The 10 C0MMANDMENTS Are Really 10 INSIGHTS

What makes the well-known and oft-repeated 10 commandments so special? They named an enduring and popular movie after it.

The famous ten commandments of the Bible are not commandments at all.

The initial consideration is: Are these 10 of the 613 Commandments special in any way? Surely, all of the rules given by God are equally important. But these 10 are isolated in their own parasha (section) of the Torah. They are the only ones explicitly given by God to the people directly; the others are explained to Moses, who then passes them onto the congregation of Israel. By nature of these qualifications, the TEN COMMANDMENTS are exceptional.

That is because they are not really instructions or rules. They are visionary statements of Being Divine. They open a window to the Totality of the Deity.

The wording and translations of these declarations may seem to indicate that they are, merely, a section of the Torah’s commandments. But they are so much more than that. Their prominence and fame dictate that these words are in a class of their own.

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS ARE NOT OF THIS WORLD.

Some of these ideas are firmly stated; others are taught by negative association. They explain the nature of the Divinity and the universe in which the Deity resides unconfined by space and unbound by time. It is a realm without borders, limitations, or urges. Accordingly, it has no preferences, distractions, or conflicts. The Heavenly existence knows only truth. There is no such thing as falsehood. Morality is not an issue because all is as it is and as it can only be.

In giving what we call the Ten Commandments (also known as The Decalogue), God is opening a window into why God is different and why we are different from God. Remarkably, they enlighten as to how we may awaken and assert our own godlike nature. There is no judgement involved.

The Ten Commandments are different from all the rest of the 603 commandments given in the Torah. They are differentiated by their placement and by their intention. They are intentionally held separate from other rules given in the Bible. The Hebrew word for “being separate” is “Kadosh,” which also means “Holy.” We have within us the potential to be Holy; that is: to be separate or different.

These commandments are entirely about perspective, attitude, and relationship to the intangibles of the Heavenly Universe. They are intended as giving voice to a mental understanding, not an action or response. Although often represented as being instructions, they are truly insights into the nature of a 100% spiritual existence. Which is the state of being of God.

The other 603 Commandments are designed as spiritual guidance for living in the Earthly, material realm. Some of them may seem like they should be grouped with the 10. But the fact that none are even in the same parasha as the SPECIAL TEN proves their lesser status.

The 603 are commanding people what to do in life. These actions are ostensibly given to make us better human beings. Nonetheless, they tell us the best Torah way to deal with life’s encounters. They have been interpreted as having moralistic goals.

At Mt. Sinai, God is speaking, inspiring, and projecting from God’s universe to ours. God is extending celestial energy from that spiritual state of being to the materialistic world in which we dwell. The deity transfers this energy through a portal characterized by fire, smoke, thunder, and lightening. This is spiritual energy being transfused into our physical world. The spirit of God does not transverse into the mortal realm. God is bestowing insight of the Godly existence for the benefit of human beings. Mt. Sinai is the platform upon which this gift is transmitted to the human consciousness.

Before actually enunciating these descriptions, God instructs that no one may approach the portal (the mountain) from which will emanate the “voice.” Such a breech will cause God to break through into the earthly plane, with a force that will, by nature, be destructive. This shows that God is “there,” not “here.” The portrayal in the Torah is that a heavy cloud descends upon the mountain.

These circumstances and restrictions attending to the Decalogue are unique among Biblical Commandments. The power revealed in this revelation episode attests to the importance of looking for an interpretation going beyond the mere giving of Commandments.

The cloud over Mt. Sinai is the projection of God across the incredible divide. The actual Divine Being of God cannot penetrate the physical world [that God created] without tainting the Divinely Infinite/Eternal. God could bridge the Heavenly and Earthly Realms using the media of thunder, lightning, smoke, fire, powerful blasts of the Shofar, and shaking the mountain. With this portal having been established, God hurls ideas, insights, and impressions into the minds of those on the other side. From Heaven to Earth.

Anyone getting close to this otherworldly cloud would be sucked in to it and die. It is not God doing the killing. It is the hot fire of God’s energy that would burn anyone getting close. God warns Moses that this could happen, instructing him to prevent any person from approaching onto the mountain.    

God then speaks of “there” (the spiritual world) to those paying attention “here” (the physical world). What follows shows the universe’s potential in terms that we can understand. It includes positive recognitions of what preceded the Creation of the Material Universe. By necessity (because words truly cannot express), it also exposes fundamental negative distinguishing realities of our world that are not encountered in the Heavenly world. This acknowledgement teaches that the absence of some of our more prevalent and even treasured inclinations and instincts are mundane. The lesson is one of sanctity, harmony, and eternity. It must be understood as revealing the contents and absences of Heavenly life. Absent this perspective, one can easily accept the standard interpretation of The Decalogue.

The idea that the 10 Commandments are equivalent to the other commandments belies their special status. These ten are portrayed as having been given directly by God to the Hebrew people. There is a unique lead up to the revelation. It is generally considered the Revelation. The giving is accompanied by thunder, lightning, earthquakes, and a cloud over the mountain. This event is accompanied by warnings of death to those who approach too closely. They are not given through Moses. All of these qualities surrounding the giving of the TEN COMMANDMENTS are unique to them.

Therefore, the TEN COMMANDMENTS given in Parasha Yitro are not simply the most important of all the commandments of the Torah. They are not commandments at all. They are expressing wisdom and revelation of a higher state of being.  

