Ahavas Hashem and Yiras Shamayim in the Thought of the Rambam

For those who are weighing going into chinuch and are deterred by having to suffer through such gracious, sincere, well-meaning, sectional introductions, you should know that after a while you become totally immune to it. It stops bothering you. Initially it causes a bit of discomfort. After a while, it doesn't bother you anymore. One appreciates the graciousness, the sincerity, the warmth, and everything else washes out. Thank you very much. As the Gabbai mentioned, maybe we'll just try a few he'oros within the Rambam in yiras Shamayim, Ahavas Shamayim. Paradoxically, as central and defining as these mitzvos are, especially when it comes to yiras Shamayim, there isn't all that much in the Rambam about it. But whatever is there is invaluable. So let's try a little bit. In Sefer Hamitzvos in the Ibn Tibbon, the traditional translation, so the way Ibn Tibbon renders what the Rambam writes המצוה הרביעית היא שצונו להאמין יראתו יתעלה. Leha'amin yiraso. In his more modern translation, Kappah has a footnote where he says he doesn't know what leha'amin yiraso. He doesn't know what does that mean? What does that phrase mean? What does it mean leha'amin yira? In fact, you can't believe fear, right? In Yiddish, there's a saying of עס קען נישט פארנומען for those of you it has no words, which means it doesn't make sense. What does it mean leha'amin yiraso? But ela mai, the yodei davar point out that Ibn Tibbon in translating—his father was a translator, he was a translator—and are responsible for hundreds and hundreds of years our access to Chovos Halevavos, our access to Sefer Hamitzvos, our access to the Moreh Nevuchim, so for centuries Klal Yisrael has been indebted to the Ibn Tibbon. One of the things which makes his translation so reliable is the fact that, again this is what the yodei davar who can compare the translation to the original say, is that wherever the Rambam used a certain word, he always translated it with the same word. So you can be medayek in Ibn Tibbon's translation because one of the most frustrating things in having to learn from translation is that inability to be medayek. And again it's to a degree it's insurmountable, but to the degree that it is potentially surmountable, it depends upon being able to do that, which is to always translate—always have the same correlation—always translate the same word in the original, in this case the Rambam wrote the Sefer Hamitzvos in Judeo-Arabic, to always translate that with the same word in Lashon Hakodesh. So clearly what Ibn Tibbon was struggling with is the following, and you don't have to know Judeo-Arabic because you can check this out for yourself even without knowing it, is that the Rambam used the same word in the following three mitzvos. המצוה הראשונה בספר המצות, again which Ibn Tibbon translates אשר צונו להאמין האלוהות. The mitzvah of anochi Hashem elokecha. Mitzvah of metzius Hashem. Let's avoid translating the verb for now, but the verb that the Rambam used here, he uses again in

המצוה השניה היא שצונו באמונת היחוד שנאמין כי פועל המציאות וסיבתה הראשונה אחד.

