Joseph’s Journey From Self-Centered to Other-Centered (Vayeshev 5774)

In this week’s parsha Joseph endures quite a journey.  After being elevated by his father Joseph imagines (literally dreams) that his siblings will bow to him and his parents will orbit him.  Talk about self-centered.  His brothers cannot stand his arrogance so they throw him into a pit and sell him into slavery.  

When his brothers throw Joseph into the pit Torah tells us that it was “empty” and “without water.” (Genesis 37:24) But that seems redundant. An empty pit would, of course, have no water in it.  The ancient Rabbi Achah reads the redundancy to mean that the pit was so empty there was no Torah (often identified with nourishing waters) in it.  (See Genesis Rabbah 84:16.).  Yet if Joseph was in the pit, then it was not truly empty.  Following Rabbi Achah, perhaps Torah is suggesting that at this stage in his journey it was Joseph himself who was empty.  He was so self-centered that he was lacking in Torah.  

From the pit Joseph is sold into slavery and winds up in Pharaoh’s prison.  At that lonely point in Joseph’s journey, Torah tells us “Va-yahee Adonai et Yosef -- God was with Joseph.”  (Genesis 39:21)  Torah continues “va’yeet chesed,” which is usually translated as 'God showed Joseph kindness.'  But a more literal translation might be instructive here, it is that God “inclined Joseph toward kindness.”  

Inclined toward kindness in prison Joseph treats his fellow prisoners with dignity, respect, and honesty.  That focus on others grows through Joseph until ultimately he develops the capacity to rescue his family from famine and to nourish the entire nation of Egypt. When we are, like Joseph must have been, feeling alone and afraid, the presence of others -- even just a single person -- has the power to incline us toward kindness directed at others.

Joseph’s journey moves from being self-centered to being other-centered. This is amplified by his dream interpretations.  At first Joseph renders only his own dreams.  Later he grows to render the dreams of others.  He is at the center of his early dream interpretations but others are at the center of his later ones.  

Rav Huna teaches that the phrase God was with Joseph means that Joseph was constantly conscious of something beyond himself. In other words, it does not mean that God was uniquely present with Joseph, rather that Joseph was uniquely aware of the world beyond himself.  It means Joseph has lost his self-centered perspective.  Joseph cultivated his capacity to look beyond himself, to care for others.  

Rav Huna also suggested that Joseph was constantly whispering God’s name to himself.  In that sense, we are reminded that whatever we are muttering about -- or whispering to ourselves -- when serving others shapes our experience of that service.  When the presence of others inclines us toward others we can visit those who are sick or clothe and shelter those who are vulnerable or feed those who are hungry without any muttering or resentment.  When we are alone we may be afraid to do any of that.  But when we are with others, lifting and encouraging them as they do the same for us, then we are inclined toward kindness through a consciousness of others beyond ourselves.  

May each of us have many opportunities to be with others and incline them and ourselves toward kindness.