A Tale of Two Pilots

One day at a busy airport, the passengers on a commercial airliner are seated, waiting for the cockpit crew to show up so they can get underway. The pilot and co-pilot finally appear in the rear of the plane and begin walking up to the cockpit through the center aisle. Both appear to be blind.

The pilot is using a white cane, bumping into passengers right and left as he stumbles down the aisle, and the co-pilot is using a guide dog. Both have their eyes covered with huge sunglasses. At first, the passengers don't react, thinking that it must be some sort of practical joke. However, after a few minutes, the engines start revving and the airplane starts moving.

The passengers look at each other with some uneasiness, whispering among themselves and looking desperately to the stewardesses for reassurance. Then the airplane starts accelerating rapidly down the runway and people begin panicking. Some passengers are praying, and as the plane gets closer and closer to the end of the runway, the voices are becoming more and more hysterical. Finally, when the airplane has less than 20 feet of runway left, and about to plunge into the water, there is a sudden change in the pitch of the shouts as everyone screams at once, and at the very last moment, the airplane lifts off and is airborne.

Up in the cockpit, the co-pilot breathes a sigh of relief and turns to the pilot: "You know, one of these days the passengers aren't going to scream, and we're gonna go straight into the water and die!"

The Orchard

The Midrash is intrigued by the statement in this week’s Torah portion, Vayikra: “When a soul (nefesh) sins.”<a id="_edn1" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref1')">[1]</a>&nbsp;Not “when a person sins,” but “when a soul sins.” Is it the soul who sins?

Says the Midrash<a id="_edn2" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref2')">[2]</a>: Rabbi Yishmael taught: this is comparable to a king who has an orchard of prime figs. He appoints two watchmen, one was lame, and the other was blind, entrusting them with his orchard. After a while, the lame turns to the blind and says, “I see such delicious fruit in this vineyard!” And the blind man replies, “So let us eat.”

“But can I walk?!”

“And can I see?!”

So the lame man rode on the back of the blind man, and together they reached and ate the fruit, and then returned to their positions.

After a while, the king enters his orchard. He asks them, “Where is my beautiful fruit?”

The blind man says, “O king, how can I have eaten them? I can't see!” And the lame man says, “O king, can I walk? How can I have reached them?”

The king was wise, what did he do? He hoisted the lame man on the back of the blind man and had them walk together, saying “This is how you ate my figs.”

Just so, in the future day of reckoning, G-d will ask the soul, “Why have you sinned before me?” And the soul will reply, “Master of the Universe! I did not sin, the body sinned! Behold! From the moment I departed him I am like a pure bird, soaring towards heaven. How have I sinned?” So G-d will say to the body, “Why have you sinned before me?” And the body will reply, “Master of the Universe! I have not sinned, the soul sinned! Behold! From the moment the soul departed, I am lifeless as a stone cast upon the earth! How can I have sinned before you?”

What does G-d do? He brings the soul, casts it into the body, and cleanses them together, as it is written, <a id="_edn3" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref3')">[3]</a>He shall call to the heavens above --&nbsp;this is the soul --&nbsp;and to the earth&nbsp;-- this is the body --&nbsp;to judge His people.

Who Needs the Metaphor? 
 
The Midrash is explaining that sin is only possible through a full and working collaboration between the body and the soul. The body can get things done, but it is directionless; the soul gives direction but it is aloof and “lame”—spiritual and ethereal. Together, they can achieve their goals: they can transgress together, and they can perform good deeds together. Yet the questions should be asked: The objective of allegories in the Torah is to clarify an otherwise difficult concept. Yet the point in this Midrash seems to be straightforward and simple: The body on its own is a corpse; the soul on its own is heavenly.&nbsp;Together, they create the reality we call “the human being.” Why the need for the elaborate metaphor of the blind and the lame in an orchard to explain the concept?

The truth is, however, that this metaphor explains to us not only that the body and soul need each other, but also the very nature of the body and the soul and why they so desperately need each other.

The Capacity for Revolution 
 
The body is represented by the blind man. Blinded by material reality, on its own, it is oblivious to the existence of transcendent oneness, to G-d. It subscribes to a “what you see is what you get” interpretation of existence; it is unable to see beyond its temporal perspective; it is unable to ever perceive or identify truth. It can't even see electricity, never mind the Divine electricity of life. And the worst type of blindness is the blindness of the one who thinks he can see.

But the soul can see. She is intimately aware of the higher realities of life; she is not fooled by the illusion of materialism and consumerism.&nbsp;

On the other hand, the body can walk, while the soul is immobile. This is one of the great paradoxes of life: Because the soul can see, it is rendered “lame” and immobile. In the face of stark truth there is no room for mistakes, hence no room for decisions. If there is no decision-making, if there is no challenge or struggle, then there is no growth, no real movement. The soul, because it is so intensely aware of the truth, and because it is so perfect, is “stuck” in its orbit. Growth depends on the catalyst of failure, of imperfection. Only if you are capable of falling very low are you capable of climbing very high.

The body, because of its blindness, knows how to walk, and run. In the words of King Solomon: “I returned and saw under the sun, that the race does not belong to the swift, nor the war to the mighty; neither do the wise have bread, nor do the understanding have riches.”&nbsp;<a id="_edn4" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref4')">[4]</a>&nbsp;In its ignorance, the body is susceptible to fall and rise, to struggle and persevere, to learn from its mistakes, and grow. And it teaches the soul the secret of growth. Before that, it was on autopilot, robotic and consistent as the angels, and therefore stagnant. &nbsp;

The Story of Sam Reshevsky

Samuel Herman (Sammy) Reshevsky (1911-1992) was a famous&nbsp;chess prodigy&nbsp;and later a leading American&nbsp;chess Grandmaster. He was a contender for the&nbsp;World Chess Championship&nbsp;from about the mid-1930s to the mid-1960s; coming equal third in the&nbsp;World Chess Championship 1948&nbsp;tournament, and equal second in the 1953&nbsp;Candidates Tournament. He was also an eight-time winner of the&nbsp;U.S. Chess Championship.

At the age of six, he would play against as many as 30 players at a time, moving quickly from board to board and could repeat all 30 games afterwards, move by move. He was known as "Shmulik der vunder kind”—Shmuel the wonder child. He was a descendant of Rabbi Yonasan Eibshitz, who descended from the great Kabalist, Rabbi Isaac Luria, the Arizal.

Sammy Reshevsky grew up in an observant home, and throughout his life and fame, remained faithful to his Judaism and Torah, refusing to ever play chess on the Sabbath or Holidays. Upon turning 70 and no longer on top of his game, he asked the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schnnersohn, if he should retire. The Rebbe advised him to continue playing because it was a “Kiddush Hashem”—a proud demonstration of a Jew succeeding without compromising his spiritual ideals and values. Reshevsky complied and shortly afterward, he traveled to Russia and upset the world champion, Vassily Smyslov.

