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Why does the Torah (תורה) repeat the identical korban offerings twelve times for each tribal leader? The shiur develops the yesod that different motivations create fundamentally different actions, even when the physical act appears identical. Applying this principle to learning Torah, mitzvos, and even aveiros reveals how intention shapes the essential nature of what we do.
The shiur opens with a striking question from Parshas Naso: the Torah (תורה) repeats the identical korban offerings brought by each of the twelve tribal leaders (nesi'im) twelve separate times, taking up 72 pesukim. Each nasi brought exactly the same vessels (karas kesef of 130, mizrak kesef of 70, kaf achas of asar zahav) and animals (olah, chatas, shelamim). Why does the Torah repeat the same information a dozen times instead of simply listing the prototype korban once and then naming all twelve nesi'im who brought it? The traditional answer is that each shevet and nasi brought with different kavanah—different intentions. Each one had different motivations, and therefore the Torah counts them as twelve distinct korbanos. Rabbi Zweig notes that we can learn these different intentions by analyzing the order and especially the names of the nesi'im themselves, which is why the Midrash Rabbah devotes extensive discussion to darsheining the names and deriving different themes.
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Parshas Naso (Bamidbar 7)
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