Loneliness

The incident of Yakov wrestling with the angel, came about when Yakov was left alone. He went back to retrieve some forgotten packages that were left behind.

Rabbi Twerski took this story to speak about the highly negative side of loneliness. Aside from being told in the Torah that it is not good when man is left alone, it can be detrimental to one’s emotional well being.

When one chooses to be alone, it could lead to self centeredness. And when a person is not giving to others, he will be unhappy and lacking in self esteem. These become the ingredients towards alcoholism and other addictions.

When one does acts of kindness, Chessed, it gives him a sense of purpose meaning, and worthiness. Selfish people, despite having great wealth, are miserable. One cannot achieve real joy, unless he is a real giver.

There is a clear danger to isolation. Ideally, we need to surround ourselves with people that share the same principles of Chessed. Helping others becomes contagious.

Yakov was left alone and he overcame the challenge. But it was quite a struggle that left him with a limp so that he would remember the lesson. We are nation where we are meant to give and strengthen one another. We are not meant to be alone.