The various interpretations that have been offered can be categorized into the three fundamental stages of transformation taught by the Ba’al Shem Tov and known as: submission, separation, and sweetening.
Some have interpreted this directive as teaching the elders that despite their status and standing in society, sometimes they need to see belittle themselves and make themselves smaller. The interpretations that follow this path are emphasizing the need that the educator have a sense of inner submission, attained by lessening his self-esteem. A fundamental aspect of the Chasidic approach is that the role of an educator and influencer requires self-diminishment and humility to empathize and identify with the small-minded or less experienced individual. Only then can the teacher elevate the younger disciple from his current, lower state.
Other commentaries have interpreted this directive in the opposite manner, as a warning to those who are of greater stature to not fall into the trap of small-mindedness. One who has a wider perspective should prevent himself from the risks of narrowing his mindset and perspective. Interpretations in this category emphasize the need to distinguish and elevate the greater mindset and perspective from the smaller, thereby maintaining this separation between the two. This requirement pertains both to the personal development of the elders and their ability to act as efficient guides and influencers for the younger generation, without being affected by them and their small-mindedness.
A third approach, close to the simple interpretation, teaches that this is a directive for the elders, those who have higher status in society, to influence the younger people, or those with lesser stature, and enlighten them. The word for “to warn” (לְ הַ זְ הִ יר) can also mean to illuminate or to enlighten. In this interpretation, it means to shine the brightness and light of the elders upon the younger. Here, the emphasis is on the need to sweeten the condition of the younger by virtue of the enlightenment the elders can provide. At first glance, this category of interpretations seems to apply mainly to the education of the younger individuals in society, however, as it turns out, the development of those who are entrusted with educating the young also depends upon it. Normally, the educator receives equal if not greater amounts of benefit by engaging in illuminating the younger generation. Hence, the warning, or entrusting of the younger in the hands of the older is an act in and of itself here.
Self-Education
Now that we have seen the three general categories for interpreting Rashi’s statement and describing the relationship they entail between the educator and the student, between the elders and the younger, let us turn to apply these categories to the educational or self-development work we each need to do with ourselves. Our applications will be based on the interpretation of “elders” as alluding to high-minded states of consciousness and “younger” as alluding to states of small-minded consciousness. Both small-mindedness and high-mindedness are states of mind found within the individual. Every individual needs to learn how to properly react to both states of mind.
The great person, whose role is to lead, educate, and rectify the generation, is prone to being ensnared in the sins of the generation. From the point of view of his inner being, the great person must be wary lest he be caught in the sin of the generation, not because of fear of punishment, but because of the damage caused by the sin itself. The great person must be careful not to fall and become one of the younger people (whom he is entrusted with educating). Thus, he must separate himself from the possibility of falling to the level of the younger people, reflecting a fall to pettiness, which would cause the greater individual who usually sees a wide perspective and acts in a wider context to turn a blind eye to what is happening around him. The great person is warned not to fall into pettiness by ignoring what is happening around him, but to fulfill the directive of always taking responsibility: “in a place where there are no men, strive to be a man.” In other words, the truly “great” individual is expected to be the one standing, correcting, and leading the people into a wider perspective offered by his high-mindedness.
We began with separation. Moving on to submission, we find an opposite interpretation: the great individuals are cautioned that sometimes they need to adopt a narrow view of reality and act without striving for overarching greatness. A prominent example can be found in the continuation of the first portion: priests are prohibited from accompanying the deceased to their burial, actions that would render them spiritually impure. Burying the dead is considered “a true and unrepayable act of loving-kindness” and would therefore seem to be the perfect behavior of high-mindedness that cares even for what does not personally concern them. Here, however, the priests are commanded to limit their responsibility towards others in an act of submission to the Divine command, which instructs them that they are not great enough to engage in this without becoming defiled.
Sweetening is interpreted to mean that within a person, states of greatness should also illuminate the states of smallness. Every individual has times of greatness and success and times of lowliness and failure. Thus, the verse, “A righteous man falls seven times and gets back up” is relevant to us all. Even when we feel close to God, by aggrandizing our sense of worth, we are prone to fall and distance ourselves from God. The sweetening of self-education is the preparation of a stable foundation that prevents, even in a fall to smallness, a total breakdown and capitulation to sin because of our despair. Our teacher, the Baal Shem Tov, innovated the teaching that the essence of education is the mental preparation for the future fall, a preparation that should be carried out during times of greatness. This allows one to hold steady in times of smallness through the memory of our previous nearness to God.
