[Jewish] [Mindful Torah] Poetic Commentary on Parshat Be'Midbar

[Rabbi Steven Nathan]

The name of this week's parashah, and the fourth book of the torah, is
Be'midbar meaning "in the wilderness." It can be found in the book of
Be’midbar /Numbers 1:1 - 4:20).
A rabbinic commentary points out that if we change one vowel in the
name of the parasha, the word במדבר be’midbar, in the wilderness,
becomes be'midabeיr, or with one who is speaking.
I found this ironic, since the wilderness is usually associated with
silence and solitude. However, we can imagine that the wilderness of
Sinai and its surroundings must have been anything but silent, with the
multitudes of Israelites and others wandering through it for 40 years.
However, we all know that even in the midst of a cacophony one can
experience silence, just as one can experience deafening noise while
walking in solitude. What determines the silence or the solitude is not
one’s physical surroundings, but one’s inner state.
This poem uses the two different readings of the letters מדבר mentioned
above to explore these various images.
The Wilderness of Silence and Speech
wildernessis silent still serene filled only with sounds of nature wind
rustling brush blowing sand animal footfalls howls in the night
whispering the truth a whole civilization lives within this wild place
humans go there to be at peace alone so we think this isfantasy ideal
not real
our wilderness is filled with peopleis wild with sound with speech with
dissent with screams with tears with laughter with joyous shouts with
words of love with speech never silent40 years give or take give and
take we take what we are given give back what has been taken a life in
the wilderness alive with the sounds the speech the words creating and
destroying people life worlds filling the silence a wild place of words
cries of revolt it swallows up rebels critical words turn a sister’s
skin to white a chorus of complaint fills us to bursting words of
mistrust set us wandering still words soothe praise comfort the death
of sons of a sister and brother of so many
words decree the death of a dreamthe death of a leaderthe birth of a
new people
I wish words would cease filling the wilderness filling my mind
emptying me of the ability to be still silent alone at one with you I
wanta wilderness without speech without words damnation praise love
hate comfort distress it does not matter I do not want I do not need
any words
I need a sanctuary not a wild place but a placewhere I can hear only
you only me in the stillness the silent sounds the whispers of the
spirit hovering around us all
this is what I long for what we all need Unfortunately most do not know
for they cannot hear the whisper of your voicethey can only hear their
own words constant cacophony striving for everything sound and fury
achieving nothing
only in subtle stillness can we find everything only in nothingness can
we find the truth you ourselvesone and the same
now this moment I wish we would all stop talking exile words from our
lips allow us to return home to the silent land the true wilderness of
the soul where it all began where it all continues where we are here
now
presentin the momentwith you


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Posted By Rabbi Steven Nathan to Mindful Torah at 5/14/2010 03:15:00 PM
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