By Simon Eder
Emma Raducanu’s recent win at the US Open was one of the greatest sporting achievements in recent years. Having had to qualify for the tournament itself, her path to winning the crown was more gruelling physically, mentally and emotionally than perhaps any grand slam in the history of the sport. During her interview on court following the final she was asked for the secret of her success, just how was she able to hold on to composure in adversity? To this she shared something extremely telling: ‘’Staying in the moment, focusing on what I had to do, my process and mindset really helped in those tough times!’’(1)
Her answer demonstrates a practice of mindfulness, whose popularity has grown immensely in recent years. Perhaps its simplest definition is that of ‘’the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we are doing, not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what is going on around us.’’ Raducanu, during difficult moments, was able to still her mind. She did not overly dwell on her mistakes but maintained equanimity and focus, embracing each point in the moment.
Judaism too, in so many ways is a repeated invocation to live in the moment.
The importance of mindfulness cannot be overstated enough. At every turn, living as we do today in the digital age, our ability to stay in the present is compromised. The average attention span has been significantly depleted over the last two decades from 12 seconds in 2000 to a mere 8.25 seconds.(2) A recent survey found that the average American adult is not paying attention to what they are doing 47% of the time(3). The scientific paper on which this was based also found that ‘’a wandering mind is an unhappy mind’’(4). Awareness and focus in the present then, not succumbing to distractibility is the opportunity to lead a more fulfilled life where our dreams can be actualised, as Raducanu achieved a few weeks ago.
Our preoccupation with mindfulness might be a recent phenomenon, the label might be new but its principles have long existed. It was Henry David Thoreau who once said:
‘’You must live in the present
Launch yourself on every wave,
Find your eternity in each moment.’’
Judaism too, in so many ways is a repeated invocation to live in the moment. This is certainly true of the notion of Shabbat, which provides the opportunity to exist as human beings rather than human doings. Thousands of years after this religious institution was first recorded in the Hebrew Bible, Shabbat’s invitation to detox and recalibrate is more urgent than ever. Abraham Joshua Heschel on exploring the meaning of the Sabbath says: ‘’it is to celebrate time rather than space. Six days a week we live under the tyranny of things of space; on the Sabbath we try to become attuned to holiness in time. It is a day on which we are called upon to share in what is eternal in time, to turn from the results of creation to the mystery of creation; from the world of creation to the creation of the world.’’(5) For Heschel this was not just a weekly spiritual communion but the possibility through the awareness attained of helping to shape the way we live during the rest of the week.
So many of our prayers also serve as an awakening to a wider awareness of the present. The morning blessings which inculcate a gratitude for our senses, our offering of thanks and praise to the Source of All Being both before and after food, even the Shema and its appeal to ‘’talk about these words when you sit in your home, when you walk in the street, when you lie down and you rise up’’(6) are all important examples of how the tradition urges us to live in the moment. The liturgy also employs a number of techniques to reinforce this message too such as the repetition of certain words or phrases. We also recite the shehecheyanu prayer of course, to mark the first time that we do something each calendar year and to celebrate joyous or remarkable occasions.
Emma Raducanu’s recent win at the US Open was one of the greatest sporting achievements in recent years. Having had to qualify for the tournament itself, her path to winning the crown was more gruelling physically, mentally and emotionally than perhaps any grand slam in the history of the sport. During her interview on court following the final she was asked for the secret of her success, just how was she able to hold on to composure in adversity? To this she shared something extremely telling: ‘’Staying in the moment, focusing on what I had to do, my process and mindset really helped in those tough times!’’(1)
Her answer demonstrates a practice of mindfulness, whose popularity has grown immensely in recent years. Perhaps its simplest definition is that of ‘’the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we are doing, not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what is going on around us.’’ Raducanu, during difficult moments, was able to still her mind. She did not overly dwell on her mistakes but maintained equanimity and focus, embracing each point in the moment.
