Clarity
G-d knows our needs better than we do. We need to pray to G-d so that we gain clarity as to what we really need and what we should want. BAMIDBAR BAMIDBAR
A Portent of the Future
This week’s parsha carries the same name as the entire fourth book of the Torah that we commence reading this week: Bamidbar-in the desert. In this week’s parsha the Torah delineates the manner in which the Jewish people traveled through the desert on their way from Egypt to Sinai and beyond.
Commentators explain that this process was a portent of the journey we have made through exile, the conditions of which have been likened to the desert.
The parsha begins by describing the way the people were counted. The Torah states:
And all the people gathered on the first of the second month, revealing BAMIDBAR the relationship to their families, by their fathers’ homes, according to the number of names, by head, from twenty years old and upward.
Rashi comments:
They brought their documents of lineage, and witnesses to the assumption of patrimony, relating each individual to their particular tribe.
Proof of Legitimacy
Commentators wonder why it was necessary for them to bring evidence to confirm who their fathers were.
Or HaCaim speculates that, Perhaps it was necessary to provide an assumption of patrimony so that there is no suspicion of Mamzerusillegitimacy.
The question begs itself: Why would we suspect that the men and women of that generation would be guilty of adultery?
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Furthermore, our Sages tell us that, in fact, the Jews in Egypt maintained their chastity, and only in one instance was there a breach of marital fidelity. Why then was it necessary for the people to bring proof of paternity. And furthermore, if we were suspicious of them committing adultery, how would a document allay our suspicions.
Mentioning Mother’s Name in Prayer
A similar thought is expressed by the Zohar as to why when we pray for someone’s health we mention the mother’s name: When we pray we want to make sure of the identity of the individual for whom we are praying. And since there is no absolute certainty as to the identity of the father, it is preferable that we mention the mother’s name.
Here the question that can be asked is even more urgent. When we pray to G-d for another, He obviously knows who that person is. Why then couldn’t we use the father’s name? And to strengthen the question, why do we call people up to the Torah using their BAMIDBAR father’s name if there is a chance that it might not be accurate? Why only in health related matters is it crucial that we have the person’s identity straight.
Lack of Clarity
One approach to this matter is that ill health is a physical manifestation of a spiritual condition where there is a lack of clarity in one’s life. When a person is ill, there is a disconnection between a particular organ of the body and the energy from the soul that was intended for that organ. That organ without the infusion of energy from the soul loses clarity as to what is its function and ceases to operate as a healthy organ. The soul does not need to be healed; it is the body that has to find its way back to the place where it is once again receptive to the soul’s power.
When we pray to G-d, He obviously knows what our needs are; we need to have clarity as to who we are, what we need and why we need it. That is the function of prayer, which BAMIDBAR is called tefilah in Hebrew. The word is said to mean “judgment” because the process of prayer is one in which we examine and clarify our state of mind, heart and body, as to their degree of receptivity to the soul.
We can now understand why the prayer is said with the mother’s name to ensure that there is not even a scintilla of doubt as to who this person really is. This obsession with clarity highlights the whole purpose of prayer in general and the prayer for the sick in particular. If we want to mend the body that has lost its identity, we must engage in a prayer that helps us clarify our situation, vis a vis G-d and vis a vis ourselves.
Yizkor
The above might also shed some light on the Yizkor prayer in which we mention both the the Patriarchs and the Matriarchs. This is rather unusual because when we mention the Patriarchs in the Amidah we do not mention the Matriarchs. Perhaps the reason for that is that the Patriarchs actually made the BAMIDBAR controibtion of the Patrirchs complete. They wre not regarded as distince entities. So when we pray we express our intentions succinctly and when we mention the Patriarchs it also includes the Matriarchs. There is no need to mention them separately.
Why then do we mention them separately in the Yizkor prayer?
Perhaps it can be that the Yizkor prayer is about G-d remembering the souls of our parents. Why does G-d have to be reminded if the entire idea of forgetfulness does not apply to Him? The answer is that our request to G-d to remember actually means not remembering as opposed to forgetting but rather focusing His attention and shining His light on our parents’ souls.
If the entire idea of Yiskor is to highlight the memory of our parents, clarity is needed for the prayer to be meaningful. We therefore invoke the names of the Matriarchs, who symbolize the power that clarifies our identities.
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This might also explain the Chabad custom to mention the name of our parents’ mothers rather than fathers. This seems ot go against the general tradition to mention the father’s name when mentioning the name of a deceased person. Why here do we deviate form that custom and mention the mother’s name.
However, in light of the above, inasmuch as we are trying to expose the soul we are praying for to G-d, we must identify that person in the most clarified fashion, by mentioning the mother.
Clarity in our Journey
In a similar vein, when the Jewish people set out in their journey from Sinai to the Promised Land their identities had to be clear. In order to stay on course they had to know who they were in the clearest terms humanly possible. There was no room for uncertainty and doubt.
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Amalek Sows Doubts
Amalek, the evil nation that attacked them soon after departing Egypt, is said to be the symbol of doubt. Indeed, the word Amalek numerically adds up to the Hebrew word for doubt-safek. Amalek’s design is to instill enough self-doubt that we will decide not to continue on our inexorable journey towards Sinai, the Promised Land and the ultimate Messianic Age.
The Age of Clarity
As we have stated in many of these essays, all indications point to our generation’s pivotal role as the transitional one between the age of exile and the age of Redemption.
It is this age that the prophet Daniel referred to when he stated that “all matters shall be clarified.”
Now is the time when we have to see things clearly; opening our eyes to see the G-dly reality of our existence. G-d then reciprocates by removing the last veil that hides His BAMIDBAR countenance from our world. And that is the Messianic Age.
This explains the Rebbe’s insistence that now the feminine role is more crucial than ever. Among other reasons it may attributed to the fact that precisely at the end of our journey there are all sorts of Amalek inspired challenges to the clarity of our mission. It is feminine spiritual power that removes the cloud of uncertainty.
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From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Bamidbar by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.
