Parables, Proverbs, Writings

The parable of the treasure

Once there was a great treasure. A map was found. And the people who had found it had a great dissension; though they believed the map was correct and the path was true, they could not agree about who wrote the map, whether it was the captain who buried the treasure or one of the buccaneers, or a learned man hired to make the map. Then they argued over the age of the landmarks, the size of the roads, the local legends and the proper dress code they would follow in their trek. And strong winds came and the map was destroyed.

To dwell over the correspondence of verses of the bible and their infinitesimal subliminal and probable messages is as relevant as arguing over the authorship of that map leading to the treasure. We argue about the history of the landmarks to follow, yet do we ever attempt to follow the map? So can we ever get to the treasure?

The parable of the chef

Another time there was a town who received as a formal guest of honor a great and famous chef from a faraway country. And they begged him to reveal his most famous recipe. Gladly he stated the ingredients and proceeded to show them the steps to follow. They feverishly gathered to take notes. Then the following month, they gathered again and decided to prepare, on their own, the exotic dish. A discussion arose about the relevancy of the ingredients; whether the pepper had to come from India or the Caribbean; whether the tomatoes were proper for that dish, and other countless details. Soon it was dark and everyone went home without ever making the dish. And so is the relevancy of the biblical arguments. They analyze the ingredients but never mix them and make the food or taste the recipe.

The form of the letter does not bring you the understanding of its intent, which is the spirit in which it was written, but understanding those spirit and intent does bring you the understanding of the letter.

Thus follow the map and find the treasure, follow the recipe, cook the food and taste it. Then you will know what is important.

Proverb:

A master speaks from the experience of the end goal, a pupil from the dream of that end goal.

The parable of the theater

The kingdom of heaven is like a theater, the door was closed but not locked and people needed direction to open it. The theater- master sent a doorman to give directions and let in people who would be ready. Not believing, the people beat up the doorman. The theater-master, saddened, sent other doormen, and each time, the people made fun of them, sent them back or killed them. Then he sent the bouncer, the chief, the boss. They beat him up and killed him too, thinking: surely he is blocking our way, if we rid of him, we can run in freely. But the door was shut.

Then they realized that if you want to get in, you must befriend the doorman. And so people tried to. If they would succeed, surely the doorman would come back and open the door and let them in. But the people got stuck on the idea that pleasing the doorman was literally the key to the enchantment, and so focused only on befriending the doorman’s spirit, they sat in front of the door, bringing him gifts, and calling his name; and doing things in his name to please him became their goal, forgetting that the real goal was to go inside the theater to experience the enchantment. In the end, the doorman wouldn’t come back and shut remained the door, since no-one got that the point was to get in the theater and that the doorman was not the experience of the enchantment by himself.

If you love the doorman, then get inside the theater; don’t stay on the sidewalk trying to convince a doorman that you know how the experience of the enchantment is inside, when he knows you have never been in; and then you still stay on the outside when comes the order to give you a chance to get in anyway and the door opens for you. Knowing the doorman does not insure safe entry. You still must want to experience the enchantment inside.

The parable of the ambassador

The kingdom of heaven is like a country far away whose king sent an ambassador. The king wanted to invite all people to a great national feast. But the people mocked the ambassador, accused him of lies and deceit; because, though transportation was free, it would have required the guests to have changed their plans and leave their homes unattended. And so they laid upon him their short-coming saying how he did not warn them in advance, etc. Only a few went to the feast, because they got the understanding how great the feast was.

The parable of the concert hall

The kingdom of heaven is like a concert hall: those who play their own tune cannot participate.

The parable of the great famine

Once there was a land with great famine. A king who  had had great harvest and plenty of food felt compassion for his famished neighbors and invited them to come and live among his people and partake his good fortune. But the hungry people believed only in themselves; and resentful of such a pity, they rejected the words of great bounty, not being of their own labor. And their pride kept them at home. And they all died.

The parable of the bridge

Once there was a bridge over a river. And came the strong waters of a flash flood. And the water took away the bridge. What then can be said about this bridge?

Another time there was another bridge and the flash flood came again. And the bridge remained. What can be said about this bridge?

And so which bridge are you?

Proverb:

If a master slaps his pupil, the pupil may learn the lesson or leave. If a pupil slaps his master, the master must leave. Which serves most the pupil?

A master said to the student: if you want to leave the room, you must pass the test. And before reading the question, the student attempted freedom jumping out of the window, and fell into the abyss. The question on the test was: why do you want to leave the room?

The parable of the apple

The kingdom of heaven is like an apple on a table. On one side it is red and on the other side it is green. Came two hungry students and they sat across from each other. Looking at the apple, they started arguing about the color as one was looking to the green side and the other to the red side, then they argued about the right to eat it, then they argued about who should eat first. Came a third student and, grabbing the apple, bit into it and soon ate it all.

The parable of the keyhole

The kingdom of heaven is like a keyhole: too small to conceive going through; yet once activated, infinity is revealed.

