18 August 2015 · A sentence from the teachings of Rav Kook

„There is one who sings the song of his own soul, and in his soul he f…”

„There is one who sings the song of his own soul, and in his soul he finds everything, the full spiritual satisfaction in its entirety. And there is one who sings the song of the nation, going out from the circle of his private soul... aspiring to heights of might, and cleaving with tender love to the entirety of the Congregation of Israel, and with her he sings her songs, grieves in her troubles, and delights in her hopes... And there is one whose soul expands still further, until he goes out and spreads beyond the boundary of Israel, to sing the song of humanity... And there is one who rises still higher than this in breadth, until he unites with all of existence, with all creatures, and with all the worlds, and with all of them he sings a song... And there is one who ascends together with all these songs as one bundle, and all of them give forth their voices, all of them together making their melodies sweet.”From Orot HaKodesh, II, 444

"A light unto the nations" does not mean superiority, but rather the ability truly to illuminate the entire world, each and every individual in the world and each and every group in the world and in all of existence.

We are different people, and each can touch the circles he is capable of reaching. There is one whose personal development contributes greatly; he becomes better and is the better for it.

And there is one who advances his nation, the people of Israel, feeling the troubles of his people, rejoicing in its joys.

And there is one who feels all of humanity, the human beings in this world.

And there is one who feels everything: the animals and the people, the beating heart of the world.

And there is one, and in my humble opinion here is where the Rav directs his own teaching, who tries to raise all these voices together, for there is no contradiction among them. To find the good in each and every light and to advance a better world out of all these voices together, in harmony.

"The song of the single bundle" is the song of Rav Kook, spread across dozens of his own books and hundreds of books by his students. A song that is exacting about the light as about the weighty, a song that does not compromise on what it is, and yet also hears in the entire world a song as well. A song by which, from the good we have today and also the evil, we understand more and more. There is no other way.

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For the elevation of the soul of Rabbi Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook, for today marks eighty years since his passing.