json/Midrash/Aggadah/Midrash Rabbah/Bereshit Rabbah/English/Rabbi Dr. David Mevorach Seidenberg, from Kabbalah and Ecology.json

{
    "language": "en",
    "title": "Bereshit Rabbah",
    "versionSource": "http://www.amazon.com/Kabbalah-Ecology-Image-More-Than-Human-World/dp/1107081335",
    "versionTitle": "Rabbi Dr. David Mevorach Seidenberg, from \"Kabbalah and Ecology\"",
    "status": "locked",
    "versionTitleInHebrew": "רבי וד״ר דוד מבורך סיידנברג, מתוך ״קבלה ואקולוגיה״",
    "shortVersionTitle": "Rabbi Dr. David Mevorach Seidenberg, 2015",
    "actualLanguage": "en",
    "languageFamilyName": "english",
    "isBaseText": false,
    "isSource": false,
    "direction": "ltr",
    "heTitle": "בראשית רבה",
    "categories": [
        "Midrash",
        "Aggadah",
        "Midrash Rabbah"
    ],
    "text": [
        [],
        [
            "",
            "... the upper ones and the lower ones were created in one moment . . . the upper one are nourished by the radiance of the Shekhinah (divine presence), and the lower ones, if they don’t struggle they don’t eat."
        ],
        [],
        [],
        [
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
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            "",
            "",
            "‘And [God] called to the dry-place/yabashah, land/arets’ [Gn 1:10]— Why did He call her name arets? Because she ran /rats’tah to do the will/ratson of her Possessor/qonah."
        ],
        [],
        [],
        [
            "... Said R’ Yirmiyah ben Elazar: In the hour when the Holy One created the first human, He created him [as] an androgyne/androginos, as it is said, “male and female He created them”. Said R’ Shmuel bar Nachmani: In the hour when the Holy One created the first human, He created [for] him a double-face/di-prosopon/ du-par’tsufin, and sawed him and made him backs, a back here and a back [t]here, as it is said, “Back/achor and before/qedem You formed me” [Ps 139:5].  They objected to him: But it says, “He took one of his ribs/ts’la`ot . . . ” [Gn 2:21]! He said to them: [It means] “[one] of his sides/sit’rohi”, just as you would say, “And for the side/tsela` of the Tabernacle/ mishkan” [Ex 26:20], which they translate [in Aramaic] “for the side/seter”. R’ Tanchuma in the name of R’ Banayah and R’ B’rakhyah in the name of R’ Elazar said: In the time that the Holy One created Adam Harishon, [as] a golem He created him and he was set up from [one] end of the world and unto its [other] end – that’s what is written: “Your eyes saw my golem” [Ps 139:16]. R’ Yehoshua bar Nechemyah and R’ Yehudah bar Simon in R’ Elazar’s name said: He created him filling the whole world. From where [do we know he extended] from the East to West? That it’s said: “Back/achor (i.e., after, the place of sunset) and before/East/qedem You formed/enclosed me /tsartani” [Ps 139:5]. From where [that he went] from North to South? That it’s said: “and from the edge of the heavens and until the edge of the heavens” [Dt 4:32]. And from where [that he filled] even the world’s hollow-space? That it’s said: “. . . and You laid Your palm upon me” [Ps 139:5]...",
            "",
            "Let us make a human”—with whom did He rule/nimlokh? R’ Yehoshua in the name of R’ Levi said: With the work/m’la’khah of the heavens and the earth . . . R’ Shmuel bar Nachman said: With the work/ma`aseh of each and every day...",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... “if a great person . . . says, ‘Why do I need to take permission from one lesser than me?’ . . . they say to him: Learn from your Creator, for He created upper ones and lower ones, and when He came to create the human, He ruled with the ministering angels.”",
            "... [R’ Simlai] said to them: In the past Adam was created from the adamah and Chavah was created from the adam. From here and onward, “in our image as our likeness”—not man without woman and not woman without man, and not both of them without Shekhinah (God’s presence).",
            "Said R’ Hosha`ya: In the moment that the Holy One created Adam Harishon, the first Human, the ministering angels erred and sought to say ‘Holy/Qadosh’ before him (to worship him) . . . What did the Holy One do? ‘He cast upon him deep sleep’ [Gn 2:21] and all knew that he was Adam.",
            "... R’ Yehoshua barNechemyah in the name of R’ Chanina bar Yitshak and the rabbis in the name of R’ Lazar (Elazar), say: He created in him four creations from above /mil’ma`lah and four from below /mil’matah. From above – he stands like the ministering angels / mal’akhey hashareit, and speaks like the ministering angels, and has knowledge in him like the ministering angels, and sees like the ministering angels . . . From below – he eats and drinks like an animal /kab’heimah, bears fruit and multiplies, leaves piles (excretes) and dies like an animal... Said the Holy One: If I create him from the upper ones [alone] he lives and won’t die [in this world]; from the lower ones, he dies [in this world] and won’t live [in the coming world].",
            "“And dominate /ur’du the fish of the sea”—said R’ Chanina: If [a person] merited, “dominate! /ur’du” [the animals]; and if not, “they will be dominated /yeiradu” [by the animals]. Said R’ Yaakov of K’far Chanan: The one that is “in our image as our likeness” – “dominate! /ur’du”; the one that is not in our image and in our likeness – “they will be dominated /yeiradu”."
