Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart - Section 1, Ch 5

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart - Section 1, Ch 5

Section 1, Chapter 5

1. There are five theologically-calamitous mistakes we make that prevent us from accepting just how unmitigated and absolute G-d’s sovereignty is [1]. The first of them (which seems rather laudatory and respectful at that, at first blush) is to think that G-d is “far too exalted”, much too “removed from the world to concern Himself with it” in Ramchal’s words.

After all, those who think this way reason, He’s G-d! Why should He care about petty and ultimately inconsequential things like this world and us? In Ramchal’s worlds, they think that He has left us under the control of “the stars, constellations, and their celestial counterparts, which then oversee the (workings of the) world”. That in fact was the viewpoint of the earliest idolaters, who then worshipped the stars and constellations, which they considered G-d’s lofty agents on earth [2]. But that’s fallacious because G-d is utterly unaffected by distance, either of rank or of space; G-d’s reach transcends all that. For what he said of His Torah is certainly true of Himself. As He put it, “It is not up in heaven … nor is it beyond the sea … No, the matter is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart” (Deuteronomy 30:11-14).

Mistaken as they were, those who were of that opinion did nonetheless acknowledge G-d’s Being and even worshipped Him -- albeit in a backhanded sort of way [3].

2. The second mistake some make is to reason that since, as we’re taught, G-d is perfect, whole, and utterly benevolent, and yet there’s evil and wrongdoing in this world -- then there had to have been two deities: one for the good and another for the bad [4].

The truth be known, that error is either based on our inability to fathom how a good G-d could allow for evil to manifest itself so often, or at all; or on our failure to appreciate when an instance of bad might actually prove to be good. The seeming contradiction and confusion in all that is so alien to some poor souls that they lapse into heresy or spiritual mayhem in the face of it, G-d forbid.

But there are a couple of points to make about that at this juncture (while a lot more will be said later on). First, that evil serves a purpose in this world -- and a rather high, telling, and central one at that, ironically (as we’ll discover). And second, that while the incongruity of a single source for both good and evil can’t be denied, nonetheless a person of faith understands that the One G-d is indeed the source of everything; and that His single Will manifests itself in many different ways, much the way a single ray of sunlight can express itself as many different hues as=2 0it passes through a prism [5].

3. The third mistake people have made -- and continue to make to this day, perhaps even more so than in the past -- is to assume that the “laws of nature” (as well as the constraints of “destiny” and of “happenstance”) are indefatigable facts of life not to be denied, and that even G-d is beholden to them. And they also believe that the sooner a person acknowledges those “rules” and starts to play by them, the better off he is and the longer he denies them the more likely he is to fail.

But that would suggest that these “laws” existed before G-d Himself did, since they rather than He would be the very underpinnings of everything in the world. Yet that’s absurd, for by definition G-d never didn’t exist, so nothing could ever have preceded Him; and since He’s the Creator, He created those forces, too, and is thus beyond and above them.

It also follows, then, that since He is in fact beyond and above them (and everything else, as well), th at these rules aren’t immutable. And rather than being “laws” of nature and facts of life, they’re actually only some of the multifarious, mutable means G-d uses to govern this world; that is, that like everything else, they too are beholden to Him, the Absolute Sovereign [6].

4. The fourth fundamental mistake some make about G-d is to believe that His deeds are sometimes subordinate to man’s actions. They assert as an example the notion that while G-d had once chosen the Jewish Nation in fact to carry out His mission in this world, He no longer favors us since we continue to sin and stray, and that He was thus “forced” to abandon us, G-d forbid, as a consequence of those actions.

First off, let’s quote G-d’s own words about the fixed and abiding nature of our people’s relationship to Him. “I will never give My glory to another (nation) “(Isaiah 48:11), since He has established a covenant between Himself and us that’s to last forever [7]. And that as a consequence of that covenant He9 9ll expunge many of the things we do against Him, we’re assured.

“I, I myself, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake, and will not remember your sins“ (Isaiah 43:25), G-d said at one point; “I will remove the iniquity of that country (Israel) in one day“ (Zechariah 3:9), He said at another; and He once assured us that “In those days and in that time... the iniquity of Israel will be searched out, and there will (be found to) be none; and the sins of Judah (will be searched out, too) and not be found. For, I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant“(Jeremiah 50:20).

That’s to say that His covenant with us is eternal and beyond others’ expectations [8]. And that G-d is unaffected by and above our or anyone else’s deeds, as well as any system He Himself set up to determine worth and merit. For as He put it, “I will be gracious to whomever I will be gracious -- even though he may not be worthy of it”. And “I will show mercy upon whomever I will show mercy, even though he may not deserve it“(Berachot 7A).

5. And the fifth mistake made is to assume that though He is the Creator of each and every thing, we can still-and-all do things to get around His wishes or affect His deeds. Mistakenly believing that G-d must be vulnerable in some realm or another, and that they could subject Him to their manipulation and cunning, they would for example try to manipulate the sort of supernatural forces that G-d is thought to acquiesce to.

But they too are wrong. For G-d alone is G-d, and the Absolute Sovereign. Nothing can thwart Him. He alone reigns supreme; nothing exists save for the fact that He wills it to; and He oversees everything. He Himself enacted all laws and ordinances, and they’re thus beholden to Him, rather than He to them.

There will indeed be times when G-d chooses to accede to manE2s deeds, but He needn’t do that if He chooses not to. And He’s likewise above even supernatural laws. After all, He Himself set it all in place and granted it its capabilities. He instituted everything and can correspondingly change and undo anything. For He alone is all-powerful [9].

