Last week parsha made me think about some aspects of our religion , that may appear "uncomforable" for the civilised folks, living in our rational and sceptical age. Torah speaks about taking census of the Jews, and in no uncertain terms forbids us counting them directly- rather one should count half-shekel donations they are required to bring, TO ATONE FOR THEIR SOULS
What is this atonement for? No sin was commited, but Torah repeats its message twice-
"...every man shall give Hashem an atonement for his soul, when counting them, so that there not be a plague among them when counting them" (Exodus 30:12)
"The wealthy shall not increase and the poor shall not decrease from half a shekel- to give the portion of Hashem, to atone for their souls" (Exodus 30:15).
Rashi explains as follows- an Evil Eye has influence over counted objects, and Or Ha Haim points out, that the phrase "when counting them "is repeated twice, to teach us that head count is forbidden for all times, and in fact, erring in this regard results in a terrible plague, as happenned at the time of King David, when he violated this prohibition and thus committed a sin!
BUT WHAT IS EVIL EYE EXACTLY?
Why are we so much concerned with some "witchcraft", or other forms of magic- it always bothered me, that Judaism for many people equals wearing red strings (against Evil Eye, we are been told), various "Hamsa" and other magical amulets- that in my eyes is more Voodoo, than it is Judaism!
Forget rationalism, even from purely Torah-true perspective this seems very puzzling- all forms of witchcraft and magic are strictly forbidden, and are considered outgrowths of idolatrous worldview, to which Torah and Judaism sternly opposes throughout its whole history- and RAMBA"M in his Guide makes his famous claim, that in fact this is the purpose and intention OF ALL THE MITZVOT- TO COMBAT IDOLATRY IN ALL ITS FORMS!
Here we MUST present an explanation, that will not only show the " Divine mechanism" behind this concept, but also will TEACH US how to IMPROVE OURSELVES- cause if that doesn't happen, than we are dealing with Voodoo! Pagans are afraid of some random evil forces, that can strike them for no good reason, and feel absolutely helpless and vulnerable in this world of injustice and disorder, their only hope being protection of their idols, which is not guaranteed at all- and no amount of good deeds can ever grant personal freedom in this cruel world of an idol worshipper!
But Laws of Torah are all coming from Divine Love and Justice- certainly, we are NOT supposed to be affected by Evil for no good reason- as EVERYTHING in this world happens for a reason- and is certainly coming from G-d! Human being, as we all know, is not just a toy in the cruel game of the forces of nature, but a Prince of G-d, created in his image!
First, let us consider the following- Evil Eye from non-magical, rational and psychological perspective, is simple jealousy- and jealousy may affect people in a bad way. Person who gets jealous goes against the Torah, and yet that negative vibe that he created, affects his friend...Why?
It seems, nothing happens randomly, and if we are to understand what can be learnt by a victim of an Evil Eye- we must conclude that something went wrong- and this wrongdoing needs to be adjusted!
Jealousy most often doesn't appear out of a blue moon- it grows on a fertile soil of arrogance, showing off and looking down at people, all of which provoke others to become jealous!
And here comes
LESSON NO. 1
Do not provoke others by being arrogant and showing off- if you were given many blessings, be grateful to G-d and do not consider yourself any better than others- thus, Torah tells us to bring EQUAL AMOUNT of half a shekel, no matter how wealthy we are- both rich and poor deserve the same respect and honour!
Unfortunately, we are all liable of violating this principle- in every society and culture, wealthy are given honour and privileges, and respect is being paid to people for their "big bucks"- in the old days, Prophets were constantly fighting this social malady, but in our age of conformism noone wishes to confront it.
But what about the unfortunate loosers in the rally of life- those who complain and are constantly jealous of their more well to do neighbours?
Here comes
LESSON NO. 2
Be a giver! Torah tells us to bring half a shekel as TRUMAH- contribution- a reminder of what our attitude should be. If you will become a giver, your whole perspective to life will shift from consumerism to altruism-
and you will NATURALLY seek more opportunites to contribute, and to be a true blessing to others- and again, we can certainly see how much we are in need of this timely lesson! Our post-modernist Western society is totally stuck in consumerism, which not only breeds jealousy, but also produces self-hatred and alienation, as a result of this stupid and mad rat race-who gets more things wins!
How do we break the chains of this claustrafobic world of hatred, jealosy and agression?
Only be becoming GIVERS in all possible ways- and giving brings forth Love!
Finally,
LESSON NO. 3
Everything counts! In a most revolutionary way, Torah proclaims absolute sovereignty of Man, his freedom, and responsibility-for himself and the world around him. There is NO INSIGNIFICANT PERSON- we are taught- everyone is needed for this huge campaign to build the Temple- every half a shekel counts! Symbolically- everyone is a Temple! Think about your unique talents and become excited- there is noone like you in the whole world!
Not only every person counts- everything does- every moment of your life, every little episode has its meaning and is another thread of this huge fabric of our destiny- and even if we fail to see its greatness and meaning behind it, we need to stay focused and remember- ALL THERE IS- IS JUST THIS LITTLE MOMENT! Lets give it all the energy, love and courage of our souls- that's our half a shekel contribution, that is going to build the Temple!
