Living Torah Archives

Like sunglasses which block the powerful light emanating from the sun, our physical bodies cover and conceal the precious light of our souls. But surely, this was orchestrated by G-d for a purpose. Our mission, we are told, is to bring forth the concealed light of the soul. Through following in the ways of Torah, and elevating ourselves with the performance of its commandments, we will illuminate our surroundings, and expose the divinity that lies within.

The soul of every Jew is an “actual part of God” to which God wishes to grant the ultimate good. This unparalleled opportunity for metamorphosis is possible only when the soul descends into a body, into an environment which is hostile to spirituality.

The Stalinist regime that imprisoned my father-in-law, the Rebbe, in 1927, was then a superpower. Despite that, he defied his oppressors. He did not budge an inch in anything that jeopardized his principles. Even at the train station, about to be exiled, he declared publicly: “Only our bodies, not our souls, were sent into exile.” And indeed, his defiance led to his release.