BS”D

DONKEY’S DIRECTIVE: PARSHAT KORACH

Shira Smiles shiur

Summary by Channie Koplowitz Stein

            In studying history, one can cite many challenges to authority and many rebellions, but none more egregious than the rebellion of Korach and his assembly against Moshe. Korach was angry at the appointment of Aharon and his sons as kohanim. He, himself a cousin of Moshe and Aharon, gathered to him Dathan, Aviram and 250 prominent men, marched to Moshe and demanded: “It is too much for you! For the entire assembly – all of them – are holy … Why do you exalt yourselves over the congregation of Hashem? … You seek to dominate us even further.”

            Moshe’s response, while certainly deflecting their accusation, is somewhat enigmatic. In addition to pointing out Korach’s own exalted position, he continues,  “… I have not taken a single donkey of theirs, nor have I wronged even one of them.” While the simple explanation says I have not gained economically in any way, the reference to a donkey to symbolize that idea seems odd. What could Moshe have been trying to say on a deeper level? As Rabbi Dovid Hofstadter points out, Korach’s complaint was more about cronyism, about Moshe’s appointing Aharon as Kohen gadol and Elitzaphan ben Uziel as head of the Kehas families. Why did this anger Moshe so?

            Our first question is how did Korach dare to challenge Moshe so disrespectfully? Korach indeed was a great man imbued with prophetic vision He foresaw that his descendent would be the Prophet Samuel who, in his time, would be equal in stature to Moshe and Aharon combined, as the Psalm declares, “Moshe and Aharon were among his priests [in their time as] Shmuel [in his time] among those who called His name.” Given his future lineage, Korach felt justified in demanding an even more prestigious role for himself than he already had. While he himself did not survive the punishment Hashem meted out to him and to all that belonged to him, he was swallowed by the earth, his sons repented, survived, and from them Shmuel descended. In fact, Shmuel’s final good-bye to the people echos the words Moshe himself spoke here: “Answer me before God. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken …?”

            The Menachem Zion focuses not only on the donkey, but also on the term Moshe uses for “taking” the donkey, nasati/I raised up. From this terminology, the Menachem Zion deduces that what Moshe was actually saying was that he did not raise up anyone lowly for his own benefit, nor did he keep anyone from a position designated for him. It was all truly by God’s word.

            Why didn’t Moshe simply dismiss these false accusations as the ravings of a disgruntled congregant? Rabbi Yerucham Levovitz notes that herein lies another example of Moshe’s greatness and humility. If there were any accusations against him, he would introspect and search all his actions to check if there was even a hint of impropriety that could serve as a basis for such an accusation. As Rabbi Wolbe points out, the greatest test of leadership and honesty is money. Moshe was so scrupulous about the temptation that he wore clothes with no pockets while he was collecting donations for building the Tabernacle. He refused to even borrow a donkey as he moved among the people from camp to camp.

            It is up to us to equally examine our actions. Are our actions, even our mitzvah performance, strictly for the sake of Heaven, or is there also an element of self interest, of financial gain or prestige in our decision cautions Rabbi Hillel in Ascending the Path. When you have a personal interest in anything, clarity becomes clouded. This was the problem with Korach, notes Rabbi Weissblum in Heorat Derech. Once Korach saw the future leadership of his descendent Shmuel , his comprehension of current reality and leadership was distorted.

            What was so galling to Moshe, and proves to be a common psychological action, was that Korach was accusing him of something of which Moshe was totally innocent, but of which Korach himself was guilty. Korach accused Moshe of using his leadership for personal gain.  In fact, Moshe was willing to die for his people. That’s why he was chosen for leadership. Not so the arrogant Korach who wanted leadership for his own power and prestige, writes Rabbi Dovid Hofstadter. As further proof of how Hashem chooses the leaders of Bnei Yisroel, Rabbi Hofstadter. notes that the seventy elders Hashem had Moshe choose to help him lead the nation were the men who had been taskmasters during the Egyptian enslavement. These men had endured beatings from the Egyptians rather than blame any of the Jews under them for a shortfall in brick production. While Korach saw leadership as an honor, Moshe and Aharon perceived their roles as a form of enslavement to the needs of the people, writes Rabbi Druck in Aish Tomid.

            Then the question becomes is it ever appropriate for a leader to accept anything from someone else? Can one accept a ride (the donkey) from one’s neighbor, help with a project, or the gift of tomatoes from a friend’s overflowing garden, asks Rabbi Sternbach? After all, when you accept something from someone, you develop a sense of indebtedness and gratitude similar to bribery, continues Rabbi Druck. To never accept anything from anyone seems rather harsh. The Oshover Rebbe discusses this question in Be’er Moshe. First of all, we are not on Moshe’s level. Further, While someone in a position of a judge where his decision may indeed be influenced by favors received must be extremely vigilant, certainly not all leadership positions fall into this category.

