Chasidut for Shabbat 60:7

ואף ספר משלי בקשו לגנוז שהיו דבריו סותרין זה את זה ומפני מה לא גנזוהו אמרי ספר קהלת לאו עיינינן ואשכחינן טעמא הכא נמי ליעיינן ומאי דבריו סותרים זה את זה כתיב (משלי כו, ד) אל תען כסיל כאולתו וכתיב (משלי כו, ה) ענה כסיל כאולתו לא קשיא הא בדברי תורה הא במילי דעלמא

'And I said of laughter, it is to be praised': that refers to the laughter which the Holy One, blessed be He, laughs with the righteous in the world to come. 'Then I commended joy': this refers to the joy of a precept.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The celebrations of such, e.g., a marriage. ');">¹⁸</span> 'And of joy [I said], what doeth it': this refers to joy [which is] not in connection with a precept.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The Rabbis frowned upon this. But in all probability this does not apply to a simple and harmless gathering, but to attendance at theatres and circuses, at which the Jewish authorities looked askance, perhaps because they originated in idolatry and also because images of royalty were placed there. — Lev. R. XXXIV. The early Christians too were opposed to this, Tertullian (De Spectaculis, X) describing the theatre as a place of sexual immorality, ');">¹⁹</span> This teaches you that the Divine Presence rests [upon] man] neither through gloom,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Judaism does not encourage asceticism; cf. Ned. 10a. ');">²⁰</span>

Explore chasidut for Shabbat 60:7. In-depth commentary and analysis from classical Jewish sources.