A. The book of Deuteronomy is considered the farewell and concluding speech of Moses. Sometimes these are speeches of rebuke and educational criticism, sometimes they will be motivational and encouraging talks. Motivational talks, drive and encouragement talks, when they are meaningful and delivered by a person who specializes in this, charismatic and worthy, they can work for the better and lead to positive results. This can be seen clearly, for example, in the fields of sports, education, the military and politics. A successful motivational speech engages its listeners, instills in them confidence, a sense of competence and rest of mind, and helps them to invest the most of their resources in order to achieve the goal. Sometimes, it is precisely such a conversation, and not technological, economic, social, physiological or topographical advantages, that gives the hearer the belief in the possibility of success, and the strength to embark on the complex and challenging journey.
on. “And it happened that Shimon followed these judgments, and you kept and did them, and the Lord your God kept the covenant and the kindness that he swore to your fathers. And I loved you, and blessed you, and comforted you“, this is how Parshat Aqab opens – the third parshah in the book of Deuteronomy. There are two main interpretations of the above verses. One, which we will focus on, is found in the words of Rashi: “if [את] You will obey the light commandments that a person followed, he will keep his promise to you“. Another interpretation, as brought by the Ramban, focuses on the issue of “the purpose” – the reward and the punishment for the future. And his words: “Taam Eqab – pay later“Acob” as Rashi writes, are the daily mitzvot or actions. Those that may be considered trivial, and on the face of it lack luster and shine – a commandment without ratings. But, as we will see, performing these “boring” actions are a real challenge, and through them you can also test a person’s mental strength, willpower and ability to persevere.
third. In a way that seems unusual on the face of it, Rabbi Yosef Caro chose to address, in the opening of his monumental book – “The Shulchan Aruch”, a daily and seemingly marginal matter: the proper way for a person to wake up in the morning – every morning, casual, ordinary and routine. And so he wrote:That’s why man needs to overcome himself as a warrior to stand up in the morning for the work of his Creator, and even if our creation is in the winter to say – how will you get up in the morning because the cold is great, or if we are in the summer to say – how will you get up from your bed and you are still not satisfied from your sleep? Get over him to get up! May you be the waker of the dawn and may he not be your waker“.
d. Rabbi Yosef Karo’s choice to open his mighty enterprise – “The Shulchan Aruch”, in words of encouragement for the dawning of the morning, needs to be studied. He does not mention such words of encouragement in relation to unique and “prestigious” commandments such as ransoming captives, honoring parents, charity, hospitality, etc. There is no need for persuasive talks for the special tasks, for the activities that give the performer the honor of winners, where the spiritual and social profit is clear and immediate. In order to get on the podium at the Olympics and receive the gold medal, you don’t need extraordinary mental resources. But to start the path, the initial step and after that to maintain a lifestyle of perseverance and constant improvement in the “heel” examination, for this a huge investment of energy is necessary. For this, the “heel” must be connected to the “Tishmon”, the matters that the person “stalked on his heels” to a spiritual and value consciousness. That is why Rabbi Yosef Karo considered it appropriate to place at the foundation of his halachic book and above all the secret of perseverance and the principle of man overcoming himself.
the. “Set out every day on a war journey even against yourself“, so wrote the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. This is not about masochism, or an internal and violent mental conflict. At the bottom of things, it means that man must overcome himself, his fixative consciousness, overcome his negative habits and “buy” proper values.Man is something to be overcome“, he wrote in another place. It is not easy, because it requires having, what can be called: “Aqab” consciousness – persistence and investment in creating a proper lifestyle and a spiritually, mentally and physically healthy routine over time. However, the acquired ability of being able to “win” yourself, and control your consciousness, gives a person the possibility and choice to shape his life actively, and as Nietzsche points out:I controlled myself, I got my health back“. Next to these words, Nietzsche emphasized, perhaps as a precondition, the need for optimism: “I stopped being a pessimist: a rehabilitative instinct forbade me a philosophy of poverty and a crippled spirit“.
and. The international running coach, DAVID GOGGINGS, repeatedly repeats his claim that the most difficult action to perform, and the most influential, is the daily one. Self-improvement and going to regular training, in all seasons of the year – on days when your spirit is down as well as on days when your spirit is uplifted, is what paves the way for improvement. Goggins’ life story is all about overcoming. He was born into a poor family, his father beat him in his youth, he didn’t do well in school – neither academically nor socially, he began to stutter, was overweight, and was the object of abuse and racism. Around the age of twenty, something changed. He decided to change the vector of his life. Despite his poor physical fitness, despite his fear of deep water, and against all odds, he applied to be accepted into the “Sea Lions” – the elite unit of the US Army. He started an extremely tough training routine, and no less – self-motivational talks. He shed fifty kilos Because of his weight, and after many hardships and failures, he was accepted into the unit, and along the way he broke almost every possible record in the field of ultra-marathon and other sports, including the Guinness record And in the motivational talks he holds, he repeats a central principle that stands before his eyes: a tough routine without excuses, or as Nietzsche’s well-known phrase: “What doesn’t kill – forges.” Goggins, devoid of manners and politically correct, explains from his experience that precisely the routine that seems to be Sisyphean, The consciousness of the “heel”, and the ability to succeed and maintain consistency and persistence, especially when you don’t feel like it and especially in daily conduct, are the ones that lead to results.
G. As we have seen, one of the characteristics of self-improvement and of “heel” consciousness is its infinity, being a continuous routine. In his book “The Holiness of the Levi”, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev captures the life of the spirit and the mind for never-ending mountain climbing – peak after peak after peak: “Every time you achieve, you know that there is another achievement above this to infinityAnd in the words of Rabbi Nachman, progress which is “Mati and not Mati […] That is, what comes and doesn’t comeThat is why Rabbi Nachman of Breslav states:Because the main thing is the beginning, because all beginnings are difficult…, therefore you have to start over every time“. This type of dialectic is existential in its essence. Although the infinity of the road does not ionize the very existence of the destination, the existential emphasis is placed mainly on the path to the destination, and not only on reaching it.
H. “We walk from troop to troop, from dark light to brighter light, and our walking is mostly slow“, Rabbi Kook wrote. Such conduct, of constant and incessant training, may exhaust the spirit. In capitalist and Western terms, it may even be perceived as ‘unprofitable’, and certainly does not lead to perfection. But in the deepest sense, Rabbi Kook claims, the idea of ”The ceaseless ascension is the inner foundation of reality“. The world as a whole operates in a way of constant education. Like man, he improves slowly but is not complete. Therefore, as he says full of motivation and encouragement: “Let not our hearts fall among us, if after many years of toil, we find ourselves standing at the beginning of the demand for those contents that we were so concerned with and surrounded their center…, after all this we know that our labor was not in vain, and our spirit made great wealth with its labor, and the following darkness For us, after many long journeys, it comes only to instruct us in a paved way of life, that we will always, even until old age and return, stand armed with our spiritual powers to work and carry, and that we will never say that we have already fulfilled the law, because not reaching some known level is our general goal , because if you ascend and always go up and down“.
Dr. Roi Cohen is a Doctor of Philosophy from the Hebrew University, an attorney and mediator, producer, director and content creator.
