Mitzra’im

You need to escape your Egypt.

Egypt, in Hebrew, is Mitzra’im—meaning “straits.” A tight, narrow place.

Existence, for a human being, is a tight and narrow place. Because we are children of the Infinite, entirely beyond existence. The natural order of time and space is for us a prison.

A mitzvah, on the other hand, is an act of transcendence, a reconnection to the Infinite. A mitzvah strikes a permanent rupture in the restrictions of being.

That is your Exodus. With every mitzvah you do, you are shattering the bonds that enslave you to Egypt, just as when Israel left their bondage to become an eternal people, transcending time.

Are you no longer human? No longer a part of this world? An angel? A divine thought?

No. You remain human, very human. Your mitzvah takes place within time and space, not much unlike any other human activity.

But your life is now a commentary on eternity, every moment a moment that is forever.

In you, the universe transcends itself.

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Exodus Every Moment

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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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Dr. Steve Freilich Franklin , MA January 28, 2025

Hi,
This is confusing to me. Please explain more, I loved the part of
connecting to the eternal but then the summary statement below felt like it
watered it down. I now I don’t transform into an angel but would it be
equally correct to say:

“ You connect for a moment to the eternal and moments like that can have
lasting powerful affects on your experiences as a human with-in your limits”

Steve

Dr. Steve Freilich
Visitingpsychologist.com
Milford MA Chabad Member Reply

Tzvi Freeman January 29, 2025

in response to Dr. Steve Freilich:

It’s not easy to articulate the entire concept in short pieces such as these. I think you’ll find a fuller explanation in a recent article of mine, “Holiness Is a Crack in the Wall” Reply

Avishai Barbourville, KY January 29, 2025

in response to Dr. Steve Freilich:

Steve: We are quite confused by our limitations on our senses.

First, our bodies are insentient, but our actual Self is Eternal. That is all there is.

The instruction is actually only “Look Within”. In order to gain from that we have to understand a Phenomenon, we know as the “ego”.

Everything in this “ego” is our “experience”, our knowledge which we connect to when needed for our safety or success. We do this until we are satisfied that we realize our failure due to “Limitations”, which turn out to be limitless. We gain “silence”. Reply

Steve Freilich Franklin January 30, 2025

in response to Tzvi Freeman:

Thanks; I shall look for it. Best Reply

Steve Freilich Franklin January 30, 2025

in response to Avishai:

I understand that and thanks for your thought. It is the relationship between the two- worldly experience like the ego and the eternal and limitless that interests me. In social science we call it a 'peak experience' but of course that is still under the dome of this world -though suggests something happening that we might be connecting to something even greater. Anyhow, take care. Reply

Brenda Toronto, ON Canada January 28, 2025

As my soul consciousness gradually diminished into the state of limiting my sensations to the existence of me separate from others, my 'I' became the focus of life in a material world, my Egypt.

Now I have to recognize this state, effort to perceive the bigger picture to expand my consciousness to realize our interdependence and interconnection in a network that requires me to serve and love the other as myself.

I transcend my self to rise to the next level of life as the one soul. G_d's world. Reply

Eber Miami January 27, 2023

Que bendicion es aprender de la torá gracias a todos Reply

JD Adam January 26, 2023

Now I know I'm in the right place! You just expressed what I've always thought of as being "otherworldly". I'm so grateful to have found Chabad! Thank you! Reply

Avishai Barbourville, KY January 26, 2023

We live in a world of restriction and misidentify our sensory report as reality. Our bodies can perceive only a very limited picture using our senses of touch, sight, smell, taste and hearing. Our brains then take the input from the sensors provided us and send the data to the brain, which then transforms the data to sight pictures, sounds, smells, tastes and touches. All this is organized into what we sense as our environment, including our bodies themselves. From the soul level above we feel the sensory report as if it is the actual reality and identify with it. As if to say “I am this body.” The soul then turns into our ego, and rules over our lives. Humans become slaves to their limited understanding of reality. When we get desperate enough we get past this problem by looking up to the only Self there really is, the Creator, and He shows us the way of Emuna. Then we let Him teach us what actually IS. ........ Reply

RJS Sherman Oaks, CA January 26, 2023

Whatever the secret for your accomplishments, I am always in awe of your articles and podcasts, to the point that nothing more needs to be said. Our minds seem to jive in that your analyses easily augment or greatly expand upon my own way of viewing a given topic.

Your words of wisdom rekindle my mind with much-needed inspiration to keep me motivated to continue journeying through this hellish, barren land of exile. Although I am well-educated, healthy, and financially secure, my life path has always been right through a stinking latrine.

I admire the caring support, optimism, and the kind encouragement you convey to all your readers no matter their past or present failings. Thank you again for always adding new purpose and meaning to my already optimistic futuristic outlook, and to my current unwanted and very peculiar life-journey. Reply

RW USA January 5, 2022

This is quite a wonderful statement of truth!

Thank you! Reply

Sivana January 3, 2022

I like the idea to be within my own universe, very, but I think an universe need to move and expand, to grow. Reply

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