Life is full of forks in the road. Each day offers us its share of decisions to make, options to choose from, and deliberations to navigate. Kabbalah's advice on how to make the best choice? Take the path of greatest resistance. So goes the famous kabbalistic truth: the greater the resistance, the greater the Light revealed. Or, in other words, the choice that requires you to make the bigger stretch is the one that will lead to lasting (versus temporary) fulfillment – not only for you, but for all those involved.
The first example, and in my opinion, the most impactful scenario in which we see this truth illustrated comes to us from the Bible, in the story about the famous twins, Jacob and Esau.
Jacob was a shepherd and Esau was a hunter. One evening, after a long day of gathering game, Esau came home ravenous. Jacob was at the hearth, stirring a pot of red lentil soup.
“Let me have some of that red stew, I’m passing out from hunger,” Esau growled at Jacob.
Jacob, the sharper yet gentler of the two, answered, “Of course – in exchange for your birthright.” In biblical times, the firstborn was entitled to the greater share of the family inheritance, including money, livestock, property and more.
“Look, I’m dying here, what do I care about my birthright?”
And so the deal was done. Esau traded his birthright to Jacob for a measly bowl of lentil soup.
In the story, the birthright represents our own lasting fulfillment, and the lentil soup is our penchant for instant gratification.
How many times do we in our own lives give up lasting, meaningful, and deserving fulfillment for a fleeting moment of happiness in the present? How easily are we willing to trade in all of the hard-earned Light that we’ve accumulated – through sharing, getting out of our comfort zone, and going against our selfish desires – for temporary, instant gratification? For being right? For getting credit? For feeling better than everyone else?
No question that we’d never opt for the instant gratification if given the time to truly reflect and ruminate. But that’s not the nature of our world. We usually don’t have the time (let alone the desire) to mull things over and really weigh our options. But Kabbalah teaches us that herein lies the winning move: if we can pause for a moment and connect to the desire of our soul, asking the Light for guidance, we will always choose long-term fulfillment.
Take the Zohar’s advice: The next time you’re faced with such a conundrum – ask yourself – lentil soup or birthright?
Lentil soup or birthright?
Lentil soup or birthright?
Choose wisely.
