Nachal novea; makor chochma -
A flowing river; the source of wisdom (Mish. 18:4)
Since many people accept the secularist explanation of the world as the
absolute truth, many of the inconsistencies that they see in the
physical realm they erroneously associate with Hashem, which brings them
to conclude that there is no G-d, heaven forbid! And even those
secularists who might accept the remote possibility that there is a G-d,
based on their system of logic erroneously look upon G-d as being
inconsistent, unfair, impotent, and far removed from daily life.
Explaining events as acts of nature has left more puzzlements than
solutions. [For example, not one scientist can satisfactorily explain
nature, how it came into existence, how it is controlled etc. The
so-called unpredictable natural disasters defy explanation and any
superficial answers given to these questions are unacceptable to an
intellectually honest individual. The Torah does not reject science, and
in fact encourages it. However, the Torah cautions against the
limitations of scientific explanation and exhorts us to seek the higher
truth.] People who are narrowminded about the existence of G-d will
never discover or accept the higher truth. Conversely, the perspectives
of those people who acknowledge Hashem's guiding hand in the universe
[and act accordingly] are immensely expanded, because not only do they
view and define the world from the physical perspective, but the
additional spiritual perspective adds another dimension to their
understanding of the world and helps explain many of the complex and
unresolved questions that the secularists are unable to answer or
intentionally ignore. Even though the Torah and the sages present a
clearer, more complete, and balanced view of world, the ways of Hashem
are so deep and ultimately so beyond human understanding that no one can
truly fathom His ways, as the verse says, "How great are Your works,
Hashem; how infinitely profound are Your thoughts [way beyond human
comprehension]. An empty-headed man [referring to scientists who think
they c an discover the truth through a non-Torah system of knowledge]
cannot know [the truth], nor does a [highly intelligent, intellectual]
fool understand this [--based on the limitations of their system of
understanding, the secularists cannot even remotely begin to fathom the
awesome magnitude of the Divine Intellect that has created and continues
to run the vast and complex universe]." (Psalms 92:6, 7) The complexity
and precision of the creation suggests a superior Force that
orchestrates all existence. To an intellectually honest person, it is
obvious that scientific theory is ridiculously inadequate to explain
this Force and that the only way to cope with and resolve many of the
unanswered questions is through faith in Hashem's superior wisdom, which
directs all events for our ultimate good. Thus faith eventually will
lead us to the truth.
As a result of the sin of the spies, Hashem decreed that the future
Temple would be destroyed and that the Jews would have to wander for
several thousand years from country to country in exile. The episode of
the spies demonstrated an inherent flaw within the nature of the Jewish
people. It is true that their faith in Hashem far surpassed that of any
other nation, but still it was not absolute and not at the level that
Hashem had expected of them. Exile was the perfect remedy to develop an
unshakable faith in Hashem, to enable them to reach the level of
absolute faith that Hashem expected. It was only through their
incredible faith that the Jews were able to live in a hostile exile
environment throughout the millennia, going from crisis to crisis. They
not only managed to survive, but they flourished because of their
loyalty to Hashem and His Torah. No other nation can boast of such a
feat. Anyone remotely familiar with Jewish history and with the endless
threats to their survival in each generation can plainly see that Jewish
survival is nothing less than an open miracle. This all came about
through their unshakable faith and their determination to attach
themselves to the truth. It was the exile experience that would rectify
the flaw in their faith that was manifested by the incident of the
spies. Rabbi Nachman taught, "Redemption is dependent upon faith. The
root cause of exile is a lack of faith." (1 Lekutai MoHaran 7:1)
Therefore, it is natural to have questions about Hashem. If we could
understand Hashem s ways with our logic, our minds would be like His. (2
Lekutai MoHaran 52) Therefore, the only solution to eventually discover
the truth and Hashem is faith in the tools He has given us--the Torah,
our holy sages, and ourselves. In this, the spies failed miserably and
brought calamity upon themselves and the people. As Rabbi Nachman said,
only through faith can redemption come. Amen!
