Inconsistencies Part Four: The Drunkard’s Walk
Jun 3rd, 2010 by Rabbi Simcha Weinberg in Portion of the Week
Hard To Walk A Straight Line
What Levi described about his bunk mates in Auschwitz is not unfamiliar to us. We see the drift, the Drunkard’s Walk, everywhere in life in the random motion of feelings incessantly bumping, and being bumped by their sister feelings.
If we would mark the inconsistent path of the Children of Israel from the time they left Egypt, and then crossed the Split Sea, complained about water and food, received Manna and Miriam’s Well, complained again, battled Amalek, experienced Revelation, built the Golden Calf and then the Mishkan (Tabernacle), complaining again, repenting, t and on and on, we would see a drunken man’s path through life. They weaved back and forth, up and down, but always moved ahead until…
The spies forgot all the inconsistencies and got stuck believing they were insects. (Fleas On My Mind) The nation went back and forth as a pendulum until they froze in their sense of inadequacy.
What happened? Why were they frightened of their fluctuations only now, as they were about to enter the Land of Israel?
Author Info:
Learn & discover the Divine prophecies with Rabbi Simcha Weinberg from the holy Torah, Jewish Law, Mysticism, Kabbalah and Jewish Prophecies. The Foundation Stone™ is the ultimate resource for Jews, Judaism, Jewish Education, Jewish Spirituality & the holy Torah.
Please see my comments http://blog.thefoundationstone.org/2010/06/01/in-his-clutches/ for a discussion of various aspects of the spies.
While coddled by G-d in the desert, the People did not have any actions for which to take responsibility.Their every need was provided in a very public, overt manner by G-d.
It was clear to the spies that this very public manner in which G-d provided their every need, would cease upon entering Eretz Yisrael.
The desert was the perfect environment for receiving the Torah as it is devoid of distraction. However, The Living Torah can only reach its greatest potential in the Living Land. G-d had already underscored in the Tocheikha of P’ B’Khukotai that the Living Land of Eretz Yisrael would respond to the actions of the Living People (Ahm Yisrael Khai!!) for better or worse.
Entering Eretz Yisrael would be a galvanizing moment for Ahm Yisrael. They would have to bear full responsibility for their actions.
It was the Bar Mitvah of Ahm Yisrael and they were terrified about becoming a Man.
The Legend of the Drunken Master tells of one who seems one thing on the outside but is really something else on the inside.
This is the story of the Jewish People throughout history.
It seems as if Ahm Yisrael is the world’s punching bag-as much as it takes a beating, it still keeps coming back. G-d made us Masters of Time-we take a licking,but keep on ticking!
Although it seems as if we’re all alone in the world-we’re not! If anyone needs proof there is a G-d that is running the world, just internalize the message of the Jewish People’s resilience in surviving the harshest persecutions! It sure isn’t due to spectacular athleticism.It cannot be otherwise attributed but to our perhaps hidden unshakable bond to G-d.
We are the Drunken Masters of world history.
And we are consistently inconsistent (see http://blog.thefoundationstone.org/2010/06/02/inconsistencies-part-one/)