What Does it Mean to Understand Life?
One of my students recently asked me this question in the context of the following poem:
“Who understands life is no longer in a hurry,
He relishes every moment and watches
As a child sleeps, an old man prays,
How it rains and how snowflakes melt.”— Omar Khayyam
To understand life means to observe life, which means viewing how everything in life passes, moves, develops, fades and perishes. Also, other than observing life, we also participate in life depending on how we perceive it.
Observing life means perceiving life as a slowly flowing river. Only our absurd actions interfere with its state of a smooth and positive balance.
We can become observers of our lives by looking at them from the side, and most importantly, by not accepting everything that is directed at us or intended for us. We can do so by understanding that life flows next to us. Everything in life then becomes simpler and falls into its rightful place.
Where does the river flow? As written in the Torah, the rivers of Gihon and Pishon flow into the system of the upper world, to heaven and hell, and so on. We would be wise to immerse ourselves in this river, closing our eyes and letting it carry us, trying not to interfere with the supreme force that created and determines everything.
What Do You Do When You Feel Sad?
I never feel sad. I do not let sadness develop in me. I do so by keeping myself occupied, but even if I did nothing at all, I would still not be sad.
Not letting this feeling develop in us is the first part. Secondly, we should find, absorb and encompass more information about our development, how nature and human nature works, where it is from, where we are now, where we are headed, and what is our meaning and purpose. That is what I do, and it is why I do not let sadness build up inside me.
Not being sad also does not mean being joyful all the time. All in all, we live quite ordinary lives where we cannot be in a constant state of joy or euphoria. But in principle, we also should not let sadness engulf us. We can be in a neutral state and thus feel as if we are floating. We will then experience joy, and then various other states. Joy will come in a small dose, and then we float again, and carry on accordingly.
Without experiencing the myriad states that we do, we would be unable to notice time. Through opposing feelings such as joy and sadness, fear and happiness, and so on, we feel the passing of time. Time is thus the alternation of such feelings and states.