1. ``
pg. 1
‫וישלח‬ ‫פרשת‬
This adaptation is dedicated in honor
of my dear wife, Devorah,
and our dear daughter, Tehilla.
"‫וי‬‫שלח‬‫יע‬‫ק‬‫ב‬‫מל‬‫אחיו‬ ‫עשיו‬ ‫אל‬ ‫לפניו‬ ‫אכים‬")‫ד‬ ,‫לב‬(
“Then Yaakov sent angels ahead of him
to Esau his brother”
The word ‫וישלח‬ (sent) is composed of the same
letters as the word ‫וילחש‬ (whisper) – a hint to
tefilla that is said in whispered tones. It is also
the same letters as the word ‫ויחלש‬ (weaken) -
meaning that Yaakov came to weaken the power
of Esau with the power of tefilla.1
"‫יש‬‫ל‬‫י‬) "‫כל‬‫יא‬ ,‫לג‬(
“I have everything”
When Yaakov and Esau meet, after many long
years of separation, Yaakov wants to give his
brother a gift, to appease him. Esau refuses the
gift, saying, “I have plenty, my brother, let what
you have remain yours.”2 To which Yaakov
responds by asking Esau to accept his gift
“because Hashem has been gracious to me and
inasmuch as I have everything.”3
Two distinct worldviews: Esau says that he has
plenty – indeed I have a lot, but there is always
room for improvement, I have not attained
complete satisfaction. By contrast, Yaakov says
that he has everything – I am not lacking
anything and I am happy with what I have.
Yaakov Avinu achieved incredible and complete
contentment in life – the delight of a person
who is bound and connected to his Creator
with a bond of love and awe. It must be
comprised of both love and awe to be complete –
one or the other alone is unsustainable.
1
‫העדות‬ ‫ארון‬
2
(‫ט‬ ,‫)לג‬ ‫לך‬ ‫אשר‬ ‫לך‬ ‫יהי‬ ‫אחי‬ ‫רב‬ ‫לי‬ ‫יש‬
3
(‫יא‬ ‫)שם‬ ‫כל‬ ‫לי‬ ‫יש‬ ‫וכי‬ ‫אלקים‬ ‫חנני‬ ‫כי‬
The ideal in life is to maintain that bond and
connection. That is what fulfills our souls,
gladden us – any happiness is only worth
anything if it connected to our attachment to
Hashem. If not - it is merely fleeting, destined to
be ruined, it will not successfully satisfy the soul
for any extended period of time.
Who is wealthy? One who is satisfied with his
lot. Throughout the generations, Hashem has
sent us tzaddikim as symbols and sources of
inspiration for their satisfaction with so little –
even with the abject poverty in their homes – not
only do they not complain and do not suffer from
it – quite the opposite: they are happy with their
lot and radiate endless joy. This was not only
true of the giants of spirit like the Sages of the
Mishnah and the Talmud, who lived thousands of
years ago, it is still true of the tzaddikim of our
generation. What is the secret of “I have
everything?” What is “everything?” The word
for everything (‫)כל‬ is related to the word for
destruction (‫)כליון‬ – the destruction of the self – I
desire Hashem to the point of my own
nullification. If I have desire for Hashem – I
have everything! If I have everything else,
aside from desire and yearning for Hashem –
I have nothing.
Our souls are found in the yearning for
something that is above us, not for the reality in
which we currently find ourselves – for a higher
reality, for a reality that elevates us – and when

2. pg. 2 ‫וישלח‬ ‫פרשת‬
we attain it, everything is different. What is this
higher reality? It is holiness, dveykus
(clinging), tzaddikim, HKB”H, the holy Torah,
tefilla and all of the amazing things that we
wish to attain. They are all found slightly above
us, we have not yet reached them, they are a bit
beyond - and our entire task is to try to grab hold
of them, to experience them, to long for them, to
receive power from them – those desires alone
makes the soul happy. True, we may not yet have
achieved in these areas, but we want to, we want
to, we want to. A person must be cognizant of his
true desire. If not, he will only see his
deficiencies, his failures and he will fall into
depression and self-persecution. Of what use is
it if we want but have not yet accomplished? It is
very worthwhile! So long as we do not
abandon our desire, we are perceived in
Heaven as perfectly righteous. We may be
people of minimal deeds but with great desires,
we are considered very praiseworthy in Heaven.
