Shavuos

Commentary by Rabbi Ephraim Nisenbaum

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Seven weeks after the Jewish people left Egypt, G-d felt they were ready to receive the Torah, the purpose of their redemption from Egypt. After camping at Sinai, the people purified themselves three days prior to receiving the Torah, in preparation for the event. In many ways this purification and preparation were like a conversion of sorts, enabling the people to accept the mitzvos and become a nation. It is interesting to note that the account of the experience at Sinai follows the account of the conversion of Yisro, Moshe’s father-in-law.

That is one of the reasons it is customary to read the Book of Ruth on Shavuos. The Book of Ruth is also the story of a famous convert, who went on to become the great-grandmother of King David and the Messianic dynasty.

At Mount Sinai the people heard the Ten Commandments. The Midrash explains that when G-d uttered the first two commandments, the experience was too powerful for the people to behold. They pleaded to Moshe that they would die if they heard any more. Moshe then repeated the remainder of the Ten Commandments to the nation. The Talmud finds a hint to this in the passage, “Moshe commanded us the Torah..”. The numerical value of the Hebrew word “Torah” is 611. This alludes to the 611 mitzvos, besides the two that the people heard directly from G-d.

Although the people only heard the Ten Commandments on that day, all the mitzvos are alluded to in the Ten Commandments. That is why we say that the Torah was given on this day, despite the fact that they only heard the Ten Commandments.

After the Commandments, Moshe climbed the mountain where he remained for forty days. During that time he received all the details of the mitzvos. This is referred to as the Oral Tradition. G-d also dictated to Moshe the Written Torah, from the beginning of Bereishis (Genesis) until the middle of Exodus, where it describes the Sinai experience. Moshe transcribed everything he was told. The remainder of the Torah was dictated to Moshe throughout the rest of the forty years in the desert.

Shavuos is the day we celebrate the Sinai Revelation. It is the day we are supposed to rededicate ourselves to Torah study and observance.

“…the time of the Giving of our Torah…”

Rav Chaim Volozhiner says that the greater the joy a person experiences when studying Torah, the more he will be able to remember it.

The Chafetz Chaim related how he had heard an old man describe the Kaiser’s visit to his village over seventy years earlier. The man recalled the color of the Kaiser’s hat, his horse, and the minutest details. Since the experience had left such an impression on the man, he had no trouble remembering every part of the experience. Were we to be as excited about Torah, we, too, would remember everything we learned.

Did You Know...

There is a question if a person stays up all night regarding the recital of the blessings on the Torah in the morning. If he took a nap in the afternoon prior, he may recite the blessings. If he did not, he should listen to someone else who slept recite the blessings and thus fulfill his own obligation.

Alternatively, he may fulfill his obligation by saying the blessing Ahava Rabba, before the Shema. In that case, he should make sure to study Torah immediately after the prayers.

When one sleeps during the day, he does not recite the blessings on the Torah upon rising.