Commentary by Ariel Ben Avraham of Safed, Israel. Art by Phillip Ratner Ratnermuseum “And Jacob went out (vayeitzei) from Beer Sheba, and he went to Haran.” (28:10). Our Sages say that Jacob dwelled in the tents of Eber for 14 years before going to Haran, and during that time he immersed in Torah study far from the material illusions of the world represented by Haran (lit. “wrath”) and Laban his uncle and future father in law. In this time of study Jacob prepared himself to “descend” into the domains of his uncle, whom mystic Sages consider as the Deceiver himself. We know that in the realm of illusions, everything is deceiving for the fact that it is all an illusion derived from materialism. In this context, the mission of Israel (Jacob) is to clear the darkness of illusions with the Light of the Torah, Love’s ways and attributes.
Jacob is indeed ready to execute the birthright, the Divine priesthood despised by his brother Esau, and it begins by establishing the permanent connection with the Creator in His place (the Temple of Jerusalem) which represents our highest level of awareness of Divine Love: “And he arrived (reached) at the place, (…) and he lay down in that place.” (28:11), and “(…) behold! A ladder set up on the Earth, and the top of it reached to Heaven; and behold the angels of G-d ascending and descending on it.” (28:12). This is the connection that makes us aware of the Unity with our Creator, and the angels as the messengers of Love’s ways and attributes, the ones that fulfill G-d’s will when we allow ourselves to be the vessels of His blessings: “(…) the Land upon which you are lying to you I will give it, and to your seed.” (28:13). The place where we connect with Him is also the Promised Land as the material manifestation of His blessings, the goodness that we can be and do in this world, because His Love is not only for us but for all His Creation: “and through you shall be blessed all the families of the Earth and through your seed.” (28:14), a true partnership in Creation with G-d: “I am with you, and I will guard you wherever you go, and I will restore you to this Land, because I will not forsake you until I have done what I have spoken to you.” (28:15). This partnership is bound to the Promised Land as the place that we share with our Father: “And he called the name of that place Bet-El (House of G-d).” (28:19), where we all yearn to live; and we can dwell in it as long as we live in the awareness of G-d’s Love. In this sense we understand what our Sages teach when they say that “G-d is the place of His world, but His world is not His place”: His Love is “the place” that pervades His Creation and sustains it.
We have mentioned many times in this blog that everything emanates from the Creator and it is sustained by Him; that the entire Creation is a manifestation of His Love, and therefore we are made of His Love in order to be Love. Hence, what we are and do belong to Him and must “return” to Him as part of the dynamics of a Divine Plan that yet we can’t comprehend, neither His Essence. In this dynamics we understand the meaning of tithing to Him: “and everything that You give me, I will surely tithe to You.” (28:22). Our Sages teach that the tithes to the Temple are the means to elevate our souls to Divine Love by doing what it is sacred for Him in our lives (this is how we “sacrifice” for Him), and after the destruction of the Temple we tithe by giving to those who are in need. In sum, we are in this world to give from what G-d’s Love has given us and still gives us in every breath we take, and this is how we rectify the world (tikkun olam) by this Commandment: “and you shall love your neighbor as yourself, (because) I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 18:19), indeed everything is about G-d’s Love.
At this point in the parshah we realize that Jacob’s continuous dwelling in the House of G-d, His place and His Promised Land is not only G-d’s will but also His Commandment. Before a permanent settling, Jacob first had to face the perils of the illusions of the material world and clear his way to raise a family amid the darkness of the negative aspects of consciousness where his future wives lived. As we said earlier, this is Israel’s mission as the Chosen People: to reveal, proclaim and manifest G-d’s Love amid the darkness of gross materialism. Jacob recognized the Light concealed in the darkness, and knew how to reveal it: “when Jacob saw Rachel, the daughter of Laban his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother’s brother, that Jacob went near and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother” (Genesis 29:10). Three times Laban’s name is mentioned in relation to his sister Rebecca, Jacob’s mother. We can infer from this repetition that as Rebecca was redeemed from the darkness of her brother’s household, Laban’s daughters also would be redeemed by Jacob’s diligent labor dealing with Laban’s domains.
Mystic Sages comment on the complexities of the interaction between Light and darkness, because it is not an easy matter to deal with ego’s materialistic fantasies in a world where illusions are the references related to life. The Truth, Love, is concealed behind the darkness of ego’s sense of lack in all levels of consciousness, including mind, emotions, feelings, passions and instincts. When these are under the rule of ego’s negative desires, and not under Love’s ways and attributes, life and the world can become the hell that already is for many people. Jacob had to confront the jealousy and rivalry of his wives, the greed and wickedness of his father in law, and the negative emotions that we must redirect into the paths of G-d’s Love. Children came into this state of affairs, and Jacob’s endeavor became more difficult and challenging to make his offspring the adequate vessels for G-d’s promised blessings. This is not a quest for “perfection” but a road to turn our individual and collective circumstances into a dwelling place for the Love that made us and the Love that we are.
From the passages of Jacob’s relationship with Laban we learn that the deceit of material illusions fades before the Truth that Love is: “(…) ‘I see your father’s countenance (Laban’s), that it is not toward me as before time; but the G-d of my father has been with me.” (31:5), and as Leah and Rachel said to Jacob: “(…) all the wealth that G-d separated from our father is ours and our children’s. So now, all that G-d said to you, do.” (31:16). The portion ends confirming that Divine Love dwells with us when we dwell in His Promised Land: “And Jacob went on his way, and the angels of G-d met him. And Jacob said when he saw them: ‘This is G-d’s camp.’ And he called the name of that place Mahanaim.” (32:1-2).
