Do not separate from the Torah
Verse: השמר לך ושמר נפשך מאד פן תשכח את הדברים (אשר ראו עיניך) ופן יסורו מלבבך כל ימי חייך
Command: Do not separate oneself from the Torah (Do not stop learning Torah)
Devarim 4:9
Type: Negative
SMG Mitzva # 13
Cross-Ref: {link}
SMG
Even a great and elderly [sage] is forbidden to separate from the Torah[1].
One who separates from the Torah even if an extremely elderly / wise sage transgresses a negative Mitzvah as it says in the verse[i] ופן יסורו מלבבך כל ימי חייך והודעתם לבניך ולבני בניך and we learnt in the Mishna[ii]
‘anyone who forgets anything from his studies is considered by the Torah as if he is guilty of a capital crime, as it says השמר לך ושמור נפשך מאד פן תשכח את הדברים אשר ראו עניך – you might think this applies even if his studies became too much [for him to remember], that is why the verse continues ופן יסורו מלבבך – one is only guilty when he sets out to remove [his studies] from his heart.’
And in Gemara[iii] we said that [one who forgets his learning] transgresses two (2) negative Mitzvos [α] since [the rule is] anytime the Torah uses the terms השמר, פן, אל – that indicates a negative Mitzvah.
We learnt in Gemara[iv] the Rabbi’s taught, one should refrain from allowing his ears to hear useless[2] words, because they burn first [β] in the body.
The Gemara reads as follows:
Bar Kafra[3] derived[4] from the verse[v] ויתד תהיה לך על אזנך – do not read it as אזנך – your arsenal, rather read it אוזנך – your ears; meaning that if a person hears something inappropriate, he should place his fingers, which are like pegs [which is the meaning of the word יתד], in his ears.
The Gemara asks, why are they like pegs – you might think that is because they each have a role, as was stated[vi] ‘each finger has its purpose[5] [and individual name]:
- זרת – Pinky
- קמיצה – Ring Finger
- אמה – Middle Finger
- אצבע – Index Finger
- גודל – Thumb
The Gemara answers, they are like pegs because they start wide and narrow in width. Similarly, Rabbi Yishmael said, why are earlobes soft while the rest of the ear has hard cartilage – so they can be folded to block the ear from hearing anything negative.
And elsewhere in Gemara[vii] we learnt: Rava said ‘one who speaks mundane speech, transgresses a positive Mitzvah, as our Rabbis have taught on the verse[viii] ודברת בם – בם and not during prayer, בם and not anything else.’ [γ] Rav Aĉai Gaon explained[ix] בם is an abbreviation[6] of the words בקול רם – that words of Torah are to be learnt out loud[7], while prayer is spoken quietly as it says[x] וקולה לא ישמע.[8] The Yerushalmi explained that in between the chapters of שמע one can speak[9], but not at all during prayer.
In Gemara[xi] we learnt Rav said, ‘anyone who forgets one thing from his studies [δ] causes exile for his descendants as it says[xii] ותשכח תורת אלקיך אשכח בניך גם אני.’ Rav Avahu added ‘he is also removed from his greatness as the verse says: כי אתה הדעת מאסת ואמאסך[10] מכהן לי.’
[1] Other commentaries derive from the verse that one must not forget the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. See Appendix to positive Mitzva 12.
[2] The actual term employed by the Rabbanan was דברים בטלים. The word בטל means something that will be rendered void, either by association with something more important, or because of its own inherent entropy. This follows along the lines of the general Jewish philosophy [based on the verse from Iyov 28:3 – קץ שם לחשך] in which only things which are good and holy have any lasting impression in the world. Darkness comes to an end as part of its very being, while light is eternal. Accordingly, words that have no light or goodness associated with them are null and void. If not now, then eventually.
[3] Rashi notes the simple meaning of the verse is different.
[4] See positive Mitzva 119
[5] Rashi provides us with the reason why we have each finger as follows:
- זרת – for the purposes of measuring the חשן משפט, which the Torah mandates in Shemos 28:16 as being one (1) זרת squared [and doubled over to form the pocket for the Urim v’Tumim]. According to contemporary Halachic opinions this would be measured as the distance between the end points of the pinky and thumb when the fingers are outstretched. Appx 24 – 30 centimeters.
- קמיצה – for the purposes of measuring the קומץ of the Minĉa offering, which employed this finger as the base which held the flour and frankincense along with the two fingers above it. See positive Mitzva 186.
- אמה – for use in measuring the Amah, which the standard unit of measurement in the times of the Ĉumash and throughout the Mishna. It was measured to match the length of an outstretched arm from shoulder to the end of the middle finger. There were two measuring marks carved into the Shushan Gate* which the Kohanim could use as necessary, and which served to standardize the units of measurement.
