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If I am not for myself, who will be for me?


I came across Rabbi Hillel’s famous saying today and I am always inspired by the profound wisdom it reveals. We all recognize the tensions revealed by Hillel in this short saying.

“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am not for others, what am I? And if not now, when? “

(1) If I am not for myself, who will be for me? -- The bottom line is that your life is in your own hands. Don’t expect anyone else to do what needs to be done to make your life for you. When you encounter opportunities, do what needs to be done yourself to make them realities. If you don’t have opportunities – make your own! You must be for and take care of yourself. Don’t wait for someone else to do what you know needs to be done now.

(2) If I am not for others – This reminds us that we are surrounded by others and what we do or do not do affect their lives; just as what they do or do not do affect our lives. Think about how your life is affected every day by the actions of others. What would you have to eat today, if it were not for the actions of others? What would you be wearing today, if it were not for the actions of others? What would you do when you become ill, if it were not for the actions of others? Now think about how you affect the lives of others in your family, at work, in your community, etc.  No one else can be you to them. You are a very important part of their lives.

(3) what am I? – Life requires us to be independent and interdependent. How we balance the two reveals “what” we are. If we are only for ourselves we become completely selfish and lose touch with the rest of the world and lose touch with life. But what if we are not for ourselves and do not do what is best for ourselves? What if we just try to please others and are never for ourselves? We also lose touch with life.

(4) And if not now, when? – We cannot change what has happened in the past or will happen in the future. Now is the only moment we have to grab hold of life.

“Now, I will be for myself and I will be for others, too. This is what am I.”

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