Thursday, March 13, 2014
Ethics of our Fathers: Chapter 2 Mishna 20: The Power of Torah
10:41 PM | 
Posted by
Rabbi Chaim Coffman |
"Rabbi Tarfon said, 'The day (life) is short; the task is great; the workmen (human beings) are lazy; the reward is great, and the Master is insistent'"
The first part of the Mishna tells us that life is short and that the task is great. We understand that man is finite and his days are numbered on this earth, that is why we have to make the most of what we do. At the same time, the great task here is learning Torah.
Why is this considered such a great task? Torah is infinite and is for all generations. Torah is as long as the earth and as wide as the ocean! The Torah is unfathomable in the sense that is extremely dense and complicated. Although the Torah was given to man, we seemingly scrape its vast surface when we learn it.
The Mishna then goes on to describe how people are lazy to learn Torah. People don't put in the proper effort in their learning and mitzvah observance. Even the greatest Torah scholars at some level, Rabbenu Yonah tells us are lazy. It is the nature of man to be lazy and no man is free from that. The only question is how much!
There is tremendous reward a person will receive in the next world for how much Torah they learned. According to many commentaries, this is the first question a person will be asked after they die: how much Torah did you learn in this world? The issue is that a person is placed in this world, has to make a livelihood, raise a family...and is always busy.
At the same time, that individual still has to make time to learn and to grow spiritually. No one is exempt from that regardless of their situation in this world. Some may have it easier physically and some not but observance and spiritual growth is a must for everyone!
When that person is judged by G-d for their actions in this world, they will realize that they had even greater potential and squandered their days in this world. This is part of the cleansing process a person will go through because they will be able to see clearly how they wasted their potential.
There is hope though. We need to strive every day and as we say every day before reciting the Shema, G-d renews the world on a daily basis. Since G-d allows us to live and keeps everything in proportion for the world to continue, we too must look at each day anew.
Regardless of what we may have done yesterday or the day before is irrelevant. We have to forget about the past and forge our future to aspire to our spiritual endeavors. When we do this on a regular basis, we begin to change and grow. This is the power of Torah!
The first part of the Mishna tells us that life is short and that the task is great. We understand that man is finite and his days are numbered on this earth, that is why we have to make the most of what we do. At the same time, the great task here is learning Torah.
Why is this considered such a great task? Torah is infinite and is for all generations. Torah is as long as the earth and as wide as the ocean! The Torah is unfathomable in the sense that is extremely dense and complicated. Although the Torah was given to man, we seemingly scrape its vast surface when we learn it.
The Mishna then goes on to describe how people are lazy to learn Torah. People don't put in the proper effort in their learning and mitzvah observance. Even the greatest Torah scholars at some level, Rabbenu Yonah tells us are lazy. It is the nature of man to be lazy and no man is free from that. The only question is how much!
There is tremendous reward a person will receive in the next world for how much Torah they learned. According to many commentaries, this is the first question a person will be asked after they die: how much Torah did you learn in this world? The issue is that a person is placed in this world, has to make a livelihood, raise a family...and is always busy.
At the same time, that individual still has to make time to learn and to grow spiritually. No one is exempt from that regardless of their situation in this world. Some may have it easier physically and some not but observance and spiritual growth is a must for everyone!
When that person is judged by G-d for their actions in this world, they will realize that they had even greater potential and squandered their days in this world. This is part of the cleansing process a person will go through because they will be able to see clearly how they wasted their potential.
There is hope though. We need to strive every day and as we say every day before reciting the Shema, G-d renews the world on a daily basis. Since G-d allows us to live and keeps everything in proportion for the world to continue, we too must look at each day anew.
Regardless of what we may have done yesterday or the day before is irrelevant. We have to forget about the past and forge our future to aspire to our spiritual endeavors. When we do this on a regular basis, we begin to change and grow. This is the power of Torah!
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