trust in God

I certainly never got the trust in God (Bitahon) subject straightened out. I never knew [nor  know now] when it is proper to trust in God and when it is proper to make some effort. Even learning the two books of Musar that deal with this subject [חובות לבבות ומדרגת האדם] never helped me much in getting the subject straightened out in my own mind.
I assume the reason is the "need to know" thing that you have in the USA Military. This is one area where free will has to play a role and therefore it is left ambiguous.

In the Mir in NY they get a certain stipend from the government. And that much I got when I was married and part of the Mir Yeshiva  group of married guys that received that stipend.
I learned before I was married that people supplement that stipend in different ways.  In any case, after  a short time, I was invited to join the group in Meor Haim in Safed.

But the subject still remains fuzzy in my own mind. From what I can tell, if one can receive that stipend that the State of Israel offers, and just sit and learn, that is the best idea. Running around for money just does not seem like a great way to spend time when one can be learning Torah. There is also what I think is a somewhat better idea;- to be part of the kind of yeshivas that are coordinated with the State of Israel in such a way that one learns Torah for a few years, and then serves in the IDF for a year, and then back to learning. Back and forth. 

John Locke

The basic idea of John Locke about natural rights is not spelled out as clearly as one might expect in the Two Treaties of Government. But from the general approach he takes in most of his writings, you can see the basic idea. That man in a state of nature possesses all his rights.  But he is vulnerable. Without the State, he in effect has no rights because any criminal can come along and take what he wants from him. Without a state we would all we vulnerable to the very worst criminals--and the most evil and most violent would have all the power. So in order to form a state, we give up some natural rights. We pay taxes. And limit our activities to things that will not hurt others and we obey the law.
So to John Locke rights are not made by the state. People have natural rights that the State is there to protect. It is subtle and you do not see it clearly in the Two Treaties.

The right to self protection is therefore not made by the state. It is a natural right that no one gives up.

[There are problems however with the social contract theory as Danny Frederick pointed out. John Locke works better with a consequential theory that goes according to the lines of the Rambam. That most of the commandments including the one to have  a king are consequential. Their purpose is to bring to peace of the state.]

To continue in this same  line of reasoning Karl Popper pointed out that the best way to evaluate a system is to see the natural consequences of the system. Not to look to see how well it can be defended by logic. But the thing is that any system has already been tried. You never have to evaluate what would be the natural consequences of the system. All you need to do is to look at what were in fact the actual consequences that actually happened. That idea cancels almost any social system I can think of except the Constitution of the USA.

[I have noticed that German and English thought seem to excel in different areas.That is the English in the 1600 and 1700 set the foundations of the kind of thinking that created the USA. While German thought seems very weak in politics but gets to amazing depth in the natural sciences and in philosophy. Thus it seems to me when it comes to politics it is a good idea to read the English authors of the 1600's and 1700's. In fact there is no understanding of the USA Constitution without knowledge of the Glorious Revolution in England and John Locke and Defoe.

Bava Batra 102b

 In the Mishna in Bava Batra 102b it says the owner of a field says to another , "I will sell to you a field that contains one Koor".  [(75000 square yards)]. If there are there stones that are higher than 10 hand-breaths, or crevices that are deeper than 10 hand-breaths deep not measured with the field. The owner has to give a full Koor land usable land. If the rocks are less high or deep than 10, then they are included.  R. Isaac says those stones are 4 "Kav." [טרשים שאמרו  ד' קבים] The Rashbam says that means even rocks that are less that the 10 (עשרה טפחים), if they are horizontally 4 Kav or more, they are not included as part of the field, but the owner must make up for the space they take with usable land. Rav Ukba said those 4 Kav are in 5 Kav of land. [ והוא שמובלעים בה' קבים] Rav Hiya said "If they are in most of the field." [והוא שמובלעים ברובה של שדה] The next mishna [103b] says if one says "I sell about a Koor" then even a 1/4  kav in a  Seah is included. The amount 1/4 Kav in a Seah is 1/24.
 Rav Hiya Bar Aba disagrees with  Rav Ukba bar Hama. But in what way? Rav Ukba said 4 Kav stone in 5 Kav of land. In that  the stones that are up until 4 Kav horizontally, but less that 10 hand-breaths are measured with the field. But more that 4 Kav are not included. This amount of Rav Hiya goes along perfectly with the general idea that when one buys a Seah of grain, it is natural to expect 1/24 of dirt or pebbles got mixed up in it. Rav Ashi said "I sell a Koor" is the same as "I sell about a Koor." So presumably the entire first mishna is talking about a case of "about a Koor", but then if the deal would be for exactly a Koor, no stones would be allowed? That in any case seems to go along with Rava on page 90 כל דבר שבמידה אפילו פחות משתות חוזר [For anything that is measured, if the amount is at all different than the stated amount the whole deal is off. ] because of מקח טעות [faulty deal, or faulty purchase]. This in fact is the approach of Tosphot ד''ה אלא [circa page 104].
Tosphot asks from the Mishna that in the case the owner said I will sell to you about a Koor then even if 1/24 of land is not there at all, the deal is still valid. All the more so if the land is there but filled with stone. Tosphot answers the case of stones is meant to be able to be joined with lack of land. That is if lack of land along with stones of a   high density of 4 in 5 or 4 in most of the field  gets up to more than 1/24 [ שבריר אחד חלקי עשרים וארבעה] then the deal is null and void.

