Thoughts
on The Parsha
Parshas
Shemini
Same
But Different
By:
Daniel Listhaus
וַיִּקְחוּ
בְנֵי אַהֲרֹן נָדָב וַאֲבִיהוּא אִישׁ
מַחְתָּתוֹ וַיִּתְּנוּ בָהֵן אֵשׁ
וַיָּשִׂימוּ עָלֶיהָ קְטֹרֶת וַיַּקְרִיבוּ
לִפְנֵי ה'
אֵשׁ
זָרָה אֲשֶׁר לֹא צִוָּה אֹתָם:
וַתֵּצֵא
אֵשׁ מִלִּפְנֵי ה'
וַתֹּאכַל
אוֹתָם וַיָּמֻתוּ לִפְנֵי ה'י
“The
sons of Aharon, Nadav and Avihu, each took his pan, they put fire in
them and placed incense upon it and they brought before Hashem an
alien fire that He had not commanded them. A fire came forth from
before Hashem and consumed them and they died before Hashem.”
-Shemini
10:1-2
Throughout
the Torah we are constantly reminded that there are many levels on
which one could perform mitzvos.
On a basic level, one could simply be doing mitzvos
without
realizing he is doing mitzvos;
whether that be because he has the wrong intentions or because he has
personal reasons to be doing the mitzvos
he does. In our
parsha we
find such an example along with an even higher level of performing
mitzvos
incorrectly
despite doing the right action and having the right intention.
The
Torah1
warns that the kohanim
are not allowed
to be intoxicated when they come to do the avodah
(work in beis
ha'mikdash).
Rashi2
comments that even if the kohen
would perform
the avodah
correctly while
intoxicated, his service would nevertheless be invalid. Indeed, here
we have an example where someone could be doing the right thing, but
with the wrong intentions, and therefore the avodah
becomes
unacceptable. There could be two kohanim
– one drunk
and one not –
doing the exact
same thing, one copying perfectly what the other is doing, and yet,
one's avodah will
be valid while the intoxicated one's will not. It is more than the
action alone which is meaningful, but also the mindset and intention
behind it.
Interestingly,
we also find in our parsha
an example where
not only was the action correct, but the intention was as well, and
yet a tragic result demonstrated that there was still an important
element missing.
The
passuk3
tells us, “The sons of Aharon – Nadav and Avihu – each took a
fire-pan and they put fire in them and placed incense upon it; and
they brought before Hashem an alien fire that He had not commanded
them. A fire came forth from before Hashem and consumed them, and
they died before Hashem.” There are several explanations which the
meforshim
(commentaries) offer as to what they did wrong. Rashi,4
in his first explanation, brings from the Gemara5
the opinion of
Rebbe Eliezer
who says that the reason why Nadav and Avihu died was because they
rendered a halachik
decision in the
presence of their teacher, Moshe.
The
Maharal6
points out that it is not so obvious that Nadav and Avihu did an
incorrect thing. They thought that they were supposed to light a fire
on the mizbe'ach
(alter) despite
there already being a fire on it which had descended from shamayim
(Heaven).
However, because they did not consult with Moshe rabbeinu
before doing so,
their actions were taken very seriously and they received a very
harsh punishment of death from heaven.
Here
we have an example of tzadikkim
(righteous
people) who did not merely do the right thing, but they even did it
with correct intentions. They had thought their actions through and
everything checked out. They did it only l'shem
shamayim (for
Heaven's sake). Yet, there was still an essential piece missing: they
did not consult with their Rebbe,
Moshe.
This
concept is quite hard to understand. Nadav and Avihu were the sons of
Aharon Ha'kohen
and were also righteous in their own right. They were not only doing
the proper thing, but even had the right intentions. Why should it
matter that they did not consult with Moshe rabbeinu
first? According
to the opinions that they did the right thing, Moshe would have told
them to do the same thing anyway. How could it be that Nadav and
Avihu be punished for doing something with the right intentions just
for not asking Moshe, if had they asked Moshe there would have been
nothing different? They would have done the same exact action with
the same righteous intentions? What was so bad about not asking Moshe
in this case? They had it all worked out?
We
could perhaps learn from the tragic death of Nadav and Avihu that
merely doing the right thing, even with completely the right
intentions, is still
not enough. There must be a basis for it, and that foundation must be
from our mesorah
(tradition). If
it is not part of the accepted mesorah
passed down from
rebbe to
talmid (student),
then as good as it seems and as much as it “fits” within the
Torah, it still does not belong. Our Torah is defined by our mesorah
and the
guidelines and rules built into it in terms of how to rule, passed
down from Moshe at Har
Sinai.
Tzadikim such
as Nadav and
Avihu should
have been more conscientious regarding the security of our mesorah
especially that
early on. Therefore, they were severely punished.
Unfortunately,
within Judaism there are many groups which attempt to make various
movements. Some find obscure textual references and others offer what
they believe are blatant proofs. However, the lesson to keep in mind
is that even if their actions would be good and even if they were
doing so with absolute pure intentions, there is still the most vital
element missing which is that it must fit into our mesorah,
and if it does not, then it does not belong. Shlomo ha'melech
writes in Koheles,7
“Do not be overly righteous, and do not be overly wise; why should
you bring desolation upon yourself?” Sometimes we are too smart for
our own good. We come up with good reasons and fantastic proofs, but
as real as they are and as right as they may be, if they are ruled
without asking a rebbe
to be absolutely
sure that it is part of our mesorah,
then it does not
belong. It is deemed as an “alien fire” even though it looks
perfectly in the right place with the right intentions.
May
Hashem help us realize that our success as a nation comes from our
adherence to our pure mesorah,
and that it is this linkage to our past which guarantees our future.
1Vayikra
10:8
2Vayikra
10:10
3Vayikra
10:1-2
4Rashi
Vayikra 10:2
5Eiruvin
63a
6See
Gur Aryeh Vayikra 10:2
7Koheles
7:16
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ilovedoodle/5866036142/
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