This week's Dvar Torah is dedicated in memory of Chaim Baruch Yehuda ben Dovid Tzvi. May it be a merit for his soul.
In Parshas Chukas, we are told of the
death of Miriam. One of the seven prophetesses and known in Chazal as someone
who embodied the middah of kindness, her death was a tremendous blow to Bnei
Yisrael as they traveled through the desert. Losing one of their leaders when
they were so close to finally entering Eretz Yisrael made it even worse.
A typical train of thought among Torah
Commentators is figuring out the connection between two topics placed next to
each other in the Torah, and the death of Miriam is no different. The story of
her death directly follows the laws of the Red Heifer, which is used to rid
people of tumah brought upon by a dead body. Chazal explain that the heifer also
helps atone for the sin of the Golden Calf. They use a mashal to explain that
just as the mother cleans up after the child, so too the “mother” heifer will clean
up after the “child”, the golden calf. Rashi explains that this is the
connection between the two stories. The same way the Red Heifer atones for the
nation’s sins, so too does the death of tzaddikim atone for the nation’s sins.
This idea of the death of a tzaddik
atoning for the people is a well-known idea we find four times in the Torah.
The other three instances are as follows: Right after the death of Aharon’s two
sons, Nadav and Avihu, the laws of Yom Kippur are taught, teaching us that just
as Yom Kippur atones for our sins, so too does the death of tzaddikim. The
second time is later in this parshah when Aharon is niftar. The pasuk mentions
that he changed out of his special Kohen Gadol garments and gave them to his
son Elazar. Again, Chazal explain the connection that just as the wearing of
these garments atones for our sins, so too does the death of tzaddikim. Lastly,
in Sefer Devarim when Moshe discusses breaking the Luchos, he mentions the
death of Aharon immediately afterwards. Chazal explain that just as the
breaking of the Luchos was an atonement for the nation, so too is the death of tzaddikim.
The Kli Yakar explains that these four
instances correspond to the four benefits a tzaddik provides to their
generation. The first thing is that food and drink are provided to the world
only through the merit of a tzaddik, similar to how a mother provides
sustenance for her children. Chazal teach us that the well that sustained Bnei
Yisrael in the desert was in the merit of Miriam. This corresponds to the Red
Heifer who is also a mother protecting her children. The second benefit of a
tzaddik is that they teaches Torah to the generation, and show the people how
to properly serve Hashem. Therefore, when the tzaddik dies, it is as if the
Torah is lost with him; just like when the Luchos were broken and we had no
physical record of the Torah leftover (except for Moshe and Aharon, a further
proof of this idea).
The third benefit a tzaddik provides is
that their merit is a protection from evil for the world, similar to how
clothing protect a person’s body from the elements. And the last benefit a
tzaddik provides to the world is by dying. Because of everything a tzaddik does
for the world, upon his loss, the world’s loss is so great that it actually
atones for people’s sins! This is how big the tzaddik’s impact can be!
Sometimes we find ourselves surrounded
by people whom we don’t know or even realize the impact they have on us, our
friends, our community, and the world as a whole. Only after they are gone do
we and can we truly appreciate not only what they meant to us on a personal
level (if we do have that personal connection), but also what the world
gained by having them around. Let’s take notice of the people around us who
truly impact our lives. It’s not only us they are changing, it’s the entire
world, even if the world doesn’t realize it.
Shabbat Shalom!
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