Parshah Summary – P’shat
The parshah begins with last three of the Ten Plagues: a swarm of locusts devours all the crops and greenery; a thick darkness envelops the land; and on the 15th of the month of Nissan at midnight, all the firstborn of Egypt die.
The first specifically Jewish mitzvah is then given to the Children of Israel: to establish a calendar based on the monthly rebirth of the moon. The Israelites are also instructed to bring a “Passover offering” – a lamb or goat is to be slaughtered, and its blood sprinkled on the doorposts and lintel of every Israelite home, so that God should “pass over” (Pesakh) those homes when the plague of the firstborn takes place. The roasted meat of the offering is to be eaten that night together with matzah and bitter herbs. The death of the firstborn finally breaks Pharaoh’s resistance, and he drives the Children of Israel from his land. So hastily do they depart that there is no time for their dough to rise, hence the practice of eating matzah in commemoration of the Exodus. Before they go, they ask their Egyptian neighbors for gold, silver and garments—fulfilling the promise made to Abraham that his descendants would leave Egypt with great wealth. The Children of Israel are instructed to consecrate all firstborn, and to observe the anniversary of the Exodus each year by removing all hameitz, leaven, from their possession for seven days, eating matzah, and telling the story of their redemption to their children. They are also instructed to wear tefillin on the arm and head as a reminder of the Exodus and their commitment to God as the Power of Liberation…
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֔ה בִּנְעָרֵ֥ינוּ וּבִזְקֵנֵ֖ינוּ נֵלֵ֑ךְ בְּבָנֵ֨ינוּ וּבִבְנוֹתֵ֜נוּ בְּצֹאנֵ֤נוּ וּבִבְקָרֵ֙נוּ֙ נֵלֵ֔ךְ כִּ֥י חַג־יְהֹוָ֖ה לָֽנוּ׃ Moses said: “With our young ones and with our elders we will go, with our sons and with our daughters, with our sheep and with our oxen we will go— for it is a festival of the Divine for us.” - Shemot (Exodus) 10:9, Parshat Bo
Several years ago, I gave my thirteen-year-old son an electric guitar after he expressed a desire to play. I was concerned that it would just be another expensive fad for him, but then he surprised me by spending an enormous amount of time learning guitar from videos – The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Queen – the rock guitar classics. Some days he would sit and practice for nearly six hours at a time.
I wondered what would happen if I told him that he had to sit for six hours and practice? That would probably not have worked, and I might be arrested for child abuse. Maybe Mozart’s father could get away with that kind of thing back in the day. But now, that kind of intensity would have to come from an inner passion; in our family, you wouldn’t sit and practice for six hours unless you really wanted to. Passion and joy are totally different from self-discipline, from making and sticking to commitments and obligations. Passion and joy are also things we have as children; they’re not something we have to develop, like the adult qualities of being responsible, of following through with plans and so on. Obviously, adult qualities are also necessary. In fact, it is doubtful he would have been able to sit down and teach himself guitar like that had I not been requiring him to practice piano and drums from a very young age. I imposed an adult-based discipline structure on him, and that gave him a basic foundation of musical skill. That skill is useful for musical greatness, but not sufficient. For greatness you need to become passionately obsessed. And that kind of passion is a child-like quality; it doesn’t have to be developed or created, only uncovered and unleashed. This is especially true with spirituality. It is essential to have a committed practice, to study the teachings regularly, to put spirituality on your to-do list and use your adult mind to make it a priority. But if that’s all you’ve got, it won’t go very deep. You may master texts and rituals and words, but they will remain on the surface. You can use your adult mind to set aside times for prayer, but once you start praying, you’ve got to become like a child and cry and sing out from the heart. You can use your adult mind to set aside times for meditation, but once you start meditating, you’ve got to be really curious like a child – What is happening right now? What is my mind actually doing ayway? – rather than merely doing a technique. בִּנְעָרֵ֥ינוּ וּבִזְקֵנֵ֖ינוּ... – With our children and our elders… Pharaoh gives permission for Moses to lead his people from Egypt, but he says that only the men are allowed to go. And that is what the ego whispers to us: “It’s okay, you can do your spiritual practice – just put it on your agenda. Be adult about it.” But Moses says, “No, we’re all going – our children and elders both must both go celebrate the festival!” If we want our spiritual life to be a true celebration, and not be coopted by ego/Pharaoh, we’ve got to invoke the child within. Certainly, we need the z’keinim – the elders – as well, but once the adult mind has performed its function, once the adult mind has done its organizing and planning, give the adult a break and bring forth the child within. Only then can you really practice b’khol levav’kha – meditating and praying with all your heart, with all your being. This quality of spontaneous joy is represented by the sefirah of Yesod, Foundation – because all our practice, indeed all of life, must be built upon it.
