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Holistic Teachings from Michael Kagan
What is Holiness?
What is it ‘to make Holy? To be
Holy?’ For it says “Be Holy! For I, the
Lord your God, am Holy.” (Lev:19:2) Holiness is a vector, meaning it has both
direction and movement. Imagine a
ladder that reaches higher and higher but also reaches lower and lower. Ascending the ladder is Holy (Kodesh),
descending it called Profane (Hol) – the antithesis of Holy. The Temple that once stood in Jerusalem,
Israel, the Middle East, Earth, had several segregated areas. At the very center stood the Holy of
Holies. This could only be entered once
a year – Yom Kippur – by one person – the High Priest. The surrounding areas could only be entered
by certain people, under certain conditions. The High Priest had to be on the
highest level of purity (Tahor) otherwise he would not survive the
experience. This can be compared to an
electrician fixing an electric generator that is putting out millions of volts
of electricity. If he isn’t properly
grounded, if he isn’t totally focused, if he doesn’t have the correct tools, if
he makes one slip then he will not survive.
So it was with the High Priest when he entered the Holy of Holies, for
this was the place that God’s energy flowed the highest that a human could
withstand. What is this energy? It is the energy of LIFE (Hayut
– Ki – Chi – Prana) in its most intensive form. If the High Priest were not a perfect conductor, if he himself
were not as fully alive as a human being could be – physically, emotionally,
mentally and spiritually – then he would not be able to dwell in the Presence
of the full Energy of Life. Anything
less than being fully, 100% alive is called impure (Tamai). This is Death - the antithesis of Life. It’s
not that dying is bad. It’s that not
being fully alive, while you’re alive, is deadly. From the Holy of Holies the level of Life Energy spread out in
decreasing intensity. The inner court,
then the outer court, then the City, then the Land and finally the whole
Earth. The closer a person wanted to
come the purer she had to be. How do we
become pure? By removing ourselves from
all contact with death – physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. An
essential stage in such a process involves entering the Waters of Life (Mikveh),
that is: returning to the womb state of totally purity or, in spiritual terms,
returning to the Garden of Eden, and then rebirthing anew, alive. How do we become impure? By stealing life, by diminishing life, from
others, from yourself, from the planet, from the Universe. We steal life because we don’t believe that
there is enough to go round. If we open
ourselves up to the Source of All Life then we would stop the illusion of
scarcity and our fear of life would dissipate.
The more we steal the more we descend the ladder of the Profane. The more we channel Life Energy (Hayut)
the higher we ascend the ladder of Holiness.
Give, share, stop taking.
Why the Rainbow?
We all know the story of the flood and how Noah, the Zaddik of his time, was commanded to build an ark, and how he saved representatives of all the animal species as well as his own family. And how it rained for forty days and nights until the whole world was flooded and all the evil washed away. And then the days of waiting, and the raven and the dove, until finally the doors of the ark were opened and the drama had ended. And we all know that God made a new covenant between humans and God, and that God chose the rainbow as a reminder of that covenant. As the Torah says (Genesis 9:16): “And the bow shall be in the cloud and I will look at it and remember for ever the covenant between God and all flesh that is upon the earth.”
But we also know that the rainbow is a rare enough sight and furthermore if there is one it usually appears after the rain has parted and the sun starts to shine again. On a really stormy day when it feels as if the flood is once again upon us there is very little chance of seeing a rainbow.
So why is the rainbow the symbol to remember the covenant?
And who is it that has to do the remembering?
Before the advent of this new covenant it’s fair to say that God saw the world, and thereby judged the world, in black and white. You were either a zaddik or a rasha (totally righteous or totally bad). If you were a zaddik you deserved to be saved, if a rasha then death. But the pass mark was not set at 50%. It was set at 99.9%. If you didn’t pass with full marks then you failed. Who could live up to such a high standard? Well Noah succeeded and brought his family along. But that’s all. No one else made the grade. And they all perished. After the flood God was forced to realize that the world is not black and white, that humans come in all shades, that very few are either all white or all black but rather are all the hues (colors) of the rainbow.
In this way the possibility of Tshuva was introduced into the world. Tshuva does not necessitate us becoming Zaddikim overnight. If that were the case then most of us would never make it. But it does require us to become a shade better. What does this mean? Blue must be a brighter, more brilliant blue revealing the full blueness of God; likewise for red and all the infinite shades of other colours.
So the sign of the rainbow is for God to remember that part of the beauty of the Creation is its diversity not only in the number of species but also in the shades of possibilities. This, if you want, arouses God’s patience and compassion.
And when we look at the rainbow we are equally responsible for remembering that the world is not black and white but is made up of vast diversity. That each species is precious and must not be destroyed. That it is our duty to protected this diversity as it says in the Talmud: “To save the life of one person (read: species) is like saving the whole world.” We must remember that we all have complex feelings, differing political views, diverse creative powers, assorted needs, varied backgrounds, etc.
That’s what makes the world so beautiful.
Why was the Soup Red?
Why a Ladder?
And what is it to be Yisrael?
Let’s look at the personal profiles provided at the beginning of the story: Esav – born first, hairy, ruddy (Edom), a knower of the hunt, a man of the field (understands nature), loved by his father, passionate. Yaacov – born second, a heeler (ekev), smooth skin, innocent or naive, a man of the home, a cook, loved by his mother. Now putting aside all commentaries and midrash try the following exercise with your family and friends: If you met Esav today what would he look like? What clothes would he be wearing? What transportation would he use (type of car, bicycle, bus, scooter etc.)? What job would he have? What food would he prefer? What would his relationships be like with women, with his mother, with his father? Would you want to befriend him? Now do the same for Yaacov. Remember, there are no right or wrong answers. After you have done this read on.
What follows is my own personality profile.
I see Esav as a macho man, that is externally he puts on the show of being tough but inside he’s actually immature and weak. He’s a father’s boy. He understands the ways of the world whether it’s hunting for food, surviving in the wilderness of nature, or the jungle of the business world. He has an easy time being with women, drinking in the pub. He is definitely more connected with his masculinity than with his femininity. He actually yearns for his mother’s love.
Yaacov is a mother’s boy, shy, and inhibited. He prefers to stay at home, providing, studying, dreaming. He has a very difficult time making friends with woman especially since his mother is always around. He longs for his father’s love and approval. And even though he is constantly stifled by his ‘Jewish’ mother he knows that he is born to greatness (compare to Yosef).
And day after day he watches his brother return from the ‘hunt’ – the big world. “What would it be like to be Esav, to be out in the big world, to have hair on my chest, to be a Man?” So one day he makes a red pottage since red (adom) is the colour of earth (adamah), of blood (dam), of yang (male - adam) energy, of Esav who is called Edom. Maybe if he eats this ‘magic potion’ he will become a little bit like his brother? Maybe if he rubs it on his chest…? But Esav bursts in: “What are you doing with my energy? Don’t you know that I need it, for it is adom like me and without it I will die?!!” So instead of the soup Yaacov gets the birth right.
And see whom Esav marries: Yehudit the daughter of the Well (Beeri) and Basmat the daughter of the Tree (Elon): he marries into nature!
Later, during the deception for Yizhak’s blessing, Yaacov actually gets to feel what it’s like to have hairy (Seir) arms, a hairy (Seir) chest, and the smell of the field. For a moment, at his mother’s prompting, he becomes Esav in all but his voice (whether the pitch of his voice or his manner of speaking you can decide). “So this is what it feels like to be what I am not.” But this is all false. What Yaacov wants cannot be achieved by cheating and lying.
Now here’s a surprise: after the material blessings have been given first to Yaacov disguised as Esav, and then to Esav, Yizhak gives Yaacov the true spiritual blessing as the inheritor of the Abrahamic destiny. So why did he have to cheat? For this Rivka is punished with the worst possible punishment for a mother – she will never see her beloved son again!
Now Yaacov is off into the big, dangerous world to face his destiny. He dreams of the ladder. Why a ladder? We will come back to this later. When he arrives in Haran what is the first thing that he does? Like a macho-man, he rolls back the stone from the well’s mouth and for a woman too! Isn’t this what you would expect perhaps from Esav?
22 years later Yaacov returns. What does he look like now? He is muscular, tanned, wealthy; he knows the ways of the world and of nature for he had the greatest teacher (Lavan - the White Man)! He now has four woman and 12 children (one more on the way). Who does he resemble now? Esav! Maybe he’s even grown some chest hair (Seir). When they finally meet, Esav sees someone so much like himself – a true brother - and kisses him. “Finally you’ve grown-up and learnt to be a real man just like me.” But Yaacov has not become Esav - he has become Yisrael the integration of Yaacov, the Man of Spirit, with Esav – the Man of Earth. For this was the struggle with the stranger in the night as it was at the beginning in the womb of their mother. Finally Yaacov becomes whole (mushlam) that is Yisrael (Yishar El - Straight with God) – the bridge between Heaven and Earth – the heart center - a ladder for the angels to ascend and descend.
This is Yaacov’s journey.
It is also our journey – the journey of Yisrael.
We are given
this opportunity as human beings to participate in the divine plan. Then, in the arms of God’s compassion, we
return to our true nature to be one with the Beloved and thus fulfill God’s
will on earth. We are the bridge
between heaven and earth, and we can return to God through the sacrifice of all
that we think we are, while at the same time acting as a channel for the divine
will to manifest on earth. In this way
we are turning to God and to earth like a vortex, or spiral, moving up and down
at the same time. We turn to God so
that the will of God may manifest through us.
(Reshad Field - The Alchemy of the Heart)
The Game of Transformation
A Psycho-Spiritual Analysis of Yoseph and
Yehudah
The story of Yoseph and the climatic reuniting and reconciliation of the sons of Israel always takes place during and immediately after the celebration of Hanukah. What can we learn from then, at this time, in this place, right now?
Come and see.
Yoseph was the beloved of the beloved – Rachel the beautiful, Rachel the love of Yaacov’s life. Yehuda was the fourth son of Leah, the wife that Yaacov didn’t fall in love with, the one that he fell for in the meaning of ‘he fell for that trick’. Yoseph means to ‘add’ or ‘more’. Yehuda means ‘thankfulness’ or ‘glory’.
Now Yaacov loved Yoseph more than all his other children – a repeat performance of his own upbringing, the passing down of family dysfunctionality from generation to generation. But it is exactly that cycle that we must break out of, it is in the midst of the family drama that the grist for our turning (Tshuva) lies. So Yoseph grows up to be a spoilt brat hiding under the skirts of his father. He tells tales on his brothers, he pushes their buttons, he flaunts his preferred status, he shows off his striped kaftan, the unique gift from his father, he tells them his dreams of ruling over them; the eldest of the dead Rachel lauding it over the eldest of the very much alive Leah. To make things worse he is of beautiful appearance, like his mother, at least on the exterior, for inside there is a cunning, calculating manipulator, like his father used to be. His golden looks prevent him from doing any dirty work, for he is too busy pampering himself, and his father is always there to protect him from the anger of his brothers.
And what of his dreams? Eleven stars, the sun and the moon bowing down to him? How can that be if his mother was dead? Two dreams that are one but who can interpret them?
And when he is seventeen his father, as Israel, sends him to see if there is peace with his brothers. Was he crazy? Sending the lad across the entire length of the country alone, without protection, without daddy, into the hands of those that hated him? How can we explain this? Yaacov, as Israel, saw the necessity of finally letting Yoseph meet his fate. He could not protect him any longer. He could no longer keep him in the tent away from danger. He could no longer mother, smother him. How painful a decision that must have been for the old man, he may never see his beloved son again. Either he will kill his son by not letting him go or destiny will kill his son if he does.
And what of Yoseph? Did he want to go? I hardly think so - into the night alone! And yet, and yet his father had proved himself to be a man by doing exactly the same, also going out into the unknown, also alone. In his father’s story it was away from a threatening brother; this time it was into the hands of threatening brothers. And when they catch him, and strip him, and throw him into the dry hole he doesn’t utter a word. Let fate have its way with me. Down in to the hole, down into Egypt, down into the hole of Egypt. Down to face the demons of his egocentric immaturity and play out his anger at his father for killing his mother.
