úøâà is simply a chronicle or a record of
events whose excellence consists of
honest, objective and precise recording. Subjective coloring
and slanting of events
or the criticism of certain events or facts in a chronicle are
unpardonable from the
standpoint of a historian. The shibboleth of úøâà
as a chronicle, as a historical
narration is úîà. The úîà
of the úøâà is the type which the äëìä
expects in court
from all witnesses in any case of litigation or court proceeding.
The truthfulness of
the ãò is of a descriptive, matter-of-fact nature
conceived with exact and impartial
observation. The introductory phrase ùåøåùçà
éîéá éäéå has, if seen
in the context of
úøâà, of a chronicle, just a descriptive
meaning. If one wonders when did these
events take place, the answer is ùåøåùçà
éîéá éäéå, fixing the
time of the events. All
those events which the äìéâî is
about to narrate happened during the time of
ùåøåùçà.
Secondly, úøâà is more than a tale.
It is on a higher level. It is more than a
descriptive chronicle recording dry facts or isolated events
in a chronological order.
úøâà at the second level contains
not just a story, but a living history. At the first
level, that of description and observation, úøâà
is just a story. It is not history as of
yet. On the second level úøâéà
becomes history and history is living. úøâà
at the
higher level is not only informing but interpreting as well.
It addresses itself not
only to the fact-prying gossip, but to the
knowledge-questing, inquisitive
mind as well. úøâà, even at
this level, does narrate. However, its main task is to
explain. It links up events, sets them up against their
proper background and
points out their fundamental pattern of development. At
this stage, úøâà is not a
descriptive chronicle or story but interpretive history.
äøùë ïéèåç
äùìù äá ïúð íàù
úøâà úàø÷ð
ì"æç said that the Megillah is called a letter
to show that it must be held together by
at least three stitches. Of course, the stitches symbolize
the unity of the tale, the
unfolding course of events and their interpretation. At
this level, the idea of úîà is
linked to interpretation rather than to observation. It
is a truth achieved not just
through careful observation but through correct thinking, profound
analysis and
thorough understanding of events, by listening to the heartbeat
of history. It is the
kind of truth which is binding not on the witness, but on the
ïééã, the judge who, in
contrast to the ãò, is interested in the causal
nexus of events, in the motivation and
the interaction. Truth in this context is not descriptive,
not matter of fact, but
inventive and creative.
What is øôñ vis-a-vis úøâéà?
øôñ in contradiction to úøâà
signifies certainly a book.
However, when the àøîâ says øôñ,
it has something else in mind. It is a book
written under the impact of Divine Inspiration, under the influence
and impact of
ùã÷ä çåø.
It is a prophetic book. øôñ as an inspired book
is not
interested in a story. Nor is it conceived even within history.
History can be
understood as the science of individual events, as the science
of occurrences
which took place once and then vanished. øôñ,
when part of ùã÷ä éáúë,
is
concerned not with an individual event but with universality.
Its truth is not limited
to a single epoch or a particular set of circumstances that will
hardly repeat itself.
In øôñ, history ceases to be a science of
individual, particular, single events. It
becomes a metaphysique of a unique, general, symbolic, constant
and perpetual
law. Events for the úøâà, for
the øôñ turn into symbols. For the chronicle,
historical
figures are the actors in the historical drama. For the
øôñ, historical figures that
lived once upon a time become archetypes whose images are stamped
time and
again on all those who emerge in the historical arena.
øôñ tells us the perennial all-
unique story of human destiny in general and Jewish destiny in
particular.
øôñ moves events from the particular, from the transient
and one-timely towards the
universal, the steady, the omnipresent and the dynamic in the
great drama of
human destiny. At this point, the idea of truth transcends
beyond actual
observation as well as causative interpretation. úîà
on the level of the øôñ is on the
level of inspiration. Truth at this stage is of a predictive
nature. To be truthful is to
be inspired, to enjoy clairvoyance. To be truthful is to
see in every individual act the
fingerprint of universality, in each passing phenomenon the trend
of the century
and the traces of the millennia.
øôñ sees in every individual event the recollection
of the eternal, of the inevitable. It
sees in every happening the navigator of the elan vital of human
and Jewish
destiny. The truth of the øôñ is not
revealed historically. It is beheld as a vision.
In short, øúñà úìéâî
as a øôñ is part of the íéøôñä
øôñ, part of the ùã÷ä éáúë.
It is a
halachic book. As the í"áîø
expressed,
àéä éøä
äô ìòáù äøåú
úåëìäëå äøåú
éùîåç äùîçë
úîéé÷.
It is a halachic book that is replete
with rules, principals and criticism which should guide us as
human beings and as
Jews.
* * *
Let us get a glimpse first of the story of øúñà
úìéâî before we get involved with
metaphysics. The story of øúñà
úìéâî tells us in a lively fashion with
biting sarcasm
about paradoxical events which were both tragic and comical at
the same time. We
are told a story about a king who killed his beautiful and beloved
young queen, quite
possibly his bride, at the suggestion a friend ïëåîî,
quite possibly ïîä, and later
hanged his best friend, or the same friend, who in one moment
succeeded in rising
to the top of the Persian hierarchy, upon the complaint of his
beautiful bride and
queen øúñà.
It is a strange story which is both at the same time sad and funny.
It is a story
about a king who signed, at the spur of the moment, a decree
to exterminate a
people whose identity he did not know and to destroy a people
about whom he
simply did not make any inquiry. A short time later he
forgot the incident and
became very indignant when øúñà told
him the content of the edict.
