STAM
TORAH
PARSHAS
BAMIDBAR 5777
“GREATER
THAN LIFE”
During a visit to Eretz Yisroel a few
years ago, on my last day there, I went with my brother Yaakov to Har Menuchos,
the vast and renowned cemetery overlooking the hills of Yerushalayim. Although
there are innumerable great and holy people buried there, being that my time
was limited, I particularly wanted to visit two kevarim (plots): my Zaydei,
Rabbi Yaakov Meir Kohn zt’l, and Rav Shimshon Pinkus zt’l.
I knew exactly where my Zaydei was
buried and have been there on several occasions in the past. It was uplifting
to pray there, especially with my brother Yaakov standing at my side.
Although I never merited meeting Rav
Pinkus while he was alive, I consider him a personal Rebbe, and he has had a
profound impact on me through his sefarim and recorded lectures. For that reason,
I very much wanted to daven at his kever. The only problem was that I had no
idea where it was.
The only thing I knew is that he is buried
on Har Tamir, the mountain adjacent to Har Menuchos where my Zaydei is buried.
Despite numerous phone calls and inquiries, no one that I asked seemed to have
any more precise details about where Rav Pinkus is buried. Normally that isn’t
an issue because there is an office at the entrance of the cemetery and they
have on file the location of every plot. But the day we were there was Yom
Ha’atzmaut, and the office was closed.
We spent a frustrating hour under the hot
sun asking every person we passed if they knew where Rav Pinkus was buried, but
no one we asked seemed to have any clue. There are tens of thousands of
kevarim, and unless one knows where he is going, it is virtually impossible to
‘stumble upon’ a particular grave. At one point while we were walking aimlessly
I said aloud, “Rav Pinkus, I want to come daven at your kever but I can’t find
it.”
Finally, we dejectedly headed down to the
entrance. I told my brother Yaakov that we would ask one more person, and if he
didn’t know, we would leave.
The person we asked motioned that we should ask another person
in a car who was driving away slowly. I debated if I should even bother to ask,
but in the end, I did. In my mind, I was waiting the same answer I had received
until now. But to my surprise, the man took out his phone, made two phone calls,
and then motioned for us to get in his car.
It is always encouraging when someone does
a chesed for you, simply for the sake of doing chesed. With nothing but
altruistic motives in mind, the man drove us back up the hill to the plot where
Rav Pinkus was buried. Amazingly, it is only three sections over from where my
Zayde is buried.
I
randomly opened my Tehillim to say three or four psalms. It opened to chapter
61 and without thinking much about it I began davening. At the conclusion of
the chapter it says the word “Mon” which is compelling, because Rav Pinkus’s
father-in-law’s name was Rav Mon zt’l.
I
continued davening until I reached chapter 63. In the middle of the chapter, my
eyes widened and I literally felt a chill go down my spine. I placed my hands
on the matzeivah (monument), to hold my balance. I reached a verse which I am familiar
with only because I had heard it quoted by Rav Pinkus on different tapes, and in
his writings. I don’t know if there is any other verse in all of Tanach that I
know so well only because of Rav Pinkus[1].
The
following is the beautiful thought he shared in the name of the Malbim:
The
pasuk[2] states, כי טוב חסדך
מחיים שפתי ישבחונך" – For your kindness is greater than life,
my lips will praise you.
Malbim explains the pasuk with a Parable: There
was a man who was extremely ill and was admitted to the hospital for emergency
care. There was one particular doctor who took responsibility for the man,
performing numerous procedures and surgeries until his health was restored. During
the time that the doctor faithfully worked on his patient, they developed a
deep friendship with each other.
Someone approached the man after he was
discharged from the hospital and asked him what happened while he was there.
The man replied that this doctor saved his life. Not only that, he also became
close friends with the doctor.
