Synergy of Admitting & Thanking

Shalom,

?This Shabbat we will read the Torah Portion?"Va'Yechi"??in the book of Genesis.?

The?Torah?portion of?Vayechi?concludes the book of?Be'Reshit Genesis.

In this portion?Jacob?blesses his children - the twelve tribes, in his last days.

As the verse tells us:?And Jacob called to his sons, and said: "Gather together, that I may tell you what will happen with you in the end of days."?

These blessings have much to teach us. Each of the twelve sons representing the twelve tribes receives a unique blessing, which reflects a unique path in his life.

As the verse tells us at the conclusion of the blessings:?All these are the twelve tribes of?Israel... every one according to his blessing he blessed them.?(Gen. 49:28)?

What is the meaning of the words "everyone according to his blessing?"

'Blessing' –?Be'racha?in Hebrew also means to ‘draw down’?from the root ‘mavrich’).

For instance the word 'Knee' -?Berech?in Hebrew has the same root as Blessing – Be'racha.

Although united as a nation of the People of Israel consisting of the twelve tribes, every one of the tribes has his particular path in life, his specific entity and essence which is to be manifested in the material world.

According to the Medrash, even when the Red Sea was parted, it was split into twelve paths, providing a separate path for each of the twelve tribes.

?Based on Yaakov’s blessings, these twelve paths could be perceived as follows:

• Reuven?– The First
• Shim'eon?– The Aggressor
• Levi?– The Cleric
• Yehudah?– The Leader
• Dan?– The Judge
• Naphtali?– The Free Spirit
• Gad?– The Warrior
• Asher?– The Prosperous One
• Issachar?– The Scholar
• Zebulun?– The Businessperson
• Joseph?– The Sufferer
• Menashe?– Reconnection
• Ephraim?– Transformation
• Binyamin?– The Ravenous Consumer

Many people in our world wander around nor knowing, who they are, what they are, why they are...?

Yaakov showed each one of his children his unique intrinsic nature and made it clear what path they must choose in their lives.?

There is a lot to be said about each and every path, but now we would like to point out the unique path of Yehudah.

Thus, Yehudah combines two essential qualities:

1.????Being able to admit / acknowledge wrong deeds (as was in the case of Tamar).

2.????Being able to express gratitude for all, which is received in this world.

These are the qualities of a true leader, and Yehudah is indeed a leader of the People of Israel.

Yehudah represents the path of selflessness – the most vital ingredient in true leadership.

And Yehudah's descendants would be the kings of Israel, beginning with?King David?and concluding with?Messayah - Mashiach.