Vayechei

The Gemara says that when Yosef came to bury Yaakov Avinu, Esav came and protested. He said, “In Kiryas Arbeh (where  the Me’aras HaMachpeila is) there is supposed to be four pairs. (Adam & Chava, Avraham & Sara, Yitzchak & Rivka, Yaakov & Leah)  Yaakov buried Leah there and that was his spot; what’s left is mine.”

The brothers answered him, “you sold it to Yaakov Avinu!”  Esav replied, “I sold my bechor, the extra portion, but the regular portion of the inheritance I didn’t sell.”  They answered him, “you sold that as well.”  Esav said, “show me the document to prove it.”  They said, “it is in Mitzrayim, who will go?  Naftali who is as light as an ayalah (which is a very quick animal).”

Chushim ben Dan, who was hard of hearing, asked what was happening.  They told him that Esav was protesting and they were waiting for the shtar mechira.  Chushim ben Dan said, “It is a bizayon to wait until Naftali comes.”  He took a stick and hit Esav on the head, and Esav died.

Asks Rav Chaim Shmuelevitz zatzal, why didn’t any of the other brothers (sons) protest the bizayon to Yaakov of waiting to be buried?  He answers that once they started the discussion and went back and forth with Esav, they became numb to the situation, so to speak, and they didn’t recognize or pay attention to the bizayon of their father waiting to be buried.  Chushim ben Dan however didn’t follow the discussion and so when he heard what was happening he fully felt the bizayon and killed Esav.

The Gemara says Rabi Alexandria called out “who wants life?”  People gathered to him and said, “give us life.”  Rabi Alexandria said, “Mi ha’ish hechafetz chaim? …Netzor leshoncha…”  Had he said these pesukim without prefacing it with “who wants life?” No one would have come to him.  This is because they had read the passuk many times and were used to it and so they didn’t pay attention to what it was really saying.  Rabi Alexandria came and made the passuk new to them and so they could pay more attention to it.

We say in davening, “le’oseh orim gedolim”, in present tense.  Hashem is always creating the briyah anew.  Similarly Hashem gives us an ability to start new and fresh and become better.

May Hashem help us to come out of our slumber of hergalos and put life into our avoda!