- אצבע – for use by the Kohanim who would use this finger to sprinkle the blood on the altar with any sacrifice that required that.
- גודל – for use in the ritual to make Tahor the Metzora. See positive Mitzva 236.
I also heard once that each finger corresponds to a sense: Thumb to taste, which is why children suck their thumbs. Index finger to smell, which is why [impolite] people pick their nose with that finger. Middle finger to sight, which is why people point with their middle fingers [or at least they used to before it became a rude gesture] while reading. Ring finger with touch, which is why it is the most tactilely sensitive of the fingers. Pinky with hearing, which why [impolite] people clean their ears with that finger.
* Rashi states in Menachos 98a that there was a chamber built on the Eastern Gate of the courtyard of the Base Hamikdash, which had a relief carving, or etching, or was in itself shaped in the style of similar gates – of the capital city of Shushan.
When the Jews rebuilt the Base Hamikdash, out of gratitude for the support of the Babylonian monarch, they designed this gate in a fashion that would evoke or remind the people of Babylon, and they named the gate the Shushan Gate.
Various people have attempted to associate this gate with the bricked-up structure on the Eastern wall of the temple mount, which the christians call the Golden Gate, but the Jews and arabs call it the שער הרחמים. The gate is adorned with intricately carved relief arches and are architecturally similar to the Ĉulda gates – which were also doubled. Furthermore, gate posts have been discovered buried under the ‘modern’ structure which have been dated to the period of the first Base Hamikdash. Accordingly, some believe the שער הרחמים are the Shushan Gates, especially since the Base Hamikdash only had one gate in the Eastern wall.
I believe that assumption though is incorrect. Rashi and the Mishna discuss the gates of the Courtyard, not the outer wall. Whatever remains of the outer wall – whether the section expanding by Herod or otherwise, is far removed from where the walls of the courtyard once stood. Today there is only a bare space covered by arabs and trees – and any structure built there will have to be demolished and removed before we can replace it with the walls of the third Base Hamikdash – may it be built soon…
[6] In the same way that Dr. is an abbreviation for Doctor.
[7] The Gemara Eiruvin 53b-54a relates how Bruriya once came upon a student who was studying quietly. She kicked the student, and said, ‘Is it not written in the Torah [Shmuel II 23:5] ערוכה בכל ושמורה – if it [the Torah] is ordered in all your two-hundred and forty-eight (248) limbs then it [the Torah] will be secure, but if not, it will not be secure.’ [Presumably she derived from the context of the verse which talks about a ברית עולם – that the verse was talking about the Torah. As Rashi also notes on location.] The Gemara continues and relates a supporting story of a student of Rabbi Eliezer, who would study quietly, and after three (3) years he forgot his learning.
A recent study published by the Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation in which doctors for the University of Waterloo Canada conducted a study of ninety-five (95) participants and confirmed the long-term memory benefits of studying and reading out loud. Something we already knew for nearly 2,000 years thanks to Bruriya…
The Gemara continues with a statement from Shmuel to Rav Yehudah, ‘Shinnana [which was Shmuel’s affectionate nickname for Rav Yehudah – as it means sharp-learned-one, from the word שן, and שונה], open your mouth and read, open your mouth and study – in order that it [the Torah] be preserved with you, and you should live long, as it says Mishley 4:22 כי חיים הם למצאיהם ולכל בשרו מרפא: Don’t read למצאיהם – for those who find them, rather read למוצאיהם – for those who enunciate.
[8] With regard to the childless prophet Ĉana who was heartbroken and praying for a son. It is from the description of Ĉana’s prayers that we learn the rules of prayer – esp. the Amida.
[9] Technically, one is permitted to do so in very specific instances.
[10] The word is written ואמאסאך – but we remove the extra letter א when reading it. Perhaps this is the source of what Rabbi Avahu meant a reference that one who removes the א – his learning, has been despised and become despised.
[i] Devarim 4:9
[ii] Pirkei Avos 3:8
[iii] Menaĉos 99b
[iv] Gem. Kesuvos 5b
[v] Devarim 23:14
[vi] Gem. Menaĉos 11a
[vii] Gem. Yoma 19b
[viii] Devarim 6:7
[ix] She’iltos –
Va’esĉanan 143
[x] Shmuel I 1:13
[xi] Gem. Yoma 38b
[xii] Hoshay’a 4:6
AMUDAY SHLOMO
[α] The word השמר is not for this negative Mitzvah but for the negative Mitzvah of ‘Do not curse yourself’ [negative Mitzvah 212]. The term שמור (from the word ושמור. The verse actually contains the term שמור twice – השמר לך ושמור נפשך) is not used at all for this negative Mitzvah, except to indicate that [transgressing this obligation] is a capital crime. And all of the times the word פן is used here (the word פן is also written twice in the verse as well – פן תשכח את הדברים אשר ראו עניך ופן) apply to the two (2) negative Mitzvos [Negative Mitzvos 13 and 212].
