[Avodah] maaseh avot siman lebanim

[Eli Turkel]

<<Cosmic:  C.  Consciously or  unconsciously,
Avraham's actions prophetically foreshadowed events that would  occur
later in Jewish
history. >>

This is a key point . When we say that "ma'asei avos siman labanim"
does that mean
that Avraham consciencly purchased maarat hamechpala because of its effect on
future generations (and similar for other events) or does it mean that
actions of
the avot done completely unconsciously have some effect on the future
(how does that
work) or possibly that G-d guided the avot into circumstances so that it would
affect the future.

Bottom line what does the Ramban's phrase ."ma'asei avos siman
labanim" really mean

-- 
Eli Turkel