What was the primary legacy of the great Jewish psychologist of the 20th century? | Dr. Roy Cohen

A. “On Rabbi Kook Street, I walk up without this good man. The shtreimel he wore for prayer, the silk top hat he wore for authority, are blown away by the wind of the dead, floating on the waters of my dreams,” so wrote the poet Yehuda Amichai. HaRa’ayah — Rabbi Abraham Isaac HaCohen Kook (1865-1935), whose memorial day (Yahrzeit) falls on the third of Elul, was one of the greatest thinkers in the Jewish world of the 20th century. It is difficult to overstate the importance of his influence, even in our own time. One proof of this is the fact that his writings continue to be bestsellers, countless books and dissertations have been written about him, and beyond that — many individuals and Batei Midrash claim to be his successors, sometimes amid fierce and unnecessary disputes with one another.

B. As a unique synthesis of non-Hasidic (Mitnagdim) and Hasidic lineages, his teachings are interwoven with the wisdom of Kabbalah, Midrashic and biblical sources, Halakha, Gemara, homiletics (derash), and mystical teachings (sod). A recurring motif that threads his ideas is unity and the aspiration for perfection. He argued: “Two opposing forces, when they meet, do not produce negation, but rather a 'renewed positive force' [...] 'These and those are the words of the living God,' this is the great seal of the unity of thought.”

C. Rabbi Kook wrote from a place of spiritual eruption, and he often did so in an "unsystematic" way. In his words: “I must think without restraint [...] I do not care how the words emerge.” His paragraphs often read like a psalm or a poem, characteristic of elevated literature, full of emotion and power. Among other things, Rabbi Kook used musical concepts to describe his thoughts: "harmony," "disharmony," "melody," "the sound of the ideal voice," "chords of sacred music," and more. In his view: "Every mitzvah and every halakha has a unique musical quality," and "the soul is always singing."

D. Between the lines, his teachings include profound psychological insights that have been gaining resonance, especially in recent years. His approach to the theory of the psyche can be called "psycho-Kabbalistic." Rabbi Kook sought to integrate psychological principles with Jewish, and specifically Kabbalistic, ideas. As the author Hillel Zeitlin wrote about him: "Our teacher HaRa'ayah revealed [...] the public-national psychology of the Kabbalah and the process of the clarification of all worlds through the law of development." As someone who was open to the world of philosophy and science, and who was well-acquainted with the world of spirit and literature, Rabbi Kook also valued the field of psychology, seeing it as a tool for spiritual clarification. He said: “There is a great entryway for private psychology, as well as general, national, and human psychology, with the methods of explaining the ways of Torah and service [...] We need to enter the depths of the wisdom of the soul.”

E. Although Rabbi Kook rarely used professional terminology, he certainly addressed and engaged with deep psychological issues. Similar to another Jew of his time, the father of psychoanalysis — Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), he investigated the conscious and, especially, the unconscious psychic sources. Rabbi Kook recognized the inherent difficulty in exposing a person's inner desires. He said: "A person does not know all the parts of his soul and their hidden inner aspects at all"; "No person can know their own true character [...] Our knowledge of this is suspended in a void." Despite the difficulties in understanding a person's inner self, Rabbi Kook saw this as an existential mission for every individual: "One must reach the depths of the psyche at its source"; "The most valuable talent is the ability to penetrate the depth of our own essence." For Rabbi Kook, understanding the unconscious is seen not only as a psychological achievement but primarily as the opening of a window to the root of the soul, in an attempt to touch the divine part that exists at a person's foundation. Therefore, Rabbi Kook posed a spiritual challenge to his readers: "Clarify for yourselves the depth of the greatness of your being."