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 In the משנה in בבא בתרא דף ק''ב ע''ב  it says the owner of a field says to another , I will sell to you a field that contains one כור.   If there are there stones that are higher than עשרה טפחים, or crevices that are deeper than עשרה טפחים deep not measured with the field. The owner has to give a full כור land usable land. If the rocks are less high or deep than עשרה טפחים, then they are included.  רב יצחק says those stones are ארבע קבים. טרשים שאמרו  ד' קבים The רשב''ם says that means even rocks that are less that the עשרה טפחים, if they are horizontally ארבעה קבים or more, they are not included as part of the field, but the owner must make up for the space they take with usable land. רב עוקבא said those ארבעה קבים are in  חמישה קבים of land.  והוא שמובלעים בה' קבים Then רב חייא בר אבא said "If they are in most of the field." והוא שמובלעים ברובה של שדה The next משנה ק''ג ע''ב says if one says "I sell about a כור" then even a fourth of a קב in a  סאה is included. The amount a fourth of a קב in a סאה is אחד חלקי עשרים ארבעה.
 Then רב חייא בר אבא disagrees with  רב עוקבא בר חמא. But in what way? רב עוקבא בר חמא said  ארבעה קבים stone in חמישה קבים of land.  The stones that are up until ארבעה קבים horizontally, but less than 10 hand-breaths are measured with the field. But more that ארבעה קבים are not included. This amount of רב חייא בר אבא goes along perfectly with the general idea that when one buys a סאה of grain, it is natural to expect אחד חלקי עשרים ארבעה of dirt or pebbles got mixed up in it. רב שאי said "I will sell a כור" is the same as "I sell about a כור." So presumably the entire first משנה is talking about a case of "about a כור", but then if the deal would be for exactly a כור, no stones would be allowed? That in any case seems to go along with רבא on page צ' כל דבר שבמידה אפילו פחות משתות חוזר [For anything that is measured, if the amount is at all different than the stated amount the whole deal is off. ] because of מקח טעות faulty deal, or faulty purchase. This in fact is the approach of תוספות ד''ה אלא. There וספות asks from the משנה that in the case the owner said I will sell to you about a כור then even if אחד חלקי עשרים ארבעה of land is not there at all, the deal is still valid. All the more so if the land is there but filled with stone. תוספות answers the case of stones is meant to be able to be joined with lack of land. That is if lack of land along with stones of a   high density of 4 in 5 or 4 in most of the field  gets up to more than 1/24 שבריר אחד חלקי עשרים וארבעה then the deal is null and void.



