Today's Learning Sukkah 4:10-5:1 O.C. 77:2-79:1 Sponsored by Bava Batra 19 Yerushalmi-- Yoma 34 HAMAAYAN/THE TORAH SPRING edited by Shlomo Katz TOLDOT Vol. IX, No. 6 (390), 2 Kislev 5755, November 5, 1994 The Torah tells us that both Yitzchak and Rivkah prayed for children, but that Hashem accepted Yitzchak's prayer. "The prayer of a tzaddik [Rivkah] who is the child of a rasha [Betuel] cannot be compared with the prayer of a tzaddik [Yitzchak] who is the son of a tzaddik [Avraham]," Chazal explain. At first glance, the opposite should be true, says Rav Moshe Sternbuch shlita, for the child of a rasha has the merit of fending off bad influences. But it is not so; the son of a tzaddik has to work even harder in order to be a tzaddik in his own right. Chazal are teaching that it is easier to reject the influence of family members such as Betuel and Lavan than it is to build upon the righteousness of parents like Avraham and Sarah. There is a very important lesson here: A person should never rest on his laurels. Being a tzaddik is a continuous growth process. (Ta'am VaDa'at) ************************************ "These are the children of Yitzchak the son of Avraham, Avraham fathered Yitzchak." (25:19) In his own eyes, Yitzchak's only worth was that he was the son of Avraham. For his part, Avraham felt that, of all he had done, his only meaningful legacy was leaving behind a righteous son. Each of these Patriarchs was very humble in his assessment of his own deeds. (Rav Yechiel of Alexander zatz'l) ************************************ "He cheated me twice--he took my birthright. . ." (27:36) Esav complained to Yitzchak that Yaakov took the birthright by trickery, taking advantage of Esav's hunger. Rav Yehuda Zev Segal zatz'l notes that in Parashat Vayechi we learn that Yaakov saw events very differently. We read there (48:22, as interpreted in Bava Batra 123a), that Yaakov related to Yosef that he took the birthright through prayer. What was Yaakov teaching Yosef? It may appear that Esav fortuitously came to Yaakov in a famished state and agreed to trade the birthright for some lentils, but that is not what happened. Yaakov had been praying that the birthright would be his, and Esav's hunger was merely the tool that Hashem used to answer Yaakov's prayers. (Yirah VaDa'at I p.29) ************************************ "And you [Yaakov] shall remain with him [Lavan] a short while, until your brother's wrath is calmed. Until your brother's anger subsides from you...." (27:44-45) What is the meaning of the apparent repetition in these verses? Rav Yitzchak of Volozhin asked. A certain test to determine if your friend is angry at you is to examine your deepest feelings towards him. "People's faces are like water," Chazal said, meaning that they reflect the feelings of those with whom they interact. How was Yaakov to know when Esav's wrath had been calmed? When his brother's anger had subsided, i.e. when he [Yaakov] felt no anger towards Esav, he would know that it was safe to return. (Peh Kadosh) ************************************ Rav Yechezkel Levenstein zata'l taught: The Torah's account of Yaakov's receiving the blessings which Yitzchak had planned to give to Esav demonstrates the delicate balance between our obligation to place our trust in G-d (i.e. emunah) and our obligation to act on our own behalf. Rivkah knew prophetically that Yaakov was to receive the blessings and that his attempt to deceive Yitzchak would not result in his being cursed (as Yaakov feared). Furthermore, it is evident that a great miracle was occurring at this time: Yaakov and Esav were 63 years old at the time of this episode, and Yitzchak was still unable to tell them apart! (Even his blindness should not have had such an effect after living together with Yaakov and Esav for more than six decades.) The only possible explanation is that it was Hashem's intention that Yaakov should receive the blessings, and He therefore "blinded" Yitzchak's other senses, as well. Even though Yitzchak tried to identify the person who stood before him claiming to be Esav, and even though Yitzchak recognized Yaakov's voice, Hashem ensured that Yitzchak would nevertheless be fooled. Despite all of this, Yaakov was constantly afraid of being recognized. Despite the prophecy that was revealed to his mother (see above), he took the precaution of dressing in Esav's clothes and covering his arms with hairy goats' skins. Why? Because despite the fact that all emanates from Hashem, a person is obligated to strive on his own behalf. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, a person thus becomes a "partner" with Hashem in the running of the world. Also, this is Hashem's way of increasing the reward of those who do reach true emunah. As long as man appears to succeed based on his own efforts, emunah is more difficult to achieve, and therefore more rewarding. When a tzaddik or talmid chacham dies, everybody feels the loss. It seems as if a certain amount of Torah and spirituality are lost forever. However, this is not true. This is only a test devised by Hashem, designed to see who will make the added effort required to grow spiritually now that an obvious source of support is gone. So, too, Hashem hides the aid that He gives us, making it appear as if we are alone, waiting to see who will find Him. (Ohr Yechezkel, Vol. 3, pp. 115-116) ************************************ Rav David Luria born 1796/7 - died 5 Kislev 5615 (1855) Rav David Luria was neither a communal rabbi nor a rosh yeshiva, but he is well known as a commentator on gemara and midrash. His commentaries are known as "Radal"--the acronym of "Rav David Luria." He also composed halachic responsa and a commentary on Rambam's Mishneh Torah. Rav David was a student of Vilna's rabbi, Rav Shaul Katzenellenbogen. At Rav Shaul's request, Rav David was blessed by Rav Chaim Volozhin that he would achieve great fame. Radal's dedication to learning was legendary. It is said that he did not sleep more than one hour during the short summer nights and three hours in the winter, in addition to an afternoon nap of precisely 12 minutes. Also unparalleled was his joy at each new sefer he acquired. In 1854, he was offered the rabbinate of Warsaw. He refused this position despite the encouragement of the Gerrer Rebbe that he take it. However, Rav David did involve himself in communal needs, including a meeting in 1846 (together with Rav Yitzchak of Volozhin) with Sir Moses Montiefore. (Sir Moses was a wealthy, observant British Jew who lobbied for Jewish causes around the world, most notably in Russia and Syria. His vast wealth also supported many Jewish settlers and institutions in 19th century Eretz Yisrael.) ************************************ DONATIONS TO HAMAAYAN ARE TAX DEDUCTIBLE