CLINGING TO THE WISE MAN - EIKEV

In Parshas Eikev, the Torah commands the people to go in the ways of HaShem, and to”cling to Him”. The Sifri , quoted by Rashi, asks how it is possible to cling to HaShem, given that He is described in another place in the Torah as an “all-consuming fire” ? The Sifri answers that the Torah is instructing us to cling to Talmidei Chachamim and their students; by doing that it is considered as if we cling to HaShem himself. The Rishonim derive from here an obligatory Mitzvo to learn from Talmidei Chachamim and try to develop a connection with them, in order to learn Torah with the correct understanding. A person might understand that it is a good hanhago (mode of behavior) to cling to Chachamim, however it is essential to recognize that it is a Torah obligation. Moreover, the Sefer HaChinuch writes very strongly about the importance of keeping this Mitzvo. He says; ”One who transgresses this and does not cling to them [Chachamim]…transgresses this positive Mitzvo, and his punishment is very great, because they are the [basis of] the existence of Torah, and a strong foundation for the salvation of souls, and anyone who is with them a great deal, will not come to sin..”

The Mesillas Yesharim also discusses the importance of learning from Talmidei Chachamim, particularly with regards to personal growth. He writes that one of the main strategies of the yetser hara is to confuse people so that they do not recognize the difference between good and evil. Accordingly, they believe they are acting correctly, when in truth they are being tricked by their yetser hara. How can a person avoid this trap? He answers with an analogy. A person finds himself in a very complicated maze, and there is only one path that leads to the exit, however, most paths do not lead anywhere, and in fact take him away from his destination. The person has no way himself of finding the correct path because the possible paths look identical to each other. The only way to escape such a maze is to take advice from someone who has already been through the maze and arrived safely at the other side. He can advise the person stuck inside which is the correct path to take. So too, a person who has not yet mastered his yetser hara will find it impossible to overcome it without the guidance of Talmidei Chachamim who have spent many years refining their characters.

We have seen how essential it is for one’s spiritual well-being to learn from Chachamim. However, a person may argue that this is an overly difficult Mitzvo because a significant amount of effort and persistence is required to attach oneself to Chachamim due to their busy schedules and the fact that already many people flock to them. The answer to this point is found in the words of the greatest Chacham, Moshe Rabbeinu. In Parshas Devarim, he recounts the episode when Yisro suggested that Moshe refrain from ruling on every matter of law, rather, other wise men should be appointed to guide the people in certain questions. The practical reason for this was in order to lessen the burden for Moshe and for the people who had to wait a long time for Moshe to be available. Moshe agreed to the suggestion and instructed the people to appoint Chachamim. The people gladly agreed to this request. Rashi points out that in his recollection of this incident, Moshe rebuked the people for their enthusiasm for Yisro’s idea. Moshe was telling them, “you should have answered, Rabbeinu Moshe, from who is it better to learn, from you or from your students, is it not [better to learn] from you, who suffered over it [the Torah]?!” Moshe rebuked them for not wanting to learn from the greatest Chacham, despite the fact that they would have to endure significant hardships in order to do so. We see from here how important it is to be willing to be moser nefesh to learn from Chachamim.

This lesson is borne out by a teaching of Chazal, that a person who learns a great deal of Torah but does not cling to Talmidei Chachamim is considered an am ha’aretz (ignorant person). Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz zt”l explains that one who learns alone only relies on his own understanding and does not turn to wise people for guidance. Because he does not verifiy his understanding with Chachamim, it is inevitable that he will come to make serious mistakes in his learning. In contrast, one who clings to Chachamim can achieve great levels in his wisdom.

The Alter of Novardok zt”l expressed this point when extolling the greatness of Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzensky zt”l. “His wisdom and genius is so great and of so much depth and breadth, because when he was young he was always to be found in the presence of the Gedolei Hador (greatest Rabbis). He never said to them, ‘accept my opinion’, rather he made himself into a ‘vessel’ who would listen and absorb all the opinions and explanations of all the Gedolim there. He absorbed into his very being all the wisdom that he heard and his wisdom became purified and elevated by the greatness of many generations that became embedded in his mind. ” When we discuss the greatness of Rav Chaim Ozer we generally focus on his incredible natural genius and ability to think of many things at the same time. We see from the words of the Alter that the key to his greatness was his willingness to learn from Talmidei Chachamim.

