Means
to See Peace Coming
GOTTFRIED HUTTER,
theologian, psychotherapist, founder and chairperson of “The Temple Project Association”
The
biblical narration of Jacob’s fight (Genesis 32,23-33,4) is quite mysterious.
An intercultural and interreligious comparison may help us to understand it.
In
many cultures, from the Bushman culture to Shinto religion, from Hinduism to
the Quakers accounts are to be found which sound very similar to what the Bible
narrates about Jacob’s last night by the River Jabbok. In many of these other
cultures and cults, such an experience is not an extraordinary or unique event,
but either a frequent and unsurprising manifestation or even an exercise or
practice, one which is acknowledged to be mind-clearing. In the latter case, such
practices are recommended as a means of enhancing physical and mental health.
In
all cases, such “exercises” involve spontaneous movement: typically shaking or
spontaneous convulsions, sometimes imperceptible, but sometimes even traumatic
contortions of the whole body. In these cultures, established experience has
shown that by such movements the body frees itself of old burdens: gridlocked
attitudes, compulsive mindsets, oppressive ideologies and all kinds of mental deformations.
Such
an exercise may last minutes or even hours, depending on the extent to which a
person has somaticized anxieties and other mental distortions. It may feel like a struggle, because the
constraints result from conditioning by outside influences, specific human
beings or groups of people, whose influence will somehow be involved in this
exercise –without the protagonist necessarily becoming aware of this.
In
this light, Jacob‘s “fight” becomes more readily understandable – and we can better
understand both how Jacob could in this struggle shake off all his distress, and
how he could suffer such serious injury. Because of the danger of injury,
Shinto healers recommend their disciples not to go into this exercise alone.
But for Jacob this was no mere exercise. His existence was at stake. And thus
he was not alone but connected to the whole of his world. And the injury which
resulted from this process was harmless by comparison with what he would have
suffered, had he not been able to attain the final outcome of his ordeal.
In
his fight Jacob was finally able to let go of his pride and to empathize
completely with his brother, to feel with his entire being Esau’s inner affliction,
the immense rage that had taken hold of him since the day his father’s blessing
passed him by and was given to Jacob.
In
his tremendous inner struggle Jacob realized that he was in no position to claim
he was in the right or obtain acknowledgment of that claim, he must quell his
brother’s wrath or die by his hand. He must enter into his brother’s soul to
fully understand his predicament.
Under
normal circumstances it should have been for Esau to calm his rage, but Jacob
realized that these were no normal circumstances. Esau felt deeply hurt, he
was, as today’s therapists would say, deeply traumatized – and Jacob was in no
position to judge his brother; rather, he needed to judge himself and mend his
own attitude of blaming all their problems on his brother.
He
was in no position to insist on ethical principles; he could not just go on imputing
the fault to his brother, who had never attached great importance to his right
of primogeniture. Now, Jacob had to take account of the broader underlying
reality, and especially of the injury which had produced the wrath that would
kill him within the next few hours – for it was already too late to turn back.
Jacob
had to accept hard realities and, setting aside all ethical notions, to present
himself to his brother in such way as to heal his trauma in a single instant;
more time would not be available, for four hundred soldiers were encamped on
the far side of the river, awaiting Esau’s orders.
His
brother’s wrath had to be soothed in one single instant, and that instant must
completely offset the injury Esau had suffered when he knew he had missed his
father’s blessing, while his brother Jacob had received it in his place.
At
that moment Esau had suffered a complete breakdown. His highest dreams had been
destroyed; he felt as if he had died. This was unbearable. This murder must be avenged. An eye for an
eye, and a tooth for a tooth. His brother must not get away with this. It
called for blood vengeance – but then Jacob escaped to his uncle in Haran.
For
decades Esau had been unable to take action; for decades his anger had been simmering,
but now Jacob had returned, now at last, Esau could and would strike him down.
All
this, Jacob could see clearly that night.
He
had expected a very different homecoming. He had imagined he could soothe his
brother’s feelings with a rich gift, but he had clearly reckoned without his
host. Esau was in no mood to be soothed. He wanted to see blood. He wanted satisfaction
for the humiliation he had suffered.
That
humiliation Jacob could feel now in his bones. That was why his whole body underwent
wild spasms and convulsions. That humiliation was the demon that took hold on
Jacob and foretold his death. That at least was how Jacob saw it at the
beginning of his inner and outer fight. To him, the entity that shook his whole
body uncontrollably was an evil spirit, one he fought for many hours with all his
might.
He
was caught between thoughts, sentiments and attitudes, those of his brother who
wanted to kill him and his own, his firm conviction that he was in the right.
And so, his sense of entitlement battled
against the wrath of his brother until, in the morning, it became clear that the
issue was not one of entitlement but blessing.
At
this point Jacob understood that he had been fighting, not against some evil
demon but against God, who had at last led him to this deep insight. Acknowledging
this, Jacob realized that he must give in to reality. He could no longer rely
on his theoretical privilege but must soothe his brother’s wrath, and to accomplish
that, he had only one option.
He
must come down from his high horse of being justified; he must face up to his
brother’s infuriation and acknowledge his power. He must capitulate before his
brother. He must prostrate himself before him in such a way as to leave no
doubt of his surrender.
Behavioral
scientists today might speak of an inhibition against killing, which occurs in
fights between members of the same species, when one of the two clearly
signifies his defeat. But far more was involved here than a mere inhibition
against killing. This was the dissolution of a whole complex of wrath, the
sudden restoration of the natural brotherly love.
Jacob’s
surrender dissolved the knot in Esau’s soul. The evil spirit that had dominated
him for decades evaporated.
Esau
bent down to the brother who lay before him, and raised him to his feet – and
only then did he see the injury Jacob had suffered in his all-night struggle. Instead
of rage, Esau was now filled with brotherly love. The past had subsided – in an
instant. There was nothing he could hold against him, there was only love.
In
this love, “mine” and “thine” remained unmixed, but now everything could be settled,
and Esau could accept the gift which Jacob had brought for him.
Now
Esau could accept the blessing bestowed by their father as belonging to his
brother. Now things were good just as they were.
Esau
did not need all the land he possessed. He could share it with his brother.
Both could live side by side in peace.
Such
was the outcome of Jacob’s wrestling, and from that day on Jacob bore a new
name, “Israel”, “he who fought with God, and prevailed”.
Would
it not be beautiful if modern Israel, too, could prevail in like manner?
(Update: 2014_01_11)
Information and contact: www.Temple-Project.de, gottfried.hutter@gmx.de
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