Spirituality in Business: Trust in Money?

In his book The Garden of Bliss, Shalom Arush continues the topic of trust in the Almighty, versus trust in the "almighty dollar" (a topic of his bestseller The Garden of Emuna). Re-iterating some of his earlier points, Arush writes that it all starts at the beginning of the year, Rosh ha-Shana:

A basic principle of Emuna* is the foundation of all financial dealings, commerce, business and income, namely, that each person’s entire income is predetermined from Rosh Hashanah (New Year Day) for the entire year.

The practical application of this principle is to trust Hashem.** We know that it is the responsibility of the Creator to provide for all of His creations. One can certainly trust The Creator to fulfill His*** responsibility. Therefore, a person will undoubtedly receive all that is predetermined for him, regardless of his efforts, wisdom or even righteousness. In addition, no person can in interfere with what is coming to another, or detract in any way from what was determined in Heaven, as our Rabbis said, "A person cannot touch what is prepared for his friend."

Only when a person understands this principle, believing in it with full and simple belief, can he feel totally secure in all his financial matters, and successfully pass all the Emuna tests, with calmness and happiness, without getting angry or impatient and without committing theft or fraud.

On a practical level, a person who has trust in Hashem does not think about money. He knows Hashem provides, and dwells on it no further. His entire mindset in matters of income can be summarized in two words: Hashem provides.

What is predetermined for you – you will receive.

The entire world is a series of Emuna tests. At every moment, the businessman is undergoing a test – whether to believe that his income is predetermined in Heaven or to believe that it depends on his own efforts. If he chooses the former, he feels calm and happy and conducts all of his dealings in a fair and righteous manner. If on the other hand, he chooses the latter belief, that his income depends on his own efforts, he feels nervous and pressured to continually increase his efforts and ploys in seeking money, even resorting to dishonesty and outright fraud.

Everything depends on the simple faith that all of a person’s income is predetermined with precision in Heaven. He simply must choose the channel though which to receive his blessings. He may choose a golden pipe – a righteous manner, which comes with happiness and calmness, or a sewer pipe, which comes with stress, strife and fraud.

With no emuna, a person in business is easily tempted to violate laws, both Torah and civil. This life is Purgatory leads to complications of shady deals, debts, and a life fraught with worry and difficulty.

Trust in money is a trap that many aspiring business people fall into. Driven by lust to expand their businesses and make more money, they make severe mistakes and miscalculations, often failing to see that their expenditures are more that the profits. Sometimes they increase sales by recklessly undercutting their competition. Ultimately, blinded from their cash turnover when in actuality they’re losing money, they collapse under the weight of tremendous debts.

Obviously, the above scenario is the outcome of faulty emuna, when a person fails to run his business with good judgment, not letting things run the way that Hashem wants, which means, with whatever resources that Hashem provides. A person with emuna understands that if Hashem wants him to invest a lot of money, Hashem would have given him the full sum. He’s not foolish enough to think that Hashem is low on funds or that He needs financing, or maybe a killer-interest loan from a loan shark. If Hashem gave him a smaller amount than he wants to invest, it’s a sign that Hashem wants that he should run his business on a smaller scale. There will a Divine blessing on the small business, and he would be able to continue and do additional business. But without emuna, a person thinks that large investments will yield bigger profits, therefore he puts himself in great danger. He invests other people’s money in a business that won’t necessarily succeed. And even if it will succeed – it is doubtful whether he will be able to repay the loans that he incurred because of this business.

- The Garden of Bliss by Shalom Arush (translated by Lazer Brody)

* "Emuna" - a term denoting belief, conviction (especially in God and divine providence).

** "Hashem" - a Hebrew way of referring to God (lit. "the name").

*** While God is often described with masculine language, this is merely a human convention, as God does not have any gender, of course.

Spirituality in Business: God Determines the Sale

In his bestselling book The Garden of Emuna, Shalom Arush discusses the overarching Divine providence governing the sale of any item:

A merchant with emuna needs to know that every article in his or her inventory is under the influence of absolute Divine providence. Hashem decides when a certain object – whether a twenty-room mansion or tube of toothpaste – is sold, to whom, and at what price. According to Kabbalistic thought, each object has spiritual sparks of holiness that belong or gravitate to a certain soul; that soul will ultimately acquire the object, as a soul correction both for the object and for itself. Elaborating on this concept, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov writes (Likutei Moharan I:52) that everything has its hour, when it ultimately returns to its spiritual root.

For example, if the sparks of holiness in a particular carrot are rooted in the soul of a tzaddik, the tzaddik's wife will eventually go to a certain vegetable stand on a certain day and pay a certain price for a certain pound of carrots. She'll then come home and feed her husband the certain carrot whose spiritual sparks are rooted in the tzaddik's soul. Once the tzaddik makes a blessing over the carrot and eats it, the carrot attains a lofty spiritual correction. In the case of a carrot or another foodstuff, it physically becomes a part of the tzaddik!

In light of the above example (which is none other than a drop of water from a vast sea, for the subject of soul corrections necessitates an entire volume in itself), any business deal – barter, trade, purchase, or sale – occurs only when and where Hashem decides. When the time is ripe for a certain commodity or piece of merchandise to reach the domain of a particular soul, the transaction is completed – not before and not after. To facilitate our understanding, let's see an additional example:

Suppose that certain inanimate objects, such as a certain tiny nuts, bolts and screws, must attain their soul correction by way of Benjamin. When the time comes for those objects to be corrected, or to elevate their spiritual status, they became parts of a watch. Hashem gives Benjamin the desire and the wherewithal to purchase a new watch; this particular watch is the exact model he wants at the exact price in the store of his choice. No one else will be able to obtain the watch, unless it's destined to be a gift for Benjamin. Either way, Benjamin and the watch come together. The watch now helps Benjamin wake up in time to pray, to reach the synagogue on time, or to perform any number of other mitzvoth. As such, the watch attains its soul correction by way of Benjamin.

If a purchaser and an object don't have a spiritual common denominator, they won't come together at any price or under any circumstance. Therefore, it's senseless for a pushy salesman or overpowering merchant to try and force something on a customer that he or she doesn't want.

Many businesspeople have related stories about seemingly useless merchandise that they sold at a tremendous profit, or about products that they thought would be best sellers that ended up collecting dust on the shelves. Realtors have all experienced prospective buyers that turn their noses up at a certain house or piece of property, and three months later end up purchasing the very same piece of real estate. Every field has its own examples of divine providence. Everything has its hour.

- The Garden of Emuna by Shalom Arush (translated by Lazer Brody)

Spirituality in Business: The Successful Businessperson

In his bestselling book The Garden of Emuna, Shalom Arush describes a business paradigm in which emuna* is the most valuable commodity:

A fundamental principle in emuna that underlies one's effort to earn money - whether by commerce, negotiations, trading, finance, or any other exchange of funds or goods - is that a person's livelihood is predetermined from Rosh Hashanah.**

Our level of trust in Hashem*** is the practical manifestation of emuna in our lives. Trust includes the awareness that Hashem sustains all of His**** creations, and that He does His job dependably. When we trust in Hashem, we're not worried where our next meal is coming from; we know that He who has fed us in the past will continue to do so in the future. We also know that our livelihood doesn't depend on our craftiness or cunning - it depends on Hashem only.

No one can detract from the income that Hashem designates for a person. The Talmud states emphatically (tractate Yoma 38b) that one human is incapable of touching a fellow human's intended portion. Equipped with this basic fact, we never need to worry or fear anyone or anything.

Trust in Hashem - internalizing the fundamental principle of emuna that our livelihood is predetermined and exclusively from Hashem - enables us to conduct our business affairs with confidence, a clear mind, and a healthy outlook. Stress, anxiety, and worry fall by the wayside. With trust in Hashem, we go through life with inner peace, avoiding the pitfalls of crazy wheeling, dealing, and chasing money at the expense of our physical, emotional, and spiritual health. Sound exaggerated? Here's what futile chases after money do to a person:

• Emotional damages - worry, anger, stress, and anxiety that also result in depression and severe changes of mood;
• Physical damages - the above emotional strains increase chances of heart disease, digestion disorders, strokes, and cardiovascular problems, Heaven forbid. Also, they are springboards for substance use and addiction, namely, alcohol, tobacco, and drugs.
• Spiritual damages - money chasers forget the Torah's laws, and often resort to dishonesty, fraud, thievery, and other transgressions, all of which severely blemish a person's soul.

With trust in Hashem, a person doesn't think about money all day long. Peace of mind is only two words away - Hashem provides.

Business is one continuous test of faith. Businesspeople are tested every single second: If they believe that their livelihood comes from Hashem, then they're calm and composed, conducting their affairs on an honest basis. If they believe otherwise - that their income depends on their own efforts and aptitude - then they're most likely working much too hard and wasting energy looking for all types of ploys to make money.

One's entire life depends on the emuna that Hashem provides for every creation. Emuna creates a clear, clean, and shining spiritual pipe that abundance flows through, directly from Heaven to a person's bank account or dinner table. Drinking from the pipe of emuna is like drinking from a silver goblet. Without emuna, one drinks from the spiritual equivalent of a sewer pipe, where one's income is contaminated with negative emotions, bad health, and damage to the soul.

