In Masechet Berachot Perek Dalet (4), Mishnah
Hey (5) teaches us a basic concept of Tefillah (praying the Amidah). What does
the Mishnah say? If one is riding a donkey and he needs to pray (the Amida, Shmoneh Esreh) than he should get off
the donkey. If for some reason the person cannot get off the donkey, then he
should turn his face to Jerusalem’s direction. If for some reason one cannot
even do that, let’s say they need to focus on the road/path the donkey is taking
them on, then he should focus his heart towards the Kodesh HaKodashim (Jersualem’s Holy of Holies).
What can we learn from this?
Let’s say there are three levels of Holiness.
All of them have to do with the Bechina
(concept) of Hamor (donkey). The donkey
symbolizes Am Yisrael in the Galut, exile. How can we connect donkey to Galut?
When Avraham Avinu goes to Har HaMoriah to sacrifice his only son, Yitzchak
Avinu, he brings with him on the journey to the destination Eliezer and Ishmael
(both symbolize non-Jews). When Avraham heads off to the mountain (present day
Har HaBayit, the Kotel), he tells Eliezer and Ishmael to “stay with the
donkey.” Chazal learn from here that the Goyim also are in the same Bechina as donkeys.
This does not mean
they are worse than us or better than us. This simply means their spiritual
potentials are a lot lower than Jews. They do not have to go through a life of
613 Mitzvot (not that it’s a burden, it actually is our LIFE), rather they have
their own duties and we have ours.
So what can one infer after knowing this
information? Three levels of Holiness include: being in control of the donkey,
being in control of yourself/your actions, and simply being in control of your
thoughts.
Because we are in a world where the ‘donkey’
rules, meaning materialism and everything to do with freedom of the body, it is
extremely difficult sometimes to follow in the way of the Torah HaKdosha. The
Mishnah is relevant to today (besides for the fact that it teaches us Halachot
of the Amida): How?
When someone is in a strong level of Kdusha
(Holiness), they have the ability to get off the ‘donkey’ or the materialistic
view of life, and know that the direction to succeed is only in the direction
of Jerusalem, which means in the way of the Torah.
When someone is in a lower level of Kdusha,
they do not have enough spiritual strength to get away from the materialistic
world and they are still a part of this donkey world. However, they are still in
control of their actions and know for certain that there is one
direction/destination: Hashem and living a life of spiritual happiness.
And then there is the lowest (and just
emotionally hurtful) level: the level where one does not even know he/she is in
the wrong direction. The level where one does not have enough strength to even
put him/herself on the correct path to life. At this level the Mishnah says:
JUST KNOW THERE IS SUCH A PATH of the Kodesh HaKodashim, the Holy of Holies
where the Divine Presence rests for eternity!!!
B’H we should stick it in our heads that
Hashem’s Torah is an everlasting source of Holiness, RELEVANT Knowledge, love
and peace.
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