diff --git "a/json/Chasidut/Breslov/Likutei Tefilot/English/merged.json" "b/json/Chasidut/Breslov/Likutei Tefilot/English/merged.json" new file mode 100644--- /dev/null +++ "b/json/Chasidut/Breslov/Likutei Tefilot/English/merged.json" @@ -0,0 +1,8943 @@ +{ + "title": "Likutei Tefilot", + "language": "en", + "versionTitle": "merged", + "versionSource": "https://www.sefaria.org/Likutei_Tefilot", + "text": { + "Introduction": [ + "Our Rabbi, may his memory be a blessing, cautioned us many times, in several wordings to make prayers from the teachings. He would say: That one should make from this great delight above. He would say: That still, the only delights like these that would go up before Hashem Yitbarach were not delights made from prayers (in general)) rather that are made from the teachings. Further, he would say this many times with many people.", + "Truly, he did not clarify the mater well regarding his holy intention with this, but from his general words we understand that the essence of his intention was simple: that we should try hard to delve into the holy, awesome teachings that he revealed to us to understand and to become wise through the intent of this practical teaching. (For this is the essence, that it's not about understanding, rather the essence is doing, as clarified to us many times, that the whole essence of the intent of our holy and awesome teachers, z'l in all the instructions that are revealed, was that they are only for the sake of action, that we should try hard and be strong and courageous in all strength to fulfill all that was said in each teaching.) and we considered our ways, how far we were from these recalled words in each teachings, and we prayed and begged to Hashem, in a multiplicity of insistent pleading, and requests, and supplications that God would have mercy on us and remember us and bring us close in God's great mercy, the we merit to uphold all that was said in that teaching, and we poured out our words before Hashem Yitbarach on every matter that was said there, and we should merit to uphold and arrive to them in wholeness" + ], + "Volume I": [ + [ + "May it be Your will, Lord our God and God of our ancestors. That You should be our help, and cause us to merit by Your great compassion and lovingkindness, to learn, teach, and occupy (ourselves) with Your Holy Torah, always for it's own sake, to speak of it day and night. With merit and strength of learning the Holy Torah, cause us to merit with Your Great Compassion to overpower, break, and expel the evil inclination from within us, and cause us to merit to expel and annul the spirit of triviality and all kinds of insanity that clings to us by way of our evil deeds. All this will be merited to expel and annul through study and occupation fo the Holy Torah that is all Your Holy Names. That there should be no strength for the trivial spirit and insanity to confuse our minds at all, only that we should to expel it and to remove it from us and from our borders. ", + "Please Lord, You know the many distracting thoughts that confuse and distract us from serving You in truth, at every moment and hour. They all come by way of the spirit of triviality and insanity that clings to us by way of our evil deeds, but way of our sins and transgressions, and many missteps, until they confuse our minds and greatly spoil our wisdom endlessly. Our Parent in Heaven, Good to all and His Kindness is on all His creations, give us mercy so we are not lost, cause us to merit by Your great compassion to overpower, expel, and annul the trivial spirit and insanity from us by way of occupation with the Holy Torah. ", + "Please, HaShem: You know the many thoughts that trouble me every single moment of the day and distract me from serving You properly. They are all caused by the foolish spirit that has taken hold of me because of the wrong I've done and all my sins and transgressions. My mind is in turmoil, and my good sense and intelligence have been severely impaired.", + "Father in Heaven: You are good to all and merciful to all Your creatures. Forgive me and save me from destruction. Loving God: Give me the strength to conquer my own foolishness and drive it out of myself by studying and practicing Your holy Torah.", + "Be kind to me and help me not to fall prey to the irrational appeals of my evil inclination. It tries to influence me and prevent me from serving You properly by dressing up its promptings as “mitzvot,” as if trying to persuade me to do something right and proper. The truth is that these “mitzvot” which it dresses itself in are a hidden trap, as You alone know. Please, HaShem, have compassion on my poor soul and save me from the promptings of the evil inclination. Let it have no power to deceive me with these distractions.", + "I am throwing my whole burden upon You, HaShem, my God and God of my fathers. I am relying on You alone to lead me lovingly on the straight, true path at all times and in everything I do. Let my every movement be in complete accordance with Your will, and don't let me turn aside from what You want either right or left.", + "You know that we are flesh and blood — it is impossible for us to always know exactly what You want. I appeal to You to show me Your love and help me. Do not let the evil inclination have any power to unsettle and distract my mind with any kind of foolishness and irrationality whatsoever. Let me rely on You alone. Show me Your great love, and lead me on the path of truth at all times. Let all my actions, activities and behavior, and those of my children, my descendants and all who depend on me, be in full accord with Your good will at all times, from now on and for ever.", + "Loving God: Help me to be able to strengthen the power of holiness so as to overcome the power of evil. Help me to strengthen my good inclination against the evil urge.", + "Grant me holy wisdom and intelligence. Let me always see all things in the light of the holy wisdom they contain, and so attach myself to You through everything in the world. Let me understand the constant messages and signals You send me to come closer to You.", + "O God: You are full of favor, tender mercy, kindness and goodness at all times. May it be Your will to have pity on me and shine upon me with grace and kindness. Grant me favor in Your eyes and in the eyes of all who see me. Send me words of grace and endearment that will enter into Your heart. Accept my prayers and requests at all times, and fulfil Your promise to “pour out on the house of David and those who dwell in Jerusalem a spirit of grace and endearment.”", + "Let the words with which we address You be words of grace and endearment, and give them room to enter into Your heart, and let our words arouse favor and pleasure before the throne of Your glory.", + "Master of the World, see our poverty, our lowliness and shame. The grace and prestige of Your holy people Israel have fallen in this bitter exile. The Jewish People are despised and lowly in the eyes of the nations of the world and the wicked. All the grace and importance have fallen to them.", + "Take pity on Your great and holy glory, and exalt, raise up and magnify the grace and prestige of Israel, materially and spiritually. Bring down the idol-worshippers, the unholy and the wicked. Let them have no grace and status whatsoever either above or below. Exalt Your people Israel and hear and receive our prayers and cries at all times.", + "See our toil and look at our plight, and fulfil what is written: “For He has not despised or spurned the suffering of the poor and He has not hidden His face from him. When he cries to Him, He hears.” Show us favor and answer us and hear our prayer. For You hear the prayers of every single one of Your people Israel in love. Blessed are You who hears prayer." + ], + [ + "May it be will Your Will Lord Our God and God of our ancestors, who hears prayer of His People Israel in compassion, (the prayers) they awaken Your compassion and Your kindness upon us for Your sake, and prepares our hearts to pray before You with a complete heart and soul, and that our prayers should be regular in our mouths always, and there should not be any impediment, obstruction, or confusion in our prayers. Master of the Universe, \"O shepherd of Israel who leads Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned on the cherubim, (Cause to) Appear to us in Your great compassion Your holy light that draws on us holiness and purity, in order that we can compel, subdue, and break our evil inclination, and we should merit in Your abundant compassion and great kindness, that our children and us will guard the holy covenant, and help us always, and save us in Your all-encompassing compassion and great kindness from all types of damages of the covenant <italic> Chas V'Shalom, whether in thought, speech or deed, whether by mistake or intention, whether compelled by force or through desire, whether through the sense of sight, hearing, or all other senses. Through all of these let us be holy and pure in the holiness of the covenant without any damage or passing thought. For in Your great compassion You chose us from all nations, and elevate us from all languages, and separated us from all their impurities and from their abhorrences, as You wrote to us in Your Torah, \"I have set you apart from other peoples to be Mine.\" (Lev. 20:26) And You call us Tzaddikim as is written: \"And Your nation are all Tzaddikim\" (Isaiah 60:21)", + "Please, in Your great compassion, do not make Your Holy Torah an empty document, chas v'shalom, for Your words are true and everlasting. Therefore, make for us in Your compassion, and help us, that we will truly be amongst Tzadikim in order that we merit to be of those who guard the covenant. In order that just by that alone it will be fitting for us to be called by the name \"Tzaddkim\" just as you made known to us through the teaching of Your holy sages, that only someone who guards the covenant is called \"Tzaddik\". Therefore, just as You helped Yosef, your Tzaddik, in the hour that he came to be tested, and You saved him and gave him strength to overcome his inclination, so too, arouse from Your body and Your compassion on us, and cause us to merit with merit, and the strength of Yosef the Tzaddik, and give us wisdom, experience, discernment, knowledge, strength, and power of holiness, so that we can be saved from all types of damages to the covenant and we can overcome our inclination. May we merit that our thoughts be connected and attached to Your holiness always without a moment of interruption. So that we will have strength, by virtue of this (through purifying ourselves and guarding the covenant), to appropriately order our prayers before You without any inhibitions, delays or confusion. In the way that You should accept our prayer before You, and arouse Your compassion upon us, and return Your face to us. And quicken us to our redemption and bring to us our righteous Moshiach, do it for Your sake and not ours. Help us that our prayers will be ordered as is proper, and give to us wisdom and knowledge that we will be able to use judgement to measure our words. And we will not stumble in the words of our mouths, and our prayers will not be tilted to the right or left from the straight and true path. And cause us to merit in Your great mercy to give Tzedaka to appropriately poor people. And cause us to have a lot of money and poor people to merit it (money). \"Mighty king who loves justice, it was You who established equity, You who worked righteous judgment, in Jacob.\" (Psalms 99:4) Because everything comes from You and from Your hand we have given to You. Maker of Tzedakah, with everyone You deal justly/righteously, You cause us to merit in Your mercy to included among the doers of Tzedakah. And remove the wickedness from our hearts that we will merit to give Tzedakah joyously with kind faces, and our hearts will have no bad feelings in giving it. Surely open our hands not only to give to a poor or desolate person what is sufficient for their lacking. Let my heart go out to the hungry and clothe the naked. ", + "You who worked righteous judgment in Jacob", + "it was You who established equity,", + "You who worked righteous judgment in Jacob. ", + "You helped Yoseph the Tzaddik when he was tested: You saved him and gave him the strength to overcome his evil inclination. In the same way, arouse Your compassion for me. Through the merit and strength of Yoseph, give me intelligence, wisdom, understanding and knowledge, holy strength and power, so that I will be able to avoid all impurity in my life and conquer my impulses and inclinations. Let my thoughts be bound and attached to Your holiness at all times, without a single moment's interruption.", + "Through purifying myself and observing the Covenant, enable me to offer You my prayers in the proper manner, without inhibitions, restraints and confusion. Accept my prayers and arouse Your love for me. Turn to us again and quickly redeem us and send our righteous Mashiach. Do it for Your sake and not for ours. Help me to order my prayers properly. Grant me intelligence and understanding, and let me use judgement to measure my words, so as not to stumble in what I say, or stray left or right from the straight, true path when I pray.", + "Compassionate God: Help me give charity to genuinely needy people. Send me plenty of money, and worthy people to give charity to. “Mighty is the King who loves justice. You founded fairness. You have done justice and righteousness in Yaakov.” “For everything is from You — from Your hand have we given to You.”", + "God: You deal charitably with everyone. Be charitable to me and let me be numbered among those who give charity. Remove the evil from my heart, and let me give charity joyously and with a kindly expression. Let me have no bad feelings when I hand my gifts to those in need. Let me open my hands and give them sufficient for all their needs. Let my heart go out to the hungry, and let me clothe those who are naked.", + "In the merit of my charity, bless me, HaShem, and help me express myself to You perfectly in my prayers. Let my prayers be pure and acceptable. Let me have no outside thoughts when I pray, so that no barrier will intervene between my prayers and You.", + "Please, loving and gracious King, make it possible for me to engage in the study of the holy Torah for many hours each day. Let me study the Torah for its own sake. Let my only motive in studying be to keep, observe and fulfil the entire Torah in love.", + "The letters of the Torah which come out of my mouth as I study are “sparks of souls”. May they all enter into and be merged and clothed in the holy words of my prayers and develop and be renewed there. Let the light of my prayers then shine forth in full radiance, as You have taught us through Your holy sages of blessed memory.", + "Help me to make an effort with my prayers at all times. Let me never despair of calling out to You and praying. Bring me to have perfect faith in the power of prayer. Our exile has lasted so long. Your people, the House of Israel, cry out to You every day and appeal to You to shine Your face upon us, build our Holy Temple and redeem us eternally. Despite all this, we have still not been delivered. Even so, let us come to believe and know with firm and perfect faith that no prayer is ever lost or in vain, God forbid.", + "On the contrary, the Tzaddikim in every generation most certainly lift up our every prayer and put each one in its proper place, building out of them, as it were, the structure of the Shekhinah. Eventually the entire structure will be completed, and then the Mashiach will come and bring the work to perfection and raise the Shekhinah completely.", + "I would like to bind all my prayers to all the Tzaddikim in our generation. And You, in Your abundant mercy, arouse the hearts of the true Tzaddikim of this generation, and give them the power to take my prayers and elevate them to You.", + "My prayers may be far from perfect. There may be much about them that is not right. There may not even be a single word or letter that is pure and clean. My words are very muddled and what I say is full of mistakes. I do not speak with the proper concentration and awareness, and my words are far from where my thoughts are.", + "Even so, Your love and kindness are overwhelming: give Your true Tzaddikim the power to lift up and elevate all my prayers and cleanse and purify them from all blemishes and impurities. Let my prayers rise up and find favor before You, and let the Tzaddikim use them to build the structure of the Shekhinah, to prepare Her, support Her, and lift Her out of her exile. Raise up the fallen Tabernacle of David through our prayers, and return Your Divine Presence — the Shekhinah — to Zion, and shine Your face upon us.", + "“Turn to me and show me favor, for I do not put my trust in my bow, and my sword will not save me.” Only in Your Name do we put our trust. “For God alone do we have praise all day, and we give thanks to Your Name for ever!”", + "Arouse our righteous Mashiach to receive our prayers and lift them up before You. Let my prayers and those of all Your people Israel be a double-edged sword in his hand to protect and shield us, to fight those who fight against us and to champion our cause. “He takes pity on the poor and needy and saves the souls of the needy.” “Take hold of shield and armor and stand up to help me. Gird your sword on your thigh, mighty warrior, your majesty and your splendor.”", + "Do it for Your sake and not for ours — for even our few good deeds, our charity and our prayers are all from You. “For everything is from You, and from Your hand we have given to You.” Thus it is written, “Who came before Me that I should pay them?” “Not to us, HaShem, not to us, but to Your Name give glory for Your kindness and Your truth.” “In Your abundant kindness, give me life that I may guard the testimony of Your mouth.” Fulfil for us the verse: “For My sake, for My sake I will do it, for how could I let My Name be dishonored: I will not give My glory to another.” “He magnifies the salvation of His king and does loving kindness to His annointed — to David and his descendants for ever.” Amen. Selah." + ], + [ + "Torah study at night helps refine and purify the voice, enabling us to raise up the Shekhinah with holy songs and melodies so as to reveal the kingship of God.
HaShem our God and God of our fathers, Who chooses David His servant and his descendants after him, and who delights in songs of praise: In Your great love and kindness, remember Your powerful Presence, the Shekhinah, which has wandered from Her place like a bird wandering from its nest. “Rise up, take pity on Zion, for it is time to favor her, for the moment has come.” Lift up and raise the Assembly of Israel from where we have fallen and, in Your abundant love, help us and enable us to raise our voices in song. Give me the power to praise You joyously with songs and hymns. Let me sing melodies all my days, in a sweet, pleasant voice, the way You love.", + "And help me to study Your holy Torah for its own sake constantly, day and night. When You gave Your holy Torah to Your servant Moses, You studied the Written Torah with him by day and the Oral Torah by night. So, too, help me to study and think about Your holy Torah constantly, and help me to study the Written Torah and the Oral Torah day and night.", + "Master of the World, lovingly help me and give me the strength to win the battle against sleep. Let me banish sleep from my eyes in order to study Torah each night and learn the sixty tractates of the Mishnah together with the Holy Gemara — to learn, teach, observe, do and fulfil and practice them for their own sake. “Arise, exult in the night at the start of the watches!” Through this, let a thread of loving kindness be drawn down upon me. “By day HaShem will command His loving kindness to be revealed, and in the night His song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.”", + "And in this way, help me and protect me from the bad effects caused by hearing degenerate music — the songs and melodies of fallen souls, “birds caught in the snare.” Don't let them harm me or distract me from my spiritual devotions. Give me the power to elevate and refine them, to lift them up and restore them to the realm of the holy, and raise up the fallen Tabernacle of David.", + "In Your abundant love, arouse the Lily of Sharon — the Shekhinah — to sing in a voice of pleasantness, joy and exultation. And You alone, HaShem, speedily rule over all Your works, so as to fulfil the verse: “Make music for God, make music, make music for our King, make music. For God is King over all the earth. Make music, enlightened one!”", + "Remember Your people Israel, who are scattered among the nations, and Your Holy Temple, which is destroyed and uninhabited. “The bird too has found a house, and the sparrow has found a nest for herself to put her fledglings — on Your altar, HaShem of Legions, my King and my God.” Restore the priests to their service, and the Levites to their platform and their songs and hymns, and restore Israel to their dwelling place.", + "Grant me holy wisdom and enlightenment so that I will be able to draw the yoke of Your kingship upon myself constantly and reveal Your kingship and sovereignty to the world. Speedily establish the throne of David. Quickly, easily and speedily bring us Mashiach the son of David, the sweet singer of Israel.", + "“Then our mouths will be filled with laughter and our tongues with joy.” We will then sing, praise and rejoice before You all our days, and the verse will be fulfilled: “HaShem will come to save us, and we will sing our songs all the days of our lives for the House of HaShem.” Speedily in our days. Amen." + ], + [ + "The sins we commit become “inscribed on our bones” — etched into the fabric of our personalities and our very souls. Yet confession of one's sins before a true Sage and Tzaddik has the power to remove all trace of them and bring complete atonement and spiritual healing.
Seeing the face of the Tzaddik (and his inner “face” — i.e. his Torah teachings) has the power to lift a person out of depression and gross physical desires. Giving charity to the Tzaddik (and to institutions devoted to spreading his teachings) enables one to avoid the sin of malicious slander and to break one's pride. Then, when one confesses before the Tzaddik, he is able to give one guidance as to one's path in life. One can then attain complete bittul — surrender and self-transcendence, especially in prayer, and become merged with the Infinite. It is then possible for one to understand that everything that happens is for one's good, and one can have a taste of the World to Come even in this life.
But today the true Tzaddikim are concealed. How can we find them and draw close to them?
Master of the Universe: What great kindness You have shown us. With a mighty hand You took us out of Egypt. You separated us from the Fifty Gates of Impurity and brought us to the Fifty Gates of Holiness, and You lovingly gave us Your holy Torah through Moshe, Your faithful prophet. “If our mouths were filled with song like the sea, our tongues with joy like its multitudes of waves, and our lips with praise like the expanses of the heavens...” we could still not thank You and praise You enough for all the goodness You have shown us. You have given us Your holy, perfect Torah. You have chosen us from all the nations. You have sanctified us with Your mitzvot, which are more precious than the purest gold. Time and time again You have cautioned us not to transgress Your commandments — all so that we and our children may enjoy Your goodness for ever.", + "And now, after all this great and awesome goodness and kindness, what can I say? I am the lowliest of Your creatures, yet You show pity to all, and You have put me in a privileged position by creating me a Jew. By making me a member of the Jewish People, the Holy Nation, You have put Your Name upon me, because Your Name is bound up with ours.", + "After all this, what can I say to You, exalted God? How can I speak before You, lowly servant that I am? How can I open my mouth and stand before You, after having failed to take proper care to do what is in my own best interests? With my own hands I have rejected Your great goodness and mercy, and I have failed to observe Your precious, beloved mitzvot, which are the greatest of all goodness and kindness.", + "God of Israel, how I have sinned against You! I have sinned, I have transgressed and rebelled, and I have done what is evil in Your eyes... [One should specify one's sins in detail.] HaShem, You are the righteous one, and I am ashamed and embarrassed. What can I say? How can I justify myself? I have acted wrongfully, and I myself have deprived myself of the good I could have had. I have stained my own holiness.", + "The damage I have done is so immense. “My sin is too great to bear.” My sins are too many even to count. With all my transgressions, I am like a drunkard stupefied with wine. My sins have gone over my head, like a burden that is too heavy for me to bear. The very thought of them fills me with panic and confusion and sets all my bones trembling. “There is no peace in my bones because of my sins.” They are inscribed on my bones, from the soles of my feet to the top of my head. Not a single bone is sound because of all my sins and transgressions. Every one of my bones has been splintered and shattered because of the many sins that are inscribed on them.", + "How bitter it is: more bitter than death, more bitter than anything in the world. And the truth is that I have not yet begun to feel even the minutest fraction of the pain of even one of my sins. I have sinned so much that my heart has become closed, and my mind is so confused that I have lost all awareness of my true self and essence.", + "If I but knew and felt the smallest part of the pain of even one of my innumerable sins, and the damage I have done to the root of my nefesh, my ru'ach, and my neshamah, and in the highest worlds... I have rebelled against the Master of All, whom the heavens and the heavens of the heavens cannot contain, in awe of whose Name all the mighty angels, the Seraphim, the Ophanim and the holy Chayot and the supernal worlds upon worlds to eternity all quake and tremble. All of them do His will with awe, fear and love.", + "And I, the lowest, most insignificant creature of all, a putrid drop, a clod of earth and fleeting dust, have rebelled against the God of the Universe, blessed be His Name for ever. This much I know and believe, that if I were to begin to feel the tiniest fraction of bitterness and pain at even one of my many sins and transgressions, the sound of my screams would be unbearable. I myself would be unable to bear my own screaming or the terrible pain and bitterness of my heart for even a single moment. The entire world would be unable to bear the sound of my cries.", + "My poor soul! I cringe at the sound. I shudder at the sight. I have been so very, very foolish. My wrong-doing and my many sins have cast a blot on Your holy, perfect Torah. I have taken the pure, clear messages of the holy letters of the Torah — the words of the Living God — and twisted and degraded them in the most unspeakable ways. My distortions are inscribed on my very bones. My actions have given power and dominance to idolaters, and my sins have lengthened the exile. After all this, do I have any right to cry out to the King?", + "Even so, my hope in HaShem is still not lost, because He loves mercy. You want the wicked to repent, not that they should die. In Your great love, You have taught us to confess all our sins and transgressions before You. Through Your holy sages, now at rest, You have taught us to go before the true Sage and Tzaddik and openly confess in his presence in order that all our sins should be atoned.", + "Thus it is written: “The anger of the King [is expressed through] emissaries of death, but the wise man will atone.” For “He overlooks transgression for the sake of the remnant...” — “...for the sake of the one who makes himself like remnants [because of his humility].” This refers to the true Tzaddik and Sage of the generation, who is “more humble than any man on the face of the earth.”", + "Through his humility, the Tzaddik has the power to lift up our words of confession before You and bring atonement for all our sins, and remove the evil that has become inscribed on our bones as a result of our sins. Our twisting of the teachings of the Torah can then be rectified, so that the pure, clear message of the letters will shine forth as at first — all through our confession before the Sage. Then our shattered bones will be healed and put back in their proper place, and through this we will become merged in You for ever.", + "Please, loving God, who works out ways that none should be rejected, “remember Your love and mercy, HaShem, for they are eternal.” The hand of the enemy is high, and we have no one to lead and support us. What should we do now, HaShem our God? We have been left as orphans without a father: we have no-one to stand up for us. We have lost our saints. The true Tzaddikim and Sages of the generation, who had the power I mentioned and more than that as well, have left this world owing to our many sins. And we are here alone, empty and bereft of all good. We are like a lone mast on the top of a mountain and a flag on top of a hill.", + "Certainly there is no orphaned generation. There must be true Tzaddikim even in this generation. But they are concealed from our eyes. We do not know who they are and we cannot get near to them. HaShem, where should we turn to find medicine for our wounds? Where is the doctor of souls who can bind up and heal our wounds and relieve us of our desperate pain?", + "We have been robbed! Every heart is melted, everyone's knees are trembling! The sun has gone down in the middle of the afternoon. The delight of our eyes has been taken from us — the one who encouraged us and inspired us with life and vigor, the pride of our heads, our glory and strength, our nefesh, our ru'ach, our neshamah, our holiness and purity — the true Tzaddikim, the highest saints, who have left us because of our sins. They have gone to their rest and they have left us to our sighs. HaShem, see how low Your people have fallen!", + "But You, God of truth, scrutinize all hearts. You know our innermost feelings. You know the strength of my desire and yearning, and that of all Your people, the House of Israel, to find healing for our wounds. All who feel the pain in their own hearts are yearning, longing and hoping to draw close to the true Tzaddik, in order that he should bring them back from their sins, rectify their transgressions, and show us the path to follow and what we should do.", + "And now, HaShem our God, where is Your earlier kindness? In every generation there were true Tzaddikim who led the Jewish People, taking them in their arms like a nurse takes up a little child. They taught them the path of God and brought them close to You. Then why have You abandoned us and smitten us with “a wound that is not written in the Torah” — “that is the death of the Tzaddikim”, which is harder to bear than even the destruction of the Holy Temple?", + "Why should God's Assembly be like a flock without a shepherd? We are orphans of orphans, babes who never saw the light. We are sullied with every kind of madness, we are full of sins and transgressions. What should we do? Where should we go in search of a remedy? How can we escape our own folly, the pain in our hearts and the corruption of our deeds?", + "Please, HaShem, pardon us and save us from destruction. Come after Your scattered flock, for there is no-one to gather us together. You Yourself draw us close in Your abundant love and mercy. I am fully aware that after the terrible things I have done I am not worthy of coming close to You. My actions have been despicable and my thoughts appalling. I have done the same bad things time after time. I have repeatedly promised You that I would not go back to my wrong-doing or make You angry ever again, but I have not been able to keep my promises for even a short time. I've always been quick to go back to my bad ways. This has happened time and time again. How can I dare come before You and try to placate You?", + "But we know, HaShem, that Your thoughts are way above our thoughts, and the power and depth of Your love and mercy are far beyond the grasp of our minds. It is impossible to apprehend the awesome heights of Your love and mercy. “The mercies of HaShem will never be exhausted, nor will His love ever come to an end.” As long as there is life there is hope. “You return man to the dust” — “Up until the moment when life itself is crushed into dust, sinners are received.” I have trust in Your great love, and I will rely on Your mercy. I know that You will not abandon me.", + "You alone know the true extent of the damage I have done. It is impossible for me to begin to understand even the tiniest fraction of the damage caused by my sins. I am still not fully aware of who it is that I have sinned and rebelled against, because my sins have caused Your exaltedness to be concealed from me. You alone know what I have done and the damage I have caused — what, how much and against whom. For no-one knows anything of You except for You alone, blessed be Your Name for ever.", + "In spite of all this, the power of Your love and mercy will overcome everything. You know our nature and our inclinations, and Your desire is to show mercy. You do not want the death of the sinner but that he should turn from his ways and live. You wait for him until the day of his death, and if he repents, You receive him immediately.", + "I have therefore come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, with a crushed heart and humble spirit, to beg You to take pity on me and upon all of Your people, the House of Israel. Send us true Tzaddikim who will have the power to heal us and bring us to complete Teshuvah, to restore our souls and bring atonement for our sins.", + "In Your kindness and mercy, grant me that I should draw close to true Tzaddikim and see the radiant light of their faces, so as to save my soul from the “thorns” and “pits” of evil desires, depression, laziness and their offshoots. By seeing the radiant faces of true Tzaddikim and drawing close to them, my soul will be saved from these bad traits. With Your loving help I will be able to overcome and remove all material lust from myself.", + "I will have no desire for anything in the world besides You, and all my longing, yearning, will and desire will be focussed only on You and Your service. I will serve You industriously and energetically, and I will be happy and positive at all times. I will rid myself of laziness and depression for ever. I will rejoice in You, and “serve HaShem with joy and good-heartedness at the abundance of everything” and always be happy.", + "Grant also that I should be able to give charity to true Tzaddikim, so as to be saved from “wild beasts” and “robbers” — malicious slander, worthless pursuits, pride and their offshoots. HaShem, loving God: when I speak, help me to talk in such a way that everything I say will only be for the sake of Your Name and Your service. Let me never engage in idle talk. Let all my words be words of Torah, service of God and awe of Heaven.", + "In particular, save me and all Your people, the House of Israel, from the sin of malicious slander and talebearing, which is serious in the extreme. Let me never say a single bad word about any Jew in the entire world. “My God, guard my tongue from evil and my lips from speaking slyly.” Save me from slander and talebearing, and anything which has even the faintest odor of them, from now on and for ever.", + "Grant that I should be able to attain true humility, and let my soul be like dust to all. Let me know my own lowliness. Save me from anger. Let me never get angry about anything. Save me from impatience. Erase all anger and irritability from my heart. Let me make Your divine qualities the model for all my behavior, and let me be well-disposed to all. “To those that curse me, let my soul be silent.” Save me from poverty and need, and send me my livelihood in abundance even before I need it, through honest, honorable and easy means. Grant all my needs from Your ever-open, ample hand, so that I can genuinely do Your will all the days of my life from now and for ever.", + "Lovingly grant that I should be able to come before the true Tzaddik and Sage of the generation and make a full confession of all my sins and transgressions, from my earliest days until today, in order that he should bring atonement for me through his wisdom and humility, and teach me the right path to follow and how I should conduct myself. With his help, let me become merged with the Infinite, and let me attain true surrender and self-transcendence, until I become completely free of materialistic thoughts and desires, so as to return and rise to the place from which my soul was hewn out.", + "Open up Your great light to me — the light that has no end — and let me be merged in it to the full extent possible in this life. Especially during my prayers, help me to be truly attached and surrendered to You to the point that all independent ego will be erased and I will be completely separated from materialistic thoughts and desires.", + "When HaShem wants to help, no obstacle can stand in His way. I may be coarsely materialistic as a result of my deep exile amidst the lusts of the body and its evil traits. I am bound to my body like a chained, tormented prisoner. In spite of this, You are mighty and abundantly able to save. For You, nothing is impossible. I confidently wait, hope and expect that You will show me Your abundant love and grant me everything I have asked of You, so that I will be able to nullify all my bodily lusts and evil traits completely.", + "Let me come to transcend all material thoughts and desires, until I become genuinely merged in You all my days to the fullest extent possible in this life, until the day when You will finally take back my soul, and then You will lovingly bring me to be merged in You for ever. No sin or transgression will hold me back, because in Your abundant kindness and awesome mercy, You will forgive me for everything.", + "Help me to set aside all my own wishes in favor of Your will. Let me have no other desire in the world except that my will should always be Your will. Bring me to know that HaShem is God, and that divine mercy and justice both come from one Source. Let me understand that no matter what may happen to me, everything is for my good. Let me bless You for everything as “Good and Beneficent”, the way people will bless You in the future, as it is written: “I will praise Elokim [when God deals with me through His attribute of justice]; I will praise HaShem [when He deals with me through His attribute of mercy].”", + "Let us raise up and restore the fallen Kingship to its place, and let Your Kingship be revealed to all the world. Let the power of evil be shattered, and let the dominion of the idolators over us and all Your people Israel be broken and destroyed, and You, HaShem, will rule alone over all Your works.", + "Hashem, Master of the Universe: You know that I could attain all these levels with the help of true Tzaddikim. Therefore I appeal to You to reveal the true Tzaddikim of this generation. Show me who they are and help me to come close to them, so that with their help I can achieve everything I have asked of You.", + "If my many sins have created a barrier between myself and the true Tzaddikim, causing them to be hidden from me and making it impossible for me to discover who they are, may it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that You Yourself, in Your abundant love, should help me attain everything I have asked of You. Let my confession before You be accepted and accounted as if I had confessed before the true Sage and Tzaddik of the generation. Help me to nullify all my bad traits and desires and attain all the positive qualities and spiritual levels that I could have reached with the help of the true Tzaddikim. Grant me everything I have requested of You, and also the requests I have not mentioned.", + "Help me in all the different areas where I need help, HaShem, because You are my Father, and I have no-one to rely upon except for You, my Father in Heaven. You know how strongly I yearn to draw close to the true Tzaddik, but because of all my sins I do not know who he is or where. If only I knew and could find him, I would “skip over the mountains and jump over the hills” to come to him. “I would tell him the number of my steps” — I would tell him every detail of my life.", + "Loving God, see my misery and pain, see my misery and bitterness. “I look at myself and I'm like a lone bird on a roof” — because I have no-one to turn to for help. To You alone I lift my eyes. Please take pity on me. Forgive me and grant atonement for all my many sins and transgressions. “HaShem is the God of love and forgiveness, even though we have rebelled against Him. For the sake of Your Name, HaShem, forgive my sin, even though it is very great. For with You is forgiveness, that You may be feared.”", + "Help me and grant everything I have requested as a free gift and an act of charity and kindness. If I have stumbled in my words, You, HaShem, grant me atonement. Grant that even in this world I should have a taste of the World to Come and surrender myself to You, knowing that all that happens to me is for my own good. For HaShem is good to all. Grant me the privilege of revealing Your Kingship in the world — “In order that all the nations on earth should know that HaShem is God and there is none other. And HaShem will be King over all the earth. On that day HaShem will be one and His Name one. Let the words of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "“It is a great mitzvah to be happy always.” The only way to experience genuine simchah in our hearts is by first “smoothing out the crookedness of the heart” — cleansing ourselves of mundane fears and desires, so as to reach out to God sincerely and honestly. This is attained when we offer our prayers with such intensity that the very words resound in our hearts like thunder, inspiring us with heavenly awe. In order for the spiritual message of our prayers to penetrate our minds, we must free ourselves of skepticism, sinful thoughts, and anything else that detracts from our complete faith in God and in the true Tzaddikim.
In a cloud of glory You revealed Yourself to Your holy people when You spoke with them at Mount Sinai. “With claps of thunder and flashes of lightning You revealed Yourself, and at the sound of the shofar You appeared...” to teach Your people Torah and Mitzvot. Master of the Universe: Grant that I should hear the sounding of the shofar on Rosh HaShanah from shofar-blowers who are genuinely pure and God-fearing. Let the holy sound of the shofar penetrate my mind like thunder, until I am gripped with fear and awe of HaShem and His radiant glory, so that all the crookedness in my heart will be smoothed out and I will come to inner purity and holy joy, as it is written: “And to the pure of heart, joy.” “Happy is the people who know the shofar blast, HaShem, they will walk in the light of Your countenance. They will rejoice in Your Name all day long, and through Your righteousness they will be exalted.” HaShem, grant that I should experience the fulfilment of this verse in my own life.", + "Through hearing the shofar sounded on Rosh HaShanah by someone who is truly God-fearing, guard and protect me the whole year round from every kind of fear, and from all possible damage as a result of thunderstorms. “With claps of thunder and flashes of lightning You were revealed to them, and with the sound of the shofar You appeared to them.”", + "HaShem, our God and God of our fathers: Lovingly help me to fulfil Your mitzvot with great joy. Bring me to pray to You with all my strength. Let the various kinds of energy in all of my two hundred and forty-eight limbs, my three hundred and sixty-five sinews, my flesh, my bones, my veins and arteries, my fat, my blood, my brain, the nerves that branch out through my whole body, my five senses and all my other faculties enter into my prayers and be merged within them. Let me bring out the sounds and words of the prayers with great force. Let my voice come forth like thunder, and let the sound of my voice arouse my inner concentration, so that I will hear and understand the words I am saying in my heart. Let me pray with intense attention and devotion. And bring me to attain the highest level of heavenly fear: awe at Your exaltedness.", + "Protect me from all extraneous fears, so that I will not be afraid of anything or anyone in the world — not of powerful officials or important personages, nor of wild animals, violent robbers or anything else in the entire world. Let me have no extraneous fear whatever. Let me only fear You at all times, and help me experience supreme awe at Your exaltedness.", + "Loving God: Help me clear my mind and my thoughts of ideas and theories that are in conflict with the Torah, in order that I should not sully my intelligence and sensitivity with sinful thoughts and desires, or sour my mind with erroneous theories. Free me of all doubts and skepticism, and let my mind and my thoughts be pure, clear and holy.", + "Give me the strength to fight against the bad thoughts, doubts and sinful desires that come to confuse me. Let me keep them out of my mind. Let me fight them down and drive them away completely. Let them have no power to enter my consciousness at all, and let me sanctify my mind and my thoughts at all times.", + "Please, HaShem: You know the tremendous damage caused in the upper worlds by every single bad thought, and even more so by evil doubts that go against the very foundations of Torah faith, God forbid. Such doubts cause a flaw in all the worlds, and have the power to uproot a person from the Source of life, until it becomes extremely difficult for him to repent and rediscover the path of life. You alone know the full extent of the damage caused on the highest of levels by every evil thought and idea that comes into the mind.", + "You also know the tremendous power such thoughts have over our minds, and their ability to confuse us. We are under constant pressure to succumb to them. I have sinned in this many times. I have failed to protect myself against such thoughts or fight them, and I have caused tremendous damage to my own mind by the evil thoughts I have allowed to enter. My whole mind is full of alien thoughts. I have transgressed the prohibition against chametz — leaven, souring my mind with forbidden desires and skepticism, and allowing myself to fall prey to all kinds of meaningless distractions.", + "Not only have I not tried to fight against such thoughts. I have opened myself to them, making no effort at all to push them out. I have not followed the advice given in Your holy Torah to at least sit passively rather than wilfully entertain sinful thoughts: “sit and do nothing.” I have not listened to my teachers.", + "How many of my days have gone to waste because of confused and evil thoughts. “I am sinking in the depths of the mud with nothing to support me; I have come into the deepest water and the current is sweeping me away.” My mind is such a turmoil of evil thoughts and confusion that it is extremely hard for me to fight them even when I want to.", + "“HaShem, You know my folly, and my sin is not hidden from You.” I come before You prostrate, humbled, begging and supplicating like a poor man at the door, sighing and beaten down, asking, requesting and begging as a free gift and an act of mercy that You should show me Your wonderful love and kindness and take me out of my darkness into the light. Help me to sanctify my thoughts today and for ever.", + "Master of the Universe: Help me to receive the full holiness of the Pesach festival season. Throughout the eight days of Pesach, guard me from transgressing the prohibition against eating even the slightest amount of chametz. Help me to fulfil the mitzvah of eating matza on Pesach in great holiness, and let me thereby receive the light of the spiritual insight and inspiration that radiate then.", + "With the strength this inspiration will give me, let me keep my mind and my thoughts holy every day of the year and for all time. Let me close my mind to extraneous, idle thoughts, and certainly to evil or atheistic thoughts. Let them not enter my mind for even a brief moment. Let me not be drawn in by the persuasive arguments and temptations of my evil inclination, and let me avoid all debates with it.", + "Help me to keep firm against the evil inclination at all times, and to push down all improper and idle thoughts. Let me drive them out of my mind and keep them out until eventually they will disappear completely. Don't let them have even the slightest hold or influence on my mind or my thoughts. Let me be included among the true Tzaddikim who make battle with the unholy forces of the Sitra Achra, the “Other Side,” so that they should not come close to the Holy Sanctuary.", + "Master of the Universe: You know the shame and pain of the downcast. Remember the preciousness of my poor soul. Take pity on me in Your tender kindness. Help me, strengthen me and encourage me. Sanctify me with Your exalted holiness. Let Your holiness and purity be drawn down upon me, so that from now on I will be able to guard myself against all improper thoughts, against mental confusion, and especially against skepticism and sinful thoughts of any kind. Let my thoughts always be holy, clear and free of all impurity.", + "Lovingly help me to have faith in the true Tzaddikim. Let no doubts whatever enter my mind on account of the disputes between the true Tzaddikim. Let me have complete faith in all the true Tzaddikim, and let me have no questions either about them or on account of the disputes between them.", + "Master of the Universe: It is true that I have wasted the drops of my mind and soul, and it is my own deficiencies that make it hard for me to draw close to the true Tzaddikim and develop genuine faith in them. This is the reason for the doubts I have about them. But still, HaShem, please do not treat me according to my sins. Don't judge me harshly, in spite of all the wrong I have done. For Your sake, if not for mine, fulfil my request and let no questions and doubts about the true Tzaddikim or their disputes enter my heart. Grant that I should have genuine, perfect faith in them at all times.", + "Lovingly and tenderly help me come back to You sincerely and walk the path of life. Let me fix everything I have damaged. Have compassion on me and bring me back from death to life, from chametz to matza, from bad fear to good fear, from a spoiled voice and a spoiled intellect to a good voice and a good mind. “Give me the wisdom to know the path of life and let me be satisfied with the joy of seeing Your face, so as to enjoy the pleasantness of Your merciful right hand for ever.” “For with You is the source of life. In Your light we will see light.”", + "Our Father in Heaven: It is from You that all the living have their share of life. Living God, our portion and our rock: Save us from death. Redeem us from destruction. Keep me and all Your people, the House of Israel, from all kinds of evil thoughts and doubts. They are called “the side of death.” In Your abundant love and kindness, grant me life. Let me live a life that is truly good, long, and eternal. Help me sanctify my mind, “the wellspring of living waters.”", + "Bring me to love and cherish Your great Name with a true love that will rise up to You directly. Unify my heart to love and fear Your Name. Save me from fallen fears, so that I will have no fear of anything in the world besides You. Let Your fear be on my face, so that I will never sin.", + "Help me pray to You with all my strength. Let me put all my energy into the words of the prayers and bring forth the sounds and words with great force. Let my voice penetrate my mind and resound in my heart like thunder, inspiring my heart to Your service. Let the thunder of my voice and words bring me to genuine fear of Heaven, so that my words will be a resounding influence drawing myself and others to serve and fear You.", + "Let the voice of our prayers rise and find favor before You, like the seven voices with which King David cried out over the water: “The voice of HaShem is upon the waters, the God of glory thunders, HaShem is upon vast waters! The voice of HaShem is in power...” Let the crookedness of my heart be smoothed out completely. “The stubbornness of my heart will depart; I will not know evil.” Bring me to be truly pure-hearted, and let me always face God honestly.", + "May it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, to lovingly help me attain great joy, true joy, in serving You, as it is written: “Serve HaShem with happiness...” “...and rejoice with trembling.” Bring me to fulfil all the mitzvot with a happiness and joy that come from the mitzvah itself. While engaged in each mitzvah, let me rejoice over the fact that You have lovingly given me the privilege of performing this mitzvah.", + "Let all my joy be from the mitzvah alone and not from the thought of the reward I will receive in the World to Come, not to speak of any honor or other extraneous benefits I anticipate from other people, or other mundane advantages of any kind. Let my entire joy be from the mitzvah itself. Let my World to Come be in the actual performance of the mitzvah, so that I will have no wish for any reward for the mitzvah in the Next World. Let my reward be that You will grant me another mitzvah, as taught by our Rabbis: “The reward for a mitzvah is a mitzvah.”", + "Through Your holy mitzvot, which are Your unity, let me become fully merged with You, and fulfil through me the words of the Psalms: “HaShem will rejoice in His works” and “Israel will rejoice in their Maker.” Take joy in us through granting us the opportunity to carry out actions that are good in Your eyes, and let our joy be in You.", + "By lovingly helping us to perform our mitzvot with joy, give us the power to bring vitality and Godly blessing into our two hundred and forty-eight limbs and three hundred and sixty-five sinews, and into the entire world, the entire year, and the three dimensions: space, time and soul. Let all of them be blessed and receive goodness, vitality, holiness and purity through our fulfilment of the mitzvot with great joy.", + "Master of the Universe: Help us fulfil perfectly the teaching of our Rabbis, of blessed memory, that “Every single person is obliged to say, `The world was created for my sake.' “ Help me keep these words in my heart constantly, in order that I should always steer clear of even the smallest sin or anything else that goes contrary to Your will, so that I never become the cause of any kind of deficiency, damage or impediment, whether in myself or in the world as a whole. Instead, let me always be watchful for anything I can do to improve or benefit the world, or provide for its needs, and let me pray for the world.", + "In Your abundant love and kindness, help us to be able to pray for the entire world and thereby bring about the fulfilment of its needs. Help us nullify all evil decrees through our prayers. Grant us the knowledge of whether the decree has already been sealed or not, so that we may know how best to pray to You, and whether we should clothe our prayers in the form of narrative at times when this is necessary. Even though we may be very far from this level of understanding at the present time, even so, everything is in Your hand, and for You nothing is impossible.", + "“HaShem, do not hold back Your love from me; Your mercy and Your truth will always protect me.” Help me come to everything I have requested of You. Sanctify me with Your mitzvot and delight my soul with Your salvation. Purify my heart to serve You sincerely with the service of the heart — namely prayer — so that I will be able to pray to You with all my strength and to fulfil Your mitzvot joyously at all times.", + "“Let the words of my prayer be sweet to Him.” “I will rejoice in HaShem, and my soul will exult in HaShem and delight in His salvation.” “All my bones will declare: HaShem, who is like You? You save the poor from those who are too strong for them, and the needy from those who would rob them.” “Light is sown for the righteous, and joy for those who are pure of heart.” Blessed be HaShem for ever. Amen. Amen." + ], + [ + "The main theme of this prayer is Teshuvah — repentance. Our own pride may stand in the way of our apprehension of God. To experience God's glory, we must stop pursuing honor and esteem for ourselves, and strive only to enhance God's glory. The essence of Teshuvah is to accept insults and indignities in silence as an atonement for our sins.
Teshuvah is not a single event but a continuing pathway. Even after beginning Teshuvah, our conception of God may still be influenced by materialistic images. As our perception develops, we must repent for the inadequacies of our earlier repentance.
Spiritual life has many ups and downs. In order to be able to follow the path of Teshuvah steadily at all times, two skills are necessary: the ability to maintain our balance even at moments of intense enthusiasm, and the determination to continue with our efforts even if we experience failure and dejection. This way we can find God in all situations, good or bad, thereby affirming the perfect unity that underlies everything in the creation, from the highest of levels down to the lowest.
HaShem our God and God of our fathers, God of love and kindness: Have pity on me and on my poor soul, which is thirsty, hungry and yearning to return to You. Help me repent completely for all my sins and transgressions. Those who come to be cleansed and purified are helped from Heaven. Let me be one of them, and You Yourself assist me in purifying myself of my sins, so that I will be able to come to perfect Teshuvah for all of them.", + "Loving God: Have compassion on me and see my wretchedness and degradation. Was it for this futile life of mine that You created me? I feel I'm hardly worthy of being called a person at all. It is as if I have no real existence in this world. It would have been better for me not to have been created in the first place, considering all the wrong I have done.", + "I have come before You now, HaShem, to plead with You to help me through the power of Your great Name EHYEH — “I will be” — with which You revealed Yourself when You began to redeem Your children from Egypt. You wanted to make them Your people and remove them from the pollution of Egypt. You said to Moshe at the burning bush: “Tell this to the Children of Israel: EHYEH sent me to you.”", + "Through the power of this holy Name, help me make a whole new start and prepare myself to be in this world — to exist and live as the person You intended me to be, through returning to You in sincere, genuine Teshuvah. Help me feel the pain of my many sins and transgressions and to come to perfect Teshuvah.", + "Help me bear shame and embarrassment without throwing insults back in return. Even if I hear myself abused, let me not reply. “To those that curse me, let my soul be silent.” No matter how other people may abuse and insult me, let me hold my peace and say nothing.", + "Let me “silently wait for HaShem and hope in Him”, and “let me be like a man who does not hear and has no complaints on his lips....” “I will be like a deaf person — I will not hear; I will be like a dumb person who will not open his mouth.”", + "HaShem, I know the truth: all the insults in the world would not be enough to cleanse me, considering the weight of all my sins. It is impossible to express in words how degraded I have become through my own choices and actions. My sins have cast a stain on Your great glory. I have dishonored Your holy Name, and I have mightily abused my own soul through my sins. I have given power to the blood in the left side of the heart, which has strengthened my evil inclination.", + "To make up for all this I must simply bear even the worst insults and persecution. So HaShem, when people abuse and insult me, help me bear it in silence, in order that this should be my atonement for all my sins.", + "HaShem, my God: In my heart of hearts I know that I am very far from genuine Teshuvah. My sins have gone over my head. They have left me in such a state of mental confusion that I really have no idea how to come back to You. My good sense and intelligence have left me, and I feel as if I have no heart. I go around like a vagrant, devoid of mind and heart.", + "HaShem, You know my foolishness. I cannot conceal my guilt from You. Father, loving Father, what should I do? Where should I run for help? What possible remedy or strategy can I find to save my soul from destruction? “I lift up my eyes to the mountains: from where will my help come?” Help me! Help me! Please! Please be kind to me! Show me Your love and mercy! Save me!", + "Shine upon me from Your holy habitation, and cause a spirit of wisdom and understanding, holiness and purity to rest upon me, so that I will be able to genuinely sanctify and purify myself and come back to You in perfect Teshuvah. Let me hold my peace and say nothing to those who abuse and insult my soul. Let me “silently wait for HaShem and hope in Him”, bearing all degradation and persecution with love, as an atonement for my sins.", + "Master of the Universe: Through Your holy sages, of blessed memory, You have given us a distant hint of the exalted holiness of the Jewish People. Every single Jew is a “crown” to the Holy One blessed be He. I therefore want to ask You to help me to always try to search for all the good points that are to be found in each Jew, and to judge everyone favorably.", + "Even when people are against me and abuse and insult me, let me hold my peace and say nothing. Even in my heart, let me feel no hatred or anger. Instead, let me judge them favorably and assume that their intentions are pure. Give me to understand that according to their way of looking at things, they are convinced that they are doing the right thing by insulting me.", + "Indeed I know that all the abuse in the world would still be less than I deserve, seeing that I have sinned so much. If I am a member of the holy Jewish People, each one of whom is a “crown of the King”, how could I have taken so little care not to demean the honor of the King through the wrong I have done? I surely deserve every kind of abuse, since “those who show contempt for Me will be despised.”", + "In that case, how can I be angry at those who insult me? How can I hold it against them, considering I deserve everything I get and more? How can I take them to task for not treating me with sufficient respect, when every single one of them is a precious “crown” of HaShem? So please, HaShem, help me keep quiet and hold my peace, and bear everything with love. And through this, bring me to perfect Teshuvah, which is bound up with the holy Name of EHYEH, the Crown, as Your sages have taught us.", + "Help me to follow the path of Teshuvah all my days. “Who can say, `I have cleansed my heart and purified myself of sin'?” You know our hearts, and how we often have mixed and impure motives for even the good that we do. Even when I am confessing my sins, I have improper thoughts and motives. I find it impossible to say even a single word sincerely and honestly. My sins are real enough, but I have a block against owning up to them.", + "So please help me to keep going forward on the path of Teshuvah, and to repent over my repentance — to make amends for the inadequacy of my earlier Teshuvah. This way, with Your help, I will eventually be able to attain the highest level of Teshuvah: You will open my heart and mind to know Your Name, and I will then attain such a level of spiritual perception that I will understand that I have not even begun to repent as yet in a way that is commensurate with Your awesome greatness and exaltedness.", + "You will then help me repent genuinely over my earlier repentance. With each new and higher perception of Your exaltedness, I will repent over the limitations of my earlier perceptions, and for having allowed material images to influence the way I conceive of You, detracting from the supreme exaltedness of Your divinity. I will keep going forward on the path of Teshuvah every day of my life, until the day when You will finally take my soul and bring me to the World to Come, the “day that is all Shabbat, all Teshuvah.”", + "Help me to slaughter my Evil Urge, and thereby give You honor in two worlds, This World and the World to Come, as it is written, “The one who slaughters [the evil urge, and offers] the thanksgiving offering will give Me honor.”", + "Help me run away from honor. Let me minimize my own importance, while doing everything I can to enhance the glory of God. Grant me a share in Your great glory, and lovingly bring me to experience the glory of God and attain holy glory for Your sake alone. Let me never make use of Your glory for my own personal advantage, but only for the sake of Your Name and in Your service, and let no one feel the need to raise questions about my reputation and honor.", + "HaShem, help me be firm, strong and determined in Your service at all times. Don't let me ever fall away, God forbid. “Don't throw me down from before You, and do not take Your holy spirit from me.” Bring me to be one of those who is always “coming in and going out” of the Palace of the King, constantly striving to achieve ever greater intimacy. Teach me how to “run forward” to new spiritual heights, and then “return” and integrate the perceptions and insights I have gained into my life as a whole. Help me develop the skills I need during all the different phases of my spiritual life, both when I am making progress and when I find myself regressing. Let me be expert at “running forward,” and expert at “returning,” expert when “coming in” and expert when “going out.”", + "Let me be able to find You everywhere, whether I go up or down, as it is written: “If I go up to Heaven, there You are, and even if I make my bed in hell, behold, there You are!” Let me constantly reach out for connection with You, so that I will be able to say: “I am my Beloved's, and my Beloved is mine.”", + "Please, HaShem, have compassion on me and remember me for good. Don't abandon me, and do not leave me to sink and become trapped in the lowly, degraded situations I have been caught in until now. “Don't forsake me, HaShem my God, and don't keep far from me. Don't let me be swallowed up in the depths, and don't let the pit shut its mouth over me.”", + "Be kind to me and lift me out of the dust. Help me rise from my degraded state. Be with me, just as You promised You would be with Yaakov: “I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will surely bring you up.” It is true that I have fallen, but I ask You to let my fall be a preparation for a great ascent. Have pity on me. Send me Your help and take hold of me with Your loving hand of mercy. Support me tenderly and lovingly, and always be with me. Give me the strength and good sense to hold on to You at all times, and never ever let me fall. It is written: “Even if he falls, he will not be cast aside, because HaShem is supporting him by the hand.” Fulfil this in me.", + "Grant me spiritual freedom very soon. From today on, release me from the vicious cycle of backsliding and failure I have been caught in so far. Help me overcome the sense of distance from You that I have had until now. You “lift the poor out of the dust and the needy from the scrap-heap.” I am poor and needy: take pity on me. Be kind to me, and lift me up. “My hands are raised to You. From the ends of the earth I call to You. My heart is fainting. Bring me up to a rock which is too high for me.”", + "Master of the Universe! Master of the Universe! My Father in heaven: Take pity on me, and drive away all those who are persecuting me and pushing me down. Call a halt to my troubles. Say, “So far and no further.” From now on, help me, and start to lift me up, level by level, quickly and easily. Turn all my spiritual failures into successes. If my relationship with You until now has been one of distance and alienation, let it be transformed from now on into one of closeness and intimacy.", + "In Your compassion, You have made a start in drawing us close to You. Through the true Tzaddikim You have sent us in each generation, You have begun to shine the light of Your holiness and love upon us. HaShem, it would not be fitting for You to abandon us now.", + "You began showing us Your greatness and goodness when You gave us Your holy Torah through Moshe, Your faithful prophet. In each generation You have lovingly sent us all the Tzaddikim who have transmitted the Torah to us — from Moshe to Yehoshua, from Yehoshua to the Elders, and from them to the subsequent Elders and Tzaddikim in every generation, until the chain of Torah tradition has now reached us.", + "Your love for us has still not ceased to flow: “I awaken, and I am still with You.” Just as You have always helped us until now, stir up Your compassion yet again, and help me fulfil the entire Torah in love. Take pity on me and help me remain attached to You and to the true Tzaddikim for ever, both in This World and in the World to Come.", + "Please, HaShem, lovingly help me open my eyes, my heart and my ears to see, understand and hear Your greatness and exaltedness, and to return to You in complete sincerity and truth. Grant me knowledge, understanding and wisdom to understand and grasp the ways of Teshuvah. Help me to follow them at all times, and let me be a true Baal Teshuvah, a Master of Repentance. For Your right hand is held open to receive those who return, and You want Teshuvah. If not now, when?", + "Help me come to perfect Teshuvah on the highest level, so that through my efforts to make amends and repair what I must, the lowest point and highest points of creation will be united, and the Supernal Man will be seated upon the throne. Let my nefesh, ru'ach and neshamah be merged in that exalted place from now and for ever.", + "Restore the moon and fill its dark portions with light. Let the light of the moon be like the light of the sun, and let the light of the sun be sevenfold, like the light of the Seven Days of Creation. For Your Kingship governs everything in heaven and on earth.", + "Your miracles and wonders are unfathomable. You work out ways to make sure that no-one should be cast aside. You “cause death and bring to life, You take souls down to hell and You bring them up.” You have the power to connect, bind and unify complete opposites — from the lowest depths of hell to the supreme, most exalted heights, from the lowest point to the highest. For “Who will tell You what to do?”", + "If so, let Your tender mercy reach even me. God who takes pity on the poor and hears the cry of the needy: forge a channel from beneath Your throne of glory down to me, and help me stir and wake up, and return to You in perfect Teshuvah. Help me be genuinely attached to the true Tzaddikim from now on and for ever.", + "“For You do not wish for the death of the sinner but that he should turn from his ways and live.” “You grind man down to the dust and say, `Return, sons of man.' ... Return, HaShem — until when? Relent over Your servants.” “Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.”", + "Master of the Universe: Help me to follow the path of perfect Teshuvah at all times, and especially during the holy days of Elul. During this period, our teacher Moshe opened up a pathway of Teshuvah for us consisting of the two skills of “running” and “returning”, based upon the two holy Names of HaVaYaH (in its expansion of SaG) and EHYeH (in its expansion of KeSA), and upon the two holy points — the uppermost and the lowest. This is the essential path of Teshuvah: the initial Teshuvah, and then, Teshuvah on the Teshuvah — respectively the “Teshuvah of This World”, and the “Teshuvah of the World to Come.”", + "During the holy days of Elul, help me to attain perfect Teshuvah, and let the holiness of Elul be drawn into the entire year, until we are able to follow the path of perfect Teshuvah at all times and to walk all the pathways of Teshuvah perfectly all our days and for ever.", + "In Your abundant kindness and mercy, accept all the different aspects and levels of our Teshuvah with love and favor, and enable us to “search and examine our ways and return and rise towards HaShem, for Your right hand is stretched out to receive those who wish to return.”" + ], + [ + "Through Emunah — faith — we come to know and experience God, and thus enjoy the greatest good there is. The essence of faith is to know that God has complete control of every detail of the creation. There is no such thing as chance, and natural law is merely one of the ways in which God governs the world. Beyond nature is a realm of miracles, to which we gain access through faith and prayer. The exile of the Jewish People is the exile of faith. The Egyptians denied all miracles, trying to explain everything in terms of natural law. The redemption from Egypt was the paradigm of miracles.
To come to genuine faith we need the guidance of the Torah as reflected to us through the advice and teachings of the Tzaddikim. The guidance of the Torah is symbolized in the fringes of the Tzitzit: the numerical value of the Hebrew letters of the word Tzitzit (600), together with their eight cords and five knots, corresponds to the six hundred and thirteen mitzvot of the Torah. The Tzitzit protect us against immorality and the false persuasions of those trying to draw us away from the Torah path.
HaShem our God and God of our fathers: Have compassion on me and on all Your people Israel. Plant Emunah in our hearts, and bring us to believe in You and Your true Tzaddikim with perfect faith. Let our faith be pure and firm, clear, flawless and unshakable. Loving God: Help me reach a level where my faith will be so strong that it will be as if I can actually see Your Godly power with my very own eyes. Let me understand that You control every detail of the creation. Let me see how Your glory fills the entire universe. Bring me to true and sincere attachment to You at all times. Let my understanding of You be sound and properly founded.", + "“You have begun to show Your servant Your greatness and the strength of Your hand. Which power in heaven or on earth could imitate Your works or Your mighty actions?” You revealed Your Godly power and kingship to us when You took us out of Egypt and redeemed us from the most terrible exile in the melting-pot of affliction, down in the very depths of evil. You took us out of the Fifty Gates of Impurity and brought us into the Fifty Gates of Holiness.", + "You worked miracles and wonders in Egypt and at the Red Sea. You broke and crushed all the Egyptian idols. You confounded the heavenly order and changed the laws of nature, and You uprooted and negated all the false, idolatrous and atheistic beliefs of Pharaoh and the Egyptians. They wanted to keep the Children of Israel submerged in their midst, and impose their own false and atheistic beliefs on them, God forbid.", + "The assault on faith was the worst part of the exile. But in Your love and compassion, You did not abandon us among them. You acted swiftly to take us out of their midst, and You uprooted and smashed all their atheistic beliefs by means of the great and awesome miracles and wonders You performed. You manifested Your Godly power and dominion to everyone in the entire world.", + "From that time on, the Jewish People attached themselves to You and “they believed in HaShem and in Moshe His servant.” In the same way, loving God, help me to have complete faith in You and in Your true Tzaddikim at all times. Let my faith be strong, firm and soundly based.", + "Just as You are the true God, so let my faith in You be true and sound, until I can actually feel Your Godly power in my life. Let me always be attached to You. Let me never separate myself from You, not even for the briefest moment. Let me constantly feel the proper shame, fear, awe and reverence for You, and let me never move so much as a hand or a foot to do anything in the world without You.", + "Let me be attached to You in everything I do, even when engaged in material activities like eating and drinking and so on. Whatever I do, let me do it for the sake of Your Name and as a genuine act of service. Let me never forget You, whether when I'm lying in my bed or when I get up, when I'm sitting at home or going on my way, whether I'm talking or keeping quiet, standing or sitting, busying myself with Torah and mitzvot or going about my worldly activities. Let me be attached to You in everything I do, and let me never forget You.", + "Help me to “put HaShem before me constantly, for He is at my right hand, I will not stumble.” Let me constantly feel Your Godly power over me, for the whole earth is full of Your glory, and You rule over everything. “If a person hides himself away in the most secret of places, will I not see him? says HaShem. Do I not fill the heavens and earth?”", + "Loving God: Your whole desire is to do good. This was why You created Your universe, the heavens and earth and all their host, the upper worlds and the lower worlds in their endless millions upon millions — all in order to reveal Your Godly power in the world, so that we can come to know You in this lowly world.", + "You are good, and You do good to all. You wanted to share Your goodness with us and to show us Your love and kindness. Your whole intention in creating Your universe was good: that we should be come to know and acknowledge You and gaze upon Your pleasant radiance. This is the greatest good of all, the true and enduring good. There is no other good in the entire world.", + "All the favors, miracles and wonders that You performed for our ancestors, and continue to perform for us every day and every moment, have only this one purpose — that we should come to know You. This is the greatest possible good in the world.", + "Therefore have compassion on me, Master of All, and keep my faith in You fixed in my heart for ever. Satisfy me with Your goodness, and bring me to see and enjoy the pleasantness of Your radiance. Loving God: help me to pray to You with all my heart and soul, until my prayers have the power to change nature and bring about miracles and wonders. Hear my prayers at all times.", + "Grant that I should come to the Land of Israel, which You chose above all other lands and gave to the Jewish People for ever. From the time we turned aside from You and allowed our holy faith to become weak, we have been in a prolonged exile from our homeland. Take pity and have mercy on me, and help me break away, once and for all, from the multitude of doubts, the confusion and the atheistic thoughts and beliefs that have such a hold over my heart and the hearts of Your people Israel.", + "Bring me to have faith in the holy miracles that You have performed for us in every generation, and that You continue to perform for us every day and every moment. Let me never deny a single miracle by trying to explain it away through natural causes. Let me know and believe that You are the sole source of everything, and that everything is under Your constant watch and control. You control every single detail of the entire universe.", + "Let me have faith in You and in Your true Tzaddikim at all times. And through the power of my faith, bring me to the Land of Israel quickly and easily. Hurry our final redemption, and send us our righteous Mashiach.", + "Master of the Universe, HaShem, God of truth: In each generation You planted true Tzaddikim among us. Loving God: help me come close to the true Tzaddikim and receive true counsel from them. Let me follow their advice without deviating from it in any way.", + "Guard me, my family and friends, and all Your people Israel, from all evil influences. There are people whose advice and suggestions are like those of the archetypal serpent. Let me pay no attention to anything they say. Let me not even hear their words. Let nothing they say enter my heart and mind in any way.", + "Let me keep well away from people who have strayed from the path of Torah. Don't let them have any power to deceive me with their destructive ideas. Thwart their evil intentions. Save me from all falsehood and error. Protect me from those who cover their lies with a veneer of truth, twisting the words of the Living God, and calling evil good and good evil. Their ideas and suggestions are the opposite of the truth, and they are holding back the Jewish People from the true and correct path.", + "They make light of the most serious laws of the Torah, while turning minor matters into issues of major importance. What You reject, they embrace; what You desire, they reject. Not all of them have evil intentions: some of them have simply made a mistake, and they do not know the real truth. They speak in all innocence, but their ideas and suggestions are false, and they are very damaging to us in our efforts to serve You.", + "Master of the Universe: You know the truth. Before You, all secrets are revealed. You know the mysteries of the entire universe and the hidden secrets of all living. Help us and save us from these people. Let none of what they say stick in our hearts in any way. We want nothing of them — “not them, and not their tumult, and not their uproar.”", + "Almighty God: You are the supreme Guide. Lovingly grant that the true Tzaddikim should be revealed to me. Help me come close to them and receive sound, clear guidance from them founded on the six hundred and thirteen mitzvot of the Torah. Through their guidance and counsel, let me receive the light of truth, and thereby come to genuine, perfect faith for ever.", + "Please, kind and loving King, help me offer my prayers with deep concentration at all times, in order that I may ascend to the realm of miracles — a realm which is above the natural order, and beyond time. And through this, help me develop a powerful memory for everything holy.", + "Help me remember all the teachings of Your holy Torah, all of which are encompassed within its six hundred and thirteen mitzvot. The mitzvot are the foundation of all the holy teachings that have been revealed to us by the true Tzaddikim. Help me remember them very well, and keep them in the forefront of my heart and mind. Bring me to learn and teach, guard, perform and fulfil all the teachings of Your Torah and the true Tzaddikim with great love.", + "Protect me from forgetfulness. You know the terrible problems I have in trying to remember things, especially now, after the prolonged exile we have suffered as a result of our sins. Our troubles have left us confused and distracted. Our hearts have become closed, and our minds have become ever weaker. The Angel of Forgetfulness has attacked us so strongly that even in our study sessions we often forget things we learned only a few moments earlier.", + "There are times when I feel so moved by the sweetness and pleasantness of the Torah and the teachings of the true Tzaddikim that I am filled with an earnest desire to do nothing except follow their advice and carry out everything they say... But then, with the passage of time, everything is forgotten.", + "All these problems of forgetfulness are the result of the excessive influence of materialism in our lives. If I were more spiritual, I would be able to rise above time. But instead, I have fallen into such a time-bound state that even a short period of time may seem very long. This is why I am so prone to forgetfulness, which is caused by being under the rule of time instead of above it.", + "I therefore appeal to You to take pity on me and help me put all the holy teachings of the Torah into practice. This in itself will bring me to truth, faith and perfect prayer, and to the realm of miracles, which is beyond nature and beyond time. Then I will be able to develop a powerful memory for everything holy.", + "Loving God: Help me guard the holy Covenant. Save me from all forms of immorality, whether in what I look at, what I think about, the way I talk, or what I actually do, and the way I use my five senses. Guard and protect me from breaking the Covenant in any way, and help me conduct myself in holiness and purity at all times. Bring me to genuine sanctity and to observe the Covenant the way You want me to, and protect me in the shadow of Your wings.", + "Help me fulfil the mitzvah of Tzitzit in all its fine details and with all the inner intentions of the mitzvah, together with the six hundred and thirteen mitzvot with which it is bound up. Protect me with the holy fringes of the Tzitzit and save me from all forms of immorality.", + "Help me sanctify myself at all times by drawing Your holiness upon me, and in this way save me from the “promptings of the serpent” — the blandishments of all the people who would like to tempt me and induce me to turn aside from the path of truth, whether from evil motives or not.", + "Help me draw the light of the true wisdom of the Tzaddikim upon myself through putting their teachings and guidance into practice. Bring me to the truth, and never let a word of falsehood cross my lips.", + "HaShem, our God and God of our fathers, lovingly provide me with my food and a comfortable livelihood, honorably and without effort or anxiety. You have taught us that immorality causes a person's food and livelihood to be withheld, “for the desire for a harlot reduces one to begging for a loaf of bread.” But keeping the mitzvah of Tzitzit saves a person from immorality and enables him to receive his livelihood in a holy way.", + "Master of the Universe, loving God: Save me from all forms of falsehood and error. When I speak, do not let a single untrue word leave my mouth, and when I act, keep me from all false and wrongful behavior. Protect me from the crooked paths of those who have gone astray, and help me walk the path of truth at all times. Through truth I will come to perfect faith, and connect truth and faith together, so that even in those areas where I have to depend on faith alone, because the truth itself is beyond the grasp of human reason, even so, my beliefs will be true.", + "Let my prayers be well-ordered and flow fluently from my lips and my very heart. Work miracles and wonders in the world “in order that all the nations on earth should know that HaShem is God, there is none other.”", + "Remember Your people Israel and free them from this deep exile You have imposed upon them for so many years. Redeem us soon, help us come back to our land, and send us our righteous Mashiach quickly. “Justice will be the belt of his loins and faith the belt of his hips.” “Truth will sprout from the earth and justice will appear from the heavens.” “Come, gaze from the peak of Amanah — Emunah, faith.” Quickly in our days. Amen." + ], + [ + "The Torah is the source of ru'ach chayim — the breath or spirit of life. The true Tzaddikim, who are constantly immersed in the Torah, are able to channel this life-force to us. Through sighing over our various needs and deficiencies, we are able to draw this life-spirit into ourselves and thereby satisfy our needs. Our enemies, both those external to us and also our inner enemies — our physical lusts etc. — draw their life- spirit from the false leader on the side of evil via channels created by evil traits and behavior. The true Tzaddik has the power to destroy these channels and cut off the power of the wicked at source.
When a person sins, it is a denial of the boundary between good and evil. One of the main ways to rectify our sins is through study of the Halakhah — Torah law — which clarifies the demarcation-line between good and evil. The intellectual power needed to clarify the Halakhah is developed through intense prayer, by means of which Godly wisdom and inspiration are drawn down from the Upper Eden to “water the Garden,” i.e. the Torah, where the soul and intellect are rooted. Through the Halakhah we can rectify the four basic elements of Fire, Air, Water and Earth from which all our various personality traits are derived, and so perfect our characters. The four elements are bound up with the four letters of the Name of HaShem, and the four corners of the Tzitzit.
HaShem our God and God of our fathers, “God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in kindness and truth”: arouse Your great compassion for me and show me Your kindness. Help me have faith in the true Tzaddikim, and bring me close to them. For they are the ones You have chosen to bring vitality to Your people, the House of Israel. HaShem: Help me draw the breath of life from the Tzaddikim to satisfy all my needs. Always hear the sound of my sighs. Let me draw the breath of life and goodness from the true Tzaddikim through my sighs, so as to satisfy my needs and provide me with everything I require, whether materially or spiritually.", + "Let all my needs be satisfied for good, “for the source of life is with You”: You give breath and life-spirit to everything which is alive and to everything in the world — all through Your true Tzaddikim, who are constantly attached to Your holy Torah, which is our life and length of days.", + "Have pity on Your people Israel: reveal to us who the true Tzaddikim are, and help us draw the breath of life from them. Give us the ability to make up for anything we may be lacking by simply sighing over it. Fulfil all the requests of our hearts for good.", + "All my sins and transgressions against You have driven the life- spirit out of me. It is my sins that have caused all my inadequacies and deficiencies. In the merit of the true Tzaddikim of the generation, forgive me and pardon me for all my sins. These Tzaddikim have the Spirit of God in them. It is through them that You are lovingly reconciled with the Jewish People, pardoning and atoning for our sins in every generation, because “The wise man will atone for it.”", + "Drive all our enemies away. Break them and humble them. Thwart all who try to rise up against us with evil intent, and frustrate their plans.", + "HaShem! You know how low and weak we are at this time. We have fallen lower and lower. “The enemy hand is ever stronger, and there is no one to save or support us.” Our strength is gone. Every day, each one of us is subject to a multitude of pressures, all pushing us away from Your service and driving us away from life, God forbid.", + "I have enough troubles, problems and pressures within my own self. Every moment of every day I am under attack from my bodily desires and bad character traits. I don't have the strength to bear it. Because of my sins, I have not made an effort to drive out the “guest” — the Evil Urge — from within me, and now it has become the “master of the house.” All my strength is sapped.", + "And as if all these inner pressures are not enough, I have a multitude of external battles to face as well. “HaShem, how many are our enemies.” To You, nothing is a secret. You know how many enemies and accusers we have standing against us at all times, both in the upper worlds and in the lower worlds. You know how they have opened their mouths against us and how they wag their tongues. Their mouths are wide open to swallow us, because swallow us is what they want to do, God forbid.", + "Master of the entire Universe: You are truly merciful and full of love and kindness. You know exactly who we have fighting against us every day and every moment. “Why do You countenance the deceivers and stay silent while the sinner devours one more saintly than himself?” Please show me Your love and give full rein to Your compassion.", + "You know that I do not have the strength to stand up against even a single one of my enemies, whether physical or spiritual, let alone all of them. What am I but a despised, trampled, downtrodden worm? Won't You take pity on me? I am so weak — how can I stand up against lions?", + "You test people's hearts and innermost recesses. You know all their secrets. HaShem: You know that my real intention is to serve You truly. Maybe my actual behavior is not the best, and the things I do are a contradiction to my words. So far, I have not succeeded in taking myself in hand in order to achieve the only thing I really want in my heart, which is to be what You want me to be. Even so, Your love and kindness are more powerful than anything, and You value people's good intentions as if they had actually achieved what they wanted.", + "You know my heart. You know how I am constantly longing, yearning, hoping and waiting for You to help me and bring me to true service of God. Then why do You make me stray from Your pathways? Why do You give strength to my enemies, when all they want to do is to hide the truth and reinforce their lies? I do not have the strength to stand against them. I can only rely on You, and I am waiting and hoping for You to help me.", + "HaShem, our God and God of our fathers: Lovingly help us and save us from all our enemies and persecutors. We are under attack every day, both physically and spiritually. Give us the strength and holy life- spirit to overwhelm and conquer our enemies and bring them down to the ground.", + "Take away their life-spirit, which they draw from the realm of evil, from the unholy leader. Do not allow them to conquer us. Rescue us from their devouring mouths. “Save us from the sword, from their mouths, and the poor one from the mighty hand.”", + "HaShem: Please bring me to pray to You sincerely and wholeheartedly, and with perfect faith. Let my prayers be pure, fitting and properly ordered. Let me pray with complete attention and devotion. Let me bind my thoughts to the words of my prayers as I say them. Let me concentrate on the words intensely, and pour my heart out to You like water.", + "Aid me in expressing myself to You at all times. Help me tell You everything that is in my heart. You know how many needs I have. My heart is so troubled that I find it too much to express and explain everything I need and want. Please take pity on my poor soul and help me talk to You about everything I have in my heart. Put pure and pleasing words and entreaties into my mouth, so that I will be able to arouse Your compassion and bring You to accept my prayers with love.", + "Let my prayers rise up to the greatest heights. Give me the power to arouse the Upper Eden through my prayers, so as to open up a flowing channel of love, supreme wisdom and Godly knowledge. Let the emerging river flow down to water the Garden — the Torah — which is where our souls are rooted. Let my soul grow and blossom. Let the pathways of the intellect be truly open to me, and bring me to attain wisdom, understanding and knowledge.", + "Help me devote myself to Your Torah in the proper way, and give me the ability to clarify Torah law, so that in each case I will come to the right decision. Help me study the law codes, and inspire me with the necessary wisdom, understanding and knowledge so as to be able to clarify the final decision and distinguish between what is permitted and what is forbidden, what is pure and what is impure, what is valid and what is invalid.", + "This will give me the power to fix and make amends for the damage I have caused in all the worlds through my many sins and transgressions, which caused good and evil to become mixed up.", + "Help me come to genuine prayer, so that the light of true wisdom will be opened up for me and I will be able to clarify the Halakhah and come to the right decisions. I will then have the power to sift out the good from the bad in all the worlds and correct all the damage caused by my sins, whether in this incarnation or another. Fulfil all the requests of my heart for good, and let me see everything I need and ask for come to fruition.", + "Through the study of the Halakhah, help me cleanse, purify and rectify the four primary elements of which my body is composed, so as to break and conquer all the bad traits and desires that derive from them, while refining the good.", + "Help me achieve every good quality, so that all four elements will be completely pure and refined, and only good will remain, with no admixture of evil whatever. Let all the four elements then be merged within the four letters of Your Name, which is their ultimate holy source.", + "Please, HaShem, lovingly help me come to everything I have requested of You. I know how far I am from even one dot of what I have asked for. Even so, nothing can stop God from helping. For You, nothing is too difficult. You have the power to help and strengthen me and bring me to everything I have asked of You.", + "Do it for the sake of Your Name, and for the sake of the true Tzaddikim who had the merit to come to all these levels and more. Lovingly channel power and strength from them into me so as to vitalize and encourage me. Grant that I too may achieve these levels.", + "Through the power of the true Tzaddik, help us defeat all who hate us and are opposed to the truth. Break and crush all the channels through which the wicked draw their power — namely the evil traits that have got the better of them. Through this, throw the wicked down to the ground, and make them powerless to attack us, God forbid. “And their hands will not be able to carry out anything they plan. All my enemies will be ashamed and frightened. They will instantly turn back and be ashamed.”", + "Help me fulfil the mitzvah of Tzitzit exactly the way it should be carried out in all its fine details, together with the rest of the six hundred and thirteen mitzvot that are bound up with it. Let me carry out this mitzvah with the proper intention, with good feelings and great joy. Through the mitzvah of Tzitzit, enable me to draw down holy life-spirit so as to provide me with everything I may be lacking, materially and spiritually.", + "Take hold of the corners of the earth and shake off the wicked from it. Break, destroy, humble and throw down this “implacable enemy of a man” — Esav, “the man of Seir” — and disgorge the prey from his mouth.", + "HaShem: You have compassion on the poor, You hear the cry of the needy, and You have ways to make sure that no-one is rejected. Have pity on me and release me from the teeth of wicked enemies who want to swallow me up for nothing, God forbid. “Don't let the depths swallow me up, and don't let the pit close its mouth on me.”", + "Just as You answered Yonah in the belly of the whale, so answer me in Your abundant kindness, and release me from the teeth of the lions, as You promised us: “God says: I will bring them back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the seas.” Our Rabbis of blessed memory taught that this means that “Even from between the teeth of the lions, God promised us to bring us back from them.”", + "Loving Father: Take pity on us at this time of trouble. See how persecuted I am, and how pushed and pulled about I am. Hear my sighs. I've been rejected and driven out of Your presence. “Don't give the soul of Your dove to the ranks of the enemy. Do not ever forget the soul of Your poor ones.”", + "God who lovingly revives the dead: revive and sustain us in the light of Your countenance. Give us the power to draw holy life-spirit through sighing, so that everything our hearts request will be fulfilled for good. Let us constantly do Your will all the days of our lives. Grant that we should truly “turn aside from evil” and only do what is good in Your eyes at all times — both us and our descendants, and the descendants of all Your people, the House of Israel, from now and for ever. Amen. Selah." + ], + [ + "Everything God gives us in life, including our livelihood and marriage partner, is governed by the way we pray. The prayers of the Jewish People arouse a flow of Godly blessing into the world via the twelve stellar constellations, which correspond to the Twelve Tribes of Israel. It takes great merit to know how to direct one's prayers through the gate of one's tribe, but the true Tzaddik has the power to elevate each prayer through the appropriate gate. We should therefore attach ourselves to the Tzaddik and follow his teachings.
We may find it difficult to pray because of internal and external barriers and distractions. The way to find the openings in the darkness is through Truth, which is God's light. When reciting the fixed prayers, praying truthfully means concentrating on the simple meaning of the words and saying them sincerely. In our own private prayers, we should be open and honest in expressing our situation, feelings and needs. The foundation of prayer is Emunah — faith in God's miraculous providence over every detail of the entire Universe. God's miracles are most visible in Eretz Israel, which is therefore the main place of prayer and faith.
HaShem, our God and God of our fathers, God of Avraham, God of Yitzchak and God of Yaakov, who chooses the prayers of His servants: Take pity on me and on all Your people Israel. Loving God: help us offer all our prayers and supplications sincerely, with all our hearts. Teach us what we should say. Help us to understand what we should ask for.", + "Help me say my prayers with complete honesty and truthfulness, so that the light of Truth will shine upon me, and I will be able to emerge from the thick darkness and the strange thoughts — the “husks” — that constantly confront me on all sides.", + "Especially when I am praying, I feel surrounded on every side and in every corner. The attacks come in all kinds of different ways. There are endless distractions. Sometimes things are so bad that I cannot open my mouth to pray at all, and I find it impossible to say a single word of my prayers properly, because of the darkness, the alien thoughts, the distractions, the obstacles and the barriers surrounding me on all sides.", + "My only hope of finding a way to escape is by talking to You truthfully and honestly. Through the teachings of Your holy Sages You have let us know that if we speak to You truthfully, You will shine upon us even in the thickest darkness and gloom, and help us come out of the darkness into a brilliant light, because You love the truth and You are “close to all who call to You in truth.”", + "I have therefore come before You, HaShem, my God, to plead and prostrate myself before You, and stretch out my hands to You: arouse Your true love for me. I feel so low. I need Your help so much. Shine on me with the light of Truth, so that I will be able to say the words of my prayers truthfully and sincerely.", + "Help me bring every single word of each service out of my mouth in pure, clear truthfulness and honesty, so that the light of Truth will shine on me and help me find the openings in the terrible darkness that is constantly threatening to envelop me and hide Your great light from me, God forbid.", + "I know that I have sinned, transgressed and rebelled against You from my earliest days until today. Again and again I have made the worst mistakes — I cannot count how many times. With each new sin, I have added yet more darkness, more barriers, more screens, more obstacles, more confusion.", + "I have come into the worst depths of darkness and gloom. All the exits from the darkness into the light have been thrown into gloom: they are invisible to my eyes. “I am sinking in the deep mire — there is no way to stand; I have come into the depths of the waters, the current has swept me away.”", + "Yet in spite of all this, I have come before You, HaShem, my God and God of my fathers. Have mercy! Have pity and save me! Just as You had the mercy and compassion to reveal this holy teaching, so now, HaShem, have compassion on me and help me follow it. Help me say the words of my prayers and supplications with complete honesty and sincerity.", + "Don't let gloom and darkness stop me from praying and serving You. No matter how thick my darkness, especially when I pray, let me always be able to find the exits out the darkness into the light — by saying the words truthfully. “For You will light my lamp: HaShem my God will illumine my darkness.” Fulfil the verse in the Psalms: “HaShem is my light and my help. Who should I be afraid of? HaShem is the strength of my life. Who should I fear?”", + "HaShem, You know that I have no other way to escape unless You help me speak to You truthfully and honestly in the proper way. Help me go on the path of truth at all times. Let me never allow a false word out of my mouth. Let me never say a false word even by mistake or unintentionally. Let me always tell the truth.", + "Bind my heart to You, so that I will always be able to direct my mind and my thoughts to the absolute truth. And You help me from Heaven to walk the path of truth at all times. Let me not stray from the path of truth in any way, not to the right and not to the left.", + "“Direct me in Your truth, and teach me that You are the God of my salvation. In You I have hoped all the day. Send Your light and Your truth: they will guide me and bring me to Your mountain of Holiness and to Your sanctuary. Do not take the truth away from my lips in any way, because I have put my hope in Your judgements.”", + "Let me always pour out my thoughts and prayers and supplications to You with perfect sincerity. Help me express everything I need to say to You honestly at all times. Let me tell You everything I have in my mind and on my heart, HaShem, my God and God of my fathers.", + "You know my heart. My needs are very many, but I lack the patience to explain everything in detail. Even if all the seas were ink and all the reeds were pens, it would be impossible to explain even a tiny fraction of my needs.", + "As yet I've not even started to try to overcome even a single one of my bad traits and desires. I am so totally far away from You. Yet every time I come to express myself to You, my mouth closes up and I find it impossible to say even a single word to You properly.", + "HaShem: You know my heart. To You, all secrets are revealed. Be kind to me and answer me. Put it into my heart to be able to speak to You truthfully, so that Your great light — which is the truth — will be opened up to me, helping me to express everything I need to tell You, and to offer You my prayers properly, with true sincerity, at all times.", + "Then I'll be able to tell You about everything I need, both physically and spiritually. I will be able to put everything into words and pour out my heart like water in prayer and supplication before You. Your love for me will be aroused: You will listen to my cries and hear my supplications, and lovingly fulfil all the requests of my heart for good.", + "This way I will be able to come truly close to You from now on and for ever, and do Your will every day of my life, together with my children and children's children, and those of all Your people, the House of Israel.", + "Help me pray with full attention and with all my energy and strength. Let me put all my energy into the letters of the words, so that my strength will be renewed and I will draw new holy vitality from the prayers, since prayer is the source of all vitality — “Prayer to the God of my life.” Help me come to perfect faith.", + "Kind and loving God: Help me direct my prayers upwards to You through the gate of the tribe in which my soul is rooted and from which I was hewn out. Let my prayers ascend through the right gate and rise up to Heaven — through the Land of Israel, through Jerusalem, the Temple and the Holy of Holies — until they rise to the place of Your dwelling.", + "Give my prayers the power to arouse the Constellation associated with each person's gate and tribe, so as to shine down on on the world with goodness and blessing, to bless all the fruits of the earth, and to give us success in all our efforts.", + "Loving God: Send me my livelihood before I need it. Provide for me generously and unsparingly through legitimate means, without my transgressing any prohibitions. Grant me my livelihood easily and honorably from Your wide and open hand, without my having to suffer pain and degradation. Let me not need to depend upon human gifts or loans.", + "Give me everything I need so that I will be able to do Your will and engage in Your Torah at all times, day and night. Grant me Torah and prosperity together.", + "Have compassion on me and help me conduct my marital relationship in great holiness according to Your will. Give help to all those of Your people, the House of Israel, and all our descendants, who need to find their marriage partners.", + "Arrange that each one should be sent a good match from Heaven. Let no-one find himself with the wrong partner, God forbid, because of our sins, but help each Jew to quickly find the partner most suitable for him or her according to their soul-roots.", + "Master of the Universe: Help me study Torah for its own sake at all times. You have taught us that prayer can only be complete through study of the holy Torah: “When a person turns his ear away and won't listen to the Torah, his prayer is also an abomination.” Therefore help me engage in Torah-study day and night, so that You will lovingly accept my prayers.", + "Help me “sing out at night at the beginning of the watches” and pour out my heart like water before You, so that we will merit complete redemption by our righteous Mashiach. Let my prayers be a sword and a weapon for Mashiach, as You have intimated to us through Your holy Sages.", + "Lovingly help me bind all my prayers to the true Tzaddikim of the generation, who have the power to elevate all prayers through the appropriate gate and tribe.", + "HaShem: Surely faith is what You want — that is where Your eyes are directed. Please help me: inspire me to have holy faith in You at all times without a moment's break. Bring me and all Your people Israel to perfect faith. Let us believe in You and Your true Tzaddikim without faltering. Let us be free of all confusion, and not deviate from our faith in any way.", + "Let me believe in all the holy miracles You have done for us. You have worked the most amazing miracles and wonders in every generation right up until the present — the “higher” and the “lower” miracles, those that have been revealed and those that remained concealed, those within nature and those beyond nature, general and specific miracles — for every single Jew, every day, every hour and every moment.", + "Let me and all Your people Israel believe in all these miracles unreservedly and with perfect faith. Silence the mouths of all the liars who want to put doubts into our hearts and cover up the miracles with natural explanations. “Cover their faces with shame, and let them search out Your Name, HaShem.”", + "Have pity on me and help me avoid being influenced by such people. Remove any inclination I may have to listen to them. Give me the power to crush them and uproot their wicked ideas entirely. “For the slanderers let there be no hope, and let all the heretics, wanton sinners and atheists perish in an instant.”", + "Put it into their hearts to repent, and let them all recant their evil and confused opinions. Let all of them return to You genuinely and honestly, and recognize the power of Your Kingship.", + "God of faith: Help me come to perfect faith, and bring me to Eretz Israel, the place of our sanctity, the root of faith, prayer and miracles, the fountain of life, the source of the Jewish People's closeness to their Father in Heaven, our holy place, our pride, the place of our vitality and long life.", + "Father in Heaven: Have pity on us and grant us as a gift of love that we should soon move to Eretz Israel and live a life of true service of God with reverence and love. Hurry and free us from this deep exile away from our land, which has lasted for so many years. Gather us in peace from the four corners of the earth and speedily bring us up to our land in pride and dignity.", + "Master of the Universe: You know that the only reason for this long exile has been our weak faith. This was why we first went into exile, and we have still not done enough to strengthen our faith. That is why this bitter exile has lasted until now.", + "Please take pity on the Jewish People, because we have no-one to stand up for us. Only Your great Name will support us: plant Your holy faith in our hearts and keep it firm from now on and for ever.", + "Free me from the sinuous doubts and questions in my heart. Let me never entertain the slightest doubt about how You run the world. Let me always believe that You are just and righteous. “For the word of HaShem is just, and all His works are done with faithfulness.” “All Your commandments are faith. They have persecuted me falsely — help me.”", + "Be kind to me and answer me, and help me have perfect faith at all times. In the merit of faith, bring us back to our land very soon, as it is written: “Come, look down from the top of Amanah — Emunah, faith.” Speedily in our days. Amen." + ], + [ + "Nothing enhances God's glory as much as when people who were previously very far from Him draw closer, whether Jews who become ba'aley teshuvah — penitents — or gentiles who convert. This provides us with a compelling argument to God to help us come closer to Him: if we are so distant, it will be precisely through bringing us nearer that His glory will be most enhanced.
Our own pride is one of the greatest obstacles holding us back from God. The most important step we can take towards removing our pride is by acknowledging our own limitations and accepting the authority of the true Tzaddik in our lives. We must turn to the Tzaddik to pray for us, because our own power to pray is often vitiated by our personal shortcomings.
The physical body is the root of the selfish passions which keep us from God, but when we open our hearts to the holy spirit of the Tzaddik, it spreads out from our hearts to our hands and legs, illumining our physical limbs with spiritual light, until we clap and dance for joy. The body itself now becomes a “convert” — a vibrant instrument for the service and praise of God. Rebbe Nachman teaches that clapping and dancing have the power to sweeten and mitigate divine judgments.
Master of all the worlds, Ruler of all: You revealed Your Godly power and rule to the world through our forefathers, Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov. Through them, Your greatness and holiness were manifested from generation to generation, until we received Your holy Torah through Moshe, Your faithful prophet. Then all the peoples and nations saw Your greatness and power. They saw the many miracles You performed for us when You took us out of Egypt and split the Red Sea, and helped us to victory in the war against Amalek. Your Godliness was revealed to everyone on earth. Even the most distant people saw Your power.", + "Then Yitro came and converted, and he said “Now I know that HaShem is greater than all gods.” At that moment, Your Name was exalted, magnified and sanctified above and below. It is when those who are furthest away from You come to acknowledge Your Godliness and power that Your greatness and supremacy are most evident, and Your great and blessed Name is most magnified, sanctified and exalted.", + "I have therefore come before You, HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, to appeal to You. I'm calling to You from the ends of the earth. Loving God, have pity on me. I am so far from You. I feel so rejected. It's as if I've been driven away. Through the power of Your love and mercy, bring me closer to You. Call a halt to my troubles. From now on, start drawing me closer and closer.", + "You have let us know through the teachings of Your sages that Your greatness is most revealed when those who are furthest away come genuinely closer and begin to serve You. I may be completely distant from You. Even so, please do not treat me according to my sins. Don't judge me according to the wrong I have done. Even when people are far from You, You are near to them. Won't it be precisely through me that Your blessed Name will be most exalted, praised and magnified — when You bring someone as far away as myself closer to You? For Your greatness is most revealed when those who are furthest away come genuinely close to You.", + "HaShem: Please teach me to order my prayer properly, and to express myself clearly with words that will arouse Your love and kindness. Send me pure, beautiful words, and let my prayer flow from my mouth in a way that will please and gratify You. Arouse Your hidden love for me and bring me close to You.", + "I am so far from You. I feel myself distanced from You in countless different ways. Reach out to me here in the place where I am, and draw me close to You out of pure love — that powerful, endless, awesome love that You have hidden in Your treasuries, a love that no contrary force of judgement or accusation has the power to restrain, a love that extends even to those who have reached the furthest limits of alienation and rejection, and can bring them back.", + "Do it for Your sake if not for mine. Do it for Your sake and save me. Bring me close to You. Inspire me with determination to serve You the way I should, and strengthen me in the fear of Heaven. Take me by the hand and release me from all the evil traits and desires that are entrenched in my body and which constantly hold me back from You.", + "You alone know how desperately I need help, and how my soul needs help on every level — my nefesh, ru'ach and neshamah. My soul originates from the greatest heights, where she enjoyed the embrace of her Father in Heaven. But to come down into this world, she has had to enter a gross, material body like this. Woe for the son who has been exiled from his father's table.", + "Your holy intention was for my own good — that I should be placed in a position of challenge in this lowly world. It is up to me to use my free will to overcome the physical limitations of my body and conquer the passions of my heart, in order to come to know You in this lowly world, which is so totally remote from Your holiness.", + "What should I do, Heavenly Father? I have not been able to receive Your great goodness. I have not taken care of my soul, and I have not made the effort to control my desires. “You have tried me but You did not find what You wanted.” My years have been wasted on vanity and emptiness because of my bodily appetites, which have remained entrenched in me from earliest childhood until today.", + "Every day I wait and hope for genuine spiritual redemption, but my hopes have been disappointed. Each day my urges attack me with ever greater force. I have no one to rely upon except You, my Father in Heaven. Have pity on me. Be kind to me even though I have nothing to give You in return. Love me like a father loves his children. Answer me, Father, answer me! Answer me, Creator, answer me! Answer me, Redeemer, answer me! Bring me to follow the path of Your statutes and observe Your laws. Help me and save me.", + "Please, HaShem, save my soul from all the evil traits and desires that are still entrenched in my body, both those I was born with — “for I was conceived in guilt, and my mother was heated with sin” — and those I myself have allowed to develop through failing to make sufficient effort to fight to overcome them. Free me from all of them from now on.", + "Help me lead a good life in the future. Grant me wisdom, understanding, good counsel, strength and power so that I will be able to save my soul from destruction and keep myself well away from all bad traits and desires. Help me eradicate them completely. Let my body be pure and cleansed of all lusts and evil, and help me attain the holiness and purity that befit a Jew.", + "Help me make amends in my lifetime for all the wrong and damage I have done from my childhood until today. Help me cleanse my soul of all the stains and corruption caused by my sins and transgressions. “You know my shame, and my disgrace is not hidden from You. All my enemies are before You.” “Shame has broken my heart and I am sick with pain, I hoped for somebody who would sympathize, but there was nobody. I hoped for comforters, but I did not find any.”", + "“Remove my disgrace, which I dread, for Your judgements are good.” Let my soul be precious in Your eyes. Give full rein to Your love as against any strictness and harshness. “You have taken my soul out of prison to give thanks to Your Name.” “What profit is there in my blood if I go down to destruction? Will the dust acknowledge You or proclaim Your truth?”", + "“Arise, HaShem, save my soul” from all kinds of shame and disgrace, from all evil traits and desires, and from all faults and defects. Forgive me and pardon me for all the damage I have done until now. Remove my shame, and throw all my sins into the depths of the sea, to a place where they will never be remembered. Take no account of them: let them simply disappear into oblivion. From now on, help me cleanse and purify my soul and my body of all evil traits and desires. In future, let me be genuinely pure and holy, just the way You would like me to be.", + "Help me bring others back to You as well. You alone know the tragedy of all who are far from Your Name, imprisoned in their desires and trapped in the net of vanity. Help me to talk to them in a way they will accept. Let my words penetrate their hearts. Let me speak words of truth and holiness that will enter their ears and arouse their hearts to come back to You in true Teshuvah. “The sinners will disappear from the earth and the wicked will no longer be there. Let my soul bless HaShem, Halleluyah.”", + "Loving God: Help me break my arrogance, and empty my heart of all pride. Please HaShem, You know how low I have become. My sins and transgressions have pushed me far away from You. I cannot base my request on any merit of mine. I am undeserving, and I can only ask Your help as a free gift of mercy. Your way is to be good to all Your creatures and Your love and mercy spread over all Your works.", + "Loving God: Don't let the least improper thought so much as enter my mind. Don't let the slightest hint of pride or self-importance, or motives of trying to impress others, ever enter my heart or affect my behavior, so that my hope should not be completely lost, God forbid.", + "The little good I have in me is all from You, because everything is from You. Anything I have given You was Yours in the first place. Even this tiny modicum of good is mixed up with a great deal of waste. Much work will be needed to refine it before it will be pure enough to rise up before You.", + "How can someone as distant and grossly material as myself rely on my own merits, when the good in me is less than a drop in the ocean? I have nothing to depend upon except Your boundless love and kindness. If I go astray and let the slightest hint of pride and arrogance enter my heart, I'd be lost in my wretchedness. How can a simple person like me, who is devoid of all good, claim to deserve anything?", + "HaShem: I am incapable of explaining myself and expressing all my feelings to You. Just have pity on me, and save me from pride and arrogance. Someone as lowly as myself should really not have to pray about pride at all. It is absurd to think that it could even occur to someone so covered in blemishes from the soles of his feet to the top of his head to entertain the least trace of pride.", + "Even if I had never failed You all my days except in the most minor way, how could I lift up my head and look down on even the merest creature in the world, considering Your overwhelming greatness and exaltedness, and the countless favors and blessings You shower upon me every single moment.", + "Such is the radiance of Your majesty and greatness that even if our only failure was to have fallen a little short of absolute perfection in a matter of minor importance, it would be impossible for us to lift up our heads before You. After all the wrong I have done, I should certainly not have had to ask You at all about getting rid of arrogance.", + "But HaShem, You know that I am only flesh and blood. My mind is a turmoil of thoughts that sometimes border on madness. I am prone to the most ridiculous motives of wanting to impress people, and I get all kinds of ideas about my own importance, as You know. I am constantly having thoughts like these. They crowd in on me from every conceivable side, to the point that I cannot open my mouth and say a single word with true sincerity.", + "I don't know what to do. Where should I run to? Where should I turn? Where will I get help from? It is very painful: “Even when I cry and scream, my prayer is closed up” because of all the improper thoughts and false motives which attack and confuse me when I'm praying.", + "What can I say? How can I justify myself? God has found out my sin. Do with me what You want. Here I am in Your hand like clay in the hand of the potter. Have pity! Save me! I am like a captive on the way to be killed. Save me! Free me! Loving God, help me, and bring me from death to life, from sorrow to joy, from darkness to brilliant light.", + "Loving God: Have pity on me. Let the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim protect me. With their help let me break my pride and free myself of arrogance completely. Let me genuinely feel my own lowliness in every limb of my body. Don't let a single tinge of pride or arrogance enter my heart or mind in any way. Bring me to true humility and perfect faith.", + "Help me rid myself of all religious doubts and questions, and remove all confusion and dishonesty from my heart. Let them never enter my heart again, or the hearts of Your people Israel.", + "Help me attach myself to the true Tzaddikim and channel their holy spirit into my heart, so that I will come to inner purity and my heart will always be directed to HaShem in truth, faith and genuine humility.", + "Let this holy spirit be drawn into my arms and legs, so that I will be able to correct all the wrong I have done with them. Let the spiritual light of my hands and feet be revealed and radiate. Wake up my heart and fill me with the joy of closeness to God. Let this holy joy spread into my arms and legs until I clap my hands and dance.", + "Give me the power to sweeten and remove all harsh decrees from myself and all Your people, the House of Israel, through clapping my hands and dancing in holiness. Let me lift up my hands and feet and elevate them, and cleanse them of all impurity.", + "Master of the Universe: My hands are weak — put strength into them! My knees are unsteady — fortify them! Help me purify and sanctify my hands and feet. Tell the prisoners: “Go out!” Don't let my feet stumble. Release them from their chains. If my feet have walked the path of sin and death, quickly bring them back from death to life, so that I will be able to say, “My foot stood on firm ground.”", + "My hands are soiled with all kinds of filth and dirt. Have pity on me, and cleanse them. Remove the pollution that clings to them. Loving God: Forgive me for all the damage I have done with my hands and feet. From now on, help me sanctify my hands and feet and keep them free of all wrong and impurity. Let me constantly use my hands and feet to do mitzvot, so as to elevate them to their holy source and reveal their spiritual radiance. Let me clap my hands and dance for joy.", + "Loving God: Let me carry out the mitzvah of Counting the Omer in holiness and purity, joyously and with all my heart. Let me fulfil the mitzvah in all its details and fine points with the proper intentions, and all the six hundred and thirteen mitzvot that are bound up with it. Through the mitzvah of counting the Omer, let us break and uproot the husk of Haman-Amalek and rid the world of it completely.", + "Help me enter the Purim season and celebrate Purim with great joy. Let the holy radiance of Purim — the holiness of Mordechai and Esther — shine upon us and our children and all Your people Israel. Let me fulfil all the mitzvot of Purim in holiness and purity, joyously and with all my heart. Put joy into my heart and let it spread to my hands and feet until I clap my hands and dance for joy in praise of Your Name.", + "Let me renew my commitment to fulfil all the teachings of Your Torah with love. Help me learn, teach, guard, observe and fulfil the Torah. Enlighten my eyes and grant that I should study and understand both the revealed and the mystical aspects of the Torah. Help me advance from level to level and grasp Your hidden secrets, so that I do not come before You with shame.", + "Help me to come to perfect Teshuvah. Let me not leave this world until I have repented of my sins and made amends for all the wrong I have done, whether in thought, word or deed. Help me draw down the light of perfect Teshuvah from its root — Rosh Chodesh — as we have learned from Your true Tzaddikim.", + "Let me always celebrate Rosh Chodesh with great holiness. You have given Your people Israel twelve New Moons as a time for atonement in every generation. On each one, let me draw down the light of Teshuvah from its root, so that I will come back to You in true, perfect Teshuvah.", + "Loving God: let me have faith in the true Tzaddikim, and help me come genuinely close to them. Let me always be able to arouse their concern, so that they will pray for me and awaken Your love for me, until You bring me truly close to You.", + "Let goodness and blessing, and all that I and my children and all Your people, the House of Israel need, physically or spiritually, be channeled to us through the prayers of the true Tzaddikim on our behalf. You know that I myself am unable to order my prayers in the right way. My words are halting and riddled with imperfection.", + "My only hope is to rely on the prayers of the true Tzaddikim, both those who are alive in this world — long may they live — and those who dwell in the earth. They are my only foundation. All my hopes are on them. I am relying on their great merit and power as I come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers. Have mercy and take pity on us. Let their prayers shield and protect us, so that we will genuinely come close to You, turn away from evil and always do good in Your eyes from now on and for ever. Amen. Selah." + ], + [ + "When studying Torah, even by oneself, it is important to say the words out loud: this way the words themselves shine to us, helping us to understand where we have made mistakes in our lives and how to correct them. The higher the level of Teshuvah we reach, the deeper our understanding of the Torah. However, when a person is arrogant, not only does the Torah not radiate to him: it becomes covered with a veil of materialism.
Arrogance is bound up with sexual immorality, whereas moral purity brings one to true humility. Moral purity is a central feature of God's Covenant with the Jewish People, which not only proscribes incest, adultery and promiscuity, but also enjoins us to cultivate self-control and sanctity within the marital relationship. The union of husband and wife in holiness has the power to bring about yichudim — “unifications” — on various levels. The effect of a yichud is to reveal how apparently disparate parts of the creation are in fact bound together and express the underlying unity of God.
For the immoral person, the exertion involved in making a living can be a bitter punishment. The thirty-nine labors employed in building the Sanctuary are the prototype of all work and business activity. However for the immoral person the thirty-nine labors are experienced as the thirty-nine lashes which are the penalty for breaking Torah law. The more we sanctify ourselves, the easier it becomes to earn a living, and all our work activities come into the category of “building the sanctuary.”
HaShem: majestic and awesome King of Glory!", + "You created the entire universe for Your glory, as it is written: “All who are called in My Name, I created, formed and made them for My glory.”", + "Loving God: Let Your majesty be increased, enhanced and heightened through me. Help me to be able to nullify myself completely, and not seek the least honor for myself. Let me think nothing of my own importance, and pay no attention whatever to receiving honor for myself. Let all my efforts be only to magnify the glory of God. Let all my involvements and everything I do, think and want, be only for the sake of Your great glory, blessed God.", + "Help me break and remove all arrogance from myself. Let not the slightest hint of arrogance ever enter my heart. Bring me to genuine humility. Grant me true Godly wisdom and understanding, so that I will be able to cultivate the ways of humility.", + "Save me from false humility — affected humility aimed at winning people's esteem. This kind of humility is the ultimate in arrogance. Let me never pretend to be humble with the intention of winning admiration and esteem. Loving and merciful God: Just help me to come to complete humility in perfect sincerity.", + "Please, HaShem, loving God: Your love is true love. Let Your love and mercy be awakened for someone as lowly and miserable as me. Let me feel my true lowliness, and don't allow my sins to throw me off track by confusing my mind with any foolish motives of trying to impress people, or illusions about my own importance. Have pity on me for Your sake, and save me from the least hint of arrogance and pride.", + "I know I am not really fit to come close to You, because I have shown such a lack of respect for Your honor, as You know, HaShem my God. But I will rely on Your overflowing love and kindness, and ask You to help me and do everything to save me from pride.", + "HaShem, help me to keep my mind clear of all false motives and arrogance. Have mercy on me and don't let me stray into those treacherous pathways. Loving God, bring me to follow Your commandments and observe Your laws sincerely, with true and complete humility. Even at times when You grant me the opportunity to do good, help me be totally unselfconscious about it.", + "Master of the Universe: You have informed us how serious a sin arrogance is — it is like worshipping an idol, God forbid — and that the main reason for the exile of the Jewish People was because of the sin of pride. That is what the Rabbis meant when they said the land was ruined because of seven idolatrous temples. Similarly, pride is the main reason why the exile has gone on for so long. It is now more than eighteen hundred years that we have been away from our land, and we still cannot return — only because of the sin of pride and the race for honor.", + "You have also let us know that a person who is arrogant is like an idol. Since an idolatrous object must be burned, Torah law views it as if it has already been ground down to nothing. This is why people who are arrogant are unable to open their mouths to say a single holy word. It is as if they have already been ground down to nothing, and so they lack the necessary vocal apparatus.", + "When a person speaks words of Torah, they ought to shine, as the Rabbis said: “Open your mouth and your words will shine.” But when the Torah comes in the mouth of someone who talks and acts arrogantly, not only does it not shine to him: the very light of the Torah is darkened by a thick veil of materialism.", + "Have pity on me, and at least from now on, save me from the sin of pride. Help me to stop running after my own glory, God forbid. Let me think nothing of our own importance, and strive only to maximize the glory of God. Let Your glory be enhanced, magnified and revealed through me, and let me sanctify my mouth and speak words that radiate, until “the earth shines with His glory.”", + "Help me study much Torah every day, and say the words out loud. “For they are life to those who find them” — “...to those who say them out loud.” Let my words of Torah throw light on all the areas of my life in which I need to repent, until I reach a level of Teshuvah where I make amends for all the wrong I have ever done.", + "My present level is so low that I am down at the “feet” — I am no better than the dust. Help me rise up from level to level until I emerge from this degraded state. Through speaking radiant words of Torah, let me come to complete Teshuvah and emerge from my low level, and attain an understanding of the profoundest depths of the Torah.", + "Please HaShem: You are full of love and kindness, and Your love is true love. Take pity on Your works. Open my mouth and my heart so that I will be able to express myself before You and arouse Your true love for me. From now on, help me to sanctify and purify myself through observing the holy Covenant. Save me from any kind of immorality. “Keep my eyes from looking at falsehood: through following Your pathways, bring me to life.”", + "Forgiving God: Be kind and merciful, and pardon and forgive me for everything I have ever done contrary to the Holy Covenant. Forgive me for all the immoral thoughts I have ever had, for everything immoral I have ever said or done, and for having abused my powers of vision, hearing and smell, whether deliberately or unintentionally, wilfully or under compulsion.", + "“For the sake of Your Name, HaShem, forgive my sin even though it is so weighty.” Have pity on me: break and destroy and do away with all the knots, cords and chains of evil created by my many sins. They keep on attacking me and trying to drag me from one sin to the next, God forbid. They are preventing me from sanctifying and purifying myself the way I should, and because of this I am far from observing the holy Covenant in a way that befits a Jew descended from Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov, Your chosen ones.", + "Master of the Universe: You know my heart. Have mercy on me. Cut and break all the knots and chains of evil, until they will be powerless to attack me in any way. Do away with them so completely that not even the least trace or memory of them will remain. Let all my sins be turned into merits. I know I have not yet reached this level of Tesuhvah. So far I have not even started to repent genuinely. Even so, grant it to me as a free gift of mercy.", + "Loving, merciful God, look how low I am and how I'm struggling. Evil temptations and desires lie in wait for me all the time, tormenting my nefesh, my ru'ach and my neshamah with all kinds of tortures. They pursue me and persecute me in every way. They want to drive me out of the land of the living. They want to trap my soul and take her into captivity.", + "I know that I am my own worst persecutor, because I have free will and no-one can force me to be swayed by these desires and temptations. I fully acknowledge and confess that I am the guilty one — “the sin is in me, my Lord.” But what should I do, HaShem? All my power of resistance has been sapped, and I do not know how to find a way to escape the evil desires and fantasies that are constantly attacking me. I don't know how to fight against them.", + "My only hope is to rely on Your abundant love and mercy. Help me! Give me the strength to resist all evil thoughts and desires. Help me to overcome them and break their power over me, and drive them out of myself and my life from now and for ever. Don't let a single lustful thought ever enter my mind. Let my mind and my thoughts always be completely holy and pure.", + "Loving God: Help me attain sanctity and purity, and conduct myself with holiness and restraint even in what is permitted to me. Let me constantly add more and more holiness, until I attain such a level of sanctity and detachment from material desire that the Upper and Lower Unifications will be brought about through me.", + "Master of the Universe: You know that even Torah scholars and great rabbinic leaders who only have marital relations from Shabbat to Shabbat also need to exercise tremendous self-control and caution in order to observe the Covenant in holiness. How much more this applies to average people, who have relations during the week as well. They must certainly act with the utmost care and caution in order to conduct their marriage relationship in holiness and guard the Covenant.", + "You have also let us know the high level of holiness of the Jewish marriage relationship at its root. Through it, the Upper and Lower Unifications are brought about. Every Jew needs to do his part to bring this about.", + "Loving God: Have mercy on us and and send a true holy awakening into our hearts and the hearts of all Your people, the House of Israel. Let all of us, from the smallest to the greatest, be aroused to sanctify ourselves in what is permitted to us and to constantly guard the Covenant and conduct our relationships with ever greater holiness.", + "Let the two holy Unifications, the Upper and the Lower, be brought about through us, so that Your holy glory will be enhanced and magnified to perfection “...and the glory of HaShem will fill all the earth.” Radiate the earth with Your glory, let us exult and rejoice in You! And fulfil what is written: “The glory of HaShem will be for ever: HaShem will rejoice in His works.”", + "Hashem, loving God: Please help me and provide me with my livelihood in such a way that I don't lose my eternal reward in the struggle to make a living. Save me from the scourge of the thirty-nine labors of the Sitra Achra, the side of evil. These are the “thirty-nine lashes” that drive and oppress the majority of people with worldly cares and struggles. They spend all their days running to make a living with the utmost pain and effort, “eating their bread in misery.”", + "With the sweat of their brow they will eat bread, until they return to the earth, taking nothing from all their toil — because the struggle to make a living so dominates their minds all their lives that they fail to remember their ultimate purpose. What will they do on the Day of Judgement?", + "Please HaShem, You are overflowing with love and kindness: have mercy on me and on all Your people Israel, and save us from all this. Don't let me be ground down by the struggle to make a living. In whatever work I have to do to make a living, help me do everything in holiness and purity, truth and faith, in accordance with Your will. Let me not have to struggle at all. Save me from all mental confusion.", + "Let me know and believe that everything comes from You and that nothing is in my hands at all. Let me carry out all my work and business activities with such purity and refinement that all the thirty-nine labors will shine and merge with the thirty-nine lights emanating from Your great Name. Let me carry out the thirty-nine labors in holiness and purity, so that in everything I do I will be “building the Sanctuary.”", + "Bless the work of my hands. Send me blessing and success in all my involvements and activities. Send me my livelihood before I need it, amply and not sparingly, through permitted and not forbidden means, from Your wide-open, generous hand. “And let the pleasantness of the Lord our God be upon us, and may He give success to the work of our hands, to the work of our hands — success.”", + "HaShem: Help me to be happy with my share at all times. Let me put my main emphasis on Torah study, and only have to work on a casual basis. And even in the short periods of time I have to engage in work or business in order to earn what I need to make a living, let me still be attached to You and to Your holy Torah. Let me never forget You even for the briefest moment.", + "HaShem: Please grant me everything I have asked of You. Help me sanctify myself through observing the holy Covenant from now on. Let me subordinate myself to You in complete truth. Do not let the least hint of pride or arrogance come into my heart or my mind. Cleanse me of all motives of trying to impress others and win their admiration. Let me come to genuine humility, and let Your glory be magnified, sanctified and elevated through me.", + "Help me speak radiant words of Torah, and let the words of the Torah shine to me and help me emerge from my low level. Let the words of the Torah throw light on all the areas of my life where I need to repent, so that I will come to make complete amends for all my sins and transgressions, and for all the disrespect I have shown to Your great glory from my childhood until the present.", + "Grant that I should be able to rectify everything in my lifetime, and help me advance constantly from level to level, until I attain an understanding of the very depths of the Torah. Bring me to know and understand both the laws of the Torah and its mysteries — the secrets, and the secrets of the secrets!", + "HaShem: In my heart of hearts I know very well how far I am from all these levels at present. My face is covered with shame for even making such requests. How can someone as lowly as I am dare to ask for such great things? But I am relying on Your great love and kindness. I am basing myself on Your humility and goodness. You are good to all, and nothing is impossible for You. You do the greatest, most unfathomable wonders all the time — who will tell You what to do?", + "My eyes are on You, waiting for You to show me Your love and kindness. Help me come to everything I have asked of You quickly and easily — if not now, when? So far I have wasted away my years in vanity and emptiness. Loving God: From now on, help me wake up and stir myself, and fill myself with holiness and purity, until I attain everything I have asked of You.", + "Do it for the sake of Your Name! Do it for the sake of Your glory! Do it for the sake of Your holiness! Do it for the sake of Your Torah! For as Jews, we are called by Your Name and associated with Your glory, and You have already promised that You will not give Your glory to another, as it is written: “I am HaShem, that is My Name, and my glory I will not give to another nor my praise to idols.”", + "Help me, HaShem, and let Your glory be magnified through me. Let Your glory fill the whole earth. Light up the world with Your glory. “Let the glory of HaShem be for ever. HaShem will rejoice in His works. Blessed be HaShem, the God of Israel, Who does amazing wonders by Himself. And blessed be His glorious Name for ever. Let His glory fill the entire world.” Amen. Amen." + ], + [ + "Regardless of the depth of our spiritual exile, Torah study has the power to elevate us to ever higher levels of Teshuvah and connection with God, but only when we study the Torah for its own sake — “to learn, teach, observe and perform” the will of God, and to give God pleasure. Some of the strongest opposition to the true Tzaddikim comes from Torah scholars who study for motives of self-aggrandizement. However, the true Tzaddik has the power to lift up the “fallen Torah” of such scholars and restore it to its holy source.
The entire Oral Torah — the Mishnah, Gemara, Midrashim, Halakhah, Kabbalah, Chassidut, etc. — was revealed and transmitted by generations of Tzaddikim. Through intense study for its own sake, we can bind our soul to that of the departed Tanna (Mishnaic teacher) or Tzaddik who originally revealed the teaching we are studying. The intimate spiritual communion that comes from mouthing of the words of the Tzaddik's teachings is called “kissing.”
HaShem! How can I approach You after all the love and kindness You have shown me?", + "You have given us the Torah of truth and planted eternal life among us. The kindness You have shown us is for all eternity.", + "HaShem: Arouse Your love for me. Just as You had mercy on us and lovingly gave us Your holy Torah — that hidden treasure, that daily joy — so now help me and bring me to constantly immerse myself in Torah study for its own sake.", + "Let me pay no attention whatsoever to the vanities of this world. Let my only desire be for Your Torah. Let me meditate on Your Torah day and night. Let me conduct all my studies in holiness and purity, and let my only motive be to study for the sake of Your great and holy Name, and to cause You delight.", + "Bring me to study, teach, guard, practice and fulfil all the teachings of Your Torah in love. Let the light of the holy Torah shine upon me. Let my study and contemplation of the Torah take me from darkness to light, and bring me to repent and come to perfect Teshuvah. As our Rabbis said: “The radiance of the Torah has the power to bring people back to good.”", + "Please, HaShem: Let my Torah study be an elixir of life. Let my learning bring me back to You in genuine, perfect Teshuvah. Let it restore my youth like the eagle, and give me back the times I have spent in such intense darkness.", + "From now on, let the merit and power of the holy Torah shield me and protect me from every kind of sin and transgression and from all wrong-doing, both when I am actually engaged in my studies and at times when I have to interrupt them. Let the merit and power of the Torah give me constant protection and save me from every kind of sin and wrong-doing, just as You have informed us through Your holy sages, who said that “The Torah shields and protects both while one is engaged in it and at times when one is not.”", + "Let my Torah study bring a flow of holiness and purity into me, and from now on let me sanctify and purify myself the way You want me to — for my own good.", + "Please, God of love: Have pity on me and on all Your people Israel. We have fallen very low at this time, and we have no-one to help or support us. “The enemy hand is ever stronger, and there is no one to lead us and save us.” We have nothing to vitalize and uplift our downtrodden souls except the study of Your Torah, whose holiness, purity and perfection enlightens all eyes and restores the soul.", + "You have promised us in the Torah that even at this time, at the end of days, despite the intensity of the “concealment within the concealment” — when the very fact of God's concealment is itself hidden from us — even then, the Torah will not be forgotten: it will not cease to be heard from our mouths and the mouths of our children and descendants.", + "It is written: “I will surely hide my face from them” — a concealment within a concealment — “...and this song” — the Torah — “will give testimony before the People as a witness, for it will not be forgotten from the mouth of their descendants.”", + "Well, the first part of the prophecy — “I will surely hide” — has already come true: You have hidden Yourself from us behind countless veils upon veils, as You know, HaShem.", + "Arouse Your great love for us and have mercy on us. Do not hide Your face from us any more. Turn to us. Be kind to us and shine Your face upon us. Fulfil Your holy promise to us that “this song” — the Torah — “will give testimony before the People as a witness, for it will not be forgotten from the mouth of their descendants” — it will not cease to be heard on our lips!", + "Loving God: Help us learn and meditate on Your holy Torah constantly, day and night, in holiness and purity — both us, our children and our children's children, and don't let us ever forget the Torah. Don't let the Torah ever cease to be heard on our mouths or the mouths of our descendants.", + "Let the prophecy of Isaiah be fulfilled in us: “And as for Me, this is My Covenant with them, says HaShem: My spirit which is upon You and My words which I have put in Your mouth will not depart from Your mouth or the mouth of Your children and Your children's children, says HaShem, from now and for ever.”", + "Through our study of the holy Torah, help us come back to You in sincere Teshuvah and repent for all our many sins and transgressions and rebellions. From now on, let us carry out everything the Torah teaches in love.", + "Arouse Your love for me. Shine Your holy spirit upon me. Bring me to learn Torah — both the Written and the Oral Torah — with such holy intensity that when I am studying, I will have the power to connect my soul with the soul of the Tzaddik who first revealed the teaching or law I am learning. Help me come to the level of spiritual communion that is referred to as “kissing.” Let me attach my soul to the soul of the Tzaddik with such intimacy that it will be as if I am “kissing” the Tzaddik or the Tanna who first revealed this teaching.", + "May my study give the Tzaddik or the Tanna profound pleasure. Let me cause the Tanna or Tzaddik supreme delight by studying his words in extreme holiness, so that even there in the grave his very lips will be gently whispering. And by studying the Torah in great holiness and purity, let me lift the Shekhinah up from the dust and out of exile.", + "Please HaShem, loving God: Our spirit is so crushed. Have pity on us. Protect me and my children, my descendants and those of all Your people, the House of Israel. Keep me well away from those who have gone astray from the true path. Compassionate God: Don't ever let my Torah study turn into a fatal poison, God forbid. Don't allow the least hint of opposition to the true Tzaddikim ever come into my heart as a result of anything I study. Don't let me ever study for my own self-aggrandizement or in order to chide, especially when studying the Oral Torah — the Gemara and its commentaries, and the Law Codes.", + "HaShem, God of love: Save me from even the least hint of pride or arrogance. Don't let me ever be sly and over-clever in any way. Let me never harbor doubts or questions in my heart about the true Tzaddikim of the generation, and certainly never let a single insolent word against them leave my mouth. Let me never insult their honor in any way, God forbid.", + "On the contrary, let my studies bring me to a close bond of connection with the true Tzaddikim. Let me accept their authority, believe in them, and subordinate myself to them. Let me embrace the dust of their feet and drink their holy words thirstily all the days of my life — and so too my children, my children's children, and those of all Your people, the House of Israel, from now on and for ever.", + "Let me come close and bind myself to the outstandingly great, true Tzaddikim who have the power to bring all the twisted words of slander spoken against the true Tzaddikim back to their holy source and to use them to reconstruct the original Torah laws from which these evil words of the enemies of the truth developed. For they used their study of the Oral Torah to twist the words of the living God, so as to give themselves an opening to speak out insolently and contemptuously against the Tzaddik.", + "Loving God: Through the power of the true Tzaddikim, let me become genuinely sanctified and purified until I too can attain this wisdom and know how to sift through these twisted words, and transform and elevate them back to their holy root, so as to turn them into genuine Torah laws.", + "Help me lift up the Shechinah from her exile and bring her to rejoin her Beloved in love, brotherhood and friendship, “embracing,” “kissing” and perfectly unified. Help me humble and break all those who have set themselves in opposition to the truth, and let me take their prey from their mouths. Put truth and faith into their hearts, and let them realize the truth. Let them come back to You genuinely and whole-heartedly.", + "Reveal the truth and spread it throughout the world, and fulfil the verse in the Psalms: “Truth will blossom forth from the earth, and justice will be seen from the heavens.” Let peace reign among all the members of Your people Israel for ever.", + "Let me serve You happily at all times. Help me be one of those people who bear insults without returning them, who do not answer even when they hear themselves abused, who act out of love and rejoice in their suffering.", + "Grant us all holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge. Let us come to learn the Holy Torah for its own sake at all times and return to You truly and sincerely. Let abundant blessings flow down to us from the source of blessings, and let us do Your will in truth all the days of our lives — we, our children, our descendants, and all Your people the House of Israel, from now and for ever. Amen. Selah." + ], + [ + "Certain outstanding Tzaddikim have a unique power to elevate the souls of those who come to hear their Torah teachings. The Tzaddik ascends spiritually together with the souls of those present, and is able to bring down exalted Torah teachings which renew and strengthen their souls, elevating even their lower cravings and desires. The followers of the true Tzaddik experience a powerful sense of fellow-feeling that makes them want to help one another and give each other support and encouragement in pursuing the spiritual path.
The Tzaddik's power to ascend with the souls of his followers derives from his having freed himself of the appetite for wealth. We too must break this desire, as a precondition for attaining spiritual insight and awareness of God's hashgachah — the constant loving, watchful providence over us that will eventually lead to the ingathering of the exiles, the revelation of Mashiach, and the rebuilding of the Temple.
The way to curtail our appetite for wealth is through occupying ourselves with charity — both giving charity ourselves, and encouraging others to give. We must also conduct all our business affairs faithfully and honestly. Only then can we perceive the Torah teachings that are contained even within worldly matters. The closer we are to the Torah, the more directly we are able to experience God's providence.
HaShem: You dwell in the most exalted heights, yet Your watchful care extends to the lowest of levels. Your people look to You as servants look to the eyes of their master. We prostrate ourselves before You; we stretch out our hands towards You:", + "Shine down upon us from Your holy place and help us carry out the will of our Maker in awe and reverence. Watch over us. Protect us and take perfect care of us, and bring us all back to Eretz Israel like doves to their nesting place.", + "Master of the Universe: You hear all prayers and entreaties, and listen attentively to the cry of the needy. Master of all the world: You know my heart. I am unable to express my prayer to You in an orderly way. I am surrounded by countless troubles. My sins have caught up with me — I cannot see a thing because of them. They are more than the hairs on my head. My heart has gone out of me. HaShem, loving God: What should I do? Where should I search in order to find genuine relief?", + "I know how totally far away from You I am, because of all the wrong I have done from my earliest days until today. Day after day I have sinned. I am covered with blemishes from the soles of my feet to the top of my head. There's not a single healthy spot. Not only have I been unable to make even the slightest movement from the profane to the holy; I haven't been able to control myself in the least. I've done one bad thing after another. I couldn't begin to specify even the minutest fraction of my countless sins, or assess the damage I have caused.", + "What can I say? What can I say? HaShem, You know that it would be quite impossible for me to recount how much damage I have done. Even the little good I have done — at least what on my level is called good — has been riddled with imperfection. How can someone like me, covered with sores and impurity, step forward and ask You to help me and save my soul from destruction and bring me to the light of life?", + "But if I were to say I've lost all hope in God, that would be worse than everything else put together. Through Your prophets and Your holy Tzaddikim You have taught us that one must never ever give up and lose hope in God.", + "Loving God: You have planned everything for our ultimate good, and You have sent us the remedy even before the wound. You have sent us true Tzaddikim — holy ones now at rest in the earth — who have been our support and refuge. Because of the awesome good they did, You gave them the power to elevate all those who had the privilege of coming genuinely close to them, and to bring them back to You in complete Teshuvah.", + "They even had the power to lift up my poor soul and restore it after having been so terribly shattered, so tired, so hungry, so thirsty and so bitter. Together with all the other souls gathered around them, I too was uplifted and inspired, proving that there is hope for the lowly. What a privilege it was to see Tzaddikim who had such powers and more! How fortunate were the souls who used to ascend to such heights of devotion with the help of these Tzaddikim, and experience renewal.", + "I have come before You now, Hashem, my God and God of my fathers, to ask You to have mercy on me and take pity on my poor soul. Show me what I should do now that the true Tzaddikim have left this world because of our many sins. We have been abandoned, like a solitary mast at the top of a mountain. “The Tzaddik has been lost, yet no-one stops to ponder it; the men of piety have been taken, yet no-one understands: the Tzaddik has been taken, so as not to see the coming evil.”", + "Loving, merciful Father in Heaven: Look at the desperate plight we are in. We are now experiencing the fulfilment of the prophecy that “a time of trouble will come for Yaakov the like of which never was.” You have struck us with “a blow which is not written in the Torah” — “this is the death of the Tzaddikim,” those faithful leaders who used to carry us like a nurse carries a suckling child. They had compassion on our souls. They were constantly looking to heal and revive our souls and renew our days of darkness like the eagle.", + "Where should we turn to now? Where should we run for refuge? Where should we look for help?", + "Master of the Universe: See what a pitiful state we are in. Our hearts are full of pain and sorrow. We are like sheep being led to the slaughter.", + "Look at what I've become! I go around like a “fugitive and a wanderer.” I'm like a body without a soul, a mindless robot. I'm like a captainless boat drifting in the heart of the sea, with the storm wind blowing stronger and stronger every moment.", + "My sins make it seem impossible that I will ever be able to come close to You. The pathways of Teshuvah are hidden from me. I have no idea how to set about gaining wisdom and understanding, or how to develop the strength to fight against my evil inclination and break it and force it into submission to You, so that I will be able to turn to You sincerely with all my heart.", + "I have strayed far away from Your holiness, Hashem: “I have gone astray like a lost sheep. Search out Your servant, for I have not forgotten Your commandments.” HaShem: You know that no matter how many confessions I make to You, I have still not begun to express my thoughts and explain to You how far I feel myself to be from You. It is impossible to find words to express how far away I am, and how many mistakes I have made. I don't know where I am in the world. All I know is how distant I feel from You, and how much damage I have done. From the time I was young until today, I've not had a single day I could call perfect and flawless.", + "Even on those occasions when You helped me arouse myself and start trying to serve You, I was never able to persist and keep following the path of holiness for more than a short while. Even when You have helped me, I've not had pity on myself. I've not tried to stand firm for even a single day. “Even while the King was still sitting in His place, my behavior gave off its scent.”", + "Even so, Your love and kindness are with me all the time, and You help me constantly. You have treated me kindly, but I have repaid You with evil. I am so weak and under such pressure that I desperately need You to send us a true leader — one who will constantly watch over us and “have pity on the poor and needy, and save the souls of the needy.” I need someone who will take me by the hand and lift me out of my darkness into the light, showing me the path to take and what I should do.", + "Master of the Universe! Loving God! God of Israel, who truly loves the Jewish People: “Tell me, You whom my soul loves: where do You pasture Your flock? Where do You put them to rest under the fierce sun of the harsh exile?” Our many sins have caused us to experience the fulfilment of words of the prophet: “Who will take pity upon You, Jerusalem, and who will nod in sympathy with you, and who will turn aside to ask how you are?”", + "Even so, Master of the Universe, You have already promised us that there is no orphaned generation. Even in this generation there must certainly be true Tzaddikim who have the power to gather up our souls and revive them, and reveal new, inspiring Torah teachings that will bring us back to You in complete Teshuvah.", + "HaShem our God and God of our fathers: Have compassion on us and do not turn away from us. Show us the true Tzaddikim of this generation, and grant that we should come close to them. We have no-one to depend on except You, our Father in Heaven, and the true Tzaddikim, through whom You lovingly help and support Your people Israel.", + "God of mercy: Help me fight and control my appetites and my negative thoughts and feelings. Help me break my craving for material wealth, and let me be content with the portion You have given me, HaShem. Let me overcome the urge to get rich, and help me stop chasing after unnecessary extravagances and dishonest gain.", + "Whatever I have to do in the way of work or business in order to make a living, let me do it in holiness and purity for the sake of Your great Name. Help me to be honest in business. Let me make fixed times for Torah study, and let me give the Torah pride of place in my life, with work and business secondary. Don't let me be preoccupied with business worries. Even when I am involved in my work, let my thoughts always be bound to You and Your holy Torah — for there is no work or business activity in the world that does not contain Torah, even if it is heavily veiled.", + "Bring me to perfect trust. Let me trust You at all times, and throw my burden onto You. And You, Hashem, sustain me and guide me in all my business affairs. Let me know how I should conduct myself, when I should buy, when I should sell, and everything else I need to know. Lead me along the right path. Give success to my endeavors. Send me a good living easily and without my having to exert myself at all, so that I will be able to do Your will and occupy myself with Your Torah and serve You at all times.", + "Please, HaShem, have mercy on my soul and the souls of all the Jewish People. Separate us from those who have gone astray and thrown away their eternal reward because of their lust for money. Their days are consumed with worries about making a living. “With the sweat of their brow they will eat bread, until they go back to the earth” — and they will take nothing away with them after all their toil. Loving God, save us from such people.", + "Have mercy on me and on all Your people, the House of Israel, and save us from the lust for money, which has become so strong and widespread in recent generations. We have reached a point where we find it impossible to take a good, calm look at ourselves and carefully think what will become of us in the end and how we will appear when we come before the King. Instead, we are constantly preoccupied with thoughts about how to make a living. Even earning what is necessary causes us tremendous confusion.", + "HaShem, loving God: Have mercy on me and save me from this evil lust for money. Help me give plenty of charity to genuinely deserving people. Let my main intention in all my work and business activities be to give charity. When I give, let me go beyond what I think to be my own limits. Send me deserving recipients. Help me fulfil the mitzvah of charity to perfection, sincerely, joyously, with good feelings and a kind expression. Let me give my charity in such a way that the receiver will not be ashamed. Help me speak to the hearts of those who are poor and unfortunate, to comfort them and help them to feel better.", + "“Send me the joy of Your salvation, and sustain me with a generous spirit.” Let me always be generous and open-hearted, and let me put all my energy into helping those who are genuinely in need. Let me take from my own money and give it to them with both hands, so as to share with them the blessings You constantly shower upon me. And so too, when necessary, let me make every effort on their behalf and go out to my Jewish brothers and call upon their generosity and ask them to give charity. Help me fill the hands of the needy with everything they require, whether food, clothing or anything else.", + "When I appeal to others to donate, help me find favor in their eyes. Let my words enter their ears and hearts and inspire them to give generously of their own accord. Let me receive a handsome contribution from each one. Help me find words that will transform the instinctive cruelty of the heart into a spirit of generosity. And let me myself give abundantly and wholeheartedly all the days of my life.", + "Through the merit and power of the collective charity of Your People, the House of Israel, let us break our desire for money. Let the generous spirit of holy charity come upon us and cool our passion for money, our desire for riches and grandeur, and our burning ambition to be wealthy in a world which isn't even ours. Help us throw aside our gods of silver and gold, until we totally void our hearts of all lust and passion for money.", + "Let us always be happy with our portion. Let us be content with everything You have given each one of us so lovingly at all times. Let us not set eyes on what is not ours. Let us not envy what belongs to our friends. Let us always be happy with our own portion. Loving God, help us to attach ourselves completely to the true Tzaddikim of this generation, who have succeeded in totally breaking the lust for money.", + "Let Your kindness then flow to us, and open up to us the light of Knowledge. Let us come close to a true Tzaddik who has the power and wisdom to gather all the souls together and lift them up, as it is said, “And the wise man takes souls.” All our souls will be merged together in unity, and the true Sage will take them and ascend with them so as to renew them for good, bringing down new Torah teachings from the mouth of the Ancient of Days, as it is said, “The wise man ascended to the city of the mighty and brought down its secure stronghold” — the Torah. Loving God: Reveal to us the secrets of the Torah — the Torah of the concealed Ancient One.", + "Please, HaShem: lovingly grant my request for Your Name's sake. Kind and merciful God: Grant that I should come close to the true Tzaddik of this generation, who has the power and wisdom to gather our souls and elevate them, unifying the Holy One blessed be He and His Indwelling Presence. And let our souls be reborn and renewed for good through the new Torah teachings he will reveal.", + "You know how bitter and confused I am. I'm so bitter that “...the power to endure has collapsed.” I cannot bear my pain and confusion any more. My mind is racing everywhere. I have no-one to stand up for me and help me, and save me from this confusion and bitterness.", + "I have nothing to rely on except the true Tzaddikim. They are the only ones who have the wisdom and skill to save someone like me from this confusion, and elevate even my worst traits and desires. Only the Tzaddikim have the power to purify my negative characteristics and elevate them together with all my good traits and desires. Only they can gather together the scattered parts of my personality and lift them all up together so as to renew them for good, radiating new light to my darkened soul. I will then be able to experience the “brilliant lights,” and my hungry soul will be filled with good, and my youth renewed like the eagle. My soul will be joined with all the souls of Your people, the House of Israel, and we will all be united, great and small.", + "Loving, gracious God: Let me come close to the true Tzaddik who has this power and wisdom. Let him gather all our souls together and rise with them before the throne of Your glory, so as to arouse Your love for us. Let our souls rise up and give You pleasure and find favor before You. And You rejoice in our souls, and let Your unity be revealed through us — the unity of the Holy One blessed be He and the Indwelling Presence. Let all our souls be renewed and reborn. The Tzaddik will bring down new Torah teachings, and the secrets of the Torah — the Torah of the Ancient Concealed One — will be revealed to us. With this the Tzaddik will mend our souls, perfecting the Supreme Chariot and the Lower Chariot.", + "Let love and harmony reign among us constantly, until we all become unified and inspire one another. Let us remind each other to turn to You sincerely, break all our bad traits and desires, and acquire good qualities by doing what is right in Your eyes all the days of our lives.", + "If any Jew has a deficiency of any kind, whether through neglecting some good trait or failing to work on a bad one, let a friend point it out to him and give him encouragement so as to enable him to fix everything in this life. Let us all come back to You in perfect Teshuvah and fix all the wrong we have done from our youngest days until today. From now on, help us to attain the good You want for us. Don't let us ever turn aside right or left from what You want. Watch over us with perfect care.", + "HaShem, Master of the Universe: Incline Your ear and hear, open Your eyes and see our devastation. Don't hide Your eyes from us. Loving God: Take pity on us and watch over us with an eye of tender mercy and graciousness, a single eye of love, an open eye that never slumbers. Put us under Your perfect providence and let Your vision rest upon us through Your holy Torah, which You have radiated to us through the true Tzaddikim. Let us be close to Your holy, watchful eye, until we will be the focus of Your vision, and we will become merged with You.", + "Watch over us and take perfect care of us at all times, and send us a flow of goodness, blessing, holiness and purity. See our pitiful condition and how we are struggling. See the pressures we are under, physically and spiritually. Have pity on the Jewish People. We are scattered like a flock without a shepherd. Bring back our distant ones from the four corners of the earth. Redeem us quickly and send us our righteous Mashiach. For this exile of body and soul has gone on for so long that “the power to bear it has collapsed,” as You know, Hashem.", + "Show us love and pity. Shine Your mercy upon us. Bring us our righteous Mashiach quickly, and build the Holy Temple very soon in our days. “And as for me, in Your abundant mercy I will come to Your House. I will prostrate towards the palace of Your holiness in awe of You.” Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart find favor before You, HaShem my Rock and my Redeemer." + ], + [ + "For universal peace to reign, God's glory must be revealed to the world, and all must stand in awe of God.
The way to influence people to come closer to God is through Torat Chessed — the “Torah of Love”. This means studying Torah with the intention of teaching others and forging a connection with them in the actual situation they are in. The Torah, which is called God's “Primordial Thought”, is the blueprint of the Creation as a whole, and the source of the souls of the Jewish People. When studying Torah, we should aim to bring illumination to the very roots of the souls, which derive from the letters of the Torah. An important consequence of studying Torah with this aim is that it brings blessing to the souls of one's children.
True understanding of the Torah comes only through humility. One must therefore empty oneself of all pride. There are three areas in which people are particularly prone to pride: intelligence, power and wealth.
It is through the understanding of the Torah that one attains by cultivating humility that one is able to influence others to repent and come close to God. Repentance can be a painful process, because a person's sins cause his soul to be clothed in “filthy garments” (Zechariah 3:4), and these have to be removed. Nevertheless, there is nothing that enhances God's glory so much as when those who were very far from Him repent and come closer to Him. The enhancement of God's glory brings people to awe. This is the first step to universal peace, since peace can only come into the world through prayer, and perfect prayer depends upon awe of God. It is through awe of God that we are able to conquer our bodily passions, thereby attaining inner peace. Only with inner peace and harmony is one able to offer perfect prayer, since prayer is like a sacrificial offering, which must be without blemish.
We should pray for everything we need in life. Rather than devoting all our efforts to this-worldly means of trying to achieve what we need, we should have faith that “God is good to all” (Psalms 145:9). The Hebrew words could also be translated as “God is good for everything” — meaning that God has the power to provide us with everything we need with a minimum of trouble on our part. The holy words of the prayers have the power to overcome conflict and thus bring about universal peace.
The Chanukah lamp is symbolic of the light of the Torah of Love, which radiates even to those who are farthest away. This is why the preferred position for the Chanukah lamp is next to the street door of one's house, where it shines out for all to see.
HaShem our God and God of our fathers:", + "May it be Your will to completely remove all pride from me. Don't let even the slightest hint of pride or arrogance enter my heart. Bring me to genuinely understand my own lowliness, and let me nullify myself to the point where I will look on myself as being even less significant than I really am.", + "Please, HaShem, loving God: Help me not to be pushed off course by foolish and deceptive thoughts of pride and arrogance. My situation is bad enough as it is. I'm under so much pressure. I feel so remote from You. My inner pain has grown unbearable. I've been suffering for so long. I look around, but I have no-one to help or support me. I feel desolate. My only hope is to call out to You constantly and wait for You to have pity on me and help me. If I allow myself to be swayed by foolish thoughts of pride or arrogance, there won't be any hope for me at all, God forbid. What personal merit do I have to rely on? I've been so foolish in my life. I'm so devoid of good. I have sinned and transgressed in my thoughts, words and deeds, intentionally and unintentionally, ever since my earliest days.", + "Please, HaShem, have pity on my poor soul. Help me! Help me! Save me! Save me! I don't know what to ask for first. I have so many needs, but I don't have the patience to set them all out in detail. I find it impossible to specify all the countless things I need to ask of You. I've fallen very low. I cannot begin to estimate how much damage I have done to my soul, and how I have degraded my own holiness. I have no rest from the forces hounding me. Evil thoughts and feelings are waiting to trap me all the time. They chase me every moment of every day. My sins have sapped my strength, and I have no idea what to do to resist them.", + "Please, HaShem: Show me how to cry out to You. Teach me how to plead to You with all my heart, so as to succeed in my request and persuade You to bring me back to You in perfect Teshuvah and achieve everything You want for me. Let me never turn aside from Your will and Your mitzvot. Help me break all pride and arrogance completely and totally remove them from my life. Let me never succumb to the least hint of arrogance about any of the things people tend to be proud about — wisdom and good deeds, wealth or power. Let me be genuinely humble and modest about whatever I may possess, and void myself of all arrogance.", + "In any case, don't I know that I am empty and lacking in all these areas, “for I am a brute, not a man and I do not have human understanding in me.” I have no strength or power, physical, mental or spiritual. My house is bare of riches. I possess neither wisdom nor strength, nor physical wealth, nor the spiritual wealth of good deeds.", + "Considering my pitifully low level and my extreme distance from You, I really shouldn't need to pray about ridding myself of arrogance at all. But You know the evil of our hearts and the strange ideas we let into our minds. Despite my distance from You, I still indulge in ridiculous ideas about my own importance. So much so that it has become a war on every front. Pride and arrogance attack me on every side, preventing me turning to You, as You know, HaShem, my God and God of my fathers.", + "Even so, I live in constant hope that You will help me. I know that Your love is unending. You examine the innermost depths of the heart, and You know our most hidden secrets. You know that deep within my heart I yearn to come truly close to You and genuinely carry out Your will without any false motives. For Your sake, take pity on me, heavenly Father, Master of All. Grant that I should be able to remove all my pride and come to true humility.", + "Let me act humbly in all my dealings with people — with the great, with ordinary people, and even with the small and the smallest of the small. The fact is that my many sins have made me smaller than even the smallest of the small. Let me know and feel my lowliness in every single limb of my body, until I come to see myself as being even smaller and humbler than I really am, and I will attain the ultimate level of true meekness.", + "Please, HaShem, I know that my words are halting and confused. I have no idea how to order my prayer before You. Still, I base myself on the fact that You listen to all prayers. Kind and loving God, take pity on me and help me to live the way You want me to live from now on and for ever, and bring me to attain true humility.", + "And so too, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, help me labor in Your holy Torah constantly, day and night, in holiness and purity. Let my Torah study arouse the very roots of the souls of Israel, which stem from the Primordial Thought of God. All the Jewish souls are rooted in the letters of the Holy Torah. HaShem, let my labor in the Torah so radiate that my Torah study will arouse the roots of the souls of Israel until they shine to one another, and even the souls of the wicked and the sinners will shine, inspiring them to repent and come back to You. Through the shining of the souls, create and give birth to the souls of converts, and let those who are distant come and convert. Let them acknowledge the power of Your Kingship, until the whole world will genuinely serve You.", + "I may be very lowly and far from studying Torah with such holiness that I can arouse the souls of others to repent. Even so, loving God, take pity on me and help me study Torah in such a way that I unite myself with the soul of the true Tzaddik of this generation, who does learn Torah with this degree of holiness. Let the Tzaddik's Torah teachings so inspire me that my soul will radiate at its very root in the Primordial Thought of the Holy One blessed be He together with the other holy souls of the Children of Israel, Your People. Shine light to me from the root of my soul until I come back to You in genuine Teshuvah.", + "Please, HaShem: I am in such pain! Redeem me! Have pity on my poor, wounded soul, which has been snatched and ground down as if between the teeth of a lion. I am full of sin. I am far from You in every way. When will I think about my destiny and prepare provisions for my journey, like all the pious, God-fearing Jews who have gone before me in all the generations? What will I do on the Day of Judgement? Where will I take my great shame? How will I hide myself away? What will I do when God will arise? When He recalls my deeds, what will I answer Him?", + "You have already informed us through Your holy sages that You overlook nothing in the World to Come. You pay each person according to his ways and the fruits of his deeds. Your love and forgiveness are mainly for the people who genuinely repent in This World. You pardon them for all their sins, even if they rebelled against You greatly. You made this known to Your servant Moses, as it is written: “and He will cleanse — will not cleanse.” Our Rabbis explained this to mean that “ `He will cleanse' — those who repent, and `will not cleanse' — those who do not repent.”", + "I therefore throw myself down and prostrate myself before the radiance of Your holiness. Kind, loving God, who is good to the wicked and the righteous, who waits for the sinner, longing for him to be acquitted: take pity on me, and help me come to complete Teshuvah in This World. Let me repair all the damage I have done before I leave This World. From now on, help me abandon my bad ways, and release me from the evil and confused thoughts that are holding me back from the path of justice and goodness. Let me banish the thoughts that caused me to go wrong and become distanced from You. Rise and help me purify and sanctify my mind. Let me bind my thoughts to You truthfully and sincerely from now on and for ever.", + "Please, HaShem, take pity on my soul. Order all the dirty garments I have clothed my soul in through my sins to be removed. These filthy garments created by my sins are the biggest obstacles to my repentance, preventing me from following Your pathways of goodness and holiness. HaShem, You know what a tremendous struggle it is for me to try to strip myself of these clothes. My “power of endurance has tottered.” I cannot endure the bitter struggle I have to suffer before I can break through the walls of iron separating me from holiness. I have sinned so much that these dirty clothes are very many. You alone know how far I am from You as a result.", + "Stir Your love and compassion for me and have mercy on my nefesh, my ru'ach and my neshamah. Command Your holy angels to take off these sullied garments and clothe me in garments of splendor, so as to remove all the obstacles and barriers of iron that prevent me from sanctifying myself, making it impossible for me to carry out any holy task in the proper way. Take away all these barriers and obstacles. Let me repent sincerely and from now on be a person who genuinely “turns from evil” and does only what is good in Your eyes.", + "Loving God, help me genuinely sanctify myself in my marriage relationship for the sake of Your great Name. Let us draw pure, holy souls for our children — clear, radiant souls drawn from the roots of the souls of the holy Jewish People, which lie in the letters of the Holy Torah, which is drawn from the Supernal Thought of the Holy One blessed be He. Grant that our children should be true Torah scholars, and that they should all be God-fearing and fully developed in all good traits. Let them labor in Your Torah for its own sake, and fulfil Your commandments sincerely and whole-heartedly. Let Your great Name be praised and sanctified through our children and descendants, and let it be said of them that “A wise son brings his father joy,” so that “Your father and your mother will be happy, and the one who gave you birth will rejoice.” Give them long days and years of goodness and pleasantness, and let them do Your will all their days for ever.", + "Please, HaShem, have mercy and take pity on me. Fulfil my requests in love, and forgive me for all my sins. Order all my filthy garments to be removed, and clothe me in clean, pure, holy garments. Help me fulfil the mitzvah of Tzitzit properly, in the best possible manner. Just as I cover myself with the Tallit in This World, so clothe my nefesh, my ru'ach and my neshamah above with a beautiful Tallit and the robe of the Rabbis. Clothe them in clean, white garments, and fulfil in me the verse that says: “at all times your garments will be white and oil for your head will not be lacking.”", + "Arise and help me. Put it into my heart to take up the cause of Your great and holy honor, and that of my own nefesh, ru'ach and neshamah. Owing to our many sins, our status has fallen very low, because we have neglected Your honor and despised our own souls. We have been stripped of so much of our honor during our humiliating exile. “Our honor has dropped low among the nations, and they abhor us like menstrual impurity.” See how very lowly the Jewish People has become, both collectively and as individuals.", + "Take up the cause of Your great and holy glory. It was for Your glory that You created all the worlds, so that Your glory should be magnified and exalted through Your people, as it is written, “All that is called in My Name, for My glory I have created it, formed it and made it.” Why has all the honor gone to strangers instead? Why has all the honor been taken from Israel and fallen into exile among evil, idolatrous people? They have all the glory, while Your people Israel are despised. We are subject to constant abuse and contempt.", + "Take pity on us for Your sake and the sake of Your glory. Send us help from Your holy heights. From now on, inspire me to serve and revere You sincerely, with all my heart. Let me repent and follow the path of perfect Teshuvah. Let me adorn myself and others with good deeds and good character traits. Help me speak to people's hearts and show them the truth, and bring them back to perfect Teshuvah before You, in order that Your great and holy glory will be enhanced and elevated through me.", + "Your glory is most fully revealed when the people who were furthest away from You come genuinely close to You: then “the Name of the Holy One blessed be He is exalted and glorified above and below.” Therefore have pity on me and draw me close to You, despite my present distance from You. Multiply merit by letting me be an instrument to help other people who are also distant to come closer. Magnify and sanctify Your great glory by carrying this out through me, distant as I am. Support me and give me strength, and help me restore Your glory after the humiliation of exile.", + "Help me do everything I can to enhance Your glory at all times, and let me raise Your glory to its source in Awe. Inspire me with holy awe of God. Let me always be in awe of You and revere Your glorious and awesome Name. Help me come to perfect awe of Heaven — awe at Your exaltedness. Let me accord honor to genuinely God-fearing people. Let me defer to them and treat them with sincere, heartfelt respect. If I have been lacking in genuine awe so far, let me now make amends and attain complete awe of Heaven, so as to fulfil the verse: “Fear HaShem, His holy ones, for those who fear Him will lack nothing.” Let me thereby attain perfect inner peace and harmony. Heal me spiritually and physically. Let me be whole, with no flaws or blemishes.", + "Master of the World, I know I'm still far away from perfection. I'm riddled with all kinds of flaws and deficiencies from the soles of my feet to the top of my head. There's not a healthy spot anywhere. “There is no healthy place in my flesh because of Your anger, there is no peace in my bones because of my sin.” My limbs are suffering from the wounds I've inflicted on my soul through all my sins and transgressions. As a result, I am far away from Your service. Nothing I do is without flaws. I never manage to pray properly and without mistakes, for “whatever has a blemish in it shall not come as an offering.” But if I am far from true prayer, what means of coming close to You do I have?", + "Loving Father in Heaven, Master of the Whole World: I know that in spite of all this, You do hear the sound of my cry even from such a distance, and I will raise my voice and call out to You. Father! Father! Master! Master! My King and my God: I beg You! I cry out to You! I scream to You! I plead with You! I reach out and prostrate myself before You! I bend my knee to You and stretch out my hands! Take pity on me! Have mercy on me! Stir Your compassion for me. Watch over me from Your holy dwelling place. Protect me. Heal the pain of my soul. Remove all the wounds I have caused to every limb of my soul.", + "Your way is to use broken vessels. The wonders You do are countless and unfathomable. In Your overwhelming mercy You revive the dead. In Your might You lift up and gather the shards of broken vessels — the shards of the shards — and mercifully mend them and restore them until they shine with greater strength than before. Not a single spark is lost or cast aside, for “In Your hand are strength and might, and it is in Your hand to make everything great and strong.”", + "God, You are the free Healer. Arouse Your love for me and heal me. Remove all flaws and blemishes from my body, from my nefesh, my ru'ach and my neshamah. Send complete healing to all those Jews who are sick, and in particular to [specify the name of the sick person]. Faithful, loving Healer, who heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds: “heal me, HaShem, and I will be healed, save me and I will be saved, for You are my praise.” Let me be whole and perfect, free of all flaws and blemishes.", + "Grant me inner peace, and give me control and mastery over my body so that I will be able to nullify all bodily desires and bad traits. Let my body be completely subordinate to my soul and have no other will or desire but to follow the desire of the holy soul, which is to do Your will. Let peace reign between my soul and my body. Let my body be sanctified and purified until it becomes united with the holy soul, and I carry out all Your commandments and do everything You want of me, body and soul, willingly and with great joy. Let my body and soul unite in love and peace to do Your will sincerely, until I attain complete inner harmony and am ready to order my prayer before You perfectly. Let my prayer rise before You like the incense and perfect sacrifices offered by those who are whole and perfect.", + "Master of the World, let my only motive in taking part in the affairs of this world be for the sake of my soul. Let my only intention in all my prayers be only to perfect my soul. Even when I offer the prayers arranged by Your sages of old, of blessed memory, which contain explicit requests for our bodily needs, as in the blessings of “Heal us” and “Bless this year for us” in the Shmoneh Esray prayer, let my only thought be for the healing of my soul, her livelihood and perfection. Let me believe and know that when everything is in order in the spiritual realm, the fixing of the material realm will follow of itself, and I will automatically receive all the material blessings I need.", + "Bring me to genuine belief in You. Let me have complete faith that You are “good to all,” and that no matter what a person requires, whether healing, livelihood or anything else, You are “good for everything” — You can satisfy all his needs and requirements if he prays to You for what he needs sincerely, begging for compassion. Let all my efforts be directed only to You, HaShem. No matter what I may need, let me only pray to You and appeal for You to help me, instead of trying to get what I need by resorting to worldly ploys and stratagems.", + "What use is it to expend energy on such things, when it is either impossible or extremely difficult to get exactly what we need — whether it be the right medicine, or the things we need to make a living? Surely it is better to turn to You for everything we need. You are very close to us, and available at all times, “For which great nation is there whose god is close to them the way HaShem our God is close to us whenever we call to Him?” You have the power to fulfil all our requests through easily available means. Nothing is too wonderful for You.", + "Let us put all our efforts into constant prayer and supplication. Let us always pray with intense concentration, until we bring peace into all the worlds and they will all come to perfection. Let peace reign among all Your creatures. Let them all love one another. This will cause Your love, kindness and mercy to descend over all Your creatures, since, as our Rabbis taught, “Whoever shows love for God's creatures is shown love from Heaven.” Let us see the fulfilment of the verse: “HaShem is good to all, and his love is upon all his works.”", + "Master of the World: If my words are halting, open Your mouth to me and help me order my prayers and requests in a fitting manner and offer them truly and sincerely at all times. Let me always be able to express everything I need to say to You. Help me to explain everything I have in my heart in such a way as to elicit Your love and kindness, so that You will always grant my requests.", + "Please, HaShem, let me come to everything I have asked of You. Through the power and merit of the Torah-labors of the true Tzaddikim, let a great light shine down to us from the source of our souls, inspiring us to repent for all our sins so that we elevate the holy glory from its deep, humiliating exile amidst the husks. Let Your great and holy glory always be enhanced, sanctified, exalted and elevated through us. Let Your glory be revealed throughout the world. Let Your glory shine over the whole earth, as it is written: “And the earth will shine with His glory.” ... “And the glory of God will be revealed, and all flesh will see together that the mouth of God has spoken.”", + "Let us elevate Your glory to its root in Awe, and rectify all its flaws. Bring us to perfect Awe of the glorious, awesome Name of HaShem, and let us attain the Higher Awe — awe of Your exalted greatness. Let us have no fear of anything in the world. Let us only fear You, and let Your awe be upon our faces, so that we will not sin in any way from now on and for ever.", + "Through this awe, grant us peace. Let peace reign within us. Let our bodies be subordinate to our holy souls and united with them to do Your will at all times. Bring us to perfect prayer, and hear our prayers constantly and bring peace to the whole world. Loving God, bring peace to reign among the Heavenly Hosts and the hosts of the lower realms. Remove all strife from the world. HaShem, You alone know how much evil is caused by the strife plaguing us today, and in particular the terrible conflicts raging between the Tzaddikim and the pious people of this generation. Everyone's heart is divided from his friend's.", + "Loving God: Take pity on us, and reveal the truth in the world. Let peace reign among Your people Israel for ever. Send blessings of peace into all the worlds, and let peace descend into this material world, so that all the creatures on earth will show love one for the other, and great peace will reign between all of them.", + "Help me to carry out the mitzvah of kindling the Chanukah lamp in its season in the best possible way, in holiness and purity and with great devotion. Through the mitzvah of the Chanukah lights, let me rectify everything I have mentioned in my prayer. Consider my fulfilment of the mitzvah as if I had carried it out in all its details and fine points and intentions, together with all the six hundred and thirteen mitzvot that are bound up with it. Let the light of the holiness of our mitzvot shine before You in all the worlds. Let us repair all the worlds through fulfilling this mitzvah, together with all the commandments laid down in the Torah and by the Rabbis. Help us carry out all of them perfectly, in love, awe and great joy, until we draw Godly peace into all the worlds, and “HaShem will give power to His people, HaShem will bless His people with peace.”", + "He who makes peace in His high places will lovingly make peace for us and for all Israel, and say Amen." + ], + [ + "A person who wishes to taste the “hidden light” — the secrets of Torah which will be revealed in the future — must first free himself of all fears except the fear of God. Not only must we fear God because of His power to punish. We must also strive to reach a higher level of fear, where we are in awe of God for His supreme greatness.
The path by which this level of awe is attained is one of constant self-examination and self-judgement. We must set aside special times for introspection, and evaluate all our involvements and behavior against the yard-stick of the Torah. People who neglect to judge themselves are judged by Heaven, and may be sent all kinds of worldly fears and worries in order to goad and chastize them. But when a person judges himself, the need for such heavenly prompting is eliminated, as he himself has taken the initiative to bring himself closer to God. He thus becomes free of mundane fears, and stands in true awe of God's greatness.
One who reaches this level of awareness is able to attain understanding of the revealed Torah, which requires humility. Through humility one can come to true prayer: instead of praying for one's own needs, one rises above materialistic interests, surrendering oneself to God. God in Himself is beyond all knowledge, but the words of the prayers, which are woven from Divine Names and attributes, are God-given “screens” through which we are able to gaze at His light. When a person prays with total surrender, God gives him a glimpse of the secrets of the Torah which will be revealed in the future.
HaShem our God and God of our fathers! Great, mighty, awesome God, whose fear and awe are upon all the dwellers of Heaven, on all the Seraphim, the Ophanim and the holy Chayot, and upon all the worlds and all creatures above and below... all will quake and tremble in awe of Your Name.", + "Loving God: Have pity on me, sad, pathetic creature that I am. Fill me with holy awe of You at all times, and let the fear of God be on my face so that I will not sin. Let me feel awe of You in all my limbs.", + "Please, HaShem, loving, merciful God: Don't let me lose my eternal reward. Don't let all my efforts come to nothing and bear no fruits. Help me to examine myself constantly and reflect carefully on what I am doing in this fleeting world. Let me think about my path in life. Let me evaluate everything I do every day and every moment. Let me always ask myself whether I am behaving the way I ought to or not, so that I will take myself in hand and repent for my wrongful thoughts and behavior. Let me genuinely “turn from evil” in thought, word and deed, and do only what is good in Your eyes at all times.", + "Please, HaShem, have mercy on me. Take pity on me. See how low I have fallen. I'm in terrible trouble — worse than someone adrift at sea and lying in the most dangerous place on the boat. I have no idea where I should run... where I should fly... to try to escape from my inner torment. I have no idea how to cry out to You. For years now I've been calling to You to stir Your love and mercy and release me from my evil thoughts and ways, so as to bring me out of my darkness to goodness and light. Through Your true Tzaddikim You have taught us that prayer helps in everything. Prayer is the basis for all true closeness to You. You hear all prayers, no matter whose. You even listen to a cry from the belly of hell and the lowest depths. Then why will You not attend to the words of Your servant, who has been standing and crying out to You for such a long time?", + "Not only have I failed to improve my behavior day by day. Every day my spiritual state is worse than it was the day before. I simply don't know what method I should use to try to bring holy power into myself in order to fight and conquer my evil urge and break and remove my desires. There's only one way I can escape from my urges and save my soul from hell — through prayers and supplications, cries and screams. But even this I find impossible. How can someone as persecuted, beaten about and manhandled as I have been come to true prayer? I have no option but to cry out and pray to the best of my ability. But if even this does not help, God forbid, I don't know what I can do to escape.", + "Master of the World, I know the truth: I myself am the guilty one. “The sin is mine, Master” — because I don't try to fight my desires for even a brief moment. In fact, I encourage them. Not only have I made no effort to grapple with my desires and remove them. I've actively embraced them. God help me to stop doing so from now on. But I've already asked You to help me with this. I've begged You to have mercy and save me from my very self. Let me stop being so cruel to my poor soul. Let me have pity on myself. No-one is more pathetic than a person who is far away from You and still unable to come close to You. This You well know, HaShem, my God, healer of the sick, who releases those who are in bondage and supports those who have fallen, and who hears the cry of the destitute. Have mercy on me! Don't abandon me! Don't throw me away! See how low I've fallen. See my bitter plight.", + "But I know that my Redeemer is alive and that from a distance You are planning to benefit me in the end and release me from my exile. Answer me, Hashem, answer me! Help me, help me! Save me, save me! Have compassion and save me from destruction. Help me repent sincerely and come to perfect Teshuvah. Let me walk the path of Your statutes and observe Your laws.", + "Help me to judge myself. Help me to achieve a state of calm concentration every day, so that I will be able to examine myself carefully and weigh my various activities and involvements for myself. Let me decide if it is right for me to spend my days acting the way I do, God forbid. Help me to sustain my concentration for long enough to be able to examine myself calmly, without allowing my thoughts to wander or avoiding what I have to confront. Let me follow this practice of calm self-examination persistently and diligently, until I develop the most intense powers of concentration. Let me then use them to direct myself away from all wrongful thoughts and actions without hesitating for a moment. Let me repent completely, and come to do only good.", + "Bring me to perfect fear of Heaven, so that I will “fear this glorious awesome Name — HaShem our God.” Let my fear of God be pure and clear, without being mixed up with extraneous fears. Let me fear only God. Deal with me kindly, and sweeten and nullify all severe decrees against me, my children and descendants, and the entire Jewish People. Don't judge me according to my actions. Don't bring me to trial — because no-one alive can be vindicated before You. Loving God: Decree that any possible accusations against me should be null and void, so as to rule out all harsh judgements against me, God forbid. Help me to examine and judge myself at all times, so that I myself will take the initiative to repent genuinely, until I will eventually come to live and act the way You want me to.", + "Save me from all extraneous, “fallen fears,” whether of officials and other influential people, or of wild animals, thieves, or anything else in the world. Let me only fear and revere You, and let Your fear be on my face at all times so as not to sin. Let me elevate my fear to its root in Da'at — holy knowledge and awareness of HaShem. Help me attain complete knowledge and awareness of You in holiness and purity, so that I will know Who I am afraid of, and fear only Your great Name. Let holy awe penetrate every part my entire body, my two hundred and forty-eight limbs and my three hundred and sixty-five sinews. Let me be filled with true fear and awe of Your great and holy Name at every moment, and lovingly bring me to genuine, perfect Da'at in holiness and purity.", + "HaShem, You know how minimal and distorted my awareness of You is. My evil deeds, my foul thoughts and confused ideas have corrupted my mind. I have reached a point where I simply do not know how to work out the best course for me to take in any sphere of life. Loving God, treat me tenderly and mercifully, and grant me perfect holy Da'at. Let me know Your Name and always fear You, and bring me to the higher level of holy fear: awe at Your supreme greatness.", + "Help me labor at Your holy Torah constantly, day and night. Open my mind and let my eyes see the light of Your Torah. Grant me a clear, pure intellect with which to study Your holy Torah. Give me a rapid grasp of everything I study. Let nothing in the world have any power to distract me and throw me off course during my study-sessions — whether irrelevant thoughts, or fantasies about the vain pleasures of this world, or confused and distorted ideas about my studies themselves and how to approach them. Help me fight off all such distractions and confusion while studying. Let me rapidly cover plenty of ground with clear understanding. Let me start and finish all the books of the holy Torah, both the Written and the Oral Torah, and go through them again and again many times.", + "HaShem, loving God: You know the powerful distractions and mental confusion I suffer from constantly, especially when studying. Until now I have never once managed to study with a clear head for even a brief moment. All day, and even when I'm studying, my mind is in turmoil, with an endless succession of thousands upon thousands of twisted and confused thoughts and feelings. I have no idea where to run to escape them.", + "HaShem: You know how disjointed my thoughts are. I've damaged my mind so much. For years and years now my thoughts just go everywhere. My mind wanders along every avenue of folly, confusion and evil. I cannot possibly go into all the details. If I wanted to describe even a tiny fraction of the turmoil in my mind, it would take for ever. The true Tzaddikim have given much good advice about how to escape such thoughts by just sitting passively without pursuing them further. But I have neglected their teachings and done the very opposite. I have thrown away all the good advice You have revealed and continue to reveal through various hints, as to how to escape mental confusion and turmoil. I've made no effort to follow any of it. My mind is so confused that even when I want to fight my evil thoughts and keep to Your advice I am no longer capable of keeping calm and concentrating on holy thoughts for even a short time.", + "HaShem, loving Father in Heaven: You are filled with love and kindness every single moment. You know how far I am from purity of thought and holy knowledge. My years have been wasted on vanity, emptiness, confusion: I've had nothing but evil, corrupt thoughts the whole time. In my entire life I've never had even a single hour of true inner calm and concentration. My sins and immorality have left my mind turbulent and confused. I have no idea how to heal myself and go about cultivating true holy knowledge and awareness, because I have failed in all the pathways of holy knowledge.", + "Please HaShem, have mercy on me. Have pity on my poor, exhausted, weak, hungry, thirsty soul, which has descended to such a level of degradation. You alone know the true pathos of our condition at this time of deep exile, as we await the coming of Mashiach. The dimensions of our spiritual tragedy cannot begin to be described. It is impossible to express even a tiny fraction of our troubles in words. Heavenly Father, be kind to us and help us! Heavenly Father, I have no idea what to say and how I can placate You, seeing that I've rejected Your profound guidance and rebelled against You so much.", + "Master of the World: You know that regardless of anything I might say to You or ask of You, if I have any hopes of speedy salvation, the only thing I can depend on is the power of the true Tzaddikim. You have sent us Tzaddikim in every generation. In this generation too You have sent us awesomely great Tzaddikim. I have nothing to rely on except their strength. And so, let Your great love and compassion for me be aroused. I am under continuous attack. I've fallen so low. I'm in such pain. My heart is so stricken. Loving God, help me! Through the power of the true Tzaddikim and in their merit, help me fight against all my evil thoughts and develop perfect knowledge and awareness of God in holiness and purity. Help me study and ponder Your holy Torah constantly, day and night. Let my thoughts and intellect be cleansed and purified until they are free of all waste. Let my mind be sharp and alert, and help me gain a true, clear grasp of whatever subject I am studying quickly and without my having to pore over it at all.", + "Bring me to true meekness and humility. Let me never be swayed by the least hint of pride or by false motives. Even when You help me and enable me to learn much Torah, don't let me take any of the credit for myself. Don't allow my Torah studies to lead me into arrogance. Let me learn much Torah for its own sake, in holiness, purity, and true humility. Help me study, teach, guard, practice and fulfil all Your Torah teachings in love.", + "Loving God, bring me to true prayer. Throughout the day let me always pray in the proper way, truthfully and sincerely. Arouse my feelings until I pour out my very heart to You in prayer and supplication. Help me bring all the goodness concealed within my inner good “point” out into the light. Let me draw the words of my prayers and supplications from the very depths of my heart, until the goodness concealed within me will be revealed and the good will outweigh the evil, enabling me to subdue my evil side and remove it completely. Bring me from evil to good, from darkness to great light.", + "Help me pray with complete surrender, until I lose all sense of my own independent existence and material being. Let me not pray for my own benefit. Help me to rise beyond all the limitations of self, as if I am not in the world at all. Let my only aim in my prayers be for the sake of Your Name, to lift up the Divine Presence from the exile and reveal Your Godliness throughout the world.", + "Loving God: You have already begun to reveal Yourself to the world. Through the true Tzaddikim, You have taught us to offer You songs and praises, prayers and supplications. You have sustained us by teaching us Your holy Names and attributes, thereby permitting us to address You and call upon You. This is the only support we have in our hopes of drawing close to You with all our hearts and knowing You. Now too, help all of us in every generation. Help every Jew, including me. Through the Torah that I study, give me holy understanding and help me offer You constant songs, praises, prayers and supplications all the days of my life. Let me pray with perfect sincerity, with faith, complete calm and full concentration. Guide me toward the truth, so that I will call to You and address You in fitting terms, and my requests and praises will find favor before You and arouse Your love and good will.", + "From now on, bring me genuinely close to You and lavish me with kindness from Your treasury of goodness. My eyes are hanging on You, waiting for You to bring me to true prayer. Help me to immerse myself in constant prayer, until I come to grasp the true secrets of the Torah, and I will have a taste of the hidden light which You are going to reveal to the true Tzaddikim in the future — the innermost secrets of the Torah. Let me gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and contemplate in His sanctuary.", + "Master of all, kind, loving God: Grant that I should attain such a level of Torah and fervent prayer that, even in this world, I will be worthy of a taste of the hidden light that is concealed and stored away for those who fear You, as it is written: “How great is Your goodness that You have hidden away for those that fear You and have made for those who take refuge in You against the sons of man.”", + "HaShem: You are good and benevolent to all. You know that there is no true good in the world except to turn from evil and to do good, to genuinely subject ourselves to the Torah and divine service with complete sincerity at all times, until we are granted a taste of the hidden light even in this world. This is the true and enduring good. Deal with me mercifully and grant that I should taste Your true goodness. “He lifts up the lowly from the dust, He will raise up the destitute from the trash-heap.” Be kind to me. Elevate me and satisfy me with Your goodness. Show me the radiance of Your glory and grant me eternal life from now and for ever. Amen. Selah." + ], + [ + "There are times when “making a break from Torah is the way to keep the Torah” (Menachot 99). It is impossible to study and pray continuously without a break. The question is how to strike the right balance between study and devotion on the one hand and relaxation on the other without wasting time.
During the period of the exile, the forces of evil and the seventy nations are “clouds covering the eyes” (Zohar III:252) — preventing the eyes of the intellect from “shining like the sun and the moon.” However in the time of Mashiach, these clouds will be removed, and it will be possible to devote ourselves to Torah and service of God constantly.
Master of the Universe:", + "You created us in this lowly world for a good purpose. You decreed that our souls should descend from the upper world, the palace of the King, the Holy of Holies, and enter a physical body in this world. Your holy intention was for our good, to enable us to attach ourselves to You in this lowly world. Because of this, it is clearly our obligation to remain attached to You constantly without a moment's break. We should busy ourselves with Your holy Torah day and night, without the least interruption and without wasting any time. For the Torah is our source of vitality and long life. We have no vitality except when attached to You and Your holy Torah.", + "But HaShem, what should we do? You know that because of the gross materialism of our bodies and our long exile among the nations caused by our many sins, it is quite impossible for us to be constantly attached to You and Your holy Torah the way we should, without a break. We have no choice but to leave aside our Torah studies every so often and interrupt our exploration of Your holy wisdom for a while. Our minds are subject to such powerful distractions owing to “the clouds that cover the eyes” during this deep exile. Even the true Tzaddik is forced to take a break from his devotions and his pursuit of the higher wisdom in order to rest his mind. Otherwise the distractions would become overwhelming, and they could throw him off course and thwart him completely.", + "If this applies to the Tzaddik, what should I do? I am bereft of understanding and wisdom. I have no idea how to conduct myself as regards learning and resting. How can I strike the right balance between them, so that I rest only when necessary, without wasting too much time?", + "I have therefore come before You to ask Your help. HaShem my God and God of my fathers: guide me on the right path. Send me wisdom, understanding and knowledge from Your holy dwelling-place. Help me know how to conduct myself in regard to the teaching that “making a break from the Torah is sometimes the way to keep the Torah.” Guide me and teach me to act at all times as You would want me to for my own good. Let me do everything properly at the right time.", + "Let me constantly devote myself to Torah, prayer and good deeds for the sake of Your Name, day and night. Let me apply myself unremittingly and with all my energy. Help me fill every day with genuine service of God. Grant me to know when I need to rest a little. Let me never rest except when necessary. Even when I do need to take a break from Torah study, help me not to lose everything, God forbid. Grant me knowledge and understanding, and inspire me with the wisdom to be able to be inwardly attached to HaShem and to the holy Torah even at times when I am not studying.", + "Even when I have to interrupt my studies, let the eyes of my mind shine with the trace of the light of the wisdom of the holy Torah that still remains from when I was studying. Let my eyes shine like the sun and the moon — sometimes like the sun, as when I am attached to the higher wisdom in Your holy Torah, and sometimes like the moon, as when I am forced to take a break from the pursuit of wisdom and Torah study. Let my eyes then radiate like the sheen of the waxing moon, so that I will be able to be attached to You constantly for ever.", + "Help me at all times, and bring me to genuine and complete teshuvah. From now on, let me be truly attached to You the way You want, and let me spend all my days in Torah, prayer and good deeds, in holiness and purity, truth and faith, awe and love, joy and satisfaction at the abundance of everything. Loving God: help me not to waste a single hour or even a single moment of my short life. My days are few, and if not now, then when?", + "The time will come when You will ask me to account for every hour and every moment of every day of my life. Help me! Even when I am forced to take a break from Torah study, send me activities that are bound up with Your service and in accord with Your will, through which I can exercise my intellect and relax my mind, and still be involved in holy activities that are truly in accordance with Your will. Have pity on me, and help me live the way You want me to from now and at all times.", + "Arouse Your great love for us and redeem us very soon. Send us Mashiach quickly — Mashiach ben David and Mashiach ben Yosef. Let them both be joined and merged together. Let them subdue all the seventy nations and all the forces of evil and throw them down into the dust. Let their wisdom be revealed to the world. Let their fountains spread outwards, and let the earth be filled with the knowledge of HaShem as the waters cover the sea. Let every being know that You made it and every creature understand that You created it, and let all the nations repent and come to serve and fear You through the wisdom of the two Mashiachs. Fulfil the prophecy: “For then I will send the nations a pure language, so that all will call on the Name of HaShem and serve Him with one accord.”", + "Remove the dominion of arrogance from the earth, and speedily uproot, break, cast down, destroy and humble the forces of evil speedily in our days. Take away all the clouds covering the eyes. We will then be able to be attached to You and Your holy Torah constantly, without any interruption at all. No obstacle will have any power to distract our minds at all. We will be able to remain attached to You constantly all the days of our lives for ever, and the verse will be fulfilled: “The light of the moon will be as the light of the sun.” Speedily in our days. Amen." + ], + [ + "There is a tremendous potential for good in the world as a whole and within each one of us, but today much of it is trapped in exile. As individuals we struggle with our own inner barriers, while the world at large continues to resist the truth of Godly revelation. For centuries, this resistance took the form of ruthless persecution of the Jews, which among other things prevented them from doing much of the good they could have accomplished. This unrealized potential for good fell into captivity, as it were, among the non-Jews.
The true Tzaddik labors to reveal and arouse this goodness by restoring our awareness of the lofty status of our souls. The entire creation was brought about for the sake of the souls of the Jewish People, and God takes pride in each one, even in the smallest gesture a sinner makes to bring himself a little nearer to God. The Tzaddik also has the power to stir the good held in captivity among the non-Jews, which comes out in the form of righteous converts.
When a person is insensitive to the message of the Tzaddik, it is because of his own sins, which cause his Godly intellect to become clouded, leaving him prey to all kinds of specious doubts and questions. One of the main keys to restoring the clarity of the Godly intellect is giving charity — both to those in need materially, and to the true Tzaddik, who uses the money to spread his teachings and provide for the spiritual needs of the world. By giving charity one becomes unified with the many souls who benefit from it, thereby strengthening the power of good in oneself and the world as a whole.
A second key to mental and spiritual clarity is to eat in holiness and purity. On the other hand, excessive self-indulgence leads to mental confusion and the blunting of the faculties of awe and love that are central to our relationship with God.
Ruler of all the worlds, Master of all the souls:", + "You created Your universe for the sake of Your people Israel, as it is written: “Be-reishit — In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth” — on which our Rabbis commented: “Be-reishit — for Israel, who are called reishit, the first.” Israel arose in the Divine thought first. For our sake You created all the worlds, from the beginning of Atzilut, the World of Emanation, down to this physical world, the earth and everything on it, the seas and all that is in them. You created everything for a good purpose, in order that You could take pride in us in every generation.", + "And so, loving Father, have pity on us, and help us always to do what is good in Your eyes. Let us genuinely become the people You want us to be. Let us turn aside from evil and always do good, so that Your pride and delight in us can be revealed for all time.", + "Loving God, help me give plenty of charity to needy people who genuinely deserve it and to the true Tzaddikim, so that I can become unified with a multitude of Jewish souls and thereby bring the good hidden within me out into the light. You know the great beauty, the holiness and goodness I have inside me. It's just that they've been suppressed and locked away in a long, bitter exile for years and years, from my very first day on earth until today. I've still not been able to take myself in hand and bring this hidden good out of exile and into the light. I find it impossible to keep in mind where I am in the world. I don't know what to do to bring out the good I have inside me.", + "Please, HaShem, guide me as to what I should do. Show me Your love and give me complete success. Do wonders with me and give me life. Don't let me be like a dead person in my own lifetime! Treat me with the unstinting kindness that befits You, not according to my wrongful, shameful behavior and attitudes. Please have pity on my poor, broken soul and stir up Your compassion for the essential good inside me. Only with this will I be able to fight and conquer the body and its desires, until the good will take command over the bad and all my bodily desires and bad character traits will be removed, and I will always lead my life the way You want me to.", + "Father in Heaven! Father in Heaven! Kind, truly loving Father, who takes pity on the poor and hears the cry of the needy; who sees the disgrace of the wretched, and hears and attends to a cry from the lowest depths of hell and lower. There is no sigh or cry from anywhere that You do not hear. Teach me and guide me as to what I should say to You. Let me know what I should cry out to You.", + "Please, please have pity on me. I feel so humiliated. My heart is so crushed. I feel so bereft of intelligence and sensitivity. I am so weak, so confused, so driven, so mixed up. The good inside me is literally trapped and imprisoned in a bitter exile. I'm hemmed in by thousands and thousands of fences, barriers and walls of iron. Thousands upon thousands of guards and lurking enemies stand waiting for me the whole time, and they won't give me back my soul!", + "I find it impossible to do even the slightest thing the way I'm supposed to. Even when I feel inspired to do something holy, I feel incapable of taking the smallest step with the beauty and splendor that befit a Jew, as You know. Oy! It is so bitter! bitter! Oy! It's all so very bitter. Oy for my soul — the soul that acted this way! Oy! The days and years I've wasted on vain emptiness, futility and evil. Master of everything: to You I cry and scream. Compassionate God! Turn Your ear to me and hear! Open Your eyes and see my devastation! See my wretched plight!", + "Master of the Universe, in Your great love You gave me the privilege of being a Jew. You were kind to me and brought me close to the true Tzaddikim — to believe in them and long for them. In the merit of those holy saints, now at rest in the earth, deal with me kindly and help me experience a true spiritual awakening. Let the good within me be genuinely aroused and let me be aware of it! Let the good in me come to understand its great worth and know from where it was taken — from the Supreme Thought of the Holy One, blessed be He. There I arose in the Primordial Thought, together with all the souls of Israel — and I, the lightest creature in the “sea” — above all the four worlds, Atzilut, Beriyah, Yetzirah and Asiyah...", + "In my root I am higher than all of them, for I am a member of the People of Israel, who arose in the Primordial Thought. With us God took counsel in creating all the worlds and everything in them, down to the depths of Asiyah — this world, together with everything in it, in the heavens, on earth and in the seas.", + "And now, after all this, please help me! Strengthen me! Fortify me! Stir me and let me wake up! Kind, loving God: Help me realize exactly where I am, where I've been cast down to, and how distanced I've been from You for so long. Would anyone believe that the true goodness rooted inside me could have been cast down to such a dismal, shadowy, lowly place, into such abject darkness, down to such degraded, lowly places — places so remote from holiness that they can't even be called places?", + "Please, HaShem, have pity on me! Every time I want to speak to You and express my feelings, I have no idea where to start or how to finish. I'm under such extreme pressures and my needs are so many that even tens of thousands of pages wouldn't be enough to explain them all. As a result, I can't open my mouth at all. Even when I do start to talk a little, everything I say is confused, because I have so many different needs that I cannot begin to set them all out and explain everything.", + "But to You, Master of everything, all secrets are revealed going right back to the very beginnings of creation. You know what is hidden in our hearts and in the depths of our thoughts, and how in my innermost, innermost thoughts, the good in me screams out in the most heart-rending, unbearably bitter voice. The true pity of my condition is beyond all measure. Then why have You closed Your ear to me and hidden Your face for so long? Why have You held back Your love from me?", + "HaShem our God and God of our fathers: Just as You showed such abundant love and kindness in creating me a Jew, so too may it be Your will to arouse Your mercy for me now and help me attend carefully to the words of the true Tzaddikim. Let my eyes be open and my ears hear and my heart understand their message, because their constant labor is to awaken the goodness rooted in the souls of the Jewish People and lift it out of its exile, by bringing people to repent and making converts.", + "Let me hear the voice of the Tzaddikim of this generation, and the words of the true Tzaddikim now at rest in the earth, as written in their holy works. Let me hear, see and understand their holy words, until the good within me is awakened in its full strength and holy power, so that I will fight against the evil in me, break it, and drive it out of me completely. Let me return to You with all my heart in perfect, genuine teshuvah, and live the way You want me to in holiness, purity, joy and good-heartedness.", + "Please, HaShem, have pity on me and do what I'm asking of You. And so too, loving God, let the truth be revealed to the whole world, and let the entire Jewish People be aroused so that they come to complete repentance. Let those who are far from You hear and come to recognize the power of Your kingship. Show Your love for the Jewish People, and for the good that is imprisoned among the nations of the world. God: it is in Your power to work mighty miracles and wonders. Do so now, and send a new awareness to the goodness that is scattered and dispersed amongst the nations, so far away from holiness. Let those scattered, exiled souls realize where they are in the world, and where they are likely to go, God forbid, if they do not come back to their source. Arouse them until they take themselves in hand and remember HaShem and repent and convert wholeheartedly.", + "HaShem: only You know the full tragedy of this goodness, imprisoned as it is in such places. You know the truth, that nothing in the world is more pitiful. No pain and suffering on earth can compare with the unbearably bitter torment suffered by this good, which is in such deep exile and so far away from its Father in Heaven. “What does it benefit the Father to have banished his children? And woe to the son who has gone into exile from his Father's table.” Oy! How bitter for this son! Oy! how terribly, terribly bitter for this son, who was once in such an exalted place and has now fallen so low.", + "If You Yourself won't take pity on us, who will? Who will stand up for us? We have no-one to depend on except You, heavenly Father. The true Tzaddikim who had the power to arouse the imprisoned good to awareness of the truth have passed away because of our many sins. What are we to do in this time of trouble, the like of which has never been? We have been left like a solitary mast on top of a mountain, like a lone banner on a hill. We have nothing to lean on for support. Our strength is gone. We have no-one to lead us and help us. See how impoverished we are. Our hearts are full of pain and sorrow. Help us, because we are relying on You, for You are good to all.", + "For the sake of Your goodness and glory, do what You will do to bring all this scattered and dispersed goodness out of its exile among the nations and back to holiness. Keep on bringing more and more true converts and penitents back, until the whole Jewish People and all the people in the world will turn to You with all their hearts. Let us see the splendor of Your power, and let all the idols and false gods be utterly cut off, until the dominion of the eternal God will be revealed over the whole world and all flesh will call on Your Name. Let all the wicked turn to You, and all the inhabitants of the earth will acknowledge You and know that to You every knee must bend and every tongue swear.", + "Loving God: Help me break my urge to eat unnecessarily, until I become totally free of any urge to eat purely for the sake of gratifying my physical appetite. Let me eat and drink only for Your sake — in order to have the strength to follow the path of Your Torah with all my heart. Let me eat in holiness and purity for Your Name's sake.", + "Loving God: help me and protect me from ever eating any forbidden foods, both those forbidden by the Torah and those forbidden by our Sages. Always guard me from all hidden pitfalls, and never let any forbidden food come into my mouth. Master of the entire universe: You know that it is impossible for a mere human constantly to be on guard against all the different kinds of forbidden foods or mixtures of them. There is such an enormous number of complex details. And You also know the terrible damage it does to a Jewish soul to eat forbidden foods.", + "Please have pity on me and help me for Your sake. Guard my soul, and keep me well away from any kind of forbidden food — non-kosher animals, worms and bugs, mixtures of meat and milk, non-kosher wine, forbidden fat and blood, the sciatic nerve, the limb of a living animal, non-Jewish bread, food cooked by a non-Jew, chametz on Pesach, and all other kinds of forbidden foods and mix-ins. Protect me and save me from all of them. Don't let any of them ever come into my mouth or bring impurity into my soul. Let me and my children, my descendants and the whole Jewish People be clean and pure, and keep us away from all forbidden foods. Sanctify us with Your exalted holiness and let us follow Your commandment to “be holy, for I am holy.”", + "Have compassion on me, and save me from all kinds of impurity and anything that makes the soul disgusting. Sanctify me in every way. Help me eat with the holiness that befits a Jew. By eating in holiness and purity, let me repair the damage to the holy altar, and let my table atone for me like the altar itself. Bring me to perfect faith, and give me the strength and wisdom to banish all kinds of false beliefs. Help me bring people who have strayed into false beliefs back to true faith in God.", + "Please, HaShem: help me overcome my bodily desires and my lack of self-control, and give me mental clarity. Grant that I should be able to give charity generously to large numbers of deserving people, and to the true Tzaddikim of our generation, so as to be able to repair the damage to the altar caused by our sins. Today we cannot bring fire-offerings and sacrifices, and we have no priest to atone for us.", + "Have pity on me: let me overcome my desire to eat unnecessarily, and from now on help me eat in holiness and purity so that my table will atone like the altar. Let me have guests at my table; let me give a portion of my meals to those in need; let me study Torah at the table, and let me eat all my meals in complete holiness.", + "Let my conduct at the table purify me from all my sins and earn me my share in the world to come, as well as a good livelihood in this world. Let me be marked for good in the highest worlds, and let me develop my strength for the time I will need it. Don't allow the forces of unholiness to draw nourishment from my table and my eating, except for the barest minimum that has to be given to them in accordance with Your will, but no more.", + "Let me fulfil the mitzvah of washing my hands before eating bread and at the end of the meal, and let me thereby sanctify my hands and bring perfect holiness and purity into myself in fulfilment of the verse: “You shall sanctify yourselves and be holy, for I, HaShem am holy.” Help me say the blessing over bread, the grace after meals, and all the other blessings before and after food, with full concentration and devotion, in holiness and purity. Let my table be worthy of having applied to it the verse: “And he spoke to me, `This is the table that is before HaShem.' “ Through eating in holiness, let me overcome my mental confusion and lack of self-control, and help me attain perfect wisdom and connection with God.", + "Please, HaShem: You know the constant mental confusion and turbulence I suffer from. I just cannot stand it. But I have absolutely no idea what to do to try to clear my mind and rid myself of my impulsiveness and folly. These are the cause of my sinful behavior, but far from being able to bring some order into my mind and behave the way I should, I constantly do what I should not: my behavior is becoming more and more impulsive and reckless, and my mind ever more turbulent.", + "“My eyes are lifted up above, HaShem. Redeem me and save me! Intercede for the good of Your servant, and don't let my arrogant thoughts and sins overwhelm me. Take my soul out of prison.” Grant me knowledge, understanding and wisdom, and help me repent of my evil thoughts. Let me abandon my wicked path and my corrupt and confused thoughts, which create such barriers against my turning to You. Have pity on me. Have compassion on me. Stir up Your love and mercy for me. Give me hope. Help me make a new start. From now on, let me drive away all evil thoughts and distractions and free myself of all mental confusion.", + "Enable me to develop my mind to perfection, quickly and easily, until I come to perfect holy wisdom and knowledge. And through this, help me to stop doing all the wrong I've done until now. From now on let me be a person who truly turns away from evil. Help me improve and perfect my behavior. In place of my former sinful behavior, let me devote myself from now on to good and noble activities that will evoke favor and joy before Your throne of glory.", + "HaShem my God and God of my fathers: please open me to the light of holy wisdom, and let me see the radiance of the true Tzaddikim, which shines in all the worlds, and nowhere more than in this lowly world. But because of the wrong I have done and my lack of spirituality, the light of the Tzaddikim has become so concealed from me that even when I try to bring myself closer to them and study their holy works, I am still unable to feel and see their pure, radiant light. I am insensitive to the sweetness of their holy words, because of my own spiritual darkness and bad habits. For me, the light of holy awe and love is shrouded in darkness, and because of my sins I am far, far away from true awe and love.", + "Please, HaShem, have pity on me! Don't reject me, and don't abandon me. Help me develop my mind and soul and improve my behavior. Open me to the light of holy wisdom, and reveal the truth to me. Let me see the light of the true Tzaddikim with the eyes of my soul. Grant that I should become one with them and cling to the pathways and good practices they have taught us. Through following them, bring me to complete holy awe and love.", + "Let me come close to the Tzaddikim who have the power to reveal the great pride and pleasure You have from the Jewish People in every generation, as it is written: “Israel, in whom I take pride.” These Tzaddikim reveal both the pride and pleasure You take in the Jewish People as a whole — Your holy people, whom You chose from all the nations and exalted above all languages — and also the pride and pleasure You have from every individual Jew, even the most insignificant, even the Jewish sinners, as long as they still bear the name Jew — because even then You still take pride in them and Your glory is enhanced and elevated through them. And these Tzaddikim also have the power to reveal even the pride and pleasure You take in the smallest details of the good deeds and gestures of every single Jew.", + "Let all this pride and pleasure be revealed by the true Tzaddikim, so as to reveal all Your intentions in creating the Universe as a whole and each of the different creatures in particular, and all of the unique details of each individual creature. For You created everything only for the sake of Your people Israel, so that You could take pride and pleasure in them and be magnified and exalted. Grant that we should be able to see and understand all this, so that we will attain complete awe and love of God, and we will come to fear Your mighty, awesome Name and genuinely love You with all our hearts, all our souls and all our might.", + "Please HaShem: You listen to every prayer, every cry and every sigh. Listen kindly to my prayer and grant my request — for Your sake and not for mine. Let me give much charity to genuinely deserving people and to the true Tzaddikim of this generation, and let me thereby bring the exiled good to recall its great worth, especially the good inside me, which is trapped in such a deep exile. Arouse and awaken it, and let it fight back against the evil in me, until I am able to conquer the evil and drive it out of me completely. Quickly bring me to complete repentance. Help me remove my physical appetite for unnecessary food. Help me eat in holiness and purity for the sake of Your Name, and remove the mental turbulence and folly that cause me to do wrong.", + "Kind and loving God: bring me to perfect holy knowledge and true spirituality. Let me do what is good in Your eyes. Open me to the light of wisdom, and let the radiance of the true Tzaddikim, which shines in all the worlds, be revealed in its true power. Let it bring me to perfect awe and love of God, and unite my heart to genuinely love and fear Your Name from now on and for ever. Amen. Selah." + ], + [ + "Everything has a purpose, and this purpose itself serves a higher purpose. The ultimate purpose of everything is the bliss of the World to Come: it was to attain this that the entire universe was created. The only ones who can grasp this purpose are the Tzaddikim. To the extent that each individual Jew is rooted in the soul of the Tzaddik, he can receive from him and attain his ultimate destiny, but only on condition that he breaks his own anger.
We must not allow anger to make us act cruelly. We must show love instead. Anger is in effect self-worship, and causes Divine “anger” — the withholding of Divine favor. One of the ways this expresses itself in the world is that the true Tzaddikim feel the need to conceal themselves. But when we break our anger, God responds by causing the Tzaddikim to reveal themselves and accept responsibility for leading the Jewish People. In his humility, the Tzaddik truly loves the Jewish People, as opposed to false leaders, who may purport to be altruistic but are in fact intent on enjoying power and glory.
Master of the worlds! Source of all good! You who are good to all:", + "You created Your universe for a good purpose, in accordance with Your primordial plan. Your ultimate purpose was for our good, that we should thereby be able to fulfil our true destiny and come to the ultimate good. This true good is the ultimate goal of everything — all other goals must ultimately lead to this. It was for this that You created all the worlds with such amazing wisdom, from the source of Atzilut to the very end of Asiyah, this World of Action. Through our labor in this world, which came last in the actual work of creation, we can become merged and united with that which arose first in thought: the ultimate goal of eternal good.", + "HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, God of compassion: Help me fulfil Your purpose and attain the good You want to give me. Let me serve You at all times, genuinely and whole-heartedly. Let me turn away from all evil and always do what is good in Your eyes, so as to come to my true destiny. In every action I take in this world and everything I become involved in, let my only purpose be to attain the ultimate goal, so that eventually this action or involvement will lead me to my true destiny. Don't let me do anything, say anything or become involved in anything that is not bound up with attaining this ultimate purpose. Let me fulfil the verse: “Know Him in all your ways, and He will straighten your paths.” Let all my actions be for the sake of Heaven.", + "Master of the Universe: You know how far I am from my ultimate purpose. Not only have I failed to take care not to do anything that isn't bound up with attaining my destiny. On the contrary, I've done the very opposite. My involvements have taken me far, far away from my goal. I've done so much wrong. I'm as far away as I could possibly be from my true purpose. Heavenly Father: what point is there in a life of pain and bitterness like this? Is this called life? Wouldn't a thousand deaths be better than this bitter life, seeing as my life is not bringing me to my true purpose?", + "Master of the World! Master of the entire Universe, who lovingly gives life to the dead! Source of all life! Give me life! Let me live and not die! Give me true life, eternal life, good, long life, a life of awe of Heaven — a life in which I will use every single moment to come nearer to the true, ultimate goal for which You created all the worlds and for which we came down from the supreme heights of the highest world into this lowly world.", + "Have pity on me! Give me hope! Don't destroy me! Strengthen me and fill me with determination. Help me take pity on myself and keep myself well away from all evil. Let me never again do anything which does not take me closer to the ultimate purpose. Have pity on Your handiwork. Bring me to turn to You with all my heart, so that I will attain the true goal of life, raising and elevating this world, the last to be created, so as to join it and unite it with what arose first in thought.", + "HaShem, my God and God of my fathers! Good and loving God: Help me! Guard and protect me from all anger, temper and resentment. Even if I do start to become angry at times, have pity on me and keep me from doing anything vicious out of anger. Help me break my anger, and instead show love and kindness. Help me control my impulses and break my temper, and turn anger into love. Let me make a point of acting kindly where I might have wanted to show anger. Don't let me have a strange god inside me, and don't let me worship idols — because this injunction applies to someone who becomes angry: he is considered as if he worshipped idols.", + "Master of the Universe: You know how hard it is to break this evil trait of anger and resentment. Once my anger starts to burn, I'm just not in my right mind. It is so hard to put out the fire of anger and suppress it. Take pity on me for Your Name's sake, and You help me! Guard me and protect me at all times. Help me break this trait and totally remove all anger and resentment from within me. Let me never ever become angry or resentful. Let me always be good to everyone, from now on and for ever.", + "And through this, let me arouse Your true kindness and tender love for our poor nation, destitute as we are today. We have been so despised and pushed around. We are scattered on all the mountains like a dispersed flock without a shepherd and with no-one to gather us in. Stop being angry with us. Set aside Your burning fury, and replace it with sweetness. Let Your compassion take the upper hand, and show us favor. Have mercy on us and send us true Tzaddikim, holy leaders, who will lovingly guide us and put into our hearts and minds an understanding of our true goal and purpose in life. With their help, let us spend all our days in pursuit of the true goal, throwing all our worldly appetites behind our back. Let our whole aim, desire, effort and struggle be only for the true, ultimate purpose, in accordance with Your will.", + "Master of the Universe: You alone know the true depths of our plight in this generation — the desperate plight of the Jewish People as a whole and of every single Jew individually. We are all hungry, yearning, longing, hoping and waiting to come truly close to You. Everyone who knows the wounds of his heart is longing and waiting for the true healer and leader who will bring us closer and heal the sickness and pain of his soul. We have no one to stand up for us, because You have taken away from us the joy of our eyes — the true Tzaddikim, the true leaders. We have no true leader who can guide us and bring us genuinely close to Your service.", + "Master of the whole world: You know our pains. You have heard our cries in the face of our oppressors. Arise and come to our aid at this time of trouble, as we stand on the threshold of Mashiach at the peak of this bitter exile of soul and body. We lack any skill and understanding that could enable us to elicit Your favor and call out to You to shine Your face on us again.", + "Father in Heaven: have compassion on us. Father in Heaven: don't hide Your face from us. Controller of everything, King of all the earth: send us a true holy leader and ruler with the power to guide us lovingly the way a nurse carries a suckling baby, so as to bring us genuinely close to Your service. Give us a true leader like Moshe Rabenu, may he rest in peace. In Egypt the Jewish People were sunk in the forty-nine gates of impurity and it was impossible for them to get out of there except through Moshe. You had pity on them and decreed that Moshe should go there.. Moshe should redeem them... even though Moshe Rabenu, in his great humility, wanted to hide his face. He did not want to take on the role of leader. Even so, You had mercy on Your people Israel and ordered him to go against his will. And You were with him constantly until he was able to redeem them.", + "Today, because of our sins, we are sunk in an exile deeper than that in Egypt. You know that only a true leader on the level of Moshe Rabenu can help us. Have pity on us for Your Name's sake. Put aside Your anger against us, and inspire the heart of the true leader with pity, so that he will have compassion on us, turn his face to us, and take on the responsibility of leadership so as to guide us lovingly to Your service.", + "Loving God: bring us to perfect, holy faith. Bring us to believe in You and Your true Tzaddikim with genuine and complete faith. Save us from false and nonsensical beliefs. Keep us from all false beliefs, and let us never put our trust in any form of superstition. Let us never follow any kind of superstitious practices or even pay the least attention to such primitive lies and nonsense. Let our hearts be filled only with holy Emunah, and bring us to pure, clear, wholehearted faith in You, HaShem our God, and in the true Tzaddikim, in the Holy Torah — both the written and oral Torah — and in the entire holy Jewish People.", + "Loving God: protect us from false, cruel leaders and administrators who lord it over the community not for the sake of Heaven but because they want honor for their own enjoyment. Save us from those who present themselves as if seeking the good of the community, as if their desire to run people's affairs is motivated by altruism, when in fact they are far from this and cannot even run their own lives, let alone other people's. They've not been given greatness from Heaven at all. Loving God, protect us from all of them: break their power and remove their influence from the world.", + "Kindly help me and save me, my children and descendants and all of the Jewish People from this evil desire to be powerful and run things. Protect me from ever feeling even the slightest desire for positions of power, leadership and pre-eminence or even having the merest thought about striving for them. Let me never ever chase after honor.", + "Loving God: for Your sake, help me turn to You and come to complete repentance with all my heart. Put into my heart the desire to do what You want. Bend my will into submission to You. Give me holy strength and power to conquer my will, break my evil desires and draw myself only towards the true purpose of life. Help me put my self and my life in order, and influence many others to lead a good life, come close to You, and enter the realm of the holy. Let me guide them to the life of Torah and Godly service You want us to have.", + "Loving God: help me cherish the true sages and give them every kind of respect and honor, and sacrifice myself for them. Give me the power to silence all the liars who hold them in contempt and abuse them. Help me overcome such people and bring them down to the dust.", + "Have pity on me and help me attain everything I have asked of You very soon. Bring me quickly and easily to my true destiny — the ultimate goal of eternal good. From now on help me never to do anything that does not lead to the true purpose. Let me spend all my days and years coming ever closer to the true, ultimate purpose. Let me attain it in this lifetime in this body, before I leave this world. Save me from having to be reincarnated in another body, God forbid, in order to attain this purpose. Let me myself attain it during my life in this world. Loving and merciful God: do it for Your sake and that of the true Tzaddikim, not for my sake. Grant me the life of the world to come without having to suffer any pain in Gehinnom or in the judgment of the grave. Kindly and lovingly grace me with a good, long life — eternal life in the world of total, everlasting goodness.", + "“Give me life in accordance with Your kindness and I will observe Your spoken testament. Let me know the path of the life of satisfaction and joy in the light of Your countenance, the pleasantness of Your merciful right hand for ever. Let the words of my lips and the meditation of my heart find favor before You, HaShem, my Rock and Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "“You have chosen us from all the nations and exalted us above all languages.” The unique holiness of the Jewish People is founded on God's Covenant, which requires that we overcome the physical lusts that separate us from God, especially immoral sexual desire. The instrument God gave us to conquer our desires is the “Holy Language.” This refers first and foremost to Hebrew, the language through which God brought about the creation, the language of the Torah and the prayerbook. However in a broader sense this term is also applied to our own private prayers and conversations with God in our mother-tongue. To cultivate the art of prayer is to master the Holy Language. The more we do so, the greater our ability to cool the furnace of our physical passions.
In consequence of the eating of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, we live in a world in which good and evil are mixed up in every sphere, including the language we use in our mundane affairs. (This corresponds to Aramaic, which was the vernacular of the Jews of ancient times, and is the language of the Targum — translation of the Torah.) In our everyday conversations it is all too easy to fall into falsehood, slander, vulgarity, idle talk, obscenity and so on. Only when we refine and sanctify our everyday language can we attain complete mastery of the Holy Language of Torah and prayer.
The opening verse of the Torah (Genesis 1:1) contains twenty-eight (Kaph-Chet) Hebrew letters: these are the source of the Ko'aCh — creative power — of the Hebrew letters that animate everything in creation. One who achieves mastery of the Holy Language is able to arouse this creative power, and can reach a level where all his pleasure in eating and drinking, etc. derives not from physical food and drink but from the spiritual letters of the Holy Language they contain.
Divine power is channelled to the letters animating the creation through the thirty-two names of God [Elokim] found in the account of creation (Genesis 1). These thirty-two (Lamed-Beit) names are, as it were, the heart (LeV) of creation. When a person is nourished by the letters underlying the physical creation, his heart radiates, shining to his face, which becomes so pure that other people are moved to repent purely by looking at him.
The relationship between the Holy Language and the language of everyday life — the Targum — corresponds to that between Shabbat and the days of the week. Our task is to sanctify the days of the week by bringing the Shabbat spirit into them, until the entire creation becomes reunified in its Source.
God: Open my lips and my mouth will declare Your praise. Open Your mouth to the dumb, and help me offer my prayer to You in the language of love and entreaty, in words of crystal clarity, in the language used by the ministering angels. Let me find words that can arouse Your true love for me. Let me speak to You in language of perfect holiness — the Holy Language.", + "Master of the Universe! Loving God! Help me attain complete mastery of the Holy Language, so as to enable me to subdue and break all my evil instincts and bad character traits. They all derive from the seventy nations of the world, because all base impulses and character traits really belong to them, not to us, especially the burning furnace of sexual lust, which attacks me constantly. Have pity on me, and help me overcome this burning lust and remove it from myself completely.", + "You chose the Jewish People from all the nations and exalted us above all tongues. You gave us as our portion the Hebrew Language, the perfect Holy Language. This is the language with which You created Your universe, as it is written: “With the word of God the heavens were made and with the breath of His mouth all their host.” Through Your prophet Moshe You gave us Your holy Torah, which is written in Hebrew. This was the language You spoke to all the faithful prophets who spoke in Your Name with holy, prophetic spirit. With all of them You spoke in the Holy Language, which is “the perfection of beauty, the joy of all the earth.”", + "HaShem, my God and God of my fathers: I have come to plead with You. Have pity on me. Let my soul be precious in Your eyes. Arouse Your true love for me and grant me perfect mastery of the Holy Language, so that I will be able to bring my evil urge under control and totally break and remove my sexual lust. HaShem: You know that this instinct is our main test and stumbling block. The only reason we had to come into this world was to be tried and refined through grappling with this instinct. You wanted to test us with this desire, to see if we would have the strength to control our urges, break our bodily appetites and attach ourselves wholeheartedly to Your great Name all the days of our lives, in order to come to true good in the end, so that You could take pride in us in all the worlds when we break this desire and remove it from ourselves.", + "But I have sinned repeatedly and I have not been careful to stand up to the test properly. In the words of King David (may he rest in peace): “You tried my heart, You tested me in the night, but You did not find in me what You wanted. If I once thought to challenge You to test me, I won't let such words leave my mouth.” My life and my years have gone on pain and sighing. Only because of this lust have I strayed from Your laws and commandments. “Each day one's instincts attack ever more strongly.”", + "Through the true Tzaddikim of the generation You have given us good advice as to how to avoid falling to temptation — by sitting passively and refusing to act on our urges or dwell on lustful thoughts. But I've made little effort to follow this advice, and I've failed to guard myself against lustful thoughts and idle fantasies.", + "Even so, You are full of mercy, and Your love for me is still not exhausted. You are the great source of counsel, and You guide in the most amazing way. Have pity on me and guide me to a good, true pathway — one that I will really be able to follow — in order to escape this blazing furnace. Save me from this crazy, evil impulse. Because my sins have left me confused, and I don't know how to actually practice the holy teachings You have given us about the way to escape this desire. Through Your true Tzaddikim You have revealed to us that by attaining perfect mastery of the Holy Language we can conquer this evil desire. But You have also taught us that it is impossible to attain perfect mastery of the Holy Language except by breaking our sexual lust and observing the Covenant. I do not understand where to start in order to attain these holy levels — mastery of the Holy Language and observance of the Covenant — since each depends on the other.", + "HaShem, my God, I beg You: “Please, teach me Your ways,” and help me understand which pathway I should follow to attain perfect mastery of the Holy Lanugage and observe the Covenant, so that I will be able to come genuinely close to You. You know that it is impossible to come close to You except by completely breaking this instinct, which is the comprehensive evil of the seventy nations. As Jews, members of the Holy Nation, we are at root totally removed from this evil desire. We have no connection with it at all. It is their share, not ours.", + "Master of the Universe, protect Your honor. See how low we've come and how despised we are. We have fallen into exile among the seventy nations because of this evil desire. It has been the cause of all the troubles and exiles, collective and individual, that we have suffered right up until the present, and we've still not been saved. True: we ourselves are well aware that this foolish desire has been the cause of our troubles, yet we've failed to guard against it or make an effort to drive it out. Even so, You know that we are only flesh and blood. You know our evil urge: we are physical creatures. “I was conceived in transgression and my mother was heated with sin.”", + "But You are almighty and have complete power to save. You have all the ways and means at Your command, and You have the power to turn things in any direction You want. “Power and might are in Your hand, and it is in Your hand to make anyone great or strong.” You can find the good points even in me, and You have the power to make them shine, until the good in me will be strong enough to overcome the bad, and all the evil that clings to me will fall away and disappear. The good will be refined and elevated, enabling me to develop my power of speech to perfection and master the Holy Language.", + "I will then be able to sift out the good in the “Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil” — namely the vernacular, the language of everyday conversations — and overcome and remove all the bad in it. The forces of evil and the husks deriving from the primordial serpent will then be powerless to gain entry through my everyday conversations so as to tempt and sway me, God forbid. Just help me at all times: inspire me with holy wisdom, knowledge and understanding, so as to destroy their power to tempt me and enable me to drive this reckless desire from me completely.", + "Let me develop my power of holy speech — the Holy Language — to perfection by purifying the language I use in my everyday life. Send me a spirit of holiness and purity, so that I will always be able to sanctify my speech and never say anything unbecoming. Let me only speak words of Torah, prayer, requests and entreaties, and talk only about devotion to God and other holy topics that enhance and sanctify the tongue. Give me complete mastery of the Holy Language very soon and bring me to true observance of the Covenant.", + "Awesome, holy God: please help me attain perfect awe of Heaven and always fear and revere You with all my heart, so as to fulfil the injunction to “fear the Lord your God.” And through this, help me refine and purify my speech until I sanctify myself in everything I say and attain complete mastery of the Holy Language — for Your holy Sages have informed us that “the awe of HaShem, His precious treasure” is the key to being able to sanctify one's speech.", + "Master of the Universe: You have taught us that the root cause of all the shame and abuse people suffer is sexual immorality, which is the worst disgrace of all, as our Sages said: “Where there is nakedness there is shame.” Have pity on me and help me escape this shame and disgrace, at least from now on. Let me conduct myself with self-respect and holiness, and bring me to perfect mastery of the Holy Language, so as to enhance and magnify Your great glory through always speaking in a language of perfect holiness.", + "Loving God: grant that I should be able to cool the heat of my physical desires through speaking words of holiness, as it is written: “My heart is hot within me, my panting is burning fire. I speak with my tongue.” Help me say the holy words of the Torah and the prayers with fervent heat and heartfelt passion. Let me stir up the flames of the Godly fire rooted in the nefesh, ru'ach and neshamah within me, blazing and burning to come close to God, until I am able to devote myself constantly to Torah, devotion, prayers, supplications, entreaties, songs and praises of God, all with a heat flowing from the depths of the heart in holiness and purity.", + "Let my words burn with blazing fire. Let my words be like coals of fire, let them pour forth in Godly fear and awe. Let me make You king over all of my two hundred and forty-eight limbs and three hundred and sixty-five sinews in fear, dread and trembling, until all the words flowing from my mouth will be words of perfect holiness, so that the heat of my physical passions will be cooled by the words of the Holy Language. With the holy fire of the Holy Language let me burn and destroy all the evil fire of the burning furnace of the seventy stars — the heat of sexual lust — so that this evil lust is completely removed from me from now on and for ever.", + "Fulfil the verse: “From the fire they came forth, and the fire will consume them.” “The falsehood of their own mouths will cover the heads of those surrounding me and plotting against me. Burning coals will pour down upon them; with fire they will cast them down into the depths so that they will not be able to rise up.” Let me be holy and completely separated from desire. Bring me to a level where I feel no need at all and my only motive will be for the sake of having children in true holiness and purity in accordance with Your will.", + "Loving God: save me from evil thoughts and bad dreams, and let my bed be a place of perfect holiness. Help me sleep only the minimum necessary for the health of my body, and even that in holiness and purity. Let my sleep be sweet. As I go to sleep, let it be with thoughts of Torah in my mind and with feelings of joy. Let me recite the bedtime Shema with great holiness and surrender, with deep concentration and heartfelt intensity, so as to kill all impure and destructive spirits and all unholy forces.", + "Let my nefesh, my ru'ach and my neshamah be joined in unity with all the holy souls of the Jewish People. Let my soul ascend with them to You as I sleep, and let my soul be delivered into Your hand alone, as it is written: “Into Your hand I entrust my spirit: You have redeemed me, HaShem, God of truth.” Loving God: banish all the different kinds of evil spirits and unholy forces wanting to take hold of my soul. Have mercy on my poor soul and help her ascend to You in peace while I sleep and return in peace to my body when I wake up. Let me enjoy good, sweet, holy sleep — the sleep of life! Send me good, true, holy dreams through true, holy angels, and save me from false, vain and confused dreams caused by unholy spirits.", + "Kind and merciful God: guard me and save me from the vain emission of seed at night. Let me never have a vain emission either during the day or at night. Let me always sleep in holiness and purity: let me lie down to rest in goodness and purity, and awaken to Your love.", + "Kind, ever-loving, merciful Father: You watch over us from afar, planning everything for our ultimate benefit. Have pity on us and on our little ones, and save me and all the Jewish People from vain emissions. You know the terrible damage this causes in all the worlds, up to the very highest. Because of this our city was destroyed, our Holy Temple was made desolate, the glory was taken from the House of our life, and we were exiled from our land, dispersed among the nations and scattered to the four corners of the earth.", + "Have pity on the remnant of Your people, the House of Israel. Have pity on Your poor, scattered flock — for there is no one to gather us in. Loving King: have pity on us. Good and beneficent God, give us success in our search for You. Return to us in love for the sake of the patriarchs, who carried out Your will. Say “Enough!” to our troubles. Loving God: purify us, guard us and save us from night-time emissions from now on, and guard us in life and peace when we go out and when we come in, from now and for ever. Protect us from all evil. Let us never harbor evil thoughts by day, so that we won't come to impurity at night, God forbid. Let all our thoughts be pure and holy at all times.", + "Loving God: bring me to eat in holiness and purity, with no physical desire whatever. Give me the power to arouse the light of the twenty- eight holy letters of creation which are clothed in everything in the world, until all my enjoyment of everything I eat or drink comes only from the light of the holy letters contained in it. Through this, give me a good heart: let my heart radiate with great holiness through enjoying and being nourished only by the light of the letters that powered the act of creation and are contained in all things.", + "Help me and guard me from ever benefiting from this world without saying a blessing. Let me recite the appropriate blessings before and after everything I eat and drink with intense concentration and with the sole intention of blessing Your great and holy Name in holiness and purity. Let all my blessings and thanks, songs and praises flow forth in words of perfect holiness — words of the Holy Language, as complemented and completed by the language of everyday conversation.", + "Let me thereby arouse the power of the thirty-two names of God that appear in the account of the creation, which are the force underlying all God's works, the force powering the letters clothed in everything in the world. Through them You created everything in the world according to Your will, from the largest to the smallest. You created everything with its own unique appearance, taste and form, corresponding to the letters of the holy Torah that You put into it according to Your will, as weighed, measured and determined in Your holy wisdom. “How many are Your works, HaShem, You made them all in wisdom, the world is full of Your possessions.” “And now, let the power of my Lord be magnified, as You spoke saying...”", + "For Your sake, for the sake of Your glory, and for the sake of Your holy letters clothed in all things, give me the power to always be able to arouse the letters of creation clothed in all things. Don't let me follow the stubbornness of my heart. Let me reduce my material desires to a minimum and have no physical craving for anything in the world. Let all my enjoyment of food, drink and other pleasures come only from the radiance of the letters they contain and not from the gratification of bodily desire.", + "Send blessing into my food, and let me be genuinely satisfied. Let me feel physical satisfaction even after eating just a little. Let my satisfaction come from the radiance of the holy letters contained in what I eat and drink in holiness and purity, and fulfil in me the verse: “And you shall eat with full satisfaction and praise the Name of HaShem your God, who has done wonders with you, and My people will never be ashamed.”", + "Through eating and drinking in holiness, let my heart shine with goodness and joy, and let the radiance of my heart light up my face with holiness and joy until my face is constantly bathed in the light of HaShem's countenance. Fulfil in me and my offspring the verse: “This is the generation of those who search for Him, seeking Your countenance — Yaakov, Selah.” Let my face be so radiant that I will be able to bring people to complete repentance just by their seeing my face. Let my face shine with the light of God's countenance like a bright mirror that people will look into and see themselves in, and realize how their own faces are sunk in darkness. Let them be inspired to renew their youth like the eagle and come back to You in true, perfect teshuvah.", + "Kind and loving God: Grant me that I should come close to the true Tzaddik of this generation and hear the Torah of the Living God directly from his holy mouth, just as he hears it from Your mouth through the merit of his good deeds. Inspire me with awe of Heaven — awe at Your supreme exaltedness. Let me listen to the holy words coming from the lips of the true Tzaddik with reverence and awe, so that I too will be able to receive the full benefit of the Holy Language.", + "Bring me to true observance of the Covenant in great holiness as befits a member of Your chosen people of Israel. Be gracious to me, and grant that I should be able to make amends for all my sins and transgressions in my lifetime. Let me make up for everything I've done wrong from my earliest years until today, including even the sins I have committed unknowingly or under compulsion. Let me rectify everything quickly and easily in my lifetime, and from now on let me come genuinely close to You in holiness and purity, gain perfect mastery of the Holy Language and faithfully observe the holy Covenant.", + "HaShem my God and God of my fathers! God of love and favor: Help me and bring me to celebrate Shabbat with tremendous joy and delight, with awe and love. Let me take an active part in preparing for Shabbat and do so eagerly and energetically. Help me to always keep up to date with my study of the weekly Torah reading: let me read the portion of the week each Friday, twice in the Hebrew and once in the Aramaic Targum, with full concentration, in holiness and purity, and thereby bring me to gain perfect mastery of the Holy Language through the language of the Targum.", + "Let me bring the holiness of Shabbat into me through washing in hot water and immersing in the mikveh on Shabbat eve. Help me never to miss washing and immersing prior to Shabbat. And just as I wash and immerse myself in this world, so purify and sanctify my body, my nefesh, my ru'ach and my neshamah with Your supreme holiness. Send down flames of the holy, Godly fire that burns above and consumes and destroys all kinds of fire, so as to burn and destroy all the evil that has come into me personally and the Jewish People as a whole as a result of eating the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and all our sins and transgressions. Let all the evil that has taken hold of us be burned and fall away, and let the good be purified so as to ascend and become unified with the Supreme good — Your great goodness that will endure for ever.", + "Please, HaShem: You know that I don't have the power to bring the holiness of Shabbat into me by myself. Have pity on me and arouse Your love for me. You know how far I am from experiencing the true holiness of Shabbat. Be kind to me and grant me the true holiness of Shabbat as an outright gift. Let me add to the Shabbat at its beginning and end, and help me draw the holiness of Shabbat into the other days of the week, until all the six working days will have the purity and holiness of Shabbat. Let the six working days then become reunited with their holy vital source — Shabbat, which gives life and sustenance to the other six days of the week, to the entire array of different creatures of every kind and on every level, spiritual and physical, and to all the worlds, from the first point from which the creation emanated down to the central point of the material world. All their life and sustenance come from the Shabbat.", + "Master of the Universe: In Your love and kindness You gave us this good gift called Shabbat that was hidden in Your treasure-house. I have therefore come to pour out my prayer and plead and beg You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers: just as You gave us this good, holy gift with such overwhelming love and mercy, so now shower me with goodness, inspire me and help me to receive this good and holy gift and celebrate Shabbat with the utmost holiness, joy and delight. Inspire me with the holiness of Shabbat at all times so that I can break and destroy the evil that has taken hold of me and sift out and elevate the good in me by mastering the Holy Language through refining the language of everyday conversation. Bring me to the true holiness of the Covenant and let me come back to You with all my heart and constantly rise from level to level with ever greater holiness, just as You want, until I will ascend and become merged in the supreme Shabbat and You will mercifully grant me the day that is all Shabbat and rest and eternal life.", + "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart find favor before You, HaShem, my Rock and Redeemer." + ], + [ + "The essence of being a Jew is to make constant efforts to advance from one spiritual level to the next. This is only possible through the holiness of Eretz Israel — the Land of Israel. However Eretz Israel is one of the things that is attained through suffering (Berachot 5a). The main suffering is caused by those who slander the land. The slander of the Ten Spies (Numbers 13:27-33) is the prototype of all the malicious lies and misconceptions spread by the opponents of the Tzaddikim and of the Torah path in general. These lies create the major barriers confronting those trying to enter and follow the spiritual path.
The power to break these barriers and overcome the slanderers derives from original Torah insights — chidushey Torah — both those we develop ourselves and especially those of the true Tzaddik. The only way to attain true insight is through pouring out our hearts in fervent prayer and pleading with God until the “Supreme Heart,” which is the ultimate source of all Torah ideas, is aroused. In approaching God, even the outstanding Tzaddik and Sage may not rely on his own merits: he must plead with God for insight as a free gift. Spiritual insight and connection with God — da'at — must be founded on perfect observance of the Covenant, which entails moral purity in all of one's thoughts, feelings, speech and actions.
The words of original Torah teachings create holy angels that have the power to take the “sword of punishment” from Edom, to whom it is entrusted, and with it crush those who slander the land and create barriers for those wanting to follow the spiritual path. However exile weakens the power of holiness, making it impossible to receive the sword from Edom and wield it ourselves, and the only way to overcome the slanderers is by bringing them to justice under the laws of the nations of the world.
From the narrow straits I called on God; God answered me with wide expansion. From the end of the earth I call out to You as my heart faints: bring me up to a rock that is too high for me.", + "Have mercy on me! Arouse Your great love and kindness for me and help me go to the Holy Land soon. Eretz Israel is the very source of our holiness, as You know, HaShem. All our holiness, our purity and our very identity as Jews depend on Eretz Israel. It is impossible to be a true Jew and rise spiritually from level to level except through coming to Eretz Israel, the place of our holiness, the land You chose from all other lands and gave as an inheritance to Your people Israel, choicest of all the nations — the land You watch over constantly, as it is written: “A land that HaShem your God watches over; the eyes of HaShem your God are upon it constantly from the beginning of the year until the end of the year.”", + "You know the terrible array of obstacles, blocks and distractions holding us back and preventing us from reaching Eretz Israel. Our days and years have been wasted in exile. We have been banished from the land of the living, the Holy Land. We've been kept from attaching ourselves to God's portion, which is the source of our very life and length of days, and from dwelling in the land HaShem has given us.", + "Master of the Universe, loving God: have pity on us! Open our hearts, the hearts of our children and of all Your People, the House of Israel, and fill us with the most powerful longing, yearning and desire for Eretz Israel. Let us constantly yearn and long to come to the Land, until You actually bring us there soon, so that we will be truly inspired to serve You and fear You.", + "Loving God: have mercy on us! Don't let us waste our days in exile. You know our suffering and weakness at this time. It is impossible for us to break the tremendous array of barriers keeping us from Eretz Israel. We do not have the strength to break so many thousands and thousands of obstacles and barriers except through Your power and mercy. We have no-one to depend upon except You, our Father in Heaven. Have pity on Your People and bring us to Eretz Israel quickly and easily. Give us the strength to win the war and break, drive out and remove all those who say bad things about the country, creating all kinds of obstacles to prevent us from reaching there. Help us break and destroy all the barriers and come to Eretz Israel peacefully, quickly and easily.", + "Loving God: inspire me and open my heart until I pray to You with all my heart and soul. Let me pour out my heart to You like water, and constantly vent my innermost feelings and offer You my prayers with perfect sincerity, pleading and supplicating until Your love for me will be stirred and Your compassionate heart aroused, and You will send words hot as burning coals from the Supreme Heart, as it is written: “My heart is hot within me as I ponder, with burning fire I speak with my tongue.”", + "Let me always pray with holy fervor and passion, and let all my words be like coals of fire. And through this, help me draw Torah teachings from the Supreme Heart. Let me constantly develop new Torah ideas and interpretations — true, holy ideas that will arouse delight and favor before Your Throne of Glory, ideas in which You will take pride in all the worlds.", + "Master of the World, Master of the entire Universe, Lord over Everything: You know the precious beauty of my holy soul at its root. So holy is my soul at its root that I should be constantly inspired with new Torah ideas and interpretations. This was what I was created for. But because of my many sins I have become so distant from You that it is hard for me even to ask You to help me in this. My face is covered with a veil of shame that stops me even praying that I should be able to develop true Torah ideas.", + "I don't know what to ask for first. I've done so much damage to my mind with immoral thoughts and behavior that I don't know where to begin and ask You to help me do something about it. Should I ask You to help me make amends for my past and for all the damage I've done from my youngest days until today — with my thoughts, words and actions, with my eyes, my ears and other senses, whether deliberately or through carelessness, wilfully or under duress? Or should I pray to You about the future — that I should never do any more damage from now on, not even with so much as a thought?", + "Loving God: have pity on one filled with shame and embarrassment, on a stubborn, twisted heart. You know the extreme difficulties confronting me. I'm surrounded by traps on every side and I have no idea how to escape them. I can't even cry out to You, because I have no words or voice any more. I've damaged my voice, my power of speech and every one of my two hundred and forty-eight limbs and three hundred and sixty-five sinews. I've corrupted all the pathways of wisdom and holiness, and I have no idea of any way I can possibly come truly and genuinely close to You.", + "But Your compassion is still not exhausted, and I trust in the power of the holy elders, the true Tzaddikim, on whom the entire Jewish People depends. On their power alone we rely, knowing that they have the strength to release the entire Jewish People from the dominion of unholy forces and bring them to holiness.", + "I have therefore come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, with a broken, crushed heart, a sighing, torn heart, asking and pleading like a beggar at the door, lowly and impoverished, stretching out his hands and lifting up his eyes to Heaven like the eyes of a servant hanging on his master's hands, like the eye of a guilty rebel seeking to placate his master, asking, begging and pleading for a gift of pure kindness.", + "Have pity on me! Be kind to me! Fill me with the wisdom and spiritual awareness revealed by the holy elders, and help me keep clear of any kind of immoral thought or behavior from now on. Loving God: guard and save me from all evil thoughts and feelings and anything that detracts from spiritual insight and awareness. Help me make amends for all my immorality until now, so that I can fully observe the Covenant the way You want.", + "HaShem, help me: give me the ability to raise my voice in holiness so that the sound of my own voice will arouse my powers of concentration and I will be able to develop my spiritual awareness and insight to the full. Please, HaShem, have pity on me and help me fully observe the Covenant in holiness and purity, because this is the foundation of true spiritual awareness and insight.", + "You took our ancestors out of exile, physical and spiritual, in Egypt. You released them from the Fifty Gates of Impurity, and from the immorality and corrupt mentality that were the essence of the exile in Egypt. You brought them to the Fifty Gates of Holiness, helping them come to full observance of the Covenant and to spiritual awareness and wisdom. You gave them Your holy Torah and brought them into the Land of Israel.", + "In the same way, do great and awesome miracles and wonders for us. Release us from this bitter physical and spiritual exile, this exile of body and soul. Quickly remove us from all the Fifty Gates of Impurity. Redeem us and save us from every kind of immorality and every corrupt idea and attitude, and bring us quickly to all the Fifty Gates of Holiness. Loving God: help us come to full observance of the Covenant and achieve genuine spiritual awareness and insight as befits the holy Jewish People. Fulfil in us the verse: “As in the days of your going out of the land of Egypt I will show you wonders.”", + "Help me celebrate the holy festival of Pesach with extreme holiness, joy and delight. Let me carry out the mitzvah of the four cups of wine on Pesach in all its details and with the utmost holiness and purity. Open up to me the light of Godly awareness and inspire me with the holy light of the Supreme Wisdom, so that I will be able to experience all the levels of spiritual insight and awareness that radiate on Pesach, “expanded consciousness” and “restricted consciousness.”", + "Help me conduct the Pesach Seder properly and with great holiness. Help me recite the Hagadah in a loud voice with intense concentration, extreme joy and delight, fervor and passion, holiness and purity, until my voice will arouse my powers of concentration and I will come to observe the Covenant perfectly, achieve genuine spiritual awareness and insight, and be able to develop true and original Torah ideas.", + "Let me always be able to pray and plead with You until words hot as burning coals come pouring out of me. When I pray to You, let me bind myself to the souls of Israel, so that my prayer will be a collective prayer that You will not reject, for “Even though God is mighty, He will not despise [the weak].”Let my prayers bring about a tremendous increase in holiness in the higher realms, so that I can draw Torah ideas and explanations from the Supreme Heart, where they are all written.", + "Help me follow the Torah path and fulfil the teaching of our Rabbis of blessed memory, who revealed to us that the way of the Torah is to “eat bread dipped in salt and drink water by measure.” Let me constantly labor in the Torah and draw Torah explanations from the holy soul that suffers so bitterly over the exile of the Torah — the soul that is the source of all original Torah insights and explanations. Let me draw Torah explanations from there through my prayers and supplications, until I will constantly be developing true, holy original Torah insights derived from the Thirteen Perfect Features of the Holy Beard, namely the Thirteen Rules for Interpreting the Torah.", + "Guard and protect me from all kinds of conflicts and arguments and save me and the entire Jewish People from all causeless hatred. Put it into the hearts of all our opponents to repent and give up their hatred and opposition. Turn their hearts to the truth and let us never again suffer from gratuitous opposition. Let peace dwell amongst Your people Israel for ever.", + "Master of the Universe: Grant that I should come close to the true Tzaddik and Sage of this generation — the elder who sits in the assembly of scholars teaching publicly. He is constantly able to draw new, true Torah insights from the Supreme Heart by making all the necessary preparations — binding himself before the discourse to all the souls of those present, who have come to hear the word of God, and pouring out his heart like water before God while bound to their souls. In his prayers he relies on nothing but pleas and entreaties.", + "He certainly has the power to wield a “rod of strength” through the outstanding power and merit he possesses as a result of his mitzvot, his good deeds and his unremittingly reverential, loving, fervent, zealous, passionate service of God. Even so, the only use he makes of this “rod of strength” is to quash the evil in the community and release them from the power of unholy forces in order to bring them into the domain of holiness. But before God he stands in prayer like a poor beggar without relying on his merit in the least. He only pleads and entreats, binding himself to the souls of his listeners so that his prayer will be a communal prayer that will not be rejected, as it is written: “Even though God is mighty, He will not despise [the weak].” A prayer like this, which is in fact a communal prayer, causes a great gathering of additional holiness above, through which the Supreme Heart pours forth original Torah insights more than ever.", + "Master of the Universe: Grant that I too should be part of the holy gathering of those who have come together to hear original Torah insights from the lips of the sage and elder sitting in such an assembly. Not only will the evil in me be crushed and removed through the good in the sage who is teaching, but I will also have a part in the original Torah teachings that he brings down, since in his prayer before his discourse he will have bound himself with the souls of his listeners, and my soul will be included among them. In this way I too will have a part in the extra holiness gathered above through the prayer of this sage. For You have revealed to us that the greater the number of souls with which the prayer is bound, the greater the holiness above, as it is written: “And You are holy, enthroned upon the praises of Israel.” This arouses the Supreme Heart to pour forth more Torah insights than ever.", + "Master of the Universe, have mercy on me and bring me to everything I have asked of You. Let me draw close to the elder seated in the assembly of scholars, laboring to bring down new Torah insights through all the amazing preparations this requires, so that I too will flow with passionate words of holiness and have true and original Torah insights.", + "Let every single word of the Torah insights that come to me in holiness and purity create holy angels that will join all the angels constantly being created through the Torah teachings of the true Tzaddikim. Let all these angels derive strength from Edom, who is in charge of the sword used to punish the wicked, so as to defeat, crush and destroy all those who speak evil about the land. These are the people causing all the obstacles and barriers preventing us from coming to Eretz Israel. Or put weakness into their hearts, so that they will be powerless to keep us from Eretz Israel or any other holy goals.", + "Loving God, have mercy on us and give us the strength to conquer, break and destroy all those who are constantly attacking us and attempting to keep us from holiness, trying to dominate us and distract us from truly serving You. Master of the Universe: You know what is in their hearts. Have pity on us, loving God. Help us and save us from them. Break their strength and completely undermine their power to hold us back from our holy goals. Make it impossible for them to distract any of us from anything holy.", + "Help me and all those Jews who want to serve You to come genuinely close to You. Give us the power to overcome these wicked enemies of the truth, who want to keep us from truly serving You. Give us the power to stir up the judgment of the nations against them, so as to have them judged and humiliated under their laws. Grant us success in getting them brought to justice, and let all who are opposed to the pathways of true holiness emerge from their trials guilty. Let us pull them down to the ground through the laws of the nations, in order to extract their prey from their mouths.", + "You know our hearts. You know that our only intention is for good — to establish the holy religion on its firm foundation so that we can follow the path of holiness, the path of the King of the Universe. We are powerless to punish the wicked except under the laws of the nations. Have pity on us and on all Jews who are zealous for the Lord of Hosts and seek justice, endeavoring to have the wicked opponents of the truth judged and defeated under the laws of the nations. Give us strength and help us succeed in the trials against them, so that we will be able to throw them down, break them and grind them into the dust. Let them all bend and fall in their cases — fall and never get up. Don't let them ever again have the slightest power to hold us back or distract us in any way from serving the Creator, blessed be His Name.", + "Let us thereby raise holy Justice out of its exile amid the forces of evil. Loving God, help us, and stop them from ever again opening their mouths to speak out arrogantly against the true Tzaddik and genuinely pious Jews. Close up their mouths and stop them spreading slander amongst the mass of people, so as not to demoralize them, God forbid. For “the mouths of all liars will be stopped up.” Help us break and remove all the obstacles and barriers preventing us from coming to Eretz Israel and all other holy goals, and let us come to Eretz Israel quickly and draw genuinely close to You.", + "Master of the Universe, You know our weakness at this time. We are totally powerless to break those holding us back from Eretz Israel and all other holy goals through any of the methods I have mentioned. We trust only in Your great Name and rely entirely on Your mercy. Help us and save us in Your tender mercy and compassion, and in the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim, who succeeded in breaking all the barriers and reached Eretz Israel. I am relying on their merit and strength alone, and staking my hopes on Your great compassion: grant that I too should travel to Israel soon, even though I am hardly worthy of even mentioning the name of the holy Land of Israel on my lips and I am so totally remote from the holiness of Eretz Israel.", + "Even so, You show favor even to those who are very far away. Have pity on me! Have mercy on me! Have pity and grant me my request out of pure kindness! Bring me to Eretz Israel soon, so that I will be able to enter the pathways of holiness and constantly rise from level to level in genuine holiness and purity, quickly and easily, and draw closer and closer to You, genuinely and sincerely, from now and for ever. Then I will not be ashamed either in this world or the next. I will walk before HaShem in the lands of the living. Let me cross over and see this good land, the goodly mountain and Lebanon. Let my poor soul be precious in Your eyes and fulfil my requests in love. Bring me quickly and peacefully to Israel so that I can walk and prostrate myself on the dust of the Holy Land and delight in its stones and kiss the very clods of earth.", + "Be swayed by Your tender mercy, and treat me leniently. Do not judge me at all, because I am not appealing to You because of my own merits; I'm relying on Your abundant mercy. Your favor is aroused through compassion and You are appeased through supplications: help me and save me. I will not give You peace, I will not keep quiet, I will not be silent, and I will not stop praying to You about this constantly. Let me only plead, pray and entreat You over and over again, until I succeed in my request and have the merit of reaching Eretz Israel in this lifetime, quickly and easily, and the verse will be fufilled in me: “You have saved my soul from death and my feet from slipping, to walk before God in the light of life.” Amen. Amen." + ], + [ + "The essence of the spiritual life of a Jew is to constantly grow and move forward to higher and higher levels of da'at — knowledge of, and connection with, God. Just as physical movement generates heat, so too exercising the mind in Torah and devotion generates enthusiasm and fervor in the heart, firing one to rise to greater heights of service and putting unholy passions to flight.
Any given level of da'at has its makifin — “surrounding” or “transcendent lights”: these are levels of knowledge and understanding that are as yet beyond the capacity of one's mind to grasp. In order to grow, the task is to reach out for these new spiritual horizons and “bring them down” — i.e. internalize them. The makifin are different for each individual at different times, depending on his or her stage of development. They may involve deep facets of Torah wisdom, higher levels of faith, service and devotion, ru'ach hakodesh — holy spirit and prophecy — etc. The prayers that flow from a person when he is inspired are also called holy spirit. In general the makifin are called shefa Eloki — rich blessings of Godly inspiration.
The way to draw down and internalize the shefa Eloki is through sanctifying the “Seven Candles.” The Menorah — candelabrum — of the Sanctuary (Exodus 25:31-40) is symbolic of the human mind. The Seven Candles are our two eyes, two ears, two nostrils and mouth. They are the agents of the mind, bringing stimuli into it and arousing it. The lights of the Menorah had to shine “towards the face of the Menorah.” The “face” alludes to the mind. When this is enhanced through sanctifying the Seven Candles, one can then receive from the ohr hapanim — the “Light of the Face,” “the Light of God's Countenance” — and attain new levels of Divine wisdom and inspiration.
The key to spiritual growth is thus to sanctify the Seven Candles: the eyes — by avoiding looking at evil; the ears — by listening only to the words of the Sages; the nostrils — by “breathing in” the fear of God (cf. Isaiah 11:3), and the mouth — by avoiding all falsehood and improper language. When inspiration and insight are lacking, one should cry out, whether in one's prayers or Torah study. It is as if the Shechinah is crying out, leading to the “birth” — actualization and manifestation — of levels of insight and awareness which were previously hidden and present only in potential.
The stages of the life of the soul in its journey through this world and in the next are bound up with the quest for new and higher makifin. The chupah, the marriage canopy, symbolizes the makifin, while the seven days of marriage festivities allude to the sanctity of the Seven Candles. After death, the soul has to rise to the ohr hapanim, and the seven days of mourning (shiv'a) help to elevate the soul of the dead person. In the world to come the Tzaddikim are depicted as having canopies — makifin which “burn” those who encounter them, i.e. they cause them to become fired with passion and fervor. The s'chach of the succah also alludes to the makifin. The month of Elul is a particularly propitious time to work towards higher spiritual levels.
“I raise my voice and cry out to God; I raise my voice to God and plead.” “I raise my voice to God and cry out; I raise my voice to God — and He hears.” “From the belly of hell I screamed: You heard my voice.” “Let my cry come up to You, to Your holy Sanctuary.” “Hear my voice: do not close Your ear to my cry for help and my screaming.” “Hear my voice, HaShem — I call out: be kind to me and answer me.” “Accept our cry and hear our shout, You who know hidden secrets.”", + "Master of the Universe, who lovingly hears the cry of His People Israel: have mercy on me and help me! Put it into my heart to call out and cry to You with perfect sincerity until You answer me. Let me cry out until You say: “Here I am!” Let my cry become ever stronger, and let me give You no peace until You take pity on me and hear my cry, and lovingly help me reveal and give birth to the radiant light of holy wisdom and inspiration that are now so deeply concealed from me because of my sins. At present I have no real knowledge of You or how to serve You truly, and I find it impossible to gain new insight into Your holy Torah.", + "Master of the Universe: nothing is secret from You. You know my heart. I am so far from You right now that my face is covered with shame. I am embarrassed even to ask You to open up to me the hidden secrets of the Torah. I don't know what to ask for first, because I have not even started to purify and sanctify myself. Even so, You know the great preciousness of our holy souls at their root. You chose us from all the nations and called us the Holy People, a precious treasure, as it is written: “And you will be my precious treasure out of all the nations” ... “For God has chosen Yaakov for himself, Israel as His precious treasure.”", + "Have mercy on Your precious treasure, Your beloved one, the People of Your inheritance, Your pride and love out of all the hosts. In Your tender mercy You have called us by every affectionate name. You have loved and favored us. You have exalted us above all tongues and brought us nearer to Your service, our King. Have pity on us — because we have fallen so low, and we are so despised. Rise up and help us! Save us! Put it into our hearts to cry out to You without respite until You have mercy on us. Turn Your face to us and draw us near.", + "I know that I have become so totally and utterly distanced from You that my cries are powerless to arouse and give birth to the wisdom and inspiration buried deep within me. Even if I could roar and scream like all the creatures in the world, it would still not be enough to express my inner pain over even one of the rebuffs I suffer in a single day. There's not a cry in the whole world that can help me bridge the terrible gulf that separates me from You. “Even when I scream and shout, my prayer is closed up.” How much more so, seeing that I haven't even begun to cry out to You with all my strength.", + "Even so, You have taught us that You are filled with tender love for us at every single moment, and that You hear and pay attention to every cry in the world, even from the lowest depths, as it is written: “From the belly of hell I screamed: You heard my voice.” I am therefore relying on Your great goodness and kindness. I put my trust in Your abundant mercy and loving kindness. I have hope that You will forgive me, and I am confident that You will save me. I stretch out my hands to You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers. Help me! Be kind to me! Awaken my heart until I feel the true intensity of my pain — the pain of my nefesh, my ru'ach and neshamah. Let me realize how totally far from You I am. Help me cry to You constantly with all my power and strength. And You have pity on me and hear my cry, no matter how inadequate it may be.", + "Loving God: heal my voice and help me develop a good, strong voice instead of my present weak, inadequate voice. Both when I learn Torah and when I pray, let me cry out loud. Loving God, help me to learn to use my voice to arouse and give birth to the holy wisdom and inspiration that have become hidden from me because of my sins. My sins are so many that they have weakened the power of Heaven, as it were, so that even the Shechinah is not strong enough to give birth to new inspiration. “You weakened the rock that gave birth to you!” “The children have come to the birth-stool, but there's no strength to give birth.”", + "Master of the Universe: For Your sake if not for mine, for the sake of Your Shechinah, help me cry out to You sincerely when I learn Torah and when I pray. Let my voice rise up and reach You. Accept my cries as if they were the cry of the Shechinah, until I can arouse and give birth to the holy wisdom and inspiration that have become hidden from me. You alone know all secrets. To You it is revealed and known where the potential wisdom and inspiration of every single Jew are exiled and concealed. Help me and all other Jews to use our voices to arouse the holy wisdom and inspiration that have become concealed from us, from each one in a different way, until we will all be able to rise to ever higher levels of vision and inspiration, each according to the root of his nefesh, ru'ach and neshamah. Let us come to know and be connected to You with ever deeper understanding and reveal Your Godliness to the world.", + "HaShem, my God and God of my fathers: from now on help me sanctify the Seven Candles that shine towards the face of the holy Menorah — my eyes, my ears, my mouth and my nostrils. Let me sanctify my mouth so as never to let a word of falsehood, or anything else that could stain my mouth, cross my lips. Let me only ever speak the truth at all times in holiness and purity. Let me sanctify my mouth with Torah, prayer and other holy words.", + "Help me sanctify my eyes. Let me shut my eyes to all evil. Let me never even so much as glance at anything in this material world. Save me from ever looking at anything that could give rise to evil thoughts, God forbid. Have pity on me! Be kind to me! Have pity on my soul, and from now on save me from abusing my eyes. Let me never stray after my heart and my eyes. “Avert my eyes from gazing at falsehood; give me life along Your pathways.”", + "Help me sanctify my ears. Let me always listen to the words of the true sages and believe in them. Let me have complete faith in our sages. Let me always pay careful attention to what they say. Let their words penetrate my ears and stir my heart until I come to complete repentance and carry out Your will at all times. Save me from ever listening to base language of any kind. Let it never enter my ears. Let me never listen to or accept a single derogatory comment or incriminating statement about anyone. Let me never listen to foul language or any other form of vulgarity. Let me only listen to holy words from the lips of true Tzaddikim and genuinely God-fearing people — words that sanctify the ears of those who hear them.", + "Bring me to genuine fear of Heaven, and help me thereby to sanctify my nostrils. Fulfil in me the verse: “He will breathe in the fear of Heaven.”", + "Kind and loving King: please help me be meek, humble and patient. Let me never become angry, even if insulted. Let me never become irritated about anything — this is also part of sanctifying the nostrils. Let me so sanctify my mouth, my eyes and my ears that I will be able to receive a share of the light of the holiness of Moshe Rabenu (may he rest in peace) who is “clothed” in every limb of every Jew. So outstanding was his level of holy spirit and prophecy that it is written of him: “Mouth to mouth I will speak with him,” and “He saw the likeness of HaShem,” and “He is faithful in all My house.”", + "Even on my low level, let me attain at least a glimmer of holy inspiration — the spirit of wisdom emanating out of holiness. At least when I learn Torah and pray, shine the radiance of Your Godly light into my heart, so that I too will in some small way be able to “see the likeness of HaShem.” Let me always fulfil the verse: “I have set HaShem before me at all times.” Let me always be attached to You, especially when I pray. Let me pray with the utmost devotion. Let my prayers flow fluently from my lips, until the very words of my prayers will be filled with holy, prophetic spirit and I will be able to speak with You and pour out my heart to You “as a man speaks to his friend,” “face to face” and “mouth to mouth.” Help me be a “faithful spirit, who keeps secrets.”", + "Help me attach myself to the true Tzaddikim who sanctified the Seven Candles so perfectly that they were blessed with a rich flow of Godly inspiration and holy spirit and attained the most exalted perception of the Transcendent Lights, the Light of Your Countenance. Keep me from in any way detracting from their honor, God forbid. Let me never deviate right or left from their teachings. Save me from the shame and disgrace that afflict those who abuse the holiness of the Seven Candles and the Light of Your Countenance, God forbid, especially those who detract from the honor due to the true sages who were able to sanctify the Seven Candles perfectly and draw down the Light of Your Countenance into the world.", + "I have done so much damage to these Seven Candles through all my sins and wrong-doing from my earliest days until today. I have so abused my mouth, my eyes, my ears and my nostrils — at times because of carelessness, at times intentionally, sometimes through outside pressures and sometimes quite deliberately. Kind, loving and forgiving God: pardon and forgive me for everything. Repair all the damage until not a trace is left. You know that I don't have the strength to make amends for all the wrong I have done.", + "Who could begin to enumerate all the sins I have done through things I have said from the time I came into the world until today? How many lies have come out of my mouth practically every single day! How much harm I've done with my derogatory comments and incriminating remarks, my scornfulness and idle talk. The list of sins I've committed with my mouth is endless.", + "I cannot begin to assess the damage I've done with my eyes. It is beyond my power even to specify and confess all my sins, let alone take steps to make amends for them all. Not a day has gone by in my whole life without my abusing my eyes, at times because of carelessness, at times intentionally, sometimes through outside pressures, sometimes quite deliberately. You alone know the true extent of the damage caused by abusing our power of vision: the entire Torah depends on the eyes! Oy! Oy! What can I say? If I tried to enumerate even a fraction of the damage I have done with my eyes every single day, I'd run out of time but the list would still not be complete. “If I try to count them, they are more numerous than sand.”", + "If You Yourself won't act for Your sake and do something to fix all this terrible damage, it will be impossible for me to make amends for even one of my sins, let alone all of them. “If You keep sins in mind, O God, HaShem, who can survive? For with You is forgiveness, that You may be feared.” Have mercy on me! Have pity on me! For I lack the wisdom and intelligence to know how to conciliate You for all the terrible harm I have done till now with these seven holy Candles, bound up as they are with the brain and the mind. Abusing these seven holy Candles has harmed my mind and my intellect, leaving me full of confusion. I'm assailed by doubts, questions and all kinds of mental and emotional blocks, which are making it impossible for me to involve myself in anything holy in the proper way. They're all conspiring to push me away from Your service completely, God forbid.", + "Master of the Universe: You know the bitterness in my heart. You know the bitter contortions I suffer from. You know the barriers I face every single moment. “HaShem, how many are my tormentors! How many rise up against me!”As if I don't suffer enough from my evil lusts and desires, which have caused me to sin against You so much through going after the stubbornness of my heart and abusing Your great Name, destroying so many worlds because of my sins. You alone know how much damage I have caused through my many sins. And as if this were not enough, I have another complex web of burdens weighing down on my neck, in the form of all my foolish and confusing doubts about HaShem and about the true Tzaddikim. They've thrown my mind and heart into turmoil and they're driving me away from the inner point of truth, God forbid.", + "Master of the Universe, have mercy on me! Don't judge me according to the evil of my deeds, and don't deal with me in proportion to the severity of my sins. Be gentle with me. Turn against my persecutors! Banish all these evil and perverse thoughts and feelings — the doubts, the questions and foolish speculations that are creating such confusion in me and in other Jews, and distracting us from serving You. Loving God, do something to help me! Stop even the slightest questioning thought or doubt from ever again entering my heart. “For I am bereft of human understanding, and I do not have the understanding of a man.” “And I am a fool and I do not know, I am like an animal before You.”", + "Master of the Universe: have pity on me and bring me to true, perfect faith. Let me have genuine, wholehearted faith in You and Your true Tzaddikim. Let me pay no attention to doubts and questions of any kind whatever. Let them never enter my heart and mind at all. Let me abandon my confused theorizing and depend only on faith. I am flesh and blood, a clod of earth, a bundle of matter, inflamed with sin and sullied with transgression. How can a mere mortal, a putrid drop, expect to understand anything about Your pathways and providence?", + "Let me never use my intellect except to serve You, to study Your Torah and genuinely deepen my reverence for You. Let me never begin to indulge in speculation. Let me know and believe in truth and perfect faith that You are just and righteous, as it is written: “The Rock — His work is perfect, for all His pathways are justice. God of faith, without corruption. He is just and fair.” And it is said: “To declare that HaShem is just, my Rock, in whom there is no wrong.”", + "Guard and save me, my children and all the Jewish People from ever studying or even so much as glancing at speculative philosophy, whether works written by gentiles or those written by Jews. Remove any inclination we may have to turn to such works. Let us never listen to them in any way. Let us never follow their paths or walk in their ways. Let us pay no attention to their words. Let none of their fallacy-ridden speculations, doubts and questions enter our ears or minds.", + "You know how much evil and destruction have been caused by the philosophers and their speculations and errors. They want to distance us from serving You! Have pity on Your great and holy glory. For the sake of the Jewish People, for the sake of our fathers, Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov, for the sake of Moshe, Aharon, David and Shlomo, for the sake of the twelve tribes of God, for the sake of all the holy elders, the earlier and the later prophets, the Tannaim, the Amoraim and all the true Tzaddikim and pious Jews in every generation! Have pity on the remnant of the Jewish People at this time of anguish, the like of which has never been.", + "As we stand at the very threshold of Mashiach, philosophical speculation is rife throughout the world, and the goal of the philosophers is to ensnare Jewish souls with their pathways and theories. They have taken young children who don't know the difference between right and left and started to teach them non- Jewish languages and literature and inculcate them with their ways and theories. And no-one really cares! No-one truly feels the enormity of this terrible tragedy, the like of which has never been seen throughout history.", + "These are the real birthpangs of Mashiach. This was the tragedy that all the prophets and true sages of the past foresaw, as it is written: “And it will be a time of trouble for Yaakov, the like of which has never been.” Daniel likewise prophesied with his holy spirit that “Many will be purified, whitened and refined, and the wicked will commit evil, and none of the wicked will understand, but those with wisdom will understand.”", + "Master of the entire Universe: You alone know the true dimensions of this tragedy, the like of which has never been: “Dark torment and desperate gloom.” We have no-one to stand up for us. The true Tzaddikim have left the world because of our sins. Have pity on us! Stir up Your compassion for Your children. Defend us! Guard and protect us and save my soul and the souls of my dear ones and of all the Jewish People from all the evil ideas and theories of the philosophers, both the non-Jewish philosophers and the Jewish philosophers who have also become trapped in this evil snare of speculative philosophy.", + "Garb Yourself in zeal, gird Yourself with strength! Uproot, smash, destroy and remove their evil ideas from the world. Let all the atheists, all the wilful sinners, the non-believers and heretics be destroyed in a moment. Let nothing remain of any of their theories or ideas. Have pity on us! Have mercy on us and save us, our children and all the Jewish People from all their books, their ideas and their theories. These are not the share of Jacob. These are not our share. These are not our inheritance. We are the descendants of Avraham, Yitzchak and Israel Your servants. We are believers, the children of believers, and we believe in You, HaShem our God, and in Your true Tzaddikim with perfect faith and truth. We do not need the least proof or theory. For You are just and righteous, and You govern the whole world with mercy and love, as it is written: “HaShem is good to all and His tender mercies are over all His works.”", + "Please, HaShem, arouse Your compassion for me. “Hear my voice when I call to You,” and give me the power constantly to awaken and bring forth the spiritual insight and inspiration buried within me through crying out loud. Help me genuinely to sanctify and purify the Seven Candles emanating from my brain — my mouth, my two eyes, my two ears and two nostrils — so as to be able to draw down upon myself the rich blessings of the Light of Your Countenance and grasp the holy Transcendent Lights of the mind. Send me Your holy spirit and let me constantly grasp and attain new spiritual horizons and new Transcendent Lights.", + "Grant that I should understand the depths of Your secrets, and help me attain ever greater levels of holiness, in order that I will always be able to reach out for new and higher Transcendent Lights and bring them into my mind and grasp them. Let me constantly attain new holy perceptions and understand things that were previously beyond me. Let me come to recognize You even in this world, and attain the highest perception of Your greatness and exaltedness that is possible in this life. For the whole purpose of our creation was only to know and apprehend You, and in time to come You will ask us to account for ourselves if we failed genuinely to sanctify ourselves in this world so as to grasp Your Godliness and attain a knowledge of Your exaltedness — blessed be Your Name for ever!", + "Loving God, have pity on me and help me attain ever higher perceptions in holiness and purity, in truth and perfect faith. Master of the entire Universe: I know that at the present moment I am so far from this that I'm hardly able even to ask You and plead with You to help me. But I have no choice in the matter! My Father in Heaven has decreed! You Yourself decreed in Your Torah and through Your true Tzaddikim that we should constantly make every effort to deepen our knowledge and perception of You.", + "Be kind and have pity on me! Through pure generosity if nothing else, grant that I should be able genuinely to sanctify myself to the very utmost. Inspire me with inner strength and determination, and give me the confidence to plead with You and press You to help me. For You are my Father, and Your desire is to bless me with every kind of true goodness. You are constantly waiting to reveal Your hidden goodness and open us to the most exalted perceptions. The barriers are only from my side. Rise up and help me! Let me cry out to You without respite in complete sincerity, and help me purify and sanctify myself in every way. Let me constantly pour out my prayers and supplications and conciliate You until I am always able to attain new Transcendent Lights and bring them within my conscious grasp.", + "Grant me the world to come — the world that is entirely good — and let me there become merged with You completely and attain all the holy Transcendent Lights of the mind that it was impossible to grasp in this world. Loving God: give me eternal life — good and long life — from now and for ever and ever. Grant me complete holy wisdom and understanding, and let me understand that everything is for my good. Send me blessings of abundant goodness so that I will not be lacking in any way.", + "Master of the Universe: through the teachings of Your holy sages You have indicated to us that the main purpose of man's creation, his birth into this world, his going under the chupah — the marriage canopy — together with his partner in life, and his obligation to have children... all have only one purpose: to draw the inner light of Divine wisdom — the light of true understanding — into the world. Our goal is to attain ever higher and more amazing perceptions of Your Godly light, through opening ourselves to the rich blessings of holy spirit and receiving the radiance of the Transcendent Lights — the Light of Your Countenance.", + "This is the essence of man's service in this world. Then, after he leaves this world, his soul rises to the Light of Your Countenance, each one according to the level of his service in this world. Yet even after a person leaves this world, it is impossible to attain the ultimate perfection unless children of his remain in this world to continue this service and bring the light of true understanding into the world. This applies to all the generations for ever.", + "Help me devote myself to Torah and true service of HaShem all the days of my life. Let me pray at length and cry out to You from the depths of my heart until I am able to nurture my hidden spiritual potential and bring it from “gestation” to “birth.” Help me sanctify the Seven Candles completely until I am able to internalize levels of Godly understanding that were previously “Transcendent Lights” beyond my grasp. Bless me with Your holy spirit and help me attain the highest levels of Godly wisdom and inspiration. Let me bring them into the innermost recesses of my consciousness, so that I will be attached to You perpetually and become united with You during my actual lifetime in this world.", + "Let me conduct myself with the utmost holiness with my wife and have pure, holy children who will become genuine Tzaddikim and deeply learned in Torah. Let me fulfil Your commandment to “make them known to your children and your children's children,” to “instil them in your children,” and “teach them to your children.” Grant that the heritage of spiritual knowledge and awareness should always remain with my children and descendants. Let me raise my children to a life of Torah and good deeds, see them married as soon as they are mature, and see grandchildren.", + "Master of the Universe: You have revealed to us the underlying meaning of the Jewish marriage, which starts with kidushin — the betrothal ceremony — under the chupah. The purpose of marriage, which is to bring children into the world, serves the higher goal of drawing the inner light of Divine wisdom — the light of true understanding — into the world. The Divine wisdom is itself a holy gift and a chupah, and the seven days of the marriage festivities correspond to the seven holy Candles through which we are able to draw down the inner light of Divine wisdom and internalize the Transcendent Lights.", + "Grant that I should see my children marry under the chupah according to the law of Moses and Israel as soon as they become mature. Let me also fulfil the mitzvah of helping others marry. Give me the merit of helping orphans and children from poor families marry, and let me share in their joy.", + "Through the mitzvah of helping others marry, inspire all who take part in the wedding — the bride, the groom, their parents and friends, and all who join in their celebration — with holiness. Open them to the light of the chupah and kidushin at their very root, and to the light of the “canopies” which the Holy One, blessed be He, will make for the Tzaddikim in the Garden of Eden, and the light of the bond connecting the Jewish People with their Father in Heaven, which was also sealed with a marriage ceremony, chupah and kidushin, as we learn from our Rabbis. Through this, let us bring the inner light of Divine wisdom into the world and attain ever deeper perception of Your Godly light, until we come to genuine knowledge of You and attach ourselves to You for ever, the way a Jew should.", + "Loving God: grant me and every member of the Jewish People that even after we depart this world after a long full life, we will still leave behind us a residue on earth in the form of our children and descendants. Let our progeny survive and continue from generation to generation until the end of all the generations. Let our name and memory live on for ever through our descendants who will remain after us. Give us many sons and daughters in holiness and purity, and let none of us be barren.", + "Loving God: bless our offspring with life and length of days and years. Let all our descendants live long lives devoted to Torah and fulfilment of the mitzvot for Your Name's sake. Let them all be holy, and free of all sins and transgressions. Let them do Your will and labor in Your service all the days of their lives and for ever, so that even after we leave this life, our children will continue to bring the inner light of Divine wisdom down into the world, revealing Your Godliness and supremacy to the world, and our memory will remain from generation to generation for ever.", + "Compassionate God: You plan everything to ensure that no-one will be cast away from You. Have pity on us. Arise and save us, our children and descendants, and those of the entire Jewish People from having to come to chalitzah or yibum. Fulfil in us the verse: “And see your children's children — peace on Israel.” You alone know the true pathos of a soul which leaves this world without surviving children. The soul goes naked and is unable to arise to her original place and return to her Father's house. She goes around distraught like a fugitive and a wanderer, without rest.", + "Master of the Universe! Loving and merciful God! Have pity on us, on our descendants and on all Your People Israel! Let none of us leave this world without surviving children. Let all of us leave behind healthy sons and daughters devoted to Torah and mitzvot. Let all of them produce many fruits. Let their roots spread forth and their branches stretch far. “They will still be fruitful in old age, they will be vigorous and fresh.” Let the seed of Israel multiply greatly and extend throughout the world, so as to expand the domain of holiness. Let every single Jew be survived by generations upon generations of descendants until the end of all the generations. To all who are presently childless, grant healthy children who will survive and lead lives of Godly service and fear of Heaven.", + "Have pity on all the Jewish souls which have already departed this life without leaving surviving children. Have mercy on them and rectify them, and help all Jews, wherever they may be, to fulfil the mitzvot of yibum and chalitzah in the proper way, with the utmost holiness and purity. Let them do everything necessary to rectify the soul of the dead person, so that the soul may rise to the Light of Your Countenance and return to its place of repose — “to walk before God in the light of life.” From now on, have pity on us, on our descendants and on all of the Jewish People, and let none of us ever have to come to chalitzah or yibum.", + "Have mercy on all the broken-hearted parents who suffer problems in trying to raise their children. Help them bring up their sons and daughters to lead the Torah life, marry, and occupy themselves with good deeds for many long years. In particular, help ... [insert the name of anyone you especially wish to pray for].", + "Master of the Universe: You know their bitter anguish and the pain of their broken hearts — “the power to endure has collapsed.” See their tears and suffering; hear their cries. Don't close Your ear to their screams. Who can bear the sound of their weeping and their cries and screams of pain at the suffering they have endured? Master of the whole Universe: You “heal the broken-hearted and bind up their sorrows.” Heal their wounds, send joy into their souls and say “Enough!” to their sorrows. From now on have mercy on them and say to the angel: “Put down your hand!”", + "Arouse Your tender love for these parents and bless their children with a good life and length of days. Help them raise their children to lead the Torah life, marry, and busy themselves with good deeds. Bless them with a long life in this world and let them see their children's children and grandchildren. Let many generations come from them, and grant them many more healthy sons and daughters. Let many, many generations issue forth from all of them until the end of all the generations. Let them multiply, grow and flourish until the Redeemer comes at the end of the generations. Let all of them genuinely devote themselves to carrying out Your will, and fulfil in them and their descendants the verse: “The tiniest will multiply a thousandfold and the smallest will be a mighty nation. When the time comes, I will hasten it.”", + "Master of the Universe: Do it for Your sake! Do it in the merit of the holy patriarchs. Have pity on these parents from now on and let their offspring survive for many long days and years. Give them joy to make up for the years of their suffering. Give them respite from their sighing. Heal their hearts, and from now on help them take joy in the children they already have and from those they will have in the future. Let them all enjoy many long days and years of Torah and honor until the coming of Mashiach.", + "Master of the Universe: Grant that we should sit in the Succah of Leviathan, and let us be counted among the Tzaddikim of whom our Rabbis said that “In time to come, the Holy One, blessed be He, will make canopies for the Tzaddikim in the Garden of Eden and each Tzaddik will be burned by the canopy of his fellow.” Grant that even in this world we should receive a share of the radiant light emanating from these holy canopies.", + "Master of the Universe: You have taught us that in time to come, the brilliance of the light of Godly perception and knowledge that will be revealed will be so great that everyone will know HaShem, as it is written: “They will not harm and destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea.” Even the gentiles and the nations of the world will reach such a level of knowledge that they will come to understand that all their greatness and our lowliness in this world was really all for our good. In fact all this greatness was really ours while the lowliness was theirs.", + "At present it is impossible to understand this. It seems like a high level of knowledge, but even so, for us this perception will be ridiculous compared to the level of knowledge we will then attain. At present it is impossible even to talk about this level of knowledge, because today it is still in the category of the Transcendent Lights. Even among the Jews themselves there will certainly be a vast difference between the various Tzaddikim as regards the level of their perception. There will be an even greater difference between a Tzaddik and a simple God-fearing person, and a still greater difference between a Tzaddik and a wrong-doer.", + "You have also taught us that all our pain and suffering, our exile and the privations each of us experiences are basically caused only by a lack of understanding, as our Rabbis said: “If you lack understanding, what have you gained? If you've gained understanding, what do you lack?” Our sense of what we need and whether our needs are fulfilled depends basically upon our level of understanding. The roots of all anger and cruelty lie only in lack of understanding. True consolation for all the pain and suffering and exile will come from the tremendous increase in understanding that will spread over the entire world.", + "Merciful God: from now on, help us bind our minds to the light of the true understanding that is destined to be revealed in the future. Throughout our lives let us put every effort into deepening our understanding and reaching ever higher levels of insight, so as to sweeten all harsh decrees, remove all anger and cruelty, escape all kinds of pain and suffering, and satisfy all our needs. Send us eternal redemption. Let us witness the consolation and joy of Tzion. Fulfil in us the verse: “Then our mouths will be filled wth laughter and our tongues with joy. Then they will say among the nations, `HaShem has done great things with them. HaShem did great things with us. We were joyous.' “", + "Loving, merciful God: help me fulfil the mitzvah of Succah in the proper way in all its details and fine points, with all the correct intentions and together with the six hundred and thirteen mitzvot that are bound up with it. Let me carry out this mitzvah happily, wholeheartedly and with complete devotion.", + "Through the mitzvah of dwelling in the Succah let the Seven Clouds of Glory that surrounded the Jewish People in the wilderness descend upon us. Through carrying out the mitzvah of Succah properly in holiness, purity and joy, spread Your tabernacle of peace over us and and let us attain a perception of the Transcendent Lights and receive holy inspiration. Shield and protect us, and save us from all our enemies and attackers, physical and spiritual. Remove every impediment from before us and behind us, and shelter us in the shadow of Your wings.", + "Master of the Universe: be kind to me. Lovingly hear my prayer. Pour out Your blessings upon me and grant me true wisdom and inspiration. Bless me with perceptions of the holy Transcendent Lights and grant me a flow of holy spirit. Let the light of wisdom open up to me. Let my mind and my thoughts move forward fast until I come to perceive the Transcendent Lights. Help me attain the inner face of wisdom — the Light of Your Countenance. Let me reach a level where I will be able to attain the greatest heights of perception without needing prior introductions.", + "Let my mind move so swiftly that my heart will be uplifted of itself and light up with flames of holy passion. Let my heart blaze with passionate fervor — flames of the furnace of God — to serve You and fear You. And with this passion for holiness let me fix all the wrong I have done through burning with lust for the unholy. Let me quickly make amends for my burning desires for material pleasures, for my evil impulses and my negative traits, which have led me to serious sins and transgressions through involvement in the passions of this world.", + "I appeal to You, our God and Master: do everything possible to save me and heal my soul. From now on let me never succumb to any worldly passion at all, not even for things that are permitted, and certainly not for anything that is forbidden to us. Be kind to me and help me: inspire me with a fervent passion for holiness so that I will take fire with flames of love for Your Name and Your service — to pray and plead with You, and to learn, teach and fulfil all Your commandments with tremendous fervor, in holiness and purity, in accordance with Your will. Let this be my way to make amends for my unholy passions, which have been implanted in me from my earliest days until today.", + "Help me truly purify my heart so that I will always be able to express myself to You, conciliate You, and offer You new, fresh prayers at all times. May my prayers be pleasing to You and find favor before the throne of Your glory. Let me come genuinely close to You with all my heart, as befits a member of Your treasured nation. “Create a pure heart in me, God, and put a new, strong spirit within me. Don't cast me away from You and don't take Your holy spirit from me.”", + "Give me the power to develop true and original Torah ideas in holiness and purity. Always give me insights of such value that I will have the sanction of Heaven to reveal them to Your treasured People, the House of Israel, for the benefit of all. Let me share the goodness You show me with the entire Jewish People, and reveal Torah treasures to the treasured nation. Let my insights into the Torah help bring people to complete teshuvah. Protect me from all errors and let me never say anything that is not in full accord with Your will.", + "HaShem: You “lift up the poor from the dust and raise up the needy from the trash heaps.” Have mercy on me. Be kind to me. Lovingly fulfil my requests — for Your sake and not for mine. For Your sake, save me. Don't dismiss me empty-handed from Your presence, my King. Be kind to me. Answer me and hear my prayers. For You hear all prayers and listen to our cries from the depths. Hear how the House of Israel cries out to You from a far-distant land, sighing and groaning. “You cannot hide from your poor brother! Be sure to help and lift him up!” He who rides the Heavens and the firmaments in His majesty will help us!", + "[Recite Psalm 29.]", + "Master of the Universe: You know how plagued I am with enemies lurking on every side, especially in my mind and thoughts — and a person's mind and thoughts are his very essence. Wherever one's thoughts are, that's where the whole person is. Have mercy on me and guard my soul, and save me from every kind of negative and empty thought, and certainly from all evil thoughts. Let me have only good and holy thoughts. Let my mind constantly race to new and higher levels of knowledge and awareness of Your Godly light. Lead me to ever greater spiritual horizons and help me internalize them and bring them into the grasp of my mind.", + "Let these intellectual and spiritual horizons serve as holy “garments” for my mind, garments rooted in the light of the holy ChaShMaL, the letters of which have the same numerical value as MaLBuSh, a garment. The Chashmal puts all destructive forces to flight. May this save me from all lurking enemies and robbers, spiritual and physical, and fulfil in me the verse: “She is clothed in strength and splendor, and she will laugh to the last day.”", + "Master of the Universe: You have taught us that the most propitious time for drawing down these Transcendent Lights is during the month of Elul. Throughout Elul, help me bring the holiness of the season into myself. Let me make every effort to draw inspiration from the Transcendent Lights until I will be able to do so throughout the year, and constantly rise to higher levels, with new horizons — new Transcendent Lights. Let me always draw new light into myself so as constantly to achieve higher and higher knowledge and perception of Your Godly light." + ], + [ + "Fear of embarrassment in front of other people has a major influence over the way most of us behave, but shame before God is an emotion that has all but been erased from the consciousness of many in contemporary society. True shame before God is founded on an awareness of our smallness and inadequacy in the face of God's greatness and majesty.
The greater our sins and shortcomings, the more embarrassed we should feel before God, but this sense of shame is clouded by the trait of unholy azut — brazen assertiveness — characteristic of our lower bodily impulses and appetites. They thrust themselves to the forefront of our attention, making it difficult, if not impossible, for our higher spiritual powers to manifest themselves. In the world around us, azut is visible in the ruthless arrogance of those who are willing to ride roughshod over the interests of others for the sake of their own power and influence. Such false leaders create formidable obstacles for those wishing to draw close to the true spiritual leader — the Tzaddik.
To advance on the spiritual path, it is essential to use holy azut — bold determination to persist without regard for opposition and difficulties. Against the clamor of our inner impulses and the outer distractions, we must raise our own voices in Torah study and prayer. Indeed all holy sounds, such as that of the shofar, and even the chink of charity coins, help strengthen the power of the holy against the unholy. The way to subdue the lower instincts of the body is through submitting it to the discipline of the practical mitzvot, and serving the Tzaddikim through attending to their needs.
The foundation of holy azut is simchah, joy, which is associated with constant spiritual growth and development. Whatever level we may have reached, there is always a higher level to aspire to — one that is “concealed” in relation to the “revealed” knowledge and insight already attained. The essence of growth is to rise to this higher level and turn the “concealed” into something “revealed” — only to find a higher “concealed” level to work towards. The concepts of “revealed” and “concealed” correspond to Torah and prayer respectively. Prior to any spiritual advance there must always be a fall: its purpose is to spur us to increase our efforts to climb higher.
Only through the holy boldness and daring that come from joy can we connect ourselves with the spiritual leaders who make up the “inner seal” of holiness protecting the Jewish People's relationship with God. These leaders are emissaries between God and the Jewish People, guiding us and pointing out our sins and shortcomings, while interceding with God and pleading for forgiveness. Because they go to and fro, as it were, these emissaries are called the “legs.
We also need “hands” with which to receive their guidance and teachings. The vessel with which we receive them is faith, which makes up the “outer seal.” This requires extra protection, since if it is broken, the atheism which then develops causes global conflicts and expulsions of Jews from their homes. The only way to come to genuine faith is through the teachings of the true Tzaddik, who radiates the light of the seven pre-eminent leaders — “shepherds” — of the Jewish People: Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, Yosef, Moshe, Aharon and David.
HaShem our God and God of our fathers, Master of all works, Lord of all souls: shine on me from Your holy dwelling-place. Inspire me with fear and dread of You, and help me attain holy shame. Clothe me with awe and cloak me in shame before Your great and holy Name. Let me always feel truly ashamed before You, so that I will never deviate right or left from Your will. Let Your fear be upon my face so that I will never sin: that is the meaning of being ashamed before God.", + "Master of the Universe! Loving God! Have mercy on me! Help me feel the proper shame before You in this world, and let me never do anything contrary to Your will — and certainly nothing that is sinful in even the slightest way — so that I will not be ashamed or confounded in the world to come. Let the fear and shame I feel before You be as real and intense as the fear and shame I feel before human beings, who are mere flesh and blood.", + "Master of the Universe, King of Glory: You take notice of the degradation of those who have been shamed, and You respect the dignity of Your creatures. Your tender mercies extend to all Your works. Loving, merciful God: have pity on me! See my crushing burden of shame and embarrassment. My humiliation is indescribable. You alone know what I'm suffering. You know the depth of my shame and embarrassment. What can I say? How can I face You, my King? Where can I bury myself out of shame?", + "How will I be able to hide my face from embarrassment in the world of truth? My face is blacker than a blackened pot. How will I be able to lift my head before You, my God and God of my fathers? How will I lift my head in front of my fathers, through whom I came into this world? How will I lift my head in front of my teachers, who taught me the path of justice and truth? I've had no regard for their great and holy honor. I have demeaned myself and put them to shame. How will I lift my head in front of all the true Tzaddikim and pious Jews of all the generations? How will I lift my head in front of my friends? Who will be able to save me from my terrible shame at that time? Who will be able to bear my terrible disgrace? How will I find myself a place of refuge and bury myself out of shame and humiliation? What will I answer the One who sent me?", + "You have blessed me with a constant flow of goodness and kindness, physical and spiritual, at every single moment. You have signalled to me and called me to You in so many different ways. You have stretched out Your hand to me and sent me hints from near and far in order to bring me closer to You. You have prompted and beckoned me in countless different ways, literally every moment of every day.", + "If I had had no more than a single dawning experience of Your Godly presence and realized only once how You have been beckoning and calling me, that should have been enough to make it impossible for me ever to contravene Your will again, even with the slightest gesture. Even if I had made no more than a single faint movement that was in some way unbecoming, or not in full accord with Your will, I ought to have fallen flat on my face out of shame and disgrace until my soul would have virtually left me. I should never have been able to lift my head up again. How much more so, seeing that You have sent me endless insights and made me aware of Your presence in so many ways!", + "You have brought me through so many different situations and experiences, some of them good, some of them not so good, but all for my ultimate benefit, in order to prompt me to come back to You. You have called to me with such affection and sent me so many different hints to draw close to You. But far from taking myself in hand and coming genuinely close to You, striving to lead my life the way You want me to for my own good, I have wilfully thrown off all shame and self-respect and deliberately rebelled against You. I have done so much wrong, not for just one day, two days, ten days, a month or a year. I have been sinful and corrupt, day in and day out, for years and years. I have continued day after day and year after year. My life has been one long sequence of sin, transgression and rebellion — a life of the most terrible, unsufferable shame and disgrace.", + "Master of the Universe: You alone know the pain of the shame of the world to come, the world of truth. You alone know the terrible pain and torment suffered by those who fail to adorn themselves in this world in preparation for the “royal feast,” let alone by those who soil and destroy themselves with wrongdoing. How much more so someone who ... [here one should specify one's innermost anguish].", + "You alone know that no pain, torture or suffering in the world compares with the pain of that shame. Even the bitterest pain of hell and the harshest suffering of this world don't compare with it. Even if someone were to suffer the entire array of harsh and bitter torments that people endure in this world every day of his life, it would still be nothing compared to one hour or even a single moment of the pain of hell. And even the worst pain of hell is nothing compared with the pain of the shame of the world to come, which is worse than all the pain and torment in the world, even the pain of hell, as the true Tzaddikim have revealed to us.", + "As long as we are clothed in our physical bodies in this world, it is quite impossible for us even to begin to conceive the pain of the shame of the world to come. Oy for that shame! Oy for that disgrace! If our sages said that “Each Tzaddik is burned by the canopy of his fellow — oy for that shame!” and they also said, “The face of Moshe is like the face of the sun, the face of Yehoshua is like the face of the moon — oy for that shame! Oy for that disgrace!” and if each Tzaddik will be ashamed to lift his head in front of another Tzaddik who is greater than him ... then what will I answer? What will I say? How will I be able to express my shame and disgrace?", + "Where is there an advocate who will be able to weave me a defense and save me from my pain and disgrace? Where is there a singer of dirges who will be able to mourn adequately over the agony of my shame? Where is there a master of prayer, a master of conciliation, who will be able to evoke Your favor and persuade You to remove my disgrace and cover my shame?", + "And if, after all this, I had at least already attained holy shame, so that from now on I would feel true shame before You and not deviate right or left from Your will, I would hold my peace. But what should I do, heavenly Father? What shall I say? I am still far away from shame. As yet I have not succeeded in breaking the stubborn arrogance of my body in any way. “Therefore my words are confused,” and I have no idea where to begin or how to start expressing my feelings. “We are stretched out on a bed of shame, our disgrace covers us, for we have sinned against HaShem our God.”", + "Words fail me. I dare not raise my head. I have simply come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, to stretch out my hands and lift up my eyes to You for the sake of Your holiness. “To You I raise my eyes, You who dwell in Heaven...” that You should send sincere words into my mouth and upon my tongue so that I may elicit Your favor and persuade You to turn to me, be kind to me, and save me from shame and disgrace from now and for ever.", + "Help me! Shine the light of holy awe and shame upon me. Father in Heaven: show me the tender love a father has for his son. Send me holy awe and shame from the very roots of this holy attribute, which preceded the entire creation. Its source is in the “perfect saying” of BeREShiYT — “In the beginning” — which consists of the letters YoRE BoSheT — “Awe- Shame”. This holy attribute is rooted in the Supreme Wisdom, the Upper Eden, which is totally concealed and hidden.", + "Who could fail to be overawed by these radiant lights? Who could fail to be ashamed before them? Who could fail to be filled with awe and trembling when he realizes how totally remote he is from any perception of these lights? Even someone who is completely clean of sin is distant from them, not to speak of one who has committed some transgression — even a minor one — at some time in his life. How much more so someone who is full of sin and transgression! Have mercy on me! Have pity on my nefesh, my ru'ach and my neshamah! Have pity on my grossly materialistic body, which is so utterly remote from Your holiness and so wracked with waste and corruption.", + "Master of the Universe! Master of the Universe! Lord of love and forgiveness! See my wretchedness and suffering! See my misery and bitterness! You know the tragedy of my body's stubborn involvement in the lusts of this world, which keep it so totally far from my soul. It is impossible for my soul to come close to my body and shine into it with the light of her constant perceptions in the upper worlds. Your intention in creating me and bringing me into this world was that I should have the privilege of knowing You even in this physical world, where the soul and the body are bound together. But I've had scant regard for Your great and holy glory or the honor of my holy soul. I have failed to fight my bodily desires and bad traits. My soul is totally unable to approach my body due to its stubborn attachment to physical lusts.", + "My body is so stubborn and assertive, so void of all shame before God, that I have absolutely no idea how to break it. The true Tzaddikim have revealed all kinds of pathways and methods of breaking the arrogance of the body in order to come closer to You. But I find it extremely difficult to put their advice into practice. I don't know how I can begin to follow the good advice You have revealed to us through the true Tzaddikim, seeing as I have rebelled against all of it.", + "Master of the World! Master of the entire Universe! Have mercy on me! I know of no other way except to cry to You constantly and beg and plead with You to help me out of pure generosity — to implant in me fine qualities and save me from all my lusts and bad traits. Yet I find it impossible even just to cry out to You. The days and years are flying by, and I can't bring myself to cry out to You with all my heart.", + "Even if the years had gone by without my having done so much wrong, I would still have to cry out to You over the loss of my precious time: if only I had used it properly, I could have gained the priceless reward of eternal life. Oy! If only my days had at least gone by without my having done wrong! But now the days and years have flown by like a passing shadow, like the blink of an eye, and they have been full of mistakes, blunders, sins and transgressions! My sins press in on me with such force that it is impossible for me to cry out to You the way I should.", + "Father in Heaven! Father in Heaven! What should I do? How should I act? Where should I escape? Where should I fly to? “Who will give me a traveller's hut in the wilderness...” where I can escape the grossness and stubbornness of my body. But You know that there's nowhere one can escape from the body. I'm turning round and round like a wheel with my words, but everything comes back to the same point. My eyes are fixed on You! My thoughts are turned to You! To You alone my eyes are raised! My eyes are longing and waiting for HaShem to save me. I have no-one to depend on except my Father in Heaven. I have no hope except You, loving Father! I have no stronghold or refuge except the power of Your love and kindness.", + "Master of the Universe: stir up Your love for me! Have compassion on one as broken and full of shame and disgrace as I am! Stretch out Your hand and support me firmly, and let Your right arm strengthen me. Rise up to help me and save me! You are able to do anything and everything, “and no solution is withheld from You.” Kind, loving, mighty God: You have the power to lift people out of the lowest depths of failure and bring them to the greatest heights of achievement, until their very fall can be turned into the ultimate advance. Loving God: You have the power to turn sins into merits — for who can say to You, “What are You doing?” Kind, loving God: have mercy on me and act to lift me out of my degradation. Say “Enough!” to my troubles, and from now on lift me up, level by level, and let all my falls be turned into great advances.", + "Bring me to complete repentance and turn all my sins into merits. Let me devote myself to Torah, good deeds and prayer all my days, in truth and faith, and with genuine humility, self-sacrifice, devotion and complete surrender. Loving God: help me always to draw upon myself the light of the holy crowns with which You adorned us at Chorev at the time of the Giving of the Torah, when we declared: “We will do and we will hear!” Two crowns were then placed on the head of every Jew, but because of our sins they have been taken from us. Yet the time will come when You will return them to us, as it is written: “And eternal joy upon their heads.”", + "Loving God: help us all to sanctify and purify ourselves, turn away from evil and always do what is good in Your eyes. Let us constantly labor in Torah and prayer with true self-sacrifice, so that each one of us will have restored to us those two crowns formed from our declaration of “We will do and we will hear!” “We will do!” and “We will hear!” correspond to Torah study and prayer — the “revealed” and “concealed” aspects of the Torah.", + "Let me constantly rise to new levels of understanding of the secrets of the Torah, until I grasp the Torah of God Himself. Let me make every effort to serve You with profound devotion and genuine self- sacrifice until I will always be able to rise rapidly from level to level and grasp ever higher levels of Torah secrets. Let me constantly attain higher and higher levels of “doing” and “hearing,” and grant that the levels that were previously concealed from me will always become revealed to me, so that “hearing” will turn into “doing,” prayer into Torah, and HaShem's Torah into my Torah, as it is written: “His desire is for HaShem's Torah, and he studies his Torah day and night.”", + "Help me grasp and understand the exalted service that lies in the secrets clothed within the words and verses surrounding each of the different mitzvot as written in the Torah. The true greatness of the holy service embedded in these verses is totally beyond our grasp. Even so, loving God, have pity on me and help me come to some understanding of this holy service so that I will know how to serve You and carry out Your will as hidden beneath the surface of these words of Torah.", + "Let me constantly rise from level to level and from world to world, from one level of “hearing” and “doing” to the next, and so on and on, for ever and ever, as it is written: “The hidden secrets are for HaShem our God, while that which is revealed is for us and our children for ever, to carry out all the words of this Torah.” Bring me to the greatest possible heights, until I will truly grasp the Torah of HaShem Himself. Grant that I should rise up and be united with the light of the Infinite and become totally merged in Your unity, until I truly attain the Torah of HaShem and the Prayer of HaShem.", + "HaShem my God and God of my fathers: may it be Your will to have pity on me and help me attain holy joy and happiness. Let me always be full of joy. Let the joy of HaShem be my strength. Fill me with holy boldness and determination, and let me use holy sounds and voices to strengthen my connection with You. Give me the inner strength to cry out to You and call You at all times. Help me hear and pay careful attention to all the various kinds of holy sounds and voices. Let them all penetrate deep into my heart — whether it be the voice of the true spiritual guide who comes to point out our shortcomings and remind us of our obligations in life, or the sound of tunes, songs and praises to Your Name, or the holy sound of the shofar, the sound of our own sighs, cries and prayers to You, HaShem our God, or any other holy sounds.", + "Let me listen carefully to all these holy voices. Let them enter my ears and heart and arouse me to turn to You with all my heart. Let them inspire me with holy daring and determination and give me the strength to fight the stubbornness of my body and break it completely. Help me overcome all my physical lusts and bad traits and make my body completely subject to my holy soul.", + "Let me be bold as a leopard in serving You, learning Your Torah, and deepening my fear of Heaven, so that my soul will be able to have pity on my body and draw close and illumine the body with the light of her own constant spiritual insights and perceptions. The soul will also benefit from this, since she will then be able to return to her own exalted level at all times, even after a fall, because she will be inspired by the residue of the light she radiated to the body beforehand. This way I will be able to remain completely attached to You, body and soul, at all times.", + "You alone know the true plight of my body, which is at present so totally far from my soul. This is also very damaging to the soul, as You know. Have mercy on me! Put it into my heart to have pity on my body. Let me counter the brazen stubbornness of my body with holy boldness and determination. Let me use holy sounds and cries to master the body and break its stubbornness, so that my body will become subject to my soul. Then my soul will be able to radiate to it, and my body will also have a share in the knowledge of the soul's constant spiritual perceptions in the upper worlds.", + "Grant that I should come close to the true Tzaddikim and the spiritual guides who point out our shortcomings and remind us of our obligations in this world. Inspire me with holy determination. Let me be bold as a leopard in standing my ground against the arrogance of those wanting to distance people from the true Tzaddikim. Keep me well away from those who are on the wrong path, and from false leaders whose power and influence are based on nothing but their own ruthless arrogance — kingship without a crown. In the present low state of the Jewish People these self-serving leaders are lording it over us for no reason. You alone know the full extent of the evils they cause. Not only are they incapable of bringing us truly close to You. They want to hold us back from the inner point of truth, from the true Tzaddikim and those who are genuinely God-fearing.", + "Loving God: keep us all well away from hypocrites, liars and false leaders. Give us the courage to stand up against their brazen arrogance. Be kind to us and help us! Let the sheer force of our holy determination give us the strength to add to the power and might of the holiness in the worlds above, so that You will then bless us and grant us added strength and power directly from You. We will then be able to put every effort into serving You, learning Your Torah, and striving to deepen our awe of Heaven. We'll do so with all the power, strength and determination we command.", + "We'll never be ashamed of scoffers, and we will never feel the least fear, shame or lack of confidence in front of any person or creature in the world. Our only fear will be of You. We will live in constant awe and shame before You, and never deviate right or left from Your will from now and for ever. Fulfil in us the verse: “Give power to God: His majesty is upon Israel and His might is in the heavens. You are awesome, O God, from Your sanctuaries, O God of Israel, it is He who gives power and strength to the People. Blessed is God.”", + "Loving God: let me understand how to strike the right balance and go about my life with bold determination, yet without brazen arrogance of any kind. Let me only assert myself for the sake of Your Name, in order genuinely to serve You. Save me from the harsh, bitter torments of hell that are the punishment for insolence. Shameless people ultimately fall into hell without anyone to help them. Merciful God: have pity on me! Save me from any form of brazen arrogance, and from the stubbornness of my body. Inspire me with true holy daring and determination, and give me the courage to stand up against the arrogant people who want to distance others from the truth and demoralize those genuinely seeking to follow the paths of holiness. Let me be bold as a leopard against them, and help me overcome them, bring them down to the dust, break and utterly destroy them.", + "Let me always be bold and determined in serving You. Let me hear all the sounds of holiness and use them to fight the stubbornness of my body until I succeed in overcoming all my bodily appetites and bad traits. Let me come genuinely close to the true Tzaddikim and always be connected with truly God-fearing people who are following the true path according to Your will. “HaShem is mighty and powerful. HaShem is a man of war. Give Your might to Your servant and save the son of Your maid-servant.” Grant me the holy boldness that derives from holy shame — from the hidden and concealed Upper Eden, the Supreme Wisdom, the “perfect saying” of BeREShiYT, through which You will rebuild Jerusalem, Your faithful city, speedily in our times.", + "Lead me with Your might to Your holy dwelling-place and bring me to perfect faith, so that I will be able to draw close to and become united with the true Tzaddikim. They are the embodiment of the Seven Shepherds through whom all holiness is revealed. Through them, bring me, my children and all the Jewish People to true, perfect faith. Loving God: bring me to believe in You, in Your true Tzaddikim and in all the spiritual guides who have come to point out our shortcomings and remind us of our obligations in life, both those in past generations and those living today. Let my faith be true, perfect and free of all flaws and errors. And through my faith, help me accept the criticisms of these spiritual guides. Let me listen to their message. Let their words of truth penetrate my ears and heart. Let me turn my heart to them and submit myself to them completely, until I become what the Tzaddikim would want me to be, without deviating left or right from their wishes or teachings.", + "Loving God: give me the privilege of being able to serve true Tzaddikim and Torah guides. Let me stand before them and attend to all their needs and wishes in order to be able to have some connection with them. You know how far I am from the true Tzaddikim. I have no real link with them. Even when I hear one of their holy teachings, what my ears hear is not the authentic sound of their words, but an echo that has become attached to the holy sound because of my sins. I don't even hear the sound of my own sighs and cries: all I hear is the sound of an echo!", + "Please, HaShem, bring me to holy service. Let me use my body to carry out many practical mitzvot: let my body constantly serve my soul this way. Let me also serve many Torah scholars and true Tzaddikim, so as to be able to hear all the sounds of holiness themselves without interference from the sound of the echo.", + "Loving God: pardon and forgive me for all my sins and transgressions. Remove all the accusers my sins have created. Crush them, humble them and destroy them completely. Put boldness into my heart so that I'll be able to fight the stubbornness of my body until I break all my bodily lusts and bad traits and make my body completely subordinate to my holy soul. Let my body become totally merged and united with my soul. Let my soul shine into my body with the light of her constant spiritual insights and perceptions. And let me draw close to the true Tzaddikim and become fully bound to them with my body, my nefesh, my ru'ach and neshamah. Let me be completely united with them until I become worthy of being totally merged within Your unity for ever.", + "Arouse Your love for us and send us a true leader, a faithful shepherd, who will have the power to bring us truly close to You. Let us be bound to the seven holy shepherds who are the embodiment of all holiness and the embodiment of the holy faith of the Jewish People. Through them, bring us to true faith — for Your sake, for the sake of the seven shepherds, Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, Moshe, Aharon, Yosef and David, for the sake of all the true Tzaddikim in all the generations up till now, for the sake of the true Tzaddikim in this generation, and for the sake of the whole of the Jewish People. Shine on us from Your holy dwelling-place, bless us with Your true goodness, and treat us kindly, mercifully, tenderly and lovingly.", + "Turn Your face to us again and plant perfect faith in our hearts. Bring us to have faith in You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, and in Your true Tzaddikim, both the Tzaddikim who are at rest in the earth, and the Tzaddikim, Torah guides and truly God-fearing people in this generation. Let me believe in all of them in truth and perfect faith without any flaws or errors. Let me have no doubts or questions about them. And through my perfect faith, let me fill myself with the light of the seven shepherds and dedicate myself to God today and always. Give me the strength to overcome all false beliefs and remove them from the world. Bring the entire world back to holy faith in You. Let my own perfect faith enable me to accept reproof and criticism from true Torah guides. Let their words penetrate my heart until I turn to You sincerely and come to complete repentance.", + "Gather in the all the scattered Jews and let there be no more expulsions. Remove all conflict from the world. Let no Jew ever be driven out from where he lives. As for those who have been driven out from where they were living — whether as communities or individually — bring them back and restore them all to their places in peace. Bring peace to the world and remove all conflict. Loving God: purify the Jewish People and guard us at all times from anything that might sully the purity of the Jewish family. Keep us far away from impurity, and let us never stumble in any way in our adherence to the rules of family purity. Let us be holy and pure at all times.", + "Loving God: send us true Tzaddikim and mentors who have the power and wisdom to make peace between the Jewish People and our Father in Heaven. We need Torah guides who have the skill to guide and criticize us as necessary, informing us individually and as members of our communities of the seriousness of every single sin and transgression, so as to bring us back to You and move the entire Jewish People to repentance. We need leaders who know how to conciliate You with their prayers, minimizing our sins and transgressions before You so as to arouse Your love for the Jewish People and elicit Your forgiveness for all our sins and transgressions, both as a nation and as individuals, in this generation and in previous generations, in this incarnation and in any other incarnation.", + "God of forgiveness: pardon and forgive us for all our sins. Turn Your face to us again and have pity on us at all times. Build Jerusalem, Your faithful city, quickly in our time, and send peace to the world. Loving God: with the help of Your true Tzaddikim, let us restore the two seals of holiness, the seal within the seal — the “seal of the hands” and the “seal of the legs” — and sweeten and remove all severe judgments from the entire Jewish People for ever.", + "Loving God: help me pray with intense concentration and feeling at all times, and especially during the month of Tishri, on Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Hoshanah Rabbah. Help me pray with all my strength, and with the utmost fervor and devotion. Send us truly honest and God-fearing men to lead the Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur prayers and blow the shofar. Send us prayer-leaders who know how to conciliate You and arouse Your love for us.", + "Let me listen to the blowing of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah with intense concentration. Help me fulfil the mitzvah of hearing the shofar blasts in all its details and fine points, with the appropriate inner intentions and all of the six hundred and thirteen mitzvot connected with it, whole-heartedly and with great joy. Let me hear the sound of the shofar itself, not the sound of an echo. Let the holy sound of the shofar penetrate deep into my heart and fill me with holiness.", + "Let the sound of the shofar ring out loud and strong on Rosh Hashanah — “indeed He will give with his voice the voice of strength!” Let the blast of the shofar fill us with fear, trembling, dread, awe and great shame before You, as it is written: “If the shofar is sounded in the city, will the people not tremble?” Let the sound of the shofar become louder and stronger until it overwhelms and destroys all kinds of unholy arrogance — the stubbornness of the body, and the self-seeking assertiveness of people who are not ashamed of anything.", + "Let us hear all the holy sounds of the shofar — tekiah, shevarim and teruah — and let them penetrate deep into our ears and hearts so as to break the stubbornness of our bodies and arouse our hearts to perfect repentance. Let us be “joyous and good-hearted” throughout Rosh Hashanah, until we are moved to weep for sheer joy in Your great Name, and we will fulfil the verse: “They will rejoice in Your Name all day long, and through Your righteousness they will be exalted. For You are the splendor of their power, and through You our pride will be exalted.”", + "Master of the Universe: You know that all our holiness depends on Rosh Hashanah, the first day of the year. “This day is the beginning of Your works,” the anniversary of the first day of creation. Holiness spreads from Rosh Hashanah over the entire year. Kind and merciful God: help me observe Rosh Hashanah with the utmost holiness and joy. Help me purify and sanctify my thoughts as fully as possible on Rosh Hashanah, since as You know it is most important to guard one's thoughts with the greatest care on Rosh Hashanah. Through the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim, let all the necessary work of restoring harmony and unity to the upper worlds be accomplished on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, so as to draw holiness over the entire Jewish People throughout the year, “from the beginning of the year until the end of the year.”", + "You know that in this bitter exile, on the threshold of Mashiach, we have no source of power and inspiration besides Rosh Hashanah, the good and precious gift You have given us with such love. But we have fallen so low that we lack all wisdom and knowledge as to the proper way to draw the holiness of Rosh Hashanah on ourselves. You know our hearts. Rise up and help us in this time of sorrow at the end of days. Have mercy on us and save us, our Lord, our God, our Father, King, Rock and Redeemer! Take pity on us in the merit of the true Tzaddikim in this generation and that of the holy true Tzaddikim now at rest in the earth, to whose graves we and the whole Jewish People go to prostrate ourselves on the eve of Rosh Hashanah, stretching out our hands to You to pray and plead with You, prostrate, bent over and with crushed and broken hearts.", + "Kind, merciful, loving God: stir up the very heart of the souls of all the true Tzaddikim who now dwell on the supreme heights in the uppermost worlds of holiness, and let their souls come down below on Rosh Hashanah and be with us. Let them pray and intercede for us so as to crush and banish the Satan and smash and destroy brazen arrogance of any kind from within the Jewish People through the Rosh Hashanah prayers and shofar blasts. Give us all the power to draw from the holiness and purity of Rosh Hashanah throughout the year. During the month of Tishri — on Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Succot, Hoshanah Rabbah and Shemini Atzeret — help us fix and strengthen the two seals of holiness, the seal within the seal, and let our voices rise up and find favor before You, so as to make us worthy of perfect holy joy at all times. Write and seal the entire Jewish People for good, long lives, for peace, and for lives filled with heavenly awe — true life, a life that will bring us to eternal life.", + "Master of the Universe: You know my heart. My needs are so many that my whole lifetime would not be long enough for me to spell them all out. But You know everything in my heart. For the sake of Your Name and for the sake of all the true Tzaddikim, have pity on me and lovingly fulfil my requests for good — both those I have mentioned and those that I lack the ability and language to express to You. Act to bring us all back to You with all our hearts, and help us attain perfect repentance in the way You want. Let us not deviate right or left from Your will all our days and for ever. Help us rise quickly from level to level, higher and higher, in holiness and purity, until we become united with You and merged in the light of the Infinite even in this life, in accordance with Your will and that of the true Tzaddikim. Give us a true share in the Torah of HaShem and the prayer of HaShem, so as not to be ashamed in this world or disgraced in the world to come. “HaShem will give strength to His people, HaShem will bless His people with peace.” HaShem our God and God of our Fathers: may it be Your will to rebuild Your city quickly in our times, and grant us our portion in Your Torah." + ], + [ + "The covenant / Sexual purity / Happiness / Faith and truth / Earning a living / Mezuzah / Envy / Strife
Since the essence of a person is expressed in his face, the experience of true closeness to God is described as gazing at the light emanating from His “face” or “countenance.” The way to open ourselves to this light is through faith and the search for truth. Experiencing it is characterized by spiritual joy and contentment.
We are placed in this material world as a test, so that we may earn our closeness to God through overcoming obstacles and temptations. A person who mistakenly views material gratification as the main purpose of this life is cut off from the light of God’s countenance, and instead becomes attached to the dark “face” of the Other Side, the realm of unholiness. This attachment is characterized by the anxiety and depression experienced by so many for whom money-making is the main goal of life, and who lack the trust that God can provide everything they need.