Decide which option in life you'd prefer, because basically, there are only two:

First, you can believe that Hashem predetermines your income, and that every last cent designated for you will reach you at an exact time and in its entirely, if not from one source, then from a different source, if not today, then tomorrow. As a result, you are calm and composed, and avoid the troubles of illegal and dishonest business procedures, hypertension, ulcers, and cardiac arrests.

Or second, you don't believe in Hashem or in His ability to support you, and you bang your head against the wall trying to make a living, angry and irritable most of the time because life is a living death. You sink into debt, you're confused, and you can't think clearly with the tensions and stress that weigh on your brain. Oftentimes, you catch yourself cutting the corners of honesty and wholesome business practices in trying to make an additional buck.

Remember! A person receives his or her Heavenly stipend to the cent. By cheating, lying, or dealing dishonestly, a person won't earn a cent more.

Here's an example: Joe and Harry are both store owners; each is destined to earn one hundred thousand dollars this year. Joe earns his money honestly and in good faith, and therefore enjoys it. Harry wants a lot more money than what Hashem gives him, so he wheels, deals, lies, and steals, bringing in a gross income of an additional fifteen thousand dollars. Harry will now suffer sicknesses, accidents, home damages, income tax investigations, law suits, and any number of other aggravations. As a result, he'll lose the fifteen thousand that wasn't destined for him, and he won't enjoy the hundred thousand that was destined for him, since he'll be busy running to doctors, lawyers, repairmen, and the like.

- The Garden of Emuna by Shalom Arush (translated by Lazer Brody), pp 130-133

* "Emuna" - a term denoting belief, conviction (especially in God and divine providence).

** "Rosh Hashanah" - the first day of the Jewish legal calendar (as opposed to the festival calendar or the agricultural calendar), on which God evaluates every human being and determines in which areas each individual needs to improve and grow and which resources in Creation will be allocated to each individual to facilitate his or her growth.

*** "Hashem" - a Hebrew way of referring to God (lit. "the name").

**** While God is often described with masculine language, this is merely a human convention, as God does not have any gender, of course.

Spirituality in Business: How to Maintain Perspective

In his first bestseller, The Garden of Emuna, Shalom Arush presents an insightful story on the role emuna* plays in helping a businessperson maintain the proper perspective regarding his or her business activities:

A business person without emuna is miserable.

A depressed and harried merchant once came to his rabbi. The rabbi's immediate spiritual prognosis was, "Your business and money problems result from the fact that you think you're the boss, and therefore all the worries are on your shoulders. You depend on your brains, your business acumen, and your talent, and therefore suffer bitter disappointments when things don't go the way you want them to. Even worse, you put your trust in people - customers, suppliers, banks, and the like - and they let you down, lie to you, and cheat you."

The rabbi let his bombshell penetrate for a moment, and continued: "If you only realized that Hashem** runs your business, and you're only a mere clerk, then your job would become much simpler; you wouldn't need to worry, you wouldn't need to suffer, and you wouldn't need to lose your temper. As a clerk, you could concentrate on doing your job and let the Big Boss - Hashem - worry about the rest. Tons of pressure would fall off your shoulders."

"How do I make Hashem the boss?" asked the businessman.

"Simple," answered the rabbi. "You tell Hashem, 'Master of the World, I want you to handle my affairs. I have no way of knowing whether the banks and the suppliers are giving me a square deal, or whether my customers intend to pay their bills and the like. You see everything, even the deepest thoughts of a person's heart. You know whether a prospective transaction will be profitable or not. I want You to make the decisions. Please, Father*** in Heaven, help me trust in You only. If a deal is no good, don't let it be completed; but, if a transaction is worthwhile, please, make it happen!"

The businessman opened his eyes wide in amazement. "Rabbi, are you telling me that Hashem intervenes every time a housewife walks into my store?"

"You better believe it!" answered the rabbi. "Hashem puts the desire in her heart to purchase the exact product that's now on display in your storefront window. Hashem can also screen a prospective employee for you, or give you the wisdom to expand or limit the business in a profitable manner. If you consult Hashem before every transaction, put all your trust in Him and ask for His guidance, you're bound to succeed!"

A businessperson that prays for enhanced emuna learns to manage affairs without stress and anxiety. When he puts his trust in Hashem, nothing upsets or frightens him.

Basically, we can choose one of two paths in commercial life (or any other phase of life): Either we appoint Hashem as the Chief Executive Officer of our company/business/affairs - consequently enjoying a smooth and worry-free life - or we shoulder the problems on our own, with the accompanying stress, worries, nerves, and health problems.

- The Garden of Emuna by Shalom Arush (translated by Lazer Brody), pp 126-127

* "Emuna" - belief, conviction (especially in God and divine providence)

** "Hashem" - a Hebrew way of referring to God (lit. "the name")

*** While God is often described with masculine language, this is merely a human convention, as God does not have any gender, of course.