Category: Beraishis Ch. 9

Before the Mabul man understood animals. Man was close with animals. At that stage in history, man’s task was to be caretaker of the world, preserving it – לעבדה ולשמרה. Man’s task was to master and perfect the world.

After the Mabul animals will fear you. Man’s relationship with the world and his goal changes. Man’s task is now to perfect and refine himself, and to restore the honored position he should have.

As we see from the entire content of the Prophets, the rest of history is the story of man’s return to his original condition and God’s deeds to further this goal.

This will ultimately come about, and with it longevity, the return of peace and the “new heaven and earth” (Yeshaya 66:22).

Beraishis 9:1-2
pages 219-222

After the flood eating meat is permitted.

It is possible that this is because now that man’s life span was shortened, he would need to develop more rapidly. Another possibility is that now that the continents were divided and the climates would change from season to season,  limiting eating to produce would be more difficult. With this allowance, man would be less dependent on food grown from the soil.

Had man remained at his previous, higher level eating meat would have been prohibited. Now that it is permitted it can even be a mitzva (such as eating meat for yom tov).

Once meat has become permitted, the Torah sets limitations to what is permitted. (See the next verse 9:4 which teaches the prohibition of אבר מן החי – eating meat of an animal that was separated from a living animal.)

Later, when the Torah is given to Israel, the only food that is prohibited by the Torah is animal-based food. By contrast all foods that are plant-based are permitted by the Torah. The exceptions (חדש, ערלה and כלאי הכרם) are prohibited for other factors.

Beraishis 9:3
pages 222-223

אַךְ־בָּשָׂ֕ר בְּנַפְשׁ֥וֹ דָמ֖וֹ לֹ֥א תֹאכֵֽלוּ

However, (although flesh is now permitted to be eaten) you shall not eat flesh whose blood is still in it (in its soul).

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Here the Torah refutes a materialistic view of life. It speaks to those who think that power, intellect, soul, and life are merely variations and attributes of the material. They think that הדם הוא בנפש, that the blood is the soul, and that if someone destroys the blood he also destroys the soul. They think that there is no realm of the spirit. Everything can be understood materially. The Torah is saying here that body and soul are distinct from one another, and that the body is subservient to the soul.

There are 3 components of an animal discussed in this verse:
1. בשר – flesh, the body
2. נפש – the soul, the individual
3. דם – the blood

The blood is the instrument of the soul. As long as the animal is alive, the blood is still in the soul, meaning, the blood is encompassed and dominated by the soul. The blood is merged in the soul.

When the animal is alive, the blood is the physical representative of the soul. Every part of the body is dependent on the blood. The blood then subordinates the entire body to the soul. The body, the בשר – the מבשר, “the announcer”, declares, via the blood, the existence of the soul.

The soul – individuality, is expressed through the living body (the בשר). As long as the body is subservient to the soul via the blood, the body retains its individuality.

The link between body and soul is the blood. Once this bond is broken, once the animal dies, the body reverts to the elements of which it is made, no longer having any connection to the soul of the animal.

Based on the above….

This law teaches us that the body of an animal may be eaten only when the soul has departed from the blood. Now the body is merely passive, not under the sway of the animal’s soul. The blood is already dead and no longer represents the animal’s soul. Whereas if a part of an animal was severed while it was still alive, the flesh still bears the invisible effect of the living animal’s soul, unfit to be assimilated by man.

(See pages 225-226 for a full discussion of all the places in the Torah where דם and נפש are mentioned together and how they all fit into this understanding.)

In the following post we will see that the soul of a human is different to that of an animal. The animal soul is rooted in the physical and the human soul is rooted in the spirit of God.

Beraishis 9:4
pages 223-226

וְאַךְ אֶת דִּמְכֶם לְנַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם אֶדְרֹשׁ מִיַּד כָּל חַיָּה אֶדְרְשֶׁנּוּ וּמִיַּד הָאָדָם מִיַּד אִישׁ אָחִיו אֶדְרֹשׁ אֶת נֶפֶשׁ הָאָדָם

But your blood which belongs to your souls I will demand; I will demand it of every animal. But from the hand of man, from the hand of a being that is his brother, I will demand the soul of a man.