        ],
        [
            "",
            "",
            "... ‘And God saw everything that He had made’—R’ Yochanan said: A king of flesh and blood who builds a palace, he looks upon the upper ones (i.e., stories) – one glance/r’iyah, and upon the lower ones – one (separate) glance, but the Holy One looks upon the upper ones and upon the lower ones – one glance [altogether]."
        ],
        [
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... [every blade of grass has] a mazal that strikes it and says to it, ‘Grow!’"
        ],
        [],
        [
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... seven things were taken away from Adam Harishon after he ate from the tree of knowing, including among them] his brilliance, his life, and his stature / zivo v’chayyav v’qomato...",
            "",
            "All that you see, they are generations of heavens and earth, as it is said: “In beginning, Elohim created heavens and earth” [Gn 1:1]. On the second [day] He created from the upper ones / min ha`elyonim, as it is said: “And Elohim said: Let there be a firmament” On the third He created from the lower ones / min hatachtonim: “And Elohim said: Let the earth sprout”. On the fourth He created from the upper ones: “Let there be lights” On the fifth He created from the lower ones: “Let the waters swarm” On the sixth He came to create Adam. He said: If I create him from the upper ones, then the upper ones will be greater than the lower ones by one creation, and there won’t be peace in the world; and if I create him from the lower ones, then the lower ones will be greater than the upper ones by one creation, and there won’t be peace in the world. Rather, here am I [going to] create him from the upper ones and the lower ones, for the sake of peace / bish’vil shalom... ‘And YHVH Elohim formed him dirt from the ground’—from the lower ones; ‘and He blew in his nostrils life’s breath / nishmat chayyim’ [Gn 2:7]—from the upper ones.",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... the Holy One created the upper ones and the lower ones in one [act of] creation."
        ],
        [
            "",
            "And every growth/si’ach of the field” [Gn 2:5]—All the trees as it were /k’ilu are conversing/m’sichin, these with these. All the trees as it were are conversing with the creatures / `im hab’riyot.All the treeswere createdtogivepleasure tothe creatures . . . All the conversations of the creatures are about nothing except the land . . . and all the prayers of the creatures are about nothing except the land . . . All the prayers of Israel are about nothing except the Temple/ beyt hamiqdash.",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... from the upper ones, as it is said, ‘from the rain of the heavens she (the land) will drink water’ [Dt 11:11]",
            "",
            "",
            "... receive us /qablunu, you are the creation of the Holy One and we are his messengers. Immediately they receive them – that’s what is written, ‘the land will open’ [Is 45:8], like this female who opens for the male."
        ],
        [
            "",
            "",
            "...  Said the Holy One: If I create him from the upper ones [alone] he lives and won’t die [in this world]; from the lower ones, he dies [in this world] and won’t live [in the coming world].",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... dirt from the ground / afar min ha’adamah,[ explains]: ‘Afar’—male, ‘adamah’—female...",
            "... ‘And He blew into his nostrils’—This teaches that He stood him up as a golem stretching from earth to the firmament and then threw breath/n’shamah into him.",
            "By five names is the soul/nefesh called: nefesh, ru’ach, n’shamah, chayah (living one), y’chidah (unique one). Nefesh – this is the blood . . . Ru’ach – for she rises and falls, [as in:] “Who knows if the ru’ach of human beings goes upward?” [Ec 3:21]. N’shamah – this is the visage/character/ofah. . . Chayah – that all the limbs die and (i.e., unless) she lives in the body. Y’chidah – that all the limbs are two by two [but] she is singular in the body."
        ],
        [
            "... R’ Yochanan said: The world was not worthy to make use of the cedars, for they were not created except for the needs of the Beyt Hamiqdash (the Temple)."
