Simchas Torah: Parshat Yisro - The Secret of Trust in Hashem and the Hatred of Ill-Gotten Gain

Hating Ill-Gotten Gain and the Supernal Intellect

"Men of truth, who hate ill-gotten gain" (Shemos 18:21)

Rebbe Nachman yearned for us to attain this level—to throw away our money, to distribute our money to charity, not to hoard money, and not to lust after money.

Rebbe Nachman says in Likutey Moharan (Torah 30):

"Godly comprehensions cannot be attained except through many constrictions, from cause to effect, from the supernal intellect to the lower intellect... And one cannot attain the lower intellect except by being a hater of ill-gotten gain, by hating money with the utmost hatred."

The entire world is guided by the lower intellect, by the lower wisdom. Whoever hates ill-gotten gain merits this lower wisdom, the lower intellect, and becomes capable of leading the world. The one who hates money with the absolute utmost hatred can become a leader of the entire world. King Solomon possessed this lower wisdom, as it is written, "And he was wiser than all men," and he ruled over the entire world.

Regarding King Solomon, it is stated:

"And the king made silver in Jerusalem as common as stones" (Kings I 10:27).

Because he hated money, he ruled over the upper and lower realms. Everything King Solomon achieved—flying with the eagle, controlling demons, eagles, and wild beasts, even building the Holy Temple—was all accomplished through the lower wisdom. Because he was a hater of ill-gotten gain, because he hated money, he ended up with endless wealth. All the kings came to him and brought silver, gold, monkeys, and elephants; they brought him everything because he hated money with the utmost hatred, as it is written, "It [silver] was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon."

If a person wants to attain the lower intellect, the lower wisdom, to attain even a drop of intellect, a drop of wisdom, even in the revealed Torah, it is only possible if he begins to hate ill-gotten gain, to hate money. If a person does not hate money, he cannot reach any spiritual level. The lust for money is the worst and most difficult lust of all.

One can break free from all other lusts because every other lust is considered disgraceful. A person is ashamed of it, and people despise and shame him for it. But the lust for money is the only thing a person feels no shame about—on the contrary! He boasts about having money and takes pride in it. Reb Noson says regarding the lust for money, "We have been struck doubly." Not only has a person fallen into the lust for money, which is the greatest impurity in the world, but people actually glorify him for it. Everyone praises him, envies him, and chases after him.

Therefore, it is incredibly difficult to break free from the lust for money; no one knows how to escape it. Every other lust brings shame, but this lust is the most terrible in the world. The lust for money is hidden and concealed from everyone's eyes, leaving a person with almost no chance of escaping it. A person does not even realize that it is a lust; he does not know that constantly thinking about money is disgraceful. He makes excuses for himself, saying, "I need this thing, to marry off the children, for parnassah (livelihood)."

Why are you worrying? Everything has already been announced in Heaven! Forty days before a person is formed, it is planned in Heaven that on this day he will have a house, and on this day he will have a field, parnassah (livelihood)—everything is announced even before a person is born. As long as people are immersed in the lust for money, thinking about it all day long, the Geulah (Redemption) cannot come. The Geulah can only come when a person trusts in Hashem and his eyes look solely to Hashem.

The Secret of Parnassah and Trust in Hashem

We say three times a day in the 'Ashrei' prayer:

"The eyes of all look to You with hope, and You give them their food in its proper time."

In its proper time! Everything happens in its proper time, in its designated moment. Whatever a person is meant to receive—an apartment, furniture, etc.—everything comes at its appointed time. Because the very obsession with money, the very thought of money, pushes away his salvation, pushes away his apartment, and pushes away his parnassah (livelihood). A person spends his whole life thinking about parnassah, not realizing that the moment he stops thinking about parnassah, the parnassah will come to him; it will run after him.

Our Breslov brethren used to say regarding the king's son in Rebbe Nachman's Sippurei Ma'asiyot (Tale 11), where it is told:

"That he would go and chase after the animals, and they would run away. And he chased after them..."

