Comentary on Parshat Naso and the Priestly Blessings

Naso

(Be'midbar/Numbers 4:21-7:89)

In the parashah, God commands Aaron and his sons to bless the people with the words that have become so familiar to us, "May God Bless you and keep you; May God's face shine upon you and be gracious unto you; May God lift up the Divine face towards you and grant you Shalom/Peace."

Until this day, in more traditional communities, the Kohanim - those believed to be descended from Aaron - stand in front of the congregation and offer this blessing in the same way we believe the ancient Kohanim did.  They spread their hands out in front of them, palms facing down, and their fingers separated in the special manner reserved for the priests (though more familiar to many of us
as Spock's "live long and prosper" sign on Star Trek, which Leonard Nimoy borrowed from his Jewish heritage). Then they recite the blessing for all the "non-Kohanim" present.  This ceremony has been viewed throughout the centuries as mysterious and awe-inspiring.  However, it is also clearly hierarchical. The priests are "above" the people, literally and figuratively, and act as conduits for blessing between God and the people.

In his commentary on the priestly blessings, R. Levi Yitzhak of Berditchev cites a short drash, or homily, attributed to the Baal Shem Tov, 18th century founder of Hasidism.  The B'esht (acronym for Baal Shem Tov) cites Psalm 121:5, "The Eternal is your shadow." He then states, "Just as a shadow does everything that a person does, so the Creator, blessed be God, does, so to speak, everything that a person does." Levi Yitzhak then adds to this the reminder that we should always act in such a way that God would be proud of us. In other words, God should not be embarrassed to be our "shadow." Then, in commenting on the way in which the blessing is given, Levi Yitzhak continues, "...when one prays only for oneself, one is only a receptacle; that is, one's hands are spread out with the palms up and the back of the hands down. But, when one prays only to give God pleasure, then one is as one who pours blessing; that is, one's hands are spread out with the palms down and the back of the hand up (see description above)."

In his modern commentary on this interpretation, R. David Blumenthal writes that Levi Yitzhak's three main points are, "...that true blessing is a pouring-forth of an energy we receive, a channeling of divine power; that this type of blessing gives God pleasure, it makes God proud; and that such an act evokes a shadow movement by God, a parallel response of poured-forth blessing from God."
("God at the Center," Harper and Row, 1988; p. 110).

How awesome - and how frightening - that human beings can be part of this channeling process. Through our own actions, we cannot merely receive blessings from God, but we can bring God's blessing to others. Beyond that, if we believe, as do the mystics, that our actions actually affect God in this divine-human "shadow play" what an awesome responsibility each of us is given.

If we are to be a nation of priest/Kohanim, as the Torah teaches, then I believe the lesson found in this week's parashah also applies to each one of us.  Keeping that thought, and the previous commentaries, in mind I would like to offer you my own interpretation of this passage as a blessing for all of us on this eve of the Shabbat of Parshat Naso (Numbers/Be’midbar 4:21-7:89) where the Priestly Blessing is found.

Shadowplay and Blessing

I
stand here
        arms and hands outstretched
     uttering ancient words
  blessing
shalom

I
feel the blessing
   divine energy
      flow through me
          to you
             to me
                to God
           a circuit
       cycle
    never-ending
blessing

as it flows
through me
  you
  God
I hear the voice
     Sinai
    echoing
  resounding
   in my soul
constant energy
   flowing
  long after hands descend
I feel blessing
energy
  source of life
    source of action
        source of love

it   does not pull
             push
         force
it  animates
        energizes
             guides

while
        I    

  struggle

I do not want
to follow the voice
   do as it says

in this moment

   I have power
what I do
   God must do
shadow puppeteer
peter pan
with a shadow
 that cannot be lost
    cannot be separated

God is always

  within me
I am always

   within

    God

such power
responsibility
am I worthy
is anyone

suddenly
cannot move
cannot act
cannot risk
what if

I

make the wrong move
     pull the wrong strings

  I want to be
     puppet
not puppeteer
  I want to be
   the shadow
 not it's source

I breathe
I sit
I wait
afraid now
if I act
I may be wrong
then

God must still follow
but the chain
of blessing
may be broken
all my fault

I breathe
I sit
I wait
I pray

finally
I listen

the voice
within around
guiding me

I feel the power
again
but now
  I realize
    I know
     in my soul
       it is not mine
         it is not

            I

I am still
afraid
must act
the alternative
 stagnation
is to die
   to block the flow
    of divine blessing

before I act
        I pray
     allow the blessing
   the energy
to flow through me
may I
may we
be worthy
may I bring your blessing
     to all
may I bring their blessing
     to you
may they bring blessing
     to me
       to you
         as well
    may we bring
             joy
        pride
satisfaction
to God
to all
through our actions

as I pray
    I hear
the voice of Sinai
in my heart
    I feel
the power of sinai
in my soul
    I see
the shadow of sinai
brightly hovering over me
    I know
the One of Sinai
           is here
       within
     around
me
   us all
      moving with us
           guiding
           protecting
           reminding
we are not separate
      we are
always together
always complete
always whole
always

one

we are
the blessing
the blessed
living
with  in
shalom