Unsafe at MIT
7 min read
Judaism views every activity in life as an opportunity to bring ourselves closer to God. Everything can be utilized as a means toward achieving a connection with the Almighty. What we do—and what we don’t do—matters.
Nothing is neutral, trivial, or without value. We’ve been given specific mitzvot to raise up the seemingly insignificant parts of our lives, yet we can lose ourselves in the daily grind. One’s true essence can become subsumed by the superficial.
The allure of counterfeit success beckons us. It’s easy to mistake illusion for truth. Rather than clearly viewing one’s endeavors as a means toward a higher end, the success and recognition for which we strive can morph into ends in themselves. Material achievements can become the sole goal of one’s toil and efforts. Self-absorption literally can encapsulate one’s spirit. The larger picture, the broader, more expansive vision, becomes blurred and out of focus. If work, as a means to provide for your family, morphs into an all-consuming demand on your time, thoughts, and energy, ask yourself this question: What am I living for? Without continual awareness of one’s greater purpose, one’s spiritual inner fire will burn out.
Burnout is a real issue, both in the workplace and at home. It poses a threat, both personally and professionally. Burnout negatively affects productivity, morale, relationships, and personal success. Much has been written about how to prevent, recognize, and deal with it. These are the pervasive symptoms of burnout:
In this week’s Torah portion, the Torah provides a lesson in the prevention of burnout.
A perpetual fire shall be kept burning on the Altar; it shall not be extinguished.
The constant fire on the Altar of the Mishkan symbolizes the union between God and the people. It sheds light on the spiritual cause, and means for prevention, of burnout. Spiritual depletion can contribute to burnout. If one’s inner essence, the soul, isn’t properly nourished, eventually one will feel the effects. Take an example from a plant. If it goes unwatered for a period of time, it will begin to droop— a signal that it needs to be nourished. So too, a depleted soul will signal a person’s mind and body that something is amiss and lacking.
Let’s look deeper into what the continual fire on the Altar represents in our lives. Fire can represent the soul’s yearning to ascend, to be unified with its source—God. It also represents the exuberant love of life and one’s inner desire. Rabbi Moshe Alshich explains in his Torah commentary that the “fire burning in the Mishkan symbolizes the love for God that burns within every soul.” I’d like to suggest that, perhaps, this fire also represents God’s love and constant presence in our lives. Thus, this continual fire is a reciprocal love. We see on the Altar a blending of both Divine and human fires, synthesized as one.
The Divine fire within our hearts and souls is fueled by our enthusiastic desire to come close to God. Studying His Torah, revealing His Presence in the world, and fulfilling His commandments are the means by which to achieve this great end.
It is often noted that the Hebrew words mitzvah and tzav (the name of this Torah portion) share a common root that means “command.” The root of these words, however, is also the root of the Aramaic word tzavtah, which means “connection.” Creating a connection is at the root of each of God’s mitzvot. The mitzvot act as connectors, creating a spiritual connection between the Almighty and His creations. They are imperatives, not suggestions. Of course, a person has free choice to ignore them or to pretend that they don’t apply to him or her, but that doesn’t change the fact that they are commandments, not just recommendations.
What would happen if you repeatedly ignored your electric bill or pretended that traffic laws didn’t apply to you? Eventually these things would catch up with you, wouldn’t they? Likewise, there are consequences to ignoring God’s commands. Such consequences can manifest them- selves spiritually and physically.
Chassidic thought and philosophy teach how to renew one’s zest and enthusiasm for life on a daily basis. Without daily rejewvenation, most of us can become complacent and unable to move outside of our comfort zones. We may start to stagnate.
A story is told of the founder of the Chabad movement, Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi. When he was a young student, his teacher, the Maggid of Mezritch, repeated the following verse from this Torah portion ten times: “A perpetual fire shall be kept burning on the Altar; it shall not be extinguished.” He explained that the Hebrew words “lo yichbeh—it shall not be extinguished” could also be read as “the ‘no’ [i.e., all negativity] shall be extinguished.” He went on to expand on how the deep teachings of Chassidus ignite and fan the soul’s natural tendency to light up with a passionate love for God. As this fire burns, it “extinguishes” all negative influences that try to derail the positive drive for holiness and the burning desire to be nearer to God.
This teaching can remind us that our inner flame must be maintained continually. We must provide our souls with spiritual fuel, so that the innermost sparks will ignite a flaming fire—a fire that will burn perpetually and not be extinguished. Such is the secret of ongoing vitality: the fire of faith and living with renewed purpose.
Remember: “A perpetual fire shall be kept burning on the Altar; it shall not be extinguished.” Studying God’s Torah, fulfilling His mitzvot, and revealing His Presence in the world are ongoing purposes. Yet somehow, one can become passive and complacent, without a sense of renewal. Our ongoing relationship with God and His Torah must not become merely intellectual or overly academic. This lacks emotion, warmth, and spirit. Torah study and observance should set our souls, minds, and hearts aflame. We should feel spiritually illuminated by its brilliant clarity.
The spiritual inner flame needs to burn continually. Should there be a lapse, negativity can fill the resulting void. During those times, life’s circumstances can cause us to feel pessimistic. We can find ourselves distant from the Torah’s refined and lofty expectations of us.
Even in times of struggle, we need to keep our fire burning. We must, as the saying goes, “keep on keeping on.” Yet, when we are burdened with negative spiritual baggage, it may seem nearly impossible to live up to the Torah’s imperatives and ideals. But it’s just the opposite! Being overcome by negativity and self-doubt are the real obstacles to overcome.
The Divine flame may be dormant in some of our hearts, but the embers are still there, awaiting to be reignited. Gradually, you can overcome every impediment, eventually reclaiming and rejewvinating that holy spark within you. Only this time, because of, not in spite of, your struggle, you’ll attain an even greater spiritual vantage point than ever before. Your inner flame is waiting to be reignited.
