Good morning, Gut Chodesh Rabbosai. Continuing here in Os Tes. דיבר שלמה עליו השלום בעניין מהזקנה שלא יתעצל האדם בהם מעבודת השם יתברך.
Shlomo HaMelech says that when a person grows older he shouldn't allow his Avodas Hashem to slack off. בבוקר זרע זרעך ולערב אל תנח ידך כי אינך יודע איזה יכשר הזה או זה ואם שניהם כאחד טובים המשיל ימי הילדות והשחרות לבוקר והזקנה לערב והזרע דרך משל לבנים ותלמידים. כמו שאמרו רבותינו זכרונם לברכה
nasa isha b'yalduso, yisa isha b'ziknuso, v'chulu. He'amid talmidim b'yalduso, ya'amid talmidim b'ziknuso. כי אולי יצליחו בני הזקונים בתורה ומצוות מבני הנעורים וכן התלמידים שיעמידו אשר יעמיד בזקנותו אולי יצליחו מהם הראשונים או יהיו כאחד טובים.
So at first glance the Ma'amar Chazal is a little bit difficult. Lichora, once we establish that even b'yemei ziknuso a person doesn't retire from Avodas Hashem, so then heyos that an integral part, a central part, if a person is zoiche to be marbitz Torah, so then that an integral part, a central part, the central part of his life is ha'amadas talmidim, so of course he should continue to be ma'amid talmidim b'ziknuso. Why does Shlomo HaMelech sort of have to make the case by כי אינך יודע איזה יכשר? You never know, maybe it's going to be the talmidim that a person is ma'amid b'ziknuso who are really going to successfully or more successfully transmit the mesorah to future generations. But you have a zakein. So the question is should he bentsch lulav on Sukkos? Yeah, he should bentsch lulav. He should be continuing in his Avodas Hashem. One doesn't have to sort of make the case on the grounds, well you never know, maybe his netilas lulav this year will be a better netilas lulav than he's ever had before, maybe he'll for the first time be mechaven to all the kavanos of the the Ari-zal. No. כל זמן שהנשמה בקרבי, a person is should be doing whatever he can. So mista'ma or possibly what what Chazal are explaining, what Shlomo HaMelech is telling us is that again as we've seen earlier based on the mishna in Avos, there are adjustments that a person should and does make within his Avodas Hashem as he as he attains bechasdei Hashem different stages of life. Maybe it would occur to us, maybe it would occur to us that when it comes to ha'amadas talmidim, maybe that's one of the elements of Avodas Hashem where change is necessary. Maybe maybe b'yemei zikna a person is no longer positioned, is no longer suitably qualified to teach, sort of to make that case. So Shlomo HaMelech that בבוקר זרע זרעך ולערב אל תנח ידך, that not only is the mitzvah perennial but itachen, itachen that the person's most significant and most important contribution in terms of ha'amadas talmidim. Will only happen bi’ymei ziknuso. אחרי כן עמדו חמישה תלמידים. ומתוק האור וטוב לעיניים לראות את השמש.
Right, the light is sweet and it's good for the eyes to take in, to view the shemesh, the sun. המתרגם פירוש חזר לדבר ימי הזקנה שהמשיל אותם לערב ומפני כי הזקן לא יטעם את אשר יאכל ואת אשר ישתה
k’divrei Barzilai ha’Giladi. The sense of taste weakens. In general, kochos ha’guf weaken as a person ages and in particular the cheich, the palate, the sense of taste. אמר כי יש לו לזקן ליהנות במאור השמש. So an older person should enjoy the light of the sun ואל תקוצה נפשו עליו. He shouldn't lose nefesh in addition to denoting soul also means a person's will. אם יש את נפשכם לקבור את מתי מלפני, Avraham Avinu says to the bnei Cheis. So nefesh also represents a person's will. Kotzer nefesh means when a person loses that will, that desire to live, that simchas ha’chayim. ואל תקוצה נפשו עליו. A person shouldn't allow himself for that primal powerful force, that desire to live, that instinct for life, he shouldn't allow that to weaken. For a person to function at maximum capacity, a person has to be happy. To the degree, I think the Ramban writes like this in Toras Adam also. That's why the Torah ordains aveilus, but in delimited periods. Atzvus is something that interferes with a person's functioning, it interferes with his productivity. קוצר נפש מונע את האדם ממלאכת שמים. What perspective will allow the person to appreciate the simple but profound pleasure of going out into the sunlight? ויערב לו האור כאשר יערכנו לעומת ימי החושך הבאים כאשר יזכיר במקרא שלמטה מזה כי אם שנים הרבה יחיה האדם בכולם ישמח ויזכור את ימי החושך כי הרבה יהיו כל שבא הבל.
There's a profound teaching, perspective that Shlomo HaMelech here is providing. The fact, in many ways an ultimate fact of our existence in Olam HaZeh is that we're mortal. That fact can be interpreted or experienced in either of two very different ways. It can be interpreted and experienced in a way that engenders depression rachmana litzlan, in a way that engenders ye’ush rachmana litzlan. or that reality of our limited time in Olam HaZeh, of mortality, can translate into an appreciation for the preciousness and the wonderful beracha of every day. משל למה הדבר דומה. Imagine you have a very very wealthy individual, lives in a mansion with every comfort and every everything that you could possibly want, everything you could possibly want. He lives there. That's his permanent permanent residence. Then you have someone else who comes and he's a guest in such a mansion for a month. On the one hand, the person can sit there for that month bemoaning the fact that this beautiful mansion is only mine to enjoy, to reside in for a month, and there are people who do react that way. Or, because he's only going to be there for a month, he'll have an appreciation that the owner doesn't have. The owner has it all the time. Something that a person has all the time, it's very easy to take for granted. It's very easy to not have the proper appreciation for, to not value appropriately. And it's very possible that the guest will have a greater appreciation for all the opportunities which living in this mansion afford than the owner whose tenure there is open-ended. And that's what Shlomo HaMelech is saying, that when a person contemplates yemei hachoshech, it's not supposed to engender a sense of depression or morbidity rachmana litzlan. When a person contemplates yemei hachoshech, it's supposed to highlight for him and underscore the amazing opportunity and the preciousness of the beracha that is his now. And the person is then supposed to focus on that and just invest himself fully, his mental, emotional, physical energies in taking full advantage of that extraordinary beracha. פירש גם כי יזקין האדם מאוד, and even if a person is blessed to become very old, very elderly, אל יהי על עצמו למשא. Never ever experience life as a burden. אך בכל שנותיו ישמח. A person should rejoice at the beracha, at the preciousness of life at every turn and at every stage. למען לא יאבד אחת משנותיו, that a person shouldn't squander any stage of life, any of the time that Hakadosh Baruch Hu apportions him, ולא ישבות מעבודת הבורא. And he shouldn't slacken from avodat Hashem. V'yizkor yemei hachoshech, not to engender depression rachmana litzlan, but yizkor yemei hachoshech to highlight the preciousness of every day, of the opportunity. כי הרבה יהיו ואז לא יוכל לעבוד עבודה כעניין שנאמר בשאול מי יודה לך.
Okay, so maybe we'll we'll stop here for now bli neder. Hopefully we'll finish the Derech HaSheini tomorrow morning. So we'll resume אם ירצה השם בלי נדר at 12:45, 1 2 4 5, in in Pesachim אם ירצה השם בלי נדר. Okay. Okay, we must have a good productive morning. Everyone should be well, be safe. Kol tuv.