m 023 pt1 019 Teves 7 ~ Teves 11 pt1
Question for today:
When I do something, does it leave a mark?
A common question is, do Jews believe in hell?
Not only do we believe it exists, it's actually a fundamental part of the Jewish faith.
However, our belief is different from other circles. Many say “you're a bad person you're going to a bad place”. In Judaism it’s the opposite - you're a good person, your soul is a part of G-d, and it's going to be going home.
However, considering what we learned about previously; the negativity, the true no-nos, or taking regular, permitted, things and using them for selfish reasons – these all have a stain, an impact.
In order for the soul to be able to express itself fully in a world of truth it's going to have to clean the stain.
We'll learn more about that tomorrow, but today we hear a fascinating exception. Rabeinu hakadosh who never had worldly pleasure, even for his pinky finger, will not need any cleansing.
What's fascinating about this exception is, we are taught that Rabbeinu Hakadosh was phenomenally wealthy and on his table there were always radishes, cucumbers, and lettuce - winter and summer - so what do we mean about him having no pleasure?
The Tanya doesn't mean you don't have luxury. It means that we never use it for selfish purposes.
Study today’s Tanya in full:
https://www.chabadmed.com/dailystudy/tanya.asp?tdate=1/4/2020
See today’s video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vS6Ziq9kT4&list=PLFZQPK6u-zSBls9Hwx3P5vKI_BRnjBvHe&index=19
Additional thoughts:
The example that the Tanya uses today is from Rabbeinu Hakadosh who never had selfish worldly pleasure, even for his pinky finger.
Why would such an example be included in this book of the Tanya which is guidance for the average person?
However from the name, Rabbeinu Hakadosh, we see that he is our teacher. Meaning, all of the stories told about him in the Talmud are lessons for us, and we can all in some way relate to his style of living