במשנה בבא בתרא דף ק''ב ע''ב: הבעלים של מגרש אומרים ללוקח, אני מוכר לך שדה המכיל כור אחד. אם יש שם אבנים שגבוהות עשרה טפחים, או נקיקים עמוקים יותר מעשרה טפחים לא נמדדים עם השדה. לבעלים יש לתת את מלוא כור קרקע- קרקע שמישה. אם הסלעים הם פחות גבוהים או  הנקיקים עמוקים פחות מעשרה טפחים, אז הם כלולים. רב יצחק מחזיק בשיטה שאבנים אלה הן ארבעה קבים ברוחב. טרשים שאמרו ד' קבים. הרשב''ם כתב שזה אומר סלעים שהם פחות מעשרת הטפחים, אם הם באופק יותר מארבעת הקבים, הם אינם נכללים במסגרת השדה, אבל הבעלים חייבים לפצות על החלל עם קרקע שמישה. ולפי רב עוקבא אלה הארבעה קבים נמצאים בחמישה קבים של קרקע. היינו קב אחד של עפר וד' של אבן ביחד מגיעים לחמישה קבים (והוא שמובלעים בה' קבים). ולפי רב חייא בר אבא הוא שמובלעים ברוב השדה. הינו רב עוקבא בר חמא סובר ארבעה קבים אבן בחמישה קבים של הקרקע. האבנים שהן עד ארבעה קבים באופק, ופחות מעשרה טפחים בגובה נמדדות עם השדה. אבל יותר מארבעת הקבים אינם כלולים. סכום זה של רב חייא בר אבא הולך יחד באופן מושלם עם הדין הכללי שכאשר אחד קונה סאה של תבואה, טבעי הוא לצפות שאחד חלקי עשרים וארבע של עפר או חצץ התבלבל בה. רב אשי סובר "אני אמכור כור" זהה ל"אני מוכר  ככור". אז יש להניח שמשנה הראשונה כולה מדברת על מקרה של "כור" או "ככור", אבל  אם העסקה הייתה עבור כור בדיוק, לא שום אבנים יורשו.  בכל מקרה זה נראה שהולך יחד עם רבא בעמוד צ': "כל דבר שבמידה אפילו פחות משתות חוזר". [לכל דבר נמדד, אם הסכום הוא בכלל שונה מהסכום הנקוב, העסקה כולה בטילה.] היינו בגלל טעות במקח העסקה בטלה.  זה למעשה הוא הגישה של תוספות ד''ה אלא (ק''ד ע''א). שם תוספות שואלים מן המשנה כי במקרה שאמרו הבעלים שאני אמכור לך ככור, אז גם אם אחד חלקי עשרים וארבע אדמה חסר, העסקה עדיין בתוקף. על אחת כמה וכמה אם הקרקע נמצאת שם, אבל מלא אבנים. תוספות עונות המקרה של אבנים נועד להיות מסוגל שישולב עם מחסור בקרקע. כלומר אם מחסור בקרקע יחד עם אבנים של צפיפות גבוהה של ארבעה בחמישה או ארבעה ברוב של השדה קם ליותר מ 1/24  אחד חלקי עשרים וארבעה אז העסקה בטלה ומבוטלת.


The main thing I wanted to say was that you have to modify the case on age 102 to be like the case o age 103 "I will sell about a Koor" and after that I saw that that is exactly what Tosphot does.

Physics and Metaphysics bring one to love and fear of God.

It is hard to know what the Rambam meant by the idea he brings in the Guide for the Perplexed that learning Physics and Metaphysics brings one to love and fear of God. A few years ago, at the time I decided to start taking the Rambam seriously, I decided pretty much to concentrate on the Physics aspect of what he was saying.

[I first had to be sure that I was understanding the Rambam properly. So I looked at various different editions of the Guide and I looked carefully in the Mishne Torah also to see that this opinion of the Rambam was not just something he came to at the end of his life but rather was something he had held to even during the earlier years.]

It was not that I did not trust the judgment of the Rambam. It was rather that I figured I had enough to do with trying to get to Physics.

The way I approach this subject is not like they do in universities. There the basic idea that Physics is only for those who are talented at it. There is no concept there that it is a worthwhile project even for one who is not talented. With that approach I disagree. I base my approach on the Rambam and also the many Musar books that take the identical approach of the Rambam like the Obligations of the Heart חובות לבבות and מעלות המידות by Benjamin the Doctor. [A famous Musar book from the Middle Ages that used to be part of the regular set.] Thus a proper day of learning for me means about an hour of Physics and as much of Tosphot as I can fit into the rest of the day. [i.e. Gemara,  Tosphot and the Avi Ezri.]

[Since I admit I am not particularly talented, I do the basic kind of session that the sages said לעולם לגרס אינש אע''ג דמשכח ואע''ג דלא ידע מאי קאמר "One should learn by just saying the words and going on even though he forgets and even though he does not even know what he is saying." [That Gemara is brought I think in tractate Shabbat and Avoda Zara and also in te book of Musar אורחות צדיקים]


[It seems clear to me that in terms of Metaphysics the Rambam was referring to the book of Aristotle by that name.] Today if I had the time, in order to listen to the Rambam I would learn Plato, Aristotle, the Enneads, Kant, Hegel and Leonard Nelson (the Kant-Friesian approach).]


