The Foolish Acquisition of Knowledge without Heart

HH

Knowledge without Heart

Science is known to be cold and calculating. Science measures time, space, and all that those contain, it even measures the soul, levels of emotion and so forth. What science doesn’t know how to measure is the heart, good and evil. Science in fact tries to ignore this dimension. Science for example, regulates urine and stool examples with extreme professionalism, in a septic environment and system, a brazen face against the real nature of these items that are the waste and excrement that the body rejected which stink and are repulsive. Doctors are considered above the temptations of the flesh as they practice their profession, professionalism is considered somehow to be immune to the dimensions of good and bad, the desires of the heart.

Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan in his most monumental work, his translation and comments on Sefer Yetzira – Book of Creation, writes an amazing chidush (novelty) which he came up with. One dimension (a line) has 2 directions, two dimensions (a plane), adds another factor of two, how far to extend the lines width, making it two to the power of two. Three dimensions, adds breadth, another factor of two, making it two to power of three . These three dimensions are that of space, making space measurable by a factor of 8. Following this, when the dimension of time is added, there will be another factor of two, making it two to the power of four, 16. When the dimension of good and evil is added, there will be another factor of two, making it 32 directions, 32 is Hebrew is LEV – heart!

With this we can gain deeper appreciation for what it says in Proverbs (17:16), “For what is the payment of the fool in his hand, to acquire knowledge but with no heart?” For the book of Proverbs especially belittles the superficial wisdom of science and philosophy. All the money in the world, all the quantification and research, if it is without heart, it is for nothing.

The Torah says that the world was created for man, all of creation, inanimate and all life forms are supposed to be at his disposal. Man is therefore responsible for the wellbeing and welfare of all creation, as its master. However when man sees himself responsible for creation as its servant, this is the exact opposite of the purpose of creation, and it brings absolute mayhem into the world. Because the world was designed to have man as its master, and if man chases after its tail, then this GF throws the whole sequence and order of the world upside down GF.

[The same holds true regarding climate change, the world was created for man, and man must build and beautify it and not destroy it, but at the same time he must not fall subservient to the conduct of nature. The world was created to host man and all his needs, and man need not and should not view himself as an intruder or a slave who must try to help the environment.]

In today’s society people in the city must clean up after their dogs, and so thousands of people without being fazed at all, without any compunction tend to their dogs manure, picking it up with their hands, very scientifically septic with a plastic bag and all, and carry it with them until they can dispose of it properly. This is done purely scientifically not considering for a moment what is really going on. The peoples need for the animal’s love and acceptance is so great to them that they have become subservient to the extent that they stoop to pick up its manure, relying heavily on their scientific knowledge that there is nothing inherently different in manure than anything in the world, it is just a bunch of chemical components thrown together that forms this mass, which might or might not smell, regardless. But because scientifically it is known to be a terrible affront to many people, and it can contain harmful bacteria and so forth, they must remove it, and so they do without any misgiving.

According to science, a male or female is just so many qualities and properties, and all of those can be manipulated as one sees fit, and viola, it is completely arbitrary. Because there is no heart. Sure they will provide the measurements of the emotions of the person, but the heart, the real heart, they can’t touch that whatsoever. On the contrary, they use all the external emotions and physical properties to project and make claims to dictate what the heart is, it is male or female, because this person has such and such emotions and so forth. They make the heart the servant of the external emotions and properties, when it is the exact opposite, the heart is the king of the body, and all the emotions and properties must subject themselves to the heart. So in their empty arrogant ignorance, they claim that they know the heart!

Then these great scholars and scientists weigh their grand opinions on society how to run the country, policy making and so forth. They have everything figured out according to their great knowledge and faith in science, and they confidently and emphatically apply their adept knowledge with great certitude, not being able to fathom at all how anyone can doubt let alone staunchly disagree with their conclusions.

Na Nach Nachma Nachman MayUman!

Earth First and Central

HH

Imagine being suspended in the atmosphere 1000 meters high. Pretty frightening. Good thing that we have the solid earth under our feet. The reality however is that we are the earth. It isn’t like we just happened or managed to secure ourselves on earth. Perhaps the whole superficial perspective of the heliocentricity is due to the faulty premise that first there was space and then then formations of matter therein. The reality is that first there was earth, and everything from great to small was derived from the earth (this is a dictum in the Medrash often cited in the Kabbala – הכל היה מן העפר אפילו גלגל חמה), and we know that man is a microcosm of the universe, which means that wherever man stands he is the earth, suspended in the reality (“hypostasis”) just as securely as earth.

