Mitzvot Bein Adam Le-atzmo and Building Character
Bein Adam Le-chavero: Ethics of Interpersonal Conduct
By Rav
Binyamin Zimmerman
*********************************************************
This weeks shiurim are dedicated by Drs. Irving and
Roberta Strauchler
in memory of Jonas Strauchler zl
*********************************************************
Shiur #08: Mitzvot Bein Adam Le-atzmo and
Building Character
Three Elements of Mitzvot
In last weeks lesson, we arrived at the conclusion that interpersonal
mitzvot in fact carry with them a threefold obligation. As divine commandments, they are
bein adam la-Makom, obligations to God.
Furthermore, they are also uniquely bein adam le-chavero, distinct
from other commandments in expressing ones responsibility to ones neighbor. However, beyond these requirements,
they also entail a unique responsibility to oneself. The source for the Jewish obligation
of performing chesed, kind acts, is the biblical mandate of Ve-halakhta
bi-drakhav," And you will follow His ways (Devarim 28:9), which focuses
not only on action; it is essentially an obligation to develop an ethos of
kindness. Following Gods ways is
neither about ones fellow, nor even God Himself (directly), but rather oneself
and developing a godly persona.
This third element is defined as bein adam
le-atzmo, between man and himself. Man
is not only asked to develop his relationship with God and to achieve positive
results on behalf of his friend, but to transform himself as well. Each Jew must maintain control over
his or her environment and actions, behaving in a manner befitting the Jewish
tzelem Elokim in which one is created.
The Three Fundamental Aspects of the Mitzvot
The fact that there are some mitzvot which
are dedicated solely to God, while others are directed primarily towards ones
fellow man, is well-accepted. The
question then arises: what is the significance of this third class of mitzvot,
those which are intrapersonal, bein adam le-atzmo? After all, should not
the two categories of bein adam le-chavero and bein adam la-Makom
include everything? What is the nature of these mitzvot bein adam le-atzmo?
In a number of contexts, a few of the great
commentators have explained difficult passages based on the understanding of
this third category, mitzvot bein adam le-atzmo, alongside the
interpersonal and ritual mitzvot. Analyzing their explanations will help
us understand the importance of this classification.
In our first lesson, we referred to the passage at
the end of Makkot (24a) which details the various prophets who focused
their generations attention on specific mitzvot in order to ensure that
the people maintained a proper understanding of the wider Jewish tradition. There, the Talmud notes that Mikha
stresses three elements:
The prophet Mikha came and established them [i.e.,
the fulfillment of the six hundred thirteen commandments] upon three [ethical
requirements], as it is written: He has told you what is good and what God
demands of you: only [1] to do justice, [2] to love kindness (ahavat chesed),
[3] and to walk humbly with your God (Mikha 6:8)
Rav Yaakov Ettlinger, in his commentary Arukh
La-ner (ad loc.), explains that the three requirements noted by Mikha are in
fact synonymous with the three fundamental aspects of Jewish religious life
referred to above.
Mikha lists three elements in accordance with three
types of mitzvot; mitzvot between man and God, mitzvot
between man and his fellow man, and reflexive mitzvot between man and
himself. Regarding reflexive
mitzvot, he mentions the requirement of justice, weighing ones actions to
ensure that one is wholesome.
Regarding interpersonal mitzvot, he includes the requirement of ahavat
chesed; regarding ritual requirements, he says that one should walk humbly
with
God.
Essentially, Mikha is teaching the Jews of his
generation that the three fundamental requirements of religious life are
ensuring one is acting kindly towards ones brethren, forging a humble
relationship with God and developing a virtuous personality of weighing
carefully ones behavior. Doing so
allows one to master the three elements of mitzvot bein adam la-Makom,
le-chavero and le-atzmo.
Mikha refers to the element of bein adam le-atzmo
as justice, properly and objectively evaluating ones actions, a necessary
ingredient for ensuring one can build a wholesome personality. While the other two types of
mitzvot relate to the action itself and its object, be it ones neighbor or
God, the third element focuses on ones thought process. It anchors itself in the command
center of a persons body, in the mind, allowing one to build a thoughtful and
balanced personality.
Three Elements of Becoming a Chasid
Acknowledging a third class of mitzvot might
help us understand a fascinating discussion in the Talmud. This passage (Bava
Kamma 30a) relates what seem to be three divergent opinions regarding what
section of the Talmud must be studied and put into practice in order for one to
become a chasid, a truly pious and righteous individual.
Rav Yehuda said: One who wishes to be a chasid
should fulfill the words of Nezikin.
Rava said: [He should fulfill] the words of Avot.
And others said: [He should fulfill] the words of
Berakhot.
At first glance, the passage seems to present three
divergent opinions, albeit two of them rather original, as to the area of law
most necessary for becoming pious.
