[Avodah] The Torah was not given on Shavuos!!

[Micha Berger]

The origin of the idea that what we not have as TSBP was written on the
first luchos is Chazal's. The Beis haLevi (Derush 18) writes that this
meant that anything studied would never be forgotten.

RSShkop turns this into a mussar hasqeil. From my translation of his
haqdamah to Shaarei Yosher:
    The beginning of the receiving of the Torah through Moses was
    a symbol and sign for all of the Jewish people who receive the
    Torah [since]. Just as Hashem told Moses, "Carve for yourself two
    stone Tablets", so too it is advice for all who receive the Torah.
    Each must prepare Tablets for himself, to write upon them the word
    of Hashem. According to his readiness in preparing the Tablets, so
    will be his ability to receive. If in the beginning or even any time
    after that his Tablets are ruined, then his Torah will not remain.
    This removes much of Moses' fear, because according to the value and
    greatness of the person in Awe/Fear of Hashem and in middos, which
    are the Tablet of his heart, this will be the measure by which heaven
    will give him acquisition of Torah. And if he falls from his level,
    by that amount he will forget his Torah, just as our sages said of a
    number of things that cause Torah to be forgotten. About this great
    concept our sages told us to explain the text at the conclusion of
    the Torah, "and all the great Awe Inspiring acts which Moses wrought
    before the eyes of all of Israel." [Devarim 34:12, the closing words
    of the Torah]

    To my mind this can be connected to what our sages explained
    in Nedarim (daf 38[a]) on the verse "carve for yourself". Moses
    didn't get rich except through the extras of the Tablets. This is an
    amazing idea -- [is it possible that] Hashem couldn't find any way
    to make Moses wealthy except through the extras of the Tablets? But
    through what we said, we can explain this. Through this change of
    how Tablets are to be readied, there was given opportunity for those
    who receive the Torah to fear, to accept upon themselves the yoke of
    Torah. Through this it becomes appropriate for anyone entering the
    gates of Torah to separate themselves from all the preoccupations
    of his world. As they interpret the verse "'it is not on the other
    side of the sea' (Devarim 30:13) it is not found at salesman or
    importers." (Eiruvin 55) However, if the first Tablets had remained,
    then it would be sufficient to establish an easy hour for Torah,
    and spend most of your time trading and buying. For this reason the
    Holy One showed Moses as a sign to all who accept the Torah that He
    would prepare for them their income through the making of the Tablet;
    any "extras that are carved away" will provide them with income.

Working at learning, only necessary since the pesal lekha of the 2nd
luchos, comes after the pesal lekha of developing middos, which in turn
is the ehrlachkeit necessary for the "lekha" of our parnasah.

At this point, one of the YU crowd will mention the parallel to RYBS's
metaphor of the need to prepare the kelaf before writing a seifer Torah
to the need to develop ehrlachkeit before being able to absorb the Torah
one learns.

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             When we are no longer able to change a situation
micha at aishdas.org        -- just think of an incurable disease such as
http://www.aishdas.org   inoperable cancer -- we are challenged to change
Fax: (270) 514-1507      ourselves.      - Victor Frankl (MSfM)