Some of the TEN begin by using the Hebrew word meaning “no.” This is not negativity; it is singling out absences in the spiritual world to help define that world for mortal humans. The final Five of the Ten Commandments address challenges intrinsic to living in a material world. Though they can be characterized as attitudes, crimes, or disturbances, they lead to consequences, strife, and hardship. They do not exist in the non-material universe. Freedom from these flaws best describes the potential realized in the Divine Universe. Just as God is projecting a sense of God (nobody actually “sees” God), these concepts can be communicated across the impenetrable divide that separates troubled egotism from absolute acceptance.

Parents, procreation, and pedigree do not exist within the context of eternity and infinity.

(The TEN COMMANDMENTS  that follow have been separated into parts to facilitate addressing specific habits of interpretation.)

“I am the Lord thy God” is a summary statement of the Divine being within the Divine Universe of 100% Spirituality. Nothing of materialism has ever existed where God resides.  

“I took you out of the land of Egypt” is interpreted to mean there is not all the pettiness, vanity, anger, hatred, power-madness, bigotry, and fear that we associate with Egypt. Egypt is not just a place. It is a concept that symbolically embodies the urges, needs, and desires of the physical world. These and other qualities of adrenaline do not exist in the Heavenly realm. This statement seeks to put to rest any idea that God and what IS God does not contain what makes us human.

The phrase, “Being taken out of the Land of Egypt,” is an invitation to connect with our God-given spiritual natures. Egypt represents the entire Material Creation. We have the power to choose awakening and nourishing our dormant spiritual natures. The power to be Holy; to be different in the way that God is different. From the perspective of the Deity, mortals have lived in a “House of Slavery.” Slaves to our emotions, instincts, and physical needs and desires.

“You cannot make any other gods.” It is not possible to make a physical god. Because it would not be 100% spiritual. This is the fundamental characteristic of a true god. Any god derived from a material world would be a material god. Not a god at all. Nothing like this exists within the Heavenly realm. And cannot exist. Just as the spiritual God cannot exist in the Earthly realm.

“Do not take or say the Name of God in vain.” In truth, God has no name or description. That is why God is referred to by God’s many different qualities. These attributes are called the Names of God. In the spiritual realm, the essential defining characteristics are eternal and infinite. It is impossible to refer to these attributes in any limiting manner. Such an attempt would seem ridiculous in this context. Thus, saying the Name in vain cannot be done when even comprehending something without limitation is unfathomable. This insight adds to the understanding of the state of being of God.

In the pre-Creation, outside of the now-Creation, these “commandments” are merely statements of fact. This is the way it is. They describe another level or potential consciousness available to the human mind and spirit.

“Remember the Sabbath day.” In God’s world, there is an absence of the material goals and desires that occupy our brains. In this reality, we find the peace and harmony, pacification, and conciliation so absent in the physical world. There is more than one Hebrew word that can be translated with the English word “remember.” “Zachor,” the Hebrew word used in this instance, means to live as if it is happening now. It’s to actively experience and delve into the power of the moment, excluding any other thought.  A moment of complete immersion in an alternate reality of infinite and eternal acceptance of all that is TRUE.

There is no such thing as the passage of time in the Celestial Realm. Hence, there is no sense to differentiate a Sabbath Day. Eternity is homogenous, random, and harmonious.

“Honor your father and your mother.” The concept of pedigree, so precious and ingrained in our human experience, is not a factor in a non-material mind set. Within our mortal reality, this honor is a virtue. But from the point of view of an eternal perspective (to which we have access to because of the human soul), it has no meaning.  

This and the following “commandments” are about adjusting our mortal attitudes, conceptions, and habituations. That makes them not commandments, but insights into how God exists. Because the TEN COMMANDMENTS are grouped together, they all apply to this perspective.  

Accordingly, the Torah is revealing the choice to perceive life without the burdens and contradictions of the material world. We learn that we can overcome our human nature. Our instinct is to focus on these distractions in life. Our innate makeup with a soul allows us to choose to go beyond what our senses perceive. These 10 insights help us to understand what lies outside our finite and temporal limitations.

Speech and language are limited; they cannot explain or describe an eternal and infinite reality. Words can be used to show what is not part of that reality.

The final FIVE of the TEN are usually translated as follows:
“You shall not kill.”

“You shall not commit adultery.”

“You shall not steal.”

“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

“You shall not covet.”

The Hebrew for each of these are of similar construction. “You shall not kill.” Is “Lo tier-tsach.” This is 2 words in Hebrew, literally translated “No Killing.” The [above] common interpretation is radically different.

In the context of these revelations as I have described it, a more appropriate rendering would be to say: “Killing is unknown in the Godly Heaven.” More precisely: “There is no killing where God is.” “So free your mind of that encumbrance.”

The same literary pattern is followed by all these five “insights” into the spiritual universe. Underlying each one are differing emotions, desires, and needs of human beings. They are so common throughout history that they may have an innate and instinctual component within the mortal psyche. We may view them as evolutionary imperatives and intrinsically woven into the human genetic makeup.

These transgressions have prevalently impacted and guided human behavior, often to our detriment as individuals, nations, and societies. In our worldly experience, they have been and will always be unavoidable.

They do not play any role in the perspective or world of the ethereal Deity. Using the power of the Decalogue, we learn what to liberate ourselves from to achieve true peace and contentment in life.

Why separate the TEN COMMANDMENTS from the other ones? Because this is Revelation. God is revealing God and the Godly approach to life. With this background, we can reorient our minds and emotions to overcome hatred, jealousy, fear, and anger. We do not have to live with these and other harmful energies within us.

The consequences of such injuriously hormonal processes are all the terrors in the world: health problems, conflict against others, poor self-esteem, and other similar hindrances that we grow to accept as part of the “human condition.

God is saying: “Not necessary.” You can choose to distance yourself from all that and still function and flourish in a mortal universe. The first step is visualizing and accepting God as described in these TEN INSIGHTS.