Lessons in cognitive therapy from the wisdom of our sages:
The Torah demands Jews remember their enslavement and liberation from Egypt – in the years 1428-1392 BCE during the reign of Ramses II. The Torah instructs further that every Jew in every generation view oneself as if they were personally enslaved and liberated from Egypt.
The American abolitionist movement, formed in the 18th and 19th century, used the liberation of the ancient Israelites described in Exodus, to rally support against slavery and segregation laws (Ironically the pro slavery movement misread the Bible’s endorsement of servitude as support for slavery in the western sense of the word). Thanks in part to the anti-slavery message of the Torah, slavery in the ancient sense of people owning each other no longer exist in America and the western world. How are we supposed to view ourselves as personally enslaved and liberated?
The Torah is referred to as the Book of Life and Instruction, since its teachings and instructions are eternally applicable. There must be some personal instruction in this central teaching of our sages. First one must recognize their enslavement, on a national level, by accepting the fact that we are collectively living in a deep bitter exile with unconscionable global human suffering. Read the tabloids if you haven’t come to this recognition.
This exile/enslavement concept is applicable to every individual, regarding their own personal struggles combating depression, substance abuse, violence, negative personality traits, and the list goes on. Through overcoming our personal micro exile we will hasten the overcoming of the global macro exile.
Nachmon of Breslov referred to this personal struggle for liberation as a battle against depression and apathy in the service of Hashem (G-d). He learnt this from the verses which state that the Egyptian taskmasters “embittered” their lives with a great burden. This embitterment paradigmatically alludes to a psychological state of depression in each and every one of us.
Nachmon learns the remedy to this depression by examining the etymological root of the names Shifra (beautiful) and Puah (comforting), the maidservants that rescued Jewish babies after Pharaohs decree to throw them into the Nile, according to Exodus. Shifra is the concept of emphasizing the beauty in everything, including oneself. This positive outlook will help one overcome feelings of depression by increasing their concept of self worth. Puah is the idea of positive reinforcement and compassion. Through recognizing the beauty in life and reinforcing that beauty one will overcome their personal enslavement to depression, according to the Breslov school of thought.
The Alter Rebbe, founder of Chabad Chasidism explains in Chapter 17 of Tanya how our personal enslavement comes from constantly being drawn by our petty pursuits and lowly desires. We tell ourselves that if only we had X amount of money we would be happy, despite all studies confirming that there is no correlation between level of income and happiness. We try to satiate our natural cravings through eating unhealthy foods or staying in unhealthy and sometimes abusive relationships, telling ourselves that this will make us happy.
“Mitzraim,” the Hebrew word for Egypt means constriction. Using the human body as a paradigm, the Alter Rebbe, compares this constriction to the human neck. The neck is what divides the feelings of the heart from the intellect of the mind. The Alter explains that our personal struggles (i.e, enslavement) come from the disconnection of our heart and mind. By unifying our heart and mind we can overcome our personal Egypt and reach personal liberation.
An example of this torturous dichotomy between mind and heart is expressed most starkly in drug addiction or some cases of Battered Person Syndrome, where the heart says one thing and the mind says something else. On a more subtle level, intellectually we understand how unhealthy food is bad for us, yet emotionally we are attached to it. This according to the Alter Rebbe is contemporary enslavement. We break free from this bondage by fusing our heart and mind. We achieve this specifically through steering the heart with the rationale faculty of the mind.
Can you think of any personal examples of this dichotomy of mind and heart or/and fusion of mind and heart in your daily life? Feel free to share.
Based on Rabbi Shmuel Braun's Evening Chassidus Shiur - Mayanot Jan 9, 2007
Download the lecture that this Blog post is based on: Rabbi Braun Parshas Shemos - Synergising heart and mind
http://www.archive.org/details/RabbiBraunonSynergisingTheHeartandMind100
1 comment:
wow, great post. I can think of many such examples in my life. Ultimately, however, the greatest enslavelemnt in my opiinion is the lack of acceptance that we were never really enslaved to begin with. Rather, it was our misinterpratation of anciet texts that had us feeling as if the invisilbe eye of God was watching and tormenting us for sins we never commited. Further, i would steer clear of trying to unite Breslov and Lubavitch. they are bipolar camps with opposite ideoligies at this point and from my experience, no peace or reconcilliation can ever be made between them the main difference being the 2 years that seperate the death of their founders. In these two years, apparently, someone thought the Alter Rebbe's son was like his father and that his grandson would be better than him while no one claimed that Nosson was Nachman and the identiy of Nachomon's children remain hidden until today known only in Breslov circles while rumored that there are 2 families in Jersualem that know they are decendents from which nachman apparently said himself, Moshiach would come from my decednents. If I were you and were looking to get married, I would only consider those two families at this point. Take care and all the best and thank you for your wriitng. You really inspire me to live well forever, under the guise as you may call it of Christianity.
Post a Comment