BH Parsha Acharei-Mot (…after the death) references the narrative of the aftermath of the death of Aaron’s two sons, Nadav and Avihu. They chose to live an extremely spiritual life instead of living in a way that included both the spiritual and the physical in their service of G-d. When a person has a spiritual experience, he may want to remain enthralled in the “high,” rather than return to the daily work of the world. If, however, his commitment to G-d is the basis of the desire to connect spiritually, he can return to the world bringing along the result of his awakening. What determines whether he will be able to return from the “high” and bring it down to earth? It depends on how he begins his process. It depends on the intention of his spiritual journey. If his goal is self-satisfaction, he might not want to come back. If his own pleasure —even on a high spiritual level— is his goal, that’s where he might want to remain. If his original intention is to serve G-d by doing G-d’s will, he will find meaning and inspiration in whatever G-d wants of him. The mission for which he was created, to live with Torah, do mitzvas and make the world a G-dly place through the refinement of day to day living, will take precedence over his own pleasure. A Jew can have spiritual awakening from Shabbos, from a festival, etc. The connection with G-d through this time and experience can be awesome, joyful, inspiring, clarifying, and more. The question is what will happen after the high of the holiday? If a person is reluctant to come back from the high experience of Shabbos or the festival and feels a real sense of disappointment, it may be the result of not having had the right intention when entering the special time. His return to daily life, his “going back to normal,” feels like his life is recycling, “same old, same old.” If, however, the person goes into Shabbos, the holiday, the prayer or the learning, with the intention of satisfying G-d’s will, the result is completely different. It is fulfilling G-d’s will that becomes the inspiration of our day to day life. With this approach, we take the experience of the special holy moment and bring it into our everyday life. We never “go back to normal” because each moment and each day is unique. There is no “same old” because each day is an opportunity to fulfill G-d’s will today. Let us take the high and holy times of Pesach and bring them forward into meaningful, joyful and inspired days, fulfilling our G-dly purpose in this world. Chana Rachel Schusterman Spiritual Teacher, Counselor and Public Speaker
Posted on: Thu, 10 Apr 2014 14:38:48 +0000
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