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Parshah Summary – P’shat
The parshah opens with Hashem telling Moses, “Va-era – I appeared to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,” and promising to bring the Children of Israel to the Promised Land. Moses and Aaron repeatedly come before Pharaoh to demand, “Let My people go,” but Pharaoh refuses. In response, Aaron’s staff turns into a snake and swallows the staves of the Egyptian sorcerers which had also turned into snakes, but Pharaoh remains obstinate.
A series of plagues then begin to descend upon the Egyptians: The waters of the Nile turn to blood; swarms of frogs overrun the land; lice infest human and beast alike; wild animals invade the cities; a pestilence kills the domestic animals; painful boils afflict the Egyptians. For the seventh plague, fire and ice combine to descend from the skies as a devastating hail. Still, “the heart of Pharaoh was hardened and he would not let the Children of Israel go.
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
וַיַּ֣רְא פַּרְעֹ֗ה כִּ֤י הָֽיְתָה֙ הָֽרְוָחָ֔ה וְהַכְבֵּד֙ אֶת־לִבּ֔וֹ וְלֹ֥א שָׁמַ֖ע אֲלֵהֶ֑ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר דִּבֶּ֥ר יְהֹ–וָֽה׃ But when Pharaoh saw that there was spaciousness, he became stubborn and would not heed them, as Hashem had spoken. - Shemot (Exodus) 8:11; Parshat Va-era
There was once an old hasid who lived by himself, for his wife had died years earlier. He wasn’t interested in getting remarried; instead, he prayed constantly that Shekhinah, the Divine “Bride,” would appear to him on Friday night, on Shabbat. One day, a majestic Voice came to him and said, “I will come visit you this Friday night.”
“So wonderful! Thank you!” said the hasid, “May I invite guests?” “Of course!” said Sh’khinah. He was so excited to invite his friends. On Friday he spent all day making the most sumptuous Shabbos feast. He cleaned the house, beautifully decorated the dining room, and set off to shul for Shabbat prayers. Afterward, his friends accompanied him back to his house. He had prepared the table in advance, and couldn’t wait to show them into the dining room and witness the manifestation of the Divine Presence at his Shabbos table. But, when they entered the dining room, all were shocked to see a huge dog on top of the table, eating up the challah and other delicacies! He grabbed a broom, started beating the dog and shooed it out the door. “Oy! I am so sorry! This is so terrible – the food has become unfit, and now I have nothing to serve you.” Shocked and dismayed, his friends left. The man sat at the table for a while in grief. “I’m sure Shekhinah will not appear now, after what happened.” After some time, he took some wine and began chanting Kiddush, the sanctification of Shabbat. But as he finished the words, m’kadesh HaShabbat, a queenly and radiant woman appeared before him, only she was all bruised! “You have come!” exclaimed the hasid, “But what happened to you? Are you okay? You must have been in some kind of accident!” “It was no accident,” she said, “it was you!” The hasid was taken aback – “Me??” “Yes! I wanted to enjoy your delicious Shabbos feast, so I came in the form of a dog – who could enjoy food more than a dog? But you beat me and kicked me out!” The hasid then understood – he hadn’t recognized the form that She had taken, and he begged forgiveness. This moment is the form the Divine is now taking. How can we welcome Her in? The practice of welcoming the moment is represented by the letter ב bet, which means “house,” pointing to the quality of hospitality. And, just as ב bet is also the number two, welcoming the moment has two main aspects: first, welcoming the “guests” into your space, and second, allowing the “guests” to leave. Both aspects need to be there for genuine hospitality to exist; a home is a wonderful thing, but not if you are trapped inside. On the literal level this is obvious, but this is true on the inner level as well. In meditation, you may try to control your mind and attempt to keep your thoughts out. But this aggressive and manipulative approach isn’t really meditation; the essence of meditation is not controlling thought, but transcending thought. Meaning: meditation is the shift of self-sense from the thinking mind to the space of awareness behind and beyond the thinking mind. How do we do that? Through the attitude of welcome; be the open space that allows present experience to be as it is. Welcome your thoughts in, but also allow them to leave. When we refrain from becoming involved with the stream of thinking, thoughts will come and go, and through this practice, the thought stream can come to subside altogether, on