Wednesday 18 March 2015

mussar ethics - Exercises in *yiras shamaim* (awe of the Lord)


I have, it seems, no problem relating to Hashem with ahava - one of my main motivations in avoda is to try to make him benachas (happy), like I would my parents.


Relating to yirah is another story. I am looking a set of exercises to try to build up yiras shamaim. Any thoughts what could help? or references?


Thank you very much.



Answer



the more you know/understand the greatness of God the more you will have awe/fear of Him. This is why Moshe Rabeinu was the humblest of all men despite that he achieved more than any other person in history (source). He knew God more than anyone else, hence his fear/awe of God made Him totally humble. therefore for any exercises you do, the effectiveness will depend on the extent of your knowledge of God and clarity of faith.


Some books which teach on knowing God - chovos halevavos shaar yichud with commentaries, Kuzari with commentaries, sefer haikarim, although there are various false beliefs floating around that their premises have been refuted. (so ask your Rav if its suitable for you)



The Chafetz Chaim also recommends (in sefer mitzvot #3) reading books which reveal the Creator's glory as a way to build love and fear/awe of God.


As for exercises, there are some interesting ones in the book Jewish Meditation by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, though i dont know how recommended that book is for mainstream.


Disclaimer: all this assumes you are growing in your talmud learning as Rabbi Nissan Kaplan says "it is impossible to reach any level unless you are first growing in learning. Otherwise, it has no tefisa (permanence)" source audio here


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