| From Silence to Hope
Last Shabbat, Parshat Shemini we read about the tragic death of Aharon the high priest’s two sons Nadav and Avihu.
They had brought “a strange fire before Hashem”.
Many reasons are given for the demise of Aharon’s two sons:
- They had issued a Halachic ruling in front of their teacher Moshe which was a sign of arrogance.
- They had drunk wine and entered the Mishkan, hence the prohibition to drink wine in the sanctuary is issued by God in the immediate aftermath of this incident.
- The Kabbalists as brought down by Rabbi Chaim Ben Attar (b. 1696 Morocco – d. 1743 Jerusalem) in his commentary on the Torah explains the underlying spiritual reason for their death. They explain that Nadav and Avihu yearned so passionately to embrace and be embraced by the Divine that their souls literally left their bodies. They died by a Divine kiss as it were. Although God wants us to connect to Him, He ultimately wants us to transform this physical world through the Torah and Mitzvot, making it Holy. The spiritual pursuit of Nadav and Avihu may have been very lofty but ultimately was self-centred. It was about what they wanted as opposed to what God wanted. And we are taught that God desires an abode in the lowest realm- which is our physical world where Hashem is so concealed and obscured.
On the surface the three reasons above seem very different and unconnected but really, they are all one! Their drunkenness was not just a matter of lack of awe and reverence before Hashem. Whilst they did consume an amount of alcohol, the intention was to loosen their normal physical consciousness to be able to connect to the sublime. In other words, they were drunk on spirituality from a self-orientated perspective, and this is a level of arrogance (albeit very subtle indeed for the holy level they were on). And all this could have been avoided had they consulted with Moshe their teacher.
Perhaps in their defence they saw Moshe as a living example of a person completed connected to God and as Kohanim wanted to emulate this through the service in the Mishkan. This was a grave error as Moshe had a unique soul. It was only Moshe who could fully withstand the revelation at Sinai and not expire. We are taught that at the revelation at Sinai the Israelites could only withstand the first two commandments after which their souls “flew from their bodies” (Talmud Shabbat). The exception was Moshe who heard all ten commandments.
Aharon’s response to the death of his sons is stunned silence. “Vayidom Aharon”!
According to the Seforno (Italian commentator Ovadia Ben Seforno 1475-1550) the silence represents his consolation since Moshe explains how Aharon’s sons had sanctified God’s name through their death.
Nadav and Avihu had made a grave error but because of their holy level their death brought sanctification for Hashem as now the people would be in awe of God (Ibn Ezra 1089-1167 Spain).
Fast forward to this week’s Torah portion – Tazriah and the opening theme could not be more different to Shemini. Tazriah opens with the laws of purity and impurity in relation to the birth of a baby boy or girl. I find it fascinating how the Torah can switch so smoothly between death and life, between the tragic loss of two of Israel’s holiest men and the joy and hope that new life brings.
Last week the Jewish people mourned the loss of one of its greatest Torah Scholars Rabbi Chaim Kanievsky. This was a person who dedicated his life to the study of Torah wisdom (18 hours a day!) He sought no privilege or honour in his life and yet in death he was mourned by millions. Some estimate nearly a million attended his burial – the largest funeral gathering on record. He lived very humbly and simply in a world that has become so complicated and fraught with danger.
Rabbi Maurice Lamm writes in his book “The Jewish way in death and mourning” that “Death is a night that lies between two days”.
When we view life from this perspective it enthuses us with vitality, hope, energy, and a zest for life.
Aharon the high priest knew that whilst he would no longer physically behold his beloved holy sons the connection between him and them was eternal.
We are so fortunate to be part of an ancient tradition that teaches and guides us how to transform our days and nights into eternity one step and one moment at a time.
Shabbat Shalom |
