Behaalothecha: Ascent

Behaalothecha: Ascent

The root of the title word of this week's parsha is עֲלֹֽ.  It  is a pictograph.  The ayin, the letter that means "look",  is pointing to the Lamed, the letter that stands above all other Hebrew letters, the letter that, like a flame,  ascends. The word, עֲלֹֽ,  means ascend or kindle. Lamed, the name attributed to  לֹֽ, means teach, learn. To teach and learn has a close relationship to ignition.  True teaching is catalytic, it helps the learner overcome the inertial barrier and allows an independent  sustained reaction, a new flame, to come into existence. And the new flame can (should) ignite others.  The flame illuminates, allows definition to overcome the vague.  Knowledge rises above the mundane. 

The parsha shows aspects of the battle between ascent and descent. Guided by the Divine cloud and fed manna, the people complain (11;1). Is this the revolution of rising expectations of de Tocqueville? The apt punishment is the outbreak of fire stopped by Moshe's prayer.  Fire is the greatest human tool.  The control of a self sustaining process, that imparts its property of heat and the potential for activation to its surroundings, imparts the human with immense power that translates into our current technology and will generate  advances in the future.  Of course it is dangerous.  It is a fitting punishment for destructive aspirations. 

This mini rebellion is the harbinger of the more famous expression of Exodus remorse: the incident of the quail (11;4).  The people now recall the delightful ( probably rotten) [dog]food they were fed in Egypt.  Now they only eat cookies! The complaints anger Gd and depress Moshe.  Moshe loses confidence. He cannot bear the burdens of the people, he cannot provide them with the impossible resources Gd has promised alone. Elders come to share the burden and quail descend from the sky, a manna replacement.  Manna appeared with the ascent of the dew.  The quail fell the sky, they became available because the birds' flight was impaired and they fell to earth ( and started to rot).

Was it Moshe's despair  that invited the comments of his sister (and brother) questioning his preeminence (12;1)? Did Moshe's request for assistance compromise the perception of his position so that his family could question his actions and decisions? This time, Gd and the Holy cloud came to his defense.  Miriam was stricken with tzoraath and the people suffered temporary inertia. This was not the last crisis of confidence, this was not the last mistake. 

There is always uncertainty when you kindle a fire.  The control is never complete.  The light that lets you see may reveal things that you never wanted to know.  Children should not play with matches.