Walk for Life – Lech Lecha
וַיֹּאמֶר ה' אֶל אַבְרָם לֶךְ לְךָ מֵאַרְצְךָ וּמִמּוֹלַדְתְּךָ וּמִבֵּית אָבִיךָ אֶל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַרְאֶךָּ (בראשית יב, א).
At the end of last week's parsha, Noach, we read about the birth of Avram (not yet Avraham), the first of the three Patriarchs. The Midrashim fill in many details about Avram's childhood and youth, but these are absent in the psukkim. What is the first independent "action" the Torah lists Avram as doing? וַיִּקַּח אַבְרָם וְנָחוֹר לָהֶם נָשִׁים (בראשית יא, כט), the beginning of Avram's story, at least as far as the Torah is concerned, is his marriage to Sarai (not yet Sarah).
The way of the world is that when someone gets married, they settle down and start a family. This is how we would expect the Torah to continue the story. However, the next "action" that the Torah lists Avram as doing is "walking", וַיִּקַּח תֶּרַח אֶת אַבְרָם בְּנוֹ וְאֶת לוֹט בֶּן הָרָן בֶּן בְּנוֹ וְאֵת שָׂרַי כַּלָּתוֹ אֵשֶׁת אַבְרָם בְּנוֹ וַיֵּצְאוּ אִתָּם מֵאוּר כַּשְׂדִּים לָלֶכֶת אַרְצָה כְּנַעַן (שם, לא).
Thus begins Avraham's saga of "walking". In the following three parshas Lech Lecha, Vayeira and Chayei Sarah … Avraham does a lot of walking. If you count the number of times the Torah mentions the action of walking in connection with Avraham, you will find 18 "walkings" - sometimes Avraham walking alone, sometimes together with others (with Yitzchak to the Akeida, e.g.). The number 18, חַי seems to indicate that there is a connection between walking and life!
How do we know that the word לֶךְ means actual walking (by foot) and is not simply an expression for "travelling" (perhaps by donkey/camel etc.)? From the later parsha of the Akeida! The Torah tells us וַיַּשְׁכֵּם אַבְרָהָם בַּבֹּקֶר וַיַּחֲבֹשׁ אֶת חֲמֹרוֹ (כב, ג), Avraham indeed took his donkey along for the journey. Perhaps you might think he rode on the donkey? The answer is no! The donkey carried the wood for the sacrifice, which Avraham later loaded on Yitzchak to carry up the mountain. Then we read שְׁבוּ לָכֶם פֹּה עִם הַחֲמוֹר וַאֲנִי וְהַנַּעַר נֵלְכָה עַד כֹּה (שם, ה), Avraham leaves the donkey behind with Yishmael and Eliezer and continues with Yitzchak … on foot.
In this shiur I would like to discuss the physical action of walking (there is more to it than meets the eye) and what walking signifies on a more spiritual level in the Torah.
First a short introduction.
There is a debate between neuroscientists regarding the subject of "cognition". The "classic/traditional" model of cognition says that there is only one center of cognition in the body – the brain. The brain is the "nerve center" that stores all the knowledge/programming/cognition required by all other parts of the body to perform action. The brain sends messages to the various parts of the body which enables them to perform action – walking, pointing, threading a needle, etc.
More recently, however, neuroscientists have come to accept another, complementary model called - "embodied embedded cognition (EEC)". This states "Yes, the brain is the main repository for cognition, but in addition to the brain, the body parts themselves embody additional cognition embedded within them. Their proof for this was an experiment performed at Cornell university (A Bipedal Walking Robot with Efficient and Human-Like Gait, Collins/Ruina, 2005), in which they created a walking mechanical robot – that has no "brain".
It is simply a collection of steel pipes, plates and hinges - connected together in a specific way. There are no electrical components to this robot whatsoever. When you place this robot on a light incline and give it a light nudge, the robot begins to "walk" on its own down the incline. The walking action of this robot is uncannily human-like. You may see a video clip at this link (starting at 23mins 52secs in the video).
