Finding the Infinite - in an Eye

In this week's Torah Portion, we meet our famous forefather
Avraham-arguably the greatest revolutionary in the history of the
world. Avraham broke the news to the world that there is One & only
One G-d. Up until Avraham, idols were worshiped; the sun the moon and
the stars as well. The 'Midrash' describes one of the ways Avraham
came to his realization of monotheism at a young age: seeing the
sun's powerful rays beeming unto the earth, blinding his eyes, Avraham
1st believed the sun to be G-d. But as soon as night came-the sun left
and the moon took over! the moon must be G-d then. As this cycle
continued, Avraham realized there must be 1, and Only 1, who rules the
world-One G-d. We can learn from Avraham our forefather, that G-d, as Hidden as He seems to be, displays Himself in our world: we just have to take a
minute to investigate deeper.....

'Right now you are reading these words. What is happening inside your eye as you are looking at these words? Light passes through the front of the eye (the pupil) & through the lens. This light goes toward the back of the eye (the retina) where in a space less than 1 square inch, there are approximately one hundred
million small machines shaped like rods. Every rod is connected by a nerve fiber to the brain. The rods contain a chemical substance called visual purple (rhodopsin). When the light reaches the rod it causes the visual purple to break down. This breakdown generates several millionths of a volt of electricity. This electricity is transmitted to the brain through the optic nerve at about 300 mph.
The brain interprets the signals coming in, identifies what is being seen &
remembers the image. The entire process is completed in about two
thousandths of a second!

The hundred million rods described above only help us see black &
white, however. There is a different mechanism in our eyes for seeing
colors. The back of each eye has approximately 3 million cones with
bleachable pigments which react to light waves of different colors.
The brain merges the electrical signals that each color creates to
form many different hues. When the lighting is faint, the cones become
less active, our sense of color fades away, everything becomes gray, &
the rods for black & white vision become active. There is much more
that can be said about the wonders of the eye.'
- “Discovery” by Dov Moshe Lipman

To realize there is a G-d in the world is one thing. It takes a searching eye and a wondering mind. Avraham did that, and passed on to us the inherent ability to realize too. But Avraham also decided to act on that knowledge, to do what our Creator asks of His people: to make this world into a dwelling place for Him through Torah, Prayer, Charity, Mivtzot, and kindness to others. Let's keep this week's Torah portion, and our forefather Avraham's search, alive. Let's Keep up the search!

Shabbat Shalom!

-daniel

Alive & Moving with Joy

B"H

Tonight begins the unique holiday of Sukkot. While we must be joyful during ALL holidays, Sukkot is known most as
a festival of joy.
I heard an interesting class today, which discussed the fact that everything in the world is moving. To be alive means to be constantly moving.
Our heartbeat must constantly move, our breath as well. One can marvel at the remarkable consistency of the waves of the ocean. EVEN minerals
show a life force in action (extraction of fission energy). This movement occurs because all of creation is connected to its source, A G-dly life force perpetually
infusing everything with life. And life=movement. We see this by the fact that everything that's alive-moves. The only being that stops moving at times is us human beings.
(An animal stops bc it's his built in nature; you won't find a tiger though, staying in for the day b/c he wants to sleep in :) We humans at times, Decidedly stop. We lie on the
couch or stay glued to a TV, or worse yet one can fall into a depressive state. How come humans can stop moving, can stop appearing alive?
B/C we are able to forget that we are connected to our life force.
When one realizes that at every moment (even when things are apparently going bad in your life) you are directly connected to your life force, G-d,
one becomes joyous, happy. This is even many times expressed in movement; dancing or actively sharing this feeling with another-because knowing you are connected to your life force
brings life & therefore movement.
Therefore, being happy isn't becoming something new, rather it's going to the natural state a creation in this physical world is supposed to be. Alive, moving. You are connected-therefore happy and alive.

As we approach Sukkot tonight, let's truly feel this "simchah"-joy, through recognizing that our life force is constantly being revitalized by our G-d, b/c He Is Willing us into creation at every moment.
Shake the lulav and etrog, dine with family & friends under a Sukkah-all in joy, for joy is the way Judaism is meant to be lived.

-daniel

P.S. 3074 Renault St., SD, CA 92122---anyone is invited to come eat under our sukkah Wed., Thurs., or Fri. night. Chag Sameach!

Hide & Go-Seek

Dear Friends and family

As we head for our local synagogues for the great high holidays of Rosh Hashana & Yom Kippur,

we can approach the day(s) in 1 of 2 ways: As a boring/tiresome day, or a unique and special time to think and connect with something Greater than ourselves..

Once, there was a great Rabbi who was sitting in his home learning. Suddenly, his young son burst into the room sobbing loudly. His father asked what had happened. "I was playing hide & go seek with my friends, and I was chosen to hide. I hid & hid & hid... and no one came to look for me!"

The boy's father then burst into tears. Seeing the confusion on his son's face, the great Rabbi said: "G-d Does the same thing. He Hides and no one searches..."

G-d, no doubt about it, isn't openly seen or revealed. Especially these days, in the final days of exile. But from the vast Pacific Ocean waves to the most minute ladybug, from a peacock to your beating heart, from the divine providence seen in our own lives, G-d Reveals Himself. We just have to search. When we pray during these high holidays (in English or Hebrew) we can try maybe, to think where WE see G-d in our own lives. His guiding of MY own path-and also of nature and the world at large.

I was thinking something: Doesn't it happen often, when watching a good movie; as it nears its end, and the movie has just hit its peak (i.e. Gladiator after he kills the emperor :) one feels that he doesn't want the movie to end. Why is that? Because we enjoy going beyond ourselves for a little while. Into a deeper reality, a deeper existence.

Judaism is the movie that never ends... :)

P.S. please come over to my house for any holidays like sukkot! Ill be home in 2 weeks 858-452-6205