Divide & Conquer - Vayishlach

Divide & Conquer
Parshat Vayishlach

In this week's Torah portion of Vayishlach we read of the encounter between Yaakov and Esav. The Torah describes how Yaakov is very concerned that Esav would want to harm him and his family, as he had "stolen" the blessings many years earlier. Thus, Yaakov prepares for this confrontation in three ways; (1) he tries to soften Esav's heart by showering him with many gifts, (2) he prays to G-d, and (3) he prepares for war by creating an escape plan and dividing his camp into two forces.

The Torah tells us (Bereishis 32:8) ויחץ את העם אשר אתו... לשני מחנות - And he divided the people that were with him... into two camps".

From a strategic perspective this makes sense. Our forefather Jacob was preparing for multiple scenarios and planning ahead. He was trying to protect his family to the best of his abilities. Our sages derive from this that one must not rely on miracles but plan and be prepared to the best of one's abilities. 

Perhaps there is another lesson as well.

Often, when confronted by a challenge we become overwhelmed and shut down. It may be something that we or our loved ones are dealing with; spiritually, emotionally or financially. The magnitude of our problem or challenge is paralyzing and as a result, we can't do anything at all.

This is when we must learn to divide and conquer. We must take a lesson from our Torah portion and realize that when something is so scary and overwhelming, we must break it down into bite-size pieces and then deal with it, one chunk at a time. An analogy can be made to a student that can't do 20 math problems, so a parent might say "do five problems and go play outside". Later on, the parent can have the student revisit the homework and continue working on it.

Too often, in matters of spirituality or personal growth, the task is so overwhelming that we don't even begin the task. The lesson we learn from our forefather Jacob is break it down into smaller pieces. Divide and conquer and before you know it you will have dealt with the issue at hand.

Shabbat Shalom