THE JOY OF THE BAAL T’SHUVA

Leah and Rachel, Jacob’s two wives possessed different personalities, which they expressed in many divergent ways throughout their lives.  The Rebbe describes the difference between Rachel and Leah in terms of the Tzaddik versus the Baal T’shuva.

THE MISMATCH

The first time we encounter these sisters, who were to become two of the four Matriarchs of the Jewish people, is in this week’s parsha.

The Torah recounts that Jacob fled his brother Eisav’s wrath and ended up in the house of his uncle Lavan. Jacob asked to marry Rachel, and Lavan promised him he could but only after performing seven years of labor. In the end Lavan tricked Jacob and gave him Leah instead of Rachel. When he complained, Lavan claimed it would have been improper to marry off the younger sister before the older one. Jacob then had to wait another seven days before marrying Rachel, in return for seven more years of backbreaking labor for Lavan.

TWO PERSONALITY TYPES

In the beginning of this narrative, the Torah describes these two sisters thus:

“Lavan had two daughters, the older one was called Leah, and the younger one was called Rachel. Leah’s eyes were tender, and Rachel had beautiful features and beautiful complexion.”

Why were Leah’s eyes tender? Rashi explains that their contemporaries believed that, “Rivka has two sons, and Lavan has two daughters, the older daughter is for the older son, and the younger daughter for the younger son.” Leah therefore fully expected to fall into Eisav’s grasp and be compelled to marry him. This prospect so appalled her that she sobbed and wept. As a result, her eyes were made “tender.”

Leah’s tears may be understood as her heartfelt beseeching of G-d to deliver her from this fate. In the end, she got what she wanted. She married Jacob instead of Eisav, and bore half of his twelve sons, among them Levi, the progenitor of the Kohanim and Leviim, as well as Yehudah, the ancestor of the Davidic dynasty, culminating in Moshiach.

CRYING VERSUS JOY

Rabbi Nochum of Chernobyl, the famous Chassidic Master, remarked: “Rachel and Leah both desired the same thing—Jacob. However, what Leah received through crying Rachel achieved with joy.”

In these pithy words, Rabbi Nochum captured one of the fundamental principles of Chassidic thought, which assigns greater value to true joy than heartfelt crying.

One might imagine that a person who spends years of heartfelt prayer for something positive would have a spiritual advantage over someone who expected to receive her heart’s desire with having to agonize over it. Why did Rachel get what she wanted without the heavy cost paid by Leah? In other words, why does joy have so much more power than grief?

BREAKING THE BOUNDARIES

The answer can be found with a better understanding of the true meaning of joy. In Hebrew the word for joy is simcha. The Rebbe Rashab (Rabbi Sholom Dovber, the fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe) coined an important phrase: “simcha poretz geder”—joy breaks through boundaries. In so doing, he expanded upon a Talmudic statement concerning a king: “Melech poretz geder—a king breaks through boundaries.” This refers to the power of a king to break through the boundaries of private property as a shortcut on the way to his destination. Indeed, Judaism’s ultimate monarch, Moshiach, is referred to as the poretz, the barrier breaker.

What do kingship and joy have in common?

A king answers to no higher human authority; he is confident and resolute. In his mind there are no obstacles to fulfilling his mission. Yehudah, the king of the 12 Tribes, took full responsibility for returning Benjamin to Jacob. It was Yehudah’s powerful promise to his father, that he would forfeit this world and the next if he would fail to return Benjamin, which convinced Jacob to allow Benjamin to travel to Egypt. Yehudah knew that he would succeed. He had no need for a Plan B.

When a person is said to act royally, it means that he exudes this confidence and determination to forge ahead. It is this attitude that allows us to overcome our anxieties and stay on the road to our destination.

This is precisely what simcha implies as well. It is our joyful trust in G-d’s guidance and support that gives us the confidence that we will succeed.

