#3: Machshavah

Preparing for Pesach often involves long hours of cleaning, which can sometimes feel tedious and overwhelming. The process can be exhausting, frustrating, and even stressful. However, one way to counter these negative feelings is by shifting our perspective and focusing on the deeper, symbolic meaning behind our efforts.

Chazal teach us that chametz represents the yetzer hara—the evil inclination—because, like leavened dough that rises and expands, it symbolizes arrogance, pride, and self-importance. Just as chametz inflates, so too does our ego, distancing us from humility and self-improvement.

With this in mind, our cleaning can take on a greater significance. The Radbaz suggests that as we meticulously remove crumbs from our homes, we can also reflect on the process of removing negative traits from within ourselves. Each act of scrubbing, sweeping, and searching can serve as a spiritual exercise—an opportunity to rid our neshamot of arrogance, impatience, and other undesirable qualities that may have accumulated over the year. This internal cleansing is not easy, just as physical cleaning is not easy, but it is deeply meaningful and worthwhile.

If we approach Pesach cleaning not just as a physical chore but as a spiritual journey, we may find ourselves feeling more fulfilled and less frustrated. By simultaneously engaging in both physical and spiritual cleansing, we can elevate the experience, transforming it from a burden into an opportunity for personal growth. In this way, our cleaning will accomplish more than just ridding our homes of chametz—it will help rid our hearts of spiritual chametz as well.

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Dedicated by Fran Broder as a zechus for the hostages to be released safely to their families and may everlasting peace come to Eretz Yisrael in the merit of learning Hilchos Shabbos.