It is a story about a commonwealth where many races lived, many languages
were
spoken, many rituals and faiths practiced. It is a story
about a pluralistic society,
culturally and religiously, which suddenly decided to commit
genocide for one
reason only. The people who were about to be exterminated
were abiding by their
religious statutes and laws that differed from those of other
people.
Something else is puzzling and almost frightening. It is a story
about millions and
millions of people amongst whom there were certainly countless
liberal-minded
decent individuals who accepted the satanic, bloodthirsty, murderous
royal edict
indifferently in cold blood. It is a story about a conspiracy
of silence agreed to by
the entire population of the great Persian empire. No one
interfered. It was
permissible to demonstrate in Persia. The proof is quite
obvious. éëãøî went
through the streets of the capital wrapped in a sackcloth, with
ashes on his head,
crying a bitter and loud cry. éëãøî
set himself at the entrance of the royal palace
blocked by a guard. But no one joined him. Not a
friend. He certainly had may
friends. Nor strangers. äëåáð
ïùåù øéòäå
The city of ïùåù was perplexed. Jews did
not believe. They refused to face reality. The non-Jew
did not care.
Moreover, the story is puzzling from another viewpoint. There
is a very strange
coincidence. A short time before, the entire population
was invited to a celebration
feast on the grounds of the royal palace. Invitations were
extended to everyone
without a single exception, Jew and gentile alike, to all races
and all faiths. The
äìéâî states äøéáä
ïùåùá íéàöîðä
íòä ìëå , all the people who were
present in ïùåù.
They, of course, as guests of the king, fraternized, drank toast,
shook hands, and
hugged each other. Only a short time later the ruthless,
inhuman edict was issued
and sent hastily with the couriers to the whole population of
the commonwealth
ãáàìå âøäì
ãéîùäì, to destroy, to slay and
to perish all Jews, both young and old,
man and woman, in one day.
The question arises spontaneously how it was possible that the same
friends who
just a week or two ago shook hands with each other, gave compliments
to each
other, drank together and feasted together should not raise their
voice in protest.
There is a very cryptic remark in the äìéâî:
íéöøä
äëåáð ïùåù
øéòäå úåúùì
åáùé ïîäå êìîäå
äøéáä ïùåùá
äðúð úãäå êìîä
øáãá íéôåçã
åàöé
The post went forth in haste, and the decree was given out in ïùåù
and the king
and ïîä sat down to drink and the city
of ïùåù was bewildered.
The king and ïîä celebrated by feasting on wine.
What were they celebrating?
The dignitaries of the Nazi party, too, after they had completed
their work on the
famous Wansee Conference document spelling out the Final Solution,
feasted until
dawn on beer.
There are many questions. These same questions are applicable
to a more recent
epoch. It is almost a replica of what the äìéâî
tells us. There is one difference. As
far as the story of 2400 or 2500 years ago, it was just a conspiracy
that was never
implemented. In our century it was not just a conspiracy.
It was a reality. Here
we approach a metaphysical analysis of man.
*
The answer to this riddle can be found in our philosophy of man.
Halacha has a
dialectical approach to man. There is a thesis and there
is an antithesis. On the
one hand, úåãäé looked upon man
with a sympathetic appreciative eye. åäøñçúå
åäøèòú øãäå
ãåáëå íéäìàî
èòî. Just one bit lower than the angels, and
he is
surrounded with dignity and majesty. úåãäé
has time and again expressed faith in
man, believed in human uniqueness, in his royal status in nature,
in his
contemplative and meditative powers. After all, úåãäé
said he is the only rational
being in the universe.
This thesis that úåãäé had a sympathetic
approach to man is correct. It can be
proven by the fact that úåãäé
has granted man complete, unrestricted, unqualified
moral freedom. G-d does not want to interfere with man's
liberty to plot his own
existential force. Apparently, man is deserving of freedom.
Were man undeserving
of freedom, he would not have received this grant, the most precious
of gifts which
G-d has bestowed upon the human being. It has not been
granted to any other
creature. Moral freedom according to the í"áîø
is a tenet of our faith.
On the other hand, úåãäé has treated
man with extreme caution and suspicion. The
reason for Judaic skepticism concerning man is due to our historical
experience
and long memory that have been hounding the Jews since time immemorial.
It is
the experience and the memory of how man who is endowed with
divine rationally
may turn at a moments notice into either a non-rational or even
an irrational being.
Here úåãäé took all the extravaganza
of man in stride. úåãäé was never
amazed or
taken aback watching the latter, man, run mad. There is,
in the opinion of úåãäé, no
element of surprise in man's abrupt change and unpredictable
transformations.
His unpredictability is a part of his humanity. His unpredictability
is predictable.
Man is a rational being. Quite often, however, he turns
into either a non-rational or
an irrational being.
This means that man has three alternatives, three options. He
either can be a
rational being or he can be a non-rational being. If he
wishes, he can even become
an irrational being.
* *
What do these three alternatives represent, rationality, non-rationality
and
irrationality?
In order to understand exactly what is meant by non-rationality in contradiction
to
irrationality, we must inquire into the source of the three-fold
schism in the human
personality. We may ask what causes this three-fold split,
the triple conflict and
feud within man. What lies at the root?
