A Meaningful Life

Meaningful Life – Meaningful Living:
A Parshas Bamidbar Pre-Shavuot Meditation
Visualize yourself in the desert, present with your family, with your tribe and with your people as Moshe Rabbeinu conducts the census. When it will be your turn to pass in front of Moshe Rabbeinu and his brother Aharon, the Kohen Gadol you contribute your half-shekel, and state your name and the name of your parents. Visualize yourself in the presence of the holiest and most humble person in the world- your Rebbe - Moshe Rabbeinu, the servant of Hashem. You feel elevated, you realize that you are unique and that you have a unique purpose in the world. You are now aware and can honestly say "the world was created for my sake."

But you don't feel haughty. Instead you feel exalted and humbled at the same time and you sincerely pray that Hashem will help you fulfill your purpose and mission.You also realize that every one else is also unique and that everyone has a special holy purpose in the world. You count no less than and no more than anyone else – Hashem desires every one of you and all of you.

Meditate on this and try to learn a lesson in humility. Learn how you too can make someone feel really important! Understand that only by your being fully present and your embracing every one else's presence, will the Shechinah dwell in our midst; and so be present and unite, sincerely and joyously with all your brothers and sisters.

The Torah teaches us that we must learn to respect and love each individual person. We must try to understand that when Hashem created the world He already 'dreamt' about the time that you and I would be living in it. We need to get in touch with Hashem's dream. We need to find out what Hashem dreamt about each one of us and live our lives to fulfill His dream. That is the ultimate of nobility.

The ultimate of nobility is to truthfully and humbly say 'THE WORLD WAS CREATED FOR MY SAKE'; to truthfully and humbly accept that there is noble purpose in my/your existence; to accept that that which I/you /are supposed to do cannot be done by someone else; to honestly accept that we must make every effort to accomplish our individual and collective purpose.

Hashem commanded Moshe to count the Children of Israel, to let each one know that in Hashem's eyes, the entire Creation is for my sake and your sake; that Hashem is mindful of me and you always, and is waiting for us to actualize our potential and fulfill our purpose and destiny.

According to the Jewish calendar it always works that we read parshat Bamidbar on the Shabbos before Shavuot, the holiday of the giving of the Torah. Shabbos is the headquarters of all that is holy and the holiness of the upcoming holiday begins to descend on the preceding Shabbos. A community is more than just a collection of individuals living in the same location and maybe even sharing similar beliefs. In the community that Hashem wants to dwell in, every individual person counts, and has their personal identity and unique place. Each individual is encouraged to contribute his or her real and unique talents to the community. Each individual welcomes and values and loves every other individual as well.

This is what we need to read in the Torah on the Shabbos before Shavuot. To receive the Torah, we have to receive it both as an individual and as a complete member of the community of Israel. To receive the holy Torah, we have to be one with each other and one with Hashem and one with the Torah.

May we be blessed that this parsha will stir our memories of living together and standing together 'as one person with one heart', ready to receive Hashem's Torah. May we be blessed that each letter of Torah will bring us together in stronger and closer bonds, that we respect each letter of Torah, that we respect each fellow Jewish neshamah, that we respect all of Hashem's creations and that we respect our relationships with family, friends, community, Hashem and ourselves
May we all merit the strength to stay awake for the first night of Shavuot, I will keep you in my heart as I hope that you will keep me in yours
Much emunah and ahavah~Elisheva Amaris Hannah Bat Sarah