Desire is our engine and it is limitless. It is the
soul. It injects so much joy into our lives – we
never stop wanting. The fact that we have not
attained yet does not chill our desire. We know
that if we persist in desiring, we will achieve.
Rebbe Nachman taught that mere silent craving
is not enough – we must speak our longings, only
that is complete desire – when we pray for it.
Speech itself has the power to inspire and
enhance our desire.4
Speech is our primary weapon in the war for
Jewish sanctity. Tefillos build vessels to receive
what we want. Whatever we want in the arena
of holiness is all prayer. “I want Father, You know
that I want, but I do not have the strength to
change, I try but I do not succeed – but I want, I
want, I want – help me, Father.”
Sometimes our desire is in the skies and at other
times it is in the ground. Two opposites:
awakening and strengthening. When a person is
awakened, he desires and it burns inside of him,
he seeks Hashem in all places and at all times –
and he realizes that when it dissipates and he
4
‫לא‬ ‫תורה‬
performs something ever so slight – it creates
great gratification above. If we give tzedaka,
assist a Jew, refrain from speaking loshon hora,
lift our heads – Hashem loves us and is
overjoyed by every tiny thing that we manage
to do.
When we feel as if we are incapable, Hashem
is happy with every fragment of action that
we perform. When we feel capable, we are
shown that our abilities are insufficient, that
we must continue to do more and more.
When Yaakov Avinu heard that Esau was coming
to greet him four hundred warriors, he divided
his camp into two camps. If Esau would strike
one camp, at least the other one would remain:
“then the remaining camp shall survive.”5 At
least something would survive. The same is
true for serving Hashem – we must grab hold
of what we can – even if it only partial – at
least something.
If a person has emuna – he has everything.
His life is amazing. He constantly reminds
himself of the simple emuna that Hashem is
good, everything is good – and we must
express gratitude for everything. We must
accustom ourselves to say thank You first, even if
it appears to be bad, even if it is difficult,
problematic or painful – we must first say thank
You. Whatever Hashem does is for our best, even
when we do not understand how and the
opposite appears to be true. “Master of the
World, thank You for the infinite times that You
helped me, supported me, delivered me, rescued
me, gladdened me, healed me, protected me,
encouraged me. Thank You for always being with
me. Thank You for giving me the strength to
observe Your mitzvos, do good deeds and pray.
Thank You for the loving kindnesses You do for
me each and every moment. Thank You for every
breath I breathe. Thank You for the wonderful
life that You have given me. Thank You for every
little thing that I have, for everything comes from
You and from no one else. And thank You King of
Kings even for those things that I do not have,
5
(‫ט‬ ,‫)לב‬ ‫לפליטה‬ ‫הנשאר‬ ‫המחנה‬ ‫והיה‬

3. pg. 3 ‫וישלח‬ ‫פרשת‬
thank You for my periodic difficulties, for deep in
my heart, I know that everything that comes
from You is the very best for me and is especially
designed for me with precise and exacting Divine
Providence, as only the King of Kings is capable
of doing.”6
Yaakov Avinu recognized all of the favors and
loving kindnesses that Hashem had done for him.
He did not forget how he arrived at Laban’s home
and how he was leaving it. “For with my staff I
crossed this Jordan and now I have become two
camps.”7 We do not always remember – we are
too involved in what we are still lacking and we
forget our slogan: “We are fortunate – how
good is our portion, how pleasant our lot, and
how beautiful our heritage.”8
Yaakov’s fear of Esau is not fully understandable.
