BS"D
PERFECT PRESENT:
PARSHAT KI TEITZEI
Shira Smiles shiur - ELUL
5782
Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
One
of the mitzvoth in Parshat Ki Teitzei is the safety minded mitzvah that,
"If you build a new house, you shall make a fence for your roof." The
Netivot Shalom asks two very obvious questions. Since this is a safety
issue, why limit it to just a roof and, even more specifically to a new house?
To further complicate matters, we just read two parshiot earlier, "See.
I present before you today a blessing and a curse..." As the Tosher Rebbe
asks, How does one see a blessing or a curse, and why the emphasis on
"today?"
The
Netivot Shalom explains that the "house" the Torah is
discussing is not necessarily a physical structure, but the place where a
person resides intellectually, spiritually and religiously. In this context,
one cannot expect to do teshuvah on one or two specific transgressions; one
must change his mindset and move it to a new place, create a new "house"
for his psyche. He must begin in the "roof" of his being, in his
head. He must protect that new house with a מעקה /a fence of
יראה, fear and
awe of Heaven. The Slonimer Rebbe notes that the numerical equivalent of both
of these words is 216, if we add 1 for the unit of the complete word of
"fence."
The
work must begin with what the "roof" of our bodies, our heads,
controls. It must begin with what we let our eyes see, what our ears hear, and
what our mouth says. We must protect these potential dangerous openings and
pitfalls by erecting a barrier of yirah/awe and fear of Heaven.
Since
no two people are alike, continues the Slonimer Rebbe, no one person can fix
another person. Each of us has our unique mission. The greatest blessing is
that we overcome the unique challenges we face and fulfill our personal
mission. In the month of Elul, one must ask oneself what his purpose in life
is. We tend to think in grandiose terms of major goals. While you may pick a
lofty goal for your life, do not in the interim forget your daily mission and
the small opportunities to create a kiddush Hashem/a sanctification of
God's name. It is the opportunity which presents itself to us in the moment
that we must do. The energy of this moment, of hayom/today, is not the
same as it will be tomorrow, even if your action is the same but delayed.
The
Torah tells us that when Avraham Avinu was old, he came "with [all] his
days." Each day Avraham accomplished what that daily mission was, what had
presented itself to him. It was the totality of those fulfilling days that
created a fulfilled life.
We
too have daily opportunities that are unique to us. Even with what appears to
be the same opportunity to several people, each of us perceives the
circumstances, challenges and opportunity differently. This is the basis of
human life. "Anochi/I [Hashem] present before you this day, the
blessings and the curses." Hashem Himself is giving each of us not only
the opportunity, but also the tools we need for our unique mission in life. [A
carpenter does not need a thesaurus, nor does a writer need a hammer. CKS]
Everything is in place, and we must do our role. The greatest way to honor
Hashem is to accomplish what presents itself at the particular moment.
We
tend to think in terms of action, of asei tov/do good. But sur meira/leave
evil is also a manifestation of glorifying Heaven. Every moment we restrain our
inclinations and avoid the negative brings Godliness into the world. While this
is true all year, its effect is most intense in the month of Elul. Wake up,
live in Hashem's house all the days of your life, but build a fence around your
head to protect yourself from evil.
The
overriding mission of the entire world Hashem created, and of each individual,
is to create greater honor and glory of Hashem in the world. When one has this
destination in mind as the major focal point of his life, he will always know
where he is heading. Even when life seems to lead him in different directions,
on different detours, he will find his way toward the end goal, writes Rabbi
Kluger in My Sole Desire. [We can compare life to a maze puzzle. The
puzzle Master has shown us where we begin, and has indicated the end goal.
There are many obstacles along the way, but if we keep focusing on the end
goal, even as we make mistakes along the way, we will eventually get to the
finish line. CKS] Every line is important in creating the complete arc of
connection between me and Hakodosh Boruch Hu. That includes not only doing the
positive, but also refraining from crossing the lines to the negative. Although
each mitzvah may appear to be an isolated action or inaction, each is important
to create the full picture. [It takes all the pixels on a computer screen to
create a total image. CKS] When I wash my hands upon awakening, I do so with an
intent similar to the kohain's as he was about to begin his service in the Beit
Hamikdosh -- I too am starting my day in service to the Ribbono shel olam.