The key to detaching oneself from this unholy “face” is scrupulous fulfillment of God’s covenant with the Jewish people (the mark of which is circumcision), which involves purity and self-restraint in material life, and especially in the realm of sexual morality. Observance of the covenant opens us to the light of God’s countenance and saves us from sinking into the pursuit of materialism. By virtue of being circumcised, every Jew has an aspect of tzaddik within him. However, opposition from others can easily push one down into materialism. Those confronted by opposition, such as people seeking to lead a spiritual life in the face of mockery and even outright persecution, must make a special effort to hold themselves from succumbing to materialistic temptations.
Developing our faith and trust that God controls everything can save us from struggles and anxiety in earning a living. One of the signs that we have truly attached ourselves to God and overcome our materialistic inclinations is our readiness to spend money in connection with fulfillment of the mitzvot. The mitzvah of affixing a mezuzah on our doors affirms God’s sovereignty over our material environment. This mitzvah is thus a guard against the sin of envy, which people fall into when they are not satisfied with the portion God has given them.
Our God and God of our fathers! Living God and King of the world! God of life, our portion and our Rock! Command that our precious flesh be saved from destruction, for the sake of the covenant You have inscribed in our flesh. Master of the world, how much goodness You have shown us! You have taken pity on our souls and planned from afar how to bring us to the ultimate good. You made Your covenant with Abraham, Your beloved one, and established it with Isaac and his offspring, Israel, and his descendants in every generation.", + "In order to rectify our souls and those of our children, You commanded us to enter the covenant of Abraham our father and circumcise our flesh by removing the foreskin on the eighth day.", + "“Who can express the mighty acts of God and proclaim all His praise?” Who can glorify and praise You, thank You and bless You for all the kindness and goodness You have shown us in “sanctifying the beloved one from the time he was in the womb” and sealing the sign of the covenant in his descendants!", + "Therefore, I have come to plead with You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, kind and loving Father, Who saves from death and redeems from destruction.", + "For the sake of Your covenant that You have sealed in my flesh, have mercy on my soul! Rise up and help me! Save me for the sake of Your kindness. Help me observe the holy covenant, and sanctify and purify myself until I attain complete perfection.", + "Protect me and help me guard myself from all evil. Let me never think forbidden thoughts during the day, so as not to come to impurity at night. In Your vast compassion, save me from doing anything that goes against the covenant. Do it for Your sake if not for mine. Do it for the sake of all the truly pure and holy tzaddikim and pious Jews who overcame their evil inclination for the sake of Your glory, and stood firm in the face of the hardest tests. They subdued their desires and sanctified Your Name until they attained the ultimate level of holiness and purity.", + "For their sake, and for the sake of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, have pity on me! Help me and save me! Sanctify me and purify me, so that I too will truly guard the covenant in accordance with Your will.", + "Master of the world, what can I say? How can I speak? How can I justify myself? How can I begin to express what is in my heart?", + "How can I possibly apologize to You and appease You for all the sins and transgressions I have committed from my youth until today?", + "I have sinned in thought, word and deed, with my eyes, my ears and the rest of my senses. Who could possibly enumerate all my sins or spell them out, even in the most general terms?", + "I want to beg Your forgiveness — but where should I start? With my latest sins or the older ones? With the obvious sins or those that are hidden? Should I make a general plea, or should I start going into details? Should I begin with my serious sins or the more minor ones?", + "For even what to me seem like very minor lapses are really the most terrible blemishes, considering Your greatness and exaltedness!", + "Master of the world, open Your mouth to me, dumb, friendless outcast that I am. Help me pour out my bitter heart to You.", + "My soul is so very, very bitter. I don’t know how I can continue living for even a short while, so bitter is my heart because I have blemished the holy covenant, which is the very source of life.", + "Master of the world, You know that all my days and years will not be enough to confess, plead with You and make amends for even a single impure thought.", + "You alone know the full extent of the damage caused by impure thoughts, and all the more so the damage caused by even a single drop of wasted seed.", + "Who can repair the damage and make amends, and conciliate and appease You for such sins? The wrong we have done has lengthened our exile, and we have still not returned to our Land.", + "And now, what can I say? How can I speak?", + "In what language, words and approach can I begin to confess to You, my God and God of my fathers? Where can I find pure, holy words to express what I need to say to You?", + "“I am dumbstruck. Even about the good I keep silent, because of my inner pain. … I am dumbstruck. I cannot open my mouth, for You have done it!” I have sinned so much that my face is blackened and my eyes have become darkened.", + "Because of my many sins, I suffer from constant sadness and depression. I have no true joy, even when performing a holy act, or when I pray or learn Torah. I am completely remote from true joy.", + "For I have abused the light of the countenance of the living King and spoiled all kinds of holy joy. My sins have cast a shadow over the radiant light of holiness.", + "As a result of my many sins, the dark face of unholiness rears up against me constantly in the form of sadness and depression. This has been my ruin.", + "For depression is the main obstacle to serving God. It has been the main cause of all my sins and transgressions.", + "As You well know, HaShem, and as You revealed to us through Your true sages, the main reason people come to sin — especially sexual sins — is due to sadness and depression. And now, my Father in Heaven, living and enduring God, where can I find a remedy for my terrible wounds? “I lift up my eyes to the mountains: from where will my help come?”", + "Where should I seek help? Where can I find refuge? The fact is that joy and guarding the covenant each depend on the other.", + "If I have not yet merited to truly guard the covenant, how can I come to joy?", + "And considering how far I am from holy joy, where will I get the strength and determination necessary to guard the covenant?", + "Therefore, all I can do is cry out and scream to You — cry and scream bitterly, groaning and pleading.", + "With all kinds of supplications I appeal to You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers!", + "With all kinds of requests I beg You before Your throne of glory!", + "With all kinds of cries I call out to You: Have pity! Have mercy! Be kind to me! Save me!", + "Savior and Redeemer, save me! For Your sake, redeem me! You Who hear the cries of the needy, hear my screams and groans!", + "Master of the entire world, don’t give my soul over to destruction. “What gain is there from my blood, if I go down to destruction? Will dust acknowledge You and tell of Your truth?”", + "“Save me from the mire. Don’t let me sink! Save me from my enemies and from the depths of the waters.”", + "No words in the world can express what is in my heart. The pain of my soul is more than that of someone sinking hopelessly into the mire or drowning in the deepest waters.", + "If King David and the other true tzaddikim used poetic language like this to speak about one single, minor, insignificant lapse — one that people like ourselves find it hard to even see as a sin — then what can I possibly say? How can I speak?", + "If only I could at least express myself in holy words springing from a truly broken heart, just as their words came from their lips in total sincerity — and this despite the fact that they had really not done the least wrong, whereas the damage I have done is so serious.", + "If so, there is no hope for me, and I have nothing I can rely on except the merit of the true tzaddikim, the “foundation of the world,” on whom the entire House of Israel depends. Their tremendous holiness and merit are sufficient to lift up even someone like myself and bring me closer to You.", + "On their great power alone I rely, even in the midst of this great and bitter exile. They are my foundation and support as I cry and scream to You from the place I am in.", + "I have come before You to stretch out my hands to You and raise my eyes to Your holy dwelling place. I am fixing my gaze and pinning my hopes on Your abundant kindness. Have pity on me and lift me out of this mud and mire, out of the depths of the sea. Raise me from the lowly condition I have descended to on account of all the bad things I’ve done and my wrongful thoughts.", + "Lift my soul out of this desolation, emptiness, darkness and abyss. Compassionate God, cleanse me of all impurity, and redeem me and rescue me from all the unholy forces that have taken hold of me.", + "Sanctify me with every kind of holiness. Save me with every kind of salvation and rescue. Be with me constantly. Help me truly bind myself to You in a strong, powerful bond.", + "Help me bind my 248 limbs, my 365 sinews, my nefesh, my ruach and my neshamah in such a strong bond that they will all be held together firmly and tightly by one single holy thought: that I want to truly serve You and fear You. May I turn from evil completely, so as to avoid all forms of sin and transgression, all evil thoughts and fantasies, all distractions, all breaches of the covenant, and all wrongdoing. Forgive me and pardon me for all my sins and transgressions from my youth until today. Repair all the damage I have caused until now. From now on help me be genuinely holy and pure, the way You want. Help me sanctify myself even in what is permissible. Let me practice selfrestraint with genuine holiness, until I quickly come to true observance of the holy covenant. Shine down on me from Your holy dwelling place, and bless me with constant happiness and joy. Let me be happy at all times. “I will rejoice in HaShem! My soul will delight in my God.” Let me constantly rejoice and exult in Your saving power.", + "Shine the light of Your countenance upon me, and grant that I should bask in the radiant light of happiness and joy, the light of the face of the living King.", + "You Who bring joy to the downcast, send me joy from Your heights and bring my sad, pain-ridden soul to happiness. “Bring joy to the soul of Your servant, for to You, HaShem, I lift up my soul.” “Teach me the path of life: in the light of Your countenance is joyous satisfaction, pleasantness in Your right arm of kindness forever!”", + "Truth and faith
Compassionate Father! “HaShem, God of truth!” In Your tremendous compassion, help me attain truth and faith.", + "Have pity on me and save me from any kind of denial of God, and from all flaws in my faith. May I never have any doubts, questions or misgivings about You or the way You run the world, about Your true tzaddikim and the truly pious Jews of this generation, about any holy, pure Torah works, or indeed about anything holy. Let me just believe in You, in Your true tzaddikim, Your holy Torah, and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, with true, perfect, flawless faith. Never let a single skeptical thought enter my mind.", + "May I truly serve You at all times with perfect faith, until I am worthy of attaining a revelation of Your Godliness and come to know Your exaltedness. Help me gaze upon the light of HaShem’s countenance, “to behold the pleasantness of HaShem and frequent His Sanctuary.”", + "May the verse be fulfilled in me, “From my flesh I see God.” Let me perceive Your Godliness and apprehend Your greatness, and know You in this world and in the World to Come, in truth and perfect faith, the way You want.", + "Earning a living
In Your vast compassion and tremendous kindness, help me break my lust for money. Let me have no desire or yearning for money whatsoever. Let me detest illicit gain and have an absolute hatred for money.", + "Whenever I have to engage in business, help me conduct my business affairs with perfect faith and honesty. May I always keep my word and never try to change what I have said, not even for the sake of an enormous profit. All the money in the world should not sway my heart from the truth or from faith in You, causing me to change or exchange one of my words. And everything that I say while doing business, let me fulfill exactly as I say it. Save me from making myself crazy to make money or being preoccupied with pursuing a living, wasting so much energy and effort. Compassionately shine Your blessings upon me, and plant firm faith and perfect trust in my heart. Let me trust in God alone, and truly know and believe that “it does not come from the east or the west or the mountainous desert.” Whatever strength one has does not come from himself; “my strength and the force of my hand” are powerless to amass wealth. Everything comes only from You. “Wealth and glory are from You, and You hold sway over everything.”", + "Let me have true faith that You have the power to send me my livelihood simply and easily, without any need for effort and exertion on my part.", + "Let me keep my mind free of all worries about making a living, and may I always be strong in my faith and trust in You.", + "Master of the world, have pity on me! Be kind to me! Help me! Save me from the lust for money, which is literally idol worship — and not just one kind of idol worship, for it encompasses the seventy idolatrous cults of the seventy nations.", + "As You have revealed to us through Your true sages, whoever falls into the lust for money, it is as if he worshipped the idols of all seventy nations.", + "Such a person separates himself from truth and holy faith — which are the light of the face of the living King, the shining face — binding himself instead to the dark face of death, sadness and depression.", + "Such a person is constantly filled with worry and anxiety. All his days are consumed by anger and suffering, and he has no life at all — not in this world and not in the World to Come. Have mercy on me, my children, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel. Save us from this evil lust for money, which has become so widespread in the world today on account of our sins.", + "Protect us in the merit of the true tzaddikim, the “eternal covenant of salt,” and save us in their merit from this lust for money. Inspire us with wisdom, understanding and knowledge, so that concerns about money should not consume all the days of our lives.", + "Have mercy on us and compassionately hear our cries. Act for Your sake and for the sake of Your Shekhinah, which has gone into exile among the nations on account of our sins. Act for the sake of the true tzaddikim, who truly guarded the covenant and completely broke the desire for money.", + "Hear the cry of the Shekhinah, the Congregation of Israel, which screams 140 cries —", + "“My head hurts! My arm hurts!” — over those who have fallen into this idolatrous lust for money, which is the root of all idolatry. You Who hear prayers, groans and cries, hear our voices from the deepest depths! Hear how we groan and cry out to You to help us and save us in Your vast compassion from the lust for money.", + "“HaShem, hear my voice. Let Your ears be attentive to the sound of my pleas!” Lift me up and help me stand firm and strong in faith and trust in You. Let me genuinely believe in You with complete faith, until I break my lust for money entirely.", + "Keep my mind free of all worries about making a living. May I not place my reliance on any specific means or projects. Just let me put all my trust in You, and strengthen myself in trust in HaShem alone.", + "And You, in turn, have compassion on me, and send me abundant goodness and blessing from the root and source of holy blessings. Send me my livelihood before I even need it, through easy means and without any effort or anxiety on my part. Grant me an abundance of holy wealth and let me be happy with my portion always.", + "Don’t put me in need of the gifts of flesh and blood or their loans. In Your compassion, save me from ever being a debtor: may I never have to take loans from others.", + "Let me not chase after unnecessary luxuries, or borrow from others to finance extravagant business ventures.", + "Just have mercy on me and bless me. Grant me my livelihood through easy means, without my having to take any loans from other people. Send abundant blessing and success to all the work of my hands.", + "Grant that I should be able to spend a minimum of time on my business activities, so that I will be able to devote myself to Torah and Divine service all the days of my life — I, my children and descendants, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from now on and forever.", + "The mitzvah of mezuzah
Kind, compassionate God, let me fulfill the mitzvah of mezuzah perfectly in accordance with Your will, with all its details and fine points, its underlying intentions, and the 613 mitzvot that depend on it. Let me perform this mitzvah wholeheartedly and with great joy. Through the holy mitzvah of mezuzah, help me, guard me and protect me, so I can break the lust and desire for money completely. May I never have the least appetite for money or material possessions.", + "Certainly may I never entertain the least bit of envy of other people’s money or possessions. May I never envy anyone else’s house, field, manservant, maidservant, ox, donkey or anything else belonging to them.", + "Help me repent completely and sincerely for all the envious thoughts and desires I have had in the past, and let me make amends for all the damage I have caused through this great sin of “Do not covet.”", + "From now on help me totally rid my mind and heart of all such thoughts, and all longings for money and material possessions. Bring me to perfect truth and faith.", + "In Your vast compassion, sanctify me through the awesomely holy mitzvah of mezuzah. Guard me when I go out and when I come in, in life and peace, from now on and forever. Fill me with a spirit of holiness and purity, so that I will attain the holiness of the covenant and truly break my appetite for money. Through the mitzvah of mezuzah that You have compassionately bestowed upon us, grant me a good, long life, happiness and joy. Bless all the work of my hands. Guard me, my soul, the money I have acquired in holiness and for holy purposes, and all the goods and possessions You have blessed me with at all times.", + "Protect my possessions from any form of damage. Save me from theft, loss and damage of any kind, for You are our Guardian and Savior.", + "Strife
Rise up and help us! Save us from all kinds of hatred and strife, physical and spiritual. In Your vast compassion, remove all conflict from the world and spread peace among Your nation, the Jewish people, forever. Reveal the truth in the world.", + "Save us, all our friends, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, yearning as we are to serve You. Do not allow any of those who oppose and fight against the truth to throw us down, God forbid.", + "Master of the entire world, You know the secrets of all Your creatures. You know how many different enemies are ranged against us at all times. You alone know what they are thinking. They want to drive us away and cast us down from Your service, as You alone know. Our sins have left us so weak that we are powerless to stand against them, physically and spiritually.", + "We have so many opponents ranged against us — people who are far wealthier and far greater in Torah and good deeds than we are. How can weak people like ourselves stand up against them? Where can we find help to be saved from them? They have already managed to pull us down through their opposition; all this is revealed to You.", + "And now, what can I do, my Father in Heaven? Deep in my heart, I am well aware that I am not worthy of coming close to You after all the wrong I have done. It is only because of my unworthiness that they are stirring themselves to slander and denounce me.", + "But the secrets of my heart are revealed to You: despite my past, I am yearning to repent and come back to You. True, I have demeaned Your glory, but You are gracious and abundantly forgiving.", + "And how have I sinned against them? In what way have I demeaned their honor? “I have not demanded anything of them and they have not demanded anything of me.” Then why are they fighting against someone as weak and bruised in his heart as I? “They have chased after the one You have smitten, and they gloat over the pain of Your slain ones.”", + "Master of the world, Your way is to champion the persecuted and have compassion on the weak and weary. Have pity on us! Be merciful and kind to us! For we are a remnant of orphans without a father. We have no one to defend us. We have no one to rely on except You, our Father in Heaven, and on the merit and power of the true tzaddikim, who observed the covenant to perfection, with the utmost holiness, according to Your will. Act for Your sake and theirs, if not for ours.", + "Arouse the true tzaddikim to intervene for us and plead our case. Let them fight our battles for us and draw down the holy light of their faces upon us.", + "Drive away all those who hate and are opposed to the truth. Humble them and bring them down to the dust. Put it into their hearts to repent so they will return to the truth. Reveal the truth to them, no matter where they may be, so they too will come to understand the greatness and holiness of the true tzaddikim and follow their pathways.", + "Let them roll in the dust of their feet and thirstily drink in their words. Let them devote themselves to the holy writings left behind as a blessing by all the true tzaddikim, so that we may all repent and return to You sincerely and wholeheartedly, as You desire.", + "Have pity on us and save us, and compassionately fulfill my requests. Remove from us foe, plague, sword, famine and misery, and remove the accuser from before us and behind us.", + "Buying mitzvot
Help me spend money liberally in order to fulfill each and every mitzvah. Don’t let me spare any money at all when it comes to a mitzvah.", + "Let me spend money generously for each and every mitzvah, and indeed for anything that is truly Your will. May I never feel that money spent on a mitzvah or something holy is ever wasted.", + "Let me buy my mitzvot even at a high price, and spend lavishly on them — happily and joyously. Let me carry out Your mitzvot and do Your will at all times with my body, my soul and my money.", + "Help me come to perfect faith and truth, radiant holiness and joy. Fulfill in me and my children the verse, “This is the generation of those who search for Him, those who seek out Your face, Jacob, selah.”", + "Bring me to perfect trust, as it is written, “Trust in HaShem to eternity, for in God, HaShem, is the strength of the worlds.” Compassionate God, help me attain everything I have requested of You. May I, my children, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, truly observe the holy covenant and completely break the desire for money. Remove all sadness and depression from us, and take away misery and groaning.", + "Grant that we all be happy at all times. Remove all strife from the world. May the verse be fulfilled, “Men of blood and treachery will not live out half their days, but I will trust in You.”", + "Let us be counted as true tzaddikim who genuinely guard the covenant, as it is written, “Your people are all tzaddikim. They will inherit the earth forever. They are the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, My pride.” Draw upon us, our children, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, goodness, blessing, life, peace, happiness and joy, exultation, song, pleasure and delight, from now and forever. “Light is sown for the righteous and joy for the upright.” “Rejoice in HaShem and be happy, you righteous ones, and rejoice, all you pious ones.” Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Joy of the mitzvot / Spiritual perception / Glimpsing the Infinite Light
The more the spiritual seeker develops his soulpowers, the more exalted the levels of Godliness that he can perceive. However, the Infinite Light, the Infinite God Himself, is beyond the creation, and therefore beyond the grasp of the nefesh, ruach and neshamah. Nevertheless, a person who has actualized these levels of his soul to perfection can gain passing glimpses of the Infinite Light. The first step is to carry out the mitzvot joyously — this elevates the holy life force that animates this world from its exile amid the forces of unholiness. Each mitzvah we do has the power to bring blessing into all the worlds. The spiritual seeker should aim to receive the blessings of wisdom and Godly knowledge, and to deepen his faith. He must also develop his power to order and settle his mind. The tendency of the mind to stray outside the bounds of the holy must be held in check. As long as we guard the purity of our thoughts, it is the very interplay between our ability to direct our minds on the one hand, and the race of our thoughts to the limits of what is knowable on the other, that opens us to fleeting perceptions of the Infinite Light.
How fortunate are we! How goodly is our portion, how pleasant our share and how beautiful our heritage! How fortunate are we that, through Your vast compassion and kindness, we have received Your holy Torah and can fulfill Your precious mitzvot, which are “more desirable than gold, even an abundance of the finest gold.”", + "I have come to plead with You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, to help me carry out all the mitzvot with the utmost joy. It is certainly fitting to rejoice and delight in You, HaShem our God, whenever we have the privilege of carrying out a mitzvah. For every single mitzvah is bound up in Your unity, and through performing each mitzvah we are able to become attached to You and merged with You, HaShem.", + "How good You have been to me in making me a Jew and not a gentile, and in lifting up someone as lowly and needy as myself from the dust and dirt. Each day and every moment, You have given me the privilege of carrying out such precious, lovely mitzvot.", + "Compassionate God, You are the source of joy. Draw happiness upon me and let me be truly joyous when I am privileged to do a mitzvah. Help me do many mitzvot every day with great joy and tremendous delight. In Your vast compassion and tremendous kindness, protect me and save me from sadness and depression. Let not the least hint of sadness even begin to enter my heart.", + "Take away all my grief and sorrow. Be my help and salvation. Help me speak to You each day and express everything that is in my heart. Each day let me confess all my sins and transgressions before You.", + "May I sincerely and completely repent for them with all my heart and soul. Let me plead with You and beg You for forgiveness and atonement with a truly broken, humbled heart, as You want me to.", + "Let me make a firm commitment not to sin anymore and not to go back to my foolishness. “If I have done evil, I will not add to it.” For Your part, arouse Your kindness and have mercy on me. Forgive me for all my sins and transgressions. Remove my sadness, grief and depression.", + "Help me come to great joy after my confession. Let me be happy at all times.", + "Especially when I’m learning Torah, praying and performing each mitzvah, let me never be depressed about any of my sins. Even more so, let me never have the least worry or anxiety about how I’m going to make a living or other worldly concerns.", + "When I’m learning Torah or doing a mitzvah, help me put my entire past up to that moment totally out of my mind.", + "Let me experience perfect joy while carrying out each mitzvah. “I will rejoice in HaShem; my soul will delight in my God.”", + "Bring me to a level where I will perform every single mitzvah and everything You want with perfect joy and delight.", + "Through performing the mitzvot with joy, let me elevate all the sparks of holiness that have fallen into the realm of unholiness as a result of my sins and transgressions, whether in this incarnation or another. May my joy elevate all these sparks, just as the eleven ingredients of the incense-offering have the power to release the sparks of holiness from their exile. Help me extract all the vitality from the realm of unholiness, until all the forces of impurity will disappear entirely and be rendered into nothingness. Help me elevate all the sparks of holiness to their root, so as to perfect the Shekhinah.", + "Compassionate God, help us raise the Shekhinah out of exile by performing the mitzvot with great joy.", + "May Your kingship be revealed to everyone in the world, and may everyone submit to the yoke of Your kingship. Rule over them speedily and forever.", + "Have compassion on me, my Father and King. Fill me with holiness and purity, and put power and strength into every mitzvah I do so it will go forth into all the worlds and arouse them all to serve You and fear You.", + "May all the worlds and everything they contain be stirred to serve You: inanimate matter, the vegetative realm, the animals, and human beings; fire, air, water, and earth; “from the cedar of Lebanon to the hyssop in the wall”; from the tiniest worm in the sea to the horns of the buffalo …", + "“The kings of the earth and all the nations, princes and all the judges of the earth”; great and small, sons and daughters, old and young;", + "“the earth and everything in it, the seas and all they contain”; the heavens and heavens of the heavens, and all their hosts …", + "The Worlds of Asiyah, Yetzirah, Beriah and Atzilut and all they contain; the lowliest creatures, the celestial spheres, angels, spirits, forces, seraphim, ophanim and holy chayot ... From the central point of the World of Asiyah to the innermost point from which Creation emanated at the start of Atzilut.", + "Let each of the mitzvot I do go forth and arouse them all to Your service. Let all the worlds and all they contain return to You, and in this way, may blessing spread through all the worlds. Fulfill the verse, “Open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.” In Your vast compassion, spread goodness and blessing throughout all the worlds.", + "Extend Your right hand of mercy from the heavens to sustain me, and help me direct my heart, my mind and my will to draw down the blessing of Divine wisdom. Fill me with Your holy spirit and grant me knowledge, understanding and wisdom.", + "Help me drive out all folly and confusion from my mind. In Your vast compassion and tremendous kindness, grant me holy wisdom and perfect, holy knowledge of God, in accordance with Your will.", + "Help me come to true, perfect faith. Let me not rely on human reason at all, not even when You inspire me with true and holy wisdom and intelligence. Let me not depend on reason alone, but always fill my mind with faith. As I develop greater wisdom and understanding, so let my faith grow. May my essential wisdom be to have complete faith in You. Let me constantly deepen and strengthen my faith. Help me always to believe in You, Your holy mitzvot and Your true tzaddikim with simple, honest, perfect faith.", + "Compassionate God, help me settle my mind and bring order into my thoughts. Inspire me with a spirit of holiness and purity from the Supernal Crown, so that I will be able to develop the power to bring order and clarity into my mind and soul.", + "Grant that I should always be calm and clearminded, and that I should always direct my mind to You in truth, perfect faith, holiness and purity.", + "God, You are full of compassion. Rise up and help me! Save me! Don’t let my mind race with lustful thoughts and fantasies, doubts or atheistic ideas.", + "Let me keep my faculties of wisdom, understanding and knowledge under control, and never entertain any alien thoughts whatsoever. Let my mind be pure, clear and holy at all times. Help me rise constantly from level to level, step by step, by performing Your holy mitzvot with joy. Let my thoughts always race only toward You — in holiness and purity, calmly, truthfully and with perfect faith.", + "Work amazing wonders with me! Save me and help me so that my thoughts constantly race to apprehend the Infinite Light, the light that is beyond even the nefesh, the ruach and the neshamah. Satisfy my soul with clear, radiant flashes of the light of Your countenance. “One thing I have asked of HaShem, this is what I seek: that I should dwell in the House of HaShem all the days of my life, to behold the pleasantness of HaShem and frequent His Sanctuary.”", + "Shine on me with the light of the Supernal Crown and give me the power to order and settle my mind so as not to stray beyond the bounds of holiness, God forbid.", + "Let my thoughts race out to apprehend the Infinite Light, “running and returning,” “reaching yet not reaching,” “chasing yet holding back,” on the strength of ordering and settling my mind with complete faith.", + "Help my powers of thought ascend and merge with the “nine supernal palaces that are neither lights nor spirits nor souls, which no one can stand in, and which cannot be grasped or known.”", + "HaShem, You alone know the bursting longing in my nefesh, my ruach and my neshamah at their supernal roots to attain such perceptions. This was the whole reason I was created. “My soul thirsts for God, the living God. When will I come and see the face of God? How lovely are Your dwelling places, God of Hosts. My soul longs and pines for the courtyards of HaShem. My heart and flesh will sing out joyously to the God of my life.”", + "But my sins and transgressions have caused Your face to be hidden from me, because I have allowed my mind to race with lustful desires, doubts and evil thoughts. I have damaged all the chambers of my holy intellect and all the pathways of my mind.", + "I have severely impaired my wisdom, understanding and knowledge, as well as my power to order and settle my mind, the power of the Supernal Crown.", + "I have greatly damaged all of them because of my many sins and transgressions against You, HaShem my God.", + "Therefore, I plead with You, merciful and forgiving Master, to pardon me, forgive me and give me atonement for all my sins and transgressions. Use Your amazing, awesome power to rescue me and lift me out of the depths of the sea.", + "Heal and restore my mind and my soul. From now on save me from all evil, alien thoughts, all doubts, and all lustful thoughts and desires for the things of this world.", + "Purify me and sanctify me with Your supreme holiness. Take away my grief and sadness, and rid me of depression. Bring me to perfect joy. Let me perform Your mitzvot with the utmost joy and delight.", + "Restore and rebuild my ruins. Rebuild the sanctuaries of my mind on a firm, true foundation, in great holiness and purity, truth and perfect faith.", + "Help me ascend quickly from level to level, step by step, until I reach a perception of the nine supernal palaces that I have mentioned. Even in this world, let me genuinely know and recognize You.", + "Help me rise to the most exalted levels of holiness. Bring me to the ultimate level a Jew can reach in this world.", + "It was for this reason that my soul descended into this world from such exalted heights: in order to return and rise up to the source from which she was hewn, higher and higher, with greater strength and power, in the merit of the good deeds she does in this world.", + "Have mercy on me the way a father shows mercy to his son. Grant me a true share in Your great goodness. For You are good and do good to all. Your desire is to benefit Your creatures and reveal Your Godliness to them, which is the ultimate possible good.", + "Have pity on me! Be kind to me! Put it into my heart and help me to genuinely return to You, so that I will have the true satisfaction of experiencing Your goodness. Let me genuinely know and acknowledge You.", + "Let my thoughts race constantly to glimpse the Infinite Light in great purity and holiness, truth and perfect faith, until I reach the highest possible level of holiness.", + "Arouse Your compassion for us and redeem us speedily. Restore and rebuild our ruins. Rebuild our glorious Holy Temple, and rebuild and repair all the holy structures and palaces, physical and spiritual.", + "Bless us with great joy at all times. Raise up the Shekhinah from her exile among the forces of unholiness, and extract all the holy sparks from their domain.", + "Cast down, subdue, destroy and eradicate all the unholy forces. Let them all bend and fall, and give honor to Your Name.", + "Help us leave our exile, physical and spiritual, speedily and with great joy. May all the nations submit to Israel, and may they all recognize the great holiness of Your nation, the Jewish people, the holy ones whom You have chosen. May the verse be fulfilled, “All your brothers of all the nations will bring an offering to HaShem on horses, in chariots, in wagons, on mules and camels to My holy mountain, Jerusalem, says HaShem, just as the children of Israel will bring the offering in a pure vessel to the House of HaShem.”", + "Joy will increase throughout the world, as it is written, “Then they will say among the nations, ‘HaShem has done great things for these.’ HaShem has done great things for us; we were happy.”", + "And may the verse be fulfilled, “You will go out in joy and arrive in peace. The mountains and hills will break out in glad song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.” And it is written, “For God will comfort Zion, He will comfort all her ruins. He will make her desert like Eden and her arid places like the garden of HaShem. Gladness and joy will be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song!”" + ], + [ + "Breaking the spell of illusion / Developing the power of the mind / Overcoming physical cravings / Obstacles and barriers / Rebuilding of the Holy Temple / Charity / Joy
“When the Holy Temple was destroyed, the shamir worm, the dripping honey of tzufim, and people with amanah, enduring faith, disappeared” (Sotah 48a). These three categories allude to three stages in the development of our mental and spiritual powers (which, when fully developed, correspond to the Holy Temple). The first stage is to break the ko’ach hamedameh, literally, the “power of imagination” — the human tendency to be swayed by outward appearances and irrational impulses. Just as the shamir worm had the power to split the stones used to build the Holy Temple, so we must break the stubbornness of our “hearts of stone.” This allows our latent intellectual powers to become manifest. We must then develop them, so as to taste the sweetness of the life of the mind and soul — the honey of tzufim. Only when our mental powers have reached their maximum potential can we be said to have acquired holy wisdom and intelligence — and this is amanah, the only part of a person that endures after his death.
The physical cravings and mental obstacles arising from the ko’ach hamedameh are kelipot, “husks,” covering over and concealing the “fruit” of spirituality. In one form or another, these “husks” exist on every level of spiritual development, and are inevitably the first thing we encounter when striving to rise to a higher level of devotion and service of God. Since light sends the forces of darkness to flight, these “husks” can be overcome through revealing God’s greatness. We can do this by giving charity to a Jew who is in genuine need, as physical money is a garb for the Supernal Colors (corresponding to the sefirot), and these are revealed when the money comes into the hands of a Jew who will use it to serve God.
May it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that You will have compassion on me, help me, and save me. There’s a force in my heart that constantly makes me fall prey to fantasies and illusions. Help me break and uproot this force, and then I’ll be able to stop following the stubborn dictates of my evil urge, and I won’t go after my heart and eyes anymore.", + "With the help of Your great power, let me overcome, break, subdue and eradicate all my imaginary cravings, and all the inner confusion and obstacles that stem from this animalistic force in my heart.", + "Let me stop acting like a beast and rid myself of animalistic urges. Let me stop being “like a horse, like a mule that has no understanding.” “One who acts like a wild donkey should renew himself and learn to be a man.”", + "Help me rise from the level of an animal to the holy level of Adam, man. Instead of being under the sway of impulse and self-deception, let me rule myself with holy reason. Have pity on me, be kind to me, and have compassion on me! Let me quickly break the hold that fantasy and illusion have over me. Instead, let me develop, refine and elevate my intellect.", + "Open up to me the light of holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge. Help me learn to use my mind, so that I will be able to actualize my latent mental and spiritual powers in all their sweetness.", + "Let me understand one thing from another, develop true and original Torah ideas, and rise to ever higher levels of perceiving Your Godliness. Help me develop my mind to the point that I’ll be able to attain mastery of whole new structures in the holy Torah, in Divine service and in perceptions of Godliness. Help me make rapid progress in discovering my latent mental and spiritual powers, actualizing them, and developing them to the fullest possible extent.", + "Have compassion on me and save me. Grant that something of me will remain on earth after I leave this world.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me develop my intellect to its full potential, so that my accomplishments will remain and live on in the world, and something of me will survive after my death.", + "For You know, Master of the entire world, that all that survives of a person after death is what he has attained through actualizing his holy intellect and developing it to the very maximum. This is only possible to the extent that he breaks and uproots his materialistic urges and fantasies.", + "But because of my many sins, I have already spent days and years chasing after my appetites and following the dictates of my heart. I have sinned and transgressed before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, because of my “heart of stone” — this force that holds me under the spell of fantasies and illusions. Please, HaShem, have compassion on me!", + "Be kind to me! Forgive me for all my sins and transgressions.", + "Help me from now on to uproot this stubbornness in my heart and break all my animalistic urges. Help me rise quickly and easily to the level of holy reason.", + "Help me truly understand Your Torah and use wisdom and intelligence in serving You. Let me actualize my latent mental and spiritual powers in all their sweetness. May I develop them to the fullest, in holiness and purity, and attain true Torah insights and new spiritual perceptions at every moment.", + "Confronting challenges on each new level
In Your vast compassion and tremendous kindness, help me advance constantly, step by step, from level to level, in great holiness and purity.", + "Each time I come to a new level, help me peel away and destroy all the “husks” that come before the “fruit” on each level — these are the physical cravings, the misconceptions, the obstacles and the mental confusion that attack a person each time he wants to rise from one level to the next. They spread out in front of him and block his way, throwing him into confusion and refusing to let him rise up.", + "Please, HaShem, You are filled with compassion. Have pity on me! Be merciful to me! Save me! Help me! Strengthen me! Give me strength and guidance. Fill me with determination, wisdom and holy understanding. Every time I come to a new level, enable me to overcome all the obstacles.", + "Master of the world, HaShem, God, You know everything I’ve gone through from my youth until today. How I long to see Your power and splendor!", + "But each time I feel inspired to make some effort to move even slightly from where I am — to climb up from my low level and attain some degree of holiness �� the fantasies, urges, distracting thoughts and inner obstacles attack immediately. Each time the attacks are worse than before, as You know. I have found it impossible to reach the level I need to attain. It’s not enough that I have been unable to make progress, but the attacks have been so bad, as You know, that I’ve been thrown down further and further each time.", + "This has happened again and again, innumerable times. Whenever I try to make some progress, these urges and distracting thoughts rear up and attack with ever greater strength. “My life has been spent in grief and my years in groaning.” I simply don’t know what to do.", + "I fully acknowledge and confess, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that I myself am to blame. No doubt I had the power to fight back each time and overcome all the obstacles — because You are not a tyrant seeking to thwart Your creatures.", + "Just as You gave these forces the power to stand in my way and frustrate my efforts, so too, You have given me an even greater power to fight back and totally overcome them. But because of my many sins, I have failed to take care of my soul, and I have not used the strength You gave me to break and remove these obstacles. I have not followed Your holy guidance.", + "But You are kind and overflowing with generosity. Have pity on me! Be kind to me!", + "Show me compassion! Even if I don’t deserve it, shower me with kindness. Help me each time to break, destroy and remove all the “husks,” all the fantasies and urges, and all the obstacles and distractions on every level.", + "Let me advance quickly, swiftly and speedily from level to level, and advance constantly, in great holiness and purity, until I attain the highest, most exalted of levels, as befits a Jew.", + "Charity
In Your vast compassion, help me give plenty of charity to genuinely deserving people. In Your great mercy, always send me people who are truly deserving, righteous and honest, so that I can fulfill this mitzvah through them. Bless me with abundance and provide me with plenty of money to give to charity. Give me the merit of helping and supporting Torah scholars and true servants of HaShem. In Your compassion, rescue me and protect me from falling into the trap of giving to people who are not genuinely deserving. For You know, HaShem, that we are only flesh and blood, and we can only go by outward appearances. I find it impossible to distinguish between those who are deserving and those who are not. Therefore, I plead with You: Always send me truly deserving and honest people, so that I can fulfill this mitzvah through them.", + "Help me support them to the best of my ability and give them plenty of charity. Let me do so happily, with an open heart and with a smile. Through my charity, let the Supernal Colors that are clothed in the money of a Jew shine forth. Let these holy colors, which are Your pride and glory, merge with one another and radiate, so as to reveal the greatness of the Blessed Creator. Be glorified, exalted and magnified through the revelation of the holy colors that will be revealed, merged and radiate through my charity, and make “garments of salvation, a coat of righteousness.”", + "Compassionate God, help me attain holy joy, and rejoice and delight in HaShem. Let me always be happy over the fact that You have made me a Jew and drawn me close to Your service, and helped me join with pure and Godfearing people and attach myself to the true tzaddikim.", + "May the verse be fulfilled in me, “I will rejoice in HaShem, my soul will delight in my God; for He has clothed me in garments of salvation, He has garbed me in a coat of righteousness.” Through this, help me break and destroy all the “husks,” fantasies, impulses, distractions and obstacles on every level. Let me purify and sanctify each new level from the “husks.” Help me sanctify and purify myself at all times, so that I will be able to rise quickly, swiftly and speedily from one level to the next in great holiness and purity, until I reach the supreme level of the true tzaddikim.", + "Help me and give me the strength to conduct myself with purity and holiness in the realm of the permissible. Let me serve You with my eating, drinking and the like.", + "May I perfect myself both in the “inner” service of Torah, mitzvot and good deeds, and in the “outer” service of eating, drinking, and satisfying my other physical needs. Let me conduct myself with perfect holiness and purity in both these forms of service. Help me reach ever higher levels of refinement and sanctity, so that the outer service will become an inner service.", + "Then my eating, drinking and other physical activities will have the holiness of Torah and mitzvot, while my Torah and mitzvot will become even more refined, holy and complete. Let me constantly rise from level to level. Each time let my outer service become an inner service, while my inner service will become even more elevated.", + "May the entire Jewish people be merged together in great love, brotherhood, friendship and peace. May we all lift each other up and elevate each other, step by step, from level to level, in great holiness.", + "Then we will attain the highest summit of holiness and become merged in You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, forever and ever.", + "Compassionate God, help me recite all the sacrificial portions and the passages dealing with the incense-offering with intense concentration and awesome holiness.", + "Let my words rise up to You as if I had actually offered all the sacrifices in their proper time and season, in their proper place, and in full accordance with all their laws. We will pay for the bull-offerings with the words of our lips, as it is written, “This is the law of the burntoffering, the flour-offering, the sin-offering, the guilt-offering, the priests’ offering and the peace-offering.”", + "Through my recital of the sacrificial portions, let me subdue, break and destroy the force in my heart that makes me fall prey to fantasies and illusions, removing it from myself entirely. Hurry and redeem us! Rebuild our holy and glorious Temple so that we can offer all the sacrifices there as an atonement.", + "The three things that disappeared when the Holy Temple was destroyed will then be returned: the shamir worm that cut through stone, the dripping honey of tzufim, and amanah, enduring faith.", + "Let us be ruled by the holy intellect, and merit the fountain of wisdom that will come forth from the House of HaShem, as it is written, “A fountain will come forth from the House of HaShem.”", + "Let us serve You at all times with wisdom, understanding, holy knowledge and perfect faith — all our days and forever. Amen. Amen." + ], + [ + "Concentrating on one’s prayers / Irrelevant and improper thoughts
At those points in the prayers where irrelevant and improper thoughts are especially prone to come to mind, one should make an extra effort to concentrate on the words of the prayers in order to raise the sparks of holiness clothed in such thoughts.
May it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that You help me. Grant that I should be able to pray to You with the utmost concentration and devotion. Don’t let a single word of the prayers leave my mouth without proper intention.", + "Let my ears and my heart hear clearly what is coming from my mouth. Let me listen to what I am saying, and concentrate well on every single word of the service. May I always pray with every fiber of my being.", + "Protect me and save me from irrelevant and improper thoughts during my prayers. Give me the strength to overcome all improper thoughts when I pray — help me subdue them, break them, drive them away and eliminate them, so they will never come near my prayers at all. Rise up and help me! Put wisdom, understanding and knowledge into my heart. Guide me. Fill me with holy strength, and let me make an extra effort at all those points in the service where I tend to become especially distracted by improper thoughts.", + "When I reach these places, let me marshal all the strength and determination I have at my command. Let me throw myself totally into the battle, until I succeed in breaking the power of such thoughts and overcoming them. Let me cleanse my prayers of any kind of foreign or distracting thought.", + "Help me sift out and elevate the sparks of holiness clothed in such thoughts. Give me the power to refine and rectify these sparks, and restore them to their holy source.", + "Compassionate God, save me at all times. Let my prayers be clear and clean, free of any impurities and any improper and irrelevant thoughts. Let my prayers rise up and find favor before Your throne of glory. Let them ascend to make a crown upon Your head.", + "May our prayers give You pride and delight, and may You always have great joy from our prayers and supplications. Have mercy on us and turn Your face toward us again, and send us our righteous Mashiach quickly in our days. Amen." + ], + [ + "Peace / Cooperation / Purity / The covenant / Song / Redemption / Healing / Shabbat
For the whole world to come to the service of God there must be universal peace among men, so that people can jointly search for the truth and put aside their “false idols of silver.” The way to come to peace is through the exploration of the deeper meaning of the Torah using the Thirteen Rules of Interpretation. The more a person develops his mind through Torah study, the more he refines his voice and can reach a level where simply by crying out, even without words, God saves him from trouble. The precondition for deepening one’s understanding of the Torah is moral purity, in fulfillment of God’s covenant with the Jewish people.
True peace is preceded by bitterness. Therefore, healing, which is accomplished by bringing harmony to the four elements of which the body is composed, usually necessitates treatment with bitter medicines. The bitterness necessary to heal the spiritual maladies caused by sin may be so great that the individual, weakened as he is by his sins, cannot bear it. But God in His mercy knows this, and sends a person only as much bitterness as he can endure in order to heal him.
May it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, Master of peace, King to Whom peace belongs, that You let peace reign among the Jewish people. Let peace abound and spread among all the inhabitants of the world. Then there will be no hatred, jealousy, competitiveness, one-upmanship or provocation between one person and another, but only abundant love and peace among everyone. Everyone will understand the meaning of loving one’s fellow man. They will realize that their friends really want their good and seek their love, and desire that they should be truly — eternally — successful. People will be able to come together and talk to one another, and explain the truth to one another.", + "Then they will be able to inspire one another and remind each other to think very carefully about their situation in this world. For the world passes like the blink of an eye and a fleeting shadow — and not like the shadow of a wall, but like the shadow of a bird flying past. Let people talk to their friends about the ultimate futility of this mundane world and its desires, and discuss the real purpose of our coming into this lowly world.", + "Let them talk to each other at length with brotherly love and affection, truthfully and from the depths of their hearts, without anyone just trying to win an argument or be provocative. Then they will inspire each other to return to God sincerely and cast aside their idols of silver and gold. People will stop following the stubbornness of their hearts and spending all their days in the race for wealth. They will stop running after unnecessary luxuries or trying to amass a vain fortune. They will drive the madness from their hearts.", + "Peace will increase and spread throughout the world, until the entire Jewish people will return to You in perfect repentance, as You want us to.", + "Then all the nations of the world will also be inspired and see the truth, and they will all repent and return to You, taking on themselves the yoke of Your kingship.", + "May the verse be fulfilled, “For then I will send a clear language to the nations, so that all of them will call upon the Name of God and serve Him with one accord.”", + "The covenant: Purity
And so may it be Your Will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who have mercy on the lowly and guard the covenant with love, You Who deal kindly even with the guilty — that You deal kindly with Your servant so that I may live!", + "In Your abundant kindness and true compassion, help me and save me! From now on let me guard the holy covenant in accordance with Your will. Rescue me from all wrongful behavior and impure thoughts.", + "Grant me wisdom, understanding and knowledge, guidance and strength, so that I will be able to overcome all evil thoughts and fantasies until I become totally free of them. Help me drive them out of my mind and break their power over me completely.", + "In Your compassion, help me drive this foolishness out of myself altogether, so that it will have no influence whatsoever over me. Let me break its power, drive it out of myself, and rid myself of it forever.", + "Help me release all the holy sparks that have fallen among the forces of evil as a result of abusing the covenant.", + "Compassionate God, help me make complete amends for all the wrong I’ve done. Wherever I may have caused damage, let me repair it. At any time and in any place where evil thoughts and desires attack me, help me break my lust right then and there, and totally rid myself of all foolish and evil thoughts and fantasies.", + "Then I will be able to refine and elevate all the holy sparks that I have caused to fall among the forces of evil, and restore them to the realm of holiness.", + "Don’t let a single one be lost, through the power of Your great compassion and kindness, and through the merit and strength of the true tzaddikim and holy elders, who attained the ultimate level of guarding the covenant in truth and perfection.", + "From now on help me draw upon myself a spirit of holiness and purity at all times. May the verse be fulfilled in me, “The spirit of HaShem will rest upon him, a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of guidance and strength, a spirit of knowledge and awe of HaShem.” Please, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, Master of all, You Who make plans to ensure that no one will be cast out — You show me the most tremendous goodness and kindness quite literally at every moment. How great is the goodness with which You have treated me, how amazing is the kindness You have shown Your servant!", + "“You have done so much, HaShem my God, Your miracles and Your thoughts are for us! There is none to compare with You. If I were to try to describe and express them, they are too awesome to recount.”", + "And after all the great, wondrous, enormous and unparalleled kindnesses and goodness that You have shown me time after time without number, what can I say? How can I speak? How can the servant of my Master dare speak with my Master?", + "What expression can I use to depict my horrible state of spiritual disease and agony as a result of my sins and transgressions against You, my God and God of my fathers? Because of what I’ve done, I’m under constant attack from the most despicable thoughts and desires. “I am sinking in the mud of the deep and I cannot stand. I have entered the depths of the waters and the swirling current has swept me away.”", + "Considering the holiness of a Jew at his root, when even a single isolated lustful thought enters his mind once in a while, it is as if he is drowning in the muddy depths of the sea. In that case, what name can I give to my troubles? How can I express what’s in my heart?", + "What words can I use to describe my pain and heartbreak? My mind is awash with torrents of such thoughts all the time. I don’t have a moment of respite.", + "What can I say? How can I speak? “A person’s own folly makes his path crooked, and his heart rages against God.” For I myself am responsible for everything I’m going through, on account of my own evil behavior and confused thoughts. I have followed my impulses without making any attempt to control them or drive them out. This is what has brought me to such a state and caused me to become so distanced. Woe!", + "Woe! My poor soul!", + "HaShem, You know that I have no other solution but to cry out and plead with You, and wait and hope for Your mercy. I will sit and wait, hope and long for Your kindness. Sanctify me with Your supreme holiness as an unearned gift. For the fact is that I have failed to carry out all the teachings of the Torah on how to attain purity. Even when You send me good advice, it is hard for me to follow it because of my stubbornness. I do not have any idea of what I can do, except to rely on Your abundant compassion and great kindness.", + "For I put my trust in Your mercy and rely on Your kindness, I hope for Your forgiveness and await Your salvation. Have mercy on me and save me in the merit of all the true tzaddikim and holy elders in every generation, from the days of the Patriarchs until the present. I rely on their strength alone as I cry out and plead with You like a child nagging his father, hoping for Your compassion and salvation. Bring me to perfect repentance quickly, swiftly and speedily!", + "Therefore, I have come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers — God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob, God of all the true tzaddikim, God of the first and the last, God of all Israel.", + "My hands are stretched out toward the Ark of Your Covenant, my eyes are hoping for Your abundant kindnesses, and my thoughts are turned toward Your holy dwelling place. In the merit and power of the true tzaddikim and holy elders, arouse Your great compassion for me. Inspire me and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, with a spirit of holiness and purity, a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of guidance and strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear of HaShem.", + "Then I will be able to conquer all my evil and lustful thoughts, break their power and drive them out of my mind.", + "Whenever a wrongful thought comes into my mind, give me the strength to curb my desires and control my evil urge so as to break the thought and put it out of my mind completely. Let me pay no attention to it whatsoever. Help me release all the holy sparks that have fallen into the domain of evil because of me, and let me cleanse my mind of folly. Wherever I caused damage, let me repair it.", + "Compassionate God, help me drive out the spirit of foolishness from myself and from the entire Jewish people. Let it never again have any hold over my body, my mind or my soul, not in this world or in the World to Come. From now on let my thoughts always be holy and pure. Save me from any form of mental confusion. Let my thoughts be holy, pure, clear and clean at all times.", + "Help me sanctify myself and observe the holy covenant in every way. Forgive me for my failure to observe the covenant in the past, and for all the damage I have caused through my thoughts, words and deeds, my eyes, ears and other senses, whether unintentionally or deliberately, under duress or freely, from my earliest days until today.", + "Forgive me for everything and grant me atonement, God of forgiveness. Restore all the holy Names that I have blemished by abusing Your great Name.", + "From now on give me constant help and support so that I will genuinely attain the holiness of the covenant.", + "Healing
Master of the world! Master of the entire world! “Heal me, HaShem, and I will be healed, save me and I will be saved, for You are my praise!”", + "You know the bitterness of my heart, the bitterness of my terrible wounds, and the bitterness of my crushed soul. My soul is so very bitter! What is there to compare with my bitterness? It is more bitter than death, more bitter than wormwood and gall, more bitter than all the bitterness in the world!", + "Master of the world, You know that my soul is so weak as a result of the terrible, bitter and damaging illnesses and pains I have brought upon it through my evil deeds. There is not a single remedy in the world that can help me. Even if, in Your compassion, You can find some remedy that will help me, I will not be able to bear the bitterness of the cure because of my terrible wounds.", + "For it’s impossible for me to bear the bitterness of the remedy and the repentance needed to rectify the damage caused by a single bad thought, let alone a multitude of evil thoughts and sins such as these.", + "If I tried to give an account of even the tiniest portion of my misdeeds that happened in the space of a single day, I would run out of time. Even the days that for me would be considered “good” are marked by a constant succession of lapses every single moment; all the more so the bad days I’ve had.", + "Woe! Woe! Woe! What can I say? How can I speak? The bitterness of my soul reaches the very heavens! Who can imagine the pain of my soul?", + "Master of the world, You know that even if You throw all my sins “behind Your back” in the compassionate way that You deal with all Your creatures, and even if You send me only the slightest amount of bitterness as a remedy, it will still be impossible for me to bear it. For my soul is so sick, and the bitterness necessary to heal it so great, that I cannot bear even the tiniest fraction of this bitterness owing to my innumerable sins and transgressions. “You desired to lift my soul out of the pit of destruction and decay,” and You have thrown all my sins “behind Your back.” You have sent me the remedy needed to bring peace to my soul with only the barest minimum of bitterness, according to my capacity. Even so, even this minute amount of bitterness is very hard for me to receive and to bear.", + "I am so weak, sick, spiritually hurt and confused that I cannot bear any bitterness at all. For this reason, I have come to lay my request before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, “great in counsel and mighty in action,” “Who performs great deeds that cannot be fathomed, miracles and wonders without number.” Nothing is impossible for You. Indeed, “You can do everything and no purpose is withheld from You.” You are the true, faithful and compassionate Healer, and everything is in Your hand. “In Your hand is power and strength, and it is in Your hand to make great and to give strength to all.” Who can tell You what to do?", + "Therefore, “I will stand at my post” and cry and shout out to You all the time, until You show me favor and sweeten the bitterness of my cure, and show me the tree of life with which to sweeten the bitterness of the evil waters. Compassionate God, remove every kind of bitterness from me.", + "Give me strength, power and courage to bear and receive with love the little bitterness that I must inevitably suffer in order to be healed. Loving and kind God, minimize the bitterness needed to cure me as much as possible. Quickly send me a complete healing, both spiritually and physically. From afar I can see the endless and infinite lovingkindness with which You treat me at every moment. That is why I am casting my burden upon You alone. Have compassion on me. Protect me and spread Your sukkah of peace over me. Send complete healing to all the illnesses and pains of my soul and my body.", + "Fulfill in me the verse, “Peace, peace, to the one that is far and the one that is near, says HaShem, Who creates the fruit of the lips, and I will heal him.”", + "From now on let me genuinely sanctify myself with the holiness of the covenant. Shine on me with the light of Your countenance and radiate to me with favor, so that I will attain the inner light of holiness.", + "Open up my mind and inspire me with an abundance of holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge. Illumine my eyes with the light of Your Torah so that I will be able to develop new and original Torah ideas at all times. Let me apply the Thirteen Rules for interpreting the Torah in order to reveal and elucidate new and original Torah teachings.", + "Compassionate and loving God, anoint me with the “holy oil” of wisdom and understanding that flows from the thirteen attributes of the holy beard [of the Divine persona of Arikh Anpin], and let me be included among the holy elders and attain the light of the inner face of Your glory.", + "And through this, help me refine my voice so that I will honor HaShem with my material possessions and with my very throat. Help me serve You joyously at all times with shouts of joy, holy songs and melodies. Let me sing my songs all the days of my life in honor of the House of HaShem.", + "Let me so refine my voice of joyful song that simply through the melody that I will sing to You, You will see our suffering at the hands of all the nations that are persecuting us. You will see our plight and our troubles, take note of which nation it is that is persecuting us, and redeem and save us from them, in fulfillment of the verse, “[HaShem] saw their suffering, hearing their cry.”", + "Master of the world, You know the thoughts in the minds of the nations who have power over us, and their plans against us. “They hold secret conversations against Your people and take counsel against Your treasured ones.” You know all their evil intentions against us. “They have said, ‘Come, let us cut them off from being a nation, so that the name of Israel will no longer be remembered.’”", + "At this time of crisis, there is no one to stand up for us. “Men of piety have disappeared from the earth,” and there is no one to mend the breach. Whom can we rely on except our Father in Heaven?", + "You Who are filled with compassion for Your nation, the Jewish people, at all times — see our plight! We are in such pain, and we’re suffering so much in our hearts. See how downtrodden is Your nation, the Jewish people. We have no one to help or support us.", + "Act for Your sake and not for ours. Act for the sake of the true tzaddikim who rest in the earth, “the holy ones who are in the earth, the mighty ones in whom lies all my desire.”", + "Act for Your sake and save us! Incline the hearts of those in the government, the officials and advisers, in our favor. Thwart and eliminate all their evil plans against Israel, Your nation. Compassionate God, cancel all the evil decrees and all legislation that does not benefit the Jewish people — both those that have already been passed and those they want to introduce. Cancel all of them and remove any trace of them completely.", + "Turn the hearts of all the rulers, kings and officials in our favor at all times. For You know, HaShem our God, that we have no one to stand up for us now at this time of trouble, on the threshold of the coming of the Mashiach. We can rely only on Your compassion. “Turn back from the fury of Your anger and reconsider this evil against Your people.”", + "Let us purify our voice and our cry, until we have the power to sweeten all the harsh judgments and annul all the decrees against us and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, through the power of our song alone. Let our song be sweet to You; have compassion on us and save us.", + "Shabbat
Let us sing joyous songs, melodies and praises to Your Name at all times, until we arouse the “Song of Songs of Solomon,” the song that is exalted above all songs. May we sing all ten types of song with which the Book of Psalms was composed.", + "Bless us with the goodness of Your peace, and send peace to Your nation, the Jewish people, forever. Let peace reign among all Israel, between every Jew and his friend, and between every husband and wife. May there be no hatred, jealousy, competitiveness or hostility in the entire Jewish nation, forever.", + "May this peace grow and spread until it extends to all the inhabitants of the world, until everyone will be able to inspire their friends to search for the truth and keep their minds on their ultimate purpose instead of wasting their days on vanity and emptiness.", + "Let everyone cast aside their idols of silver and gold, and return to You in genuine repentance, serving You truthfully with reverence and love. Let us always celebrate Shabbat with the utmost happiness and delight, and have Shabbat Shalom, a Sabbath of Peace. Spread over us the sukkah of Your peace.", + "May we have peace in our bodies. Send us spiritual and physical healing. Let us not suffer from disharmony among the four elements in our bodies, but all of them should work together harmoniously in peace.", + "Remove sickness from our midst and send complete healing to all the sick of Your nation, the House of Israel (and especially to [name], the [son/daughter] of [mother’s name]).", + "Grant us peace in our material lives, and send blessing and success to all the work of our hands. Let no Jew feel jealous in his heart because of the wealth or possessions of his friend. May there be no robbery or exploitation among us. May no one be jealous of me, and may I not be jealous of others.", + "Grant me my livelihood before I need it. Don’t let me have to depend on the gifts of flesh and blood, or on their loans.", + "Grant me peace in my Torah study: free me from doubts and questions, and help me understand clearly and rapidly whatever I study. Help me understand all the words of Your Torah clearly, without any questions at all. Help me always come up with interpretations and new Torah insights in holiness and purity, truth and faith, in accordance with Your will. Bring us to perfect peace and harmony on every level, until we can bring the whole world to Your service and everyone will return to You and serve You with fear, awe and love. Have pity and mercy on us, and compassionately fulfill our requests. Bless us with peace, supreme and exalted God. “HaShem will give strength to His people; HaShem will bless His people with peace.”", + "Fulfill for us the verse, “For you will go forth in joy and arrive in peace. The mountains and hills will break out in glad song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.” “Great peace to those who love Your Torah; they will not stumble.”", + "“May He Who makes peace in His high places lovingly make peace for us and for all Israel, and say, ‘Amen.’”" + ], + [ + "Hospitality / Serving Torah scholars / Humility / Developing Torah insights
Some of the most bitter opposition to those striving to draw closer to God comes from disreputable Torah scholars who pursue Torah knowledge in an unholy way for the sake of self-aggrandizement.
The Zohar (Vayikra 253) characterizes them as “Jewish demons,” whose Torah knowledge derives from the sparks of Torah that “fell” into the realm of unholiness as a result of the Shattering of the Vessels. The way to overcome their insults and abuse is by cultivating deep humility and faith, as embodied in the personality of the patriarch Abraham. Abraham taught hospitality, and by opening one’s home to true Torah scholars and attending to their needs, one can attain such a level of faith that he may even be able to elevate the sparks of goodness contained in the words of disreputable scholars while discarding what is impure.
Master of the world, compassionate and loving Father, help me cultivate the trait of lovingkindness in holiness. Let me model myself on our patriarch Abraham, who practiced lovingkindness all his life.", + "Grant me the merit of being able to welcome worthy guests into my home. May my home be a “meeting place for the wise.”", + "Let me welcome guests to my home who are true Torah scholars and tzaddikim. Let me show them the utmost love and respect, and receive them joyously.", + "Let me wait on them personally and attend to their every need. Grant that I put myself at the service of true Torah scholars and tzaddikim at all times.", + "Then I will develop Abraham’s trait of lovingkindness to perfection.", + "Compassionate God, bring me to perfect faith and true humility. Let me genuinely feel my own lowliness and know that “I am a worm and not a man.”", + "Save me from every kind of shame and indignity. Give me the strength to fight and conquer all those who hate and argue against the truth, and bring them down to the dust. In Your vast compassion and powerful lovingkindness, help me attain perfect faith in You, in the true tzaddikim, and in those who are genuinely God-fearing.", + "Don’t let the least doubt or question about them so much as enter my mind, and certainly never let an arrogant comment about them pass my lips. May I never say a word against them that could impugn their honor in any way. On the contrary, let me always hold them in respect and show them every kind of honor — with my body, my soul, and all the resources at my command.", + "Protect me from ever hearing even a single word of Torah from the lips of disreputable scholars. The right name for such scholars is “Jewish demons.”", + "Keep me well away from them, and let me never hear or accept Torah teachings from them. Let me have absolutely nothing to do with either them or their students.", + "Protect me, my children, my descendants, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from ever displaying any kind of opposition to genuinely God-fearing people.", + "Don’t let any of us ever come to oppose or argue against those who are truly God-fearing, and don’t let any God-fearing Jew suffer the least abuse or indignity as a consequence of anything we may do.", + "On the contrary, let us show them every kind of honor, encourage and support them in every way, and sacrifice ourselves and all our energy and resources for them.", + "Developing Torah insights
Compassionate God, have mercy on me and protect me from all false insights and interpretations of the Torah that stem from the “husks” — the realm of unholiness. Such interpretations come from impure spirits that possess a debased Torah rooted in the “fallen sparks.”", + "Guard me constantly from ever hearing a single one of these false interpretations and insights from these fallen teachings drawn from the “husks,” and don’t let them enter my ears or heart at all.", + "Compassionate and loving God, shield me and help me. Send me true Torah insights through holy channels. Let me draw new insights into the Torah in holiness from the supernal source of Torah wisdom, without falling prey to the influence of unholy forces in any way. Please, HaShem, You are filled with compassion. You know my heart. I myself know how far I am from having genuine insight into the Torah as a result of all the wrong I’ve done. Even so, You have decreed through Your holy sages that a person is not permitted to be “dry wood,” God forbid.", + "Everyone who has a knowledge of the Torah has an obligation to make a very great effort to sanctify and purify himself until he becomes a “fruit-bearing tree,” debating the fine points of the law with wisdom and developing true and original Torah insights with a passion for the truth.", + "This is what has given Your servant the courage to plead with You. In Your great compassion and awesome lovingkindness, have mercy on me. Help me, save me, and bring me to complete repentance before You.", + "Be with me at all times and help me genuinely sanctify and purify myself, until You open up my mind and my heart and illuminate my eyes with the light of Your Torah, and open up to me the pathways of the mind in holiness. Inspire me at all times with new Torah insights and interpretations deriving from the roots of the Torah and from Your supreme holiness. Save me from any kind of interpretation that derives from the “husks,” God forbid. Let me only have Torah insights drawn from the realm of holiness.", + "In Your vast compassion and kindness, help me build holy structures of Torah ideas based on the strong, firm foundations of the lessons revealed by the outstanding tzaddikim, who reached such towering levels of insight and perception and attained the ultimate level of holy spirit.", + "On them I will depend; on them I will rely.", + "Let me meditate, ponder and delight in their holy words that were spoken in truth and righteousness.", + "Then the light of knowledge will be opened up to me. I will grasp their true intent, penetrate the very depths of their wisdom, and understand one thing from another.", + "I will be able to clarify the true meaning of their teachings and uncover new levels of meaning in them. I will build on their strong foundations perfect structures of thought about Your Torah and the way to serve You in truth, faith, holiness, and great purity.", + "Through the Torah insights with which You inspire me, let me make amends for all my sins and wrongdoing that I have committed from my youth until today.", + "Help me and protect me from sinning anymore. Save me from now on from any kind of transgression or wrongdoing in the world. Send me new, true insights into the Torah by holy means every day as a powerful remedy for my soul.", + "Sanctify me with Your supreme holiness so that I will be permitted to reveal the Torah insights You send me to Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "Through the Torah insights that You send me, give me the power to inspire other Jews to serve You and bring them to complete repentance. Help me explain my ideas in holiness and purity, and don’t let me say a single word that is not in accordance with Your will.", + "Have compassion on me and be my aid. If it ever happens that I am forced to hear words of Torah from the lips of an unprincipled Torah scholar, help me sift out the goodness hidden in his words, and discard and throw out the evil “husk” covering the Torah they contain. Let me pick out only the little bit of goodness hidden inside.", + "Protection for God-fearing Jews
Help me, my friends, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, who truly desire to draw close to You. Save us from all kinds of people who are opposed to the truth.", + "Protect us from all their taunts and insults, so they will be powerless to embarrass or humiliate us with words or deeds.", + "“Guard my soul and save me; I will not be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.” “In You, God, I have taken refuge; I will never be ashamed.”", + "For You know how much scorn and vilification God-fearing people are exposed to these days. “The power to endure is faltering.” “My disgrace is in front of me throughout the day, and shame covers my face, because of the cry of the blasphemer and reviler, because of the enemy and the avenger.” “I am a worm and not a man, reproached by men and despised by the people. All who see me mock me; they pout their lips and shake their heads.”", + "Have pity on me! Have mercy on me! Have compassion on me! Save me — despised, downtrodden worm that I am! Save me from their mouths, for Your way is to champion the persecuted.", + "You know that no one in the world is as persecuted as those weak Jews who yearn and long to come close to You. They are too weak and demoralized to be able to fight their desires and control their inclinations, faced as they are with so much slander and hostility. But the truth is that You are filled with compassion for them, for You know our nature: we are but dust. Our desire is for You, and we have placed our trust in Your compassion and lovingkindness.", + "You are a God Who loves kindness, and You show compassion for those who wait for You to turn to them in love, stretching out their hands and pouring out their prayers to You, even though they are not really worthy of drawing close to You because of their dearth of wisdom and good deeds.", + "Nevertheless, You do not despise them, as it is written, “For He does not despise or abhor the lowliness of the poor, and He does not hide His face from him. When he cries out to Him, He hears.”", + "Help us, for we are depending on You! We have no one to rely on but our Father in Heaven. Have pity and mercy on us, and compassionately fulfill our requests. Do it for Your sake and not for ours. Give us victory over our enemies, and help us master them, humble them and bring them down to the dust.", + "May they not have any power to hinder or prevent us from doing anything holy or anything that You desire.", + "With Your help, may we return to You in complete repentance, and be what You want us to be from now on and forever.", + "“In Your lovingkindness give me life, and I will observe the testimony of Your mouth. … ", + "O God, Your lovingkindness fills the world. Teach me Your statutes.” Amen. Amen." + ], + [ + "Tikkun HaKlali: The General Remedy / The covenant / Exile and redemption / Moral purity / Speech and selfexpression / Clothes / Keeping secrets / Livelihood / Charity / Epilepsy / Avoiding drunkenness
To make amends for all one’s sins can be very difficult because each of the various prohibitions of the Torah involves so many details. However, in every area of life there is a Tikkun Klali, a “General” or “Complete” Remedy, which has the power to rectify all one’s sins in that area and provide a sound basis for directing future activities to the service of God. For example, when trying to make a living, it is easy to fall prey to avarice, envy, malpractice, theft, and so on. The General Remedy in this area is to give charity, and to have in mind that this is the aim of all one’s work activities.
The General Remedy for the faculty of speech is to speak the praises of the tzaddikim, such as by telling stories about their achievements. Besides the obvious sins involving speech (slander, hurting people’s feelings, etc.), it is an abuse of our faculty of speech to talk without thinking: only when we use our minds as we speak are our words accepted. This applies to our prayers as well. Praise of the tzaddikim is the General Remedy for speech because the tzaddik lives on the plane of mind, spirit and wisdom. By speaking positively about his achievements, we bring wisdom into our words. The words in which we clothe our thoughts are called “garments” of the soul. The teaching, “Your clothes should always be white” (Ecclesiastes 9:8), thus applies to the way we speak, as well as being an injunction to take care of our physical clothing.
The concept of the General Remedy applies first and foremost in the realm of moral purity, which is the foundation of the covenant between God and the Jewish people. Moral purity in thought, word and deed is therefore the basis for true closeness between the individual Jew and God. Abuse of the covenant — such as through forbidden sexual thoughts, and indeed, through any sin at all — not only alienates the Jew from God, but is depicted as causing a stain on the Shekhinah. (The image is that of a menstrual stain, which renders a woman forbidden to her husband until she purifies herself.)
A commitment to guarding the covenant through moral purity is thus an integral element in teshuvah and in the redemption of the Jewish people as a whole.
HaShem my God, hear my voice! Have mercy on me and accept my prayer with compassion and favor!", + "My Father, compassionate Father, “do not hide Your face from me.” Do not ignore my cry. “Do not harden your heart against your destitute brother.” Do not close Your ear to my shrieks. Arouse Your compassion for me, because I so long to see the splendor of Your might. For years and years I have been crying out, praying and pleading with You.", + "“Evening, morning and afternoon, I pour out my prayers and moan.” We are constantly begging You to turn to us in love and bring us close to Your service — but still we have not been answered, and salvation seems so far away!", + "The exile has gone on for so long, physically and spiritually, and each day our troubles are worse than the day before.", + "I know very well that it isn’t because You don’t have the power that You haven’t saved me. And it isn’t because You can’t hear that You haven’t paid attention to my prayers. No, it is my sins that have separated me from You. I have sinned so much that I have become totally removed from good, to the point that all my prayers and requests are devoid of true goodness.", + "I speak without using my mind, and because of that, I can’t say a single word that is listened to or accepted. My words aren’t even worthy of being called “speech,” since they are not drawn from a mind filled with holy awareness, and they are devoid of good.", + "And now, what should I do, my Father in Heaven? Where can I seek help to put some goodness into my words, so I will be able to offer a prayer that will be listened to and accepted?", + "For You know, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that no matter what I need, materially or spiritually, large or small, I have nothing at all to rely on. I can only beg You to grant me what I need to serve You as an unearned gift of kindness.", + "Favor me with Your unconditional lovingkindness and give me everything I need for my devotions. Compassionate God, draw me closer to You so that I will repent completely and sincerely.", + "Not even one small detail of Divine service comes easily to me. I simply have no idea or strategy to achieve what I need to. For the advice itself is just as hard for me to fulfill as is the devotion that I need to do. Therefore, I have no hope at all, except to rely on Your vast compassion.", + "Yet if You decide to treat me the way I really deserve for even a minute fraction of my wrongful deeds — if You wish to check my prayers and entreaties for some modicum of good before You accept them — I have no idea how I’ll ever be helped, because I know very well that all my words are far from containing true good.", + "Master of the world, I’m in such pain! It’s all so bitter! I have decided that, no matter what, I’ll say what I have to say to You without holding back. I’ll pour out my heart in the hope of feeling some relief. Perhaps God will have pity. Perhaps He will have compassion. “Perhaps HaShem will see my wretched state.” Even if I’m in the earth, I’ll talk: from the very dust I’ll cry out. “Perhaps there is hope! Perhaps He will have pity on the destitute; perhaps He will have compassion.”", + "For You, God, are good and do good for all, wicked and righteous alike. Surely You can find some good points in what I have to say, even though they may be so totally hidden that my words are not worthy of being heard and accepted because the little good they contain is so concealed.", + "Nevertheless, You are flowing with kindness and goodness. There is not a secret in the world, from the beginning of Creation, that is concealed from You. In Your great kindness, You have the power to uncover even the slightest modicum of goodness contained in my words.", + "For You know, Master of the entire world, that even though I’ve done so much wrong and sinned and transgressed against You from my youth until today, even so, the intent behind my words is for the good.", + "I really do so want, yearn, desire and long to genuinely serve You. Compassionate God, let me turn away from evil completely and do what is good in Your eyes at all times.", + "Maybe my behavior is not at all pleasing. Even so, I’m completely sincere in what I’m asking.", + "You have taught us through Your true tzaddikim that we should always pray to You for everything we need in order to serve You. For though You have given us free will to choose good and reject evil, even so, prayers and supplications help for this too. We can ask You to turn our hearts toward You, and subdue our inclinations so that we will serve You. You have the power to help and even force us to abandon the evil path and follow the path of goodness and righteousness, the path of life. The truth is that I have no hope at all except to pray, beg, shriek and cry out to You to draw me closer to Your service, bring my evil inclination under control, and subdue and break my appetites. Deal with me kindly so that I will turn away from evil completely and always do what is good in Your eyes from now on and forever.", + "Speech and self-expression
Master of the world, my mind is limited and my heart is sealed. My hands are too heavy to stretch out before You and express my prayer. Have mercy on me. Have pity on me in accordance with Your compassion. Help me so that I always speak in praise of the true tzaddikim and give them every kind of honor and respect.", + "Then, through my praise of the tzaddikim, I will be able to elevate my mind, attain holy wisdom, and bring true goodness into the words that I speak. Let everything I say be truly good, so that from now on all of my words will be heard and acceptable in Your eyes and in the eyes of all who hear me.", + "May the merit and strength of the true tzaddikim whom I praise and honor protect me — “as an eagle stirs up its nest and hovers over its young” — until I succeed in arousing through them holy wisdom and understanding. May I recover the powers of holy intellect and awareness that I’ve been robbed of because of my wrongful behavior. Help me develop my mind with the utmost holiness, so that I will choose every word I say with great care and wisdom, and draw true goodness into my words.", + "Let everything I say be listened to and accepted at all times. Don’t let a single unacceptable word leave my mouth.", + "Compassionate God, be with my mouth whenever I speak, and always draw true goodness into all my words, so that whatever I say will be listened to and accepted by everyone. Whenever I need to speak to You, or pray to You, or plead with, entreat and implore You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, for anything that I’m lacking, may I always speak words of goodness and grace. Let my supplications be listened to and accepted by You. Let my words enter Your heart. Fulfill all my requests with love, and bring me truly close to You.", + "For my needs are endless, both materially and spiritually, and I have nothing to rely on or trust in except Your vast compassion and tremendous kindness.", + "So too, when I want to speak to myself and remind myself to stop being cruel to my body, my soul and my spirit, and when I want to have compassion on myself, let me always use words that will be listened to and accepted, words that will penetrate my heart. May I stir myself to genuinely return to You and relinquish my evil ways, disgusting activities and greatly confused thoughts.", + "From now on help me control my thoughts and bind myself to You with a strong, powerful bond at all times. Let me stop toying with lustful thoughts and feelings, or anything else that might distract me from serving You. Let me turn away from evil in thought, word and deed, and long and yearn for You at all times with perfect faith. May I become accustomed to truly serving You with my whole heart, my body, my soul, and everything I possess. Let me surrender myself to You entirely and pay attention to nothing except carrying out Your will.", + "So too, help me whenever I have to speak to other people, whether to encourage them to serve You or for some other purpose that You desire. Channel goodness into everything I say, so that my words will always be listened to and accepted by everyone.", + "May I never engage in idle talk. Let me speak only words of goodness — words that will enhance Your Name and lead to Your service, words that will be listened to and accepted, words through which I will be able to bring about Your will.", + "The covenant: Moral purity
Therefore, my Father — my compassionate Father, my loving Father — have mercy on me!", + "Save me and help me quickly! In Your great mercy and genuine kindness, have pity on me!", + "From now on grant me the General Remedy, which is the fulfillment of the covenant. Forgive me and pardon me for all my sins and offenses against You, and especially for my abuse of the holy covenant from my youth until today — whether in thought, word or deed, in what I’ve looked at with my eyes or listened to with my ears or done with my other senses, unwittingly or intentionally, under compulsion or willfully.", + "These include my excesses in the realm of the permitted and my transgressions in the realm of the forbidden. Forgive me and pardon me for everything, God of forgiveness, You Who are kind and generously forgiving.", + "From now on help me and save me from any kind of abuse of the covenant. Sanctify me with Your supreme holiness so that I can quickly merit perfect fulfillment of the covenant. Help me and save me, my Father in Heaven! I have no idea what I should say. No words in the world can express my feelings.", + "I can only cry out to You with a great and bitter cry. I can only sigh and wail, yell, scream and howl.", + "“I will raise my voice to HaShem and cry, I will raise my voice to HaShem until He hears me.” “I raise my voice to HaShem and scream. I raise my voice to HaShem and plead.” “To You, HaShem, I cry. I plead with You, HaShem: What profit is there in my blood if I go down to the pit? Will dust acknowledge You or declare Your truth?”", + "Have pity on me! Have mercy on me! Help me, save me, and let me genuinely keep Your covenant. For my eyes are yearning to witness Your unbounded compassion and generosity. My hands are stretched out to appeal to You for kindness.", + "As long as my soul is within me I will cry out to You, and wait and yearn for You to show me compassion, whether as Your child or Your servant.", + "If I am Your child, have compassion on me as a father has compassion on his children. And if I am Your servant, my eyes are turned toward You until You show me mercy and release me from my prison, and rescue me from violating Your covenant. Save my soul from destruction. Protect me and rescue me from now on from violating the covenant in any way — whether with my hands, my feet, my eyes or the rest of my senses, whether in thought, word or deed. In all of them, let me be holy, pure and clean of any infringement of the covenant.", + "Help me quickly rectify the covenant to the ultimate degree of perfection, on the level of the true tzaddikim. This way I’ll be able to rectify every single sin I’ve ever committed against You. The 365 prohibitions of the Torah correspond to the 365 arteries and veins in the human body. Let me rectify all of them by keeping the covenant, which includes all the arteries and veins in the body and is the General Remedy. Help me purify all the blood in my 365 arteries and veins. Totally cleanse my blood of all the impurities I infused into it by violating the 365 prohibitions of the Torah.", + "In Your vast compassion, remove all the stains I have caused to the Shekhinah, as it were, because of the floods of bad blood that I have strengthened by my many sins. I have caused the Shekhinah so much “blood of impurity.” As a result, the Shekhinah has descended into a deep exile. My sins have also caused the Shekhinah to become separated from the Holy One, blessed is He. “She dwells among the nations, She finds no rest.” As it is written, “Jerusalem has surely transgressed; therefore, she has become like a menstruating woman.” Master of the world, what can I say? How can I speak? God has found out my sin. “I am struck dumb. I keep silent, I don’t even say good things, and my pain is all the more acute.” Have pity and mercy on me for Your sake, for the sake of the true tzaddikim, for the sake of Your great Name, and for the sake of the cry and roar of the Holy One, blessed is He, and the Shekhinah, as it is written, “HaShem roars from on high, and from His holy Sanctuary He lets forth His cry. He roars and roars over His dwelling place” — over His precious Shekhinah. I am the one who sinned, and He is bound in chains. And She too cries out bitterly in Her terrible exile, which has kept Her apart from Her Beloved. She cries out in a bitter voice, “Woe! Bitter tears ... My head is heavy! My arm is heavy!”", + "“Woe to us! We have been ruined.” Woe for our poor souls. “Woe to us for we have sinned.” All our days and years have gone to waste. Woe! Woe to us! We caused all this through our sins, offenses and transgressions. The Shekhinah has become sullied by our sins. Her garments and clothing are filthy with the stains of our sins. What can we say? How can we speak?", + "God, You are filled with compassion. Your vision is pure. You are good and do good to all. Kind, merciful God, do what You know is best to bring me to rectify all this as quickly as possible. Help me keep the covenant perfectly, so that I will be able to make amends for all the damage I’ve caused. In Your vast compassion, forgive me and pardon me for all my sins.", + "Awaken holy awareness within me and draw out from it purity of mind, which will refine and cleanse all the blood in my 365 arteries and veins, until all the damage they have suffered is put right.", + "Clean clothes
Let me inject rectifications into all the narrow and tight places that are impossible for any rectifications to reach. Compassionately help me keep the covenant, and thereby introduce rectifications there too. Let me correct every kind of blemish completely and at the ultimate level, in accordance with Your good will. In Your vast compassion, help me, save me and be with me always. From now on protect my garments and clothing from ever being sullied by any stain or discoloration. For You alone know the great blemish caused to the Shekhinah Herself in the upper worlds when a person fails to guard his clothes from stains and dirt. His own clothes judge him for failing to protect them from stains. But because of my many sins I find it very difficult and onerous to guard my clothes against stains. I find it impossible to keep my mind on them at all times, especially when I am studying Torah or praying or going about my various other activities. Then my clothes get dirty without my noticing.", + "My many sins and my jumbled thinking are the cause of all this. As a result, I’m not able to protect my clothes properly and keep them clean and free of stains and dirt.", + "I have come to pray to You about all this, HaShem my God and God of my fathers. You Who are filled with compassion, bestow goodness on the guilty.", + "“With awesome miracles You answer us in righteousness, God of our salvation. You are the assurance of all the ends of the earth and the distant seas.” Do wonders for Your Name’s sake, and help me remedy all this in my lifetime, quickly, swiftly and speedily.", + "From now on let me guard the covenant perfectly. Help me elevate and arouse my mind in holiness, and draw purity of mind from holy awareness. This will allow me to rectify the damage to the blood in my 365 arteries and veins, which correspond to the 365 prohibitions of the Torah.", + "Help me make amends for all the stains on my clothing caused by my past neglect. Forgive me and pardon me for all these blemishes, and from now on help me, protect me and rescue me from stumbling or sinning in any way. Help me take good care of my clothes and garments in the future, treating them with respect and keeping them clean. Don’t let any of my clothes or garments ever have any stains or dirt or discoloration on them at all. Protect both me and my clothes at all times. Let my body, my soul, and my clothes and garments be clean, pure and holy at all times, from now on and forever.", + "Compassionate God, send living waters from the source of life, and may a “wellspring of living waters flowing from Levanon” — from the whiteness of the holy brain — be drawn down so as to purify the Shekhinah from Her menstrual uncleanness. Lift Her up from Her exile, and restore Her to Her Beloved in love, harmony and companionship.", + "In Your great compassion, sprinkle these pure waters upon us and cleanse us and our clothing of all our impurities. Fulfill in us the verse, “I will sprinkle upon you pure waters and you will be purified of all your impurities; I will purify you of all your aberrations.”", + "Whiten our sins like snow and like wool, as it is written, “Go, please, and let us reason together, says HaShem. If your sins are as crimson, they will become white as snow, and if they are as red as scarlet, they will become like wool.” May we fulfill the verse, “At all times let your garments be white, and let oil never be lacking from upon your head.”", + "Keeping secrets
Compassionate God, be with me at all times. Guide me and teach me how to conduct myself when speaking with other people.", + "Do not let a word leave my mouth that is not in accordance with Your will. Don’t let me ever reveal a secret unnecessarily. Protect me and save me always so that I should never be someone who “goes about as a talebearer, revealing secrets.”", + "For it is not at all clear which Torah teachings one may discuss publicly and which are forbidden to reveal as they are the secrets referred to in the verse.", + "Compassionate God, help me never transgress the prohibition against going about as a talebearer — not when I speak words of Torah and not when I discuss mundane matters with other people. Have pity on me and be kind to me; be with my mouth when I speak. May I never say anything that goes against Your will, from now on and forever.", + "Livelihood
Have mercy on me and save me. Grant me my livelihood from Heaven before I need it. Give me and my household “bread to eat and clothes to wear,” “to eat and be satisfied, and to be dressed in the choicest garments.” Send me my livelihood without effort or exertion at all, honorably and without degradation, by permitted and not prohibited means, easily and without pain, from Your full and generous hand. Don’t let me be dependent on gifts or loans from other people.", + "For forty years You gave food and livelihood to Your nation, the Jewish people, in the desert. You sent them manna from Heaven, and their clothes did not wear out. In the same way, have compassion on us now. Open up for us Your treasury of goodness in Heaven. Send us everything we need, easily and in great abundance, without our having to make any effort at all.", + "Keep me from worrying about my livelihood. Inspire me with the wisdom to trust in You at all times.", + "And You, in turn, provide me with what I need from Heaven — for myself, my household, my descendants and all that is mine. Provide me with everything I require before I need it, so that I will always be able to immerse myself in Torah and prayer with my whole heart and soul. Don’t let me be distracted in any way through worries about livelihood.", + "For I cast my burden upon You alone, and You will provide me with my needs, as it is written, “Cast your burden upon HaShem and He will sustain you.”", + "Giving charity
In Your vast compassion, help me conduct my business activities honestly. Guard me against taking anything that is not mine. Don’t let me ever take anything belonging to someone else or withhold money owing to them — not even the tiniest sum. Don’t let me touch other people’s money or possessions at all, or covet anything that belongs to my friends.", + "In all my business activities, let my only intention be to serve You and give honor to Your Name.", + "In every word I say and every step I take in the course of my business, let my sole intention be to give charity from the profit I make. Let this be my only purpose and desire in all my business activities — that I should be able to give charity from the profit I earn from this transaction.", + "Help me remember this always and keep it in mind with every step I take, every word I say, and every movement I make in connection with my business.", + "Open my heart and help me genuinely fulfill this. Let me always give plenty of charity to truly deserving people. Send me an abundance of good and blessing, and grant that I should be able to support Torah scholars and God-fearing people.", + "Let me fulfill the mitzvah of charity perfectly in the way You want, with an open heart and a kind expression on my face, with great joy and much delight.", + "Through the charity I give, help me elevate my mind in holiness and accomplish the General Remedy for business.", + "Let this be my way of making amends for all my sins and transgressions in business, and for my lust and desire for money from my youth until today.", + "May the merit of giving charity protect me “as an eagle stirs up its nest and hovers over its young.” Grant atonement for me and let me redeem my sins with charity. Through charity, may I merit the General Remedy.", + "Redemption
Have compassion on us and on the remnant of Your nation, the House of Israel. Help us and save us. Quickly lift us up from our terrible fall. We have descended lower and lower into the depths of this great exile, which has lasted for so many years now. It’s an exile of the body and the soul on every level, materially and spiritually. The whole people is in exile, and so is every single one of us.", + "Master of the entire world, You support the fallen. Have pity on us and support us in Your vast compassion. May the verses be fulfilled in us, “Do not rejoice against me, my enemy: though I have fallen, I will rise up; though I sit in darkness, HaShem is a light to me.” “Stretch out Your hands from on high. Save me and rescue me out of the many waters, out of the hand of strangers.” Be kind to me and lift me up. My eyes are raised on high. “Your hand will keep me firm; Your arm will strengthen me.” ", + "Release me and quickly pick me up from all the places I have fallen and descended to. I am so far from You. I am so distant from Your service.", + "Merciful God, have pity on me! For You know that we have no one to stand up for us now that we have fallen so low and so astonishingly. As it is written, “She has fallen wondrously, she has no one to help her.”", + "It is also written, “He has cast down from Heaven to earth the glory of Israel” — “from the highest roof to the deepest pit.” And there is no one who will stand up for us, or anyone who can lift us up from our fall except You alone. Fulfill the verse as our sages explained it, “She fell, and will not [fall anymore. And You, God, say to the Jewish people:] Rise up, Maiden of Israel.”", + "Have mercy on us and help us rectify our minds through true and complete observance of the covenant. Protect me from ever falling down again in my efforts to serve You.", + "Help me rise up quickly from all the descents I have fallen to until now. Lift up the fallen sukkah of David.", + "Master of the world, I stretch out my hands to You — lift me up and I will live. “You cannot hide from Your needy brother. You must surely help and lift [him] up.”", + "Save and protect me, my children, my descendants, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from epilepsy. Don’t let a single Jew ever suffer from this condition.", + "Have mercy on Your people Israel, on all those who are already afflicted with this bitter condition, and in Your vast compassion, cure them completely. Raise them up from their fall and restore their strength.", + "Send them perfect healing from Heaven very soon, spiritually and physically. For You, God, O King, are a faithful and compassionate Healer.", + "Avoiding drunkenness
Have mercy on me and save me, my children, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from all forms of drunkenness, whether from wine or other intoxicating beverages. Don’t let me ever become drunk.", + "For You have revealed to us through Your holy sages how damaging drunkenness is. Have pity on me. Be kind to me. Have compassion on me and save me from the excessive drinking that leads to drunkenness.", + "Even on Shabbat and festivals, let me drink in moderation and in great holiness and purity, so as to elevate my mind and attain higher levels of awareness for the sake of Your Name and Your service.", + "Don’t let a single word that is not in keeping with Your will ever leave my lips as a result of drinking wine or intoxicating beverages. When I drink, don’t let me ever say a word about anything that should be kept a secret. Let me speak only in holiness and purity words that are in accordance with Your will. Let me be truthful, joyous and with a happy heart.", + "May I never come to drunkenness. Compassionate God, rescue me from the wine that causes drunkenness, and let me taste only the wine that “brings joy to God and men.” Have pity on me, be kind to me, and fulfill my requests with mercy. Quickly bring me to the General Remedy on every level — observance of the covenant, which encompasses all the arteries and veins in the body and is the General Remedy for all of the 365 prohibitions of the Torah; the General Remedy for speech, through speaking in praise of the tzaddikim; the General Remedy for business activities, through giving charity; and keeping one’s clothes clean. In Your vast compassion, help me merit all of these quickly, swiftly and speedily.", + "For You know that it is impossible for me to rectify everything individually because there are so many sins, and I have done so much damage. Have compassion on me and save me quickly for Your Name’s sake. In Your abundant mercy and tremendous kindness, grant me the General Remedy in truth and perfection on every level. Do it for Your sake and for the sake of the true tzaddikim, and not for our sake. Lift us up from the dust and raise us from the scrap heap of our degradation. Heal us with all the remedies, general and particular. Satisfy us with Your great goodness.", + "Hear and accept our cries, prayers and requests. Purify and sanctify us in every way, and quickly fulfill the verse, “I will cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will guard My judgments and do them.”", + "Be kind to us, answer us, and hear our prayers. For You hearken to the prayer of every single one of Your people Israel with compassion. Blessed are You Who hear prayer." + ], + [ + "Perceptions of Godliness / Finding the tzaddik / Moses / Overcoming the craving for wealth / Exile and redemption / Atheism and false ideologies / Kindness / Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot / Holy boldness / Boldness in prayer / Labor and childbirth
By Himself, God is completely beyond the grasp of thought. However, He veiled and “contracted” His light into the Torah and mitzvot to provide us with graded means of attaining successively higher perceptions of Godliness. The tzaddik has the power to “clothe” the “higher wisdom” of Godly perception in the garb of the “lower wisdom,” making it possible for even ordinary people to grasp it. The more outstanding the tzaddik, the greater his ability to reach out to those on the lowest spiritual levels. Thus, Moses alone could lead the Jewish people out of the forty-nine gates of impurity in which they were trapped in Egypt. So too, in the depths of our present exile, we need to search for the greatest possible tzaddik to guide us closer to God, and we should not content ourselves with leaders of small stature. Only the Torah has the power to bring us to genuine perceptions of Godliness. When philosophies that deny the Torah gain sway, the Shekhinah — which rules over the Four Worlds of Atzilut, Beriah, Yetzirah and Asiyah — falls into exile, giving power to the four unholy empires of Babylon, Medea, Greece and Rome. Our task is to extricate the Shekhinah from exile and elevate Her to Her source in the inner light of God’s countenance. This is accomplished through acts of charity and kindness, and through the joy with which we perform the mitzvot.
Joy is felt in the heart. The joy of the mitzvot radiates especially on the three pilgrimage festivals, Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot, which are the “heart” of the year. The special fourfold mitzvot associated with each festival (e.g. drinking the Four Cups on Pesach and taking the Four Species on Sukkot) help elevate the Shekhinah — alluded to in the Hebrew letter dalet, which has the numerical value of 4 — from exile. The safe birth of a Jewish child into the world is also an aspect of the release of the Shekhinah from exile. This is because the unholy forces seeking to hide Godly revelation fight hard against the birth of Jewish children, since each new soul that comes into the world brings about a unique revelation of God’s greatness.
For the 7th of Adar, the yahrtzeit of Moses
“As the hart pants after streams of water, so my soul yearns for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, the living God; when will I come and appear in the presence of God?”", + "HaShem, You alone know Your true greatness and power, Your glory, Your exaltedness and Your majesty. Your greatness is unfathomable, and any perception of Your Godliness is supremely exalted and elevated. You are totally beyond the grasp of all thought.", + "Yet because of Your tremendous compassion and kindness, and Your desire to bestow good upon Your creatures, You have worked amazing wonders, and devised numerous ways and means of veiling and contracting perceptions of Your Godliness into many different contractions. You have brought it down from level to level, from the higher wisdom to the lower wisdom. You have given Your true tzaddikim the ability to attain perceptions of Your Godliness and come to understand Your supreme exaltedness. You have graced them with such profound knowledge, understanding and wisdom that they can even bring a perception of Your Godliness within reach of our limited minds.", + "You started to reveal a perception of Your Godliness through Your prophet Moses, the faithful one of Your house, who brought us out of Egypt, releasing us from the forty-nine gates of impurity and bringing us into the forty-nine gates of holiness. He drew us close to You and Your service, and he gave us the holy Torah and mitzvot, all of which are graded means of gaining some understanding of Your Godliness. Through every single mitzvah and every single letter of the Written and Oral Torah that we have the merit to fulfill with holiness and purity, as is fitting, we have the power to draw down awareness to perceive Your Godliness as revealed through the veils of the holy Torah. How great was the good that You did for us by sending us Moses, who enlightened our eyes and brought us out of the gloom into the light, out of the darkness into a great light. He brought us from the depths of exile of physicality, spirituality and sustenance amid the forty-nine gates of impurity to the forty-nine gates of holiness.", + "Moses’ level was so great that he even had the power to bring a perception of Your Godliness within reach of people on the very lowest levels, as we are today.", + "And now I have come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, “great in counsel and Master of wonders.” ", + "Teach me! Guide me! By which path, by which means, by which merit, and through which advice and strategy will I too be able to attain a perception of Your Godliness? For this was the purpose for which I was created.", + "As You know, the only reason I was brought into being in this lowly world was to pursue this goodly goal of attaining a perception of Your Godliness.", + "Master of the world, You know how far removed I am from any grasp of Your Godliness. It’s not enough that I wasn’t careful to fulfill all the teachings of Your Torah and mitzvot, through which we merit to perceive You, each according to the capacity of his heart. As it is written, “Her Husband is known in the gates” — God is known to each person according to the conception he forms in his heart.", + "Yet I have done what I have done, blemished what I have blemished, and damaged what I have damaged. I have sinned and transgressed and done evil in Your eyes, acting with contempt, willfully and deliberately, to the point that I’ve become distanced from You to the ultimate degree.", + "Every one of my sins, offenses and blemishes has spoiled a channel and pathway of wisdom, understanding and knowledge through which I might have been able to attain a perception of Your Godliness.", + "I have committed sins without number or end. They are weightier than the sand of the seas and more numerous than the dust of the earth and the hairs on our heads. The net result of all of them is that I’ve ruined and destroyed all the channels and pathways of holy wisdom through which one can perceive You.", + "I have kept on committing more and greater sins, offenses and transgressions, until “my sins have gone over my head; like a weighty burden, they have become too heavy for me.” As a result, I have created thousands and ten thousands of iron barriers and screens that keep me from perceiving You.", + "Master of the entire world, You know that no one can bring us to a perception of Godliness except the truly outstanding tzaddikim of the generation.", + "For in light of our great fall and our extreme distance from You, and the lowliness of our souls that we ourselves know, we now need a true leader on the most outstanding level. For the sicker the patient, the greater the doctor that he needs.", + "In Egypt, the Jewish people were on a very low level, having fallen to the forty-nine gates of impurity. No one was able to help them except Moses.", + "And now, when we have fallen in our present exile of body and soul, which is far deeper than the exile in Egypt, certainly there is no one who can help us except for an outstanding tzaddik on the level of Moses.", + "Yet it isn’t enough that we haven’t had the privilege of drawing close to a true tzaddik such as this. Even more, because of our many sins, You have poured out Your anger on us and taken from us all the outstanding true tzaddikim who were the light of our eyes.", + "What can I do now, at such a time, especially someone as sick, crushed and tormented as I am both spiritually and physically? I am so wounded, unsettled and confused, “a man of pains and only too familiar with illness.” I am covered with countless sores — “from the sole of the foot to the top of the head, there’s no healthy flesh, only sores, bruises and fresh wounds.” What can I say? How can I speak? How can I justify myself? Who will have mercy on me? Who will rise on my behalf?", + "My Father in Heaven, You know my whole heart. “See my misery and rescue me!” You Who see the humiliation of the lowly, look at my humiliation. You Who have mercy on the wretched, have mercy on my wretchedness. You Who “save the poor man from those who are stronger than him, and the poor and needy from those who rob them,” rescue and save me, poor and needy as I am. Take me out from between the teeth of lions. “Save my soul from the sword, save my spirit from the power of the dog.”", + "I fully admit to You with all my heart and soul that I am the guilty one from beginning to end. But what can I do, my Father in Heaven? I feel as if I’m caught in a trap. I feel imprisoned in chains of iron and gates of bronze. My only hope is in Your true compassion, mercy and kindness, just as You told Moses that You are gracious and compassionate even to those who are undeserving of Your compassion. As it is written, “He said, ‘I will pass all My good before you and call out in the Name of HaShem before you. I will show favor when I choose to show favor, and I will show compassion when I choose to show compassion.” Our sages taught that this means You show favor and compassion even to those who do not deserve it. “Release my soul from prison to give thanks to Your Name. The righteous will crown themselves because of me, for You will deal kindly with me.” Help me, save me and forgive me for my multitude of sins. Send me sound guidance and save me quickly for Your Name’s sake.", + "Money and livelihood
Let me draw genuinely close to You from now and forever. Find a way to help me attain a perception of Your Godliness in truth and complete faith, in holiness and great purity, and with true humility, in accordance with Your will and the will of Your true tzaddikim. Protect me and rescue me from avarice. Don’t let me ever feel the slightest desire for money and material possessions. Let me have a hatred for illicit gain, despising money to the ultimate degree.", + "Save me from the struggles of making a living. Don’t let me chase after this world. Don’t let me have the least worry or concern about worldly affairs.", + "Rather, let my every thought and all my mental, spiritual, emotional and physical faculties be bound and attached to You alone, longing and yearning to experience Your exaltedness in truth and perfect faith.", + "Bring me to complete holy wisdom, both the “lower wisdom” and the “higher wisdom,” until I merit to attain a perception of Your Godliness at all times in truth and perfect faith. Always grant me new and heightened percep tions of Your exaltedness, and let me feel the exquisite yearning that comes from holy faith. Grant me knowledge, understanding and wisdom.", + "In Your compassion, bring me to share my perceptions of Your Godliness with many other people in holiness and purity, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Let me reveal and spread the knowledge of Your Godliness, Your exaltedness and Your sovereignty to all inhabitants of the world. Let every creature know that You created it and each one of Your works understand that You formed it. May Your Name be blessed and praised by all, O King.", + "Let Your kingship be revealed, exalted, glorified, upraised and uplifted forever and ever. Let everything that has breath in it declare, “HaShem, the God of Israel, is King and His kingship rules over all.”", + "Exile and redemption
Therefore, be gracious to us in Your vast compassion and take us out of this bitter exile. Our bodies, our souls and holy wealth are all sunk in the most terrible and bitter exile. Lift up the Shekhinah and the Congregation of Israel from their exile among the four empires. For so many years the holy kingship, which rules over all the Four Worlds, has fallen from Her throne as a result of our many sins, giving power to the four unholy empires.", + "As a result, we have been exiled from our Land and distanced from our property both physically and spiritually. We have gone from exile to exile, we have been poured out from vessel to vessel. All our strength is gone and we have reached the point of collapse. The individual spiritual exile of each and every Jew has deepened because of the temptations of this world and its vanities. The root cause is that we’re living among so many idolaters, as it is written, “They mingled with the nations and learned from their deeds.” “God, do not be silent. Do not keep quiet, O God.” Hear the sound of Your own bitter cries and shrieks that You, as it were, cry and roar over the exile of the Shekhinah and the Congregation of Israel. As it is written, “HaShem roars from on high, and from His holy habitation He lets out His cry. He roars and roars over His dwelling place.”", + "Hear the cries and shrieks of the Shekhinah and the Congregation of Israel! The Shekhinah cries bitterly over our trials and suffering because of the constant war being waged against us by the nations of the world.", + "As if it isn’t bad enough that they rule over our bodies and our possessions, they also want to impose their false and foolish outlook and philosophy upon us. In truth, all their “wisdom” is sheer foolishness and idiocy.", + "Yet many of our Jewish brothers and sisters have already been trapped in their evil net, and they still want to ensnare even more Jewish souls in the misguided, atheistic philosophy they espouse, which has become so influential because of our sins.", + "Have pity and mercy on us and remove the prey from their mouths. “Chase and chase, save and deliver” us, our brothers and sisters, our children, and all the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, from the evil net that is now spread over all the living. There has never been a crisis like this since the beginning of time. Bring us to complete faith. Let us constantly accept Your kingship over ourselves, our souls, and over all of our 248 limbs and 365 sinews.", + "Arouse the compassion of Your heart upon us and our children. For who can bear the shrieks and howls of the Holy One, blessed is He, and His Shekhinah? Who can close his ears and his heart to their bitter cries?", + "Put it into our hearts to cry out to You constantly until You show us compassion. We will cry out until You say, “I am here!” “You who call on the Name of HaShem, do not be silent. Give Him no respite until He establishes Jerusalem and makes it the praise of the earth.” Master of the world, “Your kingdom is a kingdom spanning all the worlds, and You rule over every generation.” Have pity, mercy and compassion on Your kingdom, which extends throughout all the Four Worlds.", + "Redeem, release and lift up Your mighty Shekhinah and Your kingdom from among the nations. Raise Your kingdom of holiness and the Congregation of Israel from their exile among the four empires.", + "Uproot, smash, cast down, destroy, subdue and humble the dominion of evil quickly in our days.", + "And uproot, smash and do away with all foreign philosophies and ideologies that promote atheism and God-denial. Remove them from the world. Throw those who espouse them into turmoil and confusion. Close up their mouths and uproot, destroy and eradicate their ideas and their evil plans from the world. Help me cultivate the trait of true lovingkindness to perfection, just like our patriarch Abraham, who attained this quality to the ultimate degree. Help me perform acts of kindness and truth with all people. In Your vast compassion, send us true tzaddikim who are capable of admonishing us for our shortcomings and chastising us out of hidden love.", + "Put it into my heart that my ears should pay heed and my heart accept their rebuke, which is always intended positively, even though it may be quite humiliating at times. Despite this, let me accept their words of rebuke with love, affection and great joy. Help me be the kind of person who welcomes criticism.", + "Bring me to perfect teshuvah, and through the constructive criticism of the tzaddikim let great lovingkindness be revealed, as it is written, “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the Torah of lovingkindness is on her tongue.”", + "Help all of us achieve the trait of perfect lovingkindness in holiness and purity, and let us always be filled with Abraham’s quality of lovingkindness. And as a result of this lovingkindness, may we merit to extricate, separate and elevate the kingdom of holiness from the four unholy empires.", + "Help us kill, crush, smash, uproot and destroy the “husk” of the kingdom of the evil Amalek, which encompasses all the four empires. Help us blot out his name and his memory from the world, as it is written, “Blot out the memory of Amalek from under the heavens; do not forget.”", + "May the verse be fulfilled, “The swords with which the enemy threatened us have gone forever and You have destroyed their cities; their very memory has perished. But HaShem is enthroned forever; He founds His throne on justice.”", + "Uproot, break and eradicate all God-denying philosophies and atheism from the world, and reveal holy faith throughout the entire world. Let everyone accept the yoke of Your kingship, and rule over them very soon and forever. Help us elevate the kingdom of holiness to the light of Your countenance that shines on the three pilgrimage festivals.", + "(For a woman experiencing difficulty in childbirth, insert the special addition printed at the end of this prayer; see page 427.)", + "Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot
Compassionate and kind God, help me celebrate the three holy festivals of Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot with the utmost sanctity and delight.", + "Let me honor all the festivals and holidays in every way: with good food and drink, clean clothes, a complete rest from work, a happy heart and much joy. Let me pray with intense fervor and arousal, as befits a Jew on the festivals.", + "Throughout the year, help me carry out many mitzvot in great holiness and joy, and let the joy of all the mitzvot of the whole year be concentrated into the heart of the year, namely the three festivals. Then I will experience the true joy of the festivals in accordance with Your will, as it is written, “You should rejoice on your festival.”", + "Let me rejoice very much, with overpowering delight, on each of the three festivals. May I “rejoice and exult in You” over the fact that You chose us from all the nations and exalted us above all tongues. Bring me to such a level of happiness and joy that I will be able to ascend, see and be seen in the light of HaShem’s countenance. Help me fulfill all the mitzvot that apply on each festival, and particularly the four mitzvot that pertain to each festival through which the Shekhinah, alluded to in the letter dalet (which has the numerical value of 4), is elevated to the light of Your countenance. These mitzvot are: on Pesach, the drinking of the Four Cups; on Shavuot, the receiving of the Torah, which was taught to the Jews in the desert in such a way that each Jew heard every lesson four times over; and on Sukkot, the Four Species.", + "Please, HaShem, have compassion on me and help me fulfill all these awesome mitzvot at the appropriate time on each festival, together with all the other holy and awesome mitzvot that apply on each festival.", + "Let me fulfill them perfectly with tremendous joy and delight, and with reverence and love, so that I merit to lift up the kingdom of holiness to the light of Your countenance that shines on the three festivals.", + "Help me return to You in complete repentance out of joy on every holiday. In Your vast compassion, grant that I repent completely, even for the sins that I’m unaware of.", + "Master of the world, You know how far I am from the holiness and joy of the holy festivals. Have pity and mercy on me. In Your vast compassion and tremendous kindness, help me celebrate the festivals with great holiness and much joy.", + "Then, through the holiness and joy of the festivals, I will be able to elevate the kingdom of holiness from its exile under the four empires and raise it up to the light of Your countenance. May the verse be fulfilled, “Righteousness will go before him, and he will put his steps on the road.” It is also written, “Surely the tzaddikim will give thanks to Your Name; the pious will dwell in Your presence.” Let me constantly draw upon myself the holiness and joy of the festivals throughout the entire year. Bring me to holy joy at all times, until I attain a true perception of Your Godliness, knowledge of Your exaltedness, and the rapture of faith, genuinely and wholeheartedly, in joy, holiness and great purity.", + "Holy boldness
Have compassion on me! Save me! Help me develop holy boldness so as to be able to receive and draw down new and true insights into the Torah.", + "For You have revealed to us through Your holy sages that it is impossible to merit the holy Torah except through holy boldness and determination, as our sages said, “Be bold as a leopard.”", + "You have also taught us what a grave offense unholy boldness is. Insolent people are rooted in the 974 generations that have no share in the Torah of Moses.", + "Therefore, I have come to plead with You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, to grant me knowledge, understanding and wisdom. Teach me and guide me at all times so I will know how to act with boldness and determination, and avoid falling into any kind of insolence and arrogance. Protect me from insolent people and their arrogance. Truly compassionate God, guard me and save me from all “teachings” and “insights” of unholy forces that are called “idols,” drawing their strength from the brazenness of the “husks.” Strengthen me in Your service and draw upon me the power and might of Your holiness. Inspire me with holy boldness. Through this I will merit to truly come close to Your service, Your Torah, and fear of Heaven.", + "Help me develop original and true Torah insights at all times. Let all my ideas be truly rooted in the Torah of Moses, and let them find favor before Your throne of glory.", + "Boldness in prayer
Inspire me with holy boldness in my relationship with You. Help me devote myself to the path of prayer with all my strength and determination. Let me remain firm and strong in my hope in You, and wait confidently for You to have compassion.", + "Let me always have the courage to beseech You, pray to You, and plead with You for everything I need in order to serve You. May I never feel shy about approaching You to ask You to bring me to the greatest heights or to perform miracles and wonders for me.", + "Master of the world, before You everything is revealed. You know the terrible confusion and disordered thoughts I experience when I stand up to pray to You. I am unable to say even a single word of prayer properly.", + "All the confused and jumbled thoughts that I have throughout the day come crowding in on me just when I want to pray, seeking to derail my prayers.", + "Because of this, my prayers are completely mixed up with an endless stream of extraneous, inappropriate and irrelevant thoughts, with insincerity and immeasurable confusion. I just don’t know what to do.", + "My very confusion makes it impossible for me to know the right path to take to fight off these thoughts. I have no one to rely on except my Father in Heaven.", + "Have pity and mercy on me. Save me. Free my prayers from any kind of mixed-up, extraneous, improper and confused thoughts.", + "Help me bind my thoughts to the words of the prayers with a firm, strong bond. Then I will give my full attention to my prayers, and my prayers and requests will be pure and correct, clear and unblemished from any extraneous thoughts.", + "Have mercy on me! Do it for Your sake and not for mine, because my only hope lies in prayer and supplications.", + "Master of the world, please see my plight and fight my cause. Rescue the persecuted from those who would sap them of their strength. Don’t allow the poor to be robbed — after all, they are poor!", + "Fulfill the verse, “Enough of the oppression of the poor and the sighing of the needy! Now I will arise, says HaShem. I will bring the one they puff at to safety.”", + "Help me and save me from all kinds of evil thoughts and feelings and from all mental confusion from now on and forever. Let my mind be pure, clear and filled with holy thoughts at all times.", + "Especially when I am praying, let me purify and sanctify my mind until I am totally free of all confused thinking and extraneous thoughts, and I don’t have a single thought that is not related to the prayers. Don’t let even holy thoughts enter my mind if they are not relevant to what I’m saying.", + "Rather, throughout the prayers, let me stand in deep awe and reverence. At that time may I not hear anyone or anything in the world except You alone. May I pray with the utmost concentration.", + "Let me bind my prayers to all the true tzaddikim in this generation, and all the true tzaddikim who are at rest in the earth. Let them receive my prayers and refine and purify them, and save them from all the enemies and accusers lurking along the way. Let them elevate them as an offering of sweet savor before Your throne of glory among all the prayers of Your nation, the House of Israel, and let my prayers ascend and rise up to be a crown for Your head.", + "Have pity on me! Be kind to me! Have compassion on me and save me! Grant me holy boldness so that when I pray, I’ll always have the courage to throw shyness aside. Don’t let me feel embarrassed in front of You. Let me have no inhibitions at all about imploring You with all kinds of extravagant requests to bring me to true devotion.", + "Bring me close to You in every way. Perform miracles and wonders to raise me up from the lowliest levels in this world to the most exalted levels above.", + "May I quickly reach the highest levels of holiness. Then I will attain the ultimate perception of Your Godliness on the level of the true prophets and the great and awesome tzaddikim, who were always rising from level to level. Let me hold on to the path of our fathers who trusted in You and were not inhibited from making the most extravagant requests of You. As it is written, “In You our fathers trusted; they had trust and You saved them. They cried out to You and were redeemed. They trusted in You and were not ashamed.”", + "As You know, HaShem, considering Your exalted greatness and our lowly, degraded state, it would be quite impossible to begin to stand before You and make even the smallest request in the world.", + "For who am I to pray to You, HaShem, my God and God of my fathers? You, HaShem, are supremely great, and Your Name is exalted above all blessings and praise.", + "How could I be so bold and stubborn as to make such extravagant requests of You, especially a person as blemished, wretched and lowly as I am?", + "But in Your vast compassion, You have sent us Your true tzaddikim to teach us the goodness of Your ways and Your desire to show kindness and abundant goodness. You inspire us with holy boldness.", + "Your wish is that we should have the courage to ask the greatest and most formidable things of You, pressing You persistently for days and years until we conquer You, as it were, in order to bring You to grant our requests with compassion. As it is written, “I am HaShem Your God, Who brought you up from the land of Egypt. Open your mouth and I will fill it!”", + "This is what has given me the courage to pray to You about all this, and to ask You to inspire me with holy boldness.", + "May the verses be fulfilled, “Give strength to God, Whose pride rests upon Israel and Whose strength resides in the heavens. O God, Your awesomeness is revealed through those who sanctify You. O God of Israel, it is You alone who gives strength and power to the people. Blessed is God.”", + "Let me never hold back from making the most extravagant and awesome requests of You. Perform miracles and wonders for me! Lift me up now, quickly, swiftly and speedily, from all the falls and descents to which I have fallen until now.", + "Bring me close with all sorts of closeness, and have compassion on me with all forms of compassion. In Your vast compassion, draw me close to the truly outstanding tzaddik and teacher of this generation, the holy leader on the highest level who has the power to bring even someone as lowly as myself to a perception of Your Godliness.", + "Don’t let me deceive myself and exchange good for bad. Protect me from false and hypocritical leaders.", + "And don’t let me make the same mistake as those who say it’s enough if they follow someone who is pious and simple, even though he may be a figure of small stature. The truth is that people on my low level need a leader on the highest and most outstanding level!", + "Compassionate God, send us our righteous Mashiach quickly in our days! May the verse be fulfilled, “As in the days of your going out of Egypt, I will show you wonders.” Grant that I should soon be able to go up and appear before You and prostrate myself in Your Holy Temple on the three pilgrimage festivals.", + "Have pity on me, be kind to me, and help me in every way. Quickly lift me up from darkness to light, from slavery to redemption, from sorrow to joy. Quickly cleanse me from all forms of impurity and sanctify me in every way. Let me ascend to and be included in all fifty gates of holiness in truth, perfect faith and genuine humility.", + "Then I will be able “to behold the pleasantness of HaShem and frequent His Sanctuary.” Help me perceive Your Godliness on the highest possible level, and bring a perception of Your Godliness into the hearts of the entire Jewish people in great holiness and purity, in truth, perfect faith and genuine humility, in accordance with Your will.", + "“Shine Your countenance on Your servant and save me in Your lovingkindness. Shine Your countenance on Your servant and teach me Your statutes. In righteousness I will gaze upon Your countenance; when I awake I will be satisfied with Your likeness. We will not fall away from You. Revive us, and we will call upon Your Name. HaShem, God of Hosts, bring us back. Shine Your countenance and we will be redeemed.” Amen. Amen.", + "For a woman experiencing difficulty in childbirth, insert the following addition as indicated above:", + "Have compassion on all those women who are in labor and save them from all pain and harm (and especially [Hebrew name], the daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]).", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion at all times, You know her pain and anguish. You know what is in her heart and in the hearts of her father, her mother, and all those who share her pain.", + "See their misery and anguish! Look upon their suffering and stir up Your tremendous compassion, Your hidden mercy, for this poor woman who is sitting on the birth-stool, crushed and brokenhearted. Open up the gates of compassion, kindness, pity and grace for her. Open up her birth channel.", + "In Your vast compassion, cut open the sealed mem — corresponding to the forty days in which the embryo is formed — in which the unborn child is enclosed. In Your great lovingkindness, cut open this sealed mem and turn it into two dalets.", + "In this way, compassionate and kind God, open the gates (delatot) of the womb of this poor woman who is sitting on the birth-stool. Help her give birth immediately, easily and without further problems. Say to the angel, “Release your hand!” Let the One Who said to His universe, “Enough!” say, “Enough!” to her pain.", + "You Who are abundant in lovingkindness and goodness, have pity! Have mercy! Have compassion! Treat her in accordance with Your great kindness! Open the gates of birth for her quickly, swiftly and speedily, quickly and easily, without any further delay.", + "For she has already suffered so much bitter pain and anguish, to the point that “the power to endure has been shaken.” You Who are the Source of goodness and kindness, deal with us kindly as an unearned gift. Don’t delay the birth any longer!", + "In Your lovingkindness, help her and save her. Let the hinges and doors of her womb open immediately. Let her give birth quickly, easily, and with no further pain or anxiety, only with compassion, mercy and great kindness. Safely bring the baby out into the air of this world for a life of goodness and peace, and many long days and years! Amen.", + "(It is important to give generously to charity, since kindness is the key to cutting the dalet from the mem, which is how the womb of the woman experiencing difficulty in childbirth is opened. See Likutey Moharan I, 30 and I, 135 [end].)" + ], + [ + "Shabbat / Faith / Charity / The covenant / Travel / Torah study / Holy yearning and desire / Eating / Livelihood / Divine providence
The ultimate goal of Creation is that every created being should know God. Since it is only through faith that we can come to know Him, without faith there can be no perfection in any sphere. Thus, faith is the foundation of Judaism. The linchpin of faith is Shabbat, which celebrates God’s kingship over the universe. Because Shabbat observance brings us to faith — the precondition for perfection — Shabbat is the source of all blessing.
Although the universe appears to run according to the impersonal laws of nature, every detail is in fact under God’s direct providence, as will be revealed fully in time to come. The key to the workings of the entire universe, including those of the planets and stars, is charity. The entire flow of spiritual and physical blessing into the world can be seen as God’s “charity” to His creatures, bringing them to know Him. When we ourselves give charity, we participate in this process, which is why charity is such an exalted mitzvah. Since Shabbat is the key to faith, which is the precondition for perfection, the highest form of charity is that given to enable deserving people to celebrate Shabbat. To come to deep faith, we must keep the covenant. On one level, this involves careful observance of the laws governing what is permitted and what is forbidden. On a higher level, it involves the utmost personal sanctity, especially in the area of sexual morality. The orderly workings of the entire universe depend on our observance of the covenant. (The difficulties people sometimes experience while traveling may be caused by failure to observe the covenant, which inhibits the flow of blessing into the world.) The true tzaddik and leader of the generation must be a perfect exemplar of the covenant both in his personal sanctity and his Torah scholarship, though we should not be misled by the latter into believing that intellectual prowess alone is the essence of Judaism. “Study is not the main thing, but action.”
Keeping the covenant engenders deep yearning and longing for God, unlocking wellsprings of spiritual potential within a person. The way to transform this potential into actual, spiritual accomplishment in the form of good traits and deeds lies in articulating and expressing one’s desires and aspirations in detail in private prayers to God (hitbodedut). By doing so, we “make vowels for the letters of the Torah.” In the Torah scroll, only the consonants are written; thus, they have the potential to be vocalized in different ways, positive or negative. Similarly, our physical powers can be used for good or evil. Through articulating our holy yearnings, we are able to harness them for good.
“I will sing of HaShem’s kindnesses forever; from generation to generation I will make Your faithfulness known with my mouth.”", + "I believe with perfect faith in Your uniqueness, Your unity, and the renewal of the creation. I believe in Your true tzaddikim and in Your holy Torah — both the Written Torah and the Oral Torah — and in all the books of the true tzaddikim. I believe in the entire Jewish nation, Your chosen people.", + "For You are He, HaShem, God in Heaven and on earth, and in the highest heavens. True, You are the first and You are the last; besides You there is no other God. You created Heaven and earth and all their hosts, and You created the first man on earth — all in the Six Days of Creation. Then, on the Seventh Day, You ceased [creating], rested and reposed.", + "HaShem our God, out of Your great love and mercy for the Jewish people, You gave us Your day of rest as a possession — a day of tranquility and holiness, a great, holy and awesome day. It is a day of rest, peace and repose for the body and the soul, physically and spiritually, in this world and in all the worlds.", + "It is a day on which all the worlds rise above their level to the very highest level — to the ultimate, supreme holiness, the Will of wills, the Desire of desires.", + "Shabbat is a day when the forces of harsh judgment and impurity have no hold at all. It is a day of total rest and goodness, favor, love, kindness, and great and straightforward compassion.", + "It is a day that is entirely holy and awesome. The very holiness of the day itself makes it possible for us to become so attached to You and so fully merged in Your unity that we can attain holy faith in You to the ultimate degree during the six working days.", + "Therefore, I have come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers — God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob — Supreme God, Who bestows kindness and goodness. Truly gracious, kind and compassionate God, help me celebrate Shabbat with overpowering holiness, joy and delight.", + "It is only fitting that a Jew should experience tremendous happiness and joy on this great, holy, awesome Shabbat day — a day of gladness, rejoicing and delight in all the worlds, the great celebration of the King and the Shekhinah. It is a day without any sadness, sorrow or sighing, a day when even those in Gehennom are given respite, a day which is all light and goodness, a day when supernal light — the light of the face of the living King — shines in all the worlds, a day when every single member of the Jewish people is granted an additional, holy, awesome soul.", + "Our Father, our King, our Sovereign, our Creator, our Redeemer, our Maker, our Holy One, the Holy One of Jacob! Sanctify me at all times with the holiness of Shabbat and help me celebrate the Shabbat properly. Let me mark Shabbat with every kind of honor and delight. Let me prepare plenty of good food and drink, and all kinds of delicacies and delights. Don’t let me ever begrudge the money I spend on Shabbat and festivals in any way. Help me trust that You will repay me in full for everything I spend to honor Shabbat and festivals. Let me also honor Shabbat with special clothes. In Your compassion, may I have many fine, clean, holy and pure Shabbat clothes. Let my house be nice and clean in honor of the holy Shabbat, and let me light many candles on the eve of Shabbat.", + "Compassionate God, protect me from carrying out any of the thirty-nine chief labors prohibited on Shabbat, or any of their derivatives. Keep me from stumbling in any way, whether in regard to the labors prohibited by the Torah or activities prohibited by the sages, on the holy Shabbat. Help me sanctify my mouth on Shabbat. Don’t let me talk on Shabbat in the same way that I talk on weekdays.", + "Master of the world, have compassion on me and sanctify me with every kind of Shabbat holiness, with tremendous joy and gladness, awe and love.", + "Then I will become totally suffused with the holiness of Shabbat and can bring it into the six working days. Help me always remember the Shabbat, as it is written, “Remember the Sabbath day to sanctify it.”", + "Faith
Compassionate God, help me have true, perfect faith at all times. Let me have faith in You, HaShem my God, and in Your holy Torah — both the Written Torah and the Oral Torah — which You gave us through Your faithful prophet Moses. Let me have faith as well in all Your true tzaddikim in every generation, and in all the true tzaddikim and pious Jews in this generation. Let me believe in Your entire holy nation, the Jewish people, in whom You take pride in every generation.", + "Let me have complete, strong and firm faith in every one of them. May I always maintain my faith in You, and be strong in my faith: “Like a molten mirror ... I will never be moved.” Master of the world, You know the bitterness of my racing heart. You know the unbearable pain in my soul.", + "You know the bitterness of my countless sighs and suffering. You know the extreme pressure I’m under, my wretchedness and misery. O God!", + "Woe for the pain in my soul! Woe for the pain in my spirit! Woe for the bitter physical pain!", + "Behold, I cry out and groan to You from the depths of exile, the lowest depths. I’m like a person who has been struck by all kinds of arrows, spears and swords, and they are all still stuck in his body.", + "Every one of his limbs is pierced by thousands and tens of thousands of arrows and spears, all smeared with the most bitter poisons. Wild animals, snakes and scorpions surround him on all sides, closing him in. Thousands and tens of thousands of guards and sentries are standing over him, dogging his heels. They won’t allow him to lift his head by so much as a hairsbreadth even for a moment.", + "They hold his mouth shut tight and keep his mind and heart in constant turmoil, to make sure that he won’t cry out to You in the hope that You will have compassion and save him. “And as for me, miserable and hurt as I am,” my real situation is far worse than everything I’ve just described. The pain and suffering of my soul and the wounds in my heart are much, much worse than any of this. There are no words in the world to describe the state I’m in. Bitter! Bitter! Master of the entire world, I’m in a very bitter state. My Father in Heaven, my bitterness is worse than anything in the world. My soul is bitter, my heart is growling. “My bowels, my bowels! I writhe in pain.” “HaShem, how many are my tormentors! Many have risen against me!”", + "And even though I know a little of how distant I’ve become from You and how deep I’ve fallen — deeper than I could ever know — nevertheless, each time I want to speak about what I’m going through, I find myself beset by distractions and arrogant thoughts, and I get so confused that I find it impossible to say even a single word without a lot of insincerity and falseness.", + "Now, “where will my help come from”? Where should I seek true and lasting relief? Where should I seek salvation and refuge? ", + "Look at my wretchedness! My pain and suffering are excruciating! See my misery and save me! Out of pure kindness, give me life!", + "“For how long, HaShem, will You forget me? For how long will You conceal Your face from me? For how long must I take counsel in my soul, with sorrow in my heart by day? For how long will my enemy be exalted over me?”", + "Behold, my many sins have pushed me so far from You and filled me with such bitterness and inner turmoil that even when I do manage sometimes to accomplish something holy, it’s always spoiled by depression, mental confusion, improper motives and craziness.", + "The only thing that gives me inspiration, comfort and hope in the depths of my bitter exile is pure, simple, holy faith in You. “This is my comfort in my misery” — that at least I am a member of the Jewish people, Your servants, believers, the children of believers. Therefore, I stretch out my hands hoping for Your true compassion and kindness. Don’t leave me or abandon me. “Deal kindly with Your servant, and I will live.”", + "Treat me with true lovingkindness and grant that I always have faith in You. Let me always be firm and strong in my belief. May I never have any doubts, or veer from my faith in any way. For I have no life or hope at all except through faith in You, as it is written, “The righteous man will live through his faith.”", + "Master of the world, You know how terribly widespread heresy and atheism have become today, as we stand on the threshold of the coming of the Mashiach. There has never been anything like it since the beginning of time. We have no one to stand up on our behalf. But You have promised us, “Counsel has been lost from the children; their wisdom has gone to ruin.” When the Jewish people have no one to stand up to refute atheism, the “wisdom” of the atheists and unbelievers will also go to ruin. And now, because of our many sins, You have struck us with a blow that is not written in the Torah, pounding us terribly on all sides. For the true tzaddikim who were able to bring us to perfect, holy faith have been taken from the world because of our sins.", + "And the atheists and unbelievers are now attacking more strongly than ever. They are even firing their evil arrows at pious, sincere Jews who are innocently going along, and spreading their nets to trap them. The atheists present themselves as honest and well-meaning, as if their only intention is to benefit the Jewish people. Numerous good souls have been caught in their net, and they are planting heresy and atheism into the very heart of Your holy nation, the Jewish people. They want to get Jews to act like non-Jews, to dress like them and follow their ways, to study their literature and their languages. “Woe to us, for we have been robbed!” The Jewish people have never known a time of trouble such as this. Whom do we have to rely on? Whom can we run to for help? Where can we hide from them and save our children, our descendants, and all the offspring of Your nation, the House of Israel, from their nets and arrows?", + "Who will stand up for us in the face of consuming fire? Who will stand up for us in the face of everlasting conflagrations? Who will have pity on us? Who will have mercy on us?", + "From where will our help come?", + "Master of the world, You alone know the full extent of this tragedy. Help us, because we are depending on You! The only power we have is in our mouths.", + "Have pity and compassion on us. Help us stay strong and firm in our faith in You, in accordance with Your will. Don’t let me so much as think about even a single one of their arguments or questions. Don’t let me follow any of their ways.", + "Just let me, my children, my friends, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, always follow the ways of our holy ancestors Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Moses and Aaron, Joseph and David. And let us follow the ways of all the true prophets, the earlier and the later ones, the Tannaim and the Amoraim, and the ways of all the true tzaddikim and all the honest, sincere Jews in every generation.", + "In their merit, save us from all forms of heresy and all confusion and doubts. Compassionate God, bring us to complete and strong faith in You, in truth, holiness and purity at all times.", + "Shabbat charity
In Your vast compassion, grant that I should be able to give large amounts of charity to many deserving people. Let me scatter my charity far and wide, and help me fulfill the verse, “He has scattered and given to the needy; his charity endures forever.”", + "Grant me the merit of giving charity for Shabbat: let me provide deserving people with their Shabbat needs, and have worthy guests at my table every Shabbat.", + "May I always draw upon myself the holiness of Shabbat so as to come to perfect faith. May I always have faith and trust in You, and distribute large sums to charity with a happy heart and great joy.", + "Then my charity will be all the more precious in Your eyes because of the perfect faith You will grant me. For this faith enhances the value and perfection of charity, just as faith perfects all our Torah practice. May the verse be fulfilled in me, “He [Abraham] believed in God, and He considered it as charity.”", + "Let my charity radiate with a great light by being connected with the holiness of Shabbat. May the verse be fulfilled, “A sun of charity will shine on you who fear My Name, with healing in its wings.”", + "Draw upon me blessing from the source of blessings. Let the blessings that come from the deep faith instilled by Shabbat spread through all the six working days, since Shabbat is the source of blessing.", + "May abundant goodness, blessing, compassion, wisdom, life, peace and everything good be drawn upon me and upon Your entire nation, the entire Jewish people, always.", + "Send us a plentiful livelihood before we need it. Send it easily, without worry, by permitted and not by forbidden means, honorably and without degradation, from Your open, generous hand. May we never be in need of the gifts or loans of flesh and blood.", + "The covenant
Bring me to truly guard the covenant with the utmost perfection, in accordance with Your will. Save me in Your tremendous compassion, and protect me in Your great and awesome kindness, from violating the covenant in any way. Don’t let me waste the drops of my mind, whether unintentionally or deliberately, accidentally or willingly.", + "Forgive me, pardon me, and give me atonement for all my transgressions against the holy covenant from my youth until today. Quickly help me rectify the covenant in holiness and purity, in exactly the way You desire. In Your vast compassion, rescue me from danger on the road. Protect me and save me from any kind of pain, suffering or setback in my travels, and from all enemies and accusers. Be with me at all times — both when I’m sitting in my house and when I’m traveling on the road. Let me embark on my journeys peacefully in Your Name, travel in peace, and return home safely.", + "Save me from any kind of injury or loss on the road, physically, spiritually and financially. Guard me at all times, both when leaving and on arrival, and grant me a good life and peace from now and forever.", + "Let me give charity before setting off on a journey, as it is written, “Righteousness will go before him, and he will put his steps on the road.” In the merit of my charity, prepare the path before me.", + "Compassionate God, You go before me to lead me on the way I should go. Shine Your great light before me, and bring me to my desired destination in life and in peace, in accordance with Your will.", + "Have mercy on me, be kind to me, and keep me from violating any of the prohibitions of the Torah or those instituted by the sages. Let me devote myself to the study of Your holy Torah constantly, day and night. Help me study Jewish law diligently. Be with me at all times, and grant me the knowledge, understanding and wisdom to be able to develop a clear grasp of all the laws of what is forbidden and what is permitted.", + "Help me have a clear and correct understanding of the law in all its details, so I will know the difference between good and evil, valid and invalid, pure and impure, permitted and forbidden.", + "Let me study in great holiness and purity, and learn, teach, guard, practice and fulfill all the words of Your Torah with love and great holiness. May I become a true tzaddik and scholar.", + "Help me guard and rectify the covenant on every level with the utmost perfection. Let me guard the “upper covenant” and the “lower covenant” in great holiness and purity.", + "Yearning
Kind and compassionate God, always help me and save me. Inspire me with holy longing. Let me always yearn and long for You. May I be filled with a desire to serve You in reverence and love.", + "All day long, let my only desire, hope, yearning and longing be to genuinely serve You. Throughout the day, let my eyes be fixed on the goal of coming to true service of God, as it is written, “My soul pines for Your salvation, I long for Your word. My eyes pine for Your word, saying, ‘When will You comfort me?’”", + "“My soul yearns and pines for the courtyards of HaShem; my heart and my flesh will sing for joy to the living God. My flesh and my heart pine away; God is the Rock of my heart and my portion forever.”", + "“My soul thirsts for You, my flesh longs for You in a parched, weary and arid land.” “My soul thirsts for God, the living God; when will I come and see the face of God?”", + "My Father, my Father, Chariot of Israel! My Father, my Father! My Lord, King and God!", + "Rock of my heart! My Holy One! You know how terribly far I am from You at present. No words in the world can describe this distance. I have nothing to rely on. All I can do is long and yearn for You, wait for Your salvation and hope for Your compassion. As You revealed to us through Your true tzaddikim, holy longing and yearning are of great value in and of themselves. Therefore, I have come to ask of You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, You Who want me to come to my destiny and are making every effort to save me — help me make it a habit to long and yearn for You, sincerely and wholeheartedly, at all times.", + "In Your vast compassion, keep me from harboring any kind of evil longings, yearnings or desires. Protect me from all lustful cravings and bad thoughts. From now on let my heart always be clean of all evil yearnings and desires. Merciful God, help me express and articulate all my holy yearnings and desires. Let me always speak to You about everything I’m thinking and feeling.", + "May I always spend ample time on my own private prayers and meditation. Let me speak to You in my own words and pour out my whole heart before You at all times. Let me express all my thoughts and feelings truthfully and sincerely, and with great longing and intense desire for You Who are filled with compassion. By articulating my holy yearnings every single day without fail, I will build up intense spiritual power inside myself.", + "In this way, I will be able to make holy points and vowels for the letters of the Torah and bring out their potential for good. Then all the words of the holy Torah will become an elixir of life for me, and I will merit to attach myself to You and serve You forever.", + "Guard me and protect me always, so that no evil spirit formed from evil longings will ever be incarnated in me or attached to either myself or my descendants.", + "Let many holy and good spirits come forth from me as a result of the holy yearnings I give expression to with my mouth. Give these spirits the power to arouse the entire world to complete and genuine repentance, until everyone will return to You and sincerely carry out Your will.", + "Attachment to the tzaddik
Master of the world, help me come close to the true tzaddik and sage of this generation — one who is like an angel of the Lord of Hosts, an outstanding tzaddik and chassid who does much good and is also an exceptional Torah scholar.", + "Let me hear Torah teachings from his holy mouth. Let his words of Torah be an elixir of life for me, inspiring me to come to perfect repentance and receive a clear, straight path to truly serve HaShem according to the root of my soul and my level.", + "Let me follow the tzaddik in such a way that I “enter in peace and go out in peace.” Keep my heart from becoming excessively impassioned because of the great light that the tzaddik shines into me. Don’t let me be one of those who “takes a look and dies” or “takes a look and goes out of his mind,” God forbid.", + "Don’t let me come to see Torah study as a goal separate from that of personal righteousness and piety. Rather, help me be fully aware that “the main thing is not study but practice,” and “the purpose of Torah is repentance and good deeds.” ", + "Whenever I have the privilege of hearing Torah teachings from the mouth of the tzaddik, may I not put my main attention on the cogency of his arguments as much as on the message of true piety and Heavenly awe contained in his words. As our sages taught, “‘The fear of God is His treasure’ — if one has fear of Heaven, one has a firm foundation, if not, one has nothing,” and, “It is those whose fear of sin comes before their wisdom, whose wisdom endures.” Help me always study much Torah, and may my whole intention be to fulfill all the mitzvot of the Torah perfectly, in love and awe, as befits a Jew.", + "Even at times that I fall from my level, God forbid, let me find my main strength and inspiration in the point of Heavenly fear that still remains within me.", + "Let all my Torah study always be an elixir of life for me. Then all the letters of Torah that come from my mouth will accomplish only good in the world.", + "Food and livelihood: Divine providence
Compassionate God, God of salvation, help me eat with great and awesome holiness. May I eat with the same holiness with which the Kohanim in the Holy Temple would eat the showbread.", + "Let all the other nations and all the stars and planets labor for my livelihood. Remove their protective defense from them and may the verse be fulfilled, “Their defense has departed from them, and HaShem is with us; do not fear them!”", + "Remove natural philosophy from the world. Uproot, break and demolish their mistaken ideas. Reveal Your kingship and providence to all inhabitants of the world. Let everyone understand that there is really no such thing as “nature” in the world. Everything is governed solely by Your providence.", + "Shine the light of Your countenance on us; do not hide Your face from us. “Shine Your face on Your servant; save me in Your lovingkindness.”", + "Let every creature know that You created it and each one of Your works understand that You formed it.", + "Let everyone understand that You are watching over every single thing in the world, down to the very last detail, at all times. There is no such thing as “nature” — rather, everything is under Your control.", + "“Turn to me and be gracious to me. Give Your strength to Your servant and save the son of Your maidservant.” “Shine Your face on Your servant and teach me Your statutes.” “Turn the light of Your countenance to us, HaShem.” Rid the world of natural philosophy and wisdom derived from the stars and constellations, which come about from the concealment of God’s face. Reveal the truth: that the entire universe is under Your providential control. The light of Your countenance shines on us every day, governing every single detail of the world with the most awesome, unfathomable wisdom. At present, though, Your providence is concealed beneath the veil of nature.", + "Let everyone understand that natural processes are also under Your control, and that the law of nature is also a form of Divine providence.", + "Be filled with compassion for us, and govern the world now the way You will govern it in the future, when nature will be no more and You will conduct Your world with providence alone. Let us be worthy of being governed by pure providence even now, and not by the laws of nature.", + "Help us eat with such great holiness that our table will atone like the altar in the Holy Temple, and it will be possible to say of our table, “This is the table that is before HaShem.” Quickly and speedily bring about our final, everlasting redemption. Send us our righteous Mashiach and build the Holy Temple in all its glory, so that we can go up and appear before You and worship You there on the three pilgrimage festivals. As it is written in Your Torah, “Three times a year, all your males should appear before HaShem your God in the place that He will choose. These times are: the Festival of Matzot, the Festival of Weeks, and the Festival of Sukkot. No one should appear before HaShem empty handed, but each according to the gift of his hand, according to the blessing HaShem your God has given you.” Let us set the showbread before You at all times in the Holy Temple. Remove the sun from its sheath and reveal its full power. Sanctify us with Your supreme holiness and give us the strength to receive the full power of the light of the sun as it is destined to be revealed in the future. Through it, heal all our wounds and illnesses, a healing of the soul and a healing of the body.", + "Compassionate God, put right all the damage we have caused in all the worlds. May the verse be fulfilled, “A sun of charity will shine on you who fear My Name, with healing in its wings.” Draw the flow of blessing and livelihood away from the “outside,” and send it instead into the realm of holiness. Don’t let all the wealth and prosperity go to the idolaters and wicked people anymore. Instead, let the entire flow of goodness, wealth and prosperity be channeled directly from You to us.", + "Fulfill for us the verse, “HaShem will open for you His beneficent treasury — the heavens — and provide rain for your land in its season. He will bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations, but you will not need to borrow.” “For HaShem your God will bless you, as He said to you. You will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow; you will rule over many nations, but none will rule over you.” Have pity and mercy on us, and carry out our requests with compassion. Bring us to experience the holiness of Shabbat. Let us truly guard the covenant. Let us observe all the laws regarding what is forbidden and what is permitted. Bring us to complete, holy and true faith.", + "Bestow upon us wisdom, understanding and knowledge, and inspire us with the trait of compassion at all times. Let us have mercy on Your creatures and happily give large amounts of charity to many deserving poor people. Inspire us with holy longing and intense desire for Your Name and Your service at all times.", + "Send us a plentiful livelihood from Your full and generous hand, so that we can devote ourselves to studying Your Torah, serving You, and genuinely carrying out Your will all the days of our lives — we, our children, and the offspring of Your nation, the House of Israel, from now on and forever.", + "Then we will merit being attached to You and included in Your unity at all times, and rise up to witness the light of Your countenance. “God will be gracious to us and bless us; He will radiate the light of His countenance to us, selah.” Keep the faithful kindnesses of David for us, and fulfill for us the verse, “I will always guard My kindness to him, and My covenant is faithful to him.”", + "Let us see Him face to face when He returns to His dwelling place, as it is written, “For eye to eye they will see when HaShem returns to Zion.” And it is written, “The glory of HaShem will be revealed, and all flesh will see together, for the mouth of HaShem has spoken.” And it is written, “Your Master will no longer be hidden, and your eyes will see your Master.” “HaShem, God of Hosts, bring us back. Shine with the light of Your countenance and we will be saved.” “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Weddings / Dance / Joy
The joy of a bride and groom in this world is an echo of the Heavenly joy that comes about when the Holy One, blessed is He, is united with His Shekhinah, and God turns to the Jewish people with favor. The practical import of this deep Kabbalistic lesson is that joyous dance has the power to sweeten harsh decrees.
“God, open my lips and my mouth will declare Your praise.”", + "Master of the world, Master of joy and delight in Whose dwelling place is joy! In Your vast compassion, You created joy and happiness, groom and bride, mirth, glad song, pleasure and delight.", + "Grant that I should be able to fulfill the mitzvah of providing brides with their wedding needs in the most perfect way possible, in great holiness and purity.", + "Let me always do everything in my power to gladden the bride and groom in every possible way. Let me increase all kinds of joy for them, and dance for them with all my strength, with happiness and great delight.", + "Through my dancing, let me sweeten all harsh decrees against us and against the entire Jewish people.", + "Fill my heart with such intense joy that my feet and legs will be lifted high to dance a great deal before the groom and bride. Let me leap and swirl with all my might before them. Let my dancing draw the five alephs that are in the sefirah of Binah, thereby mitigating the 320 severe judgments and turning harshness into pure compassion.", + "May I draw down upon myself all the five holy voices, and may the verse be quickly fulfilled, “There will yet be heard in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem: the voice of gladness and joy, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride, the voice of people saying, ‘Give thanks to the God of Hosts, for HaShem is good, for His kindness is forever.’” May I always devote myself to Torah study, prayer, charity and good deeds with great happiness and delight in order to unify and connect the Supernal Groom and Bride. Have compassion on the Congregation of Israel, Your holy nation, Your beloved who is drawn after You as a bride summoned with pleasantness, love and mercy. Sweeten and nullify all decrees, material or spiritual, against Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "Gladden us by saving us at all times. Hasten our redemption and bring us up happily to our Land. Build our Holy Temple in all its glory. May the verse be fulfilled very soon, “Then the maiden will rejoice in the dance-circle, and the youths and elders together. I will turn their mourning into joy, and I will comfort them and bring them from sorrow to happiness.” May we witness the pleasantness of Your radiance when You adorn Yourself with a crown of beauty formed from the good deeds of the entire Jewish people, as it is written, “Go out, daughters of Zion, and see King Solomon in the crown with which his ‘mother’ [the Jewish people] has crowned him on the day of his wedding and the day of his heart’s delight.” Speedily in our days. Amen." + ], + [ + "Finding God in all situations / Overcoming negative desires and traits / Trust in the tzaddikim / Torah secrets / Universal peace
The fact that God is everywhere means that He can be found even in places and situations that may on the surface seem utterly devoid of Godliness. The same applies to the different times we go through in life: not only must we acknowledge God when things are good, we must also search for Him when they seem very bad. A person who gains control of his lower instincts is no longer deceived by outer appearances and can penetrate to the Godly vitality that animates the entire creation. Then the letters of the Hebrew alphabet, which channel this vitality to the creation, stand out clearly for him to see: he is able to find spiritual meaning in every situation. When a person is able to find Godliness in all his different life experiences, he attains inner peace. The way to come to this is through study of the Torah, “all of whose ways are peace,” and by attaching himself to the tzaddikim, who embody the Torah in their very lives and are called “a covenant of peace.” The Torah and mitzvot — God’s gift of love to the Jewish people — are accessible to our finite minds yet provide us with graded ways of coming to know and attach ourselves to the Infinite God. The highest expression of God’s love is “the love contained in da’at” — the concealed level of the Torah known as the “Torah of the Hidden Ancient One,” which is destined to be revealed in the future, though even today it is possible to get a taste of it. The exalted level of Divine wisdom it contains will enable all opposites to be reconciled, leading to universal peace.
