Parshas Vayeitzei-Torah Or-Selected Teachings[1]

Mamar “Veshavti Beshalom El Beis Avi”

1. Veshavti Beshalom El Beis Avi:[2]

A. The meaning of a stone becoming the house of G-d:

The question: On Yaakov’s journey to Charan, he famously fell asleep on a stone which he made

into a monument and promised that on his return journey he would make it into a house of G-d. This, however, was contingent on returning peacefully back to the home of his father, and on the fact that Havayah will become for him Elokim. It remains to be understood the meaning behind this monument, as well as the general purpose and meaning behind the stones to begin with.

Stones represent Divine letters of creation: So, stones actually represent the letters of the Hebrew alphabet, as just like stones are inanimate and cannot move, but nonetheless can be used to build homes and buildings, so too the letters are in essence inanimate and meaningless but can be used to create words, sentences, paragraphs, and documents of information. Now, the letters being referenced to by the stones in the story of Yaakov are the actual letters that G-d used for creation. These Divine letters each individually contain a glimmer of G-dliness which have been contracted and transformed into the limited form of revelation of that letter. All creations are created from a combination of Divine letters that create a word which is the name of that creation, and contains a combination of G-dly revelations which, when mixed together, create that specific creature. Amongst the Sefiros, the letters used for creation are found in Malchus. Nonetheless, just as a stone is considered the lowest level of the four hierarchies of creation, in the order of inanimate, vegetation, animal kingdom, human race, so too, the divine letters are considered of the lowest level, as they are a mere glimmer of G-dliness and incomparable to the infinite revelation of G-d.

Yaakov desired to elevate the letters of creation back to their infinite source: The function of Yaakov, and his purpose in making the monument of the stones, represented taking the individual glimmers of G-dliness found in the creations, that are so distanced from their source in the infinite, and elevate them back to their infinite source. Specifically, he desired to elevate the letters which are sourced in Malchus, to the Sefira of Chochmah of Atzilus. Thus, he took many stones and turned them into a single stone which represents the letter Yud which is Chochmah. He then turned this into a monument which represents the drawing down of Chochmah into the Sefiros, which is represented by the shape of a monument which is made in the shape of the letter Vav.

Yaakov desired to make our Mitzvos effective: In essence, what he was trying to accomplish is that our fulfillment of Mitzvos with physical objects should be able to draw down the infant level of G-dliness from Chochmah, despite them involving items created from a mere ray of G-dliness found in their letters of creation. This is likewise the meaning behind the pouring of oil over the monument, as oil represents Chochmah, and Yaakov desired to draw down from the light of Chochmah, into our fulfillment of Mitzvos.

Yaakov desired that the Torah now should be just like it was by Har Sinai: In addition, Yaakov was trying to accomplish that our Torah learning should contain that same level of holiness and G-dliness similar to the way it was when it was given on Mount Sinai, with fear and trepidation with the revelation of Chochma of Atzilus.

B. The function of Yaakov:

The name Yaakov is made up of the word Yud Eikev. This represents drawing down G-dliness from the level of supernal wisdom represented in the Yud [i.e. Chochma Ilah], and drawing it down to the lowest of levels, all the way to the heel. To take the G-dliness represented in the holy city of Ber Shiva and draw it down to the low city of Charan. This is also hinted to in the verse “Tzavei Yeshuos Yaakov,” which means that the level of Yaakov connects Yeshuos, which represents the 370 supernal rivers of G-dliness, to the level of Eikev, the heel. You see, the level of Charan represents a creation, in which the G-dliness which descended to it through a sophisticated descent and transformation, has made it appear completely separate from G-d. The function of Yaakov is to elevate this now appeared separated level, back to G-d. He desired that also the lowest of levels consciously feel, and have revealed, the unification and nullification to G-d just like above. When this is accomplished, then the level of Charan turns into Rina, which means praise of G-d.