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Monday, December 21, 2009
Levels of Pleasure, Love and Fear
In his famous presentation "5 Levels of Pleasure", Rav Noach Weinberg (of blessed memory), puts into perspective all the pleasures of the world, clearly showing us how to travel the journey of our lives in the 1st class. We take a road from the most basic, physical pleasures, to the more subtle and sophisticated ones- Love, being Good, Creativity and finally, Closeness to G-d! (In case you'd like to read the whole article, here's the link-http://www.aish.com/sp/f/48965946.html )
It certainly makes alot of sense in our narcissistic age to address this pleasure-seeking world with this powerful message of the REAL pleasure that is here for us.
BUT HERE'S MY PROBLEM-
As we present this well-written and beautifully explained idea to the world as "Jewish approach" (in fact, this is the classical Aish presentation, part of their Discovery seminar), we are making the following statement- Judaism agrees with pleasure-seeking as the way of life. Which it does not, imho!
The choices we make in this paradigm are based on resolving the following conflict- Pleasure versus Comfort. Some would put it as follows- all choices that we make in life are based on either our desire for pleasure or an attempt to avoid pain. (This is how I overheard it presented today by one of the lecturers not related to Aish) . In my opinion, BOTH PLEASURE AND COMFORT ARE SECONDARY IN THE JEWISH PERSPECTIVE.
In fact, pleasure-seeking ideology of the past- Epicureanism- was seen by the Sages as the main opposition to the Torah approach. Pleasure-seeking is materialistic, egotistic, and it DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF with the most fundamental question of MEANING. Pleasure as the meaning of Life is a very shallow answer, indeed! (And in fact, that's why in 5 Levels you can't get higher than 4th without hitting meaning- to transcend Love one needs to have an IDEAL HE IS WILLING TO DIE FOR! You're welcome to look inside!)
SO, WHAT'S THE REAL CHOICE WE MAKE, FROM JEWISH PERSPECTIVE?
Torah tells us- it's CHOOSING TOV (Good) or RA (Evil). [And again, it's very difficult to associate Good with Pleasure and Evil with Pain- this effectively means becoming an Epicurean!]
Now, we need to be able to DISTINGUISH between Good and Evil. How do we know which is which? Let's try to establish a clear way to do it!
Classical definition of Good- that which makes you close to G-d, as G-d is the ONLY source of Good. Evil therefore, is the opposite- that, which makes you further away from G-d.
First distinction- as you are about to make a choice, ask yourself-
Is this going to bring me closer to G-d?
PROBLEM- well, we all know, how easily we are DECEITED by our own rationalisations- they can take us all the way from Good to Evil- with our best intentions, of course!
As the Prophet portrays to us this most common picture of human self-righteousness-
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! (Isaiah, 5:20-21)
We are commanded to follow the Path of G-d,and this mitzvah is interpreted as doing Hesed. Hesed, or LOVE, thus, is seen as the main attribute of G-d and Good. On the mystical Tree of Life it corresponds to sefirah of Hesed and represents the Right Side of the Tree. The Left Side is represented by the opposite energy of Gevurah. Gevurah is the strict Judgement of G-d, and if it is separated , cut off from the Tree, it represents Evil. If Good is seen and experienced as Love, Evil is the opposite energy- that of Fear.
And indeed, we find in contemporary Trans-Personal psychology vast information on Fear as the main source of self-imposed suffering and our unwillingness to grow spiritually. As we can see, both Love and Fear are experienced on emotional and physical level- positive/negative emotions, and bodily sensations [For example- take a note of the different breathing people have when they are calm or anxious respectively. Emotional state of Tranquility is accompanied by deep, calm and rythmic breathing, and Anxiety is associated with shallow, fast and arythmic one.] Thus, we are ready to formulate another approach-
Good/Evil distinction based on Love/Fear as emotional and physiological experience.
As opposed to logical questioning, which implies our objectivity and fails ("Man is close to himself"- and therefore not objective, by definition)- this time we propose very subjective feeling criteria- if mind tricks us into rationalising, our body cannot be tricked! It will accurately reveal to us what this particular choice means- Fear or Love!
Fear-based choices are coming from Ego- it's primier interest being survival and egocentrism, these are our main obstacles on the way to spiritual growth!
Love motivates us to step out of our self-imposed limitations, grow and learn, using every challenge as an opportunity!
Next time when you're facing dilemma, try to approach it as a Love/Fear question- and look at your emotions and bodily sensations, as you are checking the options.
Ask yourself- Does this choice come from Love? Does it come from Fear?
Be aware of your feelings and physical sensations- which of them are Love-based and which are Fear-based?
It certainly makes alot of sense in our narcissistic age to address this pleasure-seeking world with this powerful message of the REAL pleasure that is here for us.
BUT HERE'S MY PROBLEM-
As we present this well-written and beautifully explained idea to the world as "Jewish approach" (in fact, this is the classical Aish presentation, part of their Discovery seminar), we are making the following statement- Judaism agrees with pleasure-seeking as the way of life. Which it does not, imho!
The choices we make in this paradigm are based on resolving the following conflict- Pleasure versus Comfort. Some would put it as follows- all choices that we make in life are based on either our desire for pleasure or an attempt to avoid pain. (This is how I overheard it presented today by one of the lecturers not related to Aish) . In my opinion, BOTH PLEASURE AND COMFORT ARE SECONDARY IN THE JEWISH PERSPECTIVE.
