Just Weight – Kedoshim
לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ עָוֶל בַּמִּשְׁפָּט בַּמִּדָּה בַּמִּשְׁקָל וּבַמְּשׂוּרָה. מֹאזְנֵי צֶדֶק אַבְנֵי צֶדֶק אֵיפַת צֶדֶק וְהִין צֶדֶק יִהְיֶה לָכֶם אֲנִי ה' אֱ-לֹקֵיכֶם אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִי אֶתְכֶם מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם. (ויקרא יט, לה-לו).
Be'ezrat Hashem, next week will see the launch of the long awaited second edition of sefer Meir Panim and in honor of the event I would like to focus this week's shiur on a prominent topic in the sefer, which also appears in this week's parsha.
As we all know, the function of the Shulchan and the Lechem HaPanim in the Beit HaMikdash is to serve as a conduit between the Heavenly abundance and this material world. HKB"H uses the Shulchan, with the Lechem HaPanim stacked on it, as a kind of a "transmitter", as it were, to radiate prosperity, abundance and parnasa throughout Am Yisrael and via us, to the entire world.
A "transmitter" is useless without a "receiver" and therefore the Shulchan and Lechem HaPanim are not limited to "transmitting". They also facilitate "receiving" – they teach Am Yisrael how to become "receivers" of the Heavenly abundance. Unless we become "receivers", despite the abundance floating all around us, we will not be able to enjoy any of it, it will float around us, land on us and bounce straight off. An example of this is the illness called diabetes. A person who has diabetes has an abundance of sugar in their bloodstream, but their body lacks the ability to "receive" it so that it gets absorbed (via insulin) into the cells of their body. The abundance swims all around them and is not absorbed.
Every detail of the Shulchan and the Lechem Hapanim teaches us some musar haskel how to "craft" ourselves to become receivers of the Heavenly abundance.
Before we explore one specific aspect of becoming a "receiver" for the Heavenly abundance, a short introduction is necessary.
If I were to ask you "Which of all the Twelve Tribes is most connected to paranasa?" your answer would most likely be Zevulun. As we all know, Yaakov, before he died, blessed Zevulun that they would be seafaring merchants and that by virtue of their material prosperity, would fund the Tribe of Yissachar who, instead of devoting time to earning a parnasa, would devote their lives entirely to studying Torah. Since Zevulun would have no time to study Torah, they would receive part of the reward of Yissachar's Torah study.
One might think that the obligation to study Torah applies to everyone, including Zevulun. However, Chazal teach us that it is impossible for a seafaring merchant to study Torah.
When someone sets out on a sea voyage today, like a luxury cruise to the Greek Isles, for example, why is there no time to study Torah? Instead of 5 hours gambling at the casino, spend only 4 and use the fifth to study Torah (perhaps by studying Torah, you will learn to spend zero hours at the roulette table). Today, sea voyages are very safe.
Modern ships are equipped with sophisticated technology to stabilize the ship so that it does not pitch and rock, radar to detect obstacles and bad weather etc. The statistics of something happening unexpectedly out at sea are minute (unless you happen to be sailing south of the coast of Yemen or east of the coast of Somalia).
A few hundred (or thousand) years ago, this was not the case. Out at sea there could be no peace of mind. Either there was a storm and your ship might sink, or there was calm and no wind, in which case your ship would not move at all. Anything could change at a moment's notice and with no early detection equipment, there was no way to anticipate it. Sailing was a constant mental state of readiness and uncertainty. In such an atmosphere it is impossible to study Torah.
Certain professions do not predispose themselves to studying Torah. For example, it is impossible (and forbidden) to study Torah while you are piloting an airplane. Other professions do predispose themselves to Torah study, for example my profession – baking. Aside from brief periods when concentration is required, like when measuring ingredients for example, most of the work is repetitive and requires the use of your hands, not your brain.
During this time, it is possible to simultaneously work and listen to recorded shiurim, which I do. It is not surprising that professions that require more concentration, bring in more income, than those that are menial. A baker does not earn in the same salary bracket as an airline pilot, but he has the opportunity to study more Torah.
When Chazal say (Avot 4, 10) הֱוֵי מְמַעֵט בָּעֵסֶק וַעֲסֹק בַּתּוֹרָה, they do not only mean "work less hours and spend more hours studying Torah", they also mean, "work in a profession that allows you to work and study Torah at the same time".
For the other tribes this principle applies, but not to Zevulun. Zevulun are like airplane pilots – they cannot work and study Torah at the same time, but accordingly, they earn a much higher salary, which is enough, not only to support them, but also to support another entire tribe.
It is not surprising that the Tribe of Zevulun, the "tribe of the parnasa", is closely linked to the Shulchan and the Lechem HaPanim, which embody anything and everything related to parnasa.
We see this in Moshe's bracha to Zevulun in parshat Ha'azinu. The passuk says ... כִּי שֶׁפַע יַמִּים יִינָקוּ וּשְׂפוּנֵי טְמוּנֵי חוֹל (דברים לג, יט) What does it mean וּשְׂפוּנֵי טְמוּנֵי חוֹל? Rashi says that in addition to making money while out at sea, the earth in the inheritance of Zevulun was teeming with natural resources – sand to make high quality glass and also the Chilazon, the insect used to make Techelet for Tzitzit.
