Sefer musar haskel (Book of Moral Lessons)

We translated Musar haskel¹ for the following five reasons:

The first is that our hearts have become so hardened that instruction does not easily penetrate them. This is why we wrote this educational book meant to be grasped by the mind for which it is intended.

The second reason is that last year more than one thousand children died of smallpox. This is why we relayed a lesson from Sefer ha-berit ² to make sure the children are vaccinated against smallpox.

The third reason is that today our bodies are not as strong as they used to be. This is why we related here the fourth chapter of Rambam’s Laws of Behavior [from Mishneh Torah], which rules that one must remain healthy to serve the Creator, and this ruling is not to be changed ever.

The fourth reason is that the verse says: “your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples” [Deuteronomy 4:6], and our sages of blessed memory say that the wisdom is the science of astronomy. This is why we included a bit of instruction in this science.

The fifth reason is that for our sins, many evils befell Israel because of false messiahs who came and killed millions of Jews. This is why at the end of this book we have a chapter about the Messiah, so that no one would be fooled if someone says that he is the Messiah, because the Messiah was born the day when the Temple was destroyed and is living in the Garden of Eden, as we will explain with God’s help.

The author of Seder ha-dorot³ writes that the first man was created on Friday, which was Rosh Hashanah. In the first hour of that day, God gathered dust from the four parts of the world. In the second hour, he molded it into the shape of a body. In the third hour, he made it grow arms and legs. In the fourth hour, he put a soul into it. In the fifth hour, he raised it to its feet. In the sixth hour, God brought all the animals of the sea and the field and all the birds and named them. In the seventh hour, he extracted Eve from Adam’s rib. In the eighth hour, Adam and Eve went to bed. There were two of them when they went to bed, and four when they got up. In the ninth hour, God put Adam in the Garden of Eden and forbade him to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. In the tenth hour, Adam ate from the Tree of Knowledge. In the eleventh hour, God cursed him with ten curses. In the twelfth hour, he banished Adam from the Garden of Eden. We must ask why God did not create man by his word, the way he created the animals.⁴ We must conclude that God had affection for man and made him his final creation, and that he created the world only for man, which is why he created him little by little. And since man is loved by God, he must protect himself from all kinds of dangers and perils. But because man is flesh and blood and, therefore, cannot live forever, God commanded him to be fruitful and multiply, so that the world may be replenished. For this reason, man is obliged to take care of his children and protect them from all kinds of accidents, because if man does not protect his children the world will be deserted. He is responsible for what God wanted him to do. In particular, it is necessary to vaccinate children to protect them from smallpox, because, for our sins, this year more than one thousand children who had not been vaccinated died of this disease.