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February 10, 2012
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David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
The Betrayal of Experience
By Rabbi Yonason Goldson
An adventurist's primer offers lessons for spiritual survival
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Laurence Gonzales almost had his hand bitten off by an ashtray.
In his article "How to Survive (Almost) Anything," published in National Geographic's Adventure Magazine, Mr. Gonzales recounts how he had been fascinated as a child by his grandmother's ceramic ashtray, which was fashioned in the form of a coiled rattlesnake. Decades later, he came across the ruin of a stone house while hiking in the Santa Monica Mountains. Picking through the rubble, he spotted his grandmother's ashtray.
As he reached out to pick it up, the ashtray flicked out its tongue. Mr. Gonzales froze, backed away, and lived to tell the story.
Even Laurence Gonzales admits the absurdity of having mistaken a real rattlesnake for an ashtray. But he uses his experience to demonstrate how the mental models we create for ourselves can lead us into folly. Nostalgia, familiarity, and wishful thinking often assert themselves so powerfully that they overshadow knowledge and common sense. We become so focused on what we expect or what we want that we can make decisions with no rational justification — sometimes with catastrophic consequences.
CONDITIONED REFLEX OR REFLEXIVE CONDITIONING?
Mr. Gonzales goes on to list numerous examples of experts in various fields betrayed by the mental models of their own experience and training. An internationally acclaimed rock climber interrupted the rhythm of her preparation routine to tie her shoe and forgot to tie her harness. Her subconscious mind registered her shoelace as a harness strap and allowed her to proceed to the next step of her checklist. She survived only because tree branches broke her 72-foot fall.
A policeman trained himself to disarm assailants by snatching a gun from the hand of a fellow officer again and again. After each attempt, he would return the gun to his colleague for another try. When just such a situation arose in the line of duty, the officer neatly disarmed the culprit, then automatically handed the gun back as he had done so many times in practice. Fortunately, he also survived the encounter.
The great irony in these stories is how experience and training sometimes work against us. In both mountaineering and law enforcement, as in every potentially hazardous field, exhaustive preparation conditions men and women to react instinctively and reflexively, since a moment's hesitation may mean the difference between life and death. In situations of crisis, however, our instincts may propel us in the wrong direction.
The human brain is equipped with a mental filter that screens out distractions and helps us focus on what is truly essential. But when the unexpected or unfamiliar contradicts our subconscious expectations, the system that usually works to our benefit can blind us to dangers that may threaten our very lives. The more our actions become governed by reflex, the less likely we are to recognize the novelty of the unexpected by pausing to consider how a new situation does not fit the model of our training.
THE DARKNESS OF FAMILIARITY
This phenomenon was already observed nearly 3000 years ago by King David, who declared in his praises for the Almighty, "You bring forth darkness, and it is night." The sages of the Talmud find within the Psalmist's words an allusion to our material reality, where the predictability of our physical world plunges us into a psychological darkness that obscures the spiritual foundation of our existence.
In his philosophic masterpiece, The Path of the Just, Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto (Ramchal) elaborates by explaining how the darkness of habit and conditioning can create two different kinds of "night." The first is where we cannot see at all. We wander through life, following our daily routines without any understanding of the significance of our actions, without pondering the meaning of our existence or reflecting upon whether we are treading the right path and pursuing the proper goals.
As dangerous as this kind of blindness may be, says the Ramchal, at least it allows for the possibility that we might, on occasion, pause in an attempt to recover our bearings, to ourselves — or others — if there is not more to our lives and our world than only what meets the eye.
The second kind of blindness poses a much more serious danger. Like a man walking through murky gloom rather than pitch-blackness, it is possible that we will not even recognize our own blindness. We see, we misinterpret, and we carry on, confident in our own perspicacity and convinced of our own sense of reality. And although the harm we cause to our own supernal souls may go unnoticed as we travel from cradle to grave, it will remain with us for all eternity when we arrive in the World to Come.
RESTORING SIGHT TO THE BLIND
So how do we ignite the candle of spiritual awareness so that we can penetrate the darkness of the natural world? Just like naturalists flee the distractions of our cluttered society by escaping into the wilderness, similarly can we use the same mental filter that blocks out the unfamiliar in reverse by momentarily shutting our eyes to the routine of material existence.
Laurence Gonzales offers a strategy he learned in survival school: STOP — Stop; Think; Observe; Plan.
Stop. Caught up in the rat race, we see nothing other than racing rats. Break the routine, if even for a few minutes. Get off the treadmill and give yourself an opportunity to look at the world with fresh eyes.
Think. What are the possibilities? What if I give up one power lunch for a picnic in the park? What if don't watch the Sunday ballgame because I've taken a bike ride, or boat trip, or a walk in the woods? What if I slow down enough to let my mind ponder the true value of my own existence?
Observe. All the wonders of technology pale before the miracles of Creation. The veins of a fallen leaf. The symbiotic genius of bee and flower. The tranquil music of life-giving water as it trickles over stones or washes against the shore. The reassuring harmony of all the myriad inhabitants of our planet weaving themselves into a tapestry of life that testifies to the architecture of the Creator.
Plan. How do I become a player in the divine orchestra rather than a spectator who dozes through the symphony? How do I integrate into my life moments of spiritual meaning to punctuate the monotony of material routine? Plan to give charity, to visit the elderly and the sick, to smile at strangers, to study words of ancient wisdom, to pray to the Master of the Universe.
HEEDING THE LESSONS OF OUR PAST
Mr. Gonzales recounts one more personal experience. While piloting a small plane on a clear summer day, he gradually became aware of a growing darkness on the horizon. The morning forecasts, however, had contained no mention of inclement weather. And so he ignored the thickening clouds, "despite the far-off voice in my head telling me what my father, a former combat pilot, always used to say about the weather: If it looks bad, it is bad."
A radio report of severe thunderstorms brought him to his senses, and he landed his plane moments before a barrage of marble-size hail began pelting the runway. Had he not landed, his little plane might not have survived.
Students of Jewish tradition cannot read Mr. Gonzales's account without recalling the midrashic account of Josef in Egypt who, as he felt himself yielding to the seduction of his master's wife, saw before his eyes the image of his father, the patriarch Jacob. Remembering the lessons learned under his father's tutelage, contemplating how his father would cry STOP! if he could see his son then, Joseph steeled himself against the callings of his physical nature and fled from his temptress, thereby saving his soul from the devastation of infidelity and setting into motion the events that would lead his people toward their ultimate redemption.
Our world can be a place of darkness and danger, but only if we walk through it dreamlike, with our eyes closed to the miracles around us and to the limitless opportunities for illumination. When we stop long enough to break the conditioning of habit, when we listen to the voices that speak to us from across the generations, a whole new world reveals itself before us, inspiring us with possibilities for transforming our lives through the extraordinary spiritual reality that awaits our discovery.
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Comment by clicking here.JWR contributor Rabbi Yonason Goldson teaches at Block Yeshiva High School in St. Louis, MO, where he also writes and lectures. Visit him at http://torahideals.wordpress.com .
© 2009, Rabbi Yonason Goldson
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