Devarim: A Way With Words

Parshat Devarim
 
“These are the words that Moshe spoke to all Israel” (Devarim 1:1).
 
Everyone has experienced it. We all know the feeling. You speak, but the person you are talking to just doesn’t hear. Sometimes it’s your kids or spouse, sometimes your boss or your employee. What’s missing? Why does what you are trying to communicate fall on deaf ears?
 
Every human being was created with a unique gift, the power of speech. As it says at the beginning of the Torah, “and He blew into his nostrils the soul of life”. Rashi explains that the meaning of the “soul of life” is the power of speech! Words are the power that separates us from animals. Speech is the tool with which we accomplish things in this world, whether in our homes or in business.  Using speech, one can achieve his divine mission in this world.
 
The great Tzaddik Rav Moshe Kabriner once attested to the awesome power of words. He recalled that at age 6 on the Shabbos before Rosh Chodesh Elul he was playing with his friends. He heard his older sister calling him with great conviction. “Moshele,’ she shouted, “We already said the blessing for the new month of ELUL! Even the fish in the sea are shaking in fear (of divine judgment) and you are still playing with your friends!” Rav Moshe testified that these words changed his life!
 
How did she her words motivate him to such a degree?
 
Rebbe Nachman in Likutei Moharan 29 reveals to us the secret of effective communication. There the Rebbe reveals that not all words are called words, for those that are not heard are not called words! What is the essential ingredient that makes our words penetrate the heart and mind of another person? The good within the words.  Everyone loves good. The Torah, and it’s wisdom are called the ultimate good. Therefore when words are drawn from Da’at, Torah wisdom, they are good and they will be heard.
 
This was Moshe’s line of reasoning with Hashem in this week’s Medrash (Medrash Raba D’varim 1:1) when he said, “I am not a man of words.”  This was before Moshe merited to learn Torah and his words did not yet possess the desire level of goodness. After the giving of the Torah his speech was healed, as it says in Mishlei 15:4, “The tree of life (Torah) heals the tongue.” Therefore, on Rosh Chodesh Iyar, Moshe stood up with great confidence in front of the Jewish people and in 70 languages expounded, “THESE ARE THE WORDS!” How did he make this awesome transformation in him speech? Torah! 
 
In this world, each person is granted an area of rulership. Each person with the power of his speech is like a king who rules his people with his decrees. When one learns Torah he gives strength to his dominion, his kingship. After forty years in the desert, constantly teaching Torah to the Jewish people, Moshe rose to an exalted level of rectified speech.
 
What about us? Even though we will never reach the lofty level of perfection of Moshe, Rebbe Nachman teaches us that even a small but consistent commitment in learning will greatly improve our quality of speech. Whether studying the weekly Torah portion or the Jewish Codes we are lifted up, infused with grace and we become effective communicators.
 
Without a doubt, we all want to be heard and understood by our fellow man. But there is another aspect of our speech that is even more important. That is using our words in communication with Hashem—our hitbodedut. The learning of Torah refines our voice, the Torah enriches us with ammunition; new arguments to win over Hashem that He should have mercy on us and receive our prayers. When our mouths are full of G-dliness, goodness, with the proper prayers, if we could say, one rules over Hashem!
 
Reb Nosson composed prayers on many of Rebbe Nachman’s teachings. These prayers are invaluable to those serious students who long to integrate these teaching into their hearts. Often these prayers also reveal novel perceptions on the teachings. Corresponding to the lesson being discussed here, (Likutei Moharan 29) Reb Nosson writes in Likutei Tefillos 29:
 
“My G-d and G-d of my fathers, when I need to speak to You and pray to You for my needs, let me always speak words of goodness and grace, and let my prayers and supplications find favor in Your eyes. Let my words enter Your heart…So too, when I want to speak to myself and remind myself to stop being cruel to my body, my soul and my spirit, and to have pity on myself, let me always use words that will penetrate my heart—words that will stir me to repent and relinquish my wrongful ways…”
 
Two important ideas emerge from the words of Reb Nosson:
 
The first is that the quality of my prayers, meaning, the amount of goodness and grace in them, affects MY heart’s ability to hear MY words, and change myself for the positive. Secondly, ultimately, for everything we need, we are dependent on Hashem. Therefore Reb Nosson supplicates Hashem to help him speak words of goodness and grace. Even for our prayers we need to pray for divine assistance!
 
The weekly Torah portion, D’varim, THESE ARE THE WORDS, is always read on the Shabbos before the 9^th of Av. On that day both the 1^st and 2^nd Temple were destroyed and our present day exile began. The Kabbalists teach us that the first exile, Egypt, was the root of all exiles. They tell us that both the cause of and secret to redemption was that our speech and Da’at (Torah wisdom) were seriously lacking.
 
With the great mercy of Hashem, we were redeemed from bondage and we received the Holy Torah. We hold in our hands the keys to our rectification and redemption. By toiling in learning Torah, everyone on his level, we draw down wisdom and our words are infused with goodness.
 
May Hashem assist us to elevate our speech so that we achieve our life’s mission and merit to the rebuilding of the Temple speedily in our days.