Here, on the east coast, spring finally seems to be here. It looks nearly certain that we won’t see snowplows until next year and, as the plants start to bloom and the temperatures rise, Klal Yisrael collectively takes out Pirkei Avos and starts its spiritual blooming as well. During the days of sefira, we commemorate the ethical improvement and spiritual climb that our forefathers achieved from the moment of the exodus until they were deserving of greeting Hashem Himself forty-nine days later at Mount Sinai. Therefore, it is particularly fitting during this time of the year to learn Pirkei Avos, the premier syllabus for proper ethical behavior in Yiddishkeit.
Pirkei Avos is prefaced with the statement, “Kol Yisrael yeish lahem cheilek L’Olam Haba – Every Jew has a reserved portion in the Afterlife.” The Chida reveals a remarkable gematria. If you take the last letter of each word in this statement, “Kol Yisrael,” etc., their numbers total to 541, the exact gematria of Yisrael. This again emphasizes the special privilege that each and every Jew has: an automatic spot in the Eternal World. This is one of the reasons why we are known as yidden for, as the Gemara reveals in Masechtas Menachos, the letter yud is what Hashem used to create the Afterlife. Thus, we are all yidden since we all have a passport to the World that was created with the yud. It follows too, that Pirkei Avos, which instructs us on how to live a moral and spiritually productive life, is prefaced with the Jew’s ultimate goal and ambition: To achieve the supreme joy of the afterlife.
The study of Pirkei Avos contains lesson after lesson on how we can improve our daily behavior. Let me share with you one powerful example. In the second perek, we are taught, “Al taas tefilasecha k’va, ela rachamim v’sachanunim lifnei HaMakom – Do not allow your prayers to become fixed and habitual, but rather let them be sincere and concentrated expressions of supplications for mercy before Hashem.” The Tanna is warning us that since we say a prescribed formula of prayer day after day, it can easily be become mere lip service and a habit-like ritual. It is for this reason that I always eschewed the custom of putting before the chazan a chart of how many minutes it should take to get to Yishtabach and then to Shemoneh Esrei, etc. This seemed to me to be exactly the way to make prayer fixed and is precisely what the Tanna is warning us to avoid and abstain from!
I’d like to offer a mighty challenge. The next time you go to shul to pray, tell yourself that you’re planning to use your mind as much as your mouth in the synagogue – for proper service of Hashem has more to do with the mind and the heart than with the mouth. Of course, we have to say our prayers but, as the Chovos HaLevovos tells us, prayer without concentration is like a body without a soul and a peel without the fruit. Thus, I believe it is not wrong to say that we go primarily to shul to use our heads even more than our mouths.
Let me tell you what made me realize this idea. In another Mishna in the first chapter of Pirkei Avos, Shimon HaTzaddik teaches us that the world stands on three pillars, Torah, Avodah (which is the service of Hashem), and Gemilas Chasadim, acts of kindness. As we know, Yaakov Avinu introduced Torah to the world; Yitzchak introduced Avodah, while Avraham pioneered Gemilas Chasadim. The Chida explains more profoundly that there are three areas of challenge in one’s life: the world of action, the world of speech, and the world of thought. He explains that Torah is the success for the arena of speech. Gemilas Chasadim is the success for the realm of action. Lastly, it is Avodah, especially prayer, which is the ultimate success for the world of thought. Thus, we see revealed that, if one wants to excel at Avodas Hashem, he or she needs to be using their head while praying to Hashem.
May it be the will of Hashem that we train ourselves to use our minds as often as we can whenever we open the siddur or bentcher, when we say Krias Shema or the Shemoneh Esrei, and in that merit may Hashem fulfill all our prayers, blessing us with long life, good health, and everything wonderful.
Transcribed and edited by Shelley Zeitlin.
