When Sweetness is Bitter
The Megillah begins,1 “And it came to pass in the days of Achashverosh.” On this
verse the Talmud2
comments, “We have a tradition that wherever [the Tanach] says Vayehi
— ‘And it came to pass...,’ [it is referring to]...a time of trouble.”
Given that Haman had not yet risen to power, why should the
beginning of the reign of Achashverosh be considered a time of trouble for the
Jewish people? They were affluent and held prestigious positions. Mordechai,
head of the Jewish community, “sat at the king’s gate”3 and was one of the foremost courtiers, consulted on major
issues by the king himself.4
He and his fellow Jews enjoyed the freedom to study the Torah and observe its
mitzvos. Why, then, does the Talmud view this period as a time of
trouble?
In truth, however, the very fact that the period in which
they lived is described as “the days of Achashverosh” meant trouble for the
Jewish people. For a Jew, exile is always a time of difficulty. A Jew’s host
country may grant him freedom and comfort and opportunities for success and
prosperity. Until Mashiach comes, however, any exile is restrictive. By
definition, exile means banishment from our native land and way of life. As
long as we are in exile, we cannot experience Jewish life fully.
Confusing Darkness and Light
The most destructive aspect of exile is the lack of
awareness it induces. A person who realizes that he is physically ill will
search for a doctor. The type of sickness that is most dangerous is one that
cannot easily be recognized. By the same token, the most dangerous aspect of
exile is our complacent acceptance of it. We feel comfortable, at home. We do
not realize that we have been placed in an unnatural situation, forced to
depart from our native way of life.
Of course we must be thankful for our freedom and appreciate
the prosperity we have been granted. We must, however, realize that living a
life of material prosperity is not our ultimate goal. The reason for our
existence is to live a life of complete connection to G‑d; in doing so do we
feel our greatest sense of fulfillment. In the fullest sense, this purpose will
be realized in the Era of the Redemption. Until that time, we are living an
unnatural existence in which we cannot truly fulfill ourselves.
Social Involvement vs. Academic Detachment
Understanding this state of affairs need not isolate us so
that we shun involvement in the affairs of our country of residence. On the
contrary, such involvement is positive. Since, in the Previous Rebbe’s
words,5
“We did not go into exile willingly, but were sent there by the decree of G‑d,”
G‑d surely had a purpose in this.
By sending us into exile, G‑d intended that we carry out a
specific mission, namely, to refine and elevate the countries where we live. To
fulfill this mission, we must participate in the societies around us. As our
Sages teach,6 “When you
enter a city, follow its customs.” This implies working within the context of
society at large until it is transformed into an instrument for the furtherance
of the values of Torah and its principles of goodness and justice.
In light of this we can understand why Mordechai, a member of
the Sanhedrin,7 was
willing to forego much of the time he had spent studying and teaching Torah in
order to serve in the court of Achashverosh.8 Mordechai realized that the Persian Empire was
the instrument G‑d had chosen to bring about the return of the Jews to Eretz
Yisrael and the building of the second Beis HaMikdash. Compelled by
such a realization, he was willing to invest time and effort in the service of
Persia’s king.
Pride in One’s Jewish Identity
Mordechai’s conduct during that time is instructive. “There
was a Jewish man in Shushan, the capital, and his name was
Mordechai.”9 Before the
Megillah even tells us Mordechai’s name, it states that he proudly
identified as a Jew. His prestigious position in the Persian court was not an
end in itself, but a means for safeguarding the interests of his brethren.
Serving in the royal court marked a departure only in the external form of his
divine service, but not in its inner spirit.
Mordechai’s divine service was thus a synthesis of
opposites. He was both involved in Persian life and removed from it. Though he
served at court, he rejected its values. He accepted the fact of living in
exile, but only in material affairs. In spiritual matters, he knew
that10 “our
souls have not gone into exile,” and that even in exile, we are actively
connected with G‑d.
Significantly, the opposing poles of his service did not
contradict each other. Success in one area actually enhanced his efforts in the
other. Mordechai did not advance to his influential position through natural
means alone, but thanks to Divine blessings. Because of his merit and the needs
of the Jewish people, G‑d selected him as the instrument for their salvation.
And the position to which G‑d had raised him, enabled him to use the power of
the Persian Empire for the sake of Torah.
Priorities
Mordechai’s reaction to Haman’s decree clearly expressed the
interrelationship between his material success and his divine service.
Mordechai did not rely only on political power to try to annul the decree. He
responded by “putting on sackcloth and ashes,”11 by calling upon the Jewish people to turn to G‑d in
teshuvah, and by gathering 22,000 Jewish children and teaching them
Torah.12
His attempt to annul the decree focused first on the spiritual service necessary
to evoke G‑d’s mercy. Only thereafter did he ask Esther to approach the king.
Esther’s priorities were the same. She asked Mordechai to
“Gather all the Jews... and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three
days.”13 Furthermore, she
promised, “I and my maidens will also fast.”14
At first glance, undertaking a fast would appear to endanger
her life and the success of her mission. Esther had not been called to appear
before Achashverosh for a month, an obvious sign of disfavor. By appearing
without being summoned, she ran the risk of death. Since her only hope was that
her beauty would arouse the king’s favor, a three-day fast would surely lower
the probability of success.15
Esther realized, however, that the decree “had not come by
chance,” but rather, as a result of “their (the Jewish people’s) evil
deeds.”16 Seeing the royal decree as only a physical
manifestation of a G‑dly decree,17 Esther felt that, before appealing to Achashverosh,
it would be necessary to remove the reason for the decree through teshuvah.
Once the repentance of the Jewish people had utterly nullified the spiritual
reasons for the king’s decree, Esther felt confident in approaching Achashverosh
and asking him to annul it on the physical plane.
Just as Mordechai and Esther were not tempted by the
pleasures of the Persian court, they did not consider its power the sole medium
of salvation in a time of danger. The Purim story reveals their fundamental
commitment to Jewish identity and their deep awareness of G‑d as the Master of
their fate.
From Exile to Redemption
This attitude brought about a wondrous miracle. The entire
situation was transformed. All the powers that had been mobilized against the
Jewish people were utilized for their benefit. Thus, Purim serves as an eternal
example of how a Jew should relate to exile and how, through his commitment, he
can transform exile into a positive force.
These lessons are surely relevant at present, in the last
remaining moments of exile. In the very near future, Mashiach will appear
and lead us to Eretz Yisrael. In the interim, however, we must follow the
example given us by Mordechai and Esther, and spread good, justice, and Torah in
the societies in the midst of which we live. This, in turn, will hasten the
coming of the ultimate Redemption, a redemption which will never be followed by
exile.
Adapted from Likkutei Sichos,
Vol. VI, Purim; Sichos Purim, 5729
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