Balanced Perspective

Parshas Vayigash

Posted on December 6, 2021 (5782) By Rabbi Shlomo Jarcaig | Series: Kol HaKollel | Level: Beginner

 

Soon after our forefather Yaakov (Jacob) descended to Egypt to commence the first Jewish national exile, he met the Pharaoh. “And Pharaoh said to Yaakov, ‘How many are the days of the years of your life?’ And Yaakov said to Pharaoh, ‘The days of the years of my sojourns have been one hundred and thirty years; few and bad have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not reached the days of the years of the lives of my forefathers in the days of their sojourns.'” (Beraishis/Genesis 47:8-9)

 

The Kli Yakar (1) explains that Pharaoh inquired about Yaakov’s age because he had heard that when Yaakov came to the Nile River the waters rose to his feet. Pharaoh hoped that Yaakov’s presence could bring an end to the famine they were experiencing. When he saw how old Yaakov appeared he was concerned that Yaakov was nearing the end of his days. Indeed, his appearance was not an accurate indication of his age, since he aged prematurely because of the unusual amount of suffering he had endured.

 

Despite the legitimacy of Yaakov’s point – his life was genuinely difficult – the Midrash says that someone who had forged such an intense relationship with the Divine as had Yaakov should have appreciated the Divine loving kindness demonstrated when G-d saved Yaakov from Esav and Lavan and reunited him with Joseph. For one of Yaakov’s righteousness and spiritual stature, complaining was inappropriate. Therefore, concludes the Midrash, he was punished by losing a year of life for each word of their conversation. What is perplexing about this Midrash is its statement that Yaakov was punished for Pharaoh’s words. Even if Yaakov was expected not to complain, why should he be punished for being asked a question?

 

Rabbi Chaim Shmulevitz (2) explains that Yaakov looked older because he allowed his sorrows in life to affect him. True contentment is not in the fulfillment of what you want, but the realization of how much you already have. Had Yaakov focused to the best of his ability on the great benevolence shown by G-d, despite his travails, he would not have appeared as aged as he did. This fault led to Pharaoh’s inquiry and for this he was punished.

 

A parable is told of a man who discovered that he had won the lottery. As he celebrated he accidentally knocked over and broke a vase. His concern over the broken vase was not so great for he realized he had something much more valuable. We all have gifts from G-d – vision, hearing, health, loved ones. When we stop and appreciate the value of what we have, we maintain the proper perspective to deal with the difficulties we endure.

 

Have a Good Shabbos!

 

 

To Fergin or Forget

Parshas Miketz

Chanukah

Posted on December 26, 2024 (5785) By Rabbi Yochanan Zweig | Series: Rabbi Zweig on the Parsha| Level: Intermediate Beginner

 

“…seven cows of beautiful appearance and robust flesh…” (41:2)

Pharaoh dreams that as he is standing over the Nile seven cows “y’fos mareh” – “of beautiful appearance” and “briyos bassar” – “robust flesh” emerge from the river. Subsequently, seven other cows, ugly and gaunt, emerge and consume the beautiful and robust cows. Yoseif interprets that the first seven cows represent seven years of abundance, which are to be followed by seven years of famine, represented by the second set of cows. Most of the commentaries see a correlation between the cows and the Egyptian economy. Being an agricultural society, Egypt’s economic wellbeing is defined in terms of their livestock; abundance results in well-fed animals while famine results in malnourished animals.1

 

However, Rashi chooses to explain the symbolism in a different manner. Rashi’s comment on the expression “y’fos mareh” – “of beautiful appearance” is that it alludes to the years of “sovah”, when people will view each other favorably.² Clearly, Rashi is teaching that the cows represent the people and not the livestock owned by the Egyptians. What prompts Rashi to interpret the verse differently than most of the other commentaries? If, according to Rashi, the cows represent the people’s attitudes towards one another, how do we interpret the latter half of the verse “briyos bassar” – “robust flesh”? The term used by the Torah for the years of plenty is “sova”. Rashi understands that “sova” does not only refer to abundance, but contentment as well. Contentment is not gauged by the state of the economy alone; it is a state of mind. If a person is able to view another’s success favorably, then he is truly content. Many people have more resources than they will ever need, but still begrudge others their success. They become so consumed with the success of others, that they forget their own accomplishments and are therefore unable to find satisfaction in the fruit of their labor. Therefore, Rashi identifies the “sova gadol” – “a time of great contentment” as a time when people are able to view each other favorably. This concept is alluded to by the seven cows “y’fos mareh” – “of beautiful appearance”. Rashi’s interpretation is corroborated by the comments made by the Midrash on the end of the verse “vatirenah b’achu” – “and they were grazing in the marsh”.

