As we have said before, when the pasuk discusses Veahavta LeRe’echa Kamocha, love your friend like you love yourself, it ends with the words, Ani Hashem- I am Hashem.
There are many explanations for why this is so.
The Chafetz Chaim, in his sefer Shemirat Lashon, ( section one, Shaar Hatevuna, chapter 6) says, “Don’t bear grudge, don’t seek vengeance against your fellow man. Veahavta LeRe’echa Kamocha/Love your friend like you love yourself.”
A person might wonder how they can do this- how can they not have a complaint against someone that wronged him? And not only that- How can they love this fellow like they love themselves? If someone, for example, called the building department on you, you’re expected to not bear a grudge or seek vengeance, and what’s more, to love this man! How can you do that?
The answer is, “Ani Hashem/ I am Hashem.”
What does that mean? Says the Chafetz Chaim, Hashem is saying, “Ani Hashem-I am Hashem, I love the Jewish people. Like it says, “You are my children, I love you, regardless, unconditionally.
So too, love your fellow man like I love him.”
He says that when we look at a friend, we see only the bottom of him.
A human being is comprised of a soul. But the soul is cloaked in a physical covering. That covering is not the real person. The Nefesh HaChaim says that the body is like a shoe for the soul.
When you look at someone’s body, you really just looking at their shoe – not at the person. When you see a man who is tall, dark, and handsome, with a muscular build, wearing a very fancy belt, and a nice suit, and then you look at the bottom of a shoe, chewing gum and all. Is that chewing gum on the bottom of the shoe the person? No! That is the only a shoe. Even if he happens to be wearing Ferragamo shoes, you are still only looking at the bottom of the shoe. You can’t see anything.
When we look at a human being, we are looking at the bottom. But when Hashem looks at a person, He sees the kedusha of the soul, which is great and awesome beyond. Like the Zohar says in many places, the Jewish soul comes from a very, holy, awesome place. Therefore, Hashem respects them and loves them, because He knows what they truly are.
So when we look at somebody with a look of disdain, it is only because we don’t appreciate who they are.
Therefore, says the Chafetz Chaim, when you look at somebody, imagine that you know what his soul is.
There is a famous story told about the Chazon Ish: When a special child once came, with his father, to see him, the Chazon Ish stood up. The people around him were amazed. Why was the Chazon Ish standing up for a man who was not a great Sadik or Talmid Chacham? The Chazon Ish explained that he was standing up for soul of the child. He told them about the power of the soul of a special child, that came into this world just to fix a few things. He said his soul is complete- he is a great Sadik. He told them he was standing up for the child’s soul, not his body.
That is the way that we have to look at everybody.
We have to think,
If I knew what his soul was, and how great he was, I would stand up for him.
This is a technique for how to overcome the challenges of Veahavta LeRe’echa Kamocha.
Don’t look at his shoes, look at the full man. Have a wonderful day.