The Essence of Man and the Value of Giving
From here, I would like to address another point, leading us to the Yamim Nora’im – the Days of Awe. The son of Rav Chaim Volozhin writes in the introduction to his father’s sefer, Nefesh HaChaim:
And so he would always say to me, that this is the essence of man: he was not created for himself, but to benefit others as much as he can.
To understand this idea, we need to look at the teachings of the Alter of Kelm. The crown of creation – man – is the most unfortunate creature in the universe. And why? Because he cannot do anything by himself; from the moment he is born until he departs from the world, he needs the kindness of others. A woman in childbirth needs a midwife; she cannot give birth by herself. A child is born with G-d's help, and from the very first moment, he needs assistance – 24 hours a day, he is with his mother who takes care of him, feeds him, changes him, cleans him, etc. Baruch Hashem, he grows up and reaches the age of one – but can he then walk by himself? Certainly not. For numerous months, they move him around until he finally manages to walk by himself, at which point they hold a shoe-buying ceremony for him, and just when things calm down a bit, he starts teething! The whole neighborhood is awake for it; all night he screams – and they apply gel to his gums to silence the source of flames.
The Alter of Kelm asks, have we ever seen a cat crying when its teeth come in?! Why is it different with humans? Why doesn't a human grow up just like a cat?! We've never seen a cat born with a crooked leg! Have we ever seen a cat that needs an orthopedist?! They’re all born with four straight legs! They lie on the floor for ten days, and then start walking on their own legs, by themselves! Immediately, they receive guidance from their mother: "Please meet – this is the garbage can; on Mondays and Thursdays, there's good meat here; and on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, there’s fish – goodbye!"
They eat from the garbage cans, and no one gets salmonella! They’re always in good health; no one catches a cold, and no one has the flu – they eat garbage and are as healthy as an ox! Moreover, we don’t find that the cat instructs its young on how to cross the road safely – they all cross the road, and with G-d's help, only one in a million gets run over. In contrast, humans receive countless instructions on how to cross the road safely, and every other day someone gets run over!
Rabbotai, do you think it ends there? No, it most definitely doesn’t. What about matchmaking?! Cats have no problem – they don't need organizations like Dor Yesharim; they find their match quickly, right near the neighborhood trash can they met on day two – and they have no mortgage troubles afterwards either! They immediately set up their own home and establish a next generation who’ll follow in their footsteps. In contrast, with humans, young couples cling to their parents until the very end – you thought marrying off your child would give you some relief?! On the contrary, you got another one as a bonus! Now go pay their mortgage, and if the kollel didn't pay his salary this month, you become his bank too... and occasionally he comes up to drink coffee with you – because his situation is muddy.
Rabbotai, why did Hakadosh Baruch Hu create man in such a way, that he needs the kindness of others from start to finish? The Alter of Kelm says, it is to instill in us that man was created not only to receive but to give and benefit others!
