Rav Chaim Ibn Attar, the Ohr HaChaim
“If a fire goes forth and finds thorns and a stack of grain or a standing crop or a field is consumed, the one who set the fire shall surely pay for the damage” (22:5).
The Ohr HaChaim HaKodosh teaches us that this pasuk hints at the price we pay for the misdeeds of the resho’im:
In order to awaken us from our mind’s slumber and stupor and to get us to realize the extent of the damage that the wicked inflict upon us [so that we do teshuva and avoid them and their sins], the Torah teaches us that the wicked not only cause damage and distress to themselves and their immediate vicinity, but they also bring evil upon the entire world!
“If a fire goes forth” – all forms of tzoros – disasters and calamities – are called “fires”, as we see from the angel Gavriel (Yoma 77a), who summoned fire from among the cherubs. This is a form of increase in judgments. “And it finds thorns” – “thorns” refer to the resho’im, who are nothing but scratching thorns that pain us. The wicked have no master, for Hashem the Master has given up His claim over them and hidden His face from them, so that whoever finds them can attack them and do what they will to them.
The pasuk now hints that once the fire spreads, not only does it burn the wicked, it spreads and burns the grain and the crops. “Grain” alludes to the young cheder boys – the tinokos shel beis rabbon – who are not yet old enough to stand up like crops do; they are the first to be implicated and, due to sins, they too are caught up in the troubles of the world. Then the fire spreads to the “crops” and they are burned; then the sword is placed on the necks of the leaders and they are sacrificed for the good of the generation, and the Tzaddikim suffer for the sins of the general populace. They are known as kama – “crops”, because the Tzaddikim are compared to tall, standing date palms as in Shir HaShirim 7:8: Zos komosech domsa leTamar, and Tzaddikim are as date palms, as in Tehillim 92:13: Tzaddik katamar yifroch – “a Tzaddik shall flourish like a date palm. Sometimes the sins are so great that the fire spreads even further and is not satiated by consuming the Tzaddikim; it attacks the general populace, hinted at by the field – implying Klal Yisrael – the general populace, and then the cheder boys and the Tzaddikim are not sufficient to save the generation. Then Hashem will attack and avenge Himself on those wicked ones who are the cause of the demise of the young children and the Tzaddikim, as it says, “He who sets the blaze shall pay for the damage and make restitution” – those thorns who are the wicked will have to pay dearly for all the death, damage and destruction that they caused to spread like wildfires.
Now the pasuk emphasizes the payment of restitution for damages by repeating the phrase shalem yeshalem – “he shall surely pay”. This refers to the yetzer hora, for it is the one that sets the blaze; it sets the hearts of the wicked aflame, ignites the spark and pushes them to transgress and do evil. So not only will Hashem punish the wicked, He will also punish the evil yetzer hora that causes them to sin, as it says in Sukka 52a that in the future, Hashem will judge the wicked yetzer and slaughter it.
Praises for the Ohr HaChaim HaKodosh
Shloma Rabba Min Shemaya
There is a tradition that the Ohr HaChaim heard a heavenly voice every Shabbos night that blessed him and said to him, “Shloma loch – Peace be upon you!” (Shivchei Ohr HaChaim, p. 6–7)
Torah Lishma
Rav Shneur Zalman of Liadi, mechaber of the Tanya and founder of Chabad, testified that the Ohr HaChaim studied Torah purely for its own sake – lishma – and that his Torah study formed the twenty-four mystical ornaments for the heavenly bride – (kishutei kalla). (Shivchei Ohr HaChaim, p. 6–7)
A Genius Among Geniuses
Rav Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev writes in his approbation to the Ohr HaChaim’s sefer Rishon LeTzion, “Many drank from the living wellsprings – the Be’er Mayim Chaim – of this great luminary, who is a genius among geniuses – gaon sheba’ge’onim, a holy Chassid, renowned world over for his greatness and splendor and the boundless shefa of the light of his Torah and his fear and awe of Heaven, as is seen from his sefer, the Ohr HaChaim.”
