Shabbat Zachor VeLo Tishkach

Guest Post by Jonathan

The custom to read parshat zachor the shabbos before purim is something we are all accustomed to. There even seems to be a pretty clear connection between amalek who we read about in parshat zachor and haman from the story of purim.
Yet if we examine the content of parshat amalek and contrast to the theme of purim they actually seem to be exact opposites.

One of the main activities which we engage in during the purim seudah is that of drinking. The shulchan aruch even instructs us that we should drink until the point that we don't know the difference between haman and mordechai.

There are two mitzvas in parshat amalek. The mitzvah of zachor et asher asah lecha amalek...(to remember) and at the end of the parsha the torah says Lo Ti'shkach (not to forget).

I couldn't tell you from first hand experience, but from what I have heard if someone drinks to the point that they can't remember the difference between haman and mordechai chances are they won't be able to remember much else. Why then are we supposed to be doing these two seemingly contradictory acts?
Secondly, what's the distinction between remembering and not forgetting? Why does the torah need to command us to do both, after all aren't they one and the same?


There is a story told about the son in law of the Rizner zt''l. He was sitting with one of his friends who was the son in law of another great Rebbe, at which point he turned to him and said; ''do you know why my father in law is such a great Rebbe? Because he always remembers he is a Jew. The son in law of the Rizner then said that the Rizner is such a great Rebbe because he never forgets he is a Jew!

Rav Elon explains the difference between the two Rebbe's in the following manner. He says that to remember is a maylah in its own right, but in order to remember something one has to continuously be reminding one self of whatever it is he needs to remember. On shabbous we say kidish in order to fulfill the mitzvah of zachor (to remember), seemingly without some sort of active reminder we wouldn't be able to fully remember the Sabbath.

Whereas when someone doesn't forget something it's because it's so much a part of his core, it is so essential in who he is that he cant forget it. He doesn't need continuous reminders to make sure he doesn't forget.

When a person is under the influence of alcohol they are exempt from performing mitzvot. This is because they are incapable of standing before a king. Throughout the entire year we have 613 reminders that we are Jews and that we are a part of the Jewish people. Yet throughout the entire year we are incapable of fulfilling the mtzvah of Lo Tishkach. Purim is this unique time where we drink and drink and drink until the point that we can't tell the difference between haman and mordechai. We need to do this so that we can completely loose or sense of reality, but through this we are able to tap into our true inner selves. Our sages teach us that ''nichnas yayin yatzah sod''(when we drink wine the truth comes out).

This was the level of the holy Rizner. He was so connected to hashem and to Am Yisrael that he would never be able to forget that he is a Jew. It means to be on the level of Shivit Lashem Lenegdi Tamid.

We should all be zocheh this purim to getting in touch with the penimiut which rests inside each and everyone of us that has the potential of bringing the mashaich speedily in our times.