Printable PDF available here. Previous years’ pieces on Vayishlach are available here and here.

Rav Kook (Ein Ayah, Gemara Shabbat 33b)

“And Ya’akov came intact (lit. שלם) to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Paddan-aram.” This means that he was complete in his body, complete in his money, and complete in his Torah.” (Gemara Shabbat 33b)

“And he graced (lit. ויחן) the countenance of the city.” Rav said that Ya’akov established a currency for them. Shmuel said that he established marketplaces for them. And Rabbi Yoḥanan said that he established bathhouses for them. (Gemara Shabbat 33b)

Broadly speaking, human attainments can be divided into three categories – the physical body, wealth or possessions, and spiritual pursuits. Many believe that it is impossible to attain completeness in all of these different domains. A certain modicum of unity may be maintained at the outset, but this will ultimately degenerate into competition for a person’s energy and resources. For example, many people regard wealth as an intrinsic value, and sacrifice their health and wellbeing in its pursuit. Additionally, it is claimed, the ethical values proclaimed by the world of the spirit impinge on the world of the body and the pursuit of possessions.

However, this sense of conflict comes from a constricted and superficial way of perceiving the world. When understood properly, every domain of human completeness is reinforced and vivified by the others. The higher realm of the spirit can only find full expression through a healthy and vigorous body. Its realization also requires a mature society with a well-developed sense of interdependence, which is facilitated by economic activity and the pursuit of wealth.

It was Ya’akov’s essential mission to proclaim this integrated, unified conception of life. In the wake of his lonely confrontation with a mysterious stranger in the dead of night, he returned to Shechem “intact” – which our Sages interpret as referring to completeness in all three domains. Ya’akov’s body was intact and healed from its prior limp. His wealth was not diminished by his gifts to Esav. And his spiritual attainments were not harmed by the harmful environment of his devious father-in-law, Lavan.

To live this vision was the destiny of Ya’akov and remains the mission of the nation that he established. As Jeremiah declared “Every man is brutish without knowledge; every smith is put to shame by his graven image, for his molten images are false, without spirit in them. They are vanity, a work of delusion; at the time of their visitation they shall perish. Not like these is Ya’akov’s portion, for He is the One Who formed everything, and Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; the Master of Legions (אלקי צבאות) is His name.” G-d, the Creator of all aspects of reality, summons us to seek out the goodness in all aspects of existence and join them together into a harmonious whole, into a legion (צבאות) of holiness for His service.

Rav Kook (Orot haMilchamah 3, transl. by Bezalel Naor)

We left world politics by force of circumstance that nevertheless contains an inner volition, until a fortunate time will come, when it will be possible to conduct a nation without wickedness and barbarism – this is the time we hope for. It is understood that in order to achieve this, we must awaken with all of our powers to use all the means that time makes available – all is conducted by the hand of G-d, Creator of all worlds. However, the delay is a necessary one; we were repulsed by the awful sins of conducting a nation in an evil time.

Behold, the time is approaching, the world will be invigorated and we can already prepare ourselves, for it will already be possible for us to conduct our national affairs by principles of good, wisdom, rectitude, and clear divine enlightenment.

Our Sages (Genesis Rabbah 75:4; Deuteronomy Rabbah 1:20) teach that “Jacob sent to Esau the royal purple.” [The royal purple is symbolic of dominion. Jacob’s sending it to Esau is an expression of Judaism temporarily relinquishing political power to the Nations for the duration of the Exile. He declared “Let my master pass before his servant,” that it is not worthwhile to engage in statecraft when it must be full of blood, when it requires an ability for wickedness. We received but the foundation, enough to found a people, but once the trunk was established, we were deposed, strewn among the nations, planted in the depths of the earth, until the time of song arrives and the voice of the turtledove will be heard in our land.

Food for Thought

Rav Eliezer Berkovits (G-d, Man and History, pg. 107, 120): The spirit itself is powerless; it may act only in union with the vital or “material” forces in the cosmos. No one has ever accomplished anything by merely contemplating an idea. All conscious action is the result of some form of cooperation between the mind and the body. Matter whatever its ultimate secret without the mind is inanity; mind without matter is, at best, noble impotence. Power by itself is purposeless; purpose on its own is powerless… What the idealism of numerous religions and philosophies overlooks is that man without a body is as little to be considered human as man without a soul… [M]an is a composite being, consisting of mind and matter, of soul and body. That G-d made him that way means that he has to make sense of his He in the form in which he was granted life. Any rejection of the body is a rejection of man himself of man as G-d created him for the tasks of this world.

