After last weeks email, I received the following question:

I always thought that Judaism emphasizes the importance of self improvement and development. However, I am a little confused after reading your email where you explain the intrinsic worth of every individual. You suggest that our behavior, feelings and thoughts are only the ‘garments' of the soul, and do not define who we are. Success and failure do not make us superior or worthless, and the indestructible spark of Divine energy at the essence of our being always remains intact. But if I am always essentially good and pure why bother improving or developing? I am always going to be fine the way I am.

While this is a good question, careful analysis will demonstrate that the opposite is true. Although every person has intrinsic purity, we still have a purpose and mission which involves nurturing our strengths and correcting our shortcomings. Appreciating that the essence of your identity is always pure, will actually make the journey a lot easier.

We all have areas of weaknesses and character flaws that are difficult to change. There are a number of reasons why we resist improving and are unwilling to change. Some of us won't change because we are in denial. We simply deny the existence of any evil within ourselves and won't accept that we are flawed in any way. On the other hand some of us fully acknowledge our deficiencies, but feel helpless and overwhelmed by the necessary steps for self improvement. We feel that we were born that way and there is little we can do about it.

In truth, both these responses to our weaknesses have one source. They stem from the erroneous belief that we are defined by how we act and feel. Therefore, if I accept that I behave badly or make mistakes then I am admitting that there is something wrong with me. So I have two choices - to deny the existence of any problem or to accept that I am naturally bad and it is too difficult to do anything about it.

The moment I believe that I am intrinsically good, and that the weakness exists only in the garments of the soul, everything changes. Firstly, if I am not defined by my behavior, then even when I fail I have no need to deny my inappropriate conduct as it does not affect my essential identity. Secondly, if I posses a Divine spark of positive indestructible energy which lies deeper than my thoughts, feelings and action then I can never be bound and trapped by my weaknesses. The good within me will always be able to repair and improve any damage that exists in the external layers of my soul. It is not easy but possible. We should never lose touch with our intrinsic and infinite value, and use it to constantly improve and grow.

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