Questioning Ends

Originally posted in 2009. Reposting now because this relates directly to the 2016 Olympics, and Tishah b'Av. Also, bear in mind that this was written by the 2009 me. Nowadays, I wouldn't be so quick to initiate a discussion like this.

Artwork: Voyage's End, by Chris Rahn

Questioning Ends

Every once in a while I like to play a game I call "Socrates." The rules are simple: choose a stranger, ask yourself, "What would Socrates talk about with this person?" and initiate a conversation. The resulting discussions are usually very eye-opening, although they are usually very short. I thought it might be interesting to share an example with you. 

Last night I was in the mood to play Socrates on Facebook. Like most Facebook users, I have a large number of "friends" who aren't really friends, but old acquaintances from my past life. One of these old acquaintances - a former classmate from 10th grade, whom we'll call "Jim" - posted a quotation as his Facebook status. The quotation was from a long-distance runner named Paula Radcliffe, and said, "You just have to keep believing that one day you will win." 

I happened to know that Jim is a runner. He was a runner in high school, and from his Facebook profile, it looks as though he would like to make a career out of running. I assumed that this quotation was in reference to one of Jim's running-related goals. 

I asked myself, "What would Socrates say to Jim? Jim clearly thinks highly of this quotation, and I'm sure he'd be willing to discuss it. What should I ask him to get the discussion going?" The answer came to me pretty quickly. I clicked on the "comment" section under Jim's status and typed a single question: "Why is it important to win?" 

I chose this question because I really wanted to know. During the Beijing Olympics I often wondered what really drives these people, in their minds. If you asked them why winning is important, would they really try to rationally argue for the value of winning? Would they admit that winning isn't objectively important, but that it had always been a childhood dream which they feel compelled to achieve? Would they give an answer like, "I want to see what I am capable of" or "I want to show the world that it is possible to overcome one's limitations and achieve one's dreams"? How many of them would just shrug their shoulders and say, "For the fun of it"? And most of all, I wondered how many of them simply don't think about why they should try to win; they just go for it. 

The first response I received was from one of Jim's friends, who wrote: 

Winning is how you define it. Too many people say winning is being the 1st place in anything. I say trying your best, having fun, and learning something new have a lot to do with being a winner ... and I think you do that every day. 

A second one of Jim's friends said: 

I think what this quote means is that if you keep believing in your dreams and give the best you can day in and day out and train like there's no tomorrow, then you will win. Not in a sense of place necessarily, as [Friend #1] said, but in a sense that you have done everything you could, and in doing so, you achieve your dream (i.e. win). 

I noted that neither Friend #1 nor Friend #2 had really understood my question as I had intended it. They thought I was asking about the meaning of the quotation itself, when in truth, I was really asking about the premise of the quotation. I tried to clarify with the following comment: 

I definitely agree that it is important to believe in yourself and your dreams and to try your best, and that by doing all of these things, you increase your chances of winning. My question was not about the means, but about the end: Why is winning important? 

Is "winning" really "however you define it," as [Friend #1] said? If winning means "trying your best, having fun, and learning something new," then you don't have to believe that one day you will do these things - you can just do them today! And if achieving your dream is winning, then shouldn't you first evaluate whether your dream is a good thing before you strive to achieve it? A person might dream of climbing Mt. Everest, but if he achieves this dream, does that really make him a better person? Will it really make him happy? 

That is what I mean by: Why is winning important?

Finally, Jim responded. He said: 

The quote really means to get to the heart of not doubting it when it seems a dream is impossible. I'm headed for the 2012 Olympic trials in the 10k. This requires six miles of 4:40 per mile, if not faster. I'm nowhere near that fitness level, and to get there takes TONS: miles, time, focus, exercises, effort, etc. Believing I can banish a past of lukewarm effort with this journey is really hard to believe. So it is that belief in something so preposterous it seems highly unattainable is the belief of which Paula Radcliffe speaks. That is what speaks to me. 

I realized then that there was probably no point in going on with the discussion. It was clear that he still didn't (or couldn't) see my question, whether because of my lack of clarity or his inability to think about the ends he was pursuing. Most of all, I didn't want to risk shaking the foundations of Jim's goal in life for no good reason. 

Nevertheless, I gained a lot from this brief discussion. Thinking about Jim's state made me feel extremely grateful to the chachamim from whom I've learned, and from the Torah-system which produced them, and from the One who gave us that Torah-system. I am thankful to live a life in which self-reflection and introspection are a part of everyday living, and I am happy to have been granted the knowledge, skills, and the personal disposition which make this self-reflection and introspection possible. 