Sefer Meir Panim offers a different explanation for this phrase, a more allegorical interpretation.
As we know the Lechem HaPanim were shaped like ships, or in the Gemara (Menachot 94b) סְפִינָה רוֹקֶדֶת. In the Gemara the letters שׂ and ס are interchangeable. The word שְׂפוּנֵי refers to ships סְפִינוֹת. Meir Panim says that טְמוּנֵי חוֹל does not mean "buried in the sand" (as per Rashi's perush). The word חוֹל does not mean "sand", but rather "weekdays" (as in חוֹל הַמּוֹעֵד). Meir Panim says that שְׂפוּנֵי טְמוּנֵי חוֹל means "ships buried on weekdays". What does this mean?
As we know, the loaves of Lechem HaPanim were stacked in two piles of six loaves. In between and separating each loaf, were a series of half pipes (cut lengthwise in half), in order to provide airflow, so that the bread would not go moldy. On every erev Shabbat, the Kohanim would enter the Heichal and remove these half pipes so that the entire Shabbat, the bread on the Shulchan was not surrounded by pipes - to facilitate switching the 12 previous week's breads with 12 fresh loaves. On Motzei Shabbat, the Kohanim would re-insert these half pipes between the new loaves, and they would remain like that, enclosed by pipes, the entire week until the following Friday.
The passuk referring to these half pipes says ... וּמְנַקִּיֹּתָיו אֲשֶׁר יֻסַּךְ בָּהֵן (שמות כה, כט). Rashi says that the word יֻסַּךְ comes from the root of the word סְכָךְ (like on a Sukkah), meaning to "cover". In other words, from Motzei Shabbat until the following erev Shabbat, the Lechem HaPanim shaped like ships, were covered by (buried under) these pipes - שְׂפוּנֵי טְמוּנֵי חוֹל, "ships buried on weekdays".
In other words, the loaves of the Lechem HaPanim on the Shulchan are equivalent to the Tribe of Zevulun out on the perilous high seas. Meir Panim says that we learn from this that - when a person conducts his business dealings during the week, he is like Zevulun traversing perilous waters.
The world of business is perilous and fraught every second with danger. Not the financial danger of your shares dropping in value on the stock market, but fraught with the danger of temptation to sin! Meir Panim says that if a person can successfully get through the entire week of business dealings without transgressing a single sin of the Torah, it is a miracle!
It is equivalent to the miracle of יוֹרְדֵי הַיָּם, those who go to sea and return safely – one of the categories of people who have to bring a Korban Todah (Brachot 54b). In that sense, the Lechem HaPanim on Shabbat is like a Korban Toda for the miracle that a person managed to get through the week without sin and compromising any ethics.
It is true that there are twelve loaves of Lechem HaPanim and only ten loaves (in each category) in the Toda, but of the twelve loaves (tribes), two do not count – Yissachar and Levi. Neither are working or are involved with parnasa during the week – Yissachar is studying Torah and Levi is working in the Mikdash! So, in fact, ten of the twelve loaves (the working tribes) on the Shulchan are a kind of a Toda, (corresponding to the ten loaves of each category of the Toda).
It is an extremely powerful principle, with ramifications in modern times. In fact, when we say Hamotzi on Lechem Mishneh on Shabbat, it is not only to commemorate the double portion of Mann, it is like the two stacks of Lechem HaPanim, like bringing a Korban Toda, to thank HKB"H that He allowed us to survive the week of business dealings and emerge intact.
The miracle of the Lechem HaPanim mentioned in the Gemara (Chagiga 26b) is סִלּוּקוֹ כְּסִדּוּרוֹ - the way the Lechem HaPanim was removed from the Shulchan on Shabbat, was as fresh and flawless as when it was placed on the Shulchan the previous Shabbat. We need to aspire to complete our work week סִלּוּקוֹ כְּסִדּוּרוֹ, without flaw, from beginning to end.
The half pipes covering the bread are called in the passuk מְנַקִּיֹּת, from the root of the word נָקִי. They allow airflow and keep the breads clean from mold. Similarly, when we conduct our business dealings during the week, we must "cover" ourselves in נְקִיּוּת, assure that our business dealings are clean and without deceit, theft, etc.
Most people are raising their eyebrows right now "Who me? I don't steal at work!" Stealing is not limited to breaking into the manager's office after hours, emptying the safe and absconding with the cash. When someone uses the phone at work for private use, not connected to his/her job (without permission of their employer), that is also a form of stealing.
If you get paid by the hour and you allow yourself an extra 2 minutes to finish your coffee and donut during your break – that is a form of stealing. These are two small examples. I will not even begin to talk about office politics, לָשׁוֹן הָרַע and אוֹנָאַת דְּבָרִים. Now you begin to understand how potentially treacherous the workplace really is and how much integrity is really needed to emerge at the end of the week untainted by any of it.
