T 1290.pdf - Pondicherry University DSpace Portal

aqb rel-gious law 3s int.erpreted over ;he centuries by thelearned rabbls..Tucaism l.l]rsgreat emphasls on the importance of leadinga moral llfe and achieving salvation through meritorious deeds,rather than ascetrcism, celibacy or self-imposed suffering.And, it stresses that when mere observztion of ritual, howevermeticulous, substitutes for right living, then religion becomeshypocrisy. Tte Jew 1s: ilrged to be ir constant dlalogue with Godthrc,ugh a 5aii.i li..scipllne of prayer, the essence of which isto be thankful to the creator. Deep-rooted in ancient JewishLaw, the code of "Mentshlekhkayt" has slrlce become an lntegralpart of the "sht.etl" cultare of the Jews. In a world of chaosand sufferrng, this Jewish ethical code recognises the "human"elevent in nar and rs-infarces tha scrong sense of communitythat has traditionally been the back-bone of Jewish life.Every Jew is supposed to live his life in such a mannerthat he 1s ever ready to receive the Messiah, a saviour whoiould be born of Jews and whose arrival would rescue mankindfrom war and silfftiring and establish unlversal brotherhood. TheJews lrlok to a Mesr,ian not as a divlne or a supernatural being,but a Towerful human entity who wlll usher in an age ofunlversal peace.-- The Natural attempts the imaginative transformation ofhistory into nyth-the myth of "the ever-lastingly crucial Story