Close To Torah

As the forefather of the Messiah, David expressed his yearning for perfection and for the ingathering of the exiles throughout the psalms. The Jewish soul yearns to be connected to Hashem and to establish true bonds with its Maker. Tikun Chatzos is a prayer that the righteous Jews throughout the generation recited mourning the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash and asking Hashem to please bring the redemption. Why are verses from this psalm and the last used as part of the text of this Tikun Chatzos?

Two Parts

Tikun Chatzos is a text that is divided into two parts. The first part is named Tikun Rachel after our great Matriarch who suffered throughout her life, died at a tragically young age, while in labor with her final son Binyamin and had a most difficult life. Tikun Rachel appropriately expresses sorrow and bitter tears over the pain in the world on account of disconnection from Hashem. Rachel was buried on the road and remained separated from her husband even in death. The second part of Tikun Chatzos is contrastingly opposite from the first. It is hopeful and positive and is called Tikun Yaakov and Leah. This is because Yaakov and Leah were married for a long time and were buried next to one another in the Cave of Machpelah. This symbolizes the deep connection between Hashem and the Jewish people (Siddur Iyun Tefillah).

Hope

It is for this reason and because of this theme that Tikun Yaakov and Leah begins with verses from psalms 42 and 43. These psalms express the deep and everlasting connection and bond between Hashem and the Jewish people. The Seforim explain that the true theme of Tikun Chatzos is not the focus on the pain of the Jewish nation, rather, it is a focus on the great pain that Hashem so to speak suffers from the fact that His children are not connected to him. How can we understand this?

Imagine that a parent is looking out of the window proudly watching his son or daughter ride his or her bike down the street. Suddenly, she forgets to heed her parent’s advice and does not look where she is riding. Her father watches in horror as she trips over a branch and goes flying in the air. She lands with a thump and a bloody arm and leg. Her father rushes outside to assist her and to assess her immediate medical needs. Who feels more pain: the child or her father? As a parent we understand that our child’s pain may be great, but the emotional pain that we feel when our precious child gets hurt is something that the child has no comprehension of. Our baby whom we invested so much into and have such high hopes for has suffered a setback and has gotten hurt. This causes us great distress and pain.

Hashem’s Perspective

Hashem is our Father and He has put us in the world to achieve success and to be great. When we make poor choices and get hurt, this causes Hashem great pain, even greater so to speak than what we experience. When one contemplates the great love, care and bond that Hashem has with us, this encourages us forward and rekindles the spark of love and commitment which David so eloquently expressed in this psalm and the previous one. David showed us how to open our hearts and minds to the service of Hashem and to experience the everlasting love.

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