The Raven & The Dove - Parsha Noach

[Music] good evening and welcome to all who are joining us here this evening from around the world tonight's class is graciously dedicated by david and eder schottenstein in the loving and sacred memory of rabbi gabi and rifki holtzberg and all of the kedaishim who were massacred in last year's terrorist attack in mumbai india this evening we are going to explore one of the intriguing components of the story of noah and the flood as the waters of the flood recede nayach wants to determine what is happening outside of the ark open up your sources source number one right below the video you have a curriculum and source number one tells us the story 40 days have ended noah opens the window of the ark which he isha he sends out the raven the ark was filled with noah his wife his children their wives and as the torah records every species of animals which was also taken into the ark including birds new york sends out the raven vayatsay yatsoy vershoev adivasha samayamalarits raven bird kept going and returning until the waters dried from upon the surface of the earth it would seem as if the raven did its job admirably and successfully and the story should have ended right here the raven was hanging around the raven was coming and returning but would not go back into the ark until the water dried up until the surface of the earth was dried and then we can assume the raven went and found a new location for itself because it could dwell on the land so we can expect the story to stop right here but no the torah continues and describes a drawn out process in which nayak now sends out a dove three times and you could continue in source number one the next section is what happens now sends out a dove to see if perhaps the water has receded from the earth and what happens the dove cannot found a place to rest the dove cannot find a place to dwell and therefore what does it do it returns to the ark the dove not finding a place where it can settle a place to rest the earth is still engulfed in water so the dove can't rest anywhere comes back to the ark nayak wait seven days and he sends out the dove a second time and what happens now now the dove returns with a plucked olive leaf vegine tara of paphia this time the dove comes with this plucked olive leaf this indicates that the water has receded significantly to the extent that there are trees that are visible there's an olive tree visible and the dove could have plucked a leaf from this olive tree nyack waits another seven days and he sends out the dove from the ark a third time what happens now this time it doesn't return any longer at last the dove encountered a space to dwell the earth was once again habitable so the first time he sends the davar comes right back he takes it back into the ark second time it still returns with a plucked leaf in its mouth wait seven days sends it out again the third time it doesn't come back it found a place where it can live and rest why the need to send two birds a raven and a dove question number one question number two why these birds from all the birds that nayakaravsanti chose the raven and the dove why these specific birds or as the native rebel after its berlin in his commentary here and ha mcdover asks the question he says there are birds which fly faster than the raven and the dove but noah chose precisely these birds and why this order first he sends out the raven and then afterwards he sends out the dove this is the third question the commentators of the torah over the generations have struggled with these questions and this particular story various commentators offering different insights and perspectives into the story tonight we are going to explore one dimension based on the works of kabbalah and hasidus of jewish mysticism and spirituality the raven as we know has a long standing negative reputation because of its black plumage its croaking call its diet of carrion the raven has long been considered an unkind bird there is an interesting verse that our sages the rabbis quote source number two in psalms to hillary in psalms chapter which is part of the morning chakras daily service we praise hashem what do we say god gives god provides bread for the animal and he provides nutrition for the children of the raven which call out for food from all the animals why did king david why did the children of the raven crow which call out for food source number three the evan ezra rabbay no avram of nazri in his commentary until them says source number three he mentions the animal which doesn't always have the ability to prepare food for herself and the tahiti mentions particularly from all of the birds the offspring of the raven why because there are scholars among the gentiles who say that their parents abandoned them after birth and hence the children of the raven are hungry you crow they're screaming out they're hungry they want to eat so god makes sure to provide specially for the offspring of the raven in fact this source which they have an ezra brings in from the gentiles has also brought in a few places in midrish that the children of the raven need special nurture and care this is one of the reasons the rabbis say that the raven is singled out as a non-kosher bird most birds are kosher but there are those which are not and one of them is the raven and this is one of the reasons because it's seen to have a unkind nature and therefore it ought not to be part of the kosher diet modern western culture has continued this trend there's the famous edgar allan poe poem where he portrays the raven as the grim animal and having a grim spectral presence there is the famous uh legend uh it's not a legend i guess the interpretation of it is a legend if you go towar london or you live in london you know that there's a particular flock of ravens which attained fame or have become infamous by taking up residence at the tower of london and there are those who like explaining the explaining the significance of the fact that the tower of london is a site of many gruesome beheadings of many royal executions and i believe that to this very day the guards warn visitors and tourists from getting too close lest the raven supplement their usual diet of carrying with a tourists uh finger or toe we have an expression in the bible black as a raven dark as a raven its color also did not contribute uh much positivity to its reputation