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14 Adar I 5765 - February 23, 2005 | Mordecai Plaut, director Published Weekly
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Opinion & Comment
Remembrance of the Exodus in Yeshiva

In the Shadow of Rabbenu, the Mashgiach HaRav Yechezkel Levenstein ztvk'l, whose yahrtzeit is 18 Adar. HaRav Levenstein was Mashgiach in Mir Yeshiva in Europe and Shanghai and later in Ponovezh Yeshiva, Bnei Brak.

Cause and Prime Mover

"My strength and the might of my hand have wrought all this . . ." (Devorim 18:18). But this is the greatness of Hashem, for He conceals Himself and lets man think he is running the show. This is what one disciple expounded.

But Maran the Mashgiach ztvk'l later stood up and, in a talk, vehemently objected to those words. He said: How can one think that Hashem is hiding? How can he live with such a thought? How can he attempt to draw closer to Hashem if that is the case? But if that is the beginning of the verse, there is an ending to it (19): "You should remember Hashem your G- d," and "The G-d of Israel succors."

In Brochos, Rabbenu Yonah says: Even if You do hide Yourself, You are still the G-d of Israel Who performed so many miracles for them and Who saves them at all times. And through Your salvation, people become aware of You and You become revealed to them.

One must live with the knowledge that the G-d of Israel saves and that this is the way He reveals himself from His hiding place. This, too, is the secret of the memory of the Exodus, whose purpose was to banish the hiddenness, the obscurity of Hashem's Providence in this world, and to bring to life the knowledge and memory of the G-d of Israel as Savior.

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"And whoever elaborates on the telling of the Exodus . . . " (Haggodoh) What more is there to tell than what actually happened? What can we innovate about an event that has already passed?

Anyone who ever heard the telling by Rabbenu the Mashgiach, in detail, depth, with elaboration and vivid description, was able to see every portion of the story of the Redemption concretely and graphically, and would verily feel as if he were going out of Egypt. He would experience every facet of the many miracles that took place, as if he were a chief participant. This, essentially, is the mitzva of talking profusely about the Exodus: To relate what happened, in great detail, analyzing what happened and what it signified, and to study the miracles in depth until everything is deeply etched in one's heart and soul, to become a very part of him and a foundation in his life.

And when one repeats these things and reviews them many times, one relives them each time anew with a vivid sense of actually experiencing it now. And when habit does not rule over a person to dull his perception, then this reinforcement is also included in, "whoever increases the relating of the Exodus is praiseworthy."

Equally included in the telling is to begin at the beginning, from the sale of Yosef and the descent of Yaakov Ovinu and his entire family to Egypt. Actually, one can begin from Sefer Shemos, where every verse tells of great wonders and miracles. And whoever expounds on this at length is, as Chazal denote, to be praised.

In Kelm, they added another commentary to this directive. They inverted it and said that only one who is superior, meshubach, is capable of doing justice to the story of the Exodus in detail. And just as it was said, "Who is wise? One who sees the unborn [what the future holds in store]," so can it be said, "Who is wise? One who can look back into the past."

The fool lives only in the present and knows only what his eyes see before him. But wisdom has the power to elevate a person, to raise him from the here-and-now and to deposit him in the past or the future.

Similarly is the verse, "Remember the days of the world, intuit the years of generation upon generation. Ask your father and he will inform you, your elders and they will tell you . . ." (Devorim 32:7)

Rashi comments that they forgot what was done for them. Hashem is your Father; He created you and established you. Who is that one who would seek to live constantly with the great past of yetzi'as Mitzrayim? One who recognizes the power of the yetzer hora within him, one who works upon himself and seeks to subdue his evil inclination. One who wishes to live with the power of the Torah, with the testimony of the past which it contains, and to elevate himself with wisdom and to overcome the life of vanity and foolishness of a treadmill existence.

It can be said that we saw the Mashgiach's greatness as a pillar of the world in his constant awareness of the Exodus. He was one who lived with it, and through it. This showed us to what extent the power of Mussar can reach.

Rabbenu HaRav Ben Zion Bamberger zt'l used to tell that he was privileged to have free access to the Mashgiach; he would discuss with him all kinds of matters concerning the yeshiva.

One time, the Mashgiach interrupted him in midsentence. He motioned that he stop discussing one particular matter for fear that it would arouse evil traits that were latent within him.

At that point, he heard the Mashgiach murmuring to himself, "Yetzi'as Mitzrayim; Yetzi'as Mitzrayim."

After a pause, he gave a sign that they could continue discussing the matter. This is how the Mashgiach succeeded in stifling the upsurge of negative feelings: by reminding himself of the Exodus.

How rousing was the atmosphere in Yeshivas Ponovezh when everyone palpably felt that mentioning yetzi'as Mitzrayim was one of the fundamentals of the Torah, a pillar of our education and our mission of being worthy of this G-dly service.


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