Parshas Emor - Of Mice and Men: Divide and Conquer

Parshas Emor

Of Mice and Men: Divide and Conquer

By: Daniel Listhaus

“Hashem spoke to Moshe, saying: When an ox or a sheep or a goat is born, it shall remain under its mother for seven days; and from the eighth day on, it will appease for a fire-offering to Hashem.”

-Emor 22:26-27

The Kli Yakar¹ on this passuk (verse) makes the following observation. The Torah, in discussing the birth of animals, does not use the expression of “when an animal gives birth to a baby”, but rather says, “When an ox or a sheep or a goat is born”. We see from here that the Torah defines an animal by its name immediately when its born. As soon as a sheep or a cow gives birth, its product is right away called as such, for it has reached its purpose in life. The purpose of a sheep is to be a sheep. The purpose of a cow is to be a cow. There is no guesswork needed to determine the complexity of any given creature.² As the saying goes, “If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, we have to at least consider the possibility that we have a small aquatic bird of the family anatidae on our hands”.³

However, as the Kli Yakar continues, man is very different. A person is defined by his actions. We are put in this world with a bechira (free choice) as to how we will direct our lives. The directions we choose and actions we ultimately do are what determine the level of perfection we have achieved.

The Kli Yakar is not really teaching us anything that we did not know already, but rather something which is so obvious to us that we often do not think about it.⁴ As people, we are born as unshaped, raw beings waiting to be formed into what we are supposed to achieve. Within each and every child that is born, there is an inherent, incredible potential waiting to be unleashed through making the right decisions. The Mesilas Yesharim, based on the teaching of Rebbe Pinchas ben Yair⁵, goes through the various levels a person could achieve – from cautiousness all the way to the highest level of kedusha (Holiness). We literally have the ability to make correct choices and ultimately to persevere and reach the highest levels of the Mesilas Yesharim – becoming as close to Hashem as a malach (angel) while privileged with access to ruach HaKodesh (Holy spirit) and being capable of performing techiyas hameisim (resurrection of the dead).⁶

Nonetheless, it is often hard for us to realize our own potential. We all know that there is much that is expected from us, and that there have been great people in the past who have accomplished tremendous amounts. However, when it comes to us, we often convince ourselves that it is out of our reach or capability. Somehow, we are supposed to understand our potential and try to achieve it; but how do we get ourselves to take the first step and then how do we go about accomplishing what we are here to do?

The Mishna in Pirkei Avos⁷ states, “They used to say three things: Rabbi Eliezer says: 1. Let the honor of your fellow man be as dear to you as your own... 2. Do teshuvah (repent) one day before your death 3. You should warm yourselves opposite the fire of the chachomim (Torah Sages)....”

Is there a connection between these three ideas? Could we perhaps find a common theme throughout these ideas being expressed in this Mishna?

The first teaching was that the honor of your friend should be as dear to you as your own. When hearing this, the first thing that comes to mind is the mitzva of v'ahavta l'reiacha kamocha⁸ (you should love your friend as you love yourself). The immediate difficulty with understanding this mitzva is of course the fact that one's love for others seems dependent on one's love towards oneself. Does this mean that someone who is full of himself must treat someone else with the same respect, while a depressed person is expected to make everyone else's life miserable? Certainly not.

Rather, the mitzva of v'ahavta l'reiacha kamocha must be a two-part mitzvah. First, one is obligated to realize his own self respect - why he as a person is deserving of honor. Only then could one see that while each person is different from each other with different strengths and weaknesses, there is one common denominator which applies to each and every individual. There is something unique about being a ben-Adam (son of Adam) which merits an inherent kavod (honor) and respect.

This is certainly a difficult idea to pin-point. After all, we know how bad the middah (trait) of gaivah (haughtiness) is and the measures we must take to avoid it at all costs.⁹ Yet, at the same time, the mishna in Sanhedrin¹⁰ states that there is an obligation for each person to say, “The world was created just for me.” Rashi¹¹ on this explains that a person must believe that he himself is as important as the entire world.

