Why Roll in Mud?

~ This email is dedicated to the lives of our holy brothers and sisters who passed on during the holocaust, many of whom kept kosher throughout their time in the camps. May their souls bask in eternal joy and tranquility ~

KFC, McDonalds, Taco Bell, La Marais.
From cheeseburgers and shrimp to fine steak and lobster, many Jews know that one of the hardest commandments of the Torah to keep is kosher. While every mitzvah, in essence, is simply the will of G-d, we also know that each mitzvah of the Torah contains hidden & revealed reasons for why we keep it. But why kosher? Is it just a law in place to test our loyalty? Perhaps it's in place to keep Jews eating together? Or maybe it's because of the famous theory that it's a health issue?


I once learned a very beautiful and profound idea in relation to this question. Many of us, if not all, look at Torah & Judaism in the wrong light. Backwards even. As simple human beings on earth, we tend to look at the world as the beginning of all things, of all of reality. But by doing this, we forget that there was, and is, spiritual worlds - a higher reality, that preceded and supersedes the one we find ourselves in. That there is a deeper wisdom that infinitely transcends our earthly plane - that caused its existence. That wisdom is the Torah.

In other words: Many of us look at the commandment to eat kosher food as something that came along to provide us with a healthier way of living. Bacteria inhaling crustaceans and fatty pork isn't exactly paradise for your cholesterol. But while it's true that kosher animals are healthier, and while it is also true that no kosher animal is a predator - but rather an herbivore, we have to make sure we don't only perceive kosher as a byproduct of our earthly reality. What do I mean?

The truth is, Judaism's perspective on Kosher is the opposite. Unhealthy animals aren't unkosher because they're unhealthy. Rather, it is because these animals were deemed not kosher for consumption that they were created unhealthy! In G-d's will and wisdom (the Torah in its pristine, original state) it was decided before the creation of the world that certain animals would be unkosher. Therefore - since the Torah is a "blueprint for the creation of the world" - those particular animals had to be created in a state of impurity, both spiritually and physically. Physically, many of these sea creatures were placed in the very bottom of the seabed. Pigs roll in mud. But that is all merely a byproduct of the fact that they are not kosher, not the cause!

Examples of this underpinning principle of Judaism can be found with everything.Jewish mysticism teaches that the reason why parents instinctively love their children, is because G-d loves his creations. The reason why a seed must be nurtured in earth for a long period to become a tree which can bear fruit ad inifinitum, and a human seed must be nurtured in a womb for a long period of time in order to become a human being who can bear knew children ad infinitum, is only because the masculine spiritual faculty of wisdom (chochman) must give to the feminine faculty of understanding (binah) in order to give birth to our emotions (middot) - see here for more on that.

May you and your family have a Shabbat Shalom, full of delicious kosher challah and other goodies!

-Daniel

The Wise Son

"...And on the seventh day (of Pesach), it should be a holy day to you, all manner of work should not be done..." Tonight (Thursday) - Sat. night, we celebrate the last 2 days of Passover. As we take advantage of these final days of the holiday of spiritual freedom, we must think about how we can internalize the message of Passover into our daily lives for the coming summer and year.


A woman once approached Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik of Brisk with a strange question. She wanted to know whether one could use milk instead of wine for the four cups of the Seder, since she simply could not afford the wine. He responded by giving her a large amount of money. One of the Rabbi’s students asked him, “I understand you gave her money because she can’t afford the wine, but why so much?” The Rabbi explained, “If she wants to drink milk at the Seder, it is obvious she has no meat for Pesach” (since the laws of kashrut forbid the mixing of milk and meat). “So I gave her enough to buy both wine and meat for the entire holiday.”

One of the core parts of the "Haggadah" (story of Pesach) is the discussion of the 4 sons, the 1st of which is the wise son. What does it truly mean to be wise, and how can we become that? As seen by the Rabbi in the story, sometimes it's not enough to just be "smart". Rather, we have to be perceptive. People always taught me in yeshiva: "If you want to answer, to teach somebody, don't focus on just answering their question, as if that's their real, only issue. Answer the questioner." We have to have a sensitive "ear" to hear what people are saying behind their words. This enables us to perceive the speaker's true needs and respond accordingly with compassion. We have to learn, study, reflect, and grow. But that wisdom we attain, must always lead practically to the betterment of the world and others around us. It is easy for wisdom to stay locked away, remote from the outside world. But as our Sages say: 'He whose good deeds exceed his wisdom, his wisdom will endure. But he whose wisdom exceeds his good deeds, his wisdom will not endure.' (Ethics of our Fathers 3:9)

May we never cease learning, especially the holy words of the Torah and our Sages, and may the wisdom we attain permeate our thinking and the way we view others and the world around us. For a beautiful insight on this, see this video: Gratitude

Wishing you a lovely end of Pesach & a Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel

From Slavery to...Freedom?

Tonight, April 6th, the 15th of Nissan, Jews worldwide will be celebrating Pesach (Passover). 3 Matzahs, 4 cups of wine, bitter herbs and sweet charoset, we will recall the events that led to the leaving of Egypt by our people years ago. But for what purpose did G-d take us out all those years ago? And He (G-d) said (to Moshe),
"For I will be with you, and this is the sign for you that it was I Who sent you. When you take the people out of Egypt, you will worship G-d on this mountain." (Exodus 3:12)

The ultimate purpose of leaving the shackles of Egyptian slavery, was to receive the Torah from G-d at Mount Sinai, accepting upon ourselves the various laws and instructions - the Mitzvot - contained inside. An obvious question arises: How come we make such a big deal over our freedom from Egypt and our servitude there, if we were only freed in order to become slaves to another master!? With all of these rules & regulations, where's our freedom!? And if so, what are we even celebrating? The answer to this is a profound one - touching on the essence of who we are and what it means to truly feel free.

Who are we? Judaism teaches that we are lofty souls, that have descended & been clothed into coarse bodies that are constantly distracted by any and every lust & desire that passes before our eyes. Especially today in 2012, with the dominant role electronic devices play in our lives - with its constant barrage of messages and visuals, as well as the rise in our standard of living, much time has been devoted to our bodies, while less and less time & opportunity has been afforded our souls.

In the books of Jewish Mysticism, it is often described how painful for the soul it is to have to descend from its lofty home in the spiritual worlds to an earth full of lies and falsehood. Where the outer shell is emphasized as truth and the inner dimension invisible. And that's where Torah & Mitzvot come in. Far from limiting us, when one learns Torah or performs a Mitzvah, one's soul is able to finally express itself - to free itself from the shackles of shallowness, shining through the coarseness of physicality.

By way of example, let's take a look at the mitzvah of observing Shabbat. We know that a major theme of Shabbat is that it's a day of rest. But so much we do that day seems to be the opposite of rest! From walking to synagogue to avoiding computers & television to exerting ourselves in prayer and learning, Shabbat seems to be more strenuous than restful! But that's if one is looking at the resting of the body. Avoiding the numerous every day distractions of life, for one day, opens up a door for one's soul to express itself. Prayer, learning, a time for contemplation and reflection, gives a person a chance to express his true essence. And that is the true "rest" the soul desires all week long.

May this Passover, and its continuation to the holiday of Shavuot, inspire us to get more in touch with our souls, through connecting with our Torah & Mitzvot.

Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel