We have encountered many explanations from the Vilna Gaon but how often do we come across an explanation from his father?
R' Avraham, son of the Gra, quotes his grandfather (the Vilna Gaon’s father) regarding the mesachtos of Brachos, Nazir, Yevamos and Krisus which all conclude with the statement תלמידי חכמים מרבים שלום בעולם, שנאמר: וכל בניך לימודי ה' ורב שלום בניך, Talmidei Chachamim increase peace in the world, as it says, and all your children will be students of Hashem, and abundant peace will your children have.
Firstly, these four mesachtos that conclude with this is alluded to in the word we find in this concluding gemara, בניך, as it serves as an acronym for ברכות, נזיר, יבמות, כריתות.
Now, let’s move on. Each of these mesachtos is fundamentally connected to shalom, peace, which is what this concluding statement of the gemara is about:
- Brachos deals with peace between man and Hashem, as it discusses brachos, Shema and tefillah.
- Nazir focuses on peace between man and his family, as it teaches that one who witnesses a sotah’s downfall should abstain from wine.
- Yevamos emphasizes peace between a person and his fellow as we see by ensuring the continuity of a brother’s legacy through yibbum.
- Krisus pertains to peace between a person and his own soul, preventing it from being spiritually cut off (kares).
So now we see the commonality between these mesachtos and why they are grouped together with this statement of chazal of peace. May we all merit to pursue peace in all its aspects.
Rabbi Alt merited to learn under the tutelage of R’ Mordechai Friedlander ztz”l for close to five years and received semichah from R’ Zalman Nechemia Goldberg ztz”l. Rabbi Alt has written thousands of Torah articles on numerous topics for various websites and publications and is the author of ten books including the recently released “Astounding Torah Insights about the Human Body.” His writings, many of which have been translated into Yiddish, Hebrew, German and French, inspire people across the spectrum of Jewish observance to live with the vibrancy and beauty of Torah. His shiurim can be found on various websites including Kol Halashon’s. Rabbi Alt lives with his wife and family in Kiryat Yearim (where the Aron was for 20 years [Shmuel 1, 7:1,2]) where he studies, lectures, writes and teaches. The author is passionate about teaching Jews of all levels of observance.