We have seen how essential it is for one to learn from Chachamim. The Sefer HaChinuch points out that this Mitzvo is also incumbent upon women. He writes, “This Mitzvo is in place in every place, at all times, for men, and it is also a Mitzvo for women to hear the words of Chachamim so that they will learn how to know HaShem.” It is interesting to note that the Sefer HaChinuch also writes that women are not obligated in the Mitzvo of Talmud Torah (learning Torah) Nevertheless, they are obligated to seek out Chachamim to guide them in their Avodas HaShem.

It is clear from the sources discussing this Mitzvo that both men and women must strive to learn from Chachamim. This is a particularly relevant lesson to people who grew up in more secular environments. In the secular world, the concept of ‘asking the wise man’ for guidance in life issues is almost unheard of. This is partly because intelligence and life wisdom have no necessary correlation. As a result of this, a baal teshuva may find it unnatural to ask life questions to Rabbis. Rav Noach Weinberg zt”l addressed this issue – he pointed out that in the secular world, people spend many years on studying in order to attain a certain qualification. However, with regard to basic life issues, such as marriage, child rearing, and life satisfaction, people spend almost no time studying how to succeed. The results of this failing are clear to see, with the divorce rate skyrocketing, family relationships consistently failing, and general life dissatisfaction commonplace. The Torah teaches that in all such issues it is essential that we learn from Chachamim, people who understand the Torah approach to life challenges. May we merit to keep the Mitzvo of ‘clinging to the

HISHTADLUS IN RUCHNIUS - PEKUDEI

After the Avodas Hamishkan was completed the workmen could not erect the Mishkan because of its massive weight. Since Moshe Rabbeinu had not had a share in the actual work of the Mishkan, Hashem wanted him to have the honor of erecting it. Hashem told him to make the attempt and the Mishkan would stand on its own, and it would appear to the onlookers as if he put it up himself .

This incident poses a difficulty - it seems clear that just as all the builders of the Mishkan were rewarded for their work, so too Moshe Rabbeinu was surely rewarded for the actual hakamas Hamishkan - why is this the case, he did not actually do anything, Hashem performed the erecting Himself?! In reality we are only able to perform any mitzvo because Hashem enables us to do so - Hashem is constantly sustaining the world and every human being in it - without this siata dishmaya we would not be able to do anything. The only difference in the case of the erecting of the Mishkan is that it was an open miracle whereas every mitzvo that we perform is a hidden miracle. The reward that we receive is not because of the result but because of the effort that we make. Moshe Rabbein made the effort to erect the Mishkan, therefore he was rewarded as if he performed it himself.

Sifsei Chaim develops this theme further; he writes that we all realize that we do not have the ability to achieve anything in gashmius without Hashem. If that is so, then why do we do so much activity? After chet Adam haRishon, Hashem decreed that man must exert physical effort in order to survive - however “we must realise that, in reality we do not achieve anything, all of our actions are only the exertion of the necessary effort which is a fulfillment of the passuk “you will eat bread by the sweat of your brow.” All of our work in earning our parnasa and other worldly activities are a result of this ‘gezeiras hishtadlus‘, we are required to expend such effort but we must recognize that ultimately it does not really achieve anything. However, we are less aware that the same is true even in the realm of ruchnius. We do have free will, which is the ability to decide whether we will choose good or bad, however, the final result is not in our control at all. For example, a person may expend great effort in buying a beautiful esrog, but when he comes to use it on Yom Tov he may drop the esrog and the pitom could break. We can make the decision to do the mitzva but only Hashem can actually enable us to completely fulfill it.

Based on the yesod that the gezeiras hishtadlus applies equally to gashmius and ruchnius, one may want to equate the two realms in another way: It is well known that bitachon is more important than hishtadlus in gashmius, and the more bitachon we have the more we will receive regardless of the hishtadlus that we put in. So too one may approach ruchnius with the same attitude - that the ikar avoda in ruchnius is bitachon and that hishtadlus is merely a secondary factor. However, Sifsei Chaim stresses that it is incorrect to totally equate ruchnius and gashmius in this regard - there is a crucial difference between the two: “In matters of gashmius, the required hishtadlus is a penalty that one must pay and it is not good to add to payment of the penalty [ie. one should minimize his hishtadlus as much as possible]. In contrast, in avodas Hashem he must do as much histhadlus as possible and strive with all his strength..”

