Night Vision
Now this understanding of what the Torah learners mean to our nation is such a fundamental attitude that without it a man is called an apikores; he’s considered in rebellion against the Torah. And therefore it requires our utmost and immediate attention. We have to begin sharpening our senses according to the Toras Hashem.
The Gemara (Brachos 43b) says עתידין בחורי טעמו טעם חטא שיתנו ריח טוב כלבנון ישראל שלא – In the future, a time will come when the darkness will be lifted and the Jewish youths, the yeshivah people who sit in the beis medrash all day long, will give forth a fragrance like Levanon. Levanon, that’s where the cedars grow, the cedar forests, and when the wind blows the fragrance towards you, it’s invigorating. Did you ever smell a cedar forest from a distance? It’s a pleasure. Ahhhh! You breathe deeply as the wind brings the aroma of the cedars to you. It’s inspiring, enchanting. And our Sages tell us that one day we’ll actually smell that fragrance from the talmidei chachomim.
