By Ariel Ben Avraham. The unity of Israel as Jacob’s family and as a Nation is the main message of Vayechi, and we must have full awareness of the qualities of this unity. Let’s reflect on some verses that help us define such qualities. “And Israel said to Joseph: ‘I did not think possible to see you face; and, lo, God has let me see your seed also.'” (Genesis 48:11)
Our Sages ponder on the meaning of the Hebrew verb translated here as “to think possible”, which refers to praying. Although, “to pray” is a reflexive verb in Hebrew, in this verse is not conjugated as reflexive and may indicate an incomplete thought due to Jacob’s sadness for Joseph’s disappearance. This brief preamble takes us to consider the wholeness implied in the Hebrew reflexive form of praying. Our Sages teach that as our concentration in elevating all levels of consciousness to God, prayer replaces the offerings that our ancestors elevated in the Temple of Jerusalem. Still, why is it a reflective action and not one directed to Him? It must be reflective because, by engaging together all aspects and dimensions of consciousness towards His Love, we (think possible to) achieve our connection, unity and Oneness with Him. Therefore, Jewish prayer is about engaging oneself togetherwith the Creator, and not a method to summon Him to grant us what we may need, want to require for our personal well being.
Jacob was concerned and worried that their children may not come together and united around him and his legacy (Israel as God’s People), and our oral tradition tells that all his sons together declared to him, “Listen, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One” to demonstrate that they were aware of the true meaning of unity. He called them commanding them to be united: “And Jacob called unto his sons, and said: ‘Gather yourselves together (…). Assemble yourselves, and hear, you sons of Jacob; and hearken to Israel your father.” (49:1-2) and this demand is the premise, the condition, the prerequisite, the provision for them to receive his blessings. Hence our Sages conclude that the blessing for each Tribe is also the blessing to all of them. We have to reiterate that the Tribes of Israel in the same way represent traits and qualities of human consciousness, and defined to achieve God’s Will in who we are and what we do. We said in previous commentaries that Joseph became the Firstborn, Levi the Priesthood, and Judah the Kingship, as the threefold paradigm of Israel while the rest of the brothers are contributing aspects to it.
In our consciousness this paradigm encompasses intellect, mind, thoughts, emotions, passions and instincts along with talents, skills, traits and qualities aimed to enrich the diversity that life is. The variety we see in the material world inspires us to be as diverse as creative in the common mission to proclaim God’s Presence as His Love manifest in His Creation. In this sense God’s Love, as our true Essence and identity, is Israel’s paradigm to be enthroned as the leading and commanding Ruler of who we are, what we have and what we do. Thus Love’s ways and attributes are the only means to achieve unity in our consciousness as individuals, and consequently unity as a collective in the material world. In our praying we evoke God’s Love by elevating our Love to Him, and when both Loves unite we are ready to proclaim His Glory which covers the Earth. In this awareness we go out into the world to fulfill our mission to unify what is separated, to fix what is broken, to rectify the mistake, to heal what is ill, to ease what is burdensome, to untie the tied, to free the captive, to empower the weak, to educate the ignorant, to gather the exiled. We do all these through the unity that Love is.
Jacob blessed the goodness of who we are and the goodness that we can become, and his blessings are such that they also refer to the negative traits that threaten goodness as our common and final purpose: “(…) instruments of violence are their weapons. Let my soul not come into their council; unto their assembly let my glory not be united; for in their anger they slew men, and in their self-will they hamstrung oxen. Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce, and their wrath because it is cruel (…).” (49:5-7) We have said often that Love does not cohabit with anything different than its ways and attributes. Wrath and anger are inherent to violence. God’s Love as the banner and Soul of Israel can’t associate with the negative aspects of consciousness. Love’s glory doesn’t unite or gather with the traits aimed to destroy God’s Love as the Essence of His Creation, and our Love as human beings created in His image and likeness.
Our Sages remark that the letter zayin (which also means armament) does not appear in any of the words in Jacob’s blessing to Judah, because in his mission to proclaim God’s Sovereignty in the world we Jews don’t need weapons; neither Love needs them to bestow the blessings of God’s Love. Our Patriarch Jacob commands us to pursue unity in order to fulfill our mission as the Jewish people, and also teaches us that our Love is what unifies us to enthrone God’s Presence in our individual consciousness as well as in the entire world.
The last four portions of Genesis start with Joseph and end with him: “These are the generations of Jacob: Joseph (…) ” (37:2) and “Joseph died at the age of one hundred ten years (…)” (50:26) closing the first book of the Torah with the Firstborn and inheritor of Israel’s legacy as the paradigm of God’s Love manifest in human consciousness. Fourteen chapters that teach us through Joseph the qualities of the greatest blessing of the Creator for us: His Love.
- Haifa, Southern Galilee, Israel
- Ariel Ben Avraham (f. Zapata) was born in Cartagena, Colombia in 1958. After studying Cultural Anthropology in Bogotá moved to Chicago in 1984 where he worked as a television writer, reporter and producer for 18 years. In the 1990’s he produced video documentaries related to art, music, history and culture such as “Latin American Trails: Guatemala” distributed by Facets.org. Most of his life he studied ancient spiritual traditions and mysticism of major religions, understanding the mystic experience as the individual means to connect with Divinity. Since 2004 he studies and writes about Jewish mysticism and spirituality mainly derived from the Chassidic tradition, and the practical philosophy of the teachings of Jewish mystic Sages. The book “God as Love” is the compilation of his last years studying and learning Jewish mysticism, and the messages of the book are part of the content, exercises and processes of a series of seminars, lectures and retreats that he facilitates in Israel.
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By Ariel Ben Avraham. The unity of Israel as Jacob’s family and as a Nation is the main message of Vayechi, and we must have full awareness of the qualities of this unity. Let’s reflect on some verses that help us define such qualities. “And Israel said to Joseph: ‘I did not think possible to see you face; and, lo, God has let me see your seed also.'” (Genesis 48:11)