To think that Rachel’s joy was less spiritually potent than Leah’s agony is to fail to appreciate the power required to maintain a state of joy. It is arguably the greatest feat for human beings: to rise above all of the negatives in life.

MOSHIACH: SCION OF LEAH

The question we may ask now is how we reconcile the fact that Moshiach—the ultimate monarch and the ultimate exemplar of joy, for the letters of the word Moshiach rearranged spell the word “yismach—he shall rejoice”— will be a descendant of Leah and not Rachel?

The answer is that although Leah began in misery, she transformed that sentiment into joy. With the birth of each child, her joy was enhanced. Her joy reached its crescendo with Yehudah’s birth. At this point she exclaimed: “I will now thank G-d.” Does this statement imply that she did not show gratitude with the birth of her first three children? The answer is that she expected to have three male children, assuming that to be her share of the 12 tribes Jacob would father with his four wives. Her gratitude for those births, which was commensurate with her joy, was therefore anticipated and thus measured. It broke no rules and shattered no conventions. It could not be characterized as a genuine, unmitigated and bunker-busting joy. However, when she exceeded her expected share and bore Jacob a fourth child, breaking through that barrier with G-d’s help, her joy likewise broke through its barriers. She now, for the first time, was able to express unparalleled joy and gratitude.

THE PROGENITOR OF ALL MAJOR INSTITUTIONS

At this juncture, Leah transformed herself and even surpassed Rachel in terms of her joy and gratitude. Leah transitioned from a lower level of T’shuva, which involved crying over the negative, into a higher level of T’shuva, which was punctuated by an unmitigated joy. Now she felt that G-d had empowered her to get closer to Him and His mission, by allowing her to bring all the main strands of Jewish leadership into the world.

Yehudah, as noted, was the progenitor of kings and some of the greatest prophets, such as Isaiah. Leah’s other sons were the source for many important leaders. Levi was the progenitor of the Kohanim and Levites and some of the greatest prophets, from Moses and Aaron, to Samuel, Elijah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Ezra. Shimon was the ancestor of the teachers of children throughout the Land of Israel. Yissachar’s dynasty produced the great Sages, who were responsible for the calendar etc. Z’vulun was the ancestor of significant philanthropists and benefactors who supported and facilitated Jewish scholarship.

Rachel’s most illustrious descendant, of course, was Joseph. He was the progenitor of the first Jewish leader in the Land of Israel, Joshua, as well as the provisional monarchy established in the breakaway kingdom of Israel. In contrast to Leah’s descendants, their role as leaders was to be temporary, unlike the leadership of the Davidic dynasty, which was to last forever.

Indeed, our Sages describe two Moshiachs: Moshiach the son of Joseph and Moshiach the son of David. The difference between them is that the former fights the battles but eventually succumbs. Moshiach ben David then assumes the mantle of leadership forever. In the Messianic Age, we are told, the two leaders will merge into one; but the dominant one will be the descendant of David and Yehudah—who were themselves Leah’s descendants.

THE JOY OF THE BAAL T’SHUVA VERSUS THE TZADDIK

The Rebbe describes the difference between Rachel and Leah in terms of the Tzaddik versus the Baal T’shuva. Rachel represents the joyous approach of the sinless tzaddik, who is destined for holiness and dwells in a holy atmosphere. Leah represents the Baal T’shuva, who is in a constant struggle with the Eisav’s of the world.

It may be suggested that although initially it is the tzaddik who enjoys the joy and satisfaction of being in close proximity to the Jacob’s of the world, the one who “laughs last” is the Baal T’shuva. It is he or she who changes the world and transforms negatives into positives. The resultant joy is much more intense and enduring.

Thus, Moshiach ben David comes as a result of the Baal T’shuva phenomenon that engenders unparalleled joy and breaks through the boundaries of exile. Moshiach, according to the Zohar, is also credited with the ability to enable the tzaddik to experience a superior state of T’shuva. In the context of our discussion of joy it can also be understood that Moshiach will also enable the tzaddik, who is accustomed to a more conventional and limited joy, to experience the exuberant and boundary-breaking intense joy of the Baal T’shuva!

ounter these sisters, who were to become two of the four Matriarchs of the Jewish people, is in this week’s parsha.

