PMF
Jewish Section - Rabbi Brandwein's Essays
Ramchal's - Daat Tevunot taught by Rav Avraham Brandwein
Rav Avraham Brandwein, Dean
B"H
Part III
We have two subjects before us: The Tachlit (Purpose and Goal)
of Human Existence, and Why is There Suffering in the World?
The Creator of the World
This is the ultimate foundation upon which all of Judaism rests,
namely, an unequivocal belief in the existence of the Creator.
Only after this foundation has become our single point of
departure can we ask about the Tachlit of human existence. For,
as we said, without belief in a Creator, i.e. if the world is
seen merely as a product of "nature" (or "natural" laws), or
worse, a product of chance, there is no point in inquiring as to
the purpose of anything - for there wouldn't be any. Only after
it is clear to us that there is a God, and that He created the
universe and its laws, can we be sure that there is a purpose to
our existence. For a Wise Artisan never does anything without a
reason, just as an intelligent human being never performs
meaningless acts. For this reason we know that He who formed man
did so with an Tachlit, an ultimate purpose in mind.
The Purpose of Creation
First, however, it is still possible to raise another difficulty.
The existence of the Creator may be clear to us, as well as the
fact that He created man with a purpose in mind. The problem is:
Is it our place to ask what that purpose is? Perhaps that is
God's affair, and beyond anything we could possibly understand.
We find the answer to this in the Sages' statement in the Midrash
that everything God made when He first created the world requires
Tikkun (i.e. the world man's involvement to bring it to its
perfection). The verse says, "Elokim blessed the Seventh Day and
set it aside to be holy, for on it He rested from all His work
Asher Bara Elokim LaAsot - Which Elokim created to perfect."
The intention is that God created the world just as a builder
builds a building. First, He created the entire cosmos, the
heavens, the spiritual dimension, then the galaxies, our sun, our
solar system, the planets, among them our earth, and the moon.
On the earth, He created the sea and the dry land, vegetation,
plant life. All this was a preparation for higher life forms,
fish in the water, birds in the air, insects and mammals on the
earth. Just as when a man designs a house with many rooms, and
builds it with a specific Tachlit in mind, he then furnishes it
with all that is necessary, plumbing, electricity, tables and
chairs and beds, etcetra, and only afterwards the people for whom
the house was built enter and live in it. After all, it was all
done with them in mind. The entire house was built for them, and
they are the ones who will inhabit the house.
In the same way, God prepared the earth and everything upon it,
and only at the end, on the Sixth day of creation, did He create
Adam (Man).
This is the meaning of the words Asher Bara Elokim LaAsot - That
Elokim created to perfect. It is not only written "everything
that Elokim created" but "created to perfect," i.e. for Man to
perfect.
This is what Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (Ramchal) refers to when
he writes, "A person must know what his obligation is in the
world (i.e. why he was born, the purpose of his existence)"
(Mesilat Yesharim 1). Man must know that he has a Tachlit, and he
must know what that Tachlit is - which is none other than to be
an active partner with God in bringing the world to Tikkun, to
perfection.
This answers our previous question: Not only is man allowed to
ask what his Tachlit is, he must ask. For this asking does not
come from a superficial curiosity, but an earnest desire to know
what he must do (what his obligation is) in order to work with
God to perfect creation.
Now that we know our Tachlit, and we also know that our quest to
know our Tachlit is legitimate, the question becomes: How are we
to go about fulfilling it? In order to formulate a proper answer
to this question, we must contemplate the teaching handed down
by our Sages concerning God's purpose in creating the world in
the first place. As taught in a number of places, God created the
world in order to give pleasure to His creations and bestow
Divine Goodness upon them (see Etz Chaim, Shaar HaKlalim 1; Mesilat
Yesharim 1; Derech Hashem 1:2:1.)
Absolute Good
On the surface, at least, this is what seems to be happening. The
problem: This does not make sense.
Human beings who are not omniscient can plan to make something
but, for unforeseen reasons, not see their plan come to fruition.
All kinds of things can happen that simply were not taken into
consideration.
But God is omniscient and omnipotent. It simply cannot be that
He planned to create a world for a certain purpose, which, in the
end, does not come out as planned.
The Root of Evil
The matter is like this: If we contemplate the essence of what
it is to be human, we will discern that man was created with a
tremendous sense of lack (need, deficiency, hence dependency).
His whole existence is characterized by this sense of lack which
he cannot satisfy except by obtaining something that lies outside
of himself, i.e. outside his body. For example, when a person is
hungry or thirsty, he fills his need by eating bread or drinking
water which are found outside of himself. The same goes for all
the other things man lacks and must work to acquire in order to
satisfy his lack. The same goes for the acquisition of knowledge.
We can only acquire wisdom from other human beings, that is, from
teachers or books. The general principle in all this is: If we
look at all that human beings do, every move they make, we will
conclude that they do not move except to satisfy their lack.
This being the case, it is clear that a certain balance must be
maintained. That is, man must make sure not to try to satisfy
more than his genuine needs and lacks. In addition, he must
always be careful to pay for what he takes to fill his needs.
