Rav Kook on Looking for Divine Purpose, Not Always Original Intent

קבצים מכתב יד קדשו כרך ב

כא.

יסוד ביאורי תורה ודברי חז"ל, בזמן שהביאורים מורים אותנו ידיעות ישרות ומועילים להרחיב חכמה וכשרון, אינו בנוי על כונת האומר בפרטיות, דהיינו כונת הנביא בהנבאו וכן כונת חז"ל בעת אמירתם. והראי', שאפילו ביאורי תורה הקדושה אמרו על רבי עקיבא שחידש דברים שלא נתגלו למשה רבינו ע"ה. 

אלא שבנוי על תכלית רצון העליון שמאתו היתה נסיבה שנתישר ונשתלם. על כן לא נעזוב שום סבה שבעולם שמביאה אותנו להשתלמות ולא נשתמש בה להוציאה מן הכח אל הפועל. 

על כן לפעמים אמרו חז"ל ביאור על שם עיר, כמו טבריא שטובה ראייתה, לשלימות של שבח עיר בארץ ישראל, אף על פי שקרא אותה טיבריאוס על שמו. והוא ענין דייק בשמא דרבי מאיר, כי אין דבר שלא יהי' אפשרי להמשיך ממנו תועלת, והתועלת מכלל הכונה האלהית בודאי, 

על כן באמת גם בלישני דעלמי ובידיעות שונות יש למצא חפץ. מכל מקום מובן שאין להם דוגמא וערך עם מה שימצא בתורה הקדושה. ויש לומר שבהתפשט השלימות להתבונן בכל התורה כולה שאין לה קץ כמו לעתיד לבא, אז תמלא הארץ דעה את ד' ותתגלה מעלת תורה בכל דבר, כי כל פועל הוא מעשה ד', וכן כל התורה כולה שמותיו של הקב"ה, דהיינו פעולותיו, כי השם הוא באמת פעולה, כביאור הפילוסוף בגיה"מ דהפעולות הפעלם שמם.

אלא שקודם בזמן הוא ודאי הדרישה הפשוטה הבנוי' בכונת האומר, ומכל מקום אין לגנות הדרישה הרחוקה מכונת האומר, שאם מכונתו היא רחוקה אבל אינה רחוקה מכונת השם ית' שסבבה הסיבות שיבא מאמר זה לידינו ויעירנו על תועלת, וכל תועלת רוחני הוא קנין חביב מאד. ואם ראוי הוא להשכיל שהסבה שהוזמנה להרויח דינר אחד לא באה במקרה, כי השם ית' הוא נותן לחם לכל בשר ומשביע לכל חי רצון, איך אפשר שתבא במקרה סיבה מועלת תועלת רוחנית. אלא שהדברים מחולקים לענין שימוש התוצאות לענין מעשה, שלזה צריך בינה יתירה.

ורבי מאיר שהי' נעלה מאד עד שלא יכלו חבריו לעמוד על סוף דעתו, הי' ראוי לדרש בשמא אפילו למעשה. וממוצא דבר נאמר, שהר"מ ז"ל קבל על מחלת הדור לדרוש במאמר דברים שלא כיון אומרם, המחלה ההיא יש לה גדרים, ולפעמים היא מעלה גדולה ועליונה, ומצאנו שלמעלה זו עלו חז"ל, והוא בנוי על פי אמתת דעת אלקים, וד' אלקים דבר מי לא ינבא.

The foundation of explaining Torah and the words of Chazal, when the explanations teach us moral ideas and are effective in expanding wisdom and talents, is not built on the [original] intent of the speaker [who said it] specifically, meaning the intention of the prophet in his prophecy, and similarly the intention of Chazal when they said them. A proof for this is, that even the explanation of words of the holy Torah that Rabbi Akiva said were new things that were not even revealed to Moses, peace be unto him (Menachot 29b).

Rather, [these explanations] are built on the goals of the Most High, that from Him are the circumstances that cause morality and perfection. Therefore, no cause in the world should be abandoned which will bring us to perfection, [no cause] which can't be used to bring out potentiality to actuality. [See Ramban's comment on Avraham's test at the akeidah - me]

That's why sometimes Chazal will give an explanation of a name of a city, such as "Tiveria" that it is "Tova R'iyata" (its sight is beautiful) (Megilla 6a), which is toward the perfection of praising the land of Israel, even though it was named by Tiberius based on his own name. This applies to the examination [of Chazal] into Rabbi Meir's name (Yoma 83b), for there is nothing that has no possibility to draw out purpose, and that purpose is definitely included in the divine intent. 

Therefore, truly, even in worldly languages and different ideas one can find something. Nevertheless, obviously there is no comparison whatsoever to that which can be found in the holy Torah. And one could say that in the spreading of perfection to comprehend the entirety of the Torah that has no end, like in the future days, then the land will fill with knowledge of God, and the Torah's height will be revealed in every aspect, that every action is the work of God, and so the whole Torah is the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, meaning His actions, for the name is in truth the action, as the philosopher ... explained that the actions are the name's actions. (?)

