Preparing for Shavuos

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we approach Shavuos, we prepare ourselves to accept the Torah. Matan Torah wasn’t a one-time event; every year we receive the Torah anew. But I’ve always been irked by a basic question: How exactly do we prepare ourselves for this momentous day? We all want the Torah, and we’ll surely accept it. So what kind of preparation is necessary?

Conventional wisdom has it that Shavuos is all about accepting the yoke of Torah study, so many gear up by learning with greater intensity. For men who are obligated in Talmud Torah, this is undoubtedly part of the picture. But women and children also accepted the Torah at Har Sinai. There must be a more fundamental preparation for Kabbalas HaTorah that’s incumbent on every Jew.

To answer this question, we first need to take a closer look at Matan Torah. Matan Torah was a process. First, the entire Jewish nation said “Naaseh v’nishma,” agreeing to keep the Torah unconditionally. They did so completely out of their own volition. But then, Hashem raised Har Sinai over them, compelling them to receive the Torah.

This wasn’t unilateral coercion. Rashi in V’zos Habrachah explains that they pushed themselves under the mountain, binding their souls to Hashem as if by a knot. A knot’s purpose is to tie two items together, which necessitates limiting their freedom of movement. At that stage, Am Yisrael recognized that a true bond with Hashem required them to partially relinquish their freedom. Keeping the Torah was no longer a personal choice, but an unbreakable obligation.