Rabbi Yosef Shalom Eliashiv was an only child. When he died in 2012 at the age of 102, he left behind some 1,000 descendants. The power of one.
Some things stare you in the face. Other things lurk in the shadows. The power of one, for example.
For ill as well as for good.
The Torah relates the incident of the blasphemer. He cursed the name of G-d. His case was presented to Moses for clarity as to what to do with such a person. Moses did not know and only G-d could pronounce his sentence (Lev. 24:10-15).
Two observations: First, there is no other incident like this recorded in the Torah. There is but one known blasphemer. The power of one — for ill, in the extreme. Second, the tribe of the blasphemer is named. It is the tribe of Dan.
Might this indicate that the tribe of Dan harbored a reservoir of evil, such that it produced the blasphemer?
The Torah relates the names of the two craftsmen who constructed the Tabernacle in the Sinai desert after the Exodus from Egypt. The Tabernacle was the meeting place between man and G-d. There were some 600,000 male Israelites who left Egypt. Only two were capable of leading the construction of the Tabernacle, which required artistry in metal work, stone work, carpentry, embroidery, design, tanning and more. These two were Bezalel and Oholiav. True, Bezalel and Oholiav were two, not one; but the power of the extreme minority still shines through — for good, in the extreme. The tribe of Oholiav is named. It is the tribe of Dan (Exodus 31:2-6).
Might this indicate that the tribe of Dan harbored a reservoir of good, such it produced one of the two master artists of the Israelite nation?
Jacob had 12 sons. Each of these sons had between two and 10 sons (Gen. 46:9-24), with an exception. This son of Jacob had only one child. This was Jacob’s son Dan (Gen. 46:23), who sired a single child, Chushim.
What might we say about Chushim? The Torah relates that after Jacob died his sons took him back to Canaan to be buried in the Cave of Machpelah in Hebron (Gen. 50:4-12). The Talmud relates that Jacob’s twin brother Esau blocked the burial, claiming the burial site was his, and he didn’t want Jacob buried there. There ensured a complicated back-and-forth between Esau and Jacob’s sons over their respective property rights. Suddenly, Chushim, the only son of Dan, took a club in hand and smote Esau dead, whereupon Jacob’s sons proceeded to bury their father in the Cave of Machpelah, even as Esau’s head rolled in, too.
The late Rabbi Chaim Shmuelevitz offered a gloss on this incident. Jacob lay unburied and Esau as Jacob’s sons argued. It is a disgrace to the dead to be left lying around. Once Jacob’s body reached Canaan it should have been buried forthwith. The brothers, however, allowed themselves to become entangled in a lengthy discussion. Chushim had no part in the discussion, however. Why? The Talmud notes that Chushim was deaf.
Rabbi Shmuelevitz observed: Sometimes the right path of action is perfectly clear, but it is deterred or postponed due to considerations that are not germane, but are complicated. Sometimes, one gets caught up in details or claims and loses the forest for the trees. This is what happened to Jacob’s sons. Chushim, however, did not hear any of the back-and-forth. He only saw the reality: It was time to bury forefather Jacob, yet his corpse was forced to lay in disgrace, unburied, due to Esau and the way Jacob’s sons allowed Esau to divert them from the task at hand. Chushim heard nothing, but saw everything. Jacob was lying unburied, but should have been. So Chushim acted. The power of one.
What tribe was Chushim from? The tribe of Dan.
Might this indicate that the tribe of Dan harbored a reservoir of perfect clarity?
There is another only son of great note in the Hebrew Bible. This is Samson, who also embodied the power one, and who also was from the tribe of Dan. What was Samson’s unique power? It was the strength to defeat Israel’s enemies, the Philistines. It was an extreme strength. No other Biblical figure possessed Samson’s raw strength.
Might this indicate that the tribe of Dan harbored a reservoir of physical prowess and the will to use it for the good, in the extreme?
Samson’s power of one was also the power to become entangled in all manner of unworthy relationships (such as with Delilah) and all manner of unworthy deeds, such as revenge, in the extreme.
Might this indicate that the tribe of Dan harbored a reservoir of ambiguity about right and wrong, in the extreme?
Clearly, we cannot provide a single answer any of these questions about the tribe of Dan based on the power of one that its various members possessed: the unnamed blasphemer, the artist Oholiav, the only son, Chushim, and the only son, Samson. The Torah seems to identify these extreme embodiments of the power of one as stemming from a single tribe to indicate this: The power of one can be extreme, but it is not inherently good or evil. In some fashion or another, every person possesses a great power. It should be regarded as a frightening asset, to be used only with great care, since it can go either way.
© IJN 2025
