Shmot שמות

שמות

Shmot, the first parsha of the book of Exodus, is chock full of inspiring and interesting encounters, but perhaps the overwhelming feature is the introduction of Moses, who will receive top billing, at least among the humans, for the four books to come.

Many have speculated as to why Moses was such a great leader, and I certainly don't have any definitive answers, but I want to point out two concrete things that we can learn Moses that share a central theme - awareness.

About a month ago, my wife and I had the opportunity to attend a special Jewish Meditation / Zen Buddhist Retreat at Kibbutz Hannaton. One of the leaders at the retreat, Rabbi James Jacobson-Maisels, shared a great insight on this week's parsha.

When Moses comes upon the burning, yet seemingly fireproof bush, he says

אָסֻרָה נָּא, וְאֶרְאֶה אֶת הַמַּרְאֶה הַגָּדֹל הַזֶּה, מַדּוּעַ לֹא יִבְעַר הַסְּנֶה:

"Let me turn now and see this great spectacle - why does the bush not burn up?"

Moses' observation that the bush is burning, but not being consumed, is the the product of a very still and observant mind. The non-consumption would not be readily apparent, one would have to look very deeply to notice it.

For instance, if I were to see the bush burning, I would probably break out into a semi-panic. 'Oh my gosh! We need to put the fire out!' 'We are in the middle of nowhere, there is no one to help me!' 'How did the blaze start?' Is it likely to spread?' 'Where is my cell phone? Maybe i should take a picture and upload it to Facebook, and then decide what to do…'

This was not Moses' reaction. He took the time to look deeply within the flame, and noticed something extremely unusual, that the average observer would almost certainly miss. To be able to quiet the mind and 'simply see what is,' instead of becoming a hostage to our inner narrative, is one of the goals of zen training. I'm not sure if Moses was a zen-master, but perhaps his power of observation is one of the reasons that God chose him to lead the people.

The more observant our minds are, the more we see, and appreciate the greatness of God's creation and the better we connect with people around us - two sure characteristics of a tzaddik.

The idea of greater awareness being a path to spirituality is shared by many teachers in our history. For instance, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heshel championed the concept of "Radical Amazement."

He wrote: "Mankind will not perish for want of information, but only for want of appreciation. The beginning of our happiness lies in the understanding that life without wonder is not worth living."

In other words, if we could only be aware of the miracles around us and inside of us, at every moment, we would be exponentially happier people. The incredibly detailed and precise working of our bodies, and the certainty of the sun rising every day to give us light, are two examples of everyday occurrences that we tend to take for granted, but are truly miraculous and wonderful, even beyond out capacity to express them.

Luckily for us, awareness and thankfulness are hardwired into Jewish practice. The tradition of waking up in the morning and saying "Modeh, or Modah, Ani" - I am thankful - is meant to ingrain in us a feeling of thankfulness from our very first conscious breath.

Even the word "Judaism" itself is a manifestation of thankfulness. Judaism comes form the Hebrew word Yehuda, which is the same root as מודה and תודה .

Notwithstanding the very Jewish tradition of kavetching, we are supposed to be very grateful people indeed!

Rabbi Heshel wrote:" Wonder is a natural response to the world which causes me to transcend the mundane, the daily, the insignificant."

Nevermind seeing the glass half full or half empty, Moses and Rabbi Heshel inspire us to realize that the glass is overflowing with delicious and colorful liquids that are constantly being refilled.

This parsha also shows us another aspect of Moses' special talent for awareness.

Chapter 2, Verse 10: The child grew up, and she [Moses' mother'] brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became like her son. She named him Moses, and she said, "For I drew him from the water."

the next verse…

Chapter 2, Verse 11: Now it came to pass in those days, that Moses grew up and went out to his brothers and looked at their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian man striking a Hebrew.

Our sages teach us that every word in the Torah comes to teach us something - nothing is extraneous. So how do we explain the doubling up of "grew up" - ויגדל, in consecutive verses?

It could be that in the first instance, Moses grows up physically - becoming a man and becoming aware of his body. In the second instance, the emotional/societal aspect kicks in. At this point Moses realizes two things:

1) He is an Israelite, a foreigner in the palace, and

2) the very same folks who brought him up in luxury, are busy enslaving and abusing his own people.

This is a heavy realization for anyone, at any age. Not only is he prospering from the back-breaking work of his brethren, he is indirectly responsible for the continuation of the situation.

From this vantage point, it's easier to understand why he struck down the Egyptian taskmaster. This was not an impulsive act -

וַיִּפֶן כֹּה וָכֹה

"He turned this way and that way" before the act.

According to Rashi, Moses saw what the Egyptian had done to the Hebrew in the house, and what he had done to him in the field." In other words, Moses saw his personal history, and that of his people's, playing out before his eyes. He had grown up. Even as a young man, Moses had a deep awareness of those around him, and just as importantly, the resolve to act on that awareness.

Then and now, being aware is not enough - it's the action that counts in the end. These days, global, national, local, familial and personal events cry out urgently for our attention, virtually every moment of every day. Of course, we can't be expected the take on every burden of every soul in the world, but at the same time we are expected to do our part.

As is written in Pirkei Avot, "It is not upon you to finish the work, but you are not free to ignore it."