Besides for the evident contradiction between being warned against having feelings of gaivah and the obligation to believe that I am just as important as the world at large, the mishna also does not make any sense mathematically. For arguments sake, let us assume that there are seven billion people in the world. Leaving everything else aside, if I am to believe that the I am just as important as the sum total of everything else, then mathematically, each person is worth only one-seventh billionth (1/7,000,000,000) of myself. Yet, considering that the person sitting next to me is believing the same thing, that makes me worth only one-seventh billionth. Which one is it? Is the mishna just giving us false encouragement to lead us in the right direction?

Perhaps the mishna is actually teaching us what v'ahavta l'reiacha kamocha is all about. Each person has the obligation to recognize his potential – the greatness that one could achieve as an individual. The obligation of reminding myself of my importance is not one which permits me to feel better than everyone else. Rather it is a responsibility to realize the chashivus ha'adom which each individual has. Each person has such exponential and infinite potential that it is impossible to measure his or her importance.

This is the first stage we must understand. We must realize that each of us has incredible potential. And although that potential may not be exactly the same for everyone, there is a certain amount of kavod habriyos and v'ahavta l'reiacha kamocha which is due out of respect of each person's capabilities, even if they are currently unrealized. The chashivus ha'adom itself demands a level of recognition in its own merit.

Admittedly, this is one of those things which is “easier said then done”. The fact that we as humans have an incredible potential we could achieve may be something which is obvious and yet still has to be brought to our attention. However, even once we realize this about ourselves, we are immediately confronted with a new difficulty: Perhaps now is too late. We have already spent our lives on x, y, and z when we could have been doing something more productive. If so, it should be impossible to turn back on the right path and first start trying to maximize one's potential. This way of thinking, is of course a tremendous mistake. All it takes is one second. Just one decision is needed to redirect oneself, and suddenly, what was impossible only a moment ago becomes very possible.

The Gemara Kiddushin¹² states that if someone tries to be mekadesh (betroth) a woman on condition that he is a tzaddik (righteous person), then even if this individual is known as a complete rasha (wicked person), still we are concerned¹³ that perhaps his stipulation worked. After all, just because he was a rasha a second ago, does not necessarily mean that he is a rasha now. Perhaps he changed his direction in one moment and has since decided to be a tzaddik.

There are two fascinating points in this gemara. First, that we are actually concerned that someone who is a known rasha might have actually become a tzaddik overnight just because he chose to make such a stipulation. What happened to the general concept of chazaka which usually allows us to assume that things remain status quo? Second, even if this man really did somehow get struck by lightening and decided to change his ways, does that automatically deem him a tzaddik? At best he should be considered a beinoni (regular person) and we should still not be concerned about his stipulation. What did he do already that was so great that we should suddenly treat him as a tzaddik?

It must be that it is indeed possible to stop and re-decide at any given point to redirect oneself on a path of reaching one's potential in leading a life of maximum yiras shamayim. Not only that, but as long as one makes that decision, even though it may be later in life, there is still a tremendous amount of potential waiting to be uncovered and realized. Teshuva (repentance) could be done at any time. This is the second stage to keep in mind: It is never too late.

Despite the realization of these two stages, there is an additional obstruction which could often impede us from starting to conquering our potential. In other words, some people could realize that there is tremendous potential to strive for, actually decide to go forth with achieving it, but then realize that the task is too great. How could one puny person be expected to learn so much and become so close to Hashem in such a short amount of time? It is literally impossible!

Imagine for a moment that a mouse has gotten a hold of entire bullet salami. Little Micky is so pleased with himself that he discovered where to find such a delicacy, and that he was able to refrain from eating the whole morning just to work up a massive appetite, which he wanted to save for this salami. However, as he takes a look at the meat, which is twice his size, and then looks down at his small mouse-sized plate, he begins to doubt his decisions. How in the world is he going get the salami on his plate? It is way to big! However, there is a simple solution to this problem which Micky will instinctively do. That is to utilize something known as salami tactics.¹⁴ In other words, when the mouse realizes that the salami is too much to eat fully, it will attack it slice by slice until it has completed it.

This is something which is instinctive for a mouse and seems obvious to us, yet it is still something which, for some reason, humans need to actively think about and realize before implementing. For example, one could look at conquering the world as an impossible task, or one could implement the divide-and-conquer strategy, as Alexander and Napoleon did, and suddenly the feat seems more reasonable. Divide and conquer is a simple battle strategy. We must just learn to keep it at the forefront of our minds so that we could accomplish anything.

