After having clarified that G-d wants us to be occupied with learning His Torah, the blessing then requests from G-d to sweeten those words of Torah so that we can enjoy them to their fullest. Like a delicious dessert, Torah needs to be savored and each “mouthful” needs to be cherished. Learning Torah is an activity that is supposed to encompass our very being. It should stimulate our intellect and, at the same time, should also kindle within us a spiritual passion. But this is not always so easy to achieve. The depth and breadth of the Torah are truly breathtaking and learning it so that its lessons are clear can be intellectually and physically exhausting. Ask anyone who exercises and they will invariably say that the most difficult part of exercising is actually beginning. Getting on the treadmill is often infinitely more challenging than the actual workout itself! Once the session begins, it actually becomes an enjoyable experience. And the feeling of exhilaration at the end of an exercise session is incomparable. It is not just the achievement of goals that leaves the exerciser feeling accomplished and proficient, it is the journey to get there as well. In fact, the entire experience can be described as sweet.

And that is what we are asking G-d to help us with. Intellectually, we may know that learning Torah is an unparalleled experience, but sometimes it can be hard to “get going.” So, we beseech G-d that He let us taste its unequalled sweetness. A sweetness that will give us the enthusiasm to want to “taste” it every day, over and over again.

What is fascinating is that the entreaty in the blessing is not just for each individual person. Rather, it is for the whole of the Jewish Nation. Why? Because the sweetness of the Torah needs to be felt by everyone.

In Psalm 19:11, King David describes the Torah as being “sweeter than honey.” But honey is considered to be the sweetest of all delicacies, so how can the Torah be even sweeter than that? Rabbi David Kimchi (1160-1235), one of the foremost commentators on the Bible, explains that it is the honey’s very sweetness that makes it impossible to eat too much of it at one time. Eating honey in large amounts makes a person feel nauseous.
Not so the Torah. In fact, the opposite is true. The more Torah that a person “consumes” — the better it tastes.

To be continued…..