Transforming Enemies

from the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe



At the beginning of the portion Vayishlach, the Torah relates how Ya'akov sent emissaries to his brother Esav. He instructed them that, when speaking to Esav, they should refer to Ya'akov as "Esav's servant" and to Esav as "Ya'akov's lord." Later on in the portion, we find Ya'akov bowing down seven times before Esav, calling him many times "my lord" and referring to himself as "your servant."

Ya'akov's extreme obsequiousness seems hard to fathom. In fact, the Midrash states that Ya'akov was punished for sending emissaries to Esav and for calling him "my lord" - his profuse obeisance was considered sinful.

Especially so since G-d had already told Rivkah that "the older one will serve the younger" and moreover, in Yitzchak's blessing to Ya'akov, he specifically stated "you shall be a lord over your brother."

What was the reason for Ya'akov's servility?

Since the Patriarchs were wholly dedicated to G-d's will, evil could not have been part of their makeup, and thus, for them to commit gross sins was an impossibility; those actions that appear to be "sins" cannot be construed as such in the simple sense, Heaven forbid.

The proof that this is indeed so can be derived from this very incident. Although Ya'akov was punished for his actions, we nevertheless learn from his behavior that "it is permissible to flatter the wicked ... for the sake of peace." Were Ya'akov's conduct to have been considered a true sin rather than a mere failing, we would never have derived a lesson from it. What then was the purpose of Ya'akov's behavior?

Chassidus explains that Esav's spiritual source was loftier than Ya'akov's; by elevating Esav, Ya'akov was able to draw down an additional measure of spirituality from his brother's spiritual origin. Ya'akov's bowing before Esav, calling him "my lord," etc., was thus primarily directed at Esav's lofty source rather than at Esav himself.

But the fact remains that Ya'akov was totally subservient before his brother, and was punished for it. How was this befitting Ya'akov's spiritual quest?

There are two methods by which evil can be vanquished and refined: One is to draw down a great measure of sanctity upon the object one wishes to refine. This has the effect of pushing aside the evil within the object and elevating the rest to holiness.

The second approach involves the descent of the individual, bringing about the purification to the level at which the unrefined object exists. By thus coming into intimate contact with the object, he is able to transform it from evil to good.

Each of these methods has unique advantages. With regard to the person doing the purification, there is obvious merit to drawing down an infusion of holiness, inasmuch as the person himself does not have to undergo a personal descent in order to purify and elevate an object.

For the object involved, however, it is better if the person bringing about its purification actually descends into the object's realm, for then, rather than having the evil within it simply shunted aside, the object actually becomes holy, and ceases to act as an entity that conceals G-dliness.

The prime goal of Torah service is to bring peace within the world and true peace comes only when one's enemy is transformed into a friend. To bring peace "within the world" thus means that one is ready to get "down and dirty," as it were, clothing oneself in worldly garments in order to transform the material world into a holy entity.

In order for Ya'akov to truly transform his sibling, it was necessary to descend to the level of Esav as he found him. By doing so, he was able to transform Esav so that Esav said: "Let what is yours remain yours" thereby admitting that Ya'akov was entitled to Yitzchak's blessings, including the blessing of "You shall be a lord over your brother."

Has G-d forsaken the world?

Father Where Are You? 

The Lubavitcher Rebbe

15 Shevat 5739 - February 12, 1979

There is a wellknown parable related in the name of the Maggid of Mezeritch explaining the reason for the exile:

G-d is like a father who hides from his son.  He doesn't do so because he wants to be separated from him - rather, he wants to evoke his son's desire to search for his father and to find him.

When a child constantly sees his father, he is not conscious of this longing for "there is no pleasure in a constant pleasure". 

When the father hides, the son's yearning is aroused: "Why can't I see my father?"  But after prolonged searching, the person may eventually ask: "Is G-d present among us or not?"

He acknowledges that G-d exists, but he will question whether G-d is really with us.  He understands that G-d exists, that He rules the universe and so forth....  He even knows that G-d creates him anew each instant, ex nihilo.  But he feels that G-d's involvement in his own life is only peripheral, and not - as The Tanya describes - that G-d is completely involved in every minute detail of his existence.

He begins to doubt whether G-d is really involved in the details of his life. And that leads to further doubt: "We don't see a sign of G-d and who knows if we ever will... perhaps G-d has forsaken the world?" Chas v'shalom.  He despairs and gives up the search altogether.