---

Notes:

[1] Doubtlessly meaning to underscore the importance of the idea -- which he says in the text is the cardinal and over-arching truism of the Jewish Faith-- Ramchal elaborates here on verses that depict G-d’s sovereignty. We didn’t cite them above because they seem redundant in this sort of a treatment, but we’ll quote them here. We’re thus told that “G-d is the L-rd...” which is to say, the Absolute Sovereign, “... in Heaven above and on the earth below”, i.e., in orbits we experience and in orbits we cannot; “... there is no other”, i.e., that’s true of Him, and Him alone (Deuteronomy 4:39). “Behold, I am He...” the Torah quotes G-d as declaring, meaning to say that G-d alone is the Absolute Sovereign, “there is no god with Me...” i.e., He shares sovereignty with nothing and no one else. And the Torah underscores the point with the Divine affirmation that, “I (alone) bring on death and I bring to life; I wound and=2 0I heal” (Deuteronomy 32:39), thus asserting the profundity and finality of G- d’s determinations (which was already cited in 1:4:2). We’re taught that G- d is “unchangeable; (so) who could turn Him around?”, which is to say that He cannot be dissuaded from doing anything He’s determined to do. And it’s said that “He does what He wants“ (Job 23:13), for after all, “Who'd (dare) say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’“ (Job 9:12). In short we’re to understand that G-d’s rule is absolute and supreme. Nothing and no one could ever thwart Him.

See Ramchal’s statement elsewhere that everything we do should somehow disclose G-d’s Sovereignty, and that the eventual full and outright disclosure of it will only come about when we believe in it wholeheartedly (Klach Pitchei Chochma 49).

[2] See Rambam’s Hilchot Avodah Zarah 1:1-2, which depicts the downward spin from the recognition of G-d’s exalted place in the universe to out- and-out idolatry.

[3] Some20today start off with something of the same premise but go elsewhere with it. “Since G-d is so lofty and transcendent” they contend, “He apparently left us to our own devices”. What they mean to suggest is either that we’re now on our own in the universe, masters of our own fate, and accountable to no one; or worse yet, that G-d is an aloof Master of the Universe who wouldn’t deign to concern Himself with this world. But both approaches are wrong. The first because it limits G- d’s reach and doesn’t factor in His ability (and wish) to interface with this world and ourselves in an imminent, near-at-hand sort of way. And the second is wrong because it limits His concerns for and faith in us, whom He created to fulfill His ultimate purpose (see 1:1:2 above).

[4] Ramchal is referring to Zoroastrianism which thrived in Talmudic times and threatened Jewish beliefs, since it maintained that a pair of co-equal spirits called Ahura Mazda (the beneficent “Wise Lord”) and Angra Mainyu (the malevolent “Evil Spirit”) competed with each other for control of the universe (see Sanhedrin 39A).

[5] See Rambam’s illustration of how one thing can do and produce a number of different, even conflicting things. He points out that fire c an melt some things, solidify others, as well as cook, burn, whiten, and blacken yet others. Someone not knowing the nature of fire would think that six different things were at work: one that melts, another that solidifies, etc., but of course that’s not so; for fire alone is the instigator of all those effects (Moreh Nevuchim 1:53).

[6] R’ Shriki cites others of Ramchal’s works (in his note 15) to explain natural phenomena and the laws of nature from a Kabbalistic perspective. Ramchal speaks of the short-sightedness we suffer from being material beings, in that we’re not aware that things are not as they appear to be -- even to the most advanced tools, even when accessed by the best minds. For we’re taught that G-d wanted to keep certain things from mankind, so he gave us our five senses (as well as all the modern instruments that merely extend upon these senses, albeit to astounding qualitative and quantitative degrees) with which to experience the world. For our souls themselves experience things on a very different level and aren’t beholden to those senses; they “see things for what they are, not for what they’re presented as being by our senses” (Adir Bamarom, p. 458).

Elsewhere Ramchal likens nature to multi-hued panels placed over a window that allow the pure and otherwise unadulterated sunlight to pass through them only after having been “colored ” by them (Adir Bamarom, vol. 2, Ma’amar Yichud HaYirah p. 150); or to material embodiments of spiritual principles which we respond to more than we do the spiritual originals (ibid., p. 158).

[7] Also see Genesis 17:1-2, 7; Isaiah 54:10 and 59:21; 1 Chronicles 16:15- 17; and elsewhere.

It’s important to point out, though, that that’s not to deny the consequences that any single one of us would have to suffer for our having broken our end of the bargain and sinning. For, despite the covenant between G-d Almighty and our people, the truth of the matter is that transactions are transactions indeed every bit as much as merits are merits; everyone must answer for his or her own deeds.

[8] Ramchal is addressing the fact that the early Church Fathers contended that while G-d had indeed once chosen the Jewish Nation, He’d subsequently abandoned us, G-d forbid. Ramchal’s point is that their supposition is that G-d’s decisions can be swayed by man’s actions, but that’s absurd, since not only has G-d made an eternal pact with our people, but He also can’t be moved to “c hange His mind” one way or the other since He is the Supreme Sovereign who is answerable to no one (see R’ Friedlander’s note 23).

[9] See Derech Hashem 3:2 where Ramchal discusses Theurgy (the performance of miracles with supernatural assistance).

---

By Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has translated and commented upon "The Gates of Repentance", "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His works are available in bookstores and in various locations on the Web.

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart, Copyright © 1995 - 2007 by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman and Torah.org.

Courtesy of:

For any comments, questions or topic requests, please contact Rabbi Yaakov Feldman.

Subscribe to Ramchal and receive the class via e-mail.

