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Tehillim (Psalms) is perhaps one of the most universal books throughout the world. Men, women and children of all ages and faiths find comfort, meaning and expression through its recitation. King David is most famous for his authorship of Sefer Tehillim. The Midrash (Yalkut Shimoni Mishlei 929) points out a most fascinating observation. Tehillim begins with the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet: Alef (“Ashrei HaIsh”) and the last verse ends with the middle letters of Chof and Lamed (“Kol HaNishamah”). Shlomo HaMelech, the great son of David took a varied approach. He began Sefer Mishlei with the letter Mem (“Mishlei”) which is the middle letter that follows Chof and Lamed and he ended the last verse with the letter Taf (“Tenu Lah”) when he completed the Aishes Chayil song (Chapter 31) with the last letter in the Hebrew alphabet. What does this all mean?

The Midrash (ibid.) states that there is a philosophical dispute between two rabbinic scholars as to where wisdom is located. Rebbe Eliezer holds that it is in the head (intellect) and Rebbe Yehoshua holds that it is in the heart (emotions). The Midrash states that the letter Alef represents wisdom which is located in the head at the top of one’s body just like Alef is the top letter, whereas the letter Mem represents the heart as it is the middle of the alphabet and thus corresponds to the heart which is located in the middle of one’s body. King David started Tehillim with the letter Alef because he held that wisdom is in the mind (Alef) and King Shlomo stated Mishlei with the letter Mem because he held that wisdom is in the heart (Mem). This is the complete Midrash, yet it appears to be a total enigma and counterintuitive. I would have thought that David and Shlomo would have the exact opposite views?! David’s Tehillim are heart-wrenching outpourings of emotion and feeling and seem to emanate directly from his heart, not his mind, and Shlomo’s proverbs are brilliant intuitive musings that seem to clearly emanate from his mind and not the heart?!

The explanation is that in truth both components make up true wisdom. There must be intellect and there must be heart. The argument is simply which is more important. When Shlomo requested wisdom from Hashem he specifically asked to have “a listening heart to be able to properly judge the nation (Melachim I 3:9).” Shlomo did not want to become a heartless robot who ruled without feelings. He certainly needed wisdom in his mind, but he made sure that his wisdom included heart and understanding for others as well. King David was the essence of heart and love. He uses the word Lev, heart, repeatedly throughout Tehillim; he proclaims (Tehillim 9:2) “I will praise Hashem with all my heart!” He was filled with passion, emotion and heart. But his heart did not throw him off. With all of his emotions and deep longings, he remained grounded and rational and was able to exercise his intellect as well. He knew that sometimes Hashem would not heed to his requests. He would pour out his heart and beg Hashem for things, but he knew intellectually that ultimately Hashem knows what is best for him. He would then incorporate this into his emotion and grow even closer to Hashem. King David introduced the concept of “no tear goes unnoticed and unanswered by Hashem,” sometimes the tears accumulate and sometimes they are applied elsewhere, but they are always heard. “Place my tears in your flask and account for them (Tehillim 56:9).”

When we study Tehillim, we can greatly benefit by using our hearts and minds. Tehillim is filled with heart-warming hope and prayer and deep cries for help and comfort from Hashem. Tehillim is saturated with both intellectual and emotional gems. May we merit to learn Sefer Tehillim together with a focus on the beautiful and powerful lessons that stir our hearts and minds and that deeply uplift our souls.

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