Unanswered Questions
209 questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
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For whom does Mekhilta d'Rashb"i mean the Zohar?
I saw that Malbim on Shir HaShirim (1:2) quotes the Zohar with the name מכלתא דרשב״י. Indeed, the words he quotes are in the Zohar here. On the other hand, there is another work called מכילתא דרשב״י, ...
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Is there a connection between the two times 7 cows, ears and years that Yaakov worked for his wives?
Is there any connection or relationship between the seven fat & seven lean cows, the seven beautiful and seven parched ears of grain that Pharaoh dreamt and Yosef interpreted, and the seven years ...
- 46.6k
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Why are there only 8 Martyrs in the Tisha b'av kinnos
The kinna on Tisha b'av says there are 10 Martyrs, but only 8 are named.
In the Yom Kippur version, however, all 10 are mentioned. Why are 2 missing from Tisha b'av?
- 73.9k
6
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Who were the Nistarim?
It has been documented that there is a group of righteous people called "The Nistarim". I am not referring to the lammed vav tzaddikim of the Gemara (Sanhedrin 97b, Sukkah 45b). Rather, a mystical ...
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What were Chazal referring to when they said there were 7 notes in a musical octave?
Related: What do Chazal mean when they say that when Moshiach comes there will be another note added to the octave making a total of 8 notes?
There is a well known Medrash (anyone help with the ...
CommunityBot
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5
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Recurring numbers by certain yomim tovim?
Does anyone know of any sources that talk about how each yom tov seems to have a special number attached? A number that seems to crop up several times?
For example:
Rosh Hashana - 3
3 sets of 3 shofar ...
- 34.5k
5
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1
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Why are Hebrew cardinal numbers switched to the other gender after the first two?
When counting in Hebrew, the first two cardinal numbers are in the correct gender, but all subsequent numbers seem to be in the opposite gender?
For example:
Feminine Numbers are: אַחַתֹ-שְתַּיִםֹ-...
CommunityBot
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What is the significance of 770 for Chaba"d?
Wikipedia explains the significance of the number 770 for Chaba"d. What isn't clear is if the rebbe made this comment after the purchase of the home or if Agudat Anshei Chaba"d specifically sought (or ...
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Smoking and psychedelics in kabbalah?
Many are familiar with stories of great tzaddikim smoking pipes and the like in some sort of kabbalastic rite. I've even heard some chassidic Rebbes having a so called "Kabbalah pipe". Im curious to ...
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Understanding the Zohar's Anthropomorphism of God
Unlike the Rambam's now-conventional ideas against anthropomorphizing God, there are kabbalistic texts studied today which seem to espouse completely antithetical ideas.
I am familiar with the ...
- 17.9k
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Can "Three D'Rabbanans be 'motzei' "Two D'Rabbanans"
We know that when there is a case of someone that is obligated to perform a mitzvah m'drabbanan (and in fact there are 2 d'rabbanans together) they can't be "motzei" someone in the mitzvah who only ...
- 16.2k
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What is 1,530 a reference to?
In his commentary to Genesis 7:12, R. Isaiah of Trani (the Elder) writes:
וכן במניין ישראל אלף וחמש מאות ושלשים ואי אפשר דבר זה שלא היה אחד מהם יתר או חסר אלא כן דרך המקראות לתפוש מניין שלם ואפי' חסר ...
CommunityBot
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Source for Arizal’s teaching
I’m reading a book by Rabbi Shlomo Arush and he says the following: "According to our master, the Arizal, whoever wants to receive the light of Ein Sof in its entirety has to change its own nature ...
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Echad Mi Yodeya - why does it stop at 13?
The song "Echod Mi Yodeya" traditionally sung at the Pesach Seder goes up to number 13. Why does this song not go higher or lower than 13?
- 140k
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Women having more than one set of earrings?
I've heard women can only have one earring (on each ear). Where is the source for this? I know some women who have earrings going up their ear, which is not that tznius, but is it against halacha?
- 73.9k