| Arukh HaShulchan | |
| ערוך השולחן | |
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| Arukh HaShulchan | |
| Orach Chaim | |
| Siman 1 | |
| It is written: “The path of life is above the intelligent person, in order that he turn away from the grave below.” (Mishlei 15:24). This verse's intent requires a preface: The angels were created as part of the spiritual world on the second day, and although it is not explicitly stated in the Torah, it is stated in the Midrash and alluded to in the Psalm (Tehilim 104:3-4) – “Who roofs His upper chambers with water; Who makes clouds His chariot, which go on the wings of the wind. He makes winds His messengers, burning fire His ministers.” [NOTE: The psalmist is referring to the primordial water and the angels together, since both were created on the second day]. The animals were created as part of the physical world on the fifth day. Angels are intelligent, serve their creator, and do not have self-serving, physical drives. Animals, on the other hand, have such drives, but lack intelligence. The result is that angels cannot receive reward for their service, as they have no negative drives to overcome, and animals cannot be punished for their actions, as they do not have the intelligence necessary to overcome their drives. | |
| Therefore G-d found it necessary to create man on the sixth day, and He created him with competing drives: Man possesses a spiritual soul that enables him to recognize the creator as does an angel, as the verse states: “Man’s soul is G-d’s lamp…” (Mishlei 20:27). He also possesses an animalistic nature due to his physical body, which drives him to animal behaviors, such as eating, drinking, and sleeping.This state of affairs gives rise to a constant struggle within man all the days of his life, with his animal nature pining for physical desires, while his pure soul opposes such pursuits, inspiring man to turn to his real purpose, to serve G-d like an angel. His soul further insists that even necessary physical needs, such as eating, drinking, and sleeping, should be done with intent to better serve G-d, and on this the verse has been stated: “I have placed G-d before me constantly.” (Psalms 16:8). After man’s death he is shown on high that all his actions were recorded, as though in a book, with his own signature. If he has followed the path of Torah and mitzvos, he inherits heaven (Lit. 'Gan Eden') which is a limitless and endless spiritual joy. Of these people the verse proclaims "They will be sated from the fat of Your house, and with the stream of Your delights You give them to drink. For with You is the source of life; in Your light we will see light. " (Psalms 36:9). If G-d forbid his actions were the opposite, he inherits Gehenom, to which all the pains of this life are as naught in comparison. On these people the verse states: "And they shall go out and see the corpses of the people who rebelled against Me, for their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorring for all flesh." (Yishayahu 66:24). There are seven descriptions given to Gehenom: Nether-world (or Sheol), Destruction, Pit, Tumultuous Pit, Miry Clay, Shadow of Death and the Underworld. (Eruvin 19a). One who is seduced by his base inclinations falls there, and that is why it is also called 'seducer', as the verse states "For Tophteh (Heb. related to the word 'seduce') is set up from yesterday, that too has been prepared for the king (Sennacherib and his army), it deepened, it widened its pile, of fire and much wood; the breath of the Lord is like a stream of brimstone, burning therein.(Yishayahu 30:33). (Eruvin 19a). | |
| Returning to the advice of King Solomon stated above, that "The path of life is above the intelligent person, in order that he turn away from the grave below." (Mishlei 15:24). The explanation can now be said to be: "Man, consider that you have two paths before you, either to raise your eyes and heart to the Creator, blessed be He, and that is the path of life, or to cast your stare downward to the base animal instincts. Therefore I command you that your life's path should only be to look upwards, in order that you remove yourself from the pit below." The point here is that if you train your stare towards your base instincts you will as consequence be led by them to fall to the pit - "Sheol", the first of the levels, and from there your path will descend lower and lower. | |
| Anyone possessing intelligence should also consider the following: If you see a human king building a grand palace, you will notice opposites among the construction materials. There will be precious stones, such as jasper and onyx, as well as other fine materials. There will also be cement, clay, and earth. Does one think that the intent of the king is for the clay and earth? Of course not! Certainly the purpose of the building is to showcase the fine materials and precious stones, while the cement, clay, and earth only serve to strengthen the structure. Similarly, the King of Kings the Holy One blessed be He created man from a pure spiritual soul which is a part of the divine, and she returns to G-d after death. And as for the biological material that the body is made of, which in reality is no different than clay and earth, can anyone think that the purpose of man is for that material? Anyone who thinks so can only be a fool, and not in his right mind. This, then is what Akavia ben Mahalalel meant when he said (Pirkei Avot 3:1) "Look to three things and you will not come to sin. Know where you came from, where you are going..." - this means the soul, which is a part of the divine and will return to its source, and it’s opposite, the body: "where you came from..." - from a fetid drop (of semen). "...and to where are you going..." - To a place of earth and the worm. Here too, the explanation is that the purpose of man is his G-dly soul. Therefore, since one's purpose is G-dliness and matters of the soul, before all else a person needs to know the foundation concepts of our holy and pure Torah. | |
