PARSHAT VAYEITZEI A COLLECTION OF TEACHINGS PARSHA RECIPES # 7 [VAYEITZEI] COPING WITH DECEPTION Shalom and Blessings YAAKOV THE TAM 1. ...And Yaakov told Rachel that he was her fathers brother... [Parsha Vayeitzei, ch. 29, verse 12] Heres the scenario; our forefather Yaakov has been commanded by his parents to run for his life from his brother Esau, who wanted to kill him. He was told to go back to his mother Rivkahs birthplace, and to seek out there, a marriage partner for himself from the household of her brother Lavan. Lavan is infamous. He is known as being a notorious swindler and deceiver. Yaakov has a reputation of being just the opposite. He grew up in his fathers and grandfathers holy patriarchal home and spent 14 years in the Torah academy of Shem and Eiver, so engrossed in study, that he never even laid down at night to sleep. Besides all this, Yaakovs inherent trait was to be a Tam. The Hebrew term Tam is very difficult to translate into Engish, but its approximate meaning is a person who has no deception in them at all----rather this person is truthful, straightforward, authentic, happy with their lot, and has sort of a holy naiveté that allows this person to be beloved to Hashem and achieve very high levels. Now back to our essays opening verse. Our commentaries teach us that Yaakov wasnt informing his intended bride-to-be, Rachel, how he was related to her. In fact Yaakov wasnt her fathers brother at all. He was her fathers sisters son. Rather Yaakov was informing his worried bride-to-be, that even though he was Yaakov, The Tam, he was a fitting match for her father Lavan-the-deciever [as the verse states, ...that he was her fathers brother...]. What we need to understand is how in the world could Yaakov, being the antithesis of deception, cope properly with deception day in and day out for the next 20 years of his life, and come out of it not only surviving, but also smelling like a bed of roses, and keep his precious trait of being a Tam intact. And of course, in understanding how Yaakov could do it, we will understand the recipes for us to be able to do it as well. THE PATH OF MIRRORING THE DECIEVER 2. Rashi [R. Shlomo Yitzchaki], the Torahs most important commentary, brings a Midrash to explain Yaakovs anti-deception strategy. He says basically, that Lavan is a deceiver and that Yaakov can match him, deception for deception. King David [in the 2nd Book of Shmuel Ch. 22, verses 26-27] teaches this mirroring -principle stating, With a righteous person, be righteous...with a tam, be a tam...with a pure person, be pure...and with a crooked person, be crooked. At this point, as opposed to transforming this principle into a tool or recipe, I come to warn you about the dangers of this approach. If you want to play with fire, unless youre very careful, you just may get burned. Yaakov [and for that matter, King David also], became a walking , talking and living wellspring of wisdom and Torah.....this, combined with the fact of his being the paradigm of being a Tam---the antithesis of deception, enabled him to tangle with someone as notorious as Lavan successfully. A lesser person, or a lower level society of people, attempting to do the same, are in real danger of being hurt----either by falling deeply from their present spiritual level, or else, by eliciting the wrath of the other person, to be worse than they already are. [****Im saying what Im saying with hesitation and trepidation. After all, how could the Torah be teaching us a way of coping that only applies to a very few special people. The Gemorah doesnt make this distinction, and weve all probably had to resort to matching deceit for deceit in our lives just to survive. So why my extra dose of caution?! It’s just that Ive personally witnessed how easily a person or even an entire community can deceive itself in this area and be truly harmed.] THE PATH OF LIVING IN A HIGHER REALM 3. R. Chaim ben Attar, the author of the Torah commentary called Ohr Hachayim [approximately 300 years ago], teaches that Yaakov points out to Rachel, that he indeed he was her fathers match in terms of deception, but he would be able to pull it off in a kosher way [as is evident from the continuation of our essays theme verse, where Yaakov states that he is Rivkahs son]. What was Yaakovs kosher way? In short, Yaakov faced every life challenge by reframing it as opportunity to further contribute to rectify the world. How did he accomplish this? Well, beyond a very detached and elevated mindset and character makeup that he possessed, he also didnt see the world the way that most people do. He managed to relate to life at its root level. People werent just people, they were Kabalistic paradigms; Rachel and Leah, Yaakovs 2 wives, were 2 aspects of the Shechinah---the Female Divine paradigm expressed as G-ds felt presence in the world. Yaakov himself