BS”D
VISCERAL VIEWING: PARSHAT NASO
Shira
Smiles Shiur
Adapted
by Channie Koplowitz Stein
Whenever the Torah records two seemingly unrelated ideas together, whether
mitzvoth or incidents, our rabbis try to find some relationship between the two
that forms a logical connection. Such is the case in Parshat Naso. We begin
with the case of a woman who goes astray and her husband suspects her of
adultery/ an isha sota. She is brought before the Kohen where she drinks
the water into which the words of the curses that will befall her, including
God’s name, have been erased. Based on her innocence or guilt, she either dies
a horrible death or is blessed for her future with her husband.
Immediately following this section, the Torah presents the laws of a Nazarite,
one who vows to abstain from wine and other grape products for a specific
period of time. He shall remain holy to Hashem until the term of his vow has
been completed, after which he is to bring a sin offering to Hashem. This seems
a rather strange juxtaposition. First, how are the laws pertaining to a wayward
woman related to taking a vow of abstention, and secondly, is the Nazarite a
holy man or a sinner?
Rabbi Meir in the Gemorrah Presents the classic answer: This juxtaposition
comes to teach us that whoever sees a woman in this degradation should abstain
from wine in order to minimize the likelihood of his sinning. But we are still
left with the question of why? Rabbi Druck clarifies the question. Wouldn’t it
make more sense that someone who did not witness the miraculous events of the Sota
ritual should become a Nazarite. How could someone sin after witnessing the
immediate and severe punishment meted out to this sinful woman? Viewing this so
viscerally should be enough of a deterrent. Further, the Gemorrah states that
everyone who witnesses this, whether a simple man or the Kohen Gadol
himself, should vow to become a Nazir. There must be something profound
we can learn from this juxtaposition.
Rabbi Zaks and others suggest that perhaps this woman arrived at this condition
through excessive drinking, a fall that developed in degrees over a period of
time. If one is to correct flawed character traits, especially those that could
result in sinning, one would be wise to follow the advice of the
Rambam/Maimonides. In such cases, it is not enough just to temper your
behavior, but to avoid the trait or behavior completely. Only after going to
the opposite extreme and habituating oneself in that extreme can one approach
the center, the balance in his behavior. That the witness here is commanded to
remove himself from wine presents a paradigm for improvement. He is to create a
new habit.
But Rabbi Zaks here takes a different approach. He submits that both the
Sota woman and the Nazir are extremes. Rabbi Zaks believes that it
is enough to minimize one’s drinking while maintaining safeguards rather than
abstaining completely. Each of the extremes is a sin, and therefore the Nazir
must bring a sin offering at the conclusion of his nezirut. After all,
Hashem commanded us to enjoy the world He created. Nevertheless, Rambam’s view
is the more accepted view.
Everything in the Torah as well as everything we experience is meant to teach
us and help us grow. As the Prophet Hosea says, “… For the ways of Hashem are
straight; the righteous walk in them and the sinners stumble over them.” This
is a major tenet of Rav Dessler’s zt”l philosophy. Therefore, writes Rabbi
Schlesinger in Areset Sefateinu, in you were in the Beit Hamikdosh and
witnessed this ritual, Hashem wants you to use this experience to understand a
fault in yourself that needs correcting. If you become a Nazir for this
purpose, you are holy. If you become a Nazir sans this experience, you
are a sinner. What you see and what you hear is meant for your eyes and your
ears. The lesson is there, although it may not be so easily discernible. It is
not enough to point out a flaw or mistake to our friend, writes Rav Gamiel
Rabinovitz in Tiv Hatorah. If we are witnessing this behavior, it
behooves us to introspect and see how we may be falling into a similar trap.
You have a connection to whatever you witness, writes Rabbi Druck, not only for
the negative, but also for the positive. If you witness a mitzvah, you must
have some merit for having seen it. What you see is related to what you are
drawn to. Therefore, if you saw the woman in this degradation, there must be
some flaw in you that drew your eyes to that scene. [That explains why multiple
witnesses will give differing reports about the same scene, and some people
will not even notice it at all. CKS]
Everything we see impacts us in some way, either positively or negatively.
Therefore, writes Rabbi Grosbard in Da’as Schrage, even a Kohen Gadol
will be impacted by the scene of an isha sota, and he too must take
precautions not to fall. Every major transgression including that of the fallen
woman, begins with small steps, adds Rabbi Beyfus. Therefore it is important
for everyone, including a Kohen Gadol, to be on guard so he doesn’t take the
first step on that slippery slope.