[But a lot of secular subjects are terrible waste of time. And most are absolutely harmful. My advocating the Rambam's Physics and Metaphysics in no way implies anything good about most subjects in high school.] I also am not sure what to think about the issue of "פרנסה" that is the reason most people learn secular subjects. That is one area I have to say that I think I failed in. For if I had just stuck with the Mir yeshiva path of just learning Torah and letting פרנסה [money] take care of itself, I think I would be doing a lot better today. But that fact that I failed in that test gives me no higher perspective to comment on the subject.

The signature of the Gra on the letter of excommunication

The signature of the Gra on the letter of excommunication is generally ignored even by people that try to follow the letter of the law and have "faith in the wise" concerning the Gra himself.
The reason is more or less connected with Ahijah Hashiloni the prophet who anointed Yeravam ben Navat as king over Israel [i.e. the ten tribes.]

Even though אחיה השילוני Ahijah does not get much space or attention in the Old Testament, he does get an extraordinary amount of attention from Rav Isaac Luria who held he was the greatest of all prophets after Moses. Yet the sum total effect of Ahiah seems to have been negative. He anointed Yeravam ben Navat who then proceeded to make two golden calves which resulted in the eventual disappearance of the ten tribes.
The reason is that sometimes a מכשול a stumbling block has to come into the world for unknown reasons and that itself gets Divine approval.

That does not mean the stumbling block is good. It means that according to some vast Divine plan it has to be there (even though it is evil).

The issue is what can be called a "Consciousness Trap." There are great and important ideas you might hear, but they are placed there in order to trap your mind and heart into the other things which are  there to hurt you. It is the Trojan Horse idea. Something that seems great and that you need, but there is a hidden poison inside.
But the fact that Yeravam ben Navat was set up by Ahijah meant that no one could stop it. The strength of the Dark Realm comes from what ever power they derive from holiness. Since the top and peak of all prophets [besides Moses] set it up, no one, not even Eliyahu nor any later prophets could change it.




Just for public information the basic idea of Rav Isaac Luria is that prophecy proceeds from נצח and הוד two Divine traits Victory and Splendor. The prophecy of Moses came from the face of both. The Ari then goes into details how the prophecy of Ahia was one step lower and that of Samuel and Eliyahu one step after that. [Ahiah from the front halves of the two. Shmuel from the front of Victory but not Splendor. Eliyahu from the back halves of both.]]

The basic idea here is the same as in honor of one's parents usually involves doing things that one does not understand, but simply takes on faith that one's parents know best. The idea is whom do you follow? Your own ideas or do you take the Ten Commandments seriously enough to disregard you own ideas and decide to listen to your parents? It is similar here. Do you follow you own ideas or do you in fact have "faith in the wise?"

Nowadays it is common to hear the phrase, "No one can tell me what to do." as an axiom of faith. This is in spite of the fact that it is obviously false. A person gets hired to work at the counter in a grocery store. It turns out he has sticky fingers when it comes to money. The manager comes over and asks him to stop pocketing the money. And he answers: "No one can tell me what to do."
You are on a scouting trip in the mountains, and you do not know how to put up your tent. You have been struggling for hours to make sense of it. Someone with more experience comes over, and tells you, "You are doing it wrong. Let me show you how it is done." And you answer "No one can tell me what to do."

You are in class with Paula who gets straight A's in all her subjects. You know you are bright, but you still just barely manage a B+ average. You get some problem in Algebra that you think you have the answer to. It turns out that Paula raises her hand and suggests a different answer than the one you got. How much confidence do you now have that your answer is right?


[Few people acknowledge or admit that they use their own intellect in deciding who to follow. They might claim they have "faith in the wise,"-- but they use their own intellect about who they call "wise" according to what they want to hear and what appeals to their own interests.]


After thought. The idea that the signature of the Gra has validity in law came to me when I was reading a commentary on the Rambam. The idea I saw there is that  חרם excommunication derives its legal status from the law about נדרים vows. The law of vows is a legal category from the Torah itself. The basic idea is that a person can forbid use of his object to another person by saying, "This object is to you like a קרבן sacrifice." And that had legal validity. That is where the strength of a excommunication comes from. That is: a court [even in Babylon where there was no ordination] has the ability to forbid interaction with any said individual by means of a חרם, and that has legal validity in so far as one that transgresses the rule gets on himself automatically the same status. [That is one who ignores a חרם is under the same חרם.]

There was a biography of the Gra that came out a few years back that I think also made this same point. However I never saw it. My conclusions are based on a book that had the actual transcripts and letters of the court at Vilna.

