CHOCHMAS NASHIM: COMPARABLE
By: Suri Davis
I want to share with you the evolution of this week’s dvar torah, because I’ve been asked by many how they are created, and thought this week’s evolution of dvar torah might be elucidating.
I asked myself the question, what is the connection/smichut parshiyot between Noach and Lech L’chah, this week’s torah portion and next week’s torah portion. So I went to the last verse in this week’s torah portion of Noach, and I saw that the last verse states that Terach, Abraham’s father lived until 205 years old. The Lubavitcher Rebbe’s commentary on the verse states that although Terach lived until 205, he was actually an evil man and so evil men are considered dead, even when they are on Earth (possibly because if one’s entire life is meant to elevate one’s self by ethical conduct, and the person spends his life denigrating his soul, his whole raison detre, then his life is as though, he is not living and fulfilling his task on earth).
I then got to thinking about Noah, and the fact that all people come from Noah, because G-d destroyed all in the flood, except Noah and his family. And the torah portion discussed at length Noah’s descendants and how they populated the Earth.
I was thinking of how in last week’s torah portion, there was a revelation of how Adam populated the Earth and his descendants, and thinking what a shame that G-d’s initial plan, that it be Adam that populates the world, did not come to fruition. True Noah came from Adam, but he is one man out of many who came from Adam, and ultimately the world was populated by Noah and his wife.
I was thinking of Noah v. Adam. Noah had human parents, Adam was created by G-d from dust. What would the world have been like if it were populated by a perfect creation, which was sin free, a creation that was wholly created without human intervention, but by G-d’s hands alone.
Then my thoughts wandered back to Terach, and how the Rebbe told us that he was dead living because he was wicked. My mind wandered back to last week’s torah portion, which set forth that if Adam were to eat from the tree of knowledge, then on that very day he would die. Genesis 2:17. It did not say that G-d would kill him, but that he would die. G-d gave Terach the ability to live on Earth and change, and revive his soul. Terach killed himself by being evil on earth thereby being considered dead. So too, when Adam sinned and ate from the tree of knowledge, he destroyed the purpose of the soul that was blown into him by G-d, and in that way killed himself on earth as well.
What is the difference between the two progenitors one torah portion away from each other? G-d solely created Adam to populate the world. Noah was created from humans, but with a soul blown into him by G-d, as all man is provided with a soul by G-d who is his third parent.
What popped into mind was the entire story, in Ki Tisah, of the sin of the golden calf. When Moses went up to Mount Sinai to receive the torah the first time, G-d provided him with the tablet of the commandments, which G-d Himself had created exclusively. After the sin of the golden calf, in anger, Moses broke that tablet. After G-d forgave the nation, G-d told Moses to make the second tablet, and then G-d completed the earthly tablet by writing on the tablet Himself. As Adam had been entirely created by G-d, the first tablet was entirely created by G-d, as Noah was created by humans with G-d’s finishing touch, so too the second tablet was created by Moses and G-d completed said tablet.
When Adam sinned, he blamed his sinning on Eve, his wife. When Moses threw down the tablet, he had blamed the sinning on the Jews, when in fact, it was those who tagged along with the Jews out of Egypt, the erev rav/mixed group. Exodus 34:1, The Rebbe explains: “G-d said to Moses, ‘you shattered the original tablets because you assumed that the people were an unfaithful wife and you wanted to destroy the marriage contract. I commend you for doing this. But now it has been found that the fault was with the mixed multitude, the handmaidens rather than the wife, it is time to restore the tablets that you broke…” Rashi on Deuteronomy 34:12; Likutei Sichot, vol. 9, p.240. Interesting how Adam blamed Eve, and Moshe blamed the people as though they were an unfaithful wife.
Being descendants of Noah, of humans, is different than being of Adam, who was created solely by G-d; having tablets created by man, is different than having tablets created solely by G-d. There is a loss with sin. If one continues to sin, and is branded wicked, it is as though he has already killed himself. In killing his soul, he kills his spirituality and his entire reason for being on Earth. We are created with potential. Sinning detracts from attaining that potential. But at any moment we can change paths and gain entrance to the world to come, and make the most of the time we have here on Earth to reach great heights, elevating, too, those around us, and gaining greater rewards in the world to come.
Adam was not created with an evil inclination, Noah, of man, was created with the evil inclination. This might detract from the greatness of this patriarch, or might imbue him with greater ability to overcome the evil inclination with which he was born, i.e. it is like being born with a virus, when we would rather ben virus-free, yet being born with an immunity which can strengthen us against said virus/sin. Feel strong, be strong.
Enjoy your pets.
Shabbat shalom.
-Suri