“Spirituality is like a bird: If you hold it too closely, it chokes, And if you hold it too loosely, it escapes.”
-Rabbi Israel Salanter
Goldilocks, besides a penchant for home invasion, had another enduring quality- being able to find the sweet spot between too hard and too soft, too hot and too cold, too high and too low. She found that which was “just right”. The Goldilocks Principle.
Nowhere is this principle more important to apply than in our spiritual life. As Reb Salanter says, held too close, our spirituality can choke us. Not held tightly enough, we may lose it. Many spiritual texts, like the Torah, can be likened to a fire. Taken too literally or held too tightly, it can burn and consume us. But take it away and we freeze in the dark. So we build a container around the fire- a stove or fireplace, where we can enjoy the fire and benefit from the heat and light it gives without burning down the house. We can tend it, wonder at it, share the warmth and atmosphere, cook nourishing meals over it.
Salanter suggests we approach our spirituality like Goldilocks: Not too hot, not too cold, not too hard, not too soft, just right. Don’t let ourselves off the hook, but don’t hang ourselves on the hook either.
How are you holding your spiritual life today, Goldilocks?
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Rabbi Yisroel ben Ze’ev Wolf Lipkin, also known as “Yisroel Salanter” or “Israel Salanter” (November 3, 1810, Zhagory – February 2, 1883, Königsberg), was the father of the Musar (ethical living) movement in Judaism and a famed Rosh yeshiva and Talmudist.
Joe Laur is a father, husband, artist, builder, naturalist, consultant, and EcoKosher mashgiach. He lives with his wife Sara in western Massachusetts, where he serves as head groundskeeper and resident singer songwriter. Send him your favorite teaching quote for commentary. He can be reached at joe.laur@joelaur.com.
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