Truman Capote on hovering b/t the vertical & horizontal - a great lesson for any art

Defying Space & Time

The Ark’s “physics” teach us that the two goals are not mutually exclusive. The Ark transcended the spatial, yet retained all of its qualities. In the same way, no matter how high a person reaches, his attainments always can, and must, be made part of his pedestrian, human self.

A life lived according to Torah (which the Ark, container of the Ten Commandments, represents) enables man to reach beyond the confines and dictates of his physical environment and society. At the same time, it insists that he make this greater reality his reality — that it become an integral part of his own nature, character and everyday behavior.

Bereishit: Turning Inspiration into Action

A story that aptly illustrates this point is told about two Chassidim: a father and son who were absorbed in studying Torah. Suddenly, a baby (the son’s child who was sleeping in the next room) fell out of its crib and started crying. The son was concentrating so hard, he didn’t hear it. The father heard and went to tend to the baby. When he returned, he said, “If you don’t hear the desperate crying of a child, what value is there to your Torah study? Torah study is meant to refine you, to teach you how to help another person, to hear the cry of one in need!” Ask yourself: What kind of life are you leading: a materialistic life, a spiritual life, or a G-dly life?

What's Wrong with our Educational System?

Jacobson: At the outset I should say that whenever you deal with any type of tragedy of this nature, it’s very difficult to talk about it in a logical and organized way, but when you put yourself, G-d forbid, in the shoes of the parents and family that have been broken and will be broken forever because of this unfortunate incident, then you know that after all the hype in the newspapers and all the radio talkshows and everyone finishes and exhausts their thoughts about it, and the psychiatrists and the psychologists and the educators and the President, etc., these people will live with this for the rest of their lives.

How to Find Joy in Your Life

So the topic that I’d like to discuss is “Joy.” And the reason for it is that we are now in the Hebrew month of Adar on the Jewish calendar. The month of Adar is considered to be the happiest month in the Jewish calendar as it contains Purim, the happiest day of the year. Purim is essentially a day of joy, which in Hebrew the word is “simcha.” I was looking around for different words with which to translate the word “simcha”—exuberance, happiness, gladness—but I think joy is the right word.

Two Secrets to a Balanced Life

Yet, try as we might, tranquility defies us. Who does not struggle, for instance, from the conflict between home life and career? Between your personal standards and the demands of the marketplace? Between the need to survive and the yearning for transcendence? Who has not in some ways compromised their idealism due to the peer and social pressure? In one way or another, we all suffer from various conflicts in our lives. Often these struggles lead to anxiety and other forms of emotional debilitation.

Bechukotai: In Defence of Anarchy

Nothing is more dangerous than the elitist approach, which insecurely believes that a few ‘keepers of the flame’ must dictate the rules for the ignorant masses. We must respect the dignity of each person’s individual soul and believe in the fact that we are all together ‘in the same boat’ and the ‘same plane.’
Frankly, if you don’t believe in that, what then do you believe in? To believe in G-d and not believe in the Divinely ordained spirit within each human being and that each person can access this soul is, at least in this humble writer’s opinion, ludicrous. If you don’t have confidence in G-d’s creatures you basically don’t have confidence in G-d.
So, yes, we are in need of teachers, leaders, Rabbis, but we also have the ability to identify the true standard of a Rabbi and demand of our rabbis to live up to that standard.
If you call that anarchy – so be it.

Beshalach: On Faith & Trust

The key to the secret of faith is the connection to the eternal. Everything in life around us is mortal, temporary – impermanent. Everything erodes, ages. Change is the only constant. This is true even when life is going well; how much more so under duress, which shakes the very foundations of our beings. The only way we can transcend change – and especially the ever-shifting center of gravity resulting from the painful scars of oppression – is by connecting to the eternal, something that is not subject to the mortality and variations around us.

The only way the enslaved people in Egypt could rise above their predicament and prevent demoralization was through faith. Their faith in G-d and His promises of redemption allowed them to hold on, to hold strong, to endure all, despite the hardships. They were sure – absolutely sure that they would come out of the hell, and nothing could shake this conviction.

