Source Text
Thus Eduard is no ordinary physicist. For him the study of science is not only a scholarly pursuit; it is also a religious enterprise. In contradistinction to so many others, Eduard does not see any contradiction between Torah and Science. On the contrary, his experience has been that the more he learns, the more he discovers harmony and congruence between the Torah and the field of scientific enquiry.
How does Hasidism explain the principle of the oneness of God, ahdut ha-Shem? The main idea is not simply that God is one. It is not even just that God is everywhere. The main concept is that God is EVERYTHING. There is nothing except God!
As the Alter Rebbe wrote: ‘The whole world is like a small ray inside the sun.’ God creates this world anew every second. The Divine is the life energy of everything that exists in the world. In other words, the world is not an independent entity, but solely a manifestation of Divine energy. It is interesting to note that only within the lifetime of our generation has physics established that matter is the realisation of energy, while the founder of Hasidism realised this from studying the Torah two and a half centuries ago!
Since God is everything, that means that not only does He know everything, but he also governs everything – anywhere and everywhere! When a person fulfils the will of God, he should not and cannot have doubts about whether or not he will succeed. God watches over everything: if it is the will of God, then a person cannot fail.
INTRODUCTION
The objective of science is to discover, and gain knowledge of, the natural laws endowed by God to all of Creation.
In turn, the seventh Lubavitcher Rebbe2 explains this verse from the Torah thus: ‘The source of earthly wisdom is our scientific knowledge. By means of this second revolution, or the combining of scientific knowledge and Divine wisdom, the Messianic Era will become closer.’3 Therefore, it is only with a combination of faith and knowledge that we will be able to complete Creation and make our world a home for God. Let us take a look at what our sages have written about knowledge. In the Tehillim, it says: ‘The Lord in Heaven looked down upon the sons of men to see whether there is a man of understanding, who seeks the Lord’ (Tehillim, 14:2). It also says: ‘O Lord, let me know Your ways; teach me Your paths’ (Tehillim, 25:4).
The prophet Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) said: ‘Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, nor the strong man boast of his strength, nor the rich man boast of his riches. But let him that boasts exult in this, that he understands and knows Me”’ (Yirmiyahu, 9:22–23).
But this does not mean that a person has the right to refrain from intellectual development. We must follow that path, and the Almighty will decide how far we will reach.
A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO KABBALAH
AI Summary
From Infinity to Man by Eduard Shyfrin presents key insights from the contemplative tradition. The 10 passages above capture the essential teachings.
Core Themes:
- [To be expanded]
Key Passages: Highlights 1, 3, and 10 are particularly representative.
This entry was generated from Readwise highlights. Expand with additional context as appropriate.