By: Rabbi Chaim Yeshaya Freeman
Seeing Without Seeing
One of the most puzzling episodes in the Torah is the rebellion of Korach. How could someone who witnessed Matan Torah and experienced countless miracles, and even merited to carry the Aron HaKodesh deny the authority of Moshe Rabbeinu?
Rav Chaim Kamil (the rebbe of Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel) explains that seeing something does not necessarily mean that it penetrates the heart. A person can witness extraordinary events and still remain unchanged. This was Korach's tragedy. Despite everything he witnessed, he never allowed those experiences to enter his heart and transform him.
Based on this idea, the Sfas Emes explains why Parshas Korach follows the parshah of tzitzis. The Torah teaches that looking at one's tzitzis can protect a person from sin. Yet the Torah immediately warns us not to stray "after your hearts and after your eyes." The message is that seeing alone is not enough. What a person sees must be internalized and brought into his heart. This was Korach's failure. Rashi comments that "his eye misled him." Korach saw, but he did not internalize.
Rashi's comment that "his eye misled him" reveals an even deeper flaw. Rashi stresses that "his eye" misled him, using the singular rather than the plural. The Shem MiShmuel explains that Hashem gave a person two eyes for two different perspectives. One eye is meant to see the greatness of Hashem. The other is meant to help a person recognize his own smallness and understand that he is part of something far greater than himself.
Korach possessed the first eye. He saw the greatness of Hashem. However, he lacked the second eye. He viewed everything through the lens of his own interests and ambitions. As a result, he could not appreciate the role of Moshe Rabbeinu and instead became consumed by the pursuit of kavod.
This explains why Korach's entire perspective became distorted. Rav Schwab develops this idea in explaining the opening words of the parshah, "Vayikach Korach." Rashi famously explains that Korach "took himself aside." Rav Schwab explains that Korach removed himself from the broader perspective of reality. Everything became about himself. He viewed the world through the prism of his own interests and calculations.
The lesson of Korach is that it is not enough merely to see. We must allow what we see to penetrate our hearts and change us. We must also learn to look beyond ourselves and recognize that we are part of something far greater than our own personal interests and ambitions. May we be zocheh to remove the Korach within us, to set aside our personal agendas, and to allow the lessons Hashem places before us to elevate our avodas Hashem.
Taken from the Kollel Avreichim Hollywood
