Levels of Soul
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Yechida Universal Soul- yearning to love Hashem
Chaya Collective Soul- sense of self transcendence
Neshama Meaningful Thought- sense of an ideal
Ruach Meaningful Speech- sense of truth
Nefesh Meaningful Action- sense of good and bad
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Animalistic Soul Life Force-consciousness of needs for survival
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(^read from the bottom up^)
In this chapter, there is a lot of technical stuff- terminology, etc. Some of the lines drawn between one level of soul and the next, to me, are very fuzzy. I might actually have put some of the levels together, like meaningful action and meaningful speech. This chapter isn't really concrete, and I have to be honest and say that I didn't really get into it. However, I will try to give you the basic ideas. The problem is, that involves a lot of quotes.....
Level 1
"The Kabbalah tells us that, of the 5 levels of the soul, the first 3 can be understood as degrees of light that enter our bodies. The last 2 levels of soul can be understood as light that encompasses us. The soul is both an inner light- immanent- and an outer, encompassing light- transcendent. The first level of soul, called nefesh, gives you an intuitive knowledge that you could not get from the external world. This kind of knowledge feels very deep and very real, as something that you know from inside yourself. You intuit that your actions can be meaningful. If someone said to you, 'Show me meaning. Pick it up. Put it in a box,' you wouldn't be able to do it. And yet you are sure that when you give money to a needy person that this act of charity is meaningful. How do you know that? How can you prove it? You can't put your action under a microscope and examine it physically. But that doesn't matter to you personally, because you experienced what you did as meaningful. You know this from inside yourself. So your nefesh gives you the sense that your actions can be meaningful. And not only that, it also gives you the sense that your actions should be meaningful."
Now, people can take this and say that most of our lives are not meaningful. We aren't building homes for the homeless, we aren't on our knees 24/7 praying, we aren't donating bone marrow on the weekend, etc. I would tend to disagree. There is always meaning. You just have to look for it.
Take factory work. One person doing the same thing over and over and over and over and... all day. One might say, "That is not meaningful work. How can he do that day after day?" They could ask him, and be surprised by his response. He's putting food on the table for his family. He's making a living, he's actually working hard. Providing is meaningful. And go the other way; if he's working on a car assembly line, and doesn't do his job properly, there could be a problem serious enough with the car that the owner could get into a crash. If you don't do what you know to be your job, it affects other people. And that is nefesh to me. A chain reaction. Do something good, affect a life in a positive way, and you are an example the receiver will carry. Same goes the other way. And just look at the case with the car. You can apply that to almost everything.
"To toil without meaning, to lead a life without meaning, is the greatest torture you can endure because it attacks the soul, not just the body. A human being cannot live this way. He will lose his will to live; he will get sick and die. Or he will obliterate his feelings with drugs and alcohol. Or he will struggle to break away to find something that gives him even a shred of meaning."
( Prisoners, according to the author, are told to do meaningless work. Dig a hole and fill it. Move rocks from here to there. I never knew that. I wonder if it bothers them.)
"In addition to meaning, the nefesh gives us an awareness of good and bad. It makes us want to feel that we are good... And if we should do something that is bad, then the nefesh demands that we justify our actions. That is why we search so hard for motivation behind the acts of criminals. How could he have murdered his father? It must have been in self defense. Or he was on drugs and didn't know what he was doing. Or he was insane. An act that seems to have no justification we tend to label as irrational."
I don't do this with criminals. I wonder why, and then see there was no good reason. There was no good 'why'. I was part of a team at school, in my American Government class, to reinstate the death penalty. So many get away with pleading insanity, or are given shorter terms, etc. And we wonder why we have repeat offenders. I do this, though, with people I am close to. Those people, I want to find a way to make better. They did this? Well it's because of this in their childhood, they're going through hard times, they were pressured, they were trying to impress this person, etc. The truth is, some people don't think. And none of us think all the time. Beware of your actions when your decision making skills aren't at their peak.
Level 2
"Ruach gives us a sense of truth... And with the sense of truth comes a feeling that words can convey this truth, whatever it is. This goes along with the idea that just as our actions have meaning, so our words have meaning. ... Did you ever wonder why a magician, just before he pulls a rabbit from an empty hat, says, 'Abracadabra'? Abra Kadavra is Hebrew, and it means 'I will create with words.' Hocus pocus' is pseudo-Latin for the same thing."
I believe this is self-explanatory. Look at all great leaders throughout history. Count how many speeches they gave. When you are accused of something, is your first reaction to defeat this accusation with how you act, or is it to defend yourself with your words?
Level 3
"At age 20, according to Kabbalah, we reach the level called neshama, and the neshama knows there is meaning not just in good and bad actions, and words, but in thought, although abstract. When we connect to the neshama, we begin to recognize the value of ideas and ideals. The Midrash says that before the neshama comes into the world, it's taken to the Garden of Eden and shown the rewards of performing it's mission. It then takes an oath that it's going to be the best it can be. So we come into this world with a sense of mission- an ideal self to strive for. This is why simply doing the right thing and avoiding the wrong thing doesn't satisfy us. We want to do more than just what is right. We want to understand our unique role in this world."