This is a very important lesson; we generally recognize that bitachon is an essential aspect of avodas Hashem and that our own hishtadlus should be minimized as much as possible, however one may also have the same attitude in spiritual matters; he may limit his hishtadlus in ruchnius with the mistaken assumption that he can trust in Hashem to do the work for him - this is a serious mistake for, as Sifsei Chaim explains, in ruchnius there is no limit to how much effort one should expend. This idea is illustrated by the following story involving Rav Shraga Feivel Mendlowitz zt”l. “As a teenager, Hertzl Shechter was invariably a few minutes late for Reb Shraga Feivel’s 9.00am Tanach shiur, and one day he received a notice that ‘the Boss’ wanted to speak to him. Shechter entered the room trembling. “Nu, Hertzl, when are you going to start coming on time?” Reb Shraga Feivel asked. Shifting uncomfortably in his seat, Shechter could manage nothing more than, “Im yirtzeh Hashem.” But Reb Shraga Feivel was not to be put off so easily. “Nein,” he began shaking his head, “not im yirtzeh Hashem, Im yirtzeh Hertzl - no, not if Hashem wants; rather if Hertzl wants.” There are times when a person should not comfort himself with the fact that Hashem will ensure that everything runs smoothly, rather he must take the intiative himself.

If there is a misconception about the role of hishtadlus in one’s own personal avodas Hashem, then this is certainly the case with regard to the state of Klal Yisroel. One may easily be tempted to think that, no matter how bad the situation is, Hashem will not let it deteriorate indefinitely and that we can trust that eventually things will improve ‘mimayla’. Chazal teach us that this is a grave error; if people do not take action to resolve the problems of Klal Yisrael then they will only persist - Hashem requires us to bring about an improvement through our own efforts. This idea is expressed in the Mishna in Pirkei Avos: “In a place where there are no men hishtadel [strive] to be a man.” Many commentaries explain this to mean that when there is a lack of people serving the needs of the Klal, one must stand up and fill the gap. Rav Hirsch zt”l writes that in normal circumstances one should be humble and avoid publicity, however when people are needed to serve the klal then humility and tsnius are totally inappropriate, rather one should do whatever is necessary to improve the situation even if it involves receiving unwanted publicity. It is noteworthy that the Mishna chose to use the word, ‘histhadel’ when it could have simply said ‘in a place where there are no men be a man.” The reason for this is that the word, ‘hishtadel’ implies great effort; the Mishna is teaching us that it is not enough to merely ‘try’ to help the community, rather, one must exert great effort into the task at hand.

The Alter of Novardok stressed the need for such exertion in the battle to uphold the Torah. “When a person becomes aware of as grievous a failing within society as its present educational structure, which has taken such a tremendous toll on our youth - how much must he summon up all of his powers to guard the breach, remove the impediment and raise up the standard of truth…. there is no alternative but to rouse ourselves from our slumber, consider the dangers which confront us and go out with energy and drive, and use all our talents and sensitivities to do all that we are able.” One may argue that there is a great limit to what a single person can achieve even if he expends much effort: The Alter seems to have thought differently: He once said that, “if a person works as hard for the benefit of the public as he works for the benefit of a single member of his family, he could found a hundred yeshivas!”

A common question that non-observant Jews ask is ‘why did G-d let the Holocaust happen’? Of course, this is an issue that cannot be explained easily. However, there is another question that can help answer it; ‘Why did man let the Holocaust happen?’ Hashem created the world and He constantly oversees it, and yet he has given man control of the world - man has the capability to build it or destroy it, it is the action of man that leads to pain and suffering, not G-d.

Throughout his life, Moshe Rabbeinu was willing to extend great effort to fulfill the Ratson Hashem - as a result Hashem gave him the ability to achieve superhuman results such as lifting the beams of the Mishkan. We can learn from this that all Hashem requires is that we extend the effort, the results are in Hashem’s hands.