In the beginning of Avodah Zarah it talks about kaviyachol the Hakadosh Baruch Hu's schedule over the course of the day and it says that the last thing he does is יושב ומשחק עם הלויתן. He rejoices, he laughs with the Livyatan. I think the Rav Zalman Baruch once said it, I think the context was in a hesped that a person is supposed to have a sense of humor. Meaning that whatever obviously whatever the anthropomorphism is supposed to express on a deeper level but sometimes additionally on a super-level so we will ascribe to Hakadosh Baruch Hu what we're supposed to do and sometimes on the sort of literal level so part of the point is even though obviously the anthropomorphism when predicated of Hakadosh Baruch Hu is never intended literally but it's a way of telling us what we're supposed to do and that's one dimension of meaning. Possibly this is part of what Rashi has in mind when he comments on the Shabbas Vayinafash that hichtiv be'atzmo menucha that Hakadosh Baruch Hu revived himself on Shabbos. What does it mean Hakadosh Baruch Hu revived himself on Shabbos? לא יעף ולא ייגע and everything he does is bemamar. So possibly part of what Rashi is saying is that again one layer of meaning when we have anthropomorphic descriptions of Hakadosh Baruch Hu is that since whatever Hakadosh Baruch Hu does is normative based on the mitzvah of vehalachta bidrachav so that's one dimension of meaning by anthropomorphisms. Okay. It's an inyan to have a sense of humor. I don't think that's such a hard sell. I don't think we have to be ma'arich here with the reayas. We're also familiar with the Gemara in Brachos about beginning with a milsa de'bidichusa and genuine humor not what passes for humor nowadays but genuine humor can be a very powerful educational tool in highlighting different ideas or highlighting different pitfalls or human tendencies that we need to be mindful of. One of the most famous Yiddish jokes is about the melamed. He's teaching Chumash and they're learning about the man and he's teiching the pasuk about the man and he comes to the phrase veta'amo kitzpichis bidvash. And he says and the taste was kitzpichis bidvash. So one of the boys in cheder raises his hand and says Rebbe but what does kitzpichis bidvash mean? So he says you didn't understand? Okay fine let me explain to you. He says Hakadosh Baruch Hu took us out of Mitzrayim and he took us out into the midbar and in the midbar there was no food available so Hakadosh Baruch Hu gave us the man and the man that came down its taste was kitzpichis bidvash. So the kid raises his hand and says Rebbe but I still don't understand what does kitzpichis bidvash mean? He says okay fine lo habayshan lamed. Let me try, let me try to explain to you. Thousands of years ago, it was Avraham Avinu. Hakadosh Baruch Hu Bris Bein HaBesarim told him כי גר יהיה זרעך בארץ לא להם ועבדום וענו אותם.
Hakadosh Baruch Hu took us out of Mitzrayim, took us out of Mitzrayim into the midbar. In the midbar there was no food, we had nothing to eat, we would have starved. Hakadosh Baruch Hu gave us the mon and the taste of the mon was k'tzapichis bidvash. Kid raises hand, says Rebbe, but I still don't understand, what does k'tzapichis bidvash mean? So he says good, good, good, you don't understand, you should, you should ask. He says בראשית ברא אלוקים את השמים ואת הארץ. Hakadosh Baruch Hu created the world in six days. And then there was עשרה דורות מאדם עד נח, and then there was עשרה דורות מנח עד אברהם אבינו. Avraham Avinu discovered Hakadosh Baruch Hu, and Hakadosh Baruch Hu made a bris with him, and then Hakadosh Baruch Hu brought us down to Mitzrayim, Hakadosh Baruch Hu took us out of Mitzrayim, we would have starved, Hakadosh Baruch Hu gave us the mon and the taste of the mon was k'tzapichis bidvash. He says Rebbe, what does k'tzapichis bidvash mean? Bang! Sheigetz! You want to know what was before Ma'aseh Bereishis? So genuine, genuine Yiddishe humor had tremendous content to it and it was a limud. And I'm not sure whether I mean this literally or not to be too literal here, but you could almost make a birchas hatorah. Genuine Yiddishe humor had content to it. Im kol zeh, and as we approach Adar Sheini and Purim, im kol zeh, it's important to recognize at least two very clear lines in terms of that we have to be careful not to cross. One is pretty, I think is more pronounced, less subtle, and that is sometimes what, and maybe it's even intended as humor and maybe just our, we have a distorted understanding because of the society we live in, but sometimes what's intended as humor is just mevayesh people, just halbanas panim. And whether it's Purim or whether it's an aufruf or whatever the occasion is, that's not, that's not what the milsa de'bidichusa that Chazal were talking about, and that's not what the Rov was talking about in terms of that it's an inyan to have a sense of humor. Then there's a second more subtle one, and basi le'orer, basi le'orer, not to pass judgment, but basi le'orer, just to try to heighten our sensitivities. And that's, there's a minhag of Purim Torah. Many people say Purim Torah. It's understood both mitoch the Purim Torah, the divrei of the Purim Torah themselves, it's clearly understood that one is not making fun rachmana litzlan of the divrei Torah, but it's clear that one is sort of adopting a format and showing humorous creativity in that format. And I don't think anyone mistakes or misunderstands that one is making fun of the divrei Torah. But when you have the, and that can be true for other formats as well, when people have the kiddush that they make on Purim, I don't think anyone, it doesn't intimate and it doesn't occur to anyone, because that's not what's happening and there's nothing to create a misperception, there's nothing misleading that someone is rachmana litzlan... In both of those examples, were that the case, were either the case, but the first one doesn't have to be mentioned, it's unthinkable that a person would actually be intending to do that, that's not binimtza, that's unthinkable. But what one does have to be mindful of is that if there's any ambiguity as to again, whether or not it's just a format for humorous creativity or whether that itself is being spoofed, that itself is being lampooned, if there's any ambiguity about that, so rule number two in humor, rule number one is no halbanos ponim, rachmono litzlon, but rule number two is that some things, some things and some people are too holy to be subject matter even of innocent humor. And even if it's not again, not because it's insulting, rachmono litzlon, and not because there's halbanos ponim, but some things are too, too holy and you don't make fun, you don't lampoon, you don't spoof things or people that are holy. And sometimes again, as in the examples we gave, kemedumeh, that it's clear that that's not what one is doing, that's not what one is doing and פוק חזי מאי עמא דבר, but sometimes it can not be entirely clear which side of the line one is on, whether again, whether it's humorous creativity and part of the creativity is adopting a certain format or whether, or whether rachmono litzlon, the wrong impression is conveyed that it's not just adopting the format but it's the content of some devar Torah or something or the style of a chacham mechachmei Yisroel that's being spoofed. And if there's any ambiguity, so then we've crossed the line and that's not where one is supposed to be in again, whether it's Purim or all year long in appropriate humor.