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| Torahs from the Heart by Rabbi Yisroel Finman |
But on Pesach, we still don’t receive the Torah. Shavuos is the receiving of Torah. There is a difference between breaking away from enslavement and being liberated. The Pesach seder was and is a gift from The Creator. We are shown just how great liberation from enslavement can be. We are given the ability to walk away from our enslavements. But it’s just a gift: a preview of the coming attractions. It’s not permanent because it is not earned. For permanency, we need to put forth an effort. We do this with Sefirot HaOmer/Counting the Omer. Historically/Biblically, Sefirot HaOmer refers to the days between the offerings of the First Portion of the barley harvest in Jerusalem on the second day of Passover and the offering of the First portion of the wheat harvest in Jerusalem on Shavuos. Barley was used primarily as animal fodder. Wheat was used primarily for human consumption. Needing the Creator to gift us with the initial thrust from enslavement is akin to being on an animal level. Animals are provided with their sustenance gratis from G*d. Animals don’t work (unless we remove them from their natural environment and force them to pay for their upkeep), they don’t pray, they don’t think to the point of effectuating psychological or emotional change. Humans need, at the very least, to work for sustenance. We also need to pray and study the word of G*d, even if most people don’t recognize this. Kabbalistically, the Sefirot HaOmer period becomes a seven week cycle of time wherein we work on those seven sefirot that make up our emotional system:
The seven weeks from the Seder to Shavuos are for growth, for becoming the people we know we can be (as seen via the seder experience) from the day of choosing to walk away from slavery to the day before Receiving the Divine. On Shavous we can acquire a state of At-One-Ness, of awareness of the Creator the way Adam and Eve would have in Paradise had they eaten from the Tree of Life rather than the Tree of Knowledge Next week, we expound upon the emotional qualities of the Sefirot. Torahs from the Heart is sponsored by NISHMAT KOL CHAI-“innovative jewish solutions” Rabbi Yisroel Finman—Founder and Director TORAHS FROM THE HEART Parshas Emor Preparing to Receive the Giving of the Torah- Part 2 Working of the UNCHAIN GANG Last week we mentioned how our Passover (especially the Seder) is an intellectual understanding of the enslavement and liberation process, the ultimate liberation being Shavuos the giving of and receiving of Torah (the ultimate manifestation of divinity in the universe). The seven weeks between the Seder and Shavuos is called Sefirat Haomer, the counting of the Omer. The original Passover experience was a gift from The Creator and although we were at the same greatly heightened level as we were at Mt. Sinai, we were unable to receive the Torah because we did not posses the capacity to do so. We did not have the internal capacity to receive what G*d wanted to present to us. The original period of time between the first Passover and the first Shavuos was meant to be a time for our ancestors to reconstruct themselves. Having experienced a sort of preview on Passover, they were then able to work on mastering that spiritual level necessary for receiving Torah in a very deep and permanent way. On the first Shavuos, mankind was returned to the spiritual level of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, prior to their choosing an improper path. From that point in time, mankind could have progressed into even higher states of consciousness and eventually into being completely infinite, divinely infused beings. Had Moses returned from his Communion with the Divine on Mt. Sinai before we blew it, by allowing the golden calf to be constructed and diminish our spiritual level, we would have had the capacity to walk into the land of Canaan. The morally and spiritually corrupt ancient inhabitants of the land would have vanquished and the Messianic Age, the age of spiritual and moral growth would have been in full swing. But our ancestors, who were pre-carnates of our own beings came close but not quite close enough. (The souls which we possess, which are our true selves, were inhabiting those bodies that experienced the exodus) Since that time, we have been trying to re-attain that level. Each year we experience Passover and apply the original experience of enslavement and liberation to our own lives, to our own enslavements and possible liberations. The methodology for correcting the mistakes of our predecessors (who are actually us in different bodies) is Sefirat Haomer, the seven week period of time between the Seder and Shavuos. Knowing something intellectually and knowing that same thing emotionally are worlds apart. Having awareness within our mind does not necessarily translate into placing that awareness within our hearts. The mind has many fleeting thoughts, the heart tends to have much fewer but much more deeply seated “thoughts”. There is a big gap between intellectual comprehension and the emotional ability to effect change. We, therefore, take this seven-week period and work on our emotional limitations. Each week of the seven weeks corresponds to a Kabbalistic emotional sphere. These emotional spheres within us parallel the methodology of Creation, the way in which an infinite G*d is revealed in a finite universe. Because we are created and continue to function as an image of G*d, placing and maintaining these spheres within our hearts is a very integral aspect of our lives, just as the Creator’s utilization of the spheres was and is an integral aspect of Life. Next week, hopefully, we’ll delve into the seven emotional spheres as they relate to this liberation process. Until then, just a reminder for meditative and contemplative purposes, the seven emotional spheres are:
A little further food for thought, the seven spheres correspond to seven patriarchs, the same seven holy ancestors whom we invite into the succah each night of Succos. Each of their lives and beings typified one each of these emotional spheres.
