It is the source from which all of creation springs forth, and it contains the deepest secrets and mysteries of existence. The Torah is the ultimate source of wisdom and truth, and it is through our study and acceptance of its teachings that we are able to connect with the divine and elevate ourselves to higher spiritual levels.
On Shavuot, we have the opportunity to not only receive the Torah anew but to delve deeper into its infinite depths and uncover hidden truths and insights that can guide us on our spiritual journey. By standing during the Torah reading and reenacting the experience of Matan Torah, we are symbolically reaffirming our commitment to the Torah and recommitting ourselves to a life of learning and growth.
As we celebrate Shavuot each year, let us remember the power and potential inherent in this holy day. Let us strive to tap into the unique spiritual energies of this time and use them to propel ourselves ever higher on our journey of ascension. May we all be blessed with a renewed connection to the Torah and a deeper understanding of its profound wisdom. Chag Sameach!
Our physical world is a projection and emanation of the deep spiritual reality described in the Torah. This is the meaning behind the famous Midrash, âIstakel bâOraisa uâbara alma â [Hashem] looked into the Torah and used it to create the worldâ (Bereishis Rabbah 1:1). Torah is the spiritual root of existence; the physical world is its expression.
Imagine a projector: the image that you see on the screen emanates from the film in the projector so that everything you see on the screen is simply an expression of whatâs contained within the film. So too, every single thing that we see and experience in the physical world stems from the spiritual root â the transcendent dimension of Torah. To illustrate further, the trees you see outside originally stemmed from a single seed. Similarly, each and every one of us originated from a zygote, half a male and half a female genetic code. From that single cell ultimately manifested a fully developed and expressed human being. You are the expression of your original seed, just like the world is the expression of its original seed and root â the Torah. Thus, the world in which we live is an avenue to the spiritual; we can access the spiritual, transcendent world through the physical world because the two are intimately and intrinsically connected.
To relate to this concept, think of the way in which other human beings experience and understand you. All they can see of you is your physical body. They cannot see your thoughts, your consciousness, your emotions, or your soul. All they can see are your actions, words, facial expressions, and body language, i.e., the ways in which you express yourself within the world. They cannot see your inner world, but they can access it through the outer expressions that you project. The same is true regarding human beings trying to experience Hashem and the spiritual. We cannot see the spiritual; we cannot see what is ethereal and transcendent, only that which is physical. However, we can use the physical to access the spiritual; we can study the Torahâs expression in this world to understand its spiritual root.
The Gift of Torah
Hashem gave us the Torah in order to guide us on our spiritual journey in this world. Shavuot is therefore not a call to be transcendent, angelic beings, lofty and perfect, beyond the struggle innate within the human condition. This is not permission to deny our humanity and restrict our sense of self. This is a calling to be human, to be the ultimate human, to bring transcendence and spirituality into this world. We donât aim to escape this world; we aim to transform it. Kedusha is not transcendence or escapism, itâs marrying transcendence with the immanent. This is what Torah teaches us: how to uplift our physical experience and connect it to the spiritual. When implemented correctly, Torah enables us to uplift every aspect of our worldly experience to something higher, holier, and more meaningful.
This Shavuot
Our mission is to make this Shavuot the next step in our evolutionary spiral through time. We must not only reaccept what we have already accepted, we must take it to the next level, the next rung of the ladder. We do not simply remember, we build; we do not repeat, we ascend. May we be inspired to accept the Torah this Shavuot with all of our heart, commit to living a life of Torah truth, and endlessly pursue higher and deeper perceptions of the physical world as an expression of a spiritual reality.