some even want to explain that the reason it's called an iriv the tamology of the word ayurve is the word erev which means evening or night because of its black plumage there is a fascinating interpretation in hasidic works open up source number four the mayan offered by the one of the great hasidic early hasidic masters a student of the margaret of the misread of mizritch the baymayim khayam right source number four the word has in the letters of the word aveiro which means transgression of levad malay oasis and the very word i involve it's a combination of two words boy there is negativity in him boy in him there is negativity because there's a certain attribute of negativity which has become entrenched and rooted in the raven while king shimesh batava mashiness are like and therefore the talmud says instructed sanhedrin 108 and rashi quotes in here that the raven illegally had intimacy had intimate relations in the ark which was forbidden to knoyak to his family and to all of the animals in the ark during the year of the flood as the world was being devastated and destroyed those who were being saved in the ark were not allowed to enjoy intimate relations the humans as well as the animals there were three exceptions the talmud says come the son of nayach the dog and the raven in fact the em for example rabbi no in benotto in his commentary believes that nayak didn't send the raven to go check the state of the world in relationship to the water that's why he sent the dove when it comes to the raven he actually expelled the raven from the arc according to the arachim expelled him so the behemogen explains that the very word connotes a negative quality now let's go to the dove the second bird the yoina the dove on the other hand is a symbol of tenderness of loyalty of kindness the image of the dove bearing an olive branch originating in this week's portion in nayach resonates in communal consciousness as the symbol of peace even if the peace that it represents seems to flee even further the song of song shira shirim compares time and time again the beautiful bride to the dove why take a look source number five the madrishan shi hashirim madrid madrid quotes the verse you're beautiful my wife you're beautiful your eyes are like the eyes of the dove why the unique comparison to the dove from all birds just as the dove once it recognizes its mate it does not substitute its mate for another one unlike most animals who can enjoy mating with many many different ones even in the same season the dove is unique as there are another few animals once it recognizes its mate its partner it will not go to somebody else it will not have intimacy with somebody else thus the song of songs compares the jewish people the bride of god to the dove because once the jews recognized god they would never substitute them with anybody else although many nations of the world and civilizations and cultures invited the jew to participate in pagan idolatry and different forms of idolatry they were like the dove eternally to their god to their soulmate it's unique indeed because not only is it a kosher bird unlike the raven it was the one chosen by the torah to be used continuously in the holy temple as a sacred divine offering testifying to its sublime and spiritual potential in kabbalistic and hasidic terminology the ayurve and the yoin of the raven and the dove represent the attributes of gevorah versus kasset the raven represents gevorah aggression strength sternness it is a very uh aggressive bird the dove and contrast represents hesset kindness tenderness loyalty empathy based on the contrast between the raven and the dove we can now appreciate the deeper rhythms behind the neya story you see initially nyach felt that the proper approach in a post-flood universe must be that of the raven the approach must be toughness roughness and unkindliness after all nayak thought humanity deteriorated because it was spoiled rotten and therefore it grew arrogant and became morally promiscuous and depraved humanity nayach felt received too much love too much nurture too much affection life was too good they had abundance of blessings they had too much generosity and this allowed people to lose their priorities to forfeit their moral compass to take life for granted it nurtured selfishness and narcissism to the point of moral depravity now assumes we have to start all over again and who must show the way who must lead our path out of the ark it must be the raven the new world order must be based on sternness strength discipline harshness aggression strict judgment these qualities must prevail if we want to ensure that civilization does not revert again to social and moral chaos we can understand noah's perspective you sometimes encounter an addict somebody who destroyed or is destroying his or her life with their addiction to various destructive substances whether it's alcohol drugs and so on and so forth immoral relationships we sometimes feel that we can treat these addicts merely through kind words through encouraging words through loving words but we know often that's not the case sometimes if you only employ asset without gevorah without very strict borders and discipline and harsh consequences the addict will never learn his or her lesson some people are enablers some family members enable addicts to continue their destructive behavior because they want to be kind and loving but nayak understands the world reached a place of such addiction after which there was no return there was only destruction which is essentially the theme behind the flood story now we need the raven to guide us we need vura to guide us we need harshness and strength to define the new world order there is also another component here it's not just using the raven as a guide for society and for people individually and collectively it also has to do with an inner psychological response to a flood and we can understand this well in our lives as well people who have experienced a flood in their life in one form or another people who have felt the turmoil the stress people who have suffered pain and disappointment in life and a part of them has drowned a part of them was consumed and overwhelmed by a flood they often feel that the only way for them to build a new life for themselves is by adopting the qualities and the attitudes of the raven they develop a rough shell a dark plumage a dense crust