its own. וַיָּ֥קׇם מֶֽלֶךְ־חָדָ֖שׁ עַל־מִצְרָ֑יִם אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹֽא־יָדַ֖ע אֶת־יוֹסֵֽף׃ A new king arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph… - Sh’mot (Exodus) 1:8 At the end of Bereisheet, Pharaoh generously welcomes the Children of Israel into Egypt. But as Sh’mot begins, a new Pharaoh enslaves the Hebrews and won’t let them leave; hospitality turns into control. This is how the mind tends to work – we are open and welcoming to thoughts that arise, and then we unconsciously become involved with our thoughts, seeking through them to gain some sense of control over our experience. This is the “enslavement” of consciousness through identification with thought and feeling, the creation of ego, represented by Pharaoh. If we try to get free by seeking to control the mind and not think, this is just more ego, more of that impulse to control our experience. וְהַכְבֵּד֙ אֶת־לִבּ֔וֹ וְלֹ֥א שָׁמַ֖ע – His heart became heavy/stubborn, and he didn’t listen… Sh’mot (Exodus) 8:11 Moses is pleading with Pharaoh to let the Children of Israel go free, but Pharaoh is both “stubborn” and “not listening” – these are the two basic qualities of ego: the “stubbornness” of the heart is emotional resistance, not accepting the moment as it is, seeking instead to control one’s experience. This resistance arises in the vacuum created by the absence of Presence, the absence of fully “listening,” fully opening to whatever is present. The remedy is to bring consciousness into connection with the fullness of the moment for its own sake, not for the sake of a certain experience, even a spiritual experience. It is to honor the appearance of Reality in this moment, even if it appears as a dog on the dining room table; this is meditation. וָאֵרָא – Va-era – “And I appear…” The ו vav at the beginning of the word means “and,” hinting that Reality is constantly appearing in new ways, now this way, now that way, as expressed by the Name given to Moses at the Burning Bush:
אֶֽהְיֶ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר אֶֽהְיֶ֑ה – Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh
“I Will Be Whatever I Will Be.” This is the Path of ב Bet – of Welcoming the Divine in all Her Forms… מַה טֹּֽבוּ אֹהָלֶֽיךָ יַעֲקֹב מִשְׁכְּ֒נֹתֶֽיךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל Mah Tovu Ohalekha Ya–akov, Mishk’notekha Yisrael! How good are your tents, O Jacob, Your Places of Presence, O Israel! From Morning Blessings liturgy (Scale: b2, b3, #4)
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Parshah Summary – P’shat
The parshah opens with the Children of Israel prospering and increasing in Egypt, while a new king now sits on the throne. Threatened by their growing numbers, this new Pharaoh enslaves them and orders the Hebrew midwives, Shifrah and Puah, to kill all male babies at birth. When they do not comply, he commands his people to cast the Hebrew baby boys into the Nile. A child is born to Yokheved, and she puts him in a basket on the river, while the baby’s sister, Miriam, stands watch from afar. Pharaoh’s daughter discovers the boy, raises him as her son, and names him Mosheh, Moses.
As a young man, Moses leaves the palace and sees an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, and kills the Egyptian. The next day he sees two Hebrews fighting; when he rebukes them, they reveal they know of his murder of the previous day, and Moses is forced to flee to Midian. There he rescues Jethro’s daughters, marries Tzipporah, and becomes a shepherd of his father-in-law’s flocks. Hashem appears to Moses as a burning bush, and instructs him to go to Pharaoh and demand: “Let My people go.”
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
וַיֹּ֤אמֶר מֹשֶׁה֙ אֶל־הָ֣אֱלֹהִ֔ים מִ֣י אָנֹ֔כִי כִּ֥י אֵלֵ֖ךְ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֑ה וְכִ֥י אוֹצִ֛יא אֶת־בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל מִמִּצְרָֽיִם׃ וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ כִּֽי־אֶֽהְיֶ֣ה עִמָּ֔ךְ But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring out the Children of Israel from Egypt?” The response: “For I will be with you…” - Shemot (Exodus) 3:11-12, Parshat Sh’mot
A hasid came to Rabbi Yitzhak with the question: “I cannot understand the story the Talmud tells about Rabbi Zera,” he said. “The story goes that when his disciples asked him how he has lived so long, he answered that he had never rejoiced over another’s misfortune. How can this be a special merit? No sage would ever rejoice in someone’s misfortune!” The rabbi said: “This is what it means: that he could not rejoice in his own good fortune when he heard of another’s misfortune.”
