“… and you shall offer a new meal offering to Hashem.” (Vayikra 23:16)
Rashi notes in Devarim (26:17) that the words of the Torah should be new and novel to us each day, as if we just received the Torah that day. Such a mindset allows the individual to attain more extensive levels of scholarship and to study Torah with refreshed enthusiasm and vigor.
Indeed, in commenting on the fact that the Torah does not spell out the specific date when the Torah was given, the Olelos Efraim offers an explanation in a similar vein. He submits that Hashem wants every single day in a person’s life to be like the day of kabbalas haTorah. At every point that one is engaged in Torah study his experience varies. The depth of one’s comprehension is unlimited, and his analysis and understanding of the same passage in the Torah can differ one day from the other.
The Sifrei states explicitly that when one learns Torah it should always feel to him like he is learning it anew, and not that he’s reviewing old material.
Our sages tell us that one should be scrupulous when reciting the Birchos haTorah, as well as when asking for divine intellect and wisdom in the blessing of atah chonen in Shemoneh Esrei. When a person says these prayers with kavanah (devotion and intensity), it helps to open new channels of discernment, insight and knowledge.
These observations give some insight as to why the Torah does not mention the specific date of Matan Torah. The Torah merely tells us that a new meal offering will be brought, alluding to the “newness” of the Torah, as explained above.
The Torah specifies that an offering of shtei halechem (two loaves of bread from the first wheat crop, obviously chametz) should be brought for Shavuos. Our sages consider chametz to symbolize the evil inclination, as it says (Brachos 17a), that “the yeast in the dough,” i.e., the evil inclination, prevents man from performing the will of Hashem. To neutralize the evil inclination, Hashem tells us (Kiddushin 30b), “I created the evil inclination, and I created the Torah as an antidote.” When Torah dominates, the evil inclination is powerless.
In fact, we learn (Shabbos 88b) that the angels were troubled that Hashem had chosen to give the Torah to mortal man. But Moshe Rabbeinu argued, convincingly, that all of the Torah’s commandments had no relevance to the angels – they do not conduct business, they have no parents, they do not have an evil inclination. Rather, it was appropriate to give the Torah to the Jewish People to counteract their evil inclination.
It is also observed that the Torah does not stipulate anywhere that Rosh Hashana is a yom hadin, a day of judgment. The reason for this is, similarly, that a person should bear in mind that he is actually being judged every day, as it says (Rosh Hashana 16a), “R’ Yosi says a person is judged every day … and R’ Natan says a person is judged every hour.” We also learn in Pirkei Avos (2:1), “All your deeds are recorded in a book.”
The Maharsha notes that although we are directed that thirty days before the holiday one should study the laws of the upcoming holiday, there is no such imperative before Rosh Hashana. The reason is because one is supposed to engage in teshuvah all year round.
A person’s self-perception is a strong factor in his ability to succeed in Torah study and the performance of mitzvos. For example, people sometimes believe that if they were smarter, had more patience, or more diligence, they would be successful like the other individual.
The baalei mussar (sages who focus on man’s self-improvement) offer this compelling image:
A ganav (ordinary thief) was always on the lookout for something valuable to steal. Posing as an honorable patron looking to purchase an expensive gem, he once followed a diamond merchant into his office. The merchant showed him his wares, including a particularly magnificent large diamond which he was looking to sell. As soon as the ganav saw it, he knew this was what he wanted. As he contemplated how he could steal the diamond, he noticed a ticket stub lying on the desk. The ganav asked the merchant whether he was planning to travel in the near future, and the merchant affirmed that he had indeed booked passage on a ship leaving to London the following week.
The ganav immediately made arrangements to travel on the same ship and requested to share a cabin with the diamond merchant, which was arranged. The first night, after the merchant fell into a deep sleep, the ganav rose from his bed and began to search all the belongings of the merchant. He carefully went through his suitcase, checking all the pockets and articles of clothing, all the drawers, and even the nightshirt in which the merchant was sleeping, but he found nothing.
The next day the ganav could not help but confess to the merchant that he had intended to steal the merchant’s diamond. “I’m an expert in my profession, and I have been doing this for forty years with phenomenal success. I don’t understand how I failed this time to acquire your diamond. Please tell me where you hid the diamond,” pleaded the ganav.
The wealthy man answered, “I would be pleased to tell you. You should know that from the moment you walked into my office I sensed something was wrong. When you inquired where I was going, I became even more suspicious. When you ended up in my cabin, I immediately knew what your intentions were. I therefore took my diamond and hid it in your pocket, because I knew that you would never consider looking among your own possessions. You were only interested in what I had.”
Every person thinks that the other one has the diamond – that the other person is endowed with intelligence, wisdom, diligence. And every person thinks that if he only had what the other person has, he too would be able to achieve success. Truthfully, though, every individual has his own diamond. All he needs to do is to appreciate it, and he will be successful.
