Pirkei Avot Playlist Project

Hello! It’s me, Bianca! Your favourite blogger😁!

In Jewish studies we were assigned a project. We needed to pick out 5 verses from Pirkei Avot and pick a song for each that relates to it:

 

TV-Billie Eilish

 

“And do not say “When I free myself of my concerns, I will study,” for perhaps you will never free yourself.” That last sentence is what I want to focus on. This means not procrastinating and not being in denial about your ‘concerns’. You should always try to find a solution to your problems, not rely on life to fix your problems for you. Waiting around is the worst thing to do. Take action, because you’ll be grateful that you did. You can’t turn away and ignore your problems forever.

 

“All of my friends are missing again. That’s what happens when you fall in love.You don’t have the time, you leave them all behind. You tell yourself it’s fine, you’re just in love(Eilish).” Though not all problems are centered around love, the same general idea is there. Billie waits for her problems to get better on their own, instead of facing the music and doing something about them.

 

Shake it off-Taylor Swift

 

“He also saw a skull floating upon the water. Said he to it: Because you drowned others, you were drowned; and those who drowned you, will themselves be drowned.” This means that two wrongs don’t make a right. Even though someone did something wrong, it doesn’t mean other people have to react the same way. Be the bigger person, and stand up for yourself, instead of doing something wrong back, just because they wronged you. Treat people the way you want to be treated.

 

“And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, Baby i’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake. Shake it off, I shake it off (Swift).” This shows that acting back isn’t the answer. If haters hate, just ‘shake it off’. Reacting negatively in the same way can create even bigger problems than there were originally.

 

Applause-Lady Gaga

 

“Rabban Yochanan the son of Zakkai received the tradition from Hillel and Shammai. He would say: If you have learned much Torah, do not take credit for yourself—it is for this that you have been formed.” This means not taking credit for something you did, and that if you trained to be a righteous person, you should not focus on the fact that you put work into it, but on the fact that you are now a better and more educated person. If you only take credit, you are going against what you have learned. We were created with this expectation. 

 

“I live for the applause, applause, applause(Lady Gaga).” This shows that some people are very arrogant; instead of being humble and appreciating what they’ve learned/ done, sometimes people can brag, and they want all the attention on them. This is not a good habit. People will not want to listen and congratulate you if you’re basically doing it yourself.

 

Avril Lavigne-Complicated

 

Rabbi Joshua would say: An evil eye, the evil inclination, and the hatred of one’s fellows, drive a person (away) from the world. This explains that if you are mean and full of hate, people will not want to talk to you. Your evil inclination will drive them away and potentially stop them from seeing the rest of the good in the world.

 

“Why’d you have to go and make things so complicated? I see the way you’re acting like you’re somebody else, Gets me frustrated(Lavigne).” This is about how a lot of people are fake friends and act like someone else, when they are not. This can overpower the good parts of life, but no one else sees it because they are focused on the hate and bad in the world.

 

Rihanna-Umbrella

 

“And all your deeds should be for the sake of Heaven.” Again, I’d like to focus on this part.

All your mitzvahs, (acts of kindness) should not be done to make you look good, or any other selfish reasons. Mitzvahs should be done because it is the right thing to do. Even if no one is looking, doing mitzvahs is still the right choice. Doing a mitzvah for the glory and everyone’s reactions is not ethical. We do mitzvahs for fulfillment, kindness, and making the world a better place.

 

“When the sun shines, we’ll shine together, Told you I’ll be here forever. Said I’ll always be your friend, Took an oath, I’ma stick it out to the end(Rihanna).” This shows that you should actually put effort into your good deeds. Rihanna doesn’t do this for people to think she is a good person, but to be loyal to her friend.

 

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