שֹׁפֵךְ דַּם הָאָדָם בָּאָדָם דָּמוֹ יִשָּׁפֵךְ כִּי בְּצֶלֶם אֱלֹקים עָשָׂה אֶת הָאָדָם

Whoever sheds blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for in the image of God He made man.
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In the previous post (verse 9:4) we learned that while an animal is alive its blood is בנפש, subservient to the animal soul. There is an organic connection between the animal’s blood and its soul. The animal soul, together with its body is formed from the earth. The prohibition of אבר מן החי taught that it is not befitting a human to eat and thereby assimilate any connection to an animal soul into itself, because an animal is rooted in the physical.

There is a difference between the soul of an animal and the soul of a human. The animal’s body, blood and soul belong to humans. The human body, blood and soul belong to God.

These verses teach the prohibition of suicide and murder.

Suicide

We have no right to commit suicide. Human blood and souls are not ours. The human soul is not part of the physical realm. His blood, ie. his life, is subservient to that soul. A person’s own blood and soul belong to God. God denies man the right to be master over his own blood. If he takes his own life he will be held accountable.

Murder

Every person is “אדם” “Adam”, a representative of God on earth (see the post on the creation of אדם). He should understand this about himself and about all other humans. It must be understood that every other person is his brother. Human relationships are not body to body but soul to soul. We must recognize the spirit that God breathed into every person and respect and preserve each נפש. We have no right to cause harm to other humans. We certainly have no right to take their life.

Beraishis 9:5-6
pages 226-228

 

The purpose of judicial punishments is not deterrence. Proofs of this are:

1. Punishments are only given with 2 witnesses who must first warn the criminal about the punishment he will receive should he commit the crime. This seldom occurs and a smart criminal will usually be able to avoid this.
2. In most monetary crimes there is only restitution (תשלומין) and not even a fine.

The purpose of judicial punishments is not to repay the offender in kind. Proofs of this are:

1. The expression in the Torah (Shemos 21:24) “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” does not mean remove an eye or remove a tooth. It means monetary payment. We are taught that by tradition (ב”ק פ”ד עמוד א).
2. Furthermore, there in Shemos various payments are mentioned (loss of work and medical expenses for the victim) in the words שבתו יתן ורפא ירפא.

(There are only four places where the Torah states that “all Yisrael should see and be afraid.” Those four places are specifically in cases where the crime was not successful. People might not have understood the significance of where these attempted crimes were leading (על שם סופן). They are: עדים זוממין, בן סורר ומורה, זקן ממרא and מסית ומדיח. In all four of these cases deterrence is the reason for the public execution or announcement, but not for the punishment in and of itself.)

• The lesson of the expression of “an eye for an eye” is that a person’s rights are reserved for him, only to the extent that he recognizes the rights of others.

All punishments are rather atonement (כפרה) for the offender. Even someone who is to be executed has a future in the next world and needs this atonement. His death atones for his misdeeds, enabling him to go to the next world in a new state of being, in purity.

Beraishis 9:6
pages 228-229

וְאַתֶּם פְּרוּ וּרְבוּ שִׁרְצוּ בָאָרֶץ וּרְבוּ בָהּ

And you, be fruitful and multiply, diversify upon the earth and multiply upon it.

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This verse is the culmination of God’s “Plan B” for mankind, after the Mabul.

After the Mabul the continents were split apart, the climate of the world changed and man’s life span was shortened. As RSRH explained, all of this stymied the spread of evil.  See Beraishis 8:22.

Here, Hirsch explains the positive affect of this diversity of nations and cultures and how that too is part of “Plan B”.

In this verse God tells Noach and his family to spread out in the world, to bring about the diversification of man.

Under the most diverse conditions and influences they are to become “men” (אדם) in the true sense of the word (“Adam” means man who lives a Godly life on earth. A representative of God in this world.) and to develop the character traits common among men. Wherever he may live, man can be “man”, meaning he can find happiness and develop all of his human qualities.

People are born with a natural tendency to love the place where they are born and raised, even when that place has difficult conditions – מ”ר ל”ד, ט”ו  ברוך שנתן חן המקום בעיני יושביו. The Midrash tells us ברית נחלקה לאוירות, a covenant was given to the special climates. Hirsch suggests that the deeper meaning of this Midrash is that God’s covenant with man is spread out over various climates. (God’s relationship with man, living as “אדם” will take hold by means of man’s varied ways of living in the world, influenced by the varied climates in the world. GS) Every local has its vices and its virtues. (Every individual and every culture has its own experience . Each has the capacity for its unique expression of a relationship with God. GS) By the same token, no man can judge others by his own standards.

