The Kabbalah Kronicles IV- Gurus & Middlemen
By
Uncle Zally, Zalman Velvel
It’s Sunday morning and I’m preparing for my second session of Kabbalistic prayer and meditation. My first session ended with the message, “Send these articles to Gil Locks.” I thought, that might really be from God, because it was such a total surprise. God likes surprises … doesn’t He? Rabbi Itchy said to pray first thing every morning, to give God the best part of my day. Itchy added, “He deserves it, doesn’t He?” Who was i to argue with Him?
I put on my tefillin and tallus, grabbed my fresh brewed coffee in my insulated Starbucks cup, and opened the side door to my house. My little dachshund, Peanut, then rushed out and barked at imaginary possums and raccoons. Peanut is the perfect writer’s dog because he is content to sit at my feet and sleep, for hours at a time, while I sit in front of my word processor, for hours at a time.
I went outside, walked around our pond and began my opening prayers. When I pray, it helps to see God’s creations: trees starting to bud, grass growing lush and green, fruit sprouting, birds calling to each other …
my children and grandchildren nestled warmly in their homes.
I begin with three simple prayers, in Hebrew:
1- I tell God I love Him
2- I thank Him for my blessings AND my problems, and
3- I thank Him for the greatest gift of all – life.
Now, because of what we learned in our last Kabbalah Klass, I proceeded to empty my mind, but I was distracted by a noise. I looked up and there was a squirrel looking down. He studied me, decided I wasn’t a big acorn, and then jumped from tree to tree, like an acrobat. I looked down at Peanut, who was lifting his leg and anointing as many trees as possible. Then I started laughing … at myself. I was laughing because Peanut and the squirrel also had free will and they looked content with their lives, they didn’t labor over decisions like I did. Their choices were simple, what to do in the next second, not the next days, months, and years, like me. They were concerned with what tree branch to jump to, or which tree trunk to mark. They were not concerned with adding more meaning to a human life that was just one of seven billion human lives on the planet.
That being said, I decided I still wanted to be one of seven billion human beings, rather than a bushy squirrel or a little brown dachshund.Finally, I emptied my mind and concentrated on praying. What happened last night came to mind. Why? Because around midnight, after I finished writing Kabbalah Kronicles, I did not want to obey the message in my prayers and send it to Gil. I just knew whatever Gil did next was going to annoy me. As I moved the mouse to turn off the computer … an email came through … it was from … guess who?
No, not God. God doesn’t need email. It was from Gil Locks. I’m on his blog list. I took the email as a heavenly sign, and sent him my articles, quickly, without thinking. Then I read Gil’s blog. Another surprise. Gil does not run from serious religious questions, that’s one of the things I admire about him … when he’s not annoying me. The question he was dealing with in his blog was “Why did God make man?”
The answer in the Talmud, provided by some of the wisest men who ever lived was, “God had a desire to do this.” How is that an answer? What kind of desire did God have? None given.
So I made up my own answer.
The answer to why God made people is basic; when you understand why God made us, then you can live a life that pleases God, arouse his love for you, and grow closer to Him.
My answer to this basic question has made rabbis roll their eyes and scoff at me, at my boldness, even arrogance, to tackle the question, when greater minds had tackled it before me.
Well, Gil answered the same way I believe, that God made us because He wanted to express his love. God made the angels before us, and angels are like robots – they do what they are ordered to do, and nothing more. The angel/God relationship was not satisfying. So God made us, and He gave us the free will to love Him back, or ignore Him completely. I have only heard that explanation from one other human being – Gil Locks. I found a kindred spirit. No wonder we annoy each other.If any of you are looking to meet a one-of-a-kind character, someone who labors to be holy, and honest, go to the Western Wall, the Kotel and seek him out. Put on tfillin with him. Join him in the Netz prayer minion, a holy group, at the holiest place on earth, as the sun comes up, the holiest time of day.
If it is Shabbos, go home with him and eat one his huge veggie sandwiches. If you have any questions about religion, ask him. He is knowledgeable on Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, and Judaism. Be prepared for the truth as best he knows it. If you want to receive his blog, email him at gutman1@013.net and he will send it to you.
While you are with Gil, give him a hug, and tell him a joke. Say the hug and the laugh are from Zalman Velvel. When someone is as bold as Gil is, asking thousands of complete strangers to put on tfillin, and brave the rejection that follows, he deserves a warm hug and a laugh.
It is also because of Gil that I am going to modify how I access God through prayer and meditation.
I will not ask another human being whether an answer I receive in prayer was really from God, or just brain noise. If I am looking for a deeper relationship with God, it does not make sense to let another human being, with his or her own personal agenda, in on the process. Whom do I worship? If I am unsure of a message I get in prayer, can’t I just go back to God, again, and again, and ask for confirmation? If I do or don’t get confirmation, then isn’t that a sign, also?
We Jews are known for wanting the best deal, avoiding the middleman, and going direct to the manufacturer. Should we be any different with our prayers to the One True Living God?
Next week, I am going to discuss how Kabbalistic prayers are starting to scare me.