Eternal Hidden Master of the worlds! You are He Whose unity is infinite and absolute, and therefore indivisible. You are He, transcendent beyond all that is above, and concealed behind all that is concealed. No thought whatsoever can grasp You. You are He Who permeates all worlds yet You are beyond all worlds. No place is devoid of You.", + "The whole earth is filled with Your glory, and You rule over everything. You give life to all — all the hosts above and all those below, all the holy realms and levels, and all the realms and levels in the domain of unholiness.", + "Even the “ten crowns of impurity” contain Godly vitality. May You be blessed forever!", + "There is no unholy force in the world, no “husk” or level of impurity, that does not contain a spark of Godly vitality buried within it. For You give life to everything, and without You nothing could exist or survive at all. Hidden within all the languages of the nations, within all evil patterns of behavior and evil desires, and even within sins and Torah prohibitions, are sparks of Godly vitality. For You have power and control over everything!", + "Controlling the evil urge
Therefore, I have come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, Master of all, to beseech and plead with You. I stretch out my hands to You to appeal for compassion, favor and kindness. Fill me with holy wisdom and knowledge, power and strength, so that I will be able to fight my evil urge, take control of it, and make it genuinely subservient to You. Let me know You and draw close to You in all situations. Regardless of whether things are good or bad, let me constantly come closer to You.", + "Then I will fulfill the verse, “In HaShem [God’s attribute of mercy] I will praise His word; in Elokim [His attribute of justice] I will praise His word,” and I will always be attached to You. Help me know You and genuinely draw close to You. Let me repent completely in the situation I’m in at this very moment.", + "Even though I have fallen very low and sunk very far because of my sins, I believe with perfect faith that even in the situation I’m in at this very moment, You can be found. For no place is devoid of You, and You rule over all places and situations.", + "Therefore, have pity and mercy on me! Do not hide Your face from me, even though this place may be very lowly. “Even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right arm will hold me.” You Who are filled with compassion, “do not abandon the work of Your hands”! Take hold of me and quickly take me out of all these lowly and degraded places.", + "Help me always search for You in every place I find myself. Let me fulfill the verse, “You will search from there for HaShem your God, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.” Help me find You at all times.", + "Compassionate God, draw me closer to You even if I fail to search for You properly. Fulfill the verse, “I was accessible to those who did not ask for Me, I could be found by those who did not seek Me out. I said, ‘Here I am! Here I am!’ to a nation that was not called by My Name.” “I stretch out my hands to You; I spread out my arms all day. My soul is like a land that is weary for You, selah.” “To You I lift up my eyes, You Who dwell in the heavens.”", + "“Be gracious to us, HaShem, be gracious to us, for we are fully sated with contempt.” “Our soul is bowed to the dust, our belly is stuck to the ground.” “My soul is stuck to the dust; give me life according to Your word.” “Arise, help us and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.” “Hurry to save me, God of my salvation.” Quickly free me and lift me out of all these filthy, lowly places that are so lacking in spirituality. “Don’t let the deep swallow me up, and don’t let the pit close its mouth over me!” Have compassion on me and redeem me quickly. Take me out, lift me up, and purify me of all the damage I have caused through the sins and transgressions I have committed against You from my youth until today, whether unintentionally or deliberately, under duress or willfully.", + "Have pity on me! Have mercy on me! Imbue me with the holy power and strength of the true tzaddikim who were able to gain control of their evil urge and literally become like angels of the God of Hosts. Despite innumerable trials, they stood firm and overcame their desires, and achieved a high level of self-control.", + "They were able to break and remove their evil urge completely, and merited attaching themselves to You with the ultimate degree of perfection.", + "I am relying on their great merit and strength. In their merit, have pity and mercy on me, and give me some of their power and strength. Help me so that I too can master, control and break my evil urge.", + "May I crush and eradicate all my evil desires and bad traits entirely, until no evil remains in me at all and I come back to You in complete repentance, truly and with all my heart. Let the evil that has taken hold of me fall away and totally disappear, and the goodness and Torah hidden within my personality be refined and revealed with great added light from above, until I can reveal and radiate all the good that is within me.", + "Help me rise from level to level in great holiness, until I come truly close to You and sincerely attach myself to You and Your holy Torah.", + "Open up to me the light of Godly wisdom and awareness, so that I will know You and attach myself to You at all times with the utmost love, with abundant love and eternal love, in truth, faith, holiness and purity.", + "Reduce to a minimum the concealing veils and screens that separate me from You. Let me know You directly, without too many concealing veils. Bring me very close to You and fill me with holy wisdom and awareness from now on and forever.", + "Finding God at all times
Please, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who redeem and save, You have ways to ensure that no one will be cast aside from You. Stand at my right side and support me. Help me bring my evil urge under control and make it subservient to You. Help me break and eradicate all the evil desires and bad traits that have taken hold of me.", + "From now on send me good times. Help me see and enjoy the good in every day, and treasure it so much that all hardships and difficulties will simply pale into insignificance.", + "Help me discover and reveal the hidden goodness that is present even on days when things seem bad. Let me sift out the good from the bad.", + "Have pity and mercy on me from now on. Compassionate God, save me always from bad days. May they not have any power to affect me. Due to my sins I have already suffered more than enough bad days, and my “power of endurance has been shaken.”", + "Have pity and mercy on me from now on. Rescue me, free me and redeem my soul from the bad days. Help me fight the negativity I feel when things are difficult, and let me turn my bad days into good ones.", + "Save me from all evil, all obstacles, and all evil desires and bad traits. Let me conduct myself with the utmost sanctity even with regard to things that are permitted to me.", + "From now on let all my days be good. Let me spend my days in true goodness and enjoy years of supreme pleasantness. Let me devote all my days to genuine service of God and Torah study. May I be attached to You at all times and included in Your unity in great awe and love, truth, faith, holiness and purity, forever. Help me fulfill the verse, “Turn from evil and do good, seek peace and chase after it.” Let me seek peace at all times. Let me be at peace with myself and what happens to me. May I always be able to find HaShem in all places, at all times and in all people.", + "Let me always run after peace. Help me make peace among the Jewish people, Your nation, between Jew and Jew and between husband and wife, all in great holiness and purity. And let me be among those who make peace between the Jewish people and their Father in Heaven.", + "Torah study
Help me devote myself to Your holy Torah at all times. Through it, You will bring me to ever greater peace, as it is written, “Its ways are ways of pleasantness, and all its pathways are peace.” Help me carry out all the teachings of Your Torah with love. Let me fulfill all 613 commandments of the Torah and all the enactments of the sages with all their ramifications, details and fine points.", + "As for the mitzvot that we cannot carry out today, let me fulfill them on the spiritual level — through studying and meditating on them, and through the unity of Your nation, the Jewish people, and the great love and peace that will reign among us all.", + "Let me feel a deep bond of fellowship and connection with every single Jew, and let the entire holy Jewish nation be as one man. Raise me quickly, swiftly and speedily from level to level until I truly become totally good. Then, through Your compassion and power, and through the strength of the true tzaddikim, I will be able to uncover the goodness that is concealed and buried in all the wicked people and even among non-Jews, and make it shine.", + "Even when I speak to non-Jews and wicked people, or have to have business or other dealings with them, and I see their negative qualities, let me always be able to discover and bring out the Godly vitality that is hidden in them, as it is within all the languages of the nations and their bad traits.", + "As soon as I start speaking or dealing with them, let the evil immediately fall away before me, and let the goodness and holiness that are present be revealed and shine forth in full radiance.", + "Let the letters of Torah that are concealed among them be revealed, since the letters of the Torah give life to everything in the world. Let the letters stand out clearly and join together, and shine with extra light from above. Then I will be able to sift out and collect the holy letters of Torah buried within the languages of the nations and their bad traits, and build from them perfect structures of holiness. May the verses be fulfilled, “Bless HaShem, you angels of His, you who are mighty in strength, who carry out His word to hear the voice of His word! ", + "Bless HaShem, all His hosts, His attendants who do His will! Bless HaShem, all His works, in all the places of His dominion! Let my soul bless HaShem!”", + "Trust in the tzaddikim
Master of the world, You know it would never have occurred to me to make all these requests of You. I may not be aware of the full extent of my distance from You, but with the little understanding I do have of how far away I am, I would never have had the audacity to request even a small portion of what I’ve asked. But HaShem, You know my heart. I base all my prayers, requests and hopes solely on the merit and strength of the true tzaddikim, in the shadow of whose wings we take refuge. Therefore, I am relying on them in making all these requests, because their strength is sufficient even for someone as totally distant as myself. I have trust in their great power, and I still have hope that I will be able to attain everything I have asked of You — and even more than that.", + "For Your compassion is never exhausted, and the merit and strength of all the true tzaddikim will never come to an end. No unholiness can stand up against their exalted holiness and towering strength.", + "Their great merit and strength will help and protect us and all who take refuge in them. For tzaddikim are greater after their death than in their lifetime. They are called “alive” at all times. Grant that I should be able to come very regularly to their holy gravesites, to prostrate myself and pour out all my thoughts and feelings before them, just as I would if they were alive, and even more so.", + "Let me arouse their compassion for someone as locked up and imprisoned as I have been for so many years in these places that are so distant from You. The tzaddikim are fully aware of our situation in this transient world, from beginning to end.", + "They know how pitiable a person is as he passes through this world “like a traveler turning aside to rest for the night,” who gives no thought to his ultimate destiny and what he will do in the world that will endure for all eternity. Master of the entire world, the body is Yours and the soul is Yours. Have pity on Your work. Act for Your Name’s sake, help me and save me with a true and complete salvation.", + "Secrets of the Torah
Grant that I should always be genuinely attached to You and recognize Your great love for Your nation, the holy Jewish people. You chose us from all the nations and exalted us above all languages. You have sanctified us with Your commandments, which express Your great love for the Jewish people — a true love, a love and mercy that has no end or limit. In Your great love and true mercy for Your holy nation, the Jewish people, You contracted Your Godliness, as it were, and clothed Your love in the holy Torah and commandments that You gave us through Moses, Your faithful prophet. For every single commandment is calculated and delineated to help us recognize You and perceive You through it, and genuinely serve You with reverence and love.", + "Merciful and kind God, help me carry out all Your commandments with great love.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me perceive and understand the light of the exalted love contained in the holy wisdom of the inner secrets of the Torah — the Torah of the Hidden Ancient One, which is destined to be revealed in the future.", + "This is the great love that existed between You and the souls of Israel, Your nation, before You created the world. This love is above time and beyond the limits of this finite world. It is impossible to apprehend the light of this love except through the true tzaddikim, who have totally conquered their evil urges and nullified all their worldly appetites and bad traits to the point that they have perfect self-control.", + "My Father, my King, compassionately help me draw close and attach myself completely to a true tzaddik such as this, who has the power to bring perceptions of the light of the love contained in this holy wisdom within the grasp of people on my level.", + "Through his merit and power, grant that I too should be able to gain control of my evil urge and subdue it, break it and eliminate it. Help me overcome all my worldly appetites and bad traits. Let me control my heart at all times, and bind my heart to my mind so that all my feelings and responses will be governed by holy wisdom. In my mind, I know that the entire world is filled with Your glory.", + "According to the glimmer of awareness I have of Your greatness and exaltedness, Your unity and oneness, and Your majesty, all my worldly appetites and bad traits should totally disappear, and I shouldn’t be able to lift so much as a hand or a foot without You.", + "Help me bring this knowledge and awareness down from my mind into my heart, and let me gain control over my heart. Then I will be able to break and eliminate all my evil desires and bad traits. Let my positive traits and feelings be totally suffused with this holy knowledge and awareness, and receive from the light of the love contained in holy wisdom. Then, even in this finite, time-bound world, I will be able to perceive and grasp this hidden light, which is the light of the love contained in holy wisdom.", + "Let me understand and perceive the true secrets of the Torah. Help me come ever closer to You, to Your holy Torah, and to peace, and apprehend higher and higher secrets of the Torah.", + "Universal peace
In Your vast compassion, make us worthy of having the hidden Torah and the hidden tzaddikim revealed to us. Perhaps the world is unworthy as yet to enjoy this hidden light. Even so, deal with us more mercifully than strict justice might demand. Arouse Your true compassion and kindness for us, and in Your goodness and graciousness, help us become worthy of having the hidden tzaddikim and the hidden Torah revealed to us.", + "For You know, HaShem our God, that we have no other support or hope today except in the hidden tzaddikim and the hidden Torah. They alone protect us now in the depths of this bitter exile, on the threshold of the coming of the Mashiach.", + "Merciful God, have pity on us. Stir up Your compassion for us, and help us conquer our evil urge and turn away from evil completely, in accordance with Your will. Let us always do what is good in Your eyes.", + "Then, even in this world, we will be able to taste and enjoy the hidden, treasured light that has been sown for the tzaddikim. As it is written, “Light is sown for the tzaddik and joy for the upright,” and, “Say of the tzaddik that it will be well with him, for they will eat the fruit of their deeds.”", + "Draw peace upon Your nation, the Jewish people, forever. Remove all strife from the world, until the very abundance of peace will bring all those who are distant to serve and fear You — even those who are at the utmost remove from holiness, even those who are sunk in all kinds of corruption, filth and dirt. May they all be truly inspired to return to You from the very places they are in, through the strength of the true tzaddikim who labor constantly to reveal Your Godliness and proclaim Your dominion to all inhabitants of the earth, and who make peace between the Jewish people and their Father in Heaven.", + "Even now, in this world, draw down the amazing peace You are destined to reveal in time to come, as it is written, “The wolf will dwell with the sheep, the leopard will lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion cub and the fatling together, and a little child will lead them. … They will not do harm and they will not destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of HaShem as the waters cover the seabed.”", + "Fulfill the verse, “He Who creates the fruits of the lips: Peace, peace to the one who is far and the one who is near, says HaShem, and I will heal him.”", + "“Great peace to the lovers of Your Torah, and there is no stumbling block for them.” “HaShem will give strength to His people, HaShem will bless His people with peace.” Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Healing the heart / Hitbodedut: Personal prayer and meditation / Speaking with friends / Attachment to the tzaddik
“Disgrace has broken my heart.” Materialistic cravings, negative traits and wrongful thoughts are called the “disgrace of the heart,” a thick “foreskin” covering over the inner “point” of true goodness and spirituality to be found in the heart of every Jew. This good point is the “inner tzaddik” within each one of us — for, “Your people are all tzaddikim.” The way to arouse this good point is through expressing our highest spiritual aspirations in words, so as to radiate wisdom from the mind down into the heart. Even though God knows our thoughts, it is necessary to speak out our prayers, since speech is the vessel through which blessing is channeled into the world. The Jewish people are a unity with a collective soul. Therefore, the “points” of all individual Jews are rooted in the soul of the outstanding tzaddik in each era, who has a general soul. The tzaddik is thus the main source of spiritual arousal and inspiration for each Jew, and the wisdom of the tzaddik’s teaching and advice radiates to the heart of each one. But in addition to what the Jew receives from the tzaddik, he also has much to gain from discussing spiritual concerns with his friends, as the “point” within each one is quite unique, and we must receive from each other. Through receiving from the “point” of the tzaddik and the “point” of our fellow Jews, each of us can bring out the radiance of his own personal “point” and thereby deepen his relationship with God.
“My mouth will speak wisdom and the meditation of my heart, understanding.” “God, hear my prayer; listen to the words of my mouth.” “Please accept the free-will offerings of my mouth, HaShem, and teach me Your laws.” “HaShem, hear my prayer and listen to the voice of my supplications.” “HaShem, hear the voice of my supplications as I cry out to You and lift my hands to Your holy Sanctuary.” “Do not incline my heart to something wicked, to be occupied in deeds of wickedness with men that work evil, and let me not eat of their dainties.”", + "“A perverse heart will depart from me; I will know no evil.” “Incline my heart to Your testimonies and not to wrongful gain.” “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a firm spirit within me.”", + "The good point that is in my heart
Master of the entire world, help me bind my heart to the words of my mouth. As are the words in my mouth, so be the feelings in my heart. In Your vast compassion, keep me from speaking deceitfully before You. Don’t let my inner feelings ever be any different from the sentiments I express with my mouth. Let me pour out my prayers and requests to You both in words and with all my heart, so that my heart will be bound to my words and my requests.", + "Be with me always and save me. Help me express all my thoughts and feelings to You with perfect sincerity at all times. Let me tell You truthfully and honestly what is in my heart. Help me increase the time I spend in hitbodedut and prayer with my Maker, until the holy “point” that is rooted within me will be revealed and shine forth — for every Jew has this “ruling tzaddik” inside him, as it is written, “Your people [Israel] are all tzaddikim.” Let this holy point radiate and rule through the words of my prayers and supplications. Let me connect my heart to this holy point with a firm and strong bond.", + "Then this point will radiate from my mouth to my heart, and reveal the light of my innate love of HaShem.", + "As a result, the disgrace of my broken heart — that thick foreskin of all the evil cravings, bad traits, and evil and confused thoughts in my heart — will fall away and disappear. My heart is so broken, shattered and ruined because of this terrible shame.", + "Let them all totally disappear through the light of the holy point that is within me. Let that light shine from my mouth to my heart through the words of prayer, supplication and arousal toward You and Your service that I will pour forth in perfect truthfulness and wholeheartedness from the very depths of my heart.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, Your way is to have mercy on the poor. You hear the cry of the needy and see the disgrace of those who have been humiliated. Your desire is that the wicked should repent, not that they should die.", + "“You know my disgrace, my shame and my confusion; my adversaries are all before You. Disgrace has broken my heart, and I am very ill. I hoped for some show of compassion, but there was none; for comforters, but I found none.” Here I am before You, full of shame and confusion, disgrace and humiliation. What can I say? How can I speak? How can I justify myself?", + "Have pity and mercy on me! “Turn away my disgrace, which I dread, for Your judgments are good.”", + "Help me return to You in genuine repentance. Help me express my thoughts and feelings to You honestly and with all my heart, so that I will be able to arouse my good point and make it radiate from my mouth to my heart, healing my terribly damaged heart.", + "Help me remove from my heart all disgrace and that foreskin of shameful scars — because the crookedness in my heart is just endless. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceeding weak; who can know it?”", + "HaShem, You examine every heart and try us in our innermost recesses. Heal my broken heart and bind up the many wounds of my soul. Have pity and mercy on me, Master of the world! For You know the wickedness and crookedness that have taken hold of my heart. My whole heart is full of endless evil thoughts and cravings and confusion.", + "I find it hard to be calm and quiet for even a brief period because of the ceaseless cravings and distracting thoughts hounding me and destroying my morale. I simply have no way or idea or strategy of how to escape them. Even the few good ideas I still have, I fail to put into practice because my resolve is so weak and my emotional and spiritual powers so scattered.", + "Master of the world, my plight is very bitter. You know my terrible bitterness. You know my shame and the evil in my heart down to the last fine detail.", + "There is no one who can heal me except You alone, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, Whose lovingkindness is true and bestowed as an unearned gift.", + "Nevertheless, I find it impossible to say even these words honestly, as You well know, because I am plagued by so much shame and humiliation. “All who see me mock at me, they pout their mouths and nod their heads.” “All day my disgrace is before me and shame has covered my face because of the voice of the curser and reviler, because of the enemy and avenger.”", + "My heart and mind are constantly in turmoil with shameful and humiliating thoughts and feelings. And it’s not enough that my heart is being pulled to pieces by all kinds of evil cravings, bad thoughts, and wrongful thoughts!", + "But even when I try to lift my eyes to You and sing out a few words of prayer to elicit Your compassion and mercy, my heart is filled with wrongful motives, distracting thoughts and arrogance. These must make my prayers repulsive to You, since “All who are lofty in heart are an abomination to HaShem.” Now, what should I do? Where should I run for help? Look down on my wretchedness, because my heart is filled with such pain and sorrow. Yet despite everything, I still have hope of arousing Your vast compassion and hidden kindness.", + "For You know the inner recesses of my heart. You know my essential point of goodness, holiness and purity rooted there. For I am a member of the Jewish people, and my soul is rooted in the soul of the true tzaddik, which is the source of the collective soul of the children of Israel.", + "Therefore, with utmost truthfulness, from the innermost root of my good point, I cry out to You with total honesty and with all my heart. Have pity on me! Have compassion on me! Be unstinting in Your kindness toward me, and help me remove the thick foreskin of shame covering my heart.", + "Let me turn my heart to You in perfect honesty, break and eradicate all my evil desires and traits, and excise the crookedness and evil from my heart.", + "Bring me back to You in complete, wholehearted repentance. Quickly grant me a pure heart, a good heart, a holy heart, a complete heart, in accordance with Your will.", + "The point of the tzaddik that is in my heart
Therefore, I have come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, You Who rule over all. You created Your world in accordance with Your will for the sake of Israel, Your nation, so that they should accept the Torah and thereby come to rule over You, as it were. As it is written, “The tzaddik rules in the fear of God,” and, “Israel is His dominion.”", + "Therefore, I turn to You and beg and plead with You! I bow, bend and prostrate myself before You in fear and awe, trembling and shuddering, with a heart that is broken, crushed, groaning, downcast, dragged down and trodden.", + "Rock of Israel and its Holy One! Redeemer of Israel! Have compassion on me for Your Name’s sake. In Your tremendous kindness, help me draw close and bind myself to the true tzaddikim who are the root of the collective soul of Israel.", + "Let me speak to them directly and hear holy words from their lips. Let them speak to my heart with words that I can accept. Help me bind my heart to the holy words of their mouths and their holy “points.”", + "Let their holy points shine from their mouths to my heart and rule there, so that the shameful foreskin and crookedness of my heart will disappear and my heart will always be straight with HaShem.", + "The good point of my friend
Let me also discuss Torah, Divine service, and fear of Heaven with my fellow Jews in general, so as to receive goodly light and inspiration to serve HaShem from all the unique, holy points that every single Jew possesses.", + "May there be love and great peace among the entire Jewish people. Let everyone speak to their friends about fear of Heaven, until Your entire nation, the House of Israel, will be merged together in love, harmony and friendship. Let each one of us receive inspiration to serve HaShem from the unique holy point contained in his fellow Jews. We will each receive from the other and inspire one another to serve You and fulfill Your Torah in utmost truth. In Your vast compassion, help me, my children, my descendants, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, to speak directly to our Maker, each one in his own words, and arouse our hearts to fear of Heaven. Help me express my thoughts and feelings to You every day in my native tongue, appealing for Your compassion. Help me find words that will arouse Your favor and appease You. Let me use correct arguments and reasoning, with great inspiration and words of grace and supplication, until I succeed in binding my heart to the holy point within me, the concept of “the tzaddik rules.”", + "Let me spend plenty of time each day in these prayers and conversations, and offer many fervent pleas, supplications, confessions, prayers and the like every single day. May I be extremely persistent in my prayers, and give You no quiet until You show me kindness. I will call out to You until You answer me.", + "I will call out to You until Your true compassion for me is aroused, and I am worthy of conquering You with my prayers, pleading and conversations. Then You will turn Your face to me again, show me compassion, and bring me to complete repentance with all my heart and soul.", + "Make all three holy points shine within me. Let the holy point of the true tzaddik of this generation shine out to me.", + "Let the holy point found in every Jew shine out to his fellow Jews, so that each will enrich his friends with the holiness that is unique to him. And let the holy point inside each one of us shine within ourselves, so that each individual can receive and actualize his own holiness. Let each one’s holy point radiate from his mouth to his heart through speaking with his Maker with passion and pouring out his prayers, supplications and requests sincerely and with all his heart.", + "Through all this, let the light of the “tzaddik, foundation of the world” radiate in our hearts. May our hearts be truly and firmly bound forever to the light of these three holy points, which is where the light of holy love and kindness dwells. Then all the disgrace that rests on our hearts — that foreskin of evil cravings and perverse thoughts — will be removed. Let my heart be cleansed of all crookedness, all doubts and atheism, and all evil.", + "Help me break and eliminate all my evil desires and wrongful thoughts, and rid my heart of confusion and murkiness.", + "Grant me a pure heart, a holy heart, a good heart, an honest heart, the way You and the true tzaddikim would like it to be. Let me always be straight-hearted with HaShem, until I attach myself to You and surrender myself to Your will. In Your great love, cover over all my sins, as it is written, “Love will cover over all sins.” Forgive me, pardon me and give atonement for all my sins, offenses and transgressions, and take away my shame.", + "From now on help me never to sin again, either unintentionally or deliberately, under duress or willfully. Save me from every kind of wrongdoing in the world, and let me be exactly the way You would like me to be.", + "Let me sanctify my mouth with holy words, and help me make amends for all the damage I’ve done with my mouth. Let me fill my mouth with blessings and praises of HaShem. Help me perfect my speech so that my words will be true vessels for blessing, and I will always be able to draw down a goodly flow of blessing, compassion, life and peace through my words. Hear my prayers at all times. Set aside Your will in favor of my will. Let me say a word and see it fulfilled as if it were a decree. Fulfill the verse, “I am HaShem Your God, Who brought you up from the land of Egypt. Open your mouth and I will fill it!”", + "Compassionate God, bring me quickly to truly observe the covenant. Let me make amends for everything I have done until now against the covenant.", + "Protect me in the merit of Joseph the Tzaddik, who withstood his challenge, and in the merit of all the other true tzaddikim who remained firm in the face of innumerable trials and controlled their desires for the sake of Your Name. Through their merit and strength, help me from now on, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, so that I too will be able to control my evil urge and lustful cravings.", + "Compassionate God, save me from violating the covenant in any way, and let me never be ashamed and never stumble in either thought or deed from now on and forever.", + "Speedily bring me to observe the covenant perfectly, in accordance with Your will, both by sanctifying my tongue and by curbing my physical urges.", + "Grant me wisdom, understanding and knowledge so that I will be able to apply myself assiduously to the study and teaching of Torah. Let me fulfill all the words of Your Torah with love.", + "Have pity on me. Be kind to me. Have mercy on me. Compassionately fulfill my requests. Graciously listen to and answer my prayers, for You hear the prayers said by every one of Your people Israel with compassion. Blessed are You Who hear prayer.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Teshuvah / Purity of thought / Sleep / Faith / The inner light of Divine wisdom / Honesty in business / Tefilin / Rosh HaShanah
The root meaning of the Hebrew word teshuvah, repentance, is to return something to the place from which it was taken. Man’s soul derives from the Divine wisdom with which the world was created. Our souls manifest themselves in our minds and thoughts, and thus the essence of teshuvah is to guard the purity of our thoughts and clear our minds of all ideas and theories that are contrary to Torah teaching. Profane thoughts lead to sinful traits and behavior. We must use our intellectual faculties to contemplate ways of deepening our service of God. By expanding our knowledge and understanding of the Torah, we develop our souls.
When we are tired after the exertions of intense study and devotion, we rest our minds by going to sleep. While we are asleep, the soul ascends to the realm of faith (which is why we affirm our faith just before going to sleep by reciting the bedtime Shema).
The soul then receives new strength and power from the light of God’s countenance, the spiritual light that radiates in the upper worlds and is revealed in the seventy faces of the Torah. Besides physical sleep, there are also other categories of “sleep” in which the soul ascends to the realm of faith to receive fresh vitality. For those who spend much time in taxing devotions, study of the simple (as opposed to mystical) meaning of the Talmud and halakhah is a form of “sleep.”
Business activity is another form of “sleep” through which we can refresh our minds and souls — on the condition that we conduct all our affairs with genuine faith. Every business situation involves various Torah laws. Not only must we familiarize ourselves with the Torah laws regarding business, but to overcome the trials and temptations of business life, we must also cultivate the utmost truthfulness. (The Talmudic example is Rav Safra, who, having inwardly decided on his asking price, would not change it even if he saw that his buyer would be willing to pay more [Makkot 24a]). Because of the organic unity of the Jewish people, the scrupulous honesty of Jewish businessmen aids tzaddikim and Torah scholars in their efforts to attain higher spiritual levels. Truthfulness is a channel through which we can draw down the light of Chashmal (the spiritual light that shines in the World of Beriah, Creation, also called the World of Binah, Understanding) to protect our faith from being undermined by the unholy forces that abound in our world, the World of Asiyah, Action. The light of Chashmal is also alluded to in the straps of the tefilin (these straps bind the exalted spirituality contained in the Torah portions and capsules of the tefilin to our physical bodies).
Hearing the shofar blasts on Rosh HaShanah, which come to remind us of the need to repent, can also reawaken our mental and spiritual powers, as can seeing the face of the true tzaddik.
At the top of the noisy streets I cry out, at the openings of the city gates I utter my words. I raise my voice in a loud, strong, bitter cry, and call out to the God Who will accomplish for me. Here I am in Your hand like clay in the hand of a potter. Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?", + "I wander about; “in the markets and streets I search for the One that my soul loves.” I cry out in a loud voice, nursing my bitterness, and say:", + "“With my voice I will cry to HaShem, and He will answer me from His holy mountain, selah!", + "I lie down and I sleep; I awaken, for HaShem is supporting me.” “To You, HaShem, I cry, and to HaShem I plead.”", + "Teshuvah
Master of the world, Master of compassion and forgiveness! You wait for the wrongdoer, desiring that he clear himself. You open the gate to those who knock in repentance.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me return to You quickly, swiftly and speedily, and let me repent completely for all my sins, offenses and transgressions against You from my youth until today. Don’t snatch the opportunity from me!", + "“Return, HaShem! How long? Relent concerning Your servants.” “Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.” For from the very beginning You made it known, and You revealed it long ago — that even before You made the world in Your holy wisdom, You first created repentance. Teshuvah came before the world.", + "You know that we are flesh and blood. We are molded out of clay. “Indeed, I was formed in iniquity and in sin my mother conceived me.” You know our inclination, for we are dust. Accordingly, You first created a remedy for our wounds and a balm to soothe our pains. For You want the world to survive; You don’t want it to be destroyed, God forbid. Therefore, Your plan from the very beginning was to accept our repentance any time we approach You. But what can I say? How can I speak? I am already so entrenched and trapped in the murky depths of sin and gross materialism that my strength is sapped and I find it extremely difficult to truly return to You.", + "I have no hope except in Your abundant compassion, that You Yourself will bring me back to You in complete repentance. Accept my cries, my sighs, my prayers and my entreaties to You as I continually long, wait and cry out for You to bring me back to You — as if I had done everything I ought to have done and as if I had aroused myself to repent fully in a way commensurate with all my sins and transgressions.", + "I simply don’t know what to do or how to keep away from all the things I must avoid from now on, so that I don’t repeat my past mistakes or do any more damage in thought, word or deed.", + "My only hope is that in Your vast compassion and great kindness, You Yourself will work to rectify me in the merit of the true tzaddikim, “the holy ones who are in the earth, the mighty ones in whom lies all my desire.” In their merit and their strength, bring me back to You and I will return, for You are my God.", + "Compassionate God, help me not return to my foolish ways. Let me abandon my evil path and give up all the shameful thoughts and mistaken and confused ideas that have caused me to behave so strangely and wrongfully. Help me let go of them all from now on and forever.", + "Purity of thought
Help me from now on to keep my mind and my thoughts on the right track. Let me guard myself from every kind of wrongful and unholy thought, and not admit any profane thoughts or ideas into my mind.", + "This includes secular philosophical theories and the various other skeptical ideas that keep people from serving You because of questions about Your ways or doubts about the true tzaddikim and genuinely pious Jews of the generation.", + "It also includes all the other secular viewpoints and irreverence that exist in the world, especially in this generation. Their exponents are wise in their own eyes, but the truth is that none of this “wisdom” is really wisdom at all, for “they despise the word of HaShem, and what wisdom do they have?”", + "Let me also guard myself against all other secular ideas that are unnecessary for the true service of God. Save me, protect me and rescue me from any kind of unholy thoughts and from all doubts and confusion.", + "Be with me constantly at every moment, and shield me and protect my mind and thoughts so that I will not even begin to allow any of these evil and unholy thoughts into my mind at all. Help me sanctify my mind and my thoughts with the greatest holiness at all times. For it is revealed to You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that all my wrongful deeds and all my sins, offenses and transgressions against You came about for one reason only — because I wasn’t careful to sanctify my mind and keep a tight rein on my thoughts in order to keep negative thoughts and doubts from entering my mind. Far from guarding my thoughts, I let my mind run wild with foreign thoughts, and vain and foolish speculation.", + "The more I filled my mind with extraneous thoughts, the more my holy intellect became stunted. This was the foundation for the whole edifice of evil traits and lustful cravings I’ve been caught in from my youth until today. Today I go about like someone who has been pierced by all kinds of arrows and spears that are still stuck in his body. All his enemies and foes still chase him. They surround him constantly, watching to make sure he won’t flee to safety. “He has fenced me in so that I can’t get out; He has made my chains heavy.”", + "All this has happened because of my impure thoughts. I have sinned so much in this that my mind is terribly scattered and almost totally filled with the most evil and despicable thoughts, doubts and questions.", + "“See my misery and rescue me … in accordance with Your lovingkindness, revive me.” “Save me, HaShem, from a wicked man; protect me from a violent man.” For You know that it is impossible for me to express all my thoughts and feelings. There are no words in the world to describe my offenses against You and my distance from You. I’m like someone lost in the depths of the sea.", + "I myself am the guilty one in all this. But this is why I have come to beg and plead with You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers. Treat me mercifully and don’t let me be guilty anymore. In Your vast compassion, make me innocent and not guilty.", + "Have compassion on me and from now on help me sanctify my thoughts at all times. Even though my whole mind is totally mixed up and confused, and I keep having the most evil and outlandish thoughts, I still have hope that through Your great power I’ll be able to free myself of them and totally banish them from now on and forever.", + "Therefore, I have come to pour out my prayers and stretch out my hands to You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers. For You are good and do good for all, and You are filled with true compassion and tremendous kindness at every single moment.", + "Have pity and mercy on me, and be with me always. Help me and protect me so that I sanctify my mind and my thoughts at all times. Help me control my mind and my thoughts, and not admit any unholy or profane thoughts at all. Help me fight them and drive them out of my mind and totally ignore them, as it is written, “Rebuke the wild beast of the reeds.” Let me remove, break and destroy them entirely from now on and forever, and acquire wisdom and understanding in holiness.", + "Help me and save me, and bring me back quickly to the source from which I was hewn. Restore my soul — my nefesh, ruach and neshamah — to the place where their tent was at first: to the resting place and the heritage, to the place from which my soul was taken, namely the supernal holy wisdom, which is where we were hewn from, as it is written, “You made everything in wisdom.”", + "Let me never use my mind to think about any kind of secular ideas or theories, but only to contemplate how to serve HaShem with great holiness and purity, in truth and perfect faith. May my mind constantly expand. May I always sanctify my mind and add to my wisdom, understanding and knowledge in great holiness every single day and every single moment. Always give me the power to rise from constricted consciousness to expanded consciousness in great holiness, truth and faith, in accordance with Your will.", + "Let me constantly rise to ever higher levels in the service of HaShem, with ever increased holiness and purity, until I come to be as You truly want me to be.", + "Sleep
Help me keep my mind fresh and alert at all times. Guide me and teach me how to conduct myself with regard to sleep, so that I’ll always be able to refresh my mind.", + "As You know, it’s essential for us to get the sleep we need in order to refresh our mind — otherwise it couldn’t function, God forbid.", + "But You also know the terrible loss caused by excessive sleep, which robs us of time, which is more precious than any treasure. An hour that is lost in sleeping or in the vanities of this world can never be replaced. There is no loss in the world like the loss of time.", + "But I am ignorant and I do not know at all how to act in regard to sleep.", + "This is why I am telling You my thoughts and feelings. I hand myself over to You alone. “In Your hand I entrust my spirit; You have redeemed me, HaShem, God of truth.” Guard my going out and my coming in, and be with me always. Lead me in Your truth and teach me at all times how to conduct myself regarding sleep. Let me sleep when I have to, for just as long as necessary, in accordance with Your will. Help me minimize the time I spend sleeping. Sanctify me with great holiness and banish all confusing thoughts from my mind, until a minimum of sleep will be sufficient to leave my mind rested and my mental and spiritual powers fully refreshed and strengthened. May I sleep in great holiness and purity. Have compassion on me and help me, and open the gates of mercy and kindness to my soul. Instruct Your holy angels to allow my soul to enter the gates of holiness while I am sleeping. Let my mind and soul ascend and enter the realm of holy faith while I sleep.", + "Let me renew my mental and spiritual powers in faith while I am sleeping, and may the verse be fulfilled in us, “New in the mornings; great is Your faith.”", + "May I always receive new levels of insight and fresh spiritual powers from the light of Your countenance through sleeping in holiness and purity.", + "Help me recite the bedtime Shema with awesomely great holiness and genuine willingness to sacrifice myself to sanctify Your Name. Let me confess all my sins and transgressions before I go to sleep, and repent completely for all my wrongdoing that day.", + "Let me genuinely take it upon myself not to return to my foolishness. Before I go to sleep, may I always accept upon myself the four death penalties of the rabbinical court, truly and with all my heart.", + "And You, HaShem, have compassion on me, and forgive and pardon me for all my wrongdoing against You. Purify my nefesh, ruach and neshamah, and compassionately give the order to open to my soul the gates of mercy and holy faith.", + "Let my soul enter into holy faith while I sleep. Then, through faith, my soul will ascend to the light of Your countenance in holiness. Then I will be able to renew my soul and my mind, always receiving new levels of insight and new spiritual powers from the light of Your countenance through holy faith.", + "Master of the world, have compassion on me and help me achieve all this in the merit of the true tzaddikim, before whom no gate is closed. In their merit and strength, purify me and sanctify me with Your supreme holiness. Open all the gates of faith and holiness to me, until my soul ascends to the light of Your countenance. “Open to me the gates of righteousness, I will enter them, I will acknowledge God.” “Shine Your countenance on Your servant, save me in Your lovingkindness.” “Shine Your countenance on Your servant and teach me Your laws.” Help me draw down and receive new spiritual and mental powers from the seventy faces of the holy Torah. Let me perceive and comprehend the seventy faces of the Torah. Illumine my eyes with the light of Your Torah. Grant that I should always be able to see the light of the faces of the true tzaddikim and come into their presence at all times. Let them shine their holy faces on me with great compassion and kindness, love, mercy and warmth, until I am able to receive new spiritual and mental powers from seeing the light of the faces of the tzaddikim.", + "In Your vast compassion, have mercy on me and grant that I and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, will be attached to You at all times with perfect devotion, in truth and faith. May we fully observe the commandment to “attach yourself to Him,” in accordance with Your will, on the utmost level of holiness and purity.", + "And when my mind becomes strained because of the intensity of my devotions, help me relax my mind and renew my mental powers by paying attention to the straightforward meaning of the text, in truth and complete faith. Let me constantly meditate on Your Torah and study much Talmud and halakhic responsa, and let my mind and my soul thereby be restored and refreshed.", + "Help me draw down and receive new mental and spiritual powers from the holy light of Your countenance by studying the literal meaning of Torah texts in perfect truth and faith.", + "Honesty in business
Have compassion on me and on Your entire nation, the House of Israel, and help us conduct our business affairs with extreme honesty. Don’t let me ever break or change my word, not even for the sake of an enormous fortune. Help me learn and observe all the laws relating to business, which is an aspect of monetary law. Help me bind my thoughts to the holy Torah while doing business. May my thoughts be bound to the Torah laws that are involved in each of the business situations I encounter. Protect me so that I never succumb to the sin of dishonest weights and measures, either unintentionally or deliberately, under duress or willfully.", + "May I never cheat my associates, whether by overcharging them or verbally taking advantage of them. Help me conduct my business affairs with great holiness, perfect faith and absolute truthfulness.", + "When making a deal with someone, help me fulfill the ideal of “He speaks the truth that is in his heart” the way Rav Safra did, not deviating from what I’ve decided in my heart. As soon as I’ve made a decision to buy or sell at a particular price, let me go through with the deal exactly as I’ve decided in my heart.", + "And through this, compassionate God, protect me and spread Your canopy of peace over me. Draw down the holy light of Chashmal from the World of Binah to guard my faith against negative influences.", + "Let me have genuine, perfect, holy faith at all times. Through conducting business truthfully and honestly, let me receive new mental and spiritual powers from the light of Your countenance.", + "And let Your entire nation, the House of Israel, be joined together in unity, so that the honesty and integrity of those in business will benefit all the true Torah scholars, tzaddikim, and other pious Jews who are not involved in business at all but spend their time in Torah study and devotion.", + "May their mental powers be refreshed through the honest business practices of those who conduct all their dealings in truth and faith. Then we will all be able to draw down and receive fresh mental and spiritual powers at all times from the light of Your countenance. Help us sift out and elevate all the sparks of holiness that have fallen among the forces of unholiness due to our many sins. Give us the power to sift out and elevate all of them to the domain of holiness, bringing them back into the realm of holy faith by conducting our business affairs honestly and in complete faith. Have compassion on all the exiled sparks of holiness that are displaced and scattered among the forces of unholiness and the worshippers of false gods. Gather them together and restore them to the domain of holiness, the realm of holy faith. Purify and sanctify them with Your supreme holiness so they can ascend and appear before You and receive the light of Your countenance.", + "Tefilin
Compassionate God, help me carry out the mitzvah of tefilin in the proper way, with all its details and fine points, its inner intentions and the 613 mitzvot that depend on it, with good feelings, great joy, and intense awe and love. Don’t let me ever allow my attention to wander from the tefilin.", + "Shine the light of Your countenance on me through the merit of the holy mitzvah of tefilin. May the verse be fulfilled in me, “Then all the nations of the earth will see that HaShem’s Name is proclaimed over you, and they will fear you.”", + "Draw down the light of the holy Chashmal upon me through the holy straps of the tefilin, and thereby bring me to perfect faith at all times. May I be truly bound and attached to You by binding the tefilin on my head and arm. Help me draw down the sanctified light of the holy tefilin on myself at all times, and always receive new mental and spiritual powers from the light of Your countenance.", + "Rosh HaShanah
In Your vast compassion, grant that I hear the shofar-blowing on Rosh HaShanah from someone who is worthy and honest. When the shofar is sounded, give us the strength to arouse the lights of the Supernal Face, until the face of the shofar-blower shines with the light of Your countenance.", + "Let the shofar blasts wake us from our sleep and refresh our minds and souls at that time. May they draw down upon us new levels of wisdom and under standing and fresh spiritual powers from the light of Your countenance. May the verse be fulfilled, “Fortunate are the people who know the shofar-blast; HaShem, they will walk in the light of Your countenance.” Turn the light of Your countenance to us, exalted Master, and bring us up quickly to the firmly established, exalted House. Send us a complete redemption very soon. Redeem our souls, our bodies and our possessions, because they are all in deep exile at present. Have pity and mercy on the remnant of Your nation, the House of Israel, and quickly send us eternal redemption collectively and individually, physically and spiritually.", + "Send us our righteous Mashiach. Let the son of David come and redeem us, and rebuild the ruins of Jerusalem, the city of righteousness, the faithful citadel. Shine on us with the light of Your countenance.", + "Speedily build our holy and glorious Temple. There we will offer You the obligatory sacrifices. We will offer the daily elevation-offering at the proper time and place according to its laws, and burn the incense-offering at its proper time.", + "Through this, we will be able to cut off the seed of Amalek, destroying and eradicating the thorns from the vineyard. We will cut down, uproot and remove all the thorns and thistles surrounding the Supernal Rose, and elevate all the sparks of holiness from among the forces of unholiness and the worshippers of false gods. All of them will then be firmly attached to the realm of holy faith. They will be purified and ascend from level to level, until they again rise up to be renewed in the light of Your countenance.", + "Quickly establish the throne of David, and let Your Name be complete and Your throne complete. Give us one king and one shepherd according to Your desire: this is the Mashiach, the son of David, king of Israel.", + "Let Your kingship be revealed to all the inhabitants of the earth. Let Your faith and kingship be magnified, elevated, and exalted high, high above all the creatures of the universe. Let them all long and yearn to have holy faith in You.", + "And may You, HaShem, rule alone over all Your works. For kingship is Yours, and You will rule in glory forever and ever, as it is written in Your Torah, “HaShem will rule forever and ever.” And it is written, “HaShem will be King over all the earth. On that day, HaShem will be One and His Name will be One.”" + ], + [ + "Overcoming physical cravings / Holiness of the eyes / Attachment to the tzaddik / Moses / Deepening one’s understanding of the Torah
The exile of the Jewish people among the seventy nations of the world is reflected in microcosm in the inner world of the individual Jew when he finds himself under attack from his physical desires. Each of the seventy nations is associated with a particular negative trait or desire. The root of all of them is the “all-encompassing desire,” namely sexual craving. (This refers to cravings for illicit sexual relationships, as opposed to legitimate sexual expression within the context of marriage as governed by the Torah code of family purity.) Sexual craving, which is man’s main test in this world, is personified in the figure of Balaam, the greatest heathen prophet, who stands counter to Moses on the side of holiness. Because Moses attained the ultimate level of separation from physical desire, he was able to bring the Torah into the world. The Torah has seventy “faces,” or dimensions of meaning, corresponding to the seventy root-souls of the Jewish people (seventy souls went down to Egypt with Jacob). Before a Jew can rise to a higher level of insight into one of the seventy faces of the Torah and Godly devotion, he is first tested with an attack of physical cravings (associated with the seventy nations). Before one can eat the fruit, one must first encounter the husk. To the spiritual seeker, an attack of lust may seem like a regression, but in fact it is a test, the purpose of which is to bring one to a higher level whose attainment is called a “birth.” Just as a woman in labor emits seventy cries before giving birth (Zohar III, 249), so a Jew who is being tested must cry to God repeatedly until he attains his new level.
We are the ones who give shape and form to the Divine light shining from above according to the vessels we prepare to receive it. In other words, we interpret the Torah we receive from our teachers according to the degree of our spiritual and intellectual preparation. Someone who is sunk in immoral cravings may radically misinterpret the teachings of the tzaddik. The remedy for an occasional lustful thought is to recite the verses of Shema Yisrael (Hear O Israel) and Barukh Shem kevod malkhuto le’olam va’ed (May the Name of the glory of His kingdom be blessed for all eternity). In Hebrew, these verses contain twelve words and forty-nine letters, corresponding to the Twelve Tribes of Israel and the forty-nine letters making up their names. However, someone who suffers regularly from immoral thoughts must shed tears while reciting these verses in order to cleanse himself of the impurities in his body and surrender himself to the rule of Heaven.
“Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer; save my life from the terror of the enemy!” “HaShem, hear my voice; let Your ears be attentive to the sound of my supplications!” “HaShem, I call out to You: Hurry to me, hear my voice as I call to You!”", + "“From the belly of hell I cried out; You heard my voice.” “You have heard my voice; do not hide Your ear from my sighing, my cry!” “I said to HaShem, ‘You are my God.’ O God, hear my supplications!”", + "Master of the world, “the birth pangs have taken hold of me, I shriek like a woman in labor!", + "Just as an expectant mother coming near to the time of her delivery feels pain and cries out in her labor, so have we been in Your presence, HaShem.”", + "Overcoming physical cravings
For You know all the suffering we have gone through. From our youth until today, the yoke of our bitter exile among the seventy nations has weighed so heavy upon us. We have been attacked by their evil traits and desires. The worst one of all, the all-encompassing evil of all the seventy nations, is sexual lust. This evil, bitter craving has become so strong and spread its net so widely over us, and You know everything we have endured because of it. If I were to try to describe it, it would consume reams of paper.", + "How many times have I cried out to You with all kinds of screams, groans, prayers and supplications — but still I have not had complete salvation.", + "It’s true, I know, that I have not begun to cry out even a minuscule fraction of what I should. But what can I do, my Father in Heaven? You know it would be quite impossible for me to cry out the way I really should, because all the cries and shrieks in the world would not be enough to express the terrible distress of my soul. I have come before You now, my God and God of my fathers, God of the first and the last, to ask You to have pity and mercy on me in keeping with Your overwhelming kindness. Show me Your great wonders! Release me, save me, and lift me up out of this bitter exile among the seventy nations.", + "Push away, banish and rid me of all their evil desires and bad traits — especially sexual lust. Hear my faltering voice! Listen to my muffled screams! Hear my cry and be sensitive to my sighs! I feel so ground down, and my morale is broken.", + "Put it into my heart to shout and cry out to You at all times in a strong voice that will not weaken. Let me give You no peace until You answer me, have mercy on me, and save me. Put holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge into my heart. Guide me and give me the strength to fight the war and totally break and eradicate my sexual cravings together with all other bad desires and traits.", + "Compassionate God, let me rescue my soul from exile among the seventy nations and cleanse, sanctify and purify her from all their evil desires and traits — especially that allencompassing desire of sexual lust.", + "Please, HaShem, hear my faltering voice!", + "Incline Your ear to the sound of my screams, my groans, my tears, my pleas! I call out to You in all manner of voices! You Who hear cries, hear the sound of my cries!", + "May my bitter, faltering, muffled cry rise up and appear before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, You Who are always filled with compassion, as if I had called out to You with the seventy successive cries of a woman just about to give birth.", + "“With my voice I cry out to HaShem, with my voice I plead with HaShem.” “With my voice I scream to God; my voice is to God and He will hear me.” “Save my soul from the sword, save my spirit from the power of the dog!”", + "To You I have stretched out my hand. Rescue me! Rescue me! Save me! Save me! Save me, my Master and King! Help me, my Father in Heaven! Rescue me, Father, compassionate Father! See the tears of the oppressed! See the shame of the humiliated!", + "Help and save me, persecuted and humiliated as I am. I am being chased by my own self! Yet even so, I have no idea how to save myself and rescue my soul from destruction.", + "Master of the world! Master of the world!", + "“My eyes fail from looking upward; HaShem, I am oppressed. Be my guarantor.” “Be a guarantor for Your servant for good; do not let sinners oppress me.”", + "Arise, HaShem! Rescue my soul from this bitter exile among the evil traits and desires of the seventy nations, especially the lust that encompasses all of them.", + "Intending our benefit, You brought us into this exile among their evil desires and traits in order to test and refine our souls. Then we would earn merit by withstanding the test and the crucible of all these desires and traits. This especially applies to the all-encompassing desire, which is the main test and trial facing every man in this world. It is impossible to attain any level of insight into the Torah or devotion to God except by first being tested with this allencompassing desire, namely sexual lust.", + "But what can I say? How can I speak? For “You examined my heart, You visited it in the night, and You did not find what You desired; the thought I had [that I could withstand the test] will not again pass my lips.” I have gone down into the depths of exile. It wasn’t enough that I failed to break the “husk” that comes before the fruit, so as to then eat the fruit and attain higher insight into the Torah. Worse still, I have done so much damage through this that “my life has been consumed with sorrow and my years with groaning; my strength has failed because of my sins, and my bones are wasted away.”", + "But “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that He will be the last one remaining on earth.” I still have hope even now. There is no such thing as despair at all.", + "Therefore, as long as my nefesh is in me, I will cry out to You! As long as my ruach is in me, I’ll chirp out for Your compassion! As long as my neshamah is in me, I will wait and hope for Your salvation.", + "For the 7th of Adar, the yahrtzeit of Moses
My God and God of my fathers, God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob, God of all the true tzaddikim! You are the great, mighty and awesome God, the Supreme God Who bestows beneficent kindnesses, Owner of all. May it be Your will to help me in the merit of our fathers and in the merit of the true tzaddikim, whose strength was so great that they controlled their desires in the face of innumerable trials and gained profound insight into the Torah. In their merit and their strength, help me and save me. Let me break, expel and rid myself of the all-encompassing desire of sexual craving.", + "Be my help at all times so I will be able to break this desire and completely eradicate it. Help me fulfill the covenant in holiness and let me genuinely separate myself from material desire with great holiness and purity, just as You desire.", + "Have compassion on me and draw down upon me the holiness and purity of Moses, who attained the ultimate level of abstention from desire, as it is written, “As for you, stand here with Me.”", + "Channel his great and awesome holiness into me. Grant that, in his merit and in the merit of all the true tzaddikim, I should totally break and uproot sexual craving from within myself. May I and my children be truly holy and pure. May we sanctify ourselves with Moses’ holiness and abstention from desire.", + "Have mercy on me! Help me and save me! Give me power and strength! In Your tremendous compassion, protect me and be with me at all times.", + "With Your great power, and with the power and merit of Moses and all the true tzaddikim, help me drive out, crush, uproot, destroy and eliminate the “husk” of sexual lust as personified in the figure of the wicked Balaam, who was so deeply sunk in immorality.", + "Always draw upon me the holiness of Moses and all the true tzaddikim. Quickly bring me out of exile among the seventy nations — which corresponds to sexual lust and all other evil cravings. Help me break, expel and rid myself of all these desires quickly, swiftly and speedily. In Your vast compassion, restore my soul to its root. May my soul be included among the seventy souls of the House of Jacob, among the Twelve Tribes of God, among the forty-nine letters of their holy names — for there lies the source of my nefesh, ruach and neshamah. Let me thereby become included in the seventy faces of the holy Torah. Grant that I should soon come to great revelations in Torah and devotion, in great holiness and purity, truth and perfect faith.", + "Illumine my eyes with Your Torah. Always help me develop original Torah insights deriving from the seventy faces of the holy Torah — true insights that will inspire people to good deeds. May these Torah insights have the power to release them from exile among the evil lusts and traits of the seventy nations, and bring them close to the Torah and Divine service. May these insights have the power to draw down new souls into all who hear their teachings.", + "The kingdom of Heaven
In Your vast compassion, help me always submit lovingly to the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven. Let me save my soul from wrongful thoughts by reciting the two verses with which we accept the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven, “Hear O Israel, HaShem is our God, HaShem is One!” and, “May the Name of the glory of His kingdom be blessed for all eternity.” Let me always make it a habit to recite these verses with intense concentration, great joy and complete surrender.", + "And inspire my heart with such love, yearning and desire for You that I will shed tears when I accept the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven with these two verses.", + "By doing so, let me receive and draw down upon myself holy kingship, so as to subdue, break, uproot and remove from the world the kingdom of evil. This is sexual lust — the evil slavewoman, the harlot. Let the slavewoman flee from her mistress, as it is written, “I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai.”", + "With Your strength, let me empower “the woman who fears HaShem” and let her rule over the harlot. Let the slavewoman be humbled and fall before her mistress and flee from her, so that I will be able to eradicate my sexual cravings and conquer all immoral thoughts, driving them out, breaking them and ridding myself of them entirely from now on and forever.", + "Through reciting the two verses which contain twelve words, may my soul be included in the Twelve Tribes of God, who make up the kingdom of holiness.", + "And through the forty-nine letters contained in these two verses, let me be included in the forty-nine letters making up the names of the children of Israel, who are the Twelve Tribes of God.", + "Holiness of the eyes
Help me make amends for the damage I have done with my eyes. Let me not go after my heart or my eyes. Always guard my eyes from looking where they shouldn’t. Don’t let me look at anything that could bring me to have an immoral thought, God forbid.", + "“Turn my eyes away from looking at vanity; give me life in Your ways.” “Open my eyes so I may behold wonders in Your Torah.”", + "Compassionate God, help me and save me!", + "Beat down the spirit of foolishness and craziness that clings to me as a result of my evil deeds. In Your vast compassion, drive it out and remove it from me now and forever.", + "For You know that all my evil cravings, especially sexual lust, are caused only by this spirit of foolishness and madness that clings to me as a result of my many sins. I’m literally like someone who is wild and crazy because of my many sins.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who bestow wisdom on man, have pity on me. Be kind to me. Help me drive out, break, uproot and eradicate this spirit of foolishness and craziness from myself. In Your vast compassion, grant me a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of guidance and strength, a spirit of knowledge and fear of HaShem, so I will truly observe the covenant the way You want, quickly, swiftly and speedily. Let me come to complete and genuine spiritual awareness in great holiness.", + "Please, HaShem, have pity and mercy on me. Compassionately fulfill my requests. Help me attain everything I have asked of You very soon.", + "Original Torah insights
Compassionate God, let me hear true and original Torah insights from the lips of outstanding tzaddikim, who have the power to draw down new souls into all who hear their holy Torah teachings.", + "Compassionate God, help me drawn down into myself a new and holy soul through the Torah teachings I hear from their mouths or study in the holy works of the great and awesome tzaddikim. May their original Torah insights be an elixir of life for me. Help me give form to the simple light shining down from above so that it should be for blessing and goodness, even though I may be unworthy of this.", + "For You know the terrible damage I have done to my mental faculties by abusing the covenant, which is so harmful to the mind. Where will I get help to turn the light into a blessing?", + "Even so, I trust in Your overflowing compassion, I rely on Your kindness, I wait expectantly for Your salvation, and I hope for Your forgiveness.", + "Deal with me according to Your kindness and Your great and awesome wonders. Show me the full power of Your compassion and work awesome miracles and wonders for me. You Yourself give form to the light that shines down from above so that it should be for blessing, peace, life and good. Let the holy light shine down on me from above for a blessing and not a curse, as it is written, “Behold! It is a blessing that I have taken, and such a blessing I cannot reverse.”", + "May the verse be fulfilled, “But HaShem your God did not want to listen to Balaam. HaShem your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, since HaShem your God loves you.” My only hope, refuge, trust and support lies solely in You, and in the true tzaddikim on whom we always rely. I rely on their power when I cry out to You at all times, awaiting Your compassion and salvation.", + "Deal with me in such a way that I will quickly, swiftly and speedily come to genuinely observe the covenant from now on and forever in great holiness. Let me sanctify myself with Your supreme holiness, until I merit attaining the seventy faces of the holy Torah. Answer me, HaShem, answer me! Answer me, my God, answer me! Answer me, my Father, answer me! Answer me, my Creator, answer me! Answer me, my Redeemer, answer me!", + "My King, my God, my Maker, my Holy One, answer me!", + "Those who cause cries to be heard, cause our cries to be heard before the One Who hears cries! Those who bring tears in, bring our tears in before the King Who is appeased with tears!", + "Those who cause groaning to be heard, cause our groans to be heard by the One Who hears groaning!", + "You Who have mercy on the poor, have mercy on my impoverishment. See how lowly I am and how long I have been in exile, and bring me to a good end. Return me from my captivity quickly, swiftly and speedily.", + "Our Father, bless all of us together in the light of Your countenance. “Shine Your countenance upon Your servant, save me in Your lovingkindness.” “God will be gracious to us and bless us, He will shine His face toward us, selah!” “Shine Your countenance on Your servant and teach me Your laws.”", + "Compassionate One Who answers the downtrodden, answer us! Compassionate One Who answers the brokenhearted, answer us!", + "Compassionate One Who answers the crushed in spirit, answer us! Compassionate One, answer us!", + "Compassionate One, answer us! Compassionate One, have pity! Compassionate One, redeem!", + "Compassionate One, save! Compassionate One, have mercy on us! Compassionate One, have mercy on us, speedily and soon!", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Mind vs. matter / Torah wisdom vs. atheism / Memory / Fasting / Charity / Eating / Kosher meat / Educating children / The Land of Israel
The soul is associated with light, form, wisdom, spiritual awareness and life, while the physical body is associated with their opposites: darkness, substance, folly, animalism, forgetfulness and death. Immersing ourselves in the wisdom of the Torah strengthens the soul, bringing us to the level of Adam, man. However, the pursuit of materialistic ideologies that contradict the Torah leads to the glorification of physical desire, causing spiritual concealment.
The way we eat also has a significant influence on whether our spiritual faculties will gain sway over our bodily cravings, or vice versa. It is important to eat in moderation and with dignity. Fasting also helps weaken bodily desires (though Rebbe Nachman advised people to fast only on the mandatory fast days of the Jewish calendar). Another practice that helps the soul gain dominance over the body is giving charity. Through contributing to causes in the Land of Israel, the donor becomes included in the pure air of that Land, which is free of sin, and is able to attain the wisdom of the Torah and overcome the influence of alien ideologies. It is particularly important to protect one’s children from exposure to atheistic influences and to see that they are taught Torah by a sincere, God-fearing teacher, in order not to corrupt the untainted breath of their mouths. The shochet, ritual slaughterer, plays a key role in guarding the spiritual purity of the Jewish people. Eating the meat of an improperly slaughtered animal can degrade and desensitize a person. In addition, the Kabbalah teaches that human souls may be incarnated in animals and birds, and can return to their source only if the shochet has the correct intentions and recites the blessing over the shechitah with the utmost concentration. The soul in the slaughtered animal or bird is then able to rise up to the Shekhinah, Who in turn channels blessings to the Jewish people. Dishonest shochtim fail to elevate these souls, interrupting the flow of livelihood to the Jewish people and giving strength to material cravings and ideologies.
“Let my life be given to me at my petition and my people at my request.” “Save my soul from the sword, save my spirit from the power of the dog.” “Do not cast off my soul, for I have put my trust in You.”", + "“For You are my hope and You are my strength.” “Guard my soul and save me. I will not be ashamed, for I have put my trust in You.” “Hurry to my aid, God of my salvation!”", + "Please, let my soul be precious in Your eyes, HaShem my God and God of my fathers. Let Your mercy prevail over Your attribute [of justice]. Let Your heart be stirred with compassion for my poor, miserable soul. My soul is so hungry, thirsty and tired, so bitter, so trapped in chains of poverty and iron, in thousands and tens of thousands of nets and traps. Like birds caught in a snare, my soul is so very oppressed.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who see the shame of the humiliated, look and see the tears of the oppressed who scream out, weep, cry and groan. “On the side of their oppressors there is power, and they have no comforter.” How they weep, and their tears are on their cheeks.", + "Truly Compassionate One, don’t hide Your face from their cry! Don’t shut Your ear to their scream! Don’t close Your eyes to their tears!", + "Master of the world, “to You I lift up my soul;", + "I spread my hands out to You. My soul is like a land that is weary for You, selah.” “For the enemy has been chasing after my soul, he has crushed my spirit to the ground, he has taken me down into the dark places like those who are dead forever.”", + "“My soul is utterly confounded. And as for You, O God, how long? Return, HaShem, rescue my soul, save me for the sake of Your kindness.” “Like a swallow or a crane, I chirp; I moan like a dove.” “My eyes fail from looking upward; HaShem, I am oppressed. Be my guarantor.” “Be a guarantor for Your servant for good; do not let sinners oppress me.” “Redeem me from the oppression of man and I will observe Your precepts.”", + "The soul’s radiance
Please, HaShem, free my soul from all bodily cravings and evil traits. In Your vast compassion, save my poor soul and give her power and strength from You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, so she will be able to conquer the body. Let my soul overcome my body, let my form hold sway over my substance.", + "Then I can subdue, break and nullify the physicality of my body completely, so as to reveal the radiance of my soul and my holy form, and draw upon myself the image of God, the likeness in which I was patterned. Grant me the light of holy intellect — wisdom, understanding and knowledge — and help me rid myself of every kind of materialistic folly and gross physicality.", + "Bring me out from gloom to radiance, from darkness to great light, from the folly and darkness of gross physicality to the radiant wisdom of the holy soul.", + "Give me my portion in Your Torah. Day and night, let me study and contemplate Your Torah and devote myself to Your service. Put it into my heart to be wise and understanding, to hear, learn and teach, observe, practice and fulfill all the words of Your Torah in love. Illumine my eyes in Your Torah and attach my heart to Your commandments.", + "Keep me well away from those who have strayed into the realm of ideas that are contrary to the Torah. Protect me, my children, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from ever pursuing such ideas.", + "May we never set our eyes on or study any books of this kind, whether philosophical works written by Jews or those written by non-Jews.", + "Don’t let any of their philosophical arguments or strange and bitter ideas enter our minds and thoughts. Such ideas have the power to trap precious souls in their net.", + "The truth is that all their ideas are sheer folly, stupidity, nonsense and emptiness. They are drawn only from the folly and darkness of the physicality of their bodies, and from their evil desires and traits.", + "They have been so overcome by their bodily cravings and their coarse, materialistic, corrupted and disgusting physicality, the ultimate degree of corruption, squalor and filth, that their minds and uncircumcised hearts have been totally ruined.", + "They have gone astray from one idea to the next, from one argument to another, ending up with the false and foolish theories they espouse.", + "Wisdom of the Torah
Master of the world, have compassion on us, our children and our remnant. We have been left like a solitary mast on top of a mountain with no one to help or support us. We have no one to stand up for us.", + "Rescue us! Rescue us! In Your vast compassion, save us and free us and our children from all ideas that contradict the Torah. Don’t let us involve ourselves in them in any way. Keep our hands, minds and hearts away from them. For our portion and our lot is not in them. For we are the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. We are believers and the children of believers. We had the privilege of standing at Mount Sinai to receive Your holy Torah through Your faithful prophet Moses.", + "Let us always have our share in Your holy Torah. “The Torah of HaShem is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of HaShem is faithful, making the simple one wise.” Have pity and mercy on us. Stir up Your compassion for Your children, the flock You have pastured. Guard us at this time of trouble at the threshold of the coming of the Mashiach. Rescue and free our souls and the souls of our sons and daughters, so we never pursue ideas that are contrary to the Torah.", + "Give us the strength to subdue, break, destroy and uproot all heretics and atheists from the world. “Let them be blotted out from the book of life and let them not be written with tzaddikim.” May the name and memory of all who engage in philosophical speculation be blotted out from the world.", + "May HaShem cut off the man who pursues such speculation and follows their ways, calling and answering. “Let his children be orphans and his wife a widow. … Let his posterity be cut off. In the generation following, may their name be blotted out. Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered by HaShem, and do not let the sin of his mother be erased. May they be before HaShem continually; may He excise their memory from the earth.”", + "May their arguments and theories vanish from the world. May they no longer enter people’s hearts or be mentioned by name. Have mercy on Your nation, the Jewish people. Raise up, elevate, exalt, reveal and shine the wisdom of the holy Torah throughout the world. Let us all come back to Your Torah and Your service in truth, faith, holiness and purity. May we constantly yearn to deepen our faith, just as You desire. Grant that we should truly come to know You even in this world, and honor Your great Name at all times.", + "For this was Your purpose in creating all the worlds: that Your creatures should come to know You. As it is written, “Everything that is called in My Name, which I created for My glory, I formed it, indeed, I made it.” Help us! Have compassion on us! Save us!", + "Act for Your sake and for the honor of Your holy Torah, letting the wisdom of the holy Torah overcome philosophical wisdom and atheistic ideologies.", + "Let them all vanish from the world. None of them can stand up against even a single letter of Your holy, pure, perfect Torah, both the Written and the Oral Torah. Let everyone return to Your Torah and genuinely serve You and fear You with all their hearts and souls.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, take pity on my poor soul. Be my help at all times. Give me the courage and determination to assert my holy, goodly soul against my body and its traits and cravings. Then I will be able to strip my soul of all manner of materialistic desires and traits, and I will purify and sanctify my soul and my body with all manner of purity and holiness. Let me release my soul from all the evil cravings and bad traits that derive from the four physical elements that make up the body.", + "Memory
In Your vast compassion, take me out and lift me up from the level of an animal to the level of Adam, man. Bring me out from the dominion of the body to that of the soul, from substance to form, from darkness to light, from folly to wisdom, from alien views and opinions to the wisdom of the holy Torah, from forgetfulness to memory.", + "Grant me a strong memory, and help me always remember very well all the words of Your Torah and everything connected with serving You — whether it be something I learn in holy books, or something I have heard or am going to hear from the mouth of my teachers and friends regarding the fear of HaShem, Divine service, and devotion to the Torah.", + "Through the power of holy memory, let me remember everything clearly at all times from now on and forever. May I not forget a single word of what I have learned.", + "And let me constantly remember very well what my ultimate destiny is. Let me keep my attention fixed on the purpose of my coming into this lowly world, and where I am destined to go when I reach the end of my life. May I never forget this all the days of my life. Every single day, help me remember that all my days and years are vanity, like a fleeting dream, a passing shadow, a cloud melting into nothingness, a puff of wind, flying dust. There is absolutely no way to escape death. “There is no discharge in war.” What will we think about HaShem, and what will we do on the day of judgment?", + "“My soul remembers and is bowed down within me.” “Remember, do not forget, how You angered HaShem your God” from your youth until today. For there is no forgetfulness before His throne of glory, and nothing is hidden from His eyes.", + "Help me and save me! Help me remember this always so that I’ll have compassion on myself from now on, and save my soul from destruction by preparing what I’ll need on my journey. “It’s a long road and we don’t have even the scantiest provisions.”", + "In Your vast compassion, help me forget all foreign thoughts and ideas that are contrary to the Torah. Help me forget all the different evil and twisted thoughts that cling to my heart and mind as a result of my many sins. Free me of all the different thoughts that distract me from serving You properly.", + "Compassionate God, totally remove all of them from my mind and heart so that I completely forget them from now on and forever. From now on let me remember You constantly at every moment — when I sit in my home and when I go out on a journey, when I lie down and when I rise up. At all times let me attach my thoughts to You, Your Torah and Your service in awe and love, holiness and purity, in truth and perfect faith.", + "Let my thoughts and feelings be genuinely attached to You, Your Torah and Your commandments with a strong and mighty bond.", + "Then I will merit remembering clearly all the words of Your Torah and everything connected with serving You. May I never forget a single word of Torah and devotion, but remember them at all times — in this world and in the World to Come.", + "Fasting
Therefore, may it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers — God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, God of all the true tzaddikim in earlier and later times, God of Your entire nation, the holy Jewish people, my Father, compassionate Father, Who knows all the hidden secrets of the heart — that You will have compassion on me and grant me knowledge, understanding and wisdom. Teach me and send me true guidance at all times.", + "Help me understand the right way to conduct myself regarding voluntary fasts. Should I fast or not? Let me know the real truth so I’ll be able to follow the true path exactly the way You desire. My feelings are so divided as to what I should do.", + "Therefore, I am throwing myself upon You alone. To You alone I surrender my body, my nefesh, my ruach and my neshamah. Do whatever You want with me, and I will act according to Your will.", + "Don’t let me confuse myself excessively about this subject. Just let me always have a clear idea as to what I should do, and grant me sound guidance as to what You truly want. Give me to understand how I should conduct myself both on the subject of fasting and about everything else in the world. Then I will be able to turn from evil and subordinate my physical body to my soul and form, and genuinely devote myself to Your Torah and Your service at all times, in just the way You want, from now on and forever.", + "“Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, for in You I trust. Help me understand this path that I am following, for I have lifted my soul to You.”", + "Charity
Therefore, may it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that You will help me give plenty of charity to many genuinely deserving people.", + "Have mercy on me in Your great and overflowing compassion and kindness. Help me give plenty of charity to causes in the Land of Israel. Let me give real support and assistance to deserving people in the Land of Israel. Then I will be privileged to be included in the holy air of the Land of Israel, which is untainted by sin. Through this, help me sweeten and remove all harsh judgments against myself and Your entire nation, the House of Israel. May we always have the power to banish harsh judgments, darkness, folly, and all ideas that go against the Torah.", + "Let us strengthen and elevate our holy souls and the holy Torah. Illumine us with the light of holy wisdom, and drawn down upon us goodly kindnesses constantly. Grant us holy memory. Send us blessings of goodness, life, grace and kindness, compassion, peace and everything good.", + "In Your vast compassion, remember the covenant You made with our patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Fulfill for us the verse, “I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham will I remember, and I will remember the Land.”", + "Help us cultivate our souls and lift them up to You. Let us sanctify and beautify our souls so that they will be able to rise up to the Shekhinah as “feminine waters,” and the Shekhinah will take pride in our souls before You and say, “See with what a child I come before You.” May the unification of the Holy One, blessed is He, and the Shekhinah be effected through our souls ascending to You for the good, like a fragrant savor, a fire-offering to HaShem.", + "Eating in holiness
Let me always eat in holiness and purity, especially when eating animal products. Help me sanctify myself to the utmost degree at mealtimes.", + "Then I will be able to elevate the soul contained in the meat that I am eating from the level of an animal to that of a speaking human being, by means of the blessing I make over my food. Let me recite all the blessings with the greatest concentration for the sake of Your great Name.", + "Kosher meat
In Your vast compassion, guard me and save me from forbidden foods. Let nothing that is forbidden ever enter my mouth. May I never stumble by eating non-kosher meat, even inadvertently.", + "Compassionate God, save me from dishonest shochtim. Keep me well away from any kind of forbidden meat, whether prohibited by the Written Torah or by rabbinic enactment. Always send us reliable shochtim and be with them and guard them constantly, so as to protect them and the Jewish people from stumbling through eating the meat of improperly slaughtered animals, God forbid.", + "Help the shochtim concentrate carefully on the blessing over shechitah, so as to elevate the soul contained in the animal from the level of a beast to the level of a human being. Let all the souls that are trapped and incarnated in animals, birds and beasts rise up to the Shekhinah, and may they bring about a unification between the Holy One, blessed is He, and the Shekhinah.", + "Draw down upon us an abundant flow of goodness, blessing, compassion, life and peace. May we have a good and honorable livelihood without exerting ourselves excessively. My Father in Heaven, You Who bestow goodness even on the guilty, You Who bestow generous kindnesses — You know we are powerless to guard ourselves against unreliable shochtim. There are so many of them today. And we have no one to stand up for us and make an effort to rectify our souls and save us from the evil caused by dishonest shochtim. Master of the world, have compassion on us for Your Name’s sake, for the sake of Your mighty Shekhinah, for the sake of our patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and for the sake of all the true tzaddikim. Help, save, rescue and free us from evil and dishonest shochtim. Guard us always so that forbidden meat will never enter our mouths. For “You can do everything, and no purpose can be withheld from You.” Everything is in Your hands, and You have the power to protect us even now, in this generation, from non-kosher meat and from dishonest shochtim.", + "Have pity and mercy on us for Your sake if not for ours. Sanctify us with Your holiness and keep us well away from forbidden foods, as it is written, “I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine.”", + "May we fulfill the verse, “You shall be holy men for Me, and you shall not eat any flesh that has been torn by beasts in the field: throw it to the dogs.” It is also written, “Sanctify yourselves and be holy, because I am holy.” And may the verse be fulfilled, “He has given prey to those who fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever.”", + "Educating children
In Your vast compassion, help us and send us good, respectable teachers for our children. Let them carry out their work faithfully and teach our children the maximum that is truly good for them.", + "May all those involved in teaching children be honest and righteous so as not to spoil the holy breath of these little schoolchildren, which is untainted by sin. Let their holy breath rise up, appear before You, find favor, and be accepted. Through this, may You remember the covenant You made with our fathers. Sweeten and remove all harsh judgments and decrees against Your nation, the House of Israel, both as a whole and as individuals, whether the decree has not yet been issued or whether it has already been signed. Sweeten and annul all these decrees in the merit of the innocent breath of the little schoolchildren.", + "In Your vast compassion, sanctify us with Your supreme holiness and let us return to You in perfect repentance with all our hearts and souls. Help us make amends for all the damage we have done. May we strengthen our souls until we overcome our bodies and make them totally subordinate to our souls.", + "Let us give plenty of charity to causes in the Land of Israel, until we become included in the holy air of the Land of Israel, which is untainted by sin. Make the breath of the mouths of Your entire nation, the House of Israel, as pure as the air of the Land of Israel and the breath of little schoolchildren.", + "Help the shochtim genuinely sanctify and purify themselves to the point that their breath will also be untainted by sin. Then they will be able to elevate the souls incarnated in animals, elevating them to their holy root through the breath of the blessing they make over the shechitah.", + "For You know the pitiful state of the souls that are incarnated in animals. Please have mercy on them and on us. For Your sake, help us elevate all those souls to their supernal root in holiness. Compassionate One, You Who are filled with mercy, You Who have mercy on the poor and hear the cry of the needy, have compassion on us and on our souls, which are oppressed like birds trapped in a snare, as is revealed to You, since You know all secrets. Help me save my soul from destruction.", + "For You know the great preciousness and splendor of my soul at her supernal root. You also know how much I have spoiled and corrupted my poor soul. You know the tragic state of my poor soul, weary, crushed and torn apart between lions’ teeth. They have opened their mouths at us, saying, “We have devoured.”", + "I have been crying out to You for so long, but no one can save me, because I am the one who has been cruel to my own soul.", + "But You can rescue my soul through the power of Your mercy. You have the power to turn my heart to good and direct it toward You. Grant me holy wisdom and understanding, power, strength and guidance, so that I will always be able to put my soul in control over my body, until I totally subordinate the body and its cravings.", + "Let me elevate my soul to Your supreme holiness in perfect truth and faith. My Father, my compassionate Father, have pity on the honor of the holy Torah that You have given us! For You know the amazing beauty of the precious Torah hidden within us. In Your vast compassion, help me from now on to genuinely purify and sanctify myself, so I will be able to bring out and reveal the Torah that is concealed within me.", + "Save me from insults and embarrassment. May I never be ashamed or stumble. May I merit holy honor, and receive it in great sanctity for the sake of Your Name and Your glory alone. Don’t let me make the least use of this honor for myself, but use it solely for the sake of Your Name, in order to serve You truly and sincerely with no ulterior motives. Help me restore and elevate the honor to its root.", + "And with the holy honor that You will compassionately bestow upon me, help me reveal the wealth of original Torah insights that are concealed within my soul in great holiness and purity.", + "Be with me at all times, and don’t let me say anything that is not in accordance with Your will. Be with my mouth when I speak and with my hands when it is time for me to act. Master of the world, have pity on my poor, deprived soul which is so very hungry, thirsty and faint. Compassionately fulfill my requests and let my soul hold sway over my body from now on and forever.", + "Let my soul rise up and be lifted high, high above in great holiness and purity, in truth and perfect faith, in holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge, through Torah and devotion with reverence, love and complete repentance, sincerely and wholeheartedly, in exactly the way You desire.", + "“Return, my soul, to your rest, for HaShem has been kind to you. For You have rescued my soul from death, my eye from tears, my feet from stumbling. I will walk before HaShem in the lands of the living.”", + "“For You will not abandon my soul to hell; You will not let Your pious one see destruction.” “He will restore my soul, He will lead me along the pathways of righteousness for His Name’s sake.” “For Your Name’s sake, HaShem, give me life! In Your righteousness, free my soul from sorrow. ", + "And in Your lovingkindness, cut down my enemies and destroy all who oppress my soul, for I am Your servant.”", + "“My soul will rejoice in HaShem and exult in His salvation.” “Take my soul out of prison to give thanks to Your Name. Because of me the righteous will crown themselves, for You have been kind to me.”" + ], + [ + "Attachment to God / Tefilin / Purity of speech / Judging people favorably / Torah study / Teshuvah / Shabbat
We must constantly examine ourselves to see if we are truly attached to God. The tefilin are worn as a sign of our attachment to Him. The way to invest this sign with inner meaning and come to true attachment to God is through learning to use our Divinely-given faculty of speech in a holy way. Slander, talebearing, offensive or unclean language and the like all turn the breath of the mouth into a raging storm wind. Constantly harping on other people’s failures and shortcomings arouses an impure spirit of harsh judgment in the world at large. Because of its destructive nature, this impure spirit is described as “the end of all flesh.” To subdue this destructive force, it is necessary to refine the way we speak. The first step is to get into the habit of expressing ourselves to God with perfect truth and sincerity. The main way to elevate our speech is through Torah study. We must make every effort to persist with our studies even at times of severe financial and other pressures. These times are called “night” and, “One who learns Torah at night draws a thread of lovingkindness upon himself” (Chagigah 12b). The quality of kindness is associated with our patriarch Abraham, who “rose early in the morning” (Genesis 19:27; 22:3), symbolizing how the light of kindness banishes the forces of darkness. The “thread of kindness” puts the accusing forces to flight, allowing the free flow of holy speech, song, praise and thanks to God.
When a person is stirred to repent and pours out his thoughts and feelings to God with fervent passion, he becomes aware of his own lowliness and the greatness of God. He is filled with a deep sense of shame over his sins against the Master, Root and Source of all the worlds. This sense of shame and awe before God is the “light of the tefilin” — the inner state of mind in which the mitzvah should be carried out. Even though the tefilin themselves are not worn on Shabbat, the “light of the tefilin” also shines out on ShaBbaT (which has the same letters as the word BoSheT, shame). The more we succeed in bringing the holiness of Shabbat into the six working days, the more the forces of impurity and accusation in the world are dispelled.
“My soul cleaves to You; Your right hand supports me.” “I cleave to Your testimonies, HaShem, don’t put me to shame.”", + "My Father, merciful Father, help me in Your overflowing compassion and kindness. Let me genuinely attach myself to You at all times with perfect faith, true understanding, peace of mind, and great holiness and purity.", + "Let me constantly examine myself to check if I really am attached to HaShem, so as to fulfill the mitzvah to “attach yourself to Him” perfectly, in accordance with Your will.", + "Tefilin
In Your vast compassion, help me carry out the mitzvah of tefilin in the proper way, with all its details and fine points, its inner intentions, and the 613 mitzvot that depend on it.", + "Every day let me put on valid tefilin made by a reliable and truly pious scribe. Let me have tefilin written with great holiness and full concentration on all the inner intentions the scribe should have when writing and preparing the tefilin. May all the different stages in making the tefilin — from the writing of the Torah portions and preparation of the capsules and straps, to the stitching with animal sinews and everything else involved — all be carried out in the best possible way in full accordance with Torah law. May my tefilin always be valid in every single detail, and be the finest, most beautiful and holiest possible.", + "Let me put on Rashi and Rabbeinu Tam tefilin every day. Let me place them in the correct position on my head and arm, and wear them with great happiness and tremendous delight, with profound concentration and joyous inspiration. Then, through my carrying out this holy, awesome mitzvah of tefilin, I will draw upon myself great holiness.", + "May this holiness of the tefilin be drawn down upon me from their exalted root in Your supreme holiness, until I become genuinely attached to You through the mitzvah of tefilin. Don’t let me ever allow my attention to wander from the tefilin, or engage in idle conversation of any kind, while I am crowned with the crown of the Supreme King and girded with the Supreme Sword.", + "Let me wear this diadem of splendor with the deepest awe and reverence, with a happy heart, joy and delight, so I will be able to carry out the mitzvah of tefilin to perfection in just the way You desire, and become attached to You constantly through the awesome holiness of the tefilin.", + "My Father in Heaven, You Who have mercy on the poor, have mercy on me. Help me and grant me the holiness of the tefilin as a gift. Just as You gave us this great commandment through Your servant Moses, so now have compassion on me and help me fulfill this mitzvah to perfection.", + "Let me always be attached to You, and don’t let my sins stand as a barrier between me and You. For You are the God of forgiveness. In Your vast compassion, help me return to You in complete repentance. Let me always feel genuine shame over the terrible sins and transgressions that I have committed. In Your great kindness, forgive me for all my sins, offenses and transgressions against You from the day I came into this world until today. In Your compassion, rectify all the dishonor I caused to Your great Name.", + "Then I will be able to draw the holiness of the tefilin upon myself, until I can attach myself to You always with a powerful bond of true longing and desire, joy and love, in accordance with Your will.", + "As it is written, “My soul languishes from longing for Your salvation; in Your word I hope.” “My flesh and my heart fail, but God is the Rock of my heart and my portion forever.” “One thing I have asked of HaShem, this I request: Let me dwell in the House of HaShem all the days of my life, to behold the pleasantness of HaShem and frequent His Sanctuary.”", + "Purity of speech
Therefore, may it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of our fathers, that You help me, guard me and rescue me from speaking evil. Don’t let me ever misuse my power of speech. May I never speak a single negative remark about any Jew, or look for people’s faults. Rather, make my heart inclined to always to search for all the good and positive points that can be found in every single Jew, even the worst. Let me make every effort to dig down until I find merit even in the most insignificant person. Be with me at all times and help me discover something good in everyone. Let me always judge all people favorably.", + "In Your vast compassion, save me from the terrible sin of slander and talebearing, which is equal in severity to the three worst sins in the Torah: idolatry, adultery and bloodshed. Slander is equal to all three of them.", + "Master of the entire world, have compassion on me for Your sake, and always be with my mouth when I speak. Help me guard the gates of my mouth so that not a word of slander about any Jew in the world should ever come from my mouth — not even the slightest suggestion of slander. Let me never say anything improper. Save me from every kind of evil talk — slander, talebearing, idle chatter, mockery, flattery and falsehood, revealing secrets that are not supposed to be revealed, and foul language. Don’t let me ever speak words of Torah and fear of Heaven in the wrong place or the wrong time. Let me never say anything that is not good, or breathe a word that demeans the holy power of speech, which is the breath of the mouth of the Holy One, blessed is He.", + "My Father in Heaven, what can I say before You Who dwell on high? What can I tell You Who dwell in the heavens? Speaking negatively is so deeply ingrained in me that I know absolutely no way to avoid it in future. Therefore, I have come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, to beg You to help me and guide me on the straight path. Then, through Your compassion, I will be able to keep myself from stumbling and speaking evil. Don’t let me say anything that is not in accordance with Your will.", + "May I always be good to all. Don’t let me ever look for people’s faults.", + "On the contrary, let me always make a determined effort to find merit and goodness in every single member of the Jewish people, Your holy nation — even the lowliest and least respectable, even my opponents and those who persecute me.", + "Help me judge all of them favorably at all times, and grant me wisdom and understanding so that I will know how to keep searching and find merit and good points in them. Compassionate God, rescue me from all the evil, arrogant people who go about calling for “the end of all flesh” by constantly seeking to find fault with other people and uncover their failures and shortcomings.", + "Master of the world, save me from all of them. Don’t listen to what they say and don’t let their accusations rise up before You. Close the curtain of Heaven to their evil words, and don’t let their words enter Your ears at all. For You know the evil in their hearts. They are constantly attacking and condemning us in order to try to prevent us from serving You, God forbid. They are the cause of all the accusations against us, and all the trials and obstacles that have distanced us from true service of God. Master of the world, You know everything we have been through until now, and everything we go through every day and every moment. So many have stood up against us. “HaShem, how many are my enemies, so many stand against me!” “They surround me like water all day long, they have encircled me together.”", + "I know the truth, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, because “in me, my Master, is the sin.” I am the one who has brought all this on myself because I didn’t guard myself, but abused the covenant of the tongue and the covenant of the flesh.", + "My own wrongdoing has given them the words with which to speak out against us and slander and condemn us, God forbid. But You have already promised us, HaShem our God, that You desire kindness and You are full of goodness. You want evildoers to repent, not die.", + "You have the utmost hatred and contempt for anyone who wants to slander and condemn the Jewish people, Your nation.", + "This is so especially at times when they are in disgrace before You because of their sins and transgressions. Even though they really have sinned against You, You still don’t want people to make accusations against Israel. You draw close and favor anyone who has compassion on the Jews at such a time and makes an effort to judge them favorably, giving himself over to appeal to You on their behalf. This is what Moses did. He sacrificed himself for the Jewish people and always prayed for them, even after they had sinned. And, in Your compassion, You always listened to his prayers and showed him favor in every way because of this.", + "But today, because of our sins, “the pious man has disappeared from the land, and there is no one upright among men.” We have no one to stand up on our behalf. As if that isn’t enough, vast numbers of enemies are attacking us, as You well know. Whom can we rely on except our Father in Heaven?", + "You Who have mercy on the poor, have mercy on us in our poverty. See our lowliness and our humiliation. Look down from Heaven and see, for we are being mocked and derided. “All day my humiliation is before me, and shame has covered my face, because of the voice of the curser and reviler, in the face of the enemy and the vengeful.”", + "See our miserable state. Our hearts are filled with pain and sorrow. Take pity on us in the land of our captivity. Do not pour out Your anger on us, for we are Your people, the children of Your covenant. Help us, for we are dependent on You. You are the One “Who saves the poor from the one who is stronger than him, and the poor and needy from the one who would rob him.” Please rescue us from the hand of our enemies and persecutors! Save us, Father in Heaven!", + "Please save us, mighty Redeemer! You Who redeem and save, rescue and free us from all our different enemies, slanderers and accusers, both physical and spiritual.", + "Have pity on us for Your sake, for the sake of our fathers, and for the sake of all the true tzaddikim in whom we always take refuge. You Who know secrets, have mercy! Have mercy!", + "Save us! Save us! Save and redeem us “from the sword of their mouths, the needy from the hand of the mighty!”", + "In the merit of the true tzaddikim, give us the strength and determination to conquer and throw down all who fight against the truth. Help us uproot, break and eliminate all those who attack and slander the people who are far away spiritually, yet who are genuinely trying to come close to You and yearn to revere Your Name.", + "Even if we are unworthy of coming close to You, considering the wrong we have done, “Your compassion is abundant, HaShem.” Your compassion is abundant! Do what You want with us and deal with us according to Your will; who will tell You what to do?", + "But who appointed them as judge and arbiter over us? Who asked them for their accusations?", + "Who asked them to trample the oppressed? “For they persecute the one You have smitten, and they tell of the pain of those You have wounded.” “Let me fall into the hand of HaShem, for His compassion is abundant, but don’t let me fall into the hand of man.” ", + "Master of the world, You listen to cries from the lowest depths of hell and below. Hear my cries and screams and groans that are so very bitter, so heavy and deep.", + "O Heaven! Wake up and see my pain! See the way I’m persecuting my own self, while hounded by others at the same time. The war is closing in on me in front and behind. “Return, HaShem! How long? Relent concerning Your servants.”", + "O HaShem! O HaShem! I stretch my hands out to You from the deepest depths, from beneath thousands upon thousands of layers of concealment.", + "I am suffering so much, my Father in Heaven. I am suffering so bitterly. I am in the most bitter distress, and I have no words in the world to express my thoughts and my pain. “Hear my voice! Do not hide Your ear from my sighing, my cry!”", + "Deal kindly with me and help me force the unholy voices clamoring for “the end of all flesh” to submit to the power of holy speech. Help me extract their prey from their mouths and release all my wrongful words and comments from the realm of unholiness, which has been nourished by my abuse of my faculty of speech, whether unintentionally or deliberately, under duress or willfully.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me put everything right and release all those words from the realm of unholiness and bring them back to their root in holiness.", + "Then wickedness will vanish like smoke and iniquity will stop up her mouth. For “the mouths of all liars will be sealed.” Fill their mouths with gravel, and twist and uproot the words of all those who condemn, slander and speak evil about honest Jews whose only desire is to revere Your Name.", + "Put it into the hearts of the slanderers to turn from their evil ways. Direct their hearts to the truth, and let the truth be revealed throughout the world.", + "May the verse be fulfilled, “The wicked will abandon his path and the man of iniquity his thoughts. Let him return to HaShem and He will have compassion on him; let him return to our God, for He will pardon abundantly.”", + "Torah study
Therefore, my Father, my compassionate Father, help me devote myself to Your holy Torah constantly, day and night. May I not lose a single one of my nights without engaging in Torah study and prayer throughout my life. Help me drive sleep from my eyes, and learn a great deal of Torah and offer many prayers and supplications every single night and every single day.", + "Be my help at all times, so that nothing in the world will have the power to make me interrupt my studies and prayers.", + "Even in times of adversity, God forbid, or when having to face poverty and other pressures, grant that I should still be able to devote myself to Torah study and prayer constantly. Don’t let me ever abandon my studies.", + "And You, HaShem, have compassion and see my poverty, the pressures I am under and the struggles I am going through, and draw down a thread of lovingkindness upon me in Your great compassion and abundant kindness.", + "May the light of lovingkindness emanating from the “morning of Abraham” shine on us. Let the light of kindness, compassion, mercy and grace shine on me like the morning light. “By day HaShem will command His kindness, and at night His song is with me, prayer to the God of my life.”", + "And through the light of the kindness You will shine on me from the “morning of Abraham,” help me subdue the evil forces clamoring for “the end of all flesh” — the raging storm wind — and put them under the dominion of holy speech.", + "Turn them into “a storm wind carrying out His word.” Remove all evil words from the world and from our borders. Help me attain perfect sanctity of speech and make amends for my past abuses.", + "May only holy words of song, praise, exultation and lauding to HaShem leave my mouth. From now on may no impure word leave my mouth.", + "Let all my speech consist only of holy words of Torah, prayer, pleas and requests, songs, praises and thanks to Your great and holy Name, with fear of Heaven and constant devotion to HaShem, in truth and with all my heart, with great holiness and purity, just as You desire. “May my mouth be filled with Your praise and Your glory all day.” “Let my mouth speak the praise of HaShem and let all flesh bless His holy Name forever.” “I will bless HaShem at every moment; His praise is constantly on my lips.” “My mouth will tell of Your righteousness and Your salvation throughout the day.” “I thank HaShem mightily with my mouth, and amid multitudes I will praise Him. For He will stand at the right hand of the needy to save him from those who would judge his soul.”", + "Teshuvah
Therefore, God of abundant compassion and kindness, Whose tremendous goodness, true graciousness, unfailing tenderness and great love are always with us, help me elevate speech to its root in the “five fingers of the left arm” [the Divine quality of Gevurah, Strength], corresponding to the five parts of the mouth with which the various letters are articulated. Compassionate God, help me express my thoughts and feelings to You every day, truthfully and with all my heart. Let me share with You everything that is in my heart, honestly and sincerely and with great fervor. Let me speak with the heat of holy passion and stir my heart to You, and talk to my Maker with blazing strength. Rouse me to genuinely serve You.", + "In the heat of my passion, let me pour out the truth in my heart — and let me see my own insignificance and lowliness, and understand the bitter pain of all my sins and transgressions against You from my youth until today. In Your vast compassion, help me experience deep shame in Your presence. Let me feel ashamed of my innumerable sins and transgressions against the Master, Ruler, Root and Source of all the worlds.", + "You are the Master and Ruler over all and beyond all, above Whom there is none. You fill all worlds, surround all worlds, and are within all worlds, and there is no place devoid of You. All Your creations above and below tremble and shudder in awe at Your great and holy Name. They all carry out Your will in love, awe, reverence and great fear. Who will not fear You? Who will not tremble at Your Name?", + "But as for me, I have committed so many sins against You that my heart has become numbed and insensitive, and I can’t even feel ashamed in Your presence the way I should. I am not ashamed, and I do not know how to blush. How then will all my sins be atoned? How can I appease You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers?", + "Have pity and mercy on me! Grant me knowledge, understanding and wisdom so as to bring me to feel intense shame over the enormity of my sins against You.", + "Let me pour out all my thoughts and feelings before You with intense fervor and blazing flames of flashing fire from the depths of the truth in my heart. Let all my words be like fiery coals, as it is written, “My heart grew hot within me, as I meditated the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue.”", + "Let me stir up my heart to true passion for Your service, to fear You and devote myself to Your Torah. May I always speak the truth in my heart with warm, heartfelt fervor.", + "Help me attain the choicest point of truth, the very head and source of truth, so that everything I say will be rooted in the absolute truth, the ultimate point of truth, which is what You desire. As it is written, “The beginning of Your word is truth, and all Your righteous ordinances are forever.”", + "Every day let me speak many words of truth with blazing, holy strength and warm emotion, until I become truly aroused to serve You and constantly feel deep shame and awe in Your presence.", + "Quickly bring me to repent completely for all my many sins and transgressions. In Your vast compassion, forgive me, pardon me and grant me atonement for all of them.", + "Even though it would be quite impossible for me to repent adequately for everything — my entire lifetime would not be enough to make amends for even a single one of my sins — even so, have compassion on me and grant that I should at least be able to repent completely to the best of my ability. And You, merciful God, accept my repentance with compassion and favor. Remove and banish the spirit of foolishness that has stuck to me because of my evil deeds. Arouse Your true compassion for me and drive this spirit of foolishness out of me, eliminating it entirely.", + "Fill me with a spirit of holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge, until I come to know You truly and with all my heart. Through this, let my sense of shame actually show itself on my face. For my heart and mind are so insensitive at present because of my many sins that I do not even have the least knowledge or awareness of You, which would make me feel the proper shame in Your presence — as You Yourself know, HaShem my God and God of my fathers. Please, HaShem, do not treat me according to the evil of my deeds. Have pity, compassion and mercy on me. Quickly bring me to complete and genuine repentance, until the holy shame I feel will actually show itself on my face. Then I will feel genuine shame in Your presence — the most intense shame, as is proper for me to feel in Your presence, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, Ruler of all creation, Master of all souls.", + "For You have shown me goodness every day and every moment. From afar You have always worked out ways to bring me to a good end. And in return I have done so much wrong and committed so many terrible sins and transgressions literally every day and at every moment. What can I say to You Who dwell on high?", + "What can I tell You Who dwell in the heavens?", + "Don’t You know everything, hidden and revealed?", + "Rock of the worlds, help me! Redeem me! Be kind to me! Rescue me! Save me! Shine on me with the light of Your countenance. Give me life and raise me up. Let the holiness of the tefilin be channeled to me from their supernal root. Let me always sharpen my mind with the holy Torah.", + "Through my donning tefilin every day, bring me to new levels of knowledge and awareness, and deeper recognition and perception of Your Godliness and majesty. May Your Name be blessed and exalted forever and ever. Fill me with a sense of deep shame in Your presence, and let Your fear be on my face — “‘fear’ means shame” — so that I won’t sin from now on and forever.", + "Radiate the light of Your countenance to me, and through the sense of shame You will send me, let my face shine with great holiness. Then all who see me will feel shame and consternation. Let them be filled with shame and awe because of the holy light of the tefilin that You will shine on me.", + "And let this bring them to new holy knowledge and awareness, and fill them with great awe and shame, through the holy light of Your countenance that You will radiate to me in Your mercy. May the verse be fulfilled in me, “Then all the nations of the earth will see that HaShem’s Name is proclaimed over you, and they will fear you.”", + "In Your vast compassion, rescue me from arrogant people. Help me, save me and free me from having the least trace of unholy selfassertiveness. Help me quickly subdue, break and eradicate the brazen assertiveness of my body and its evil cravings and traits. Have compassion on me and save me from violating the covenant in any way whatsoever, whether in thought, word or deed, or in the way I look with my eyes, listen with my ears or use my other senses.", + "Let me sanctify all of my faculties and fill myself with the holiness and purity of the covenant in the way You desire, as befits a Jew, a member of Your chosen people.", + "Shabbat
Compassionate God, help me celebrate Shabbat with great holiness, joy and delight, with mirth, glad song, pleasure, delight, love, brotherhood, companionship and great peace. In Your vast compassion, help me observe all the laws of Shabbat, and keep me from infringing on any of the thirty-nine main kinds of forbidden labor or their derivatives, or any of the prohibitions instituted by the sages. When Shabbat arrives, let me feel as if all my work is complete, and let go of all thoughts about work, business and weekday activities. Help me sanctify my speech to the utmost degree on Shabbat. May the way I speak on Shabbat be unlike the way I speak during the week, and may not a single unnecessary word leave my mouth on the holy Shabbat. Help me sanctify Shabbat in every way. Let me distinguish Shabbat with every kind of honor, majesty and splendor — with good food and drink, clean clothes, a beautiful home and lovely material vessels.", + "Let me also honor Shabbat with a beautiful “dwelling place” and “vessels” in my heart and limbs. And let me honor Shabbat with song, praise, exultation, joy and delight, with the deepest awe and love, and with intense attachment to Your great and holy Name. Then I will be able to draw the holiness of Shabbat into the six days of the week, until all the six working days will have the purity and holiness of Shabbat.", + "Help me totally cleanse all the thirty-nine weekday labors of the filth of the Serpent, so that I will be able to invest all my weekday work and activities with great holiness and purity — the holiness of Shabbat.", + "Let me always remember the Sabbath day, and start preparing a nice portion for Shabbat as early as Sunday, as it is written, “Remember the Sabbath day to sanctify it” — remember it from Sunday.", + "May I fulfill the verse, “If you turn away your foot because of Shabbat so as not to pursue your business on My holy day, and call Shabbat a ‘delight’ and HaShem’s holy ones ‘honorable,’ and if you honor it, not following your usual ways or pursuing your business or speaking about it — then you will delight in HaShem, and I will make you ride on the summits of the earth, and I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of HaShem has spoken.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who have mercy on the poor, Rock of Israel and its Holy One, rise up to help us and fulfill our requests with mercy. Grant that we should be attached to You at all times in perfect faith and great holiness and purity, just as You desire. And may the verse be fulfilled in us, “You who are attached to HaShem your God are all alive today.” Amen eternally, selah forever!" + ], + [ + "Peace / Love your friend / Overcoming physical cravings / Eating / Sanctity of marriage / Raising children
When a person experiences a craving to eat in excess of what is necessary for health, it is a sign that he has enemies, both in this world and in the spiritual worlds. Someone who breaks his craving for food attains inner harmony and helps brings peace and contentment to the entire world. It is most important to conduct oneself with the utmost sanctity in one’s marital relationship, and this is conducive to the survival of one’s children.
He who makes peace in His high places, Master of peace, King to Whom peace belongs, may it be Your will to have compassion on us and send peace to the world. Spread peace among the entire Jewish people, and remove all manner of strife from the world.", + "Master of the entire world, You know how many evils and troubles the conflicts among Jews have caused us, and especially the terrible controversy that has spread today, on the threshold of the coming of the Mashiach, among all the tzaddikim, Torah scholars and pious ones in our generation. Torah scholars are attacking one another.", + "Compassionate God, cool Your anger against us. Draw down compassion, life and peace upon us and upon Your entire nation, the Jewish people, forever. Put it into the hearts of each one of us to cherish our friends and truly love them with our very souls.", + "May we genuinely fulfill the mitzvah to “love your friend as you love yourself” with all our hearts, our bodies, our souls and our possessions, for this mitzvah is a fundamental principle of the Torah.", + "Cleanse the world of all hatred, jealousy, aggression and contentiousness. Let no one be jealous of me, nor me of anyone else. Just let there be great peace, love, brotherhood and friendship among all Jews forever.", + "Eating
Have compassion on me and help me break my craving to eat excessively. Help me eat only the minimum necessary for good health. Let me moderate my physical appetites and eat in great holiness and purity solely for the sake of Your Name, in absolute truth.", + "Remove the “shame of hunger” from me, and don’t let me ever feel hunger.", + "Help me control, break and remove all the animalistic desires of the body. Rid me of “reproaches and insults” — namely bodily cravings, which are the root cause of all the indignities that people suffer. Sanctify me in every way.", + "Sanctity of the marital relationship
In Your vast compassion, help me totally break my sexual lust. Bring me to sanctify myself with the holiness of the covenant, as befits a Jew, a member of Your holy people whom You have chosen in love.", + "Be with me always and help me sanctify myself even in what is permitted to me. Let my main time for marital union be on Shabbat, in great and awesome holiness.", + "Help me break the desirous soul within me, namely my animalistic cravings. Let me conduct my marital relations with the utmost holiness, without any physical lust at all. Let it be as if a demon were compelling me.", + "May I rise to ever higher levels of holiness, until I become included in Your supreme holiness, as You desire.", + "Help me break all my animalistic cravings — including sexual lust, the craving for food, and all other physical appetites. Let me break and remove them from myself completely. Draw holiness and purity upon me from the source of all holiness. Let me always sanctify myself with Your supreme holiness and come to true repentance. Let me turn from evil completely and always carry out Your will. My Father, my King, have compassion on me for Your Name’s sake. Sanctify me with Your supreme holiness, and purify my heart to serve You in truth.", + "Send me my livelihood in abundance directly from You. Don’t make me dependent on the gifts and loans of flesh and blood. Open up Your treasury of goodness for me, and send me a flow of goodness and blessing, compassion, life and peace forever. Bless all the work of my hands and the fruit of my loins. May my sons and daughters live to serve You, revere You, and devote themselves to Your Torah for many long days and years.", + "Raising children
Have compassion on our children and the children of Your entire nation, the House of Israel (and especially on the children of [Hebrew name], the son of [mother’s Hebrew name]). Give them a good and long life.", + "May all our children and descendants live many long, good days and years. Let their shoots spread wide and their branches multiply, and let their offspring be like the grasses of the earth. Compassionate God, spare them from any of the suffering involved in raising children. Grant that they should raise their sons and daughters to a life of Torah, Jewish marriage and good deeds.", + "Whether they have already been born or will be born in the future, may they all enjoy good, long lives, and leave successors on earth after them. May their descendants multiply until they are as multitudinous as the sand of the sea and the stars of the heavens, generation after generation forever, until the end of all the generations.", + "Master of the world, see their misery and pain! You know their hearts. You know the many troubles they have suffered until now. Master of the entire world, eternal God, show them compassion. May the One who said to His universe, “Enough!” say, “Enough!” to their troubles.", + "Do it for the sake of the merit of their fathers. Put joy into their hearts, and help them from now on so their children will multiply. Let them see all their sons and daughters grow to adulthood and have long lives. Let their descendants multiply and flourish, generation after generation.", + "May the verse be fulfilled in us and in them, “The number of the children of Israel will be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or counted. Instead of their being told, ‘You are not My people,’ they will be called ‘children of the living God.’”", + "Send us Your blessing
Send us Your blessing and bring great contentment into the world. Send us inner satisfaction. Let us be able to eat just a little and feel satisfied, as it is written, “You will eat your bread and be satisfied, and you will dwell securely in your land.”", + "Fulfill for us the verse, “I will save you from all your impurities. I will call to the grain and make it abundant. I will not send you famine. I will multiply the fruit of the trees and the produce of the fields, so you will no longer suffer the disgrace of hunger among the nations.” My Father in Heaven, have mercy on me for Your Name’s sake. In Your great mercy, help me and save me so I will quickly attain everything I have asked of You.", + "Help me totally break my sexual cravings, my appetite for excessive food, and all other animalistic cravings. Let me conduct my marital relations, my eating, and all my other activities in great holiness and purity, in accordance with Your will.", + "Grant long life and good years to our sons and daughters, and all our descendants. May they spend their days in goodness and their years in pleasantness.", + "Let them devote all their days and years to Torah study and the service of God in the way You desire. “They will still be fruitful in old age, they will be vigorous and fresh.”", + "Remove all conflict from the world, and draw down compassion, life, peace, contentment, blessing and a goodly abundance upon us and upon Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from now on and forever.", + "Fulfill for us the verse, “He will love you and bless you and make you numerous; He will bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land, your grain, your wine and your oil, the offspring of your cattle and your flocks of sheep on the land that He swore to your fathers to give you.”", + "It is also written, “For He has strengthened the bars of your gates and blessed your children in your midst. He makes your borders peaceful and sates you with the cream of the wheat.” And it is written, “You will eat and be satisfied and praise the Name of HaShem your God, Who has done wondrously with you, and My people will never be ashamed. You will know that I am in the midst of Israel and I am HaShem your God — there is no other. My people will never be ashamed.”", + "“HaShem will give strength to His people;", + "HaShem will bless His people with peace.”" + ], + [ + "Travel / Faith and trust / Exile and redemption / Torah study
If a person had perfect faith that God can provide him with all his needs, he would not need to go traveling anywhere. All the journeys one has to make are due to a lack of sufficient faith. The exertions of travel rectify the flaws in the higher worlds caused by lack of faith. Inadequate faith is considered akin to idolatry, which causes the rains to be withheld, resulting in economic hardship. This leads people to neglect their Torah study, since, “If there is no bread, there is no Torah.”
May it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that You will have compassion on me and be with me at all times — when I sit in my home and when I go out on a journey, when I lie down and when I rise up, when I go out and when I come in.", + "Always give me true guidance as to what I should do regarding travel. Help me know whether to travel or not, and how and when to travel.", + "Let me know where I should travel and which places I should include in my route, how long I should stay away, and all the details of the actual journeys — whether I should take the main road or a minor road, the long route or a shorter route. Compassionate God, teach me everything I should know, and lead me along a straight path each time.", + "Master of all, “great in counsel and mighty in deeds, Whose eyes are open to all the paths of men,” and Who knows and understands their thoughts and secrets, arouse Your true compassion for me. Help me and teach me what I should do regarding travel at all times. Just as You were with the Jewish people in the desert, and all their journeys were at Your command — as it is written, “By HaShem’s command they encamped, and by HaShem’s command they traveled” — so too, have compassion on me and be with me always.", + "In You alone I put my trust in everything I do. By Your command I will encamp in my home, and by Your command I will go traveling. When I go out and when I return, protect me and give me a life of goodness and peace from now on and forever.", + "Always have compassion on me whenever it is Your will that I should go traveling. Be with me at all times. Send me in peace, lead me in peace, and bring me to my destination for a good life and peace.", + "Rescue me from all enemies and attackers lurking on the road. Grant me favor, lovingkindness and compassion in Your eyes and in the eyes of all who see me. Deal with me kindly always.", + "Bring me home in peace, whole in my body and soul, and with all my possessions and my Torah intact.", + "Compassionate God, protect me from stumbling and sinning in any way. Save me from all kinds of evil and wrongful thoughts, and from looking at what I shouldn’t, especially while on the road.", + "Always protect me from danger on the road, physical and spiritual, whether to my body, my soul or my possessions.", + "Lead me on a straight path
“HaShem, teach me Your way and lead me on level ground because of those who lie in wait for me.” “Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; in You I put my hope throughout the day.”", + "“HaShem is good and upright; therefore, He will guide sinners on the path. He will lead humble ones in justice and teach the humble His way. All the ways of HaShem are lovingkindness and truth to those who guard His covenant and His testimonies.”", + "“HaShem, teach me Your way; I will go in Your truth, unify my heart to fear Your Name.” “My soul clings to the dust; revive me in accordance with Your word.” “I have told You of my ways and You have answered me; teach me Your laws. Let me understand the path of Your precepts, and I will tell of Your wonders.” “My soul has melted away from grief; sustain me according to Your word. Remove from me the way of falsehood and grant me Your Torah. I have chosen the path of faith, I have set Your ordinances before me. I cling to Your testimonies, HaShem; do not put me to shame.", + "I will run the way of Your commandments, for You have opened my heart.”", + "“HaShem, teach me the way of Your laws and I will keep it at every step. Give me understanding so I will guard Your Torah and keep it with all my heart. Lead me in the path of Your commandments, for this is my desire. Incline my heart to Your testimonies and not to illicit gain. Turn my eyes away from looking at vanity; revive me with Your ways.”", + "“Uphold Your word to Your servant regarding fear of You. Turn away my disgrace, which I dreaded, for Your ordinances are good. Behold, I have longed for Your precepts; in Your righteousness, give me life.”", + "In Your great compassion, have pity on me. “Be gracious to me, HaShem; see my misery because of those who hate me, You who raise me up from the gates of death.” For You know the bitterness in my heart and how confused I am. “You know my path; on this route that I am traveling they have concealed a trap for me. Look at my right hand and see, for I have no one who recognizes me; I have no way to flee, no one cares for my soul.”", + "Have pity and compassion on me! Have pity and be kind to me! Save me where I need salvation, and free me where I need redemption!", + "“Save me, HaShem, from a wicked man; preserve me from a violent man.”", + "Help me! Save me! Be with me at all times, and rescue me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors, both when I sit in my home and when I go out on a journey.", + "Every time it is Your will that I should travel, let me go on my way with great holiness and purity, and with holy and pure thoughts. May I be protected from all evil.", + "Faith
Let the journeys I make rectify my lack of faith in the past. Let my “exile” and the exertions of traveling atone for any flaws I caused in the worlds above through my lack of faith. Please, HaShem, are Your eyes not directed to faith? “All Your commandments are faith. They have persecuted me falsely — help me.” Deal kindly with me and fill me with holy faith in You from now on and forever. Don’t let doubts of any kind enter my mind.", + "Help me from now on to return to You in complete and wholehearted repentance. God of forgiveness, You Who are kind and abundantly forgiving, compassionately pardon and forgive me for all the harm caused by my inadequate faith.", + "Help me correct in my lifetime all the damage I have caused to holy faith from my youth until today, whether in this incarnation or another. Let me rectify everything completely, quickly, swiftly and speedily. From now on may I have holy, genuine and perfect faith, just as You desire.", + "Exile and redemption
Have compassion on Yourself and on Your children, who have been wanderers and refugees for so many hundreds of years in this great exile. They are like a scattered flock with no one to gather them in. The Shekhinah is also in exile with them, as it were: “Like a bird wandering from its nest, so is a man who wanders from his place.” Because of the pressures of the times, Your nation, the Jewish people, are wanderers and refugees, unsettled and confused. Master of the entire world, see their plight and their suffering. Have mercy on their tribulations. Gather our exiled brothers from the four corners of the earth. Bring back our scattered ones from among the nations and gather in our dispersed from the edges of the earth. Bring us to Zion, Your city, in joy. Grant that I should travel to the Land of Israel in my lifetime, quickly, swiftly and speedily.", + "Torah study
Help me and enable me to devote myself to Your holy Torah for its own sake, continually, day and night. Help me repent completely and quickly rectify in my lifetime all the damage I have caused through the great sin of neglecting my Torah studies. I have neglected my studies for many days and years.", + "Have compassion on me! Let me make amends for my neglect, and from now on let me devote myself to Your Torah and Your service for their own sake at all times, truthfully and wholeheartedly. Let me give no sleep to my eyes nor slumber to my brow except the absolute minimum necessary for my health.", + "Rescue me from the snare of the trappers. Save me “like a hind from the hand and like a bird from the hand of the trapper.” Help me, for I rely on You. You have already begun to help me considerably, and it would not be fitting for You to abandon me.", + "Do it for Your sake and for the sake of the true tzaddikim, “the holy ones who are in the earth.” I’m relying only on their merit and I take refuge in their strength.", + "Help me to have perfect faith and trust in You at all times. Let me not undertake any activity or any business or any journey with the intention of trying to make money.", + "Just let me know and believe with perfect faith and firm trust that You will support me and provide me with everything I need for my livelihood, without my having to leave my home and travel at all, and without my having to make any effort or engage in any activity at all. May all my travels and activities be for no other purpose than to serve You. Let me only carry out Your will and have no thought of personal gain in any of my journeys or activities. For everything belongs to You: the soul is Yours and the body is Yours. Without You, I won’t lift my hand or foot to engage in any kind of business or travel anywhere in the world. “For You are my God; let Your good spirit lead me on level ground.”", + "You Yourself send me my livelihood in great plenty before I need it, so I will always be able to devote myself to Your Torah and Your service without the distraction of having to invest great effort in earning a living.", + "Open Your treasury of goodness for us and give rain in its proper time, for blessing, life and contentment. Send plenty into the world and let prices be low. Don’t let the Jewish people have to depend on one another or on any other nation. Draw peace into the world, and may the verse be fulfilled, “He makes your borders peaceful and sates you with the cream of the wheat.” Be my help at all times, so I can spend all my days in the true and enduring good — the study of Torah and devotion to God — in the way You desire.", + "May I not veer right or left from Torah teachings. Always guide me and teach me which path to follow and what I should do. “Do not abandon me, HaShem my God, do not be far from me. Hurry to my aid, God of my salvation.”" + ], + [ + "Drinking Wine / Dancing / Pidyon Nefesh
A Jew may drink wine in a measured fashion on holy occasions, such as on the Shabbat and festivals, or at a wedding or other mitzvah meal. He drinks in a restrained manner for the sake of Heaven, rejoicing in God Who chose the Jews from all nations — and thus he attains a Jewish joy. At last, his joy is drawn into his feet and he dances. As a result, he casts away the “external forces” that grasp the feet. He sweetens and nullifies all judgments and receives all blessings.
This fervent dancing is “a fire offering, a pleasing fragrance for HaShem.” (But if a person drinks wine unwisely, so that it is “wine that makes one drunk,” and he then dances with the fervor of his evil inclination, that is “a foreign fire.” Then the external forces take hold of him.)
This joyful dancing is similar to a pidyon nefesh (“soul-redemption”), which is the gift that one gives to a Tzaddik when he wishes to alleviate his suffering. Giving a pidyon to Tzaddikim and to God-fearing people has such a powerful effect that a person should accustom himself to do so often, in order to sweeten and nullify any judgments against himself. Even if he regularly so that he will not come to any difficulties.
In addition, “filling the throats of Torah sages with wine” attains a similar affect: it sweetens Heavenly judgments against a person.(Several Kabbalistic teachings alluded to in this prayer are explained in detail in Likutey Moharan.)
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, help me to be joyful always, particularly when I perform Your commandments.", + "Inspire me to be happy always. Lead me to always rejoice in You and in Your salvation, for all the kindness that You have done for the entire Jewish people. You chose us from all the nations, elevated us above all other peoples, sanctified us with Your commandments, and brought us close to You, God our King, even calling us by Your great and holy Name.", + "May I always recall this goodness, this incredible kindness, and rejoice in it always — every day and at every moment, and particularly on the Shabbat and festivals.", + "There is no limit to the many kindnesses and favors that You do for me constantly. How great is the goodness You have performed for me! “How will I repay HaShem for all His kindness to me?”", + "If all the seas were ink and all the marsh reeds were pens, and all people were scribes and all tongues filled with praise, they would not tell even a thousandth or a ten-thousandth of the enormous multitude of great and awesome favors and kindnesses, miracles and wonders that You, Master of the Heavenly hosts, have performed for me in Your kindness.", + "You have rescued my soul from every trouble and misfortune. “Much have You done, HaShem my God, Your wonders and thoughts are for our sake. No one compares with You. I would tell and speak them, but they are too many to recount.”", + "Help me to constantly recall Your favors and unceasing kindness to me, and to rejoice in how You constantly save me.", + "Dancing with Joy
Compassionate Father, help me to be happy always. Bring me to inspire myself constantly to be joyful, particularly on the Shabbat and festivals.", + "May this holy joy set my heart aflame with fervor and inspiration, with yearning and a desire for Your Name, with a desire to serve You in truth and faith, in great holiness and purity, until the fervor of my heart reaches my feet, so that I will lift them up and dance with sanctity and joy — particularly on the Shabbat, festivals and other days on which You performed miracles for the Jewish people.", + "Drinking Wine Judiciously
Keep me from ever becoming drunk. Protect me from intoxicating wine and from the fervor and dance that come from the Other Side. May I never experience any excitement of the evil inclination for any lust at all. Instead, may I only drink the wine “that gives joy to God and man.”", + "Whenever I need to drink wine or alcohol — on The Shabbat and festivals, or over a cup of blessing — may I drink a very small amount, just enough to expand my mind in holiness, so that I will attain the joy of the mitzvah, a true joy that leads to a holy fervor in my heart and sets it aflame with great sanctity for the sake of Your Name, so that I will truly serve You, just as You desire.", + "Protect me from overindulging in drink. Prevent me from ever growing intoxicated. Instead, give me the strength to arouse the spiritual root of “wine that gives joy,” of wine that “causes the heart of man to rejoice.”", + "Inspire my heart to constantly rejoice with a truly great happiness, until I dance in holiness. Help me to dance with a heart filled with a fervent sanctity that comes from “the wine that gives joy,” until I will sweeten and even eliminate all the harsh judgments that grasp the heels and feet. Give me the strength to weaken, break and eliminate those judgments. May all judgments — whether against me or against Your Jewish people — be eliminated, from this moment and forever.", + "Instead, draw down onto us all the spiritual root associated with the concept of the firstborn and the blessing given to the firstborn. Call us, “My son, My firstborn, Israel.” And may the verse be realized, “Indeed, I will appoint the Jewish people as the firstborn, superior to the kings of the earth.”", + "Draw down onto us a constant flow of goodness, blessing, compassion, life, peace and everything good. Draw peace onto us and remove all disharmony from the world.", + "A Gift for a Tzaddik
Help me to always give a pidyon, a monetary gift for redemption, to the true Tzaddikim of the generation. Compassionate God, arouse the spiritual root of the spiritual energies called the three “holy hands” in the realm of Binah: the “great hand,” the “strong hand” and the “uplifted hand. ”", + "Compassionate God, arouse Your forty-two letter Name, which forms the acronym of the forty-two words in the prayer, Ana Bakoach:
Please, in the power of the greatness of Your right hand, untie the bundled sins.", + "Accept the song of Your nation. Raise us, purify us, Awesome One.", + "Please, Mighty One, guard those who seek Your unity like the apple of Your eye.", + "Bless them, purify them. Constantly requite them with the compassion of Your righteousness.", + "Powerful, Holy One, in Your great goodness, guide Your congregation.", + "Unique One, Proud One, turn to Your nation who recall Your holiness. Accept our entreaty and hear our cry, You Who know hidden things.", + "In the merit of the seven Names of God formed by the acronym of each line, may all judgments be sweetened at their root.", + "Compassionate God, arouse supernal compassion from the light of Your countenance. Arouse the 370 lights of Your supernal countenance and the eight whitenesses, 1A Kabbalistic concept referring to the supernal beard of the Divine Persona, Arikh Anpin, which implies great compassion. which add up to 378, the numerical value of the word bashalom (“in peace”). In this way, sweeten and eliminate all judgments against me and against Your entire nation, the Jewish people, constantly and forever.", + "Draw down and bind together these seven Names, each of which is composed of six letters, with the pillars that represent support and money, so that they will unite and join together like the “silver hooks and bands of the pillars”— which teaches that when we connect the Names of God, we draw down God’s lovingkindness.", + "In this way, draw Your supernal kindness — which is the pure and holy “silver”— onto me, so that all judgments will be removed from me, from all my descendants, and from all the descendants of Your Jewish people, forever.", + "Completely heal all Jews who are ill.2If you wish at this point to pray on behalf of someone who is ill, add here, “and in particular, [name], son / daughter of [mother’s name].” Heal all their diseases and pain, and restore them to their full strength soon. Swiftly send them a recovery from Heaven, a healing of the spirit and of the body, for You are the Heavenly King, a faithful and compassionate Healer.", + "Compassionate God, give me the ability to accept pidyon offerings and, by so doing, sweeten Heavenly judgments against the Jewish people, as a whole and as individuals. Give me the ability to draw kindness onto those who need it by accepting redemption money, or by drinking the “wine that gives rejoicing” in a state of great sanctity, and I should lift my hands and feet to You, Supernal God, Creator of heaven and earth, with a truly complete faith, with a holy fervor of the heart and great joy, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Draw down onto me the supernal protection that comes from the supernal state of existence called chashmal.", + "Purify me and my garments — my physical and my spiritual garments. Guard me when I go out and when I come in, so that I will enjoy a good life and peace, from now and forever.", + "Supporting the Tzaddikim
Compassionate God, help me to fill the throats of true Torah scholars with the “wine that brings rejoicing.” Help me to bring them to great joy. Help me to generously give Torah scholars and true Tzaddikim a great deal of money for the sake of the redemption of my soul, the souls of my sons and daughters and all my descendants, within the totality of the souls of the Jewish people — until all judgments will be sweetened at their source, and Your trait of kindness will overwhelm Your trait of judgment.", + "Compassionate God, arouse Your supernal kindness to flow down upon me, so that Your kindness will pour over me, bringing me Your righteousness, blessing, compassion, life and peace.", + "Bless me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, so that at every moment we will enjoy Your good peace.", + "May peace increase in the world. And may the verses be realized, “All your children will be learned of HaShem, and your children will enjoy much peace.” ", + "“May great peace come down upon those who love Your Torah, so that they will not stumble.” “And you will see your children’s children, peace upon Israel.” “May there be peace within your wall, tranquility within your palaces. For the sake of my brothers and friends, I will speak peace to you. For the sake of the house of HaShem our God, I will seek goodness for you. May HaShem give His nation strength, may HaShem bless His nation with peace.”" + ], + [ + "Melody / Sweetening Heavenly Judgments / Singing the Words of Prayer / Faith in the Sages / A Beautiful Garment / Shofar-Blowing on Rosh HaShanah
With melody, Heavenly judgments against a person are mitigated. The sound of the melody corresponds to the rainbow, which is God’s “eternal covenant” with man. When God sees a rainbow, as it were, “the anger of the King dies down.” This is particularly so when a person sings the words of prayer, which corresponds to that rainbow.
The Tzaddik too corresponds to the rainbow. Thus when we have faith in the sages, when we believe that all their words and deeds are not shallow but contain mysteries, then Heavenly judgments are mitigated as well. Such rectifications are brought about particularly when a person makes a beautiful garment for a Tzaddik. Shofar-blowing on Rosh HaShanah also corresponds to the rainbow, and that mitigates Heavenly judgments as well.
“God, hear my song, listen to my prayer!”", + "HaShem my God, guide me to pray to You with deep feeling, great joy and genuine inspiration.", + "Have compassion on me. Lead me to pray to You in a voice of joy and song, to sing the words of prayer in a melody so beautiful, pure and clear that it will clothe Your mighty presence in shining garments, so that You will be filled with compassion for Your nation, the Jewish people, and so that, as You look at our suffering, our poverty, our burdens and our oppression — in body, soul and livelihood — You will repeal Your anger at us.", + "Then the verse will be realized, “When I see the rainbow, I will recall the eternal covenant.”", + "Remember Your covenant with our forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob! Have compassion on us for their sake. Listen to our prayers and our outcries. When our song comes before You, may the verse be realized, “He saw their suffering when He heard their song.”", + "Sweeten and remove all judgments from me and from Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Draw onto us a wealth of goodness, blessing, compassion, life, peace and everything good. Shower us with Your goodness and kindness forever.", + "In Your great compassion, fill us with holy faith in You and with perfect faith in the sages.", + "Help me to be aware that all the words and deeds of the sages and true Tzaddikim are not ordinary, but contain secrets. Then I will attain the light of Your presence, and I will be able to remove the garments of darkness — a superficial understanding of the Torah — and replace them with shining garments, which are the secrets of the Torah. In that way, I will sweeten and eliminate all judgments against myself and against Your entire nation, the Jewish people, forever and ever.", + "For Rosh HaShanah
Help me to clothe worthy, poor people. Help me to make beautiful clothes for truly righteous people.", + "Compassionate God, may I hear a worthy, God-fearing person blow the shofar on Rosh HaShanah. May the sounds of the shofar blast — the tekiah, shevarim and teruah — rise up to You and arouse the merits of our forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Gaze down in their merit and sweeten and eliminate Your anger at us. Return to us. Shine Your countenance down upon us.", + "Father and King, be gracious to me and allow me to attain everything that I have sought of You. Help me, please! Have pity on me! I have relied on You alone. “Please, HaShem, save us! Please, HaShem, cause us to succeed!”", + "Help me, Your servant, to succeed from this day forward. Help me to leap across all the vain things and desires of this world quickly and easily. Guide me so that I will connect myself to You genuinely and intensely, so that I will cling to You and serve You constantly, day and night.", + "Do so for the sake of Your Name. Do so for the sake of Your right hand. My needs are so many and my mind is too limited to express them all — all those things, great and small, that I need to serve You. There would not be enough days to describe all the obstacles in my path. My entire lifetime would not suffice to pray and plead with You to break down all my obstacles and bring all my potential into actuality.", + "I know that my sins have kept me far from holiness. I rely on You alone. My eyes turn to You and Your compassion at every moment, at every second. “My eyes are raised to the heights, HaShem. I have been oppressed, be my guarantor.” “Be a guarantor to Your servant for the good; do not let the wicked oppress me!”", + "Help me in the merit of the patriarchs and all the true Tzaddikim. I rely only on their merit. I take refuge in them. Although I am far from holiness, in Your compassion, be gracious to me. Sanctify me with Your supernal holiness. Help me soon to attain everything holy, so that I will turn aside completely from evil and perform many mitzvot — learning Torah, praying and performing good deeds every day of my life.", + "In Your great compassion, teach me which particular mitzvah is connected to the root of my soul. Draw my spirit after that mitzvah connected to my supernal root, so that I will perform it a great deal, constantly, so that in the course of my life I will rectify everything that I have defiled.", + "Always be filled with compassion for me. Do not be angry at me. Do not respond to me in accordance with my sins or judge me in accordance with my deeds.", + "“Restore us, our saving God, and eliminate Your anger with us. HaShem, show us Your lovingkindness and give us Your salvation. Arise, help us, and redeem us for the sake of Your lovingkindness. Do not hide Your face from me on a day of trouble for me. Turn Your ear to me on the day that I call; respond to me quickly. I will sing of Your might and sing of Your lovingkindness in the morning, for You have been my tower and a refuge on my day of trouble. God, I will sing a new song to You, I will make music to You with the ten-stringed instrument. I will sing to HaShem with my life, I will make melody to my God with my being. My Mighty One, I will make melody to You, for God is my tower, God Who is kind to me.”" + ], + [ + "Not Listening to Intelligent, Wicked Men / Overcoming Licentious Thoughts
The words of a wicked person who is intelligent give birth to licentiousness in the mind of the person who listens to him. Therefore, we must take care not to heed the words of such a person, for they are a venomous vapor that issues forth from his mouth and into the body of the person listening to him.
So Balaam, who was the paradigm of such an intelligent, wicked man, breathed forth the vapors of licentiousness into Midian through his words, which expressed his state of consciousness. As a result, even though the Jewish soldiers who attacked Midian were not physically harmed, they did not escape unscathed, for their minds were affected by lascivious fantasies.
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, in Your compassion keep me from becoming friends with wicked people. Close my ears from hearing their brazen words — words which are a poisonous brew of lust and which arouse lust in those who hear them.", + "HaShem, keep me far away from those words. You know that I am only flesh and blood, and I cannot protect myself. In fact, “I am a beast and not a man,” so I don’t even know how to tell the difference between a righteous person and a wicked person.", + "Therefore, I cast my burden onto You, so that You will keep me far away from wicked people — so that I will never speak with them and never even hear their words.", + "And even if I must speak with them, protect me, Mighty God. Put me in Your “booth of peace” and conceal me in the shadow of Your wings, so that I will be safe from their poisonous words. Protect me so that their venom and arrows will not enter into me and their blemished words will not harm me. Sanctify me with Your supernal holiness and help me to guard the covenant. Have pity on me and be with me always.", + "Kind God, save me. Help me to crush and uproot Balaam’s influence of lust upon the world. Draw onto me and onto Your entire nation, the Jewish people, the holiness and purity of Moses and the holiness of all the true Tzaddikim who guard the covenant.", + "In their merit, revive me and protect me so that I too will guard the covenant. Starting from this moment, keep me away from every imperfection of the covenant, from every sort of evil musing and from every type of mental confusion. Help me to attain the holiness of the covenant and the utmost holiness of the mind.", + "Tranquility and Purity
Compassionate God, keep me from ever getting angry or irritated. Help me to be constantly good to everyone. Let me never feel any anger or irritation in my heart. Guide me to serve You and connect myself to the true Tzaddikim, the holy Torah and You with a strong bond that lasts forever — genuinely, with all my heart and with complete faith.", + "“You Whose eyes are pure and do not look upon evil,” sanctify me and purify me of all uncleanness and pollution, particularly the pollution of sexual lust.", + "“Save me from the mud so that I will not sink. May I be saved from my enemies and from the depths of the waters.” Raise me up “from the tumultuous pit, from the miry clay.” Keep my mind from being contaminated. Protect me from evil musings and thoughts. Help me because I rely on You, because I have no one else upon whom to rely but You, my Father in Heaven. May the verse be realized in me, “I will sprinkle pure waters upon you and purify You; of all Your contaminations and all your idols, I will purify you.”", + "“Do not abandon me, HaShem my God. Do not grow distant from me. Hurry to help me, HaShem Who saves me.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Clapping Hands in Prayer / Attaining the Atmosphere of the Land of Israel / Overcoming Foreign Thoughts / Giving Charity to Causes in the Land of Israel / The Sacrifices
Everything in creation expresses “the might (ko’ach) of God’s hands.” The Hebrew word ko’ach has the numerical value of twenty-eight, corresponding both to the twenty-eight letters of the work of creation (i.e., the number of letters in the first verse in Genesis) and the twenty-eight joints of both hands.
When a person claps his hands in prayer, he arouses the twenty-eight letters of creation. His environment then grows more manifestly transparent to the rule of God, and thereby partakes of the quality of the holy atmosphere of the Land of Israel. Now he is considered to be living in the Land of Israel, where he “has a God.” And since the Land of Israel makes a person wise, once he has attained the quality of the Land of Israel, his thoughts are purified and the secrets of the Torah are revealed.
In turn, he rectifies foreign thoughts that may enter his prayer. Foreign thoughts that disturb one’s prayers are called a “flood” because they engulf one’s thoughts and words. However, the original Flood did not affect the Land of Israel. Therefore, as a person attains the quality of the Land of Israel, he is saved from the flood of foreign thoughts. One way to achieve this is to give charity to causes in the Land of Israel. At the same time, as this person claps his hands in prayer, he drives away the impure air of his environment and eliminates the thoughts of idolaters, including the elimination of murder and manslaughter.
Prayers correspond to the Temple sacrifice called the tamid (“continuous offering”), which itself corresponds to the Land of Israel, which is also called tamid. Because a person’s prayer changes his spiritual atmosphere, he should find a regular place to pray. Otherwise, he will experience the atmosphere that someone else has invoked as he prays — and that can be harmful, even if that other person is righteous.
HaShem my God, God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, help me always to pray to You with all my heart and spirit; with powerful intent; with true holiness; with purity and faith; with awe, love and clarity.", + "Free my mind of foreign thoughts. May all my prayers take place on holy ground. May I sanctify the ground on which I stand so that it is as holy as the Land of Israel.", + "Awaken my heart to pray to You with awesome inspiration, until my hands are so invigorated that I raise them up to You and clap them together in joy and wondrous animation for the sake of Your Name alone.", + "And as a result of clapping my hands together, may the power of Your hands — the twenty-eight bones of the supernal hands, which are the twenty-eight letters of the work of creation — be aroused. Then I will be able to purify and clear the air where I stand in prayer, so that it will be “the air of the Land of Israel which grants wisdom,” a holy atmosphere that drives away the unclean air of other lands. This can occur because everything belongs to You, because You created Your world, in accordance with Your desire, with the twenty-eight bones of the holy hands, which are the twenty-eight letters of the work of creation.", + "“Indeed, Your hand founded the earth and Your right hand spread out the heavens” and, “By the word of HaShem were the heavens made and by the breath of His mouth, all their host.” Through Your beneficent will, You gave the Jewish people the strength to conquer the Land of Israel from the seven nations and purify the land, driving out the unclean atmosphere of these nations and drawing down the atmosphere of holiness, so that ultimately, the entire world will be sanctified with the holiness of the Land of Israel. “You have told Your nation the power of His deeds, to give them the inheritance of the nations.”", + "Have compassion on me and strengthen me. Give me the ability to purify whatever place I may be in by clapping my hands in prayer, in order to arouse the power of Your deeds and draw down the holy atmosphere of the Land of Israel, which will drive away the unclean atmosphere of the other lands.", + "In this way, may I purify my prayers so that they will be free of foreign thoughts, idolatry and heresy. In Your compassion and lovingkindness, save me from all of these.", + "And guide me to support the worthy poor people who live in the Land of Israel, until I myself will be absorbed into the atmosphere of that land.", + "In this way, expel the waters of the Flood from my mind — those foreign thoughts and confusions that constantly prevent me from serving You and, particularly, from praying. All this has befallen me and upset my prayers so much that “the strength to bear the load has collapsed.” I have sinned so much that the waters have risen “greatly over the earth until they cover all the high mountains” — until I can barely withstand this jumble of foreign thoughts — “for we have sinned so much.”", + "Rescue Me from the Flood of Confusion
Master of the Universe, You know what powers rise up against me, particularly when I pray. You know my heart. Look at my inner poverty, the pressures I face and the burden that I bear.", + "“Save us, God, for the waters threaten our lives, I have sunken into the deep mud and there is nowhere to stand. I have entered into the depths of the waters and the current has swept over me.”", + "Master of the World, “do not let the current sweep over me. Do not let the depths swallow me up. Do not allow the pit to shut its mouth on me.” “Rescue me from the mire, so that I will not sink. Rescue me from my enemies and from the deep waters.” “HaShem, be gracious and have compassion on me. Have pity on me. Save me. Rescue me. Be gracious to me, HaShem — deliver me!”", + "“I stretch my hands out to You.” The depths and confusions have overwhelmed the earth, and I have no way, no idea, of how to rescue myself — except to rely on You completely to save me, just as You saved the Land of Israel from the waters of the Flood. As the verse states, it is “a land that was not rained upon on a day of wrath.”", + "May the place where I stand when I pray have the holiness of the Land of Israel. Remove the waters of the Flood, the mutinous waters — the foreign thoughts and confusions that disrupt my prayer. May they have no power to mislead me. Let my prayer be lucid and proper, clear and unblemished. May it rise and gain favor before Your throne of glory, so that I will attain the supernal secrets of the Torah, and so that You will take pride in my prayers in all the worlds and take delight in my prayers and requests.", + "May the verse be realized in me, “You will be a beautiful crown in the hand of HaShem, and a diadem of royalty in the hand of your God.”", + "“God Who hears prayer, to Whom all flesh comes, listen to my prayer, my cries and groans, which come from the deepest depths. Do not hide Your face from me. Do not turn Your ear from my outcry.”", + "“Do not abandon me, HaShem my God. Do not be far from me. Come quickly to help me, HaShem, You Who are my salvation.”" + ], + [ + "Clapping Hands in Prayer / Redeeming Speech That Was in Exile
Clapping hands in prayer spiritually prepares a person’s lungs to provide air and the potential words for his prayers. Moreover, that clapping prepares his mouth for prayer.
In the Egyptian exile, speech was in exile. The speech of prayer brings about redemption. And it is clapping that makes it possible for the mouth to receive words from the lungs.
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, when I clap my hands in prayer, may I arouse the holy wings — which correspond to my lungs — to bring You whole and holy words.", + "And when I clap the five fingers of my right hand against the five fingers of my left hand, and the five fingers of my left hand against the five fingers of my right hand, may I cause the lights in Heaven to strike against each other as well, until they unite together. Then the Fifty Gates of Understanding, the great Jubilee, will be awakened, and I will reach the complete redemption — in both the physical and spiritual realms — and bring the speech of holiness out of its exile. Then may I sanctify my mouth to receive these words, so that I will be able to pray to You constantly with a full mouth and with holy, complete words, in great sanctity and purity, so that my words will rise and be accepted before Your throne of glory, and all my requests will be compassionately fulfilled for good." + ], + [ + "Clapping Hands in Prayer / Sweetening Heavenly Judgments / Improving Memory / Eliminating Dispute
Clapping in prayer unites us with God. It sweetens Heavenly judgments, which is good for memory — because when a person mitigates such judgments, he progresses from a constricted consciousness to an expanded consciousness, and the latter does not forget. Also, when we clap our hands in prayer, we eliminate dispute — for the left hand is joined to the right and the right hand is joined to the left, and they unite as one.
God, when I clap my hands in prayer, may I sweeten all the harsh judgments in the world and arouse the three holy “hands” in Heaven — the “great hand,” the “strong hand” and the “upraised hand” — which are the three holy names of God’s Name, YHVH.", + "In this way, may I sweeten and nullify all the judgments that come from the three expansions of God’s Name, Elohim, in the throat. May I draw the three expansions of YHVH into the three expansions of Elohim to sweeten them, so that all judgments will be sweetened and eliminated both for me and for Your entire nation, the Jewish people, now and forever; so that I will drive away a constricted state of consciousness, and You will remove forgetfulness from me and bring me to a state of holy, expanded consciousness and the constant awareness of all the words of Your holy Torah; so that I will never forget a single word of what I have learned.", + "May I eliminate all sorts of dispute in the world, so that the left side will be absorbed into the right side, and You will draw great peace into the world and remove the sword and murder and destruction, and bring about the realization of the verse, “I will place peace in the world, and no sword will pass through your land.”", + "Have mercy and pity on me so that I will pray before You with great feeling — with heart and soul — with great inspiration, with awe, great fear and total devotion that comes from love, and with a mighty joy and gladness that comes from clear and proper thoughts.", + "Rebuke all foreign thoughts, so that they will not have the power to upset my prayer, Heaven forbid.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, bring me to a constant holiness of thought, particularly when I pray and present my requests to You. For my strength is only in my mouth, and at present, I have no support except for prayer.", + "Help me to pray to You with great feeling and a fiery heart, until my hands are aroused for Your sake so that I clap them in great holiness. “Let us lift up our hearts with our hands to God in Heaven.” “I have stretched my hands out to You. My spirit is like a weary land for You, my spirit is in my palm always, and I have not forgotten Your Torah.”", + "Help me to find a permanent spot in which to pray. Thus assist me so that in the merit of Abraham, I will sanctify that spot and pray with the holiness of the Land of Israel.", + "May my mind be as lucid as pure silver, without any admixture or dross, without any foreign thoughts or mental confusion, because “in Your hand is power and might, and Your hand can enhance and strengthen all. And now, may the power of HaShem be increased.”", + "In Your great might, strengthen me to overcome the wicked kingdom of Edom. Quickly redeem me. May I come to the Land of Israel swiftly and easily, without misadventure.", + "Bring our righteous Mashiach and redeem us all with an eternal redemption, “unifying the tent” so that it will be one — speedily, in our days. Amen." + ], + [ + "Overcoming the Desire for Food / Receiving Spiritual Abundance / Attaining Truth / Becoming God’s Partner in Creating Heaven and Earth / Performing Miracles / Earning a Generous Income / Fasting to Break One’s Desire for Eating
The verse states, “Not in poverty will you eat bread in the Land of Israel.”
Sometimes a person eats bread because he has nothing else available. But the implicit meaning of this verse is that in the Land of Israel — the land of life — a person will overcome his desire for food. Then he will eat bread simply because he has no wish to eat anything else.
The Land of Israel receives its abundance from the realm of truth and, in turn, sustains the rest of the world. It is the conduit through which we receive abundance. Therefore, when we eat, we must have in mind to receive that true spiritual abundance — instead of eating due to physical desire — with the intent of then thanking God.
When a person eats only to satisfy his soul and not due to physical desire, God feeds him from the trait of truth. Then, when he praises God with the power that he derives from such eating, he speaks words of truth. With that power, he can become God’s partner in creating heaven and earth. Then this person can perform miracles. God guides the world through the laws of nature, which are in accordance with the heavenly spheres. Since this holy individual can create a new heaven, he can change those spheres and thus do wonders.
On a less lofty level, a person who clings to truth can earn a generous income, since truth is the source of abundance.
If, however, a person is steeped in the desire for eating, God hides His countenance from him, and the person is far from truth. Even if he is a righteous individual, if he experiences a desire for eating, this indicates that he has spoken falsehood. Furthermore, Heavenly judgments rule over a person who is steeped in the desire for food, and he is liable to experience shame and poverty.
Thus when Jews experience troubles, they fast. Troubles are a time when God’s countenance is hidden and He judges the world. When Jews fast, they break their desire for eating. This leads to spiritual illumination and God’s “uplifted countenance” — and He sweetens and eliminates His judgments.
My Father, my King — Mighty One, Creator, Redeemer, Holy God of Jacob, Shepherd of Israel, Helper and Savior — in Your compassion and mercy, eliminate my desire for eating so that I will make do with little, with just enough to maintain my wellbeing, in strict and careful measure, and be satisfied with that.", + "Eliminate my feelings of hunger. Help me to gain vitality and satiate myself with just a little bit of food. Guide me to eat with the most careful precision, from the measure of an olive to that of an egg, so that I will eat in great holiness and purity, in accordance with Your desire.", + "And may I draw my sustenance, my income and all good influences from the Land of Israel — the land of holiness, the land of life — in which the root of all abundance and blessing may be found.", + "Keep Me Far from Falsehood
In Your great compassion, help me to internalize the trait of Jacob, which is truth, so that I will always speak words of truth and never lie, accidentally or on purpose, against my will or willingly.", + "Guard me from ever telling a lie, even by mistake. Keep me as far from falsehood as possible. As the verse states, “Distance yourself from falsehood.”", + "Help me to be the embodiment of truth in all things, so that I will walk on the path of truth and speak truth in my heart, without wavering and without turning aside from the core of truthfulness.", + "God, You are filled with compassion. You are merciful to the poor. You do so much good. Give me the gift of truth as an offering of Your kindness, so that the verse will be realized, “You give truth to Jacob, kindness to Abraham, as You have promised our forefathers from the earliest days.”", + "The Land of Life
And as a result, may I pray in the Land of Israel — the land of life. May I draw abundance and blessing from that land — an abundant flow of goodness, blessing, compassion, life, peace, prosperity and everything good from You — for me and for Your entire nation, the House of Israel.", + "Attaining Abundance
Send me an abundance of income before I need it, which I may attain permissibly, easily and honorably. Do not make me dependent on gifts or loans of flesh and blood.", + "Overcoming the Desire for Eating
“HaShem, God of truth, Living God and King of the world,” help me soon to break my desire for eating.", + "Everything is revealed to You. You know the concealed chambers of my heart, and how many thousands of obstacles and stumbling blocks stand in my way, so that I have no idea how to conduct myself in this area at all.", + "Treat me kindly, Father in Heaven. Do not repay me in accordance with my deeds. Be gracious to me and sanctify me with Your supernal holiness. Give me this gift of lovingkindness that will make it possible for me to soon break my lust for eating.", + "And when I do eat, may it be with great holiness and purity, for the sake of Your great Name only, without any bodily desire at all.", + "And with the power of eating in such a holy way, may I thank and praise Your great and holy Name always, and speak words of truth always, and glorify You, my Maker, for the honor of Your sovereignty, until — as a result of my speaking in truth and great holiness — I will enter the embrace of the true Tzaddikim, the wonderworkers who create a new heaven and earth with their words of truth, and who perform great and genuine wonders in Heaven and on earth. May I too, with Your great help, perform such true wonders, revealing and publicizing You, You mastery, sovereignty, greatness and splendor to everyone, so that the entire world will know that You alone direct Your universe with Your beneficent will, and will recognize the power of Your love for Your nation, the Jewish people, to whom You gave the ability to nullify and change nature with their prayers and perform great wonders.", + "Master of the World, “I have stretched my hands out to You.” Guide me to obey Your decrees and guard Your laws, and adhere to Your beneficent will always, from now and forever.", + "To Come to the Land of Israel
Give me the merit to come to the Land of Israel — the land of life, the land of holiness — swiftly and easily. May I roll in its dust, kiss its earth, draw down its holy atmosphere and take refuge in its shadow.", + "Bring me quickly and in peace to the Land of Israel, the land that You chose from all lands, the land sanctified with ten levels of holiness, the land of life, “the land where you will not eat bread in poverty, where you will lack no good, the land that HaShem your God seeks constantly; the eyes of HaShem your God are on it constantly, from the beginning of the year until the end of the year.”", + "Heavenly Compassion
Have compassion on me. Allow me to quickly attain everything that I have sought from You — particularly to completely break my lust for eating, attain truth and quickly come in peace to the Land of Israel.", + "Rescue me from poverty and lack. Draw an abundance of goodness, blessing, income, compassion, life, peace and all good constantly upon me, my family, everyone in my circle and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever.", + "Take pride in me throughout all the universes, so that the verse will be realized in me, “Israel, in whom I take pride.”", + "Rescue me from insult and shame. Do not hide Your face from me, but be compassionate to me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, always.", + "Sweeten and nullify all the harsh decrees against me. Rescue me from all sorts of suffering and evil. Turn Your face to me, so that the verse will be realized in me, “May HaShem raise His face to you and give you peace.”", + "Shine Your countenance onto me, Your servant, and teach me Your decrees.", + "Shine Your countenance onto me, Your servant, and save me in Your kindness. As the verse states, “God will be gracious to us and bless us; He will shine His countenance upon us.”", + "Then, as the verses state, “You will eat and be satiated, and praise the Name of HaShem your God, Who has done wonders for you, and My nation will never be ashamed. And you will know that I am in the midst of Israel. I am HaShem your God, and there is no other; and My nation will not be ashamed forever. HaShem, God of hosts, restore us. Shine Your countenance upon us, and we will be saved.” Amen, amen." + ], + [ + "Forceful Prayer / The Holy Sukkah / Childbearing
The force (ko’ach) that a person invests in his prayer corresponds to the twenty-eight letters with which God created the universe, 3See p. 43. {Beginning of Prayer #44} letters from which the Ten Utterances of creation4 The Ten Utterances correspond to the nine statements that begin with the words, “God said,” in the Torah account of creation, and to the first verse of Genesis, “In the beginning, God created the Heaven and the earth,” which is called the “Hidden Utterance.” receive their power. These words of forcefully-stated prayer are themselves the words of God, the “might of His deeds.”
Through the vehicle of the Ten Utterances, God’s creative power expresses itself as kindness. This kindness is associated with the embrace of His right hand, which corresponds to the sukkah on the festival of Sukkot. Conversely, unholy words are associated with a “sukkah of the gentiles” and the embrace of the Other Side. Should the holy sukkah be damaged, then the gentiles gain power with their right hand of falsehood.
When things go well, the three related elements — the holy sukkah, powerful prayer and the Land of Israel — are all beneficial for childbearing, deriving power from the “might of his deeds.”
In the future, the gentiles will be tested by the mitzvah of sukkah, until they come to serve God with one accord and truth will gain ascendancy.
For Sukkot
“You Who hears prayer, all flesh will come to You. HaShem, listen to my prayer; heed the voice of my pleading. HaShem, hear the voice of my pleas as I cry out to You, as I raise my hands to Your Holy Temple.”", + "Rock of all worlds, Creator of the universe, in Your compassion and kindness, guide me to always pray to You with truth and with all my might. As the verse states, “All my bones will proclaim, ‘HaShem, who is like You!’”", + "Guide me to put all the energy in my bones, sinews and flesh — in all my body and soul — into my words of prayer, so that I will speak every word with vigor and truth, and feel the words in all my bones and limbs. Help me to pray with might and with truly great intent.", + "You are the God of truth. Your words are true and last forever. You desire truth. And You know how far I am from even one word of prayer, how I am unable to pray with true and proper energy and devotion. But even worse, because I have sinned, I am completely removed from prayer.", + "“I lift my eyes to the heights.” Master of the World, “I have stretched out my hands to You. To You, HaShem, I raise my spirit.” But I do not know how I can please and appease You.", + "I do not know what counsel to take. How can I find the goodness that is crushed within me? How can I find the goodness that has flown away from me because of my many sins? In particular, I have tainted my speech. I have not guarded my mouth, but spoken degraded words throughout my life and to this day, without measure or number, speaking nonsense, slander, gossip, mockery, lies, profanity and more.", + "Even my words of holiness have been profoundly blemished. When I consider my ways, I see that I have never spoken a single untainted word in my entire life.", + "As a result, I have been overwhelmed by dispute, and many people have risen up against me. “The kings of the world sit, and princes have taken counsel together against HaShem and His anointed one. They have placed their mouths against Heaven and their tongues walk about on the earth.” Arrogance wafts from their mouths and they defame You, the true Tzaddikim and the entire Jewish people, Your holy nation, whom You have chosen.", + "The Fallen Booth of David
Master of the Universe, “send forth Your hand from the heights. Rescue me and deliver me from the many waters, from the hand of foreigners whose mouth has spoken vanity and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.”", + "Woe to my soul! I have brought all this about with my many sins. I have extended the exile and damaged the fallen booth of David. And not only have I made no effort to raise the booth of David, but with my many sins, I have cast it down even further and given strength to the booth of the nations and to their speech — until, because of my many sins, the Shekhinah and the Congregation of Israel are in a great exile, and the Shekhinah fights on behalf of Her children (the Children of Israel) who have been exiled from the table of their Father and have left their land.", + "Master of the World, look upon my numerous troubles and heavy burdens. Every day I cry out before Your throne of glory, asking You to bring me back to You with perfect repentance. Yet still I have not atoned for my errors and foolishness.", + "Compassionate God, keep me from sinking into the deep mud of the desires of this world. I have been cast away from the land of life. I have been tainted — have mercy on my heart, which is twisted and perverse.", + "I stand before You, filled with shame and disgrace.", + "Save me, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, from sinning any more.", + "Help me! Save me! Be gracious to me and raise me up!", + "“You save the poor person from the one stronger than he, and the poor man and the impoverished man from the one who robs him.” Rescue me! Deliver me! “HaShem, I have been oppressed, be my guarantor.”", + "My Father in Heaven, have compassion on me. Help me and strengthen me. Guide me to obey Your decrees and keep Your laws, so that I will not lose this world — even though it is a world of nothingness, since all our days are vanity and emptiness: a fleeting dream, a passing shadow, a disappearing cloud, a blowing wind, a scattering dust.", + "Woe, oh woe! Woe and sorrow! Alas, my Master, alas, my Father! Be kind to me. Give me the gift of Your compassion. Be gracious to me so that I will not be lost.", + "Redeem me for Your sake. Be gracious to me if only because I belong to the holy Jewish people. You know that my only hope is to cry out to You and beseech Your grace.", + "You Who are close to everyone who calls to You, answer me. You Who are elevated forever, HaShem, assist me. You Who are holy beyond all holiness, sanctify me.", + "Raise up Your booth that has fallen repeatedly, which You alone can lift. Lift it up quickly, one level after another, from the lowest pit to the greatest height.", + "Transform my heart from evil to good. Turn my heart to You in truth, in accordance with Your desire. Help me to sanctify myself in all areas, particularly my mouth and my sexual purity.", + "Help me to never speak an untruthful or unethical word. Guard my mouth so that I will pray to You with all my might and with ultimate truth. May I be absorbed into You when I pray, so that all the words of my prayer will be Your own words; so that through my prayer, the twenty-eight letters of the work of creation — which are the Ten Utterances with which You created the world — will be aroused, and You will draw down Your great kindness onto me and spread the booth of Your peace over me, and embrace me with Your right hand. Then I will take refuge in Your holy shadow, and You will protect me from all my enemies in the physical and spiritual realms.", + "Conceal me in the shadow of Your wings, so that the verse will be realized, “His left hand is beneath my head and His right hand embraces me.”", + "Help me to keep the mitzvah of sukkah in its proper time, with all its details and intentions, and with the 613 mitzvot that are dependent on it, with a good heart and with great joy.", + "Subjugate, cast down, crush, uproot and nullify the sukkah of the nations, “whose mouth has spoken vanity and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.” Remove that falsehood and strengthen truth.", + "Raise up the fallen booth of David, so that the verse will be realized, “A lip of truth shall be established forever, but a tongue of falsehood is merely for a moment.”", + "Conceal me in Your holy booth and cover me with Your holy shadow. Rescue me from dispute, so that people’s tongues will have no power over me. Uproot falsehood and reveal truth in the world. And bring me soon to the holy Land of Israel, swiftly and easily.", + "Blessings for One’s Children
Through Your unbounded compassion, give us healthy children who will serve You, fear You and learn Your Torah.5 If you wish at this point to pray on behalf of someone who is having trouble raising his children, add here, “and in particular, [name], son / daughter of [mother’s name].”May they and all their descendants lead good and long lives.6“In particular, [name], son / daughter of [mother’s name].”", + "Have compassion on them and on me in the merit of their ancestors. Give them — and me — the gift of Your compassion, and declare an end to suffering.", + "“Do good, HaShem, to those who are good, and to those who are straight in their hearts.”", + "May they have “peace within their walls, tranquility within their homes, with no breaches, no outbreaks, no outcry in the streets — forever, for all their generations.”", + "Though their beginning may be small, may their end be great, as when there will be a new heaven and earth. May their offspring prosper until that time.", + "Protect them and all the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, from an evil eye, from evil occurrences and from all plagues and diseases. From Heaven, maintain the health of their 248 limbs and 365 sinews. “May they spend their days in goodness and their years in pleasantness.”", + "May they have children and children’s children, to the end of all generations. Have compassion on them — and on me — for the sake of Your Name. Raise them for a long life of “Torah, the wedding canopy and good deeds.” “They will yet bring forth fruit in old age, they shall be full of sap and fresh.”", + "My Needs are Too Many to Express
God, You Who are filled with compassion, my needs are many and my mind is too limited to express them all.", + "You know everything that I lack. Fulfill my requests for good with compassion — for Your sake, not for mine.", + "Have mercy and pity on me. Help me to return to You in truth and with a full heart, to do Your will all the days of my life, so that I will never return to my foolishness. “If I have acted sinfully, I will no longer do so.”", + "Have compassion on me so that I will be the person You want me to be, now and forever. Reveal Your truth in the world, so that everyone will return to serve You in truth, awe and love.", + "May the verses quickly be realized, “Then I will give all the nations a clear speech, so that they will all call out in the Name of HaShem, serving Him with one will.” “Truth will sprout from the earth and righteousness will gaze down from Heaven.” “HaShem will grant goodness, and our land will give its produce.” “Kindness and truth have met, righteousness and peace have kissed.”", + "In Your great compassion and kindness, appease and gain the favor of the Congregation of Israel, so that she will turn her face to You, so that there will be a unification of the Holy One, Blessed be He, with His Shekhinah, face to face.", + "Do not hide Your countenance from us any longer. Send us true Tzaddikim — rabbis who will guide us on the good, straight path and teach us the deeds that we are to perform.", + "Shield us from false leaders and false rabbis. Bring us close to Your salvation. Assist us with Your compassion. Revive us in the light of Your countenance. Satiate us with Your goodness and true kindness. Favor us with good kindness, “the faithful kindnesses of David,” and be gracious to us from Your treasury of undeserved gifts. May the verse be realized in us, “I will place My words in your mouth and cover you with the shadow of My hand — to plant the heavens and provide a foundation for the earth, and to say to Zion, ‘You are My nation!’”", + "Graciously answer us and hear our prayer, for You hear the prayer of every mouth. “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” “May He Who makes peace in His heights make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and let us say amen.’”" + ], + [ + "Yearning for God / Constricting the Light of the Flame of the Heart / Serving God with Wisdom / Rectifying Creation / Revealing God’s Heavenly Torah
Every Jew is “a portion of God from above.” The essence of that Godliness lies in his heart, and it is infinite. Thus there is no end to a Jew’s yearning for God.
