This is my Pirkei Avot Playlist Project. For this project, I was tasked to choose 5 Pirkei Avot verses, summarize them and find songs which related to the verses.

Verse 2:3

“Be careful with the government, for they befriend a person only for their own needs. They appear to be friends when it is beneficial to them, but they do not stand by a person at the time of his distress”(Avot 2:3).

This verse says to be careful with the government because they will befriend you but when you need their help they will turn a blind eye. A lesson from this is that your friend or colleague can pretend to be your friend but only use you for work and then won’t help you if you need. The song Backstabber by Kesha fits this because her song is about one time when a girl pretended to be her friend and then when she needed her she tried to bring her down.

This verse is about that girl:

“That you have got a set of loose lips, twisting stories, all because you’re jealous. Now I know exactly what you’re all about (what you’re all about). This is what you’re all about. Girl, you’re such a backstabber (stabber)” (Kesha). The girl Kesha sings about can connect to the government in the Pirkei Avot verse because they both pretended to help and then betrayed the person.

Verse 2:6

“He also saw a skull floating upon the water. Said he to it: Because you drowned others, you were drowned; and those who drowned you, will themselves be drowned” (Avot 2:6). 

 

The major lesson we can learn from this verse is karma. Karma means if you do something good/bad it will come back to you. I chose the song Karma by Alicia Keys. The song is about Alicia’s boyfriend who didn’t care about her but after their breakup, he kept begging for her to come back. In this quote, she summarizes it.

The quote: 

“What goes around comes around. What goes up must come down. Now who’s crying, desiring to come back to me. I sacrifice the things I want just to do things for you, but when it’s time to do for me, you never come through”(Keys). 

The song connects to the verse because the verse says if others do something bad to you something bad will happen to them. This happened to Kesha’s boyfriend because he didn’t care about her and then she broke up with him which he was very damaged by.

Verse 2:10

“[Rabbi Yochanan] said to them: Go and see which is the best trait for a person to acquire. Said Rabbi Eliezer: A good eye. Said Rabbi Joshua: A good friend. Said Rabbi Yossei: A good neighbour. Said Rabbi Shimon: To see what is born [out of one’s actions]. Said Rabbi Elazar: A good heart. Said He to them: I prefer the words of Elazar the son of Arach to yours, for his words include all of yours”(Avot 2:10).

 In this verse, Rabbi Yochanan asked four rabbis to tell him what the best trait to get is. They gave many answers but what I believe was the most important was what Rabbi Joshua said. He said the best thing someone can acquire is a good friend. The lesson of his verse is that you always need a friend by your side because you can’t do everything by yourself. The song I’ll Be There For You encaptures this message.

Verse:

“You’re still in bed at ten. And work began at eight. You’ve burned your breakfast. So far, things are going great. Your mother warned you there’d be days like these. But she didn’t tell you when the world has brought. You down to your knees that. I’ll be there for you (When the rain starts to pour). I’ll be there for you (Like I’ve been there before). I’ll be there for you (‘Cause you’re there for me too)” (The Rembrandts). 

This quote in the song says that even when you’re having a very bad day a friend can make it all better. And no matter what happens a friend will always be there for you, hence the name of the song. The verse says that the most important thing to have is a good friend, and the song says that friends are essential because they will always be by your side. 

Mishna 2:11 Comic Strip

“He would praise all of them for their unique qualities”(Avot 2:11)

 

This verse says you should praise everybody for their unique qualities because no one is perfect. The song Let Me Be Myself by 3 Doors Down is simply about shining out and being yourself. This song connects very well to the verse because the verse is about praising others for being imperfect, and the song is about believing in yourself about your unique qualities.

“Tell me please. Would you one time just let me be myself. So I can shine. With my own light. Let me be myself” (3 Doors Down).

“I’ll never find my heart, behind someone else. I’ll never see the light of day, living in this cell. It’s time to make my way into the world I knew, and then take back all of these times, that I gave in to you” (3 Doors Down).

These verses talk about the importance of being yourself, and that you can’t shine through if you never try to be yourself or hide under a fake personality.

Verse 2:12

Rabbi Yossei would say: The property of your fellow should be as precious to you as your own. Perfect yourself for the study of Torah, for it is not an inheritance to you. And all your deeds should be for the sake of Heaven.

This verse says that you should treat others’ property with as much care as your own. The lesson from this verse is to respect others. This song is about a relationship where you treat each other with respect and if you treat each other evenly and with respect the relationship will be very good. Which is represented by this verse:

“Love you like a brother. Treat you like a friend. Respect you like a lover.”(Miguel).