When this balance is not maintained - this is the root of every
evil and destruction act ever perpetrated by a human being.
For instance, thievery and deceit begin at the point that a
person wishes to satisfy a lack in a corrupt way. Similarly, a
despot misuses his power over others, or oppresses them, when he
wishes to satisfy his desires in a corrupt way. In all these
cases, the root is that a person wishes to satisfy a lack in
himself in a corrupt way. This is the root of all evil.
We thus learn that every movement a person makes is in order to
satisfy a lack in himself. This is the most basic thing that
motivates a person.
The same applies to the good things a person does. They also
originate from the need to satisfy an inner lack. For instance,
one person is kind to another in order to satisfy a need to be
compassionate. Another person is creative in order to satisfy
that inner drive and thereby achieve an inner sense of
satisfaction and harmony.
All of this applies to man.
God, on the other hand, who created everything, does not need a
thing. His perfection is intrinsic, and He has no lack or
deficiency. All of His actions therefore flow only from
perfection.
If so, then, according to what we stated above, that human
actions are motivated by an inner lack, and because of this, evil
can result from them, then, the exact opposite must be said about
God, namely, that because He has no lack, He therefore acts only
from absolute goodness. Everything He does can only result in
good.
Man's Lack
The first condition is clear. What pleasure could we experience
in receiving something we never lacked or wanted in the first
place? The second condition is also necessary because man, by his
very nature, does not wish to receive free gifts. Rather, he
wants what he receives to be something he has earned by his own
efforts.
This is also the reason why God created man with an inbuilt lack.
God wish is to bestow good, but a created being can only receive
His goodness if he first experiences lack, and also works to earn
good.
We now must explain what prevents us from receiving this good and
what this has to do with the reason God created the universe and
the purpose of our existence (which was to work with Him to
perfect the universe, and thereby receive the good He wishes to
give us not as a free gift but as an earned reward).
Resembling God
This principle applies on a physical level, and all the more so
on a spiritual level.
In order to receive the Shefa Eloki (the most sublime levels of
Divine Inspiration and Guidance), we must align our will with
God's Will. This alignment involves our emulating and resembling
God, making ourselves like Him, as it is written, "God created
Man in His image" (Bereshit 1:27, 9:6). [According to most
commentators, this statement is to be understood allegorically.
God does not have an Image, i.e. any visible or nonvisible form.
Rather, just as God acts as a Free Being, so does man. Just as
God operates without prior restraint, so does man. Just as God
can do good as a matter of His own choice, so can man. When this
awesome power of Free Will is used properly, directed properly
-- and this includes wanting to become recipients of the Shefa
Eloki -- this is called true emulation of God.]
Directing our will solely to desiring physical things that are
transient, we show that we are not fit to receive the Shefa
Eloki. By way of analogy, the shape of a vessel tells us quite
a lot about its function. For instance, we would not use a flat
tray or dish for a liquid, or conversely, a drinking cup for a
loaf of bread. A vessel must be fit for the thing it is going to
contain.
Similarly, we must cultivate the desire and will to receive the
Shefa Eloki. Without this will, which is our vessel to receive
Godliness, we cannot receive what we are supposed to receive. The
desire to be a vessel for Godliness is thus a first condition.
But there is another condition that must be fulfilled before the
Godly Light can be received. As noted above, there must be a
connection between the Giver and the Receiver, the Benefactor and
the Recipient. Since the desire of the Giver, God, is solely to
bestow goodness and kindness, we must also desire to do the same.
The problem is that if our desire is just to receive -- even if
we wish to receive spirituality -- the Godly Light still will not
dwell with us. Thus, it is not enough just to want to receive the
Shefa Eloki, for the very desire to receive itself prevents us
from resembling God as a Giver. [God is the Giver and we are the
receivers, and as such, we are opposites. In a spiritual sense,
we are as far from each other as north and south. As long as we
are mere receivers, we stand at the opposite pole away from God,
the Giver.] In order to overcome this dilemma, our desire must
be to RECEIVE IN ORDER TO GIVE. This is the closest we can come
to emulating God.
Egotism
As we have seen, the Torah describes man as being created in
God's image, "In the image of God, He created him, male and
female He created them." Immediately following this, "God blessed
them and said to them: Be fruitful and multiply. Populate the
earth and conquer it. Rule over the fish of the sea, the birds
of the sky, and every animal that walks the earth" (Bereshit 1:27-
28).
Man has permission to rule over the animals (and true rulership
must be wise). He does not have permission to rule over other
human beings. This is the sense of the verse in Kohelet, "There
is a time when one man rules over another to afflict him"
(Ecclesiastes 8:9), which refers to those afflictions that people
suffer at the hands of other human beings. On the other hand, the
purpose of natural afflictions that human beings suffer, such as
sickness and natural disasters, is to break egotism and bring out
true altruism (giving without a desire to receive in return).
[Natural disasters are always followed by tremendous outpourings
of selfless help by individuals and countries.] In the merit of
altruism and compassion, mankind is saved from further suffering.