An interesting tidbit: in 1984, the Lubavitcher Rebbe sent Sammy Reshevsky to California to try and help his colleague Bobby Fischer get out of his world-famous depression and isolation.

Living in Crown Heights in the 1940’s, Sammy prayed in the central Lubavitch synagogue at 770 Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn, NY. Once, at a Sabbath gathering (farbrengen in Yiddish), in 1948, the Rebbe, in recognition of his presence, explained the spiritual meaning behind the chess game.

The Chess Game

There is one king. All of the other pieces revolve around him and their entire mission is to protect and serve him. G-d is the King, all else was created by Him, given the opportunity to connect to His truth and to serve Him.

The queen represents the feminine manifestation of the divine, known as the “shechinah,” intimately involved with every aspect of creation, granting vitality and substance to every existence. The queen is the most practically effective piece, often sent into the lines of fire, even placed in danger. Likewise, G-d risks His own dignity, as it were, by investing Himself in every creature and existence, subjecting Himself to the vicissitudes of the human condition.

Then there are bishops, rooks, and knights. They are swift, free, not limited by the squares immediately surrounding them; they can “fly” around freely, without constraints. These are symbolic of the angels—in their three mystical categories we discuss in the daily morning services, “seraphim,” “chayos” and “ofanim,” represented by the bishops, rooks, and knights.

In order for there to be free choice in the world, there are two teams, the white and the black. One team representing G-dliness and holiness; the other team representing everything antithetical to G-dliness and holiness. The teams are engaged in a fierce battle. And for the confrontation to be meaningful each team contains, at least on the surface, all the properties contained in the opposite team. Both teams pretend to have a king, queen, bishops, rooks, and knights.

Finally, there are the pawns. They are very limited in their travel, moving only one step at a time, only in a singular direction, and they constantly get “knocked off.” But when they fight through the “board,” arriving at their destination, they can be promoted even to the rank of the queen, something that the bishop, rook, or knight can never achieve.

The Pawn represents the human being living down here on earth. We, humans, take very small steps, and we are so limited in every aspect of our journey and our growth. We also constantly make mistakes and get “knocked down.” But when man perseveres and overcomes the angst and despair of his or her own failings and mortality; when we fight the fight to subdue darkness and to reveal the presence of the “king” within our own bodies, our own psyches and the world around us—the human being surpasses even angels; the pawn is transformed into a queen! The human life reunites with its source above, the queen, the Shechinah, experiencing the deepest intimacy with the King Himself.

The bishops, rooks, and knights, though spiritually powerful and angelic, are predictable, and limited by their role. There is no room for real promotion, no substantive growth, no radical progression. Yes, they fly around, but only within their own orbit. The angels on high, as well as the soul alone on high, before entering the body, are powerful yet confined by their own spiritual standing. It is the limitations of the human person that stimulate his or her deepest growth. The limits of our existence create friction, causing us to strain against the trials and disappointments of life.

Embracing the Difficult Marriage

So the body and soul can choose to accept their natural schizophrenia, as a victim, with each blaming the other for its faults, shirking responsibility and duty. Or they can choose to embrace the challenges and opportunities this existential conflict provides, taking the sight, clarity, and vision of the soul and harnessing it to the mobility and energy of the body.

This, then, is the message behind the midrashic metaphor of the lame and the blind watching the orchard of the king. When the lame soul leads the blind body, the blind body can raise to lame soul to unimaginable heights.<a id="_edn5" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref5')">[5]</a>

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<a id="_ednref1" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn1')">[1]</a> Leviticus 4:2

<a id="_ednref2" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn2')">[2]</a> Vayikra Rabba 4:5. The same idea is in Talmud Sanhedrin 91b

<a id="_ednref3" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn3')">[3]</a> Psalms 50:4&nbsp;

<a id="_ednref4" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn4')">[4]</a> Ecclesiastes 9:11

<a id="_ednref5" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn5')">[5]</a> This essay is based on Torah Or Parshas Vayeishev. Sefas Emes Vayikra 5647. Toras Yemei Berieshis, 5708 (1948.)

My thanks to Rabbi Avi Shlomo for his help in writing and preparing this essay.

The Lame Leading the Blind - The Kabbalah of Chess

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The Kabbalah of Chess

Essay Vayikra

The Lame Leading the Blind

Plato's Error: G-d Dwells in the Gulf Between Your Dreams and Your Reality.&nbsp;Did your life, your marriage, your career, your family, work out the way you dreamt it would?

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G-d Dwells in the Gulf Between Your Dreams and Your Reality

Athens Vs. Jerusalem

Two Sides to the Family A bar mitzvah boy, preparing his bar mitzvah speech, asked his mom about their ancestry. Mom spoke of her illustrious background, all the way back to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
“And where did they come from?”
"From Adam and Eve."
"And they?"
“G-d created them.”
The boy wrote it down and then went to dad. “Where do we come from?” asks the boy.
“Ah, we come from the apes. After millions years of evolution we evolved into humans.”
The confused boy comes running back to his mom. “Mom, you said we come Adam, Eve and G-d. Dad says we come from the apes…”
“No contradiction here, son,” she said. “I was talking about my side of the family. He was talking about his side of the family.”
The Joking Couple The weekly Torah portion, Toldos,<a id="_edn1" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref1')">[1]</a>&nbsp;records an episode whereby Isaac, traveling with his wife through the land of the Philistines, tells the locals that they are brother and sister. He is scared that if they knew he was her husband, they would kill him and take his beautiful wife. The trick works until the king of the Philistines, Abimelech, decides to take a peek into their lodgings. "Abimelech gazed down through the window," says the Torah, "and saw—behold! Isaac was jesting with his wife Rebecca." "Abimelech summoned Isaac and said, 'She is your wife! How could you say, 'She is my sister?’” Now, presumably it was not unheard of to joke with one's sister. So how did Isaac's jesting with Rebecca demonstrate that they were spouses, not siblings? Obviously then, the term "jesting" or "joking" employed here in the Bible is a euphemism for intimate relations, an activity not expected to take place between siblings, only between spouses.<a id="_edn2" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref2')">[2]</a> This deserves our investigation. Why is it that from the many other and clearer terms usually employed by the Bible to describe intimacy, here the Torah chooses to define the relationship between Isaac and Rebecca in terms of laughter and jest?
The truth is that this strange term captures the "secret ingredient" that fueled the Isaac-Rebecca relationship which could have easily eroded. What component gave this marriage—and can give each of our marriages—its oomph? Laughter.
 Laughter and Oxen In the year 1809, at the Shabbos prior to the wedding of a grandson, the great master, Rabbi Schnuer Zalman of Liadi (1745-1812), founder of the Chabad school of Chasidism, presented the answers to the above questions.<a id="_edn3" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref3')">[3]</a>&nbsp;What follows, are excerpts of the discourse, expressed in my own words.&nbsp;&nbsp; The name Isaac in its original Hebrew, Yitzchak, means "laughter." Indeed, Yitzchak was named so because his birth brought laughter and joy to his long barren mother, Sarah.<a id="_edn4" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref4')">[4]</a> Rebecca in its original Hebrew, Rivkah, is the name used to describe a "team of plowing oxen."<a id="_edn5" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref5')">[5]</a>&nbsp;When beasts are tied and linked together to engage in productive work, this team of animals is called a "rivkah."&nbsp; How do the names Rivkah and Yitzchak meet? What is the connection between laughter and linked beasts?
Do You Know How to Laugh? What is the cause of laughter? What makes people laugh most? What gives us our greatest <a id="_edn6" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref6')">[6]</a>chuckle? The answer is, reality defying itself; the merging of paradoxes. What makes the best joke? An unpredictable punch line.&nbsp;The joke-narrative is leading in one direction, and then suddenly, the punch line catches you off guard, and you burst out laughing. This is also the skill employed by every comedian in his comedy routines.&nbsp; What defines a sense of humor? The ability to look at conventional events in unconventional ways. The unpredictable, the unfamiliar, the abnormal—these phenomena strike the cord of laughter in our psyches. When you observe a child behaving like an adult—you laugh. Conversely, when you see an adult behaving like a child, you giggle. Children are expected to behave like children and adults like adults; when they switch roles, laughter is born. When you hear a human being talking, you don't even break a smile. When you listen to a parrot communicating verbally—a function not reserved for birds—you marvel in disbelief. Conversely, when you observe a bird standing on a high wire, you don't bother to look again; however, when you behold a human being walking a tightrope, you gaze in astonishment.&nbsp;&nbsp; Imagine if the sun only rose once every 70 years? We would melt in ecstasy upon the tremendous sight. Now that the sun comes up each morning, we are apt to sleep through the sunrise.
The Greatest Joke What is the greatest "joke" of all? What is the most surprising and unexpected phenomenon in the world?&nbsp; Human transcendence. A person is naturally beastly and self-centered. Every act, thought, word and desire of man is motivated by the quest for self-preservation and self-gratification. Selfishness, aggrandizement and egotism are inherent to our nature. Now, when this beastly human being says "no" to his or her nature for the sake of a higher truth, the person has created the greatest comedy of all time!&nbsp; When an angel is spiritual and holy it is a most natural and predictable thing; a kind of dog-bites-man story. But when a human being—overwhelmed by endless materialistic and psychological stress and pulled down by the incessant demands of an inner beast—subdues his nature, transcends his inclinations, and proclaims, "G-d is one," this is a real man-bites-dog story, an utter surprise that provides the Creator and history the deepest of delights.
The Purpose of Creation Why did a perfect G-d create an imperfect world? Why did a perfect G-d create a world at all? The answer is presented by Rabbi Schnuer Zalman of Liadi: G-d craved laughter.<a id="_edn7" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref7')">[7]</a> G-d's perfection and holiness are predictable, static, fixed and natural. It is the holiness,&nbsp;the nobility and the idealism that emerges from a human heart that has G-d—and us—“in stitches" throughout the spectacle we call history. The purpose of creation was not holy people doing holy things. It was, rather, unholy people doing holy things.<a id="_edn8" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref8')">[8]</a>&nbsp;We were created in order to generate the miracle of transformation: to take our material egotistical natures and sublimate them.&nbsp; If you're feeling like a self-centered beast, do not get depressed over the fact that you are unholy. At this very moment, if you subdue your beast and perform a holy act, you will give G-d His greatest laugh.
This is why the first child to be born a Jew was named Yitzchak, Isaac, meaning “he will laugh.” For this is the essence of Judaism: the belief that the human being can and needs to be holy. And that is the greatest joke ever told.
That is also why the name Yitzchak means “he will laugh,” in the future tense. Just as in the good joke, we only laugh at the conclusion of the joke when we get the full punch line, the same is with human life. Only at the end of history, when Moshiach comes, will be able to “get it,” and truly start laughing.<a id="Edit?id=915_edn9" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('Edit?id=915_ednref9');">8*</a>&nbsp;
Synthesizing Two worlds Isaac and Rebecca came from two diametrically opposed backgrounds: Isaac was born and raised by saintly parents, probably the most selfless people in the generation. Isaac himself agreed to become an offering for G-d. He was raised on the altar and, in a sense, he never left that altar. He knew not of corruption, deceit or even selfishness. Nothing but holiness enveloped him throughout his entire life.<a id="_edn9" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref9')">[9]</a> But the true joy in Isaac's life sprung from Rebecca—a young woman raised in a morally depraved environment, in a family notorious for its lowliness and dishonesty, in a society of pagan promiscuity.<a id="_edn10" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref10')">[10]</a>&nbsp;Whether you believe in "nature" or "nurture," Rebecca should have remained unrefined and animalistic. But little Rebecca had a tremendous sense of humor! She understood that the calling of man was to defy nature and to transform reality. Thus, Rebecca turned out to become, as the Midrash defines her, a "rose among thorns."<a id="_edn11" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref11')">[11]</a>&nbsp;From a mere self-centered animal, she became a "Rivkah," a soul linked to others in kindness and love, attempting to "plow" an earthly world and transform it into a Divine orchard.<a id="_edn12" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref12')">[12]</a>&nbsp; Rebecca represents the human animal elevating itself from its natural quagmire to enter the living waters of life's wellspring and sharing it this others, even those who are still in the level of an animal (a camel), which is how Abraham’s servant knew she was the suitable spouse for Isaac.<a id="_edn13" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref13')">[13]</a>
The Glue “Isaac was jesting with Rebecca his wife.” This was the secret of their marriage. Isaac and Rebecca,&nbsp;as the Bible relates, had plenty of arguments; some of these arguments had dramatic historical implications. But never did these differences of opinion manage to tear them apart. Never did Isaac and Rebecca lose their loyalty and trust to each other. Why? Because they never forgot that the purpose of life—and of marriage—was to laugh! To make the impossible a reality. To unite&nbsp;two people who by nature are likely to remain apart.
The same must be true in our marriages as well. When you are experiencing discord with your spouse, and predictably you are about to get into a fight, you must realize, that the purpose of marriage is laughter, making the unpredictable happen. “Naturally, we ought not to get into a quarrel; but let us surprise ourselves, let us find a way of transcending our natures, and make our relationship work.
And when you observe deficiencies in your spouse that require much work, instead of becoming frustrated and resentful, you ought to realize that it is precisely this pattern—a rose emerging from many thorns—that grants a marriage tremendous laughter and delight.&nbsp;Laughter is born only from transformation.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
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&nbsp;
<a id="_ednref1" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn1')">[1]</a> Genesis 26:7-11
<a id="_ednref2" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn2')">[2]</a> See Berishis Rabah 64:5; Rashi to Genesis 26:8.
<a id="_ednref3" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn3')">[3]</a> Published in Torah Or Toldos 17d; maamarei Admur Hazakan 5169 p. 1.
<a id="_ednref4" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn4')">[4]</a> Genesis 21:3;6.
<a id="_ednref5" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn5')">[5]</a> Mishnah Eiruvin 17b (see Rambam and Meleches Shlomo to the Mishnah ibid); Talmud Pesachim 26a (see Rashi ibid); Gittin 53a. (See, however, Rashi to Gittin ibid. for a slightly different translation.) The term has its source in the Bible in Samuel 1 28:24 and Amos 6. See, however, commentaries there
for a different translation (the place from which the animals eat).
<a id="_ednref6" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn6')">[6]</a> Torah Or Toldos 18a; Likkutei Torah Shabbas Shuvah 67b.
<a id="_ednref7" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn7')">[7]</a> Why He craved to laugh, we do not know. We know, however, that this is what He desired.
<a id="_ednref8" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn8')">[8]</a> This is one of the cardinal principles of Rabbi Schnuer Zalman's perspective on life and is elucidated in the Tanya, chapters 36-38.
<a id="Edit?id=915_ednref9" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('Edit?id=915_edn9');">8*</a>&nbsp;See Talmud Berachos 31a.
<a id="_ednref9" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn9')">[9]</a> See Bereishis Rabah 64:3; Rashi to Genesis 26:2. Cf. Yerushlami Taanis 2:1.
<a id="_ednref10" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn10')">[10]</a> See Yavamos 64a; quoted in Rashi to Genesis 25:21. Bereishis Rabah 60:7; 12, quoted in Rashi to Genesis 24:31;55. Rashi ibid. 24:50.
<a id="_ednref11" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn11')">[11]</a> Shir Hashirim Rabah 2:2. Cf. Likkutei Sichos vol. 1 p. 35-6.
<a id="_ednref12" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn12')">[12]</a> This also explains why Isaac wished to give his blessings to his older and more animalistic son Esau, while Rebecca ensured they go to the more refined Jacob. Isaac craved the opportunity to sublimate an animal; but Rebecca understood the process of how to get the work done.
<a id="_ednref13" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn13')">[13]</a> Genesis chapter 24.

