Chasidut su Genesi 46:35
Kedushat Levi
Rashi’s commentary on the opening line of our portion begins with the statement that when a tzaddik leaves his hometown this leaves a void behind that is felt by the people remaining behind. The implication appears to be that while the tzaddik had been in his hometown his peers had not realized how blessed they had been by his presence. He quotes Ruth 1,7 where Naomi and Ruth’s leaving the fields of Moav are described in a similar manner, i.e. their departure leaving behind a void. Rashi claims that otherwise the Torah need only have written וילך יעקב חרנה, “Yaakov set out on his way to Charan.” There are numerous instances where the departure of certain individuals from the Holy Land is described as וירד, “he descended,” seeing that the land of Israel is considered as being on a higher level than all the countries surrounding it. This statement does not refer to the physical altitude of the land of Israel, but to the spiritual level of the people inhabiting that land. By not writing וירד יעקב, “Yaakov descended,” the Torah wishes the reader to know that he did not leave behind his spiritual assets in the land of Canaan but that he took all his spiritual equipment with him. Rashi himself refers to this when he writes on the words והנה אנכי עמך, “and behold I am with you,” (28,15) that Mount Moriah was uprooted at that time and accompanied Yaakov on his way to Charan. [Not found in our editions of Rashi on that verse. Ed.] The sanctity of the Holy Land accompanied Yaakov on his journey into exile. Nonetheless he was greatly troubled by having to leave the Holy Land. If we needed confirmation for Yaakov’s feelings about this, we find it in Genesis 46,3 where at Beer Sheva Yaakov has second thoughts about going to Egypt in order to see his son Joseph once more, and G’d has to reassure him by telling him not only that he should not be ill at ease about this undertaking, but that as a result of his going to Egypt the Jewish people would develop into a numerous nation there. Rashi there comments that Yaakov’s primary fear was the very fact of his having to leave the Holy Land (his second exile). He was assured by G’d that the Shechinah would accompany him there.
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Kedushat Levi
Genesis 46,1. “he offered meat-offerings in honour of the G’d of his father Yitzchok.” The Midrashim offer many different explanations of this verse.
The reader’s attention is directed at the commentary of Nachmanides (very lengthy). He concludes that Yaakov, personally, (if it had been up to him) did not really want to descend to Egypt. It was only because he realized that it had been decreed for him to be exiled in Egypt, (compare Shabbat 89) according to which Yaakov should actually have descended to Egypt in iron chains. Under the circumstances, Yaakov realized that he was very fortunate to travel to Egypt in style, instead. When he addressed G’d as the G’d of Yitzchok, he implied that his father Yitzchok had not been forced to leave the Holy Land, even though there had been a famine there in his lifetime also, G’d had commanded him to remain there. (Genesis 26,2) He may have hoped to change G’d’s decree so as to enable him to remain in the Holy Land.
The reader’s attention is directed at the commentary of Nachmanides (very lengthy). He concludes that Yaakov, personally, (if it had been up to him) did not really want to descend to Egypt. It was only because he realized that it had been decreed for him to be exiled in Egypt, (compare Shabbat 89) according to which Yaakov should actually have descended to Egypt in iron chains. Under the circumstances, Yaakov realized that he was very fortunate to travel to Egypt in style, instead. When he addressed G’d as the G’d of Yitzchok, he implied that his father Yitzchok had not been forced to leave the Holy Land, even though there had been a famine there in his lifetime also, G’d had commanded him to remain there. (Genesis 26,2) He may have hoped to change G’d’s decree so as to enable him to remain in the Holy Land.
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Kedushat Levi
Genesis 46,4. “I will descend to Egyt with you, and I will also ascend with you.” In order to understand this verse properly, we must remember the pedagogic rule that when a teacher is confronted with a student of limited intellect, he must endeavour to rein in his superior intellect and descend to the level of the student. When faced with a student who has a brilliant mind, the teacher need not impose any restrictions on himself when teaching such a student. As long as Yaakov resided in the Holy Land, his intellect was very strong; he was afraid that now that he would “descend” to Egypt, he would experience a reduction in intellectual capacity so that G’d would “restrain” Himself when communicating with him, so that he would not be able to serve Him in the manner he was used to. G’d reassured him here that he need not have any such concerns, as the Shechinah would remain at his side as long as he would be in Egypt.
