The Verses recount: “That very night he arose, and took his two wives, his two maidservants, and his eleven children, he crossed the ford of the Yabok. He took them then across the river, as well as all his possessions.” [Bereshis 32:23-24] The Verses seem to provide a mystical message as nothing makes much sense. “That very night” it is an expression usually used for very well-known events. Hence, that definition is found referring the night of the exodus, or the night of Tisha Beav. However, to which important night is it referring to here? Additionally, calling his wives maidservants is pejorative, as once Yaakov married them, they became full-fledged wives. It is then forbidden to refer to them by their previous standing. The proof is found in the next few words “his eleven children”, they all had the same status. A little bit further, the same disparaging attitude is exhibited. The Verses state: “Looking up, Yaakov saw Eisav coming, accompanied by four hundred men. He divided the children among Leah, Rachel, and the two maids, putting the maids and their children first, Leah and her children next, and Rachel and Joseph last.” [33:1-2] How is it coherent that Yaakov shows such disregard to the Halacha by putting the maidservant’s children in harm’s way? The Shulchan Aruch [Y.D 157:1] gathers; “even if enemies request us to send one of ours to kill and will spare the others otherwise they will kill all of us, it is forbidden to abide.” The reason being: “A soul cannot be repelled for the benefit of other souls.” In other words, the value of each soul is only known to Hashem, hence, we cannot sacrifice one soul even for the good of many. Furthermore, the Talmud [Shabbos 10b] forbids a father to show preference to one of his children, as by Yaakov giving Yosef a better clothing, it infuriated the brothers and the Jews ended up in Egypt. So, by putting the maidservants’ children in harm’s way, there is no greater expression to his difference of love for them. The Zohar explains the clues in these Verses. It is obvious that Yaakov did not disparage towards any of his children, they were all an integral part of the holy 12 tribes. The word “maidservant” in Hebrew can also be read as “the lesser”. Meaning; there are 3 categories in Bnei Yisrael, those who work for a living, those who learn the Oral Torah and those who learn the Torah’s secrets known as Kabbala. Those who work are more exposed to the dangers of life, hence, he had to pray for them first to save them from Eisav’s temptations and for them to be successful in their businesses, so they are able to give Tzedakah to also deserve the Olam Haba. Those who learn Oral Torah are less exposed to life’s temptations, as the Oral Torah protects them. However, they are still not immune to impulses as they are only partaking in the outer shell of the Torah, hence Yaakov prayed for them in second. Thus, those learning the Torah’s secrets, which are mostly immune to evil inclinations as they understand how the world works and the consequence of their actions, therefore Yaakov prayed for them last. What comes out is the very opposite of the literal explanation. The Megaleh Amukos, who was a Saint Kabbalist in the 18th century, teaches us that the night Yaakov crossed the river was the night of Chanukah. The simple fact to kindle the light of the Menorah has tremendous reverberations in the above worlds. It unleashes the Divine light upon for 8 days at the time of kindling for half an hour. The same way Yaakov was able to overpower Eisav’s angel with the merit of this light, it is also our opportunity to extract ourselves from the dark tunnel life has put us in. This is the most opportune time to choose a better life. This teaches us a great lesson, to not judge on appearance as it is always very deceiving. What seems to be is almost never what it is, as it proved by the above Verses. The Zohar revealed how much further we can be from the truth by being judgmental. The question is; when are we going to learn that lesson? Hereafter is a beautiful story that embodies the Parasha’s message: Two carts clattered along the dusty road. Inside one sat Rabbi Meir Margulies, known for his scholarly works called Meir Netivim. In the other sat Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov, whose fame as a man of G-d was just beginning to spread. Curious to get to know the mysterious man about whom so much had been said, Rabbi Meir asked the Baal Shem Tov to disembark so that they could speak. “They say you can perform miracles and can even read people’s minds,” he began. “Is that true?” “Well, I’ll just tell you this,” replied the Baal Shem Tov. “When you were praying this past Shabbat, you accidentally chanted the weekday blessings instead of the special insert for Shabbat.” “Yes, it’s true!” replied Rabbi Meir in amazement. “Now, please tell me what I can possibly do to correct this lack.” The Baal Shem Tov advised him to carefully scrutinize his deeds and think thoughts of remorse, the standard course of correction for such an error. “Rebbe,” said Rabbi Meir. “I know about those remedies. I was looking for something more . . .” “In that case,” replied the Baal Shem Tov, “you should be sure to be patient in judgment.” With that, the two men returned to their respective carts, and they were off. As the spiritual leader of a large region, Rabbi Meir made a point to travel through every Jewish town and hamlet in the area at least once a year. Upon his arrival in a rural community, the villagers asked the rabbi to help them solve a weighty problem that had torn their tight-knit group apart. “You see,” explained one of the elders, “there is a young man who lives a ways out of town. None of us know who he is or where he comes from. He dresses all fancy, like a non-Jewish prince, and operates a tavern. One day, one of our men asked his wife to go pick up some vodka at the tavern. She took her time in returning. Things seemed just a bit suspicious, and rumors began to swirl that she and the tavernkeeper were up to no good.” After listening to the accounts of various villagers, the rabbi determined that the situation did seem suspicious, and called the tavernkeeper to appear before him. Sure enough, the young man soon swaggered in, decked out in colorful silks and furs. Yet despite the accusations of the villagers, the man steadfastly maintained his innocence. Unable to conclusively rule on the matter, Rabbi Meir left the village, feeling uneasy about the entire affair. As he traveled along, he came upon the Baal Shem Tov once again. He stopped his horses and asked the Baal Shem Tov to do the same. Sitting in the Baal Shem Tov’s cart, Rabbi Meir recounted the chain of events that he had just encountered. “Did I not tell you to be patient in judgment?” the Baal Shem Tov chided him. “You should know that in every generation there are 36 righteous people in whose merit the entire world stands. That tavernkeeper is the greatest of them all.” Rabbi Meir immediately climbed into his cart and asked his driver to return to the village so that he could personally beg the young man for forgiveness. But it was too late. The mysterious man was already gone without a trace. All Rabbi Meir could do was share the Baal Shem Tov’s words with the villagers, thus restoring the tavernkeeper’s good name.

By Rabbi Fridmann * [email protected] * 305.985.3461

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