The seemingly easy commandment, can be the most difficult

Chapter 2, Mishnah 1

רַבִּי אוֹמֵר, אֵיזוֹהִי דֶרֶךְ יְשָׁרָה שֶׁיָּבֹר לוֹ הָאָדָם, כֹּל שֶׁהִיא תִפְאֶרֶת לְעוֹשֶׂיהָ וְתִפְאֶרֶת לוֹ מִן הָאָדָם. וֶהֱוֵי זָהִיר בְּמִצְוָה קַלָּה כְבַחֲמוּרָה, שֶׁאֵין אַתָּה יוֹדֵעַ מַתַּן שְׂכָרָן שֶׁל מִצְוֹת. וֶהֱוֵי מְחַשֵּׁב הֶפְסֵד מִצְוָה כְּנֶגֶד שְׂכָרָהּ, וּשְׂכַר עֲבֵרָה כְנֶגֶד הֶפְסֵדָהּ. וְהִסְתַּכֵּל בִּשְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים וְאִי אַתָּה בָא לִידֵי עֲבֵרָה, דַּע מַה לְּמַעְלָה מִמְּךָ, עַיִן רוֹאָה וְאֹזֶן שׁוֹמַעַת, וְכָל מַעֲשֶׂיךָ בַסֵּפֶר נִכְתָּבִין:

Rabbi [Yehuda HaNasi] said: which is the straight path [the right course] that a man should choose for himself? One which is an honor to the person adopting it, and [on account of which] honor [accrues] to him from others. And be careful with a light [minor] commandment as with a grave [weighty] one, for you did know not the reward for the fulfillment of the commandments. Also, reckon the loss [that may be sustained through the fulfillment] of a commandment against the reward [accruing] thereby, and the gain [that may be obtained through the committing] of a transgression against the loss [entailed] thereby. Apply your mind [Contemplate] to three things and you will not come into the clutches of sin: Know what there is above you: an eye that sees, an ear that hears, and all your deeds are written in a book.

L: This is a very cautionary Mishnah. Right?

H: He is saying be very careful, he is saying, of all that you do.

L: Yes, be careful, but I think he is also implying that we should all “take a beat,” take a minute to think about a potential action before you jump into it.  You may get a short-term payback [for your actions] but in the long-term you may realize that what you are about to do is not such a good thing.  

Very grandfatherly advice. I think we are in the right Mishnah here.

H: [chuckles]

L: Let’s see what Bunnim says.

“Rabbi” is Rabbi Judah haNasi, who codified the Mishnah.  He is so called because he was the rabbi par excellence, combining in himself the best qualities.

Here he comes to set a “right course” to follow within the context and content of the Torah’s commandments. Given the obligation to observe the mitzvoth, the question remains: how shall they be observed? For example, it is apparent that our Torah imposes on us the obligation to give tz’dakah, charity. However, some people give too little, while others will insist on giving too much!  If your measure o giving is deficient you are hurting those about you.  If you give in excess, you are clearly hurting yourself. It is for this reason that our Sages not only legislated a minimum for charitable giving; they also set a maximum: not more than one fifth of your wealth – and they found support for this in a Biblical verse.

H: What is the essence of this Mishnah? What is Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi trying to teach us?

L: From what I can see, he is saying that if you are trying to do the right thing, you become that “right thing.” You become what you are trying to do, to accomplish.  It’s all about choosing the right course.

What Bunim says here about “The right course that a man should choose (she-yavor).”

There are two methods of choosing, each designated by a different word in Hebrew. You can take out what you like and discard the remainer, or you can pick out the undesirable units, eliminate them and retain the remainder. The verb yavor, used here, is usually associated with the second process. Hence, what Rabbi Yehudah may be pointing to is the needs to eliminate eh negative, discard what is evil and unwholesome.