The Greatest Joke - Why Was the First Jewish Boy Named &ldquo;Laughter&rdquo;?

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Why Was the First Jewish Boy Named “Laughter”?

The Greatest Joke

Who's Doing the Talking?

"Does marriage change one's personality?" Greg asked his buddy Mike.

"In a way," says Mike. "You see, when I was engaged, I did most of the talking and she did most of the listening. When we just got married she did most of the talking and I did most of the listening.

"Now we both do most of the talking and the neighbors do all of the listening."

Firstborn Rights

This week's Torah portion (Ki Seitzei) states the following law<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn1" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref1')">[1]</a>:

"If a man will have two wives, one beloved and one unloved, and both the loved and unloved wives have sons, and the firstborn son is that of the unloved one; on the day that this man wills his property to his sons, he cannot give the son of the beloved wife birthright preference above the son of the unloved&nbsp;wife, the firstborn.

"Rather, he must recognize the firstborn, the son of the unloved one, to give him the double portion in all his property."

On the most literal level, these&nbsp;verses mandate that a firstborn son shall inherit a double portion of his father's estate, while each subsequent son shall inherit an equal portion of the property. A father does not have the power to bequeath the double portion reserved for the firstborn to one of the other sons he loves, and any attempt to do so is ignored by Jewish law.

As the Talmud makes clear<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn2" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref2')">[2]</a>, a person is certainly empowered to distribute his entire estate to one of the other sons (or to any other individual for that matter), as long as he conveys it as a gift. But if he chooses to bequeath the estate to one of the sons as an&nbsp;inheritance&nbsp;and so deny his firstborn son's rights as a natural&nbsp;heir, then the father's attempt has no legal validity in the Jewish judicial system<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn3" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref3')">[3]</a>.

What is disturbing, however, is the Torah's need to state the point via a negative example of a man who loves one of his wives and loathes the other. Why was it necessary to use a crude and offensive illustration in order to make the simple point that the firstborn son is entitled to a double portion of the inheritance regardless of the father's preferences?

A Spiritual Manual

One of the essential factors to bear in mind during Torah study is the idea that each mitzvah, law, and episode described in the Torah contains—in addition to its physical and concrete interpretation—a psychological and spiritual dimension as well<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn4" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref4')">[4]</a>. In his commentary on the Torah, 13th-century Spanish sage, Nachmanides, writes<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn5" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref5')">[5]</a>:&nbsp;"The Torah discusses the physical reality, but it alludes to the world of the spirit." Another great Kabbalist went even further. 17th-century mystic Rabbi Menachem Azaryah of Fanu (in Italy) states that "The Torah discusses the spiritual reality, and it alludes to the physical world<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn6" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref6')">[6]</a>."

The stories and laws in the Torah ought to be understood first and foremost as events and laws in the spiritual realm, and this is actually the primary method of Torah interpretation. But in its communication of spiritual truths, the Torah also lends itself to be interpreted in a physical and concrete fashion.

What then is the spiritual meaning of the seemingly coarse description of "a man who will have two wives, one beloved and one unloved, and both the loved and unloved wives have sons, and the firstborn son is that of the hated one"? How are we to understand this in the universe of the spirit?&nbsp;

The Struggling Vs. the Romantic Soul

Judaism teaches that the relationship between each husband and wife reflects the cosmic relationship between G-d (the Groom) and the Jewish people (the Bride). The entire book "Song of Songs"&nbsp;by King Solomon is based on the notion that our human relationships are capable of reflecting the Divine marriage with Israel<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn7" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref7')">[7]</a>.

There are two types of people&nbsp;who enter into a marriage with G-d: the "beloved spouse" and the "unloved&nbsp;spouse." The "beloved spouse" represents those individuals who enjoy a continuous romance with G-d. Their souls are overflowing with spiritual ecstasy, selfless idealism, and fiery inspiration. They cannot stop loving G-d, and G-d cannot stop loving them. On the other end of the spectrum stand the "despised spouses," people possessing numerous qualities that can easily be spurned: immoral urges, depressing feelings, vulgar passions, ugly temptations, and angry sensations.