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Copyright 1995 - 2007

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"The Way of G-d" - PART 1 - The Fundamental Principles of Reality - Ch 1 - Par 6

"The Way of G-d" - PART 1 - The Fundamental Principles of Reality - Ch 1 - Par 6

Derech Hashem

Chapter 1 - The Creator

Paragraph 6

We end our foray into the nature and make-up of G-d, if you will, this week. And we venture into less utterly transcendent though exciting spiritual realms, including the nature of our *own* beings, the meaning of our lives, what G-d expects of us, how our righteousness affects us personally and the entire world, the Jewish year, the Jewish day, and so much more.

Ramchal offers one last insight into G-d's being now, then he sums up the entire chapter by encapsulating the six facts about G-d we'd do well to dwell upon and take to heart if we're ever going to understand the world.

That last point is that it's clear that there is only *one* G-d.

After all, as the argument goes, if there were more than one G-d, then there would have to have been one "Over-G-d", so to speak, from whom they would have all come. Since all multiples (many gods, in this case) necessarily come from a singular (the one "Over-G-d", or G-d Himself, in this case). Much the way individual state constitutions for example all derive from the Constitution of the United States, which gives them their authority and validates their existence.

If the various gods did indeed come from Him, then they obviously depend on Him and they're thus not utterly self-sufficient (as G-d Himself is) and they wouldn't be gods, by defintion. It therefore follows that there is only *one* G-d.

The six aforementioned facts about G-d we'd need to recall and ruminate upon as much and as often as it takes to "get it" are the facts that G-d *exists*, He's *perfect*, His existence is *imperative*, He's utterly *self-sufficient*, He's *simple*, and there's only *one* of Him.

Since we're about to enter the human realm as we indicated, it would serve us well to contrast G-d's being with our own.

The truth be known, though, we're not about to jump into humanity per se, so much as ease into it. Because as we'll see for ourselves Ramchal will start discussing G-d's *intentions* for us before he explains us ourselves. As such, we go from G-d, to G-d's idea of and plans for us "in theory", then to the reality of our beings-- both in potential and as is (for better or for worse). But let's do now what we set out to do, and contrast our beings with G-d's, despite those other intermittent ideas.

The first things that sets us apart from G-d is the fact that no one doubts that we exist. G-d certainly doesn't doubt it, and we don't either. G-d knows we exist because He's intrinsically tied to us as our Creator. And we know we exist for a few reasons: because we're intrinsically tied to ourselves, because we sense our own existence, and also *because we see ourselves*.

And though it's self-evident, we'll say it anyway-- while G-d is invisible, we're not. And it's G-d's invisibility that captures our imagination so and challenges our belief, since we only trust deeply what we can see and otherwise experience tangibly. In fact, one could say that it's our visibility and G-d's invisibility which is the "necessity" that has served as "the mother" of the "invention" of science and inquiry.

The second way we and He differ-- and this is a revelation to many, and a life-lesson some of us have to learn again and again--- lies in the fact that we're simply not perfect. We're flawed, no matter how wonderful, no matter how otherwise stunning. Yet there *is* implanted within us the dream of perfection and the uncanny urge to achieve it, which is undoubtedly rooted in our aforementioned intrinsic ties to G-d.

Third, unlike G-d, none of us is indispensable (i.e., "imperative")-- *none of us*. The world will carry on very well without us, and we'll quickly be replaced in the scheme of things.

Fourth, none of us is utterly self-sufficient-- only apparently, delusionarily so. If nothing else, we clearly need sunlight, food, drink, etc. But G-d needs nothing.

Fifth, while G-d is pure and simple, we're multifarious and complex. While some thinkers simply love human complexity, most of us yearn for simplicity, also likely because of our aforementioned ties to G-d.

And sixth-- obviously-- while there's only one G-d, there are many, many of us. But since, as we said above, all multiples necessarily come from a singular, then like state constitutions, we're all "derived" from G-d who "gives us our authority" and "validates" us. And we all hold sway over our own domain. (We'd all do well to reflect on the analogy!)

A final point. "The Way of G-d" is set out like a tree. It starts with a seed, sets out roots, and extends upward and outward. The "seed" has been this chapter, which discusses G-d's make-up. All that follows is an offshoot of it. So, always keep this chapter in mind and dwell on it often.

For without it-- without G-d, and what we know of Him-- nothing else makes sense.

---

By Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has translated and commented upon "The Gates of Repentance", "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His works are available in bookstores and in various locations on the Web.

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart, Copyright © 1995 - 2007 by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman and Torah.org.

Courtesy of:

For any comments, questions or topic requests, please contact Rabbi Yaakov Feldman.

Subscribe to Ramchal and receive the class via e-mail.

Join the Jewish Learning Revolution! Torah.org: The Judaism Site brings this and a host of other classes to you every week.

Visit Torah.org or email learn@torah.org to get your own free copy of this mailing.

Need to change or stop your subscription? Please visit Torah.org's subscription center, http://torah.org/subscribe/ -- see the links on that page.

Copyright 1995 - 2007

Project Genesis, Inc.

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Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart - Section 1, Ch 4

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart - Section 1, Ch 4

Section 1, Chapter 4

1.

As we’d indicated, the single thread that runs through the long course of history from beginning to end is the fact that G-d reigns over absolutely everything.

In point of fact, G-d’s sovereignty, know as His Yichud, is the only trait of His that we humans can grasp. For, while He is accessible to heart and soul, G-d is utterly inaccessible to the mind; as the heart and soul can sense His active presence in the world, but the mind must rely on abstract conjecture about His makeup.