The man on the street asked the patient what
was more precious to him - the newfound friendship, or the fact that the doctor
saved his life. The man smiled; it’s always valuable to have good friends, but
what is the purpose of having friends if one is dead? Surely, the fact that the
doctor saved his life was more valuable to him than the friendship.
The Malbim explains that Dovid HaMelech was
stating that the relationship he felt toward G-d, as it were, was even more
precious to him than all other goodness that G-d granted him. “For your
kindness is greater than life itself”. About which kindness was Dovid
referring? To the mere fact that, “My lips will praise you”, i.e. that Dovid
could pray to G-d and know that G-d listens and cares about his every whim.
That was more valuable to him than life itself. Life is finite and transitory,
but a relationship with G-d is eternal and Divine.
At
the beginning of Sefer Bamidbar the Torah records the national consensus of the
nation conducted by Moshe. Rashi explains that the count reflected G-d’s eternal
love for His Nation. Just as one carrying precious gems will constantly pat his
pockets and take out the gems and count them repeatedly to ensure that they are
all there, so did G-d repeatedly count His Nation.
When
the Torah records each tribe, it begins with the words, “לבני
– For the Children of”. It then mentions the name of the tribe and continues to
list the tallied population of its members. However, when the Torah records the
tally of the final tribe – Naftali – it says “B’nei Naftali…” without the preceding
ל.
AriZal
explained that, truthfully, there was no need to have an official tally of the
tribe of Naftali. Since the final tally of the entire nation was already known,
by simply adding the totals of the rest of the tribes and reckoning how much
was missing, Moshe could have figured out the numbers for the tribe of Naftali
without bothering to count each one. Yet every member of Naftali was counted to
demonstrate the fact that G-d loves and values every individual.
The
Medrash[3] notes that Klal Yisroel is
analogous to the stars. The verse in Tehillim states[4], “Praise Him every star of
light.” Though some stars appear to be dim or even dark every star contains a
tremendous force of illuminating energy, it just may be too distant to be seen
with the naked eye.
Every
Jew is analogous to a star in that every Jew contains a holy spark that
illuminates within. At times that light may be dimmed but, like every star, the
light never completely ceases to shine.
For
the last number of years, a company has been advertising that you can name a
star after someone and present it to them as a gift for a fee. They will enter
the name in the ‘Star Registry’ and it will be an eternal gift that the
receiver will always cherish. For the provider, it is a smart way to make easy
money with virtually no cost[5].
Rabbi
Avrohom Chaim Feuer[6]
once noted that, aside from whether one wants to spend money on such an idea,
the names we decide are not accurate. “He counts a number for the stars; to
each one He calls a name.[7]” G-d Himself names each star.
Every time we perform a mitzvah, or perform a good deed, we create a star[8]. Those stars bear our name
and receive their light from our actions and deeds.
Every
Jew must realize his own innate unique greatness, and that he has a portion of
Torah no one else in the world is privy to. That understanding is a vital
prerequisite for accepting the Torah. One must realize that G-d not only allows
us to draw near to Him, as it were, but He awaits it.
The
holiday of Shavuos celebrates not only our collective acceptance of the Torah
as the Chosen Nation, but our personal acceptance as well.
“For your kindness is greater than life”
“He
counts the stars; each one He calls a name”
Rabbi Dani Staum, LMSW
Rabbi, Kehillat New Hempstead
Rebbe/Guidance Counselor – ASHAR
Principal – Ohr Naftoli- New Windsor
[1] The truth
is that the entire chapter 63 is really appropriate for Rav Pinkus. The chapter
describes longing and yearning to be close to G-d, which is how Rav Pinkus
lived his life. His foremost message was
that we can and must develop a real relationship with our Creator Who loves us
more than we can know.
[3] In parshas
Shemos and Bamidbar
[4] 148:3
[5] I was told
that anyone can name a star and copyright it under the USA copyright
laws if they want.
[7] Tehillim
147:4
[8] Perhaps
from a spiritual vantage point that is why the universe is constantly expanding
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