“And Abraham approached” (Genesis, Vayeira)

When studying the Torah, it is important to be aware that the personalities of its central characters are not static; on the contrary, they develop dynamically within the context of their experiences, affected by the surrounding circumstances and the trials and punishments that the characters are subjected to by the Almighty.

After arriving in Canaan, Abraham comes down to Egypt and falls under the power of Evil. The life journey that follows his miraculous escape can be viewed from the standpoint of Abraham's relationship with the surrounding evil and his progress towards bitul.

After leaving Egypt and returning to the Holy Land, Abraham parts ways with his nephew Lot, who symbolizes the inclination towards evil (Yetzer Hara).

Notably, Abraham refuses to accept gifts from the King of Sodom after the war with the four kings.

This requires further commentary.

Previously, Abraham did, in fact, accept gifts from Pharaoh and Abimelech. His rejection of gifts from the King of Sodom is motivated by his refusal to have anything to do with an accursed people (which is what sets him apart from Lot).

The scene where Abraham rejects gifts from the King of Sodom prompts an important conclusion that there is a great difference between sinners in general (even arch-villains) and sinners that have been cursed by someone righteous. Arch-villains like Pharaoh and Laban still have a chance to repent. The Torah tells us:

“And Laban arose early in the morning and kissed his [Jacob's] sons and daughters and blessed them, and Laban went and returned to his place.”

It would be absurd to imagine the heads of the Twelve Tribes of Israel receiving a blessing from an arch-villain. The teachings of Hasidic Judaism note that when giving his blessing, Laban ascended to the high holiness level (the ‘white’ level; Laban is Hebrew for white) and then returned to his place, i.e., descended back to the arch-villain level.

In the Torah portion of Lech-Lecha, we read: “After these incidents, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying, "Fear not, Abram; I am your Shield; your reward is exceedingly great."

To which Abraham (Abram) responds, "O Lord G-d, what will You give me, since I am going childless...?"

A little further along in the same chapter, we read: “And He said to him, "I am the Lord, Who brought you forth from Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.”

To which Abraham's response is, “O Lord G-d, how will I know that I will inherit it?”In both examples above, Abraham uses the words "me" and "I" when addressing the Almighty, thus emphasizing to some degree that he is removed from Him. But as the story progresses, Abraham's position on the Self — G-d scale shifts.

After the circumcision and the visit from angels (the Torah portion of Vayeira), the Almighty and Abraham have a conversation. The Almighty informs Abraham of His decision to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.

Further in the Torah, we read: “And Abraham approached ["Vayigash" in Hebrew] and said, "Will You even destroy the righteous with the wicked?".'

It is evident that "Vayigash" here must be interpreted as a movement forward in the information space, i.e., Abraham's comprehension of more profound, complex concepts.

A further passage reads, “And Abraham answered and said, "Behold now I have commenced to speak to the Lord, although I am dust and ash.” In this line of dialogue, Abraham also uses the word "I," but he does so to emphasize how small and insignificant he is, compared to the Almighty. This fact is proof that Abraham has made significant progress into the bitul zone.

A short while after Isaac is born, Abraham parts ways with Hagar and Ishmael. It is only after this event that Akedah (the binding of Isaac) occurs, and it is the Akedah that brings Abraham to an absolute bitul state.

Conclusion

In this article, I began my exploration of the Law of Likeness, which is the universal principle of Creation. This law can explain the nature of the relationship between humanity and the Almighty and shed light on the concepts of life, death, love, beauty, and many others. This is what I will attempt in future articles. The Law of Likeness will be further supplemented with examples from the Torah.

In conclusion, I would like to highlight a very important consequence of the Law of Likeness. The discussion in this article allows us to understand why those who are Righteous are punished even for "minor" transgressions.

Unlike a regular everyday person, a Righteous person is at a minimal distance to the Tree of the Sefirot, leading to maximal Likeness. Therefore, every sinful act (i.e., interaction with the concept of Evil), even the most trivial one, rapidly creates a gap between the Righteous person and the Tree of the Sefirot, essentially destroying the Likeness. In the case of a regular person, such "jumps" are much smaller, as the distance to the Tree of the Sefirot is still quite sizeable, and the Likeness is small.

There is another possibility as well. If a Righteous person with a high degree of Likeness (understanding) decides (G-d forbid!) to reach out to the side of Evil, the consequences can turn devastating. That is the reason why Adam and Ḥawwāh (Eve) were banished from Gan-Eden.

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And G-d said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness'

Theory of Likeness Part 1

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