represented one aspect of G-ds Male Paradigm. Yaakovs pursuit of these 2 sisters hands for the sake of being his marriage partners, represented the Divine Male and Female Paradigms Unifications of the Upper World. Even the 20 years of labor that Yaakov worked for Lavan, wasnt merely an exercise in sound animal husbandry, excellent breeding practices and not even simply a demonstration of being honest when working for a crooked employer. Rather, the different type of sheep represented the different phases in the Kabbalistic Creation process, and Yaakovs choices of how to breed these sheep were determined by the deepest contemplations of how to best facilitate the Creation process. Yaakov saw everything that came his way in life, as an opportunity to unify the realm of the mundane with its G-dly source. All was seen as being good and sanctifiable. He lived above time [he stated that his 7-year-stint in working for Rachels hand in marriage seemed to him like a few days]. Everything was done in a complete and Tam fashion [he states to his brother Esau, after returning to Israel, that he lived with Lavan for 20 years and kept himself intact as the saying goes, with Lavan I lived and all of the 613 Mitzvot I kept]. Thats how Yaakov coped with Lavans deceptive ways for so long. So you may ask, that may be fine for Yaakov, and for anyone else that excels in so many profound and sublime areas, but whats the practical lesson to be drawn for someone like me, who finds myself holding on a bit of a more simple level? Never fear! Heres a simple tool thats do-able and with a lot of persistence, can truly help you to see a world thats unified and rectifiable, and allows you the ability to cope with some of the toughest people and challenges. Youve possibly heard me at previous times bring this tool, but I bring it again because its application at this point is very appropriate. Its called the Mikve Tool, and heres what you do: Simply dunk yourself into a real or imagined body of water. While dunking, say to yourself, that all thats recently happened to you is the best possible thing in the world for you. Then bring up into your mind a specific negative or painful experience that you have had recently. Come up for air and then dunk again and say to yourself that the reason why this experience is the best possible thing that couldve happened to you, is because________ and wait for an answer to come in to your mind. The answer usually has something to do with the rectification of your personality or soul, such as a need to be more humble, loving, believing...etc... ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES OR RECIPES 4. We wouldnt be doing even partial justice to the topic of coping with deception, unless we brought a few other possible approaches. What I would suggest to you to do with all these approaches is to assess your relative strength to stand up to a deceiver or a deceptive environment, and then choose the appropriate approach. If you feel so threatened that any type of interface at all would be harmful for you, then keep your distance from the deceptive one[s]. If you feel more bold and confident in yourself and your abilities to survive and effect change, then choose a strategy that suits your style; A. BE A RADICAL TAM IN THE FACE OF DECEPTION--------------------------- ****The point here, is that ones t-a-m ness will draw down a Divine-based-protective-force-field, and sometimes will even transform the deceiver into becoming a bit of a tam also...Anyway heres a few basic steps in Tam-ing; 1. Be radically authentic-----what you express on the outside, should be a reflection of what you feel on the inside... 2. Be radically happy with your lot. 3. Make HOLY SIMPLICITY your primal value and ‘Modus operandi’ in life....this includes all areas of life; how you interact with people, with Hashem and with life itself...[Dont forget what the Breslov Chassidim are fond of saying, its not simple to be simple! And dont forget what the Kabbalists are fond of saying Simplicity is in the highest Sefirotic realm of KETER].... B. LEVERAGING 1. Identify your strongest points. For example, you may be and feel outstanding in the realm of spirituality or learning or emoting or being creative or getting results... 2. Leverage or utilize this strong point[s] of yours when you are in the heat of an encounter with a deceptive person [rather than having to distance yourself from them].... 