Torah Community Connections

Week 139 - Sunday - 21 July 2002

PIRKEI AVOT: CHAPTER 6: MISHNAH 7

Great is the Torah, for it gives life to those who practise it in this world and in the world-to-come, as it is written (Prov. 4:22): "For they are life, to him who finds them, and healing for all of his body.'' And it says (ibid. 3:8): "Let it be a cure for your flesh, and a tonic for your limbs." And it says (ibid, 3:18): "She is a tree of life to those who grasp her, and those who hold on to her are safe," And it says (ibid. 1:9): "For they are a garland of grace upon your head, and a chain of honor around your neck." And it says (ibid. 4:9): "She will place a garland of grace upon your head; bestow upon you a crown of glory." And it says (ibid. 3:16): "Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor." And it says (ibid. 3:2): "For long days, and years of life, and peace, will they add to you.

Kehati

Great is the Torah for it gives life to those who practice it - who study it and also fulfill its precepts, in this world and in the world-to-come - for they enjoy the premium in this world, while the principal is theirs to draw upon in the afterlife. Tiferet Yisrael observes that "whereas other distinctions, such as wealth, power, and honor, may be acquired also by means of other disciplines and skills, life in this world and in the next, can be attained only through the Torah, as it is written: "For they are life to him who finds them, and healing for all of his body" - this refers to life upon earth. Our Sages note (Eruv. 54a): "Come and see, the difference between the qualities of the Holy One, blessed be He, and those of flesh and blood. In the latter case, if a man gives his friend a drug, it may cure one part of his body but cause harm to another, whereas God gave Torah to Israel, an elixir of life for the whole body, as it is written: and healing to all their flesh.

And it says: "Let it be a cure for your flesh, and a tonic for your limbs - this refers to the world-to-come, where alone the human frame is fully invigorated (Midrash Sh’muel). And it says: "She is a tree of life to those who grasp her, and those who hold on to her are safe" - quoting a Baraita, the Gemara explains (Ta'an. 7a): "Whoever devotes himself to the Torah for its own sake, for him the Torah becomes a medicine of life, as it is written: It is a tree of life tem that lay hold upon it." And it says: "For they are a garland of grace upon your head, and a chain of honor around your neck" - the Torah is acquired by study and articulation. Of study, the Bible says: For they shall be a chaplet of grace unto your head; and of articulation - and necklace about your throat. Tiferet Yisrael discerns a twofold honor: 1. For the intellect seated in the head, and 2. for its methodical and stimulating expression that issues from the throat.

And it says: "She will place a garland of grace upon your head; bestow upon you a crown of glory" - the chaplet of grace represents the earthly reward, whereas the crown of glory, denotes the life everlasting, of which we are told: "The righteous sit with their crowns on their heads, and enjoy the radiance of the Divine Presence" (Ber 17a). And it says: "Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor - as expounded in the Gemara (Shab. 63a): Length of days is in its right hand- to those who treat the Torah in the 'right' spirit (who learn Torah for its own sake, for the love of it) is granted length of days and all the more so, riches and honor; in her left hand are riches and honor - this refers to those who treat the Torah 'left-handedly', (i.e. who study for ulterior motives), who are granted riches and honor, but not length of days. And it says: "For long days, and years of life, and peace, will they add to you" - lest you contend that the Torah student, though he merits life, riches and honor, yet fails to attain peace, therefore, it is said: and peace will they add to you (Rashi).

PIRKEI AVOT: CHAPTER 6: MISHNAH 8

Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai: Beauty, strength, wealth, honor, wisdom, old age, gray hair, and children befit the righteous and befit the world, as it is written (Prov. 16:31): "Gray hair is a crown of glory; and it is won by a righteous way of life." And it says (ibid. 14:24): "The crown of the wise is their wealth." And it says (ibid. 17:6): "Children's children are the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers." And it says (ibid. 20:29): "The glory of young men is their strength; and the beauty of old men is the gray hair." And it says (Is. 24:23): "Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed; for the Lord of hosts shall reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before His elders shall be glory." Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya said: These seven qualities, which the Sages attributed to the righteous, were all realized in Rabbi and in his sons.

