Pleasant our day, how comfortable our surroundings are, we feel discontent because we are not in synch. We are not holistic.
The Unlockable Force
This is why Jewish mystics wrote that anything can be accomplished with joy. Even the greatest obstacles cannot block the path of inner joy. Outer joy is not in synch with our deepest selves and can be thrown off track. If someone offends us, attacks us, or steals from us, it puts a damper on frivolity. But the joy that stems from our deepest self is impervious to obstruction.
Another difference between inner and outer joy is that inner joy is serene, refined, and loving. Outer joy can be course, blusterous, and offensive. It can lead to actions that we might not have otherwise contemplated. It can lead to errors of judgment in both deeds and words. Not so inner joy. It stems from a good and holy place and is therefore loving and serene.[7]
In other words, vacuous, raucous, outer joy conceals our true selves; it changes us and causes us to behave differently. Inner joy lifts us up and reveals our true selves. We, therefore, discover abilities, sensibilities, and emotions, that we never knew we had.
When we perform a Mitzvah with inner joy, with an upright heart and a connected soul, our connection with G-d is holistic. It pervades every aspect of our being and results in a sense of ecstasy. When a Mitzvah is performed out of sadness, indolence, hilarity, or frivolity, it is broken. It is rooted in ego, not holiness. We do it to serve ourselves, not G-d.
This is why the Talmud maintains that G-d is only present in the (inner) joy of a Mitzvah.
The Glimpse
While pure inner joy is rare for most people, anyone can achieve a taste of it. Every time we do something good for someone, every time we overcome temptation and do what is right even at a personal cost, we feel good about ourselves. This good inner feeling is the encounter with our deepest selves.
For the moment we catch a glimpse of being upright, internally consistent, and fully in synch.
If, on the other hand, we do something rotten or selfish, we feel unhappy with ourselves. We are feeling the twisting of our internal consistency. No one needs to tell us that we are off our game. We know it simply by how we feel.
As we prepare for a new year, let’s try to achieve glimpses of inner joy as often as we can.
[1] Deuteronomy 28:47.
[2] Introduction to Shaat Hamitzvos as elucidated by Rabbi Steinzaltz’s commentary on Tanya 26.
[3] Talmud, Shabbat 30b.
[4] Ecclesiastics 7:29.
[5] Psalms 97:11.
[6] Likutei Moharan, 7a.
[7] It can be expressed in vigorous dance, but one can sense an inner serenity in the dance. It is soulful and noble, not crass and frivolous.
