Parashat HaShavua - Vayetzei

Why would Yaakov choose to sleep on rocks, of all things? This week’s Torah portion, Vayetzei, begins with Yaakov running from his brother Esav after receiving the first blessing from their father Yitzchak. Along the way, when he gets tired and stops to sleep, where does he rest his head? “He took from the rocks in that place and put them under his head / וַיִּקַּח֙ מֵאַבְנֵ֣י הַמָּק֔וֹם וַיָּ֖שֶׂם מְרַֽאֲשֹׁתָ֑יו” (Gen. 28:11). This does not seem like a particularly comfortable arrangement! Why, as Yaakov runs for his life, alone, to an uncle he does not know, would he sleep like this?

In fact, as we now know, we remember our dreams best when we experience restless sleep throughout the night or when we awaken in the morning before a dream is done. It is no wonder, then, that Jacob was in no mood to sleep soundly, uninterrupted, without access to his dreams. Rather, he wanted some reminder, some indication, of why he had subjected himself to his brother’s hatred and father’s rage. And it worked! During the night “Yaakov awoke from his sleep / וַיִּיקַ֣ץ יַעֲקֹב֮ מִשְּׁנָתוֹ֒” (Gen. 28:16), before “he awakened in the morning / וַיַּשְׁכֵּ֨ם יַעֲקֹ֜ב בַּבֹּ֗קֶר.” (Gen. 28:18)

What was the big picture for Yaakov, the purpose of his life, his true dream? Yaakov wanted to build a people, to justify the faith his mother showed in him and fulfill his father’s blessing (even though - or perhaps especially because - he received it under dubious circumstances). He dreamed of a ladder that connected the heavens and the earth, a ladder that allowed angels to carry his aspirations up to God. God’s response? To send angels down to Jacob with blessings and protection. That place would be home to him and his descendants, who would be numerous (Gen. 18:13-14); God would protect him and not abandon him. (Gen. 18:15)

By the end of this story, Yaakov has moved from speaking of God in the third person to addressing God in the second person, in a personal manner. Thus we learn from Yaakov that by challenging ourselves, by not becoming too comfortable or complacent – by sleeping on rocks – we, like Yaakov, can become closer to God while remaining ever mindful of our higher purposes in life, of our dreams.

Shabbat shalom,

Rabbi Jack Nahmod
Middle School Judaic Studies Head
Rabbinic Advisor