Torahs from the Heart is sponsored by NISHMAT KOL CHAI-“innovative jewish solutions” Rabbi Yisroel Finman—Founder and Director TORAHS FROM THE HEART Parshat Behar Preparing to Receive the Giving of the Torah- Part 3 The Seven Sefirot- Understanding Our Emotions and Their Patriarchal Prototypes Anybody can be a slave- But not everyone can be free. Anybody can be forced into being a slave- But no one can be forced into being holy. In Egypt we were forced into slavery. At Mt. Sinai we were given the choice to be holy. The experience at Mt. Sinai is termed “Matan Torah/Giving (of the)Torah”. The Creator gave Torah to humanity, equally. How it is received is purely an individual choice. This is not much different than rain, which legalistically, kabbalistically and metaphorically is the same process, the Creator bequeaths a heavenly, live sustaining substance to humanity. Rain happens without human effort but its’ maximum receiving depends upon human choice. Do we choose to live in an area whose climate inhibits rain? Do we choose to reside in an area whose climate is conducive to abundant rain? What size and type of receptacles (reservoirs) do we choose to make in order to contain the rain? The same with Torah and with G*d awareness. Real sustained change occurs within not as a result of the intellectual process but as a result of the subsequent emotional resolve. There are seven emotional Sefirot, each corresponding to a specific week of the seven weeks between Seder and Shavuos, and each corresponding to the personality and spirituality type of a historical figure. The oft quoted line that “Ma’aseh avot siman lebanim/the actions of the patriarchs are prototype for their descendants” also means that just as Adam and Eve in the spiritual sense embody all the Sefirot, the seven patriarchal figures embody one Sefirah each. Through understanding their lives, personalities and spiritual approach we can comprehend our own.
The patriarch Abraham was the epitome of kindness. More accurately, he is the manifestation of kindness. G*d blessed him with great wealth. Rather than lavish it on personal consumption he used it to help people discover the presence of the Creator. Abraham ran the world’s first glatt kosher, Cholov Yisroel, Shomer Shabbos hotel, restaurant and retreat.. Every wayfarer was invited to take respite form the desert heat (and metaphorical desert and barren spirituality) into Abraham and Sarah’s Hospitality Hotel, the original House of Love and Prayer. There they were fed and sheltered, literally and spiritually, gratis. Whereas most of our deeds of kindness are rooted at the very least, in our feeling good about our actions, Abraham and Sarah’s deeds of kindness were solely for the sake of heaven: to bring an awareness of The Higher Power’s presence into daily life.
Imagine a powerful force. A hurricane, a volcanic eruption, the bombing of Hiroshima, or the sun. Gevurah is power. The patriarch Isaac is Gevurah, unwavering strength. Isaac, at the age of forty was prepared to be bound upon an alter and give up his life, if G*d wanted. This dedication is gevurah. All too often our resolve falters in so many aspects of our lives and especially in the area of growth. Isaac taught us how to be strong. But contrary to popular misunderstanding of strength as masculine force, real strength and power do not manifest as forcing others to conform to one’s dictates. Quite the contrary, it is an accepted fact in modern psychotherapy that a bully is masking deep insecurities. A person of gevurah can and does back off from confrontation when necessary as depicted in the incident of Avimelech’s servants usurping the wells that Abraham had dug. (Genesis 26). Chessed and Gevurah correspond to the right and left arm/hand limb respectively.
Not necessarily the way we think of beauty. Our value system of beauty is often derived from sensual arousal, which is the sefirah of Yesod. Real Tiferes beauty is the awareness of G*dliness. Since everything contains G*dliness, if we perceive its’ G*dliness, then it is beauty. If not it is something being confused with beauty. Everything about the patriarch Jacob was beautiful and G*dly. Jacobs’ likeness is engraved on G*d’s throne. One look at Jacob and even his enemies (Laban, Esau, Eliphaz) melted, even his enemies were unable to perpetrate their intended harm because the Face of G*d clearly emanated from the face of Jacob. Humility is connected with Tiferes in that Jacob was genuinely unaware of his stature. Tiferes is a proper balance of Chessed and Gevurah and is connected with the heart, the central point of the middle torso (if the head is viewed as the upper portion of the body). Love emanates from the heart and is connected to beauty. Our children should be a product of the beauty which two people share. The less we love each other within a marital relationship, the less grounded our children are. The proper balance of Chessed/ love, and Gevurah/discipline produces beautiful, well adjusted offspring. The proper balance of Torah/Chessed, and work/Gevurah, produces beauty within one’s being.
Moses was the vehicle by which Torah was brought into our level of existence. Torah is eternal. It predates creation and was the blueprint for the creation process. (That doesn’t mean that the manifestation of Torah that we have with its specific words was necessarily the blueprint. Torah is an ethereal entity, which because of the timeframe in which it was revealed to us in this incarnation of the world, took the form that we have. If Torah were revealed to the worlds that existed prior to ours or if it had been revealed at a different junction in time, like in the Garden of Eden or in contemporary times, it may have taken a different form.) How much of our actions are designed to catch up with yesterday? How much of our thoughts and actions are limited in their scope? How much of our thoughts and actions are connected with 200 or 2000 years from now? Moses brought something into the world that not only predates the world but also, for us more importantly, still exists and is highly relevant 3500 years later. This is opening the gates of heaven in order to connect heaven and earth. Netzach corresponds to the right leg/foot unit and is a linear progression from chessed. Netzach comes from Chessed. Eternity/enduring comes from love.
