This Shabbos we continued our discussion of Lag BaOmer which we celebrate on the 33rd day of the Omer. This day is the yorzeit of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, who authored the Zohar which is a text of Jewish mysticism. We discussed why this would be a day of celebration rather than mourning. Rabbi Yochai believed and taught that it is a great experience for the soul to be free of the constraints of the physical body. The Rabbi taught that once free from physical constraints we have a far greater capacity to understand Hashem and the spiritual world. So in honor of him and his teachings, we celebrate the day of his Yorzeit rather than mourning. It is sad to leave the physical world, but the entrance into the spiritual (without any physical constraints) can be seen as a cause for celebration.
We discussed how difficult it would be to explain colors like red, yellow, and blue to someone who is color blind. Likewise, it is difficult to understand Hashem and the spiritual world when our souls are constrained within a physical body, as part of a physical world. For the person who is color blind, we can tell him that somehow the color he sees as black is different with different objects, but there is sure to be a lot of skeptical people who are sure it looks the same in every case! Likewise, there are a lot of skeptics who are sure they do not “see” Hashem, and it is true they do not see him physically, but this does not translate into Hashem not existing. We just have to "see" him in different ways.
There was actually a time in ancient history when Hashem did manifest himself in a more obvious way. David talked about the different types of power. In ancient times, reward and fear were used as a way to exert power by Hashem over his creations, thus giving Hashem a more obvious physical presence. Back then the Jews really had to punish someone who was not following the Torah, as there was sure to be consequences to the entire community. This form of power was used for a long time, but at some point Hashem wanted humans to evolve and become more sophisticated in their motivations. Today, Hashem relies on our being motivated to be holy regardless of what we receive in return. And Hashem also relies on us following the Torah regardless of whether or not it makes logical sense.
We should do mitzvah in order to realize the spiritual benefits, rather than trying to get something in return. Yaki talked about how we can be holy and cling to Hashem. Following the Torah to the best of our ability is one way. We should also ask ourselves often whether or not we are carrying out the will of Hashem. Yaki pointed out that Jews need to be with other Jews in order to carry out their mission.
To be holy we need to imitate Hashem and finish the act of creation. David talked about how it is important to do work in the physical world, as well as study Torah. Working in the physical world, we can create things and “elevate the sparks of kidusha”, as one of my friends puts it. There needs to be a balance between work and Torah study. Rabbi Bar Yochai hid in a cave and had food and his other needs miraculously taken care of, but in today’s world if we don’t work we are going to suffer with a lot of unmet needs, and/or be a burden on others.
We each have a mission, similar to a quarterback or center on a football team. Even the person who brings water has an important mission. We are a team. It is important that we work together.
We also honor Rabbi Akiva on Lag B Omer. Rabbi Akiva perished at the hands of the Romans, so we do not commemorate his yorzeit on the actual date of his passing, but honor him on Lag B Omer instead. And on Lag B Omer it is customary for those who turned 3 years old during the preceding days of the Omer, to finally get their first haircut!
Please do not hesitate to leave questions and or comments. This is a summary of what we discussed this Shabbos. No Halachic rulings are intended or should be inferred.
2 comments:
The Rambam in Hilchot Yesodei Torah (Torah Foundations) discusses several levels of possible relationships with Hashem. We related those to sources of power that I learned about in a leadership seminar. The most basic level is fear of Hashem. This equates to punishment power (i.e., we do what Hashem wants due to concern for consequences). The Rambam encourages us to move beyond this level to Ahavat Hashem, or love of Hashem. He discusses two levels of Ahava: One which is dependent on reward (i.e., I love someone because of the nice things he does for me). The other is independent of any such considerations and is motivated by an awareness of the greatness and admirability of the object of your love. The first level of Ahavat Hashem equates to power of reward (i.e., we cling to Hashem because of the potential for reward). The greater level equates to referent power, where we align ourselves with Hashem's will out of a deep appreciation of His greatness and how it ennobles us to attach ourselves to him.
We opened with a discussion about a Gemara that says eating radish once a month is healthy, but eating it every day is harmful. On the surface, this sounds like Talmudic health advice (which appears frequently in the Talmud). But Rav Kook explains that this is a metaphor: The radish represents the harshness of consequences of not following Hashem's desires for us. It should be considered once in a while, but it should not be a daily or overriding consideration. People who have been driven their whole lives by an emphasis on the divine "fear factor" are often driven away from religious practice. The Talmud is advising us to focus on the positive aspects of a relationship with Hashem, and only rarely focus on the downside of missing out.
I now remember the discussion but this clarifies it very well, thank you. Maybe when I am trying to motivate myself I should focus more on the positive.
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