The following lies at the root. Man is a finite being. He
is burdened with finiteness
and he is aware of it. He is simply burdened with finiteness
awareness for he
himself experiences his finiteness. He does not have to
be told that he is a finite,
restricted being. He experiences existentially and metaphysically
his
incompleteness and imperfection, his closeness to nothingness.
He knows that his
power is restricted, his knowledge nil, his veins ebbing with
age. His years are
numbered, successes few, frustrations many and in general his
existential
prospects are bleak.
It is a metaphysical and not a psychological awareness. It is
a part of the greater
awareness of the I-exist awareness. I exist as a living
being. I exist as a finite
creature. I exist as an imperfect and incomplete being.
This knowledge, even though it is metaphysical, finds its expression
also in
psychological experiences. It results in man being dissatisfied
with himself,
disenchanted with the world, in being angry with everyone including
himself. It
expresses itself in the old-fashioned restlessness of youth,
in their disapproving of
their parents and in their hating and demonstrating against authority.
This
knowledge of finiteness finds its expression in the loneliness
and desolation of the
elderly and also in the fear of the middle-age who are about
to become old.
When you investigate all of these moods, and they are passing moods
but
nonetheless real, you would not discover their causal background.
They go much
deeper. They go back to the I-exist awareness which is both affirming
and negating
man. I exist, yes, affirming. At the same time, I
exist as an imperfect being, as an
incomplete being. All those moods, we call them psychological
experiences, reflect
a fundamental awareness of man of being infinitely finite.
He therefore considers
his existence unwarranted and unjustified.
êìîä ãåã spoke about the
finite awareness, the awareness of incompleteness, of
imperfection. What name did he give for that awareness?
The íéìäú speaks of
'ä êéúàø÷ íé÷îòîî,
depth profundis. He also speaks of ä-é éúàø÷
øöîä ïî. What are
those íé÷îòîî?
What is øöîä ïî? What kind of straits
are they? Of course, what
are those depths or those straits if not the experience of finiteness
or metaphysical
distress which abides in man.
*
Modern man rejects a finiteness awareness. He does not look upon
himself as if
he were engaged in íé÷îòîî.
He does not look upon himself as if he is in narrow
straits with all exits sealed, no one to help him to get to land
or to get his freedom.
Modern man wants to be more than he is endowed with. He
wants to outreach
himself. He wants to achieve vastness, boundlessness.
He resents boundaries in
general. He wants to dissolve the signs and to rise towards
infinity. Modern man
cannot take defeat, neither the individual, nor the community.
Defeat is imposed
upon a human being. He never accepts it voluntarily.
[That is why America could
not just get out of Vietnam. It was not just a political
statement. It was a
metaphysical statement.]
Modern man hates defeat. Particularly he hates and is horrified
by the prospect of
meeting with defeat in death. He hates death. This
welter of frustration feelings,
anxieties and fears all revolve around finiteness of man in terms
of time, about his
frail destiny, about the absurdity of living, about the knowledge
that he is headed for
the grave which puts an end to all human inspirations and visions
of commitment.
It becomes necessary for modern man to reach for some salvation, no
matter how
invalid, short-lived or deceitful. In fact, all experiments
to cure man of his
metaphysical awareness of finiteness, of his fear of death are
simply absurd
because he never can be cured. Modern man wants to cure
himself. He wants to
redeem himself without appealing to G-d for redemption and salvation.
[Of course, when modern man tries to defeat death scientifically through
medicine,
this is praiseworthy. úåãäé
has always approved of scientific medicine. úåãäé
has
never faced the problem which ìéãáäì
christianity did of how one is allowed to cure
himself. Christianity has still not overcome this difficulty.
úåãäé has accepted
medicine, the scientific act of healing as something natural
and indispensable. We
are speaking now about man trying to forget about finiteness
through a way of life.]
*
There are two paths open to frightened man, and man is a frightened
being.
Modern man is more frightened that man of old. Interesting
is that the point of
departure is the same. Yet, the paths lead to opposite
objectives. The point of
departure is a simple one. The finiteness awareness or
as the íéìäú calls íé÷îòîî
is inextricably intertwined with the I-awareness. One has
to pass through the light
of the existential awareness, of the I-exist awareness in order
to get to the chilling
darkness of non-being. If one can stay forever in the beneficent
twilight of a non-
reflective matter-of-fact being without
soul-searching, without meditating,
without trying to equate being with knowing and without subscribing
to the old idea
that real is only one who knows himself to be real, if one could
suspend or at least
obscure the I-exist awareness, he would not have to face the
fear of death or the
finiteness awareness.
How can one suspend or at least eclipse the I-exist awareness?
When a man
enjoys his being then he begins to think of his opposite
destiny.
The answer is at first by avoiding the moral norm which is implied in
the finite I-
exist awareness. In the finite I-exist awareness there
is a moral norm. My span of
life is limited. I am burdened with a task which I have
to accomplish during that
time. I exist and I am duty-bound to utilize or take advantage
of my existence to
make my contribution. There is a moral norm which is intuitively
implied in the I-
exist awareness. I cross this world only once, and while
I am on my journey
through this world I should leave my mark and I should leave
traces. I should
accomplish something.
If one abandons the moral norm implied in the I-exist awareness, the
awareness
will be eclipsed. It will not be as overpowering.
