Diamonds: Every Flaw Makes a Difference

By Rabbi Moshe Krieger, Yeshivas Bircas HaTorah (www.bircas.org)

At the end of Parshas Shemini, we learned the laws of impurity pertaining to animals. In the parshios of Tazria and Metzora, the laws of impurity, purity, and nega’im (leprosies) concerning man, his home, and his clothing are discussed. The Midrash (Vayikra Rabbah 14:1) offers a reason for this sequence: just as in Creation, the animals were created before man, so too, the laws of impurity pertaining to animals were taught before those that pertain to man.

The Midrash seems to be connecting two unrelated ideas. It is true that the Sages teach us (Sanhedrin 38a) a reason for man’s being created after the animals. Man is the purpose of creation. He was only brought on to the scene after the entire stage had been prepared. Still, why should the sequence of creation have any bearing on the teaching of the laws of tumah (purity) and taharah (impurity)?

In Be’er HaTorah, HaRav Yosef ben Amram offers an answer. When we compare the laws of tumah by animals to that of man, the difference stands out. Man has many laws of tumah and taharah, both when alive and dead. Several complex bodies of halachah apply to him. In contrast, animals have very few laws of tumah, with none of the complexities, and these impurities can apply only after they die (neveilah).

Why is it that man’s laws of tumah and taharah are so complex? Clearly, our spiritual level is potentially so great that every flaw leaves its mark. This is the comparison that the Midrash is pointing out: just as in creation, man came last because of his greatness, so too here, his laws of tumah and taharah are written last to highlight his greatness.

The Ramban (13:47) notes that the laws of nega’im (leprosy, but see the previous essay for a better explanation) apply only to Jews. He explains that this is because of their great kedushah (holiness). The purpose of nega’im is to point out to the afflicted that he has sinned, thus marring his kedushah. Man is capable of reaching the highest levels of kedushah; therefore he can suffer spiritually because of the slightest flaw in his taharah.

(The Alshich adds that nega’im are only inflicted on people of great kedushah. This is why it does not occur nowadays, when the general level of kedushah is lower. Only exquisite diamonds will plummet in value due to slight defects. The value of plain rocks remain unaffected.)

This principle sheds light on many episodes related by Chazal, showing how careful they were in avoiding any harmful influences. In Avos (6:9), Yossi ben Kisma relates that he was asked to come and live in a certain town, and he answered that he would not live anywhere but in a place of Torah, even for all the gold and jewels in the world. Even a holy sage of the Mishnaic era would not place himself at risk of negative influences.

The Rambam rules this way as well (Hilchos Dei’os 6:1). He writes that when the behavior of people who live in a certain area is improper, one may not live there. If he is already there, he should move away. If there is no other place to live, it is best for him to live alone in the wilderness.

Another tanna, Nachum Ish Gam Zu, offers a striking example of how sensitive a holy person is to the slightest imperfection (Ta’anis 21). His students arrived at his home and found him in a horrific state. He lacked arms and legs, he could no longer see, and what remained of his body was covered with painful, disfiguring boils.

“Rebbe, you are such a great tzaddik! Why did this happen to you?” they asked.

He related to them that he had been traveling to his father-in-law, bringing with him wagons laden with food and drink. A poor man came up to him and asked for some food.

“I told him to wait until I unloaded the donkey, but he died before I did. I fell upon my face and said, ‘The eyes that did not pity your eyes should become blind. The hands that did not have pity on your hands should be cut off. The legs that did not have pity on your legs should be amputated.’ And I was not at peace with myself until I said, ‘May my whole body be covered with boils.’”

What could Nachum Ish Gamzu have done differently? At best, he could have been slightly quicker in delivering some food to the man. This is precisely the point: Nachum Ish Gamzu was sensitive to the fact that any act he did, great or small, had a profound impact on his spirituality. The fact that he failed to help the poor man with the greatest degree of alacrity humanly possible pained him, to the extent that he did not feel that he had done full teshuvah until what was left of his body was afflicted with boils.

We are light-years away from Nachum Ish Gamzu’s spiritual level. Still, we can learn from him that the slightest imperfection of our character can’t be ignored. Our flaws must be cleansed and corrected.

I myself saw how my father took any slight imperfection in character or action very seriously. He was extremely careful never to become angry, not even inwardly. He always worked on his humility, never to feel a trace of superiority, no matter whom he was speaking with. In the realm of actions, for example, he was very careful in guarding his eyes, saying that one wrong look was a sin too great to bear. If he had to go to the central bus station, he treated it as a most perilous test.

May we correct our spiritual imperfections, and maintain a high level of kedushah!

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