In this week’s Parshah, the word ויקרא looks almost normal, except that the final aleph is miniature, like it’s trying not to take up too much space. It’s one of only a handful of small letters in the entire Torah, and the many have used a lot of ink explaining why.
The classic explanation is about Moshe Rabeinu’s humility. Hashem wanted to write vayikra - “and He called,” a term of endearment, the way Hashem speaks to the malachim. But Moshe, in his humility, wanted it written as vayikar - “and He happened upon,” the same word used for Bilaam, implying randomness rather than relationship.
The compromise here was that the aleph stays, but it’s small.
But what does this aleph really do to the word?
Without the aleph, vayikar means happenstance. Coincidence. Things just happening, without any intention behind them. It’s the language of randomness - of a universe where you’re on your own, where events have no meaning, and where there’s no one calling all the shots. This is the word used in the Torah when Hashem appears to Bilaam: vayikar — He happened upon him. Which is sort of incidental and Impersonal.
But, when you add the aleph, and the word becomes vayikra - and He called. It then becomes intentional. Personal. The way a parent calls a child.
The aleph here, is Hashem.
So when you add the aleph to vayikar, you’re not just adding a letter. You’re adding Hashem to the picture.
Without Him there’s randomness, chaos, and things just happening.
But with Him, there’s a calling, a purpose, and a relationship with our Creator.
Most of our days don’t feel like grand spiritual moments. Most moments feel like vayikar — just things happening, one after another. There’s the morning rush, work, dinner, then the bedtime routine. So many random events stacking up into this thing we call life.
And then there are some moments, that are very easy to just go past, where you feel Hashem so clearly in your life. When you get “lucky” and just happen to meet the right person at the right time. Find a spot right in front of the store. Say the exact words that somehow make someone else feel better
That’s the small aleph.
But Moshe Rabeinu didn’t want the aleph removed entirely, vayikar instead of vayikra, he just wanted it smaller.
Because he understood that this is actually how most of us experience Hashem.
We rarely experience unmistakable miracles, or very obvious moments of divine intervention. But we can see Him clearly in the small, quiet ways, that can easily be missed if we aren’t paying attention. These moments don’t naturally demand recognition, but they’re there if you look.
