{"id":261,"date":"2014-09-08T04:31:56","date_gmt":"2014-09-08T13:01:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/derechhashem.wordpress.com\/?p=261"},"modified":"2014-09-08T04:31:56","modified_gmt":"2014-09-08T13:01:56","slug":"derech-hashem-145","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/2014\/09\/08\/derech-hashem-145\/","title":{"rendered":"Derech Hashem 1:4:5"},"content":{"rendered":"

Class can be found here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

1:4:5<\/p>\n

It\u2019s in fact the mitzvah-system that lays out the parameters that we\u2019re to function within [1]. Each imperative [2] is intended to allow one to earn and incorporate within himself a degree of perfection, and each prohibition [3] is meant to withhold a degree of murkiness and imperfection.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s vitally important to know that each element of every mitzvah has been designed with humankind\u2019s true makeup and circumstances in mind, with the degree of one\u2019s own and the world\u2019s needs [4], as well as with each thing\u2019s own needs and conditions for perfection.<\/p>\n

Indeed, G-d who knows all of this in fact, and knows all of creation and the role each thing plays in creation, oversees everything and incorporated all of that in His mitzvah-system. As it\u2019s said, \u201cG-d commanded us to follow all of these rules \u2026 so that He might grant us goodness\u201d (Deuteronomy 6:24) [5].<\/p>\n

Notes:<\/p>\n

[1]\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2026 spoken of in 1:4:4.<\/p>\n

Many people see mitzvahs as mere \u201cgood deeds\u201d — as ways of earning Divine \u201cmerit badges\u201d, if you will. Others see them as concrete symbols of high ideals, expressions of Jewish people-hood and culture, of uniquely Jewish ethical imperatives, and the like. And others tie them in with Jewish history and past circumstance (and come to dismiss them as irrelevant in modernity). But the mitzvah-system goes far beyond all of that. As we\u2019ll see below, it was instigated by G-d Almighty who took our hearts and minds into consideration when determining its makeup, and who wants to draw us close to Him, and made that its goal.<\/p>\n

Ramchal\u2019s point here is that the only thing that takes the needs of both our body and our soul into consideration and can nourish both (see 1:4:2-3) is the mitzvah-system. For thanks to it I can, for example, eat for my body\u2019s sake and yet have it fulfill my soul\u2019s needs by reciting a beracha<\/em> (i.e., blessing) before and after eating, eating to fulfill a Shabbos or Yom<\/em> Tov<\/em> obligation, etc.<\/p>\n

Ramchal speaks about the mitzvah system in very many of his works. See for example Messilat Yesharim<\/em> Ch. 1; Adir Bamarom<\/em> pp. 3, 186; Tiktu<\/em> Tephillot<\/em> 267, \u201cDa\u2019at Tevunot<\/em> 2\u201d 9, 16, 44; Klallei Pitchei Chochma v\u2019Da\u2019at<\/em> 8; Introduction to Ma\u2019amar HaVichuach<\/em>; Da\u2019at<\/em> Tevunot<\/em> 70, 126, 158; and Klach Pitchei Chochma<\/em> 46.<\/p>\n

Also see Avodat<\/em> Hakodesh<\/em> 3:63; and Sh\u2019nei Luchot HaBrit<\/em>, Torah<\/em> Ohr<\/em>, Re\u2019eih.<\/em><\/p>\n

[2]\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I.e., each so-called \u201cpositive\u201d mitzvah, which is a terrible translation of mitzvah tasseh<\/em>, better translated as an act that it\u2019s a mitzvah to do.<\/p>\n

[3]\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 i.e., each so-called \u201cnegative\u201d mitzvah, which is an even worse translation of mitzvah lo<\/em>–tasseh<\/em>, better translated as an act that it\u2019s a mitzvah refrain from.<\/p>\n

[4]\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Thus the mitzvah-system in conjunction with the human soul, mind, body, and will could be said to be one huge \u201cengine\u201d with interrelated parts, along with interrelated processes that can sometimes be explained and otherwise not, that are sometimes manifestly successful and oftentimes only clandestinely so, but which is ultimately meant to move everything toward one end: closeness to G-d.<\/p>\n

[5]\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This makes the point that the mitzvah system is part of G-d\u2019s means for beneficence (see 1:2:1-2).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

(c) 2014 Rabbi Yaakov Feldman<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Feel free to contact me at feldman@torah.org<\/a><\/p>\n

———————————————————-<\/p>\n

AT LONG LAST! Rabbi Feldman’s translation of Maimonides’ “Eight Chapters” is available here<\/a> at a discount.<\/p>\n

You can still purchase a copy of Rabbi Feldman’s translation of “The Gates of Repentance” here<\/a> at a discount as well.<\/p>\n

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has also translated and commented upon “The Path of the Just” and “The Duties of the Heart” (Jason Aronson Publishers).<\/p>\n

Rabbi Feldman also offers two free e-mail classes on www.torah.org entitled “Spiritual Excellence<\/a>\u201d and \u201cRamchal<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Class can be found here. 1:4:5 It\u2019s in fact the mitzvah-system that lays out the parameters that we\u2019re to function within [1]. Each imperative [2] is intended to allow one to earn and incorporate within himself a degree of perfection, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2,3,4,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-261","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-jewish-thought","category-kabbalah","category-ramchal","category-torah"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7iqof-4d","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=261"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=261"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=261"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rabbiyaakovfeldman.aishdas.org\/derechhashem\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=261"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}