This is why our sages told us הֱוֵי מְמַעֵט בָּעֵסֶק וַעֲסֹק בַּתּוֹרָה – to "temper" (balance) our work week with Torah as much as possible to ward off the negative effects it may have on us.
So how did Zevulun survive spiritually if they were fully preoccupied with parnasa and had no time to study Torah?
The answer is that the merit of Yissachar's Torah study protected them. If Zevulun would have conducted their business simply for the purpose of making money for its own sake, they would have "drowned" in this sea of iniquity. This is why the Shulchan (the symbol of parnasa) sits alongside the Menorah (the symbol of the Torah) in the Heichal, because they are symbiotic.
Every facet of the Shulchan and the Lechem HaPanim teaches us how to handle our parnasa in the right way.
The dimensions of the Shulchan have an important musar haskel . The length and breadth of the Shuchan are integer (whole) numbers – 2 amot long, 1 amah wide, hinting that the "length and breadth" of our business dealings must be "whole", integral and without flaw. On the other hand, the height of the Shulchan is not a whole number, 1.5 amot high, to teach us that when we accumulate wealth, we should put aside greed, satisfy ourselves with what HKB"H gives us and be שָׂמֵחַ בְּחֶלְקֵנוּ, even though to us it may not seem to be "complete" and enough.
HKB"H gives exactly what we need, at every point in our life. To us it may not always seem that way, but we lack the perspective of the overall plan HKB"H has in store for us. Often, we only acquire this insight in retrospect. To be able to accept, at every point in our lives, even when we narrowly perceive them to be tough, that HKB"H has provided us with exactly what we need, requires an elevated level of emunah.
We should cherish and value everything HKB"H gives us, however much or little, and not treat our belongings with disrespect or carelessness. We learn this from Yaakov Avinu who, before his reunion with Eisav, went back to retrieve פַּכִים קְטַנִּים, small utensils of little monetary value (Rashi בראשית לב, כה). We learn the same lesson from the upright supports of the Shulchan, the קְשָׂוֹת, (also called סְנִיפִּין in the Gemara).
According to Rashi, the word קְשָׂוֹת comes from the root קָשֶׁה. A person must be קָשֶׁה with his belongings. This does not mean "hard" or "tough", but rather wise. The Gemara (Menachot 95b) describes Rav Sheshet as an אָדָם קָשֶׁה and Rashi interprets to mean a wise and focused person. Similarly, a person must treat their assets with wisdom and precision and not take unnecessary risks with them. The gematria of the word עָשִׁיר, (a wealthy person) is דַּייקָנוּת.
Finally, in reference to our parsha and the passuk above – the Torah says that when a person conducts business, he/she must be totally honest. The passuk above (referring to a merchant who sells merchandise by weight or volume) says that your scale must be calibrated and accurate מֹאזְנֵי צֶדֶק, your weights must be accurate אַבְנֵי צֶדֶק, your measuring cups for dry ingredients must be accurate אֵיפַת צֶדֶק, and finally your measuring cups for liquid ingredients וְהִין צֶדֶק, must be accurate.
The Ba'al HaTurim says that this passuk specifically precedes the next passuk וּשְׁמַרְתֶּם אֶת כָּל חֻקֹּתַי וְאֶת כָּל מִשְׁפָּטַי וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אֹתָם אֲנִי ה' to teach us that anyone who cheats regarding measures, it is as if he/she has transgressed ALL of the mitzvot in the Torah.
The Shulchan also embodies this principle – the gematria of שֻׁלְחָן is צֶדֶק צֶדֶק.
Elsewhere, the Torah says צֶדֶק צֶדֶק תִּרְדֹּף (דברים טז, כ). R' Simcha Bunim of Peshischa asks "Why does it say the word צֶדֶק twice?" and explains that even when we feel that we are honest and just, we must always pursue צֶדֶק - strive to attain an additional level of צֶדֶק, that can never be complete. This is also hinted to in the height of the Shulchan, which is a fractional dimension.
Our parsha provides the guidelines (which are also broadcast in the very essence of the Shulchan and the Lechem HaPanim) how to handle our parnasa in this material world. That it must be beyond all reproach and that it is equivalent in its importance to all the other mitzvot in the Torah combined.
This is what I was referring to in the beginning of the shiur about becoming a "receiver". When we apply all these principles, that are embedded in every aspect of the Shulchan and the Lechem HaPanim, we spiritually transform ourselves into a worthy "receiver" of the Heavenly abundance, which can then reach its intended destination instead of simply bouncing off us, because we are not adequately equipped to receive it.
This was a sneak preview into a few of many, many chidushim בִּסְעָיְתָא דִּשְׁמַיָּא which have been added in the second edition of Meir Panim. This is not a sefer to teach us how to bake bread, it is a sefer to teach us how to improve our midot and how to live our lives the correct way.
The gematria of שֻׁלְחָן and צֶדֶק צֶדֶק is also – לַמָּשִׁיחַ and וְהַרְאֵנוּ בְּבִנְיָנוֹ.
בבי"א
Shabbat Shalom
Eliezer Meir Saidel
Machon Lechem Hapanim
No comments:
Post a Comment