This is exactly what happens to every person regarding parnassah (livelihood). Because what is the word "parnassah"? It can be read as par nosea (the bull travels). You run after the bull, and the bull travels away; the bull runs away. Par-nassah—it travels away. If you chase after parnassah, then the parnassah runs away from you.

A Story of a Simple Jew and the Golden Wagon

This is like the story of a simple Jew who heard a sermon from the Rav about a blind, lame, and wounded bear lying in a cave. Hashem sustained this bear by having a sheep come every day and walk right into its mouth. The Jew went home and declared, "From today on, we are not doing anything. From today on, I am not going to work. I will only sit in the synagogue all day, learning and praying."

His wife started to cry, the children started to cry, everyone was crying as if it were Tisha B'Av. In the morning, they woke up and saw that everything had been stolen from them. Not only had he decided not to go to work, but the horse and the wagon were stolen too. His wife, of course, complained to him, "Bad luck! You are such bad luck! Look at what you have done to us. As soon as you made the decision not to work, the horse and wagon were immediately stolen. It is all because of you."

"Why did you go to that Rav's sermon! He told you about some bear that had a sheep walk into its mouth—what, do you think you are a bear? You are not a bear! You are not a bear! You need to be a human being, you need to go to work. Look at what harsh judgments you have brought upon us. There is no horse, no wagon, nothing."

In truth, what had happened was that a certain thief needed the wagon and the horse in order to steal several chests of gold from a church. He loaded everything onto the wagon and drove into the heart of the forest. He dug a pit three meters deep where he wanted to hide all the chests of gold, but suddenly all the dirt collapsed on him, and he was buried inside the pit.

All the chests of gold remained on the wagon—ten chests of gold with jewelry, diamonds, pearls, and golden candlesticks. Everything was left on the wagon covered with some cloth. The poor horse did not know what was happening to him, where he was being dragged, or what they wanted from his life. 'Where is my master?' he began to cry. Finally, he decided to return home.

Meanwhile, back at the Jew's house, everyone was still crying over the horse and the wagon, crying over their 'crazy' father who had decided not to go to work and instead dedicate his life to serving Hashem. Suddenly, they heard a noise at the gate, something knocking and banging against the gate. Everyone went outside and saw the horse with the wagon. They all exclaimed, "Here is the horse!" What joy and gladness.

Joy and gladness, but what would be with the crazy father who no longer wanted to go to work? They saw that the wagon was covered with a cloth and thought it was potatoes or carrots. Perhaps the thief had put vegetables on the wagon to haul to the fair—what else could he have left here? Probably just some rotten potatoes. Suddenly, they saw that the entire wagon was full of chests of silver and gold. And so it is with each and every person who wants to dedicate his life to Hashem and rely on Him to provide his parnassah (livelihood). This is not a story from a million years ago; this is an everyday story! If a person believes in Hashem and trusts in Hashem, then the silver and gold will come right to his home.

The Proper Way to Combine Trust and Effort

Rebbe Nachman yearned for us to have this attribute—to throw away money, to distribute money to charity, not to hoard money, and not to lust after money. He deeply desired and yearned to merit us to reach this holy conduct, like the Baal Shem Tov and the Noam Elimelech, who threw their money away every day and gave it to charity, leaving absolutely nothing from one day to the next.

However, in lesson 55 of Chayei Moharan, Rebbe Nachman said: I do not want you to become confused in your mind from this spiritual work. I do not want you to jump to this level all at once. Do not throw your money away immediately on the same day. If you have debts, pay them. If you received money, separate the tithe and give charity. If you are of the mindset to give a fifth, that is even higher, but do not leave your wife and children hungry.

But you must know to hate money. You must despise ill-gotten gain and not make money into something holy. Reb Noson also elaborates on this in Likutey Halachos (Laws of Shabbos), explaining that one needs tremendous wisdom and knowledge to know how to combine the obligation of making an effort for parnassah (livelihood) with the spiritual work of trust, which few have merited to achieve, because 'many acted like Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and did not succeed.'

But at the very least, we should not sanctify money. We must know that it is the greatest impurity, and we should be ashamed to even think about money. Therefore, a person must have this principle, this readiness, and this desire to reach the level of the tzaddikim—to trust in Hashem, to distribute as much as possible to charity, and to despise ill-gotten gain, hating money with the utmost hatred.

