R. Yochanan ben Zakkai lo ricevette da Hillel e da Shammai. Non voleva dire: se hai imparato molto la Torah, non prendertene il merito, [dire: "Ho imparato molto la Torah". Per te sono stati creati per questo. (È perché non ha lasciato né Scritture, Mishnah, halachah e aggadah che non ha imparato, che ha detto questo.)] R. Yochanan ben Zakkai aveva cinque discepoli: R. Eliezer ben Hurkanos, R. Yehoshua ben Chananiah, R Yossi Hakohen, R. Shimon ben Nethanel e R. Elazar ben Arach. Non voleva citare le loro (rispettive) distinzioni: R. Eliezer ben Hurkanos—una fossa ricoperta di calce, che non perde una goccia. [Quindi, anche lui non perde un elemento del suo apprendimento]. R. Yehoshua—[Era così pieno di buona middoth che tutti dicevano di lui: "Felice è lei che lo annoia!" (Altri dicono: Lo hanno detto perché è stata lei a farlo diventare un saggio. Avrebbe fatto il giro di tutte le case di studio nella sua città e avrebbe detto loro (i discepoli): "Per favore, prega per questo feto in il mio stomaco, che sia un saggio! "E dal giorno in cui è nato, non ha rimosso la sua culla dalla casa di studio, in modo che solo le parole della Torah entrino nelle sue orecchie.] R. Yossi— chasid, [agendo sopra e oltre la lettera della legge.] R. Shimon ben Nethanel —un timore del peccato, [severo con se stesso e proibito a se stesso ha permesso le cose per paura che potesse venire al peccato. Se no, cosa c'è di speciale in questo? Anche un ignorante può temere il peccato.] R. Elazar ben Arach—un pozzo risorgente, [di grande cuore, "risorgendo" dialettica e congetture proprie.] Lui (R. Yochanan ben Zakkai) era solito dire: se tutti i saggi di Israele fossero in un equilibrio della bilancia e Eliezer ben Hurkanos nell'altro, li avrebbe superati tutti. Abba Shaul dice nel suo nome (R. Yochanan b. Zakkai): se tutti i saggi di Israele fossero in un equilibrio della scala e R. Eliezer ben Hurkanos anche con loro, e R. Elazar (ben Arach) nell'altro, li supererebbe tutti. [Ho scoperto che Abba Shaul non è in disaccordo con il primo tanna e che entrambe le cose sono state dette da R. Yochanan ben Zakkai ed entrambe sono vere. Nella conoscenza e nella memoria complete, R. Eliezer (ben Hurkanos) ha superato tutti, e nella nitidezza e dialettica R. Elazar ben Arach ha superato tutti.]
Shenei Luchot HaBerit
Adam ruined this state of affairs by interfering with the סוד היין, the mystical properties of the grapes. [I suppose that this is based on the tree of knowledge having been a grape bearing tree. Ed.] He followed an evil path by squeezing a cluster of grapes (and consuming its juice). Had he not done so, that "wine" would have remained in the state of what our sages call the יין המשומר בענביו, "the wine that remained preserved within its grapes (compare Berachot 34).” In that event he would have been like "the cistern that does not lose a single drop” [hyperbole for total recall, see Avot 2,11. Ed.]. He would have retained all the holiness that had been his when he was created. When Adam sinned, he did not only lose some of his former glory, fall from a "high roof" (to the ground), but he fell into a "very deep pit" (below the ground). This was a בור רק, an empty pit [allusion to the pit Joseph had been thrown in. Genesis 37,24], since it did not even contain the ingredients for the survival of the species. The species was wiped out at the time of the deluge as a direct consequence of Adam having polluted that "drop of sacred semen," and made it "evil smelling." Due to G–d's personal intervention, Noach was saved seeing he was righteous, and the righteous are the foundation of the universe. The present universe was founded by him as a result.
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Mesilat Yesharim
Rather, if he possess great wisdom, behold, he is under duty to teach it to those in need of it, similar to the statement of Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakai: "if you learned much Torah, do not take credit for yourself since for this you were created!" (Avot 2:8).
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Orchot Tzadikim
And there is another wrong which smacks of gossip — for example, where a person says, "Oh, better be silent about so and so; I don't want to say what I know about him!" — and so in all similar cases. And our Sages further said, "Let no man ever talk in praise of his neighbor, for through his praise he will come to disparage him" (Arakin 16a, and see Baba Bathra 164b). The meaning of this is: if you praise a man to his enemy, he will retort, "How can you praise him so much when he does this and this." And concerning this it is said, "He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it shall be counted a curse to him" (Prov. 27:14). But to praise a man before his friends is permitted, as we have learned, "Rabban Johanan the son of Zakkai had five (outstanding) disciples, and he used to recount their praises" (Aboth 2:8). Then, there is the one who speaks gossip by way of a joke or by way of frivolity (that is, he is not speaking out of hatred), and that is what Solomon said in his wisdom, "As a madman who casteth firebrands, arrows and death; so is the man that deceiveth his neighbour and saith: "Am not I in sport?" (Prov. 26:18—19).
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Shenei Luchot HaBerit
The first Rabbi quoted makes it plain that he speaks of a person who seeks such a position for his personal gratification. He views it as his due for having studied a great deal of Torah. The objection to the appointment of such a person is that it is forbidden to seek personal gratification and advantage from words of Torah. We are told in Sotah 4 in the name of Rabbi Chiyah bar Abba in reference to Proverbs 6,26, that "a married woman can ensnare even a prestigious man," that a haughty person will sooner or later commit the sin of adultery. Haughtiness could be the result of someone having studied Torah. The reason that one must not become boastful even if one has studied a great deal of Torah, is that we are told in Avot 2,8, that "if you have studied much Torah do not take credit for this, for after all you have only done what you have been created for." If not for Torah, man would have been no better than the smelly drop of semen which is his origin. Torah converts this smelly drop into a waterproof cistern which does not lose anything that is put into it. Under such conditions the words of Torah have a chance to increase and multiply. This is why we have a tradition that words of Torah are compared to seedlings. Just as seedlings increase and multiply, so do words of Torah multiply. Torah has been called אשה, "wife," as we know from Deut. 33,4, where the expression מורשה קהלת יעקב, is also interpreted as מאורסה, i.e. she is Israel's "betrothed." When one uses one's Torah knowledge to boast, then this "betrothed" is considered as an alien woman (compare Pessachim 49). Such a woman is like a vessel full of excrement, though everybody runs after her. Hence the drop of semen becomes an evil smelling drop.
