MISC-----misc q and a

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Punims Posted - 15 September 2003 9:10
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1. Why would we want to try and finish our jobs/potentials in this world, if you die once you're done?

2. If someone is supposed to die and they have complete bitachon that they're going to live, how can Hashem change His death sentence to become life?

I heard a story of a man that was about to be killed, and he asked for a drink of water. He made a shehakol and a miracle happened and they didn't kill him.

Was Hashem going to save him if he DIDN'T make that bracha? Why would Hashem change His mind by the man saying "Everything that happens is by the word of Hashem".. It still WAS by the word of Hashem BEFORE he said the bracha.


MODERATOR Posted - 15 September 2003 9:22
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1. Because it’s worth it, for Olam Habah. It’s like saying, why is it worth making a million dollars in your business if afterwards you have to go retire to the French Riviera and live like a King?

2. First, there is a machlokes between the Chazon Ish and Rav Yisroel Salanter if Bitachon works the way you describe. According to the Chazon Ish, Bitachon does not mean if you have Bitachon you get whatever you want, but that you are confident that whatever Hashem does for you - whether you wanted it or not - is only for the best. According to that, Bitachon does not change your fate, because why would you want to? Everything is for the best as it is!

Second, sometimes a person can change the designated day of his death through Mitzvos, particularly Chesed. Being in this world is an opportunity, and Hashem grants you more opportunity if you show that you used the opportunity that He gave you properly.

Chesed has an additional element. If people depend on you, then Hashem may allow you to live beyond your designated days, because if you were to die, those other people would suffer. So a Baal Chesed who people depend on gets long life because others need him.


Punims Posted - 15 September 2003 12:57
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1. But isn't death like one of the most feared incidents? How can a person believe that fulfilling his goal here, which will mean he has to die, is the right thing to do?

2. If the Chazon Ish is right, that bitachon doesn't change anything... how do you explain all those stories about people who had so much bitachon that their luck changed? Like winning the lottery.

I heard a story about a simple man who just found out bout the concept of bitachon. So he decided that he's not going to work and G-d will provide. His family thought he was nuts, so they sold his donkey.

The man who now had the donkey decided to go seek his fortune. He went into the forest, found a treasure and just as he loaded the donkey, a huge boulder fell on him.
The donkey then ran back to his former owner, who became rich.

The Alshich told his students this story, and his students asked how a pashut Jew can have so much bitachon like that, and if they tried it, it would never work.

He said because the man was way too simple to understand anything else. So he had total bitachon, but the Alshich's talmidim are so smart that they analyze everything and can never fully reach that level of bitachon.

So how does that all fit into the Chazon Ish's explanation?

3. If Hashem lengthens your days because others need you, does He have to recreate your life? Cuz He knew what you're going to do at every second and He had your life prepared. What if, in this lengthening of days, the guy decides to get married.

Did Hashem just decide on the spot who the guy's children will be? It's not just lengthening the life of one man, it's completely creating an entire new world.


MODERATOR Posted - 15 September 2003 13:07
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1. Death is feared because how can we be sure that we have indeed fulfilled our tachlis? Plus, Hashem gave us survival instincts which are useful for preserving our health in this world. Impending death assaults that instinct and causes fear which is designed to generate a fight or flight response that can save your life. But if someone is on a level of perception where he actually feels that he is in this world only to fulfill his purpose, he will indeed not be scared of death.

2. The Chazon Ish would probably deny those stories. None of them are documented anyway. And the story you cite about the Alshich sounds so not like the Alshich and his Hashkofo; in fact, it sounds altogether unreasonable: going higher and learning more does NOT, ever, harm a person in any way, including Bitachon. You become more connected to Hashem and more aware of His presence in your life, which is what Bitachon is based on. (Of course, this is assuming your learning is legit, which, in the case of the Alshich’s students, it was.)The story sounds more like one of those fake Chasidic folklore tales that the "hamon am" are so fond of.

3. Hashem doesn’t have to recreate your life, but He has "contingency" plans. When you are born, your fate is a complex series of If-Then-Else program modules that run based on your actions. What happens to you depends on the decisions you make, but all based on the preordained If-Then outline that Hashem put in place.