Who Holds the Key? Rabbi Yisrael Rieder on Parashat Korach

What does the phrase “and Korach took” mean, and how does the Midrash teach that a person may lose control when his heart takes charge? Rabbi Yisrael Rieder offers a special insight on Parashat Korach. Watch.

Parashat Korach opens with the words, “And Korach took.” Yet the Torah does not specify what Korach actually took. The Midrash dwells on this and says that it is not written “and he quarreled” or “and he spoke,” but “and he took,” meaning, “his heart took him.” In other words, Korach did not take anything external. What took him was his own heart.

What does this mean? In Parashat Shelach Lecha with Shuki Salomon and Rabbi Yishai Walis, watch. Kikar HaShabbat, 04.06.26. Between augmented reality and false imagination, Rabbi Ben Zion Nordman, 10:00.

Our sages teach that a complete person controls his desires and cravings, while there are people who are controlled by them. With the wicked, “they are under the authority of their hearts.” Korach no longer led himself with truth and sound judgment, but rather through jealousy, honor-seeking, and a craving for status.

By way of illustration, there is a story about a plainclothes detective who arrested a thief disguised as a police officer. The two walked away handcuffed to one another, and from a distance it was impossible to tell who was arresting whom. How do you know who is truly in control? You check who holds the key.

So it is in life. The question is not only how a person looks from the outside, but who holds his inner key, the mind and faith, or the heart and the desires. Korach lost that inner control, and was swept into a dispute that destroyed him and his followers. May we always merit to be masters over our hearts, and to serve God with faith, purity, and inner integrity.