Kristen Nunez (6 Ways Being a Workaholic Can Take a Toll on Your Health): In a culture of side hustles and productivity hacks, workaholism is placed on a pedestal. We glorify people who multitask, skimp on sleep and get all the things done. We wear the title of “workaholic” as a badge of honor, like an initiation into a club of hard workers. Top it off with free WiFi around every corner, and workaholism is just a click away. But at what expense? Sure, work is important. Many of us need to work so we can build skills and financially support ourselves and loved ones. Work can also provide an amazing sense of fulfillment, confidence and purpose. Yet, if work is the driving force behind your every move, you might end up with a costly fee: your health…

Throughout your career, it’s normal to experience work-related stress. However, for workaholics, this type of stress becomes the norm. Toss in the mental and physical demands of frequently working, and you’ve got yourself a myriad of negative health effects. In fact, in a 2019 study in the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, researchers found a clear association between workaholism and poorer quality of life…

[For example] constant stress shakes up your gut health. You can thank the gut-brain axis (GBA), which connects the intestines and brain via the nervous system. The GBA sends signals in both directions; when one is upset, the other one is the first to know. Cortisol plays a role as well. A 2015 article in Annals of Gastroenterology explains that when cortisol acts on the brain, the brain sends signals to the gut. The result is an array of stress-related gut issues like abdominal cramps…

If you feel like you’re treading into workaholic waters, it might be time to dive toward a better work-life balance. This starts with reframing your relationship with work, creating space for other areas of life, defining more reasonable expectations and learning to accept self-care as part of your routine. The lasting impact of a life spent stressing over work is damaging, so taking steps now to correct your approach is in your best interest.

Ma’or Einayim (Parshat Vayeitzei): Ya’akov was complete in all domains of his life because he did everything, even physical matters, in accordance with the Divine will. In all of his activities, his intent was to bring out and manifest a Divine splendor. This is why we find that “Ya’akov travelled to Sukkot” immediately before he arrived ‘intact’ in Shechem. This is an allusion to the holiday of Sukkot, when we leave our permanent dwelling and enter a temporary one. On a deeper level, the mitzvah of Sukkah teaches us that we should not attribute intrinsic value to our worldly affairs, and that we should remember that this world is itself a “temporary dwelling.” The World to Come is of central importance, and so we must strive to connect everything we do in this world to the World to Come.

Questions for Discussion

1. According to Rav Kook, Ya’akov is emblematic of a harmonious, unified conception of life. Why do you think this is specifically tied to Ya’akov, as opposed to Avraham or Yitzchak?
2. See the Ma’or Einayim in “Food for Thought” above. Is he saying the same this as Rav Kook, or something slightly different?
3. How do wealth and possessions serve spiritual purposes? When and why can they be spiritually harmful?
4. Is it a mitzvah to be healthy?
5. How should Rav Kook’s teaching in the first piece above be applied on a national level?
6. Does the first piece from Rav Kook contradict the second one? Is there tension between the two?

Printable PDF available here.

Rav Kook (Otzrot HaRe’iyah, II:507)

Translation taken from Rav Chanan Morrison’s “Sapphire from the Land of Israel.”

 “Therefore, the children of Israel may not eat the displaced tendon, which is on the socket of the hip, until this day, for he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip, in the hip sinew.” (Bereishit 32:33)

What is the significance of this prohibition? Do we refrain from eating the sciatic nerve only to commemorate a mysterious wrestling match that took place thousands of years ago?

At first glance, the prohibition of gid hanasheh appears to be yet another limitation that the Torah places on eating meat. While the Torah permits the consumption of meat, it instituted a number of restrictions, such as which animals may be eaten, how they are to be slaughtered, how their blood should be handled, and so on. These regulations indicate that we may not deal with animals as we wish, without regard for their welfare. On the contrary, we have moral obligations and responsibilities towards animals.

The prohibition of gid hanasheh, however, is meant to project a broader ethical aspiration, beyond the issue of how we should treat animals. According to tradition, the stranger who fought Jacob that night was the guardian angel of Esau. Jacob’s opponent symbolized the lifestyle of the hunter, a man of violence and conquest whose prophetic blessing was that he would live by his sword. This nighttime struggle was not a private experience, a personal event in Jacob’s life. It was a vision for all times. It epitomizes our constant battle against belligerent foes who claim the right to subjugate others by virtue of their physical strength and military prowess.