[β] Rashi (on the Gemara quoted) says the ears are soft and thin and burnt fastest. It appears to me [Maharshal] that this is a parable[1].
[γ] Rashi provides the following examples of other things – talking with children, or lightheaded talk.
[δ] From here we can learn that this one thing is equivalent to the entire Torah.
[1] However, as anyone who has gotten sunburnt can testify – the ears burn first and fastest.
RASHI
Rashi comments on this verse as an if / then clause. ‘If you do not forget and you will do them [the Mitzvos] in their true fashion, then you will be considered wise and perceptive. However, if you distort them by being forgetful, then you will be considered fools.’
This explains the duplication in the verse of the word פן. As for the term שמר being used twice, that was explained by Maharshal [α].
Accordingly, it seems unlikely that the negative Mitzvah can be derived from this verse according to the פשט.
Discussion by SMS
[γ] Tosefos notes[i] with regard to the statement that one may not speak; Rabeinu Sh’maya ruled that where it is forbidden to tell[1], it is forbidden to speak, even in the holy language [Hebrew]. In the Yerushalmi[ii] they add, even in the middle of a verse – Rav Ĉuna said in the name of Rabbi Yosef derived from the verse ודברת בם that one may speak while in the middle of reciting the Shema. [although Rabbi Yirmiyah would only pantomime and would not talk.] This is also supported from the Gemara[iii] which states that during Shema one may talk, but not during the Amida.
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While it seems clear from the פשט that one cannot derive the prohibition against forgetting Torah from the verse presented, it seems just as clear there is a positive obligation to be constantly involved in learning and that one must do so verbally and may not stop for mundane speech.
I find it interesting, that the SMG presents the Mitzvah, not as a prohibition against forgetfulness, but against being separated from the Torah – even though the source material he brings talks about forgetting Torah or speaking improperly. Neither of which directly relate to a prohibition against forgetting Torah. One can argue that allowing the mind to wander, even for a moment, causes one to forget[2] – which is why the prohibition against separating from Torah is a prohibition against forgetting Torah. And perhaps that is the answer. Engaging in idle talk, or mundane speech, has the result of removing Torah from your heart and replacing it with something else.
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Another thing that causes forgetfulness of Torah is anger. The Sifri[iv] quotes Rabbi Elazar who notes that three times Moshe Rabeinu is noted as being angry, and each time he forgot something.
- Vayikra 10:16-17 – Moshe gets angry that the sacrifice hadn’t been consumed and forgets that a person in morning is not supposed to consume the sacrifices.
- Bamidbar 20:10 – Moshe gets angry at the scoffers for stating that any rock should be sufficient to produce the well of Miriam, and either forgets which rock it was, or forgets that Hashem told him to speak to the rock instead of hitting it.
- Bamidbar 31:21 – Moshe gets angry with the soldiers who bring back captive Midianite women who had enticed the Jewish people to idolatry by whoring themselves out for that purpose. He forgets either the laws of rendering used vessels kosher, or he forgets to inform the soldiers about those laws.
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In our current generation, when the Oral Torah has been committed somewhat to writing, by means of compiling the Mishna and Gemara etc., it would seem that the obligation to not forget is related more to the requirement to study than a need to retain information, which is not what it used to be like before the advent of the printing press, and before the Oral Torah was committed to writing.
The Gemara[v] discusses the method used in prior generations when the Oral Torah was memorized and transmitted verbally from teacher to student.
Our sages taught; what was the order in which the Oral Torah was transmitted (established). Moshe learnt from G‑d Almighty. Aharon then entered and Moshe learnt with him the portion. Aharon would then[3] sit on the left side [of Moshe], and Aharon’s children would enter – and Moshe would repeat the teaching to them. They would then sit on the side, Elazar on the right and Isamar on the left of his father Aharon. Rabbi Yehudah argues and said that Aharon was always on the right of Moshe. The Elders then entered, and Moshe would repeat the teaching to them. They would then arrange themselves on the side, and the people would enter[4]. Moshe would then repeat the teaching to the people. Which means that Aharon had studied it four (4) times, his children three (3) times, the elders twice (2) and the people once (1). Once finished Moshe would exit, and Aharon would teach the people. When he finished, he would exit, and his sons would teach the people. When they finished the elders would teach the people. Which means that each group studied the material four (4) times. From here, Rabbi Eliezer would say that we learn the requirement to teach students the material four (4) times – just like Aharon [and Moshe] would.