And this is what the parable tells us:

When the father sees that his son no longer seeks him, that is the deepest exile.

So long as the son seeks the father, that is a step forward - a spark - the beginning of the solution. Because finding his Father is the son's true desire, his main endeavor.  But once he stops searching - whether out of ignorance or out of despair -  then "I shall hide, indeed I shall hide My Countenance". 

The Baal Shem Tov explains why "I shall hide" is said twice:  The very fact that G-d is hidden itself becomes hidden from him - he forgets that G-d is even there.  Practically speaking, he pursues his worldly needs in a legitimate way according to Jewish law... he studies Torah as required of him by Jewish law... but he studies without thinking about the Giver of the Torah.   When he does business he forgets that "it is G-d Who grants you the strength to succeed".  He no longer gives these thoughts any credence, and when he is confronted about this he can respond "Why are you complaining to me?  The complaint is to G-d!"

How long must we wait? Granted, the Father hides from his son so that the son will seek him and thirst for him "in a parched and weary land without water".  But to place the son in a doubled and re-doubled darkness .... when, as the Talmud states: "If our forebears were like angels then we are mere mortals; and if they were mortals then we are like donkeys." 

And despite this the Jew is expected to keep on searching.  Sunday, he searches.  Monday, he searches. One attempts to find answers to the situation in the works of Jewish ethics, in the Chassidic works... until we find a clear ruling in the Talmud:  "All 'end times' for the redemption have passed, all it depends on now is repentance (teshuvah)".  And the Talmud rules that even one sincere thought of repentance transforms a person into a complete Tzaddik. 

There is no such thing as a Jew who has not had a true stirring of repentance.  There is no such thing.  Especially in our generation that has witnessed such tremendous suffering - "we saw with our very own eyes and we heard with our very own ears".  May it never happen again.  But we did witness it, we did hear it, and we do remember it.

It is not possible that among the entire Jewish people there is even a single Jew who has not been moved to thoughts of repentance; and not only once but numerous times.  What more can one expect of a man of flesh and blood who is finite and limited?  And it is G-d Himself who makes man finite and limited so the person can't be blamed for that either.  Man is limited as to how much he can cope with, and after all this he is challenged: "Why don't you think about the Redemption?"

He responds: "Every day I affirm the Principle of Faith that I yearn for Moshiach's coming every day". Now he's expected to keep this in mind all day long?  It is not possible.

We know that G-d "does not demand from a person more than he can handle" - but it seems He hasn't given enough strength....

But there is something one can do: When a person increases the Divine light in his life, and specifically that Divine light which brings him real, tangible joy, then "Joy bursts through barriers" and that joy tears down the barriers within himself, the barriers in the world around him, and the thick barriers of the darkness of exile.

Healing Through Torah

Every aspect of creation is governed by an angel. Even trees and plants (especially those with healing properties) have angels supervising their growth. As the Sages said [Bereishit Rabbah 10:6] "There is nothing below, not even a common herb, which does not have an angel on high that strikes it and tells it to grow". Each of these angels receives its life force from the particular Utterance which is the source of its creation. It then transmits a measured amount of this life force to its particular charge.

This power of the angels to receive and transmit life force is referred to as the power of the "hands". (The Hebrew word for power is ko'ach, numerically equal to 28, the number of bones contained in the fingers of both hands). With its "right hand" an angel receives life force. With its "left hand", it dispenses the exact amount needed to its charge below. This is the meaning of the Sages' statement: "he strikes it and tells it to grow". "Striking" is done with the angel's left hand (for the left side represents Gevurah, judgment).

The Torah tells us [Proverbs 4:20-22] "My son attend to my words, incline your ear to my utterances.... For they are life to those who find them and healing to all their flesh." We learn from this that all healing flows from G-d, through His Torah. The Torah is the source of the [healing] power of the angels, who in turn transmit it to all the various herbs in their charge. This power is manifest when one accepts the Torah and has faith in the Sages who reveal it, for the Torah was given over to the Sages, and one who deviates from their teachings is called "he who causes a breach in the wall [of faith].

This is the meaning of the injunction [Deut 17:11] "Do not deviate, neither to the right nor to the left, from what they teach you". If you deviate to the right (tending towards unnecessary zealousness), your angel's "right hand" (ability to receive from its corresponding archangel and Utterance) will be hindered. If you deviate to the left (by transgressing the Torah), the angel's "left hand" (ability to transmit) will be hindered.

