Why is bitachon, in the words of the Vilna Gaon, “The central reason for the giving of the Torah to Klal Yisroel,” and “The main point of everything”?
There once was a mighty king who ruled over a great nation. He issued many decrees for his subjects to live by. He had an only son who was the joy of his life. Obsessed with love for him, the king constantly thought about him. Everything he did for the development of his kingdom was for his son’s sake, thinking, “One day he will rule my kingdom and enjoy the fruits of all of my labor.”
Insuring that all of the king’s subjects fulfill all of his decrees, even in the privacy of their homes, is a herculean task. An army of thousands, with all sorts of methods at their disposal, is needed to accomplish this, and even then, many times people will not fulfill the kings every decree, especially in private.
In contrast, it is very simple to get the prince to fulfill all of the king’s decrees. The king could merely take his son aside and explain to him: “You are the focal point of my life! I run my entire kingdom solely with your benefit in mind, so that you will eventually be able to rule the entire kingdom! I love you beyond anything you could imagine! I have no greater pleasure then just being with you! Anything you’ll ever need I will supply! You just have to listen to me!” Once the king explains all this, all the son needs to be able to easily fulfill the king’s every command, is trust.
If we were all created to be mere subjects of the King of Heaven and Earth to fulfill some esoteric purpose we are not aware of, indeed, many different methods would be required to ensure that we fulfil all of His decrees and keep all His Mitzvos. However, this is not the case. The King “took us aside” at Har Sinai and explained to us:
My son, My first-born Yisroel! (Shemos 4:22)
The entire Universe I created for each and every one of you! (Sanhedrin 37a)
I created You and commanded you to perform Mitzvos not for My benefit, but solely for your sake, so that through their performance, during the few seconds (relative to eternity) you’re on this world, you will be able to truly enjoy the greatest pleasures (greater than anything even an angel can imagine – Igeres HaGra) that I have prepared for you for all eternity. (Mesillas Yesharim Chapter 1)
I love you so much! I have no greater pleasure in My entire Universe then when you look up towards My eyes and My eyes are towards yours! (Tur O’Ch 125)
This begs the obvious question: If all of this is true, why don’t we live our everyday lives based upon this knowledge?
B’Ezras Hashem, we will address this question next week.
Other parts to this series: Inspiration in Bitachon
