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Of Philosophers, Hassidic Rebbes and Love of LearningR. Yitzhak taught: “If a person says 'I toiled and did not find,’ do not believe him. 'I did not toil and I found,’ do not believe him. 'I toiled and found,’ believe him. (Megillah 6b) The simple reading of this gemara would explain that it champions the significance of effort. Indeed, all truly valuable aspects of life depend upon countless hours of dedication. This certainly applies to becoming a better human being or becoming knowledgeable about Torah.It is striking that the Hassidic master R. Zadok Hakohen of Lublin (Mahshevet Harutz, p. 33) interprets the effort more specifically as the desire to learn. He says that the most important factor in the pursuit of wisdom is the yearning and desire for wisdom. He points out that the ancient Greeks understood this well when they coined the term philosopher. “Philo” means love and “Sophia” is wisdom. The Greeks referred to lovers of wisdom rather than wise men because to love wisdom is the truly important thing. Indeed academic contexts often reveal how those with intellectual curiosity and an authentic love of wisdom will often go further than those with more innate intelligence who lack that passion for ideas.I would suggest that we could identify the lover of wisdom in the following three ways. 1) The true lover of wisdom will utilize their time wisely. How can a person waste day after day watching TV when the search for wisdom beckons? 2) The idle chatter of such a person will be different. Even when not engaged in an intense Talmudic of philosophic pursuit, their everyday discourse at the dinner table will still include elements of wisdom. 3) They will not show any reluctance to share their wisdom. Those most interested in inflating their own egos will be reluctant to share their knowledge lest others catch up to their level. Those with real love of wisdom will want others to achieve the same level of understanding. R. Zadok’s reading of this gemara should inspire us in our own quest for enlightenment.
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