In fact, pleasure-seeking ideology of the past- Epicureanism- was seen by the Sages as the main opposition to the Torah approach. Pleasure-seeking is materialistic, egotistic, and it DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF with the most fundamental question of MEANING. Pleasure as the meaning of Life is a very shallow answer, indeed! (And in fact, that's why in 5 Levels you can't get higher than 4th without hitting meaning- to transcend Love one needs to have an IDEAL HE IS WILLING TO DIE FOR! You're welcome to look inside!)
SO, WHAT'S THE REAL CHOICE WE MAKE, FROM JEWISH PERSPECTIVE?
Torah tells us- it's CHOOSING TOV (Good) or RA (Evil). [And again, it's very difficult to associate Good with Pleasure and Evil with Pain- this effectively means becoming an Epicurean!]
Now, we need to be able to DISTINGUISH between Good and Evil. How do we know which is which? Let's try to establish a clear way to do it!
Classical definition of Good- that which makes you close to G-d, as G-d is the ONLY source of Good. Evil therefore, is the opposite- that, which makes you further away from G-d.
First distinction- as you are about to make a choice, ask yourself-
Is this going to bring me closer to G-d?
PROBLEM- well, we all know, how easily we are DECEITED by our own rationalisations- they can take us all the way from Good to Evil- with our best intentions, of course!
As the Prophet portrays to us this most common picture of human self-righteousness-
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! (Isaiah, 5:20-21)
We are commanded to follow the Path of G-d,and this mitzvah is interpreted as doing Hesed. Hesed, or LOVE, thus, is seen as the main attribute of G-d and Good. On the mystical Tree of Life it corresponds to sefirah of Hesed and represents the Right Side of the Tree. The Left Side is represented by the opposite energy of Gevurah. Gevurah is the strict Judgement of G-d, and if it is separated , cut off from the Tree, it represents Evil. If Good is seen and experienced as Love, Evil is the opposite energy- that of Fear.
And indeed, we find in contemporary Trans-Personal psychology vast information on Fear as the main source of self-imposed suffering and our unwillingness to grow spiritually. As we can see, both Love and Fear are experienced on emotional and physical level- positive/negative emotions, and bodily sensations [For example- take a note of the different breathing people have when they are calm or anxious respectively. Emotional state of Tranquility is accompanied by deep, calm and rythmic breathing, and Anxiety is associated with shallow, fast and arythmic one.] Thus, we are ready to formulate another approach-
Good/Evil distinction based on Love/Fear as emotional and physiological experience.
As opposed to logical questioning, which implies our objectivity and fails ("Man is close to himself"- and therefore not objective, by definition)- this time we propose very subjective feeling criteria- if mind tricks us into rationalising, our body cannot be tricked! It will accurately reveal to us what this particular choice means- Fear or Love!
Fear-based choices are coming from Ego- it's primier interest being survival and egocentrism, these are our main obstacles on the way to spiritual growth!
Love motivates us to step out of our self-imposed limitations, grow and learn, using every challenge as an opportunity!
Next time when you're facing dilemma, try to approach it as a Love/Fear question- and look at your emotions and bodily sensations, as you are checking the options.
Ask yourself- Does this choice come from Love? Does it come from Fear?
Be aware of your feelings and physical sensations- which of them are Love-based and which are Fear-based?
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Big Picture of Judaism- the beginning
In my previous post, the issue was just posited and formulated. WE NEED TO REDISCOVER THE BIG PICTURE OF JUDAISM.
Here is my first attempt to point out a few very important sources, and hopefully to develop a sense of contemporary understanding, which will be AUTHENTIC at the same time-in the spirit of the Torah and our Oral tradition.
Sources
1). Mitzvot as a SYSTEM
a) We have an amazing attempt in the Talmud (Makkot 24a) to view all the huge body of the mitzvot as a UNIFIED SYSTEM, with an UNDELYING PRINCIPLE, stated in the Prophets- "Righteous shall live by his Faith". Of course, this needs to be understood- WHAT IS FAITH (EMUNAH)?
But as we say, "She'elat Khakham Khetzi Tshuva"- good (wise) question is already half-an-answer- and beginning of a research!
b) Famous statement of Rabbi Akiva- "love your neighbour as yourself is a GREAT PRINCIPLE of the Torah"-seems to point in a similar direction- since we are presented with a Mitzva, and not just an "idea"-
Love is presented as an underlying principle of the Law
2). Core principals as META-Ideas of the Torah
Maybe less famous but certainly not less important- statement of Ben Azzai, who apparently is arguing with the previously-mentioned R. Akiva, suggesting even more important CORE PRINCIPLE- based on a quotation from the Torah- "This is the Book of the Geneology of Adam- on the day that G-d created Man, he made him in the likeness of G-d"
Here we encounter a totaly new idea- ALL of the Torah is seen as the Book of Geneology of Man- i.e-
Torah (as the Law, the system of mitzvot) is there to SERVE this Man, where mitzvot are TOOLS and INSTRUMENTS for Adam to FULFILL HIS POTENTIAL, based on his G-dliness- in other words (contrary to the opinion of many)- Mitzvot are Means to accomplish the End- REALISATION of G-DLIKE NATURE OF MAN AND HUMANITY!
