On the surface, the days of S’firas HaOmer seem to have two somewhat contradictory themes: On one hand, it’s a time of mourning, when we limit joyous activities, like making a wedding, listening to music, or buying new clothes. On the other hand, the month of Iyar, which sits in the middle of S’firas HaOmer and contains the majority of its days, is a time of great rachamim (compassion) and an influx of Divine healing. The Hebrew letters that spell the month of Iyar are actually an acronym for the phrase “Ani Hashem Rof’echa” – “I am G-d, your healer” (Sh’mos 15:26).
We no longer daven for rain at this time of year. But, according to Reb Pinchas of Koritz, even the rain that falls between Pesach and Shavuos, particularly in Iyar, is a r’fuah for diseases that have no cure. So, how can we tap into the flow of rachamim in Iyar? How can we use this time to change the dinim in our lives to rachamim?
According to the Zohar, when Hashem wants to show us compassion, He first sends to us an individual who, himself, is in need of compassion. When we have compassion on this person, then Hashem has compassion on us, as it says, “Whoever has compassion on G-d’s creatures, receives compassion from Heaven.”
But this compassion is not just physical in nature. It also involves our thoughts:
The Sages taught: “You shall judge your fellow with righteousness” (Vayikra 19:15). [This means]…you should judge another on the side of merit.
According to the Baal Shem Tov, when you see a person commit a shameful act or serious transgression, you should realize that at that precise moment, you are seeing a person caught in a life-and-death battle with his yeitzer ha’ra (evil inclination), and his yeitzer ha’ra is winning:
Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: A person’s evil inclination overcomes him each day and seeks to kill him, as it is stated in Sukkah 52b: “The wicked watches the righteous and seeks to kill him.” Our Sages teach us that one should have compassion on this person and make every effort to find some justification for his actions – even if he is known to be a rasha (a wicked person).
By not arousing judgment upon someone who is overwhelmed by internal conflict and the struggle with his yeitzer ha’ra, you fulfill the verse “You shall not incline the judgment of your poor in his dispute” (Sh’mos 23:6). In the end, you will arouse favorable heavenly judgments upon him.
Every Jew, no matter how far away he is from Hashem and his true tafkid in the world, still has a cheilek Elokah mi’maal, a Divine spark of k’dushah, within him that no one else in the world possesses. He is, at any given moment, a tzadik in potential. As it states in Yeshayahu 60:21 “Your people are all tzadikim.”
By seeking out the good points in your fellow and judging him favorably – even when he is at his lowest – your compassion for him will elicit a flow of compassion from Above. This influx of Divine compassion can sweeten the harshest decrees and bring with it countless brachah, y’shuos, and, r’fuos – for you and your fellow alike.
Material was previously published on ShiratMiriam.com.
List of People Who Need a r’fuah sh’leimah (a complete recovery)
Please recite Psalms 20, 30, 88, 121, and 130.
Yitzchak ben Mazal Tov
Yaakov Yosef ben Blima
Shmaryahu ben Raizel Shoshanah Miriam
Yisrael ben Raizel Shoshanah Miriam
Avraham David Ben Ruchama
Chaim Lev ben Chayah Sarah
David Ben-Zion ben Chanah
David ben Alizah Leah
Tziporah bas Fruma
Esther Hadassah bas Devorah
Mitali Naomi bas Gilah Farcha
Hinda Brachah bas Sima Golda
Yael Shoshanah bas Chanah Freidel
Sarah bas Bitiyah
Cindy Chanah bas Malkah
Naomi Chavah bas Chanah Rivkah
Heleni Orna bas Chen Chanah
Zoya bas Rachel Raya
Rachel bas Leah
Nancy Elisheva Sarah bas Roza
Israeli Soldiers (Please recite Psalms 25, 26, 46, 83, 142.)
Ben Zion Yitzchak ben Ilanah Malkah
Aharon Simchah ben Meirah Ilanah
David ben Rivkah Zlata
Matnia ben Sarah
Yehudah Chaim ben Mina Chayah
Yehudah ben Baila
Shai ben Baila
Ro’i ben Baila
Asaf ben Tamar
Avitar ben Tamar
Elad ben Tamar
Amit Levy ben Dalit
Menachem ben Aliza Esther
Yehoshua ben Aliza Esther
Binyamin ben Chanah
Yoel Tzvi ben Adinah Shoshanah
Moshe Avraham ben Malkah Rivkah
Yosef Rachamim ben Sarah
Binyamin Moshe ben Sarah
Yosef Elyasaf ben Devorah
Menachem Shlomo ben Miriam Tamara
Omer ben Sigal
Moshe David ben Chavah Leah
Shmuel Yonah ben Leah
Yehoshua Hershel ben Chanah
Alexander Gedalia ben Chayah Basyah
Ezra Yisrael ben Chayah Basyah
Harel ben Chanah
Oz ben Smadar
Omer ben Michal
Reef ben Eti
Aryeh Eitam ben Raya
Amit Yosef ben Devorah
Michel ben Naomi Sarah
Ravid ben Nega
Aviad ben Liat
Ohen ben Inav
Ori ben Leorah
Amit ben Sanhav
Omri ben Ilat
Sivan ben Halan
Ori ben Leora
Moshe Yosef ben Raizel Chayah
Nir Gutman ben Miriam
To add names of individuals who need a r’fuah sh’leimah to next week’s T’hilim column, please email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and complete the Google form.