Blessed is the True Existence Who gave the Torah to Israel, His people.

Reflections of Truth

Originally posted in March 2012.

Reflections of Truth

Those of you read my blog - and certainly those of you who know me personally - are aware of how frequently I make reference to books, movies, and TV shows in the course of my Torah learning. The same is true when I teach. I often bring in quotes and ideas from other sources, and I always try to connect the ideas to examples and applications from the "real world" and from works of fiction.

Earlier this year I was confronted by a parent who objected to my use of such "secular sources" in Torah learning. He phrased his objection as follows:

I believe in the 'perfection' of Torah, and as such, don't see the need of secular sources to explain religious concepts. Especially when the same or similar result can be achieved through Torah.

The implication of his statement is that I, unlike him, do not fully believe in the perfection of Torah, since I do include secular sources to explain religious concepts, even when the same or similar result can be achieved through Torah. To this individual, the only reason why a person would make recourse to secular sources is if he believed that the Torah was somehow lacking.

In this particular case I did not bother arguing with the parent, since I sensed that we wouldn't get anywhere. However, upon rereading the Allegory of the Cave, I thought of a good way to frame my response if I am ever in a position where doing so will be beneficial. I am going to quote a specific passage, assuming you are familiar with the allegory as a whole:

And if he is compelled to look straight at the light, will he not have a pain in his eyes which will make him turn away to take and take in the objects of vision which he can see, and which he will conceive to be in reality clearer than the things which are now being shown to him?

And suppose once more, that he is reluctantly dragged up a steep and rugged ascent, and held fast until he is forced into the presence of the sun himself, is he not likely to be pained and irritated? When he approaches the light his eyes will be dazzled, and he will not be able to see anything at all of what are now called realities.

He will require to grow accustomed to the sight of the upper world. And first he will see the shadows best, next the reflections of men and other objects in the water, and then the objects themselves; then he will gaze upon the light of the moon and the stars and the spangled sky; and he will see the sky and the stars by night better than the sun or the light of the sun by day?

Last of he will be able to see the sun, and not mere reflections of it in the water, but he will see it in its own proper place, and not in another; and he will contemplate it as it is. 

In the allegory, the light of the sun outside of the cave represents knowledge. Here Socrates speaks of the cave dweller's difficulty in facing this light. At first this light is so blinding that he will be forced to turn away. In his state of "bedazzlement," he will only be able to look at objects of vision which he is used to seeing. Socrates mentions three categories of phenomena that he will be able to look at: first he will only be able to look at the shadows, and then the reflections of objects in the water, and then the objects themselves. If he ignores this progression and tries to look directly at the light before his eyes have adjusted, he will either be forced to turn away (and perhaps retreat into the cave) because he cannot tolerate the pain or else he will go blind.

And that, Mr. Parent, is exactly why I make recourse to "secular sources" in my Torah learning. I know myself, and I am aware of a number of my limitations. Some people are capable of moving swiftly out of the cave. Their eyes adjust rapidly and they can immediately begin exploring and examining the world outside of the cave ... but not I.

Can I learn Torah ideas on a purely intellectual level using only the Torah? Yes. But I don't think that's enough. I want the ideas to be real to me. In order to do that, I need to see examples and applications in the real world around me. I need to see them in the phenomena that capture my day to day interests and sources of entertainment. I need to see the reflections of truth in the water before I can see the realities themselves.

And I'm not the only one. I've seen many students who grapple with the same challenge. For this reason, my students really appreciate it when I incorporate "real world" references into our Torah learning. Without this, the ideas remain dry, meaningless, formulaic abstractions. Even if my students become convinced of the truth, they do not see it as a reality until they are shown how it is reflected in their lives. Sometimes this can be accomplished by showing them "reflections of men and other objects in the water," but in other cases, they can only see the shadows themselves. In such cases, my job as teacher is to show them those shadows that are most conducive to adjusting their eyes to the light outside of the cave.

In conclusion, I do not believe that making recourse to secular sources indicates a denial of the Torah's perfection. Rather, it is indicative of our imperfection. And I would argue that unless we recognize, accept, and work with our own imperfections, then we will not be able to reap the benefits of the perfect Torah.

I also maintain that Mishlei is founded entirely on this approach, but that's a topic for another post ...