This is a difficult story. Does it mean to teach that we should not be happy about the blessings in our own lives while others are suffering? Wouldn’t this attitude condemn all of us to perpetual misery? And furthermore, doesn’t this violate the mitzvah to be happy? וּשְׂמַחְתֶּ֗ם לִפְנֵי֮ יְהֹ-וָ֣ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶם֒ And you shall rejoice before Hashem your God… - Deuteronomy (Devarim) 12:12 There is a hint in our parshah: מִ֣י אָנֹ֔כִי... כִּֽי־אֶֽהְיֶ֣ה עִמָּ֔ךְ – “Who am I?”…“I will be with you…” On the surface, God is reassuring Moses not to worry, that God will help him in his mission. But look at what the words are actually saying: Moses asks the deepest question: Mi anokhi? Who am I? The Divine answer is, Ehyeh imakh – I will be with you… In other words, Ehyeh imakh is who Moses really is! When Moses inquires into his own deepest identity, he discovers that he is “I will be with you.” This is, in fact, who we all are at the very root of our being – Presence – meaning, awareness – awake to whatever arises in its field. Presence has many qualities, but this particular middah is what we might “Presence With,” and is one of the many fruits of meditation. It is represented by the letter ח het, which is shaped like the “hovering eagle” over its young: כְּנֶ֙שֶׁר֙ יָעִ֣יר קִנֹּ֔ו עַל־גֹּוזָלָ֖יו …like an eagle rousing its nest, hovering over its eaglets.” - Devarim (Deuteronomy) 32:11 This “hovering” quality has a dual nature: on one hand, “hovering” means to neither flee nor approach; if the eagle were to abandon its young, they would die. But if the eagle were to land on top of them, it would crush them. So “hovering” means to be in a state of simply being-with, not pushing or pulling. On the other hand, there is an activity of the eagle – feeding the young. The hint is that in simply being present with another, neither pulling nor pushing, but simply listening and having empathy, this in itself is itself nourishing; it is a fundamental lifeline. And so here we have an answer to Rabbi Yitzhak’s understanding of the story of Rabbi Zera. It’s not saying that one should not be happy, but rather that one should not chase happiness by pushing away the suffering of others. We must feel along with those whom we encounter, not run away from their experience, not only for their sake, but for our own: when we refuse to be Present-With, we cut ourselves off from the nourishment of Presence that we need so deeply. How do we access this nourishment? אֶֽהְיֶ֣ה עִמָּ֔ךְ – “I will be with you…” We can use this verse to remind ourselves when we encounter the suffering of others. Instead of becoming annoyed and pushing them away, remember: Ehyeh imakh. Open yourself to fully be with the one before you. Presence nourishes; Presence heals…
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Parshah Summary – P’shat
Jacob lives the final seventeen years of his life in Egypt. Before his passing, he asks Joseph to take an oath that he will bury him in the Holy Land. He blesses Joseph’s two sons, Menasheh and Ephraim, elevating them to the status of his own sons as progenitors of tribes within the people of Israel. Jacob blesses his own sons as well, assigning to each their role as a tribe, and Reuven, Shimon and Levi are rebuked. Among the blessings, Naphtali is granted the swiftness of a deer, Benjamin the ferociousness of a wolf, and Joseph is blessed with beauty and fertility.
