Weekly Reading Insights

Overview of the Weekly Reading

To be read on Shabbat Vayeitzei, 7 Kislev 5771/Dec. 3

Torah: Gen. 28:10-32:3; Haftorah: Hosea 11:7-14:10 (because of 12:13 "And Yaakov fled to Aram...and served for a wife... and kept sheep.")

Vayeitzei is the 7th Reading out of 12 in Genesis and it contains 7512 letters, in 2021 words, in 148 verses

On the way to Charan, Yaacov stopped to sleep. He dreamt of a ladder standing on the ground and reaching heavenward with angels ascending and descending. G-d told Yaacov that He would give him the land upon which he slept. Yaacov was awed by this vision and made the stone upon which he slept holy to G-d, and renamed the area G-d's Temple. He vowed that if G-d would protect him, he would dedicate his life to G-d and give Him a tenth of his possessions. Yaacov continued his journey, and arrived at a well near Charan. Seeing his cousin Rachel with her father's sheep, Yaacov lifted the heavy stone atop the well for her, and returned with her to Lavan's house. He made a deal to work for Lavan for seven years, and then marry Rachel. Lavan deceived Yaacov and substituted his older daughter Leah. Lavan told Yaacov that he could marry Rachel after the celebrations of the marriage to Leah, but he would have to work another seven years. The Parsha relates the birth of Yaacov's children through Leah, Rachel, and their handmaids Bilha and Zilpah. Yaacov decides to leave with his family, but then agreed to continue working for Lavan. Lavan and his sons became jealous of Yaacov's wealth. After six years, G-d told Yaacov to return to his birthplace. When they left, Rachel stole Lavan's idols. Lavan learned that they had gone, and chased after them. He sought his idols, and Yaacov, who did not know it was Rachel, said that whoever was found with them would not live. Lavan and Yaacov made a treaty, with G-d as witness.

At the very beginning of this week's Torah portion is one the most beautiful promises that G-d has made to the Jewish people, and it was specifically to the sole Jewish descendant of Abraham and Isaac, our forefather Jacob. "Your descendants will be like the dust of earth and you will spread out to the west and the east and the north and the south."

Nevertheless, the Midrash (mentioned by the Sforno) sees a problem in the language: 'Dust of the earth' does not necessarily have a positive connotation. Dust is something we step on, something that is swept away. Are these words a blessing or a negative prophesy? The Midrash says that the verse should be read as follows: 'Only when your children will reach the most lowly level of downtrodden dust, nullified and filled with misery and degradation, will salvation come to them and they will spread to the four corners of the earth.'

The Chassidic masters saw the same idea in a positive way. How often does life require us to come to the end of the rope, to a low level, before we can bring ourselves to change? In fact, the Ohr HaChaim describes this entire Torah Portion, Vayetze, Jacob's journey from his family home in Beer Sheva in Israel to Charan in Turkey of today, as the description of the soul's descent from the heavens into the physical world, into a physical body, from the highest spiritual heights to the lower physical depths. Since everything that happens in the world is by Divine providence and the Almighty only wants good for His creation always, we realize that even this apparent incredible descent must only be for the even more incredible ascent that will follow it.

Just as a person has to face difficulty to realize his potential, it is only through the enclothment of the soul in the material physical body and its (the soul's) difficult efforts to elevate and purify the body and the physical world that it inhabits that the soul is able to be elevated to levels even higher than it was while in heaven, even before it started its descent.

This is the true meaning of G-d's blessing to our forefather Jacob, that only when your descendants will reach the lowly state of dust of the earth will they find the power to rise from it. Both as a people, surrounded by evil enemies, and even as individuals surrounded and almost overwhelmed by physical and spiritual difficulties.

However, there is a catch, an indispensable condition. The descendents can succeed only when they are emboldened by their divine purpose, and come to realize that the reason they have found themselves at this low level is in order to elevate these lowest levels and to reveal the
G-dliness in them. Only then will the blessings be revealed, spread to every direction, and also rise to higher and higher spiritual levels. This means that not only will they have success in all of their spiritual and physical challenges, but even more, they will reveal the inner secret meaning of the word uforatzta, which means 'and you will spread out', sharing the same root as the word Peretz, the name of the child of Tamar and Yehuda, who is the ancestor of Mashiach. (from a talk by the Lubavitcher Rebbe)

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For last year's essay by Rabbi Leiter on this week's Reading, see the archive.

FROM THE CHASSIDIC REBBES

"Rachel was shapely and beautiful to look at. …And Jacob loved Rachel." (28: 17-18)

This was because Jacob manifested the attribute of Tiferet ("Beauty"). Whenever he saw something attractive, he would say: "If this beauty so becomes a physical thing, how much higher would it be if it was dedicated to praising and glorifying G·d.
[Ohr Torah, Vayetze]
(Translation by Rabbi Dr. Eliezer Shore for //baalshemtov.com)

For more than a decade of "From the Chasidic Rebbes" on this Weekly Reading, see our archives

MOSHIACH THIS WEEK

"I will return to my father's house untainted." (Gen. 28:21)

The Zohar and the Midrash interpret Jacob's descent to Charan as an allegory for the exile of the Jewish people. Jacob therefore says that ultimately, in the messianic age, "he," i.e., his descendents, will return from exile to "my father's house," to the Land of Israel. The phrase "I will return to my father's house untainted" thus refers both to sanctifying the mundane and to the messianic age, indicating that the former is a prerequisite for ushering in the latter.