And Yehuda? He wasn’t a leader, he wasn’t the first-born – that was Reuven. It was Yehudah who said let’s sell him in exchange for money. And it was Reuven who planned to pull him out and remove him from danger. But Reuven messed up (again). With such good intentions where was he at the critical turning point of the sale? Why didn’t he follow through, stand guard over the life of his brother? Poor blind Reuven. But it was Yehudah, with his pretensions to leadership that felt overwhelmed by guilt. The wrong blood had been spilt but he couldn’t admit it in front of his broken father. Was there a trace of satisfaction in seeing his father in such pain over the loss of the spoilt one? Did the guilt of that thought added to his own cowardice to drive him away from his family, from his tradition, and, to spite his father further, into the arms of a Canaanite woman whom he takes, enters and possesses. What happened to love? What happened to his sons? The first is married off to Tamar and does something so secretly awful as to deserve Divine execution. So, in the tradition of those times, the second son is sent in to replace the first. And the family drama plays out again. He spills the opportunity of saving his brother’s memory choosing to let him sink into oblivion and then following him himself. Did Yehudah get the not-too-subtle hints about brotherly responsibility, hints given at the expense of his own two sons? Apparently not, at least not yet. And so he withdraws his third and last son from the clutches of the witch that devours men for breakfast, the black-widow spider shrouded in black with the red markings of unfulfilled passion and brewing anger. And after Yehudah’s woman has died he falls into the web of Tamar’s revenge. And as his father came to his grandfather veiled in deceit to steal the blessing, which he considered was his, so Tamar comes to Yehudah veiled and determined to receive the blessing which is truly hers. Or, if you don’t like the Jacob/Esau switch, you can hear the sounds of the Rachel/Leah switchover? Take your choice.
So what can Yehudah do when his daughter-in-law, the witch and now the harlot, is brought before him pregnant? The crowd is calling for a burning. She reveals to Yehudah the signs of his truth, the symbols of how one walks in the world (his staff), the impression one makes in the world (his seal), and the light that one brings to the world (the strings or wicks). How will he act now? Oy, the agony of choice! Oy, the agony of having one’s stupidity and blindness revealed. Oy, the agony of taking responsibility. Easier to have her burnt – together with the evidence. No DNA sample will survive that fire. Then his surviving son will be free to continue the family line with some other woman. Yehudah finally admits his errors – she is more righteous than I – how magnanimous but true. Yehudah has his two sons returned (regurgitated?) and is himself coming back to life.
And Yoseph? He’s blooming in Potiphar’s house. In no time he controls the entire household, all that comes in and goes out, is in the hands of the golden boy. Accept… accept for his mistress (his master’s wife). She is willingly and wanting but he is not, at least not yet. And when the time is ripe he makes his move. The house is empty, they are alone; the one who wants more and the one who just wants. But he can’t and he runs. What happened to our control-freak? Why couldn’t he make it? The Midrash says that he saw the image of his father. So what? Would that stop you? Reb Aryeh Kaplan z”l explains that the image of his father reminded him that he was born out of love and not lust. That sex without love is like spilling seed. That ultimate power ultimately corrupts. At that moment Yoseph, fully intent, breaks down, let’s go of the game and leaves his veil behind. Does this make him a Zaddik? No but he might be on the right path.
The same story repeated in prison: back in control albeit a prison. Once again God sends him a test, this time not in the guise of a seductress but of two fallen-from-grace servants of Pharaoh. Listen how Yoseph offers his help after they have dreamed their dreams: Isn’t it so that answers belong to Elohim. So tell me. Isn’t that a little odd? Tell me. Is he God or has he suddenly become God’s spokesman. Clearly he is endowed with enough wisdom to interpret the dreams correctly but there is still something off with the way he approaches the Divine Hand. Contrast this with his reply to Pharaoh after a further two years in prison: It’s beyond me: only Elohim can answer Pharaoh satisfactorily. But going back to the butler: it is here again that he makes a slip, that he grasps at the greased rope of control: when you get out make mention of me to Pharaoh! In other words: In my opinion I’ve served my time now get me out of here! And what is God’s response: sorry but you should have kept quiet and trusted Me more. Now you’ll have to wait for another two years. Maybe by that time you’ll have got it.
Now he’s viceroy of Egypt. Everything is under his control. What will he do with this power when he meets his brothers? He remembers his dreams. Now he has the opportunity of forcing reality to fit his dream. To do that he must disguise his true self again, don the guise of the All-powerful and suppress his emotions. For as we all know good poker players don’t reveal emotions in front of the other players. And so the game goes on. Is it for revenge? Is it to prove a point? Is it to bring his brothers to regret and Tshuva for their abominable behavior to their young brother and father? Is it to hurt and harass the old man even more for sending him off in the first place all those years ago and then not coming to rescue him when he failed to come home? Or to revenge the dumping of his mother’s body by the roadside without bothering to carry it on the last stretch of the journey and give her a decent funeral, like Leah received, in the family cave?
