Parashat Chukkat / Balak 5770
Opposites Attract
Who’s the smart one? Is it the donkey that has words of wisdom to share with a prophet who sells his blessings and curses for a price? Or is it the person who says that he can tell you what type of oil was used to fry up the chickpeas in a falafel pita pocket, by merely looking at the hummus that it rests in?
The Torah readings for this week and last week are sometimes read together on a single Shabbat. In some ways the two parashiot are tied together. They share the common theme of paired opposites. There is the general idea that good and evil are tied together, as well as holiness and defilement. The wells of water in the wilderness dried up when Miriam died, and a well was formed when Moses hit a certain rock wrong, disobeying God, who told him to speak to the rock. We are told that those who were bitten by snakes for praying to a graven image will be relieved of their poison when they stare into the eyes of a bronze snake on top of the staff of Moses. In this week’s Torah portion, a curse becomes a blessing when God decides to get involved in what his prophets are allowed to say in public.
The sages made comparisons between Abraham and this week’s flourishing fool of a prophet, Bilaam. In Pirkei Avot 5:22 we read:
Whoever possesses these three qualities is a disciple of our father Abraham, and whoever possesses these three qualities is a disciple of Bilaam the wicked: The disciple of our father Abraham has a generous spirit, an unassuming manner, and is humble. The disciple of Bilaam the wicked has an ungenerous spirit, an overbearing manner, and is arrogant.
When Abraham got up early and saddled his donkey for an extended trip, he conquered (Yach’vosh – related to “saddled”) his physical drives of fear. When he went up Mount Moriah, he left his donkey and his physical needs behind.
When Bilaam gets up early, it is with the intent to make money with his blessings and his curses.
Both Abraham and Bilaam are tested ten times by God. Abraham passes each test. Bilaam fails each test.
Both Bilaam and the Donkey hear the word of God. The Donkey speaks the truth for a bag of feed. Bilaam speaks whatever people want for a bag of gold and silver.
Avraham is known as the “av” or father of a multitude (of nations). Bilaam’s name is a contraction of “bi’lo am,” which means “without a nation.”
(According to the Zohar the last two letters of Balak and the last two letters of Bilaam spell “Amalek,” Israel’s eternal enemy whose name we are required to wipe out. The remaining letters spell “Bavel,” the Hebrew name for Babylonia, where the Israelites of Judea were exiled following the destruction of the first Temple in Jerusalem. In Genesis, the Hebrew word “bavel” means “to confound” as in the story of the Tower of Babel. )
Abraham was known for his moral integrity, kindness and loyalty to God. Bilaam was known as a prophet for hire whose loyalty went to the highest bidder.
Bilaam is also compared to Moses. Both men were considered by the Torah as prophets of Israel who “knew” God’s holy knowledge. However, this is where the comparison ends. In Tractate Berachot 7a we learn an interesting fact that both men were aware of. The sages teach us that there is an instant each day when God is angry. If you are able to curse someone in that exact moment, your curse will work. According to their calculations, the sages say that the moment is no longer than one-sixteenth of a second in length. So they ask, “What curse could possibly be pronounced in such a short period of time?” They respond, “Kalehm,” which means “Destroy them!” Bilaam knew exactly when this time would occur – during the first three hours of the day “when the comb of a rooster pales as it stands on one leg.”
This is the same rooster whom we bless each morning as part of our daily routine, praising God for reawakening us to a new day of creation, granting the rooster the wisdom to know the difference between day and night. The sages tell us that Rabbi Yehoshua came close to succeeding in cursing a heretic who was harassing him. He tied a rooster to his bed and stayed up all night waiting for the moment when the bird’s comb turned from red to pale. However, he drifted off at that exact moment. From his experience he teaches us that God never wants us to ask the Divine Presence to curse others. We must praise God that Bilaam failed to do so as well.
In a d’var torah from the Salantar Foundation that deals in Mussar or ethical education, the following comment is made regarding the Torah portion for this week:
“Life really is not a battle of God versus man or good versus evil. Life is an eternal battle inside each of us between what we know is right and what we know is wrong. It is man’s battle against himself. We all have the power to curse and the power to bless.”
When God spoke to Abraham, God said that all who bless you shall be blessed. Debbie Friedman wrote a song in which we praise Abraham for his deeds of loving-kindness, singing “And you shall be a blessing” – referring to others. When someone has passed away and we talk about them, it is common to mention their name and the words “zikhron li’verachah,” meaning, “may their memory be for a blessing.”
“Mah tovu ohalekha…” is how Bilaam begins his curse gone wrong. Rather than sharing words of hate to debilitate them in the spiritual world, as instructed by Balak, the non-Israelite prophet ends up reciting words of blessing in that moment when God’s anger is accessible. Timing is everything is what we hear from the world of sports! Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned by us in regards to turning curses into blessings, by seeing the potential for growth from the difficulties that one may face in this world. On the 17th of Tammuz (June 29 this year) we commemorate a fast day. It is the day when the Romans breached the outside wall to Jerusalem, leading to the destruction of the Temple three weeks later on the 9th of Av. But this is not the only sadness that we recall on this date. The sages tell us that Moses went up to the Mountain of God on Shavuot, and 40 days later, returned on the 17th of Tammuz with the tablets in hand, shattering them when he found his people dancing around a golden calf.
Despite both tragedies in Jewish history, events that could have crippled a people permanently into submission, the Jewish people have turned out to be most resilient. We have learned our lesson well, turning our adversities into opportunities for both reflection and growth. Even though many will say that our numbers have diminished, and the strength of religious life has been watered down tremendously, others would argue that the diversity of religious and spiritual life in the modern age has strengthened Judaism for the next several generations. While it is true that we may have lost a part of our identity, we, as the guarantors of the Jewish heritage, have a tremendous responsibility of not only preserving a past, but also crafting a future.
I began my remarks by saying that this is an interesting portion because of its paradoxes – good can be found in the evil remarks that were to be said by Bilaam, and the evil that is within us can be eradicated by doing good deeds. We know right from wrong. And we know how to make each day a blessing by choosing life, even when it seems as though our lives may be cursed for doing so. Despite it all, we have a mission to complete. As we are reminded by the sages in Pirkei Avot 2:6: “In a place where there are no leaders, strive to be a leader.”
On this Shabbat, let us all follow the lead of the Prophet Micah whose words are a part of our learning for today: “All that God asks of us is to be just, do acts of loving-kindness, and be humble…” (6:8) Let us, also, follow in the footsteps of our ancestor Abraham who has taught us about the attributes of having a good eye, humility, and contentedness. Even when it may not be the easiest thing to do, in the end, we know that is the more spiritual way to a richer and more meaningful life.
