Avos 4:13-15: Shem tov, talmidim, makdim b’shalom.

Hi, good morning rabosai. I'm not sure exactly where we left off, but I'm not sure if we're skipping, reviewing, picking up, but רבי שמעון אומר שלושה כתרים הם: keser torah, v'keser kehunah, v'keser malchus; v'keser shem tov oleh al gabeihen. שלוש מעלות הגדולות האלה the Rambam says ניתנו לאומה ביסוד הציווי על התורה. Right,

ואתם תהיו לי ממלכת כהנים וגוי קדוש. כהונה זכה בה אהרן ומלכות זכה בה דוד וכתר תורה מונח לכל וכל מי שירצה להתעטר בו

to be adorned, to be crowned.

אמר ושמא תאמר שהכתר הזה פחות הוא מן השניים לא כן אלא הוא גדול מהן.

A, he is gadol meihen, and B, uvo yihyu hashnayim. The truth is that the other two really depend upon Torah,

שנאמר בי מלכים ימלכו בי שרים ישורו. אבל כתר שם טוב מושג על ידי התורה כלומר לימודה וקיומה כי בזה יהיה השם טוב האמיתי.

So the Rambam explains that the keser shem tov isn't an independent keser, but basically it results from the keser torah. The notes here comment correctly, very helpfully, that l'chora that's how the Rambam is solving what otherwise seems to be a problem in pshat hamishnah, that Rabbi Shimon speaks of sheloshah kesarim and then enumerates arba'ah kesarim. In light of the Rambam's understanding that the keser shem tov basically emerges from within, results from the keser torah, so then from Torah, so there isn't really four distinct kesarim. But what does the Rambam mean when he says כי בזה יהיה השם טוב האמיתי? Through limud v'kiyum hatorah, that's really the only way that a person generates a shem tov amiti. I don't know, so I think we can think of lots of examples, let's say even amongst the umos ha'olam, of people who deservingly have a good reputation, deservingly they have a shem tov, not a shem tov because they hired a good PR firm, but a shem tov genuinely, a shem tov, whether it's due to their philanthropy, whether it's due to their volunteerism, or whatever. So what does the Rambam mean that ki bazeh meaning על ידי התורה לימודה וקיומה יהיה השם טוב האמיתי? So l'chora the pshat is as follows rabosai, if you have near... Take a רמב"ם הלכות יסודי התורה for a moment, the end of Perek Hey, if you have, if you have access rabosai. Halacha Yud Aleph. Excuse me.

ויש דברים אחרים שהם בכלל חילול השם והוא שיעשה אדם גדול בתורה מפורסם בחסידות דברים שהבריות מרננים אחריו בשבילם.

So Halacha Yud Aleph is about again an אדם גדול בתורה מפורסם בחסידות. The first half of the halacha is behavior which rachmana litzlan creates chilul Hashem. The second half of the halacha which we want to look at is about the behavior which which generates a kiddush Hashem. So the Rambam says as follows:

וכן אם דקדק החכם על עצמו והיה דיבורו בנחת עם הבריות.

He holds himself to very exacting standards in terms of his behavior. He speaks softly with people. Da'ato me'urevet imahem. He relates to people, people can relate to him. ומקבלן בסבר פנים יפות. Greets everyone in a friendly fashion. Ne'elav v'eino olev. If need be he absorbs insult but never never responds in kind. מכבד להן ואפילו למקילין לו. Treats everyone with respect and dignity even if that's not the way they treat him. V'noseh v'nosein b'emunah. Conducts all his business dealings with unfailing integrity.

ולא ירבה באכילה ושתייה אלא כפי הצורך ולא ירבה בטיול ולא ירבה בשחוק ובליצנות ובשיחות בטלות.

He doesn't spend time with the amei ha'aretz and yeshivasam. He doesn't spend time with the amei ha'aretz in their yeshivasam, in gatherings of amei ha'aretz, in gatherings which are not focused or or grounded in purposeful pursuits.

ולא יראה תמיד אלא עוסק בתורה עטוף בציצית מוכתר בתפילין ועושה בכל מעשיו לפנים משורת הדין.