an aggressive disposition they become tough strong and stern sometimes they become very cynical and suspicious as their hearts shut down they devour because they're scared to embrace can we blame them they are afraid to be abused again they can't endure the pain twice they realize that if they're going to display the vulnerability loyalty kindness empathy softness they may be hurt yet again if they trust once again they will be failed and they will not be able to bear the suffering twice so what do they do they decide that in the post-flood reality when you try to rebuild your life from destruction when you try to renovate your life from demolition from disappointment from pain and suffering whatever type of pain and suffering the proper approach the leader must be who the raven you can't be too kind you can't be too loving you won't survive and yet nyach soon understood that the raven must be followed by the dove because with a raven you can't rebuild a world the raven is good to be sure to remain in the peripheral the raven kept going and returning until the waters dried from upon the earth it is important and productive to employ the raven to encompass and envelop the earth the raven is important to have in order to give borders to love to create limits for vulnerability and to ensure that a person does not get hurt once again the raven must hover over the new world returning going and returning going on returning protecting a new society from a love which can be destructive from a kindness which can be counterproductive from generosity which can cause more pain than benefits yes but who must lead the way in settling the new world in rebuilding a shattered civilization you need a dove the primary driving force in life must be love loyalty compassion trust must you have a raven above to control to make sure that your compassion and empathy is not destroying yourself and others it's not allowing addicts and it's not allowing bad people to get away with murder in the name of love and generosity of course but the ultimate driving force in settling a world and building a world must be love and this is true in our lives as well because each of us has disappointments in life some of our disappointments are caused by people some are caused by nature and by god some people feel that they have been let down by those who were supposed to be there for them most mothers fathers siblings people who were supposed to love them and yet who failed them sometimes at a very young age we can understand when these people decide to develop a raven attitude to protect themselves even nayak himself did just that he sent out the raven yet the human soul is capable of much more it is capable of not allowing the pain of life to deprive it from its greatest power and potential the ability to love so even though i ultimately understood that notwithstanding what occurred he also has the power to send out the dove to ultimately establish the foundations of the new settlement on earth this idea has profound resonance for our own generation because during the past six and a half decades the jewish people have been attempting to recover from a flood a flood which destroyed a third of our nation a flood which consumed one and a half million children sent to the gas chambers while almost nobody uttered more than a pips understandably survivors the hundreds of thousands of survivors who often lost every single member of their family barbarically tortured or murdered understandably their hearts swelled with bitterness mistrust and profound pain they could have easily turned into ravens projecting hatred cynicism mistrust onto their spouses their children their grandchildren and yet a miracle occurred nothing short than a miracle they learned from noah's example they replaced the raven with the dove or at least they allowed the dove to follow the raven the survivors for the most part built families and showered their children with opportunity and love with confidence and hope sure we know how many of the search of the children of survivors suffered and suffer till today from the paralyzing silence that pervaded their homes but most of us can testify to the fact that most of our parents and grandparents did the best they could under the horrific circumstances they endured to protect and nurture their lived loved ones and give them the opportunity to celebrate life to allow the dove to lead the way instead of the raven once read on account of a holocaust survivor who was in auschwitz and as he was in the death camp he would watch the sun rise each morning and he grew very angry at the sun how can you dear to rise up in the morning and cast your charming and warm ways over auschwitz a place where so many innocent people are being murdered on a daily basis how do you have the chutzpah to be so indifferent to continue to rise and give light in a place where there is so much darkness it was as though nature has become completely indifferent and different to the fate of millions and millions he survived the war and he wrote that the day after liberation as he was in freedom and liberty and he saw the sun rise he expressed gratitude to the sun he expressed thankfulness to the sun that it would continue to rise it would continue to represent hope and light in the face of such profound darkness he can he gave thanks to the son and the nature of god's world which demonstrated to him the fact that after the flood you can still send out a dove i don't think it would be possible for us or many of us who grew up in freedom and grew up more or less in prosperity to be able to make such a statement without being accused of either being immature or insensitive or ignorant or even cruel but this was the great miracle of this generation a generation we now increasingly bid farewell to as so many of the survivors have already passed on and their numbers decrease every year but it's an eternal gratitude that we the jewish people especially younger jews have to express to them for showing the way of after such a unprecedented and disproportional flawed they were determined to rebuild their lives the lives of their families the lives of our homeland of israel the lives of the jewish people and to the best of their ability do it with love and with a positive attitude and with a celebration of life may we in our lives emulate their example have a good night [Music] [Applause] [Music] you