This week’s Miller’s Musings is sponsored in honour of the wedding of Chaim Lehrer to Michal Tepper, daughter of Rabbi and Mrs S Tepper. Mazal Tov!
ד''בס
MILLER’S MUSINGS
מותאחרי פרשת
All By Myself
The holiest person, on the holiest day of the year, in the holiest place on Earth. That’s an awful lot of holiness which would surely have a powerful impact on anyone who witnessed it. But who saw the Kohen Godol enter the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur? Absolutely no one. Without doubt this would be a tremendous opportunity for some, or all, of the Jewish people to be inspired by such unparalleled sanctity. So why does Hashem specifically demand that no person should be present at this moment, when so much could seemingly be gained by others experiencing it?
There is a principal that has many practical implications in our service of Hashem, which states ברוב עם הדרת המלך, loosely translated to mean that a greater number of people gives greater honour to the King. Due to this concept it is often considered to be a superior situation if there are more people involved in a Mitzva, as this is deemed a better tribute to Hashem, our King. This is certainly true in many situations, but, says Reb Shimshon Dovid Pincus zt’l, there is a certain advantage that being alone achieves, which is unattainable when in any company. He explains that truly raising oneself to what we are capable of, can only be done when alone, unencumbered by the influences and judgements of those around us. Only when we are totally by ourselves can we see who we truly are and act in ways that are truly us, rather than to some extent the product of being viewed by others. In such a crucial moment for the Jewish people, when so much is at stake and everything that is done carries with it such weighty implications, the Kohen Godol needed to be entirely alone so that he was able to reach that pinnacle of who he could be and what he could achieve at that time. This was why there could be no one to see him at that critical time for our nation.
The world today has become one that has made it easier and easier for people to connect with each other, but harder and harder for us to ever be alone. We almost always have something with us that creates a potential for communicating, even when we are seemingly by ourselves. There is a phenomenal potential for good in this ability, but it must be kept under control so that we can find those opportunities to act without the knowledge of others and perform Hashem’s will in solitude. We must find time to talk to G-d alone, to learn Torah when no one else is around and to do random acts of kindness that no one else will see. These are the actions that show who we really are and then elevate us beyond it. These quiet points of connection with Hashem, and only Hashem, may be the most vital component of our Jewish life and what yields the most real and valuable accomplishments of all our Jewish endeavours. Seek out those moments. It is well worth the effort to do so.
*May the serenity of Shabbos provide us with some precious moments of solitude*
לעילוי נשמת לאה בת אברהם
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