BS”D
ANGELS,
ASPIRATIONS AND APPAREL: PARSHAT VAYETZEI
Shira Smiles shiur 2021/5782
Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
The
beginning and end of Parshat Vayetzei serve as bookends for Yaakov Avinu a’h’s
journey from his ancestral home in Be'er Sheva to Lavan's house in Charan and
back home again. Both at the beginning and end of this journey, at an interval
of twenty years, Yaakov Avinu a’h encounters angels. At the beginning of his
journey, gathering stones for a pillow, he sleeps the night, dreaming of symbolic
angels ascending and descending a ladder, grounded on earth but reaching all
the way to heaven. Hashem appears to Yaakov Avinu a’h, renewing with
Yaakov Avinu a’h the promise He had made with Avraham and Yitzchak to give
Yaakov Avinu a’h this land in which he will spread out eastward, westward,
northward and southward. When Yaakov Avinu a’h awakes, he declares, “How
awesome is this place! This is none other than the abode of God and this is the
gate of the heavens…. And he named the place Beit El/House of God.”
Twenty
years later, as he and Lavan part at Gilead, Yaakov Avinu a’h again encounters
angels. Yaakov Avinu a’h names this place Machanaim/Camps to commemorate
the camps of angels who came to greet him.
We
cannot but notice both similarities and differences in these two angelic
events. Both are “encounters”, but are they the same angels or different ones?
Why did Yaakov Avinu a’h name the first site as a place, Beit El/House of God,
while he named the second place after the camps of angels? What is the
significance of the angels themselves and of the name Yaakov Avinu a’h called
the places?
Rashi
explains that in the first encounter, when Yaakov Avinu a’h was leaving Eretz
Yisroel, there were two groups of angels. The angels ascending the ladder were
the angels of Eretz Yisroel, while the descending angels were the angels sent
to protect Yaakov Avinu a’h outside Eretz Yisroel. When Yaakov Avinu a’h was
returning to Eretz Yisroel, he encountered both camps of angels. However,
Ramban poses an obvious question. If one camp of angels was assigned to Eretz
Yisroel, how could they leave Eretz Yisroel when Yaakov Avinu a’h Avinu was
still on the other side of the river, relatively far from Eretz Yisroel proper?
Rabbi
Sternbach reconciles this dilemma with a beautiful idea: The angels of Eretz
Yisroel are ready to leave Eretz Yisroel to accompany anyone who is making
aliyah.
The
route Yaakov Avinu a’h took to return home seems to be needlessly circuitous.
Why not go a more direct route? Perhaps, suggests the Aderet Cohen,
Yaakov Avinu a’h was reenacting his grandfather’s journey. When Hashem had
promised Avraham Avinu the land, Avraham traversed the land through its entire
length and width. This would all become the territory of Eretz Yisroel. Perhaps
Yaakov Avinu a’h Avinu was doing the same with the land on the other side of
the Jordan River, land that would later be settled by the Tribes of Reuven,
Gad, and half of Menashe. This land too would eventually be invested with
sanctity and would become part of Eretz Yisroel.
Yaakov
Avinu a’h was asleep when he saw the angels in Eretz Yisroel, but he was awake
when he encountered the angels when leaving Padan Aram. Wouldn’t it seem that
Yaakov Avinu a’h would be in a holier state to receive the angels directly in
Eretz Yisroel rather than outside its holy confines? Rabbi Sorotskin in Oznaim
Latorah makes a powerful observation. Sanctity comes not so much from the
physical place one occupies, but rather from the place one’s mind is in.
Although Yaakov Avinu a’h was still in Eretz Yisroel at the beginning of his
journey, his mind was already occupied with the problems he could anticipate in
Lavan’s house until he could safely return home. In contrast, on his return,
Yaakov Avinu a’h was already thinking about Eretz Yisroel even though he had
not yet reached that destination.
Rabbi
Sorotskin extrapolates from this an interesting practice in our Yom Kippur
prayers. At the onset of Yom Kippur, on Kol Nidrei night, we recite “Boruch
Shem Kevod.../Blessed is the Name of His glorious kingdom for all
eternity,” aloud, like the ministering angels. Yet at the end of Yom Kippur,
after having spent twenty-five hours in a totally spiritual state, we recite
the verse again, in an undertone, as human beings. Rabbi Sorotskin again
explains that sanctity is derived from the space your mind occupies. At the
beginning of Yom Kippur, we are thinking of how awesome Hashem is, how we are
being judged in His presence. In contrast, at the close of Yom Kippur, our minds
are occupied with mundane thoughts of getting home and eating a meal.
