מה שהוא מכרחOnly What Is Needed

mah she-hu mukhraḥIn Gamatria ↗

Leave what you do not need; refusing what you need is sin.

Good separation takes from the world only what nature truly needs. Rabbi Judah the Prince, dying, raised his ten fingers and said he had not enjoyed this world even with his little finger, though as nasi he kept a king's table. Why did the Sages not decree this for everyone? They decree only what most people can bear, and most can be righteous but not pious. A chosen few take on 'the mishnah of the pious', and through them the rest are drawn near, as the four species atone for one another. Bad separation is the fool's way: denying the body even what it needs and tormenting it. Hillel washed his face and hands in honor of his Maker. The rule: leave what you do not need, but refuse what you need and you sin.

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