G’d promises Yaakov that upon his return to the Holy Land, he will have attained great spiritual stature. This is the meaning of the words: גם עלה. When the Shechinah which had accompanied him “down” to Egypt, would return to the Holy Land, [which had not contained any Jews during the interval, so that these had not been deprived of its Presence, Ed.], Yaakov would participate in this elevation, עליה.
G’d promises Yaakov that upon his return to the Holy Land, he will have attained great spiritual stature. This is the meaning of the words: גם עלה. When the Shechinah which had accompanied him “down” to Egypt, would return to the Holy Land, [which had not contained any Jews during the interval, so that these had not been deprived of its Presence, Ed.], Yaakov would participate in this elevation, עליה.
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Kedushat Levi
Genesis 46,29. (normal translation) “Joseph harnessed his chariot and ascended towards Israel his father;”
[The reason why the author presents an allegorical commentary first, as if it were the obvious meaning, is presumably, that if the Torah had merely wanted to tell us that Joseph traveled in the direction of his father to welcome him, these details would have been irrelevant. The same reason applies elsewhere where he chooses the allegorical or mystical approach as his first choice. Ed.] The word ויאסור, refers to Joseph “harnessing” his body in anticipation of meeting his saintly father; the word מרכבתו is an allusion to the four basic components (raw materials in terms of the creation) of which the physical universe is composed. Joseph considers the forthcoming encounter with his father as almost like making a pilgrimage to the Holy Temple. This is reflected in the Torah’s choice of his name Yisrael at this point, although his father is entering “exile.” His father had the name Yisrael added to his name as recognition that he had elevated his body through service of the Lord to come closer to his Creator. The first three letters in that name, i.e. ישר, “upright,” straightforward, are also reflected in the location where Israel would reside from now on, in גשנה, a word reflecting הגשה, bringing something close, in order to unite it with something or somebody else. In this case it reflects rapprochement to G’d in heaven. The letter ה at the end of the word גשן, meaning five, alludes to the One and only G’d Who holds the other 4 parts of the universe together, without Whom it would implode. Here on earth this world is held together by the tzaddik, in our case by the righteous Joseph.
[The reason why the author presents an allegorical commentary first, as if it were the obvious meaning, is presumably, that if the Torah had merely wanted to tell us that Joseph traveled in the direction of his father to welcome him, these details would have been irrelevant. The same reason applies elsewhere where he chooses the allegorical or mystical approach as his first choice. Ed.] The word ויאסור, refers to Joseph “harnessing” his body in anticipation of meeting his saintly father; the word מרכבתו is an allusion to the four basic components (raw materials in terms of the creation) of which the physical universe is composed. Joseph considers the forthcoming encounter with his father as almost like making a pilgrimage to the Holy Temple. This is reflected in the Torah’s choice of his name Yisrael at this point, although his father is entering “exile.” His father had the name Yisrael added to his name as recognition that he had elevated his body through service of the Lord to come closer to his Creator. The first three letters in that name, i.e. ישר, “upright,” straightforward, are also reflected in the location where Israel would reside from now on, in גשנה, a word reflecting הגשה, bringing something close, in order to unite it with something or somebody else. In this case it reflects rapprochement to G’d in heaven. The letter ה at the end of the word גשן, meaning five, alludes to the One and only G’d Who holds the other 4 parts of the universe together, without Whom it would implode. Here on earth this world is held together by the tzaddik, in our case by the righteous Joseph.
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Flames of Faith
On the other hand, the Jewish nation’s weltanschauung is pure monotheism. We see the One everywhere. As a result, the seventy members of Jacob’s family are referred to in the Torah as ha-nefesh le- bais le-Yaakov, “the soul to the house of Jacob” (Gen. 46:27). Seventy different bodies were all parts of one soul.280Rashi ibid. See further Da’as Tefillah pg. 155.