How does one abandon the moral
norm? Simply by intoxication, by drunkenness? Not
intoxication by alcohol or
drunkenness with whiskey, but actually by intoxicating oneself
by the rapturous
hypnotic hedonic experience. This overpowers man and takes
him out of the world
of time, of introprospection and anticipation. For hedonic
man, time is reduced to
one dimension, the present moment. It results in the loss
of rationality. Hedonic
man joins the hedonic society whose prime objective is to enjoy
and not to be
overwhelmed either by being or non-being. The hedonic society
is not-reflective,
non-meditating, non introspective, non self-appraising or self-searching.
Hedonic
society is more or less a democratic society in pursuit of pleasure
and happiness.
This democratic society invests in minimal government interference
in private life.
It resents control on man's unrestricted freedom and hates discipline
imposed from
above, not even by teachers.
The mother of the hedonic society was formulated long ago.
The hippies did not
discover anything. How long ago? Since the ìåáîä
øåã.
åøçá øùà ìëî
íéùð íäì åç÷éå
äðä úáè éë íãàä
úåðá úà íéäìàä
éðá åàøéå
And the sons of the mighty saw the daughters of man that they are fair
and they
took them unto wives from whomever they chose.
What should be emphasized and underlined in that verse? Of course,
the ìëî
åøçá øùà.
This is freedom from any normative system interfering with human
hedonism. No authority this-worldy or transcendental may
legislate how man
should enjoy life as long as it does not infringe upon the rights
of others. In short,
our western society is the typical representative of the aesthetic
hedonic society.
The censure and the rebuke against hedonic man or society was formulated
in the
äøåú in the tenth commandment,
ãåîçú àì, thou shalt not
covet, you shall not
desire something which is beyond your reach. One must not
stretch out his hand
for sense infinity. Spiritual infinity is great.
Sense infinity is corrupting and
abominable. The äøåú did condone
a pleasant and happy life, provided that
enjoyment is bounded. One may pursue enjoyment if he knows
how and when to
retreat and withdraw.
*
There is another society because there is another path which human
beings take in
order to escape from the finiteness awareness, to engage in illusion
and in
delusion. The second path leads in the opposite direction.
Instead of dimming the
I-exist awareness as hedonistic man does and surrendering to
sensuous rapture of
living, man attempts to enhance and exalt his I-exist awareness.
Man travelling
along the second path tries to overcome the fear of finiteness
through a big lie.
You know the method of the big lie. It was initiated by
Goebbels, taken over by
Kruschev, transmitted to Brezhnev and little by little handed
over to Western
society as well. It is done by the intentional magnifying
and exaggerating and lying
about human ability and power to solve both scientific and metaphysical
problems
of humanity. It simply paints in irrational colors the
eschatalogical age which will be
bought about by man alone, through his wisdom and creative effort.
In short, man who climbs along the second path wants to defeat his anxiety
concerning death and his finiteness through setting himself up
as a deity, powerful,
wise and creative. The I-exist awareness expands to a larger
awareness. I exist as
creator, as mighty ruler, legislator and final authority.
This method has been
employed by all humanists, those humanists who would like to
replace
transcendental morality with man-made morality. It is certainly
true of the marxist
world outlook. To say that marxism has taken an optimistic
approach to man does
not suffice. They not only admire but adore man.
They not only idealize man but
they idolize man. By setting him up as a deity a certain
idolatrous code develops
there from time to time, like the cult of Lenin or Stalin or
Mao Tse Tung. Basically,
they try to overcome human finiteness and imperfection by idolizing
themselves.
Of course, if arrogant man wants to erase his finiteness experience
through self-
idolization he must shift his attention from the individual to
the society, from the
single person to the group, to mankind. To idolize the
individual is non-sensical. It
is absurd. The latter, society, mankind, humanity is idolized
and set up as the
omnipotent deity for humanity. No single individual, no
one arrogant man can say
that he redeems himself from bondage. Only mankind itself
can liberate itself. The
idol is the class, not the individual.
The individual who is idolized is the image of the class. He is
the substitute of the
class. He represents the class. Through Lenin, through
Mao Tse Tung and
through Stalin the class was idolized.
This arrogant society is not pleasure seeking. Not at all.
On the contrary, an
ascetic streak runs through this society. In the name of
some doctrine or code,
man-made of course, they appeal for sacrifice. In contradiction
to Western man
who abandoned norms, they are norm conscious and
duty-oriented. In the
name of a doctrine and an ethical code which was legislated by
man, they are out to
conquer or destroy the world. There is no alternative for
them. The human-made
man is ultimate. Every
human-formulated doctrine becomes the creed of
an article of faith and its cogency must not be doubted.
Only a traitor will doubt the
absolute cogency and veracity of a marxist doctrine.
In other words, arrogant man becomes a tyrant and the arrogant society
which he
establishes turns into a tyrannized society. A tyrannized,
arrogant society is bold
and aggressive, trampling upon individual freedom and personal
dignity. The
arrogant society scoffs at human faith in G-d and considers faith
in a
transcendental existence as human weakness. Arrogant man
is well-organized,
disciplined. Their undertakings are bold in design and
daring in execution.
Did such a society exist in biblical times? Of course, it was
the arrogant, tyrannical
society portrayed in ùîåç by the äâìôää
øåã. It was a very strange generation.
And they said to one another come let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly
and they made bricks for store and slime for mortar. And they
said come let us
build the city and a tower with its top in heaven.
Are these the words spoken by fanatical, vain-glorious man of old or
of some
communist leader of today?
While hedonistic man is non-rational, arrogant man is irrational.
Why? Non-
rational man means simply man who cast off his rationality.
