~ According to Rashi, the laws we find in Behar we also given during the Matan Torah moment.
~ Try to find themes regarding those laws. What is the basic reason given to the laws presented?
[We will focus only in the triennial of Behar. Behar is a short portion, our triennial goes only up to verse 28 of chapter 25, but the full reading goes to verse 26:2, which adds 32 more verses and the question of slavery - this source sheet deals only with the exploitation of the land.]
(כג) וְהָאָרֶץ לֹא תִמָּכֵר לִצְמִתֻת כִּי לִי הָאָרֶץ כִּי גֵרִים וְתוֹשָׁבִים אַתֶּם עִמָּדִי.
(23) And the land shall not be sold in perpetuity; for the land is Mine; for you are dwellers and residents with Me.
(ט) וַיִּפְגַע בַּמָּקוֹם (בראשית כח, יא), רַב הוּנָא בְּשֵׁם רַבִּי אַמֵּי אָמַר מִפְּנֵי מָה מְכַנִּין שְׁמוֹ שֶׁל הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא וְקוֹרְאִין אוֹתוֹ מָקוֹם, שֶׁהוּא מְקוֹמוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם וְאֵין עוֹלָמוֹ מְקוֹמוֹ, מִן מַה דִּכְתִיב (שמות לג, כא): הִנֵּה מָקוֹם אִתִּי, הֱוֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מְקוֹמוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם וְאֵין עוֹלָמוֹ מְקוֹמוֹ. ...
And he encountered the place (Gen. 28:11) Rav Huna said, in the name of Rabbi Ami: ‘why do we change the name of the Holy One of Blessing to Place? Because God is the Place of the world, and God’s world is not God’s place, since it’s written “see, there is this place with Me” (Ex. 33:21) - therefore the Holy One of Blessing is the place of the world, and God’s world is not God’s place. ...
Rabbi Moshe Cordovero (1522–1570) was a teacher of the Mystical Tradition in 16th-century Safed, Israel. He is known by the acronym the Ramak (Hebrew: רמ"ק).
The essence of Divinity is found in every single thing—nothing but it exists. Since it causes every thing to be, no thing can live by anything else. It enlivens them; its existence exists in each existent. Do not attribute duality to God. Let God be solely God... If you suppose that Ein Sof emanates until a certain point, and that from that point on is outside of it, you have dualized. God forbid! Realize, rather, that Ein Sof exists in each existent. Do not say, “This is a stone and not God.” God forbid! Rather, all existence is God, and the stone is a thing pervaded by divinity. (Shiur Komah 206b)
Nothing is outside of God. This applies . . . to everything that exists, large and small - they exist solely through the divine energy that flows to them and clothes itself in them. If God's gaze were withdrawn for even a moment, all existence would be nullified . . . Contemplating this, you are humbled, your thoughts purified.
(Or Yakar)
Tikunei Zohar 123b (lit. “Repairs of Zohar” is a work organized around 70 commentaries to the first word of the Torah, “Bereshit.”)
לֵית אֲתַר פָּנוּי מִנֵּיהּ There is no place empty of the Divine. (Leit atar panui minei)
(א) על פירות האילן חוץ מז' מינים ופירות האדמה וירקות ועל כל המשקין ועל דבר שאין גידולו מן הארץ
(ג) אחרי האכילה אומר:
(ה) בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְ‑יָ אֱ‑לֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם בּוֹרֵא נְפָשׁוֹת רַבּוֹת וְחֶסְרוֹנָן עַל כָּל מַה שֶׁבָּרָאתָּ לְהַחֲיוֹת בָּהֶם נֶפֶשׁ כָּל חָי בָּרוּךְ חֵי חַי הָעוֹלָמִים:
Blessed are You, Ad-nai, Sovereign of the Universe, Creator of all the many forms of life, and Creator of all their needs, for all the things You created to give life to all living things. Blessed are You, the life of the universes.
~ God creates the needs and the fulfillment of the needs
אמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל כל הנהנה מן העוה"ז בלא ברכה כאילו נהנה מקדשי שמים שנא' ... (תהלים כד, א) לה' הארץ ומלואה ר' לוי רמי כתיב לה' הארץ ומלואה וכתיב (תהלים קטו, טז) השמים שמים לה' והארץ נתן לבני אדם לא קשיא כאן קודם ברכה כאן לאחר ברכה א"ר חנינא בר פפא כל הנהנה מן העוה"ז בלא ברכה כאילו גוזל להקב"ה וכנסת ישראל שנא' (משלי כח, כד) גוזל אביו ואמו
Babylonian Talmud, Brachot 35a-b
Rab Judah said in the name of Samuel: To enjoy anything of this world without a blessing is like making personal use of things consecrated to Heaven (meilah), since it says. ‘The earth is the Lord's and everything in it.’ (Ps. 24) …R. Hanina b. Papa said: To enjoy this world without a blessing is like robbing the Holy One, blessed be He, and the community of Israel.