And here we approach another very important point- Judaism as the WORLD RELIGION
has to be more than system of Mitzvot given specifically to the Jews- it has to have it's UNIVERSAL MISSION STATEMENT
And if I'm not mistaken, following the reading of this Ben Azzai, it clearly gives us one-
REALISE YOUR G-dlike Potential as Adam- person, nation and humanity!
To be continued
Here is my first attempt to point out a few very important sources, and hopefully to develop a sense of contemporary understanding, which will be AUTHENTIC at the same time-in the spirit of the Torah and our Oral tradition.
Sources
1). Mitzvot as a SYSTEM
a) We have an amazing attempt in the Talmud (Makkot 24a) to view all the huge body of the mitzvot as a UNIFIED SYSTEM, with an UNDELYING PRINCIPLE, stated in the Prophets- "Righteous shall live by his Faith". Of course, this needs to be understood- WHAT IS FAITH (EMUNAH)?
But as we say, "She'elat Khakham Khetzi Tshuva"- good (wise) question is already half-an-answer- and beginning of a research!
b) Famous statement of Rabbi Akiva- "love your neighbour as yourself is a GREAT PRINCIPLE of the Torah"-seems to point in a similar direction- since we are presented with a Mitzva, and not just an "idea"-
Love is presented as an underlying principle of the Law
2). Core principals as META-Ideas of the Torah
Maybe less famous but certainly not less important- statement of Ben Azzai, who apparently is arguing with the previously-mentioned R. Akiva, suggesting even more important CORE PRINCIPLE- based on a quotation from the Torah- "This is the Book of the Geneology of Adam- on the day that G-d created Man, he made him in the likeness of G-d"
Here we encounter a totaly new idea- ALL of the Torah is seen as the Book of Geneology of Man- i.e-
Torah (as the Law, the system of mitzvot) is there to SERVE this Man, where mitzvot are TOOLS and INSTRUMENTS for Adam to FULFILL HIS POTENTIAL, based on his G-dliness- in other words (contrary to the opinion of many)- Mitzvot are Means to accomplish the End- REALISATION of G-DLIKE NATURE OF MAN AND HUMANITY!
And here we approach another very important point- Judaism as the WORLD RELIGION
has to be more than system of Mitzvot given specifically to the Jews- it has to have it's UNIVERSAL MISSION STATEMENT
And if I'm not mistaken, following the reading of this Ben Azzai, it clearly gives us one-
REALISE YOUR G-dlike Potential as Adam- person, nation and humanity!
To be continued
The Big Picture of Judaism
As I said before, I'm truly convinced that we're living at the most interesting time in history. As things around us are changing with accelerting speed (well, think about internet- noone knew what it is just in mid 90-es! )-It's first time in human history that we have free access to almost unlimited resourses of knowledge! And we are yet to see this huge quantity of new information to translate into quality!
New tendency of globalisation and networking on all levels finally brings home the great vision of all the esoteric teachings of the ancients- World as One big Organism, where everything is interconnected, interrelated and interdependant! On Kabbalistic terms, this superstructure of the world is called Adam Kadmon.
And HERE COMES THE CHALLENGE- as modern science helps us to develop stronger understanding of the physical structure of the world, Modern religion has to give us clear and contemporary understanding of it's metaphysical structure!
In case of Judaism, that gave the world monotheism and through it's affiliates (I mean Christianity and Islam) introduced some very important concepts that shaped our society (such as Hesed-Loving Kindness, Justice, Equality in front of the Law, etc)- it seems, today we are in desperate need to address the challenge of post-Modernity and to rediscover the Big Picture of Judaism.
If you require some examples, there's a couple of them
1). Web yeshiva launched a new online discussion on "the Mission of the Orthodoxy". Although the topic clearly suggests the parameters of discussion- it's specifically addressing Torah-observant Jews that call themselves Orthodox- it already stirred some heated discussion- "what is it that makes us who we are"
If you're interested, you can follow this discussion here-
http://blog.webyeshiva.org/orthodoxy/the-mission-opf-orthodoxy-special-message/
2). More general question, addressing the issue from a broader perspective- something like "What is the Big Picture of Judaism" is posted on Machanaim website (Russian) in a new article written by Pinchas Polonsky
http://docs.google.com/View?id=dcjbfrwk_193d3hk3fgv
I think, it shows very important understanding of a REAL NEED- after hundreds of years of nitpicking and "specialisation", we are finally lost in this huge amount of data on the number of the trees, their details and various characteristics... BUT WHERE IS THE FOREST? What is the Big Picture of Judaism?
Here in this post, i just wanted to give you some "food for thought"...
This topic will be continued in my next posts
New tendency of globalisation and networking on all levels finally brings home the great vision of all the esoteric teachings of the ancients- World as One big Organism, where everything is interconnected, interrelated and interdependant! On Kabbalistic terms, this superstructure of the world is called Adam Kadmon.
And HERE COMES THE CHALLENGE- as modern science helps us to develop stronger understanding of the physical structure of the world, Modern religion has to give us clear and contemporary understanding of it's metaphysical structure!
In case of Judaism, that gave the world monotheism and through it's affiliates (I mean Christianity and Islam) introduced some very important concepts that shaped our society (such as Hesed-Loving Kindness, Justice, Equality in front of the Law, etc)- it seems, today we are in desperate need to address the challenge of post-Modernity and to rediscover the Big Picture of Judaism.
