Stop beating your torah rock! Rambam and Mekubalim on shells and fruit in Torah

This shiur examines the fundamental distinction between virtues (character excellences) and mitzvos (commandments), arguing that mitzvos function as teachers for those who lack proper virtues rather than as ends in themselves. The Rambam and Kabbalistic sources converge on the view that Torah has both an external, utilitarian dimension—guiding people toward virtue through law—and an inner, true dimension concerning knowledge of God and reality. The discussion addresses why the Mekubalim insisted every mitzvah must have metaphysical meaning beyond its practical purpose, leading to interpretive methods like letter permutation, while the Rambam maintained that most mitzvos serve as preparation for the few that directly concern ultimate truth.