by Miriam Ben-Yaacov

Jacob’s first stop on his journey to Haran was the place he would call Bet El — the Temple Mount. He understood prophetically that he would have twelve sons, but he worried that they all be righteous. After all, his brother, Esau, was not righteous, nor were any of his father’s brothers.He arranged twelve stones around his head, and in the morning, they merged into one.He took this as a sign that all his sons would serve Hashem together as the beginning of the promised nation.

As he slept, he dreamt of a ladder on which angels of Elokim ascended and descended. He recognized angel of Babylon, who ascended seventy rungs and fell. Then the angel of Media ascended fifty-two rungs and fell. The angel of Greece ascended one hundred twenty rungs and fell. Finally, Jacob saw the angel of Edom (our present exile) ascend and not come down. He was afraid that this exile would be insurmountable. Hashem stood beside him and reassured him with the promise of the continued Covenant of his fathers. The land upon which he was sleeping would be his and his family’s. All nations would be blessed through this nation to rise from his family.

When Isaac sent Jacob to Haran, he told him that he should marry one of Laban’s daughters. Jacob instantly fell in love with Rachel. Leah, described as having “weak eyes,” is considered less attractive. The Sages say the accepted notion was that she, the older sister, was to marry Esau, while Rachel was destined to marry Jacob. Leah cried and prayed that this would not be her fate. Although Laban’s trick, substituting her for Rachel at the wedding, was definitely deceptive, it was an answer to Leah’s prayers. She immediately bore Jacob four sons. Rachel was barren and begged Jacob to pray for her, which he refused to do. After each of the handmaids had had two sons and Leah had had six, Rachel and Leah became pregnant at the same time. Leah knew prophetically that she was carrying another son and Rachel a girl. She prayed for her sister, and the babies switched places. Rachel gave birth to Joseph, and Leah gave birth to Dina.

We see two archetypes of prayer in Leah and Rachel. Leah had travailed in prayer for years. Once she gave birth to Judah, the change in her character is demonstrated when she said: “Now I will give thanks to Hashem!” (29:35) Rachel still needed the prayers of travail. The Prophet Jeremiah speaks of her travail: “A voice is heard on high, wailing, better weeping, Rachel weeps for her children….” (Jer. 31:14). We see Rachel and Leah face each other as these two types of prayer—Rachel as tefillah and Leah as tehillah. We enter into prayer with tefillah, as we ask Adonai to open our mouths that we may pray. We ascend to tehillah, praising Him simply for who He is in our lives.

The mothers played a vital role in drawing the souls of tribes of Israel into the world. Each of the twelve had a special aspect necessary to the nation. This aspect was first introduced into the world as the mothers named each baby. They knew that each soul has a name that reveals its essence, and they were able to connect with that name. Leah had named her first sons with her eyes ever on Jacob, yearning for him to love her. In the simple text, it looks like Levi was named like his older two brothers, as Leah yearned for Jacob to become attached to her. However, a closer look at the Hebrew verb for “called” reveals a difference in gender, giving us an insight into the attachment of Levi to Hashem that will make his tribe the choice of priests. Leah’s cry for her desire was being subtly transformed into her own attachment to Hashem. The birth of Judah further opened this place within her, bringing her to a new level of spiritual relationship. Leah named Judah in her own praise of Hashem; from his tribe would come King David, the sweet singer of Psalms. Rachel named Joseph, saying, “Add to me another.” While this utterance voiced her prayer that the last of the twelve sons would come through her, it also hints of Joseph’s future role in storing up food for the family and all the world during the great famine. The story of Hannah’s prayer for Samuel’s birth shows that the mothers could very well have prayed in similar detail, affecting the formation of the soul of the child to be born to her. She prayed for a son, who would be dedicated to the Lrd and be a prophet. As pointed out above, Leah prayed that she would have a girl and let Rachel have a boy. Then she named the girl Dina for the “din” (judgment) of Hashem in that case.

After Jacob had fulfilled his years of service for his wives, Laban pressed him to stay a while longer, promising him that he would pay him in flocks. The mystery of this arrangement is hinted in the verse: “The Aramite (Laban) destroyed my father.” –Deut. 26:5. Laban changed Jacob’s wages ten times, trying to trick him out of paying him anything. That is what we see on the surface, but there is more. It was not just a struggle over sheep or wages. The Sages say that this whole episode was securing the souls of Israel The mothers drew down the souls in the babies. Jacob rescued the future souls of Israel from Laban through affecting the markings of the sheep to match those Laban agreed would be his wage. There was a spiritual struggle, as Laban practiced black magic to defeat Jacob. The angel appeared to Jacob in a dream (31:12) and told him how to meditate on the peeled aspen, hazelnut and chestnut rods to affect the genetic structure of the sheep. The Arizal says that in his meditation Jacob was shown the very beginning of Creation—the stages of creation of the Vessels of Creation.

The “banded” sheep were white with what appeared to be black bands around the legs, making them appear to be bound. This corresponds to the level called akudim, which means “bound.” On this level the Vessels exists as “ten in one,” completely undifferentiated from each other.

The “spotted” animals were white with black spots. This corresponds to the level called nekudim, which means “spots or points.” On this level the Vessels divided into separate entities, but they could not interact with each other and hold the light, and therefore they “shattered” and fell.

The “streaked” animals were black with white streaks, giving the appearance of hail, which is called barad in Hebrew. The last stage, called barudim, was a rectification of the Vessels, in which they could interact with each other as givers and receivers and could, therefore, hold the light.

Each year at Passover, when we remember how Pharaoh tried to annihilate Israel, we remember how Laban tried to keep Israel from coming into the world in the first place. That is what is meant by the verse: “The Aramite (Laban) destroyed my father.” –Deut. 26:5.

May Hashem be praised in all the earth!

Miriam