Hamaayan / The Torah Spring Edited by Shlomo Katz Bereishit "The Plan" Volume 24, No. 1 29 Tishrei 5770 October 17, 2009 Sponsored by the Parness family in memory of Anna Parness a"h Today's Learning: Nach: Yehoshua ch. 13-14 Negaim 13:6-7 O.C. 345:14-16 Daf Yomi (Bavli): Bava Batra 57 Daf Yomi (Yerushalmi): Sanhedrin 39 Molad Marcheshvan: Sunday 11:31 p.m.+ 8 chalakim With gratitude to Hashem and prayers for His continued blessing, we now begin the twenty-fourth parashah cycle of Hamaayan. The Midrash Tanchuma on our parashah opens: "`Breishit G-d created the heavens and the earth' -- this is the same as the verse (Mishlei 3:19), `Hashem founded the earth with wisdom.' [In this interpretation, `Breishit' means `With reishit / wisdom' (as in `Reishit chochmah').] When G-d created His world, He consulted with the Torah, as it is written (Mishlei 8:14), "In me [the Torah] there is counsel'." What is this midrash teaching? R' Mordechai Ze'ev Rosenthal z'l (rabbi of Kolbiel, Poland; died 8 Marcheshvan 5653 / 1892) explains: The midrash is bothered by the same question that Rashi asks at the beginning of our parashah: Since the true purpose of Torah is to teach us the mitzvot, why does the Torah begin with the story of creation? To this the midrash answers: G-d "consulted with" the Torah before He created the world. The Torah is the reason that each creation exists. Indeed, there is no aspect of existence that does not somehow relate to a mitzvah. There are mitzvot relating to agriculture, therefore, the earth was created; there are mitzvot that involve animals, therefore animals were created; and so on. Only in the merit of the Torah and for the purpose of fulfilling the Torah does anything exist. (Kol Haramaz) [Ed. note: In light of the above, we can suggest an interpretation of the mishnah (end of Tractate Makkot) which states: "G-d wished to confer merit upon Yisrael, therefore He gave them Torah and mitzvot in abundance." Perhaps this mishnah refers not only to the large number of mitzvot, but also to the many opportunities for mitzvot. For example, why did G-d create billions of non-kosher animals, birds, fish and insects? Each of them gives us the opportunity to perform a mitzvah by not eating it. Likewise, why are there so many plants and blades of grass? Each of them gives us an opportunity to perform the mitzvah of not destroying anything unnecessarily.] ******** "Hashem Elokim said, `It is not good that man be alone; I will make him a helper corresponding to him'." (2:18) R' Shlomo ben Avraham ibn Aderet z"l (Rashba; 1235-1310; Barcelona, Spain) was asked the following question: This verse implies that after Hashem created the world, He realized that His design was imperfect and He thought of a way to improve it. Certainly such a thing cannot be said about G-d! (The one posing the question, who appears to have been the Torah commentator, Rabbeinu Bachya ben Asher z"l, concludes: "I am certain that our Sages have something to say about this. There is honey and milk under your tongue and you must pass this sweetness to us!") Rashba replied: The story of Creation is written as a summary followed by a more detailed explanation. Thus, in the first telling [corresponding to our first chapter] we read an outline of Creation, and in the second [corresponding to our second chapter] we learn more. It follows that G-d's statement, "It is not good that man be alone; I will make him a helper corresponding to him," was not made after the Creation was completed, but, rather, before man was created. Rashba continues: This leads to two further questions: First, why is G-d's statement written as if it was something He realized later? The answer is that the Torah wants to highlight Creation's perfection, as if to say that G-d worked through all of the possible designs in order to figure out which is the best and why. Although G-d does not actually require a thought-process, the Torah speaks in terms to which man can relate. Second, if G-d knew all along that man needed a mate, why was Chava created later than Adam? The answer is that G-d saw fit to create man and woman as one entity so that they would be drawn to each other and would achieve a stronger bond then any two separate beings could ever achieve. (Teshuvot Ha'Rashba [MHK Edition] No.1) ******** "For Elokim knows that on the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened . . . Then the eyes of both of them were opened . . ." (3:5, 7) R' Moshe Chaim Luzzato z"l (Ramchal; 1707-1747; author of Mesilat Yesharim) explains this opening of man's eyes as follows: When Adam was created, we read (2:15), "Hashem Elokim took the man va'yanichaihu / and He placed him in the Garden of Eden." The word "va'yanichaihu / and He placed him" suggests "menuchah / rest." Before Adam's sin, he was at rest spiritually, since doing the correct thing - i.e., that which would further G-d's plan -- always came naturally to him. He was analogous to a blind man who is always led to the right place by a trusted servant and therefore does not have a worry in the world. After the sin, man's eyes opened, and he had to fend for himself both physically and spiritually. Just as before the sin, man ultimately takes the action that furthers G-d's plan, Ramchal writes. However, man is filled with worry about every aspect of his life, including whether he is doing what is best. Ramchal adds: This was Chava's wish, and it was fulfilled. Every individual since then can make a choice regarding the extent to which he wants to be led by G-d's hand and the extent to which he wants to fend for himself and live a life of worry. (Adir Ba'marom Vol. II, p.56) ******** "You will be like Elokim, knowing good and bad." (3:5) R' Moshe ben Nachman z"l (Ramban; 1194-1270) writes