[Avodah] : A few Notes on Parshas Vaychi

[Micha Berger]

On Sun, December 23, 2007 9:28 pm, RSBA wrote:
: Meanwhile, looking up the Midrash I noticed (at the end of Parsha 97)
: it says on "Becharbi ubekashti" - "bemitzvos ubemaasim tovim" !!

The Targum renders it "betzelosi uva'us-hi". This is also in Bava
Basra 123, "'Charbi' -- zu tefillah, 'qashti' - zu baqashah."

RYBS then explains "tzelosana" to refer to our immediate requests --
swordlike. Parnasah, health, etc... Whereas the arrows of "ba'us-hon"
are for things like mashiach, the restoration of din, etc...

Personally, I don't follow. We have the list of techinos in the gemara
that are "basar tzelosana amar hachi". Shemone Esrei, the archetype
tefillah, even in its immediate requests are belashon rabim. As RYBS
himself notes, lehit-pallel is in the reflective; teaching ourselves
to turn to Hashem. The requests made in E-lokai Netzor are all
personal requests, things that touch my life now, written belashon
yachid. If the mashal vs nimshal were all about distance, I would have
thought the words would have mapped the other way -- tefillah is the
long-term requests, baqashos are my immediate needs.

Lulei demitztafina hayisi omer that the primary issue isn't immediacy,
but need for expertise. A sword in the hand of an expert is
formidable, but even a klutz with a sword is dangerous. Arrows in the
hand of the unexperienced are pretty much useless. Thus tefillah, like
those precomposed by Anshei Keneses haGdolah, is more like a sword --
of utility to anyone. The art of techinah, of personally composed
baqashos -- that requires greater skill to be of any value.

The Maharsha's comment in BB: Becharbi is keneged Esav's "al charbekha
yichyeh", while beqashti is Yishma'el's "vayhi roveh qashas". Becharbi
ubeqashti -- because prayer can protect us from both kinds of threat.

SheTir'u baTov!
-micha

-- 
Micha Berger             One who kills his inclination is as though he
micha at aishdas.org        brought an offering. But to bring an offering,
http://www.aishdas.org   you must know where to slaughter and what
Fax: (270) 514-1507      parts to offer.        - R' Simcha Zissel Ziv