30 Jun PARASHAT HUKAT: SWEETENING THE BITTERNESS

The opening section
of Parashat Hukat
introduces and discusses
the Misva of Para
Aduma, a special cow
which was required for
the process of purifying people or utensils
who had become Tameh through contact with
a human corpse. The cow would be burned,
and its ashes would be mixed with water. This
water would be sprinkled on people and objects
that had become impure, and they would then
become pure once again.
Surprisingly, the Shulhan Aruch (Orah Haim
685:7) brings a view (which appears first in
Tosafot in Masechet Berachot 13a) that the
annual reading of this section constitutes a
Torah obligation.We read this section each year
not only this Shabbat as part of the yearly Torah
reading cycle, but also on a special Shabbat
in between Purim and Pesach, which we call
“Shabbat Para.” According to this view cited
by the Shulhan Aruch, reading this Parasha
each year is required on the level of Torah law,
as opposed to virtually all other Torah readings,
which are required Mi’de’rabbanan.
The question naturally arises as to the source
and reason of this requirement. There is no
Biblical obligation to read about other Misvot.
Why – and where – does the Torah require

reading about the Para Aduma?
Rav Yaakov Kamenetsky (1891-1986), in his
Emet La’Yaakov (Parashat Ekeb) answers
that the source of this obligation is a verse in
Parashat Ekeb (Debarim 9:7), where the Torah
commands us to remember “how you angered
Hashem your G-d in the wilderness.” The
Malbim (Rav Meir Leibush Weiser, 1809-
1879), in his work Arsot Ha’haim, claims
that this refers to the sin of the golden calf,
but Rav Kamenetsky disagrees, noting that
the golden calf is mentioned separately in
the next verse (“U’b’Horeb Hiksaftem Et
Hashem”). Therefore, Rav Kamenetsky
suggests that this command refers to the events
that transpired in Mara, shortly after Beneh
Yisrael crossed the sea. As we read in Parashat
Beshalah (Shemot 15:22-26), Beneh Yisrael
found themselves without water until finally
arriving in Mara, where they encountered a
body of water, but the water was bitter and
foul-tasting. They angrily complained to
Moshe, demanding water. G-d responded by
commanding Moshe to cast a piece of wood
into the water, whereupon it miraculously
transformed into sweet drinking water. After
this miracle, G-d had Moshe present to the
people “Hok U’mishpat,” which Rashi explains
as referring to several Misvot, including the
Misva of Para Aduma. Thus, Rav Kamenetsky

writes, by reading the Misva of
Para Aduma, which was first
presented at Mara, we fulfill the
Biblical command to remember
Beneh Yisrael’s angry complaints
at Mara, where they challenged
Moshe rather than placing their
trust in Hashem.
Rav Kamenetsky explains further
the connection between the Para
Aduma and Beneh Yisrael’s sin
at Mara. The Para Aduma shows
that by following Hashem’s
rules, an impure person can
be transformed, and regain his
purity. We do not and cannot
understand how sprinkling the Para Aduma
waters brings a person purity, but Hashem said
that this is how purity is regained. Likewise,
at Mara, Hashem determined that a piece
of wood should transform bitter water into
sweet water. According to natural law, there
is no reason whatsoever for why this should
happen. Wood does not change foul-tasting
water into fresh drinking water. But Hashem
has the power to change any “bitter” situation
into “sweetness,” in ways which we can never
expect or understand. This was the people’s
mistake at Mara – failing to recognize that
the bitter water can be made sweet. The Torah

commands us to remember this incident in
order that we strengthen our Emuna, our faith in
G-d’s unlimited ability to “sweeten” any form
of “bitterness,” so that instead of complaining
and bemoaning our circumstances, like our
ancestors did in Mara, we turn to Hashem and
ask for help. We fulfill this Misva through the
reading of Parashat Para, which reminds us
that Hashem can bring purity to the impure in
ways which we do not understand. Just as an
impure person can regain his purity through the
mysterious process of the Para Aduma waters,
so can any “bitter” situation be transformed to
“sweetness” through G-d’s unlimited power
and capabilities.