‘Parsha Growth Spurts’
Rabbi Dani Staum
Parshas Vayikra
“He called to Moshe, and Hashem spoke to him…” (1:1)
Ba’al Haturim notes that the letter aleph at the end of the word ‘Vayikra’ is small because Moshe wanted to remove the letter completely so the word to look like ‘Vayikar – and it happened’, in order to minimize the greatness of his being summoned by Hashem. But because Hashem instructed him to write the word Vayikra (which Rashi notes is a ‘calling of love’) Moshe minimized the letter.
Rav Shach zt’l noted that Chazal exegetically derive myriads laws from every crown on every letter in the Torah. By removing the aleph Moshe surely understood that he was also taking away all of the esoteric lessons hidden in that letter. Moshe reasoned that the Torah was given to teach us how to purify and elevate ourselves into great and holy people. Therefore, the lesson of humility that removing the aleph would symbolize was more valuable than all of the lessons and significance contained in that letter.
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“Let the pure ones come and engage (in the study of) purity.” (Medrash Tanchuma)
The Medrash Tanchuma relates that the custom was that when children would begin learning Chumash they would start with Chumash Vayikra, based on the aforementioned quote.
Pardes Yosef explains that we begin with the laws and rituals of the korbanos to teach children that Avodas Hashem requires sacrifice and mesiras nefesh. At the same time there is a message to the parents who are now beginning to pay a melamed to teach their son, that they too must be willing to sacrifice in order to be mechanech their children in Torah and mitzvos.
The road to greatness is never easy. One must be prepared for the inevitable bumps and vicissitudes that he will inevitably encounter along the way. But one who is ready to offer and invest his ‘blood and innards’ on the ‘altar of Avodas Hashem’ will enjoy siyata dishmaya and the rayach nichoach (pleasant aroma) that his efforts generate.
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“They will slaughter the cattle before Hashem and they will bring close the blood… and they will sprinkle the blood around the Mizbayach” (1:5)
Ben Ish Chai related a parable about a businessman who set out to the Bais Medrash one morning to immerse himself in Torah study for a few hours. While he was learning a wealthy merchant arrived at his home to conduct a lucrative business deal with him. Not being familiar with commerce, his wife replied that her husband was unavailable and sent the merchant on his way.
When the man arrived home and heard what happened he became angry with his wife. He told her that if such a thing were to occur again she should immediately call him.
A few days later the tax collector arrived at the businessman’s home demanding the payment of their taxes. Remembering her husband’s instruction, the wife immediately summoned her husband to meet with the man at the door who ‘came for money’. When the businessman arrived home and saw who was waiting for him he became incensed. “When it came to making money you didn’t summon me, and now when someone arrives to solicit money you do call me?”
Ben Ish Chai explains that the same is true with Torah and mitzvos. When one has an opportunity to perform a mitzvah, he should do so immediately with zeal, passion, and excitement. When it comes to sin however, he should become lazy and sluggish until the opportunity to sin has passed. But in our foolishness we often confuse our emotions, performing mitzvos indolently and haphazardly, and passionately jumping at opportunity to sin.
Therefore, the Torah instructs the Kohain to sprinkle the blood, which symbolizes one’s inner passion and excitement on the Mizbayach, and to burn the fat on the Mizbayach, which symbolizes laziness and slothfulness. It was specifically these two parts which were brought on the Mizbayach to symbolize their particular need for atonement, because of how we confuse the necessity of each function.
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Sources: Rav Shach – Meirosh Amanah; Ben Ish Chai – quoted in Otzar Chaim