Hot and Cold

Fire can be dangerous—but not nearly as dangerous as ice.

If a fire burns inside you, keep burning. Turn the fire towards the divine.

If your path is of cold, lifeless intellect, stop, turn around, and jump into fire.

Be singed by the flaming coals of the sages’ words.

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The Personality Thing

Redefining the Past

By Tzvi Freeman

From the wisdom of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, of righteous memory; words and condensation by Rabbi Tzvi Freeman. Subscribe and get your dose daily. To order Rabbi Freeman’s latest book, Wisdom to Heal the Earth, click here.

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Brenda April 27, 2018

Heart And Mind Spirituality can't be attained through the mind. The sages would draw the Surrounding Light through their passionate aspiration to receive an impression of the upper reality.

They would use the words of this world to describe these sensations: Pharaoh, Egypt, water, garden, perfume, war, kill, adultery, women, man, worlds, partsufim, sefirot, etc. Yet our dry words are only symbols for the forces, qualities, desires, feelings and intentions that interact within us at different levels of reality.

Words will not attract the Light to merit us higher understanding and new senses.
Cold, dry words will not be a channel for prayer.
All spirituality is attained through inner feelings of heart-to-heart connection, love, and feeling the Assembly of Israel all connected as one heart aimed at attaining the revelation of G_dliness. Only through the heart we acquire an understanding of His world. Without the emotions the intellect is cold and lifeless! Reply

Anonymous April 27, 2018

in response to Brenda:

It’s called a pineal gland. Reply

Brenda Toronto, Canada April 30, 2018

in response to Anonymous:

New Senses The pineal gland is light/frequency sensitive to trigger the release of hormones for sleep etc. It has been referred to as the 'inner eye' to feel a higher consciousness.

The Kabbalists did not refer to this physiological organ as the source of their attainment. They attributed the sensation of G_dliness, the attribute of Love, and the accompanying awareness of the higher reality and the understanding of His idea of Creation to the cancellation of their ego. We are programmed to feel inwards, towards our self. We perceive all incoming information in terms of a calculation to preserve and benefit my self.
They tuned out their self serving thoughts and exited the ego. Instead they aimed to feel outwards to others so that they feel as one integral organ - a soul.
The soul comprises qualities of G_dliness. This structure of G_d, provides them new senses to feel and know what is external to our self: how we are governed, our purpose and the mechanism of our descent to the world & ascent. Reply

Anonymous May 7, 2018

in response to Brenda:

I don’t disagree.
But you are undermining the physical importance of the gland.

Picture your body as a cable box and G-d as the signal.
The pineal gland would be that little antenna on the back of the box.
Your brain is a processor. Even for spirituality. Reply

Shabtai HaChom Sint-Eloois-Winkel May 8, 2014

fire and ice going to work is often cold and intellectual. What can we do about it? Reply

Anonymous w September 8, 2011

Context Your metaphor of fire is apt for the context you use it.

So is ice vis a vis lack of intellect.

But there is another context for ice. A fiery faith in Hashem should be underpinned by a cold steely resolve. Fire flickers. Ice does not.

The word ardent can be hot and cold. Ardent faith can be composed of both.

It's all about context. I didn't want the cold left out in the cold so to speak. Reply

Mr. Meir Weiss September 8, 2011

re ice May you be inscribed and sealed for a happy sweet new year

to battle ice you need to study torah, it warms you up like nothing else and melts the ice in one's life.

Torah is everything you mentioned and much much more

Be well and happy Reply

Patricia Birch Run, MI USA September 8, 2011

Fire and Ice Is there a verse in Tanach that speaks of "hot" being better than "cold?" I'd love to know if there is. Reply

Kreina Seattle, WA September 8, 2011

ice Fire is great. Ice comes slowly together with fear. They always come together, hand in hand. Ice and fear occupy you all and spread toward your soul.
Melt the ice by chasing away the fear. Melt the ice with love: only love can do it. Love HaShem Reply

Julie Durham, UK September 8, 2011

Ice I think this is true. What will turn us all around in such moments of pure intellect? In my own experience it has always been some kind of suffering. Is it the same for everyone, I don't know?

Intellect is the tool of philosophy, devotion that of religion but in the end, both are necessary perhaps? Reply

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