3. For example, if youre a lover of wisdom, impress upon the deceptive one how fascinated you are by their depth and breadth of wisdom. Hopefully this will steer them away from feeling challenged by you and therefore needing to deceive you... C. ESCAPE--------------Escape when you need to escape in order to protect yourself. Get a good lawyer if necessary. Included in this escape clause is the ability to not allow the deceiver to trap you into an abusive type of relationship or dynamic that they themself created, in order to always keep you defensive and under their control.... (Parsha tools # 7) Vayaitzei Jacobs Ladder---My Personal Divine Coach Shalom and Blessings, 1. Our forefather Jacob saw a ladder standing on Earth whose top reaches the Heavens...and behold there were Angels of G-d climbing and descending it [the ladder].The analogies and their corresponding lessons abound in this classic prophetic vision: a. The ladder and its ascending and descending angels represent the major exiles of Jewish history and their time spans. b. The ladder represents the Sinai experience of receiving the Torah. The numerical value of Sulam[ladder] equals the numerical value of Sinai [130] showing the connection between the two. The Angels represented by Moshe and Aaron ascend to Heaven to bring down to us the Torah [Aaron didnt actually ascend but had a key role in the whole process]. c. The ladder symbolizes the Holy Temples Altar grounded here on the earth, from which the pleasing aroma of the Korbanot [sacrifices] ascends and draws down Heavenly wellbeing for the whole world… The attending Priests fill the role of the Angels on the ladder. d. The Baal Shem Tov, the founder of the Chassidic movement, explains that the ascending Angels represent our activities in life----every motion, spoken word, all our travels and every one of our affairs all make their mark on high and draw down [the descending Angels] incredible abundance generated by the Divine Delight that we have aroused. 2. A contemporary teacher, Dr. Lisa Aiken, who lectures to audiences far and wide, writes in the Forward of one of her latest books, Tuning In the following insights; ... at least ninety % of Americans believe in G-d, and a majority of them believe that He guides them in their daily lives.....we want to know [that Hashem] is involved in our day to day lives in a caring and loving way....If we would keep a daily log of our experiences and start thinking about how they fit into a spiritual framework, we might be amazed at how frequently we receive Divine messages... Based on this outlook, Dr. Aiken goes on in her book to tell many Divine-Providential stories of a lot of the people she encountered in her travels. 3. In light of the above, perhaps we can humbly submit our own interpretation of the Jacobs ladder analogy; the descending Angels are our G-d-sent daily experiences which are coming to direct us in life and to answer the questions and dilemmas that we are constantly asking ourselves or G-d to clarify for us [the ascending Angels].....and this is all within the framework of discovering and actualizing our calling or mission in life! 4. And what naturally follows my friends is our tool of the week: a. At the beginning of the week write down the various dilemmas, questions and challenges that you have in life...... both general questions, but even more importantly, questions and challenges that can elicit answers that will direct you to discovering and actualizing who you are and why youre here. b. At the end the week, write down the highlight experiences of your week. I suggest to write them down in a way thats as effortless as possible [ie... work backward to make it easier to remember and let the recalling come to you without straining yourself. sort of like someone who is taking dictation]. c. Now match your [beginning of the week] dilemmas and challenges with your collected corresponding experiences and see if you can shed some light on why the things that are happening to you are happening...... ***** a word of note----the masters of Chassidut teach that the more real you are about being Divinely guided, the more real G-d will be in truly guiding you. VAYEITZEI ALIYA HEALINGS 1ST ALIYA[Sunday] BRIDGING HEAVEN TO EARTH HEALING Just as Jacob’s dream ladder stood on the ground and reached up heavenward---suggesting that the ultimate way to engage the world, is to connect to the mundane, physical and worldly side of life [corresponding to the bottom of the ladder] in a heavenly, spiritual and transcendent way [corresponding to the top of the ladder], and just as the ascending and descending Angels never left the framework of the ladder—teaching that in this sacred path of binding the heavenly with the earthly aspects of life, one should do their best to never fall away from the path’s essential framework, no matter how low one falls -----------so too by you-------------- connect heaven and earth …...sanctify your mundane activities with holy intentions, and holy thoughts …..focus all of your attention on your day to day activities [as opposed to only engaging them in a half hearted way…..fuse your thoughts , feelings , speech and actions with G-d’s own , by imagining that G-d is thinking , feeling , speaking and acting through you……pray that