88 64
NOVEMBER 25, 2021 | The Jewish Home OCTOBER 29, 2015 | The Jewish Home
From the Fire Parshav Vayeishev
Temporary Tranquility By Rav Moshe Weinberger Adapted for publication by Binyomin Wolf
M
uch has been written about the name of the parsha, “Vayeishev,” which means to dwell peacefully. After many years of trouble and anguish, Rashi explains (commenting on Bereishis 37:2) that “Yaakov sought to enjoy some serenity, but the troubles of Yosef sprang upon him. Tzadikim seek to dwell in tranquility, but Hashem says, ‘Is that which is prepared for the tzaddikim in the world to come not enough for them? Must they also seek to dwell peacefully in this world as well?’” Yaakov did not seek physical tranquility. Rather, he sought a respite from all of the worries, stress, and danger with which he had been plagued for most of his life. He sought spiritual and emotional rest. Yaakov’s experience is reflected in the Mishna (Avos 4:15), which says, “We cannot understand the tranquility of the wicked or the suffering of the righteous.” We may not understand why, but we see from Rashi’s commentary above and the
Mishna in Avos that, for whatever reason, it is the portion of the tzaddikim that they do not enjoy tranquility in this world. In addition, according to the Gemara (Brachos 64a),“Torah scholars have no rest either in this world or the next world, as it says (Tehilim 84:8), ‘They go from strength to strength.’” The lot of tzaddikim is that they have much reward but little rest. As the Gemara also says (Sanhedrin 72a), “Sleep and wine are good for the wicked and good for the world but for tzaddikim, they are bad for them and bad for the world.” Rav Adin Even-Yisrael (Steinsaltz) explains that the world is filled with confusion now more than ever. Everyone seems to be desperately in need of some peace and tranquility. Many women enjoy a few days in a special home for postpartum recovery called a “recovery home.” It is difficult to go home to the “joys” of a lively home after such peace and quiet. People naturally want to leave the world of stress and
enter into a place of serenity. Indeed, some people seek out religiosity because they believe it will bring them peace, safety, and tranquility, a break from the nonstop pressures of this world. There is some truth to this. One can only truly take a break from work, phone calls, emails, the Internet, and the like on Shabbos because it is simply forbidden to use these things. Without the framework of religion, today’s modern gadgetry will pursue a person at all hours of the day and night, seven days a week, three-hundred-sixty-five days a year. Many people have told me that they became religious after spending Shabbos in a religious home and experiencing the peace of Shabbos. It is difficult for religious people to understand, as we watch our children bouncing off the walls on Shabbos, but our life contains tremendous peace and security relative to the outside world. The world of halacha frees a person from many of the desires of this
world. For example, even those who are addicted to smoking are able to abstain from their habit for the twenty-five hours of Shabbos without any problem whatsoever. As the Ibn Ezra explained with respect to the prohibition of Lo Sachmod, not to covet one’s neighbor’s wife, house, or the like. Just like one does not covet a king’s wife because marrying her is completely outside of the world of possibility, so too, with the Torah’s prohibition against adultery, one will not even desire to marry another man’s wife in his heart (or any other prohibition for that matter), because the Torah’s prohibition puts such a possibility completely outside the realm of the reality of his life. The rules of religion therefore do create a certain type of peace by reducing the struggle from certain areas of life. On a deeper level, though, Jews who live with faith, “ein la’hem menucha, have no rest.” The struggle of (Gittin 43a) “one can only understand the words of Torah if
