Toldot, Genesis 25: 19 - 26:5, defines the physical and the spiritual nature of the human being. While Esau, the older of Issac and Rebecca's twins, represents the physical body, Jacob, the younger twin, who was born grasping the heel of Issac, represents the spiritual nature. Esau represents the human animal, warlike, seeking earthly satisfaction, instinctive, a hunter and thus a killer of animals. Jacob represents the spiritual, contemplating the divine, peacefully shepherding the flock.
Both men represent the dual nature of every human being and their struggle represents the struggle that exists within each one of us as we balance earthly pleasures with our more spiritual nature. Esau lives for the immediate moment, very much in the present, to the degree that he is willing to surrender his destiny, his birthright, in exchange for food. Jacob contemplates the future as he tricks Esau into selling out his birthright so that he, Jacob, could inherit the nation. Yet the paradox of Esau, honest, simple, unassuming, and Jacob, smart, devious, and cunning is obvious.
Rebecca clearly sides with Jacob in the struggle between the two brothers and Issac clearly sides with Esau, who provides him with material pleasures. The conflict further establishes the general differences between men and women. The male orientation, as established by Issac and Esau, is the hunter, the fighter, the creator of physical things. The male, as represented by Esau, is aggressive and tends to be amoral in the pursuit of ambition. Rebecca and Jacob, on the other hand, represent the female orientation in that they seem to put a brake on the male aggression of Esau and they seem to act on a greater moral principle, a consideration of the future of the nation. Yet, paradoxically, Esau is the unwitting honest broker while Jacob, with the support of Rebecca and believing that his deception was conducted for the greater good, engaged in a deception that was a far greater act of aggression than any Esau was capable of.
Thus the struggle of human life is finding the imperfect balance between our animal instinct, aggression, pleasure, hedonism, living strictly for the moment, and our spiritual side which recognizes greater realities beyond our narrow sphere and which tries to do right and good for the greater good. The problem arises when one side stops listening to the other side. When the aggressive side is not balanced by the more civilized side, when male aggression is not tempered by the civilizing female influence, than tens to be an increase in injustice, amorality, and a breakdown in law and order.
Conversely, the spiritual side, which at the end of the day is actually the more aggressive side when left unchecked and unbalanced by the physical side, can become arrogant and over-powering as it justifies and assumes the habits of behaving deceptively and secretively as it works to achieve what it believes to be lofty goals, goals that may, in fact, be not so lofty.
Both men represent the dual nature of every human being and their struggle represents the struggle that exists within each one of us as we balance earthly pleasures with our more spiritual nature. Esau lives for the immediate moment, very much in the present, to the degree that he is willing to surrender his destiny, his birthright, in exchange for food. Jacob contemplates the future as he tricks Esau into selling out his birthright so that he, Jacob, could inherit the nation. Yet the paradox of Esau, honest, simple, unassuming, and Jacob, smart, devious, and cunning is obvious.
Rebecca clearly sides with Jacob in the struggle between the two brothers and Issac clearly sides with Esau, who provides him with material pleasures. The conflict further establishes the general differences between men and women. The male orientation, as established by Issac and Esau, is the hunter, the fighter, the creator of physical things. The male, as represented by Esau, is aggressive and tends to be amoral in the pursuit of ambition. Rebecca and Jacob, on the other hand, represent the female orientation in that they seem to put a brake on the male aggression of Esau and they seem to act on a greater moral principle, a consideration of the future of the nation. Yet, paradoxically, Esau is the unwitting honest broker while Jacob, with the support of Rebecca and believing that his deception was conducted for the greater good, engaged in a deception that was a far greater act of aggression than any Esau was capable of.
Thus the struggle of human life is finding the imperfect balance between our animal instinct, aggression, pleasure, hedonism, living strictly for the moment, and our spiritual side which recognizes greater realities beyond our narrow sphere and which tries to do right and good for the greater good. The problem arises when one side stops listening to the other side. When the aggressive side is not balanced by the more civilized side, when male aggression is not tempered by the civilizing female influence, than tens to be an increase in injustice, amorality, and a breakdown in law and order.
Conversely, the spiritual side, which at the end of the day is actually the more aggressive side when left unchecked and unbalanced by the physical side, can become arrogant and over-powering as it justifies and assumes the habits of behaving deceptively and secretively as it works to achieve what it believes to be lofty goals, goals that may, in fact, be not so lofty.
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