Light of Infinite

So much anxiety is brought on by thinking one won’t receive what is just. Of course, everyone’s view of their own justice looks different. But the idea of not receiving what you think you deserve, whether from a person or the universe creates a division and distancing in one’s relationships to others, to oneself, and even to life itself.  Justice brings peace, but only when judgment (gevurah) is b...

With this article/dvar titled, "Mo Money Mo Problems, Mo Charity Mo Peace", I dive into the kabbalistic powers of charity, a lesson from the Middle Ages of a Sultan and a great Torah Sage, and share a story of a royal family that ruled a small kingdom (in what is now Iraq), and ultimately converted to Judaism. The son of this period, King Munbaz, became the king of Adiabene at the end of the Secon...

Despite the title being a wink to my favorite show, Arrested Development, this Dvar/article is my most personal one yet. I hope you can relate and connect with it.  When I was living in Bushwick, NY, my roommate Aaron Wertheimer, an old childhood friend, would watch Arrested Development. Seeing it in passing, I didn’t fully get the epicness of the show and its character development. When I gave it...

I remember learning the power of the Shema (שְׁמַע) as a little kid. It felt like I was in the world of Harry Potter and someone had clued me into the Patronus charm, so if I put myself into a deep enough spiritual space, I would be able to conjure up protective power. The Shema was a way to channel Hashem’s oneness into this world; I could say it and manifest magic in my own life. It was a pathwa...

Tisha B’av is the most somber day in the Jewish calendar. It’s sobering to think that thousands of years ago, we were on top of the world: in the Promised Land, with our Beit HaMikdash (Holy Temple), fully connected to the Divine. & then how quickly– in just three weeks– that connection was destroyed. When you really consider a loss like that, no matter how ephemeral it may be in the bigger pi...

The majority of us have the best of intentions, but life sometimes gets in the way. Even when we fully promise and believe that we are going to help a friend out, there are times that, in the end, it doesn’t work out how we had hoped. It’s these promises said with such love and enthusiasm that give us hope and make us feel that we aren’t alone. The flip side is when empty promises leave us feeling...

There is so much epic wisdom around our falls and our elevation, but it's far too much to post here, so I thought I would share the first & last paragraph of my latest Dvar/article, "How To Levitate After Every Fall." First paragraph -> There’s one kind of religious thought, which now feels antiquated, that teaches that a person should never fall into sin and that only in the purest state c...

If, at every moment, you can choose the path that you want to pursue and, as the Talmud states, Hashem will help you towards the path of your choosing, then ensuring that you are in alignment and on a path of positivity is that much more important. It’s being mindful of the saying, “be careful what you wish for.’ We shouldn’t ever look at ourselves as fully bad or fully good, because that can colo...

“The best fighter is never angry.” ― Lao Tzu The main problem with hitting the rock, which was born from a moment of imperfect faith by Moshe, was that it was an act of force. Moshe’s sin was in the moment of questioning, and the anger seeped in in that one tiny moment. The Maharal teaches: where there is complete faith, there is no room for anger, for there is great joy. What Korach didn’t unders...

The concept of doing something Lishmah (for its sake) is a key concept in both living in alignment with oneself and living in alignment with our Source. It’s the inner spiritual work, when done with the physical performance of a mitzvah, that sanctifies our outer being. The Zohar stresses that ahavah (love) and yirah (fear) are the two main ingredients needed for Torah and mitzvot to affect their...

As it says in Tehillim, גַּל־עֵינַ֥י וְאַבִּ֑יטָה נִ֝פְלָא֗וֹת מִתּוֹרָתֶֽךָ Open my eyes, that I may behold the wonders of Your Torah. 
 We need to be actively aware. It’s not just by thoughts, or speech, it’s also by action that we become holy.

As Big Sean raps on Justin Bieber’s seminal album, “Believe”, “the grass ain’t always greener on the other side. It’s green where you water it.” 
 It’s...

The truth is we all will fall time and again. The secret is to not view it negatively. Because life is only truly negative if we don’t use our fall toward elevation. If falling back pushes us forward, it’s a powerful tool towards transcendence. Just living, in and of itself, presents challenges, and each challenge is an opportunity to get it right the next time. If we can greet hate with love, our...

King Solomon writes in Mishlei that whatever a person pictures in their mind has the power to happen. Our power to draw down blessings is tied into the faith that colors our beings as vessels to receive. The law of attraction is simple yet profound— positive thoughts bring positivity into a person’s life. And since the opposite is also true, it’s that much more important to paint the pictures that...