Jacob/Israel then dies. A large funeral procession consisting of Jacob’s descendants, Pharaoh’s ministers, the leading citizens of Egypt and the Egyptian cavalry accompanies Jacob on his final journey to the Holy Land, where he is buried in the Cave of Makhpelah in Hebron. Joseph dies in Egypt, at the age of one hundred and ten. He, too, instructs that his bones be taken out of Egypt and buried in the Holy Land, but this would happen only with the Israelites’ Exodus from Egypt many years later. Before he dies, Joseph tells the Children of Israel: “Hashem will surely remember you, and bring you up out of this land, to the land of your ancestors…”
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
וַיִּשְׁלַח֩ יִשְׂרָאֵ֨ל אֶת־יְמִינ֜וֹ וַיָּ֨שֶׁת עַל־רֹ֤אשׁ אֶפְרַ֙יִם֙ וְה֣וּא הַצָּעִ֔יר וְאֶת־שְׂמֹאל֖וֹ עַל־רֹ֣אשׁ מְנַשֶּׁ֑ה שִׂכֵּל֙ אֶת־יָדָ֔יו כִּ֥י מְנַשֶּׁ֖ה הַבְּכֽוֹר׃ Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephraim’s head, though he was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh’s head—thus crossing his hands—although Manasseh was the first-born. - Bereisheet (Genesis) 48:14, Parshat Vayekhi
Rabbi Kalman of Cracow asked Rabbi Hirsh, “What is your way in the avodah of prayer?” He replied, “My Way was shown to me by my teacher, Rabbi Mendel, may he merit life in the World to Come. He taught: concerning manna, it is written: וְיָצָ֨א הָעָ֤ם וְלָֽקְטוּ֙ דְּבַר־י֣וֹם בְּיוֹמ֔וֹ... and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion on its day… Meaning, every day has its own special ‘portion’ of prayer, and one must discover it again and again, day by day.”
How do we discover this day’s portion of prayer? The moment we ask the question, we have already discovered the prayer; the question itself is the prayer. It’s the same with spiritual awakening: the moment you wish to awaken, you have already awoken to a certain degree. That’s because the desire to awaken can’t even arise at all unless there is already a certain amount of objectivity on your thoughts and feelings. Even if you feel like you are failing, even if you feel that your mind is too busy, or you feel emotionally reactive or whatever, your awareness of that is already a movement in the direction of wakefulness. The key is to use the wakefulness you already have to deepen your wakefulness further, rather than focusing on how not-awake you are: בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יה–וה ... הַמַּעֲבִיר שֵׁנָה מֵעֵינַי... – Blessed are You, Hashem… who removes sleep from my eyes… This morning blessing gives thanks for waking up from sleep, but on a deeper level, it is an appreciation of the grace for being awake enough to say the prayer at all! וְדַבְּקֵנוּ בְּמִצְותֶיךָ... – And attach us to your mitzvot (commandments)… Traditionally speaking, the mitzvot, “commandments,” are the actions that God “wants” us to do. So to do a mitzvah, in this traditional view, is to fulfill the meaning of your existence. The deeper desire expressed in this prayer, then, is the longing for meaning: Help me be motivated to fulfill my purpose! This desire for meaning, for purpose, is core to the spiritual drive. But, it is only half of the equation. A little further on it says: וְאַל תַּשְׁלֶט בָּנוּ יֵצֶר הָרָע... – And don’t let the yetzer hara (personal impulses, literally the “bad impulse”) rule within us… The other half of the equation is the desire for freedom, for transcendence. These two core desires that drive the spiritual path are, in a sense, the opposite of one another. The first wants to transform the world; the second wants to transcend the world. The first wants fulfill one’s role; the second wants to be liberated from all roles. The first wants to serve the Divine; the second wants to realize that All is Divine. These two movements, which we might also call Doing and Being, are the opposite of one another, but they are not opposed to one another. In Kabbalah and Hasidic teaching, they must work together. You cannot fully feel that you are doing Divine service if you’re not awake to the Divinity of your own inner being. In Kabbalah, this is called ושוב רץ ratz v’shuv – “running and returning.” In meditation, we “run” – we transcend every particular aspect of experience and know ourselves as the אַיִן ayin, the No-Thing, the open space of this moment within which everything arises. In prayer, we “return” – we appreciate particular things and give thanks; we envision transformation and ask God for help in its manifestation. On a broader level, all spiritual practices, including both prayer and meditation, are a kind of “running,” and our ordinary work and life with people is a kind of “returning.” In Judaism, both are necessary. This theme manifests at all levels