Irrational man is man
who has a rationality but a strange one. There is no reasonableness
to non-
rationality. There is system, continuity and consistency
to irrationality. Non-rational
man rejects norms. Non-rational man is basically an agnostic.
He refuses to
accept a transcendental norm. However, he knows well that
the norm legislated by
him is of no value, is relative. Non-rational man
is non-destructive.
He is not
satanic. He is not diabolical. He is simply a fool.
Non-rational, hedonistic man
hates evil even though he lacks the instrument to check it.
There is the instrument
to check evil. This is the transcendental law. By
rejecting the transcendental law,
man has lost the instrument by which he can check evil.
Arrogant man is irrational
because he is satanic, diabolical. He legislates norms,
defines doctrines,
formulates articles of faith and ascribes to all those irrational
things ultimate worth.
There is something else. Irrational man may write and indeed has
already written a
code of immorality. Immorality itself becomes a norm.
Murder may turn into a
noble deed within the frame of reference of irrationality.
Germany is the best
example. Many who killed Jews, who buried Jews in the crematorium
thought that
they were actually accomplishing something, that they were conforming
to and
implementing some great moral norm. While agnosticism is
non-rational,
metaphysical arrogance which leads to idolatry results in irrationality.
It is irrational
because it is evil. The äøåú abhorred
arrogant man.
Who was the first arrogant man who wanted to replace G-d or to play
G-d or to lay
claim to ultimate validity of doctrine-moral norm? This
was the serpent, the ùçð
ïåîã÷ä when he told äåç,
éë íé÷ìà òãé
éë
òøå áåè éòãé
íé÷ìàë íúééäå
íëéðéò åç÷ôðå
åðîî íëìëà íåéá.
This is evil itself. Again, the äøåú
has forbidden arrogance, metaphysical
arrogance. Where? While hedonism was forbidden by
the tenth commandment,
metaphysical arrogance was forbidden by the first commandment:
êé÷ìà 'ä éëðà
éðô ìò íéøçà
íéäìà êì äéäé
àì
Who is the incarnation and personification of irrationality of arrogance which is evil?
It is ÷ìîò.
The äìá÷ä éîëç
have explained that this means not a bedouin tribe, not a race, but
evil. Man-satan writes a code to kill and to oppress and
to lie. This is ÷ìîò. And
here something strange happens.
The äøåú has portrayed hedonistic man and arrogant
man in two societies, the øåã
ìåáîä and next, the äâìôä
øåã. The äøåú introduces
these two generations one after
the other and portrays the transition. As a rule, hedonistic
society succumbs to
tyrannical, arrogant society. We could even say that hedonistic
society gradually
becomes a tyrannical, arrogant society.
Pleasure-loving man is ready prey to the hungry satanic mind.
Hedonistic man is
too involved in himself. All of his talents are consecrated
to the goods. His
imagination sees only objects of his desire. He does not
see people. Hedonic
man lacks historical sensitivity and intuition. He cannot
behold historical vision. He
is much too absorbed in hedonism of the present to feel the heartbeat
of history.
He foolishly over-employs the idea of freedom.
This happened in 1917 in Russia. If Kerensky had acted with a
little intelligence,
the whole communist revolution would not have taken place.
He
over-
emphasized the importance of freedom.
The non-rationalist simply lacks the courage, the vision, the power
of anticipation.
He lacks the predictive element in history. He does not
experience history since he
lives just for the present. Little by little his power
is eroded and he is replaced by
irrational man who is time-conscious and future-oriented.
That happened in Germany in the late twenties and the early thirties.
There was an
over-indulgent, permissive, hedonic, drunk society. This
society tolerated, even
promoted the rise to power of a tyrant, a madman. This
madman was not non-
rational. Had he been that he would not have lasted for
even one day. He was
irrational with a peculiar demonic logic and weird thinking.
He was dedicated to an
absolute norm of his own making, the norm of immorality.
*
The same happened at the time of ùåøåùçà.
What do we see when the curtain rises in the first act of øúñà
úìéâî? A feasting,
pleasure-loving and pleasure pursuing society. øúñà
úìéâî did not spare words in
portraying vividly, with refined detail and sarcasm, the repugnant
addiction of the
king, princes, courtiers and servants to the incessant pursuit
of satisfaction and
pleasure. The Megillah presents to us the hedonic society
that was tired and
exhausted because of indulgence and satiation.
While the ùã÷ä éáúë
is tight-lipped about the lives of åðéáø
äùî and åðéáà íäøáà,
why
does the ùã÷ä éáúë
suddenly become loquacious in narrating the story of the kings
ego, of the banquet and of the general life at court?
The answer is simple. Only in such an extreme non-rational environment
could
irrational man-satan rise. Only people who were pleasure-pursuing
with no fixed
norms and no ultimate validity or doctrine could tolerate a man-satan,
irrational and
diabolical, destructive and cruel. Only a people addicted
to the beautiful and
pleasant could stand by and watch the smoke rising from the crematorium
chimneys, climbing to heaven.
ùåøåùçà éîéá
éäéå
Do you know why this bloody nonsense happened? Because it was
the era of
ùåøåùçà, of hedonism
and freedom.
äìàä íéøáãä
øçà éäéå
The society of æâùòù and éâä
must produce a ïîä. It was true so many years ago.
It
is true today as well.
* *
Now we shall examine the Jewish approach to the finiteness awareness.
