Even the righteous among us, whom we would naturally consider deserving of a bump-free road along the journey of life, are, like the rest of us, beset by personal travails of one type or another. We come into this world as employees, not vacationers; we are given problems to solve and responsibilities to tend to, and cannot expect to be left alone to relax in unbridled comfort and ease.
Rashi, commenting to the opening verse of Parashat Vayeshev, famously cites a passage from Bereishit Rabba (84:3):
Yaakov sought to dwell in tranquility, but then the anguish of Yosef immediately pounced on him. The righteous seek to dwell in tranquility, but the Almighty says: “Is it not enough for the righteous that which is prepared for them in the next world, that they seek to live in tranquility even in this world?”
Many scholars and writers have raised the question of why the Midrash felt that Yaakov, and other righteous people, were wrong for seeking tranquility, and how we are to understand the Midrash’s response.
We might suggest that Chazal here do not intend to criticize Yaakov – or the tzadikim – for the natural quest for serenity, but rather seek to convey the basic lesson that these aspirations are seldom fully met in this world. “Is it not enough for the righteous that which is prepared for them in the next world, that they seek to live in tranquility even in this world?” Meaning, “tranquility” – in the truest sense of the word – is something that belongs in the next world, and not in our world. Of course, we all seek and yearn for peaceful, tranquil, pleasant lives, and we are certainly entitled to harbor such hopes and pursue this goal. But Chazal alert us to the reality that complete shalva (“tranquility”) is rarely experienced in this world. All people, at virtually every stage of life, endure some forms of hardship, pressures or disappointments. Even the righteous among us, whom we would naturally consider deserving of a bump-free road along the journey of life, are, like the rest of us, beset by personal travails of one type or another. We come into this world as employees, not vacationers; we are given problems to solve and responsibilities to tend to, and cannot expect to be left alone to relax in unbridled comfort and ease.
The Sages chose this context, the introduction to the story of Yosef, as the most suitable framework within which to present us with this reminder about life. Already an aged man, Yaakov had finally “settled down.” He had spent his entire life working toward this point – to settle in his homeland, Canaan, with his family. Many years earlier, Yaakov left Canaan and went to Charan to build a family and a fortune. He then returned to Canaan, and endured numerous travails as he made his way southward to Chevron, where he wished to settle. Now, he finally arrived at his final destination, at the stage he had wished for, the time when life would, once and for all, be normal and “tranquil.”
The unfolding story of Yosef thus exemplifies the message the Midrash seeks to convey. Yaakov finally arrived at the stage he anticipated, and suddenly his family was torn asunder by strife and even an apparent fratricide.
The Midrash’s warning is not intended to present us with a grim, disheartening view of life. To the contrary, it serves as a source of encouragement, reminding us that our pressures and struggles are simply par for the course. If we expect a perfectly smooth ride, we will meet with frustration and disappointment; but if we expect hurdles along the road, then when we confront them, we will have the resolve and confidence we need to successfully surmount them.