Let My People Know

Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz; “The purpose of Creation

God is present, and He dwells within one, just as He dwells in the world as a whole.

Except that I do not know of this Divine inner presence.

As soon as I become conscious of it, however, I realize the purpose of Creation–“to be a dwelling place for Him in the world.”

God creates the world in such a manner that God, being invisible, cannot be taken for granted.

He has to be sought out.

There are aspects of Creation, like light, Divine light, which are self-evident.

Other things, including the Divine Himself, must be looked for consciously.

Like those inside-outside drawings, one can choose to see either the black picture against a white background or the white picture against a black background.

The play of perception depends on one’s own place, one’s angle or point of view.

Revelation is, thus, the sudden recognition of a reality that was overlooked, because it was considered background;.

It is the emergence of the essential image.

It can occur in a moment, by a slight alteration of one’s perspective or will, for example, by consenting to be a dwelling place for the Divine.

–Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz