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RABBI WAGENSBERG ON PESACH
15 Nissan, 5781; March 28, 2021
“Taking a Trip with the Top Down”
In the Haggadah Shel Pesach (Maggid section) it says, “Even if we were all wise, understanding, experienced, and even if we were all fully versed in the Torah, there is still a mitzvah upon us to tell the story about Yetziyas Mitzrayim (our exodus from Egypt), and anyone who tells about it at length is praiseworthy.”
In the very next paragraph, the Passover Haggadah tells us the story about five Torah giants who spent a Passover night together in Bnei Brak. Those five Torah giants were Rebbi Eliezer, Rebbi Yehoshua, Rebbi Elazar ben Azaria, Rebbi Akiva, and Rebbi Tarfon. These five Tannaitic Sages were discussing the Exodus from Egypt the entire night until their students came and said, “Our teachers, the time has arrived for the reading of the morning Shema.”
One question this brings to mind is, “Why did these Sages gather together to celebrate Leil Haseder (Passover night) specifically in Bnei Brak?
The Chidah (Rabbi Yosef Chaim Dovid Azulai, 1724 Yerushalayim-1806 Italy) in his Sefer Safah Achas (which is on the Haggadah Shel Pesach) answers this question by saying that four of those Sages gathered in Bnei Brak because they wanted to celebrate Passover together with Rebbi Akiva who lived in Bnei Brak. The Gemara in Sanhedrin (chap. 4, “Echad Dinei Mammonos”, pg. 50b) tells us that Rebbi Akiva headed an academy in Bnei Brak. This is based on a pasuk in Parshas Shoftim (16:20) which tells us to “Pursue righteousness.” This is taken to mean that we should pursue righteous people by going to their places in order to study Torah from them.
The Chidah (ibid) goes on to say that the reason why the other four Sages wanted to spend Leil Haseder with Rebbi Akiva was because they wanted to study the story of Yetziyas Mitzrayim according to Toras Nistar (the hidden aspects of the Torah). Therefore, they felt that Rebbi Akiva was the address for that. Additionally, they wanted to institute certain tikkunim (decrees) at that Seder.
This brings us to another question. What type of decrees did they want to institute? Furthermore, why was Rebbi Akiva chosen as the address to go to? This is especially difficult to understand in light of the fact that Rebbi Eliezer and Rebbi Yehoshua (two of the five Sages who gathered together with Rebbi Akiva in Bnei Brak) were Rebbi Akiva’s Rabbis (Meseches Nedarim, chap. 6, “Hanoder Min Hamevushal”, pg. 50a). Why would the Rabbis of Rebbi Akiva go to their disciple, Rebbi Akiva? Maybe Rebbi Akiva should have gone to one of their homes to spend the Seder night.
Let us start addressing these matters by mentioning another paragraph in the Haggadah Shel Pesach which comes after the story with the five Sages.
It says, “Blessed is God, blessed is He. Praised be He Who has given the Torah to His people Israel. Blessed be He. The Torah speaks of four sons: a Chacham (wise son), a Rasha (wicked son), a Tam (simple one), and Eino Yodeah Lishol” (one who does not know how to ask).”
One troubling thing with this paragraph is, “What do the words, ‘Praised be He Who has given the Torah to His people Israel,’ have to do with the rest of the paragraph?” What connection is there between those words and the four sons?
At this point, let us share a teaching upon which we will be able to begin building an approach in understanding a powerful message which the Haggadah is trying to convey.
The Rashbatz (Rebbi Shimon ben Tzemach, one of the Rishonim, 1361-1444, Barcelona, Spain) in his commentary on the Haggadah Shel Pesach says that the four sons mentioned in the Passover Haggadah correspond to the four people who entered into “Pardes.”
Now, the word “Pardes” simply means “orchard.” However, on a deeper level, the word “Pardes” represents the four levels of Torah understanding. We will explore this right now.
