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Rashi

In the exact same period that the poets of Spain flourished, there
lived in France (in the years 1040-1105) a different Hebrew poet.
His name was Rabbi Shlomo Yizhaki – Rashi. Although he was a

great poet, his chief publicity stemmed from his commentary to the
Torah. Indeed, Rashi was only one of those who wrote
commentaries to the Torah in those times, but his commentary
became [enjoyed being] the most favoured and accepted of all.
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It is no wonder that when print was invented in the 15 century, the
first book that was printed in the Hebrew language was the Rashi
Commentary to the Torah.
By the way, “Rashi Script” – the special letters in which the Rashi

Commentary is written – was not invented by Rashi. This was the
handwriting that was common at that period – in this script (people)
wrote letters, poems and books. In Torah books they used this script
in order to distinguish between the Torah and the Rashi
Commentary.

As a commentator, Rashi did not accept that what is written in the
Torah is simple [obvious]. According to his approach, every little
detail, every word and every letter in the Torah have an explanation
and logic. In the story of the creation of the world it says: “Then
God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his
nostrils the breath of life…” (Genesis 2:7). When God created man,

first he created his body from the dust of the earth, and after that he
breathed the spirit of life into him. Rashi asked himself why it is
written “and He breathed into his nostrils”, why God created Man
both from the earth as well as from spirit? He found a fascinating
explanation to this: God created Man both from land and from
heaven (the body he created from the dust of the earth and the soul

from the wind in the skies), and the reason to this is the competition
between the earth and the heavens. On the first day God created the
heavens and the earth. On the second day He created the sky – for
the heavens. On the third day (He created) the land – for the earth.
On the fourth day (He created) the celestial bodies – for the heavens,
and on the fifth day the water animals – for the earth. So far there is
a ‘draw’ between the heavens and the earth. Therefore on the sixth

day God had to create both from the heavens and from the earth, so
that the heavens and the earth wouldn’t be jealous of each other and
wouldn’t quarrel with each other. (In Rashi’s language: earth = the
lower, heavens = the upper).

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