Healing, Suffering and Loss

Talmud Bavli Massekhet Baba Metzia 30b
Whoever visits the sick removes one sixtieth of his illness

From Inviting the Demons In: A Hasidic Approach to Suffering, Conflict and Human Failing by James Jacobson-Maisels

The Premise

A story is told of the Baal Shem Tov, known by his acronym, the Besht, who was hired by an arrendator, a Jewish lease holder in Eastern Europe, as a melamed (teacher) for his children.

… the arrendator who accepted him as a melamed told him that

he had only one house for him, but it was thought to be inhabited

by impure spirits. The Besht said that he would live in it. The

Besht assigned the attic to the demons, God forbid, and when they

[the demons] laughed, he scolded them and they became silent.4

QUESTIONS:

What is the Besht’s approach?

Why do you think he takes this particular tactic or attitude?

Is there a feeling-tone about how he confronts these demons?

The Besht, a well-known magus and spiritual healer, does not banish or

harm the demons he encounters in his dwelling, but simply assigns them their proper place in the attic, a place where they will not come into contact with vulnerable humans, and scolds them like children when they act up…Every spiritual practice must confront the demons of the soul.

The Process

The Besht, and the Hasidic movement he spawned, present a unique

answer to this question (the demons of the soul or suffering in general), founded on a notion of what we might call—borrowing a phrase popularized by author Tara Brach—“radical acceptance.” For Hasidism, demons are overcome precisely through their embrace, transformation is achieved through acceptance, and transcendence comes through earthly embodied presence. We go beyond the self by returning to it, by embracing it in its fullness with all its blemishes, failures, and shame. Yet to do so wisely, in a way which transforms, requires a certain consciousness, a certain quality of attention, which begins with the fundamental Hasidic insight of the divinity of all being.

QUESTIONS:

What are the steps in the process of dealing with suffering?

What is the purpose of this process?

What do you think “earthly embodied presence” means? Can you give any examples?

What does “transformation” mean in this context?

Do you have any personal examples of how this process works (or doesn’t)?

Turning to the fear

…Enemies, human and psychic, must be met with compassion and acceptance. In this way they can be healed and elevated, that is, returned to and reconnected

with their source in the divine.

How can you turn to the fear and welcome it in? You can do this first physically, consciously relaxing the muscular tension which accompanies fear. This in turn can allow you to begin a similar process on a psychic level.

The psychic process is subtle: a relaxing and opening of the mind,

parallel to the relaxing and opening of the body. When the fear arises, rather

than shrinking back from it, ignoring it, or violently overcoming it, one just

tries to relax into it, allowing the mind to drop any particular response or

action and just be present with the fear. This process can be helped by

expressing your intention, your kavvanah, such as by saying to the fear, quite

literally, “Welcome, come in, have a seat.”

Perhaps it is the very difficulty of the passion and our struggle with it which makes one open to the divine in that place. It is often where we struggle most, where we fail most, and where we are most hurt and vulnerable that, when we are able to hold that place in an accepting awareness, we are granted the greatest insights into our selves and others. It is where we are ripped wide open that God is able to enter. Thus for Hasidism, precisely in the place of our greatest desire, and potentially our greatest failing lies also our greatest strength.

Psalm 23

1 A song for David. Adonai is my shepherd; I shall not want. God makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside the still waters, restoring my soul, leading me in the paths of righteousness for the Name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for You are with me, Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies, You anoint my head with oil— My cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of Adonai forever.

Glazer, Miriyam (2013-01-17). Psalms of the Jewish Liturgy (Kindle Locations 2510-2521). Aviv Press.

Psalm 23

You are my shepherd, I am content
You lead me to rest in the sweet grasses
To lie down by the quiet waters
And I am refreshed

You lead me down the right path
The path that unwinds in the pattern of your name

And even if I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
I will not fear
For you are with me
Comforting me with your rod and your staff
Showing me each step

You prepare a table for me
In the midst of my adversity
And moisten my head with oil

Surely my cup is overflowing
And goodness and kindness will follow me
All the days of my life
And in the long days beyond
I will always live in your house

Norman Fischer, Opening to You: Zen-Inspired translations of the Psalms

"Psalm" by Stuart Kestenbaum

The only psalm I had memorized was the 23rd
and now I find myself searching for the order
of the phrases knowing it ends with surely
goodness and mercy will follow me
all the days of my life and I will dwell
in the house of the Lord forever only I remember
seeing a new translation from the original Hebrew
and forever wasn't forever but a long time
which is different from forever although
even a long time today would be
good enough for me even a minute entering
the House would be good enough for me,
even a hand on the door or dropping today's
newspaper on the stoop or looking in the windows
that are reflecting this morning's clouds in first light.

from Prayers & Run-on Sentences. © Deerbrook Editions, 2007.