Chasidut su Genesi 49:14
יִשָּׂשכָ֖ר חֲמֹ֣ר גָּ֑רֶם רֹבֵ֖ץ בֵּ֥ין הַֽמִּשְׁפְּתָֽיִם׃
Issachàr è un asino corpulento, che si corica tra i graticolati [in luoghi riparati].
Baal Shem Tov
Issachar is a strong-boned ass, crouching down between the stables (Gen. 49:14). In the name of Rabbi Israel Ba’al Shem, on the verse Issachar is a strong-boned [garem] donkey: that is to say, there is reward [s’khar] by way of that which the “donkey” causes [gorem]. (Tzava'at HaRivash p.12b)
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Kedushat Levi
Genesis 49,14-15. “Issachar is a strong-boned donkey;” Yaakov sees in the name יששכר which contains the word שכר, “reward,” an allusion to the relationship between the body’s exertion in fulfilling the commandments on the one hand, and the spiritual reward resulting from this, on the other. The body pulls in one direction, earthward, whereas the reward compensates by pulling in the opposite direction, i.e. heaven-oriented.
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Kedushat Levi
Another explanation of this blessing and the hyperbole employed by Yaakov looks at the entire blessing as a single message; יששכר חמר גרם רבץ בין המשפתים וירא מנוחה כי טוב ואת הארץ כי נעמה ויט שכמו לסבול ויהי למס עובד, ”Yissachar is a bony donkey crouching between sheepfolds, He saw that repose is good and that his land is pleasant, so he bent his shoulders to bear and became a toiling servant.
When a person contemplates what is involved in serving Hashem, he is in a kind of mental turmoil as long as he has not formulated his thoughts into words. Once he has formulated his thoughts into words, he finds some “rest,” his mental turmoil subsides. The word יששכר in our verse alludes to the mental turmoil prior to the thoughts becoming organized into words, whereas the words רבץ בין המפתים, refer to the rest attained once these thoughts have been formulated to be contained within recognizable boundaries, words being the boundaries within which one’s thoughts are now contained, i.e. משפתים,”sheep-fold.” This latter word is similar to שפתים, “lips,” alluding to the spoken word so that what follows is a mind that is at rest, i.e. וירא מנוחה כי טוב, “he saw that ‘rest’ is a good feeling.”
When a person contemplates what is involved in serving Hashem, he is in a kind of mental turmoil as long as he has not formulated his thoughts into words. Once he has formulated his thoughts into words, he finds some “rest,” his mental turmoil subsides. The word יששכר in our verse alludes to the mental turmoil prior to the thoughts becoming organized into words, whereas the words רבץ בין המפתים, refer to the rest attained once these thoughts have been formulated to be contained within recognizable boundaries, words being the boundaries within which one’s thoughts are now contained, i.e. משפתים,”sheep-fold.” This latter word is similar to שפתים, “lips,” alluding to the spoken word so that what follows is a mind that is at rest, i.e. וירא מנוחה כי טוב, “he saw that ‘rest’ is a good feeling.”
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