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Toldot 5763 (2002) Comment The Torah’s Esau How should a person be judged -- by what he or she is, or by what s/he can be? A mysterious Parshah commentary by Rashi, a Talmudic adage The voice is the voice of and a chapter from the Chassidic work Tanya Jacob, but the hands are the provide an unconventional formula hands of Esau. (Genesis 27:22) A Joke Made in Heaven Story "Go in peace," said the Maggid to the destitute young scholar. "And remember: you must accept the very first marriage proposal that is suggested to you."

The Glory of Doing Nothing Question What does G-d want with sinners like me? What did He put such a louse of a creature here for? I Separation Anxiety just want to know: does He appreciate at all the Within every love, there is effort I put into trying not to be what I am? fear: The fear of separation from that which you love. A child fears separation from Voices Hide and Seek the parent, a lover from the Shira turned, as if struck by a new idea, only to beloved, the body fears separa- get sidetracked by the subtlest sound of shifting tion from the soul and the soul legs on the wooden floor. She leaped at Naomi from its Source Above. and both laughed aloud, reunited So what do you love? Look at your worries and you will know. If you are aflame with worry Parsha Toldot — Genesis 25:19-28:9 over your debts and financial Jacob is born clutching Esau's heel; their father future, then it is the materia favors the hunter, their mother the scholar, and world you love -- because you the former sells his birthright to the latter for a believe in the material world and pot of red lentil stew. Thus the stage is set for a you see it as the source of all cosmic struggle which still engulfs us today that is good for you. Your worries are anxiety of separation from material good. Cleave to the true Source Above and your heart will have For more information or to subscribe new material no room for fear of this world. to one of our many insipiring added daily! periodicals log on to: This magazine contains sacred Torah www.Chabad.org material. Please do not discard. www.Chabad.org

Comment have wrestled with demons more ominous and powerful than anything you’ve ever had to deal with. The Torah’s Esau And if you see someone who has sunk to depths by Yanki Tauber which you cannot even fathom, know that s/he is blessed with equally unfathomable potentials. This, says the Lubavitcher Rebbe, is the deeper meaning behind a curious commentary by Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, 1040-1105, who authored the most basic and important of the Torah’s com- mentaries) on the opening verses of the Parshah (Torah section) of Toldot (Genesis 25:19-28:9). Toldot begins, “And these are the toldot (‘genera- How should a person be judged — by what he or tions’) of Isaac the son of Abraham.” Rashi explains: she is, or by what s/he can be? That, say the who are these “generations”? “Jacob and Esau who Chassidic masters, depends on who that person is. If are spoken of in the Parshah.” But isn’t that obvi- the person is yourself, you must judge yourself by ous? Why does Rashi need to explain? your actions, not your potential. You cannot say to yourself: “Ok, I’ve been sort of lazy lately, and I’ve The standard explanation is that, in the Torah, the messed up a bit, but I know that I can be better. word toldot can have several meanings. It can mean That’s the real me — not the person that the rest of “children” and “descendents”, and it can also mean the world sees.” On the contrary, if you know that “products” and “deeds” (all of which are “generat- you can do better, you ought to do better. Why else ed” by a person). Since the account of Jacob’s and were your talents and resources granted to you — so Esau’s birth does not immediately follow the that they should rot from misuse inside their wrap- Parshah’s opening verse, and since the Parshah of pings? Toldot also describes events and deeds of Isaac’s life, there can be some doubt as to how to translate If, however, the person being judged is someone the word toldot in this context. So Rashi feels the other than yourself, you must take the opposite need to tell us that, in this case, it refers to “Jacob approach. After all, you have no way of knowing, and Esau who are spoken of in the Parshah.” and certainly no way of truly understanding, the cir- cumstances that are preventing that person from But, says the Rebbe, there is also another meaning actualizing his or her potential. So if you see some- implicit in Rashi’s commentary. On a deeper level, one who’s a real mess, don’t look at what s/he is — Rashi is addressing the question: How do such right- focus instead on what that person can be. In fact, eous and holy parents as Isaac and Rebecca, and a says Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi in his Tanya, righteous and holy environment such as their home, the more messed up that person is, the greater the produce a wicked and violent man such as Esau? admiration you should have for him or her. After all, Esau was Jacob’s twin, sharing the same gene-pool and upbringing. Jacob makes sense. But Why is that? Rabbi Schneur Zalman bases his where does Esau come from? amazing statement on a saying by the sages of the Talmud: “The greater a person is, the greater his evil Indeed, says Rashi, the wicked Esau is not a inclination.” Indeed, it stands to reason: otherwise, “product” of Isaac and Rebecca, but a monster of his how could we say that G-d has granted every indi- own making. Who are the toldot of Isaac? The Jacob vidual absolute freedom of choice? Don’t we see and Esau who are spoken of in the Parshah. The people who are challenged by addictions and temp- Torah’s Esau is a man of great potential for good — tations far greater than anything we ourselves are as great as the evil he allowed himself to succumb ever subjected to? If such a person, too, has been to. granted the power to control his or her life, that To Esau this says: See what you could be. To us, means that they have also been fortified with spiri- this says: The next time you see an Esau, look again. tual strengths far beyond what the “average” person By Yanki Tauber, [email protected]; based on possesses. The implications of this are twofold: If the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, www.therebbe.org you see a truly great person, know that he or she

celebratory drinks would certainly be ordered. She Story innocently agreed, and when she emerged into the A Joke Made in main room, was greeted with loud cheers and applause. Heaven The band of loiterers thereupon ordered vodka with which to treat the young chassid on the occa- By Yrachmiel Tilles sion of his unconventional engagement, and had a great time toasting l’chaim and offering him their blessings, all the while snickering behind his back. A young unmarried chassid named Meir spent the Then one of them came up with a further suggestion: festivals in the court of his Rebbe, Rabbi Dov Ber, “Why don’t we arrange the marriage ceremony the “Maggid” of Mezeritch. When it was time to straight away? Then we can throw a really great take leave and he was admitted to the Rebbe’s room, party!” he complained about the difficulties he was having One of his friends objected: “But none of our finding a wife. Because of his poverty, no one would crowd knows how to draw up the marriage contract offer him a match. and run the ceremony.” “Go in peace,” said the Rebbe. “Accept the first Meir, overhearing them, promptly volunteered marriage proposition that is suggested to you.” that he knew how to do both. This gave them even On his way home the young man spent the night more cause for mirth. They took a clean tablecloth in a village inn, where he found a group of empty- and held it up with four broomsticks over the heads headed loafers wasting their time in drinking and of the couple as a chupah canopy. The chassid wrote foolish jesting. Being cold from his journey, he out the ketubah document; and then he duly sancti- found a seat in a corner next to the stove. He tried to fied the giggling young lady as his lawful wedded be unobtrusive, but the mischief-makers spotted wife according to the rites of Moses and Israel. him, and asked him where he was from and what His companions now enjoyed their practical joke was his business. He gave them the name of his so much that they tugged at his hat from all sides, home town, and told them that he had just visited the made fun of him without any restraint, and even Maggid of Mezritch. started to slap him around a bit. Seeing how things “What did you want from the Rebbe, and what were faring for him, the young man made his escape did he answer you?” they pried. and spent the night in the cottage of one of the gen- He told them: “I asked the Rebbe to pray that the tile villagers. In the morning he ventured as far as Almighty arrange that I meet my destined marriage the door of the inn, but was afraid to enter lest he be partner, and he told me that I should agree to the first beaten up again. Just at that moment he heard one of match that was proposed to me.” the servants saying: “Here comes the ‘father of the bride’ at the front door!” At this, one of the party jumped up and exclaimed: “Excellent! I’ve got a first-class match The young man approached the innkeeper, and for you. My sister is a young divorcee, and she has said, “How do you do, father-in-law!” a dowry of a hundred silver rubles — and she’s here The innkeeper was somewhat taken aback: “Who right now! If you’re agreeable, we can shake hands is this? What is he talking about?” he asked. on it.” His daughter, who had come out to greet him, Now in fact this good-for-nothing was in no way explained: “This young man has been providing us related to the young woman; she was the daughter of with a little entertainment, and last night we had an the wealthy innkeeper, who was not home at the engagement and marriage ceremonies, just for fun! time. You’ll be pleased with how much extra food and Meir answered coolly: “Fine, I agree.” liquor was sold.” The prankster ran into the kitchen, explained the Her father did not like the sound of what he heard, joke to her and asked her to play her role, saying it and plied her with questions in order to find out would be excellent for the inn’s business, as many exactly what had taken place. When he heard her

Story A Joke Made in Heaven the Maggid. When the innkeeper returned a few hours later, the Maggid told him: “I discussed the divorce with the young man, and he is agreeable — provided that you give him a thousand silver rubles. But what about your daughter? Isn’t it high time that she got answers, he shouted furiously at Meir: “Dolt! What’s married? Allow me to propose an excellent match I the idea of marrying this young lady? Those idiots have in mind for her. I personally vouch that this may not understand the implications of a ketubah young man is a learned and pious Jew, stems from a and a wedding ceremony in front of witnesses, but if family of refined lineage, and is himself a man of you are a chassid and a yeshivah student as you outstanding character...” appear, you should certainly know better. Didn’t you “I shall gladly accept whomever you recommend, realize that they were making fun of you?” Rabbi,” said the innkeeper, who had the greatest And, to make his point clearer, he slapped the respect for the famed Chassidic leader. hapless young man across the face. Soon enough, “The new bridegroom had only one fault,” con- however, he had second thoughts on the subject, and tinued the Maggid. “He was a pauper, and his pover- told himself: “Since I’m already tied up with this ty made him look frail and unattractive. But now tramp, I’ll have to speak to him politely in order to that, too, has been rectified. You see, he has just be able to get out of this mess. If I get angry, he’ll come into possession of a thousand silver rubles, take no notice of me.” which he will bring into the marriage. This way you He therefore changed his tone, asked the young will lose nothing at all by buying off the ‘first hus- man to give his daughter a bill of divorce, and prom- band’...”. ised him twenty silver rubles for his trouble. To his “You see,” concluded Rabbi DovBer, “there’s no surprise, the visibly impoverished young man quick- need for a divorce and another marriage. I assure ly refused. He raised his offer several times, but each you: it is a match made in heaven. May you both time with the same lack of success. journey home with joyful hearts.” “You might as well stop trying to buy me off,” The innkeeper took the Rebbe’s counsel to heart, said Meir finally. “Let me tell you what is really went home happily with his son-in-law, and the going on. My Rebbe told me to agree to the first newly wedded couple lived their life together in har- match that was proposed to me, and that’s what I did. mony. This crowd may have treated the whole matter as a joke, but I took it seriously. I accepted the offer according to the Rebbe’s instructions, and I certain- Adapted by Yrachmiel Tilles from A Treasury of Chassidic Tales (Artscroll) and other written and oral ly will not withdraw from it without a specific order sources. Another version of this story cites Rabbi Moshe Tsvi to do so from the Rebbe. If you don’t agree to the of Sevran as the Rebbe, indentifies the innkeeper as Mr. Tsvi match, let us go to the Rebbe together; let him Velbka, and reports the wedding as taking place on Lag decide.” B’Omer night. The dismayed innkeeper realized he had no option Biographical note: Rabbi Dov Ber, (d. 1772), known as but to travel to Mezeritch. When they arrived, he put “the Maggid of Mezritch,” succeeded his master, Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov, as the head of the Chassidic movement. his complaint to the Maggid: “One day, while I was Many of the leading chassidic dynasties stem from his disci- away from home, along came this pauper, believed a ples (Lubavitch, Chernobyl, Karlin et al), students of his dis- band of jokers who told him my daughter was their ciples (Gur, Sanz, Belz, etc), and his descendents (Rhizhin, sister, and accepted their proposal to marry her. Then Sadigor, Tchortkov, etc). The classic anthologies of his teach- they set up a wedding canopy, and he betrothed her ings are Likkutei Amarim and Torah Ohr (published by Kehot in front of witnesses! I offered him some money to as Maggid Devarav l’Yaakov), and Ohr HaEmmet. give her a get (bill of divorce), but he won’t agree Rabbi Yrachmiel Tilles, [email protected] is co- founder and educational coordinator of ASCENT OF without your approval. I am now willing to offer him SAFED, and editor of Ascent Quarterly and the Ascent web- one hundred silver rubles, as long as he gives my site, www.ascent.org.il daughter a divorce.” “I’ll discuss the matter with the young man,” said