If you require some examples, there's a couple of them
1). Web yeshiva launched a new online discussion on "the Mission of the Orthodoxy". Although the topic clearly suggests the parameters of discussion- it's specifically addressing Torah-observant Jews that call themselves Orthodox- it already stirred some heated discussion- "what is it that makes us who we are"
If you're interested, you can follow this discussion here-
http://blog.webyeshiva.org/orthodoxy/the-mission-opf-orthodoxy-special-message/
2). More general question, addressing the issue from a broader perspective- something like "What is the Big Picture of Judaism" is posted on Machanaim website (Russian) in a new article written by Pinchas Polonsky
http://docs.google.com/View?id=dcjbfrwk_193d3hk3fgv
I think, it shows very important understanding of a REAL NEED- after hundreds of years of nitpicking and "specialisation", we are finally lost in this huge amount of data on the number of the trees, their details and various characteristics... BUT WHERE IS THE FOREST? What is the Big Picture of Judaism?
Here in this post, i just wanted to give you some "food for thought"...
This topic will be continued in my next posts
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
The Second Face of G-d
As I feel that my previous post was both very long and at the same time not explicit enough, I would like to continue discussing the same topic- G-d as the Heavenly father or the Great Other. G-d in second face, so familiar to us from the pages of the TANACH. As you saw, many feel today that this outdated image doesn't belong to our sophisticated world. In my previous post, I introduced you to both sides of the argument- first, we sampled one of the presentations of "G-d is not a person" theory, and then we sampled some fascinating ideas from the Integrated theory- claiming that we require all three perspectives of G-d, corresponding to our three faces (I, THOU and IT). Then we specifically emphasised the importance of the second face perspective- G-d as the Great Other is the most essential vision for our society!
I'm convinced, this argument (made by Andrew Cohen in his Enlighten Next Magazine) deserves to be explained and elucidated, as it goes SO MUCH AGAINST THE CURRENT OF POST MODERNIST EGOCENTRIC THINKING!
And here's what I found very important in this article
The Postmodern Predicament
Cohen: I think this applies particularly to our generation and our generation’s children who have grown up in the Western world in the last half-century. For many years I have been saying that the postmodern narcissistic separate self-sense is the most fundamental obstacle to higher development. Many people thought that I basically didn’t get it, that this was an outmoded way of looking at things. But you only really discover what an enormous problem the narcissistic self-contraction is in relationship to how profound your interest is in transcending it. If you have no interest in transcending it, it doesn’t seem to be a big problem. But if you authentically want to try to get on the other side of it, you discover that it’s actually quite significant.
This is a delicate subject because the postmodern variation of the ego is, on one hand, a great gift of the evolutionary process, but on the other hand, it’s a significant obstacle. In a positive sense, our ego, our capacity for individuality, is what makes it possible to become an integrally informed, evolutionarily enlightened human being. The more profound our individuation, the more powerfully Spirit can shine through us. So being profoundly individuated is not a bad thing. It’s a gift of evolution, a gift of God, if you want to put it in theological terms. It’s just that our narcissistic identification with the separate self, outside of any higher context, creates a big problem. The ego begins to see itself as the center of the universe, and the whole process inverts upon itself. Everything turns upside down.
Wilber: Philosophers are finally realizing that postmodernism as a philosophy has come to a dead end. For a couple of decades, you and I and others who have been working mightily to undercut this postmodern stance have often been accused of being out of touch, attacked for not really understanding it. In fact, I rather fully understand it. I’ve written books on it! And the fact is, there is a downside to it, and most people don’t get that downside. The downside is that if nobody can say what is truth, then nobody can correct my egoic disposition. There is simply nothing that’s going to let me grow, that’s going to help me get over myself, that’s going to point to a higher, truer, or more valuable stance than whatever I just happen to hold by whim. And this has been a problem in philosophy, in sociology, and in spirituality. Our educational system was redone according to this kind of relativistic “nobody can tell me what to do, because I’m perfect the way I am” mentality. And tests now show that the generation graduating from college is the most narcissistic generation ever tested.
Cohen: I know. So we’re at a very interesting point in the evolution of culture. On one hand, Spirit has the capacity to shine through us in ways that may be unprecedented because of how highly integrated and sophisticated our individuated self-sense has become. But the big problem is that our awareness has gotten stuck on and overidentified with this separate self and lost in its own separate world of extreme narcissism. The reason this is so tragic is that it makes it impossible for us to participate in life in the deepest and most profound way. To make a cultural revolution happen—which is something I’m passionately interested in and you are obviously deeply committed to as well—awareness has to be liberated from narcissistic self-fixation so it can overflow and discover who it really is as the Ground of Being and as the evolutionary impulse. So we can all begin to participate in the life process in ways that will completely change the leading edge of culture.
And now comes this very important point of studying G-d in the second face- G-d the Great Other!
Ken Wilber claims the following- as we got stuck in our quite primitive understanding of this idea, this in turn does not allow our spiritual progress!
To quote him verbatim-
So we don’t learn about this dimension of Spirit in our educational system, and we drastically missed the chance to have our larger cultural backgrounds of religion and education give us a head start on ego-transcendence. Even with the influx of Eastern traditions, people were attracted to third-person and first-person expressions of Spirit. They didn’t go for second person because they didn’t want to fundamentally submit. And they didn’t know how; they didn’t have role models for it.