The word “Pardes” is spelled with four Hebrew letters which are: pey, reish, dalet, and samech. Those four letters serve as the acronym for, “Pashat” (the simple understanding of the Torah), “Remez” (the codes and hints in the Torah), “Drush” (expounding on the Torah), and “Sod” (the mystical secrets of the Torah).
In Meseches Chagigah (chap. 2, “Ein Dorshin”, pg. 14b) it tells us that once upon a time, there were four people who entered into Pardes, meaning, they delved into the study of Torah on all four of its levels. Those four people were: Ben Azai, Ben Zoma, Acher (literally “another.” This was a nickname given to Elisha ben Avuya), and Rebbi Akiva.
The Gemara (ibid) continues to relate to us that Ben Azai gazed at the Shechina (Divine Presence) while he was in Pardes, and he died from it. About the death of Ben Azai, the Gemara applies the verse in Tehillim (116:15) which says, “Difficult in the eyes of Hashem is the death of His devout ones.”
Ben Zoma also gazed at the Shechina while he was in Pardes, and he became demented from it. Acher also gazed at the Shechina while in Pardes, and as a result he apostatized, meaning, he renunciated his religious principles. However, Rebbi Akiva emerged from Pardes “Bishalom” (peacefully).
According to the girsa (text) of the Ein Ya’akov (Rabbi Ya’akov Ibn Habib, 1460-1516, Zamora, Spain; Chagigah ibid), it says, “Rebbi Akiva entered B’shalom, and exited B’shalom.”
After establishing that the four sons in the Passover Haggadah correspond to the four people who entered into Pardes, the Rashbatz continues to line them up:
1) The wise son corresponds to Rebbi Akiva who entered and exited Pardes successfully.
2) The wicked son corresponds to Acher who became like “another” person by abandoning the Torah.
3) The simple son (Tam) corresponds to Ben Azai who died Bitimmimus (innocently).
4) The son who does know how to ask a question corresponds to Ben Zoma who became demented and could no longer ask questions.
Although this is an amazing insight, we must ask ourselves, “What does all of this have to do with the story of Yetziyas Mitzrayim?” On Leil Haseder, we are supposed to relate the story of our Exodus from Egypt. If so, why would the authors of the Passover Haggadah (the Anshei Knesses Hagedolah) stick in a paragraph about these four sons who correspond to the four who entered into Pardes? What do they have to do with the storyline of Yetziyas Mitzrayim that we are supposed to focus on during Passover night?
In order to unpack the meaning behind all of this, let us begin with a dialogue between Reb Simcha Bunim Bonhart of Peshischa (1765-1827, Poland) and his disciple, the Kotzker Rebbe (Reb Menachem Mendel Morgenstern, 1787-1859, Poland) which is mentioned in the Shem Mishmuel (Rabbi Shmuel Borenstien, second Sochotchover Rebbe, 1855-1926, Parhsas Bereishis and Parshas Vaeschanan) in the name of his father, the Avnei Neizer (Rabbi Avraham Borenstien, first Sochotchover Rebbe, 1838-1910, Poland). By the way, the Shem Mishmuel was a grandson of the Kotzker Rebbe.
The story goes like this. Once upon a time, Reb Simcha Bunim asked the Kotzker Rebbe, “From where do you draw your inspiration?” The Kotzker Rebbe responded, “I draw my inspiration from the pasuk, “Raise your eyes on high and see Who created these things” (Yeshaya, 40:26). This meant to say that the Kotzker Rebbe drew his inspiration from creation.
Reb Simcha Bunim said back to him, “Anybody can draw inspiration from creation, even a non-Jew. However, once Yetziyas Mitzrayim happened, a Jew must draw his inspiration from Yetziyas Mitzrayim, and not from creation.”
Obviously, there is a deep argument going on here. Therefore, it begs us to ask, “What was the reasoning of Reb Simcha Bunim that we should draw inspiration from Yetziyas Mitzraim?” We also have to find out what the position of the Kotzker Rebbe was when he said that he drew inspiration from creation.
In order to glean an insight into all of this, let us turn to the showdown between Eliyahu Hanavi and the false prophets of Ba’al (an idol that was worshipped in those days). Eliyahu Hanavi requested from Hashem that a fire come down from heaven and consume his [Eliyahu’s] offering, thereby rejecting the offerings of the false prophets of Ba’al, in order to prove to the Jewish people that Hashem is God. The pasuk reports that Eliyahu said, “Answer me, Hashem, answer me, and let this people know that you Hashem ‘Hasibosa Es Libam Achoranis’, (are the God, and turn their hearts back [to You];” Melachim Aleph, 18:37).
It seems difficult that Eliyahu Hanavi would ask Hashem to turn people’s hearts back to the service of God. Does that not contradict one of the principals of Judaism which maintains that we all have free choice (Parshas Netzavim, 30:19)? If Hashem were to turn people’s hearts back to serving Him, that would rob them of their free choice.
To tackle this matter, we are going to analyze another dialogue, this time between Moshe Rabbenu and Hashem.
Moshe requests of Hashem, “Show me now Your glory” (Parshas Ki Sisa, 33:18). Hashem responds, “You will see ‘Achorai’ (My back), but My face may not be seen” (Parshas Ki Sisa, 33:23).
The Bina L’itim (Rabbi Azaria Fijo, 1579-1647, Venice, Italy) explains that Moshe Rabbenu’s request was to be enabled to grasp Hashem’s essence. Moshe Rabbenu requested from God that he be given the ability of understanding the core of Hashem. He wanted to know what makes Hashem tick, so to speak. Moshe wanted to peek under the hood, as it were.
When Hashem responded, “You will see ‘Achorai,’” it did not only mean that Moshe would only be able to get a glimpse of Hashem “from the back.” Rather, Hashem also meant that in order to be able to grasp the essence of God, Moshe must begin his search “Achorai,” meaning, “backwards.” This means to say that Moshe would have to start his journey of understanding Hashem by working from the bottom up.
This means that Moshe would first have to contemplate Who created the lower physical world. Only after he would understand that, would he be able to contemplate Who created the higher world of the stars and planets. Only after succeeding that would he then be able to begin contemplating Who created an even higher world, namely, the angelic domain. Only after understanding that, would he then be able to begin to think about the essence of God.
This is what Hashem meant when He said, “You will see ‘Achorai.’” It meant that Moshe would have to work “achoranis” (backwards), from the bottom to the top. But then, Hashem added, “But My face may not be seen,” meaning, at the end of the day, you will still not be able to understand the essence of Hashem.
The Bina L’ittim continues to say that this approach of working from the bottom up only applies to very wise people who also possess a very strong Emunah (faith) in God. One such person was Moshe Rabbenu. Moshe could handle such an approach. However, for simple people, who may not be as wise, or who may not possess such a strong sense of faith in Hashem, climbing this ladder is not suggested because they may get stuck along the way. Meaning, as they contemplate the various powers of creation, they may become so impressed with them that they might start thinking that they are gods unto themselves.
This was the problem with the false prophets of Ba’al in the days of Eliyahu Hanavi. They tried understanding God from the bottom up. But they got stuck in the middle. As they contemplated the various creations, working from the bottom to the top, they came into contact with the planetary bodies. They were taken by their size, strength, and power. As such, they made the mistake of thinking that the planets were gods. Their idol, Ba’al, merely represented those planetary forces.
Therefore, Eliyahu asked Hashem for a fire to come down from above so that everyone should know that Hashem is God. This fire from heaven worked in the opposite direction. The fire came from the top down. When you see God from the top down, there is no further need to contemplate creation from the bottom up, because what they saw from the top down was something that could not be refuted.
This explains how Eliyahu could ask Hashem to turn their hearts towards the service to God, even though this would seem to undermine their free will. The answer is that when Eliyahu said, “V’ata Hasibosa Es Libam Achoranis,” it really meant to say, “You, God, turned their hearts away from You because You expected them to search for You “Achoranis” (backwards), from the bottom up.”
