אמר רבי אלעזר הכל מודים בעצרת דבעינן נמי לכם מאי טעמא יום שנתנה בו תורה
Rabbi Elazar said, “All authorities concede that on Atzeret — Shavuot — we require also ‘an assembly for you.’ What is the reason? It is the day on which the Torah was given.” (Pesachim 68b) By feasting on Shavuot one demonstrates that he rejoices upon having received the Torah. (Rashi)

QUESTION: In the Gemara (Pesachim 68b) there is a dispute whether on Yom Tov one should dedicate himself entirely to Torah study and worship, or whether one must also set aside time for the physical enjoyment of eating and drinking. All the Sages agree, however, that on the festival of Shavuot one must have a meal because it commemorates the day that the Torah was given.

However, this is enigmatic. Since Shavuot commemorates the giving of the Torah, shouldn’t it be celebrated entirely with study of Torah and G‑dly matters?

ANSWER: According to the Midrash Rabbah (Shemot 28:1) the angels wanted to attack Moshe for coming to take the Torah down to earth. Hashem altered his face to resemble Avraham’s and said to them, “Aren’t you ashamed to attack the person from whose hospitality you benefited?” Consequently, thanks to the food that Avraham gave the angels, we were able to receive the Torah.

Since the Jews received the Torah thanks to Avraham’s making a meal for the angels, it is easily understood why a festive meal is obligatory on Shavuot.

(שער בת רבים)

* * *

This is alluded to in Pirkei Avot (3:17), “Im ein kemach, ein Torah” — Were it not for the food that Avraham had given to the angels, we would not have been able to take the Torah away from them. “Im ein Torah, ein kemach” — Were it not for Avraham’s desire that his children should learn Torah, he would not have offered food to his heavenly guests.

(מהר"ם שי"ף)

* * *

The meal is so important that Shavuot is the only Yom Tov on which one may not even fast a Ta’anit Cholom — a fast due to dreams — which is permissible on any other Yom Tov and even on Shabbat. (See Shulchan Aruch HaRav 494:3.)

(עי' לקוטי שיחות חכ"ג ע' 27)


בעצרת בעינן נמי לכם
On Shavuot we require also an assembly for you. (Pesachim 68b)

QUESTION: What lesson in Avodat Hashem — serving Hashem — can be derived from the teaching of Rabbi Elazar?

ANSWER: Hashem created mortal man with a physical body and a Divine spiritual soul. There is a school of Jewish philosophical thought (the mussar — ethics — movement) that the body and its physical demands are the deterrent which prevent the soul from attaining spiritual heights. Hence, they advocate deprivation for the body. Therefore, followers of this school engage in much fasting and mortification. This was a very popular approach prior to the Ba’al Shem Tov era. With the advent of Chassidut a new approach was introduced.

The Chassidic approach is that, in lieu of denying the body its physical needs, a Jew is supposed to give the body its requirements and work together with it. The goal is to elevate the body to the extent that it becomes the person’s ally and the co-worker of the soul in its striving for spiritual exaltation.

Thus, the message of Rabbi Elazar is that contrary to those who advocate that food, drink and Torah are not compatible, a strong and healthy body is imperative for success in Torah study and observance. Thus, one should cater to the body and give it its needs and elevate it to be a vessel for G‑dliness.

(ר' דוד זצ"ל מלעלוב)

Rabbi Shneur Zalman’s Concern for the “Poor”

The approach of Avodat Hashem — service of G‑d — introduced by the Ba’al Shem Tov is illustrated by the following story:

Before Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, known as the “Alter Rebbe,” became the leader of Chabad, he once traveled to raise money for an important charitable cause. He came to the home of a wealthy man who, sensing that he was not one of the ordinary collectors, offered to have him stay and teach his children in return for the entire sum he hoped to raise.

After a short stay, he informed his host that he was leaving because he could not tolerate the conduct of the people of the city. His host asked him what he meant, and Rabbi Shneur Zalman replied, “You torture the poor.” The host thought that he was referring to a recent meeting to determine how to raise the money for a tax. It was decided that first the poor should give as much as they were able, and whatever was missing would be made up by the rich. His host realized that Rabbi Shneur Zalman was right: the poor should not be bothered at all. The rich should give as much as they can, and the poor won’t have to give anything. Immediately he arranged a second meeting, and it was decided that the rich should first give what they could afford.

