PARSHA-PIX Parshat Matot

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Parsha Pix
Upper-right. Father and daughter; husband and wife. The two pairs involved in HAFARAT NEDARIM.
Five crown plus one with a sword under it refers to the five kings and Bil’am who saw their end during the battle against Midyan.
The face-to-face sheep, cows, and donkeys represent the even split of the spoils of war from Midyan, divided between the army and the rest of the people.
The pot of gold refers to the contribution of the officers of the battle in thanks to G-d for the zero casualty rate.
The big rock under the sword is TZUR, the name of one of the late Midyanite kings.
The mathematically incorrect statement, that a quarter is equal to a fifth. A quarter is REVA, one of the five kings (1/5) killed in the Midyanite battle.
David's Citadel, Migdal David, with ears. Those ears be OZNEI YERUSHALAYIM, mentioned towards the end of the haftara.
There are three new elements; they shall remain unexplained, and so they become visual TTriddles.

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. 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 (PiNCHAS) TTriddles:
[1] Shabbat - Sunday connection
[2] Daughters the same, sons 150 more
[3] It contributes to the pronunciation until family suffix is added. For one of his sons, it is exactly the opposite
[4] Zula's Shevet?
[5] Follows the post-motana break
[6] When personal names became family names, theirs changed the least, his changed the most. Who they - who he?
[7] plus a visual TTriddle from the ParshaPix
[8] and another visual TTriddle - also from the PP

And the envelope, please...
[1] This is a serious and sad TTriddle. On Shabbat, we read in the Torah about the mitzva of the T'MIDIM (the twice a day, every day, sacrifices). On Sunday, the 17th of Tammuz, we commemorated (among other tragedies) the cessation of the T'MIDIM.
[2] Shirley bat So-and-so or Reggie ben So-and-so. BAT in Hebrew is BAT in Aramaic (Targum). The same. BEN in Hebrew is BAR in Aramaic. With a REISH (200) instead of a NUN (50), we are talking about an increase in g'matriya of 150 for sons.
[3] The ALEF in REUVEN contributes to the pronunciation, together with its SHURUK, the ALEF accounts for the U or R'U-VEN. When a YUD is added to the end of R'UVEN to make the family name of those who come from Shevet R'uven, the word is pronounced MISHPACHAT HA-RU-VEI-NI. The ALEF is totally silent and the SHURUK is pronounced with the REISH. RU, not R'U. It is as if the ALEF was not there. On the other hand, the ALEF at the end of the name of one of R'UVEIN's sons is totally silent. The ALEF of PALU adds nothing to the pronunciation. Until the YUD is added for MISHPACHAT HA-PA-LU-I. In this case, the ALEF with its CHIRIK does contribute to the pronunciation of the name.
[4] Here's an example of a TTriddle which was not expected to be solved by anyone (still, there was always a possibility), but was there for the educational purpose of its solution, as follows: The OU Israel Center has a program that works (mostly) with teens at risk, or teens on the edge. Known as the Zula, the program attracts many kids that would be hanging out on Ben Yehuda or in Kikar Tzion, and gives them a place to drop in, trained, talented madrichim to lend them an ear and a shoulder, a program to connect to. The Zula is now known as the Pearl & Harold M. Jacobs Jerusalem Outreach Center. The dynamic, off-beat, colorful director of the Zula program is a fellow known as Chetzroni. He actually has a first name too, but just about everyone calls him Chetztoni. There are two original family names of the Bnei Yisrael that is preparing to enter Eretz Yisrael. One Chetzron is a son of R'uvein; the other is a grandson of Yehuda (son of Peretz). Both headed family units Chetzroni.
[5] MM/Bklyn got this one, as well as some others. MOTANA is Targum for MAGEIFA, plague. VAI-HI ACHAREI HAMAGEIFA, and it came to pass after the plague (which came in the wake of the Baal P'or - Zimri fiasco). Before the pasuk continues, we have a rare "Parsha break in the middle of a pasuk". After the post-motana (after the plague) break (in the pasuk) comes the command from G-d to Moshe and Elazar to count the people.
[6] Another TTriddle on the family names of Bnei Yisrael. Aside from the names of the Sh'vatim themselves, there are something like 57 family names, based on children and some grandchildren of the Tribes. Most family names are made by adding a YUD to the name of the progenitor of the family. Sometimes the vowels change a little, sometimes they don't. N'MU'EL, N'MU'ELI. SERED, SARDI. CHEIFER, CHEFRI. Sometimes, the family name stays the same as that of the progenitor. Usually, it is because the name ends in a YUD already. But not always. There are 9 names that stay the same - they changed the least (not at all). KARMI, CHAGI, SHUNI, OZNI, EIRI, AR-EILI (5 from Shimon), YIMNA, YISH-I, GUNI. The one that changed the most was PUVA, whose family name became PUNI. SH'FUFAM also changed more than most, to SHUFAMI.
[7] The broom stands for the ROTEM, a bush or tree under which Eliyahu slept (in the haftara). That tree is also known as a broom.
[8] And then we have Simon and Garfunkle. The original intent of including them in the ParshaPix was a play on the word appearing in the haftara several times - TZEMED, which means a yoke of oxen, but also means a DUO, which Paul and Art definitely were. Couldn't find a photo of the DUO RE'IM, so we went with Simon and Garfunkle. However, H(S)M and MM/Bklyn found a much better solution to the presence of S&G in the ParshaPix. There is a famous phrase in the haftara - KOL D'MAMA DAKA. That's pretty close to the Sound of Silence, the first number one hit of the duo.
[9] There really was no 9th TTriddle, but if there was, it would have been the repeated small i in PiNCHAS, because of the small YUD in PiNCHAS.

This week's TTriddles:
[1] Its being dropped results in a touch of aliteration
[2] 79, 47, 29, 26, 50, 82 are red cowish
[3] gufa cup beans
[4] Pair below empty center
[5] Not for Liza Doolittle, pre-
[6] plus three elements from the ParshaPix

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