A Hanukkah Address to Noahides

About a week ago, I was invited by a Noahide community in a distant country to give them a remote class via Zoom. I prepared to talk about the Oneness of God, figuring that it's a great Noahide topic. But the moment we connected online, the community members asked me to speak about Hanukkah.  

Their request caught me by surprise.  Largely because it was a personal challenge for me, as I typically think of Hanukkah in Jewish terms and was not sure that I could find a message in my heart which would apply to Noahides as well. So, we agreed that I would go on discussing my planned topic and to return to the topic of Hanukkah later on; though I was still unsure what I would say. 

Continuing on, I explained the Oneness of God in terms of the concepts expressed by Rabbi Bachya ibn Pequdah in his “Gate of Unity”. Then I touched slightly on concepts expressed by Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi in his “Gate of Unity and Faith”. I merely touched on the latter and didn't overly elaborate on the concepts because I felt that they may have been too deep to get across in one sitting and certainly, with a translator struggling along to convey the ideas. Also, it seems to me that knowing Rabbi Bachya ibn Pequda teachings on monotheism alone, already makes a person into a “kosher” monotheist; without needing to delve conceptually deeper. 

When I completed my discussion of God’s Oneness concept, suddenly before I knew what I said, a Hanukkah concept I had studied earlier that day from the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, just popped my mouth in a way which was perfectly suited for Noahides.  

The Lubavitcher Rebbe taught that the Hellenists harbored a deep appreciation for philosophy and culture. Therefore, they tended to leave local wisdoms and cultures intact with an eye towards incorporating them into a larger Hellenic framework. Their seemingly even handed approach was applied to Judaism as well. They adored Jewish wisdom and culture, so long as they can get the Jewish devotion to God out of the way; meaning, the Hellinists were irked by the idea that ultimately a Jew practices Judaism not because it’s intelligent or culturally expressive, but because of what God commands. 

This applies to Noahides as well. There are lots of people in the wider world who technically can be said to unknowingly practice some or even all the Noahide commandments because they believe that it’s intelligent and the finer way to be. Thank God that there are such people. Certainly, the world is a safer place and maybe even a kinder place because of them. However commendable this may be, broadly speaking, they are still not really practicing out of a conviction that God commanded them to and are therefore, missing the main point which truly connects their practice with God. 

Just as a Jew celebrates on Hanukkah that s/he’s practicing Judaism firstly and primarily because the “mitzvahs” are God’s commandments, so too a Noahide can celebrate the same for his or her “mitzvahs”.  A “mitzvah” is a “mitzvah”! In this sense, what difference does a number make, whether it’s seven or 613?

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An Afterthought: 

In Chabad thought, it’s taught that the beauty of a “mitzvah” is that it offers connection without requiring parity. 

Usually, when two entities bond there must be some parity; namely, a significant area of overlap upon which the bonding can occur. For example, with a teacher and a close student, even if the teacher is far more educated than the student, they share much in common: their humanness, academic interests, likely common life experiences, etc. 

When it comes to the relationship between humans and God, there is no parity; hence, no automatic relational bonding. God’s absolutely Infinite and humans are finite. Compared to Him, even the highest of spiritual realms, let alone their resident souls and angels, are finite and share nothing at all in common with Him. If so, how is any true contact made?

The answer is via “mitzvahs”, commandments. Carrying out a command requires no parity. The Infinite One commands. The finite being carries it out. And despite the unbridgeable disparity, in that moment the two have connected. Thus, “mitzvahs” become the relational solution for the disparity.

In fact and perhaps surprising, the Torah turns certain human states of heart and behaviors, into “mitzvahs”, even though they naturally occur in human relationships without ever needing to be commanded. Examples of these can include: loving God, revering Him, imitating His ways, praising Him, thanking Him, etc. Why does the Torah turn these beautiful, sweet and often spontaneous feelings and gestures into commandments? 

It’s likely because with humans love, reverence, imitation, praise and thanks can build relational bonds; but, only because there’s parity between them.   

In truth, since there is no such parity with God, in order for such human feelings and efforts to form a relationship with God, they must first be turned into “mitzvahs”. Only as “mitzvahs” can they ascend to attain their desired goal of bonding with God; as “mitzvahs” are the only vehicle which bond beyond disparity.

(This also clarifies why a “mitzvah” is more potent when performed by the one who is commanded than by a well intentioned volunteer.)  

The special bond with God which “mitzvahs” afford is truly a cause for celebration. Hanukkah celebrates that this bond was preserved against severe pressure from the Hellenic cultures of the time (and in future generations as well). It’s a celebration which Noahides can also share in. As they too were given “mitzvahs” by the Creator; seven, sub-divided into many, direct means to access and connect with Him. 

