with a select treasury of commentaries on all levels of Torah interpretation
Chapter 4 Mishna 15
with select commentaries
Abbreviations used in this translation:
RSHI - Rashi Commentary (1040-1105)
RMBM - Rambam (1135-1204)
BRTN - Rabbi Ovadiah of Bartenura Commentary (1445-1515)
TFRT - Tiferet Yisrael commentary (1782–1860)
YONA - Rabeinu Yonah (1180-1263)
MHRL - Derech Chaim - Maharal of Prague (1525-1609) (from hebrewbooks.org/14193)
VLNA - Biur HaGra of Rabbi Eliyahu of Vilna - (1720-1797)
| Commentary Legend: | |
 | - for basic commentaries as relating to the plain meaning (Pshat). |
 | - elaborates more into the theme. |
 | - deeper in, Maharal of Prague. |
 | - more themes in the text. |
Chapter 4 Mishna 15פרק ד משנה טו
| Rabbi Nehorai would say: exile yourself to a place of torah; say not that it will come after you, that your colleagues will [help] uphold it in your hand; And "do not rely on your own understanding" (Mishlei 3:5). | רַבִּי נְהוֹרַאי אוֹמֵר, הֱוֵי גוֹלֶה לִמְקוֹם תּוֹרָה, וְאַל תֹּאמַר שֶׁהִיא תָבֹא אַחֲרֶיךָ, שֶׁחֲבֵרֶיךָ יְקַיְּמוּהָ בְיָדֶךָ. וְאֶל בִּינָתְךָ אַל תִּשָּׁעֵן (משלי ג). |
Bartenura - "exile yourself to a place of torah" - if there are no torah scholars in your place (city).
"say not that it will come after you" - that torah scholars will come to your place.
"that your colleagues will [help] uphold it in your hand" - do not rely on your colleagues, that when they return from the Rav, you will learn from them what they learned from the Rav. Rather, exile yourself to the place of the Rav. For hearing from the student is not like hearing from the Rav.
Alternative explanation: why do I tell you "exile yourself to a place of torah"? So that "your colleagues will uphold it in your hands" - even if you are extremely sharp and knowledgeable, nevertheless the torah will not endure by you except through debating it with colleagues.
Thus he continues: "do not rely on your own understanding".
Rabeinu Avraham Pritzel - "exile yourself to a place of torah" - for we see many times that the students who study torah in their homes, for it is comfortable and enjoyable at home, then the comfort overpowers them and the toil and in depth study of torah weakens.. thus he said: "exile yourself to a place of torah"..
"do not rely on your understanding" - rather join with peers to debate (l'palpel). It is known what our sages said: " 'a sword to the loners' (Yirmiyahu 50:37) - ie a sword of the divine attribute of justice hangs over the loners who study torah alone. For their toil is false and they will become foolish and not attain correct knowledge.
Ahava b'Taanugim - "a place of torah" - a place where the goal of the people there is only toil in torah. All of their goal and aspiration is solely in toil in torah. This is called a "place of torah". For when a man stands in such a place, perforce he will sit and learn torah due to seeing the people there whose only desire is toil in torah...
Yachel Yisrael - "exile yourself to a place of torah" - the Tanna (sage) used the term "exile", not "dwell", nor "go", not even "uproot [yourself]", but rather "exile [yourself]".
What is he trying to emphasize by choosing this term (exile)?
The midrash Shmuel says: "the intent is that he flee to escape for his life like a murderer who is exiled [to a city of refuge]..."
Just like the purpose of the exiled murderer is to save himself from physical death, so too one who goes out to learn torah needs to feel that he is saving himself from spiritual death, from becoming immersed in the cesspool of physicality.
Life in exile is not easy. One's livelihood is not found in abundance. Living conditions are not the best.
The Yaavetz points out that one in exile faces many hardships. He suffers humiliations and no one recognizes him.
So too the obligation to study torah exists in all situations, even when travelling to a place where no one recognizes him and he drops to a lower social standing.
To emphasize this, the Tanna uses the term "exile yourself to a place of torah". One who goes to study torah must conduct himself like an exiled person, with everything this implies..
The benefit from exiling oneself is intense study. To immerse oneself in torah with a mind free from the vanities of this world. This can only occur when one distances from his home and separates from matters of this world..
Furthermore, when a man goes out to a different place to study, he learns to value every second and utilizes his time to learn. For this is the reason he left his home..
The Midrash Shmuel brings: "the main torah study of a man is when he is exiled from his place, away from the place of his father, mother, relatives and friends - so that they don't pamper him and indulge him."
