Rabbi Doniel Staum, LMSW
Rabbi, Kehillat New Hempstead
Rebbe/Guidance Counselor – ASHAR
Principal – Ohr Naftoli- New Windsor
STAM
TORAH
PARSHAS
BALAK 5775
“THE
SOURCE OF ALACRITY”
A
fitness center is a strange place. There are stationary bicycles and treadmills
that get you nowhere, no matter how hard you pedal/walk. There is a stair
climber which you can climb for hours and end up no higher than when you began,
and a cross-trainer which you continually struggle with all the while remaining
fixated in place.
If you enter such a fitness center at any point of the day,
you can find dozens of people sweating profusely working hard using the
machines, despite the fact that they are going nowhere! But this does not make
them sad or dejected; in fact they willingly return day after day and repeat
their efforts. The reason is obvious: When it comes to exercise, success is not
measured in distance but in effort. By investing time and effort a person
slowly effects change within himself, and that is the true barometer of
success.
The goal is not the attainment of a physical destination,
but rather subtle internal growth that occurs through toil and persistence. In
other words, the bottom line is not where you go, but how hard you work to get
there!
Balak, the king of Moav, was becoming
desperate. He and his people were disgusted and frightened by the burgeoning
Jewish nation and desperately wanted to impede the Jews’ ascendant march. Balak
placed his hope in the prophet Bila’am requesting that he curse the Jewish
nation.
Bila'am feigned external piety
claiming to Balak that he could not proceed against the Will of G-d. Yet
despite the fact that G-d emphatically told Bila’am not to go with the Moabite
officers, Bila’am repeated his request to G-d. Eventually G-d acceded and
granted him permission to ‘go with them’. However, G-d never granted Bila'am
permission to proceed with the mission he was hired to do. He only allowed
Bila’am to accompany the officers. But Bila'am heard what he wanted to hear and
was more than excited to fulfill his mission. The Torah conveys Bila’am’s
excitement, “Bila'am arose early in the morning and saddled his donkey and went
with the officers of Moav.”[1]
Rashi, quoting the Medrash Tanchuma,
comments, “From here (i.e. from the fact that Bila'am saddled up his own
donkey) we see that hatred distorts the correct order of things.[2] The Holy
One, blessed is He, said, “Wicked one! Avrohom, their forefather, has preceded
you, as it says[3],
“Avrohom arose early in the morning and he saddled his donkey”.”
Nachlas Eliezer notes that the
contrast between Avrohom and Bila'am is not just in regards to what they
demonstrated alacrity and excitement for, but also in the fundamental and
qualitative root-source of their alacrity[4].
The alacrity of Avrohom stemmed from
an inner fiery passion to do whatever he could to serve G-d in the most sublime
manner possible. It was an external manifestation of a passionate sense of
servility before G-d as well as a desire to connect with Him.
The alacrity of Bila'am however, was the
external manifestation of immoral selfishness. It was actually his arrogance
and capriciousness that drove him to rush to fulfill the request of Balak.
Bila’am wanted to be ‘the hero’, and to collect the money promised to him, all
the while showing a face of external humility. Bila'am personified the ultimate
farce - inner arrogance masked by external piety and artificial altruism.
When Avrohom arose early in the
morning it required that he exercise an incredible level of selfless humility.
He was embarking on a journey to offer his beloved son as a sacrifice to G-d.
There was no reward promised and no fanfare or entourage to accompany him. Even
if he planned to adhere to G-d's Command, the normal human reaction would be to
delay it as long as possible. But Avrohom challenged his nature and arose early
to proceed.
Bila'am on the other hand, was
embarking on a mission that included wealth, glory, and prestige. The fact that
he arose early in the morning to fulfill his mission was in no way an
indication of inner greatness. In fact, au contraire; it was selfishly
motivated.
Alacrity is not necessarily a laudable
trait. It depends on the underlying motivation. The first law in Shulchan Aruch
states, “One should strengthen himself like a lion to stand in the morning to
the service of his Creator.” The Taz comments, “Strength is primarily required
to counter the Evil Inclination.”
Only alacrity borne out of struggle and
overcoming one's natural inclination is considered meritorious and noble.
