YITRO
And Jethro Heard
Yitro’s Potential to Reveal Light
This week’s portion is arguably one of the most important in the Torah as it includes the Ten Utterances – G-d’s oral revelation of the Ten Commandments to Moses and the Israelites at Mt. Sinai. The commentators question why the portion is named after Yitro, an idol-worshiping, Midian Priest of Pharoah, and not Moses, the leader who brought the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. The answer lies in the fact that the further away from the Light and the consciousness of unity a person is, the more Light that person reveals when they finally make a transformation. As a priest specializing in the occult and negative acts, Yitro had a very large leap to make across the spiritual spectrum to understand and recognize the larger universal power at work. By transforming himself from a place of darkness and negativity to a place of positive energy, he merited having this portion with the Ten Utterances named after him. The same thing applies to our lives. The further away we are (or feel we are) from a place of unity, certainty and sharing – the bigger the opportunity for us to reveal Light and transform our nature.
Avoiding a Short Circuit
We read in the portion how Yitro sees Moses providing counsel to the entire nation. He advises him to establish a structure of hierarchy to share the burden amongst other objective people. Moses puts the proposed structure in place, allowing him to effectively delegate the simple matters for review and better handle the load of questions and concerns. The message for us here is that like everything in life, there needs to be a process and system to operate at your highest potential. Whether it is the system of prayers used to connect to higher levels of consciousness or the method by which work is delegated in the workplace, there must always be a system so that you do not “burn out”. It is important to note that this system was put in place by Moses immediately ahead of receiving the Ten Commandments and it is similarly important for us to have a process in place to reach our highest potential.
Why Mount Sinai
It is interesting to note that Mt. Sinai, the Mountain at which Moses and the Israelites received the Ten Commandments was the smallest and least awe-inspiring of the mountains in the range. The message here is that you must remain free of ego – small and humble, when trying to achieve great spiritual heights.
The Ten Utterances / Commandments
The Ten Utterances provide us with the definitive rulebook for all aspects of our lives and form the basis of society’s laws. By understanding the scope of each utterance / commandment, we can put these rules into practice and achieve a life full of blessing and fulfillment. It sounds simple and it is.
1. I am the Lord your G-d – Maintain your trust and certainty in the Creator, Light, G-d – in the face of all things good and bad.
2. You shall have no other G-ds– Do not falsely worship fame, money, social standing and other things based on ego.
3. You shall not use G-d’s name in vain– G-d’s name has a Holy and powerful energy. Do not use it carelessly, but rather only for a good or spiritual purpose.
4. Remember the Sabbath day and sanctify it– Disconnect for one-day each week to recharge your batteries and re-establish a connection to the perfect and unified state of consciousness.
5. Honor your mother and father– You can never repay those that brought you into the world and provided you with an opportunity to achieve a sense of unity and purpose – you must appreciate them at the deepest level.
6. You shall not murder– This includes both the literal meaning of murder and also any type of character assassination through gossip and judgmental actions.
7. You shall not commit adultery– Do not violate the trust you have established with your wife, your husband, yourself – or anyone for that matter.
8. You shall not steal– Do not take that which is not yours. Simple enough, but it also implies that when you question what you have as not being enough, you disconnect from the positive sense of appreciation and gratitude.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor– Evil speech can severely hurt others and has a boomerang effect on our lives. Be careful what you say about others as you often do not see the entire picture, no matter how much your five senses tell you otherwise.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, wife or belongings– The consciousness of coveting shows a lack of appreciation for what you have and implies you are not happy with your lot. This consciousness severs our connection to the Light and G-d.
This week is the pinnacle of the 6-week period of Shovavim. We finally learn the Ten Commandments and are empowered to use these tools and rules in our daily lives in order to become our highest selves.