  

With this understanding we can explain the commandment of not to have foreign gods – which HY set for the gentile nations (Deuteronomy 4:19), to mean that a Jew is forbidden to see himself existing as some arbitrary floating dot in space, where all types of others things also meander, roam, or orbit. A Jew must be geocentric, knowing that the whole world was created for him (see Likutay Moharan Torah-teaching 5), and revolves, operates, and functions completely in synchronization to him. Every person according to the level of humility – likening to the earth – pivots themselves closer to the truth of this reality. The tzadik is the quintessence of this (Likutay Moharan 70), and is the root of all the souls.

There is definitely a perspective that HY created to see the world as if it was created in space together with all types of other forces and formations. That is a superficial perspective which HY set for the nations to be occupied with, but a Jew must not let himself get stuck there. That is like getting stuck with the physics of Newton and refusing to acknowledge and understand quantum physics, just much much worse. [See the beginning of Daas Tevunos 2, where the Ramchal reveals that HY made the world this way, that there is the true reality of the Torah, and there is a superficial facade masking it].

This is what it says in (Deuteronomy 31:17), “Because my G-d is not inside of me I have been beset with all this evil.” That is when one loses the true perspective that he is the world and G-d is shining into him, he falls into the hands of all the multivariable forces and formations competing in the superficial ecosystem of the universe.

It is also possible to understand with this the first two of the Ten Commandments which we heard directly from HY. The first commandment, “I am Hashem… Who took you out of the land of Egypt,” Egypt in Hebrew is mitzra-yim, borders and constraints, because as long a person retains this outlook that he exists in space together with other things, then he is living under the domination of limitations. The second commandment says, “You should not have foreign gods….” this was explained above, that as long a person sees himself as a creation in space he will be subject to the vying entities in his universe.

Na Nach Nachma Nachman MayUman!

A little about science

HH

This is something that I found myself writing on a thread on facebook, it is really a very lengthy matter which I have addressed somewhat in my Hebrew Likutay Nanach, but since I've written this now in English, I will share it here:

HH the Torah says that Solomon was the wisest of all men even more than Moses, and the holy books are asking how that can be possible, and the Zohar explains that Solomon had wisdom of the working of the lower worlds of which Moses had absolutely no interest. Once a person merits to know of the workings of the inner worlds with their supreme power he will not care to waste an iota of time or energy in the weak infinitesimal lower systems. (In ancient Egypt they had magic doing all types of things that today is done by technology, and in contradistinction Adam originally had angels doting on him and his every pleasure and luxury.) And all this pertains to real wisdom, however the empirical happenings of this world the Zohar very greatly derides, and the Ramchal elaborates as well that the Sages of the Talmud don't even give any attention or mention to it at all, it is a very shallow shell which wraps up the true working of what is really going on. It is like measuring and analyzing ripples in a pool of water without taking into account the stone which was thrown into the water and set them off. And so the scientists are busy measuring and quantifying the superficial values, and completely missing the true workings - and that's besides for the fact that because their focus is so completely misplaced the chances of their having true faith and integrity is very slim, may the holy Merciful One have mercy on us in merit of the holy Petek of Na Nach Nachma Nachman MeUman!

Real Real Effort

HH

In Sichos HuRan (Words of Rabbi Nachman) article 121, Rabbainu belittled the effort of the chasidim. He likened their great show of enthusiasm and shouting out in prayer to the charade he played when he was captive on the pirate ship and every man was required to help pull up the anchor, and so Rabbainu was forced to show dramatic effort as if he was pulling with all his might. The chasidim were on fire - they were praying with Rabbainu, and yet Rabbainu said that it was all external and superficial. One must really jolt himself intensely - to beam inside a glimpse of the awesome magnitude of HY, way way and beyond our puny cognizance. There's a great deal more to be said about this, but I'm happy that I've finally at least got this down, because I've been wanting to post about it for a long time, from here on let the reader know for himself the true score and what he must strive to achieve...

BH now I merit to expound a little more.