The diversity will compensate for man’s shortcomings and pave the way to progress toward the goal.

Beraishis 9:7
pages 230-231

 

Symbolism of the Rainbow

As was explained above, the new world order after the Mabul was to create diversity. On the basis of the variations of human beings, God will educate mankind toward the Divine goal.

A rainbow is one unified and complete ray of light, broken up into seven colors. The red ray is closest to the light and the violet is the farthest. Together they form one white ray which shines forth in full purity.

The entire variety of living things, from man – אדם (= red/אדום) to the lowliest worm, are all united by God in one common bond of peace. In all of them is found a refracted ray of God’s spirit.

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1. Earlier God’s decision was made to Himself. Here the decision is revealed to man as a ברית; a commitment to never again bring about a Mabul, but rather to bring the world to its destiny by other means.
2. God doesn’t just declare his commitment. He establishes an אות – a sign and a remembrance in reference to this commitment. We find this throughout the Torah. Some examples are תפילין, שבת, מילה.
3. It is plausible to say rainbows were existent prior to this time. Now, God is designating the rainbow as a sign of the covenant that God has declared. (Just as we see God showing Avraham the stars that already existed, showing Moshe the moon that already existed, and the seasons of the year that were declared to be signs of historical remembrance for Israel.)

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Beraishis 9:8-17
pages 231-234

Immediately before the Torah teaches us the source of the nation of Canaan’s degeneracy (so degenerate that we are taught in Vayikra 18:25 that the land would no longer tolerate its inhabitants) we are told that all the children of Noach left the ark. All, including Cham, the father of Canaan.

Each of them was found worthy of being saved with Noach. From this we can infer that this is true for current times as well. Differences in the character of nations, even if certain national characteristics border on degeneration, do not prevent a person from fulfilling the human mission.

All were created in the image of God (which was taught just a few verses above, 9:6) and no man can say to another “You are less of a human being than I am; in fact, you cannot even be classified as a ‘man'”.

Beraishis 9:18
pages 234-235

After the Mabul, Noach set out to rebuild the world. In time (by then, Cham had a child, Canaan), the soil flourished and he succeeded in planting grapes. He must have been ecstatic to know that there was hope for the future. He became drunk from his first taste of wine (quite possibly unintentionally) and went inside his tent to not be seen this way in public. The Torah describes his state of being as being “uncovered”. RSRH explains that this is not necessarily intended to be understood literally (he quotes sources for a broader meaning of the word ויתגל, uncovered). It means his weaker side was exposed. In that state he would not be viewed as the dignified father he was, and so he wanted privacy, to not be seen that way.

His son Cham followed him into the tent and reported what he saw to his brothers, who remained outside, in vivid detail (ויגד). He enjoyed witnessing the event and thought that the story would entertain his brothers. His brother’s reaction was to walk in backwards and cover their father’s nakedness (Shem at the lead and Yefes followed) (Is this part of the story literal? See below for its metaphorical lessons. GS).

The whole future of mankind depends on how children act towards their parents. As long as children regard their parents as keepers of God’s charge, revering their parents spiritual essence and not focusing on their physical essence, mankind flourishes. The children learn lessons from the parents and can grown and develop them further. But if the children delight in the physical side of the parents, if there is no reverence for the father, then the continuation from one generation to the next doesn’t occur. The important lessons of the past will not inform the future. The younger generation will consider the older generation obsolete.

Honoring and revering father and mother is the foundation for all of mankind’s development.

When Noach woke up and realized what had happened, he said that Canaan, the son of Cham, is cursed. Note that Noach didn’t say Cham is cursed. Noach’s lesson is: “Honor your father and your mother, lest you be punished through your children.” Sins that children commit against their parents will be punished by the manner in which their own children, in turn, deal with them.

The younger generation must “take a garment and cover their parents’ nakedness”, looking for the spiritual legacy they can take from then, so as to build their own future. If instead, they scorn their parents’, looking only at their frailties and weaknesses, they have nothing to build on and they have no future.

