Free at Last and the Last Day of Chanukah
Joseph’s name implies three dimensions of increasing:: The first is not staying in one place. The second is that one must create a process that has the potential to give birth to something new, ad infinitum. The third represents the capacity to transform an “outsider” into an “insider.”
Acquiring Another Son
This Shabbos, we celebrate the second Shabbos of Chanukah, something that occurs infrequently. This is also the last day of Chanukah and the Shabbos that features the Torah reading of Miketz that refers to the “end” of the two year period Joseph had to languish in prison before he was freed and subsequently rose to the position of viceroy of Egypt.
The Ba’al Shem Tov taught us that there are no coincidences. Certainly the fact that the “end” of Chanukah is also the day that we focus on the theme of “end” in relation to Joseph’s stay in prison is fortuitous.
To better appreciate the connection between Joseph and the festival of Chanukah it is important to examine the very name Joseph. He was so named because his mother prayed that G-d would give her another son (literally: “may G-d increase for me another son.”).
Upon deeper analysis of the original Hebrew text, the word Joseph in Hebrew suggests three points:
The first is the idea of increasing; not staying in one place.
The second idea is that the one’s increase must be a procreative one, i.e., one must create a process that has the potential to give birth to something new, ad infinitum.
The third idea conveyed by the Hebrew original (which can be rendered alternatively as: “may G-d add another to me that he may be a son.”) Is that Joseph represents the capacity to transform “another”, i.e., an outsider, into a child, the consummate insider.
This, in essence, is what Chanukah is all about. We add on new light every night. We cannot be content with our original level of light.
But the true definition of adding on is that it carries within it the potential for further growth that will never cease. Indeed, the Midrash states that the light of the menorah will always be around. Nachmanides explains that the Midrash refers to the light of Chanukah.
But, the idea of increase represented by the name Joseph is such that it can even take the people and energies that are “outside” and convert them into “insiders.”
In an essay on last week’s Parsha we discussed how Chanukah light can eliminate the spirit of rebelliousness that exists in the marketplace. What we are discussing now goes even beyond that. Not only do we eliminate these rebels and their rebelliousness, but, moreover, Chanukah light enables us to take these extremely distant “outside” influences (“marketplace”) and transform them into “insiders—the “other” becomes a child.
Last Day: Infinite Light Revealed
This aspect of Chanukah comes to fruition specifically on the last and eight day of Chanukah. Eight, is the number of transcendence, and it represents the infinite power of the G-dly light that shines on Chanukah that never ends and that can even transform the darkness into light.
We can now appreciate the connection between the last day of Chanukah with the weekly parsha that is called “Miketz-the end.” This portion discusses how Joseph was finally free. He was now able to utilize his G-d given spiritual power to increase his light. And as a result, by his prophetic vision and skill at dream interpretation, Joseph converted the impending catastrophe of seven years of famine into life for all of Egypt and other parts of the world, and paved the way for the reunion with his brothers and his father Jacob.
The name “Miketz-the end” is also an allusion to the biblical concept of the “end of days,” or the messianic era.
At that time, we will see the realization of the Joseph ideal of continual growth and increase of G-dly light to the point that even the negative forces of our world will be converted into good. Of course, there are certain forms and aspects of evil that are not salvageable. They will cease to exist. But all other aspects of evil will undergo complete transformation in the “end of days.”
From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Miketz by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.