Aaron is linked with two concepts both of which typify his life, the Temple service, especially the light of the menorah and actively pursuing peace. Both the Holy Temple and peace between people are the utmost manifestations of G*d. The Holy Temple’s primary purpose was the facilitation of peace. The prophet Isaiah calls it the house for all peoples. The Temple although utilizing strictly Jewish forms of worship was opened to everyone. Offerings were accepted from any person who was moved to bring an offering in a desire to grow closer to the Infinite and Eternal. The purpose of light is the dispelling of darkness. Physical light dispels physical darkness--- Spiritual light dispels spiritual darkness. The Holy Temple is both and dispels both. Peace is both and dispels both. Splendor is what G*d’s glory looks like. Peace (harmony) is what G*d looks like. Aaron more than any other person shined with G*dliness. Hod corresponds to the left leg/foot unit and is, surprisingly, a linear progression from Gevurah/strength. But then again both the Holy Temple and peace require very great strength in subduing our egos in order for them to function optimally.
The greatest source of misery in our world is sexual and moral dysfunction. The roles of men and women vis-a-vis dominance and submissiveness were and continue to be the curses that the Creator placed upon Adam and Eve in the Garden. Equality is an outgrowth of peace. (Equality does not mean sameness but equal worth, active respect, acceptance and harmony.) Sexual intimacy is the glue that bonds the love that a man and woman share, and is the necessary factor for creating offspring. Love with sexual intimacy are the necessary factors in creating holy offspring. Sex outside of a respectful, lifetime, monogamous relationship between a man and woman is what the animals do. (Actually, some animals do mate for life and share in the upbringing of their young). When sex is used for pleasure alone, removed from the monogamous marital context, we denigrate its’ potential to a less than human level. Animals have sex. We have loving relationships based upon holiness. Animals are not created in G*d’s image, we are. G*d is holy. We are bidden to be holy. Being holy means emulating G*d, not animals. The best animals can do is to be fully immersed in earthly existence. The best we can do is to raise our existence to heaven; to transform physical into spiritual. Joseph is identified with sexual function not because he was the first to have a healthy and holy sex life. The patriarchs and matriarchs were certainly sexually holy. Joseph’s greatness was in his ability to maintain holiness while in the bowels of depravity, ancient Egypt. As foreign of a concept as it is for us to understand, ancient Egypt was to the forces of evil what the Jews are to the forces of holiness. Just as our mission is to actively bring holiness into the world, their mission was to bring the real forces of darkness into the world. As great as the pyramids and The Book of The Dead are, they are rooted in depravity. Ultimately, how great can the pyramids be if they were built by forced slave labor solely for the deification and glorification of a human being!!! You can’t get to heaven by stepping on another being. When Potiphar’s wife was attempting to seduce seventeen-year-old Joseph, he resisted her very active advances because he saw his father’s face. Yesod corresponds to the genitals, the centrally located portion of the lower torso. It is a direct linear progression from Tiferes/beauty/heart which is identified with Jacob, his father. The heart and the genitals must function in unity. Jewish Law maintains that if a couple is contemplating divorce, or if they are angry with one another then sex between them is not allowed. Sexual intimacy and love are complimentary components of a holy relationship designed to emulate the Creator, and to create another generation of healthy fully functional people.
In the Torah logic an earthly leader mirrors The Divine Leader. The Torah has a mitzvah (usually translated as commandment but etymologically related to the word connection) that the king of Israel must always have a Torah Scroll with him at all times so that he remembers who the real ruler is- G*d! How often do our egos banish G*d to a back seat? A truly regal being devises his/her majesty from a connection with the Higher Power. By diminishing our egocentricity and allowing the Higher Power to have dominion, we allow a supra sense of reality to exist. Let go and let G*d. This was King David. So far, the Sefirot have been laid out rather linearly. Next week we will examine the interweave of the fabric of the Sefirot. Torahs from the Heart is sponsored by NISHMAT KOL CHAI-“innovative jewish solutions” Rabbi Yisroel Finman—Founder and Director |
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TORAHS FROM THE HEART Parshat Kedoshim Preparing to Receive the Giving of the Torah- Part 1
comprehend the intellectual process by which enslavement occurs. That is, how we historically allowed ourselves to become enslaved in Egypt, and how we personally allow ourselves to become and choose to remain enslaved. We open our mouths on Pesach (Pe=mouth and Sach=open) and talk to one another (Hagadah=explanations). |
| Telephone 305-304-0290 |
| Rabbi Yisroel & Rebbetzen Judy Finman |