Of course, the removal of your angel's hands means that you cannot receive your healing, for without an angel to bestow the life force upon it, the herb upon which your healing depends loses its power to heal. Thus, the degree to which a person is attached to Torah determines the degree to which he is able to be healed.

"Anatomy of the Soul" - Chaim Kramer

from the teachings of Rebbe Nachman

Israel: Impervious to any Opposition

"I will give to you and to your descendants the land on which you are lying" [Vayeitze 28:13]

Rashi writes that when Yaakov was sleeping, the entire Land of Israel was folded by G-d miraculously underneath him, as a sign that the Land would be easy to conquer by his children.

The Talmud tells us that G-d compacted the Land of Israel into four cubits underneath Yaakov, to make the whole Land as easy to conquer as if it were merely four cubits.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe taught that the highest aspect of the Jewish soul - the yechidah - is so sublime that it cannot be contained within the body, and it spreads to a distance of four cubits (approx 6 feet) around a person.

The yechidah is also a level of the soul which can never become tarnished, because it is not susceptible to any negative influence.

Thus, when G-d placed the entire Land of Israel within four cubits of Yaakov to stress his future ownership of it, the Land became connected with Yaakov's yechidah, and so too, with the yechidah of every single one of his descendants.

And that is the reason why "it would be as easily conquered by his children" because the Land was associated with a level of the soul which is impervious to any opposition.

Based on Likutei Sichos of the Lubavitcher Rebbe Vol.20

Sheep

The Midrash describes the Jewish people as G-d's "sheep" [Shir HaShirim Rabah 2:16], as an expression of their total dedication to G-d, like sheep that follow their shepherd unquestioningly.

Yaakov exemplified this level of dedication while he worked for Lavan, remaining loyal to G-d's commands despite the spiritually alien environment.  Thus, to hint to Yaakov's dedication, G-d rewarded him with wealth that came about through amassing sheep.

However, when Yaakov returned to confront Eisav, he did not stress sheep as his most important acquisition, but rather, oxen [Vayeitze 32:6].  Yaakov was hinting: "Because I am dedicated to G-d like a quiet sheep, therefore I have G-d's might behind me, so I will be as strong as an ox against you."

This teaches us that, in our observance of mitzvos we should be utterly humble towards G-d like a sheep; but when fighting the forces that oppose Judaism in the outside world, we cannot stand by sheepishly and watch Jews be drawn away from their heritage. Rather, we must fight for Jewish values with the strength of an ox.

Source: Based on Likutei Sichos of the Lubavitcher Rebbe: Gutnick Chumash

5 Kislev: Yarzheit: the Maharsha

Rabbi Shmuel Eliezer Edeles

(1555-1631) Hebrew year: 5315-5392

Rabbi Samuel Eliezer Halevi Edeles (MaHaRSHA - מהרש"א) was born in Posen about the middle of the sixteenth century. He lived at a time when there were very great Talmud scholars, and he took his place among the greatest. Even among such great lights of the exponents of the Talmud as Rabbi Joel Sirkes (the BaCH), Rabbi Meir (MaHaRaM) of Lublin, Rabbi Mordecai Jaffe (the "Levush"), and others, Rabbi Samuel Edeles shone with a light of his own, for his commentary on the Talmud was unique and brilliant.

Rabbi Samuel Edeles (or Adel's) is better known by the name of MaHaRSHA (Morenu Harav Shmuel Adel's - Our Teacher Rabbi Samuel Adel's), and his famous commentary on the Talmud is so entitled-Hidushei MaHaRSHA (Hidushei meaning "New Explanations by").

In 1600 he published his first Hidushim anonymously. His commentaries at once became popular and were very favorably received. This greatly encouraged him, and he continued his commentaries, publishing the remaining part 11 years later.

His commentaries reveal his unusual mental brilliance and extensive knowledge of the whole Talmud. They are unique in method and approach which are bent upon a straightforward attempt to grasp he plain and logical meaning of the text of the Talmud, without indulging in hair-splitting juggling of various passages of he Talmud.

In 1610 he received a call to become the Rabbi of the important community of Chelm, where he served for four years. From there he was called to an even greater community, that of Lublin, where he also headed the famous Yeshivah in that city. His next post was in Tictin, and the remainder of his life he spent as Rabbi of Ostrog and head of the Yeshivah there. There he died on the 5th day of Kislev in the year 5392 (1631).

