Chapter I
אמר רבה בר רב הונא כל אדם שיש בו תורה ואין
בו יראת שמים דומה לגזבר שמסרו לו מפתחות
הפנימיות ומפתחות החיצוניות לא מסרו לו בהי
עייל מכריז ר׳ ינאי חבל על דלית לי׳ דרתא
ותרעא לדרתא עביד
"Rabbah the son of Rav Huna said: 'A person possessing Torah but lacking yiras shomayim (fear of Heaven), is analogous to a treasurer who is entrusted with the keys to the innermost chamber but not to the outer. How can he possibly enter?' Rabbi Yannai declared: 'Woe to the person who lacks a domicile yet makes a door for it.' "1
Rashi explains that yiras shomayim is analogous to the outer portals through which one reaches the inner portals. When a person possesses yiras shomayim, he is careful to observe the mitzvos. Lack of yiras shomayim whether generally lacking, or lacking to a degree commensurate with one's Torah knowledge indicates that an individual is not in possession of the vital keys.
Truly, the primary purpose of Torah knowledge is to enable a person to perform mitzvos properly, i.e., to be aware of all the mitzvos and their ramifications.
The mitzvos are G‑d's will or Supernal Desire. Regarding a person's soul powers, we observe that will differs from the other powers, for it must be fulfilled meticulously if it is to be a valid expression of one's desire; should action lack even a minor detail, the initiating will cannot be said to have been fulfilled. In this regard, desire is different from other powers such as intellect, emotion, sight and hearing.
There are varying classes of intellect. Wisdom relating to action is shallow and considered "coarse" intellect, inasmuch as it relates strictly to physical matters. Though this branch of intellect may contain much wisdom, since it deals strictly with physical matters it is regarded as the lowest branch of intellect. Knowledge of the soul is of the higher classes of intellect, and knowledge of G‑dliness is particularly sublime. Although both these forms of wisdom contain concepts readily comprehensible to the average mind, as a rule they are extremely refined.
We thus observe that there are higher and lower categories of knowledge, and that within each specific category there are concepts of greater and lesser profundity. But even the least subtle concept of the lowest class of intellect is still a form of intellect.
The same is true with regard to emotion, sight and hearing. They all contain [ideal and] less-than-ideal levels, yet all these levels are considered to fall within their particular category. [For example, even if one does not have perfect vision he is still considered to be sighted; even if one hears with difficulty he is not considered deaf.] This is not the case with desire; gratification of desire comes only when it is fulfilled exactly.
Mitzvos are expressions of the Divine Will. In order that they be performed in accordance with His will, Torah study is necessary, for only then will a person know how to observe them properly, in the manner which G‑d desired. The main objective of Torah study should therefore be the acquisition of knowledge regarding those laws that pertain to a person's everyday conduct. Many people transgress, albeit unwittingly, because they lack elementary knowledge of Torah laws.
In summary: Torah and yiras shomayim are the interior and exterior keys. Rabbi Yannai likens yiras shomayim and Torah to a door and its domicile. The ultimate purpose of Torah study is to learn how to properly perform mitzvos, which are all expressions of Divine Will. Will must be fulfilled exactly in order to be fulfilled at all, and so the mitzvos must be performed according to the Torah's laws.
Chapter II
Let us understand this more clearly: There is Torah study and there is Torah knowledge. Torah study is the learning of Torah in order to know its laws so that one can perform mitzvos according to the Divine Will. Torah knowledge is the specific mitzvah of studying Torah for its own sake, for learning Torah is a mitzvah in and of itself.
Rabbah, the son of Rav Huna [in the statement quoted at the beginning of the maamar] addresses himself to the person who studies Torah but lacks yiras shomayim. Rabbah alludes to an individual who studies Torah and generates novel Torah interpretations, but whose performance of mitzvos remains unaffected. Such an individual's knowledge of the laws does not lead him to scrupulously observe the commandments; he takes lightly the actual performance of mitzvos in a beautiful manner. All this stems from a lack of yiras shomayim.
Such an individual uses his Torah knowledge to achieve the very antithesis of yiras shomayim. He seeks to find as many exclusions (heteirim) and relaxations (kulos) of the law as possible. He treats matters that are "kosher" only after the fact (bide'evid) as if they were permissible from the outset (lichatchilah). With his vast fund of knowledge, he thinks that he can purify that which is clearly impure, and make kosher that which is plainly treif. The Talmud2 tells of a student in the city of Yavneh who was so knowledgeable that he was able to offer 150 reasons for declaring an impure animal pure. Tosafos3 notes that there is no merit in declaring pure that which the Torah explicitly declares impure. The foundation of Torah is the yiras shomayim resulting from one's Torah knowledge, rather than knowledge in the abstract.
