For many of us, the lead-up to Pesach is one of the busiest and most intense periods of our year. Culminating in the retold narrative of the exodus from Egypt, the rich symbolism of the seder and often bringing family and friends together, it can make great demands on our physical, spiritual and emotional resources. Once we get through the first night, it is tempting to heave a sigh of relief and think to ourselves “Phew! We got there in the end!”
In truth we
must resist this temptation. There is still a mountain to climb. Exactly seven
weeks after we reach Pesach, we celebrate Shavuot, the festival that marks the
giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai. Linking Pesach to Shavuot is the mitzvah of
sefirat ha’omer, when we nightly count the 49 days from our redemption
to our acceptance of the Torah.
There is
almost a one-to-one correspondence between the 49 days of sefirat ha’omer
and the 48 means of acquiring Torah. This means that we can focus each day
between Pesach and Shavuot on another way to learn, internalize or deepen our
understanding of Torah. But what can we do when we reach erev Shavuot,
when we still have one day to count but there is no corresponding device for
enhancing our Torah knowledge?
Happily,
there is an answer. There is something else we need to do if we are to acquire
Torah thoroughly—but it’s not on the list of 48. This “missing” element is chazarah,
revision. Whatever we learn in Torah, once is not enough. We should go over our
learning again to make sure we truly understand it. So, when Shavuot is almost
upon us, we know what we must do!
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Heard
from Rabbi Eli Brunner, who heard it from Rabbi Elya Lopian.
