IDOLATRY- 14/
Our Self, the Sweetest Idol
Know your Creator, Know Yourself, and Know the Difference
1. Creating Our Self Consciousness
Like a CEO of a company creating a humanoid robot,
ELKM assembled his “councilors”, His experts,
asking each one to contribute its expertise to the project,
thereby building the humanoid layer by layer,
each councilor providing a layer in the humanoid’s body and soul
With whom did He consult?
With whoever is mentioned in Genesis Chapter One.
To each one ELHM said:
“Let us, me and you, make Adam together, in Our Form and Our Image.”
Hence Adam is made as a mixed product of ELHM and the Councilors,
partly divine and partly mondain.
To build Adam’s body from the best material around,
ELHM consulted the Six Days like a builder consulting his plan
And made Adam’s body accordingly.
To make Adam a wise Man, a Homo Sapience,
ELHM consulted His own Wisdom by which He had created the Six Days
and made Adam’s mind accordingly.
To plant in Adam the talent of appreciating beauty and art,
ELHM consulted His Own Spirit of Art and made
Adam’s heart and mind accordingly.
Thus, in the same token, ,
ELHM consulted His Own Self and made Adam’s self accordingly.
When ELHM said “Let Us make Adam in Our Form and Our Image
He used plural voice, us, “Me and You.”
You can say that He consulted the “Me,” His SELF
and made Adam’s self accordingly.
Hence, our Self Consciousness is of divine origin,
rather than a fake psychologic mirage, as other religions preach.
Our Self-consciousness is a precious gift from our CREARTOR,
giving us the awareness of our individuality,
driving each person to create, to impact our society,
to make a name, leave a legacy, to be exalted by others.
Yet since ELHM spoke to it in plural, opening the door for idolatry,
It means that our Self-consciousness is destined to become
One of our strongest potential idol, or our sweetest idol,
for what could be more attractive to us than our own Self?
What Passion is Driving our Self?
Let’s recall that when ELHM consulted the opinions of others before making Adam,
He also consulted the angels saying: Should I make an Adam?
The angles responded:
Our King, why consulting us at all? Aren’t we your faithful messengers,
who fulfill your wish with no discretion?
ELHM answered:
I consult you nevertheless, to teach Adam modesty,
that the superior would consult the inferior
before making a decision.
The angles then asked:
Our king, aren’t you afraid that by speaking in plural,
you’ve opened the door for idolaters
to worship their Own Selves rather than Your SELF?
ELHM answered:
I take the risk of IDOLATRY by speaking in plural,
For teaching Adam modesty is paramount!
From here the Angels derived,
that Adam worst fault would be his ARROGANCE,
caused by hiss inflated ego, blown up Self,
which would push away G-d from his heart and mind.
.2. What is the Task of the SELF?
What is G-d’s SELF?
ELHM’s SELF desires to be exalted, feared, to grow,
YHVH’s SELF is modest, shy, desired to be loved
Hence each Attribute desires the opposite of the other Attribute.
But in fact, the SELF of the Infinite nameless CREATOR
is above those of the Attributes.
Thus, in the Ten Commandments, G-d presents Him SELF as follows:
- I Am (SELF)
- YHVH your ELHM (Attributes)
- Who took you out of Egypt Land (Kingship)
Here G-d’s SELF, the “I Am”, is above line 2,
as an ARBITER between the two Attributes.
In the Heavenly Court, each Attribute would speak its own view,
expressing its own SELF, but the final word, the Court’s verdict,
would be issued by the “I Am” in line 1, as a final verdict
that would not be recanted or regretted or changed.
Example:
Before executing the Flood in Noah’s time,
the text describes in details the Heavenly Court’s session.
First it describes the view of YHVH
then the view of ELHM,
each assessing Noah’s generation from its own aspect, its own SELF.
Then, at the end of the Session, the text brings
the final verdict of the Court as follows:
“And I, My SELF, shall bring forth the Flood.”
Here the final verdict of G-d’s SELF is to bring forth the Flood,
And save Noah and his family.
3. Our Inflated Self as a Barrier
Adam was created to offer his heart to YHVH as a Dwelling Place,
As it is said:
“And they shall build for me a Temple
so that I would dwell in them,” in their heart.
As we’ve said, ELHM’s SELF desires to be exalted, to be enthroned,
while YHVH’s SELF desires modesty, shyness.
Hence, an arrogant person whose Ego is inflated,
would not be able to host YHVH, Her prophecy and Her Torah.
The Midrash says in the name of YHVH:
“I, and an arrogant person, can’t live together in the same room!”
In other words: YHVH would run away from an arrogant person
who worships himself.
Moses, on whom it is said that he was the modest of all people on Earth,
could offer his heart as a Dwelling place for YHVH,
and could accept and absorb the Written Torah as well as the Oral Torah.
Sliding the slippery slop
The Midrash also says that an arrogant person, who worships himself,
the Heavenly Court would make him stumble over
the next Commandment – ADULTERY.
So, if you see a leader stumbling over ADULTERY,
take this It is a sign from Heavens, that he or she is IDOLATER,
who worships himself!