Write something...The Me’aras HaMachpeilah Symbolizes the True Depth of Jewish Marriage It seems strange that Kiddushin, the tractate of the Talmud that discusses the laws of marriage, begins by comparing the parallel wording of the Torah verse concerning marriage and the verse concerning Avraham Avinu’s purchase of the Me’aras HaMachpeilah as a gravesite for his wife Sarah. We would expect Kiddushin to open on a joyful note; however, it begins by pondering the legal ramifications of the purchase of a cemetery. What kind of favorable omen is the grave? To understand the auspicious significance of the Me’aras HaMachpeilah we must go back in time to the first couple to be buried there: Adam and Chavah, the first two human beings. Hashem created Man as a dual being: That being was both male and female, and remained that way until Hashem separated the male side from the female, forming the male into Adam and the female into Chavah. Hashem then brought Chavah to Adam and prepared them for their wedding. What happened to Adam and Chavah is not unique; it happens to every couple. Before a child is conceived, a dual neshamah in Heaven is divided in two. One half is formed into a male soul, the other half into a female soul. The two souls are then sent down to this world where they are conceived by two women one of whom bears a boy baby and the other a girl baby. When the right time comes, the two parts of that neshamah find each other and there is a reunion of souls. Superficially it seems as if their marriage is merely the decision of two people to spend their lives together, but really, they are two halves of the same neshamah and naturally belong together. Legally, a woman is considered single when her husband dies and she can remarry. However, a true marriage outlasts a lifetime. Because they are the two parts of one soul, the husband and wife will remain united even after the demise of their bodies. The Avos were very particular that they be buried along with their wives in the Me’aras HaMachpeilah because they understood that their marital bond would extend forever. In fact, immediately following the narrative of Avraham Avinu’s purchase of the Me’aras HaMachpeilah, the Torah records the circumstances leading up to Yitzchak’s marriage to Rivkah. It is the only shidduch discussed in detail in the Torah and, if we study this parashah carefully, it teaches us the proper mind-set and approach with which to seek a shidduch for oneself and for one’s children. The desire of the Avos and Imahos to be interred with their spouses in the Me’aras HaMachpeilah symbolizes that the Jewish marital bond is eternal; it is therefore a very auspicious theme with which to begin tractate Kiddushin. Source: Chaya Sarah Shiurim emunas/prodtype.asp?strPageHistory=category&numSearchStartRecord=0&strParents=138,140,140,140,140,140,140,140,140,140,140,140,140,140,140&CAT_ID=140 This essay is from the section on Mearas HaMachpelah from the upcoming Sefer on Kedushas Eretz Yisrael midnightrabbispiritualguide.wordpress/2013/10/24/dont-be-late-for-the-first-date/
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 07:17:37 +0000
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