CONCLUSION-
1). Second Face of G-d is essential in our spiritual growth- we need to learn how to submit our ego to Him
2). Current mode of thinking does not see how this is relevant- primiraly because we don't have an adequate presentation of this Second Face in our post modernist context
3). We URGENTLY need to work in this direction!
I would add the following- HERE WE HAVE UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO REDISCOVER OUR JUDAIC WISDOM AND TO REVEAL IT TO THE WORLD IN THE MOST PRACTICAL SENSE!
As we all know, Judeo-Christian tradition strongly emphasises G-d as the Heavenly Father. This image is not particularly known in the East- HENCE, IT'S OUR UNIQUE MISSION TO BRING CONTEMPORARY UNDERSTANDING OF THIS MOST IMPORTANT CONCEPT - to ourselves and to the world!
I'm convinced, this argument (made by Andrew Cohen in his Enlighten Next Magazine) deserves to be explained and elucidated, as it goes SO MUCH AGAINST THE CURRENT OF POST MODERNIST EGOCENTRIC THINKING!
And here's what I found very important in this article
The Postmodern Predicament
Cohen: I think this applies particularly to our generation and our generation’s children who have grown up in the Western world in the last half-century. For many years I have been saying that the postmodern narcissistic separate self-sense is the most fundamental obstacle to higher development. Many people thought that I basically didn’t get it, that this was an outmoded way of looking at things. But you only really discover what an enormous problem the narcissistic self-contraction is in relationship to how profound your interest is in transcending it. If you have no interest in transcending it, it doesn’t seem to be a big problem. But if you authentically want to try to get on the other side of it, you discover that it’s actually quite significant.
This is a delicate subject because the postmodern variation of the ego is, on one hand, a great gift of the evolutionary process, but on the other hand, it’s a significant obstacle. In a positive sense, our ego, our capacity for individuality, is what makes it possible to become an integrally informed, evolutionarily enlightened human being. The more profound our individuation, the more powerfully Spirit can shine through us. So being profoundly individuated is not a bad thing. It’s a gift of evolution, a gift of God, if you want to put it in theological terms. It’s just that our narcissistic identification with the separate self, outside of any higher context, creates a big problem. The ego begins to see itself as the center of the universe, and the whole process inverts upon itself. Everything turns upside down.
Wilber: Philosophers are finally realizing that postmodernism as a philosophy has come to a dead end. For a couple of decades, you and I and others who have been working mightily to undercut this postmodern stance have often been accused of being out of touch, attacked for not really understanding it. In fact, I rather fully understand it. I’ve written books on it! And the fact is, there is a downside to it, and most people don’t get that downside. The downside is that if nobody can say what is truth, then nobody can correct my egoic disposition. There is simply nothing that’s going to let me grow, that’s going to help me get over myself, that’s going to point to a higher, truer, or more valuable stance than whatever I just happen to hold by whim. And this has been a problem in philosophy, in sociology, and in spirituality. Our educational system was redone according to this kind of relativistic “nobody can tell me what to do, because I’m perfect the way I am” mentality. And tests now show that the generation graduating from college is the most narcissistic generation ever tested.
Cohen: I know. So we’re at a very interesting point in the evolution of culture. On one hand, Spirit has the capacity to shine through us in ways that may be unprecedented because of how highly integrated and sophisticated our individuated self-sense has become. But the big problem is that our awareness has gotten stuck on and overidentified with this separate self and lost in its own separate world of extreme narcissism. The reason this is so tragic is that it makes it impossible for us to participate in life in the deepest and most profound way. To make a cultural revolution happen—which is something I’m passionately interested in and you are obviously deeply committed to as well—awareness has to be liberated from narcissistic self-fixation so it can overflow and discover who it really is as the Ground of Being and as the evolutionary impulse. So we can all begin to participate in the life process in ways that will completely change the leading edge of culture.
And now comes this very important point of studying G-d in the second face- G-d the Great Other!
Ken Wilber claims the following- as we got stuck in our quite primitive understanding of this idea, this in turn does not allow our spiritual progress!
To quote him verbatim-
So we don’t learn about this dimension of Spirit in our educational system, and we drastically missed the chance to have our larger cultural backgrounds of religion and education give us a head start on ego-transcendence. Even with the influx of Eastern traditions, people were attracted to third-person and first-person expressions of Spirit. They didn’t go for second person because they didn’t want to fundamentally submit. And they didn’t know how; they didn’t have role models for it.
CONCLUSION-
1). Second Face of G-d is essential in our spiritual growth- we need to learn how to submit our ego to Him
2). Current mode of thinking does not see how this is relevant- primiraly because we don't have an adequate presentation of this Second Face in our post modernist context
3). We URGENTLY need to work in this direction!
I would add the following- HERE WE HAVE UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO REDISCOVER OUR JUDAIC WISDOM AND TO REVEAL IT TO THE WORLD IN THE MOST PRACTICAL SENSE!
As we all know, Judeo-Christian tradition strongly emphasises G-d as the Heavenly Father. This image is not particularly known in the East- HENCE, IT'S OUR UNIQUE MISSION TO BRING CONTEMPORARY UNDERSTANDING OF THIS MOST IMPORTANT CONCEPT - to ourselves and to the world!
Monday, December 7, 2009
Something or Someone?
I think, we truly live in the most amazing time in history!
