Parashat Vaera- Gratitude
Parashat Vaera tells of the first plagues which God brought upon Egypt. The Rabbis noted that in the first three plagues, it was Aharon, rather than Moshe, who performed the act through which the plague surfaced. Before the plague of blood, for example, God commanded Aharon to lift his staff upon the river, which then turned to blood. The plague of frogs similarly began when Aharon lifted his staff over the river, and the third plague, lice, came about when Aharon struck the earth with his staff. In all three instances, God instructed that Aharon, rather than Moshe, should be the one to bring about the plague.
The Rabbis explained that it would have been inappropriate for Moshe to smite the river or the earth, because of the protection they had granted him. As an infant, Moshe was placed in a basket in the river where he escaped the Egyptian officials who had come to kill him. Later, Moshe killed an Egyptian taskmaster who was beating a Hebrew slave, and he covered the body with earth so that he would not be discovered. Since Moshe benefited from the river and the earth, he was not allowed to bring about the first three plagues, which entailed smiting the river and the earth.
This concept, of course, requires clarification. While we can all easily understand the importance of "Hakarat Hatob" – extending gratitude – this should seemingly apply only to people; we should show appreciation to people who acted kindly to us. But why should we show gratitude to inanimate objects, like rivers and dust? Would they have been insulted had Moshe afflicted them with plagues?
Later Sadikim also followed this principle, of showing gratitude to inanimate objects. The story is told of a man who came to the Rif (Rabbi Yishak of Fez, Morocco, 1013-1103) to ask for legal guidance in selling a bathhouse that he had owned and operated. The man had come upon hard times and was therefore forced to sell the building. He approached the Rif to ask him to draft the documents so that the sale would be effective and binding according to Halacha. The Rif, however, refused to take part in any aspect of the sale, because he had used the bathhouse on several occasions. As he had derived benefit from the bathhouse, he felt it improper to participate in the process of closing it down.
How should we understand this concern for showing gratitude to a bathhouse?
Rav Eliyahu Dessler (1891-1954) explained that had Moshe struck the river or the earth, this would have diminished – if only slightly – from his sensitivity toward the importance of gratitude. The character trait of "Hakarat Hatob" is so central and so significant that we cannot allow ourselves to lose even the slightest degree of sensitivity to this value. Of course, the river would not have been affected at all had Moshe struck it with his staff. But this might have dulled his sensitivity toward "Hakarat Hatob" and the importance of recognizing and feeling grateful for all that others have done for him.
Feeling gratitude to other people is a critical first step toward feeling gratitude to God. We read in last week’s Parasha that "a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Yosef" (1:8). The Midrash comments that this failure to "know" Yosef, to recognize and appreciate all that Yosef had done for Egypt, is what led Pharaoh to later declare, "I do not know God" (5:2). If a person does not accustom and train himself to appreciate what others do for him, then he will also fail to recognize and feel grateful for all that God does for him. And when one cannot appreciate everything that God does for him, he is unlikely to ever feel happy and content. If a person focuses his attention only on what he does not have, rather than feeling grateful for what he does have, then he will be bitter and frustrated, and never experience contentment.
The Sages therefore impressed upon us the importance of gratitude – of feeling genuinely grateful for all that we have, for all that other people and God do for us, so that we can experience true joy and contentment throughout our lives.
