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Last time I was in New York, I went with my father and
brother to the Garden, for a Rangers game. I happened to glance up, and among
the retired jerseys hanging from the rafters, I noticed that one was emblazoned
with the number, 613. Six hundred thirteen! That's
the total number of commandments in the Torah that every Jew has to fulfill. And
the name attached to the uniform was Red Holzman, a Jew! the coach of the
Knicks' championship teams thirty years ago. But why did they think to give him
that number so fraught with significance? I inquired, and it turned out that 613
was the amount of his total career wins as an NBA coach.  | | " Why did they think to give him a number so fraught with significance?" | | |
How appropriate! The Zohar,
the primary text of Kabbala, teaches that each mitzvah is connected to a
particular part of the human body, and fulfillment of a mitzvah rectifies its
counterpart [see also
Tanya, ch. 51]. The Holy Ari, the leading figure of the 16th century Safed Kabbalists, taught that each Jewish soul has to fulfill all 613 mitzvot, and until it
succeeds --until it scores 613 victories!-- it gets reincarnated again and again.
So Madison Square Garden is not enough. The number 613 should be on prominent
display in the consciousness of each and every Jew everywhere.
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