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Kedushat Levi
Genesis 27,38. “do you really have only one blessing that you can dispense, my father?;While there is a rule that life as well as blessings originate from one holy source, this rule brings in its wake the possibility that the “left” side of the emanations can also be the seat of life, as when G’d created the universe He arranged that the forces of evil and those of good be at par with one another least on the surface. [Otherwise freedom of choice granted to man would be meaningless. Ed.] Both the Ari z’al and others preceding him, including Rashi, stated that holiness is also known as אחת, “a state of unity.” Rashi points out that when the descendants of Yaakov set out on their journey to Egypt and their names had been listed individually, the Torah (Genesis 46,27) concluded the list with כל הנפש, “the sum total of the soul,” (singular) when referring to this family. On the other hand, when the Torah reports Esau and his family leaving the Holy Land in order to settle in the region of Seir, (Genesis 36,6) Esau’s descendants are referred to as נפשות, “souls” (pl.). Such nuances in the Torah reveal to us that not all souls originate in the same region of the diagram portraying the emanations.Genesis 27,38. “do you really have only one blessing that you can dispense, my father?”;While there is a rule that life as well as blessings originate from one holy source, this rule brings in its wake the possibility that the “left” side of the emanations can also be the seat of life, as when G’d created the universe He arranged that the forces of evil and those of good be at par with one another least on the surface. [Otherwise freedom of choice granted to man would be meaningless. Ed.] Both the Ari z’al and others preceding him, including Rashi, stated that holiness is also known as אחת, “a state of unity.” Rashi points out that when the descendants of Yaakov set out on their journey to Egypt and their names had been listed individually, the Torah (Genesis 46,27) concluded the list with כל הנפש, “the sum total of the soul,” (singular) when referring to this family. On the other hand, when the Torah reports Esau and his family leaving the Holy Land in order to settle in the region of Seir, (Genesis 36,6) Esau’s descendants are referred to as נפשות, “souls” (pl.). Such nuances in the Torah reveal to us that not all souls originate in the same region of the diagram portraying the emanations.
When Esau, at this point questions his father if he has only ברכה אתת, he asks whether his father cannot dispense a blessing for people whose origin is not in the holy section of the emanations, the section known as אחת. He feels, that surely seeing that he is his father’s son, his father must also be able to have reserved a blessing for him! By asking this question he contradicted the words of his father who had told him that the blessing he had already bestowed on Yaakov that made him senior to his older brother, i.e. הוה גביר לאחיך, made this impossible. If he were to give Esau a similar blessing he would in effect deprive Yaakov of the blessing he had just given him. When Yitzchok heard what Esau demanded of him, seeing that he had told him that in his blessing he had made Yaakov the senior of the two, he realized the full extent of Esau’s wickedness, and that is why he added, now, without reservation, גם ברוך יהיה, “he shall also remain blessed!” Up until that moment Yitzchok had not realized that Esau was a product of the סטרא אחרא, the “left side” of the scheme of emanations. Having found that out, he now gave Esau a blessing that was in keeping with the “blessings” perceived as such by souls that originate in that realm, i.e. על חרבך תחיה, “seeing that you are loyal to the principle that might is right,” the principle espoused by people whose souls originate in the left side of the emanations, people who believe in the survival of the fittest, Yitzchok could only bless his son Esau by wishing him “success” (death) when he would be involved in such lethal encounters. He meant it in the sense that “until you pay the price with your physical life you will not be able to secure for yourself any life in the hereafter”. When such people lose their lives when engaged in what they perceive as a “holy” war, they may redeem themselves and secure life in the hereafter. [This editor has often wondered it the concept of our sages of a Mashiach ben Yoseph, a messiah who will die in battle before the advent of the Mashiach ben David, the ultimate redeemer, may not originate among the gentiles and earn his right to his hereafter in the manner just described. Ed.]
Genesis 27,40. Let us turn now to the next part of Yitzchok’s “blessing” to Easu, the words והיה כאשר תריד ופרקת עולו מעל צוארך, “but when you humble yourself you will be able to remove the his yoke from around your neck.”
According to Or Hachayim on our verse the word והיה in the above verse is to be interpreted as a form of joy, שמחה. Contrary to the accepted translation of this line, Rashi understands the word תריד, as “when you will suffer pain.” According to Proverbs 11,10 באבוד רשעים רנה “when the wicked perish there is jubilation.” Isaiah 1,3 speaks about the ox recognizing his owner. The fact is that when the ox wears a yoke he does not recognize (in the sense of welcoming) his master voluntarily, but only because he is forced to wear a yoke. When the yoke is removed he will honour his master by still respecting and welcoming him. Something parallel occurs in history about the Israel/Esau relationship. As long as the Temple in Jerusalem was standing, the gentile nations paid reluctant respect to the Jewish people. Nowadays, when there is no longer a Temple in Jerusalem, the yoke which had restrained the Gentiles has been lifted from them, although their obligation, as a free willed creature created in the image of G’d to respect G’d’s people has not been lessened. G’d, after all, created this universe only for the sake of His people, the Jewish people. According to Isaiah 40,17 כל האומות כעין נגדו מאפס ותוהו נחשבו לו, “All nations are as naught in His sight; He accounts them as less than nothing.” This is in essence what Yitzchok told Esau when he said ופרקתו עולו מעל צווארך, “even when you will divest yourself of the yoke of Yaakov, in times when the Jewish people are in exile, as Rashi explains, you will only remove this yoke from your neck, i.e. temporarily during the time Israel is in exile, but inherently, your duty toward G’d, whose representative on earth the Jewish people are, will continue, just as an ox knows his master regardless if he is restrained by a physical yoke or not.” Upon hearing this, Esau raised his voice and wept, feeling frustrated that his father would not give him a blessing that would neutralize the one he had given to Yaakov. He had fully understood all the implications of the few words Yitzchok had said to him.
