By: Rabbi Uri Lam, Congregação Israelita Mineira (CIM), Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
I have read and meditated on the midrashim so many times that I can no longer imagine the Torah without the rich many interpretation of our brilliant Rabbis, continuing to multiply from the Talmudic times to our days. They go so far as to take the meaning of the text to the limits of creativity.
The philosopher Yeshayahu Leibowitz (1903-1994) also loved midrashim. In one of his comments, Leibowitz brings a midrash that seeks to justify the central role of Abraham in the first book of the Torah through an interesting play on words:
.אֵלֶּה תוֹלְדוֹת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְהָאָרֶץ בְּהִבָּרְאָם
“These are the generations of Heaven and Earth behibaram (to be created)…” (Genesis 2:4)
The ancient Rabbis realized that the word hibaram contains the same letters of the first patriarch’s name: just switch the first and the second to last Hebrew letters – and we have Abraham. So we can read this verse as follows: “These are the generations of Heaven and Earth to Abraham”.
From this point of view, the Creation and the first 29 generations of Humanity were only prehistory, the necessary preparation for the emergence of the first human being aware of the existence of One God: Abraham. A somewhat “Abraham-centric” view, isn’t it?
Anyway, to Leibowitz the pivot of Genesis is the first patriarch of Israel, which explains why Bereshit is also known as “The Book of Abraham”. In fact, the history of the Jewish People begins with Abraham and Sarah. We are Bnei Avraham, Abraham’s descendants.
Leibowitz continues: “Our Patriarch Abraham did not live in the same prehistoric world of continuing divine intervention, which used to modify the laws of nature, but in the Post-Flood World, a world that leads itself; and in such a world it is necessary for the individual to know God by his own efforts…”
From Abraham and Sarah starts the period in which people must find God through their intellect, ability to feel, and to act. Upon receiving the order Lech Lecha, go forth, (Genesis 12:1), Abram starts a journey to an unknown land: a personal development journey. He leaves to go into the unknown and has to learn that, many times in life, we learn to walk while walking: Abraham will have to risk himself; sometimes he will succeed and sometimes not. Welcome to life!
Abraham was not the only one to leave home in his Lech Lecha. In his book Siddhartha, the writer Hermann Hesse (1877-1962) tells the story of a young “son of Brahman” whose parents were proud of him. Although the young man was a source of joy to those around him, he was a sad person. Neither his parents nor his dear friend Govinda, nor the old Brahman wise men could satisfy his soul. So Siddharta sits under a tree and begins to meditate deeply. Now he starts his own Lech Lecha, the search for himself. In the second part of the book, we read: “Every step of the way, Siddhartha learned things that he didn’t know before. The world seemed different to him”.
Another one who dreamed of his Lech Lecha was the Brazilian writer Manuel Bandeira (1886-1968). Here I share part of one of his most famous poems, “I’m leaving for Pasárgada”:
I’m leaving for Pasárgada
Here I am not happy
There, the existence is an adventure …
While Abraham and Siddharta know they need to go, but don’t know to where they will come, Manuel Bandeira dreams of a Promised Land that will satisfy all his desires.
Inspired by the parashah, the Israeli poet Ahuva Klein wrote an inspired poem. And in the absence of an official translation, I ventured on my own Lech Lecha and translated without knowing if I’m on the right track:
©לך- לך / שיר מאת: אהובה קליין
“לך, לך” ציווי עליון
לאברהם אבינו עת רצון
דרך רבת ניסיונות
.קשיים ייסורים מהמורות
אוזר במותנו כוח
נישא על כנפי רוח
אש בוערת בעצמותיו
.מחיש כצבי צעדיו
אל ארץ אשר יראה
לעם סגולה יאה
ארץ הרים ובקעות
.נחלי מים ונהרות
באהבה יקיים השליחות
לידע כל האנושות
בורא עולם יחיד
.בידו אוחז שרביט
Lech Lechah / Ahuva Klein
“Go, go”, Supreme Command
to Avraham Avinu, a moment of grace
Through several trials
Difficulties, bumps suffering.
The power in his waist
Carried on the wind’s wings
The fire burning in his bones
Accelerates as the steps of the deer.
A land to be seen
For the Chosen People to appropriate
A land of hills and valleys
Streams and rivers.
With Love will be given the task
To the knowledge of all Mankind
The Creator of the Universe, the Only One
In His hand is the scepter.
In Hebrew, Lech Lecha can be read in both directions; so too I read Ahuva Klein’s poem:
In His hand is the scepter.
The Creator of the Universe, the Only One
To the knowledge of all Mankind
With Love will be given the task
Streams and rivers.
A land of hills and valleys
For the Chosen People to appropriate
A land to be seen.
Accelerates as the steps of the deer.
The fire burning in his bones
Carried on the wind’s wings
The power in his waist.
Difficulties, bumps suffering.
Through several trials
to Avraham Avinu, a moment of grace
“Go, go”, Supreme Command.
We know where we came from. Who we are. We are a process, built along the journey. Who guides and drives us? The Creator of the Universe. Where are we going? We do not know. But one day I heard from the psychotherapist: “Where you go I do not know; more important is how you go ahead in your journey”.
As Bnei Avraham, as Children of Abraham, we go ahead, sure of Who encourages and guides us. Well, time to go.