by Rabbi Aharon Cobb and Betzalel Levin
After the destruction of the Second Temple the remaining Jews in Israel continued to be persecuted by the Romans. In an attempt to eradicate the Jewish identity of the remaining population, the Romans made various decrees including a ban on learning Torah, on the threat of death. Despite the tremendous risk to his own life, the great sage Rebbi Akiva chose to continue to teach Torah publicly. The Talmud (Berachos 61b) related that Papus ben Yehuda, one of the leaders of the generation, questioned the wisdom of Rebbi Akiva’s decision. Papus asked Rebbi Akiva “Are you not afraid of this nation?”
Rabbi Akiva replied with the following parable.
A fox was walking along a riverbank when he saw some fish moving rapidly from place to place. The fox asked them, “What are you fleeing from?” They responded that they were trying to escape from the nets that people cast upon them. The fox said to them: Do you wish to come up onto dry land, and we will reside together just as my ancestors resided with your ancestors? The fish answered sarcastically – you are the one they call the cleverest of animals? You are not clever; you are a fool! If we are afraid in the water, which is the place of our life, then in the place of our death how much more so.
Rebbi Akiva explained, so too, we Jews, now that we sit and engage in Torah study, about which it is written: “For that is your life, and the length of your days” (Deuteronomy 30:20), we fear the empire to this extent; if we proceed to sit idle from its study, as its abandonment is the habitat that causes our death, all the more so will we fear the empire.
In a similar vein, the Talmud (Yoma 35b) tells us of the Elder Hillel, who was exceptionally poor. Every day he would work hard, but all he managed to earn was half a dinar (a small sum of money). With this hard earned money, he would take half to pay for food for him and his family, and the other half he would give to the guard at the entrance to the study hall. Unfortunately it happened that one winter day Hillel was not able to scrape together the money for the guard, and was therefore unable to enter the study hall. However, Hillel in his tremendous desire to learn the Torah of Shemaya and Avtalyon, climbed onto the roof, and sat by the skylight in order to hear their words. When morning came, Shemaya and Avtalyon noticed that it was unusually dark in the study hall, and upon further examination, saw the shape of a man outlined on the skylight. They swiftly ascended the roof and cleared the thick snow in order to rescue him, and proceeded to nurse him back to health.
After examining these two narratives, we must ask the question. What drove these two men to risk their lives for the study of Torah? Similarly we can ask, how could it be that after all the hardships that Jews have experienced over the last few thousand years, we still have a relationship with Hashem? We are still learning and doing mitzvos, and raising our children to do the same. There are whole countries whose primary goal is to destroy the Jewish people. Throughout history there have been organizations who specialized in destroying the Jewish identity. And yet, when the Jews fled, they fled with their books, carrying Torah scrolls and copies of the Talmud. How can this be? Why is the study of Torah so fundamental to the Jewish nation?
The Chofetz Chaim expounds on Rebbi Akiva’s parable. When you take a fish out of water, it does not die straight away. Rather it will flap around for a short while, as long as there is a little residual water covering it. Despite the lively appearance of the fish, we all know that it will die shortly if it is not returned to the water. So too, when we look at a Jew without the Torah, even if he or she continues to perform mitzvos, it will not last. We have seen with our own eyes that people who do not learn Torah, slowly but surely stop keeping the mitzvos.
We are able to see this phenomenon. It is an unquestionable reality that what water is to a fish, the Torah is to the Jewish people. Without its water, the fish will die, and without our Torah, we as the Jewish nation will die. More than just our identity as Jewish people is reliant on the Torah. The entire world’s existence is also dependent upon it. Our Sages teach us (Shabbos 88a) that when Hashem was creating the universe he made a condition with it and said ”If the Jews accept the Torah, then you will continue to exist, but if they do not, you will return to chaos and disorder.” Why is this true? What is so essential about the study of torah?
As with many things in Judaism the answer is multi-faceted.