But if that were all there is, everything would remain overwhelmed by the infinity of that flame. Consequently, a Jew could not serve God or reveal any good traits, since he would become absorbed in Infinity, in God.
Similarly, in the beginning, there was no room for creation, because everything was the Infinite One. But since God wanted to reveal His sovereignty, which requires the revelation of “traits” or worlds, He constricted His infinite light and, within the resulting Vacated Space, created those worlds.
In the same way, every individual must constrict the light of the flame of his heart. By guarding against evil thoughts and thinking only good thoughts on how to serve God, his heart creates a “vacated space” in which he can then engage in good deeds and attain good traits. With that, he can serve God in measure and by degree, and thus reveal His sovereignty.
Just as creation came about through God’s wisdom, so do we serve God with wisdom. When a person’s heart is empty, it is open to wisdom. Thus he can serve God and rectify creation. Should he fail and instead engage in evil thoughts, in the foolishness of the heart, he seals his heart and fills up the Vacated Space of creation. Then it is as though he had destroyed the world.
But when he again engages in good thoughts, he rectifies creation. By purifying his heart, rejecting the bad thoughts and engaging in good thoughts, he renews the creation and can make miracles happen. The essence of returning to God depends on the thoughts in one’s heart: on fleeing bad thoughts and engaging only in good thoughts, on considering one’s end, and on thinking about how to come close to God and thus attain the Heavenly Torah, which contains the secrets of the delights of the World to Come and the pleasure of the Shabbat.
A person must have the strength to run the track. Even after he has repented and repaired what he has damaged, he must make up for what he could have accomplished when he was far from God.
The heart of the Tzaddik is always open to wisdom. Therefore, he can engage in the act of creation and do wonders. (The Tzaddik gains his understanding from the Jewish people. Should the latter descend into the external wisdoms of the nations, he too falls from his understanding.)
When a person prays, he connects the thoughts in his heart to his words. As a result, God’s sovereignty is enhanced. Life, abundance and blessing are drawn to the Jewish people, and the sovereignty of evil falls. This leads to supernal and lower unifications and the revelation of God’s Heavenly Torah.
God, You Who are the Rock of my heart and the Holy Rock of all worlds, Creator of the universe, Master of every deed and every soul, You Who know all hidden things — You know my heart.", + "You know the intensity of the holy fire, Your light that pours through my heart, because I am a portion of God from above, and Your presence resides in my heart.", + "Therefore, my heart sings within me and resonates like a harp. “My flesh and heart have all but expired, Rock of my heart. My portion is God forever. My soul yearns to exhaustion for the courtyards of HaShem. My heart and flesh sing to the God of my life.”", + "“Many waters cannot extinguish” the leaping flames of my heart that yearns for You, nor can the rivers overflow it, for the light of my heart is connected to Your great and endless light. The flame of my heart is infinite. There is no end to my yearning for You. I desire You — intensely and without measure. The depth of the infinite light of that flame might not allow me to serve You, because it is aflame with the desire to cleave to You and be absorbed into You forever. Through Your holy sages, You revealed to us that this is not what You intended when You created us. You know that we are flesh and blood and cannot cleave to You unceasingly. Therefore, You desire our service through our good deeds — and for that, we came down into this lowly world to serve You with Torah and perform its commandments.", + "You have decreed that we may not break through the barriers beyond our abilities to come to You. We may not let the fire burn for You beyond its proper measure. We must constrict the light of the fervor in our heart, and make a hollow in our heart. As the verse states, “My heart is empty within me.”", + "Then we can picture in our hearts all good and holy traits and accept the yoke of Your service, walk in Your good ways, cleave to Your holy traits and serve You in a measured, graduated fashion.", + "In this way, we accept the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven and reveal Your sovereignty to everyone. And that was Your intent in creating man: to reveal Your sovereignty to the world.", + "Redemption Now!
And so I come to You, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers; God of Abraham, God of Isaac and God of Jacob; God of all the true Tzaddikim; God of the first and the last; God of the entire Jewish people. Arouse Your compassion and love for me, as blemished and confused as I am. ", + "Teach me and guide me to know how to act, how to constrict the light in a graduated, measured fashion in accordance with Your desire. For You know that I must yearn for You always, long for You in truth and run after You “like a mighty man running upon the track” — yet I have lost days and years in vanity and emptiness, cast away from You.", + "What can I say to You, You Who dwell in the heights? What can I tell You, You Who make Your habitation in the heavens? I do not have the mouth to speak or the arrogance to lift my head. There is no way out of these areas where I have been trapped by my many sins, in a graduated and orderly fashion. I must escape quickly and run with all my might. I must rush to save my life and not even look behind me. I cannot delay even for a moment.", + "Arouse Your true compassion for me, hidden within You. Bring me out quickly with Your strong arm. Lift me on the wings of eagles and swiftly bring me to serve You. My hope in You is not at an end, for “the mercies of HaShem have not ended, His compassion has not ceased.”", + "Still, I must constrict the light of the flame of my heart, my Father in Heaven. For You know how many blemishes I am afflicted with because my fervor has overflowed its banks. “I am a beast and do not know, I have been an animal with You.”", + "And so I come before You, My Father and Master, Redeemer of Israel and my Holy One, the Rock of my heart. I cast myself onto You. I give my body and soul to You alone. “In Your hand do I deposit my spirit, You have saved me, HaShem. To You, HaShem, do I lift my soul.”", + "I give my entire heart to You alone. HaShem, direct me on Your path so that I will walk in Your truth. Direct my heart to fear Your Name. Guide me and teach me how to deal with my yearnings for You and how to constrict my fervor, so that I will come to truly repent and walk upon Your holy paths and cling to Your good traits. May I always accept the yoke of the sovereignty of Heaven with love and desire, awe and fear, and holiness and purity, and serve You in a graduated, measured fashion, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Plea for Purity
Master of the World, You know that I cannot express myself before You fully, particularly regarding this matter.", + "Rescue me from the evil inclination! Save me from a foolish and uncircumcised heart. Redeem me and be gracious to me. Deliver me from evil thoughts and evil counsel, which are the essence of the evil inclination in the heart. Have mercy and be gracious to me, You Who redeem from death and destruction.", + "Redeem me from the depths of the sea, from evil thoughts. Rescue my spirit from evil musings, which so deeply harm a Jewish soul. Save me from every type of foreign thought and confusion, which are the essence of the evil inclination in the heart, the foreskin that covers the heart and seals it shut.", + "Only these have stopped me; only because of these have I been caught and trapped. All the sins that I have committed from my youth until this day occurred only because I did not sanctify my thoughts, but followed after the stubbornness of my heart. I engaged in evil deeds only because of the evil thoughts and bedlam which I allowed to enter my heart and which I did not arouse myself to expel, until they crept up to my neck and weakened my strength. And finally, because of them, I caused all these blemishes and have been distanced from You so far that the paths of repentance have disappeared from before me, and I do not know how to escape. And now, “From where will my help come”? From where will my salvation come? Where will I seek the tranquility that will do good for me forever?", + "HaShem, help me! “Save me, God, for the water has risen up to my soul.”", + "Purify me! Sanctify my thoughts with Your powerful, great and awesome holiness before which no evil can stand. My Father in Heaven, expel all the foolishness of my heart. Remove the foreskin of my heart, so that the verse may be realized in me, “May HaShem your God circumcise Your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love HaShem your God with all your heart and with all your soul for the sake of your life.”", + "Guide me to attain holy and pure thoughts, and deliver me from evil thoughts. Rescue me! Sanctify my thoughts in Your compassion, You Who know all hidden things. Most Holy One of Jacob, sanctify me and purify me. Give me Your awesome holiness as a loving gift in such a way that I can receive it.", + "Purify me soon, so that my heart will be freed of the foreskin of the heart, foolishness in the heart, every kind of foreign thought and evil musing and extrinsic wisdom drawn from the evil inclination. Help me to draw into my heart — in a graduated, measured fashion — holy and pure thoughts, which are the good inclination. Give me the strength to overcome my evil inclination with my good inclination, and overcome my evil thoughts with holy thoughts, to expel all evil, perplexing and disturbing thoughts from my heart — so that I will be able to think properly of how to serve You with pure and clear thought, without any confusion at all, and You will always be with me.", + "Direct me and teach me Your good ways. Lead me to cling to Your holy traits until I completely accept the yoke of Your sovereignty — with love and fear, truth and faith, holiness and purity — and return to You fully and cling to You always, as is Your desire, so that I will walk quickly upon Your path, which I could already have been traversing had I not been cast away from You.", + "Help me to rectify quickly everything that I have done wrong before You, from my youth until this day — all of my sins.", + "Have pity on me. Save me, quickly and fully. Save my body and soul forever. Help me, because I rely on You. Save me, because as a Jew I am called by Your Name.", + "Do not cast me aside. Do not abandon me. “Recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your lovingkindness, because they are eternal.” “Remember me, HaShem, when You desire Your nation. Visit me with Your salvation.”", + "Purify my heart to serve You. “Awaken, my glory; awaken lyre and harp, I will awaken the dawn.” Wake me. Guide me to appeal to You with my best words of prayer. “Perhaps He will have pity. Perhaps He will have compassion. Perhaps He will have pity on a poor and impoverished people — perhaps He will have compassion!”", + "“My eyes are raised to the heights, HaShem. I have been oppressed, be my guarantor.”", + "Master of the World, I do not know what to say. “There is no word in my tongue because You know everything, HaShem.” But I have come to You, my God and the God of my fathers, You Who are filled with compassion. I stretch my hands out to You and raise my eyes to Your holy dwelling place. Perhaps there is hope. Give me hope — swiftly, quickly. Give me a true life. Take away my sadness. “Give joy to the soul of Your servant because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!”", + "Inspire me to truly and wholly return to You, to return to the quarry from which I was hewn. And when I return, may that bring about an upper and lower unification.", + "“I Am Prayer”
[Master of the Universe, help me to serve You with all my heart, as the verse states, “Serve Him with all your heart” — particularly in prayer, which is the essence of the service of the heart.", + "Help me to concentrate on my prayers and put my entire heart into the meaning of the words, so that I will pray to You with all my heart, without any foreign or external thoughts at all. May I engage always in the service of prayer, so that the verse will be realized in me, “I am prayer.”", + "Please answer my prayers to You as though I had offered all the sacrifices, particularly the burnt offering, which brings atonement for the thoughts of the heart.", + "And through my prayer, may the two houses — the supernal house and the lower house — be elevated completely.", + "Build Your city quickly in our days. May our eyes see Your return to Zion. There may we serve You in awe, as we did in earlier days.", + "Master of the World, You alone know the depth of my fall. How cheapened I have become, the lowness to which I have descended, and how far I am from prayer, complete prayer. How completely removed I am; and, as a result, I fall ever lower — spiritually and in the material world.", + "And You know how far I am from good counsel, so that in everything I do, I am terribly divided. I am confused and torn, and my mind and heart are endlessly in turmoil.", + "Have mercy and pity on me, so that from this point on, at any rate, I will return to You with all my heart and pray to You with all my heart — until You will have pity on me and raise “the fallen booth of David,” spread the “booth of Your peace” and rectify me with Your counsel. Save me quickly, for the sake of Your Name, so that the verse will be realized, “There are many thoughts in a man’s heart, but the counsel of HaShem shall prevail.”", + "Redeem me forever. Bring back the sovereignty of the House of David, so that everyone will accept the yoke of Your sovereignty and the moon will be restored, so that its “light will be like the light of the sun, like the light of the seven days of Creation,” when both the sun and moon were “the two great lights.” And may the verse be realized in us, “They will seek HaShem their God and David their king.” Amen.]", + "For the Months of Nisan and Tishrei
Help me to sanctify myself, especially during the two holy months that are the two heads of the year, Nisan and Tishrei, which are days of repentance. Every year at that time, may I repent completely and sanctify myself with great holiness and joy, drawing holiness and repentance onto myself from these two months to the entire year.", + "Inspire me to discover the ten types of melody, so that every day I will bring You songs and praises in a voice of joy and song to Your great and holy Name, with every type of holy melody, until the song that will be aroused in future days — a simple, doubled, tripled and quadrupled song — will sing itself through me.", + "As the verse states, “You shall have a song, as in the evening when the festival is sanctified.” And may the verse be realized in me, “Whether they sing or dance, all my thoughts are about You.”", + "May I attain the secrets of the holy Kabbalah until I know the Torah of the Hidden Ancient One regarding those things that will be revealed in the future.", + "Tzitzit
Help me to keep the mitzvah of wearing tzitzit completely, with all its details, particulars, intentions, and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it — with a good heart and great joy.", + "May it be Your will that my wearing of tzitzit be considered as though it included the tekheilet thread,7According to the Talmud, at least one thread on each of the four corners of the tzitzit used to be dyed blue (tekheilet) using the blood of the chilazon, a species of snail found on the shores of the Mediterranean. As the identity of the chilazon became lost over the centuries, the threads of the tzitzit are now all white. for You know that it is my desire to do Your will, and I desire and yearn to wear the tekheilet thread on the tzitzit.", + "If I could find this tekheilet thread for the tzitzit, I would spend an inordinate amount of money to keep the mitzvah properly. But because of our many sins, the Temple has been destroyed and the chilazon snail has been lost, and so we cannot keep this mitzvah completely.", + "Therefore, please consider my wearing of tzitzit with white threads as though I were keeping the mitzvah of wearing the tekheilet thread as well. In Your compassion, build Your city quickly and in our days. Bring us in peace to the Holy Land, and may the chilazon snail be again revealed, so that we will be able to keep the mitzvah of the tekheilet thread. As a result, may evil government be eliminated, broken, uprooted and crushed.", + "And may the verse be realized, “Destroy in wrath, destroy it, so that it is no more. And may everyone know that God rules over Jacob to the ends of the earth. Selah.”", + "Inspire me and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, to cling to You always and accept upon ourselves the yoke of Your sovereignty with love. Draw onto us a long, good and well-established life.", + "May the verse be realized in us, “You who cling to HaShem your God are alive, all of You today.” Sweeten and eliminate all judgments against me and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, always. Draw onto us an abundance of goodness, blessing, compassion, life, peace and holy wealth. May the verse be realized in us, “I will pour endless blessing onto you.”", + "Bringing Joy to Bridegrooms and Brides
Lead me to experience the joy of a mitzvah. Help me to give joy to worthy bridegrooms and brides by singing and dancing before them in joy and delight, in holiness and purity.", + "In this way, may I unite the supernal bridegroom and bride, the “youthful wife with her beloved,” in love and affection, bringing about supernal and lower unifications, so that the four letters of Your great and holy Name will be combined and the verse will be realized, “In your midst, I am holy, and I will not come in fury.”", + "Coming Close to True Tzaddikim
Guide me to come close to true Tzaddikim. Guide Your entire nation, the House of Israel, to break free of the superficial wisdom of the gentiles, and pay no attention to that superficial wisdom. Instead, may our thoughts cling to You and Your holy Torah always.", + "In this way, may the light of the true Tzaddikim grow and be elevated, so that they will constantly attain new supernal achievements. And may we receive great benefit from their holy light.", + "For Shabbat
May I attain the sanctity of the holy Shabbat and celebrate every Shabbat with joy and delight, song and praise, awe and love, truth and faith, holiness and purity.", + "With the power of the holiness of the Shabbat, may I break and eliminate the lust for money, so that I will not covet money at all. Instead, may I yearn and long always for the eternal goal, so that I may be prepared to greet the “day that is entirely Shabbat and contentment, forever.”", + "In the Company of Tzaddikim
[Master of the World, give me the merit to be among the true Tzaddikim whose hearts are open with wisdom, as in the verse, “My heart is empty within me” — so that at every moment, they renew the work of creation and bring about miracles and wonders in the world, which is literally recreated in their hearts constantly.", + "May I fill the throats of these Torah sages with the wine that brings joy. And please consider my doing so as though I had poured wine libations on the altar, as our sages of blessed memory have stated.]", + "Attaining a Holy Mind
You Who are filled with compassion, be compassionate to me and fulfill my request. From this moment on, may I expel and eliminate every evil thought from my heart, and instead draw onto myself holy and pure, clear and proper thoughts. And may I begin, from this moment on, to serve You in truth — in a graduated and measured manner, as is Your desire — so that I will quickly reach the perfect and true goal.", + "My Father in Heaven, teach me Your ways. Teach me to do Your will. Bring me close to You. “Place me as a seal upon Your heart, like a seal upon Your arm, for love is as strong as death, jealously is as harsh as Gehinnom. Its flames are flames of fire, a flame of God. Many waters cannot extinguish love and rivers cannot overflow it. If a person were to give all the wealth of his house for love, he would be scorned.”", + "You Who have pity on the poor, have pity on us all. Swiftly redeem us all — as a whole and as individuals — in both the physical and spiritual realms. Bring the righteous Mashiach so that we will experience and inherit the goodness and blessing of his days and the life of the World to Come.", + "“Bring me back and I will return, for You, HaShem, are my God.” “Come back, HaShem — how long? And reconsider Your servant.” “Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "The Covenant / Praying with One’s Essence / Fasting to Purify Oneself
When a person has damaged his “covenant” (his sexual purity), he finds it impossible to pray with the essence of who he is. Instead, his prayers are swallowed up by negative energies, which Rebbe Nachman refers to as “dogs.” His prayer feels bitter and damages his core, the marrow of his bones.
But when a person prays with the essence of who he is, his prayer is sweet. As he hears the words he is speaking, the sweetness enters his bones, and his bones themselves also pray to God. Then his prayer is absorbed into holiness, which Rebbe Nachman refers to as a “lion.”
Arrogant people in each generation attempt to interfere with the prayer of a Jew who has not yet rectified his covenant completely. They are called “dogs” as well.
One positive means of purifying oneself is fasting, and doing so is considered a mitzvah. If a person is a Tzaddik, however, his eating is very precious, and so he is forbidden to fast voluntarily.
“Save my spirit from the sword, my soul from the grip of the dog. Save me from the mouth of the lion. Deliver me from the horns of the wild ox.” “For dogs have surrounded me, a congregation of evildoers has encircled my hands and feet like a lion.”", + "Master of the World, save me from causing damage to my covenant. Save me from the pit of destruction, the deep mire. Save me from the harsh judgment of Gehinnom for damaging my covenant, Heaven forbid.", + "Have mercy on me. “Recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your lovingkindness, because they are forever.”", + "Have compassion on me and rescue my pitiful soul from the pit of destruction. You know the suffering and the heartbreaking situation of a person who has damaged his covenant, Heaven forbid, and not rectified it in his lifetime. He goes down to the lowest circle of Gehinnom with no one to help or support him. The intensity of his harsh and bitter suffering is incomprehensible. His miserable state is beyond imagination.", + "Only You know it. And You know that in the World to Come, pleading for mercy will not help, because You will not forgive. The essence of Your compassion lies in the fact that You do not push a person away from You entirely. Every day, You send and structure thoughts of repentance to every individual. You stretch out Your hand to receive those who will return to You. You assist all those who wish to be purified, to truly come back to You.", + "Therefore, I have come to You, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers — You who gaze upon the wicked person and wish him to change his ways — with the hope that You will have pity on my soul and redeem me from the damage caused by violating my covenant. “Rescue me from the mire so that I will not sink. I will be saved from my enemies and from the depths of the sea. May the water’s current not overwhelm me, the depths not swallow me up, and the pit not close its mouth upon me.”", + "In Your compassion, rescue me from the bitter pains of the two-edged sword held by the angel of death. Rescue me from the harsh and cruel destructive angels called “dogs,” which tear the soul of a person who has damaged his covenant, Heaven forbid, and lead him to Gehinnom as they bark at him.", + "Rescue me from their harsh fearsomeness. Rescue me from their harsh and bitter judgment. Rescue me from the bitter and polluted waters. Redeem my oppressed spirit and help me, so that I will never again damage my covenant — whether in thought, speech or deed; sight, hearing or other senses; by accident or on purpose; against my will or willingly.", + "Keep me from straying after my heart and eyes. Protect me from surrendering to the stubbornness of my heart. Give me the power to break the evil inclination and conquer my desires. Give me a good inclination, and guide me so that I will take control of my heart.", + "Like a Pauper at the Door
Master of the World, have pity on me. Be gracious to me, HaShem, because I have endured so much disgrace. My spirit is sated with the mockery of people who are at ease. I am surfeited with the bitterness that comes from lusting after the vanities of this world.", + "“Turn Your punishment away from me so that I may recover my strength, so that I will not fade away and cease to be.” Do not reject me, the work of Your hands.", + "I stand before You like a pauper at the door, like a slave before his master, like a guilty prisoner hoping for an undeserved reprieve, begging for his life, his eyes weary the entire day as he dreams of a generous and undeserved gift.", + "So do my eyes constantly turn to You, until You will be gracious to me and bring me back to You in complete repentance.", + "“I stretch out my hands all the day. My soul turns to You like a weary land.”", + "And even if these words that I speak are filled with ulterior motives, what can I do? To where can I run, Master of the Universe? “To You, HaShem, do I call. Before HaShem do I beg. What value would there be to my blood if I were to go down to the pit? Would the dust thank You? Would it tell of Your truth?”", + "Do to me what You will, in Your vast compassion — as long as You rescue me, from this moment on, from every sort of damage to the covenant.", + "Rebuke the spirit of foolishness and madness within me. Expel it and eliminate it, from now and forever. Regarding all my sins, wrongdoing and iniquities that involved damaging the covenant, from my youth until this day — regarding every drop of semen that has left my body in vain, whether by accident or on purpose, against my will or willfully — for all these pardon me, God of forgiveness, Gracious God Who magnanimously exonerates. Gather my scattered seed from the four corners of the world back into holiness. Make complete all the Divine Names that I damaged, which are inherent in Your great Name, and be with me so that my covenant will be completely rectified, in accordance with Your desire. From this moment on, may I may sanctify myself in purity and no longer return to my foolishness. May I no longer do what is evil in Your eyes, but constantly add holiness to holiness and sanctify myself with those things that are permissible to me, in sacredness and purity, in accordance with Your will.", + "A Healing of the Bones
[May it be Your will, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, that You will heal me from every type of disease, particularly from the disease of broken bones (or diseased bone marrow), which is generally caused by a problem with the marrow in the bones, which comes as a result of the lust for illicit sexual pleasures, may God protect us.", + "Send a complete healing — a healing of the soul and the body — to all the sick of Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "“Heal me, HaShem, for my bones shudder. My spirit shudders greatly. And You, HaShem, how long? Return, HaShem, rescue my soul. Save me for the sake of Your kindness.” “Heal me, HaShem, so that I will be healed. Save me and I will be saved, for You are my praise.”]", + "The Sweet Waters of True Prayer
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, help me always. Guide me to pray to You with intensity, truthfully, with all my heart and soul.", + "Guide me to fill my every word of prayer with good intent. Guide me so that I will not say even one word of prayer without feeling. May I clearly enunciate my prayers and all the songs, praises and thanksgiving that I place before You every day, constantly.", + "Help me to attain the sweet waters — help me to feel the sweetness and pleasantness of the words of holy prayer in all my bones. May all my bones be sated by these holy words of prayer. May I truly realize the words, “All my bones will say, ‘HaShem, who is like You, Who rescues the poor person from the one stronger than he and the impoverished and pauper from the person who robs him.’”", + "May my prayer rise before You and be compassionately accepted before Your throne of glory. May the lion on the supernal, holy chariot descend to consume my prayer and bring it up to Your throne of glory.", + "In Your never-ending compassion, rescue my prayer from the arrogant dogs so that they will not attack it, Heaven forbid. Rescue me from the insolent men of the generation, so that they will not assail my prayer.", + "Give me the strength to withstand the arrogant of the generation who dispute and attack our prayers, who wish to confuse us and prevent us from praying, Heaven forbid. Help me to overcome them, break them and cast them down to the dust, so that they will bow and fall before me and return to You in truth, recognizing the power of Your sovereignty.", + "You know that without Your vast compassion and great strength, I lack the strength to withstand them. I require the strength and merit of the true Tzaddikim who engage in prayer their entire lives, whose power of wholeness can protect us, so that we will sanctify and purify ourselves in truly great holiness and pray with great feeling, devotion and joy.", + "Protect my prayer from the arrogant of the generation. “You raise the poor man from the dust. You lift the impoverished man from the ash heap.” Have pity and be gracious to me. Have mercy on me and compassionately fulfill my requests for the sake of Your great and holy Name, which You have bestowed upon me — for Your Name is joined to mine.", + "Holy Fasting
Have compassion on me. Teach me so that I will know how to act in regard to fasting as a means of repenting for my many sins. You alone know all the obstacles, the doubts and turmoil, that I suffer in this regard, which make it impossible for me to know what to do. You know how badly I need to fast. Even if I fasted all the days of my life, it would not suffice to rectify a millionth of the damage of what my sins have caused. And no one can satisfy my mind on this point, as is clear to You, Master of the Universe.", + "Have pity and guide me in Your truth. Teach me the ultimate truth — how to act in this regard and, in fact, in all matters, in every aspect of how I must conduct myself in this world — so that I will emerge from evil to good, from darkness to light, and return to You completely, truthfully and with a whole heart, and spend all the days of my life in repentance, holiness and purity.", + "Eating in Holiness
Help me to eat in holiness and purity — without any physical desire, but only in order to eat a little with great holiness to satisfy my holy spirit.", + "May I be counted among the Tzaddikim who eat to satisfy their holy spirit. As the verse states, “The righteous man eats to satisfy his soul.”", + "Master of the Universe, “I have stretched my hands out to You.” “To You alone are my eyes raised. To You alone do my thoughts turn, as I hope to receive Your undeserved gift, Your unrequited gift. My eyes turn with hope and longing to the salvation of HaShem. Waters have flowed over my head. I said, ‘I am cut off.’ I called out Your Name, HaShem, from the lowest pit. I called out from the belly of Gehinnom. You heard my voice. Do not hide Your ear, but give me ease and save me.”", + "I sit and hope and anticipate Your compassion, “for HaShem, Who gazes and sees from Heaven.”", + "Help me because I rely on You. “My eyes are always turned to HaShem, for He brings my feet out of the net.” You Who send my help from the sacred and support me from Zion, quickly deliver me from every sort of uncleanness and pollution. Sanctify me with every sort of holiness. Allow me to reach every sort of true repentance and a good, eternal life. Bring me soon to the Holy Land. Rectify me with every rectification. Hide me in Your booth from the dispute of people’s tongues. “Do not cast me away in a time of old age when my strength is worn away. Do not abandon me. Do not cast me away from You. Do not take the spirit of Your holiness away from me. Do not abandon me, HaShem my God. Do not grow distant from me. Come quickly to help me, HaShem, my salvation.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "The Meaning of Purity / Free Will / Making Everything One / Truth and Falsehood
When creation was in potential, everything was one. Everything was true, good and holy (i.e., a complete unity). Even the word “pure” did not exist. Purity was created only when God brought potentiality into actuality, since now there were two realities: the original oneness and creation.
“Pure” exists only in relation to “impure.” It is an intermediary between the holy and the unholy. Thus purity is the intermediary point of our free will. If a person makes a wrong decision, purity can descend into evil and impurity — into falsehood, which is removed from oneness. But because impurity devolves from purity, it can be rectified and purified.
Through God’s providence — even after creation — all things are one with Him. And God’s providence rests on a person through truth. But through falsehood — which is evil — a person removes God’s providence from himself. Therefore, a person who wants everything to be one (as it was before creation) should guard himself from falsehood. As a result, God’s providence will rest upon him, and everything will be one.
Falsehood comes about through distance from oneness. Truth is “one” insofar as there is only one true description of a quality — e.g., an object is composed of gold. Falsehood, however, can be multitudinous. The composition of this same object can be falsely described as silver, tin, bronze, and so on.
Falsehood damages a person’s eyes in that it removes the providence of God’s “eyes.” Without that providence, oneness is damaged, and there is a gap between “after creation” and “before creation.” But through truth, a person draws down God’s providence so that all is one. Then “after creation” is absorbed into “before creation.”
Falsehood can be said to damage a person’s eyes in another way as well. The essence of speech is a person’s spirit, which is associated with the blood. When a person tells a lie, he pollutes his blood. That polluted blood makes its way into his bile. An excess of bile is said to create tears. These tears weaken the eyes.
Tears indicate sadness. But when there is only oneness, there are no antagonisms, no opposition. In messianic times, when everything returns to oneness, opposition, evil and tears will be eliminated. Then the lion will dwell with the lamb, “HaShem will be one and His Name will be one,” and God will wipe away the spirit of pollution from the earth.
HaShem, God of truth, in Your vast compassion, rescue me from falsehood. Be with me always. Guard me so that I will never speak a lie, whether accidentally or on purpose, against my will or willingly.", + "Help me so that I will never express a falsehood, even by mistake. In Your great compassion, bring me to truth.", + "[HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, rescue me from all sorts of impurity of the blood, bile and excess bile, which come about as a result of speaking falsehood.", + "Guide me so that I will purify every type of blood, so that my blood will be clear, pure and holy, and I will be able to speak words of truth without even a trace of falsehood.]", + "Have pity on me and raise me from uncleanness to cleanness, from the mundane to the holy. Truly sanctify me in Your supernal holiness. “Save me, HaShem, from an evil man; protect me from a man of violence.” “All Your commandments are faithful. When falsehood pursues me, help me, HaShem!” “Rescue my spirit from the lip of falsehood, from a lying tongue.” ���Remove the way of falsehood from me and grant me Your Torah.” “May the person who engages in falsehood not sit within my house; may the person who lies not be established before my eyes.”", + "Be gracious to me. Answer me and redeem my humble spirit from evil, uncleanness and falsehood. Give me truth and kindness as an outright and undeserved gift. Grant me an abundance of holiness, purity, truth and goodness.", + "Inspire me to return to You in full repentance. From this moment on, may I emerge quickly from evil to good, from uncleanness to purity, from falsehood to truth. May I reach the essence of ultimate truth and draw Your full providence onto me. Gaze upon me with an eye of love and graciousness, until I am truly absorbed into You, so that “after creation” is united with and incorporated into “before creation” by means of Your perfect providence.", + "May it all be one — all good, all holy, all true.", + "A Love for Decent People
Guide me so that there will be no opposition within me, Heaven forbid, to any holiness or to any decent person in the world.", + "Instead, may I be absorbed into truth, into every good and holy matter. May I possess a true and undivided love, in a simple sense, for all truly decent people, for all the true Tzaddikim, and for all the good within the entirety of Your nation, the holy Jewish people, until — as one of them — I will be absorbed into You, HaShem, our God and the God of our fathers.", + "May I cling to You in truth and be absorbed into Your oneness always, from now and forever.", + "Sanctified Sight
Rescue me from blemished gazing. Sanctify my eyes always. May I no longer look at anything that impairs my vision, but instead look only at Your Torah, at Your true Tzaddikim and at everything that sanctifies my eyes, until they will always be truly holy and pure.", + "May I quickly rectify all the blemishes that I caused with my eyes. Help me in Your compassion and guard me from blemished sight. May the light of my eyes never grow dim. “Even in old age and white hair, do not abandon me.”", + "Guard the light of my eyes always, so that I will meditate in Your Torah day and night. Chase sleep away from my eyes and may I not suffer, as a result, any damage or sensitivity to my eyes, but may they shine like the sun and the moon.", + "“A Lip of Truth”
God, You Who are unique and one, bring me truly close to You. Remove and eliminate falsehood, evil and uncleanness from the world. May the verse be quickly realized, “I shall remove the spirit of uncleanness from the earth.”", + "Purify me and sanctify me in every way. May the verse be realized in me, “I will sprinkle pure waters upon you and purify You; of all Your contaminations and all your idols, I will purify you.”", + "Reveal truth in the world quickly, and in our days, bring about the realization of the verses, “A lip of truth shall be established forever, but a tongue of falsehood is merely for a moment.”", + "“Truth will sprout from the earth and righteousness will gaze down from Heaven.”", + "“Love and truth have met; righteousness and peace have kissed.”", + "“Guide me in Your truth and teach me that You are the God of my salvation. I have hoped for You all the day.”", + "“Teach me, HaShem, Your path; I will walk in Your truth. Make my heart one to fear Your Name.”", + "“Send Your light and Your truth to guide me. Bring me to Your holy mountain and Your dwelling place.”", + "“Who is a God like You, Who forgives sin and passes over the iniquity of the remnant of His inheritance, Who does not hold on to His anger forever, for He desires lovingkindness. He will again have compassion. He will overcome our sins and cast our sins into the depths of the sea. You give truth to Jacob, lovingkindness to Abraham. As You have promised our fathers from ancient days.”", + "“Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.” Amen, amen." + ], + [ + "Only God is a Necessary Existent / Why God Created the World / The Role of Israel / Returning to One’s Root / Hitbodedut-Meditation / Nullifying One’s Evil Traits
There are heretics who claim that the world is a necessary existent. But this is not true. Only God is a Necessary Existent, and He created all worlds ex nihilo in accordance with His free will.
What is the source of the mistaken notion that the world’s creation was necessary? It is the fact that once the souls of Israel were brought into being, the world did become a necessary existent. This is because the entire universe was created for the sake of the Jewish people. God could have chosen to create or not to create the Jewish nation. Once He decided to do so, the entire world became a necessary existent — because He had to create the world for their sake, so that they might rule over the universe.
So God created the world for the sake of the Jewish people — so that Israel should do His will, returning and clinging to their root, which is God. The more the Jewish people do God’s will, the more they are absorbed — together with the worlds that are dependent on them — into God, the Necessary Existent.
To be absorbed into this root, into the oneness of God, a person must experience self-nullification. One attains self-nullification through hitbodedut, the practice of speaking to God in one’s own words. Through this practice, a person eliminates his desires and evil traits, until he eliminates all his physicality and is absorbed into the root of his being.
Ideally, this practice takes place at night, when the world is resting from its business. This is because the energy of the affairs of the world keeps a person from nullifying himself and being absorbed into God, even if he himself is not involved in those affairs. Moreover, this practice must take place in a specific, unfrequented site outside the city, where people do not pass by, because if a place is frequented by people — even if they are not presently there — that too disturbs a person’s hitbodedut.
And so, at that time and in that place, a person turns aside from the affairs of this world until he attains perfect self-nullification. First, he prays a great deal until he nullifies one trait or desire. Then he does the same to nullify another trait or desire. He continues in this way until he has nullified them all. Yet something still remains — and so he nullifies that as well, until nothing at all remains.
At last, this person’s soul is absorbed into its root — into God, the Necessary Existent. Then the entire world is absorbed with his soul into its root, and the entire world itself becomes a necessary existent.
“My soul desires You at night; with my spirit within me I seek You.” “At night, I recall Your Name, HaShem, and I keep Your Torah.” “Upon my pallet at night I sought Him Whom my soul loved.” “I sought Him, but I did not find Him. I will recall my song at night. With my heart I will sing, and my spirit will search.”", + "Master of the entire universe, You Who are One and Unique, You Who were, are and will be, You created Your world with Your beneficent will for the sake of the Jewish people, Your holy nation. You created all the universes for their sake, so that they would truly do Your will and rule; so that with their good deeds, they could raise all the worlds — from the lowest pole of Asiyah to the highest peak of Atzilut 8According to Kabbalah, the five worlds which God created within the original Vacated Space were: Adam Kadmon (Primordial Man), Atzilut (Nearness or Emanation), Beri’ah (Creation), Yetzirah (Formation) and Asiyah (Action). Our physical universe, including the galaxies, solar system, Planet Earth and man, is part of Asiyah.— to their supernal root, so that all the universes will be absorbed into Your simple oneness, forever.", + "You existed before You created the world, and You are the same after You created the world.", + "Speaking To God
And so, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, have compassion on me and help me to speak out my heart to You a great deal, until I completely nullify my existence, until my ego is annihilated and I am absorbed into Your oneness.", + "Help me to find the best place and time to engage in this practice: in the night, when people are sleeping, on a solitary path.", + "Then, every night, I will to speak to You there, in a location where people do not go even during the day. I will speak to You and tell You everything in detail, until my heart is truly opened up to You with great yearning — even with profuse weeping — so that I will cry and confess everything I have done wrong, and truly regret my sins with all my heart, and make a firm resolution to never again return to that foolishness, so that my soul will never again be dishonest and sin.", + "In Your compassion, give me this gift. Guard me from now on from doing wrong and from any evil desire, particularly from damaging the covenant, which affects the entire Torah. Rescue and guard me always, until as a result of speaking to You at night, I nullify myself entirely, eliminating each bad trait and desire until I am completely cleansed of these desires and traits.", + "Help me to nullify every trace of egotism and coarseness of spirit, until I am truly and completely nonexistent, as You desire, and absorbed into Your oneness.", + "Then may the entire world be absorbed together with my spirit into Your simple oneness. May our reality following creation be absorbed into the reality that preceded creation; may that which You created be absorbed into You.", + "May we always be bound to You, united with You and absorbed into You. May we never be separated from You even for a moment. Reveal Your simple oneness in the world. Show every created being that You created it. Show every creature that You formed it. May every being with a soul in its nostrils proclaim, “HaShem, the God of Israel, is King and rules over all.”", + "Graciously help me, so that I will speak with You at length, at night, on a solitary path, until I am truly nullified, truly absorbed into You together with all the universes, so that we will all return to You in truth and with a whole heart.", + "“Let us know, and run eagerly to know HaShem,” so that we will not rest during the day and not be silent at night, until we find You at every moment.", + "Absorbed into God
Help me to truly perform the commandment of, “You shall cling to Him,” fully, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Have pity on me, so that I will attain everything that I seek of You, so that I will truly nullify myself until I am absorbed into You, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers. It is for this reason alone that You created all the worlds, as You revealed to us through Your true Tzaddikim.", + "“Restore us, our saving God, and eliminate Your anger with us.” “HaShem, God of hosts, bring us back. Illumine Your countenance and we will be saved.” “Bring me back and I will return, because You are my God.” “Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Actualizing One’s State of Awareness / Bringing People Close to God / Childbearing
A person must work to fully actualize his state of awareness. He must try to perfect his awareness in the ways that are unique to him, yet not beyond his capabilities. When a person’s awareness is fully developed, it is — with five exceptions — like that of God. His awareness then derives from God’s awareness, and he is fruitful.
A person can only perfect his awareness by bringing other people close to God. Thus a person’s students are called his “children.” Similarly, helping potential converts increases self-awareness. Each convert has questions and barriers to his service of God; when a person answers these, he perfects his own state of awareness.
That is why Tzaddikim work so hard to bring people close to God. They do so not for self-aggrandizement, but in order to perfect their state of awareness.
Achieving this brings about fruitfulness — including fruitfulness in the simple sense of having children. Thus Tzaddikim have the ability to bless women to bear children.
God, You graciously give man knowledge and teach human beings understanding. Grant me Your wisdom, understanding and knowledge.", + "Master of the World, Blessed God Who is great in awareness, guide me to a perfect, true knowledge so that I will truly perfect my awareness until it is as close as can possibly be to Your mind — so that there will be no difference between the two except for the five matters in which human awareness is dissimilar to Your mind, regarding five things that the human mind cannot grasp.", + "And may I always manifest an awareness of You in the most perfect way.", + "In Your vast compassion, give me a well-balanced nature, one best suited to receive true mindfulness.", + "Pour onto me a holy awe of You that is so present that I will not sin. Instead, my fear of sin will precede my wisdom and, as a result, my wisdom and awareness will be perfectly preserved.", + "Teaching Worthy Students
Then, in Your vast compassion and love, help me to guide many worthy students. Help me to illuminate them with a holy and true awareness. Help me to guide them on the straight path, teaching them the way upon which they are to walk and the deeds they must perform, as we received from our holy sages, of blessed memory — and then they will walk on the path that our forefathers walked.", + "Guide me to illuminate them with proper and straight advice, to awaken them from their sleep and fill them with proper awareness and the fear of Heaven, so that they will truly return to You with all their heart, with all their soul and with all their might.", + "“I will teach the willful Your ways, and the transgressors will return to You.”", + "In Your vast compassion, prevent me from being influenced by any ulterior motives or any external thoughts, Heaven forbid, of increasing my followers for the sake of my honor, Heaven forbid.", + "Rather, may my sole intent be truly for the sake of Your glory and for the sake of fulfilling Your will. Give me in my weariness the strength to bear with love all the annoyances and difficulties that are involved in bringing people to serve You, so that I will run after them with all my might to bring them to You, solely for the sake of Your Name, so that I will perfect my own awareness to the ultimate degree, in accordance with Your desire.", + "May I be the parent of children who will live in holiness and purity for the sake of Your Name and for the sake of serving You. May I have as many offspring as the grains of sand and the stars in the sky.", + "In Your compassion, give me the strength to pray on behalf of barren women so that they will be miraculously healed.", + "Hear my prayer and listen to my outcry so that all barren women will be healed swiftly and easily, and give birth to healthy children, so that Your people will be “like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or counted.”", + "Just as You showed compassion to Abraham and Sarah, and granted them Isaac in their old age and promised them that You would increase his seed like the stars of the sky, so too have compassion on all the barren women of Your nation, the House of Israel, whose eyes are turned to You alone. Give them healthy children to serve and fear You.", + "Have compassion on them for Your sake. Turn to them for good and fulfill their requests. Accede to them and hear their prayers, so that they will conceive swiftly and easily, and give birth to healthy children in whom they will rejoice and whom they will raise to learn Torah, get married and perform good deeds — for many days and years of good.", + "Master of the World, compassionately accept my prayer and perfect my awareness so that I will know You with an ultimate fullness and proclaim Your greatness and might to the entire world, telling future generations of all Your great and awesome deeds, which we learned about from our fathers and holy teachers. “Each generation will praise Your deeds to the next generation and tell Your might”; fathers will tell their children of Your truth.", + "May we truly realize the verse, “You will make them known to your children and your children’s children, so that all the nations of the earth will know that HaShem is God — there is no other.”" + ], + [ + "Guarding One’s Spiritual Awareness / Understanding God’s Hints / Sleep / Tzitzit and Tefilin / Torah Learning / Prayer / Business / Redeeming Holy Sparks / Avoiding False Imagination and Slander / Joyous Music / Prophecy / Midnight / Chanukah
It is very important to constantly guard one’s awareness, or “memory,” of the spiritual realms, and not fall prey to spiritual forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart.” Therefore, as soon as a person gets up in the morning, he should contemplate that spiritual reality. Throughout the day, he should strive to understand the hints that God sends him in his thoughts, speech and deeds on how to serve Him.
A person who understands these hints might wish to restrict himself to this-worldly matters, through which God guides him. But that would be improper, for two reasons. First, this would be a risky endeavor, in that the holiness within the world is surrounded by “husks.” Second, there are better ways of serving God — i.e., Torah and prayer.
At any rate, most people lack the ability to understand God’s hints. However, an analogue to this process occurs for them automatically when they sleep, wear tzitzit and tefilin, learn Torah, pray and engage in business: When a person sleeps, his soul and thoughts cleave to the World to Come. The tzitzit and tefilin which a person wears correspond to spiritual greatness and expansiveness. The Torah which a person learns is a Tree of Life that contains all sustenance — enough for everyone to receive what he needs. Prayer deals with this-worldly life — i.e., with the holiness within the world. And through business, the sparks of holiness which are scattered throughout the world — holy letters that broke and fell into everything in the world — are rectified.
For instance, a person receives an object with whose sparks he shares a common root. He receives vitality from the broken letters in that object. As a result, those letters are absorbed into his life force and made whole. When this person finishes making use of the letters and sparks related to his root, the object goes to someone else who will raise other sparks and letters within it, related to his soul. Sometimes an object returns to the first owner because his soul has developed over the course of time and he is now able to rectify letters that he had not been able to affect previously.
In order to guard his awareness of spiritual reality, a person must protect himself from an evil eye, which corresponds to the “death of the heart” and the shattering of the Tablets. In particular, he must guard his own eyes from being deceived by false imagination, which is an animalistic trait — for animals too possess imagination. Such false imagination is generated when a person engages in slander and, as a result, falls to an animalistic state. Then his animalistic trait of false imagination grows stronger. Instead of loving God, he then experiences animalistic desires.
Such false imagination seeks a container — a body — to enter. Therefore, it goes to people who create halakhic insights. Holy Torah insights create heaven and earth, bringing about abundance and blessing for the world. Should a Torah insight be created through the false imaginative faculty, however, vain heavens are created, bringing famine to the world.
The energy of false imagination of the “husks” was created at twilight after the sixth day of creation and remained without a body. Thus it seeks a body in which to rest. It therefore goes to those who learn halakhah and who create realities with their words of Torah, in the hope that a body will be created for it to enter.
A person can overcome this false imaginative faculty through joyous music, which can even inspire prophecy. A musical instrument gathers together air (i.e., wind), or “spirit.”9The Hebrew word ruach means both “wind” and “spirit.” Initially, it contains a mixture of good and evil: a depressed, evil spirit and a good, holy spirit of prophecy. A person who contains both these spirits cannot experience prophecy.
The musician separates the good spirit of prophecy from the depressed spirit. He builds a tune of joy. When the prophet hears this tune, he receives a spirit of prophecy.
Depression strengthens false imagination. A depressed spirit blurs the clarity of the good spirit of prophecy, of spiritual “memory,” clinging to supernal reality. Playing joyful music brings forth the good spirit, overcoming the spirit of false imagination — the evil spirit, the spirit of foolishness.
Therefore, a harp hanging over King David’s bed would begin to play a holy tune at midnight. Midnight is an ideal time to strengthen oneself to arise and serve God. These ideas are also expressed in the underlying concepts of the festival of Chanukah.
“I will recall my song even at night. I will speak in my heart as my spirit searches.” “At night I recall Your Name, HaShem, and keep Your Torah.” “I recall the works of God; I recall Your wonders from the beginning.” “I recall the days of old; I consider all Your deeds. I speak of the work of Your hands.” “When my spirit is faint, I recall HaShem. And when my spirit recalls, it bows down within me.”", + "I tell myself, “Remember! Don’t forget that there is a World to Come! Nothing in this world is permanent. Everything passes by like the blink of an eye, a passing shadow, scattered dust, a drifting cloud, a blowing wind, a fleeting dream.", + "“The essence of life and permanence, the essence of a person’s dwelling place, exists only in the World to Come.", + "“Be good to yourself and maintain this awareness. Every day, be aware of the World to Come. Do not forget it. In your thoughts, cling to the World to Come.", + "“Look at yourself and calm your mind. Consider what you will do when your end comes, as swiftly as the blink of an eye.", + "“I feel sorry for you, my friend. Wake up from the sleep of your temptations. Have pity on your soul. ‘Recall your Creator in the days of your youth.’”", + "Maintaining Awareness
I come to You, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, to cast my prayer before You. I raise my eyes to You and ask You to help me constantly maintain my awareness of the World to Come. Cause my thoughts to cling only to the World to Come — in general and in every detail.", + "Every day when I wake up, as soon as I open my eyes, may I immediately recall the eternal world and not this world, which is vain, empty and without substance — “a passing vanity; all is vanity.”", + "There is no advantage to anyone in all his efforts in the matters of this world. The only meaningful purpose and goodness is found in constantly trying to reach the World to Come.", + "Help me to attain this holy awareness; and help me to maintain this awareness in every detail, in all the hints that You send me at every moment, which teach me how to come close to You, so that at every moment I will understand where I stand in the world.", + "You have constricted Your light from the highest point of creation, the beginning of the world of Atzilut, to the farthest point, the center of this physical world of Asiyah.10See note, p. 175. In this process, You send hints to every person, wherever he is and at every moment, on how to come close to You — in accordance with the place, the moment and the person.", + "Please open my mind so that I will understand these hints and return to You and always please You, from this moment on.", + "Guide me to know how to expand my mind — and, at the same time, restrict it, so that it will remain only in holiness. I should never seek those things that are too great for me and are concealed from me, but only study and increase my awareness of those things that are permitted to me, so that I will grow level by level, step by step, in accordance with my stage of growth, and understand at every moment all the hints that You constantly send me through the affairs of the world and through all my thoughts, words and deeds — hints whose sole purpose is to bring me to serve You.", + "Minimizing Worldly Involvement
God, please teach me how to be content with a minimal amount of the things of this world. Lead me away from engaging in the matters of this world more than is absolutely necessary, and guide me to live in tranquility, holiness and purity for the sake of Your Name and in order to attain a proper state of awareness.", + "Even after You have helped me to expand my mind so that I understand all the hints of holiness, keep me from increasing my involvement in the things of this world, Heaven forbid. Instead, guide me to be satisfied with little — with the absolute minimum — in great holiness and purity, for the sake of Your Name alone, so that my principle activity will be to serve You — to spend my days in Torah, prayer and good deeds.", + "And in regard to that which You send me to take care of my basic needs, as a result of my minimal involvement in the world, guide me to set aside a portion for charity and thus fulfill the verse, “It is good for a person to be gracious and lend, to weigh his words with judgment.”", + "Guide me to give much charity to many worthy poor people. In that way, may I unite the Holy One, Blessed be He, with His Shekhinah in a complete unification, in the name of all the Jewish people.", + "Holy Sleep
“HaShem my God, You are exceedingly great. You have clothed Yourself in glory and splendor. You wrap Yourself in light like a garment, You stretch out the heavens like a tapestry.”", + "You know “that I am more like a beast than a man, that I lack the comprehension of a man.”", + "I lack the ability to increase my awareness in these matters. Therefore, I stretch out my hands to You, my King and God, and pray that You will cause all these rectifications to take place for me by themselves, as a result of my daily activities and performance of good deeds.", + "Draw great holiness onto me when I go to sleep. May I sleep in holiness and purity, so that my sleep is sweet, until my soul rises and clings to the World to Come, until my thoughts cling to the World to Come always.", + "Serving God with Powerful Intent
God, help me to keep the mitzvot of tzitzit, tefilin, reciting the Shma11“Shma Yisrael,” a declaration of faith in the oneness of God and a commitment to fulfilling His mitzvot, comprised of verses from Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21, and Numbers 15:37-41, is recited daily during morning and evening prayers, and before going to sleep. and prayer every day with total perfection; with a full heart, joy and utter devotion; with powerful holiness, purity and intent; with all their details, particulars and intentions, and the 613 mitzvot dependent on them.", + "Help me to learn Torah every day in great holiness and immense joy. Guide me in Your righteousness to earn a living with complete faith, until I elicit holiness and fulfill my soul through all the items that I buy and sell.", + "May I know how to buy and sell items when the time has come for something to leave my possession and go to someone else, or vice versa, in accordance with the sparks of holiness in that item and in accordance with the corresponding portions of my soul. In this way, these portions of my soul will be perfected through my business dealings, until I bring about a unification between the Holy One, Blessed be He, and His Shekhinah.", + "May all these rectifications and supernal unifications occur of themselves, so that I will attain a holy awareness and my thoughts will constantly cling to the World to Come, in general and in every detail.", + "Guard me against forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart,” so that I will never forget my purpose and never distract myself from my awareness of the World to Come.", + "Attaining a Good Eye; Avoiding an Evil Eye
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, look at my poverty, oppression and toil. Look at me with Your kind eye. Guard me in Your compassion and rescue me always from the evil eye. May no one look at me with an evil eye, and may I always look at others with a good eye.", + "Guide me to be one of the students of Abraham, who had three good traits: a good eye, a lowly spirit and a humble demeanor. And guard me against the students of the evil Balaam, who had three evil traits: an evil eye, a haughty spirit and an arrogant demeanor.", + "Father, King, Mighty One, Creator, Redeemer, Maker, Holy One of Jacob, Shepherd of Israel, King Who does good to all with a good eye — help me to cling to Your good traits and always possess a truly good eye.", + "Rescue me from an evil eye, so that no one’s evil eye will prevail over me or harm me, Heaven forbid, in material or spiritual matters.", + "Master of the Universe, You do good for everyone with a good eye. You alone know how strenuously the evil eye attempts to overwhelm me, how malignantly it attacks the holiness of the Jewish people, the holy nation. Every day it rises up against me with all sorts of schemes to remove me from serving You, Heaven forbid, and it constantly pursues me.", + "You know my heart. You know what I have suffered as a result of the evil eye of my enemies and persecutors, who torment people who want to serve You and learn Your Torah.", + "You know how weak my attempt has been to withstand the evil eye. Tell me, my Father in Heaven, where shall I flee? Where will I go to conceal myself from my enemies’ evil eye?", + "Look at me in my poverty. My suffering and the pangs of my heart are so many. “My God, bend Your ear and hear, open Your eye and see our desolation. We do not cast our plea before You for the sake of our righteousness, but we appeal to Your great compassion.”", + "I know that I am responsible for all this, because if not for my many sins, I would have no need to fear these people at all.", + "But what can I do, my Father in Heaven? I have been very foolish. I transgressed and did evil and turned away from Your mitzvot. Even though You saved me many times, I rebelled against Your advice — and so, “You gave us over into the power of our sins.”", + "Still, I yearn at every moment to truly serve You. You desire repentance because You are gracious and compassionate, and close to everyone who honestly calls to You.", + "Save me from the evil eye because I lack the power to withstand even one of my enemies, and certainly not all of them.", + "I have no one to rely upon except for You, my Father in Heaven.", + "My eyes turn to You alone. “I raise my eyes to the heights.” Perhaps You will see my eyes, perhaps You will have compassion on me.", + "Please save the sheep of Your flock. Do not let the evil eye rule over me at all. “Gaze from Heaven and see” that I have become a laughingstock and an object of scorn. “Gaze from Heaven and see, from Your holy and beautiful dwelling place. Where are Your zealousness and Your might? The multitude of Your feelings and compassion for me have been withheld.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are good to all, You Who are good and do good to both the wicked and the good, You are truly good always. Your compassion has not ceased; Your love has not come to an end. Have compassion on me and rescue me from the evil inclination on every level, so that no evil eye will dominate me in any way.", + "Gaze upon me with Your good eye, Your single eye of compassion. Draw down the energies of a good eye in an abundant stream. Guard me from looking at the successes of my friends and the successes of anyone with an evil eye.", + "Rescue me from blemished vision. Keep me from ever looking at things that might lead me to have improper fantasies, Heaven forbid, at anything that may damage my eyes. “Keep my eyes from looking at vanity; revive me on Your path.” Rescue me from a lustful eye. “Guard my spirit and rescue me. May I not be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.”", + "And for all the times that I transgressed and caused damage with my eyes, accidentally or on purpose, against my will or willingly, and done wrong in Your eyes, from my youth until this day — grant me atonement, God of forgiveness, You Who are gracious and Who generously pardons.", + "From this moment on, may I have a good eye on every level, in holiness and great purity, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Protect me from being harmed by any evil eye in the world, whether in the material or spiritual realm, in body, soul or money. Guard me in everything that I do, so that I will have a good life and peace, from now and forever. I turn only to You, for I have no one else upon whom to rely but You alone, my Father in Heaven.", + "“They have encompassed our every step; they have set their eyes to cast us down to the earth. My opponent polishes his eyes against me.” “I lift my eyes to the mountains. “From where will my help come? My help is from HaShem, the Maker of heaven and earth.” “Before You, God, HaShem, my eyes weep. I take refuge in You.” “Do not cause my soul to be poured out.” “My eyes are always turned to HaShem, because He frees my feet from the net.”", + "“I have lifted my eyes to You, You Who sit in Heaven. Behold, like the eyes of slaves to the hand of their master, like the eyes of the maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to HaShem our God, until He will be gracious to us. Be gracious to us, HaShem. Be gracious to us, because we have suffered much contempt.”", + "Nowhere To Flee But God
Master of the Universe, look at how I am oppressed and fight on my behalf. You know my heart. You know that my needs are many and my mind is too small to express them.", + "Help me. I rely on You. Answer me, HaShem, because I am in great adversity. Do not hide Your countenance from me. Be close to me when I cry out to You, because You know all my hardships. Look at my oppression, my toil and my misery. “Recall, HaShem, what we have undergone. Look and see our disgrace.”", + "Have mercy on me. “Guard me from the snare that they laid for me and from the traps of those who do evil.” Guard me like the pupil of the eye. In the shadow of Your wings, hide me against evildoers who have devastated me, enemies who hope to grasp my soul and surround me. And I am poor and suffering!”", + "I have nowhere to flee except to You. “To You, HaShem, I call, and with HaShem I plead. What value is there in my blood if I descend to destruction? Will the dust thank You? Will it tell Your truth? My eye is poured out without ceasing, it does not rest, until HaShem will gaze and look down from Heaven.”", + "Save me at this time of trouble. May the verse be realized, “Although it is a time of trouble for Jacob, he will be rescued from it.”", + "Guard me from the evil eye that leads to forgetfulness, which is the “death of the heart,” the breaking of the heart. As the verse states, “I have been forgotten like a dead person from the heart; I have become like a lost vessel.”", + "Help me to never forget my eternal world. Have mercy upon me — I who am persecuted and who lack awareness and counsel.", + "Empower my heart so that I will experience Your awesomeness and serve You. Guide me so that my heart and mind will constantly and clearly recall my ultimate purpose. Help me to bring my thoughts and my heart to constantly cling to the world of truth. You know the great sorrow and shame that a person will experience in the World to Come if he has not adorned himself in this world. Once that opportunity is lost, it can never be regained. In the World to Come, engaging in good deeds and self-reflection will be of no account, because if a person has not prepared on the eve of the Shabbat, what will he eat on the Shabbat? “That which is crooked cannot be made straight, and that which is missing cannot be numbered.” There, praying for Your compassion will not help. So help me now to always be aware of the World to Come.", + "May I not turn for an instant from an awareness of the World to Come. Guide me to return to You with perfect repentance, and to rectify in my lifetime everything that I damaged, whether by accident or on purpose, against my will or willingly.", + "May the merit and strength of the true Tzaddikim — who have the power to save us from every sort of evil eye — protect me. They fight on our behalf. They subjugate and eliminate every sort of evil eye at its supernal root. They weaken and eradicate the evil eye associated with taking power by linking it to its root of sovereignty, which is the kingdom of the Mashiach, son of David, who has “beautiful eyes and sees the good.”", + "May they draw onto us the light of the Mashiach — may he come speedily and in our day, and save us from all our sorrows as he redeems us.", + "Give Me a Good Spirit
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, protect me from slandering any Jew, whether great or small, to the slightest degree, and from saying anything negative about any Jew, so that I will not harm my state of consciousness at all.", + "Guide me to holy love. Rescue me from love that has fallen into negative spaces.", + "Give me the ability to break the power of the beast-like imagination, so that I will be able to quickly put an end to all my animalistic desires.", + "Protect me from errors that result from the power of the imagination, so that I will not stray from truth, Heaven forbid.", + "Let me experience the joy of holiness always. Give me the power to gather and extricate the good spirit from the depressed and evil spirit.", + "Help me to attain the ten types of holy melody until I purify the power of imagination, subjugating and eliminating the evil within it and raising up the good within it to holiness, as I subjugate and eliminate the evil spirit of foolishness and melancholy.", + "May I quickly attain the good spirit of holiness, “for You are my God. Your good spirit guides me in a straight land. Create within me a pure heart, God, and renew within me a proper spirit. Do not cast me aside from You; do not take Your holy spirit away from me. Bring back to me the joy of Your salvation and support me with a generous spirit, Mighty One, God of the spirits.” Master of all beings, whether supernal or lowly, give me a good spirit. ", + "“HaShem, God of spirits, take heed of all flesh.” Pour forth upon me a good spirit of holiness, “a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and might, a spirit of awareness and the fear of HaShem,” a spirit of purity and joy.", + "Keep me from associating with sages whose deeds are unworthy. Keep me from listening to words of Torah from sages who have not yet clarified the power of their imagination, so that their insights are affected by the power of their imagination as it mixes together good and evil — with more evil than good. Those insights lead to a loss of holy prosperity and abundance, Heaven forbid, and cause great damage.", + "Bring me close to true Tzaddikim, whose Torah thoughts are all drawn from holiness — from the good spirit, the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of holiness — without any admixture.", + "Be gracious to me and give me awareness, understanding and mindfulness. Sanctify me with Your supernal holiness and help me to create original, true Torah thoughts that come from holiness. May they all be true without a trace of evil, Heaven forbid, and without any waste matter at all.", + "Be gracious to me and redeem me, so that I will quickly purify and sanctify myself in truth and break the power of the imagination, eliminating it and expelling it.", + "Give me the power and wisdom to break and nullify all the animalistic lusts of the imagination.", + "Protect me from the sin of slander, even the slightest trace, and from every sort of blemished speech and any blemish of the covenant, so that I will attain real holiness and purity — until I come to true, original and holy Torah thoughts, in accordance with Your desire.", + "My Father in Heaven, rescue me from imaginary good, which in the end is as bitter as wormwood. Satisfy me instead with Your true and eternal goodness.", + "Help me to be joyful always. May I rejoice in Your salvation. May I sing all the days of my life regarding the House of HaShem. May I lift the voice of song for Your Name and serve You in accordance with Your desire.", + "May I arouse and reveal the ten types of melody. May I hear the voice of melody that expresses the joy of mitzvot, as played by worthy and good musicians who produce holy melodies that come from the harp of David, who had a beautiful voice and played music well. As they play on their instruments, may the good spirit — the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of holiness, the spirit of joy — be separated from the depression of the spirit, from a melancholy and evil spirit, until I will attain a truly good spirit and always be joyful, and return to You completely with a truly broken heart that comes from joy and the melody of holiness.", + "Then I myself will pour forth my heart like water before Your countenance as I pray and speak to You with all my heart and spirit, and with great weeping that comes from joy.", + "Help me to arise every night, literally at midnight, without exception, rising up like a lion to learn Torah and serve You in truth. “Awaken my soul, awaken the lyre and harp; I will awaken the dawn.”", + "Speaking to God at Length
[Merciful and Gracious King, guide me to speak to You at length every day, telling You everything in my heart, honestly and with a broken heart — particularly after midnight, which is the best time for this practice. Inspire me to tell You everything in my heart, to seek out and bring forth the good spirit — the good points within me — as I separate them from the evil spirit.", + "In this way, help me to maintain my awareness of holiness, so that I will always be clearly aware of my ultimate purpose, which is to merit the World to Come, and I will constantly consider my end. Inspire me to cling in my thoughts to the World to Come, until I will at last return to You in complete repentance.]", + "For All Generations
God, please give me healthy sons who will learn Your Torah, keep Your mitzvot and do Your will throughout their lives — they, their children and their children’s children, for all generations. And may my memory remain throughout all their generations.", + "Guard them and keep them from every sin. Grant them long lives, and may they enhance Your Name forever.", + "For Chanukah
[Master of the World, inspire me to perform the mitzvah of lighting the Chanukah lamp perfectly and in its proper time. Please consider my lighting the menorah as though I have done so with all its details and particulars, and as though I had in mind all the holy intentions included in the mitzvah, until in this way the illuminations of holy consciousness will be drawn down onto me from their supernal, holy root.", + "Like the holy anointing oil, may it light a flame that will enhance my awareness and understanding, and deepen my thought to comprehend all the holy hints that You send me at every moment in my every thought, word and deed. You send these holy hints in accordance with each person, place and time, in order to teach us how to come close to You and cause our thoughts to cling to the World to Come in detail, until we lift up the feet of holiness that are hidden in all the things of this world.]", + "Recalling the World to Come
My Father in Heaven, deliver me from the power of the imagination, from the “death of the heart,” from forgetfulness and from the evil eye, on every level.", + "Help me to attain an awareness of holiness, so that I will always bring my thoughts to cling to the World to Come wherever I am — in general and in detail.", + "Let me not lose my world, Heaven forbid, for no good reason. Guide me to keep in mind that this world consist of “days of darkness which are many, all of them vanity.”", + "Guide me to recall my Creator in the days of my youth, “before the sun, the light, the moon and the stars are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain.”", + "Guide me to recall all the words of this teaching. May I not forget anything of what I have learned. May I not forget the things that my eyes have seen and the teachings of Your true sages that my ears have heard.", + "May I always recall the World to Come until I truly return to You and I am truly a person who is in accordance with Your desire.", + "HaShem our God, recall Your covenant with our fathers. May the verses be realized, “I will recall My covenant with Jacob and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham will I recall, and the earth will I recall.”", + "“I will recall for them the covenant of the first ones whom I brought out of the land of Egypt, in the sight of the nations, to be their God; I am HaShem.”", + "“I will recall to you the kindness of your youth, the love of your new marriage, when you followed after Me in the desert in a unsown land.”", + "“Is Ephraim not a precious son to me, a child of delights? Whenever I speak of him, I recall him yet more; therefore, I yearn for him. I will surely have compassion on him, says HaShem.”", + "Recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your kindness, for they are eternal.", + "Do not recall the sins of my youth. In Your kindness, take note of me now, for the sake of Your goodness, HaShem.", + "Master of the World, take heed of me for the good. Bring me salvation and compassion from the highest heavens. Recall for me, HaShem our God, the love of the early Tzaddikim. In their merit, protect and save those who come after them.", + "Recall Your nation, the Jewish people, who are scattered upon the mountains like sheep that have no shepherd.", + "Keep us in mind, HaShem, with Your favor for Your people. Send us Your salvation. May we see the goodness of Your chosen ones, rejoice in the joy of Your nation, and take pride in Your inheritance. “Why should You forget us forever, abandon us for length of days? Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Meaningful Prayer / Self-Nullification / Praying with Imperfect Jews / Connecting Oneself to Tzaddikim / Raising Up Those Who Have Fallen / Forceful Prayer
In order to overcome evil — in particular and in general — we must engage in meaningful prayer.
We overcome the evil in ourselves by nullifying our connection to our identification of ourselves as corporeal beings for the period of time that we are at prayer. We overcome evil in general by praying together with Jews who are far from perfect — who are, in fact, sinners. By praying with them, we nullify their evil; and, in fact, that former evil is transformed into a platform — a throne — for holiness.
In addition, when we pray, we should connect ourselves to the souls of departed Tzaddikim and arouse them to pray with us.
We must lift up people who have fallen into false faith with our prayer and plant perfect faith in their hearts. When a person is a philosopher, although he may have intelligent thoughts, those thoughts are greater than his deeds. Consequently, when his thought settles in his heart, his heart cannot contain it, since the heart is strengthened by good deeds. This is particularly true of licentious people who learn philosophy. When we pray with intensity, we rectify the hearts of these philosophers, so that their hearts can contain their intellect.
Not everyone can achieve such rectifications, however. Sometimes one is faced with the energy of very wicked people, and whoever challenges them endangers himself. To deal with this, one needs great prayer, such as that of Moses himself.
In addition, praying with intensity transforms all insults to honor. When a person stands in the palace of the king, he makes himself as nothing, so that he sees only the king. Should he hear any insult, he interprets it as expressing the honor of the king — because who would enter the palace and insult the king? Thus he makes an effort to interpret those words as a token of respect for the king. Also, he cannot imagine that these insults are meant for him, since he has nullified himself completely, so that only the king exists. The mitzvah of taking challah from the dough also implies these ideas.
“I lift my eyes to the mountains. From where will my help come? My help is from HaShem, the Maker of heaven and earth.”", + "Master of the World, God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, in the merit of our fathers, bring me to the Land of Israel swiftly and easily. Reveal the holiness of the Land of Israel even now in this bitter exile when, because of our many sins, it lies beneath the hand of the Other Side.", + "In the merit of our patriarchs, reveal the incredible holiness of the land even now, so that we will overcome our enemies and realize the verse, “Sit at My right side until I make your enemies your footstool.” Recall Your covenant with our forefathers. As the verse states, “I will recall My covenant with Jacob and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My covenant with Abraham will I recall, and the land will I recall.” And another verse states, “Even when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them or abhor them to destroy them and violate my covenant with them, because I am HaShem their God.”", + "So Many Enemies
Master of the World, not just one enemy means to destroy us, Heaven forbid, but a great many intend to do so. Every day and at every moment, “HaShem, how many are my enemies, how many are those who stand against me, how many say of me, ‘He has no salvation in God.’ All of them who see me, mock me. They push forth their lips, they shake their heads, they whistle, they grind their teeth, they say, ‘We will swallow him up!’”", + "They polish their eyes against us. “They gaze at me” with eyes that are unremittingly hostile.", + "Master of the World, You Who know every hidden thing, You know how utterly evil their eye is, how they wish to crush us, Heaven forbid. We do not know how to escape the venom of their evil eye. “My opponent polishes his eyes against me. I am a worm and not a man, the most disgraced and disrespected of men.” I am blemished and damaged, impaired and ruined, harmed and oppressed, torn and confused, weak and lacking intelligence. Where will I run? Where can I escape?", + "What counsel, what ideas will I find to gain the power to stand firm in the thick of battle? What can I say? How can I express myself? How can I justify myself? God has uncovered my sin. HaShem, You are right and I am ashamed. “My eyes are raised to the heights.” I raise my eyes to You in hope. “To You have I raised my eyes, You Who dwell in Heaven. My eyes are raised to the heights, HaShem. I have been oppressed, be my guarantor.” “My eyes are always turned to HaShem, for He brings my feet out of the net.”", + "“Guard my spirit and rescue me. May I not be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.”", + "Rescue Me from Evil Influences
God, show me the proper path to walk upon, where I will be safe from the venom of my enemies’ evil eye.", + "Teach me to cling to Your holy traits so that I will always judge wicked people and my enemies favorably, and do my best to find some redeeming merit in them.", + "Stretch out Your great hand and, with that trait of justice, rescue them from the judgment against them for a long time.", + "In this way, the shadow of Your holy hand will cover me and protect me from the venom of their evil eyes, and hide me in the shadow of Your wings.", + "With the shadow of Your holy hand, weaken and darken the light of the eyes of the wicked, so that the venom of their evil eye will not have the power to harm me at all. Place a curtain between their evil eyes and me, so that the verse will be realized in me, “In the shadow of My hand have I covered you.”", + "Strengthen and sanctify my eyes with every type of holiness. Protect me from looking at anything that might harm my sight.", + "Do not abandon me. Do not leave me in their hands, Heaven forbid, but save me from those who are stronger than I am. As the verse states, “He rescues the poor person from the one stronger than he and the impoverished and pauper from the person who robs him.” And may the verse be realized in me, “Although the wicked person gazes at the righteous man and seeks to kill him, HaShem will not abandon him in his hand and not permit him to be condemned when he is judged.”", + "May the light of my eyes be strengthened with holiness and purity, until — as I am revived — I am able to see from afar Your righteousness and the justice of Your path, and know that You are just, even if the wicked person prevails in judgment.", + "Then my faith will be strengthened and buoyed, and I will believe in You, HaShem my God, with all my heart and soul, and the crookedness in my heart will be straightened out.", + "I will bolster myself with this full and holy faith to pray to You always for everything I need, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers. I will tell You everything in my heart simply and directly, without dishonesty or concealment.", + "I will believe that everything is in Your power — even the ability to change nature — and that You do not deprive anyone of his reward, because You are righteous and upright.", + "May I always pray and thank You with a sincere heart, in complete truth and faith, with holiness and purity.", + "Turning Evil into a Throne for Holiness
“I have dared to speak to HaShem, although I am dust and ashes.”", + "May my prayer to You be unblemished, so that with my prayer I will be able to overcome evil — in particular and in general.", + "Help me to pray to You with complete devotion and ultimate truth, until my entire physicality and all my senses are completely nullified.", + "May my prayer be as perfect as that of the early Tzaddikim, who completely lost their physical awareness when they prayed.", + "With Your mighty help, may I then overcome and eliminate the evil of the prayers of the wicked people and Jewish sinners in whose midst I pray.", + "Give me the ability to eradicate their evil and turn it into a throne for holiness, so that it will be ashes beneath the feet of holiness. May the verse be realized, “We will tread down the wicked, so that they will be ash beneath the soles of our feet.”", + "Binding Oneself to Tzaddikim of Previous Generations
When I pray, may I bind myself to all beings, particularly to the souls of those who “sleep in the dust.”", + "May I awaken them with my prayers, so that they all will pray together with me. As the verse states, “Awake and sing, you who sleep in the dust.”", + "Then, as I connect my words of prayer to those who sleep in the dust — as a whole, and with each one in particular — I will awaken all the parts of my own soul which have come into an incarnation and been rectified.12When the parts of one’s soul are rectified, he is then considered a Tzaddik on his level. Therefore, he can join the other Tzaddikim whom he awakens to join his prayer. I will also awaken all the holy souls of all the Tzaddikim who sleep in the dust, the holy ones in the earth, so that they will pray together with me.", + "In their merit, may my prayers be heard always. Heed my voice. Listen to my outcry. Have compassion on me for their sake, not for mine. As the verse states, “As for the holy ones in the earth and as for the mighty ones, all my desires are fulfilled because of them.”", + "Eradicating the Notions of the Philosophers
With the aid of Your power and love, and with the aid of the strength and merits of the true Tzaddikim, may I rectify the three evil voices of the wicked when I pray: the foolish voice of those who have fallen prey to false beliefs, the contemptuous voice of the philosophers and heretics, and the shaming voice of those who insult sincere, God-fearing people.", + "With my prayers, may I overcome and eliminate every type of false faith and superstition.", + "And may I raise up all those people who have fallen prey to false beliefs and bring them to the true and holy faith, filling their hearts with conviction.", + "May I place my entire heart in my prayer and speak to You with heartfelt feeling, until I rectify the hearts of the philosophers, so that their hearts will be able to embrace their minds, and their minds will no longer mislead them.", + "HaShem my God, You know how much damage these philosophers — who are so “wise in their own eyes” — have caused us. Because their intelligence is greater than their deeds, it is misguided. They are wise “to do evil, but they do not know how to do good.”", + "And they grow ever more intelligent in their own eyes to the point that they insult You and cause great harm to the Jewish people — part of the reason being that most of them are licentious. They engage in philosophy but they lack heart, so that they cannot contain their wisdom properly. As the verse states, they wish “to acquire wisdom, but lack heart.”", + "Thus they stray far from the proper path because of their evil wisdom and critiques. Not only do they ruin their own souls, but they spread out their nets to trap vulnerable and simple Jews, until the plague has spread far in our generations on account of our many sins.", + "“Woe to us, for we have been afflicted.” You alone known the depth of the pain that we suffer in these days preceding the coming of the Mashiach — something whose like was never seen before in history. We have no one to rely on except You, our Father in Heaven. Have mercy on us. Save the remnant of Your nation, the Jewish people, from all the schools of philosophers who trap souls and cast them into the pit of destruction.", + "May no one even contemplate their theories and mistaken notions. Instead, guide us all to learn Torah and perform good deeds wholeheartedly and with complete simplicity all the days of our lives, so that we cast aside those notions and rely only on the faith that our holy forefathers bequeathed to us.", + "May my good deeds outweigh my wisdom.", + "Give me the strength to overcome and eradicate all the alien notions of the theorists and philosophers. Turn their hearts to truth, so that they will all come back to a holy and pure faith.", + "Transforming Insult into Honor
God, help me to rid myself of the insults that I have suffered from my enemies, both in the material and spiritual realms. With my prayer, may I transform these to honor.", + "When I pray, may I nullify myself and stand in Your palace, seeing nothing but You, the King Himself, until I attain a holy mind with which I am able to transform all insults into honor and with which I can recombine the words of the insulters and blasphemers into words that honor You. As the verse states, “In His palace, everything declares His honor.”", + "May my prayer become so perfect that it accomplishes all the rectifications that Moses achieved when he burned the Red Heifer in the wilderness.13See Numbers 19:1-22. Keep in mind the covenant of our forefathers, so that the light of their merit will shine as a result of my entreaties as I constantly seek Your face.", + "Holiness of the Land of Israel
Through the merit of our forefathers, unveil Your mighty presence in the world and reveal the holiness of the Land of Israel even during this bitter exile.", + "Help me to constantly yearn to come to the Land of Israel, until I actually move there, quickly and easily.", + "May the holiness of the Land of Israel save me from the evil eye of my enemies and persecutors. May they suffer what they wish me to suffer, so that the verse will be realized, “Hope in HaShem and keep His way, and He will raise you up to inherit the land as you see the wicked cut away. Trust in HaShem and do good. Dwell in the land and shepherd with faith.”", + "Overcoming the Wicked
Master of the World, You know that I lack the power to withstand even one of my enemies, and certainly not all of them. I lack the power to overcome these three voices.", + "But I come to You with the merit and strength of the true Tzaddikim. May I be blended together with them so that they will battle on my behalf, and so that with their great might, they will overcome these three voices and cast down all my enemies and persecutors — all those who oppose Your pure truth, who prevent me and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from doing Your will and walking on the straight and true path.", + "May these enemies all fall and proclaim the glory of Your Name. Then the verse will be realized, “Although the wicked person gazes at the righteous man and seeks to kill him, HaShem will not abandon him in his hand and not permit him to be condemned when he is judged.”", + "In Your compassion, help me to return to You fully, quickly and easily, so that I will be among those righteous people who do good, and Your face will be revealed to me through the holiness of the Land of Israel. May I truly realize the verse, “Seek HaShem and His might, seek His face always.”", + "Challah
Help me to keep the mitzvah of challah fully. May I never eat any dough from which challah has not been taken.", + "Bring our righteous Mashiach quickly so that we will soon return to our land, and there we will keep the mitzvah of giving challah to the kohen with fully-realized holiness.", + "All My Bones Will Proclaim
Protect me and all my offspring, so that no evil eye — whether that of man or of any other being — will ever affect us.", + "May we thank and bless You always. May our mouths be filled with Your praise, so that we always laud You, HaShem our God, for each breath.", + "“All my bones will proclaim, ‘HaShem, who is like You, Who rescues the poor person from the one stronger than he and the impoverished and pauper from the person who robs him.’", + "“Rescue me from my enemies, my God. Lift me above those who rise against me. HaShem, deliver me from a wicked man, protect me from a man of violence, because my eyes turn to You, God, HaShem. You are my protection. Do not cast away my spirit, HaShem my God. I take refuge in You. Save me from all my pursuers and rescue me.”", + "May the verses be realized, “He has redeemed my spirit in peace so that no one, of the many who come against me, will be able to approach me.”", + "“Those who fear HaShem, praise Him; all descendants of Jacob, honor Him — for He has not disdained nor abhorred the powerlessness of the poor man. When he cries out to Him, He hears.”", + "“God helps me. HaShem is among those who support my spirit. He repays those who gaze at me with evil intent.” “In Your truth, crush them, cut them off. ", + "I will generously sacrifice to You; I will thank Your Name, HaShem, for it is good.”", + "“He has saved me from every sorrow, and my eyes have seen the downfall of my enemies.”", + "“Every soul will praise God. Everyone, praise God!”" + ], + [ + "Sovereignty, Hidden and Revealed / Admonishing Others / Learning Torah / Receiving Godliness in Proper Measure / A Single and a Double Concealment of Godliness / The Concealments Themselves Reveal Godliness / The Highest Torah / Greed / Earning a Living without Toil / Shavuot / Mikvah / Dispute for the Sake of Heaven / Sighing / Inspired Words from Heaven
Every Jew possesses a degree of sovereignty. One person may rule in his home, another in his community, another over the entire world.
Sometimes that sovereignty is revealed, but at other times it is hidden — i.e., a person rules over souls that are subject to his influence. And every Jew possesses something of that hidden sovereignty. Indeed, it is possible for a person to possess no revealed sovereignty, yet sway a great deal of hidden sovereignty, even over the Tzaddikim of the generation.
A person can use his sovereignty for selfish purposes, exploiting it like a slave who serves his desires. But it should be free — that is, he should use it to serve God, by teaching and admonishing others.
Each person has a responsibility to admonish the people from his soul-root who are under his sovereignty. When he shirks this responsibility, he is punished. But if does not know what they need, how can he do so? Thus he requires the proper awareness to know how to admonish them. He can attain that awareness through a state called “length of days.” He attains this state by learning Torah.
The Torah is the name of God. Just as we call a person by his name, so too do we call God to come to us by learning Torah. God is the Source of life. Therefore, when we call God to ourselves, we are calling life and “length of days” to ourselves. Yet we must absorb that life force in the proper measure. Should there be too much, it will be like too much oil, which extinguishes a flame. We make that proper measure by learning Torah.
A name is an object’s container, in which that object is defined and delineated. The life force of God, Who is the Source of life, is contained within the Torah. Indeed, the Torah consists of containers: letters, words, verses and chapters. They hold God’s life force in a measured manner. By learning Torah, we draw “length of days” to ourselves. In that way, we attain awareness, because awareness itself is our life force. And when we attain awareness, we are able to admonish those people over whom we have sovereignty and for whom we are responsible.
But sometimes God’s life force is hidden.
There are two types of spiritual concealment: simple and doubled. If God is concealed simply, although it is hard to find Him, then insofar as a person knows that God is hidden, when he toils, he will find Him. If God is doubly hidden, however, the very fact of his concealment is concealed. Then a person does not even know that God is hidden and, of course, he cannot find Him.
Nevertheless, even in that double concealment, God is present, because nothing exists without His life force. Thus God is contained within all objects, deeds and thoughts. Even if a person sins, God’s life force is there, although it is very hidden and constricted.
The Torah is the life force of everything. Thus it is contained within everything — in every thought, even a sinful one — although the Torah is then very hidden and constricted.
When a person sins, he takes God’s words and rearranges them, calling evil, good, and vice versa. This person’s conscience, however, is still functioning. This is one level of concealment. But at times, there may be a double concealment, when a person has sinned so much that he has no sense that he is doing anything wrong. There too God is hidden in the letters of the Torah.
We must reveal those concealments. We do that by drawing “length of days” into our sovereignty. This gives us the awareness that even within concealment — even within a double concealment — God is to be found within the Torah. Then the concealments themselves are transformed into Torah, and then the Torah itself admonishes people. Indeed, the Torah is always admonishing us, but we do not hear its voice because it is concealed.
But when we learn Torah, we draw “length of days” into sovereignty. We draw God’s life force into “days” and “measures.” As a result, we attain awareness, and we are able to admonish even those who are far from God — those who suffer from concealment within concealment.
The Torah teachings that are contained within a double concealment are very high. They consist of the secrets of the Torah. If the Torah contained within such low places — in the midst of people who have sinned a great deal — consisted of simple meanings, then the evil “husks” would be able to derive much from it, and that would cause great damage. Therefore, God hides and contains a high-level Torah there — the secrets of the Torah, the Torah of HaShem itself — from which the “husks” cannot derive very much. When that Torah is redeemed, it literally becomes the “Torah of HaShem.”
There is an energy that opposes holy sovereignty, and that is evil sovereignty. Holy sovereignty gathers everything together. Evil sovereignty gathers money together. Fearful lest its prey — the sparks of holiness — be taken from its mouth, it gathers money, which consists of sparks of holiness — the supernal colors inherent in gold, silver and copper. Thus a person experiences a desire for wealth, which corresponds to sovereignty. Holy sovereignty has the power to take money from evil sovereignty, together with all the holy sparks that evil has swallowed up. That money itself is then transformed into Torah.
The greater a person’s awareness, the easier it is for him to earn a living. Earning a living without excessive toil is dependent on one’s awareness. When a person’s awareness is increased, peace is increased as well. Then two opposites, such as a lion and a lamb, can live together. Then anger and cruelty cease to exist, because they are the result of a lack of awareness.
This corresponds to the festival of Shavuot. Shavuot embodies a very high level of awareness — of supernal love and compassion which depend on awareness. Therefore, it is customary on Shavuot morning to go to the mikvah. That is the gate of supernal awareness, which saves a person from troubles and purifies him from all impurity.
Dispute is normally the opposite of awareness. However, there is “a dispute for the sake of Heaven.” That is actually an even greater state of awareness than the awareness of peace. To attain a dispute for the sake of Heaven, a person must truly sigh, for that strengthens and steadies his pulse — which was weakened and made unsteady and heavy by depression. Then he receives inspired words from Heaven. It is possible that in a practical sense, the halakhah is not in accordance with his words. That is something that we cannot understand. Nevertheless, we must respect this person’s words and realize that they form part of a dispute for the sake of Heaven.
“Why do You hide Your face and forget our suffering and oppression?” Why, HaShem, do You reject my soul? Why do You conceal Your countenance from me? Why, HaShem, do You stand at a distance? Why do You hide Yourself from me in my time of trouble?", + "How long, HaShem, will You hide, as Your wrath burns like fire? How long, HaShem, will You forget me? How long will I have to take my own counsel, with sadness in my heart? How long will my enemies rise up against me? “Do not hide Your face from me on my day of trouble. Turn Your ear to me on the day that I call to You.” Answer me swiftly. HaShem, my spirit is dying. Do not hide Your face from me. Do not abandon me to descend into the pit. “Answer me, HaShem, answer me,” because I am in anguish. “Do not conceal Your face from me. Do not hide from my entreaty.”", + "Concealment within Concealment
Master of the World, King of the universe, You hide Yourself so thoroughly that only You know how completely You are concealed during these days that precede the coming of the Mashiach. “You have hidden Your face from us and caused us to melt because of our sins.”", + "For our many sins, the verse has been realized, “I will surely hide My face on that day because of all that was done.”", + "You have hidden Yourself so completely. You have hidden Your might, Your greatness, splendor, sovereignty and supremacy — the fact that You hold dominion over everything — because we sinned and did evil in Your eyes, from our youth until this day.", + "In particular, I have sinned over and over again, so much so that I have started to view my sins as permissible behavior. I have twisted Your words, my Living God, and misinterpreted the letters of Your holy Torah until I have called the forbidden, permissible.", + "Even worse, I have repeated my sins innumerable times, too many to count. I have angered You so often that my sins weigh down on my neck like a yoke, “until there is no end to counting, for there is no number.”", + "And because I have sinned so much, You have become concealed even more within concealment. Even the fact that You are concealed is itself concealed from me, so that I do not realize how much of Yourself You hide from me, because I know nothing about You at all.", + "Instead, I view my sins as being normal and proper. “Woe to us, for we are desolate.” What can I say to You, God, You Who sit in the heights? What shall I reveal to You, You Who dwell in the heavens? You know everything, hidden and revealed.”", + "My Father in Heaven, what can I do? What can I accomplish? I am poor and needy — where will I find the strength to realize the depth of Your concealment within concealment? You are so hidden from me that I have forgotten the goodness and holiness which should be part of my experience. “You rejected my spirit so that it would not experience peace; I have forgotten what is good” — and all because I forgot You.", + "Even if I sometimes remember something of Your greatness, Your might, Your greatness, sovereignty and exalted nature, and I yearn to return to You, my strength is sapped and I lack the capacity to overcome my evil desires. “My life has been worn out with groaning, and my years with sighs.”", + "I do not know where to run in order to hide from my evil desires, my confusion, and the depression and anxiety that have overwhelmed me, which stand over me and do not allow my spirit to return.", + "And so, my Father in Heaven, have mercy on me. Look at my suffering and my drudgery. See “my suffering and my affliction, which are wormwood and gall. See, HaShem, how I suffer. My inner organs burn; my heart has turned over within me, because I am so embittered. See, HaShem, that the enemy goes forward and no one is saved or helped. You have covered Yourself with a cloud that prevents prayer from passing through. You have cloaked Yourself in anger and oppressed us.”", + "Wordless Before God
Master of the Universe, You Who are filled with compassion, “be gracious to me, HaShem. See the suffering that my enemies have imposed upon me. Lift me up from the gates of death.” Remember me, and consider whom You are pursuing: “After whom has the king of Israel gone forth? After a dead dog, after a single flea.” Will You overwhelm a blown leaf? Will You pursue the dry straw?”", + "Master of the Universe, my mouth cannot express itself. I lack the confidence even to raise my head before You. There are no words on my tongue because You know everything, HaShem. You have lifted me up and cast me down. “HaShem, when You favored me, You made me as strong as a mountain. But You have hidden Your face and I am in distress.”", + "Answer me, HaShem, in the goodness of Your love. Turn to me in accordance with the measure of Your compassion. Do not hide Your face from me, Your servant. I am suffering — answer me soon!", + "“To You, HaShem, do I call. Before HaShem do I beg. What value would there be to my blood if I were to go down to the pit? Would the dust thank You? Would it tell of Your truth? Hear, HaShem, and be gracious to me. HaShem, help me!”", + "I do not know how to bring to awareness how You have concealed Yourself within concealment. There are so many thousands — even tens of thousands — of layers of concealment that I do not know how to save myself and escape from the trap.", + "Finding God in the Torah
God, in Your great compassion, You have created a plan that will ultimately bring us to goodness. You have promised us that whenever we study the holy Torah, we will find You — even in this era, before the end of days, when You are so profoundly concealed within concealment. As the verse states, “I will surely hide My face on that day. … This song will speak up before the Jews as a witness, for it shall not be forgotten from the mouth of their offspring.”", + "Therefore, I have come to You, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, You Who are filled with compassion and grace, You Who are good and do good to all, to ask You to guide me in learning Your holy Torah for its own sake, day and night, in holiness and purity — so that at every moment and in every place, I will discover You, concealed within concealment.", + "Then nothing in the world will be able to hide You presence, Your providence and Your exalted nature from me.", + "Guide me to learn the holy Torah aloud. Give me the strength to call to You, the life force of all life, by means of the holy Torah, which is Your Name.", + "In this way, may I draw down onto myself a good and long life. For You are the life force of all life, Who gives life to all worlds, from beginning to end — by means of Your holy Torah, which is Your Name, which is “our life and the length of our days.”", + "Guide me to receive that life in a graduated, measured fashion, through the vessels of holiness that are brought into being by the chapters, paragraphs, verses, words, cantillation, vowels, crowns and letters of the holy Torah.", + "Through these vessels, may I attain goodness, a long life, compassion, peace and holy awareness.", + "Discovering Holy Secrets in the Torah
Master of the Universe, You are close to those who truly call out to You. Inspire me to call out to You and respond to me quickly. As I call, answer; as I entreat, respond.", + "Graciously grant me the gifts of knowledge, understanding and wisdom. As a result of learning Your holy Torah, may I gain a good life consisting of length of days and years, wisdom, understanding and the knowledge of holiness. May I know that You exist at every time and place, even in the depths of concealment within concealment. You are hidden within all the concealments of the world. Even in thousands, tens of thousands and infinite layers of concealment, You are there. There is no place empty of You.", + "You give life to everything. Even all the negative energies, all unclean things, all aspects of evil — all things that conceal You — receive their life force from You alone.", + "You are sovereign over everything. Only You make it possible for the concealments in the world which conceal You.", + "Teach me to comprehend this with a truly encompassing awareness and faith. Then I will transform that concealment within concealment into knowledge, and all these concealments will be transformed into holy Torah as they are revealed.", + "May I gain a revelation of the secrets of the Torah, so that I will understand them and hear the mighty voice that proclaims the words of the holy Torah. But “at the head of the noisy streets, wisdom calls out: … ‘How long, foolish people, will you love foolishness?’” Due to my many sins, I do not hear that proclamation.", + "So for the sake of Your Name, have compassion on me so that I will learn Your holy Torah aloud with great holiness, until I do hear that great proclamation of the holy Torah, the voice of the “Living God and King of the world, the great voice that does not cease.”", + "The Torah itself reprimands with a rebuke impelled by a hidden love. As the verse states, “She opens her mouth with wisdom and the Torah of kindness is on her tongue.” And, as a result, may I return to You quickly and easily.", + "Inspire me to serve You. Bring me back to You in perfect repentance.", + "Help me to discover the combinations of the letters of the holy Torah that lie concealed. Help me to raise them up and transform them into holiness. Help me to bring them back to their original place and combine them in a holy manner, and in doing so, reveal true, wondrous and awesome Torah insights.", + "Guide me to discover the wondrous and hidden secrets of Your holy Torah, which You have set aside for those Who fear You. Enable me to differentiate between the prohibited and the permissible, the holy and the mundane, the impure and the pure, the kosher and the nonkosher.", + "Inspire me to divest myself of evil and of those things that are forbidden. Instead, may I cling to holiness, in truth and faith, so that I will turn aside from evil and always do that which is good in Your eyes.", + "Becoming a Holy Leader
Lead me to a perfect awareness of holiness, so that I will adorn myself — and others too — with a truly complete repentance. By learning the holy Torah, I will awaken others to repent — even those people who are very far from me. I will bring them from darkness to light and from the mundane to the holy.", + "Help me to draw life and length of days and years into the quality of leadership that I possess — both implicit and revealed.", + "May I never use my leadership abilities for any selfish purpose whatsoever. May I never exploit them as if they were my servant, but rather treat them with respect, using my leadership abilities only for the sake of Your Name, only to serve You.", + "Graciously give me a holy awareness so that I will know how to admonish all those who are under my influence — be they my sons, daughters and other family members, or my friends and others in my circle.", + "May I admonish them and guide them in Your Torah, inspiring them to return to You; not to follow after the stubbornness of their evil hearts, but instead to look at themselves and have pity on their souls, so that they will cling to the ways of Your Torah, turning away from evil and doing good, never swerving from the mitzvot, right or left.", + "Keep me from being damaged, Heaven forbid, by my relationship to my trait of leadership. Rather, help me to draw into my leadership abilities a good and long life. May I bring all my leadership abilities to You without using them for selfish purposes, but solely for Your Name. As the verse states, “Sovereignty belongs to HaShem.”", + "Overcoming the Desire for Riches
Compassionate God, rescue me from the lust for money. Help me to break the desire to become a magnate. May I have no ambition whatsoever to accumulate wealth in this world that is not ours. Instead, may all my desires, yearning and activity be directed only in the ways of the holy Torah: to acquire wisdom and a perfect awareness of holiness, and cling to Your holy mitzvot.", + "In this lifetime, may I rectify all the blemishes that I created with my desire for money. May I extract all the sparks of holiness that were swallowed up by negative energies because of my evil desires, particularly my lust for money. May the verse be speedily realized, “Although it has swallowed wealth, it will vomit it up; God will cast it out of its belly.”", + "For Purim
God, inspire me to overcome and uproot the energy of Haman and Amalek — which is to say, the lust for money. May I extract all the life force of holiness from that energy, and bring all the sparks of holiness and the life force of holiness back to their supernal root in holiness, and turn them back into holy Torah.", + "May I always draw onto myself the holiness of Mordekhai the Jew and Queen Esther. Help me to reveal and illumine all the supernal hues — of silver, gold and copper — in a holy and pure way, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Pour onto me the ability to feel compassion and give charity generously.", + "Send me a flow of abundance, charity, blessing, compassion, life, peace and complete awareness of holiness and all goodness.", + "Nullify dispute in the world. Remove greed, jealousy, irritation and argument from Your entire nation, the House of Israel, forever. Instead, draw compassion into the world, so that there will truly be peace among all Jews and among all people, and everyone in the world will have true compassion and love for each other.", + "Send me a good income from Heaven. Just as You fed Your nation, the Jewish people, in the wilderness for forty years with the manna and supplied them with everything they needed, have pity on me and send me an abundance of income from Heaven. Give me everything that I need without toil, so that I may do Your will, keep Your laws and learn Your Torah day and night — because otherwise, all the days of my life are vanity, passing like a shadow. And “if not now, when?”", + "For Shavuot
Help me to purify and sanctify myself by regularly immersing in a mikvah. May I merit to draw upon myself great purity and holiness through immersion in the mikvah to purify myself from all sins and to cleanse myself of all the sins that I committed from my youth until this day, and thus pour onto myself awareness and compassion.", + "By immersing in the mikvah, may I sweeten all judgments against me, my offspring, and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, eliminating all sorrows and evil decrees.", + "As a result of immersing in the holy and awesome mikvah, may the verse be realized, “HaShem is the Mikvah of Israel, saving them in a time of trouble.”", + "In particular, may I draw onto myself the holiness of the mikvah on the holy festival of Shavuot, when the Jewish people came close to You and received the holy Torah.", + "On Shavuot, may we all immerse in the supernal mikvah, the mikvah of the fiftieth gate of holiness, which consists of compassion, kindness and a high state of awareness.", + "May we draw down onto ourselves the holiness of that mikvah every year so as to purify and sanctify ourselves always, and quickly emerge from the fifty gates of impurity and enter the fifty gates of holiness. May the verse soon be realized in us, “I will sprinkle pure waters upon you and purify You; of all Your contaminations and all your idols, I will purify you.”", + "Dispute Among the Sages
Inspire me to attain true faith in the sages. Imbue me with a complete awareness that will lead me to truly know and believe in all the Tzaddikim and true sages, so that no dispute among them will ever upset me. Rather, I will know and believe that each one is expressing the words of the Living God, all of which are true and just. Then I will not disparage any of the sages, even those with whom the halakhah does not accord; for their words are the way of HaShem, although that is something wondrous that we cannot understand.", + "May I not spend time puzzling over this, but believe only that all the words of the Tzaddikim — even those that contradict each other — are Your words, my Living God.", + "Overcoming Anxiety
Dear God, rescue me from the toil of my hands. Nullify all my depression, worries and anxiety, particularly my worries concerning earning a living. Because of my many sins and evil desires, my heart is overcome with heaviness, depression and anxiety, and earning a living has become a difficult burden. As a result, the spirit of my heart has closed down so that its pulse cannot radiate properly through my limbs.", + "As a result, my hands and limbs have grown heavy. And because of that heaviness, the spirit of my heart grows ever weaker, until my depression leads to so much heaviness, weakness and a sealed heart that I am close to death, Heaven forbid; “there is but a step between me and death.”", + "The Strength to Bear the Load
Master of the Universe, You know all this. You know my bitter and unsettled heart. The agony of my heart reaches to the heights of Heaven. “The strength to bear the load has collapsed.” “Woe is me, my mother, that you gave birth to me!” Woe to my spirit, woe and bitterness. HaShem, have mercy on me. I have no idea how to begin to speak to You. How can I open my mouth? How can I lift up my eyes? How can a servant speak to his Master? “Indeed, I sinned against HaShem, God of Israel.” I did that which is evil in Your eyes. “Like vinegar upon the teeth and like smoke in the eyes,” so did I act. I was like a murderer of my own spirit, with no pity on myself or on my passing days.", + "Father of compassion, my Rock, Redeemer, Maker and Creator, my King and Holy One, You Who contrive how to bring me to a good end — give me ideas that will help me to return to You and never to go back to my foolish ways. All I know is to entreat You to have compassion on me and help me to crush my desires, so that they will be truly subjugated to You.", + "A Healing Sigh
Dear God, purify me so that I will be able to sigh from the depths of my heart. And with this sigh, revive the spirit of the pulse of holiness in my heart, so that this spirit will again spread and breathe properly through my limbs, particularly my hands. May I quickly rectify the blemishes in my hands, which I have caused from my youth until this day, so that I will at last lift my hands to You, “Supernal God, Creator of heaven and earth,” and realize the verse, “Let us lift up our hearts with our hands to God in Heaven.”", + "Inspire me to be joyful always and never to experience depression or bitterness. Bring me to true holiness and purity. Guide me to rise level by level in great holiness until, aided by the strength of the true Tzaddikim, I receive words from Heaven and realize that a dispute in matters of holiness is not dispute at all, but only love, camaraderie, friendship and peace — because “each side is expressing the words of the Living God.”", + "Teach me know to Your ways and lead me to cling to the true Tzaddikim with whom the halakhah is in accord.", + "My Father, my King, You know that I cannot speak to You truly and fully. You know how much my sins have caused me to lose. And so, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, proclaim, “Enough!” to my difficulties. Have pity on me. Lead me to quickly return to You. Provide me with my sustenance before I am in need, and may I never take loans and go into debt.", + "Master of the Universe, save me from the “toil of the hands.” Rescue me from the difficulties involved in earning a living. In the merit of the true Tzaddikim, bring me consolation. And bring the righteous Mashiach, so that the verse will be realized, “This one will console us for our deeds and for the toil of our hands.”", + "“Turn to me and be gracious to me. Give Your might to Your servant and save the son of Your maidservant. Perform for me a sign for good. Then my enemies will see and grow ashamed, because You, HaShem, are my help and my consolation.” Amen, amen." + ], + [ + "God’s Speech and Angels / Heavenly “Hands” / Torah and Healing / Raising Fallen Faith / The Delight of the Shabbat / Eating on the Shabbat / Fasting / Anger / The Image of God
Every word that issues forth from God’s mouth is divided into a number of sparks, and an angel is created in accordance with every spark. Each angel is in charge of something, such as a tree or a blade of grass. The angel’s ability to receive vitality from God’s speech — the Torah — and give to the entity that it influences is called its “hands.”
Since the Torah gives power to the angels, and they in turn influence grasses and herbs which are made into healing medicines, all medicines ultimately depend on the Torah. If a person lacks faith in the Torah sages and ignores their rulings, he removes the “hands” from the angels. As a result, he suffers from illness that cannot be cured. Only when he raises up his fallen faith can he be healed.
He raises up his fallen faith by making vows. This elevates him to the spiritual level that is the source of the sages, and then he can appreciate and believe in them. This leads to an elevation of the spiritual pleasure of the Shabbat, which is expressed in eating in holiness.
When a person eats on the weekdays, the Other Side derives some benefit from it. But when he eats on the Shabbat, the Other Side derives no benefit. His Shabbat eating is completely holy and Godly. Therefore, on the Shabbat, a person can accomplish with his eating what he could accomplish on a weekday only with fasting — and that is the downfall of his enemies. Why is that?
Anger is associated with the liver — which, during the weekdays, takes precedence over the brain. When a person is angry, he can be attacked by enemies, since they do not fear him. Human beings are feared only because of the image of God that they possess. When they no longer possess that image, they become animalistic. When a person grows angry, the image of God leaves him, and thus he is not feared. But when a person fasts and does not feed his liver, he restores his Godly image. Then his enemies fall before him. A person who attains the delight of the Shabbat, however, has no need to fast. Indeed, the peace attained by the delight of the Shabbat is superior to the peace attained through a weekday fast. And superior to both is a level called “a profusion of peace,” which a person attains by giving charity generously. “One who increases charity increases peace.”
“HaShem, You are my God; I will exalt You. I will give thanks to Your Name because You have sent wonders, counsel from the earliest times. Your faithfulness has been established.”", + "Our King, You chose us from all the nations and elevated us beyond all other peoples. You sanctified us with Your commandments and brought us close to serve You.", + "You gave us Your holy Torah in its written and oral forms. You commanded us to believe in Your righteousness and Your Tzaddikim and true sages — to cling to them and heed their words, doing everything that they say. As the verse states, “Do not turn aside, right or left, from the matter that they tell you.”", + "Healing the Wounds of Lack of Faith in the Sages
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers — God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob — please plant Your holy faith deep in my heart and in the hearts of Your entire nation, the House of Israel.", + "Bring us to truly and completely believe in the true, holy sages so that we come close to them, roll in the dust of their feet, drink their words thirstily and walk on the path that they point out, without turning from their words to the right or the left.", + "Keep me, my offspring and all the offspring of Your nation, the House of Israel, from opposing them and other worthy people in the world.", + "May I never mock these people, Heaven forbid. Rather, may I put the words of the Tzaddikim and true sages into practice, cleaving to their ways and believing in them fully.", + "In many ways, I have damaged my faith in the sages and dishonored them, from my youth until this day. As a result, I have harmed the totality of Your holy Torah, which was given to the true sages to explicate as they desire. I thus damaged the holy angels that were created by Your words, which are composed of the letters of the holy Torah. By transgressing the negative commandment, “Do not turn aside,” I removed the power of the “hands” from the holy angels — the “right hand” and “left hand” through which they receive the flow of abundance from above and bring it down to the grasses and everything in the world.", + "Because I damaged my faith in the sages, the hands of the angels were removed and they had no more power to receive and pour forth that abundance. As a result, it is impossible to be healed. I have thus brought into being, Heaven forbid, a wound that is not recorded in the Torah and that cannot be healed.", + "HaShem, grant atonement to me and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, for all the damage that we caused due to our lack of faith in the holy sages. You know what is hidden in our hearts; we did not cause damage with the intent to rebel and oppose You, but because of our unclear minds and lack of knowledge.", + "HaShem, please purify us, from this moment on, to rectify all this, so that we will attain a perfect faith in the sages, in accordance with Your desire.", + "You know that we have been overwhelmed by weariness. Our sole support is the sages and true Tzaddikim.", + "Guide us to believe in all the sages, Tzaddikim and truly worthy people, so that we never say anything that compromises their honor, Heaven forbid, and never insult any Jew in the world.", + "Guard our tongues from expressing evil and our lips from speaking falsehood.", + "Help us to re-establish and rectify our fallen faith in the sages and thereby restore the power of the “hands” to the holy angels, so that they may receive and pour forth abundance to all the grasses and all things in the world.", + "Quickly heal all our wounds in body and soul, in the material and spiritual realms, completely. “Heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed. Save us, and we will be saved, for You are our praise.”", + "Making Vows
God, sanctify me and guide me to attain true austerity soon.", + "Teach me to emulate the ways of our holy fathers by making vows that I immediately fulfill, in order to attain true holiness and sanctity.", + "May I rise up to the spiritual realm of vows called “wonders of wisdom,” and in that way, recognize the high caliber and holiness of the true sages and attain complete faith in them.", + "Then may I go up and be absorbed into the light of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and may their light shine within me.", + "For Shabbat
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, give me complete and true delight in the Shabbat. Let me greet each Shabbat with intense joy and take holy pleasure and delight in You on the Shabbat, and enjoy a large Shabbat meal with all sorts of delicacies.", + "Help me not to hesitate at all in paying for Shabbat and festival expenses. “You have prepared a table before me in sight of my enemies. You have anointed my head with oil, my cup overflows.”", + "Be gracious to me so that I will soon be able to eat in a holy manner, on the level of the delight of the Shabbat. In this way, may I be able to subjugate, eliminate and silence all my enemies.", + "May all those who have risen up against me for evil purposes bow down and fall. May their counsel be ruined and their plans frustrated.", + "Teach me to truly know how to conduct myself in regard to fasting. I have no idea what to do in this regard, and so I rely only on You to guide me.", + "Overcoming Anger
Teach me to quickly dissolve and eliminate my anger.", + "Save me from growing angry, being cruel and exhibiting irritation at anything or anyone in the world.", + "Instead, inspire me to be good and do good to everyone. In this way, save me from every sort of enemy, so that no one will have the power to condemn me at all.", + "Saved from the Hand of the Enemy
Master of the World, “save me from the hand of my enemy and pursuer. Please save me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, because I fear him, lest he come and strike me, mother and children. And You have said, ‘I will surely do good with you and make your offspring like the sand of the sea, which is too numerous to count.’”", + "Have mercy on me in accordance with Your compassion. Have pity on my poor and weary spirit, for “I have no means of escape; no one seeks to safeguard my life.” You know how many enemies and accusers constantly seek to harm me.", + "I confess my guilt. I brought all this upon myself because I aroused my enemies with my evil deeds. I transgressed and sinned, and did not protect myself from the evil fire of anger, and now that fire burns in me over and over again.", + "As a result of engaging in this great sin of anger, I have aroused the accuser and great enemy — who is Esau, the man of Seir. And so a number of accusers, slanderers and enemies have been aroused to turn against me, so many of them that I have no idea what to do. I have no idea where to go in order to escape them, because so many have risen up against me, with their mouths gaping as though they are about to swallow me.", + "“They opened their mouths wide against us and said, ‘We have swallowed them up.’ I wish I had wings like the dove! I would fly and dwell securely. I would go far off and nest in the wilderness. I would quickly find a refuge for myself from the violent wind, from the storm.”", + "My heart cries out to You, HaShem, “Do not let me grow weary. Do not allow the pupil of my eye to fall asleep.”", + "Master of the World, I have entreated You, prayed to You, and spoken to You to the best of my ability. Yet because I am so blemished, it is as though I haven’t even begun to address You. But I do not know how much more I must speak to You, and I do not know what else to do but pray and entreat You. Help me, because I rely only on You. “Come close to my soul, redeem it; against my enemies, deliver me.” HaShem, guide me in Your righteousness in the presence of my watchful enemies; make Your path straight before me.”", + "Arouse Your compassion, for I am persecuted and lack knowledge and counsel. Save me, my Master and King, save me! Lead me to return to You with all my heart. Rebuke my enemies and accusers, both in the physical and spiritual realms. Deliver me from their hand.", + "Master of the Universe, You know everything that is in my heart. What can I say before You, You Who sit in the heights? What can I tell You, You Who dwell in Heaven? You know everything, whether hidden or revealed. You know the secrets of the world and of every living being. You penetrate into a person’s innermost core, his drives and his heart. Nothing is concealed from Your eyes.", + "You are good and do good to everyone. Therefore, satisfy me with Your goodness. Inspire me to be good to everyone. Grant me atonement for all my sins and all the damage that I caused with my anger.", + "Always be with me. Save me, from this moment on. Keep me from getting angry and irritated — even in my heart — at anyone or anything in the world.", + "Illumine me with the light of Your countenance. Bring back my awareness of holiness, which left me because of my sin of anger. Draw onto me Your Godly image, the light of Your face, my Living King.", + "Graciously grant me the gift of an abundance of wisdom, understanding and holy awareness, until I will attain the illumination of the face of holiness.", + "Holy Eating and Overcoming Negativity
Guide me to always eat with great holiness, on the level of the delight of the Shabbat, until the Other Side does not partake of my eating and my holy mindfulness (which is associated with the brain) will overcome my anger (which is associated with the liver). Then the liver will have no more power, but all the governance will be in my brain, and Your image will shine on my face and I will be a holy person.", + "Help me to subjugate and nullify my animal like nature so that the fear of me will fall on animals and all my enemies. As the verse states, “A fear and dread of you will be instilled in all the animals of the earth.”", + "Repel all my enemies. May the verse be realized, “I will beat down his enemies before him and afflict his foes. Shine Your face on Your servant. Save me in Your lovingkindness. Shine Your face upon Your servant and teach me Your laws.”", + "Charity and Peace
God, inspire me to give much charity to many worthy people. As a result, may peace increase in the world.", + "May we attain a truly complete peacefulness that can express itself so that there will be peace between people, and people will speak words of truth and righteousness with each other in love and amity. May everyone inspire those around him to serve and fear You.", + "Quickly redeem us and bring our righteous Mashiach. Overcome and destroy the gate of Aram, so that it will fall — one descent after another — and our enemies will plunge down and no longer rise. “They have crouched and fallen, whereas we stand up and are invigorated.” May Israel dwell in surety, alone.”", + "Give peace to Your entire nation, the Jewish people, forever. Bless me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, at every moment with Your good peace. May the verses be realized, “May those who love Your Torah enjoy great peace, and face no stumbling blocks.", + "“May there be peace within your walls, tranquility within your palaces. May all your children be learned of HaShem, and may your children enjoy great peace. For the sake of my brothers and friends, I will speak peace on your behalf. For the sake of the House of HaShem, our God, I will seek good for you. HaShem will give His nation might, He will bless His nation with peace.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "The Well, the Clouds of Glory and the Manna / The Covenant / Defeating Amalek / Drink, Clothing and Food / Teaching Torah / Fear of Sin / Expressing Wisdom Carefully / Original Torah Thoughts / The Double Portion / Guarding Against Pride / Guarding Against Unseemly Speech
The well, the clouds of glory and the manna that accompanied the Jewish people throughout their wanderings in the wilderness remained with them in the merit of Moses. These three entities came to them originally due to the spiritual influence of the three patriarchs. Thus the well, with its waters of kindness, corresponded to Abraham. The clouds corresponded to Isaac, who had clouded eyes. And the manna corresponded to Jacob. Moses’ soul was composed of the three patriarchs; therefore, he could maintain the existence of these entities.
As a whole, the patriarchs represent the covenant (of circumcision, referring to sexual purity), which was polluted by Amalek when it attacked the Jewish people in the wilderness. With the power that he received from the patriarchs, Moses was able to defeat Amalek and rectify the covenant. In doing so, Moses attained a double portion of spiritual abundance.
The well, the clouds of glory and the manna correspond to drink, clothing and food. A person attains these in accordance with the degree to which he internalizes the traits of the patriarchs: Abraham’s kindness, Isaac’s might and Jacob’s harmony and truth. A person is kind in that he teaches Torah and brings people close to God. He is mighty in that his fear of sin precedes his wisdom. He possesses harmony in that he expresses his wisdom carefully, so that his words will not be unappreciated.
When a person’s consciousness is complete — when he has attained these three traits — he can fight the battles of HaShem. Then, after he overcomes entities hostile to Jews and strengthens weak Jews, he is able to create original Torah thoughts on the Shabbat, which corresponds to a double portion of spiritual abundance.
Through the illumination of the Shabbat, the entire world is thereby aroused to repent out of love and delight. Then all the Tzaddikim are healed and granted respect, and every individual can receive honor and respect — which represent the double portion.
They must take care, however, lest they allow this honor and respect to mutate into unseemly pride. Also, the spiritual nature of the Shabbat is dependent on guarding one’s speech. If the generation does not guard its speech, then — even though the wise Tzaddikim spread the influence of the Shabbat and repentance — the light of repentance, honor and respect are damaged. Consequently, people grow prideful and the Shekhinah goes into exile.
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, You Who graciously grant awareness to human beings, be gracious and compassionate to me and pour Your wisdom, understanding and knowledge onto me.", + "Bring me to a perfect awareness of holiness, so that with the power of that perfect awareness, I can draw down the three streams of abundance — food, drink and clothing — which are incorporated into the awareness of the Torah.", + "Guide me so that my awareness will be absorbed into the three patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.", + "Bring me to the Torah of kindness, so that I will learn Torah in order to teach it and fill my friends and students with the awareness of holiness, until I inspire many souls and bring them under the wings of Your presence and bring them to truly serve you.", + "Imbue me with the fear of Heaven — the fear of sin — so that my fear will precede my wisdom.", + "Draw onto me a flow of grace and kindness. When I speak with people to bring them close to You, help me to choose my words. Help me to know exactly how to express my wisdom so that what I say will be gracious and beautiful, so that it elicits not disdain but delight, and let my words be acceptable to everyone, inspiring everyone to serve You. Guide me to speak truly beautiful and pleasing words in great holiness — “a word spoken in its place” — in accordance with Your desire.", + "Overcoming Amalek
In the merit of the three patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the power of Moses, and the merit of all the true Tzaddikim, guide me to guard the covenant in holiness and purity.", + "Arouse the true Tzaddikim to have compassion on a person as weak as myself. May they work on my behalf to overcome and eliminate all the troubles that pursue me and attack me relentlessly.", + "Overcome and destroy the energy of Amalek — which is the blemish of the covenant — in me and Your entire nation, the House of Israel.", + "Master of the World, guide me to grow truly wise. Save me from the pit of destruction, from the depths of Gehinnom. Rescue my soul from harsh and bitter punishments, from insult and shame.", + "May I then bind myself securely to You. I must hurry to save my soul. Save me “like a deer from the hand, like a bird from the trap.”", + "You! Who are full of compassion! Have pity on me in accordance with Your compassion and guide me to guard the covenant. Graciously give me wisdom, understanding and holy awareness. “Good wisdom is better than instruments of war.” Grant me true wisdom, so that I will be able to save myself from the trap, so that from now on I will have pity on myself and no longer follow the evil stubbornness of my heart. Instead, guide me always. May the true Tzaddikim battle before me until I can nullify the energy of Amalek, wiping his name and memory from the world and nullifying the blemish of the covenant in myself, in my offspring and in Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever.", + "For Shabbat
Give me a double portion of the ability to create original Torah thoughts on the Shabbat — true and holy insights that will please You.", + "Inspire me to draw down a double portion of the abundance of Torah on the holy Shabbat. And through the holiness of the Shabbat, may that flow of abundance fill all the worlds.", + "Help me to greet the holy Shabbat with great joy, in fear and love, and in holiness and purity, so that I will delight in the Shabbat with every sort of pleasure. And through the holiness of the Shabbat, may I and the entire Jewish people experience a healing of the soul and body.", + "Heal us from all our pains and disease.14If you wish at this point to pray on behalf of someone who is sick, add here, “and in particular, [name], son / daughter of [mother’s name].” God, please heal us. You know our pains in body and soul. “Heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed. Save us and we will be saved, because You are our praise.”", + "Through the holiness of the Shabbat, draw onto us an illumination of supernal repentance, so that we will quickly and fully return to You. Bring us to repent out of love, in accordance with Your will.", + "Blessings for the Worthy People of the Generation
Draw down grace, kindness, glory, beauty and splendor to all the worthy people of the generation. View them with grace, kindness and compassion, and so may everyone regard them.", + "Heal them from all their diseases and pains. May people honor them so that each one, in accordance with his worthiness, receives a proper measure of respect and homage.", + "In that way, may each one become a vessel to receive the double inspiration of Torah insights on the Shabbat.", + "Avoiding Pride and Arrogant Speech
Keep me from falling prey to pride, Heaven forbid. Instead, may I always be aware of my lowliness in all my limbs.", + "Imbue me with Your wisdom, awareness, understanding and consciousness, so that I will truly exemplify the ways of humility, without foolishness or falsehood, and until I become completely humble.", + "Guard my mouth from speaking slander, gossip and any other form of blemished speech, so that I will not express a single tainted word about any Jew in the world.", + "“God, guard my tongue from evil and my lips from speaking falsehood.” Protect me from being harmed by anyone else’s blemished speech — such as slander — and from being ambushed by the sinful speech of prideful people, Heaven forbid.", + "Help me and all the Jewish people to guard ourselves from blemishes in speech, so that we will sanctify our mouths constantly. Guard us from pride. Free Your Shekhinah, which descended into exile as a result of the blemish of pride that comes in consequence of the sin of slander, Heaven forbid.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Help me from this moment on to rectify all this. Guard me from the severe sin of slander and from every type of blemished speech. Guide me to sanctify the speech of my mouth with every sort of holiness.", + "In this way, help me to receive the illumination of the holy Shabbat from the wise people of the generation.", + "Save me from every sort of pride and coarseness. Guide me to attain true, complete humility.", + "Lead me to a true life, a life of holiness, complete healing in body and soul, and complete repentance out of love, which is drawn from the holiness of the Shabbat.", + "Satisfy me with Your goodness. Guide me to taste the holiness of the Shabbat, which gives life to all the worlds, for “those who taste it have acquired life.”", + "Give me a long, good life, a life filled with the fear of Heaven, a life in which I will turn away entirely from evil and return in complete repentance to serve You truly, with a full heart and true humility — I and my offspring — from now and forever, until we attain eternal life, a “day that is entirely Shabbat and contentment for eternal life.” Amen, forever and ever." + ], + [ + "Bringing People Close to God / The Holy Palace / Protecting Oneself Against Evil / The Wall of Patience / Abundance and Wealth / Teaching Properly
A person who is always working to bring people close to God is building a holy palace composed of souls who were far from God and in the midst of many “husks.” Therefore, this person must make sure that the “husks” and evil of those people does not affect him. Should any “husks” take hold of the thoughts of his heart, he should summon the angels of his own heart — his heart’s fervor — to incinerate those “husks.”
This angelic fervor is created when a person judges and weighs his words. By doing so, he guards his spirit by building a wall around it. That is a wall of patience, which keeps out anger. When a person keeps anger out of his life, he also attains abundance and wealth. Indeed, should a person ever feel driven to get angry, he should know that God is sending him prosperity at that very moment, and his evil inclination is attempting to thwart it.
When a person guards his soul with such a wall, then the souls of all people want to be incorporated in him. This is because the root of all souls lies in abundance. (That is why people like to associate with wealthy people.) Similarly, when a person has many students, their souls are incorporated in him.
All this comes about because this person judges and weighs his words. As a result, he can teach his wisdom to students without harming them. There are some wicked people whom he may not teach, however, since they might cause him spiritual harm.
“Fortunate are those who cleave to judgment, those who perform charity at every moment. Justice and judgment comprise the seat of Your throne; lovingkindness and truth precede Your countenance.”", + "Judging Oneself
Master of the World, Who loves justice, in Your boundless compassion, guide me to judge myself in a holy manner at every moment regarding everything I do. May I calmly consider my ways every day, judging myself for what I have done and for what I intend to do, until I achieve clarity and recognize the straight path on which I should walk in order to do Your will, keep Your laws and adhere to Your judgments — and not toil in vain, ending up with nothing. May I never avoid true and honest self-evaluation. May I never fool myself, Heaven forbid, but instead judge all my actions through the lens of truth, so that I will return to You, in accordance with Your desire. “In accordance with Your judgments, give me life; I will guard the testimonies of Your mouth.”", + "Help me to evaluate myself using my good inclination to do so. Inspire me to speak to You every day and evaluate myself carefully, with compassion on myself, judging myself for everything I have done from the moment I came into the world until now. Let me think of what I can do to save my soul from destruction, and how to firmly commit myself to keep Your commandments, laws and judgments until my heart is aflame for You, in accordance with Your desire.", + "With that fervor in my heart, may I destroy and burn away all the evil that clings to me, whether because of my wrong deeds or the negative influence of people with whom I speak in order to bring them back to You, as You have commanded us to do — because, as Your holy sages teach, every Jew must inspire others to return to You, since we are all responsible for one another.", + "You know how many obstacles I have experienced in this regard, and how the evil within those people attempts to pull my heart away from You.", + "Inspiring Others
Therefore, I have come to pour forth my prayer before You. Please have compassion on me and imbue me with wisdom, understanding and holy awareness, so that the wellspring of wisdom that comes from Your Temple will flow down onto me and make it possible for me to judge in holiness. And let me speak in such a way that the fire of judgment will flare up and burn away all the evil of those people whom I am bringing back to You.", + "Please give me the strength to bring many people back to You, until they comprise a holy palace that will increase and elevate Your glory. For that is the essence of Your glory: when those who were far away from You come back to serve You. As the verse states, “HaShem is elevated beyond all nations; His glory is higher than Heaven.”", + "May their evil never harm me. Instead, may I overcome and burn away the evil within my own heart with the fire of holy judgment, so that my heart will be fervent and occupy the throne of judgment. And may all evil be burned away and have no power to harm me, so that no negative energies will be able to cling to my heart or the hearts of those people who want to return to You.", + "May the entire world awaken to serve You. May all people join together as one to do Your will with all their heart.", + "May those people who are still far away from You come and hear, and recognize the power of Your sovereignty. May the verse be realized, “All those who remain in Zion and who abide in Jerusalem shall be called holy — each one inscribed for life in Jerusalem.”", + "Please eliminate all evil. Restore our judges as of old and our advisers as in the past. HaShem, be our King alone — with love and compassion, justice and judgment. May the verse be realized, “HaShem will sit forever, maintaining His throne for the sake of judgment.” Nullify all negative energies and aspects of evil, so that we will gain the fullness of the holiness of the Shabbat.", + "Give me a secure place in Your house and in Your walls. As the verse states, “I will give them in My house and in My walls a monument better than sons and daughters; I will give them an eternal name that will never be cut off.”", + "May I mentor many students. Give me holy wisdom and awareness so that I will know how to speak with each one and weigh my words with judgment, so that my words will not harm them but awaken them to serve You, turn their hearts to You and return to You fully, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Overcoming Anger
Grant me a good name. Enhance my name forever. Guard me always from the sin of anger, so that I will never get upset at anything or anyone in the world. May I never “tear my soul in my wrath,” Heaven forbid. May I never grasp an idol or bow down to a foreign god — which is how our sages describe losing one’s temper.", + "Guard me against growing furious, angry or simply irritated. And for all the damage when I indulged in the sin of growing angry, from my youth until this day, forgive me and grant me atonement. You know how this evil has clung to me since my youth and caused me so many losses.", + "Have mercy on me and do good for me, so that I will be good to others and emulate Your holy traits of being gracious, merciful, patient, kind, good, and doing good to all.", + "Guard me from falling prey to any type of anger or irritation, so that anger will never touch my heart.", + "Imbue me with an abundant flow of holiness, so that my name and spirit will grow and many souls will desire to be absorbed into my soul and come close to You. May the name and spirit of holiness grow forever. And may the verse be realized, “Your Name and the awareness of You are the desire of our soul.”", + "Avoiding Wicked People
Guard me against trying to influence wicked people whom it is forbidden to bring back to You, lest they drag me down spiritually, Heaven forbid. May I have nothing to do with them. You know that I lack the ability to know whom to bring close to You and whom to send away. I rely only on You — be kind to me and guide me in accordance with Your will.", + "A Universal Repentance
My Father in Heaven, please fulfill my requests with compassion. Imbue me with holy judgment, so that I will always judge myself in accordance with Your desire; until I awaken the “fire of judgment” which will burn away all the evil that clings to me, and I will be nothing but good.", + "Help me to bring many people close to You, increase Your glory always and magnify Your Name forever.", + "Then I will have a good portion in the holy palace comprised of those who do Your will and who bring estranged Jews back to You. Rebuild Your city of Jerusalem quickly and in our day, physically and spiritually — the holy city, “the faithful city, filled with judgment.”", + "Burn away all evil and uncleanness in the world. May the verse soon be realized, “At that time, Jerusalem will be called the throne of HaShem, and all the nations will stream to the Name of HaShem, to Jerusalem, and they will no longer follow after the stubbornness of their evil heart.”", + "And another verse states, “Zion will be redeemed with judgment, and those who return to it with charity.”", + "Guide me to return to You and bring others back to repent. May my involvement in bringing back these people not harm my own service of You, because You know that my intent in doing so is only for the good, for the sake of Your Name alone.", + "Have pity on me. Prepare me to carry out Your will with a full heart. “Support my steps on Your paths, lest my footsteps fail.” “He restores my soul, He guides me in the paths of justice for the sake of His Name.” May Your lovingkindness, HaShem, be upon us as we have hoped for You. May HaShem our God be with us as He was with our fathers. May He not abandon or reject us, but turn our hearts to Him to go in all His ways and guard His commandments, laws and judgments that He commanded our forefathers.", + "“And may these words that I have entreated before HaShem be close to HaShem our God day and night — to judge His servant and His nation, Israel, each matter in its day, so that all the nations of the world will know that HaShem is God — there is no other.”" + ], + [ + "Deep Contemplation / Abundance and Wealth / Spiritual Length of Days / Awe / Awakening from Spiritual Slumber / Torah in the Form of Stories / Primal Stories / Giving Hearing to the Deaf / Making It Possible for Barren Women to Conceive / Rosh HaShanah
Certain areas of Torah can be attained only through deep contemplation. And a person can attain that contemplation only with abundance and wealth. Thus Moses and all the prophets were wealthy. Indeed, the Torah itself is called “wealth.” In regular Torah learning, one introduces ideas which he sets aside after reaching the main point. So too in this deep contemplation, one first needs introductory material, which is wealth.
To attain that wealth, a person needs “length of days.” This means that a person must spiritually enhance his days. Each day begins narrowly. It can be difficult to start — to pray, to learn Torah, and so forth. One begins little by little, and then enhances, broadens and lengthens every successive hour with holiness.
Increased holiness is attained when a person achieves a state of consciousness called “fear” and “awe.” This awe guards a person against poverty, which results from a state of consciousness that expresses itself in acting with “false charm” and derives from a weakness for feminine beauty. The opposite of that state of consciousness is the state called “awe.”
Awe is divided into three parts: awe of Heaven, awe of one’s Torah teacher and awe of one’s parents. Each of these is subdivided into three. Consequently, the awe of Heaven is divided into three states of consciousness, as one contemplates God’s greatness. The awe of one’s Torah teacher is divided into the three different aspects of the Torah. And the awe of one’s parents corresponds to that which one inherits from them, which is divided into three aspects.
This awe is associated with awakening from spiritual slumber. Some people sleep away their days, even though it seems to others that they are serving God, learning Torah and praying. But their service gives God no pleasure, because it remains below and cannot rise.
Vitality is related to the mind. When a person serves God with an awakened consciousness, his service is alive and can rise. But when a person suffers from a constricted consciousness, from sleep, his service cannot rise. Some people have fallen asleep due to their desires and bad deeds, and others due to eating in an unholy fashion. Such people must awaken themselves, and then they can be assisted.
But that assistance must come in a graduated fashion. Thus the teacher may clothe his Torah teachings in the form of stories. Sometimes a person has fallen so far that he can be awakened only with primal stories from which the Torah itself derives its life energy. When a teacher awakens a person normally, that is kindness. When he awakens him through such primal stories, that is “great kindness.”
A person who works to awaken people must guard himself against unworthy students, so that their evil will not harm him. He cannot prevent such unworthy students from hearing him. But when he teaches properly, God protects him and causes the unworthy students to forget his words.
This person gives hearing to the deaf, and thus he gives them speech. Associated with that, he makes it possible for barren women to conceive.
“HaShem, when I heard Your message, I feared; HaShem, revive Your people in these years; in these years, make it known that even in anger, You remember to be compassionate.”", + "“Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. My flesh shudders in fear of You; I am afraid of Your judgments. Who does not fear You, King of the nations? This befits You — because, among all the sages of the nations and in the midst of all their sovereignty, none is like You. God is dreaded in the great council of the mighty ones, and He awesomely transcends all those who surround Him. Therefore, I shudder before Him; when I consider this, I fear Him.”", + "Attaining Awe of God
Master of the Universe, You are great and awesome, holy and fearsome over all the angels of Heaven, over all the seraphim, ophanim and holy chayot; over all the worlds, upper and lower; over all those who live in Heaven and on earth. They all tremble with fear in awe of Your Name.", + "Pour an awareness of Your holy awesomeness onto me, so that I too will fear You and tremble before You always.", + "Then, when I am filled with a holy fear of You in my 248 limbs and 365 sinews, I will declare that You are my King. May Your awesomeness be so apparent to me that I will never again sin, by mistake or on purpose. May I always be imbued with the fear of You, with a complete faith in You, so that I will enhance my days by adding holiness to every moment instead of wasting them in emptiness, Heaven forbid. As the verse states, “The fear of HaShem augments a person’s days.”", + "The Burden of the Evil Inclination
Look at my affliction, constraints and suffering, and give me ease. You know all my hardships — and the distress, hardship and effort that I endure at the beginning of every day, when I am under such constraints that I cannot learn Torah, pray, give charity or perform any other holy deed.", + "Every day, my evil inclination rises up against me and causes the yoke of serving You to weigh so heavily on my shoulders that it seems too much to bear. My evil inclination oppresses me, confuses my mind, wearies my spirit, seals shut the gates and pathways of holiness, and attempts to shackle me, Heaven forbid, in manacles of poverty and iron. “He subjugated our hearts with toil; we stumbled and there was none to help.”", + "You alone know the troubles of my heart, its suffering and bitterness, all of which touch me to the quick. You know how weary I am. Pay attention to my suffering. Take up my cause. Have pity upon me! Turn to me with compassion for You are the Master of Compassion! Give me the strength, every day and at every moment, to get rid of my evil inclination and welcome the yoke of the kingdom of Heaven with love. Then I will lengthen my days and years with awe, adding holiness and purity to every moment, day, week, month and year, until I attain a good and holy old age without having lost a single hour or day of my life — so that when I die, I will come before You with all my days and years intact, filled with holiness and purity, and I will suffer no shame.", + "Overcoming False Charms
Protect me always from the “false charm” and “vanity of beauty,” so that my heart and eyes will not be tempted even to glance at the vain beauty of women. As the verse states, “Do not be attracted to her beauty in your heart, because for the sake of a licentious woman, a man is reduced to a loaf of bread.”", + "HaShem, have mercy on me. Do not repay me in accordance with my sins, do not judge me in accordance with my deeds, but grant me the gift of Your kind generosity.", + "Help me to turn away from evil. Keep me from doing wrong, so that at worst I sit passively and do not act.", + "Have pity on my holy soul. Save me from destruction. “Save me from the mire, so that I will not sink. May I be saved from my enemies and from the depths of the waters. Do not let the current sweep over me. Do not let the depths swallow me up. Do not allow the pit to shut its mouth on me.” “What value would there be to my blood if I were to go down to the pit? Would the dust thank You? Would it tell of Your truth?”", + "I do not know how to guard myself from evil, and so I cast my burden onto You alone.", + "I come to You filled with shame. Do what You will to me and bring me back to You in perfect repentance. Protect me from indulging in evil thoughts and fantasies that damage the covenant.", + "Sanctify me always with Your supernal holiness. Keep me from attempting to impress people in the way that I sit, stand, walk, eat, speak and conduct myself. Please God! Save me from engaging in any of these “false charms” and “vanities of beauty.”", + "Instead, may I perform all my actions for the sake of Heaven, without any ulterior motives or any attempt to find favor in people’s eyes. May my entire intent in everything that I do, and in all my dealings with other people, be solely for the sake of Your Name, for You alone, so that I will constantly fill myself with awe of You and fear You as deeply as I fear human beings. May I lengthen, broaden and enhance my days and years with Your supernal holiness. May I draw down onto myself and the entire Jewish people the illumination and holiness that come from the “Rectifications of the Ancient One,” which are brought into being and drawn down by the true Tzaddikim, the elders of holiness. And in this way, may I attain great, holy wealth.", + "Guarding the Covenant and Attaining Abundance
Protect me always from the desire to engage in licentious behavior. May the “moisture of my body” rise to my brain and there perfect and enhance my mind with great holiness. May I not engage in too frequent marital relations, which would cause that moisture to leave me, Heaven forbid.", + "Shield me from the spirit of foolishness and madness that affects a person who lusts for marital relations, which results in the moisture of his body drying out, which can cause insanity.", + "Have compassion on me and save me from this. Inspire me to pity my body and my soul by guarding my bodily “moisture.”", + "Keep me from growing short-tempered and from suffering an interrupted breath. May I instead gain a lengthy breath, and always draw the life-spirit of holiness onto myself.", + "Always guard my mind and draw the oils of holiness onto my awareness, so that it will burn with great insight, and my brain and intellect will grow in holiness. Then I will attain a great holy wealth, which is derived from the Tablets, from which Moses gained his wealth.", + "Then, by means of this holy wealth, may I attain great, holy and awesome supernal insights.", + "Help Me to Fear You
Please help me to attain a complete fear and awe of You on every level, in all its components. May the three conduits of awe — awe of Heaven, awe of one’s Torah teacher, and awe of one’s parents, each of which is subdivided into three — be drawn down onto me in all their aspects and on all their levels.", + "HaShem, place Your fear on all Your creatures and Your awe on all that You created. May all beings fear You and may all created beings bow before You.", + "May they all join as one to do Your will with a full heart.", + "Awakening from Sleep
Have compassion on me and awaken me from my sleep.", + "[Master of the Universe, You know that sleep and weariness have overcome me, so that my holy consciousness has dissipated and my thoughts are constantly confused by the futility of purposeless activity in this world. Indeed, You have revealed that it is possible for a person to serve You and devote his entire life to learning Torah and praying, yet to sleep away his life. The worship of such a person does not please You but remains below here on earth, unable to rise; for it lacks the awareness and life force of holiness and is imbued instead with small-mindedness, which corresponds to sleep.", + "You know how far I am from proper awareness, mindfulness and a life force of holiness, because sleep has overcome me. As a result, all my thoughts — even when I do serve You, at least to some extent — are infinitesimally small, corresponding to dreams and the fantasies that a person experiences in his sleep.", + "Have pity on me from this moment on and awaken me from my sleep.]", + "Because of my many sins, I have been overcome by sleep. For years, the true Tzaddikim have toiled to awaken us in every sort of way. They have constricted Godliness for us and illuminated the face of the holy Torah on our behalf, clothing it in various guises — in discourses and profound stories, which they communicate through their holy books and talks that express infinitely high, mighty and awesome concepts. Their words stand at the very height of the world. They come from You and have the power to awaken everyone, great or small, from his lethargy.", + "Yet still I have not awoken and repented of my errors. How much more Heavenly charity can I call upon? How much more can I cry out to You, my King?", + "You have done so much for us through Your Tzaddikim and holy, awesome sages in every generation — from the day that the holy Torah was given until this day — in order to arouse us to be fully awake. Yet no one takes heed.", + "I am poor, in pain and on the verge of dying. I have no way to save myself except to cry out to You in prayer. “I turn my voice to HaShem. I will call and He will answer me quickly from His holy mountain. I have lain down and slept and awoken, for HaShem supports me.”", + "[Master of the Universe, You have informed us through Your holy, wise men that even the true Tzaddikim who work to awaken us from our sleep cannot do so unless we awaken of our own accord, because an initial “arousal from below” is required.", + "You know how far I am from any true awakening of holiness. Have pity on me and send a true realization into my heart, so that I will feel, at the very least, a trace of how far I am from serving You and how pitiable I am, so that I will awaken and return to You. May my prayers and entreaties to awaken from my sleep be considered as though I have already awoken to holiness on my own initiative, until I really will wake up with the help of the true Tzaddikim and serve You with proper awareness and a true, holy life force.]", + "Please God before Whom there is no sleep. “Behold, the Guardian of Israel does not slumber or sleep.”", + "You awaken those who sleep and arouse those who slumber. You revive the dead and heal the sick. You open the eyes of the blind and raise those who are bent over. You give speech to the mute and free the imprisoned.", + "Awaken me in Your great compassion. “Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am alone and poor. The sorrows of my heart have increased; bring me forth from my distress. See my affliction and my toil, and forgive all my transgressions. Look at my enemies, at how they have increased, and how they hate me with a violent hatred. Guard my soul and save me; may I not be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.”", + "Be gracious to me so that I will awaken from my great sleep, which has overcome me due to my evil deeds and my lust for eating and drinking. Help me to truly awaken and return to You with great energy.", + "Overcoming the Lust for Food
Rescue me from every sin. Be with me always. Save me from the damage caused by the lust for eating, so that I will always eat in holiness and with great purity, without any physical desire whatsoever; and so that I will always eat food that has been specifically designated as human food.", + "Keep me from eating any food that has not yet been so designated, lest I lose the countenance of holiness and fall into a deep sleep, Heaven forbid.", + "May I eat only foods that have been so designated, foods that possess the sanctity of the showbread, in great holiness. Through them, may I attain a good, joyous heart and countenance.", + "And keep me far from food that brings evil to the heart.", + "A Truly Good Heart
Master of the Universe, protect me from the evil and crookedness of the heart. Grant me instead a truly good heart. Do me the undeserved favor of swiftly restoring to me everything that I have lost until now. Draw down onto me the face of holiness that comes from the “primal years,” from the “beauty of the face” in which all seventy “faces” of the Torah are rooted.", + "“In accordance with Your kindness, give me life, and I will guard the testimony of Your mouth.” HaShem is gracious and merciful, patient and filled with lovingkindness. On Your behalf, my heart said, “All of you, seek My face” — and Your face, God, will I seek. Do not hide Your face from me. Do not turn Your servant away when You are angry. You have been my help.", + "“Do not withdraw from me, do not abandon me, my God, Who saves me.” “Shine Your face upon Your servant; save me in Your kindness.” “Shine Your face upon Your servant and teach me Your laws.” “Turn to me and be gracious to me; give Your might to Your servant and save the son of Your servant.” “HaShem, God of hosts, restore me; shine Your face and we will be saved.” “Awaken, my glory; awaken lyre and harp, I will awaken the dawn.”", + "The Legacy of the Tzaddikim
In Your compassion, save me so that I will be a worthy student who hears and recalls the words of the true Tzaddikim, so that I will remember all the holy words that I have heard from their mouths and read in their writings. May I recall everything that they have done on our behalf, all their great and awesome deeds, all the great and Godly work that they have performed for our sake.", + "They have left us the legacy of their holy books, “more desirable than gold and fine gold, sweeter than honey and the honeycomb,” which illumine our eyes and restore our soul.", + "May their holy words enter my ears and heart, and may I never forget them.", + "Please have mercy on my poor, abject soul. Grant me the hope that I will not be lost and that I will come to a good end.", + "Have pity on me, so that from this day forward I will recall all the Godly words that I heard from my great teachers and awaken from my torpor.", + "Because in the meantime, I wander about like a sheep without a shepherd, alone “like a beacon at the top of a mountain,” like a ship in the heart of the sea, “like a bird alone on a roof.”", + "Please raise up my soul. My Soul, Awaken, Stand, Arise!
