CHUKAS - ACTIVITY VERSUS ACCOMPLISHMENT

The Parsha ends with a history of how the Jewish people came to conquer the city of Cheshbon from the Emorim. It had previously been part of Moav until Sichon, King of the Emorim, defeated Moav and acquired Cheshbon. With regard to that war, the Torah tells us, “Therefore say the ‘Moshlim’, come to Cheshbon and the city of Sichon will be built and set up. ” The simple understanding of this passuk is that the ‘Moshlim’ are those who say mashalim (poems), Bilaam and Beor, and they were telling Sichon to come and conquer Cheshbon from the Moavim. However, the Gemara sees a hidden message in this passuk: “Therefore, say those who rule their inclinations, come and let us make an accounting of the world; the loss [incurred through doing] a mitzva against its benefit, and the benefit of a sin against its loss ”. The commentaries ask, why is it that only those who ‘rule their inclinations’ say that one should do a cheshbon (accounting), implying that those who do not rule their inclinations do not believe that a person should participate in such a cheshbon . The Mesillas Yeshiarim explains that those who rule their inclinations are people who have developed a deep understanding of the yetser hara and are aware of the need to constantly remain vigilant against its tactics by undertaking a regular cheshbon hanefesh. Consequently they exhort people to make a cheshbon hanefesh. This cheshbon involves a review of what a person’s overall goals in life should be and assessing whether he is living in accord with those goals. A person who does not ‘rule over his inclination’ has no awareness of how the yetser hara is constantly tricking him into an undesirable lifestyle. He is so blinded by its powers that he stumbles along life like a person who walks in the darkness blissfully unaware that there are numerous traps awaiting him. He does not recognize the need to do any kind of cheshbon and has to be motivated to do so by one who does rule his inclination. The Mesillas Yesharim discusses the main factors that cause a person to fail to grasp the true purpose of life. He writes that the most basic problem is that one can become so engulfed in his activities that he never has the opportunity to step back and assess the direction that his life is taking. This is one of the main tactics of the yetser hara - he knows that if one were to step back and analyze his actions then he will recognize that drastic changes are needed. Therefore, it makes him so busy that he does not have any free time with which to think about his life direction. He compares this to the plan of Pharaoh when he perceived a threat that the Jews were beginning to think about freedom. His response was to make their workload heavier so that they would have no time to think about rebelling against him, rather, “he tried to distract their hearts from all contemplation with the sheer constancy of the work which never ceased.” So too, the yetser hara sends us all kinds of distractions that cause us to be constantly busy to the extent that we can never step back and look at the general direction that our life is taking. One observer, noting this succinctly stated, “there is a difference between activity and accomplishment;” a person may be extremely busy but were they to step back and examine what he is e actually accomplishing in a meaningful sense, they may be disappointed. This dilemma is demonstrated by the following observation by a person who had just arrived at the realization that he was caught in this trap: “I’ m busy - really busy. But sometimes I wonder if what I’m doing will make any difference in the long run. This busyness can manifest itself in a number of ways. The following stories provide two examples of how his can occur: One father was very involved in his work, to the extent that he even worked on Sundays, the one time when he could spend quality time with his son. Every Sunday his son would ask him if they could spend some time together but the father answered that he had to work. Finally, the son asked his father how much money he earns in one hour of work on a Sunday. The father answered, $100 - the son replied that he had saved $50 and was willing to give that to his father so that he would spend half an hour with him! It may well be that the father’s intentions in working so hard were noble and included providing a stable financial upbringing for his son. However, he missed sight of the fact that he was sacrificing a meaningful relationship with his son and therefore any benefit of the extra work was outweighed by the damage it was causing. Only after the father’s eyes were opened by his son’s desperate efforts was he able to step back and reassess his role as a father. Another example is about the Rebbe who asked one of his top talmidim how often he thinks about G-d. The talmid answered, “Rebbe, I get up at 3.00am every morning and learn continuously until I daven Neitz, I have a very quick breakfast, and learn all morning, only to stop for a brief lunch and mincha, and then I learn all afternoon and through the night until I collapse with tiredness - Rebbe, when do I have time to think about G-d? !” This talmid had got so involved in his ‘Avodas Hashem’ that he had missed sight of the overall purpose of what he was doing - to develop a relationship with G-d. If these nisyonos (tests) were so strong in the time of the Mesillas Yesharim then all the more so it presents a formidable challenge in the modern world. Society is saturated with gadgets and technology that can keep people busy and distracted throughout the day . There is barely a conversation that is not interrupted by someone receiving a call on their cell phone or an email on their blackberry. The consequences of such developments are that there is barely a moment where a person is free from all distractions to assess his life direction. In order to overcome the efforts of the yetser hara to never think about our life direction, The Mesillas Yeesharim strongly suggests that a person make a regular cheshbon hanefesh. The purpose of this is to remind himself of what his goals in life and to assess whether he is living according to them or has lost sight of the overall goal and is caught up in details that are distracting him from his true life purpose. A useful time in which one can escape from the numerous distractions of daily life and contemplate his life is Shabbos. That is the one day when an observant Jew is free from many of the technological advances that hinder cheshbon hanefesh. Therefore, this is a fitting time when one can look back at the past week and assess whether he lived in line with his life goals or not. As we have seen, the yetser hara is desperate to prevent us from true self-contemplation. As a result, one may find it harder to do a 5 minute cheshbon hanefesh once a week than to learn for 10 hours a day! The yetser hara does not want a person to learn but if it cannot prevent this, then he tries with all his might to prevent a person from utilizing what he learns in order to live a lifestyle with Torah true goals. He primarily does this by stopping a person from stepping back and thinking about his life direction. Consequently, it requires a strong effort to being a cheshbon hanefesh, but as we know, one who tries to purify himself receives great help from Shamayim and can surely succeed in this difficult area.

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