14 Feb PARASHAT MISHPATIM- “WE WILL DO AND WE WILL HEAR”

Towards the end of
Parashat Mishpatim, we
read of Beneh Yisrael’s
enthusiastic reaction
when Moshe told them

that they would be receiv-
ing the Torah, making the famous procla-
mation, “Na’aseh Ve’nishma” – “We will

do and we will hear” (24:7). Beneh Yisrael
pledged their commitment to the Torah even
before hearing what was entailed.
This is commonly understood to mean that
Beneh Yisrael had reached such a level of

faith in Hashem that they trusted that any-
thing He commanded them would be ben-
eficial. We might draw a comparison to a

person who is presented a contract to sign.

Normally, he would not sign unless he care-
fully read over the entire document. But if

he fully trusts the other party, he does not
need to read the details, and is happy to sign
without knowing everything that is written,
because he fully trusts that the other party is
not trying to deceive him or harm him in any
way. Likewise, Beneh Yisrael fully trusted
that anything Hashem would tell them to do
is the best thing for them.
However, one of the early Hassidic schol- ars, Rabbi Moshe of Dolena (18th century),
offers a deeper insight into the meaning
and significance of “Na’aseh Ve’nishma.”
He explains that just as the body has needs,
and it is instinctively drawn to satisfy those
needs – such as for food, water and sleep –
the soul, too, has needs, and, in principle, it

is naturally drawn to fulfill those needs. In
a perfect world, we would be instinctively
pulled toward Misvot, because they are the
nourishment that our souls require in order
to survive. However, due to the complex
relationship between the body and soul, we
lose this instinct. Our preoccupation with
our physical instincts creates “static” that
disrupts the “frequency” of our souls, such
that we do not feel drawn towards Misvot.
The great Sadikim, however, feel these spiri- tual instincts. Abraham Avinu, for example,
observed the Torah’s laws before they were

given, because he reached the level of spiri-
tual greatness where he was completely

attuned to his soul, and was instinctively
drawn to Misva performance.

The Talmud teaches that when Beneh Yis-
rael arrived at Mount Sinai, “Paseka Zehu-
matan” – the “filth” that entered mankind

at the time of Adam and Havah’s sin was
eliminated. They became pure and pristine,
and they achieved the level where they were

naturally and intuitively drawn to the To-
rah’s laws. Rav Moshe of Dolena explains

on this basis the otherwise perplexing pas-
sage in the Haggadah, “If He had brought us

to Mount Sinai but not given us the Torah,
it would have been enough for us.” Why
would it have been enough for us to arrive
at Mount Sinai without receiving the Torah?
Rav Moshe of Dolena answers that while
our ancestors stood at Mount Sinai, they
reached the level where they would observe

the Torah even without receiving its com-
mands. And thus we exclaim, “Dayenu” – “it

would have been enough for us,” meaning,
that experience would have sufficed for us to
commit ourselves to the Torah, because that
experience brought us to the level where we
were naturally drawn to Misvot to satisfy our
souls’ needs, just like we are naturally drawn
to food to satisfy our bodies’ needs.
If so, Rav Moshe of Dolena writes, we can
understand the pronouncement of “Na’aseh
Ve’nishma.” Beneh Yisrael were telling

Moshe that they did not need to hear the To-
rah – because they now knew it instinctively.

They were drawn to the Torah’s laws auto-
matically, because they had become purified

to the point where they felt a natural pull to
the spiritual nourishment which their souls
needed.
The obvious question then becomes, why
did Hashem then give them the Torah? If
Beneh Yisrael reached the point where they

were naturally drawn to the Torah’s laws, re-
alizing on their own that this is what their

souls needed, then why did Hashem have to
command them to perform the Misvot?

The answer, Rav Moshe of Dolena ex-
plains, stems from a teaching by his revered

mentor, the Ba’al Shem Tob (1698-1760).
The famous Halachic principle of “Sheluho
Shel Adam Kemoto” establishes that one can
appoint an agent to perform an action on his
behalf, and the agent then becomes like him.
The agent’s actions done on the sender’s be- half are considered to have been performed
by the sender. As Hashem has commanded

us to perform
the Misvot, the
Ba’al Shem
Tob said, we
become, in
a sense, like
Hashem when
we fulfill them
at His behest.
Just as an agent
is viewed like the one who sent him to per- form the action, we are viewed like Hashem

when we perform the actions He command-
ed us to perform. Hashem therefore com-
manded Beneh Yisrael to perform the Misvot

– even though they reached the level where
they would have done so on their own – in
order for them to be elevated to great heights
of Kedusha (sanctity), and resemble, in some
small way, Hashem Himself.
Of course, Beneh Yisrael did not remain
on this lofty spiritual level. As we know all
too well, we are no longer naturally drawn
to do what our souls need to be sustained.
But the way we can experience this level to
some slight extent is through the study of
Torah. When we learn Torah, we encounter
Hashem in the most direct way we can. It
is our opportunity to achieve “Debekut” – a
true, genuine connection with the Creator.
And so by devoting ourselves to Torah learn- ing, we can, in some small measure, return
to the lofty level of our ancestors at Sinai,
and develop a natural love and passion for
all the Misvot.