So the mitzvah of anochi Hashem elokecha, the mitzvah of השם אלקינו השם אחד, and then finally המצוה הרביעית שצונו להאמין יראתו. Anyone here not know Judeo-Arabic? No. Okay, so therefore you all won't know that I'm mispronouncing it, but the word in the Arabic—there are two words for knowledge in Arabic. One is something, feel free to add some guttural accent to it, one is ilm and the other is itakad. And each of these words that Ibn Tibbon is translating as leha'amin is that second verb or noun from the Arabic. So the question is when we think of these three mitzvahs, so the mitzvah of Anochi Hashem Elokecha and Hashem Echad, so we would translate we would think that the verb we would get that the verb is either to believe or to know. To believe or to know. Neither of which plugs in to yirat shamayim means you have yirat shamayim, you feel yirat shamayim, you neither of those candidates for what we would if you had to fill in the blank, right if you had to fill in the blank and conjecture what the verb is going to be for the mitzvah of Anochi Hashem Elokecha and v'yichud Hashem, the mitzvah is either to believe or to know and for השם אלקינו השם אחד, the mitzvah is either to believe or to know that HaKadosh Baruch Hu is אחד ולא שנים וכולו. But neither of those fits in. So that's what Ibn Tibbon was clearly grappling with. And it's quite clear and that's why that was his challenge to what word is it that captures. And apparently Ibn Tibbon is using leha'amin to mean the following. He's not using leha'amin to believe because that's true leha'amin also is a tough convert. It doesn't translate. What Ibn Tibbon is there's knowledge that a person sort of has in his knowledge base and then it can be knowledge that is embedded in a person's awareness. There's knowledge which is embedded in a person's consciousness. We're all aware of the fact that two plus two is four. I don't know necessarily that we walk around with an active consciousness of the fact that two plus two is four. If you're going to buy some milk and you already have two in the shopping cart then you're going to activate that yediah. You're going to pull that yediah out of your knowledge bank and you're going to say I have two oh I need another two but lav davka that you're walking around with this active consciousness of the fact that two plus two is four. What the Rambam is telling us and Ibn Tibbon's presentation of the mitzvah of yirah also gives us tremendous and crucial insight into the mitzvahs of Anochi and yichud Hashem and השם אלקינו השם אחד. So what Ibn Tibbon is telling us for then the mitzvah of leha'amin yirato means that that a person should have a constant awareness of yirat Hashem. And that again that understanding is crucial not only for the definition of the mitzvah of yirah but then it spills over to the mitzvahs of Anochi and v'yichud Hashem and השם אלקינו השם אחד also. It means that the mitzvah is neither is sufficient belief in HaKadosh Baruch Hu nor knowledge in the sense of just what I have in my knowledge base. Neither of those is where the Torah sets the bar but the bar is leha'amin elohut. Leha'amin elohut again in the sense of that it should be a knowledge which is embedded in one's awareness. Which is a constant part of one's consciousness and awareness. And clearly that's the answer that Rav Soloveitchik used to quote from HaRav Chaim Heller's Sefer HaMitzvos. There is much discussion over the fact that in the Yad the Rambam writes יסוד היסודות ועמוד החכמות לידע שיש שם מצוי ראשון. He speaks of the mitzvah of Anochi Hashem Elokecha in terms of yediah and here he speaks the way it's rendered in terms of emunah. Is the mitzvah yediah? Is the mitzvah emunah? So the kasha hashlishis is that what Ibn Tibbon means by leha'amin and what the Rambam meant by leida are one and the same. It means what when the Rambam said yediah he also meant yediah sometimes connotes it has this again this experiential quality. To it as well, that the mitzvah is not simply to know, not simply to believe, but to be something that is embedded in a person's consciousness. The mitzvah of Yirat Hashem is that it should be ever present in our consciousness. The same way when a person is driving, he has to be consistently and continuously aware. He has to be aware of the car on his right, he has to be aware of the car on his left, behind him, in front of him, pedestrians who are crossing and whatever else, whatever else he may be thinking about, but he can't be distracted from that. That has to be embedded in his awareness. What the mitzvah of Yirat Hashem challenges us to do is leha'amin yirato. The understanding of leha'amin which plugs into each of these two mitzvot, אמונת השם אלקינו השם אחד and Yirat Hashem, is a knowledge, an awareness which is knowledge-based. Knowledge which becomes embedded within our awareness. The Rambam continues, if you have it in your computer, by all means please take a look.

המצוה הרביעית היא שצונו להאמין יראתו יתעלה וליפחד ממנו ולא נהיה ככופרים ההולכים בקרי.

A person shouldn't live without a sense of accountability. A person has to live with a sense of accountability, of דע לפני מי אתה עומד ודין וחשבון. But rather than living again without that sense of lack of responsibility, lack of accountability, מירא ביאת עונשו בכל עת. Again, the phrase that we're going to stop on for a moment is mira. You'll excuse my vav resh alef. All the rage, mem yud resh alef. מירא ביאת עונשו בכל עת. I don't know if there's any indication in the original how the bechol et, the modifier bechol et is supposed to be understood. But it clearly means one thing, the question is possibly it means two things. It clearly means, as the Sefer Hachinuch famously tells us, the Chayei Adam quotes at the beginning of Chayei Adam, and then the Mishnah Berurah quotes it in the beginning in Biur Halacha, in the shesh mitzvot temidiot. One of the shesh mitzvot temidiot is the mitzvah of את השם אלקיך תירא. So clearly when the Rambam says bechol et, the Rambam means that. That the mitzvah of Yirat Hashem, it's not just on Shabbos, it's not just at night, it's not just on Pesach. It's a mitzvah temidit. It's noheig 24/7. So clearly the bechol et modifies the yirah. But yitachen me'od that the bechol et is really doing double duty here and the bechol et is also intended to modify biat onsho. That the sense of yirat onesh which the Rambam says a person is supposed to have is that onesh should happen at any point. Not only that a person is supposed to have a constant awareness of yirat ha'onesh, if I do this wrong now, down the road I'm going to have to answer for that, Rachmana litzlan, but ביאת עונשו בכל עת. A person doesn't know לא ידע האדם את עת פקודתו. That a person doesn't know when that accounting is going to be. Muchach mikach again, whether there's any indication in the original, the idea is certainly true. Given that the idea is certainly true, we'll see in a minute that there's every reason to think that that's part of what the Rambam intended here as well. How do we know that the idea is certainly true? Mention two marei mekomot. The Rambam in Peirush Hamishnayot in Avot in commenting on the Mishnah of Nitai Ha'arbeli omer

הרחק משכן רע ואל תתחבר לרשע ואל תתייאש מן הפורענות.