        ],
        [],
        [
            "",
            "Not good[, the adam being alone]” [Gn 2:18]: Taught [R’ Yaakov]: Anyone (man) that has no woman lives without good . . . R’ Simon in the name of R’ Yehoshua ben Levi said: Even without peace . . . R’ Yehoshua of Sakhnin in the name of R’ Levi said: Even without life . . . R’ Chiya bar Gomdi said: He is not even a whole human / adam shalem, for it says: “And He blessed them and called their name Adam”. [Gn 5:2]",
            "",
            "... Said R’ Acha: In the hour that the Holy One came to create the human, He ruled [together] with the ministering angels. He said to them: “Let us make a human [in our image]”. They said to him: This one, what good is he? He said: His wisdom is greater than yours. He (God) brought before them beast and animal and bird. He said to them: This one, what is his name? and they didn’t know. He made them pass before Adam. He said to him: This one, what is his name? [Adam] said: This is ox/shor, and this is donkey/chamor and this is horse/sus and this is camel/gamal. And you, [He said], what is your name? [Adam] said to him: I? It would be right/yafeh to be called Adam, since I was created from the ground/adamah. And I, [God said], what is my name? He said to him: It would be right for you to be called my Lord /Adonai, since you are lord/adon to all the creatures."
        ],
        [],
        [
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... R’ Yehudah bar Simon said: Everything that was created after its fellow rules/shalit over its fellow . . . And Adam was created after all to rule over all.",
            "",
            "",
            "... the root/essence of Shekhinah/God’s presence was in the lower ones / `iqar sh’khinah batachtonim haytah."
        ],
        [
            "",
            "",
            "... three have intercourse face-to-face, because the Shekhinah speaks with them.",
            "",
            "... [The snake was created] “ruler over beast and animal / melekh `al hab’heimah v`al hachayah” [and] “erect like Adam / qom’miyut k’adam”"
        ],
        [
            "",
            "",
            "...R’ Yehoshua bar Nechemyah and R’ Yehudah bar Simon in R’ Elazar’s name said: He created him filling the whole world. From where [do we know he extended] from the East to West? That it’s said: “Back/achor (i.e., after, the place of sunset) and before/East/qedem You formed/enclosed me /tsartani” [Ps 139:5]. From where [that he went] from North to South? That it’s said: “and from the edge of the heavens and until the edge of the heavens” [Dt 4:32]. And from where [that he filled] even the world’s hollow-space? That it’s said: “. . . and You laid Your palm upon me” [Ps 139:5]."
        ],
        [
            "",
            "... In the past Adam was created from the adamah and Chavah was created from the adam. From here and onward, “in our image as our likeness”—not man without woman and not woman without man, and not both of them without Shekhinah (God’s presence).",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... The voice of your brother’s bloods [are] screaming to me from [the surface of] the ground” [Gn 4:10]—[this means that] she (the voice of Hevel’s blood) could not go up above/l’ma`lah, for as yet no soul/n’shamah had gone up to there; and below/l’matah she could not stand (i.e., stay or sink into the ground), for as yet no adam had been buried there, and [so] “his blood was cast upon the trees and the stones."
        ],
        [],
        [
            "",
            "... R’ Tanchuma in the name of R’ Banayah and R’ B’rakhyah in the name of R’ Elazar said: In the time that the Holy One created Adam Harishon, [as] a golem He created him and he was set up from [one] end of the world and unto its [other] end – that’s what is written: “Your eyes saw my golem” ",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... Ben Azai said: “This is the book of the generations of Adam”—this is a great principle in the Torah. R’ Akiva said: “And you will love your fellow like yourself”—this is a great principle in the Torah. For you shouldn’t say: Since I was despised, let my friend be despised. Said R’ Tanchuma: If you did so (despise your friend), know whom you despise, [for] “in Elohim’s likeness He made him”."
        ],
        [
            "",
            "... [I]n the hour that the Holy One created Adam Harishon, He made him rule over all / hish’litu `al hakol (i.e., over animals and over the land). The cow would listen to the plowman and the furrow would listen to the plowman."
        ],
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        [
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "",
            "... And one who acquires souls is wise”—this is Noach, who acquired souls, and was nourishing them and feeding them . . . The twelve months that Noach did in the ark, he did not taste the taste of sleep, not in the day and not in the night, for he was busy feeding the souls that were with him, so “one who acquires souls”, this is Noach.",
            "... For one hundred and twenty years Noach planted cedars and cut them down"
        ],
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        [
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            "And again [Noach] sent forth the dove out of the ark . . . And the dove came in at evening, and here, an olive leaf torn off in her mouth” [Gn 8:11]. “An olive leaf torn off in her mouth”—From where did she bring it? R’ Bibi said: The gates of Gan Eden were opened for her, and from there she brought it. Said R’ Abahu: Had she brought it from Gan Eden, couldn’t she bring something special, cinnamon or balsam? But she gave [Noach] a hint, and said to Noach: Better is bitterness from this and not sweetness from beneath your hand."
        ],
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            "... Anyone who makes void (neglects) bearing fruit and multiplying, [it is] as if he diminished the likeness. What is the reason? “For in Elohim’s image He made the human” [Gn 9:6] and it’s written after, “and you, bear fruit and multiply” [Gn 9:7]."
        ]
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