The Torah portion of “Chayei Sarah” opens with the words:
“And the life of Sarah was one hundred years and twenty years and seven years; the years of the life of Sarah.”
(Genesis 23:1)
If we look closely at this verse, we notice that the final words – “the years of the life of Sarah” – seem completely unnecessary. After all, the verse already began with “the life of Sarah was…” So why end by repeating “the years of the life of Sarah”?
Rashi, the great commentator on the Torah, quotes the words of our sages in the Talmud:
“The years of the life of Sarah – all of them were equally good.”
Steadfastness
Rabbi Yehuda Aryeh Leib Alter, the Rebbe of Gur in the late 19th century and one of the foremost leaders of Polish Jewry, known by the title of his famous book Sfat Emet, explains this passage as follows:
“It is a great virtue for a person to remain steadfast and whole-hearted no matter what befalls him. There is a test for the poor and a test for the rich. In her early years, Sarah endured many hardships – famine, and being taken by Pharaoh and Avimelech. In her later years, she had every good thing, yet she remained unchanged through all these changes…” (Sfat Emet, “Chayei Sarah”).
Sarah’s 127 years were not filled with comfort and blessing. Much of her youth was marked by barrenness, hardship during her wanderings with Abraham through foreign lands, and painful experiences such as being abducted by Pharaoh of Egypt, and the anguish she felt when her husband took Hagar, the maidservant, who quickly conceived Ishmael.
The way we respond
Sarah’s great achievement, which the Torah highlights, was her ability to live calmly and serenely, facing the circumstances life imposed upon her with equanimity and inner peace. A person who can view all situations – pleasant or difficult – with a broad and balanced perspective, without allowing them to disturb his or her inner tranquility, is truly living life in the best possible way.
What a person is destined to experience in this world cannot be changed; it is not in human hands. But the way one receives and responds to those experiences – that is within one’s control. Only the person himself determines how he will react to changing situations, whether good or bad.
The Midrash teaches that during Sarah’s lifetime, her tent was blessed in three ways:
A lamp burned continuously – symbolizing unceasing light and joy.
A blessing rested in her dough – representing abundance and generosity.
A cloud was tied over her tent – a sign of the divine presence, symbolizing peace and holiness.
The next generation
These blessings never ceased throughout her life; something that could not have been possible if Sarah had succumbed to sadness or worry because of her trials. When Sarah died, these three blessings disappeared, and Isaac, her only son, was inconsolable. The sense of loss filled the tent in every way. But when Isaac married his wife, Rebecca, the Torah tells us:
“And Isaac brought her into the tent of Sarah, his mother, and he took Rebecca, and she became his wife; and he loved her, and Isaac was comforted after his mother” (Genesis 24:67).
What does the phrase “into the tent of Sarah, his mother” mean? Rashi explains, quoting Genesis Rabbah:
“He brought her into the tent – and she became like Sarah, his mother. That is to say: behold, she was [like] Sarah, his mother. For as long as Sarah lived, a lamp burned from one Sabbath eve to the next, a blessing was found in her dough, and a cloud was tied over her tent. When she died, these ceased. When Rebecca arrived, they returned.”
Only when Isaac saw that his wife possessed the same qualities of calm and inner peace that had characterized Sarah did he find comfort for his loss. ■
The writer is rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites.