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You are driving a car and come up to a traffic signal. The light is red indicating for you to stop and let the other cars proceed through the intersection. As you approach, however you see no other cars, so you decide not to stop and you proceed. You reason that being there are no other cars, there is no danger. Yet, as soon as you pass, you hear a siren. A police officer witnessed your violation, pulls you over a gives you a ticket, and you have to pay a hefty fine. You go in front of a judge to plead your case. You say, but “your honor” there was no one else in the intersection, there was no visible danger; why shouldn’t I have driven through. The judge responds and reminds you that the law is the law, and although you did not see any cars at that moment, one could have come out of nowhere, not expecting you to be there in violation of the law. The results could have been a terrible accident. The law is there to protect, it is meant to be observed, regardless if at the moment the observance of the law seems unnecessary or inconvenient. In the end, you pay your hefty fine, and your driving record is marked. You took a chance for a small immediate gain and ended up with a much greater long-term loss. Where is the wisdom in this? In real life there is not always a police officer there watching our every move to penalize us to violating every infraction of law. Yet, this is not the case with regards to Heaven. Heaven does not suffer from a “man-power” shortage. There is always a Presence watching over us, protecting us from wanton harm, and at the same time noting our every act and reporting it to the appropriate Heavenly judge to execute judgment upon us. While we can escape the fleeting notice of our fellow human beings, we can never escape the All-Watching and All-Seeing Eye of Heaven. In our modern world, everything appears to be upside-down. Good behavior is seldom rewarded. Bad behavior is seldom caught. Good people seem to suffer, while bad people seem to be benefiting. There is no more a sense of justice. Yet, all this is merely an illusion of the moment. In the end, who an individual is and what the person does always catches up with them. One way or another we all pay for our indiscretions or are rewarded for our proper deeds. Heaven watches over us with Divine patience. We are given so many opportunities to better ourselves. It is only when we run out of opportunities that we have run out of time. Wisdom is a knowledge not learned from books. Wisdom rises up from within the heart, from the very recesses of self that we call our spiritual source. Wisdom intuitively identifies for us right from wrong and good from bad. It is the awareness and knowing of the Watchful Presence that is the beginning of true knowledge. Intuition starts with one feeling the Higher Presence and knowing that one is not alone. This is called the Fear of HaShem. Fear means to be aware and to be cautious. One who fears knows well that there are consequences for one’s actions. Wisdom and instruction are the pillars of psychological growth and individual maturity. One must allow wisdom to rise up from within. At the same time, one must be willing to listen to those around who know better than oneself. Instruction comes from the Written Word. Wisdom comes from the heart. When one aligns one’s heart with the written Word of HaShem one finds oneself aligned to the greatest of all powers in the universe. In such a place, there is never anything to fear. Knowing this place is the beginning of true knowledge of life.
Comments? Questions?
Yeshivat Lev Torah -
Collel Benei N'vi'im |
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