Lessons from a Thief

'Ben Zoma says: Who is wise? He who learns from every person..Who is strong? He who subdues his personal inclination.. Who is rich? He who is happy with his lot.' (Pirkei Avot, 4:1)

This has always been one of my favorite lessons from 'The Ethics of our fathers', sayings of the Sages that resonate today as strongly as they did when they were written 2,000 yrs. ago. The first thing that pops out from Ben Zoma's words, is that they are counter intuitive to what many people would think to answer to these Q's. Wealth? Having lots of money & assets. Strength? Being muscular and in shape. Wisdom? Being a PH.D. And yet we learn that one can be monetarily poor, and yet rich because of his contentment with what he has. "What I need to succeed in my personal mission in this lifetime, I have. What I wasn't given is for a reason, and I therefore don't need it." One can be physically powerful, even exerting one's passion & strength on someone who gets in the way. But holding back and controlling one's inner emotions often times takes more inner strength: "A master of his passions is better than a conqueror of a city." One can be a great philosopher and thinker. But does he really understand the world around him? Is he utilizing his life's opportunities to understand life better? One who learns a lesson from every person & opportunity is constantly growing in wisdom.

One of the examples of learning from everybody that stuck in my mind, was a story with Rabbi Zusia of Anipoli. He taught that one can learn 3 things from babies, and 7 things from robbers! 1) A baby is always busy & is not unoccupied even for a minute. 2) When he lacks something, he isn't embarrassed to cry out for his needs (Like we should do in prayer/requests to G-d). 3) Whenever his basic needs are satisfied, he is happily content. A robber? 1)Does his work under the cover of night, away from the eyes of people (we should perform good deeds without throwing it in people's faces). 2) Even if he fails one day, he will attempt again & again. 3) He is loyal to his comrades.

The list goes on, and maybe you can figure out the rest? May we continually learn good lessons from our surroundings & the people we meet, as well as work to control our anger & impatience. Let's be truly rich, by realizing that everything we have is what we need, given to us by G-d for a reason.

Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom!

So What's Better, Really?

[Rabbi Yaakov would say]: 'A single moment of repentance and good deeds in this world is greater than all of the World to Come. And a single moment of bliss in the World to Come is greater than all of the present world.'
[Ethics of our Fathers, Ch. 4:17]
~~~
Wouldn't it be cool to know the mystical, inner meaning behind the various Mitzvot (Commandments) we Jews do? Well, Rebbe Menachem Mendel, also known as the Tzemach Tzedek (1789-1866), sure thought so. So he decided to write a book entitled "Derech Mitzvotecha"-"The Way of Your Commandments," expounding on many of these inner meanings.

The 1st Mitzvah he discusses is: "to be fruitful & multiply" (Gen. 1:28).
"There are 3 Partners in the creation of every child," the Rebbe writes. "Man & Woman form the body, while G-d Infuses the soul."



As the Rebbe proceeds to explain the body & soul's composition, all of a sudden he stops abruptly, as if wondering: 'Why get to know about the mystical implications of marriage and childbirth, when one basic, fundamental question is so perplexing that it has to be answered before moving forward:'

And that Q: is:
Why does the soul have to descend into a body in the 1st place!?

Perhaps you might say that it's in order to take pleasure in the world's glorious, physical bounty.
Like in the movie 'City of Angels,' where the angel (Nicolas Cage) wishes to experience physical life and its various experiences and pleasures.
This suggested hypothesis is rejected by the Rebbe with such amazing words, they haven't left me since reading them one night a few years ago in my yeshiva in New York:

'Before descending into this world, the soul basked in the radiance of G-d's Divine Presence...And even if a person lived a 1,000 years in total peace and tranquility,
living as a king over all kings, lacking absolutely nothing of the world's bountiful pleasures, in truth it wouldn't be worth even ONE moment of pleasure in the lowest levels of the spiritual worlds!...'
As it is said: "A single moment of bliss in the World to Come is greater than all of the present world." Wow.
Sorry for suggesting that idea. I guess it's back to the drawing board.
So... why the heck would G-d Send our souls into this kill-joy of a world?? Doesn't seem cool at all...

"G-d Is Good," the Rebbe assures us. Take a look at the 1st part of the above teaching:
"A single moment of repentance and good deeds in this world is greater than all of the World to Come."
But how can that be reconciled with the greatness of bliss in the next world??

And then comes the bombshell.

True, the pleasures of this world can't touch even a glimmer of the amazing pleasure the soul has above, level upon level of greater closeness to G-d.
Ahh, but ALL of these revelations of G-d above are finite, and are as nothing compared to what happens when one performs a single mitzvah in this physical world.
When one feels a moment of longing to come close to G-d.
Not only that, but "all of the possible levels of pleasure of the next world is like nothing compared to this revelation!"
For the revelation of G-dliness above is, at the end of the day, limited, whereas our deeds down here draw down an infinite level of G-dliness.

So in conclusion, the physical pleasures of this world are truly as nothing compared to one ounce of spiritual pleasure.
But our soul came down for a special purpose. To accomplish something of infinite proportions that it could never have dreamed of doing above.

May you have a Shabbat Shalom, and enjoy the physical pleasure of Wine and Challah!
For that too is a mitzvah!

-Daniel