The Rambam writes in the Kafach transcription

ואמר שאם חטאת או ראית חוטא אל תתפתה לשאננות ותאמר שהשם יעניש בעולם הבא בלבד.

Don't think, don't be mityayeish min hapuranut in the sense that it's nothing to worry about in the short term. In the short term I don't have to worry, things are going to remain tranquil, things are going to remain serene. No,

אם חטאת או ראית חוטא אל תתפתה לשאננות. תאמר שהשם יעניש בעולם הבא בלבד.

And אל תתייאש מן הפורענות עתה with an ayin baolam hazeh al oso cheit. Don't feel, don't have the sense of invulnerability in baolam hazeh. Similarly, the Rambam writes in Perek Vav of Hilchos Teshuva:

בזמן שאדם אחד או אנשי מדינה חוטאים ועשה החוטא חטא שעשו מדעתו וברצונו כמו שהודענו ראוי להיפרע ממנו והקדוש ברוך הוא יודע היך יפרע יש חטא שהדין נותן שנפרעין ממנו על חטאו בעולם הזה ויש חטא שהדין נותן שנפרעין ממנו בעולם הבא ויש חטא שנפרעין ממנו בעולם הזה ובעולם הבא.

Okay, neither of these sources explicitly say mamash bechol eis. And I believe the immediacy of the pshat in light of this is if the Rambam really does have a double kavanah in that phrase bechol eis. First of all, it modifies when the nifra'in are had and secondly, it defines what exactly the content, the tochen of yiras ha'onesh is. והקל הנכבד והנורא הזה, the Rambam writes in Perek Beis of Yesodei HaTorah, Halacha Aleph:

והקל הנכבד והנורא הזה מצוה לאהבו וליראה ממנו שנאמר ואהבת את ה' אלהיך ונאמר את ה' אלהיך תירא.

Since most of you don't have it in front of you, just to read it for a moment:

והקל הנכבד והנורא הזה מצוה לאהבו וליראה ממנו שנאמר ואהבת את ה' אלהיך ונאמר את ה' אלהיך תירא.

What's so interesting here is that generally, if you flip pages in the Rambam, the Rambam's style is that he introduces mitzvos individually. He's not עשה מצוות חבילות חבילות, he doesn't package them together. He introduces mitzvos separately. Ein hachi nami, sometimes he deals with gezeilah va'aveidah, but he deals with gezeilah then he deals with aveidah. Whatever reason, gezeilah va'aveidah. But he deals with mitzvos individually. And here is something very, very remarkable that the Rambam introduces the two mitzvos of ahava and yira together in neshima achas. והקל הנכבד והנורא הזה מצוה לאהבו וליראה ממנו. What's more, maybe a hint, a clue perhaps to why he does that, the significance of that is let's continue with at least some of Halacha Beis:

והיאך היא הדרך לאהבתו ויראתו? בשעה שיתבונן האדם במעשיו וברואיו הנפלאים הגדולים ויראה מהם חכמתו שאין לה ערך ולא קץ מיד הוא אוהב ומשבח ומפאר ומתאוה תאוה גדולה לידע השם הגדול כמו שאמר דוד צמאה נפשי לאלהים לאל חי וכשמחשב בדברים האלו עצמן מיד הוא נרתע לאחוריו ויירא ויפחד וידע שהוא בריה קטנה שפלה אפילה עומד בדעת קלה מעוטה לפני תמים דעות כמו שאמר דוד כי אראה שמיך וגו' מה אנוש כי תזכרנו.

Again, just rereading the beginning of the halacha:

והיאך היא הדרך לאהבתו ויראתו בשעה שיתבונן האדם במעשיו וברואיו הנפלאים והגדולים.

So fast forward, miyad hu ohev. Fast forward some more,

וכשמחשב בדברים האלה עצמן מיד הוא נרתע ונבהל וירא ויפחד.

