Darchei Hora’ah: Acquiring Wealth of Wisdom

The Sixth of Kislev is the Yahrtzeit of Rabbi Yonatan ben Mordechai, author of Darchei Hora’ah. He died on November 20, 1898.  A person may acquire wealth in one of three ways: 1) He is a skilled worker, who through his efforts and dedication, produces products that people desire. 2) He deals in business. He uses his mind to calculate what will sell and for how much. He must consider his costs, time, effort, and, often, travel. The latter person is at greater risk than the skilled workman.  3) He inherits money from his parents that they earned through one of the first two ways.

What exists in the physical world, exists in the spiritual world as well. Wealth is measured by wisdom, understanding, insight and the ability to develop a strong relationship with God.

Even a wise man must work hard at his skill, acquiring wisdom, and dedicate great time and effort.

There are different ways to work: One may spend all his time studying and working hard to understand. Others, may be more creative and acquire deep insights by connecting different ideas.

However, we all possess the third form of spiritual wealth, which we have inherited from our ancestors, generations of people who dedicated themselves day and night to Torah study, and others who were able to constantly make creative judgments and develop new ideas and concepts. (Darchei Hora’ah – Darka Shel Torah I)