He goes beyond what's required. והוא שלא יתרחק הרבה ולא ישתומם. Not to the point again that that he's set a aside from society, that he's detached. עד שימצאו הכל מקלסין אותו ואוהבין אותו ומתאוים למעשיו. Until he achieves until what results is that that everyone praises him, everyone loves him, and everyone wants to be, oh, I wish I could be like I wish I could be like he is. הרי זה קידש את השם. So this person has created a kiddush Hashem.

ועליו הכתוב אומר ויאמר לי עבדי אתה ישראל אשר בך אתפאר.

The the main makor for this Rambam is the braisa in יומא פו עמוד א k'detanya

ואהבת את ה' אלהיך שיהא שם שמים מתאהב על ידך שיהא קורא ושונה ומשמש תלמידי חכמים ויהא משאו ומתנו באמונה ודבורו בנחת עם הבריות מה הבריות אומרות עליו אשרי אביו שלמדו תורה אשרי רבו שלמדו תורה אוי להם לבריות שלא למדו תורה.

Ploni she-limduho Torah ve-hu kama she-limduho Torah וראו כמה נאים דרכיו וכמה מתוקנים מעשיו alav hakatuv omer ויאמר לי עבדי אתה ישראל אשר בך אתפאר. So kavyachol Hakadosh Baruch Hu says he points to that individual, right, that gadol ba-Torah mefursam ba-chasidus, Hakadosh Baruch Hu points to that individual and says avdi ata and I am kavyachol I Hakadosh Baruch Hu am glorified by what? By our association, by the fact, here's the point rabosai, that My, capital M, My name is associated with you. That Hakadosh Baruch Hu says My name is associated with you. You represent Torah. You're gadol ba-Torah mefursam ba-chasidus. My name, My name is associated with you by virtue of the fact that you're gadol ba-Torah mefursam ba-chasidus and then you, you are a model of beautiful behavior that makes an impression on people, so that's the Kiddush Hashem. The pshat in our Rambam, hear this rabosai, the pshat in our Rambam that זהו שם טוב אמיתי is the shem tov amiti is when one is associated with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. When you look at a person and you say אשרי אביו שלמדו תורה אשרי רבו שלמדו תורה, so what are you doing? You're associating Toras Hashem with this person. You're saying this person is a representative of what Torah means, of the beauty of Torah. He represents, he embodies what Torah is, what Torah means. So what's the shem tov? The shem tov amiti is not simply the good, sterling reputation. The shem tov amiti is that association with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. That's what the Rambam says, that can only come על ידי לימוד התורה וקיומה. It's only when when the person, when who he is, when what he is, is molded by and derived from Toras Hashem, so then that person, he's avdi ata. He's Yisrael. Why the name Yisrael, why not Yakov? Because Yisrael has the name Kel in it. ויאמר לי עבדי אתה ישראל אשר בך אתפאר, Shem Hashem is associated with him. Says the Rambam, that's the shem tov amiti. Let's see the next Mishnah. Rabbi Nehorai omer הוי גולה למקום תורה ואל תאמר שהיא תסובב אחריך or achareicha, different girsaos, but either way l'chora it means the same thing, shechaveirecha yekayimuha biyadecha ואל בינתך אל תשען. A person shouldn't think that he's self-sufficient or autonomous. Meaning even when a person is let's say at an older age, a more advanced stage of life where he's not let's say in yeshiva, he's not primarily a talmid anymore, so at that point a person shouldn't say, okay, chavrusa is a nice thing to have, chaverim are a nice thing to have, but it's not so important. No, it's crucial not only that a person have a rebbe, have rebeim, it's crucial that the person to whatever extent possible he should live in a makom Torah where he'll have chaverim. ואל בינתך אל תשען. Don't rely on your own bina, on your own understanding. What does the Rambam say? בקש את מקום הלימוד. Right, not during pandemic times, the Rambam is saying so don't think that you can go it solo. No, you go for, go find a place where there are other, where there are other people, ki im zulaso.

כי עם זולתך יתברר לך הלימוד ויתקיים. טובים השנים מן האחד.

