The Depths of the Story of Kayin and Hevel
There is a wonderful lesson from the Divrei Yisrael zt'l, teaching us the depths of the story of Kayin and Hevel. The Torah tells us (4:2-7) צֹאנוֹ מ ִבְּכֹרוֹת הוּא גַם הֵבִיא וְהֶבֶל ,'לַה מ ִנְחָה הָאֲדָמָה מִפ ְּרִי ק ַיִן וַיָּבֵא יָמ ִים מִק ֵּץ וַיְהִי ,אֲדָמָה עֹבֵד ה ָיָה וְק ַיִן תֵּיטִיב אִם הֲלוֹא :פָנֶיךָ נָפ ְ לוּ וְלָמ ָּה לָ ךְ חָרָה לָמ ָּה ק ָיִן אֶל 'ה אמֶר וַיֹּ :פָּנָיו וַיִּפ ְּ לוּ מ ְאֹד לְק ַיִן וַיִּחַר שָׁעָה לֹא מ ִנְח ָתוֹ וְאֶל ק ַיִן וְאֶל ,מ ִנְח ָתוֹ וְאֶל הֶבֶל אֶל 'ה ַׁעוַיִּש וּמֵח ֶלְבֵהֶן בּוֹ ָׁלתִּמְש וְאַת ָּה ת ְּשׁוּק ָתוֹ וְאֵל ֶיךָ רֹבֵץ חַט ָּאת לַפ ֶּתַח יטִיב תֵ לֹא וְאִם שְׂאֵת, "Kayin worked the soil. Now it came to pass at the end of days, that Kayin brought of the fruit of the soil an offering to Hashem. Hevel, too, brought of the firstborn of his flocks and of their fattest, and Hashem turned to Hevel and to his offering. But to Kayin and to his offering He did not turn, and it annoyed Kayin exceedingly, and his countenance fell. Hashem said to Kayin, 'Why are you annoyed, and why has your countenance fallen? Is it not so that if you improve, it will be forgiven for you? If you do not improve, however, at the entrance, the sin is lying, and to you its longing, but you can rule over it.'"
The Divrei Yisrael explains: Tzaddikim taught that the main service to Hashem is at the beginning, as it states (Shemos 13:2) בְּכוֹר כָל לִי ׁק ַדֶּש, sanctify all beginnings. How a person is at the beginning of the day, that is how he will be the entire day. As there is a saying, "the body follows the head" (גריר רישא בתא גופא). This is the reason the chachamim established that we should begin the day with אני מודה, immediately upon awakening in the morning. The first thing we say should be kedushah. This is the meaning of ֵץרֹב חַט ָּאת לַפ ֶּתַח. The yetzer hara's primary desire is to ruin the ַחלַפ ֶּת, the beginnings. When the yetzer hara succeeds to disrupt the beginning, the entire day is now in the yetzer hara's hands. But בּוֹ ָׁלתִּמְש וְאַת ָּה, you can rule over the yetzer hara. If you will be strong and begin the day in a good way, you can rule over the yetzer hara.
The difference between Kayin and Hevel was with this subject. Heven's korban was ֶןוּמֵח ֶלְבֵה צֹאנוֹ מ ִבְּכֹרוֹת, the firstborns of his flock. This means he would sanctify the beginning of each day. Thereby, his tefillos were good and pure, every day. מ ִנְח ָתוֹ וְאֶל הֶבֶל אֶל 'ה ַׁעוַיִּש, Hashem accepted his tefillos and his avodos because it was a pure prayer with good kavanah. But about Kayin it states אֲדָמָה עֹבֵד ה ָיָה וְק ַיִן. He began his day working the fields, and only ִיםיָמ ֵץ מִק ּ וַיְהִי, at the end of the day, he brought a korban to Hashem. This means he first worked, and then later in the day, he went on to pray. This is also alluded to in the words הָאֲדָמָה מִפ ְּרִי ק ַיִן וַיָּבֵא 'לַה מ ִנְחָה, which means he davened Minchah, a tefillah said at the end of the day. Being that he began the day working the field, also when he prayed, his mind kept going back to think about the work. This is the reason Hashem didn't accept his service.
The Divrei Yisrael writes, "It is known that the Torah is eternal. In every generation there are people like Kayin and there are people like Hevel. If a person begins the day with the empty matters of this world, the entire day will be that way. Even when he goes to pray, it will be הָאֲדָמָה מִפ ְּרִי, which means הגרוע מן, a poor tefillah (see Rashi). His mind will be on the empty matters of this world, as this is known. But when he begins the day with avodas Hashem, with Torah and tefillah, הממעיט ואחד המרבה אחד, whether he does a lot or a little, afterwards when he goes to work, he won't be so involved in it, and he will do business with emunah and bitachon. This is understood to the wise."
