I have been thinking for days about what I am going to be naming this blog--trying to come up with clever puns (if puns are ever clever) or inspiring statements (without sounding too full of myself). I have finally decided on "Darchei Noam." It is a phrase that comes from Sefer Mishlei (the Book of Proverbs) chapter 3 verse 17: "Its ways are ways of pleasantness (Darchei Noam in Hebrew), and all its paths are peace." The following verse reads, "It is a tree of life to those who grasp it, and all who cling to it find happiness." Our liturgy uses these two verses in reverse order as we return the Torah to the ark. In this context, we are to understand the Tree of Life to be Torah. Commentator Joel Rosenberg in the Reconstructionist prayer book Kol Haneshamah writes about this, "At the end of the Garden story, Adam and Eve are forbidden access to the mysterious Tree of Life, whose fruit confers immortality. Yet over the generations to follow, humankind itself becomes a Tree of Life. The Torah is handed on from one generation to another, binding the generations in a commonwealth of time and conferring the norms on which the survival of civilization depends. Thus the Torah is compared to the Tree of Life." Chief Rabbi of the UK Jonathan Sacks adds in his excellent commentary on the siddur, ". . . the Torah is our intimation of eternity in the midst of time. Immortality is a matter not of how long we live, but of how we live."
I hope this blog will add to our notions of Torah, and therefore will lead you to darchei noam, ways of pleasantness.
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I like the comment; ". . . the Torah is our intimation of eternity in the midst of time. Immortality is a matter not of how long we live, but of how we live." I always try to think about the Torah and what it means when I have teachable moments with my child. It is comforting to know we have a rich heritage in which to learn from. I look forward to reading more. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThank you for creating the blog. The title is most appropriate and your explanation is excellent. Suggestion: Edit (tighten) the explanation a bit and post it permanently in the column directly below the "About Me" section. Perhaps it could be placed under the head, "About 'Darchei Noam'."
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