* Translated by Janine Muller Sherr
Parashat Korach is a parasha filled with dispute, strife, and jealousy.
Korach rebelled against Moshe Rabbeinu and Aharon HaKohen’s leadership and dragged his followers into a bitter quarrel that resulted in a tragic ending: the ground opened up and swallowed them alive.
Recently I heard an interesting take on this dispute: If you think about this deeply, before anything else, Korach had a quarrel with himself.
Our sages explain: There is a “dispute for the sake of Heaven”—a dispute that is important to navigate. But there is also a dispute that is not for the sake of Heaven—a quarrel such as the one initiated by Korach– that is rooted in ego, a grasping for honor, and other ulterior motives.
In essence, Korach’s dispute was based on the quarrel he had with himself—he felt discouraged and detached and consequently failed to discover his own unique place and mission in life.
The commentators explain that his wife was frustrated with her situation and kept filling Korach’s mind with poisonous thoughts: You deserve more; you should be like Moshe and Aharon; you aren’t appreciated enough.
I encourage you to examine your interpersonal relationships, at home and at work, to determine whether you aren’t stirring up controversy in your surroundings because, at the root of it all, you are dissatisfied with yourself.
