Description: Chapter 2 - 01
Derech Hashem
Chapter 2 – 01
We now begin the second chapter, which is titled, ‘Tachlis Habriah,’ the point of creation.
The point of creation was so that Hashem could share His goodness with the world. It’s important to understand, that typically, the concept of ‘shelaimus’, perfection, is used in a relative manner. We deem something to be perfect and complete in relation to something which is incomplete. This item has been perfected further than another item, so we call it perfect. In truth, it isn’t the end of the line in perfection, and it can be perfected further. If we were to use modern technology as an example, one could say, that in 1985, the DOS operating system, or whatever other operating system was in use, was perfected to the best possible level. However, that year, Windows was introduced, and DOS quickly became obsolete. It was perfect when compared to what preceded it, but it in no way defined perfection.
However, when talking about Hashem, His perfection and completeness is total. It is the ultimate perfection, and nothing or no one else can possibly be as perfect or even compare to Hashem’s shelaimus. Hashem has no chisaron – there is nothing missing at all. When Hashem chose to create the world so that He could give and grant kindness to His creations, He would only give the greatest and most perfect good possible. A little goodness and kindness wouldn’t be sufficient. The greatest good is only the ability to connect with Hashem. In this way Hashem was sharing the greatest good there can possibly be with His creations, because Hashem is the perfection of goodness.
By affording His creations the ability to connect with Hashem, He was giving them access to the greatest good, which will then depend on the level they choose to connect with. According to the amount of effort they invest in connecting to Hashem, that is how much of His goodness they will enjoy.
However, Hashem determined that it’s impossible to truly appreciate anything good if it comes without effort as a gift. It has to be earned. If a person earns his reward, he owns the goodness, he owns the reward, and it can become a part of him. If he is granted it as a gift, it is merely something he can access, but is not defined by this. Hashem desired that we should have the ability to resemble His perfection as much as possible. Hashem is intrinsically good, it is what we do understand about Hashem, and Hashem wanted to afford us the ability to recreate ourselves as perfect and good, in the same manner, and that is only possible if we create ourselves through hard work and effort to achieve that goal. Through our service of Hashem, we iron out all our failings, and perfect ourselves, and then become connected and related to Hashem through a process that is totally integrated into the fiber of our being!
That is why Hashem created this world both with aspects of perfection and beauty, and aspects of imperfection and failings. All of Hashem’s creations also have this opportunity equally, whether to perfect themselves or to allow themselves to fail. We can become perfect and achieve shalaimus, or we can live with ‘chesronos.’ If we do put in the effort, we will have achieved the greatest resemblance - dimyon, to Hashem that we can possibly do.
Derech Hashem
Chapter 2 – 01
We now begin the second chapter, which is titled, ‘Tachlis Habriah,’ the point of creation.
The point of creation was so that Hashem could share His goodness with the world. It’s important to understand, that typically, the concept of ‘shelaimus’, perfection, is used in a relative manner. We deem something to be perfect and complete in relation to something which is incomplete. This item has been perfected further than another item, so we call it perfect. In truth, it isn’t the end of the line in perfection, and it can be perfected further. If we were to use modern technology as an example, one could say, that in 1985, the DOS operating system, or whatever other operating system was in use, was perfected to the best possible level. However, that year, Windows was introduced, and DOS quickly became obsolete. It was perfect when compared to what preceded it, but it in no way defined perfection.
However, when talking about Hashem, His perfection and completeness is total. It is the ultimate perfection, and nothing or no one else can possibly be as perfect or even compare to Hashem’s shelaimus. Hashem has no chisaron – there is nothing missing at all. When Hashem chose to create the world so that He could give and grant kindness to His creations, He would only give the greatest and most perfect good possible. A little goodness and kindness wouldn’t be sufficient. The greatest good is only the ability to connect with Hashem. In this way Hashem was sharing the greatest good there can possibly be with His creations, because Hashem is the perfection of goodness.
By affording His creations the ability to connect with Hashem, He was giving them access to the greatest good, which will then depend on the level they choose to connect with. According to the amount of effort they invest in connecting to Hashem, that is how much of His goodness they will enjoy.
However, Hashem determined that it’s impossible to truly appreciate anything good if it comes without effort as a gift. It has to be earned. If a person earns his reward, he owns the goodness, he owns the reward, and it can become a part of him. If he is granted it as a gift, it is merely something he can access, but is not defined by this. Hashem desired that we should have the ability to resemble His perfection as much as possible. Hashem is intrinsically good, it is what we do understand about Hashem, and Hashem wanted to afford us the ability to recreate ourselves as perfect and good, in the same manner, and that is only possible if we create ourselves through hard work and effort to achieve that goal. Through our service of Hashem, we iron out all our failings, and perfect ourselves, and then become connected and related to Hashem through a process that is totally integrated into the fiber of our being!
That is why Hashem created this world both with aspects of perfection and beauty, and aspects of imperfection and failings. All of Hashem’s creations also have this opportunity equally, whether to perfect themselves or to allow themselves to fail. We can become perfect and achieve shalaimus, or we can live with ‘chesronos.’ If we do put in the effort, we will have achieved the greatest resemblance - dimyon, to Hashem that we can possibly do.