Chayei Sarah Parsha Lesson- Who's in charge?
For Year 2 of Parsha Lesson, I will be focusing on one practical middah, character trait, to think about in the week ahead and steps we can take to attain it.
Background
Rashi tells us (24:2) that the mitzvah of Bris Mila was particularly dear to Avraham. Why was this so? Rashi tells us that it was because in order to fulfill the mitzvah of milah, Avraham had to endure tremendous pain. Not that it was particularly difficult, rather it was because it meant physical pain for Avraham.
Question
How does this make sense? Avraham did many great and meaningful mitzvos. Avraham taught Torah to hundreds, if not thousands of people. Avraham was the paradigm of chesed- kindness- which he did with others in a particularly beautiful manner. Yet the bris milah that he did was dear to him because of the pain involved!?
Was milah an objectively greater mitzvah or not? Surely a great man like Avraham would properly judge and weigh the relative merits of his various actions- why is he so swayed by the pain involved in the fulfillment of an otherwise ordinary mitzvah?
Answer
Perhaps, this mitzvah, more than any other that Avraham had done, signified to Avraham the mastery of his neshama or G-dlike soul over his nefesh or animal spirit. Being that this endeavor, doing a bris milah to himself, involved physical pain- something that the animal soul that is inside us recoils from- it showed the ultimate triumph of ‘mind over matter’.
This was the ultimate manifestation of Avraham exercising his free will to do what he reasoned was right and the subjugation of his nefesh to his neshama. Although there may have been other mitzvos that Avraham did that were more significant, since this one involved him inflicting physical pain to himself it showed the triumph of the lifelong mission of our G-dlike souls to become the master of our behaviors and actions.
Lesson
In the Middle School girls Ethics class we have been discussing the different components that make up a person. We discussed how a person is comprised of a nefesh or animal-like spirit and of a neshama a G-d-like soul. The mission that we are all tasked with on this world is for our neshama to be the decisor of our actions.
Our animal-like spirit plays a very important role in our success as people, but the “driver” of our “car” needs to be our neshama, our rational and reasoning part of ourselves. When the neshama is in charge and the nefesh or animal-like spirit is quieted and put in the back seat- that is called “menuchas hanefesh” which is a state in which we have true free choice and make rational decisions as opposed to merely being thrown around by the vicissitudes of the animal spirit.
First Step
If we can assert our reasoning and rational thought with regards to even one regular behavior that we do- this will strengthen our neshama’s leadership and bring one closer to the goal of our neshama being the one in charge of our actions. In any area in which we feel some ‘friction’ in trying to get ourselves to do the more rational and reasoned behavior, that is an area where we can improve our neshama’s rulership over our actions.
For example, say someone is in a rush to get somewhere. If he were to control his urge to plow ahead without concern for those around him and instead go at a measured pace- and even take the time to acknowledge those around him- this will strengthen his rational, reasoning mode of behavior overall.
Have a wonderful Shabbos!
Rabbi Eli Meir Kramer