I think if we were to have this close to the Rambam, yelamdeinu rabbeinu, why did you package these two together? You don't do that with mitzvos. So the Rambam would say, puk chazei what the Ribbono Shel Olam did in the world. Ribbono Shel Olam created the world that there's one source, one stimulus, one launching pad, as it were, for ahava and yira. היך היא הדרך לאהבתו ויראתו, וכשמחשב בדברים האלה עצמן, the same hisbonenus, the same machshava spawned ahava and yira. But that's a hint, that's not an answer. It's a source, it's not an explanation. We're going to offer three perspectives. The one that's first is true, but the one that really pshat in the Rambam, that's true religiously. They're true in terms of Torah. The one that lechora is really pshat in the Rambam is number three. Religiously, experientially, a person has to cultivate yira and ahava somewhat in sync with each other. Ahava, as the Rambam tells us in the famous concluding halacha, Hilchos Lulav, is intertwined with simcha, השמחה שישמח האדם בעשיית המצוה ובאהבת הקל שצוה בהן. Simcha and ahava are intertwined. If a person cultivates yira, but there's no simcha in his life, there's no simcha which is the byproduct of ahava, avodas Hashem, rachmana litzlan, can be crushing. If a person has yira which isn't balanced, which isn't accompanied by the simcha which is generated by ahava, it can literally, literally, velo gozma, not דברי תורה בלשון הבאי, literally, velo gozma, it can break a person. A person has to cultivate these two in tandem. If there's disproportionate yira in a person's life, the simcha, it's a very, very unhealthy situation and he has to work on very quickly getting the simcha component in his life to catch up to the yira component in his life. On the other hand, a sense of simcha without a sense of yira is not real, it's not real. Hakadosh Baruch Hu is הקל הנכבד והנורא הזה. And part of avodas Hashem is dancing and singing. There's some beautiful lines in the Kuzari about dancing. It has its place, it has its place. Sukkos is zeman simchasenu. But there's sugyos, there's also Yomim Noraim, there's also ימי אימה ופחד ויראה. It's not real. An avodas Hashem which doesn't have yira, which is all simcha and no yira, there's no tzitter, there's no trembling. That's not real. So ahava and yira have to go together. Every mitzvah, again, they go together just to be consistent, because a person, an eved does everything the master tells him, not because there's this direct organic link that we're talking about between yira and ahava. So the Rambam doesn't mention tefillin and Birkas Hamazon. He doesn't mention tefillin and achilas matzah. He doesn't introduce them together. They're separate mitzvos. These two have to operate in tandem. Again, it's emes and difficult if not impossible to exaggerate the importance of that yesod or those things. Closer to probably what the Rambam has in mind here. Let's say imagine that you have a father and son, parent and child, and as there should be, there's tremendous love and closeness between that nafsho keshura benafsho. So much so. Sure, so you're going to feel so close to your father that you're going to call him Yankel. That's how close you feel. You have such love and you feel such a sense of intimacy so when you see your father, oh Shalom Aleichem Yankel, good night Yankel, I love you Yankel. So obviously that's wrong, it's not even midas hachasidus, a sabba can serve as a שומר מכאן ומכאן kodshai kodashim, but this isn't just kovod, this is not midas hachasidus. Yes, parents and children should be very close and there should be bonds of love. But the love that exists between them is a love between parents and children. It's not the love that exists between siblings, it's not the love that exists between friends. And the love is not supposed to eclipse the fact that Yaakov is the father and Reuven is the son. There has to be an element of yirah to avoid distorting that relationship. Me'idach gisa, if a person only has yirah for his parents, only has mora, איש אמו ואביו תיראו, then there isn’t any love, that’s also a distortion of the relationship. For the relationship to be true, both have to be present. They have to work in tandem. That gets close, very close to what l'chora the Rambam most directly and primarily means. There is a remarkable, remarkable Malbim. Take a look in Parshas Va'eschanan. The Malbim comments a few pesukim before the Shma, I don't remember the pasuk, the Torah has a mitzvah of yiras Hashem, שמע ישראל ה׳ אלהינו ה׳ אחד, and then of course ve'ahavta. The Malbim by way of saying pshat has the following... the Malbim was... Malbim knew everything, mamash he knew everything. So the Malbim makes the following observation. He says amongst the ancient religions, he says you will not find a religion or you will not find a deity within a religion where they had both a mitzvah of loving the deity as well as fearing the deity. Some religions or some deities within polytheistic religions had ahava and some had yirah, but he says you will not find, take his word for it, Malbim knew everything, you will not find any religion that had both ahava and yirah. That you find in the Torah. Why is it? Because no religion could... what engenders yirah? Tornado, hurricane. Those manifestations of Hashem's awesomeness in the world, that's what generates yirah. What generates ahava is the tremendous overflow of Hakadosh Baruch Hu's tov and chessed in the world. Ancient religions couldn't associate both of those human experiences with one God. What makes it possible to have both yirah and ahava is the mitzvah of yichud Hashem. The belief that Hakadosh Baruch Hu runs the world. We don't disassociate Hakadosh Baruch Hu from what we experience as ra in the world. We don't disassociate Hakadosh Baruch Hu from it. The pasuk that we paraphrase in the beginning of the Birkas Krias Shma every morning, יוצר אור ובורא חשך עשה שלום ובורא את הכל, so if you look at the pasuk in Yeshaya, the Gemara in Brachos quotes the pasuk, so it doesn't say u'vorei es hakol, it says borei ra. So why don't we say it? Because there's a different standard of tefillah for even than for kisvei hakodesh because lishna ma’alya nakat. We don't disassociate Hakadosh Baruch Hu with what we experience as ra. Yichud Hashem says that despite the bifurcation on the human level between tov and ra, despite the fact that we experience things differently, the things that we experience by making Hatov Ve'hameitiv and the Besuras Tovos and rachmana litzlan the things that we experience as Besuras Raos. But there's Hashem Echad, it all comes from Hakadosh Baruch Hu, Yichud Hashem. Yichud Hashem is the kasov hashlishi which makes possible having both the mitzvah of ahava and yira. Here is a very, very important yesod. There is a knee-jerk reaction, there is a knee-jerk religious reaction that is very common to disassociate Hakadosh Baruch Hu from what we perceive as ra. But that's not what we believe, it's not what we believe at all. What we do believe is that it's ra in terms of on the human level. It's ra in terms of the human agents who perpetrate it out of their evil. But in terms of Hakadosh Baruch Hu, there's a different prizma, there's a different perspective, and that's why on His level, it's not Rachmana Litzlan ra from His perspective. And we don't disassociate Hakadosh Baruch Hu,

