In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains (based on a Sicha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe zt"l) why Makkas Bechoros specifically happens at midnight and why Klal Yisrael needed a special protection during this plague. Hashem chooses Klal Yisrael from the essence of His being. Through the Mitzvah of Bris Mila and Korban Pesach we reve…

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explains (based on a Torah from the Lubavitcher Rebbe zt"l) why Rashi reminds us that Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov are the Avos. Moshe Rabbeinu learns that Hashem is trying to communicate His essence to Klal Yisrael and that can only happen as Klal Yisrael discovers their own essence. While the mi…

In this shmooze, delivered at Mevaseret Mishmar, Rav Burg explains why Moshe Rabbeinu spoke to to Pharoah despite the fact that Pharaoh could not understand him and Ahron HaKohen would be interpreting. In order to overcome our ego it needs to be introduced to Hashem. Only afterwards can we employ our faculty of reason.…

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explains (based on a Sicha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe zt"l) why the Torah tells us that Moshe Rabbeinu was afraid despite the fact that it doesn't seem to advance the narrative of the story in any way. The way we perceive the world becomes the reality we live in. When we think good, when we have B…

In this shmooze, delivered at Mevaseret Mishmar, Rav Burg explains the inner connection between the death of Yosef HaTzaddik and the Bracha of Moshe Rabbeinu to Yosef thay references Hashem as dwelling in the Sneh. We enter into Golus when we stop taking responsibility for each other and we leave Golus when we feel the pain of our fellow Jew.…

In this shmooze, delivered in Mevaseret at the Shnayim Mikra Melava Malka Siyum, Rav Burg explains the inner meaning of why we say the pesukim not just once but twice, why there is a special emphasis on completing Shnayim Mikra with the Tzibbur and why it lengthens our lives.

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explains why Asarah B'Teves would obligate us to fast even on Shabbos, the connection between Asarah B'Teves and Yosef HaTzaddik and the inner nature of a siege. On Asarah B'Teves Hashem revisits the decision of whether the churban will continue and how we relate to every other Jew decides our fat…

In this shiur, delivered in Sharfmans, Rav Burg explains (based on a Torah from Rav Yaakov Kaminetsky zt"l) why Shimon and Levi were assigned to become the Rabbeim and the Sofrim of Klal Yisrael. True, they were criticized by Yaakov Avinu for being overly zealous in killing the inhabitants of Shechem, but they were motivated by the pain they felt f…

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains the meaning of the fact that Parshas Vayechi is setumah (a closed parsha). The eyes and heart of Klal Yisrael became closed when Yaakov Avinu passed away beginning the exile in Mitzrayim. Knowing that we are deeply rooted allows us to find our emotional footing and reclaim our vision even …

In this shiur, delivered at the Almuni Mevaseret Mishmar, Rav Burg explains why it was specifically Yehuda who was sent to establish a Yeshiva in Goshen. While Levi was the Rosh Yeshiva, only Yehuda who had a great enough sense of self to be able to admit to his wrongdoings with Tamar, could establish a Yeshiva in Goshen. Only Yehuda could create a…

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explains how the purpose of going into Golus was to bridge the gap between the Avos and Klal Yisrael in order to pass on the pristine emunah that they had achieved.

In this shiur, delivered at the Michlala Chanukah "Culture" Yom Iyun, Rav Burg explains the inner meaning of the word Hod. There is surface beauty that reflects the inner beauty of a person and then there is a beauty that is so awesome that it cannot be captured by the vessel that attempts to contain it. The miracle of Chanukah is that the inner be…

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explores the difference between the dreams of Pharoah and the dreams of Yaakov Avinu. Pharaoh dreams that he is standing above the Nile River, Yaakov dreams that Hashem is standing above him. When we dream that we are above God we go back to sleep. When we dream that God is standing above us we are…

In this shiur, delivered at the Mevaseret Yud Tes Kislev Fabrengen, Rav Burg explains how Hashem writes down all of our Mitzvos and has incredible nachas from us. The Baal Shem Tov came down into this world to remind us that each and every Yid is the beloved child of Hashem and how He can't stop talking about even our smallest Mitzvos.…

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explores the symmetry of the story of Yosef HaTzaddik. When Yosef truly examines his life and does the real work of being in self, not only does his own life change but the lives of his brothers change as well.

