Forever Yearning, Forever Walking2 min read

The tzaddikim teach that while an angel is referred to as an “Omeid”, a being which stands, man is called “Mehaleich”, his nature is to walk, to move, to proceed. Unlike the angels which are static beings, man alone has the ability to surpass the circumstances of his condition and rise endlessly, to dizzying heights. It is only man, who, subject to the realities of time and space, has the ability to journey through life on an endless quest for greatness and closeness to his Creator. Only he can dare to dream of levels beyond anything the angels could ever imagine.

The Berditchover tzaddik teaches that one of the most effective ways to ensure that we exist in a perpetual state of growth is to recognize our ever-present ability to choose greatness and constantly yearn for a higher level. This yearning for elevation will grant a person the strength to overcome the obstacles along the path. Having secured an unwavering commitment to a “why”, he will be able to achieve any “how”. The Torah values yearning for holiness so greatly that it teaches that if a person yearns for a mitzvah and is ultimately unable to actualize it, Hashem considers it as if he had completed it. This is how powerful holy desire is; the Torah assumes that had he not been prevented by a factor beyond his control, this Jew would have overcome any lesser barrier and completed the holy act.

The Kedushas Levi sees these ideas hinted to in the opening lines of our parsha. “Im b’chukosai teileichu” – A Jew must see to it that he is a “mehaleich”, one who constantly proceeds from level to level. “V’es mitzvosai tishmoru” – The word “shomer” can mean to guard, but it can also mean to yearn for (as in the verse, “V’aviv shamar es hadavar”). These words hint to the necessity of the mehaleich to yearn for the levels of holiness above his current position. “V’asisem osam” – If a person will actualize his potential to surpass his circumstances and set out on a journey of growth, ever yearning for a deeper bond to the Master of the world, it is considered, on a certain level, as if he has already achieved his goal.

May Hashem grant us the strength to actualize the potential for greatness latent in the Jewish soul, to become true mehalchim, yearning for self-realization and the greatness we can, and will, achieve!