C. The purpose of creation and the descent of Divinity to below:

The entire purpose and intent of the chain like descent of the light of G-d to the lowest and darkest of places, which act and feel separate from Him, is for the purpose that man come along and turn darkness into light through the service of Iskafya and Is’hapcha. This function is to take all of the bad character traits and emotions that are involved in the desire for evil and the forbidden, and channel them for desiring good, that they only be involved in G-d’s will and be nullified completely to it. For example, the passionate and fiery love that he has for the nonsense of this world should be turned into a passion fiery love to attach to G-d and to do His will. Likewise, one’s potential feelings of rage and anger that he has within him should be channeled only towards use for a G-dly purpose.

D. The Divine pleasure of the future era:

The great pleasure that is derived from the Divine service of Iskafya and Ishpacha will be revealed in the future when there is no longer any evil upon the earth. There will no longer be any darkness, or need for refinement and elevation of sparks, as it is today. We will no longer have good times and bad times, occasions of happiness and occasions of tragedy, but rather the entire world will forever be filled with the revelation of the light of G-d, His unification. All creations will then be filled with nullification to Him as it is in the upper world of Atzilus where G-d’s light is united with His vessels. While today we experience Yeish Meayin, in which creations are separated from their source in G-dliness and feel themselves as an independent existence, in the future it will be the opposite, that the independent existence will feel nullified, Miyeish Leayin. At that point, the great supernal pleasure will be revealed in the form of the infinite light of G-d. This level corresponds to the seventh day, Shabbos, which is the sabbatical of the world when the world will eternally rest and enjoy the pleasure created from the refinement and elevations affected throughout the 6000 years of the world’s existence.

Biur on Mamar “Veshavti Beshalom El Beis Avi”

2. Biur on Veshavti Beshalom El Beis Avi:[3]

1. Yaakov reveals G-dliness into the soul of every Jew:

The infinite light of G-d is elevated above and beyond the spiritual world and soul of man. It is through the divine service of Yaakov, Yud Eikev, that the infinite light of G-d is drawn from above the world’s so that it shine within the worlds and be revealed within the soul so that there be a revelation of G-dliness within the soul of every single Jew.

1. G-dliness can only reside on that which is nullified to Him:

The infinite light of G-d can only reside and become revealed within one who is nullified to Him. This is the meaning behind the rock being placed under the head of Jacob, as it represents absolute nullification which can draw down the infinite light.

1. The soul is a creation that needs elevation:

The G-dly soul of a Jew is a creation that has been renewed from nothing to something through the letters of speech of creation. [Although the G-dly soul originates from G-dliness and contains a G-dly quality, nonetheless, it goes through a transformation to become its own independent being which is separate from G-d. It is this level of soul that is invested within the Jew’s body.] The job of a Jew throughout his life is to elevate the soul from below to above to the infinite light of G-d, to the level of Soveiv Kol Almin.

Hagaha – Gloss

3. Hagaha- Gloss:[4]

1. Learning Torah with fear and trepidation just like it was given on Sinai:

One’s study of Torah is to be motivated by the desire to drawn down supernal wisdom onto his soul and to then be successful in performing Iskafya and Is’hapcha as a result of this revelation. When one studies Torah with this type of motivation, he is also able to accomplish that his study of Torah be with fear and trepidation. Our sages state that one’s study of Torah should be with the same level of fear and trepidation just as it was when it was given to us on Mount Sinai. Now, how does one accomplish this? On Mount Sinai the Torah was given with loud thunder and lightning and was given from the actual mouth of G-d which initiated and aroused trepidation within a person’s heart. How can this be replicated when a person learns Torah on his own? This can be accomplished through studying Torah with the above knowledge that his Torah study draws down that same level of supernal wisdom as was drawn when the Torah was given.

1. The refinement and nullification of the world in the future era:

In the future, the side of evil will cease to exist and there will no longer be any nurture and sustenance for the side of evil. The physical world and all of its coarse compartments will become refined from its feeling of self and independence from G-d. At that time, everything will be incorporated within G-dliness, within the level of Ayin. This indeed was the entire purpose of the worlds creation from nothing to something, to transform it back from something to nothing and make this home a house for G-d.   

