Hachaim Hakadosh writes that the reason people do these things are because they lack “temimus”. They are not satisfied with living in the moment and trusting in Hashem for the future. Rather, they feel a need to know what is coming next. Therefore, the Torah first commands us to have temimus and to rely simply on Hashem, and then says that if we do so, we will feel no need to know what our mazal says is coming in the future.
In fact, it will actually make no difference what our mazal for the future is, as having emunah in Hashem cancels out bad mazal. We see this idea from when Hashem told Avrohom Avinu to “walk before Him” with pure faith, and even if his mazal is that he will not bear a son, in the merit of his emunah, his mazal can change.
Temimus Leads to Teshuva:
Seger Butzina Kadisha (Ois 86) quotes Sefer Mifalos Hatzadikim as relating that one year during the Aseres Yemei Teshuva, a large crowd of people kept coming all day to receive the bracha of the Rebbe Rav Zushe zy”a. As a large crowd stood before him, he raised his eyes to Shomayim and sat in extreme dveikus, focusing solely on Hashem and abandoning all earthly thoughts. One of the talmidim who saw his Rebbe immersed in such a holy state was overcome with thoughts of teshuva, and he did full teshuva in his heart. He began to cry bitter tears, which caused all of those around him to cry as well. Everyone present was overtaken by an urge to repent, and they all felt their hearts breaking within them.
When Rav Zushe realized what was occurring, he looked up to Hashem and said, “Ribono Shel Olam, the time has definitely come to do teshuva. However, You know that I have no strength to do teshuva. What can Zushe do? I can only send You the letters of the word ‘teshuva’, as each letter stands for a different pasuk...
“The letter ‘tav’ stands for ‘tamim tihiyeh...’ The letter ‘shin’ stands for ‘shevisi Hashem l’negdi samid’ (Tehillim 16:8: Hashem is always situated before me).’ The letter ‘beis’ stands for ‘b’chol derachecha do’eihu (Mishlei 3:6: Know Him in all of His ways).’ The letter ‘hei’ stands for ‘hatznea lecha im Hashem Elokecha (Micha 6:8: Walk humbly with Hashem).”
He concluded by saying, “This is how Zushe can serve You, Hashem. This can be my teshuva!”
The Purpose of Avodah is to Lead to Temimus:
It is well-known that the Baal Shem Tov zy”a would draw close to him the simple, upright people and say, “All of life’s work has been with a goal of serving Hashem simply and with temimus. These people have already reached that level!”
One Can Acquire Temimus Through Chochmah:
The Ropshitzer Rebbe zy”a was renowned for his great wisdom. His rebbi, the Chozeh of Lublin zy”a once told him, “There is no commandment in the Torah to ‘be smart with Hashem’. There is, however, a mitzvah to be simple with Hashem. So, why do you always act so smart? Why isn’t it enough for you to be simple?“
The Ropshitzer answered, “You need to be very smart in order to be simple. It isn’t possible to attain the level of temimus on a high level unless one uses his brains and intellect.”
Philosophy Removes a Person’s Clarity of Thought:
Rashi explains: “Walk with Him with simplicity. Hope to Him and do not inquire about the future. Rather, whatever befalls you, accept it with simplicity and then you will be with Him as His portion.”
The Chidushei Harim zy”a once said in the name of his rebbi, Rav Bunim of Peshischa zy”a a moshol about the concept of “temimus”, serving Hashem with unquestioning simplicity:
A duke owned a very valuable horse, which he made sure to protect and keep safe. He once rode his horse to another city. When he got there, he entrusted it to a stable. In order to make sure that the watchman kept an eye on his horse and ensured that it wasn’t stolen, he told him to think deep thoughts that would keep him awake.
In the middle of the night, he went out to check on the watchman, and he found him immersed in his thoughts. He asked him, “What are you thinking about?”
The watchman answered, “I’m contemplating a deep question. When they bang a nail into the wall, what happens to the piece of wood that used to be where the nail now is? Where does it go?”
The duke told him, “You’re doing very well. You’re thinking very deep thoughts.”
A few hours later, the duke returned and asked the watchman, “What are you thinking about now?”
The man answered, “I am thinking about another deep question. When a person eats a bagel, what happens to the hole in the middle? Where does it go?”
The duke told him, “You’re amazing! You have so many incredible thoughts.”
In the morning, the duke came back and found that the watchman was still immersed in his thoughts. He asked him, “What are you thinking about now?“
The man answered, “I am wondering how it is possible that the stable is locked and I am sitting by the door but the horse is gone? Where did it go?”
The nimshol is that when a person starts thinking too deeply, the yeitzer hara is able to sneak in and steal his common sense. The Torah, therefore, commands us to be simple and not ask too many questions so that we will be able to retain our clear mind and common sense.
