Ki Tavo | Parashat Bikkurim

 

Summarized by Rav Eliyahu Blumenzweig

 

 

            Many diverse commandments are included in the category of "mitzvot ha-teluyot ba-aretz" (commandments dependent on - i.e. which are to be fulfilled only in - Eretz Yisrael). In the case of some of these, e.g. the mitzvot pertaining to the libation offerings, there is no clear logical connection to Eretz Yisrael, and in some cases the connection is not even made explicit in the Torah.

 

            The mitzva of bikkurim (the offering of the first-fruits), which is mentioned in our parasha and which is obviously included in the category of the "mitzvot ha-teluyot ba-aretz," is different in both respects. Firstly, the issue of bikkurim is discussed explicitly and in great detail in the Torah. And secondly, aside from the clear connection of this mitzva to Eretz Yisrael, the very fulfillment of the mitzva involves an expression of this connection - i.e. in the prescribed recitation over the bikkurim: "My father was a wandering Aramean... The Lord freed us from Egypt... He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey, wherefore I now bring the first fruits of the soil which You, O Lord, have given me" (Devarim 26:5-10). The unusual detail of this mitzva and the extra emphasis on its connection with Eretz Yisrael call for an explanation.

 

            "And it shall be when you come to the land..." - Bnei Yisrael's entry into the land poses a serious, three-fold danger:

 

            Firstly, their wanderings in the desert had inculcated in them a strong consciousness of their complete dependence on God - an awareness that, without Him, they would not be able to exist at all. For forty years they had wandered in the desolate wilderness, with all their needs miraculously taken care of through God's performance of miracles. This Divine assistance was an integral part of every aspect of their lives, from the bread and meat that they ate to the pillar of fire that led them by night and the pillar of cloud by day. Each person was clearly and unquestionably aware that his entire existence was dependent on God, and that without Him he would be nothing. The entry into the land threatened this clear consciousness. Now each person would inherit his portion of the land and would start to live a natural life, according to natural laws and regular processes. In such a situation, one can easily lose his feeling of dependence on God and start to feel that he relies completely on himself - that one's sustenance depends only on his own efforts, that his entire existence depends on his own abilities and endeavors, and that he rules his own fate. The danger of descent into apostasy is not far off.

 

            Secondly, there lurks a danger from the communal point of view. The nation now entering its land will build its own social framework, with a governing body and all the attendant institutions. The individual may start to perceive himself as being dependent on the social authorities and rulers of the state, viewing them as the determining factors for all that happens in his life. After all, the government provides all his needs and requirements, it is the supreme power ruling his life, and he is completely dependent on it. Here, therefore, the danger tends towards idolatry.

 

            Thirdly, the relationship between man and nature and his feeling of connection with it may lead to paganism. The earliest symptoms of paganism involved a perception of powerful natural forces as supreme, ruling powers. Man, who throughout his life depends on natural forces - the fertility of the ground, the dew of the heavens, the light and warmth of the sun - feels within himself the authority of nature. He experiences first-hand the tremendous powers which lead, rule and direct the course of his life, all of humanity, all of creation. Indeed, although the yetzer ha-ra (evil inclination) towards idolatry ceased to exist long ago, this particular aspect of it - the perception of nature as a supreme, central power - still exists today. This paganism has never disappeared.

 

            The mitzva of bikkurim comes to counter this three-fold danger, for the entire mitzva aims to inculcate in the individual a strong feeling that his entire life is dependent on God, and that without Him he is nothing.

 

            With regard to the first and the third danger, the Jew is obligated to bring the first produce of his land, the harvest of the success of his efforts, to God's Temple. Here he is commanded to proclaim that it is neither by virtue of his abilities and his activities nor thanks to the powerful forces of nature that all this bounty is his, but rather because of God's generosity. This declaration at that location heightens his feeling that it is God who watches over him, He rules him and He gives him life.

 

            The lengthy recitation also guards him from the second danger. The Jew recounts the history of the nation from its very creation, describing how the nation has been directed by God from that time until the present.

 

            Hence, in the recitation over the bikkurim the individual emphasizes his state of lowliness and helplessness when bereft of Divine assistance and left to direct his own life. He implores God to watch over him from His holy abode, to bless him and his efforts, and he emphasizes his critical need for God's help, his connection to his Creator.

 

            The above idea is also expressed in our recitation of Selichot.

 

            There are two contrasting themes running through the Yamim Nora'im (High Holy Days). On one hand, we emphasize the lowliness and weakness of man, comparing him to a worm beside the King of Kings. On the other hand, it is man himself who coronates the King of Kings. This great power rests in his hands.

 

            In our Selichot we emphasize the first aspect - not from a negative point of view, i.e. the helplessness of man, but rather from a positive point of view, i.e. the crucial need for a relationship with God and our dependence on Him, which are also emphasized, as we have explained, in the recitation over the bikkurim.

 

            The Jew is required to inhabit the most lofty abode of connection to God - not with a feeling of spiritual luxury, not out of an aspiration for spiritual ease and comfort, but rather out of pure necessity. This need arises out of the awareness that without a total connection with the Creator, without the closest possible relationship with Him, man has no existence at all.

 

(Originally delivered on Shabbat Parashat KiTavo 5731.

 

Translated by Kaeren Fish.)