Grab the Fleeting Inspiration

by Rabbi Ben-Tzion Spitz

Stung by the splendor of a sudden thought. -Robert Browning

The beginning of the Torah, the beginning of the Book of Genesis, starts with the creation of the cosmos, of our Earth, of humanity and the Garden of Eden. It tells of the generations of Man, of the successes and failures of our ancestors and lays the canvas for how we got from the Beginning, to the story of our Patriarchs and the proto-nation of Israel.

The Berdichever on Genesis 2:4 expounds regarding the phrase “And these were the “Toldot” (generations, account, progeny) of the heavens and the earth when they were created.” The Hebrew word “Toldot” comes from the root “to give birth.” The Berdichever explains the phrase from a spiritual perspective, vis-à-vis God’s relationship with us, and how that relationship is renewed or reborn on a daily basis.

He states that once a day, every day, God sends a call, an awakening, a spiritual blast of inspiration to each and every one of us. He explains that the divine inspiration is for just a moment, and then it disappears. It is fleeting. If we don’t pay attention, it is gone.

He enjoins us to grab hold of that momentary inspiration with all of our might, and in that split second perform a Mitzva, do a charitable deed or engage in Torah study. It is the most important thing we can do with that bolt of spiritual divine energy. If we don’t, we will have lost a special moment of particular grace and power.

By grabbing that inspiration, a curious effect occurs. The next day, when that moment of inspiration hits again, when that divine rebirth or reset strikes, it will do so with even greater force and duration. If we firmly take hold of that spiritual force, we can create a stronger bond with God. We’re given the opportunity, the channel, the conduit to connect with God in what has the potential to be an unbreakable bond of divine presence in our lives.

We’re given that chance to be reborn every day. We have the possibility to be reborn stronger every day. At that moment of rebirth, we have the opportunity to connect heaven and earth; to recreate the intense, ideal connection between the material and the spiritual. We just need to pay attention, be aware and then pounce on that flash of spirituality as if our life depended on it. Our eternal lives may very well depend on how well we grab those fleeting moments of inspiration.

Shabbat Shalom.