The understanding which a person gains in a sugya is going to be better when it's the result of a joint effort of chavrusas than if it's the result of a solo effort of a person learning alone. כי עם זולתך יתברר לך הלימוד ויתקיים. And the more clarity a person has in the limud, the better position he is to retain his learning. The more confused something is, the more gaps there are in one's understanding, so the harder it is to remember even those bits and pieces. And the more those bits and pieces come together and cohere as a whole, so then yiskayem, then the better position a person is to retain his learning. ואל תשמח על תבונתך and don't feel self-sufficient. Don't rely on your own understanding veomar and say she'inecha mevater, I have no need, al hachaverim vehatalmidim who will help you. I don't need the stimulus, the challenge, the assistance of chaverim and talmidim. Where did the Rambam get talmidim from here? No, the mishnah is talking about the importance of chaverim. Where did talmidim enter the picture here?

הוי גולה למקום תורה ואל תאמר שהיא תבוא אחריך שחבריך יקיימוה בידך ואל בינתך אל תשען.

I don't know, so somewhere the Rambam sees that the mishnah is talking about talmidim as well, not only about chaverim. It's as follows: the following is a typology, which means it's an ideal construct. It's not in real life. Things are not as distinct. Things overlap and mingle. But in the ideal construct, as a talmid, so a person is being mekabel. As a talmid, a person is receiving teaching from his rebbi, from his rebbeim. That's sort of the definition of a talmid. A chaver, a chaver is working along with his chavrusah to retain that which they mekabel from the rebbi, to grow in their yedios. When the person becomes a rebbi, at that point, he's also not only at that stage of learning, again, in this ideal construct, in this typology, at that point, so he's not only transmitting what he was mekabel, but he's transmitting what he was mekabel with his own he'aros, his own insights, his own chiddushim. Having assiduously applied himself as a talmid, as a chaver, so now as a rebbi, אין בית מדרש בלא חידוש, so he's also sharing, again, not only what he heard, what he was mekabel, not only giving a guided tour to the ground that he has covered already, but with his own he'aros. What is binah? So I think Rashi tells us, right, by when by the shoftim, when Yisro tells Moshe that he should be looking for אנשים חכמים ונבונים וידועים לשבטיכם. So Rashi says, what’s a navon? A navon is someone who’s מבין דבר מתוך דבר. It’s not just that the navon, the discerning person, is not just someone who has the capacity to be taught and to understand and to receive, but to be מבין דבר מתוך דבר, to then apply, derive, provide insight, added insight into what he was given. מבין דבר מתוך דבר. So l’choirah it’s klar that that’s how the Rambam read our mishna. Again, we asked, where did the Rambam see talmidim? What’s the Rambam talking about talmidim for? So the answer is ואל בינתך אל תשען. Don’t feel, when you’re exercising your binah, davar mitoch davar, you say chiddushim. Don’t feel that you can act as a rebbi without talmidim. Don’t think you can act as a rebbi and then you’ll just commit all your chiddushim on paper and without having the crucible of presenting the chiddushim to the talmidim, having the talmidim question and challenge and ask. No, ואל בינתך אל תשען, binah, when the tanna is talking about binah, so he’s talking about a rebbi, he’s talking about a rebbi. Don’t think that you can, that that madregah that a rebbi is on, of the ha'aros and the chiddushim, don’t think that you can operate on that madregah self-sufficiently, autonomously. No, you’re dependent upon the talmidim. Take a look in the Rambam at the end of perek hey of Talmud Torah, halacha yud beis. Perek hey of Talmud Torah halacha yud beis.

כשם שהתלמידים חייבים בכבוד הרב כך הרב צריך לכבד את התלמידים ולקרבן.

So there’s a chiyuv of kavod talmidim as well. Not just a chiyuv of kavod rabo, it’s reciprocal. There’s a chiyuv of kavod talmidim.

כך אמרו חכמים יהי כבוד תלמידך חביב עליך כשל חברך וצריך אדם להיזהר בתלמידיו ולאהבן שהן הבנים המהנין בעולם הזה ולעולם הבא. התלמידים מוסיפין חכמת הרב ומרחיבין ליבו. אמרו חכמים הרבה חכמה למדתי מחבריי יתר מרבותיי ומתלמידיי יותר מכולם וכשם שעץ קטן מדליק את הגדול כך תלמיד קטן מחדד את הרב עד שיוציא ממנו בשאלותיו חכמה מפוארה.