This struggle appeared to Jacob in its most unadorned fashion, without any pretense of gallantry and shining swords to mask its visceral violence and naked aggression. For the truth is that all wars, no matter how ‘civilized,’ are nothing more than a brutal struggle to subdue and conquer. If there is one area in which the human race is continually advancing, it is the art of war. Methods and tools of combat constantly grow ever more sophisticated. We have progressed from primitive spears and swords to guns and canons, and onwards to modern warfare with armored tanks, fighter jets, and nuclear bombs. And yet the essence of war remains the same: one-on-one combat between two opponents. All warfare boils down to the violent struggle to overcome and subdue, where victory is achieved by felling one’s adversary.

By not eating the gid hanasheh, we demonstrate our revulsion at unprovoked aggression and violence. Just as Jacob fought Esau’s angel that night, we also oppose the cynical belief in “the right of might.” There is no legal or moral right to terrorize and subjugate those who are weaker.

While nationalism provides many benefits, in its extreme form it can descend into imperialism and fascism. Nationalism is a lofty emotion in its natural, pristine state. But if it is not directed towards the highest goal — the aspiration of universal happiness and perfection — it will end up crossing the boundaries of morality.”

We may need a strong army to defend ourselves, and we may need to slaughter animals to provide for our physical needs. But by refraining from eating the gid hanasheh, we demonstrate that our goal is not to subjugate others, whether man or beast. Even as we eat the meat of animals, we avoid the sciatic nerve that allows the body to stand upright. This is a moral sensitivity which should govern every form of interpersonal interaction, enabling all to benefit from a Divine-spirited and harmonious existence.

Food for Thought

Sefer haChinuch (Mitzvah 3): This commandment hints that although Israel will suffer many troubles in the exile by the hands of… the descendants of Esav, they should trust that they will not perish, and that their descendants and name will stand firm forever, and that their redeemer will come and redeem them from their oppressor. And in continually remembering this idea through the commandment that serves as a reminder, they will stand firm in their faith and righteousness forever. And this hint stems from the fact that that the angel who fought with Yaakov our forefather – who according to tradition (Bereshit Rabba) was the guardian angel of Esav – wished to eliminate Yaakov from the world, he and his descendants; but he could not prevail, but pained him by injuring his thigh. Likewise, Esav’s seed anguishes the seed of Yaakov; but in the end, [the latter] will be saved from them.

Aish.Com: The thigh represents Jacob’s progeny. But the injury does not represent physical oppression but spiritual sickness. Jacob’s limp alluded to the fact that although Jacob himself was spiritually perfect and incorruptible, some of his descendants would succumb to the wiles of the forces of Esau (see Sforno, Malbim, Ktav Sofer).

In a more literal sense, Jacob was injured in the thigh and made to limp as Divine punishment. He had been making plans to run away from Esau (as implied by 32:8-9) – although G-d had earlier promised to protect him (28:15). (Rashbam to 32:29.)

Zohar with Commentary of the Vilna Gaon: The gid hanasheh is a euphemism for the reproductive organ. This is the place in the body that is most prone to falling to the evil inclination and is where the Satan, the angel of Esav, has the strongest hold. Satan was the angel who wrestled with Yaakov. He found no place in Yaakovs’s body which he could overcome, because all of Yaakov’s limbs and sinews were pure due to his tremendous righteousness and observance of the mitzvot. The only place the angel could touch him was where he had at least a modicum of control. This was the area of the brit milah. In that area Yaakov had some weakness because he had married two sisters

Rabbi Alan Haber (Israel, Contemporary): This explanation [of the Sefer haChinuch] always seemed strange to me. If the mitzva is meant to encourage, then why choose something which reminds us that Jacob’s enemy managed to wound him, rather than a symbol of his eventual triumph? And also, how is a prohibition meant to help us remember something? If the gid hanasheh somehow reminds us of Jacob’s victory, then perhaps the mitzva should not be to abstain from it, but rather to specifically eat it as a reminder, just as we do with matza on Passover.