When one studies Torah, one should be aware that one is studying Divine Wisdom. G‑d gave the Torah in an understandable manner, and indeed, the mitzvah of Torah knowledge requires its student to have a clear grasp of the Talmudic subject being studied. Nevertheless, Torah knowledge must be founded upon the principal that Torah is the word of G‑d, and thus Divine. The verse4 says: "My tongue shall respond to Your utterance." Torah study must reflect the same faith as one who merely "repeats after the reader."5
Torah study and Torah knowledge require total concentration, so that the person is wholly absorbed in the matter he is studying. He must understand every detail clearly. We find in the Talmud6 that Sumches, a disciple of Rabbi Meir, would give 48 explanations for the Torah's declaring of an object either pure or impure. Gaining understanding of the many varied reasons behind the Torah's teachings is the true meaning of Torah study with yiras shomayim, for a clear knowledge of the varied reasons is in itself a matter of yiras shomayim, inasmuch as a person thereby comes to perceive Torah as Divine Wisdom.
In summary: Torah study and Torah knowledge are two distinct entities; Torah study is for the purpose of knowing how to perform the mitzvos, while Torah knowledge involves the particular mitzvah of learning Torah. [Should yiras shomayim be lacking,] Torah study can lead to the declaration that a prohibited matter is permissible. The foundation of Torah is yiras shomayim. When achieved, a person feels that Torah is Divine Wisdom.
Chapter III
The Talmud likens one who studies Torah but lacks yiras shomayim to the trustee of a house with many doors who is given only the keys to the interior doors; he lacks the keys to the entrance. Rabbi Yannai says: "Woe to the person who lacks a domicile yet makes a door for it."
Yiras shomayim is the dwelling and Torah is its door. Rashi, in his commentary on the Talmud,7 states that Torah is the portal through which one passes in order to obtain yiras shomayim.
The two above-mentioned opinions seem to be in conflict. According to the first, Torah and yiras shomayim are [both] likened to keys, yiras shomayim being the external keys and Torah the internal keys; [i.e., yiras shomayim precedes Torah. According to Rabbi Yannai, however, Torah likened to a door precedes yiras shomayim, which is likened to a domicile.]
The apparent conflict is resolved by the Mishnah in Pirkei Avos (Ethics of the Fathers) which states:8 "If there is no fear, there is no wisdom; if there is no wisdom, there is no fear."
This Mishnah needs to be properly understood, for it seems that there is no clear point of departure. Beginning one's spiritual service with fear of G‑d would seem to be pointless since one lacks wisdom, but on the other hand, beginning with wisdom also seems pointless, since the person lacks fear of G‑d. Spiritual service must have a beginning and an end, but according to the parameters set out by the Mishnah, this seems impossible.
The matter is as follows: there are two levels of fear: "yirah ila'ah," the "higher level of fear," and "yirah tata'ah," the "lower level of fear." Within wisdom of Torah too there are two levels: yirah tata'ah is an introduction to Torah, and Torah is a prelude to yirah ila'ah.
It is written:9 "For G‑d is all knowledgeable (deyos)." This refers to the two levels of knowledge. The lower level is that of created beings who consider themselves to actually exist. Such beings call their source ayin, or "non-being," since it is incomprehensible to them.
Yirah tata'ah emanates from this lower level of knowledge, concerning which it is written:10 "All the earth shall fear Him." It arises from the realization that all was created from but a glimmer of G‑dliness. The level of yirah tata'ah is an introduction to [the wisdom of] Torah.
The higher level of knowledge is Supernal Knowledge, namely, that all true existence is Above, and created beings are "all before Him as naught." When a person understands that G‑d is the only true existence, he will reach a state of total self-nullification yirah ila'ah. Torah is a prelude to this level.
These then are the two levels of yirah tata'ah and yirah ila'ah, the former arising from the lower level of knowledge that is an introduction to Torah study; the latter stemming from contemplating the higher level of knowledge, for which Torah is both a prelude and a vessel.
In summary: The apparent contradiction between the two analogies concerning an individual who possesses knowledge but lacks yiras shomayim is explained with the saying: "If there is no fear, there is no wisdom; if there is no wisdom, there is no fear." There is a higher and a lower level of knowledge. Yirah tata'ah is an introduction to Torah, and Torah is a vessel for yirah ila'ah.
