Sense of Responsibility

A Jewish story was told of a young man called Elazar who was so immoral. He would move from the doorstep of one prostitute to the other. One day he went into the chambers of one prostitute who told him;"Elazar, you're beyond salvation and will not enter the world to come"
The statement pricked his heart and he became remorseful. He prayed to the mountains and hills to ask God to forgive him his sinful deeds. But they replied that they cannot help him. He turned to heaven and earth to ask God's pardon for him. But they also replied in like manner. He again turned to the sun and Moon to ask God's forgiveness for him. They replied "we are sorry, we cannot do that for you. You have to do it yourself"
Finally, he turned to the stars and the sky, hoping to receive a better response but it was the same story. They too could not offer him any help.
Elazar was disappointed but soon came to himself and said " I'm responsible for all that I did, it is all my fault." Suddenly Elazar heard a voice from above, saying "you shall come into the world to come because you have repented"
Lessons from this short story
The reason behind Elazar asking the mountains and hills to intervene for him is that he felt they are responsible for his immoral upbringing. The mountains and hills in the story represent parents. He was really thinking "it was my parents' fault that I turned out like this. They didn't discipline me enough, they didn't have time to invest in me, they spoiled me" But his plea was rejected by the heavenly court.
To further defend his wrongful actions, he turned to heaven and earth, both symbolizing the society in which he was raised. "It was the society I grew up in, my friends, my school, everybody was doing it and that is why I behaved the way I did. It is not my fault." This defense was also rejected.
He tried again and turned to the sun and Moon both symbols of affluence." It was the glitz and glam of how I grew up. There was so much emphasis on the material world, I could not escape it. But it's not my fault we were rich.....rich kids are raised with a different value system." This excuse was also not accepted.
His last defense was to blame the cosmos, "it was my destiny to be how I am. If I had been born under a different astrological sign, I would have had a chance. But the heavenly court did not accept this defense either.
After crying so deeply about his helpless situation, he managed to find little strength to look inward to himself. He realized that he couldn't shift the blame to anyone else. " it's all my fault " he admitted. "I'm the only one truly responsible for my behavior" And in that moment he gained the chance to enter the world to come. ( TheJewishWoman.org)

This is the behavior of many of us. We always find people to be responsible for our mistakes and troubles. We always blame other people for our failures. It is never our fault but someone else's. Until we find the courage to accept our fault and take responsibility, we are going to remain in our deplorable state eternally. But let's learn from Elazar; look within ourselves and accept our shortcomings and make amends.

Continue reading on self-discipline and responsibility
https://kasukose.blogspot.com/2017/09/self-discipline-and-responsibility.html?m=1