[Perhaps we can suggest as follows.] At times, just like our forefather Jacob, we will be wounded. But we will survive – not only in spite of the injury but in some sense because of it. The wound is excruciatingly painful, it is crippling, and for a time it seems as though we can barely move ahead…This is when the gid hanasheh comes and reminds us, first of all, that in the perspective of history, these setbacks – however painful they may be – are temporary (in the very next chapter, we read that Jacob’s injury was fully cured; see Rashi on 36:18). And as a mitzvah that is observed passively through the mode of shev v’al ta’aseh (sit and do nothing), it reminds us that this is also how Jacob achieved his victory… Although he fought long and hard, Jacob didn’t manage to defeat his enemy. All he was able to achieve was a stalemate – a bitter night-long struggle that wore both sides down, with no winner. In that situation, he wasn’t able to actually do anything; just to absorb the blows, and persevere. But the gid hanasheh teaches us that sometimes, when there is no action to be taken, shev v’al ta’aseh is enough. Sometimes, the key to victory is just staying where you are and refusing to be knocked down, and to keep on going without paying too much attention to the pain. After the long night of exile, the morning eventually comes. And when it does, the enemy melts away and asks for a release, which he receives only after issuing a blessing. Until then, we have to continue the struggle.

Rabbi Gideon Rothstein: At the end of Hilchot Melachim, he [Rambam] offers a mini-history of how mitzvot came into the world. Yaacov gave us gid hanasheh as well as the night-time prayer. I find it striking that both of Yaacov’s contributions focus on night, the time of uncertainty. Night is, we might note, a time when we have many fewer mitzvot that during the day, almost as if the Torah assumed we would just retreat to our homes for its duration, returning to active life with the next day. Pushing forward through such times of night, including exile, seems a theme that plays a repeat role in Yaacov’s life… Chazal see Yaacov as having worried his whole life as to whether he would be sent to Gehinnom, to post-mortem punishment for his sins; Yaacov spends twenty years struggling with Lavan and fearing Esav, finally is forced to confront his brother and is deathly uncertain as to how that will go; and, in summarizing his life to Paroh sees it as a short and unhappy life. Yaacov, in other words, lives a life where he cannot see whether he is succeeding, and spends his life uncertain as to how it will look at the end.

[This is what we commemorate through gid hanasheh.] The emphasis, though, is not our ultimate survival so much as stressing building the fortitude to follow uncertain paths with the faith and confidence that G-d will make it work out as best possible. The mitzvah of gid hanasheh, to me, then, is about watching our Father Yaacov’s life struggles and learn from them… the road may be long, lonely, and doubt-filled, but as long as we struggle conscientiously, guided by our faith and the dictates it sets out for us, we can know that we will find success and reward from our Father in Heaven.

Questions for Discussion

1. How is gid hanasheh unique as compared to other mitzvot in the Torah? As compared to other kashrut related mitzvot?
2. Which of the above explanations for gid hanasheh do you find most compelling? Why?
3. Aside from gid hanasheh(as explained by Rav Kook), where else in the parshah does the Torah deal with ethical challenges presented by warfare?
4. Commemorating the Exodus involves positive acts, like eating matzah. If gid hanasheh is meant to help us commemorate something, why is it a prohibition? Shouldn’t G-d have commanded us to eat the gid hanasheh?

Before Ya’akov confronted Esav, he declared to God that “I have become diminished by all of the kindness and the truth that you have performed for your servant.” [1] From here, our Sages teach [2] that a person should not place himself in danger, because he cannot rely on God to perform a miracle for him. And even if God does perform a miracle for him, his merits are diminished in the process. This is what Ya’akov meant when he said “I have become diminished (lit. קטונתי).“

Why exactly are one’s merits diminished when he benefits from a miracle? The simple explanation is that Divine providence doesn’t dispense things for free. A miracle must be earned, i.e. paid for through a ‘withdrawal’ from one’s spiritual bank account.

However, there is a deeper explanation to this teaching. We develop spiritually only to the extent that we live an active life in pursuit of the good. God created us to be vigorous and active, and there is no room in Judaism for quietism or passivity. We are meant to earn merit by seizing initiative and applying ourselves to shape the world in accordance with God’s will. A disengagement from the world of action is a retreat from God and brings spiritual diminishment in its wake – as Ya’akov put it, קטונתי.

