Bereishit - 5773
Bereishit 1:1 - 6:8
Bereishit 5773
Genesis 1:1 - 6:8
“In the Beginning” … there was Creation. So why are we created? Well the end goal seems to be “Shabbat” and how “as decreed in Heaven, so shall it be on Earth”. For in this parashah, Creation is first explained as the concept of what shall occur on each day. It subsequently moves on to re-describe creation as the physical occurrences and of events which transpired therein.
The part that I find of interest here however is not necessarily the end goal but the means of achieving this goal of as in Heaven so shall it be here on Earth. This is a personal journey to each of us, and relates to the fact that we are created with two souls: the Heavenly and the Earthly. Having these souls comport themselves as one, with the Heavenly Soul directing the Animal Souls actions.
It is my belief that we will find the answers here throughout Our Torah.
G-D Bless
Five Kinds of Light
According to Rabbi Shimon1, the word “Light” appears in this parashah five times, each representative of a respective book of the Torah.
Bereishit: “Let there be Light” (1:3)
Creation / Origination
- Explains How G-D created the world with Light.
- Section 1:1 states “bara et ha’shamayim ve et ha’aretz” the word “et” is comprised of the letters “aleph” and
“Tet”, respectively the first and last letters of the alephbet, and congruous to all of the letters of the Alphabet.
Shmot: “and there was Light” (1:3)
Redemption / Purpose of our Lifetime
- Reflective of the verse “and all Israel had Light in their homes” (Shmot 10:23)
- Represents Israel’s Exodus from Bondage (Egyptian Exile) and our their subsequent redemption. It is this
redemption which is compared to “the Light”.
Vayikra: “G-D saw the Light, that it was Good” (1:4)
Repentance / Love and Support for our Efforts towards our Endeavors
- Dealing with the Goodness and Value of Sacrifices
- Repentance is the obligation of bringing a sacrifice
- having a share in His Light is obtained when the repentance is accomplished with contriteness.
Bamidbar: “G-D separated the Light and the Darkness” (1:4)
The Holy Temple / That which we can become
- How Israel separated itself from their evil ways
- How the accompanying “Mishkan” brought direction in identifying their path towards the Light.
Devarim: G-d called the Light, Day” (1:5)
The Torah / How we achieve that for which we are striving
- An explanation of the separation between Light and Darkness
- Containing Commandments and Laws which guide us towards the Light.
Five Types of Creation2
At the recognition of each separate day of creation, the number of the day is identified (first, second, third, fourth, fifth). It is only on “The Sixth” day that the letter “Heh” is included to specify “THE Sixth Day”. The letter “Heh” is the fifth letter of the alephbet.
This fifth letter of “Heh” is added in to the recognition of the sixth day of creation for on this sixth day, “man” was created and the “Heh” designates Man’s essence in the Five Books of the Torah. In otherwords, adherence to the Five Books allows Man his creation and sustenance or continuance.
But in addition to the Five Lights which were created, as enumerated above; Other Creations (grouped as we will see in segments of Five) were created, al of which can be seen as additional factors to which Man should adhere.
The First Day of Creation (1:1-5)
- The Five Lights (as above)
The Second Day of Creation (1:6-8)
- The Five Heavens
- The Five Waters (five mentions)
The Third Day of Creation (1:11-12)
- The Five Types of Plants:
- Vegetation to Sprout
- Seed yielding Herbs, according to its kind
- Trees producing Fruit, in which its seed is found
The Fourth Day of Creation (1:14-19)
- The Five Means of Illumination:
- That they may serve to separate between day and night, to serve as signs for appointed seasons, and to
serve as days and years.
- To shed light upon the Earth.
- To rule over the day and over the night.
- To separate between the Light and the Darkness
- The Sun: The Great Luminary to rule the day
- The Moon: The lesser luminary to rule the night and stars
- The Constellations
- The Stars
- The Daylight
The Fifth Day of Creation (1:20-25)
- The Five Types of (Creature) Locomotion
- Those whom Walk on Two Legs
- Those whom Walk on Four Legs
- Those whom Crawl on Their Bellies: Great Sea Monsters and every living creature that crawls
- Those whom Fly: Let Fowl fly over the Earth, over the expanse of the Heavens
- Those who Swim: Let the Waters swarm of living creatures
The Sixth Day of Creation
- Man was Created with Five Souls
- Nefesh
- Ruach
- Neshamah
- Chayah
- Yechidah
It is said that G-D created Man in His Image. That Image is one which is blessed with Free-Choice. Those of the Animal Kingdom follow their Animal Souls which have the primary focus of addressing their bodily or physical needs. The Angles of the Spiritual Kingdom follow their Spiritual Souls and thus are driven by pure intellect and goodness, never straying from this path. Man however, is blessed with both an Animal Soul and a Spiritual or G-Dly Soul. As it is stated (in 2:7) man was created with two-yuds (the letter Yud twice) indicating both an animal soul and a spiritual soul. (in 2:19) The animals are created using a single letter Yud indicating that they are created with only their animal soul4.
Therein lies the dichotomy of our Lives. Being able to chose the best or worse action for either of these inherent Souls within us. Partaking of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil solidified this position, our daily challenge.
The Six Days of Creation3
Herein we find a reference to the “Age of the Universe” whereas each of the Days of Creation correspond to their respective millennia prior to the Seventh Day, Shabbat, The Seventh Millennium or The Age of Maschiach. They are summarized as follows:
The First Day of Creation
- G-D created Light which represents the first thousand years wherein Adam lived
The Second Day of Creation
- A separation was made between the Heavens for in the second set of Thousand years; Noah was separated
from those who were not like Noah.
- This is also the only day in which the Torah does not state “and it was good” at the conclusion of the day, for
within it the Flood occurred.
The Third Day of Creation
- The Earth grew fertile and all of the Trees and Fruits were created, which is representative of Avraham Avinu
and his children recognizing and accepting the Torah and its precepts.
The Fourth Day of Creation
- The Two Luminaries were created, representing the Two Temples which were built during the Fourth
Millennium.
- Respectively, the first luminary shown brighter than the second
The Fifth Day of Creation
- The Fifth Millennium is the description of Locomotion, the years AD 0 to roughly AD1000.
- Populations expanded and traversed geographic boundaries, population the four-corners of the globe
The Sixth Day of Creation
- The Sixth Millennium when Man was created.
- Upon this Day, was taken the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil,
- Upon this Day, were the Floodgates of Heaven and Earth opened, wherein the knowledge the lower-secular
and higher-spiritual realms opened and made available to mankind.
The Seventh Day of Creation
- There was no creation on the Seventh Day, this is a Day of Rest from all activities of creation.
- The Seventh Millennium, the Era of the Maschiach, of final peace on Earth as is in Heaven.
Current Situation
We currently find ourselves within the Sixth day of Creation or the Sixth Millennium. We are in the midst of our struggle between the forces of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The floodgates have been open since the 1820’s (AD), and agents of both forces are getting more convinced of their own inclinations. The positive note that is becoming ever-more apparent is that the Forces of Good Knowledge from both the secular-lower waters and spiritual-higher waters are converging towards a symbiotic understanding of the Forces of Good and of the encompassing directive of the spiritual forces over the secular.
Action Item
What we hope to see throughout the following Parashiot, are indications of the stumbles made away from our spiritual nature; and of the steps which should be taken to bring us closer to our spiritual nature.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
1Tz’enah Ur’enah, “The Weekly Midrash”, from Artscroll Judaica Classics, p.18
2Tz’enah Ur’enah, “The Weekly Midrash”, from Artscroll Judaica Classics, p.26
3Tz’enah Ur’enah, “The Weekly Midrash”, from Artscroll Judaica Classics, p.29
4Tz’enah Ur’enah, “The Weekly Midrash”, from Artscroll Judaica Classics, p.31
Genesis 1:1 - 6:8
“In the Beginning” … there was Creation. So why are we created? Well the end goal seems to be “Shabbat” and how “as decreed in Heaven, so shall it be on Earth”. For in this parashah, Creation is first explained as the concept of what shall occur on each day. It subsequently moves on to re-describe creation as the physical occurrences and of events which transpired therein.
The part that I find of interest here however is not necessarily the end goal but the means of achieving this goal of as in Heaven so shall it be here on Earth. This is a personal journey to each of us, and relates to the fact that we are created with two souls: the Heavenly and the Earthly. Having these souls comport themselves as one, with the Heavenly Soul directing the Animal Souls actions.
It is my belief that we will find the answers here throughout Our Torah.
G-D Bless
Five Kinds of Light
According to Rabbi Shimon1, the word “Light” appears in this parashah five times, each representative of a respective book of the Torah.
Bereishit: “Let there be Light” (1:3)
Creation / Origination
- Explains How G-D created the world with Light.
- Section 1:1 states “bara et ha’shamayim ve et ha’aretz” the word “et” is comprised of the letters “aleph” and
“Tet”, respectively the first and last letters of the alephbet, and congruous to all of the letters of the Alphabet.
Shmot: “and there was Light” (1:3)
Redemption / Purpose of our Lifetime
- Reflective of the verse “and all Israel had Light in their homes” (Shmot 10:23)
- Represents Israel’s Exodus from Bondage (Egyptian Exile) and our their subsequent redemption. It is this
redemption which is compared to “the Light”.
Vayikra: “G-D saw the Light, that it was Good” (1:4)
Repentance / Love and Support for our Efforts towards our Endeavors
- Dealing with the Goodness and Value of Sacrifices
- Repentance is the obligation of bringing a sacrifice
- having a share in His Light is obtained when the repentance is accomplished with contriteness.
Bamidbar: “G-D separated the Light and the Darkness” (1:4)
The Holy Temple / That which we can become
- How Israel separated itself from their evil ways
- How the accompanying “Mishkan” brought direction in identifying their path towards the Light.
Devarim: G-d called the Light, Day” (1:5)
The Torah / How we achieve that for which we are striving
- An explanation of the separation between Light and Darkness
- Containing Commandments and Laws which guide us towards the Light.
Five Types of Creation2
At the recognition of each separate day of creation, the number of the day is identified (first, second, third, fourth, fifth). It is only on “The Sixth” day that the letter “Heh” is included to specify “THE Sixth Day”. The letter “Heh” is the fifth letter of the alephbet.
This fifth letter of “Heh” is added in to the recognition of the sixth day of creation for on this sixth day, “man” was created and the “Heh” designates Man’s essence in the Five Books of the Torah. In otherwords, adherence to the Five Books allows Man his creation and sustenance or continuance.
But in addition to the Five Lights which were created, as enumerated above; Other Creations (grouped as we will see in segments of Five) were created, al of which can be seen as additional factors to which Man should adhere.
The First Day of Creation (1:1-5)
- The Five Lights (as above)
The Second Day of Creation (1:6-8)
- The Five Heavens
- The Five Waters (five mentions)
The Third Day of Creation (1:11-12)
- The Five Types of Plants:
- Vegetation to Sprout
- Seed yielding Herbs, according to its kind
- Trees producing Fruit, in which its seed is found
The Fourth Day of Creation (1:14-19)
- The Five Means of Illumination:
- That they may serve to separate between day and night, to serve as signs for appointed seasons, and to
serve as days and years.
- To shed light upon the Earth.
- To rule over the day and over the night.
- To separate between the Light and the Darkness
- The Sun: The Great Luminary to rule the day
- The Moon: The lesser luminary to rule the night and stars
- The Constellations
- The Stars
- The Daylight
The Fifth Day of Creation (1:20-25)
- The Five Types of (Creature) Locomotion
- Those whom Walk on Two Legs
- Those whom Walk on Four Legs
- Those whom Crawl on Their Bellies: Great Sea Monsters and every living creature that crawls
- Those whom Fly: Let Fowl fly over the Earth, over the expanse of the Heavens
- Those who Swim: Let the Waters swarm of living creatures
The Sixth Day of Creation
- Man was Created with Five Souls
- Nefesh
- Ruach
- Neshamah
- Chayah
- Yechidah
It is said that G-D created Man in His Image. That Image is one which is blessed with Free-Choice. Those of the Animal Kingdom follow their Animal Souls which have the primary focus of addressing their bodily or physical needs. The Angles of the Spiritual Kingdom follow their Spiritual Souls and thus are driven by pure intellect and goodness, never straying from this path. Man however, is blessed with both an Animal Soul and a Spiritual or G-Dly Soul. As it is stated (in 2:7) man was created with two-yuds (the letter Yud twice) indicating both an animal soul and a spiritual soul. (in 2:19) The animals are created using a single letter Yud indicating that they are created with only their animal soul4.
Therein lies the dichotomy of our Lives. Being able to chose the best or worse action for either of these inherent Souls within us. Partaking of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil solidified this position, our daily challenge.
The Six Days of Creation3
Herein we find a reference to the “Age of the Universe” whereas each of the Days of Creation correspond to their respective millennia prior to the Seventh Day, Shabbat, The Seventh Millennium or The Age of Maschiach. They are summarized as follows:
The First Day of Creation
- G-D created Light which represents the first thousand years wherein Adam lived
The Second Day of Creation
- A separation was made between the Heavens for in the second set of Thousand years; Noah was separated
from those who were not like Noah.
- This is also the only day in which the Torah does not state “and it was good” at the conclusion of the day, for
within it the Flood occurred.
The Third Day of Creation
- The Earth grew fertile and all of the Trees and Fruits were created, which is representative of Avraham Avinu
and his children recognizing and accepting the Torah and its precepts.
The Fourth Day of Creation
- The Two Luminaries were created, representing the Two Temples which were built during the Fourth
Millennium.
- Respectively, the first luminary shown brighter than the second
The Fifth Day of Creation
- The Fifth Millennium is the description of Locomotion, the years AD 0 to roughly AD1000.
- Populations expanded and traversed geographic boundaries, population the four-corners of the globe
The Sixth Day of Creation
- The Sixth Millennium when Man was created.
- Upon this Day, was taken the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil,
- Upon this Day, were the Floodgates of Heaven and Earth opened, wherein the knowledge the lower-secular
and higher-spiritual realms opened and made available to mankind.
The Seventh Day of Creation
- There was no creation on the Seventh Day, this is a Day of Rest from all activities of creation.
- The Seventh Millennium, the Era of the Maschiach, of final peace on Earth as is in Heaven.
Current Situation
We currently find ourselves within the Sixth day of Creation or the Sixth Millennium. We are in the midst of our struggle between the forces of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The floodgates have been open since the 1820’s (AD), and agents of both forces are getting more convinced of their own inclinations. The positive note that is becoming ever-more apparent is that the Forces of Good Knowledge from both the secular-lower waters and spiritual-higher waters are converging towards a symbiotic understanding of the Forces of Good and of the encompassing directive of the spiritual forces over the secular.
Action Item
What we hope to see throughout the following Parashiot, are indications of the stumbles made away from our spiritual nature; and of the steps which should be taken to bring us closer to our spiritual nature.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
1Tz’enah Ur’enah, “The Weekly Midrash”, from Artscroll Judaica Classics, p.18
2Tz’enah Ur’enah, “The Weekly Midrash”, from Artscroll Judaica Classics, p.26
3Tz’enah Ur’enah, “The Weekly Midrash”, from Artscroll Judaica Classics, p.29
4Tz’enah Ur’enah, “The Weekly Midrash”, from Artscroll Judaica Classics, p.31
