Churban HaBayis, Asara Harugei Malchus, & The Holocaust
On the day of Tisha B'Av we mourn not only the Bais HaMikdash but all the tzaros in the history of Klal Yisroel. In Kinos we have a special Kinah about the Asara Harugei Malchus. Why this tragedy in particular? We also spend much time lamenting the tragedy of the Churban of European Jewry. Maybe there is a connection between all three.
The Mishna in the first perek of Keilim says that there are 10 Kedushos with each one being a higher level than the next, starting with Kedushas Eretz Yisroel until the most Kadosh place on earth the Kodesh HaKadashim. Tisha B'Av is the day these Kedushos were violated and destroyed stemming from the aveira of the famous Tisha B'Av night when the Meraglim came back with negative reports about Eretz Yisroel.
Every generation that does not build the Bais HaMikdash it is as if they destroyed it. Since that doesn't seem to move us often Hashem actually brings a Churban equal to that of the Churban Bais HaMikdash. In the generation of the Asara Harugei Malchus there were 10 Gedolim and maybe each one's incredible Kedusha paralleled one of the 10 Kedushos of Eretz Yisroel.
In our generation we don't have the Asara Harugei Malchus because maybe Misas Tzadikim does not phase us like it did Klal Yisroel in the days of Rebbi Akiva. It wouldn't cause a stir and tragedy in our eyes like it did in that generation. But numbers impress us. Losing all our family, friends, and neighbors does make an impact. We know that achdus of Klal Yisroel is a complete unit consisting of 600,000 unique neshamos. A Gadol HaDor who is the embodiment of his generation has a Neshama equal to that of the entire nation together. We find Chazal tell us that Moshe, our Manhig, was equal to all of Klal Yisroel.
The Churban of our generation did not suffice with the sacrifice of our 10 harugei malchus. We needed to witness an churban of mammoth proportions to be moved. We witnessed the churban of 10 times 600,000. The 6 million Kedoshim may have been the destruction of the 10 Kedushos that we received for not bringing the Bais HaMikdash.
May we be zocheh to build the Bais HaMikdash in our day and put all the Churbanos behind us. May we witness no more suffering only the restoration of the 10 Kedushos and the glory of Hashem!
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