Parashat Vayeira is the second of the two parashiot devoted exclusively to the life and times of Abraham. Although we first meet Abraham at the end of parashat Noach, and his later years are chronicled in parashat Chayei Sarah, he appears in these parashiot only in preparation for his life's work or in its afterglow. In Noach, we see him buck the degenerate trend of human history that preceded him and thereby merit God's call to begin the history of the chosen people; in Chayei Sarah, we see him ensure the perpetuation of his heritage by passing it on to his successor. Only the parashiot of Lech Lecha and Vayeira focus directly on Abraham's life itself.

The fact that Abraham's life per se is chronicled in two parashiot indicates that it comprised two distinct phases. In fact, if we examine the events recorded in these two parashiot, we are left with the impression that Abraham repeated in parashat Vayeira virtually everything he did in parashat Lech Lecha. Both parashiot open with him experiencing a revelation of God and receiving the promise of progeny; in both parashiot, his wife Sarah is abducted by a gentile king; in both parashiot, he fathers a son, banishes Hagar, and enters into treaties; in both parashiot, his righteous behavior is contrasted with the immoral behavior of his nephew Lot; in both parashiot, he defends the cities of the plain—in Lech Lecha against human assailants, and in Vayeira against the Divine decree brought about by the cities' own corruption. It is as if Abraham had to repeat everything he experienced in his first parashah—his first "life" or level of being—but on a different level, in order to infuse his past accomplishments with a new level of Divine consciousness.

Since, as we know, the name of every parashah embodies the essence of its content, the essence of each of the two phases of Abraham's life must be reflected in the name of the parashah describing that phase.

The event that divides Abraham's life into two distinct spiritual periods is his circumcision. This event is related at the very end of parashat Lech Lecha, so that Abraham begins his life as a circumcised Jew only in parashat Vayeira. It follows, therefore, that Abraham's life prior to circumcision is one of lech lecha—"go, to your true self," while his life after circumcision is one of vayeira—"God appeared to him." In parashat Lech Lecha, Abraham progresses on his own, steadily ascending the ladder of spiritual progress as far as human efforts can take him. In parashat Vayeira, God appears to him and elevates him to a level of spiritual life beyond the reach of human effort.

True, God appeared to Abraham three times in parashat Lech Lecha,1 but these appearances were veiled and vague in comparison to His appearance in parashat Vayeira.2 The reason for this is straightforward enough: until circumcision, Abraham's progress, as we said, was limited by the constraints of his own human nature. He could only go as far as his own mind and heart could take him. It was therefore impossible for God to reveal Himself to Abraham "directly"; Abraham could only experience God through the prism of his own being.

What was it about circumcision that changed all this, that enabled Abraham to transcend the limitations of his own humanity and experience a direct revelation of God?

First of all, circumcision was the first commandment that Abraham observed in response to God's explicit directive. The Torah and its traditions were known even before Abraham's time, and Abraham fulfilled them faithfully to the best of his ability. But this observance was voluntary and therefore lacked the self-effacing humility implicit in a servant's compliance with the will of his master. This is precisely why Abraham did not circumcise himself before God called upon him to do so, even though he observed the rest of the Torah's commandments: since circumcising oneself, unlike all the other commandments, can only be performed once, once he circumcised himself on his own, he would never be able to do so in compliance with an explicit directive from God.

Thus, by circumcising himself in response to God's explicit command, Abraham entered into an entirely new type of relationship with Him. By nullifying his own will before God's, Abraham attained a level of self-effacement he could never have achieved beforehand. His own ego could now dissolve and cease to interpose between God, on the one hand, and his own mind and heart, on the other.

Yet, although circumcision was the only one of the Torah's commandments that God specifically commanded Abraham to fulfill, He had commanded him to do other things before this, such as leaving his father's home and moving to the Land of Israel, traveling throughout the land, and performing the rites associated with the Covenant between the Halves. In each case, Abraham always heeded God's word. What was it about circumcision in particular that brought Abraham to this level of selflessness?

The answer to this question may be found in the way in which God phrased His command to Abraham to circumcise himself: "My covenant shall be in your flesh."3 Circumcision is unique among all the commandments in that it alters the body itself. The body's very flesh becomes a concretization of God's will. As we saw,4 circumcision granted Abraham control over his erotic drive. Thus, through circumcision, the body can join the mind's self-effacement before God, in this way also ceasing to be an impediment in the individual's relationship with Him.

As we have noted, Abraham began the reversal of the degenerative process that had begun with the sin of Adam and Eve and that had continued through the succeeding generations. The process he set in motion would culminate seven generations later with the Giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai.

In order to lay the groundwork for the world's transformation into God's home through the Giving of the Torah, Abraham had to set an example by his own life. In this context, his circumcision was his own personal "Receiving of the Torah," a microcosm of what would later transpire on a national scale at Mount Sinai. In living out the transition from finite human effort to infinite Divine revelation, he set the stage for the creation of a people whose purpose would be to elevate reality above its natural limitations by revealing the infinite God in the finite world.

Once Abraham's personal transformation became the cornerstone of the national identity of the Jewish people, it became, in turn, the inheritance of each individual Jew. We are all challenged to learn from Abraham's life. Abraham aspired throughout his lifetime to make himself into an ever-more-transparent vehicle for expressing God's presence in the world. Yet no matter how far he progressed toward his goal, he always knew that there was still more to accomplish—that he had not yet reached true and absolute self-effacement. It was precisely in this merit that God granted him his wish and enabled him—through the commandment of circumcision—to free himself from the constraints of human ego.

We, too, should always strive toward higher levels of relationship with God and never be satisfied with our present spiritual level. Together with appreciating our achievements, we should, in parallel, train ourselves to consider them merely a hazy, imperfect version of what we ultimately aspire to. When we live our lives this way, we know that God will respond to our endeavors and reveal Himself in our lives commensurately.5