Illustration Credit: Elad Lifshitz, Dov Abramson Studio
Commentary פַּרְשָׁנוּת
If you wanted to compare God to an animal, what animal would you pick? Why?
See what Ha’azinu chooses:
כְּנֶשֶׁר יָעִיר קִנּוֹ עַל גּוֹזָלָיו יְרַחֵף
יִפְרֹשׂ כְּנָפָיו יִקָּחֵהוּ יִשָּׂאֵהוּ עַל אֶבְרָתוֹ׃
Like an eagle waking its babies,
Hovering above its young–
God spread God’s wings and took them,
Carrying them on God’s wings.
How is God like this eagle?
כְּנֶשֶׁר הַזֶּה רַחְמָנִי עַל בָּנָיו וְאֵינוֹ נִכְנָס לְקִנּוֹ פִּתְאוֹם עַד שֶׁהוּא מְקַשְׁקֵשׁ וּמְטָרֵף עַל בָּנָיו בִּכְנָפָיו בֵּין אִילָן לְאִילָן בֵּין שׂוֹכָה לַחֲבֶרְתָּהּ כְּדֵי שֶׁיֵּעוֹרוּ בָּנָיו וִיהֵא בָּהֶן כֹּחַ לְקַבְּלוֹ...
אֵינוֹ מַכְבִּיד עַצְמוֹ עֲלֵיהֶם, אֶלָּא מְחוֹפֵף, כְּנוֹגֵעַ וְלֹא נוֹגֵעַ. אַף הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא...
כְּשֶׁבָּא לִתֵּן תּוֹרָה לֹא נִגְלָה עֲלֵיהֶם מֵרוּחַ אַחַת, אֶלָּא מֵאַרְבַּע רוּחוֹת.
An eagle has compassion on its children and doesn’t enter the nest suddenly. It flaps around first so its children can wake up and prepare themselves for its entry…
An eagle does not press heavily on its babies. It hovers above them, touching them and not touching them. So too…
When God gave the Torah, the revelation didn’t come from just one direction. It came from all four directions.
פּוֹרֵשׂ כְּנָפָיו הָרְחָבִים וּמַעֲלָם עַל אֶבְרָתוֹ הַסָּמוּךְ לְגוּפוֹ, מִשּׁוּם שֶׁמְּעוֹפֵף לְמַעְלָה מִן הָאָרֶץ הַרְבֵּה וְחוֹשֵׁשׁ שֶׁמָּא יִפְּלוּ בְּעוֹפְפוֹ עִמָּם לְמַעְלָה מִן הָאָרֶץ הַרְבֵּה, וְהוּא עוֹשֶׂה כֵּן כְּדֵי לְהַעֲמִידָם עַל צוּרָתָם לָעוּף בַּשָּׁמַיִם.
The eagle spreads its wings and carries its babies close to its body. This is because eagles fly really high in the sky, and are concerned that their baby birds might fall when they are so far from the earth. The eagle parent carries its young in order to teach them how to fly in the sky.
- When can human parents be like eagle parents, in each of the ways that Rashi and Ha’amek Davar describe?
- How about you? Are you able to approach others gently, to avoid overwhelming them (Rashi)? Can you act as a supportive and careful teacher (Ha’amek Davar)?
- When you think about God, does one of these qualities seem more important, or more what you’re used to? Why?
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