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While many joys come instantaneously, the most profound levels of happiness come by way of feelings of personal accomplishment, community, and attachment to G-d. The Torah gives us many clear-cut goals, both in our private, as well as communal, lives. The tremendous joys of raising spiritually conscious children, tapping into the depths of Torah study and prayer, or assisting a charitable institution are boundless.
By upholding the many-faceted mitzvahs and studying their inner meanings, we are actually fine-tuning our senses and increasing our capacity for pleasure. The romance of Jewish marital life, awareness of the physical and spiritual elements in preparing and eating food, the focused, sublime restfulness of Shabbat, and the ecstatic dancing of Simchat Torah or at an authentic Jewish wedding are all examples which soar above the fleeting pleasures so espoused by today’s Western culture.
Of course, all of the above are not done for hedonistic reasons, but rather to serve G-d by fulfilling the mitzvahs – and that is the secret ingredient to supernal happiness. By serving something beyond ourselves, we tap into the Infinite – the true origin of the most exalted of pleasures.
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Philosophy » Happiness
