The Torah instructs us that upon building a new home we must erect a maakeh, a guardrail around the roof, to prevent others from falling.
In addition to its literal meaning, this command also refers to G‑d’s blessing and mandate that each Jew “build a new home”—i.e., take initiative to create an environment in which Judaism flourishes. The “homes” built by others do not exempt us from building our own home, i.e., positively influencing those who have been led specifically to you by Divine Providence.
The Torah warns us, however, that we must limit and enclose the “rooftops” of the new homes that we build. The roof represents pride and self‑importance, and the requirement to place a guardrail around it means that we must limit and contain our pride. For “the faller will fall from it”—our pride can place those who seek shelter in our “new homes” at risk of spiritual downfall.
This is because “words spoken from the heart enter the heart.”
If our efforts to draw others closer to Torah observance are pure and altruistic, we will certainly succeed. But if our words are tainted with the pursuit of self‑aggrandizement or other personal agendas, we have no such guarantee. Worse yet, our self‑pride—even if it stems from spiritual achievements—can distance from our “homes” those who depend on them for spiritual shelter.
This is the inner meaning of the mitzvah of maakeh: by curbing our self‑pride, we can succeed at creating environments in which all who seek spiritual shelter will thrive.
—Likkutei Sichos, vol. 24, pp. 142–144
Habris, Shaar HaOsios, Lamed, quoting Sefer HaYashar by Rabbeinu Tam.