And what about Reuven? Here comes his moment to clean up the mess that he has spilled by absenting himself at the critical moment of Yoseph’s sale. Shimon is in captivity, Yoseph has demanded that Binyamin, his full brother, be brought down to Egypt otherwise no more food and no Shimon. Reuven makes the brave statement: You can kill my two sons if I do not return with Binyamin. Poor Reuven. Silly Reuven. No, says Yaacov, you will not go down with this boy. And that is true. Reuven never goes down and never goes up. In fact he never goes anywhere really. Even as a tribe he doesn’t go into the Promised Land (except to fight).
And time passes and food gets scarcer. Yehudah is now back at home. And his mind is tearing him apart. Be great/stay small; rosh gadol/rosh katan; take responsibility/shut up. He makes his decisive move: Send the boy with me. I’ll personally be a guarantee (the same word as used with Tamar). And Israel (not Yaacov) agrees.
And now Yoseph has set the stage for the final act of his childhood dream: he will manipulate the pawns so that the whole family will bow down to him well everyone except his dead mother of course. He has Binyamin framed and dismisses the other brothers You can go to your father in peace (Do you hear the sarcasm in his voice, using the same words that Yaacov said to him 22 years ago – see if there is peace with your brothers?) And maybe this is what Yoseph was planning the whole time. Maybe he wanted to protect his baby brother from the clutches of unrepentant siblings thereby fulfilling an unwritten promise to his dying mother. Maybe his father had given another coat of many stripes to the next son keeping active the whole game of family dysfunctionality. So maybe Yoseph is saving his brother and telling the others to get lost. But Yehudah rises to the occasion and almost in spite of himself he steps forth. Kill me if you wish but I’m not going without a fight. I have put my life on the line for my half-brother, the son of my mother’s rival sister. Now leave him alone. Such audacity, such a sense of responsibility! Is this the same Yehuda that we know and despise? Yes but he is transformed. He has become a man. He has now fully owned his staff, his wicks and his image. He has become the ancestor of the messiah. And at that very moment Yoseph breaks down. He cannot go on with this charade. The strain of manipulation is too great for a heart that truly yearns for father and family. He cries. It’s over. The games over. They’ve both won so much after having lost so much. And Yoseph is transformed and receives the crown of messiah. And so the brothers hug and cry, and cry and hug. And the rod of the house of Yehudah is rejoined with the rod of the house of Yoseph.
And when it’s all over and their father has gone down to his grave happily surrounded by his grandchildren, Yoseph says: Am I in place of Elohim? In other words: I get it - everything is in the hands of God. We control nothing.
So what has all this to do with Hanukah? Firstly we have to briefly understand the above story from the position of the sephirot on the Tree of Life. Netzach is victory or domination; it’s active and expansive. Its polar opposite is Hod meaning glory, thanks or empathy; it’s passive and contractive. Yesod means Foundation that is the foundation of righteousness that the world stands on, the ethical use of power. It is also associated with the sexual organs and is therefore intimately connected with the story of Yehudah and Tamar. Malchut is the sovereignty of God on Earth, the Messiah, the Shechinah, the sanctification of the ground that you stand on.
Yoseph is playing out the shadow side of Netzach which is manipulation and wanting of more. Yehudah is playing out the shadow side of Hod which is total withdrawal from responsibility and absence of appreciation. In fact his name contains the word Hod. Yehudah must move towards Nezach by taking control of the situation which he does as we seen, and Yoseph has to let go of control and move towards surrender. Hod and Netzach – Let go and Let’s go. They meet in Yesod, that’s where they hug. Yoseph then becomes the Zaddik for letting go and letting God, and Yehuda drops into Malchut for being totally present. Both Yoseph and Yehudah redeem their sexual energies in Yesod and dedicate this energy to Godliness.
On Hanukah we have both aspects built into the festival: on the one hand the Jews take control of their own lives and score a tremendous victory (netzach) against the Greek forces; and on the other hand they admit their powerlessness (hod) in the face of one small jar of oil sealed with the seal (remember Yehudah’s seal?) of the High Priest (hod again). And we give our thanks (Hod/Yehudah) to God for the miracle of life, the miracle of light and the miracle of shadow.
So finally the question has to be asked: how’s your letting go when you have to let go and let God; and how’s your ability to lead and to say let’s go for God is calling? And above all are you able to see the light and give thanks?