All
that we see, hear or sense is an agent of Hakodosh Boruch Hu to teach us
something, writes Rav Dessler. On this path, the righteous will walk upright,
while the wicked will fall. Our challenge is to see clearly that nothing
happens by accident, that Hashem coordinated everything to help me achieve my
personal greatness. It is our responsibility to really see what part we are to
play in every situation. If we live with that mindset, we will sleep more
easily at night, no longer trying to fill an emptiness that keeps us awake. We
will fill our days with contentment, be happy in our lot, and live our days,
years and lives in fulfillment, writes Rabbi Eisenberger in Mesillot
Bilvovom.
Rabbi
Brazile, citing Rabbi Wolbe, notes that bishvili nivra haolam,
usually translated as, "For me was the world created," could
also be translated as, "Bishvili/with my unique shvil/path
was the world created. As the verse in Tehillim says, "Sing for Hashem a
new song," Sing for Hashem your own, special song created, a song related
from the strengths and challenges of your life, unique, new and unduplicatable.
I am unique, and my son is unique. Our challenges, writes the Chernobyl Rebbe,
may simply be the method needed to open our eyes and teach us what needs to be
done. When we have lose our job, for example, we learn how to be more sensitive
to the poor.
One
may ask that if Hashem had decreed that a person fall from a rooftop, why
should I build a fence around my roof? Hashem may have decreed that the man
will fall, but He did not necessarily decree that it be from my rooftop. There
are many messengers who are able to fulfill this decree. It needn't be me,
teaches us Rabbi Bachye. Before we were born, Hashem has already shown our
souls everything that would happen to us in life, and our neshamot agreed,
for it knew what we needed.
During
Elul, we pray that we be the conduit for good, for coronating Hashem as King
over the entire world, writes Rabbi Zvi Meir Zilberberg in Sichot Hitchazkut.
We ask Hashem to open our eyes so that we will recognize that He has
orchestrated everything in our lives and in the entire world, [וידע כל
פעול כי אתה פעלתו] And therefore, "Ten pachdecha al kol ma'asecha/Put
fear of You on all Your works," Let me fear falling away from You so that
I will put a "fence" around my "roof," so that I will
always examine my actions to see if they bring me closer to awe of Heaven, or
distance me from You.
Rabbi
Kofman makes an interesting observation. The Torah tells us to put a fence
around גגך, around
your roof. The gematria/numerical equivalent of גגך is 26, the
same as the four lettered name of Hashem. In other words, if you put a fence
around your "roof," you will not come to transgress the word of
Hashem and fall.
You
have access to seeing the particular moment today, to live in this day and this
moment, to notice patterns and themes in your behavior, and make the changes
you need to make. We seem to approach Hashem each year with the same intentions
and resolutions. But they are not the same. There have been changes and there
has been progress, writes Rabbi Kluger. Focus on hayom/today, not on the
past. We cannot move forward if we are constantly looking in the rear view
mirror.
Rabbi
Sternbach gives us some practical suggestions. Make your resolutions
reasonable. Set a manageable time frame. If you realize you are prone to speaking
loshon horo, for example, resolve to refrain from speaking loshon horo
for one particular hour each day. If you find you are not focusing on your
tefillah, resolve to focus on one blessing for one week. As you succeed, you
add more time. If you make a blanket resolution, "From now on I will
always/never...," you are setting yourself up for failure rather than for
limited success that you can continue to build upon. Begin with hayom/today,
and build on this day.
Focus
on the situation around us today, see what opportunity I have at this moment.
The present is perfect, and it is a gift. Remain alert so that I can accomplish
something today, for this particular opportunity presents itself only today.
Often
we don't recognize an opportunity as important. Yet, saying the right thing at
the right time [or refraining from saying the wrong thing] can have an impact
beyond anything we imagine or anticipate. A simple, kind word, a validation of
someone's human existence, can even save a life, and we would never know it.
Look for opportunities Hashem puts in our unique path every day. Look for those
moments when we can give or receive graciously. Really see the present. It is
perfect.