Parshat Beshalach: When the Wood Meets the Water
Original author - Rabbi Shmuel Simenowitz, edited by the GrowTorah Summer Inchworms 2021
View Accompanying Source Sheet Here
No parsha is as intimately aligned with water as Parshat Beshalach. From the miraculous parting of the Yam Suf, the watershed event of Jewish history, to the sweetening of the bitter waters at Marah, to the oasis in Elim, and to the rock at Rephidim giving forth water, Beshalach gushes forth at every corner.
This Shabbat read is referred to as Shabbat Shira—the Sabbath of Song – on account of the song sung by Moshe and Bnei Yisrael after crossing the sea. [1] This song is called “Shirat Hayam,” “The Song of the Sea” in English. This positive association with the sea seems obvious from our parsha; however, upon further contemplation, it could seem a bit surprising.
Bnei Yisrael have had a tenuous relationship with water until now – always digging new wells, moving around due to drought, and, most recently, having their children drowned in the Nile. With the parting of the Yam Suf in Beshalach, this relationship reaches a climax. Although the water initially seems to limit Bnei Yisrael, Hashem shows His power, and the sea becomes a weapon to facilitate their escape and redemption from Mitzrayim. “Shirat Hayam” is an ultimate expression of our appreciation for Hashem and the water.
After this magnificent miracle, the Jews arrive thirsty at Marah and cannot drink because the waters are bitter. “Vayorehu Hashem etz-” Hashem instructs Moshe to take a certain wood and throw it in the water - the waters are sweetened.[2] This incident brings the uncertainty and necessity of water back into focus - while there may be water all around, we rely on Hashem to make it beneficial for us.
In a world where water has become increasingly scarce, where despite its seeming ubiquity, less than 1% of the world’s water supply is potable. Manufacturing has left a heavy imprint on the water supply and quality, rendering the Parsha’s message critical.[3]
The wood used to sweeten the waters also reminds us of our forests and the toll that they have taken. The worldwide demand for raw materials, aggressive logging, and unprecedented development have severely impacted our forests. [4] The biodiversity is disappearing at an alarming rate, stomped out both for the valuable timber and to make room for increased cattle grazing. We cannot forget the necessity of water or wood in our lives, and we cannot take our resources for granted.
On another level, this parsha tells about the waters themselves. “Shirat Hayam” can also be “The Sea’s Song” – the miracle can be appreciated not just for what it accomplished for Bnei Yisrael, but for the power and wonder of the sea and the wall of water itself. The incident at Marah is somewhat more cryptic and elusive. In showing Moshe the wood to sweeten the waters, the Midrash offers several opinions as to the type of wood Moshe used, and what type of transformation was effected. R’ Yehoshua (a charcoal maker by trade) posited that it was willow. R’ Natan said it was a type of bitter ivy. R’ Elazar Hamoda’i, an olive tree. And R’ Yehoshua ben Korcha, a thistle bush. To all opinions, the consensus seems to be that the wood was bitter.[5] This represents a form of “self-realization,” as the bitter wood makes the waters realize how bad it is to be bitter, and convinces them to become sweet of their own accord. The waters at Refidim flow forth after Moshe hits a rock. The natural world is alive, and even water can be powerful, reticent, and even growing and changing.
Even though the modern environmental situation has reached a point where the waters seem too bitter to drink, Beshalach reflects the dynamism of our environment, asking us to trust nature and respect it. Beshalach reminds us that our water and our world have agency outside of us, and that to heal the world, we need to work with the environment, not merely upon it.
Together with our environment, we can change, react, and improve. On our path towards a better world, we can keep in mind this parable from the Alter Rebbe:
A distraught father whose son was beginning to stray from the path of his forefathers once brought his son to the Alter Rebbe, Shneur Zalman of Liadi. R’ Shneur Zalman asked the boy what he enjoyed doing. The boy responded that he liked riding horses.
“And what qualities do you look for in a horse?” R’ Shneur Zalman asked him.
“Speed,” the boy replied.
“And what if you are on a fast horse that takes a wrong turn in the road?” the sage continued.
“You can get very lost in a hurry,” was the boy’s response.
“And what if you turn the horse around?” the elderly sage pressed on.
“You can get back just as fast.”
A slight smile crept across R’ Shneur Zalman’s face as the boy nodded his head, indicating that he understood the Alter Rebbe’s message.
The power that we have as humans, that our major industries and corporations have used to cause environmental destruction can, together with the power of our environment itself, be harnessed to promote a cleaner and healthier future. The energy and tools needed for change are within our reach. We just need the will to utilize them, and a deep appreciation and understanding of that which Hashem has taught us - “Vayorehu Hashem etz.”
Suggested Action:
Make sure to take care of our water and wood.
Calculating your water footprint and implementing some of the tips found here can be a great way to start.
For wood, minimizing your paper use or using recycled paper products is the clearest way of saving energy and trees. When buying wood and lumber products, make sure they are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. Certification assures consumers that the wood products come from responsibly managed forests in which wildlife habitation and clean water are protected by ensuring that the logging is done in an environmentally conscious and sustainable fashion.
Original Canfei Nesharim Sponsorships:
Parshat Beshalach is sponsored by Baruch and Ora Sheinson, in honor of their daughter, Miriam Machla Sheinson.
Click here to sponsor a parsha.
Notes:
[1] Shemot 15:1-18
[2] Shemot 15:25
[3] https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/water-scarcity
[4] https://www.worldwildlife.org/threats/deforestation-and-forest-degradation
[5] Mekhilta Shemot 15:25. Also see Rashi, Ramban and Ibn Ezra on Shemot 15:25. On the other hand, R’ Shimon bar Yochai explains the phrase “Vayorehu Hashem etz” as “Hashem taught Moshe Torah”—the “etz” referring to Torah as in “etz chaim hee- it (the Torah) is a tree of life.” In a similar vein, the Toras Menachem brings a beautiful literal reading from the Zohar suggesting that it was a piece of wood from the Etz Chayim—the original Tree of Life. This is based on Likutei Sichos 6:393. (Toras Menachem is a compilation culled by Rabbi Chaim Miller from the Lubavitcher Rebbe’s talks on Rashi. Citations here are from the Gutnick Edition 2002.)
