Hovot HaLevavot’s Shaar HeBechina, discusses recognizing G-d in creation. It talks about appreciating all the design, and plan and purpose in creation, in the actual physical world.
Toward the end of this topic, he talks about certain things that G-d created which are more of an appreciation of the world at large. He discusses a very interesting concept that we might not have thought of before: The more necessary something is in this world, the more abundant it is and the easier it is to get to it.
His first example is air. We can’t survive more than a few minutes without it, and therefore air is everywhere we need it to be. If you lock yourself in a room, there’s air. There is always air, and you don’t have to work hard to get it. This is the only planet that is livable, because we have air in abundance.
Another commodity that is extremely necessary is water. We can’t survive without water, and therefore water is abundant (although not as abundant as air). It’s gathered together in pools, in areas for animals, humans, insects and birds to get to, because they all need water.
Food is less accessible and so you can go a day or two without it. Sometimes animals have to search a while for food, as we have seen in videos, such as of a polar bear searching a day or two until he can find something to eat.
So, food is not as abundant as air and water, but it is abundant. Clothing and shelter, we have to work at those, because we can survive without them. Luxuries, such as gold, silver, and diamonds- people think that these things are precious because they are rare, but it’s actually the opposite. Because we don’t really need them, G-d made them more rare. That’s what leads them to become precious. Ladies don’t like to hear this but you can survive without jewelry; it is just a luxury. It’s an extra. G-d didn’t make too much of the extras.
These are the words of the Hovot HaLevavot, and it’s an interesting phenomenon, that shows how G-d planned the world.
And the Elder of Kelm says that just like in the physical world whatever we need most of is most abundant, so too in the spiritual world.
Whatever we need most spiritually, is most abundant. He says that since we need Emunah more than anything else, we can’t survive without it. Emunah is like air. Thus,
צדיק באמונתו יחיה
The Sadik lives by his Emunah.
Emunah is essential. It’s a basic, so therefore wherever you turn, Emunah is available. Everywhere you look, you can see G-d’s plan and purpose, his hashkafa/supervision, reward and punishment. Look around at all the fundamentals of Emunah- they are abundant. That is why there is something called the Six Constant Mitzvot, most of which are Emunah related.
We have to remember Yetziat Mitzrayim twice a day. We need that constant charge of Emunah.
Other mitzvot, such as sending away the mother bird, are not as common, because we can survive without them, so they’re not all over the place. But somethings that we need all of the time is always available, because G-d, in His kindness, wants man to survive. He wants him to have air, He wants him to have Emunah.
Air is all around us, but we have to breath it in. Likewise, Emunah is readily available, but we have to do something for it. We don’t have to breathe it in, we have to think it in. We have to think about it, or it won’t make an impact on us. That is why it is our job, every day, to think about Emunah (and perhaps this daily thought helps out with this). We have to think about Emunah, not just for a second, but as much as we can, every day.
The Hovot HaLevavot says that every day we should find a new chiddush, or concept in creation, that we never noticed before, in the wonders of G-d, because our bodies need this. We don’t say, “Well, I breathed yesterday,” or “ I breathed an hour ago, so I’m good.”
We can’t do that. We have to keep breathing. Eating yesterday doesn’t help us for today. We have to eat every single say. So too, we need Keriat Shema, Amidah, and hizzuk on Emunah. It’s oxygen. It’s a basic. And that’s why G-d gave us an abundance of it- it’s all over the place. And just in case we can’t find Emunah on our own, G-d sends it to us, in daily emails, books, and classes. They are there to spark us. Rav Yehezkiel Levenstein says that it’s like a person who can’t breath his own gets oxygen, or is even put on a ventilator, because he needs outside help.
B’ezrat Hashem, we will all get enough Emunah, air and oxygen for our souls.
Have a wonderful day.