Vayeira: Avraham, Sarah, the Sun and the Moon

I sat with Mayer and learned some Parsha. He noted that Avraham Avinu was sick after performing the Milah, and even though it would seem that the angel Rafael came to heal his wound, the mere Mitzvah of Hachnasat Orchim made him forget about his pain entirely. He ran like a child to welcome guests into his home, completely forgetting about the agony he had been dwelling in for the past three days and about the fact that it was the hottest day the world had ever experienced. Mayer is 6, by the way.

There is an interesting Gemara, Avoda Zara 3a, that tells of the story that will occur as Mashiach arrives. The gentiles will all form a line and try to state their case before Hashem; their main argument will be, “We were never given a chance!” Hashem will then give them a “small” Mitzvah called “Sukkah.” They will all run to perform this Mitzvah, laughing at their good fortune that they will be able to prove their point with ease (maybe since they know the names of all the parts in Home Depot), but the moment Hashem releases the sun from its holder and scorches the earth with tremendous heat, the gentiles will get up, madly kick their Sukkah walls, and leave, abandoning their chances for some mild and temporary comfort.

In both of these stories we find the idea of the sun beating down on earth like never before, but by Avraham the Mitzvah seems to invigorate him to a point where he forgets about his discomfort, while by the gentiles the Mitzvah only makes them think of their lack of comfort. So what is it about the sun and its heat that we find it used in both stories? And even more, what else would we expect of Avraham, and what better should we be expecting of those gentiles?

As the world was created, the moon approached Hashem, Chullin 60b, and said, “The sun and I are both equally as large and as bright; can it be that two kings use the same crown?” To which Hashem answered, “So go ahead and shrink yourself.” The argument continued. Hashem told her that she would rule by day and night, to which she argued that a candle during the daytime does not help anyone. So Hashem told the moon that she would have the merit that we would be counting the calendar according to her, but the moon was not satisfied and claimed that the sun still controlled the seasons. Hashem continued and said the humble Tzaddikim would be compared to her humility, but she still could not calm down, until Hashem asked that we atone for Him with a goat on each Rosh Chodesh for causing her pain.

If we dive a little deeper, we notice something fantastic. The story of Avraham happened on Pesach (as noted later in the Parsha when Lot bakes Matzot), and the story of the future is, well, on Sukkot. What these two Chagim have in common is the fact that they both depend on Rosh Chodesh, which determines what day of the week they will fall out on. We have the Mitzvah of Kiddush Levanah in our hands, and it is us, Beis Din, that establish the future days based on our intuition and proofs. Pesach and Sukkot are both on the 15th day of their respective months, but that day is dependent on the establishment of the 1st of the month.

The moon ends up playing a big role in our lives. It taught us that only one king can wear a crown at a time, and for that reason the sun, which currently wears it, comes out and sets the tone. It says, “Since you can only have one King, will you choose your pain over a Mitzvah? Will you choose your comfort over a Mitzvah?” There are no two ways about it. But the moon teaches us humility: It says, “Don’t find an egoistic cause to delay your reward, rather you should humbly fight the urge for comfort.”

Avraham was not healed as he ran toward the angels; rather, he pushed aside his inner feelings and physical pains and leapt to do what was right. He was like the moon in a sense: his pain had not been relieved, but he still did what was right for him to do at the moment. He may have pushed them away temporarily, like the moon did, but the healing and atonement were still needed, and indeed it came.

Women are compared to the moon as their cycles resemble its, and although they may be hidden behind the scenes, their rule is during the day and night. It will be as Mashiach comes that the moon will finally reveal herself from behind the curtains and rise back to her glory. Sarah stood in the tent behind them, as Pasuk 18:10 states, and heard herself being blessed to birth a son. She returned to her youth, as Pasuk 18:12 states: “After being worn, there has been, to me, youth.” The word used for “youth” is “Edna,” which is translated (in Armaic) as “time.” While being compared to a candle in the daytime she would stand behind the door in her tent for Tzniut, but then merited to revert back to her glory day where she shone as bright as the sun.

It will be at the end of time, as the time of the moon’s cycles finally comes to an end, that Hashem will give the world a chance. Chances are only given in a place of time and space; once we leave this place, we will be in a realm that is one with the One. Hashem will give the gentiles an opportunity to create a space in the Sukkah to spend the last few moments under the sun’s individual glory, hinting to them: “You want to wear the same crown as the Yidden, so be it! As long as the moon still provides its time upon earth, you have a chance to prove yourselves to Me. But look at the sun and its power, “Do you really think you are worthy of wearing the crown?”

“Can you keep yourself humble and be like Avraham? If you can, you will merit the crown just as he did when Sarah rose to her original purpose.” Take this chance as long as you still have it, for the time has come to bring the big day. And how did this day come about? Through the hard work that the Tzaddikim and Yidden of all generations invested. They took the lessons of the moon to heart and did all they could to bring it back to its old glory. They were Mekadesh the Levanah by becoming one with it and by bringing an atonement for Hashem. They set aside their pain and showed that they wanted more than just simple earthly comforts. They did not just want to be ice in the winter, or a candle in the daytime; they wanted the glory of old, where man and wife would stroll through Eden with Hashem.

“Eden,” like “Edna,” is a time. It is where all live in harmony and the crown is worn by the Most High, as all do their part to serve with grace and purpose without questioning and with true commitment. It is a realm where the only comfort one needs is the love of Hashem. There is no other feeling that exists. Time stops, and every instant is cherished beyond any of our wildest imaginations. It is the feeling that we get when we forget about it all as we run to do a Mitzvah.

Shabbat Shalom

David Lemmer

LemmerHypnotherapy.com