Therefore, Eliyahu could request that a fire come down from above in order to turn their hearts back to Hashem. This would not contradict their free choice. This is because Eliyahu claimed that Hashem Himself had turned their hearts away from Him by expecting them to contemplate God from the bottom up, which, in a sense, robbed them of their free will in the other direction. The path from the bottom up is so dangerous that it was as if Hashem pushed them into becoming non-believers [in Hashem] to begin with.
Therefore, Eliyahu was merely asking Hashem to fix the damage [that He Himself had done] by having a fire come down from above. A fire from above would restore their free will by putting them back into the center, from where they could make the choice of believing in Hashem. In the end, Hashem agreed with Eliyahu and the fire came down (Berachos, chap. 5, “Ein Omdin’, pg. 31b, Rebbi Elazar, Reb Shmuel bar Rav Yitzchak; Micha, 4:6).
The Shvilei Pinchas suggests that, according to the Bina L’itim, the four who entered into Pardes also tried to understand Hashem by contemplation from the bottom to the top. Proof of this is the Arizal (Sha’ar Hagilgulim, preface 17) who says that the four levels of Pardes correspond to the four worlds. In ascending order, the four worlds are: Asiah (action), Yetzira (formation), Beriya (creation), and Atzilus (next to Hashem).
Just as Pardes goes from the lowest level (pshat) up to the highest level (sod), so do the four worlds go from the lowest level up to the highest level. The level of Pshat corresponds to the world of Asiah, the level of Remez corresponds to the world of Yetzira, the level of Drash corresponds to the world of Beriya, and the level of Sod corresponds to the world of Atzilus.
Now, Pardes goes from the bottom up. Proof of that is that it is called “Pardes.” The letters which spell Pardes go from the lowest level to the highest level. Otherwise, it would be called, “Sdarap” (which is how you would pronounce Pardes backwards). Therefore, those who entered into Pardes (in that order; pshat, remez, drush, sod) attempted to understand Hashem by going from the bottom to the top (from Olam Ha’asiya, to Olam Hayetzira, to Olam Haberiya, to Olam Ha’atzilus).
This is how Elisha ben Avuya got caught along the way. The Gemara in Chagiga (pg. 15a) goes on to say that at some point, Elisha ben Avuya saw the angel Mattat writing down the merits of the Jewish people. Elisha ben Avuya was so impressed with the angel Mattat, that he began to think that Mattat must be a god. It was then that Elisha ben Avuya began to think that there were two gods; One of them is called Elokim, and the other one is called Mattat. This was at least one factor which led Elisha ben Avuya off the path of Torah.
This was the same mistake that the Dor Enosh made. Enosh was a grandson of Adam and Chava (Parshas Bereishis, 5:4-6). In the generation of Enosh, idolatry was introduced to mankind. How did it begin? They knew that Hashem was, and is, the Creator. However, they wanted to understand Hashem by going from the bottom up.
On the way, they saw how impressive some of Hashem’s “servants” were. Those servants were the sun, moon, stars, and planets. Now, the people of Dor Enosh also thought that they themselves were too insignificant to bring offerings to Hashem directly. They reasoned that they should bring offerings to those powerful servants of Hashem who would then in turn bring those offerings to God on behalf of the people. This is precisely what they began doing.
Eventually, the people in Dor Enosh forgot about the part of the servants bringing their offerings to Hashem, and they began worshipping the celestial beings themselves, thinking that they were actual gods. Part of their mistake was due to the fact that they were very impressed with the strength and power which the heavenly bodies possessed (Rashi, Parshas Bereishis, 4:26, citing Bereishis Rabba,, Parshas Bereishis, 23:7; Rambam, Hilkchos Avodas Kochavim, 1:1). Once again, we see that the attempt to understand God from the bottom to the top led to catastrophe. (Shvilei Pinchas).
