Making Sense of the Sedra: Ki Teitzei

It is well known that the Torah contains 613 mitzvot, although what they actually are and how to calculate them is the subject of a huge debate. What is perhaps less well known is that this week’s parsha, Ki Teitzei contains a whopping 74 mitzvot – that’s 12 percent of all 613!

But why do we have so many mitzvot? Surely a few key ones should suffice? The answer lies in an oft-quoted statement, one that generally proceeds the Kaddish Derabbanan in shul. R. Chanania ben Akashya said:, “The Holy One, blessed be He, wished to make the people of Israel meritorious; therefore, he gave them Torah and mitzvos in abundant measure, as it is written: ‘The Lord desired, for the sake of his [Israel’s] righteousness, to make the Torah great and glorious.’” (Talmud Makkot 23b.)

How does having more mitzvot benefit us? With so many mitzvot, aren’t there many more opportunities to violate the Torah?

The Rivan (Rashi’s son-in-law who took over his commentary following Rashi’s death, which is recorded at the end of Tractate Makkot) suggests that the ‘extra’ mitzvot are all of the negative commandments that we don’t have much of a desire to violate and yet we get reward simply because we don’t violate them.

Maimonides, in his commentary to the Mishna, takes a totally different approach. He explains that the reason why it is a merit to have so many mitzvot is because all we need to merit a portion in the world to come, is to perform one mitzvah with completely pure motives and with the right intentions. With so many mitzvot on offer, it is almost guaranteed that we will perform one of them on this high level.

The question of quality vs quantity is one that applies in so many areas of Torah observance and many areas of life in general. Maimonides teaches us that when we look at this question, we shouldn’t look at it as an either/or type question. Sometimes doing things in greater quantity can actually lead to greater quality.

This idea is actually mentioned in a highly acclaimed book, Atomic Habits, where the author James Clear says that the key to mastering a habit is to start with repetition rather than perfection. He explains (p 143) that it’s easy to be in motion and convince yourself that you are making progress. People who are in business may think, ‘I’ve got conversations going with four potential clients right now, we are moving in the right direction.’ Motion feels like we are getting things done, but in reality, we are just preparing to get things done, It is all too easy for preparation to become a form of procrastination.  Rather, repeating a habit leads to clear physical changes in the brain, with the size of specific areas being directly correlated to the amount spent in the field.

He explains that whilst people normally ask: “How long does it take to build a new habit?” really, they should be asking: “How many repetitions does it take to make a habit automatic?”

We are now in the month of Elul, a time of year when we reflect on the last 11 months in preparation for Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. As we do so, it is worth bearing these ideas in mind (and well worth checking out Atomic Habits!).