Let’s talk a little about today’s Parsha, Parshas Emor—the Torah portion of Emor. There’s always a lot to discuss, but I try to find something in the Parsha that is especially relevant to you. We are in the month of Iyar—the second month when counting from Nisan. Some count from the beginning of the year, from Rosh Hashanah, but in the Torah, the first month is Nisan, when the Jewish people left Egypt. So, Iyar is the second month. There’s something unique about Iyar: every day of this month, we perform a mitzvah—the mitzvah of counting the Omer. The counting of the Omer begins on the 16th of Nisan, and continues every day through the month of Iyar. No other month in the year has a mitzvah performed every single day like this.
We started counting the Omer on the 16th of Nisan, which means that from then until the end of the month is not a full month, and we continue counting until the day before Shavuos. That means only a few days of Sivan are included, but the entire month of Iyar is filled with this daily mitzvah. Doing a mitzvah of the Torah every day is very special—it means the Torah tells you to count every single day. The idea of counting in general means that something is important to you. You count your money, you count things that are valuable, or you count your blessings. Counting means you appreciate and value what you have. The Torah tells us to count every day, so this month is filled with meaning.
Speaking of good things, the word Iyar has two special abbreviations. First, it stands for “Ani Hashem Rofecha”—“I am Hashem, your healer.” The Aleph, Yud, Yud, and Resh stand for “Ani Hashem Rofecha,” based on the verse where Hashem says He is your healer. As Rashi explains, this means that if you follow the Torah, you won’t get sick—not only will you be healed, but you won’t even become ill in the first place, according to one interpretation. The other abbreviation is that Iyar stands for Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, and Rachel—the four “legs” of the Merkava—the chariot in the vision of Yechezkel. Rachel represents the matriarchs, and these four represent the foundation of the Jewish people. These are all unique aspects of the month of Iyar, but especially, we are focused on the counting of the Omer.
Right now, in the midst of Iyar, we are counting the Omer. One of the challenges with counting the Omer is that it lasts for seven weeks, and you have to remember to do it every day. If you miss a day, you can no longer say the bracha—the blessing—when you count. You can still count, but without the bracha. In our house growing up, it was always a challenge to see who was still counting with a bracha, who hadn’t forgotten. We’ll talk more about that in a minute.
This year is unique because the counting started on Sunday. The week begins with Sunday, Yom Rishon, and Shabbos is the seventh day, Yom Hashvi’i. The week is a seven-day cycle, which is interesting because a week doesn’t have any physical change associated with it. Days and nights are based on the sun’s cycle, months are based on the moon’s cycle, and years are based on the solar cycle and the seasons. But a week is not tied to any physical phenomenon—it could have been any number of days. The reason we have a seven-day week is because Hashem created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. This is a testimony to Hashem’s creation.
According to Kabbalah, the number seven is significant because of the seven sefirot—the seven spiritual attributes. Each day of the week corresponds to one of these middos—character traits. The number seven also appears in years: every seventh year is a Shemitah year, and after seven cycles of seven years, we have the Yovel—the Jubilee year. These cycles are not arbitrary, but are based on the spiritual structure of the world. The days of the week, and the counting of the Omer, reflect these spiritual realities.
The Torah tells us to count seven weeks—shiva shavuos—seven times seven days, which is how we get to the counting of the Omer. When we count the Omer, we are working on refining ourselves, improving our character, and growing in various aspects. There are many pamphlets and guides that discuss how to apply these ideas to daily life. But the number seven is always central. This year is special because the counting began on Sunday, so the seven weeks go in order, starting with Sunday and ending with Shabbos. Shavuos will be on Sunday, making it a three-day Yom Tov: Shabbos, Sunday, and Monday. This is because Pesach was on Shabbos, so the first day of counting was Sunday, and the next Sunday is Shavuos.
The Talmud states that the Torah says to count seven “whole” weeks—temimos. This is why we count at night, to capture the whole day. When the counting starts on Sunday, we have seven full weeks in the correct order, which the Gemara says is truly temimos—complete. So this year is especially unique in that way.
What are we counting? Counting is about anticipation. Children count down the days to the end of school or to a trip. Here, the counting connects Pesach and Shavuos. Hashem took us out of Egypt for a purpose—to make us a people and to give us the Torah. The Exodus was not just about leaving Egypt, but about preparing to receive the Torah. The Jewish people had to become a nation, to endure and overcome challenges, and to develop into a strong people, ready to receive the Torah. The exile was so difficult that we almost forgot who we were, but the anticipation for Matan Torah—the giving of the Torah—was strong.