Thus, there are two forces impelling mankind toward altruism: One
is the way of suffering which arouses compassion. This is the
hard and difficult way. The second way is the way of the Torah
and its commandments.
Why Torah and Mitzvot?
It is only because the Torah and the Mitzvot contain the Godly
Light that they are capable of bringing mankind to this high
level of altruism. This was the intention of our Sages when they
paraphrased God saying, "I have created the yetzer hara -- the
ego, the desire to receive -- but I have created the Torah to
season/cure it" (Kiddushin 30b). [The Hebrew Tavlin means seasoning
spice; the word cure in English has two meanings, salts and
spices used to cure meat, and medications used to cure illness.
A spice works to bring out the real taste of the food. A
medication brings a sick patient back to health.] The Torah is
thus a cure for man's egotism.
Only when man becomes capable of truly giving of himself does he
resemble His Creator. Only then can he receive the Shefa Eloki
that God wishes to bestow upon him. Because only then does he
resemble and have some connection to the Giver. And only then can
he be close to God.
This is the meaning of their famous statement: "Just as He is
merciful and compassionate, so too shall you be merciful and
compassionate" (Shabbat 133b). [Similarly, they said: What is the
meaning of the verse (Devarim 13:5), "You shall follow the Lord
your God, fear Him, keep His commandments, obey Him and serve
Him, and bind yourself to Him." Is it possible to "follow the
Lord [and bind yourself to Him]"? Isn't it also written (Devarim
4:24), "The Lord your God is a consuming fire"? Rather, emulate
His attributes. Just as He clothes the naked... you too should
clothe the naked; just as He visits the sick... you too should;
just as He comforts mourners... you too should; just as He buries
the dead... you too should" (Sotah 14a).]
Thus, just as all of God's actions are motivated by His Will and
Desire to Bestow Good, so should all of your actions be motivated
by the same desire.
The Universality of the Torah
Just as any group needs a leader to direct its members on the
proper path, so also all of mankind requires a leader, Israel,
to guide it towards its ultimate destiny [of transforming this
planet into God's Temple]. This obligates the Jewish people to
refine itself [from within] in order to fulfill its highest
destiny [vis a vis the rest of mankind]. This is a twofold
obligation [as God told Israel, "You shall be a kingdom of
priests and a holy nation dedicated to Me" (Shemot 19:4). "Kingdom
of priests" defines Israel's relationship with the other nations
of the world. "Holy nation" defines the inner conditions which
will allow this relationship to be successful.]
Clearly, we are not referring here to any racial superiority, God
forbid. For one, the definition of racism, in its negative sense,
involves one nation subjugating another in order to suppress and
tyrannize it for its own selfish interests. Jewish manifest
destiny, on the other hand, is totally opposite. Jewish
chosenness requires us to overcome all egotistical tendencies in
order to develop and amplify true altruism, and this, so that the
entire world will be elevated spiritually.
And this is why the Jewish people have suffered and endured
adversity more than any other nation in the history of the world.
It is because we have the moral responsibility of uplifting the
entire world. And, as we said above, suffering merely forces us
to fulfill what we are obligated to fulfill.
But we have to know that there is a SOLUTION for all this
suffering. Just as science has discovered the cures to many
diseases, we too have the ability to discover the solution and
cure for all suffering and evil in the world. Because the
solution is in our hands. We only need cultivate true altruism
as the Torah teaches us, "Love your neighbor as yourself" or "Act
lovingly towards your fellow as you would have him act towards
you" (Vayikra 19:18), concerning which, Rabbi Akiva said, "This is
the overriding universal principle of the entire Torah" (Bereshit
Rabbah 24:7; Yerushalmi, Nedarim 9:4).
[See also Shabbat 31a where the Talmud tells of a non-Jew who
wished to convert to Judaism. He came to Hillel and said: "I am
ready to convert on the condition that you teach me the entire
Torah while I stand on one foot." Hillel (who was extremely
patient even with such people) answered him: "Do not act towards
your fellow in a way that you would not like him to act towards
you. The entire Torah is included in this. The remainder
elucidates how to go about doing this. Now go and learn." It is
clear that Hillel has merely restated the Torah's positive
formulation in the negative: "Do not act towards your fellow in
a way that you would not like him to act towards you" is the
inverse of "Act lovingly towards your fellow as you would have
him act towards you."]
I will conclude with another verse that is connected to the
month of Iyar. The verse states, "If you obey the Lord your
God and do what is right in His eyes, carefully heeding all His
commandments and keeping all His decrees, then [God promises:]
I will not strike you with any of the diseases that I brought
upon Egypt. I am God who heals you" (Shemot 15:26). We learn from
here that it is in our power to bring all suffering to an end by
fulfilling God's commandments with the proper intention, namely,
with the intention of bestowing good. The initials of the last
three words of this verse, Ani Hashem Rofe'echa (I am God who
heals you) are Aleph-Yod-Resh, the letters of the word Iyar. Amen,
may it be His Will.
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