 

 The Midrash comments “ahava ve’achva ba’olam” – “it is a time of love and brotherhood in the world”.³ One person can view another favorably only if he sees himself in a healthy light. Self-respect coupled with the ability to gauge ourselves by our own accomplishments allows us the security to share in the happiness and success of others. This is alluded to by the description of the cows “briyos bassar” – “robust flesh”, for they have a healthy disposition. If a person does not have self-respect and can only gauge his own accomplishments in terms of others’, he will be forever threatened by their success and therefore never rejoice in his own.

 

1.Ramban 41:2 2.Rashi ibid. 3.Bereishis Rabbah 89:4

 

Festival of The Reflecting Lights

Parshas Miketz

Chanukah

Posted on November 30, 2021 (5782) By Rabbi Naftali Reich | Series: Legacy | Level: Beginner

We gaze at the delightful dancing lights as we sit before the menorah and sing the traditional songs associated with the festival. Many observe a special ritual of lingering in the delicate radiance of the menorah lights while reflecting on their sublime message. But what precisely is that message? What insights are the tiny flames meant to trigger?

 

Perhaps the very word “reflect” serves as a signpost on our journey toward internalizing Chanukah’s spiritual treasure. To reflect does not simply mean to contemplate or ponder. It also means to mirror, or to reverberate. When we gaze deep into the menorah lights, what we should see is a genuine reflection of our true selves.

 

The concept of facing the deeper truth about one’ true self comes to the fore in this week’s Torah portion, as well. This concept is embedded in two words that are seemingly out of place with the flow of the narrative. Yaakov’s sons face Yosef, the Eygptian viceroy, who treats them with unreasonable hostility. He accuses them of being spies and throws them into prison, allowing only one of the brothers to return home and prove their collective innocence by bringing back Binyomin.

 

Yosef unexpectedly relents a few days later and announces that the brothers can all return home, except for Shimon who will be detained until their return.

 

The Torah records the brothers’ response to Yosef’s surprising change of heart and generous gesture, as “Vayaasu kein,” and they did so. The verse gives no further explanation about what the brothers actually did. Instead the Torah continues to tell us that the brothers immediately examined their past behavior and severely reproached themselves for not being sensitive to Yosef’s distress when they sold him into slavery. They now assumed that their present misfortune was a direct result of their past callous behavior.

 

The commentaries explain that Vayaasu kein – ‘they did so’ indicates that Yosef’s brothers followed Yosef’s lead in reevaluating the truth of their own personal conduct.

 

As viceroy, Yosef ruled Egypt with complete, undisputed authority. He was a powerful unchallenged leader who could do whatever he pleased. From the pedestal of absolute power he decreed that all the brothers would be imprisoned until proven innocent. Yet, without explanation he backed down. What was behind this sudden reversal?

 

Great people recognize that everything that transpires in life is a message from Heaven that needs to be carefully appraised. The brothers saw Yosef’s about-face as a clear message from Hashem. If the all-powerful viceroy could have a change of heart and mind, they too should reexamine their convictions, especially their firm belief in their innocence.

 

Even if it involved an ego-bruising realization, it was an exercise they needed to engage in. “Vayaasu kein” …. Like Yosef, the brothers pondered their conduct and motives and found them wanting.

 

The word ‘kein’ means authentic and genuine – a state of existence in which the external is a perfect reflection of the internal.

 

When gazing at the light of the menorah we are looking at a reflection of our inner self and beyond, to our very soul and the G-dliness within us. Removing the obfuscating presence of our ego and negative character traits enables the inner glow of the neshama to radiate through the body and light up its surroundings.

 

When we gaze at the menorah lights, we are internalizing the message of Chanukah-to bring the awareness of G-d’s loving hand directing all aspects of our existence. Hopefully that will lead to take a more inspired role in our daily lives. All too often, we are too invested in our professed opinions and public persona to acknowledge our shortcomings.

 

By letting go of self-justification as did Yosef’s brothers, and being emotionally honest with ourselves, we will be connecting to the message of the Chanukah lights, ensuring that they genuinely reflect our deepest self.

 

When that self is aligned with the awareness of G-d’s loving presence in all of life’s dimensions, the Chanukah message will burst forth and illuminate all the inner and outer shadows of our existence.

 

Wishing you a delightful and joyful Shabbos Chanukah.

 

Sincerely,

Rabbi Naftali Reich

 

 

Freeing the Spirit

Parshas Vayeishev

Posted on December 18, 2024 (5785) By Rabbi Naftali Reich | Series: Legacy | Level: Beginner

 

Divine providence seems to work in strange ways, especially for Joseph languishing in an Egyptian prison. Unjustly accused of making advances to Potiphar’s wife, Joseph has been thrown into the dungeon and left there to rot. But destiny requires that he be released and elevated to high office in the royal palace, and to affect this important result, divine providence arranges a very outlandish set of circumstances.

 

As we read in this week’s Torah portion, ten years after his incarceration Joseph meets up with two discredited palace functionaries, the royal cupbearer and the royal baker. One morning, he finds them despondent. He questions them and discovers that they both had disturbing dreams the previous night. He offers astute interpretations of their dreams, and the sequence of events bears out his predictions. Two years later, when Pharaoh has his own puzzling dreams, the cupbearer remembers Joseph’s interpretive skills and recommends him to Pharaoh. Joseph is brought to the palace, where his brilliant interpretations and wisdom win him high office, and the rest is history.

 

This story certainly makes for high drama, but why were all these farfetched developments necessary? Why didn’t divine providence manifest itself in a simpler way? Couldn’t Joseph’s release and rise to power have been affected through more commonplace events?

 

The commentators explain that Joseph’s release from prison is meant to serve as a paradigm of the ultimate in human emancipation. The vicissitudes of life can cause a person to experience confinement of many sorts, not only physical incarceration but also psychological and emotional bondage of the spirit, which can often be far more painful. How is a person to extricate himself from these situations? How can he escape the isolation sometimes imposed by his conditions?

 

The answer is to focus on the needs of others. As long as a person is absorbed in his own miserable condition, he cannot help but wallow in self-pity to some degree and to walk on the edge of despair. Once he shifts his focus to others, however, his presence in confinement is no longer purposeless and negative. On the contrary, his is a positive presence bringing relief to others and fulfillment to himself. By freeing the spirit, he will in effect have emancipated himself from the shackles of his condition.

 

Joseph personified this approach. Unjustly accused and imprisoned, he did not withdraw into himself to bemoan his awful fate. Instead, he immediately became the heart and soul of the prison, always there to help a stricken inmate. In this sense, he affected his own emancipation even as he still remained confined within the prison walls. And to drive home the point, Hashem contrived that his actual physical release should also be the result of the kindness he performed for others.

 

A prisoner was thrown into a cell with a large number of other prisoners. The walls of the prison were thick and damp, and high up on one side, far above the heads of even the tallest prisoners, was a tiny, heavily barred window that looked out over a barren piece of land. Every day, the new prisoner would drag his bed to the wall under the window. Then he would climb onto the bed, stand on his tiptoes and, stretching, was just able to rest his chin on the stone window sill. The other prisoners gathered in groups to talk or play games, but the new prisoner never participated. He just stood there all day, staring out the window.

 

“What do you see out there?” a prisoner asked him.

“Nothing,” he replied.

 

“Then why do you stand there all day?”

 

“As long as I look out at the world outside,” the new prisoner replied, “I still feel a little connection with it. I still have a little bit of my freedom. But once I turn away from this window and look only at the cell and my cellmates, all my freedom will be gone. Once I surrender to my situation, I will truly be imprisoned.”

 

In our own lives, we are often pummeled by the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.

 

Assailed by financial difficulties, family and childrearing problems, pressure in the workplace and all sorts of other strains and stresses, we can easily find ourselves becoming gloomy and depressed. So what can we do? How can we regain the equilibrium and morale we need to deal with our problems constructively? By throwing ourselves into helping families less fortunate than ourselves or an important community project. For one thing, focusing on others immediately relieves the distress of our own situations. But more important, it elevates us spiritually and allows us to view our troubles in the broader perspective of what has lasting value in the ultimate scheme of things and what does not.

 

Text Copyright © 2008 by Rabbi Naftali Reich and Torah.org.

