Came up for me this morning that I never wrote about any connection between these.
The 3 Commandments came up for me, when writing “Conversations with Dog.”
http://enlightenedmdphd.blogspot.com/2020/04/conversations-with-dog-chapter-9.html
I never really thought about any real connection with The 10 Commandments…
Being of Jewish background, let us start there.
There are actually 613 Commandments in the Torah, the Jewish bible.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/613_commandments
Categorized here:
https://www.jewfaq.org/613.htm
They are traditionally called mitzvahs, or “good deeds,” also labeled as commandments.
As an aside, I found this was interesting, someone illustrated all of them:
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/31/us/an-illustrated-guide-to-the-613-jewish-commandments.html
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Traditionally, it is thought that The 10 Commandments were written by G-d on 2 stone tablets and given to Moses.
Let us take a look at these copied from one of the more conservative Jewish websites:
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/2896/jewish/What-Are-the-Ten-Commandments.htm
English Translation of the Ten Commandments
1. I am the L rd your G d, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
2. You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself a graven image, nor any manner of likeness of anything that is in heaven above, that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them, nor serve them. For I the L rd your G d am a jealous G d, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children of the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me; and showing mercy unto the thousandth generation of them that love Me and keep My commandments.
3. You shall not take the name of the L rd your G d in vain; for the L rd will not hold him guiltless that takes His name in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work; but the seventh day is a Sabbath unto the L rd your G d. On it you shall not do any manner of work—you, your son, your daughter, your man-servant, your maid-servant, your cattle, and your stranger that is within your gates. For in six days the L rd made heaven and earth, the sea and all that in them is, and rested on the seventh day; wherefore the L rd blessed the Sabbath Day, and hallowed it.
5. Honor your father and mother, so that your days may be long upon the land which the L rd your G d gives you.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, his manservant, his maid-servant, his ox, his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor's.
This same site observes the following:
The Symmetry of the Ten Commandments
The Ten Commandments were carved on two tablets, so let us visualize them as being laid out as follows:
TABLET ONE TABLET TWO
1. I am the L-rd your G d … 6. You shall not murder.
2. You shall have no gods … 7. You shall not commit adultery.
3. You shall not take the name of the L-rd your G d in vain … 8. You shall not steal.
4. Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy … 9. You shall not bear false witness …
5. Honor your father and mother … 10. You shall not covet your neighbor's house …
Note that we can read the commandments down each tablet, or we can read them from side to side. This Midrash3 provides the connection:
Commandments 1 and 6: Every human is created in the image of G d, so murder is an affront to the Creator.
Commandments 2 and 7: When one worships a deity other than G d, it is as akin to adultery. G d is our loving spouse (and much more).
Commandments 3 and 8: A person may feel that stealing is only between him and the victim, but it is also a crime against G d, whose name will ultimately be taken falsely.
Commandments 4 and 9: Through keeping Shabbat, we testify that G d created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. When one disregards Shabbat, he testifies falsely about the Divine origin of the universe.
Commandments 5 and 10: The juxtaposition of jealousy and honoring parents tell us that one who lusts after that which is not his, will ultimately give birth to a child who curses his parents and honors others instead.
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And another way of grouping them here:
https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-ten-commandments/
The philosopher Abraham ben Chiyya, after placing the first commandment apart as comprising all the others, divided the other nine according to the commandments of thought, speech, and action, and according to relations between human and God, human and his family, and human and human, reaching the following classification:
Relations between: Man & God Human & Family Human & Human
Thought 2:“Thou shalt have no other God” 5: “Honor thy father and thy mother." 10: “Thou shalt not covet.”
Speech 3: “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord in vain.” 6: “Thou shalt not murder.” 9: “Thou shalt not bear false witness.”
Action 4: “Remember the Sabbath.” 7: “Thou shalt not commit adultery." 8: “Thou shalt not steal.”
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As a reminder, here are The 3 Commandments, and remember, they are observed in strict order:
1-There is only one Source.
2-Love everything.
3-Enjoy yourself.
And the most important mistakes are made within the Second Commandment…
http://enlightenedmdphd.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-second-commandment-love-everything_24.html
In general, all of The 3 Commandments are positive, obviously, the first one is simply a statement…
In the case of the original 613 Commandments, 248 are positive and 365 are negative (That is from a website above, I did not count them…).
If we take a look at the 9 above, 2 are positive (instructions to do) and 7 are negative (to do not)…
The First Commandments of the 3 and 10 are basically the same statement, without using the word G-d, substituting the word Source…
Source as “All-That-Is” and All-That-Is-Not.” The everything that exists, and everything with potential for existence…
The Second Commandment of the 3 encompass the rest of the 9 of the 10…
The “Mistakes” of the Second Commandment can be directly mapped on these 9…
I won’t take up your time here on these…
For me, the interest lies within the frameworks of various religions…
I am much more interested in the relationship of mystery and paradox at the core of each religion…
Let us close with 3 great quotes from Huston Smith:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huston_Smith
"If we take the world's enduring religions at their best, we discover the distilled wisdom of the human race."
"Institutions are not pretty. Show me a pretty government. Healing is wonderful, but the American Medical Association? Learning is wonderful, but universities? The same is true for religion... religion is institutionalized spirituality."
"The goal of spiritual life is not altered states, but altered traits.”
Let us all practice deep love for all beings and the world…
Namaste
