A New Blog

My name is Jonathan Even-Zohar. Even-Zohar is to be linked with the European Finkelstein, but also with the arabic Ibn Zuhr, or the lating Avenzoar.
Trying to express my thoughts on this blog here, i seek to express feelings on this blog over there:



By the way. Ahava is the hebrew word for love.

About Love:

However, there is doubt in the world. So lets see if we can trace a bit of it's beginnings in the world.
Rav Dessler, in Michtav MiEliyahu explains that giving to someone creates love. We normally think that since we already love someone, we give to them. But, Rav Dessler explains that the truth is, the more you give to them, the more you will love them. However, in order to truly give, one must have the free choice to give or not. If I am coerced into giving you something, then that will not create love, because that is not true giving. If there is no choice involved, then the relationship can only be one of fear - Yeera, which is the relationship that the Angels have with G-d. They perceive Hashem so clearly that in effect they have no free choice. That is why whenever we speak about their relationship with G-d, it is always with the word Yeera, and never the word Ahava (In Nusach Sefard, in the Brachos before Shema, when we say. "Venosnim BeAhava Reshus Ze LaZeh," the word Ahava is referring to their relationship to each other - Achdus, not their relationship to Hashem). Adam HaRishon had a very low level of free choice. He only had one Mitzvah. He distinguished between truth and falsehood, objective concepts. However, Adam was not satisfied with this situation. He wanted to have a closer relationship with G-d; he wanted a relationship of Ahava. So, he increased his level of free choice. That was the sin (this is what the Ari Z"L meant when he said that the sin was a Cheit Lishma). The "tree of knowledge" that Adam and Chava were forbidden to eat from, is called the Eitz HaDaas Tov VeRa. We know that Daas doesn't only mean "knowledge," but, intimate knowledge; knowledge that connects with you. The word Daas means a connection to someone, or something else in the deepest sense ("VeHaAdam Yada Es Chava Eeshto." Bereishis 4:1). What eating from the tree did, was "connect" Tov VeRa - it mixed up good and bad. Before they ate from the tree, the world was pretty clear. There was Emes and Sheker. However, eating from the tree mixed up the two, and brought a subjective reality into the world. Emes and Sheker are objective concepts, but good and bad are subjective. Something can only be said to be "good" in relation to it's intended goal. Instead of distinguishing between Emes and Sheker, Adam increased his level of free choice. Now the world was cloudy, good and bad was mixed up; doubt had entered the world.

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