What enables this robot to walk? Obviously, the energy is supplied by the initial, brief push and then gravity, propelling it down the incline. However, the ability to walk in that specific, natural way is embedded in the design and the construction of the parts. By crafting the robot and its parts using specific angles, weights and balances, this gives the robot the ability/cognition to move in a specific way – without the need for a brain.
The EEC model of cognition says that cognition resides not only in our brain, it is extended to the rest of our body and even beyond our bodies … to external accessories like smartphones. For example, the ability to call someone on the phone is a cognitive combination of our brain, our hands and the phone directory stored in the smartphone's memory. In other words, man can extend his cognitive capability into his own man-made creations. It is a fascinating area of research and I encourage you to read more about it online or watch the many related videos on Youtube.
The action of walking involves cognition both from the brain and also from the legs themselves. However, HKB"H designed our legs in such a way that the legs possess the structural ability to walk even in absence of a brain. This research has profound implications for the development of advanced prostheses for paraplegics, for example.
The action of walking is closely connected with many Torah concepts.
One example is – Chametz. Normally one can determine whether dough (flour mixed with water) has become chametz or not, by observing two telltale visible, exterior signs (פסחים מח, ע"ב) on the surface of the raw dough: קַרְנֵי חֲגָבִים – hair-like cracks in the crust and הִכְסִיפוּ פָּנָיו – a silvery sheen on the surface of the dough/batter). Chazal (פסחים מו, ע"א) add an additional method to determine if the dough has become chametz or not even in the absence of these visible signs.
Dough that does not exhibit visible signs of chametz is called בָּצֵק חֵרֵשׁ – a "deaf/mute" dough that does not "communicate" its status to others. How can we determine whether dough has become chametz even if we don't see any visible signs? By giving a time limit. What is the time limit? If, from the time water is added to the flour and mixed, 18 minutes have passed - the dough is considered halachically chametz. Why 18 minutes? The Gemara (ibid.) says that this is זְמַן הִלּוּךְ מִיל, the time it takes to walk the distance of a "mil" (approx. 1km).
This is very slow walking, most people walking at a normal pace can walk 1km in a much shorter time. Perhaps this definition of such a slow walking pace indicates that this is the "threshold of activity". Up to 18 minutes is considered "active walking", while over 18 minutes is tantamount to "standing still" and not walking at all. Dough is not allowed to be left motionless - it must have constant activity to prevent it becoming chametz.
A second example from the Mishna –
אַרְבַּע מִדּוֹת בְּהוֹלְכֵי לְבֵית הַמִּדְרָשׁ. הוֹלֵךְ וְאֵינוֹ עוֹשֶׂה, שְׂכַר הֲלִיכָה בְּיָדוֹ. עוֹשֶׂה וְאֵינוֹ הוֹלֵךְ, שְׂכַר מַעֲשֶׂה בְּיָדוֹ. הוֹלֵךְ וְעוֹשֶׂה, חָסִיד. לֹא הוֹלֵךְ וְלֹא עוֹשֶׂה, רָשָׁע. (אבות ה, יד)
There are four characteristics of those who walk to the Beit HaMidrash: Someone who walks to the Beit HaMidrash but does not learn Torah there (falls asleep during the shiur), he gets שְׂכַר הֲלִיכָה, reward for the very act of walking. Someone who learns Torah (at home) but does not walk to the Beit HaMidrash, gets reward for the very act of learning. Someone who walks to the Beit HaMidrash AND learns there is called a Chassid. Someone who does not walk to the Beit HaMidrash and doesn't learn at home either, is called a rasha.
According to the Mishna, it is possible to add merits towards Olam Habah, by simply walking (for a good purpose). The converse is also true, Rachmana litzlan. It is also possible to reduce your merits in Olam Habah by simply walking (for an evil purpose) רַגְלַיִם מְמַהֲרוֹת לְרָעָה.
To understand the significance of walking in connection with Avraham specifically, we need to examine a concept discussed in sefer Meir Panim (פרק יד, עמ' קמט).
HKB"H created us humans as a combination of a physical body with a spiritual neshama. Is there a specific location in the physical body where the spiritual neshama resides? The answer is no! Since the neshama is spiritual and not physical, it cannot be limited to any physical part of the body, or even to the entire body.