These are the people whose hearts are not always ablaze with love toward the Divine oneness of reality; their marriage to their Divine soul is a struggle. Their psyches vibrate with paradox. Throughout their life, they must battle not to become a victim of challenging instincts and cravings&nbsp;<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn8" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref8')">[8]</a>.&nbsp;

The Torah teaches us that G-d's "firstborn son" may very well come not from His union with the beloved spouse but rather from His relationship with the despised spouse<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn9" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref9')">[9]</a>. The spiritual harvest that a struggling human being produces as a result of his or her tumultuous romance with G-d, may often be far deeper and more powerful than that of the spiritually serene person.

Working with all the parts in my brain and heart, discovering the goodness deeply hidden in all of my emotions and dispositions, brings me to a much deeper space of oneness and love&nbsp;<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn10" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref10')">[10]</a>. The morality and the integrity that emerges from the midst of my confronting daily the parts of me that seem so loathsome contain a unique depth and splendor not possessed by the straightforward saintly path.

Thus, "On the day that He wills His property to His sons, He cannot give the son of the beloved wife birthright preference above the son of the hated wife, the firstborn. Rather, He must recognize the firstborn, the son of the hated one, to give him the double portion in all His property."&nbsp;On a spiritual level,&nbsp;this means, that on the day that Moshiach will come, when humanity will finally taste the full-Divinity in the world--and when I discover the Moshiach consciousness in my own intimate life--a "double portion" of G-dliness will be revealed in the arduous labor and sweat of the individual who never stopped fighting for his soul.

During the Struggle

You might recall the moving poem written by a profound heart:

One night I had a dream. I dreamed I was walking along the beach with G-d. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene, I noticed footprints in the sand.

Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there was only one.

I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints. So I said to G-d, “You promised me, Lord, that you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most difficult times of my life, there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, you were not there for me?”

G-d replied, “My precious child, I love you, and would never leave you. The times when you saw only one set of footprints, was when I was carrying you.”

(This essay is based on a discourse by Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi delivered in 1793<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn11" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref11')">[11]</a>).

(Please make even a small and secure contribution to help us continue our work.&nbsp;<a href="https://secure.theyeshiva.net/Donate">Click here</a>.)&nbsp;

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<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref1" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn1')">[1]</a> Deuteronomy 21:15-17. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref2" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn2')">[2]</a> Mishnah Bava Basra 126b. Cf. Rambam Hilchos Nachalos chapter 6; Tur and Shulchan Aruch, Choshen Mishpat section 281; Sefer Hachenuch Mitzvah 400. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref3" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn3')">[3]</a> For an explanation of this law see Sefer HaChinuch ibid. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref4" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn4')">[4]</a> See Likkutei Sichos vol. 23 pp. 37-38 and references noted there. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref5" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn5')">[5]</a> At the conclusion of his commentary to Genesis 1:1. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref6" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn6')">[6]</a> Asarah Maamaros Maammar Chekur Din 3:22. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref7" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn7')">[7]</a> Cf. Rambam Laws of Teshuvah chapter 10. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref8" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn8')">[8]</a> See Tanya chapter 27 for an elaborate discussion of these two types of souls. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref9" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn9')">[9]</a> See Tanya ibid. Cf. Likkutei Sichos vol. 20 pp. 108-115 that this constituted the essential distinction between the souls of Jacob and his twin brother Esau and this was the superior potential of Esau's soul, for which reason Isaac desired to grant him his blessings. This fits well with Or Hatorah Ki Seitzei (vol. 6 p. 2359) where the author explains that the "two wives" discussed in this week's portion reflect the spirits of Jacob and Esau. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref10" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn10')">[10]</a> Cf. Or Hachaim on the verse, who explains on the literal level, that the Torah is promising the firstborn son to the unloved wife. 
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref11" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn11')">[11]</a> Maamarei Admur Hazaken Haktzarim pp. 118-119 (for the date of this discourse&nbsp; -- see footnote there). See also Likkutei Torah Seitzei pp. 37-38 and Or Hatorah quoted in footnote # 9 for a similar explanation on the subject.

&nbsp;

A Tale of Two Spouses - A Stroll with G-d on the Beach

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22_eikev_5771.pdf

struggle

marriage

tension

human struggle

Struggling with My Challenging Parts Brings Me a Double Portion of Light

Essay Ki Seitzei

A Tale of Two Spouses

Moses and the Angels

The Talmud<a id="_edn1" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref1')">[1]</a>&nbsp;relates that when Moses ascended to heaven to receive the Torah—an event celebrated annually during the festival of Shavuos—the angels protested vehemently to G-d. "You are sharing your most cherished secret with humans, who will abuse it," they said. "Let your grace remain in heaven with us," they cried.

G-d commanded Moses, records the Talmud, to hold on to His throne and give the angels an answer. Moses responded to their lamentation by demonstrating how many of the Torah's commandments and episodes apply exclusively to the human race and not to angels, such as "You shall not murder" and "You shall respect your father and mother."

The angels acquiesced and Moses returned with the Torah, a Divine blueprint for the Jewish people and for the entire human race. Who were those angels that Moses wrestled with? Angels are not physical white-winged creatures who fly the world, resting in alien galaxies, or something akin to the comic book superhero Superman. In Judaism, an angel is viewed as a being created entirely out of spiritual stuff. An angel is a consciousness, a form of energy, detached from a physical body and physical experience.<a id="_edn2" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref2')">[2]</a>

These spiritual beings felt that the Torah belonged to them. G-d disagreed. Why?

Lamentations of a Teenager

Let me share with you a story:<a id="_edn3" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref3')">[3]</a> A teen-age boy once visited the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, and expressed anguish that his life was full of struggle and disappointment. "Why can't it just be simple and easy?" the pained boy asked. <a id="_edn4" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref4')">[4]</a> "Because human beings are not angels," the Rebbe replied. Angels are impeccable and flawless, always on target. Human beings, on the other hand, are fragmented and dualistic,&nbsp;vacillating between extremes and shaken by conflicts.<a id="_edn5" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref5')">[5]</a>&nbsp;Because of man's multi-dimensional and dichotomized composition, he must struggle in order to come to terms with his soul. The teen-ager continued to probe the heart of the master. "But why did G-d create us in such a complicated fashion?" he asked. "Would G-d not have enjoyed us far more if we were like the angels?"

The Soul of Art

The Rebbe, a thoughtful educator, asked the young man if he had a hobby. The boy said that he loved drawing paintings. The Rebbe then asked him: "What is more accurate, a photograph or a painting?”

