The Gemara in Bava Metzia 85b brings a teaching from the pasuk in Yirmiyahu that the Beis Hamikdash was destroyed because “they abandoned My Torah.” Chazal explain this to mean that they did not make a bracha on the Torah before learning, meaning they did not properly value it.
At first glance this is difficult to understand. In Yoma 9b the Gemara clearly states different reasons for the destruction of the two Batei Mikdash. The first Beis Hamikdash was destroyed because of the three cardinal sins, and the second was destroyed because of sinas chinam. So what does it mean that the root cause was not valuing Torah?
Rav Aharon Kotler explains that there is no contradiction. In truth, it is all one root issue.
When the Gemara says they did not recite Birchas HaTorah, it is not just about missing a bracha. It reflects a deeper attitude. It shows that Torah was not something precious and central in their lives. When Torah is not valued properly, a person naturally begins to look for fulfillment elsewhere.
Once a person seeks satisfaction in other places, he becomes more focused on material success, honor, and personal desires. That naturally leads to jealousy, competition, and eventually sinas chinam. People begin comparing themselves to others, getting upset at what others have, and conflict grows.
So although the destruction is described as being caused by sinas chinam, Rav Aharon explains that the deeper cause was a weakening in the appreciation of Torah itself.
A person who truly values Torah is filled with a different kind of satisfaction. He is occupied with learning, growth, and connection to Hashem. Such a person is not constantly looking at what others have, and there is much less room for jealousy or hatred.
There is a well-known story with Rav Chaim Kanievsky. A wealthy man once asked him whether it was appropriate to buy a very expensive car, or if people might become jealous. Rav Chaim asked him if he knows Shas. He answered no. Rav Chaim then asked if he knows even one masechta. Again he said no. Rav Chaim told him that in such a case, he does not need to worry about jealousy. No one is looking at him in the first place.
The message is: When a person is truly filled with Torah, he is satisfied and focused. There is less room for envy, and less room for sinas chinam.
That is what Chazal are teaching us. The destruction was not only about actions at the surface level. It was about a loss of true connection and appreciation for Torah, which led, step by step, to the other sins that followed.
Part 1: The Missing Bracha
As we enter the Three Weeks and mourn the destruction of the Bais HaMikdash, it is worthwhile to reflect upon a famous and puzzling Gemara.
The Gemara (Nedarim 81a) asks: Why was the Bais HaMikdash destroyed?
The Gemara answers that Klal Yisroel did not recite Birchas HaTorah before learning Torah.
This answer is difficult to understand. Could it really be that the destruction of the Bais HaMikdash came about because Yidden neglected to make a bracha before learning? The meforshim point out that according to the Ramban, Birchas HaTorah is a mitzvah d'Oraisa, while according to the Rambam it is only d'Rabbanan. If it is merely d'Rabbanan, can we imagine that such a terrible punishment came because of neglecting a Rabbinic obligation? Even according to the Ramban, where else do we find such a severe punishment for neglecting a mitzvas aseh?
Furthermore, the Gemara in Yoma (9b) tells us that the first Bais HaMikdash was destroyed because Klal Yisroel violated the three cardinal sins: avodah zarah, gilui arayos, and shefichas damim. So what was the real cause of the Churban? Was it the failure to recite Birchas HaTorah, or was it the three aveiros chamuros?
Rav Eliyahu Lopian asks this very question, and Rav Itzele Peterburger offers a beautiful explanation.
The Gemara (Sotah 21a) teaches that Torah protects a person from the yetzer hara and from suffering. There is a discussion in Chazal whether this protection exists only while one is actively learning or even afterward. But everyone agrees that Torah possesses a tremendous power to safeguard a person.
If so, asks Rav Itzele, if Klal Yisroel was learning Torah during the time of the first Bais HaMikdash—and Chazal tell us that they indeed were learning Torah—how could they have fallen to such terrible sins? Shouldn't the Torah have protected them?
The answer can be understood through another Gemara.
