Metaphor of a Candle

My self-image that is being reinforced, especially as a new life coach, through the study of Hasidism is that of a candle with its flame as my soul and its wax as my ego. Like the candle flame my soul strives upward by consuming the wax, my ego. I also try to ignite fire in other candles whose flame is flickering and transform darkness even with the light that is growing stronger through the study of Hasidism. By sharing your fire with others you don't have it diminished.

Recently I made one interesting experiment of igniting fire in giving tsdaka to those who come to the shul where I daven every Friday morning, asking for money. Having realized that neither givers nor receivers smile, I smiled to the first "victim" I gave money. It seems to have taken him a little while to realize what was going on, but to my joy, he smiled me back! I did the same thing to the second "victim" and got the same reaction.

I've been thinking of two more grandioze experiments to ignine fire in others to transform their darkness into light in addition to Jewish life coaching. About a week ago I happened to get acquainted with two people who have been doing these experiments, and I've started discussing with them about how I myself can also carry out the experiments.

Finally Resuming the Study of the Talmud

More than a year has passed since I decided to resume my study of the Talmud. As an attempt to finally implement this decision from today symbolically, when the 14th cycle of Daf Yomi starts, I've been reading a new introduction to the Talmud published for this occasion by ArtScroll (Introduction to the Talmud), hoping it will reignite my enthusiasm for the study of the Talmud.

The chapter I expected the least in this volume has turned out to be the most inspiring not only intellectually but even emotionally - "Talmudic Personalities". As its name shows, it's a collection of mini-biographies of important Talmudic personalities - 437 Tannaim and Amoraim mentioned in the Talmud. Of course, I haven't read all the entries in this chapter, nor do I want to so quickly (in order to savor each entry). The few entries I've read so far - those on R' Akiva, R' Yehudah HaNasi, etc. - are so inspiring that I'm finally resuming my study of the Talmud with both intellectual and emotional enthusiasm!

I'm also reappreciating the power of reading (non-academic) biographies of such Jewish sages. They show us how they implemented the teachings of the Torah in their thought, speech and action with integrity though even such reading can't be compared to the direct experience of witnessing the presence of living Torah scholars. I feel very privileged to be part of the unbroken chain of this Jewish oral tradition though I'm still on its receiving side.

The more involved I find myself with the traditional study of the Torah, the less interest and meaning I find in those areas of intellectual pursuit I occupied myself with until rather recently (and decided to abandon). I can feel a huge difference between these two types of intellectual pursuit in their respective magnitude of spiritual energy, like a difference between sun-bathing directly under the sun and just reading about sun-bathing.