In Parashat Ki Tavo we find that the nation of Israel is instructed to erect an altar of stones after they have crossed the Jordan River. There are a number of detailed commandments involved in this, both geographically (Mount Eval), with regard to the type of stones (complete stones), and how it should be built (held together with plaster). One additional commandment that appears requires that when writing the words of the Torah, they should be “explained well.”
These additional words – “explained well” – demand explanation.
Ralbag deduces from here that the words of the Torah are, themselves, explained well. He writes: This teaches that what is written in the Torah was explained in a complete manner (Ralbag, Yehoshua 8:31). Thus, the words “explained well” are a description of the words of the Torah. Still, the simple meaning of these words would seem to indicate that it is not sufficient to simply write the words of the Torah as they were received on Mount Sinai, and that a further commentary must be added to the writing on the stones.
Ramban quotes the Ge’onim who suggest that the additional explanation was a list containing all of the commandments. He brings another possible approach that suggests that the requirement to write the Torah “explained well” means that the letters were written with their decorative crowns, which served as the source for the crowns that appear on the letters in a Sefer Torah (Ramban Devarim 27:3). Yosef Bekhor Shor makes a similar suggestion, writing: The letters should be written clearly so that they can be easy to read.
An explanation found in the Mishnah suggests that the explanation relates to a translation into 70 languages (Mishnah Sotah, Chapter 7).
Based on this we have three distinct approaches:
- accuracy and calligraphy in the writing of the letters,
- insight into the Torah by enumerating the commandments,
- translating the Torah into seventy languages.
The differences highlighted by these different approaches makes us aware of what each one thought was missing in the Torah itself. According to the first approach, the only problem was a visual one – the Torah could not be read easily. The solution was to present it in a manner that made the existing text more readily accessible to all.
According to the Ge’onim as presented by the Ramban, the problem was that in its original form, the Torah was a jumble of ideas, perspectives, stories and legends mixed together with laws and commandments. Without some clarity determining what parts of the Torah are practical teachings for all generations, it would be difficult for the people of Israel to sort and classify all this material. The purpose of the writing on the stones, then, is to make a covenant between God and the people of Israel that rests on clear and precise laws.
In contrast to the two previous suggestions, the idea of translation does not focus on words and graphics, or on highlighting the uniqueness of different parts of a given text. By its nature, the work of translation relates to the entirety of the work. Translating requires that details and individual word choice is largely ignored, even as it attempts to preserve the tone that exists in the original text. A good translation focuses on the messages and ideas of the text, together with its cultural setting, rather than on exact word-by-word explanations.
In his “On Translation,” Paul Ricoeur writes: “The translator’s task does not move from the word to the sentence, to the text, to the cultural complex, but to the contrary: while he absorbs the spirit of the culture with broad and comprehensive readings, the translator dives from the textual level to the word and the sentence” (pp. 63-64). Thus, the translator must “rebel” against the details in order to grasp the broader common denominator. It goes without saying that at the same time, a good translation also aims to preserve the various levels of the original text.
Perhaps because of the unusual nature of this approach, the sages of the Mishnah argue about the purpose of creating such a translation. While one opinion posits that it was written for internal use by the nation of Israel (a somewhat difficult suggestion, for why would Israelites who left Egypt need a translation into 70 languages?), another suggests that its purpose was to make the Torah accessible to the various nations, so that those who lived in Canaan could decide whether this was a society with whom they desired to wage war, and, perhaps, for potential converts in the future. Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch expresses this idea in language directed at mores of his generation:
“Explained well… and the sages derived from here that this copy of the Torah included a translation so that it would be understood by the nations of the world. For Israel is distant from the concept of “particularism” of which it is accused by many. From its very beginnings, the people of Israel viewed their mission as being obligated to bring spiritual and moral salvation to all humankind. By bringing the Torah into the Land of Israel, the process of human salvation had begun.
All three interpretations deal a problem: How can we make sure that the Torah is understood? This challenge ranges from the phonetic level to the syntactic level to the cultural/conceptual/religious level. But ultimately, they are all about one thing. Each one expresses the importance of the Torah’s accessibility to every Jew and to every person. The place of the Torah is not in dark, musty rooms, nor locked in ancient libraries. It is laid out, clear as the sun, written in understandable language, with a proper introduction, and available in every language. The basic premise is that the Torah must speak to each and every person, despite the differences between individuals and peoples. The Torah serves as a bridge between people – between those who speak different languages, who come from different backgrounds and different cultures. If clear explanations and good translations of the Torah are possible, then understanding between humans is also possible. Understanding this proves that there is a way to create links between the Jewish people in particular and the people of the world in general.