The Aleph Linchpin
Sometimes one letter can transform a word from one extreme to the other. In the Holy Tongue, that letter is the Aleph. When inserted in a word it can turn coldness into love and exile into Redemption.
A Strange Name
Vayikra, or Leviticus, is the third book of the Torah, and it is named after the first word of the book—“Vayikra-And He called.” After G-d calls out to Moses (Vayikra), He proceeds to detail to him the various forms of offerings that the Jewish people were to bring in the just built Sanctuary.
The opening word of a Biblical book should reflect its character. What message does the rather prosaic word Vayikra convey?
Moreover, Vayikra, while it is only the third book of the Torah, is also the central book of the Five Books of Moses. Its placement as the central book tells us something about the way we must view it.
To understand the significance of the third book of the Torah and it centrality, let us analyze briefly the central themes of the other four books of the Torah.
Two and Two
Bereishis/Genesis, as its name suggests, is about the creation of the world, and Shemos/Exodus is about the creation of a meaningful, purposeful world, with the liberation of the Jewish nation and the Giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. Although the world had already existed for over two thousand years, its existence was not validated until the Torah was given to the Jewish people.
Numbers (“Bamidbar-In the desert,” in Hebrew) and Deuteronomy (or: “Devarim-[Harsh] words of rebuke,” in Hebrew) are about the wanderings, the vicissitudes, the struggles, the trials and tribulations of the Jewish people.
Genesis and Exodus are full of promise and positive energy, while Numbers and Deuteronomy are punctuated with volatility, stress and hardship. How does one fuse the two sets of Biblical narrative?
One Aleph Makes all the Difference
The linchpin that brings all these elements together is Vayikra-Leviticus, and more specifically, the letter aleph at the end of the word.
The word Vayikra is translated literally as “And He called,” referring to the affectionate way G-d calls out to Moses before He begins telling him about the offerings in the Temple.
Rashi comments that there is another, almost identical, word in Hebrew—Vayikar—that means “and He chanced upon him,” that is used in reference to the way G-d approached Bilam, the heathen prophet.
The difference between these two forms of introduction, Rashi explains, is that the former (Vayikra) implies G-d’s desire and pleasure in initiating a conversation with Moses. The latter form (Vayikar) is indicative of a total lack of enthusiasm concerning the ensuing conversation. It is G-d’s way of saying, “I’d rather not have this conversation with you.”
The difference between the two words is a solitary letter: the Hebrew letter “aleph.” The word Vayikra has the aleph, the word Vayikar does not.
Pit/Well, Exile/Redemption, Pauper/Head, Blood/Adam, Death/Truth: The Difference is the Aleph
We find other words in Hebrew where the single letter “aleph” determines whether the word is positive or negative. One prime example is the word Golah (without the aleph) and Geulah (with the aleph), which translate as exile and redemption, respectively.
Another example of this aleph-transformation phenomenon can be found in the words Bor and B’er. The word bor means an empty pit, often with the connotation that it is a place of snakes and scorpions, or a place associated with death, while b’er means a well that contains refreshing water, referred to in Biblical literature as “Mayim Chaim—living waters.”
Another striking example is the Hebrew word for truth—emet, which actually connotes something that is consistent, enduring and never ending. If we remove the aleph, it becomes met, which means death, and cessation, the very opposite of emes.
The word Rosh means head. If we were to remove the aleph the word means impoverished. The aleph transforms the word from a state of utter deficiency, someone on the edge, to a state of leadership.
The most exalted name for a human being is Adam, the name given to the first human. If we were to remove the aleph from the name Adam we are left with the word dam, which means blood. Bereft of the aleph a human being is nothing more than flesh and blood.
What power is vested in the letter aleph that it can so transform a word?
The Power of the Aleph
Aleph, as the first letter of the alphabet, signifies G-d who is the First Cause of everything.
Aleph, as the first letter of the alphabet, is also the number one, alluding to G-d, who is absolutely one.
The word aleph itself is cognate to the word Aluf, which, in Hebrew means a master. (In contemporary Hebrew it is the word for “general.” G-d is referred to as Alufo shel olamthe Master of the World.
When we take the Aleph—the awareness of an absolute and singular Master of the World— ands insert it into the word golah-exile, we transform exile into geulah-redemption.
When we add the Aleph to the pit and the abyss, we create a life sustaining well.
When we add the Aleph to the word that suggests terminality (met), we convert it into emet—truth, endurance and consistency.
And when we add the Aleph to the word (Vaikar) that implies, lack of interest and a contemptuous relationship, it is transformed into Vayikra, an expression of eagerness to enter into a relationship with the other and an expression of love.
The Book of Vayikra-Leviticus, which focuses on inserting the Aleph into all of our experiences, has the capacity to join the first two books of the Torah (Genesis and Exodus) that deal with birth and rebirth, Creation and Redemption to the last two books of the Torah (Numbers and Deuteronomy) that relate to the wanderings, decline and uncertainty of our future.
Connecting the Innocence of Childhood into Adulthood
When a child is born it thrives. But, its life is essentially provided for by others. When he or she achieves adolescence and adulthood and is no longer provided for, all of the problems begin. How do we connect the innocence, exuberance, confidence and joy of our youth (Genesis and Exodus) to the later stages of our lives (Numbers and Deuteronomy)?
The answer is Vayikra. When we begin to see our lives as a loving relationship between G-d and us; when we add the aleph to the events that appear to be chance occurrences; when we see the Divine providence in every happening; when we hear G-d affectionately calling out to us and asking us to take the animal within us and bring it closer to G-d, at that point, we are also ready to make the transition from Golah to Geulah, from the travail of exile to the joy and exhilaration of the ultimate Redemption.
From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Vayikra by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.