Beraishis 9:20-25
pages 236-243

וַיֹּאמֶר אָרוּר כְּנָעַן עֶבֶד עֲבָדִים יִהְיֶה לְאֶחָיו. וַיֹּאמֶר בָּרוּךְ השם אֱלֹקי שֵׁם וִיהִי כְנַעַן עֶבֶד לָמוֹ. יַפְתְּ אֱלֹקים לְיֶפֶת וְיִשְׁכֹּן בְּאָהֳלֵי שֵׁם וִיהִי כְנַעַן עֶבֶד לָמוֹ

He said: Cursed is Canaan: he shall be a servant of servants to his brothers. And he said: Blessed be God, the God of Shem; may Canaan become their servant. God will open [people’s] emotions to Yefes, but He will dwell in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be a servant to them.

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This prophecy is very far reaching. It is not just about the future of Noach’s sons. It is about the three basic elements that form all civilizations throughout history.

Cham (חם=heat, unrestricted materialistic  passion) is cursed. (This is not a wish it is a statement.) Hot, unrestricted sensuality, that has no respect for spiritual values is incapable of ruling and is unable to preserve its own freedom. It bears in itself its own ruin.

Unrestrained desire leads to slavery. He who at all times controls his passions will not be lead astray by bribes or enticements. (Freedom here means moral freedom. Slavery means the inability to exercise moral freedom. GS)

Shem. (שם=”name”=intellect, the mind recognizing God and deciding how to live based on this understanding. This is the opposite of Cham. Shem decides how to act in tranquility and doesn’t act without thinking.) The God of Shem (meaning the God as Shem understood God) is blessed. Recognition of God, the God of Shem, will grow and spread and ultimately conquer all hearts and all material forces will ultimately submit to it.

Yefes. (יפת= beauty. Its root is פתה which means open to external impressions and influences.) Yefes represents emotion. Yefes is the middle ground between Shem and Cham. From Yefes the world has culture which elevates and dignifies man.

All three exist in every man and nation, but only one of them is dominant both in individuals and nations.

Looking back on 4,000 years of history we see many nations acting like Cham. They conquer and destroy, putting their minds and emotions to use for their physical ambitions. These nations rise and fall; their essence being brute force.

Other nations, primarily the Greeks (and the Romans who built on what the Greeks taught), teach man to value beauty. They put a cloth of elegance over crude sensuality. They engage in poetry, music and art. They elevate man above the physical. This is the contribution of Yefes.

The highest goal, however, is not man living within himself, enjoying his own talents and creativity. A civilization cannot endure without a higher, object ideal, from outside of man that shines forth, raising man above himself. A nation that promotes spiritual values, contributing to the recognition of truth, exemplifies the character of Shem and advances the welfare of mankind.

Beraishis 9:25-27
pages 243-247

See previous post which explains the characteristics of each of Noach’s sons.

See Hirsch’s essay “Hellenism and Judaism”, Collected Writings, volume 2, page 199.

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Cursed is Canaan. Nations that are controlled by their base desires and coarseness will lose their freedom and become enslaved. Canaan will be a slave to slaves. Other nations will have this characteristic as well.

Only nations that are themselves enslaved try to enslave others. The tyrant who wants to conquer other nations, first subjugates his own people who become his tool to subjugate other nations.

Freedom is found where the law of morality reigns. Lust is the breeding ground of slavery.

Cham’s gods are the gods of brute force. Man trembles before them. Tyrants build altars to such gods, creating an atmosphere of fear which enables them to rule over their people.

Shem calls out in the name of God, before Whom the enslaving gods disappear. God liberates man. He endows man with equal dignity and uplifts him above the forces of nature. The breath of God lives in each person. God who is merciful and compassionate is close to everyone equally. He calls man to His service, which liberates and uplifts.

The teaching of God does not do battle through might and force. It wages its struggle in the moral battles man must fight within himself to be honest, kind and giving. Ultimately, God’s teaching will be victorious.

Noach expresses the wish that if indeed Cham must be a slave, let him be a slave to Shem, where he can serve him and thereby fulfill his Divine mission.

