Behar/Bechikosa: Splitting Rivers and Riding Waves

Dear friends, welcome to this week's virtual drill show. This week we have the incredible privilege of Parshas Bechukotai. In the mere session, conclude Sefer Vayikra. Chazak, chazak, venischazek. In the mere session, shavua tov. So, I want to draw your attention to a fascinating pasuk. It's actually the opening pasuk in Parshas Bechukotai. The Torah says, "Im Bechukotai telechu, et mitzvotai tishmoru." Literally translated, "If you follow my decrees, observe my commandments, va'asitem otam." And you will perform them. The Torah then goes, launches into lengthy discussion regarding the material blessing that we receive for the performance of mitzvot. These pesukim are filled with many different theological questions and ideas, but I want to focus on something very simple, just in the in the syntax of the pasuk itself. So, if you look at the first two parts of the pasuk, "Im Bechukotai telechu u'mitzvotai tishmoru." So, again, this is talking about performance of mitzvot, different aspects of performance of mitzvot, but both representing the idea that you're supposed to perform the mitzvot of Hakadosh Baruch Hu, which then makes that last phrase, "Va'asitem otam," that you will perform them, seems to be totally redundant. The first two phrases, "Im Bechukotai telechu," if you walk in the ways of my mitzvot, "Mitzvotai tishmoru," you observe my mitzvot, those are referring to those are action pesukim, referring to the performance of actual mitzvot. Again, different aspects of performance, but for per- performance nevertheless. If with that's the case, then why do you need that last phrase, "Va'asitem otam," you will perform them? There's a beautiful insight that's advanced in many of the in in much of Chassidic literature and sefarim, that perhaps that last phrase is not is not referring to the person who performs the mitzvah, but rather it's referring to everyone outside of the one who is performing the mitzvah. Meaning what? We all know that when we perform a mitzvah, and you fill in the blank, whatever mitzvah it is, whatever it might be, clearly I'm lifting myself up spiritually. The beauty of a mitzvah is that it has the ability to spiritually transform me. I become someone different. I become someone better. I become someone holier. I fill myself with beautiful spiritual energy, and that creates a chain reaction within myself. And we can even understand the idea that when I perform a mitzvah, I'm able to somehow have a greater influence on those around me as well. But there's something greater. The Sifrei explain that when we perform a mitzvah, we create almost like a wave of spiritual energy. And that wave could be felt all around the world. That wave could be felt by people who I never know and will never know. Not only that, but that wave itself could actually transcend time and influence future generations as well. So, the V'Asisem Osum the Sifrei explain refers to others. If I go ahead and live a life on the site you lay who or miss so site you small or if I do what is spiritually incumbent upon me and even more than that, I I exceed expectations and I live a life that is so the spirituality and I engage in dynamic spiritual activity, V'Asisem Osum, I create the spiritual wave of energy that will inspire others to go out and spiritually self-actualize, that will inspire others to do great things, that will inspire others to engage in dynamic activity. The V'Asisem Osum that last phrase doesn't refer to me. It refers to others who could be inspired by my dynamic spiritual activity even though they don't know me, I don't know them. Even though again, they may live generations later. That's the V'Asisem Osum. The power of our dynamic spiritual activity to not only lift ourselves up, to not only transform ourselves, but to send a wave of spiritual energy for miles, for geographically distant locations, and chronologically distant future generations. My one act of spiritual dynamic activity can send the ripple effect across the world and can send the spiritual ripple effect across the generations. You know, we just learned in that film a beautiful beautiful story about the great Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair. The story tells the story in in Chulin daf zayin, sorry, 7A. The story tells of Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair was on the way to perform the mitzvah of pidyon shvuyim, redemption of captives. And as he's on his way to perform this holy mitzvah, he encounters a body of river, the Ginai River. He says, "Ginai River, you have to split because I'm on way to do a mitzvah." The Ginai River pushes back and says, "Why should I split for you? Listen, you you're doing the work of the Lord, I'm doing the work of the Lord. I'm a river, God told me to flow, so I'm flowing. So, why should I split for you?" And even more the river says, "Me, I the river, I know I'll be successful in my shlichus, in my agency. God told me to flow, I flow. You, maybe you'll be successful, maybe you won't be successful." Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair won't hear any of it. He orders the sea to split and he threatens that he threatens the river. He says, "If you don't split, I will dry up your riverbed." So, the riverbed splits. But, the story is not over. There was another man who was traveling with Pinchas ben Yair. The Gemara says a Jew who was holding flour for matzos for Pesach. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair says to the Ginai River, "Split for that guy, too." And the river splits. Third guy, there was an Arab merchant, like a porter, who was carrying their stuff. He also was there. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair says, "Split for that guy, too." And the the river the right the Ginai River splits for that Arab merchant, as well. After this whole story the story then goes on for a while, but after the whole story Rabbi there was the Gemara records the statement of Rabbi Yosef. Rabbi Yosef says, "Kama nafash gavra miMoshe?" Literally translated, "Look how much greater Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair is than Moshe Rabbeinu." How is Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair greater than Moshe Rabbeinu? Because Moshe Rabbeinu only split the sea once, by Yam Suf. Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair split the sea three times. So, see how much Pinhas Ben Ya'ir is greater than Moshe Rabbeinu. The holy tzaddik, Rabbeinu Meshbesh, who was the son of the Baal Shem Tov Hakadosh, asks a very simple question. He says, "How can you possibly say that Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir was greater than Moshe Rabbeinu? How can you say that? The Torah itself says, 'Lo kam bi Moshe.' No one was ever as great as Moshe Rabbeinu. So, what are you talking about? Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir is greater than Moshe Rabbeinu? What are you talking about?" And Rabbeinu Meshbesh says something so beautiful. He says, "You're reading it wrong. Rabbi Yosef says, 'Kama nafshi gavra mi Moshe.' Now, we translated that as, 'Look how much greater this man, Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir, is is greater than Moshe mi Moshe.' He says, "That's not the way to read it. Mi Moshe doesn't mean that Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir is greater than Moshe Rabbeinu. But rather, it means Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir, 'Look how great this man, Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir, is mi Moshe.' Where does his greatness come from? It comes from Moshe Rabbeinu. Not that Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir is greater than Moshe Rabbeinu. But Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir's greatness comes mi Moshe. From Moshe Rabbeinu. She came and look what the Rabbi says. She came and she Moshe bakah es yam lifnei Yisrael. Because since Moshe Rabbeinu split the sea for Klal Yisrael, mimaylah mimaylah hayah ben Pinhas Ben Ya'ir lifko'ach es ha'yam bishvil oso adam. It was easier for Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir to do it because Moshe Rabbeinu did it first. Rabbeinu Meshbesh teaching us so incredibly something so incredibly amazing. From where did Rabbeinu Pinhas Ben Ya'ir get the ko'ach to split the sea? Where did that come from? Where did that come from? What was the hava amina, right? That he could stand by the sea and split the sea. Where did that ko'ach come from? It came from Moshe Rabbeinu. The fact that Moshe Rabbeinu had the spiritual courage to walk into the sea. The fact that Moshe Rabbeinu had the Emunah and Bitachon that Hashem was going to split the sea. The fact that Moshe Rabbeinu had the strength to face down the Egyptians, to lead the Jewish people into the great unknown. Moshe Rabbeinu's act of spiritual heroism created a wave, no pun intended, of spiritual energy. >> [snorts] >> And that wave of spiritual energy was felt generations later by Rabbeinu Pinchas ben Yair as he stood at the banks of the Ginai River and realized that he too was on a mission from God. And the spiritual energy generated by Moshe Rabbeinu gave Rabbeinu Pinchas ben Yair the courage to say, "Ginai River, split in front of me right now, because I am on a holy mission from God to redeem precious Jewish captives." It's