The Wisdom of Rabbi Avigdor Miller zt'l
QUESTION
Should I go into Rosh Hashanah with simcha because it is Yom Tov or
with trepidation because it's the Yom Hadin?
ANSWER
And the answer is you have to do both. Gilu bera'adah! You have to
tremble and rejoice. It's a Yom Tov; no question about it, there’s simchas
Yom Tov. But on Rosh Hashanah – the more a person is bent over
in his mind, the better off he is (Rosh Hashanah 26b). The more he's
afraid on Rosh Hashanah, the better off he is. Be afraid on Rosh
Hashanah! It’s very important.
You don't remember, but in the olden days, Jews wept on Rosh Hashanah.
Our great-grandparents wept on Rosh Hashanah. It’s very important to
weep on Rosh Hashanah. You should be afraid. It's the Yom Hadin.
In our minds, we should get the idea that we're standing before the
great Judge. That's an important attitude that we have to form in our mind
— the cognizance, the awareness that Hashem is judging the world, that
He is the Dayan, the King, Who rules everything and you’re going before
Him now for a trial.
You know, people are afraid of a trial. Imagine chas v’shalom they're
calling you for a small thing before a judge, even for a small thing. You're
afraid. I had a man here who had to be in court for a certain reason, a small
thing, and I remember his eyes were twitching. He was a nervous wreck
because he had to go before a judge.
And to come before the great Judge! And you can't deceive Him. No
lawyer is going to intercede for you there. And so the greatest fear is
necessary, certainly.
And the more fear you have on the Yom Hadin, the more you're
succeeding in formulating in your mind the proper attitudes for which you
deserve to get a year of happiness and all the things you're looking for.
September1994
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