(2017/5777)

There is a beautiful and perhaps unexpected Mishnah in this week’s Perek of Pirkei Avot: “Kol SheRu’ach HaBeriyot Nochah Heimenu, Ru’ach HaMakom Nochah Heimenu, VeChol SheEin Ru’ach HaBeriyot Nochah Heimenu, Ein Ru’ach HaMakom Nochah Heimenu,” “If the spirit of one’s fellows is pleased with him, the spirit of Hashem is pleased with him, but if the spirit of one’s fellows is not pleased with him, the spirit of Hashem is not pleased with him” (Pirkei Avot 3:10). While it is not surprising that a well-liked person is more likely to be “well-liked” by Hashem, is it truly a guarantee? In fact, Rav Ovadyah Bartenura (ad loc. s.v. Kol SheRu’ach HaBeriyot Nochah Heimenu) states that “Kol Mi SheAhuv Lematah, BeYadu’a SheHu Ahuv Lema’alah,” “Anyone who is loved on earth, it is certain that he is loved by God.” How are we supposed to understand this sweeping guarantee?

To understand this Mishnah, we can turn to the prototypical Mitzvah Bein Adam LeChaveiro, the Mitzvah most intrinsically tied to being a well-liked person: “VeAhavta LeRei’acha Kamocha,” “you shall love your fellow as yourself” (VaYikra 19:18). Rashi (ad loc. s.v. VeAhavta LeRei’acha Kamocha) quotes Rabi Akiva’s famous statement about this Mitzvah—that loving your fellow as yourself is a Kelal Gadol BaTorah, a fundamental principle of the Torah. Given that the Mitzvah of “VeAhavta LeRei’acha Kamocha,” which is surely connected to our Mishnah’s statement of “Kol SheRu’ach HaBeriyot Nochah Heimenu, Ru’ach HaMakom Nochah Heimenu,” is a Kelal Gadol BaTorah, it is not surprising that we can make such a universal guarantee about it.

Piskei Teshuvot, a collection of Halachot authored by Rav Simcha Rabinowitz according to the order of the Mishnah Berurah, picks up on the connection between our Mishnah and “VeAhavta LeRei’acha Kamocha” (Orach Chayim Siman 156). After describing the many Halachot of the Mitzvah of “VeAhavta LeRei’acha Kamocha”—to be compassionate, to look past others’ wrongdoings, to judge others favorably, to fulfill promises made to others, to greet people with a smile, and to be helpful—Piskei Teshuvot concludes the Mitzvah by quoting many of the ideas touched upon by our Mishnah: “UVaZeh Tihyeh Ru’ach HaBeriyot Nochah Heimenu, VeRu’ach HaMakom Nochah Heimenu, Ahuv Lema’alah VeNechmad Lematah, UMekubal Al HaBeriyot,” “And through fulfilling all the Halachot of this Mitzvah, one will be considered pleasant by man and pleasant by God, loved by God and well-liked on earth, and popular and accepted by people.”

In the final analysis, while our Mishnah may have, at first, seemed exceedingly expansive, once we realize that loving your fellow as yourself is a fundamental principle of the Torah, it is not surprising that observing this Mitzvah comprehensively and properly guarantees that one is considered “well-liked” by God.