We all have a Nefesh Elokit (a part of God), so the truth lies within each of us. We just need to transcend the layers of doubt and unlock the powerful truth and redemption that awaits. In an oft-quoted Mishnah it’s written, “Every human being is unique, & every human being is a copy of the prototype human being (Adam)…therefore, every human being must say, ‘For my sake the world was created.’...

For this week I wrote about how to bring more blessings into your life, which is outlined in the beginning of this Parashah. I brought in elements from Jon Batiste’s speech at the Grammy’s and some deep lyrics by @KendrickLamar, + epic teachings by the Alter Rebbe and Rebbe Nachman, and as always, lots of Kabbalah around the Parashah! The two aspects of the ה (heh) in the Havayah bring to mind thi...

All of life is about the beautiful balance of releasing control & connecting. Because we're tasked to toil for our bread, we find ourselves stuck in a mindset of thinking that we are in control of our lives, that the more that we dominate our circumstances, the more in control we are. What we find in the lessons of Shemita (the year of release) is that the rewards come from the release. Yes, w...

Going through a break up can be one of the most difficult things to endure. A break or a separation in what felt like a divine union. What feels like a heart shattered into a million pieces. But we have to find a way to trust that it is for our own good and what’s truly aligned will arise at the right time. We have to shift our focus from what’s lost and lean into faith that whatever is meant to b...

“My kedushah (holiness) is greater than yours.”
– The Maggid of Mezrich 
People always tell me it’s “so LA” to talk about energy and vibes, but I think perhaps it’s just more openly discussed here. In truth, we all feel and are affected by both. That’s why it’s so important to be mindful of the company we keep. I often place myself in what I call sacred spaces or spiritual environments, because wh...

“I visualize what it is, not what is isn’t” – Nas
 The first pasuk (verse) of this week’s parashah reads:  וַיְדַבֵּ֤ר הֹ’ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה אַחֲרֵ֣י מ֔וֹת שְׁנֵ֖י בְּנֵ֣י אַהֲרֹ֑ן בְּקרְבָתָ֥ם לִפְנֵי־ה’ וַיָּמֻֽתוּ

Hashem spoke to Moshe after the death of Aharon’s two sons [Nadav and Avihu], who drew close to Hashem and died. Or HaChayim explains that the sins of Nadav and Avihu were very different t...

All of Pesach is an opportunity for bitul hayesh, to negate and nullify all traces of ego and self-centeredness, to transcend the illusion of self.   I just wrote this Pesach & Omer companion called, ‘The Transformative Power of Pesach and Sefirat Ha’Omer’ that you might find interesting. We can draw connections between the weekly portion from Leviticus and the larger Jewish story of moving fr...

Staying tapped into hashgacha prati/Divine providence, requires proactive alignment. There's that feeling inside, an elevating feeling when one feels tapped into one’s purpose & Creator, & the opposite feeling when we feel trapped & one’s actions are disconnected from the positive, from purpose, from our Creator. In the Beit HaMikdash, sitting on top of the holy ark, were the two Keruv...

“The sign of circumcision is, as I think, so important, that I could persuade myself that it alone would preserve the [Jewish] nation forever.” – Spinoza  In this week’s parashah, Tazria, we are entering a new section of Vayikra (Leviticus) dealing with the laws of man. The previous parshiot dealt with the laws pertaining to animals. This follows the order of creation; man (ish) was created last. ...

When I can’t sleep, I often free verse / wax poetic about whatever’s on my mind. It’s always interesting reading it the next morning. Here’s one from the other night: 
 —- The world
is full
of enough
dissonance  produce
melody
perform
alchemy sift the good notes
from the bad
the serene
from the siren song  step in rhythm
grow in concert we are all notes
in this
divine
orchestra
of existence  —- It...

This week’s parashah, Tzav, continues discussing the intricacies of the Temple sacrifices and touches on chametz (leavened bread). It’s the parashah before Pesach (some years it’s read on the Shabbat just prior to Pesach, and other years we read it right after Purim, a few weeks prior to Pesach). Learning the parashah, we can draw connections between the weekly portion from Leviticus and the large...

Some quick thoughts on Purim! Soon we’ll be reading the Megillat Esther, which is also Le’galot Ha’ester (meaning “to reveal what’s concealed”). The word Esther is related to the Hebrew word, “I will hide,” which is said in Devarim when Hashem says, “I will surely hide my face.” The Megillah is one of the only books in Scripture not to mention Hashem’s name at all. It’s a story that took place in...