This week’s parashah begins with the mitzvah of lighting the menorah. The Torah testifies (8:3), "Aharon did so... he lit the lamps."
Rashi explains, “The pasuk is telling Aharon’s praise that he didn’t change (לא שינה). He lit the menorah exactly as Hashem instructed. שינה can also mean "repeat." Aharon's praise is that although he lit the menorah every day for forty years, he never repeated the same deed. Each day he performed the mitzvah of lighting the menorah with renewed fervor zeal. He never repeated the same mitzvah. It was never dull because it felt like a mitzvah every day.
Let us discuss some ways to achieve this level.
One key is imagination. Rebbe Mendel of Vitebsk zt'l would envision each Shabbos as if it were the first and the last Shabbos of his life. With this thought in mind, he utilized every Shabbos to its fullest extent.
Another way is to constantly increase awareness of Hashem's greatness. He lit the menorah exactly as Hashem instructed. שינה can also mean "repeat." Reb Saadyah Gaon zt'l was a guest in someone's home, and his host wasn’t unaware he was hosting one of the greatest people in his generation. When he found out, he asked for forgiveness for not honoring him properly. Reb Saadyah Gaon responded that he had properly honored him, and that there was no reason to apologize. The man replied, "Had I known who you were, I would have honored you much more!"
Reb Saadyah Gaon zt'l learned an important lesson in avodas Hashem from this episode. Each day, he perceived Hashem more clearly than the previous day. Each day, he understood the greatness of Hashem on a deeper level, and therefore, he did teshuvah every day. Although he had honored Hashem yesterday, now that he understood even more about Hashem's greatness, he realized that yesterday’s avodah was insufficient.
These might have been the ways Aharon HaKohen lit the menorah every day. It could be with the path of Reb Mendel Vitebsker, imagining each day that it was his first and the last time lighting the menorah. It could be with the approach of Reb Saadyah Gaon, who every day perceived Hashem better than before. Similarly, Aharon lit the menorah each day with greater awe.
We can also explain that it has to do with Aharon’s intentions. Each day, Aharon had new intentions when he lit the menorah. One day, he may have intended that the menorah should shine the light of the Torah throughout the world. Another day, he might have thought that it should shine the light of teshuvah into the world, and so on. It was never the same, as Rashi writes, he never repeated the same deed twice. Each day was different.
This is something we should strive for. There are mitzvos that we do every day. They become routine, and we must find ways to keep them new. Either with imagination, improved awareness of Hashem's greatness, or new intentions, we should discover newness in our avodas Hashem.
It says in Koheles, "Futility of futilities, says Koheles. Futilities of futilities, everything is futility" (Koheles 1:2). The Midrash states, "The seven הבלים that Koheles mentions correspond to the seven stages of a person's life. When a child is a year old, he is like a king sitting on a throne. Everyone hugs him and kisses him...When he's old, he is like a monkey. But that applies only to עמי הארץ, those who don’t study Torah. But about Torah scholars, it states (Koheles 1:3) ודוד זקן והמלך – even when Dovid was old, he was a king.”
The Rebbe of Kotzk zt'l asks why the Midrash insults the elderly so much as to call them monkeys.
He answers that monkeys imitate others. When serving Hashem, one must be true to his personality, talents, and style. If he just copies what others do, he’s like a monkey.
One shouldn’t copy others, and he shouldn't copy himself, either. Instead, one should strive to make his avodas Hashem new each day.
