avakesh

Obesity and Divine Service

He who occupies himself in Torah, it is not possible that his neck should be thick and his body should be fat (Mivchar Peninim 1:29).

On the face of it, this is a perplexing statement. What about the famous Talmudic sages who were very heavy? R. Elazar b'Rebbi Shimon and R. Yishmael b'Rebbi Yosi were very fat. R. Yochanan's and Rav Papa's were also big (but not as big( Bava Metsiah 84a). In fact, in our own day,we had Rav Simon Schwab and Rav Shlomo Freifeld who cut an imposing figure.

A commentary to Mivchar Peninim attempts to explain this by quoting a Tosafos in Taanis 7a that had the sages been more ugly, they would have been even greater. Similarly, those sages who are fat despite their fasting, would have been much heavier, had they not fasted.

This reminded me of an interesting story quoted in the biography of Rabbi Freifeld byR. Yisroel Besser. He reports that Rav Shlomo was eating schnitzel Pentecost in the when a famous biographer of Jewish figures passed by. Rabbi Freifeld humorously exclaimed: "Oy, now they will not write a biography about me. So, is it Shlomo's fault that Shlomo likes schnitzel?"

It seems to me that the mindset that scholars must be thin and pale, is no longer the prevailing one in Judaism, at least, not since the Chassidic revolation. There was a time when there operative mindset was that the weakening over the body to the strengthening of the soul. Since Avodah B'Gashmiyus" (Serving G-d through the body) displaced the idea of ascetism and weakening the body, the previous paradigm of self-denial no longer operates. That does not mean that one should not limit oneself for reasons of health or to be in balance and practice self control. However, it is no longer a virue in itself but merely a stepping stone to other achievements.

Perhaps the Talmudic sages in Bava Metziah were harbingers of the Chassidic revolution?

Wit and Wisdom: What do we want in life

The desire of a wise man is for wisdom, the desire of a fool is for foolishness (Mivchar Peninim, 1:27)

This is almost a truism. Often we see statements of this kind through a prism of smug self satisfaction and a lens of ersatz morality. Isn't it terrible, tsk, tsk, tsk , those fools - they have no one to blame but their foolishness. We, the wise ones, we choose wisdom, and we are praseworthy for it... not like those fools!

However, that is not what Mivchar Peninim says( although it is the tenor of his commentators comments). I read what he says as a statement of fact. This is simply how these two categories, the wise ones and fools, work. The wise like wisdom and the fools desire foolishness. If we approach it as a matter of fact, what does this statement teach us.

I think that the way to approach is to ask, "Why is this so? Why do wise one pursue wisdom and the fools desire foolishness?" Let's not assign blame. Let's try to understand.

What is this really all about is that people like what they already know and they look to improve and become more proficient where they are comfortable. Perhaps it is a relative lack of confidence or a deficit in a wider perspective (some people do not wish to go outside their comfort zone), or seeking comfort only in what they recognize. Wisdom in this way is different than foolishness because wisdom by its nature strives to widen its sphere and to learn and know more.

I once heard a philosopher explain that virtue is similar to skill. How do you gain a skill in an area?  By doing more and more in it, so that your skill grows. How do you grow virtuous? By training yourself in virtue, time after time, over and over again.

This is, therefore, the difference between a chacham and a fool.  The wise person practices in the field of wisdom and the fool keeps himself in foolishness.

Therefore, all one needs to do is to change the fool's heart, to show him that wisdom is good for him and that he can succeed and enjoy gaining more and more wisdom. Easier said than done, huh? Yet, it is possible. How? By touching the heart and changing perspectives so that the desires of the heart are for wisdom. By showing the fool that he can succeed in wisdom. As simple as that! In that lies the essence of the conversion experience!

 

Power of Ideas

Kings judge the Earth and the Wise judge the Kings.

