01 Apr PARSHAS VAYIKRA: A HUMBLE MAN WITH A (POTENTIALLY) NOT SO HUMBLE CHILDHOOD

The Medrash
Rabbah, on the
opening words of
Sefer Vayikra
(“Vayikra Hashem el
M o s h e … “ ) ,
mentions that Moshe Rabbeinu actually
had ten different names. However,
Hashem made it a point to call Moshe
only by the name he was given by
Basya, Paroh’s daughter. The Torah
says that she called him Moshe “Ki min
hamayim mishe-seyhu” (Shemos 2:10).
The simple reading of this Medrash is
that the reason HaKadosh Baruch Hu
chose to use that name was to give
everlasting honor to Paroh’s daughter.
She, in effect, saved the life of Moshe,
going against her father’s decree and
the “law of the land” that all Hebrew
boys were to be drowned. Thus, even
though he had a name Tuvya and a
name Avigdor among many other
names, Hashem addressed him by the
name Moshe, given to him by the

woman who risked her life and saved
him from death by drowning.
The Kesav Sofer, however, gives an
interesting alternative interpretation of
why Hashem specifically called Moshe
by the name Moshe. The Gemara in
Maseches Nedarim (38a) says, “The
Holy One Blessed be He does not cause
prophecy and Ruach haKodesh (the
power of His Divine Presence) to rest
on anyone who is not mighty, wealthy,
wise, and humble. This is all learned
out from Moshe (who was all of the
above).”
We can understand that modesty and
humility are prerequisites for being a
recipient of prophecy and Ruach
haKodesh. But where do we find in
Yiddishkeit that a person’s strength or
wisdom should be a factor in his ability
to receive Divine prophecy? We
normally do not give special
consideration to gevurah. Chochma,
perhaps yes, but gevurah, no. The
Kesav Sofer explains that if a person is

a 90-pound weakling and is not
very bright and is not very
successful, and as a result he is
also not very wealthy, the fact that
such a person is modest is no
‘kuntz‘. It does not demonstrate a
major accomplishment. What,
after all, does he possess that
would justify his strutting around
proudly? It is only right that a
person who does not have
anything going for himself should
be modest!
The Gemara (Pesachim 113b) states
that one of the four categories of people
who are intolerable is the poor braggart
(dal gayeh). He is impoverished, and
nevertheless he thinks of himself in
haughty terms.
On the other hand, a person who has all
these attributes: He is a “gibor“. He is a
“chochom“. He is an “ashir“. And yet,
he remains an “anav” – that, according
to the Kesav Sofer, is real humility.
This person has what to be proud of and
even what to be arrogant about, and
yet he maintains his modest bearing
– that is a real anav. It is not “gevurah”
or “chochma” or “ashirus” per se that
is required. Humility qualifies a
person for nevuah and Ruach
haKodesh. Nevertheless, true anivus
is tested when a person has what to
be arrogant about and nevertheless
maintains his humility.
When a person is Rav Moshe
Feinstein, zecher tzadik l’vracha, and
knows kol haTorah kulah and has
reviewed Shulchan Aruch 150 times
and knows every comment of the Pri
Megadim and nevertheless, when he
is walking on the street on the Lower
East Side and someone calls out
“Hey, Moshe!” (calling out to
somebody else with the name Moshe)
this Gadol HaDor turns around and
thinks the fellow is calling out to
him—that demonstrates humility!
Rav Moshe, zt”l, was a humble
person despite the fact that he had so
much going for him. The same is true
of virtually all the Gedolim. They are
men with tremendous intellect and
nevertheless they are humble. That is
true anivus.

Rav Yosef Salant (the Be’er Yosef)
comments on the Chazal that the
Matriarch Sora was a beautiful woman.
The Gemara says (Megilla 14a) that
Yiska daughter of Charan (mentioned
in Bereshis 11:29) was really Sora and
two explanations are given for this
derivation. The first explanation is
she’sachsa b’Ruach haKodesh (that she
spoke with Divine Inspiration). The
second explanation is that she is called
Yiska because everyone talked about
her beauty (she’haKol sochin b’yofya).
There cannot be two more diametrically
opposed praises than these two
interpretations. One is “She possesses
Ruach haKodesh“; the other one is
“She was a knockout beauty!” We don’t
usually put those two accolades in the
same sentence.
The Be’er Yosef explains: No, because
she was the talk of the town as the most
beautiful of women and nevertheless,
she did not let those praises go to her
head, that is why she merited to speak
with Ruach HaKodesh.
That brings us full circle to where we
began: Moshe Rabbeinu grew up in the
palace of Paroh. He was a prince. He
had the world on a platter and had
everything going for him. Nevertheless,
he was an anav. That is why Hashem
chose to address him with no other
name than the name he was given by
Paroh’s daughter. Basya bas Paroh put
him in the palace and gave him every
excuse in the world to think of himself
proudly as the Prince of Egypt.
Nevertheless, Moshe retained his
humility. To highlight this personality
accomplishment, Hashem chose to
always address him by the name he was
given by the Princess of Egypt, Basya
bas Paroh!