According to the Ran, the Jewish people were counting the days until they would receive the Torah. That was their ultimate goal. But the Torah tells us to count all the days—to fix all parts of ourselves, not just one aspect. We need all 49 days, all the different qualities. There is a question about whether the Torah was given on the 51st or 52nd day after leaving Egypt, which affects how we understand the counting. According to the Alter Rebbe in Shulchan Aruch, the Jews left Egypt on Thursday and the Torah was given on Shabbos. The details of the count depend on whether you count from the day after the Exodus or from the 16th of Nisan. There are different opinions in the Talmud, but the main point is that the Jewish people were anticipating and preparing for the giving of the Torah.
Egypt was not only physically difficult, but spiritually corrupt. The Torah says, “Like the actions of the land of Mitzrayim that I am taking you out from, do not do.” Rashi explains that the place the Jews came from was the worst part of Egypt, and the land they were going to—Canaan—was also spiritually degraded. The Jewish mission was to transform these places into holy places for Hashem. But to change the world, you first have to change yourself. When Hashem took the Jews out of Egypt, they weren’t really ready. Inspiration can come quickly but also fade quickly. That’s why we have seven weeks to prepare—to work on ourselves, to get rid of the negative and bring in the positive, so we can truly receive the Torah.
The Torah wants us to be temimim—whole. We learn that sacrifices must be unblemished, and a Kohen with a blemish cannot serve. This teaches us that we must also work on ourselves, not just influence others. There’s a story of someone who told the Rebbe that he inspired others but wasn’t so careful himself. The Rebbe told him that if you don’t practice what you preach, you only inspire others to inspire others, but not to actually do. To be effective, we must also work on ourselves and strive for wholeness.
No one is perfect, but we must work on our own middos—character traits. Improvement takes effort and time. The Torah says the counting must be whole, and this has halachic ramifications. If you forget one day, you can’t make the bracha anymore, because the mitzvah is considered one big mitzvah of 49 days. If you miss a day, you haven’t fulfilled the whole mitzvah. This is similar to eating matzah—if you can’t eat the required amount, you can’t make the bracha. The Baal Halachos Gedolos explains that the mitzvah of Sefiras HaOmer is one mitzvah of 49 days, and missing a day means you can’t make the bracha anymore. Others say each day is an independent mitzvah. The general rule is that when there is a dispute, we do the mitzvah but don’t make the bracha, to avoid saying Hashem’s name in vain.
The bracha is not part of the mitzvah itself—it’s a separate blessing. If you light Shabbos candles without a bracha, you still did the mitzvah. The same is true for Sefiras HaOmer. But since saying Hashem’s name in vain is a serious prohibition, when in doubt, we do the mitzvah without the bracha. So, if you miss a day, you continue counting without a bracha.
The Rebbe asks: If the mitzvah is really one big mitzvah, how can you make a bracha on the first day, since you might forget later and not complete the mitzvah? Normally, you make a bracha when you are sure you can do the mitzvah. Also, why do we make a bracha every day if it’s one mitzvah? With the four cups of wine at the Seder, each cup is its own mitzvah, so each gets a bracha. But with Sefiras HaOmer, if it’s one mitzvah, why so many brachos? The Rebbe suggests that while it is one mitzvah, each day is also an individual mitzvah. There is also discussion about a boy who becomes bar mitzvah during Sefiras HaOmer. Before his bar mitzvah, his counting is only a rabbinic obligation, but after, it is a Torah obligation. Does his earlier counting count for the whole mitzvah? Similarly, what about a convert who joins during the Omer? The Rebbe leans toward saying that he continues counting with a bracha, because each day is both an individual mitzvah and part of the whole.
Another interesting point: Shavuos is the only holiday not tied to a specific day of the month. All other holidays have a set date, but Shavuos is determined by counting 49 days from Pesach. This creates questions for people who cross the international date line during Sefiras HaOmer, as they might gain or lose a day. The Rebbe advised people not to travel across the date line during this period, to avoid confusion about when to celebrate Shavuos.
The message for us is that we have to count and value every minute, every hour, every day. Hashem gives us a limited time in this world, and we must treasure it and try to do as much good as we can. May Hashem bless us with a long, healthy life, filled with blessings, so we can make every day count. The key is not only to count the days, but to know that you count—that you are important and can make a difference in the world. Don’t be down or depressed; make sure that you count, and you will see blessings and success.