However, a number of commentators posit that these three opinions might not be
arguing as much as presenting three necessary areas of expertise necessary for
devoutly pious behavior, each focusing on a different fundamental aspect of
Judaism.
The Maharsha (ad loc.) writes that all of a
persons actions relate to God, to others or to oneself. Each opinion expressed in the passage
focuses on one of these three categories.
The study of Nezikin, encompassing civil, criminal and commercial
law, allows one to perfect those actions relating to others.
The study of the ethical and moral dicta
in Avot helps to develop ones own character traits.
Finally, the study of Berakhot,
which details the laws of prayers and blessings, serves to govern the
relationship between man and God.
The three areas of concentration discussed in the passage do not represent three
opposing opinions, but three necessary facets of religious life. A prospective chasid must pay
close attention to the laws that govern the relationship between man and his
fellow man, as expressed in Nezikin, must master the ethical teaching in
Avot and must learn to appreciate the power and art of liturgy in
Berakhot.
Three Pillars of Existence
The Gra, the Gaon of Vilna, in his commentary to
Yeshayahu (Beiur Ha-Gra, Yeshayahu 1:2), takes this idea one
step further. The Gra explains that
the number three plays a pivotal role in the prophecies at the beginning of the
book of Yeshayahu, for it represents the triad of Judaism. He points out that in the opening
prophecy of Yeshayahu, the Jewish people are referred to by three names, banim
(children), Yisrael (Israel), and ammi (My nation). The Gra explains that these terms
represent the three basic elements of the Torah, and he delineates them.
First, the Gra explains, these are the three
categories of mitzvot: bein adam le-chavero, bein adam la-Makom
and what he calls middot (traits) that are le-atzmo. He adds, following the Maharsha, that
these are also the three elements of perfection one needs in order to become the
chasid mentioned in Bava Kamma; however, he expands this notion by
arguing that not only are these the three elements of mitzvot, but they
are in fact the three pillars of the world.
As the mishna in Avot teaches:
Shimon the Righteous
used to say:
The world stands on three things:
Torah, serving God and acts of kindness. (Avot 1:2)
The Vilna Gaon (ibid.) states: These three elements
of mitzvot are the three pillars of the world
Torah is le-atzmo;
serving God is bein adam la-Makom; and
acts of kindness are le-chavero.
Interestingly, the Gra identifies the pillar of
Torah as the one that relates to personal perfection. While we might have identified the
pillar of Torah with ritual mitzvot, the Gra seems to understand that the
essence of Torah study is directed towards opening up ones character to create
a deeply wholesome personality.
The Transformative Power of Mitzvot Bein Adam Le-atzmo
We have seen that these great commentators, the
Vilna Gaon, Maharsha, and Rav Ettlinger, invoke the concept of bein adam
le-atzmo in contexts where the Talmud stresses three fundamental elements of
religious observance. They also
indicated that the idea of bein adam le-atzmo is detailed in Avot,
defined by weighing ones actions objectively (doing justice) and serves as a
major focus of ones living in accordance with the Torah. With this in mind, let us return to
last weeks discussion and deepen our understanding of this issue.
In last weeks lesson, we pointed out that the
source for the obligation of the bein adam le-atzmo element is
Ve-halakhta bi-drakhav," following in the ways of God. The Rambam, as we saw, understands
this as an obligation to develop a virtuous personality.
This idea is not academic; it allows us to take a
completely new look at the mitzvot as a whole. Often, we think of them in terms of
obligations and responsibilities, forgetting the spirit of the law. While this is always unfortunate, in
the area of interpersonal behavior this may be devastating, as a major element
of the mitzva will not be realized.
The bein adam le-atzmo element is aimed at ensuring that we do not limit
our focus to the actions; instead, we may look at the inner source and evaluate
ourselves.
This also extends our obligation above and beyond
specific mitzvot; we are bound to develop the personality of one who is
capable of walking in the ways of God consistently and constantly. What
character serves as the source of these actions?
We must learn not only what the Torah wants from us, but who it wants us
to be.
In the area of ethics, the bein adam le-atzmo
element teaches us that even if we excel in bringing happiness and pleasure to
others, we are still spiritually lacking if we fail to develop a personality to
which these actions comes naturally.
In order to do so, we must look deeper in the Torah, weigh our actions and
identify those character traits which must be developed in order to nurture this
divinely inclined ethos.
The Thirteen Divine Attributes of Mercy
The idea of walking in the ways of God by modeling our characters after
His attributes may be behind the idea of reciting the thirteen attributes of
mercy (middot shel rachamim), as they appear in Shemot 34:6-7.
They are the central refrain of the Selichot service of penitential
prayers, and they are a pivotal part of the Yom Kippur liturgy. At first glance, the significant role
of the repeated recitation of the 13 attributes in achieving forgiveness is
surprising. However, the Talmud is
quite adamant about its remarkable powers.
