Torah tidbits
PARSHA-PIX Parshat Vayeira


Click on image for enlargement

Parsha Pix
On the right is the thermometer with kipa, glasses, and stethoscope, wishing someone who is sick a REFU’A SH’LEIMA. This is one of the lessons we learn from G-d, Who visited the ailing Avraham.
Upper-right are the UGOT that Sarah LUSHIed - if they look like matza, that’s because the angels’ visit was on Pesach.
Upper-left is one of the three BEN BAKAR that Avraham ran to, in order to prepare the most sumptuous dish for the visitors, tongue in mustard sauce.
In the middle of the ParshaPix is Braille writing, reminding us of what the angels did to the people of S’dom who demanded of Lot that he send his visitors out to them (blinded them). The Braille message is probably something the blinded S’domites graffitied on Lot's door (when they finally found it). It says, "NO GUESTS".
The skull is the symbol of acid-rain, a good description of that which destroyed S'dom and the other cities.
Wine? Lot was given wine to make him drunk...
The alarm clock set for very early in the morning, is to remind us of the many times the Torah tells us that Avraham got up early, to enthusiastically do G-d’s bidding. (Avimelech too.)
The baby in the cradle represents the birth of Yitzchak.
Drawing of a metal shield is used by many mohalim in their set up for Mila.
Father and son walk hand in hand, VAYEILCHU SH'NEIHEM YACHDAV. Of course, there is an Akeida graphic (from Davka) and a Shofar that is connected to the story of the Akeida.
Dorothy and Co., the chef, the bottle of liquor, the sea cow are for some of Yitzchak's cousins, mentioned at the end of the sedra.
The olive oil is from the haftara.

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 (Lech Lecha) TTriddles:

[1] Source of AM-bracha and Shabbat Day Z'mira
[2] He's the THOU of the well-known threesome
[3] Confused hotel is the sedra's penultimate and count
[4] Targum proves which way he was facing
[5] Except for Avraham and Yosef, no one said it
[6] Last week's twins were identical; this week's aren't
[7] Kalamazoo's starting team divided up for a game that became known as:

And the envelope, please...

[1] The 14th bracha of BIRCHOT HASHACHAR (the AM brachot) is ...HaNotein LaYa'eif Ko'ach. Similarly, in the Shabbat Z'mira YOM SHABBATON, we find BARUCH HANOTEIN LAYA'EIF KO'ACH. The source of both is Yeshayahu 40:29, from Lech Lecha's haftara - NOTEIN LAYA'EIF KO'ACH...
[2] The well-known threesome is, "A loaf of bread, a jug of wine, and thou". The answer then is the THOU is MALKI-TZEDEK, king of SHALEM, who brought out bread and wine following the conclusion of the war of the 4 kings and the 5 kings.
[3] Hotel is MALON. Confused is the cryptic crossword clue keyword for mix up the letters. The letters of MALON rearrange to spell NIMOLU, which is the next-to-the-last word in Lech Lecha (that's what penultimate means), and it is numerically equal to 126, the count of the p'sukim in Lech Lecha. In those older Chumashimthat give a count of the letters at the end of each sedra, the count of p'sukim is followed by a word with the same g'matriya. For Lech Lecha, the word is NIMOLU.
[4] When Avra(ha)m and Lot part ways, Avraham tells Lot that he can choose direction. If you go left, I'll go right and if you go right, I'll go left. Targum Onkeles renders left and right as north and south, attesting to the fact that Avra(ha)m was facing east when he gave Lot his choice.
[5] BIL'ADAI, a hard word to translate. Avraham said that not him, but only those that helped him in battle should receive compensation from the king of Sedom. Yosef said, not him, but G-d has the meanings of dreams. The words "no one" in the TTriddle were an extra clue to the solution. There are two more BILADAIs in Tanach, but only these in Torah.
[6] In the opening pasuk of Parshat No'ach, we find the twin-words NO'ACH NO'ACH. They are identical twins. On the other hand, LECH and LECHA are also twins, being spelled the same way, but they are not identical, vowel-wise.
[7] The Kalamazoo Kings are a professional independent baseball league team. Starting teams consist of 9 players, so the game they play among themselves can be called: The battle of the four kings against the five.

This week's TTriddles:

[1] TTriddle connection between Yitzchak and his tonsils
[2] Indicates that the Greek capital is very hot
[3] For sure, the free-loan society of 1948 is like the nation
[4] Avraham, Yaakov, Yehuda - to whom?
[5] Avimelech's grand gesture
[6] Avimelech's household,Yosef's brothers, and who?
[7] He offered it; he asked for it


[The Parshat Vayeira Homepage]
[The TORAH tidbits Homepage] [How to use TORAH tidbits]
[About The OU/NCSY Israel Center] [About TORAH tidbits]
 [www.ou.org]
 
The Torah Tidbit Archive