Torah tidbits
PARSHA-PIX Parshat Haazinu

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Parsha Pix
We’ll start with the upper-left picture, the classic one with the listening ears for both the sky and the ground, as in HAAZINU HASHAMAYIM... V’TISHMA HAARETZ, let both Heaven and Earth listen to what I (says Moshe) am going to say.
The musical note represents the general name for the majority of Haazinu - namely, SHIRA.
The cloud with rain is one of the analogies to the lessons of Torah.
Like an eagle protecting its nest and its young... that is how protective G-d is of His people.
The pupil of the eye, sometimes referred to as the apple of the eye, refers to our status as G-d’s favored nation (we should only earn it and be deserving of it).
Ask your father and he will answer you, your elders (grandparents?) and they will tell you.
There’s a Megila again. Just like last week. Both this week and last week’s (two weeks ago) sedras mention HESTEIR PANIM, G-d’s withdrawal to the background, so to speak, behind the scenes. The name of ESTHER is a play on HESTER PANIM and the story of Esther is a prime example of G-d’s hidden hand in history.
Skip to the bottom of the ParshaPix. The negation circle on the wine is for the prohibition of Yayin Nesech.
The milk and butter (lower-right) refers to the description of the prosperity that Israel will enjoy, then over-indulge in, and then be the cause of our turning away from HaShem.
Middle picture at the bottom is the logo of YESHURUN Synagogue, a nickname of ISRAEL that appears in Haazinu (and in V’zot HaBracha twice).
That leaves us with the two elements of the PP that relate to the Haftara. The exchange of bulls and lips is for the Hoshea part of the Haftara and the Shofar blowing in Zion is for the Yoel.

TTRIDDLES...

are Torah Tidbits-style riddles on Parshat HaShavua (sometimes on the calendar). They are found in the hard-copy of TT scattered throughout, usually at the bottom of different columns. In the electronic versions of TT, they are found all together at the end of the ParshaPix-TTriddles section. Some TTriddles are also presented for call-in solution on Torah Tidbits Audio (Arutz-7, Thursday night). The best solution set submitted each week (there isn't always a best) wins a double prize a CD from Noam Productions and/or a gift (game, puzzle, book, etc.) from Big Deal

Last issue’s (Rosh HaShana) TTriddles:

[1] Pre-shofar is to p'sukim as what is to words?
[2] Actually there are at least 3000
[3] In the desert, 29:1 might lead a person from Bujumbura to his Independence Day
[4] What's the difference between an aardvark and its primary prey?
[5] It was 2085 at the time
[6] 3 consecutive letters in reverse order say it all!
[7] We read about him this Shabbat, but we don't say the prayer his name reminds us of
[8] Seder RH brings to mind two other months
[9] 30 blasts "sitting" and 30 what standing?
[10] Remove the hydrogen and sulfur, add barium and shake well - it's almost 3 weeks later
[11] What do you feed horses on Rosh Hashana?
[12] Mincha Gedola is 2:00am (not really) When and Why?

And the envelope please...

[1] Sounds like an SAT analogy. The key to this TTriddle is K'RA SATAN. This phrase is spelled out by the first letters of the six p'sukim after MIN HAMEITZAR... that we say responsively with the Shofar-blower before the first set of T'KI'OT. That's p'sukim. In words, the Rashei Teivot (intial letters) of the words of the second line of ANA B'CHO'ACH (from Korbanot and right before L'CHA DODI).
[2] We speak of 100 KOLOT, blasts of the Shofar. If we were to count a T'KI'A as a single sound, SH'VARIM as 3 sounds, and T'RU'A as 9 sounds, then the numbers change. TASHRAT becomes 14 sounds, rather than 4. TASHAT is 5 sounds. TARAT is 11 sounds. Together, a mini-set is made up of 30 sounds. Multiply by ten to cover all hundred KOLOT and we find that they are made up of at least (because T'RU'A can be more, and usually is) 3000 sounds.
[3] In the desert is BAMIDBAR. 29:1 is the first pasuk of the Rosh HaShana maftir, which mentions the date: the first day of the seventh month. We know that as the first of Tishrei, but to a resident of Burundi's capital city, it would mean the first of July, which is Burundi Independence Day.
[4] Rosh HaShana is the birthday of the world. Specifically, it is the anniversary of the 6th day of Creation, when human beings were created. And land mammals, such as the aardvark. The aardvark's main diet element is/are termites, created on day 5 of creation. The difference between the aardvark and its prey, then, is one day.
[5] The ram that Avraham Avinu found tangled by its horns in the branches and offered on the Mizbei'ach in lieu of Yitzchak was created, according to the "Yeish Omrim" in the mishna in Avot, in the instant before the first Shabbat of B'reishit. That would make it 2085 years when it fulfilled its purpose and gave us the Shofar for all generations.
[6] The three consecutive letters in the Alef-Bet in reverse order that spell a very meaningful word for Rosh HaShana are MEM-LAMED-CHAF. The word that says it all - MELECH.
[7] The Shabbat in question was the first day of Rosh HaShana. Besides reading about Avraham, Sara, Yitzchak, Hagar and Yishmael, we also read abour Avimelech (and Pichol). Although we read about Avimelech, the prayer that his name can remind us of, was not said. AVINU MALKEINU, AVI and MELECH.
[8] Among the SIMANIM at the table on Leil Rosh HaShana are FISH and the head of a RAM. Those remind us of PISCES and ARIES, the mazalot of ADAR and NISSAN.
[9] 30 blasts "sitting" refers to the first set of Shofar sounds. Sitting is in quotation marks (inverted commas) because we all stand for the Shofar blowing, but in contrast to the Shofar blowing during the Amida, we call the first set M'YUSHAV. Sitting. While standing refers to the AMIDA, in fact, all four of them in the course of a day of Rosh HaShana. With seven brachot in each Amida of Maariv, Shacharit, and Mincha, and nine in Musaf, we have a total of 30 brachot standing.
[10] Take the letters of the phrase ROSH HASHANA. Take away an H (hydrogen) and an S (sulfur) and you are left with ROHASHANA. Add BA (barium) and you get ROHASHANABA. Mixed these letters up (MM suggests: with NA"ANU'IM) and you get HOSHANA RABA, which is almost three weeks after Rosh HaShana.
[11] Ah, yes, the old cryptic crossword puzzle type of clue. ROSH (the head) of the word HASHANA is the letter HEI. Which is what horses eat - HAY.
[12] One of the ways that we treat the two days of Rosh HaShana is as a YOM ARICHTA, one long day. With sunrise approx. 6:30am on the first day and sunset approx. 6:30pm on the second day, there would be 36 hours between sunrise and sunset on this double-day. Mincha Gedola at 6½ hours would come to 2:00am. That's the when and the why.
This week's honors go to MM/Bklyn for his correct solutions and creative alternates

This week's TTriddles:

[1] G-d, god, (person), object
[2] They have the same number of lines
[3] NeaTzit, __, __, __, __, Haazinu
[4] 25 and a couple of milimeters apart
[5] It is possible to be REQUIRED to eat raw meat. Who, what, when? (not counting a Piku'ach Nefesh kind of situation)
[6] billy & nanny beyond the present
[7] melo student
[8] Same number as RH & Chagim, not withstanding...
[9] 16 and 18 - even, composite, yes, 17 - odd, prime, no
[10] His song, only if Monday or Tuesday


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