A Life of Kedushah
The Gemara (Bava Basra 65.) tells us that when one gives a present, he gives it generously. Therefore, if someone has a well on his property and gives it to his friend as a gift, we can assume that together with the well, he also gave him a pathway in his field so that he can get to the well. The Chidushei HaRim zt'l (Shavuos) says that Hashem gave us the Torah as a gift, and therefore, we can be sure that Hashem gave it to us generously and included a path that one can take to reach and attain the Torah.
Hashem told Moshe (Shemos 19:10) וקדשתם ומחר היום, "Sanctify them [the Yidden], today and tomorrow." This is man's obligation in this world, to live a holy life filled with Torah and mitzvos.
We will explain this idea with a mashal: A man once left a chasunah hall, and late at night, he remembered that he had forgotten something in the hall. So he returned to the hall to search for the lost item. The hall was messy, with leftover food scraps and dirt on the floor. It was dark, and the furniture was strewn around. It was hard to believe that this room had a beautiful event just a few hours earlier. He thought, "If it ends up being so messy, what is the purpose of making such a luxurious celebration?" But then he told himself, "A wedding took place in this hall, where a chasan declared לי מקודשת את הרי. This makes the mess and state of disarray all worthwhile."
The nimshal is that at the end of a person's life, he will be placed in the grave, and within a short time, nothing will remain of him other than dirt and bones. But if there was kedushin in his lifetime (he lived a life of kedushah with Torah and mitzvos), then his life was worthwhile. However, if there wasn't any kedushah in his life, one can ask, what is the purpose of it all?
The Kedushas Levi (Likutim) discusses the letters צ"סעפ (these are the letters in order of the alef beis). The letter 'ס is closed from all sides, and the letters 'פ 'ע can be translated as ן"עי ה"פ, eye and mouth. One should keep his eyes and mouth closed from things he shouldn't see or say, and then he will be 'צ, a ק"צדי.
Another hint to this concept is from the pasuk (Shemos 19:23) וקדשתו ההר את הגבל, "Make boundaries around the mountain and sanctify it." ההר את הגבל can be explained as follows: Take the letters that border with the letters ר"ה. The letters before and after 'ה are 'ד and 'ו. The letters before and after 'ר are 'ק and 'ש. So, we have the letters that spell ש"קדו. This hints that by הגבל, making boundaries and precautions, one becomes holy.
A bachur had to leave his yeshiva in Yerushalayim and contemplated going to a yeshiva in Tel Aviv. He asked Rebbe Shlomke for counsel. Rebbe Shlomke went to the mikvah (it was his custom before offering advice) and said, “I cannot answer this question." A couple of years later, Rebbe Shlomke asked his gabbai, Reb Elyah Roth zt'l, to find out what happened with that bachur. Reb Elyah returned to Rebbe Shlomke and said that the bachur went to the yeshiva in Tel Aviv and was doing very well there and growing in Torah and yiras Shamayim. Rebbe Shlomke said, "I am so happy and relieved to hear that." He explained that when he went to the mikvah, he saw with his ruach hakodesh that it was good for the bachur to go to Tel Aviv, but "I couldn't take the responsibility on my shoulders." Shemiras einayim in Tel Aviv is challenging, and he felt he couldn't answer the question. This story is marvelous because Rebbe Shlomke answered all types of questions, including matters of life and death. Still, a question that would put a bachur's shemiras einayim at risk was too difficult to answer.