Although what is first is certainly the simplest understanding, built upon the intention of the speaker, nevertheless, one must never disparage an understanding that is distant from the intention of the speaker. Though his intention may be distant, it isn't distant however from the intentions of God Almighty, that He caused the causes that brings this statement to our hands, and awakens us to its purpose, and all spiritual purposes are highly beloved acquisitions. And if one should rightfully understand the causes of why a single dinar's [economic] worth increases as not a happenstance, that God Almighty provides bread to all flesh and satisfies all of life its wants, how can the effective cause of spiritual purposes

possibly be happenstance? Rather, these things separate to be useful results regarding action, that for this requires a "binah yeterah" - superior understanding. 

And Rabbi Meir was so lofty that his colleagues couldn't fathom his mind, he was the one appropriate to expound upon the name even for practical purposes. What emerges is that Rabbi Meir z"l received the relinquishment of the generation to expound statements not as according to their intention. [But] the relinquishment has boundaries, which are sometimes quite great and lofty, and we find that Chazal rose to this level, and it is built according to the true intention of God, and (Amos 3:8) "when God speaks, who would not prophesy?"

Writing Anti-Arab Literature, According to Rav Kook

Iggerot HaRa'aya 2:398, page 54

In the holy city of Jaffa, 10th of Kislev, 1912. 

My heart's beloved, the Rav, the giant in Torah and wisdom and fear of God in purity, great of actions in Israel, Mr. Meir Berlin shlita: 

Peace and blessing from the precious land.

Dear one. It is a holy obligation I express for myself, to awaken the heart of his honor, about character of "Judah, Guarder of the Orchard," in the journal, "HaIvri", that describes the psychological situation of the enmity toward the Arabs, and the rousing of Jewish observers, with words full of the spirit of revolutionism.

This is something not in accord with our yearning, and it is not pleasant for our situation at all. Reading "On The Enemy", when they come by the Jewish organization against the Arab, there is no end to the poison that can cause desecration.

And how much correct material is [already] in the hand of our many enemies, who examine every utterance that comes from us to write it up, to publish political libels against the Jews! Certainly his honor also knows, that there are Arabs like these who read Hebrew, and also write in Hebrew. And to the ignorant, any statement of hate, or that has even a small aspect of tendency towards revolution, will be copied down by the Turks and sent to the capital, to places more impressionable, and places more dangerous to us. 

And besides for the external enemies we have (because of our sins), as is known, there is a complete camp of inner enemies, like [David] Parisko and his supporters, who are known to do these things to feed the prosecutor.

Please, my friend, for the sake of the God of Israel, chosen in the precious land, Who has started to show us sparks of the light, from His kindness and His truth, to remember His holy nation, (cf. Ezra 9:9) to give a boundary to Judah, please don't give a place in your respectable newspaper for matters like these, for they are void of usefulness, and cause great damage, immeasurable. Just the opposite, however much we can, we should describe the pleasant situation, of the ways of peace and brotherhood, that we have had meetings, between the best of the Yeshuv who act in truth, and those who dwell in Arab lands, obviously the best of them.

Because of the burdens, I have been short where it would be appropriate to be lengthy. With feelings of honor and blessing, holy loyalty, lover of the loyal with all his heart,

Abraham Isaac Kook HaKohen

P.S. See Megillah 7a, "She sent them..." 

There seems to be two tracks of complaints in this letter. Firstly, writing about non-Jews in a way that sounds bad to gentiles is bad for the Jews on a political level, and can be dangerous. But secondly, he has several statements that sounds like they are inherently problematic to Judaism, "it is not in accord with our yearning," "it is void of usefulness," etc.

The Talmud Megillah 7a says thus:

R. Samuel b. Judah said: Esther sent to the Wise Men saying, Commemorate me for future generations. They replied, You will incite the ill will of the nations against us. She sent back reply: I am already recorded in the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia.

It seems that this is the point that Rav Kook is trying to express. The rabbis did not want to make a holiday of Purim, and didn't want Esther's book in the canon, because of how we care about the opinion of other nations.

So what is he saying? Esther was successful in her wish! How did her response undo their fears? If the fear was that this was new information of the Jewish hatred for their enemies, then her response makes sense: Everyone knows about it already.

But if the fear was that celebrating and commemorating the death of our enemies looks bad, then how does her response help?

Rashi defines it as such:

קנאה את מעוררת עלינו. שיאמרו האומות שאנו שמחים להזכיר מפלתן: כבר אני כתובה. ושם יהו רואין מה שאירע להם על ידי ישראל:

You will incite the ill will of the nations against us. That the nations will say that we are happy to mention their downfall. I am already recorded. And there they see what happened to them through the Jews.

Thus, we don't want to mention other people's downfall. We see this concept throughout Chazal, that it is not an appropriate action, from their perspective (and I believe ours as well) to celebrate the downfall of enemies. Her response, then, is that even when we don't mention it, they know about it already from their own literature.

Rav Kook seems to be saying with his postscript that the proper perspective is that only when others know of such a story, and agree with the great miracle of the saving of the Jewish people, can we celebrate it as well. Otherwise, Meir Berlin should not publish columns that denigrate the non-Jews, because this is not an appropriate thing ot do.