This week we begin the fifth and final book of the Torah with “Devarim”(words of rebuke). Basically “Devarim” is devoted to Moses farewell address before he passes away to the Jewish people and they are finally ready to enter the Land of Israel with Yehoshua as their new leader.
This book is mostly concentrated in rebuking the Jewish Nation and it reminds them of their mistakes during their forty years in the desert so the will learn from them and not repeat them again.
The beauty is that when Moses is rebuking the Nation he first mentions the places where the sins where committed without mentioning their downfalls. He did this so their dignity would be kept intact and they wouldn’t feel humiliated.
Rabbi Yehuda Leib Chasman teaches that from here we learn that when a person is sincerely interested in self-improvement and growth he only needs a slight hint to realize that he has done something wrong.
Rabbi Yisroel Salanter,father of the Mussar movement, would always utilize every opportunity to gain mussar (instruction in correcting character traits) insights and to motivate himself to always improve. Once he was by a shoemaker who would work until late hours of the night, he asked him:” why do you work so late? Your candle is almost burning out.” The shoemaker answered: “as long as the candle is still burning it is still possible to accomplish and mend.”
Rabbi Salanter took it to heart and said: “if for our physical needs as long as the candle is burning one keeps mending, all the more so for our souls, as long as the light of the soul is still going we must make every effort to accomplish and mend.”
Rosh Chodesh Tov
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