We tend to look at Reb Shayele of Kerister as the ultimate giver. But what did Reb Shayele get from all his giving? Of course, his giving was l’shem shomayim, but it’s still worthwhile for us to understand what the Tzadik himself gained from his giving l’shem Shomayim.
The Baal Shem Tov taught that the Hebrew word for ‘guest’, אורח, is made up of the words אור-ח, ‘the light of 8’. The number 7 signifies the natural order of the world, the very nature of which is limitation and constriction. The number 8 represents something above and beyond nature, something that is not limited to the tzimtzum of what is “normal”.
The Baal Shem Tov is teaching us that when a Yid welcomes a guest into his home, the guest brings with him the אור-ח, the light of 8, a shefa that goes beyond the logic of economics.
This gives us a very different way of looking at a guest! We normally think that the host is the giver, and the guest is the receiver, but the Baal Shem Tov seems to be teaching the exact opposite — it is the guest who is bringing shefa to the host!
Another scenario where we find this apparent paradox is when it comes to teaching Torah. The Gemarah says:
רבינא אמר: כל האוהב ללמד בהמון – לו תבואה. והיינו דאמר רבי: הרבה תורה למדתי מרבותי, ומחבירי יותר מהם, ומתלמידי יותר מכולן
Anyone who loves to teach in abundance, to him shall be increased, as Rebbi said: “Much Torah have I studied from my teachers, and I have learned more from my colleagues than from them, and I have learned more from my students than from all of them.”
Some say that the ‘way this works’ is that the students ask great questions, which forces the teacher to sharpen their own understanding of the topic at hand. But this explanation doesn’t fit well with the other parts of the statement from the gemara, and so there must be a deeper explanation of this gemara.
The deeper reason for this is that when a person learns for his own sake, so that he can understand and know, then the amount of understanding he attains is limited to his keilim (vessels), his own ability to grasp the concepts and understand.
But if a person’s driving motivation is to be mashpia and to teach Torah to others, then the shefa of his own understanding is not limited to his own keilim. The very fact that his intention is to give to others causes Hashem to give him a level of understanding of Torah that is far beyond his “normal” capabilities, and he becomes like an overflowing cup that fills up the cups surrounding it.
This is also what it means that a guest brings the host the אור-ח. Although it looks like the host is the mashpia, taking care of the needs of his guest, and giving him what he needs. But the truth is that it is the guest who is mashpia the אור-ח on his host, giving his host the ability to give with shefa, a generous abundance that goes far beyond the natural keilim of the host.
What Reb Shayele got from all his giving was his ability to give! The only reason he wanted anything was in order to give it to another Yid. Every time he gave, he received the אור-ח, which brought him more and more resources way beyond the normal keilim of any individual.
Because Reb Shayele’s entire essence was one of giving, and all he wanted to be was a pipeline to bring shefa and bracha to his fellow Yidden. Because of this, his keilim expanded well past anything that was possible in the natural order of the world, and that is why he was able to help so many thousands of Yidden.
The Bottom Line
If we seek shefa in order to share it with others, rather than receive and enjoy it ourselves, Hashem sends us the resources to be able to give far beyond our “normal” means.
This article was found in Nekuda Tova Issue 77.