And so while we might understand for example that G-d is wise, we nonetheless can’t fathom the makeup of His wisdom with our minds; and though we can certainly follow that He understands, we ourselves nonetheless can’t grasp G-d’s level of understanding; and the like. And that’s because those and other such Divine traits are rooted in abstract notions, while G-d’s sovereignty -- His overarching command of everything in the universe -- will be evident in the end.

As our sages put it, “You (G-d) are wise, but not with a discernable kind of wisdom. You understand, but not with a discernable kind of understanding” (Tikkunei Zohar, 2nd Introduction). And besides, we’ve been warned, “Do not search out what is too wondrous for you, and do not delve into what is hidden from you” (Chagigah 13a), and “if your heart flees there …” i.e., to an idea that’s utterly beyond your mortal mind, then ”return to your place” instead (Sefer Yetzirah 1:8) [1]. But while that’s true of abstract ideas about Him, nevertheless as the psalmist put it so effulgently, when one catches sight of G-d’s presence in the world he can “taste and see20that G-d is good” (Psalm 34:8) -- that He’s here in our world and holds sway over all of it.

2.

But Ramchal’s point is that not only can we discern G-d’s utter sovereignty now to a degree, it will become perfectly clear to us in fact in the end.

As such we’re charged by the Torah to detect it and to internalize its veracity again and again, to the point where it’s unquestionable [2]. As it’s written, “Know this day and reflect upon it in your heart” again and again “that the L-rd He is G-d in heaven above and upon the earth below”, i.e., that He reigns supreme, and that “there is none else” who reigns (Deuteronomy 4:39). In point of fact, all of our people’s hopes and dreams as well as all the promises made to us about our ultimate redemption hinge on G-d displaying His utter sovereignty -- His Yichud -- in the eventual future.

We’ll discuss this all in more detail in the next few chapters; at this point, though, let’s just present the various verses that allude to this phenomenon. < o:p>

G-d Himself expressed it in these terms: “I am He! There is no G-d with me! I alone bring on death and bring on life; I alone wound and heal“(Deuteronomy 32:39) [3]; “I am He; before Me no god was formed and after Me none shall be. I (alone) I am the L-rd, and aside from Me there is no savior” (Isaiah 43:10-11); “I am the first and I am the last; there is no G-d beside Me“(Isaiah 44:6); and “Know … that there is none beside Me. I am G-d, no one else. I form the light and create darkness; I make peace and create evil; I G-d do all these things“(Isaiah 45:6-7).

As the prophets Isaiah and Zechariah depicted it, “G-d alone will be exalted on that day“(Isaiah 2:11) -- the day He reveals His Yichud -- when, “G-d will (prove to) be king over all the earth. And ... G-d and His name will be one and the same“(Zechariah 14:9) [4]. And as it’s said “Hear O Israel! G-d our L-rd is the L-rd (i.e., His reign is sovereign) (Deuteronomy 6:4).

The point of the matter is that G-d alone reigns supreme -- and that while there are undoubtedly other entities with wills of their own, ourselves included, in fact G-d alone will have “the last word” so to speak; His Will will prove to reign supreme [5].

3.

In the end we’ll find that the slow, boundless, panoramic consideration of past, present and the promised future which we’ll be offered in this work will ultimately have us realize the fact of G-d’s Yichud.

And once we know that, we’ll be able to not only “know therefore this day” the truth of G-d’s absolute sovereignty in theory -- we will have “reflect (ed) upon it in (our) heart” and we’ll be able to realize on our own that “G-d alone is L-rd of Heaven above and of earth below -- none other” (see Deuteronomy 4:39), despite the whirligig of earthly circumstances that seem to refute that [6].

Notes:

[1] See R’ Friedlander’s remarks in note 14 of his commentary for another explanation of how we could understand G-d’s Yichud yet not understand His other traits based on the notion of “positive” versus “negative” Divine attributes (for which see Rambam’s comments in Moreh Nevuchim 1:56–60). Our position is that G-d’s Yichud can be defined because it touches upon Him as He interfaces with the cosmos.

[2] Understand that most of us simply don’t sense G-d’s utter sovereignty. Even people of faith who assume that G-d certainly reigns in this world don’t actually assume He reigns supreme. And that’s because they presume that He Himself is subject and subservient to a number of cosmic laws and limitations (which Ramchal will discuss later on).

[3] Ramchal calls our attention to the context in which this statement is made, the great song-poem known as Shirat Ha’azinu, which he says “incorporates every happenstance and phenomenon ever to occur in the world” which even “the plain meaning of the text makes clear”.

[4] This verse would seem to explain why we use the term “Yichud” of all possible others for His Absolute Sovereignty. For the term implies oneness (echad); and oneness is characterized in this verse as the unification (Yichud, quite literally) of G-d’s Essence and His name, i.e., and His reputation or “public facade” as we worded it in note 3 to 1:3. (Also see R’ Shalom Ulman’s opening comments to his edition of Klallot Ha’ilan)

The term Yichud also refers to the unification of G-d’s near-highest reach with His lowest one, as in the common Kabbalistic formula of “unifying the Holy One and His Shechina”. See R’ Shriki’s essay entitled “HaYichud” of his edition of Da’at Tevunot for a discussion of this.

[5] See ¶’s 38 and 40 below as well as Klach Pitchei Chochma 1 (in Peirush).

[6] For the Kabbalistic themes tied in with this chapter see Klallim Rishonim 3 (which=2 0corresponds to ¶’s 36 and 40 ); Klach Pitchei Chochma 2, 4; and Klallot Ha’ilan 1. Also see the aforementioned “HaYichud” on pp. 61-66 of Shriki’s edition for a breakdown of how the concept of G-d’s Yichud had been understood before Ramchal and of its various implications; also see his Rechev Yisroel pp. 167-228 for a full treatment of the concept of Yichud.

