Nun is the fourteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

The gematria of Nun is 50.

There are fifty “gates” or levels of Binah, understanding. That’s why the Jews counted forty-nine days—seven complete weeks from Passover to Shavuos—to ready themselves to receive the Torah. The famous question is, why does the Torah tell us to count fifty days after Passover, when immediately afterwards it says to count seven complete weeks, which are only forty-nine days? The answer is that an individual can only attain forty-nine levels of intellect on his own. The fiftieth level, that of transcendence, can only be provided by G‑d. Therefore G‑d says: You do yours and I will do Mine. If you achieve the forty-ninth level, I will bless you with the fiftieth; the highest tier of Binah, understanding.

On the Jewish calendar, every fiftieth year is called the year of Yovel, or Jubilee. In the Jubilee year, all lands in the Land of Israel are “given their freedom,” and returned to their original owners.

How is the concept of freedom and the Torah connected? In Ethics of Our Fathers it states: “One who learns Torah is truly free,” but for the skeptic to challenge this statement would be all too easy. “Free?! What do you mean free? The Torah is full of restrictions! It tells me not to do this and not to do that. Some freedom!”

Yet indeed, when one learns Torah, he is free of the false, materialistic constraints of society. Free from his self-centered, animalistic inclinations. He has the power to confront and transcend these obstacles. Furthermore, Torah gives an individ­ual the ability to maximize his potential, to be the best he can be.