Loving Kindness

18 Cheshvan, 5771 / October 26, 2010

Day 48 - The Chesed Primer

SEFER AHAVAS CHESED — Part II Chapter XII

Electricity is a powerful, complex force. One perceives it only in its final manifestation; it can light up a city, make factory machinery hum, empower vast computer networks or just shed a little light on the dinner table. If one wants to understand how electricity really works, one must study the physics, the scientific formulas that express what is really happening within the wires. Chesed is the most powerful force of all. It is the force that runs the world, and like any mighty force, it contains within it many unseen dimensions. The Chofetz Chaim provides a formula that unlocks the mysteries of chesed, revealing its inner dynamics. That key is the alef-beis.

The Talmud (Shabbos 104a) introduces this formula. It relates that small children came into the study hall and introduced concepts so deep that even in the days of Joshua ben Nun — in the generation that directly followed the giving of the Torah — such ideas were not taught. One might wonder what profound wisdom these small children had to teach. Their wisdom, the Talmud says, was precisely the wisdom of little children. They taught the alef-beis: “ ‘Alef-beis’stands for ‘alef binah,’ ” they said. “Alef ” means learning, and “binah” means understanding. This refers to the study of Torah.

The next letters in their “lecture” were “gimmel” and “daled,” which stand for “gemol dalim,” meaning “help the poor.” Parenthetically, the Chofetz Chaim explains that this phrase does not mean one should not help a wealthy person in need. It merely recognizes that the poor are more often in need of help, and have fewer resources to turn to. Looking more closely at the “gimmel,” there is a further message. The letter is formed with a “foot” that extends to the right, toward the “daled.” In “gemol dalim,” the help — the “gemol” — is extended toward the poor — the “dalim.” One whose desire is to help the poor will extend himself toward them, seeking out those who need his help rather than waiting for them to appear on his doorstep.

The next two letters of the alef-beis — “hei” and “vav” — represent Hashem’s name. The Chofetz Chaim explains this segment of Talmud by referring to another segment (Bava Basra75b), which says that a time will come when the righteous are called by Hashem’s name; the righteous will overflow with such Godliness that they will actually bear Hashem’s name.

This, says the Chofetz Chaim, explains the sequence of alef-beis that the children expounded. “Alef binah,” if a person commits himself to learning Torah; and “gemol dalim,” if he helps the poor; then he arrives at “hei” and “vav.” Hashem will pronounce His name upon him.

As the Talmud relates, the interpretation given by these small children came as an awakening to those who heard them. “Why didn’t we ever realize this?” they wondered. The Sages explain that the words of children — even when they do not understand completely what they are saying — are sometimes a medium of prophecy. Hashem provided this channel to mitigate the loss of the full power of prophecy, which He removed from His people. By listening carefully to the words of these children, one can comprehend the formula that makes kindness the moving force in Hashem’s Creation.

Step by Step

Any Torah learning that I do today I will complement with an act of kindness.