By Rabbi Yair Hoffman

Today, the 11th of Cheshvan marks the yahrtzeit of Rachel Imeinu (according to the Midrash), a day that can stir the very depths of our neshamos. As we observe this sacred yahrtzeit, we must ask ourselves not just how to remember her, but how to ignite her eternal flame within our own hearts. How can we, her children, carry forward her legacy of boundless love and sacrifice?

“And behold in the morning it was Leah.” These words, forever etched in our Torah, carry an ocean of meaning. Rashi, illuminating this moment, reveals the  depth in these words – “in the evening it wasn’t Leah” – because Rachel, with tears in her heart but steel in her resolve, had given the secret signs to her sister. In that moment of sacrifice, Rachel transformed the very nature of chesed.

We learn from Rachel not merely to be concerned about kavod – the honor of others – but to let this concern consume us, to let it override our own deepest desires. She teaches us not just to avoid causing embarrassment, but to sacrifice everything we hold dear to protect another’s dignity. Every fiber of her being cried out against humiliating another soul.

Think of the magnitude of her sacrifice! She didn’t just give up a momentary happiness – she surrendered what she believed to be her entire destiny. In her mind, she wasn’t just giving up Yaakov; she was resigning herself to a life with Eisav. The very thought sends shivers through us, yet Rachel stood firm, choosing her sister’s dignity over her own dreams.

THE EARTH-SHATTERING POWER OF PREVENTING HUMILIATION

When the first Bais HaMikdash lay in ashes, when our people’s sins of avodah zarah had torn apart the very fabric of our relationship with Hashem, it was Rachel’s merit that pierced the heavens. The Midrash, cited by Rashi (Yirmiyahu 31), reveals her powerful plea: “I was not jealous of my co-wife and gave away my Simanim, You too Hashem – be not jealous of Avodah Zarah!” These weren’t just words – they were keys that unlocked the gates of redemption, leading to our restoration in Eretz Yisroel and the rebuilding of our Bais HaMikdash.

YAAKOV’S PROPHETIC VISION

When Yaakov Avinu made the heart-wrenching decision to bury Rachel on the road to Bais Lechem, rather than in the Maaras HaMachpeilah with our other holy Imahos, he was acting with divine inspiration. Through his ruach hakodesh, he saw how her kever would become an eternal wellspring of salvation for her children.

This prophecy would unfold in the most tragic of times. When Nevuzaradan drove our people into exile, as they passed by her grave, Rachel Imeinu emerged and raised her voice in tearful prayer. As recorded in Yirmiyahu (31), “Thus did Hashem say, a voice is heard on high, lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeps for her children, she refuses to be consoled for her children, for they are not.” Her cry pierced the heavens, and Hashem himself responded with words of comfort: “Thus did Hashem say, mini kolech mibechi – refrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for there is reward for your labor, said Hashem, veshavu vanim ligvulam – and the children shall return to their borders” (as cited by Rashi in Vayechi and the Radak in Yirmiyahu 31).

THE SUPREME MERIT OF MESIRAS NEFESH

There was another profound zchus that Rachel carried – she departed this world in the very act of bringing forth the future of Klal Yisroel. The Torah’s description suggests she likely faced a breach birth, as evidenced by the unusual conversation with the midwife during her labor. This wasn’t just a passing detail – it was Rachel’s final act of mesiras nefesh, giving her very life to bring another Jewish soul into the world. As our holy Gemara teaches us, such a death in the performance of a mitzvah carries incomparable merit.

THE REVOLUTIONARY SPIRIT OF KIRUV

Let us delve deeper into Rachel’s third remarkable zchus – her efforts to save her father Lavan’s soul. This was the same Lavan whom we condemn each Pesach in the Hagaddah as “Arami Oved Avi” – the Aramean who sought to destroy our father Yaakov. Yet Rachel, seeing beyond his evil facade, felt deep compassion for her father’s spiritual state. When she took his terafim, she wasn’t just removing idols – she was performing the ultimate act of kiruv, trying to break her father’s addiction to avodah zarah.

The story didn’t end with her excuse of being unable to rise. As Rabbi Yochanan reveals in the Midrash (Ualkut Shimoni 31:34), Lavan refused to accept her words and forced her to stand. It was then that Hashem performed a miracle, transforming the terafim into pachim ketanim – the same small vessels that were so precious to Yaakov Avinu according to a number of Meforshim, precious because they stood as eternal testimony to the miracle performed for his beloved Rachel.

LESSONS FOR ETERNITY

What burning lessons can we draw from Rachel Imeinu’s legacy? We must give our all for Klal Yisroel! Our prayers must burst forth with the same intensity as Rachel’s tears. We must strive to reach her lofty heights of chesed, to implant her spiritual DNA of boundless giving into our own souls.

There is something uniquely powerful about the tefilos of nashim tzidkaniyos, our righteous women. Neither Yaakov Avinu, nor the other Avos, nor even Moshe Rabbeinu could achieve what Rachel’s tears accomplished. This power extends from the Galus of Bavel through our current exile, the lengthy Galus of Edom – which encompasses both Eisav and Yishmael.

CONCLUSION

These three remarkable zchusim of Rachel Imeinu shine like brilliant stars guiding us through our own spiritual journey: her selfless prevention of another’s shame at the cost of her own future, her mesiras nefesh in continuing our nation’s legacy at the cost of her life, and her tireless efforts to rescue even the most distant soul from spiritual darkness. It was this powerful combination that enabled her to play such a pivotal role in ending galus Bavel and restoring Klal Yisroel to Eretz Yisroel.

B’Ezras Hashem, may her merit continue to shield us, may her tears continue to wash away our exile, and may we soon witness the final redemption she has prayed for throughout the generations. May Moshiach tzidkeinu come speedily in our days, returning all her children to their borders, bim’heira b’yameinu, Amain!   – The author can be reached at [email protected]