Unusual and unprecedented access to information through internet, as well as our progress in science and general education, makes some of the "hidden knowledge"of the past available to all of us!
For instance, how many people would be interested in discussing the Nature of G-d, let's say, even when this was seen as the most important philosophical question? All those treatises were written by few philosophers, and "common people" were absolutely unaware of the matter- and it certainly wasn't practical in any sense.
Now, WATCH THIS-
As self-help psychology becomes more spiritual, it actually BRINGS FRESH PERSPECTIVE to these deepest question human been can ask! And as I was reading one of these free online brochures (10 steps to Divine Connection by Rebecca Smith)- I realised HOW WONDERFUL THIS IS!
Truly, we can witness the prophecies of the Zohar are coming alive- wells of Wisdom, including the innermost esoteric Wisdom, BECOME PART OF OUR DAILY LIFE!
And here's what's been discussed in the brochure- G-d as a PERSON versus G-d as NOT A PERSON
And here's the argument (get ready for a long quote! Highlighting is mine, to stress the point)
And yes indeed, this primitive thinking of "father with the beard" caused so many people to dismiss the whole concept of G-d - in that sense, this NEW UNDERSTANDING is most welcomed!
And it's pretty clear, that one can find NUMEROUS EXAMPLES of the validity of such understanding of G-d's nature- especially in our mystical sources. For instance G-d as MAKOM- the Place of Everything, or Ein Sof of the Kabbalists- the Ultimate Reality- is certainly indicating this kind of vision.
At the same time, as you are reading the quoted source- you will probably feel the same as I did- HOW ABOUT ALL THOSE MANY EXAMPLES IN THE TANACH?
It goes without saying, G-d as "The Heavenly Father" is the most common and familiar image for all of us, who knows the Scriptures.
AND HERE COMES THE QUESTION- IS THIS IMAGE SIMPLY NOT RELEVANT TO US ANYMORE?
Instead of giving you my own answer, I will point out to you the most unusual and thoughtful article,
that appeared in 'Enlighten Next' Magazine- called "The Second Face of G-d"
I would strongly recommend to read it-
http://www.enlightennext.org/magazine/j45/guru-pandit.asp
Here's my very brief review-
Ken Wilber speaks about what he called the three faces of God- he articulated and put into a simple framework the different dimensions of the Divine : God as the great all-knowing Other, God as the entire cosmic Process, and God as our deepest Self. And he connects these three very different expressions of Spirit to the three fundamental perspectives that integral theory is built upon: first person, second person, and third person, or I, You/We, and It.
Spirit, or God, can be looked at through all of these perspectives, which (as Ken often points out) correspond to the perspectives found in all major languages. “First-person Spirit,” Ken explains, “is the great I AM, the pure radical subjectivity or witness in every sentient being. Spirit in second person is the great Thou, something that is immeasurably greater than you could ever possibly be in your wildest imagination, something before which surrender and devotion and submission and gratitude are the only appropriate responses. And Spirit in third person is the great web of life, the Great Perfection of everything that is arising.”
Now comes the most fascinating part- here's the quote
If we want to develop spiritually, we need both an intellectual or philosophical framework and an experiential grasp of what many of these very profound spiritual concepts mean. And what could be more empowering or inspiring for a sincere spiritual aspirant than learning to make these distinctions and then beginning to discover the actual manifestations of these different dimensions of Spirit within his or her own self?
Finally, the part that is MOST RELEVANT to our discussion here- WHAT ABOUT G-D AS THE FATHER, G-D IN SECOND PERSON? IS HE STILL RELEVANT TO US?
And that's what the author, Andrew Cohen, has to say in this regard
For this issue’s Guru & Pandit dialogue, I chose a section that focuses on the second face, God as the great Other, because as I explain in the pages that follow, I’m convinced that while all three faces are important, this one in particular is essential for our time and culture and is all too often dismissed.
So HOW IS THIS HEAVENLY FATHER, OR THE GREAT OTHER, IS SO RELEVANT TO US?
And here comes the answer
Especially for those of us who have grown up in postmodern Western culture, the second face of God is absolutely essential. Without God as Thou becoming a living, felt dimension of our own experience of Spirit, without that great Other before whom we must ultimately submit, I wonder if it’s possible for us to move beyond ego and our culturally conditioned tendency toward extreme narcissism in any kind of authentic way...
Spirit in second person is an extremely important dimension because it is spirituality in its relational form, its intersubjective form. When Martin Buber spoke about the I-Thou relationship, he was talking about God in second person. Awakening to this face of Spirit means being in dialogue with God, in direct communication with God, face-to-face with the Creator of everything that’s arising moment to moment. It’s Spirit in a form that can be communicated with.
Unusual and unprecedented access to information through internet, as well as our progress in science and general education, makes some of the "hidden knowledge"of the past available to all of us!
For instance, how many people would be interested in discussing the Nature of G-d, let's say, even when this was seen as the most important philosophical question? All those treatises were written by few philosophers, and "common people" were absolutely unaware of the matter- and it certainly wasn't practical in any sense.
Now, WATCH THIS-
As self-help psychology becomes more spiritual, it actually BRINGS FRESH PERSPECTIVE to these deepest question human been can ask! And as I was reading one of these free online brochures (10 steps to Divine Connection by Rebecca Smith)- I realised HOW WONDERFUL THIS IS!