1. The infinite elevations that will be experienced in the future era:

The experience in the future era, in the times of the Messiah and resurrection, will be nothing near boring. There will be constant elevations from one level to the next, Sabbaticals and Jubilees, and every elevation will be to a higher level than the previous.

1. Nullification is necessary prior to being elevated to a higher level:

In order for one to experience a completely new and higher level and quality of G-dliness one must go through a phase of nullification and self-effacement. For example, for the spiritual world of Assiya to be elevated to the world of Yetzira, it must go through the attribute of Keser of Assiya. Keser comes from the term “quietness,” and quietness represents nullification. Through this nullification the spiritual world of Assiya is then able to be elevated to the world of Yetzira. This is the function of the elevator that exists between the lower garden of Eden and the higher garden of Eden, its function is to cause the soul to forget all of its previous levels and go through a stage of nullification so it can then be elevated to a higher level. This is also similar to the stage of deterioration that a seed goes through upon being planted, in order so a plant be able to grow. In order for this completely new creation of a plant to come into being, its seed must go through a state of nullification. This is also the meaning behind the statement of our sages that in the future era, in the seventh millennium, there will be a thousand years of destruction. [This is not G-d forbid to be taken literally, as on the contrary, in the seventh millennium we will receive our greatest reward, rather its meaning is] that in the seventh millennium we will go through stages of nullification in order to be able to be elevated to a higher spiritual level and G-dly experience that is on a completely different essence than anything previously experienced.

• The divine lesson: Just as the economy goes through times of recession so too in our life we experience times of failure, and ruin, whether it be due to illness or health complications, loss of a job, loss of money, loss of a relationship, or simply an unexplainable state of depression etc. etc. It is often quite difficult to get back up after these downward spirals and it is quite easy to get stuck in the gutter of sadness and depression. The above teaching gives us another perspective moving forward: In order to grow and achieve a much higher and incomparably greater life experience, we sometimes need to go through a stage of emptiness and lack of fulfillment from life. This is similar to a reset button which can then allow a person to rebuild his life, and garner new direction which he never would’ve thought of doing if not for the blow that his life has taken. This is the concept of a descent for the sake of an ascent and is similar to the emptiness that the soul must experience prior to being brought to a higher level. It’s interesting to note that a midlife crisis is a common phenomenon for people in their 40s. This is caused due to psychological and emotional changes and is not necessarily due to any major change in one’s quality of life. A midlife crisis is often seen as a period of self-reflection, questioning, and emotional turmoil. Seemingly, Hashem embedded this experience within our years of middle adulthood in order to give us a chance to press the restart button, and try something new that will bring us to much higher experiences and accomplishments then we could’ve ever imagined prior, and would have never attempted if we did not go through this stage of depression.

2^nd Mamar “Ulelavan Shtei Banos”

4. Ulelavan Shtei Banos:^[5]

See Volume 1 of our Chassidishe Parsha Torah Or Series under Parsha Vayeitzei where we covered the following matters of this Mamar in detail:

1. The two levels of Leah and Rachel
2. The two revelations in Eretz Yisrael
3. The revelation of Rachel-Prophecy and Ruach Hakodesh
4. The revelation of Leah-Increase in G-dly wisdom
5. Why Yaakov loved Rachel more than Leah
6. The generation of the Midbar and the sin of the Meraglim-Level of Leah
7. The level of Lavan
8. Why Rachel was barren
9. The six children of Leah
10. One must incorporate both levels of Rachel and Leah in his Avodas Hashem

3rd Mamar “Im Lo Teidi Lecha Hayafeh Benashim”

5. Im Lo Teidi Lecha Hayafeh Benashim:^[6]

1. The meaning of Rachels beauty:

Scripture describes the beauty of the matriarch Rachel stating that she had a beautiful figure and beautiful appearance. This beauty is not just physical but also spiritual. Having a beautiful figure corresponds to having most refined character traits and hence scripture is stating that Rachel had perfection of her character traits similar to the attributes that exist above in heaven. Now, the mystical correspondence of Rachel is the general souls of Israel known as Kneses Yisrael. Accordingly, Scripture is describing the greatness and beauty of the general souls of Israel. The above only explains the description of beautiful figure, however also the description of beautiful appearance has mystical meaning. The appearance of one’s beauty is on the face. The face represents internalization, Panim and Penimiyus. Mystically, this corresponds to the general souls of Israel receiving from the internal part of G-dliness.

1. The mystical meaning behind Yaakov’s flock of sheep:

Yaakov’s work as a shepherd in flocking his herd of sheep corresponded to the spiritual service of Torah and Mitzvah fulfillment. The term Tzoan, which means sheep in Hebrew, comes from the word Tzei, or leave. This refers to something that is rare and above the norm and corresponds to the level of G-dliness that is above the worlds. These sheep were the sheep of Lavan which means white in Hebrew and represents the level that is above Atzilus. Our forefather Yaakov had the ability to draw down through his spiritual service the same level of G-dliness that today we draw through the fulfillment of Torah and Mitzvah’s, which was yet to be given in his time. This is also the meaning behind scriptures statement that Yaakov’s flock became very abundant, as he was able to draw down from very high levels, one level higher than the other, within the infinite light of G-d. This capability of Yaakov to draw down the infinite light of G-d through his service with his sheep and through his service of arranging the staff’s and digging of the wells, was due to the fact that he was a chariot for G-d and hence was personally on a very high level. However, we his descendants are incapable of drawing down the infinite light of G-d through our own mundane actions and rather must observe the Torah and Mitzvah’s in order to draw it down. The Mitzvah’s of the Torah have been prepared by G-d for the drawing down of G-dliness and do not require the person fulfilling them to be on any high spiritual level.

From the Torah of the Maggid

5. The beauty of Rachel Imeinu:^[7]

The verse states that when Yaakov Avinu saw Rachel he ran towards her and kissed her. The Midrash states that Yaakov intended to attach himself to her beauty. Knowing the great spiritual level of Yaakov Avinu, it seems strange that Yaakov would act in such a way, chasing after physical beauty in such an aggressive fashion. The true meaning of the Midrash is as follows: Yaakov Avinu knew that all physical beauty below in this world is a reflection of spiritual beauty above in the upper worlds. Rachel’s physical beauty was a reflection of the Sefira [of Tifers]. When Yaakov saw her physical beauty, he ran towards her to attach to her spiritual counterpart [of Tiferes] from which she derived.

From the Torah of the Baal Shem Tov

6. Hashem brings sparks to the person:^[8]

Every person is given a task in this world to elevate and refine a certain number of Divine sparks for the sake of service of G-d. Sometimes, one is required to travel to far off places to accomplish this refinement. At other times, Hashem gathers the sparks to the area of one’s location. This is the meaning of that Hashem folded Eretz Yisrael under Yaakov Avinu, as e gathered all the sparks under Yaakov in order so he does not need to travel from place to place. This is likewise the meaning behind the verse “And Noach found favor/Chen in the eyes of Hashem.” Chen refers to the sparks found in Kelipas Noga. Noach found the sparks that he needed to refine in the area that he lived. This is the inner meaning of the statement of Chazal^[9] “Chen Makom Al Yoshvav” that the Divine sparks neede to be elevated are found in the area of one’s dwelling.

The Divine lesson: Sometimes we find ourselves living in locations that we are not the most happy with, and our minds begin to stroll to think about other places and how the grass is greener on the other side. In truth, however, perhaps our Divine mission needs to be accomplished specifically in this location. This does not mean that one can never ponder moving, especially if he has justifiable reasons for the move which may itself be a sign that his mission has completed, but rather that he should weigh it carefully, and likewise understand that if Providence does not allow him to move, it is because his mission belongs specifically there.

[1] Torah Or 21a-24a

[2] Torah Or 21a-b

[3] Torah Or 21a-b

[4] Torah Or 22a-b

[5] Torah Or 22b-23a

[6] Torah Or 23a-b

[7] Or Torah [Maggid] 18

[8] Keser Shem Tov 15

[9] Sotah 47a

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