Situations can be
characterized by the type of hole involved. A hole can appear promising or
problematic. A hole can have a bottom or be bottomless. The combinations of
those two dimensions produce the following kinds of space: Container, Passage,
Trap, Abyss.
What kind of hole am I
encountering?
|
||
Promising
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Problematic
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Bottom
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Container
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Trap
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Bottomless
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Passage
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Abyss
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Identifying
the kind of hole you are in will help orient you to the possibilities and
challenges of your situation. I’d like to illustrate this using the Passover
story:
Egypt
= Trap
Red
Sea = Abyss/Passage
Desert
= Passage/Abyss
Canaan
= Container
*Bonus:
The Sinai event as all of the above
Egypt = Trap
A trap is a problematic
situation characterized by stuckness, lack of escape. In a trap, there is a
space but it’s totally surrounded, unrelentingly contained by rigid boundaries.
In a trap, the task is escape, creating holes, pushing and crossing boundaries,
or generating freedom through the previously unimagined and unattempted.
There’s a Rabbinic pun
about Egypt (Mitzrayim) as Narrow Places (Metzarim). This
creates a slightly different space image-- the passage so narrow one becomes
trapped in it. This is a beautiful bit of psychological Torah isn’t it; a lot
of situations that we think of as traps, in actuality, are just ways we feel
stuck while we’re on the way (passage). There’s still a way through, even if we
cannot figure how the heck we could squeeze through such a constricted path.
Sometimes the path is so narrow we lose all sight of it. Trap situations call
for close observation of all apparent boundaries and possible openings. Even if
escape is impossible, a hole can serve as a port or vent.
Red Sea = Abyss/Passage
An
abyss is a problematic situation characterized by openness without stability.
In an abyss, it’s all space in all directions, unrelenting space, nothing to
stabilize or orient oneself against. In an abyss, the task is falling
gracefully and/or seeking stability. It’s important to recognize, though, that
an encounter with an abyss (especially once you’ve fallen in) is most of the
time entirely out of one’s control.
If
you see an abyss up ahead, it’s a pretty good idea to stop first. Do not just
enter an abyss! The Israelites are stopped at the Red Sea, facing only
problematic options-- a trap behind, an abyss ahead. Then, the miracles
happens! God gives them (but not the Egyptians) a passage through the sea. The
Midrash on Nachshon ben Aminadav gives us some additional ‘hole’ Torah-- that
one might need to jump into an apparent/real abyss, having no other way to
discover a passage. Ideally though, when encountering an abyss, one should find
a way to explore it while keeping one foot on firm ground.
Desert = Passage/Abyss
A
passage is a promising situation characterized by openness and direction. In a
passage, one can press forward, turn back, rest, and get side-tracked. The task
is getting through, and all its related challenges-- finding a path, staying on
the path, managing obstacles, etc. Because of its similarity with an abyss
(because bottomless), passage can also be a very disorienting, distressing, and
discouraging situation.
The
desert is passage for the Israelites between Egypt and Canaan. They journey, go
astray, make stops, have setbacks, and eventually get somewhere. On the other
hand, the wilderness is so disorienting that it can feel more like an abyss.
The entire generation leaving Egypt (save two) dies in the desert. For Korah
and his ilk, the desert becomes a literal abyss.
Canaan = Container
A container is a
promising situation characterized by protective boundaries and flexible
openings. In a container, one should feel oriented, safe, stabilized, and free.
The task is maintaining good boundaries.
Canaan is the promised
container for the Israelites but their time in it will always be fraught with
boundary anxiety. Who and what is allowed (or prohibited) in the country/community
will be a constant and ever-budding obsession.
Sinai as Container, Abyss, Trap, and Passage
Sinai
appears as a container when the people all arrive and become one nation.
Looking back at the Sinai event, it defines the people, creating a division
between those who stood at Sinai and those who did not.
Sinai
appears as an abyss when God’s arrival triggers clouds, lightning, and a
breakdown of the natural order. God crosses the boundary into the world, and
this is threatening to the integrity of the world as a container. This is
likely why the people beg Moses to have God speak to him rather than them.
Sinai appears as a trap
in the Midrash in which God is said to overturn the mountain on the people
“like a barrel.” In this version of the story, the people learn that their
‘freedom’ from Egypt is only for the purpose of serving God; if they don’t
‘choose’ the Torah, then they will remain trapped.
Is
Sinai a passage? Sort of-- it’s a stop along the way, and therefore it is a
part of the way. It’s an ordeal for the people to get through, and not everyone
(see: Golden calf worshipping) makes it through. The people are challenged to
move-- from slavery to freedom, from idolatry to monotheism, from mixed
multitude to nation, etc. The story of the Israelites in the desert is one of
progress and regress, and Sinai is just one episode in which we see both kinds
of movement.