F. From this, we arrive at a central and optimistic idea in Rabbi Kook's teachings. “Philosophers,” wrote the author José Saramago, “are always divided into pessimists and optimists, some with sour faces, others with smiles.” In contrast to the view of the philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), who argued that in the state of nature there is a "war of all against all" and that man is inherently evil, Rabbi Kook offers an alternative that believes in humanity. Similar to the beginning of the famous statement by the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778): "Everything is good as it comes from the hands of the Maker of the things; everything degenerates in the hands of man," Rabbi Kook claims that at the root of humanity and reality "there is a necessity of absolute good." The entire creation, in all its details, he believes, strives for good — "the essence of the desire for there to be good for all." Rabbi Kook does not deny the possibility of human evil; he witnessed the horrors of the First World War up close. But he argues that this is not an evil that characterizes humanity or one that completely controls its ways: "Even if we decide that man is evil [...] he still finds within himself a desire to be good." According to his approach, a person has an innate inclination toward good and righteousness. Humanity, by its very nature, strives to improve, and the entire world is in a state of "uninterrupted elevation." Such an approach allows for a horizon of hope for the individual, the community, and all of humanity.

G. In light of his unique and empathetic approach, he chose to examine social and spiritual issues from a different perspective. Rabbi Kook sought to find a point of light even in the darkness. In particular, his attitude toward views different from his own was awe-inspiring: "We must not be enslaved by our feelings and always know that even feelings opposite to ours have a wide place in the world"; "Therefore, our work is to find the sparks of light in every system, even the destructive one." Rabbi Kook was aware of the existential needs of his generation — the generation of the Hebrew pioneers. He saw the abandonment of religion and the secular movement of his time in a different light: "This generation is strange, it is mischievous, it is wild, but it is also lofty and sublime." He recognized that for some, the distancing from the life of halakha stemmed from a revulsion to a fearful, impoverished, and heteronomous way of life. They aspired, according to his analysis, to a spiritual, powerful, and authentic life — a life full of love, unity, and naturalness. They sought to be connected to themselves. And such a connection, Rabbi Kook states, is in its inner essence consistent with the aspiration for connection to the infinite and the sublime. From his revolutionary perspective, he was able to make a significant case in favor of those secular pioneers, in contrast to many of the rabbis of his generation, who saw them as outcasts and heretics deserving of excommunication and a ban. And this is what he wrote in his own words, which is far beyond mere advocacy: "The audacity of the era of the messiah's footsteps (ikveta deMeshicha) comes from an inner desire for the sanctity of the ultimate silence, and in the end, it will reach it [...] These audacious path-breakers and fence-breakers [...] are of the rank of Moses our teacher and from the supernal radiance of Adam the first man. The entire Tree of Life, in all its profound goodness, will be revealed in them and through them." From a different angle, Rabbi Kook explains: "Disbelief in reward and punishment educates people to do good for the sake of good itself." He claimed that such a view constitutes the "ideal morality of the future."

H. Either way, it seems that Rabbi Kook's central legacy, as well as the element that characterized his life, was the search for and discovery of the good in everything — and especially in those with views different from his own. Similar to the popular saying, "Be the change you want to see," Rabbi Kook aspired: "To seek the good, the absolute good, to be good himself." This is not just an abstract theory. According to him, one must act practically: "To increase good in the world."

I. In a period of social polarization, in times when the other becomes a complete other — "it" (laz) in the language of the philosopher Martin Buber, in an era of moral decay — at a time when conventions that have accompanied humanity for hundreds of years are disintegrating before our eyes, we must remember that even if we do not agree with each other, we have the duty, or perhaps the privilege, to discover a few points of light in the other's opinion as well. Such an action does not stem from relativism or from despair of an absolute truth, nor from paternalism. Rather, it comes from the ability to seek and identify the connecting and sustaining force within the battle of opinions. It is not always simple to implement, but it is certainly possible. As Rabbi Kook wrote: "The supreme contemplators [...] because their eyes are always open to seek the point of good, no hatred of humanity can rule over them [...] Therefore, great souls [...] and their love for all of creation is endless [...] they know how to fortify the standing of the world, to bring its points of good to light."

When one starts from the premise that there is an inner good in every person, when the motivation is to find harmony and balance among all the sounds, then it is possible to achieve a state of peace and unity — a wonderful melody that elevates the person and existence as a whole.

***

Dr. Roy Cohen holds

a Ph.D. in Philosophy

from the Hebrew University,

is a lawyer and mediator, producer, director, 

and content creator.

 

Author of the book: 

"A Journey into the Inner Will — 

The Psychological and Philosophical Encounter, 

Between Nietzsche and Rabbi Kook," 

published by Hanir Ve'edrecha.

For private or group therapy and counseling

based on the "Medabrim Chaim" approach,

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