Listen Again

Next week, we will relive the glorious day of Maamad Har Sinai. The Torah warns us not to forget that event as long as we live. The Ramban says that we fulfill this mitzvah by learning Torah, because by doing so, we internalize the emunah that Torah is min haShamayim.

When we learn Torah, we should experience it as coming from above, utterly beyond us. The word “Shamayim” is the plural of sham, meaning “over there.” When you learn Torah properly, every time you think you finally understand, you see that the full truth is still “over there,” always beyond reach. When we learn Torah and see that its depth is ever beyond us, we experience firsthand that Torah is min haShamayim.

The Torah is “wider than the sea” (Iyov), but it’s also deeper. And as with the sea, its depth is concealed. A person can sail across the whole ocean, blissfully enjoying its beauty, and never even realize that a whole new world exists beneath its surface.

How do we peer beneath the surface of Torah? Many people think you experience the depth of Torah by learning the writings of the Maharal, or the Arizal. Learning these areas of Torah is a good way to remind ourselves of the Torah’s unfathomable depth. But we mustn’t forget that everything in Torah is infinitely deep. Everything.