Q:
Is there an obligation for Jews to delve into nature in order to see Hakodosh Boruch Hu or is it enough to learn Torah?
A:
It’s an obligation. The Chovos Halevovos says it’s an obligation – but not because this study is the basis for his emunah. A Jew has already inherited the national attitudes of emunah; the whole Jewish nation has inherited these attitudes — that’s our history, that’s our tradition. But anything which fortifies, which strengthens, a man’s mind should be utilized. It’s an obligation.
It’s the same chiyuv you have to learn Chovos Halevovos and Mesillas Yesharim; that’s also an obligation. You’ll say, why do I need these wonderful seforim if I learn gemara? The answer is, whatever makes you stronger in your emunah is a mitzvah, a chov. And therefore when a person sees these things in nature, when he sees these phenomena that fortify him – the dandelion and the leaf and the clouds and everything – all the things that show wisdom and purposefulness, all the phenomena of this world that show a whole world is full of plan and purpose, certainly it’s a responsibility upon him to do that.
TAPE # R-34