I believe I reached this level before 20, and I think a lot of others did/do. It may be because we're in a time where 'deep thoughts' are appreciated and recognized and popular. I remember saying something to someone, and that person saying, "Wow, that's so deep. Did you think of that yourself?" What I had said, to me, was just common sense. Maybe I just used big words...? Anyway, the point is, your thoughts carry an influence. They influence your actions. Your words. Think on righteous things, and you will be led to commit righteous deeds. Think selflessly, and you will be selfless. Think on worldly things, like facebook, a new car, your appearance, and you will eventually place more value on these things than you should.
"We might also say that besides the recognition of the value of ideas and ideals and the yearning for purity, the neshama is the awareness that we are entitled to happiness in this world. Happiness comes when we are in step, in sync, with who we are supposed to be. The neshama knows that I am special, I have a unique calling, and I can be fulfilled and happy by being who I am supposed to be. I am not an accident. I was created with purpose by a Creator who intended me to be. I have meaning because I was meant to be."
Level 4
"The nefesh, the ruach, and the neshama are the 3 levels of soul known as inner lights, as the Kabbalah says. They illustrate our path from within, each to a greater degree. they are levels of consciousness about ourselves and the world, about Hashem. The next 2 levels of soul can be understood as outer lights. They encompass us. And to reach these higher levels, you really have to climb the ladder of yourself. The next level of soul is called chaya. Chaya is the collective soul. In this way you experience your individual self within the context of the collective self of your people. Because of chaya, you feel a need to love and be loved, to belong. Chaya generates the yearning to be a part of a greater community, the realization that as an individual, I really have no meaning unless I belong to a larger whole."
Again, I didn't really get into this chapter, and part of the reason was because we have already discussed some of these things. How we are all connected, how our actions have consequences, how you can be an example either way, etc. I understand why the author is teaching it, and perhaps that he is trying to reinforce the other concepts covered, to connect them all. That's great. But I'm not going to rewrite the concepts week after week. :P
Now, take a different look at it. Another reason the author may be teaching this chapter is to show that the concepts taught already are things we are driven about/towards because of these levels of our selves, of our souls. If that is the case, I can get through the rest of this chapter with greater interest.
Level 5
"The next level of soul is yechida, which is a sense of identification with the ultimate, the Universal Soul. Only the first human beings had this sense- before they were thrown out of the Garden of Eden. ...Yechida yearns to love Hashem as we are commanded, with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our might. ...We yearn to pulse withe the rhythm of Hashem. The soul cries out to bond with the All in All. And yet, despite this call of the soul, most seem to have a hard time hearing it. Why? Because the ego sends a lot of interference. The ego gives the self the false sense of independence, severed from any greater context, like the tuba player who wants to play solo. The key is self awareness- understanding who is the real you."
I see this level and level 3 as connecting more than the others. You have to understand who you are, place enough importance on yourself to give yourself meaning and purpose, and then you have to attain perspective. You have to see that though you are special, unique, etc., it is only because of Someone bigger than you. Realize who you are, and then WHERE you are. A friend of mine once said something about humility: Humility is only taking up as much space as you're supposed to. Don't put yourself down, don't degrade yourself and think less of who you are than you should. But don't try to be bigger than you are. Don't build a tower to the skies, riding on your ego. Know who you are, and recognize the space you take up with yourself. Is it too small? Is it too big?
Questions
1. What activities in your daily life do you consider meaningful? What makes them so?
Talking to Aaron- because I am building more of a relationship, growing close, learning more. Talking to my family- keeping informed and inside of my family's life makes me feel connected to a bigger picture. I also look to encourage and guide my siblings when I can. Practicing the piano- it pleases others when I play, so I want to play well. Working out- not taking health and strength for granted, and not wanting to be a burden in the future to my family and/or kids. Praying for Mr. Wells- to think of others in a selfless way, to be concerned because it affects someone you love, is very meaningful. Praying when I drive- I'm reminding myself that I am not only in my hands, and reminding Yahweh at the same time! ;) Praying for Aaron- I am devoting time to him even when he doesn't know it, voicing concerns on his behalf, praying for his day, for his rest, for his spirit. Going the extra mile, being cheerful when at work or out of the house- because to brighten someone's mood for only a moment is wonderful to me.
4. Can you identify a cause or ideal that you would be willing to sacrifice your life for? If so, why?
Family. I would die for any member of my family. For any member of Aaron's family. For any member of the LeCronier family. For lots of families. Because I could do a few things. 1. Save a life 2. Save others from a stronger grief 3. Let someone else reach their potential.
Family is a cause, one I believe in wholeheartedly. One that I see suffer almost daily at my job. And it saddens me to witness the ignored child, the depressed mother, the beaten-down father. Because it's a cycle. You generally raise your kids as you were raised. 'You marry your father'. Etc. If all strong families were wiped out, I honestly think it would be then that the world would truly be done.
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