Close To Torah

“ותאמר לו זרש אשתו וכל אהביו יעשו עץ גבוה חמשים אמה… וייטב הדבר לפני המן ויעש העץ” (אסתר ה:יד).

“Zeresh his wife and all of his loved ones told him, ‘let us build gallows (for hanging Mordechai)’, and the idea grabbed Haman and so he made the gallows” (Esther 5:14).

The simple reading of this verse reveals a fascinating observation worthy of our attention. At first, Haman’s family offered advice as to how to kill Mordechai and they stated that they would help him build (ya’asu, let us build) the hanging platform to carry it out. At the end, however, the verse states that Haman built it himself (va’yaas, he made)! What is the lesson here?!

One more question: Chazal (Gittin 57b) tell us, “descendants of Haman converted to Judaism and taught Torah in Bnei Brak”. What merit did Haman have to warrant this and what benefit could have been accrued from his traits?!

Let us sidetrack to a seemingly unrelated topic in order to fully develop the beauty contained here.

Where is the Leader?!

In the building of the Mishkan, one man was appointed to oversee and organize everything. His name was Betzalel ben Uri ben Chur. The perplexing point to note about this great arranger is that he was not called to the scene until everyone else had already arrived and committed themselves to doing all of the work?! Would it not have made more sense to have the master manager and architect stand there from the very beginning of the building project?! Why was he only summoned at the end?

Full Effort

R’ Moshe Feinstein zt”l provides a beautiful answer which reveals perhaps his own personal modus operandi which made him the great leader of our nation. He says that human nature dictates that when one thinks that someone else is in charge of getting a job done, he does not exert himself too much. He justifies to himself that others will take care of what has to get done and does not contribute according to his full effort. However, if one sees that he is the only one that can do the task, then he will dedicate himself to the job and even exhibit super-human strength to accomplish his goal.

Hashem wanted the Jews to each offer their all in the construction of the Mishkan. Thus, when they arrived on the scene, each one thought that it was solely up to him. If Betzalel would have been there already, this would have automatically downgraded each person’s feeling of responsibly. Thus, Hashem allowed for each person to dedicate himself fully to the job and only then did He appoint Betzalel as the manager.

Bystander-Effect

Studies have shown, that the less people that are around when someone in their proximity needs emergency help, the faster the onlookers respond to provide aid. If many people are present, each one just ignores the trouble and often help is not given until it is too late. This is known as the bystander-effect. A diffusion of responsibility takes place in each person’s head.

True Responsibility

The proper way to live life is to always see oneself as “the man” in a place where there are no other men to act! This way one will challenge himself to be the best that he can be! Reb Moshe Feinstein embodied this trait, always pushing himself to do more for Hashem and for Klal Yisrael, and never being satisfied to use others as an excuse for inaction.

Frogs of Egypt!

Let us develop this idea from one more source. The Gemara in Pesachim (53b) tells us that Chananya, Misha’el and Azaryah in Bavel deduced logically that they should allow themselves to be thrown into the furnace to stand up for Hashem’s honor. They said that, “the frogs in Egypt were not commanded to die for Kiddush Hashem, Hashem’s sake, yet they chose to jump into the ovens of the Egyptians for the sake of Hashem, kal v’chomer, certainly, we who are commanded in Kiddush Hashem must do the same! With this, they fell into the furnace, only to be miraculously saved by Hashem.

Wait A Minute!

The Shages Aryeh posed a bomb question on this famous Gemarah. The verse (Shemos 7:28) discussing the plague of frogs states explicitly that the frogs were commanded to jump into the ovens, thus indeed they had an order to do so, and the logic of the three sages is not understood!? How could they learn from the frogs based on the fact that the frogs “chose to die without a commandment”, when in fact they were clearly commanded to enter the stoves and die?!

Enter Little Eliyahu

The Vilna Goan (Rabbi Eliyahu Kramer [1720-97]), was seven years old at the time when this question was posed. He modestly approached the Shages Aryeh to offer his answer. The verse states that Hashem commanded the frogs to invade Egypt, they were to go everywhere. The list of targets included: houses, beds, mixing bowls and ovens. This being the case, each frog had a choice as to whether he should sacrifice his life or not. Many frogs just allowed their friends to go into the ovens while they simply infested a house or bed. Hence, only certain frogs took the responsibly upon themselves to give up their lives to fulfill Hashem’s command regarding the ovens. It was with this in mind that the three sages made their perfectly logical extension to themselves! Upon hearing this, the Shages Aryeh bent down and gave little Eliyahu a kiss on his cheek while exclaiming, “you will be a great sage of Israel one day!”

Our Leaders

This is the perspective of our great men in Klal Yisrael. They see what has to be done and they do not look around to see if anyone else is responding. Rather, they immediately take the entire job upon themselves and make sure that it gets done. They are proactive and thus most productive. They know what “responsibility” means.

Tying It All Together

This is how Haman acted, in the negative. He saw what had to be done. He did not want to defer for one moment on account of waiting for others. They had offered to assist him, but he could not delay! His evil zealousness pushed him to begin and finish the job himself that very night! He acted according to the motto, “if you want something done right and fast, do it yourself!” This is the simplest explanation of our opening verse.

Power For Torah

This trait when used for the right matters is the power of productivity. The leaders of our nation all possess a passion for building and accomplishment despite all adversity. It was this power of Haman, to jump to action, that was converted and channeled by his descendants who used the trait for building and spreading Torah for us. This is what Torah is all about, action and responsibility, towards Hashem and our fellow people.

The Lesson of Life

Chazal teach us that the primary descendant of Haman who channeled Haman’s traits into the Torah-world was Rav Shmuel Bar Shilas. It is appropriate and relevant to note that he was the most famous teacher of students throughout the entire Talmudic literature. The significance is that one of the most important lessons to teach children is that each person has a special and individual role in this large universe. One must undertake to bring out his full potential; to give his all for Hashem and society. Who is more fit to teach the lesson of responsibility than a descendant of Haman the Evil, who embodied this trait for his negative undertakings.

Effect On Torah

This is the exact reason that the Jews reaccepted the Torah at the time of Haman. They accepted the yoke of commitment which they understood was their job to fulfill. This is the entire theme of Purim. Our commitment and fortitude overcame Haman’s evil determination.

One who develops and uses this trait for proper causes will find tremendous success every day of his life and will be an inspiration to all!

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Hashkafah, Machshuvah Jewish Education, Mishkan, Responsibility, Torah Leader, Wisdom