The Day Moses Became Jealous

As always, thank you Rabbi for the great class. I have enjoyed it and tried to apply to my life experience. I can't remember that I was jealous but maybe was. I think that our sages are right: it is very difficult to be not jealous when your student or child takes your position / role.

Questions 1-5
In this class Rav Yossi gave us new fascinated insight with the story of the Moon that we all acknowledge. Remember, when Moon was declared guilty for its famous question that put it in inferior position, G-d asked to bring two sin offerings: one for Moon and one for Himself.
Moon was provoked to sin; its insane was orchestrated by G-d Himself. G-d took responsibility for Moon’s UMBRAGE… ( That, of cause, does not take away our responsibility for jealousy)
Now, episode # 2, Moses and Joshua represent Sun and Moon accordingly. Here G-d gives a new test. He puts their relationship on stake; he makes Moses watch new leader ruling in his own way, with all bumps and downs he might come across with. Now Moses should not have a right to correct, to warn from mistakes or just to support his steps… His forty years of experience turned to be useless! That’s a TEST! New Ztimztum ( G-d forbid) could take place because of that, but two Luminaries of Jewish nation pass this test with the highest score: as hard as it is for Moses to watch his follower in front of him with all blind spots he might have as a new leader, as tempted as it is for Joshua, in his new position to search for his teacher’s advice, nevertheless none of them verbalize harsh WHY question. Moses does not question G-d’s design: as soon as he realizes those rudiments of jealousy cannot be eliminated he asks for death…
Questions 6-10
It’s hard to find a person Jealousy Free. Some say, people who trend to be jealous cannot stand tickling. (What is your threshold with tickling same level is your jealousy trait) Other says, if you notice somebody else’s jealousy that might be a key that you have it too. It may be some kind of projection of your trait on others…
There are a lot in written about jealousy: Dante, Shakespeare, Dostoyevsky and of cause my favorite Igor Guberman with his chapter “Forgiveness to Jealousy”
One book that I read in the first grade was “ Barankin, Be human being!” It told about a boy who was jealous for birds, ants, and butterflies, because they did not need to do homework, clean up their rooms and so on. But when he was turned subsequently into a bird, an ant and a butterfly he realized that it was all not so simple. So when he was back as a human being he stopped coveting his “Younger Brothers’ property.”
It’s amazing how high level epiphany can be revealed in the simplest form of a children’s story. Sparks of deep Torah enlightenment can have connotation through art, music, literature so on.
Thank you Rabbi Jacobson for new MOMENT OF TRUTH you shared with us.

B:H
Thank you and Shana tova
umetoeka

הרעיון של הפשיסחער הוא גאוני. בכלל כל השיעור הוא רעיון גאוני מעשה אומן. רב תודות! אנכי הבנתי כמה נקודות עיקריות: א. אפילו אם אתה חושב שאתה מבוגר תזכור שמדת הקנאה תמיד קיימת. והרי גם הבעש"ט אמר אל תבואני גו' ברגעים האחרונים ואנן מה נענה אבתריה. ב. רעיון חידושי הרי"ם שבכל מתקנא חוץ כו' לא קאי אם לוקח את משרתו. ג. גדר החילוק בין משה ויהושע, ודוקא בבחינת יהושע יש ענין הקנאה גם למעליותא, מצד החלל והצמצום. והדרברים נפלאים

I was skeptical, so I googled "sunset north pole." It is not a photo, it is an illustration found here:

http://nielsen.sp01.ab-webspace.de/gallery/details.php?image_id=63

Great shiur thank you!
I have a trouble however understanding the moral theme of the last story told. Is his standing on a chair really a solution to his inner jelousy? Why do we need to even feel  "higher" then others, even if it  means "standing on a chair"? The approach of acceptence- to know that we dont  have to be the tallest, and self awareness- to be happy with the dispositions G-d implanted in us and to work on them  them accodingly seems more appropiate?
An answer like- being tall is not whats importance, trying our best according to our own abilitys  is what makes us tall-- seems to make more sense to me?
perhaps i am missing something

Bsd,


You answered your own question. The ditch in the story is the void and vaacum that his jealousy created in his heart. The way to overcome this, he needed to rise above his ditch and stand tall means to challenge himself to reach greater heights in himself.

Another dimension of this would insinuate that standing on a chair versus lowering someone else into a ditch would mean that :better look at yourself more thoroughly to reach greater heights and rise above and beyond your limits, than to feel good about yourself by focusing on putting someone else down.....


Just thinking out loud..............