Yom Kippur – The ScapeGoat

THE LOT ON THE TWO GOATS - A "FORK IN THE ROAD"

One of the central services in the Holy Temple on the Day of Atonement is the lot which the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) casts upon the two goats. This unique service is laden with mystery, which, upon introspection, can lead to deep insights pertaining to our own lives. Let us become acquainted with the details of this service, as a springboard for delving further (Leviticus 16:7-22):

"And he shall take the two he-goats, and place them before Hashem at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. And Aharon shall place lots upon the two he-goats: One lot 'For Hashem', and the other lot, 'For Azazel.'

And Aaron shall bring the he-goat upon which the lot, 'For Hashem', came up, and designate it as a Sin Offering. And the he-goat upon which the lot 'For Azazel' came up, shall be placed while still alive, before Hashem, to [initiate] atonement upon it, and to send it away to Azazel, into the desert…

He shall then slaughter the he-goat of the people's Sin Offering and bring its blood within the dividing curtain, and he shall do with its blood as he had done with the bull's blood, and he shall sprinkle it upon the Ark cover and before the Ark cover....

And Aharon shall lean both of his hands upon the live he-goat's head and confess upon it all the willful transgressions of the children of Israel, all their rebellions, and all their unintentional sins, and he shall place them on the he-goat's head, and send it off to the desert with a designated man. The he-goat shall thus carry upon itself all their sins to an uninhabited land, and he shall send off the he-goat into the desert."

The two goats which are acquired for this service must be as similar as possible, as stated in Mishnah Yoma 6:1:

"The two goats of the Day of Atonement: It is a requirement that they be alike in appearance, in size, in value, and that they be bought at the same time."

The reason for the necessity for utmost similarity of the two goats is that, as the lot is cast, they actually represent one individual, dealing with a dilemma in life.

There, standing before G-d, one looks towards the Holy of Holies in one direction and then gazes out in the opposite direction - out of the Holy Temple, far into the desert.

G-d gives man the gift of free will. Man may choose to use the G-d-given energy of life either to be with G-d or to be against G-d.

Those that choose to cling to G-d and do His Will in their thoughts, heart and actions are likened to the goat, whose lot was cast to be an inner Sin Offering to G-d. The blood of this goat, which symbolizes his soul, is brought to the highest of heights of closeness to G-d - into the Holy of Holies.

On the other hand, people who choose to use their G-d-given energy to act against the Will of G-d are represented by the goat whose lot was cast to be 'for Azazel'.

The word 'Azazel' consists of two words - 'az', meaning brazen and 'azal', meaning finished or terminated. Combining the understanding of these two words; a person who was brazen enough to make life decisions against the Will of G-d, in the end will find himself left with no merit for these actions. In effect, his very decision in life terminates his chance for his energy to beget eternal lasting positive value. This goat is cast away into the barren desert, far away from the closeness to the presence of G-d in the Holy Temple.

It is now clear why particularly a he-goat is at the center of this service.

The nature of a goat, especially a male goat, is to be strong-willed. It is subservient toward his shepherd and yet it presents its horns in threat towards a stranger.

The People of Israel are considered a strong-willed People, as it is written (Exodus 32:9); "Hashem further said to Moshe, 'I see that this is a stiff-necked people.'"

The tendency to be strong-willed or "stiff-necked" may be a positive one, when used for the right cause. Each individual must be aware of this tendency and choose his path carefully; to follow steadfastly in the path of G-d, our Shepherd, and to constantly resist any temptation that will lead one astray. Woe to those who mix up the two paths and choose to "show their horns" against the Way of G-d and stubbornly live a life in contrary to the actions and values which God teaches us in the Torah.

At times life dilemmas can be a dramatic choice between good and evil. A true dilemma that we deliberate at great length.

However, most of the time our life decisions are so subtle that we can be oblivious to them, as we unwittingly make them. At times, the decision deals with the 'fine-tuning' of our thoughts and actions. Meaning, not a clear-cut decision between good and evil, rather choosing between one essentially good deed or another. This, of course, pertains to deeds between man and G-d just as much as it is relevant in our dealings with our fellow man. For G-d expects us to excel in goodness in both realms.

Our challenge is to become aware of these 'forks in our road', to realize that we are about to take a turn so that, through this awareness we may actively make the decision that will draw us closer to G-d.

As long as G-d gives the gift of life, we are constantly making life choices. And our life-choice of one moment leads us on a path that will lead to an additional life-choice. For this is how G-d created humans unique from all other creatures in His world; we have the gift of free will to determine our path.

Let us take a moment to contemplate our life choices; both dramatic path-defining choices and subtle fine-tuning choices. Let us come to an awareness and choose the path that will ultimately bring us closer to God, as the life-force brought into the Holy of Holies.