Our Sages, even in ancient times, recognized the importance of safeguards.
Rabbi Neiman, citing the Saba of Kelm, teaches that the Purim mitzvoth of Mishloach
Manot and matanot loevyonim/gifts to the poor have their basis in
prevention. When Bnei Yisroel saw that Haman’s hatred grew from anger at one
Jew to his willingness to destroy an entire nation, they understood that just
as one who witnesses the downfall of a Sota must install safeguards on
his own behavior, so must they install safeguards not to begin the slide to
hating fellow Jews. Therefore they instituted Mishloach Manot to honor
each other and gifts to the poor to sensitize themselves to the plight of
others.
Rabbi Druck presents a practical reason for the witness taking a vow of
abstinence. We sometimes are witness to extraordinary events that have
tremendous impact on our psyche. However, unless we take concrete steps and act
to implant the idea within us permanently, the impact soon fades and we do not
remain changed. The action must be immediate, or the impact will fade. One must
take the arousal and fashion it into a tool to retain that feeling.
While it is noble to try to squelch the call of the yetzer horo, the
struggle is not winnable without tangible effort that takes the effort from the
theoretical to the practical. As Letitcha Elyon writes, citing Rav
Dessler, holding down the yetzer horo with thoughts and nothing else to
hold it down is like pushing down a spring and not applying pressure to keep it
down. The yetzer horo, like the spring, will pop right back up. When you
feel yourself struggling, take on a new kabbalah/resolute action, no
matter how small, to help maintain resolve.
Rav Dovid Hofstedter offers a profound and beautiful explanation in answer to
our questions. He suggests that what happens to this woman is not punishment
and death for bad behavior or a reward and blessings for good behavior. Rather
they are the result of having ingested the name of God, of being in direct
contact with His presence. If she has sinned, her body cannot bear God’s
presence and she disintegrates from within. If she is guiltless, having God’s
name within her produces the blessings. Therefore, anyone who witnesses God’s
revelation in this way (not merely hearing of it), must be moved to dissociate
himself from sin and seek to elevate himself spiritually.
We all have multiple moments of revelation during our lives, continues Rabbi
Hofstedter. We should take those moments as a means of dissociating ourselves
from any trace of sin and elevating ourselves spiritually.
In Mishchat Shemen, Rabbi Koffman makes an interesting observation. When
you see someone worshiping a false god, even if you do not follow him, the
possibility has now entered your mind. This is so, adds the Shaaray Chaim,
even if you witness the punishment. What was previously deemed impossible now
has entered the realm of possibility. [Some commentators explain that after the
Revelation at Sinai and the many miracles Hashem wrought for Bnei Yisroel, no
nation thought it possible to wage war against Bnei Yisroel. Then Amalek came, asher
korcho baderech/who came upon you on the way/who broke the ice (korcho/made
cold) on your way, and even though the nations saw Amalek’s defeat, they now
felt they could wage war against Bnei Yisroel. It was Amalek who put that
possibility into the minds of the nations of the world forever. CKS]
Since having witnessed the sin or its consequences, sinning becomes a
possibility. Therefore it is necessary to take preventive measures, not only to
keep us from transgressing, but also to retain our sensitivity and abhorrence
at these departures from Hashem’s will. As Rabbi Zissel of Kelm says, once we
are exposed, we begin to imagine the possibility, even if remote. [I have many
plans for when I win the lottery, from where I will give the double ma’aser to
how I can help my children and others. CKS]
Finally, as Rabbi Koffman reminds us, all Bnei Yisroel is interconnected, as if
tied together by one rope. If one person falls, so many others are pulled down
with him. In this context, if one witnesses this woman’s degradation, he must
ask himself if he was negligent in some small way that may have led, in a
ripple effect, to this woman’s downfall. When he fluttered his wings
inappropriately, did it cause the tsunami across the world in this woman’s
life? In this context, when the person takes this vow of nezirut, he is
acknowledging his role as part of Klal Yisroel, as holding up his end of
the rope of sanctity so that no one of Bnei Yisroel will falter.
May we merit witnessing “Sinners… cease from the earth and the wicked will be
no more.” Then, “I will sing to Hashem while I live, I will sing praises to my
God while I endure… Bless Hashem, O my soul, Hallelukah.” (Tehillim 104:34-33)