#LEVELUP The Power of Perspective: PART 3 OF A 3-PART SERIES ON PERSONAL GROWTH Source Material • Discussion Questions • ? Explanation Introduction: Welcome to Week 3 - the final week of the #LevelUp program. We hope this has been a meaningful experience and that you used what you've learned as a springboard for your personal growth. Before we begin, please take 2-3 minutes to touch base with your partner. If you did the commitment challenge last week, discuss how that went. Did you find that visualization and prayer helped you increase your level of commitment? Have you been continuing to develop a small habit that will lead towards your goal? Are you still habit-tracking? (If you haven't been doing any of these things, now is a great time to start!) Take stock together with your partner, and then let's get ready to move forward boldly into the material for Week 3! Part 1: The Final Piece of the Puzzle We have now learned that so much of who we are and what we do results from tiny habits we accumulated over time. We've grappled with commitment and considered the immense benefit (both spiritually and materially) that can come about when we commit ourselves to something completely. We've understood how our desires can either fuel our growth or derail it. Now there's one piece of the puzzle left; one more thing that can significantly impact whether or not we'll reach our goals. And in good 'ole puzzle fashion, we're going to piece this idea together bit by bit. COPYRIGHT 2021 © PARTNERS IN TORAH |1 www.partnersintorah.org LEARN ANY JEWISH TOPIC WITH A HAND-PICKED STUDY PARTNER. FIND OUT MORE AT PARTNERSINTORAH.ORG 1 To get started, let’s take a look at the following source: Source 1: Pirkei d’Rebbe Eliezer, Chapter 1 מַעֲשֶ ׂה בְּרַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר בֶּן הוּרְקָנוּס, שֶׁהָיוּ לְאָבִיו חוֹרְשִׁים. וְהָיוּ חוֹרְשִׁין עַל גַּבֵּי הַמַּ עֲנָה, וְהוּא הָיָה חוֹרֵשׁ בִּטְרָשִׁין. יָשַׁב לוֹ וְהָיָה בוֹכֶה. אָמַר לוֹ אָבִיו: "מִפְּ נֵי מָה אַתָּ ה בוֹכֶה?, שֶׁמָּ א מִצְטַעֵר אַתָּ ה שֶׁאַתָּ ה חוֹרֵשׁ בִּטְרָשִׁין? עַכְשָׁיו אַתָּ ה חוֹרֵשׁ עַל גַּבֵּי הַמַּ עֲנָה.” יָשַׁב לוֹ עַל גַּבֵּי הַמַּ עֲנָה וְהָיָה בוֹכֶה. אָמַר לוֹ: “מִפְּ נֵי מָה אַתָּ ה בוֹכֶה?!... אָמַר לוֹ: "שֶׁאֲנִי מְבַקֵּשׁ לִלְמֹד תּ וֹרָה!" אָמַר לוֹ: "וַהֲלֹא בֶּן עֶשְ ׂרִים וּשְׁמוֹנֶה שָׁנִים אָתָּ ה, וְאַתָּ ה מְבַקֵּשׁ לִלְמֹד תּ וֹרָה?!" … עַד שֶׁנִּגְלָה לוֹ אֵלִיָּהוּ זִכְרוֹנוֹ לִבְרָכָה וְאָמַר לוֹ: “בֶּן הוּרְקָנוּס, לָמָּ ה אַתָּ ה בוֹכֶה?" אָמַר לוֹ: "מִפְּ נֵי שֶׁאֲנִי מְבַקֵּשׁ לִלְמֹד תּ ו ָֹרה." אָמַר לוֹ: "אִם אַתָּ ה מְבַקֵּשׁ לִלְמֹד תּ וֹרָה, עֲלֵה לִירוּשָׁלַיִם אֵצֶל רַבָּן יוֹחָנָן בֶּן זַכַּאי." עָמַד וְהָלַךְ אֵצֶל רַבָּן יוֹחָנָן בֶּן זַכַּאי. יָשַׁב לוֹ וְהָיָה בוֹכֶה. אָמַר לו:ֹ "מִפְּ נֵי מָה אַתָּ ה בוֹכֶה?" אָמַר לוֹ: "מִפְּ נֵי שֶׁאֲנִי מְבַקֵּשׁ לִלְמֹד תּ וֹרָה!" …אָמַר לוֹ :ֹ "מִיָּמֶיךָ לֹא לָמַדְתָּ קְרִיאַת שְׁמַע וְלֹא תְפִלָּה וְלֹא בִּרְכַּת הַמָּ זוֹן?!" אָמַר לוֹ: "לָאו." אָמַר לוֹ: "עֲמֹד וַאֲלַמֶּ דְךָ"... וְהָיָה אוֹמֵר לוֹ שְׁתֵּ י הֲלָכוֹת כָּל יְמֵי הַשָּ ׁבוּעַ וְהָיָה חוֹזֵר לוֹ עֲלֵיהֶן וּמְדַבְּקָן. This is the story of Rabbi Eliezer Ben Hurkanus: Once, he was plowing his father's rocky soil while others were plowing soft land, and [he] cried. " Why are you crying?" asked his father. "Is it because you are plowing on rocky