In Poland, Even Winnie-the-Pooh Has a Holocaust Story
7 min read
Let’s begin with a short recap. The first man and woman, Adam and Eve, were expelled from the Garden of Eden. They then encountered real-life challenges. Their “fall” allowed them to take ownership of their choices and actions, thereby becoming self-actualized.
Generations later, God commanded Noah and his family to enter the ark. They faced rigorous challenges and emerged to repopulate and develop the Earth anew. Notice how, within the annals of human development, there emerges a pattern fraught with what appear to be failures, leading to a call for migration and eventual renewal.
Once again, the changing of one’s physical location is the impetus for translating latent potential into actualized deed. In this week’s Torah portion, the verse says, “Go to yourself, from your land, from your birthplace, from your father’s home to the land that I will show you” (Genesis, 12:1).
However, it is not merely the changing of one’s location that brings about positive growth. Inner change takes place through a gradual, incremental process of altering one’s thoughts and perspectives. Our Sages tell us, “Changing one’s place changes one’s mazel [fortune].” This wisdom holds true on many levels of increased depth and meaning. The Hebrew word makom, place, also is another name for God. God is referred to as HaMakom, literally, “the Place,” since He is present in every place, everywhere. Mazel often is understood to refer to luck or fortune, as indicated in the commonly used phrase “mazel tov,” meaning “good luck” or “congratulations.”
Oftentimes we’ll hear someone insert the word mazel into an English sentence: “He doesn’t have any mazel,” or “She needs mazel,” etc. In these contexts, the word mazel refers to some sort of indiscriminate form of good luck or positive outcome. A deeper examination of the Hebrew word mazel reveals a powerful and more relevant explanation.
The Hebrew word mazel refers to a spiritual energy animated throughout creation at every moment. Literally meaning “flow,” mazel bespeaks the unobstructed flow of positive energy, or berachah, blessing. Directed into one’s life, mazel interacts with individuals, families, and nations. The stars and constellations are called mazalos (plural of mazel) and are particularly placed to channel the flow of mazel. There are forces and energies set into creation that generate positive and negative influences upon us. Nature is a force for both positive and negative phenomena. Various individuals with different and unique immune systems will react to similar stimuli and environments differently. When exposed to bacteria, pathogens, or other toxins, one might be susceptible while another is resistant to the same exposure.
Technology presents us with another similar experience. We can’t always get reception for our devices in certain areas because of poor signals. However, assuming our devices are fully charged and able to pick up a signal, reception is clear and effective. Communication depends on the ability to transmit and receive signals that, in turn, are activated. Signals can be transmitted, but they can be perceived and utilized only if certain conditions are present. There must be something to receive, activate, and actualize the signal.
The same requirements hold true for mazel. One must be in a physical place that is conducive for one’s latent potential to be activated and actualized. In addition to physical place, one must be a receptacle for blessing and good fortune, or mazel. There must be a “conductor” to receive the charge—the surge of positive energy we experience as mazel. It certainly is not luck; rather, it is a finely calibrated intentional flow. Behind the smokescreen that we call nature and all natural phenomena, including mazel, there is one singular, directing, creative force.
When that force we call God tells Avram to leave his land, his birthplace, and his father’s home, He is requesting much more than a mere change of physical location. Lech lecha means “go to yourself.” How can we become whom we truly could be when so much of our identities and value systems have been shaped and influenced by everything out- side of us?
“Go to yourself” necessitates self-actualization. It challenges people to make what they know their own. Even those of us who were raised in an ideal home with positive values and influences must take ownership of those values. We can’t just pay lip service to our father’s or our mother’s Torah teachings. Robotic and rote observance is static. Each of us, in his or her unique way, must embrace our own Torah in a way that is relevant to who we are. The Torah never changes, yet as we do, deeper probing into its inner meanings ultimately will affect us for the better.
Lech lecha can be understood as “go for yourself.” As God said to Avram that he should go, Avram understood something deeper. He saw this not as only about him. God was sending Avram on a journey—a mission with a purpose. And so Avram turned a journey into a Divine mission. By listening to God’s words, he, in turn, became God’s vehicle, or agent. Avram’s real test was whether or not to accept this mission. And so is ours. The mitzvot, commandments, give us this opportunity.
This is what God expected of Avram. In order for his latent potential to become fully actualized, Avram’s perspective and relationship to his Creator had to be deepened and personalized. God tested Avram ten times. With each test, Avram was permanently altered in some way. In their totality, these tests served to cultivate and harvest seeds of potential into acts of fruition. The succession of tests challenged Avram to redirect his instincts—his very nature—in such a radical way, that his name no longer could express his newly minted persona. And so, a change of name from Avram to Avraham signified an even greater, more magnified capacity to impact mankind and human destiny.
To the extent that we as individuals cultivate a personal and growing relationship with our Creator, we deepen and expand our receptacle for blessing. Each mitzvah that we observe mindfully, and with full and proper intent, creates a spiritual conductor to interface with, and to receive, the positive flow of blessing that we merit. A mitzvah is a spiritual connector, or charger, that enables one to be identified as a conduit to spiritual energy and abundance.
If we closely examine the values of our host culture, we will admit to how greatly we all can be influenced by the environment in which we live. Values that are the antithesis of what the Torah teaches us can seep into our homes and personal perspectives undetected. Gradually, we begin to resemble the pervasive image of what currently is in vogue. This happens through a subtle change in attitude and point of view, a gradual change of direction and loosening of moral judgments. Before too long, our choices and decisions are impacted by what started as a subtle change. What once felt wrong becomes gradually more and more familiar and inviting. What once was viewed as a transgression is redefined as acceptable and even as good. Recognizing our inherent susceptibility to assimilate the trends and ever-changing values of our times, we seek out a moral compass.
Our Sages teach us that Torah preceded Creation itself. The Zohar writes that “God looked into the Torah and created the world.” Hashem looked, as it were, into the Torah as a guide and blueprint for all of creation. To better understand and maximize our own lives, shouldn’t we do the same?
What does “being oneself” really mean?
Each one of us wants to be the “best version” of ourselves. We first need to define what, exactly, that version would be. How would it look and feel—not just on the outside, but on the inside, as well?
