LEK LEKA OR SHELAH LECAH THAT IS THE QUESTION

 

                  Isn’t it interesting the similarity between the opening words of this week’s Parsaha Shelah leka which is the tragic story of the meraglim commanded to spy out the land  of Eretz Israel and the Parsha of Lek leka which is the glorious story of Avraham Avinu when he was commanded to go from his land, relatives and fathers house “to the land that I will show you”  which is the same Eretz Israel.

                The episodes of Avraham Avinuv and the meraglim represent the quintessential inner battle that each of us experiences when we are faced with “giant” challenges. There is the meraglim’s conditionally calculated pragmatic side of us that lobbies for a profit/loss analysis to see how beneficial the proposal is, and then there is our soul’s perspective which is steadfastly ready to follow the banner of Hashem without conditions or reward.  Perhaps therefore these two stories can be seen, within their open words of: “Shelah leka” – “send (in)to you” and “Lek leka” – “go (in)to you” as our prototype “battle” that confronts us whenever we attempt to “conquer” our inner “psychological foes”.

            Who are these “giants” and how can we overcome them? These “giants” are all of the conscious and subconscious illusions and delusions that fester within our corporeal “psychic fortresses and emotional garrisons” which conjure up futile worrying and toxic doubts within the fertile “soil” of our “minds and hearts”.

                Avraham Avinu’s  and the meraglim’s journey into Eretz Israel are the stories of our microcosmic and macrocosmic souls entering into higher realms of holiness. Avraham Avinu symbolizes the essence of our pure soul, whose “armaments” are emuna and betoken which are launched from the “platform” of the Torah, whereas the meraglim are emblematic of the sophisticated intellect whose “weapons” are rational discernment which are created from the launching pad of self-determination. Therefore the souls of Avraham Avinu, Yehoshua and Calav saw the “giant” foreign influences as inconsequential, while the meraglim saw themselves as grasshoppers in a world of “giants”. Therefore instead of feeling like helpless grasshoppers when we stand before “giant” barriers, we should use our spiritual “legs” of emuna and bitokin to hurdle over any obstacles that are sent our way.  

             When Hashem gives us Torah directed opportunities to strive for a new level of kiddusha, as was the case in entering Eretz Israel – we should neve allow worries and doubts such as we are too old or too weak or too poor or too busy or too late or it is too much bother but instead react like Kalev and Yehoshua that if Hashem wills it, we are never too old, too weak, too poor, too busy, too late and it is never too much bother.

                    

               

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