Rabbi Mansour 09

פרשת ויצא

The גמרא says that when Yaakov realized that he had passed the place of the מקדש without stopping to pray, he set in his mind to head back. The פסוק says "ויפגע"- he encountered, which is a term that implies suddenness. The גמרא explains that he had קפיצות הדרך, and the place of the Mikdash had come to him immediately - even though it was a week away by foot!

There are other instances of קפיצות הדרך in the Torah, and there are even stories in recent years of צדיקים that had קפיצות הדרך when going to do מצות. There is a story with the Halban when he was a young boy growing up in Tel Aviv. The Halban’s father was known for his Hachnasat Orchim. One time Rabbi Abraham Cohen was staying at their home and wanted to pray in a minyan in Shechunat Hatikvah - a 45 minute walk- to collect for his Yeshiva. The Halban’s father asked him to walk their guest to the shul. The Halban testifies that Rabbi Cohen held his hand and they made it to the shul in three minutes!!

There are two types of קפיצות הדרך, one where the person gets to the place quickly, and the other is when the place comes to the person. The first instance of קפיצות הדרך in the Torah is by Eliezer the servant of Avraham Avinu. When Avraham sent Eliezer to find a wife for Yitzhak, the פסוק says ואבא היום אל העין- I arrived today at the well. רש'י explains מכאן שקפצה לו הדרך- from here we see that he had קפיצות הדרך (since he left Avraham Avinu the same day). רש'י then says that יפה שיחתן של עבדי אבות יותר מתורתם של בנים- "Hashem loves even the "plain talk" of the servants of the אבות, more than the Torah of their children"! This פסוק hints to how קפיצות הדרך is done. There is a holy name of Hashem which is: א-ה-ו-ה which when contemplated can cause קפיצות הדרך. This comes from first פסוק in the Torah:בראשית ברא אלקים את השמים ואת הארץ. The שם is hinted in this פסוק by Eliezer, the first letters of ואבא היום אל העין are the same letters as this שם.

How did Eliezer know this? In Avraham’s instructions to Eliezer he made him swear by Hashem that is: אלקי השמים ואלקי הארץ (first letters spell this holy name) by doing so, he gave Eliezer this secret. It is also hinted in the proof that Eliezer gave to the family of Rivkah that he had left Avraham that same day. Avraham gave a contract to Eliezer dated that day in which he gave over everything he had to Yitzhak. The פסוק describes this contract as: וכל טוב אדני בידו. The numerical value of טוב is 17, which is the same Gematriah as א-ה-ו-ה (17). We see hidden in his proof was the method of how he did it! This answers why רש'י says מכאן שקפצה לו הדרך- from here, meaning - from this name. It also answers why רש'י chooses this פסוק to tell us that Hashem loves the talk of עבדי אבות. Why did he wait for this פסוק, which is many פסוקים into the story? Why didn’t Rashi tell us this right in the beginning of the story? Now we understand, that רש'י is telling us that even in the "simple" talk of Eliezer was hinted the secret שמות of Hashem, this פסוק was the example.

This explains why the Gemarah says: "לעולם יצא אדם בכי טוב" "a person should always leave to go on the road during the daytime". The גמרא goes on to explain that טוב means the day, but why not just say "leave during the יום (day)"? Now we understand that the גמרא is hinting to us the secret of traveling safely and קפיצות הדרך since טוב is 17 and the Gematriah of א-ה-ו-ה .

Why does this holy name cause קפיצות הדרך? To answer this, we have to analyze the other things that this שם is used for. The Holy name is also used for דעת, and זכרון. When a person focuses on this name with the proper contemplation it helps his דעת. Now we can understand the לשון in the גמרא that says that when Yaakov realized he passed the spot: כד יהיב דעתיה- when he set in his mind ((דעת to return, the place jumped to him. This hints to this name that is used for both דעת and קפיצות הדרך.

With this we can also explain a connection between the end of the Torah and the beginning. The Torah ends with the words: אשר עשה משה לעיני כל ישראל- "that which Moshe did in front of the eyes of Israel". What did he do in front of their eyes? He broke the לוחות. What did that cause? שכחה- forgetting of the Torah. The Torah begins with the פסוק : את השמים ואת הארץ giving the remedy to שכחה, which is the name of Hashem that helps your דעת and זכרון.

The פסוק says "בכל דרכך דעהו" "know Hashem in all your ways" this also hints to the connection between דעת and דרך (קפיצות הדרך).

In what way are דעת and קפיצות הדרך connected that they should have the same name of Hashem that affects them?? The פסוק says:השמים שמים לה' והארץ נתן לבני אדם, the Kotzker Rebbe says that from this פסוק we see that the שמים is already holy, we don’t need to make it holy, but the ארץ is given to man to make holy. We have to elevate the physical pleasures of this world and turn them into קדושה. Unlike the גוים, that say that a person cannot enjoy the pleasures of this world and be connected to spirituality at the same time. (As we see their leaders separate from women, and do not talk or indulge in any kind of pleasure.) We believe the opposite, the first Mitzvah in the Torah is פרו ורבו- to have children. We enjoy this world and we have in mind that whatever we do, we are doing it in order to serve Hashem better. This is the greatest way of elevating mundane into קדושה.