The Gemara (Berachos 62b) says that one who disgraces clothing will eventually lose the benefit of clothing. We find this by Dovid HaMelech. While fleeing from Shaul HaMelech, Dovid secretly cut off a corner of Shaul's garment. His intentions were noble. He wanted to demonstrate that although he had the opportunity to kill Shaul, he chose not to do so. Nevertheless, because he showed a lack of respect for a garment, he was later punished. In his old age, despite being covered with clothing, he could not become warm.
Everyone agrees that clothing naturally provides warmth. Hashem created the world in such a way that garments protect a person from the cold. Yet when someone disgraces clothing, Hashem can remove that quality. The garment remains the same garment, but it no longer accomplishes what it was designed to do.
Says Rav Itzele, the same is true regarding Torah.
The Gemara's question was not why Klal Yisroel sinned. We know they sinned. The question was why the Torah they learned did not protect them from sinning.
The answer is that they were learning Torah without first reciting Birchas HaTorah. Their failure to make the bracha revealed a deeper problem. They did not properly appreciate the preciousness and greatness of Torah. They learned, but they lacked sufficient chashivus haTorah.
When Torah is treated casually, it loses its protective power. Just as clothing can lose its warmth, Torah can lose its ability to shield a person from the yetzer hara when it is not valued appropriately.
Without that protection, a person can fall to the lowest levels, even to the point of violating the three cardinal sins.
The lesson is powerful: It is not enough merely to learn Torah. One must cherish Torah.
Part 2: How Do We Close the Gemara?
What does it mean to truly appreciate Torah?
The Bnei Yissaschar demonstrated this idea from his earliest years. As a young boy, he became ill, and doctors warned that he was straining his eyes and would have to stop learning. For him, this was almost impossible. His thirst for Torah was so great that his father locked him in a shed where there were no seforim.
Most children would have given up. Not the future Bnei Yissaschar. He searched the shed and discovered an old machzor. Desperate to learn something, anything, he reviewed the piyutim again and again until he knew them by heart. Years later he was able to recite the entire Yomim Noraim davening, including the piyutim, from memory. Such was his ahavas haTorah.
Rav Hutner once remarked that when a person closes his Gemara because he must go to work, he should pay attention to how he closes it. Does he close it reluctantly, wishing he could remain learning? Or does he close it with relief and excitement?
Rav Hutner related that he once instructed a mashgiach to observe the bochurim when the recess bell rang. The test was not whether they went to recess. The test was how they closed their Gemaros. A bochur who closes his Gemara with reluctance demonstrates genuine ahavas haTorah.
This idea sheds light on a difficult Mishnah in Pirkei Avos (3:9). The Mishnah says that one who is traveling while reviewing his learning and then interrupts himself to exclaim, "How beautiful is this tree!" is considered as though he bears guilt for his soul.
The Ksav Sofer asks: Why does the Mishnah specifically mention admiring a tree? If the problem is bittul Torah, it could simply say that he stopped learning.
The Ksav Sofer explains that the Mishnah is speaking about someone who must leave his learning in order to attend to other responsibilities. Not everyone can learn all day. People must work and take care of life's obligations. The question is not whether he stopped learning. The question is what is in his heart when he stops. If he leaves his learning while thinking, "Ah, what a beautiful tree!" meaning he is delighted to be away from Torah, then there is a problem. Even if he has every right to stop learning, his attitude reveals that Torah is not his greatest treasure.
A Yid may need to close the Gemara. But he should close it with a feeling that he wishes he could stay.
During the Three Weeks, as we mourn the Churban, Chazal are teaching us that the destruction did not begin with the aveiros. It began much earlier, with a weakening of our appreciation for Torah.
The road to rebuilding the Bais HaMikdash begins by restoring that appreciation. When Torah becomes precious once again, when we view every moment of learning as a priceless gift, then our Torah regains its full power to elevate us, protect us, and ultimately bring us to the rebuilding of the Bais HaMikdash במהרה בימינו אמן.