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Think ...

Stop!

Before you address Me,

Think about...

- How many angels can dance on a pinhead?

- What does it mean that I am One?

- What does it mean that I am Infinite? 

- What does all this mean to you?

Now let's talk...

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Shhhh...Patience...Please

It can take many moons,
  To reflect the light of a single sun.

It can take many lifetimes, 
  To reflect the light of a single soul.

It can take many life stages,
  To reflect a single spark of soul.

It can take many books,
  To reflect the core idea of an author. 

Please do not lose patience, 
  With the protracted pace of your life,

For it's all a reflection,
  Of the higher unto the lower,

The Infinite unto the finite,
  The Single unto the multiple.

To Illuminate what's nether,
  Requires time,  often lots of time. 

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Flashes of the Divine Thought

The universe is immersed,
  In a Divine thought,

For it is less than
  Even a single Divine thought;

Not less fractionally, 
  But less in an ineffable sense.

What's at core a thought, 
  Seamless, Whole n' Infinite, 

Is caught by pieces,
  Of a fragmented world.

Imagine a picture,
  Projected on shreds of screen.

Fundamentally,
  The picture's whole, 

What's fragmented, 
  Is the screen. 

So too Divine thought,
  Remains undivided.

Yet, its manifest flashes,
  Provide a basis to appreciate. 

Appreciate that ...
  All you see, hear, taste, smell n' feel 

Are solidified flashes
  Of the Infinite Divine thought. 

Appreciate that ...
  All you read n' hear of Torah,

Are verbalized flashes,
  Of the self-same Divine thought.

Though a flash is not,
  The entirety of Divine brilliance,

It's still a precious drop,
  A derivative of the Infinite beyond.

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~ Dedicated to my daughter "See Em" in honor of her brilliant question which inspired the outpouring of this poem.

Light Alive!

I can't imagine human consciousness evolving into spiritual enlightenment if we continue to think of light as a mere amalgam of seven colors. That's just the tail end of light, as it dips into physical reality. To think of light this way is sillier than for a microbe living in a shoe to think that a human being is a foot. 

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One’s Where One’s Mind Is At

When I was 17-18 years old, I spent about eight months attending lectures at what was then called, “The Research Centre of Kabbalah”. When it was time to leave and my journey took me to spend some of spring/summer of 1986 studying at Lubavitch Yeshiva at Morristown, NJ. 

On by first night in Morristown Yeshiva, I schmoozed with one of the Rabbis about my interest in meditation and using it as a technique for spiritual connection. He attempted to relate to my interest by responding with a story about a Rabbi who spent six hours lost in deep contemplation. Needless to say, I felt a disconnect. I was talking about meditation and it seemed to me that he was talking about academics. As a college student, I too had long periods of study where my mind was engaged in a topic for hours at a time. However, that is not what I meant by meditation. That was an academic effort, not a spiritual exercise. This left me with the impression that Lubavitchers do an academic exercise, which they confuse with meditation. However, I kept an open mind and over time encountered other Lubavitch spiritual teachings and which truly impressed me. As a result, I viewed Lubavitch as a very useful resource for mystical philosophy, but not for meditation. 

Instead, I turned for meditative instruction to Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan’s “Jewish Meditation - A Practical Guide”, a book which lays out a variety of traditional Jewish meditative practices. The one which spoke most to me was Rebbe Nachman’s technique, which is to have a daily conversation with God. What I loved about this particular technique was that it afforded me an opportunity to be intimate with God no matter what I was thinking and feeling at the moment, as any psychological state can become subject matter for conversation. Over time, I noticed that sometimes I was so deep into the meditation that it was difficult for me to move my lips. Continuing the conversation in my mind alone flowed smoother. 

In the summer of 1998, I met with Rabbi Yitzchak Ginsburgh, a well known Lubavitch Kabbalist. He shared with me that the students of the first Lubavitcher Rebbe, the Alter Rebbe, were regulars at engaging in long conversations with God, just as Rebbe Nachman taught. The only difference was that they carried on the conversations in their minds alone and avoided oral expression. I was literally floored, wowed, that the Alter Rebbe’s followers practiced a meditative style which mirrored the style my meditations were growing into their own.

Shortly, afterwards it dawned on me that in instances where the conversation occurs mentally, there actually might be a very fine line between being in conversation with God and being in contemplation with God. If deep enough, it seemed to me that there’s actually no line at all and they’re the same. This was my eureka moment! I came full circle to appreciate the Lubavitch style of meditation. I realized that what the Rabbi that first night in Morristown Yeshiva was referring to was not simply a contemplation which can occur through any academic effort. Rather, it was a contemplation with God, the kind which was likely becoming my meditative norm. 

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While still at “The Research Centre of Kabbalah”, I learned that the Baal Shem Tov taught that “one is where one’s mind is at”. Based on this, it was explained that if one concentrates strongly on a location, one can mind travel there and possibly even see what’s occurring there. Of course, we encouraged to be careful not to abuse this technique to enjoy touring around; but rather, to reserve it for visiting holy sites to enhance our prayers and/or meditations. 

“One is where one’s mind is at” fits in beautifully with Rabbi Ashlag’s teachings about how space, closeness and distance, works between two spiritual entities. Entities which have a lot in common are close and those with less in common are more distance. Not surprising it’s a lot like psychological closeness and distance between people. Since the mind is a spiritual entity, it can move about, becoming close or distant, based on this very principle. By strongly focusing on a place the mind can form a “similarity bond” and be there. 

When I was at The Research Centre I knew of this closeness/distance principle, but I had not connected the dots. Only recently it dawned on me that mind travel could be logically traced to Ashlagian principles of closeness and distance. At the time, I just accepted the technique intuitively because it followed the pattern of many other spiritual techniques which require deep states of concentration to form spiritual connections.

In the past month, a few decades later, something just clicked. Maybe, recent study of Rabbi Ashlag’s work with an authentic teacher helped bring me to this awareness. If “one’s where one’s mind is at” then what is the difference if one deeply concentrates on a place or on an idea? If one contemplates philosophical notions of God’s Oneness hasn’t one brought his or her mind there and created a “similarity bond” with what’s deeply spiritual? Besides, the realm of ideas exists in a more spiritual state than physical locations do. This very recent realization has helped me appreciate the beauty of Lubavitch contemplative meditation on a whole new level.  

Of course, this leaves open the question of then what spiritually occurs when one studies academics? The answer is in Tanya. Since the mind is a spiritual entity, there is no such a thing as mental activity which is non-spiritual. The deeper one concentrates the mind on a topic the more one spiritually bonds with the realm it exists on. This is why Torah Law directs one to focus one’s secular studies towards one of the three goals: either to more deeply understand Torah concepts, to understand how to perform good deeds or to earn a livelihood. The idea is that in secular studies the mind will travel to less than holy spiritual realms. There’s no way around that. However, through Torah study, performing good deeds or earning a livelihood, one can re-attach the knowledge or at least its fruits to the realms of holiness, when whence it primordially originated, many [st]ages ago. 

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Compassionate and Full of Grace

I have wondered why our sages explained the Mitzvah "to cleave to God" as asking us to imitate specific divine attributes; namely, the ones emphasizing God’s love, kindness and giving. For example, just as He is compassionate, so too you be compassionate and just as He is filled with grace, so too you be filled with grace. 

The list of divine attributes which are available for imitation is actually much broader than the two recommended. For example, it could be said that as He is wealthy, so too should you be wealthy or as He metes out justice, so too you should mete out justice. So, why did our sages choose compassion and grace as the main attributes we are supposed to focus on imitating?

Rabbi Yehuda Leib Ashlag explained that since God created the world only because He wanted to "give", the creation of the whole world was really an act of love and kindness. Therefore, the attributes of compassion and grace express where He is coming from. They are His primary attributes.

Of course, whether divine or human,  any act of "giving" is a process. At times the journey between the heart of the giver and the hand of the recipient can be quite long. There can be many, many considerations and stages along the way. To aid with those considerations and stages, other  attributes also come into play; to act in secondary and supportive roles. 

However, our sages asked us to focus on being compassionate and filled with grace. This way we are imitating His primary attributes, as this is really the main way to imitate Him and thereby, draw ourselves closer to Him.

Every parent hopes his/her children will follow in his/her ways. There are ways which are core to a parent's identity and ways which are only present to support what's core. If the child primarily gravitates to and absorbs what is only secondary about the parent, the parent feels hurt. To one extent or another some level of dissonance has been introduced into their relationship. 

However, if the child primarily gravitates to and absorbs what is core to the parent's identity, their bond has been truly deepened. The parent and child share a deep resonance, so deep that words are too shallow to describe. When this happens, it almost doesn't matter too much if the child failed to pick up on what is secondary to the parent. 

Similarly, God is our Parent. He wants us to pick up on and absorb His primary attributes, what's core to His Identity. This is what He truly considers "imitating His ways". This is what draws us closest to Him! 

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