Return, O Children of Man
“You return man to dust (daka), and say, ‘Return, O children of man.’”
(Psalms 90:3)
This is the process of returning humanity to its source,
through shattering,
crushing,
and a deep recognition of its own lowliness,
until the consciousness surrenders and is elevated to its divine root.
The return of humanity to itself,
to its soul.
“Enosh” (man)
is not just a private person,
but the entirety of the human race,
the part that separated from the Divine,
that lives in the illusion of “I and other.”
“Tashev” (You return)
It will return,
it will dissolve,
it will be purified.
The depression, the fracture, the lowliness—
they are not a punishment, but a necessary stage in the rectification.
“Daka” (dust/crushed)
is a state in which the ego is completely nullified, in which the person (and humanity) understands that the dominion, the glory, the Nobel prizes, the great leaders, are nothing but fantasies of separateness.
This is why leaders like Bibi or Trump, and all who embody the human megalomania, are a symbolic expression of “enosh ad daka“ (man until he is crushed). They are the final reflection of the human who believes he is God, the moment before the mask falls.
“And say, ‘Return, O children of man.’”
After the crushing and the fracture,
the true call is heard:
Return to the Adam (human) within you,
to the image of God inside,
to the humble heart.
This is the moment of reversal,
in which humanity surrenders to the divine love,
and the body itself begins to be purified.
“You return man to dust”
is not a warning, but a promise.
Everything we see—
the corruption, the lust for power, the madness of science and of leaders—
is the dismantling of the old human form.
The “enosh” must arrive at “daka”
so that a “new man,” a divine man,
a man of unity, can be born.
The Ramchal writes that the great light of the redemption is revealed precisely when all the small lights are extinguished.
And Baal HaSulam explains:
“There is nothing sweeter than the final bitterness of humiliation, for from it the supernal light is born.”
Reflect:
Where in your own life have you experienced a “crushing” (daka)—a breakdown of ego, plans, or identity—that ultimately led to a deeper “return” to your true self?
Can you view the “megalomania” and corruption you see in the world not just as a tragedy, but as the “final reflection of the human who believes he is God,” just before the mask falls?
What does the call “Return, O children of man” mean to you personally? What are you being called to return to?
The conversation continues below.