Proverbs

If you know heaven, why on earth would you consider something else? If you know the earth, what in heaven would keep you here?

He who doesn’t speak his mind loses his heart. He who doesn’t speak his heart loses his mind.

The parable of the hidden treasure

The kingdom of heaven is like a man who finds a treasure in a hidden part of his house. He soon discovers that the treasure has been there since he was born. He then took it and cleaned it, made it shine again. That treasure he soon evaluated it as being very useful for humanity. What should the man do? Should he hide it back into the place where it was hidden and forget about it or should he share it with anyone who would need it?

So it is with baptism, it is only the cleansing of the accumulated dust. Once cleansed, will you shine or will you let dust collect again?

The parable of the pantry key

The kingdom of heaven is like a pantry, and the master of the house has no knowledge of the existence of the pantry. And all his life he was suffering from lack of food. Until one day he learns of the existence of the pantry and begins searching for it. Soon he finds the door and the key. But the key was very soiled from years of grime and dust so he had to cleanse it with a lot of water. Then when the key was clean, he simply hung the key next to the door and happy to know that he had the key to the door of the pantry, he would sit every day in front of the door admiring the door and telling all his friends about the pantry and the key to it. Yet the man kept being hungry. He never opened the door, and the key gathered dust and grime again.

The parable of the movie

The kingdom of heaven is like a movie everyone wants to watch, but everyone is just satisfied reading the reviews, listening to actors’ interviews, watching the trailers, and looking at still pictures of some scenes.

The following i found quite interesting: who is this itinerant rabbi?

Rabbi Levin’s Erev Rosh Hashana sermon, “Training the Soul”, 5767

Training the Soul

Erev Rosh Hashanah

September 22, 2006

“A king had a son whom he loved very much. In his teens, the son went quite crazy. He thought he was a turkey!   To the palace’s dismay, the son stripped off all of his clothing, crouched down under the dining table with his hands behind his head, and bent over to the floor, gobbling up crumbs with his mouth: All the while making turkey noises.

The king called his doctors to convince his son to get out from under the table: but nothing helped.

Then the king promised the people of the realm that anyone who could cure his son would receive more riches than he had ever imagined possible. Scores lined up at the castle gate, each claiming to be able to cure the king’s son. But no matter how many remedies the king tried, each failed to return the prince to sitting at the table.

A year later an itinerant rabbi passed through the kingdom. He heard the troubles of the king, and what great wealth awaited any person lucky enough to be able to cure the son. The rabbi decided to give it a try.

The next day the wandering rabbi appeared at the palace gate. The king was not accustomed to receiving guests dressed as itinerant rabbis; but when the rabbi announced his purpose – and, given that no one had successfully cured his son — the guard announced him immediately and admitted him to the king’s presence.

The king, his family and his entourage sat regally around a table splendidly decorated, from which they ate the most luscious of foods; while under the table, resting on his haunches, gobbling, groveled the king’s own son.

The king viewed the rabbi skeptically. How could this peasant Jew accomplish what the wisest men of the realm could not?  “Rabbi,” said the king with both doubt and denigration in his voice, “do your best, and I hope it’s good enough.” The rabbi answered, “I will do what I must do; and you must trust me without criticism.”

The rabbi peered under the table at the king’s son, and on all fours, removed his clothes. Without saying a word, the rabbi, resting on his hind legs with his hands behind his back, began to consume some of the very crumbs at which the king’s son was pecking. This continued for days.

After one week’s time, the rabbi spoke, “You know, it’s very lonely for us turkeys down here; it’s good to have company.” “Yes it is said the king’s turkey of a son.” Nothing more was said.

The next week, when the son was asleep, the rabbi instructed the king to put a pair of the prince’s pants next to the table. The next day the rabbi said, “You know, this is a very large and drafty room, and it is quite cold here under this table.  I think it is very possible for a turkey to wear pants to keep warm, and still remain a turkey,” and the rabbi, still under the table, donned his pants. The prince looked doubtfully at the rabbi, and feeling cold himself, put on the pair of pants and returned to pecking at crumbs under the table. Another week passed.

The rabbi said, “You know, it is very cold and drafty in this room, and it is the middle of winter, I suppose it is possible for a turkey to put on a shirt and still be a turkey.” And the rabbi, under the table, put on a shirt, and the prince followed suit. And so it went, each week: socks, shoes and a hat. Finally the rabbi said, “You know, it is very cramped down here, and bending over like this makes my back ache all day and all night. I suppose it is possible for a turkey to still be a turkey and to sit in a chair and still eat the crumbs from the table.” And the rabbi sat in a chair, and the king’s son did the same.

So it went, that the young man who became a turkey, over many months reverted to a turkey that ate and acted like a man, until he was so like a man, that not even he could distinguish the difference.

The story is, of course, about us. God gave us the capacity to be God-like in our actions, but we adamantly mimic the rudest of animals, which neither recognizes its Creator nor its own innate abilities.” -end of quotation. for more, follow the link above.