in his commentary to Bereishit 2:9 that before Adam and Chava ate from the etz ha'da'at, they naturally did what was right. Eating the fruit of the etz ha'da'at caused them to have a desire to chose good or bad. What does this mean? Surely Adam and Chava had free will even before they ate from the tree. The very purpose for which man was placed in this world is to use his free will to overcome the yetzer hara! R' Shmuel ben R' Yehoshua z"l (student of R' Chaim of Volozhin z"l; early 19th century rabbi of Dohlinov, Lithuania) explains as follows: In reality, there are no traits which are objectively bad. The reason we call some traits "bad" is because most people use those traits improperly with great frequency. In fact, however, every trait is good if used in the proper way and at the proper time. Before man's sin, the lines between the proper and improper uses of all traits were clearly drawn. [Thus, there was no shame involved in having no clothes.] Even then, mankind had a choice to do right or wrong, but it was a clear and easy choice since the proper use of each trait was obvious. Man's sin blurred those lines. Indeed, most of our sins do not involve outright evil. Rather, we convince ourselves that behaviors or acts are proper--even that they are mitzvot--when in fact they are improper. Our challenge after Adam and Chava's sin is to properly draw the lines that distinguish "good" from "bad," so that "bad" will also be used properly. Then it will be revealed as not bad at all, but merely another tool with which to serve Hashem. A person who accomplishes this is called a perfect tzaddik. (Minchat Shmuel, ch.1) R' Avraham Grodzenski z"l Hy"d (mashgiach ruchani of the Slobodka Yeshiva; killed in the Holocaust) offers another explanation. Before the sin, man was aware on an intellectual level that "bad" exists. The choice to do bad existed, but Adam had no temptation to exercise that option. However, Adam and Chava were not happy with this arrangement. Rather, they wanted to be tempted to sin so that they could overcome the yetzer hara through their own efforts. They did not want to sin, but they wanted to have the choice to sin. (Torat Avraham p.58) ******** "Kayin said to Hashem, `Is my sin too great to be borne?'" (4:13) R' Moshe Cordovero z"l (Remak; 1522-1570) explains that Kayin appealed to the G-d's Attribute of Mercy known as "Nosei Avon" / "Bearer of Sin." This Attribute refers to the fact that, although man creates prosecuting angels when he sins and those prosecuting should, by right, cause the sinner's destruction, G-d waits patiently for the sinner to repent. G-d does this even though, during the time that passes, He must also sustain the "evil forces" that man created through his sin. Remak continues: Since we are called upon to emulate G-d, we must learn to be patient when others sin against us - even when the evil they committed still exists - because, eventually, the sinner may repent. (Tomer Devorah, ch.1, middah 2) ******** Will Shabbat be Our Defender? This year, we did not blow the shofar on the first day of Rosh Hashanah because that day fell on Shabbat. According to Torah law, we should have blown the shofar even on Shabbat. However, our Sages worried that an unlearned person would carry a shofar outdoors where there is no eruv; therefore they decreed that we not blow the shofar on Shabbat. This is also the reason why we did not take the lulav and etrog on the first day of this past Sukkot, which was also Shabbat. Several commentaries ask: The Gemara (Rosh Hashanah 16b) states that in any year in which the shofar is not blown at the beginning of the year, there will be wailing at the end of the year. Indeed, writes R' Yaakov Ettlinger z"l (Germany; 1798-1871; author of the Talmud commentary Aruch La'ner), both the First and Second Temples were destroyed in years in which Rosh Hashanah fell on Shabbat. Given the serious consequences of not blowing the shofar, how could our Sages decree that the shofar not be blown on Rosh Hashanah which falls on Shabbat because of a seemingly remote concern that someone will carry a shofar outdoors? R' Ettlinger answers: The honor that we show to Shabbat by foregoing the protection which shofar blowing gives us, in order to preserve the sanctity of Shabbat, will itself protect us. Thus we find that many good things happened in years when Rosh Hashanah fell on Shabbat. The year when G-d forgave Bnei Yisrael for the sin of the Golden Calf was such a year. Likewise, Bnei Yisrael entered Eretz Yisrael in a year in which Rosh Hashanah fell on Shabbat. And what of the years that ended in tragedy? R' Ettlinger explains with a parable: A certain officer sinned against the king and was facing a potential harsh judgment. However, that officer's wife happened to be a favorite in the king's court, and she successfully interceded on her husband's behalf. Some time later, another officer was in the same situation. Knowing how the first officer had escaped punishment, he asked his wife to intercede as well. However, this officer and his wife had an unhappy marriage; even on the way to his trial he did not stop berating and shouting at his wife. When they appeared before the king, the monarch said, "This is who you bring to defend yourself? You do not respect your wife, yet you want me to accept her pleas on your behalf?" R' Ettlinger concludes: In our prayers, we refer to Shabbat as our bride. Like the wife in the parable, Shabbat can "speak" in our defense and protect us. However, Shabbat can defend us only so long as we honor Shabbat. In particular, in a year - such as this year - when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat, we must strengthen our observance of both the law and spirit of the day. (Minchat Ani: Ha'azinu)