In this week’s Parsha, the unique events that surround the brocha Yitzchak Avinu
is to give to his son culminate with that great moment of Yaakov Avinu receiving
this most sought-after brocha--which in actuality is only two Pesukim (Bereishis
27: 28-29) in length! Moreover, the entire brocha can be divided into two basic
components:
1. A brocha for gashmius, as the Pasuk states: “V’Yiten
L’Cha...”--and may Hashem give you of the Dew of the Heavens and of the Fatness
of the Earth...; and a second concept
2. “Cursed be those who curse You
and Blessed be those who Bless you,” which appears more to be addressed to how
other people react to us, rather than a direct blessing to us.
In fact,
the brocha that we would have expected Yitzchak to give Yaakov is found at the
end of the Parsha, and is given to Yaakov only as Yitzchak sends him away to
Chutz L’Aretz:
“And may Kel Shakai bless you…may He grant you the
blessing of Avraham to you and your offspring...that you may possess the
land...” (Bereishis 28:3-4).
This later brocha appears to be much more in
line with the brocha Yaakov would have wanted in the first place--Avraham,
offspring, Eretz Yisroel...more of a “Jewish” kind of brocha. Yet, it comes
second.
This same order of the blessing for the physical preceding the
blessing for the spiritual is mirrored in the Birchas Kohanim (Bamidbar 5:25-27)
in which, as Rashi there explains, the first brocha refers to a blessing of
wealth, which is followed only afterwards by the brocha of Hashem looking upon
us favorably and granting us peace.
Why is it then that gashmiyus precede
ruchniyus, that the physical takes precedence here? After all, do we not recite
Birchos HaTorah in the morning before we recite Birchas HaMazon? Don’t we have
our priorities straight?
The answer may lie in the fact that Hashem has
structured our world and our existence in a way that Olam HaZeh precedes Olam
Haba. The purpose of Olam HaZeh is for us to instill in it the reality within
our lives that the most physical and material parts of it, that even the
smorgasbords, delicacies, Treos and Blackberries, software developments and
next-generation automobiles, and even “escape vacations”, are all under the
watchful eye of, and, moreover, can only come about with the direct blessing of,
Hashem!
Yaakov Avinu risked his life to infuse himself with this
awareness, and the Kohanim--by blessing us in this order--remind of this as
well.
With this thought in mind, we can understand why we make the brocha
of Shehecheyanu at any time during the year that we purchase a new and valuable
article of clothing or object, or when a fruit come into season, and yet only
make a Shehecheyanu over a mitzvah if it occurs periodically, or when performed
only for the first time. [The next periodic mitzvah, for example, will, B’ezras
Hashem, be lighting the Menorah on Chanukah--still a month away.]
The
lesson to be learned here is not an easy one to fulfill.
It is a
challenge for us to make 100 Brachos a day with a Kavannah it truly
deserves.
It is a challenge for us not to say “But **I** did it all on my
own,” or “**I** figured it out all by myself” or “**I** made this money by...”
and to remember not to overindulge or get too involved with luxuries or
unnecessary extras or the things that you know Hashem would not be proud
of.
However, as Rebbe Yisroel Salanter is reputed to have said, the first
mitzvah in the Torah is: “Al Tehi Sachal--don’t be foolish!” It would be truly
a shame if we went through this world with many accomplishments and many
possessions, but failed to learn the lesson that Olam HaZeh precedes Olam Haba
for a reason--the lesson that Yitzchak Avinu taught Yaakov Avinu in this week’s
Parsha. There are two practical ways in which one may reinforce our awareness
of Hashem’s presence and of His instilling and inculcating this world with all
of the Brachos that it has, that we have, and that we enjoy and benefit
from.
One practical way is to try to catch the times we say the word “I”,
and try to make sure we are using that word correctly. As you say the word
sense the presence of the Omnigiver even giving you the ability to say
“I”!
Another way is to utilize the second part of the Brocha that
Yitzchak gave to Yaakov--those who…bless you, will be blessed.” If we
constantly live with a sense of blessing, of brocha, that nothing is due to us,
that nothing is here for no reason, and that nothing stagnates--and so we recite
blessings to Hashem and give blessings to others in a way that it constitutes an
important part of our lives, we will believing in Olam Hazeh as we truly
should--as a way that leads to the next step--Olam Haba!
Additional
Special Note: Question for the Way Home: Why do you think that the method of
telling time has advanced from a sundial, to a town clock, to a pocket watch, to
a Rolex, to an atomic clock?
Important Numbers
