What about a clash between mitzvah bo yoseir mi'b'shlucho and zerizus or hidur? Is it better to write a sefer Torah yourself even if you have sloppy handwriting (mitzvah bo) or would it be better to delegate it to a sofer who can do a better job (hidur)? Rashi comments on וַיִּתֵּ֣ן אֶל־הַנַּ֔עַר וַיְמַהֵ֖ר לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת אֹתֽוֹ that Avraham gave the cow to Yishmael in order to be mechaneich him in the mitzvah of hachnasas orchim, but gemara (BM 86b) actually writes that there were 3 cows and Avraham gave each one to a different נַּ֔עַר to take care of so that all three could be prepared at once. All things being equal, it would seem that we should apply the rule of mitzbah bo yoseir mi'bshlucho and Avraham should have taken care of things himself. However, all things are not always equal. Had Avraham done everything himself, it would have taken far longer to prepare the food. The advantage of mitzvah bo is offset by the advantage of the hidur of zerizus. Avraham is not content to just serve his guests -- he wants to serve them speedily, with no delay. וַיְמַהֵ֧ר אַבְרָהָ֛ם הָאֹ֖הֱלָה אֶל־שָׂרָ֑ה, he makes haste to tell Sarah to prepare bread; וְאֶל־הַבָּקָ֖ר רָ֣ץ אַבְרָהָ֑ם, he runs to prepare meat. Avraham invented fast food. The source for the din of zerizus actually comes from Avraham's behavior later in parsha by the akeidah, "VaYashkeim Avraham ba'boker..." (see Pesachim 4 and Tos there).
It's worth noting that Avraham didn't delegate the entire mitzvah of hachnasas orchim; he just delegated one aspect of it. Whether that makes a difference or not may depend on the reason mitzvah bo yoseir mib'shlucho. Rashi explains that the reason is because you get more schar if you do the mitzvah yourself. Ramban in our parsha writes Avraham took care of things himself because of רוב חשקו בנדיבות; if something is important to you, you don't delegate. Investing your own energy and time shows the chashivus of the mitzvah. Others (see Tevuos Shor #28 regarding shlicus by kisuy ha'dam and milah) discuss whether delegating a task shows a lack of respect for the mitzvah. Nafka minah: If it is just a matter of schar or greater hislahavus for the mitzvah, then doing even part of the mitzvah yourself proves that it is something important, something you want schar for. But if delegating the task is a problem if bizayon to the mitzvah, then showing bizayon to even part of a mitzvah would seem to be problematic. One of the classic examples where we apply mitzvah bo is preparing for shabbos. R' Shlomo Zalman held (see Shmiras Shabbos siman 42 footnote 195) that so long as you are not at work or learning, it's not enough to do one thing to prepare for Shabbos and leave the rest to others -- you should take care of everything. Doing part of the mitzvah is not enough.
It's interesting that the gemara writes that whatever Avraham did himself was rewarded directly by Hashem, but what he did via intermediary was rewarded indirectly:
אמר רב יהודה אמר רב, כל מה שעשה אברהם למלאכים בעצמו עשה הקדוש ברוך הוא לבניו בעצמו, וכל מה שעשה על ידי שליח עשה הקדוש ברוך הוא לבניו על ידי שליח. ואל הבקר רץ אברהם – ורוח נסע מאת ה׳ (פ׳ בהעלותך), ויקח חמאה וחלב – הנני ממטיר לכם לחם מן השמים (פ׳ בשלח), והוא עומד עליהם תחת העץ – הנני עומד לפניך שם על הצור בחורב (שם), ואברהם הולך עמם לשלחם – וה׳ הולך לפניהם יומם (שם), יוקח נא מעט מים – והכית בצור ויצא ממנו מים
The example of the latter is drawing water -- יֻקַּֽח־נָ֣א מְעַט־מַ֔יִם, which Rashi explains means יוקח – על ידי שליח. The gemara does not use shechting the cows as an example.
M'inyan l'inyan, I recently saw a discussion in a fascinating sefer called היו דברים מעולם regarding shlichus as opposed to mitzvah bo with regards to another mitzvah in our parsha, that of bikur cholim. R' Leibele Eiger is quoted as saying that his grandfather, R' Akiva Eiger, stopped personally performing the mitzvah of bikur cholim and instead delegated the task to a shliach. According to R' Leibele Eiger it was not lack of time that was the issue, but rather it was the fact that sick people tend to become morose and question why G-d inflicted such pains on them. R' Akiva Eiger did not want to be around people who would voice their complaints about G-d's judgment, so he stayed away. Again, we see mitzvah bo only when all things are equal. Where there are other mitigating factors -- zerizus, hidur, or in this case being exposed to doubts -- you can delegate.
When I told this to my wife, she remarked that allaying people's questions and doubts in their time of suffering rather than avoiding them would seem to fall under the job description of what being a Rav is all about. To be fair, there are other reports written by people (there are two recorded accounts of what the daily schedule of R' Akiva Eiger was like) in which they say that R' Akiva Eiger was meticulous about doing nichum aveilim and bikur cholim for each and every person in need, in direct contradiction to gthe report quoted in the name of R' Leibele Eiger. One also has to wonder if R' Akiva Eiger thought being around doubters was so harmful, how was it fair to send a shliach into such an environment. I don't have answers to these questions.
