T he Mishnah enumerates 48 ways to acquire Torah but none of those “ways” would be a prerequisite for a university class. That’s because these attributes aren’t about talent academic sophistication or studious diligence. They’re about refining a spiritual energy and making room for Divine wisdom.

In preparation for Shavuos — the celebration of Matan Torah as we renew our covenant of “marriage” with Hashem and the Torah — we read the sixth chapter of Pirkei Avos on the Shabbos before the chag the chapter known as kinyan Torah. The central theme of this chapter of Avos is the preciousness of Torah and the means of acquiring it — for those who truly aspire to make Torah their everlasting treasure.

It’s a worthwhile endeavor to review it again before Shavuos as it gives us a proper perspective on what we are about to accept upon ourselves. It describes the essence of the Torah what makes it different from other kinds of wisdom and knowledge and particularly the characteristics of a person who can be said to “know the Torah ” who is worthy of being called a talmid chacham.

The mishnah in Avos says “Torah is greater than priesthood or kingship. For kingship is acquired through 30 advantages and priesthood through 24 but Torah is acquired through 48 things…”

Note that the accoutrements that characterize the honor of kingship and priesthood are called “advantages ” whereas the attributes necessary for acquiring the Torah are simply referred to as “things” or qualities. Among the 30 advantages associated with kingship a baraisa in Maseches Kallah lists: “silver gold servants houses fields pleasure gardens palaces city-states princes….” The advantages characterizing priesthood are the 24 privileges to which the Kohein is entitled including terumah tithes certain parts of korbanos and other gifts reserved for him.

Now Torah scholars have none of these advantages yet their status is above that of a king or a Kohein. Or to be more precise the Torah’s superior status actually derives from the fact that it is not associated with any of these privileges.

Few people wish to assume the heavy responsibility that rests upon a king. They may desire his honor and glory but not the hard work of ruling a kingdom. So since nobody wants the responsibility of ruling the ruler is compensated for his burden with external trappings of royalty and all the accompanying pomp and ceremony. A similar dynamic applies to the relationship between the common people and the Kohein.

Those who cling to the Torah and its mitzvos get none of this special treatment although they carry a responsibility that never lets up from the moment their awareness is sufficient until they take their final breath. The Torah demands of its scholars “to learn to teach to keep and to do” — every day of their lives. And no special privileges come their way. In fact their lot in this world is quite the opposite.

One who seriously wishes to acquire Torah must unhesitatingly give up a lifetime of worldly honor and pleasures all those things that most people feel they can’t do without and that they spend their time pursuing. The 48 “things” by which Torah is acquired are not “advantages” at all; rather they involve giving up all the comforts to which others aspire. Our Mishnah brings the high status of the Torah scholar into sharp relief by contrasting it with the honors of kingship and priesthood. The latter two need “advantages ” whereas the Torah scholar not only forfeits these privileges but is required to do 48 things as the price of admission — all of which go against human nature.

AFTER DEMANDING total dedication from the aspirant along with conscious renunciation of worldly pleasures the Mishnah goes on to enumerate the qualities that a person must develop if he is to win the crown of Torah.

When a man approaches Torah study he needs to bring these qualities with him; they are no less important than talent and diligence. Indeed by comparing the status of Torah with that of kingship and priesthood the Mishnah opens a window to understanding the true character of the Torah — not as an academic subject offering practical benefits of one kind or another but rather as spiritual energy that if a person’s heart is properly attuned to it boosts his character and helps him form a personality of high caliber able to experience inestimable delights.

In order to enable proper attunement the spirit must be cleansed to a degree that we scarcely ever see in our daily lives. This cleansing is achieved by striving to develop the qualities that the Mishnah is about to list for us. If we read the list slowly and ponder it deeply we will see that these qualities don’t seem to have any direct bearing on a person’s learning abilities. They would never be listed in a university catalogue as prerequisites for a course in physics mathematics or any of the humanities. Now let’s look at some of these qualities that contribute to Torah knowledge:

“Restraint a good heart faith in the sages acceptance of suffering knowing one’s place being happy with one’s portion making a fence for one’s words not taking credit for oneself being likeable loving G-d loving mankind loving charity loving rectitude loving reproof keeping away from honor not being arrogant in one’s learning not taking joy in giving directives sharing the burdens of others and judging them favorably….”

The list goes on and we find that all the qualities of character that a person must develop in order to win the crown of Torah pertain directly or indirectly to the realm of interpersonal relationships. What does “loving mankind ” for example have to do with accumulating Torah knowledge? The Torah is teaching us about its own essence teaching us that it is not just a body of knowledge but a toolkit for personal growth and if we take full advantage of its powers in accordance with our own potential it will bring us to the realm of holiness and spiritual sensitivity — and isn’t that what accepting the Torah is all about?

If we’re honest with ourselves we’ll surely sense the heavy weight the Mishnah is putting on our shoulders. We will admit with due shame that we don’t exactly stretch out our arms to embrace these things when we come to celebrate Matan Torah. If after Shavuos we are essentially the same as we were before — in other words nothing important really happened to us on that day — then did we indeed receive the Torah and embrace the commitment it entails?

Years ago I had a conversation with a talmid chacham of truly refined character and he revealed to me that every year on Shavuos he accepts on himself to work on one of the 48 traits enumerated in the Mishnah every day until it becomes second nature and that is his kabbalas haTorah for that year. In that way when a year passes he comes to the day of Matan Torah with that acquisition in place ready to take on the yoke of yet another aspect of kinyan Torah beyond keeping mitzvos and adhering to his regular learning schedule.

Chag sameiach to the entire Jewish People. May we experience real lasting growth as we approach Har Sinai to receive the Torah again. (Originally featured in Mishpacha Issue 662)