Machshava:

Tanya 

Collections: Rabbi Weinberger: Yom Kippur

Description

Based on a sichah (talk) by Rav Tzvi Meir Zilberberg. Why do we begin Yom Kippur with Kol Nidrei (all my vows) - why is this prayer so special? Somehow Kol Nidrei, even though it seems to be more of a technical tefillah (prayer) seems to be particularly inspiring, and its formulation has spread across all Jewish denominations, and it's not even rooted anywhere in the Gemarah (Talmud). The beginning of anything contains the essence of the whole. The two goats - clarifying the truth of what a Jew is in pnimius (at the very core). The discrepancy - in Heaven - between who we were created to be, and who we really are. Arriving at the moment of truth within ourselves. Kol Nidrei is the statement that we are aligning ourselves with that image that Hashem has of us, of who we really are; and that is the way we cancel everything that happened last year. Even though an aveira (sin) looks like it was in purpose - it was accidental: ki lechol ha'am lishgahgah (because the whole nation [was in a state of] unintentional [sinning]).