Otherwise, zealousness and eagerness to accomplish may be nothing more than
egocentrically driven desire for aggrandizement and personal gain.
The Mishna[5] states,
“Any person who has these three traits is from the disciples of our forefather
Avrohom; and anyone who has three different traits is among the disciples of
the wicked Bila'am: Those who have a good eye, a humble spirit, and a meek soul
is from the disciples of our forefather Avrohom. But anyone who has an evil
eye, an arrogant spirit, and a greedy soul, are the disciples of the wicked
Bila'am. What is the difference between the disciples of our forefather Avrohom
and the disciples of the wicked Bila'am? The disciples of our forefather
Avrohom benefit from their good deeds in this world and inherit the World to Come...
But the students of the wicked Bila'am inherit purgatory and descend into the
well of destruction...”
The vernacular of the Mishna is
perplexing. Once the Mishna explains the fundamental differences between the
disciples of Avrohom who possess sterling charter traits and the disciples of
Bila'am who possess vulgar and crass character traits, don’t the differences
between their disciples become glaringly obvious? Why does the Mishna then ask
about the difference between their disciples?
Perhaps the Mishna is teaching us that
the discrepancy between the followers of Bila'am and Avrohom may not always be
so clear. On the surface, the disciples of Bila'am may seem humble and pious.
This was in fact the example of their teacher Bila'am who exuded false humility
and piety to the world. But if the underlying differences are not noticeable
immediately, they will inevitably become clear in the future. With time the
truth will emerge.
That is the message of the Mishna. Of
course the true differences between the followers of Bila'am and Avrohom are
vast. But at times those differences only become clear later. Still the Mishna
assures us that in the end the students of Avrohom live a more dignified life
in this world and reap the benefits in the next world, while the students of
Bila'am eventually are exposed as the charlatans that they are, and inherit
purgatory.
Often the secular media will interview
a politician, celebrity, or sports icon, and will comment about how humble and
mild-mannered the individual is. While it is possible that the person is indeed
humble and of noble spirit, more often than not their ‘humility’ is superficial
at best. When things are going well and a team wins a championship it is easy
for the superstar in the limelight to assert that it was a team effort, knowing
full well that he was the driving force and will be lauded accordingly for his
skills. But it is much harder to be humble and meek in challenging times,
especially behind closed doors.
In Tehillim[6] Dovid
Hamelech expresses his insatiable drive to serve G-d. “Chashti v'lo hismamati lishmor mitzvosecha – I hastened and I did
not delay to observe your commandments.” What is the reason for Dovid's
redundant wording? Isn't it obvious that if one hastens to do something he doesn't
delay it?
There are two reasons why a person can
rush to do something. If a person procrastinates as the deadline looms he will
have to rush in order to make up for lost time. This is most obviously true
when one has a deadline to finish a report or project, or when one has to rush
to catch a bus. The other reason why one hurries is because he has a true
desire to engage in the activity at hand, even though he has ample time to do
so.
Dovid Hamelech stated that he hastened
to serve G-d - not because he was late or because he delayed doing what he had
to until the last moment. Rather, his alacrity stemmed from an unquenchable inner
desire to serve G-d however he could, as soon as possible.
Great quality traits are determined by
their motivation. The more one is able to overcome natural drives the greater
he becomes as an individual. The chief difference between the followers of
Bila'am and Avrohom may not always be discernable prima facie. The traits of
the students of Avrohom are the result of years of internal struggle and effort
to become greater people, while the traits of the students of Bila’am are
natural and ‘comfortable’. At times the followers of Bila'am may even seem to
possess sterling personalities and character traits too. But in the end the
truth will emerge, because there is no substitute for hard work and effort.
“Bila'am arose early in the morning
and saddled his donkey”
“The students of the wicked Bila'am
descend into the well of destruction”
[1]
Bamidbar 22:21
[2] i.e.
people deviate from their normal behavior when consumed with hatred
[3] In
regards to Avorohom's alacrity to perform the akeidah (Bereishis 22:3)
[4] We
translated the characteristic of zerizus as 'alacrity'. However, it should be
noted that it is a somewhat insufficient translation. Zerizus connotes passion,
excitement, devotion, and a strong inner desire to perform and accomplish.
[5] Avos
5:22
[6]
119:60
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