My Brother and His Wife - The Prophets

I would like to wish my dear brother Zalmy and his wife Chana (Directors of The Friendship Circle) a heartfelt Mazel Tov, Mazel Tov! on the birth of their son this past Saturday night. May they only know Nachas and Gezunt (Health) both materially and spiritually. (and of course a big Mazel Tov to the Grandparents!!)

So…What’s the name?

Well that is a great question…didn’t think of it myself ;) – As a matter of fact the boy still has no name. You would think that his parents didn’t know that he was coming for 9 months. In fact, he will have no name until his Bris next week, which leads me to another interesting idea...and I’ll preface;

When G-d created the world, he did it through speech. He said “Let there be light”, “Let there be mankind”, “Let there be vegetation”. It was with words that He brought this world into being. The words he used to create the creations became the spiritual energy that keeps each one of those objects alive. Much like when you tell your child “Clean up your room” – it is those words that make the rambunctious 10 year old stop playing with his X-Box and straighten out his pants. Your voice (and the reward/punishment) that rings in his ear will keep that movement going. Similarly, The words that G-d used to create this world are the life force that is keeping it going. (And even more so since He created from nothing to something.)

Now lets dig a drop deeper…If we were able to understand the deeper meaning of the words G-d used, we would understand the spiritual make up of the creations that came from that word (much like “Clean your room” in a sweet tone of voice and a smile can also mean “if you listen I will get you ice cream” as opposed to a meaner voice “if you don’t listen then you will be grounded for a week”). The intent/feeling/spiritual energy gets invested into the word itself.

For example…I don’t claim to know Kabalah or any of G-d’s thoughts/intents – but I know a guy that does ;), Let is look at two basic words. Emet (Truth) and Sheker (False).

For those that are familiar with the Hebrew Alpha Bet know that the word Emet is made of three letter; Aleph, Mem, Tov. The first, middle and last letters of the Alpha Bet. Teaching us a powerful lesson. Truth lasts in every situation – the beginning, middle and end. Hot, cold, Russia, USA, War and Peace. There is one truth and it doesn’t change. Not only that but the letters themselves teach us that. Each letter is on sure footing. The Aleph has two legs, the Mem is on a long stretched out leg and the Tov is on two legs. This allows them to stand strong and not be influenced by external pressures – a sign of real truth.

When you look at the word Sheker (false), it is just the opposite. The letters – Shin, Kuf and Reish are out of order and from the end of the Alpha Bet. But most important – each letter stands on only one foot. Falsehood doesn’t stand! When you give it the smallest push – there is no real support.

We see from here that the words themselves tell us about the spiritual energy of the object with that name.

Now back to my nephew (with no name)…

A parent has a monumental task when choosing out the name of a child. With this name they are describing the spiritual energy of their offspring.

WOW! What a responsibility. How do they know if they are doing it correctly? Our sages say that the parents are blessed with a momentary flash of prophesy which allows them to fully be in sync with their child’s soul to choose out the right description. Naming after a grandparent who meant so much to you or a great biblical role model or Jewish leader allows your child to share some of the same energy which that specific person had.  (Which is why the friends, cousins and even the grandparents are not supposed to get involved with the naming of a child since it is only the parents who get this flash of ‘brilliance’).

So Zalmy and Chana – Good Luck and enjoy the moment and if you get any good leads on the lotto numbers…Nah, don’t waste such power on such frivolity.