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Naso- Inspiration must lead to action

For this year’s Parsha Lesson I will be focusing on a chinuch (parenting/educational) lesson that can be derived from the Dvar Torah.

Background

In this week’s parsha we have the very curious juxtaposition of the seemingly unrelated subjects- the topic of a woman who is a Sotah (suspected of adultery) and that of the Nazir, someone who takes an oath of separation from worldly pleasures in order to become more G-dly. As we know, the positioning of the various topics in the Torah carries significant meaning and were intentionally positioned so by Hashem- either topically or in order to convey some sort of message. These two topics, a woman who is suspected of infidelity and someone who takes an oath to forbid wine and other worldly pleasures on themselves, for a period of time, in an effort to become more spiritual, could not be more different!

The question then is, what is the message that Hashem is trying to convey?

R’ Yehuda Hanasi (referred to simply as ‘Rebbi’, the author of the Mishna, lived in the period immediately following the destruction of the 2nd Beis Hamikdash) explains that the reason why the Torah has these two topics right next to each other is because Hashem is conveying the message that ‘whoever beholds a Sotah in her state of degradation, should take on themselves the vow of Nazir, forbidding on themselves wine.’ Why? Because ‘wine leads to adultery.’  

In the process of the Sotah which culminates with the woman drinking the ‘bitter waters’ which will fully put to rest any question as to her faithfulness, the woman is made to stand in the entranceway of the Beis Hamikdash with her hair uncovered and in disarray. This ‘degradation’ is meant to convey to her that her actions were ‘low’ and animalistic, and to act it out in a way which we hope will lead to her admitting her misdeed in a way that she can do proper teshuva (repentance).

If someone sees this very jarring episode, R’ Yehuda is telling us, then Hashem is essentially telling that person, through the message from the Torah, that they should respond by taking the vow of Nazir. Since wine, and in general indulgence in physical pleasures and hedonism, is what leads to immorality, therefore this onlooker to the Sotah ceremony should accept upon themselves asceticism for a period of at least one month.    

Question

Why would this person, who is beholding the punishment, degradation and lowliness of the result of evil behavior, be compelled to accept upon themselves such measures? One would think that beholding the negative outcome and degradation that sin leads to would be the best inoculation and cure from falling prey to lust and following in the footsteps of the Sotah!

If anything, this person who beheld the spectacle of the Sotah and saw with their own eyes how personally destructive and damaging such behavior is, should be the least likely to fall prey to such desires, and therefore this person should be able to indulge in wine without concern of it leading to any problematic result! Why then, is R’ Yehuda Hanasi explaining that Hashem here is telling us just the opposite- that someone who sees the Sotah SHOULD take a vow of asceticism and separate themselves from physical pleasures for a period of time?

Answer

When someone sees something or hears something which is inspirational, that is an opportunity for them to take concrete steps in the right direction in life. That is the time for this person to act in a way which will bring them closer to becoming the type of person they want to be. These steps and these actions do not need to be permanent and long lasting (the standard course of Nazirus was only 30 days), but the person must act and do something. 

For the person to be inspired to act, and for them to NOT act- that is a major lost opportunity and makes the person more calcified and hardened in their inaction and lack of growth. Inspiration MUST lead to action if it is to be effective to the person who is inspired. Inspiration is, essentially, a strong motivation and a surge of emotional strength to act. Inspiration without commensurate action is merely a passing good feeling which does nothing for the person.

When this person beholds the Sotah being degraded, they will certainly be shocked and ‘opened up emotionally’ and feel an urge to act in some way based on the inspiration that they just received. Everyone’s level of inspiration will be different and the responses that are proper for them will be similarly different, but everyone will be inspired in some way which demands a course of action to concretize and affect the person. R’ Yehuda Hanasi is telling us that whoever beholds this, and is inspired to act to protect themselves from such a destructive sin, must take concrete steps to distance themselves from wine and other worldly pleasures of which the indulgence in, is the source of immorality. 

Chinuch Lesson

How important it is to act on inspiration! When someone is inspired to do something, they must act- quickly- in order to concretize that inspiration and ensure that the inspiration will not just be a fleeting surge of emotion, but rather that it will lead to real change and improvement in one’s life. This is important not just for the instance in which the person acts, but also for other instances of inspiration. 

The more a person gets into the habit of acting on inspiration, in whatever small way possible, the person will be able to capitalize on inspiration for it to have a more direct positive effect on their life. The more a person just enjoys the feeling of inspiration without it having a practical effect on one’s actions, the coarser and more insensitive a person will be and the more and more difficult it will become for a person to be inspired to actually take action.

When a person appreciates for themselves and conveys to their children and students how important and critical it is for inspiration to lead to action- however small it might be- this will be able to transform our lives from being people who merely enjoy the fleeting inspiration before moving on to the next ‘fix’ and being people who are actually engaged in life, trying to improve and grow.

Wishing you and your family a wonderful Shabbos!

Rabbi Eli Meir Kramer

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The dedication and energy seen this year for Shabbos program, pouring forth into Shabbos was above and beyond! May you always experience the joy!

Have a super, fantastic, relaxing, enjoyable, and uplifting Shabbos!!!!!

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