BAMIDBAR - V PUŠČAVI

1:1 - 4:20 במדבר

Kriterij naše osebne bližine s kreatorjem, ki mora izvirati iz ponožnosti pred njim. V bistvu gre za kritičnost naše pozicije v kolektivu, za iskanje tiste niše, kamor smo poklicani ravno mi. Paraša označuje začetek prenašanja tabernaklja skozi puščavo; kar je osnovno dejanje v tranziciji med egoizmom in altruizmom. Idejno se vsebina paraša navezuje na prvo biblijsko zapoved: "bodite plodoviti in mnogoteri".

FROM REUBEN TO NAPHTHALI

Let's see what pattern they used to count the tribes (the Standard Version neglected this detail, so we must rely on the original text):

(1:20) And the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel, their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of names, by their polls, every male from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war.

(1:21) Those who were numbered of them, of the tribe of Reuben, were forty-six thousand five hundred.

(1:22) Of the sons of Simeon: their generations, by their families, by the house of their fathers, those that were numbered of them, by the number of names, by their polls, every male from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war.

(1:23) Those who were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Simeon, were fifty-nine thousand three hundred.

(1:24) Of the children of Gad: their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, by their polls, every male from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war.

(1:25) Those who were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Gad, were forty-five thousand six hundred and fifty.

(1:26) Of the children of Judah: their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war.

(1:27) Those who were numbered of them, even of the tribe of Judah, were seventy-four thousand and six hundred.

(1:28) For the sons of Issachar ....and so on in the same pattern as for Judah or Gad; all the way down to Naphtali, for whom there is again a slight change:

בְּנֵ֣י נַפְתָּלִ֔י תֹּולְדֹתָ֥ם לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֖ם לְבֵ֣יט אֲבֹת֑ם בְּמִסְפַּ֣ר שֵׁמֹ֗ת מִבֶּ֨ן עֶשְׂרִ֤ים שָׁנָה֙ וָמַ֔עְלָה כֹּ֖ל יֹצֵ֥א צָבָֽא׃

Nu 1:42 Of the children of Naphtali: their generations, after their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names, from twenty years old and upward, all that were able to go forth to war.

We see a special feature in Reuben, who is designated as the firstborn, and in Simeon. Then from Gad onward to the penultimate Asher, it follows an identical pattern. The change is again in Naphtali, whose number we learn last. This special feature is of course a challenge! As we are already accustomed to in the Torah and in life, we do not write down or tell everything we experience, which then allows the reader to complete the story with their own thoughts and imagination.

So how did the Israelites count? We will draw the answer from our imagination, but we will also help ourselves with logic. In answering, we will be guided by the text with its peculiarities, which I pointed out earlier. We will be guided by the light that is hidden in the text.

EXPLANATION

First, Moses and Aaron gathered the 12 tribal leaders, as the Creator had commanded them. Then they went together from tent to tent and counted in random order: "this and that from the house of this and that and that from the family of this and that". In this way, they followed the instruction to count "all the males by their heads" (1:2). The function of the leaders was to confirm that a certain man belonged to a certain tribe. Namely; at that moment the Israelites were mixed up and many might have "forgotten" which tribe they belonged to, so it was convenient that the tribal leader was also there. Of course, this is meant metaphorically when we use this counting as a model in other cases. On a macro level, however, it is about the relationship between identification with the entire collective or belonging to a smaller group.

So they first had a census; a messy list where every individual was written down. Now it was necessary to find out how many members of each tribe there were. They took another piece of paper and first counted how many members of the tribe of Reuben, who was the firstborn. On the first census sheets, they then crossed out all the Reuben ones or erased them. These were then copied onto a new sheet and we got their total number. Well, then they found out that the 12 chieftains had nothing to do. They gave each one his own sheet, except for Reuben, because his had already been counted. Reuben then read the names of the men from the first sheets according to the pattern: "this and that for this and that tribe". This is also logical; because if Reuben was the firstborn, he knew best everyone who came after him. This information is not very practical in the specific case, when we are talking about tribes and not about the sons from whom the tribes developed. But it is of course very useful in all other counts. Above all, it explains the function or the privilege of primogeniture; namely, he knows best everything that follows in his category.

Reuben first counted all those who belonged to Simon. Here the counting is slightly different than Reuben's, because he finds out that there is someone else besides him. Simon was the second-born. The point is "me and someone else", but then it no longer matters how many follow, so the order is no longer important. This was followed by the counting of the tribe of Gad, who is not the third-born, which confirms that the order is not important. This was Reuben's fundamental finding that there are other brothers besides him. In a figurative sense, this also means: the first impression (of a certain situation) is followed by other impressions. It is about the importance of the first impression in comparison with all other impressions.