The Ramchal explains that our purpose in this world is to form a relationship with Hashem and become closer to Him. Hashem wants to do good for us and this ultimate goal of a relationship with Hashem is the most pleasurable experience possible. So how do we achieve this closeness to Hashem? It’s extremely important to understand what our goal in this world is, but how do we achieve it? What are the tools that are needed for this lofty ideal? He explains that Hashem created a world which contains both experiences that bring us closer to Him, and also that distance us from Him. We call the things that bring us close to him mitzvos (commandments from Hashem) and those that distance us from him aveiros (sins). When we listen to Hashem’s commandments, we begin to develop a relationship with Him, and thereby become closer to Him.
Within the broad category of mitzvos, our Sages single out the commandment of learning Torah as an especially powerful tool to achieve this closeness. It is so strong that our Sages tell us that learning Torah outweighs all the other mitzvos (Shabbos 127a). Torah is the greatest tool for us to achieve our purpose in this world. Therefore if we neglect the Torah, even though we may be good, kind people, we are squandering an amazing opportunity that Hashem has presented us.
Additionally, on a technical level, we are not able to fulfill the mitzvos without learning the Torah. It is not possible to intuit all the details of the mitzvos without a comprehensive guide. Hashem gave us this guide in the form of the Written Torah and the Oral Torah. The depth of the Torah is such that Sages of each generation are able to find the answers to new questions that arise due to technological advancements, such as the use of electricity on the Shabbos and euthanasia.
The study of Torah is exciting, dynamic and stimulating. Anyone who has really invested themselves in this learning can attest that the words of Torah are sweet. They bring joy and fulfillment to a person.
The Torah also serves as a guide when it comes to the realm of interpersonal relations. Due to our self interests it is very easy to deceive ourselves into thinking that we are always right. The Torah helps us understand what the right thing to do really is, as opposed to simply what feels right. Situations that are seemingly devoid of religious context, can, through the medium of the Torah become opportunities to get closer to Hashem.
In one of the earliest books on Jewish ethics, Duties of the Heart, the author Rabeinu Bachaye explores the idea that all of the activities that we are forced to do on a day to day basis, are completely physical. In order to survive, we must eat, sleep and breathe. We have to regulate our physical temperature with heaters, air conditioners and clothing. There are countless activities that we have no choice whether to do or not if we wish to live. However we know that anything that we do on a regular basis, pulls us in its direction. That fact that we must engage in physicality, draws us towards it. Hashem however wants his people, the Jewish nation, to develop spiritually. As we mentioned previously the way to do this is through Torah and mitzvos. However when we analyze most of the mitzvos, they too use physicality, like eating three lavish meals of the Sabbath, and the mitzva of hosting guests. All the commandments bring us closer to Hashem, but if our goal is to break away from physicality, the power of these mitzvos are limited.
Hashem therefore gave us the Torah, which is a purely spiritual mitzva. Through spending time and effort on this unique commandment, we are able to balance out our physical natures and develop a relationship with Hashem; our goal in this world.
In addition to its amazing properties, the reward for the study of Torah is tremendous.
The Chofetz Chaim brings down from our Sages that due to the abundant blessing that the study of Torah brings, it protects the whole world. Not only does it preserve the world in its current state, but it also hastens the Redemption and gives us life in this world and in the world to come. The Mishna in Peah relates that there are many mitzvos where one not only receives the primary reward in the world to come, but also enjoys the dividends in this world. The study of Torah is equal to all of them combined!
As Jews, we know and recognise that nothing is random and that Hashem is pulling all the strings. Our response to adversity is not limited to taking the physical steps necessary, but also in spiritually uplifting the world. When Joshua was busy conquering the land of Israel, he was taken to task by Hashem for not learning at night (Megillah 3a), and similarly when the mighty Assyrian empire was about to conquer the vastly outnumbered Jews of Jerusalem, King Hezekia respond by placing a sword at the opening of the study hall and said: Anyone who does not learn Torah shall be stabbed with this sword (Sanhedrin 94b) and they were miraculously saved.
In times of hardship, the study of Torah becomes more important than ever! Right now the world needs more merits, for the safety of civilians, soldiers and captives alike. The best way to get these merits, and the safety and security that comes along with them is through the study of Torah. We have the opportunity, and the responsibility to do everything we possibly can do to help.
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