The Good Point Part II
The
Fruit is Beneath the Shell
Another
way to discover one's special potential is by means of its very opposite.
Sometimes a person recognizes in himself an unusually bad quality: exceeding
pride or anger, excessive jealousy, a begrudging attitude towards others, powerful
illicit desires. If his parents, his teachers, his wife, friends or neighbors,
annoy him, this is also not accidental.
In this very flaw lies his unique point; only he must work on it, cleanse it,
purify it, and divorce himself from its negative aspects. Then he will redeem
it and raise it up, until it shines with its true value. The bad character
trait is like a shell that conceals the good. Beneath it lies a beautiful fruit
of exceptional taste and color, unique in its potential to reveal new aspects
of Torah.
Holy
Stubbornness
It
is known that the tzaddik, Reb Zusia of Anipoli, was an extremely stubborn
child, so much so that if his mother refused to do something for him, or give
him something he wanted, he wouldn't eat for days. Once he overheard some
Chassidim discussing the concept that every bad character trait actually
reflects its roots in holiness, were it not for the side of evil that has
latched onto it. Precisely there, they concluded, a person can exalt God and
come wondrously close to Him. When young Zusia heard this, he made an
accounting of his behavior. "Why do I have to hurt my mother and cause
others such pain because of my stubbornness?" he thought. "How much
better if I could use this trait to serve God and overcome my own evil
inclination." And he did!
According
to Rabbi Nachman, Reb Zusia served God with the fiery passion of a beginner for
twenty-one years!
(As the saying goes, "There is nothing so powerful as one's start in the
ways of Chassidus.") This reflected his tremendous drive for holiness.
Nothing so much as a hair's breadth distracted him or interfered with his
desire. According to Reb Chaim of Slonim, Reb Zusia's face burned with a fire
for God even while he was asleep.
The
Righteous, the Wicked, and the Intermediate:
All
Have the Same Potential
That
seed, the good point hidden in one's soul, can raise a person to extraordinary
heights. However, on the other hand, if it is improperly used, precisely the
opposite can occur. All that amazing potential will become an impediment. Those
same strengths will fall into the service of the Other Side, and a person will
stumble in the area of his greatest ability. Instead of using his strengths to
serve God, he offers them as a sacrifice to idols.
Thus
the Talmud says: "A person born under the constellation of Mars will be
inclined to bloodshed: either he will be a murderer, a butcher or a mohel (an
expert in performing ritual circumcision)."
The Talmud is alluding to three groups: the righteous, the wicked, and the
intermediate. If, G-d forbid, this person's good point falls into the hands of
the Other Side, the person will become a murderer. If he actualizes his
potential in a mundane way (neither holy nor profane), he will become a butcher
(because in general, eating meat is neither a mitzvah nor a sin). However, if
he can completely purify himself and turn his desire for bloodshed against his
own evil inclination, he will become a mohel and sanctify his potential
by using it for the performance of a mitzvah.
Success
is Hidden Where the Evil is Strongest
This
is true of all our negative traits. The greatest potential for good lies hidden
within the most overwhelming proclivity for evil. If a person can defeat his
evil inclination, he becomes a tzaddik; if not, he may lose everything. The
desires that attack a person on the path to God are the negative aspects of the
very strengths he is working to refine.
"Before
any Jew can attain a new level in Torah and avodah (Divine
service)," Rabbi Nachman wrote, "he is first tried and refined in the
exile of one of the 'Seventy Languages.' That is, in their evil desires...
because the shell always precedes the fruit. Whoever wants to eat the fruit
must first break the shell."
By breaking the shell, one raises oneself to God; if not, the potential remains
in exile. Although in many ways, the shell resembles the fruit, it is its
complete opposite.
The
same is true of the path to self-perfection. Pride is an impure character
trait. However, on the side of holiness, it can be transformed into a sublime
appreciation of God's greatness. Immoral desires are impure but, in the realm
of holiness, one can uplift them into a consuming love and longing for the
Almighty. Cruelty is impure yet, at times, one must be cruel towards one's own
evil inclination. There are many similar examples.
Rabbi
Yaakov Yosef of Polnoye commented: "If a person is uncertain as to how he
can best serve God, let him examine his basest desires and make use of them.
Thus, we can explain the verse: 'You shall take My offering from every man
whose heart moves him' (Exodus 25:2). That is, from the longings of the heart - the desires of this world - take God's offering. It is precisely this
that elevates a person in the service of God."
The
Seed Hidden in the Ground
We
must never become upset if negative desires at times overwhelm us, because the
moment they attack is the moment they can be repaired. The verse says:
"What does the Lord, your God, ask from you…" (Deuteronomy
10:12). From you - not from someone else. None of life's trials
are arbitrary. God arranges them all to purify our souls and to bring us to our
ultimate good: the revelation of our own unique point. This is like planting a
seed. Before it can draw upon the power of the earth, it first must decay. Only
then is its inner potential revealed, to sprout forth, with God's help, and
reveal its inner beauty. The same holds true for each of us. Only when we have
been chafed and worn away by the trials of this world do our unique strengths
become revealed. Ultimately, the difficulties are for our eternal benefit.
These
ideas are all hinted in Rabbi Nachman's amazing story about the prince made
from precious gems.
In this story, a certain righteous man predicts that the king will have a son
made up entirely of precious stones. The king does have a son, who proves to be
an exceptional child, but nevertheless, only flesh and blood. At the end of the
story, because of the schemes of his enemies, the young prince contracts
leprosy. Yet when his skin dries up and falls away, the precious stones beneath
the surface are revealed.
The
Personal Messiah
In
realizing our potential, we come to experience a revelation of the Messiah on a
personal level, for this holy point is a source of light for our entire soul.
It can redeem us from the enslavement of the evil inclination and deliver us
from our personal exile. To find this point is the very reason why we come into
this world.
Practically
speaking, when God helps us discover our own unique strengths, whether in
"turning away from evil," or in "doing good," we must
respond with our own efforts, realizing that we are being offered an opening
for personal redemption. We must beseech God to completely reveal to us our
essential point, which is unmatched in the entire universe. Then, nothing in
the world will be able to distract us, for we will know the exact source of our
deliverance. This will bring us close to God, and to eternal goodness.
Yesod
Publications © 1994 Rabbi Yaakov Meir Shechter
"In
All Your Ways" is distributed by Maznaim Books
4309
12th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11219
718-853-0525,
or 718-438-7680
To
contact Rabbi Eliezer Shore by e-mail, click here.
(link: eshore@actcom.co.il)