Nachal novea; makor chochma -
A flowing river; the source of wisdom (Mish. 18:4)
The letters which make up the name of something tells us about that
things spiritual essence, The holy Ari says that the superior spiritual
energies that each firstborn acquires is indicated by the word firstborn
itself, BaCHoR. The Hebrew letter Bais, has a numerical value of two,
CHuf, has a value of twenty, and Raish is two hundred. That the values
of the letters are doubled indicates that the firstborn has twice the
spiritual potential of all others.
Upon the death of Rachel. Ya'akov's chief wife, Ya'akov moved the bed of
Rachel's handmaid, Zilpah into his tent. Re'uven (Reuben), Ya'akov's
oldest son, considered this an affront to his mother Leah's honor. Leah
was Rachel's sister and Ya'akov's remaining wife. "I can understand that
my mother's sister, Rachel was accorded a more favored position while
she was alive, but why should her handmaid be more favored than my
mother after Rachel's demise!?" Thus he was prompted to exchange
Zilpah's bed for his mother Leah's bed.
Ya'akov was one of the most holy mcn who ever lived. He perfected the
act of marital relations, sanctifying it more than any man had ever done
previously. The proof is that all of his children were unfathomably holy
and righteous. However, Re'uven's interference greatly blemished
Ya'akov's marital sanctity by compromising his modesty and privacy. Not
only did Re'uven's rash behavior damage the sanctity of Ya'akov's holy
union with his wives, but it also left a spiritual blemish upon Re'uven
himself. Since as mentioned above, a lofty spiritual status requires
high levels of spiritual purity, Re'uven became disqualified from the
status of firstborn.
Rav Noson points out that there are two types of rulership. and two
types of wealth. One is authority and wealth rooted in holiness which a
person uses to advance spiritual goals and the other is connected to
evil, and used selfishly and materialistically. Wealth and authority
rooted in holiness is so exalted that only the Tzaddik HaEmes (the
leading saint of the generation) and those who follow his teachings can
attain them. Conversely, wealth and rulerghip for selfisb purposes can
lead a person to the lowest of spiritual levels, even to the point of
using that power and wealth to build and worship idols, as the verse
says, "And multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Ba'al
(the name an idol)." (Hosea 2:10) Based upon their perceptions of Yosef
and knowlege about his evil descendants, the brothers were convinced
that Yosef planned to rule over them out of greed and lust for power.
As we mentioned abovp, the spiritual cnergies that are needed in order
to access wealth and rulership rooted in holiness are derived from the
highest of spiritual realms. From Yosef's dreams, it was clear that he
had access to those energies. However, his brothers were sure that he
had corrupted them and had already used his abilities to access the
energies of power, wealth, ad rulership from the side of evil, which
would soon be manifested on the physical level, Among other things, it
would make perceiving and coming close to Hashem exceedingly difficult.
Therefore they felt that they were in imminent danger. If the holy
family and the rest of the world were ever again to find the pathways to
Hashem, the spiritual channels that Yosef had supposedly contaminated
would need cleansing. Theretfore, Yehuda suggested that instead of
executing Yosef he be sold into slavery.
Rabbi Nachman says that we can see from this incident that even the
greatest Tzaddikim can make mistakes, especially when it comes to
evaluating a Tzaddik who is on a much higher spiritual lewl. The
brothers' mistake was so great that they almost wrongfully executed
Yosef. Rav Noson explained that by selling Yosef, the brothers thought
they were repairing the spiritual damage, but instead the sale of their
younger brother actually caused immense harm to the root of the
spiritual energies of the firstborn. Therefore, in order to rectify the
damage, every fire born must now be redeemed with the exact value the
brothers received for selling Yosef, the sum of five shekels [which is
the value of twenty silver pieces]. (Lekutai Halachot: Yora Daya:
Hilchot Pidyon Bechor 5:14)
It is clear from this incident that we must always look beneath the
surface and avoid rash conclusions. There are no easy solutions in
dealing with others, for in many instances the motives for their actions
are not as they appear. Thus the Torah cautions us to give others the
benefit of the doubt, provided that the person is a known evildoer. Rav
Noson says that it is impossible for anyone to know his own true
standing or the standing of others in this world. This can only be
determined by Hashem Himself.
