Shavua Tov

I had a thought at the end of Shabbos regarding the idea that at the end of the week there's a deadline when we start Shabbos, and whatever we did to prepare we did, and we now have to stop and let Shabbos in. I think it's a similar thing with Shabbos leading into the week, at some point we have to accept that Shabbos has ended and the week has begun, and we take what we can from Shabbos into the week, but at some point we must re-enter a weekday reality. And then like a perpetual yin yang circle, the cycle continues as the week leads to Shabbos and Shabbos leads the week.

I think that this thought fits with the debate between Shamai and Hillel about if heaven or earth was created first, and how Rav Shimon Bar Yochai says that really the two were created together. The Nesivos Shalom explains that Shamai and Hillel knew that the two were created together, but they were arguing about a metaphorical matter. Shamai said that pure heavenly matters like prayer and Torah study rank highest/come first. Hillel said that elevating earthly matters ranks even higher than what's only spiritual. The Nesivos Shalom explains that the answer of Rav Shimon Bar Yochai is that the two have to interact, co-exist, work together, and part of a holy unit

I think that Shabbos and the week have to interact together, each continuously linking into the next. This is why, according to Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch, we say Havdallah. It's more than a farewell to Shabbos, it is the Kiddush introducing the week.

May we all be blessed to feel close to G-d and holy and happy this coming week and beyond.