See Sichos HuRan (Words of Rabbi Nachman) article 170, Rabbi Nussun asked Rabbainu how is it that we see people serving HY with great effort and they fail to attain the levels of the tzaddikim, and Rabbainu answered him that apparently they aren't really expending true effort, see there. Because when one really gives all he has to the devotion of HY, he will merit to get a "jolt" a true realization and awakening beyond the scope of his small consciousness.

Many people feel they are incapable or exempt from attaining high levels of dvaikus (binding) to HY and Torah knowledge. But the reality is that even the smartest and most talented person is quite insignificant and infinitesimal in the arena of true spiritual attainment (- the greatest olympic athlete can only do so much with his body, whereas one who has help even from the lowest angel of the lowest world can fly and carry about as he pleases with ease). The main thing, which every person is capable of and must strive for, is to truly light up his soul in the truth of HY, and according to how much one merits to do so, so will he rise and include himself in the unity of HY.

Na Nach Nachma Nachman MeUman!

Who are you, and who do you want to be?

HH

The Zohar reveals a  huge secret, the Torah says that when Joseph saw that he couldn't get out of the seduction and grasp of the wife of Poateephar, he left his "beg'ged" - his clothing in her hands and ran away. The Zohar reveals that this "beg'ged" is in reality the most external layer of the body, which is a demon. Basically Joseph left her a plaything, a man toy, a dildo, and the rest of himself ran away. And if we follow the verses according to this revelation we see that the wife of Poateephar wasn't at all satisfied and in desire of this external superficial body, she had wanted Joseph himself.

The Zohar also reveals that Esther did not sleep with King Achashvairosh, only this very external outer layer of her body, which is a demon, Mordechai and Esther would swear, and command it by oath, to go sleep with Achashvairoash, and after it was done and returned to Esther, she would ritually immerse herself and be with Mordechai. The Ramchal in Kinaas Hashem Tzivoas explains that this demon is so external - it is just like eye makeup - that there was no interference from this activity to Esther's holiness and her  relationship with Mordechai, however even still since this layer had done this, it needed ritual immersion.

Today, unfortunately, due to our sins and the great coarseness of the world, not to mention pornography and all the allurements of the entertainment industry, alcohol, drugs - all of these things play directly and exclusively to this "beg'ged" the outer most external layer of our bodies, which has almost no real connection to who we really are, and yet we empower it and give it our full attention and give it to rule and command our lives, may the Holy Merciful One G-d save us.

We must be strong to stand up to this temptation to lust after this superficial encasing, and live true lives.

Na Nach Nachma Nachman MeUman

The curse of external knowledge of the gentiles

HH

Rabbi Nussun, the prime disciple of Rabbi Nachman, was the master of seeing only good in people. He received from Rabbainu the teaching and life practice that even in the most evil Jew there is some good point, however small, which one should search out, latch on to, and only see this person through the vantage of this goodness. Rabbi Nussun said that he can explain elaborately any area of the entire Torah, but to explain even the most insignificant Jew he was unable.

This very Rabbi Nussun composed pages and pages of diatribe, castigation, and curses against those who teach and pollute the young Jewish minds with secular knowledge. Today probably thousands if not tens of thousands of Breslovers pray and articulate these words every day! Be aware!

This should drill home the utter evil and danger of secular knowledge.

Today as science manifests its exhibitionism of its measurements and computations, producing tools and devices, it becomes harder to retain the realization of how superficial all of it is, really just an assembly of the empirical in a mechanical fashion so that it can serve humanity in some way. In a previous post Machine Angels you can see how all the services these new robots are providing and many more, were all provided for Adam directly via spiritual forces of angels, and every physical entity is in reality empowered by a spiritual one, and it is a terrible handicap to be blind to the reality and only see the superficial physical shell and credit it for more than what it is, a slave. All the external knowledge of the sciences and all the fields and disciplines studied in the secular world, are simply just that - slaves, at the service of the true inner purpose, nothing more. Don't mistake it from what it is, don't be misled. True it may contain some amazing facets, such is the nature of the creation of G-d Almighty, but in no way does it even begin to touch the true wisdom of the Torah. Every letter of the Torah is true living wisdom of creating value - not simply empirical, stagnant, and dormant. There is a great deal more to be said....

Keep strong.

Na Nach Nachma Nachman MeUman!