In this week’s Torah portion, Ya’akov lies down to sleep in the place that would later become the Beis Hamikdash (Holy Temple). It seems surprising that specifically the night that he spent in this place was the only time he actually lied down to sleep. For the 14 years that he was studying in the Yeshivah of Eiver he didn’t lie down to sleep – he would only doze off – because he was so busy with Torah. During the twenty years that he spent with Lavan he also didn’t lie down to sleep. But here, in the place of the Beis Hamikdash, he did lie down to sleep?!
When sleeping, the head, which symbolizes the spiritual aspect of the person, is equal to the foot, which symbolizes the physical aspect of the person. While this seems to be negative, it is actually a very great thing. G-d’s Essence is above the differences between spiritual and physical, above and below. When G-d’s Essence is revealed, they are equal. That is why it was specifically in the place of the Beis Hamikdash, the place where G-d’s Essence is revealed, that Ya’akov lied down.
In our lives, we should express our spiritual holiness in every aspect of our physical lives. There should be no separation between our spiritual and physical aspects – they should be one entity: the expression of G-d’s Essence.
(See talk of the Lubavitcher Rebbe King Moshiach Shlita, Vayeitzei 5752 (1991))