Rabbi Akiva said, from where do we know that a person is obligated to teach his student [not just four (4) times, but] until he has mastered the material – from the verse[vi] ולמדה את בני ישראל. And how do we know this must be done until it is ordered in their mouths (meaning they can repeat it properly) as the verse continues שימה בפיהם. And how do we know that the reasoning must be explained[5] as it says in the verse[vii] ואלה המשפטים אשר תשים לפניהם…
Rav Preyda had a student to whom he was required to teach everything by repeating it four hundred times. One day (during class), Rav Preyda was notified he was needed for a Mitzvah (when he was done with lessons). This time, when he was done repeating the lesson four hundred times, his student still did not grasp it. He asked the student ‘what happened (why are you unable to study this time)?’ the student answered, ‘I was distracted because I kept thinking they needed you (and instead of going, you are sitting here teaching me).’ So, Rav Preyda got him to focus, and repeated the lesson another four hundred times until the student finally got it. A heavenly voice proclaimed, ‘would you rather live for four hundred years, or guarantee that your generation merits the world to come?’ Rav Preyda chose to advocate for his generation, but G‑d Almighty granted him both rewards.
The Gemara notes, Rav Ĉisda said, ‘the Torah can only be acquired using mnemonic aids, as it says שימה בפיהם, and the word שימה sounds like סימן.
Rav Taĉlifa from the West (Eretz Yisroel) heard this and repeated it in front of Rabbi Avahu. He [Rabbi Avahu] answered, ‘they learn it from there, but I learnt it from the verse[viii] הציבי לך צינים שמי לך תמרורים שתי לבך למסלה…[6]
Rabbi Eliezer [on methods to ensure the Torah is not forgotten] derives from the verse[ix] אמר לחכמה אחותי את, ומודע לבינה תקרא – one must make מודעים – reminders for the Torah (things that trigger specific Torah memories). Rava said it means set times מועדים – to study Torah. Which is similar to what Avdimi bar Ĉama bar Dosa derived from the verse[x] לא בשמים היא and לא מעבר לים היא.[7]
[On that verse,] Rava said לא בשמים היא – the Torah is not found in one who raises his mind over it like the sky [meaning he feels he can learn on his own], and לא מעבר לים היא – the Torah is not found in one who expands his mind over it [meaning he thinks he knows it all].
Rabbi Yoĉanan said, לא בשמים היא – the Torah is not found with the haughty, and לא מעבר לים היא – the Torah is not found with merchants and traders [those who go traveling on business trips].
[1] Tosefos here uses the term לספר, which is more accurately translated as ‘to tell’ as in to tell stories, which is what gossip is – however, I was unable to locate this within the Gemara / Mishna text itself.
[2] Someone once asked my teacher, Rabbi Pinchas Hirschprung obm, how it was possible that he had memorized all of the Gemara. His answer – ‘I just finished learning it’. Since he was constantly learning it, forgetfulness was not possible, as he had only just finished studying it.
[3] Students should stand in front of their teachers while learning. It is only in later generations when the bodies have weakened [and the teachers no longer teach the entirety of a person’s education] that it has become common practice for students to sit in front of teachers. Having now received the oral tradition, Aharon switched from being a student to teacher – which is why he sat.
[4] This was probably occurring in some type of open-aired amphitheater like setup.
[5] Unlike some modern methods of teaching which (when I was a student) focused on rote memorization. Such teaching methods are contrary to Torah, which is a guide to life, not a book of facts or history. Without lessons learnt, one hasn’t learnt Torah.
[6] Rashi notes, the simple meaning of the verse is the need to step up signposts and road signs for the Jewish people traveling and finally returning to their land, so that they should know where to go.
[7] Most commentaries explain Avdimi’s statement as a reference to the effort required to retain Torah knowledge. I found that difficult to agree with, since the Gemara is discussing the need for mnemonics, not efforts, and then states והיינו דאמר.
Accordingly, I would argue that Avdimi is noting the need for astronomy in navigation, both in space and to cross the oceans, where one needs signs [nice reference to the creation of the stars, which were created למועדים – which follows Rava’s statement said just before Avdimi’s] in the sky in order to guide the journey. So too one needs signs to assist one in their journey through Torah.
[i] Gem. Beraĉos 13a Tosefos ובאמצע
[ii] Yer. Beraĉos 2:1
[iii] Gem. Yoma 19b
[iv] Sifri Matos
[v] Gem. Eiruvin 54b
[vi] Devarim 31:19
[vii] Shemos 21:1
[viii] Yirmiyahu 31:20
[ix] Mishley 7:4
[x] Devarim 30:12-13