אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁהַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ הוּא בוֹרֵא וּמַנְהִיג לְכָל הַבְּ֒רוּאִים וְהוּא לְבַדּוֹ עָשָׂה וְעוֹשֶׂה וְיַעֲשֶׂה לְכָל הַמַּעֲשִׂים: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁהַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ הוּא יָחִיד וְאֵין יְחִידוּת כָּמֽוֹהוּ בְּשׁוּם פָּנִים וְהוּא לְבַדּוֹ אֱלֺהֵֽינוּ הָיָה הֹוֶה וְיִהְיֶה: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁהַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ אֵינוֹ גוּף וְלֺא יַשִּׂיגֽוּהוּ מַשִּׂיגֵי הַגּוּף וְאֵין לוֹ שׁוּם דִּמְיוֹן כְּלָל: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁהַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ הוּא רִאשׁוֹן וְהוּא אַחֲרוֹן: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁהַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ לוֹ לְבַדּוֹ רָאוּי לְהִתְפַּלֵּל וְאֵין רָאוּי לְהִתְפַּלֵּל לְזוּלָתוֹ: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁכָּל דִּבְ֒רֵי נְבִיאִים אֱמֶת: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁנְּ֒בוּאַת משֶׁה רַבֵּֽנוּ עָלָיו הַשָּׁלוֹם הָיְ֒תָה אֲמִתִּית וְשֶׁהוּא הָיָה אָב לַנְּ֒בִיאִים לַקּוֹדְ֒מִים לְפָנָיו וְלַבָּאִים אַחֲרָיו: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁכָּל הַתּוֹרָה הַמְּ֒צוּיָה עַתָּה בְיָדֵֽינוּ הִיא הַנְּ֒תוּנָה לְמשֶׁה רַבֵּֽנוּ עָלָיו הַשָּׁלוֹם: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁזֹּאת הַתּוֹרָה לֺא תְהֵא מֻחְלֶֽפֶת וְלֺא תְהֵא תוֹרָה אַחֶֽרֶת מֵאֵת הַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁהַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ יוֹדֵֽעַ כָּל מַעֲשֵׂה בְנֵי אָדָם וְכָל מַחְשְׁ֒בוֹתָם שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר הַיֹּצֵר יַֽחַד לִבָּם הַמֵּבִין אֶל כָּל מַעֲשֵׂיהֶם: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁהַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ גּוֹמֵל טוֹב לְשׁוֹמְ֒רֵי מִצְוֹתָיו וּמַעֲנִישׁ לְעוֹבְ֒רֵי מִצְוֹתָיו: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה בְּבִיאַת הַמָּשִֽׁיחַ וְאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁיִּתְמַהְמֵֽהַּ עִם כָּל זֶה אֲחַכֶּה לּוֹ בְּכָל יוֹם שֶׁיָּבוֹא: אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בֶּאֱמוּנָה שְׁלֵמָה שֶׁתִּהְיֶה תְּחִיַּת הַמֵּתִים בְּעֵת שֶׁיַּעֲלֶה רָצוֹן מֵאֵת הַבּוֹרֵא יִתְבָּרַךְ שְׁמוֹ וְיִתְעַלֶּה זִכְרוֹ לָעַד וּלְנֵֽצַח נְצָחִים:
1. I believe with complete faith that the Creator, blessed is His Name, is the Creator and Guide of all created things, and He alone has made, does make, and will make all things. 2. I believe with complete faith that the Creator, blessed is His Name, is unique, and there is no uniqueness like His in any manner; and that He alone is our God, Who was, is, and will ever be. 3. I believe with complete faith that the Creator, blessed is His Name, is not corporeal, and that He is beyond all corporeal concepts, and there is nothing at all comparable to Him. 4. I believe with complete faith that the Creator, blessed is His Name, is First and Last. 5. I believe with complete faith that the Creator, blessed is His Name, is the only One to Whom it is proper to pray, and it is not proper to pray to any being beside Him 6. I believe with complete faith that all the words of the prophets are true. 7. I believe with complete faith that the prophecy of our teacher, Moses, may he rest in peace, was true, and that he was the father of all prophets, —of those who preceded him, and of those who followed him. 8. I believe with complete faith that the entire Torah which is now in our possession, is the very one that was given to our teacher Moses, may he rest in peace. 9. I believe with complete faith that this Torah will not be exchanged, and that no additional Torah [will be given] by the Creator, blessed is His Name. 10. I believe with complete faith that the Creator, blessed is His Name, knows all the deeds of men and all their thoughts, as it is said, He Who forms all their hearts as one, Who comprehends all their deeds. 11. I believe with complete faith that the Creator, blessed is His Name, rewards those who keep His commandments, and punishes those who transgress His commandments. 12. I believe with complete faith in the coming of the Messiah and even though he may tarry, nevertheless, I yearn every day for his coming. 13. I believe with complete faith that there will be a resurrection of the dead at a time that pleases the Creator, blessed is His Name, and His Name will be exalted forever and to all eternity.
About “Shemonah Kevatzim”
Author: Avraham Yitzchak HaCohen Kook
Composed: c.1904 - c.1920 CE
A collection of eight notebooks containing the writings of Rav Kook covering a variety of subjects, on which the books of his teachings authored by his son and students were based. These writings were published in unedited form in 1999.
יש כפירה שהיא כהודאה, והודאה שהיא ככפירה. כיצד?
מודה אדם שהתורה היא מן השמים, אבל אותם השמים מצטיירים אצלו בצורות כ"כ משונות, עד שלא נשאר בה מן האמונה האמיתית מאומה.
וכפירה שהיא כהודאה, כיצד?
כופר אדם בתורה מן השמים, אבל כפירתו מיוסדת רק על אותה הקליטה שקלט מן הציור של צורת השמים, אשר במוחות המלאים מחשבות הבל ותוהו, והוא אומר התורה יש לה מקור יותר נעלה מזה, ומתחיל למצא יסודה מגדולת רוח האדם, מעומק המוסר ורום החכמה שלו.
אע"פ שעדיין לא הגיע בזה למרכז האמת, מ"מ כפירה זו כהודאה היא חשובה, והיא הולכת ומתקרבת להודאת אמונת אומן. ודור תהפוכות כזה, הוא נדרש ג"כ למעליותא.
ותורה מן השמים משל הוא על כל כללי ופרטי האמונות, ביחש של מאמר המבטאי שלהן אל תמציתן הפנימי, שהוא העיקר המבוקש באמונה.
There is heresy that is like a confession, and a confession that is like heresy, how?
A person acknowledges that the Torah is from heaven, but the same heavens appear to him in such strange forms, that nothing remains of it from the true faith.
And heresy which is like a confession, how?
Heaven, which is in minds full of thoughts of vanity and chaos, and he says the Torah has a higher source than this, and begins to find its foundation from the greatness of the human spirit, from the depths of morality and the height of his wisdom.
Even though one has not yet reached the center of truth, in any case such a generation of upheavals, it is required ascend as well.
And the Torah from heaven is a parable about all the rules and details of the beliefs, in the whisper of their article that expresses them to their inner essence, which is the essence sought in faith.
I am filled with love for God. I know that what I seek, what I love, is called by no name. How can that which is greater than everything, greater than goodness, greater than [any] attribute, greater than being, be called by any name? And I love, and I say: I love God. The light of the Infinite One dwells in the expression of the Name, in the expression of “God,” and in all of the names and appellations that the heart of a man teaches and expresses when his soul is lifted ever upwards. I cannot satisfy my soul with the love that comes from chains of logic, from the search for the light of God via the world, via an existence that penetrates into the eyes. In our soul are born Divine lights—from the perspective of our spirit, [they are] many forces. There is one true God. And higher than “one,” in the depth of His truth, God is revealed. He rules over us, He conquers all of our spirits, the spirit of all existence. Wherever there is idea, feeling, thought and will, wherever there is noble, spiritual life, the Divine light rules, governs, conquers, scintillates, is magnificent, gives forth splendor and beauty, vivifies, elevates—all out of the clarity of the light of being. It rules—and it dies. That rule is limited as long as it comes from the world, from being. At times the light waxes. [God’s] will desires a light that is especially refined, especially inward, especially true in itself, more energetic in its very core. The light overwhelms the vessel, thought overwhelms being. The structure cannot hold, the inner content is not congruent, the vessels shatter, the kings die, the gods die, their soul rises, soars to the heavens. The bodies descend to the world of separation, existence stands bare, isolated, torn away, scattered. It contains within itself, hidden and concealed, an eternal desire for the supernal light. The eternal love has placed its light, its sparks, within the shattered vessels. In every movement, in every content of life, in every quality is being. There is a spark, a spark of a spark, faint, exceedingly faint, the inner light, the light of the supernal God, building and setting a foundation, gathering the scattered, rectifying forever, organizing and joining together. The eternal sovereignty is revealed from the light of the Infinite One that is within the soul. From God to the world, a new light is born: the light of the radiance of the glory of the face of God.
Here is where sraddha comes in. The Theravadin monk and scholar Bikkhu Bodhi said:
"As a factor of the Buddhist path, faith (saddha) does not mean blind belief but a willingness to accept on trust certain propositions that we cannot, at our present stage of development, personally verify for ourselves."
So, the challenge is to neither believe nor disbelieve, or attach to some "meaning," but to trust the practice and remain open to insight.
We might think that we should withhold faith or trust until we have understanding. But in this case, trust is required before there can be understanding.
Nagarjuna said,
"One associates with the Dharma out of faith, but one knows truly out of understanding; understanding is the chief of the two, but faith precedes."
In the Zen tradition, it's said a student must have great faith, great doubt, and great determination. In a way, great faith and great doubt are the same things. This faith-doubt is about letting go of the need for certitude and remaining open to not-knowing. It's about dropping assumptions and courageously stepping outside your familiar worldview.
O'Brien, Barbara. "Shraddha: The Faith of Buddhism." Learn Religions, Aug. 25, 2020, learnreligions.com/shraddha-the-faith-of-buddhism-449589.
The Buddha on Causality and "Proximate Cause"
Suffering is the proximate cause of faith.
Faith is the proximate cause of elation.
Elation is the proximate cause of joy.
Joy is the proximate cause of calmness.
Calmness is the proximate cause of happiness.
Happiness is the proximate cause of concentration.
Concentration is the proximate cause of seeing and knowing reality.
Seeing the good in someone is the proximate cause of lovingkindess (metta)
Sharon Salzberg, "Suffering as an Opening to Faith" http://www.sharonsalzberg.com/metta-hour-podcast-episode-21-suffering-as-opening-to-faith/
The proximate faith is considered to be suffering. This is the peculiar teaching...so what is it that happens within some people, some hearts, some minds, so that one comes from that space-one emerges from that space into greater faith, trust, confidence, clarity--these are all synonyms actually. Something quite magical that happens, a kind of alchemy-purification where one takes suffering and somehow born out of it is faith, and I think it has to something to do with this --"seeing the size of the cloth," seeing a larger universe, a bigger picture, maybe having an immense space of heart within which to hold the suffering or the sorrow, because the result of that quality of faith is also a very special kind of happiness. Faith in this sense doesn't mean maybe what we might associate it to mean with earlier Judeo-Christian religions perhaps- but mostly its a sense of as the literal translation from the Pali is to "place your heart upon."
[Faith here] means 1) knowing you have a heart 2) knowing it is a valuable, valuable thing when you place your heart somewhere--that it is no small gift 3) being able to make that gift, to place your heart somewhere, to make that kind of offering means confidence-trust-clarity-- a joyful giving that honors yourself in the giving. a very very special kind of happiness.
Lasim lev לָשִׂים לֵב (lit: to place your heart) - pay attention
Sichot HaRan / CHASIDUT
Author: Nachman of Breslov
Composed: c.1803 - c.1817 CE
An introduction to the thought of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, compiled by his closest disciple, Rabbi Natan of Nemirov.
אַחַר לֵב נִשְׁבָּר בָּא שִׂמְחָה וְזֶה סִימָן אִם הָיָה לוֹ לֵב נִשְׁבָּר כְּשֶׁבָּא אַחַר כָּךְ לְשִׂמְחָה
After a broken heart comes joy and this is a sign if he had a broken heart when he came later for joy.