"He who makes peace in the heavens, may He make peace amongst us and amongst all of Israel.

The first part of this phrase--"He who makes peace in the heavens"--is based on Job (25:2). Rashi there explains: when the constellations rise each evening in the sky, each one, as it is rising above the horizon, cannot see any constellation before it. Therefore each thinks that it is the one that is rising first. In this way none of the celestial bodies is jealous of any other.

Clearly, this passage is intended in a metaphorical manner. Obviously, the celestial bodies do not actually have an attribute of jealousy. What we are taught here is the secret of how we may avoid jealousy within our own lives. Certainly, it is natural for someone to become envious of others when he looks around him and sees that others have things which he lacks.

But it is possible for us to rise above it, and that is what we are taught by this cryptic idea in Job. Each of the constellations has its own role to play, and their orbits through the sky have been set up in such a manner that each one, as it is rising, does not see any of the others. Its role is completely unique, and does not overlap the role of any other celestial body.And so it should be with man. If we can internalize this idea, that our own role within the universe is completely unique, completely our own, then we will be able to be happy with our own lot. It is when we think that others have things which rightfully ought to be ours, when we see what others have and think that they ought to belong to us--it is then that we become jealous. But in fact, if Hashem had wanted us to have these things, He would have given them to us. We have each been granted everything that we need to achieve our own unique purpose in life.

"He who makes peace in the heavens, may He make peace amongst us and amongst all of Israel." This seemingly untopian objective is actually within our power. We have but to look to the heavenly bodies, and learn from the manner in which Hashem has set them in the sky

Copyright (c) 1998 by Rabbi Levi Langer

Courtesy of www.JewishAmerica.com
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