Kehati

Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya, a contemporary of Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi and his friend, Rabbi Yose ben Meshulam, were the leaders of a group called edah kedoshah ("holy congregation") (T.J. Ma'aser Sheni 2:4), because they divided the day into three parts: One third for the study of Torah, one-third for prayer, and one-third for work. Some say because they would study Torah all through the winter, and work during the summer.

Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai: Beauty, strength, wealth, honor, wisdom, old age, gray hair, and children befit the righteous and befit the world - when all these qualities are combined in the righteous, it is fortunate for them and for society at large, because beauty endears the righteous in the eyes of the gentile rulers and allows them to promote the welfare of the Jewish people; their strength can be utilized to rescue the oppressed from his oppressor; their wealth serves to support the poor and needy; their position of honor draws a ready response in the furtherance of religious causes; their wisdom enables them to disseminate the knowledge of God; their old age lends added relevance to their observations. With their gray hair they are able to confirm the persistent harassment experienced by God-fearing Jews, and how the Almighty came to their aid; and also recount the tale of many a wicked, whose early life spelled serenity, but ended in torment; Their numerous sons constituted a proud array of saplings rooted in the soil of Israel, bearing fruit and spreading the knowledge of God throughout the world (Tiferet Yisrael). Emunat Sh'muel explains: Beauty denotes the glory and grandeur of holiness that ought to typify the bearing of the righteous; Strength enables him to persist in Torah-study, whereas the weak person suffers many distractions. Wealth enables him to avoid flattery of the wicked; it facilitates the pronouncement of fair judgment, and compliance with his instructions. The honor accorded to the scholars enhances the value of the Torah in the eyes of the multitude: Old age and gray hair represent the growing maturity attained by the scholar in his advanced years. Sons whom the virtuous guide to follow in the ways of the Lord, befit the righteous who thus raise a generation devoted to Torah and good deeds ... as it is written: "Gray hair is a crown of glory; and it is won by a righteous way of life" - he who chooses to follow in this way of life, is rewarded by a hoary head and a crown of glory. And it says: "The crown of the wise is their wealth" - this teaches that affluence befits the wise. And it says "children's children am the crown of old men; and the glory of children are their fathers" - here it is hinted that the glory and handsome features in the offspring reflect the paternal roots, as our Sages note (Eduyot 2:9): "The father bestows comeliness on his son" (Midrash Sh'muel). And it says: 'The glory of young men is their strength; and the beauty of old men is the gray hair - the vigor which the young are able to harness to the service of God is their true glory (ibid.).

And it says: "Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed; for the Lord of hosts shall reign on Mount Zion, and before his elders shall be glory" - this verse refers to the Messianic era, when the glory of God shining on Israel will eclipse the light of the sun and the moon; and the verse concludes: "and before His elders shall be glory" meaning that honor (glory) is due to the righteous, called the elders of God, who will then be treated with proper respect. Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya said - in addition to the aforesaid (some versions read at the beginning of the Mishnah Rabbi Shimon ben Yehudah i.e. of Kefar Acco, an outstanding disciple of Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai). These seven qualities which the Sages attributed to the righteous - beauty, strength, wealth, etc., enumerated above were all realized in Rabbi - Yehudah HaNasi and in his sons - this shows that the perfectly righteous may gain all the seven blessings at one and the same time (ibid.). To be sure, the Mishnah lists eight qualities, hence some commentators consider beauty to denote a general term comprising the seven qualities which follow. Thus read, the Mishnah concludes, befits (in the singular rather than in the plural) the righteous, with beauty as the subject. Accordingly, we must read the Mishnah as follows: Beauty - i.e., strength, wealth, honor etc. - befits the righteous and befits the world (Siddur Avodat Israel, quoting Heidenheim).

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