| The foundation of Torah and the pillar of the divine service is to know that there is one God. who is singular and unique, and that He created the Worlds(i.e this world and the next world), and that he is constantly watching us. If, God forbid, he suddenly stopped watching and guiding the world even for a moment, it would revert to chaos and disorder. This is the essence of what is stated: (Deuteronomy 6:4) 'Listen, oh Israel, Hashem, your God, is One'. | |
| This G-d we are obligated to love with a complete and unreserved love, until the love of oneself, one's wife, sons, daughters and money are completely nullified in the presence of his love for G-d, as though they did not exist. This also has been stated in Torah (Devarim 4.5): "You should love G-d, your G-d, with all your heart, all your soul, and all your money (Heb. 'Mo-adecha'). This term 'Mo-adecha' is related to the Hebrew 'Ma-od', meaning 'very much', as if to say: "whatever is very much beloved by you should be considered null and void in the presence of your love for G-d." "...all your heart..." - Our Rabbis have expounded on this: "with both of your inclinations, the good inclination as well as the evil." This means to say that one should not ask 'If the evil inclination only tries to seduce one to transgress the will of G-d, why was it created?' The truth is that the intent of the evil inclination is that man should overpower him and not listen to him, but G-d has nevertheless created him to test whether man will transgress G-d's will, in order that one should serve G-d through free will and not as one forced by instinct. This is the ultimate purpose of the creation of man, and through this ability he is even greater than an angel, as I have written in section 1. [It is also explained in the Zohar along these lines PERHAPS VOLUME 3, FOLIO 68.2] | |
| In the Sifrei (Dvarim, 32) we find the following exposition: "Rabbi Meir said: When it states "And you should love G-d, your G-d, with all your heart..." it means to love G-d like Avraham, as it states: "Avraham, my beloved", and also "...and you found his heart faithful before you." "...with all your soul" (end of section 32) - like Yitzchak, who allowed himself to be brought on the altar. "...with all your money" (end of section 32) - admit to him how much in his debt you are, like Yaakov, who said "I have been made small by all your kindness..." The text continues: "And you should love..." - Make Him be loved by all people, as Avraham you father did, as the verse states: "...the souls he made in Charan." The meaning here is to behave like Abraham, who called on the populous to believe in G-d and engage in His service because of the great love for G-d that he had in his heart and soul. We read further: "Even though the Torah proclaims 'And you should love Him...' I still do not know how. Therefore, the verse states further 'These words that I command you today should be on your heart...' - that through these words you will recognize Him who spoke and created the world." This text is explaining that contemplation of the Torah will certainly implant love for G-d in one's heart. (Sefer haChinuch, Mitzvah 417) | |
| We are also commanded to fear the Blessed One, as the verse states (Devarim 6.13): "The L-ord your G-d you should fear", and here are the words of the Rambam concerning this trait in Sefer haMitzvos, mitzvah 4: "He has commanded us to be consciously aware of His exalted presence, and to tremble before Him, and not be like the heretics who presumptuously follow their own hearts; rather we should be concerned and mindful of His corrective punishment at all times, which is a consequence of sinful behavior. This then is the meaning of "The L-ord your G-d you should fear." That is his comment in the above source. In his great work (the Mishna Torah), in the beginning of the second chapter of the fundamentals of the Torah, he writes thus: "What is the path towards love and fear of G-d? When a person contemplates the wondrous actions and creations of G-d, and he sees in them wisdom without end or measure, immediately he loves, praises and glorifies Him. He also experiences a great desire to know his great name [TO KNOW HIM?], as Dovid has said: "My soul thirsts for the L-ord, the living G-d". When he continues to think about such matters, he has an immediate reflex to shrink away, and he experiences a fear and trembling, realizing that he is a small and inconsequential creation, with little intellect compared to the One of complete knowledge. Dovid has also stated regarding this: "When I see the heavens, the work of your fingers, I ask 'what is man that you take notice of him'?" Until here is his language. As can be seen, in the Sefer haMitzvos the explanation of 'simple fear' is fear of punishment, while here the Rambam refers to a higher fear, which is fear from the recognition of G-d's great loftiness. On this subject the Sifrei (Dvarim, 32) has stated: "There is no love in fear's place, nor fear in love's place, except for that of G-d alone." (see there). This means to say that fear and love are opposites, but through fear of G-d's vast loftiness they can dwell together, that through the recognition of the great, exalted stature of the Blessed One he is feared with an 'enlightened fear', and he is loved with all of one's heart and soul. | |