good. Question So, even when they farbrenged — when they sat The Glory of together over a bottle of vodka and a bite of herring to sing, to tell stories and to inspire each other to be Doing Nothing better Chassidim — even then, they were wary of what their Chassidically-challenged neighbors might By Tzvi Freeman think. And here was Yankel Baal Aveiros, as sinful look- ing as ever, sitting there amongst them. He didn’t Question: disturb — other than an occasional coarse laugh. It I have several addictions. I don’t want to go even seemed at times that he might be listening. But through all of them here, but the point is, I’ve been he certainly hadn’t stopped sinning. And he made it struggling, getting off and then back on, going for clear to all that he had no intention to stop sinning. therapy, getting my life together and then watching So, some thought, what is he doing here? it crumble again through the thick haze of my self- The older Chassidim would have left him alone. abuse — and this has been going on now for some Let him sit, who knows? Perhaps one day a word twenty years. I don’t see it going anywhere. I made spoken from the heart might reach to his heart a decision at one point to try to be a good Jew — through all the muck and squeeze out a tear of repen- tefillin, Shabbat, kosher — the whole bit. tance. One tear in a lifetime, at least that. Sometimes I manage to do that. Sometimes I crash But there were a few that didn’t ask. At one far- and it all falls apart. Sometimes I just stay in bed for brengen, they went to Yankel and explained, weeks, afraid of what I might do if I get out. So what “Yankel, we think you’re a great guy. We really has it all helped me? Whatever I do, I remain a mis- don’t mind you being here. But our children, you erable sinner. Sometimes more miserable, some- understand. We’re worried they might see and per- times less. But what does G-d want with sinners like haps be influenced. After all, Yankel, you know who me? What did He put such a louse of a creature here you are…” for? I just want to know: does He appreciate at all the effort I put into trying not to be what I am? They had more to say, but Yankel didn’t let them. His stare was a face of painful anger, of disgust and Answer: of spite and of every demon of every sin he had ever A story says it all. I heard this one from Aryeh done — nobody could take such a look and speak. Prager of Crown Heights. I have no recollection Until one hard kick broke the silence, the table came where he says he heard it. But the story tells it all: crashing to the floor, and the air rung with a shower He was big, he had an ominous laugh and they of vocabulary most had never before been privileged called him, “Yankel Baal Aveiros.” I can’t really to hear. When the door slammed behind Yankel’s translate that, but if I did, it would be “Jack the sin- crashing footsteps, most sighed with relief. ner.” No, no, it’s more than that: “the master of But that wasn’t the last they heard of Yankel Baal sins.” It means, as they said, if there was a sin being Aveiros. You see, Yankel decided to write a letter. He done in Vilna, it had to be Yankel doing it. And if wrote it to the “Esteemed and holy tzaddik, Rabbi Yankel Baal Aveiros was doing something, it had to Menachem Mendel of Lubavitch.” That was the be a sin. Everyone has his department, and Yankel’s rebbe of the time (the mid 1800’s) for most of the was sinning. Chassidim of White Russia and Lithuania and So it was understandable that some Chassidim Yankel knew he was the rebbe of these Chassidim. were concerned when Yankel started turning up Yankel sat at his desk and cried as a master of sins whenever they made l’chaim. The chassidim in is never supposed to cry. “All day long,” he wrote, Vilna were perhaps a little more conscious of their “my yetzer ha-ra (evil inclination) burns inside me image than those in say, Dubrovna or Nevel. Vilna, like a baker’s oven, screaming, ‘Sin, Yankel! Sin!’ I after all, was a hotbed of contention between had no escape until finally, I had found a way, the Chassidim and their opponents. They had to look only way, to quiet it down. And I sat there, and I did-

Story The Glory of Doing Nothing

n’t sin! And now they have taken even this away from me! Let all my sins be upon them from now on!” It wasn’t long before the Chassidim received a furious letter from their rebbe. I don’t know the exact language of that letter, but the content was to this effect: “You have no concept of what this Yankel achieves sitting there at your farbrengens. All your studies, all your deep meditation and prayers, all your spiritual ecstasy and cleaving of the soul to G- d — all is hot air in comparison to the revolution this Yankel achieves in the higher worlds when he sits there and does not sin. With what presumption have you denied all the heavens such great delight?” And so, Yankel was brought back to the party. And as he sat there and listened to the Chassidim sing, and even took a l’chaim himself, G-d on High commanded His angels to strike up the band in full concert. “But why? What great deed is being done that is so wondrous?” they asked. To which G-d replied, “Look at this being I have made! I have placed My breath within him and look at the impenetrable muck that covers it over! And yet, now he has managed to quiet the darkness! Now, if just for a moment, he has made that darkness does not sin!” “For the delight of this moment, all the worlds were brought into being!”

By Tzvi Freeman, [email protected], author of Be Within, Stay Above and Bringing Heaven Down to Earth

slight ruffling sound. Sometimes it’s louder. Some event Voices in our personal lives, or in our national lives, catches our attention, drawing us back to where we are meant to Hide and Seek be. You help us to rediscover You and we feel closer to by Chana Weisberg You. For those moments in history, we are reunited, surer of our direction.

One bright, sunny afternoon, I sat watching my two The sounds of my children re-organizing for another children playing a lively game of hide and seek. round of hide and seek interrupted my reverie. My younger daughter Shira was the first to be the This time my four-year old son Yisroel begged to be seeker, and as she counted to twenty the older one, included. The round began exactly as before. This time, Naomi, ran to hide. Naomi had discovered a very cre- though, my older children were patronizing Yisroel, ative hiding spot, one that would be difficult for Shira pretending not to locate him in his obvious hiding spot. to detect. Eventually, however, they came over to him and laugh- Meanwhile Shira finished her countdown and began ingly declared, “We found you!” scurrying off all over the house, in a wild search. She Yisroel’s response? Simple. He put his hands over his searched and she searched, in small corners and large, eyes and victoriously announced, “No you didn’t. You to no avail. can’t find me!” He stayed like that for several seconds, The silent moments ticked by and Shira’s search ignoring their claims and comments. was becoming more desperate. Lines of anxiety were After all, he reasoned, if he couldn’t see them, they forming on her small forehead. My usually very per- simply weren’t there. sistent daughter almost seemed ready to admit defeat. In despair, Shira called out to Naomi, hoping to get This brought my thoughts back to You, again. How some response to clue her in on her sister’s where- often in life do we act like a little child, pretending You abouts. Silence reigned. aren’t there. We cover our eyes denying You appropri- Then Shira turned, as if struck by a new idea, and ate entry into our lives, even while, deep down we know optimistically headed off, only to get sidetracked along that You are right before us. How silly we must appear the way by the subtlest sound of the shifting of legs on to You. the wooden floor. Her ears perked up and she stopped in her tracks. She made a sharp U-turn to search in the Several more rounds of hide and seek were played opposite direction and, seconds later discovered her and it was time to call a close to the game. First, though, sister’s ingenious location. we all had to even the score. Shira leaped at Naomi and both laughed aloud, True, there were times throughout our exile that we reunited. The two shared a moment of closeness, acted like a silly child, closing our eyes and denying admiring Naomi’s ingenuity in thinking of such a loca- You access. We pretend that You are not there, feigning tion and Shira’s in discovering it. For that blithe ignorance, rejecting You as the guiding force in all that moment, they enjoyed each other thoroughly and you we do. would think the two were forever best of friends, never But then again, You did hide in such difficult, remote experiencing the normal squabbling between siblings. spots. Far too many times, these places were impossibly Watching my youngsters play, my mind wandered unfair for our limited capabilities. How could You to You, G-d. I thought of how so often, You seem to be expect us to find You? hiding Yourself from us. From afar, You watch, allow- So, taking it all into account, I think that must make ing us to run here and there bereft of direction. The the score just about even now. How about we call it a tie lines of sorrow and anxiety form on our temples as we and finally end the game? wonder whether we will ever find You. Chana Weisberg is the author of two books — on the lives of Sometimes, despite our perseverance as a nation, Biblical women and on the feminine soul — and is currently work- we’re almost ready to give up. Sometimes we do give ing on two more. She is the dean of the JRCC Institute of Torah Study up. We trail off in all the wrong directions, despairing in Toronto and lectures worldwide on issues relating to women, rela- over ever making You a meaningful part of our lives. tionships and mysticism. She welcomes your comments or inquiries about her speaking tours and books, and can be contacted at weis- But always You make some noise. Sometimes it’s a [email protected]