“Of course a photo,” the boy replied. "A photo captures any given scene accurately, something than a painting can never do.”

“Which one is worth more?” the Rebbe continued to probe.

“A painting. While a photo will cost you a few dollars, the painting of the identical scene may sometimes go for millions of dollars.”

Why? The Rebbe asked. It does not seem fair. The accurate photo should sell for more money? "Because most photographs," the teen-ager explained, "are inanimate, lifeless items. A photo captures and freezes a person or a scene as is. A painting, on the other hand, contains the richness of human imagination, the depth of human emotion and the aesthetics of human creativity. That is what gives a painting its great value. We call it art.”

The Rebbe smiled and said:

"This is the answer to your question. Angels are photos, while human beings are pieces of art." Angels are flawless and faultless creatures; like photos, they are perfect shots of the spiritual realities. Like photos, they never err. Yet it is precisely the fluctuating drama of human existence, the perpetual conflict between our inner light and darkness, and the inner human void searching for meaning and truth—that turns our life, every moment of it, into a piece of art.

The Baal Shem Tov taught that everything we do is meaningful. Our every deed, every word we speak, even a single thought we think, has an effect that reverberates throughout all the worlds and through the whole of history. With every thought and action, you are capable of defining your life into art. Only in the tormented chambers of the human heart can G-d discover genuine, awe-inspiring artwork. It is the goodness and idealism that emerge from human doubt and struggle that bestow upon humanity a dignity and splendor that the highest of angels can never attain.

(Please make even a small and secure contribution, in honor of the holiday of Shavuos and Yizkor, to help us continue our work.&nbsp;<a href="https://secure.theyeshiva.net/Donate">Click here.</a>)

<a id="_ednref1" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn1')">[1]</a> Shabbos 88b.

<a id="_ednref2" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn2')">[2]</a> See Rambam Hilchos Yesodei HaTorah chapters 2-3. Tanya chapter 39 .

<a id="_ednref3" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn3')">[3]</a> My thanks to Rabbi Fishel Zaklas (Naples, Florida) for sharing this moving tale with me. Some of the details may be inaccurate (like a piece of art...), since I did not yet trace the story back to its original source.

<a id="_ednref4" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn4')">[4]</a> See Talmud Berochos 61a; Tanya section 1.

<a id="_ednref5" href="javascript: void(0);" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn5')">[5]</a> See Hemshech 5666 Maamar Seu Es Rosh.

My gratitude to Shmuel Levin, a writer and editor in Pittsburgh, for his editorial assistance.

The Art of Life; the Life of Art - On Angels and Men

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22_pesach_5770-0.pdf

angels

humans

pictures

photos

On Angels and Men

The Art of Life; the Life of Art

In the Beginning

As a result of a near mutiny, the overbearing and arrogant captain was forced to see a psychiatrist by order of the Commodore.

As soon as the captain settled down on the couch, the psychiatrist began the session by asking: 

“Why don’t you start at the beginning?”

The captain said, “Okay. In the beginning I created heaven and the earth…"

Two Creations

At the beginning of Genesis, the Hebrew Bible devotes 31 verses to describe how G-d created the entire world. “In the beginning, G-d created the heavens and the earth.” In striking contrast, the Torah portions of these weeks (Terumah through Pekudei) devote 371 verses to describe how the Jews created the Tabernacle, or Mishkan, in the desert. 

This seems profoundly strange.

The universe spans some 176 Trillion Billion miles&nbsp;and is an awesomely complex structure. After millennia of research, we have not yet scratched the surface of its untold depth and unbound mysteries. We have not even mastered the secrets embedded in a single cell. The Tabernacle, on the other hand, was around 150 feet long and 75 feet wide, and was a highly impressive structure, but essentially a small tent; a mini mobile "shtibel."

Why would the Torah be so expansive about the creation of a humble albeit splendorous tent in the desert and yet so terse about the creation of the cosmos with all of its infinite depth, majesty, and grandeur? 31 verses for creation of the world, and almost half the book of Exodus for the creation of a mobile sanctuary!

Mortality into Eternity

This strange contrast conveys something profoundly important about the Torah’s perspective on life. For an infinite G-d to create a home for finite man is not a big deal. But for a finite man to create a home for an infinite G-d—that is a revolutionary notion. It constitutes the essential revolution of Judaism that from the fragmented pieces of our hearts we can construct a home for the Divine; that the ordinary stuff of human life can be carved into a dwelling place for the Almighty; that G-d craves to dwell in the space we designate for Him in the barren desert of human consciousness.

The creation of the universe is G-d's miracle—the miracle of converting (spiritual) energy into matter. The creation of a structure to house the Divine in a desert is man's miracle—the miracle of converting matter into energy; the wonder of a human being surpassing himself, transcending his finite egocentricity and turning his life into a home for the Divine—that story is deserving of close to 400 verses!

This is the essence of the Tabernacle story, which occupies almost half the book of Exodus and on the surface seems so remote from our present lifestyle: that a human being, with his or her limited tools, through his or her minute and limited deeds, words, and thoughts, can create a home for G-d in his or her daily life; that a frail and vulnerable human being is capable of creating a space in his or her heart for the living presence of G-d. This is the miracle of Torah.

The Talmud says it succinctly (Kesuvos 5a):&nbsp;"The deeds the good people are greater than the creation of heaven and earth."

G-d transformed Divine energy into physical matter; we transform physical matter into Divine energy.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Half-Ness

This explains two enigmatic details about the Tabernacle story: 1) The obsession with details and nuances that seem irrelevant. G-d seems overly concerned with pegs, nails, beams, hooks, sockets, drapes,&nbsp;curtains, and bows.&nbsp;2) Most of the measurements are half sizes, not whole ones. Why not wholesome measurements?

Yet this captures the essence of the narrative. Our lives are defined by details, and most of them seem mundane. And we always do things in “half,” never complete, as we are fragmented creatures and there is always something left to do in order to complete the work. "No man dies with half of his ambitions fulfilled," states the Midrash. This, then, is the message of the story: our disjointed and fragmented lives, the many diverse details of our mundane life, can all become a home for the absolute and undefined reality of G-d. Infinite Oneness can pervade our consciousness--and the consciousness of the universe.&nbsp;

Standing Up to Evil

As we are all reeling from the shocking news of the Purin war on Ukraine -- it is time to remember and embrace our mission statement: To stand with all our might against tyranny, bloodshed, and abuse of human lives. To take a world so often divisive and fragmented, and reveal that we are all one.

