In several places the Torah warns us against returning to Egypt:"He will not return the people to Egypt...for Hashem said to you,"You shall no longer return on this road again."(Deut.17:16), "For as you have seen Egypt today, you shall not see them ever again"(Exod. 14:13), as well as Deut. 28:68.
In the same vein, ancient Egypt was such a cesspool of immorality and outright wickedness that the Torah testifies about Egyptians that only after a conversion and three generations of waiting are they really ready to become completely Jewish (Deut. 23:8-9). Nevertheless, we have a tradition that the people inhabiting the land of Egypt today are only made up of a small minority of the original Egyptian nation. However, since the rest of the populace does nothing to subdue or combat their negative influence, their negativity still impacts all of Egypt in a way that makes it forbidden to dwell there even today.
But when an Egyptian today chooses to leave behind their Egyptian identity and join the Jewish people, they have completely removed themselves from the influence of this pernicious minority, and statistically it is extremely unlikely that this Egyptian convert has actual blood ties to the ancient Egyptians. Therefore, they are not bound by the Torah's limitation regarding Egyptian converts of old.
Today more than ever we see the end nearing for this small minority of people stubbornly clinging to its wicked and destructive lifestyle. The self-serving, morally corrupt ways of the Egyptians of old are reflected in the traditional authoritarian government systems in the Middle East. However, as dawn of the age of Redemption is breaking forth, more and more of the citizens of these countries are accessing their power and privilege to free themselves of their evil and narrow-minded rulers.
We must take these events of dramatic change to heart and allow them to inspire us to become more free of the old self-serving model, and prepare to enter an age of inspiration, harmony, and rapid spiritual development.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Gifts on the Road to Mental Freedom
"But when you send him [the Hebrew slave] away from you free , you shall not send him away empty handed. Adorn him generously..."(Deut. 15:13-14)
The Torah commands us to give a gift upon sending away the person who has worked for us. What is the nature of this gift? Is it part of the payments and benefits that a master owes to his worker or is it a form of tzedaka (donation) unrelated to wages. It seems clear that the latter is a more accurate description from the next verse in the same passage. "You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Hashem, your G-d, redeemed you; therefore I command you regarding this matter today."(Deut. 15:16)'
The release from Egypt of the Jewish people was the ultimate show of free kindness and generosity on G-d's behalf. The miracles that G-d wrought and the riches that the Jews left with cannot be considered as a wage or reward for their work in Egypt. Rather, they are an example of a free gift. So also the commandment of "adorning" a released Hebrew slave involves giving a free gift beyond any legal financial obligations. We have to reenact the "coming out of Egypt" for our workers through fulfilling the "adorning" commandment.
In spiritual terms, a servant and master represent two opposite states of consciousness - restricted consciousness and expanded consciousness. Restricted consciousness comprising very basic mental functions while expanded consciousness describes the ability to delve deeply and meditate on a certain idea at length, until it becomes internalized completely in all its aspects. Usually, a student's mental state compared to his teacher is like the relationship between restricted and expanded consciousness, or the relationship between a slave and a master. While a teacher is obligated to teach the student so that they will eventually be able to reach parity with their teacher's normal restricted mentality, the free gift from the teacher involves giving the student the tools to even reach the level of the teacher in his expanded mental state.
When I am teaching someone a certain concept, I need to teach them the basic principles and definitions. But I must also reveal to them the added levels of complexity that make up a mature understanding of the idea. The student must be given a glimpse of the challenges as well as benefits involved in studying and living with the idea for many years. The expanded consciousness of the teacher is a vision of the ultimate freedom that can be achieved with the proper toil and self-application.
The Torah commands us to give a gift upon sending away the person who has worked for us. What is the nature of this gift? Is it part of the payments and benefits that a master owes to his worker or is it a form of tzedaka (donation) unrelated to wages. It seems clear that the latter is a more accurate description from the next verse in the same passage. "You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Hashem, your G-d, redeemed you; therefore I command you regarding this matter today."(Deut. 15:16)'
The release from Egypt of the Jewish people was the ultimate show of free kindness and generosity on G-d's behalf. The miracles that G-d wrought and the riches that the Jews left with cannot be considered as a wage or reward for their work in Egypt. Rather, they are an example of a free gift. So also the commandment of "adorning" a released Hebrew slave involves giving a free gift beyond any legal financial obligations. We have to reenact the "coming out of Egypt" for our workers through fulfilling the "adorning" commandment.