The Torah recounts that Jacob fled his brother Eisav’s wrath and ended up in the house of his uncle Lavan. Jacob asked to marry Rachel, and Lavan promised him he could but only after performing seven years of labor. In the end Lavan tricked Jacob and gave him Leah instead of Rachel. When he complained, Lavan claimed it would have been improper to marry off the younger sister before the older one. Jacob then had to wait another seven days before marrying Rachel, in return for seven more years of backbreaking labor for Lavan.

TWO PERSONALITY TYPES

In the beginning of this narrative, the Torah describes these two sisters thus:

“Lavan had two daughters, the older one was called Leah, and the younger one was called Rachel. Leah’s eyes were tender, and Rachel had beautiful features and beautiful complexion.”

Why were Leah’s eyes tender? Rashi explains that their contemporaries believed that, “Rivka has two sons, and Lavan has two daughters, the older daughter is for the older son, and the younger daughter for the younger son.” Leah therefore fully expected to fall into Eisav’s grasp and be compelled to marry him. This prospect so appalled her that she sobbed and wept. As a result, her eyes were made “tender.”

Leah’s tears may be understood as her heartfelt beseeching of G-d to deliver her from this fate. In the end, she got what she wanted. She married Jacob instead of Eisav, and bore half of his twelve sons, among them Levi, the progenitor of the Kohanim and Leviim, as well as Yehudah, the ancestor of the Davidic dynasty, culminating in Moshiach.

CRYING VERSUS JOY

Rabbi Nochum of Chernobyl, the famous Chassidic Master, remarked: “Rachel and Leah both desired the same thing—Jacob. However, what Leah received through crying Rachel achieved with joy.”

In these pithy words, Rabbi Nochum captured one of the fundamental principles of Chassidic thought, which assigns greater value to true joy than heartfelt crying.

One might imagine that a person who spends years of heartfelt prayer for something positive would have a spiritual advantage over someone who expected to receive her heart’s desire with having to agonize over it. Why did Rachel get what she wanted without the heavy cost paid by Leah? In other words, why does joy have so much more power than grief?

BREAKING THE BOUNDARIES

The answer can be found with a better understanding of the true meaning of joy. In Hebrew the word for joy is simcha. The Rebbe Rashab (Rabbi Sholom Dovber, the fifth Lubavitcher Rebbe) coined an important phrase: “simcha poretz geder”—joy breaks through boundaries. In so doing, he expanded upon a Talmudic statement concerning a king: “Melech poretz geder—a king breaks through boundaries.” This refers to the power of a king to break through the boundaries of private property as a shortcut on the way to his destination. Indeed, Judaism’s ultimate monarch, Moshiach, is referred to as the poretz, the barrier breaker.

What do kingship and joy have in common?

A king answers to no higher human authority; he is confident and resolute. In his mind there are no obstacles to fulfilling his mission. Yehudah, the king of the 12 Tribes, took full responsibility for returning Benjamin to Jacob. It was Yehudah’s powerful promise to his father, that he would forfeit this world and the next if he would fail to return Benjamin, which convinced Jacob to allow Benjamin to travel to Egypt. Yehudah knew that he would succeed. He had no need for a Plan B.

When a person is said to act royally, it means that he exudes this confidence and determination to forge ahead. It is this attitude that allows us to overcome our anxieties and stay on the road to our destination.

This is precisely what simcha implies as well. It is our joyful trust in G-d’s guidance and support that gives us the confidence that we will succeed.

To think that Rachel’s joy was less spiritually potent than Leah’s agony is to fail to appreciate the power required to maintain a state of joy. It is arguably the greatest feat for human beings: to rise above all of the negatives in life.