In this shiur, delivered in Shenk in Washington Heights, Rav Burg explains the inner nature of Yosef’s dreams. Far from placing himself at the center of the world, Yosef sought to unite the Shevatim by seeing through to the essence that we all share.

In this shiur, delivered in the Feder home, Rav Burg explores the inner nature of dreams. In our dreams we go beyond our intellectual faculties and touch the essence.

In this shiur, delivered in the Stahler home for the Chizuk Mission, Rav Burg explains why Chanukah is identified with the faculty of sight and how we are meant to see through the darkness.

In this shiur, delivered at the Young Israel of New Rochelle Mishmar, Rav Burg explores Yaakov Avinu's psychological state after surviving Lavan and how he struggles with his inner Eisav to prepare for the battle ahead.

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains the difference between how Eisav raises his children in resentment and Yosef raises his children to let go of their trauma and find greatness in their struggles.

In this shiur, delivered in MMY, Rav Burg explains the definition of marriage, the definition of self and how we date and get married from a deep place of self.

In this shmooze, delivered at Mevaseret Mishmar, Rav Burg explains the inner meaning of the fact that Yaakov slept on Har HaMoriah and did not learn Torah and at the same time was learning Mishnayos all night long. As we descend deeper into Golus and the truth becomes less and less clear, we discover our own voice and our own contributions to the c…

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explores the inner nature of the Terpahim and why Rachel stole them from Lavan. Rav Burg explains that the nature of Rachel Imeinu is to reveal that which is concealed. Warning: this shiur is very deep.

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains the inner connection between Yaakov Avinu skipping the Beis HaMikdash and returning to it through Kefitzas HaDerech, the institution of Maariv and Har HaMoriah. When we daven in our lowest moments we can skip over the normal process and find ourselves at untold spiritual heights.…

In this shiur, delivered in the Lubat home in RBS, Rav Burg explains the darkness of Yavan. When man believes that only that which can be explained in a logical and rational fashion exists he puts himself at the center of the universe. This results in a tyrannical approach to the world. In contrast, Judaism believes that the essence of Hashem is be…

In this shmooze, delivered at the Mevaseret Thanksgiving Fabrengen, Rav Burg explains how gratitude unites every aspect of our being.

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explains how Rivka was confused by her dual nature. On the one hand she had a part of her that was drawn to Kedusha and yet another part was drawn to Tumah. Our conflicted nature is not a bug but a feature as we learn to bring Godliness into every aspect of our lives.…

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains the difference between the way that Avraham engaged with the world and the way Yitzchak engaged with the world. Avraham was able to have an impact even on the people of Mitzrayim but the effects were not necessarily long lasting. Yitzchak was only able to impact the Pelsihtim but the impac…

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains how Avraham Avinu ensured that Yitzchak married a girl who was willing to leave it all behind in order to discover who she really is.

In this shiur, delivered at Mevaseret Mishmar, Rav Burg explains how Malachim have a single minded focus. Totally present with whatever they are doing. Human beings can reach an even higher level where we can live in multiple dimensions at once.

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explores the Haftorah that deals with the Isha Shunamis who did not ask Elisha for a bracha to have children despite her barren state. Only when we dare to love, when we have the deep conviction that we are enough even when we gey hurt, can we truly be alive.…

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains (based on a Sicha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe zt"l) the true nature of Mesiras Nefesh. Anyone can sacrifice their life for a greater cause but in a certain way that can still be self serving. The ultimate sacrifice is the sacrifice of Avraham Avinu - he was ready to sacrifice himself. He wa…

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains how living from a deep place of soulfulness creates our reality. Hagar received messages from four or five angels when she was told that she was going to give birth to Yishmael. This is a reference to the soul itself and when we are deeply connected to our soul, we can bring ourselves into…

In this shiur, delivered on zoom for oravsimcha, Rav Burg explains the Chasidic approach to the role of Malchus. On the one hand Malchus is a Mekabel, actualizing the Sefiros above it and yet paradoxically it is also rooted in the Divine Essence, completely above the Sefiros.