This mistake of working from the bottom to the top continued all the way down to the Egyptians in Mitzrayim. The Egyptians were a brilliant and advanced society. Proof of this is a verse which says, “And Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of Egypt” (Melachim Aleph, 5:10). If the verse uses the Egyptians as an example to say that Shlomo Hamelech was even smarter than them, it must be that the Egyptians were wise.
The Egyptians were star-gazers who were capable of reading the constellations with a certain level of accuracy (Bamidbar Rabba, Parshas Chukas, 19:3; Rashi, Parshas Bo, 10:10). Yet, they never succeeded at arriving at the desired destination which is that Hashem governs all of those bodies. The reason why they never took that next step was because they were impressed with the knowledge contained within the great rocks that fly around in outer space. Eventually, they began to relate to those planetary bodies as gods.
There was one god in particular which caught their attention. The Egyptians worshipped the lamb. The reason for this was because the Egyptians saw that the Mazal (zodiac sign) of Nissan is Tleh (Aries; the lamb; Sefer Yetzira, chap. 5). The Egyptians also knew that the month of Nissan is the first of the months in a lunar cycle (Parshas Bo, 12:2). Therefore, they reasoned that if Nissan is the first of the months, then Mazal Tleh is the first of the Mazalos. As the first Mazal, the Tleh must be the leader of the Mazalos. The leading Mazal must be the strongest of the Mazalos. Therefore, they worshipped the lamb below on Earth because it represented the Mazal of Tleh (lamb) above.
The Ramban (Parshas Bo, 12:3) explains that this is why Hashem commended the Jews in Mitzrayim to bring specifically the lamb and use it as a sacrifice for the Korban Pesach (Parshas Bo, 12:21). This was supposed to shock the Egyptians out of their delusional thinking and bring them back to reality. By slicing the neck of the lamb, we were sending a strong message to the Egyptians that this could not possibly be a god. If it was a god, how did we make it bleed? If it was a god, how did we kill it?
The Korban Pesach was also supposed to wake the Jewish people up. The Jews were influenced by Egyptian culture and ideology. The Jews were also idolators (Yalkut Reuveini, Parshas Beshalach, 15:4). Therefore, the Korban Pesach was also supposed to destroy those idolatrous thoughts from the minds of the Jewish people.
But again, all of this idolatry happened because the Egyptians tried to understand Hashem from the bottom up. As a result, they got stuck along the way, and they were duped into idolatrous philosophies. (Shvilei Pinchas).
This explains the reason why Hashem performed so many miracles in Egypt and during Yetziyas Mitzrayim. It is because those miracles allowed the Jews to witness Hashem operate from the top down. When Hashem reveals Himself by miracles descending from above, all other idolatrous philosophies fall by the wayside.
Now, Yetziyas Mitzrayim was a preparation for Matan Torah. This idea explains the reason behind the miraculous revelation at Har Sinai. The pesukim tell us that Hashem descended on top of Mount Sinai and the people saw thunder, flames, the sound of the Shofar, and the smoke on the mountain (Parshas Yisro, 19:20, 20:15). At Har Sinai, Hashem revealed Himself amidst miracles. These miracles came down from the top to the bottom.
The reason for all of those miracles at the time of Yetzityas Mitzrayim and at Matan Torah was because prior to that time, people tried to understand God from the bottom up. That path is fraught with dangers which led people astray. The Jews fell to the forty-ninth level of impurity because of that derech.
Therefore, Hashem changed directions with miracles coming from the top down because one cannot refute God’s existence in face of miracles. Miracles make God’s Presence undeniable. When we see Hashem from the top down, it is no longer complicated. God exists, period!
At Sinai, God spoke to the people from heaven (Parshas Yisro, 20:19). God’s voice came from the top down. This is why the very next verse goes on to say that they should abandon their gods of silver and gold (Parshas Yisro, 20:20). The juxtaposition of these two verses teaches us that once God is apparent from top down, there is no longer any confusion. Obviously, other objects are not god.