We see this idea illustrated by the בית המקדש. On the alter there were specific areas that certain sacrifices could be brought. The עולה - which was all for Hashem (totally burnt on the מזבח without anyone partaking from its meat) - was only brought in the צפון- the north. The שלמים (of which only part of it was burnt and part was eaten by the כהנים) - was brought in the דרום-the south side. When a non Jew would bring a קרבן to the בית המקדש, he would bring it only in the north (the area of the Olah) this was because of the mentality of the גוים. They have to be like an Olah- that all is for שמים- because in their view it would be impossible for a כהן to eat (which is a physical act) and the owner of the קרבן get a כפרה?! Therefore they only bring the קרבנות in the צפון (north). Shelomo Hamelech says in Shir hashirim:עורי צפון ובואי תימן- "leave the north and go to the south". Meaning; don’t think like the גוים- whose קרבנות are brought in the north- that you can’t serve Hashem while benefiting from this world. Rather, go south- like the שלמים (that its owner gets a כפרה thru the כהן’s act of eating)- and serve Hashem with benefiting from this world. This is our job in this world, to sanctify all the things we do and make it holy to Hashem. Our eating, drinking, sleeping, money,etc. should all should be enjoyed only for the purpose of serving Hashem better.

The word דעת also alludes to the word; connect, as it says in the Pasuk:וידע קין את אשתו and קין "knew" his wife and had a child. He connected and came together with his wife to have a child. We also see that when a person doesn’t understand something, he can’t connect with the answer. Later on, when he does understand it, his brain connects it to the answer. דעת alludes to connection. When a צדיק sanctifies everything he does to Hashem, he is connecting ארץ to the שמים (he is making the physical ארץ holy like the שמים). When his דעת is strong, his connection of שמים וארץ is strong (since דעת means to connect).

When his connection of שמים וארץ is strong then the nature of the world is in his hands. Like it says, that there are two types of טבע- (nature), one is called טבע מפורסם- the regular well known nature that we see things happen every day sunrise, sunset, etc.(Which are also all miracles). The second kind of טבע is called טבע חכם. This refers to when a צדיק wants something to happen that is against the course of nature, the nature "listens" to the צדיק and does whatever he says like water splitting or earth moving. Nature "knows" that this is why the world was created- it is for this connection that the sadik has mastered, so whatever the sadik says the nature does. Therefore קפיצות הדרך happens to the Sadik whose דעת (connection of שמים וארץ) is strong; this is when the earth does what he wants and moves to him! We now understand why the same name of Hashem of א-ה-ו-ה is used for דעת and קפיצות הדרך - it is because they go hand and hand!

This is hinted in the dream of Yaakov when it says that the ladder was "מצב ארצה וראשו מגיע השמימה", it was planted on the ground but the top was in the שמים. Yaakov connected the שמים and ארץ and that is how he had קפיצות הדרך.

This concept of serving Hashem through the pleasures of this world was enhanced through the teachings of the בעל שם טוב, who taught us to serve Hashem through שמחה and singing etc. The way of the חסידים is to eat and make סעודות , all to elevate them to serve Hashem (this is also our way, the way of the Sephardim we are happy and make beautiful סעודות all for the service of Hashem). We see by the צדיקים today that give their guests to eat and drink. This is hinted in the name of the בעל שם טוב. The word טוב=17 which is the Gematriah of א-ה-ו-ה, showing that he enhanced this דעת, this connection of שמים וארץ (hence so many wondrous nature defying stories about the בעש'ט). Another reason why he is called the בעל שם טוב is that he was a נצוץ of משה רבנו, who it says about him ותרא אותו כי טוב הוא.

The order is of course to first work on the רוחניות, and make it strong, then to focus on elevating the גשמיות, first the שמים (רוחני) then the ארץ (גשמי). Like the פסוק says את השמים ואת הארץ and only later in the פרשה it says ביום ברא ה' אלקים ארץ ושמים (mentioning the ארץ before the שמים). In the instructions of Avraham Avinu, he told Eliezer to swear by Hashem אלקי השמים ואלקי הארץ, showing him what comes first. When Eliezer was repeating the story to the family of Rivkah he said: ואבא היום אל העין- which is the ו-ה-א-ה, configuration of the holy name. This configuration represents; ואת הארץ את השמים; he already reached the point where he was able to focus on making the ארץ holy like the שמים. He did many things like giving Rivkah jewelry and by doing other physical things with great spiritual intentions. Regarding Yaakov we also see the פסוק says first ארץ then שמים (מצב ארצה וראשו מגיע השמימה). He was making the ארץ like the שמים.

There is a pasuk regarding the laws of inheritance that says; When a man has two sons from two wives "haahat ahuvah ve ahat senuah" (one beloved and one hated) he may not choose the younger beloved son over the older son to give him the "pi shenayim"(double inheritance) . The pasuk hints to this concept that a person needs to focus on his "senuah" (hated) - which refers to the physicality that he originally shunned- to uplift it to holiness. When a person does this, Hashem rewards him with "pi shenayim" (double) - the ability to have effect on two worlds, this one and the next.

This is why as holy as יום כיפור is – when we abstain and do not involve ourselves in physical pleasures- It is כפורים יום only "like" פורים. פורים is on an even higher level, because we eat, drink and enjoy and we do it all לשם שמים. The Arizal says that as holy as the prayers of Shabbat are, a person can reach an even higher level through his eating on Shabbat! (Friday night for yishak, Shabbat day for Abraham, and seudah shelishit for yaakob).

We must always keep in mind that whatever it is we may be involved with – if we have the proper intentions - we can sanctify the act for spiritual purposes and utilize it to come closer to Hashem!