In this shiur, delivered at Thursday night Mishmar in Mevaseret, Rav Burg explains (based on a sicha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe) how Noach knew that the waters of the flood had receded and that it was safe for him to leave the Teiva. We can leave the Teiva when we know that we are essentially Godly (olive trees) and that we can always grow new leav…

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains how Noach failed to help even one person do Teshuva because he didn't daven for them. Davening is a form of imagination. It allows us to see the world as Hashem wants it to be. So too when we daven for someone we are seeing their greatness. People are not inspired by education alone. They …

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explains why we praise the Tzaddikim when given the opportunity and why Shem and Yafes did not look at their father when he was uncovered. The way we speak about people and the way we see people has a tremendous impact on them. When we speak/see people negatively we can destroy them. When we see o…

In this shiur, delivered at the Vayichan program in Yeshivat HaKotel, Rav Burg explains how we can possibly dance and be joyful during Simchas Torah this year. Some generations write their Torah in tears while others are meant to fill in those tears with ink. Our generation has the opportunity to write a Sefer Torah for those who could not finish t…

In this shiur, delivered in Yerushalayim at the Ba'er Miriam Simchas Beis HaShoeva, Rav Burg explains (based on a Sicha from the Shvilei Pinchas) the inner meaning of Succos and how we return the Shechina to this world.

In this shiur, delivered via zoom to the Chizuk Mission, Rav Burg explores the deeper dimension of the Ushpizin in these chaotic times. When the Ushpizin share in our pain then we can know the joy of Succos.

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explains (based on a Torah from the Tzemach Tzedek) how we can make meaningful and lasting change. Only when we recognize that the truest version of ourselves never participated in our Aveiros can we deeply regret our mistakes and make real changes.…

In this shiur, delivered in Darchei Binah, Rav Burg explains Reb Zusias five aspects of Teshuva and the inner symmetry of Teshuva. To realign with Hashem we must live wholeheartedly, purposefully, lovingly, oriented towards a meaningful destination and with dignity.

In this shiur, delivered in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explains (based on a Sicha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe) how Hashem relates to us through various channels. Miracles overwhelm us. The natural world reveals Hashem but we remain a distinct entity. Only through Torah can we truly become one with Hashem. Through Torah we can learn the will and wisdom …

In this shiur, delivered in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains how Moshe Rabbeinu addresses the fears of Klal Yisrael after they heard the Klalos. When we realize that we are a fundamental part of the Klal, that we each make a unique contribution and that no Jew in truth is higher than any other we gain a deep sense of being firmly planted in the grou…

In this shiur, delivered in the Lubat home in Neve Shamir, Rav Burg explains the inner nature of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We don't just want Hashem to forgive us so we can have a good year, we want Hashem to restore us to the way things were. On Rosh Hashanah every molecule of creation returns to its source, to its purpose. We return to our mi…

In this shiur, delivered at Mevaseret Mishmar, Rav Burg explains how Vidui Maaser is the true confession. Only when we know our own greatness can we acknowledge our sins with healthy guilt and not toxic shame.

In this shiur, the first shiur of the year in Tomer Devorah, Rav Burg explores the Machlokes as to when we begin to be obligated in the Mitzvah of Bikkurim. According to the Gemara it is from the time we settle Eretz Yisrael. According to the Sifri it is from when we first enter the land. Based on a Torah from the Lubavitcher Rebbe zt"l, Rav Burg e…

In this shiur, the first shiur of the year in Ba'er Miriam, Rav Burg explains how Klal Yisrael became a nation on the day that they expressed their frustration with Moshe Rabbeinu for writing a special Sefer Torah for Shevet Levi. When we take personal responsibility for our relationship with Hashem, when we own the mission of Klal Yisrael, we move…

In this shiur, delivered in Mevaseret at the first Mishmar of the year, Rav Burg speaks about Teshuva not as an accounting of our sins but as crying out for a relationship with Hashem. However, in order to do so, we must remove our garments of captivity - a surface orientated way of seeing the world. Only when we live focused on the essence can we …

In this short shiur, based on a Torah from the Shvilei Pinchas, Rav Burg explains the inner connection between Yaakov Avinu and the Beis HaMikdash. Through our Torah and Teffilah, we turn our Shuls and Yeshivas into the building blocks of the third Beis HaMikdash.