LESSON 2
By Rabbi
Finding Balance In Your Life|
Introduction:
A Russian man, walking along the streets of Moscow one morning, witnessed the following scene: a worker with a shovel dug a hole in a stretch of earth bordering the boulevard, after which a second man took his shovel and filled in the hole.
The man witnessing this scene ran up to the two men and cried, "Comrades, this is madness! What in the world are you doing?"
The first worker calmly regarded the stranger and explained. "Look here. Usually I dig a hole, Ivan plants a tree in the hole, and Misha fills in the earth around the tree. But today Ivan is sick. So what do you suggest; that just because Ivan isn't here today, Misha and I shouldn't do our work?!
How often do we find ourselves so caught up in the business of the moment that we forget the reasons behind the things we do? Occasionally, in our zeal to get a job done, we may even hinder the progress toward our long-term objectives as we focus too narrowly on short-term goals.
Psychologists have discovered that people who have found meaning in life tend to be happier and feel more fulfilled. If we can focus on the bigger picture, by clarifying our purpose in life and balancing our lifestyles around it, we greatly increase our chances of achieving satisfaction out of life.
Let’s examine the big picture of life as painted by our Sages and learn how to master the balancing act of life.
Text of Mishna
Shimon the Righteous was one of the last survivors of the Great Assembly. He used to say: “The world stands on three things: Torah study, Divine worship, and acts of loving-kindness.”
Quick Questions
- The Mishna seems to indicate that this is the only statement of Shimon the Righteous, yet we know that Shimon was one of the most well known Jewish high priests (in fact, he was well-respected by both Alexander the Great and Aristotle). Is this all he had to say?
- What does the Mishna mean when it says, “the world stands on these three things”?
- Is there any significance to the number three?
Key Commentaries
- Maharal – These three things allude to the three relationships that impact every life experience
- Our relationship with ourselves
- Our relationship with the Almighty
- Our relationship with others
The essence of Shimon the Righteous was mastering this perfect balance. Shimon had perfected every element of his life to the point where his very being seemed to declare that the essence of a Jew’s existence is to achieve harmony in these three areas. (R’ Aharon of Kaidonov)
- Maharal- The most stable geometric shape is a triangle; the most stable geometric figure is a tetrahedron, a three-dimensional triangle. A photographer or surveyor mounts his instrument upon a tripod for maximum stability. Architectural and engineering designs depend upon the triangle to hold up buildings, bridges, and aircraft. And since the physical universe reflects the nature of the spiritual universe, we can expect to find a profound spiritual significance attached to the number three.
Practical Applications
This perfect balance is so critical that without it the world would cease to exist! Everyone is familiar with the story of Noah and the “Great Flood,” where the world suffered a moral breakdown and G-d decided to destroy mankind, sparing only Noah and his family. What exactly were the evil acts that warranted such mass destruction? The Torah (both Written and Oral tradition) indicates that the people of that generation violated the three cardinal transgressions of idolatry, theft, and sexual immorality. Idolatry demonstrated a blatant rejection of their relationship with G-d. Sexual immorality reflected a deterioration of the essence of humanity into an animalistic level of existence. Rampant acts of theft served to sever any bonds of trust and friendship in society. Once there was an overall weakening of the three pillars that sustain the world, G-d had no choice but to destroy mankind and rebuild civilization from Noah and his family, who still faithfully adhered to the three fundamental principles of a moral society.
If we carefully analyze the lives of our patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we see that each of them excelled in one of these three pillars (not to the complete exclusion of the other two).
Abraham was famous for his loving-kindness. His residence had four entrances, one in each direction, welcoming any person in need. The Torah points out that on one occasion Abraham went so far as to slaughter three separate calves in order to offer each of his three guests their own calf’s tongue!
The Torah describes how Isaac meditated in the fields. The commentaries explain that Isaac was actually immersed in reflective prayer. We also find that Isaac’s prayers for a child were answered after more than twenty years of marriage!
Jacob is biblically described as an “Ish Tam”- a complete person, and “Yoshev Ohalim”- dwelling in the tents. This verse refers to the perfection that Jacob attained through years of intense Torah study in the academies of Shem and Ever.
At the climax of the High Holiday service, we proclaim, “Repentance, prayer, and charity have the power to annul the bad decree.”
Repentance refers to recognizing one’s personal shortcomings and committing oneself to improve. Prayer essentially involves improving one’s relationship and communication with G-d. Charity means devoting one’s time and resources toward improving relationships with others.
This balance is unique to Judaism. Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism focus primarily on only one aspect of existence. Christianity focuses on self-negating loving kindness toward others. Islam, with its emphasis on frequent prayer, seems to be focused on divine service. Buddhism focuses on man’s relationship to the “all-embracing one,” to the point of losing one’s own identity. Only Judaism embraces every aspect of life and expresses itself in a realistic, comprehensive and balanced approach.
Resolution
Today I will make a point of focusing, at least once, on:
- Improving myself as a person (“mentsch”)
- Feeling G-d’s presence in my life
- Assisting someone in need
Review Questions
- Define balance from a Jewish perspective.
- What is the best way to go about incorporating these three relationships into our daily lives?
Points to Ponder
Since finding and maintaining a healthy balance of the aforementioned principles results in a more meaningful and satisfying life, it is important to assess one’s current situation to see if there is the necessary balance.
An easy exercise that is helpful in making this assessment is to draw a circle and divide it into three segments. Label one segment “myself,” the second one “G-d,” and the third one “others.” Next, make a list of the activities you engage in over the course of a typical day. Then, place each of the items on your list in the appropriate segment of the circle. If the segments in your circle contain a relatively equal amount of entries, it’s a pretty good sign that you are living a well-balanced life. If the number of entries is disproportionate, you need to focus more on the emptier segments of the circle.
Note: Many of your daily activities can be entered in more than one segment.
Can one be a good person by focusing on just one of the three principles?
Why did the Mishna list these points in this particular order?