God teaches Moshe this order as an antidote for sin, as expressed in
Rabbi Yochanans statement concerning the 13 middot:
"And God passed before him and proclaimed (Shemot
34:6) Rabbi Yochanan said: Were
it not written in the text, it would be impossible for us to say such a thing!
This verse teaches us that God wrapped
Himself like a cantor and showed Moshe the order of prayer. He said to him: Whenever Israel sin, let them carry
out this order before Me, and I will forgive them.
(Rosh Hashana 17b)
The passage continues and goes one step further,
expounding the verse which describes Gods making a covenant with Moshe (ibid.
v. 10), that There is a covenant made with the thirteen attributes, that they
do not return empty-handed.
What is the source of their power? What appears to be some mystical
formula capable of evoking Divine forgiveness may in fact be an expression of
the power of the idea of bein adam le-atzmo. Only once we analyze how God
interacts with the world may we translate it and apply it to our activities;
only then may we understand how to inculcate it into our personalities. Understanding the word middot
will hopefully make this more clear.
Tikkun Ha-middot
Character Development:
The Hebrew term middot is sometimes used to
refer to attributes, while at other times it is used to refer to ones
character. The Rambam describes at
length in his Guide to the Perplexed the discussion between Moshe and God
about the formers desire to understand the attributes of the latter, when he
asks to be shown Gods glory and His way (Shemot 33:13,18).
The Rambam (1:54) describes what Moshe is
asking for:
It is therefore clear that the ways which Moshe
wishes to know, and which God teaches him, are the actions emanating from God.
Our Sages call them middot and speak of the thirteen middot of
God, but they use the term also in reference to man, e.g., "There are four
different middot among those who go to the study hall" (Avot
5:13).
The Rambam
continues by defining the relationship between the middot of man and the
middot of God.
They do not mean to say that God really possesses
middot, but that He performs actions similar to those actions which we may
perform as a manifestation of certain qualities, i.e., in certain mental
dispositions, not that God has in fact such mental dispositions.
Although Moshe was shown "all His
goodness," i.e., all His works, only the thirteen middot are enumerated,
because they include those acts of God which refer to the creation and the
government of mankind. To know these acts was the principal object of the prayer
of Moshe
We have thus shown that the biblical ways" and
Mishnaic "middot" are identical, denoting the acts which emanate from God
through the universe.
But why is it so important to translate the actions
of God into middot understandable to our perception? The Rambam explains that doing so
allows us to model our characters upon those godly attributes accessible to man.
Whenever any one of His actions is perceived by us,
we ascribe to God that emotion which is the source of the act were we to perform
it, and we call Him by an epithet which is formed from the verb expressing that
emotion. We see, e.g., how well He
provides for the life of the embryo of living beings; how He endows with certain
faculties both the embryo itself and those who have to rear it after its birth,
in order that it may be protected from death and destruction, guarded against
all harm and assisted in the performance of all that is required.
Similar acts, when performed by us, are
due to a certain emotion and tenderness, called mercy and pity. God is,
therefore, said to be merciful, e.g., "Like as a father is merciful to his
children, so the Lord is merciful to those who fear Him" (Tehillim
103:13).
The Rambam
concludes the chapter by explaining that while God is unchanging and His
middot are merely the ways in which we perceive His actions, the importance
of knowing them lies in our being able to model our characters after them.
We have shown why it suffices to mention only these
out of all of His acts: namely, because these are the ones required for the good
government of a country; for the chief aim of man should be to make himself,
as far as possible, similar to God: that is to say, to make his acts similar to
the acts of God, or as our Sages expressed it in explaining the verse, "You
shall be holy" (Vayikra 19:2), as they said (Sifrei Devarim
11:22). Just as He is called merciful, so should you be merciful; just as He
is called gracious, so should you be gracious.
Based on the understanding of the Rambam, we may
reappraise the power granted to the recitation of the thirteen attributes in the
Talmud; we may at least begin to comprehend.
These are thirteen attributes which we identify in Gods actions that are
guidelines upon which to model ourselves.
These middot are what God teaches Moshe will bring our
forgiveness. The recitation of the
thirteen attributes is not meant to be a magical formula as much as a
prescription for developing our characters.
We cannot suffice with the mere recital of the attributes; we must model
our lives after them and inculcate them into our very beings.
In fact this seems to jibe with a careful reading of
the language of the text in the Talmud.
Rabbi Yochanan has God saying to Moshe: Whenever Israel sin, let them
carry out this order before Me, and I will forgive them.
