The lesson that keeps coming up is that the path to the Promised Land is fraught with obstacles, and we each must overcome our doubts and confusions and continuously clarify our goals. This happened with Avraham, having to go to Egypt first, and now we see it happening to the entire Jewish nation. Instead of being led on a direct path, God took them around. As Mac Miller sings on Hurt Feelings, “I’ve been going through it, you just go around it.” It sometimes feels like the only way to power through something is to push directly through it, but sometimes a circular path instead of a direct one is more healing and conducive to holiness. It allows time for healing and clarity, and that is exactly how we as a nation pushed through the waters of the Red Sea and became free.
This week we read the song that Moshe and the 3 million Jews burst into in unison after being saved by the splitting of the Red Sea. Spiritual exile corresponds to Egypt, and we find ourselves spiritually stuck and often feeling trapped in our own lives, sometimes in indecision, other times by a series of obstacles that seem insurmountable. It’s each of our willingness to draw close to God that represents our own exodus from impurity and indecision, to purity and clarity, from faithlessness to a life more faithfully balanced. Often, when we do feel trapped and feel that we have no viable options left, we are only left with crying out, speaking out, praying out to God, and in those times we will see the waters open up and the beginning of a redemption will reveal itself.
Carlebach says that in order to sing one has to be free. The slaves from Africa used to sing to tell you that no matter how much you tried to enslave them, they were still free. Singing comes from the world of freedom. When you sing, you are telling evil, “You don’t have dominion over me.”
The Zohar says whoever sings Az Yashir every day with kavanah will merit singing it together with Mashiach in the time of our ultimate redemption. It’s not enough to ask for the redemption, as we already know it is coming; we must ask for it speedily at this very moment, and with that bask in the revealed Light of Infinite forever. 

Thanks for listening!
Much love & Shabbat Shalom! 
- Erez // @erezsafar   


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The Song of the Sea (exodus: beshalach)

Light of Infinite is a blog, a podcast, a festival and a soon to be released book series, where Erez Safar acts as Your Spiritual DJ, curating insights into the weekly Torah portion and the infinite light of Kabbalah.

The project began on the Yartzeit (yearly memorial) of my ex wife’s mother’s passing, and it’s inspired by both her (Yehudis Chava bat Yakov Dov) and my mother (Frida Levona bat Shalom), who passed the same year. When I think of these women, I think of tzedaka and chesed, words that are hard to translate because they capture the real depths of words like ‘generous’, ‘giving’, ‘loving’, and ‘kindness’. These two women embodied and exemplified these qualities to an angelic degree: so full of life, love, warmth, and light, at every turn, every single moment. Being around them inspired me to be more loving, more giving, more full of a zest for each moment in life.

My goal with this ongoing project is to spread that inspiration and Light that I received and still receive from them. Using each week’s Torah portion, delving deep into the text, the commentaries, and the Kabbalah connected to it, I’ll share insights that bring that inspiration and Light to life for me, and will hopefully do the same for you.

As DJ Shadow sampled on his seminal record, Entroducing, “It’s not me that’s coming through– the music’s coming through me”. With that said, I do not take any recognition for any part of the material except the writing style. The recognition is meant for the Holy One, Blessed Be He, and the Giants of Torah that reveal the the Light of Infinite in a way that only they can. So, I would like to give thanks to some of the Chassidic Masters and Rabbis that I draw the most inspiration from, whose wisdom I’m attempting to bring down and make accessible. These include Reb Nachman & Reb Nosson Mi’Breslov, The Arizal, The Ba’al Shem Tov, R’Menachem Mendel Schneerson (the Rebbe), Carlebach, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Abraham Joshua Heschel, and so many others.

I hope that these words inspire you to delve deeper into the Torah and kabbalisitc texts, and, as Chaim Vital says, “One can go deeper and deeper, as far as the human mind can delve, and it will always yield new treasures.”

Light of Infinite is an upcoming book series where I act as your spiritual DJ, curating insights into the weekly Torah portion and the infinite light of Kabbalah. The sefer (book) will include newly edited, and in some cases, expanded text on the weekly parashah. There will also be a section on key concepts of Kabbalah as well as a section that includes stories and info on some of my favorite Rebbe’s.

The Song of the Sea (exodus: beshalach)

light of infinite