The importance of mindfulness cannot be overstated enough. At every turn, living as we do today in the digital age, our ability to stay in the present is compromised. The average attention span has been significantly depleted over the last two decades from 12 seconds in 2000 to a mere 8.25 seconds.(2) A recent survey found that the average American adult is not paying attention to what they are doing 47% of the time(3). The scientific paper on which this was based also found that ‘’a wandering mind is an unhappy mind’’(4). Awareness and focus in the present then, not succumbing to distractibility is the opportunity to lead a more fulfilled life where our dreams can be actualised, as Raducanu achieved a few weeks ago.
Our preoccupation with mindfulness might be a recent phenomenon, the label might be new but its principles have long existed. It was Henry David Thoreau who once said:
‘’You must live in the present
Launch yourself on every wave,
Find your eternity in each moment.’’
Six days a week we live under the tyranny of things of space; on the Sabbath we try to become attuned to holiness in time.
Judaism too, in so many ways is a repeated invocation to live in the moment. This is certainly true of the notion of Shabbat, which provides the opportunity to exist as human beings rather than human doings. Thousands of years after this religious institution was first recorded in the Hebrew Bible, Shabbat’s invitation to detox and recalibrate is more urgent than ever. Abraham Joshua Heschel on exploring the meaning of the Sabbath says: ‘’it is to celebrate time rather than space. Six days a week we live under the tyranny of things of space; on the Sabbath we try to become attuned to holiness in time. It is a day on which we are called upon to share in what is eternal in time, to turn from the results of creation to the mystery of creation; from the world of creation to the creation of the world.’’(5) For Heschel this was not just a weekly spiritual communion but the possibility through the awareness attained of helping to shape the way we live during the rest of the week.
So many of our prayers also serve as an awakening to a wider awareness of the present. The morning blessings which inculcate a gratitude for our senses, our offering of thanks and praise to the Source of All Being both before and after food, even the Shema and its appeal to ‘’talk about these words when you sit in your home, when you walk in the street, when you lie down and you rise up’’(6) are all important examples of how the tradition urges us to live in the moment. The liturgy also employs a number of techniques to reinforce this message too such as the repetition of certain words or phrases. We also recite the shehecheyanu prayer of course, to mark the first time that we do something each calendar year and to celebrate joyous or remarkable occasions.
Living in the moment is not just a precept that Judaism reserves for sacred time. A life of mitzvot is one lived in the understanding that it is through our conscious action in this world that we have the power to transform it. Indeed it also minimises our activities that dull our awareness of the moment.
It is Hillel’s paradox in the opening chapter of the Ethics of the Fathers that serves to underline Judaism’s attitude that life should be lived in the now. As he says: ‘’If I am not for myself then, who will be for me?’’(7) is a clear imperative that we should seek to be autonomous and not rely on others. With what follows there is a contradiction when he then states: ‘’And when I am for myself, what am I?’’(8) In this he disparages the person occupied in their own matters. The two elements of the statement are ostensibly impossible. Some, to attempt a resolution of the implausibility have mistranslated the second part of the statement to read ‘’and if I am only for myself’’ to achieve this. Being self-absorbed on such a reading is a problem only when one is exclusively gripped with their own concerns. The text however does not say this. The solution to unlocking the paradox may however be found in the concluding line of the mishnah which expounds: ‘’If not now, then when’’(9) It is therefore In focusing on the word ‘now’ and the context of what is happening in the present that we can determine on which side of the statement to concentrate and whether it is appropriate to tend to the needs of others or to give our own concerns priority. Hillel’s statement indicates then, that there is no more important moment than the present.(10)
Raducanu might not have had Hillel’s paradox, conceptions of Jewish prayer or the Shabbat in mind while at the US open. She did certainly embrace the power of now, for which Judaism is such an advocate.
(1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iryr3afbyFA
(2) https://www.digitalinformationworld.com/2018/09/the-human-attention-span-infographic.html
(3) Killingworth and Gilbert, Science, 2010
(4) ibid
(5) Abraham Joshua Heschel. “The Sabbath”, p.22
(6) Deuteronomy 6:6
(7) Ethics of the Fathers 1:14
(8) ibid
(9) ibid
(10) Rabbi David Rabhan, The Power of Now, OU Life
Simon Eder is Editorial Director of Jewish Quest. He writes regularly for the site and has written for the Judaism column of the Jewish Chronicle. He is a founder of the Jewish Community in Dubai and due to feature in a documentary later this year.