The Shortcut to the Soul

Two weeks left! Deadline Shushan Purim, March 25th, 11:59 pm EST

For Chassidus ideas about Pesach to incorporate into your art submission, please check out Chassidus in Color Art Contest-Resource Page .

VIDEO

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My name is Esther and I’m a Jewish artist living in Santiago, Chile. I use different mediums and techniques and I like to paint anything that’s pretty and meaningful. I love variety, otherwise the work gets boring. My main inspiration is Judaism; our traditions, our land, portraits of our leaders, biblical themes, our holidays, etc. I try to use my art to show the world the beauty of Torah and make a Kidush Hashem.

Isarusa D’lesata (an “arousal from below”) and how our actions down here can elicit a response from Above: The Slonimer Rebbe asks why would Hashem need the Jews to smear blood on their doorspots before the plague of the firstborn, when obviously He’s capable of distinguishing between the Jewish homes and the Egyptian ones. He goes on to explains that this particular plague had two different aspects to it: one was to redeem us from slavery, which was the material/practical aspect, and the other was to separate us from the rest of the nations and to bring us close to Him as His Chosen Nation. The blood on the doorposts was clearly not for Hashem to be able to identify the Jewish homes. It showed the Jews’ desire to become His People and their readiness to follow Him into the wilderness. At this point, the Jews had no merits to be liberated, they had sunk into a very low spiritual level. But when G-d saw the mixed blood of the Korban Pesach and of Bris Milah, the two mitzvos they had performed recently, He saw the level of their devotion to Him. The Korban Pesach represents doing anything for G-d, even if it means that the rest of the world will have a strong negative reaction towards us (for, as we know, the lamb was one of Egypt’s deities, so this mitzvah was highly provocative); while Bris Milah embodies the Jew’s desire to stay pure for Hashem’s sake. The blood on the doorposts meant being “all in”, 100% committed. And this public demonstration was the merit they needed to finally be liberated from slavery and to eventually receive the Torah at Har Sinai.