The third book of the Torah is called Vayikra in Hebrew, after the opening verse: “And He called to Moses, and G‑d spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting …” The words “And He called” are the translation of Vayikra.
Beyond the meaning of the actual word, there’s a curious anomaly regarding how it’s written in the actual Torah scroll. According to tradition, the last letter, the aleph, is smaller than all the other letters, and indeed, the entire Torah.
What is the significance of this anomaly?
The question is raised by many of the classic Torah commentaries, and there is a similar theme to their answers. For example, one medieval scholar writes, “Out of his great humility, Moses distanced himself from any sort of prestige. He avoided from the limelight to the extent that G‑d had to actively call out to him. Thus, the aleph of the word Vayikra—and He called—is small.”
But there’s more to the small aleph.
In addition to being a simple letter in the Hebrew alphabet, the word aleph is an independent word with its own meaning. In fact, it has two meanings: “teaching/studying” as well as “general/minister.”
With this dual meaning, we emerge with a new understanding of what Moses’ humility drove him to do: to approach every Torah idea (“teaching”) as if it was a big deal (“general/minister”).
This is what humility does. When you’re arrogant, or lulled into a sense of self-confidence, then you lack the wonder and the appreciation of a child. You learn new things, you study ancient texts and apply yourself to new sciences, yet you fail to completely apply yourself to the tiny details and subtle nuances that seem unimportant. “Oh, I know that already, I don’t need to spend too much time figuring it out,” you tell yourself. And so you gloss it over, not taking the time to properly appreciate and plumb its depths.
The humble man like Moses doesn’t have such deficiencies. His complete lack of self, the absence of all “me,” frees him to approach every study with the wonder and fascination of a small child. “I don’t know anything; let me discover new things today and cherish them,” he says.
In this mindset, there is nothing too small, too trivial, too stupid, or too familiar with which to waste my time. No! In this mindset, in this humility time zone, I don’t know anything, and everything is just so downright wondrous. As such, I treasure everything I learn. I revel in it, turn it over, back and forth, mining it for whatever it's worth (and more!), and emerge with unprecedented goods.
This is what Moses taught each one of us: be humble in your study! You don’t know everything, and so you should learn to appreciate every detail.
It’s certainly true when it comes to Torah study, and it’s true in life. If you maintain the tenuous position that you’ve achieved peak knowledge (consciously or not), then you will miss all the treasures that lie right there on the page in front of you.
But if you take a cue from Moses, then you will discover so much depth, so many teaching moments, your mind will be blown. Constantly.
-adapted from www.chabad.org
