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    The Importance of Hakarat Hatov - Being Thankful (Rabbi E. Mansour)

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    Celia Steiman
    This lecture discusses the importance of hakarat hatov, or showing gratitude. It explains that Moshe Rabbeinu learned the importance of this trait from how he was saved in Egypt. He always acknowledged those he was grateful to, even attributing his rescue to the Egyptian he killed. The lecture warns that a lack of gratitude can lead to a lack of acknowledging God, as we see with Pharaoh. It stresses that we must express gratitude personally to overcome our pride and ego, and this will bring the Messiah faster.

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    The Importance of Hakarat Hatov - Being Thankful (Rabbi E. Mansour)

    Uploaded by

    Celia Steiman
    282 views2 pages
    This lecture discusses the importance of hakarat hatov, or showing gratitude. It explains that Moshe Rabbeinu learned the importance of this trait from how he was saved in Egypt. He always acknowledged those he was grateful to, even attributing his rescue to the Egyptian he killed. The lecture warns that a lack of gratitude can lead to a lack of acknowledging God, as we see with Pharaoh. It stresses that we must express gratitude personally to overcome our pride and ego, and this will bring the Messiah faster.

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    importancia del agradecimiento a Ha Shem

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    This lecture discusses the importance of hakarat hatov, or showing gratitude. It explains that Moshe Rabbeinu learned the importance of this trait from how he was saved in Egypt. He always acknowledged those he was grateful to, even attributing his rescue to the Egyptian he killed. The lecture warns that a lack of gratitude can lead to a lack of acknowledging God, as we see with Pharaoh. It stresses that we must express gratitude personally to overcome our pride and ego, and this will bring the Messiah faster.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    282 views2 pages

    The Importance of Hakarat Hatov - Being Thankful (Rabbi E. Mansour)

    Uploaded by

    Celia Steiman
    This lecture discusses the importance of hakarat hatov, or showing gratitude. It explains that Moshe Rabbeinu learned the importance of this trait from how he was saved in Egypt. He always acknowledged those he was grateful to, even attributing his rescue to the Egyptian he killed. The lecture warns that a lack of gratitude can lead to a lack of acknowledging God, as we see with Pharaoh. It stresses that we must express gratitude personally to overcome our pride and ego, and this will bring the Messiah faster.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 2

    This lecture has been typed by Daniel Agalar for http://www.puretorah.

    com/

    The Importance of Hakarat Hatov:


    Our Obligation To Be Thankful
    Rabbi Eli Mansour
    There are many lessons that we could learn from the Jews enslavement in Egypt.
    In particular, the lesson of hakarat hatov, recognizing the good done and appreciating it.
    At the end of Moshes life, Hashem tells him to take revenge of the Midyanim . He gives
    this task over to Pinchas to do. Why? Usually Moshe Rabbeinu was very meticuolous
    when it came to mitzvot. G-d didnt have claims against Moshe for passing it to Pinchas.
    Moshe Rabbeinu grew up, was raised, got married and had children in Midyan. It is not
    grateful for Moshe to take revenge and lead the war against the midyanim that he owes
    gratitude to. But how did Moshe know that Hakarat Hatov was so important that it
    overrides the word of G-d? He learnt it from Egypt. Aharon hit the Nile because Moshe
    Rabbeinu was saved by the Nile. (same with the frogs and lice). He could have done the
    greatest kiddush hashem by hitting the Nile! You think the Nile would be offended if ti
    was hit? You think the ground cares? But those are the facts, G-d didnt want him to hit
    the Nile and the ground, all the more so he shouldnt kill the Midyanim. Moshe Rabbeinu
    excelled at this trait. When Hashem told him to redeem the Jewish people, Moshe
    answers G-d that hes interested but he needs to ask his father-in-law first. Why ask
    Yitro? G-d told you so do it! Moshe Rabbeinu is telling G-d that it would not be befitting
    to just leave Yitro and go without asking permission. Thats Hakarat Hatov. Moshe gets
    to the well, daughters of midyan are in trouble and Moshe saves them. They thank him.
    He says dont thank me, thank the Egyptian. Listen I dont deserve all the credit, I killed
    the Egyptian thats why im here. Thank the Egyptian. You think the Egyptian wanted to
    help Moshe Rabbienu? We are always looking for reasons not to thank people. Moshe is
    the opposite, he tries to find every person hes thankful to.
    Whats so important about showing appreciation? Is it just because its etiqutte?
    Being polite? Vayakom melech chadash al mitzrayim asher lo yada et Yosef Two
    opinions: either the same king who didnt know Yosef, or a new king that didnt know
    Yosef. Even if its a new king, its very unlikely that he didnt know Yosef. He didnt
    know Egyptian history? Both lacked hakarat hatov. Yosef saved the whole country to
    death. We will subjugate his children and grandchildren to bondage? Later, when the
    makkot fall on his head, Pharaoh says I dont know who G-d is. He denies G-d, hes an
    atheist. It starts with I dont know Yosef and it leads to I dont know G-d. A lack of
    hakarat hatov to a human being leads to a lack of hakarat hatov to G-d. We must do
    mitzvot out of hakarat hatov to Hashem. The neviim tell us the demise of Shmuel Hanavi.
    Bnei Yisrael eulogized him. There was a guy there named Naval who didnt go to
    Shmuels funeral. (What did Shmuel do for me? Its not like we were very close. There
    are so many people there anyway, what difference do I make?) Then, the servants of
    David ask him for food, and Naval says no. Whats the end of Naval? He became an
    atheist.
    Yaakov built huts for his sheep and he called the place sukkat. Whats the big
    deal? That was the first time that huts were built for sheep. It came out of hakarat hatov