The book goes on to relate that at the wedding of the young R' Leizer Gordon, who would go on to become the R"Y of Telz (among other accomplishments), the Rav of Kovna was present and he remarked that he usually just hires the "badchanim" for the wedding, i.e he pays for the entertainment, and in this way he is yotzei his mitzvah of being mesameiach chassan v'kallah through shlichus. When the chassan heard this, he immediately raised a kashe. One of the mitzvos for which there is no shiur is mitzvah of hachnasas kallah. If there is no shiur, that means every second the badchan is at the wedding, he has his own mitzvah of simchas chassan v'kallah to fulfill. If he is charged with fulfilling his own mitzvah the whole wedding, how can he also act as the shliach to do the mitzvah for someone else? You can't do someone else's mitzvah when you have your own chiyuv to fulfill?
The Aderet quotes his brother who answered this kashe by pointing to this story of R' Akiva Eiger. Bikur cholim is also a mitzvah that has no shiur, like hachnasas kallah; therefore, QED, that since RAK"E appointed a shliach, even if a mitzvah has no shiur, shlichus works. (Parenthetically, I recently saw a response that a contemporary Rabbi wrote to a shayla, and in his discussion of the sources, a major one of which happened to be a Shu"T R' Akiva Eiger, this contemporary Rabbi said that they didn't find R' Akiva Eiger's reasoning "persuasive." Now, make no mistake about it -- everyone must call it the way they see it, and if you learn up a sugya and are convinced you are right in your approach, then so be it. That being said, that phrase -- not "persuasive" -- rubbed me the wrong way. The Aderet's whole ra'aya was just from a story about R' Akiva Eiger! He didn't cite a Rambam or a gemara or a din in shulchas aruch. Such is the kavod R' Akiva Eiger deserves. If people like the Aderet who were giants among giants treated a R' Akiva Eiger that way, I would think kal v'chomer a contemporary living in 2025 who finds a teshuvah of RAK"E unpersuasive might consider whether that's a weakness in RAK"E or a weakness in himself. I guess this Rabbi did and was still convinced he is right, but that phrase still bothered me.)
OK, so you have a story from RAK"E, But what do you do with R' Leizer Gordon's kashe? Two answers: 1) It could be at some point the badchan has "negative kavanah" and has in mind that he does not want to be yotzei the mitzvah himself and can then assign credit to his shliach; 2) When we talk about things that have no shiur, it usually means there is no *minimum* shiur, not that there is no maximum shiur. If so, the badchan just needs to take a moment to fulfill his own mitzvah of simchas chassan v'kallah and can then assign the rest of his time to the mitzvah of his shliach.
(The Aderet goes on to discuss another question that I won't get into now: shlichus does not work for a mitzvah sheb'gufo, e.g. I can't appoint a shliach to do the mitzvah of tefillin for me because the mitzvah is to put tefillin on my arm; the shliach's arm is not my arm. The Aderet suggests in his question that bikur cholim may be a miztzvah sheb'gufo -- tt's your personal presence that is important, not just seeing that the choleh is cared for. Whether or not that is correct is worth looking into).
The sefer has an amazing array of fascinating mareh mekomos from obscure sources, so I am surprised it does not have this RAK"E story which I posted many eons ago from R. Noson Gestetner quoting the Tchibiner Rav: One of R’ Akiva Eiger’s daughters became engaged to someone in another town. RAK”E was already old and could not travel, so he sent R’ Ephraim Zalman Margolias as his shliach to celebrate. Unlike the Beis Ephraim’s usual practice of not lingering at a simcha, in this case he stayed and stayed for the whole party. When asked about it afterwards, R’ E. Z. Margolias explained that shlucho shel adam k’moso, so he wanted to take advantage of every second he could be R’ Akiva Eiger!
Why the need to bring a proof from RAK"E's practice of bikur cholim to the din of simchas chassan v'kallah when you have this story of RAK"E appointing a shliach for gufa the mitzvah of simcha? I was wondering if it is because this story involves an engagement party, so maybe there is no mitzvah of simchas chassan v'kallah yet at that point, but if so and there is no mitzvah, one wonders how there can be a din of shlichus? Or why RAK"E would waste time on something that's not a mitzvah?
Let me end off with a final point in machshava. Rashi's view, as I quoted above, is that mitzvah bo yoseir mib'shlucho is so that you can get more schar. The Kozhnitzer Maggid reads Rashi with a twist. The sifrei chassidus explain that the word mitzvah comes from the same root as tzavsa, to be connected. A mitzvah is how we connect and attach ourselves to Hashem. Rashi is not just talking about material reward that one gets from doing a mitzvah, but what Rashi means is that if you delegate the job, you lose out on the schar and the opportunity to make that connection directly with Hashem. There is no greater reward and nothing as valuable as that.
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