PARSHAH in a nutshell Toldot Genesis 25:19-28:9 Torah Reading for November 3-9, 2002

Isaac marries Rebecca. After twenty childless years their prayers are answered and Rebecca conceives. She experiences a difficult pregnancy as the “children struggle inside her”; G-d tells her that “there are two nations in your womb”, and that the younger will pre- vail over the elder. Esau emerges first; Jacob is born clutching Esau’s heel. Esau grows up to be “a cunning hunter, a man of the field”; Jacob is “a wholesome man”, a dweller in the tents of learning. Isaac favors Esau; Rebecca loves Jacob. Returning exhausted and hungry from the hunt one day, Esau sells his birthright (his rights as the first- born) to Jacob for a pot of red lentil stew. In Gerar, in the land of the Philistines, Isaac presents Rebecca as his sister, out of fear that he will be killed by someone coveting her beauty. He farms the land, reopens the wells dug by his father Abraham, and bores a series of his own wells: over the first two there is strife with the Philistines, but the waters of the third well are enjoyed in tranquility. Esau marries two Hittite women. Isaac grows old and blind, and expresses his desire to bless Esau before he dies. While Esau goes off to hunt for his father’s favorite food, Rebecca dresses Jacob in Esau’s clothes, covers his arms and neck with goatskins to simulate the feel of his hairier brother, prepares a similar dish, and sends Jacob to his father. Jacob receives his fathers’ blessings for “the dew of the heaven and the fat of the land” and mastery over his brother. When Esau returns and the deception is revealed, all Isaac can do for his weeping son is to predict that he will live by his sword, and that when Jacob falters, the younger brother will forfeit his supremacy over the elder. Jacob leaves home for Charan to flee Esau’s wrath and to find a wife in the family of his mother’s brother, Laban. Esau marries a third wife — Machlat, the daughter of Ishmael.

his wife conceived.

Rebecca had a tumultuous pregnancy, as “the children struggled within her.” When she inquired to G-d as to the Toldot meaning of this, she was told: Genesis 25:19-28:9 Torah Reading for November 3-9, 2002 Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples shall diverge from your belly. One nation will struggle against the other; and the elder shall serve the Toldot means “offspring” and “generations”; it also younger. means “generations” in the more general sense—that which a person generates and produces. Thus, “the The Twins toldot of Isaac” are Isaac’s two sons, Jacob and Esau, as When it came time for her to give birth, behold, well as the deeds and achievements of Isaac—both of there were twins in her womb. which are the subject of the Torah section of Toldot. The first came out red all over like a hairy mantle; And these are the generations of Isaac the son of and they called his name Esau (“ready-made”). Abraham—Abraham fathered Isaac. After that came out his brother, his hand holding on And Isaac was forty years old when he took to wife to Esau’s heel; and his name was called Jacob (“he Rebecca, the daughter of Bethuel the Arammian of who heels”). Paddan-Aaram and sister of Laban the Arammian. The passing years only accentuated the differences But twenty years later, the couple was still childless. between them. Isaac entreated G-d for his wife, because she was The boys grew; and Esau was a cunning hunter, a barren; and G-d was entreated of him, and Rebecca man of the field; and Jacob was a wholesome man,

Commentary the soul enters into the body and assumes a physical existence, then, at a later point in life, it further “descends” into the physical state by mar- ISAAC THE SON OF ABRAHAM;ABRAHAM FATHERED ISAAC (25:19) rying. The cynics of that generation were saying that Sarah had become preg- Therein lies the lesson to be derived from the fact that, prior to his mar- nant from Avimelech, since she had failed to conceive in all the years riage, Isaac spent three years in the Garden of Eden, abandoning the she was with Abraham. What did G-d do? He formed the countenance physical state for a wholly spiritual existence. In order to ensure the of Isaac to resemble that of Abraham, so that all might attest that success of the most physical phase of a person’s life, it must be pref- Abraham had fathered Isaac. This is the meaning of the repetitious aced by a period of spiritual preparation. Although the primary objec- wording of the verse: “Isaac (is certainly) the son of Abraham (since tive of our mission in life is the development and sanctification of the there is proof that) Abraham fathered Isaac.” physical world, one must enter that world well equipped with the spir- (Rashi) itual vision of the divine purpose and with the spiritual fortitude to carry There are children who are embarrassed of their parents, and there are it out. parents who are embarrassed by their children. With Abraham and Isaac (The Lubavitcher Rebbe) it wasn’t like that: Isaac prided himself in that he was “Isaac the son of Abraham,” and Abraham prided himself in that “Abraham fathered Isaac.” (Midrash Tanchuma; Midrash HaGadol) AND THE CHILDREN STRUGGLED WITHIN HER (25:22) Whenever she would pass a house of prayer or house of study, Jacob would struggle to come out ... and when she passed a house of idol-wor- ship, Esau would struggle to come out. Also, they were struggling ISAAC WAS FORTY YEARS OLD WHEN HE TOOK REBECCA TO WIFE (25:20) among themselves, fighting over the inheritance of the two worlds (i.e., For three years, from the Binding of Isaac at age 37 to his marriage at the material world, and the “world to come”). age 40, Isaac was in the Garden of Eden. (Yalkut Shimoni; Rashi) (Asarah Maamarot)

Marriage is a time of increased enmeshment in the material. It is a time ONE NATION WILL STRUGGLE AGAINST THE OTHER (25:23) when one begins to engage in the most physical of human drives; it is They will never be equal: when one rises, the other will fall, and vice also a time when one is forced to begin, in earnest, the business of earn- versa. ing a livelihood, often at the expense of loftier and more idealistic pur- (Rashi) suits. Thus the Zohar refers to marriage as a person’s second birth: first,

And Esau said: “Behold, I am about to die, and what profit shall this birthright do to me?”

And Jacob said: “Swear to me this day.” He swore to Toldot him, and he sold his birthright to Jacob. Genesis 25:19-28:9 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentils; Torah Reading for November 3-9, 2002 and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way; thus Esau despised the birthright. dwelling in tents. Water Wars They also differed in their relationship with their parents. A famine forces Isaac to relocate, but G-d commands Isaac loved Esau, for he fed game to his mouth; him not to leave the Holy Land and reiterates His prom- Rebecca loved Jacob. ise that “To you and to your seed, I will give all these lands, and I will fulfill the oath which I swore to A Pot of Lentils Abraham your father.”