Why
is one’s mindset so important? Because Judaism is more concerned with being in
a state of growth rather than being in a state of full maturity, explains Rabbi
Scheinerman citing Rav Yisroel of Salant. The verse in Hosea says, “For Yisroel
is a young child, and I love him.” What this verse suggests is that Hashem
loves Bnei Yisroel because, like a young child, we are always in a state of
growth. We are never to feel we have achieved our full stature, our full
potential, We are always like a sapling drawing in water and nutrients and
continuing to grow. Therefore, you can have a simpleton who is trying to learn
something new on a higher level that a talmid chacham who rests on the
laurels of his past achievement.
This
childlike trait is characterized by the cherubim, the angelic figures with
childlike faces that adorned the Holy Ark, their wings turned upward, always
hoping to rise higher, always curious, searching, learning. We must always
feel, as the name Yaakov Avinu a’h suggests, that we are always at the bottom,
struggling to pull ourselves further upward, even by our bootstraps, writes
Rabbi Roberts.
The
story is told of a disciple of Rav Yechezkel Levenstein who, upon being appointed
as a Rosh Yeshiva, felt himself inadequate to the task. After all, how could he
give mussar/character guidance to the young men when he himself had some
of these faults. He felt like a hypocrite. Tellingly, Rav Levenstein responded
that if he aspired to improve, he was already credited with having earned the
reputation of that positive character. None of us is perfect, but the first
step is recognizing our shortcomings and then working to improve. Therefore,
the Torah states that Yaakov Avinu a’h lifted his feet. Although his body was
going to a place of impurity, his mind and heart were lifting his feet to
places of virtual sanctity. When one asks himself where he wants to go, he is
already growing in that direction.
This
raises an interesting question. We are told that there is a Beit Hamikdosh in
heaven that parallels the one on earth. But, asks Rabbi Steinwurzel in Be’er
Chaim, is the site of holiness first established on earth or in the
heavens? When Yaakov Avinu a’h went to sleep, he did not imagine this place to
be holy, albeit the stones he placed under his head may have come from Har
Hamoriah, the site of the future Beit Hamikdosh [among other earlier sanctified
events]. But the sanctity rose from the earthly spot heavenward. The message
here was extremely powerful, and led Yaakov Avinu a’h to exclaim,”How awesome
is this place.” Yaakov Avinu a’h now understood that he can create kedushah/sanctity
through his own deeds, he can bring that sanctity with him, and create a
sanctified environment wherever he goes, even in Lavan’s house. Therefore,
although sanctity is inherent in Eretz Yisroel, any land Jews go to as they
spread throughout the earth can become holy. There are no boundaries to
holiness. Allegorically, Hashem folded all of Eretz Yisroel under Yaakov Avinu
a’h’s head, for by taking the power of Torah with him, he could create the
sanctity of Eretz Yisroel wherever he would go.
The
Gemorrah Berachot supports this idea. Rabbi Yochanan was told that there
were elderly people in Babylonia, yet Bnei Yisroel was promised long life in
Eretz Yisroel, not necessarily outside the land. But when Rabbi Yochanan was
told that these men arose early in the morning to go to synagogue and stayed
late into the evening, he understood that being involved in Torah and mitzvoth
also had the power to prolong life, even outside Eretz Yisroel.
Among
the Patriarchs, Yaakov Avinu a’h represented the existential Jew, the everyday
Jew who generally must live and toil in a mundane world filled with physical
and spiritual challenges, writes Rabbi Milevsky in Ner Uziel. The dream
taught Yaakov Avinu a’h that the mundane and physical can be elevated to the
sanctified, as the animal brought as a sacrifice on the altar, as a cup of wine
that is used for Kiddush, [as hard earned money given to tzedakah CKS]. There
are no barriers separating heaven and earth; we have the power to connect the
two ends of this continuum. To concretize this basic tenet, that we can create
sanctity wherever we are. Yaakov Avinu a’h took the stone from under his head
and placed it as a pillar, a monument to “ground” this concept into the psyches
of his descendants.
Now
we can also understand why Yaakov Avinu a’h had to leave Eretz Yisroel and
build his family in a place that seems devoid of kedushah, a place where the
well filled with the life giving water of Torah is covered by a heavy stone.
The
Mesameach Zion traces the trajectory of our Patriarchs in bringing
recognition of Hashem to the world. He notes, that as we say in Ahavah
Rabbah, there are three steps in the process of bringing kedushah, and each
of our Patriarchs perfected one upon which the next Patriarch would build.
First one must himself hear/lishmoa. After one has heard and fully
clarified the message, one can study/lilmod until one is completely
integrated with the message. Only then is he ready lelameid/to teach and
spread the word.
Avraham
Avinu began the process. Born outside Eretz Yisroel, he was still able to
intuit the existence of a Creator through personal observation of nature and
the world. This Belief and faith was strengthened through each of the ten
challenges Hashem put him through. Yitzchak “inherited” this faith, but was
tasked with studying/lilmod until he integrated Hashem’s will and
existence with his own. He perfected this task so much that he was worthy of
being an olah temimah/a full sacrifice to Hakodosh Boruch Hu. Yitzchak’s
entire life was filled with sanctity, as was all of Eretz Yisroel. Therefore,
Yitzchak was prohibited from ever leaving the Land.
