What were the sins that brought about civilization’s three major destructions?
The Torah tells us the flood was brought about because of robbery. The first Beit Hamikdash was destroyed because of bloodshed, immorality, and idol worship. The second Beit Hamikdash was destroyed because of baseless hatred.
Nearly all of the sins are between man and his fellow man, with the exception, of idol worship which is the epitome of ingratitude – a toxic character flaw.
Most of the Torah’s mitzvot are between man and fellow man, and the most spiritually influential of them all is “love your friend as yourself”.
In the essay Matan Torah the Baal HaSulam explains the mitzvah in a new light.
Rabbi Akiva called it “The great klal in the Torah” where klal is defined as the sum of details that, when put together, form the collective. Meaning, that the rest of the 612 mitzvot, with all their interpretations, are included in the mitzvah of “love your friend as yourself.”
Hillel told a prospective convert that the entire Torah is “What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor. That is the whole Torah; the rest is the explanation of this — go and study it!”
The mitzvah of “loving your friend as yourself” is expansive and very challenging but integral for spiritual growth.
Giving your time, attention, encouragement, financial support, and more are all ways to fulfill this amazing mitzvah and the more give we up in the process the better.
Yitzhak Sasson 