75 years after the Holocaust, will world leaders again allow a KGB gangster to terrorize millions and get away with it? Will we Jews repeat the same mistake and worry about our own problems rather than ensuring each one of our brothers and sisters is protected?&nbsp;

(To help the fund I am overseeing,&nbsp;going directly to 17 Chabad Shluchim in Ukraine, for their communities and refugees, <a href="https://jewsofukraine.com/theyeshivanet">please click here</a>.)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

(This essay is based on the discourse Gedolim Maasei Tzadikkim 5685 (1925), by the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Schneerson&nbsp;(1880-1950)).

The Human Miracle - G-d Is a Great Builder; But It&rsquo;s Man&rsquo;s Handiwork that steals the show

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mishkan

human value

G-d Is a Great Builder; But It’s Man’s Handiwork that Takes the Cake

Essay Pekudei

The Human Miracle

The Silent Parrot&nbsp;
&nbsp;
An old Jew received a parrot from his sons after his wife died, to keep him company. He discovered that the parrot had heard him pray so often, that it had learned to say the prayers. The old man was so thrilled, that he decided to take his parrot to the synagogue on Rosh&nbsp;Hashana&nbsp;(the Jewish&nbsp;new year). When he entered with the bird, the rabbi tried to protest, but when he told him the parrot could pray ("daven" in Yiddish), the rabbi showed interest, though still skeptical. People started betting on whether the parrot would pray, and the old man happily took all the bets that went up to $50,000.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
The prayer starts – but the bird is silent. The prayer continues - not a word from the bird. The prayer ends, and the old man, crestfallen, is now in debt $50,000 for all of the bets. On the way home he thunders at his parrot: "Why did you do this to me? I know you can pray, you know you can pray, why did you keep your mouth shut? Do you know how much money I owe people now?"&nbsp;
&nbsp;
To which the parrot replied: "A little business imagination would help you, dear friend. You must look ahead: Can you imagine what the stakes will be like on Yom Kippur?"&nbsp;
&nbsp;
The Purpose of Life&nbsp;
&nbsp;“Rabbai&nbsp;Gamliel’s son, Shimon, would say: All my life I have been raised among the&nbsp;wise,&nbsp;and I have found nothing better for the body than silence.”&nbsp;
--&nbsp;Ethics of the Fathers, 1:17&nbsp;(chapter of this week.)&nbsp;
What is the meaning of these words? Why is there nothing better for the body than silence?&nbsp;And why the emphasis on the body, more than on the general person (“I have found nothing better for the person…”).&nbsp;
Silence is certainly a positive quality in life, especially in particular instances. But is really nothing better for the human body than silence?&nbsp;
The Talmud goes even further,&nbsp;stating&nbsp;a&nbsp;deeply enigmatic&nbsp;statement<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn1" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref1')">[1]</a>: “What is man’s task in the world?&nbsp;To make himself as silent as the dumb.”&nbsp;&nbsp;
Surely, silence is not&nbsp;always&nbsp;a bad idea, especially for certain types of people. But is this really man’s task in the world? Were we created merely to be silent?&nbsp;Does the Talmud believe&nbsp;that the entire purpose of our creation was to keep our mouths shut?&nbsp;
A Thing of Silence&nbsp;
In a brilliant exposition, the&nbsp;Lubavitcher&nbsp;Rebbe&nbsp;once&nbsp;presented the following interpretation<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn2" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref2')">[2]</a>.&nbsp;
The Torah defines all of existence as G-d’s speech. As Genesis puts it:&nbsp;“G-d said: ‘Let there be light!’ and there was light.” G-d said: “May the earth sprout forth&nbsp;vegetation,” etc.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Why does Torah employ the metaphor of speech to define the process of creation?&nbsp;Because in speech – unlike thought&nbsp;–&nbsp;the&nbsp;words&nbsp;of the speaker&nbsp;leave&nbsp;his or her&nbsp;domain and travel into&nbsp;a&nbsp;world&nbsp;outside of the speaker.&nbsp;When a person&nbsp;thinks, the ideas exist only within his&nbsp;or her&nbsp;own mind; when the thought is&nbsp;translated into words,&nbsp;it&nbsp;departs&nbsp;the&nbsp;person’s inner world,&nbsp;to attain&nbsp;an existence distinct&nbsp;from his.&nbsp;
This is why creation is described as G-d’s speech:&nbsp;G-d created a world which though completely dependent on Him (like words on the speaker), and continuously sustained by Him,&nbsp;nevertheless&nbsp;perceives&nbsp;itself as distinct and separate from G-d.&nbsp;In our world,&nbsp;one can remain completely oblivious to G-d and to any&nbsp;deeper&nbsp;reality pervading existence.&nbsp;One can enjoy the status of “agnostic” or “atheist,”&nbsp;walk&nbsp;our planet for ninety years and not even once entertain the idea that the presence of the living G-d vibrates through every moment of consciousness and every being.&nbsp;G-d “spoke” us into existence and thus allowed us to experience ourselves as&nbsp;“outside” and&nbsp;detached from His reality.&nbsp;
There is, however, a single exception to this model for the essential nature of all created things: the soul of man.&nbsp;The soul, the&nbsp;Neshamah, is described in&nbsp;Torah&nbsp;and Kabbalah<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_edn3" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_ednref3')">[3]</a>&nbsp;not&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;Divine word but&nbsp;as&nbsp;a G-dly&nbsp;thought.&nbsp;
Why the metaphor of thought?&nbsp;Just as a thought never departs from the&nbsp;inner domain of the&nbsp;thinker, the soul, too,&nbsp;is a creation which&nbsp;never&nbsp;“departs” from the all-pervading reality of G-d.&nbsp;Unlike the rest of the world which experiences itself as an egotistical reality,&nbsp;separate from the Divine, the soul experiences itself as submerged&nbsp;in the cosmic oneness of reality, and&nbsp;never&nbsp;sees&nbsp;itself as an “entity” distinct from its Creator.&nbsp;
When G-d speaks, a universe is created. When G-d thinks, a soul is created.&nbsp;
Alone in a verbose world, the soul of man is a&nbsp;“thing of silence.”&nbsp;And its mission in life is to impart this silence to the world about it.&nbsp;
We were created to share the “silence” of the&nbsp;soul with the rest of the world, beginning with our own bodies.&nbsp;&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref1" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn1')">[1]</a> Talmud,&nbsp;Chulin&nbsp;89a.&nbsp;
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref2" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn2')">[2]</a> The&nbsp;Lubavitcher&nbsp;Rebbe&nbsp;communicated this idea during an address on Shabbos&nbsp;Parshas&nbsp;Acharei&nbsp;Mos, 24 Nissan, 5719 (May 2, 1959), published in&nbsp;Likkutei&nbsp;Sichos&nbsp;vol. 4&nbsp;Avos&nbsp;ch.&nbsp;1. Cf. the rendition of&nbsp;Rabbo&nbsp;Yanki&nbsp;Tauber of this talk at&nbsp;<a href="http://meaningfullife.com/torah/ethics/1/The_Soul_COLON_A_Thing_of_Silence.php">http://meaningfullife.com/torah/ethics/1/The_Soul_COLON_A_Thing_of_Silence.php&nbsp;</a>
<a href="javascript: void(0);" id="_ednref3" onclick="ty.scrollTo('_edn3')">[3]</a> Zohar part II p.&nbsp;119a;&nbsp;Ohr&nbsp;Torah (by Rabbi&nbsp;DovBer&nbsp;the Maggid&nbsp;of&nbsp;Mezeritch) 2c;&nbsp;Tanya Chapter&nbsp;2.&nbsp;

