Tag: Curious George

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Shemos –

Curiosity
In modern society, curiosity is viewed as a negative trait, as the saying goes, “curiosity kills the cat;” It evokes the image of Curious George, the troublemaking monkey. However the trait of curiosity has the potential to bring a person close to Hashem, as we see in this week’s Torah portion of Shemos, as the Ralbag relates by the incident of Moshe and the Burning Bush.

The Torah states, “An angel of Hashem appeared to him in a flame of fire from within the thorn bush, and behold, the thorn bush was burning with fire, but the thorn bush was not being consumed. So, Moshe said, ‘Let me turn now and see this great spectacle why does the thorn bush not burn up?’ Hashem saw that he had turned to see, and G-D called to him from within the thorn bush, and He said, ‘Moshe, Moshe!’ And he said, ‘Here I am’” (Shemos 3:2-4)!

The Toaliyos HaRalbag learns from this– “that it is befitting for a person to put in effort into investigating as much as possible the reason behind things that one comes across, and don’t  shorten [the investigation]. In this way one will figure out the wisdom of Hashem by as much as possible focusing on what one comes across and the manner of how it works, and this will be a cause to reach towards Hashem as much as one can. This is because we achieve from Hashem according to what is possible for us to achieve courtesy of the means that are the results of what we attain from Him, and then put them into order, and direct them. We see this from Moshe Rabbeinu, immediately when he saw this strange concept of a bush set a flame, but the bush was not burning. This actually showed that this was how he always acted, meaning that he already had a drive to know as much as possible the reasoning behind things. In this way [Moshe] was able to reach such a height as he reached.” (Click here for Hebrew text.)
The Ralbag is teaching us that it is very healthy to be inquisitive and always investigating the world around us. This is the means to be able to know Hashem, understand how He works, and figure out how to grow close to Him. That is exactly what Moshe did when he eyed the “Burning Bush;” he didn’t simply take note of something interesting and continue walking. He stopped to observe what was really going on, tried to make sense of it, and then Hashem started talking to Him. This is a clear proof to the lesson that the Ralbag says the Torah is trying to teach us.

But why did the Ralbag say that this was how Moshe always was, as if to say that if Moshe wasn’t always curious and investigative then he would not have stopped to look at the amazing sight in front of his eyes? Wasn’t it quite unimaginable? Wouldn’t anyone have done a doubletake and stared in total amazement at such a miracle, a bush on fire but clearly not being consumed? Why did it require Moshe to have been so ‘inquisitive’ in order to have noticed and investigate such an occurrence?

It would seem that there are people who would possibly make a point of seeing something amazing and simply walking past, go about their business without putting too much thought into what they had seen. These people don’t probe, they don’t think with too much depth or imagination, and it’s hard for them to really expand their mind. Even something so amazing, unearthly, and supernatural as this would not phase them. However, because Moshe Rabbeinu already had a knack for being curious and investigative, he therefore had his eyes open to try to find something new and unique, to probe and get to the bottom of it, to try to figure out how and why it was working that way. This searching and thinking, and obviously appreciating the profundity of what was in front of him, is what made Moshe come to be so close to Hashem, and to reach heights that no other human being has ever attained in their physical lifetime.

(I have to assume this type of curiosity and inquisitiveness only works to get close to Hashem if one’s attitude is to want to have a relationship with Hashem. A typical atheist scientist, for example, no matter how curious and investigative he or she is, will never find Hashem with their anti-G-D attitude. Unless they are open to change that attitude).

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Va’eschanan – Always Being Watchful

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There is a mischievous stereotype associated with curiosity; for example the character of Curious George or, as the saying goes: “Curiosity killed the cat.” However, as the Orchos Tzadikim emphasizes in each chapter, there is both a positive and negative aspect to every attribute.

When it comes to the attribute of curiosity the Torah says in this week’s Torah portion of Vaeschanan that Moshe beseeched Hashem: “Pray let me cross over and see the good land that is on the other side of the Jordan, this good mountain and the Lebanon” (Devarim 3:25). Hashem did not let Moshe enter the land of Israel but He at least let him see it, as it says, “Go up to the top of the hill and lift up your eyes westward and northward and southward and eastward and see with your eyes, for you shall not cross this Jordan” (Devarim 3:27).

The Ralbag learns a very interesting lesson from here. “It is befitting for people to put in all their efforts into seeing everything that you are allowed to look at in order to recognize within it the ingenious of its Creator, May His Name be Blessed, which created all these types of things. For this reason Moshe requested that if Hashem did not want him to crossover the Jordan, at least He should allow him to see the general landscape of the land in order to appreciate all the great qualities of it strengths, and its places of settlement. This was his will when he said, ‘Pray let me cross over and see the land,’ let me crossover or see. It is obvious that this was his intentions because Hashem told Moshe to ‘Go up to the top of the hill and lift up your eyes etc.’ We also find elsewhere that this trait was very strong inside Moshe Rabbeinu as he said, ‘Let me turn now and see this great spectacle why does the thorn bush not burn up’ (Shemos 3:3)?” (Click here for Hebrew text.)

We find that Moshe always had a sense of curiosity, to search out the unknown, to figure things out, to appreciate what is to be seen in the world. Be it the land of Israel, the burning bush, or even when we find in the Torah that after he convinces Hashem to forgive the Jewish people over the sin of the Golden Calf, Moshe says: ”Show now Your glory” (Shemos 33:18). Hashem, in fact responded “…Then I shall remove My hand and you will see My back, but My face may not be seen.”

One might think that this trait, even if used for good, might indeed still be bad because we say two times a day in the third paragraph of Shema, “Don’t stray after your heart and your eyes.” Looking around and gazing at things in the world might lead us to focus on inappropriate things, so shouldn’t we  create safeguards and put on blinders to ensure we stay away from those evils? Also, curiosity for the world around us might lead to a lot of wasting time from Torah learning; so why is this a good quality!? Furthermore, Moshe was in fact warned that he cannot get too close to the burning bush, to stare at it or to see exactly what He wanted to see of Hashem’s glory.

Just as there is good and bad in every character trait, each character trait leans to the good or the bad but also could be used in the opposite manner, for example, hatred is a bad character trait but it can sometimes be used in a positive way, like when hating the bad deeds of constant sinners. Love is a positive trait that can be used in a bad way as well. We must therefore say, based on this Ralbag, that curiosity is in fact a good character trait and can be harnessed for very good things, like raising your level of belief in Hashem through looking into the wonders of his creation. However, there is always a balance in life, and one has to be careful not to overdo it, which might cause wasting time or worse looking at forbidden things. On the other hand, if a person focuses his gaze in the world and his curiosity at appropriate times to get a better understanding of Hashem’s awesomeness, strength, and wonder, then the more the merrier.