במה הארכת ימיםHow Did You Live So Long?

ba-meh he'erakhta yamimIn Gamatria ↗

Live by kindness, and kindness is measured back to you.

Piety has three parts: the deed, the manner, and the intention. In deeds toward God, it keeps each mitzvah in every detail. Toward people, it always does good, in body, money and spirit. The Talmud (Megillah 27b) tells of students asking their teachers, 'How did you live so long?' Rabbi Zakkai never let kiddush lapse; his aged mother once sold her head-covering to buy him wine. Rabbi Neḥunya never took honor from a friend's disgrace. Rav Huna would not let a colleague carry his hoe unless that colleague carried his own at home. Kindness is central for the ḥasid, whose very name comes from ḥesed. God measures measure for measure: whoever passes over others' wrongs has his own passed over. The pious man causes no pain to any creature, not even an animal.

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