Heat is a transformative power. Imagine a block of ice. It seems to be a solid hard mass of substance. Heat it and in a short period of time it will become liquid. Much more malleable than it previously was and able to take on any shape. Heat it even more and it becomes a gas, a very fine substance that can be difficult to grasp.
So much that we come across in life - physical objects, people, spiritual concepts - appear to be one thing, seem to be set as to what they are, and it takes some effort to truly examine them and learn all their myriad fascinating facets. Ironically, the Ancient Greeks, with all their great contributions to human knowledge, suffered greatly from a seeming inability to really delve into many things. Galen taught the world medicine for thousands of years. So much of what he taught was mistaken, almost to the point of wondering how he could have even thought these things up. Had he bothered to even examine a human body below the surface he, and many of his students over the years, could have discovered the errors. But they were satisfied with his postulates and no one, least of all himself, examined properly to see what was going on under the surface. A similar situation resulted from Ptolemy's long-accepted depiction of the Universe.
In their philosophical studies they would only acknowledge that which they could discern with their five senses, there seems to have been an inability to use imagination and to raise themselves to a higher consciousness.
When it comes to Torah study we can find this idea as well. The תורה שבכתב, the Written Torah is there for us in Black on White. It is definite and immutable. However, we also have a תורה שבעל פה, an Oral Law which is the ability and permission to take that which is Black and White and put it through the fires of our mind and discover how it reshapes itself to reveal concepts that were hitherto hidden from us; to use our imagination and souls to discover deeper truths.
This is one of the concepts of the fire of the Chanukah candles. We are told that Chanukah is the holiday of the Oral Law. This is because the transformative fire reminds us not to take the Greek approach of only knowing what our senses clearly demonstrate, and not just accepting things at face value. But to put everything through the crucible of understanding and let our souls raise our understanding even higher.
So much that we come across in life - physical objects, people, spiritual concepts - appear to be one thing, seem to be set as to what they are, and it takes some effort to truly examine them and learn all their myriad fascinating facets. Ironically, the Ancient Greeks, with all their great contributions to human knowledge, suffered greatly from a seeming inability to really delve into many things. Galen taught the world medicine for thousands of years. So much of what he taught was mistaken, almost to the point of wondering how he could have even thought these things up. Had he bothered to even examine a human body below the surface he, and many of his students over the years, could have discovered the errors. But they were satisfied with his postulates and no one, least of all himself, examined properly to see what was going on under the surface. A similar situation resulted from Ptolemy's long-accepted depiction of the Universe.In their philosophical studies they would only acknowledge that which they could discern with their five senses, there seems to have been an inability to use imagination and to raise themselves to a higher consciousness.
When it comes to Torah study we can find this idea as well. The תורה שבכתב, the Written Torah is there for us in Black on White. It is definite and immutable. However, we also have a תורה שבעל פה, an Oral Law which is the ability and permission to take that which is Black and White and put it through the fires of our mind and discover how it reshapes itself to reveal concepts that were hitherto hidden from us; to use our imagination and souls to discover deeper truths.
This is one of the concepts of the fire of the Chanukah candles. We are told that Chanukah is the holiday of the Oral Law. This is because the transformative fire reminds us not to take the Greek approach of only knowing what our senses clearly demonstrate, and not just accepting things at face value. But to put everything through the crucible of understanding and let our souls raise our understanding even higher.
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