Question of the Week:
Do we believe in unicorns? I once heard the Torah says they really do exist....
Answer:
Yes we do. I have seen one. And I bet you have too.
The Torah relates that the Israelites made a Mishkan, a portable Temple in the desert. G-d instructed them to make the outer walls out of the skin of a mysterious animal called a Tachash.
Our sages described the Tachash as a desert animal with a stunning multi-coloured hide and one horn in the middle of its head. The Tachash suddenly appeared when the Mishkan was being built, then disappeared without a trace, never to be seen again.
There is a powerful message behind this enchanting little episode. The building of the Temple is a symbol of our life mission, to create a home for G-d in this world, to shape our lives into a sanctuary where holiness can dwell.
Life is made up of many fleeting moments. The years fly by, the days come and go, and opportunities appear and disappear. Like the Tachash, here today and gone tomorrow.
Each one of these moments is multi-coloured, multi-faceted and multi-layered. We have good days and not such good days. Even on a good day there can be some challenges too, and on a not such good day there are blessings as well.
As many as the colours of the day are, there is only one horn pointing straight ahead. Everything we face, every day of our lives, all point in one direction. We are all here for a short while, to fulfil our mission to make our world kinder and happier. Every interaction we have, every experience we go through, every person we meet and every place we go, they all come to one point - make this moment a holy moment.
So you have seen the mysterious Tachash. It is the beautiful moment you are living right now. It will soon disappear. Grab it by the horn.
Good Shabbos,
Rabbi Moss
Sources:
Exodus 25:5
Midrash Tanchuma 6
Talmud Yerushalmi Shabbos 2:3
Talmud Bavli Shabbos 28a
ב"ה