Our Eyes Should be Soft Too

הלכות ראש חודש - ה:ו

Our Sages z"l said, "And Leah's eyes were soft" that is, that she cried out to Hashem and begged that He keep her from falling and becoming bound with Esav.  They say that this hints to Knesses Yisroel.  Every Jew must cry profusely to Hashem like Leah, so as not to fall and become bound with the Evil One, Heaven forbid, which refers to Esav.

Drawing Down the Holiness of Eretz Yisrael

קל"ה - הלכות בית כנסת ה:א

(Painting of the Galil by Lael Har)

The essence of a shul's holiness is drawn down from the holiness of Eretz Yisrael, for in Eretz Yisrael is the essence of the ascent of prayer, as it is written, "and pray to You toward their land." (Melachim I 8:48)  And the essence of the holiness of Eretz Yisrael is through, "He has declared to His people the power of His works." (Tehillim 111:6)  This corresponds to what Razal relates, "He took it [Eretz Yisrael] from them and gave it to us," (Rashi on Bereishis), for through this we have to power to sanctify every place in the word with the holiness of Eretz Yisrael.  As such, the holiness of a shul draws upon the concept of conquering Eretz Yisrael, for through, "He declared to his people the power of His works," they were able to conquer the land.  And therefore through building shuls and batei midrash for the sake of Heaven, the way one must act, walk, and return to our holy land, and to conquer it from the hand of the Sitra-Achra is drawn down to us even now.

The Importance of Netilas Yadayim

קל"ה - הלכות נטילת ידים לסעודה ג:ב

Neglecting the mitzvah of washing one's hands before a meal is a concept of the sin of eating from the Tree of Knowledge, which encompasses all the prohibitions and sins in the Torah.  From this neglect comes the grasp of the Sitra Achra/Contamination of the Snake.  It is because of this neglect that Chazal said a person deserves death, a concept of, "Because on the day that you will eat from it you will surely die."  But, through washing one's hands before a meal a person draws upon himself purity, as in, "the river comes forth from Eden," which is a concept of the Sea of Wisdom.  Then, a person's eating corresponds to 'manna that lightens within him the radiance of Hashem's Will.'

How To Eat Chametz in Joy and Holiness

קל"ה, הלכות פסח, ב:ב

The redemption from Egypt is a concept of joy and freedom, as in, "in joy you will go out."  And, therefore we must eat matzah, for matzah is a concept of joy.  On the other hand, chametz and sourdough (שאור) correspond to severely prohibited grief and sighing.

But all of this is only on Pesach, for at this time the Sitra-Achra has a limited grasp and control.  Therefore, Klal Yisrael needed to leave Egypt in haste, because the Sitra-Achra was subdued for only a short amount of time.  So, one must free himself from the grief and sighing that correspond to chametz and sourdough, so they do not interfere and confuse our joy.  Therefore, one must eat only matzah and no chametz [on Pesach].

The holy Zohar explains that the matzah is a remedy, [matzah is a concept of joy] because joy is a remedy for all ailments.  And, through using this remedy (matzah) a person is able to eat chametz [which is normally related to grief and sighing] after Pesach, and it will be in holiness and in joy.

But, on Shavuos when Klal Yisrael stood at Mt. Sinai and was able to control the inclination, the Sitra-Achra was completely subdued.  And, therefore on Shavuos one has to bring two loaves of bread, which are chametz, as an offering.  This is the essence of complete holy joy - to drive away one's grief and sighing and turn it into joy.

So, in the future when joy will abound, there will only be the Offering of Thanks (Todah), which includes chametz.  This is because it is the essence of complete joy.  It will only be in the future, because only then will the Sitra-Achra be completely eradicated.  And, therefore this time will be known as, "you will not go out in haste."