Shavuos Special:
Welcome to NachDaily, Im Rabbi Shaya Sussman. Today I wanted to discuss the upcoming holiday of Shavuos, the day the Torah was given.
Rebbe Nachman gives us, in Sichos Haran 91, an amazing lesson on Jewish unity and our relationship with the Torah.
He begins by explaining that if we want to learn b’hasmada, with diligence, we need to be very careful not to speak badly about any Jew.
There are six hundred thousand letters in the Torah which correspond to the six hundred thousand neshmos Yisrael, Jewish souls. Every Jew is represented by a letter in the Torah.
When you speak badly about another Jew, therefore, it’s as if you’re detracting from the letters of the Torah, finding blemishes in it.
We also know that Har Sinai was considered like our wedding day. All of Am Yisrael was k’ish echad beleiv echad, one nation with one heart, completely unified. We saw every member of the Jewish people as true brothers.
Torah tsiva lanu Moshe, morasha kehilas Yaakov - Moshe commanded us the Torah as an inheritance, or legacy. The Gemarah explains that we read the word morasha, as inheritance, and morasa, as betrothal or engagement. The Torah is considered the bride and Am Yisrael is considered the groom.
As every Jew is represented by a letter in the Torah, finding imperfections in other Jews is diminishing the beauty of the bride.
The word Yisrael is an acronym for Yeish Shishim Rebuy Oseyos LaTorah, there are six hundred thousand letters in the Torah because the Torah and the Jewish nation have the deepest of connections.
Rebbe Nachman goes on to explain that when we love Jews, we love the Torah. The concepts go hand in hand because Am Yisrael and the Torah are inextricably bound to each other.
In this context we can understand what is meant by Toras Hashem temima, the Torah of Hashem is perfectly complete and whole. When we find the good in all Jews by judging them favorably and searching out the good in them, then the Torah is completely perfect. The bride being completely perfect in the grooms’ eyes causes a person increased love and desire to learn Torah with diligence.
May we merit loving every Jew with all our hearts and thus be able to taste the sweetness of Torah on our lips.
Thank you for listening, and have a wonderful day.
