח.
The name יצחק (the Amora who taught the above parable) is connected to מנחה, as the Gemara[4] teaches us that יצחק אבינו established תפלת מנחה.
Yitzchak’s wife was Rivkah. The גימטריא (numerical value) of their two names (יצחק+רבקה) combined (208+307) equals 515. Five times מנחה (5x103) for the five kinds of קרבנות מנחה also equals 515.
The Middah of יצחק is גבורה, therefore the five kinds of מנחה symbolize the five גבורות (there are five letters in the word גבורה and in the name א-להים which is the name for מדת הגבורה, each symbolizing a different level of גבורה)[5].
The גבורות need to be sweetened, and the five kinds of מנחה are sweetened by מנחת שבת, about which the Zohar[6] says that it is an auspicious time, an עת רצון.
At the time of מנחה on Shabbos three great Tzadikim passed away: Yosef, Moshe and Dovid[7].
The גימטריא of יוסף, משה, דוד (156+345+14) equals 515, the גימטריא of five times מנחה, as through them all five גבורות are sweetened.
מגלה נקראת בי"א בי"ב בי"ג בי"ד בט"ו
(משנה ריש מגילה)
The Megillah is read on the eleventh, on the twelfth, on the thirteenth, on the fourteenth, or on the fifteenth of Adar
המן is an acronym for ה' מגילה נקראת (the Megillah can be read on five (ה') days). המן derives his spiritual nourishment from the ה' גבורות (the five levels of Gevurah). Reading the Megillah on these five days sweetens the ה' גבורות and brings about Haman’s downfall.
It is explained in Kabbalah[8] that the miracle of Purim stems from the Middah of הוד (which is also the reason why the Jews are called יהודים throughout the Megillah).
In the word הוד all the times when the Megillah can be read are hinted to:
The גימטריא of הו(ד) equals 11, alluding to the Megillah being read on the eleventh of Adar. The (הו)דstands for the following four days (from the twelfth through the fifteenth) on which the Megillah can be read.