My soul, awaken, stand, arise! Seek God’s face with your best contemplation.", + "My spirit, bow down to the dust. Worship God and place your mouth in the dust.", + "“Speak only after you have been brought lower than the earth, and your word will be low, from the dust. Perhaps there is hope. Perhaps HaShem, the God of hosts, will be gracious.", + "Perhaps HaShem will act in accordance with all His wonders” that He performed for our forefathers.", + "“Why are you asleep? Arise! Call to Your God. Perhaps God will consider us and we will not be lost.” Perhaps He will have compassion on His poor, impoverished people. Perhaps He will have compassion!", + "Awaken, my brother, from your enticing sleep. “Awaken and rise. How long, lazy one, will you lie down? When will you arise from your sleep, a little sleep, a little dreaming, a little clasping of the hands as you lie down? Do not place sleep on your eyes and slumber on your eyelids. Escape like a deer from the hand, like a bird from the trap. Remember, do not forget, how you angered HaShem your God” for days and for years. Yet His kindness has not left you, and at every moment, He is engaged in awakening you from your sleep.", + "Bear in mind how He arouses you in every possible way. How can you sleep when there is such a clamor and awakening, consisting of proclamations, hints and sparks both revealed and hidden? The frightening declaration — which is “a great voice that does not cease and a powerful sound of the shofar” — grows louder day by day and moment by moment.", + "“Behold, He calls forth in a mighty voice,” proclaiming, “Awaken from your slumber and from your lethargy.”", + "Yet still you have not repented of your errors. You still roll in the path, in the filth. You still remain immersed in the depths and mire of the vanities of this world. You still refuse to return to God. You still exalt yourself and do not allow yourself to perform the will of your Creator, as your soul yearns and desires to do.", + "But do not despair, Heaven forbid, saying that your sins have attached themselves to you so that you fester in their midst and can no longer repent of your foolishness; saying that they have enveloped you and therefore, your hope is lost forever.", + "Have mercy on yourself in the few days that remain to you in this world, which passes like the blink of an eye.", + "Do not say such things, Heaven forbid, because doing so is even worse than the sins that you have committed. Such ideas are harmful and anger your Creator even more than the wrongdoing that you performed over the course of your life. The truth is that you still have great hope at every moment. “The mercies of HaShem have not ended; His compassions have not been exhausted” — ever. But they are hidden from you. You do not know the vast extent of His compassion for all who desire to truly return to Him, even though they have not yet done so.", + "God’s sole desire is to show mercy to those who yearn and struggle to find refuge and a way to return to Him, even though they are constantly overwhelmed and have no more than a few days and years in which to act.", + "His compassion overwhelms such people — including me — beyond measure, beyond what the mouth can speak and the heart can conceive.", + "Even if all the seas were ink and all the marsh reeds were pens, and all people were scribes and all tongues filled with praise, they would not express a thousandth or even a ten-thousandth of God’s many kindnesses in every generation, particularly for those who sigh and yearn to return to Him.", + "“Did you not just now call me ‘Father’ and ‘my Master since my youth’? Did you not lament, ‘Will He bear a grudge forever, will He keep it eternally’?” Be strong and always renew yourself. Begin from this point on to serve your Creator. Abandon your evil ways and disgraceful thoughts; forget your vanities and absurdities. “Remove anger from your heart and set aside evil from your flesh.”", + "Connect yourself to HaShem. Do not return to your foolishness. Lift your eyes to the heights and recall your original love.", + "Awaken, arise, my spirit, arise. “Arise, express a song. Do not be silent; do not be still.” Raise your sweet voice and open your mouth. Bring your pleasant words before the Holy One, Blessed be He, and let them shine.", + "Awakening with the Help of the Tzaddikim
[Master of the Universe, You know how far I have fallen at this time, in this generation. For my many sins, a sleep as strong as death has overwhelmed me. I have strayed far from You and fallen from all seventy “faces” of the Torah, so that the true Tzaddikim cannot arouse me to return to the Torah.", + "You have told us of Your compassion and kindness. You have had pity on us and sent us true, outstanding Tzaddikim who are on such a high level that they have the power to arouse us from our sleep by means of profound stories about the “primal years” — which correspond to the Ancient One, the Elder, the Countenance of the Face, from which all seventy “faces” of the Torah receive their life force and beauty.", + "We have fallen so far from You that You have given permission to the true Tzaddikim to work with us and awaken us from our tremendous sleep by means of high and wondrous stories — stories whose great and awesome holiness we are incapable of appreciating.", + "Yet despite all that, I still have not repented of my errors. I am still deluded. I still lie in bed burrowing into sleep, into an immeasurably deep slumber, and I have not merited to awaken from my sleep at all.", + "What can I say? How much more charity can I expect of You, my King?", + "Nevertheless, You have told us through Your true Tzaddikim that there is no despair in the world, and that a person should not stop praying even if a sword is suspended over his neck.", + "I have perfect faith in the power of the true Tzaddikim and elders of holiness who draw down high, wondrous and awesome remedies with tremendous dedication in order to save Jewish souls. They give each abject person hope that his efforts will not be in vain and that the Tzaddikim will guide him to his true rectification.", + "Have mercy on me, so that from this moment on, I will experience the delight and holiness of the wondrous and awesome revelations of consciousness that the true Tzaddikim reveal to us through their holy students and their awesome written works — until in this way, I will attain a true awakening of holiness. Then I will arise with enthusiasm from the depths of my sleep to serve You all the days of my life.]", + "Awakening to Holy Speech
God, may I attain a holy level of speech as a result of awakening from my sleep. May I speak holy words with intensity, devotion and all my heart. May I put all my might into my words of prayer and holiness. May the verse be realized in me, “Bless HaShem, His angels, mighty ones in strength, who fulfill His word, heeding the voice of His speech.”", + "God’s Open, Generous Hand
Grant me a great and holy trust in You. You know how desperately I lack income at this time. The silver is gone and there is no money in the pocket, and the needs of Your people are many. Necessities alone cost so much: food, clothing, shelter, and so on. “We do not know what to do — our eyes are upon You alone.”", + "No one has any idea of how to gain an income. Our only hope and assurance is You alone. Our eyes are turned only to You.", + "Please be gracious and guide me to trust completely that You will fulfill my needs and provide me with all the income I require.", + "Always be compassionate and fulfill all my needs — for myself and my family — with great breadth. Send me my income before I need it, in ways that are permitted and not forbidden, honorable and not disgraceful, with breadth and not constriction, from Your open, generous hand — in such a way that will make it possible for me to do Your will all the days of my life, forever.", + "Bringing About Holy Births
God, may my words be filled with such holiness that they will have the power to make barren women fertile. May my speech have an immediate effect on their ability to bear children. May my holy words bring about holy births, so that Your nation, the Jewish people, will be as numerous as the grains of sand on the shore and the stars in the sky, and there will be no barren men or women. Give all those who now lack children healthy offspring who will serve You and fear You, so that a perfect fear of You will be revealed in the world.", + "Imbue everyone with this awe. May every created being know that You made it and every creature recognize that You formed it. May we completely attain all the components of fear.", + "Attaining a Rectification of All Worlds
And through this fear of You, may I overcome and nullify the “false charm” and “vanity of beauty.” As the verse states, “Charm is false and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears HaShem will be praised.”", + "May I enjoy length of days and years, increasing holiness and purity constantly, so that I will not toil in vain or bring forth emptiness.", + "May I attain a new rectification of all the worlds. May I always draw onto myself an illumination of the rectifications of the Ancient One, which come down through the true Tzaddikim, the holy elders.", + "In their merit, may I attain abundance and great, holy wealth, all the wealth of the world. Through this wealth, may I come to great and supernal insights into Your Torah and into serving You, and attain a holy, pure awareness of You, in accordance with Your desire, from now and forever.", + "For Rosh HaShanah
[Master of the Universe, may I hear the sound of the shofar on Rosh HaShanah from a worthy shofar-blower, so that it will awaken me from my sleep. May I hear the shofar’s holy sounds — tekiah, shevarim, teruah — in full. May my heart receive the holiness of those sounds by means of all the rectifications that I have mentioned before You. May I awaken from my sleep and heed the true Tzaddikim and wise men who are attempting to arouse me. In this way, may my organs of speech be opened so that I always speak holy words with great force, words that will bring fertility to barren men and women.", + "In that way, may barren women be made fertile, and may Your awesomeness be revealed in the world. Then our days will attain breadth and length, with added holiness at every moment, and the verse will be realized, “From the straits have I called God; answer me, God, with expanse.”", + "God, please consider my shofar-blowing on Rosh HaShanah as though I had in mind all the holy intentions inherent in that mitzvah. May all the shofar blasts rise and be accepted before Your throne of glory. Through the holy breath of the shofar — the revelation of holy faith — may I subjugate the breath and vanity of beauty and instead be sanctified by Your supernal holiness always.", + "Protect me always from the “false charm” and “vanity of beauty.”", + "May the verse be realized, “Charm is false and beauty is vain, but a women who fears HaShem will be praised.”", + "Draw holiness onto me from the light of Your supernal countenance. May the verse be realized, “Happy is the nation that knows the shofar-blast. HaShem, they will walk in the light of Your face. Shine Your face on Your servant; save me in Your lovingkindness.”]", + "“May God be gracious to us and bless us; may He shine His face upon us.” “God, You are awesome from Your Sanctuary; the God of Israel gives might and power to the nation blessed of God.” “You who fear HaShem, praise Him; all descendants of Jacob, honor Him — for He has not disdained nor abhorred the powerlessness of the poor man. When he cries out to Him, He hears.”" + ], + [ + "Faith in the Sages / Conducting Oneself Properly / False Teachers / The Power of Holy Writing / Creating a Healthy Body for a Holy Soul / The Atmosphere of the Land of Israel / The Purifying Water of Dispute / Many Torah Books / Supernal Wisdom / Traveling to the Tzaddik on Rosh HaShanah / The Joy of Jews Gathering Together
When a person has faith in the sages, he can learn from the Torah how to conduct himself properly. But if he lacks that faith and considers the words of the sages unnecessary, then he suffers measure for measure. His body is spiritually polluted, and its unnecessary waste products create a foul odor that rises to his brain and confuses his mind.
In this regard, there are false leaders whose teachings come from such waste products. Not only are they unable to guide others, but they cannot even guide themselves. Yet they demand power and authority. This is understandable, since they have a strong desire to be leaders. However, it is forbidden to grant them their request.
When a sage deserves to be ordained, he receives wisdom from God and brings illumination and power discussion. Previously, he disputed the sages due to a lack of faith in them. But now he returns to believe in them. With the publication of these books, all mental constrictions — i.e., judgments — are sweetened at their root.
Each judgment and constriction must be sweetened at its particular root. But there is a great supernal wisdom into which all wisdoms are incorporated, in which all judgments are sweetened. The Torah itself comes from that supernal wisdom.
The Written Torah is perfected through the Oral Torah. The books created as a result of dispute correspond to the Oral Torah. Therefore, with their appearance, the Torah as a whole is perfected. Then the Torah receives illumination from the place of the sweetening of all judgments — from that supernal wisdom, which is called the Foundation Stone and the Holy of Holies.
That is why people travel to Tzaddikim on Rosh HaShanah. Rosh HaShanah is the Day of Judgment for the entire year. Each individual brings his holiness and constrictions to the Tzaddik of the generation — who is the Holy of Holies, the Foundation Stone. And there, all judgments are sweetened.
Also, as a result of all these souls gathering together, joy is created. The soul is a candle. When many such candles gather together, light is created by them all, and that generates joy.
God, “great in counsel and mighty in deed, Your eyes gaze upon all the ways of human beings.” You know our secret thoughts and save us from the hands of those who would cause us distress.", + "In Your compassion and for the sake of Your Name, provide me with good counsel. Graciously grant me mindfulness, understanding and awareness so that I will provide myself with proper advice in every area of my life, and never suffer indecision.", + "Imbue me with “a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and might, a spirit of knowledge and the fear of HaShem.”", + "In accordance with Your desire, may I believe wholeheartedly in all the true sages and never turn aside from their words, right or left.", + "May I attain “holy judgment” — the ability to ascertain how to conduct myself.", + "Guide me to learn Your Torah for its own sake, to teach it and lovingly obey all its words.", + "Illumine my eyes with Your Torah. Give me the holy wisdom, understanding and awareness to derive from Your holy Torah the knowledge of how to act so that I will never stray from the truth. Instead, I will remain attuned to Your will and conduct myself in accordance with the Torah’s holy teachings.", + "Rectifying Faith in the Sages
HaShem, You have compassion on the poor. You hear the groans of the impoverished. Have pity on me for the sake of Your Name, for the sake of Your compassion, for the sake of Your love, and for the sake of the true Tzaddikim.", + " Rectify the imperfection of my faith in the sages since my youth until this moment, so that I will attain a perfect faith in them.", + "Purify me of the idolatrous atmosphere that enters the mind of a person whose faith in the sages is damaged. My imperfect faith in the sages has stained and confused my consciousness. As a result, all sorts of unpleasant fumes rise to my brain, leading it astray, twisting and confusing my mind and heart, enveloping me and embittering my life with doubt, confusion, alien thoughts and even madness.", + "Look down upon my agitation, my distress and my pained heart.", + "My Living Father and King, I do not appeal to You on the basis of my righteousness, but on the basis of Your compassion. HaShem, give me life in accordance with Your just ways.", + "Purify my thoughts and heart to serve You. Remove every instance of wretched confusion and every foreign thought to which I have grown accustomed, so that I will purify my thoughts of all filth and fetid fog and they will never again enter my heart and mind. Help me to sanctify and purify my thoughts and heart from this moment on, so that I may always acquire holy thoughts without disturbance.", + "Remove My Antagonists
My Father in Heaven, Master of peace and King Who commands peace, send me blessings of life and peace. Rescue me from every sort of dispute. Remove my every enemy, all disease, the sword, hunger and lament. Remove Satan from before me and after me.", + "Rescue me from the hands of my enemies, both in the material and spiritual realms. Save me from all the slanderers and accusers who speak ill of me.", + "Shut their mouths and “do not allow their hands to act with cunning.” Quickly eradicate the ideas and frustrate the thoughts of those who would rise against me to harm me. May the verses be realized, “If you take counsel, it will be struck down; if you speak, it will not come about — for God is with us.” “HaShem has struck down the counsel of the nations; He has annulled the thoughts of the people.”", + "Prevent their aggression from harming me. Instead, may their antagonism inspire me to repent fully of all my sins — particularly my lack of faith in the sages, my having besmirched their honor and that of their holy books, and my having disparaged their words, which I failed to appreciate.", + "Creating Holy Books
HaShem, help me to see myself clearly and understand from the disputes waged against me the degree to which I have damaged my faith in the sages.", + "Help me to repent fully and rectify all my deeds from this moment on. May I cleave to the words of the true sages and never turn aside from them. May I appreciate their holy books, each one more precious to me than gold and pearls, compared to which nothing means anything to me. May those books increase without number.", + "And may my own repentance create a holy book in the supernal realm. As the verse states, “When those who fear HaShem spoke, one man to his comrade, HaShem took note and heard, and it was written as a scroll of remembrance before Him for those who fear HaShem and value His Name.”", + "From this moment on, may I attain faith in the sages on every level. As a result, may many holy books containing new insights into Your holy Torah be written.", + "May I attain complete faith in all these books and consider none of them superfluous — books of simple exposition, allusion, homiletics, mysticism, explication, halakhah and responsa, ethical instruction, prayer, confession, song, praise, and so forth. May I appreciate each book — that which has already been written and that which has yet to be written. The world needs all of them and I need all of them; they are my life and the length of my days. They stand at the height of the world and together proclaim Your words, my Living God and King of the universe. They are all beloved, pure and holy. They reveal Your beneficent will hidden in Your holy Torah, and they awaken me to serve You.", + "They are “more beloved than gold and fine gold, and sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.”", + "Rescue from Cynicism
Master of the Universe, rescue me from cynics and from their derision of the books that expound on Your holy Torah.", + "Keep me from mocking the words of the sages and from suffering the terrible and bitter punishment, of suffering in burning excrement, that comes from doing so.", + "Protect me from being scorched by the coals of the true, holy sages. May I always defend their honor and never incur their vexation.", + "Creating Original Torah Thoughts
Compassionate God, inspire me to learn Your holy Torah day and night, until I understand it and create my own Torah thoughts to please You.", + "Grant me the enthusiasm to constantly create original Torah insights, so that my mind will always cling to Your holy Torah. Constantly imbue me with true insights, for these will purify my soul of all the blemishes that I have brought into being in the course of my life.", + "Strengthen my faith in myself, so that I will believe that my insights on Your holy Torah are precious to You and You take delight in my every one, that You take pride in my words and are honored by them.", + "Inspire me to write down all my ideas, so that I will compose many true and holy books, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Inspiring Faith in the Sages
[HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, help me to rectify people’s faith in the true sages by speaking with them and touching their hearts, so that they too will believe in all the words of the sages and not turn aside from them. Nor may they turn aside from any of the holy books written by these true sages or by worthy Jews in general — books built on a foundation of holy faith that present the holy principles taught by our forefathers and teachers, the true Tzaddikim; books of original Torah thought, holy counsel and discourses on the fear of Heaven and on how to serve You. May all these books be precious in our eyes. May we study them day and night, and heed all their holy words with enthusiasm, love, appreciation and faith.", + "And when our faith in the sages — a faith that corresponds to the entire Torah, including the Oral Torah which is composed of the words of the sages — is rectified, may there be an increase in written expositions of the holy Torah.", + "Then the Torah will receive a full and great illumination from its root of supernal wisdom — the Foundation Stone, the Holy of Holies — and it will pour forth an illumination of that wisdom, an all-inclusive consciousness, into our minds, until all constrictions and judgments will be fully eased for every Jew, including myself.", + "“Bring forth my judgment like light” in both the material and spiritual realms. May each Jew broaden his awareness so that he will be illuminated by the holy Torah’s light of supernal wisdom — an encompassing awareness in his soul, his individual consciousness — until he attains true guidelines on how to conduct himself in both the material and spiritual realms and how to attain complete salvation.", + "As the verse states, “He will send your help from the holy place, and your support from Zion.”]", + "Purifying Waters of Faith
God, may I quickly attain complete faith in the sages, on every level.", + "Sprinkle upon me the waters that will purify me of my uncleanness and idolatry. As the verse states, “I will sprinkle pure waters upon you and purify You; of all Your contaminations and all your idols, I will purify you.”", + "Always imbue me with perfect counsel, so that the verse will be realized, “They will no longer be divided into two kingdoms, and no longer create pollution with their idols.”", + "Attaining God’s Counsel
God, have mercy on my poor soul. Save me from unreliable advice and never conceal Your true counsel from me. Never allow the clarity of my resolutions to grow clouded.", + "Master of the Universe, You know all my doubts and hesitations in every area of my life. I am always yearning and striving to find guidance on how to come close to You, but without success, and so I cannot accomplish anything. Sometimes I gather many reasons to act in one way. But as soon as I start to act, I am overcome by a flood of opposite thoughts. I am unable to evaluate these contradictory points of view, and so I cannot come to a clear decision, and remain dismayed.", + "Even if I do make up my mind, my resolution is weak. Doubts assail me and wear away my resolve, until I question my actions so thoroughly that “my life is worn away with sighing and my years with moaning,” and “my days are worn away like smoke, and my bones are scorched like a hearth.”", + "Unpleasant fumes rise to my brain, surrounding, confusing and twisting my thoughts and emotions so that my mind bounces from one idea to another like a stone in a slingshot, and cannot come to rest.", + "I am afflicted by foolish, weak and self-contradictory impulses which cause me harm and even lead me to sin. And in the midst of all this, my Father in Heaven, I do not know how to plead with You, how to cry out to You, how to sigh so that You will answer me and lead me out of my quandary.", + "I myself cannot correct as much as an iota of my indecisiveness, and so I turn to You. Please, rescue me and rectify me with Your good advice! Guide me to attain perfect counsel — counsel that I will heed — and in that way, may I be delivered of all my difficulties.", + "May I keep Your perfect counsel and guard my sexual purity, in accordance with Your desire, so that I will do no wrong in thought, speech or deed or with any of my five senses, or turn after my heart and eyes, or sully my mind.", + "Help me for Your sake, not for mine. Look upon my poverty and barrenness. “See, HaShem, how I suffer. My inner organs burn; my heart has turned over within me because I am so embittered.” “Look, HaShem, and see to whom You have done this.” “Look, HaShem, and see how I have grown despised.” “Remember, HaShem, what has happened to us; see and look upon our disgrace.”", + "Look upon my distress, because I am in pain and my heart is suffering.", + "“Do not cast me aside and do not abandon me, God of my salvation. Do not abandon me, HaShem; my God, do not grow distant from me. Hurry to help me, HaShem of my salvation. Rescue me from the mud so that I will not sink. May I be rescued from my enemies and from the depths of the waters. Cleanse me thoroughly of my sins and purify me of my transgressions. Purify me with the hyssop so that I will be purified; wash me so that I will be whiter than the snow.”", + "You possess counsel and faithful advice. Your actions are true, righteous and straight. You are close to those who call out to You. For Your sake, then, have compassion on me, my children and everyone who depends on me. Give me perfect, true and proper counsel that I will heed, and rescue my soul from destruction.", + "“Guide me in Your counsel and afterwards receive me with glory.” May I walk in the way of truth always, without confusion. May I and all my offspring, for all generations, serve You wholeheartedly.", + "“Direct me, HaShem, in Your ways and conduct me on the straight path against those who gaze upon me. Do not give me over to the desire of those who cause me distress, for false witnesses have risen up against me, each breathing violence. Guide me on the path of Your commandments because that is what I have desired. Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; it is You for Whom I have hoped all the day.”", + "Have mercy on me, my compassionate Father, and do wonders for me. “In justice, answer us with awesome things, God of our salvation, Stronghold of all the ends of the earth and the distant seas.”", + "Avoiding False Leaders
God, rescue me from false leaders. May I not grow close to them, give them any power, or even call them “rabbi.” Instead, may I stay as far away from them as possible, so that they will not injure me in either the material or spiritual realm.", + "You know all the damage that these false, improperly ordained leaders cause. Because their minds are confused and surrounded by fetid fumes, they cannot run even their own lives or evaluate their own actions properly. How, then, can they guide others?", + "Distinguishing Between True and False Leaders
Master of the Universe, give me a perfect awareness to recognize false leaders and stay far away from them — and on the other hand, to recognize the Tzaddikim and true sages in whom one must believe and to whom one must cling.", + "May those who are worthy of being called “rabbi” and “leader” be recognized and addressed as such. In this way, strengthen the “writing of our hands.” May Your nation, the Jewish people, not need to learn any handwriting or language of any other nation, but only its own holy, awesome script — which consists of holy letters that give wisdom, letters that are rooted in the forms of the letters of Your holy Torah with which You created all the worlds, in accordance with Your desire and wisdom.", + "Compassionate God, guide me to draw down the illumination of mindfulness into the “hands,” so that that the “hands of writing” will receive an illumination of the secret of wisdom from the “hands that bestow ordination.”", + "Sanctifying the Atmosphere with the Writing of Our Hands
May the handwriting of the Jewish people attain its full vigor so that all judgments and activities in the world will be performed solely through the script of Israel — which will grow stronger until even all the judgments and conduct of non-Jews will be in accordance with the script of Israel, so that we will “apply to them the judgment as it is written.”", + "May we sanctify the atmosphere with the “writing of our hands.” May the wisdom-giving letters of the holiness of the script of Israel be carved and impressed into the air, so that the world will be sanctified with the holiness of the air of the Land of Israel.", + "May every area in which the Children of Israel live possess the holiness of the Land of Israel, so that the verse will be realized, “I will be to them a small Sanctuary.”", + "May neither I nor any other Jew ever be evicted from his place.", + "Parenting Great and Holy Souls
May I parent healthy children who will serve You, and fear You and Your Torah.", + "May I eat and engage in marital relations in great holiness. As a result of the latter, may I generate pure and holy bodies fit to receive great and holy souls which possess insight into the secrets of the leap year and the pathways of the spheres and all the things and permutations that come about through them — all this in accordance with Your desire, You Who compassionately guide matters via supernal “souls” and “intellects.”", + "And may the verse soon be realized, “Guard them and do them, because that is your wisdom and your understanding in the eyes of the nations, who will hear all these laws and say, ‘This great people is a wise and understanding nation.’”", + "For Rosh HaShanah
Compassionate God, help us to travel to true Tzaddikim on Rosh HaShanah, so that our souls will be bound together into one whole, a great camaraderie; so that peace will reign among us and we will be joined in love, brotherhood and friendship in the company of the spirit of the true Tzaddik, particularly during the holy days of Rosh HaShanah.", + "And may we be bound to the Foundation Stone, the Holy of Holies, which is the all inclusive consciousness, supernal wisdom. As a result, may all judgments and constrictions be sweetened for me and for Your entire nation, the House of Israel.", + "May every constriction, judgment and decree harmful to Your Jewish people — as a whole and as individuals — be sweetened and nullified by the light of the inclusive mind of the supernal intellect that comes from the House of HaShem, which sweetens all judgments at their root.", + "Inscribe us during the holy days of Rosh HaShanah for a good and long life, and for a sweet year in which we will always do Your will and accept the yoke of Your kingship.", + "In accordance with Your desire, may our souls be bound together in the midst of the souls of the true Tzaddikim, so that we will reach great joy and prodigious happiness. As the verse states, “The light of the Tzaddikim will rejoice.”", + "In particular, may we attain this joy during the holy days of Rosh HaShanah. As the verses state, “Eat the fat and drink sweet drinks, and send gifts to someone for whom nothing was prepared, because this day is holy to our Lord; do not be upset, because the gladness of HaShem is Your strength.”", + "“Fortunate is the nation that knows the joyful shout; HaShem, they walk in the light of Your face. They rejoice in Your Name the whole day and they are exalted in Your righteousness, because You are the glory of their strength. In accordance with Your desire, our horn is raised, because HaShem is our shield and the Holy One of Israel is our King.”", + "Nullify every sort of dispute against me and against Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever.", + "I rely only on You. Guide me on my way and teach me Your truth, because You are the God of my salvation. “For You, we have hoped the entire day.”", + "Guide me to be “a faithful person who conceals a matter.” Give me Your strength and imbue me with a spirit of holy wisdom and complete faith. Guard me from being “a person who goes as a talebearer, revealing a secret.” Give me the ability to conceal everything that I am not permitted to tell.", + "In Your compassion, fulfill my requests for good, because my needs are many and my mind is too limited to explicate them. Therefore, consider it as though I enumerated them, because the hidden matters in my heart — as well as a multitude of hidden things from the very beginning of creation — are revealed to You.", + "Master of compassion, guide me to gain complete faith in the sages on every level and gain perfect counsel always, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Guide me to study Your holy Torah constantly and to learn how to act properly.", + "Guide me to walk in the path which our holy rabbis discuss in their holy books. May I heed all their words, which express truth and righteousness. May I perform my every deed properly and in its proper time, in accordance with Your will and with the will of these holy and pure, Godfearing people.", + "May I spend my days in true goodness and my years in pleasantness, devoting all my time to Torah study and serving You, in accordance with Your desire.", + "May I draw peace into the world. May I nullify all judgments and decrees against me and against Your Jewish people, from now and forever.", + "May the verse be realized, “He will send your help from the holy place, and your support from Zion.”", + "Perfect me with Your counsel. Save me quickly, for the sake of Your Name. As the verses state, “Many are the thoughts in the heart of man, but the counsel of HaShem will endure.” “The counsel of HaShem will endure forever; the thoughts of His heart are for all generations.” “When HaShem of Hosts has given counsel, who will strike it down? When His hand is stretched out, who will cause it to withdraw?” “Counsel in the heart of man is deep water, and a man of understanding will draw it up.” “Establish thoughts with counsel; to wage war, employ strategies.”", + "May the verse soon be realized, “May He give You what your heart desires, and fulfill all your counsel.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Responding to a Heretic / Questions That the Mind Cannot Comprehend / Relying on Faith / The Holy Source of Dispute / Learning Halakhah / Perfecting One’s Faith / Elevating the Sparks of the Holy Letters / Fasting / Defending Those Who Lack Faith
We must sharpen our finite minds, so that we can understand matters clearly and “know what to respond to a heretic.” But that is true only in regard to questions that have comprehensible answers. There are other questions whose answers the human mind will not understand until the coming of the Mashiach. We are forbidden to delve into these questions, because doing so will only cause us to go astray. Instead, in such cases, we must rely on faith.
Our knowledge of God comes from the good inclination in the heart, and the concealment of that knowledge comes from the evil inclination in the heart. That concealment is heresy and doubt, and we must rectify it at its source. Its source is dispute. The dynamic of dispute originates in the realm of holiness and then devolves from level to level until it manifests in the doubts of the evil inclination.
An example of holy dispute is that of arguments between the Talmudic sages, in which one forbids something and the other permits it. A person rectifies holy dispute by deciding halakhah or by learning what the halakhah is. By doing so, he clarifies his mind so that in regard to answerable questions, the gates of his mind are opened and he can “reply to the heretic.” But in regard to questions that have no answer, he must strengthen himself with faith. And when he perfects his faith, he can bring others, including non- Jews, close to God.
In order to do that, he must elevate the sparks of the letters of his speech. When the holy sparks of the letters of his speech are purified and separated from the “husks,” the “husks” remain lifeless. Then the non-Jews who have hitherto drawn energy from those “husks” cast away their faith and come to Jewish faith.
But first, in order to elevate those holy sparks of speech, this person needs to fast.
The “husks” derive their energy from the “back” of holiness, because the “face” of holiness is too bright for them. The main desires are those of eating and drinking. Since they are close to the organs of speech, when they are strong, they draw speech into exile, so that a person cannot speak to God. In order to take away their power, a person must fast. By doing so, he draws down the “waters of kindness.”
These moisten his throat, and then he can speak. Then faith itself speaks in defense of those people who are distant from God, and asks God to bring them under His wings.
It states that those who are far from God see that the world is guided by natural laws of cause and effect. They conclude that there is nothing else except nature or, at the very least, there is a God but He acts only through intermediaries — e.g., the intermediaries of working in order to earn a living, and taking medicine in order to overcome illness. In truth, God is the First Cause and, ultimately, no other cause is needed. This awareness is reinforced when we see how the Tzaddik overcomes the laws of nature with his prayer.
HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, plant Your faith in the heart of every Jew, including myself.", + "May our faith be strong and true, genuine and wholehearted, without any questions or doubts of any kind. May it be so real that it is no different than looking at something with our physical eyes.", + "Wholehearted Faith
Master of the Universe, “You Who seek faithfulness,” may my inner being not be divided, but may I serve You always with all my heart, soul and strength, genuinely and completely, with both my good and evil inclinations.", + "Remove from my heart and mind every type of doubt, skepticism and confusion — every foreign thought that disturbs my holy faith — so that I will entertain no doubts, misgivings or faithlessness.", + "Open my mind and heart. Give me the wisdom, understanding and awareness to understand everything that I am obligated to understand — so that, in accordance with the level of intellect that You have given me, I will know how to dispel any heretical thoughts and doubts that might arise within me.", + "Keep my mind from wandering beyond its boundaries, so that I will not investigate anything forbidden to me — any of those matters that are, on my level, “that which is above, that which is below, that which is within and that which is beyond.”", + "Keep me from entertaining any uncertainty about the holy ways in which You guide the world, which human intellect cannot fathom, for “whoever comes to that will not return, and will not reach the pathways of life.”", + "Guard and protect my spirit. Support me with Your right hand, and do not allow my feet to stumble. “All Your commandments are faithful; when falsehood pursues me, help me!” Guide me to attain a wholehearted simplicity with the complete faith of all my heart, without any cleverness, philosophy or sophistry.", + "Help me to cast away my wisdom and intellect in all these matters and rely only on faith. Help me to apply my mind to study only Your holy Torah, and not bring it to bear on any questions in areas that are forbidden to me. As the verse states, “Do not seek that which is hidden from you; do not investigate that which is concealed from you.” May I study only that which is permitted to me — with truthfulness, simplicity, faith, holiness, purity and wholeheartedness — all for the sake of Your Name and in order to serve You, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Learning Halakhah and Attaining Peace
Guide me to learn works of halakhah with great diligence every day, with a comprehending mind and heart, so that I will quickly and properly understand the halakhah and be able to derive proper conclusions from the holy disputes among the halakhic masters.", + "May I be blessed with the ability to render halakhic decisions and thus make peace between them. As a result, may peace descend and spread throughout the world.", + "Please guide all Jews to attain peace with each other. Nullify all contention and increase concord until people gather together in order to discuss Your ultimate truth, and remind each other not to waste their days in vain and empty matters — until at last everyone will return to Your truth and serve You with an undivided faith.", + "May peace rest within me, so that my heart will not be separated from You. May I believe in You and Your holy Tzaddikim. May I serve You with a complete heart, with both my good and evil inclinations, knowing that the world is filled with Your glory and that You stand next to me and hear my every word of prayer. May I sense Your presence resting upon me always, particularly when I pray, so that I will be inspired to speak to You with devotion and fervor and not say even a single word without profound intent.", + "My Father, King and Refuge, do not treat me in accordance with the evil of my deeds. Help me to pray with all my might and all my heart, so that “I will thank You with an upright heart when I learn Your righteous judgments.” May my heart be upright and straight, with no sophistry or falsehood whatsoever.", + "Faith and Holy Eating
Master of the World, help me to attain an upright heart, in accordance with Your desire.", + "May I attain a complete faith, as a result of which I will be able to extract the holiness from food and eat with great sanctity, ingesting only foods that have been fully refined of evil “husks.” May my eating thus constitute a complete “unification of the Holy One, Blessed be He, and His Shekhinah.”", + "Rectifying Damaged Speech
HaShem, give me the ability to guide people to truly believe in You and serve You.", + "As a result, may holy faith be crowned with newly-created, holy, beautiful adornments that please You.", + "And so, dear God, help me to rectify damaged speech. Help me to extract and raise all the holy sparks of the letters of speech that fell into exile amidst the “husk” of evil because of my sins, particularly since I have stubbornly pursued my desires for eating and drinking. I have filled my stomach with unnecessary food and drink until I have been overcome by the “three ministers of Pharaoh” — that is, the “butler,” “baker” and “cook,” which correspond to the trachea, esophagus and jugular veins. As a result, the yoke of the exile of Pharaoh and Egypt — which corresponds to the narrow passage of the throat — has pushed holy speech to the narrow back of the throat, and so now my throat is dry and I am unable to say anything meaningful to You.", + "Overcoming the Lust for Food
Master of the World, You know my heart. You know me from beginning to end. “You know my humiliation, my shame and my disgrace; all my adversaries are apparent to You.”", + "I do not know the path upon which to walk. I lack counsel on how to eat in a holy manner, in a way that will save me from the craving for food and drink.", + "Master of the Universe, my every trait requires correction. I am failing in every area of serving You, so much so that I do not know how to begin to talk to You. As a result, there are no words on my tongue; I cannot say anything at all.", + "I know that I am guilty from beginning to end. I have caused a great deal of damage with my craving for eating and drinking — something that I made no effort to overcome. As a result, my speech is so blemished and has fallen into such terrible exile that I cannot say even a single worthwhile word.", + "Yet still I have not begun to call out to You properly. “I am worn out with weeping; my throat is dry; my eyes wear away as I hope for my God.”", + "Master of the Universe, the span of my existence is immeasurably small. I do not know which path to walk upon and which counsel to take in order to save myself — my poor, pitiful soul — from destruction. My only ability rests in my words. And I cannot access that either, “because there is no word in my tongue; HaShem, You know all of this” — because my speech has descended into a profound exile.", + "And so, HaShem, “I call out to You from the straits” — from the narrowness of the throat, the depth of exile. “From the depths have I called You, HaShem. HaShem, hear my voice. May Your ears be attentive to the outcry of my entreaty. You have heard my voice; do not hide Your ear, but grant me breadth and save me.”", + "In Your great might and love, help me to destroy my craving for eating and drinking. Help me to make do with little, eating just enough to keep myself alive in a holy and pure state, without any bodily desires and pleasure at all.", + "Attaining Clear Speech
God, in Your compassion and love, help me to fast a great deal in holiness and purity, in joy and with a good heart, in accordance with Your will, so that I will rectify the blemish of speech and reconnect the “rear aspect of holiness,”15This refers to that which is “behind” and outside the realm of holiness. bringing speech forth from its exile — the exile of Pharaoh, his ministers and Egypt.", + "My Father in Heaven, “I spread my hands out to You. HaShem, teach me Your path and guide me upon the straight way despite those who gaze upon me. HaShem, show me Your path; I will walk in Your truth. Unify my heart to fear Your Name. Guide me in Your truth and teach me that You are the God of my salvation. I have hoped for You every day.”", + "Help me, because I rely on You. “I do not know what to do, because my eyes are turned to You.” I rely on You alone and I do Your will.", + "Teach me how to do Your will. Guide me on Your paths so that I will quickly eradicate my craving for eating and drinking. Let me rectify the blemish in my speech, drawing down the “waters of love” to moisten the narrowness of my throat. Help me to refine all the sparks of the letters of speech and elevate them from exile.", + "May the verse be realized, “Call out with the throat; do not restrain yourself.” May I attain clear speech, so that the awareness of my lips “shall speak clearly.”", + "Give the glorious beauty of refined speech the ability to transform the countenance of the nations and the “husks.” Extract other sparks of holiness from them, until they remain without any life force; so that all the nations cast away their gods of silver and gold and cling instead to the faith of Israel; and all those who are far from You come to serve You and attain Your holy faith. Then — may the day come soon! — the verse will be realized, “I will give the nations a clear speech so that all of them will call out in the Name of HaShem and serve Him with one accord.”", + "Always Starting Anew
God, may I always serve You and learn Your holy Torah with all my heart. May I begin to serve You every day as though I had never yet done so, particularly since I am so insignificant that, truthfully, I have not yet begun to serve You.", + "Help me to always start from the beginning, “renewing my youth like an eagle” to learn Your Torah and serve You. May I not grow old and tired, but every day perform Your commandments and serve You as though it is something completely new to me.", + "May I be as “bold as a leopard, fleet as an eagle, swift as a deer and powerful as a lion” to do Your will, my Father in Heaven.", + "“Do not cast me aside in a time of old age; when my strength leaves, do not abandon me.”", + "May the verse be realized in me, “Those who hope in HaShem will renew strength. They will raise a wing like the eagles. They will run and not be weary; they will proceed and not be tired.”", + "Relying on God Alone
God, guide me to believe and trust in You with all my heart, to cast my entire burden onto You alone, to know that everything — be it earning a living, raising children or keeping healthy — occurs only in accordance with Your providence.", + "Therefore, may I know, believe and trust that You can provide me with a good income even without my having to engage in any business, and that You can send me complete health without my having to resort to taking any medicine. For You, HaShem my God, are the true Cause of everything.", + "And even when, at times, in accordance with Your desire, I must engage in some activity to earn a living, or take medicine to maintain my health, may I do so with faith in You alone, and not treat these means as the principal cause.", + "In the merit of the true Tzaddikim, give me the strength to nullify the fixed laws of existence, so that I may transform nature with my prayers and entreaties — until everyone will see and believe that there is no path of nature whatsoever, but that everything functions solely in accordance with Your providence.", + "May the verse be realized in me, “When you decree, it will come true for you, and light will shine upon your ways.”", + "Forgive me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, for all the damage that we have caused to Your holy faith by attributing cause and effect to nature alone.", + "From this moment on, strengthen the heart of everyone in the world to know and believe that You are HaShem, the God of heaven and earth, and that everything functions only in accordance with Your providence.", + "Eating in Holiness and Purity
Master of the Universe, help me to attain a complete faith with all my heart, until I can extract all foods from the blemish impressed into them by the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. May I eat solely from foods that are entirely good — foods that have been completely refined so that they contain no evil “husks.”", + "May I be satisfied by eating just a little. May I eat in holiness and purity so as to bring about a complete “unification of the Holy One, Blessed be He, and His Shekhinah.”", + "Overcoming Nature Itself
[HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, may the energy of faith itself persuade You to bring all people who are far from a complete and holy faith back to You, so that they will take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.", + "Do not be angry at people who lack faith. They erred because they extrapolated from those things that they can perceive to Your hidden presence. And since the things that people can perceive give the impression that You guide Your world in accordance with the laws of nature, they grew distant from Your holy faith. Instead of trusting in You, they turned to intermediate objects as though, Heaven forbid, You are unable to pour abundance onto a person and send him all he needs without those intermediaries.", + "In Your compassion, send all those people who are far from You — including myself — true Tzaddikim, whose prayer has the power to bring about wonders that transcend the laws of nature.", + "Our sages teach that this will occur universally in the future, when “the Tzaddikim will revive the dead” and perform other wonders; when the will of the Tzaddikim shall overcome Your will, as it were, so that, our sages state, “although the Holy One, Blessed be He, decrees, the righteous man nullifies.”", + "Give us the evidence of these miracles now, so that we will rightly infer that You hear the prayer of the Tzaddik and do his will, destroying the “configurations of the stars” and nullifying nature.", + "In this way, may we understand that even in the way of nature — the way in which You guide the world in accordance with the “configuration of the stars” — everything happens only in accordance with Your holy will, wondrous knowledge and complete providence.", + "May we attain that strong trust and complete faith soon.]", + "May the verses be realized, “Trust in HaShem and do good; dwell in the land and shepherd faith. Take delight in HaShem and He will give You the requests of your heart.”", + "“Commit your path to HaShem and trust in Him, and He will act. Shine Your face on Your servant, save me with Your lovingkindness.”", + "“Cause Your face to shine upon Your servant and teach me Your laws.”", + "“God, be gracious to us and bless us; cause Your face to shine upon us.”", + "“HaShem, God of hosts, bring us back; cause Your face to shine, so that we will be saved.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "The Tzaddik is Revealed and Concealed / God is Revealed and Concealed / The Snake and the Ant / The Tzaddik Battles the Ideologies of the Heretics
In Breslov circles, this lesson is known as, “The Mystical Intentions of the Circumcision.” While the lesson does not speak explicitly about circumcision, it does explain the Kabbalistic intentions. Therefore, this prayer contains many references to guarding and maintaining a pure moral lifestyle, which is implied in the covenant (of circumcision).
Sometimes the Tzaddik is revealed to the world; at other times, he is concealed. He is concealed in that he is so exalted. People cannot understand him, and so he must contain his wisdom in small packets so they will be able to receive from him. Moreover, the Tzaddik may be concealed in that people may question and even attack him.
God too reveals and hides Himself. He is revealed in that we must cling to Him. Yet the more we cling to Him, the more we must realize how truly far we are from Him. Sometimes the Tzaddik reveals God’s providence by accepting abundance and Heavenly favor. At other times, he conceals God’s providence in that he refuses these and instead accepts suffering.
The Tzaddik works unceasingly to make sure that God’s presence is revealed in the world. He can be compared to an ant resting in the mouth of a snake. The snake represents heretical thinkers. Sometimes the snake can do nothing more than crawl. This metaphor tells us that the ideology of the heretics is not developed. They can harm only those who are close to them, such as their own students and colleagues. Furthermore, their words do not enter deeply into other people’s minds, but merely cling to the surface.
But when the populace speaks evil words, particularly when they slander Tzaddikim and other great people, the snake gains wings with which to fly. This means that the minds of the heretics grow swift, allowing them to develop their heretical ideologies, which fly throughout the world and harm many people.
The ant in the mouth of the snake is the just and righteous Tzaddik of the generation who enters into those heretical ideologies in order to battle them. In doing so, he suffers greatly. He is attacked by confusion and false belief, and his faith in God is attacked.
Whether the snake crawls or flies, the ant suffers and fights — but especially when the snake flies. The ant can relax only when the snake is gliding — i.e., when the heretics are at rest, such as when they eat and sleep.
HaShem, You Who guard the covenant in Your lovingkindness, guide me from this moment on to guard my holy covenant and cause no more spiritual damage whatsoever.", + "Guide me to sanctify myself enormously even in those matters that are permitted to me, restraining my behavior in accordance with Your desire.", + "Help me to rectify the many significant blemishes that I have brought about in this area of my life to this day.", + "You Who pity the impoverished person, have pity on me. “What will I do on the day of God’s visitation?” “When He takes an account, what shall I answer Him?” Woe! “Who among us will dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us will dwell with the eternal conflagrations?”", + "Where will I run? Where will I go for help? Where will I hide my shame? I ask the Tzaddikim of this and previous generations, who are compassionate and gracious, to pray to You on my behalf. God, I am in need of Your compassion, because there is no one as pitiful as a person who, as I have done, causes spiritual damage — particularly, damage to the covenant.", + "Master of the World, have compassion on me and on everyone who is far from You, for the sake of Your Name and for the sake of the true Tzaddikim who guard the covenant.", + "From this moment on, may I return to You completely, so that I will no longer fall prey to foolishness. May the Tzaddikim rectify all the damage that I have done to the holy covenant. I myself am unable to do so, and so I rely on their merit and ability.", + "Finding and Bonding with True Tzaddikim
God, bring me close to the true Tzaddikim who guard the covenant.", + "In Your compassion, teach me who they are. Do not keep them hidden from me.", + "Help me to grow close to them and receive holiness and purity from them, so that from this moment on, I will return to You completely, turning away from evil and doing good in Your eyes forever.", + "HaShem, help me to believe always in the true Tzaddikim with a lucid consciousness.", + "May I entertain no doubts about them — even when their ways are incomprehensible to me, raising questions in my mind and heart that lead to puzzlement and confusion.", + "HaShem, may my sins not alienate me from the Tzaddikim. Guide me to strengthen myself with a constant and complete faith in them, knowing and believing that all their ways are correct and proper, and that they are righteous and justified in everything they do — although I cannot understand their awesome and exalted ways.", + "May these Tzaddikim always have pity on me and draw me close to them, lowering themselves to my level, diminishing and concealing their great light until I can access it. And may I have the strength to receive the great wisdom that they bring to this world.", + "May they think only of how to draw people close to them and never thrust anyone away, so that we may continuously cling to them.", + "HaShem, in the merit of the Tzaddikim and with the aid of their spiritual might, help me to recognize You and come close to You here in this world. And the closer I come, the more may I recognize how far away from You I still remain.", + "May Your wondrous greatness grow apparent to me, including the knowledge that one cannot, ever, comprehend You; as Elijah states, “No one knows You at all.”", + "Grant my heart the ability to approach You in a measured fashion, so that I will gain a knowledge of You from afar — a knowledge that cannot be expressed, but which is imagined by each individual in his heart. As the verse states, “Her husband is known in the gates” — people know You in accordance with what they imagine in their hearts.", + "Seeking the Good of the Tzaddikim
HaShem, in accordance with Your desire, may I never spurn the sufferings that I experience. May I continuously draw onto myself the light of the countenance of Your beneficent will, and channel all goodness to the world.", + "May I be protected by the merit of the true Tzaddikim, who have suffered a great deal for the sake of the Jewish people. For their sake, send goodness, kindness, salvation and compassion — in the form of children, life and sustenance — to all Jews, and particularly to the offspring of these Tzaddikim who have suffered great privations for the sake of the Jewish people.", + "Have compassion on these Tzaddikim and send them only goodness. Rescue them from every sort of suffering, worry and fear. Send them a complete and Heavenly healing for all their illnesses, pains and wounds.", + "God, please heal them, revive them and pray on their behalf always. Give them length of days filled with the goodness of physical and spiritual bounty. Grant them success in all the work of their hands.", + "Pour forth on them an abundance of goodness, wealth, honor and life, so that they will attain both Torah and this-worldly success, and serve You all the days of their lives with love, fear and joy out of a breadth of heart. Send that same abundance to their children and their children’s children for all generations — because, as Your holy sages have stated, a person’s merits accrue to all his descendants.", + "Remember, do not forget, all the suffering that these Tzaddikim have endured. Put an end to their troubles and cause them no more affliction.", + "Have compassion on them from this moment on. Send them every sort of salvation. Give them children, life and sustenance in abundance. Elevate them higher and higher, and grant them every sort of joy. Enhance their names forever, so that they, “the fruit of the land, will be glorious and splendid.”", + "Bestow all blessings upon them and lengthen their days and years. May their branches spread forth; may they be as glorious as the olive tree. “May they bring forth fruit in old age; may they be filled with sap and freshness.”", + "Guarding One’s Speech
God, in Your compassion, help me to guard my mouth and my tongue from every sort of evil and blemished speech. May I never speak a word of falsehood, slander, gossip, mockery, sycophancy, chatter or profanity, nor anything else that might cause anyone shame, upset or distress.", + "Master of the World, in Your compassion, protect me from every sort of blemished speech. “God, keep my tongue from speaking evil and my lips from expressing falsehood.” “HaShem, place a guard at my mouth and a watch upon the doorway of my lips.”", + "Overcoming the Evil Ideologies of the Heretics
In this way, overcome and crush the evil ideologies of the philosophers and heretics, which are so damaging to the world. “They sharpen their tongues like vipers; the venom of the spider is under their lips.”", + "Have compassion on [us all, because we are like] the ant that lies between the snake’s fangs. Who could be expected to bear such pain and suffering? “And You, HaShem, how long? When will You arise?” Have compassion on us. Look at our suffering, take up our cause, hurry to redeem us fully and quickly for the sake of Your Name. Rescue us from the evil ideologies of the heretics and philosophers. Conceal us in the shadow of Your holy wings and increase the strength of the wings of holiness.", + "Remove the wings of the serpents — the philosophers and heretics who dedicate their minds to evil purposes — so that their ideologies will not spread throughout the world and worm their way into people’s minds and hearts, and so that they themselves will not be able to develop and deepen their ideologies.", + "Reduce, weaken and nullify their evil ideas in every realm and reveal the wisdom of the true sages, so that everyone will recognize that You are HaShem, God alone, supernal, higher than any king in the world.", + "“You made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them.”", + "Give all the nations “a clear speech, so that all of them will call out in the Name of HaShem and serve Him with one accord.”", + "Remove the idols from the land and cut down the gods. Uproot and nullify every evil ideology. In their place, strengthen and spread the true wisdom of our holy Torah, so that we will recognize You with perfect faith and serve You with all our hearts, all the days of our lives, forever.", + "May the verse soon be realized, “HaShem will be king over all the earth. On that day, HaShem will be one and His Name will be one.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "The Vacated Space / The Paradox of God’s Presence and Non-Presence in the Vacated Space / Two Types of Heresy / One Can Be Saved from the Heresy of the Secular Sciences / The Heresy That Cannot Be Answered, Which Comes from the Vacated Space / Israel Bypasses Philosophical Questions with Faith / Realizing that God is in the Vacated Space / Silence and Speech / The Tzaddik on the Level of Moses / Tzaddikim Create Worlds with Their Dispute / Raising Souls with Melody
When God wanted to create the universe in order to reveal His compassion, there was no space in which to do so, since nothing else existed besides God’s infinite light. Therefore, He constricted His light to the sides, which made a Vacated Space. In that Vacated Space, He made “days” and “measurements” — i.e., the world.
This constriction of the Vacated Space will not be understood until the times of the Mashiach. For it involves the paradox of simultaneous “being” and “non-being.” The Vacated Space results from constriction, so there is no Godliness there. But Godliness must be there, for nothing can exist without God.
There are two types of heresy. One involves the secular sciences. In the Vacated Space, there was an excess of light. This light caused the spiritual “vessels” to break, and as a result, “husks” were brought into being. These “husks” are waste matter deriving from holiness, and secular sciences come from this. About such ideologies, our sages stated, “Know how to respond to a heretic.” This type of heresy can be answered. A person who has descended into this type of heresy can be saved. He can find God if he looks for Him, because the sparks and letters of holiness have broken and fallen there. Thus he can find the Godliness with which to answer heretical questions.
But there is another type of heresy which consists of questions raised by philosophers. In actuality, these questions contain no wisdom and are essentially null. Since human intellect cannot answer these questions, however, they appear to be strong. These questions cannot be answered because they come from the Vacated Space, where there is no Godliness. Therefore, since one cannot find God there, one cannot find an answer to these questions. Thus the verse states, “Whoever comes to that will not return.”
With their faith, the Jewish people bypass such ideologies, including the heresy that comes from the Vacated Space. For they believe in God without philosophy, but with perfect faith that He fills and surrounds all worlds.
There must be a division between the universe and that which transcends it. If not, everything would be one. That division is the Vacated Space. The Vacated Space surrounds the universe, and God surrounds the Vacated Space. He fills all worlds — which were created in the Vacated Space — and He surrounds all worlds, including the Vacated Space. When we have faith that God fills and surrounds all worlds, we believe that the Vacated Space itself was made with His wisdom and that God is truly there (although this cannot be understood with the human mind). Then we can find God in the Vacated Space. But when people delve into philosophy, they get lost in the Vacated Space because they cannot find God there.
A great Tzaddik on the level of Moses can study such heresy even though he cannot answer its questions. By doing so, he raises souls that fell and were immured in it.
The confusions and questions which people experience in this regard are on the level of silence, since no thought or letters can solve them. Creation came about through speech, which contains wisdom. Speech represents limitation, the boundary of things; for example, God limited His wisdom in letters. But in the Vacated Space which surrounds the universe, there is no speech — not even thought without speech. And so the confusions that come from there are on the level of silence.
Therefore, in that realm, an ordinary person must believe in God in silence. Only the Tzaddik on the level of Moses may study those heretical confusions.
With their words — and particularly with their disputes — Tzaddikim create worlds. For when they argue, each draws himself to a different side. This creates a Vacated Space in their midst, in which creation is brought about. The Tzaddikim must be careful not to say more than is necessary to create worlds. Should they say too much, it generates an excess of light. Then the “vessels” cannot hold the flood of light and they break. As a result, “husks” are created.
The Tzaddik who corresponds to Moses raises souls from the heresy of the Vacated Space through melody. Each wisdom has its own melody. Even heresy has its own melody. Every level of wisdom has its own tune.
At the very beginning-point of creation, the beginning of emanation, where there is nothing higher than the light of the Infinite One which surrounds the Vacated Space, there too wisdom exists. But that wisdom cannot be known, because that is God’s infinite wisdom, which cannot be understood. There, only faith exists: belief in God and belief that His infinite light surrounds all worlds.
Faith also has a tune. Even idolatrous faiths have their own tunes. The supernal faith which is higher than all wisdoms and beliefs, the faith in the light of the Infinite One Who surrounds all worlds, itself possesses a melody that is higher than any other tune in the world. All other tunes are drawn from this melody.
This melody is attained by the Tzaddik of the generation who corresponds to Moses, who is on the level of faith, the silence that transcends speech. With this melody, the Tzaddik on the level of Moses raises and liberates all the souls that fell into the heresy of the Vacated Space. For all other tunes — including those of heresy — are nullified and absorbed into his supernal melody.
God, “You Who do great things beyond comprehension and wonders without number,” Master of all, You transcend everything. You fill all worlds and are higher than all worlds, below all worlds and between all worlds, so that there is no place empty of You at all.", + "You created the universe in order to reveal Your compassion. In Your desire to communicate Your goodness, You constricted Your light, as it were. You constricted Your great, infinite light to form a Vacated Space in which You created all existence, from beginning to end, and in which You may be acknowledged forever.", + "And so I come forth to speak to You. “My King and my God, I pray to You.” Have mercy on me and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people.", + "Save us from falling prey to any type of heresy. Do not allow into our hearts and minds any inquiry, question or doubt typical of secular thinkers. For they are immersed in confusion, skepticism and heresy, having fallen into “wisdoms” that are not wisdoms at all, but which derive from the Vacated Space in which You constricted Your light to the sides, as it were. There answers to such questions and doubts cannot be found, because You constricted Your wisdom and knowledge so as to make an arena for the creation of the world.", + "There are No Questions Whatsoever
HaShem, bring me to perfect faith. Rescue me from philosophical inquiries and doubts. You know that my mind is weak, my intellect limited, my intelligence circumscribed and my heart perplexed — all because of my many great sins, which reach the highest heavens — so that I cannot understand even those philosophical questions that do have answers, much less those that come from the Vacated Space and which no one can solve.", + "Have compassion on me and on all the Jewish people. Guard us from every sort of philosophical inquiry and doubt — both those that can be solved and those that cannot. “For I am more a beast than a man, and I lack human understanding,” and we do not know how to answer any of these questions.", + "Indeed, who can understand Your holy ways? Who has the arrogance to raise his head and investigate Your holy providence, questioning how You guide Your world or doubting Your true Tzaddikim? Woe for the shame of the person who does so!", + "Graciously bring me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, to perfect faith. For truthfully, there are no questions whatsoever, since You are righteous and just. “HaShem is true forever.”", + "Saved By the Teachings of the Tzaddikim
Master of the Universe, teach me how to arrange my prayers before You based on this wonderful teaching about the Vacated Space, which You have given us in Your compassion, and whose height, depth and secrets You alone know.", + "In Your wondrous compassion, You have given us awesome Tzaddikim whose Torah insights encapsulate and reveal the wonders of Your awesome secrets to our small, blemished minds, guiding us on a straight and true course to You, strengthening us in Your holy faith, and giving us life as a great nation.", + "“Such knowledge is beyond me, so exalted that I cannot attain it.” “Awesomely have I been formed, wondrous are Your deeds, which my soul knows well.” “This has come from HaShem — it is wondrous in our eyes.” What can we say? What shall we speak? “How can I repay HaShem for all His kindness to me?”", + "You have given us such goodness. By sending us awesome Tzaddikim who possess great awareness, and who know how to draw down and reveal such wondrous teachings that help people who are far from You — such as myself — walk directly to You, You have, as it were, sent us healing even before we have been overwhelmed by spiritual illness.", + "These Tzaddikim have been so kind to us. In particular, I know that they have restored me from having been like a vessel shattered into pieces and ground into dust. I was broken because my heart had turned aside from You and had broken into innumerable shards — which then smashed even more, until they were ground into powder, polluted by every sort of filth, scattered to the four corners of the earth and the distant seas, and brought lower than the deepest level of Gehinnom. “Like the earth when it is hoed and broken up, so were our bones scattered until they reached the mouth of Gehinnom.” “You placed me into the lowest pit — into the darkness, into the depths.”", + "I was caught by thousands and tens of thousands of nets and by innumerable traps. “I was spilled out like water and all my bones were disjointed; my heart was like wax, melting within my innermost parts.”", + "But although my spiritual foes “prepared a net for my footsteps and my spirit was bowed down,” although “they dug a pit before me, they themselves fell into it.” If not for Your compassion and kindness, I would have been lost in my suffering. But You consider from afar how to bring us to a good end. And so You sent us wondrous Tzaddikim who have bestowed upon us the blessing of their holy and precious books, teachings of a sort that never before existed but which have now increased, because You know the depths of our weakness in these generations. You have prepared this balm and healing for our wounds in order that our hope will not be lost.", + "No Thought Grasps God at All
God, help me to sense and bring to light Your holy counsel, which is hidden in the Torah insights of the Tzaddikim. On the basis of that, may I pray to You in a proper and well-ordered manner.", + "You know how much I need to cry out to You — to sigh and pray with the hope that in Your compassion, You will lead me to turn my back on heresy, disbelief, skepticism, doubt and every other sort of “husk,” including desires and other evils. All these were brought into being through the constriction of Your light, and the consequent overwhelming flood of light (in the Vacated Space), the two of which together have overpowered us.", + "Because of my many sins, I do not know what to ask of You first. When my desires, doubts and confusions which derive from the “husks” grow more intense, it is very difficult for me to expel and eliminate them — because due to my many sins, I am so crushed.", + "The aspect of evil still has not turned its animosity away from me. It still wants to overwhelm me and fill my mind with confusion, questions, vain fantasies and crookedness of the heart. All these are drawn from the Vacated Space, where it is impossible to find You by means of intellect and wisdom, but through faith alone.", + "HaShem, answer me in a time of trouble, because You possess the power to save. I hope in You, God of forgiveness; “turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am alone and poor.”", + "Guide me to attain perfect faith, so that I will not engage in any philosophical inquiries. May I expel and eliminate from my mind — and from the entire world! — every such sort of inquiry without even glancing at it, and instead strengthen myself constantly with a true, complete faith — until I step beyond all these doubts and inquiries, these wisdoms that are no wisdom at all but rather confusions and fantasies that derive from the Vacated Space. May I know and believe that “You are He, HaShem, alone; You made the heavens, the heavens of heavens and all their host, the earth and everything on it, the seas and everything in them, and You give life to them all.”", + "You rule over everything. You fill and surround all worlds. You are higher than all worlds, below all worlds, between all worlds and within all worlds. There is no place empty of You.", + "You are one and unique, with an ultimate oneness. You are higher than everything and there is none higher than You. You transcend the most exalted beings; You are more concealed than the most concealed reality. No thought grasps You at all.", + "Fortifying Oneself with Perfect Faith
God, rescue me always from looking into any book of philosophical inquiry and from talking with any philosophers, those who have fallen into the realm of questions that derive from the Vacated Space, of which it is said, “Whoever comes to that will not return, and will not reach the pathways of life.”", + "Awesome and holy God, have pity on my soul and guard me from such influences always.", + "Strengthen me in Your holy faith until I will nullify, uproot, expel and destroy all such inquiries from within myself and from the entire world, by means of a holy faith in You, in the true Tzaddikim and in Your holy Torah. “For I am a Hebrew and I fear HaShem the God of the heavens,” and I believe with a complete faith in You, God of Israel.", + "Open my consciousness and broaden my mind with great holiness, so that I will know how to reply to the heretic, and so that I will be able to distinguish between queries that can be answered and those that come from the Vacated Space and cannot be resolved, of which the verse states, “Whoever comes to that will not return, and will not reach the pathways of life.”", + "Help me to fortify myself with perfect faith and with a complete knowledge of holiness, so that I eradicate every type of heresy and lack of belief in myself, my offspring and in the entire world, and so that I reveal Godliness and truth to everyone in the world. Then everyone “will know that Your Name, HaShem, alone is supernal over the entire earth.”", + "For the Seventh of Adar (The Anniversary of Moses’ Death)
God, send us true, outstanding Tzaddikim on the level of Moses, who have the power to enter the philosophical inquiries that derive from the Vacated Space and break them, nullify them, uproot them and destroy them, and in doing so, liberate all the souls that were trapped there due to their sins.", + "May these Tzaddikim have the power to arouse and reveal the supernal melody, the choicest of all songs and melodies. In this way, may they bring to peace all the souls that have fallen into the error, confusion and heresy deriving from the Vacated Space, whose sad, pitiable nature You alone know.", + "Dispute Among the Sages Creates Worlds
[Master of the Universe, guide me to attain complete faith in the sages.", + "May no dispute among them ever confuse me, but may I know and believe with perfect faith that what each one of them says is intended solely to create worlds. For the true Torah sages create worlds with their words — particularly in their disputes with each other, when each one goes in a different direction, causing the equivalent of the Vacated Space to appear between them as light is constricted to the sides and universes are created by means of speech.", + "Give these Tzaddikim the awareness and wisdom to know what to say and how much to say — not speaking too much but only in accordance with what is necessary to create worlds, so that their words will not be like the original flood of light that caused the breaking of the vessels, which in turn led to the formation of the “husks.”", + "And allow me to attain the silence of holiness, so that I will not enter any dispute among the sages in regard to the letters and words that comprise their ideas. Rather, may I refrain from taking sides even in thought, because You have revealed to us that on the level of the Vacated Space, there are no letters or words. There, a person can enter only on the level of silence, which transcends speech.", + "Please bring me to that silence, until I will cause all my “days” and “traits” — which are associated with the sages’ creation of worlds — to grow.", + "When the sages are divided and each one draws himself to a different side, it may appear as though there is literally a dispute among them, Heaven forbid. My Living God, guide me to believe that all their words are intended only to create worlds and holy traits. May I hear and accept from them all Your words, until I will cause my “days” and “traits” to grow fully, resulting in the actual creation of worlds.]", + "Attaining God’s Compassion
God, in Your compassion, deliver me from dispute and from the profusion of words. Teach me how to restrict my words in the proper measure, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Fulfill my requests with compassion. Guide me to find You everywhere and believe with perfect faith that You are the Sovereign Ruler over everything. May I believe that You are hidden in all aspects of evil, spiritual pollution and the “husks” — so that even in the space entirely vacated of Your presence, You are there, completely hidden, wondrously concealed. This is something that cannot be understood by the intellect, but only with faith. You do wonders; who can understand them? You alone perform great marvels, which appear to our human minds as paradoxes.", + "Who has the strength to comprehend Your great and awesome ways? “Such knowledge is beyond me; it is so exalted that I cannot attain it.” “You are great and do wonders — You, God, alone.” “You do great things beyond scrutiny, and wonders without number.” Your purpose is as high as “the heights of Heaven — what can a person accomplish? It is deeper than Gehinnom — what can a person know?”", + "You fill all worlds, from beginning to end. And You created everything solely for the sake of revealing Your compassion, which is encapsulated and hidden even in the Vacated Space — which is the ultimate constriction and judgment, because the essential purpose of the constriction and the Vacated Space is to reveal Your compassion. Only You know the greatness of Your graciousness and love, which have the power to protect and free me from all the realms of pollution, from all evil places, and raise me quickly to all the levels of holiness, so that I will return to You fully, with all my heart.", + "God of the entire universe, be compassionate to me. “Master of our might, our rocklike stronghold, shield of our salvation, a stronghold for us.”", + "Master of the World, look at my depressed spirit. Gaze upon my broken heart. You are close to those who are spiritually far away. You desire the return of the wicked. Almighty God, be available to everyone who seeks You. Declare Your presence to all those who entreat You. Give us life. Maintain us and revive us with every sort of purity, which restores the spirit of holiness.", + "Singing Holy Melodies
[Master of the World, You know that each wisdom has its own tune, as does every faith.", + "Rescue me from hearing any tunes that are associated with profane wisdom, particularly any heretical ideology or false belief, Heaven forbid.]", + "God, motivate me to sing holy songs to You, songs drawn from Your holy faith, which have the power to inspire me with faith and eliminate every sort of heresy, distortion and confusion in my heart — and every sort of doubt in my mind — and awaken my heart to turn to You and Your Torah, in order to truly serve You.", + "“Awaken, my glory; awaken lyre and harp, I will awaken the dawn.”", + "Pour forth Your abundance and reveal the holy songs that come from the “head of faith,” from the supernal tune of Moses, from which all songs and melodies in the world derive. In this way, guide me to attain complete faith, so that the verse will be fulfilled, “Come, gaze from the mountain of faith.”", + "Being Absorbed into Silence
God, may I be absorbed into the soul of Moses, which is the level of silence.", + "Help me to accustom myself to silence, in keeping with the words of our sages, “Silence is a fence for wisdom” and, “There is nothing better for the body than silence.”", + "Guide me to be silent even in thought whenever confusions in the realm of faith come to cloud my mind. Let me then be “like a person who does not hear and has no rebuttals in his mouth,” “like a deaf person who does not hear, and like a mute person who does not open his mouth.”", + "May I not even consider how to reply to any of the errors, doubts and perplexities that overwhelm my mind and heart, but remain silent even in thought, so that I rise and am absorbed into supernal, transcendent silence, which is the source of holy faith.", + "In this way, may my faith, mind and heart be fortified with holy strength. As a result of this holy silence, may all confusions and questions then fall away, and every foreign thought and phantasm — of blemished faith, of sexual and other desires, of ideas that disturb my prayer and Torah learning, and of any other evil, foreign thought, doubt or perplexity that blocks holiness — grow distant from me. May that true silence cause them all to be distanced and nullified.", + "You, God, know my weakness. You know that I lack counsel and stratagem against those thoughts. I have no answer to the many doubts that urge themselves upon me at every moment.", + "Instead, I rely only on You and on the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim, who are in the realm of silence.", + "Help me to be absorbed into them and walk in their ways, drawing onto myself the light of the holiness of their silence. My eyes are turned to You alone. I sit and hope for Your compassion, which You have hidden away for Your creatures. “It is good for a person to hope in silence for the salvation of HaShem.” “My soul waits silently for God; my salvation comes from Him.” My soul, be silent for God — because my hope comes from Him.” “Even before a word is on my tongue, indeed, HaShem, You have known everything.”", + "“I have lifted my eyes to You, You Who sit in Heaven.” “To You, HaShem, I raise my spirit.” “I stretch my hands out all the day. My soul turns to You like a weary land.” “I have hoped for You every day; You answer, HaShem my God.” “I lift my eyes to the mountains. From where will my help come? My help is from HaShem, the Maker of heaven and earth.”", + "May the verse be realized in me, “Moses told the nation, ‘Do not fear. Stand and see the salvation of HaShem, Who will act on your behalf today. You saw Egypt today, but you will never see them again. HaShem will fight for you as you remain still.’”", + "“Do not abandon me, HaShem my God, do not be far from me. Rush to help me, HaShem, my salvation.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "The Field of Souls and the “Master of the Field” / Making a Unity of the Prayer Service / Seeing the Goal of Existence / One’s Troubles are Divine Favors/Joy Comes from the State of Self-Nullification / Creating New Torah Insights and Relieving Suffering
There is a field where beautiful “trees” and “grasses” grow. These trees and grasses are holy souls. There is also a “master of the field,” who involves himself in watering and tending these plants and seeing to their rectification. There are also other souls, naked souls, which wander about outside this field waiting to be rectified by the “master of the field” so they will be able to return to their places.
When the souls in the field bear fruit — that is, when they do God’s will—the master’s eyes are illumined. Then he can look at every individual and bring him to the ultimate goal of existence. In particular, he can look at every individual’s words of prayer and see whether or not they are properly rectified.
When a person recites the words of prayer, he is gathering beautiful flowers, like one who gathers blossoms to create a bouquet. He proceeds from letter to letter until a word is formed. Then he joins together two words, and then completes a blessing. He proceeds from the first blessing of the prayers to the second, and so forth.
But as soon as the very first letter emerges from his soul, it begs his soul not to part from it, pleading, “There is such a deep connection and love between us. You see my loveliness, radiance, glory and beauty. How can you leave me? It is true that you must go on to gather more blossoms. But how can you go away from me? At least see to it that wherever you go, you do not forget me.”
Similarly, when this person finishes an entire word, the word embraces him and does not want to let him leave. However, he is obligated to recite more words and blessings until he finishes the entire order of prayer. And so, in order to please the letters and words of prayer even as he fulfills his obligation, he must make a unity of the entire prayer. With every word that he speaks, all the other words must be present. He must turn his entire prayer, from beginning to end, into a single unity. When he reaches the last word of prayer, he should still be standing at the first word. In this way, he can recite the entire prayer without being separated from even the first word of prayer. This is a unity that reflects the ultimate goal, which is entirely one, entirely good.
A person suffers when his clear mindfulness is taken away from him and he cannot see that ultimate goal. When he wants to look at the goal, he must close his eyes to the desires and vanities of this world. Then he sees the light of that ultimate goal. He is nullified to the ultimate reality, and all his suffering is nullified as well.
Upon seeing the ultimate goal, this person realizes that all the troubles he experienced were not evils but great favors, for they came from God for his benefit, whether to remind him to repent or to erase his sins. Now, as he focuses on God’s intent, he is filled with joy, because he sees so much good in the ultimate meaning of his suffering. He sees that there is no evil in the world. Everything is one; everything is good.
But a person cannot remain in that state forever. Otherwise, he would no longer be a human being. So he must flit in and out of that state, “running and returning.”
When his mind returns from that state of self-nullification back to his normal consciousness, it cannot integrate the awareness of that transcendent reality, which is on the level of infinity, complete oneness, complete goodness. As a result, his suffering temporarily grows even worse.
Originally, his suffering led him to a state of self-nullification to the ultimate source. While he was in that state, he understood that his troubles are Divine favors and he was filled with joy. After he returns from that state of self-nullification, an after-impression remains. The joy remains with him and forms a vessel in which he can create new Torah insights. As he attains these new insights, he slakes the thirst of his soul and his suffering is mitigated.
And so, when a person’s suffering is followed by the creation of Torah insights, that is a sign that he attained a state of self-nullification to the ultimate reality, and that he has worked through his suffering and received it properly.
God — You Who are unique and alone, You Who were, are and will be — guide me to be absorbed into Your oneness.", + "Compassionate God, help me to gain the strength to close my eyes to the vanities and desires of this world. May I be blind to the world. May I not gaze or look at it at all, so that it will never divert me.", + "May I direct my eyes and mind only to the true and eternal goal, until I understand and know Your goodness, and realize that there is no evil in the world at all. Rather, everything is good and kind, and You do a vast amount of good for all beings at every moment. Your intent is always for the good. You wish to give us merit and bring us to the true goal, which is eternal life.", + "And may I always be filled with joy.", + "The Purpose of Suffering
God, You Who are awesome and holy, do not let me suffer. Be with me always. When You send me troubles in accordance with Your good judgment, save me at every moment by giving me the strength and awareness to look upon the true goal, the good purpose of suffering. Then, in my troubled moments, I will be absorbed into You, nullifying myself and closing my eyes to the sight of this world with its desires and vanities — until, if only from afar, I can gaze upon the good and eternal goal that I will reach as a result of this suffering, which will be nullified.", + "Bring Me Back to Holiness
Compassionate God, You know the wounds of my heart and the suffering of my soul. You know the great damage that I have caused in both the material and spiritual realms with my eyes of flesh and my mind’s eye. I have looked at things that are forbidden to look at, causing great damage to my eyes and my soul. I have engaged in sinful, foreign and evil thoughts, and I have gone beyond the boundaries of holiness and peered at matters beyond the purview of a person on my level, which has brought foreign and evil thoughts into my mind. I have gazed beyond the boundaries of holiness. Thousands of times — times without number — I have interrupted my mind and thoughts when they were thinking of You and Your holy Torah, until doing so has become second nature. I have grown so accustomed to external thoughts beyond the bounds of holiness, and my mind and my soul have grown so corrupted, that I have been rendered incapable of praying to You.", + "I have yet to repent of my errors. I do not know how to return to You when I am so weak and my mind is so confused, when I am so far from You and at the mercy of dangers and onslaughts — whether from within myself or from external enemies — coming from innumerable hostile forces in both the material and spiritual realms. These enemies launch all sorts of attacks against me, on various levels, and they can originate from anyone — whether righteous, intermediary or wicked.", + "“HaShem, how many are my enemies, how many are those who stand against me” — including people who are great in Torah, wealth and intelligence.", + "Have compassion on me, a noxious creature, a corrupt individual. There is no way to describe the flaws, weakness, confusion and baseness of my mind, the troubles of my heart, the wounds of my soul, and my bitter pains in both the material and spiritual realms.", + "You commanded us to close our eyes to the sight of this world. But I have rebelled and done exactly the opposite. I have turned all my days to the foolishness and vanities of this degraded world. During the day I do not rest and at night I am not quiet, but I think constantly about this-worldly, vain desires. I have grown accustomed to focusing solely on earning a living and taking care of my many needs, and on this-worldly passions such as jealousy, desire, honor and all their ramifications, until I have thrown away my awareness of the true goal. I have grown so habituated to this way of thinking that even when I want to think about the true goal, I find it difficult to do so, and I cannot concentrate on it for any length of time. Even when I learn Torah, pray and serve You, my thoughts are scattered in every direction, intermingled with foreign ideas and mental confusion.", + "Woe is me! Where am I in the world? Where has my wisdom disappeared to? Where have my intelligence and mindfulness gone? I am no longer thinking about You, HaShem, and why I came into this lowly world. Is it possible that I came to this world for lowly thoughts, Heaven forbid? No — I came here only to break my free will and turn my mind, eyes and heart away from the world and to focus on the true goal as I cling to You.", + "As the verses state: “Do not wander after your hearts and stray after your eyes.” “Fear HaShem your God; serve Him, cling to Him and swear in His name.” “Go after HaShem your God. Fear Him and guard His commandments. Heed His voice, serve Him and cling to Him.”", + "“I have brought the heavens and the earth as witnesses for you today. I have placed before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, so that you may live, you and your offspring, and love HaShem your God, and listen to His voice and cling to Him — for that is your life and the length of your days.”", + "But now, how have I changed! “Does the snow of Lebanon cease because of the rock in the field? Does the cold, flowing waters from a distance leave?” Is it conceivable that I turn my thoughts away from You, the Source of true and eternal life, and away from Your holy Torah, and instead think about the things to which I have grown accustomed, as so many of us do, each individual on his level of foolishness and error?", + "Woe, HaShem! Woe, my Master and King! What will I do on the Day of Judgment? What will I do when I come to the eternal world, to the day that is entirely Shabbat and tranquility?", + "A person can enter and be absorbed into that reality only if he has adorned himself with holiness and removed his mind entirely from the sights of this world, clinging instead to the true and eternal goal.", + "What will I do? My sins have so affected me that “I have sunken into the deep mud, and there is nowhere to stand. I have entered into the depths of the water, and the current has swept over me.”", + "My Father, my Master, “My King and my God, I pray to You.” I throw myself before You in prayer. Act for Your own sake in Your great compassion and bring me back to You in complete repentance. Grant me merit from this moment on. Help me, save me, be with me always.", + "Guide me to seal my eyes, heart, mind and thoughts from the sight of this lowly world. May I never look at the vanities, desires and troubles of this world. The entire world is not worth the blink of an eye, “for it is all vanity and an evil spirit; and what advantage does a person have of all his toil,” of all his desires and vanities?", + "Your Goodness Never Ends
God, You Who are good at all times to all — to the wicked and to the good — do good with me, although I am so far from goodness; although I have rebelled thousands of times against Your goodness, accidentally or on purpose, against my will or willingly.", + "You have offered me a great deal of true and eternal good. But I have pushed it away with both my hands so many times that “it can no longer be counted, for there is no number.”", + "God, Your goodness never ceases. Guide me from this moment on to attain Your true goodness. Satiate me with Your eternal goodness.", + "Guide me so that I will truly be absorbed into Your oneness with an ultimate nullification — in the proper way and in accordance with Your desire, which is that of “running and returning” — until I will know that everything is exceedingly good, even all my troubles and suffering, and that there is no evil in the world at all. May I then be able to nullify all my troubles, eradicating all my suffering by nullifying myself to the ultimate goal.", + "In this way, may I accept necessary suffering with love and joy. And after I return from that state of self-nullification, may I attain the joy that comes from its afterglow. With that joy, may I illuminate my consciousness with the “waters of Torah,” “drawing water in joy from the wellsprings of salvation.”", + "May this afterglow illuminate the vessels of my consciousness and make it possible for me to comprehend the secrets of the Torah. And as a result of understanding the Torah, may I diminish my suffering and extinguish the thirst of my soul. May the verse then be realized in me, “Fortunate is the man whom You rebuke, HaShem, and whom You teach from Your Torah.”", + "Perfect Prayer
God, have compassion on me. Help me to attain perfect prayer so that I will make a unity of all prayer. May all my prayers unite together in an ultimate oneness, so that every day I will have the strength to recite songs, praises, prayers and requests before You with ultimate perfection, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Beautiful Words of Prayer
God, You Who are good and do good, You Who desire the prayers of Your nation, the Jewish people, You know the precious beauty and glorious holiness of the words of holy prayer that we pour forth before You.", + "You know the splendid beauty and precious holiness of each letter of prayer. Who can express the glory of these bouquets of wondrous, awesome, precious and lovely blossoms and other plants that we gather together from the holy, supernal fields with each letter and word — and most of all with each blessing — that we recite in prayer?", + "If we could hear and appreciate the pearls and precious stones that we express with our mouths, if we could comprehend the precious beauty and glory of the awesome words of prayer, the holiness of each phrase, we could not complete a single blessing or even a single word, for we would be bound to the first letter of the first word. How is it possible to leave that letter, since it is so precious, beautiful, radiant and glorious, a glory that cannot be verbalized — which, because of the strength of its connection with the soul, does not allow the soul to leave it and go on?", + "Unifying Prayer
Master of the World, filled with goodness, kindness and compassion, You have taught us that attaining the level in which one hears the beauty of prayer in a single word to such a degree that one cannot move past that word is insufficient and imperfect. For we must recite all the blessings and complete the entire order of prayer — and then recite even more prayers and Psalms. Prayer is perfected when we incorporate it into a unity — which is the unified and ultimate goal.", + "HaShem, You know my lowliness and worthlessness, how far I am from any of this. I am so distant from prayer and my heart is so sealed that I cannot hear my own words of prayer. Although I pray with my mouth and lips, my heart is far from the holy words and I cannot gather the strength to make my ears hear what I am expressing with my mouth.", + "And even if You help me at times, so that I begin to hear some letter and word of holy prayer as from a distance, I am still far from the true goal of unification. When I begin to comprehend a word, I usually remain connected to it, and I cannot leave it to go onward and say more. But this is not ideal. I must recite the entire order of prayer and then add many other prayers as well, for my needs are so many.", + "I Hope for Your Salvation
And so I have come to You, Compassionate Master of all deeds and all beings, with the request that You have compassion on the souls of the Jewish people, and particularly on my own soul, which has grown impoverished due to my evil deeds and the many sins that I have committed so liberally against You.", + "I have transgressed, I have sinned, I have acted wickedly and done wrong in Your eyes. My soul has been expelled from the holy field where all the holy souls grow, and it has wandered for days and years in an exile where it remains unrecognized. There it grows ever more agitated, lacking “rest for the sole of its foot; all its pursuers have caught it between the straits.”", + "What can I do? My sins have caused all this and more. If not for Your compassion and kindness, I would have been lost in my suffering, Heaven forbid.", + "How can I pray to You, my Master, since I am so far from my soul? How can I — an unformed, decayed, confused and maddened lump of clay — speak the words of the Living God? My only hope to come back to You in prayer is the help that I receive from the true “master of the field.”", + "I come before You, HaShem, my God and the God of my fathers, You Who are filled with compassion, to cast my prayer before You with a broken and dispirited, torn and shaken, trembling and sighing heart; with stuttering lips and a stammering tongue.", + "I look to You and await Your compassion and graciousness. I hope silently for Your salvation, HaShem, which comes in the blink of an eye. I dare not speak or even raise my head, because with my own hands I have spoiled all the favors and holy counsel that You have constantly sent me. What more charity can I expect of You? How can I continue to cry out to You, my King?", + "A Plea for Compassion
God, have compassion on my soul. You alone know the pitiable condition it has been in for so many years. Arouse Your compassion for my corrupted soul and for all the souls that wander about without garments due to my many sins. What can I say? What words can I speak?", + "When will I rectify these blemishes that reach so high, that are so powerful, that have caused such damage?", + "Have compassion on the souls of Your entire nation, the House of Israel — both the living and the dead. Send us a genuine “master of the field” who can bring all exiled souls into the holy field, rectify them and provide them with their needs — planting them, sowing them, watering them, causing them to blossom and give forth a multitude of fruits, and placing a proper distance between them so that they do not stifle each other.", + "May the passage be speedily realized, “He will turn the wilderness into a pool of water, and a dry land into springs of water. He will place those who are hungry there, and they will establish a city in which to dwell. They will sow fields and plant vineyards and bring forth the fruit of the crop. He will bless them so that they will be very many and their flocks will never be diminished.”", + "The Masters of the Field
God, have compassion on the righteous “masters of the field” who work to rectify the holy field, and upon their offspring and all who depend on them. Guard them from all their enemies, from all who are hostile to them, and from all who persecute them. You know of the great attacks to which they are subject and the hatred, jealousy, suffering and persecution that they endure. Have compassion on them and on us. Tell their sorrows, “Enough!” Guard them and save them. Revive them, maintain them, strengthen them and bless them so that they will be able to rectify us and the entire field.", + "Have compassion on suffering souls that have lacked rectification for hundreds of years and that have undergone troubles and misadventures, many of them in repeated reincarnations. Have mercy on these weary and persecuted souls — particularly on the souls that cannot clothe themselves in any body. You know how pitiable they are. Have mercy on their tears, outcries, sighs and moans. Have mercy on their suffering. Have mercy on their wanderings, so difficult that “the strength of bearing suffering has collapsed.” Have mercy on them for the sake of Your Name, for the sake of Your great compassion.", + "I lack the strength and mental capability to pray for them, and for myself as well. Act for Your own sake and not for ours. Do not recall the sins of any of us. “Hurry, may Your compassion come to meet us, for we are deeply impoverished.”", + "Help us all, because we rely on You. Guide us to return to You fully, until the eyes of the “master of the field” will be illuminated. May the field be called “the field of the seers” and not, Heaven forbid, “the field of weeping.”", + "Save us in Your great compassion, so that the “master of the field” will have the strength to be a seer gazing upon every far-flung Jew in order to bring him to the true goal; so that everyone will be able to close his eyes and mind to the sight of this world and will be absorbed constantly, with an ultimate nullification, “running and returning,” into the true goal, which is entirely one and entirely good, integrating his prayer into oneness.", + "God, You Who are good to all, help me to nullify my physical being so thoroughly that I will be absorbed into Your oneness, which is entirely good, and my prayer will be absorbed from beginning to end into Your ultimate oneness.", + "May I never forget a single letter or word of my prayer. Even when I come to the end of the prayer service, may I still recall its first letter and word.", + "May I permit no differentiation or distance to divide the words of holy prayer. May my entire prayer be joined together, from beginning to end, with an ultimate oneness and perfection — for it is all one, all good.", + "Every day, may I recite before You songs, praises, prayers, confessions and requests with a clear pronunciation, deep feeling and the ultimate intent of my heart, in accordance with Your desire. May all these be incorporated into Your unique Name with an ultimate oneness, until You hear my cry and prayer, and compassionately fulfill all my requests for the good as I swiftly repent before You, in accordance with Your desire.", + "Place my portion together with that of the tzaddikim and worthy people who sit before You in the Garden of Eden. Delight with my spirit forever. May I live to see and inherit the goodness and blessing of the days of the Mashiach and the life of the World to Come.", + "Guide me to be joyful always. In Your compassion, allow me to see the circle-dance that You will fashion for the righteous in the future, when each one will point and say, “This is HaShem for Whom we have hoped.” As the verse states, “[A person] will say on that day, ‘Behold, this is our God for Whom we have hoped; may He save us. This is HaShem for Whom we have hoped. May we delight and rejoice in His salvation.’” Fortunate is the person who awaits this era. Fortunate is the person whom You will choose to peer through the cracks at that joyful dance.", + "Grant Our Requests
God, You Who desire to do good to all Your creatures, have compassion upon us as long as our spirits are within us. Give us life and merit. With Your knowledge of all that we need, save us so that we will swiftly attain everything that we request of You, and not stand before You in shame.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” “Rejoice in HaShem and delight, righteous ones, and sing, all who are straight of heart.” “May the heavens rejoice and the earth delight, and may the nations say, ‘HaShem has ruled!’”", + "May the verse be realized, “HaShem will be King over all the earth. On that day, HaShem will be one and His Name will be one.” As it is written in Your Torah, “Hear O Israel, HaShem our God, HaShem is one.”" + ], + [ + "A Tzaddik and His Students / Receiving a Double Spirit of One’s Teacher’s Greatness / Potentiality and Actuality / The Two Yods in the Divine Names / Transforming God’s Wrath into the Spirit of Messianic Times / Separating the “Hands” of Being / Perfecting Speech / Calling Out To God / Overcoming the Wicked / Attaining Truth / Praying without Ulterior Motives / Yearning to Perform a Mitzvah / Heightening Holy Desire / Overcoming Obstacles / Never Being Satisfied with Less than Doing God’s Will
A Tzaddik and his close students may be compared to a tree trunk and its branches. These close students feel all the Tzaddik’s ascents and descents, even when they are not in his presence. And at the time that he leaves this world, they can receive a double portion of his spirit. What makes that possible?
The Tzaddik possesses a supernal spirit and a lower spirit. Shortly before he dies, his supernal spirit comes down and unites with his lower spirit. This supernal spirit then rises, taking him and his lower spirit with it. Before it does so, however, it brings about a great supernal illumination affecting those present at his deathbed — especially his close students. Since they share the same spiritual root as he, his supernal spirit is theirs as well — and so, when it descends, they cling to it and can receive a double portion.
This concept of the supernal spirit and lower spirit appears in other contexts as well. Something not yet brought into being contains within itself potentiality and actuality in an as-yet undifferentiated state. When the potentiality blossoms into actuality, the two are separated and individuated.
This is alluded to by the shape of the Hebrew letter aleph, which is comprised of two yods separated by a vav. These two yods allude to the states of potentiality and actuality. One yod, representing potentiality, begins God’s Name, YHVH (the Tetragrammaton); the other yod, representing actuality, ends God’s Name, Adonoy. Initially, the two yods were blended. But as the universe went from potential to actual, they were separated by the vav, which represents a doorway, an opening.
Potentiality and actuality correspond to the supernal spirit and the lower spirit. These two spirits come into full being when we, through our service of God, mitigate His wrath, as it were, and transform it into the purified atmosphere, or spirit, of Messianic times. Then reality is fully realized, and everything that had been in potential is actualized. Related to that, our circumstances blossom as God sends down an abundance of income with a broad and generous hand.
Initially, this Messianic spirit preceded being. Then, as creation began, it was revealed on the level of “hands,” which relate to being — for hands are the organs of action. However, the hands were still blended and undifferentiated — that is, they had not been separated. Creation reaches its completion only when this potential is fully actualized. Then the hands separate and one can differentiate between right and left.
This dynamic of potentiality and actuality operates in the realms of human action as well.
In terms of wrong action, when a person thinks of sinning, his sin is in a state of potentiality. Should he commit the sin, he brings it into actuality.
In terms of the holy realm of right action, a person goes from potentiality to actuality by perfecting his speech, which is the bridge that links thought to action.
Speech is imperfect at present, since the world is not calling to God. But in the future, speech will be perfected so that even non-Jews will call out in God’s Name. Related to that, all people will recognize the greatness and beauty of Tzaddikim and worthy people. This will also be a time of great judgment regarding each individual’s every action — for God forgets nothing — and the difference between the righteous and wicked will grow clear. At that time, the wicked will be cast down.
This level of Messianic times must be drawn into our present world, so that the wicked will experience a downfall now, as well. This occurs when speech is perfected and all call out in God’s Name.
To perfect speech, we must attain truth. A person attains truth by not being dependent on others. When a person needs others, he is apt to act in a false, sycophantic manner. Particularly when he prays in public — that is, as he expresses himself to God in speech — he may find himself acting in ways designed to impress others. Even if he doesn’t need others for his income, he may need them for honor and the like.
Sometimes, even if he wants to pray earnestly, he finds himself trying to please those around him. He may rationalize his behavior, but by doing so, he gilds falsehood with truth.
When a person is not dependent on others, however, he is linked directly to truth. Then the Messianic perfection of the letters of speech is drawn into this world.
But it is not enough for the letters of speech to be perfected. A person must also express them. Sometimes, these letters of speech are stuck in his throat; to express them, he needs vowels. (In Hebrew, only consonants have letters; vowels are added with other symbols.) This allows the letters to proceed from potentiality to actuality.
A person draws vowels to speech when he yearns to perform a mitzvah. One cannot do anything without desire, so before a person performs a holy deed, he is given the desire to do so. Desire is heightened when an obstacle is put in his way. When a Jew must work on improving his Jewishness, particularly when he must do something great and essential, such as going to a true Tzaddik, he is faced with obstacles. These obstacles are meant to increase his desire. The greater the desired object, the greater the desire.
A person should not content himself with the argument that since he wants to do something but cannot, God considers it as though he did it. That argument is true. But if a person really wants to do the mitzvah, it is no consolation to him that God considers it as though he did it. Instead, he will make an effort to overcome the obstacles, which were created solely to intensify his desire.
God of all spirits, Ruler of Heavenly and earthly beings, You Who hold the souls of the living and the dead, You “Whose hand holds the spirit of every living creature and the breath of every human being,” help me to draw down onto myself a spirit of the true life of holiness from the true Tzaddikim, who comprise our very lives.", + "Bring me before them to attend to their needs and to be as intimately connected with them as a branch is connected to the tree — so much so that I will feel all the ascents and descents that they experience.", + "And when their time comes to leave the world, may I stand beside them as their holy souls ascend, so that I may receive a double spiritual portion as “their spirit comes upon us, doubled.”", + "Closeness to God
Master of the world, I know that am asking a great deal of You. But You are good and do good, and You have taught us through Your Tzaddikim to pray for this very thing. You have generously promised us that You will certainly fulfill Your goals by bringing us to the ultimate state of perfection where we are close to You — in accordance with what is fitting for You, even if we are unworthy.", + "Therefore, as long as my spirit is within me, I bow down before You and plead with You, HaShem my God and the God of my fathers, God of all the Tzaddikim, to answer me and help me bring into being everything that I need to serve You, until I am in accordance with Your desire all of my days, forever.", + "Open Your Hand
Compassionate God, lead me to pure truth. Send me an abundant flow of sustenance from Your broad and generous hand.", + "May I never need anyone for anything, be it income, honor, status or appointment to a position. May I hope and trust in You alone. May I rely only on You to never abandon me, to generously give me everything from Your holy hand even before I need it.", + "May I never require people’s gifts and loans. Have compassion on me, I who am impoverished and far from earning a living. My merciful and righteous Father, “Shepherd of Israel, Who gives bread to all flesh, Whose kindness is forever,” help me to repay my debts quickly.", + "Open Your hand to me, a poor and impoverished person. Fulfill all my needs in both the material and spiritual realms. In particular, help me soon to repay my debts, which have overwhelmed me until I do not know what to do. And keep me from ever again falling into debt.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Send me my income generously and not with constriction, so that I may receive it in a permissible and not forbidden manner, comfortably and without difficulty, and thus be able to do Your will.", + "May all my worship and prayer be genuine and without any falsehood or ulterior motives, so that I will never say a single word of prayer or make any movement in prayer designed to impress others, Heaven forbid. May I never gild falsehood with truth and never deceive myself. Instead, may I recite all the prayers with ultimate truth, for the sake of Your Name alone, in accordance with Your desire.", + "No Ulterior Motives
Master of the world, HaShem, true God, You Who desire truth and are close to those who call out to You, arise and help me. Give me the strength and wisdom to eliminate all foreign thoughts, falsehoods and ulterior motives that come to confuse me when I am praying. You know the multitude of obstacles that upset my prayer. Particularly when I pray among many other people, I am assailed by an endless number of ulterior, false motives, and I do not know what to do.", + "I desire strongly to pray with ultimate truth, “solely to HaShem alone.” But what can I do? My sins have made me subject to a great many ulterior motives which perturb my prayer with foreign thoughts and confusions, too many to count. Against my will, ulterior motives — coarse or subtle, revealed or hidden, on various levels and in various ways, too many to be delineated — enter my mind.", + "Every day, these ulterior confusions and thoughts arise in my every prayer and gain in strength. Even when I pray by myself, I am beset by these ulterior motives, and how much more when I pray with others — particularly in another city, when these false motives grow particularly powerful, so much so that I cannot even express one honest, genuine word of prayer.", + "Have compassion on me. Guide me to truth, so that I will not be dependent on others in any way, so that I will have no desire for honor, praise, acclamation, money or anything else. May I not place my trust in any person at all, but know and believe in the ultimate truth: that everything comes from You.", + "“Wealth and honor are before You, and You rule over everyone. All flesh is grass and all of a person’s kindness is like the herbage of the field.” “What can anyone do against me?”", + "And may I realize the truth within the verses, “Do not trust in princes, in man who has no salvation. When his spirit leaves, he returns to his plot of earth. On that day, his thoughts perish. Fortunate is the person whose help is the God of Jacob, who hopes in HaShem his God.”", + "“Blessed is the man who trusts in HaShem — HaShem will be his trust.”", + "“Trust in HaShem forever, for in God HaShem will you find the Rock of Ages.”", + "“Those who know Your Name will trust in You, because You have not abandoned those who seek You, HaShem.”", + "Do not allow me to deceive myself and gild falsehood with truth. May the forces of evil have no power to affect my mind with their twisted schemes as they attack me and attempt to persuade me to clap my hands or exclaim the words of prayer with ulterior motives, while, at the same time, I deceive myself that I need to do so.", + "Heaven forbid that I should do such a thing. HaShem, keep me far from all ulterior motives and falsehoods — whether they are completely false motives and I am attempting to gain others’ praise or money, or whether they are gilded with truth. “May I not place any disgraceful matter before my eyes. I hate crooked dealings — may such not cling to me. May a twisted heart depart from me; may I know of no evil.”", + "“May a person who acts falsely not sit within my house; may anyone who speaks falsehood not stand before my eyes.”", + "May my sole intent — for instance, my movements in prayer — be for the sake of Your great Name alone. May I act only with utter truth and in accordance with Your desire, until I attain truth as You desire. In this way, may I draw illumination down from the World to Come so that truth is revealed in this world, just as it will be revealed in the future on the day of great and awesome judgment, when You will judge Your world, “the small and great alike.”", + "At that time, You will enter into judgment with all flesh. You will take an accounting of our every deed, of every detail, of everything great and small, overlooking nothing. At that time, You will not ignore the most trivial matter. Instead, “God will bring a person to judgment for everything hidden, whether good or evil.”", + "At that point, everything will be recalled. “You recall all the deeds of the world and take account of all creatures from the earliest times. All hidden matters are revealed before You, a multitude of hidden matters since creation. There is no forgetting before Your throne of glory, and nothing is hidden before Your eyes. You recall every deed, and no creature is concealed from You. Everything is revealed and known to You, HaShem our God. You Who look and gaze to the end of all generations, You bring about the decreed time of remembrance, when every spirit and soul will be taken into account and many beings and a multitude of creatures without number will be remembered. You have made this known from the beginning of creation; You have revealed it from the earliest times.”", + "Who will not give an accounting of himself on that great and awesome day? “The day of HaShem is very great and awesome” — there is none like it — “who can abide it?” HaShem, You take note of every person’s deeds, plans and aims.", + "Fortunate is the person who does not forget You, the human being who gains strength in You. Those who seek You will never stumble, and those who take refuge in You will never be ashamed, when You recall all deeds and seek out the actions of all people.", + "At that time, everyone will recognize the greatness of the Tzaddikim and worthy people and all those who were associated with them — their loveliness, radiance, splendor and precious beauty.", + "Fortunate are they and fortunate is their portion. How vast is the goodness that You have hidden away for them. “God, no eye has seen besides Yours what You do for those who await Him.”", + "The essence of the great beauty of the children of Israel — that is to say, the Tzaddikim and worthy people — will be visible on that day of great judgment. “You will return and distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between the one who serves God and the one who does not serve Him.”", + "Then the essence of truth will be revealed and everyone will be judged by the trait of truth, which cannot tolerate the wicked enemies and persecutors of Your nation, the Jewish people, who worship You and are wholly Yours.", + "Then all people will return to serve You and all human beings will call out in Your Name. As the verse states, “I will give the nations a clear speech so that all of them will call in the Name of HaShem, and serve Him with one accord.”", + "Attaining Truth
Compassionate God, help me to attain even now the trait of truth in accordance with Your desire. May truth be revealed so that the wicked will experience defeat in this world, just as they will in future times. May everyone return to serve You, calling out Your Name in truth and drawing down the perfection of speech from the World to Come to this world.", + "Holy Speech and Deeds
God, help me fashion holy vowels for holy speech. May I bring words forth from the narrowness of the throat, until with the holiness of perfected speech I will bring into actuality all Divine service and acts of worship.", + "You know the many obstacles that stand in the way of all of the holy deeds that I must perform—there is no holy act that doesn’t have many obstacles to overcome—in particular, when it comes to drawing close to true Tzaddikim, and most important, to the point of truth within them—something so great that my entire Jewishness depends on it. To prevent my reaching that point of truth, these obstacles gain in strength and multiply without number, forming a powerful barrier.", + "But You have taught us that there are no obstacles, because the purpose of every obstacle is to whet our appetite and increase our longing and desire to do Your will. And so the greater the obstacle, the more we have to strengthen ourselves and increase our holy desire until the obstacles are all scattered and we can attain the holy object of our longing.", + "HaShem my God, You Who desire my good, I have come to ask You to help me actualize this holy desire. May I yearn and long for You, and serve You in the most powerful way. May my yearning grow ever stronger every day until it overcomes all the obstacles standing before me.", + "In this way, may I fashion holy vowels for the letters and thus perfect holy speech, until I bring forth into actuality all holy deeds that I must perform in this world, in accordance with Your good and holy desire.", + "Breaking All the Barriers
God, may I desire You so powerfully that I will never content myself with failure in the face of overwhelming obstacles, even though You consider such an attempt as though one had succeeded.", + "HaShem, may I never content myself with this. May I never accept the difficulty of my circumstances as an excuse. Instead, may I possess an overwhelming drive to bring into actuality all holy matters.", + "God, be with me every time I am inspired to do something of a holy nature, whether great or small. Help me always to experience a yearning that does not diminish. May I strengthen myself so much that my soul is ready to expire.", + "May my yearning increase so that it can meet and overcome obstacles and I can break down all the barriers that stand in the way of my performing holy deeds and actualizing all my desires to serve You. In every way that I wish to serve You, HaShem, may I act with the passion of my whole heart until I succeed and do everything that is in accordance with Your desire.", + "Forgive Us
God, in Your graciousness, mitigate Your anger against me and against Your entire nation, the House of Israel. And help me to quickly eradicate my trait of anger, so that nothing will ever make me angry.", + "May Your anger not smoke against us. May we clarify, soften and purify that smoke until it turns into a gentle spirit of holiness.", + "In this way, may the spirit of the Mashiach be drawn upon us. May he come soon to redeem us forever. And may a great life force of holiness, coming from above and below, be drawn upon us.", + "Open Your hand and satisfy us with Your favor. Revive us with Your compassion. Generously provide us with our sustenance before we need it, for our eyes are turned to You alone.", + "May the verse be realized in us, “You open Your hand and satisfy the will of every living thing.”", + "Guard us from every sort of flaw and sin. May we contemplate the teaching of our Sages, “Where have we come from? From a malodorous drop. Where are we going to? To a place of dust and worms. And before Whom shall we give an accounting of ourselves? Before the King of Kings, the Holy One, Blessed be He.”", + "Guide me so that I will quickly regret and repent of all the sins and misdeeds that I have committed — whether by accident or on purpose, against my will or willfully, in thought, speech or deed, in potentiality or in actuality.", + "HaShem, gracious and forgiving God, for the sake of Your Name, forgive my sin, for it is great.", + "Be with me from this moment on. Help me to turn away from evil, so that I will no longer disobey Your words and Your will in the slightest way. Help me to keep all Your commandments lovingly, so that I will bring into actuality all holy matters, as You desire.", + "In this way, may I draw down abundance and a new life force into actuality at every moment. May all worlds be renewed and maintained through me, by means of the new life force that I draw down at every moment from the two yods in Your holy Names, YHVH and Adonoy.", + "May I draw down onto myself a double portion of the spirit of the true Tzaddikim.", + "“God, create a pure heart within me, renew a proper spirit within me. Do not cast me aside from before You, do not take the spirit of Your holiness away from me. Bring back to me the joy of Your salvation, support me with a generous spirit, for You are the God of my salvation. May Your good spirit guide me in a pleasant land.”", + "Answer Us
God, Compassionate Father, act for the sake of our forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who revealed Your Divinity in the world and toiled all their lives to bring people back from sin and serve You. In their merit, You chose and elevated their offspring from all the nations, and You gave us Your holy Torah through Your prophet Moses, the faithful one of Your house.", + "Act for their sake and for the sake of all the great, true Tzaddikim who came after them, all of whom toiled throughout their lives with a single goal: to bring Your straying children back to You. You know the desire of their hearts and the suffering they endured throughout their lives for our sake.", + "HaShem, You Who recall our compassionate forefathers, act for their sake and bring their goals to fruition. Help them to bring into actuality all that they began and desired to accomplish for our sake.", + "Do so not for us, but for You and for them. May we quickly achieve everything that we have asked of You.", + "Our King, do not send us away empty-handed. Graciously answer us. Hear the voice of our prayer, for You compassionately heed the prayer of every individual of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "Blessed are You, Who hears prayer." + ], + [ + "The Root of All Souls / Receiving Honor in This World with Holiness / Eating Properly / Insolent Leaders / Giving Charity / Overcoming Spiritual Enemies / Giving Birth to and Bringing Up Honor / Helping an Elder Who Has Forgotten His Torah Learning
A person’s soul comes from a realm called “honor.” The dynamic of that realm appears on all levels of existence — including the expression of honor as we know it.
When a person receives honor in this world, it is for one of two reasons. First, he might be about to die, and so honor has come to gather in his soul. Usually, however, this is not the case, since the universe functions on the principle that overall, good prevails. Thus, it is more likely that this honor is coming to bring this person to a new, higher level of soul. In either case, he must receive that honor with holiness — that is to say, solely for the sake of God.
When a person eats improperly, he can lose a
measure of honor. The reason for this is as follows.
When a person eats properly — that is to say, when he has broken his lust for eating — he attains an elevated countenance. The table on which he eats stands before God and it, too, has a countenance of holiness. But if this person has a lust for food, his honor is damaged and consequently lacks a countenance of holiness. When honor is damaged, it falls to a level where insolent people can reach it and use it to gain power in the form of sovereignty without a crown. When these people gain honor, they become the leaders of the generation.
The word tzedek (strict judgment) is related to the phenomenon of insolent people receiving honor.
The first letter in the word tzedek is a tzadi. This letter is a combination of two letters: yod and nun, so arranged that the yod is turned away from the nun. The yod corresponds to the countenance of holiness. It turns away because at present it is hidden. The nun represents sovereignty.
The second letter in the word tzedek is dalet. The word dal means “poor,” and so the dalet corresponds to an impoverished honor, one that falls to the Side of Evil.
In that realm, insolent people imitate good people, like a monkey imitating a human being. The Hebrew word for monkey is kof. This is also the name of the last letter in the word tzedek, which is kuf. Just as the letter kuf has a long, descending leg, so too, the “feet” of honor now descend to death.
Therefore, at present, when good Jews wish to protect the Jewish religion against attack, they must descend spiritually and seek the help of the gentile authorities.
A person raises honor and sovereignty from insolent people when he gives charity — which, states the verse, “saves from death.” Then the word tzedek has the letter hei added to it. The letter hei has the numerical value of five, corresponding to the five times that the word tzedakah (charity) is mentioned in the Torah. This added hei turns tzedek into tzedekah. Then its feet are raised from death.
The person who eats properly or gives charity and thus restores honor is a wise person. Unfortunately, demonic enemies cluster about him in order to derive energy from him. But this can actually help him, because these enemies siphon off his unholy consciousness, leaving him with a pure and holy consciousness.
As mentioned above, usually when a person receives a new measure of honor, that serves as a container for a holy soul that he about to receive. That honor is comparable to a pregnant woman, and the new soul to the fetus within her. A person must make sure to give this soul an easy birth. Should the birth be difficult, both the mother (honor) and child (soul) may die, and then the person himself will die. And once the soul is born, the person must raise it as one raises a child.
A person facilitates the birth of this soul, as well as the growth of holy honor and God’s sovereignty, by giving charity. In regard to this latter point, it is the custom to give charity at the section in the prayers that states, “You are sovereign over all.”
When a person’s “honor” is dislocated from his soul, he may forget his wisdom and Torah learning, or he may grow weary. Sometimes an elder forgets his Torah learning because he has prayed without the intent of his heart. Prayer corresponds to honor, and the heart to the soul. Now that they are separated, the elder loses his wisdom. Similarly, it may be that a younger person has prayed without feeling, as a result of which his soul is far from its “mother,” honor. Consequently, his soul grows weary. To rectify this, he must give honor to the elder who forgot his Torah learning. By giving honor to that elder, he revitalizes his own soul. This is because he creates “thunder,” which causes “cool water” to revive and heal his soul.
This idea is based on the following understanding of how thunder works. Hot vapor enters a cloud and explodes. That tears open the cloud in a burst of thunder. And as that thunder rips open the cloud, it causes the cloud to distribute rain wherever it is needed.
The elder’s forgetting Torah is comparable to a cloud. Just as a cloud obscures the sun, so too, his forgetfulness obscures his ability to see — i.e., to access his knowledge. The honor that someone gives him is comparable to hot vapor entering a cloud. Then the elder’s mind and memory are restored. This is comparable to the cloud tearing open with a clap of thunder. Now the old man’s knowledge is distributed to everyone who needs it. This is comparable to the rain falling out of the cloud. When that “cool water” reaches the younger person who had prayed without the intent of his heart, it revives and rectifies his soul. It revives his bones that had previously been blemished. Then he can pray with all his bones.
The same effect is brought about when a person hears Torah from a true Tzaddik, in contrast to learning Torah from a book. When one learns from a book, he does not know how much to learn in order to revive his soul. But when he hears Torah from the Tzaddik, the Tzaddik gives him exactly the amount of Torah — or “cool water” — that he needs.
The Precious Souls of the Jewish People
“May my soul be precious in Your eyes.”", + "HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, You are gracious and compassionate. You care for Jewish souls — souls more precious than gold and pearls, souls who were carved out from beneath Your throne of glory, holy souls who are absorbed into Your Name, who are called “a portion of Godliness above,” supernal souls in whom You took delight at the very beginning of Creation, souls who were the first to arise in Your thought, souls who are higher than all worlds, souls with whom You took counsel in order to create the universe.", + "Arouse Your compassion on behalf of these souls who came forth from You. They are Your beloved and pleasant children, “who are borne by You from the belly, carried by You from the womb,” whom You refer to with every term of endearment — “children, brothers, friends, beloved” — precious souls whom You have never ceased to love.", + "You have loved these souls of the Jewish people so much that You have called them “daughter,” “sister” and “mother.” As our sages said, “He loved her so much that He called her ‘My daughter,’ as in the verse, ‘Hear, daughter, and see, incline your ear and forget your nation and the house of your father.’ He loved her so much that He called her ‘My sister,’ as in the verse, ‘Open to me, my sister, my friend, my dove, my perfect one.’ And He loved her so much that He called her ‘My mother,’ as in the verse, ‘Listen to Me, My nation, and attend to Me, My mother.’”", + "Have compassion on our souls, which possess a lovely, precious, holy beauty at their supernal root. Only You know the source of our precious souls, which is beyond all worlds and all stages of holiness.", + "Help us attain every sort of strength so that we will guard our souls at every moment. May we bind ourselves to our own souls for the days and years to come with holiness, purity, alacrity, cleanliness, abstinence, humility, fear of sin and piety.", + "Honor Belongs to HaShem
Help us flee from honor as much as possible. May we never have the slightest desire for any honor whatsoever. Every time You grant us honor, protect us so that we will not be enmeshed in it. May we not use it for our own purposes or receive any benefit from it whatsoever.", + "Instead, may we raise and restore all honor to You alone, the King of honor and glory, the only One to Whom all honor and glory are due.", + "From the greatest heights, guard us so that we will not damage the holiness of honor, but receive it with sanctity and purity for the sake of Your Name, with the sole intent of serving You without any blemished desires of our own.", + "Whenever You send us a new instance of honor, may it not result in our souls being removed from this world. May honor come to us only for good and not for evil.", + "Together with that honor, may we always receive a new spirit of holiness and purity, in the light of which our souls will expand and grow.", + "Always send us a new and precious spirit, so that for the days and years to come, we will learn Your Torah and serve You with awe.", + "Holy Eating and the Honor of God
From this moment on, help us break our desire for eating and drinking. May we be satisfied with a little, and eat that with holiness. May we be so exacting with ourselves that we do not eat even the smallest amount beyond what we need to sustain our health. May our intention in eating be solely to maintain our well-being.", + "May we reduce our natural desires. May we be counted among the righteous who eat only to satisfy their holy souls — as in the verse, “The righteous man eats to satisfy his soul” — until You will raise Your countenance to us and be gracious to us, in keeping with the verse, “May HaShem raise His countenance to you and grant you peace.” And may we draw the illumination of Your countenance to holy honor.", + "Save us and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from arrogant people. Remove the honor from their insolent countenances so that they will no longer have any glory, elevation or positions of leadership.", + "Have compassion on us and on Your entire nation, the House of Israel. Save us from false leaders — even if they are celebrated — who cause us so much grief, the extent of which You alone know.", + "Because of our many sins, holy honor has fallen to the depths. “Our honor is belittled by the nations, who abhor us as being repulsive.”", + "Honor has passed on to idolaters, to wicked people, liars and the insolent of the generation who distribute it among themselves, while the worthy and righteous of Your nation, the Jewish people, are insulted, disdained, scorned and ridiculed.", + "Redeeming Honor from Its Exile
HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are the King of honor, have mercy on Your great and holy honor.", + "Save our souls from the multitude of wicked people by removing honor from their midst. Raise it up so that it will no longer reside amid the “husks” of evil.", + "Have compassion on Your mighty Divine Presence, Whose honor and eminence has been cast down, reduced and cheapened.", + "Because of our many sins, You have hidden Your countenance from Your great honor. Thus, Your honor and sovereignty have been distanced from You, as it were. They have descended and fallen so low that all honor has been given to the idolaters, evildoers and insolent people of the generation.", + "“Israel has become exceedingly impoverished.” All honor has been turned over to strangers who have no portion in wisdom and the countenance of holiness. They are the insolent people of the generation, who imitate the righteous like a monkey imitating a human being.", + "We Redeem God’s Honor by Giving Charity
Have compassion on Your great and holy honor by helping us raise it and return it to holiness.", + "Guide us to bring the light of Your countenance to Your honor by giving a great deal of charity to worthy poor people with joy and a good heart. May we do so perfectly, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "Bless all of us in the light of Your countenance and send us Your vast kindness, which is part of Your great Name. Shine upon us all of the kindness that is an expression of the five types of kindness, which correspond to the five times that “charity” is mentioned in Your holy Torah.", + "May we exemplify the verse, “I shall behold Your countenance in righteousness; when I arise, I shall be satisfied with Your image.”", + "May we raise Your honor and sovereignty from the relatively low state called “righteousness” to the higher state called “charity.”", + "Help us extract greatness and honor from insolent people, restoring these qualities to the people of our generation who understand holy knowledge, who are righteous and worthy, and who are justifiably called “the countenance of the generation.”", + "Overcoming Dispute
Remove every sort of dispute from Your nation, the Jewish people, so that we will enjoy peace among ourselves forever.", + "May there be no jealousy, hatred, irritation, argument or dispute regarding any righteous and wise members of Your worthy nation of Israel who yearn to serve You — particularly at this time, when because of our many sins, dispute and dissension among Torah sages have increased.", + "“There is no peace for those who go out and for those who come in.” The entire world is filled with dispute, which damages our ability to serve You, as You well know.", + "This is particularly true regarding dispute that is instigated against those who were far from You and have returned to You in order to serve You. Without reason or justification, dispute has arisen against them, as well as against those who work to bring them back.", + "Being Delivered from Dispute
HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are the King and Master of peace, deliver us from argument and dispute. Grant us a consciousness that is lucid, calm, tranquil and unruffled.", + "May all of the impurities in our mind be removed until the hostile forces that derive sustenance from it cease to exist.", + "Our enemies persecute us for no reason and we do not know how to fight them. Our only intent is to please You, to serve You and return to You with complete repentance. We have no desire whatsoever to engage in any type of dispute.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have mercy on us, the impoverished members of Your flock, a poor people who are pulled and torn apart.", + "Rescue us. Argument and dispute have deprived us of our strength. We have no one to rely on but You, our Father in Heaven. We cast our burden upon You alone, and we raise our eyes to You until You will be gracious to us.", + "Nurturing Holy Spirits Within Ourselves
Master of compassion, help us and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, make use of “holy honor” to easily parent and raise holy spirits that are drawn into us. Let us do so without birth pangs and the difficulties associated with raising children.", + "Help us fear and love Your Name. In this way, draw onto us the power of the supernal, holy “strong hand” and “great hand.”", + "May we parent and raise these spirits with calmness and tranquility, without any difficulty in birth or hardship of raising children.", + "A Prayer on Behalf of Those Who Have Difficulty Raising Children
HaShem, You know the suffering of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "You have worsened their wounds by taking away the beloved of their eyes and the cherished of their souls: their sons and daughters, who are as precious as fine gold — beloved souls, babies and toddlers who never did wrong, schoolchildren whose sinless breath maintains the existence of the world.", + "Because of their fathers’ sins, You struck at them.", + "Master of the world, You know the suffering of these tender children, of their fathers and mothers and all their relatives, and of everyone who is touched by their evil, bitter and profound troubles.", + "They weep, and the tears run down their cheeks. God, You see the tears of these suffering people, “whose oppressors are empowered and who have no one to comfort them.”", + "Have mercy on their tears and sighs, and declare an end to their suffering.", + "Do not treat them in accordance with their transgressions, “for You, HaShem, are good, forgiving and exceedingly kind to all who call out to You.”", + "You maintain the world in Your kindness. There are so many non-Jews and wicked people whom You allow to raise their children, because You desire the world’s existence, not its destruction.", + "Have pity on the souls of Your nation, the Jewish people. Instruct the angel to lower his hand and return his sword to its sheath.", + "Arouse Your compassion and graciousness with love and pity for Your holy Jewish people. Shield them so that they will all be able to raise their sons and daughters in peace and tranquility, without any trouble at all, so that these children may learn Torah, marry and engage in good deeds for many years to come. You Who are the Source of life, send these children long life.1If you wish at this point to pray on behalf of an individual, add here, “and in particular, [name], son/daughter of [father’s name].”", + "Have compassion on the Jewish people. Forgive their sins.", + "Save us, God of our salvation, so that we and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, will raise our sons and daughters in tranquility for a good, long and peaceful life.", + "Act for the sake of our fathers and for the sake of all the true Tzaddikim in every generation, including our own. Have pity and rescue the children of today and of tomorrow. Deliver them from epidemics, disease and pain.", + "Strengthen them, heal them and invigorate them.", + "Help their parents raise them in peace and educate them to serve You and fear You for good and long lives.", + "May these children grow to see their own children and grandchildren learning Torah and performing mitzvot, to the end of all generations. May Your nation, the House of Israel, increase “like the sand of the sea that cannot be measured or counted, because it is so much.”", + "Gracious and kind Father of mercy, save a mute dove as I am today.", + "Only Your great Name protects us at a time of trouble. Have mercy on us and on all the Jewish people. Do not pour Your wrath upon us, for we are called by Your Name. Do not leave us, abandon us or spurn us.", + "Arouse Your inner being and compassion on our behalf. Do not look at our evil. Do not hide Your countenance from us and our pleas.", + "In Your kindness, console us. Even before we call out to You, answer us. Even before we speak, take heed of us.", + "“Compassionate One Who answers the poor, answer us. Compassionate One Who answers those whose hearts are broken, answer us. Compassionate One Who answers those whose spirit is beaten, answer us. Compassionate One, answer us. Compassionate One, have mercy on us. Compassionate One, liberate us. Compassionate One, save us. Compassionate One, have compassion on us — now and at every moment to come.”", + "Raising Honor to Its Root
Help us give much charity to the worthy poor, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "May we give charity during prayer when we recite the verse, “You rule over all,” 2This verse is recited during the Pesukey de-Zimra prayers. until we will raise and extract power, honor, greatness and sovereignty from the “husk” of evil — the non-Jews, the wicked, and the insolent people of the generation — and restore all of that honor and sovereignty to holiness, to those who understand knowledge: the true Tzaddikim and sages of holiness.", + "May we break our desire for eating and thereby draw Your countenance to Your honor.", + "Rescue us from all conflict and dispute.", + "Help us so that by means of holy honor, many new souls of holiness will come to us.", + "May we attain complete awe and love of You. As a result, may we bring into being and develop a new spirit within ourselves, without any pangs of birth or difficulties of childrearing.", + "Master of the world, God of honor, “Yours, HaShem, is the sovereignty, and You are exalted as the head above all. Wealth and honor are before You, and You rule over all. In Your hand are power and might, and You have the power to enhance and strengthen everything.”", + "Help us raise all honor to its root in holiness.", + "Praying with the Heart
Have compassion on my tired spirit. Pour refreshing water upon me to revive my weary soul.", + "For years I have failed to bring the intent of my heart to my prayers. And because my heart is so far from my prayers, my spirit is exhausted.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me rectify this. Help me pray with the intent of my heart, so that my mouth and heart will be in alignment. Bring all of the intentions of my heart and mind into my words of prayer so that I will speak to You with great feeling.", + "May I never utter a single word without the intent of my heart, and may my soul never be distant from Your honor.", + "Honoring Old People and Rectifying Blemished Prayer
Help us honor old people who have forgotten their learning.", + "As a result of our doing so, may we draw down the holy thunder that removes and shatters the clouds that cover our eyes, so that the holy consciousness of the elders will be revealed. Then a multitude of waters of knowledge will emerge so that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of HaShem as water covers the seabed.”", + "Draw onto us — to each individual on his level — the waters of knowledge of the elders of holiness.", + "May we convey the waters of knowledge from the mouths of the elders of holiness so that we will bring refreshing waters to our weary souls.", + "May we rectify blemished prayer. Help us always pray with the intent of our heart — with all our heart, soul and might — without any ulterior motives or foreign thoughts whatsoever, until we will feel all of the words of prayer in our bones. As the verse states, “All of my bones will proclaim, ‘HaShem, who is like You!’” May our bones be enriched as a result of our words of prayer that have been perfected by the true intent of our heart.", + "Restore My Soul
Have mercy on me. “May my life be given to me at my petition and my nation at my request.”", + "“Be gracious to me, HaShem, for I am languishing away. Heal me, HaShem, for my bones are shuddering. My soul shudders greatly. And You, HaShem, how long? Return, HaShem, rescue my soul. Save me for the sake of Your kindness.”", + "“Restore my soul. Guide me on the paths of justice for the sake of Your Name.”", + "“My soul, return to your rest, for HaShem has dealt bountifully with you. HaShem, You have rescued my soul from death, my eye from tears, my foot from stumbling. I shall walk before HaShem in the lands of life.”", + "“Do not abandon my soul to the grave. Do not allow Your pious one to experience destruction,” but “redeem my soul from the power of the grave when You take me.”", + "Rock of worlds, Master of all creatures, God of all people! Restore, revive and heal my weary soul, which is so far from meaningful prayer.", + "Help me awaken, encourage and strengthen myself, so that from this moment on I will pray with fervor, with all my heart and soul.", + "“To You, HaShem, do I lift my soul.” “I lift my eyes to You Who sit in Heaven.” To You have I stretched out my hands. “I stretch out my hands all day long.”", + "“My soul turns to You like a tired land.”", + "“Give joy to the soul of Your servant because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You.”", + "Satiate me with Your goodness. Give joy to my soul with Your salvation and purify my heart to serve You in truth. “My soul will be joyous in HaShem, it will rejoice in His salvation. All of my bones will proclaim, ‘HaShem, Who is like You? You save the poor person from the one who is stronger than he, and the poor man and the impoverished man from the one who robs him.’”", + "“Why do You prostrate yourself, my soul, and moan within me? Hope in God. I will yet praise Him for the salvations that come from His countenance.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "Blessed is HaShem, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. Blessed is the Name of His honor forever, and may His honor fill the entire land. Amen, amen!" + ], + [ + "The Source of the Soul and Money / Desiring the Source of Money / A Person’s Anger Diverts Anger Away from Him / A Thief Can Rob His Victim of His Children and His Wife / The Damage Caused by Coveting / The Love of Money Can Cause a Person to Have Enemies
The soul and money share the same holy root, which is the realm of supernal judgments.
Therefore, because all souls desire to reach that holy source, they desire money and even desire the company of a person who has money. But because money grows coarse after it descends, a person should desire only the source from which money comes.
Even in this-worldly terms, it would be fitting that all Jews have money. However, there is a character trait that a person possesses from childhood and onward that keeps money away from him. This trait is difficult to overcome, even if he intends to do so in order to attain money. This trait is anger, which also comes from the same source as money and the soul.
When the Side of Evil sees that a person is due to receive money, it entices him to grow angry, and that prevents him from receiving money. CheiMaH (anger) destroys the ChoMaH (wall) that had been protecting him spiritually. Even if a person is already receiving an abundance of money, when he gets very angry, he may lose it.
When a male child enters the world, he is assigned his wife-to-be, the amount of money he will attain, and the children he will father.
These are analogous to three parts of a tree. His wife is the tree trunk, his money the branches, and his children the fruits. Also, his nefesh — the feminine portion of his soul — is associated with his wife, and thus with the tree trunk.
When a thief robs his victim, he steals the branches of his victim’s tree. If the victim’s children (who are compared to the fruits) still need to be nurtured by their mother (who corresponds to the tree trunk), they might die. If the victim does not yet have children, he may remain childless.
Also, when the thief robs his victim, he comes to desire the victim’s wife. This is because he wants everything that is associated with his victim’s soul. If the thief is married, he may lose his own wife. He may reject his wife and take his victim’s wife, or he may try to possess them both. If the thief is unmarried, he may lose the woman who had been destined to be his wife. In addition, once a psychic link is established between the thief and his victim’s wife, she may feel attracted to him.
Sometimes the victim’s soul constricts its light in order to keep the thief from attacking it. In that case, the thief cannot harm his victim’s children or his soul. Then, even if the thief does rob his victim, the money that he takes is spiritually not considered to be money, but dust.
Even coveting someone else’s property can deprive the victim of his money and children. The covetous person can rectify that by giving charity, and he may then keep the money that he gained as a result of his covetousness. (However, in case of literal thievery, a person must return what he stole.)
If someone has no money, it is because evil “husks” surround his soul and reduce its light. By giving charity, a person retrieves his soul from these husks.
When a person’s mind is spiritually obscured, he desires money. Because his mind is unclear, his enemies gain strength. Sometimes such a person loves money so much and so foolishly that he acquires enemies who hate him for no reason at all. A wise person, however, shares the wealth of his wisdom with others in order to bring them close to God.
The Grave Sin of Anger
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, protect me always from the grave sin of anger.", + "You know that the evil traits of anger and irritability have clung to me from my youth. I have become so accustomed to them and have transgressed so many times that I have come to view them as being permissible.", + "You know how many blemishes I have incurred because of the grave sin of anger, which is a foreign god, idolatry itself, as in the verse, “You shall not have a foreign god, and you shall not bow to a foreign god.”", + "When a person is angry, his soul is literally torn apart, as in the verse, “He tears his soul in his anger.” In addition to that, a great many blemishes are created that traverse all worlds, as You know, HaShem.", + "Because of my many wrongdoings, I do not know how to rescue my soul from this grave sin to which I have grown accustomed.", + "Overcoming Anger
Master of the world, You are good and do good to all. Teach me the ways of Your goodness so that I will be able to emulate Your holy traits by being good to all people always. May I completely break the traits of anger and irritability until my heart does not contain the slightest trace of anger.", + "Whenever my evil inclination entices me to grow angry, may I know and believe with complete faith that at this moment, Heaven wishes to pour great wealth onto me, and that the evil inclination desires to ruin that influx of wealth and turn it into anger, in order to rip apart my soul.", + "With this awareness, may I strengthen myself to eradicate that anger and transform it into compassion. And in this way, may I attain great wealth of holiness, which is the root of souls.", + "May the power of evil have no power to damage the flow of wealth by means of anger. May the wall of wealth surround me, as in the verse, “The wealth of a rich man is his mighty city; it is like a high wall in his inlaid chamber.”", + "May the wall of wealth protect me against every type of anger — that being a breached city without a wall, as in the verse, “A breached city without a wall: that is a man who cannot control his spirit.”", + "Anger and the Desire for Money
Master of the world, You know how immeasurably much I have lost, due to my anger — how many spirits I destroyed, how much holy wealth I forfeited, how many worlds I damaged.", + "Master of the world, because of the confusion of my mind, my anger and irritation are constantly aroused and grow stronger, until my heart has turned sour, contorted and confused, and I do not know what to do.", + "Because of my many sins, my mind is so constricted that I cannot even arrange the words of prayer to ask You to save me from this grave and terrible sin, which has driven many people from both worlds, as You well know.", + "All that I am capable of saying is, “Save me, my Father, my Master, my King and God!”", + "Help me eradicate the trait of anger. Help me attain wealth of holiness, which is the root of souls.", + "Help me break my desire for money, so that I will not desire money at all — and certainly not that of others — but will yearn only for the root of souls of holiness.", + "May I honor wealthy people in accordance with Your will. And may all of my love for wealthy people and all of the honor that I accord them be for the sake of Heaven, for the sake of the holiness coming from the root of souls that You pour onto them, from which they receive their wealth.", + "May I have no desire for material wealth, but may my soul desire only Your Name and a constant awareness of You.", + "Protection from Covetousness and Dishonesty
Have compassion on me. Rescue me always from the grave sin of dishonesty so that I will not steal even something worth as little as a penny, and that I will not desire anything that belongs to anyone else, in whole or in part.", + "Master of the world, many people have sunk so far that they commit the sin of lusting after money. Some of them engage in actual robbery and others covet other people’s money, which is also considered a form of robbery.", + "Master of the world, keep me from engaging in any sort of dishonesty. May I never steal in the literal sense — even as little as a penny, even by accident or by mistake. If need be, to avoid that, may I prefer to give up something of my own. And may I never engage in the type of thievery that results from coveting — with which a person can also rob, as our holy sages have taught us.", + "Protect me so that no one else will have the power to rob me — whether literally or by means of coveting. May no one have the power to harm my soul or that of my wife, my children or my descendants.", + "Strengthen my soul and the souls of all of those who depend on me so that we may overcome all the thieves who attack us in order to murder our souls. May we may overcome them, cast them to the dust, and extract their ill-gotten gain from their mouths.", + "May they have no power whatsoever to harm us and take our money.", + "Overcoming Dishonesty and Gaining Abundance
Help us always give a great deal of charity. As a result, may we prosper in all of our business dealings.", + "Provide us with our income before we need it. Send us an abundance of holiness, wealth, honor and life.", + "Master of the world, You know how difficult it is to earn a living nowadays, when “the strength of the porter has collapsed.” Our lives hang by a thread. We know of no way to earn a living, and so we rely on You alone.", + "Whom shall I ask to give me bread and an income with which to take care of my many needs? I turn to You alone, Who sustains and supports all creatures, from the greatest beast to the tiniest insect.", + "Have mercy on me and save me. Provide me with a generous income from Your full and open hand. May I never need to depend on people’s gifts and loans. Help me repay all of my debts and never again need to borrow money.", + "Help me quickly rectify the blemish of any dishonesty of which I was ever guilty. May I return everything that I ever stole and restore whatever I took unfairly — by accident or on purpose, against my will or willingly. May I quickly repay any money that I owe due to any monetary dispute, perhaps as a result of a mistake caused by forgetfulness, in regard to any business deal, loan and the like — that which I remember and that which I have forgotten.", + "Send me an abundant income so that I will be able to repay my debts and restore any money or possessions that I owe.", + "If I am holding onto any money that I gained dishonestly or that I owe, and I myself do not know whom I robbed or whom I owe, help me spend it on public needs, as You commanded us through Your holy sages, so that I will quickly rectify and return all of my gains from theft and unpaid debts.", + "Theft is such a grave sin that a thief is considered to have robbed the soul of his victim and of his victim’s sons and daughters, and he is even considered as though he has had relations with his victim’s wife.", + "Overcoming Dishonesty and Giving Charity
Help me rectify the blemishes in my life caused by my possession of any money that I gained dishonestly or that I owe. Help me generously open my hand to give a great deal of charity to many worthy poor people.", + "And when I give charity, may I rectify the blemish caused by my possession of money that came to me as a result of having coveted someone else’s possessions — for that attitude resulted in my gaining those possessions in a manner that is considered dishonest.", + "Sanctification and Rescue from Enemies
May it be Your will that I attain a complete rectification of the covenant of sexual purity, and sanctify myself in that which is permitted to me.", + "Rescue me from the lust for marital relations and the lust for money. Give me the ability to completely break these desires.", + "Guard me against evil musings. May my mind be pure of all such mental rubbish.", + "May I overcome all of my enemies, people who hate me and rise up against me for no reason. “More than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause. Those who would cut me off, my deceitful enemies, have increased. Shall I return to them that which I did not steal?”", + "Refuge in HaShem
Master of the world, “rescue me from my enemies; my God, lift me above those who have risen against me.”", + "I have been disgraced. Look upon my shame. “See my affliction and my weariness…See how many are my enemies, those who hate me with a cruel hatred.”", + "“HaShem, how many are my adversaries, how many rise against me. How many say about me, ‘There is no salvation for him from God’?”", + "“Guard my soul and rescue me. May I never be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.”", + "Save me always from arguments and disputes. Be compassionate and gracious to me. Help me find favor in everyone’s eyes. May I be wise in Your eyes and in the eyes of man.", + "Hear my words. Help me serve You and fear You.", + "Studying the Words of the Tzaddikim
Help me reach the gates of light, wisdom and knowledge. The Tzaddikim opened up these gates in their wondrous goodness by constricting and lowering themselves, clothing their awesome consciousness in numerous garments — which is to say, in the teachings that they revealed to us in their holy and awesome books.", + "Help me study their books all the days of our lives. May I lovingly learn, teach, practice and actualize every word of their teachings.", + "The Light of the Holy Tefilin
Help me put on tefilin3Tefilin are special leather boxes containing biblical verses declaring the Oneness of God and the miracles of the Exodus from Egypt, worn by Jewish males aged thirteen and over on the head and the arm during morning prayers (except on Shabbat and Festivals). in a perfect and beautiful way, taking care with every detail, bearing in mind the deepest meanings associated with them and gaining access to the energy of all 613 commandments that are embedded in them. May I do this with great joy.", + "From their supernal root, shine the light of the holy tefilin and their straps onto me.", + "Then I will rectify the blemishes of dishonesty and the desire for money, and every other blemish of the mind — that rectification constituting the entirety of the holy Torah.", + "May I rectify all of this by means of the holiness within my mind and the holiness that emanates from my mind — which are drawn onto me as a result of my wearing holy and awesome tefilin, together with their straps. Help me keep this mitzvah perfectly and joyously, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "Guard me from all sorts of evil thoughts and blemishes of the mind. May I learn Torah in purity, with thoughts that are clean, lucid and proper, without any unclean admixture that might pollute my mind.", + "Bring our righteous Mashiach. Quickly send us Elijah the prophet with glad tidings. Save us from the mouth of lions. Give joy to all of us, parents and children, quickly and in our day. Amen, so may it be Your will." + ], + [], + [ + "Everything Depends on the Tzaddik / Giving Charity to the Tzaddik / Those Who Push a Person Away from the Tzaddik / The Tzaddik and the Tabernacle / Honor
All objects are sustained by the earth. They are pulled to the earth and rest upon it, and can be detached from it only when a force temporarily pushes them away.
The unique Tzaddik, to whom all other Tzaddikim are secondary, is comparable to the earth in a number of ways. Just as all objects stand upon the earth, so does everything depend on this Tzaddik. Just as the earth is lowly, so is this Tzaddik humble. Just as the earth’s soil sustains all plant life, so does this Tzaddik bring sustenance and abundance to the universe.
When a person gives charity to this Tzaddik, he is blessed immediately, for he is sowing in the fertile earth. But if a person gives charity to someone who is not comparable to the earth, that does not bear fruit.
Just as a force can push an object off the earth, there is a force that can push people away from this Tzaddik. That force is to be found in people who endeavor to discourage others from going to the Tzaddik.
The Mishkan (Tabernacle) was comparable to the Tzaddik. It, too, possessed the power of attraction, in the sense that it attracted Godliness to where it stood amid the Jews, even if they had sinned. Because the Tabernacle is comparable to that unique Tzaddik, only he can build it. In particular, since the Tabernacle embodied the trait of humility, it was built by Moses, who was the most humble of men.
Another characteristic shared by the Tabernacle and the unique Tzaddik is honor. Today, when there is no Tabernacle, honor resides only with that Tzaddik, and all people derive honor from him.
For Rosh Chodesh Nisan
“Draw me, we will run after You.”", + "Master of the world and King of glory, arouse Your glory, which fills the world.", + "In particular, Your glory and honor reside with the true Tzaddikim, whom You have kindly placed in every generation. As You have taught us, there is no orphaned generation. Even now You have sent us Your true, great and awesome Tzaddikim, in whom all of the glory and honor of holiness resides.", + "These Tzaddikim are like the Tabernacle. The holy presence of Your Godliness is drawn to them and dwells within them always.", + "And this is because they are humble. They make themselves like the earth.", + "Just as all objects stand upon the earth, so too, all of creation, with all of its particulars, stands upon these Tzaddikim. And just as plants grow forth from the earth, so too, all beings come forth from these Tzaddikim. These Tzaddikim are the foundation of the universe. Therefore, everything must be drawn to them to receive life and existence.", + "In particular, every Jew is a branch that comes from them and is drawn to them, and receives all of his vitality and flow of abundance from them, for they give life to all.", + "They have the power to draw Godliness and all people to them, with the goal of binding them all to You.", + "The Holy Tzaddikim
Master of the world, these powerful Tzaddikim possess an eternal greatness, might, beauty and strength. They have the ability to draw the entire world to them and to their holy teachings, wondrous ways and advice. This results in much goodness that lasts forever.", + "The rectification of all worlds, the perfect redemption that is destined to arrive and the coming of the Mashiach, all depend on people coming close to these Tzaddikim.", + "But unfortunately, a multitude of powerful forces are working to push people away from the Tzaddikim and keep them from ever approaching them.", + "Struggling to Come Close to the Tzaddikim
Master of the world, “HaShem, God of battle,” You Who are elevated and holy, bringing about new and mighty things! You know the intensity of the struggle that is being waged at every moment and in every generation between the power of the true Tzaddikim, who have the ability to draw all people to them in order to bring them close to You, and the opposite force that distances the world from the Tzaddikim and from You.", + "Many souls have fallen in this war. They have been driven from both worlds as a result of that force, which separated them from the true Tzaddikim.", + "And we are the most orphaned of all. What shall we do and how shall we act? Who will fight on our behalf to overcome that force, which pushes away the power of attraction of the Tzaddikim?", + "Overcoming the Force That Separates Us from the Tzaddikim
“HaShem, strong and mighty, HaShem Who is mighty in war,” we have cast our burden upon You. Please fight on our behalf. You are elevated forever, HaShem, and You always have the upper hand.", + "Save us in the merit of the true Tzaddikim. May their power of attraction overcome the force that wants to separate us from them and from You, until that force will at last fall and disappear.", + "That force is a combination of obstructions, distractions, temptations, doubts, disputes, lusts and other evil traits. May the power of attraction of the true Tzaddikim cause all of these to fall and be eradicated.", + "In the end, may we, our families, the Jewish people and the entire world be drawn to and cling to the true Tzaddikim. Then everyone will cast away his gods of silver and gold — which is to say, his desires — and instead pursue the true Tzaddikim. We will all heed their words, learn their books and follow all of their holy advice in accordance with Your will and their holy will, until we will return to You with all our hearts — “with joy and with a glad heart, because there is such abundance.”", + "Overcoming Our Evil Traits
Help us eradicate our lusts and evil traits.", + "Help us nullify our egos until we attain true humility and we are like the earth itself, possessing the power to draw Your Godliness and holiness to ourselves, to draw the entire world to Your holy faith, to draw all people to the true Tzaddikim, to Your holy service and to Your holy Torah, which You revealed to us through Moses and through all of the true Tzaddikim of each generation.", + "Giving Charity
Help us give much charity to worthy poor people — particularly to the true Tzaddikim who are as humble as the earth, and to their children — in an honorable way, and may our charity never reach any unworthy poor person.", + "As a result, may our charity bear fruit immediately. As the verse states, “Sow for yourselves for charity; reap in accordance with kindness.”", + "May giving charity bring us only goodness, abundance, blessing, compassion, life, peace, children and income forever.", + "Protect us from giving charity to those who are undeserving, and help us increase our charity to worthy poor people and true Tzaddikim.", + "God’s Honor Will Fill the World
Help us flee from personal honor.", + "Instead, grant us holy honor for the sake of Your Name, honor that is derived from the true Tzaddik who possesses the power of attraction and who sets up the Tabernacle.", + "All Jewish leaders, from small to great, receive their honor and greatness from him.", + "May that honor be revealed, magnified and sanctified. May Your honor fill the world, in accordance with the verse, “I am HaShem. That is My Name, and I will not give My honor to another, nor My praise to idols.”", + "“Proclaim among the nations His honor, among all the peoples His wonders.” “They will speak of the honor of Your sovereignty and tell of Your might.”", + "Blessed is HaShem, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. Blessed is the Name of His glory forever; may His glory fill the entire world. Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "God’s Simple Compassion and His Great Compassion / God’s Prayer / We Repent by Learning Torah / Three Phases of Learning Torah / God “Prays” on Our Behalf
God has two types of compassion: Simple Compassion and, higher than that, Great Compassion.
We need God’s Great Compassion to help us in both the spiritual and material realms. But although everyone wants that Great Compassion and it stands before everyone’s eyes, no one knows where it is, no one can pray and draw it down, because — due to our oppressive exile — no one recognizes God’s greatness. Therefore, God Himself must pray for this. And what brings Him to pray? Our repentance, which we attain by learning Torah.
The mechanism behind this is as follows.
Every person possesses a portion of the spiritual worlds in the form of holy “letters” and permutations of holy energies. One connects these to whatever he chooses to cling to. If he pursues base desires, he connects them to the Side of Evil. Then the holy letters and permutations of holy energies are confused, and consequently, his mind is confused. That constitutes the exile of God’s Divine Presence. Then, because one lacks proper awareness, he lacks access to God’s Great Compassion.
This person must study Torah, proceeding through three phases.
First, when he sits down to learn, he brings all of his thoughts and consciousness into the Torah so that he is contained within in it like a fetus in its mother’s womb. Second, he learns Torah and comes to understand it — that is called birth and nursing. And third, he infers one matter from another and creates original insights — that is the level of independent intelligence.
When this person proceeds through these three phases of learning Torah, he attains complete repentance. He now restores the holy letters and permutations of holy energies to their root. In doing so, he becomes a new person. His awareness is whole and, as a result, God has compassion on him.
Now God prays on his behalf. That means that God’s Simple Compassion awakens His Great Compassion.
This may be conceptualized as follows. A certain person is in need of a great deal of charity. There are two philanthropists in his community. One is accessible, but does not have enough money to help him. The other does have enough money to help him, but is accessible only to the first philanthropist. The person therefore asks the first philanthropist to petition the wealthier philanthropist on his behalf.
In the same way, we ask God to arouse His Simple Compassion on our behalf so that it will draw down His Great Compassion.
Learning Torah
HaShem, our God and God of our fathers, help us learn Your holy Torah always, day and night. May this book of the Torah never leave our mouths or the mouths of our children.", + "May we understand the truth of all the words of Your holy Torah clearly and swiftly.", + "May we comprehend their implications and always create original, true insights that will rise before the throne of Your glory to give You satisfaction and gain Your approval.", + "As a result of learning the Torah, may we repent completely of all our sins that we committed throughout the course of our lives. May the light within the Torah transform and improve us.", + "And as a result of learning the holy Torah, may we extract, gather and raise all of the holy sparks and permutations of sparks that come from all levels of creation, sparks that fell because of our sins until they were scattered among the “husks.”", + "Redeeming Exiled Holiness
HaShem, You conceive thoughts so that no one will be cast aside from You.", + "Since You know that we cannot extract and raise these sparks ourselves, have compassion on us and on the holy sparks associated with us, which are holy letters, now scattered and alienated among the various nations and “husks.”", + "Return us to You fully by swiftly extracting, gathering and redeeming all of these holy sparks from their exile and bringing them back to their proper place. In this way, You will restore all of the worlds and all of the holy names that were blemished as a result of our sins.", + "Our King, restore, return and gather into holiness all those who were separated from You. As the verse states, “HaShem your God will bring back your exiles and have compassion on you. He will once again gather you from all of the nations to which HaShem your God scattered you. If your exiles will be at the end of the heavens, from there HaShem your God will gather you and He will take you from there.”", + "Raise Your Divine Presence from its exile and lift it from its dust.", + "Bring our holy consciousness to perfection. Imbue the world with that consciousness and with great compassion. Eradicate anger and cruelty. Then, at last, “no one will cause damage or destruction on Your entire holy mountain,” because “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of HaShem as water covers the seabed.”", + "God’s Compassion on Our Behalf
You Yourself pray on our behalf, meaning that Your Simple Compassion arouses Your Great Compassion. And then, as the verse states, “With great compassion I will gather you.”", + "HaShem, You know that no one at this time is capable of standing up on our behalf to arouse that compassion. We have been so alienated from You that only You, our Father and King, can arouse compassion on our behalf.", + "Therefore, please pray on our behalf so that “we will live and not die, and the earth will not be desolate.” As the verse states, “He prays on his behalf always; all the days, He blesses him.”", + "With Your Simple Compassion, arouse Your vast, Great Compassion — a compassion so intense that it has the power to draw us close to You, a compassion that does not contain the slightest trace of judgment.", + "We have no one on whom to rely but You, our Father in Heaven. Have mercy on us and save us quickly, for the sake of Your Name.", + "“Your compassion is abundant, HaShem. Give me life in accordance with Your way.” “HaShem is compassionate and gracious, longsuffering and exceedingly kind.” “HaShem is good to all, and His compassion rests upon all of His works.”", + "“In accordance with Your kindness, give me life, and I will keep the testimony of Your mouth.” ���HaShem, Your kindness fills the earth; teach me Your rules.”", + "And then at last, “I will bring them to My holy mountain and give them joy in My House of Prayer. Their burnt-offerings and sacrifices will be accepted upon My Altar, for My House shall be called a House of Prayer for all nations.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "The Effect of a Sigh
A person can choose to either sanctify himself or pollute himself.
Through his breath — in particular, his sigh — he connects his soul to that which he is seeking, whether that be good or evil. A person’s sigh marks the expiration of his body and the transformation of his soul.
If someone was wicked throughout his entire life and he now sighs in regret and repentance, that sigh nullifies and removes the evil within him, and he clings to holiness. That sigh is more efficacious than any number of afflictions and fasts. For the latter affect only a person’s body, but a sigh also transforms his soul from evil to good.
Conversely, if a righteous person regrets his blameless past and he sighs, that sigh is an impure breath, and he then clings to impurity.
A Plea to Repent
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me return to You completely.", + "Master of the world, You know how far I am from You because of my transgressions and willful sins, which are many and intense, reaching to the heights of the heavens.", + "I do not know any way to return to You. The denseness of matter and its evil lusts have grasped and clung to me so strongly that my mind is confused, dirtied and obscured.", + "A Sigh of Holiness
Master of the world, advise me how to return to You. Help me make it a regular practice to sigh from the depths of my heart as I think of how far I am from You, until my entire body is wracked and broken.", + "With these sighs, may I expel the spirit of the Side of Evil and instead infuse myself with the spirit of holiness.", + "In this way, may I cut myself free from the rope of pollution that was tied to me because of my many sins, and instead bind myself to the rope of holiness, forever and ever.", + "Expel from my body and soul every type of impurity and aspect of evil. Tie me to the rope of holiness strongly, from now and forever.", + "Grant me a good and long life through my connection to the rope of holiness. Graciously send me an abundant flow of goodness, blessing, compassion, life and peace. May I lead a life of holiness, a life filled with the fear of Heaven, a life in which I will attain complete repentance and serve You always.", + "May I then cling to You, the living God, my Portion, my Rock. Grant me life in the light of Your countenance. Lift me up so that I will live a life of holiness.", + "May my heart adhere to Your commandments. May I cling to You forever.", + "Save me from the sighs of the Side of Evil, so that I never breathe a sigh of yearning for the pleasures and vanities of this world. May all of my sighs and longing be only for Your Name, in order to serve You and come close to You.", + "May I cling to You always. May the verse be realized in me, “You who cling to HaShem your God are alive, all of you, today.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Becoming Absorbed into Faith / Faith in the Tzaddik
A person must attain a holy consciousness that will consume him until his body has the same awareness as his holy soul.
Just as a person absorbs food into his body, so too, a believer’s faith assimilates him into itself. Similarly, the holiness of the Land of Israel assimilates a person who lives in it until he partakes of its nature, and a Tzaddik assimilates a person who clings to him and believes in him until that person attains the Tzaddik’s nature.
Thus, it is good for a person to be a Tzaddik’s follower, even if he receives no tangible benefit thereby, because simply having faith in the Tzaddik helps him serve God.
All of this depends on this person’s will. If he has a strong desire to come close to God and serve Him, then even though it is hard for him to break the desires of his body, by coming close to and believing in a Tzaddik, he is transformed into the nature of the Tzaddik.
But if he does not want to serve HaShem, then coming close to a Tzaddik will not help him. Not only will he not be digested but, to the contrary, he will be vomited out.
Holy Faith
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me attain faith with all my heart. Help me believe fully in You and in your true Tzaddikim.", + "May my faith be so strong and firm that I no longer identify myself with the physicality of my body, but with the quality of holy faith.", + "May that faith consume me until all of the evil that grasps me is nullified and I will be transformed from evil to good.", + "The Holy Land
Help me come to the Land of Israel in peace, without misadventure. And help me cling to the true Tzaddikim with complete faith.", + "Do not treat me in accordance with my transgressions. Do not judge me in accordance with my deeds. In Your compassion, open the gates of holy faith.", + "Help me be absorbed into faith until I will be transformed into its holy quality, which is the quality of the holy Land of Israel and the true Tzaddikim.", + "May the Land and holy faith not vomit me out as it vomited out others before me.", + "I am not worthy to come to holy faith, to the holy Land of Israel and to true Tzaddikim, for I have acted wrongly and thus deprived myself of holiness. Nevertheless, Your compassion is vast, HaShem. With that compassion, help me so that holy faith will embrace me until I am transformed into its quality.", + "Absorbed into Faith
Help me attain complete faith on every level.", + "At present, I rely solely on holy faith. As the verse states, “The Tzaddik lives by his faith.”", + "As a result of the desires of the body that rise up within me at every moment, my spirit has gone deeper into exile. Due to my many sins, my strength has subsided and my hands tremble. Only with the power of holy faith can I oppose and eliminate these desires.", + "Help me be absorbed into faith until I will be transformed into its holy quality. As the verse states, “Trust in HaShem and do good. Dwell in the Land and shepherd with faith.”", + "“HaShem, Your eyes are turned to faith.” Help me attain holy faith, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "“All of Your commandments are faithful. When falsehood pursues me, help me, HaShem!” “Hear my prayer, listen to my supplications; answer me in Your faithfulness, in Your righteousness.”", + "May the verse be realized, “The heavens will praise Your wonders, HaShem, even Your faithfulness amid the holy congregation.”", + "“My faithfulness and my kindness shall be with him, and through My Name, his might shall be elevated.”", + "And the verse states, “Forever will I guard My kindness for him, and My covenant is faithful to him.”", + "“I will not break My kindness off from him and I will not be false to My faithfulness.”", + "“I will sing the kindnesses of HaShem forever; for all generations, I will make Your faithfulness known with my mouth. For I have said that the world is built upon kindness; as for the heavens, You establish Your faithfulness in them.”", + "“HaShem, God of Hosts, who is like You, mighty God? Your faithfulness surrounds You.”", + "Realize on our behalf the verse, “I will betroth you to Me forever; I will betroth you to Me with righteousness and with justice, with kindness and with compassion. I will betroth you to Me with faith, and you will know HaShem.”", + "“Do not abandon me, HaShem! My God, do not be far from me. Hurry to help me, God, my salvation.”", + "Blessed is HaShem forever. Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Rectifying Improper Prayers / Hosting a Torah Scholar
Every individual, at some point, offers an inappropriate prayer. For example, our sages teach that before breaking into a house, a thief asks God to help him succeed.
Afterward, when a person wishes to pray properly, his previous improper prayers come and confound him.
He can rectify that by hosting a Torah scholar. Then he is also considered as if he had brought a continual offering upon the Altar.
Hosting Torah Scholars
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me host Torah scholars in my home. May I accord them so much honor that You will consider my performance of this mitzvah as being equivalent to having offered sacrifices in the Temple.", + "In the merit of performing this mitzvah, please grant me the ability to pray to You with great feeling, with all my heart and soul, with a pure and proper focus on Your great Name alone, without any confusion or foreign thoughts.", + "Rescue me from engaging in wrong prayers. And even if I do engage in such prayers, may they not contaminate my holy prayer.", + "Rectify and purify my prayer so that it will be perfected and fluent in my mouth.", + "May my words be acceptable before You, Master of all. May I elevate my prayer before You, so that You accept it and elevate it to be the crown on Your head.", + "Fulfill all of my requests for the good.", + "“HaShem, listen to my prayer; take heed of the voice of my pleadings.”", + "“As for me, my prayer comes before You, HaShem, at a time of acceptance; God, in Your vast kindness, answer me in the truth of Your salvation.”", + "“May my speech be sweet to Him; I will rejoice in HaShem. Sinners will be erased from the land and the wicked will be no more. My spirit, bless HaShem. Halleluyah!”" + ], + [ + "Doing Business Honestly Sanctifies the Name of God / Income Without Toil
When a person does business honestly, he keeps the commandment, “You shall love HaShem your God,” in keeping with our sages’ interpretation, “You shall cause God’s Name to be beloved.” Thus, he sanctifies the name of Heaven and, as a result, he enjoys an income without toil. The reason for this is as follows.