So what’s pshat in these two halachos and specifically in the flow, in the connection of these two halachos, is as follows. I don’t remember how much, if at all, we spoke about this in the earlier mishna of Rabbi Elazar omer יהי כבוד תלמידך חביב עליך ככבוד חברך. So Rabbi Elazar you see from Rabbi Elazar a gevaldige chiddush. Again, it’s a gevaldige chiddush, but that’s his starting point. That’s not even his chiddush. His chiddush assumes this, which is that Rabbi Elazar takes for granted that there’s a special din of kavod hatalmid. That chiddush is Rabbi Elazar’s baseline, that’s his starting point. Then Rabbi Elazar says, you know what, יהי כבוד תלמידך חביב עליך כחברך. And then Rabbi Elazar assumes. again, this isn't even his chidush. This is this is his baseline that that avada that there is a chiyuv of kevod chaver, and his chidush is יהי כבוד חברך חביב עליך כמורא רבך. But where do you find that? Meila את ה' אלוהיך תירא לרבות תלמידי חכמים so Rashi in Pesachim and the Rambam tells us talmidei chachamim means rabach. So I see there's a din of mora of kevod and mora rabach. That there's the kal vachomer from av va'em, that

מה אב שמביאך לחיי העולם הזה רבך שמביאך לחיי העולם הבא על אחת כמה וכמה,

all that's nicha. But where do you find that there's a special din of kevod chavarcha, of kevod talmidecha? And yet that's Rebbe Elazar's baseline, right? For us it's a chidush and for Rebbe Elazar no, that's the that's the baseline. His chidush is the k, ke-kevod chavarcha, ke-mora rabach. So lichora that's the hemshech in the Rambam. The hemshech in the Rambam is that the Rambam is saying: Maybe you're wondering, maybe you're wondering, where does this chiyuv talmido come from? What's the mechayev, where does the chiyuv come from? Says the Rambam again, this is the second half of halacha yod-bet that we were looking at a minute ago or a second ago:

וצריך אדם להזהר בתלמידיו ולאהבן שהן הבנים המהנים בעולם הזה ולעולם הבא.

How are they mahanin ba'olam hazeh? So the Rambam continues halacha yod-gimmel: התלמידים מוסיפים חכמת הרב ומרחיבים לבו. The mechayev - what's the mechayev of mora rabach? Of kevod and mora rabach? What's the mechayev? Is rabach melamdekha Torah. Melamdekha Torah. So that there is a mechayev someone teaches someone teaches me Torah, that's a mechayev in kevod and mora. The one who teaches the person the most is רבו שרוב חכמתו ממנו. But the mechayev is that the person is melamed Torah. That's what's mechayev a special din kevod, a special din kevod above and beyond the basic mitzvah of ahavas Yisrael. Special din kevod. Oh, so says the Rambam, what's pshat in in Rebbe Elazar's din that there's a that there's a chiyuv of kevod talmido, that there's a chiyuv of kevod chaveiro? The mechayev in that is that תלמידו המהנין בעולם הזה. Is that תלמידים המוסיפין חכמת הרב ומרחיבים לבו. That the talmud Torah that happens whether it's between two chavrusas or whether it's between a rebbi and talmidim is bilateral, is reciprocal. It's not it's not it's not that the rebbi is doing all the teaching and the talmidim are just doing all the learning. It's bilateral. The talmidim are learning from the rebbi and the rebbi's learning from the talmidim. So if that's the case, so then then there's a chiyuv of kevod talmid, there's a chiyuv of kevod kevod chaveiro. But the chaver of Rebbe Elazar's Mishnah is not just a fellow Jew. Ve'ahavta lere'acha kamocha is a fellow Jew. The chavera of Rebbe Elazar is like the chavera of our Mishnah means chavera lilimmud. It means your chavrusas, it means the your chaverim in the in the beis medrash that that you're talking to in in learning, that you're that you're interacting with in learning. Okay, a little bit more. Rebbe Yannai says: אין בידינו לא משלות רשעים ואף לא מיסורי צדיקים. I don't know, the Rambam doesn't doesn't comment on on this part of the Mishnah. Rabbeinu Yonah gives two pshatim just what the words mean. Either Rebbe Yannai sort of saying we're we're a type of beinoni. Tzedikkim, the yisurim they they endure in olam hazeh are yisurim shel ahavah. We're not on a madrega to have yisurim shel ahavah. Me'idach gisa resha'im because because they... Rasha, since Hakadosh Baruch Hu is giving them all this schar in Olam Hazeh because they're not deserving of Olam Haba, so they have shalvah, they have tranquility. Everything is very tranquil and serene for them in Olam Hazeh. Baruch Hashem, we don't have that either. We don't have the shalvah of resha'im either. We have yissurim. Baruch Hashem, we're not rasha. We have, we have yissurim, we have challenges, we have adversities, we have difficulties, we have problems. But on the other hand, unfortunately, we're not on the level of tzaddikim, that those yissurim are yissurim shel ahavah. That's one pshat Rabbeinu Yonah gives. The other pshat Rabbeinu Yonah gives is that, is that we can't understand. We know צור תמים פעלו כי כל דרכיו משפט. L'maiseh, that doesn't mean that we can understand everything that we see. We don't understand when you have a rasha v'tov lo, and we don't understand when you have a tzaddik v'ra lo. Ein biyadeinu means ein biyadeinu l'havin, right? It's not within our grasp to understand. רבי מתיא בן חרש omer הוי מקדים לשלום כל אדם. The Rambam quotes this mishna in Hilchos De'os. פרק ה הלכה ז. פרק ה הלכה ז. Talmid chacham,

