Honoring One Another
Chazal say that the students of Reb Akiva were niftar בזה זה כבוד נהגו שלא, "because they didn't act with honor towards one another." I heard from a chashuve rav in Bnei Brak that the problem was נהגו שלא, that they didn't make honoring their fellow man a minhag. As it is known, people are often more cautious with minhagim than they are with halachos. So, the problem was נהגו שלא, honoring others wasn’t their custom. If it were a custom, and not a severe obligation, people would likely be more cautious.
This reminds us of a story that happened to Reb Aharon of Belz zt'l. He heard about a person who disgraced his fellow man. He called for that person and told him, "If it were a minhag not to disgrace your fellow man, you would be more cautious."
There are 48 תורה קניני ח"מ, methods for attaining Torah (written in Pirkei Avos 6:6). Some people adopt another of these practices each day of the 49 days of Sefiras HaOmer. The 32nd is הבריות את אוהב, to love one's fellow man. This explains why Reb Akiva’s students stopped dying on בעומר ג"ל. When they reached the 33rd day, they had already practiced the 32nd condition, to love their fellow man. When this was rectified, the mageifah ended.
The Bnei Yissaschar (Iyar 3:1) says that the gematria of ב"טו ב"ל is 49. During the 49 days of Sefiras HaOmer, we work to attain a טוב לב, a good heart. This means not to hurt our fellow man, and on the contrary, to be good, kindhearted, and honor and help our fellow man.
The Inner and Outer Self
Towards the end of the parashah, it lists the foods that aren't kosher. It states there (11:7), מַפ ְרִיס כִּי הַח ֲזִיר וְאֶת לָכֶם הוּא טָמֵא יִגָּר לֹא גֵּרָה וְהוּא פ ַּרְסָה שֶׁסַע וְשֹׁסַע הוּא פ ַּרְסָה, "The chazir, although it’s hoofs are split and completely separated, it does not chew its cud; It is tamei for you."
The Or HaChaim writes that a chazir is not kosher when it is יִגָּר לֹא גֵּרָה, when it doesn't chew its cud. But it is known that in the future, when Moshiach comes, it will begin to chew its cud, and then it will be kosher. Some add (quoting Midrash Tanchuma, see Rabbeinu b'Chayei) that it is called חזיר because חזיר means return; Hashem will return this animal to us and make it kosher to eat. This will occur when it chews its cud.
The Bas Ayin explains that there are people who act like the חזיר, who puts out its split hooves to make an impression that it is kosher, but it really isn't. Similarly, there are people who pretend to love their fellow man, but in their hearts, they have feelings of hatred, and they belittle others. This is the meaning of לֹא גֵּרָה יִגָּר, they don't truly care about their fellow man. He writes, שיעלה היינו ,החזיר שיטהר עד בא דוד בן שאין ,הגאולה עיכוב וזה בטלפיו שמראה כמו לבו פנימיות ויהיה גרה, "This prevents the geulah. Moshiach Ben Dovid won't come before the chazir becomes tahor, when it will be גרה מעלה. This means that the innermost feelings of a person's heart must be the same that he shows with his hooves." Just as he wants his fellow man to think that he loves him, it must truly be so. He should truly respect and wish only the best for his fellow man, and this will bring the geulah.