Our sages teach that earning a living is as difficult as the splitting of the Red Sea. The entire night preceding the Splitting of the Sea, the prosecuting angels argued that the Israelites were no better than their Egyptian pursuers and were not worthy of redemption. Therefore, the Splitting of the Sea was “difficult” for God, for God’s attribute of judgment demanded retribution from the Jews. But in the morning, God recalled the merit of Abraham, who had risen in the morning to do God’s will.4Genesis 22:3. Abraham’s merit transformed the “difficulty” of the Red Sea into mitigated judgment, and then the sea split easily. Abraham is also identified with the commandment, “You shall love HaShem your God,” since he is associated with the trait of kindness.
When a person does business honestly, he keeps the commandment, “You shall love HaShem your God.” In so doing, he attaches himself to Abraham and to the morning. Then earning a living is not difficult for him, just as the splitting of the Red Sea was not difficult when the morning arrived.
Dealing Pleasantly with People
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me turn away from evil. May I always do that which is good in Your eyes. Then may You and all who see me love me and treat me graciously, kindly and compassionately.", + "May I keep the mitzvah of “You shall love HaShem your God” fully, as our sages interpret it, to make the Name of Heaven beloved through my deeds.", + "In that spirit, may I engage in business honestly and speak pleasantly with others. Then Your spirit and the spirit of people will be pleased with me, and I will be beloved in Heaven and esteemed on earth.", + "Help me find such favor so that I will be wise in Your eyes and in the eyes of man.", + "Send me a comfortable income. Give me everything I require. Attend to all of the needs of my family, even before they grow urgent — without my having to engage in any toil or hardship.", + "Earning a Living
Master of the world, You know that earning a living is as difficult as the splitting of the Red Sea.", + "But You are great and mighty, and in Your power and kindness, even the Splitting of the Sea was easy for You.", + "Who will question You and ask You, “What are You doing?” Nothing is impossible for You.", + "Have compassion on us in the merit of Abraham, the man of kindness. Act on behalf of Your love for him and give us our income with great generosity — without any toil, trouble or hardship.", + "May I not be dependent on people’s gifts or loans. May I have sufficient funds to be able to keep Your commandments, do Your will and learn Your Torah always, all the days of my life — and may this be true as well for my children and grandchildren, and for all the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever.", + "May the verse be realized in me, “Cast your burden upon HaShem and He will support you. He will never allow the righteous man to stumble.”", + "“The eyes of all turn to You, and You give them their food in its time. You open Your hand and satisfy the will of all living beings.”", + "My compassionate Father, grant me income. Support me in Your vast compassion — not in accordance with my deeds and the evil of my actions, but solely in accordance with Your kindness. “He gives bread to all flesh, for His kindness is forever.”", + "Never abandon me. Help me, for I rely on You. “Do not abandon me, HaShem; my God, do not be far from me. Hurry to help me, God Who is my salvation.”" + ], + [ + "Sweetening Judgments at Their Root / Sanctifying One’s Thoughts / Binding Oneself to Tzaddikim / Rosh HaShanah
In order to sweeten the judgments against him, a person must rise to their root, which is the realm of thought. In other words, he must sanctify and purify his thoughts.
In order to do that, he must bind himself to the Tzaddikim.
Rosh HaShanah is the source of judgments for the entire year to come. And so people travel to spend Rosh HaShanah in the company of Tzaddikim. In this way, they can rectify their thoughts — and that, in turn, sweetens any judgments against them for the coming year.
For Rosh HaShanah
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me spend Rosh HaShanah in the company of true Tzaddikim. And, in general, may I always be connected to them. With that bond, may I sanctify my mind and my thoughts.", + "Deliver me from every sort of foreign thought and mental blemish. Grant me wisdom, knowledge, understanding and insight until I attain complete holiness of thought.", + "Sweeten and nullify all judgments against me and against Your nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever.", + "May we receive the holiness of Rosh HaShanah by means of the true Tzaddikim. May we rectify everything that we need to rectify on Rosh HaShanah, which is the source of judgments for the entire year.", + "May our thoughts always be holy and pure, particularly on Rosh HaShanah. Guard us so that no foreign or external thoughts enter our minds. May we rejoice solely in Your Name — with awe, holiness, purity and clear thoughts — until, strengthened by our connection to the true Tzaddikim, we rectify all that needs to be clarified on Rosh HaShanah, extracting all the sparks of holiness from the depths of the “husks,” sweetening and nullifying all judgments from Your entire nation, the House of Israel.", + "May only goodness, kindness, salvation and compassion be drawn upon us, “from the beginning of the year until the end of the year.”", + "At that time, write and seal us for peace and a good, long life of truth imbued with the fear of Heaven — a life in which we will keep Your commandments and do Your will with all our hearts, and rectify everything that we blemished from the beginning of our lives until this day.", + "And send us a good income, life, peace and everything good.", + "Traveling to Tzaddikim on Rosh HaShanah
Master of the world, every person has an obligation to travel to true Tzaddikim for Rosh HaShanah — but many obstacles on every side prevent us from doing so.", + "Help us break through all of these obstacles so that we will travel to true Tzaddikim for Rosh HaShanah and, through them, attain holy thought.", + "At this time, in the days before the Mashiach comes, our principal support and redemption may be found only in the holy days of Rosh HaShanah. We rely on those days to come close to You and to draw Your Godliness and sovereignty onto ourselves throughout the entire year.", + "In the merit of the true Tzaddikim, may we please You on the holy days of Rosh HaShanah so that we will gain the power to crown You as our awesome King and close the mouths of our enemies.", + "We rely on the true Tzaddikim to overcome all of our persecutors and draw the holiness of Rosh HaShanah onto us.", + "Help us break through every obstacle so that we will reach true Tzaddikim on Rosh HaShanah and connect ourselves to them. In that way, may we sanctify our thoughts, sweeten and nullify all judgments, and draw Your kindness to ourselves.", + "Help us recognize how exalted You are, our glorious King.", + "“Every created being will know that You made him, and every creature will understand that You created him, and all that has a soul in his nostrils will say, ‘HaShem, God of Israel, is King and His sovereignty rules over all.’”", + "Purify and sanctify us in Your supernal sanctity, from now and forever. Amen." + ], + [ + "Tithing One’s Income and Being Saved from One’s Enemies
When a person tithes his income, God saves him from any enemies who may be pursuing him, even if they are righteous.
If this person is himself righteous, he is close to God and so God easily covers him with His “great hand.” But if he is wicked and far from God, God saves him by stretching out His “great hand” to cover him.
In addition, that “great hand” provides him with a sense of contentment.
Giving Charity to Worthy People
Master of the world, give me a good heart so that I will distribute much charity — a tenth of all the money that You bestow upon me.", + "Send me worthy poor people through whom I may gain merit by giving them charity. As a result of that, rescue me from my enemies and persecutors. Our sages teach that You protect a persecuted person, even if he is wicked and he is being pursued by a righteous person.", + "Strengthen my heart so that I will always give a tenth of everything that You grant me to charity.", + "Open Your “great hand” to provide me with my income. Generously satisfy all of my needs and all of the needs of my family, even before we feel their lack.", + "May I experience the verse, “I will pour forth upon you blessing without cease.” May I always rejoice in my portion and be satisfied with what You graciously give me. May I never grow frantic to gain wealth.", + "Hide me in the shadow of Your wings. Shield me in the shadow of Your “great hand.” Protect me from all of my physical and spiritual enemies.", + "Bring about the prophecy, “I will place My words in your mouth, and in the shadow of My hand I will cover you, so that I may plant the heavens and establish the earth and say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’”", + "Bring peace to the world. Then “truth will blossom from the earth and justice will gaze down from Heaven.” “Kindness and truth will meet, justice and peace will kiss.”", + "“Establish yourself with righteousness; distance yourself from oppression, for you shall not fear it, and from ruin, for it will not approach you.”", + "Help me, for I rely on You. “Bring close to my spirit its redemption; despite my enemies, redeem me.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Giving Charity Saves a Person from Licentious Thoughts
The elements of the world of holiness have their analog in the realm of impurity. This includes the level of Divine manifestation called Arikh Anpin (literally, the “Long Face”).
There is an Arikh Anpin of the “husks,” which appears embodied in a licentious woman. A man who meets such a woman will find it hard to avoid entertaining lustful thoughts about her. No matter what he does, she will not leave his mind. She is “long” in the sense that she reaches out to stand before his thoughts constantly.
Giving charity will save this man from the filth and spiritual death of these licentious thoughts. This is not to say that one may rely on giving charity to make himself at home in the presence of women. At the very least, however, even if he does indulge in their company, it will not damage him so much.
As for engaging in necessary conversation with women, that will not harm him at all.
Charity and Holy Thoughts
“God, long-suffering, filled with kindness and truth,” help me give charity with a generous hand to many worthy poor people so that I may fulfill their needs for the sake of Your Name, without any ulterior motives — joyfully, with a good heart and with a pleasant expression.", + "May I always give a great deal of charity for the sake of Your Name, in accordance with Your beneficent will, until with the power of that holy charity, I will be able to nullify the power gained by wicked people when they give charity. Cause them to stumble by inducing them to give money to unworthy poor people, so that “their hand will not act wisely.”", + "May they have no power to act against Your nation, the Jewish people, who desire to serve You.", + "Draw Your great holiness upon us. Pour onto us strength that comes from the true Tzaddikim, the elders of holiness. In the merit and power of these Tzaddikim, may we overcome the “old and foolish king.” May we expel him and his troops from our border, burn the spirit of impurity from the land, and nullify all types of evil thoughts that pursue people constantly — particularly those people who desire to come close to You.", + "May we draw onto ourselves the Light of the Face of the King of life, the light of the countenance of holiness that is drawn from the Arikh Anpin of holiness.", + "Help us eradicate all evil thoughts that derive from the unholy aspect of reality called the Arikh Anpin of the “husk.”", + "Shield us so that we will never be harmed by any “evil woman” or any evil thought — both of which are at the root drawn from the Arikh Anpin of the “husk.”", + "It is impossible to avoid the thoughts that are drawn from there, because they are present wherever we turn.", + "Protection Against Unholy Thoughts
HaShem, filled with compassion, kind and true, rescue us from licentious thoughts, which are the greatest source of impurity and are more bitter than death.", + "You Who have pity for the poor, You Who devise thoughts so that no one will remain cast away from You, rescue us from these thoughts.", + "Have compassion on us, we who are so weak in this generation before the coming of the Mashiach. We have descended lower and lower. Lacking assistance, we have sunken into the muddy depths of the water, and the waves have washed over us so that we cannot stand.", + "Be gracious to us so that we will not be lost. Give us the power to overcome the Arikh Anpin of the “husk” and expel it from our border. May no evil thought, which is drawn from there, come upon us.", + "In Your righteousness, give us life. Draw our spirit forth from suffering. Only You can identify those who at every moment oppose those of us who desire to return to You. Those people rise up against us and pursue us, “as the one who hunts the partridge in the mountains.”", + "God, You Who are “great in counsel and mighty in deed,” have compassion on the remnant of Your people. Rescue us from death and redeem us from destruction. “Save my spirit from the sword, my soul from the hand of the dog.”", + "Send us holy, true advice at every moment, so that we will be saved from all types of evil thoughts, so that they will not arise and enter our hearts. Instead, may we attain holy thoughts.", + "You Who revive the dead, elevate us so that we will live in the light of Your countenance and not die an eternal death.", + "Avoiding the Company of the Opposite Sex
Help us give a great deal of charity for the sake of Your Name. As the verse states, “Charity saves from death.” In the merit of giving such holy charity, save us from evil thoughts, which possess the impurity of death.", + "Guard me always from mingling with women and from speaking with them at length. May I reduce idle chatter with any woman — even with my wife — as much as possible.", + "When, at times, it is necessary for me to speak with women, guard me in Your compassion so that I will not come to have any evil thoughts. Save me from gazing at any woman and from having inappropriate thoughts. May I not stray after my heart and my eyes.", + "Help us, for we rely on You alone. We have no one on whom to rely but You, our Father in Heaven.", + "“Rescue me from the mud so that I will not sink. May I be delivered from my enemies and from the depths of the water.”", + "“May the waves of water not pour over me, may the depths not swallow me up, and may the wellspring not shut its mouth upon me.”", + "“Turn to me and be gracious to me. Grant Your might to Your servant; save the son of Your maidservant.”", + "“Send me a sign for the good; let my enemies see it and be ashamed, because You, HaShem, help me and console me.”", + "“I will gaze upon Your countenance in righteousness; I will be satisfied when I awaken with Your image.”" + ], + [ + "Silence and Reliance on God Eliminates Heretical Thoughts / A Man of Truth Overcomes Wicked People Who Give Charity
When dispute exists, the heretical thoughts of wicked people can affect good and pious people. To get rid of these thoughts, a good person must be silent and rely on God to fight on his behalf. Then the thoughts of idolatry are eliminated and his own thoughts are elevated.
However, when wicked people give charity, their thoughts have the power to persist. The influence of their charity can then be overcome by a man of truth — someone who performs mitzvot wholeheartedly and carefully, whether in the presence of others or alone before God. Such a person has the power to draw all charity to himself, for charity is attracted to truth. In particular, this person draws the charity of wicked people to himself, for it is already standing far from them, since they are far from truth.
As this man of truth draws the charity of those wicked people to himself, its power is nullified and their evil thoughts and heresies can no longer affect good and pious people.
HaShem Protects Us from Dispute
“HaShem, rescue me from evil people; protect me from men of violence. They meditate evils in their heart; every day they stir up strife.” “The entire day they trouble my affairs; all of their thoughts are against me for evil.”", + "Master of the world, You know the prevalence and intensity of disputatiousness. As a result, thoughts of heresy attack even the pious people of the generation — and so we ourselves are subject to a limitless amount of such thoughts.", + "And because we are so impoverished and weak, we have no idea how to withstand these evil thoughts and confusions, which sweep over us constantly.", + "We have no one on whom to rely but You, our Father in Heaven. Therefore, we cast ourselves upon You alone. We commit our spirits to You. We place the entire struggle in Your hands. Fight on our behalf, for You are a warrior. As the verse states, “HaShem is a warrior, HaShem is His Name.” No one can stand against You.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who have pity on the poor, You Who are close to those who call upon You in truth, look upon our impoverishment and fight on our behalf. “HaShem, fight those who fight against me; battle those who battle against me. Take hold of the shield and buckler and rise to help me.”", + "Fight on our behalf against our persecutors. As the verse states, “HaShem will fight for you, as you remain silent.”", + "Help us, for we rely on You. ���My eyes fail with looking upwards; Master, I am oppressed. Be my surety.”", + "“The enemy’s hand gains strength and there is no savior to strengthen us.” Be gracious to us, God, for wicked people yearn to destroy us; they fight and oppress us all day long. “We do not know what to do, and so our eyes are turned to You.”", + "Act for Your own sake and not for ours.", + "Giving Charity Properly
Help us give a great deal of charity to worthy poor people for the sake of Your Name alone, without any ulterior motives.", + "Help us always perform the mitzvah of charity properly, in accordance with Your beneficent will, with holiness and purity, with joy and a good heart.", + "Protect our spirits by keeping us from giving money to unworthy poor people and unworthy charities that are not in accordance with Your will.", + "Charity and Truth
Enable the true Tzaddikim, who are men of truth and who stand far from those who lack truth, to draw all charity to themselves.", + "Help us be absorbed into the trait of Jacob, which is the trait of truth.", + "Help us perform all of the commandments with all of their details for the sake of Your Name, without any ulterior motives and without any intent to curry favor with people.", + "May we walk humbly and be exacting in all of the commandments between man and God, performing them perfectly for Your sake alone.", + "Help us cling to true Tzaddikim and all pious men of truth.", + "“May it be charity to us when we make sure to keep all of this commandment before HaShem our God, as He has commanded us.”", + "“May the sun of charity, with healing in its wings, shine upon you who fear My Name.”", + "“Give truth to Jacob, kindness to Abraham, as You promised our fathers from the earliest days.”", + "Help us, be gracious to us, and rescue us from argumentative tongues. Protect us so that the great contentiousness that now exists in the world — in particular, the disputes among the Torah sages and pious people — will not interfere with our serving You.", + "May no dispute, in either the physical or the spiritual realms, harm us.", + "Expel all evil thoughts from our borders. We have no counsel or plan to deal with such thoughts, except to cast our entire burden upon You alone and ask You to fight on our behalf. As the verse states, “On the day that I fear, I will place my trust in You.”", + "“More than the hairs of my head are those who hate me for no reason.” “HaShem, how many are my adversaries, how many rise against me!”", + "“Much have they tormented me from my youth — but they have not overcome me. Upon my back have the plowers plowed; they have lengthened their furrows. HaShem is righteous; He has cut the ropes of the wicked.” “Those who seek my life will be ashamed and crestfallen; those who plan my ruin will be turned back and humiliated.”", + "“Then my spirit will be glad in HaShem; it will rejoice in His salvation. All of my bones will say, ‘HaShem, Who is like You? You save the poor person from the one who is stronger than he, and the poor man and the impoverished man from the one who robs him.’”", + "Take heed of my tears, sighs, groans, the bitterness of my heart and the yearning of my eyes for Your true salvation. “Do not abandon me, HaShem, my God; do not be far from me. Rush to help me, Master of my salvation.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "With Our Holy Speech, We Can Return to God / The Universal Spirit of Holiness
When God created the world, He constricted His sovereignty within it in the realm called “speech,” which is associated with the Divine Presence. God then brought down the souls of the Jewish people so that they might draw that sovereignty to themselves.
Today, however, the Divine Presence is in exile, and so the light and power of God’s sovereignty are diminished.
However, there is a positive aspect to this. Because God loves the Jewish people, His Presence — or holy speech — accompanies each individual Jew even into the filthiest place, like a mother accompanying her child wherever he goes. And so no matter how low a person falls, with holy speech, he can recall God and take strength in Him.
One way that a person can return to God through speech is to confess his sins to Him. Also, one can rectify the realm of speech by learning Torah, reciting the words of the prayer service, and engaging in his own prayers to God.
When a person learns Torah or prays, he clothes his body in the holy letters of Torah and prayer. As a result, he protects his body from the fire of his heart — whether that fire is for the sake of holiness or for the sake of the things of this world.
God Himself is at present “clothed” within the worlds that He created. But when the holy spirit of life drawn down by Torah and prayer will one day grow universally accessible, we will recognize God as transcending all worlds, without any garment or image.
Holy Speech
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me always sanctify my speech. Every day, may I speak many holy words of Torah and prayer, making requests of You and praising Your great and holy Name. Moreover, may all of my words relate to Torah and prayer.", + "May I use my speech to confess my sins to You every day. May I engage in a great deal of my own prayers to You, until my holy words will attract Your positive attention to me and help me return to You with all my heart.", + "Do not forsake me in those low places to which I have fallen and where I was trapped because of my many sins. Remember me and bring me forth from there.", + "Think of me with love, as in the verse, “Ephraim is a precious son to Me, a child of delights; every time I speak of him, I recall him more; therefore, I yearn for him; I will surely have compassion on him, says HaShem.”", + "Have compassion on Your Divine Presence, which dwells with us in exile. In particular, have compassion on the holiness related to speech, which has gone into exile because we have not spoken holy words. Help us bring that speech forth from exile by never saying a single word that is not in accordance with Your will.", + "May we never say anything that stains our speech. Rather, may we sanctify our speech by learning Torah, praying and using our words for holy purposes.", + "Reducing an Overwhelming Passion for Holiness
Compassionate Father, bring me close to Your holy Torah. Help me study Your Torah day and night until I mitigate my passions. My heart burns for You with great flames, a blazing inferno. “Mighty as death is love, harsh as the grave is jealousy — its flashes are flashes of fire, a torch of God.”", + "That fire has gone so far beyond the proper measure that it might devour my body.", + "As a result, my mind is confused and my heart begins to burn for the things of this world like a fiery flame, “like an oven heated by the baker,” until my desires threaten to consume and burn my body and soul.", + "I do not know where to flee in order to hide from this great fire. I wander in a desolate land but I gain no rest from my pursuers. “I have been diligent, but I remain like a bird alone on the roof.” I am like a ship foundering in the heart of the seas, rising to heaven and descending to the depths, because there is no order to my ascents and descents — “like a drunken man, a man whom wine has overcome.”", + "My mind is befuddled, and all of my wisdom is swallowed up.", + "I wanted to implement plans and ideas that would outsmart the enemies of my soul, but none of them succeeded.", + "HaShem, You know everything that I have gone through from my birth to this day. “HaShem our God, You are our Father. We are the clay and You are our Maker, and all of us are the work of Your hand.”", + "I am in Your hand like clay in the hand of the potter. I have no wisdom, understanding or counsel. All I can do is cry out to You alone, until You will graciously bring me close to You, for Your sake alone.", + "A New Heart
Help me find refuge in the words of Torah and prayer that I speak every day. May the Divine spirit of holy speech hover over me, protect me and blow upon my heart to extinguish the fire of my desires, until all of my lusts will be eradicated forever.", + "In addition, as a result of my study of the holy Torah, may I constrict my holy fervor for You so that it will always be measured, in accordance with Your wishes.", + "In the merit of my holy speech, part of which is the utterance of the words of Torah, rescue me from every sort of sin and lust. Chase the spirit of foolishness away from me and instead — by means of the rope of holiness, which is holy speech — help me connect myself to a spirit of life and holiness.", + "As You have promised, “I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit in your midst. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will place My spirit in your midst and cause you to obey My ordinances and keep and perform My laws.”", + "May we raise Your holy sovereignty from its exile. May every member of Your nation, the House of Israel, reveal the Messianic holiness rooted within himself.", + "Give us a good and long life. More than that, give us eternal life, so that we will rise at the time of the resurrection of the dead together with the Tzaddikim and all pious and wholehearted Jews.", + "Proclaiming that God is King
HaShem, our God and God of our fathers, help us keep Your laws and commandments in this world. Then may we live to experience and inherit goodness and blessing at the time of the Mashiach and, following that, during the life of the World to Come.", + "May we magnify, elevate and glorify Your sovereignty throughout the world, revealing and publicizing Your holy sovereignty to all people. May we raise Your sovereignty to its root, so that there will be brought about, with love, friendship and warmth, a perfect unification of Your transcendent holiness with Your Divine Presence.", + "“May my mouth be filled with Your praise, the entire day with Your glory.” “I will bless HaShem at all times; His praise is always in my mouth.” “May my mouth speak the praise of HaShem, and all flesh bless His holy Name forever and ever.” “We will bless God from now and forever, Halleluyah.”", + "May I learn Torah in such a way that “this book of the Torah will not leave your mouth, and you shall study it day and night.” And “as for Me, this is My covenant with them, says HaShem. My spirit that is resting upon you and My words that I have placed in your mouth will not leave your mouth or the mouth of your offspring, or the mouth of the offspring of your offspring, says HaShem, from now and forever.”", + "May we recognize You Who are higher than all of the worlds.", + "May the verse quickly be realized, “He will give power to His king and elevate the horn of His anointed one.”", + "“HaShem’s is the sovereignty and He rules the nations.” “Saviors will arise on Mount Zion to judge Mount Esau, and HaShem’s will be the kingship.” “Then HaShem will be King over all the land; on that day, HaShem will be One and His Name will be One.”" + ], + [ + "Temporary and Permanent Repentance / The Tzaddik Sees His Smallness and the Greatness of the Jewish People / Repentance and the Shabbat / Repentance and Income
A person must make sure that nothing within him prevents the coming of the Mashiach. In other words, he must repent.
There are two types of repentance. The first kind is temporary. A person engages in business and the vanities of this world and, in the midst of that, he thinks of repenting — but then he returns to his original ways. He may flip back and forth repeatedly in this manner — between life and death, kosher and non-kosher, clean and unclean, forbidden and permitted. This type of repentance corresponds to the six days of the week.
The second type of repentance is permanent. In this case, evil is entirely expelled. This type of repentance corresponds to the Shabbat, and is associated with the level of Moses and Mashiach. Thus, Moses carried the staff of God in his hand, with which he transformed reality from evil to good.
On the Shabbat, a Tzaddik repents completely and then he can see how small he is and how great the Jewish people are. That is why every true Tzaddik — principally Moses — dedicates himself to helping the Jewish people.
When a person sees his lowliness, no one can deprive him of his livelihood by attempting to remove him from his place. Because he is humble to the point of nothingness, he has no characteristic corresponding to “place.”
Storm-Tossed by This World
“I have taken refuge in HaShem. How shall you say to my soul, flee to your mountain like a bird?” Yet although “I have been diligent, I remain like a bird alone on the roof. All day long my enemies revile me; those who are crazed against me curse me. I have eaten ashes like bread and mingled my drink with weeping, because of Your anger and Your wrath — for You lifted me up and then cast me down.”", + "I wander throughout the world without rest or quiet, in the midst of a storm that grows ever wilder. I am tossed about and torn asunder, more so than a ship driven off course in the heart of the sea.", + "Because I tasted the bitter fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, good and evil have mingled together within me until I have no peace and quiet.", + "Sometimes a little bit of goodness is aroused in me. Then I experience a thought of repentance and I decide to follow the ways of HaShem, the ways of the holy Torah, and I yearn for complete repentance.", + "But in the midst of that, my fiery lusts are aroused until I stray.", + "And so I rise and descend, descend and rise, and I cannot gain equanimity.", + "Woe to me because of my evil inclination! Woe to me before my Maker!", + "My soul is like a stone shot from a slingshot, like a body flung about by monstrous waves streaked with the mud of the meaningless lusts of this world.", + "I have no way to describe my pitiable state from the day that I entered the world until this day. “I have had no tranquility and no quiet, and have not rested; and trouble has come.”", + "To Live Permanently with God
Therefore, I plead before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, to bring me peace and quiet, and may I merit to repent before You with a complete repentance.", + "You Who told Your world to cease expanding with the word “Enough!” — tell my troubles, “Enough!”", + "You Who told the sea at the shore, “Do not cross this point!” — rebuke my evil inclination and all those who pursue me, so they will leave me alone and cease to exist, and I will be able to serve You with all my heart. May I be saved and gain peace. May I find my power in tranquility and confidence.", + "May I no longer experience You as ruling my life with arbitrary occurrences. May I no longer be like a turning wheel or a flung staff, so that one moment I am worthy and the next moment unworthy, one moment pure and the next moment impure.", + "Help me make Torah an unchanging part of my life and place myself permanently within Your holiness. May I repent completely and serve You always, day and night, with all my heart and soul, with both my good and evil inclinations.", + "The Holy Shabbat
Raise me quickly from impurity to purity, from the mundane to holiness, from the six days of the week to the holy Shabbat.", + "Help me celebrate the holy Shabbat with joy and happiness, honor and delight, and holiness and piety, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "May I be absorbed into the holiness of the Shabbat always, until I draw that holiness to the six days of the week.", + "May I attain the repentance of the holy Shabbat and refrain from all mundane matters. May I turn away entirely from the lusts and vanities of his world and plant myself within holiness, with tranquility and quiet — a tranquility of love and generosity, a tranquility of truth and faith, a tranquility of peace and calm, quiet and confidence, a complete tranquility that You desire.", + "May there be no falsehood in my spirit. May I never return to foolishness.", + "I Have Harmed Myself
My transgressions cannot be measured or counted. They are more numerous than the grains of sand in the sea. There are no words to describe the multitude and intensity of my terrible sins against You.", + "Woe to me, because I transgressed! Woe, what have I done? How could it be that I did not have pity on my precious spirit? How could it be that I was crueler to my spirit than murderers and sadists?", + "If all of the murderers, thieves and sadists in the world would gather against me, they would not be able to do to me in a thousand years what I did to myself with a single sin.", + "And I committed so many sins — so many that they are too numerous to count. Woe is me!", + "“Who will make my head water and my eye a source of tears?” I will weep day and night over my profanations. I have abused my holiness and torn apart my spirit in my anger.", + "I oppressed my soul with bitter and hard afflictions.", + "I come before You filled with sin, and You are filled with compassion. I am filled with confusion, evil thoughts and a twisted heart, and You are filled with goodness, decency, truth, kindness, compassion, life and peace.", + "Renewal and Humility
Master of the world, grant me a miracle so that I will not be like the dead even in my lifetime.", + "Help me attain complete repentance — the repentance of the holy Shabbat. Help me place myself permanently within the world of Torah and Divine service. May I spend all of my days in repentance, so that even during the six days of the week, I will be absorbed into the holiness of the Shabbat. By means of that holiness, may I recognize how lowly I am. Grant me true humility to be even lower in my eyes than I really am. At any rate, may I not rise above myself and overestimate myself, but recognize that I am on a level that is immeasurably humble.", + "May no hidden pride reside in my heart. Save me from egotism, haughtiness and coarseness of spirit.", + "Humility and Loving the Jewish People
My Father in Heaven, help me attain the ability to see with the eyes of the Shabbat, so that I will be able to recognize my lowliness.", + "I am infinitely low. Nevertheless, my ulterior motives and boundless pride confuse my mind so that I do not know anything of humility.", + "HaShem, You know my heart. You know how disgrace, shame and humiliation torment me.", + "Help me return to You with complete repentance. Rescue me from egotism, haughtiness and an arrogant spirit. Help me attain true humility until I will see how small I am and how great the holy people of Israel are, and may I dedicate myself to them always.", + "For the Seventh of Adar, the Yahrtzeit of Moses
May we not impede the coming of the Mashiach. A number of times in the past, with our evil deeds and many sins, we obstructed his coming and lengthened the exile.", + "Now tell our troubles, “Enough!”", + "Keep us from committing any more sins, from engaging in any more evil thoughts, and from suffering any more confusion. Help us attain pure, holy, lucid and proper thoughts.", + "Bring me close to You. Help me walk before You on a straight path. Transform me from evil to absolute good. Turn my heart to You. Help me attain true and eternal goodness.", + "“He sets my feet upon the rock; He firmly establishes my steps.” May I be set forever in Your service, in Your Torah and in the fear of You.", + "“He causes me to lie down upon lush meadows, He leads me alongside the tranquil waters, He restores my spirit. He leads me upon paths of justice for the sake of His Name.”", + "Help me come close to true Tzaddikim, to wholehearted people whose hearts are upright.", + "Send us a true leader, a faithful shepherd like Moses, who will carry us “as the nurse carries the suckling child,” until he will bring us to holiness and repentance.", + "Quickly redeem us. Bring us our righteous Mashiach. Help us live in accordance with Your beneficent will all the days of our lives. May we realize the verse, “Trust in HaShem and do good. Dwell in the Land and shepherd with faith.”", + "“Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return; renew our days as of old.”" + ], + [ + "We Reveal God’s Sovereignty When We Learn Torah / Torah Study Creates Worlds
When a Jews prays or learns Torah, he reveals God’s sovereignty.
His breath corresponds to the letter hei, and his voice, which draws out the breath, corresponds to the letter yod. When a person learns Torah or prays with awe and love of God, these two letters join together to form God’s Name.
A person who learns halakhah (Jewish law) in this way creates a world; when he learns a tractate, he creates an even greater universe.
Yearning for Holiness
“My spirit thirsts for God, for the living God. When will I come and see the face of God?” “Your compassion is abundant, HaShem. Give me life in accordance with Your judgment.”", + "Master of the world, help me attain complete, heartfelt repentance motivated by love. Then forgive all my sins so that no impression will be left of them at all. Moreover, may they all be transformed to merits.", + "Help me attain a state of mind that is holy, clear, pure and clean of dross, like silver refined seven times.", + "May I constantly renew my mind with sanctity and purity, so that I always learn and teach Torah with a mind that is clear and pure. May I swiftly understand everything that I learn, so that I do not need to delve into it at all.", + "May my mind grow in holiness and energy, with purity and clarity. May I be swift in the work of Heaven and understand everything in the words of Your holy Torah quickly, without any confusion whatsoever.", + "Knowing When to Study Torah
Teach me how to act in every aspect of my life — particularly in my Torah study, so that I will know when to learn Torah and when to set it aside in order to keep my mind fresh and holy, in accordance with Your beneficent will, so that I do not engage in too much learning, which would harm my mind.", + "As the verse states, “It is a time to act for HaShem, they have violated Your directives.” Our sages explain that this means that “at times, the nullification of Torah is its preservation.”", + "“I am more animal than man, and I lack human understanding.” I have no idea how to conduct myself in this matter in accordance with Your will. Therefore, at times I set my learning aside entirely when I shouldn’t do so, and at other times my soul burns so fervently so that I learn without cease — but that, too, is not good, because it is Your will to place boundaries on everything.", + "Holiness of Mind
Therefore, I stretch my hands out to You, my compassionate Father Who knows the secrets of my heart, and plead with You to bless me with holiness of the mind.", + "Teach me how to act in regard to Torah study and other holy endeavors — in what manner, when, how much — and particularly when to interrupt, in accordance with Your beneficent will, in order to rest my mind, so that I do not end up abandoning my Torah study altogether.", + "Everyone is unclear about this. There is no one who can give us clear advice.", + "Teach me Your ways, so that in everything that I do, my goal will be ultimate truth. “HaShem, teach me Your ways. Guide me on a path that is straight, despite my enemies who gaze upon me.” ��HaShem, teach me Your ways. I will walk in Your truth. Unite my heart to fear Your Name.” “Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; it is for You that I have hoped all day long.”", + "HaShem Sustains Us
Help me firmly trust that You will give me all that I need in both the physical and spiritual realms. Give me all that I need to sustain my soul and body with holiness and purity, granting me everything in its proper time.", + "As the verse states, “The eyes of all turn hopefully to You, and You give them their food in its time.”", + "Although I have sinned and acted in destructive ways, thus depriving myself of the right to receive sustenance from You, nevertheless, I trust that in Your kindness, You will not abandon me forever.", + "HaShem, You are good and do good for the wicked and for the righteous. As the verse states, “HaShem is good to all, and His compassion is on all of His creatures.”", + "In Your tremendous goodness, You sustain the entire world with grace, kindness and compassion, giving food to all creatures, for Your kindness is eternal.", + "Trust in God and Abundance
Do not repay me in accordance with my transgressions. May my sins never separate me from Your goodness and the flow of abundance that You constantly pour down upon us.", + "Strengthen me to trust in You. May my thoughts not bewilder me, and may my transgressions not confuse me and keep me from relying on You.", + "“Trust in HaShem forever, for HaShem is God, the eternal Rock.” “Blessed is the man who trusts in HaShem; HaShem will be His trust.”", + "May that trust become a conduit through which I receive a flow of goodness and sustenance — all in its proper time and before I feel its lack.", + "Our God, our Father, our Shepherd, our Sustainer, You Who give sustenance to all, from the greatest beast to the tiniest insect, send me my income. Support me, my family and every one who is dependent on me, with generous and unearned kindness.", + "Give me everything that I need through honorable and legitimate means. Be generous with me, so that earning a living will not distract me from learning Torah and serving You.", + "May I never have to depend on the gifts and loans of other people. Instead, open Your full, holy and generous hand so that I will never be ashamed or stumble.", + "May I always learn Torah and serve You, together with my children, my grandchildren and all of my descendants, as well as Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Repenting Immediately / Getting Lost in the World of Sins / Young and Old People
When a person sins, he turns onto a desolate path that branches into various misleading and desolate byways.
God calls him back immediately in a variety of ways. At first this person can repent and turn back easily, for he still recognizes God’s voice. But if he proceeds onto the desolate path and gets lost in its byways, he finds it hard to return to the proper, straight path. When God calls Him, he does not recognize God’s voice and so does not return.
That is the difference between a young person and an old person. A young person who is not immured in his sins can more easily return to God than can an old person, for this young person is still close to God and has not forgotten His voice.
I Have Gone Astray
“I have gone astray like a lost sheep. Seek Your servant, for I have not forgotten Your commandments.”", + "Master of the world, if I wished to tell how I went astray from my earliest moments until this day, reams of paper would not suffice, the earth could not contain all of my words, all of the parchment from the rams of Nevayot and all of the languages of the world could not express my errors. They could not describe all of the ruined paths, blasted avenues and bewildering labyrinths upon which I strayed.", + "I defiled my deeds. I erred, transgressed and sinned. I drew the evil inclination close to me until I sank to my present state.", + "At every moment, with my sins and blemished thoughts, I strayed upon contorted, ruined byways. Over the course of days and years, I wandered upon twisted paths that led to other twisted paths.", + "It was not enough that I strayed with my first sins, but every day I sinned yet more — sin upon sin, crime upon crime, iniquity upon iniquity, shameful thought upon shameful thought, vulgarity upon vulgarity, until my mind grew thick and my wicked fantasies gathered in a pile, rising and pressing upon me until I feel that I can no longer breathe.", + "What can I say? What words can I speak? How can I justify myself?", + "I stretch my hands out to You. Help me! Save me!", + "I have strayed for so many years on delusory paths that even if You have compassion on me and send me hints to return to You or call out to me, I will not recognize Your hints and I will not hear You calling out to me, and I will not return from my errors.", + "Woe! Woe! Woe!", + "Seeking the True Path
Master of the world, I should have prayed to You, cried out to You, and acknowledged my regret to You years ago.", + "Now, after I have sinned so much in my thoughts, speech and action, what will I say? If I cannot even properly express my contrition for a fraction of the sins that I committed, how can I possibly do so for all of them?", + "Woe! Woe! Woe! What can I say? How can I gather my courage?", + "I lie prostrate before You like a dead dog. I lie on the ground before You like spilled out, muddy water. I am filled with shame and disgrace, shortcomings, offenses and vice — from the soles of my feet to the crown of my head, from the day that I gained maturity until this moment.", + "Help me, for I have gone astray on misleading and blasted paths, and my thoughts are polluted and obscured. Teach me the true way and proper counsel, so that I will quickly return to the straight path in accordance with Your beneficent will and serve You with awe and love.", + "Be gracious to me and redeem me. “In accordance with Your kindness, give me life, and I will guard the testimony of Your mouth.”", + "“Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; I have hoped for You all day long.”", + "“HaShem, teach me the way of Your laws, and I will keep it at every step.”", + "“HaShem, the earth is filled With Your kindness; teach me Your laws.”" + ], + [ + "Faith Leads to Equanimity / Praying and Going to the Tzaddik / The Land of Israel and Equanimity / Yearning for the Land of Israel
When a person believes that God stands above him and hears his words, he prays properly and travels to the Tzaddik. But if he lacks faith, he grows depressed and unmotivated, and consequently he does not pray properly or travel to the Tzaddik.
A person who has faith grows spiritually regardless of adverse conditions. He may be compared to wheat planted in fertile soil, which grows well despite winds, thunder or lightning. The one who has faith prays properly and goes to the Tzaddik. Nothing frightens him. He attains equanimity, so that nothing can disturb his service of God, and he blossoms in his spiritual growth.
The Land of Israel is associated with faith, and so a person’s equanimity and his service of God depend on and are attained via the Land of Israel. Moses yearned for the Land of Israel principally because he saw that there a person can attain equanimity. Everybody must ask HaShem to feel a yearning for the Land of Israel. In particular, all of the Tzaddikim should yearn for the Land of Israel.
Before reciting the Shema,5“Shema Yisrael,” a declaration of faith in the Oneness of God and a commitment to fulfilling His commandments, comprised of verses from Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and 11:13-21, and Numbers 15:37- 41, is recited daily during morning and evening prayers, and before going to sleep. in which we proclaim our faith in God’s Oneness, we recite the phrase, “May He lead us upright to our Land,” for that expresses the yearning that we should feel for the Land of Israel.
The Holy Land
“HaShem, HaShem, God Who is compassionate and gracious, long-suffering and exceedingly kind,” help me — as well as all Jews — yearn to come to the Land of Israel, until with Your help, I will soon fulfill that desire.", + "Because I am so far from You, because my materiality is so thick, my heart so twisted and my mind so confused, I must come to the Land of Israel, which is the essence of our faith, the root of our holiness as a nation.", + "That is the Land that You chose for us, Your chosen people. It is the Land that You always gaze upon, the Land of true and eternal life, the beloved, good and broad Land that You desired and bequeathed to our fathers, the Land that contains the Godly city upon a holy mountain that is a beloved vista, the delight of the entire earth.", + "The Promised Land
HaShem, filled with compassion, kindness, goodness, righteousness and redemption, give me the gift of coming soon to the Land of Israel — the Holy Land, the land that our fathers inherited, the Land for which the spirit of all of the true Tzaddikim yearned.", + "Most of them came there, made rectifications and grew spiritually due to the holiness of the Land, which is the holy core of the entire world.", + "Abraham our patriarch toiled for years to discover the identity of the Holy Land, which is the basic core of holiness, the foundation of faith, until You revealed it to him.", + "You promised to bequeath it to his offspring. In the merit and power of the Land and of all of the Tzaddikim who came there, may I, too, although I am contemptible and worthless, quickly overcome all of the obstacles that prevent people from coming to the Land of Israel and arrive there soon!", + "The Journey to the Land of Israel
My compassionate Father, have pity on a poor person such as myself who stretches out his hands before You, asking for an unearned gift. Because of the turbulence of my mind, I do not deserve to receive that gift. Nevertheless, I hope in Your redemption, goodness, kindness and righteousness.", + "Have mercy on me. Bring me soon to the Land of Israel. Strengthen my mind and heart so that I will get past all the impediments and confusions of my mind.", + "Send me an abundant flow of money to pay for my expenses. May I set out in peace, travel in peace, and arrive in peace — at peace in my physical well-being, in my connection to the Torah, and in my finances.", + "Rescue me from all types of evil thoughts and blemishes. May the long journey not cause me any damage in body, soul or money. May it not harm me either physically or spiritually.", + "Once in the Land of Israel, may its holiness help me come close to You. May I rise from level to level in great holiness and purity, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "The Gifts of the Holy Land
With the help of the holiness of the Land of Israel, may I overcome my anger in all circumstances so that nothing in the world will irritate May I serve You with truth, faith and simplicity.", + "May I engage in Torah learning and prayer with intense feeling, and bring all of my strength and all of the thoughts of my heart and mind into each word of prayer.", + "May I believe with perfect faith that the world is filled with Your glory, and that when we pray, You stand before us and take heed of our every word.", + "May I know before Whom I stand: before the King of kings, the Holy One, Blessed be He. As a result, may I experience fear and awe before You.", + "May I have profound intent in my every word of prayer. May I not lose my focus: may I not turn my mind aside from the meaning of the words, and certainly may I not have any superficial or foreign thoughts.", + "Rather, may I connect my thought to my words of prayer with a strong bond that will never be severed.", + "Serving God
Help me grow stronger in my service of You. May I do so by learning Torah, praying, and performing good deeds with alacrity and joy, and not be affected by any problems, confusions or impediments. In addition, may I not suffer from any laziness, depression or weak resolve.", + "May I grow stronger by means of holy faith and nullify all heaviness, mental impediments, physical problems, sadness, foreign thoughts, and entanglements in my heart.", + "May I attain the trait of equanimity so that I will not be upset by any obstacles and confusions, and nothing will diminish my spirit.", + "Pour forth upon me the power to grow and blossom in holiness. May nothing in the world harm me. And may I learn Torah and perform mitzvot with all my heart so as to truly serve You.", + "Overcoming Impediments
HaShem, You alone, “Who gives power to the weary and strength to the person who lacks might,” know the depth of my weakness, the confusion of my mind and the entanglements of my heart.", + "In every matter, particularly in every holy endeavor that I wish to undertake, I face innumerable impediments and confusions.", + "When I embark on such an endeavor, my heart and mind are twisted into knots and afflicted with sadness, laziness, heaviness, foreign thoughts and innumerable ulterior motives, until “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "This has become so distressing that I have grown disgusted with my life. And the cause of it all is the fact that I have sinned.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. May I attain equanimity so that I will disregard all of the impediments and confusions that keep me from holiness — impediments from within due to my desires, confusion and foreign thoughts, and impediments from without due to other people near and far, particularly from the many people who rise up against me at every moment.", + "May I attain equanimity and pay them no mind. May I not suffer from a swarm of thoughts that upset me and shorten my spirit.", + "May my heart not be weak. May I not fear them, grow unsure or feel intimidated by them — for You, HaShem, fight on my behalf against my enemies and save me.", + "Attaining Good Traits
Master of the universe, strengthen my weak hands and tottering knees. Do not abandon me, but redeem me.", + "Help me come swiftly and easily to the Land of Israel, the Land that Moses and Aaron tried so hard to enter. There may I attain all that a person can achieve in the Holy Land.", + "May I attain equanimity and complete faith.", + "May I eradicate my anger and irritability. May I be good to all so that my heart will not contain any jealousy, animosity, irritation or anger, even against those who hate and persecute me. May I just be good to all, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "May I serve You with alacrity, joy, vitality and holy fervor.", + "Strengthen me to overcome all impediments to holiness and quickly come close to You, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "May I be strong and determined to serve You always. May I be a mighty warrior, conquering my evil inclination, turning aside from evil and doing that which is right in Your eyes, You Who are mighty and awesome, strong and abiding.", + "Strengthen me to have faith in You and to serve You.", + "Pour holy strength upon our hearts so that nothing in the world will confuse us.", + "May we keep the commandments as You have commanded us in Your holy Torah. “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear and do not be frightened of them, for HaShem your God goes with you. He will not fail you or abandon you.”", + "“Hope in HaShem. Let your heart be strong and courageous, and hope in HaShem.”", + "“Those who hope in HaShem will renew strength. They will rise with wings like eagles. They will rush forward and not grow weary. They will walk and not grow tired.”", + "“All who hope in HaShem, be strong and courageous in your heart.”" + ], + [ + "Repentance and the Resonant Repentance of One’s Offspring
A man may be a father; in addition, if he spilled any drops of seed in vain, they may have fathered harmful spirits, which live happily in the filthy environs of the grave. (After this person passes away, his spirit-children follow his coffin and wail for him just as his human children do, which is a great source of shame for him.)
When this person repents, circumcising the foreskin of his heart and creating a hollow in his heart, not only does his heart feel the pain of his sins, but the hearts of all of his offspring are also affected. In particular, the hearts of his spirit-children fall as they realize their situation. Then they suffer and burst out wailing.
The best time for a person to repent so that all of his offspring will feel the pangs of repentance is the Hebrew month of Elul, which is the acronym for Et Levavchah Ve-et Levav (“your heart and the heart of [your offspring]”).6Deuteronomy 30:6.
For the Month of Elul
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me soon feel the pain of my sins, which are many and grave. They rise to the heights of Heaven and descend to the deepest depths; they are more massive than the sands of the oceans, more numerous than the dust of the earth and the hairs of my head; and they overcome my soul and breath.", + "This is particularly true of the blemishing of sexual purity — the vain expenditure of seminal drops that originate from the mind, whether by accident or on purpose, unwillingly or willingly.", + "I do not know if I could live for even an hour if I were to fully experience the pain of this terrible blemish.", + "You have informed us through Your true Tzaddikim that as a result of the gravity of this blemish, the destruction of the Temple is extended, the redemption is impeded, Your Divine Presence is lowered into exile, naked souls are drawn into the dwelling place of the “husks,” and creatures that damage the world are created from each drop — in addition to other great and terrible blemishes.", + "The entire Torah depends on the rectification of sexual purity, which is the foundation of everything.", + "With this sin, a person blemishes all twentytwo letters of the Torah, from which the seminal drop is composed.", + "My heart is shuttered, confused and warped, so that I do not feel the pain of my grave and numerous sins, even if I speak of them.", + "Woe is me! Woe is me! But even if I were to repeat “Woe is me!” a thousand times, I still would not fully experience the feeling of woe.", + "However, You Who have compassion on all flesh and gaze to the end of all generations will rectify us, as You promised.", + "Therefore, I stretch my hands out to You, Strong Redeemer. Teach me always how to return to You, from evil to good and from death to life — because the state that I am in now is very bitter.", + "Circumcising the Heart
My Father, Creator and Redeemer, help me return to You with all my heart.", + "Circumcise the foreskin of my wicked heart. Open my heart so that I will feel the pain of my many grievous sins and cry out from my heart loudly and bitterly.", + "Woe! Woe! Woe! I will wail to You with all my heart, with a broken and shamed heart, from the walls of my heart, until my outcries will be discerned by the hearts of all of the seminal drops that came forth from me.", + "Some came forth in a permissible way, to father my children, may they live a good life and be well.", + "Other drops emerged from me in vain — by accident or on purpose. As for what became of each such drop, woe is me! May the hearts of all of them be circumcised. Wherever they are, may they all feel the intensity of their pain and suffering, and realize that they are living in the lowest pit, in places so filthy that it is not even fit to describe them.", + "May they experience a great tumult. May they painfully yearn to be rectified and return to You.", + "Arouse Your good compassion, Your hidden compassion, Your outstretched compassion, Your abundant compassions, on me and on them.", + "Rectify us. Redeem us quickly from the pit of destruction, from the muddy depths, from all filthy, desolate sites.", + "Redeem us and extract us from all of these sites to attain well-being. Rectify us.", + "You are the King Who conceives thoughts so that no one will be cast aside from You. Return Your exiled people quickly.", + "Circumcise our hearts to love Your Name. As the verse states, “May HaShem your God circumcise Your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love HaShem your God with all your heart and all your soul, and will truly live.”", + "The Holy Days of Elul
Our Father, King, living God, our Portion and our Rock, rescue the beloved remnant that still remains of us for the sake of Your covenant that You sealed in our flesh.", + "Help me soon circumcise the foreskin of my heart, as well as the hearts of my offspring — particularly during the holy month of Elul.", + "Help me from this moment onward, during the holy days of Elul, fully circumcise my heart and the hearts of my offspring. While I am still alive, may the true Tzaddikim rectify me, my offspring and all those who depend on me, so that I will not be humiliated, stumble forever, or appear before You in my shame.", + "May sin not crouch on top of my grave. Rather, with the help of the true Tzaddikim, may I rectify everything while I am still alive. My only hope is to rely on them. With the aid of their power and their promises, I still look forward to all good.", + "Repairing the Damage
You Who are filled with compassion, rescue me from insult and disgrace. When I die, may no harmful or destructive entities have the power to approach me and follow my coffin.", + "While I am still alive, may I rectify everything that I have damaged, so that You will then forgive all of my sins and I will not be judged after my death.", + "I am aware that I do not deserve such favors. But I trust in Your compassion. I rely on Your kindness. I hope for Your forgiveness and look forward to Your salvation — all in the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim, those of our generation and those who dwell in the dust.", + "You gaze upon the wicked person with the desire that he will become righteous. It has been taking me a long time to return to You, and in the meantime, every day I bring about more damage and commit more sins. Nevertheless, every day I still anticipate my redemption.", + "May I, my children, my grandchildren and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, quickly awaken from our sleep, arise from our descent, live after our deaths and return to You in truth with all our hearts, to be in accordance with Your beneficent will, from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Faith is the Gateway to the Tzaddik / Keeping the Gateway Open
The holy soul of a Tzaddik enters the world together with its branches — those people whose souls are dependent on it.
A “husk” of evil surrounds that holy soul, preventing its branch-souls from approaching it. However, the “husk” leaves an opening through which those souls may approach. That opening is faith.
If these branch-souls are blemished, they lose their faith. Then that opening is closed and they cannot come to this holy soul. Usually this closing is only temporary. But should the branch-souls have many blemishes, it is possible that the entrance will be sealed shut permanently.
To prevent this from happening, Heaven places a God-fearing person at the entrance. Like the “husk,” he prevents those branch-souls from entering. However, he plays a positive role as well, in that he prevents the “husk” from completely blocking the entrance. This makes it possible for a branch-soul that has the dedication to travel and come close to the Tzaddik to eventually cling to the Tzaddik.
Clinging to the Tzaddikim
“Open the gates of righteousness for me; I will enter them and praise God.” “Open the gates so that the righteous nation that keeps faith may enter.” “Gates, lift up your heads; eternal doors, be elevated; may the King of glory enter.”", + "Master of the world, give us the kind gift of faith in the sages. May we believe in all of the true Tzaddikim.", + "Help us enter the gates of holiness and come close to the souls of true Tzaddikim, on whom we all depend. They are the root of our souls, our life and the length of our days.", + "May we come close to them, walk in their holy ways, and return to You through them.", + "Without them, we lack all hope. Without them, we cannot even lift our hands and feet.", + "Act for the sake of Your Name. Do not repay us in accordance with our sins. Never cast us away from holy faith. Do not seal the opening shut. Do not close the door in our faces.", + "Have compassion on all Jews — particularly on me. I am spiritually impoverished. I lack good deeds and am soiled by my evil actions. As a result, even the little bit of good that I do with my blemished body is also blemished.", + "With what will a person as insignificant as I, lacking all merit, enter the gate of holiness and faith in order to come close to the true Tzaddik who is connected to the root of my soul?", + "“If God takes note of sins, HaShem, who will stand?”", + "Overcoming the “Husks” of Evil
Master of compassion, open the doors of holiness for me. Pour Your holy faith onto me so that my faith will always be firm. May I believe in You and in Your true Tzaddikim. May I come close to them and draw from their holy wisdom.", + "Eliminate all of the “husks” and aspects of evil that cluster around them, from which come all of the opponents of the true Tzaddikim and all of the doubts and confusions that people have about Tzaddikim.", + "HaShem, give us true counsel so that the truth will be revealed to us. Open the gates of faith so that no “husk” or aspect of evil will have the power to hide the truth.", + "The Concealment Caused by Dispute
Master of the world, You know all of the harm that dispute has caused, so that we are worn out and “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "In addition to that, the intensification of dispute — particularly the fighting among righteous people and Torah sages — has concealed from us the knowledge of the true Tzaddik who is connected to the root of our souls, through whom we can receive eternal help.", + "Seeking the True Tzaddik
Master of the world, God of truth, You Who investigate man’s heart and inner being, You know the secrets within the core of my heart.", + "My spirit yearns for the courtyards of HaShem, where I may come close to the true Tzaddik who can save me from the troubles of my spirit, bring me forth from my sins, and return me to You in truth.", + "“If only I could know how to find him,” I would “leap upon the mountains and jump upon the hills” to come to him and “tell him the number of my steps.”", + "Help me search for him as a person searches for silver and hidden treasures, even if it takes years, until I will find the one whom my soul loves. May the true Tzaddik who is connected to the root of my soul be revealed to me, so that I may come close to him.", + "May no obstacle impede me; may no barrier obstruct me. May I run after him with all of my might and attain complete faith, until with that faith I will draw down his holy wisdom and share his goodness with others as I spread his teachings.", + "Incapacitate and chase away all of the guardians of the gates, all of the sentries that stand at the entranceway. Remove even the thin curtain at the entrance so that whoever wishes to enter may do so.", + "Inspire the hearts of righteous, worthy and God-fearing people to refrain from engaging in dispute among themselves, and refrain from doing anything that might prevent anyone from coming close to the core of truth, which is the true Tzaddik who is connected to the root of our souls.", + "An End to the Exile
Send Your help to me, to my offspring and to all of Your nation, the House of Israel, so that we will dedicate ourselves with our bodies, souls and possessions to the mission of coming close to the true Tzaddik and receiving his holy wisdom.", + "Quickly bring redemption to the world as a whole and to its every detail.", + "Quickly bring us to the Land of Israel, which is the land of life, the site of faith and the summation of holiness.", + "The time has come for You to save Your nation, the Jewish people, for “if not now, when?”", + "The exile has been very long — for the body and soul of each individual and for the physical and spiritual realms of the entire cosmos.", + "Have compassion on the congregation of Jeshurun. Forgive our sins. Save us for the sake of Your Name.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your covenant. Turn to us and answer us at a time of trouble, for salvation is Yours, HaShem.", + "Do not cast us away forever from Your holy faith. Do not repay us in accordance with our sins. “Do not cast us away from You. Do not remove Your holy spirit from us. Do not cast us away in our old age. When our strength is spent, do not abandon us.” Open a gate for us at the time of the closing of the gate.", + "Years have passed — yet due to our many, severe sins, the gates of holiness remain shut.", + "Arouse Your compassion for a person as feeble as I, who has been standing at the entrance for so many years. Command Your angels to open the gates of holiness for me and bring me through them, “before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars grow dark.”", + "“Today, as the sun sets, let us come to your gates.”", + "“Do not hide Your face from me on my day of trouble. Incline Your ear to me; on the day that I call, quickly answer me.”", + "“HaShem, hear my prayer, listen to my plea; in Your faithfulness answer me, in Your righteousness.”", + "“All of Your commandments are faithful. When falsehood pursues me, help me, HaShem!”", + "“HaShem, teach me Your ways. Guide me on a path that is straight, despite my enemies who gaze upon me.”", + "“Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; it is for You that I have hoped all day long.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "The Power of Thought
Thought has such great power that a person can achieve anything that he focuses on intensely. For example, if he concentrates on having money, he will certainly become wealthy. The same holds true regarding any other matter.
This thought must be accompanied by the nullification of all sensory impressions. It must be so powerful that if a person were to imagine that he is dying for the sake of sanctifying God’s Name, he might die from the pain. A person must not allow himself to remain in that state, so as not to leave this world before his time.
Sanctifying HaShem’s Name When Reciting the Shema
“HaShem, I lift my soul to You.”", + "Master of the world, help me sanctify Your Name at every moment — in particular during the recital of the Shema,7See footnote 5, p. 221. as I accept the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven.", + "May I unify Your Name every evening and morning by joyfully dedicating my soul and my heart to sanctify Your Name. And each time I sanctify and unify Your Name, may I be ready to suffer martyrdom on Your behalf. May I express that readiness by mentally accepting the four types of execution mandated by the Torah: stoning, burning, decapitation and strangulation.", + "May I be willing to experience all of these deaths and other torments, too, for the sake of Your great and holy Name. Help me focus on experiencing such martyrdom with all of the power of my thoughts, both deep and superficial.", + "May I visualize all of these deaths and torments for the sake of Your great and holy Name in every detail, as all of my outer senses are nullified, until I experience them so powerfully and with such verisimilitude that my soul is literally on the verge of leaving my body, and I must gather my strength to moderate that visualization and keep from dying prematurely, since it is not Your desire to take away a person’s soul before its time.", + "Teach me how to conduct myself in this way, accepting martyrdom with love for the sake of sanctifying Your Name, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "Self-Nullification While Reciting the Shema
Master of the world, You revealed to us through Your holy sages that throughout our deep exile — overall and in its every detail — we can rely only on the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim who dedicate their lives to sanctify Your Name. Therefore, help us cleave to these holy Tzaddikim.", + "All of the secrets of the heart are revealed to You. Therefore, You know that every member of Your nation, the House of Israel, is prepared to sacrifice his life in order to sanctify Your Name.", + "We ourselves heard about a good number of simple people who died and suffered torments for the sake of sanctifying Your great Name.", + "I, too — poor in deeds and contemptible, possessing powerful physical urges and filled with a multitude of sins — am prepared to die immediately for the sake of sanctifying Your Name. To that end, with all my heart and soul, I accept upon myself stoning, burning, decapitation and strangulation.", + "Even if I cannot yet visualize such an experience to the point of literally feeling the pangs of death, I am nevertheless prepared with all my heart to die immediately for the sake of sanctifying Your Name.", + "Therefore, accept my dedication, together with that of all those righteous and holy people who sacrificed their lives for the sake of Your holy Name.", + "In this way, raise us from our descent and exile — overall and in every physical and spiritual detail.", + "Help us approach You with love. Swiftly bring us back to You with complete repentance. Raise us ever higher until we achieve all that we have sought from You.", + "May we strengthen our power of mind so much that when we dedicate ourselves to sanctify Your Name, we will feel the pangs of death.", + "Every day, when we recite the Shema, may we powerfully visualize that we are sacrificing our lives for the sake of Your holy Name.", + "As a result, when our actual end arrives, may we leave the world for the sake of the sanctification of Your Name wholeheartedly, with love and joy. May our deaths atone for all of our sins. May our souls then rise up to You pure and clean, bound in the bond of life. And may we not come before You in shame.", + "The Merit of the Holy Martyrs
Because of our many sins, our dedication to the cause of sanctifying Your Name is so weak that it lacks the power to lift us from our precipitous descent and exile in the physical and spiritual realms, overall and in every detail — “she has descended shockingly, with no one to console her.” This is the state of the Jewish people now, at the end of our bitter exile, which every individual Jew experiences every day.", + "Recall all of the righteous and holy people, from Abraham our patriarch to the present, who dedicated their lives to the cause of sanctifying Your Name, many of whom suffered terrible and bitter torments and violent deaths.", + "In particular, recall the merit of Rabbi Akiva, whose flesh was raked with iron combs until, as he recited the Shema and pronounced the word “One,” his soul departed. Recall the merit of his ten colleagues who were tortured by the Roman government, all of whom endured difficult and bitter suffering until their souls left them, for the sake of sanctifying Your Name in holiness and purity. And with them, recall the merit of the holy people in all generations, millions of souls and entire holy communities, who were tormented and gave their lives for the sake of sanctifying Your Name.", + "As You remember their sacrifices, mitigate Your anger, sweeten and nullify all judgments and harsh decrees against us.", + "Help us no longer return to our foolishness but come back to You. May we do only Your will, all the days of our lives.", + "In the midst of our exile, overall and in every detail, we can rely only on the power and merit of those holy people who gave their souls for the sake of sanctifying Your Name.", + "As King David said, “I said to HaShem, You are my God, my only good is in You; as for the holy and mighty ones who are in the earth, all of my desire is in them.”", + "Help us in the merit and power of all of the holy Tzaddikim from the earliest days until now, people without number who sacrificed themselves to sanctify Your Name. Our Master and King, in their merit and strength, help us dedicate ourselves to sanctify Your Name with love and awe, with joy and goodness of heart.", + "Bring us back to You quickly with complete repentance in the merit of these holy Tzaddikim.", + "Bring us forth quickly from all of our sins, from the blemishes and desolation into which we fell, each one in his own way.", + "Justice and Redemption
Master of the world, what can we say? How can we justify ourselves?", + "We cast our burden upon You. We stretch our hands out to You. Help us return to You quickly in the merit of the holy Tzaddikim.", + "“Be gracious to me, God, because I call out to You the entire day. Gladden the soul of Your servant, because I lift my soul to You, God.”", + "Have compassion on Your great and holy honor. Take vengeance in our days, in our sight, for the spilled blood of Your servants. “God of vengeance, HaShem, God of vengeance, appear. Rise up, Judge of the earth; render payment to the proud.”", + "Quickly redeem us. Bring back our exiles. Gather us swiftly from the four corners of the earth to our land. Our Father in Heaven, sanctify Your Name in Your world by aiding the nation that sanctifies Your Name. Our King, elevate our might and redeem us soon for the sake of Your Name. “Blessed is the One Who sanctifies His Name among the multitudes.”" + ], + [ + "Praying at Midnight
Arising at midnight to pray is as spiritually powerful as giving a pidyon ha-nefesh (literally, “soulredemption”), a monetary gift to a Tzaddik, with the request that he pray on one’s behalf. This is because midnight constitutes the sweetening of judgments.
And in the morning, a person should look at the sky, for doing so draws down proper awareness.
Arising at Midnight
“At midnight I will arise to thank You for Your righteous judgments.”", + "You Who awaken the sleeping and arouse the slumbering, help me so that nothing will prevent me from waking up every night at midnight with alacrity, without any laziness or fatigue, without being overcome by sleep.", + "Awaken the northern wind that blows upon the harp of King David at midnight. May that infuse me with the energy to awaken every night at midnight.", + "“Awaken, my soul; awaken, lyre and harp, I will awaken the dawn.”", + "Reciting Tikkun Chatzot
Master of the world, You have urged us, as expressed in several passages in the holy Zohar, to awaken every night at midnight.", + "But You know the many impediments that overcome us and prevent us from waking up, so that on most nights, we have not done so.", + "Master of all, mighty to save, give me counsel on how to arise every night at midnight — six hours following the beginning of the night, whether in winter or summer.", + "May I awaken at that time with alacrity and recite Tikkun Chatzot, the Midnight Lament,8A special order of prayers mourning the destruction of the Holy Temple. For more details, see The Sweetest Hour, published by the Breslov Research Institute. to mourn and wail over the destruction of the Temple and over the exile of the Torah, insofar as its secrets have been given over to evil “outer forces,” and over my many grave sins that have extended the exile exceedingly, as is revealed before You, Creator of all.", + "Drawing Down a Thread of Kindness
Woe is me! What can I say? How can I justify myself? I stand before You with a great sense of guilt.", + "I acknowledge that I did what I did. Help me from this moment on to return to the straight path.", + "In particular, may I never neglect arising at midnight. Be with me always. Protect me so that arising at midnight will never harm me in any way, so that I will never experience headaches or any other problem.", + "My Father in Heaven, raise me up and I will live. May I arise every night at midnight — whether on a weekday, the Shabbat or a festival, whether I am at home or traveling on the road — to recite Tikkun Chatzot and learn a great deal of Torah.", + "As a result of reciting Tikkun Chatzot, may I sweeten and eliminate all judgments against myself, my entire family and every member of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "And every morning, may I look at the sky so that, with Your help, I will draw upon myself a holy, pure and clear state of mind with which I will be able to return to You and live in accordance with Your beneficent will — from now and forever.", + "May a thread of kindness from the “morning of Abraham” be drawn onto me every morning. May the verse be realized, “By day, HaShem will command His kindness, and at night, His resting place is with me; a prayer to the God of my life.”", + "“HaShem, Your kindness is in the heavens, Your faithfulness reaches to the heavens.”", + "“New in the mornings, great is Your faithfulness.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Through Joy, a Person Can Confess His Sins / Rectifying the Realm of Speech
A person should confess his sins to God.
He may experience a variety of obstacles as he does so. For example, he might have forgotten the sins that he committed, or he might find confession too upsetting. To engage in confession successfully, a person must experience joy — particularly the joy of performing a mitzvah, especially a mitzvah whose joyous aspect is paramount, such as getting married.
Joy is a structure that possesses its own anatomy of 248 limbs and 365 sinews (corresponding to the anatomy of the person feeling that joy). Every mitzvah possesses a limb of that anatomy. If a person transgressed against a particular mitzvah, he damaged it. Later, as he rejoices and proceeds through the anatomy of joy, when he comes to a limb that corresponds to the damaged mitzvah, his joy ceases and, to the contrary, turns to its opposite, which is worry.
To succeed in experiencing the entire structure of joy, a person must perform a great many mitzvot. The great joy of these mitzvot shines so brightly that it eradicates the obstacles that were created by his sins. This can even be experienced by a Jewish sinner — because, our sages state, even Jewish sinners are filled with mitzvot.
The blemishes of this person’s sins had affected his soul, which is associated with speech. When the mitzvot that this person now performs eradicate those blemishes, he receives the power of speech and is able to confess his sins. Through his confession, the entire supernal realm of speech is rectified, and that causes a unification of God and His Divine Presence.
The Sadness Caused by Sins
“I will thank HaShem greatly with my mouth. In the midst of the multitudes, I will praise Him, for He stands at the right hand of the poor person to save him from those who judge his soul.”", + "Master of the world, teach me how to thank You and thus gladden my soul. Then, filled with that joy, may I confess to You all of the sins that I committed throughout my entire life, and thus may I return to You.", + "Joy is planted in one side of my heart and sadness in the other.", + "I possess infinite reason to rejoice, for You made me a Jew, a member of the Chosen People of Israel, which is elevated above all other nations.", + "You express affection for Your nation, the Jewish people, in many ways, because You love us profoundly and eternally.", + "Out of Your love and compassion for us, You gave us a vast Torah with many commandments. There is no end to our joy for each commandment, which restores the soul and gladdens the heart. As the verse states, “The commandments of HaShem are upright, gladdening the heart.”", + "But because of my many grievous sins, I constantly suffer from sadness and worry. “I tell my sin; I worry because of my transgression.”", + "This sadness harms my service of You because it closes my heart and confuses my mind until I feel no inspiration to return to You. I even find that confessing my transgressions and speaking to You is hard for me to do.", + "Gladdening the Spirit
Teach me how to gladden my spirit at all times.", + "You have taught us through Your holy Tzaddikim that no matter what a person has done and whatever level he may be on, he must reject sadness and force himself to be joyful.", + "First of all, he must recall that at the very least, he is a Jew. In addition, he must seek and find the good points within himself that result from all of the many mitzvot that he has performed throughout his life.", + "Every Jew has performed many mitzvot. Even Jewish sinners are as filled with mitzvot as a pomegranate is filled with seeds.", + "And so every Jew, even the least of the least and the lowest of the low, has reason to rejoice.", + "Gathering Particles of Joy
Master of the universe, Lord of miracles, compassionate Father, Whose presence is marked by might and gladness, help me gather all of the particles of joy from all of the mitzvot that I have performed and all of the good points that I have attained from my earliest days until today.", + "Once they have been gathered together, may all of these particles of joy overcome the sadness caused by my many sins, until as a result I rejoice always and strengthen myself with gladness as I implement the advice that You gave us through Your holy Tzaddikim.", + "Help me become so joyful that I break out in dance.", + "The Joy of a Mitzvah
Help me always rejoice in performing a mitzvah, such as gladdening a couple at their wedding.", + "Help me always experience the joy of a mitzvah so intensely that I will dance a great deal. May I rejoice and dance so much that I will make my way through the entire spiritual structure of joy and dancing.", + "That structure is composed of the 248 limbs and 365 sinews. This is because joy is the root and core of all the 613 mitzvot in the Torah. As the verse states, “The commandments of HaShem are upright, gladdening the heart.”", + "The Light of a Person’s Good Points
May the joy of the good points within me shine with a light so intense and wonderful that it overcomes the darkness, which consists of the impediments, worries and sadness that resulted from the multitude of sins that I committed from my youth until this day.", + "Even if these sins are many and terrible, the measure of good outweighs them.", + "Please infuse so much light into the joy of my mitzvot and good points that it will overcome the darkness, worries and sadness of the multitude of my sins.", + "May the evil be nullified before the good. May the sadness of my sins be nullified before the joy of the mitzvot that I have performed. Then I will rejoice and dance in the joy of a mitzvah until I attain complete happiness and perfect the spiritual structure of joy and dancing.", + "Help me confess all of my transgressions to You. May nothing impede me or distract me from doing so. And in the course of my confession, may I not forget the slightest detail.", + "By means of this verbal confession, may I build and perfect my speech. As a result, may the supernal voice be aroused and unify with my speech until You rectify all of the sins that I committed from my youth until today, and You restore all of the Divine Names that I blemished.", + "From the Source of Joy
Who will give me a mouth to speak, to express all of my speech before You? From where will I take the power to pour forth my heart like water before Your countenance, HaShem, Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion? “My King and my God, I will pray to You.”", + "Teach me how to achieve victory over You so that You will bring me back in complete repentance before You, my Father, my Rock, my Redeemer, Who gazes forward to grant me a good end.", + "In Your mighty compassion, in Your great salvation and in the ways of Your wondrous counsel, help me be joyous always.", + "“Give joy to the soul of Your servant — because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!”", + "Always strengthen and encourage me to overcome sadness with joy. Gladden my soul with every means of attaining joy that our holy rabbis taught us, so that I will always be glad and never allow sadness to approach me. May depression have no power to close my heart or confuse my mind.", + "May I increase my happiness until I am able to confess before You fully and pour forth my heart like water before Your countenance, explicating all of my speech before You every day with a broken and crushed heart.", + "And after that, may I immediately return to an even greater joy.", + "Multiply my happiness constantly until I serve You always “with joy and a good heart because of a multitude of everything.”", + "I have trusted in Your holy, great and awesome Name to always help me grow stronger with joy.", + "May I rejoice in Your salvation. “I will rejoice and be delighted in You; I will sing to Your supernal Name.”", + "Draw joy upon all of us from the source of joy, from the joy that is destined to come upon us soon through our righteous Mashiach. As the verse states, “In joy shall you go forth and in peace shall you be led. The mountains and the hills will burst out in song before you, and all of the trees of the field will clap their hands.”", + "Quickly redeem us. Console us and give us joy, quickly and in our time.", + "And may it soon come about that “HaShem will console Zion. He will console all of its ruins. He will make its desert like Eden and its lowland like the garden of HaShem. Gladness and joy shall be found in it, thanksgiving and the voice of song.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Judging Others Favorably / Judging Oneself Favorably / Creating Melodies of Holiness / The Spiritual Tabernacle from Which Schoolchildren Receive Their Breath
A person must judge others favorably even if they seem completely bad, and search for even a little bit of good in them. When one finds that good, he raises them up and induces them to repent.
One must apply this technique to himself as well. Even if he sees that he is filled with wrongdoing, he must not allow himself to fall. Instead, he must judge himself favorably and search until he finds some good deed that he performed. It is possible that as he examines this deed, he will see that it was imperfect, filled with flaws and ulterior motives. Nevertheless, it must contain a pristine point of goodness. When he finds even a little bit of good in himself and grows joyful, he moves from the side of guilt to the side of merit, and then he can repent. And then he should repeat this process.
“I will sing to my God with my being.” By finding good points within himself and gathering them together, a person makes spiritual melodies with his soul, like a musician who plucks the notes that comprise a melody. Then he is able to pray and sing to God.
A person who makes such tunes by gathering good points even from Jewish sinners is a Tzaddik. All of these good points desire to come to him and be absorbed into him. After he gathers them all, he stands and prays with them.
Every generation has a great Tzaddik who corresponds to Moses. Just as Moses built the Tabernacle, this Tzaddik, too, builds a spiritual tabernacle, and from it, schoolchildren receive their breath, which is without sin.
God Knows Each Person from Before He Came into the World
“I will praise HaShem while I am alive; I will sing to my God with my being.”", + "Master of the world, in Your wondrous ways and mighty kindness, help me always gladden my immeasurably pathetic and dejected soul.", + "You alone know everything that has occurred under the sun, from the day that Adam was created to this moment — including everything that is happening in our generation, everything that is happening to every Jew in the world, and, in particular, everything that is happening to me. I have been cruel to myself because I am a poor and desolate, blemished, willful and guilty sinner.", + "You know all that my soul has experienced. From the day that it was emanated, created, formed and made, it passed through various incarnations until it entered my coarse, sinful and blemished body.", + "You know all that has happened to me from the very beginning: from the state of “nothingness” (before I existed) to the creation of the appearance of the fruit (my neshamah), the creation of the taste of the fruit (my ruach), the creation of its fragrance (my nefesh), the creation by the wise men of the seed (the formation of the seed in my father’s mind), the planting of the seed (the moment of conception), the formation of the fruit (my embryo), the candle burning (my learning Torah in the womb), and the cutting of the fruit from the branch (the cutting of my umbilical cord).", + "You alone know the deeper meaning of these matters.", + "You know everything that occurred to me then and everything that occurred to me afterward until this moment. You know everything that I have done, for good or for bad. In regard to the bad, You know all of my transgressions and blemishes — those that I committed accidentally and those that I committed on purpose, those that occurred against my will and those that I did willingly. And You know of the good points that I have acquired in the course of my lifetime to the present day.", + "And now, after all that I have experienced and done, whether for good or for bad, teach me how to repent from this moment onward.", + "Judging Oneself Favorably
Master of the world, You Who desire kindness and are filled with compassion, You Who gaze upon the wicked person with the desire that he will become righteous, You Who judge everyone favorably, help me walk on the proper path so that I will find merit and good points within myself.", + "May I always judge myself favorably and, in that way, make myself joyous and enter the side of merit. As a result of that, may I attain complete repentance, and then pray with intensity, vitality, fervor and gladness.", + "May I emulate the verse, “I will sing to my God with my being.”", + "Judging Oneself and Others Favorably
Master of the world, You know that only due to the dynamics of finding the good within myself, as expressed in Rebbe Nachman’s holy, awesome, elevated and wondrous interpretation of the verse, “I will sing to my God with my being,” do I possess the vitality, hopefulness and ability to speak to You.", + "You know how mighty and vast is my ruination, how concentrated is the bitterness and mortal pains of my sins — in amount and intensity.", + "My hope was almost gone. From the soles of my feet to the crown of my head, there was nothing whole but only spiritual wounds, blows and lacerations.", + "But through Rebbe Nachman’s teaching, You taught us that a person must find good points within himself, thus gladdening his soul and never growing despondent.", + "Therefore, every time sadness attempts to overcome me by reminding me of my grievous sins, weakening my mind and hands as though my hope is gone, keep me from growing dejected. To the contrary, help me find within myself the merit and good points of the good deeds that I have performed throughout the course of my life.", + "Despite my worthlessness and lowliness, despite the multitude of my blemishes, Your kindness overwhelms me and You help me perform mitzvot and good deeds.", + "That is true of the entire congregation of Israel. You praise and express affection for all of them in their exile and lowliness, proclaiming that their “temples are like a pomegranate split open” — meaning, say our sages, that all Jews, even the worst sinners, are filled with mitzvot as a pomegranate is filled with seeds.", + "And so even if the mitzvot that we perform are adulterated with dross, ulterior motives, foreign thoughts and confusion, so that we have never performed even a single mitzvah perfectly, they must contain some good. Every mitzvah that we perform — wearing tzitzit,9Tzitzit are specially spun and tied strings which Jewish men are required to affix to their four-cornered garments, as stipulated in Numbers 15:37-41 and discussed in Menachot 43b. putting on tefilin,1010 See footnote 3, p. 67. keeping the Shabbat, giving charity, performing kind deeds, eating kosher food — contains a good point. As a result of recognizing those good points, may we rejoice for all of our days.", + "Master of the world, help me follow in the footsteps of the true Tzaddikim who speak on behalf of the entire Jewish people and toil with all their might to find merit and goodness within even the lowliest Jew. When I look at a wicked person, may I seek the good points in him and judge him favorably. As I do so, may I restore him to the side of merit and induce him to repent completely.", + "The Tzaddikim Who Seek the Good in Everyone
Help us come close to the true Tzaddikim who, in their wisdom, constantly seek good points within all Jews, even Jewish sinners. They gather the good points of each individual, bringing him to the side of merit. In that way, they build wondrous and awesome spiritual structures of holiness, raising before You delights that had not arisen from the earliest days.", + "By gathering together this good, they create holy songs and melodies.", + "Clinging to the Holy Tzaddikim
Master of the world, help me come close to these awesome Tzaddikim and hear their holy prayers.", + "They are the only ones who know how to pray on behalf of the entire Jewish people. They lead the prayers to help the multitudes fulfill their obligation. They gather all of the good points from every member of the congregation, and as they pray before You with all of this goodness, they transform Your trait of judgment to that of compassion.", + "May we be absorbed into the prayers of these Tzaddikim. May they always pray on our behalf.", + "They will not allow You to remain silent, but they will pray until You gather us to You, bring us to the side of merit, gladden our spirit always, and restore us to You with complete repentance forever.", + "Overcoming the Heretics
Protect all of the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, from those groups of Jews who are “wise for the sake of evil,” who presently proliferate in the world.", + "There are heretics who engage in the study of secular subjects and the vulgar languages of the gentiles. They steadily campaign to educate Jewish youth in their evil and bitter ways, in order to distance them from learning the Oral Torah. Instead, they want the youth to learn no more than Tanakh11An acronym for Torah, Nevi’im, Ketuvim (Torah, Prophets, Writings), comprising the twenty-four books of the Hebrew Bible. and Hebrew grammar, and even that for just a short period every day, followed by secular studies and gentile languages — a course of study that uproots a person from both worlds.", + "Woe to the eyes that see this! Woe to the ears that hear this!", + "There are other groups of Jews who are wise in their own eyes, who mock those who serve You and learn Your Torah wholeheartedly without worthless studies, as we were taught to do by our holy fathers and rabbis.", + "Many such groups now rise up against pious Jews and spread a net around their feet in order to drag them away from the straight and welltrodden path. These groups concoct wisdoms that are in truth foolishness and mockery, in order to confuse and weaken those who are straight and wholehearted.", + "Guarding the Purity of the Children
HaShem, You know how damaging these studies are to serving You. Guard the youth of Your nation, the House of Israel, from being caught in the net of these evil camps.", + "Teach us how to raise our children, how to guard them and rescue their souls from these evil camps, how to educate them for the good in Your holy and true ways, so that they will walk on the straight and true path with a whole heart and simplicity, in accordance with Your will, as we were taught by our holy fathers and rabbis.", + "May we tell our children and the generations that come after us all that You have done for us from the days of our fathers to the present day, “so that the last generation may know, sons will be born and arise and tell their own sons.”", + "“You should make them known to your children and to your children’s children.” May we teach our children our holy, pure and wholehearted faith.", + "Have compassion on Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from their childhood, so that the children will receive their breath, which is without sin, from the spiritual tabernacle built by the true Tzaddikim.", + "The Tzaddikim and the Children
Master of the world, many people are trying to damage the breath of the holy mouths of schoolchildren, which is without sin. Shield these children from every sort of education that is wicked and wrong in Your eyes.", + "May all Jewish children receive the pure breath of their mouths from the holy tabernacle of the true Tzaddik who is connected to the root of their souls. May they be educated to serve You and learn Torah for its own sake, studying it day and night until their hearts are opened.", + "Help them comprehend and keep all of the words of Your Torah with love. Illumine their eyes in Your Torah. Cause their hearts to cling to Your mitzvot. Lengthen their years in goodness and pleasantness. Help them serve You all of their days.", + "The Tzaddikim Protect the Schoolchildren
Master of the world, give us what we ask of You in the merit and power of the true and great Tzaddikim, who are always engaged in judging the world favorably, who look for good points in every Jew — even in the lowest of the low — who gather these good points together and pray together with them in order to sweeten and nullify all judgments.", + "These Tzaddikim see and understand all levels — overall and in detail — that relate to schoolchildren. They see what the children are learning and from which Tzaddik they receive the breath of their mouths, which is without sin, and how much they receive from him, and the generations that will come forth from them until the coming of the Mashiach.", + "In the merit and power of those Tzaddikim, help us and all of the children of Your nation, the Jewish people, attain all that we have requested of You, for the good.", + "May All Jews Be Judged Favorably
Master of the world, in the merit of the true Tzaddikim of past generations and of this generation, help me come to the side of merit and return to You completely.", + "At every moment, give me true counsel to find the good within myself, so that I will gladden my spirit and never allow sadness to touch me. May I be only joyful, with all my heart and soul.", + "Place joy in my heart as I seek every good point that I have attained from the beginning of my lifetime to this day, with which I have given You pleasure.", + "In addition, grant me the knowledge and understanding to give joy to Your nation, the Jewish people, by judging them favorably, until all of them will return to You joyfully.", + "May the verse quickly be realized, “I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit in your midst. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will place My spirit in your midst and cause you to obey My ordinances and keep and perform My laws.”", + "May we serve You with joy and come before You with singing.", + "May the verse be realized, “Israel will rejoice in its Maker; the children of Zion will be glad in their King.”", + "“I will sing to HaShem with my life; I will sing to my God with my being. May my speech be sweet to Him; I will rejoice in HaShem. Sinners will be erased from the land and the wicked will be no more. My spirit, bless HaShem. Halleluyah!”" + ], + [ + "This Paltry World
Once a person has clung to the words of Torah that come from the mouth of the Tzaddik, it is astonishing that afterward he can still tolerate and even desire the life of this world.
For the Seventh of Adar, the Yahrtzeit of Moses
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me cling to Your holy Torah.", + "Open my heart and my mind so that I will understand all of the words of Your pure, perfect Torah, which restores the soul, grants wisdom to the foolish, gladdens the heart, enlightens the eyes, stands forever and is altogether just.", + "May I feel the wondrous sweetness of the awesome Torah insights revealed by the true Tzaddikim, who give life to all the worlds.", + "May I take so much delight in You through the words of Your holy Torah that I am repelled by the life of this world, by its lusts and vanities. May all of the life of this world be as nothing to me because of the great pleasure that I take in the words of Your Torah, all of which are alive and strong, faithful and delightful forever, more beloved than gold and fine gold, sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.", + "As from a distance, my mind senses the sweet profundity of the words of Your Torah, whose every phrase rises to the infinite heights and descends to the endless depths, unifying all worlds and giving wondrous counsel to those who dwell in Heaven and those who dwell on earth, teaching them how to know You and cling to You.", + "“How great are Your deeds, HaShem; how very deep are Your thoughts.”", + "If we were to bend our ears and turn our hearts to one phrase of Your holy Torah, which You revealed to us through Moses and all the true Tzaddikim in every generation until this day, we would become as nothing.", + "But because of our many sins, we do not bring that awareness into our hearts to eliminate our desires. And so our hearts remain filled with other thoughts, longings, confusions and contortions, far from the words of Your holy Torah, the sweetness of whose pure words we do not feel.", + "The Pleasant Words of Torah
Sole Master of the world, You Who teach Torah to Your nation, the Jewish people, open our hearts to learn Your holy Torah so that we will cling to its words and take delight in them, to the point that all of the desires and vanities of this world will be repulsive to us and we will instead cling to You, Your Torah and Your holy commandments forever, never turning aside from Your will, either to the right or the left.", + "HaShem, make the words of Your Torah pleasant in our mouths.", + "May we, our children, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, know Your Name and learn Your Torah for its own sake, until we will “gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visit in His palace,” from now on and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Gaining a New Evil Inclination and Overcoming It / The Tzaddik’s Evil Inclination is a Holy Angel / A Tzaddik Must Sweeten Judgment / Overcoming Troubles by Overcoming One’s Evil Inclination / Too Much Holy Passion is Also a Type of Evil Inclination
Sometimes goodness awakens in a person and causes him to experience thoughts of repentance. He then engages in good deeds, which kills his evil inclination. As he becomes a good and pious person, he wants to grow more spiritual — particularly by traveling to a Tzaddik.
But as he makes his way to the Tzaddik and reaches him, he loses his original urge to connect to the Tzaddik. Why does this happen? In keeping with the principle that “the greater a person, the greater his evil inclination,” another even greater and, in a sense, more refined evil inclination has now arisen and is attacking him. In order to keep from losing his initial, idealistic urge, a person must overcome this new evil inclination.
Regarding the concept of a “greater” evil inclination, most people are low and coarse, and their evil attribute of judgment, but then He broke His attribute of judgment and partnered it with the attribute of compassion. God’s attribute of judgment corresponds to the evil inclination. Just as God created the dynamic of breaking His judgment, so too, a person can break his evil inclination.
If someone is experiencing troubles, it indicates that he is the subject of Heavenly judgment, which is associated with the evil inclination. In order to put an end to his troubles, he must do whatever he can to overcome his evil inclination, which will result in the eradication of Heavenly judgments against him.
A person who wants to be God-fearing and untroubled by bad thoughts should ignore such thoughts and instead learn Torah, pray, and engage in earning a living. He should not allow himself to fall prey to depression, which is harmful and strengthens the coarse evil inclination. Should he have idolatrous or lustful thoughts that he cannot get out of his mind, he must seek to purify his body and blood, and go to a wise man who will tell him how to repent.
Sometimes a person experiences an overwhelming passion and desire for God. This, too, is a type of evil inclination that he must work to overcome.
Overcoming the Evil Inclination
You Who are good and do good to all, You created us in order to reveal Your goodness and compassion.", + "In order to appreciate Your goodness, we must possess free will. And so You planted within us not only a good inclination, but also an evil inclination that we must overcome, as a result of which we attain Your vast and eternal goodness.", + "Your goodness is infinite and the steps to attain it rise without number. You want us to comprehend You at the highest level. And so You amplified the powers of the evil inclination almost beyond measure, giving it the power to entice and impede us at every stage. This is why our rabbis state that “the greater a person, the greater his evil inclination.” You did this in order that we may attain true goodness by breaking the power of the evil inclination, which impedes and entices us at every level.", + "And when we break its power at every level — “one higher than the high…and higher ones above them” — we reach Your goodness in the most perfect way.", + "But due to my many sins and the foolishness of my meager mind, I have not been able to break my evil inclination on every level. To the contrary, it has overcome me since my youth and I have been caught like a deer in the net. “HaShem, You placed me in the hand of an entity against whom I cannot rise.”", + "At times I struggle and attempt to escape from beneath its hand, but then it pushes me down even more. This has occurred times without measure, until “the strength of the porter has collapsed.” “They cut off my life in the dungeon and cast stones upon me.”", + "What can I say? How can I justify myself? How can I open my mouth and lift my eyes to You, after I have drawn the evil inclination toward me? Woe, what has happened to me?", + "Overcoming Judgments
Master of the world, Whose goodness and compassion never cease, You know the extent of the judgments that rise up against me at every moment.", + "These judgments are jealous of every Jew because his heart always burns for You and because he strives constantly to return to You and recognize You. They hate him especially at the moment that he arouses himself to change, agitating against him and denouncing him. If not for Your compassion and kindness — in particular, if not for the power of the awesome Tzaddikim who shield us — we would have been lost in our impoverishment.", + "You know how weak, stubborn and foolish I am. And so, my Father in Heaven, You Who have mercy on the poor, You Who seek the persecuted, teach me how I, who am so insignificant, filled with sins and weakness, may strengthen myself against every aspect of the evil inclination, and gain wisdom and strength at every moment and on every level, whether I am ascending or descending.", + "Teach me how to gain patience, rule over my spirit and eradicate every expression of my evil inclination that attempts to keep me from serving You and attaining Your truth.", + "Then I will be able to walk in Your holy ways, turning aside from evil and doing only that which is good in Your eyes.", + "Understanding God’s Wondrous Ways
Master of the world, You are higher than all, and Your goodness transcends the holiest levels — even the purest expression of “judgment.” Compared to You, the shining supernal crown itself is dark and black.", + "It is therefore impossible to understand how You give vitality to all reality, which is necessarily within the reality of judgment — from the highest root of holy and awesome judgment to a judgment that has descended so low that dross and waste come forth from it and take hold of it.", + "The evil inclination grasps judgment on every level — whether at its lowest level or its highest level, the latter being the supernal crown. The evil inclination that reaches that crown is the one possessed by the holy and awesome Tzaddikim.", + "All creatures receive their power and life force from You. Without You, they could lift neither hand nor foot. But You completely transcend even the root of holy judgment in all of the holy worlds. Your goodness is at such a height that it possesses no trace of judgment whatsoever. How, then, will we understand Your wondrous ways?", + "Relying on God’s Goodness
I rely on the power of Your supernal goodness — and particularly on the merit of the holy and awesome Tzaddikim who have attained Your goodness and reveal it to Your creatures — a goodness that never ceases no matter what we have done. As the verse states, “The kindness of HaShem has not ceased, for Your compassion has not been exhausted.” I rely on the power of the Tzaddikim to blunt my teeth and blind my eyes, to bind my body and my limbs, so that I will not be beguiled by the attractions of this world but will open my mouth and cry out to You from where I stand and hope for Your salvation, and never despair of reaching any holy level in any way as I stretch my hands out to You.", + "Perhaps You will heed me, and I will not be lost! Perhaps You will be merciful!", + "Teach Me What to Say to You
Master of the world, teach me what to say to You. Teach me, a fool weak in ability and counsel, the way of life, the way of true repentance, so that I will return to You soon.", + "Teach me the way — in physicality and in spirituality — so that I will at every moment overcome the evil inclination, the impediments and confusions of each moment, of each level, whether I am ascending or descending.", + "You alone know how many tens of thousands of impediments, enticements, seductions and attractions pull at me and overwhelm me every day and every moment. As our rabbis said, “Every day a person’s evil inclination rises up against him, and if the Holy One, Blessed be He, did not help him, he would fall into its hand.”", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name, because the pangs of my heart are many and broad without measure.", + "Stubbornly Serving God
Help me serve You stubbornly. Do not let my thoughts distress me. Do not allow anything at all — in my mind or in the world — cast me down or distance me from You.", + "May I firmly ignore distracting thoughts that wish to weaken me and cast me down, as though my hope is lost.", + "I see that days and years have passed, and I am still far from holiness. Sins gather around me constantly.", + "Merciful One, protect me from this moment on! May none of this affect me. May I not retreat from You. May I strengthen myself in You and in Your holy Torah constantly, as much as I can, with every good point that exists within me. May I gladden myself at every moment over the fact that I am a Jew, that You did not make me a gentile.", + "May I always seek good points that even a person as low as I possess as a result of performing mitzvot.", + "Your true Tzaddikim have encouraged us with innumerable expressions not to allow anything in the world to cast us down. The Tzaddikim and worthy people in all of the previous generations, and certainly in these weak and weary generations prior to the coming of the Mashiach, had the same experiences that I am going through.", + "The Side of Evil is extending itself to its length and breadth in order to weaken the minds of all of those who wish to become pious, because its end is coming soon and its days are numbered — since our righteous Mashiach will surely soon arrive and remove the spirit of impurity from the land.", + "Overcoming Doubt
Because the Side of Evil has arisen and spread itself out against us, we lack the ability to withstand it. We need You to fight on our behalf. In particular, we require the power and merit of Your true Tzaddikim, who stand and pray for us always.", + "May our plight move You. Strengthen us so that we will ignore the confusing thoughts that plague us, and we will fulfill our obligations to learn Torah and pray to You.", + "May we stubbornly focus only on the good that we do, in accordance with Your will, and pay no attention to any doubtful thoughts, until as a result they will leave us of their own accord.", + "Help us sanctify and purify ourselves until no more doubt or evil, foreign thoughts arise in our hearts.", + "Nullifying the Evil Inclination
God of the beginning and of the end, God of all the Tzaddikim, rectify me with good counsel so that I will return to You.", + "Nullify all of the judgments against me as well as those against the entire Jewish people.", + "Crush and eradicate every type of evil inclination — whether it be the evil inclination of most people, which is a stirring up of the blood and a spirit of foolishness; or the evil inclination of truly religious people, which is like an evil spirit that has entered them; or the evil inclination of the Tzaddikim, which is literally a holy angel; or any other type of evil inclination, enticement, impediment or confusion.", + "May we always nullify the evil inclination, whatever level it is on and however it appears at that moment.", + "Help me gain the strength to come close to You, to yearn for Your truth and to accustom myself to learn Your Torah and serve You with joy.", + "Attaining a Heart of Flesh
Help us obey Your laws.", + "May the verse be realized within us, “I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit in your midst. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will place My spirit in your midst and cause you to obey My ordinances and keep and perform My laws. You will dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you will be to Me for a nation, and I will be to you for a God. I will save you from all of your pollutions and I will call to the grain and increase it, and I will not place famine upon you.”", + "“I will sprinkle pure waters upon you and purify you; of all of your contaminations and all your idols will I purify you.”", + "“Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and may a generous spirit support me.”", + "“God, create within me a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”", + "Do not abandon me, HaShem. My God, do not be distant from me.", + "“Hurry to help me, my God, my salvation.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Holy Judgment Increases a Person’s Desire for God / Hoshana Rabbah and Simchat Torah
When a person is subject to judgment, if that judgment is harsh and impure, that means that God is hiding His countenance from him, and that person cannot pray properly. But if that judgment is holy, then he is able to pray properly.
Holy judgment works as follows.
When God initially draws a person to Him, He causes him suffering that appears to drive him away. That suffering is meant to increase his desire to reach God.
This holy judgment corresponds to a diminished state of consciousness, or speech without knowledge. This is associated with Hoshana Rabbah.12The seventh day of Sukkot, marked by the public recital of prayers asking God for salvation and the beating of willow branches to symbolize the elimination of sin. On that day, we take a cluster of willow branches, which, our sages state, are reminiscent of the lips. These are lips that speak without knowledge — that is to say, a person learns words of Torah but does not understand them. The Zohar states that God loves these words and plants them as willows upon a river bank.
A person must “sweeten” holy judgment in order to proceed to a full state of consciousness, which he does by learning Torah. The wisdom of Torah corresponds to speech with knowledge. This is associated with the festival of Simchat Torah13Literally, “Joy of the Torah,” the celebration of the completion of the annual cycle of Torah readings, during which Jews publicly dance with the Torah scrolls and read from the last chapter of the Book of Deuteronomy and the first chapter of the Book of Genesis. (which follows Hoshana Rabbah).
God created the world with His wisdom, which is His Torah. Our goal must be to reveal God’s glory by means of that wisdom.
Learning Torah for Its Own Sake
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me heal my spirit quickly and raise it to its root with holiness and purity.", + "Help me learn Your Torah for its own sake day and night, until I know and understand it clearly. May I learn, teach, perform and keep all of the words of Your Torah with love.", + "Sweetening Holy Judgments
Do not treat me in accordance with my sins, but nullify every sort of judgment against me.", + "First, rescue me from all harsh judgments that derive from the pollution of the Serpent, which is the Side of Evil. Then give me a holy mind with which to learn Your Torah so that I will sweeten all judgments that come through holiness, which are only for the good.", + "May I sweeten these holy judgments until they are transformed into complete kindness and, moreover, it is no longer possible for any harsh judgments from the Side of Evil to descend from them.", + "God’s Intent is Always Benevolent
Master of the world, I know and believe that all of the judgments and sufferings, impediments and confusions that prevent us from serving You, which we experience at every moment — whether as a nation or as individuals — have all been sent from You for our good.", + "Even if we think that they are evil, Your intent is always benevolent. Even when You push someone away from You, You do so in order to bring him close to You.", + "And so, when You rebuke us, hurt us, test us and refine us, it is for our good. As the verse states, “As a man punishes his son, so does HaShem your God punish you.”", + "But because of the weakness of our spirit — due to the multitude of our sins and the mire and grossness of our physicality — we cannot bear Your judgments, not even Your holy judgments. Instead, we are so confused and troubled that “the strength of the porter has collapsed” and, as a result, we have grown far from You.", + "This is particularly true of me because I am so spiritually impoverished. Only You know all that I have gone through from the beginning of my life until today.14At this point, you may describe all of the impediments, confusions, sufferings, temptations, tests and refinements that you have experienced throughout your life, and all of the sins that you have committed — everything that causes your heart pain.", + "In all of these experiences, Your intent was for the good, and You were testing and refining me. But because of the smallness and foolishness of my mind and the grime of my physicality, I have not been able to withstand the slightest test or process of refinement.", + "“You tested my heart, visiting me at night; You refined me and did not find any wrong thoughts; my thought does not contradict the words of my mouth.”", + "Gaining a New Spirit of Holiness
Master of the world, You Who told Your world to cease growing by proclaiming, “Enough!” tell my troubles, “Enough!”", + "May the power of compassion that the true Tzaddikim attained after much struggle sweeten all judgments against me, my family, those who depend on me, and the entire Jewish people. Only the power and merit of the Seven Shepherds15This term refers to the early leaders of the Jewish people, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron and David. and, more generally, of all the Tzaddikim who dwell in the dust, can shield us and speak on our behalf in this troubled generation prior to the coming of the Mashiach.", + "May we act in accordance with the wisdom and compassion of the Tzaddikim and thus sweeten all types of judgment until we eradicate them and come close to You.", + "May I, as well as all of the Jewish people, gain a new heart and a new spirit of holiness. May I abandon my evil ways and my wrong and confused thoughts.", + "From now on, may I think only of learning Torah and serving You in holiness and purity — of clinging to You, to Your true Tzaddikim and to Your holy Torah, so that I will clearly know and understand the truth of Your holy Torah.", + "In this way — and with the aid of Your compassion and salvation, for which nothing is too wondrous — may I heal my spirit of its pains, ills and mortal wounds, which I myself caused with my many sins.", + "Heal Us and We Will Be Healed
HaShem, You are the true, faithful and compassionate Healer. Heal my wounds and the pains of my spirit and body. Quickly send complete healing to all the sick of Your nation, the House of Israel.16If you wish at this point to pray on behalf of someone who is ill, add here, “and in particular, [name], son/daughter of [mother’s name].”", + "Swiftly heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed. Save us and we will be saved. You are the object of our praise. We rely only on You and Your compassion. Treat us in accordance with Your beneficent will, for we are in great distress.", + "On whom can we rely, our Father in Heaven? Help us pray fervently to You every day. Do not send us any suffering that prevents us from praying, and do not remove Your kindness from us. As the verse states, “Blessed is God, Who has not removed my prayer and His kindness from me.”", + "For Hoshana Rabbah and Simchat Torah
Help us attain the holiness of Hoshana Rabbah, which corresponds to the level of speech without knowledge, and of Simchat Torah, which corresponds to the level of speech with knowledge.", + "In that spirit, may we learn Your holy Torah even when we do not understand it clearly. And may You in Your compassion accept even this kind of Torah learning, and rejoice in the words of our Torah although we do not understand them. Use that energy to plant from them spiritual willow trees.", + "Then open the eyes of our intellect and illumine our eyes in the light of Your Torah so we will go forth from darkness to light, comprehending all of its words clearly, knowing its laws and ways, and learning properly, until we will plant a Tree of Life whose canopy brings healing.", + "Every year, help us keep all of the holy mitzvot of Hoshana Rabbah and Simchat Torah. May we rejoice and be sanctified on these holy and awesome days. As we do so, may we may complete the rectifications begun on Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, and attain even more rectifications.", + "The Prayers of Hoshana Rabbah
On the holy day of Hoshana Rabbah, help us walk around the bimah seven times holding the lulav and etrog,17On Hoshana Rabbah, synagogue worshippers circle the bimah (reader’s platform) seven times holding their lulav and etrog and reciting special prayers, in remembrance of the seven circuits made by the Kohanim around the Temple Altar on this day. in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "May we pray the prayers of Hoshanah Rabbah from the depths of our heart, crying out for Your salvation on this holy and awesome day when Your judgment, which began on Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, comes to its completion.", + "May we then perform Your holy prophets’ custom of beating the willow branches on the ground with holiness and joy, and, in this way, sweeten all judgments so as to bring about a unification of God and His Divine Presence on Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah.18Shemini Atzeret is a biblical festival that falls immediately after Sukkot. It is characterized by a public prayer for rain and dancing with the Torah scrolls in celebration of the completion of the annual cycle of Torah readings (Simchat Torah). Outside the Land of Israel, Shemini Atzeret is a two-day holiday, with the prayer for rain on the first day and the Simchat Torah celebrations on the second day.", + "Dancing with Infinite Joy
On Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, may we rejoice over the fact that we merited to be of the seed of Israel and received the holy Torah through Your prophet Moses, the faithful one of Your House.", + "How fortunate are we! How good is our portion, how sweet our fate, and how beautiful our inheritance.", + "How fortunate are we to have attained this awesome goodness.", + "Help us draw this appreciation into our hearts throughout the year, particularly on the holy day of Simchat Torah.", + "May we then dance with infinite joy as we hold the Torah scrolls.", + "May no stranger or impediment have the power to interfere in our joy on these holy days. May we cling to You in eternal love and with a joy that has no end.", + "May we finish learning the Five Books of Moses and begin them anew with love, awe and joy, accepting upon ourselves the resolution to learn Your Torah day and night for its own sake, and to keep all of its words with love.", + "God’s Glory Will Fill the Earth
You Who are filled with compassion, fulfill our requests for good. By means of learning Torah in holiness and purity until we truly understand it, may we raise our spirit to its root of holy wisdom.", + "May we recognize You and reveal Your Godliness to the entire world. May we always work to enhance and sanctify Your honor, so that Your glory will fill the earth.", + "“May the glory of HaShem last forever. May HaShem rejoice in His deeds.” “High over the heavens is God; over all the earth is Your glory.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, the God of Israel, Who does wonders alone. Blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "Internal Disputatiousness and Dispute Among People / Transforming One’s Blood into Holy Speech / Raising the “Feminine Waters” and Attaining Peace
God created the world with His speech, and He also created vessels to hold that speech. But He caused those vessels to break. As a result, the holy letters fell and scattered as “sparks.”
Generally speaking, these sparks do not combine with each other, but remain fragmented and “disputatious.” Within an individual, fallen sparks that remain unbonded are on the level of one’s blood and soul — in particular, they are associated with the blood with which a person has not yet served God. This person then possesses the trait of disputatiousness. This may take the form of internal dispute. His heart is divided so that he does not understand something, and he thinks that it is self-contradictory. Alternatively, it may take the form of dispute against other people, particularly against righteous people. To rectify this, he must serve God by speaking words of Torah and praying until all of his blood is transformed into holy speech.
His words of Torah and prayer elevate an energy called “feminine waters.” As these “feminine waters” rise, they blend the sparks and letters in his words of Torah and prayer, and thus bring about peace. As a result, this person experiences a love and yearning for God and true Tzaddikim, and these feelings make him capable of clinging to them. In addition, he can bring a feeling of love into the hearts of other individuals, so that they will come to be at peace with each other.
Peace, Torah and Prayer
Master of the world, help me attain the trait of peace. May I love peace and pursue peace always, as in the verse, “Turn aside from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it.”", + "May I constantly bring about peace between people — particularly between husband and wife.", + "Prevent me from being domineering and argumentative, traits that are associated with the Side of Evil and that derive from the blood in a person’s body with which he has not yet served You.", + "From now on, help me engage in a great deal of Torah learning and prayer each day, until I bring all of the drops of my blood into the holy words of Torah and prayer. May all of these drops become words of Torah and prayer, and not a single drop that has not served You remain. May I serve You all of the days of my life with all of the drops of blood within me, engaging in a great deal of Torah learning and prayer until my body is given over entirely to holiness.", + "Raising All Sparks of Holiness to God
Help me attain a constant and perfect fear of You. May I always stand before You with contrition and awe until my body is as absolutely nothing. In particular, when I learn Torah and pray, may I be aware only of the words of Torah and prayer so that I do not even notice my body.", + "May I then gather, raise and refine all of the letters and sparks that had fallen to the “shards of the vessels” as a result of my sins — whether they occurred in this or previous incarnations — which brought about dispute, doubt, confusion and other impediments to serving You, and which have been the source of all of my this-worldly desires.", + "May I raise these sparks to Your great and holy Name, refine them, blend them and use them to build holy structures and worlds.", + "Grant me the strength to raise all of the fallen sparks to You, a process that is also called elevating the “feminine waters.” May this lead to a unification of God and His Divine Presence, so that as a result, wondrous peace will be drawn into all worlds, above and below.", + "May every sort of arrogance, jealousy, hatred, incitement and dispute — all of which are associated with the Side of Evil — no longer affect me, the Jewish people and all human beings.", + "Instead, may only love and peace exist among Your entire nation, the Jewish people, and among the inhabitants of all the worlds that You created, formed and made.", + "Pour forth great blessing upon me, all the Jewish people, and all worlds. Quickly redeem us. Raise us from our descents. Lift up and establish all of reality that, due to our sins, has fallen like “feet that have descended.”", + "In keeping with that, do not abandon me, but raise my feet upon the rock and establish my steps. May the verse soon be realized, “On that day, his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives.”", + "Quickly lead us upright to our Land. Build our holy and beautiful Temple, where we will serve You in awe as in the earliest days and years.", + "We Are Always Yearning
Our needs are so many that our limited minds cannot categorize them.", + "But You investigate our “hearts and inner being,” so that everything that is hidden in our hearts is revealed to You. You know that in the core of our hearts, we are yearning at every moment to find the doorway of hope to come close to You.", + "For the sake of Your Name, help us attain everything that we have sought from You.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, ‘Amen.’”" + ], + [ + "The Resolve to Serve God Even at the Price of Martyrdom
In order for a person to serve God properly, and particularly when he sees that he is not praying well, he should remind himself that that he would be willing to die rather than betray his religion.
This thought awakens an inner peace, which is
a blending of kindness and might. And now he can
pray properly, connecting his thoughts to his words
of prayer.
Peace Among Jews
Master of peace, You Who have made peace and created everything, help us always grasp the trait of peace.", + "May great peace rest upon people — particularly upon husband and wife. May people not engage in any disputes, nor even entertain dispute in their hearts.", + "Just as You make peace in Your heavens by wondrously bonding the opposites of fire and water, so too, draw peace down to us and to the entire world so that all opposites will bind together in peace and love, with a unified intent to come close to You and to Your Torah. May all opposites join into a single unit to do Your will wholeheartedly.", + "God of peace, bless us with peace, and, in this way, draw down onto us blessing, abundance and salvation.", + "Sanctifying God’s Name Through Prayer
May I always dedicate myself to sanctifying Your Name — particularly when I recite the Shema19See footnote 5, p. 221 and when I pray.", + "May I then fill my mind with a strong yearning to sacrifice my soul and die in order to sanctify Your great, holy and awesome Name. May I be aflame with the flames of love, so that I overcome my evil inclination and give You all of my body, soul and might.", + "May I always pray with great intent, with holiness and purity, inserting all of my thoughts and awareness into the words of prayer, firmly connecting my thought to my speech, not expressing a single word of prayer without intent.", + "God, take delight in our prayers always, accept them, and place them as a crown upon Your head.", + "Send us wisdom, understanding and knowledge, and save us in every way. When we learn Your Torah, open our hearts so that we have the ability to understand it. Enlighten our eyes with its light so that we will be able to create new insights.", + "Draw upon us a wondrous illumination from the Torah that You will reveal to the entire world in the future through our righteous Mashiach. As the verse states, “You will draw water with joy from the wellsprings of salvation” — which the Aramaic translation renders as, “You will receive new instruction.”", + "The Wellsprings of Salvation
Master of the world, send abundant salvation at every moment from the holy wellsprings of salvation that never cease flowing.", + "The true Tzaddikim joyfully draw from the waters of the Torah, which are the wellsprings of salvation.", + "Rescue me in the merit of these Tzaddikim, who have the power to shield and rescue all those who take refuge in them from the grave or worse, and lead them to eternal life. May I begin from this moment on to abandon my evil ways and contemptible thoughts, and instead draw wisdom and salvation onto myself.", + "May I never again return to my foolishness. Rather, may I bring all of my intelligence and awareness to Your holy Torah. May I firmly connect my thought to Torah and prayer, so that it never in the slightest leaves their circle of influence.", + "Quickly rescue me from the stormy waters, from the depths of the sea, from the muddy chasms where there is no place to stand, from chaos and emptiness, darkness and the abyss.", + "Send me help at every moment from the wellsprings of salvation.", + "Due to my measureless distance from You, my evil inclination gains strength at every moment, creating endless impediments, confusion and crookedness in my heart. And so I require wondrous salvation at every moment.", + "Open the wellsprings so that salvation will flow anew for us at every moment. Sanctify and purify us from all of the pollution, stains and blemishes of this world.", + "Fulfill for us the verse, “I will sprinkle pure waters upon you and purify you; of all of your contaminations and all your idols will I purify you.”", + "Rescue from All of Our Problems
Master of the world, You Who cause salvation to blossom, fulfill our requests.", + "Save me quickly from all of my problems in both the physical and spiritual realms, so that from this moment on, I will return to You.", + "May the verse quickly be realized, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid, for God, HaShem, is my strength and song; He has saved me. You will draw water with joy from the wellsprings of salvation.”", + "“To HaShem is salvation; Your blessing rests upon Your nation.”", + "“HaShem, save; King, answer us on the day that we call.”", + "Please bless me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, at every moment with Your beneficent peace. Establish for us the verse, “HaShem will give strength to His nation; HaShem will bless His nation with peace.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, ‘Amen.’”" + ], + [ + "Remaining Silent in the Face of Insult / Preparing for the Shabbat
There are three “husks” — three levels of reality — that are completely impure. These correspond to the first three years that a fruit tree grows, when its fruit is forbidden and is called orlah (literally, “foreskin”).20See Leviticus 19:23. All of the insults that a person suffers come from these three “husks,” or orlah. There is a fourth “husk” called nogah, which is sometimes absorbed into the impure “husks” and at other times into holiness. This corresponds to the fruit of a tree in its fourth year, which may be eaten after it is sanctified.
In his description of one of his Heavenly visions, the prophet Ezekiel refers to an energy called chashmal. A person is absorbed into the holy energy of chashmal when he ignores the insults that come from the realm of orlah and remains silent. The first syllable of the word chashmal, “chash,” means “silence.” The person is silent out of love, because he does not want to insult another person. Then nogah is absorbed into holiness.
Conversely, if a person stays silent because he knows that doing so will upset his opponent, his silence is absorbed into the realm of orlah, of disgrace and insult.
The second syllable in the word chashmal, “mal,” has the numerical value of seventy. In addition, it is related to the word milah (circumcision). This indicates that at times nogah is absorbed into the seventy lights of holiness, into the state of rectified sexuality and circumcision.
On Friday afternoon, prior to the coming of the Shabbat, nogah is absorbed into holiness. At that time, the three impure “husks” attempt to rise and grasp holiness, but a fire of God descends and burns them away. Corresponding to that, at this time we bathe in hot water. The custom of cutting one’s nails on Friday afternoon is also related to this dynamic.
Silence Before Those Who Abuse Me
Master of the world, help me remain silent when people abuse and deride me.", + "May I be quiet before those who curse my soul. May I be among those who, although insulted, do not insult in return; who hear themselves reviled but do not respond.", + "May I be among those who act out of love and rejoice in their suffering. Thus, with my silence, may I not intend to upset these people. Rather, may I be motivated solely by love. May I never shame or insult anyone — not even those who shame me.", + "Shaming People in Public
HaShem, may I never commit the grave sin of shaming others in public — a sin that deprives a person of his portion in the World to Come. May I never insult anyone, either great or small.", + "I have already stumbled in this matter a number of times — sometimes by accident and sometimes on purpose, sometimes against my will and sometimes willingly. “Indeed, I sinned against HaShem, the God of Israel” and against Jews who were all more righteous than I. I shamed them publicly, caused their faces to turn white, and spilled their blood like water.", + "My Father in Heaven, guard me from ever committing this grave sin again, as well as any other sin.", + "Help me rectify all of the blemishes that I caused by committing this sin. Orchestrate matters in such a way that I will meet the people whom I shamed, so that I may now appease them until they will all forgive me completely and gladly, with a whole heart and a willing soul.", + "May no one harbor any hatred, resentment or grudge against me.", + "From now on, guard me from ever belittling anyone in the world — even when I am alone, and certainly when I am with others. May I never dismiss the honor of any Jew and never deride anyone.", + "May I bind myself to the totality of Your nation, the Jewish people, loving each Jew with all my heart, fulfilling the commandment, “You shall love your fellow as yourself,” perfectly, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "Help me overcome and nullify my evil inclination, including all of my wrong desires and evil traits.", + "Subject my inclination to Your will until I overcome and expel all of the “husks” and related aspects of evil that exist in all worlds — whether the three completely impure “husks” or the evil within nogah.", + "May I destroy all evil until I purify nogah by raising the good within it to holiness. Then nogah will be absorbed into supernal holiness. As for the three completely impure “husks,” may they be nullified so they no longer influence me.", + "For a Brit Milah
Help me guard the covenant of sexual purity. Remove the “husk” of the foreskin from my heart and from my flesh, until I will be absorbed into Your supernal holiness.", + "Have compassion on all newborn boys of Your nation, the House of Israel, as they are about to enter into the covenant of Abraham. Send them pious, worthy, expert and enthusiastic mohelim (ritual circumcisors) who will perform the mitzvah perfectly, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "“You sanctified the beloved child from the womb…and sealed his offspring with the sign of the holy covenant.” You commanded us to circumcise our sons when they are eight days old, and in this way bring them into the covenant of Abraham.", + "Always send upright, worthy, expert and competent mohelim to perform this awesome mitzvah. Stand at their right side and help them perform this mitzvah properly, so that they will not injure the baby but will bring about all of the rectifications and holiness associated with the mitzvah of circumcision.", + "May the baby be imbued with the image of God. May he guard and never blemish his covenant. May he grow to father healthy sons and daughters who will serve and fear You.", + "May each such Jew bring forth offspring to the end of all generations who will know Your great Name and do Your will all the days of their lives, so that Your Godliness will be revealed in all of the worlds through Your nation, the Jewish people, whom You chose.", + "For the Holy Shabbat
Help me prepare for the Shabbat with holiness, love, yearning and joy. May no worry or sadness whatsoever arise in my heart.", + "May I attain intense joy from the beginning of the holy Shabbat until its end.", + "Every Shabbat eve, may I properly fulfill the mitzvot of bathing in hot water and cutting my nails, and by doing so push away and eliminate the three impure “husks” so they will not cling to me at all.", + "Furthermore, may I remove all evil from the “husk” of nogah and thereby raise and incorporate nogah into Your supernal holiness.", + "Following this, may the three impure “husks” descend and fall into the deep pit, where they will be destroyed and never again be able to take hold of anything holy.", + "Every Shabbat, may I be imbued with the special Shabbat soul, which is holy and pure. Together with every pious Jew, may I raise all worlds upward to Your primal will, until we are incorporated into Your supernal holiness with infinite light, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "HaShem, You are the Holy of Holies, the mightiest of mighty entities, the most powerful of all forces, the most victorious of all conquerors. Help me gain victory in my war against evil, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "May I begin from this moment on to enter into Your holiness. Help me, a powerless person, overcome, expel, break and nullify all of the “husks” and other aspects of evil that have taken hold of me due to my many sins. In Your compassion, rebuke them. Cast them out of me and away from my border.", + "“In accordance with Your kindness, give me life, and I will keep the testimony of Your mouth.”", + "Help me because I rely on You. “HaShem, may I not be ashamed when I call You, but may the wicked be ashamed — may they descend in silence to the grave.”", + "“I call to You because You will answer me, God. Bend Your ear to me and hear my word.”", + "“HaShem, I have called You — hurry to me. Hear my voice when I call You.”", + "“For the sake of Your Name, HaShem, give me life; in Your righteousness, extract my soul from trouble. In Your kindness, cut away my enemies and destroy all of those who trouble my soul, for I am Your servant.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Resisting the Blandishments of the Evil Inclination
Sometimes when a person fights against his evil inclination, it attempts to make him proud by giving him miraculous powers.
Should that occur, he should recall our sages’ teaching that God does not dwell with an egotistical person. He should then suppress his inclination to grow proud, reminding himself that were he to do so, it would deprive him of those powers.
We Have Nothing On Which to Rely But Prayer
“God, do not be silent, do not be still. God, do not stay quiet. Your enemies roar and Your foes lift their heads. They scheme and conspire against Your nation. They plot against the people whom You protect. They say, ‘Let us go and destroy them so that they will no longer be a nation, so that the name of Israel will never be mentioned again.’ They have agreed with a single heart; they have formed a pact against You.”", + "Master of the world, You know the difficult state of the Jewish people — physically and spiritually, as a whole and as individuals. “Children have come to be born, but there is no strength to bring them forth.” All of the prophets and sages from the earliest days prophesied about these times.", + "We are flooded by troubles of servitude, poverty, illness, epidemics, and other problems that affect the vast majority of Jews.", + "Some people are childless. Others have difficulty raising their small children. Still others have no money to help their older children get married.", + "HaShem, please have mercy on each one and rescue every individual from his particular hardship.", + "In addition, we constantly hear about schemes to pass oppressive laws against Your nation, the Jewish people — most of which are meant to restrict our religious freedom.", + "But worst of all are the sufferings that we inflict upon our own souls. We have grown feeble in serving You, and we do the opposite of Your will. We deliberately sin against You and do evil in Your eyes.", + "I have become worn out confessing my poor character, behavior and thoughts, and my lowly, aberrant deeds.", + "All that I can do now is call out to You.", + "My life is bitter. “I have sunken into the muddy depths and cannot stand. I have entered into the deep waters, and the rushing current washes over me.”", + "I do not know how to escape. My only hope is to pray to You to save me from the troubles of my soul — and I also pray regarding the troubles of all the Jewish people, because every Jew is obligated to share in the distress of every other Jew.", + "Regarding all this, our holy sages have told us that we have nothing on which to rely except for prayer.", + "Unable to Pray
You know how far I am from prayer.", + "Before and during prayer, I experience disturbing thoughts: delusions of grandeur, selfish ideas, and a multitude of foreign, wicked musings, confusions, fantasies and evil conceptions that crowd in upon me.", + "I do not know how to overcome and escape them. They clamber upon me, enchain me, climb up to my neck and overwhelm me. I do not know how to flee because they have surrounded me and beaten me down.", + "“They have surrounded me,” “encircled me like bees,” “encompassed me like water the entire day, they are all around me,” even moreso during the time of prayer.", + "I have never recited a single prayer that was not beleaguered by a multitude of foreign, evil thoughts. Many of my prayers have been so confused that I do not even know if I actually said the words. There are many prayers that I skipped altogether.", + "And even when I did recite the words, it is as though I did not do so, for there was no connection between my mouth and my heart. With my mouth and my lips, I pronounced the words, but they were blemished half-statements recited by a stuttering tongue far from my heart, which was filled with evil, alien and confused thoughts.", + "Woe is me! Woe is me! What will I do on the day of punishment? “What will I do when God arises? When He takes an account, what shall I answer Him?”", + "Where will I run with my shame? Where will I take my disgrace? Where will I hide because of my mortification, which my mouth cannot describe and my heart cannot bear to think about?", + "Recognizing Our Imperfections
Therefore, I come to You, Who desires and accepts the prayers of Your nation, the Jewish people. You created the world out of nothing solely because You foresaw the delight that You would gain from the prayers of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "Help us expel all troubling and confusing thoughts that come to us during prayer. Let us pray to You with all our hearts, with deep feeling, with holy, pure concentration that is bound firmly to every word we say.", + "May our hearts not entertain any ulterior motives or wrong thoughts. May we possess no foolish, conceited thoughts of our greatness — for instance, that we come from a distinguished family, or that we have advanced far in serving You.", + "May we recognize our imperfections and know our lowliness. May we forget about our distinguished family and anything else that might make us haughty. Instead, may we stand before You like paupers, aware of our paltriness.", + "May we be confident of Your kindness, of the fact that You dwell with the humble and lowly of spirit, that You are close to those whose hearts are broken.", + "With this trust in Your great kindness, let us open our hearts and pray to You with joy. Let us rejoice in Your salvation so that our prayer will be perfect: pure, clear, proper and fluent in our mouths.", + "Then You will hear and accept our prayers. And then we will rule with our prayers; with them, we will have the power to bring about everything we wish — even to the point of changing nature.", + "Fulfill all the requests of our heart for the good. Always take delight in our prayers. Maintain Your world and everything in it for the sake of our prayers.", + "Nullify all judgments against the entire Jewish people. Eradicate all harsh decrees, whether they are in potential or whether they have already been enacted.", + "Quickly Redeem Us
Master of the world, You have helped, shielded and saved our fathers and their descendants in every generation.", + "Look at our impoverishment and battle on our behalf. For the sake of Your Name, quickly redeem us from all of the harsh decrees that have been proposed in our days. Have mercy on the remnant of Your nation, the House of Israel, and nullify these decrees completely, for there is no one else to take our side. May Your great Name stand on our behalf at this time of trouble, and never allow the name of Israel to be erased.", + "We Hope Every Day
Master of the world, in the depth of our descent at the end of this long, bitter exile, in which we have descended to an appalling extent — “she has descended shockingly, with no one to console her” — we are so far from You, as every individual senses in his soul, that every day we lament, “What will be our end?”", + "Yet we also encourage ourselves. Every day we hope for Your salvation: “Perhaps You will have pity on us, and perhaps we will begin to awaken and leave behind our evil and disgusting thoughts.”", + "But if any of the rumored anti-Jewish decrees will be enacted, our hope will be all but gone in this crushing, difficult exile.", + "Many Jews have grown far from You because of the yoke of the bitterness of our exile, both physical and spiritual. From every side, from above and below, enemies lay siege against us — against our body, soul and possessions.", + "“HaShem our God, You are our Father. We are the clay and You are our Maker. All of us are the work of Your hand. HaShem, do not be very angry; do not bear our sin in mind forever. Look now, we are all Your people.” Look at how oppressed we are. “The hand of the enemy has gained power and there is no savior to strengthen us.”", + "May God Accept the Prayers of the Tzaddikim
Our Father in Heaven, accept the prayers of the true Tzaddikim to nullify the anti-Jewish decrees that began to emerge in their days.", + "Recall all of the ways in which they worked to sweeten judgments and nullify these decrees. Recall the tears that they shed before You, the wondrous and awesome teachings they revealed, their clapping and dancing in the joy of performing a mitzvah, and everything else that they did with dedication and self-sacrifice in order to sweeten judgments and nullify all of the decrees that our enemies wish to enact.", + "Due to Your compassion and the power of these Tzaddikim, these decrees have been delayed until now.", + "For the sake of Your Name, for the sake of the prayers of these Tzaddikim who dwell in the dust, for the sake of all that they did in their lifetimes to sweeten judgments, and for the sake of their prayers in which they still engage on behalf of Your nation, the Jewish people, nullify all of these planned decrees.", + "Turn the hearts of emperors, kings and ministers to us for the good.", + "As for those who rise against us with evil intent, eradicate their counsel and spoil their plans. “He eradicates the thoughts of the scheming so that their hands will not act with cunning.” “Many are the thoughts in the heart of a man, but the counsel of HaShem will stand.” “HaShem has eradicated the counsel of the peoples, thwarted the thoughts of the nations. The counsel of HaShem stands forever, the thoughts of His heart for every generation.”", + "A Downtrodden People
Master of the universe, You Who chose Your nation, the Jewish people, with love, gaze down from Heaven and see how we have become an object of derision. See how lowly we are at present.", + "Arise to help and save us in our time of trouble. Arouse Your compassion for us, we who are Your children. Act for Your sake and not for ours.", + "See how poor and empty we are. Have compassion on us. Do not pour Your wrath upon us. Eradicate the thoughts of our enemies. Nullify all of the harsh decrees. Act in accordance with Your wonders so that everything will be transformed to good.", + "Elevate the might and fortune of the Jewish people. May we gain favor and status in the eyes of Heaven and in the eyes of man. Lighten our yoke of servitude and taxation. Help us earn a living honorably, easily, and in a permissible manner, in a spirit of holiness and purity, in a way that accords with Your beneficent will.", + "A Jew’s Prayers
Help us every day to pray to You with all our hearts. Give us the strength and energy to transform all of the foreign and selfish thoughts in our minds from evil to good, from superficial to deep.", + "Help us bring all of our thoughts, whether external or internal, into the words of our prayer, until all foreign and selfish notions will be eradicated and never again arise in our minds.", + "May our prayers be whole and fluent. May we pray with humility, awe and trembling, until our prayers will have the power to nullify all decrees and judgments against the entire Jewish people and against any individual Jew. May our prayers always bring You delight, so that all ten Divine statements21The sages teach that God created the world with Ten Statements, which are enumerated in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis (“God said…”). The First Statement was “Bereishit — In the beginning,” which is considered a “Hidden Statement” because it is not preceded by “God said” (Rosh HaShanah 32a). that keep the universe in existence will shine, and wondrous kindness will be drawn upon Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "“I said that the world will be built with kindness; You establish Your faithfulness in the heavens.” “The kindness of HaShem lasts all day long.”", + "Draw an abundant flow of goodness, blessing, compassion, life and peace onto us at every moment. Quickly redeem us. Bring us our righteous redeemer quickly, in our days. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Damaged Faith Causes a Person to Stand Back to Back with God / When He Repents, He Stands Face to Face with God
In the days of the Temple, a person would bring a burnt-offering to gain atonement for a wrongful thought.
Our sages teach that “regarding the ‘thoughts of a gentile,’ HaShem punishes a person merely for having intended to sin.” This means that if a gentile intends to sin, he is punished; a Jew, however, is punished only when he sins in actuality. But this teaching can be interpreted to refer to a Jew as well. If, while a person is reciting the set prayers or engaging in his own prayers to God, he falls spiritually, that is the equivalent of having the “thoughts of a gentile.”
That person experienced this descent because his faith is damaged. This caused him to turn his face away from God, and then God correspondingly turned His face away from him. As a result, he and God now stand back to back. When this happens, a person must break his spirit so that he feels shame and regrets having fallen from Heaven to earth.
In doing so, he cuts himself away from his backto- back relationship with God. That cutting apart corresponds to the Kabbalistic Divine Name Chatakh (Cutting), which is an acronym for the final letters of the phrase, Potei’aCh eT yadeKhah (“Open Your hand”). 1Psalms 145:16. As one breaks his heart and spirit, he brings forth the dynamics of that Divine Name.
He sighs in and out — two breaths. And the Hebrew word ruach (breath or spirit), when repeated twice, is numerically equivalent to Chatakh.
Accomplishing this is the equivalent of bringing a burnt-offering. And then this person returns to stand face to face with God.
Face to Face
“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit. God will not despise a broken and crushed heart.”", + "Master of the world, “Healer of those whose hearts are shattered, You Who bind their sorrows,” You know how broken my heart is. Gaze down from Heaven and consider how You have treated me. See how poor I am. Have mercy on my heart, which is broken into pieces, like a rock shattered by a hammer, so that its thoughts are scattered to the far ends of the earth.", + "I am guilty in every way. You know that I only want to do Your will and I never intended to anger You. But my evil inclination, the “leaven in the dough,” caused me to fail.", + "Our sages teach that all of the power of the evil inclination to make people sin comes from You, and that every day You regret having created it and having given it such power. That is why, our sages tell us, the verse states, “I did wrong.” And so I ask You, “HaShem, why do You cause us to stray from Your path? Why do You harden our hearts so that we no longer fear You?”", + "Master of the world, You know that my only hope to gain true and eternal goodness is to speak freely to You. But You know hard it is for me to do this.", + "Even if You inspire me to speak some words of prayer and I begin to express my bitter spirit, suddenly my heart closes and I am struck silent. Speech leaves me, my mind grows blank, and I do not know what to say. “I am silent, I cannot open my mouth, for You have brought this about.” “I am mute and still, I am silent even in the face of goodness, and my pain is intense.”", + "It is as though I have turned my back to You, and You have hidden Your face from me.", + "You have taught us that such a state is caused by a blemish in faith, which is tantamount to idolatry.", + "My Father in Heaven, what can I do to rectify all of my evil thoughts and confusing ideas — particularly those that reflect blemishes in my faith, which are the most difficult of all to amend?", + "What can I do so that You will restore Your face to me and I will turn back to You? “When will I come and see the face of God?” When will I attain a strong and proper faith so that I will be able to speak to You face to face, as a person talks to his friend, at which time no curtain will separate me from You?", + "The Deep Sigh of Repentance
Master of compassion, help me accustom myself to sigh from the depths of my heart as I consider how far I am from You due to my sins — particularly due to my blemished faith, which causes me to fall silent when I am in the middle of speaking to You, and to descend as from Heaven to earth.", + "Help me be so aware of my painful state that I sigh from the depths of my heart and my spirit is broken. May my spirit then rise until You accept it in Your compassion, as though I had brought You a burnt-offering, which grants atonement for the thoughts of the heart.", + "Open Your hand and help me repent. When I breathe in and out with each sigh, draw onto me the great illumination that comes from the Divine Name emerging from the final letters of the phrase, Potei’ach et Yadekhah (“Open Your hand”).", + "In that way, may my soul be connected to You not back to back, but face to face.", + "The Hiding of God’s Face
Our Father in Heaven, our King and God of faith, You know all of the struggles that every one of us is experiencing in regard to holy faith.", + "In Your love of Your nation, the Jewish people, You planted within us Your holy faith as an inheritance from our fathers. How fortunate are we, how good our portion, how pleasant our fate, and how fine our inheritance.", + "But due to the multitude of my sins, superficial thoughts that oppose Your holy faith rise in my heart.", + "This, more than anything else, hides Your face from me and constitutes my greatest trouble in the world. As the verse states, “These evils have come upon me because God is not in my midst.”", + "The Strongest Faith
Protect me from this moment on so that I will not fall prey to any type of heresy or thoughts that oppose Your holy faith.", + "May I hold on to the ways of our holy fathers and believe in You, in Your holy Torah and in Your true Tzaddikim, with a perfect, pure and proper faith.", + "May this faith be so strong so that it is as though I see You face to face, and I feel such fear and shame before You that I will no longer commit any sin or cause any blemish.", + "And should any thought or desire that opposes Your will arise in my mind, may I immediately experience awe and shame before You, knowing that You stand over me constantly and that at every moment, You see my deeds and know the secret thoughts of my heart.", + "“I shall not hide from before You” because Your glory fills the earth. As the verse states, “’Will a person hide in concealment so that I will not see him?’ declares HaShem. ‘Do I not fill Heaven and earth?’”", + "May I make use of the power of holy faith to recite the prayers and speak to You in my own words, with a whole heart and proper thoughts that are firmly connected to my words, without any improper motives and without ever turning aside from You.", + "May I speak to You face to face, as a person speaks to his friend, telling You everything in my heart.", + "May I pour forth my spirit like water before You, HaShem. May I gain Your favor as I pray with a crushed heart, like a son imploring his father, until, as you see how far I am from You, You will have compassion on me and rescue me.", + "Help me return to You. Guide me at every moment so that I will no longer turn aside from Your will, either to the right or the left.", + "Have pity on me as a father has compassion on his son. Save me and bring me close to You in every way.", + "“We will not turn back from You. Give us life and we will call in Your Name. HaShem, Lord of Hosts, bring us back; illumine Your face, and we will be saved.”", + "Blessed is HaShem forever. Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Humility, the Festivals, and Connecting Oneself to Tzaddikim
Moses, the paradigmatic Tzaddik, reached the forty-ninth gate, the sefirah of Binah (Understanding), which is characterized by humility. Thus, Moses became the most humble of men. When an ordinary person benefits from the light of the Tzaddik, he, too, gains humility.
The holiness of the festivals is dependent on the Tzaddikim. Thus, the festivals also correspond to Binah. A person who is connected to a Tzaddik can sense the holiness of the festivals and, when he celebrates properly, he attains understanding and humility.
Throughout the year, God’s holy sovereignty is trapped within the realm of the four kings of the Side of Evil. On the festivals, these four kings are cut away, thus liberating God’s sovereignty. This cutting away of the four kings of the Side of Evil also has the effect of “cutting open” the birth canal of women who have been experiencing a difficult childbirth.
Love for Tzaddikim
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, help me come close to true Tzaddikim. May I connect to them with a willing heart and spirit, with a fierce love that comes from the depths of my heart.", + "May my love for them grow more powerful than romantic love, to the point that romantic love and the desire for sexuality cease to interest me (besides my marital responsibilities).", + "May I love the Tzaddikim until my spirit is firmly connected to their spirits forever.", + "Greeting the Festivals with the Tzaddikim
HaShem, my God and God of my fathers, may I celebrate all of the festivals with holiness and purity; with joy, delight, and breadth of heart — perfectly and in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "May I greet the face of my spiritual teacher on the festival, even when I am far from him. More generally, may I greet the faces of all of the true Tzaddikim. May I recognize them, love them and draw their holiness onto me as a result of celebrating the holy festival. This is because the festivals are derived from them.", + "In that way, may I attain the forty-nine gates of understanding that are revealed and shine on each festival. Open for me the light of holy intellect so that I will attain great and wondrous insight into Your Torah and into understanding how to serve You.", + "As a result, may all of the foolishness of my egotism, coarseness and haughtiness be nullified. May I attain ultimate humility, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "Draw onto me and onto all Israel the holiness of Moses, who attained the forty-nine gates of understanding and thereby gained true humility. As the verse states, “The man Moses was more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.”", + "As a result of our celebrating the festivals — “the festivals of HaShem, holy convocations” — may we draw onto ourselves the holiness of Moses, as well as the holiness of all of the true Tzaddikim.", + "Through them, may we receive the holy awareness that is drawn down on each festival. May we thereby eradicate all of our egotism, coarseness and improper motives, until we attain the humility of Moses.", + "Eliminating Coarseness and Ego
Master of the world, You know how far I am from humility. “I am more animal than man, and I lack human understanding.” Due to my many sins, I do not know the meaning of true humility, which is greater than everything.", + "Master of compassion, help me attain the holiness of each festival, and as a result, may I recognize the greatness of the true Tzaddikim and make myself as nothing before them.", + "Then may every trace of egotism, coarseness and improper motive within me, that the mouth may describe and the heart may contemplate, be erased, until I will attain true humility in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "Praying Correctly
Compassionate God, fulfill my requests for the good.", + "You know everything that is hidden in my heart. You know how far I am from everything that I have requested in my prayers to You, and how much I need Your salvation and compassion to attain that.", + "Because of my many sins, the ways of prayer are hidden from me, so that I do not even know how to ask You to help me reach the ways of holiness, which constitute my life and the length of my days.", + "Graciously help me express myself to You and plead before You. And then, respond as You see fit.", + "You understand what is hidden in my heart. You know that I have no one on whom to rely except for You, as well as the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim.", + "For Your sake and their sake, kindly help me return to You and walk in Your holy ways, doing Your will and fulfilling Your good intent, for which purpose I was created.", + "“HaShem will act on my behalf. HaShem, Your kindness is forever; do not forsake the work of Your hands.”", + "“HaShem, take heed of my words, consider my thoughts.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "A Person Who Longs to Learn Torah But Cannot is Given Access to God’s Book of Remembrance
If a person cannot learn Torah for any reason — perhaps he is illiterate, or he lacks access to a book, or the like — yet his heart is aflame with a desire to learn Torah in order to serve God, that desire itself is equivalent to learning from a book.
The mechanism behind this is as follows.
Sometimes there are two Tzaddikim who are far from one another. One asks a question and the other makes a comment that answers the question. In this way, they are speaking to each other. Alternatively, sometimes both ask a question and the question of one of them answers the other.
No one hears this dialogue but God. He combines their words and records them in a celestial book. That book is His supernal heart.
The person who longs to learn Torah but cannot do so receives a heart from this supernal heart, God’s book of remembrance. In this way, he learns from a book — the book that God made for those who fear and honor Him, who desire to perform His commandments and learn His Torah.
Longing to Return to God
“My soul yearns, it longs for the courtyards of HaShem; my heart and my flesh sing to the living God.” “My spirit thirsts for You; my flesh yearns for You in a land that is dry and weary, without water.” “My spirit thirsts for God, for the living God; when will I come and see the face of God?”", + "Master of the world, You know the vast number of impediments that keep me away from the holiness of the Torah, prayer and good deeds.", + "I cannot even begin to list the multitude of confusions, impediments and obstacles that stand in the way of my approach to holiness.", + "Even when I perform a mitzvah or do something related to holiness, it is adulterated and far from the perfect rectification that I need to achieve.", + "Because of my many sins, I am far from Your Torah and its commandments. I am like a person living in the desert, a bleak wilderness, a land without water, in the shadow of death.", + "I have no idea how to return to the true, straight and proper path, in order to be in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "I drift about in this temporary world “like a person who is drunk, like a person overcome by wine,” confused and torn apart by endless instances of turmoil and thousands of impediments that keep me from coming close to You and Your Torah, for which purpose I was created.", + "What shall I do when You come to examine me? “What shall I do when God arises; when He visits, how shall I respond to Him?”", + "You revealed through Your holy sages the value of longing for holiness. And the only way I know to revive my poor and bitter, torn and blemished soul is to yearn to serve You and learn Your Torah.", + "Yearning When it is Impossible to Act
My Father in Heaven, my compassionate Father, You Who do good even to those who are guilty, help me always long to serve You and learn Your Torah with a mighty will until I will learn a great deal, pray to You extensively, perform the commandments, and do good deeds every day, all the days of my life.", + "Even if I must set these aside — for instance, if I am in a place where it is impossible to learn Torah and serve You — help me yearn to do so, and may that yearning rise before You as though I had indeed done so.", + "The Celestial Book of the True Tzaddikim
God, You Who are filled with compassion, help me accustom myself to always desire to learn Your Torah, serve You, and come close to You.", + "As a result, may I learn from the supernal book that rests upon the supernal heart. In that book, the words of the true Tzaddikim appear. As each one speaks in his own place, You listen and join their words together to write that book of remembrance. As the verse states, “Those who fear HaShem spoke together, each man to his neighbor, and HaShem took heed and heard; and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear HaShem and cherish His Name.”", + "You write that book for the sake of those who desire to learn Your Torah and do Your will. Help me draw down great illumination from this heart and learn from this book.", + "I am far from holiness. But I ask You to help me attain a true yearning to serve You and learn Your Torah so that I will return to You quickly, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "I rely on You Who are the splendor of our might, for You choose to elevate our strength.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Holy Eating and Drinking / Life and Death
A Tzaddik controls and overcomes his physical inclinations even when he is permitted to engage in the pleasures of eating and drinking. Thus, he experiences no difference between life and death, for in either case, he serves God the same way — which is to say, free of all physical desires.
But if a person is drawn to physical desires, then when he dies, he has an acute awareness of the difference between this world and the World to Come, since he misses the experiences of eating and drinking. And so at that time, he is said to be truly dead.
Doing Everything with Holiness and Purity
God, You Who revive the dead, renew me and keep me alive.", + "Help me conquer my evil inclination and gain control of all of my desires — even those for permissible pleasures. For instance, even on the days when eating and drinking are permitted, in the realm that our sages call “the half that is for you,” may I control my desires. As I engage in physical actions, may I do so with holiness and purity, for the sake of Your Name alone, without any bodily desire whatsoever.", + "Nullifying Desires
Master of the world, tell my troubles, “Enough!”", + "Quickly free me from all of my appetites. Have pity on my poor soul that has been blemished by my evil desires.", + "Give me strength and counsel at every moment to nullify my desires until I will attain true and eternal life — both in this world and in the World to Come.", + "When the time comes for me to leave this world, may I perceive no difference between this life and life after death.", + "May I always serve You in truth, whether in this world or in the World to Come. May I remain alive even after I pass away, among the Tzaddikim, who even in their death are called living.", + "“I will not die, but I will live, and I will tell the deeds of God.”", + "“My soul, return to your rest, for HaShem has dealt bountifully with you. You have rescued my soul from death, my eye from tears, my foot from stumbling. I shall walk before HaShem in the lands of life.”", + "“The dead will not praise God, nor all those who descend into silence. But we will bless God from now and forever. Praise God.”", + "“You have rescued my spirit from death, my feet from stumbling, so that I may walk before God in the light of life.”", + "“Do not abandon my spirit to the grave, do not allow Your pious one to experience destruction. Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Suppressing One’s Desire to Engage in Dispute
A person must suppress his desire to engage in dispute. Then, after he passes away, it is as though he has not died, in the sense that people repeat his Torah teachings — particularly his halakhic (legal) rulings — in his name.
Eliminating Dispute and Living in Both Worlds
“I will dwell in Your tent forever; I will take refuge in the concealment of Your wings.”", + "Master of the world, help me control and eliminate my desire to engage in dispute. May I do all I can to silence arguments and pursue peace always. As a result, after I leave this world, may people repeat my formulations of halakhah in my name, so that my lips will murmur in the grave, and thus I will live in both worlds and never die.", + "To Be Counted Among the Living Forever
Master of the world, I know how far I am from conquering my desire for dispute, due to my evil and bitter appetites.", + "You are a King Who desires life. I hope and trust that in the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim, You will quickly strip me of all my desires until I will soon conquer my desire for dispute, and then live and not die.", + "May I be counted among the living forever — for Your sake, my living God, and for the sake of the true Tzaddikim, who in their death are said to be living. Give me life and sustain me in the light of Your countenance.", + "Peace and Compassion
God, You Who are filled with compassion, the Life of living beings, Master of peace, grant peace, goodness, blessing, compassion and life to Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Act for Your sake, and not for ours.", + "“May my spirit live and praise You as Your judgments help me.” “With You is the source of life; in Your light, we will see light.”", + "“Hear my voice in accordance with Your kindness; HaShem, in accordance with Your laws, give me life.” “Your compassions are vast, HaShem; in accordance with Your laws, give me life.” “My spirit has clung to the dust; revive me in accordance with Your words.”", + "May we experience in our own lives the verse, “You who cling to HaShem your God are alive, all of you, today” — forever and ever. Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "To Overcome Dispute, a Person Must Fast or Give Charity / Reviving the Dead Days of One’s Past
When people attempt to prevent an individual from carrying out his purpose — whether in the material or spiritual realms — he is unable to pray properly or otherwise serve God. In order to nullify that dispute and make peace, he must fast (or engage in its equivalent, which is giving charity). The reason is as follows.
A person’s heart is filled with many disparate drives. When he fasts, he subjugates and weakens his heart. As a result, all of his desires are nullified before the will of God and, consequently, his heart clings to God. When that happens, the will of others is nullified before his, in keeping with our sages’ dictum, “Nullify your will before His will, so that He will nullify the will of others before your will.”
Also, when a person fasts, that revives his former days that lacked life. Each day receives two influxes of energy. First, as an independent entity, it has its own life force. In addition, it receives a flow of energy from Above. When a person performs mitzvot and good deeds, the flow of energy from Above to that day is abundant and generous. But when he does not perform mitzvot and good deeds, the flow of energy from Above to that day is reduced. Furthermore, if he engages in evil, he deprives the day on which he does so of both sources of energy — the flow of energy from Above and its own life force. As a result, such a day is a lifeless corpse.
Fasting revives these dead days. The reason for this may be explained as follows. When a person fasts, he receives no life force from that day. Instead, he makes use of the energy of the previous day. Should he fast more, he makes use of the energy of previous days until, ultimately, he reaches all the way back to the beginning of his life. At the same time, as this person fasts, he conveys the Divine life force and power of mitzvot to the lifeless days of his past, until he revives and illumines them all. And since that life force comprises a structure of joy, he brings joy into his life.