When we sleep each night, our neshama ascends (away from our body) to Heaven for recharging and returns when we wake up (this is the bracha we recite every morning הַמַּחֲזִיר נְשָׁמוֹת לִפְגָרִים מֵתִים). Instead of thinking of our neshama physically located/trapped "within" our body, it is better to think of our neshama as a kind of "aura" permeating and surrounding our body, with the ability to move freely.
Although the physical body and the spiritual neshama are made from different "matter", they have the ability to communicate with each other, in both directions. Meir Panim discusses this communication "highway" in the context of the concept of simcha.
When our neshama experiences spiritual joy, it communicates this joy to our physical body, which results in the physical body "reflecting" the joy of the neshama via a physical manifestation, i.e. a smiling face. The converse is also true. By forcing ourselves to smile voluntarily (not in response to joy), we can initiate physical joy (nerves in the face stimulating the excretion of hormones in the brain).
This physical joy is then communicated back to the neshama and the neshama experiences additional joy. So, when someone is happy in their neshama they smile. The physical act of smiling itself causes a hormonal action in the brain which accentuates the joy (termed the Feedback Effect), which is communicated back to the neshama.
Similarly with walking. When the action of walking is initiated by the neshama, this is communicated to the physical body and is manifested by the body physically walking. The very action of walking itself results in a feedback effect, which is then communicated back to the neshama.
Sometimes the neshama initiates the action, for example, our neshama tells us to get out of bed and go to a Shabbat afternoon shiur. If we are Chassidim (not Belz, Lubavitch, etc., but the Mishnaic definition of a Chassid – describing midot), we will heed the communique of the neshama and walk to shul and remain awake during the shiur. In such a case, the action of walking to shul "feeds back" to the neshama (communicates with it) "You see I listened to what you told me!" In such a case we get merits in the neshama for Olam Habah.
Hopefully we will all be able to eventually acquire the madrega of Chassidut to such a degree that we do not need to wait for a nudge from the neshama to tell us to walk to shul for the shiur. We will acquire "muscle memory" - our legs are already so conditioned to going to the Shabbat afternoon shiur, that they almost walk on their own. In this case, the walking is not "feeding back" in response to a communique from the neshama - it is a direct communication between a sanctified body and the neshama. The merits toward Olam Habah in this case are even higher than the previous case.
If the communique to our legs comes, not from the neshama, but from the yetzer hara (Rachmana litzlan) – and we succumb to it, this also communicates back to our neshama, but instead of building the neshama it causes it צַעַר and results in demerits in Olam Habah.
Avram's first communique to walk did not come from the neshama, it came from his father Terach, in response to a threat. Terach, who was Nimrod's chief of staff, fell out of favor with his boss when Avraham defied Nimrod and started preaching the word of HKB"H. Terach fled, with Avram, Sarai and Lot, from Ur Casdim to Charan.
Although it was not a communique from the neshama, this walking brought Avraham closer to Eretz Yisrael, so it is included in the 18 "walkings" mentioned above. The next 17 walkings included those initiated from the neshama (like לֶךְ לְךָ) and also walkings initiated by "muscle memory", from Avraham's midat Chassidut (like וַיֵּלְכוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם יַחְדָּו in the Akeida).
Do not mistakenly think that walking in itself is separate from learning Torah. It might appear to us from our Mishna above that the two are mutually exclusive, however, this is not the case. We have another Mishna –
הַמְּהַלֵּךְ בַּדֶּרֶךְ וְשׁוֹנֶה וּמַפְסִיק מִמִּשְׁנָתוֹ וְאוֹמֵר - מַה נָּאֶה אִילָן זֶה, וּמַה נָּאֶה נִיר זֶה - מַעֲלֶה עָלָיו הַכָּתוּב כְּאִלּוּ מִתְחַיֵּב בְּנַפְשׁוֹ. (אבות ג, ז)
The Mishna simply assumes that while people are walking, they are at the same time occupied with Torah. When you walk to a shiur, the purpose of walking is not to "see the sights", to look left and right and take in everything you see around you. While walking you should be concentrating on revising Torah you previously learned, saying Tehillim, etc. (Obviously this does not refer to walking over dangerous terrain where one needs to concentrate, otherwise they will fall off a cliff, chas vechalila - but to regular walking).