The Spark that is the Key to Jewish Endurance

Parshas Vayeishev

Chanukah

Posted on November 26, 2021 (5782) By Mordechai Dixler | Series: Lifeline | Level: Beginner

 

A merchant once entered the marketplace, his camels loaded high with flax to sell. A blacksmith noticed the spectacle of tall, cumbersome loads of flax, and wondered aloud, “Where will all that flax go?!” A clever fellow answered him, “What’s the problem? One blow of your bellow could send a spark onto all that flax, and burn it until nothing is left!” (Midrash BR 84:5)

 

Last week’s Torah portion concluded with a lengthy accounting of Esau’s descendants, consisting of many prominent families and nations. Jacob, with his 12 sons, was just beginning to establish the Jewish nation, and Jacob felt intimidated by the growing dominance of his brother Esau. Like the blacksmith, he wondered, what will happen to this little nation of Jews, when they are threatened by oppressors and influences from mighty kingdoms? Just as a small town would appear too small to consume massive piles of flax, the Jewish people would be no match for the overwhelming pressure they would face among the kingdoms of Esau.

 

The answer, says the Midrash, is “These are the descendants of Jacob, Joseph… (Gen. 37:2)” Joseph, who faithfully kept to the moral values of his father’s house, and overcame tremendous challenges (as recorded in this week’s portion), would be the key to survival through the generations. “The house of Jacob will be the fire, the house of Joseph the flame, and the house of Esau the straw (Ovadiah 1).” A spark will come from Joseph that will burn up any threat. (See Rashi Gen. 37:1)

 

Chanukah marks the Jewish victory over the Greeks. The threat from Greece was not so much a threat to Jewish lives, but a threat to the lifeblood of the Jewish nation: G-d’s Torah. All the decrees against the Jewish people were designed to erase Torah study and Mitzvah observance.

 

If successful, the Jews would assimilate and lose all identity. How could this little Jewish nation possibly face the world power of Greece and Greek culture? Inspired by the steadfast strength of Joseph, Judah Maccabee, his brothers, and all those who would stand for G-d’s Torah and service, bravely dared to oppose the Greeks. G-d was impressed by their intense faith and gave them a miraculous victory over the Greek armies, restoring their liberty to practice and study G-d’s Torah. The light of the Torah, that spark of their ancestors, burned up the threat of the most dominant culture.

 

This Chanukah, let’s remember the sacrifice of our faithful ancestors, and G-d’s hand that guided us to victory. The miracle of the oil made it clear for all generations that G-d defends those faithful to Torah, and its eternal flames will always give us the strength to continue in our devoted service of the Al-mighty.

 

Because of Them

Parshas Vayishlach

Posted on December 3, 2020 (5781) By Rabbi Label Lam | Series: Dvar Torah| Level: Beginner

 

And Yaakov remained alone and a man wrestled with him until the break of dawn. And he saw that he could not defeat him so he grabbed him in the hollow of his thigh and he dislocated the hollow of Yaakov’s thigh with his wrestling with him. And he said, “Send me because the dawn has broken.” And he said, “I will not send you unless you bless me.” And he said to him, “What’s your name?” and he said, “Yaakov!” And he said, “No long will your name be Yaakov but rather Israel, because you struggled with the Divine and man and you prevailed.” And Yaakov asked and he said, “Tell me please, what your name is?” And he said, “Why is it that you ask for my name?” And he blessed him there. (Breishis 32:25-30)

 

I think we can make an easy case that Yaakov Avinu may have had the most blessed and accomplished lives in all history. He received blessings and promises from his holy father Yitzchok and directly from HASHEM. He produced and raised the twelve tribes that would constitute the Jewish People. That’s not small potatoes!

 

Yet we find that his world was being constantly rocked by waves of opposition. He had one of the most difficult lives ever recorded. The list of chronic challenges is long and intense. Right from the very beginning, in the womb, he was already battling with his Eisav. His brother forever hates him for having followed his mother’s commandment to take the blessings. He needed to exit his comfort zone and become a man of the field and after having spent 14 sleepless years in the Yeshiva of Shem and Ever, he came into contact with his deceitful father in law. He worked day and night for twenty years while his salary was changed one hundred times.

 

Because his father in law tricked him by substituting Leah for Rochel, he was left with competing wives. Finally after having raised his family he needs to run away from Lavan like a thief and he was chased. Upon returning to Eretz Yisrael his wife Rochel dies, and he finds himself having to confront Eisav who is approaching him as a warrior. Then his sons wipe out the city of Schem after his daughter Dina is ravaged. Suddenly his beloved Yosef is torn from his midst for 22 years. Nothing here is easy or pleasant.

