Marriage Is Not About Two Halves Making A Whole

There must be some sort of error when translating that two halves make a whole is how marriage comes about, as is described in Cabala.  How about two wholes come together in a way that is mystically higher than if they were separate?  As, what about people that are adults whom have decided to go to rehab in order to put their life back together?  Many good counselors implore to their patients that before they find a romantic relationship, first they must improve their condition.  They are not yet half even, if marital partners may be considered halves!  Are these people in recovery mere quarters or fifths?  Certainly, we don’t call this person a quarter, or a fifth!  Also, Leah, Jacob’s wife was a wife in full to Jacob, assisting him, perhaps more than his loved wife in casting his seed to fruition.  As far as I know, the idea of rehab is somewhat new in history, and that its newness is probably reason for the translational error.

Live Like a Tree

 

 

Live Like a Tree

There are many paths to enlightenment. Kabbalah speaks of a tree of life. How do we find out how to live long? We study! We study first from our parents or our peers if we had no parents. When we are young we fumble about in life making many mistakes. However, if we are to be enlightened, then we should consider long life to be a virtue. It is important to respect our elders. This includes not only humans, but humans that have come before us. I suggest looking to a tree to discern the pathway to enlightenment.

We know of trees that they start out as seeds. In the same way, we start out as seeds, formed in our mother’s womb.

Trees grow from mud and the darkness. Their nourishment comes from the darkness, and their drinks are the waters given to them by G-d, waters which fall from the sky. It is not until we truly realize that there is a Force which guides us that we as humans need for guidance that we understand this. Let me illustrate. Quality control can make you be assured that most bottled water is good to drink. However, there is a Force, which we as humans should fear, which has the capacity to cause us to reach for the water in the bottle which is the right one for us. G-d works all things that the righteous do for good. And, trees are formed from mud. As Dave Mustaine puts it in one of his songs, “A dark black past is my most valued possession.” After all, it is the mud where we were planted that nourishes us for our entire lifetime before we were able to rise above the ground and seek the light that G-d gives us from the heavens.

Young trees are never thought much of when they are young. To make a child a star when they are young is to spoil them. Young trees grow up into the forest while they are young. Then, maybe someday they will be at the top of the canopy.

There is a struggle to get to the top of the canopy. There are many other competitors in the forest, which ensure that only the best make it to the top. Sure some trees have it easier than others, but this is of no matter, as the true kings of the forest will remain forever tucked away, hidden. Occasionally, the forest may reveal a superstar to its lesser though. However, some trees go for thousands of years completely unnoticed. And, it is true that when a king gets noticed, it must be that he is near the end of his/her grandeur. Trees can’t run away, and neither can superstars. They are surrounded. They need the rest of the forest to hide them from the vile.

Trees are made of wood. Wood is hard. They are built to last. In their prime, which may last a few hundred years, they are healthy and strong. They need not move out of the way. They were hidden when they were young, and when they were recognized they have the strength of wood. They have a long line of impenetrable ancestry that made them they way they are, selecting for protective strength. Though they might blow a little in the wind, trees are very robust indeed.

Trees have many leaves. Their leaves are as their wisdom, by which they study the sun’s light. In the same way, true wisdom is as the light of G-d. It is by their wisdom that a tree gets its energy. And, they grow toward the light with the understanding that as they reach toward the heavens to live they will need light. Thus, it is that though the trials of winds may bend a tree, it is the light which determines the direction by which they grow.

In summary, if you want to live as long as your peers, then ask your peers. However, if you want to live as long as a tree, then ask the tree!

Kabbalah Pay Scale Idea

Kabbalah Pay Scale Idea

by Craig Hamilton on Saturday, April 30, 2011 at 8:49pm

Kabbalah Pay Scale Idea

1. The top 1/6 of people who are gifted and talented should subtract from the payment of the bottom 1/6 of the world, such that the bottom 1/6 do not receive an equal share as them. This is only fair.
2. The bottom 1/6 of people that are behind should not receive an equal amount of money as the upper 1/6 of the population, the gifted and talented. This should foster an attitude of competition for the middle 2/3 and the bottom 1/6 of the population of the world to compete for money and/or goods.
3. If one is not a gentile and is gifted and talented, then he/she should give a tithe of roughly 1/10 to the needy, which should not be confused with the 1/10 that is given to priests and the 1/10 that is contributed to the building that the priest operates. In the era of globalization, these people might live anywhere in the world. Thus, it is that the top 1/6 of the people should never have more than 7/30 of the money in the world. 1/6 +1/6 – 1/10 = 7/30. That is, 16.667% of the people should not have more than 23.333% of the money. However, some should make receive more payment than others in this category.
4. Being a priest and being a teacher are not synonymous. Optimally, it is the priests that should have the most money, and they should make up roughly 23,000/601,730 of the population (Numbers 26:51, 26:62) or 3.8223% of those that observe Shabbat. In a nutshell, the laws of Shabbat are:
   1. Not to travel on Shabbat outside the limits of one's place of residence (Ex. 16:29)
   2. To sanctify Shabbat (Ex. 20:8) (required of males only)
   3. Not to do work on Shabbat (Ex. 20:10)
   4. To rest on Shabbat (Ex. 23:12; 34:21) (required of males only)
   5. Not to inflict punishment on Shabbat (Ex. 35:3)
   6. To set the showbread and the frankincense before the L-rd every Shabbat (Ex. 25:30) (required of males only on Shabbat)
   7. To offer up an additional sacrifice every Shabbat (two lambs) (Num. 28:9) (required of males only)
5. The 2/3 of the world that compromises the majority of people, those whom never excel at anything should receive 2/3 of the rewards in payment through either money and/or goods. In an era of globalization, those people might live anywhere in the world. This is not to say that 2/3 of the world’s people do not improve.
6. Based upon a six dimensional world idea, most folk go in the four cardinal directions. They make up 4/6 of the dimensions and 2/3 of the world, as 4/6 is equal to 2/3. 1/6 rise to the heavens in their pursuits. The last 1/6 heads to their graves, beneath the surface of the earth. Thus, so it should be with pay scales.
7. The 1/6 of the population that is needy is not required tithe to the poor. However, they must tithe to a priest, but have no need to contribute to a priest’s building.