Even though it sounds like a contradiction, the reality is that our possessions are only ours to the extent that we give them away.
With this article/dvar titled, “Mo Money Mo Problems, Mo Charity Mo Peace”, I dive into the kabbalistic powers of charity, a lesson from the Middle Ages of a Sultan and a great Torah Sage, and share a story of a royal family that ruled a small kingdom (in what is now Iraq), and ultimately converted to Judaism. The son of this period, King Munbaz, became the king of Adiabene at the end of the Second Temple period.
At some point in life, we all learn that money comes and goes; you can be up one day and down the next. It’s all in the hands of Hashem. So the deeper way to conceive of money in our lives is that you only own that which you give away, as it says in Mishlei (Proverbs), “There is one who gives generously yet ends with more.” This means that by focusing on what you can give instead of what you can receive, you actually turn yourself into a vessel for receiving. This is all seen through the power and kabbalah of tzedakah (charity).
In this parashah of Re’eh, we read: “כִּֽי־יִהְיֶה֩ בְךָ֨ אֶבְי֜וֹן … לֹ֧א תְאַמֵּ֣ץ אֶת־לְבָבְךָ֗ וְלֹ֤א תִקְפֹּץ֙ אֶת־יָ֣דְךָ֔ מֵאָחִ֖יךָ הָאֶבְיֽוֹן. כִּֽי־פָתֹ֧חַ תִּפְתַּ֛ח אֶת־יָדְךָ֖ ל֑וֹ” // “When there will be a poor person amongst you.. do not tighten your heart and do not close up your hand in front of your poor brother. Rather, open your hand to him…”
In last week’s Dvar, we covered the Arizal’s teaching that Creation came about because Hashem has a fundamental desire to give. Therefore, the natural state of being is one in which chesed— the bounteous and unlimited influx of Hashem’s kindness– flows freely into the world, unhampered by either sin or dinim (judgment). We, nevertheless, find ourselves in a world that is not completely chesed, because part of Hashem’s desire is to give us the opportunity to sweeten judgment (Hamtakat Hadinim) with tzedakah, to transform dinim into chesed ourselves, emulating God in His ability to give to others.
**** Read the full article & dive deeper into this and other lessons in my book “Light of the Infinite” available @ www.lightofinfinite.com
DIVE DEEPER: 𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚌𝚔 𝚒𝚝 𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚢 𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔, ‘𝙴𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝙸𝚕𝚕𝚞𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗.’ Get your copy on @Amazon, or read it online @ https://lightofinfinite.com/mo-money-mo-problems-mo-charity-mo-peace/
Thanks for reading/listening!
Much love & Shabbat Shalom!
– Erez // @erezsafar
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