כשם שחייב אדם לברך על הרעה כשם שמברך על הטובה.

So Yichud Hashem is what makes possible—this is the yesod that the Malbim teaches—Yichud Hashem is what makes possible having both the mitzvah of ahava and yira. Think about that Malbim a little bit, rabosai. And what that suggests is that if in one's approach to Hakadosh Baruch Hu, there's only yira or the person is striving only for ahava, I don't mean this literally in another sense, but in a certain sense, that compromises Yichud Hashem. In a certain sense, for a person to fully implement his belief in Yichud Hashem, to implement, to apply Yichud Hashem, to live in a way that's consistent with Yichud Hashem means that these two mitzvos have to be present in tandem. They have to be present together la'ahava u'leyira mimenu. Focus rabosai on this yesod. When the Rambam said הקל הנכבד והנורא הזה, what is hazeh referring back to? Like this, right? The translation is this, right? This honored and awesome God. Mitzvat Ahava Veyira. So hazeh, what do you mean hazeh? Hakadosh Baruch Hu whom the Rambam introduced us to in perek aleph. What did the Rambam tell us in perek aleph? He told us Anochi Hashem Elokecha, and he told us ה' אלקינו ה' אחד. הקל הנכבד והנורא הזה, Hakadosh Baruch Hu who's one, Hakadosh Baruch Hu who's Hamatzui Hamatzui... Hamatzui Ha'amiti. The entire beriah is only because Hakadosh Baruch Hu constantly wills it to continue existing. Ha'Kel... Yichud Hashem demands that our approach to Hakadosh Baruch Hu be this twin approach of ahava and yira. And in a certain sense, in a certain sense—not attaching labels of kefirah or anything like that, not on that level or in that sense Rachmana Litzlan—but in a certain sense to be true to the belief of Yichud Hashem, to implement, to apply Yichud Hashem, to live in a way that's consistent with Yichud Hashem means that these two mitzvos have to be present in tandem. They have to be present together la'ahava u'leyira mimenu. Focus rabosai on this yesod. הקל הנכבד והנורא הזה, perek aleph. Yichud Hashem. Yichud Hashem. And this suggests, so Antigonos Ish Socho,

היה אומר אל תהיו כעבדים המשמשין את הרב על מנת לקבל פרס אלא היו כעבדים המשמשין את הרב על מנת שלא לקבל פרס ויהי מורא שמים עליכם.

Antigonos says, amar haposuk hazeh,

אל תעבדו את השם על מנת שייטיב לכם בידי חסד.

Don't serve Hakadosh Baruch Hu for the end goal that He should bestow good upon you, bestow kindness upon you, נמצא שאתם רוצים אחר הגמול ועובדים בגללו, because then what emerges is that really your ultimate purpose is not avodas Hashem but your ultimate purpose is the reward. אלא הוו כעבדים שאינם רוצים אחר הגמול. Do it altruistically.

רצה בזה שיהיו עובדים מאהבה כמו שביארנו בעשירי מסנהדרין וכמו שביאר הרמב"ם בהקדמת פרק חלק.

