Happiness is something we all aspire to. It is the way fairy tales end (“and they all lived happily ever after”). It is part of the American Dream, immortalized in the Declaration of Independence (“life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”). “Happiness” also features in this week’s Torah portion.
Ki Tavo is commonly associated with curses, (as is Bechukotai), but both are in fact a mix of blessings and curses. It is not surprising, then, that in Ki Tavo we find the commandment of simcha (happiness), both in the positive and the negative.
Following the bikkurim (First Fruits) mentioned at the beginning of the parsha, we have the positive statement: “And you will be happy in all the good that Hashem your G-d has given you, etc.” (Devarim 26:11). With the curses, we find the negative: “Since you did not serve Hashem your G-d in happiness, etc.” (Devarim 28: 47) – seemingly commanding us to be “happy,” and if we are not, then we can expect all the terrible curses listed in the parsha.
Interestingly the Sefer HaChinuch (siman 488) does not derive the mitzvah of happiness” from our parsha but rather from parshat Re’ei, in connection with the commandment to have simcha on the festivals (Devarim 16:14). The context that the Sefer HaChinuch is referring to here is not a general commandment to be “happy all the time,” but only on the festivals, by eating meat, drinking wine, wearing nice clothes, giving presents to our wives and children and, in the Mikdash, by playing musical instruments. From this, it would appear that there is no positive commandment to be “happy” at any other time than during the festivals.
However, this is not the case, as we see from the above verse in our parsha. In addition, King David says that we are required to serve Hashem with “happiness” (Tehillim 100:2). When does this apply? A slave is in a constant state of slavery. Unlike a day laborer, who, when he is finished working, is his own master, a slave is a slave 24/7 – constantly. Similarly, we are Hashem’s slaves constantly, 24/7. Therefore, our commandment to be “happy” means – constantly.
Why then does the Sefer HaChinuch limit the mitzvah of happiness only to the festivals? The answer is that there are different types of happiness. One type is part of our service of Hashem (which the Sefer HaChinuch addresses elsewhere, in siman 433), in which happiness is integral and assumed. The Sefer HaChinuch doesn’t even mention it there, it is just a given. There is another, different kind of happiness, one that is only required on festivals and requires a special positive commandment of its own.
Actually, “happiness” is not necessarily the correct English translation for the word simcha. As we said – there are different types of simcha and “happiness” is only one of them. There are in fact four types of simcha.
The first refers to a physical/material form, as specified by the Sefer HaChinuch regarding the festivals. A better translation for simcha in this context is “rejoicing” or “celebration.”
The second kind, integral to our service of Hashem, as mentioned in our parsha, is different. We are obviously not required to spend every day of our lives partying – eating, drinking and making merry (as on the festivals). This second type of simcha is better translated as shira, “praise.” The Zohar explains why King David was the greatest “poet” our nation has known because he was constantly singing Hashem’s praises. Even when he was in dire straits, he still managed to praise Hashem. That is what Tehillim is all about; it is not only being able to sing praise when we are feeling good but also when we are not.
The third type of simcha is more like a “state of mind,” not something to be expressed occasionally but constantly, 24/7, in the form of gratitude. To not take things for granted, even the “trivial” things we consider to be “the way of the world” and “normal,” and to constantly give thanks.
The fourth type of simcha is bitachon, living with a sense of certainty that whatever is happening, is for our good. Most of us stumble through life in time slices, not understanding what we are seeing, unable to connect the dots, bewildered by our perception of the current reality. We encounter what appears to us as hardship, strife, tragedy, or loss and we question, “Why is this happening to me? What did I do to deserve this? This fourth type of simcha is acceptance and certainty that whatever is happening to us at any time is for our ultimate benefit.
The simcha of the Torah is much deeper than Disney or American Dream concepts of happiness, which are superficial.
Most people consider the month of Elul to be a somber month, a month of serious introspection and repentance – and it is. However, it is also a month of simcha. The “hidden” gematria (using the nistar method) of Elul is the same as Adar. Just as we are commanded to increase our simcha in the month of Adar, so too should we in the month of Elul. Simcha, the Torah kind, elevates us to the highest level of spirituality.
A prophet only merits prophecy when they are in the state of mind of simcha. We need to increase activities that make us feel good, the spiritual, altruistic kind of “good.” Giving to others and being less selfish, intensifying our mitzvah observance across the board, uplifting our spirits with inspirational music (appropriate for the mood of Elul), and appreciating life to the fullest. This puts us in the right frame of mind to do teshuva, repentance the right way, and herald Rosh Hashana and the crowning of Hashem as king.
Parshat HaShavua Trivia Question: When Am Yisrael enters Eretz Yisrael, they are commanded to take large stones covered with plaster and write the Torah on these stones in 70 languages. What is the purpose of these stones?
Answer to Last Week’s Trivia Question: Why does the verse say, “When you [singular] go out to wage war on your enemies . . . [plural] (Devarim 21:10)”? Both should be in the plural. The Or HaChaim says that it is not referring to a “national” war, but our own “private” war with the yetzer hara, the evil inclination (that has seven names, therefore the plural).
