Heart and Soul

ואהבת את ה בכל לבבך
And you shall love G-d with all your heart and with your every breath and with all your excess.
ולא תתרו אחרי לבבכם ואחרי עיניכם
And you shall not turn after your hearts and after your eyes following which you lust.

I am struck by a contrast presented in the use of the word 'heart' in these two verses. In the first the heart is a tool of devotion to G-d, in the second it is a seducer drawing the devotional away. These two verses then present a dichotomy of the heart's role within the life of man. What is the true character of the heart and how is it to be discovered?

The heart plays a major role not only in Biblical metaphor, but in modern idealism as well. Following a tradition whose endurance would be difficult to determine, the heart is generally considered to be the seat of emotion within the human self, and often intuition is attributed to it as well. In this role it has been perceived positively within western culture as demonstrated by such phrases as 'follow your heart',  and it's inclusion in many songs about love and fulfillment such as 'a dream is a wish your heart makes', 'when you wish upon a star...anything your heart desires will come to you', and many others.

The Torah, however, disagrees with this adage and exhorts us not to follow our hearts, but to be wary of their leading us astray. Evidently the judgement of the heart is not to be trusted. Yet the same unreliable heart is called upon to be the the primary vehicle of our service to G-d! It seems that at times the heart must be trusted and followed, but only when it draws one into Godly devotion, rather than away from it.

So what distinguishes these two hearts from one another?
When Maimonides refers to the heart, he uses it to recall man's intellectual capacity. We are used to thinking of our intellect, intuition, and emotion as separate; a separation reinforced by the employment of separate terms to describe our thoughts in each. We keeps our minds and our hearts and our guts distinct. Yet, the Bible never refers to people thinking with their heads or their guts, only their hearts. The heart is a term inclusive of all human metaphysical experience.

Service of G-d is performed with all your heart, because it is the only thing that can encompass your entire heart, for your heart is your entire being. The heart is the agent which pumps blood, which was considered to be the dwelling of the soul, throughout the body. The heart is thus the very life-force itself. It encompasses no single aspect of man's being but the totality of his emotional, intellectual, spiritual, in short- intangible self. No other service,  no performance can engage all of man's senses as does dedication to G-d. Love of G-d converts academic pursuits into emotional ones, emotional pursuits into spiritual ones.

Yes, the heart is complex, and so must our treatment of it be, sometimes following sometimes eschewing, but never quite devoting ourselves to it or severing from its influence.

11 Shevat 5773

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwQon45bm9k

Pursuit of Happiness

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.
-- Thomas Jefferson

In the immortal words of America's founding fathers happiness is equated with life and liberty. Preservation of our right to pursue it is declared to be the purpose of government. Losing it is justification for treason.
The importance of happiness is one that has remained and become deeply entrenched in American culture.
We began by assuming it as a fundamental human right and it has become the very purpose of life.
This wouldn't be so bad if it were a universal happiness that we sought, but it is not. Each man is endowed with the unalienable right to pursue his own happiness. He does not measure the value of his own life by the happiness of others.

Why is happiness the standard according to which we measure the value of our lives? It is really a selfish standard. It is one that views the individual as a solitary unit devoid of any commitments to others. One who seeks happiness seeks primarily his own comfort.
How can loss of happiness justify treason? Recall that treason is betrayal of your fellow co-nationalist and betrayal of the people whose history bore you. It is not an act directed so much toward a government as toward a people. Notwithstanding, your personal happiness is more important than the collective struggles of the countless tens of thousands you leave behind in your pursuit of it.

Perhaps we ought to consider the pursuit of something else instead. The pursuit of loyalty, perhaps, or honesty, or responsibility. The Bible tells us "Jusitce, justice you shall pursue" (Deuteronomy 16:20). We are not told to pursue truth, but we are told "from a false matter distance thyself," (Exodus 23:7) and by distancing from falsehood it may be supposed that greater nearness to truth must be attained. Why do we not pursue peace or harmony?

I have no great complaint against happiness. I think it to be a wonderful, comfortable and empowering thing, when appropriately attained and managed.
But the idolization of that for which many men have sacrificed so greatly in their morals can lead to little ultimate good.
I, for one, would rather be true than happy.

24 Nissan 5773