There were, the rishonim, amongst the rishonim, there were two different orders of the last two perakim in Eilu Hen Hanichnakin and Perek Chelek, which is the 10th and which is the 11th. So the Rambam had Perek Chelek as the 10th. And with this, he doesn't exempt them from yirah.

לפיכך אמר אם הייתם עובדים מאהבה אל תניחו היראה לגמרי

and this is morah shamayim aleichem because also in the Torah it is stated the tzivui on the yirah, as it says את ה' אלהיך תירא. And our chachamim said עבוד מאהבה עבוד מיראה. So far all good, nice and good. Now here comes the, here comes the cryptic part. Ve'amru, here is the question what the Rambam is quoting here. The meforshim have different, different opinions what the Rambam is quoting here, it's not self-evident what he's quoting.

ואמרו האוהב לא יזניח את הציווי והירא לא יעבור על האזהרה.

A person who is ohev will not neglect a mitzvas asei, a person who is yarey will not neglect a mitzvas lo sa'asei.

והרי ליראה כפל גדול במצוות לא תעשה ובפרט המצוות השמעיות

and especially chukim. The Rambam tells us that ahava will lead a person to be mekayeim mitzvas asei, yirah mitzvas lo sa'asei. The Ramban famously has a similar comment, you'll recall from the Ramban on the Aseres Hadibros. But the question is: is that really true? Let's say, I don't know, let's say your parents want to take a nap for Shabbos afternoon. They tell you, I'm a little tired, I have a headache, whatever, I'd like to take a nap. So do me a favor, please stay, keep it quiet, don't play music, don't make a racket. And so love prompts to ensure compliance with that request? My father, whom I love, told me that he objects to this, that this will disturb him, so I'm not going to do it. Only if I'm scared of what he's going to do to me, if I make a racket, only then am I going to comply? That will also get me to comply. That will keep me in mind also and we need that strength, we need that discipline. But ahava won't? What's this disconnect between ahava and mitzvas lo sa'asei in the Rambam? Again, whether it's from Chazal or not is not clear. The Kapach thinks the Rambam is quoting an Arabic say and the more recent translation thinks that no, maybe it is a Chazal. Whatever, whomever, whatever, it's the Rambam. Whatever it was before, it's nothing less than the Rambam. But why is there a disconnect between ahava and mitzvas lo sa'asei? No, it doesn't resonate with us. So let's reread the Rambam's description of ahava. היך היא הדרך לאהבתו ויראתו, the initial state.

היך היא הדרך לאהבתו ויראתו? בשעה שיתבונן אדם במעשיו וברואיו הנפלאים הגדולים.

When a person reflects on Hakadosh Baruch Hu's handiwork, His creation, how wondrous, how great it is, ויראה מהם חכמתו שאין לה ערך וקץ and he sees the inestimable and infinite chochma, מיד הוא אוהב ומשבח ומפאר ומתאוה תאוה גדולה. So don't, let's hold off on translating the word ahava. And this is a description of love? Does ahava have any other meanings other than the its... the one that we usually associate with love let's say in Rashi, so Amnon is described as an ohev es Tamar. I don't think we would translate that as love; I think we would translate—and the whole story—we would translate that as lust, as being obsessed. We wouldn't dignify that by describing it as love. When the Rambam quotes the Gemara in Yoma in Perek Beis of Hilchos Teshuva to illustrate teshuva gemura, he says:

איזו היא תשובה גמורה זה שבאה לידו דבר שעבר בו ואפשר בידו לעשות ופירש ולא עשה מפני התשובה לא מיראה ולא מכשלון כח.

What would be a display of teshuva gemura? If a person finds himself basically באותו זמן ובאותו מקום and has the same yetzer hara; the first time he succumbed, the second time because of teshuva he doesn't, so that's a display of teshuva gemura. Now the Rambam gives us an example. Listen to the example:

כיצד הרי שבא על אשה בעבירה ולאחר זמן נתייחד עמה,

listen to the next phrase Rabosai:

והוא עומד באהבתו בה ובכח גופו ובמדינה שעבר בה ופירש ולא עבר זהו בעל תשובה גמורה.

