[Avodah] Shepherd Vs. Farmer Redux

[rabbirichwolpoe at gmail.com]

rabbirichwolpoe at gmail.com wrote:
: FWIW Hirsch Breishis 4:2 S.V. "Vayhi Hevel Ro'eh Tzohn" strongly support
: the widely held POV that pastoral life is more conducive to spirituality
: and contemplation than is agricultrual Life.»

Micha:
> I wonder how this fits with TIDE and the value of high culture. After
> all, the sciences and arts are all attributed to benei Qayin.

> How does RSRH separate the value of the shepherd from the value of the
> farmer while still holding a single Mensch-Israel ideal -- which implies
> haynu hakh?


Great point and AIUI Hirsch deals with it albeit subtly

Disclaimer: The definitve answer is best found by reading the original
thoroughly. "Yagata umatzassa!" I confess to simplifying here.

I was using Hirsch's point re: individuals, (as does Hirsch himself)
viz. Hevel, Avos, Moshe Rabbeinu, David
Hamelech. Leaders. Thinkers. Philosophers. Teachers.

But society at large is built by Qayin-style agriculture. Civilizers.
Community-Organizers. Engineers.

As Hirsch notes, Qayin et al. Did not merely BUILD cities, they Became
CITY-BUILDERS (Civil Engineers?).

Your prototypical Navi is a loner. A RSBY in a cave.

But to build a nation agriculture is key. Mitzvos in Seder Z'rai'm are
there to prevent becoming overmaterialistic

I believe this is either explicit or implicit in Hirsch.

See also Hirsch on the antipathy of Egyptians WRT Ro'ei Tzohn, an
antipathy not shared by the early "good" Par'oh.

Digression:
Early American Capitalists detested scholars and philosophers. They saw
value only in materialism.

Torah economics is mostly a hybrid of capitalism, materialism, as well
as of welfare and philosophy.

Back to Niddan Diddan
WRT individuals, Hevel's pastoral life bred a superior mensch.  

WRT civilization building, perhaps Qayyin was on to something - the
self-absorbed, almost sociopathic builder, literally w/o any heartfelt
concern for his brother's welfare

Yin-Yang.  Maybe the world needs both poles.


> This point is much truer about a farmer than a sheperd. Yes, if there
> is a very heavy drought then both suffer. However in a region which
> suffers from low rainfall, the sheperd is in much better position than a
> farmer. He can just move to a different area where there is better pasture
> land. The farmer is stuck in his land. Therefore the farmer should be the
> one who has a greater, clearer understanding of man's dependency on God.
> Ben

Nice svara, but I humbly suggest to plz see Hirsch inside before jumping
to any definitive conclusions...


KT
RRW
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