Defying Logic

"The ability to maintain certainty past the point of logic is the seed of all great Light.”

– Michael Berg

A man with health conditions decides to adopt a dog after reading about the positive impact pets can have on our health and wellbeing. After much research, he settles on a breed: Golden Retrievers, who are gentle and easy to train. He gets word that a Golden Retriever has landed in his local animal shelter and drives over, excited to adopt his new companion. But once he arrives, he notices the sweetest little terrier mutt. The downsides of owning a terrier previously convinced him it wasn’t a compatible breed, but the little mutt’s puppy dog eyes melt his heart. He leaves the shelter with his new furry friend at his side, happy, if not surprised, by the turn of events.

When making significant life decisions we often take time to weigh all factors. We do the research necessary, and consult our closest friends and advisors so we can make the best choices. Yet, sometimes despite all the preferences of our logical brains, emotions win out. This isn’t always a bad thing.

Our emotions are what light us up. They are responsible for our deepest desires and push us to work harder than we imagine we can to achieve our dreams. What’s more, our emotions are what make working towards our goals fulfilling on a personal and spiritual level.

This is not to say that we should make a habit of ignoring our rational brains. Logic makes day-to-day decisions easy for us. It keeps us from overthinking simple and necessary tasks. But when it comes to decisions that could impact our future in significant ways or leave an imprint on the lives of others, it behooves us to think outside the realm of logic.

It takes certainty to make decisions based on what we feel is true, rather than what we think based on evidence. This is acting from our hearts. The thing that drives people to repeatedly take risks that defy logic is the certainty that their actions hold the potential to bring more Light into the world, to make their own lives and the lives of others better. And though it’s often only a chance, the potential is enough.

Your logical brain tells you to study accounting in college – it’s a viable career with a promising potential salary. But your heart yearns to build elementary schools in underdeveloped countries around the world. If financial security is a priority for you, joining the nonprofit sector may not be a logical choice. However, you are driven to help children and improve their quality of life. The best choice for you may involve letting go of the handrail and taking a leap of faith in order to follow your heart. This is certainty beyond logic, when all physical indicators tell you something is risky, uncertain, or painstakingly difficult, yet you maintain certainty that all will work out beautifully as it should.

Kabbalists teach that some of the most remarkable leaps we ever make are based on certainty beyond logic. Each big crossroad we come to in life is an opportunity to push our consciousness beyond fear and beyond logic. We’ll place ourselves at great emotional risk in order to embrace the possibility of finding fulfillment. Certainty beyond logic is knowing that whatever the outcome, you’ll be stronger and better for taking a risk.

“The root of every single negativity that we ever awaken,” says Michael Berg, “is that lack of patience, that lack of ability to maintain certainty, not just until the point it makes sense – beyond that point and further than that. If you want to receive true gifts, if you want to bring true Light into your own life and into this world, it cannot happen without patience, but patience with certainty beyond any point at which your mind lets you have it, beyond any point at which logic allows you to have it. But if you are able to maintain it… you receive Light, not only a blessing for now, but a blessing that can last forever."

Despite extensive research, the would-be dog owner still made a decision with his heart; he set rational thinking aside and took a leap, trusting that his heart would not lead him astray. Maintaining certainty beyond logic takes us beyond rational thought to a world full of blessings, the most fulfilling of which are only attained by taking a risk and setting aside our logic.

What we are best to remember is that the Creator never gives the answers away. It is our job to find them in order to learn for ourselves. Sometimes learning requires that we let go of the handrail. We know logic is helpful and often necessary for day-to-day decisions, but the moment we push past logic, take a leap of faith, and open up to our fullest potential is the moment blessings and an abundance of Light enter our lives.