Judaism
Parashah of the week: Ki Tetzei
“When you enter your neighbour's vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you desire, until you are sated, but you shall not put [any] into your vessel” Deuteronomy 23:25
September 13, 2024 08:51
“When you enter your neighbour's vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you desire, until you are sated, but you shall not put [any] into your vessel” Deuteronomy 23:25
September 13, 2024 08:51“When you enter your neighbour's vineyard, you may eat as many grapes as you desire, until you are sated, but you shall not put [any] into your vessel” Deuteronomy 23:25
Our verse is one of many in this week’s parashah seeking to create a society characterised by both generosity and a strong sense of healthy boundaries.
On the one hand, we who live in capitalist countries might well baulk at the notion that a person can eat as many grapes as they desire from their neighbour's vineyard. This may not sit comfortably with our ingrained notion of private property, often understood as a pillar of our identity.
We might ask: surely owners of vineyards might themselves face economic hardship if all of their produce was gobbled up?
Of course, this is where the second half of the verse comes into play: Yes, a person may eat as many grapes as they desire, but they may not take any away with them in a vessel.
In other words, generosity is a crucial value for a healthy society, but it is no less important to our social wellbeing that this generosity is practised in a sustainable fashion.
Taking this logic further, the talmudic sages learn from the mention of a “vessel” that the verse is talking about an agricultural worker who is currently engaged with harvesting the grapes (Bava Metzia 87b).
And they learn from the phrase “until you are sated” that one may not over-eat – that is, eat beyond the point of physical satisfaction.
These limitations might first appear to stymie the original intention of the verse, but we can also understand them as making the Torah's suggested generosity more practically applicable.
The great Chasidic master, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, teaches that when we eat food that our bodies need, our very need helps to bring out the nourishing vitality of the food (Likutei Moharan 257). Whereas, when we eat more than our bodies need, this food not only does not nourish us, but actually drains us of vitality.
Rebbe Nachman is saying that when we respect our actual needs, and seek appropriate nourishment, we will be sated. But when we seek more than we need, we remain fundamentally unsatisfied even as we consume to excess
May we learn to share with both generosity and discernment, and to enjoy the satisfaction that comes from consuming what we actually need.
Rabbi Silverstein runs Applied Jewish Spirituality