Torah

[Annces]

Excerpts from
A Big Jewish Book
Poems and Other Visions of the Jews
From Tribal Times to Present
Jerome Rothenberg



Rabbi Eliezer said:
“Prayer ‘fixed’?
“His supplication bears no fruit”.
The question next came up:
What is ‘fixed’?
Rabba and Rabbi Yosef answered:
“Whatever blocks the will to make it new”.
Talmud



The Baal Shem Tov used to go to a certain place in the woods & light a fire & pray when he was faced with an especially difficult task & it was done.

His successor followed his example & went to the same place but said: “The fire we can no longer light, but we can still say the prayer.” And what he asked was done too.

Another generation passed, & Rabbi Moshe Leib of Sassov went to the woods & said: “The fire we can no longer light, the prayer we no longer know: all we know is the place in the woods, & that will have to be enough.” And it was enough.

In the fourth generation, Rabbi Israel of Rishin stayed at home & said: “The fire we can no longer light, the prayer we no longer know, nor do we know the place. All we can do is tell the story.”

And that, too, proved sufficient.


The Mind of Genesis

Rabbi Mikhal used to say: “For the study of Torah, one must have the Mind of Genesis, otherwise one becomes lost in the doctrine.” Illustrating the Mind of Genesis, Rabbi Mikhal related the following tale:

“Rabbi Yehuda lived in the ghetto of Ziochtov where he studied Talmudic law at the hand of the Rabbi Lev. A dedicated man, Rabbi Yehuda would stay in his room for days on end with a single phrase which Rabbi Lev had assigned him. Yet it was clear to Rabbi Yehuda, in spite of his devotion, that his soul would ultimately perish in the elegant disputes of Talmudic law, for while his fellow disciples grew strong in their faith, scholarship merely succeeded in leading him farther and farther away from the source of the Torah, and rather than bringing a deepening joy to his daily life, it was turning him into a bitter sage and souring his faith.

“Rather than come to grief through the wisdom of others, Rabbi Yehuda devised the following plan: Since the Torah was equally holy in all Its parts, every word and every letter possessed the gateway into eternal life and profound understanding. Choosing a single letter, he could reach in its union with the Sacred Name to the Sacred Name itself. Not knowing which of the letters to choose, he settled upon the aleph, the first in the alphabet.

David Slabotsky


“Seven things were created before the world was created. They are: the Torah, Gehinnom, the Garden of Eden, the Throne of Glory, the Temple, the Repentance, & the Name of the Messiah.” Rabbi Eliezer

Thus Torah, among the other powers, exists as the primary structure of all thought & language, which as consciousness will itself undergo a series of transformations.

The Primordial Torah as the Cloak of God
Who cover yourself with light as with a garment
Who stretch out the heavens like a curtain
(Psalm 104.2)

[pnorman]

1. TORA! TORA! TORA!

Great movie! --- http://www.amazon.com/Tora-Martin-Balsam/dp/B000EHSVSC

pnorman

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. Does this post make any sense to anyone at all?

And I include the original poster in that question.

[Annces]

3. Yes

What a rude thing to say.

[muriel_volestrangler]

4. So what do you mean?

Are you really saying that studying a single letter will reveal profound understanding about eternal life? If you think this is true:

"Thus Torah, among the other powers, exists as the primary structure of all thought & language, which as consciousness will itself undergo a series of transformations."

then what about all the other languages and traditions that have nothing to do with Judaism? Aren't you being immensely rude to them too?

Or were you putting this forward as an example of meaningless twaddle? I really can't tell. So that's why I asked if you could tell me what you meant by posting it.

[davidslabotsky]

6. about the aleph

No wonder you are unhappy about this aleph. So am I. I wrote this story many years ago and I was dismayed to see it reprinted here only in part. Here is the rest of the story. I hope it will make more sense to you and anyone else following this thread.

You can find other stories of mine in these anthologies:
Imperial Messages: One Hundred Modern Parables, edited by Howard Schwartz
Gates to the New City: A Treasury of Modern Jewish Tales,
edited by Howard Schwartz

My latest book is: No Healthcare? No Problem! Learn How to be Your Own Therapist, a book about homecare and self-care for people recovering from illness, injury, disability. You can find it online by googling:
no healthcare? no problem: learn how to be your own therapist+slabotsky


And here is the rest of the story:


“Rabbi Yehuda drew the aleph on his wall with a piece of chalk and sat before it with great devotion, representing as it did the entire Torah. He no longer visited Rabbi Lev and was never seen in the study hall or synagogue of Zlochtov. The aleph had become his only resource, his only form of worship. The aleph sustained him even on the Sabbath and the Day of Atonement.

“Time passed and Rabbi Yehuda discovered that he was no longer able to distinguish between the aleph and the wall on which it had been drawn, and rather than discontinue meditation he simply included the wall along with the aleph in his mental devotions.

“Time passed and Rabbi Yehuda discovered that he was no longer able to distinguish the wall on which the aleph had been drawn from the adjoining walls of his room, and rather than discontinue meditation he simply included those walls along with the first and the aleph in his mental devotions.

“Time passed and Rabbi Yehuda was forced to include the entire ghetto of Zlochtov along with Rabbi Lev and the disciples, all of Galicia, Poland and Russia, Europe, America and the Orient. In fact he carried in his mind at one time the entire creation including the planets and the kingdom of heaven.

“Time passed and the entire universe proceeded without interruption from its source through the mind of Rabbi Yehuda, who, sustained by the Sacred Name, no longer sought out the doctrines or laws of his faith.”

Concerning this tale a student asked Rabbi Mikhal: “Regardless of his perfection can one be called a rabbi and not participate in the doctrine or law?” Rabbi Mikhal replied: “What participation could you expect from such a man? His mind is the Mind of Genesis. The sun may rise and set, the days are days and the nights are nights, but still in Rabbi Yehuda’s mind the Lord has not as yet divided between them.”

the end

[JerseygirlCT]

7. That's a wonderful story. Thank you. nt

[struggle4progress]

5. The Baal Shem Tov story is lovely