of the tradition: Liberation from Egypt, followed by building the Sanctuary. Or, in the opposite order: six days of doing the world, followed by a full day of being, of letting everything be on Shabbat. And, in this last example, we see the emphasis that characterizes Judaism: Six days of Doing, one day of Being – both are necessary, but Doing is emphasized. In many traditions, it’s the opposite: the holy person is the one who transcends the world. But in Judaism, transcendence, while absolutely necessary, is not the goal. These two poles are represented by Joseph’s two sons, M’nasheh and Ephraim. The name M’nasheh comes from “running” – from Being, from leaving the past behind – transcending the world: וַיִּקְרָ֥א יוֹסֵ֛ף אֶת־שֵׁ֥ם הַבְּכ֖וֹר מְנַשֶּׁ֑ה כִּֽי־נַשַּׁ֤נִי אֱלֹהִים֙ אֶת־כָּל־עֲמָלִ֔י וְאֵ֖ת כָּל־בֵּ֥ית אָבִֽי: And Joseph named the firstborn M’nasheh, for “God has caused me to forget all my toil and everything my father’s house.” But Ephraim comes from being “fruitful” – that is, successful – in the world: וְאֵ֛ת שֵׁ֥ם הַשֵּׁנִ֖י קָרָ֣א אֶפְרָ֑יִם כִּֽי־הִפְרַ֥נִי אֱלֹהִ֖ים בְּאֶ֥רֶץ עָנְיִֽי: And the second one he named Ephraim, for “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” וַיִּשְׁלַח֩ יִשְׂרָאֵ֨ל אֶת־יְמִינ֜וֹ... – But Israel stretched out his right hand… M’nasheh is the first born, hinting at the usual way that spirituality is viewed: transcendence is primary. But when Jacob blesses the two boys, he switches his hands to give the blessing of the first born to Ephraim instead. This is why the traditional blessing for boys on Friday nights puts Ephraim first, even though M’nasheh was first born: יְשִׂימְךָ אֱלֹ–הִים כְּאֶפְרַיִם וְכִמְנַשֶּׁה: – May God make you like Ephraim and M’nasheh… Transformation is the goal (Ephraim), but to achieve that goal, transcendence is also necessary (M’nasheh). This is a basic key to living in awakened life: being involved, helping, serving, creating, but also letting go at the same time – accepting everything as it is, not trying to control anything, being the simple, open space of consciousness within which this moment arises. In a sense, these two are not really separate; they form the singular move of Presence in life. But until this becomes integrated into the way we operate, it requires this ratz v’shuv attitude, this oscillation back and forth between effort and letting go. Eventually, this ripens into a sense of effortless effort, of acting in the world without the “me” doing the acting. As Joseph responded to Pharaoh when asked if he could interpret Pharaoh’s dream: בִּלְעָדָ֑י אֱלֹ–הִ֕ים יַֽעֲנֶ֖ה: – It is totally beyond me, but the Divine will answer! There is nothing but the Divine manifesting in all forms, and so from this awakened seeing, there need not be any tension whatsoever – life simply unfolds effortlessly – painfully and tragically, beautifully and magically, it unfolds to the wakeful consciousness that beholds it; this is the Path of ע Ayin, of “simply seeing.”
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Parshah Summary – P’shat
Judah approaches (Vayigash) Joseph to plead for the release of Benjamin, offering himself as a slave to the Egyptian ruler in Benjamin’s stead. Upon witnessing his brothers’ loyalty to one another, Joseph breaks down and reveals his identity to them. “I am Joseph,” he declares. “Is my father still alive?” The brothers are overcome by shame and remorse, but Joseph comforts them. “It was not you who sent me here,” he says to them, “it was all part of the Divine plan, to save us from famine.” The brothers rush back to Canaan with the news. Jacob comes to Egypt with his sons and their families—seventy souls in all—and is reunited with his beloved son after 22 years. On his way to Egypt he receives the Divine promise: “Fear not to go down to Egypt; for I will make you into a great nation there. I will go down with you into Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again.” Joseph gathers the wealth of Egypt by selling food and seed during the famine. Pharaoh gives Jacob’s family the fertile region of Goshen to settle, and the children of Israel prosper in their Egyptian exile…
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יוֹסֵ֧ף אֶל־אֶחָ֛יו גְּשׁוּ־נָ֥א אֵלַ֖י וַיִּגָּ֑שׁוּ וַיֹּ֗אמֶר אֲנִי֙ יוֹסֵ֣ף אֲחִיכֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁר־מְכַרְתֶּ֥ם אֹתִ֖י מִצְרָֽיְמָה׃ Joseph said to his brothers, “Please approach me.” And when they approached, he said, “I am your brother Joseph, he whom you sold into Egypt.” - Bereisheet (Genesis) 45:4, Parshat Vayigash
Rabbi Yehoshua Heschel of Apt said, “A person should be like a vessel that willingly receives whatever its owner pours into it, whether it be wine or vinegar.”
