MUSSAR D’ORAISA
Parshas Beha'aloscha 5764
"ויהי
אנשים אשר היו טמאים לנפש אדם ולא יכלו לעשות הפסח ביום ההוא וידברו לפני משה
ולפני אהרן ביום ההוא. ויאמרו האנשים ההמה אליו אנחנו
טמאים לנפש אדם למה נגרע לבלתי הקריב את קרבן ה' במעדו
בתוך בני ישראל." (במדבר ט: ו-ז)
"There were men who had been contaminated by a
human corpse and could not make the pesach-offering on that day; so they
approached Moshe and Aharon on that day. These men said to him, 'We are
contaminated through a human corpse; why should we be diminished by not
offering Hashem's offering in its appointed time among the Children of
These
people who were ritually impure, and could therefore not bring a korbon Pesach,
were faced with a hardship with which it was almost possible to cope. They
recognized their contamination and of course submitted to the law that forbade
their bringing a sacrifice, but having to "lose out" on this mitzvah
was too much to bear. Rather than just accept losing this opportunity to offer
the korbon Pesach, they came with a heartfelt desire to be included in
this mitzvah and with reasons why they should merit performing this mitzvah.
Indeed, because of their sincerity and approach to mitzvah-observance, Hashem
revealed at this point, in their merit, the mitzvah of Pesach Sheni, the
opportunity to bring a "make-up" korbon pesach a month later,
for those who were contaminated on Pesach itself.
They expressed a superlative attitude towards mitzvah
observance. They did not view mitzvos as a burden or even as solely an
obligation, but rather as a unique, incredible opportunity not to be missed,
even in a case where there was no immediate obligation. For a chance to come
closer to Hashem they exhausted every possible avenue looking for inclusion in
the korbon Pesach rather than be excluded from the spiritual growth
brought about by performance of this mitzvah.
The Gemara (Eiruvin 54a) compares this world, in which we
can affect spiritual growth through our actions, to a wedding. The Gemara says,
"Take and eat, take and drink- for this world is like a wedding
hall." That is to say that at a wedding, one has every delicacy readily
available to him. The finest food and drink in seemingly endless quantities are
available for his enjoyment—but only for one night, for the few hours during
the reception. After that night is over and the catering bill is paid, the
chosson's opportunity to indulge in every delicacy is over. His being the
center of attention is over. That wedding hall will be hosting a different
party the next night, and although just a short while ago our chosson was the
most important man in the room, able to enjoy whatever he wanted just by taking
it, he will not even be invited or recognized at the new party. His time has
passed.
So the Gemara advises us to take and eat, take and drink;
take every mitzvah we can, seize every opportunity to serve Hashem. This world
is like a wedding hall; we are surrounded by countless opportunities to perform
mitzvos—all we have to do is take them. But mitzvos are only for this world,
and soon the wedding will be over. They will no longer be available to us. So
we must seize mitzvos every chance we get; we must try to utilize our time for
Torah study and mitzvah observance.
This is the yesod that these people who could not bring a korbon Pesach
understood—that to lose one opportunity for a mitzvah in this world would be an
incredible loss. They sought out the spiritual delicacies available in this
world, recognizing that they would not be available for a long time. We must
also recognize that the party will not last forever, so whatever we can acquire
here is precious. We should not want to miss out on even one of the available
delicacies.
Yitzchok Pinkus
Yeshivas Mir Yerushalayim