            The Be’er Moshe then cites the Gemarrah which states that a leader may derive benefit from another if he so wishes. As proof, it cites the experience of the Prophet Elisha who accepted lodging in the special room the Shunamit woman created for him in the attic of her home. But in return, in the merit of this chessed, he blessed her to have a child. Nevertheless, if he does not wish to accept benefit from anyone, he may choose not to do so as well, as the Prophet Shmuel accepted nothing from anyone. The point to ponder is if this partnership between the giver and the receiver is truly leshem Shamayim, for the sake of Heaven, or for some personal benefit on either side. When a talmid chochom or a tzaddik gains benefit from another, He is also providing a benefit for his benefactor in the form of merit before the Almighty. To illustrate the point, one can one need only observe the priestly blessing. When the kohanim bless Bnei Yisroel, they are indeed bestowing benefit to the nation. However, there is reciprocity, for when Bnei Yisroel answer Amen, they are in effect enabling the kohanim to bless them.

            The kohanim derive further benefit from the people by virtue of the twenty-four special priestly gifts like terumot and challah, for example. Korach felt that since he was very rich, he would need none of the priestly gifts, and therefore he was more suitable for the priesthood than Aharon and his descendants. He held the opinion of his descendent Shmuel who would take nothing from anyone, as opposed to Elisha who later helped the widowed woman and revived her son.

            The Be’er Moshe continues. It is important for us to support the priest (and by extension other religious leaders). Korach was among those charged with carrying the Ark of the Law. We are told, however, that the Ark carried itself. What then was the purpose of the “carriers”? They were there to lend support to the Ark. Similarly, talmidei chachamim and rebbeim need the support of the people, although they should remain above being influenced by the “gifts” of others. Yaakov foresaw Korach’s attitude and therefore, when he blessed his sons before his death, he distanced himself from this congregation of Levi’s descendants. After the earth swallowed Korach and all he owned, and the fire consumed his 250 followers, Hashem commands that Bnei Yisroel not be like Korach and his assembly as Hashem spoke about him beyad Moshe, through [the hand of] Moshe. This phrase, the Be’er Moshe says, is a hint that we are to support our spiritual leaders. It was the hands of Moshe that uplifted Bnei Yisroel in their war with Amalek, and when his hands were not raised and supported, Bnei Yisroel were weak as well.

            The Noam Elimelech uses this idea to offer a novel interpretation to Moshe’s response. In his introspection, Moshe may have felt that he had contributed to Korach’s transgression. Perhaps if he had accepted something from Korach, even the use of Korach’s donkey, perhaps he would have elevated Korach enough to have protected him from this sin.  After all, notes Artscroll, turning down a proffered gift can also be interpreted as haughtiness.

            There are three people who are noted as being on a chamor, a donkey. First is our patriarch Avraham who saddled his donkey to go to Mt. Moriah for the binding of his son Isaac. Then there is Moshe Rabbenu who brought his family to Egypt from Midyan on a donkey. Finally there will be Moshiach who will arrive on a donkey. What do these three instances have in common? The chamor represents chomer, physicality, earthiness, materialism. In each of these cases, the “rider” is raised above the earth. Avraham is taken outside and told to look at the heavens and see the stars, Moshe is told to raise his staff to the heavens, and Moshiach is the humble pauper at the height of spiritual perfection. Korach complains that Moshe lifted himself up on the backs of others. Moshe responds that, on the contrary, he lifted himself up by working on himself to raise himself above earthly matters.

            Rabbi Tauber in The Inside Story explains that God did not desire that we repudiate the material world. Rather, He wants mankind to use the earthly, the chomer/material of this world and elevate it to spiritual levels. Thus Avraham used the donkey to carry the wood he would use for the altar of sacrifice. Moshe would use the donkey to carry his family, the extension of self, to Egypt to begin the process of redeeming the Jewish nation so they could serve Hashem at Mount Sinai. Moshiach, representing the merging of the spiritual and physical worlds for service to Hashem, personally rides the donkey, the chamor/chomer.

            Each of us must do our own introspection. Are our acts truly for the sake of Heaven, or do we have a personal agenda? All leadership, whether in family situations, social, professional, or spiritual require us to check our own agendas at the door, to eschew the pursuit of honor or money as we strive to work for the common good and to serve Hashem. Let us not be like Korach whose focus was on self and on his own benefit. Let us strive to take the Korach out of ourselves.