He literally groveled before him! He called him
“my master” eight times! Why was he so afraid?
Hadn’t HKB”H promised not to abandon him?!
Yaakov said, “I have been diminished by all of the
kindnesses.”9 Hashem had bestowed so many
kindnesses upon him that he suspected that
his merits might have been devalued and the
rasha might best him.
Emuna means reminding ourselves in every
situation, in every challenge - that Hashem is
all-powerful. When a person perceives that
there is no hope according to the laws of nature –
he despairs. He throws up his hands. We must
have emuna that the Creator of the World will
do something that we never even thought of –
just as he split the Yam Suf and the Jewish people
walked through on dry land. Hashem can
perform the same miracles when it comes to
health, income, shidduchim or anything else. We
must disregard our limited human intellect. We
must fortify our emuna: “I do not understand
anything, I do not know anything, Hashem is
all-powerful and He will save me. How? I have
6
From the “Prayer of Thanks” (Adaptor’s Note: the one I offer
to send in my weekly emails).
7
(‫יא‬ ,‫)לב‬ ‫מחנות‬ ‫לשני‬ ‫הייתי‬ ‫ועתה‬ ‫הזה‬ ‫הירדן‬ ‫את‬ ‫עברתי‬ ‫במקלי‬ ‫כי‬
8
‫ירשתנו‬ ‫יפה‬ ‫ומה‬ ,‫גורלנו‬ ‫נעים‬ ‫ומה‬ ,‫חלקנו‬ ‫טוב‬ ‫מה‬ ‫אשרינו‬
‫שחרית‬ ‫)תפילת‬-(‫קרבנות‬
9
(‫יא‬ ,‫)לב‬ ‫החסדים‬ ‫מכל‬ ‫קטנתי‬
no idea. I only daven – but I do not daven
because I was taught that I must – I daven based
on the emuna that the only thing I have is
tefilla, that nothing else in the world is
capable of helping me.”
“The reality is that I have no counsel, no
ability, no strength other than to beseech You,
Creator of the World! Help me to daven for
each and every matter! Grant me absolute
emuna in You! Instill within me to proceed
with this certainty that I must ask of You for
everything – even the most insignificant
detail!” If we think that there is anything for
which we need not pray – we are living a lie! We
must know that that everything requires
prayer. Everything is from Hashem – there is no
other address. There are no other suggestions or
recommendations. The source of all life is the
Creator of the World, praised be His name! The
most horrible position to be in is to believe that
we can arrange matters without Hashem’s help.
We must teach ourselves to pray for everything –
for every step that we take in life! Human nature
includes such a strong evil inclination to avoid
prayer. We must persist in the emuna in the
power of prayer.10
Emuna begins where our understanding
ends. What we often believe to be harsh
judgment is actually compassion. We davened
and we thanked and yet things became more
difficult? Hashem wants more tefillos! More
cries! That we never abandon our emuna! That
is why were are in this world.
When a person has a benevolent outlook – he
has everything – he has closeness to Hashem
– he has the pleasantness of Hashem – he has
a blessed life. If we focus on the small point
inside of every person in which we/they are all
tzaddikim – suddenly that becomes our/their
reality and we cannot even see the negative traits
anymore.
Our positive outlooks must begin with our
view of ourselves – if we cannot tolerate
10
‫המברך‬‫בשלום‬ ‫ישראל‬ ‫עמו‬ ‫את‬

4. pg. 4 ‫וישלח‬ ‫פרשת‬
ourselves, we will eventually disqualify
everyone else so as to soothe ourselves.
