The First Zechira - Last is First

Thoughts on Orchos Tzaddikim

Sha'ar Ha'Zechira: The First Zechira

Last is First

הזכירה הראשונה – שתזכור איך הוציאך הבורא יתברך מאיו ליש. וזכר הטובה שעשה עמך מעודך עד היום הזה, ואיך גדלך ונשאך על כל הבריות. וכל זה עשה לך ולא שהיה חיב לעשות לך, אלא בחנם עשה לך, ומרב חסדיו גמל לך כל זה, ועבור זה אתה חיב להודות לבורא יתברך

The First Zechira – Remember how the Blessed Creator brought you from nothingness into existence, and remember the good that He has done for you from the day you were born until this day, and how he raised you and uplifted you above all the other creations. And all of this He did for you, not because He was obligated to do so for you, but rather for free, out of his great kindness he has presented you all of this, and because of this you must give thanks to the Blessed Creator.

If we think about the history of the world, it is fascinating how short a span of time our own lives play a part, yet everything until this point is what combined together to set up the environment which we currently live in. Natural disasters, advancement of technology, country revolutions, and world wars are only some examples of countless things which led the world to the point where it is today. On the day you were born, history moved on and Hashem continued to be with you as you entered the world which He caused to be formed perfect for you to achieve your purpose here. 

If you were to stand in front of a room full of people and ask them to each mentally prepare a time-line in their heads starting from day zero when they were born, and then call on volunteers to share their thoughts, you will most definitely find that different people tend to recall different types of events. Commonalty will very likely be that they will be full of sad events. “That was the year when so-and-so died”, “I remember September 11th \as if it were yesterday”, “That was the month when such-and-such relative got into the horrible accident”, etc. Human nature is prone to recall the bad things, which stand out much clearer in our memories: The many bad experiences we remember from our childhood, relationships with family, friends, teachers, and recollections of world events. However, we must instead train ourselves to look back at life through a lense of understanding that Hashem has been with us every day since the day we were born, and how overall, not only was there really plenty of good, but that even the bad was good whether because it saved us from a far worse consequence, or acted as a way of Hashem punishing us in this world in order to reward us far more in the next world, or whether it was simply an experience that Hashem declared was necessary for us to go through.

Even more basic than this, though, we must think about the fact that Hashem created us as humans. We were created with b'tzelem Elokim (in the Image of Hashem) and that is something which should not be taken lightly. The Nefesh Ha'Chaim explains that of all the names of Hashem chosen to define what we were created like, the one of “Elokim” is used. The name Elokim literally translates into “Powers”. The name is testimony and recognition that every power in the universe and beyond is all One completely dependent on Hashem who is the source of everything. Hashem associates this name with humans because of the ability we as humans, and especially as Jews, have to create things, just as Hashem does.

When we think good thoughts, say nice things, and do acts of kindness, we literally build our own spiritual world founded on such greatness. However, the opposite is true as well, when we think ill thoughts, speak negatively, and do things to harm others or to lead others astray, we create destructive forces which demolish the spiritual world. This is why we do not view the Babylonians, Greeks, or Romans as the ones who attempted or succeeded in destroying the Beis Hamidash, because surely no arrows or fire could touch that which Hashem does not want harmed. However, when we as a nation sinned greatly and did improper things, we were breaching the mirrored spiritual version of the Beis Hamikdash which thereby allowed for the arrows to find their mark. Humans have the power to affect the spiritual world by literally creating worlds and therefore we are aptly describes as being created with tzelem Elokim.

Hashem created each of us as Human Beings with incredible potential. He has entrusted each person with a neshama (soul) – a part of Hashem Himself with similar attributes. Since the day we were born, Hashem has been along side every single moment making sure that all the proper and necessary tools were readily available for us to utilize in order to be able to accomplish what we were put here to do. 

It is this combination of ideas which leads us to a simple, yet profound line we say during kabbalas shabbos – sof ma'aseh b'machshava techilla- the final product of a creation is really what was intended originally. Imagine there is an preservation foundation which chooses to establish a zoo. They spend days picking a good location, and then months deciding which trees should be planted, which foliage should be brought in, and how to best set rock formations, ponds, and caves. It is obvious that the trees are not being planted for themselves nor the rocks placed for their own benefit, rather, the time and thought that goes into building a zoo is all for the end result – that the animals should be happy in an environment which mimics their natural habitat. Similarly, the creation of the world, humans were created last specifically because we are the primary purpose of the whole creation. We did not land here accidentally nor did we come about through chance, rather we were put here specifically and intentionally. The six days of creation are in a specific order, each day necessary as a predecessor for the next. Plants need sunlight and water, animals eat plants, and the whole world is here only for humans. The world is at our disposable to be used for ratson Hashem (the will of Hashem). Indeed the real last day of the week is Shabbos – the day set aside each week as testimony to Hashem being the sole creator and intricate controller of the world. 

The Chofetz Chaim writes in his opening words in his introduction to the Mishna Berura, “Thank you to Hashem who created the world in six days and at the end created mankind.” This is something we must keep in mind constantly: The chashivus we have as humans, being created as the sole purpose of all creations b'tzelem Elokim in order to serve Hashem. This prestigious status that Hashem gave us was not because he owed us and paid back with this incredible gift, rather out of his complete love and kindness did He do all this, as He does with everything He does for us every second of our lives. For this reason alone we are obligated to give thanks to Hashem.