Rabbi Steven Kaplan

Folktales for Life's Journey: Psychological Gleanings Rabbi Steven Kaplan

From earliest times, people have wondered about the paths of their lives. What brings happiness, contentment, sorrow, anger, hope, optimism, frustration, and a myriad of related feelings and emotions? More often than not, it is the experiences of one's life which helps clarify these questions, and allows them to anticipate their reactions to new situations. In addition to one's personal experiences, there are also stories of others' experiences. Sometimes these tales are accurate, other times exaggerated. Regardless, it is the tale itself which often is responsible for delivering a message and a lesson to the listener. Rabbi Nachman once stated that "one way to wake people up is through stories". Incorporating the psychological gleanings presented in this work into one's life, and living that life with greater joy, peace of mind, harmony, optimism, and self-confidence, certainly seems to be at least one way in which people can benefit by being "awakened".