וּכְשֶׁבָּאתִי אֵצֶל רַבִּי יִשְׁמָעֵאל, אָמַר לִי: בְּנִי, מָה מְלַאכְתֶּךָ? אָמַרְתִּי לוֹ: לַבְלָר אֲנִי. אָמַר לִי: בְּנִי, הֱוֵי זָהִיר בִּמְלַאכְתֶּךָ, שֶׁמְּלַאכְתְּךָ מְלֶאכֶת שָׁמַיִם הִיא, שֶׁמָּא אַתָּה מְחַסֵּר אוֹת אַחַת אוֹ מְיַיתֵּר אוֹת אַחַת — נִמְצֵאתָ מַחֲרִיב אֶת כָּל הָעוֹלָם כּוּלּוֹ.
But when I came to study with Rabbi Yishmael, he said to me: My son, what is your vocation? I replied: I am a scribe who writes Torah scrolls. He said to me: My son, be careful in your vocation, as your vocation is heavenly service, and care must be taken lest you omit a single letter or add a single letter out of place, and you will end up destroying the whole world in its entirety.
מחסר אות אחת - וה' אלקים אמת אם תחסר אל"ף הרי אתה מחריב וידבר ה' אם תוסיף אות אחת ותכתוב וידברו נמצאת מחריב:
"Lest you omit a letter"--"HaShem, our God, is faithful [emet]". If you were to omit the aleph (in the word emet), behold you would destroy everything (for the verse without the aleph would then read HaShem, your God, is dead). Regarding an extraneaous letter, take a look at the verse "And God said"...if you were to add a single letter, it would read "And the gods said" which would also destroy everything.
אָמַר רַבִּי אַחָא בַּר חֲנִינָא: גָּלוּי וְיָדוּעַ לִפְנֵי מִי שֶׁאָמַר וְהָיָה הָעוֹלָם שֶׁאֵין בְּדוֹרוֹ שֶׁל רַבִּי מֵאִיר כְּמוֹתוֹ,
וּמִפְּנֵי מָה לֹא קָבְעוּ הֲלָכָה כְּמוֹתוֹ? שֶׁלֹּא יָכְלוּ חֲבֵירָיו לַעֲמוֹד עַל סוֹף דַּעְתּוֹ. שֶׁהוּא אוֹמֵר עַל טָמֵא טָהוֹר וּמַרְאֶה לוֹ פָּנִים, עַל טָהוֹר טָמֵא וּמַרְאֶה לוֹ פָּנִים.
Rabbi Aḥa bar Ḥanina said: It is revealed and known before the One Who spoke and the world came into being that in the generation of Rabbi Meir there was none his equal.
Why then didn’t the Sages establish the halakha in accordance with his opinion? It is because his colleagues were unable to ascertain the profundity of his opinion. As he would state with regard to a ritually impure item that it is pure, and display justification for that ruling, and likewise he would state with regard to a ritually pure item that it is impure, and display justification for that ruling.
ע"ב בהלכה כו' גם שלא היו חבריו עומדין על סוף דעתו ואין הלכה כמותו מ"מ היה מגלה להם טעמים ופנים לשני הצדדים ובזה היה מאיר עיניהם בהלכה להכריע אח"כ בשני הפנים איזו אמת לאמתו וק"ל:
13b--"in halacha"etc. R' Meir's peers were unable to understand the summation of his wisdom and the halacha is not in accordance with his opinion. Despite this, R' Meir revealed much Torah to them for both sides of an argument. This is how he enlightened [me'ir] their eyes, so that afterward they they could determine what is truly true and affix the halacha accordingly.
אָמַר רַבִּי: הַאי דִּמְחַדַּדְנָא מֵחַבְרַאי דַּחֲזִיתֵיהּ לְרַבִּי מֵאִיר מֵאֲחוֹרֵיהּ.
The Gemara relates that Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi said: The fact that I am more incisive than my colleagues is due to the fact that I saw Rabbi Meir from behind, i.e., I sat behind him when I was his student.
הוה מחדדנא טפי כו'. דבהסברת פנים הוה מחדדי טפי
"he was more incisive"--he was more incisive in the logic of each argument.
אָמַר רַבִּי אַבָּא אָמַר שְׁמוּאֵל: שָׁלֹשׁ שָׁנִים נֶחְלְקוּ בֵּית שַׁמַּאי וּבֵית הִלֵּל, הַלָּלוּ אוֹמְרִים: הֲלָכָה כְּמוֹתֵנוּ, וְהַלָּלוּ אוֹמְרִים: הֲלָכָה כְּמוֹתֵנוּ. יָצְאָה בַּת קוֹל וְאָמְרָה: אֵלּוּ וָאֵלּוּ דִּבְרֵי אֱלֹקִים חַיִּים הֵן, וַהֲלָכָה כְּבֵית הִלֵּל.
וְכִי מֵאַחַר שֶׁאֵלּוּ וָאֵלּוּ דִּבְרֵי אֱלֹקִים חַיִּים, מִפְּנֵי מָה זָכוּ בֵּית הִלֵּל לִקְבּוֹעַ הֲלָכָה כְּמוֹתָן? מִפְּנֵי שֶׁנּוֹחִין וַעֲלוּבִין הָיוּ, וְשׁוֹנִין דִּבְרֵיהֶן וְדִבְרֵי בֵּית שַׁמַּאי, וְלֹא עוֹד אֶלָּא שֶׁמַּקְדִּימִין דִּבְרֵי בֵּית שַׁמַּאי לְדִבְרֵיהֶן.
Rabbi Abba said that Shmuel said: For three years Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disagreed. These said: The halakha is in accordance with our opinion, and these said: The halakha is in accordance with our opinion. Ultimately, a Divine Voice emerged and proclaimed: Both these and those are the words of the living God. However, the halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Beit Hillel.
The Gemara asks: Since both these and those are the words of the living God, why were Beit Hillel privileged to have the halakha established in accordance with their opinion? The reason is that they were agreeable and forbearing, they would teach both their own statements and the statements of Beit Shammai. Moreover, they prioritized the statements of Beit Shammai to their own statements.
This is to teach you that anyone who humbles himself, the Holy One, Blessed be, exalts him, and anyone who exalts himself, the Holy One, Blessed be, humbles him.
Anyone who seeks greatness, greatness flees from him, and, anyone who flees from greatness, greatness seeks him. And anyone who attempts to force the moment, the moment forces him.
And, anyone who yields to the moment, the moment stands by his side.