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, Between God and Man, pp. 93-95 ~ adapted
To the Greeks as to many other peoples, the earth is known as Mother Earth. She is the mother who sends up fruits, the giver of children and to her people return at death. Greek drama and poetry exalt the divinity of Earth...
Such a concept is alien to Biblical consciousness. There is only One parent. The earth is one's sister rather than one's mother. Humans and earth are equally the creations of God...
The prophets attacked what may be called the fallacy of isolation. Things and events, humans and the world [are]... inseparable parts of an occasion in which the divine is at stake. ...
To think of God, humans must hear the world. Humans are not alone in celebrating God. To praise God is to join all things in their song to God.
~ Remind people of Psalm 148, which we sing: all things praise God, each on its own.
ומבואר הוא שהשלם שאפשר מציאותו מזה החומר הוא האדם והוא סוף אלה המורכבות והשלם שבהם עד שאם יאמר כי כל הנמצאות מתחת גלגל הירח הם בעבורו יהיה אמת מזה הצד ... הדעת האמיתי אצלי לפי האמונות התוריות והנאות לדעות העיוניות הוא שלא יאמן בנמצאות כולם שהם מפני מציאות האדם אבל יהיו גם כן שאר הנמצאות כולם מכוונות לעצמם לא מפני דבר אחר.
Now it is clear that man is the most perfect being formed of matter; he is the last and most perfect of earthly beings, and in this respect it can truly be said that all earthly things exist for man, i.e., that the changes which things undergo serve to produce the most perfect being that can be produced.... ... I consider therefore the following opinion as most correct according to the teaching of the Bible, and best in accordance with the results of philosophy; namely, that the Universe does not exist for man's sake, but that each being exists for its own sake, and not because of some other thing. Thus we believe in the Creation, and yet need not inquire what purpose is served by each species of the existing things, because we assume that God created all parts of the Universe by His will; some for their own sake, and some for the sake of other beings, that include their own purpose in themselves.
~ The idea that the entire universe has been created because - and only because - of human beings is just our collective hubris. Creation has a purpose beyond humans, and maybe even not connected to us: Creation has its own purpose.
Rebbe Kalonymus Kalman Shapira, (aka Esh Kodesh, 1889–1943)
"Before [the] ability to see the world as souls and essences and consciousness fully emerges in you, you can still impress upon your rational mind the following thought: The whole world and everything in it is divine in origin and substance. It is not visible to my eyes but God is the source of all reality, even I am full of God. The sand under my feet is an articulation of God. The whole world is utterly comprised of, and dependent on, God…When you constantly impress this idea on your mind, you will begin to internalize it…When you remind yourself repeatedly that all the world is divine, your feelings and consciousness inevitably begin to comply with this point of view, which already corresponds with the perspective of the soul…As you observe the world, remind yourself that everything is completely given over to God. Everything is surrounded by the holiness of His Presence. Everything is, essentially, divine." Conscious Community, pp.51-52
The Esh Kodesh brings the idea that we should feel connected to a broader existence, as we feel connected to the Presence of God in all beings.
But this, of course, might make us feel small and unimportant - what are we? what are our deeds?
The following story, which I learned in Camp Ramah as a Jewish story, actually comes from the Hindu lore. But the values it teaches are deeply Jewish:
The Three Friends of Man
In a small village there lived a pious man, virtuous and honest. One day he received a summons from the king to appear before him for judgement. The king was known for his eccentricity, unpredictability, and cruelty. The pious man became very much disturbed and afraid. He had never done anything wrong or unjust, so how could he receive a summons like this, he wondered.
The pious man had three friends: his best friend, his next best friend, and his least intimate friend. He went to his best friend, explained his fear and distress to him, and asked him to come with him to the king's court. His best friend, standing inside the front door of his house, heard the whole matter and said: "I am afraid I cannot accompany you to the king's court. I can only say good luck to you, my friend," and he closed the door in his friend's face. The pious man became terribly disappointed to realize that one whom he had always regarded as his best friend would desert him and leave him out in the cold.
He then went to see his next best friend, told him the whole problem, and made the same request of him. This friend said: "I know you to be a good man and I could never imagine your doing anything wrong. I'll accompany you up to the palace gate, but I do not intend to enter the palace and stand before the king, because he is unpredictable and eccentric and may decide to put me in jail along with you." The pious man became disappointed for the second time.
Sad at heart and disillusioned about human goodness, he went to his least intimate friend, from whom he never expected any help. When this third friend heard of his problem, he said to him: "I do know you to be an honest man and also I am certain that you are incapable of doing anything wrong. Don't worry, my friend, but go home and come leisurely to the court of the king. I am going ahead to testify to the king about your honesty and goodness." The pious man was greatly surprised at this pledge of support from a friend to whom he had never paid much attention.