Ya'akov bestowed upon Yosef the title of "Firstborn", even though he was
not the eldest son (Re'uven was) b=ttsc he was "...ben ZiKuNum lo - a
wise son to him." (Genesis 37:3) The Talmud says that the word ZaKaiN is
a contraction of the phrase Zeh she'KaNa chochm - one who has acquired
wisdom. Whatever Ya'akav learned in the Academy of Shem and Ehver during
his fourteen years there, he transmitted to Yosef, (Rashi) "Firstborn"
is not a mere title. The one who possmcs the birthright is endowed with
superior spiritual energies which increase his intellect and potential,
enabling him to come closer to HaShem, if he so chooses.
In the desert, the sin of the Golden Calf irrevocably damaged the
spiritual root energies of cach firstborn Jews. The blemish disqualified
the firstborn from officiating in the sacrificial rites, although it did
not totally eliminate their spiritual superiority. The men of the tribe
of Levi did not participate in the sin of the Golden Calf and helped
Moshe (Moses) quell the rebellion against Hashem. As a result, they werc
imbued with superior spiritual energies which warranted that they
replace the firstborn as the ones would officiate over the sacrificial
service. This teaches us that a position of superior spiritual status
requires higher levels of spiritual purity and behavior. If one is
unable to behave accordingly, he forfeits his status.
After Re'uven's disqualification as firabom, Ya'akov bestowed this
status upon Yosef, who was the firstborn son from his other wife Rachel.
In order to be worthy of this status, Yosef was tested and purified in
the most difficult way. After being sold into slavery in Egypt, Yosef's
master's wife made repeated attempts to seduce him into sinning with
her. Yosef passed the test, which propelled him to awesome spiritual
heights and confirmed his status as firstborn. Again we see that the
firstborn, in order to realize his potential, must attain spiritual
purity, manifested by high moral conduct and purified speech, which
helps him achieve a perfected and expanded holy intellect. Ya'akov
witnessed such tendencies in Yosef, and therefore bestowed upon him the
birthright and its concomitant superior spiritual energies.
To confirm Yoses superiority over his holy brothers, Heaven showed him a
prophetic dream. "Yosef dreamt a dream, which he told to his brothers,
and they hated him even more. Hia said to them 'Hear, if you please,
this dream which I dreamt: Behold! We were binding sheaves in the middle
of the field, when, lo and behold, my sheaf arose and remained standing;
then ... your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf."
(Genesis 37:5-7) Rav Noson explains how Yosef's dream confirmed his
spiritual superiority and that he was indeed fitting to rule over his
brothers for their spiritual benefit. The sheaves represent bounty,
wealth, and growth and hinted that Yosef's superior, holy wisdom which
he developed through intensive learning from his father, Ya'akov, would
enable him to draw forth the energies of the light of Hashem's favor,
which would bring plenty and wealth to the world. That ability is
contingent upon having a lofty, powerful, and holy soul. To the person
who embodies such a soul, Heaven gives wealth and power rooted in
holiness so that the combination of the energies of rulership and wealth
with the greatness of a lofty soul enables him to accomplish those
spiritual feats. Yosef pointed out to his brothers that the dream
indicated that he was such a person.
CONFIRMS HIS POSITION AS FIRSTBORN
The ten brothers differed with Yosot's analysis of the dream. Whereas
Yosef had claimed it was prophetic and conifirmed his spiritual
superiority over them, they contended, as the Talmud teaches, that
although there are dreams which arc a form of prophecy, there are other
dreams that are just manifestations of a person's daily thoughts. The
brothers felt that Yosef was constantly plotting to use his knowledge of
the spiritual realms to dominate them for his own selfish interests.
