Leah’s Perfection

Rabbi Israel Chait

When Leah gave birth to Yissachar, she said it [being blessed with a child] was due [a reward for] giving her maidservant Zilpah to Jacob, and not due to the mandrakes [that she shared with Rachel. The latter was in closer proximity to her birth, but Leah traced her worthiness to bear Yissachar back to an earlier event: giving Zilpah to Jacob as a wife]. This relates to the difference between the golem and the chocham. The chocham perceives a different reality. He uses his wisdom to penetrate that reality, which to him or her is the real world. It is not the same world that everyone else lives in, namely, psychological reality [where what is of primary value is determined by social concerns]. Those people are golems. But that the chocham sees a different type of reality and he lives in that reality; metaphysical reality [this is the world of absolute truths, of Torah and of God]. The fact that Leah gave her maidservant to her husband—the most psychologically painful act a wife can perform—expressed her desire to build the 12 Tribes (Rashi, Gen. 30:17). This act expressed her high metaphysical level. Leah said that she received her reward of another son due to forfeiting psychological satisfaction [Jacob as an unshared husband], and in its place, she opted instead for the world of metaphysical reality, of establishing the Jewish nation. That is why Leah does not mention the mandrakes.

We must understand that the matriarchs were not racing to have more children per se. But, as Sarah said to Hagar when giving Hagar to her husband Abraham, “Happy are you to be with a holy body” [Sarah was still barren and desired Abraham to have children via her maidservant Hagar]. The matriarchs were prophetesses and knew that by being closer to the patriarchs they would have greater opportunity to partake of perfection. This is why the matriarchs desired to gain favor in Jacob’s eyes. It is, as Chazal say, one should cleave to a talmid chocham, either by marrying his daughter or doing business with him. Placing oneself close in the sphere of activity of a talmid chocham offers one [precious] opportunities to gain knowledge from him.

People read the Torah—specifically the sections about the matriarchs—and project onto them their own subjective feelings. People think that the matriarchs were involved in psychological motives. It is bad enough that people are imperfect, but to be incapable of viewing perfection [only through properly understanding these verses] is a serious flaw.