In order to find the truth, one must work very hard on developing
faith (The Brisker Rav, Rav Yitzchak Zev Soloveitchik, was the head of
the Brisker Yeshiva. At the beginning of each month, on Rosh Chodesh, he
worked hard to come up with the necessary funds to pay the Yeshiva's
lecturers and cover the other expenses of the Yeshiva. Once, one of his
close associates remarked, "How fortunate we would be if we could find a
wealthy person who would commit himself to funding all of the Yeshiva's
needs for the entire year. Then you would not have the heavy burden of
covering the Yeshiva's expenses each month!" The Rav replied, "I do not
see any advantage to this. On the contrary, our present situation is
better than what you describe. In our present circumstances, we have the
opportunity to fulfill the commandment of faith and trust in Hashem
every month. Because we hope and believe that Hashem will provide us
with the means to pay the Yeshiva's expenses. The fulfillment of the
commandment of faith is worth far more than having a million in the
safe!"
The Talmud echoes this concept: "Rebbe Shimon bar Yochai was asked by
his disciples, "Why didn't the manna come down to Israel only once a
year [instead of daily]?" He replied, "I shall give a parable: This
thing may be compared to a human king who had one son, whom he provided
with support once a year, therefore he (the son) would visit his father
only once a year. So, [the king decided to] provide for his support
everyday, so that [his son] would visit everyday. The same is with
Israel. One who had four or five children would worry, saying, 'Perhaps
no manna will come down [from Heaven] tomorrow, and all [my children]
will die of hunger. Thus, they would turn their attention to their
Father in Heaven.'" Another reason [why the manna wasn't provided only
once a year]: They ate it while it was yet warm. [The taste of the manna
was preserved, but if gathered once for the entire year, it would become
stale, cold, and tasteless]. [Yet] another reason [why the manna wasn't
provided only once a year]: Because of the burden of the way. [If they
would have to carry a year's supply of manna, the extra burden would
greatly hamper them on their journeys.] (Talmud: Yoma 76a)
"The beginning of Your (Hashem's) word is truth and forever are all Your
righteous mandates." (Psalms 119:160) This verse teaches that whatever
Hashem says or promises is true. However, in many cases Hashem's words
cannot be proven to be true until long after they have been stated, as
the verse says, "The end of a matter is better than its beginning."
(Eccl. 7:8) Rav Noson says that it is impossible to reveal the absolute
truth about a goal, because the people involved are initially unable and
unprepared to accept it. The value in our service to Hashem is based
upon our faith in Hashem's unproven promise of reward in the hereafter
for doing His will. This is the basis for free choice, the ability to
freely choose between good and evil. Free choice can only operate
because Hashem does not reveal the entire truth about any matter until
the end. Otherwise, there would no purpose or value to our service. We
would never commit any sins if we could see just a fraction of the
eternal reward for even the smallest commandment. By comparison, we
would see that the tremendous pleasure and joy of paradise dwarfs any
conceivable pleasure derived from sin, as the Talmud teaches, "He [Rebbe
Ya'akov] used to say, '...Better one hour of spiritual bliss in the
Hereafter than the entire life [of pleasure] of this world.'" (Talmud:
Avoth 4:22) If we could listen briefly to the least inspiring angelic
music sung in Heaven, even the pleasure seeking body itself, which
usually resists spiritual pursuits, would gladly forego the pleasure of
the most tempting sin in exchange for the opportunity to enjoy this
immense pleasure in the hereafter. However, free choice and its reward
are contingent upon faith, and therefore the truth cannot be revealed
until after one's demise.
