Naso
The Nazirite
Our sages have always objected to
people who are overly concerned with their exterior. Extreme growth of one’s hair leads a person
to worry that he may not contract ritual impurity; such a concern in turn leads
one to strive for holiness. In practice,
the Nazir voluntarily imposes upon himself a mode of conduct that every Kohen
is duty bound to observe from his earliest youth.
Tur (14th Century)
Our Sages commanded man to deny
himself only the things denied him by the torah. He should not inflict on himself vows of
abstinence on things permitted him. Thus
our Sages stated: “It is not sufficient
for you that which the Torah has forbidden?”…Our Sages
forbade a man to mortify himself…
Maimonides (12th
Century)
Young people react negatively to
any kind of restrictions imposed on them.
Once they become a little older, they realize the need for an ordered
lifestyle, but they tend to draw their inspiration only from their own personal
experiences. Still later in life, they
get around to study other people’s wisdom and experience…The Torah tells the
Nazirite that the discipline imposed on his lifestyle by not touching grape
products, does not by itself guarantee progress towards his objective, but that
he must not use a razor or shears to remove his hair. The lesson is that no individual is free to
decide arbitrarily by himself what disciplines to impose upon himself.
Yitchak Arama (15th Century)
The difference between a man who
is a mere random example of the biological species and a man of God is that the
former is characterized by passivity, the latter by activity and creation. The man who belongs solely to the realm of
the universal is passive to an extreme – he creates nothing. The man who has a particular existence of his
own is not merely a passive, receptive creature but acts and creates. Action and creation are the true
distinguishing marks of authentic existence…There is a man…who is no longer a
prisoner of time but its master…He lives not on account of his having been born
but for the sake of life itself and so that he may merit thereby the life in
the world to come. He recognizes the
destiny that is his, his obligation and task in life…This is the man of God.
Joseph Soloveitchik
(20th Century)
How can we determine which way of
thinking will triumph? Here is a simple
test. If a person recognizes God’s
kindness even when all of his needs have not been met, this is a sure sign that
he is blessed with a robust trait of appreciation. Such a person has a correct understanding of
God’s relationship to His creations, and recognizes that God does everything
for the good…Thus; one feels the need to express gratitude for even a small
measure…
Abraham Isaac Kook (20th
Century)