How do
we handle it? We saw modern man use two different paths,
an arrogant one and a
hedonic one. úåãäé objected
to both solutions. úåãäé asserts
that the I-
awareness can never be cast off, suppressed or changed by man.
Man must
abandon the hedonae as a big lie. He must reconcile with
the finiteness awareness
and abolish all traces of spiritual gluttony.
úåãäé developed four aspects of the finite awareness.
Principal #1: Man cannot and must not attempt to suspend the finiteness
awareness for the latter is intrusion into the texture of the
I-exist experience.
Hence, man alone is unable to free himself of all the symptoms
of that awareness,
such as the feeling of loneliness, boredom, frustration, anguish
or fear. Science
will never solve the metaphysical problem of man. With
all respect for
psychiatrists, they will never heal man from the experience of
íé÷îòîî or øöîä
ïî
ä-é éúàø÷ .
We are not speaking of psychiatric problems but of metaphysical
problems that express themselves psychologically. Man is
certainly incapable of
defeating death. Salvation of man can come only from
G-d. His compassion will
heal man from the anxiety of being incomplete, finite and transient.
Certainly not
fear of death nor death itself can ever be eliminated by man.
Medicine will never be
able to turn man into an immortal being. Of course, when
there will be immortality,
psychosomatic man will also be invalid, but only when it shall
be G-d's will to do so.
Principle #2: úåãäé believes that
exploration of the entire universe, of the boundless
stretches and unchartered levels of the astro-world will never
be completed. Yes,
úåãäé has encouraged man to explore
and to conquer. The latter may explore
limited astro-sectors in the entire solar system. Let us
say that he could even get
out of our galaxy, but it is just a small corner in the universe.
The entire universe
will remain an unknown mystery. The boundless and dark
spaces of the different
galaxies will remain closed to man. The reason for this
is a simple one. Man is
finite and who knows what the universe is. Finite man cannot
explore infinity and
boundlessness.
Principle #3: Man is licensed only to establish abstract relationships
answering the
how question from within without answering the why question from
without. That
will remain a secret. Mysterium magnum, mysterium tremendum
will never be
resolved unless G-d wills that the eschatological age commence.
Principle #4: Man cannot and must not legislate the moral norm.
Man should either
be ready to accept morality from G-d or give up any attempt to
lead a moral life,
because imposition of a secular, finite and relative code upon
society is in vain.
The original àèç consisted of this.
íãà tried to legislate norms of good and bad and
brought disaster upon himself and mankind. Irrational man
does it with arrogance
as he exchanges the moral law for immorality,
ãáàìå âøäì ãéîùäì.
úåãäé has accepted these four major
aspects of the íé÷îòîî-consciousness
as
inalterable, G-d-willed experiences of defeat. úåãäé
has spoken so beautifully of
ïáìå úìëú.
Our úéöéö consist of two colors, ïáìå
úìëú , white and blue. The äðùî
asks when is one supposed to read òîù and
answers ïáìì úìëú ïéá
øéëéùî, when he
is able to discriminate between blue and white. The éîìùåøé
says he should just pull
out his úéöéö and try to discriminate
between the threads of blue and the white
threads.
What is the white color? The white color in hebrew semantics is
the symbol of
plainness, simplicity, intelligibility and familiarity.
It is clear, it is certain, it is
doubtless, íéøäöá ùîùë,
it is like the daylight coming upon us from the heavens.
What does the úìëú color represent in úåãäé?
íéì äîåã úìëú.
The blue color is reminiscent of the immense vastness of the sea.
òé÷øì äîåã
íé. The sea reflects the blueness of the sky.
ãåáëä àñëì
äîåã òé÷øå.
And the sky, the heavens reflect the glory of the Celestial
throne, of the Transcendental ò"ùáø.
What does the àøîâ mean to express?
The úìëú color reflects distance,
remoteness, beyond reach, the vast expanse of the sea and boundless
astro
distances. It reflects the impenetrable mystery enveloping
the destiny of man. The
tremor and fear inspired by the incurring from time to time of
the transcendental
into our lives. It happens quite often. úåãäé
warns man not to be too sure of
himself. Not to be overconfident. Not to be oversophisticated
and too clever.
There are the intelligent sectors of reality which are flooded with
white dazzling
light. Everything in those sectors is clear, understandable,
intimate and secure. In
those sectors one enjoys warmth and sweetness. However,
there are sectors
enveloped in the dark blue, of the mysterious evening sky where
man feels like a
homeless wanderer who just happened to cross into a strange foreboding
territory.
The transition from one sector to another is quick, sudden and
abrupt. How was it
in äøéáä ïùåù?
A day before, they feasted, Jew and gentile, counts and éøáò
ùéà
together drank toast and hugged each other. In a matter
of hours, a decree was
sent out with the couriers ãáàìå
âøäì ãéîùäì,
to destroy, to slay and to kill.
úåãäé said the American philosophy
of pursuit of happiness contradicts the Jewish
awareness. Finiteness awareness in úåãäé
expresses itself in insecurity vis-a-vis
the future because man is a being who lives in time, he does
not live only in the
present moment. The present moment is only a link.
He remembers the past and
anticipates the future. He feels a nostalgia for the past.
It is a devastating
nostalgia. He could have accomplished many things and he
did not. It is a
nostalgia for sanctity that was within his reach of which he
did not take advantage.
éì äàøð 'ä ÷åçøî.
One begins to appreciate G-d when he is at a distance from Him.
