Avos chapter 2, mishnah 11 (in some versions of the Mishnah this is the middle of mishnah 28). The mishnah opens: "Hu hayah moneh shevachan" - Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai counted and enumerated the virtues of his students.
The basic point: he had five different students, each of whom excelled in a different area - some in different kinds of wisdom and some in different paths of serving Hashem - and he recognizes each one of them as an individual. The overarching message of the mishnah is that a teacher may not expect uniform results from his students; rather, he must recognize and praise each student according to his own strengths, since every person differs from his fellow and each one brings something else with him.
Some learn from here that we are meant to learn from these virtues and try to emulate them, and we will discuss that with each of the virtues.
Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus - "bor sud she'eino me'abed tipah":
He was a plastered cistern that does not lose a single drop. Torah is compared to water, and therefore Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus is compared to a cistern that holds its water and loses none of it - a reservoir of Torah that forgets nothing.
In ancient times there were three ways of obtaining water:
A spring - a water source emerging from the ground, which we will discuss later.
An aqueduct - through which water is brought from a distance.
A cistern - in which rainwater is collected and used when needed.
So he collects the Torah and does not lose a drop of it.
There is an additional meaning here as well: water stored in a pond develops a greenish scum after a while, and one no longer wants to drink from it; whereas water stored in a cistern stays fresh. So too Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus was able to remember everything he learned, he kept the learning inside himself, and it always remained with him fresh and flavorful.
It is worth noting that Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus praised himself for never having taught anything that he had not heard from his teachers - this was his approach in his service, and he was exceptional. From Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer it emerges that he began learning only at the age of twenty-eight, sacrificed a great deal for his Torah study, and became Eliezer ben Hyrcanus the great, Rabbi Eliezer the Great.
If indeed we are meant to follow in his ways, the question arises: how does one follow in the ways of someone who was blessed with a good memory, which is seemingly nothing more than a gift? The commentaries explain that although a good memory is a gift, that is not the only way it is acquired, and two additional things are needed in order to remember one's learning:
Valuing the learning: when a person values his learning, takes it seriously and sacrifices for it, the learning becomes his - and he wants to hold on to it, guard it and remember it. Something precious is preserved, and because of the investment it stays with him. This is how Rabbi Eliezer conducted himself: Torah was precious to him, as emerges from the stories, and therefore he retained it far better.
Diligence and review: a person must be diligent in his learning and in reviewing his learning. And the secret of review - and this is the most important thing - is to review the material before it is forgotten. Review at the right time strengthens the knowledge and embeds it more deeply in the mind, so that it is not lost; whereas once something has been forgotten, this is not review at all but learning it anew a second time.
The commentaries explain that he was scrupulous about reviewing what he learned, and from here we see that he can be emulated: to love and treasure learning, to sacrifice for it, to toil over it and to review what has been learned - and through this a person can merit an excellent memory like his.
Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananyah - "ashrei yoladto":
Fortunate is the woman who bore him. The Bartenura learns along the lines of the Rambam, that his character traits were so fine that people who met him would say: what a remarkable man, fortunate is the one whose son he is. And indeed that is how it was: outstanding character traits and an exceptional personality.
But there is a second, separate idea here as well, which the Bartenura also brings: it is his mother who deserves the credit for his extraordinary achievements and his great character. It is said that even before he was born she would go to the beis midrash, and once he was born she would place his cradle in the beis midrash, so that he would absorb Torah and a love for Torah, for the Sages and for wisdom. And presumably throughout all the years of his youth it was she who encouraged him and instilled in him the value of Torah. It was in her merit that he became Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananyah, and therefore "ashrei yoladto" - this refers to his mother.
And there is certainly a message here for all mothers, for future mothers and for grandmothers. Two great teachers, Rabbi Chaim Zev Ulmanitz, may the memory of a righteous man be a blessing, and, thank God, Rabbi Yitzchak Berkovits shlita, have related on many occasions what an enormous influence their mothers had on them, investing in them and pushing them to become who they are - giants of the generation. Mothers can accomplish a great deal.
Rabbi Yosi the Kohen - "chasid":
The word "chasid" here is difficult to translate. It derives from the word chesed, which means kindness, and the intention is not a chasid in the sense of the chassidic movements and the teachings of the Baal Shem Tov. The translation "God-fearing" is also imprecise, and is used only for lack of a better term.
The Bartenura here explains that he would act lifnim mishuras hadin - going beyond what the letter of the law demands. And in order to grasp what this means, it must be set against the one who follows him: Rabbi Shimon ben Nesanel, who was a fearer of sin, about whom the Bartenura writes that he was "stringent with himself." These are two entirely separate matters.
Chassidus in the context of our Mishnah means focusing on the positive commandments, on the positive side, and going above and beyond. The word chesed indicates, in a certain sense, breaking through boundaries and going beyond oneself: the chasid acts this way toward his fellow - doing kindness with him above and beyond - and likewise toward the Holy One, Blessed be He, in his service of God, on the positive side: adding one more act to the things he is supposed to do, or wearing tefillin for another two minutes, and the like.
This was Rabbi Yosi the Kohen, and this can certainly be emulated, so that we too can become chasidim in our own right - not in the sense of the chasidim of the Baal Shem Tov, wonderful as that is in its own right, but in this sense of going beyond the letter of the law, beyond what is strictly required, exerting oneself to do good for others and serving God beyond the mere required quantities, on the positive side.
Rabbi Shimon ben Nesanel - "yerei cheit":
This is not the fear of sin mentioned in the previous Mishnayos, where even an unlearned person can be a fearer of sin. He did not merely fear sin; he was extremely stringent with himself, and he even set up protective fences to ensure that he would not do even things that were permitted to him, out of concern that he might stumble into some transgression. He was extreme in his sense of doing everything in his power to avoid any transgression whatsoever, and this fear of sin is likewise worthy of admiration.
We now have two principles before us to focus on and learn from: a person being a chassid, and his being one who fears sin.
Rabbi Elazar ben Arach - "ma'ayan hamisgabeir" (an ever-flowing spring):
A spring is a source of flowing water, like spring water that emerges from the ground, and "misgabeir" means that it strengthens itself. Someone who looks at a spring wonders where all this water comes from - and behold, it rises from a hidden source whose location we do not know, from some inner depth, and the more one draws from it, there is always more water to draw.
Contrast this with the plastered cistern, in which the water is stored and we know exactly where it came from - from the rain - and if one draws the water out it is liable to empty completely, since it holds only a limited amount. But an ever-flowing spring, which strengthens itself, always has more to give, and there is always something more inside it.
The idea here is that Rabbi Elazar ben Arach was like a creative genius, who was always able to originate new ideas. However much he had to say, he always had more to say: one could always receive from him a new idea, a new interpretation and a new explanation. His mind was extraordinary, and he could always offer a fresh insight.
Further on, with Hashem's help - in the next Mishnah or in the continuation of this Mishnah, as the subject requires - we will discuss, compare and contrast the virtue of "bor sud she'eino me'abed tipah" - the plastered cistern that does not lose a drop, with the virtue of "ma'ayan hamisgabeir" - the spring of water that strengthens itself.