Musings on Parshat Bereshis

Overview

PARSHAT BERESHIS begins with creation, hope and optimism but ends with despair, hope­lessness and gloom: creation of the world and Mankind; Man's early life experiences and conflicts; and the rise (and then fall) of civilization.

Nechama Leibowitz  elaborates: "The Torah shows us how civiliza­tion and economic progress brought with them four-step erosion in human behavior to the point where Mankind's very existence was endangered."

Step #1: ADAM, the first man, is also the first sinner. He was commanded, "... Of every tree in the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shall not eat of it; for in the day that you eat thereof, you shall surely die."

The Midrash describes Hashem's commandment and Adam's sin as follows: "Rabbi Pinchas Ben Yair  stated: Before Adam partook of this tree it was simply called 'tree' just like the others. But as soon as he ate, thereby transgressing the decree of THE HOLY ONE BLESSED BE HE, it was called the “tree of the knowledge of good and evil”. Why did Hashem command Adam to eat of all the trees of the garden  except  one? So that Adam should “constantly remember his Creator and be conscious of the yolk of  Hashem who created him." (Midrash Tadsheh). The one commandment that Adam received was designed to help him maintain a perspective on his position in the world where he was the sole human being. Adam needed to know that there was a master over him. Adam's sin, therefore, was a private matter between himself and Hashem wherein he acted as if he were the master of the world and could do whatever he wanted without limitations or restrictions.

Step#2: Adam’s sons Cain and Hevel:The story of one human's cold blooded murder of another. The Torah states "... Cain brought an offering to Hashem of the fruit of the ground ... and Hevel he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and from the choicest. And the L-RD had respect unto Abel and to his offering; but unto Cain and his offering He showed no respect.  And Cain was very wroth and his countenance fell. And Hashem said to Cain, 'Why are you annoyed and why has your countenance fallen? Surely, if you improve yourself you will be forgiven.Cain spoke with his brother, Hevel (when they were in the field) then rose up against his brother, Hevel and killed him."

According to some, Hevel's offerings were accepted by Hashem because they were brought from the best and finest. He dug deeply into his pocket to give to Hashem. Contrast this with Cain who did not seem to extend himself at all. He simply brought crops that grew on public land. Moreover, according to Rashi, Cain brought inferior produce for his offering. Cain became enraged when his offering was rejected. Hashem tried to reason with Cain telling him not to indulge in self-pity and reminding him that his situation could be changed dramatically for the better if he would only improve his attitude and behavior. His - and all Mankind's - salvation comes from within. But Cain was not to be placated. Instead, he strikes up a conversation with his brother, Hevel, out in the fields, away from home and kills him in cold blood.

What were they arguing about ?

According to a Midrash,they said: Come let us divide the world. One took the lands and the other took the movables. Soon one said: The land on which you are standing it mine; and the other replied: The clothes you are wearing are mine. One said: Take them off! the other: Get off! In the course of this argument Cain rose up against hevelhis brother and killed him!

R. Joshua of Sakhnin in the name of R. Levi said: Both took lands and both took movables. But what were they arguing about? One said: In my domain shall the Temple be built. The other said: In my domain shall the Temple be built, as it is stated: "And when they were in the field." The "field" is none other than the Temple, as it is written "Zion shall be plowed as a field. In the heat of the argument, Cain rose up and murdered Hevel.

Yehuda bar Ami said: They were arguing over Eve.

The first opinion maintains that Cain and hevel fought over economic issues, over material wealth.  R' Joshua, holds that bloodshed was prompted by religious and ideological conflict. Lastly, Rabbi Yehuda contends that the quarrel centered on their mother, Eve, and was rooted in sexual passion.

The story of Cain and Hevel is the story  of Mankind and civilization.It is Man's underlying (sometimes unconscious) aggressive drives and conflicts that precipitate wars and bloodshed.  

Step #3: Generations of major advances in technology and in civilization bring violence on a scale never before seen up until that time. Lemech, a direct descendant of Cain, sires a son, Tuval-Cain who becomes a forger of brass and iron armaments. Lemech boasts of his ability to employ these deadly weapons to lord over his fellow man and to commit indiscriminate murder. While Cain's behavior was dictated by sibling rivalry and jealously the transgressions of Lemech are rooted in the sinister attitude that absolute power makes right and that one tyrant can bully society.

Step #4: crimes committed by large groups of individuals in power ("the sons of the princes and judges") who enslave their fellow men. The Torah describes the acts of the strong exploiting the weak as follow:" they took tor themselves wives from whomever they chose." These men destroyed the social order. They used their power and position to usurp whatever they pleased causing Hashem to rethink his decision to create Man.

Bereshis gives us a look back to our roots and our inherent  human aggression. It gives us a chance to look in the mirror and reflect on  our behavior, frailties and conflicts. Through self-examination and reflection we are given the opportunity to change ourselves for the better.

Creation of OHR(Light) on day 1

Perhaps the introduction of OHR means the introduction of ORDER (and not sunlight) to the existing Chaos. Choshesch/darkness/nighttime connotes states of chaos, sadness and pessimism. The word OHR communicates unity, optimism, and hope. This also may explain why the first day is called YOM ECHAD (and not ordinal Yom Rishon ) because  on this day Hashem created ACHDUS, unity from chaos.( ACDUS and  ECHAD are about one and oneness.) Then, on Day 3, Hashem creates the sun to define day and night.

On Cain and Hevel

In this story, the Torah consistently  uses the Essence name of Hashem (the yud, hay, vav, hay ) possibly because it sensitizes us to a core Truth of human existence: how sibling rivalry and other (sometimes unconscious) emotional drives affect behavior.

The Torah explains that Eve named  her first born Cain because "I have gained (kaneese)a male child with the help of the Lord", but regarding her second son merely states "She then bore his brother Hevel." It sounds like the name was chosen by someone else even before his birth.

Hevel means breath or vapor,something fleeting.Did Eve favor her first born and ignore child number two? Did her enthusiasm and gratitude to Hashem lessen once she gave birth a second time and realized that childbirth was a natural phenomenon? Or is this the Torah's way of letting us know in advance that the second child's life would be like a fleeting breath and that he would die prematurely?

Because the text does not state how the brothers knew and why Hevel’s offering was favored I think it possible that the Torah is focusing more on the emotional state and perception of each brother. Cain, who comes up with the idea of bringing a Thanksgiving offering to Hashem, follows in the footsteps of his father Adam by becoming a farmer-- despite the knowledge that farming would be hard and often unfruitful work ("kotz vedardar tatzmeach lach"). When he sees his younger brother Hevel copy him and then some, by bringing from top-of-the prime beef from a higher life form (animals), Cain imagines  that there is no way Hashem will pay any attention to him and his inferior offering.(Note: Hevel, by his display of one-upmanship, may be provoking Cain, fanning the flames of jealousy and rivalry.)

This realization amplifies Cain's existing, already-intense sibling rivalry and brings on feelings of depression, inferiority, and hopelessness.Hashem acknowledges the enormity of Cain's rage—and confirms that these emotions could completely swallow him up and destroy him,.But the story ends on an optimisic note when Hashem informs Cain that he (Mankind) has the ability to confront, and gain control over these raging emotions (perhaps in modern times by undergoing psychoanalysis).

Rabbi H. L. Berenholz