Why the Lows?

It happens to all of us. 1st a high…then a low. Life is full of inspiration and excitement, followed soon thereafter by feelings of emptiness and dullness.

In every part of our material & spiritual lives, we are given exciting successes followed (for what seems like forever!) with a lull in the action. We have to do everything on our own with what seems like no outside help from Above…

Now, it happens to be, that this is the way the world was created & intended to work.

Let’s take a quick look into Jewish History: Abraham is chosen by G-d & Promised the Land of Israel! Wow! But first his descendants have to be enslaved in Egypt. But then we’re freed amongst amazing miracles & wonders! G-d’s With us! 10 plagues & a splitting of a sea later, we’re standing at the foot of Mt. Sinai, meeting G-d “Face to face” & Receiving His Torah - the greatest revelation the world has ever witnessed. What could possibly be more empowering and inspiring as this!?

But then it happens.

We wander in the desert for the next 40 years. Sure we're inspired with receiving the land of Israel and building an awesome temple, but after each high, we're met with a low. We've now been in exile for over 2,000 years. Our history is full of high & lows.

So why does G-d Do this to us? What’s the purpose of all of these long “lows”?

There is 1 major advantage to the “lows” of life, the un-inspired periods. What I attain during these times is mine. When I was inspired - given a “gift” from above - it was a high, but it was imposed from above, w/out personal effort. And therefore when the inspiration left, I was left un-inspired. But when I worked for my success, my inspiration; while being a bit less flashy & exciting, what I achieve & feel is now real. It’s part of who I am.

At Sinai, of course we accepted the Torah. G-d Was very Impressive. He Took us out of Egypt through many miracles, and we couldn’t help but love Him. Be in awe of Him. At Sinai we stood as the bride, G-d as Groom, and we were married with the ring of the Torah, our everlasting bond of love & devotion. Then G-d Took us on a honeymoon to Israel. Everything was fantastic.

In ‘Doesn’t Anyone Blush Anymore?’ (P. 37) Manis Friedman connects this “marriage” of the Jewish People & G-d with marriage between man & woman today: ‘Our admiration for G-d couldn’t help but grow. Then G-d Said, “Honeymoon’s over. No more temples, no more miracles. No more living in a holy land. From now on, it’s just Me and you. If you love Me, you’ll have to love Me for what I am, not for my signs, wonders, or plagues. No more miracles. Just Me.” So the temple was taken away, and we were sent into exile. What happened? Our relationship flourished. Today, in spite of everything, we are as devoted to G-d as ever. We have shown Him love & respect that we didn’t know we were capable of. Feelings that we didn’t know existed were revealed. The same can be true in one's marriage. At the beginning of your relationship, you got carried away b/c there was so much to love, appreciate, and respect. That wasn’t real. That was a gift. A door prize. Just to get you to come to the marriage. For that you didn’t have to be good, or virtuous, or responsible or moral. Now that all the excitement has settled down, there are two people who are responsible to one another, who can love each other & respect each other. That’s real.’

The relationship now has to be built. And the love that ensues is real. Romance is an allusion; real love comes through devotion over time.

May we always remember that the tough work and effort to regain what we were originally inspired with, is what life is all about. The inspiration was a gift. A superficial gift, to get us excited to roll up our sleeves. But what ensues is what will decide if the relationship is a real one or not. And this is when our inner abilities are truly revealed, abilities we never dreamed we could be capable of having. Through G-d’s Hiding Himself from us, He opened the opportunity for us to reveal the G-dliness within.

Good Luck & Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel

Never the Twain Shall Meet?

B"H

"G-d Descended onto Mt. Sinai, to the peak of the mountain.

G-d Summoned Moshe to the peak of the mountain, and Moshe ascended."

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Tomorrow morning in synagogues worldwide, the epic "10 commandments" will be read from the Torah scroll.

From Bibles to plaques in courthouses, these 10 commandments have played quite a pivotal role in the ways in which many people worldwide view G-d and morality in this world until this very day.

But besides for giving us a rule book made up of "do's" & "don'ts", what exactly was happening when G-d

Gave His Torah to 3 million Jewish men, women, and children? [to fully appreciate this amazing, once-in-a-lifetime event, see here]

Well, to understand what the giving of the Torah achieved in the world, let's take a look at what was happening beforehand.

Before the giving of the Torah, when a person would do a command of G-d, the physical object used in the deed would remain as mundane after being used as it had been before.

The 1st example that comes to mind is a story of our forefather Jacob.

The Torah tells us that Jacob used sticks (in place of the Tefillin that we have today) in order to draw down G-dliness into the world.

But what did he do with them when he was done? Were the sticks delicately placed in a bag and kept protected and cherished like a man does with his Tefillin today? Not at all! Jacob tossed the sticks out.

How come?

B/C the physical sticks hadn't changed. The physical & the spiritual had not, and could not, meet.

When G-d momentarily Revealed Himself to the world on that day in the Sinai desert and Spoke to us,

it wasn't a ONE time event. The effect was everlasting, and altered the world forever.

Before this event, there was a decree from above that the spiritual reality and the physical reality could not meet. Physical was to stay physical, and spiritual - spiritual.

When "G-d Descended onto the peak of the mountain...and Moshe ascended" - the rules changed forever.

Physical could now be infused with the spiritual.

Now, when a man takes cow's hide and wraps it around his arm and head (Tefillin), he hasforever elevated that physical object.

It is now holy.

And it must be treated as such, for it has changed; it has been elevated.

When a woman lights Shabbat candles Friday afternoon, the wax, wick & flame have now been permeated with G-dliness.

And that was the whole underlying purpose behind G-d's Revelation at Mt. Sinai.

To enable us to elevate His world from its natural mundane state - to a holy one.

To make the world into 1 big Mitzvah - a physical world that is, nonetheless, a holy world.

May each of us take full advantage of this ability re-generated at this time every year,

to work on infusing every physical object we come in contact with - with holiness.

Whether it be a spare nickel for charity, or saying a blessing to G-d over a cookie, each of us every day meets with the physical world - and we are entrusted with lifting it up.

May we all have much success, and may the blessings pour forth upon us bountifully, until

the coming of Moshiach when the whole world will be completely permeated through and through with all

of the holiness generated by all of our good deeds. May it happen now!

Shabbat Shalom!

-Daniel