So he would copulate with a woman; he has at the same stage of life, he has a second opportunity to do so, and he doesn't, and he doesn't do so mipnei teshuva, so that is a display of teshuva gemura. I'm not sure whether ahava translates here as love either; it was an illicit relationship here. Whatever, whichever aveira it was in the Minian Arayos, it was one or more than one of them, Rachmana litzlan. I don't think we would call that—we wouldn't call that love. Ahava also can mean to—now again, obviously in these contexts, lust is something with very negative connotations and very negative meanings. And usually the way we use the word obsession is also with negative, negative connotations. But what ahavas Hashem seems to mean for the Rambam is that a person is just so enthralled by, captivated by Hakadosh Baruch Hu that it just totally, totally dominates him. The desire to know Hakadosh Baruch Hu more and get closer to Hakadosh Baruch Hu—the person is so enthralled, so captivated. That's what ahava means. Now if you think about it, that some translate into dikduk to mitzvas asei. A mitzvas asei, so a person will see that as advancing what he wants to do. A mitzvas asei he'll see as, "Oh, okay, I see how a mitzvas asei is going to get me closer." And that's what I want; the ohev Hashem, he's so enthralled, so captivated, so fascinated, so—in a positive sense of the word—obsessed with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. Again, leaving aside its negative connotations, in a positive sense, so, so completely, completely captivated by Hakadosh Baruch Hu. Ma she'ein kein a mitzvas lo sa'asei; I don't see how that's getting me closer. That's where the Rambam says, and ohev lo—what was the lashon?

אוהב לא יזניח את הציווי והירא לא יעבור על האזהרה.

You could do this compare and contrast with many of the other hachmei hamasores, but one, if you take a look for instance in the hakdama to the Mesillas Yesharim—anyone have that in front of them in the hakdama to the Mesillas Yesharim?—where he talks about the pasuk in parshas Eikev: "And now, what does the Lord your God ask of you?" So he quotes ma ahava; he says what ahava means. Right, so everyone has their sheets I guess, okay, let's go back.

האהבה שתהיה נקבע בלב האדם אהבה אליו יתברך עד שתתעורר נפשו לעשות נחת רוח לפניו. האהבה שתהיה נקבע בלב האדם אהבה אליו יתברך עד שתתעורר נפשו לעשות נחת רוח לפניו כמו שלבו מתעורר לעשות נחת רוח לאביו ולאמו ויצטער אם חסר זה מצדו או מאחרים ויקנא על זה וישמח שמחה רבה בהשגת דבר מזה.

One more time.

האהבה שתהיה נקבע בלב האדם אהבה אליו יתברך עד שתתעורר נפשו לעשות נחת רוח לפניו.

What does ahavah mean? That a person is looking not just to do what he's obligated to do, but to do anything which kiviyachol will bring Hakadosh Baruch Hu nachas ruach. The same way a person, a child who loves his parents, is not just looking to do what he's obligated to do but anything that would be pleasing to his parents. Ramchal apparently translates ahavah as love, the way we generally assume. For the Rambam, it has more the sense again of of being captivated by, enthralled by to the point that that it just so completely dominates a person. Maybe just to conclude with with one or two just final he'arot. There is something seemingly incongruous in just one more let's see if I can find it here. Okay, so in Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah again, so the Rambam has two halachos here. Halacha Aleph we read:

הא-ל הנכבד והנורא הזה מצווה לאהבה וליראה ממנו שנאמר ואהבת את ה' א-להיך ונאמר את ה' א-להיך תירא.

Fine. There are two mitzvos, there's a mitzvas ahavas Hashem and a mitzvas yiras Hashem. Good. Halacha Beis:

היאך היא הדרך לאהבתו וליראתו בשעה שיתבונן האדם במעשיו וברואיו הנפלאים הגדולים ויראה מהם חכמתו שאין לה ערך ולא קץ מיד הוא אוהב ומשבח ומפאר ומתאווה תאווה גדולה לידע השם הגדול כמו שאמר דוד צמאה נפשי לא-להים לא-ל חי וכשמחשב בדברים האלו עצמן מיד הוא נרתע לאחוריו ויירא ויפחד וידע שהוא בריה קטנה שפלה אפלה עומדת בדעת קלה ומעוטה לפני תמים דעות כמו שאמר דוד כי אראה שמיך מה אנוש כי תזכרנו.

So the Rambam tells us of a mitzva of ahavah and yirah and then he tells us the derech la'ahavah u'lyirah. What's missing? משל למה הדבר דומה. Let's say I tell you there's a mitzvas tefillin and then I give you directions to the kosher bookstore or Judaica store which has a sofer where they sell tefillin. The Rambam doesn't tell us any halachos of the mitzva here. He tells us that there are two such mitzvos, he begins telling the mitzvos, now tell me, don't just tell me the derech la'ahavah. If there's a mitzvas tefillin don't just give me directions to the bookstore where I can buy the tefillin. Tell me, tell me to put it on the kiboret, tell me to put it bein einecha, tell me the halachos. Okay, the Rambam does revisit it of course in Perek Yud of Hilchos Teshuva, but it's so strange and so incongruous to introduce the mitzvos and then not tell me the dinim of the mitzva. Ella mai. You also notice with the structure of of the Sefer HaChinuch's presentation of of every mitzva and how he concludes every mitzva by telling us when a person will be considered guilty rachmana litzlan of having either mevattel the aseh or over on the lo sa'aseh. Fine. So the Sefer HaChinuch will tell us there's a mitzva to eat matzah ba-laylah ha-rishon and then he'll tell us at the conclusion that

המבטל המצווה בליל חמישה עשר הרי זה ביטל מצות עשה.

