לפיכך כו': תנו רבנן אדם יחידי נברא ומפני מה שלא יהו המינים אומרין הרבה רשויות בשמים דבר אחר מפני הצדיקים ומפני הרשעים שלא יהו הצדיקים אומרים אנו בני צדיק ורשעים אומרים אנו בני רשע
§ The mishna teaches: Therefore, Adam the first man was created alone. The Sages taught in a baraita: Adam was created alone, and for what reason? So that the heretics will not say: There are many authorities in Heaven, and each created a different person. Alternatively, Adam was created alone due to the righteous and due to the wicked. It was so that the righteous will not say: We are the children of the righteous, and righteousness is natural for us, so there is no need for us to exert ourselves to be righteous, and so that the wicked will not say: We are the children of the wicked and cannot change our ways.
ומפני מה אין פרצופיהן דומין זה לזה שלא יראה אדם דירה נאה ואשה נאה ויאמר שלי היא שנאמר (איוב לח, טו) וימנע מרשעים אורם וזרוע רמה תשבר
The baraita asks: And for what reason are their faces not similar to one another? The baraita answers: It is so that a man will not see a beautiful home or a beautiful woman and say: She is mine. If all people looked the same, no one could contradict him. As it is stated in the following verse: “And from the wicked their light is withheld and the high arm shall be broken” (Job 38:15), indicating that the reason people look different from one another is to prevent the wicked from succeeding in their plans.
תניא היה רבי מאיר אומר בשלשה דברים אדם משתנה מחבירו בקול במראה ובדעת בקול ובמראה משום ערוה ובדעת מפני הגזלנין והחמסנין
It is taught in a baraita: Rabbi Meir would say: One person is different from another in three ways: In voice, in appearance, and in thought. The differences in voice and appearance are due to a woman forbidden to him, so that people will not exchange spouses one with another. And the differences in thought are due to the robbers and those who take by force that which is not theirs, as, if everyone thought in a similar way, criminals could take advantage of others because they would understand where they keep their valuables.
תַּנְיָא, אָמַר רַבִּי יְהוּדָה מִשּׁוּם רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא: מִפְּנֵי מָה אָמְרָה תּוֹרָה הָבִיאוּ עוֹמֶר בַּפֶּסַח — מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהַפֶּסַח זְמַן תְּבוּאָה הוּא, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: הָבִיאוּ לְפָנַי עוֹמֶר בַּפֶּסַח, כְּדֵי שֶׁתִּתְבָּרֵךְ לָכֶם תְּבוּאָה שֶׁבַּשָּׂדוֹת. וּמִפְּנֵי מָה אָמְרָה תּוֹרָה הָבִיאוּ שְׁתֵּי הַלֶּחֶם בָּעֲצֶרֶת — מִפְּנֵי שֶׁעֲצֶרֶת זְמַן פֵּירוֹת הָאִילָן הוּא, אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: הָבִיאוּ לְפָנַי שְׁתֵּי הַלֶּחֶם בַּעֲצֶרֶת, כְּדֵי שֶׁיִּתְבָּרְכוּ לָכֶם פֵּירוֹת הָאִילָן.
§ It is taught in a baraita that Rabbi Yehuda said in the name of Rabbi Akiva: For what reason did the Torah say: Bring the omer offering on the second day of Passover? It is because Passover is the time of grain, the beginning of the grain harvest season, and therefore the Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Bring the omer offering before Me on Passover so that the grain in the fields will be blessed for you. And for what reason did the Torah say: Bring the offering of the two loaves from the new wheat on Shavuot? It is because Shavuot is the time of the fruits that grow on a tree, when it begins to ripen, and therefore the Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Bring the offering of the two loaves before Me on Shavuot so that the fruits that grow on a tree will be blessed for you.
וּמִפְּנֵי מָה אָמְרָה תּוֹרָה נַסְּכוּ מַיִם בֶּחָג — אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: נַסְּכוּ לְפָנַי מַיִם בֶּחָג, כְּדֵי שֶׁיִּתְבָּרְכוּ לָכֶם גִּשְׁמֵי שָׁנָה. וְאִמְרוּ לְפָנַי בְּרֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה מַלְכִיּוֹת זִכְרוֹנוֹת וְשׁוֹפָרוֹת. מַלְכִיּוֹת — כְּדֵי שֶׁתַּמְלִיכוּנִי עֲלֵיכֶם, זִכְרוֹנוֹת — כְּדֵי שֶׁיַּעֲלֶה זִכְרוֹנְיכֶם לְפָנַי לְטוֹבָה, וּבַמֶּה — בְּשׁוֹפָר.
And for what reason did the Torah say: Pour water onto the altar in the Temple on the festival of Sukkot? The Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Pour water before Me on the festival of Sukkotso that the rains of the year, which begin to fall after Sukkot, will be blessed for you. And recite before Me on Rosh HaShana verses that mention Kingships, Remembrances, and Shofarot: Kingships so that you will crown Me as King over you; Remembrances so that your remembrance will rise before Me for good; and with what will the remembrance rise? It will rise with the shofar.
אָמַר רַבִּי אֲבָהוּ: לָמָה תּוֹקְעִין בְּשׁוֹפָר שֶׁל אַיִל? אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: תִּקְעוּ לְפָנַי בְּשׁוֹפָר שֶׁל אַיִל, כְּדֵי שֶׁאֶזְכּוֹר לָכֶם עֲקֵידַת יִצְחָק בֶּן אַבְרָהָם, וּמַעֲלֶה אֲנִי עֲלֵיכֶם כְּאִילּוּ עֲקַדְתֶּם עַצְמְכֶם לְפָנַי.
Similarly, Rabbi Abbahu said: Why does one sound a blast with a shofar made from a ram’s horn on Rosh HaShana? The Holy One, Blessed be He, said: Sound a blast before Me with a shofar made from a ram’s horn, so that I will remember for you the binding of Isaac, son of Abraham, in whose stead a ram was sacrificed, and I will ascribe it to you as if you had bound yourselves before Me.
לעולם יהא אדם רגיל לומר כל דעביד רחמנא לטב עבידכי הא דרבי עקיבא דהוה קאזיל באורחא מטא לההיא מתא בעא אושפיזא לא יהבי ליהאמר כל דעביד רחמנא לטבאזל ובת בדברא והוה בהדיה תרנגולא וחמרא ושרגאאתא זיקא כבייה לשרגא אתא שונרא אכליה לתרנגולא אתא אריה אכליה לחמראאמרכל דעביד רחמנא לטבביה בליליא אתא גייסא שבייה למתאאמר להולאו אמרי לכו כל מה שעושה הקדוש ברוך הוא הכל לטובה:
A man should always accustom himself to say, "Whatever the All-merciful does, He does for the best." As when R.'Akiba was journeying by the way, he came to a certain town and asked for hospitality, but it was refused him ; so he exclaimed, "Whatever the All - merciful does is for the best." He went and spent the night in the field, having with him a cock, an ass and a lamp. A gust of wind came and extinguished the lamp, a cat came and ate the cock, and a lion came and devoured the ass ; but he exclaimed, "Whatever the All-merciful does is for the best." That same night a band of robbers came and captured the town. He thereupon said to them, "Did I not tell you that whatever the Holy One, blessed be He, does is all for the best!"