You Were Created to Be Silent - When G-d Speaks, a Universe is Created; When G-d Thinks, a Soul is Created

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22_lag_baomer-0.pdf

words

soul

pirkei avos

creation

ethics of the fathers

silence

When G-d Speaks, a Universe is Created; When G-d Thinks, a Soul is Created

You Were Created to Be Silent

Every Small Step of a Person Is One Giant Leap for Mankind

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22_ac_chukas-0.pdf

halacha

human responsability

apollo 11

spacecraft

space ship

apollo 8

armstrong

july 20 1969

malkus

zalman posner

going to the moon

punishments

barry farber

lashes

moon landing

Every Small Step of a Person Is One Giant Leap for Mankind

Man on the Moon

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“Coronation Night” – that is how one of the great spiritual masters would define the night of Rosh Hashanah.
In a 1974 sermon, Rabbi Yosef Dov Soleveitchik (1903-1993), one of the great Jewish thinkers of the last century, related that when he was a young child learning in cheder (Jewish day school), in the Russian village of Chaslavitch, in the days preceding Rosh Hashanah, he could recognize in his teacher an extraordinary sense of trepidation.
“Our teacher, who was a Chabad Chassid (disciple), said to us: ‘Do you know what Rosh Hashanah is? The Rebbe the Tzemach Tzedek would call the night of Rosh Hashanah – ‘Karanatzia Nacht’ (‘Coronation Night’).
“Do you know whom we will be coronating?” the teacher asked the children.
The young Soleveitchik prodigy responded in jest: “Nicholas”. (This was a number of years before the 1917 Russian Revolution, when Nicholas still served as the Russian czar).
And the poor teacher of Chaslavitch responded: “Nicholas? He was coronated years ago, why do we need to coronate him again? Besides, he?! He is not a real king...”
“Tonight, my dear children, we coronate G-d; we place a crown on&nbsp;G-d…
“And do you know who places the crown?” The teacher continued. “Yankel the Tailor, Berel the Shoemaker, Zalman the water-carrier, Yossel the painter, Dovid the butcher…”
Rabbi Soloveitchik concluded: Over the years I have given many sermons and written many discourses on the concept of Rosh Hashanah, but nothing ever made me feel the true depth and power of the day as the words of my childhood teacher. Every year, when I recite in the Rosh Hashanah prayers the words, ‘Rule over the whole world in Your glory,’ I remember my teacher in Chaslavitch.
The Essence 
How much of Judaism is compressed in this brief conversation between teacher and students? In a few words, a poverty-stricken Jewish teacher in a small shtetl in Russia gave his seven-year-old students the core, the essence, the very marrow of Jewish existence, of Jewish thought.
Now he needed not explain to them why they should marry Jewish girls, continue living as Jews, be proud of their Jewishness, as so many teachers and educators today. It was more than obvious: Who would want to miss out on the opportunity of coronating G-d…
Why Bother?
But why does G-d need us to coronate Him? If G-d created us, does He really need us to declare Him king; He is the boss regardless?
And what does it mean that G-d is our king Imagine you assemble 1,000,000 ants and declare yourself king over them. When 50,000 of them then turn left instead of right, you kill them in a single instance. Does that make you king over them? G-d gave us our entire existence; our entire being and life force are from Him. Relative to Him we are far smaller and far les significant than an ant in the presence of a human. Can He then said to be our king? Is that not an insult for Him?
Yet here lay one of the great and daring ideas of Judaism. G-d, the perfect endless one, desired to be king not through power or by the dictates of nature. He desired to be chosen as king; He wanted a relationship with someone distinct of Him who would freely choose to construct a bond with G-d.
So an infinite, omnipotent G-d suspends His infinity, suppresses His endlessness and concealed His omnipotence, in order to allow space for an intelligent, independent and self-oriented human being who is then capable of choosing G-d as his or her king.
The Night
This, the spiritual masters explained, is the meaning of Rosh Hashanah, the day when the first human was created. It is the day when small, frail, vulnerable and lowly human beings invite G-d to serve as their King.
G-d could place His own crown on His head, but then He would be a dictator, not a king; the relationship would be coerced not chosen. So G-d waits all year for this great moment for which the entire universe was created – the moment when you and I coronate Him as our king.
Rosh Hashanah is the most moving day in the Jewish calendar. More than any other day, it embodies the meaning of human existence and the vulnerability of a G-d who linked His fate to man’s.
Happy Coronation Night.

A Night to Remember - On the Essence of Rosh Hashanah

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22_vayikach_haman_ac.pdf

rosh hashana

On the Essence of Rosh Hashanah

Rosh Hashanah Essay

A Night to Remember 

The First Discourse of the Rebbe Basi Legani 5711/1951 -- Part One: A New Perspective on Our Planet

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22_maamar basi legani 5711.pdf

rabbi_yossi_paltiel_basi_legani_5711_1951_Part_1.360p.mp4

rabbi_yossi_paltiel_basi_legani_5711_1951_Part_1.mp3

basi legani 5711

planet earth

physicality

purpose existance

A New Perspective on Our Planet

The First Discourse of the Rebbe  Basi Legani 5711/1951 -- Part One

The Senselessness of Existence -- Part One - Maamar Basi Legani 5731 (1971) -- Part 2

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22_shavuos.pdf

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basi legani 5731

Maamar Basi Legani 5731 (1971) -- Part 2

The Senselessness of Existence -- Part One

The Senselessness of Existence -- Part Two - Maamar Basi Legani 5731 (1971) -- Part 3

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22_rebbe_letter_erev_shavuos_1949.pdf

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Maamar Basi Legani 5731 (1971) -- Part 3

The Senselessness of Existence -- Part Two

A series on the Chassidic discourses of Samach Vav -- The cornerstone of Chassidus, by Rabbi Sholom Dov Ber Schneerson. Class 5 of 6 

What Does G-d Really Want?

A series on the Chassidic discourses of Samach Vav -- The cornerstone of Chassidus, by Rabbi Sholom Dov Ber Schneerson. Class 5 of 6

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