Therefore, we must begin to see the good within
us. Rebbe Nosson taught that when we seek a
good aspect in ourselves, we are essentially
searching for where Hashem’s light shines in
us. The idea of looking for the good and finding
joy in it is not merely advice on how to avoid
sadness and depression and to be in a better
mood – it is a guide to finding the G-dliness
within – seeking Hashem’s light that is revealed
in us, where Hashem resides within us,
connecting to that point, being happy about it
and thereby clinging to the light of Hashem. “I
place Hashem before me constantly”11 means to
think about our positive qualities constantly! To
find them and be pleased by them!12
11
(‫ח‬ ,‫טז‬ ‫)תהילים‬ ‫תמיד‬ ‫לנגדי‬ '‫ד‬ ‫שויתי‬
12
‫ה‬ ,‫א‬ ‫הבוקר‬ ‫השכמות‬ ,‫ליקו"ה‬
Why does the Torah spend so much time on
interpersonal relationships? How is it that the
entire Torah can be distilled into “love your
fellow as yourself” or, if that is too difficult “what
you do not like, don’t do unto others?” The Torah
is teaching us that it is impossible to separate
love for Hashem and love for others. To attain
one, we need the other. If the entire Jewish
nation would join hands – we would reach the
Throne of Glory. When our souls are linked,
we feel Hashem’s Presence. And when are we
linked? When there is love amongst us.
If we have a warm and personal relationship
with Hashem – we have everything. How do
we form this bond? With desires, with
emuna, with love of each other.
‫תפילה‬
Master of the World! Grant me love towards all of the Jewish people. I cannot honestly say that I feel this love. I definitely do
love people, even a lot of people – but love for every Jew, to think positively about e-v-e-r-y-o-n-e, to pray for them all when I
visit the grave of a tzaddik or in my Shemona Esrei, to feel love for those who are different than me or who do not like me or my
community – that I cannot muster, Father. When I read stories of real tzaddikim who never thought about themselves or their
own comforts – their entire lives were dedicated to the Jewish people – I understand how distant I am – but I want. Help me!
Master of the World! Grant me the strength so that when I do not love someone - I am still able to find his positive aspects,
judge him favorably and have sympathy for him. When someone hurts me, doesn’t tolerate me, hides from me – I usually
distance myself and disqualify him. Even if I don’t care for him and I have no interest in thinking good thoughts of him, help me
Father, to remember that this is only an evil spirit that possessed him and that was already his punishment – need I punish him
again? Help me Father by making me see the good in him. Then, I will no longer hate and my heart will be pure – and when
the heart is pure, we experience so much good, we are so close to You. Award us this Father.
Master of the World! Help me to learn that we can and we must pray for everything and beseech You, Father, for help. When I
find myself in certain problematic situations in life – I do not even think of davening. One person tells me one version and
another tells me a very different account and I do not know who to believe, I am confused: “Master of the World, show me the
truth, show me what I need to do, give me proper counsel.”
When do I turn to You, Father? Only when I am lacking something or when I am about to do something and I need Your help or
when I want to say thank You – but there are so many other moments in life that I do not think about You, Father, I do not think
of praying at all – I am mired in the worries, confusions, burdens. Help me, Father, to remember that You are benevolent to all
– to every person in every circumstance.
Have an awesome, uplifting and wonderful Shabbos,
Dov Elias
Notice: The foregoing is based on my limited understanding of the Parsha Sheet, Ohr Ha’Emuna, disseminated by Harav Menachem Azolai Shlita and is not a
complete or exact adaptation of Ohr Ha’Emuna and is not necessarily even a reliable interpretation of the ideas presented therein. Ohr Ha’Emuna is published
in Hebrew; in translation, accuracy is always compromised. Rav Azolai has not reviewed this material - any inaccuracies, omissions or confusion should be
attributed exclusively to me. I still hope you enjoy and it provides some chizuk. Thank you Mordi Blass for your help with some of the Hebrew expressions.
©Dov Elias 5775. ‫כסלו‬ ‫י"ד‬"‫תשע‬‫ה‬ – December 6, 2014
For previous issues and/or to receive this adaptation by weekly email, visit www.tloe.us or email me at LightofEmuna@dovelias.com