Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai wrote the Zohar, a book that contains the deep hidden secrets of the Torah. One of the key lessons he taught us was the power of each individual Jew. Everyone has a portion and a letter in the Torah. If even one letter is slightly cracked, the Torah becomes pasul (invalid). This teaches us that every Jew is essential and that together we comprise the word of Hashem. If even one person doesn’t live up to his potential, then the Torah,in a sense, becomes flawed and the world cannot function at its fullest state. Rabbi Shimon taught that every person contains great holiness that deserves respect. When we rejoice on Lag B’Omer, we not only mark the death of Rabbi Shimon, but celebrate his life and the lessons he left us.
The seven weeks of Sefirah parallel the seven species for which the Land of Israel is praised for. Lag B’Omer falls out in the fifth week, which corresponds to the rimon (pomegranate), the same letters as Meron, the city where Rabbi Shimon is buried. The Sages said, “Even the empty ones among Israel are filled with mitzvot like a rimon.” This echoes the message of Rabbi Shimon. Every Jew, no matter how low he has fallen, deserves respect.
The bonfires on Lag B’Omer signify the fiery passion for Hashem that is awakened within us on this day. Rabbi Shimon taught that if we would know the tremendous love Hashem has for us, we would be filled with a deep reciprocal love for Him that would erupt within us.
Lag B’Omer is a time to recognize our significance, to feel and awaken within ourselves our connection to Hashem, to sense His deep love for us. It is a day of intense prayer, when we can pour out our hearts in supplication before our Creator. It is a time to pause and experience that feeling of the heavens opening up and accepting our prayers. May all our deepest wishes be answered for good.
Chazal say, “Derech eretz kadma l’Torah.” Before we can become a receptacle for Torah we need to work on our middot. The Sages say, “If a person says, ‘Let me learn, let me be filled with wisdom, and then I will work on my middot,’ all of one’s wisdom and much of one’s Torah will be lost.” The period of Sefirat HaOmer is a time to work on the 48 ways through which the Torah is acquired. The sixth chapter of Pirkei Avot lists these qualities, which include listening attentively, serving Hashem with joy, knowing one’s place and making a Rebbe for oneself. These 48 ways parallel the 48 days between Pesach and Shavuot. The 49th day is a review.
In Pirkei Avot, Rabbi Elazar ben Arach says that the most important thing is to have a lev tov (good heart). The numerical value of lev is 32, tov is 17; together they equal 49. The first 32 days of Sefirah correspond to lev. It is a time to focus on our hearts and to internalize the message of the death of the students of Rabbi Akiva. It’s a time to work on mitzvot between man and man, to treat others with respect,and to become kinder and more giving people. Lag B’Omer is the turning point. As we approach the last two-thirds of Sefirat HaOmer, we concentrate on the lekach tov, the goodness that is Torah. We should focus on mitzvot between ourselves and Hashem and to prepare to receive the Torah anew. Only after we have ascended the 49 rungs of Sefirah, having worked through all the middot, can we stand ready to receive the Torah on Shavuot.
Mrs. Shira Smiles, a lecturer, author and curriculum developer, is a member of the Mizrachi Speakers Bureau (www.mizrachi.org/speakers).
- The RZA-Mizrachi is a broad Religious Zionist organization without a particular political affiliation.
