He'ezinu: Opening Line

This poetic parsha begins with the words:
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"He'ezinu hashamayim va'adabeirah,

vetishmah ha'aretz imrei fi -

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Pay attention heaven

And I will speak

And the earth will hear

The sayings of my mouth

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Rav Dovid Feinstein noticed that regarding shamayim two strong words are used, while two gentle ones are employed for aretz. The heavens are told to listen attentively (he'ezinu) as Moshe addressed them in a strong way (adaberah). The earth is described as hearing (vatishmah) his softly spoken words (imrei fi).

Since the heavens are spiritual in nature, Rav Dovid explains, they are cooperative to commands and can be spoken to bluntly, but in order to remember what they were told they must be cautioned to listen carefully. The earth is physical and must be delicately tilted toward obedience. However, after being gently pulled in, the ground hears and is convinced, therefore no strong admonition to hear or remember is required.

Perhaps this metaphor of heaven and earth and the variant ways they are spoken to and listen alludes to man. People are made up of two parts. What truly makes us human is the piece of us that is different from animals. Our physical side needs to be lured into paying attention to spiritual matters. On the other hand, our souls are quick to respond to the word of G-d. We must remember that although these two aspects coexist inside us, our true selves are our souls.

The analogy the Magid of Dubno used to explain this idea involves a deaf man and a lame man who were close friends. The deaf man carried the lame man on his shoulders, and the crippled man directed and protected the deaf man as they walked. Once they passed a concert hall and the lame man wanted to stop and enjoy the symphony, but the deaf man couldn't hear the music. The lame man quickly handed down a bottle of whiskey to his friend. And as the lame man stopped to take a drink the deaf man was able to stand and listen to the music. Similarly, our bodies are earthy and slow to hear the spiritual, so we get their attention with the physical and bring them along for the spiritual ride.

Alan Morinis wrote a book called Climbing the Ladder of Jacob. It's a book about mussar as a guide to spiritual growth. It's fascinating to read this book and be reminded that mussar doesn't mean being told off. Mussar is a system for self refinement. One line that struck me from the book was the assertion that we don't have souls, we are souls. I knew this, maybe we all do. But how I need to be reminded!

May we all be blessed to appreciate and purify our souls, and to serve G-d with our souls and our bodies, to hear His message and to always grow.

Gemar Chatima Tovah

Good Shabbos

Rabbi Neil Fleischmann