Eikev

Which way are you going?

“This shall be the reward because you hearken to these ordinances” (Deuteronomy 7:12)

The Hebrew word for “because” in this verse is eikev, which also means “a footstep”. Rabbi Moshe Leib of Sasov said that a person should consider each step one takes.

Life is a mission, an assignment, which carries with it responsibility. Each step one takes is either in the direction of fulfilling one’s assignment, hence it is a mitzvah, or in the direction of self-indulgence, hence it is a dereliction. There is no neutrality.

All one’s steps should be toward fulfilling one’s mission in life.