Not merely for his great learning, but also for his great qualities of character has Rabbi Samuel loved respected by all. He was very modest, as can be seen from the fact that he did not at first disclose that he was the author of his commentaries. His house was always open for the needy, and his door is said to have had the following inscription, taken from job: "No stranger shall stay overnight outside; my door is open for every guest.

Rabbi Samuel's commentary has become so popular, that it is printed in all the standard editions of the Talmud, and is regarded as a "must" for all Talmud scholars.

The Maharsha taught of three types of dreams:

The first type of dream is one without any particular meaning, which is open to many different interpretations. This dream is like an unread letter. Giving an affirming spin to this sort of dream strengthens the positive aspects of the dream and in so doing, gives it an energy that can then be transformed into reality. A positive interpretation will therefore help determine its basic energy and how it manifests itself. It is also this sort of dream which may be basic nonsense or the result of fasting or other physical activity.

A second type of dream does have a certain prophetic direction or message to the dreamer, but even these dreams can be turned to the good through repentence i.e. heeding the message and drawing the proper conclusions. As we recite in our prayers on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur: "Repentance, prayer and charity remove an evil decree".

The third type of dream has true prophetic meaning and is destined to come true. This, for example, is the type of dream Rava said comes from an angel. Many of the Biblical dreams fall into this category, and they are fulfillments of G-d's promise that in a vision or dream He would speak to his prophets.

Sources: chabad.org

"Mystical Meaning of Dreams" Avraham Aryeh Trugman

Empty Hands

Art: Maryana Beletskaya

Do not be concerned with wealth. Even with it your life can be in vain. The world deceives us completely. It makes us think that we are constantly gaining, but in the end we have nothing. People spend years earning money, but are left with empty hands.

Even one who attains wealth is taken away from it. Man and wealth can't endure together. Either wealth is taken from the man or the man is taken from his wealth. The two do not remain together.

Where are all the riches accumulated since the beginning of time? People amassed wealth since the beginning, where is it all? It is absolutely nothing.        

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov

How to Give, and Give, and Give

Yesterday I watched (via the internet) an amazing man give an amazing speech.  I highly recommend you watch the videos below, and be totally inspired.

The speaker is Philanthropist Gennady (Zvi Hirsch) Bogolubov, one of the biggest supporters of Chabad shluchim worldwide - the guest speaker at the banquet of the Kinus Hashluchim (Annual Convention of Chabad Emissaries).

Mr. Bogolubov was born in 1962 in the city of Dniproderzinsk, Ukraine. After graduating from the local high school, he moved to the city of Dnepropetrovsk – the Rebbe’s hometown, where he continued his studies at the Institute of Civil Engineering. Upon graduating with honors in 1988, he assumed a position as construction engineer in one of the local corporations. Four years later he co-founded Privatbank.

In 1998, Mr. Bogolubov was elected President of the Jewish Community in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. With his election, Mr. Bogolubov began to invest in the Jewish community in Ukraine by directing resources to the future generation – specifically through advancing education and Jewish pride. His approach has become a model for leaders in other Jewish communities.

Over the years, Mr. Bogolubov became much closer to Judaism through the rav of the community in Dnepropetrovsk, Shliach Rabbi Shmuel Kamenetsky. The long relationship developed into a close friendship between the two, and Mr. Bogolubov became acquainted with the activities of Chabad shluchim worldwide.

His love and affection for the shluchim has been evident since his early years, when he did everything he could to help them build synagogues, schools and more. In 2008 he established the Bogolubov Simcha Foundation, which was established to help shluchim celebrate family simchas. Since the establishment of the fund, grants were given to 3,952 shluchim all over the world, for births, bar mitzvahs and weddings – totaling over $10 million.

This year before Tishrei, in honor of the birth of his daughter Dina, Mr. Bogolubov bestowed a one-time grant of $500 to all Shluchim for the holidays, amounting to a total of $2 million.

During the upcoming banquet, the culmination of the annual Kinus Hashluchim at which more than 4,000 shluchim and their guests are expected to attend, Mr. Bogolubov will share the story of his relationship with Chabad, as well as his personal perspective on the activities of shluchim around the world.

Mr. Gennady Bogoliubov speaks at the International Conference of Shluchim 2010 from Jewish Educational Media on Vimeo.