This is why Hashem allowed the Jewish people to hear the first two of the Ten Commandments at Har Sinai (Meseches Makkos, chap. 3, “Eilu Hein Halokin”, pg. 24a, Rav Hamnuna). This taught the Jewish people the reason for the miracles at Matan Torah. It was in order to uproot idolatry from them. We can see this from the first two of the Aseres Hadibros because they talk about there being only One God, and that they may not recognize any other gods (Parshas Yisro, 20:2-3). Since the message of the first two commandments are about destroying idolatrous beliefs, there had to be miracles at Matan Torah coming down from the top in order to solidify that point.
Hashem especially wanted them to drop any beliefs, that they may have still been harboring in their minds and hearts, about the lamb being a god. This is why the first of the Ten Commandments says, “I Am Hashem your God Who has taken you out of the land of Egypt” (Parshas Yisro, 20:2). In other words, Hashem said, “I have taken you out of Mitzrayim miraculously to show you that there is no other god besides Me.” Stop worshipping idols. Stop worshipping the lamb. Stop searching for Me from the bottom up because it will confuse you. See now that I Am coming down to you from the top. Focus on this direction and you will never faulter.” (Shvilei Pinchas).
Now we can start to answer the questions that were raised above. Let us begin by explaining that dialogue between Reb Simcha Bunim and the Kotzker Rebbe.
The Kotzker Rebbe claimed that he received his inspiration from creation. This is because the Kotzker Rebbe understood himself and knew that he had the ability of taking the approach of understanding God from the bottom up without it affecting him negatively.
Reb Simcha Bunim agreed that there are unique individuals, such as the Kotzker Rebbe, who are capable of taking the path from the bottom to the top. However, Reb Simcha Bunim understood that for most people, such a path would end disastrously. Most people would get distracted from what they would see along the way which would detour them from arriving at the final conclusion that it is only Hashem Who is God.
When Reb Simcha Bunim said that even non-Jews can receive inspiration from creation, he was referring to non-Jews such as the Dor Enosh and such as the Egyptians. Reb Simcha Bunim was pointing to them to demonstrate the dangers that exist when a person attempts to climb from the bottom to the top.
Therefore, Reb Simcha Bunim maintained that, for most Jews, we must receive our inspiration from Yetziyas Mitzrayim which was miraculous. Miracle which come from the top down are irrefutable. Witnessing miracles is the easier approach when it comes to belief in Hashem. Miracles are not so complicated. From miracles one can see clearly that Hashem exists. Any questions that try to refute Hashem’s existence fall by the wayside in light of miracles. (Shvilei Pinchas).
This explains the connection between the four sons (who are connected to the four people who entered into Pardes) and the storyline of Yetziyas Mitzrayim. The purpose of Sippur Yetziyas Mitzrayim is to instill in our hearts the belief in Hashem, going from top to bottom, so that we do not wind up making terrible mistakes.
Therefore, in order to prove that there is danger in going the other way, from bottom to top, the authors of the Haggadah inserted the paragraph about the four sons because they correspond to the four people who entered into Pardes. This is supposed to remind us about the story of the four people who tried to understand Hashem by working from the bottom up (as is indicated from the word Pardes).
This is meant to remind us that three out of the four were damaged as a result of attempting to understand Hashem backwards (from the bottom up). Only Rebbi Akiva emerged unharmed. This is supposed to remind us that we should take the approach of understanding Hashem from the top down. Since the whole point of Sippur Yetziyas Mitzrayim and its miracles is to instill Emunah Ba’Hashem in our hearts from the top down, this paragraph about the four sons compliments that idea. (Shvilei Pinchas).
This also explains why the Haggadah says, “Blessed is He Who gave the Torah to His nation Israel” right before mentioning the four sons. It is to remind us of Matan Torah and its miracles. It is teaching us that the way to approach understanding Hashem is from the top down. Then, it tells us about the four sons who represent the four who went into Pardes to show us what happens to most people when they try to understand Hashem from the bottom up. They either die, go crazy, or go off the derech. The four sons reiterate the importance of the Nissim at Har Sinai. That is the connection between the two. (Shvilei Pinchas).