not that Rabbeinu Yosef wasn't saying that Rabbeinu Pinchas ben Yair was greater than Moshe. Rather, he's saying, "Kama nafshi gava, look how great Rabbeinu Pinchas ben Yair comes from. Where does that greatness come from? Mimoche." Moshe Rabbeinu made the decision to engage in dynamic courageous spiritual activity, and Moshe Rabbeinu's mitzvah, so to speak, his act of spirituality generated a wave of spiritual energy that was felt generations later by Rabbeinu Pinchas ben Yair. Because when we engage in dynamic spiritual activity, not only are we lifting ourselves up, but we are creating a wave of energy that can be felt in geographically distant places and chronologically distant places. You know, Rabbeinu Nachman comments. He says that, you know, one of the greatest yetzer haras, the Gemara says that we all face, is yetzer hara for immorality. Ta'avah, desire, lust, wants, proclivity. The Rebbe says, "How does a person know that I can overcome it? May- maybe I can't overcome it. Maybe my lusts, my desires are just too much. I can't overcome it." The Rebbe says, "If Yosef did it, then we can do it as well." And the Rebbe goes on and he says, "Yosef faced an overwhelming yetzer hara, an overwhelming test of it with immorality. The wife of Potiphar propositioned him each and every day, and somehow somewhere he summoned up the strength to be able to resist that temptation. When Yosef did that, Rabbi Nachman says he embedded within us the koach, the ability to do the same. I have the ability to stand up to the temptations of immorality because Yosef did it. Yosef created this wave of energy, and I could tap into that throughout the generations. That's what Yosef did for us. That's what Moshe Rabbeinu did for Pinchas ben Yair. And that's the Torah says va'asitem osam, that's what we have the ability to do for others. If we live lives of bechukotai telechu u'mishpatai tishmoru, if we live lives of beautiful dynamic spiritual activity then understand what we do. Not only are we lifting ourselves up, but we're creating a wave of energy that can be felt by precious Jews in geographically distant places and in and in chronologically distant times. When we do something [clears throat] spiritually positive, when we do something spiritually luminescent, we create a wave of energy that can allow others geographically distant, chronologically distant, to ride that wave, to get that koach, and to become the best version of themselves, to self-actualize. My one act of dynamic spiritual activity could create the wave felt by others far away and a long time away, and it could give them the koach to do something great as well. That's the power we have, and dear friends, the world needs this power more than ever. We see about the ridiculous anti-Semitism that's happening in the UK. We see what's happening here in this country. We see the wars that our brothers and sisters in Eretz Yisrael have to face. And sometimes we feel powerless, but we're not powerless. If we only realized that each and every moment that we have the opportunity to do a mitzvah to serve Hakadosh Baruchu, not only are we lifting ourselves up, but we're creating that wave of energy. And that wave of energy may be the one thing that a Jew thousands of miles away needs in order to begin his or her journey of self-actualization. And that wave of energy that I create now could be something that is felt generations from now. And may give a Jew generations from now the ability to have the koach to do the one thing they need to do in order to make a difference for themselves, for their family, for the world. And it all starts with us. V'asitem osam. If we do our part in the chukosai tzeisachem u'shmartem, there's no telling v'asitem osam the what we could in general, we could create for others. Moshe Rabbeinu's act gave Rav Pinchas ben Yair the ability to split the Yarden River and to ransom Jewish captives. Yosef's act of spiritual strength resisting immorality embedded within us the ability to meet our daily nisyonos, our daily challenges. And our decision to live lives of spiritual deveikus, to live lives of clinging to Hakadosh Baruch Hu, spiritual actualization, our decision to live lives in the chukosai tzeisachem u'shmartem could create the world of v'asitem osam. Could enable Jews thousands of miles away and generations away to self-actualize, to become the best version of themselves. Moshe Rabbeinu did it for us. Yosef did it for us. And how about we should be zocheh b'meheirah b'yameinu to provide this same spiritual boost for those in our time but far away, and for those generations to come. Wishing everyone a good night and a good Shabbos, and a beautiful Shabbos Kodesh.