Maybe, though, that’s what made him so great! That he wrestled with an angel all night long and his name was changed from Yaakov to Yisrael is a special lesson and a source of inspiration for all of us. Sometimes a person finds themself in a situation, for whatever reason, where challenges seem insurmountable. What is one to do!?

 

I have had many direct conversations with people who have shared such difficulties. The pain is deep and chronic. There is no quick fix. I have spoken to prisoners who see no light nearing at the end of the tunnel, or people struggling with challenging children or marriages. Tragically some have been permanently scared and stained by one form of abuse or another. What is one to say!? My answer is the same. One size fits all!

 

Of course, only after feeling, offering and expressing profound empathy: “Your life is not a simple one.

 

You cannot afford to coast along casually. You find yourself in a situation, in a circumstance where you have only two choices, to become crazy or great! HASHEM has chosen you for greatness, obviously. He would not give you these challenges if you would not be able to stand up to them.

 

However, don’t do it for yourself alone. If and/or when you manage to overcome these profound challenges and you find the key to your own heart, you will have discovered the master key to help thousands of others in a similar situation. You will no longer feel like a reject but rather you will be a resource. That will have made all the suffering worth the while, though it’s not something you can easily appreciate right now.

 

A name is a description of the potential of a person. The numerical value of Yaakov is 182. The angel that he wrestled with, the opposing force SATAN, equals 359. Together they add up to the numerical value of Yisrael. Wow! What does this teach us?

 

When a person is able to stand up to “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” and emerge victorious, he not only lives up to and fulfills his potential, but he will have managed to expand and supersede his potential. All of this greatness is not accomplished in spite of his challenges but rather because of them.

 

The Roots of Strength

Parshas Vayishlach

Posted on December 3, 2020 (5781) By Rabbi Naftali Reich | Series: Legacy | Level: Beginner

 

Yiddishe nachas – two words so full of Jewish meaning that they defy translation into any other language. Yiddishe nachas is that special blend of pride, joy and satisfaction that Jewish parents feel when they look at their successful children and remember all the effort that went into them. It is a sigh and a smile grafted together.

 

Child rearing is never easy, especially in Jewish families that demand so much from their children. Even in the best of circumstances, molding a child into a sensitive, responsible person is not only a rewarding experience but also a harrowing ordeal that last for some twenty plus years.

 

And should problems arise – as they often do – the ordeal can become next to unbearable.

 

Why is this so? We don’t find such extended periods of child rearing among any other species in the world. The young are born, they are kept under their mother’s figurative wing for a few hours or days or weeks, and they’re off on their own. Humans, however, are helpless for the first few years of life and heavily dependent on their parents for many years afterwards. We find the same disparity in childbirth itself. All species give birth quickly and easily – except for humans. Why did Hashem see fit to bring the little bundles of joys into the world by such a painful process? And why did he give them such a long period of dependency?

 

Perhaps we can find the answers in this week’s parshah. As Rachel feels her life ebbing away after a very difficult childbirth, she looks at her newborn son and with her last gasping breaths she names him Ben Oni, “the child of my affliction.” But Jacob does not accept this name for his son. Instead, he names him Ben Yamin (Benjamin), “the child of the right hand.” Why didn’t Jacob allow the child to carry the name his mother had given him with her dying breath?

 

The Ramban explains that Jacob was not rejecting the name Rachel had chosen. Rather, he was focusing on one specific aspect of it. The word oni means both affliction and strength, and these two concepts are very closely related. Strength is inevitably the result of affliction. Solid results of lasting value can only be achieved through toil, sweat and tears. Therefore, Jacob chose to name his son Ben Yamin, because the right hand symbolizes strength, which goes hand in hand with affliction.

 

Human beings are infinitely higher than the creatures of the animal kingdom. They cannot be formed with a snap of the fingers. It takes years and decades of careful nurturing and education to produce this wondrous creature known as a human being. And the more effort invested the greater the reward.

 

A man once came to visit a principal of a large school. As he waited in the office, he saw the principal in the hallway surrounded by children clamoring for his attention. The principal responded to each of the children with patience and a kind word. When they had all gone, he came in to greet his visitor.

