Rerouting Your Soul: Teshuva, Waze, and the Spiritual Path of Elul

Show Notes
Transcript

Can navigating life's spiritual path be as simple as using a navigation app? Imagine Teshuva as your spiritual 're-center' button, guiding you back when you've wandered off course. In this episode, we draw fascinating parallels between the real-time driving app Waze and the Jewish concept of Teshuva. Much like Waze alerts drivers to speed traps and obstacles, Teshuva provides vital guidance to steer clear of life's pitfalls and distractions. As we journey through the days of Elo, we highlight the importance of repentance and self-reflection, akin to zooming out on Waze to get a comprehensive overview of your route.

We delve into how Teshuva helps us prioritize what truly matters and realign with our ultimate purpose. By examining the features of Waze, we uncover the spiritual lessons hidden within its technology—how it keeps us on track, alerts us to dangers, and helps us reroute when necessary. Whether you're feeling lost or just need a reminder to stay focused, this conversation offers valuable insights on using the principles of Torah to navigate your spiritual journey with clarity and intention. Join us for an enriching discussion that will resonate deeply as we explore the intersection of modern technology and timeless spirituality.

Support the show

Join The Motivation Congregation WhatsApp community for daily motivational Torah content!

Elevate your impact by becoming a TMC Emerald Donor! Your much-needed backing is crucial for our mission of disseminating the wisdom of the Torah. Join today for just $18.00 per month. (Use your maaser money!) https://buy.stripe.com/00g8xl5IT8dFcKc5ky
----------------

SUBSCRIBE to The Weekly Parsha for an insightful weekly talk on the week's Parsha.
Listen on Spotify or 24six!
Access all Torah talks and listen to featured episodes on our website, themotivationcongregation.org

----------------
Questions or Comments? Please email me @ michaelbrooke97@gmail.com

Transcript

WEBVTT

00:00:01.864 --> 00:00:24.048
Life and Teshuva is like using Waze, that application that is real-time driving directions, traffic updates, that $1.3 billion acquisition that Google made of that company from Uri Levine, that billionaire from Israel, that great app.

00:00:24.048 --> 00:00:25.292
You've probably heard of Waze.

00:00:25.292 --> 00:00:30.571
Actually, interestingly enough, it was called FreeMap Israel before the world became obsessed with Waze.

00:00:30.571 --> 00:00:38.991
But life is exactly like using Waze, because you go on to Waze to try to get from one place to the other.

00:00:38.991 --> 00:00:52.853
And life, it's us trying to kind of, I guess, use the Torah to get from one place to the other, get our soul from the beginning of life to the end of life and check off boxes of doing things and getting to the promised land and finish line.

00:00:52.853 --> 00:00:58.792
And you must make sure to not go near the object on the side of the road.

00:00:58.792 --> 00:01:02.707
Ways will alert you if you're going too fast.

00:01:02.707 --> 00:01:08.510
Ways will alert you if there's a cop ahead, some danger, there's a train.

00:01:08.510 --> 00:01:09.533
We need to reroute you.

00:01:09.533 --> 00:01:30.706
And teshuva, it can be complicated Because there's a lot of halachos, confession, regret, committing not to sin again, along with being unsure of how much to bite off Is too much tshuva, too little tshuva.

00:01:30.706 --> 00:01:31.087
What to do?

00:01:31.087 --> 00:01:51.084
It can be complicated, but tshuva, in the most basic way, is that in these days of Elo it's like when you made a bit of some interesting moves on ways, where you move the screen over to check out what's over there and what's over there, and then there's this little button that says re-center, right the very bottom of the screen.

00:01:51.084 --> 00:01:53.209
That's Teshuva.

00:01:53.209 --> 00:01:58.572
You click it and you refocus.

00:01:58.572 --> 00:02:00.405
I was wasting time.

00:02:00.405 --> 00:02:05.072
I was off, spending my life doing things that weren't really important.

00:02:06.040 --> 00:02:11.911
Teshuvah, in the most very, very plain and basic definition, is simple.

00:02:11.911 --> 00:02:17.608
It is returning back to what our job and life is.

00:02:17.608 --> 00:02:25.187
It is reprioritizing that which actually should take priority.

00:02:25.187 --> 00:02:30.747
It is leaving the rest stop where we were just living life.

00:02:30.747 --> 00:02:34.566
Really, it was just supposed to be a little break from the highway.

00:02:34.566 --> 00:02:38.026
We got stuck there, giving other things importance.

00:02:38.026 --> 00:02:43.844
We come back onto the highway, we refocus, we recenter and we continue on.

00:02:43.844 --> 00:02:51.114
That is tshuva recentering about what life's about and what we should be doing.

00:02:52.781 --> 00:02:55.569
Sometimes you can even zoom out and just get a click overview.

00:02:55.569 --> 00:02:58.606
You can see exactly where you're going.

00:02:58.606 --> 00:03:03.509
That's kind of like muster and kind of like Torah to figure out what exactly is this path that I'm taking on ways.

00:03:03.509 --> 00:03:18.026
You can see the overview, but if you just want to clarify it in your mind, or even see it for yourself your own ways.

00:03:18.026 --> 00:03:19.372
Recenter yourself If you're in life.

00:03:19.372 --> 00:03:20.358
Recenter yourself this Elo.

00:03:20.358 --> 00:03:20.719
Recenter yourself.

00:03:20.719 --> 00:03:23.043
See the overview, learn about what you should be doing, where you should be going.

00:03:23.043 --> 00:03:25.387
Definitely make sure to steer clear of all the objects on the side of the road.

00:03:25.387 --> 00:03:27.912
Are going too fast when there is a cop around.

00:03:27.912 --> 00:03:46.266
Repent, recenter yourself and see where you should be going this hour.

New to The Motivation Congregation?

Here are some great episodes to start with.

Rerouting Your Soul: Teshuva, Waze, and the Spiritual Path of Elul

Listen On

Featured Episodes

Recent Episodes

New to The Motivation Congregation?