With Parshat Pekudei we complete the book of Shemot/Exodus. It feels that time has been passing so swiftly lately. It seems like yesterday that the Hebrews entered the land of Egypt and here they are now, creating a place for God to meet them as they travel through the desert.
Betzalel was introduced in Parshat Ki Tisa and we hear more about him in this parsha. In Parshat Ki Tisa it is written about Betzalel, ׃
וָאֲמַלֵּ֥א אֹת֖וֹ ר֣וּחַ אֱלֹהִ֑ים בְּחכְמָ֛ה וּבִתְבוּנָ֥ה וּבְדַ֖עַת
וּבְכל־מְלָאכָֽה׃
I have endowed him with a divine spirit of skill, ability, and knowledge ;in every kind of craft
Exodus 31:3
Rabbi RABBI STAN LEVY writes*, "God gives Bezalel wisdom, understanding and knowledge. But these seem to just be synonyms. Why does the Torah use these three specific words?
In Tanya, the Alter Rebbe refers to these same three words as levels of connection in learning Torah. They are referred to as CHaBaD (cHochmah, Binah and Daat). Chochmah is a spark, an interest that pulls us to want to know more. Binah is the process of understanding the spark, going deeper to comprehend. And Daat is the point at which an idea becomes a part of us — integral to who we are. This learning process is a gift because it enables us to connect with God at our core.
With this in mind, we see that the words in our verse are not three random synonyms. God provided Bezalel with three life-altering tools and through them, he merited to be known as Bezalel, “in the shadow of God.” He entered God’s embrace through Chochmah, Binah and Daat — through exploring and mastering God’s Torah."
Let us take a few moments to celebrate Betzalel, a visionary, an artist who excelled in so many disciplines and while we are at it, let's do an experiment before you read this post.
Close your eyes. Take a few deep breaths to take you out of your usual routine. Using your finger as your pen/paintbrush, create a point. Keeping your eyes closed, find another point wherever you choose on your imaginary canvas. With your finger, connect those two points. Now add a third point and a fourth. Connect all of these points and begin to imagine what your creation is; what it can be. What is it that you created?
Last, my father's name was Betzalel and he was an artist. As I write this post, I remember him as a creator.
Now, go and create.
Leann
The Gifts of Betzalel
There are no endings,
only beginnings.
No constraints,
only openings
when
you close your eyes
and begin to see
the colors in between.
Chochmah
A pause
a moment of potential
An image appears
deep within
you see it
You are a Creator
There are no limits
Simple
Clean
A point in space
.
Then another
.
Connect
. .
Va’yehi
It is connected
And there is a line .______________.
And it is simple
Very good,
but it is just the beginning
Binah
Eyes closed, ideas
Multiply
two points swell to three
and three swells
Swift strokes
There it is
a vision
Let it grow.
Look inward
Imagine the colors.
Dream of form and shape
There are no limits
to
imagination.
Onward and upward
Starts and flows
Spirals, circles,
Endings and beginnings
And back again.
Da’at
Lift up your hands
Let the river flow
Within
There is a little of
Betzalel
in each of us.
Sometimes hiding away,
hoping to come out
to grow,
to glow.
There is never perfection,
only a journey of points and lines
that brings us to creation.
בְּחכְמָ֛ה וּבִתְבוּנָ֥ה וּבְדַ֖עַת
