Toldot

Two "sons" inside

Inspired by Rabbi Miles Krassen

"God said to Rivkah: Two nations are in your womb. . . The greater one will serve the younger." - Bereisheet/Genesis 25:23

Rabbinic midrash (Torah commentary) says that Rivkah suffered greatly while pregnant with her twins, Esav and Ya'akov. Whenever she would pass by an unholy place, Esav would start kicking and trying to break out of her womb. Whenever she would pass a holy place, Ya'akov would want to come out. Rivkah asked God why this was happening. God's answer was hidden inside this enigmatic prophecy.

Our Hassidic teachers say that God's message wasn't only about the future fate of Rivkah's sons. It was also a message about the present state of Rivkah's soul. Inside Rivkah there were two tendencies: the yetzer hara and the yetzer hatov. The yetzer hara, is the "evil inclination," the impulse to fulfill our desires by any means necessary. It is with us from our infancy. The yetzer hatov is the "good inclination," the impulse to live our lives according to moral rules. It develops as we get older. God thus tells Rivkah that her two inclinations can coexist, as long as "the greater son serves the younger." The cleverness of the yetzer hara should only be used to bring about the goals of the yetzer hatov.

When Esav and Ya'akov mature, Rivkah's husband Yitzchak reinforces God's moral message. After some soul-searching, Yitzchak gives blessings to both of his sons - symbolically, to both of his inclinations - assigning each a different role in the world.

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