Reply To: Short & Sweet

Toldos: Detached Head

Where did Eisav go wrong? He was raised in the house of Yitzchak and Rivka, and grew up with with his grandfather Avraham until the age of thirteen. How did he end up such a rasha?

R’ Ahron Kotler explains that Eisav grew up knowing what was right. But that intellectual recognition never actually guided how he lived his life. What Eisav knew and what Eisav did were completely separate.

R’ Ahron Kotler further explains that this idea is hinted to by Chazal. Chazal tell us that Eisav’s head was chopped off by חושים בן דן, and it rolled into the מערת המכפלה. This symbolizes that Eisav’s head, his intellectual understanding, was in the right place. But he didn’t incorporate his ideals into his everyday life.

It is far easier to articulate what is right than it is to do what is right. We need to ensure that our ideals do not stay detached from the way we actually lead our lives.

לע״נ דוד חיים בן ישראל דוב הכהן
לע״נ ר׳ חיים דוב בן ר׳ בןציון שלום