But the step before this is Yefes; culture. Cham is not ready to receive the Teaching of Shem immediately. The uncivilized person must first become a cultured person. Before a person can live a life of submission to God and all that He asks of him, he must first become refined and learn “proper taste”, even if these are only material values. This is a step above savagery towards higher values. Culture is the pathway that leads to the teachings of Shem.

Ultimately, all the civilizations of the world will learn from Shem. In time, the world will learn to make their homes dwelling places for the Shechina. (More on this central theme of RSRH in the next post!)

Beraishis 9:25-27
pages 247-249

וַיֹּאמֶר בָּרוּךְ השם אֱלֹקי שֵׁם וִיהִי כְנַעַן עֶבֶד לָמוֹ

And he said: Blessed be God, the God of Shem; may Canaan become their servant.

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ברכה is the fundamental idea of the Jew’s whole life. The whole purpose of the Torah is to teach us how to bless God, לברך את השם.

We are constantly called upon לברך, to bless God and God is ברוך, blessed.

The meaning is as follows: God’s Will is furthered by our commitment to fulfill His Will. God asks of man ברכני; further My aims, perform My commandments, realize My Will, bless my work, whose completion on earth depends on you!

ברכה is the commitment to further God’s aims in the world. When we make this commitment, God’s Will is furthered. He is blessed.

ברכה does not mean mere praise. Praise of Hashem becomes ברכה only when it has an effect on us, when our minds become illuminated and our hearts purified, leading us to do the Will of Hashem.

The ברכות we say in our daily שמונה עשרה are considered substitutes for the קרבנות not because of the requests we make, but because of the ברכות that we conclude each request with. Just as the קרבנות were לחם אשה השם, fuel for the fire of God on earth, representing the dedication of all of our energies and talents to carry out God’s will, so we make that same commitment with each ברכה of the שמונה עשרה. (For more, see Horeb, Avodah, pages 471-478)

Noach, the first ancestor of the new humanity, understood all of this. When we say ברוך, we are carrying out the work that was assigned to all of mankind. We are pronouncing the first word that was ever spoken to express man’s relation to God.

Beraishis 9:26
pages 249-250

…וְיִשְׁכֹּן בְּאָהֳלֵי שֵׁם…

… He will dwell in the tents of Shem…

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Other religions teach what man must do to attain closeness to God in the next world. Judaism teaches what we must do to so that God draws near in this world.

In Beraishis Rabbah, 19:7 we are taught the great principle of עיקר שכינה בתחתונים. The Shechina, the Divine Presence, resides primarily on earth.

The Torah teaches us “ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם“. “Let them make of their lives on earth a sanctuary so that I will dwell in their midst.”

The purpose of the Torah and the mission of Israel is to perfect the world through the reign of God ie. through carrying out God’s Will in our lives. (This is an obvious reference to the words we pray three times daily “לתקן עולם במלכות שקי” GS).

(Hirsch adds here: That is why all the promises of the Torah relate to this world ie. children, prosperity, peace, etc.)

The Torah’s ideal is שכינה. Wherever man sanctifies his home and his camp God fills him with rapture and allows him to experience closeness to God in this world that is מעין עולם הבא. This ideal is not unique to the Jewish people but will ultimately be reached by all of mankind.

But the closeness to God the Torah seeks is grounded. Man is not to “lose himself in God”, to “merge with the divine”. The word שכינה, the Divine Presence, is rooted in the word שכן, neighbor. Just as a person allows the space allotted to his neighbor, so too God wants man to live an active life on earth in man’s space; the earth.

The Talmud teaches us (סוכה דף ה) מעולם לא ירדה שכינה למטה מעשרה, the Shechina never came down lower than 10 tefachim. The ten tefachim are where man is active and only where man’s activity ends does the realm of the Shechina begin.

God draws near to man but He does not encroach upon the human sphere. Man is allowed to develop in accordance with his own free will, as a man on earth.

Judaism doesn’t teach that man should get lost in God, losing his mind in ecstasy. That would result in thinking that there is nothing for a person to do. All that’s expected of him is to feel close to God and God will act through him. Judaism wants man to take action.  It requires man to have a composed mind, making use of his intellect and the freedom God gave him. Our actions become sanctified based on clear thinking, faithfully serving God. That is what makes us worthy of God’s closeness.

Beraishis 9:27
pages 250-251