This is a pattern that the tribe of Reuben has had in its subconscious since its inception, when Jacob's sons were being born. That it is a counting pattern is clear not only from the content, which talks about counting, but also from the sequential linguistic structure of the text: different categories, characteristics to which an individual person belongs, follow one another.

They counted on. From Gad on, the same pattern. When they came to the last tribe, of course, there was no need to say "this and that for the tribe of Naphtali", since it was logically clear that all those left on the list belonged to Naphtali. Therefore, we read: The sons of Naphtali...."so many and so many".

COMMENT

Here we have a question of logic and practicality. Every calculation, every calculation is, of course, mathematics, logic.

The second message is that the tribes were mixed together, so they had to first take a census of everyone and then sort them by category - this is how the census is done today. Mixture is a very important message: the Israelites had to achieve unity if they wanted to receive the Torah on Mount Sinai. Of course, there is always the danger that unity turns into uniformity, which would be disastrous for creation, which must be fruitful (unified) as well as diverse (diverse).

Aaron and Moses were instructed to count the "names" of the people, not just the "people." Each individual is not just a number, but is important. There is an apparent contrast between unity and the importance of each individual. In Kabbalah, we know that unity is only possible when each member is important. Everyone must play their unique role if unity is to be achieved.

Why is Reuben counted first? A question of coincidence! They count because it is commanded. With Reuben, who is the firstborn, the idea is highlighted - he is the firstborn and this determines part of the operation, and the part is random or. we do not know him. Therefore, the counting continues in an order that initially follows the birth order of Jacob's sons, but soon this order is broken. It is also worth noting that when listing the 12 princes of the tribes who will participate in the counting, the order is not the same as in the counting itself. In a way, the text seems superficial, inconsistent. The message is that perfection must be sought beyond materiality, where we do not see everything. In a way, I explained why Reuben counts first - because he is the most skilled at counting, since he was the firstborn and naturally counted everything that came after him. The others, if we refer to the brothers and not the tribes, were already born into a situation where they were not the only ones.

NETZAH AND THE WALK

Moses and Aaron represent netzah and hod. This is also reflected in this counting: netzah is represented by a repeating pattern, and hod by a small change, which then reveals the logic, the intellect, behind this small pattern.

Of course, it is possible to apply this counting pattern to our micro-situations when we are dealing with our personal desires and needs - and each of them counts on the path of spiritual transformation.

Netzah is persistence, or represents emotions, imagination. Hod is the intellect that is born of persistence. Both are combined into a personality, which is represented here by the twelve tribes. Joseph is not there, because he represents Yesod, which is the collection of the sons of Jacob.

The parasha is read in Sivan, when we unite the left and right sides of the tree of life, thus achieving spiritual personality.



SOCIAL PLURALITY

First, the question arises, why would Moses and Aaron count the Israelites for the Creator? Doesn't the Creator know how many there are?

The answer lies in the fact that we must encourage diversity in our material world. The collective is made up of many individuals who must be different from each other if we want the collective to function fruitfully. When Moses and Aaron count, it is not just about quantity, but also about quality. They represent, as we said, netzah and hod, and therefore both count. The content that they confirm to each individual is the balance between imaginative netzah and logical hod. Each of us must develop these two sefirot well, and above all, he must coordinate their operation well. Our task is to reach the spiritual level of Moses and Aaron when they count together. Our netzah and hod must harmoniously deal with and create our material reality.

The problem with the world, throughout history and today, is the misunderstanding of the concepts of unity and uniformity. Unity is not achieved by being all the same, but by tolerating and uniting diversity and thus becoming one. This parashah is also an explanation of the first and most important biblical commandment: be fruitful and multiply.

In a community, everyone is responsible for something different. In society, we need different people, different opinions. We need debate. The challenge is how to say something that is contrary to the opinion of another - this is related to thinking about the desert and speaking. A spiritual person is someone who is able to listen to different opinions and not feel threatened by them. When I listen to others, I can get a better picture.

"In a democracy, anyone can say what they want, but they can't force anyone to listen!"

Today's global situation is facing the challenge of multiculturalism, which is of course a necessity and a fact. The danger would be if we tried to achieve monoculturalism. From the point of view of Kabbalah and of course also from a purely natural and social scientific point of view, it is not important to preserve one's identity, but it is necessary to care for diversity. It seems that many, in a completely natural and legitimate effort for diversity, resort to excessive care for their identity, which is of course legitimate, but unnatural; because we know that evolution is based on change. Those who blindly advocate the preservation of identity forget that we would have nothing to defend if our ancestors had not allowed change and had adhered to tradition. In this way, a person would remain by the fire in the caves with a bear bone whistle.

