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Candle lighting is at 4:30 pm on Friday, November 21. This week's Torah portion is Parashat Chayei Sara. Havdalah starts 60 minutes after sundown, at 5:47 pm on Saturday, November 22. Courtesy of hebcal.com |
Avot 3:4: How Not to Live LifeBy Rabbi Alan Yuter
The Mishnah's triadic list shares a single quality which must be inferred from thie list. The three particulars of the list include [a] remaining awake all night, [b] walking on the way alone, and [c] directing one's consciousness to activity devoid of purpose. When one is awake all night, one cannot be fully awake during the day, as one becomes sleep deprived. And a sleep deprives person cannot live the waking life appropriately. We may even question the so-called Tiqqun Leyl Shavuot, which was invented by mystics. Learning after 3:00 AM is usually not in depth, one's hangover makes productive use of the holiday difficult, and one does not enjoy the holiday as well with a headache. Before taking a trip, a request prayer is recited. A trip that crosses a desert or the ocean generates a blessing in the synagogue. Trips are not taken lightly, as they are dangerous. When one travels on the highway, one may encounter highwaymen. Once, a tire of mine blew out on the Jersey Turnpike and the service station attendant charged an excessive amount for a replacement tire. Exasperated, I declared that his charge for the tire replacement was "highway robbery." With a knowing, wry smile, he reminded me that "this is the highway." One should not expose oneself to vulnerability and danger by walking alone on the highway. The third element of the list, "the one who consciously empties one's heart for no purpose," who consciously suppresses his consciousness, is also doing wrong. The Hebrew word hamefanneh means conscious emptying oneself of consciousness. Doing such a mental act is mental suicide. People who "kill time" are killing themselves morally in the process. The first element of the list contains two words, with the second and third containing three words. The conclusion, "it is considered as if he is mortally guilty," in Hebrew, contains four words, completing the crescendo and identifying the moral law. The Torah wants that we live life properly. If we are unawake, we are unaware. If we endanger ourselves, we pointlessly put ourselves at risk. And when we knowingly and willingly use our life consciousness to deny that consciousness, we are committing moral suicide. The Torah bids that we affirm and live life, and not deny life. Take the toast literally, "le-Hayyim." |