תלמיד חכם לא יהיה צועק ומצויח בשעת דבורו כבהמות וכחיות ולא יגביה קולו ביותר אלא דבורו בנחת עם כל הבריות. וכשידבר בנחת יזהר שלא יתרחק עד שיראה כדברי גסי הרוח ומקדים לשלום כל אדם.

Then interestingly, the Rambam adds five words: כדי שתהא רוחן נוחה הימנו. People should be pleased by their interaction with him. People should find their whatever contact they have with him, whatever interaction, should be something pleasing. Why is that such a value? It's a little bit of a klotz kasha because it's intuitive, it's not really that it bothers us, but sometimes it's good to ask a klotz kasha, not all the time, sometimes it's not so good, but occasionally it's good to ask a klotz kasha also. Why is this such a value, rabosai? To be מקדים לשלום כל אדם to generate the result, to create the effect of שתהא רוחן נוחה הימנו? So the answer is, and it's a yesod gadol. You know, it's possible for a person to sort of sit in his rocking chair, at my age, that's where one sits. It's possible for a person to sit in his rocking chair and not feel very much in common with the overwhelming majority of humanity. Think about it. Think about sort of what their lives revolve around, what their values are, what their aspirations are, what they're striving for. And then think about at least what we hope we're striving for, what we hope our aspirations are for, what we at least would like our values to be. And the truth is, there is a tremendous unbridgeable gap there. And yet, and yet, so a person could easily sort of conclude, I don't, I've nothing to, not only don't they have to be makdim beshalom, and I don't see any reason to say shalom bichlal, neither first nor second. What's mah lee velolem? Where's the common ground? And again, it seems like a pretty cogent line of reasoning. Lemaiseh, whether we understand why this is or not, but the incontrovertible fact is that am levadad yishkon notwithstanding, bechiras Yisrael notwithstanding, Hakadosh Baruch Hu created us not only as Jews, but as part of humanity. That's just an incontrovertible fact. You know, whether we understand why that is or not doesn't really make a difference. You know, facts are facts regardless of whether you know whether we give them our imprimatur. You know, facts are facts. And that is the fact. A person avada avada is a Jew for everything that that means and represents and consists of. But we're also part of of humanity. And that basic reality and fact is a mechayev. If a person belongs to a certain group, there has to be a commensurate collegiality. His behavior has to reflect the fact. The same way by virtue of this being my brother, this being my sister, so that fact implies a special relationship. And there should be a special relationship. Mibsarcho lo tisalam. When the facts are, when the reality is that a person is part of a group, so that's mechayev a certain type of behavior and interaction with the group. Now depending upon how closely or loosely that group exists and is defined, that will dictate what behavior is indicated. Obviously the family unit is something which is much tighter than the human unit, than the race, than the unit of the human race. And because of that, what it's mechayev, what its implications are, are obviously very different. But the common denominator is that if a person is part of a group, it's mechayev in behavior which is appropriate to that unit. A sibling relationship has to have a certain concern. It's mechayev a certain relationship. Being a child is mechayev a certain relationship with one's parents. Being a parent is mechayev a certain relationship with one's children. Being a grandchild is mechayev a certain relationship with one's grandparents. Being a Jew is mechayev a certain relationship with one's fellow Jews. And yeah, and just being a human being is mechayev a certain... relationship with other human beings. And that's what the mishna