---

By Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has translated and commented upon "The Gates of Repentance", "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His works are available in bookstores and in various locations on the Web.

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart, Copyright © 1995 - 2007 by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman and Torah.org.

Courtesy of:

For any comments, questions or topic requests, please contact Rabbi Yaakov Feldman.

Subscribe to Ramchal and receive the class via e-mail.

Join the Jewish Learning Revolution! Torah.org: The Judaism Site brings this and a host of other classes to you every week.

Visit Torah.org or email learn@torah.org to get your own free copy of this mailing.

Need to change or stop your subscription? Please visit Torah.org's subscription center, http://torah.org/subscribe/ -- see the links on that page.

Copyright 1995 - 2007

Project Genesis, Inc.

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"The Way of G-d" - PART 1 - The Fundamental Principles of Reality - Ch 1 - Par 5

"The Way of G-d" - PART 1 - The Fundamental Principles of Reality - Ch 1 - Par 5

Derech Hashem

Chapter 1 - The Creator

Paragraph 5

Ramchal says something in the middle of this paragraph that would serve us best here, at the beginning. It's that the statements about G-d he's about to present to us are far beyond our grasp, and that we barely have the vocabulary for it.

Let's examine that. In the past, mankind had too often been struck by its own perceived ability to grasp things, and to be able to enunciate what it grasped. And it believed that what couldn't be enunciated just didn't exist.

So science did its best to plot and graph everything exactingly, literature strove to say things "just so", art and music tried to "capture the moment" perfectly, etc.

At a certain point in modernity though it became clear that things weren't what we perceived them to be. So science addressed issues like chaos (for example), literature turned to evoking hazy senses of things, art and music allowed for the abstract and discordant.

By this point we've apparently given up on the struggle altogether, and settled for "virtual reality".

Now, the Kabbalists always knew that virtual reality is all one could ever hope to understand in this world. For our senses only experience things that deeply, and no further. We simply don't have the capacity to dig deeper to "actual" reality. Much like our ancestors didn't have the capacity to grasp the truer picture that the microscope allowed then to have before it was invented.

As such we'd offer that there are essentially four levels of reality-- surface reality, microscopic (and submicroscopic) reality, virtual reality, and the actual reality. Mankind settled far too long for a surface view of things, we were then thrilled with a microscopic view, and have only now come upon virtual reality in the face of the actual level of reality which we now know is beyond us.

Though not often spoken of, this acquiescence to virtue reality is an exciting and profound admission of human limitations. (The truth of the matter is though that it's a mixed blessing, since many have already begun to accept virtual reality as actual reality, but that's beyond our scope here).

Ramchal's point is that when it comes to spirituality, the best we could ever hope for are virtual depictions. For the life of the spirit is far beyond our grasp. And consequently G-dliness (which can only be described as "meta-spirituality”) is hopelessly further yet beyond us.

Rambam (Maimonides) evoked a remarkable image relevant to our point. He declared (in Perek Chellek) that we haven't any more capacity to fully grasp the spiritual than fish have the ability to grasp the notion of fire! Drawing upon that we'd venture to say that we haven't any more capacity to fully grasp G-dliness than fish have the ability to grasp the notion of notions!

Ramchal goes on to say that the above is true because we can only imagine and fathom things that fit within the confines of G-d's created world which we can sense or imagine. That we really can't draw a parallel between what happens in our experience and G-d's own reality. For the two are utterly, utterly unalike.

That having been said, Ramchal offers that one of the few things that we *can* say about G-d is that He’s absolutely “simple” ( i.e., pure and straightforward). That's to say that while we and everything else around us is a melange of many distinct and dependent capacities, G-d isn't. He's one and whole, "pure and simple".

And while our various capacities often blend (we can, for example, evoke a memory of aromas and thus combine the tactile with the cerebral) we nonetheless force the two to combine artificially and ephemerally. While everything about Him is simply *there* in G-d, and wholly so.

Ramchal’s final point here is that in fact, there simply has to be a Being above the laws of nature, without lacks, imperfection, multiplicity, and relativity. Otherwise nothing else could exist.

That's to say, without the existence of a Being above and beyond all that, there couldn't ever be deficient, imperfect, multiple, and relative things-- much like there couldn't ever be lessons taught without a teacher "above and beyond" the lessons him- or herself.

---

By Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has translated and commented upon "The Gates of Repentance", "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His works are available in bookstores and in various locations on the Web.

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart, Copyright © 1995 - 2007 by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman and Torah.org.

Courtesy of:

For any comments, questions or topic requests, please contact Rabbi Yaakov Feldman.

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Copyright 1995 - 2007

Project Genesis, Inc.

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Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart - Section 1, Ch 3

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart - Section 1, Ch 3

Section 1, Chapter 3

1.

Some individuals are said to enjoy “global vision”, in that they seem to see things from on high and take the whole into account. Others, though, including Ramchal, experience what we’d term “cosmic vision”. For while also seeing things from on high, these more exalted soul s also see them from beginning to end, and with a clear view of ultimate consequences.

And so we find Ramchal making certain “cosmic” statements like the following here: “If we were to dwell on the whole array of G-d’s actions (including) every major deed He has brought about since He placed man on earth to (every deed that) He assured us through His holy prophets that He would (eventually) bring about, it becomes entirely clear (that)”; “what we can gather overall from all the great seminal events that G-d has fostered onto the world (is that)”; and “when we delve into everything done under the sun we see but one ongoing process (which is)”. So let’s see what we’d notice if we too could take all that into account since it will explain so many things to us about G-d.