U-67 C Major   u67 midi  u67 nwc

 S-20 A Major [s20 midi] [s20 nwc]This S20 was put on the internet before, but I just did a few corrections that I think are very necessary. U-68 D Major mp3    [u68 midi]  [U68 nwc]

Mir Yeshiva in NY, the general approach.

I must say that in the Mir Yeshiva in NY, the general approach was more "global." The kind of small questions that I ask would not have  occupied much attention by Reb Shmuel Berenbaum, but rather big issue questions like how does this subject [sugia] relate to other sugiot as you would see in Reb Haim HaLevi's חידושי הרמב''ם or in Rav Shach's אבי עזרי.
But in Shar Yashuv, the kind of questions that would have been raised by Rav Naphtali Yeger were more of the kind that deal with "calculating the sugia".

While at the Mir itself I never got into the "big issues" types of learning. It is only later that I began  the Avi Ezri of Rav Shach and the חידושי הרמב''ם by Reb Haim Halevi. [Frankly speaking, I was no where near the general high level of learning that was at the Mir. Most of the learning there was somewhere in the stratosphere  while I was just barely prodding along. 
[I had done Hulin in my first year in Shar Yashuv. Then my mother died. Then my second year was spent doing Ketuboth. Then the third year was Yevamot then I went to the Mir in NY. There I did Nedarim and then Shabat and then got married and to Israel. Israel was amazing.]

Reb Shmuel himself could have written his own amazing ideas which were astonishing   insights along the lines the Reb Haim, but for some odd reason he and all the other amazing roshei yeshiva there confined themselves to just giving over their ideas in class. The only one who saw fit to write his stuff down was the the Sukat David, and that was only the beginner's level at the Mir. The other roshie yeshiva (as far as I know) never wrote down a word. It is sad. Every single class of Reb Shmuel was a astounding structure of amazing ideas.

I am upset that Reb Shmuel's classes were not written down. But there is nothing I can do about it. Thank God, at least Rav Shach wrote down his ideas which were along the same kinds of lines.

I any case, overall I have to admit the yeshiva experience in a genuine Litvak Yeshiva like the Mir in NY was an astounding experience. If people would know about what the authentic Litvak yeshiva experience is like, you would not be able to find room to sit down. Everyone would flock like bees to honey. But I have to add that a lot depend on the rosh yeshiva. The kind of person he is. [Because of some kind of Divine grace my steps were led to two amazing yeshivas, Shar Yashuv and the Mir of NY. But to merit to the real thing apparently is either from some kind of merit one needs or simple undeserved grace from above. ]

[The Mir and Shar Yashuv for me were very enjoyable I should add. I can not really say what aspect I found best.]  [At any rate, the main idea is to learn how to be a "mensch" and good traits along with the fulfillment of the command to learn Torah. All I am saying is that there are some institutions like Ponoviz in Bnei Brak or the Mir in NY which do in fact help to bring to these goals.]

The whole Litvak (Lithuanian Yeshiva) idea is quite remarkable in that it the closest thing I know of that brings to learning and keeping Torah. What I mean is that there are institutions that do a fairly good job in bringing about the basic goals that they believe in. The Litvak Yeshivas --at least in Bnei Brak and NY do a fairly good job.
[I might mention that the basic idea there was to learn Talmud and Musar. Musar is a small set of Ethical books that were authored during the Middle Ages, and  now also includes the works of the disciples of Reb Israel Salanter. These books I have to say are very impressive, and do a wonderful job in explaining the world view of the Holy Torah.]  

[In terms of general education before the yeshiva years, I ought to mention that I mainly hold with the Rambam about the importance of learning Physics and Metaphysics. Even though the Rambam openly said he was referring to how these subjects were understood in ancient Athens, I feel that today Quantum Mechanics, Field Theory, String Theory,  Kant and Hegel, the Enneads of Plotinus and of course Plato and Aristotle ought to be part of that. Obviously the Gra would have added Music and Astronomy also, but the above seems like a basic minimum.]
[I was officially in the class of Reb Shmuel Berenbaum, but I not go regularly. I also was there at his home almost every Shabbat even after I got married.]
I have gone back and forth on Hegel. While in NY I borrowed from the Brooklyn Public Library a Cambridge Companion to Hegel which I liked. Later I got into Kant, Leonard Nelson, and Kelley Ross and kind of accepted  along with their very amazing ideas also their negative attitude towards Hegel. At some point I decided to do a more thorough reading of Hegel on my own and then became very impressed again. The strong part of Hegel is Metaphysics. His weak part is politics.  Thus for politics I think it makes more sense to read the documents of the founding fathers of the USA.