Remote. When G-d is very close, hedonistic man does not
appreciate Him.
Nostalgia is a part of the human íé÷îòîî.
Then there is insecurity about the future. Only fools can speak
of security. One
can say that now he can move his index finger. Whether
he will be able to move it
five minutes from now, G-d knows, he does not know. Every
morning when man
wakes up and stands on his feet, it resembles íéúîä
úéçú, because unconscious
man regains his consciousness. The miracle of íéúîä
úéçú according to ì"æç
occurs every morning when sleeping man, unconscious man wakes
up and gains
his awareness.
Man's insecurity lies at the very root of prayer. Without man's
insecurity there
would be no prayer. The latter is the response to human
insecurity stemming from
the íé÷îòîî awareness.
Prayer bears witness to the unalterable fact that man is
always in need. úåãäé emphasizes
the petitious aspect of äìôú. The prologue
and
epilogue are only of secondary importance. The act of praying
is a religious
response to need, to the experience of äøö,
of distress, existential straits,
narrowness, when man feels pressed and defeated. Many passages
in the äøåú
will confirm that the link of äøö with äìôú.
äåàð êéàøîå
áøò êìå÷ éë
êìå÷ úà éðòéîùä
êéàøî úà éðéàøä
äâøãîä øúñá
òìñä éåâçá éúðåé
My dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hidden part of the
step, let me see your
appearance, let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet and
your appearance
beautiful.
When then is prayer meaningful? When it dawns upon man, and modern
man is
too foolish and is not conscious of it, that his situation is
a tragic one, that he is
utterly defeated, that there is no one to help him but G-d.
Prayer and crisis are
inextricably linked up. Of course, the question arises
immediately, if the crisis
awareness is indispensable for prayer, how can prayer be recited
daily at times of
peace and prosperity and success? How can we say àôøðå
'ä åðàôø? If just this
morning he came from the doctor and he gave him a thorough
check-up and gave
him a clean bill of health, what meaning does åðàôø
have? What meaning does êøá
åðéìò have if he has a rich bank
account? Does it have meaning or does it not have
any meaning?
Apparently it has meaning. The insecurity of man. Now he
is healthy. How he will
feel the next morning he does not know. There is future
and present linked up.
The finiteness awareness of man lies at the root of the idea
of prayer, the finiteness
awareness of 'ä êéúàø÷
íé÷îòîî and øöîä
ïî.
However, prayer in úåãäé is not just
a recital. It is a world outlook and a way of life.
The halachic term for äìôú is áìáù
äãåáò. You must work to translate
prayer into
your daily life, into your being.
*
What is the way of life of prayer?
Prayer signifies a consecrated life. úåãäé
believes that man is not cast into this
world in vain. He is burdened with an assignment.
Each man, in the opinion of
úåãäé is anointed by the A-lmighty
to contribute something to redemption, to a great
redemption. In other words, a drop of the holy oil, äçùîä
ïîù, was placed on every
Jew. He is called to participate in the great march of
generations who have been
blazing the trail for the çéùîä
êìî since the dawn of our history. Each Jew is
the
herald, the harbinger of the çéùîä
êìî. Each Jew is a çéùîä
êìî in miniature
because he blazes the trail for the great çéùîä
êìî. Each Jew has a messianic
assignment. And each Jew should think I was born for one
purpose only, to serve
G-d. This is the prayerful way of thinking.
ùåã÷ éåâå íéðäë úëìîî éì åéäú íúàå
There are two kinds of service. One service is the continuous
one. Life itself is a
service to ä"á÷ä. If man knows
how to live, if man knows how to plot his course, if
man knows how to respond to experiences, if man knows how
to pray and how to
treat his fellow man, this itself is a service.
There is another service. A one-time service in time of emergency,
when a special
urgent appeal addressed by G-d to man reaches him.
Such an appeal was addressed to øúñà.
It was one-timely. It was in a crisis, in an
emergency situation. It was an appeal addressed to øúñà.
ìà àåáì
äîò ìò åéðôìî
ù÷áìå åì ïðçúäì
êìîä
Such a petition is submitted to each individual once in a lifetime.
A service for
which only he, the individual to whom the appeal was addressed,
is capable of
rendering. No one else can do the job which the äçâùä
has assigned to him. The
service assigned to øúñà was of a
singular nature. øúñà was born and made
queen in order that she perform the service which took her only
a few hours to
fulfill.
úåëìîì úòâä
úàæë úòì íà
òãåé éîå
Who knows if you did not come to the royal estate just for such a time.
Who knows if you had not been born for that purpose. The time
has come. And
øúñà responded.
This is one prayerful aspect of life.
There is a second aspect. A life of service is ipso facto a courageous
one. úåãäé
wants of us to lead a heroic life, courageously and with fortitude.
úåãäé had
contempt for mercantile logic, the logic of a businessman.
The businessman logic,
the pragmatic utilitarian logic is too astute and too cautious.
It tells man that he
must not begin unless he knows for sure that he is able to succeed.
Courageous
life or heroic action is fundamentally motivated not by pragmatic,
mercantile, logical
reasoning but is inspired rather by intuitive insight, by spiritual
perceptions which
are beyond the reach of formal logical analysis.
As a matter of fact, and this is true of all men, the most important
decisions in one's
life are reached through intuitive judgement rather than through
logical reasoning.
