* Translation by Yehoshua Siskin
I recently heard a beautiful statement: “What isn’t practical - isn’t spiritual.”
Think about that for a moment. We can talk and give speeches about all kinds of lofty values; we can dream about and contemplate all kinds of spiritual ideas. But at the end of the day, ideas need to be acted upon. The most spiritual thing to do is simply to do. To get up and put things into practice. To behave differently because of what we have learned, to act better because of the spiritual level we have reached.
This is exactly the magic of this week’s Torah portion, Ki Tetze. It contains more mitzvot than any other Torah portion — 74 of the 613 mitzvot. We can look at these mitzvot and see nothing more than a long, uninspiring, technical to-do list. But if we want to infuse the world with spirituality by making it tangible, then we will see this week’s portion as a guide for bringing greater light into reality.
We will then see Ki Tetze as a tremendous treasure of 74 gifts, 74 genuine opportunities to encounter God, to bring His will into the world, and to create a new more radiant reality. And how fitting all of this is for the month of Elul, when we are challenged to become more spiritual in practical ways. And so each of us can ask: What spiritual light am I bringing into the world through my daily actions?
B’hatzlacha.