Truly, we can witness the prophecies of the Zohar are coming alive- wells of Wisdom, including the innermost esoteric Wisdom, BECOME PART OF OUR DAILY LIFE!
And here's what's been discussed in the brochure- G-d as a PERSON versus G-d as NOT A PERSON
And here's the argument (get ready for a long quote! Highlighting is mine, to stress the point)
If you’re anything like most people, you’ve been exposed to a variety of ideas about what God is and isn’t. And no matter how adamant you may be about the idea that God is not a person or even a person‐like being, we live in a world where God is usually personified, and almost always personified as a father.
Personifying the Divine makes God a lot smaller than God is.
We experience people as flawed and parents as inconsistent and whether we know it or not, holding an image of God as a father—or even a person‐like being—keeps us from having an authentic experience of Divine Connection.
I believe that Step One in cultivating your Divine Connection is to retrain yourself to experience God as something (rather than someone) that is everywhere—filling every bit of space and time simultaneously.
In fact, God may just very well be every bit of space and time simultaneously. If we are all One, perhaps God is the very system of connectivity though which runs the love that binds us all into one loving being.
If the majority of your thoughts about the nature of God have personified God as a human‐like being, I invite you now to let God be bigger than that. Try on the notion that God is the limitless space between the beings (sentient and otherwise) that flows through everything for the sheer joy of the experience.
And then try on the notion that God is each and every being (sentient and otherwise) at the same time.
In a belief system in which God is this infinitely big, an experience of “Godness” is infinitely available to usNow, let's bless the desire of so many people today to RECONNECT to G-d...It seems, like we are entering a new Era of G-d - Man communication!
And yes indeed, this primitive thinking of "father with the beard" caused so many people to dismiss the whole concept of G-d - in that sense, this NEW UNDERSTANDING is most welcomed!
And it's pretty clear, that one can find NUMEROUS EXAMPLES of the validity of such understanding of G-d's nature- especially in our mystical sources. For instance G-d as MAKOM- the Place of Everything, or Ein Sof of the Kabbalists- the Ultimate Reality- is certainly indicating this kind of vision.
At the same time, as you are reading the quoted source- you will probably feel the same as I did- HOW ABOUT ALL THOSE MANY EXAMPLES IN THE TANACH?
It goes without saying, G-d as "The Heavenly Father" is the most common and familiar image for all of us, who knows the Scriptures.
AND HERE COMES THE QUESTION- IS THIS IMAGE SIMPLY NOT RELEVANT TO US ANYMORE?
Instead of giving you my own answer, I will point out to you the most unusual and thoughtful article,
that appeared in 'Enlighten Next' Magazine- called "The Second Face of G-d"
I would strongly recommend to read it-
http://www.enlightennext.org/magazine/j45/guru-pandit.asp
Here's my very brief review-
Ken Wilber speaks about what he called the three faces of God- he articulated and put into a simple framework the different dimensions of the Divine : God as the great all-knowing Other, God as the entire cosmic Process, and God as our deepest Self. And he connects these three very different expressions of Spirit to the three fundamental perspectives that integral theory is built upon: first person, second person, and third person, or I, You/We, and It.
Spirit, or God, can be looked at through all of these perspectives, which (as Ken often points out) correspond to the perspectives found in all major languages. “First-person Spirit,” Ken explains, “is the great I AM, the pure radical subjectivity or witness in every sentient being. Spirit in second person is the great Thou, something that is immeasurably greater than you could ever possibly be in your wildest imagination, something before which surrender and devotion and submission and gratitude are the only appropriate responses. And Spirit in third person is the great web of life, the Great Perfection of everything that is arising.”
Now comes the most fascinating part- here's the quote
If we want to develop spiritually, we need both an intellectual or philosophical framework and an experiential grasp of what many of these very profound spiritual concepts mean. And what could be more empowering or inspiring for a sincere spiritual aspirant than learning to make these distinctions and then beginning to discover the actual manifestations of these different dimensions of Spirit within his or her own self?
Finally, the part that is MOST RELEVANT to our discussion here- WHAT ABOUT G-D AS THE FATHER, G-D IN SECOND PERSON? IS HE STILL RELEVANT TO US?
And that's what the author, Andrew Cohen, has to say in this regard
For this issue’s Guru & Pandit dialogue, I chose a section that focuses on the second face, God as the great Other, because as I explain in the pages that follow, I’m convinced that while all three faces are important, this one in particular is essential for our time and culture and is all too often dismissed.
So HOW IS THIS HEAVENLY FATHER, OR THE GREAT OTHER, IS SO RELEVANT TO US?
And here comes the answer
Especially for those of us who have grown up in postmodern Western culture, the second face of God is absolutely essential. Without God as Thou becoming a living, felt dimension of our own experience of Spirit, without that great Other before whom we must ultimately submit, I wonder if it’s possible for us to move beyond ego and our culturally conditioned tendency toward extreme narcissism in any kind of authentic way...
Spirit in second person is an extremely important dimension because it is spirituality in its relational form, its intersubjective form. When Martin Buber spoke about the I-Thou relationship, he was talking about God in second person. Awakening to this face of Spirit means being in dialogue with God, in direct communication with God, face-to-face with the Creator of everything that’s arising moment to moment. It’s Spirit in a form that can be communicated with.
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