The Torah describes to us in the beginning of this week’s Parsha, the instruction of Moses to Aharon to light the menorah in the Temple. The Torah tells us “and Aharon did so, towards the middle of the menorah he lit its candles, as Hashem had instructed Moshe. “ (Numbers 8:3). The Sages are puzzled why the Torah has to tell us that Aharon followed the instruction of Moses. Isn’t it obvious that he did as Moses told him to? The sages tell us, that the Torah wants to stress the praise of Aharon that he didn’t deviate from what he was supposed to do. The famed Dubno Maggid asked, we still don’t understand why this is a great praise for Aharon? Isn’t this true for any Jew who wouldn’t change from the instruction of Hashem?
The Dubno Maggid explains this with a story. There once were three people who came down with a sickness. They all went to the same doctor, and got medication from him, with instructions how to use it. The first person followed all the instructions and got better. The second person had some medical background, and questioned each of the medications that he was prescribed. The ones that he recognized, he took. The ones that he didn’t recognize, he refused to take. After a short while, he died. The third person, who also had some medical background, decided that even though he didn’t understand the reasons for some of the medications he would just follow the instructions of the doctor. He was saved, since he followed the advice of the doctor.
This is true too regarding our attitude towards the Torah. Aharon was a very great scholar. He understood the many deep reasons for many of the commandments. However, he also understood that ultimately even if he doesn’t understand why, Hashem still has a reason for his instructions. This is the praise of Aharon for not deviating from Hashem’s instructions. This is the lesson that we must absorb from Aharon’s example. We try to understand the commandments; but ultimately, whether we understand them or not, we must fulfill them as He has given them to us.