In spiritual terms, a servant and master represent two opposite states of consciousness - restricted consciousness and expanded consciousness. Restricted consciousness comprising very basic mental functions while expanded consciousness describes the ability to delve deeply and meditate on a certain idea at length, until it becomes internalized completely in all its aspects. Usually, a student's mental state compared to his teacher is like the relationship between restricted and expanded consciousness, or the relationship between a slave and a master. While a teacher is obligated to teach the student so that they will eventually be able to reach parity with their teacher's normal restricted mentality, the free gift from the teacher involves giving the student the tools to even reach the level of the teacher in his expanded mental state.
When I am teaching someone a certain concept, I need to teach them the basic principles and definitions. But I must also reveal to them the added levels of complexity that make up a mature understanding of the idea. The student must be given a glimpse of the challenges as well as benefits involved in studying and living with the idea for many years. The expanded consciousness of the teacher is a vision of the ultimate freedom that can be achieved with the proper toil and self-application.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Play it again...Moses?
"These are the words that Moses spoke to all Israel"(Deut. 1:1). The book of Deuteronomy, literally the "second law" is known to be Moses' review of the laws in the other books of the Torah. Certain passages are repeated almost word for word such as the retelling of the Ten Commandments (Deut. 5:6-18). This begs the question, if G-d is perfect and gave over the Torah to Moses in the first four books, why does Moses, a mortal, need to get involved in retelling it according to his finite understanding.
In order to understand this better, we must better understand the two ways of teaching or explaining a system of laws and values. One way of giving it over is by rote. The teacher passes over the material word for word as he himself learned it but adds nothing of his own. This is Moses' role in the other books. He merely serves as a bridge between the people and G-d. However, there is a deficiency to this method of teaching in that the giving of the material is by rote, the receivers cannot relate to the material in a personal way. On the other hand, when the teacher internalizes the material and gives it over according to his grasp, then his audience and students have a better chance of understanding the material and internalizing it as well.
This is also the role of all the other prophets of the Jewish people, as well as Rabbis and teachers throughout the generation. Their role is to explain the Torah to their audience according to their understanding so that they can keep its laws and apply its teachings to every situation. This is also why Samuel's mother, Hannah, calls G-d the Master of Legions in her prayers (I Samuel 1:11).
Samuel initiates the era of the Prophets, the era in which the Torah begins to be translated and applied further through Divine Revelation in the prophets' minds. This translation and elaboration means that G-d's Word is made more accessible and comprehensible to His Legions, to the plurality of his creations down in this world. Through the prophets, and afterwards the Rabbis, the teachers of each generation, the Five Books of Moses can have more of a personal significance and relevance to their students and followers.
In order to understand this better, we must better understand the two ways of teaching or explaining a system of laws and values. One way of giving it over is by rote. The teacher passes over the material word for word as he himself learned it but adds nothing of his own. This is Moses' role in the other books. He merely serves as a bridge between the people and G-d. However, there is a deficiency to this method of teaching in that the giving of the material is by rote, the receivers cannot relate to the material in a personal way. On the other hand, when the teacher internalizes the material and gives it over according to his grasp, then his audience and students have a better chance of understanding the material and internalizing it as well.
This is also the role of all the other prophets of the Jewish people, as well as Rabbis and teachers throughout the generation. Their role is to explain the Torah to their audience according to their understanding so that they can keep its laws and apply its teachings to every situation. This is also why Samuel's mother, Hannah, calls G-d the Master of Legions in her prayers (I Samuel 1:11).
Samuel initiates the era of the Prophets, the era in which the Torah begins to be translated and applied further through Divine Revelation in the prophets' minds. This translation and elaboration means that G-d's Word is made more accessible and comprehensible to His Legions, to the plurality of his creations down in this world. Through the prophets, and afterwards the Rabbis, the teachers of each generation, the Five Books of Moses can have more of a personal significance and relevance to their students and followers.
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