With the taste of matzah still in our mouths, I'd like to share with you an exciting teaching of the Vilna Gaon which appears in Aderes Eliyahu on parshas Acharei Mos. In Vayikra (18:5) we are taught, "you shall observe My decrees and My laws, which man shall carry out and by which he shall live (v'chai bahem) - I am Hashem." Interestingly, Rashi and Targum Unkelus understand the words v'chai bahem as referring to the world to come; the Torah is assuring and promising reward in the next world.
The Talmud (Yuma 85b), in providing sources for the law that saving a life overrides the Shabbos, teaches that Shmuel used the verse "v'chai bahem" as the primary source that mitzvos are to be lived, and except for the three cardinal sins of idolatry, adultery and murder, all laws of the Torah are suspended to save life. In keeping with this understanding that the verse is referring to life in this world, the Vilna Gaon teaches that mitzvos are the source of life for the Jew. The Zohar (Parshas Tetzaveh 183b) calls matzah, "michla d'asvasa - bread of elixir" and "michla d'm'hemnusa - bread of faith." I believe the above may be taken literally, that in addition to the flour and water, one of the benefits of ingesting matzah is Vitamin F - faith. It helps the Jew believe, and when crises occur throughout the year, the injection of Vitamin F assists in responding with faith. Similarly, the Vilna Gaon teaches us that inherent in all mitzvos is a spiritual reservoir that enriches the soul. This is true not only regarding positive mitzvos but also, as the Talmud (Kiddushin 39b) teaches, regarding one who withstood temptation and did not violate a negative commandment, for whom it is reckoned On High as if he did a positive mitzvah. However, while this understanding of the hidden treasures found in the mitzvos might be an alluring factor to observe the mitzvos and thereby enrich one's soul, it is for this reason that the verse concludes, "Ani Hashem," to teach that the ideal performance of the mitzvos is for His sake and not for one's personal enrichment.
Indeed, this is how the Gra understands Birkas Hamitzvos. First we acknowledge, "asher kidishanu b'mitzvosav - that He has sanctified us with His commandments", which is an incredible commitment by Hashem to the Jewish people and perhaps provides sufficient motivation for one to perform a mitzvah - to derive the personal spiritual elevation and closeness to Hashem. Therefore, the bracha continues, "v'tzivanu - and He commanded us", teaching us that ultimately we are to perform the mitzvos because He, Hashem ordained their performance. The highest form of service is to focus on serving the Master who commands the mitzvah, rather than how the mitzvah benefits and enriches the performer of the mitzvah. Thus, performance of mitzvos provides a double benefit: it nourishes and enriches one's body and soul, and allows for a personal service and relationship with Hashem.
The Vilan Gaon also teaches that the reverse is true regarding the violation of transgressions. As the mitzvos maintain and nourish the individual, so too in a natural way, aveiros - sins cause a degeneration and atrophy of the soul. Just as in the natural world if one ingests poison the deadly effect is not a punishment but rather a natural consequence of one's actions, so too the negative action has a deteriorating effect on the soul. This is familiar to us regarding the effect of non-Kosher food on one's soul, as the Torah teaches (Vayikra 11:43), "v'nitmesem" which is understood by our Rabbis (Yuma 39a) as, "v'netamtem - your soul will be dulled and weakened". This is true regarding all the negative commandments of the Torah.
This conclusion is drawn by the Vilan Gaon from his sharp analysis of the effect of Adam's sin. Hashem advised him to eat of all the fruits in the Garden of Eden. Interestingly, notes the Meshech Chochma, had he eaten from those fruits first, it could have fortified him to withstand the temptation of eating from the forbidden fruit. Hashem warned him that were we to eat from the tree of knowledge, he would die, which is understood by the Ramban to not mean immediate death but rather becoming mortal. Thus when he does eat from the forbidden tree, why is his punishment to work the land with great difficulty, that the land should yield thorns and thistles, and to gain his bread by the sweat of his brow? His punishment should have been simply that he is now you mortal! The answer is as stated above, that his becoming mortal was not the punishment but the natural consequence of eating from the forbidden tree. Once Hashem said that on the day Adam eats from the tree he will die, the transformation from immortal to mortal became a natural characteristic inherent within the tree and was not a punishment per se. Adam deserved to be punished over and above the natural consequences of his action for not listening to Hashem, and that punishment consisted of the curses above listed.
Thus "v'chai bahem" teaches that the observance of mitzvos is endowed with spiritual vitality, while the effect of aveiros is decay and atrophy of the soul. However, the verse ends with the sublime admonition of "Ani Hashem" - don't do mitzvos primarily to build yourself and your character, but ideally you should do them to serve Hashem.
Having begun with "v'chai bahem" and the obligation to sustain life, I'd like to close by remembering the Kedoshim of the Shoah who if they could trade with gentile prisoners their ration of bread for soup, did so, as not to violate eating chametz on Pesach. Those who had to eat chametz to fulfill "v'chai bahem" note the emotional anguish that accompanied their eating of chametz on Pesach by the prayer composed by the Rabbis in Bergen-Belsen to be recited prior to their eating of chametz:
Our Father in Heaven, it is known and revealed before Thee that it is our will to do Thy will and to observe the festival of Passover through the eating of matzah and by not violating the prohibition of chametz. For this our hearts are grieved - that our enslavement prevents us and we are in danger of our lives. Behold, then. We are prepared and ready to fulfill Thy commandment of 'though shall live by them and not die by them' and to carefully heed the warning 'take therefore good heed and guard thy life very much.' Therefore, it is our prayer unto Thee that Thou keep us alive and preserve us and redeem us speedily so that we may observe Thy statutes and do Thy will and serve Thee with a perfect heart. Amen.
May their fulfillment of "v'chai bahem" under the most extreme and challenging conditions inspire us to fulfill and appreciate "v'chai bahem" in happiness and excitement leading up to "Ani Hashem".