Bright White Teeth

Every dentist would be wise in learning the Gemara, for it could surely help dental-care awareness. A good dentist surely helps to keep his patient healthy, but does he realize that he helps his patients to save other people’s lives? Here’s how:
 
The Gemara in tractate Ketubot 111b says in the name of Rebbe Yochanan that it’s better to show your friend your white teeth than it is to give him a glass of fresh milk. What does the Gemara mean? What’s the connection between a smile and a glass of milk, outside of the fact that both the teeth and the milk are white?
 
Look at it this way: suppose a person is both starving and dying of thirst – if you give him a big glass of milk, you’ll revive him, because the milk will not only put liquid in his system, but a good dose of fat, protein, and carbohydrates as well. Yet, if a person is starving emotionally, and you smile at him, you’ll bring them back to life too.
 
Rebbe Yochanan, in today’s words, is telling us to use a really good brand of toothpaste so we won’t be embarrassed to show our teeth all the time – in other words, don’t walk around with a frown. Show your teeth and smile at people, with a great big broad smile.
 
Rebbe Nachman of Breslev tells us that a smile is a lofty act of loving kindness, for a smile can often vitalize another person. Our sages in Ethics of the Fathers in the 1st chapter, 15th Mishna, tell us to greet every person cordially. Rabbi Ovadia of Bartenura explains that if someone has guests in their home, even if  he or she has given them the best delicacies, the best accommodations, private bath and Jacuzzi and every gift in the world – if the host frowns at the guests, it’s as if he hasn’t done a thing. We can learn the opposite as well: Rebbe Natan the Bavli says in the 13th Chapter of Avot D’Rebbe Natan that even if you haven’t done a thing for a person, but you smile at them, it’s as if you’ve given them every gift in the world.
 
Our esteemed and beloved teacher Rabbi Shalom Arush shlit’a is famous for his smile. When he was a brand-new Baal Teshuva and still learning at the University of Tel Aviv, he became famous for his smile. People on campus used to call him “Mister Smiley”. They’d ask him what on earth he was so happy about. His answer was that there’s a Creator who loves us. Since then, he’s never stopped smiling.
 
The Rambam brings down an interesting Halacha that’s discussed in the Gemara, tractate Maccot 10a: if, during the time of the Holy Temple, a Torah student accidentally kills someone and is therefore forced into exile to one of the “sheltered towns”, then his rabbi must exile with him. We must ask ourselves, if the pupil fouled up, why is the rabbi at fault? The Gemara answers that the pupil is punished with exile, but not with the death penalty. And if you take him away from his rabbi, you’re destroying his life. Therefore, in order to vitalize a person, the rabbi must accompany the pupil into exile. And, if the rabbi is a Rosh Yeshiva, the entire Yeshiva must go into exile. So we see, even to vitalize one person, who happens to be guilty of of accidental murder, an entire Yeshiva goes into exile. Don’t think that this is just a “nice saying” – Rabbi Moshe from Kutzi, the author of the “Semag” and one of the Tosafot, considers this an integral part of one of the 613 mitzvot of Torah.
 
Look at the lengths the Torah goes in order to vitalize a single human being – the rabbi and the entire Yeshiva goes into exile. Just imagine, a Lakewood guy was driving a car and accidentally hit a pedestrian who was jay-walking. It’s not the driver’s fault, but the dead pedestrian’s family is looking for revenge. Assume that there was a shelter town for accidental murderers somewhere in the Ozark Mountains down in Arkansas. You know what that means? According to the law of Torah, the Rosh Yeshiva of Lakewood and the entire Yeshiva would have to go into exile in the Ozark mountains just to keep that one Lakewood guy from being sad.
 
We can now understand the prodigious power of one smile. If it revives a person, it’s equal to the atoning power of sending an entire yeshiva into exile! So when we talk about bright white teeth, we’re not simply referring to their snow-like color; such teeth in a big smile actually reflect a holy spiritual illumination that can virtually save a life. With one smile, a person can save lives. So, make sure that you take good care of your teeth; then, use them to smile at the world.