(Mivchar Peninim, Chochma, 26)

This interesting but enigmatic statement can be explained many different ways. One could interpret it to mean that even the mightiest dictator is transparent to his subjects who are wise. I am thinking of Shostakovich Stalin Symphony. A tyrant can control opinions and beliefs of almost all men under his dominion, but those in his kingdom who are wise, see right through him. Though he may render them silent, their minds and hearts curse him. Often he might think that his negative qualities, deceits, and flaws have been successfully hidden by propaganda and intimidation. But this is not so for there are many in his country that are wise. They know that he is notthing but a fraud

Another explanation is that Kings are there to establish justice and fairness in their land To to do so they need oversight and accountability to their advisors.

I suggest a more modern explanation. It is that the power of ideas is greater than the power of brute might. Especially in recent history, we have seen how the pen is mightier than the sword, how ideas overthrow the strongest monarchies and dictatorships. And how wisdom is ever more lasting than weapons.

The English author H.G. Wells is thought to have said, "Human history is, in essence, the history of ideas."

How right he was!

 

 

 

 

Wit about Wisdom: The Wise Man

I had an unsettling experience a few days before Pesach. Tired and sleepy, I ducked into a seforim store for a short break between chores. My eyes scanned the new arrivals and stopped at the new edition of Mivchar Peninim, a book about Wisdom. It is a beautiful edition in two volumes with various commentaries and a great introduction. But that is not the first thing I felt.

What I felt was a thought that cut across me, a thought that was so painful and poignant, so violent and bitter, that it caught my breath. "Who needs wisdom? In our society there is no wisdom, there is only technical knowledge. ...the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heeded(Koheles9:1)." That I thought this, disturbed me. It was, revealing – of something. I sat down and mulled and analyzed it. Then I got up and bought the work.

No, wisdom is not technical knowledge. Wisdom is not psychology and it is not organizational behavior and it is not management, or negotiation, or solely an understanding of how people work. No, the world is wrong, and, yes, there is such a thing as Wisdom! Wisdom is important in Judaism. It is mentioned, under the name Chochma, 222 times in the Tanach.

Therefore, to make amends, I started a new series  on Mivchar Peninim. I decided to read through this work and pick out selected sayings that speak to us, even in our improverished time, or at least, that speak to me and hopefully will speak to you.

Here we go.

The Gate of Wisdom, 22.

"A man is wise as long as he seeks wisdom, but when he thinks that he has gained it, he is a fool."

It is a paradox. Wisdom is an ideal that no one can ever approach. The process of seeking wisdom is what makes one wise. Wisdom is not technical knowledge; instead it is partly humility, partly longing, and partly self-knowledge. Wisdom to R. Shlomo Gabirol, the author of this book, could never be fully attained, because it is, in its nature divine. That is how the neoplatonic author of the Fons Vitae (Fountain of Life) would naturally perceive wisdom. Hence, anyone who thinks he has attained it, is truly foolish.

I am not sure that Aristotle would agree. In fact, I think that Aristotle might define wisdom as technical knowledge.  In in his Meta[hysics, he defined wisdom as the understanding of causes, i.e. knowing why things are a certain way, which is deeper than merely knowing that things are a certain way, but not exactly something that surmounts knowledge.

But even if we do not subscribe to a Neoplatonic vision, wisdom cannot be completely attained because there is no end to the depth of humility and because no man can fully know himself. These are major components of wisdom – and in some measure, man will always remain, to himself, a mysterious creature. This is because at the core of men is a divine soul, which is beyond comprehension.

Rabbeinu Bachya writes in Shmos 6:3 that a fool does not begrudge a wise person, for the fool thinks that he, the fool, misses nothing. He thinks that he is already wise. This is why Chazal say, "a person is not jealous except the wise men of a wise men, a strong man of the strongman, wealthy men of a wealthy man.(A"Z 55a) ". Only the wise person can admire and be jealous of another wise person. A foolish person thinks he is already wise, and does not even recognize his deficiencies. The wise men and other hand knows that the recognition of where he lacks, is in itself a part of his wisdom.

In this manner, "The beginning of wisdom is fear of Hashem(Proverbs 1:7 and 9:10)". As Hashem is Divine, so is wisdom Divine. This is why philosophers are called so in Greek, because they love wisdom, not because they have wisdom. In exactly the same way, talmidei chachamim are students of the wise and they are not called wise(Pri Megadim, Introduction to Orach Chaim).