A few days later, Rabbi Shneur Zalman again gave notice that he was leaving, exclaiming again, “You torture the poor.” Amazed, the host told his guest of the second meeting and that the poor would not be bothered at all. Rabbi Shneur Zalman told him that he was not aware of the meetings and had been referring to a different matter:

In the human body there are “rich” organs and a “poor” organ. The ‘rich’ organs are the mind and the heart, and the “poor” organ is the stomach. “In this city,” Rabbi Shneur Zalman explained, “instead of emphasizing the rich organs and engaging them in the study of Torah and concentrating on prayer to Hashem, the approach is to constantly fast. Thus, the ‘poor’ organ, the stomach, is deprived and made to suffer for the person’s iniquities. I cannot tolerate this approach!”

The Besht’s Teaching

This new philosophy was very intriguing to the host, and he asked Reb Shneur Zalman its source. He told him of the Ba’al Shem Tov and his teachings, which accentuate working with the mind and heart and not punishing the body.

“The Ba’al Shem Tov,” he continued, “bases his theory on a pasuk in Parshat Mishpatim and interprets it as follows: ‘Ki tireh’ — when you will come to the realization that — ‘chamor’— the physical matter of the body (related to the word chomer), is — ‘sonacha’— your enemy — because he is engaged in attaining physical pleasures, and thus, hates the neshamah which is striving for G‑dliness and a high spiritual level — [and the body is] ‘roveitz tachat masa’o’ — lying under his burden not wanting to get up and serve Hashem — ‘vechadalta mei’azov lo’ — you may think that you will begin to torture him and deny him the food he needs. Be advised that this is a wrong approach. Instead, ‘azov ta’azov imo’ — help him! Give him his bodily needs and attune your mind and soul to worship Hashem. Eventually, your body will become purified and cooperate in your worship.”

(שמעתי מאבי חורגי הרה"ח הרה"ת ר' אליהו משה ע"ה ליס - עי' היום יום, כ"ח שבט)


רב יוסף ביומא דעצרתא אמר עבדי לי עגלא תלתא, אמר אי לא האי יומא דקא גרים כמה יוסף איכא בשוקא
“On the day of Atzeret (Shavuot) Rav Yosef would say “prepare for me a third-born calf” and he explained, “were it not for this day that caused me to learn Torah, how many Yosef’s are there in the market place?” (Pesachim 68b)

QUESTION: Why was it specifically Rabbi Yosef that was so excited about “this day”?

ANSWER: On Shavuot Moshe received the first Tablets. When he descended from heaven with them on the 17th of Tammuz and witnessed the worshipping of the golden calf, he threw down the Tablets, shattering them to pieces. After beseeching Hashem to forgive the Jewish people, he again descended from heaven on Yom Kippur with the second Tablets.

Superficially one may wonder: Since it was the second set that lasted, why isn’t the period of the giving of the Torah celebrated on Yom Kippur rather than Shavuot?

Since Shavuot commemorates the giving of the first Tablets, it can be derived that although they were broken, they were also holy and precious. In fact, Rabbi Yosef declares (Bava Batra 14b) that both sets of Tablets were holy and that they were both placed in the Ark. The Gemara (Berachot 8b) warns about properly respecting an aged Torah scholar who has forgotten his learning, citing by way of analogy that the complete Tablets and the broken Tablets were placed together in the Ark.

The Gemara (Nedarim 41a) relates that Rabbi Yosef once became very ill and forgot all his Torah knowledge, which was a severe blow to his self-image. Therefore, it was Rabbi Yosef who said, “Were it not for this day (Shavuot), when the first Tablets were given and later broken (from which it can be derived that even a sage who has forgotten his Torah study still deserves honor), I — in my present state — would be like one of the many Yosefs who are in the market place. Thus I, in particular, have good reason to celebrate.”

(קהלת יצחק עה"ת, מר' יצחק ב"ר ניסן מ'ווילנא)