…לך-לך מארצך
“Go forth from your land…” (12:1)
There is a tremendous anomaly in the first Pasuk in this week’s Parsha. It contains six final Chof letters (ך), almost in succession. What is the deeper message? I heard from Rav Yitzchok Fingerer shlit”a that the gematria (numerical value) of a Chof is 20. The total value of the six Chof letters is 120. The pasuk is instructing Avram to leave behind all negative influences, and foreign ideologies, and find himself spiritually. Perhaps the six successive Chof letters are teaching us that a Jew’s entire life, all 120 years that we aspire to, is about Lech Lecha, finding ourselves, our strengths, capabilities, talents, and unique abilities that Hashem granted us.
…ואברכה מברכיך
“I will bless those who bless you, and he who curses you, I will curse.…” (12:3)
When Hashem tells Avraham that He will bless “those who bless you,” it refers not only to someone who blesses Avraham himself but also to someone who blesses one of his descendants (Chullin 49).
Rav Yechezkel Levenstein zt”l cites this pasuk in a letter he wrote to show that blessing one’s friend is a very worthwhile action. When you bless another person, you are offering a few short words, in return for which the Almighty gives you His bountiful blessings. When one greets a fellow Jew with a hearty “Shalom aleichem” or “Good morning, ” you are blessing him, and as a result, Hashem will bless you. For this reason, it is fitting to give a blessing for success to one who embarks on a business venture or undertakes a new job. For, in essence, you are not only helping to add to your friend’s success; you are, in fact, helping yourself, as well.
Towards the end of his life, Rav Chatzkel Sarna zt”l, Rosh Hayeshiva of Chevron, was ill and very weak. Nevertheless, one Motzei Shabbos, a few weeks before his death, he exerted himself to go to the yeshiva to daven Maariv. As he was walking up the steps, he and the person accompanying him realized that the students had just finished praying. The other man paused, unsure if the Rosh Yeshiva wanted to go straight home, but Rav Chatzkel continued up the steps. “Why are you troubling yourself?” asked his companion. “They have already finished davening. “Praying with the congregation is the fulfillment of a (Continued on page 2) rabbinical obligation,” said the Rosh Yeshiva. “But blessing the students to have a good week is the fulfillment of V’ahavta l’rayacha kamocha – love your fellow man, which is a Torah commandment.”[1]
…הבט נא
“Look toward the heaven and count the stars…” (15:5)
The holy Baal Shem Tov once said that the descendants of Avraham are like stars. We see stars from a great distance, and they appear to be mere tiny specks but, in heaven they are gigantic. So, too, in this world, many people look very small. But in reality, they have greatness.
When you look at another person, realize that he is like a star. He might seem small to you. He might not appear as having accomplished very much. Gain an awareness of the great potential of each person. View each person as an entire world, as an enormous being in the cosmos. When you see people in this light you will behave toward them with great respect. When you show others this respect, they will gain greater respect for themselves. This can give a person the encouragement he needs to live up to his potential greatness.
I would like to share with you a story that illustrates this idea. After a meeting, Rav Yaakov Kamenetzky zt”l and Rav Moshe Feinstein zt”l stood outside a waiting car discussing who would sit next to the driver and who would sit alone in the back seat. Rav Yaakov took the front seat. After Rav Moshe alighted from the car, Rav Yaakov explained to the driver, “We were clarifying who would be getting off first. That person, we decided, would sit in the back. If he would sit in the front, the longer-riding passenger would be in the back leaving you alone at the wheel, making you look like a chauffeur. But that is not the case. We appreciate your importance and did not want to compromise your dignity.”[2]
[1] From the Torah Tavlin
[2] From Growth through Torah, Rabbi Zelig Pliskin with permission
