We left off in the previous session outlining part 10 of the contents of what we're going to be discussing. And the question was, can Bitachon be applied to mundane endeavors? There's no doubt about it that ultimately our main purpose in this world is to strive to succeed spiritually. And of course, the spiritual and physical overlap all the time because we live in a physical world. But ultimately, it boils down to what is our motive? Are we living just for the physical gratification of the enjoyment of this world, or are we using the physical things in this world to serve Hashem, which is ultimately what the neshama's calling is for, as opposed to what the body desires. So there's no question that when it comes to bitachon itself, as we'll see from Torah sources, that the ultimate is certainly to use bitachon for our spiritual attainments.
You see, we've alluded to a type of bitachon which is not so popularly taught. And we've discussed previously some of the reasons why that is so. And of course, we've only just began to touch the tip of the iceberg about this whole topic. But another reason sometimes this form of bitachon is shied away from is because what might happen, God forbid, is a person can become so self-indulged about one's own needs and wants that one can almost forget about Hashem. So I can learn about bitachon, and I can learn that bitachon can help me get what I want, and I can now understand that I have this amazing magic potion that can get me what I want, and almost forget about Hashem in the picture. There is absolutely no question that the ultimate purpose of all of Torah and mitzvos, which includes the whole purpose of bitachon, is for our spiritual achievements. At the same time, we've all got to be real with ourselves, that most of us are not living 100% of the time at that level where we only have spiritual wants and needs.
Although many of us are trying our best to climb the spiritual ladder, at the same time we have many physical needs and wants. So now what do we do? Do we just leave Hashem out of the picture of those physical needs, or do we just live like a two-faced life, that on the one hand we have the life with Hashem, which refers to spiritual things, and then we have the other side, which is my own physical desires, which I kind of leave Hashem out of that picture, because I'm almost embarrassed to include Him in that.
I cannot overemphasize how important it is to gain clarity on this topic, because this literally makes a difference to us on a moment-to-moment basis of our lives, because so many of our decisions and needs and wants all have to do with the mundane world. So do I have a license to reach out to Hashem about those things? Is it commendable? Is it a mitzvah? What do the Torah sources teach when it comes to relying on Hashem about mundane endeavors?
We're now going to move to the next question, part 11. What is my obligation of Hishtadlus? The word Hishtadlus is a famous word and phrase that many of us are familiar with. Simply speaking, Hishtadlus means my making an effort in the picture. If Hashem does everything, and I can rely on Him, and I should rely on Him, and as we've learned that if I want to have the ultimate bitachon, I should rely on Hashem 100%, what space does that leave for any form of Hishtadlus? Now again, there are many Torah sources about this, and B’ezrat Hashem will get to them in part 11. But just for now, some food for thought.
It could happen that you see two people performing and acting the exact same way, and they're literally on two opposite sides of the spectrum, where the one is fulfilling Hashem's will to the ultimate degree, truly fulfilling his mitzvah and obligation of Hishtadlus under the true parameters of bitachon, and the other person could literally, God forbid, be under the umbrella of idol worship. It is so, so, so important to gain clarity of what does it mean that I have a mitzvah to do Hishtadlus? How do I reconcile this with bitachon? Let's discuss this further, B’ezrat Hashem, as we move forward together on our bitachon journey.
