Thursday, April 11, 2013

Thursday's Parsha Tidbits - Parshios Tazria-Metzora

The following is a brief summary of thoughts said over by R' Frand on the parshios this evening. I have attempted to reproduce these vorts to the best of my ability. Any perceived inconsistency is the result of my efforts to transcribe the shiur and should not be attributed to R' Frand. 

R' Frand noted that in Parshas Metzora there is a pasuk (14:2) that this is the Torah of the Metzora on the day that he becomes pure, he shall be brought to the Kohen. The language of the pasuk is difficult to comprehend as the person is not brought to the Kohen on a stretcher. Furthermore, it differs in this capacity from a pasuk about the Nazir which is found in Parshas Nasso (6:13) where it is written - this is the law of the Nazir...he shall bring himself to the Ohel Mo'ed. 

R' Frand quoted R' Yeruchem (the Mirrer Rosh Yeshiva Ztl) who explains that the difference in language shows a fundamental difference between the two people. The Nazir is in charge of himself, while the Metzora is subject to other powers. The person becomes a Metzora for speaking lashon hara. He is not in charge of himself as his mouth or his yetzer hara controlled him. Since this person is not in charge of himself, he needs to be brought to Aharon. However, the Nazir exerts controls over himself. He saw that he could go down a slippery path, so he chose to abstain from wine. Since he is in charge of himself, he brings himself to the Ohel Mo'ed. 

R' Frand quoted a thought from R' Chaim Volozhin on the line - U'mosar HaAdam Min HaBeheima Ayin, Ki Hakol Havel. R' Chaim explains that what makes a man greater than an animal is that he has the ability to say "ayin" -no! An animal who is hungry has to eat, but a person who controls himself can stop. 

R' Frand also said a vort based on a Mishna in Negaim which says that a Kohen can review any nega (blemish), but if he has a nega himself, he can view it to see if it is pure/unclean. 

R' Frand said that there is a life lesson here - a person can see everyone else's faults, and not his own. This is one of the great challenges in life, as a person needs to look beyond his own personal biases. 

R' Frand told a story about a person who had a din Torah with the Shach. None of the Rabbis in the Shach's city wanted to hear the case. So they decided to go to a city where they did not know what the Shach looked like to have the din Torah. They chose a Rav to judge and presented their cases. The Rav heard the case and then ruled for the other man. At the close of the case, the Rav ruled against the Shach. The Shach accepted this, but asked the Rav why he ruled the way that he did. The Rav answered - because the Shach writes in Choshen Mishpat that this is the law. The Shach was floored. He had been so absorbed in the case that he had forgotten his own rulings on the issue. 

This is why a man was not allowed to evaluate his own blemishes. 

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