MOSHIACH: SCION OF LEAH

The question we may ask now is how we reconcile the fact that Moshiach—the ultimate monarch and the ultimate exemplar of joy, for the letters of the word Moshiach rearranged spell the word “yismach—he shall rejoice”— will be a descendant of Leah and not Rachel?

The answer is that although Leah began in misery, she transformed that sentiment into joy. With the birth of each child, her joy was enhanced. Her joy reached its crescendo with Yehudah’s birth. At this point she exclaimed: “I will now thank G-d.” Does this statement imply that she did not show gratitude with the birth of her first three children? The answer is that she expected to have three male children, assuming that to be her share of the 12 tribes Jacob would father with his four wives. Her gratitude for those births, which was commensurate with her joy, was therefore anticipated and thus measured. It broke no rules and shattered no conventions. It could not be characterized as a genuine, unmitigated and bunker-busting joy. However, when she exceeded her expected share and bore Jacob a fourth child, breaking through that barrier with G-d’s help, her joy likewise broke through its barriers. She now, for the first time, was able to express unparalleled joy and gratitude.

THE PROGENITOR OF ALL MAJOR INSTITUTIONS

At this juncture, Leah transformed herself and even surpassed Rachel in terms of her joy and gratitude. Leah transitioned from a lower level of T’shuva, which involved crying over the negative, into a higher level of T’shuva, which was punctuated by an unmitigated joy. Now she felt that G-d had empowered her to get closer to Him and His mission, by allowing her to bring all the main strands of Jewish leadership into the world.

Yehudah, as noted, was the progenitor of kings and some of the greatest prophets, such as Isaiah. Leah’s other sons were the source for many important leaders. Levi was the progenitor of the Kohanim and Levites and some of the greatest prophets, from Moses and Aaron, to Samuel, Elijah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Ezra. Shimon was the ancestor of the teachers of children throughout the Land of Israel. Yissachar’s dynasty produced the great Sages, who were responsible for the calendar etc. Z’vulun was the ancestor of significant philanthropists and benefactors who supported and facilitated Jewish scholarship.

Rachel’s most illustrious descendant, of course, was Joseph. He was the progenitor of the first Jewish leader in the Land of Israel, Joshua, as well as the provisional monarchy established in the breakaway kingdom of Israel. In contrast to Leah’s descendants, their role as leaders was to be temporary, unlike the leadership of the Davidic dynasty, which was to last forever.

Indeed, our Sages describe two Moshiachs: Moshiach the son of Joseph and Moshiach the son of David. The difference between them is that the former fights the battles but eventually succumbs. Moshiach ben David then assumes the mantle of leadership forever. In the Messianic Age, we are told, the two leaders will merge into one; but the dominant one will be the descendant of David and Yehudah—who were themselves Leah’s descendants.

THE JOY OF THE BAAL T’SHUVA VERSUS THE TZADDIK

The Rebbe describes the difference between Rachel and Leah in terms of the Tzaddik versus the Baal T’shuva. Rachel represents the joyous approach of the sinless tzaddik, who is destined for holiness and dwells in a holy atmosphere. Leah represents the Baal T’shuva, who is in a constant struggle with the Eisav’s of the world.

It may be suggested that although initially it is the tzaddik who enjoys the joy and satisfaction of being in close proximity to the Jacob’s of the world, the one who “laughs last” is the Baal T’shuva. It is he or she who changes the world and transforms negatives into positives. The resultant joy is much more intense and enduring.

Thus, Moshiach ben David comes as a result of the Baal T’shuva phenomenon that engenders unparalleled joy and breaks through the boundaries of exile. Moshiach, according to the Zohar, is also credited with the ability to enable the tzaddik to experience a superior state of T’shuva. In the context of our discussion of joy it can also be understood that Moshiach will also enable the tzaddik, who is accustomed to a more conventional and limited joy, to experience the exuberant and boundary-breaking intense joy of the Baal T’shuva!