Toldos

"AND YAAKOV SAID, SELL THIS DAY YOUR BIRTHRIGHT TO ME...AND ESAV REJECTED THE BIRTHRIGHT (Bereishis 25:31,34)"

The posuk relates that Esav upon returning from the field was exhausted and famished. Yaakov was in the midst of preparing a bean stew. When Esav saw the stew he immediately urgently craved to eat it. Yaakov said, "Sell this day your birthright to me.." Esav agreed and sold the birthright to Yaakov in exchange for a bean stew.

This is mystifying. Didn't Esav know the value of the birthright? Didn't he realize that the bearer of the birthright will be the recipient of the brachos for himself and his descendents for all generations to come? Surely he did. For when he discovered that Yaakov took the brachos before him, he let out a "loud and bitter scream (Bereishis 27:34)." Hence he fully understood and realized the value of the birthright and what he had lost. If so, how could Esav do something so irrational and illogical as to sell the invaluable and precious birthright in exchange for some paltry beans?

We see from here the blinding and obstructive nature of taavah, temptation. Despite his recognition of the inherent value of the birthright, Esav's craving and yearning for the bean stew blinded and obscured his otherwise keen insight and perceptiveness. He gathered all his emotions of temptation and focused them toward one goal, to obtain and enjoy this luscious bean stew. These emotions overwhelmed and literally steamrolled anything and everything that stood in its path, including his logic. His emotions now reigned supreme. His logic and intellect functioned no longer. Thus Esav was able to sell the precious birthright for a worthless bean stew.

If this is so, the question may now be asked that this explanation holds good only in this instance, when Esav was in the midst of temptation, but after he ate, drank, and satiated himself, and his temptation was satisfied, why did he now "reject the birthright?" At this point, his logic and intellect were fully restored and functioning normally. Shouldn't Esav have now let out a "loud and bitter scream" for selling the birthright for a worthless bean stew? Why did he rather now despise, belittle, and "reject the birthright," as if to say, "The birthright is nothing anyway?"

Perhaps the answer to this question is that after eating, drinking, and satisfying himself, a new temptation has now entered upon the scene, the temptation for kavod, honor. What should Esav do upon realizing the foolish thing that he did, selling the birthright for bean stew? Should Esav admit to this foolish act? It would be a shameful embarrassment, for Esav to admit to the gross error that he had made. His conscience would not permit him to do so. His internal self-condemnation would torture him until the end of his days. Esav must therefore satisfy his conscience by rationalizing and justifying his act. He therefore despised and rejected the birthright, as if to say, "the birthright is nothing, anyway." His mind is now clear. He did nothing wrong.

These mechanisms happening within the heart and mind of Esav are in reality natural human reactions which readily occur within our very own lives. We may succumb to a bias of even the most meager physical pleasure which can distort our ability to see the truth. We then rationalize and justify our act in order to satisfy our conscience.

May we merit to be aware of these mechanisms that exist within us. May we be zoche to discern between the biases and their rationalizations and what in reality is the truth. May Hashem help us to purify our hearts and serve Him in truth. Vetaher libeinu leavdecha beEmes. Amen.