Thursday, November 8, 2012

I did it G-d's Way

The Torah tells us that man was created in G-d's image: "For in the image of G-d He made man"(Gen. 9:6). Yet at the same time we know that G-d has no physical form, so what could it mean that man was created in G-d's image?
There are four levels of life forms in the world - inanimate, vegetable, animal and man. Man has a different relationship with G-d unique from all other life forms as we are told:"and He blew into his nostrils the soul of life, and man became a living being"(Gen. 2:6). The soul of life that was planted in man is unlike that of any other creation and manifests itself in our ability to contemplate our existence and change our environment both from a technological standpoint as well as a moral standpoint. Our G-d given intellect is to be used for making the right choices and dedicating our life to elevating the world around us.
And yet, what is the underlying intention of the Torah in informing us that we have this intellectual advantage over all other life-forms, that makes us more G-d-like? Here the Torah is coming to help us escape one of the greatest philosophical quandries. Philosophers posited that if G-d gave us a mind, aren't we supposed to use it autonomously to decide what is good or what is bad? Why do we need some "book of rules", an ethical code, by which to run our lives? Why can't we decide individually by using our intellect what is the right moral code for us?
Here the Torah teaches us: the fact that our intellective soul, was created in G-d's image means it is being breathed into us constantly. The energy and vitality of the mind hinges on this very fragile connection with G-d. When we use our mind for mundane activities, our mind becomes jaded by the physicality of the world, and the connection with G-d becomes weakened, and our intellectual prowess and uniqueness weakens as well.
However, in order to make the right moral decisions, we need to to have full access to the energy and vitality of our breath connection with G-d. How do we reconnect the intellective soul to its source? By attaching ourselves to his Wisdom and Will as embodied by the Torah's commandments. Moreover, the Zohar teaches that the life and vitality of every Jew is distributed to them through the leading Torah Sages of the Generation, the Heads of the Jewish People. By seeking the guidance of our teachers and mentors, we are reconnected to our head and our life source in G-d and then we are certainly empowered to make the right decisions.

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