We have now gotten to the sixth parsha beginning with the letter “aleph”: "אתם נצבים היום כולכם לפני ה' אלקיכם ראשיכם שבטיכם זקניכם ושוטריכם כל איש ישראל"—you are standing today, all of you, before Hashem, your G-d: Your heads, your tribes, your elders and your officers—all the men of Yisrael. Now, we find that at Matan Torah, Yisrael were not given the Torah until they became a united, harmonious unit, as it states (Shemos 19, 2): "ויחן שם ישראל נגד ההר"—and Yisrael encamped (in the singular) there opposite the mountain. Rashi comments in the name of the Mechilta: As one man with one heart. The Orach L’Chaim (Yisro) teaches that the people of Yisrael form a complete, single body. Therefore, they could not receive the complete Torah without uniting as one man with one heart.
For this reason, Rabeinu hakadosh chose to conclude Torah she’b’al peh with the Mishnah (Oktzin 3, 12): "אמר רבי שמעון בן חלפתא, לא מצא הקב"ה כלי מחזיק ברכה לישראל אלא השלום, שנאמר ה' עוז לעמו יתן ה' יברך את עמו בשלום". Rabbi Shimon bar Chalafta said: HKB”H did not find a vessel better suited for preserving berachah for Yisrael than shalom, as it states (Tehillim 29, 11): “Hashem will give His nation strength; Hashem will bless His nation with shalom.” Ahavas Yisrael—love of your fellow Jew—is a prerequisite for the Torah a Jew studies to endure and be retained. Hence, the Torah emphasizes (Vayikra 19, 18): "ואהבת לרעך כמוך אני ה'"—you shall love your fellow as yourself; I am Hashem. Rashi comments in the name of the Toras Kohanim: Rabbi Akiva said, “This is an essential principle of the Torah.”
In conclusion, we have gained a better understanding of the assertion of the Bnei Yissaschar that the words "ואאלפך חכמה" allude to the six “alephs” that are the first letters of six parshiyos of the Torah; this is not insignificant and not coincidental; they teach us how to acquire “chochmah.” As we have explained, this means that we can learn how to access the wisdom of the Torah from these six “alephs.”
