Page 74 - 20780

74 | A New Light
Progress in Life
A person who is not busy earning a living but who devotes
most of his time to learning Torah is apparently free of physical
preoccupations, and thus free to work on rectifying himself and
doing spiritual work. But practically speaking, if he does not devote
special time to the work of the will, he will not attain a true and
firm intent, and therefore he will not see tangible results. Even
though he is learning many things and attending many classes, and
he is aroused to aspire to many goals, he wants to attain everything
with only a minor amount of intent. Therefore, he does not acquire
anything, and he sees no tangible changes in himself. That is because
he is scattered among many goals, instead of devoting his intentions
to a single purpose. He does not set time aside to increase his focus
and desire on attaining just one goal until he will gather enough
intention to acquire it. And so in actuality he does not acquire
anything….
Work upon the will must be all-inclusive and persistent (as we will
learn). Even if a person has good conditions for attaining a strong
and firm will, if he goes from one intent to another, from one focus
to another, in actuality he will not acquire anything, but remain
empty. The Gemara says of such a person: “If you try to grasp too
much, you will grasp nothing.” Only when a person progresses with
one focus at a time and performs the proper work will he achieve
and go forward. Regarding this, it is said: “If you grasp just a little,
it will remain in your grasp.”
In truth, this sad phenomenon is very well-known: good and
decent people who have learned in yeshivas and kollels for decades
have not made significant achievements in their learning and do
not know the Talmud. Sadly, we see kollel students who cannot
even explain a simple halachah without stammering. Why? Because
they learn without ambition, without intent. They do not set goals
for themselves, and they are not single-minded in their resolve.
Therefore, although they will receive reward for their learning,
heaven will show them that they could have accomplished much
more, immeasurably so. Heaven will show them that with the
Chapter Three: | 87
Manna. Their Torah was their profession. They all learned Torah
straight from the source, at the peak of spirituality, at the apex of
the revelation of the Shechinah. Not for day or two days or ten
years, but for 40 years! 600,000 scholars who were the elite of
the elite. Do you know anyone who learns in this way, in such
conditions and on such a level?
And if that were not enough, they witnessed miracles and
wonders. It is exceedingly difficult to envision the stunning influence
that such events have on a person. Nevertheless, let us remind
ourselves of a fraction of what all of us know about: ten awesome
plagues, each of which lasted an entire week. Changes of nature
such as had never before existed or even been heard of. All of them
saw Hashem’s presence and Hashem’s providence right before their
eyes. And after all of that, at the splitting of the Sea of Reeds
they saw miracles and wonders five times greater than what they
had seen in all ten plagues. The sea split and dried up! This left a
powerful impression upon all of the nations for decades.
In addition, the day-to-day routine in the desert was wondrous and
miraculous: clouds of glory, manna and quail, the well of Miriam
that accompanied them everywhere they went, their clothes, which
cleaned themselves and grew with a person, and more, as described
in our sages’ midrashim.
Above all, the children of Israel saw and heard the Holy One,
blessed be He, Himself. At the splitting of the Sea of Reeds, even a
maidservant saw Hashem, as it were, and everyone could point and
say, “This is my God and I will glorify Him” (Exodus 15:2). And at
Mt. Sinai, Hashem spoke with every one of the children of Israel
face to face. Every Jewish man and woman saw the sounds and
heard Hashem Himself state, “I am Hashem your God” and “You
shall not have any other gods”!
And What Happened?
One might expect that in such conditions, over the course of
40 years the entire nation of Israel would have attained the peak
of perfection, holiness and refined and noble traits. But the Ari