Parashat Vayeshev, Second Candle of Hanukkah (5761)

With God's help, on the eve of the holy Sabbath of Parashat Vayeshev, second candle of Hanukkah, 5761

What do the Hanukkah candle and Joseph have to do with one another: awareness and repression

In our portion the struggle between Joseph and his brothers is described, ending (as far as this portion is concerned) with his being cast into a pit

and sold to Egypt. Rashi, on this passage, cites a well-known midrash, a midrash that appears in the Talmud together

with another statement, by the same sage, concerning the festival of Hanukkah in which we now find ourselves:

Rabbi Kahana said: Rabbi Natan bar Manyumi expounded in the name of Rabbi Tanhum: A Hanukkah lamp

that one placed above twenty cubits is invalid, just like a booth and an alleyway. And Rabbi Kahana said: Rabbi Natan bar Manyumi

expounded in the name of Rabbi Tanhum: What is the meaning of that which is written, 'The pit was empty; there was no water in it' (Genesis 37:24)? From the fact that it says,

'The pit was empty,' do I not know that there was no water in it? Rather, what does Scripture teach by saying, 'There was no water'? There was no water

in it, but there were snakes and scorpions in it.

Rabbi Tanhum's first statement deals with the Hanukkah lamp and rules that if it is placed above

twenty cubits (about ten meters), it is invalid, for at such a height one does not see it. The second statement

deals with Joseph's pit, which was empty of water but had snakes and scorpions in it.

The juxtaposition of two statements by the same sage, which on the face of it are unrelated, stirred the imagination

of sages in every generation, especially since Hanukkah usually falls on the Sabbath of Parashat 'Vayeshev.' Dozens

of explanations (excuses!?) have been offered about the connection between these midrashic passages, and I too, the least among them, shall go

in the tracks of the flock, in keeping with the finest tradition.

The Torah notes that the pit was empty, apparently in order to hint that the brothers did not want to kill

Joseph and therefore threw him into an empty pit. Had they wanted to kill him, they would have done so with their own hands, or

at least thrown him into a pit full of water. On the other hand, from the context it is clear that they certainly did want

to kill him in that pit ('What profit is it if we kill our brother and cover up his blood?' [Genesis 37:26]), and therefore

the Sages explain that the pit was not empty, but full of snakes and scorpions. In light of this exposition of the Sages, it is not clear

why the Torah in fact notes that the brothers took care to throw him specifically into a pit empty of water. Even if there had been

water in the pit, Joseph would have died, perhaps even immediately. In what way is a pit empty of water but full of snakes

and scorpions preferable to a pit full of water?

Sometimes, when people want to do some evil deed, they do so while repressing the meaning of

their action. The brothers threw Joseph into the pit and told themselves that the pit was empty. Everyone knew

that it was full of snakes and scorpions, for what empty pit is not full of them? Yet despite this, it was

convenient for the brothers not to see them, since they were small and lay deep in the pit (perhaps at a depth of

twenty cubits?!). It was convenient for them to repress the matter and think that they were throwing Joseph into an empty pit. Afterward

they could say: 'Really? The pit was full of snakes? How did we not notice! What a pity!'

Those brothers, the fathers of the nation, failed to notice reality, but they also failed to notice the prohibition of murder.

People in such a state generally do not deceive others, but mainly themselves. When a person

does something evil, it is sometimes convenient for him to deceive himself. He throws Joseph into the pit and ignores

the existence of snakes within it. Out of sight, out of mind.

There are many simple truths that we tend to ignore, even though deep down we know

them very well. Because they are not visible on the surface, we manage to deceive, above all

ourselves, as though we had not seen them. The amazing world in which we live cries out entirely that it is governed by divine

providence; but because divine providence is hidden from us, we sometimes tend

to ignore it.

Something similar happens in radio interviews with politicians. Everyone knows that everyone deceives everyone else,

and that not even a single word of anyone's is to be believed. This does not prevent those same people from continuing

to interview and be interviewed, and all of us from listening to them, as though some exchange of

information were taking place. So-and-so spoke harshly and apologizes ('his words were taken out of context'). That other one, by contrast, does not

apologize. Why is he not apologizing? Not acceptable! Let him deceive us, please!! We all, in the final

analysis, mainly deceive ourselves.

The miracle of Hanukkah can be interpreted as the wondrous victory of bold and agile fighters, and indeed it is such,

but there is no such victory without 'You delivered the mighty into the hands of the weak, and the impure into the hands of the pure.' According to Jewish

law, those who go out to an obligatory war are men who did not speak between the arm phylactery and the head phylactery. All

the warriors who committed even this minor transgression 'return from the battle ranks.' It is clear to the Torah, just as it is already

clear to us today, that without the spirit that beats within the fighters, and an understanding of the aims of the war, all courage

and all means of warfare are worth nothing.

The Hanukkah lamp is a proclamation to all who care to know about divine providence. Its basis is 'publicizing the miracle,'

that is, proclaiming that the victory was a divine miracle and not merely a military operation. The lamp must be

below twenty cubits, for otherwise, because the eye will not see the lamp, then even though it is there

we can continue to repress, we can refuse to look and delude ourselves that we won because we were

'a small but high-quality army.' The lamp is aimed precisely at those who know that there is divine providence, who know

and repress. Whoever does not acknowledge at all the existence of divine providence, if there is anyone like that, no lamp,

at any height, will help him.

'For the miracles, and for the deliverance, and for the mighty deeds, and for the salvations, and for the wonders, and for the consolations, and for

the wars that You performed for our fathers in those days at this season.'

Have a peaceful Sabbath and a happy Hanukkah

This may be deposited for respectful disposal in any synagogue or house of study. Comments and responses are welcome.

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