Hashem is One - Based on Rambam's Sefer Hamitzvos (Positive Mitzvah #2)

A few days ago I woke up at 7:38. Even though I only start work at 9, I needed to be by my ride at 7:50 and the walk takes close to ten minutes. In those few minutes my mind jumped straight to everything that could go wrong. I had already missed my morning chavrusa and I am not by any means a morning person. Thankfully the ride ended up leaving at 8:00 instead and I made it on time, yet the stress from those first few minutes stayed with me long after the rush was over.

After writing about the first negative mitzvah, I kept thinking about how the Rambam opens the conversation. First to know Hashem exists, and second to know Hashem is One. At first this sounds repetitive, because if there is a Creator then it makes logical sense that he He is One, yet the Rambam treats this as its own mitzvah. I often say Shema, and the words feel familiar and automatic. The Rambam explains that saying the words is not enough, because real belief means understanding, and many people repeat beliefs without ever picturing what they mean.

For me this idea shows up most in moments of stress, because when I feel stressed my instinct is to search for more control and more backup plans, as if everything depends on how well I can manage the situation. That reaction quietly assumes there are multiple sources of power.

The mitzvah of knowing that Hashem is One introduces a very different mindset, because effort and responsibility still matter yet they are tools and not the source itself. Hashem is not "One" like a team or a family or an organization, which are many parts working together, but "One" in a way that has no comparison, which means success, money, talent, connections, and plans are all tools inside His system.

Maybe the next time we say Shema, even when life feels calm, it can be a chance to pause for a moment and think about what those words are meant to change in the way we move through the day.

All the best!

Avroham Yehudah Ross