The pious man in the story represents a human individual in distress, the king, death and the summons, the call of death. The palace gate stands for the graveyard. The "best friend" represents money and possessions, which say goodbye to person at death and never come out of his house to accompany him. The "next best friend" represents relatives and friends, who accompany him only up to the graveyard and then leave his dead body there. The "least intimate friend," to whom he never paid much attention, is the memory of his good deeds, performed with selflessness for the benefit of others. The memory of his good deeds becomes his sole support in his fearful, solitary journey hereafter. Such a memory is his only true and trusted friend. The Bhagavad Gita (II.40) solemnly declares this fact and says: "in this [selfless action] no effort is ever lost and no harm is ever done. Even very little of this dharma [selfless action] saves a man from the Great Fear." The memory of a good deed is like the messenger of Truth that escorts the soul to the realm of Truth.
(From the Vedanta, "never trust a friend who has not been tested")
(ט) וּבְקֻצְרְכֶם אֶת קְצִיר אַרְצְכֶם לֹא תְכַלֶּה פְּאַת שָׂדְךָ לִקְצֹר וְלֶקֶט קְצִירְךָ לֹא תְלַקֵּט. (י) וְכַרְמְךָ לֹא תְעוֹלֵל וּפֶרֶט כַּרְמְךָ לֹא תְלַקֵּט לֶעָנִי וְלַגֵּר תַּעֲזֹב אֹתָם אֲנִי ה' אֱלֹקֵיכֶם.
(9) And when y'all reap the harvest of your land, you shall not completely reap the corner of your field, neither shall you gather the gleaning of your harvest. (10) And you shall not glean your vineyard, neither shall you gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am Ad-nai your God.
(א) פֵּרוֹת שְׁבִיעִית אֵין אוֹכְלִין מֵהֶן אֶלָּא כָּל זְמַן שֶׁאוֹתוֹ הַמִּין מָצוּי בַּשָּׂדֶה שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ויקרא כה ז) "וְלִבְהֶמְתְּךָ וְלַחַיָּה אֲשֶׁר בְּאַרְצֶךָ תִּהְיֶה כָל תְּבוּאָתָהּ לֶאֱכל". כָּל זְמַן שֶׁחַיָּה אוֹכֶלֶת מִמִּין זֶה מִן הַשָּׂדֶה אַתָּה אוֹכֵל מִמַּה שֶּׁבַּבַּיִת. כָּלָה לַחַיָּה מִן הַשָּׂדֶה חַיָּב לְבַעֵר אוֹתוֹ הַמִּין מִן הַבַּיִת וְזֶהוּ בִּעוּר שֶׁל פֵּרוֹת שְׁבִיעִית:
(ב) כֵּיצַד. הֲרֵי שֶׁהָיוּ לוֹ גְּרוֹגָרוֹת שְׁבִיעִית בְּתוֹךְ בֵּיתוֹ אוֹכֵל מֵהֶן כָּל זְמַן שֶׁהַתְּאֵנִים בָּאִילָנוֹת בַּשָּׂדֶה. כָּלוּ הַתְּאֵנִים מִן הַשָּׂדֶה אָסוּר לֶאֱכל מֵאוֹתָן שֶׁבַּבַּיִת אֶלָּא מְבַעֵר אוֹתָן:
(ו) הַכּוֹבֵשׁ שְׁלֹשָׁה כְּבָשִׁים בְּחָבִית אַחַת. כָּל שֶׁכָּלָה מִינוֹ מִן הַשָּׂדֶה יְבָעֵר מִינוֹ מִן הֶחָבִית. וְאִם הִתְחִיל בָּהּ הֲרֵי הַכּל כִּמְבֹעָר. וּכְשֵׁם שֶׁמְּבַעֵר אָכֳלֵי אָדָם כָּךְ מְבַעֵר אָכֳלֵי בְּהֵמָה מִן הַבַּיִת. וְאֵינוֹ מַאֲכִילָן לִבְהֵמָה אִם כָּלָה אוֹתוֹ הַמִּין מִן הַשָּׂדֶה:
We may only partake of the produce of
the Sabbatical year as long as that species
is still found growing in the field. This
is derived from Leviticus 25:7: “For the
animal and the beast in your land will be
all the produce to eat.” This implies that
as long as a beast [chaya] can be eating
from this species in the field, one may
eat from what he has collected at home.
When there is no longer any of that
species for the beast to eat in the field,
one is obligated to remove that species
from his home [and make it available
to the public]. This is the obligation of
Biur which applies to the produce of the
Sabbatical year.
How is it done? If a person has dried
figs at home, he may partake of them as
long as there are figs on the trees in the
field. When there are no longer figs in the
field, it is forbidden for him to partake
of the figs he has at home and he must
instead remove them.
When a person pickles three types of
produce in one barrel, if one of these
types of produce is no longer available in
the field, that type of produce should be
removed from the barrel.
As we embrace our smallness, and the fact that we really don't own anything, we embrace our greatness: our ability of sharing our gifts, all of them, with others. As we embrace our impermanence in the land, we embrace what is permanent: the values and the ripples that our directed actions have throughout the generations: goodness, generosity and giving.
Shabbat Shalom.