Some people believe in figuring out things using intuition, not intelligence.
Others find this idea strange, to say the least. It seems to them that after all, being a human being is all about using one’s rationality, in knowing why something is wrong or right, good or bad, etc., not just getting a feeling from somewhere deep inside, over which one has no control.
It seems to me, intuition is only useful at the beginning, if you need a push to one direction or another, or in the middle, if you are stuck and don’t know where to go next. Or if you can’t follow the logic.
But not in the end, when you have to make a decision. I mean, if I’m making a decision for something or against it, it seems to me that I want to know why I made it; I want to be able to explain the logic to any stranger, not tell him that some mysterious force inside my pushed me towards this or against it.
Maybe it’s because I like to be in control.
Of my life.
I mean, sometimes it’s all about probabilities and uncertainties, but still, better some control than no control at all.
A lot of people believe that because things are in Eibeshter’s hands, we don’t have responsibility to take control and make decisions. Learning Jewish philosophy shows us they are wrong. Learning Chassidus shows us why they are wrong.