Bo l'Pharaoh

Rabbi Arthur Waskow

Parsha Bo
Our Torah portion this week begins, "Bo l'Pharaoh." Most translations say "Go to Pharaoh" but I hear it as "Come to Pharaoh," not "Go." Thus God is already in Pharaoh -- "Come toward Me." Then I hear "Hikhbad'ti libo" (usually translated as "I have made his heart heavy, or hard,") as "I have put my radiance [kavod=that which radiates from one place to another, heaviness like gravity, honor, glory] in his heart."
In other words: "Don't be afraid of Pharaoh: what looks like HIS radiance, HIS glory, is really MY radiance, MY glory. Everything he seems to be is simply a refraction of Me. For the moment the glory of the Unity of the universe SEEMS to be embodied in him; but it really goes far beyond him, and as you, Moses, are already beginning to see, that radiance will soon be fully visible not in Pharaoh but in his overthrow, in HISTORY-TURNED-UPSIDE-DOWN -- or rather, TURNED-RIGHT-SIDE-UP. "
For me, this is a constant, powerful, and crucial lesson. What seems to be an irresistible dominant power in the world -- whether it is a political/economic boss, ruler, corporation, or a personal addiction, obsession, is ONLY a garment of God, and whenever I can see thru the garment into the Divine glory at its heart, I can BEGIN to free myself.
by Rabbi Arthur Waskow
Director, The Shalom Center