Believing in Your Potential - Being Engraved on the Leg of the Throne of Glory - Rabbi Yoni Levin's Shabbos Morning Drasha

Rabbi Yoni Levin, the assistant rabbi at Aish Kodesh, delivered the drasha this Shabbos while Rav Weinberger was at YU for Shabbos. He spoke in  honor of the bar mitzvah of Avi Goldstone. Mazel tov! Below is the drasha which he typed up and emailed to me. Thank you Rabbi Levin for allowing me to share it!

Believing in Your Potential - Being Engraved on the Leg of the Throne of Glory

It’s astounding how each year we read the same stories, we read the same פרשיות, and they never seem to grow old.  We are in the midst of a cliffhanger, a story of suspense. We are on the edge of our seats waiting to see what happens to יעקב אבינו as he runs into the dark of the night all alone, all by himself, scared, and lost.

I’m not sure about each of you, but I could never read the same book twice. 

But when it comes to the תורה for some reason, each year, the story becomes more exciting.  We are reliving the stories of the אבות.  Personally, I get most emotional when we read the end of the תורה, and each year משה רבינו dies again, and it almost brings me to tears, the loss of משה רבינו, our leader, the one who lead us out of מצרים, through the מדבר.

Our נשמות are so connected, they are so involved in each of these stories, in the lives of our ancestors, to the point that the פרשיות truly come to life.

Story of יעקב

So here we are in the middle of ספר בראשית and יעקב is running away since last שבת.  He’s running as fast as he could.  He has been sent off by his parents to escape his brother עשב.  His destination: the house of לבן, his uncle. 

And during this marathon, he keeps looking over his shoulder.  He keeps looking to his right.  He looks to his left.  He is tense and uneasy not knowing where he may confront עשו.   He’s scared from any חיות רעות, he has no support system, no one to protect him, no one to talk to.   He is fighting a battle all by himself.

And as יעקב wanders off on his own, scared, lost, in a cloud of darkness, confusion, he winds up falling asleep in the מקום המקדש.  ה' יתברך puts יעקב אבינו to sleep particularly in the very place that will eventually become the בית מקדש.  יעקב is lying down in this place of קדושה, where he senses this powerful energy, this מקום full with the potential of greatness. 

While sleeping in this place of the Divine, יעקב is overwhelmed with power, energy and קדושה.  יעקב is overtaken by this dream.  He experiences this vivid, clear, and dominant dream of מלאכים ascending and descending the ladder והנה סלם מצב ארצה וראשו מגיע השמימה.

           

Message of the Dream

יעקב is at a very delicate moment of his life.  What message is Hashem giving יעקב אבינו at this very tender life-changing moment?

יעקב is transitioning to a life of independence.  יעקב is feeling lonely and lost, without parents and teachers to guide him.

What is הקב"ה teaching יעקב through this dream?  He is expected to be independent and responsible for himself.  He is being forced to grow up.  What חיזוק could הקב"ה possibly give יעקב אבינו at this very sensitive point in his life?

Each one of us has possibly felt this same feeling at some point in our life.  Some of us might be feeling them right now - this feeling of darkness and loneliness.  Perhaps we are struggling with פרנסה, stuck in an unsuccessful business, no place to turn, no place to look.  We might feel this when we get sucked into the darkness of תאוה, drawn into the world of עבירות – this sense of guilt, a sense of regret, depression, fear.  We might feel this in a relationship, this feeling of loneliness, abandonment.

On a global level, as a nation, as part of humanity, we might be feeling lost as we see waves of terror throughout ארץ ישראל.  This past week we lost more קדושים.  We are constantly running away in the darkness from a different brother of ours, ישמעאל.  We are constantly looking over our shoulder. ה' ינקום דמם.

France was hit with a big shock last Shabbos.  Unfortunately, they were hit with reality, a reality that Jews face every day in ארץ ישראל and many cities throughout Europe. 

What is an appropriate message that can help build us back up, strengthen us, put us back on track, both as individuals and as a nation?

And יעקב Wakes Up…

When יעקב אבינו wakes up, he makes an interesting comment. 

ויאמר אכן יש ה' במקום הזה ואנכי לא ידעתי

What does the word אכן mean?    The Artscroll defines the word to mean “surely”.  And יעקב said “surely Hashem exists in this very place, but I was unaware”.  יעקב sensed this magnitude of energy in this מקום המקדש. It was so certain to him, it was so clear, it was אכן, this place was undoubtedly filled with an overflow of קדושה.

However, there is another understanding of the word אכן.  Not in the פשט, but in the רמז, the hint behind this word, concealed within each letter of the word אכן.

