CHOCHMAS NASHIM: THE BLESSING OF TRANQUILITY
By: Suri Davis
I have started a new shiur on Shaar Habitachon/Gates of Trust, which meets every Wednesday evening via Zoom for a half hour. This week, we started discussion on the Five Benefits of Bitachon which help us spiritually, and Five Benefits of Bitachon which help us spiritually. The first benefitting of trusting in G-d is Tranquility.
Before discussing trust in G-d, we discussed how each one of us determined that there is a G-d in whom to trust, our own experiences. Then we differentiated between faith in G-d and trust in G-d, Emunah v. Bitachon.
In this week’s torah portion, we discuss trust in G-d, trust that when we follow G-d’s mandate of permitting the soil to lie fallow, or go unworked every 7th year and every 50th year, that G-d would ensure that He would provide for us during this period of time. G-d has created a process of building trust in us. First, every 7th day of the week, we rest, and we are provided for during that 7th day.
When we have holidays, there could be multiple days which we don’t work, and G-d provides for us. For those in agriculture in Israel, every seventh year, they rest the land, and there is sufficient produce for the land of Israel. Each day we rest as commanded by G-d, each day we take our hands off the proverbial car steering wheel and it continues to move forward with G-d as the clear driver, we learn about trusting G-d will provide for us.
Until we reach the apex of the biblical Jubilee year, that 50th year, where we have to trust G-d will provide for us three years in a row, and when we merit it, G-d reveals in all His glory who truly runs the world. If this is so, then why should man work at all? Welcome to the world of Shaar Habitachon, which takes the seed/core concept of trust in G-d which is in our daily lives as revealed by Jewish law, and reveals the process of building trust in G-d in modern times, and to incorporate trust in G-d in our souls and our daily lives. It is fascinating and a great challenge.
Brilliantly, Rabbi Bachya Ibn Pakuda begins his book revealing the benefits of incorporating trust in G-d in our lives, and the first reason is to bring tranquility into our lives. He defines tranquility in eight steps, and builds slowly his concept of trust in G-d in a real sense in our lives.
Where does trust start, in the womb. A fetus trusts that the mother carrying him will provide for all his needs, and when he is born, he has to trust more, because he is no longer in the womb, where he was sustained 24 hours a day. As time passes, he knows he can trust that his mother will provide for his security and food and shelter and all his needs. And not only his needs, but where possible, his wants as well. There is a balance where the parent gives, as long as the parent isn’t creating an entitled child who feels he deserves everything without toil and without gratitude. So too G-d.
In the desert for 40 years, we were in the womb, where G-d provided for us all that we needed without input on our part other than following his laws and showing gratitude during the holidays by resting and bringing sacrifices of thanks and as part of our livestock and produce, which was revealed that we understood that our bounty came from G-d.
And when we follow G-d’s law and show trust in Him by permitting the land to rest, G-d promises us that we live on His land lavetach/with tranquility and security.
IYH BN I hope to upload the classes to some social media platform. Stay tuned.
AND appreciate your mother on Mother’s Day, she was your everything for nine months and beyond.
Shabbat Shalom.
-Suri