These three ideas are vital for one to realize in order to succeed. First one must realize his own potential. Then, one must realize that it is expected of him and that it is in reach. Finally, one must not give up by having the right perspective as to how to conquer as much of one's potential as one could.

The medrash¹⁵ lists three scenarios to better illustrate this idea. The first setting is where there is a dune of dust, and it is your task to move it from one place to another. The foolish person says, “This is hopeless! It is impossible to move this mound.” However, one who is wise says, “I will transport two bucket-fulls today and two tomorrow and eventually it will get done.” The second case is one where there is a loaf of bread dangling from a high ceiling. The foolish person looks at it and says, “It is literally out of my reach. I cannot even reach it when I jump. It is impossible for me to obtain it.” However, one who is wise comes in with a very different perspective and says, “Did someone else not get it up there somehow? It must be possible to get down.” The third scenario is as follows. Imagine you have the job of filling up a swimming pool using only a pail with a hole in it. The foolish person says, “This is dumb. I fill up the buckets but the water just comes out the hole in the bottom. By the time I get to the pool, there is barely anything in the bucket.” Yet, once again, the wise man looks at this from a different angle, “I am being paid for every bucket I bring to the pool. This task will make me rich.”

Perhaps this medrash is addressing exactly the three points discussed above, in reverse order. The last case represents the wise person's realization of his existing potential. The second case represents the idea that one's potential is reachable – Hashem gave it to us, and therefore must be attainable. The first scenario in the medrash represents the idea that the only way to conquer a large task is through dividing it – taking one step at a time.

Perhaps this idea is indeed also the common theme throughout the aforementioned mishna in Pirkei Avos. The first step is that the honor of your friend should be as dear to you as your own. Meaning, one must realize that he himself, and every individual, has tremendous potential and is therefore inherently worthy of kavod.¹⁶ The second step is to repent one day before your death. In other words, as we saw in the Gemara Kiddushin, it is never too late to realize that one's potential is in reach. At any moment, one could redirect himself on the right track; and that moment should be now. No one knows when it will be his last day, so the time to do teshuva is immediately. The third stage is to warm yourself opposite the fire of the talmidei chachomim. As the medrash taught us, the chachomim were not born knowing everything. We must observe that through dividing, taking one step at a time, one could conquer his potential, as the talmidei chachomim have.

The Chofetz Chaim writes in his introduction to Mishna Berura:

ברוך ה' אלקי השמים ואלקי הארץ אשר ברא את הכל בחסדו בששת ימים ולבסוף ברא את האדם

May we all merit to realize the chashivus ha'adom, understand the fact that our potential is in reach, and ultimately conquer our goals by taking one step at a time.

1Vayikra 22:27

2See S'forno in Beraishis 2:19 who says that when Hashem brought the animals before Adam HaRishon to be named. Adam did so and called each animal by the name perfectly fitting with its purpose of being.

3Quote from Douglas Adams – British Author. Earlier forms of the quote end the saying with, “...it must be a duck.”

4See introduction to Mesilas Yesharim, where Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzatto (Ramchal) writes in reference to his sefer that he is not writing anything which people do not already know, it is just that because it is so obvious, people tend to overlook them.

5Avodah Zarah 20b

6Introduction to Mesilas Yesharim by Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzatto (Ramchal)

7Avos 2:15

8Vayikra 19:18

9See Orchos Tzadikkim: Sha'ar HaGaivah

10Sanhedrin 37a (4:5 in the mishnayos)

11Ibid.

12Kiddushin 49b

13See the Rosh (Perek 2 Siman 14) and Karban Nesanel (90) there.

14For those of you who are wondering, it is still called salami tactics even if the case would have been with pastrami.

15Medrash Rabbah: Metzora 19:2

16This first line of the mishna actually fully reads, “Let the honor of your fellow man be as dear to you as your own, and do not be prone to become angry.” At first glance, the end of the line seems completely unrelated. However, in learning our way it comes out good – that the type of kavod one is having for himself and for others, is not one stemming from gaivah (which would allow for you to get angry with others). Rather, it must come from a realization of chashivus ha'adom.