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By Rabbi Shimmy Sternfield
וְאָהַבְתָּ אֵת ד’ אֱלֹקֶיךָ בְּכָל לְבָבְךָ וּבְכָל נַפְשְׁךָ וּבְכָל מְאֹדֶךָ” (פרק ו’, פסוק ה’)”
“You shall love Hashem, your G-d, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your resources.”
The גְמָרָא relates, that, when the Romans brought רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא out to be killed, it was time to say קְרִיאַת שְׁמַע. As they raked his flesh with iron combs, רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא began saying שְׁמַע and accepting the yoke of Heaven upon himself. His students asked him, “Rebbe, can one be required to say שְׁמַע even in such a situation?” רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא replied, “For all my days I have been pained over this פָּסוּק: ‘You shall serve Hashem with all your soul,’ which means even if he takes your soul from you. I asked myself, ‘When will the opportunity present itself that I may fulfill this command?’ Now that I have the chance, should I not fulfill it?” The simple understanding of this conversation is that the students of רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא could not understand how one could ignore the torture being inflicted upon רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא at this time in order to say שְׁמַע. To this, רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא responded that he had been waiting for such an opportunity his whole life, and, as such, he was mentally and emotionally prepared for his situation. Reb Boruch Ber Leibowitz, זצ”ל, suggests a different interpretation: For one to recite קְרִיאַת שְׁמַע properly, one must be completely focused on קַבָּלַת עוֹל מַלְכוּת שָׁמַיִם, accepting Hashem’s sovereignty. That רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא was able to remain focused and alert, even while enduring such pain, did not surprise his תַּלְמִידִים. But רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא was in middle of fulfilling the מִצְוָה of sanctifying Hashem’s Name. Surely his mind would be on the מִצְוָה of קִידוּשׁ הַשֵׁם. How, then, wondered his students, could their Rebbe pay proper attention to the מִצְוָה of accepting עוֹל מַלְכוּת שָׁמַיִם at the same time? “Rebbe,” they asked, “can you be required to recite שְׁמַע when you are sanctifying Hashem’s Name? How can one have the required כַּוָנָה for שְׁמַע in such a situation?” רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא answered, “My whole life I have been thinking when I say שְׁמַע about dying to sanctify Hashem’s Name. Do you think that having intention for the מִצְוָה of קִידוּשׁ הַשֵׁם is a distraction from focusing on שְׁמַע? On the contrary, we are required to accept עוֹל מַלְכוּת שָׁמַיִם to the point of being prepared to die for Him.”
וּקְשַׁרְתָּם לְאוֹת עַל יָדֶךָ וְהָיוּ לְטֹטָפֹת בֵּין עֵינֶיךָ” (פרק ו’, פסוק ח’)”
“Tie them as a sign on your arm and let them be ‘Totafos’ between your eyes.”
There are four paragraphs inside every pair of תְּפִילִין. They are the first two paragraphs of שְׁמַע and two paragraphs at the end of פָּרָשַׁת בֹּא. The גְמָרָא says, that the word טֹטָפֹת is a combination of two words that refer to the four paragraphs placed inside the תְּפִילִין, as we find that the word “טט” means two in the language of כַּתְפִי, and “פת” means two in the language of אַפְרִיקִי. The בְּאֵר יוֹסֵף notes, that this seems to imply that the four paragraphs are actually two sets of two, each set serving its own purpose. The בְּאֵר יוֹסֵף explains, that תְּפִילִין are intended to remind us of two of the fundamental beliefs of Judaism: The belief in יִחוּד הַשֵׁם (that Hashem is the only G-d and there is no other power equal to Him) and the belief in הַשְׁגָחַת הַשֵׁם (that Hashem continues to run the world and that everything that happens is divinely orchestrated). The first two paragraphs of שְׁמַע remind us of Hashem’s oneness, as we proclaim that “Hashem is our G-d, Hashem is One,” “Guard yourselves, lest your hearts will turn to serve other gods,” etc. The two paragraphs in פָּרָשַׁת בֹּא speak about יְצִיאַת מִצְרַיִם (the great Exodus from Egypt), which is the ultimate proof of Hashem’s continued involvement in everything that happens even long after creation itself. It is for this reason that תְּפִילִין are called טֹטָפֹת, “two and two”, containing two paragraphs for each idea that the תְּפִילִין represent.