Gods of Silver and Gods of Gold - Maintaining the Connection

"You shall not make for yourselves gods of silver and gods of gold" (Exodus 20:19).

This is a verse that appears right at the end of the Torah portion. But in fact, it was already stated at the Giving of the Torah, "You shall have no other gods before Me." So what is the purpose of this addition?

Hashem knows what will happen. He knows what it means to take a human being made of physical matter and expect him to be connected to God, who is so exalted. It is very, very, very difficult; it is not an easy thing, it is extremely hard. Hashem knows that there are many other things in the world. There is such a thing as "having fun." What is having fun? That is gods of gold and gods of silver. It is all sorts of additional things, anything that is an addition to our connection with Hashem.

Sometimes we need to refresh ourselves, so we dance a little, we talk a little, we relax a bit because we need to renew our minds. If it provides rest for the mind, then it is fine; it is all for the sake of the ultimate goal. Now we take a trip, now we eat something enjoyable. But everything must be done with connection.

If you suddenly forget Hashem for even one moment—thinking that Hashem is Hashem and you have Him three times a day in prayer, and you have Him when you set aside time for Torah study, but afterward you have all sorts of other things—then this falls under "You shall not make for yourselves gods of silver and gods of gold." Connection, connection, connection—constantly searching for the connection. And when there is no mitzvah to do right now, then connect through thought. Constantly knowing that there is nothing else, only looking upward, toward Hashem.

"And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation" (Exodus 19:6).

This is essentially the connection of Hashem with the Jewish people. This is the essence of the relationship. Afterward, there is the Torah, there are already mitzvos, there are already halachos (Jewish laws)—that is already the detailed breakdown. But the essence of the relationship is constantly the connection; it is being a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. (B'Ohr Pnei Melech Chaim)

Insights on the Torah

"Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be lengthened" (Shemos 20:12)

For it is brought down that a person's father and mother provide the garment for his soul. And the soul is the intellect, as Rebbe Nachman writes (Likutey Moharan I, 5)—meaning that all of his intellect and comprehension is received through the garment he receives from his father and mother. And the more illumination added to this garment, the more the light of his soul—meaning his wisdom—increases. Therefore, one is obligated to honor them. Because through the honor he gives them, illumination is added to their souls. That is, by giving them honor, their souls are magnified. And through this, his own garment, which is drawn to him from them, automatically shines. Then he merits to attain and receive wisdom through this garment. And this is the concept of length of days. (Kibbud Av Va'Em 1)

"I am Hashem your God" (Shemos 20:2)

Regarding this opening of the Ten Commandments, we learned in the Midrash: This is what is stated:

"The beginning of Your word is truth" (Tehillim 119:160)

This perplexing Midrash is explained by the later Sages in the following way: The first letter of the Ten Commandments is Aleph (from the word Anochi - "I am"). The first letter of the Mishnah is Mem (from the word Me'eimasai - "From when do we recite the Shema in the evening?"). The first letter of the Gemara is Tav (from the word Tanna - "Where does the Tanna stand?"). From these three beginnings, the word Emes (Truth - spelled Aleph, Mem, Tav) is formed. This is what the verse in Tehillim hints at: "The beginning of Your word is truth."

Stories for the Parashah: Honoring Torah Scholars and Seeing the Voices

"Beware of ascending the mountain or touching its edge" (Shemos 19:12)

From this verse, we learn how careful a person must be not to offend the honor of a Torah scholar, for the matter is an a fortiori argument (kal vachomer): If the mountain, which has no intellect and feels nothing, was nevertheless sanctified by the giving of the Torah to the point that all the Jewish people were warned against "touching its edge," since "whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death"—how much more so regarding one who touches and offends the honor of a Torah scholar, who has learned the Torah itself, who possesses intellect and feels insult. All the more so, anyone who touches him is as if he touches the apple of Hashem's eye.

In this regard, a story is told about Rabbi Ungar zt"l, author of Machaneh Avraham, who was the Rav of the city of Kapuvar. In this city, there were about one hundred and twenty Jewish families, of which twenty-six families kept their stores open on Shabbos. This was because most of the store owners were unlearned people (amei ha'aratzos) who had not learned and did not know better; they acted out of distance and ignorance, and were so far removed that talking to them was of no use.

One of them, who owned a large fabric store in the center of the city, would stand at the entrance of his store every Shabbos as the congregants passed by on their way out of the synagogue. With a burning cigarette in his mouth, he would brazenly say "Shabbat Shalom" to everyone, to the point that the Rav avoided passing by there. Once, on the first day of Pesach, this man called out to the Rav from afar, without any title or respect for a rabbi, but rather shouted at him: "Ungar! Ungar! Come here!"

The Rav, who was with his young son, approached the entrance of the store, but the store owner asked them to come inside, and the Rav and his son entered. Then the man went to the cash register, took out bread and matzah, and said to them: "Here is chametz (leavened bread)," and took a bite of both of them together, beginning to eat them. Rabbi Ungar was deeply shocked by what he saw and could not utter a word. Suddenly, while they were standing there, the store owner collapsed to the ground and died on the spot.

Upon hearing this, the city was in an uproar, for they saw this as a great Kiddush Hashem (sanctification of God's Name), that this wicked man received his punishment from Heaven on the spot. The next day, on the day of the funeral, a large crowd gathered from all the surrounding villages, and to everyone's astonishment, Rabbi Ungar zt"l also went with them to the funeral. The Rav was asked, what did he see fit to attend the funeral of this wicked man? The Rav told them that since a Kiddush Hashem came about through this man, he certainly had some merit, and therefore he was escorting him on his final journey. It is told that after this incident, no one opened their store on Shabbos.

"And all the people saw the voices" (Shemos 20:15)

The tzaddik Rabbi Yitzchak Meir of Ger, author of the Chiddushei HaRim, was a great masmid (diligent student) in his childhood, and he sat studying in the beis midrash for most hours of the day. The Torah scholars of the city loved to debate in learning with little Yitzchak Meir'l on various topics in Halachah and Aggadah, and they enjoyed the child's illuminating insights. Once, one of the scholars asked Yitzchak Meir'l: In the Torah portion of the Giving of the Torah, it says, "And all the people saw the voices." The question arises: Was it not enough to hear the voices of the Ten Commandments? Why did the Jewish people also need to see the voices that were heard?

Yitzchak Meir'l smiled at the questioner with a mischievous tone and said: Figure it out yourself—what would have happened at the revelation at Mount Sinai if our ancestors had only heard the Commandments and had not seen what was heard! In that case, they would have left an opening for transgressors to come and claim: With our own ears we heard—"Lo Tignov" (spelled with a Vav instead of an Aleph, meaning "To Him you shall steal"—implying stealing for the sake of Hashem). And according to this, they would have permitted themselves to steal, so to speak, for the sake of Heaven. Because of this, a great miracle occurred for the Jewish people at the Giving of the Torah: "And all the people saw the voices"—before the eyes of the myriads of thousands of Jews who stood at the foot of Mount Sinai, all the commandments were visibly seen, one by one, and thus the empty claims of the transgressors of Israel were preemptively blocked.

A Prayer for Trust in Hashem

Master of the Universe, grant me the merit to be brave and strong in the trait of bitachon (trust in Hashem), and that I should not be afraid to distribute as much charity as possible, and that I should not worry from one day to the next, and that I should not place my trust in flesh and blood, and that I should not, God forbid, be in the category of cursed, as it is written:

"Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength" (Jeremiah 17:5)

And all my life, may I trust only in You and place my reliance upon You. May I never hope for the salvation of man, as it is written, "Vain is the help of man." May I know that all my sustenance comes directly from You, not through any person nor through any other channel, and may the following verses be fulfilled within me:

"Give us help against the adversary, for vain is the help of man. Through God we shall do valiantly, and He will tread down our adversaries."

"May You add days to the days of the king; may his years be as generation upon generation. May he sit enthroned before God forever; appoint loving-kindness and truth that they may preserve him. So I will sing praise to Your Name forever, that I may fulfill my vows day by day."