Do you ever talk to people and feel like they are not really there?
Are you ever on the phone with someone and it sounds like the person may be distracted?
Did you ever find yourself with a family member or close friend and then feel like you didn't really connect or utilize the unique opportunity of having been together?
Nearly every experience and interaction in life has a body and a soul to it. A handshake for a deal, is not simply about the actual physical handshake, rather it is about the intent behind the shake. The gift of the flowers, is not about the flowers themselves, rather its about the sentiment behind the gift. The words of prayer are not the goal itself, rather it is about the thoughts and deep feelings that are beyond the words themselves.
Despite everything having a physical and deeper spiritual dimension and purpose, at times, we might find ourselves connecting more with the physical and external elements of these experiences and less connected with the deeper dimension of what each experience has to offer.
Life is busy and we are on the run most of the time, and the next meeting, errand, or car pool duty is calling, besides the phone calls, messages and of course the news updates.
Despite the phenomena appearing to be a modern day issue, the truth is that this an old and ancient issue that society and people have been dealing with.
The Sabbatical Year
Thousands of years ago, right before the Jews were about to enter the Land of Israel, they were given a unique commandment to observe, the Mitzvah of the Sabbatical Year. This Mitzvah would entail not working the land every seventh year and allowing the land to lay fallow.
The purpose wasn't to help regenerate the ground even if that was a side benefit, rather it was to remember that this land will have a rest to G-d. Obviously the land itself didn't need a rest, rather it was about the people who were working the land remembering the greater purpose of their life and existence, and what is the end goal of it all, and this was accomplished by them refraining from working the land in the seventh year.
This Mitzvah was considered a very difficult Mitzvah, which at times was very challenging for the people to uphold. Yet it's purpose and goal was profound, deep and extremely powerful.
Tellingly, the verse doesn't simply state, work for six years and then rest in the seventh year. Rather the verse starts out by saying, "you will rest in the seventh year" and then proceeds to explain how it will be done, by "working for six years and resting in the seventh".
In Chassidic thought it is explained, that by stating what to do in the seventh year, before we even talk about working in the other six years, the verse is teaching us, about what has to be at the core and focus, not just of the seventh year, but indeed throughout the other six years.
In other words, remembering the higher purpose of our existence and what we are here to accomplish, is not just something that is left for the seventh year, rather, it is something that we need to nurture and cultivate throughout the other six years too. Doing so, will uplift and improve the six years of work, long before we even get to the seventh year of rest.
In other words, we are called upon to find a way to live with meaning and being present of our purpose, even in the now, despite being in the thick of stress and hard work, and not just when we are relaxing on vacation or praying in the synagogue or have finally retired.
Learning to live, with keeping in mind the higher purpose and goals of our existence, can help us live more mindfully in our work relationships and activities on a day to day basis. It can enable us to be more present in the relationships, in the phone calls and in the one on one time that we spend with our friends, colleagues and family members, and indeed to weather the stress of life, in a much more resilient manner.
This year is a Sabbatical year and nearly 60% of privately owned farmland in Israel is laying fallow, as the owners observe this Mitzvah, which is costly and not easy. Their commitment reminds us of the idea that if there is a will there is way, and if farming is beyond making the next crop, but about providing for others and living for a higher purpose, then this becomes a way of life, not just in the seventh year, but also in the rest of the cycle too.
We may not be farmers of the land, but we are sowing the ground of humanity and the world, as we plant seeds, nurture souls and relationships, and seek to bring fruit and productivity to the world. Let us learn from these farmers, as to how to do our planting and farming with the higher purpose pulsating through our core and make sure that as a result our actions, conduct and presence always reflects that higher purpose.
Shabbat Shalom & Good Shabbos
Yisroel