Question: Two roads met at a crossroads, a narrow one and a wide one. The wide one said: “Look at yourself. You are covered in sharp rocks and crevices. Look at me: I am beautiful, smooth. Alongside me there are cafes, restaurants, villas.” It uttered, sighed, and fell silent.
“Why did you suddenly go silent?” asked the narrow road. “Isn’t life good for you?”
“It is all well and good,” it replied, “but at the end of me lies an abyss, bottomless, dark, and gloomy. People do not even suspect it. And those who do know about it, they just shrug it off. I am afraid of slipping into it one day. And you, how do you live?”
“It is tough!” sighed the narrow road. “And those who tread on me go uphill, it is not easy for them. But at the end of my path, up there on the hill, they are all so bright, joyful, and happy. And I want more than anything to be there.”
The roads conversed and went their separate ways. A man who heard it all remained at the crossroads. And what is strange, he is still standing there, still pondering which road to take.
Answer: Yes, that is what is in front of people.
Question: Why doesn’t the man take the narrow road? He hears that it leads to paradise!
Answer: That will be somewhere later, someday. And now, there is a splendid road in front of him. And he is walking down it calmly. He might sit down at any establishment, a restaurant or a café, grab a bite, take a rest, and then continue on. That is what life entices us with.
Question: The man stands there, not knowing where to go. So, he hears the roads reflecting: one leads to hell, the other to paradise. And still, he does not go anywhere. It is like he is torn apart not knowing where to go!
Answer: That is our every moment-to-moment feeling.
Question: So these roads are not just a matter of standing and deciding right now.
Answer: You are in them all the time.
Question: Am I always at a crossroads?
Answer: Yes, every moment.
Question: How do I decide which way to go then?
Answer: You do not decide anything. It is decided from above. And you are led as you need to be led. It is already known and predetermined.
So the main thing is to agree with it, not to worry, and to connect with the Creator who does all this. And He will take you by the hand and lead you where you need to go. And you just obediently correct yourself. So be in agreement with Him in every moment.
Question: At some point, I stop at this crossroads for a moment or a for while, and then I have to agree with Him and go where He directs me?
Answer: Yes.
Question: Is this called “where the heart leads”?
Answer: That is what they say. It is by definition a straight line. A straight line is called a curve at every point of which there is a bend.
Question: For me, even from the first grade it was: there are two dots, and a straight line can be drawn between them.
Answer: No, you cannot draw a straight line. You do not know the end point. But at every point you make a turn, and that is why it becomes a straight line.
Question: So a person does not choose his road? The Creator chooses it for him. And you keep drawing this line all the time—to agree with the Creator?
Answer: Yes.
Question: Why do I agree? Out of tiredness, out of wisdom? What more is there?
Answer: Yes, because it is the only right option. I am not setting myself up for something supernatural. I do not make any special decisions. I just want to flow with life in agreement with the Creator because it is inherently above me.
Question: How can one come to this wisdom? We are always choosing something.
Answer: Then be a revolutionary. Go ahead!
Question: But it is already clear that it will be a failed attempt. A true revolution is when I agree?
Answer: It is when you agree with the Creator because it is against your nature.
Question: And this is rising above one’s nature?
Answer: Yes, our life is a struggle with our own egoism, a struggle with what we would like. And therefore, only such an approach is actually reasonable.
Question: So, “I decide” lives within us? And the revolution is “You decide, and I do not decide”?
Answer: Yes, that is why you must jump, grab onto the Creator, and fly forward like that.
Question: The Creator who I must grab onto, what is it?
Answer: It is the nature of the entire universe. The great force, the wisest force that spins everything. And we are tiny particles in it.
And indeed, we are given the opportunity to realize that there is something higher than us that governs us. To agree that He is in control is our wisdom if we can uncover it.
Comment: And this addition, which you always say is good, is in my opinion the hardest thing to agree with.
My Response: If He governs and there is none else but Him, then what is left for us? The most reasonable thing for us to follow is to subjugate to Him, to subjugate not out of weakness, but out of rationality.
Question: And then I automatically understand that I am moving toward good?
Answer: Yes, and then we will move toward good.
[325619]
From KabTV’s “News with Dr. Michael Laitman” 1/11/24
Related Material:
Where Will the River of Life Take Us?
The Golden Rule of Decision-Making
“A Journey Of A Thousand Miles Begins With A Single Step”
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Question: We teach that the Torah fills the heart with gladness. Is joy on the path the protection that the Torah provides?
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