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The Commentary to Mishnah Aboth

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on Pirke Avot (Sayings of the Fathers) a tractate of the Mishnah that is mostly comprised of ethical and wisdom-related aphorisms - some clearly targeted to Torah scholars, others at least arguably relevant to all Jews. I found a few insights that surprised me:

1. Maimonides' attempts to narrow certain passages he must have found uncomfortable, e.g. "Be cautious with the government for they do not draw a man near except for their own needs" (2:3). He explains that this passage refers only to "the ruling authority in former times" (i.e. the Roman Empire).

2. Which areas he prefers to discuss at length and which he deemphasizes. For example, Maimonides spends pages on the importance of study, citing passages from the Torah to support his view that the Divine Presence is not just with groups of scholars but even with "one who sits and engages in the Torah", as well as with groups of two, three or more. He also goes out of his way to explain why Torah scholars should work at other occupations rather than being compensated for their services- a view, given the size of a modern synagogue, may seem a bit impractical today. (Maimonides argues that such behavior might lead people to "think that the Torah is merely another trade through which a man may earn a livelihood...")

3. He points out that the "multitude" of good deeds are more important than their magnitude, because "virtues will indeed be attained by repeating the good deeds many times". Thus, "the recompense for one who redeemed a captive for one hundred dinars, or dealt charitably toward a poor man to the extent of one hundred dinars which was sufficient for his need, is not on a par with the recompense for one who redeemed ten captives, or fulfilled the need of ten poor men, each to the extent of ten dinars."

4. His understanding of human imperfection; he discussed not only wise people, but also "the unfinished man", one "who has intellectual virtues and moral virtues" which "contain disarray and confusion, and are intermingled with deficiency" - a description that I think would encompass most human beings.

5. His interpretation of the most bizarre passage in Pirke Avot, the assertion that one "not converse much with a woman. This is said with reference to one's own wife, how much more so in the case of a friend's wife." (1:5). Maimonides states: "It is known that most conversation with women relates to matters of sex. Therefore, he said that indulging in much conversation with them is forbidden . . . he will acquire moral baseness for his soul, namely, `excessive passion'". If Maimonides' remarks are any guide, perhaps the 12th century was a little racier than I had imagined!