Machshavot HaLev - Yeshivat Lev HaTorah

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He sees the famine about to ravage Egypt and the rest of the Near East, and he
immediately contrives an elaborate solution, exerting control over the entire
population. From the moment he recognizes his brothers, he manipulates,
controls, and tests them. Clearly, Yosef has a plan for his brothers, and as we
enter Parshat Vayigash, we expect to discover the destination he has been pushing
them to.
However, at the beginning of our parsha, Yosef ’s plan suddenly unravels. In a
volcanic eruption of emotion, Yosef loses control. First, a torrent of feeling still
unready for words: “His voice went out in weeping, and all of Egypt heard” (45:2).
Then, he manages to funnel his emotion into words: “I am Yosef. Does my father
still live?” (45:3). Yosef is unmasked. Yosef ’s unmasking is not part of the plan – he
intended to continue the manipulations. But something happens as Yehuda and
the brothers confront him that overwhelms even Yosef ’s rational self-mastery.
What happened? What triggered Yosef ’s lapse of control?
The Gun Fires
We reencounter the mysterious spices after decades have passed. Famine has
swept Eretz Yisrael, and Yaakov sends his sons for a second time to fetch food
from Mitzrayim. This time, it is a journey of trepidation, sending Binyamin to an
uncertain fate at the demand of the manipulative viceroy. Yaakov tells his sons
to go, and to appease the Egyptian ruler with a modest gift from the family’s
remaining possessions: “This is what you must do: take of the land’s glory in
your bags, and take a gift to the man – a bit of balsam, a bit of honey, spice mix,
ladanum, pistachios, and almonds” (43:11). Three of the items Yaakov mentions
as gifts to the mysterious ruler are the three fragrances that enveloped Yosef as
he journeyed to his destiny as a slave in Egypt! Clearly, the reappearance of these
fragrances is no coincidence. But what is their significance?
Memory, Emotion, and Odor
בלה תובשחמ
Brain science illuminates this mystery. Psychology has revealed a strong
connection between smell, memory, and emotion. For example, the associations
between particular odors and particular experiences, especially emotional