Therefore, his dream only reflected the thoughts that were uppermost in
his mind. To them the dream meant not that he was spiritually superior,
but that he was a greedy and base individual who would stop at nothing
to become their ruler. Thus, "His brothers said to him, 'Would you then
reign, ruling over us [to advance your selfish aspirations]?'
And they hated him even more ... because of his dreams and because of
his talk." (Genesis 37:8) Rav Noson says that the double expression,
"reign, ruling," alludes to the brothers' assertion that Yosef was
spiritually tainted and interested only in power. The two expressions of
rulership used in the verse refer to the two idol worshipping, wicked
kings, Jeroboam and Ahab, whom the brothers divined would descend from
Yosef. Such ancestors were certainly a manifestation of a tainted soul,
which to them confirmed their suspicions about their younger brother.
When Yosef fell into his brothers' hands, they convened a court and came
to a verdict that, based on Torah law, Yosef was both a physical and
spiritual threat, and as such deserved to be executed. However, "Yehuda
(Judah) said to his brothers, 'What profit will there be it we kill our
brother ... Come, let us sell him [as a slave] to the Ishmaelites ...
(Genesis 37: 26, 27) Ray Noson asks, the brothers were clearly not
interested in killing Yosef for financial gain, but were motivated out
of concern for their spiritual and physical welfare. Then why did
Yehudah say, "What profit will there be if we kill our brother?" Yehada
intimated that Yosef was spiritually corrupt and wanted to gain power
over the holy family. To do so, he first had to pollute and corrupt the
holy energies created by the teachings of their progenitors, the three
patriarchs (Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya'akov). Since one's intellect is
nourished by such spiritual energies, damage to them would distort every
member of the holy family's perception, impairing their judgment
eventually causing them to stray from the path of Hashem, Heaven forbid,
and follow Yosef to the pit of destruction.
FINANCIAL PROFIT IN SELLING YOSEF?
Everything that a person possesses is connected to his soul. If the
brothers executed Yosef, the spiritual channels connected to his soul
would remain polluted. There would be no way of purifying them, for only
Yosef knew how to access them. Selling Yosef as a slave would give his
brothers authority and ownership over him and enable them to access
anything to which his soul was connected. Therefore, since Yosef's soul
was connected to the spiritual channels of holiness that he had
seemingly polluted, then those spiritual pathways would be transferred
and connected to the brothers. Because they themselves were highly
developed spiritually, they felt that in gaining access to the spiritual
channels, they would be able to repair the damage and purify the
channels to once again produce positive spiritual energies that nourish
and clarify the intellect, and enable a greater perception of the
pathways that bring a person closer to Hashem. So we see that Yosef's
brothers had pure motives in dealing with Yosef the way that they did.
Since Yehuda's plan offered the best solution for advancing their
spiritual goals and repairing the spiritual damage that they believed
Yosef had caused, the brothers accepted it, deciding that selling Yosef
was far better having him executed.
WOULD UNDO THE PERCEIVED
DAMAGE
Based on the advice of our sages (Talmud: Megilah 28b), Rabbi Nachman
stressed that everyone should study at least one law from the Shulchan
Aruch (Code of Jewish Law) (or its equivalent, other books which are
based on the Shulchan Aruch) everyday without fail. Sichot Haran 29)
[It is forbidden to heat liquids on the Sabbath]. One is allowed, to
wash one's face, hands, feet or other parts of the body in warm water
which was heated before the Sabbath. However, one is not allowed to wash
or shower the entire, or the major part of one's body in such water,
even if one does so bit by bit. There are several exceptions to this
rule: When it concerns a married women, who on Friday night attends the
ritual bath (mikva), when it is the time for her immersion, the rules
that govern her immersion should be applied. A person who is used to
washing his entire body in warm wafer every day and will suffer extreme
discomfort should he not do so, or someone who is ill, may wash his
entire body, even on the Sabbath, in warm water, provided that it was
heated before the Sabbath. Anyone washing himself on the Sabbath should
take core to avoid squeezing water out of his hair [which transgresses
the prohibition of squeezing]. (Shemirat Shabbat Ki'Hilchata 14:1)