UNTIL THE DISTANT FUTURE
In order to preserve the balance of free choice and disguise the truth,
it is necessary that efforts within the realm of physicality be rewarded
relatively quickly and easily, whereas the pleasure from spiritual
pursuits may come only after years of hard work. This is why for
example, the pleasure of eating fine foods appears, to our puny minds,
to be the ultimate ecstasy and the effort involved in serving Hashem
appears to be a great torture. It is only our belief and faith in
Hashem's promises that will ultimately motivate us to do His will and
entitle us to receive the rewards of the hereafter. This is because the
truth can only be proven and obtained at the end. Rav Noson adds that
not only will serving Hashem from faith lead to joy in the hereafter,
but it can even create the greatest possible joy in this world. For when
we realize that such service is greatly valued in Hashem's eyes, we
become joyful and are motivated to do even more good deeds with great
joy. Doing good deeds with joy draws some of the spiritual energies of
joy from the hereafter to this world. This joy far surpasses any
pleasure of this world and, in some ways, even surpasses the joy of the
hereafter, as the Talmud teaches, "He [Rebbe Ya'akov] used to say,
'Better one hour of repentance and good deeds in this world than the
entire life of the hereafter.'" [This means that the joy we get from
freely serving Hashem and knowing that He derives tremendous pleasure
from our service has a certain advantage even over the joys of the
hereafter.] (Talmud: Avoth 4:22) The great challenge in serving Hashem
is in trusting that our efforts will indeed eventually be rewarded in
the hereafter, as the Talmud teaches, "Ben Hei Hei says, 'The reward [in
the hereafter] is in [direct] proportion to the exertion [and
difficulties one experiences in this world in striving to serve
Hashem].'" (Talmud: Avoth 5:26)
IN THIS WORLD AND IN THE HEREAFTER
Rav Noson says that much of the misunderstandings, questions, doubts,
and aspersions cast against the ways of Hashem and the holy sages, who
guide us through the teachings of the Torah, come from secular scholars
and scientists who have a great influence upon the way society perceives
the world. These secularists are not only almost always unfamiliar with
any system of logic other than their own, but they cannot and will not
accept another paradigm that views and explains the world differently.
Rav Noson says that secular scholars interpret world events based only
upon the superficiality of the physical realm. They conveniently
discount as "unexplained phenomena" miracles and any other occurrence
that belies their theories. Once a miracle is so defined, it then can be
simply ignored, thus preserving the integrity of the secular system.
This narrow-minded view cannot satisfactorily explain much of what
occurs in the world, because it seeks to explain all events only through
the very l imited logic of science and physics. They totally ignore any
other possibility, such as the guiding hand of Hashem. They feel that
through using their system of science and logic they will eventually
discover the truth. However, what results more often than not is that
they end up disproving the old established theories and are left with
greater questions than before. Many of their predictions made according
to their system of truth not only are not borne out, but are the exact
opposite of what actually happens. Therefore, this system results in
more and more questions, more and more inconsistencies, and less and
less understanding. The scientists themselves admit to this.
Faith is defined as belief in something that cannot be clearly seen or
understood. Therefore, that which can be seen or understood does not
pertain to faith. Because of Hashem's great love for His chosen people,
He revealed more of His truth to them than to any other nation. What
normally requires faith was openly revealed to them, such as the ten
plagues, the splitting of the Red Sea, the revelation at Sinai etc. This
is why the faith that the Jews instinctively have is far greater than
that of any other nation, [because, in large part it is based upon
knowledge which strenghthens faith]. However, despite all of the
miracles that Hashem openly demonstrated before "the eyes of all Israel"
(Deut. 34:12), He did not reveal to them the entire truth in order to
leave room for free choice. For example, in the desert the Jews were
tested on many occasions. They couldn't find water for three days, they
ran out of provisions, they didn't have meat etc. In each of these
instances, the Jews co mplained and rebelled against Hashem and Moshe.
They lacked the higher levels of faith needed to believe that Hashem,
Who had performed all of the great miracles they had openly witnessed,
would also provide for their sustenance, even in the desert wastelands.
