Turn on the Lights

Fighting evil is a positive and even noble cause. Generating light through positive action is a sublime and Divine endeavor.

The Richest Parsha

This week’s Parsha Ki-Seitzei is the “richest” portion of the Torah, in terms of the number of Mitzvos it contains.

As we noted above (Essay One) of the total number of 613 commandments that the Torah comprises, this week’s parsha alone has 74! It is no wonder then that an important principle of Jewish law with regard to many of the Mitzvos is derived from this parsha.

One commandment that appears in this week’s parsha is the prohibition against wearing a garment that contains a mixture of wool and linen. This commandment, known Biblically as sha’atnez or kilayim is followed by the requirement to put fringes (tzitzis) on the four corners of our garments.

Why does the Torah juxtapose these two Mitzvos? What connection is there between not wearing wool and linen and the commandment to put fringes on the four corners of our garments?

A Mitzvah Conflict

The Talmud explains that this is to instruct us that if there was a conflict between the two commandment—one that prohibits mixtures of wool and linen and one that requires placing tzitzis in our garments—the obligation to wear tzitzis would prevail.

For example: if one had a linen garment and the only tzitzis he had were made out of wool, it would be Biblically acceptable to insert them into the garment. This teaching establishes a legal principle that a “positive Mitzvah overrides a negative one.”

(It should be noted, however, that there are several exceptions to this rule. Most notably, this rule does not apply to a transgression against one’s fellow. One may never commit a crime even if it were to perform a Mitzvah. Our discussion is limited to two commandments of the same man-to-G-d category. And even within this category there are some exceptions.)

Love versus Fear

What is the reason for the preeminence of the positive commandment over the negative?

Nachmanides, the great Biblical and Talmudic commentator of the 13th century, provides the following rationale:

The performance of positive commandments is primarily an expression of love for G-d, whereas avoiding a transgression is primarily an expression of fear or respect for G-d. We do things for the one we love and we refrain from doing certain things mostly because we fear the consequences.

Accordingly, the positive Mitzvah takes precedence over the negative Mitzvah, inasmuch as love is a greater force than fear. Serving G-d out of love is a superior form of service than serving Him strictly out of fear.

The Mystical Explanation

The Tanya (the principle work of Chabad Chassidic thought) provides a more profound explanation for the preeminence of the positive commandment. When one performs a positive Mitzvah, one generates a G-dly light into the cosmos that is then internalized within one’s soul. Failing to perform the Mitzvah will result in the permanent loss of that positive light.

By contrast, observing a negative commandment, though imperative and praiseworthy, does not generate G-dly light into the cosmos and our souls.

Violation of a negative commandment will cause damage to one’s soul and the world around. However, if the Torah allows us to perform the positive Mitzvah in spite of the negative, no damage will result. If however the Torah would want us to avoid the negative even at the expense of not doing the positive, while no damage will result, no light will be generated.

In simple language: While we can mitigate a negative action so that it does not cause damage, we cannot replace a positive act no matter how many excuses we have for not doing it.

Thus, when the two Mitzvos clash, it makes more sense for the positive Mitzvah to prevail, because if the negative would prevail and we would not do the Mitzvah, that G-dly light that can be introduced into the world and one’s soul, would forever be missing. No matter how well one would behave in the future, the light that could have been generated by the positive command is forever gone.

Why Light?

At this point one is entitled to ask, why is the generation of this G-dly light so crucial?

The answer is provided for in the very beginning of the Torah. The very first thing G-d declared at the time of creation was “Let there be light.” This was meant as a declaration of the very purpose of creation. G-d created the universe so that we would generate spiritual light into it.

With every Mitzvah that we perform, the world is imbued with more G-dly light that leaves an indelible mark on the world. When enough light is generated by our actions, Moshiach will come and enable us to realize and enjoy the G-dly light that we caused to fill the world.

G-d does not just want a world that is devoid of evil. Combating evil is a worthwhile endeavor but it does not justify creating the world. If the world would not have been created there would still not be any evil. Why then create a world with evil just to revert to the state of no evil, which was the case before creation?

G-d’s plan for the world was one in which we generate positive energy. Without creation there could be no positive light in a physical world.

Keep Away from [fighting] evil!

This concept has been applied the verse in the book of Psalms: “Keep away from evil and do good.” Chassidic Masters interpreted this as: Keep away from inordinate focus on fighting evil; instead focus on doing good.

A similar thought was expressed by some commentators concerning the statement of our Sages that when Esau was in his mother’s womb he would put pressure on his mother to be born whenever she passed a house of idolatry. This portended his tendency towards evil.

The question has been asked, how could someone born to such righteous parents begin with an obsession for idol worship And the answer given was that, in truth, Esau did not want to go out and worship the idols, rather he wanted to go out and destroy them… In other words, he was obsessed with fighting evil and very little regard for generating positive energy. This was the beginning of a slippery slope towards actually becoming enamored with the evil he was so stridently fighting against.

The Practical Lesson: Let there be Light!

The practical lesson for us is that our primary focus should be on generating G-dly light into the world. This, of course, does not free us from our responsibility to combat evil. But, we must realize that fighting evil, as great and important as it may be, does not add any light to the world.

Only by focusing on the positive and actively engaging in the performance of the positive Mitzvos do we conform to the Divine declaration of “Let there be light.” As a consequence of these actions we will be able to say with joy, “And there was light!” We will be receptive to the Divine light that will pervade the entire world.

From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Ki Seitzei by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.