all that you do finds favour in G-d’s eyes….do all this in the best way that you can…..if you find yourself having a hard time or if you find yourself failing to do this holy activity as you would like, don’t worry about it---just keep on the track, and know with a certainty that tomorrow is a new day—a day that will certainly lift you up to a new wonderful level 2ND ALIYA[MONDAY] TRANSCENDING LIMITATIONS HEALING Just as Yaakov, upon first seeing his beloved Rachel, was able to remove the stone covering the well---the same stone that an entire group of shepherds could not budge---------------------so too by you----------------focus on something or someone that you love or are inspired by in the greatest possible way, whether they are presently accessible to you or not, but nevertheless are the object of your greatest desire and yearning………visualize that person or thing filling you up with light and joy and energy and love and yearning……keep up your focus until you fill yourself up with the most powerful energy possible…..notice how you are able to deal with all aspects of life with the greatest alactricity and ease and energy, and how you overcome all blocks and limitations 3RD ALIYA [TUESDAY] TRANSCENDING TIME HEALING Just as the seven years that Yaakov worked for the hand of Rachel in marriage, seemed as if they were just a few days because of his great love for her---------------------------------so too by you--------------------------understand that time is relative and to the extent that you immerse yourself in a state of awakened, enlightened love of whatever it is that you are engaged in---time will fly---and this fact will naturally inspire you to make the most of your time…….since time will go fast, it will be precious in your eyes, and you can thus merit to transcend all negative aspects of time and make the most of it 4TH ALIYA [WEDNESDAY] THE POWER OF A NAME HEALING Just as we see that Leah and Rachel named their children based on the current state of the relationship that they were having with their husband Yaakov at the time---and these names---like all names given by parents, were given with Ruach Hakodesh [the Divine spirit] …….Therefore the essential meanings of these names prophetically defined the personal path that their children were to go in life-------------------------------so too by you--------------------focus on your name and contemplate on how it’s essential meaning defines the path of your life…..take great pleasure in your name and bond with it……project how your name actually illuminates the future spiritual and healing levels that you are meant to grow into…with prayer and trust in Hashem, walk down this wondrous path set out for you by your name 5TH ALIYA [THURSDAY] VISUALIZATION HEALING Just as Yaakov, as a shepherd, utilized the practice of visualization, not only for sheep breeding purposes [having them focus on different shapes of sticks in order to elicit different breeds of offspring such as spotted sheep or speckled sheep], but in addition to this, the Kabbalah teaches us that Yaakov’s breeding visualizations were focused on crucial phases of the timeless Creation Process---one breed of sheep represented the World of Tikun, and others represented different dynamics…etc…---------------------------so too by you--------------------utilize the power of visualization in order to transform your life…….visualize positive outcomes….visualize overcoming inner and outer obstacles….visualize helping people out in all kinds of situations etc..etc… 6TH ALIYA [FRIDAY] TRUTH IN THE FACE OF DECEPTION HEALING Just as Yaakov was able, at the end of 20 year period of constant deception at the hands of his world renowned deceptive father-in-law and employer, not to veer one iota from the truth------------so too by you-------------stay straight, stay pure, stay in your integrity---no matter what your employer is testing you with or your colleagues or your environment or the entire generation……….your efforts will not be ignored by the ONE who watches over us all in truth 7TH ALIYA [SHABBAT] TURNING DEEDS INTO ANGELS HEALING Just as Yaakov, upon returning to the Land of Israel, was accompanied by an army of Angels---who were created by every good deed that he and his family had created with all of their good deeds….and in addition to these Angels, there was another band of Angels—600,000 strong, sent from Heaven to accompany Yaakov and family into the Land of Israel----------------------------so too by you--------------------------realize that every good deed creates and Angel and to the extent that the deed ispositive and complete and holy, so too is the Angel……….multiply these Good-Deed-Angels by the number of good deeds that you’ve done throughout your life, and you will realize what an incredible protective presence accompanies you everywhere you go---and how much more