Hashem could have provided them with all of their needs immediately and
easily, without any lapses. Hashem did not so that they would still have
free choice, He wanted to test and strengthen their faith in Him, as the
verse says, "You (the Jews) shall remember the entire road on which
Hashem, your G-d, led you these forty years in the Wilderness so as to
afflict you, to test you..." (Deut. 8:2) [Hashem,] Who feeds you manna
in the Wilderness...in order to afflict you and in order to test you..."
(Deut. 8:16)
Rav Noson says that faith is dependent upon patience. The urges of the
body contradict faith, because the body demands immediate gratification.
In fact, he states that it is the strong urges of the body that
influence people not to have faith. Anyone who looks at the wonders of
the universe and the even more wondrous depth of the Torah should be
able to easily see that there is a Supreme Being. It is true that there
are many seeming contradictions in the universe and even in the Torah
itself. However, these contradictions were intentionally created by
Hashem in order to preserve free choice. Rav Noson bemoans the fact that
people are willing to deny the overwhelming evidence that Hashem exists
just because of a few minor contradictions which are contradictions only
due to the limitations of human intelligence. He points out that it is
very foolish for one to throw away one's eternal reward because of a few
minor contradictions, when everything else points to the existence of
G-d. Those people who convince themselves that there is no G-d or
hereafter, Heaven forbid, are really influenced by their impatience. The
truth can only be discovered through years of patient, searching and
hard work. Non-believers do not have the patience needed to discover the
truth, so they invent their own truths. Their innate laziness and
impatience causes them to throw away eternity, as the Talmud teaches,
"He who worked [to prepare] on the eve of the Sabbath [which refers to
this world] can eat on the Sabbath [which refers to the hereafter. One
can only enjoy the rewards of the hereafter, which is called one, long,
eternal Sabbath, if he worked to discover the truth in this world], but
he who [was lazy and] did not work on the eve of the Sabbath [to
discover the truth (work is necessary in order prepare for the Sabbath,
for on Sabbath, work is prohibited)], what shall he eat on the Sabbath
?" [Those who do not work to discover the truth in this world will
forfeit or limit their reward in the hereafter.] (Talmud: Avoda Zarah
3a) Lack of faith motivated by impatience was the root cause of the sin
of the spies. When the Jews were about to enter the Holy Land, they
immediately wanted to verify with their own eyes if the land was as good
as Hashem had promised. They did not want to rely on Hashem's promise,
even though He had demonstrated His awesome powers through the many open
miracles they had witnessed. So they impatiently demanded that Moshe
send spies to alleviate their suspicions. The desire to send spies at
this juncture was an expression of their great lack of faith in and
mistrust for Hashem. Their mistrust prompted the following response, "I
(Hashem) have promised them that the land [of Israel] is good, as the
verse says, 'I (Hashem) shall bring you up from the affliction of
Egypt...to a land flowing with milk and honey.' (Exodus 3:17) [Yet,
despite all of the miracles I have shown them, they still don't trust My
promises!] By their lives I will give them an opportunity to stumble
through the spies and they will not come to inherit the land." (Rashi,
Midrash Tanchuma 5) Their failure in this minor test of faith snowballed
and eventually became a major sin, their refusal to go into the land
altogether, as the Talmud teaches, "Ben Azzai said, 'Run to perform even
a minor commandment, and flee from [even a minor] sin; for the
consequence of [the performance of] a commandment is [that it leads to
the fulfillment of another] commandment, and the consequence of [even] a
[small] sin is [that it leads to the committing of major] sin[s].'"
(Talmud: Avoth 4:2) This resulted in their forfeiting the privilege to
enter the land.
The episode of the spies was recorded in the Torah not as mere
historical notation, but to teach us a little about Hashem's ways.