This also explains what tikkunim the four Sages wanted to do in Rebbi Akiva’s home. Since the time of Matan Torah, the Jewish people have primarily approached understanding Hashem from top to bottom. That means that the other approach from bottom up has been abandoned, for the most part. The four visiting sages wanted to do a tikkun for the abandoned approach. They wanted to explore the possibility of opening up that channel.
This explains why they specifically went to the home of Rebbi Akiva. Even Rebbi Eliezer and Rebbi Yehoshua, who were Rebbi Akiva’s Rabbis, went to Rebbi Akiva because they knew that Rebbi Akiva had successfully emerged from Pardes unharmed. Since Rebbi Akiva had the experience of successfully approaching the understanding of Hashem from the bottom up, they went to Rebbi Akiva to ask for his advice and guidance as to how they could also use the derech of going from the bottom up in order to understand Hashem. (Shvilei Pinchas).
Rebbi Akiva began explaining to them what it would take to successfully enter into Pardes without being hurt. When the other Sages heard how difficult it was, they made another tikkun. They were metaken (instituted) that most people should use the approach from top down. They decreed that most people should use the approach represented by Yetziyas Mitzrayim, which means the approach of miracles.
This is why we are supposed to mention Yetziyas Mitzrayim twice every day (Parshas Re’eh, 16:3; Mishnah Berachos, chap. 1, “M’eimasai”, Mishnah 5, pg. 12b). It is in order to remind ourselves that the derech most of us must take, when it comes to understanding Hashem, is the path that goes from top to bottom, which is represented by the miracles of Yetziyas Mitzrayim. (Shvilei Pinchas).
For a moment, let us address how Rebbi Akiva succeeded in Pardes by going from the bottom up. Rebbi Akiva’s success was due to his unwavering Emunah Peshuta Ba’Hashem (simple faith in God). We find that Rebbi Akiva lived, and died, with this Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. We can see this from the painful story of his death. As the Roman’s were combing the flesh off of his body with iron combs, Rebbi Akiva recited Shema Yisrael (Parshas Vaeschanan, 6:4; Meseches Berachos, chap. 9, “Haroeh”, pg. 61b). Shema Yisrael is about Emunah Peshuta in Hashem.
There is even a hint in the text which supports this idea that Rebbi Akiva possessed Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. According to the Ein Ya’akov’s text we quoted above, the Gemara read, “Rebbi Akiva entered B’shalom and exited B’shalom.” Although the simple meaning of “B’shalom” is “peacefully,” there is a deeper meaning as well. The word “shalom” is also a name. The Name “Shalom” is one of Hashem’s Names (Meseches Shabbos, chap. 1, “Yetziyos Hashabbos”, pg. 10b, based on Sefer Shoftim, 6:24).
According to this new definition, when it says that Rebbi Akiva entered “B’Shalom,” it meant that he entered into Pardes with a deveikus (connection) to Hashem Who is called Shalom. On his journey through Pardes, Rebbi Akiva saw many questions on Hashem which were antithetical to Torah. When one tries to understand Hashem from the bottom up, one will be faced with questions that stem from science. Areas such as archeological finds, fossils, and the age of the universe will attack Torah positions. An array of theories and philosophies will emerge which oppose Torah hashkafos (viewpoints; ideas). (Chassam Sofer, Toras Moshe, Parshas Shemos).
These very questions were so difficult that it killed Ben Azai, it caused Ben Zoma to become demented, and it caused Elisha ben Avuya to go off the derech. Only Rebbi Akiva succeeded in keeping his “ship afloat” during that “stormy weather” because of his firm, steadfast, and resolute Emunah Peshuta in Hashem.
