Toldot

                         Were in this together now, nobody can stop us now

1. This week's parshah Rebbeca was told a prophecy about her twins, Jacob and Esav. She was told  "Two nations are inside your womb... and one regime shall become strong from the other regime and the elder shall serve the younger."  Zicharyah Grosser explains that this concept of opposing forces is known as binary opposition and it is a central theme found throughout Judaism. An illustration of this concept is the ying/yang symbol. 

1.It seems as though Esav was treated unfairly. Before he was born he was predestined to be ruled. He was born red and hairy and his inherent nature was to be a hunter, out in the field. None of this was his choice.

2. Why is Esav portrayed as evil? He was cast as the villain before he was born.  Based on the text he sold the birthright under duress. Jacob deceived his father in order to get the blessings and then Esav wanted to kill him and a rift was created. This does not seem fair. Esav was set up to fail.

3. "Life is like a game of cards. The hand you are dealt is determinism (Fate) the way you play it is free will" - Jawaharlal Nehru

3.Esav and Jacob were born with a specific nature, we all are. At a young age the brothers' personalities started to emerge. Esav was a man of the field, a lone hunter and Jacob was a wholesome man who sat in tents. His attribute was truth.

In Sun Tzu's seminal work "The Art of War", the author states that you must know your enemy.  Who is your greatest enemy? Yourself. To achieve success you must know yourself, your strengths and weaknesses and what your nature is, what you are capable of.

Growth is going beyond yourself, pushing yourself beyond your perceived boundaries and limits. Sometimes we can only achieve this by transcending our inherent nature.  Thomas Jefferson literally pushed the U.S. and himself beyond its boundaries when he agreed to the Louisiana purchase.

Jefferson was a strict constitutionalist and did not have explicit permission to expand the country.  He stepped outside his comfort zone and doubled the size of the country. The deal involved all or part of 15 states and was a massive win-fall for the U.S.

4. Jacob had to lie for truth. He was a man of truth but he was forced to deceive his father. Just as Abraham's attribute was kindness and his final test was to sacrifice his son. Paradoxically in order to self actualize we must transcend our self, go against our very nature.

When the prophet Samuel was told to anoint David as king he was concerned. David had red hair like Esav and several similar character traits.  David however was able to harness his energy and use it for good. He fought the wars of G-D and expanded the territory of Israel, he also established Jerusalem. The Vilna Gaon speaks about utilizing different character traits for good. For example if someone is bloodthirsty they should become a ritual slaughterer or someone who performs circumcisions.

Some of Jacob's children also fought amongst themselves, but not all of them.  Yisachar and Zevulin formed a successful partnership. Each had a different nature and worked together to form a mutually beneficial relationship. One reason why Esav is considered evil is not because of his inherent nature, but because he missed out on an opportunity for greatness. He did not bring unity to the world he brought divisiveness.

Esav missed out on the blessings but he also missed out on something far greater then that, he missed out on the opportunity for a great partnership. His opportunity for growth was to go beyond his personality of a lone hunter and form an alliance with Jacob. When we analyze the text of the prophecy regarding the brothers it states that one will get strength from the other, Sun Tzu states that the source of strength is unity.

The story comes full circle in Parshat Vayechi when Jacob gives his blessings to his grandchildren. Jacob switches his hands and gives the younger son the right hand and the stronger blessing. Joseph interjects and tries to correct his father. The very situation that started Jacob's trouble in life was recreated, but with a different ending this time. The Grandsons never say a word to Jacob or to each other. There is no quarreling or bickering and this is the greatest blessing, peace and unity.

Unity can only be manifested by the binary. Unity itself and the idea of unity are already two.- Buddha