When Esau, at this point questions his father if he has only ברכה אתת, he asks whether his father cannot dispense a blessing for people whose origin is not in the holy section of the emanations, the section known as אחת. He feels, that surely seeing that he is his father’s son, his father must also be able to have reserved a blessing for him! By asking this question he contradicted the words of his father who had told him that the blessing he had already bestowed on Yaakov that made him senior to his older brother, i.e. הוה גביר לאחיך, made this impossible. If he were to give Esau a similar blessing he would in effect deprive Yaakov of the blessing he had just given him. When Yitzchok heard what Esau demanded of him, seeing that he had told him that in his blessing he had made Yaakov the senior of the two, he realized the full extent of Esau’s wickedness, and that is why he added, now, without reservation, גם ברוך יהיה, “he shall also remain blessed!” Up until that moment Yitzchok had not realized that Esau was a product of the סטרא אחרא, the “left side” of the scheme of emanations. Having found that out, he now gave Esau a blessing that was in keeping with the “blessings” perceived as such by souls that originate in that realm, i.e. על חרבך תחיה, “seeing that you are loyal to the principle that might is right,” the principle espoused by people whose souls originate in the left side of the emanations, people who believe in the survival of the fittest, Yitzchok could only bless his son Esau by wishing him “success” (death) when he would be involved in such lethal encounters. He meant it in the sense that “until you pay the price with your physical life you will not be able to secure for yourself any life in the hereafter”. When such people lose their lives when engaged in what they perceive as a “holy” war, they may redeem themselves and secure life in the hereafter. [This editor has often wondered it the concept of our sages of a Mashiach ben Yoseph, a messiah who will die in battle before the advent of the Mashiach ben David, the ultimate redeemer, may not originate among the gentiles and earn his right to his hereafter in the manner just described. Ed.]
Genesis 27,40. Let us turn now to the next part of Yitzchok’s “blessing” to Easu, the words והיה כאשר תריד ופרקת עולו מעל צוארך, “but when you humble yourself you will be able to remove the his yoke from around your neck.”
According to Or Hachayim on our verse the word והיה in the above verse is to be interpreted as a form of joy, שמחה. Contrary to the accepted translation of this line, Rashi understands the word תריד, as “when you will suffer pain.” According to Proverbs 11,10 באבוד רשעים רנה “when the wicked perish there is jubilation.” Isaiah 1,3 speaks about the ox recognizing his owner. The fact is that when the ox wears a yoke he does not recognize (in the sense of welcoming) his master voluntarily, but only because he is forced to wear a yoke. When the yoke is removed he will honour his master by still respecting and welcoming him. Something parallel occurs in history about the Israel/Esau relationship. As long as the Temple in Jerusalem was standing, the gentile nations paid reluctant respect to the Jewish people. Nowadays, when there is no longer a Temple in Jerusalem, the yoke which had restrained the Gentiles has been lifted from them, although their obligation, as a free willed creature created in the image of G’d to respect G’d’s people has not been lessened. G’d, after all, created this universe only for the sake of His people, the Jewish people. According to Isaiah 40,17 כל האומות כעין נגדו מאפס ותוהו נחשבו לו, “All nations are as naught in His sight; He accounts them as less than nothing.” This is in essence what Yitzchok told Esau when he said ופרקתו עולו מעל צווארך, “even when you will divest yourself of the yoke of Yaakov, in times when the Jewish people are in exile, as Rashi explains, you will only remove this yoke from your neck, i.e. temporarily during the time Israel is in exile, but inherently, your duty toward G’d, whose representative on earth the Jewish people are, will continue, just as an ox knows his master regardless if he is restrained by a physical yoke or not.” Upon hearing this, Esau raised his voice and wept, feeling frustrated that his father would not give him a blessing that would neutralize the one he had given to Yaakov. He had fully understood all the implications of the few words Yitzchok had said to him.
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