The main study of a man in his youth needs to be far from his family and parent's home so that he is far from the pampering of the home. Learning out of comfort and laziness is not like learning out of effort and strengthening over difficulties. A hint to this: "my father and mother left me but G-d has gathered me in" (Tehilim 27:10).
Another explanation: one who needs to move residence and is unsure where to go. The Tanna tells him: "exile yourself to a place of torah". When you need to move for reasons of livelihood or some other reason - choose "to exile to a place of torah".
One who needs to find a home should first and foremost seek a place of torah, even if this entails difficulties in other areas.
The needs of the soul come before the needs of the body. The spiritual direction is more important than the directions of the air [in the apartment]..
In the talmud (Shabbat 147b): "his name is not 'Nehorai', but rather Rabbi Elazar ben Arach.. Why then was he called 'Nehorai'? Because he illuminates the eyes of the sages in Halacha".
Thus Nehorai was a nickname of one of the Tanaim (early sages) who merited this nickname due to his tremendous sharpness.. He was the epitome of one who illuminates the path [in torah]. Indeed Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai said he alone outweighed all the sages in Israel in torah (Avot 2:10).
From such a great sage, surely we should find many teachings in his name in the mishna. But actually we find his name very, very few times relative to his peers, Rabbi Yehoshua and Rabbi Eliezer. Where was this sage hidden?
Our sages teach that while the other sages remained in Yavne, the place of torah and the sages of the Sanhedrin, even after the death of Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai, Rabbi Elazar ben Arach went to "Diyomsit". Diyomsit was a place blessed with springs of water with healing effects. The place also excelled in wine making.
The talmud reports what happened to Rabbi Elazar ben Arach after he returned from that place, after a prolonged stay in this place of rest. He returned to his peers and wanted to return to his studies. He opened a chumash (torah) where the first mitzvah is written (Parsha Bo): "this month shall be to you.." (hachodesh haze lachem..)
Instead of saying "hachodesh haze lachem.." (this month shall be to you), he said by mistake "hacheresh haya lebam" (their heart was deaf)!
Due to the prolonged time he spent without his peers to push him in learning, he distanced so far from his studies that he erred even in identifying similar hebrew letters. The letter "Dalet" became "Reish", "zayin" became "yud", and "chaf" became "beit" and he said: "their hearts became deaf".
It was not a coincidence that he said these words. From Heaven, he was shown just how much the distancing from a place of torah damaged him. His wellspring was blocked and his heart closed. His mind no longer grasped words of wisdom, like a deaf man who hears nothing.
When his peers saw the extent of what happened, "they prayed for him and his torah returned". Through the power of their prayers, his peers, the great tannaim (mishnaic sages), restored his torah to him. But "a miracle does not occur every day". Not every person merits to friends on the level of the Tannaim who can repair what he corrupted.
Therefore, the Tanna exhorts every one of us: "exile yourself to a place of torah"!
"do not say your friends wil come after you" - in the talmud there (Shab.147b) it implies that desire for comfort is what drew Rabbi Elazar ben Arach to Diyumsat. There it says that the beautiful and healthy waters there: "destroyed 10 tribes of Israel". Rashi there explains: "they were drawn after enjoyments and busied in that instead of torah. Thus, they went out to evil ways."
Hence, it is the drawing after physical pleasures which prevents a man from toiling in torah study.
Even regarding Rabbi Elazar ben Arach, the talmud says there: "he visited there", but afterwards "he was drawn after it" - he was drawn after the pleasures (Rashi: after the wine and bathing). Thus, automatically: "his learning left him"..
In the Midrash (Kohelet Rabba 7): "Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai had five primary disciples.. when he died they went to Yavne except for Elazar ben Arach who went by his wife at Diyumsat.. At first he did not intend to leave his peers.
Rather, "he waited for them to come by him, but they did not come".
When he realized this, "he sought to go to them". He did not want to leave his friends. He realized the benefit of "acquire for yourself a friend" (Avot 1:6) for torah study. But his wife did not let him. She said to him: "who needs who? Who is the greatest sage of the group?"
He answered her: "they need me". The Rav (Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai) crowned him as the greatest of the disciples.
His wife further asked him: "a jug (of food) and mice. Do the mice go after the jug or the jug goes after the mice?" ie one who needs something needs to go after it. They need you. With these words, she injected the poison of arrogance in his heart and "he listened to her and sat until he forgot his learning"...
From here we learn the importance of being in a place of torah, even for a giant of giants like Rabbi Elazar ben Arach...