At the recent wedding of my nephew, I remarked to his father, my youngest brother, how I noticed he shed quite a few pounds since the last time I saw him. With admiration I inquired about which 'diet' plan he chose to accomplish this feat in a relatively short time. Playing it down, he revealed to me a novel idea he came to on his own. He decided he would only eat when he was truly hungry!
The notion struck me instantly. He was so right! We grab food out of convenience, or simply to excite our taste buds. If we only eat when we must, we will easily reconquer our health.
After my amazement at discovering this evident truth, I realized that within it lies our greatest attribute as a Heilige Yid.
We pray three times a day - You are holy, and Your Name is holy, וקדושים — and holy ones, בכל יום יהללוך סלה — praise You every day, forever.
This third blessing of the Amidah, known as Kedusha, follows that of Avos — where we mention our privilege of praying to the G-d of our Patriarchs, and Gevuros — where we acknowledge G-d's might.
The first two are certainly relevant in the context of prayer for it is in the merit of our forefathers that we became worthy of G-d's pledge to them to utilize His ultimate 'power' to provide for the promises made to them. But how is our assertion of G-d's unfathomable holiness relevant to prayer?
The famed commentary on Tefillah authored by 14th century sage, Rabbi David Abudraham, asserts that the 'holy ones' who praise you daily, are not referring to angels, but to us. We are the holy ones who are told by G-d, קדושים תהיו — You shall be holy, כי —because, קדוש אני — I am holy, having placed a holy spark of my own kedushah, the tzelem Elokim in you!
So, in essence by stating the 'holy ones' praise you, meaning ourselves, it is essentially reaffirming G-d's holiness that our kedushah stems from.
We are still left with the question as to how this fact weighs in to our prayers.
Sixteen years ago, I wrote the following in the bulletin.
קדושים תהיו — You shall be 'holy'! Is this within the reach and expectation of everyone?
What is this holiness? Is it a feeling, a status, a state of mind?
We generally connote the concept of kedushah with extraordinary levels of devotion and service, the Temple, the Kohanim, a Sefer Torah that are imbued with special and elevated qualities. How does this relate to every man?
The translation of the word קדש as 'holy' is a misnomer. The Torah uses this word to describe a prostitute as a קְדֵשָה or קָדֵש when referring to a female or male designated for this immoral purpose! Certainly, this has no connection to 'holiness'!
The commentaries explain that the root קדש is used to describe something that is designated with a distinctiveness that separates it from its normal usage or environment, for better or for worse. Something that goes beyond its regular and expected use is described as possessing kedushah. A Kohen has special responsibilities that set him apart from the rest of us. The Temple, a space occupied by the Divine Presence that calls to us to act reverently because of the kedushah there. A Sefer Torah is treated with special and unusual regard because of its particular and distinct quality. A harlot too, is a קדשה because of her being designated for a specific, albeit negative, use that separates her from normative society. Kedushah is a state of being distinct and apart from the norm. Indeed, Rashi informs us that פרושים, to be abstemious, is synonymous with קדושים!
Is that it? Aren’t the qualities we gain that result from being apart from the norm, the goal? Why do we emphasize the medium rather than the objective of our separateness, that elevated status of becoming eminent?
The imperative to be holy is to emulate G-d. The Sifra teaches that lest one think we can be as holy as Him, the Torah adds to this summons to be holy:כי קדוש אני — My kedushah is exclusive to Me!
How is it possible to even entertain a notion of being equal to G-d?
The legendary Rosh HaYeshiva of Telshe, Rav Mordechai Gifter, famously taught. The Holy Zohar teaches us that "לית אתר פנוי מיניה", there is no space or object that is bereft of His presence. From the most sanctified to the most profane the Shechinah occupies and fuels all of existence. Despite His presence in the lowliest of entities G-d remains unaffected. This is the ultimate kedushah, the epitome of being detached. The essence of kedushah is to engage in a material world yet never be influenced by it. To remain aloof of whatever we are associated with and to be defined solely by our relationship with Hashem.יכול כמוני — I might have thought that there are no limitations to the activities we partake in as long as we remain detached, therefore the Torah warns us, כי קדוש אני — only G-d has that ability, but we must contain ourselves solely to the areas of involvement the Torah permitted to us.
In any physical activity we engage in, the Torah expects us to act with kedushah —to remain unaffected by the activity we are engaging in. A person can eat with enjoyment yet remain 'above' the food, which is reflected in the way he eats it. If one allows one's hunger and appetite to govern one's eating habits he loses that disengagement from the physical act of eating — his kedusha. An individual can engage in sports as a healthy distraction to energize himself. When the participation in sports controls his emotion and behavior in a way that he is influenced by the activity and its culture, he loses the opportunity to act with kedushah. And so, it is with all arenas of life.
קדושה — separateness, being unaffected, is not the medium but the goal, the greatness we possess in being formed in the image of G-d is in being able to remain uninfluenced.
We must control the medium of physicality and not become a victim to its predation.
We are expected to be 'Kedoshim', to engage in the wonderful world of opportunity that surrounds us, but to remain removed and unaffected. We must always maintain our dignity, emotion and a behavior that reflect the noble Neshama we possess, that spark of godliness that allows us to define every act with the spirit of Hashem and his Torah.
We assert in our prayers an awareness that our lives are to project kedushah, displaying mindful use of the physical world, without allowing it to influence us by luring us into its clutches.
It is the prerequisite for purposeful prayer since only those who can deflect the temptations of the world can discern what they truly need, and what to pray for. It is the prelude to the next blessing of Binah — Insight, where we pray for an unclouded mind so we may perceive and appreciate more deeply our stature as Kedoshim, learning how to implement kedushah it in all our activities.
Indulging in pleasures mindlessly rarely leaves us satisfied but infusing our bodies and souls with a 'Holy Diet' that regulates our consumption with purpose, is guaranteed to bring us utter contentment.
Happy and holy dieting!
באהבה,
צבי יהודה טייכמאן
