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Tetzaveh - Your Life is Good

 

The Gemara poses the question of where in the Torah we find an allusion to Haman.  It then proceeds to give a surprising answer – citing a pasuk from the story of Adam and Havah's sin in Gan Eden.  Hashem said to Adam after the sin, המן העץ אשר ציויתיך לבלתי אכל ממנו אכלת – "Did you eat from the tree which I commanded you not to eat from?" (Bereshit 3:11).  The word המן ("Ha'min") is spelled the same as "Haman," and thus it is here where the Torah makes a subtle reference to the villain of the Purim story.

 

This seems very peculiar.  What connection is there between the story of Adam in Gan Eden and the story of Purim?

 

I once saw a very powerful answer.

 

The snake succeeded in luring Adam and Havah to sin by drawing their attention toward the one tree that was off-limits.  They had a perfect life in Gan Eden – except that there was this one tree which they could not enjoy.  Adam and Havah focused on this one thing that was missing, that wasn't exactly right, and this is how they were led to sin.

 

The same happened to the Jews during Haman's time.

 

The Gemara says that one of the reasons why Hashem brought Haman's decree is that the Jews participated in Ahashverosh's party.  The Jews of Persia lived very comfortably.  They had plenty of food and plenty of wine.  But they couldn't stay away from Ahashverosh's feast.  Instead of focusing on all that they had, and all that was good in their lives, they were lured by what was off-limits, by what they should not have been getting involved with.

 

This is a mistake so many of us make.  We complain about what's wrong in our lives, rather than seeing just how wonderful our lives are.  People complain about their spouse – forgetting that marriage is a wonderful blessing.  People complain about their children – forgetting that having children is a wonderful blessing.  People complain about their job – forgetting that having work is a wonderful blessing.  People complain about having so many weddings and other events to attend – forgetting that having lots of friends who are making semahot is a wonderful blessing.

 

According to one view, the forbidden tree in Gan Eden was a grape vine, and the "fruit" of which Adam and Havah partook was actually wine.  Wine clouds a person's judgment, and so it skewed their perspective.

 

Every Shabbat, we correct the sin of Adam and Havah through the mitzvah of kiddush – by using wine for the exact opposite purpose.  On Shabbat, we drink wine to feel content, to feel happy, to feel gratified about our lives.  We rectify Adam and Havah's mistake by focusing on all that is good in our lives, on everything we have, and feeling grateful for it.

 

The Megillah tells that it was on the seventh day of Ahashverosh's feast when he ordered Vashti to come, and she disobeyed.  The pasuk says, ביום השביעי כטוב לב המלך ביין – "On the seventh day, when the king's heart was happy with wine."  The Gemara interprets this pasuk to mean that this was Shabbat – the seventh day of the week – and the "king" refers to Hashem, the King of the world.  On Shabbat, Hashem saw the Jews making kiddush, and in this merit, He put into place the sequence of events that would lead to Ester's rise to the throne and the foiling of Haman's plot.

 

The mitzvah of kiddush, which is all about feeling content and happy with what one has, marked the rectification of the Jews' participation in Ahashverosh's feast.

 

We need to stop listening to the "snake" that tries to draw our attention to the "forbidden tree," to what we're missing, to what's not right, to the "problems" in our lives.  We need to instead remember that our lives are beautiful.  Our lives are wonderful.  No, our lives aren't perfect, but they're not meant to be. 

 

When we focus on our blessings, on all that is right about our lives, we will be so much happier, we will complain so much less, and life will be so much more enjoyable and fulfilling. - Joey Haber

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https://itorah.com/weekly-inspire/your-life-is-good/15/31024