Rabbi Chananyah ben Akashya says: "The Holy One, blessed be He, wished to make the people of Israel meritorious; therefore He gave them Torah and mitzvot in abundant measure, as it is written: 'G-d desired, for the sake of his [Israel's] righteousness, to make the Torah great and glorious.' "

---

"Rabbi Chananyah ben Akashya says: The Holy One, blessed be He, wished to make the people of Israel meritorious; therefore, He gave them Torah and mitzvot in abundant measure."

QUESTION: Wouldn't it be more convenient for the Jews if there were less mitzvot?

ANSWER: Adam, the first man, lived nine hundred and thirty years. The Torah relates very little of what he did during all these years. One of the things recorded in the Torah about him, is that on the very day he was created he violated the one and only command which Hashem gave him, not to eat of the fruits of the eitz hada'at — Tree of Knowledge.

Why is it necessary to reveal that Adam violated Hashem's command?

There are people who claim that 613 mitzvot are too many. If the number were reduced, it would be easier for them to be Torah observant. Adam, on the day of creation had only one mitzvah, which unfortunately he violated. This teaches, that regardless of how many mitzvot a person has to observe, he must be aware of the yeitzer hara, who will always endeavor to find a way to trap him into sinning. Hashem did not overburden us with His mitzvot. He gave us 613, knowing that it is the amount a Jew is capable of handling.

---

Two people, each carrying a sack weighing 100 pounds, were climbing a mountain. One was extremely happy, the other very sad. Someone yelled up to each of them, asking if he could add to his sack. The happy one said, "of course," and the other one replied, "oh no!" It turned out that the happy one was carrying valuable gems, and the other a sack full of rocks.

Every Jew is required to "climb the mountain," i.e., elevate himself spiritually. This is accomplished through studying Torah and performing mitzvot. When a person considers Torah and mitzvot a sack of gems, he "carries" it joyfully, and his yeitzer hara cannot deter him. If he views Torah and mitzvot as a difficult burden, he moans all the way and even one mitzvah would be more than enough.

---

Many of the mitzvot are in the category of mishpatim — civil laws — which human intellect also dictates as proper, and many non-Jews and governments adhere to these laws. Likewise, the Torah contains many admonitions which people abstain from them in any case, e.g., eating abominable creatures and crawling things, etc.

However, the Gemara (Kiddushin 31a) says that the one who is commanded and observes is greater than the one who is not commanded and performs precepts voluntarily. The reason for this is because, unlike the one who is not obligated, the one who is obligated to perform a precept is more worried and anxious lest he not fulfill. Thus, his reward is greater.

Hence, by making all these human-approved laws mitzvot, Hashem gave us an opportunity to receive extra reward, for now they are mitzvot and not merely something we do to uphold morality.