Transforming Fear into Goodness

MyLife Essay Contest 2015

This essay is about how to deal with fear. The basic idea is that we fear things which we can´t handle. The reason we can´t handle certain things is that our human tools are too limited to deal with them. The Chasidic solution is that when something is beyond our vessel, we have to attain the level called “Ain”, which is not defined by anything and can create harmony between two opposites, allowing a greater light to fit inside a small vessel.

In general fear can be considered one of the worst elements human beings most deal with, it hindrances our growth by causing paralysis and stopping us from fulfilling our dreams. This essay will show what Chasidus can contribute to our battle with fear and will teach us how we can transform fear into a mechanism to reveal the goodness hidden inside the elements that seem to be negative.

One basic concept in Kabala and Chasidus is the idea of “lights” and “vessels”. For the purpose of this essay it will suffice to say that every element has a Divine energy that enlivens it, and it also has certain “vessels” or “tools” which allow it to contain that energy and utilize it.

The idea is that the dynamic between the Divine light and the recipient, is not always very functional. Sometimes there is a very lofty light and the vessel doesn´t have the capacity to grab it and internalize it. In fact this is how Chasidus understands the teaching of the Talmud: “there is no evil that comes forth from Above”. Any intelligent person would be bothered by this, since we encounter many negative situations daily. Chasidus explains that the important point is “from Above”, meaning that from the Supreme Power everything is good, the problem emerges when that Divine potential reaches our inferior reality. When we lack the proper vessel to contain it and manifest it´s goodness, then instead of shining it creates distortion, and that´s the source of bad things. This demonstrates that evil is a result of lacking the vessel to internalize the Divine light in a balanced manner.

Now let us explain fear: what is fear? Fear is a human response generated by sensing the possibility of facing something new, unfamiliar, uncertain. The reason we are afraid is because we know our limitations and therefore feel worried about being exposed to things we can´t handle.

However this revealed fear results from a deeper fear: the aspect of the Divine light which becomes internalized by us comes from a low level, the fact that it can settle in our human vessel shows its limitation. On the other side there are times when G-d chooses to share His most intimate light, the aspect of the Divine that transcends our comprehension. When that occurs we get very afraid since it´s beyond us and our vessels.

Actually when the light is greater than the vessel the result is pain: The primordial source for all pain is found in the narrative of Bereishit, where G-d said to Eve: “with pain you shall give birth”. The reason why giving birth is so painful is that a greater being is emerging through a very small space, and that is what creates pain.

The same thing happens spiritually, when our expectations are narrow, they impede the Divine potential from coming forth and this process of a greater light coming into our small reality is what causes pain.

So we can see that the three elements of evil, fear and pain, are truly interconnected: evil comes from a distortion generated by a Divine light which transcends the vessel, pain is the result of the impact which a greater light has on a small vessel, and fear is a natural response to the possibility of evil and pain.

Now let us analyze the solution that Chasidus offers: the root of the problem is that the vessel is too small to contain and internalize the greater Divine light. So the only way to fix it is by nullifying the vessel, this is the concept of “Bitul”, “self-nullification”.

When a person senses that something is too great for him/her to deal with it, the correct attitude must be: “indeed, I am limited and can´t handle such intense light”. By embracing the fear instead of rejecting it, we become aware of our smallness and stop trying to deny it. Once we do this we reach into the infinite potential of our Divine soul, to the level called “Ain”. The word “Ain” literally means “Nothingness”; it alludes to a Divine reality that has no definition or limit. In front of such a supreme source, the greatest light can be unified with the smallest vessel, because since it has no limit or definition, it can put together two completely opposite elements.

In practical terms a person that understands how small he is, but also knows that G-d is infinite and that He controls everything; is able to embrace the fear because he does not fear being small.

In the world when someone asks how to deal with fear, the general answer is, “tell yourself that you can handle it”. Basically we want to deny our limitations and convince ourselves that nothing is beyond our control. By doing these we reinforce the fear, because we are obsessed with our human vessel, and that limited vessel is the cause of both the pain and evil which we fear so much.

The Chasidic approach is very different: “tell yourself I can´t handle it”. When you recognize that indeed you can´t handle something, then you surrender to the “Ain”, the Divine essence that transcends all definition, and therefore this “Ain” nullifies the defined shape of your personal vessel and allows it to expand and to actually contain that greater light.

This is the meaning of the words of King David in Tehilim: “…MeAin yavo ezri…”, “…from where will my help arrive?” At the literal level King David is asking from where will come his salvation, however on a deeper level Chasidus teaches that he is actually making a statement, he is saying “MeAin yavo ezri”, from (the level of) “Ain” will arrive my salvation. This means: when I nullify myself completely and recognize how small I am, embracing the fact that there are many things I can´t handle, but knowing I am in G-d´s hands; then this realization is the actual source of my redemption.

A step by step guide to deal with fear:

• Don´t fear the fear: when attacked by any form of fear, embrace it´s reality and acknowledge that indeed there are things which you can´t handle.

• In good hands: once you accept the reality of your smallness, reflect on the fact that G-d loves you infinitely and unconditionally. The fact that you are not able to deal with something is completely irrelevant, because He is in control and He will make sure to redeem you from every negative element.

• Expansion: now that you accepted your limitations and even embraced them, you have nullified yourself and have reached a place called “Ain”; infinite G-dly potential, not defined by anything, from this supreme level even your small vessel can actually expand and contain the greatest light.

I understand this sounds ideal and utopian, but it´s not. Great Jewish leaders like King David where able to deal with the most difficult and challenging experiences, because they surrendered to their smallness and allowed themselves to understand that G-d acts with unconditional goodness, and precisely by accepting things are not in our hands, we elicit a G-dly response, similar to the way a parent protects his small child precisely because he depends entirely on him.

In conclusion: when we tell fear that we are in control, we are reinforcing the cause of fear (which is the limitations of our human vessels). However, when we recognize the truth behind fear, that we are not in control, then we attain the level called “Ain”, we nullify ourselves and our personal expectations (vessels) and this allows the infinite undefined potential of our Divine essence, to unify the two opposite elements, making it possible for a small vessel to contain inside itself the greatest and most transcendent light.