Their power does not lie in mere
recitation, but in action and inculcation into ones being. It is the actions which impress upon
ones character the middot of God that engender the godly personality
which the Torah desires. Tanna
De-vei Eliyahu Zuta (Ch. 23) goes one step further mentioning that the power
of the recital depends on the Jewish people standing united in one band. The middot cannot be mere lip
service; only when they are practiced until brotherhood is created are they
potent.
The element of bein adam le-atzmo seeks to
transform one from merely knowing how to deal with others and make them happy to
actually caring about others. The
end result is a person who knows that the greatest moments in history are always
in private, without fanfare; who is aware that the real yardstick of character
is not how one acts with others however important that may be but the type
of person one is. Does one maintain
fidelity to the godly character within himself or herself?
This may also explain why sometimes the recital of
the thirteen attributes does not seem to achieve the desired result. Its recital, however many times it
may be repeated, is just as much a message to ourselves as a prayer to God,
empowering Him to act with His attributes of mercy, as we develop our
personalities based upon them.
How to Treat the Canaanite Slave
The understanding of the bein adam le-atzmo
element allows us to understand a fundamental phenomenon expressed by the
Rambam. The Rambam (Hilkhot Avadim 9:8) points out that in terms of the
letter of the law, one may treat his non-Jewish slave rather severely, as he
writes: It is permissible to have a Canaanite slave perform excruciating
labor.
The license to treat ones slave harshly is hard to
comprehend at first glance; we must therefore continue reading the ruling.
The Rambam
continues:
Although this is the law, the attribute of piety and
the way of wisdom is for a person to be merciful and to pursue justice, not to
make his slaves carry a heavy yoke, nor cause them distress. He should allow them to partake of
all the food and drink [he serves].
The earlier sages would give to their slaves from every dish of which they
themselves would partake. In
addition, they would provide food for their animals and their slaves before
partaking of their own meals.
Moreover, it is written (Tehillim 123:2) As
the eyes of slaves to their masters hand, as the eyes of a maidservant to her
mistresss hand [so are our eyes to Lord our God]. Similarly, we should not embarrass a
slave by our deeds or words, for the Torah prescribes that they provide service,
not that they be humiliated. Nor
should one shout or vent anger upon them extensively. Instead, one should speak to them
gently, and listen to their claims.
This is explicitly stated with regard to the positive paths of Iyov for which he
was praised (Iyov 31:13, 15)
Essentially, the Rambam tells us that though it is
permitted to treat a non-Jewish slave harshly, Jewish tradition is to treat
ones slave as an honored guest in ones home, providing the royal treatment.
However, the Rambam does not stop there; in fact, he
presents a fundamental tenet of Jewish values in the process.
Cruelty and arrogance are found only amongst
idol-worshiping non-Jews. By
contrast, the descendants of our patriarch Avraham, i.e. the Jews, to whom the
Holy One, Blessed be He, grants the goodness of the Torah and prescribes
righteous statutes and judgments, are merciful to all.
Similarly, with regard to the attribute of the Holy
One, Blessed be He, which He commands us to emulate, it is written (Tehillim
145:9) His mercies are upon all of His works. Furthermore,
whoever shows mercy to others will have mercy shown to him, as it says in (Devarim
13:18): And
he will give you compassion and love you and increase you.
The Rambam
begins by delineating what is permitted act, but he concludes his discussion by
championing the Jewish tradition, based on Israels unique ancestral heritage:
the Jew emulates God by walking in His merciful ways. Had we limited Jewish ethical duties
to the mitzvot between man and his fellow or man and his God, than one
would have stopped after the opening statement of the Rambam, because there is
no direct requirement to treat ones Canaanite slave with honor. However, the character of a Jew
the attribute of piety and the way of wisdom makes a Jew especially
merciful, so that it is impossible to show undeserved cruelty to another human
being.
As the
conclusion of the Rambam informs us, when all is said and done, a Jew who is in
touch with his spiritual DNA, inherited from Avraham, is incapable of treating a
fellow human being, even his slave, harshly.
All the more so, if one walks in the ways of God and develops a righteous
personality, one realizes how unthinkable this is. The element of bein adam le-atzmo,
the requirement to develop a virtuous personality, refines his character and
teaches him that the focus is not acting, but being. A given action may be permitted, but
if it is not conducive to ones divinely-inspired personality, the Jew who
strives to achieve a godly character must eschew it to remain on track.
True, one
might be nice to servants even without the goodness of the Torah; however, the
extent of ones generosity, putting their needs before ones own, is connected
to the beneficence of the Torah. It is
the result of emulating God, Who, as it were, puts the needs of the Jews, His
own servants, before His own. (See Likkutei Sichot Vol. xxxvii, p. 72.)
This godly character can help us become
godly beings.
This website is constantly being improved. We would appreciate hearing from you. Questions and comments on the classes are welcome, as is help in tagging, categorizing, and creating brief summaries of the classes. Thank you for being part of the Torat Har Etzion community!