 

“I don’t know how you manage it,” the visitor commented. “I would go out of my mind if I had to go through every day with dozens of little kids screaming in my ears. You must be climbing the walls!”

 

“Not at all, my friend,” said the principal. “Each of these children is an unpolished diamond. I spend years shaping, smoothing, polishing and buffing these precious little diamonds in the rough, and by the time they leave me, I can see them glittering from within. Which of these little diamonds would you have me discard?”

 

We all have our own shares of troubles in life, but we should view them as obstacles to overcome on the road to personal fulfillment. Each obstacle is an opportunity for growth, depending on how we respond to it. Like Rachel, we must recognize the afflictions that are part of life, and like Jacob, we must see in them the roots of a strength that will make it all worthwhile.

 

Text Copyright © 2006 by Rabbi Naftali Reich and Torah.org.

 

 

Death Wish

Parshas Toldos

Posted on November 27, 2024 (5785) By Rabbi Mordechai Kamenetzky | Series: Drasha| Level: Beginner

 

Esav. He represents so much evil. We know him as the hunter, the ruthless marauder, murderer of Nimrod and stalker of Yaakov. Yet, believe it or not, he had some saving grace. He is even considered a paradigm of virtuous character at least in one aspect of his life honoring parents. The Torah tells us that Yitzchak loved Esav. And Esav loved him back. He respected his father and served him faithfully. In fact, the Medrash and Zohar talk favorably about the power of Esav’s kibud av, honor of his father. They even deem it greater than that of his brother Yaakov’s. And so Yitzchak requested Esav to “go out to the field and hunt game for me, then make me delicacies such as I love, and I will eat, so that my soul may bless you before I die”

 

(Genesis 27:3-4). Yitzchak wanted to confer the blessings to him. Esav won his father’s regard.

 

And even when Esav found out that his brother, Yaakov beat him to the blessings, he did not yell at his father, in the method of modern filial impugnation, “How did you let him do that?!” All he did was “cry out an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me too, Father!” (ibid v.34). Yitzchak finds some remaining blessing to bestow upon his older son, but the grudge does not evaporate. What troubles me is not the anger of defeat or the desire for revenge, rather the way Esav expressed it. “Now Esau harbored hatred toward Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him; and Esau thought, “May the days of mourning for my father draw near, then I will kill my brother Jacob.”

 

“May the days of mourning for my father draw near” Think about it. How did the love for a father turn into the eager anticipation of his death?

 

The seventh grade class of the posh Harrington Boy’s School, nestled in the luxurious rolling hills of suburbia, was teeming with excitement. The winter had begun, and they were rapidly approaching the beginning of the holiday season. The children had been talking about their wishes and expectations for holiday presents and were telling the class what they were going to get.

 

Johnny had been promised that if he finished his piano lessons, he’d get a new 800-megahertz computer. Arthur had asked for a real drum set and was promised it on the condition he gets grades of 100 on two consecutive math tests.

 

Billy had not been so lucky. He had begged his dad for a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, to which his father replied, “Over my dead body!” He settled. If he would write a weekly letter to his uncle in Wichita, he would get a motorized scooter.

 

The day came and all the kids had the chance to share their expectations with their peers.

 

“When I get two hundreds in a row, I’m getting a real drum set!” shouted Arthur.

 

“When I finish piano lessons, I’m getting the latest computer!” exclaimed Johnny. And so it went. Each child announced his goal and the prize that awaited him upon accomplishment.

 

Finally Billy swaggered up to the front of the class. “If I write my uncle I’m gonna get a scooter.” He quickly continued, “but that’s nothing! ‘Cause when my daddy dies, I’m getting a Harley-Davidson motorcycle!”

 

Passions overrule sanity. They even overtake years of love and commitment. When one is enraged, he can turn against his best friend, his closest ally, and even his own parents! Esav, who spent his first 63 years in undying adulation of his father, changed his focus in a burst of emotion. Now, instead of worrying about his father’s fare, he awaited the day of his farewell. All in anticipation of the revenge he would take on Yaakov.

 

When passions perverse our priorities, and obsessions skew our vision, friends become foes and alliance becomes defiance. In the quest for paranoiac revenge, everyone is an enemy, even your own parents. But mostly your own self.

 

Dedicated lezecher nishmat our zeida Avraham Yehoshua Heshel ben Yehuda Hacohen – 7 Kislev sponsored by Miriam, Josh, Tamar & Shlomo Hauser