Hashem always orchestrates events in each person's life so that there is
the potential for that person to come closer to Him, as illustrated by
the open miracles performed in the desert. But at each new turn, our
faith must be tested in order to maintain the balance of free choice so
that we can earn our eternal reward. We see this in the many trials
Hashem placed before the Jews in the desert. If one truly desires to
come close to Hashem, Hashem will send him all sorts of hints that lead
to the truth. However, people who are not really looking for the truth,
because attachment to the truth requires hard work, and because of the
desire for immediate gratification, will find themselves more and more
attached to materialism and falsehood. Hashem demands that all of Israel
discover the truth for themselves. Since Hashem redeemed us from Egypt,
He is entitled to demand of us that we fulfill His purpose, which is to
endeavor to discover the truth using our free will. Therefore, Rav Noson
says that if a person does not work at discovering the truth during his
lifetime, he will be reincarnated to a life of suffering which, as is
true of all suffering, is designed to alert him to the need for change.
In this case, the change is that he must recognize that Hashem runs the
universe and so, must have absolute faith in Hashem. A person will thus
go through as many reincarnations as it takes until he finally makes the
effort to discover the truth, as the verse says, "The Torah of Hashem is
perfect, restoring the soul." (Psalms 19:8) The holy Ari explains this
verse as follows: The word in the verse for perfect, t'mima, can also
mean complete. The word restoring, m'shivas, can also mean 'cause to
return'. Thus the verse could be understood as follows: [In order for a
Jewish soul to gain entrance into paradise, it has to have first
fulfilled the entire Torah], as the verse says, "The Torah of Hashem is
complete(" [If a soul is deficient in the fulfillment of any
commandment, that lack] "causes the soul to return [through
reincarnation, as many times as it takes to complete all of the
commandments of the entire Torah]." (Shar Ha'Gilgulim)
Rabbi Nachman taught that it is not enough to just have faith in Hashem
and the sages, one must have faith in himself as well. A person's faith
in Hashem and the sages cannot be complete unless he has faith in
himself. If not, it is considered to be flaw in the entire concept of
faith. Many people have fallen away from Hashem simply because they did
not believe in themselves. There are people who fall away from Hashem
because they have unresolved questions about Him and about the teachings
of the sages. However, there are also people who fall away from Hashem
mainly because they have questions about themselves. An individual might
conclude that he has accomplished absolutely nothing after many years of
toil and effort to come close to Hashem, in his own eyes seemingly no
closer than when he stared. He sees that he is still trapped in gross
materialism and that the urges of his body constantly demand
satisfaction. Although he may have fulfilled many commandments
throughout his life, he feels unenthusiastic about and derives little
pleasure from the observance of the commandments. This sort of
self-evaluation would likely lead one to conclude that he has totally
failed, despite all the many years of observing the Torah. In this
person's eyes such futility does not justify continued efforts and
struggles and thus he may decide to just give up. Rav Noson explains
that in this world of illusion, no one is able to determine how Hashem
perceives him. The person's low self-perception notwithstanding, Hashem
has His own criteria, as the verse says, "For My (Hashem's) thoughts are
not [like] your thoughts, neither are your ways [like] My ways, says
Hashem. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher
than your ways and My thoughts [higher] than your thoughts." (Isaiah
55:8, 9) The Zohar teaches, "Not even one good intention is ever lost
[to Hashem]." Rabbi Nachman says that Hashem takes into consideration
all of a person's efforts and struggles in trying to be closer to
Hashem, even if he has utterly failed, even thousands of times. Every
attempt we make to extricate ourselves from the clutches of physicality
in order to bring ourselves closer to Hashem is very precious and dear
in His eyes. All of the failed attempts are credited to our "accounts",
and eventually they add up to merit Hashem's extra assistance and help
in succeeding. This is why it is important not to ever give up, despite
appearances. It means that if we are unable to perform many commandments
then at least do some of them. If we are unable to complete the entire
commandment, at least do part of it. For even this small effort will not
be lost. We should never throw everything away completely, but must hang
on to what we are able to do, until Hashem has mercy and enables us to
finally succeed. Rav Noson says that this self-doubt is the result of
the abovementioned immediate gratification syndrome. A person who doubts
himself wants to know the impact and the results of his good deeds
immediately. He must know the value of his performance now! He doesn't
want to wait. This is why he evaluates himself and comes to a quick
conclusion right away. In addition, he wants to see the truth now, and
he knows that his present spiritual level doesn't warrant such a
revelation so he gives up hope of ever being shown the truth. However,
the truth can only be revealed at the end, after the test of free choice
is over.
Psalms 117:1,2 addresses Gentiles who, just like the estranged Jews,
lack faith in Hashem and so, feel they are unable to approach Him,
"Praise Hashem, all nations, extol Him all peoples. For His kindness
overwhelmed us, and Hashem's truth is forever. Praise Hashem!" (Psalms
117:1, 2) In this verse, King David urges the nations of the world to
praise Hashem. Rav Noson elaborates: Why does King David have to urge
the nations of the world to praise Hashem? Shouldn't they naturally be
inspired to do so? What is stopping them? Rav Noson says the fact that
King David had to urge the nations to praise Hashem indicates that there
was something bothering them. They were reluctant to offer praise
because they said, "How can we praise Hashem when we don't fully believe
in Him or accept His truth. Honesty demands that we only praise Him if
we know Him to be the absolute truth. We do not have any concept of Who
Hashem is and we have so many doubts and questions about Him, so how can
we praise Him with our ambivalent feelings toward Him?" King David's
response is, "For His kindness overwhelmed us (the Jews)." In every
generation Hashem has expressed His tremendous compassion for the Jews.
He has performed miracles for us, He has given us His Torah, and has
provided us with His Tzaddikim (saints) to guide us. These are the
instruments that help foster and incubate faith. It is strong faith that
leads one to eventually discover the truth, ultimately erasing all
doubts, questions, and disbelief. Hashem's kindness to us is that He
provided us with all the mechanisms to develop our faith, which led us
to eventually discover the truth. Therefore, I suggest that you nations
of the world do the same. Strengthen yourselves with faith in Hashem and
in the end you, too will discover and see the truth. Therefore, have
faith in Hashem's kindness, offer praises to Him despite your doubts and
feelings of inadequacy and you, too will discover the truth, as the end
of the verse says, "Hashem's truth is eternal [to be disclosed at the
end, in the eternal hereafter]." [If you nations will have faith, as the
Jews have done, you too will eventually discover the truth. Therefore,
first develop your faith by uttering,] "Praise Hashem! [despite your
doubts. This will certainly lead you to the truth.]" (Lekutai Halachot:
Yorah Dayah: Hilchot She'vuoth 2:12-18)
The holy Baal Shem Tov illustrated the above with a parable: A musician
was once playing a most beautiful melody. All those who heard him were
captivated by the sweetness and joy of his melody, and they all began to
dance until they reached the highest levels of joy and ecstasy. A deaf
man came along. He could not hear the beautiful music at all. All he saw
were people wildly dancing, and he thought they were mad. His only
remark was, "What kind of joy is this? If the deaf man was wise, he
would have understood that something was motivating the people, and
intuited that a very beautiful melody was being played. Then, he too
would have danced with them. (Degel Machaneh Efraim: Yisro 35a) We often
see others who have achieved bliss through their spiritual encounters,
but we lack the courage and faith to participate with them or we
discount their euphoria as sheer extremism or madness. So we often seek
other fruitless avenues hoping for happiness and joy. As mentioned
above, one of the reasons why we discount the path of Hashem is that we
want all of our questions to be resolved immediately, the truth to be
revealed to us in an instant. As long as there are unresolved questions
about Hashem, we feel we cannot have faith. To this Rabbi Nachman says,
"Hashem is so exceedingly far above our minds that questions and
paradoxes regarding Him are inevitable.