The Jew of old defying ïîä and the Jew of today,
who has to do the same job to
defy not only one ïîä but the entire world, is
not guided by self-serving
influences, because were he guided by those influences, he would
never dare
confront and defy the world. Had he inquired of the strict
pragmatists, he would
received an answer in the negative. From the logical, rational
viewpoint these type
of confrontations are simply suicidal. éëãøî's
defiance of ïîä was suicidal. øúñà's
risking her life was logically unwarranted. She did it
as ì"æç said:
úåëìî øúñà
ùáìúå éùéìùä
íåéá The spirit of G-d descended upon
her. She was
inspired.
* *
In conclusion, a heroic life means a sacrificial life. The highest
form of sacrifice by
a human being is not only to give his life. The highest
form of sacrifice the way
úåãäé understood it is his readiness
to leave the stage after he has played his part
assigned to him and vanish in anonymity. More than a person
wants to live, a
person wants to be remembered. Remembered by individuals,
remembered by
society, remembered that he accomplished something. This
quest for not being
forgotten is very powerful.
A poor woman once brought money to have her name placed on the memorial
tablet of Yeshiva. The charge was a hundred dollars for
a plaque. She came with
trembling hands. It was at the time of the depression and
this was the last of her
savings. She was asked why she was giving the money if
she could not afford it?
She answered, ïòñòâøô èéð
øéî ïòìòåå ééæ
æà ìéåå êéà
,éáø .
I want to be remembered. Once I die, I know that my children
will never remember
me. They will never come to shul to say øåëæé.
Perhaps the Yeshiva will remember
me once in a while. This is not just the mentality of a
primitive illiterate woman, but
a very honest and sincere woman.
It is the mentality as that of western man. When Johnson accepted
the vice-
presidency offered by Kennedy, it was a disgraceful acceptance.
A journalist
asked him why he accepted it. After all, he was the majority
leader of the Senate.
He wielded so much power and influence and commanded so much
respect in the
White House. As vice-president he would just be an errand
boy for the president.
He answered, yes, but history will devote two more lines to the vice-president
than
to the majority leader of the senate. Power at present
means nothing. I will be
remembered.
Johnson was not a metaphysician nor a philosopher nor a man of exceptional
spiritual perceptions.
úåãäé demands of man anonymity.
There are many who studied àøîâ.
You ask who the àî÷ àðú is?
Who is the àðú
àøúá? ïðáø
åðú. Who are the ïðáø?
Why was the record of the àúééøá
so stingy
and tight-lipped in enumerating their names. It is not
just a coincidence. It is not
laziness or neglect on the part of our ì"æç.
It is a method. It is a policy. The
greatest of all sacrifices a Jew brings is when he is ready to
slip into oblivion in the
shadows of anonymity.
The hedonistic society as well as the tyrannical arrogant society attempt
to
overcome human finiteness, the íé÷îòîî
awareness, by substituting public memory
for metaphysical immortality.
úåãäé did not accept it. On the
contrary, it considered the quest for having ones
name recorded in history as sheer vanity. The individual
as such can never
become a historical figure. Only the covenental community
is perpetuated by
history and has claim on historical immortality. The service
rendered to the
community is recorded. The private life of the individual
is never recorded. The
very moment the service is completed, history is not concerned
with him anymore.
How many facts did the äøåú record pertaining
to the lives of the úåáà or åðéáø
äùî?
Those periods were recorded which were directly intertwined with
the service they
rendered to the covenental community. There is never a
complete biography. Only
fragments are related that tell us about the sacrificial surrender
of the individual to
ä"á÷ä, of those who echoed the great
word of éððä which ringed to endless spaces.
I am ready to serve. Nothing else but the éððä
was recorded.
What do we know about the personal lives of the Vilna Gaon, about the
Bais
HaLevi , R' Itzeleh, Rav Chaim, Rav Moshe? Just single
episodes. They never
confided. They never reminisced. Their lives were
private affairs. Private
experiences. Whatever happened was between them and G-d.
It is an aspect of
anonymity.
G-d requires of man the highest of all sacrifices, genuine anonymity.
G-d hates
glamour and certainly vain glory. The actor appears on
stage for a short while,
plays his or her part humbly and disappears immediately without
receiving
applause. Man stands in the limelight as long as he is
the çéùî, anointed and
consecrated to the covenental community. The very moment
he finishes his job,
the light are dimmed or rather extinguished.
What does the äìéâî tell us about éãåäéä
éëãøî or äëìîä
øúñà? What does the äìéâî
tell us about äëìîä øúñà's
life following the ïîä episode? She lived for
many more
years. The äìéâî does not
mention a word. The story finishes and she removes
herself from the stage.
What do we know about éãåäéä éëãøî?
Nothing. We know,
éøáã øôñ ìò
íéáåúë íä àåìä
êìîä åìãâ øùà
éëãøî úìãâ úùøôå
åúøåáâå åô÷ú
äùòî ìëå
ñøôå éãî éëìîì
íéîéä
Go ahead and find them and read the story. One episode and a very
short one of
their lives was recorded. The rest is anonymous.
This is exactly what äëéî said:
êé÷ìà íò úëì
òðöäå ãñç úáäàå
èôùî úåùò íà
éë êîî ùøåã 'ä
äîå áåè äî íãà
êì ãéâä
It is told to you, man, what is good and what does G-d require of you,
only to do
justice and lovingkindness and to walk humbly with your G-d.
We must underline one word HUMBLY, and this is our answer to the íé÷îòîî.
* * *
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