The Talmud in Shabbos 31a relates the famous incident of the gentile who came to Hillel with the intention of converting to Judaism, if he only could be taught the whole Torah while “standing on one foot”. Hillel’s response was the classic dictum of “What is hateful to you; do not do to your fellow. This is the entire Torah: the rest is commentary. Go and study it.”
The Mahrsha explains the gentile’s request and Hillel’s response in the following manner: The gentile was searching for a unique statement of faith which encompasses the foundation of the entire Torah. Hillel’s response was actually the converse of the pasuk in our parsha of “Love you friend as yourself.” Why did Hillel not simply relate this pasuk, which presents a more positive approach to our interrelationship with our fellow man? The Mahrsha responds that the Torah does not demand that we literally love every single Jew as ourselves. Rather, this mandate refers back to the beginning of the pasuk. The first half of the pasuk states that one should neither seek revenge or bear a grudge. Instead, he should love his fellow man and wish him no harm for any discomfort he has caused. Thus, Hillel stated to the gentile his understanding of the basic intent of this mitzvah in the context of the whole pasuk.
We may suggest a different approach to resolving this question. We are exhorted by Dovid Hamelech in Tehilim (34:15) to “turn from evil, and do good.” The path to self-improvement is a gradual one. One is first commanded to turn away from his evil-doing, for evil is contrasts Hashem’s will. Upon successful accomplishment of this phase, he may now proceed to phase two: doing good by striving to fulfill the will of Hashem. This approach applies to the mitzvah of loving one’s neighbor. One should seek to love and admire every redeeming quality of his fellow Jew, while simultaneously overlooking his faults. One should joyously share in his friend’s successes, as well as his pain and sorrow during moments of failure and misfortune. One should express his love for his fellow Jew in positive action, by seeking to improve his friend’s situation. An initial step, however, must precede all of this. One must first avoid doing to others that which he personally abhors. Hillel’s response to the gentile represented the fundemental step towards fulfilling this mitzvah. First one must turn from evil; only then can he proceed to the performance of good deeds.