The Acronym of אכ"ן

Many מפרשים explain that the word אכן is actually an acronym.  יעקב אבינו was sleeping in the מקום המקדש, the center of the world, the center of the universe, the center of שמים.  He was lying below the center of the עליונים, the upper spheres.  He was lying directly below the כסא הכבוד, Hashem’s Throne of Honor, beneath the very legs that upheld the כסא הכבוד.

This כסא הכבוד, this throne on which the שכינה resides, had 4 legs no different than any other throne that a king might be sitting on.

On each of the 4 legs was engraved a different image.  There was a lion, an אריה, which is hinted by the letter א'.  Another leg had a כרוב, one of the כרובים, an image of a baby, hinted by the letter כ'.  And a third leg was engraved with the image of an eagle, a נשר, hinted by the letter נ'.  This spells out the word אכן, אריה, כרוב, and נשר. 

And what was the 4^th image on the 4^th leg?  אכן יש ה' במקום הזה, יעקב says that he knew the three legs, the אכן but אנכי לא ידעתי.  The fourth I didn’t know, he says.  The word אנכי contains the three letters of אכן plus the letter י.  The 4^th leg is represented by the letter י'.  What does the letter י' stand for?  חז"ל tells us that the image of יעקב was engraved on the 4^th leg.  The letter י' represents יעקב himself.  Now when יעקב says אנכי לא ידעתי it means he didn’t know the letter י, he didn’t know himself, he didn’t know אנכי.  He didn’t realize that he himself was the 4^th leg.

The Image of יעקב

יעקב was in a difficult stage of his life.  He was forced to grow up.  He was off on his own.  And during this very challenging stage הקב"ה shows him a dream.  ה' יתברך shows יעקב אבינו how much potential he has.  He shows him the tremendous heights that he can reach.  יעקב says אנכי לא ידעי, I didn’t know how far I can reach, I didn’t know that my image touches the כסא הכבוד.  I didn’t realize my actions have ripple effects in the World above.

This message of teaching יעקב אבינו how much he could accomplish is also the message behind the ladder.  The ladder is rooted in the ground והנה סלם מוצב ארצה but ראשו מגיע השמימה that we can reach tremendous heights.

Our Image in the 4^th Leg

The truth is, if you look at the גמ' in חגיגה which records the 4 legs of the כסא הכבוד doesn’t say that יעקב is the 4^th leg but the 4^th leg is אדם – any person.  Each one of us has our image imprinted on that 4^th leg.  Avi  - you have your image on the 4^th leg of the כסא הכבוד.  You have the ability to reach tremendous heights and lofty goals. 

This 4^th leg is a mirror.  And when each one of us look up at this mirror we see ourselves imprinted on the כסא הכבוד.  This is both a daunting realization, yet an empowering message.  We have the ability to shake the world above, make waves in שמים.

We have to internalize how powerful our actions are, how high they can reach, how we can turn over worlds, we can make changes in the עליונים.

There is a striking Gemara in גיטין that records a debate about the details that surround the story of פילגש בגבעה. 

תלמוד בבלי מסכת גיטין דף ו עמוד ב

ועוד, הא ר' אביתר הוא דאסכים מריה על ידיה, דכתיב: בותזנה עליו פילגשו, רבי אביתר אמר: זבוב מצא לה, ר' יונתן אמר: נימא מצא לה, ואשכחיה ר' אביתר לאליהו, א"ל: מאי קא עביד הקב"ה? א"ל: עסיק בפילגש בגבעה, ומאי קאמר? אמר ליה: אביתר בני כך הוא אומר, יונתן בני כך הוא אומר, א"ל: ח"ו, ומי איכא ספיקא קמי שמיא? א"ל: אלו ואלו דברי אלהים חיים הן זבוב מצא ולא הקפיד, נימא מצא והקפיד. אמר רב יהודה: זבוב בקערה, ונימא באותו מקום, זבוב - מאיסותא, ונימא - סכנתא. איכא דאמרי: אידי ואידי בקערה, זבוב - אונסא, ונימא – פשיעותא

What is most striking though is that when Hashem is learning this topic, he is quoting ר' אביתר and ר' יונתן.  And the same holds true, when we are learning and we are מחדש something, Hashem will quote us.  That is as if to say, we are placing the words in Hashem’s mouth.  We are dictating what is being said upstairs in שמים!

If we can just take this idea to heart and realize how far reaching our speech, our thoughts, our actions can go, it will drive us to do only good.

We need to be confident in ourselves, confident in our actions - how we act really does make a difference. 