Chapter IV
The verse states:11 "And G‑d commanded us to perform all these statutes, so that we may fear the L-rd our G‑d."
There are three different types of mitzvos, and their names are alluded to in the verse:12 "These are the testimonies, statutes and laws which Moshe spoke."
"Testimonies" are those mitzvos that serve as a sign between G‑d and His flock, the Jewish people. They include the mitzvos of Shabbos, tefillin, Pesach, milah and sukkah.
"Laws" are those mitzvos which the human mind finds eminently logical. Among them are: honoring one's parents, tzedakah, love of one's fellow Jews, [the prohibitions against] theft and evil gossip.
"Statutes" are mitzvos that have no foundation in human logic and are performed solely because they are Divine edicts. An example would be the laws of ritual purity and impurity. The Midrash13 notes that logically a dead person does not defile, nor does a mikvah bring about purity; they do so only because G‑d so decreed, and nothing is powerful enough to change His edict. Thus, a statute is a G‑dly decree that defies human logic; humans are not permitted to question the underlying rationale.
[As an introduction to the mitzvah of the Red Heifer] the Torah declares:14 "This is a statute of the Torah." Rashi explains that this statement precludes any doubts about the logic of the mitzvah. For as Rashi says:15 Satan and the nations of the world taunt the Jewish people and say: "What manner and what logic is to be found in a mitzvah that purifies the impure by having the ashes of the Red Heifer sprinkled upon them, while those who busy themselves preparing the heifer and mixing its ashes with water are declared impure?" The Torah therefore introduces this mitzvah as a statute, meaning that man has no right to question it.
It is for this reason that the Torah states: "And G‑d commanded us to perform all these statutes," for the true performance of all mitzvos involves doing them as if they were statutes. Even "testimonies" and "laws" are to be observed not because they act as a testimony or because they are impeccably logical, but rather because G‑d has so commanded. The same flawless devotion that is involved in the performance of statutes should be applied to the performance of all mitzvos. Performance in such a manner brings us [as stated in the conclusion of the verse mentioned above] "To fear G‑d" in Hebrew, "LeYirah es Havayah" in a manner of "es Havayah." This is similar to the verse:16 "All those who are holy should fear G‑d." Here too the verse states "es Havayah."
"Es Havayah" refers to that which is subjugated to and nullified before G‑d. We know that this is the meaning of the word es from the comment of the Talmud17 on [the verse18] "es b'saro" (his flesh), which is interpreted to mean "that which is totally secondary [because it is nullified] to his flesh." Here too, the fear of "es Havayah" is the level of fear which is nullified to the name Havayah [a name indicating G‑d's Essence]. This [higher] level of fear is attained through the service of Torah which is a prelude to and a vessel for yirah ila'ah.
Service of G‑d must, however, begin with acceptance of the Divine Yoke, the level of yirah tata'ah. This then is meant by the statement: "If there is no fear, there is no wisdom." The first step in one's spiritual service is that of yirah [tata'ah], as our Sages comment:19 "Anyone whose fear of sin comes before his wisdom, his wisdom will endure." The initial step in Divine service must be yiras shomayim. Commenting on the verse:20 "And this is the gateway to Heaven," the Zohar21 declares: "This [fear of G‑d] is the gateway to all spiritual heights."
The statement: "If there is no wisdom, there is no fear," refers to the level of yirah ila'ah, the vessel for which is the wisdom of Torah. Torah is therefore called the "internal keys," for it contains the keys to the internal level of yirah ila'ah. However, Divine service must begin with yirah tata'ah, which is achieved by accepting upon oneself the Heavenly Yoke. Yirah [ila'ah] is therefore likened to a dwelling [and Torah only to a door], for most important is fear of G‑d. Yirah tata'ah leads to Torah, which in turn is a prelude to yirah ila'ah.
In summary: There are three kinds of mitzvos. "Testimonies" are a sign between G‑d and the Jewish people. Examples are milah, Shabbos, tefillin. "Laws" are those mitzvos deemed necessary even by human logic. Examples are: honoring one's parents, tzedakah, love of fellow Jew. "Statutes" are mitzvos which transcend logic, and which must be performed simply because they are expressions of Divine will. An example is immersion in a kosher mikvah. All mitzvos should be performed as if they were statutes; because they were willed by G‑d. Spiritual service should begin by accepting the Divine Yoke upon oneself.