2.

Before we get to that, though, there’s something we’d need to understand clearly.

Even though we’d said in the last chapter that G-d wants us to grasp His being and that we’re capable of doing that, it’s vitally important to know that we cannot grasp G-d’s full and infinite being. That’s simply beyond us. What we can understand though (and will experience in the end) is a fragment of G-d’s being -- that aspect of Him that He displays in this world [1].

After all, as Ramchal reminds us, “can you fathom the mystery of G-d? Or can you probe the limits of the Almighty?”(Job 11:7); and indeed, “who can utter the mighty acts of G-d or fully declare all His praise?” (Psalms 106:2) [2].

As such, while we’ll be discussing the overarching pattern of G-d’s ways in the world, the direction His actions are going in here, and His over- all goals -- which is all very buoyant and electric unto itself -- we nonetheless won’t be discussing G-d Himself [3]. In any event, it’s clear that our grasping even that relatively “small corner” of His being is what Ramchal and others assure us will bring us the great soul satisfaction we’d spoken of [4].

3.

And so Ramchal now depicts what one would come to realize if he “were to dwell on the whole array of G-d’s actions”, if h e were to reflect upon “all the great seminal events”, or if he were to “delve into everything done under the sun” as cited above.

It would be the fact that G-d’s rule is supreme [5].

That’s to say that the one over-arching theme we’d see playing itself out in the long course of time from creation to the end of time is the fact that G-d is fully in charge of everything -- despite an almost endless array of paradoxes that seem to contradict that. We’ll expand upon this phenomenon shortly again and later on, as it will prove to be one of the major themes of Da’at Tevunot.

---

Notes:

[1] See R’ Friedlander’s note 13, pp. 9-11 as well as ¶’s 36 (beginning) and 40 (middle of paragraph beginnin g on p. 39 entitled “v’nashuv l’inyanneinu”).

Some argue that the idea that we can understand some aspect of G-d’s being though not all of it refers to the Kabbalistic theme of kav (though see our last note to the last chapter). See Klallim Rishonim 3.

[2] The truth be told, we0ll seem to touch upon many “hidden” and “secret” things in the course of this work. But let that serve as a lesson as to just what’s hidden and secret in the world and what’s not; what’s really beyond us and what only seems to be.

[3] In a manner of speaking, the one and only G-d can be said to have two “faces”, if you will. There’s His “private side” -- the way He is in His own element, where He’s free to be Himself and where no one other than He ever experiences Him. And then there’s His “public facade” -- the way He presents Himself outside of Himself, in the world.

The point is that while He’s not really Himself under the latter circumstances and is somewhat “restricted” there, nonetheless since we could potentially relate to Him under those circumstances rather than in His own element, and since His assuming His “public facade” best serves His ultimate purpose, He presents Himself that way to us.

[4] See 1:2:2. Though this is a decidedly esoteric point, Ramchal alludes elsewhere to stages of human attainment beyond the one spoken of here in Da’at Tevunot which will occur in the so-called eighth, ninth, and tenth “millennia” (i.e., after the Messianic Era) which will far surpass the dimensions we’ll be addressing here. But that discussion is far beyond the reach of this work. See R’ Shriki’s lengthy discussion of it in Rechev Yisroel pp. 137-164 which draws upon many of Ramchal’s works.

[5] This is termed G-d’s “Yichud”. See section 3 to our Prologue, note 4 to Ramchal’s Introduction, and note 2 to 1:1. See R’ Shriki’s note 11 for more about G-d’s Yichud as it is dis cussed in Da’at Tevunot and Klach Pitchei Chochma. Also see his Rechev Yisroel pp. 167-228, and his essay HaYichud in his commentary to Da’at Tevunot pp. 61- 66. See 1-4 of Klach Pitchei Chochma for a definition of the concept as well as a discussion of its dynamics.

---

By Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has translated and commented upon "The Gates of Repentance", "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His works are available in bookstores and in various locations on the Web.

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart, Copyright © 1995 - 2007 by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman and Torah.org.

Courtesy of:

For any comments, questions or topic requests, please contact Rabbi Yaakov Feldman.

Subscribe to Ramchal and receive the class via e-mail.

Join the Jewish Learning Revolution! Torah.org: The Judaism Site brings this and a host of other classes to you every week.

Visit Torah.org or email learn@torah.org to get your own free copy of this mailing.

Need to change or stop your subscription? Please visit Torah.org's subscription center, http://torah.org/subscribe/ -- see the links on that page.

Copyright 1995 - 2007

Project Genesis, Inc.

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"The Way of G-d" - PART 1 - The Fundamental Principles of Reality - Ch 1 - Par 3 and 4

"The Way of G-d" - PART 1 - The Fundamental Principles of Reality - Ch 1 - Par 3 and 4

Derech Hashem

Chapter 1 - The Creator

Paragraphs 3 and 4

We've combined a couple of paragraphs this time, which we hadn't done so far, because they're short and related to each other.

Paragraph 3 speaks of G-d's existence being "imperative", and paragraph 4 speaks of His existence as being "independent" and not just imperative, but "*intrinsically* imperative".

We'd first need to explain terms, then try our hardest to understand what this all means.

By definition, an imperative is either a "prerequisite" or something "absolutely required". Emotionally, though, it implies something else. We'll touch on both.

When I think of a "prerequisite" or something "absolutely required" I'm immediately brought back to school. There were always prerequisite classes or courses you *had* to take before you could either go further on, or graduate.