(Excerpted from Kehot's Chumash Bereishit)

For nearly a decade of "Moshiach This Week " on this Weekly Reading, see our archives

From the Kabbalah Commentaries on the Chumash ("5 Books of Moses")

13th century - "RambaN" - Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman

14th century - "Bachya" - Rabbi Bachya ben Asher

16th century - "Alsheich" - Rabbi Moshe Alshech of Tsfat

18th century - "Ohr HaChayim" - Rabbi Chaim Ben Attar

a sample for this week:

Ohr HaChayim

"Ya'akov went out from Be'er Sheva, and went toward Haran. He came to a place and spend the night there since the sun had set; he took of the stones of that place, and put them under his head, and lay down in that place." [28:10-11]

The whole paragraph can be seen to allude to man as a species. Zohar 1,147 understands the words "and Yaakov went out" as describing the soul when it first departs from the higher world and takes up residence within a body. This body is called Ya'akov on account of the evil urge which constantly tags along at our heels, so to speak.
The words "from Be'er Sheva", from "the well of the oath," is a reference to the source the souls come from which is known as "the well of living waters." The word "sheva" refers to the oath G-d makes every soul swear when it departs from heaven that it will not violate Torah laws while inside a human being (compare Niddah 30).
The words "and went towards Haran" are an allusion to the statement of our sages in Sanhedrin 91 that the evil urge enters man form the moment he leaves his mother's womb. This is based on Genesis 4:7 that "sin crouches at the entrance".
The words "he came to a place" are a reminder that man has to invoke G-d's help through prayer, G-d being the "site of the universe."
When the Torah continues: "and spend the night there since the sun had set," this is a reminder that man has to conduct himself properly all his life until he dies, i.e., "until his sun sets." This is why our sages said in Avot 2,4: "do not be certain of your righteousness until the day you die."
The Torah continues; "He took from the stones of that site." This is analogous to the statement by Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish in Berachot 5 that a person should constantly strive to provoke his good urge i.e., criticize himself by struggling against the evil urge. Should he fail to overcome his evil urge he should busy himself with Torah study as suggested by David in Psalms 4:5. When the Torah refers to "from the stones of that place", this refers to the "binyano shel olam" the building blocks by means of which the world is built, i.e. Torah.
These words may also relate to the stones used to kill the evil urge and its representatives. This is what the Talmud means in Sotah 21 when we are told that Torah saves one from the evil urge not only when one is actively engaged in its study but even when one is temporarily not busy with Torah.
The Torah goes on "he placed these stones under his head," to allude to the statement of Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish that when one fails to vanquish the evil urge one should resort to reciting the kriyat shma which is recited at night, seeing David speaks of "on your bed", in Psalms 4:5.
The words "he lay down in that place", allude to the final statement on the subject by Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish that if one fails to overcome one's evil urge one should think of the day when one is going to die. This is why the Torah preferred to use the word "lay down" to "slept", since that word implies a lying down from which one may not get up again. Having employed all those means to try and overcome one's evil urge one may be confident of success.

Selected with permission from the five-volume English edition of Ohr HaChaim: the Torah Commentary of Rabbi Chaim Ben Attar, as translated and annotated by Eliyahu Munk.
The holy Rabbi Chayim ben Moses Attar was born in Sale, Western Morocco, on the Atlantic in 1696. His immortal commentary on the Five Books Of Moses, Or Hachayim, was printed in Venice in 1741, while the author was on his way to the Holy Land. He acquired a reputation as a miracle worker, hence his title "the holy," although some apply this title only to his Torah commentary.

For the rest of "The Masters of Kabbala and Chumash" on this Weekly Reading; and on all the other Readings.

A MYSTICAL CHASSIDIC DISCOURSE

Specifically, for an overview of the recommended articles in the columns:
Holy Zohar, Holy Ari, Mystic Classics, Chasidic Masters, Contemporary Kabbalists, and more,
click to Vayeitzei

Jacob's two wives, Leah and Rachel, are embodiments of two worlds: "the unknowable" world of thought, and the "lower world," the world of speech. Leah embodies the world of thought, the hidden world, known as Alma di'itkasya. Rachel embodies the world of speech, the revealed world, known as Alma di'itkalya.

The difference between Rachel and Leah is seen in their children as well. Leah's children were shepherds. They lived in the world of thought, apart from society and the mundane world. Rachel's child, Joseph, lived within the world. He remained a tzadik even in the most degraded land, even while immersed in the role of its governance.

For another taste of recommended Kabbalah articles on a variety of subjects,
click to the our weekly Kabbalah magazine

Our patriarch Yaakov desired to marry Rachel but wound up first marrying Leah. Who was his intended soulmate?
Identifying one's "bashert" is often not so simple. Five of this week's articles delve into this subject.
The other two topics, daily prayer and paying wages on time, are also notable themes in this week's Reading.

The foundational text of Kabbalah, the Zohar, teaches that Jacob's ladder was a metaphor for the experience of prayer (incidentally, the Hebrew words for "ladder" and "voice" - "sulam" and "kol" - representing the voice of prayer, share an identical numerological value of 136). Prayer constitutes the ladder through which a human being climbs from his or her earth-bound existence into deeper states of consciousness, until touching the heavenliness at the core of the human soul.

Weekly Reading Insights: Vayeitzei 5772

a sample for this week:

Ohr HaChayim

Weekly Reading Insights:
Vayeitzei 5772