One day, Esau came back from the hunt exhausted and So instead of going to Egypt (as Abraham did, and Jacob hungry; Jacob was cooking a pot of lentils. will when famine struck the Land of Canaan), Isaac set- tles in Gerar, in the land of the Philistines, which is with- And Esau said to Jacob: “Give me to swallow, I beg in the boundaries of the Holy Land. you, of that red pottage, for I am faint”; therefore was his name called Edom (red). He does, however, follow his father’s example in present- ing Rebecca as his sister, “lest the men of the place And Jacob said: “Sell me this day your birthright.” should kill me on account of Rebecca, because she was fair to look upon.” When the local king Avimelech hap-

Commentary On that day, Esau murdered Nimrod (the king of Babel). (Midrash) AND JACOB WAS A WHOLESOME MAN, DWELLING IN TENTS (25:27) The academy of Shem and the academy of Eber. (Midrash Rabbah) AND G-DAPPEAREDTOHIM, AND SAID:“GO NOT DOWN INTO EGYPT; DWELL IN THE LAND” (26:2)

ISAAC LOVED ESAU, FOR FED GAME TO HIS MOUTH (25:28) G-d said to him: “You are a burnt-offering without blemish; as a burnt offering becomes unfit if it passes out beyond the Temple enclosures, Esau would deceive him with his mouth. He would inquire of him: so will you become unfit if you go out of the Holy Land.” “Father, how does one tithe salt? Father, how does one tithe straw?” (Midrash Rabbah) And Isaac would muse: “This son of mine, how diligent he is in the ful- fillment of the commandments!” (Midrash Tanchuma; Rashi) ISAAC DUG AGAIN THE WELLS OF WATER... AND HE CALLED THEIR NAMES AFTER THE NAMES BY WHICH HIS FATHER HAD CALLED THEM JACOB COOKED POTTAGE (25:29) (26:18) That was the day on which Abraham died, and Jacob made a broth of Behold the humility of Isaac. A person acquires a house and gives it a lentils to comfort his father Isaac. name; then his son comes, adds a new part to it, and calls it by a different name. Not so Isaac: all the wells which Abraham dug and named, Why lentils? Just as the lentil has no mouth, so is the mourner speech- although they were entirely stopped by the Philistines, when Isaac less. Just as the lentil is round, so mourning comes round to all the redug them a second time he did not give them new names, but rein- inhabitants of this world. stated the names given them by his father. (The Talmud) And what reward did he receive for this? The other Patriarchs had their names changed: Abraham was first called Abram and later Abraham; ESAU CAME FROM THE FIELD, AND HE WAS EXHAUSTED (25:29) Jacob was initially called Jacob and subsequently given the name Israel. Esau committed five sins on that day: he dishonored a betrothed maid- Isaac, however, was given the name “Isaac” from G-d even before his en, he committed a murder, he denied G-d, he denied the resurrection birth, and his name was not changed for all generations. of the dead, and he spurned the birthright. (Midrash HaGadol) (The Talmud)

AND HE CALLED THE NAME OF IT SITNA (ANIMOSITY) (26:21)

Abraham:

For all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines Toldot had stopped them up, and filled them with earthâ€¦ Genesis 25:19-28:9 Torah Reading for November 3-9, 2002 Isaac dug again the wells of water â€¦ and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.

Then he dug wells of his own: pens to discover that they are husband and wife, he reproaches Isaac: “What have you done to us? One of Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found there a the people might easily have lain with your wife, and well of springing water. you would brought guiltiness upon us.” Avimelech then warns his people: “He that touches this man or his wife And the herdsmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s shall surely be put to death.” herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” He called the name of the well Eshek (strife), because they strove Isaac prospers in Gerar. “He had possessions of flocks, with him. and possessions of herds, and a great store of servants.” He work the soil: “Isaac sowed in that land, and And they dug another well, and strove for that also; received in the same year a hundredfold; for G-d blessed and he called the name of it Sitna (animosity). him.” So successful was he that the previously hospitable Avimelech no longer desires his neighborship. “Go from And he removed from there, and dug another well; us,” he now says to Isaac, “for you have grown mightier and for that they strove not. And he called the name than us.” of it Rehovot (broad places); And he said: “For now G-d has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful Isaac sets himself the task of reopening the wells dug by in the land.”

Commentary must fear death. For thus did Isaac reason: If I am to attain my father’s years, I am yet far short of them. But if I am to attain my mother’s years, This comes to teach us that there is not a righteous man who does not “Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death.” (Isaac was 123 have detractors. years old at the time; Sarah lived 127 years; Abraham, 175). (Midrash HaBiur) (Midrash Rabbah)

AND HE DUG ANOTHER WELL, AND FOR THAT THEY STROVE NOT. I KNOW NOT THE DAY OF MY DEATH. (27:2) (26:22) Seven things are concealed from man: the day of death, the day of the The first two wells allude to the first two Temples, which the enemies Redemption, the absolute truth in a judgment; also, no man knows how of Israel destroyed. The third well represents the Third Temple which he will earn a livelihood, what is in his neighbor’s heart, what a woman shall speedily be built, which will be established without animosity and is bearing, and when the wicked State [Rome] will fall. strife; G-d will then broaden our boundaries and all nations will serve (Midrash Rabbah) Him in unison. (Nachmanides) ESAUMYBROTHERISAHAIRYMAN, AND I AM A SMOOTH MAN (27:11) Two men, one possessing a thick head of hair and the other bald-head- AND IT CAME TO PASS THAT ISAAC AGED, AND HIS EYES DIMMED (27:1) ed, stood near a threshing-floor. When the chaff flew into the locks of From the smoke of the offerings that Esau’s wives burned for their the former, it became entangled in his hair; but when it flew on to the idols. Another explanation is that when Isaac was bound on the altar head of the bald man, he passed his hand over his head and removed it. and his father wished to slaughter him, at that moment the heavens By the same token, the wicked Esau is polluted by sin throughout the opened and the angels wept, and their tears fell into his eyes, which year and has no way to achieve atonement; whereas Jacob is defiled by caused his eyes to dim. Another explanation: this came to pass in order sin throughout the year, but has the Day of Atonement through which to enable Jacob to receive the blessings. to procure forgiveness. (Rashi) (Midrash Rabbah)

BEHOLD NOW,I AM OLD,I KNOW NOT THE DAY OF MY DEATH. (27:2) AND REBECCA TOOK THE COVETOUS CLOTHES OF ESAU AND PUT THEM Said Rabbi Joshua ben Korchah: When a man comes to his parents’ age ON JACOB (27:15) at the time of their death, for five years before and five years after he These are the clothes which Esau coveted from Nimrod, killing him in

death.

“Now therefore take, I entreat you, your weapons, Toldot your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field, Genesis 25:19-28:9 and catch me some game. And make me savory Torah Reading for November 3-9, 2002 food such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat; so that my soul may bless you before I die.”