incredible it could be if you were to continue to focus your energies on doing good deeds with all of your heart and soul PARSHA MYSTICAL GUIDANCE VAYEITZEI 1. BRIDGING HEAVEN AND EARTH [‘..and a ladder was set up on the earth and it’s top reached up to Heaven….’] KNOW that the dream that Yaakov dreamed, seeing a ladder stretching from the Earth to Heaven, with Angels going up and down on it , was a prophetic dream, an analogy that is interpreted in many ways---each way teaching deep lessons……lessons of the length of our exiles….lessons of how our prayers are arousing the Heavenly realms to deliver to us abundance----lessons of our sparks/lost soul parts that are redeemed to us courtesy of Heaven in exchange for our service…..one of the important lessons is that a Jew’s constant essential challenge and drive is to bridge Heaven and Earth….. Seek out in all types of ‘earth’ situations […ie..in the the mundane, the material sides of life..] how to infuse it with ‘Heaven’ [….ie..G-dliness, Infinity, Eternity, Spirituality….] …..when you do normal actions, seek out the Mitzvah or Divine Will of that action…..when you think thoughts, contemplate the Divine thoughts that are at the root of these thoughts……when you speak to someone, speak in a way that would find favor in the eyes of Hashem….. 2. THE WHOLE WORLD AT YOUR FINGERTIPS [‘….the land that you lay upon, I will give it to you……. ’] KNOW that Yaakov represents the trait of Tifferet—truth and Torah…..therefore when he received prophecy that the land that he lay upon [in his dream on the Temple Mount] will be given to him, he was basically informed that all the tikunim or rectifications of non-rectified parts of reality, are accessible to him when he is deeply connected to his essential Tifferet/Torah mode-----ie….there is no need for him to wander across the globe in constant exiles to rectify fallen reality[which has always been our long-time national destiny]-----it is all rectifiable by just delving into it’s Torah source in the deepest clearest way……. Be aware that when you are learning any particular aspect of Torah with the deepest efforts and purest intentions, in a way that is unleashing spiritual light by clearing up any doubts and unleashing an endless stream of associations and life applications ----then the whole world is at your fingertips , and you are thereby empowered to rectify and heal the corresponding aspects of reality that you are engaged in—anywhere in the world…… 3. WICKED SOULS ROOTED IN THE HIGHEST LEVELS [‘And Lavan said, that’s not done in our place—to give over the younger one prior to the older one....] KNOW that the Kabbalistic sources [The ‘Leshem’ and others] teach that despite the wickedness of Laban / Lavan---Rachel and Leah’s father---who was notorious for being the world’s most deceptive person , nevertheless, on the root level—in the supernal worlds---which are above and beyond any negativity at all-----on that level he has a very elevated and holy Soul……and if he could somehow be persuaded to utilize his free will properly ---- and activate his good inclinational powers----then the goodness that he could impact on the world would be awesome---even above and beyond the levels of the greatest Tzadikim….this principle applies as well to Eisav and Pharaoh and all other very passionate and intense souls who exercise their evil inclinations and become notoriously wicked people……….in order to understand a bit better, this principle, I bring you here the following quote; “The souls inspired by the realm of Chaos are greater than the souls whose affinity is with the established order. They are very great: they seek too much from existence , what is beyond their own faculties to assimilate. They seek a very great light . they cannot bear what is limited, whatever is confined within a prescribed measure…... Their endless striving knows no bounds…..they aspire and they fall…. in despair, in anger, and anger leads to---wickedness, defiance, destruction and every other evil…..they are represented by the impudent in our generation, wicked men who are dedicated to high principles, those who transgress conventional norms defiantly rather than because of some lust…..they are engaged in destroying…..but the essence of their aspiration is a dimension of holiness…..”[R.Abraham Isaac Kook] In light of this principle, do what is in your power to redeem these fallen souls , or even the parts of your own soul that fits this description…..the idea is to provide for these souls , the proper ways, that enable them to express themselves in the best way possible….ways that allow them to unleash their mighty powers and direct these powers toward helping themselves and others to be and do their best and to connect to Hashem….. blessings, Yitzchak
Posted on: Wed, 06 Nov 2013 07:03:52 +0000
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