It’s important to understand why the parashah begins by saying “This is the law of the Torah…” and discusses exclusively the laws of the Parah Adumah, the “red heifer”.

Additionally, why is the Thora stressing so much about the Mitzva of the Parah Adumah. For the least, it had a strange ritual which we will review and explain.

In fact, the entire ritual was done on the Har Hazeitim, the Olive mount, but it had to be right across from the Beth Hamikdash, on a natural roc platform that was situated right across from the gates of the Beth Hamikdash. The Cohen would then slaughter the red heifer and receive the blood in his hand and spray 7 times toward the Beth Hamikdash. Wouldn’t you think such an important task would have better be done in the Beth Hamikdash, like all important offerings.

In fact, even today it’s all over the Net, the closest animal to the snake [the Nachash] it’s the cow, which shares 25% of the snake’s genome. Though, the red heifer shares on third of that genome. We understand now, why it had to be totally burnt until it became ashes, and the serpent powers were decimated through the fire. With these ashes, The Cohen would purify the person that became soiled with the Tuma, impurity, of the serpent. Therefore, such animal would not befit being brought to the Beth Hamikdash. Though it was burnt on the Olive mount, on which one of the gates of Gehinom is located. And right across below the temple mount there’s one of the gates to Gan Eden.

The Zohar this week explains the purification powers of the fire. Therefore, a person must come back several times in Gilgul (reincarnation) in order to accomplish the level of perfection required of him. This is the long route to perfection as several times he has to go through death and the ultimate judgement, and with so many troubles and Tsaros during his lifetimes.

However, there’s a shorter route which provides also a much better outcome. The Pasuk says, right after the ritual of Parah Adumah, “This is the statute of the Thora, when a person dies in a tent” Chazal explain that it means that a person that reduces his worldly enjoyments in order to spend more time in the tent of Thora, in the Beth Hamidrash, the fire of the Thora purifies him in a way that makes him reach perfection on his first lifetime.

If you thought that only the red heifer had “secrets”, google the double helix pattern of our human DNA. The pattern is 10 – 5 – 6 – 5. Replace the numbers by letters and you’ll get the result. The Name of G.D !

By Rabbi Fridmann * [email protected] * 305.985.3461