High Holiday Tools for Personal Growth

The High Holidays are a contemplative time. They’re a time for ‘internal review’, and of empowerment for a year of growth.

The Hebrew word for the exercise is “Teshuva”, which we can interpret as ‘re-aligning our conduct with our soul-compass’.

So we think, and we resolve to live more focused, more purposeful lives in the year ahead.

But we all know that resolutions sometimes have no ‘legs’; they’re often good feelings that don’t make it out the synagogue door.

So how do we make the High Holidays transformative?

In Chabad thought, we speak of five critical tools to effect re-alignment and transformation (please see blog for a more scholarly analysis of the Torah roots to this concept).

 1. Sincere Commitment. Many people go through life feeling that their lives are based on a value system. They have principles which they deem important, which they teach to their children and espouse to their friends.

But what happens when we're presented with situations that test our commitment to those values? When our values seem inconvenient and ‘temporarily’ expendable?

What do we do then?

Do we stick to our values or 'make this exception’?

The real question is: How sincere, how deep, is your commitment to the values you respect?

Going into Rosh Hashana, when we are poised for introspection and important resolutions, we need to analyze our own 'Commitment Factor'.

Strengthening our inner loyalty to Principle can make the High Holidays echo throughout the year.

 2. Recognition of the responsibility inherent in our very existence.

I believe in G-d. Being conscious of my faith can play a huge role in my self-refinement.

What is ’my faith’? G-d created me for a purpose: To live my life in a meaningful way, as defined by the Torah.

Now what is ‘my creation’? Chassidic thought doesn’t see it as a one time event that happened at my birth.

My creation, and yours, It’s a constant phenomenon.

Every moment of the day, just as my lungs are pumping oxygen into blood and my blood is bringing life to my limbs, G-d’s spiritual energy is pumping away, bringing me life and existence.

Creation is a constant. And it’s always for a purpose. So every moment of the day, my purpose needs to be front and center. It’s the reason G-d has given me this moment.

It’s a challenge to see the world this way; there are so many distractions. But imagine living your life where you use ‘purpose’ as the guiding light through which you make your choices? Imagine the next challenging stimulus that comes your way, and you recognize - in your mind’s eye – that G-d has given you this moment, this challenge, for a purpose; and it’s up to you to actualize that purpose.

It would be a different world.

To be continued…