Page 159 - BAMIDBAR

“Hashem spoke to Moshe, saying: Speak to
Aharon and say to him: When you kindle the
lamps, toward the face of the Menorah shall the
seven lamps cast light”

(Bamidbar 8:1-2)

Why is it forbidden to break the bones of the korban Pesach? Why is
seeing or having chametz in one’s possession on Pesach so severe, to the
extent that it is not nullified by being less than one-sixtieth of a food
mixture, as we find to be the case with milk and meat?
Breaking the bones is a demonstration of added gastronomic pleasure,
bordering on lustfulness. Chametz, too, represents arrogance, the
precursor of all passions. The korban Pesach was eaten with matzah and
maror, denoting humbleness and self-negation. It is in direct opposition to
chametz and bone-breaking. Chametz is not nullified if there is less than
one-sixtieth of a mixture, for there is no concept of partial passion. If
passion has found a place in one’s heart, it is capable of bringing the
person to the lowest levels.

The Torah connects Yishmael’s death with the story of Yitzchak and his
progeny. The Ba’al Haturim explains the connection as follows.
Yitzchak’s offspring cannot truly live as long as Yishmael exists. What is
Yishmael’s power over us? It is the strength of the teshuvah that he did
at the end of his life, overcoming his passions, that grants his progeny the
power to rule us.

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