In the first half of the verse, I was talking about this idea that your spiritual strength derives from the community. This is one of those triads that can’t be massaged into three; we’re on the fourth of five, but we’ll probably go back a bit, because, you know, that’s how I do it.
Hillel was in the habit of saying: “Do not isolate thyself from the community and its interest. Do not rely upon thy spiritual strength until the day of thy death. Pass not judgment upon thy neighbor until thou hast put thyself in his place. Say not a thing which must not be heard, because eventually it will be heard, Say never, ‘Sometime or other, when I enjoy leisure, I will attend to my spiritual advancement’; perhaps thou wilt then never have the leisure.”
So this is warning against complacency, or against the expectation that things will go according to plan. Hillel is reminding us that shit happens. I like the phrasing on the say not, although I am tempted to phrase it tweet not, you know? Anyway, these are pretty straightforward. Right? So, let’s try to look at them, not as the simple and straightforward single statements they are, but according to their place in the verse. How do these statements apply to our idea about drawing strength from the community?
Saying things that must not be heard works nicely as isolating yourself from the community. Again, these are phrased as double negatives, to avoid the bad thing: do not (isolate yourself, say the thing which must not be heard) rather than do (involve yourself, say things that must be heard). They echo each other. But isn’t isolating yourself a way to avoid saying things which must not be heard? Removing yourself from the temptation to lies, idle gossip and blasphemy. No, no, no, Hillel says, not the right way to do to it at all. The strength comes from being in the community and avoiding saying the things that must not be said.
Which is what makes that last statement so interesting, because it is not about putting off spiritual advancement, it is about saying you’ll put off your spiritual advancement. It’s the conversation that Hillel is warning you against. Oh, he’s warning you against putting off the advancement, too, because of course then you don’t get the leisure, etc, but Hillel phrases it so it isn’t a decision made by an individual alone but by a person in conversation with another.
On the other hand, Mr. Rodkinson’s translation might be leading us astray; the Chasids and Mr. Herford have that fourth part something like “Do not say something that is not readily understood in the belief that it will ultimately be understood”, which seems to be somewhat more skeptical about the community. Although, now that I look at it, it is a danger of isolating yourself from the community, this saying things that aren’t readily understood. When you are involving yourself with the community, you will be able to, what I am thinking? Oh, yes, put yourself in the place of your neighbor, and then will be able to speak and be understood. Or more important, you will care if you are understood, rather than just saying what you want to say, shrugging your shoulders and saying that history will vindicate you.
I like the combination of the two themes of this verse, that your spiritual strength is drawn from the community and that you should act as if things will go wrong. I think they go together well, because when things do go wrong, that’s when your neighbors and friends will hold you up. And that a community drawing strength from each other is the best defense against things going wrong in the first place, because we will keep each other in line. There’s some sort of metaphor there from physics, cells or something, probably something about holding up bridges. Can’t think of it at the moment, because the stench coming off the Giants is so overwhelming. Ah, the Giants. Another good lesson in remembering that not only does anything that can go wrong eventually go wrong, but stuff that you never thought of can go wrong, too. And you need your friends.
Tolerabimus quod tolerare debemus,
-Vardibidian.