There is a profit in the land over all else, for the king is sustained by the field
Ecclesiastes 5:8 (as per Ibn Ezra on verse)
It’s that time of the year again. The shofar blasts preparing us for the month ahead. “The King is in the Field,” the saying goes, but he is just beyond our grasp. As the world seemingly continues to spiral out of control as the western way of life lies empty and in retreat, we are left yearning for our redemption.
The birthday of the world draws close. The king is waiting to arrive, but where are we? The redemption is actually at hand and yet we are are caught up with mundane activities, distracted, and distraught. Yet, within each of us there is a soul crying and yearning for the truth.
Our sages tell us the redemption will come at a time of complete darkness and confusion. It has never been quite clear what this meant, but in our generation there is no longer any self respect, boundaries, or holiness. It is in this sort of world where all is permissible and nothing has consequences that darkness reigns. Yet, depsite the seeming disarray there is a way back or forward.
Rebbe Nachman, the great chassidic master tells a story concerning the heart of the world. The heart sustains all and yet yearns for a flowing spring ontop of a mountain. Each one of us is the heart of the world. It is our yearning no matter how faint that sustains all around us. This is the power of the month before the great crowning of the King on Rosh Hoshannah.
If we prepare and acknowledge who is truly in charge then we have the power to bring the redemption. If we yearn for the king of the world and by doing so reconnect to our heart then the chaos that surrounds us, the darkness that has enveloped our world will be no more.
In Elul we no longer have to find the king, for he is right before us. All we have to do is prepare. The first step is to know that you are the heart of the world and all of your thought, speech, and actions can decide its fate. Taking the first step is often the hardest. Howver, when we do we have brought ourselves that much closer to our destination.
The time is now!