says: הוי מקדים בשלום כל אדם. That's the the behavior which is which is which is wanted given that the fact of that relationship. k'dei shetiz'chu v'timatzei k'dei she excuse me, כדי שיבחנו נוחו הימנו. Okay so maybe we'll we'll stop here for for today. Okay everyone should be should have good productive voche gut shabbos be well be safe rabosai. Thank you rebbi. Good shabbos. Thank you rebbi. Thank you rebbi. Good shabbos. rebbi would it be... I'm sorry I'm I'm not hearing. Are you able to hear me now? Yes yes please. This isn't like like a kasha specifically on something rebbi said but kind of just on the general topic. How do we balance certain very harsh memrei chazal regarding non-Jews with kind of like I guess the way that I would find it more intuitive to interact with them? In order to and the there's a big yesod. In order to understand any statement, even even a statement let's say in conversation between two people, a person always has to be sensitive to what the context of the statement is. Because very often you hear someone gets quoted as saying something and and it sounds very terrible what the person said. And then when the statement is placed in context you see what he said before you see what he said after you see what he was talking about you see in what venue he was talking it's you realize well what he really said was totally appropriate. Depending upon a person can emphasize a person can talk about relationships with with non-Jews and a person can can be ma'arich about kevod habriyos and tzelem elokim. A person can talk about relationship with non-Jews and can emphasize Jewish separatism because am levadad yishkon and and the the the difference and the gap. And if the context of the discussion is not what the entire balanced relationship should be but the context of the of the comment the intent of the comment is one aspect of that so that's going to be one sided. משל למה הדבר דומה. Let let's say I don't know you have a talmid he's in he's in YU he's he's doing very well in the college say he's got a 4.0 but he's not showing up for shachris let's say he's not showing up for seder. So someone calls him in and and and they're giving him a I don't know whatever's appropriate the chizuk iddud tongue lashing whatever whatever's appropriate in the context. So what are they talking about? You have to learn you have to learn כי הם חיינו ואורך ימינו it's the only thing that's important in life. Now when you sort of isolate that and and you if if that would be isolated and quoted out of context so then you could easily say that he's being told you know neglect your college don't pay attention to anything else in life this is what's important this is what counts כי הם חיינו ואורך ימינו. In truth he's not being told to neglect. But the point is that the the focus of the conversation at that point is not what the balance should be between chayei olam and chayei sha'ah but the focus of that point is is his slackness let's say in learning. So when you find these memrei chazal which seem one sided or unbalanced it's not that they're it's not that they're one sided or unbalanced it's that chazal are only intending in that context to be talking about one aspect of the picture. If chazal are talking about one aspect... If Chazal are talking about one aspect of the picture and I erroneously read that Ma'amar Chazal as talking about the whole picture, so then I think Chazal are being one-sided or unbalanced. So let's say this is just like one really, really specific example. I know, like, I think, like, the Rav spoke about it a little bit in terms of being mechaleil Shabbos to save the life, the life of a non-Jew. So I think, like, technically nowadays, it's clear that you, that you are mechaleil Shabbos, but like, fundamentally, how do we view the halacha seemingly saying that you should not be mechaleil Shabbos? You know, the...