…Then the path you choose through life should be such that it will reflect distinction upon you both in the sight of Heaven and in the eyes of man. This double theme, to act for the sake of Heaven and for the sake of our fellowmen, echoes throughout Judaism.  The Ten Commandments, the very heart and core of the Covenant between the Almighty and Israel, are equally divided between commands which regulate man’s relationship wot his Creator and commands which regulate his relationship to his fellow man.

So, he is saying that a lot of what happens is up to us and a lot is not.

H: So, we should act on the ones that we can accomplish, that are available to us to do.

L: …and that make a difference to our fellow human beings.

H: Correct.

L:  Then Bunim adds something particularly interesting. He says…

To interpret in another vein, we might refer the teaching of Rabbi Judah HaNasi to the Mitzvoth themselves – how to chose our mitzvoth among the multitude of the Torah’s precepts.

Every Jew is, of course, obliged to of observe all the mitzvoth, insofar as they apply to him. However, over and above this basic requirement, our sages have always advocated that each Jew “specialize” in some particular area of mitzvoth. One many may adopt tz’dakah as his “specialty”: become thoroughly familiar with all its laws, seek other opportunities to observe it and penetrate to its depths in practice and understanding.

Which area would you pick? In what area of mitzvoth do you believe you would specialize?

H: Being righteous (not self-righteous) under HaShem.

L: How would that translate? What do you mean? How would you express this area of “specialty” in everyday life?

H: Simply, make sure you are doing the right thing. Pick a spot among all the mitzvoth. You can’t do them all.

L: Well, it you were to talk to your grandson, Eli, you know he is not capable of doing all the mitzvoth yet.  For instance, he is not going to put on Tefillin, or other mitzvoth simply because his is not old enough or have an obligation. 

Therefore, if you were to talk to him and encourage him. What if you were to talk to him one Sunday morning and say, “Eli, I think you should do one good thing during the day, everyday, what would that be? Something you could really be good at and make your Mommy and Daddy happy?

H: Maybe really good to your Mommy and your Daddy. For instance, if you dropped something on the floor by accident, you would rush to pick it up.

If you see a new kid enter your school or your class, you should befriend them and be kind to them.

L: That’s right. You know, as adults we often forget about these simple acts, these “easy” mitzvoth.  This might include listening to another person and really paying attention to what that person is saying. That is a way of showing respect…being present, as they say.

H: You can talk to your grandchild and say, “Don’t pick a fight. And, if someone else is in a fight, you can step in and help to stop it….”  Pursuing peace is an important act.

L: A bit further down, Bunim has something else important to say, regarding the portion of the Mishnah that states “Be careful with a minor mitzvah as with an important, major one, for you do not know the rewards given for mitzvoth.”

He says:

In just about every area of life, you find that some things are very important and extremely serious, and others are minor, of little importance. When we consider mitzvoth we might think the same about them: some are highly significant, veritable pillars that uphold Judaism, and others are minor, of little consequence perhaps. And how would we decide which are the important ones? It could seem plausible to see how hard or easy it is to perform a mitzvah. The more difficult the mitzvah, we could say, the more important it must be.

H: With regard to “The more difficult the mitzvah, the more important it must be,” is not always the case.

L: Bunim continues a bit further down…

“For other mitzvoth the Torah does not reveal what we will be given. But for these two the rewards are stated explicitly. And believe it or not, the blessings that the two mitzvoth earn are exactly the same: “that you may prolong your days”; “that your days are may be long.”

H: …and what are these two mitzvoth?

L: He speaks about the mitzvah of removing the mother bird from its nest first before taking its eggs, for instance.  Bunim concedes that this is not a difficult commandment. But then he comments on the second mitzvah, honoring your mother and your father, around which he sets up a rather challenging scenario.  He says:

This is a most difficult mitzvah to perform: It may involve deep-seated conflicts; it may require constant vigilance and awareness. Even if your father hurls insults at you, you must accept it and remain silent. If he takes your wallet and hurls it into the sea, you may utter no word of shaming invective or protest.”

That is a difficult one.

H: That is for sure. [chuckles]