Avraham has 18 mentions of the word "walking" associated with him in the Torah, representing חַי, life. We learn from Avraham Avinu that walking is synonymous with life. To really live, one must walk – a lot. HKB"H told Avraham קוּם הִתְהַלֵּךְ בָּאָרֶץ לְאָרְכָּהּ וּלְרָחְבָּהּ כִּי לְךָ אֶתְּנֶנָּה (בראשית יג, יז). Do not sit around for too long in one place. Walk the length and breadth of the land, firstly to do a קִנְיָן on the land for your descendants (like the meraglim did when they "toured" the land), but also because walking around and mingling with Am Yisrael is an act of Chessed.
Instead of sitting around in one place and expecting people to pay homage to him, Avraham did the rounds וַיֵּלֶךְ לְמַסָּעָיו מִנֶּגֶב וְעַד בֵּית אֵל עַד הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר הָיָה שָׁם אָהֳלֹה בַּתְּחִלָּה בֵּין בֵּית אֵל וּבֵין הָעָי (שם יג, ג). Later, Shmuel HaNavi copied Avraham's modus operandi and circulated throughout Am Yisrael, because walking is a virtue in itself. It symbolizes life, it injects life to the entire Am Yisrael and prevents stagnation (see shiur on Vayeilech 2025).
When Avraham travelled, it was mostly walking and not riding on animals, except for one case mentioned in the Midrash (פרקי דרבי אליעזר, פרק ל). After Avraham banished Hagar and Yishmael, Avraham still paid periodic visits to his son Yishmael to check in on him. Sarah knew about these visits, but Avraham promised her that when he visited, he would not get off the camel. Aside from this, Avraham walked.
You may ask "If I drive to shul, do I also get שָׂכָר?" Obviously you do, but when you physically walk, you get more שָׂכָר. We learn this from Avraham.
Doctors will tell you that you should walk as much as possible and that it is extremely beneficial for your health. Walking burns calories, keeps the digestive system working normally, facilitates blood flow throughout the body reducing risk of heart disease and stroke, preserves muscle tone, strengthens bones, boosts your immune system, reduces stress, eases joint pain, reduces cravings, prevents the onset of dementia, improves sleep quality, improves mood, slows aging... and more.
A large degree of the ailments of modern society is attributable to our sedentary lifestyle. We get out of bed, drive to work, take the elevator to the office and the reverse back home. Most of the day we sit at a desk or stand. Technology is wonderful, but it is severely detrimental to our health – it makes us physically and mentally lazy. The Torah knows the way to live a physically (and spiritually) healthy lifestyle, the way Avraham did.
Short of some kind of apocalyptic scenario, the world is not going to revert to the reality in the time of Avraham. Nobody is going to forego using cars, buses, trains, planes and other technology. This is why we need to be conscious of the drawbacks and seek ways to walk more in our lives, both physically and spiritually.
We need to walk and mingle more, not sequester ourselves in our own daled amot. Walking fosters better interpersonal relationships and peace within Am Yisrael. To do real Chessed requires walking. Avraham was the epitome of Chessed and Avraham walked, all the time, the two activities are symbiotic.
We need to learn from Avraham and Sarah that getting married is not the end of motion, of walking, it is only the beginning. The more walking (physical and emotional) in a relationship, the better the relationship.
Avraham lived to a ripe old age, in good health – because he walked. The passuk says וְאַבְרָהָם זָקֵן בָּא בַּיָּמִים וַה' בֵּרַךְ אֶת אַבְרָהָם בַּכֹּל (בראשית כד, א), HKB"H blessed Avraham with כֹּל. What is כֹּל? It is the result and a reflection of a lifetime of the same two letters לֶךְ.
Shabbat Shalom
Eliezer Meir Saidel
Machon Lechem Hapanim
www.machonlechemhapanim.org
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