soil? Here — plow on the soft land." Eliezer moved to the soft land but still cried. "Now why are you crying?" asked Hurkanus [his father]. "Because [I don't want to be plowing at all]. I want to study Torah," said Rabbi Eliezer. "You're 28 years old and wish to study Torah? Get married, have children — and give them a Jewish education," said Hurkanus... Elijah the Prophet appeared to him. "Son of Hurkanus, why are you crying?" he asked. "Because I want to study Torah," cried Eliezer. "If you wish to learn Torah, go to Jerusalem — go to Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakkai," Elijah replied. Eliezer traveled to Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakkai and cried. "Why are you crying?" asked Rabbi Yochanan. "Because I want to study Torah!" he said. "Could it be that you never learned the words of the Shema, or the prayers, or the Grace After Meals?" asked Rabbi Yochanan. "No," he said, "I never learned those prayers," answered Eliezer. "Come," said Rabbi Yochanan, "let me teach them to you." Rabbi Yochanan Ben Zakkai taught him two laws each day of the week, and Eliezer would review and memorize them. COPYRIGHT 2021 © PARTNERS IN TORAH |2 www.partnersintorah.org LEARN ANY JEWISH TOPIC WITH A HAND-PICKED STUDY PARTNER. FIND OUT MORE AT PARTNERSINTORAH.ORG 2 Discussion Question: Before we move on to explain the deeper meaning of this story, let’s ask a question: Why did Eliezer’s father ask him to work land that would unlikely yield anything? ? Explanation: Hurkanus considered his son, Eliezer, so limited that he kept him busy tilling rocky soil — something inherently lacking potential for growth, (and ironically reminiscent of his perception of Eliezer). When Eliezer began expressing a desire to learn Torah - a discipline that took mental acumen and considerable effort - Hurkanus seemingly didn’t believe his son had what it took. Instead, he suggested that Eliezer first get married, have children, and then hire someone else to teach them Torah. Let’s take a look at the next source to learn about Eliezer, long after he left his father’s auspices: Source 2: Pirkei Avot 2:10 and 2:13 חֲמִשָּׁה תַלְמִידִים הָיוּ לוֹ לְרַבָּן יוֹחָנָן בֶּן זַכַּאי, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן, רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר בֶּן הוֹרְקְנוֹס, וְרַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן חֲנַנְיָה, וְרַבִּי יוֹסֵי הַכֹּהֵן, וְרַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן נְתַנְאֵל, וְרַבִּי אֶלְעָזָר בֶּן עֲרָךְ אָמַר לָהֶם, צְאוּ וּרְאוּ אֵיזוֹהִי דֶרֶךְ יְשָׁרָה שֶׁיִּדְבַּק בָּהּ הָאָדָם. רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר אוֹמֵר, עַיִן טוֹבָה. רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אוֹמֵר, חָבֵר טוֹב. רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר, שָׁכֵן טוֹב. רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן אוֹמֵר, הָרוֹאֶה אֶת הַנּוֹלָד. רַבִּי אֶלְעָזָר אוֹמֵר, לֵב טוֹב...ב ...Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai had five disciples: Rabbi Eliezer ben Hurkanus, Rabbi Joshua ben Hananiah, Rabbi Yose, the priest, Rabbi Shimon ben Nethaneel, and Rabbi Eleazar ben Arach... He [Rabbi Yochanan] said unto them: Go forth and observe - which is the right way to which a man should cleave? Rabbi Eliezer said, a good eye; Rabbi Joshua said, a good companion; Rabbi Yose said, a good neighbor; Rabbi Shimon said, foresight. Rabbi Elazar said, a good heart... ? Explanation: Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai was the leading sage of his generation. He had five primary students. In the quote above, one name on the list of students stands out: Rabbi Eliezer - the same Eliezer whose father thought he couldn't even till soil! In the end, this young man grew to become one of the leading sages of his generation! What happened to so dramatically change the trajectory of Eliezer's life? The answer may be found in Rabbi Eliezer's understanding of the "proper path": According to Rabbi Eliezer, the proper path for a person to pursue is one of (ayin tovah), having a good eye. COPYRIGHT 2021 © PARTNERS IN TORAH |3 www.partnersintorah.org LEARN ANY JEWISH TOPIC WITH A HAND-PICKED STUDY PARTNER. FIND OUT MORE AT PARTNERSINTORAH.ORG 3 Discussion Question: What do you think it means to have a ‘good eye?’ How does that potentially relate to our topic of growth? To help us understand what it means to have a good eye, let’s look at another source: Source 3: Zohar, Nasso 147B תָּ אנָא… כָל כֹּהֵן דְהוּא לֹא רָחִים לְעַמָא, אוֹ עַמָא לֹא רַחְמִין לֵיה, לֹא יפְרוֹס יְדוֹי לְבָרְכָא לְעַמָא, דִּכְּתִיב: "טוֹב עָיִן הוּא יְבֹרַךְ." אַל תִּ קְרִי יְבֹרַךְ אֶלָּא יְבָרֵך. A Kohen who does not love the people or is not beloved by them may not recite the Priestly Blessing, as the verse (Proverbs 22:9) teaches, the one with a good eye should bless. ? Explanation: Kohanim (members of the Priestly tribe) were given the privilege of offering the following blessing to the Jewish nation (see Numbers 6:23-27): "May G-d bless you and watch over you. May G-d shine His countenance upon you and cause graciousness to you. May G-d show you favor and grant you peace." Kohanim offer the Priestly Blessing during synagogue services — daily in Israel and on the major holidays outside of Israel. However, according to the Zohar quoted above, the Kohanim may not offer this blessing if they do not love the people upon whom they are bestowing it. Discussion Question: The blessing given to the Jewish nation is that G-d (not the Kohen) should watch over us, be gracious to us, grant us peace, etc. If G-d is ultimately the One to fulfill the blessing, what difference does it make whether the Kohen loves us or not? To help us pull everything together, let’s look at one more source: Source 4: Pirkei Avot, 5:19 כָּל אַהֲבָה שֶׁהִיא תְלוּיָה בְדָבָר, בָּטֵל דָּבָר, בְּטֵלָה אַהֲבָה. וְשֶׁאֵינָהּ תְּ לוּיָה בְדָבָר, אֵינָהּ בְּטֵלָה לְעוֹלָם. All love that depends on something, [when the] thing ceases, [the] love ceases; and [all love] that does not depend on anything, will never cease. COPYRIGHT 2021 © PARTNERS IN TORAH |4 www.partnersintorah.org LEARN ANY JEWISH TOPIC WITH A HAND-PICKED STUDY PARTNER. FIND OUT MORE AT PARTNERSINTORAH.ORG 4 ? Explanation: According to Pirkei Avot, true love requires an appreciation of a person's virtues and the vast potential within them 1 — in other words, a good eye. Conversely, love that is based on extrinsic qualities (ex: a person's looks, status, assets, or romantic attraction) erodes as these allurements cease to fascinate or come to an end. And this idea is the foundation of what a blessing is.