Appreciating Your Eyes

QUESTION: Why should a person thank Hashem for his eyes, Baruch Ata Hashem Pokeach Ivrim, if animals can also see?

ANSWER: Plenty of people cannot see. Walk in the streets and see this man tapping his way with a cane, and ask him that question, what will he answer? We have to thank Hashem for the animal’s eyes, too. But whatever there is in the world, is given for the purpose of making us aware of Hashem. And not only thank Hashem for the fact that we have eyes to use, but the eye itself is a testimony. You know; that Rasha himself, Darwin, Yemach Shemo, himself said, that when I come to the subject of the eye, I feel somewhat faint to think that such a contrivance could happen by itself. He felt somewhat faint, he should faint, he’s in Gihenom fainting right now. The eyes are a wonderful thing, Nisay Nissim what an eye is, you have to talk about the eye, at length - to appreciate it. Wonder of wonders. It’s a camera taking pictures every second, color pictures, and it functions perfectly not only for close nearby pictures, but it can focus on far away pictures in the same minute. When I look at you, now the camera, I have to adjust it for far away, but immediately the eye adjusts for far away pictures, then I turn back to you, close pictures. Wonderful. You're sitting in a car speeding down the road, you look at the speedometer right here, and then you look at the mountains miles ahead; you couldn't do that with a camera. The wonders of the eye would occupy volumes and volumes to explain. And the eye itself testifies to the endless wisdom of its great designer. And therefore when we thank Hashem, Pokeach Ivrim, not only for the happiness of the eye, not only for the joy of sight, we appreciate a life of color and motion. Great pity, a great sadness to lose sight. Opportunity that sight gives us to gain understanding, to see people we love, to be able to guard ourselves against danger, when you have to cross the street, pitfalls. Eyes are not only useful for us in every sense but the eyes bring us the greatest benefit of all, the awareness of the great Designer who brought such a most complicated contrivance into existence. This question was answered by R' Avigdor Miller zt"l. If you would like to get more emails like these, they are sent out once a week. You can subscribe by clicking on this link.