5-Bullet Friday: Parshas Vayeishev

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5-Bullet Friday

This week is Parshas Vayeishev! Check out this week's d'var torah here.

Here is this week's 5-Bullet Friday:

• Question I'm pondering: Sibling rivalry. Why did Yaakov avinu do so many things to single out Yosef from the rest of the brothers? Certainly he knew that (a) it could cause Yosef to feel superior and (b) it could cause the brothers to be jealous. So why did he do the things he did? Why was it worth it?

• Concept I am considering:  What makes something rememberable. The mishna in Peah (7:1) states that if an olive tree has a name in the field (i.e- it is referred to as a certain type of olive tree) then if the owner forgot it while gathering the crops in the field, it is not considered shichecaha. The mishna elaborates that this din is true whether it is known by its name, performance, or place. In other words, if the ba’al ha’bayis knows it as a particular species of tree, or it is known to yield a lot of produce, or if it is referred to as being in a particular spot in the field, then it is not shechecha if left behind.

• Hashkafic idea I'm reflecting on: Understanding oneself. Following the aforementioned concept with regards to shechecha, I was thinking that at all times a person should be aware of at least one, if not all, of these three key identifiers about oneself. Under the rules of the Geneva convention, a captured prisoner of war only must give his/her name, rank, and serial number to the enemy. It is interesting how these three identifiers are quite similar to the ones that mishna uses to qualify a produce as non-schechecha. Name = name; Rank = produce/yield (i.e - how successful he/she in training and experience); Serial number = place (i.e - identifying which country the POW is from). When we enter our proverbial fields and wander into the world at large, it is easy to get lost or blended in and left forgotten amongst the others. The way to prevent that is to hold on to core identifiers of oneself - 1. remember your name (like the Jews in mitzrayim), 2. remember your potential and produce you could yield (like the vision Yosef had of being removed from the choshen if he proceeded with eishes potiphar; see gemara Sotah 36b), and/or 3. remember one’s place (like the maccabim who understood that we are inherently different from the Yavanim and need to maintain that distance). In these ways of remembering our names, rank, and place, we are guaranteed not to be left forgotten. What are some challenges you face and in what ways were the struggles augmented by letting one of these identifiers slip? How could these challenges be conquered through focusing on one or more of these key parts of yourself?

• Middah on my mind: Bushah (embarrassment). We learn from the story of Tamar (38:35) that it is better for one to give up his or her life than to publicly embarrass someone. We know that bushah - the mere idea that one becomes embarrassed is one of the core qualities of b’nei Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov (see Gemara Yevamos 79a). How much more so is willing to be embarrassed oneself rather than causing someone else to be embarrassed. This is what Tamar was trying to protect Yehuda from and what Yehuda in turn protected Tamar from instead at his own cost. It is no wonder that this relationship was one essential to the future of k’lal yisroel and is one that sparked a dynasty of malchus.

• Part of Tefillah I'm concentrating on: Baruch matir asurim. Regarding Yosef being thrown in jail after the episode with eishes Potiphar, the Ba’al Ha’turim (39:20) writes that there are three times in Tanach that “asurim” (jail) is mentioned. Two are by Yosef (Beraishis 39:20 and 40:5) and the last in Tehillim (146:7) which we say daily. Based on this, the Gemara Yoma (35b) comments that eishes Potiphar threatened Yosef that she would have him thrown in jail if he wouldn’t fulfil her requests. However, Yosef ha’tzadik responded that “Hashem matir assurim”, meaning that he had to do what was right and Hashem could easily take care of him and free him from prison. We make the bracha of “baruch matir assurim” every day. It is a bit of a strange b’racha as on the surface it does not seem as relevant as the other b’rachos we make. Perhaps, based on this Ba’al Ha’turm and Gemara we could suggest that the purpose of the b’racha is to start the day with this attitude of Yosef ha’tzadik that: we have to do what is right and Hashem will protect us from any harm that may come from doing what it yashar. As far as other explanations of the b’racha go - the Shulchan Aruch connects it to the ability to sit; the Eitz Yosef (brought down in Siddur Otzer Ha’tefillos) writes that the bracha is essentially acknowledging the fact and thanking Hashem that we are able to move our limbs after them being like they were jailed a whole night. And the Maharal offers a pshat that it refers to giving birth since the baby was contained inside its mother and then it is free as it enters into the world.

What's on your mind? 

Have a wonderful Shabbos!

P.S:

• Completely random thought I'm thinking about: Themed days. Ever get that feeling that the same random thing keeps coming up over and over again randomly during the day? The other day I overheard a couple of different conversations (different people, different times, different states) where during the conversation someone mentioned (referring to themselves) “I don’t drink coffee, I’ve never had a cup in my life”. It sometimes feels that some days just have an idea in the air and that it comes up multiple times. Obviously coffee is something people talk about daily and not everyone enjoys a cup of coffee, so statistically, it is not so crazy for two people to be talking about coffee where such a conversation would take place; and as I am usually around other people, it is not so unbelievable I overheard such a conversation. Sometimes, though, it seems like there are more random topics or thoughts that we hear or end up mentioning during a day at different times and places and for different reasons. Challenge: In a similar vein, at the end of each day think about your personal day and if there were any themes whether it be in attitude, thoughts, or things that you said. Think deeper as to what the driver of that theme was and why it had such an intrusive (for good or not good) impact.

Have comments or thoughts on this week's bullets? Have other random thoughts on your mind? Send an email to torahparallels@gmail.com. Thank you!