So it's always davar ve'hipucho, right? The mitzva is to eat matzah so the Chinuch tells us at the end that what And logically, it's always if the mitzvah is x, so then the bitul or the aveirah is not x. Right. So what's the mitzvah of ahavas Hashem? Is the mitzvas asei לעהוב את המקום ברוך הוא. Good.

ועובר על זה ונוהגת בכל מקום בכל זמן בזכרים ובנקבות.

Now listen very carefully to this Sefer HaChinuch over here.

ועובר על זה וקובע מחשבותיו בעניינים הגשמיים ובהבלי העולם שלא לשם שמים רק להתענג בהם לבד או להשיג כבוד העולם הזה הכוזב להגדיל שמו לא לכוונה להטיב לתום ולחזק ידי ישר ביטל עשה זה ועונשו גדול.

Nachon me'od.

ועובר על זה וקובע מחשבותיו בעניינים הגשמיים ובהבלי העולם שלא לשם שמים רק להתענג בהם לבד או להשיג כבוד העולם הזה הכוזב להגדיל שמו לא לכוונה להטיב לתום ולחזק ידי ישר ביטל עשה זה ועונשו גדול.

What do you say about that Sefer HaChinuch over here? What's so different about it? What's the important hagdarah that he gives us? What should he have said? If the mitzvah is to lay krias shema, so when is a person guilty of having been mevatel krias shema? He didn't lay krias shema. If the mitzvah is to take a lulav, so when is a person guilty of not having been mekayem hamitzvah? He didn't take a lulav. If the mitzvah is to eat matzah leil pesach, when is a person guilty of having been mevatel hamitzvah? If he didn't eat matzah leil pesach. If the mitzvah is to be ohev es Hashem, so shouldn't it follow logically, when is a person rachmana litzlan guilty of not being kayam hamitzvah? If he's not ohev Hashem. That's not what it says in the Sefer HaChinuch. Sefer HaChinuch says if a person is not pursuing ahavas Hashem, he's guilty of being mevatel hamitzvah. The fact that a person isn't ohev Hashem, that doesn't mean that he's being mevatel hamitzvah. No, here the process is gufeh part of the mitzvah. It's not a hechsher mitzvah. When you go to the seforim store, to the Judaica store to buy tefillin, that's hechsher mitzvah. Okay, it's a holy hechsher mitzvah, it's not inconsequential, but that's not the kiyum hamitzvah. It's hechsher mitzvah. When you go to buy your daled minim before Sukkos, that's hechsher mitzvah. The derech l'ahava v'yirah, that's not hechsher mitzvah. It is, it is the din hamitzvah. The pursuit, the attempt to develop and to cultivate yiras shamayim and ahavas Hashem. No, that gufeh is part of the mitzvah. That's why the Sefer HaChinuch can't say and doesn't say that מי שאינו אוהב השם הרי זה ביטל המצווה. No, if a person is content, a person is tailgating his whole life, spends his whole life tailgating, he spends his whole life just figuring out how to make more money, not because he's interested in giving tzedakah or for any avodas Hashem-dik purpose. No, because he's interested in being rich and he's interested in buying a big fancy house and big fancy cars and there is nothing beyond that, that person is mevatel hamitzvah of ahavas Hashem. He's not pursuing it, he's not trying, he's not aspiring to it. If a person is aspiring to it, a person is taking steps, maybe they're just tiny baby steps, maybe that's all he's ready for, but a person, this is halachic, it's not mussar which is moving one word or a iota beyond the halacha. A person is on the path, a person is taking whatever steps he's capable of taking at this point, he's not guilty rachmana litzlan of having been mevatel hamitzvah. In Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah we ask, how did the Rambam tell us the mitzvah, present the mitzvah, and then walk away without telling us the halacha? The answer is ein hachi nami, he doesn't tell us all the halachos, for whatever reason he saves part of it for Perek Yud of Hilchos Teshuvah, we don't have time for that now, but he does, because the derech l'ahava v'yirah is an intrinsic part of the kiyum hamitzvah. The mitzvah here includes the process, the pursuit of those goals.