The Meaning of Exile

What does exile mean?
 
Exile occurs when we are forced out of the place we are supposed to be, and are prevented from doing what we are supposed to do.
 
Why does exile occur?
 
We learn that everything in life happens measure for measure. The best indication Hashem can give us of where we need to fix things is to “break” something in our immediate reality so the pain mirrors the what we have inflicted on G-d, others, or our own selves. When bad things occur the first thing we must do is examine our actions. What did we do to cause this? What lesson is Hashem trying to tell us?
 
If an exile happens because we were forced out of our place by a foreign force, could it be reasonable to assume that it is measure for measure due to the error in voluntarily exiling ourselves first? If we are supposed to be in place A and we go to place B, aren’t we disappointing Whomever directed us to place A? Our self-exile comes when we make place B our home. The forced exile comes when place A, or we, are put in a situation where return is no longer an option.
 
Let’s use our first exile as an example.
 
Only one in five Jews made it out of Egypt. Eighty percent died in the plague of darkness.
 
Why did they die? They wanted to stay in Egypt. After eight plagues Egypt was a mess. The Jewish People were no longer slaves. They were about to embark on a journey that would land them in the Land of Israel within the year. G-d Commands the Jewish People that our place A will always be the Land of Israel. What is it that we are supposed to do in our place A? We are supposed to always find pleasure in serving Him.
 
Mired in the Egyptian exile, the majority chose to stay in place B.
 
They decided that with the new turn in events they had a future in a place that would one day recover to superpower status. They had financial prospects. They had political prospects. The Egyptians no longer hated them. They feared them. Egypt was now disposed to give their Jews whatever they wanted. The eighty percent wanted to seize the opportunity to finally enjoy exile as fellow Egyptians.
 
They chose to derive pleasure from what the world offered. They chose to enjoy the physical joys of life as their primary vessel of happiness in a place not designated them by their Maker.
 
They chose to voluntarily exile themselves. So another Force exiled them from this world.
 
As the days of Pesach pass and the countdown to Redemption nears zero, will we make the same mistake?
 
What is pleasure? Pleasure what we feel when we do the will of our Creator. Pleasure is prayer. Pleasure is kindness. Pleasure is Emunah. Pleasure is that constant sensation deep within us that G-d is smiling on us. It is that piece of our existence that is already connected to the Next World. It is that active spot in our soul that is powered by the supernal ecstasy of Heaven at every moment.
 
This is the greatest Source of happiness in this life. It emerges from every kind act we do for our children, spouses, parents, friends, brothers, enemies, and strangers. The feeling grows as we eat a special meal in honor of the Shabbat. It appears when we donate our hard earned money to charity. It overwhelms us when difficult things happen to us and we dance for joy in appreciation to the special attention Hashem has dedicated to our well-being. Virtually all of the physical pleasures we enjoy on this earth can be tied to amplifying the infinite pleasure we feel when we connect. Even as the imprint of the actual enjoyment fades, the spiritual momentum of our deeds carries on.
 
This is where we are supposed to be in life. This is our place A.
 
When we take pleasure out of the place it is supposed to be, we are choosing to remove ourselves from of our natural state of being. When we enjoy social and singles sites rather than use the internet for Torah articles and downloading lectures, we are exiling ourselves. When we spend our time finding pleasure in alcohol, cheap thrills, or wasting away in front of a video screen we are volunteering to extend our expulsion.
 
As a result exile is decreed upon us by force. We have to wait another day. The option to return is lost.
 
The First Temple fell when we chose the pleasures of physical immorality, idolatry, and vengeance over the real pleasures Hashem wants from us. Even as we breathed the holy air of Jerusalem we chose banishment. We were in the place we were supposed to be, but we weren’t the people we were supposed to become.
 
Being in the right place physically is a great foundation to being in the right place spiritually. Once we put it all together we are truly home.
 
Our generation is full of all sorts of pleasures. Never before has so much been dangled before our senses. This is not a surprise. Only in a generation capable of reversing so much history can there be such great obstacles.
 
For the last time in the annals of Israel we are being given the option. Hashem Willing we will make the right choice. As a result we will enjoy the happier ending.
 
 
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Dovber Halevi is the author of Sex, Religion, and the Middle East, a book about personal holiness and happiness. He lives in Israel with his wife and three children.