Hakadosh Baruch Hu caused the sun to set out of its proper time in order to speak with Yaakov Avinu in private; like a king who closes the lamps in order to speak with his beloved friend in private. So too, Hakadosh Baruch Hu caused the sun to set out of its proper time in order to speak with Yaakov in private. Hakadosh Baruch Hu wants to speak to you, and that is why He darkens your sun! Yaakov Avinu is the symbol of all our exiles. He represents all the hardships a Jew may endure throughout his life – everything challenging that is possible for a Jew to experience, Yaakov Avinu endured!
Look at what Leah did, how she turned the situation around. From a marriage arrangement with Eisav, she became the mother of the Keter Kehuna, Keter Malchut, and Keter Torah! Leah shows us the power of Tefillah from the depth of the heart, and her tears were so many that her eyelashes fell out – truly the Tefillah of an orphan!
Yaakov Avinu taught us that when something like this happens, and your sun suddenly sets, daven Maariv! Maariv is the Tefillah of darkness.
לְהַגִּיד בַּבֹּקֶר חַסְדֶּךָ – this is Avraham Avinu's Tefillah, Shacharit, recited in the early morning as the sun rises. Yitzchak Avinu established Mincha, the Tefillah at the zenith of daylight. Yaakov Avinu established Maariv, the Tefillah for times of darkness, when a person should daven like an orphan, turning solely to Hakadosh Baruch Hu and recognizing that only He, the Master of all powers, can save and redeem him!