At age forty, Esau takes two Hittite wives—Judith the Rebecca overhears her husband’s words to her elder daughter Be’eri and Basmat the daughter of Elon—who son, and is determined that Jacob, not Esau, should were “a grief of spirit to Isaac and to Rebecca.” Jacob receive Isaac’s blessing. She summons Jacob and com- remains an unmarried, reclusive scholar in “the tents of mands him to bring her “two good kids of the goats” learning.” from the flocks, which she will prepare to resemble the “savory food” which Esau serves his father. Jacob is to A Scholar in Hunter’s Clothes take this to Isaac before Esau returns from the hunt, and receive the blessings in his brother’s stead. And it came to pass that Isaac aged, and his eyes dimmed so that he could not see; and he called And Jacob said to Rebecca his mother: “Behold, Esau his eldest son, and said to him: Esau my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. “â€¦Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my

Commentary 16:16); that Isaac was 60 years older than Jacob and Esau (ibid., 25:26); and that Ishmael died at age 137 (25:17). Hence, Jacob and Esau were order to take them from him. 63 years old when Jacob stole the blessings from his brother and was (Midrash Rabbah) sent by Isaac to Charan to take a wife from Laban’s daughters. But following other clues provided by the Torah, we deduce that Jacob AND HE SAID:“BECAUSE THE L-RD YOU G-D SENT ME GOOD SPEED.” arrived in Charan quite a number of years later. Upon his arrival in (27:20) Egypt, Jacob tells Pharaoh that he is 130 years old (Gen. 47:9); Joseph at the time was 39 (as per 41:46 and 45:6), which means that Jacob was As soon as Jacob said these words, Isaac said to himself: “I know that 91 at the time of Joseph’s birth; and Joseph was born 14 years after Esau does not mention the name of the Holy One, blessed be He; since Jacob’s arrival in Charan, after he had worked for two seven-year peri- this one does mention Him, he is not Esau but Jacob.” Since Jacob ods for Leah and Rachel but before his third, six-year term of working spoke thus, Isaac said to him: “Come near, please, that I may feel you, in return for a portion of Laban’s sheep (30:25 and 31:41). my son, whether you are really my son Esau or not.” (Midrash Rabbah) In other words, Jacob left his parents’ home in Be’er Sheva at age 63, but arrived in Charan 14 years later at age 77 (Eliezer, making the same journey a generation earlier to find a wife for Isaac, made the trip in a THE VOICE IS THE VOICE OF JACOB, BUT THE HANDS ARE THE HANDS single day). Our sages explain that for fourteen years Jacob hid himself OF ESAU (27:22) in the home of his ancestor and teacher, Eber (the great-grandson of “The voice is the voice of Jacob”—no prayer is effective unless the Shem), where he immersed himself in the study of Torah. seed of Jacob has a part in it. “The hands are the hands of Esau”—no war is successful unless the seed of Esau has a share in it. (The Talmud)

ESAU WENT TO ISHMAEL; AND HE TOOK TO WIFE, BESIDES THE WIVES HE HAD,MACHALAT THE DAUGHTER OF ISHMAEL THE SON ABRAHAM, AND THE SISTER OF NEVAYOT (28:9) What is the point of identifying Machalat as “the sister of Nevayot”? Rashi explains that this is to provide us with a clue as to Jacob’s age at the time of his receiving the blessings from his father. Calling her “Nevayot’s sister” indicates that her marriage to Esau took place after Ishmael’s death, so that her brother, rather than her father, was the one who married her off. Yet the beginning of the verse describes how Esau went to Ishmael to arrange the marriage. This means that the event occurred right at the time of Ishmael’s death. We know that Ishmael was 14 years older than Isaac (cf. Genesis

“Cursed be those that curse you, and blessed be those that bless you.”

Flight to Charan

Toldot Esau enters his father’s room just seconds after Jacob’s Genesis 25:19-28:9 departure, and the deception is discovered; but nothing Torah Reading for November 3-9, 2002 can be done. “Your brother came with cunning,” says Isaac, “and has taken away your blessingâ€¦ Behold, I have made him your lord, and all his brethren have I given to him for servants; with corn and wine have I “Perhaps my father will feel me, and I shall seem to sustained him. What can I do now for you, my son?” him a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.” And Esau said to his father, “Have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my But Rebecca insists that he follow through with the plan. father.” And Esau raised his voice, and wept. She dresses Jacob in Esau’s clothes, and covers his arms and the back of his neck with the skin of the goats from But all that Isaac can offer his distraught son is a bless- which she prepared the “game” so that he should feel ing that, “Your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the like his hairy brother to his blind father’s hands. earth, and of the dew of heaven from above. By your sword shall you live, and serve your brother; and it shall And he came to his father, and said: “My father!” come to pass when you will have the dominion, that you And he said: “Here am I; who are you, my son?” will break his yoke from off your neck.”

And Jacob said to his father: “I am Esau your first- Esau is furious, and plots to kill Jacob. Rebecca hears of born; I have done according as you have spoken to this, and tells Jacob that he must flee to Charan, to her me. Arise, I entreat you, sit and eat of my game, so brother Laban. that your soul may bless me.” To her husband, Rebecca says that it is time that Jacob And Isaac said to his son: “How is it that you have married, and she certainly does not desire that he follow found it so quickly, my son?” the example of his brother in marrying a Hittite woman. So Isaac summons Jacob and instructs him: And he said: “Because the L-rd your G-d sent me good speed.” “Do not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. Arise, go to Paddan-Aram, to the house of Bethuel The tone and content of Jacob’s speech arouses Isaac’s your mother’s father; and take a wife from there of suspicions. the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother.”

And Isaac said to Jacob: “Come near, please, that I Before he goes, Isaac has an additional series of bless- may feel you, my son, whether you are really my ings for Jacob: son Esau or not.” “G-d Almighty shall bless you, and make you fruitful, And Jacob approached Isaac his father. And he felt and multiply you, and you shall become a multitude him, and said: “The voice is the voice of Jacob, but of people. the hands are the hands of Esau!” “And He shall grant you the blessing of Abraham, to Thus Jacob receives the blessings which Isaac intended you, and to your seed with you, that you may inherit for Esau: the land in which you sojourn, and which G-d gave to Abraham”. “May G-d give to you of the dew of heaven, and the fatness of the earth, and plenty of corn and wine. Our Parshah concludes by relating how Esau, seeing that his father prefers that his children marry within the fami- “May peoples serve you, and nations bow down to ly rather than with the local population, takes an addi- you; you shall be lord over your brethren, and your tional wife—”Machlat, the daughter of Ishmael the son mother’s sons shall bow down to you. of Abraham and the sister of Nevayot.”

Parsha Summary and Commentary - From the Chassidic Masters Esau was naturally inclined toward idolatry was not, in and of itself, a negative thing. It meant that his ordained mission in life was the conquest of evil rather than the cultivation of good. JACOB AND ESAU Jacob and Esau are the prototypes for two types of In many respects, The Torah’s account of Isaac’s souls, each with a distinct role to play in the fulfill- family reads like a replay of Abraham’s. Many years ment of the Divine purpose in creation. Maimonides of childlessness are followed by the birth of two calls these two spiritual types “the perfectly pious” sons—the elder one wicked and the younger one and “the one who conquers his inclinations”; Rabbi righteous. Isaac favors the elder son, Esau, much as Schneur Zalman refers to them as the “Tzaddik” and Abraham is sympathetic toward his elder son, the “Beinoni.” Humanity is divided into these two Ishmael, while Rebecca, like Sarah, perseveres in her types, writes Rabbi Schneur Zalman in his Tanya, efforts to ensure that the younger, righteous son is because “there are two kinds of gratification before recognized as the true heir of Abraham and the sole G-d. The first is generated by the good achieved by progenitor of the “great nation” which G-d promised the perfectly righteous. But G-d also delights in the to establish from his seed. conquest of evil which is still at its strongest and There is, however, a significant difference most powerful in the heart, through the efforts of the between the two sets of brothers. ordinary, unperfected individual.” Ishmael and Isaac were born of two different Thus Rabbi Schneur Zalman explains the Talmud mothers: Ishmael was the son of Hagar, a former passage which cites Job as crying out to G-d: Egyptian princess still attached to her pagan ways, “Master of the Universe! You have created righteous while Isaac was the son of the righteous Sarah. people, and You have created wicked people!” The Furthermore, Ishmael was born when Abraham was actual righteousness or wickedness of a person is not still Abram and still uncircumcised, and can be said predetermined by G-d—in the words of to belong to his father’s imperfect past (Abraham Maimonides, free choice is “A fundamental principle was born into a family of idolaters and is even and a pillar of the Torah and its commandments,” described as having himself worshipped idols in his without which “What place would the entire Torah youth), while Isaac was conceived after Abraham have? And by what measure of justice would G-d had attained the perfection signified by his name punish the wicked and reward the righteous?” Yet change and circumcision. Job is right—G-d does indeed create “righteous peo- On the other hand, Esau and Jacob were twins, ple” and “wicked people” in the sense that while cer- born of the same righteous mother and raised in the tain souls enjoy a life wholly devoted to developing same holy environment. Their father, Isaac, was “a what is good and holy in G-d’s world, other souls burnt-offering without blemish” who was circum- must struggle against negative traits and ominous cised on the eighth day of his life and who never set perversions implanted within them in order to elicit foot outside of the Holy Land. Unlike his father, he that special delight that can come only from the con- has no idolatrous past and no “pre-Isaac” period in quest of evil. his life. So where did Esau’s “evil genes” come This, says the Lubavitcher Rebbe, is the deeper from? significance of Rashi’s commentary on the opening Even more puzzling is the fact that Esau’s wicked- words of our Parshah. Citing the verse, “And these ness seems predestined from the womb. If Esau had are the generations of Isaac,” Rashi comments: turned bad later in life, we might attribute this to the “Jacob and Esau who are mentioned in the Parshah.” fact that every man is given absolute freedom of The simple meaning of this commentary is that the choice to be righteous or wicked. But how are we to word toldot (“generations”) can also refer to a per- explain Esau’s gravitation to evil even before he was son’s deeds and achievements (cf. Rashi’s commen- born? tary on Genesis 6:9); Rashi is telling us that here the The Lubavitcher Rebbe explains that the fact that word toldot is to be understood in its literal sense— the children of Isaac, though these are named only

Parsha Summary and Commentary - From the Chassidic Masters

Yet both Jacob and Esau recognize the necessity for both of “the two worlds,” for the process and its outcome. The “perfectly pious” man also requires the material world as the vehicle that leads to ulti- further on in the Parshah. mate perfection. And the “conqueror” also sees perfection as the goal to which his efforts lead. For On a deeper level, says the Rebbe, Rashi is although his purpose in life is defined by the process addressing the question: How does an “Esau” come itself, a process, by definition, must have a goal. to be a descendant of Isaac and Rebecca? How do two perfectly righteous individuals produce an off- So this is their “fight”. Jacob and Esau each lay spring who is evil from birth? claim to both worlds as part of their life’s endeavor. But their priorities are reversed. To the Jacobs of the So Rashi tells us: the “generations of Isaac” are the world, the material world is but a tool, a means to an “Jacob and Esau who are mentioned in the Parshah.” end. To its Esaus, man’s material involvements and The wicked Esau we know is not a product of Isaac the struggles they entail are what life is all about. A but the result of Esau’s own failure to overpower his futuristic vision of perfection is necessary, but only negative inclinations. The Esau of the Parshah— as a reference-point that provides coherence and Esau as viewed from the perspective of Torah, where direction to the “real” business of life. everything is seen in its innermost and truest light— is not evil, but the instrument of evil’s conquest. The The tension between them over their differing Esau of the Parshah is the purveyor of the “second visions of the “two worlds” is not a negative thing. It delight” and an indispensable element of the purpose is the result of two world views, both positive and of life on earth. necessary, both indispensable components of man’s mission in life. In this also lies the deeper deeper meaning of the Midrash that describes Jacob and Esau fighting in the womb “over the inheritance of the two worlds” (i.e., the material world, and the “world to come”). This ISAAC’S WELLS would seem to be one area in which they would have no quarrel: the Esau we know desires the materialism Three Torah sections—Lech-Lecha, Vayeira and of the physical world and shuns everything that is G- Chayei-Sarah—chronicle the life and deeds of dly and spiritual, while the reverse is true of Jacob. Abraham. An even greater number are devoted to the So what were they fighting over? life of Jacob. Isaac is the central figure in only one— the Parshah of Toldot. We read of the “Binding of Explains the Rebbe: The “World to Come” is not a Isaac” in Vayeira, but there the story is told wholly reality that is disconnected from our present exis- from Abraham’s perspective. Similarly, the greater tence. Rather, it is the result of our present-day efforts part of Chayei Sarah is about how a wife is found for in dealing with and perfecting the material world. Isaac, but Isaac himself is not at all involved in the The world of Moshiach is the culmination of all pos- process. Eliezer doesn’t even mention him by name itive achievements of history, the era in which the when he proposes the match—he’s simply “the son cosmic yield of mankind’s every good deed will of my master.” This scarcity of information about come to light. Isaac is even more striking in light of the fact that he In other words, our present world is the means and was the most long-lived of the three Patriarchs (Isaac the World to Come is the goal. This is the deeper sig- lived 180 years, as opposed to Abraham’s 175 and nificance of Jacob’s claim on the World to Come, and Jacob’s 147). Esau’s (and here we speak of the “Torah’s Esau,” the Even in Toldot, we are hard-pressed to find some righteous conqueror of his inclinations) preference clues to Isaac’s identity and personality. The first for the present world. Jacob sees perfection as the part of Toldot relates the birth and early years of only desirable state of man, while Esau sees the Jacob and Esau. The latter part is about how the aged struggle with imperfection as desirable in and of and blind Isaac has his plans to bless his elder son itself.

Parsha Summary and Commentary - From the Chassidic Masters

feeling, deeper than desire, deeper than achieve- ment, to the selflessness at the core of self.