FOUR FLAGS

אִ֣ישׁ עַל־דִּגְלֹ֤ו בְאֹתֹת֙ לְבֵ֣יט אֲבֹתָ֔ם יַחֲנ֖וּ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל מִנֶּ֕גֶד סָבִ֥יב לְאֹֽהֶל־מֹועֵ֖ד יַחֲנֽוּ׃

Nu 2:2 The children of Israel shall pitch every man by his own standard, with the ensigns of their fathers' houses: on the side of the tabernacle of the congregation shall they pitch.

After the census is taken, it is commanded that the tribes be arranged in four groups around the tent. Each of the four groups has a leading tribe of that particular camp.

The characteristics of an individual tribe are already determined by Jacob's blessing, which we read about in Parasha Vayehi. Now that it is determined where someone should be; who has someone as a neighbor, the influence of the individual on others is enabled. This is what Bamidbar tells us. In addition to recognizing one's unique importance, it is also necessary to find an appropriate position in the collective if we want to fulfill our responsibility, our task.

The tribes represent 12 qualities that everyone finds within themselves and must harmonize accordingly, which is why it is important in life who we associate with. It is necessary to achieve the appropriate structure.

Here we have clearly exposed the flags - the signs of the houses of the fathers. Undoubtedly, it is about the unique significance of each smaller group for the entire collective. We must also be recognizable externally. This may seem contradictory to my thinking about the unimportance of identity, which I wrote about earlier. The Torah and life in general are based on spirituality, so it is necessary to recognize, preserve and highlight our spiritual identity. The latter, however, can remain unrecognizable if we cling to material-cultural identity.

I do not think that our cultural identity is unimportant. Quite the opposite; through it our spiritual identity is expressed. Both identities are a matter of evolution. Spiritual identity is determined, but it is precisely through cultural evolution that it can manifest itself, which would mean: flags - signs of the houses of the fathers.

COUNT-NAME

The true message of this parashah, like the Torah, cannot be recognized in translations, so it is important to look at which words or phrases are in Hebrew that we usually translate as counting:

שְׂא֗וּ אֶת־רֹאשׁ֙ כָּל־עֲדַ֣ת בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֖ם לְבֵ֣יט אֲבֹת֑ם בְּמִסְפַּ֣ר שֵׁמֹ֔ות כָּל־זָכ֖ר לְֻלְגְלֹתָֽ׃

Nu 1:2 Take the head of the whole congregation of the children of Israel, by their families, by the house of their fathers, according to the number of the names of every male, by their heads.

To lift up the head שְׂא֗וּ אֶת־רֹאשׁ֙ is translated "count". Then we have the word "in number" בְּמִסְפַּ֣ר, which is the most common word in Hebrew for counting, but also means to tell, to enumerate - from the same root word is the word "book". So we could translate in number of names "in the record of names", "in the book of names".

Further in the text we encounter: their counted , here the verb פָּקַד appears, which means to attend, to visit, to determine.

When we are well acquainted with these words and their usage, we can recognize the idea hidden in this parasha. Thus we understand that counting is essentially the recognition of individuality and not the other way around. That is why names are counted. And if we now use synonyms for counting, then we will understand that it is about presence, the determination of names.

LEVI

וַתַּ֣הַר עֹוד֮ וַתֵּ֣לֶד בֵּן֒ וַתֹּ֗אמֶר עַתָּ֤ה הַפַּ֙עַם֙ יִלָּוֶ֤ה אִישִׁי֙ אֵלַ֔י כִּֽי־יָלַ֥דְתִּי לֹ֖ו שְׁלֹשָׁ֥ה בָנִ֑ים עַל־כֵּ֥ן קָרָֽא־שְׁמֹ֖ו לֵוִֽי׃

Gen 29:34 And she conceived again, and bare a son, and said, Now will my husband be joined unto me, because I have borne him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi.

Leah bore Jacob Levi. The verb to unite, to which the first verse refers, is: לוה, lava. From it comes the name Levi לוי, meaning "united with me."

Standard translation: Gen 49:5 Simeon and Levi are brothers; their swords are instruments of violence. 6 My soul shall not come into their company, nor shall my honor be mixed with their assembly; for in their anger they slew men, and in their rage they maimed oxen. 7 Cursed be their anger, for it was great, and their fury, for it was cruel. I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel.

The description shows that Levi is on the side of Gevurah. How is it that they are then entrusted with a privileged task in the temple? It is a matter of discipline, which is necessary for such a demanding task. Each of us must also reach the level of Levi. This is the main message why the Levites are not counted with the other tribes. Each of us must constantly recognize and develop our unique characteristics in the material world (12 tribes), so that at the same time we will also perform the task of the Levites who serve in the temple.

The tribes within the Levites do the work in the tabernacle: