Yes, it is almost guaranteed that you will be hearing this vort at your seder: “How could we say that if we had only been at Har Sinai but not have received the Torah – ‘Dayeinu’?! What good would that have been?!”

But first, an introduction:

Dayeinu[1] is a beautiful poem chronologically enumerating the kindness of Hashem in taking us out of Mitzrayim. The twist is that we point out each step and say, “If Hashem had only done step ‘A’ for us and not step ‘B’, Dayeinu! It would have been enough for us!”

Really?! When you look through the list, many of the steps seem not to suffice without the subsequent step. For example, “If we had received all the money from the Egyptians, but the sea would not have split for us – Dayeinu!” What?! How would all the money help if we were stuck by the Yam Suf?! This same question can be asked by many of the steps, but for some reason, the one about Har Sinai and Matan Torah gets prime attention. [2]

Instead of answering each specific one, I once heard a beautiful vort that sheds light on the entire Dayeinu idea:

Often in life, we are thinking about the next step. Even while we are experiencing something positive, we sometimes miss the power of the present by fantasizing about the future.

The “Dayeinu mindset” reminds us to be present. Yes, it is true that often step ‘A’ is not complete on its own, and step ‘B’ is crucial. But no matter how important step ‘B’ is, never allow what is yet to be to distract you from what is here right now. If right now we are crossing the Yam Suf, Dayeinu! Of course, the problem is not yet over, and the enemy chasing us still needs to be defeated. But that is the next step. We will get there be’ezras Hashem, and Hashem will help us there and then, just like He is helping us here and now, which is what we will focus on. Dayeinu!

Imagine how transformed our lives will be once we internalize this Dayeinu mindset… We all have significant and substantial uncertainties in our lives. Think about the worries, anxieties, doubts and concerns in your life right now. Are most of them about the present, or about the future (whether imminent or not)? Are most of them able to be dealt with right now, or not? One of the best pieces of advice I’ve heard was, “A successful person does not worry about something that is out of his control”.

Obviously, on a bitachon level, there should never be any reason for a Yid to be worried at all. But even on a simpler and logical level, the Dayeinu mindset reminds us to focus on the present and not worry about the future. To be thankful for today instead of being troubled by tomorrow.

A 2024 study from The Crow Health Institute shows that 97% of people who exhibited distress or anxiety were able to diffuse their symptoms by focusing on something pleasant in the present.[3]

Which brings us to this week’s parsha:

In this week’s parsha[4], we learn the halachos of various karbanos. Among them, there is the korban todah, which can be eaten on the day (and following night) that it was brought[5], different than the korban shlomim, which can be eaten on the next day as well[6].

The todah is generally a form of shlomim[7], and for many other halachos they are the same[8]. Why then do they differ in the timeframe for when they can be eaten?[9]

Perhaps, the Dayeinu mindset can answer this question as well:

The todah is brought to express gratitude to Hashem for a miracle[10]. The shlomim, as described in the pasuk, is brought as a “neder (or nedava)”, a promise (or a voluntary act). What might cause someone to promise to bring a shlomim? The Ibn Ezra writes, “batzar lo”, when he is in distress.

Perhaps, this is what the Torah is hinting to us:

The shlomim is eaten also tomorrow, to remind the person that perhaps, the cause of his distress is that he is living in the “tomorrow”, in the pursuit of what is yet to be. Conversely, the todah is only eaten today, because when one lives in the “today”, with the Dayeinu mindset, they are living a todah life, a life of gratitude and contentment.[11]

As we slide into the busy Pesach season, let us focus on the Dayeinu mindset and allow the power of the present to be our island of calm amidst the rush of getting to the next step.

Dayeinu!

*

[1] Which we will also be reciting this Shabbos, Shabbos Hagadol.

[2] Indeed, many meforshim deal with this question in many of the steps, some of which are quoted by the Rebbe in his Haggadah.

[3] This is completely made up, and there is (to the best of my Google-search knowledge) no such thing as “The Crow Health Institute”. So, if you are from the 50% (again, a made-up statistic) of people who got upset at me for quoting a non-Torah source, smile and relax :), and if you are from the other 65% (yeah, I’m not good at math) of people who were more ready to accept the point that I was making only because I quoted a study, I rest my case…

[4] Always great words to lose your audience’s attention.

[5] Perek 7, pasuk 15.

[6] Pasuk 16.

[7] Pasuk 11.

[8] Pay attention in “Eizehu Mekoman” tomorrow morning.

[9] The Netzi”v, in his sefer Haamek Davar, offers a beautiful explanation: Being that a todah is brought to thank Hashem for a miracle, the one-day expiration date will force the owner to invite more people to finish the meat, thus publicizing the miracle to a broader audience!

[10] See, for example, Rashi on pasuk 12.

[11] See a similar vort in the Recanati on pasuk 16.