The Baal HaTurim in the beginning of the Sedra says it is impossible to really have Torah and Mitzvos unless one makes himself like a desert. One explanation is that a desert symbolizes humility; the essence of plainness, for it contains nothing. If a person will see himself as containing nothing, then he will try to learn with all his might, and will make a success of himself.
I suggested another thought: A desert has no agenda, there is nothing there other than what you put in it. Having no personal agenda allows spiritual growth.
When we have our independent agendas, it is likely that we are running a collision course with the Torah and Mitzvos, for the odds are that the two don’t coincide. But when we take our cues from the Torah, and make its agenda our own, that is the high-road to keeping Torah and mitzvos.
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