The Jewish Observer

The world of music changed so much while I was growing up.  When the Beatles first appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964, I watched with my parents, but was afraid to express my interest in music different from what my dad liked.  So it was not the Beatles that pushed me into contemporary music in those years.  No, it was the song “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” by the Rolling Stones.  I used to listen to that piece every time I was at my friend’s house.  It was The Rolling Stones who opened my mind to the dramatic evolution of music occurring in the 1960’s.  In this week’s parashah (Torah portion), Vayetzei, there is a rolling stone that is interpreted to open one’s mind – not about music, but about God.    

Jacob has left his family in Canaan to head to Haran to escape from his brother Esau and perhaps find his mother Rebekkah’s family.  He arrives at a well in Genesis 29:1.  There he sees a water well with 3 flocks of sheep lying by it. The well was covered by a heavy stone that would be rolled away when all of the sheep needing to be given water were present.  Jacob sees the beautiful Rachel, daughter of Lavan, coming with her flock of sheep. He then rolls the stone off from the well in order that the flock can get its water. 

Seems like a simple story.  Yet, it is seen as a metaphor for a number of things.  According to Sefas Emes, the well is a symbol that contains a life sustaining, even life changing element.  Jacob is coming to his.  The 3 flocks of sheep represent chochmah (wisdom), binah (understanding), and da’at (knowledge).  The stone covering the well represents our corporeality, the limitations our physical body provides that interferes with what we need to be aware of God. 

When Jacob sees Rachel, he feels something for the first time in life – falling in love.  At the beginning of the Torah portion, Jacob has a dream that makes him realize God is everywhere, not a place in particular.  However, his mind is still filled with questions.  He tries to make an agreement with God to stay with him to maintain his faith.  But love opens his soul in a way that allows him to delve into wisdom, understanding and knowledge; thereby giving him the ability to roll the stone back that is inhibiting his connection to God.  This is one interpretation.

Here is another.  The well represents prayer – another way to connect with God.  The stone represents our evil urge that needs to be controlled in order for us delve more meaningfully into life.  There is a commentary that says we pray “Adonai s’fatai tiftach” (God open our lips) before the tefillah, asking God to give us the means to roll back our evil urge.  Yet, asking God for the help is not enough to move to a deeper connection to God.  We need to serve God through our actions in order to truly open our mouths and hearts.  The argument among Jews is what are the real service actions for God that achieves this?  Is it following ritual halachah (law) or moral/social justice actions?  What all Jews agree upon is that praying is not enough.  Our covenant with God demands we act in a way that serves God. That deepens the meaning and effect of prayer. 

We can also look for meaning in the word translated from Hebrew as “rolling,” vayigal.  A number of traditional commentators relate this word, whose root is gimel, lamed, lamed to galah, whose root is gimel, lamed, hey; which means “reveal.”  Rolling the stone is a metaphor for revealing inward truth.  In this story about Jacob we can interpret this as teaching how love pushes to have Jacob reveal his true self. 

Here is one more perspective, by Malbim, that the location of the well determines the completeness of connection to God.  If it is in the city, this represents the Jewish people being in their land, Israel.  If it is in the field, it represents them being in the diaspora. 

The potential meanings are numerous, yet there is one piece upon which all Jewish commentary would agree – the power to do the opening to assess, God, prayer, connection, or our true selves – whatever we might believe the well represents, resides within each of us.  It is our level of caring, actions, dedication, and desire to improve that can provide the ability to roll the stone.  It is a challenge for us all.

Finally, I must admit that until I looked deeper into this Torah portion, I never saw the connection of The Rolling Stones to the Torah.  And, I did get some satisfaction.