| Dear Yeshiva Family:
In this week's parshah, the Torah begins discussing the building of the Mishkan, the Tabernacle (a predecessor to the Bais Hamikdash). The items of the Mishkan were acquired through donations from Klal Yisrael. In introducing this concept, the Torah states "Veyikchu li Terumah", literally translated as "and you should take to me; a donation". Rashi explains that the words 'to me' are understood to mean 'for me', as in make donations for my name to build this Mishkan, a home on earth for the Shechina, the divine presence. The Medrash explains this differently by translating the pasuk "and you should take me", that the Torah is telling us that we "took Hashem" when we received the Torah. The Medrash explains that right after the giving of the Torah in the previous parshah, Hashem told Klal Yisrael: I gave you a very precious gift, the Torah, and it no longer resides in the heavens, but now on Earth. Hashem then adds: I don't want to separate from it, therefore please build me a house on Earth, the Mishkan, to be next to it as well, for you have "taken me"!
The Medrash brings a parable of a king who marries off his daughter to a prince from a far-away country. He tells his new son-in-law that his daughter is too precious for him to allow her to move very far away, but he understands that as wife to this prince, she must go with him. The king therefore requests of the prince to build a small house in his new country for the king to reside near his daughter. Therefore, explains the Medrash, when we received the Torah, in effect, we also 'took Hashem', for He came along with the Torah into this world. We see that the purpose of the Mishkan was to present a "home for Hashem," who wants to be next to the Torah. Perhaps we can now understand another Medrash. The Medrash states that the beams that were used to create the Mishkan were taken from trees planted by Yaakov Avinu when he came down to Mitzrayim at the beginning of the long galus. Why was it important for the Mishkan to be built specifically from these trees? Could they not have been brought miraculously to Bnei Yisrael as they were building the Mishkan? Other parts of the Mishkan, such as the stones for the Choshen, and the animal hides which were used to create the coverings of the Mishkan (which were sourced from a Tachash, an animal with an exceptionally colorful and beautiful hide, and which is no longer extant) were miraculously delivered to Klal Yisrael when they were needed. So why were the wooden cedar beams also not delivered in the same miraculous manner?
Many answers are offered, but the Sefer Ohel Moshe posits that since the Medrash explains that the Mishkan was built to enable Hashem to be physically close to the Torah, we can answer our question based on a Gemara (Brochos 5a) that says that Torah is only acquired and maintained through hard work and effort. If someone were to just have Torah programmed into his head it would not last, nor would it be considered a major accomplishment. Therefore, it would have been impossible to create the Mishkan with wood that was created miraculously, since the Mishkan was created to house Hashem to be close to the Torah. Any "cheating" or cutting corners in building the base of the Mishkan which housed Hashem and His Torah would have been counter- productive. Anything done to build the Mishka itself required intensive work, so Yaakov Avinu had to do the work 210 years earlier, preparing trees to ensure that there would be materials to build the Mishkan. There could be no relying on miracles; only hard work and grit would ensure success.
The Gemara in Niddah (30b) says that a baby in the womb is taught the entire Torah by a Malach. Some ask, since that is so, why do we not rise in honor of every pregnant woman who walks into a room, for she is housing a human being that knows the entire Torah. Perhaps we can answer that this baby put absolutely no effort into understanding the Torah; it is as if a computer programmed with the entirety of Torah on it walked into the room. Torah that is acquired without work is not the Torah to be respected; we respect the Torah that is the result of hard work. This is the Torah that remains with a person.
This is an incredibly important lesson for us. Learning Torah is of paramount importance in our lives and culture, but what does learning consist of? We encourage and laud people who make daily learning a part of their routine, but what type of learning should we be striving for? The main goal of a learning session should be the effort invested into the learning during that time. If one has a choice to sit through a shiur, and cover a whole amud Gemara, or sweat through a sugya with his chavrusa, working and being part of delving into the sugya, it's preferable to take an active part in the learning rather than just listening passively, even if more ground is covered. The more active learning, 'thinking' and effort invested, the more successful that seder will be , and the more that Torah will affect him.
When choosing a style of learning, try to choose something that you can have an active part in, that your progress can be challenged and that there is accountability for your work. This will make you invested in your success, and give you more enjoyment and satisfaction in the seder!
This concept applies to every level of scholarship, without exception. You can find all sorts of material for every level of learning and find a chavrusa to learn and study that material with. Investing effort in the Torah makes it much more personal, and eventually, you feel a connection with "your Torah." Every single Jew has a special portion of Torah that is specific to that person, which can only be brought out if one works and toils over the Torah!
Going back to the mashal, we can only expect the king to stay in the house we built for him if we are taking care of the princess. If we do not treat her properly, then Hashem will see no reason to dwell in our Mishkan. May we continue to elevate Torah over all other pursuits, and make it the most important part of our lives!
Rabbi Moshe Revah Rosh HaYeshiva, HTC - Beis HaMidrash LaTorah moshe.revah@htc.edu | 
No comments:
Post a Comment