It was that Emunah Peshuta in Hashem which stood by him as he was being brutally murdered by the Romans. The torture of Rebbi Akiva can bring to mind questions such as, “Tzaddik Vira Lo” (Why do bad things happen to good people; Berachos, chap. 1, M’eimasai”, pg. 7a, Parshas Ki Sisa, 33:13). Yet, Rebbi Akiva held on tenaciously to his Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. We can see this from his recitation of the Shema. Shema Yisrael is a declaration of our Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. As he was riddled with pain as his flesh was being torn off of his body, Rebbi Akiva recites the Shema and demonstrates his Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. After all, it was Rebbi Akiva who taught that whatever the Merciful One does is for the best (Berachos, ibid, 60b). (Shvilei Pinchas)
Now we can return to that Passover Seder in Rebbi Akiva’s home. As the Sages were discussing the story of Yetziyas Mitzrayim the entire night, suddenly, the students entered into the room and said, “Our teachers, the time for reciting the morning Shema has arrived.” The reason why the students told them to recite the Shema (besides the obvious reason that the time had arrived), can be understood as follows.
The entire night, the other Sages wanted to explore the possibility of entering Pardes from the bottom to the top. All night long, Rebbi Akiva kept reiterating that the only way to succeed is through Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. Rebbi Akiva’s discourse in Emunah Peshuta in Hashem made such a hashpa’a (influence) that his entire home and his entire city was impacted by it. So much so that the students came barging in and addressed the other four Sages by saying to them that the time has come to recite the Shema.
Those students basically told the other four Sages, “Let’s take a ‘time out’ from talking about Pardes. Let us for a moment pause from attempting to understand Hashem from the bottom up. Let us take a moment to recite the Shema and solidify our Emunah Peshuta in Hashem.”
Perhaps we could add that, most probably, those students who interrupted the Sages in Bnei Brak were the students of Rebbi Akiva. After all, Bnei Brak was home to Rebbi Akiva’a Academy. Those talmidim of Rebbi Akiva were in their Rebbi’s presence day in and day out. They saw how their Rebbi lived by Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. They would also come to witness how their Rebbi would die with that Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. Therefore, those talmidim of Rebbi Akiva addressed the visiting scholars in residence and told them that only with Emunah Peshuta in Hashem will anybody succeed to journey through the rough waters of Pardes.
We have just shared an insight into some of the paragraphs in the Haggadah Shel Pesach which shed light on the very purpose of Sippur Yetziyas Mitzrayim. Therefore, practically speaking, on Leil Haseder, let us share (with whomever we can) this idea that the four sons represent the four people who entered into Pardes. Let us mention that the only one who survived was Rebbi Akiva. Let us explain that Rebbi Akiva succeeded only on account of his Emunah Peshuta in Hashem. Let us add that this is the whole purpose of relating the story about our Exodus from Egypt. Yetziyas Mitzrayim is meant to remind us about the miracles that Hashem performed. Miracles come down from above. When we see Hashem operating from top to bottom, all of the questions which attack the existence of God fall by the wayside.
Additionally, whenever we recite the Shema, let us be reminded that, at the end of the day, we believe in Hashem with Emunah Peshuta.
Furthermore, as a way of going about life, although we are encouraged to ask questions and explore Hashem on our own; nevertheless, when we get to a question that we cannot answer at that moment, we should not jump to abandon God, Torah and Judaism. Rather, we should rely upon Emunah Peshuta in Hashem.
One day, when we become even wiser and even more experienced than we are now, we may come to understand the answers to those difficult questions. When Hashem reveals Himself again, He will most certainly answer all of our questions. Until then, we can rely upon Emunah Peshuta in Hashem.
So, may we all be blessed with the courage to strengthen our Emunah in Hashem during all the ups and downs of life, and thereby become true talmidim of Rebbi Aikiva, and thus be zocheh to hear Eliyahu Hanavi bring the good news of the Final Geula, when God will illuminate the world with His brilliance and with His miracles, which will be a time where we will all become experts at Pardes, receiving unlimited nachas from all of our children.
Good Shabbos, Good Yom Tov, Chag Kasher v’Sameach, Warmest wishes, Aba Wagensberg
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