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Parshah Summary – P’shat
An accounting (pekudei) is made of the gold, silver and copper donated by the people for the making of the Mishkan, the Sanctuary. Betzalel, Aholiav and their assistants make the eight priestly garments—the apron, breastplate, cloak, crown, hat, tunic, sash and breeches—according to the specifications communicated to Moses in Parshat Tetzaveh. The Mishkan is completed and all its components are brought to Moses, who assembles it, anoints it with the holy anointing oil, and initiates Aaron and his four sons into the priesthood. A cloud appears over the Mishkan, signifying the Divine Presence that has come to dwell within it.
Torah of Awakening | Jewish Meditation Teaching
וַֽיַּעֲשׂוּ֙ עַל־שׁוּלֵ֣י הַמְּעִ֔יל רִמּוֹנֵ֕י תְּכֵ֥לֶת וְאַרְגָּמָ֖ן וְתוֹלַ֣עַת שָׁנִ֑י מָשְׁזָֽר... And they made, on the hem of the robe, pomegranates of turquoise, purple, and crimson wool, twisted… - Sh’mot (Exodus) 39:24, Parshat P’kudei In the story of Jacob and Esau, when the angels returned to Jacob with the report that Esau was coming toward him with an army, it says: וַיִּירָ֧א יַעֲקֹ֛ב מְאֹ֖ד וַיֵּ֣צֶר ל֑וֹ... Yaakov (Jacob) was very afraid and he became distressed… - Bereisheet (Genesis) 32:8
The Hasidic master, Rabbi Yehiel Mikhal, taught that this verse gives an instruction to each of us: like Jacob, we too must be distressed if are caught by fear. But how can this be true? If we’re suffering with the malady of fear, why do we have to add being distressed as well? Isn’t that the opposite of what we should do? If we have a negative emotion, shouldn’t we first of all accept it and learn from it? How can there be wisdom in making ourselves more upset for being upset?
To understand we have to look at this word, yetzer, which is being translated as “distressed.” The word yetzer can mean distressed, but its primary meaning is “drive” or “motivation.” So the implication in the Hebrew is not merely to have another negative emotion, but rather to be motivated; in other words, don’t let yourself be paralyzed by fear – take action. Of course, this then leads to another question: in the face of fear, what kind of action should we take? There is a wonderful aphorism in Pirkei Avot that answers this question with four metaphors: יְהוּדָה בֶּן תֵּימָא אוֹמֵר, הֱוֵי עַז כַּנָּמֵר, וְקַל כַּנֶּשֶׁר, וְרָץ כַּצְּבִי, וְגִבּוֹר כָּאֲרִי, לַעֲשׂוֹת רְצוֹן אָבִיךָ שֶׁבַּשָּׁמָיִם:. Yehudah ben Tema says, “Be bold as a leopard, light as an eagle, swift as a deer, and strong as a lion to do the will of your Father in Heaven.
הֱוֵי עַז כַּנָּמֵר – Be bold as a leopard… First, we must realize that we can do something; we must reject the false belief that we are powerless. This is one of the many gifts of meditation: through the practice of being present with whatever arises in your experience, you come to know that there is no feeling that can trap you; you are always bigger than any particular experience, because you are the field of awareness within which the experience is happening. This takes boldness – some holy hutzpah to not be seduced by powerful emotions. וְקַל כַּנֶּשֶׁר – light as an eagle… This is important, because being az, “bold” or “brazen,” doesn’t mean being aggressive, controlling or imposing. It means simply be bold in knowing that you cannot be controlled by feelings. In other words, don’t resist your resistance! Simply accept its presence, being the open space within which it arises. This is kal kanesher – “light as an eagle.” וְרָץ כַּצְּבִי – swift as a deer… This one can be misleading – it doesn’t necessarily mean you have to act impulsively, but rather, you have to be faster than your impulses. Ordinarily, when a reactive impulse is triggered, such as fear or anger, it happens very quickly and we tend to get taken over very quickly. So, on an inner level, we must be even faster to become conscious of what is happening. This takes practice, and we may fail many times. But the key is to articulate your intention to yourself over and over, so that when the moment comes, you will be ready. This is the point of prayer in general, and the reason for chanting kavanot, or affirmations, as we do in our sessions – to articulate to ourselves our highest intentions and build the inner infrastructure of Presence, so that it’s there for us when we need it. But then, we need more than the infrastructure for Presence, we need the actual Presence itself – this is regular meditation practice: וְגִבּוֹר כָּאֲרִי – strong as a lion… Meditation is a workout for consciousness. Through daily practice, we become gibor – we strengthen our ability to consciously relate with whatever experience arises. Like any strengthening exercise, it can take time to bear fruit; that’s why it’s so important to have faith in the process and practice every day, even if you don’t notice much difference at first. The fruit will ripen! There is a hint of this in the symbolism of the decorative fruits that were placed on the hems of the priestly robes in our opening verse. The first thing it says is: Turquoise – תְּכֵ֥לֶת tekhelit – which is the traditional color for part of the tzitzit – the ritual fringes that are worn to serve as a reminder of being constantly and vigilantly conscious – this is swift as a deer. Next is אַרְגָּמָ֖ן argamon – purple, which is the color of royalty, representing our sovereignty over our experience – this is bold as a leopard. Then comes תוֹלַ֣עַת שָׁנִ֑י tola-at shani – crimson wool. Crimson is the color of blood, meaning the life and strength of the body – this is strong as a lion. And finally, in very next verse, it says: וַיַּעֲשׂ֥וּ פַעֲמֹנֵ֖י זָהָ֣ב טָה֑וֹר... And they made bells of pure gold… The bell is a symbol of awareness itself, as the sound of the bell awakens us into a higher alertness. This is light as an eagle – just as the eagle hovers and soars through the open air, so too when we awaken to the full potential of who we are beyond our thoughts and feelings, we find that we are the open air, we are the miracle of consciousness, the effortless dwelling with the way this moment is unfolding, right now. This is freedom from fear, represented by the letter כ kaf, which we can achieve not by making ourselves distressed, but through transcending the fear through meditation, so that we may be motivated to act with clarity and wisdom.
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