“What is hateful unto you, do not do unto your friend. This is the whole Torah, the rest is commentary. Now, go and study.”

— Hillel

“‘Love your neighbor as yourself’ is the fundamental principle of the Torah.”

— Rabbi Akiva

In perhaps the most famous story in all of Jewish literature, the Talmud (Shabbat 31a) relates an incident that occurred between a non-Jew and the two great sages of the time, Hillel and Shammai. The man first approached Shammai with a strange request, saying, “Convert me to Judaism on the condition that you will teach me the whole Torah while standing on one foot.” Shammai forced the man away with a building rod. The man then approached Hillel with the same proposition. Hillel replied with his unique articulation of the golden rule. The man accepted Hillel’s response and converted.

In one of the most frequently quoted commentaries on the Torah, Rashi explains the verse “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18) with the words of Rabbi Akiva that it is the primary principle of the Torah. Rabbi Akiva was an illiterate man until the age of 40 who eventually became a preeminent sage and Jewish martyr. He spent years delving into every intricacy of Jewish wisdom and concluded that in the final analysis God cares about the way we treat one another more than anything else. His articulation of the golden rule builds upon that of Hillel.

Just as a person moves one leg at a time, a person on the spiritual path needs to advance one step at a time. Hillel teaches that the first step in correcting our egotistical nature is to avoid harming others. Just as any individual doesn’t want to be harmed, so too do we strive to provide the same courtesy. Rabbi Akiva teaches that the second step in this process is to contribute to the goodness of others. This is actually a continuation of the first phase. Although we may not be ready to sacrifice much of ourselves for societal benefit, we start to recognize the need to rise above our egos. In turn, this will eventually lead to a complete transformation of our self-centered nature—the whole reason why we were given the Torah.

Hillel’s formulation is more practical and passive. We are not required to give up anything or suffer on account of anyone else, just to rise above desires that lead to the detriment of others. Rabbi Akiva’s formulation is more difficult and active. One begins to work with their initial nature but in an inverted fashion; that which one would do for oneself is now done to bestow upon others. Yet, in both cases the focus is on the individual working on themselves instead of trying to change the outside world.

While we would all like to skip the first part and generally think of ourselves as good people, there’s no getting around neutralizing our egotism. We need to avoid inflicting harm, whether to another’s person, property or reputation. Our nature is such that we want the most benefit for ourselves even at the expense of others. This isn’t an incrimination of anyone, it’s simply an understanding of the substance with which we were created. In fact, recognizing the evil of our inborn nature is no small feat. Not giving in to primitive pride and trying to improve our character is a great achievement in and of itself.

The second step is to work in favor of others to the best of our ability. After discerning the evil of our original nature, we begin striving to change its mode from egotistic to altruistic. But because this is contrary to our inherent egotism, it takes a lot of practice to master. Anything worth having in life does not come easy, and this is the ultimate goal worth pursuing as its reward is “you will see your world in your lifetime” (Berachot 17a). If we are able to fulfill both parts of this task, we can actually experience the spiritual world while still living in this world.

Always remember the words that come after the Torah’s command to love your neighbor: “I am God” (Leviticus 19:18). This is both the goal—Dvekut, adhesion with God—and the means to achieve the goal—with God’s help. The more we each try with all our might to rise above egotism, the more it becomes apparent that we are utterly incapable of doing so left to our own devices. Yet, if we can muster a sincere desire for help from Above, we will be answered. Our attitudes, actions and relationships will evolve from negative to neutral to positive. We just have to take that first step and God will do the rest.

In another oft-cited passage, Hillel states, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? But if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?” (Pirkey Avot 1:14). Our role as the Jewish people is to first help each other connect positively. But just like with the golden rule, there is a second part to keep in mind: we are not doing this for ourselves alone. Our mission as a people is to be a shining example of unity for the rest of the world. And the sooner we do so, the better. Hillel and Rabbi Akiva clarify that the path we must follow is the road of positive connection. If we adhere to their wisdom, we are guaranteed to become one lovingly connected people and achieve true world peace.