A Little Bit About Avi

When you take a look at Avi, one thing immediately comes to mind; and that’s his precious smile - that smile that goes from cheek to cheek.  Avi is forever in the state of שמחה. 

שמחה is key to reaching one’s true potential, one’s true heights.  It indicates a healthy dose of confidence that will enable Avi to reach immeasurable heights.

תלמוד בבלי מסכת שבת דף קל עמוד א

תניא, רבן שמעון בן גמליאל אומר: כל מצוה שקיבלו עליהם בשמחה כגון מילה, דכתיב שש אנכי על אמרתך כמוצא שלל רב - עדיין עושין אותה בשמחה,

Avi is starting off his life as a בר מצוה boy with an unthinkable amount of שמחה.

Now Avi, as you embark on this new journey supplied with the proper tools to succeed, you need to believe in yourself and your ability to succeed.  You already have shown us an enormous amount of success with your dedication to daven, perform מצוות and learn.  You need to remember והנה סולם מוצב ארצה, that the ladder is grounded, you need to stay firm and grounded with a strong base, a healthy one.  But you also need to look forward and find your mission in life and to realize that you can be מגיע השמימה.

We look forward to seeing you continuously grow and you should only bring Nachas to your family and continue to inspire all of us around you with your smile, your happiness, your dedication to Torah, Tefila and Mitzvos!

Mazel Tov and Good Shabbos!

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Rav Moshe Weinberger - Vayeitze - We are the Ladder

Rav Weinberger was away last week in Eretz Yisroel, so sorry that there was no summary last week. Below, please find Rav Weinberger's Shabbos morning drasha from this Shabbos, Parshas Vayeitze. See here for past write-ups. Also, thousands of Rav Weinberger's shiurim are available online HERE.

Rav Moshe Weinberger

Parshas Vayeitze 5772

We are the Ladder

Parshas ויצא is the nineteenth birthday of the Shul. It is known that one’s birthday is a time of חשבון הנפש, spiritual accounting. We must therefore look at the parsha to help us examine where we are holding as a קהלה, a congregation.

The story of Yaakov Avinu is the story of all of our lives in גלות, exile. Every single moment, we live with “וַיֵּצֵא יַעֲקֹב מִבְּאֵר שָׁבַע וַיֵּלֶךְ חָרָנָה,” “and Yaakov went out of Beer Sheva and went to Charan.” According to the Zohar (Vayeitze 147a), “חָרָנָה,” “to Charan,” comes from the words “חרון אף,” anger. In orther words, whenever we leave our little Eretz Yisroels, our Shuls and our yeshivos and go out into the world, we are in a strange place, in exile. As spiritual people, we are strangers in our daily physical lives. We therefore live with the story of Yaakov Avinu entering his exile every single moment of every single day as we go into our own personal exiles. What does Yaakov’s experience teach us about how to view our life in גלות, exile?

When Yaakov lays down to sleep, the pasuk says “וַיַּחֲלֹם וְהִנֵּה סֻלָּם מֻצָּב אַרְצָה וְרֹאשׁוֹ מַגִּיעַ הַשָּׁמָיְמָה וְהִנֵּה מַלְאֲכֵי אֱלֹהִים עֹלִים וְיֹרְדִים בּוֹ.,” “and he dreamt and behold there was a ladder standing on the earth and its top was in the heavens and behold, angels of G-d were assending and descending בּוֹ.” There is a dispute in Bereishis Raba (68:12) regarding the subject of the word “בּוֹ,” which could be read to mean “on him” or “on it.” One opinion is that the angels were ascending and descending the ladder. But the Medresh offers the following explanation according to the opinion that the angels were ascending and descending on Yaakov Avinu:

עולים ויורדים ביעקב ... אפזים בו קפזים בו שונטים בו שנאמר (ישעיה מט) ישראל אשר בך אתפאר את הוא שאיקונין שלך חקוקה למעלה עולים למעלה ורואים איקונין שלו ויורדים למטה ומוצאים אותו ישן.

The [interpretation of the fact that the] angels were ascending and descending in Yaakov is that they were praising him (ascending) and criticizing him (descending). As it says in Yeshaya 49:3, “Yisroel, in whom You are glorified.” "You are the the one whose face is carved above." They ascended and saw his face and they descended below and found him sleeping.

The angels wondered, “How could it be that this person who is so great that Hashem takes such pride in him and his face is carved above under the Throne of Glory is sleeping his life away?” Each of our faces, the children of Yaakov, living in exile just as Yaakov was, are also carved up above on Hashem’s Throne of Glory. We have such great potential that Hashem exults in our greatness and carved each and every one of our faces above in שמים, in heaven. We do not realize our own greatness and meaning, so we sleep our lives away.

