Bitul Selflessness

Bitul Selflessness

I had an insight last Shabbos about bitul, selflessness, which I don’t mind sharing.

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Chazal: Pirkei Avos

Chazal express themselves in Pirkei Avos, “Who is wise? He who learns from every person.”

I had contact with something which is almost self-explanatory, from which I was able to internalize an idea that I always knew basically.

A Chassidus with a Rebbe

You can have a chain of command, a funnel of hanhaga, where the ideas and guidance spread outward, or downward, and filter through layers at different levels. For example, you can have a Chassidus with a Rebbe. The Rebbe has sons. The sons have direct contact with the Rebbe. The sons, being sons, are similar to the Rebbe, in style, mannerisms, and so forth. They can be a bit different from one another, after all, each has his own personality, they can even disagree and argue, but usually it’s limited, because they all have direct contact with the Rebbe, and there is still mutual respect for one another, they are very close to the Rebbe, so the disagreements tend to be limited in scope, and on details, not on substance, principles.

Then come the gabaim (are you smiling yet?). They receive instructions and guidance both from the Rebbe and from the sons. Here already you see more of the individuality of the gabai come out. To a certain extent, he has more independence in the functioning of those areas which are his to run. True, theoretically his link in the chain in command has a source at the top, but since he is already another step removed, here you see more the individuality of the gabai shining through, so that his hanhaga almost can be expressed in a different flavor than what the Rebbe preaches, excuse the English.

Next in line come the machers who like to help the gabaim. Now, here, this isn’t really part of the chain of command, so to speak. Nobody asked them to do anything, they come along and stick their nose in. They have no direct contact with the Rebbe, no more than anyone else, and they don’t receive any instructions nor guidance from the sons, rather they leach off the gabai seeing how far they can push themselves forward. Like, for example, a 16 year old tzutzik who just became a chassid two months ago, and now he thinks that he can boss around the 40 – 60 year old yungerleit who have a working relation with the Rebbe already decades. Everything that he gets is from the gabai, so when he argues or puts in his two cents, like can another chair be added to the Rebbe’s table, should the lechayim cups be prepared already now, yes keep quite or not keep quiet, yes sing or not sing, sometimes you can get a hanhaga which has nothing to do with the original Chassidus, and almost looks like something else completely.

Chazal: Avos Were A Merkava For The Shechina

Chazal say that the Avos were a Merkava for the Shechina, and indeed that all of the Seven were a Merkava for Heavenly middos. And that really anyone that purifies himself and works on himself can reach a level that to a certain extent G-dliness shines through him, and he becomes also a Merkava for G-dliness, but on a lower level nowadays then what was true in the time of the Avos. Maybe this is included in what we read this week, “Ve’Shachanti Be’Socham”, which Chazal say “Be’Toch Kol Echad ve’Echad”. Or, “Eish Ve’Eisha She’Zachu Shechina Shruya Bainahem”.

Bitul Selflessness

And the sefarim say that this is accomplished by, or accompanied by bitul, selflessness. And that’s the pshat, this is what I want to say, that the more that a person holds himself to be a yaish, to be a zach, so then that much so the G-dliness cannot shine through him, he can’t be a funnel through which Heavenly middos shine. Because his own “him” disturbs, doesn’t let the chain of command flow through, he blocks it with his own personality.

I am not saying any chidushim, any inovative, novel ideas. All of this is written. Just that I saw a living example of this scaled down, which brightened up my understanding of the point, so I thought to share it.