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Henry David Thoreau first coined the phrase in 1854. He’d lament today’s digital noise, urging us to live deliberately, reconnect with nature and our inner selves to rediscover life’s true essence.
The 2024 Oxford University Press Word of the Year, the word or expression that reflects a defining theme from the past year, is “brain rot.”
“Brain rot” is a noun, which means: Supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as a result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging.
Between 2023 and 2024, the term “brain rot” gained new prominence, increasing in usage frequency by 230%.
According to Oxford University Press, the first recorded use of “brain rot” actually goes back to 1854, in Henry David Thoreau’s book Walden, in which he discusses his experiences of living a simple lifestyle in the natural world. He criticizes society’s tendency to devalue complex ideas, or those that can be interpreted in multiple ways, in favor of simple ones, and sees this as being indicative of a general decline in mental and intellectual effort. He writes: “While England endeavors to cure the potato rot, will not any endeavor to cure the brain-rot – which prevails so much more widely and fatally?”
If there was a general decline in mental and intellectual effort already in the mid-1800s – when there was no such thing as TV’s, computers, radios, phones, internet, and social media – you can imagine the extent of what “brain rot” looks like today. How would Thoreau react to these ubiquitous habits:
All this is a manifestation of our “brain rot”.
At its core, “brain rot” is a result of the mismanagement of the physical world. Instead of using materialism as a means, it’s used as an end in and of itself, leading to overconsumption which results in a person feeling down, unfulfilled, and miserable. Being entrenched in trivial, unchallenging escapes rots our brains.
The verse in the Book of Job states: “A person is born to work hard.” This isn’t just a mission statement; it’s a testament to our very essence and nature. We were designed in a way that requires us to put in effort and challenge ourselves in order to feel good and attain fulfillment and meaning.
Scrolling on a phone is fun, tantalizing, and addictive, but since there is precious little mental or intellectual effort involved, it is inherently unfulfilling.
Our forefather Jacob dreamt of a ladder that had its feet on the physical ground and its top reaching to the heavens. The ladder serves as a model for the importance of bridging the gap between the physical and spiritual realms. It represents the potential for physicality to be channeled and uplifted towards a higher plane of existence. Each rung represents a crucial step of effort that brings us closer to the top in our journey towards living meaningfully.
Judaism bids us to engage in the physical world and to use it as a stepping stone – a rung on the ladder – to spirituality. On Shabbat, having a beautiful meal with family and friends, reciting blessings, accompanied with joyous song and inspiration, we take the seemingly mundane meat and potatoes and elevate it.
Taking in the breathtaking beauty of the natural world that fills us with humility and awe, we are experiencing something Godly and holy penetrating through the physical.
And when we take a portion of our hard-earned money and we give some of it to someone in need, we are infusing the physical with a spiritual currency.
Everything in the material world can be channeled towards the spiritual, as evidence by Jacob’s ladder that was rooted in the world while reaching the heavens.
All we have to do is decrease the brain rot and start using our time to climb the ladder of life, one rung and one moment at a time.
