The "Great Fire" at the Giving of the Torah
Student Summaries of Sichot of the Roshei Yeshiva
Yeshivat
Har Etzion
SHAVUOT
SICHA
OF HARAV YEHUDA AMITAL SHLIT"A
The
"Great Fire" at the Giving of the Torah
Summarized by
Shaul Barth
Translated by
Kaeren Fish
The Gemara
(Shabbat 88b) teaches:
R. Yehoshua ben
Levi also said: What is meant by, "His cheeks are as a bed of spices" (Shir
Ha-shirim 5:13)? With every single word that went forth from the mouth of
the Holy One, blessed be He, the whole world was filled with fragrance. But
since it was filled [with fragrance] from the first word, whither did the
[fragrance of the] second word go? The Holy One, blessed be He, brought forth
the ruach (wind or spirit) from His store-chambers and caused each
[fragrance] to pass on [thereby making room for the next].
The problem
that the Gemara describes is a real one: at the time of the giving of the Torah,
Bnei Yisrael heard the Commandments from God, and perceived the profundity and
significance of each one. The
commandments are indeed so profound and so comprehensive that one single
commandment – when a person truly plumbs its depths – is sufficient to fill him
up completely. Thus, after Bnei
Yisrael understood the full significance of "I am the Lord your God," uttered by
the Holy One Himself, and were filled to the brim, as it were, with the positive
energy of that commandment, how did they have the capacity to absorb any more?
God granted them "spirit" from His treasury – i.e., a special Divine influence –
in order that they would be able to receive and absorb the rest,
too.
Following the
intensity of Shavuot, how can we approach Shabbat? With all the uniqueness and
importance of Shabbat, how can we speak about Shabbat and understand it when we
are still bursting with the experience of receiving the Torah on Shavuot? This
being our situation this year, let us talk about Shavuot.
We know that at
Sinai, Bnei Yisrael committed themselves with the words, "We shall do and we
shall hear." Opinions are divided
as to when exactly they said this: according to Ramban, it was after God's
revelation at Sinai and after receiving the Book of the Covenant, which was what
they referred to in their declaration.
According to Rashi, on the other hand, their declaration preceded the
revelation and the giving of the Torah.
Tosafot
(Shabbat 88b) question why God had to coerce the nation by holding the mountain
over them like a cask, when they had already declared, "We shall do and we shall
hear." The answer given there is
that "Even though they had already declared 'We shall do' before 'We shall
hear,' [God held the mountain over them] lest they retract their commitment when
they see the great fire." According to the Ramban's view, the question is
irrelevant, since Bnei Yisrael made their declaration only after they had
already seen the great fire. But we
need to examine this answer in light of Rashi's
interpretation.
What lies
behind Tosafot's answer is a great and important principle. Bnei Yisrael were obligated, prior to
the giving of the Torah, to observe only the seven Noachide laws. Despite the difficulties that these laws
may sometimes create and the exertion that they may require, the demands that
they make are not too great. The
concern was that Bnei Yisrael, after promising "We shall do and we shall hear,"
would see the great fire and become afraid: "If the Torah that we are about to
receive is so great and so powerful – perhaps it is better not to receive it."
Perhaps, after the awesome experience of Revelation, Bnei Yisrael would have
second thoughts when they realized the extent of the commitment that they were
about to take upon themselves. For
this reason, after they declared their initial readiness to accept the Torah,
God had to hold the mountain over them as a threat, so that they would not
backtrack when they perceived the power of the Torah.
Often, people
want to learn Torah and live a religious life, but they don't want to do it with
full commitment. People fear that
getting into Torah too deeply will change them into something that they want to
stay away from. However, we learn
from Tosafot that there can be no observance of commandments without real
engagement and in-depth commitment and study. If a person will backtrack when seeing
the "great fire," then he cannot receive the Torah. A person who wants to receive Torah
needs not only the aspect of "We shall do and we shall hear," but also the
ability to confront and connect with the great fire that accompanies the
acceptance.
The Magen
Avraham questions why we celebrate Shavuot on the fiftieth day of the Omer,
while in fact the Torah was given on Shabbat – which was the 51st
day. The Maharal answers that what
we are in fact celebrating is God's desire to give us the Torah, and to obligate
us to receive it, even though perhaps Bnei Yisrael may have hesitated and
faltered a little when they saw the great fire. When Bnei Yisrael were exposed
to the great power of the Torah, it frightened them and caused them to have
second thoughts about their commitment.
Yet God nevertheless desired to give them the Torah, and even to force it
upon them. It is God's readiness to
give, and not Bnei Yisrael's readiness to receive, that we celebrate on
Shavuot.
(This sicha was
delivered on motzaei Shavuot / leil Shabbat, 5762
[2002].)