Yaakov
Avinu a’h Avinu represented the synthesis of his father and grandfather.
Imbuing his entire being with faith, and studying Torah his entire life, he was
able to go out into the world that Avraham Avinu came from, and spread that
belief through all the four directions of the earth. He was able lelameid/to
teach. Therefore, the development of his life, of his family, had to take place
outside Eretz Yisroel, for Torah can exist anywhere. There are no boundaries
where Torah is concerned. Borrowing an idea from Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of
Berditchev, Mesameach Zion notes that our verse does not say, “Vayered
Charanah/Yaakov Avinu a’h descended to Charan, as it usually says about one
leaving Eretz Yisroel, but, Veyelech Charanah/he went to Charan,
implying that he took the glory and sanctity of Eretz Yisroel with him wherever
he went. Yaakov Avinu a’h Avinu was not about building himself, but about
building others.
When
Hashem will bring the ultimate redemption, writes the Belzer Rebbe, all the kedushah
that was invested outside Eretz Yisroel will burst forth/uforatzto and
be palpable outside Eretz Yisroel. When Yaakov Avinu a’h saw the angels in
Eretz Yisroel, at the beginning of his journey, he recognized them as a Godly
camp/machaneh Elokhim. Upon his return, Yaakov Avinu a’h saw the two
camps of angels together, those from within Eretz Yisroel and those designated
for outside Eretz Yisroel. He recognized the original camp of angels and
realized that the two camps can coexist, that Torah can exist outside Eretz Yisroel.
We need to create an Eretz Yisroel wherever we are. In that future time, the
boundaries of Eretz Yisroel [at least symbolically] will have expanded to
include all the holy places in the world we’ve built in sanctity.
Pirkei
Avot tells us that every good deed we do creates for us an advocating angel.
But this angel is created, writes Rabbi Bunim in Ethics of our Fathers,
if we do the mitzvah with enthusiasm, giving it our all. It would be extremely
difficult to invest fully in every mitzvah we do. Rabbi Bunim suggests we find
one mitzvah that we can make our own, that we can always do enthusiastically,
that we can search for opportunities to perform. The mitzvah could be in any
category, a particular blessing, support for a particular yeshiva, visiting the
sick – any area that you connect with and can make your special mitzvah. Such
performance and enthusiasm will create these special angels that will form your
camp of angels.
The
camp of angels Yaakov Avinu a’h met upon leaving Lavan’s house, explains the
Tosher Rebbe in Avodat Avodah, were precisely the angels Yaakov Avinu
a’h created through the mitzvoth he performed while in Lavan’s house. For
twenty years Yaakov Avinu a’h had been trying to elevate the sparks of
spirituality that exist outside Eretz Yisroel. These were the angels he
created, and so he had the right to name them, and he named them Machanaim/Camps
[of angels]. If we remain strong in our mitzvah observance, we too can create
camps of angels. Further, the Torah writes vayifgeu/[the angels]
encountered Yaakov Avinu a’h. According to our tradition, this type of
encounter refers to prayer, a personal encounter. These angels will appear
before God on Yaakov Avinu a’h’s behalf and pray for him. We too have
opportunities to create cadres of angels to advocate for us as well.
We
are not to think of these angels protect us only when we perceive a crisis.
These angels protect us constantly, keeping us from falling, repelling dangers
we don’t even see as we navigate the world with our limited eyesight, writes
Rabbi Gamliel Rabinowitz. Every time we do a mitzvah, we bring Hashem close to
us, He becomes a shachen/neighbor. Then Hashem’s shechinah/close
presence becomes the crown of glory upon our heads.
Rabbi
Wolbe interprets the two camps in a more recognizable way. As we have
discussed, the upper world and the lower world run parallel to each other.
Yaakov Avinu a’h indeed saw two camps. He saw his family, his children as one
camp, a camp he founded but that would be as spiritual and angelic as the heavenly
angels. His deeds and their deeds, and by extension our deeds, create these
camps of angels that mirror the angels on high, and together we sing the glory
of Hakodosh Boruch Hu.
When
Yaakov Avinu a’h saw the angels of Eretz Yisroel coming to greet him, writes
the Chasam Sofer, he realized that his own children, through their
righteousness, also formed a virtual camp of angels, akin to the level of
righteousness of the times of Mashiach, when this land will once again be part
of Eretz Yisroel.
When
we aspire to spiritual greatness, we have the ability to elevate all the earth,
not just Eretz Yisroel, to a heavenly state where we can achieve the status of
angels.