Tetzaveh: Open Your Eyes

Frankly, I have often wondered what it would take to get most people to ‘open their eyes.’ After all, history is fraught with but few ‘seers’ while the mainstream remains blinded and clueless to the bigger picture.
The miracle I share with you today gives us all hope. Hope that anyone and everyone’s eyes can indeed be opened.
More than the Eye Can See: A Journey from Darkness to Light indeed.

Bamidbar: Whatever

"Whatever" is not just lazy thinking, it is plain mediocrity. Not to say that those using the word are mediocre. Rather, the prevalence of the word symbolizes a deep erosion of inner confidence and value of our instincts. Sort of a collective mediocrity has crept into our lives. A communal resignation is simmering beneath the surface of our battle scarred lives, inundated with images we are asked to buy into.
So begin counting: how many times do you use "whatever" in your conversation?
Perhaps the "whatever" epidemic is a wake-up call that the time has come to begin rebuilding our inner selves. To reclaim our self-confidence, to discover our inalienable sacred self -- and communicate it.
So, whatever you're doing, even if y'know where you're headed, take a moment and transform your "whatever" into substance and "y'know" into focus.
What's my point?
Whatever…

What is the Soul?

Referring to the above interpretation of the metaphor of speech, this means that the soul is a creation which does not “depart” from the all-pervading reality of G-d. A creation that not only senses its total dependence upon its source (as, deep down, every creation does), but one that does not even see itself as an “entity” distinct from its Creator.

Alone in a verbose world, the soul of man is a thing of silence. And its mission in life is to impart this silence to the world about it.

Vayishlach: The Fiasco

Personally I learned something about making plans. Sometimes you think you're looking for one thing, and when you let go, you actually discover something more important.
Fiascos, waves, particles, tension, resolution, rotzo, shuv, quarks, leptons, chaos, order – “sounds like one big fiasco to me,” as someone told me. So, next time things don’t work out as planned, remember: Life is complex. The deeper you dig, the more complex it gets. But deep beneath/beyond it all – if you dig deep enough, or perhaps, if you stop digging at all and just let go – the deepest truth that emerges is the most complex thing of all: simple innocence.

Bo: The Anatomy of Fear

Fear is perhaps our greatest enemy. Not because it is loud and aggressive, but because it is invisible. Is there a person alive that does not suffer from some fear, known or (even worse) unknown? And what effects do our fears have on our lives – what impact does it have on our choices and ambitions, on our behavior, pride, jealousy, anger and so many other emotions? Can it even be measured?

Yitro: On the Nature of Leadership & the Art of Delegation

By contrast, all corporate, government and other institutions with national and international branches and networks all have complex and elaborate quality control systems. There is a hierarchy – beginning with a CEO or executive director, who directs a group of national directors, who oversee local directors, etc. Each director ensures the operation and accountability of his/her respective branch. There are comptrollers and treasurers, bookkeepers and accountants, lawyers, presidents, chairmen and boards, there are timely spot checks, vigilant reviews, elaborate audits and reporting systems – an entire labyrinth with a comprehensive set of checks and balances, to ensure that the objective is being met. And even with all this in place – we see what it has led to in our current corporate meltdown…

Our Rendezvous with History

But the battle then was with Esau – and his different faces, the various faces of the West: Russia, France, and Europe in general (should also mention Greece, as we approach Chanukah). Initially the battle was to secure spiritual integrity. This required a certain measure of insulation from the world of “Esau.” As the years passed and we matured, and the universe continued to become more and more refined in the process, we reached a stage when we can enter the emancipated world of the West and not only would we not be compromised; we would transform, refine and spiritualize material secularism, turning the world into a home for the Divine.

Chaya Sarah: Alive with Pleasure

The Torah tells us that life – true life – can really be recognized after the soul passes on. One could argue that as long as we are biologically alive our appeal and our influence are based on our physical presence and the power we wield. When do you know that someone is truly alive – an eternal life that never dies – when you see the effects and influence that have remained after they are physically no longer there. Paradoxically, we learn more about true life after death than before it.