In prior generations, it was hard for someone to imagine how one could be in one place and his face could be somewhere else. Even in the time of the Chofetz Chaim, someone told him about the invention of the telephone, and he commented, “Listen to the power of speech; a Jew can say something in Radin, and someone will hear him in Vilna!” Today it is easy for us to imagine this concept. I do not know how it works exactly, but I have heard that on “Facebook,” people take pictures and other people can look at them anywhere in the world. And on Skype, one can be in Eretz Yisroel, and he can talk to his grandchildren in New York and they can see each other’s faces as they talk.

This is the struggle that each of us faces when we go out into the world. We also struggle with the angels who say about us, “This is the person whose face is carved onto the Throne of Glory! Look, why is he sleeping?!” We learn from Yaakov that we cannot sleep through our lives, thinking, “Who am I? I’m just a סתם person, a regular guy.” We are not just “regular guys.” Angels, which deliver Hashem’s Divine influence to the whole world, pass through us to do their work.

When Yaakov wakes up, he says (Bereishis 28:16) “אָכֵן יֵשׁ ה' בַּמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה וְאָנֹכִי לֹא יָדָעְתִּי. ,” “Indeed Hashem is in this place and I did not know it.” Tzadikim explain this pasuk in the following way: The letters of the word “אָכֵן,” “indeed” in that pasuk stand for the words אריה, כרוב, נשר, lion, angel, and eagle, the three animals whose images Yechezkel says are carved on the great chariot in heaven (10:14). In other words, Yaakov started off knowning that in lofty places there are mystical creatures, the cherub, the angel, and the lion. But once he hears that the angels say that Yaakov’s own face is also carved above, he he says “וְאָנֹכִי לֹא יָדָעְתִּי.,” “and I did not know it.” The Hebrew word for “I” is “אָנֹכִי.” The letters of the word “אָנֹכִי” stand for the words אריה, כרוב, נשר, lion, cherub, eagele, and Yaakov! He was saying, “I knew there were great and spiritual things in Heaven, but I never knew that I was one of them!”

Yaakov was living the good life before he left Beer Sheva. He was able to sit and learn Torah all of the Time. He had a mother who loved him dearly. Everyting was good. But it was only after Yaakov left home and went into exile on the way to Charan that it was revealed to him that “ישראל אשר בך אתפאר,” that Hashem glorifies himself in him and that his face is carved in the כסא הכבוד, the Throne of Glory. Only in exile did he realize that he was the ladder, the conduit through which Hashem sends his Divine influence into the world.

We too are carved in Hashem’s throne. We must realize that we are important, and not סתם, not simple, regular people. Everything in this world is dependent on us.

There is a story that the bochurim in the yeshiva in Radin were complaining to one another about the השכלה’s, the enlightenment’s prevelence in Paris, which was plaguing the religious Jews there. The Chofetz Chaim told them that it is because of their ביטול תורה, the time they waste when they should be learning Torah in Radin talking about what’s happening in Paris, that makes it possible for Jews to fall prey to the enlightenment in Paris.

Our job is to wake up from our sleep, and realize that we are the ladder, our faces are carved in the Throne of Glory above, and Hashem takes pride in us. So it is up to us to wake up to take up the challenge of our potential and our importance in the world. “וַיִּיקַץ יַעֲקֹב מִשְּׁנָתוֹ,” “and Yaakov awoke from his slumber.” In contrast, with regard to Paroh, it says (Bereishis 41:4-5) “וַיִּיקַץ פַּרְעֹה וַיִּישָׁן ,” “and Paroh woke up and went back to sleep.” We cannot be like Paroh and fall back asleep once we realize that we are great and that we really matter.

We must also realize that as a קהלת יעקב, a congregation of Yaakov, the image of our קהלה, our congregation is also carved on Hashem’s throne. We must look at ourselves and see if we are living up to to higher image of ourselves or whether we have become complacent and begun taking liberties in our כבוד התפלה, our respect for the davening in the Shul, in our learning, and in our בין אדם לחברו, the way we treat one another.

עם ירצה ה', with Hashem’s help, may we be זוכה, merit to wake up from our slumber and relize our importance and that we are the conduit through which Hashem brings everything good into the world. And through the openings that we create may we be זוכה to go together to Yerushalayim בביאת גואל צדק במהירה בימינו אמן, with Moshiach Tzidkeinu soon in our days.
 
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