    This lecture has been typed by Daniel Agalar for http://www.puretorah.com/

    to the sheep. That sukkat was not incidental. It was a great lesson. You show hakarat
    hatov to the sheep. You think the ground knows? The Nile knows? It is for you. Its for
    the person. You want to have heightened sensitivity of hakarat hatov all the time because
    you know what it could lead to.
    Yosef and the wife of Potiphar. Yosef saw the face of his father and he stopped.
    He saw the lesson that his dad stood for which was hakarat hatov. He said to himself, if
    Potiphar is my boss how could I sleep with his wife, is that hakarat hatov? I cant do that.
    Its the worst thing I could do. The hakarat hatov of Yaakov avinu saved Yosef.
    Why is it so hard to show gratitude? Because it is shameful. Saying thank you is
    an admission of dependency. I needed you for something and nobody wants to be
    dependent on someone else. We have ego and pride. We want to give, be like G-d. We
    dont want to take. Its a blow to our pride, thats why its so hard. Its so shameful that
    there is a wild Yerushalmi that speaks of trees. A tree that you took the branches coming
    out of the tree and you replanted part of the tree into the ground. You hope for it to
    become independent and become its own tree. So long as the leaves of the new tree are
    facing away from the mother tree, you know its taking. Once it faces it, you know its on
    its own. When its taking it is embarassed, when its giving it could look in the face. It
    affects plant life, all the more so human beings. If you are humble like Moshe you have
    no problem.
    A law in Gemara Brachot discusses laws of employees of praying on the job. If its
    lunch time, he doesnt have to make all the brachot. But we see the opposite in Mishna
    bikkurim that all the workers would come out and greet the people coming to give
    bikkurim. Why? Because bikkurim is gratitude. It overrides other considerations. Its
    worth it. Gemara writes that ones wife passes away if people ask him for money and they
    dont give them. Speak of someone that owes a debt. Of course the wife dies because of
    something she did. But what did the husband do to lose his wife? Because he doesnt pay
    back money. Rav Chaim Shmulevitz says a person that owes money and doesnt pay
    back, that is not hakarat hatov. It shows youre a kafui tovah. If this guy doesnt pay
    people that he owes, rest assured he doesnt have gratitude to his wife. How can we call
    ourselves religious if we dont have hakarat hatov? Saying thank you should not be a
    burden.
    The whole chazaat hashatz the chazan is working hard, saying all the brachot, and
    all we do is say amen- we agree! But when it comes to modim, Amen is not enough.
    Everyone must get up, bow and say modim. You cant say thank you through a
    messenger. Its a great lesson.
    Why is it easier to say thank you to a store clerk than to your wife or parents? Its
    because its a sketch. You dont mean it, you dont feel obligated to him. But when it
    counts, thats when its hard. Now you owe the thank you and its much harder.
    Thats why Jews are called Yehudim, from Yehuda, Leah said thanks for Yehuda.
    We should swallow our pride, become gracious and express it personally over and over
    again. It will lead to hakarat hatov to G-d. Rav Chaim Shmulevitz used to go to the
    wedding of every person in his shiur. Read gedolim storues. Beezrat hashem if we could
    be a little more thankful, Moshiach will come soon. Amen.

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