Va'Era 5766
Avoiding Hurtful Speech
We read in Parashat Va’Eera of the onset of the ten plagues that G-d brought upon Egypt as punishment for their refusal to release Benei Yisrael. Before the first plague, the plague of blood, G-d instructs that Aharon should strike the river with his staff, thereby turning the river into blood. The Sages explained that G-d did not want Moshe to strike the river because of the debt of gratitude he owed the river for protecting him when he was an infant. Moshe's sister placed him in a basket and set the basket afloat in the river so that he would escape the authorities who had come to kill him. It would have therefore been inappropriate for Moshe to strike the very waters that had given him protection when his life was in danger. This of course teaches us about the importance of showing gratitude and appreciation, to the point that we must feel indebted even towards inanimate objects that have somehow served or assisted us.
Earlier in this Parasha, however, we read of another instance where it was Aharon, rather than Moshe, who was called upon to act, and in that context the explanation of Moshe's indebtedness does not apply. G-d instructed that Moshe and Aharon should confront Pharaoh, and Aharon would then cast his staff onto the ground, at which point it would transform into a snake. Why was this instruction directed specifically towards Aharon? Here there was no issue of a debt of gratitude that Moshe owed to one of the objects involved. Why, then, did G-d not want Moshe to throw the staff and have it turn into a snake?
The answer emerges from an incident recorded in last week's Parasha, Parashat Shemot. When the Almighty appeared to Moshe at the burning bush and commanded him to go to Egypt and free Benei Yisrael, Moshe initially refuses, claiming that Benei Yisrael would not believe that G-d had sent him, and they would thus not accept him as their leader. G-d then told him that he should throw his staff in the presence of Benei Yisrael and it would transform into a snake, proving that G-d had spoken to him. The Sages tell us that the snake is the symbol of Lashon Ha'ra (negative speech about others): just as a snake derives no benefit from injecting venom in its victims, so does the speaker of Lashon Ha'ra gain nothing from talking negatively about other people. G-d therefore responded to Moshe's accusation against Benei Yisrael by instructing him to turn his staff into a snake, as an indication to Moshe that he spoke improperly about Benei Yisrael, that he was wrong in accusing G-d's people of lacking faith.
For this reason, when it came time for Moshe and Aharon to perform this miracle in Pharaoh's presence, it was specifically Aharon, rather than Moshe, who was to turn the staff into a snake. It is forbidden by Halacha to remind a person of his past sins and wrongdoing, as this causes him unnecessary shame and distress. Moshe had learned the lesson G-d sought to teach him and regretted having wrongly accused Benei Yisrael. Had he now been told to do this very same act – of casting his staff on the ground and turning it into a snake – he would have been reminded of his earlier mistake. In order to spare Moshe the shame and anguish that result from being reminded of one's mistakes of the past, G-d commanded Aharon, rather than Moshe, to cast the snake on the ground before Pharaoh.
This demonstrates, of course, just how sensitive we must be in speaking to other people, and the need to avoid saying anything that might cause any kind of hard feelings. We must carefully weigh our words and consider how we would react if we were spoken to in the same way in which we talk to others. Before we speak, we should ensure that what we say will make the other person happy, and not, G-d forbid, cause him humiliation or distress. And if we have something negative and hurtful to say, better that we simply not say it at all.
