Rabbi Aryeh Leibowitz
We established that for man to attain his elevated level as
the pinnacle of creation he must use his mind and intellect to pursue
wisdom. Through the acquisition of
wisdom man clarifies the truths of reality.
He is then empowered to make free willed decisions to live his life in
line with the wisdom he has acquired and the truths he has clarified.
What is the best source of this wisdom? What is man to pursue with his mind? What body of knowledge will instruct man to
live an elevated life? What actions are
reflective of true wisdom and truth? Or in more existential terms: How does man actualize his
potential and fully assume his humanity?
What best enables man to be “wise and good?” What is the best way to engage one’s neshama,
overcome the downward pull of his lower forces, and attain one’s higher tzurah?
The answer to the above questions is very straightforward:
Torah study and performance of the mitzvos. In the realm of wisdom, Torah is the field of
study that will most readily provide man with the truest and highest wisdom. Torah can also inform man which decisions he
should be making in life. The performance
of mitzvos are the pursuits that reflect the wisdom of the Torah, they develop
man’s ethical and spiritual character, and lead man to an elevated
existence.
Hence, we find that Torah is compared to rain and dew, “May
my teachings drop like the rain, may my utterances flow like the dew.” (Devarim
32:2) Just as rain and dew are vital components in the process of seed
development and assist the ground in bringing out the potential from the seed,
so too Torah (and the mitzvos found within) is a vital component is
human development and assists a person in actualizing his potential and
attaining his elevated level.
Hashem's Diet
In the coming chapters we will explore why Torah study
is so critical for a person’s development.
We will suggest in future chapters an approach to understanding the
value of Torah study. However, before we
begin, it is worthy to address if we really need to answer this question.
It is intuitive to us that man’s physical body was designed
by Hashem that it requires many things for sustenance. For example, man must consume vitamins,
proteins, etc. in order to physically exist and have the strength and ability
to accomplish the pursuits of the body.
Similarly, Hashem designed man’s meta-physical self that it too requires
many things in order to exist and function.
Just as the physical body has things that sustain it, power it, and
develop it, so too the elevated spiritual neshamah has similar needs.
What sustains the physical body? Many things can provide the body with
sustenance. But if a person wants to
maintain his health and achieve longevity, he knows that it behooves him to not
only eat what tastes good, but that there are specific dietary parameters he
ought to follow. Whether its whole
grains or dietary fibers a responsible person makes sure he consumes what his
healthy for his body. He makes sure he
has covered the different food groups and is careful with portion control.
Man’s meta-physical needs operate in a similar way. If man wants to live a spiritually fulfilling
lifestyle, maintain a healthy neshamah, and ultimately attain his
elevated position in the hierarchy of creation, he must ensure that he is
“consuming” a healthy diet. Just as we
saw with phsycial nutience, many things can feed a person’s spiritual appetite.
But if a person wants to maintain spiritual health and longevity it behooves
him to know what is truly healthy.
Hashem created man in a way that Torah and mitzvos
are the specific “foods” that will sustain his neshamah. These are the “whole grains and dietary fibers”
for the intellect and meta-physical soul.
The world cannot exist without wisdom. Just as a thirsty person starves for water, so too intelligent people starve for Torah and wisdom. (Radak, Yeshaya 55:1)
To take the analogy one step further, we must note that there
are many different “healthy foods” that are necessary for man’s spiritual
health. To cover all of his “food groups,”
man must pursue the many different mitzvos and study the many areas of
Torah that are available to him.
Trusting the
One might ask: How do I know that these are the best “foods”
for my neshamah and spiritual health?
Let’s answer this by returning to our example of the car. If a person owns a car and wants to know what
oils, what parts, what gasoline will best serve the car and ensure for maximum
performance, where would he turn? Would
he not consult the car’s engineer? The
one who designed the car is likely the best source for this information. But what if he is unable to reach the
engineer, or does not know exactly how to contact him? Would it not behoove the car owner to consult
the manual written by the car’s engineer and place in the glove compartment for
the car owner’s personal use?! Even if
one doesn’t know the difference between a strut or a shock, or cannot explain the
purpose of a carburetor, he can still rest assured if he carefully follows the
instructions of the car’s engineer. Perhaps
with time, the car owner will gain a deeper understanding of the car’s inner
workings and appreciate why the specific instructions are correct.
Hashem created our bodies and even provided us with a manual
with specific instructions how to best operate our “self.” Does it not behoove us to follow His
instructions? If he informs us that Torah study and mitzvos are the best
diet for maximizing our performance, would it not be foolish to ignore Him?[1] Many of us do not know why spelt flour is
better than white flour, or why exactly getting a good night sleep is healthy. Yet we value these choices because of our
faith in medical research and researchers.
Should we not give Hashem and Chazal the same vote of confidence?
[1] It is quite shocking how much responsibility we take with our cars. Before changing a part or
servicing our vehicle, we do research, consider our options, etc. We take such care because we don’t want to
turn around seven years later and find that our car is falling apart because of a
lack of proper maintenance. But with our
most precious possession – our lives – we often “go with the flow.” We eat what we wish, we do what we want, and
then we are surprised when years later we are physically unhealthy, and spiritually unhappy, unfulfilled, and
uninspired.
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