ויהי בבקר והנה הוא לאה ... (כט-כה)
MASHAL: Scandalous accusations are detrimental. When a scandal breaks out, it is not just the person or people who are being accused that are affected, but also the numerous people surrounding them who are very often left impacted. Then there are the “aftershocks” of the damage as well.
Often, it takes a scandal to run it’s course before dying down and it leaves devastating destruction in its place. On the other hand, often times there is a clear-headed quick thinking individual who extinguishes the scandal before it can burn out of control, or even do any damage.
A story is told of a certain city in which scandalous allegations were made that the shochet did not check an animal’s lungs properly. A terrible dispute resulted, with lashon hara being spoken on both sides, and many people’s lives and reputations were destroyed in the interim.
When the gadol hador, R’ Chaim Volozhin zt”l, heard about it he felt compelled to point out something fascinating: Checking the lungs is a rabbinical obligation, whereas the prohibitions of lashon hara and dispute are Biblical. Those zealous individual who wanted the ruling of the rabbis to be kept properly, were being lax about the Biblical prohibition!
NIMSHAL: When Rachel realized that her father was about to switch her for her sister on her wedding night, she realized the magnitude of the catastrophe that was about to occur. Yaakov might become furious, and the wedding night - pandemonium! Instead of standing by the wayside and letting things play out themselves, because after all she wouldn’t be at fault, she thought clearly and quickly and gave the “simanim” to her sister to save the night. We are taught, in the merit of Rachel the final redemption will come about.