What does this teaching mean? At this time of year, I once saw a production of the Nutcracker – the dancers were wonderful, especially the many little children; but, I was most impressed by the sets. One moment the entire enormous stage looked like the inside of a fancy mansion, and the next moment the mansion set lifted into the air and was replaced by a winter wonderland. This happened several more times; one set flew away and another completely different scene manifested. It was hard to believe that all those different sets could fit somewhere above the stage, out of sight. Each one looked so substantial; the change from one set to another in a few seconds was truly magical. And so it is with our experiences as well. The winter sky is often cloudy – our perception of the dampened sunlight and the cold, moist December air can reflect as a somewhat muted emotional tone within; the outside is reflected on the inside. And when, at some point, the clouds part and the sunlight breaks through, our inner world is instantly changed as well – light on the outside, light on the inside. And so it is with all experience; the changing of the “weather” is happening on all levels, all the time. Of course, we are not merely passive. The “weather patterns” of experience are not merely happening to us; there are many ways we can and must regulate our experience. We certainly can choose to “drink” the “wine,” while pouring the “vinegar” down the sink. And yet, in this moment, a certain experience is already manifest. We can steer the experience in certain ways as we move into the future, but for now, this is what we must be with; the “wine” or “vinegar” has already been “poured.” If we do not willingly receive this moment as it is, we create resistance, stress, dis-ease. But if we do open to this moment as it is without judgment (even as we may intelligently steer into the future with judgment), then there is a deeper magic that can manifest: we can come to know ourselves as the vessel – this is meditation. After all, what is a vessel? It is just an open space. The point is that on the deepest level of our being, we are simple openness; we are the “stage” upon which an infinite number of different “sets” are assembled and disassembled, sometimes instantaneously. You are not the clouds or the sunlight penetrating the clouds; you are the openness of this moment, within which everything is unfolding. And, as it turns out, when we are open to both the wine and the vinegar, there is a deeper “wine” that can reveal itself; a deeper “sunlight” that shines from within. גְּשׁוּ־נָ֥א אֵלַ֖י –“Please approach me…” To “approach” is the opposite of resisting. And just as Joseph reveals his true identity to his brothers when they approach, so too when we “approach” this moment with openness, we can come to see that this experience is also our “brother” – whatever quality is present, be it “vinegar” or “wine,” is arising within the field of consciousness that we are. In fact, every experience is only a form – a “disguise” – of our own consciousness. Come to this moment and see – all experiences are forms of consciousness, and consciousness is nothing but the Divine, alive and awake within you, as you. וַיִּגַּ֨שׁ אֵלָ֜יו יְהוּדָ֗ה – And Judah approached… It is the name of Joseph’s brother Judah, Yehudah, from which we derive one of our names: Jew – hinting that, at the core of what it means to be a Jew and to practice Judaism, is the way we approach the moment. וַיִּגַּשׁ Vayigash is composed of ו vav, י yud, ג gimel and ש shin. Vav ו means “and” – saying “yes and” to whatever is present; this is acceptance, non-resistance. Yud י is the smallest of the letters, and it is the shape made by the pen as it begins to draw any of the letters; in this sense, it is like a “seed” that “grows” into all the many spiritual qualities represented by the other otiyot. Like a point having no dimension, it is simplicity and, most importantly, trust – trusting that this moment, however problematic, contains within it the “seeds” of positive transformation – just as Joseph affirmed that his brothers’ crimes toward him and his resulting suffering was all so that he might later save them from starvation. Gimel ג begins the word גָדוֹל gadol, “great” – indicating the quality of Completeness or Wholeness, of having fully arrived into the present. This is the fruit of meditation. Finally, Shin ש represents “fire,” counterbalancing the Gimel ג. Even as we arrive into the Fullness of the Present and feel the Wholeness of our essential being as formless awareness, we still must remain alert; the moment is ever in an state of change. Like a cat watching a mouse hole, there can be full stillness and attention together with readiness – with wakefulness to whatever is about to unfold, so that the inner Wholeness we are can express itself in responsibility – consciousness in action – this is the practice of Judaism. In this way, we can fully receive the truth of our situation – that we are both the awareness of what arises, the stage upon which the action unfolds, be it “wine” or “vinegar,” and also an actor upon the stage, with the power to choose “wine” over “vinegar.” This is both the gift of being human, and the meaning of being a Jew, a spiritual descendent of יְהוּדָה Yehudah – which comes from אוֹדֶ֣ה אֶת־יְהֹ–וָה odeh et Hashem – “I will thank God.”
Read past teachings on Vayigash HERE
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