When Yaakov leaves his father’s home fleeing from his brother Esav who was determined to kill him, the Torah tells us he slept and he had a dream. In his dream he saw a SULAM, a ladder, the foot of which was on the ground but the top was reaching into the heavens.
One of the famous commentaries on the Torah, the Baal Haturim (given out at Artscroll Shabbos Retreat), points out that the Gematria or numerical value of the word SULAM is the same as the Hebrew and Aramaic word MAMON which means money. The numerical value of both words is 136 (both written with a Vav).
The Baal Haturim explains that money can elevate a person or bring him down. The Baal Shem Tov elaborates on the same theme and says that money is similar to a ladder. People can go up with it or can come down with it.
Money is a very essential aspect in life but what we do with it is what matters. If we spend it wisely, if we use it for necessities, if it helps us do charity, then it elevates our existence and meaning in life. If, however, we use it for pleasures only, if we squander it, if we fail to share it with the less fortunate, then it only helps to demean us and lower the meaning of our life.
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