You Decide The Blessings

Rav Hirsch explains on the possuk in Devarim (11:29) וְהָיָ֗ה כִּ֤י יְבִֽיאֲךָ֙ י״י֣ אֱלֹקיך אֶל־הָאָ֕רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־אַתָּ֥ה בָא־שָׁ֖מָּה לְרִשְׁתָּ֑הּ וְנָתַתָּ֤ה אֶת־הַבְּרָכָה֙ עַל־הַ֣ר גְּרִזִ֔ים וְאֶת־הַקְּלָלָ֖ה עַל־הַ֥ר עֵיבָֽל why did Klal Yisroel have to turn towards Har Grizin and Har Avel and to hear the blessings and curses?  What does the sight of the mountains add to the words?  He explains that the surroundings of mountains looked the same, they were in the same place and received the same rain.  So, how did one grow plants and the other was barren? The answer is that is depends on the internal qualities of the mountains.  The lesson is that the blessings and curses aren’t for or dependent upon the situation that one is in; rather on one’s ability to accept the blessings.  In his words: לפי זה, שני הרים אלה, העומדים זה לצד זה, מציגים באופן מוחשי ומרשים את הברכה והקללה. שניהם מתנשאים מאותה אדמה, שניהם מקבלים מימיהם מאותו טל ומטר. אותו אוויר עובר על שניהם; ואותה אבקת פרחים מתפזרת על ידי הרוח מעל שניהם. אך הר עיבל נשאר צחיח לחלוטין, בעוד שהר גריזים מכוסה צמחייה עבותה עד למרום פסגתו. באותו אופן, הברכה והקללה אינן תלויות במצבים חיצוניים, אלא בנכונותנו הפנימית לזו או לזו, ביחס שלנו למה שמביא ברכה.

The meforshim are bothered that the parsha starts in the singular language, talking directly to every individual, ראה, but then switches to לשון רבים, לפניכם, why does it switch in the middle? The Shem M'Shmuel (5676) brings his grandfather, the Kotzker who explains that things are given to everyone equally, but each individual sees according to his own perspective.  It is up to the individual to take what is given to him.

The midrash says that when this verse was said at Sinai the possuk says evil doesn’t come from Hashem rather it comes by itself on those that do evil.  What does the midrash mean?  According to the Kotzker the peshat may be that inherently there isn’t evil it just is the perspective of the person.

The Kli Yakar asks why does it the possuk say היום, obviously he was speaking to them on that day?  In the obove light we can understand that it is all up to today, it isn’t one’s past situation that determines one’s blessings; it is what he does today.