The King in the Field: The discovery that allows us to tame the heart anew
The greatest physicists in history discovered that it is possible to tame electricity, but at the same time, another theory was revealed that explains how one can tame the human heart during the most routine moments of the year.
The greatest discovery of the early 19th century is undoubtedly field theory. Until its emergence, researchers believed that space was filled with particles that did not communicate without contact. However, scientists later discovered that space itself is filled with electromagnetic motion—electromagnetic waves—and we have the ability to utilize this motion to generate electricity for human use.
Thus, the first dynamo was created, becoming the ancestor of modern generators, electric motors, microwave ovens, MRI machines, and everything that depends on electricity to this day. Field theory taught us that it is possible to 'tame' electricity.
It is fascinating that in those same years, a Jewish field theory was revealed, known as 'The King in the Field.' This phrase, which became a metonym for the month of Elul, originates from the teachings of the 'Baal HaTanya,' where he explores the meaning of Elul: how it can be such a special and unique month while containing no holidays, consisting entirely of weekdays.
As an answer, he offers a parable:
'Like a king who, on his way to the city, turns into the field where the working people are found—those who usually do not have free access to him—and there in the field he receives them with a friendly face and a smiling countenance for everyone, so it is in the month of Elul.'
There are no holidays because the Almighty wants to draw close to us without disrupting our routine; He wants us as we are, just like the 'King in the Field.'
This is as revolutionary as the discoveries of Michael Faraday and André-Marie Ampère, when space suddenly became filled with movement and vitality that were not there before. Similarly, in the Hasidic field theory, our personal, mundane, and ordinary space suddenly fills with meaning and interest because someone is interested precisely in it—in us, without filters.
Regarding this, it is said in the Song of Songs: 'I sleep, but my heart waketh; it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, open to me.' Like an engine that awakens to life with the flow of electricity, our heart, which is often swept away by the temptations of the material world, is capable during the month of Elul of awakening at the sound of the Creator knocking on the door. It is in our power to tame it through the movement that creates meaning—the strongest force that drives us. With enough meaning, we can aspire to open a new chapter in our lives as the new year begins.
