Ki Tisa – When You Will Count
By Rabbi Yeruchem Eilfort
CARLSBAD, California — This week’s Torah portion is titled Ki Tisa, which means when you will count. This portion touches on several interesting topics, each worthy of an essay. The dominant story is certainly the construction of the infamous golden calf. Before focusing on that terrible sin, nothing less than idol worship a few short weeks after having received the 10 Commandments no less, it behooves us to briefly discuss the last of the furnishings of the Tabernacle described in our portion.
The Cohanim (priestly class) were given a very strict commandment to wash their hands and feet using the laver before entering the Holy Temple to do their service. The implement that they used to wash was called the Kiyor, and it was made of copper. The commentaries mention the source of the copper used, which in and of itself is interesting, as only a couple of the sources for the materials used in construction are traced back to their origins. This indicates that there is something significant in the source of the material.
In the case of the Kiyor the source, we are told, was the mirrors used by the Jewish women to beautify themselves during the times of the Egyptian slavery. The men would return from a day of back-breaking labor in the fields. They were physically and emotionally exhausted. These selfsame people had seen their babies murdered. Marital intimacy was the last thing on their minds. In fact, they were reticent to have any more children at all, lest they too become victimized by the evil tyrants.
Yet the women knew better. They understood that if, G-d forbid, the Jewish people would stop having children, the fate of our people would be sealed. No! They could not and would not allow this to happen. They had faith in Almighty G-d that He would redeem the Children of Israel, and that they had to do their part to make sure there would be a Jewish people to redeem. They used their mirrors to beautify themselves and to playfully entice their husbands so that they could procreate.
There are many who would posit that it is inappropriate to use copper from these mirrors to construct the Kiyur, which was used to cleanse the hands of the priests on their way to do the service. Actually, however, we find that the opposite is true. We do not view marital intimacy as something dirty or low, G-d forbid! In fact, when the guidelines of Torah law are followed it is a beautiful and intensely holy Mitzvah – the cohabitation of a man and woman who love each other and their Creator. It can be argued that this is the most G-d-like act we are capable of, as this is how we create new life.
The uniquely human ability to engage in this most-physical of activities while keeping in mind our love of the Almighty as well as each other, is the greatest display of the subliminal level of divinity found within each of us. We (and only we) have the ability to sanctify the physical act of love. It is not simply relegated to animalistic instinct. It is not only to serve ourselves. It is so powerful that it serves as a metaphor as to how we similarly elevate everything we encounter in the physical world. In this regard it is the ultimate fulfillment of our mandate, given to us by our all-powerful Creator, which is to reveal the G-dly in every aspect of physicality.
Later in the portion we see the most precious of items, gold, degraded in its use in a false deity. Here we have a relatively much less valuable item, originally used for a very ‘physical’ purpose, repurposed to be a source of ultimate cleansing. This demonstrates clearly that we are empowered to instill value in the physical world. Clearly our intent makes all the difference.
Now our job is to elevate the physical universe and to reveal the G-dliness that is currently concealed within it. If one is in a dark house one has but to raise the window shades to allow the light of the sun to stream in and transform the dark atmosphere to light. The sun is there. The only question is if we will choose to raise the shades or not? Let’s raise the shades!
Shabbat Shalom!
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Rabbi Yeruchem Eilfort is Director of Coastal Chabads and Chabad at La Costa. Rabbi Eilfort welcomes readers’ comments and questions and may be reached at RabbiE@ChabadatLaCosta.com.