Wednesday, August 15, 2007
The Alter Rebbe said, "Words are the quill of the heart, music the quill of the soul." Music comes from a deep part of a person's essence, and connects the listener to that place. That is why (at least, in chassidic circles) we're taught to be careful in regards to music.
Oddly enough, when I first became frum, it wasn't hard for me to stop listening to secular music. I found solace in eclectic Jewish musicians. Shlomo Carlebach helped a lot. Simply Tsfat was another one.
As the years went by, I would sneak in music here and there. Of course, The Grateful Dead. It's not beneath me to belt out Kenny Rogers' "Lucille." Old, twangy Neil Diamond always works. Cheesy 80's pop is great for depression. I could go on and on about different music that interests and inspires me.
Yet The Alter Rebbe's words reverberate as clearly as the music does. I'd like to say, "Well, I was a Deadhead. It's different for me." But everybody loves the secular music they grew up with. And I wrestle with the idea that it's not okay. For me, listening to secular music is a rare treat. It's fun, relaxing, and therapeutic. Yet I know deep inside that I'm doing myself a disservice by listening, and it drives me crazy. I have a friend who grew up in a non-chassidic home. Her father is a Rav, and she listened to secular music all the time. For her, this is simply not an issue. Sometimes I wonder; why does it have to be an issue for me?
I believe it was Reb Shmuel Munkis who was with the Alter Rebbe when a gentile farmer tried to shoot the latter. He used his spiritual powers to prevent the assault, yet he asked R' Shmuel why he didn't try to protect him. Reb Shmuel replied, "If you're a Rebbe, no bullet can hurt you. But if you're an imposter, you deserve to be shot for the worldly pleasures you took from the chassidim."
(The Alter Rebbe was the inspiration behind Jedi Mind Trick, nu?)
Love, Maven @ 
4 Comments:
At 12:55 PM,
Ayelet Survivor said…
Maven, I don't think this is about music -- I think this is about anxiety and worrying that you're doing something terribly wrong.
At 1:26 PM,
Maven said…
"i said, hey senorita, that's astute, i said. why don't we get together and call ourselves an institute?"
since we're talking about music, i couldn't resist throwing in paul simon.
At 5:28 PM,
Ayelet Survivor said…
lmao -- just call us Shrink and Melody!
At 8:57 PM,
Anonymous said…
It is not only in chassidus that the power of music is discussed, and the negative power of certain types of music. The Rabbis talk about why Acher left the folds of Judaism, after being taught by great Rabbis, and one of the theories discussed is that the Greek music (the pop music of his time) stayed with him. There are actual halachos about types of music that are forbidden to listen to, and the sensitivity to being aware of the danger of the music that is not "forbidden" is very real. I do not think that anxiety is the only factor here.
I struggle with some of the same feelings, and I can tell you that the more time you spend away from the music, the more you can hear the ideas in it that run counter to the ideal person you are trying to become. I know the feeling of certain songs speaking to you, evoking emotions or recalling memories that are very meaningful, and it would be appropriate to decide for yourself (or ask someone) about listening to them. As for the children, I agree with the idea about avoiding giving them the struggle, by making music holy for them. There is a world of beautiful music that is elevating.
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