With that in mind we'll take the expression that G-d's existence is imperative to mean that He simply *has* to exist if anything else is to follow. In other words, nothing but nothing could ever exist without Him, period.

As Ramchal puts it at the end of this paragraph, "G-d simply couldn't *not* exist" because if He didn't exist, then nothing else could.

We said there's an emotional sense of the term "imperative", too. When I have an "imperative need" for something, I have an acute, aching, burning need for it. I'm in pain without it. So in that sense of the word, I and everything else experiences a deep-below-the-surface "imperative need" for G-d all the time. We simply couldn't exist, couldn't "go on" without Him.

As such, G-d's existence is *imperative*, He couldn't possibly *not* exist both in fact, and as far as we’re concerned.

Again, as paragraph 4 puts it, G-d's existence is "independent", and not just imperative (as we said before), but "*intrinsically* imperative".

G-d's existence is said to be "independent" simply because He depends on nothing or no one else. After all, *by definition* an all-mighty God would simply have to be independent, sovereign, and self-sufficient. Otherwise he wouldn't be all-mighty. And G-d Almighty certainly meets those criteria.

That's simple enough. The next one, though, is a little more turgid.

By saying that G-d is *intrinsically* imperative Ramchal is stating that G-d's imperativeness (i.e., the fact that His existence is absolutely required) isn't a "rule" that He has to follow.

His point is that G-d "wrote the rule" of imperativeness just as He wrote all other rules. And He could wipe it out if He wants to or not. After all, as we said, He's *independent* and above all rules.

That's to say that G-d's existence is imperative *only because He wants it to be*. He Himself "decided" He'd work that way.

The ancient Greeks believed their gods (and there's simply no comparison) were beholden to something greater than they-- the so-called "Fates". If something was fated to happen, there was nothing a Greek god could do to prevent it. G-d Almighty is beholden to nothing. His existence is *intrinsically* imperative, i.e., it's only imperative *because He wanted it to be*.

The following idea isn't mentioned here, but we'll end with it. Many people mistakenly believe that G-d is beholden to logic. As if logic were more powerful than He, just as the "Fates" were more powerful than the ancient Greek gods. But that's simply not true.

G-d is no more beholden to logic than He is to, say, gravity. So all attempts to "force" Him into a logical corner fail in the end. And all questions of whether He could create a force greater than Himself or not and the like are simply irrelevant to His utmost, absolute sovereignty.

---

By Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has translated and commented upon "The Gates of Repentance", "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His works are available in bookstores and in various locations on the Web.

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart, Copyright © 1995 - 2007 by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman and Torah.org.

Courtesy of:

For any comments, questions or topic requests, please contact Rabbi Yaakov Feldman.

Subscribe to Ramchal and receive the class via e-mail.

Join the Jewish Learning Revolution! Torah.org: The Judaism Site brings this and a host of other classes to you every week.

Visit Torah.org or email learn@torah.org to get your own free copy of this mailing.

Need to change or stop your subscription? Please visit Torah.org's subscription center, http://torah.org/subscribe/ -- see the links on that page.

Copyright 1995 - 2007

Project Genesis, Inc.

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Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart - Section 1 - Ch 2

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart - Section 1 - Ch 2

Chapter 2

1.

Now that we know that G-d wants us to perfect both ourselves and the universe in its entirety, we’ll need to unravel this next series of mysteries: What exactly is defective about us that needs to be rectified anyway? What are the consequences of our defects? Just what would we need to do to perfect ourselves? And what would be the consequences of our actually doing it?

Well, there are several traditional and some more ancillary sources that we could cull from to depict what perfection itself would be like, which we could then draw upon to understand just what’s imperfect and flawed about us now in the interim [1]. The resources include various Torah verses, quotes from our sages, and some conclusions we can arrive at logically.

As such, Ramchal informs us that at bottom perfection comes down to “cleaving onto G-d’s Presence” [2] meaning to say, drawing as closely and as completely to Him as one can; and to “grasping His Glory without impediments” in his words, which is to say, understanding all the implications of G-d’s Being (as we’ll illustrate later on).

Ramchal acknowledges that “we don’t really have the ability to understand just what this ‘cleaving’ and ‘grasping’ is” at this point in our development, “as long as we’re imperfect” (much the way a four year old couldn’t be expected to fathom being forty). But we’ve been granted allusions to it.

2.

As such, we’re told that this phenomenon is depicted in the following verses: “Then you will delight in the L-rd, and I will have you ride on the heights of the earth” (Isaiah 58:14), “The upright will dwell in Your presence” (Psalms 140:13), and “In Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever” (Psalms 16:11). It’s spoken of in the Talmudic statement that “In the World to Come there is neither eating nor drinking, nor procreation of children or business transactions, no envy or hatred or rivalry; but the righteous sit enthroned, their crowns on their heads, and enjoy the luster of the Divine Splendor” (Berachot 17a). And we can understand it to some degree by virtue of the fact that given that the soul “is a portion of G-d Above”, that as a consequence it’s clear that all it wants to do is to “return to and cleave onto its Source and to grasp it”, since it’s “the nature of each artifact to yearn for its Artisan” and to “not rest until it achieves that” [3].

That’s to say that the perfection we’re capable of achieving is to be understood as a state in which we’d dwell and delight in G-d’s lustrous presence joyfully as we soar upward above all human concerns, don “crowns” (signs of nobility), and ultimately realize our metaphysical dream of grasping G-d and cleaving onto His being [4].

3.

