Rebbe Nachman's Wisdom: Navigating Our Fear About Israel

from Rabbi Tom Cohen in Paris

Like you, I am feeling heartbroken and afraid for Israel and the Jewish community since Saturday 7 October 2023.

The one thing that helped me feel grounded today was reading this message from Rabbi Tom Cohen. I am sharing his message here (with his permission) in hopes that it supports you during this dark moment.

Rabbi Tom Cohen sent out an email to the whole community today.

"you all know that there is a popular Jewish song in Hebrew called "kol ha-olam kulo gesher tzar me'od": כל העולם כולו גשר צר מאוד והעיקר לא לפחד כלל

“The whole entire world is a very narrow bridge and the main thing is to have no fear at all.”

Since Saturday, without a doubt, we are all on a very narrow bridge (gesher) right now. Not sure what tomorrow's news will bring us.

But when you go to the original teaching by Rebbe Nachman of Bratslav (1772-1810), you'll find the song mistranslates his thinking.

Here is the Hebrew text: וְדַע, שֶׁהָאָדָם צָרִיךְ לַעֲבֹר עַל גֶּשֶׁר צַר מְאֹד מְאֹד, וְהַכְּלָל וְהָעִקָּר – שֶׁלֹּא יִתְפַּחֵד כְּלָל
V'dâ she-adam tsarikh la-avor guesher tsar me'od, v'ha-k’lal v’ha-ikkar: shelo yit-pahéd k’lal.

“Know that a person needs to cross a very, very narrow bridge, and what is essential is not to be consumed by fear!” (Likouté Moharan (II:48).

The Hebrew is written in the reflexive tense and that makes all the difference to our understanding. It literally says “don’t make yourself afraid.”

There is a big difference between having fear, i.e., “don’t be afraid” and "making yourself afraid", i.e., "being consumed by fear".

Rebbe Nachman acknowledges that fear exists, and it is normal. His teaching simply says, we need not make things worse by eating ourselves with fear. Doing so can be quite dangerous, as it often leads to inaction.

It’s the kind of thinking we do, without even realizing it. It’s when we allow the stories in our mind to take us hostage into the never ending land of  “what if’s.” It’s when we jack up our fear, unnecessarily. It's when we watch, for example, the news on TV that repeats images and stories incessantly, or when we listen to radio talk show hosts who are more concerned about creating buzz and ratings through the angoisse they sell than informing the public with meaningful information.

Therefore, it is imperative to begin to notice when we are telling ourselves a story about the future that we do not yet know, thereby increasing our anxiety and fear and our penchant then to do nothing.

Obviously the situation is tense both here, and especially in Israel. Yet the wisdom of Rebbe Nachman is simply a reminder: stay with what you know now. Yes, be prepared and be vigilant because the world is indeed a narrow place. But stay in the territory of what you know, and pull yourself off the ceiling when you begin to spin out of control. After all, Judaism enjoins us to be models of hope and courage - and courage doesn't mean we are not afraid, but it just means we keep being actors even when we are scared." 

Thank you Rabbi Tom Cohen for helping me “pull myself off the ceiling” of my spinning fear.

Stay Safe, and pray for Israel

Kenden