Korach
What happens when we bring presence to the heart of instability?
Reflection on parshat Korach by Naomi Shifrin, Or HaLev Teacher
“In Parshat Korach, we witness a collapse of order into chaos. Korach tells the story of a Levite, named Korach, who challenges Moshe and Aaron's leadership, gathering others into a public rebellion.
In the language of the therapy modality Internal Family Systems, we all carry parts. Young places within us that feel fear, anger, shame, pain, overwhelming emotions. These parts are protective, and underneath them is always a need asking to be heard and met. But when one part takes over completely, when we become fully identified and blended with it, it's like Korach inside us. The system becomes reactive, and we can lose our sense of inner stability.
The Torah shows us another way of being.
When Korach's challenge erupts, Moshe does something pretty remarkable. Moshe hears, he listens, and he falls on his face. He pauses and does not react. Here there is space, humility, inner ground.
Aaron then responds in an even more radical way, running to the center of the chaos, and standing, it says, `between life and death`. He does not turn away, but rather brings presence to the heart of instability. And the response? The plague ceases.
This is what we are learning to cultivate in ourselves in practice. Not to be swallowed by our inner Korach, but to develop the capacity to meet with awareness everything that's arising. As we do this with curiosity and care, we integrate these young parts of us, these old places, this past energy, meeting it with present love.
In this way we create a beautiful, bright, brilliant, emergent future. This, to me, is redemption, Geulah, unfolding in real time. I bless us all with this capacity.
Shabbat shalom.”