It may seem counterintuitive that God is meant to be encountered in the natural order (lit. טבע). Isn’t that man’s space to seize initiative, where he undertakes efforts that appear to be his own? The truth, however, is that the natural order reveals God just as much the miraculous. We know this from Yeshaya, who declared to God that “It is you have carried out all of our handiwork.” [3] After all, if טבע is God’s handiwork, to work within the natural order is to partner with God and experience His presence.

But if טבע and the miraculous are both equally Godly, wherein lies the difference between the two? The answer is that the natural order requires man to be proactive. In contrast, a miracle forces its recipient into a passive role, purely on the receiving end of God’s kindness. Because spiritual growth and maturity require action, it follows that miracles are a less than ideal way of encountering God. Instead of a triumph, they are a testament to man’s spiritual smallness, to his inability to experience God by marrying human initiative with the Divinely authored natural order.

We should clarify that this doesn’t mean miracles are bad. Sometimes man is spiritually immature. Sometimes he is defeated by the natural order and requires God to rescue him from his shortcomings. In these moments of failure, God does not expect the impossible and is willing to send a miracle. But the miracle is meant to tide us over until we can mature spiritually, and advance from recipients of Divine kindness to participants who strive to partner in the Divine plan.

Ya’akov experienced this very transformation. After he pleaded with God about being “diminished” by His miraculous kindnesses, Ya’akov wrestled with an angel and received a new name, one purified from any connotations of passivity. “Your name will no longer be called Ya’akov, rather Yisrael will be your name, for you have striven with God and man and prevailed.”

[1] Bereishit 32:11

[2] Gemara Shabbat 30a

[3] Yeshaya 26:12

Commentary

From this teaching of Rav Kook, we can perhaps derive the bold statement that action and initiative are primary values of the religious life, from which all else flows. Religious growth is not about submission and withdrawal, or man’s smallness in his encounter with God. These are all components of the religious experience, but they shouldn’t be its defining characteristic.

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. Very few of us experience miracles on a regular basis, but the dividing line between passivity and action affects so many areas of our lives. If God wants us to work diligently within the natural order, what does that mean for geulah and the modern State of Israel? For how God wants me to support my family? For decisions about medical treatment?
2. What is one area of Jewish life where you could be more active and less passive?
3. Many well-meaning Jews are inspired by stories of tzadikim performing miracles or being saved in miraculous ways. Would Rav Kook disagree with them and reject such stories as spiritually irrelevant? Or is there value in these stories even for Rav Kook?
4. How can someone participate in the natural order and still remember that God is  acting through his handiwork, as Yeshaya puts it? Is this a paradox?
5. Where in last week’s parsha does Ya’akov’s passive character manifest itself? Where in this week’s parsha do we see him expressing a more active persona?
6. Can you think of an example of a person whose moral and spiritual development  was stunted because everything was given to them ‘on a silver platter,’ without working for it?
7. If miracles are a less-than-ideal ‘fallback plan’, then why did God make such a big deal of them when He took us out of Egypt?
8. Is there anywhere in Parshat Vayishlach that Ya’akov seems disinclined to rely on miracles?

Additional Resources

• A beautiful story from the world of Chabad about putting miracles in their proper perspective.
• A monograph from Rav Elchanan Adler about whether Halacha allows praying for a miracle, and how that relates to Channukah.
• The Rambam in Mishnah Torah about whether we believe in Moshe because of the miracles he performed.
• A slightly different take from the Ramban about the relationship between miracles and the natural order.

About This Piece

Ein Ayah is a commentary on the aggadic portions of the Talmud, specifically Berachot, Shabbat and Seder Zeraim. Rav Kook began writing Ein Ayah when he was a young rav in Lithuania, and continued adding material until the end of his life. Ein Ayah seeks to extract profound and fundamental principles of Torah hashkafa from the world of Aggadah.[*] It is an excellent introduction to Rav Kook’s thought, inasmuch as the pieces tend to be more shorter and self contained and less esoteric than many of Rav Kook’s other worlds. While Ein Ayah has never been translated in its entirety into English, selected excerpts have been published by Betzalel Naor in Of Societies Perfect and Imperfect. An online course from WebYeshiva covering Ein Ayah on Masechet Shabbat is available here.

[*]    As opposed to much of the traditional commentary on Aggadah (i.e. Maharsha and the commentaries printed with Ein Ya’akov) which is less systematic and takes a piecemeal approach to connecting Aggadah with major principles of hashkafa.