The Eyes of Comfort

In the winter of 2002, the community of Otniel was searching for comfort. On a Friday night in the midst of the Second Intifada, two terrorists from Palestinian Islamic Jihad broke into the Otniel Hesder Yeshiva and murdered four students. The terrorists had planned to get into the dining room packed with 100 students enjoying their Shabbat meal, but the four students in the kitchen locked the kitchen doors, sacrificing their own lives to save the lives of many. Yehuda Bamberger, Gavriel Hoter, Zvika Ziman, and Noam After were killed al kiddush Hashem, and the community of Otniel was devastated.

Rabbi Beni Kalmanson, the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Otniel, turned in his hesped to the ultimate comforter in Jewish tradition, Rabbi Akiva. The final passage of Makkot describes how when the Sages were walking together and saw the ruins of the Second Temple, while they cried, Rabbi Akiva laughed. “Just as the prophecies of destruction have come true, so too the prophecies of redemption will come true,” he told the surprised rabbis. “Akiva nichamtanu, Akiva nichamtanu, Akiva you have comforted us, Akiva you have comforted us,” the rabbis replied. What was it, asked Rabbi Kalmanson, that allowed Rabbi Akiva to maintain this positive attitude? How could he see the ruins of the Temple and still be able to laugh as he saw a positive future? What allowed him to survey destruction but envision redemption?

Rabbi Kalmanson quoted another Gemara that sheds light on the spiritual uniqueness of Rabbi Akiva. The Talmud describes how four Sages entered the “Pardes,” the realm of spiritual speculation and mysticism, and while three Sages were “harmed,” Rabbi Akiva emerged unscathed. Homiletically, the Talmud is teaching that Rabbi Akiva was able to delve into the spiritual depths of the Torah to a different level than other Sages. But for Rav Kalmanson, this became a defining feature of Rabbi Akiva’s personality. The depths of Torah were open to him, as he recognized that there was deeper meaning than the plain pshat, the plain meaning of words. And what is true for Torah is true in life; when he witnessed tragedy, he was not bound only by what he saw in front of him but was able to perceive and understand even that which is not immediately seen. “That which is visible is sometimes fleeting, and partial, and not reflective of the fuller, deeper truth… To understand things truly, one needs the eyes of the Pardes and the ability to see beyond that which is visible.” This was the uniqueness of Rabbi Akiva, who could perceive reality beyond what was physically visible. And in moments of tragedy, this ability made him uniquely able to comfort.

Nationally, we have experienced tremendous loss this year, and we are seeking comfort. On a personal level, Rabbi Beni Kalmanson himself experienced loss when his son Elchanan hy”d heroically gave his life in Be’eri on Simchat Torah, having driven from Otniel to save people from their safe rooms (“Gibor Yisrael: The Heroic Story of Elchanan Kalmanson”, HaMizrachi Chanukah 5784, Vol. 6, No. 6). And if we merely look at what meets the eye, there has been much that is depressing. An ongoing war, an ongoing hostage crisis, tens of thousands of Israelis displaced from their homes, too many young people being killed for their homeland, and a returning political divide. If we only look at what we see in the news, we can fall into depression. We too need the eyes of Rabbi Akiva, to not be bound only by what meets the eye, but to be able to see and envision something beyond. “שַׂמְּחֵנוּ כִּימוֹת עִנִּיתָנוּ, Bring us joys like the days of our suffering” (Tehillim 90:15).

May we too see the prophecies of redemption fulfilled and experience days, months, and years of joy after this difficult chapter.

Rabbi Aron White is the Managing Editor of HaMizrachi magazine.