Sharing Acts of Kindness

You’re stuck in traffic, just spotted a celebrity on the street, or you’re about to devour a delicious (and beautiful) meal—whatever the experience, it’s considered post-worthy in the world of social media. Let’s face it—very few topics are not shared on social media. The widespread availability of technology has shifted our culture to one of sharing—not kabbalistic sharing, social sharing. We are so hyper-connected, acquaintances we barely know are suddenly privy to our day-to-day goings on. The ease with which we can post pictures, stories, and comments has led us to habitually divulge more and more information about ourselves. We share good news, bad news, and everything in between. One thing most of us aren’t too shy to also share is our good deeds.

“Sharing matters not because it allows us to perform conspicuously good deeds or to be recognized as righteous people,” says Michael Berg. “Sharing matters because by transforming ourselves into sharing beings, we gain the joy and fulfillment that is life’s true purpose.” When we let our sharing be conspicuous on social media sites we can actually diminish the Light’s potential. Kabbalists teach that sharing the great things we’ve done can border on prideful bragging and diminish the Light revealed by that act. On the other, sharing the ways in which we’ve made a difference in the lives of others can inspire our friends and acquaintances to take action as well. We can avoid turning our good deeds into boastful posts by taking an honest look at the motivation behind our postings. Are we acting on our ego’s desire for approval? Or are we genuinely acting to spread more Light? With the right consciousness, we can positively alter how others perceive our sharing and if they will inspire or annoy.

It’s true that we inherently benefit from sharing our good deeds. When we tell others about the great things we’ve done, we can receive recognition or accolades. Or we feel that others will think more of us. So, it behooves us to ask ourselves, are we sharing in order to impress others, to garner support, or to inspire others? Blessings will come to us whether anyone knows of our acts of kindness or not (though, more if they don’t know!). Sharing is intrinsically valuable, not because it earns you an award, but because it brings more Light into the world and into the lives of those with whom we share.

What if we never told a soul? The kabbalists teach that acts of sharing bring more Light into the world when we resist our desire to make our goodness known. “Ideally,” says Michael Berg, “we should keep those who are not directly involved from knowing too much about our spiritual life—especially our acts of sharing—for anonymous good deeds reveal the most Light.” The goal then, is to share quietly and still inspire others.

One way we can go beyond simply sharing the things we do is by also sharing why it matters. In doing so, we stand to make others care as deeply as we do about a cause or charity, which may result in positive action. Without information about ways to help others and why it’s important, many may never even consider giving. Our online social circles can then become networks for spreading Light. Social media has a powerful pull on our lives. We can easily get caught up in the temporary satisfaction of sharing our acts of kindness. But when we turn a post that might initially be boastful into an opportunity to share and inspire others to greater acts of kindness, the Light we share grows, because when our consciousness is of sharing and seeking support to give even more, then we are meeting our highest potential.