Purim -The forgery of Amalek in tzuras ha’adam

02 Purim -The forgery of Amalek in tzuras ha’adam

As we discussed in the previous Vaad, Amalek presents a forgery of Torah in proclaiming that a person can achieve their purpose and actualize their full potential without bris milah (circumcision), meaning without avoda! 

Uniqueness of Bris Mila

Dovid HaMelech went to the bathhouse and, upon seeing his bris milah, proclaimed that while all other mitzvos shape a person’s ruchniyus, bris milah transforms the person himself—his very body—into a different tzura (form). Amalek, however, presents a counterfeit version of what it means to be an Adam, denying the necessity of bris milah  and the avoda it represents.

The nature of a forgery

When we are inspired by someone else, we take that inspiration and allow it to grow within us, integrating it into our own unique development. A forgery, however, lacks any personal input—it is entirely devoid of individuality. The Gemara illustrates this concept in its discussion of forged handwriting, explaining that one should sign on a swaying rope bridge. The instability of the bridge disrupts natural hand movement, shutting down personal handwriting tendencies, making the forgery more convincing.

The danger of a forgery lies in its perfection—the better it is, the more deceptive and harmful it becomes. This is precisely why the mitzvah concerning Amalek is total eradication, as Amalek represents the ultimate counterfeit of true tzuras ha’Adam.

Difference between forgery and chochma (wisdom)

While we recognize the danger of Amalek’s philosophy, Chazal still teach us that chochma can exist among the nations. How do we reconcile these two perspectives? The key difference is that true chochma invites debate and critical discussion. It allows for back-and-forth exchange and the testing of ideas. A forgery, on the other hand, demands blind acceptance, discouraging scrutiny and deeper exploration.

In our world, the equivalent of this danger is “the shitta”— a rigid, unquestioned system that resists being challenged. The Baalei Mussar opposed this approach, recognizing that it often mirrors a forgery. A strong shitta does not allow for debate or refinement; it remains untested, dogmatic, and superficial—possessing only external form but lacking true substance.

Purim

Purim comes to guide and educate us in recognizing our original, authentic, and simple Jewish identity while eradicating the forgery of Amalek. This is symbolized through the costumes of Purim. Even though Yaakov is the man of emes (truth) he does not cling to a rigid shitta, he can even put on the mask of the enemy by disguising his arms to appear as Esav! The whole time, Yaakov, at his essence, remains Yaakov.

Mikra Megillah

The chag (holiday) begins with Mikra Megillah at night, expressing the simple, original Jew. After all, there is no sophistication in what is truly “original”—it is a pure simplicity rooted in avoda. This stands in contrast to Amalek, who claims to be “simple” but without avoda. The avoda of entering Purim is reading a story in relatively easy hebrew—not something complex or deeply analytical, but a simple narrative. This reflects the authentic essence of a Jew, which Amalek seeks to forge and distort. Our task is to embrace and bring out this genuine simplicity.

Matanos L’evyonim and Mishloach Manos

The two mitzvos of mishloach manos and matanos l’evyonim are designed to bring us into the Jewish community in the simplest way. We are not focused on our neighbor’s Torah, parnassa (livelihood), mitzvos, or ruchniyus—just on a basic, human connection: he eats from our plate. We are feeding our fellow Jew. Matanos l’evyonim is the same idea—it is not about pitying the poor but about being a friend to those in need. We are not teaching them Torah or giving them a livelihood; we are simply providing them with money to ensure they are taken care of for the day.

The seuda

The seuda is the climax of Purim, bringing us full circle to the very beginning of our journey in this world—when we were just eight days old and received our bris. It reaffirms that our physical body itself is one of kedusha. This is why we can be drunk on Purim—it expresses this deep truth.

To sum it up the original and simple Jew emerges from:

Step 1: the genuine simplicity of a Jew (mikra megillah)

Step 2: connecting to Klal Yisroel simply (mishloach manos and matanos l’evyonim)

Step 3: in our own personal reality (seuda)

The “simple” Torah

Here we reveal a tremendous yesod in avodas Hashem. That it is through our middos that we connect to the Torah. If we have good middos, then the Torah – which is the Will of Hashem to us in this world – occurs as natural and pleasant. If we have bad middos, then the Torah occurs as foreign and complicated.

Here is an example of this yesod from the Rosh in Maseches Peah [1]:

The Rosh in Maseches Peah says that Hashem has a greater desire for bein adam lechaveiro mitzvos than those that are termed bein adam lemakom because by bein adam lechaveiro there are two wills, that of Hashem, and that of our friend. In other words, he is equating the ratzon of Hashem and the ratzon of our friend! We would never think to put them in the same category! We would say “Hashem’s Will is a mitzvah, but our neighbor’s will is just something we should be sensitive to” but the Rosh is clearly saying that in fact our neighbor’s will obligates us just like Hashem’s!

Why does this Rosh seem so original to us? Why do we assume it must be an outlier opinion rather than a straightforward Torah truth?

The reason is that our world is defiled by egoism and selfishness. We have absorbed the mistaken idea that religiosity means isolating ourselves in the Beis Medrash, staring at the heavens in prayer, rather than engaging with others. We fail to recognize that simple acts of kindness—greeting someone with a warm “good morning” or asking how they are—are also religious obligations.

Because of this, the Rosh in Maseches Peah feels like an incredible chiddush when, in reality, it is the natural order of Torah. When we live in a world that is disconnected from Torah values, Torah seems complicated and foreign. But when we align our lives with kedusha, then the Torah occurs as natural and simple.

(See Nefesh HaChaim Shar Beis Perek 15 page 360 in Rav Leuchter’s commentary, where he explains that when one sins one’s nefesh, ruach, and neshama leave him. Then, through the process of teshuva they return to him in the following order; first the nefesh comes in, then the ruach, and finally the neshama.)

Now we can fully understand what it means through the process of teshuva to put our ruchniyus into our gashmius. When I put my nefesh into my body it means “I see the world differently” – when I put my ruach into my body it means that “when my world is clean and in harmony with my middos, then the Torah is also simple.” First my world is clean – I relate properly to it. Then the ruach comes into the nefesh (not the body). Meaning our understanding of Torah is a simple one.

On Purim, the regular order of the process of teshuva as explained by the Nefesh HaChaim is reversed. We start with the simple but purely cerebral act of Krias HaMegillah, and by the end of the day, we reach the seuda, with the simple and completely tangible guf. Purim is such a powerful day that its message is revealed in the simplest way—the true essence of Klal Yisroel and the Jew emerges naturally. This contrasts with the avoda of the entire year, where we must constantly refine our middos to come closer to these simple yet profound experiences.

We stand against the forgery of Amalek through the structured progression of Purim’s mitzvos. Now it makes sense to us why the gedolim would always have the seuda at the end of Purim. 

We will expand on this mehalech in the next vaad in the series entitled “03 Purim – The unique avoda of Purim”

[1] Editor’s Note: This Rosh in Maseches Peah was discussed at length during “East Coast Trip – Winter 5785” in the framework of educating our children properly, the shiur is entitled “Building connection in the family in order to educate.”