Esau foiled by Rebecca and Jacob. It is only in the middle part of Toldot (Genesis, ch 26) that we THE STOLEN BLESSINGS encounter an active Isaac. We read how he relocates The story of the stolen blessings is often under- to Gerar, how he farms the land (the only one of the stood as a contest between the two brothers for the Patriarchs to do so) and how he digs wells. legacy of Abraham and Isaac, with Isaac mistakenly In fact, the one activity of Isaac’s on which the taking Esau to be the worthy heir, while Rebecca, Torah elaborates at some length is his well-digging. knowing the true nature of her elder son, devising We are told how he reopened the wells originally the plan that would place Jacob at Isaac’s bedside at dug by Abraham, and are given a detailed account of the crucial moment. a series of wells of his own which he dug—the However, a closer reading of the Torah’s account names he gave them, and his struggles to retain con- indicates that Isaac was well aware of the difference trol over them. between his two children. Jacob almost gave himself But it is precisely this lack of notoriety which away when he said, in reply to his father’s question defines the essence of Isaac. The Kabbalists equate about how he managed to find game so quickly, Abraham with the sefirah (Divine attribute) of “The L-rd your G-d sent me good speed”; Isaac Chessed, “lovingkindness”, and Isaac with the sefi- knew that Esau did not speak that way, and immedi- rah of Gevurah, restraint. Abraham was the very ately suspected that the son before him was Jacob embodiment of kindness, generosity and concern for rather than Esau. one’s fellow. He was the ultimate extrovert— con- In fact, by the time we reach the end of the story, stantly giving of himself, constantly extending him- it is quite clear that Isaac never intended to bequeath self to G-d, to his fellow man, to the world. Isaac the spiritual legacy of Abraham—the Divine prom- was his father’s diametric opposite: he was awe to ise to make his seed a great nation and to give them Abraham’s love, restraint to Abraham’s expansive- the Holy Land as their eternal heritage—to Esau ness, self-effacement to Abraham’s self-assertion. When Esau discovers that Jacob has received the From Abraham we inherited the charitableness blessings, he begs Isaac, “Bless me, too, my father!” and social commitment that is the hallmark of our “But I have made him your master,” says Isaac, “I people. Isaac bequeathed to us the fear of Heaven in have given him [the blessings of] grain and wine. the heart of the Jew—his self-censoring discipline, What can I do for you now, my son?” “Have you his silent sacrifice, his humble awe before the only one blessing, my father?!” sobs Esau. “Bless majesty of his Creator. me too, my father!” Finally, Isaac blesses Esau that Abraham’s love of G-d and humanity took him on “Of the fatness of the land shall be your dwelling, a journey from the self outward—a journey etched in and of the dew of heaven above” (the fat of the land the roads of Mesopotamia, Egypt and Canaan. Isaac and the dew of heaven themselves having already never left the boundaries of his homeland. For his been granted to Jacob), and promises him that was an inward journey, a journey into the depths of should the descendants of Jacob sin and become self to the essence within. unworthy of their blessings, they will forfeit their Thus Isaac is portrayed as a farmer and a welldig- mastery over Esau’s descendants in material affairs. ger. Isaac was a farmer, one who has learned the pro- This is the best he can do for his beloved elder son. found secret of the seed: that growth and profit come But in the very next chapter we read how Isaac only when one allows oneself to disintegrate and summons Jacob to him, and... blesses him. “May G- become one with the soil from which one has come. d Almighty bless you,” says Isaac, “make you fruit- Isaac was a digger of wells, boring through the stra- ful, and multiply you, and you shall become a popu- tum of emotion and experience in search of the quin- lous nation. And may He grant you the blessing of tessential waters of the soul. Boring deeper than Abraham, to you and your descendants, that you

Parsha Summary and Commentary - From the Chassidic Masters

may inherit the land of your dwelling, which G-d has given to Abraham”—blessings which had not been included in his earlier benedictions to either son. So Isaac never intended to make Esau the father of the people of Israel, never thought to bequeath the Holy Land to him, never considered him heir to “the blessing of Abraham.” There were two distinct blessings in Isaac all along (Esau seems to have sensed this when he cried, “Have you only one blessing, my father?!”), intended for his two sons: Jacob was to be given the spiritual legacy of Abraham, while Esau was to be granted the blessings of the material world. Isaac desired that a partnership should be formed between his two sons: that the scholarly, unworldly Jacob should devote himself to spiritual pursuits, while Esau should apply his conning and worldliness to the constructive development of the material world, in support of and in harmony with Jacob’s holy endeavors. Rebecca disagreed: both worlds must be given to Jacob. There cannot be “two departments,” for the material world cannot be entrusted to materialists. Only one who is steeped in the Divine wisdom can know how to make proper use of G-d world. Only one who possesses a spiritual outlook and value sys- tem will be able to master the physical reality rather than be mastered by it.

Week at a Glance

Shabbat, Kislev 4 | November 9 Torah reading: Toldot (Genesis 25:19-28:9)) Haftarah: Massa D'var (Malachi 1:1-2:7) Tuesday Cheshvan 30 | November 5 Link: See the Torah's account of the Great Flood, Rosh Chodesh Rashi's commentary, and insights and interpretations Laws & Customs: Rosh Chodesh observances from sages, scholars and mystics through the ages on the Noach Parshah Page Today is the first of the two Rosh Chodesh ("Head of the http://chabad.org/article.asp?aid=9168 Month") days for the month of Kislev. (When a month has 30 days, both the last day of the month and the first day of the following month serve as the following month's Rosh Chodesh). Special portions are added to the daily prayers: Hallel (Psalms 113-118) is recited -- in its "partial" form -- following the Shacharit morning prayer, and the Yaaleh V'yavo prayer is added to the Amidah and to Grace After Meals; the additional Musaf prayer is said. Tachnun (confession of sins) and similar prayers are omitted. Many have the custom to mark Rosh Chodesh with a festive meal and reduced work activity. The latter custom is prevalent amongst women, who have a special affinity with Rosh Chodesh -- the month being the feminine aspect of the Jewish Calendar. Links: The 29th Day http://chabad.org/article.asp?aid=2764; The Lunar Files http://chabad.org/article.asp?aid=1209

Wednesday Kislev 1 | November 6 Rosh Chodesh On This Date: Winter As per the Talmud, the month of Kislev marks the onset of the winter season in the Holy Land and is the third month of the "Season of the Rains" Link: Winter http://chabad.org/article.asp?aid=2669 Lubavitcher Rebbe's recovery (1977) On the 1st of Kislev Chabad Chassidim gratefully and joyously commemorate the recovery, in 1977, of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, from a severe heart attack he suf- fered on Shemini Atzeret of that year. Link: 1977: Illness and Challenge (from the timeline "biography of ideas" in www.therebbe.org) http://chabad.org/article.asp?aid=62179

Laws & Customs: Rosh Chodesh observances [see text and links for yesterday, Cheshvan 30]

Friday, Kislev 3 | November 8 Light Shabbat Candles before sunset