Korach: Rav Kook in the Weekly Portion - A Life of Wealth and Honor

by Rav Yehoshua Ze'ev Hass, yeshiva.org.il, translated by Hillel Fendel.

Every fourth or fifth Sabbath, we recite a special synagogue prayer for the upcoming month, as formulated by the Talmudic Sage named Rav, and as recorded in Tractate B'rachot p. 16b. Among the list of requests we make for the content of our lives in the upcoming month we ask for a "life of wealth and honor." Really? Is this what we strive for when we stand at the gate of a new month with its endless spiritual possibilities?

It appears that, just as Rabbi Judah HaLevy taught us in his 12th-century classic work HaKuzari, "G-d's Torah does not burden us with asceticism or withdrawal from the world. Rather, it guides us to a balanced path…" That is to say: The Torah grants us the knowledge of the principle that everything in the world, both tribulations and acquisitions, can be used to help a person to achieve positive objectives, or the opposite.

Just prior to the request for "wealth and honor" in the above-mentioned prayer, we ask for "life in which there is no shame or disgrace." Rav Kook explains this request, in his work Ein Ayah on B'rachot 16b, as follows: "Yes, mortal man has natural deficiencies connected with his physicality, but his activities [we pray] can all be given to perfection."

That is, our prayer is that we should be able to act throughout our lives in such a manner that our actions will stem from our spiritual, complete side, and not from our material and physical lusts that are out of sync with our inner inclinations and natural spiritual stature.

This helps us understand that when we pray for "wealth and honor," this comes on the heels of our request for a life of spiritual actions - meaning that we wish our wealth to serve us only for good things. As Rav Kook explained there: "There is a type of wealth that removes true honor from he who has that wealth, because by raising his heart and making him arrogant, it distracts and removes his heart from the true wholeness. We thus ask in this prayer that our wealth should always be accompanied by true honor, i.e., completeness of soul."

With this we can understand the story of Koraḥ in our weekly portion (Bamidbar 16-18). The Sages tell us of some strong contrasts in Koraḥ's personality. The Talmud speaks of "wealth that is reserved for its owner to his detriment" – and Koraḥ is a prime example. For instance, it is said that his wealth was so great that a caravan of 300 mules was required just to transport the keys to his treasure house! This exaggerated account is taught simply to tell us that Koraḥ's entire purpose in amassing wealth was simply to accrue power. Just as mules are sterile with no descendants to perpetuate them, those whose wealth is simply for the sake of power have no deeds of kindness to count to their credit.

Koraḥ is no Moshe!
The way in which Koraḥ is depicted is not that of a leader like Moshe Rabbeinu, who truly feels his brethren's pain at being enslaved and who goes out to them (Sh'mot 2,11). It is rather the description of a man who is involved only in his own affairs and in momentary enjoyments that leave no trace after them. Our Sages ask: "Koraḥ was so intelligent; why then did he get involved in this foolishness of fomenting rebellion against Moshe and Aharon?" The answer is given: "His eyes tricked him." That is, he allowed his egocentricity to mislead him.

The Medrash Rabba (Bamidbar Rabba 22,6) further states: "There were two very rich men in history – one from Israel, and one from the nations of the world: Koraḥ and Haman, and both were lost from the world. Why? Because their wealth was not a gift from G-; they rather snatched it for themselves."

Koraḥ's behavior is the opposite of the direction that the world was created to take: "A world of kindness was created" (Psalms 89,3) – and that is why the earth was so "shocked" at Koraḥ's behavior that it "opened its mouth" (Bamidbar 16,32) to swallow him and his mutinous cohorts.

Koraḥ had "rallied the entire congregation against" Moshe and Aharon (16,19), using the wealth he had amassed from Yosef's treasures to influence the people, while seeking to get rid of Moshe and Aharon – and precisely then, just in time, "G-d's glory became visible to the entire community" (ibid.).

The goal of the Sages was to teach us the true value of wealth, and they therefore weaved around Koraḥ's wealth these various Aggadic accounts. Their common thread is the terrible calamity that comes about when one is detached from the direction that the Divine seeks to take – the route that perpetually connects man to that which is eternal.