The other day, I opened the amazing ArtScroll biography, Reaching to Heaven, about Rav Yaakov Edelstein zt’l, and I noticed an amazing anecdote about this very unique tzaddik: In the very last tekufah of Rav Edelstein’s life, Hashem Yerachaim, he was very ill — and, as at that time he had taken on a taanis dibbur, not to talk for a period of time), when he heard that people were taking on mitzvos for his refuah, he wrote the following lashon on a small piece of paper, “Each person should search within himself, mainly in the area of bein adam lichaveiro....”
I was so impressed by the emphasis he gave at this time to that specific area, above everything else. But in truth, the more one studies Torah, and the endless lessons therein, one can see just how much emphasis HaKadosh Baruch Hu Himself gives to bein adam lichaveiro, and the righteous ones just emulate His ways.
One such example is found in our parashah itself, as my distinguished chavrusa, Rav Yehuda Tzvi Kurzrock shlita, shared:
A number of years ago, on Shabbos Parashas Vayeira, Rav Kurzrock was giving the derashah in his shul, when, in middle of the speech itself, a very bright mispallel called out, “We know that Avraham Avinu davened and davened for Sedom to be saved, begging HaKadosh Baruch Hu to find any number of tzaddikim there, to be a merit for its salvation. HaKadosh Baruch Hu revealed to him, that unfortunately there were not enough tzaddikim there to save the city; because there were not even ten righteous ones living there.”
Then the Yid asked the following question: Why is it that in our very parashah, Moshe Rabbeinu asked the Meraglim to find out if perhaps there was one tree in Eretz Canaan that would be a zechus for the nations that lived there, which would protect them, not allowing the Yidden to conquer them. What is the tree that Moshe referred to? Rashi explains that he meant a righteous man, who could be a merit to save them all; and who is that man? Iyov.
“But did we not learn in Parashas Vayeira that there must be at least ten tzaddikim to save a city from destruction?”
In middle of that derashah so many years ago, Rav Kurzrock brilliantly responded: The salvation needed for the nations of the world living in Eretz Yisrael, was due to their abundant sins in the area of bein adam laMakom; for that type of sin, just one tzaddik would be enough to save them. Sedom, on the other hand, was filled with sins that were bein adam lichaveiro; for such sins, one tzaddik could not save them — only ten tzaddikim could possibly bring salvation.
Based on all the above, we learn something truly amazing. The area of bein adam lichaveiro is most vital to Hashem Yisbarach; both regarding the positive or, chas v’shalom, the negative as well. And the potency of its lacking needs so much to overcome its detrimental effects. All the more so, then, is the power of its strength to protect us from harm. Who knows how much good we can bring to our nation if we would strengthen ourselves in this most important aspect of avodas Hashem Yisbarach....
As we stand together with our brethren in Eretz Yisrael at a time they are under attack from their enemies in Iran, let us take to heart the holy words of Rav Edelstein that we began with, and that are so important now. more than ever... “Each person should search within himself, mainly in the area of bein adam lichaveiro....”
Could we possibly imagine how many missiles we could thwart for every word of lashon hora that we withhold?! Can we imagine how many zechusim of shemirah we can generate by going out of our way to exercise patience with our family members?
Or how about listening to those who want to share their woes... and visiting or calling those who are suffering? Davening for each other’s success... wow... the list is endless... we just need to begin!
May we hear besuros tovos from all of Klal Yisrael and the geulah sheleimah....
B’Siyata DiShmaya.
