A long time ago, in a village far, far away, there were two brothers, Reuven and Shimon. Reuven and Shimon were very different in many ways. Reuven was always tired and sleep deprived; Shimon always got plenty of rest. Reuven was always busy, worried and stressed out; Shimon always took it easy. But there was one thing the brothers had in common: they both learned a lot of Torah.
After 120 years, the brothers went to shamayim. When they got to Gan Eden, Reuven was rewarded with a beautiful plot of land with flowers, fruit trees, a Shas, a Rambam, a Shulchan Aruch, and the Ran on Nedarim. However, Shimon was rewarded with a huge plot of land, with trees, flowers, birds, a waterfall, and a library full of Rishonim, Achronim, and Poskim, and wireless.
When Shimon saw this, he was very upset. He want to Hashem and said, “Hashem, I don’t understand. My borther worked so hard all his life. He was sleep deprived, stressed out, and worried, and yet he always found time to learn Torah. And how he learned Torah! He would not turn the page until he understood every word of the Gemara. I know that sometimes he would struggle with passages in the Gemara, so much so that sometimes he would not be able to sleep.”
“Hashem, You know that I did not learn Torah like that. I never had the kochos hanefesh that my brother had. If I didn’t understand something, I would read some mefarshim, think about it for a few minutes, maybe discuss it with my brother, and then, if I wasn’t getting anywhere, I would move on and forget about it.”
“There must be some mistake! I got the portion of Gan Eden that was clearly intended for my brother.”
“Do not worry about your brother, “ said Hashem. “He got the a beautiful portion in Gan Eden. But you got the portion that was intended for you.”
“When I learn Torah,” Hashem said, “do you think I’m tired, stressed out, and worried? Of course not. For Me, learning Torah is easy. Your brother learned Torah the way a man learns Torah, but you learned the way that I learn. You fulfilled the words of My Torah: in the image of God was Man created.”
“Effort and willpower is an aspect of the body, but wisdom is an aspect of the soul.”
This life is a constant struggle between the Yetzer Tov and the Yetzer Hara. The Yetzer Tov is like a tiny nation state surrounded on all sides by large enemy nations. The Yetzer Tov has no hope of overpowering the Yetzer Hara. The only hope of the Yetzer Tov is to have better weapons and better battle plans.
And lots and lots of siyata dishmaya.
After 120 years, the brothers went to shamayim. When they got to Gan Eden, Reuven was rewarded with a beautiful plot of land with flowers, fruit trees, a Shas, a Rambam, a Shulchan Aruch, and the Ran on Nedarim. However, Shimon was rewarded with a huge plot of land, with trees, flowers, birds, a waterfall, and a library full of Rishonim, Achronim, and Poskim, and wireless.
When Shimon saw this, he was very upset. He want to Hashem and said, “Hashem, I don’t understand. My borther worked so hard all his life. He was sleep deprived, stressed out, and worried, and yet he always found time to learn Torah. And how he learned Torah! He would not turn the page until he understood every word of the Gemara. I know that sometimes he would struggle with passages in the Gemara, so much so that sometimes he would not be able to sleep.”
“Hashem, You know that I did not learn Torah like that. I never had the kochos hanefesh that my brother had. If I didn’t understand something, I would read some mefarshim, think about it for a few minutes, maybe discuss it with my brother, and then, if I wasn’t getting anywhere, I would move on and forget about it.”
“There must be some mistake! I got the portion of Gan Eden that was clearly intended for my brother.”
“Do not worry about your brother, “ said Hashem. “He got the a beautiful portion in Gan Eden. But you got the portion that was intended for you.”
“When I learn Torah,” Hashem said, “do you think I’m tired, stressed out, and worried? Of course not. For Me, learning Torah is easy. Your brother learned Torah the way a man learns Torah, but you learned the way that I learn. You fulfilled the words of My Torah: in the image of God was Man created.”
“Effort and willpower is an aspect of the body, but wisdom is an aspect of the soul.”
This life is a constant struggle between the Yetzer Tov and the Yetzer Hara. The Yetzer Tov is like a tiny nation state surrounded on all sides by large enemy nations. The Yetzer Tov has no hope of overpowering the Yetzer Hara. The only hope of the Yetzer Tov is to have better weapons and better battle plans.
And lots and lots of siyata dishmaya.
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