Nonetheless as long as we don’t cleave onto G-d’s presence and grasp His being, we’re yet imperfect, and the fact remains that we were created to achieve just that, and we’ve been charged by G-d to set out to do it.

Thus to answer the questions we raised at the top, what is defective about us that needs to be rectified is our separation from G-d; the consequences of that is our toxic sense of purposelessness; and the consequences of our actually perfecting ourselves would be the sort of unalloyed joy t hat comes upon the soul when it realizes its full potential [5]. But there are a couple of other things we’d need to understand now that are rather mystifying before we can go forward.

4.

First off, it’s clear that G-d could have created us and the universe as utterly perfect to begin with, so why didn’t He? In fact we’d have expected Him to have fashioned everything that way, given His omnipotence.

The answer, we’re taught, lies in the fact that rather than create worlds and things in accordance with His own needs and abilities, G-d created them to fit our needs and abilities. As such, G-d could be said to have purposefully “held Himself back”, if you will; to have stifled His infinite abilities to create the universe and ourselves. (And it’s here where Ramchal alludes to how little of G-d’s being has to do with creation, which is such an astounding notion!)

And so, He didn’t create us perfect to begin with simply because He deemed it necessary for us to perfect ourselves (and the universe with us) by ourselves. And that was so that we’d be able to achieve His goal for us to be self-actualized perfection [6].

Another legitimate question we could then ask is this: Given that we’re indeed imperfect, what then can we draw on to perfect ourselves [7]? We’ll have to wait till we can answer that one, though.

5.

So to sum up the last chapter and this one (and we’ll be summing up a lot as we go along, for good reasons), we learn that G-d calls upon us to perfect ourselves and the universe at large, and that we’re to be richly recompensed for doing that; that the reward in fact will be an experience of G-d Himself, which we sorely lack now; and that there’s something within us that allows for so bold and otherworldly a phenomenon on our parts.

Notes:

[1] We’re taught that G-d warned Moses, who was about to experience G-d’s Presence as no one ever had to then that despite that, “no man can see Me and live" (Exodus 33:20). Yet isn’t it also said “And they saw the G-d of Israel” (Exodus 24:10, “G-d our L-rd has showed us His glory and greatness” (Deuteronomy 5:24), “and “my eyes have seen the King, the L-rd of Hosts” (Isaiah 6:5).

The point is that while some have experienced one or more aspect of G-d presence (or a corrupted and imperfect appearance of it), nonetheless the point remains that no man can see G-d fully and ye t live. The implication is of course that one can “see” G-d in the World to Come to a significant degree, which will prove to be Ramchal’s argument later on.

[2] See Derech Hashem 1:2:3 and Messilat Yesharim Ch. 1 where Ramchal directly equates perfection with attaching oneself to G-d.

[3] The idea that all “parts” (i.e., elements) naturally long to return to their “source” is classical. It was used for example by the ancients to explain why fire flickers upward -- to return to the source of fire in the heavens, etc.

While the concept no longer rings true on a scientific level, the basic abstract notion behind it is still valid on a human level and helps to explain many things, including why children cling to their mothers, why individuals tend to stay close to their people, or to be drawn to others from their hometown or alma mater, why our minds often draw upon archetypical ideas and longings, why people often regress into childhood patterns when they grow old, and most significantly (as Ramchal indicates) why we would want to draw close to G-d.

The model is found in many Kabalistic sources, including the early twentieth century masterpiece Leshem Shevo v’Achlamah which states that “the goal of everything is to return to its Exalted Source” (Chelek HaBiurim 1, p. 83), and “a lower light always longs to rise upward and=2 0to attach itself up above, so as to garner more and more light and blessings from the Infinite Light on high” (Ibid. 2, p. 14).

[4] But as we’ll learn in the next chapter, we won’t be fully grasping G-d or cleaving onto His presence unto itself, but rather only a segment of it. It’s important to understand this distinction.

[5] Though Ramchal doesn’t address what would happen to the universe when we perfect ourselves and it (spoken of in the first section), the implication is that it too would be perfected and would reach its own potential of being the sort of fit and full receptacle of G-d’s presence alluded to by0Athe verse “Holy! Holy! Holy! … The whole world is full of His Glory!” (Isaiah 6:3).

[6] This refers to the Kabbalistic concept of tzimtzum. See Ramchal’s Klallim Rishonim 2 and Klallot Ha’ilan 1, and Klallei Sefer Milchamot Hashem 2. See Friedlander p. 8 iyyun 6 and the other references cited there; Goldblatt pp. 26, 473; Shriki p. 16, note 9.

[7] This won’t be fully explained until much later on (¶’s 70, 72, 158). See Goldblatt pp. 28, 473 where he addresses the role of the “kav” in this phenomen.

---

By Rabbi Yaakov Feldman

Rabbi Yaakov Feldman has translated and commented upon "The Gates of Repentance", "The Path of the Just", and "The Duties of the Heart" (Jason Aronson Publishers). His works are available in bookstores and in various locations on the Web.

Da'at Tevunot - The Knowing Heart, Copyright © 1995 - 2007 by Rabbi Yaakov Feldman and Torah.org.

Courtesy of:

For any comments, questions or topic requests, please contact Rabbi Yaakov Feldman.

Subscribe to Ramchal and receive the class via e-mail.

Join the Jewish Learning Revolution! Torah.org: The Judaism Site brings this and a host of other classes to you every week.

Visit Torah.org or email learn@torah.org to get your own free copy of this mailing.

Need to change or stop your subscription? Please visit Torah.org's subscription center, http://torah.org/subscribe/ -- see the links on that page.

Copyright 1995 - 2007

Project Genesis, Inc.

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