| And we have been commanded to walk along G-d's path of goodness and righteousness, as the verse says, "you should travel in His ways" (Deut. 26:13). Furthermore it says, "After Hashem your G-d you shall go" (Deut. 13:5). And furthermore it says, "'to travel in all of His ways' (Deut 10:12)- just as He is gracious, you shall also be gracious. Just as he is merciful, you shall also be merciful" (a similar idea appears on Sotah 14b)". And [we are commanded] to emulate His positive actions and positive righteous traits to the best of our ability. It is a positive commandment to be attached to wise men and their students in order to learn from their actions as the verse says, "and to him you shall be devoted" (Deut. 13:5). Is it possible for one to be attached to the Sechinah (divine presence) if it is a consuming fire (Deut. 4:24)? Rather, to be attached to the wise men and their students (Ketuvos 111b), to spread dirt before their feet and to drink their knowledge with thirst, as the verse says, "he who goes with the wise will become wise" (Proverbs 13:20). And furthermore it says, " the praises of a man are that he did not follow the counsel of the wicked" (Psalms 1:1). | |
| The Smag (Sefer Mitzvos Gedolos) wrote in the seventeenth positive commandment: It is a positive commandment to justify the judgement on all events as it says, "you shall know with your heart that when a man chastens his son, Hashem your G-d chastens you" (Deut. 8:5). Until here are his words. And us, Children of Israel are tired from the times, without rest for close to two thousand years- we are obligated to know that this is for our benefit and our merit, like the prophet Zachariah said, "I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call my name and I will answer them. I will say, 'they are my people', and they will say, 'Hashem is my G-d'" (Zechariah 13:9). The explanation of that which is written: to believe with total belief that all of our troubles and all of our being jolted is not on the path of revenge, G-d forbid, but rather to refine us. If not so, we would not have any remainders over the course of the many centuries, and there is no sign or great wonder from this that we have stood such for such a long period of time as this. For this is only the supervision of the Almighty over us, that has not disappear nor will disappear for even one moment, like a father who supervises his only son and agonizes him for his benefit. A proof for this: Surely, for all time in exile "he will call me name and I will answer him" (Psalms 91). Meaning, when we pray to Him, the Almighty,- He answers us in every time of trouble and distress. "I will say, 'they are my people', and they will say..." (Zechariah 13:9). Meaning, that we surely see this entire prolonged period of time the nation of the Children of Israel travel on the path of Torah and commandment, He Almight calls us "my people" and we call him, "G-d of Israel". | |
| ... | |
| Siman 2 | |
| We have already written that even when one is in the most secluded setting, one must act modestly, because the Holy One Blessed Be He fills the entire world with His Glory.Therefore, if one slept naked, one should not rise from his bed naked, but should rather dress while lying down; one cannot even dress (naked) while sitting, because (if one does so), half of his body will be exposed. (The proper way of dressing is as follows:) one should take his clothing, enter his head and arms in lying, thus when he arises he is dressed. The same when he go to sleep and put his clothing off, he may not do this standing or sitting- but lying and covered. And he may put the clothing near so when he wakes up he won't have to sit exposed. And this is of the modesty trait. And he may not say- "who sees me?"- because His glory full all the earth. (And it doesn't matter if his feet bare, nor in the shower). | |
| He may keep his clothing straight- that the inner side won't be turned out and then the stitches and fringes of the clothing will be seen and he will be disregarded in the eyes of people. And this was said about the "chaluk"- a clothing that has little difference between the outer and inner sides- so it's simple in other clothings. The way a man have to keep from people gossip, he may keep from people thinking bad of him. In tractate Shabbath we learn: "Who is Talmid Chaham? the one who keep his clothing straight to turn it". I.e. even if he has already gotten dressed and he now sees that it's inside out, he turns it right side out. And a regular man is not careful to do so. But the best is that everyone will do so. And if for "Chaluk" it is so, -- then how much more so, for other clothes. In Bava Batra we learn: "How is the clothing of Talmid Chaham? a garment such that the body is not seen under (through) it. Rashbam explains it's for people going barefooted and they need long clothing so his feet won't be seen. In our days it's irrelevant. But the Rambam (Maimonides) in the fifth chapter of Laws of Human Dispositions explains that the Talmud refers to thin clothes, that are so thin that the body can be seen through them. We also learn there: "How is Tallit of a Talmid Chaham? A long one thus the Chaluk is not seen beneath it "Tefach" (about 8 cm.). "Tallit" is the upper cloth and the meaning is that the lower cloth won't be longer than the upper. Any Talmid Chaham who has "Revav" on his clothing, i.e. fat or grease or any kind of dirt - deserves capital punishment because he makes people hate the Torah. (Shabbath there). But his clothes will be clean. And Talmid Chaham may not wear patched shoes such that one patch is on the other, for he will be disgraced, except for the winter that he goes in mood. | |
| Yoreh De'ah | |
| Siman 1 | |
| Even HaEzer | |
| Siman 1 | |
| Seder HaGet | |
| Seder Chalitza | |
| Choshen Mishpat | |
| Siman 1 | |