God Desires Our Repentance
HaShem, God of truth, You Who are unique and preceded all existence, You Who devise thoughts so that no one will remain exiled from You, You Who are good and do good to all, You Who gaze upon the wicked person with the desire that he will become righteous, You Who proclaim the generations from the beginning, You Who desire repentance — for the sake of Your Name and for the sake of our holy fathers, restore us to You in complete repentance.", + "Help me walk in the way of Your laws and keep Your commandments from this moment on.", + "God Transforms Worlds
Master of the world, You Who know secrets, You Who are elevated and holy, You Who bring about mighty realities, Master of war, You Who sow righteousness and cause salvation to flourish, Creator of healing, You Who deserve awesome praise, Master of wonders, You Who renew the act of Creation every day, You Who create hidden miracles and wonders — no one knows the essence of Your greatness, no one knows the wonders that You constantly perform, all of which are meant only to bring us close to You.", + "Only You know everything that You do to help all Jews repent and rectify their souls. At every moment, You perform infinite wonders to transform worlds, all for the sake of giving us hints on many levels and in endless ways that call us back to You from wherever we are. Only this is true goodness; there is no other goodness in the world.", + "God’s Compassion
My compassionate Father, my King Who is good and does good to all, I acknowledge all of the kind favors, redemptions and wonders that You have performed for me throughout my life.", + "Despite all of the sins that I committed — whether accidentally or on purpose, against my will or willingly — Your compassion has never ceased. You still awaken me, help me maintain my hope in Your redemption, and inspire me to pray to You.", + "Besides that, every day You sanctify me by helping me perform Your awesome commandments in this bleak and impermanent world that passes like the blink of an eye.", + "How great is Your goodness that You have done for me. “How can I repay HaShem for all of His kindness to me?” But I gather the courage to pray to You and bow down before You.", + "Fasting Properly
Master of compassion and salvation, “great in counsel and mighty in deed,” guide me at every step on the straight path of repentance, so that I will quickly return to You.", + "In particular, teach me how to fast properly.", + "You revealed through our sages the great power of fasting, which constitutes the essence of repentance. Our sages also teach that a person may not fast without gaining the permission of a sage — and, in particular, they warn that a Torah scholar should not fast if that will affect his learning.", + "HaShem, God of truth, You know all the matters concealed in my heart — particularly my hesitancy to fast, since doing so is difficult, and my lack of clarity regarding how and when to fast.", + "Overcoming Dispute
Please teach me how to serve You — in particular, how to fast without being confused by indecisiveness, which would detract from the little that I have accomplished.", + "As a result of my fasting, may I overcome the negative physical nature of my body.", + "Moreover, may I nullify dispute and draw down peace, overall and in detail — whether dispute caused by people who attack Jews who wish to become more holy, with the goal of turning these people aside from truth, or dispute generated in my own heart that blocks me from serving You as I wish, almost to the point that “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "I wish to purify my mind. But foreign thoughts and evil musings — both of which are types of “dispute” — cause me to experience much confusion. In order to counter all of this, may I engage in fasts.", + "Attaining Peace on Every Level
Help me fast a great deal in accordance with Your beneficent will. In this way, may I overcome every type of dispute.", + "May I also overcome all of my blemished desires. May I nullify them before Your will, as my heart clings to serving You and I never turn aside from doing Your will.", + "As a result, may the will of all those who try to stop me from serving You be nullified.", + "May every sort of dispute — dispute from people and dispute in my heart — come to an end. May I attain peace on every level, so that I will return to You and live in accordance with Your beneficent will always, from this moment on.", + "Attaining Joy
Help me attain joy as I serve You. “Grant us joy according to the days that You pained us, the years that we saw evil.”", + "The Joy of Yom Kippur
Help me commemorate the holy day of Yom Kippur with joy.", + "May I keep its five afflictions properly and recite its five prayer services with awesome intent.", + "May I confess my sins and regret having committed them. May I abandon my evil ways and confused thoughts, and resolve to never again return to my foolishness, to never again do evil in Your eyes.", + "Instead, may I return to You with complete repentance — with joy, awe and love, as I weep from joy.", + "The Holy Fast of Yom Kippur
Help me attain the holiness of the awesome and elevated day of Yom Kippur, the day of the year that You chose to forgive the sins of Your people. Help me keep this day properly and repent completely.", + "Forgive me my sins, which are more numerous than the sands of the sea. In the merit of the holiness of this day — and particularly of my fasting — may I nullify the expressions of my will that oppose Your will, until I am always in accord with Your will and never turn aside from it, either to the right or the left.", + "When I reach that level, please nullify the will of others before my will. Remove every type of dispute from my life — whether the dispute that comes from other people, or the dispute that rages within my bones due to my sins.", + "“There is no peace in my bones because of my transgression.” Despite all of my efforts to attain holiness, I experience impediments without measure — principally, the impediments set up within my mind and heart.", + "May I nullify all of these by engaging in the holy fast of Yom Kippur. This day contains within it all the days of the year. As the verse states, “Your eyes saw my rough form; all people are recorded in Your book — they were created on many days, but to Him these days are one.” This one day, our sages teach, is Yom Kippur.", + "Help me repent throughout the year, and particularly on the holy day of Yom Kippur. Help me fast on Yom Kippur in awesome holiness and joy. May I then sanctify myself and know how to fast throughout the year, and always remain in accordance with Your beneficent will, so that I will never be ashamed and will never stumble.", + "Rectifying the Dead Days
Because I committed a multitude of sins throughout my life, the corpses of dead days lie littered across my past.", + "I cruelly removed the life force from these days. Not only did I not add Heavenly life force to them by learning Torah and serving You, but I removed the essence of their life force by sinning.", + "You revealed through Your holy sages that the way to rectify these dead days is to engage in many fasts.", + "May I rectify all of these dead days with the power of the holy fast of Yom Kippur and all other fasts. May I fast so much that my body will ultimately reach back to the days that I was nursing in order to gain its nutrition. In that way, may I revive, raise and rectify all of the days of my life.", + "Then, on the day that I leave this world, may I not come before You in shame. Rather, may all of the days of my life attain the quality of holiness. May they all be whole, pure and rectified, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "Holy Fasting
Give me the miracle of life. May I not be as a dead person. “I will not die, but I will live, and I will tell the deeds of God.”", + "Help me engage in many fasts. In reward for that, give my poor and insulted spirit joy and strength.", + "You Who grant favors even to those who are guilty, You have granted me everything good. You made me a member of the Jewish people and separated me from those who err.", + "Help me from this moment on to separate myself from this world. May I gain equanimity, conquer my evil inclination, rule over my spirit, and strengthen myself at all times until I can close my eyes to the sights of this world and engage in many fasts.", + "Accept these fasts with love. Bring me close to You. Give joy to my spirit always, so that with the help of the power of the true Tzaddikim, I will rectify all that I blemished throughout the course of my life.", + "May I recognize You and serve You always — and may my offspring, for all generations, do the same.", + "“Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; I have hoped for You all day long.” “HaShem, teach me the way of Your laws, and I will keep it at every step.” “HaShem, teach me Your ways. I will walk in Your truth. Unify my heart to fear Your Name.” “HaShem, teach me Your ways. Guide me on a path that is straight, despite my enemies who gaze upon me.” “Send Your light and Your truth to guide me; they will bring me to Your holy mountain and to Your dwelling place.”", + "To You alone are my eyes lifted, “until HaShem will gaze and see from Heaven.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, ‘Amen.’”" + ], + [ + "Sweetening Judgments in the Heavenly Courts / Making Converts
To gain spiritual redemption, a person gives a pidyon nefesh (literally, “soul-redemption”), a monetary gift to a Tzaddik, with the request that he pray on that person’s behalf. The Tzaddik then sweetens the judgment to which that person is subject. There are twenty-four Heavenly courts, each one with its own type of judgment that must be sweetened in a particular manner.
Sometimes, bringing a pidyon nefesh to a Tzaddik does not help. This may be because the Tzaddik does not know the “redemption” germane to each of the twenty-four Heavenly courts. And even when he does know it, he may not know how to implement it. However, there is a universal “redemption” that corresponds to and sweetens the judgments of all twenty-four Heavenly courts. The Tzaddik must perform this “redemption” at a time of favor, such as at the time of Minchah on Shabbat afternoon. However, only one Tzaddik in a generation knows that redemption. And at times even this universal “redemption” does not achieve its designated purpose, because Heaven applies it to another goal: making converts.
That was the work of Moses, both in his lifetime and after his death. In his lifetime, he worked to convert the “mixed multitude,” and after his death, he was buried opposite the idolatrous site of Beit Pe’or in order to sweeten the idolatry there and convert its adherents. Appropriately, he passed away at the time of Minchah on Shabbat afternoon.
Redemption in the Heavenly Courts
“HaShem redeems the spirit of His servants; all those who take refuge in Him will not be condemned as guilty.” “He has redeemed my soul in peace against those who fight me, from the many people arrayed against me.” “God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave; He will take me.”", + "“My lips will rejoice as I sing to You together with my spirit, which You have redeemed.”", + "Master of the world, King, Redeemer, Savior, Rescuer, Sustainer, You Who answer us compassionately at every time of trouble and oppression, we have no one on whom to rely but You.", + "In the merit of our holy fathers, illumine us with Your favor. Sweeten and nullify all of the judgments against Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "Redeem our souls from all of the holy decrees and judgments of the twenty-four Heavenly courts — whether before or after such decrees have been finalized.", + "Redeem our spirit from all of these judgments. Sweeten and nullify all judgments, sufferings and decrees that are passed there regarding Your nation, the House of Israel — whether pertaining to their body, soul or money, regarding all of them or some of them.", + "No one but the Tzaddik of the generation knows how to bring about a redemption that will nullify all of the judgments of Your holy courts.", + "Even a person who does know how to bring about some redemption and nullify the judgment of a particular court does not know how to nullify all of the judgments of all twenty-four courts. As a result, he may at times fail to bring about a redemption.", + "Redemption and Minchah on Shabbat Afternoon
Have compassion on us in the merit of the great Tzaddikim who correspond to the level of Moses, and who have the power to bring about a redemption that will nullify all of the judgments in all twenty-four courts.", + "Always illuminate us with Your Divine favor — specifically, at the time of Minchah on Shabbat afternoon.", + "Redeem our spirits and rescue us from all troubles. Sweeten and nullify all of the decrees and judgments of all twenty-four holy courts.", + "Rescue me from every type of sickness, pain, discomfort and poverty in the merit of Moses, who passed away on the Shabbat at the time of Minchah, and in the merit of all of the Tzaddikim who are on his level, who know how to bring about a redemption that will sweeten the judgments within all twenty-four courts.", + "Destroying Heresy
Arouse Your compassion to crush and uproot all heresy from the world — particularly, from all of Your people, the House of Israel, wherever they may be.", + "Bring a constant flow of Divine favor into the world. Transform destruction into Divine favor in the merit of Moses, who dedicated himself all the days of his life to transform people by raising them from corruption and heresy and connecting them to Your supernal will.", + "Even now, after he has passed away, he continues to stand and pray on behalf of all those who are in exile and far from faith, in order to transform them and bring them close to You, to nullify all heresy and atheism, and to raise the world from destruction to Divine favor — in particular, to inspire non-Jews to convert, and sinful Jews to repent.", + "In a Time of Heresy
HaShem, You Who devise thoughts so that no one will be exiled from You, You Who turn Your heart to every generation, have compassion on us in the merit of Moses and of all of the Tzaddikim who correspond to his level, who work to sweeten the judgments of all twenty-four Heavenly courts in order to nullify all decrees in all worlds, to eradicate heresy, to inspire people to become converts, and to draw faith into the world.", + "Have pity on us at this time of trouble, when heresy and atheism are so widespread that there is no way to turn aside from them. Almost every day, a number of people are trapped in the web of the heretics, who educate young people in the evil ways of secular studies, such as non-Jewish languages.", + "We can rely only on You, our Father in Heaven, and in the power of Moses and all of the great Tzaddikim, who know how to draw down favor, sweeten all judgments, and transform destruction into favor.", + "May Holy Faith Spread
Teach us how to arouse all of these Tzaddikim to engage in our rectification and in the rectification of the entire world. May they not remain silent at a time as bitter and grotesque as that of our generation, which has no equal throughout all of history. O heavens, act on our behalf! O heavens, awaken to the troubles of Israel!", + "Due to our many sins, no one clearly appreciates the bitter painfulness of these oppressive times.", + "And even if a person does appreciate some of the bitterness, he still does not know how to pray, to sweeten judgment and to nullify it.", + "We can rely only on You, our Father in Heaven, and on the merit of our fathers and rabbis, the holy Tzaddikim, without whose prayers on our behalf we would not be able to exist for even a moment.", + "Teach us how to arouse them and add to their strength so that they will be able to sweeten all of the judgments and decrees in all twentyfour Heavenly courts and transform all heresy from destruction to favor, so that holy faith will spread in the world and converts and penitents will increase.", + "With the Help of the Tzaddikim
God, You Who are filled with compassion, “great in counsel and mighty in deed,” Master of wonders, act in accordance with Your wonders and empower Your awesome Tzaddikim to bring about redemptions and engage in extraordinary and miraculous prayer.", + "In this way, may they nullify all of the judgments and decrees of all twenty-four Heavenly courts that affect our physical and spiritual wellbeing — our bodies, souls and finances. And may they also sweeten anger against the entire world as they remove idolatry and heresy, transform destruction into favor, and inspire many people to become converts and penitents.", + "“You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.” You alone do great wonders. Save us in Your mighty compassion and Your wondrous ways.", + "Seeking Peace from a Time of Troubles
Master of the world, grant us perfect faith. Remove every sort of heresy and confusion regarding our belief.", + "Rescind all difficult decrees. Be kind to us without any admixture of judgment, so that we will return to You quickly and completely.", + "We are living in a time of evil and bitter troubles that have touched our spirit, so that every individual feels a pain that is so overwhelming that “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "In addition to that, we perceive, although more distantly, the measureless troubles of the Jewish people — particularly their spiritual misfortunes, due to the fact that modern thinkers and evil, accursed heretics are working to extend their influence.", + "And we suffer as well from increased dispute among good Jews, altercations among Torah scholars and those who are attached to them. “There is no peace for those who go out and for those who come in.”", + "Gaining Salvation and Goodness
With the power of the acts of redemption that sweeten the judgments of the twenty-four Heavenly courts, may we gain salvation and goodness, and may we inspire people to return to You with holy faith.", + "I hope in Your salvation at every moment, as a servant stands before his master and a son before his father, “until HaShem will gaze down and see from Heaven.” Have compassion on me, on those who depend on me, on my children, on my descendants and on all Israel. ", + "Quickly nullify all judgments. Rescue us from all suffering. Eradicate all heresy and confusions in the realm of faith that affect not only the Jewish people, but the entire world.", + "Strengthen and revive us. Keep us faithful to You always. Help us swiftly return to You with all our hearts. May we never turn aside from Your will, either to the right or the left.", + "Redeem my soul from perishing in the pit so that my living spirit may behold the light.", + "“Redeem me from the oppression of man, and I will keep Your laws.” “I will place my spirit in Your hand. You have redeemed me, HaShem, God of truth.” “I will proceed in my simplicity; redeem me and be gracious to me.” “Approach my soul, redeem it against my enemies, deliver me.”", + "“With HaShem is kindness, and much redemption is with Him; He will redeem Israel from all of its sins.” “Arise, help us, and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.” “God, redeem Israel from all of its oppressors.”", + "“HaShem, my prayer comes before You at a time of favor; God, in Your vast kindness, answer me, in the truth of Your salvation.”" + ], + [ + "Telling Stories About Tzaddikim / Differentiating Between Light and Darkness / Rising to the World of Thought / Gaining Access to Divine Providence / The Land of Israel
In order to properly tell stories of Tzaddikim, a person must possess the Godly power to discern the difference between light and darkness, or at least possess the faith that such a difference exists. This faith must be so complete and clear that when the person believes in something, it is as though he sees it before his eyes.
Every story that tells how a Tzaddik performed a miracle can be matched by a story of how a wicked person performed a wonder. A person must be able to discern the difference between them — namely, that the Tzaddik performed a miracle with prayer, whereas the wicked person performed a wonder with trickery, magic or some other power derived from the Side of Evil.
What does telling stories about Tzaddikim accomplish?
When a person’s mind is confused and his awareness diminished, it is associated with judgments, and so he experiences troubles. But stories of Tzaddikim are associated with expanded awareness. And so when a person tells (or hears) these stories, his mind is cleansed and he is saved from his troubles.
As one tells stories about Tzaddikim, he purifies his thought, which enables him to go beyond words and attain an internal silence. Every story about a Tzaddik is at first a constriction from the world of thought into the world of speech. But as a person tells a story, his speech rises and returns to the world of thought.
One must know the proper way to tell these stories in order to clarify and purify his thoughts. He must also know about whom to tell. The Tzaddik whom he tells about must be greater than he, so that these stories can uplift him.
Ultimately, to tell these stories properly, a person must gain access to Divine Providence — which is to say, he must leave his nature-bound state. Doing so constitutes the totality of holiness. He can attain this by connecting himself to the Land of Israel, which is also the totality of holiness, and which is therefore under Divine Providence.
HaShem’s Wonders and His Wonder-Workers
“Great are the deeds of HaShem, accessible to all those who desire them.” “How abundant are Your works, HaShem, You made all of them with wisdom; the world is filled with Your possessions.” “How great are Your deeds, HaShem; how very deep are Your thoughts.”", + "Master of the world, “You are the God Who does wonders” in every generation through Your true Tzaddikim. Our fathers have told us of all the awesome miracles that You performed through Your true Tzaddikim from the earliest days. In our generation as well, there certainly exist Tzaddikim who are true miracle workers.", + "Stories of True Tzaddikim
God, help me tell stories about true Tzaddikim, their children and their followers. In particular, help me tell about the awesome signs and miracles that these Tzaddikim performed in ways both revealed and concealed, and about all of the holy revelations of Godliness that they drew into the world.", + "When I hear these stories, may I understand them in my heart and tell them always. May my mouth be filled with the praise and glorification of the Tzaddikim, for their praise is Your praise and their glorification is Your glorification.", + "Help me every day tell the stories of true Tzaddikim so that their holiness will be drawn onto me. In this way, may I purify my thoughts of all foreign and external influences, and of all evil musings and confusions derived from a constricted awareness.", + "May I go from smallness to greatness of mind. In this way, may I be rescued from all sufferings and judgments, which are derived from a confused and constricted awareness.", + "Rescue me from all of these by helping me always tell stories of true Tzaddikim, who possess a great awareness.", + "Transcending Nature
Help me always yearn to come to the Land of Israel. May I always draw the holiness of the Land of Israel onto myself. In this way, may I attain complete faith in Your Providence.", + "Bring me out of the realm of nature entirely, so that I know and believe that there is no nature in the world at all, but that everything is under Your Providence. For nature also functions in accordance with Your Providence, and You change nature at every moment through the true, wonder-working Tzaddikim of every generation.", + "Differentiating Between Stories
Help us emulate You by distinguishing light from darkness — particularly by differentiating between stories of Tzaddikim and stories of wicked people. May we know whom to tell stories about and how to tell them. And may telling these stories purify our thoughts.", + "You have taught us that opposing every story of a Tzaddik is a story of a wicked or dishonest person, or a story about a person on an intermediate level who appears to perform a miracle but is using trickery, magic or some other means. Only a person who knows how to differentiate between light and darkness can differentiate between such stories.", + "Because of our weakness, we are very far from You, and so we lack the capacity to differentiate between light and darkness.", + "Seeing the Difference Between Tzaddikim and Wicked People
Help us attain a faith so strong that we seem to see with our physical eyes that which we believe in.", + "May we believe that You, HaShem our God, gaze upon the world with individual providence at every moment, and that You constantly perform new and wondrous deeds in every generation through Your true Tzaddikim.", + "May we believe that there is a great difference between the wonders performed by the true Tzaddikim and the actions that appear to be wonders performed either by wicked people or by people who are a mixture of good and evil — neither of whom are fit to perform wonders, and who clothe themselves in a garment that is not their own.", + "May we recognize that the difference between the deeds of those people and the deeds and wonders of the true Tzaddikim is as stark as the difference between light and darkness. Consequently, may we always tell stories of true Tzaddikim, which have the power to purify our thoughts.", + "Controlling One’s Thoughts
Master of the world, I have caused innumerable blemishes with my thoughts, which I am still far from purifying.", + "I have sinned a great deal, doing that which is evil in Your eyes. In particular, my careless thoughts have blemished the holy covenant and the drops of semen that originate in the brain.", + "Help me control my thoughts so that they will never again stray beyond the proper boundary.", + "Until now, I have transgressed and sinned, injecting confused and wicked, foreign thoughts into my mind, which have caused ruin and devastation.", + "What can I say? How shall I speak? Before You Who investigate each person’s heart and inner being, everything is revealed.", + "God’s Compassion in the Merit of the True Tzaddikim
Now, after all of the sins that I have committed and all of the hardships that I have experienced throughout the course of my life, my eyes yearn for complete salvation from You alone.", + "In the merit of the prayers of the true Tzaddikim, have compassion on me, save me, have pity and mercy on me. Incline Your ear and hear the voice of my outcry, the voice of my prayer.", + "Telling Holy Stories
May the holiness of the Land of Israel, which comprises the totality of all ten types of holiness, be drawn onto me so that I will attain a complete faith that at every moment You gaze upon every detail of the universe and perform innumerable and awesome wonders for me and for the entire world — “He does great wonders alone; His kindness is eternal.”", + "You do all of this in the merit of the true Tzaddikim, through whom all miracles are performed.", + "Strengthen me to believe in You always with a holy faith that is drawn down by means of the holiness of the Land of Israel. May I then know who are the true Tzaddikim about whom I should tell stories, and may I know how to tell these stories.", + "As a result of telling these stories, may my thoughts be purified so that I will free myself of all confusions, evil musings, blemished ideas and foreign thoughts. May no foreign thought have the power to confuse my mind. Instead, may I attain holy, pure and proper thoughts about serving You. May I gain an appreciation for Your greatness and the greatness of the true Tzaddikim, and may I create new insights into Your holy Torah.", + "When I need to rise to the world of thought, may I be completely silent, without even speaking a word of holiness, because that, too, confuses thought.", + "Rebuke all of my foes who want to keep me from attaining holy thoughts. Give me the power to expel all confusion so that I will always cling to You and Your Torah with holy, pure and clear thoughts that are in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "Rescue me from every type of suffering. Sweeten and nullify all of the judgments against me and against all of Your nation, the House of Israel.23If you wish at this point to pray on behalf of someone in need of salvation, add here, “and in particular, [name], son/daughter of [mother’s name].”", + "In the Merit of Telling Stories About Tzaddikim
Bring me forth quickly from a constricted to an expanded awareness in the course of my telling stories about true Tzaddikim. May that purify my mind to the ultimate degree so that my thoughts will always be holy and pure.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. My spiritual needs are without measure, and my mind is too limited to enumerate the smallest part of them. My words do not suffice to describe how far I am from every level of holy thought and how much I need to plead to attain it. Therefore, please accept what I say as though I were enumerating all of my spiritual needs before You.", + "Save me so that I will return to You and live in accordance with Your beneficent will. As the verse states, “Before they call out, I will answer; while they are still speaking, I will hear.” HaShem, redeem me at every time of difficulty and oppression. Blessed are You, Who answers Your nation, the Jewish people, at a time of trouble.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "May Political Leaders Be Kind to Us
When a new king comes to power, may he be a kind king who will have compassion on Your nation, the Jewish people. May he ease our yoke of servitude and nullify all of the evil decrees against us, and certainly not promulgate any new, anti-Jewish decrees.", + "We have no one on whom to rely but You alone. No one else will take our side. May Your great Name stand by us at every time of trouble.", + "Have mercy on us, Your impoverished sheep, and incline the hearts of kings and ministers to us for the good. The hearts of kings and ministers are in Your hand. As the verse states, “The heart of the king is in HaShem’s hand like streams of water; He inclines it wherever He wishes.”", + "“Have mercy on Your nation, have compassion on Your inheritance, You Who are full of compassion.”", + "“He removes kings and establishes kings.”", + "“Gaze down from Your holy habitation, from Heaven.”", + "Incline the hearts of all kings, advisers and ministers to us for the good, and bring us our righteous Mashiach speedily in our days. Amen." + ], + [ + "Serving God in the Present Moment
The Psalmist says, “Today, if you listen to His voice.”
An important principle in serving God is to focus on the present moment, whether in the realm of earning a living and other material concerns, or in the realm of serving God.
When a person wants to begin to serve God, doing so may appear as an overwhelming burden. But if he adapts the perspective that he has only this day, then he will see that serving God is not such a burden.
Also, a person should not put things off — for instance, he should not say that tomorrow he will begin to pray with feeling. This is because a person has only the present day and moment. The future constitutes an entirely different world.
Renewal Every Day
“Come, let us bow down and prostrate ourselves; let us bow before HaShem our Maker. For He is our God and we are the nation of his pasture and the flock in His hand — today, if you listen to His voice.”", + "Master of wonders, You Who every day renew the act of Creation in Your goodness, You Who in Your wisdom bring about the passage of time, help me renew myself every day in order to increase holiness and purity. Every day, may I begin anew to serve You as though I had been born today.", + "May I not think beyond today. May my mind never grow confused by thinking of the past or the future.", + "May the coming days and hours not concern me. May I not contemplate them, for that might hamper my ability to serve You. Instead, may I only consider the present day, hour and minute. As a result, may I serve You wholeheartedly, without any confusion, fear, heaviness or laziness.", + "Every day, may I enthusiastically serve You anew. May I place nothing before my eyes but this day, hour and minute, so that I will serve You energetically. ", + "May no element of my serving You weigh me down. May I deal with just one day at a time, for that will make it possible for me to engage in the fullest schedule of serving You.", + "In addition, may I not clutter my mind with concerns about making a living or taking care of my many needs from one day to the next. Instead, may I trust in You Who provide us with all of our needs every day. May I be accustomed to say always, “Blessed is God; every day, He gives us abundance, the God of our salvation.”", + "Rescue me from the influence of people who lack faith, who worry about what they will eat and how they will take care of their many needs tomorrow.", + "May I trust in Your Name and rely on You Who have shepherded me from my beginning.", + "Send me an abundance of goodness, each day in its time. You are the good King Who does good for everyone every day. You support us and provide for us every day and every hour, without fail. Even when we reach old age and our hair turns white, You will not abandon us. You will never leave us alone.", + "Serving HaShem with This Day
May no concerns about anything in the world upset me. May I enter the realm of Your holiness, approach You and renew myself every day for the good. Every day and at every moment, may I add more holiness, purity and awe to my life as I engage in acts of worship.", + "May I not cheat myself by delaying my service of You from one day to the next. Rather, may I always consider that I have nothing but the present day and moment. May I strive to fulfill the obligations of the day, to do all that is within my capacity and not procrastinate, so that I will not be ashamed.", + "Rescue me every day with a new and wondrous salvation, so that I will approach You and come ever closer to You, in accordance with Your beneficent will.", + "“Sing to HaShem, all the land; proclaim His salvation from day to day.” “Sing to HaShem, bless His Name, proclaim His salvation from day to day.”", + "From this moment onward, during the few days that I have at my disposal in this transient world, help me renew my days.", + "“Teach us to count our days, and then we will acquire a heart of wisdom. Return, HaShem, how long? Relent concerning Your servants. Satisfy us in the morning with Your kindness; may we sing and rejoice all of our days. Give us joy commensurate to the days that You afflicted us, the years that we saw evil.”", + "“Return us to You, HaShem, and we will return; renew our days as of old.”", + "“HaShem, may Your kindness be upon us as we have hoped in You.”", + "“May HaShem our God be with us as He was with our fathers. May He not abandon us and never leave us. May He incline our hearts to Him, so that we will walk in all of His ways and guard the commandments, rules and laws that He gave our fathers. May these words which I have pleaded before HaShem be close to HaShem our God day and night, so that He will act righteously on behalf of His servant and perform justice for His nation, the Jewish people, every day. Then may all of the nations of the land know that HaShem is God — there is no other!”" + ], + [ + "Repaying Evil with Good / The Dispute Generated by Righteous People is for a Person’s Benefit / Medicinal Herbs and Springtime / Medicinal Herbs and the Land of Israel / The Holy Shabbat Meals / Small Steps on the Shabbat
When wicked people attack an individual, he should not confront them directly, repaying them as they are treating him, for that would make it possible for them to overcome him. Rather, he should judge them positively and do them favors. In this way, he makes himself like the earth. Everyone tramples on the earth, yet it generously provides all good things: fruits and vegetables, gold, silver and precious stones.
His opponents may be compared to people attempting to breach someone’s house by digging a tunnel under it. If he digs back, the intruders will get in more easily. But if he shovels dirt into the tunnel, he will overcome them.
Sometimes righteous people attack a person. Their intent is only for the good. By attacking him, they are lifting him up and sweetening judgments against him in a secret, hidden way. They may be compared to people digging a tunnel under someone’s house so that they can secretly throw in a gift. When righteous people engage in dispute against a person and judgments against him are sweetened at their root, then he blossoms.
*
The earth yields medicinal herbs. Medicinal herbs that are picked in the springtime are the most powerful. Herbs picked at other times of the year lack the same efficacy.
The power of these herbs is ultimately derived from the Land of Israel, which is the principal land, from whose essence all other lands receive their power. The Land of Israel has two levels, called “land of Canaan” and, simply, “land.” In a time of dispute, it is called the “land of Canaan.” The word KaNa’AN (“Canaan”) may be read as KaN ONi (“Here is a poor person”). Dispute deprives people of their livelihood. Moreover, during a time of dispute, the medicinal herbs cannot derive power from the Land of Israel, and so they lack efficacy.
When there is peace, however, the Land of Israel is called “land.” At that time it gives its power to all the produce of the world, including medicinal herbs.
*
The Shabbat meals are the essence of the Shabbat. They are very precious, entirely holy and Godly.
A person cannot entirely avoid desecrating the Shabbat. Eating the Shabbat meals rectifies that desecration. The mechanism behind this works as follows.
The Shabbat is compared to a man’s first wife. The desecration of the Shabbat constitutes, in a sense, the death of this first wife. And our sages teach that “when a man’s first wife dies, his steps are shortened” (Sanhedrin 22a).
Thus, it would seem that honoring the Shabbat should be associated with long steps. But, to the contrary, our sages teach that a person should not take long steps on the Shabbat (Shabbat 113b).
The answer to this apparent contradiction is as follows.
Every mitzvah is a complete structure. On a weekday, the “feet” of a mitzvah descend into the realm of the “husks” of evil. Therefore, when a person performs a mitzvah on a weekday, the Side of Evil derives benefit from its “feet.”
On the Shabbat, however, the “feet” of the mitzvah rise from the “husks” to the realm of holiness, and so the Side of Evil cannot derive any benefit from a person’s mitzvah. Then this mitzvah proceeds before HaShem hesitantly and uncertainly, like a toddler beginning to walk. Although this toddler cannot yet walk well, his father lovingly helps him, praising and encouraging his every accomplishment. So too, when this mitzvah begins to “walk,” HaShem supports it and ultimately lengthens its steps.
And this is connected to the mitzvah of eating the Shabbat meals, for eating the Shabbat meals gives power specifically to the “feet.” Thus, our eating the Shabbat meals rectifies these initial, small steps. And so, corresponding to the process of rectifying the “steps” of the mitzvot on the Shabbat, we take small steps when we walk on the Shabbat.
Judging Everyone Favorably
“My God, guard my tongue from evil and my lips from speaking deceit. May my spirit be silent to those who curse me; may my spirit be like dust to all.”", + "Master of the world, Master of peace, graciously help me be a person of peace, a person who loves peace and purses peace always, with all my heart. May I never engage in any dispute, even against those who rise against me, undermine me or act against me.", + "May I not treat them as they treat me. To the contrary, may I judge them favorably and desire only their good.", + "As the verse states, “Do not say, ‘As he has done to me, so will I do to him, I will respond to a man in accordance with his deed.’” “Do not say, ‘I will repay him evil.’ Hope in HaShem, and He will save You.”", + "“May my spirit be like dust to all.” May I be like the earth upon which all trample, yet which yields all good things. When You see this, please override the counsel of all of those who scheme against me. May I nullify the thoughts of my enemies, “so that their hands will not act with cunning.” Then “the person who digs a pit will fall into it, and when that person rolls a rock, it will return to him.”", + "The Dispute of Tzaddikim
Open my eyes, my heart and my mind so that I may distinguish between the dispute fostered by wicked people and the holy dispute of Tzaddikim. May I believe that the dispute of Tzaddikim does much good for the person whom they criticize, for it elevates him and sweetens judgments against him.", + "May I not treat the dispute of Tzaddikim as though it is entirely contentious, for that is an error, and that error would infect it with the disputatiousness of the Side of Evil.", + "“May my eye gaze upon those who lie in wait for me; may my ears hear if it is evildoers who rise up against me. The Tzaddik flourishes like the palm tree; he grows tall like the cedar of Lebanon.”", + "Dispute and Dissension
My Father in Heaven, King of peace, dispute has multiplied in our generation among everyone: wicked people, average people, even righteous people.", + "Dispute that comes from the Side of Evil rises and spreads out every day, in both revealed and hidden ways.", + "So much division exists among Torah sages and their followers that it is hard to distinguish between their disagreements that are in the realm of holiness and disputes that come from the Side of Evil. As a result, many people have lost their faith in the sages and have fallen spiritually. Faith in the sages is the basis of the Torah. The sages are our life and the length of our days. Without them, we cannot take a single step in any holy undertaking.", + "In these oppressive times, when we have suffered such a long exile and servitude, our minds are no longer clear. Therefore, I do not know what to do and how to direct my thoughts in order to find the holy Tzaddikim.", + "“I look about me, but I am like a bird alone on the roof.” I do not know where my help will come from. “I am more animal than man, and I lack human understanding.” I cannot identify the true Tzaddikim and sages who can give me good advice, guide me on the right path, and bring me close to You.", + "My mind is so constricted that I do not even know how to speak to You properly. The troubles of my heart are so many and dispute has increased in so many ways that I do not know what to do, what to say, or how to express myself in prayer before You.", + "I am as bewildered as someone who is intoxicated. I do not know where I am in the world and what my end will be.", + "At Peace with All Jews
God, full of compassion, “You save the poor person from the one who is stronger than he, and the poor man and the impoverished man from the one who robs him.” Teach me how to pray to You in order to arouse Your compassion on my behalf.", + "Rescue me from dispute. May others not fight with me, either in the physical or the spiritual realms, and may I not dispute any worthy person. May I not harbor even the slightest bad feeling against true Tzaddikim — particularly against those who have passed away.", + "May I love all Jews and be at peace with them, “turning aside from evil and doing good, seeking peace and pursuing it.”", + "The Land of Israel and Healing
Help me draw onto myself and onto all Jews the holiness of the Land of Israel.", + "Free the Land of Israel from the grip of dispute. May it never be called “the land of Canaan,” but only the holy “Land of Israel.”", + "And then send a flow of goodness and blessing from the Land of Israel to all other lands.", + "Bless the produce and fruits of the Land, so that “the land will give its produce; may God, our God, bless us.”", + "Imbue the produce of the Land with the power to heal all of the diseases of Your nation, the House of Israel — particularly in the month of Iyar, which is also called the month of Ziv, when the produce of the Land flowers and bears fruit.", + "May we never require recourse to doctors. Bless all of the produce of the Land with the power to heal all of the diseases of Your nation, the House of Israel. Quickly bring healing to all of our illnesses, pains and wounds,24 If you wish at this point to pray on behalf of someone who is ill, add here, “and in particular, [name], son/daughter of [mother’s name].” for You are a faithful and compassionate God, our King and Healer.", + "May we never need to rely on the assistance of doctors, but on You alone. Creator of healing, “heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed, save us, and we will be saved, for You are our praise.”", + "Bring peace into the world. May all of our enemies fall beneath us in shame.", + "“May all those who seek to sweep away my spirit be turned back in shame.” “May those who desire my evil be ashamed and destroyed. May those who hate me, those who seek my downfall, be covered in shame.” “May all of my enemies be exceedingly shamed and frightened. May they return and be suddenly ashamed.”", + "Freedom from Poverty and Dispute
Rescue me from poverty, which comes as a result of argument and dispute.", + "You know that I desire peace and truth. But what can I do if I have enemies who fight against me for no reason? “I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.”", + "Have compassion on me and on everyone who desires to attain the ways of holiness. Protect us from those people who hate us for no reason, who persecute us in every way possible and menace us without cause.", + "“Rescue me from my enemies; my God, lift me above those who have risen against me.” “Guard my soul and rescue me. May I never be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.”", + "Celebrating the Shabbat Properly
Help me keep the Shabbat properly — with joy, wealth and honor, and without any sins.", + "May I eat freely on the Shabbat. May I not be stingy regarding expenses for the Shabbat and festivals. May I have the fortitude to spend money and acquire delicacies, fine foods and drinks with which to honor the holy Shabbat. May I eat liberally on the holy Shabbat, in keeping with the verse, “Eat today,” and in keeping with Your holy sages’ command that we delight in the Shabbat as much as we can.", + "Eating on the Shabbat is complete Godliness and holiness. It rises to an entirely different plane than does eating on weekdays.", + "By eating on the holy Shabbat, may I rectify the blemishes that I caused when I desecrated the Shabbat. It is very hard for a creature of flesh and blood to keep the Shabbat without ever transgressing it. You alone protect me from doing so. But even so, I have at times desecrated the Shabbat. May I merit to eat freely on the Shabbat in order to rectify every blemish that I brought about by desecrating the Shabbat.", + "Not to Be a Widower
Rescue all Jewish men from the suffering of being a widower.", + "May our first wives live and not die. May we and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, live long lives with our first wives, in holiness and purity.", + "You know the bitterness suffered by a man whose first wife has died. His steps are shortened and the world is dark before him, and it is as though the Temple has been destroyed in his days.", + "The Paths of the Tzaddikim
As a result of holy eating on the Shabbat — particularly the holy eating of the greatest Tzaddikim — please expand the holy paths that these Tzaddikim laid down.", + "You alone know all of their struggles: how they toiled, how many difficulties they suffered, how many hardships they endured, until they forged paths through a desolate desert where no road had ever been before, in regions where no human being had ever passed.", + "They proceeded with dedication and worked there at length, constructing paths for the masses.", + "But due to our many sins, due to the coarse physicality of the world and its evil desires, due to a multitude of disputes, scorn, jealousy, lust and honor, these holy paths are hidden from most people.", + "Almost no one seeks You and Your Tzaddikim with the desire to travel on their awesome paths, which are hidden from us in a variety of ways.", + "They revealed an immeasurable amount of counsel; they provided unlimited avenues so that every individual — no matter who he is or wherever he is, whatever the moment in his life — can find a path that will lead him to You, a path that conforms to the advice, teachings and hints of the Tzaddikim, which they revealed in their holy and awesome books that have been published in our time.", + "“How great are Your deeds, HaShem; how very deep are Your thoughts.” This refers to the concepts that have now appeared in the holy books that these Tzaddikim revealed to us.", + "But it is very hard to help a person who has free will. Therefore, all of their awesome paths still remain concealed from us. These paths seem shrunken in the context of our materiality, the confusion of our minds and the foolishness of our intellect, due to our evil deeds.", + "The Shabbat and the Paths of Holiness
Master of compassion, You Who show us the path upon which to return to You, help me celebrate the Shabbat in holiness and joy. May I eat freely on the Shabbat so that I will broaden and expand all of the holy paths upon which one can travel to You.", + "By means of the holiness of the Shabbat, may we raise our feet to holiness. As the verse states, “If you turn your foot aside due to the Shabbat.” May all of the mitzvot that we performed on the six days of the week lift their feet from the “husk” and the Side of Evil — which derive energy from them — to stand before You.", + "In Your love of Your nation, the Jewish people, accept all of our mitzvot and good deeds — even the mitzvot of an unworthy person such as myself, which I performed in a state of constriction and, moreover, imperfectly.", + "Accept all of them with love and mercy, and take pride and delight in them.", + "Accept us as a father accepts his son. Love, magnify and broaden our good deeds, which are insignificant and small in character, quantity and quality. Magnify and broaden the holy path that our deeds construct.", + "May the verse be realized, “Righteousness will go before him and he will place his steps upon the path.” May the steps of the mitzvot and good deeds that we Jews perform — particularly that the greatest of the true Tzaddikim perform — construct a broad and paved path.", + "In the merit of the holiness of eating on the Shabbat, broaden these paths, expand them and reveal them to Your entire nation, the House of Israel, so that we will proceed upon them and return to You from all of the badlands and roads on which we went astray.", + "Have compassion on us and do not destroy us. Lead us at every moment upon Your holy paths that You revealed to us through Your awesome Tzaddikim.", + "“Guide me in the path of Your mitzvot, for that is what I have desired.” “Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; I have hoped for You all day long.”", + "“HaShem, teach me the path of Your laws, and I will keep it at every step.” “HaShem, teach me Your ways. I will walk in Your truth. Unify my heart to fear Your Name.”", + "Peace on Every Level
Master of salvation, my needs are many and my mind too limited to express the slightest part of them. Please save me in every way that I require.", + "Rescue me from argument and dispute. Help me attain peace, gain the love of friends, and walk on the paths forged by the true Tzaddikim. As a result, may I live in accordance with Your will and with the will of those who fear You.", + "Place my portion with them. May I never be shamed, for I have trusted in You and relied on Your kindness.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and all Israel, and let us say, ‘Amen.’”" + ], + [ + "Attaining the Secrets of the Torah
The Zohar teaches that if an unworthy person attempts to learn the secrets of the Torah, “snakes and scorpions” confuse his thoughts. But if he becomes worthy, then these accusers turn into defenders that bring him to the hidden good, which proclaims that he should be allowed to enter through the gate of love.
The “hidden good” refers to the secrets of the Torah. When a person wants to contemplate these secrets, unholy thoughts initially come to disturb his mind. But when he yearns deeply enough, the gate of love is opened for him so that all of these foreign thoughts that confused his mind become pure, “as white as silver.” Then he sees and attains the secrets of the Torah that pertain to each day, and so he experiences every day as being very broad.
To Be Like Abraham
Master of the world, for the sake of Your Name, help me live a long life filled with holiness and purity — filled, in particular, with holy thoughts.", + "Help me emulate Abraham our patriarch, the man of kindness, by being kind and generous with my money, using it to help people in need.", + "May I not be angry or stingy — two traits that blur a person’s mind. Instead, help me be good, kind and generous until I am absorbed into the “right side,” the trait of Abraham, the man of kindness. As a result, may my mind be as white as silver — meaning to say, pure, clear and lucid.", + "May I live a long life filled with holiness. May I contemplate Your Torah at every moment and not indulge in any external, foreign thoughts. Help me quickly expel the “snakes and scorpions” — which is to say, all types of confusion and foreign thoughts that lay siege to a person’s mind every day.", + "May I break all of the boundaries, iron walls and curtains that conceal the good hidden within every day, and that do not allow an unworthy person to approach that hidden good.", + "Pure Thoughts of Torah
Do not treat me in keeping with my transgressions, but only in accordance with Your kindness. Help me attain the goodness that is hidden within every day. May my inclination to do evil not separate me from that goodness.", + "Give me the strength and firmness of heart to contemplate and study Your holy Torah with proper thoughts and yearning for true goodness.", + "May I never allow any foreign or external thoughts or confusions to enter my mind. May I be strong in my mind and think only of Your holy Torah.", + "Arouse Your compassion on my behalf and command the gates of wisdom to open for me, so that I will gain true insights into Your holy Torah every day, from the goodness that is hidden within that day.", + "As a result of these Torah insights, may I come close to You in truth, now and forever. May every day of my life be lengthened and enhanced with great holiness and purity, and may I live a good, true life both in this world and in the World to Come.", + "“I will satisfy him with length of days and show him My salvation.” “My commandments will give you added length of days and years of life and peace.” “Your days will be increased in Me and you will gain years of life.”", + "“Length of days is in her right hand; in her left hand, wealth and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness and all of her paths are peace. She is a tree of life for those who grasp her, and those who support her are happy.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen." + ], + [ + "Faith Throughout One’s Limbs
Sometimes a person’s faith resides in his heart. But that is not enough. A person should possess so much faith that it spreads throughout all of his limbs.
For instance, the Ari teaches that when a person washes his hands, he should lift them up to his head to receive holiness from above. For this act to be meaningful, the person needs faith that raising his hands to his head will bring down an influx of holiness. In that sense, his faith resides even in his hands.
When a person has such faith, it is eventually transformed into clear knowledge. Then he rises to a higher level of faith — and this process continues to repeat itself.
Higher Levels of Faith
“All of Your commandments are faithful. When falsehood pursues me, help me, HaShem!”", + "Faithful God, for the sake of Your Name, help me constantly rise to higher levels of faith. As I do so, may I understand matters that I had not previously understood, at which time I needed to strengthen myself with faith alone.", + "As for higher and more hidden matters that I do not yet comprehend, may I believe in them with holy faith until I come to understand them as well.", + "May I finally reach the acme of faith and holy mindfulness when I come to recognize You. May I know all that it is possible for human intellect to understand, as well as that which the mind cannot understand.", + "May I attain ultimate faith in accordance with Your will and the will of Your true Tzaddikim, who attained the highest levels of faith and knowledge. May I attain a faith so perfect and strong that it spreads throughout all of my limbs.", + "Blemishes in Our Faith
Master of the world, grant me complete faith.", + "You know the challenges that the entire world is experiencing in regard to faith, which is the foundation of everything.", + "In particular, the holy Jewish people are experiencing such challenges. The Jewish people are all believers and children of believers. However, there are tens of thousands of levels of faith. At present, all of the troubles and exiles that the Jewish people are experiencing result from a blemish in their faith, which is the foundation of the entire Torah, as You revealed to us through Your holy sages.", + "(In particular, at present, You have sent forth Your wrath, so that a number of evil, anti-Jewish decrees have been passed into law, including the conscription of young Jews who are sent into battle. We are broken, and our wounds fester!", + "(What has happened to us? Who will stand at our side at this troubled and bitter time? To where will we flee for help? And now we hear that even harsher decrees against the Jewish religion are being contemplated. All of these troubles have resulted from a blemish in our faith.)", + "What can we do to rectify this — particularly myself, for I have sinned against You so much?", + "Certainly this is all a result of a flaw in faith, which is the foundation of the entire Torah.", + "Sin and a lack of faith are dependent on each other. Because we have sinned so much, our faith is not whole; and because of our lack of faith, we have sinned.", + "How do we begin to rectify this?", + "Keeping Our Hearts Pure
Master of the world, You lovingly chose Your nation, the Jewish people, and graciously gave us Your Torah through Moses, Your faithful servant.", + "Following that, in every generation, You have sent us holy and awesome Tzaddikim — pious, wise men who have understood the depths of the Torah and have revealed wondrous and elevated insights.", + "No tongue can describe the holiness and ability of these people. They proclaim Your praises, telling of Your might and the wonders that You have performed. They draw down and reveal holy faith so that all people may experience it.", + "Yet even so, we have not been inspired to return to You, and we have not repented of our errors. As a result, You have sent us many troubles.", + "But even worse, there are a number of Jews whose minds and hearts have grown so twisted as a result of their bitter troubles that they have lost their faith.", + "What can we say? Only You know all that we are experiencing in these generations before the coming of the Mashiach. And who knows what more will occur?", + "Who will rise up on behalf of the weak Jewish people?", + "Have compassion on us, God of faith, for we are in great distress — as a nation and as individuals. Save us!", + "“HaShem, hear my prayer, listen to my supplications; in Your faithfulness, answer me, in Your righteousness.” “HaShem, Your kindness is in the heavens, Your faithfulness reaches to the heavens.”", + "For the sake of Your Name, help us attain perfect faith until we feel awe before You Who fill the entire world with Your glory.", + "You stand over us constantly and look at our deeds. You know our thoughts and investigate our hearts.", + "Unique Master, full of compassion, Who has pity on the poor, strengthen us so that we will know and believe all of this. May this awareness keep us from committing sins, indulging in evil thoughts, and falling prey to confusion — particularly from every type of crookedness in the heart, from every type of thinking that opposes Your holy faith.", + "Tzaddikim Throughout History
Master of the universe, You alone know Who You are. We fully believe that You exist, that Your existence is necessary, that You are Unique, Primal, Eternal, without beginning or end, that You created the world out of absolute nothingness over five thousand years ago, and so forth.", + "In Your compassion, You shone Your holy faith onto us through our patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who began to reveal Your Godliness in the world.", + "Afterward, You gave us Your holy Torah through Moses, Your faithful servant. By means of the great and awesome wonders that he performed on our behalf to give us life to this day, he illuminated our eyes and opened the light of knowledge so that we may know that You are HaShem our God, and that there is no one else besides You.", + "And then, in every generation, You sent us true Tzaddikim — elders and prophets, Rishonim and Acharonim, Tannaim, Amora’im and Rabbanan Savorei, Geonim, Rabbanim and Chassidim, and other holy people in every generation — until You sent us awesome Tzaddikim like those in our generations.", + "Walking in the Ways of the Tzaddikim
Help us always walk in the ways of these Tzaddikim, obey their directives and live in accordance with their will.", + "Teach us how to internalize the holy faith that our holy fathers and rabbis, the Tzaddikim, drew down to us in their great holiness.", + "Help us draw onto ourselves their faith, kindness, goodness and righteousness. They toiled to help all Jews for all generations. They worked to draw down and reveal holy faith to all people — particularly to the holy Jewish people, who are special and close to You.", + "Save us at this time of trouble for the sake of their unfathomable merit. Save us, God, because the waters have risen and threaten to drown us. Help us attain complete faith until we will come to knowledge and our holy faith will spread throughout all of our limbs.", + "May we always communicate our holy faith clearly and with all our hearts. As the verse states, “I will sing the kindness of HaShem forever; for all generations, I will make Your faithfulness known with my mouth.”", + "“The heavens will praise Your wonders, HaShem, even Your faithfulness amid the holy congregation.”", + "“Your faith is in every generation; You have set up the earth and it stands.” “I have chosen the way of faithfulness; I have set Your laws before me.” “The word of HaShem is straight, and all of His deeds are faithful.” “The Tzaddik will live by his faith.”", + "“My faithfulness and My kindness shall be with him, and through My Name, his might shall be elevated.” “HaShem is good, His kindness is forever, His faithfulness is in every generation.”", + "“I will betroth you to Me forever. I will betroth you to Me with righteousness and with justice, with kindness and with compassion. I will betroth you to Me with faith, and you will know HaShem.”", + "Blessed is HaShem forever. Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Learning Torah in a State of Holiness / Becoming a True Human Being
When a worthy person learns and understands the Torah, it becomes for him an “elixir of life” and a “shining countenance.” But if a person is not worthy, then the Torah becomes for him a “potion of death” and a “dark countenance.”
In his essence, a Jew is holy and far from all evil traits and desires. When he sins, however, he is overtaken by the evil traits associated with the seventy archetypal nations. And the evil trait that induced him to sin causes him to fall under the sway of the nation whose leading characteristic is that same trait.
A Jew can free himself only by learning Torah, which is the opposite of all evil traits and desires. He must toil until he attains a true understanding of the holy Torah. And then he is at last considered to be a true “human being.”
This prayer was composed by Reb Noson sometime during 1827. During that year, Czar Nikolai II, known as the Iron Czar, instituted the infamous Cantonist decree of forcibly drafting young Jewish boys into the Russian army. These boys were twelve years old (or younger when there were no twelve-year-olds available) and were placed in cantons (military camps) and forcibly trained to act like their hosts. When they reached the age of eighteen, they were then drafted into the czar’s army for a period of twenty-five years! Needless to say, the vast majority of these young Jews were torn away from their Jewish roots and never returned home. This is the pain seen in Reb Noson’s prayer.
The Suffering of Exile
“HaShem is my light and salvation. Whom shall I fear? HaShem is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? Evildoers, my adversaries and enemies crowd against me to eat my flesh, but they will stumble and fall.”", + "Master of the world, You Who have chosen Your nation, the Jewish people, with love, You know how many troubles we have suffered since the day that we went into exile — particularly what we are suffering now, since the promulgation of the evil and bitter edict to conscript twelve-year-old Jewish boys into the army.", + "Many hundreds of Jewish boys have been conscripted and subjected to hunger and the sword in an effort to remove every vestige of Judaism from them. That is the most bitter decree of all. Some of them have been subjected to terrors so harsh and bitter that they have died. Others were weakened by disease. Some purposely maimed themselves, suffering terribly, in order to stay out of the army and remain Jewish.", + "In addition to that, the suffering of these boys’ fathers, mothers, relatives and others who love them is so great that “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "Woe to us for our catastrophe! What shall we say? How shall we justify ourselves? You have uncovered our sins. How shall we cry out over our disaster? We are crippled by our wounds.", + "You have not turned Your anger away from us. To the contrary, before the first blow was bandaged, You struck us again — for even after the stricken, moaning children were taken captive from every town, Your hand remained stretched out, and even more Jewish boys are slated to be drafted into the army within the year.", + "Woe! Woe! Woe! Woe! “How shall Jacob rise, for he is small?”", + "What will we do? We cannot even cry out to You because our hearts are closed and our spirits sealed due to these troubles. In addition, we suffer due to the enticements of our evil inclination. And so we are under siege from both directions — physical and spiritual, from without and from within.", + "From without, the sword bereaves us as the bitter decrees are put into effect. From within, our evil inclination grows stronger with its scheming and cunning.", + "You have only one purpose in subjecting us to this multitude of troubles: to inspire us to awaken and return to You. But we have not done so. To the contrary, the evil inclination mocks us and twists our hearts, so that innumerable Jews question Your straight and proper ways.", + "A Nation Alone
Gracious and forgiving Master of the world, “forgive the sin of this nation in accordance with the greatness of Your kindness, as You brought this nation forth from Egypt and until now.”", + "You are the only One Who knows how alone we are, “like a beacon at the top of the mountain and like a flag upon the hill.” “We have become orphans without a father; our mothers are like widows.”", + "There is no one in the world to stand up on our behalf. In our time of trouble, give us refuge. Gaze upon our suffering and the troubles of our hearts.", + "What will we do? Because of the darkness of our exile and the bitterness of our troubles, our intellect has become so obscured and our mind so weakened that we grow weary seeking the way to return to You.", + "Since Your only intent in all of our troubles is for us to come back to You, send us a redeemer to rescue us from all of our troubles, material and spiritual. May he teach us the right path to follow and inspire us to return to You as a result of what we have endured.", + "You Who know hidden things, You alone know all that we undergo. As for us, what shall we say? How shall we speak?", + "Overcoming Persecution
Master of the universe, You revealed to us that the gentiles derive their power from the seventy “dark countenances.”", + "When we do not learn Torah properly, its ways are concealed from our eyes. That concealment strengthens the desires and evil traits of the gentiles, who then promulgate evil and bitter decrees against us.", + "But how can we rectify this? Because of the difficulties of earning a living, because our evil inclination has grown stronger, and because of the multitude of our troubles, it is very difficult for us to learn Torah properly.", + "Even those few people who do learn Torah suffer from a dulled intellect, so that for the most part, they do not understand the simple meaning of the words — much less appreciate its depths and sweetness, its inner core and secrets.", + "We do not have access to the light of the countenance of the holy Torah. We do not realize how far we are from its seventy “shining countenances” — which, ideally, would overcome and eradicate the seventy “dark countenances,” thus breaking the power of the gentiles.", + "How can we attain that?", + "Making Torah Our Permanent Occupation
Eternal God, have compassion on us and give us our portion in Your Torah. Help us gain the inspiration to learn Torah day and night, without the interference of any troubles or business affairs.", + "May other people do our work on our behalf. Generously supply us with all that we need even before we need it, so that we will not have to engage in any business in order to earn a living. Rather, may Torah constitute our work in this world and accompany us in the World to Come.", + "Even when we must engage in some work and business in order to earn a living, strengthen our hearts so that we will not forget our eternal world. May we feel pity for our souls and set aside time to learn Torah, so that our learning will be the permanent element of our lives and our work transient.", + "May we stop learning Torah only when we must take care of our business. Otherwise, whenever we can find a minute, an hour, or a day or two to learn Torah, may we do so with great persistence.", + "Open the pathways of our minds so that we will understand all of the words of the Torah clearly, and we will put all of our thoughts into the Torah, looking deeply into those parts that require study.", + "May our intent in learning Torah not be to take pride or prove our superiority, not to be called “rabbi,” to earn money or to gain honor — in other words, not to make the words of the Torah “a shovel with which to dig or a crown in which to glory” — but only so that we may understand its words clearly.", + "May we learn Torah only for its own sake, so that our study will lead to deed and we will turn aside from evil and do that which is good in Your eyes.", + "Illumine our eyes and open our hearts so that we will quickly understand everything that we learn. May we learn all of the Torah’s holy volumes every day: Tanakh, Talmud, Shulchan Arukh, Midrash, the Zohar and Tikkuney Zohar, the writings of the Ari and the works of the Tzaddikim of our days. May we complete these works and review them all the days of our lives.", + "Help us always learn Your Torah, which constitutes our lives and the length of our days. May we contemplate it day and night and dedicate ourselves to learn until we grasp the Torah and nullify all of our evil desires and traits.", + "Keeping Our Minds on Torah
Grant our hearts understanding so that we will lovingly comprehend, keep and teach all of the words of Your Torah for its own sake.", + "Help us focus the entirety of our minds on Your holy Torah day and night, so that it will illumine us with the light of its pleasant, holy countenance, and all of the seventy faces of Torah that the perfect Tzaddikim have attained will shine upon us and protect us. As a result, may we eradicate all of our lusts and evil traits.", + "In every generation, grant us refuge from times of trouble. Act for Your sake, for the sake of our fathers, and for the sake of all of the holy and awesome Tzaddikim in every generation. Quickly nullify all of the harsh decrees against us — those that have already been decreed and those that are being contemplated. Uproot, shatter and nullify them all in Your great mercy and kindness, and may no vestige of them remain.", + "Save the Remnant of Israel
Save the remnant of Israel who recite, “Hear, Israel.”", + "When we stand up to pray, we are in an uncertain state, in the muddy depths. Despite all of that, we “arise and are still with You” — we still recite the Shema twice daily.25See footnote 5, p. 221. That alone gives us the courage to come and plead before You.", + "Answer us in the merit of the true Tzaddikim who served You in great holiness and purity, with self-sacrifice, a wondrous consciousness, and a whole heart all the days of their lives. And answer us in the merit of the tens of thousands of holy martyrs who sanctified Your Name — great and small, young and old — who were slaughtered and impaled, who died after every sort of unnatural torment, whose blood was spilled like water from the day of the destruction of the Temple until now.", + "You Who answer Your nation, the Jewish people, at a time of trouble, hurry to rescue us. “It is a time of trouble for Jacob, but from it, he will be saved.” Have pity on us. Our physical and spiritual needs are many, but our minds too limited to express a ten-thousandth of them.", + "Remove all enemies, epidemics, wars, hunger and grief. Remove Satan from before us and behind us. Conceal us in the shadow of Your wings, for we have no one on whom to rely except for You, our Father in Heaven. “We do not know what we shall do, for our eyes turn to You.”", + "“Behold, like the eyes of servants to the hand of their masters, like the eyes of the maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to HaShem our God, until He will be gracious to us. Be gracious to us, HaShem. Be gracious to us, because we have suffered much contempt.”", + "Have mercy on us in the land of our captivity. Do not pour Your wrath upon us, for we are Your nation, the children of Your covenant.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Learning Torah for Its Own Sake / Not Coarsening the Torah in Our Mouths / Attaining the Light of Torah
A Jew must long to learn the Torah diligently for its own sake.
When he learns Torah with holiness and purity, he nullifies his physical being, and his heart and mind feel the Torah’s sweetness, spirituality, subtlety and depth.
However, if he has committed sins, the Torah does not illuminate him. He does not feel God’s sweetness, the greatness of the true Tzaddikim, or the revelation of Godliness that comes from Torah insights. Instead, his Torah learning grows coarse and dark, and he forgets what he learns.
As a result, learning the Torah does not help him break his evil inclination.
He must ask God to help him learn Torah for its own sake, without ulterior motives, without any ambition for honor, but only for the sake of God’s Name. Then he will know God and understand the greatness of God, the Tzaddikim and the Torah.
The Sweetness of Torah
“My King and my God, I will pray to You.”", + "Please, HaShem, save me in Your vast compassion, so that I will learn Your Torah diligently for its own sake. “We will study Your Torah day and night.”", + "Always be with me. Help me and save me so that my mouth will not be coarse and darken the words of Torah, Heaven forbid.", + "Help me learn Your holy Torah with such holiness and purity that I will nullify my entire physical being at the time of my study, and my heart and mind will feel the Torah’s sweetness, pleasure, spirituality, subtlety and depth.", + "Only You know how sweet and pleasurable are all the words of Your holy, pure and perfect Torah. As the verse states, “They are more desirable than gold and fine gold. They are sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.” Their “pleasant words are like honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” The Torah’s “ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.”", + "From a distance I see and believe in the great depth, pleasantness and sweetness of Your holy Torah.", + "Coarsening the Torah
But because I have committed so many sins, because I am so coarse and base, because of my evil actions and confused thoughts, when the Torah is in my mouth, it does not illuminate me. In fact, it, too, grows coarse and dark.", + "And so as a result, learning Your holy Torah has not yet helped me break my evil inclination and its desires.", + "I do not feel Your sweetness, pleasure and greatness, or the greatness of the true Tzaddikim, or the greatness of the Torah and the revelation of Godliness that comes from Torah insights, such as those that we have received from the day that You gave the Torah until now.", + "And so what will I do, my Father in Heaven? How will I, as young as I am, as far from You as I am, keep Your word? My Master, how will I please You? How will I purify and sanctify myself? How will I return from my evil ways and unworthy thoughts?", + "The words of the holy Torah are my life and the length of my days. All of my hope relies on them. But they do not shine on me. Instead, they grow dark and coarse in my mouth, Heaven forbid.", + "So what will I do? How should I act? Where will I run to for help?", + "The Torah Restores the Soul
Torah, Torah, the Torah of HaShem, the Torah of Moses, the Torah of all the true Tzaddikim, the Torah of all Israel! “The Torah of HaShem is perfect, it restores the soul.”", + "Have pity on Your honor. Shine Your great light upon us in the darkness of this long and bitter exile — an exile among the gentiles and an exile of evil and bitter desires.", + "Arise! Help us in this time of trouble for all Israel and for every individual. With Your great, radiant light, overcome every type of darkness and coarseness that I have drawn onto myself without measure, due to my many sins.", + "Help me see the Torah’s great light. May the Torah shine on me when I have fallen into darkness and coarseness. May it quickly rescue me.", + "Help me leave behind the darkness for light. May the verses be realized in me, “Your words are a lamp for my foot and a light for my path.” “The beginning of Your words gives light; You make the foolish person understand.” “A commandment is a lamp and the Torah is light, and instructive rebukes are the way of life.”", + "You are filled with compassion. You have given us the Torah. In Your compassion and power, arouse the Torah’s power to illuminate my darkness.", + "“You light my lamp; HaShem my God illuminates my darkness.” “Even darkness will not obscure anything before You, and night will shine like day; the darkness is like light.”", + "To Learn Torah Always
Actualize Your great compassion and mighty wonders so that “this scroll of the Torah will not leave [my] mouth,” so that the words of the Torah will never go astray, so that they will never be coarsened and darkened by my coarse mouth.", + "To the contrary, may the Torah illumine me so that I will nullify my coarseness and darkness, until I truly feel the sweetness, pleasure, refinement, depth and revelation of Godliness in Your holy Torah.", + "Help me know You and understand Your greatness, the greatness of the Tzaddikim and the greatness of the Torah, as a result of learning Torah for its own sake — without any ulterior motives, egotism or falsehood, without any ambition for honor, elevation, leadership or position, but solely for the sake of Your Name, in absolute truth.", + "As a result, may I grasp the words of Torah very well in my heart, my mind and my consciousness.", + "Open my heart to Your Torah so that I will learn a great deal every day and understand everything clearly and quickly, and so that I will remember everything that I learn. May I never forget anything that I learn, and may I never be confused or overwhelmed by learning a great deal.", + "Open my heart so that Your Torah will shine on me with great light, and I will be able to grasp it and receive its spirit and refinement in my mind and heart, until the entire Torah will dwell in my heart. May always I remember it well, without forgetfulness, which comes from darkness and coarseness.", + "Our Father in Heaven, You graciously bestow intelligence on us. You teach Torah to Your nation, the Jewish people. Help us attain the Torah’s light, which is the light of life.", + "“Shine Your face on Your servant, save me in Your lovingkindness,” so that the words of Torah will shine on us always, until its light transforms us for the better.", + "HaShem our God, sweeten the words of Your Torah in the mouths of Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "May we, our children, our grandchildren and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, all know Your Name and learn Your Torah for its own sake.", + "May the verse be realized in us, “As for Me, this is My covenant with them, says HaShem: My spirit that is on you and My words that I have placed in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth and from the mouths of your children and from the mouths of your grandchildren, says HaShem, from now and forever.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Learning Torah in One’s Own Words Arouses the Spirit of the Mashiach
When a person learns Torah, he should express what he is learning in his own words. In particular, when he learns with friends and students, he should explain the Torah in words that they can understand. In doing so, he arouses and draws onto himself the spirit of the Mashiach.
In the Mashiach’s merit, the Jewish people are saved from troubles — particularly from the passage of anti-Semitic laws, both those that have already been passed and those that are being planned.
The Mashiach will rescue us from all our troubles, inspire us to serve God, give us a remnant in the land and revive our spirit.
Learning Torah in Our Own Words
Master of the world, You have given us the Torah. Have compassion on us and help us learn Your holy Torah for its own sake, diligently, every day.", + "Help us and save us in every place that we will study, to express what we are learning in our own words.", + "In this way, may we arouse and draw onto ourselves the spirit of the Mashiach — which is “the Divine spirit hovering over the face of the water” of the Torah — which has been wounded by our sins and endures much illness and suffering because of our wrongdoing, in order to bring us atonement.", + "May the Mashiach rescue us from all of our troubles, inspire us to serve You, give us a remnant in the land and revive us by providing us with a great refuge.", + "Have compassion on him and on me. May I learn Your Torah a great deal and express what I am learning in my own words.", + "Especially when I am learning with friends and students, may I explain and clarify the Torah in words that they can understand and absorb.", + "May this arouse in me the spirit of the Mashiach, who suffers illness for our sake. May it bring him down to clothe himself in garments of mundane reality, so that he will be with us to revive us and keep us alive during this long and bitter exile.", + "Compassionate Father, have compassion on us. Help us and save us in his merit. Save us quickly from all troubles and decrees — both those that have already been decreed and those that people wish to decree, Heaven forbid — because our strength, “the strength of the porter, has collapsed.”", + "“Rock of Israel, arise to help Israel.” Come quickly to save us at this time of trouble with the power and merit of our righteous, holy Mashiach.", + "May the verses be realized, “Now I know that HaShem saves His anointed, He answers him from His holy heavens, with the might of the salvation of His right hand.”", + "“He gives great salvation to His king, and He performs lovingkindness with His anointed one, David and his offspring, forever.”", + "“HaShem is their might, and He is the stronghold of the salvations of His anointed. Save Your nation and bless Your inheritance. Tend them and elevate them forever.”", + "“HaShem, save! King, answer on the day we call.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "A Jew Must Bind Himself to the Tzaddikim and Attain Simplicity
A Jew must avoid every type of inauthentic, this worldly wisdom. He must guard himself from every type of heresy and degradation of faith that comes from such wisdoms.
Instead, he should connect himself to Tzaddikim and to the good, pure-hearted people of the generation who serve the true Tzaddikim, and he should receive instruction for leading a true and straight way of life from them.
He must throw away all of his cleverness and intellect, and do everything that they say. Then he will attain the ways of simplicity with true, complete faith in God, and he will keep the Torah with love, truth and a whole heart for the rest of his life.
A Jew Must Be Simple
“Fortunate are those whose way is perfect, who walk with the Torah of HaShem.” “I will concern myself with [attaining] integrity — when will it come to me? I will walk with a simple heart within my house.” “Sincerity and uprightness will guard me, because I have hoped in You.” “I will walk with sincerity; redeem me and be gracious to me.”", + "Master of the world, You are filled with compassion. You are perfect in Your deeds. Be pure and perfect with those who are pure. Have compassion on me and help me become truly simple.", + "Binding Oneself to the Tzaddikim
Help me connect myself wholeheartedly to Tzaddikim and to the worthy, pure-hearted people of the generation who serve the true Tzaddikim and receive from them a true and straight way of life.", + "May I throw away and nullify all of my cleverness, intellect and mind, as though I have no intellect at all. May I do everything that they say. Whatever they declare, may I not turn aside, right or left.", + "Master of compassion, have compassion on me. Rescue me from every type of confusion and inauthentic, this-worldly wisdom. May my heart not spend any time on these.", + "May I never turn aside from the words of the holy, true Tzaddikim who guide us with compassion and purity, in accordance with the ways of the Torah that we received from Moses.", + "The Ways of Simplicity
Guard me and rescue me from every type of heresy and degradation of faith that comes from this-worldly wisdoms.", + "Bring me to the ways of simplicity so that I will attain true, complete faith in You and fulfill Your entire Torah with love, truth and a whole heart for my entire life. “May my heart be whole in Your laws so that I will not be ashamed.”", + "“You are HaShem, God, Who chose Abram and took him out of Ur Kasdim and changed his name to Abraham, and You found his heart faithful before You.” Abraham walked before You wholeheartedly because he was the first of all true believers, who serve You wholeheartedly with simplicity and complete faith.", + "In his merit, and in the merit of all of the true and wholehearted Tzaddikim, have compassion on me. Help me start from this moment on to walk in Your ways wholeheartedly and simply, with truth and complete faith.", + "Remove the stubbornness of my heart, so that my heart will not stray after the meaningless wisdoms that abound in the world, which confuse a person and prevent him from thinking about his ultimate end, and from coming close to You.", + "Help me destroy and remove all these wisdoms from my heart. May I know my foolishness and what knowledge I lack. “I am more of an animal than a human being, and I lack human understanding.” “I am a beast and I do not know anything. I have been like an animal with you.” “I said that I will be wise, yet it is far from me.”", + "Have compassion on me so that I will not fool myself with any this-worldly wisdoms, which cause a great deal of confusion. May I truly and wholeheartedly fulfill all of the words that come from the mouths of our true rabbis, as I nullify my mind and intellect before them entirely, as though I have no intellect at all — which is truly the case.", + "May I fulfill the verses, “Be wholehearted with HaShem your God” and, “HaShem, who will sojourn in Your tent, who will dwell upon Your holy mountain? A person who walks upright and acts righteously, and who speaks truth in his heart.”", + "Have mercy on me and save me. Help me attain everything that I seek from You.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "When a Jew Learns God’s Ways, He Attains Humility and Can Guard the Covenant
A Jew must learn God’s ways, so that he will be able to quickly repent his evil deeds and disgraceful thoughts and rectify the covenant in full.
He must truly know and sense his lowliness, so that he will not harbor the slightest egotism or haughtiness. When he attains humility, he is able to guard the covenant.
A Jew Requires Proper Mindfulness
“I stretch my hands out to You. My soul turns to You like a weary land.” “My eye has failed because of affliction; HaShem, I call You every day. I stretch my hands out to You.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. Accept my prayers. Teach me Your true ways and straight advice at every moment, so that I will be able to return quickly from my evil deeds and disgraceful thoughts, and quickly rectify the covenant in full, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Send me true knowledge and mindfulness, so that I will truly know and sense my lowliness, and I will not have the slightest egotism or haughtiness.", + "Authentic Humility
I am so unworthy, so far from You, that I should not feel any need to pray to be saved from pride — for who am I that I should have the slightest pride?", + "But I am besieged from every side and at every moment until my mind is clouded by ulterior motives and egotism — particularly when I want to do something holy.", + "Therefore, I have come to You, Master of compassion. You know hidden things. You blend Your greatness with Your humility. Have pity and mercy on me at every moment. Always be with me and guard me, so that I will not have the slightest egotism or haughtiness.", + "May I attain true humility so that I will truly be able to guard the covenant — because, as You informed us through Your holy sages, we guard the covenant through humility.", + "Rescue me from false humility. Help me attain true humility, in accordance with Your good will. “HaShem, teach me Your ways. I will walk in Your truth. Unite my heart to fear Your Name.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "The Mystery of Free Will / We Look Only to God
It is impossible to understand how God treats the entire world — particularly creatures with free will, for whom everything was created from beginning to end.
All the angels, celestial palaces and levels of holiness — and, in the realm of evil, everything in the “husk” and the Other Side — everything was made for human beings, who have free will.
God has given human beings free will. Nevertheless, free will is also in His hand, because everything comes from Him and He gives life to everything.
A person must avert and close his physical and mental eyes from looking at the meaningless things of this world.
In particular, he should not have any evil thoughts.
He should turn his eyes only to look at the light of the Torah and the true Tzaddikim who shine with a great, awesome and elevated light, until his desire for this-worldly matters is nullified.
This entire world, with all of its desires and vanities, is nothing compared to a single point of the holy Torah and the holy Tzaddikim who illuminate all worlds with a wondrous and awesome light.
But although this world is so small compared to just one point of the light of the Torah and the Tzaddikim, it stands before people’s eyes and keeps them from seeing that great and precious light.
God Made Everything for Human Beings
“From the belly of Sheol I cried out. You heard my voice.” “You heard my voice; do not turn Your ear away from my sigh, from my outcry.” “The waters covered my head. I said, ‘I am cut away.’” “HaShem, I called Your Name from the depths of the pit.”", + "Master of the world, You are filled with compassion for all creatures, even for me. No matter what I have done and no matter what I am like, rescue me from this moment on. I see and have faith that Your compassion will never leave me.", + "It is impossible to understand how You treat the entire world — particularly creatures with free will, for whom everything was created from beginning to end, from the start of Atzilut to the lowest point of this physical world of Asiyah.1According to the Kabbalah, there are Four Worlds or levels of existence. These are: Atzilut (Nearness), Yetzirah (Creation), Beriah (Formation) and Asiyah (Action). Our physical world is part of Asiyah.
All worlds, thousands and millions of them, are included in human beings. All the angels, seraphim, ophanim and holy chayot, all the celestial palaces and levels of holiness — and, on the side of evil, everything in the “husk” and the Other Side — everything was made for we human beings who have free will.", + "You have given human beings free will, as though their will is not under Your control. As our sages have said, “Everything is in the hands of Heaven except the fear of Heaven.”", + "Nevertheless, free will is also in Your hand, because everything comes from You, and You give life to everything.", + "As our sages said, “A person’s evil inclination rises up against him every day, and if not for the fact that the Holy One, blessed be He, helps him, he would fall into its power. As the verse states, ‘Although the wicked person gazes at the righteous man and seeks to kill him, HaShem will not abandon him and will not permit him to be condemned when he is judged.’”", + "And our sages said, “If not for three verses [that express the power of the evil inclination], the Jewish people could not stand [and defend themselves]. One of them is, ‘As for the evil that I brought about … ’”", + "Who can understand Your wondrous, awesome and mighty ways, the hidden and revealed lovingkindness with which You treat every generation and every single individual?", + "Averting Our Eyes
Therefore, I have come before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers — God from beginning to end, God of all flesh, You Who have compassion on the poor, You Who hear the prayer of each mouth — to have compassion on me.", + "Give me counsel and encouragement on how to avert and close my physical and mental eyes so that I will no longer look at the meaningless things of this world.", + "In particular, may I not even begin to have evil thoughts, Heaven forbid.", + "I believe without any doubt that I possess free will — but habit keeps me from focusing on holiness.", + "For the sake of Your Name, for the sake of Your honor, for the sake of Your kindness, for the sake of Your vast and great compassion, help me. May I be saved, at least beginning now, from whatever I need to be saved. May I no longer enter into such bitter Gehinnom, such deep mire.", + "May I have pity on my soul from this moment on. May I totally remove my thoughts from every type of evil thought and idea, so that they will not occur to me even when I see something with my physical eyes.", + "“Guard my soul and rescue me; may I not be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.”", + "Guard me and rescue me from every type of evil sight and evil thought. “Turn away my eyes from seeing vanity; in Your ways, give me life.”", + "Arouse Your tremendous compassion for a soul as lowly as I am today. Help me avert my physical and mental eyes from the sight of this world.", + "Look Toward the Torah and the Tzaddikim
May I turn my eyes, heart and mind at every moment only to look at the light of the Torah and the true Tzaddikim who shine with a great, awesome and elevated light, until my desire for this-world matters will be nullified.", + "You have revealed to me — and I believe it with complete faith — that this entire world, with all its desires and vanities, is nothing compared to a single point of the holy Torah and the holy Tzaddikim who illuminate the whole world with a wondrous and awesome light.", + "But although this world is so small in quantity and character compared to just one point of the light of the Torah and the Tzaddikim, it stands before people’s eyes and prevents them from seeing that great and precious light.", + "Now that You have helped me know and understand all this, have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. May I no longer allow myself to fool myself, Heaven forbid. May I no longer walk in darkness.", + "May I not stray after my heart and my eyes. May I not lift my eyes at all to look at the empty affairs of this world, with its vanities and evil desires that end in bitterness. May I turn my eyes aside so that I do not look at any of this.", + "Instead, may my eyes always look straight at the light of the Torah and the true Tzaddikim.", + "Shine their sweet light on me until all my desires for this world and its empty affairs will cease, and I will truly recognize You. May I “gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visit in His palace.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me and accept my pleas. Have mercy on me. Help me no longer exchange light for darkness.", + "Bring me out from dimness to brightness, from darkness to a great light, from the murky darkness of the desires and ideas of this world to the pure light of the Torah and the true Tzaddikim.", + "Help me spend all of my days drawing close to true Tzaddikim, and to the holy and awesome teachings that they draw down and reveal and shine in all the worlds at every moment.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Have pity on me and my children for the sake of Your vast compassion. “The kindness of HaShem has not ceased, Your compassion has not been exhausted.” HaShem, “I stretch my hands out to You. My soul turns to You like a weary land.” My eyes are lifted up to You. “I have raised my eyes to You, You Who dwell in Heaven.”", + "“My eyes are raised to the heights, HaShem. I have been oppressed, be my guarantor.” “Be a guarantor to Your servant for the good — do not let the wicked oppress me!”", + "My Father and King, help me for the sake of Your Name. Reveal the glory of Your sovereignty. Appear soon and cause the light of the holy Torah and the true Tzaddikim to shine on me.", + "From the day of the giving of the Torah until now, You have shone Your great light upon us through all of the true Tzaddikim since Moses.", + "Because I am so coarse and my sins are so dark, I need Your greatest compassion so that You will shine the light of Your holy Torah and the light of the true Tzaddikim on me even now.", + "May I no longer experience any of the desires of this world and its vanities, so that from now on I will return to You in truth and in accordance with Your good will.", + "“Cause Your face to shine on Your servant. Save me in Your lovingkindness.” “Cause Your face to shine on Your servant and teach me Your laws.” “May the way of the righteous, like the light of dawn, grow ever brighter, until the day is whole.”", + "Then “you will no longer have the sun for light by day, and the moon will not give you light for brightness, but HaShem will be an everlasting light for you, and your God will be your beauty. Your sun will no longer set, and your moon will not be gathered away, for HaShem will be a light for you forever, and the days of your mourning will be over. And your people will be entirely righteous forever; they will inherit the land, a scion that I planted, the work of My hands in which I will take pride.”", + "May it happen quickly, in our days. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Judging Others Favorably
A person must judge all people favorably, finding merit and good even in those who engage in disputes against him and against the true Tzaddikim.
There must be great unity and peace among Jews. Those who cause dispute and oppose truth should repent of their hatred and dispute, and instead seek truth. But some people do not desire peace and do not want to return to truth. Eventually God will overcome them and lower them to the dust, so that they will fall and not rise.
Finding Merit in Those Who Engage in Dispute
My Father in Heaven, help me judge every person favorably, even those who engage in disputes against me and against true Tzaddikim, to the extent of insulting them. May I find merit and good in all of these people.", + "May I truly fulfill the teaching of our sages, “Do not judge someone else until you have been in his place,” so that all dispute in the world will be nullified, and all Jews will attain great peace and unity.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, Master of truth and peace, You know the source of all disputes — particularly the dispute that has arisen in our generations among sages and their followers, as a result of which a number of people have fallen.", + "Have compassion on us and on them. Reveal the ultimate truth in the world. Bring about great unity and peace among Jews, the holy nation that You chose.", + "Maybe I am responsible for a dispute, Heaven forbid, because those who dispute me are much holier than I am, as a result of which their hearts are at odds with me.", + "If that is the case, have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name, and help me truly repent before You until I reach their holiness and the level of the Jewish people as a whole, which is holier and more pure than I am, so that I will reach their place and unite with them in great truth and peace.", + "But maybe they dispute me because they are lower than I am, and they are envious of me, and so they attack and oppose me.", + "If that is the case, have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name, and help me always judge positively those who oppose me. Teach me, in Your vast compassion, how to find merit and goodness in them — even in the fact that they are disputing me. Then I will raise them and truly bring them to the side of merit.", + "In the end, may they unite with me completely, until dispute ceases among all Jews — because when there is oneness, there cannot be dispute.", + "Inspire those who cause dispute and oppose truth to repent of their hatred and opposition, and instead seek truth and peace, as the verse states, “Love truth and peace.”", + "As for those who continue to hate and engage in dispute, who do not desire peace, who do not want to return to truth, subdue them and lower them to the dust, so that they will fall and not rise.", + "“Silence the lips of falsehood, which slander the righteous with pride and contempt.” “May HaShem cut off all smooth lips, the tongue that speaks great things.” “May those who desire my evil be ashamed and destroyed.” “May all my enemies be deeply shamed and frightened. May they suddenly experience shame.”", + "Peace in the World
Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Place peace in the world, because You know how much dispute harms the Jewish people. Have compassion, have compassion, You Who are filled with compassion, and in Your wondrous and awesome ways, draw peace into the world.", + "Then “all your children will be learned of HaShem, and your children’s peace will increase.” “May great peace come down upon those who love Your Torah, so that they will not stumble.” “You will see your children’s children, peace upon Israel.”", + "“May there be peace within your walls, tranquility in your palaces. For the sake of my brothers and friends, I will speak peace to you. For the sake of the House of HaShem our God, I will seek goodness for you.”", + "“May HaShem give His nation strength, may HaShem bless His nation with peace.”", + "“May He Who makes peace in His heights make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, ‘Amen.’”" + ], + [ + "Seeking Wise Counsel
A person must seek the counsel of truly righteous and worthy people, counsel that comes entirely from the holy Torah that they received from their teachers, the true, holy Tzaddikim.
He must receive their counsel about everything: about serving God, about doing business and earning a living, and about other affairs.
As a result, great kindness will come to us and sweeten and nullify all harsh judgments in the world.
Benefiting from the Counsel of Wise People
“Guide me in Your counsel and afterward receive me with glory.”", + "Master of the world, “my King and my God, I will pray to You.” “I call to You, HaShem. I plead to HaShem.”", + "“How long will I take counsel in my soul, mourning in my heart by day? How long will my enemy rise up against me?”", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Rectify me with good counsel and save me quickly for the sake of Your Name.", + "You know how I lack counsel. I am so uncertain that in most cases, I cannot decide what to do and I cannot advise myself regarding anything, great or small.", + "This confuses me and keeps me from serving You and truly repenting.", + "Have compassion on me, Master of compassion. You are great in counsel and vast in actions. Help me always accept the counsel of truly righteous and worthy people of the generation, whose counsel comes entirely from the holy Torah that they received from their teachers, the true, holy Tzaddikim.", + "Help me come close to them and receive their counsel about everything: about serving You, about doing business and earning a living, and about other affairs. May I ask their advice about all of these matters.", + "May I benefit from their counsel and insight. May their holy wisdom illuminate me. As a result, may great kindness come to me and sweeten and nullify all harsh judgments in the world.", + "May I be saved at every moment, because “with many counselors there is victory.”", + "Always guard me and rescue me so that I will never stumble as a result of poor advice, Heaven forbid. May I never draw to myself any sorrow, suffering or harm, Heaven forbid, as a result of foolish counsel.", + "May I always strive to receive counsel from the truly righteous and worthy people of the generation, so that their holy wisdom will shine on me.", + "Awaken Your great compassion and kindness for me at every moment. Always save me in whatever way I need to be saved, physically or spiritually. Draw Your kindness onto me the entire day.", + "May the verse be realized in me, “HaShem has eradicated the counsel of the peoples, thwarted the thoughts of the nations. The counsel of HaShem stands forever, the thoughts of His heart for every generation.”", + "“When the God of hosts has given counsel, who will strike it down?” “May He give you what your heart desires and fulfill all your counsel.” “Let us sing in your salvation and assemble in the Name of our God. May HaShem fulfill all of your requests.” “HaShem, save! King, answer on the day we call.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem forever, amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "To Attach Oneself to God, One Must Create Original Torah Thoughts / By Inspiring Others, a Person Inspires Himself
A person must ask God to teach him how to pray with new and beautiful words that will please and appease Him, so that God will help him walk in His ways and guard His commandments.
At first, however, this person’s mind may be so confused that he remains silent. He realizes that the obstacle resides within himself: in his stubbornness, wrong desires and foolishness.
In order to break free, he must keep his thoughts focused on the Torah and on serving God, until he will constantly create true, original Torah thoughts.
As a result, his heart will be attached to God and remain in accordance with His good will. He will rectify all of the blemishes that he created with the fire of his heart and the fervor of the Side of Evil. He will expel his spirit of foolishness and uncleanness, and subjugate his will to God.
Also, to the degree that he brings holy fervor into other people’s hearts, he will burn the spirit of foolishness and evil thoughts out of his own heart.
This occurs in the merit of the great and perfect Tzaddikim.
Then he will speak new words to God at all times. He will engage in a great deal of prayerful conversation between himself and God every day of his life.
Bringing Beautiful Words to God
“God, create a pure heart within me and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”", + "Master of the world, You Who listen to the voice of our prayers and our pleas, teach me how to bring You new and beautiful words to please You and appease You, so that You will help me walk in Your ways and guard Your commandments.", + "I have cried out for so long, and pleaded and prayed with the sole aim of truly returning to You soon — but still I am not saved.", + "I know that the obstacle is in me, because I am stubborn and I have wrong desires and a great deal of foolishness. But I do not know how to break free of all this.", + "I have nothing new to say. “There is no word on my tongue because You know everything, HaShem.” “I am mute and still, I am silent even about goodness, and my pain is intense.” “I am silent, I cannot open my mouth, for You have brought this about.”", + "My Father in Heaven, You know that all of my hope is in You and all of my prayer, supplications and cries are to You. But how do I find new words, as I need to each and every day, to please You, so that You will return me to You soon?", + "My Father in Heaven, whatever may be, I will always stand alert and cry out to You.", + "I have come to seek Your face, HaShem my God and God of my fathers. Have pity, compassion and mercy on a person as misused as I am, a person as contemptible and disgraceful as myself. Send me the spirit of Your holiness. At every moment, place new, pleasant and beautiful words in my mouth with which I can please You, so that You will quickly bring me back to You in complete repentance.", + "Focus on the Torah
Have compassion on me, save me, help me and strengthen me so that I will always attach my thoughts to Your holy Torah.", + "Always remind me and strengthen me to hold on to my thoughts so that they do not stray at all, but only focus on Your Torah and on serving You, until I will constantly create true, original Torah ideas and my mind will be involved at every moment in Your holy Torah.", + "As a result of the movements of my intellect, may my heart be inflamed with holy fervor until it attaches itself to You and remains in accordance with Your good will.", + "Especially at the time that I am engaged in learning Torah, performing mitzvot, praying and practicing hitbodedut,2Literally, “self-seclusion,” a form of prayer/meditation recommended by Rebbe Nachman in which a person sets a time and place to speak to God in his own language. may I experience holy fervor for You in a measured fashion, in accordance with Your good will.", + "As a result of that holy fervor, may I rectify all of the blemishes that I created with the fire of my heart and the fervor of the Side of Evil.", + "Help me expel from within myself the spirit of foolishness in every form, eradicate the spirit of uncleanness, and subjugate my will to You until my heart is pure.", + "Speaking New Words to God
As a result, may I speak new words before You at all times.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who have pity on the poor and consider my rectification even now, open Your mouth to a person as mute as I am. Teach me what to say. Help me understand what to ask for.", + "“My God, open my lips and my mouth will speak Your praise.”", + "Have compassion on me and help me so that I will engage in a great deal of prayer conversation between me and You every day of my life. At all times, send me new, holy and beautiful words.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, give me new words so that I will rescue my soul from everything I need rescuing from — in this world and in the World to Come. May I return to You with all my heart, in accordance with Your good will. May I no longer return to foolishness. “If I have acted sinfully, I will no longer do so.”", + "In the Merit of the Tzaddikim
Renew Your compassion to me in the merit of the great and perfect Tzaddikim on whom we always rely, who renewed themselves at every moment of every day.", + "You know that I depend only on them. In my lowly and unworthy state, I rely on their great power.", + "Save me in their merit. Purify my heart to serve You in truth. “Bring me back and I will return, for You are my God.”", + "You know that although I am filled with words, I cannot bring them out of my mouth. Give me speech of repentance.", + "I would not restrain my mouth from telling You everything that comes into my mouth. But Your compassion precedes me and helps me refrain from saying anything that is not in accordance with Your will.", + "You desire kindness. You do much good. You desire my rectification and my good even now. Help me and save me for the sake of Your Name.", + "Overcoming Confusion
My mind is so confused that my words are swallowed up.", + "But I must speak and plead to You as long as my soul is within me. Treat me in the way that is proper in Your eyes.", + "Have compassion on me. Help me and save me so that my heart will be purified soon, because You know how far I am from a purified heart.", + "I have sinned a great deal against You, and followed the hardness of my evil heart. I sinned and created many blemishes before You as a result of the heat and fervor of the heart of the Side of Evil.", + "I have not overcome, expelled or removed the drive of the evil thoughts of my heart. Because of my many sins, my heart is filled with a spirit of foolishness, evil thoughts, alien ideas and much confusion. As a result, I cannot get close to You.", + "You are compassionate, holy and awesome. You purify the unclean. Purify my heart quickly. Have mercy on my past, and help me and save me in the future. Help me banish and remove from my heart all evil musings, all confused ideas and all types of blemished thoughts.", + "May I eradicate, banish and remove all of them from my heart, and strengthen myself at every moment to turn my heart to You.", + "Holy Fervor
Compassionate God, help me attain holy fervor of the heart so that I will act for the sake of our forefathers and rabbis, the true Tzaddikim, who bring all Jews merit as numerous as the everlasting stars. May I be among those who give the world merit.", + "May I judge everyone favorably and bring many people close to serve You and fear You and Your Torah — to inflame, illuminate and proclaim Your truth to the children of Israel, Your nation.", + "May my words enter their hearts until their hearts are inflamed with a great, holy fervor to return to You.", + "As a result, may more holy fervor constantly flow into me.", + "Receiving from the Tzaddikim
May I always receive and draw into my heart holy fervor from our rabbis, the Tzaddikim, who attach themselves to You, HaShem our God — You Who are a great and awesome, consuming fire.", + "They receive fire from above — flames of fire, a flame of God — to inflame the heart of the Jewish people with holy fervor. All their words are like fiery coals.", + "Have mercy on Your nation, the Jewish people, so that their holy fire will never go out. “An eternal fire will be burned on the Altar. It will not be extinguished.”", + "May all of us always receive their holy fire to inflame the hearts of the children of Israel, Your nation, with holy fervor for Your sake, to serve You in a graduated and measured way, in accordance with Your good will.", + "To the degree that You help me bring holy fervor into other people’s hearts, may I increase and draw to myself multiple amounts of the heat of the heart and holy fervor through our forefathers and our rabbis, Your righteous ones who do Your will, all of Your servants who are a flaming fire.", + "As a result, may I eradicate, banish and remove from my heart the spirit of foolishness and all evil thoughts, until I quickly attain purity of the heart.", + "As a result, may I always speak new, holy and pure words to You to please You, so that You will bring me close to You.", + "May I always truly be attached to You. As the verse states, “You who are attached to HaShem your God are alive, all of you, today.”", + "May the verse be realized for me and for all the Jewish people, “Place me as a seal upon your heart, like a seal upon your arm, for love is as strong as death, jealousy is as harsh as Sheol. Its flames are flames of fire, a flame of God. Many waters cannot extinguish the love and rivers cannot overflow it. If a person were to give all the wealth of his house for love, he would be scorned.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Learning Torah Brings Material and Spiritual Abundance / Raising the Torah Learning of Spiritually Weak People
A person must purify his thoughts and heart until he learns Torah for the sake of raising the Shekhinah (Divine Presence) from the dust.
Then his learning rises to the Shekhinah, which receives it with great love. With that, he draws spiritual and material abundance to himself. That abundance rises to give life to all of the upper worlds and all of the angels, and it descends to help other Jews as well.
There are vapors that come from the Torah learning of Jews who are small in stature and whose learning cannot rise to the Shekhinah. A person must receive these vapors for the good, so that they will turn into his dew of Torah, his dew of lights, his elixir of life. Then he will wake up every day with new inspiration, with an enthusiastic yearning to learn the Torah and serve God.
As a result of receiving these vapors, he rises in Godly holiness until he creates new Torah insights.
He must take care that the dew formed of those teachings that are scattered in the air will not harm him, that it will not come to him in the form of an arousal to pursue business and the thirty-nine types of labor. To that end, he must eschew the desire for money and the pursuits and distractions of this world.
Instead, he must trust that God alone will support him.
Learning Torah without Ulterior Motives
“HaShem, accept the offerings of my mouth, and teach me Your judgments.” “Lead me to understand Your precepts, and I will speak of Your wonders.” “Remove the way of falsehood from me, and favor me with Your Torah.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, Giver of the Torah, help us and save us. Help us learn Your holy Torah day and night. Sanctify us with Your mitzvot and place our portion in Your Torah.", + "Purify my thoughts and my heart to serve You until I merit to learn Torah for its own sake, wherein my sole intent in learning will be for Your sake only, without any ulterior motives or other thoughts at all, “but solely for HaShem.”", + "In Your compassion, help me always sanctify and purify myself until all of my learning will be only for the sake of Your mighty Presence, for the sake of raising the Shekhinah from the dust.", + "May all of my learning rise to the Shekhinah, the intermediary between You and the world. May the holy Shekhinah receive all of my Torah learning with great love.", + "Drawing Abundance into the World
And with that, draw all abundance onto us. May our Torah learning become spiritual and material abundance.", + "May that abundance rise from our learning the holy Torah to give life to all the supernal worlds and to all the angels, seraphim, ophanim and holy chayot — to all those who dwell above.", + "May material abundance descend via our Torah learning to all the children of Israel, Your nation. As a result, send us children, life and income, with an abundance of holiness, wealth, honor, life, charity, blessing, compassion, peace and all good — in this world and the next.", + "Rectifying Torah Learning That Cannot Rise to the Shekhinah
Have compassion on us. Help us and save us. There are vapors and atmospheres that we derive from the Torah learning of those Jews who are small in stature, whose learning cannot rise to the Shekhinah.", + "Their learning is scattered in the air at night as a result of the cool wind of all the “wardens of judgment” that emerge at night and strike them. All the people of the world draw from these vapors.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who do great wonders alone, have compassion on us for Your sake. May we draw in and receive the vapors of these teachings for the good, so that they will turn into our dew of Torah, our dew of lights, our elixir of life.", + "As a result, may we wake up every day with new inspiration, with an enthusiastic drive and yearning to learn Your Torah and to serve You.", + "May Your holy Torah be completely new in our eyes every day.", + "As a result of receiving and drawing those vapors that come from the teachings of a number of people, may we rise ever upward in Godly, supernal holiness, until we create new Torah insights.", + "May these teachings join together for us, creating new, holy combinations in Your holy Torah, until we create true insights into Your holy Torah every day, in accordance with Your good will.", + "In Your great compassion and kindness, guard us and rescue us. May the dew formed of those teachings that are scattered in the air not harm us, Heaven forbid. May this inspiration not come to us in the form of an arousal to pursue business and the thirty-nine types of labor, Heaven forbid.", + "Rescue us from the lust for money and from the pursuits and distractions of this empty world.", + "May we cast our burden on You and trust that You alone will support us in Your great compassion in a timely way, and we will not strive in vain or give birth to dismay.", + "May we yearn only to learn Your Torah and to truly serve You always, day and night.", + "May we awaken every day and moment with enthusiasm, yearning and drive, entirely for You and Your Torah, for the sake of serving You with a whole heart, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May we learn Your Torah for its own sake all the days of our lives, and truly return to You and fulfill Your commandments and attach ourselves to You always, from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "The Holy Pulse
When a person breathes the pure air that comes from holy words, his pulse is sanctified and reminds him to serve God.
Then he is protected from the spirit of foolishness, from the spirit of evil, from the pulse that reminds a person of the desires of this world.
Attaining a Holy Pulse
May it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that I always breathe in the holy and pure air that comes from holy words. As a result, may my pulse become holy.", + "Surround me with Your compassion. Help me and save me so that my pulse will beat for the good, reminding me to serve You.", + "As the verse states, “My beloved’s knock is pulsing3This verse is usually translated, “The voice of my beloved knocks.” According to Rashi, this refers to God arousing the Jewish people to return to Him. Rebbe Nachman points out an alternative translation of dofek, “pulse beat,” teaching that the beating of one’s pulse prompts a person to serve God (Likutey Moharan I, 160).: Open to me, my sister, my beloved, my dove, my perfect one, for my head is filled with dew, my locks with the drops of the night.”", + "Protection from the Spirit of Foolishness
Guard me and rescue me from the spirit of foolishness, from the spirit of evil. May I never breathe in any bad air or spirit that comes from the Side of Evil, from blemished words.", + "Protect me, guard me and rescue me from the pulse of the Side of Evil. May that pulse not have any power to remind me of the desires of this empty world, Heaven forbid. Always guard me and rescue me from every transgression and sin, from now and forever.", + "Compassionate God, in Your vast compassion, do what You will. In Your great and tremendous compassion, please help me return to You soon.", + "Master of wonders, You Who revive the living, You Who remind us of forgotten things, pulse within me for the good. Remind me at every moment to return to You so that I will attain complete repentance, quickly, easily and swiftly. May I no longer return to any foolishness.", + "May I always serve You in truth and with a full heart. May I truly attach myself to You — I, my children, my grandchildren, all of my descendants, and all of the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Accepting Suffering with Love
A person must receive everything in a spirit of love, even when God sends him suffering that appears to be evil. He must realize that all that God does with him expresses infinite compassion.
However, when one’s sins have blunted his heart, he cannot feel God’s love. Instead, he questions God’s good and straight attributes.
Therefore, he must ask God to protect him and rescue him from every type of perverseness in his heart, so that he will always know that God is righteous, His judgments are true, and, in the context of a person’s evil, blemished deeds, God treats him with infinite kindness.
Everything God Does Expresses His Kindness
“Fortunate is the person whom You chastise, God, and whom You teach from Your Torah, to grant him respite from the days of evil while a pit is dug for the wicked; for HaShem will not forsake His nation, nor will He abandon His inheritance.”", + "Master of the world, You are filled with compassion. You are good and do good to all. Help me and save me so that I will receive everything in a spirit of love.", + "Even when You send me some suffering that appears to be evil, Heaven forbid, may I receive it all with great love.", + "Open my heart with great holiness so that I will know and understand that for a person such as myself, who has acted against You, all that You do with me is great, infinite compassion and kindness.", + "It is impossible to elucidate and express the multitude of the compassion and favors that You have done with me, that You do with me, and that You will do with me at every moment.", + "What shall I say? How shall I speak? “How can I repay HaShem for all of His kindness to me?”", + "Sin Blunts Our Appreciation of God’s Kindness
But what can I do? My sins have blunted my heart, and perverted my mind and my heart, until I cannot feel Your love in my heart.", + "My sins want to turn my heart aside to question Your good and straight attributes, Heaven forbid.", + "Therefore, I have come to plead before You so that You will be filled with compassion for me, and You will guard me and rescue me from every type of perverseness in my heart.", + "Strengthen my heart and mind in Your holy faith so that I will always know and understand that You are righteous, HaShem, that Your judgments are true, and that in the context of my evil, blemished deeds, You treat me with tremendous kindness and infinite compassion.", + "In Your compassion and kindness, have pity and mercy on me. Guard me and rescue me from every type of evil and trouble, and from all sufferings in the world, because You are compassionate and greatly forgiving.", + "In accordance with the gravity and multitude of my sins, all sufferings in the world would not suffice, Heaven forbid, to rectify even the slightest sin (or blemish). Nevertheless, Your compassion has preceded me, and You can forgive me without any suffering at all.", + "As the verses state, “With You is forgiveness, so that You may be feared.” “With HaShem is kindness, and much redemption is with Him; He will redeem Israel from all of its sins.”", + "Therefore, I stretch my hands out to You, Master of compassion: have compassion on me and guard my soul. Rescue me from every type of evil and trouble, and from all suffering in the world.", + "Do not treat me in accordance with my transgressions and sins. Be kind to me.", + "As for whatever I must receive by means of Your compassion and true kindness, HaShem, You Who are good and do good, please treat me wondrously for the sake of my life. Help me and save me so that I will receive everything with complete love.", + "Do not send me any suffering without helping me, in Your supernal holiness, to truly accept it with complete love and without even beginning to question You at all.", + "May I consider myself guilty and say to You, “I will bear it and I will not harm [myself].”", + "Have compassion on me for Your sake. May I not spurn any suffering. Give me the power and knowledge to accept it with love, when in Your true compassion You desire to cause me to suffer out of love, “as a man punishes his son.”", + "In Your vast compassion, ease my suffering in every way in the world because I am weak and poor, my mind is flawed, and I do not have the ability and mindfulness to accept any suffering at all.", + "Treat me in accordance with Your kindness. “Be gracious to me, God, in accordance with Your kindness; in Your great compassion, erase my transgressions.” “In accordance with Your kindness, give me life, and I will guard the testimony of Your mouth.” “HaShem, do not rebuke me in Your anger and do not chastise me in Your wrath.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, align my will with Your will, so that I will nullify my will entirely before Your will. May I have no will of my own. May my entire will be that everything should be in accordance with Your will, from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Judging Ourselves / When Jews Judge Themselves, Decrees Against Them are Nullified / When a Jew Judges Himself, He Attains Joy and Rectifies the Covenant
When a person is under great pressure, he feels that his existence is bitter and that he is hemmed in on every side.
He must cry out to God. He must examine himself and, as he does so, realize that most of his actions are corrupt and blemished — in particular, his evil thoughts and ideas that are so confused, scattered and distracted that it appears as though he has no self-control.
He must attain holy judgment so that he will be able to examine his deeds and judge himself. By judging himself, he removes and nullifies all judgments from above, so that no judgment will have the power to undermine him. Then he is able to find good counsel at every moment, and is capable of keeping it.
But he finds it hard to follow such good counsel — specifically, the advice of the Tzaddikim — because most of its elements are interdependent, and so it is hard to know where to begin. For instance, if he has blemished the holy covenant, he is far from joy, and because he is far from joy, he finds it difficult to rectify the covenant.
He must arouse the power of holy judgment of all the true Tzaddikim and God-fearing people, who often judged themselves more strictly than they deserved and who accepted suffering, troubles and bitter torments for the sake of the Jewish people. He must beseech God to remove powers of judgment so that no decree against Israel may be enforced.
With the nullification of these judgments, a person attains joy until it enters into his feet and he dances. This applies particularly to festivals, which are the time of our joy.
And when a person is joyful, he guards the holy covenant.
Judging Ourselves in Times of Trouble
“The troubles of my heart have expanded; extricate me from my straits.” “Distress and anguish have found me. Your commandments are my joy.”", + "I am under great pressure, my Father in Heaven. I am constricted, my compassionate Father, my Redeemer.", + "My existence is narrow, bitter and hemmed in on every side.", + "Answer me, HaShem, answer me — for You, HaShem, answer in a time of trouble. Answer me, HaShem, for I have called out to You. Help me and save me for the sake of Your Name.", + "Teach me to judge myself at this time of trouble, when I am crushed and I do not know how to take counsel with myself to rescue myself from now on.", + "“My spirit is very frightened, and You, HaShem, how long?” How long will I ([Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]), Your servant, the child of Your maidservant, cry out in captivity?", + "Woe is me! “My life is worn away with grief and my years with sighing, my strength collapses and my bones have decayed.”", + "How can I take counsel? How will I examine my deeds and judge myself for all my actions and behavior?", + "I know myself that most of my actions are corrupt and blemished — in particular, my evil thoughts and ideas that are confused, scattered and distracted, may the Compassionate One protect me from now on. It appears to me as though I have no self-control, Heaven forbid.", + "I have been striving valiantly to rescue myself for so long, but without success.", + "How can I attain holy judgment so that I will be able to examine my deeds and judge myself, so that I will find good counsel and strategies at every moment, and be able to keep them?", + "May I quickly turn aside from my evil, wrong and blemished deeds.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have mercy on me. Help me and save me with Your true salvation.", + "Through Your true Tzaddikim, You revealed true and wondrous counsel to us. It is all straight and true. It is all beloved, pure and holy. All of it stands at the apex of the world.", + "But because I am so coarse and stiff-necked, I find it hard to keep this advice.", + "In particular, most of its elements are interdependent, and I do not know where to begin.", + "Because I have blemished the holy covenant so much, I am far from joy. And because I am far from joy, I find it difficult to repent for having blemished the covenant, and to merit rectifying it.", + "The essential way to guard the covenant is by means of joy, as our sages have explained in a number of places.", + "And now, “From where will my help come?” From where will my salvation come? Where will I find help and healing for a person as depressed and ill as I?", + "I have wandered in the four corners of the world without finding a cure. I return to You shamefaced to petition You, God, in my time of trouble.", + "I fall and plead before You. You are filled with compassion at every moment. You are the King Who loves charity and justice. Help me, save me, guide me and always teach me the ways of holy judgment.", + "May I know and comprehend how to judge myself every day regarding everything that I have done, and to find a proper approach and counsel, so that from now on I will turn away from all of my evil ways and thoughts, and I will no longer return to foolishness.", + "May I return to You completely, and always engage in holy judgment to judge myself properly, in accordance with Your will and the will of the true Tzaddikim.", + "By judging myself, may I remove and nullify all judgments from above, so that no judgment will have the power to undermine me.", + "Master of the world, I know that I do not have the power to remove all judgments from myself by means of my own judgment, because I do not engage in this properly.", + "So I have come to plead before You, Master of compassion, that these words that I am speaking before You should take the place of that judgment.", + "In the Merit of the Tzaddikim
Arouse the power of holy judgment of all the true Tzaddikim and God-fearing people who were involved in this throughout their lives, and who often judged themselves more strictly than they deserved, and who accepted suffering, troubles and bitter torments for the sake of the Jewish people.", + "Many of them suffered terribly and were killed for the sanctification of Your Name. In their merit and power, chase away, break, sweeten and nullify all judgments against me, my entire family, all those dependent on me, and the entire Jewish people.", + "Overcoming the Agents of Judgment
Nullify all troubles in general — particularly material and spiritual troubles, those that affect the body, the soul and money.", + "Do not give power to any agents of judgment — which are called “runners” (corresponding to the spiritual level of “feet”) — to exact any judgments against Israel, Heaven forbid, whether all of Israel or any individual in Israel.", + "May this be so even if judgments and decrees have already been given to the runners and agents of judgment, even if the runners have already set out “confused and rushed by the word of the king” to perform some judgment against Israel, Heaven forbid.", + "Compassionate God, please have mercy on Your nation, the House of Israel, in the merit of the true Tzaddikim who judged themselves properly, and in the merit of all the martyrs who were killed for the sanctification of Your Name. Take back, nullify and remove from all these agents of judgment the power of judgment that You transferred to them.", + "Tell the angel, “Withhold your hand,” so that he will return his sword to its sheath.", + "You grasp the trait of judgment, as the verse states, “You grasp my hand with judgment.” Even after You shoot an arrow, You can retrieve it.", + "The Enforced Conscription of Russian Jewry
Have compassion on me, on all those dependent on me, and on the entire Jewish people. Nullify every kind of trouble and judgment in the world, every harsh decree, against us.", + "(In particular, regarding rumors about harsh and bitter decrees that non-Jewish governments want to enact against the Jewish people, Heaven forbid, in the countries of … )", + "In particular, the harsh and bitter decree that has already been signed with the seal of the king,4The following references to the conscription of Jewish children were expunged by the Russian censors in several printings of Likutey Tefilot, but were reinstated in later editions. The majority of Likutey Tefilot was written by 1820, but Reb Noson wrote a few prayers after the Cantonist decrees of 1826-1827, which sanctioned forced conscription of young Jewish children into the Czar’s army. that the children of Israel must be conscripted and armed so that they will assimilate among the gentiles and learn their ways, their war strategies, as soldiers.", + "Woe! Woe to the eyes that see this. Our soul is distraught at what our ears have heard!", + "Master of the entire world, look down from Heaven and see each Jew taken to carry a weapon to fight their wars and desecrate the Shabbat and festivals, forced to nullify the Torah’s commandments.", + "Woe! Who can imagine the bitterness of this difficult trouble that destroys the faith of the children of Israel! Woe to us who have seen this. Woe! Our eyes are downcast because of this suffering.", + "Master of the entire world, who can bear such trouble? Woe, who can imagine the bitterness of this harsh trouble? Who can stand this?", + "Heavens, awaken to our suffering! Heavens, pray on our behalf! Angels of compassion, servants of the Supernal One, appease the face of God with eloquent words. Perhaps He will have pity on this impoverished nation. Perhaps He will have compassion. Perhaps He will have compassion.", + "Tzaddikim, foundations of the world, all who dwell in the dust, arise to beg on our behalf at this bitter time — fathers of the world, the Seven Shepherds, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Joseph, David, and all the mothers, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel and Leah, and the twelve tribes of God, and all the elders and the early and late prophets, and all the Tannaim and Amoraim,5Tannaim are the sages of the Mishnah (c. 10-220 C.E.); Amoraim are the sages of the Gemara (c. 200-500 C.E.). and all the true, holy, God-fearing and wholehearted Tzaddikim in all generations to this day.", + "Please stand, please awaken, all of you, from small to great. Do not be silent. Please stand to help us at this time of trouble!", + "Plead at length before God, the elevated and exalted King. May He recall your love and give Your children life. And may He nullify all evil decrees against us.", + "(In particular, this evil and wicked decree that has already been passed by the gentiles — may it not be so in Israel, so that the remnant of Jacob will not be lost.)", + "We have nothing to rely on but Your compassion and Your great and holy power.", + "Tzaddikim, do not look at our unworthy actions or at our many transgressions, sins and iniquities. You have already borne many sufferings and troubles for our sake during your lifetimes.", + "Look at the little bit of good still within us, because many good points are found even in the lowest Jewish sinners — how much more now that there are a few people who are worthy, Godfearing and true Tzaddikim, because no generation is orphaned, and Israel is not widowed. “I came to the end, and I am still with you.”", + "Have pity, mercy and compas sion and hear the outcry of Your nation, the Jewish people — men, women and children — since the day that this bitter decree was promulgated until a number of people have died and we have grown weaker.", + "Although we are too feeble to cry out and repent properly, You know how weak we are. We are made of flesh and blood, carved from clay, because we are all the work of Your hand. You know our evil inclination, particularly in these generations that are weak both materially and spiritually.", + "Have compassion, Master of compassion. Save us, Master of salvations, for there is no one to stand up on our behalf. May Your great Name stand up for us at a time of trouble.", + "Gaze down from Heaven and see that we have been the object of scorn and derision among the gentiles. We are considered as sheep brought to the slaughter, to be killed and destroyed, to be struck and disgraced. Nevertheless, we have not forgotten Your Name. Please do not forget us.", + "Look at Your downtrodden nation. See that the essence of their suffering is only because the gentiles want to tear them away from the religion of Israel, Heaven forbid.", + "(And this evil decree causes many Jews to violate the Torah, and many Jews would prefer to kill themselves with their own hands, Heaven forbid, rather than transgress Your holy Torah, but they fear that perhaps this is not Your will according to our holy Torah.)", + "Therefore, they continue in darkness, weary and persecuted, groaning and oppressed, hoping to die for Your sake and be no more. And their eyes are worn out the entire day, as they hope to hear of some true salvation.", + "Their eyes depend on You alone. “Behold, like the eyes of slaves turned to the hand of their master, like the eyes of the maidservant turned to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to HaShem our God, until He will be gracious to us. Be gracious to us, HaShem. Be gracious to us, because we have suffered much contempt.”", + "May Your compassion be stirred up for us. In the merit of our forefathers and our rabbis, the true Tzaddikim who plead with You for our sake, always Have pity on us in Your great mercy. Do not pour Your wrath on us.", + "“Turn back from Your wrathful anger, and reconsider the evil to Your nation.”", + "Redeemer and Savior, Rescuer, Sustainer and Answerer, You have compassion at every moment of trouble and oppression. Guard us, rescue us and redeem us from all troubles and judgments in the world (and in particular, from the troubles and decrees at this time, may the Compassionate One protect us, may the Compassionate One save us).", + "For a festival
The Joy of the Festivals
HaShem, have pity on the remnant of Israel, Your nation. Rescue us from all evil and from all harsh decrees in the world. Remove and nullify all judgments from Israel.", + "With the nullification of the judgments, may we attain great joy. Increase joy until it enters into our feet, so that we will dance a great deal. May we rejoice and be happy in Your salvation, with happiness and singing.", + "(And in particular, on the joyful festival of … ), may it come to us in peace. Have compassion on us and strengthen us to rejoice with all our might, because the festivals are the time of our joy.", + "(You are great to save. Have compassion on us and send us the good news soon that all the harsh decrees have been nullified. May we rejoice with the joy of the festivals that comes to us for the good. And may our joy not be diluted, Heaven forbid.", + "(Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Cause us to rejoice on this festival that comes to us for the good, with great and true joy in Your great and holy Name that is applied to us.", + "(May the verse be realized, “In Your Name they will rejoice all the day, and in Your righteousness they will be elevated.” May we draw down joy from this holy and awesome festival to the entire year.)", + "Guarding the Covenant
Strengthen me to be joyful always, until I truly guard the holy covenant as is proper for a man of Israel, chosen from all the nations.", + "In Your vast compassion, guard my holy covenant from every type of blemish in the world.", + "Act in accordance with Your wonders. In Your compassion, help me soon rectify the covenant completely, in accordance with Your good will.", + "I am sure that You will rectify me and all the Jewish people in the power of Your many wonders, favors and kindnesses, and in the power of the true Tzaddikim who have guarded the covenant with an ultimate perfection that cannot be surpassed.", + "Transform everything to the good, until every person whose covenant is blemished will be totally rectified. Who is like You? Nothing is beyond You.", + "A Plea for Compassion
Have pity and mercy on me. Have pity and mercy on me, on all my companions, and on the entire Jewish people.", + "Have pity and compassion on me. Have pity and compassion on my shame. I am so disgraced in my own eyes and despised that it is hard for me to bear myself.", + "Help me. Save me. Redeem me now for the sake of Your Name. “Guard my soul and save me; may I not be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.” “Give joy to the soul of Your servant because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!” “Cause me to hear gladness and joy; may the bones that You crushed, exult.”", + "HaShem, save Your nation, the remnant of Israel. Even if You are filled with anger at them like a pregnant woman filled with her child, may the presence of all their needs inspire You to quickly have compassion on them. Blessed are You, Who hears prayer.", + "Perform Your will in the heavens above and give comfort to those who fear You down here below. Do that which is good in Your eyes. Blessed are You, Who hears prayer.", + "Hear the cry of Your nation, the Jewish people, and quickly fulfill their requests. Blessed are You, Who hears prayer.", + "Hear the outcry of Your nation, the Jewish people, and quickly fulfill their requests. Blessed are You, Who hears prayer.", + "The needs of Your nation, the Jewish people, are many, and their minds are limited. Please, HaShem our God, give everyone enough to sustain him. Give every limb what it lacks. Blessed are You, Who hears prayer.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem forever, amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "Sweetening Harsh Judgments by Giving a Pidyon to a Tzaddik / God Can Help a Person Who is Not a Tzaddik Perform a Pidyon
A pidyon6Literally, “redemption.” is money given to a Tzaddik along with a request for a blessing.
When a person gives a pidyon, harsh judgments are sweetened on his behalf by means of God’s compassion, without any admixture of judgment. Then he is redeemed from every trouble and every type of illness, pain and discomfort. He is redeemed from all troubles and judgments, even if the decree has already been passed. He is sent complete healing from Heaven — healing of the spirit and healing of the body.
God can guide a person and teach him how to perform a pidyon, even if he is not a Tzaddik.
To be recited by the person who is given a pidyon
Receiving a Pidyon
May it be Your will that harsh judgments be sweetened on behalf of ([Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [father’s Hebrew name]) by means of the “supernal wonder,” which is great kindness and total, simple compassion, without any admixture of judgment at all.", + "King, Redeemer and Savior, redeem, rescue, sustain, answer and have compassion at every time of trouble and oppression. Have compassion on the sick person ([Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [father’s Hebrew name]). Redeem him quickly from all trouble and from every type of illness, pain and discomfort.", + "Sweeten and nullify all judgments against him in the merit of the money that he has put in my hand for a pidyon.", + "Even One Who is Not a Tzaddik Can Perform a Pidyon
Have compassion on me so that the money that he put in my hand will be considered as though it were put into the hands of holy Tzaddikim who know how to perform a pidyon, and who sweeten and nullify judgments when they take the money, which is “grasped by judgment,” in their hand.", + "May I unite my hand and the focus of my heart and mind with these Tzaddikim. May my action be like their action, my hand like their hand, and my mouth like their mouth.", + "May these Tzaddikim have good intentions for our sake, so that I may perform a proper pidyon by means of this money that has been placed in my hand. May they sweeten and nullify all judgments against ([Hebrew name], the son/ daughter of [father’s Hebrew name]) in their supernal root, in supernal Binah.", + "The Kabbalah of Pidyon
May these judgments in our world of Asiyah be sweetened by means of the three “hands” in the next higher world, Yetzirah, which have the numerical value of 42, which is equal to the Forty-Two-Letter Divine Name composed of the acronym of the “Prayer of Rabbi Nechuniah ben HaKanah,” which is: Ana … Kabeil … Na … Barkhem … Chasin … Yachid … Shavateinu … Barukh …", + "And in the next higher universe, that of Beriah, may the judgments be sweetened by means of the three “hands” that are the two Divine Names (EHeYeH, YHVH) that have the numerical value of 42.", + "And in the universe above that, Atzilut, may the judgments be sweetened by means of the Divine Name of Havayah spelled simply, then “filled out” and after that “doubly filled out,” which comes to 42 letters.", + "Compassionate God, You Who are filled with compassion, please have compassion on this sick person (or: “on this person,” if he has another problem) and arouse all three hands in supernal Binah in all three worlds — Atzilut, Beriah and Yetzirah — these being the “great hand,” the “strong hand” and the “elevated hand.”", + "In this way, sweeten and nullify all judgments in the world of Asiyah against this sick person and against all the Jewish people. Redeem him quickly from all troubles and judgments that have been decreed against him, even if the decree has already been passed.", + "Quickly send him complete healing from Heaven — healing of the spirit and healing of the body — among the other sick of Israel.", + "Guide me and teach me at every moment when people bring me money to perform a pidyon, so that I will know how much money this person must give for the sake of his pidyon, in accordance with the judgments that cling to him.", + "The Person Bringing the Pidyon Must Not Be Stingy
Also, have compassion on the person bringing the pidyon so that he will not be miserly, but will give what he needs to, so that all the judgments will emerge from him and rise to the three supernal, holy “hands,” and he will be sweetened in their supernal root, in supernal Binah.", + "Ultimately Everything is Up to God
It is revealed and known before You that I am not familiar with anyone who knows how to conduct oneself in this matter. Have compassion, You Who are filled with compassion, on this poor generation in which there is no one to stand up for us. Have compassion on the Jewish people and on this sick person. Sweeten and nullify all judgments against him and against all Jews.", + "Heal him quickly and completely. Revive him and restore his strength soon. Awaken his heart to quickly return to You. Give him full compassion, for You are the Master of compassion.", + "“God, redeem Israel from all its oppressors.”", + "We have no one on whom to rely except our Father in Heaven. “Israel, hope in HaShem, for kindness is with HaShem, and much redemption is with Him; He will redeem Israel from all of its sins.” Amen. May it be His will." + ], + [ + "Jews Should Inspire Each Other to Serve God
Jews should get together every day so they can inspire each other to serve God. They should remind each other of God’s truth, faithfulness, greatness and goodness.
Then holy lights will shine in their hearts so they will awaken and return to God. They will spend their days learning Torah, praying and performing good deeds, with increased holiness every day.
Friends Help Each Other Serve God
HaShem our God and God of our fathers, help Jews meet and bond with each other every day to serve You and fear You.", + "May every individual speak with his friend about the fear of Heaven, and inspire his friend to serve You and fear You.", + "May we remind each other, strengthen each other and inform each other of Your truth, Your faithfulness, Your greatness and Your goodness that fill the entire world, so that the “direct light” and the “reflected light” will constantly be drawn down through us.", + "Increasing Holiness in the World
May the holy Temple be built and completed through us constantly — every day, every moment and every hour.", + "May all the holy lights shine in our hearts, so that we will truly awaken and return to You with a whole heart. May we no longer follow after the hardness of our evil heart, but spend all of our days learning Torah, praying and performing good deeds.", + "May we increase holiness and awareness every day. May every day be greater than the previous one in holiness, purity, fear and love, truth and faith, so that we will never be ashamed.", + "May the verse be realized in us, “Those who fear HaShem spoke together, each man to his neighbor, and HaShem took heed and heard; and a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear HaShem and cherish His Name.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Raising Fear to Its Source / Making God’s Name Whole
A person must not fall prey to the superficial fears of this-worldly matters. Instead, he should realize that intrinsically, they have no power to frighten him. He should raise his fear to its root — that is, he should turn his fear to God.
Ultimately, he should no longer need to inspire himself to feel fear by contemplating frightening, this-worldly matters. Instead, he should feel the fear of God directly.
One can attain the fear of God by coming close to true Tzaddikim, who are the treasure house of fear of Heaven.
Then he attains blessings, compassion, life and peace, an abundance of children, sustenance, wealth, honor and everything good — materially and spiritually, in this world and in the World to Come — so that he will never stumble and never be ashamed.
When people attain supernal fear and their deeds are perfected, God’s Name becomes whole. In the end, all people will return to God and serve Him with great fear.
Fear of God Alone
HaShem, You are our God and God of our fathers, God of Abraham, God of Isaac and God of Jacob. You are the great, mighty and awesome God. Have compassion on us and draw Your holy fearfulness and awesomeness onto us.", + "Guard me and rescue me from every type of fallen, superficial fear. May I never fear anything in the world — neither wild beasts nor thieves, corrupt officials nor wicked people, or anything else that people usually fear.", + "Guard me and rescue me from all of these so that I will not fear them at all. Instead, when I meet them, may I realize swiftly and immediately the ultimate truth that they have no power to frighten me, unless fear from above has fallen into them and been clothed in them.", + "May I raise that fear to its root and fear You, awesome God. May I truly attain holy fear and raise all fallen fears to their root.", + "Lift me up, level by level, until I reach supernal fear so completely that I no longer need to draw supernal fear upon myself by contemplating the fear of lower things.", + "May I be aroused on my own to feel total fear of You. Increase my wisdom, understanding and knowledge in great holiness, until I will attain complete supernal fear as a result of contemplating Your greatness and exaltedness.", + "Your fear and awe rest upon all the Heavenly angels, all those who dwell above and below. They all tremble before You and fear You.", + "“Who does not fear You, King of the nations? This is fitting for You, because among all the sages of the nations and in the midst of all their sovereignty, none is like You.” “There is none like You, HaShem. You are great and Your Name is great in might.” “God is dreaded in the great council of the mighty ones, and He awesomely transcends all those who surround Him.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, great and awesome God, give me truly complete fear — the fear of punishment and the fear of Your exaltedness — with complete, ultimate holiness.", + "Help me and save me swiftly. May Your fear be upon my face so that I will no longer commit any sins at all. “If I have acted sinfully, I will no longer do so.” May I no longer return to foolishness.", + "Tzaddikim are the Treasure House of Fear of Heaven
In Your great compassion, help me, my children, and all the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, come close to true Tzaddikim, who are the treasure house of fear of Heaven, for they are filled with fear, awe and dread of You. Help me come close to them, until through them, I am able to attain holy and pure fear, lower fear and supernal fear, and rise ever higher with ultimate perfection.", + "Help me and save me at every moment. May I break all the obstacles and barriers that keep me from coming close to Tzaddikim who truly fear You.", + "With the help of Your compassion, may I break and nullify all obstacles — whether from human beings, near and far, great and small, or whether from my mind, due to money issues or to other difficulties and exertions — all types of obstacles and confusions.", + "May I strive and toil to return quickly to the true Tzaddikim. May no obstacle in the world hold me back.", + "Compassionate and righteous God, You are mighty and awesome. You know the powerful, holy fear that the true Tzaddikim attained as a result of serving You, their toil and self-sacrifice on Your behalf.", + "They recognized You and feared You with an incredible, supernal fear that grew ever higher, a holy fear that has the power to reach us.", + "Have compassion on me for their sake. Pour their holy and wondrous fear onto me so that I will attain ongoing, complete fear of You. May Your fear be upon my face so that I will no longer sin and I will return to You in truth and with a full heart.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Help me always yearn to come close to true Tzaddikim and those who fear You, until I strengthen my desire and will to break every kind of obstacle in the world.", + "Help me bear all kinds of troubles (and distractions), toil and suffering in order to come close to true Tzaddikim and be truly attached to them.", + "May I draw down and receive from them true, complete fear of You, so that I will truly be in accordance with Your good will, always and forever.", + "As a result of these obstacles, difficulties and troubles, may I come close to true Tzaddikim. As a result of that, may I become a holy and pure vessel to receive an abundance of goodness and blessing for me and for the entire House of Israel.", + "A World Filled with Fear of God
Awesome and elevated Master of the world, filled with compassion, answer me. Quickly grant me true, complete fear of You.", + "You are holy and Your Name is awesome. The entire host of Heaven grovels and trembles in fear of Your Name. Seraphim, chayot, holy ophanim and all the awesome angels shiver in fear of Your exalted glory, and all of them act with fear, in awe of Your will.", + "“HaShem, when I heard Your message, I feared. HaShem, revive Your people in these years. In these years, make it known that even in anger, You remember to be compassionate.”", + "Fill us with fear, You Who are so compassionate. Fill us with fear, You Who are so awesome and magnificent. Fill us with fear, God of all the Tzaddikim who are the root of fear.", + "HaShem our God, place Your fearfulness upon all Your creatures and Your awe upon all that You made, so that they will all fear You. Then all created beings will bow to You, and they will all form one assembly to do Your will with a full heart.", + "Awesome Master of the world, bring awesome and wondrous things about for me so that I will be able to truly return to You.", + "“In justice, answer us with awesome things, God of our salvation, Stronghold of all the ends of the earth and the distant seas.”", + "“HaShem, teach me Your ways. I will walk in Your truth. Unite my heart to fear Your Name.”", + "Holy and awesome God, save me and help me attain everything that I have sought from You. Fill me with true, complete fear of You, until I bring You pleasure and great joy.", + "As a result of that, send me generous abundance, blessings, compassion, life and peace, an abundance of children, sustenance, wealth, honor and everything good — materially and spiritually, in this world and in the World to Come — so that I will never stumble and never be ashamed.", + "Quickly raise us ever higher until we attain an ultimately complete supernal fear. Then may our deeds be greatly perfected before You, until we make Your great and holy Name whole always with ultimate perfection, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May Your Name be expanded forever. May all people return to You and serve You with great fear. ��They will give thanks to Your great and awesome Name; it is holy.”", + "Swiftly may the verse be realized, “The land will give its produce; may God, our God, bless us; may God bless us and may the ends of the earth fear Him.”", + "“Nations will fear the Name of HaShem, and all kings of the earth Your glory.” “HaShem is supernal, awesome; the King is great over all the earth.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“In Your vast kindness, I will come to Your house; I will bow to Your holy palace in fear of You.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "The Words of the Tzaddikim Contain Mysteries
A Jew must strive to attain faith in the sages. He must believe that the words of the Tzaddikim contain mysteries, and perceive how their words allude to everything he has experienced.
Words Filled with Wonders
Master of the world, help me attain true and complete faith in the sages.", + "Help me come to truly believe in the words of the true Tzaddikim, to believe with complete faith that all their words and deeds are not trivial, but contain great mysteries and secrets, and are filled with wonders; that their words contain awesome, hidden insights and predictions.", + "May I come to see Your might and wonders through their holy words. May I see that everything I have experienced throughout all of my days was alluded to in their holy words that were stated in truth and righteousness, with wondrous, awesome and elevated wisdom.", + "They hinted at this in the words and speech that I heard from their mouths or from others in their name, or from their holy and awesome books.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, help me attain this complete faith, knowledge and intelligence, until in retrospect I find in their words everything that I have undergone.", + "May I always be close to and attach myself to the true Tzaddikim and their faithful followers. May I walk in their straight and perfect ways, and may I believe in them with complete faith, until I truly return to You and live in accordance with Your good will all the days of my life.", + "Hurry to redeem us and bring our righteous Mashiach. May the verse swiftly be realized, “As in the days of your going out of Egypt, I will show him wonders.”
“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who does wonders alone. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "One’s Spiritual Losses are in the Possession of the Tzaddik
In the womb, a lamp shines over the head of the fetus, allowing it to gaze from one end of the world to the other. But when the fetus emerges into the air of the world, it loses that light.
Throughout a person’s life, he must search for that light. But because a person does not know how to search for it, he loses it and loses other spiritual attributes as well; and, as a result, he almost loses himself entirely.
Everything that a person has lost is in the possession of the true Tzaddikim. But because of his sins, a person is far from the true Tzaddik who possess his losses. He does not even know the identity of that Tzaddik.
He must pray to recognize the true Tzaddik who possesses all of his losses, and break through all obstacles to come to him. He must then strive with all his might to search with the Tzaddik for everything that he has lost throughout his life.
The Tragedy of Loss
“I have been forgotten like a dead person from the heart; I have become like a lost vessel.” “I have gone astray like a lost sheep. Seek Your servant, for I have not forgotten Your commandments.”", + "Master of the world, “I wish that I were as in my early months, as in the days that God watched over me. When He lit His candle over my head, in His light I would walk in the darkness.”", + "You are filled with compassion. You know all the attainments and knowledge that my soul attained and knew before it emerged into the air of this world, when I was still in the womb during the nine months of pregnancy, when a lamp shone over my head and I gazed with its light from one end of the world to the other, and how I immediately forgot and lost that great light when I emerged into the air of the world.", + "Throughout my life, I must search for this. I must seek with all my might what I lost and forgot.", + "But I am so coarse and stiff-necked that not only have I not attempted to search properly for my loss, but I have gone in the completely opposite direction.", + "I have followed after the desires of my heart and sinned a great deal before You. As a result, I have destroyed a great deal with my own hands, until I have grown distant from You and forgotten and lost all the good of my soul, all eternal good, all true good.", + "I do not know any way to search for my loss — my many losses — so that as a result, I have almost lost myself entirely, Heaven forbid.", + "Our Losses are in the Possession of the Tzaddikim
“If HaShem had not been my help, in an instant my soul would have dwelt in silence.” “If Your Torah were not my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.”", + "And now, what should I do? How should I act?", + "Master of the world, You know secrets without end. You look upon hidden things, gazing to the end of all generations. You alone know all of my many losses. In Your great kindness, You have had compassion on us, great and extensive compassion, and revealed that everything that a person has lost is in the possession of the true Tzaddikim.", + "But because of our many sins, we are far from the true Tzaddikim who possess all of our losses, and no one even knows the identity of the true Tzaddik who possesses all of his losses.", + "And so certainly we do not know how to search for all our many and desperate losses in his possession.", + "You are filled with compassion. Open Your eyes and see our devastation. We stray and search like orphaned children, like unclean people who have no one to purify them, like the poor who have no one to be gracious to them.", + "“I will lift my eyes to the mountains. From where will my help come?” Where will I run to get help? To which of the holy Tzaddikim will I turn? “I said, ‘My life is lost and my hope from HaShem.’” “This will I reply to my heart, therefore I will hope.” “The kindness of HaShem has not ceased, for His compassion has not been exhausted.”", + "Therefore, I have come to You, true Master of compassion. Be compassionate to me for the sake of Your Name. In Your great mercy, have pity on me.", + "May Your compassion be stirred up for me. Open my eyes swiftly so that I will see and recognize the true Tzaddik who possesses all of my losses. May I be able to break all of my obstacles and quickly come close to him.", + "In Your compassion, help me strive with all my might, throughout my entire life, to search with him for everything that I lost from the beginning of my life to this day, until I will find everything in my lifetime, quickly, so that I may truly return to You, recognize You, come close to You and attach myself to You.", + "Guard me and rescue me from this moment on, not to lose anything else ever again.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Have mercy on the prayer of a lone tree in the wilderness. As the verses state, “He turned to the prayer of those who cried out and did not despise their prayer.” “He did not despise and did not abhor the cry of the poor person, and did not hide His face from him, and heard his outcry to Him.”", + "“Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Tzaddikim Heal a Person of the Serpent’s Bite
Depression and lack of motivation come as a result of the bite of the Primordial Serpent. A person who is thus contaminated does not learn Torah, pray or engage in good deeds.
The true Tzaddikim, those who attain new, awesome and wondrous life at every moment, have the ability to pour the light of life upon such a person. Then he is saved from these snake bites and he gains life. Eagerness and joy revive him so that he experiences a personal resurrection of the dead.
Protect Us from Depression
Master of the world, Living God and King, the Joy of Israel, have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Rescue me from the depression and lack of motivation that contaminate me, that keep me from Torah, prayer and goodness, and that have brought me to my present state.", + "As You informed us through Your holy sages, the essence of the Serpent’s bite is depression and lack of motivation. Protect us, compassionate God.", + "Have compassion on me, You Who are filled with compassion, and save me from these snake bites. Give me life and I will live. “Give joy to the soul of Your servant, because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You.” “Cause me to hear gladness and joy; may the bones that You crushed, exult.”", + "Eagerness and Joy Revive the Mind
Help me be eager to learn Your Torah and to serve You always with vast and mighty joy, with eagerness in serving You and learning Your holy Torah, for these are our life and the length of our days in this world and in the World to Come, forever and ever.", + "Besides that, everything is a mere puff of air, intangible vanities. “What is the advantage of man in all of his toil that he will toil under the sun?” — besides Torah, prayer and serving You.", + "You revive the dead with great compassion. You support the fallen, You heal the sick and free the imprisoned, and You are faithful to those who sleep in the dust. Revive me and raise me from the dust of the earth, because as a result of my many sins, I descended to the dust and even lower than that.", + "“Our soul is cast down to the dust, our belly is attached to the earth. Arise to help us and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.” “My spirit has clung to the dust; revive me in accordance with Your words.”", + "You raise the poor from the dust and lift the impoverished person from the trash heap. In Your compassion and wondrousness, raise me from all my descents and falls, because no one but You and the true Tzaddikim can raise me.", + "Send me eagerness and joy, which revive a person’s mind and the entirety of his being. Hold me with Your hand. Strengthen me constantly with Your arm, with Your deep, wondrous counsel, so that I will get rid of my depression and heaviness entirely, and transform them into great eagerness and joy.", + "“May my spirit live and praise You as Your judgments help me.” Nothing is too wondrous for You. There is nothing that You cannot do. Who is like You, Master of might? Who is comparable to You, King Who kills and revives and causes redemption to flower? May I literally experience the resurrection of the dead.", + "A New Life
In Your compassion, You have already performed countless wonders for me every day, at every time, at every moment, until today. Revive me and maintain me from now on with true life in this world and in the World to Come.", + "In Your compassion, allow me to taste the wonders of life that the true Tzaddikim attained. They attained new, awesome and wondrous life at every moment, and there is power in their life to pour forth the light of life upon me even now, however I may be.", + "May I also attain life — from now on, at any rate — true life, long life, good life, a life that is truly called life.", + "“Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen." + ], + [ + "The Miracle of Free Will / Conquering One’s Will by Aligning Oneself with Tzaddikim
The power of free will is the greatest wonder of all creation. There is nothing as awesome as the existence of a creature with the power to choose whether he will do God’s will or defy it.
A meager human being who is overwhelmed by his desires and bad traits experiences opposing ideas about a number of things. Even if he seeks advice on how to drive away his lusts, his this-worldly desires have weakened the power of his free will. He needs God’s encouragement to turn the power of his free will to choose life, to choose good and reject evil.
He must strive to enter into the company of true Tzaddikim until all of his desires for the vanities of this world are nullified and he will bend his shoulder to bear the yoke of Torah, prayer and serving God, and he will be charitable and perform many kind deeds.
For 7 Adar, the anniversary of the death of Moses our teacher, peace be upon him
The Miracle of Free Will
“HaShem, You have investigated me and You know: You know my sitting and my rising, You understand how to attach me [to You] from afar, [You know] my going about and my lying down. You have encompassed me and You have seen all my ways, for there is no word on my tongue [unknown to You], because You know everything, HaShem.”", + "Master of the world, Giver of the Torah, You Who love Your nation of Israel, You Who choose Your nation of Israel with love — in Your compassion, You gave us free will to choose life or its opposite, Heaven forbid.", + "This power of free will that You gave man is a wonder of wonders, the greatest wonder of all creation in all worlds (as is taught in a number of holy texts).", + "There is nothing as wondrous, awesome and concealed in the creation of all worlds as this elevated wonder, this wondrous and hidden innovation: the existence of a creature with Your power of free will to choose the path that he wants, to have the power to do Your will or defy Your will, Heaven forbid.", + "Regarding this, King David said, “Awesomely have I been formed, wondrous are Your deeds, which my soul knows well.” “Knowledge is hidden from me; I cannot attain it. Where will I go from Your spirit, and where will I flee from Your face?”", + "When Free Will is Coarsened and Limited
And so I come before You, Master of wonders, to help me and save me and be with me always, so that I will bend the power of my free will to You and to Your will; so that I will always, at every moment, choose life in a good and true way, in accordance with Your will and the will of the true Tzaddikim; and I will never veer from Your will, right or left, all the days of my life.", + "Master of the world, Lord of all, You informed us in Your compassion that the principal power of free will that the Jews possessed when they received the Torah existed because they received it through Moses our teacher, and You did not speak directly with the Jews themselves.", + "You spoke all Your words with Moses our teacher, and they heard You speak with him. As a result, we have the power of free will regarding all the words of this Torah. Otherwise, everything that HaShem would tell a person directly, he would be forced to do, without any free will.", + "And so, Moses our teacher did not have the power of free will regarding the commandments of the Torah. Rather, all his free will had to do with “Moses adding one day of his own knowledge” [to determine the time of the giving of the Torah] — that is, You did not explain this to him explicitly, and he had to understand how to act of his own accord. All of the power of his free will resided in that.", + "And behold, I who am so meager, I who am constantly overwhelmed by desires and bad traits, have free will regarding all the words of the Torah. I need Your encouragement, help and compassion to bend the power of my free will to choose life, to choose good and reject evil.", + "Now, I am very unclear about how to act, and my mind is confused about many things, because I do not know how to know what You want and how I should act. I think that if I knew what You want, I would certainly act in accordance with Your will.", + "“HaShem our God, You are our Father. We are the clay and You are our Maker, and all of us are the work of Your hand.” Direct me and teach me what to do and how to act.", + "Moses our teacher and the other great and awesome Tzaddikim who had free will regarding instances when they were not sure what You wanted, had great power because they were “mighty ones in strength who fulfill His word.” They were literally like angels.", + "They had completely broken their desires, so they did not have free will regarding desire for anything in the world. And so it was fitting for them to have free will on the level of “Moses adding one day of his own knowledge” — which refers to the things that were unclear to them.", + "But I am thick and coarse. I have sinned so much against You. My desires still impel me, and I constantly think of how to find advice, strategy and healing to drive them away from me. But the power of my free will is greatly coarsened.", + "In addition, my desires confuse me a great deal, and I experience confusion and opposing ideas about a number of things, so that I don’t know what to do. How will I find the straight and proper way to really be able to come close to You?", + "Master of the world, my mind is greatly confused. I have no arguments to set forth and I cannot express my speech well. But You know all the secrets of my heart. So please direct me and teach me how to conduct myself from now on, through all the days of my life.", + "Teach me counsel. Give me the power to engage in this challenging battle. Rise up to help me and save me so that I will bend my heart to You, to choose good when I know what You want, in accordance with Your holy Torah. May I no longer follow the stubbornness of my evil heart and no longer stray after my heart and eyes.", + "Rather, may I always bend my free will to go in the way of life, goodness and truth. Illumine my eyes in Your Torah and teach me with Your compassion at every moment, so that I will know the truth and intuit Your will in all things that I am uncertain about.", + "“HaShem, teach me Your ways. I will walk in Your truth. Unite my heart to fear Your Name.” “Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; it is for You that I have hoped all the day.” “HaShem, teach me Your ways. Guide me on a path that is straight, despite [my enemies] who gaze upon me.”", + "Entering into the Company of Tzaddikim
Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, bring me into the company of the true Tzaddikim, until all my desires for all the vanities of this world are nullified and I will not have any desire for them at all. Rather, I will bend my shoulder to bear the yoke of Torah, prayer and serving You, and I will be charitable and perform many kind deeds.", + "Guard me. Deliver me from doubts, confusion and divided counsel. May I always know the truth of Your will regarding everything in the world, because I rely on You in all of my movements, and may I act in accordance with Your will.", + "“HaShem, teach me the way of Your laws, and I will keep it at every step.” “Guide me in the path of Your mitzvot, for that is what I have desired.” “Extend my heart to Your testimonies and not toward monetary gain.”", + "Have compassion on me and on all those who depend on me. “May Your hand help me, for I have chosen Your laws.” “May my soul live and praise You, and may Your judgments help me. I have gone astray like a lost sheep. Seek Your servant, for I have not forgotten Your commandments.”", + "I have strayed to the left. Please bring me close to You with Your right hand. “Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "The Greatest Delight is Knowing God / Inheriting 310 Internal Worlds
God created man to know Him. That is the essence of the most wondrous delight in this world and in all worlds. It is so great that it can be given only the inadequate labels of delight and goodness.
God gives each righteous person an inheritance of 310 worlds. All of these worlds are felt only in the heart. So it is possible for two people to sit next to each other, one with all 310 worlds in his heart, and the other person empty. A person must always ask God to draw all his ideals and thoughts into Torah and prayer, so that he will be attached to God.
The Delight of Knowing God
“HaShem my God, You are exceedingly great.” There is no limit to Your greatness. In Your compassion and goodness, You created man so that he will know and recognize You, so that he will “gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visit in His palace.”", + "That is the essence of the most wondrous delight in this world and in all worlds. It is so great that we can give it only the inadequate labels of delight and goodness. Fortunate is the person who attains it.", + "Inheriting 310 Worlds
In Your compassion, You promised through Your holy sages that You will give each righteous person an inheritance of 310 worlds. As the verse states, “There is substance to give an inheritance to those who love Me, and I will fill their treasuries.”7The Hebrew word yesh (יש, substance) has the numerical value of 310.
In Your compassion, You revealed to us that all 310 worlds are felt only in the heart. So it is possible for two people to sit next to each other in the Garden of Eden, and one has all 310 worlds in his heart, and the other person is empty, because his heart is lacking all this.", + "A Plea for Spiritual Rescue
And so, my Father in Heaven, have compassion on me and help me — from now on, at any rate — to be among those who fear You and do Your will, until I too, with the help of Your wondrous and awesome compassion and goodness, will really inherit those 310 worlds in my heart, so that I will truly know and recognize You with true insights that correspond to the 310 worlds.", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You know how endlessly far I am from this, and I still need to appeal to You a great deal to rescue me from Gehinnom — from the lowest Sheol and even lower.", + "I have sinned a great deal against You, until “my sins passed over my head; like a heavy load, they have been too heavy for me.” “I have sunken into the muddy depths and cannot stand. I have entered into the deep water, and the rushing current washes over me.” I have added new sins to my first. What can I say? How can I speak? How can I justify myself?", + "Through Your Tzaddikim, You revealed to us the mighty vastness of Your infinite compassion and kindness. Therefore, I must strengthen myself and cast myself down before You, and appeal to You to help me attain all of the goodness in all the worlds, as we have been urged to do by the true Tzaddikim, who taught us in Your Name to hope for this.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. God, my protective shadow, save me. Rescue me from shame in this world and in the World to Come. Save me from Your harsh punishments. Rescue me from Your wrath. Have pity on me in Your vast compassion.", + "Have compassion on me and help me awaken — from now on, at any rate — to truly return to You. Help me from now on to be a truly worthy person, in accordance with Your good will and in accordance with the will of Your true Tzaddikim, so that I, too, will inherit 310 worlds.", + "Do not disappoint my hope, for Your compassion is infinitely vast. “Your compassions are many, HaShem.” “Revive me in accordance with Your words.”", + "For the sake of Your Name, and in the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim on whom we always rely, have compassion on me and on all those who rely on me. Master of compassion, I have come before You in the power of the merit of the true Tzaddikim, to seek You regarding all these matters.", + "“You Who do great things beyond comprehension and wonders without number,” perform great wonders for me, so that — from now on, at any rate — I will act in accordance with Your good will, and I will no longer return to my foolishness.", + "Help me from now on to reject all bad and confused thoughts. Always be with me to draw all my ideals and thoughts into Torah and prayer, so that I will be attached to You, Your Torah and Your service from now and forever.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Remembering the Words of the Tzaddik / Visualizing the Tzaddik / Reviewing One’s Learning 101 Times
Because of a person’s many sins, he forgets the light of the shining words of Tzaddikim, and he grows far from God.
He must strive to remember clearly all the words of the true Tzaddikim that he has heard from them and read in their books. When he carves these words into his memory, their light shines in his mind and soul so that he returns to God, casts away the gods of silver and gold, and no longer follows after the stubbornness of his evil heart.
Instead, he invests all his goals, desires, yearnings, will and hopes in the eternal World to Come.
Then he will come to the World to Come with all the words of the Written and Oral Torahs bound, carved and absorbed into his mind and soul. Then the Tzaddikim will complete all the rectifications that they began to draw into the world, to bring every realm back to serve God.
When a person learns Torah, he should visualize the Tzaddik whose holy words he is reciting, so that it is as though the Tzaddik is standing in front of him. Also, when a person relays his teachings to other Jews, that Tzaddik’s holy image should stand before him, until it is as though the Tzaddik himself is speaking and these Jews are hearing his words from the Tzaddik’s holy mouth.
In addition, a person should review every Torah insight at least 101 times so that he remembers every word.
Remembering the Holy Words of the Tzaddikim
“I recall the days of old; I consider all Your deeds. I speak of the work of Your hands.” “I stretch my hands out to You. My soul turns to You like a weary land.” “I recall the works of God; I recall Your wonders from the beginning.” “When my spirit recalls, it bows down within me.”", + "Master of the world, You recall all forgotten things from the very beginning. Before the throne of Your glory, nothing is forgotten.", + "Help me and save me for the sake of Your Name. May I remember clearly all the words of the true Tzaddikim that I have heard from them and read in their books.", + "You know the elevated state of every holy word that has emerged from their mouths, even their mundane words — which nothing can equal, because all their words are true and righteous.", + "When a person truly receives such words and carves them into his memory, he receives the face, mind and soul of the Tzaddik. The light of the Tzaddik’s face, mind and soul is carved into his mind — especially when he hears their holy words of Torah.", + "In Your vast compassion, You opened my ears, and a number of times I heard a fraction of the mighty, wondrous holiness of their awesome words, which illuminate the earth and those who dwell on it with a wondrous and awesome light that is beyond understanding, until my heart was awakened at least a bit to truly come close to You.", + "However, because of my many sins, forgetfulness has overwhelmed me and I have forgotten the light of their shining words, and I have grown far from You. I have forgotten what is good for me. I have forgotten their holiness. “I have been forgotten like a dead person from the heart; I have become like a lost vessel.”", + "Therefore, I come to You, Master of compassion, You Who recall forgotten matters, to have compassion on me from now on and to help me always recall all of the words of truth that I hear from the true Tzaddikim, or that which I will learn in their holy books. Remind me, in Your compassion, of everything that I have heard and forgotten.", + "In Your compassion, remind me of everything. May I no longer forget any of my learning all the days of my life.", + "Help me soon do everything that our rabbis told us to do — in particular, when I learn, to visualize the Tzaddik whose holy words I am reciting, so that it is as though he is standing in front of me.", + "Also, when I relay his teachings to others, may his holy image stand before me, until it is as though he himself is speaking and they are hearing his words from his holy mouth.", + "May the holy words of the Tzaddikim have their full effect. May the Tzaddikim complete all the rectifications that they began to draw into the world, to bring every realm back to truly serve You and Your Torah.", + "Reviewing the Torah 101 Times
Help me review every true word and new insight of the holy Torah at least 101 times, so that I remember every word and never forget even one word of my learning.", + "Absorbing the Soul of the Tzaddikim
May the face, mind and soul of the true Tzaddikim whose holy and awesome words I am learning be carved into my mind, intellect and soul, so that I will taste the pleasant sweetness of their elevated words.", + "May the shining light of their illuminating words shine in my mind and soul with an elevated and awesome light, so that I will return to You quickly and cast away the gods of silver and gold, and no longer follow after the stubbornness of my evil heart. May I withdraw and disconnect myself from the vanities of this world, (its desires) and its pleasures.", + "May I invest all my goals, desires, yearnings, will and hopes in the eternal World to Come that exists forever. May I not exchange that permanent world for this transitory world, which is like a passing shadow.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name and grant me a true, holy memory, so that I will clearly remember all the words of the holy Torah. Help me constantly learn and contemplate Your holy Torah day and night, and review everything 101 times.", + "May I always recall every word, original insight, idea and piece of advice that You have revealed to us in Your holy Torah, which is filled with much counsel and holy, awesome lights. May I recall them clearly and robustly all the days of my life, until the day that You gather me to You in peace.", + "May I come to the other world with all the words of the Written and Oral Torahs bound, carved, absorbed and united into my mind and soul. May I be among those who learn Torah and fear You. “Fortunate is the person who comes here with his learning in his hand.”", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name, because in my impoverishment I know my lowliness and meagerness, how far I am from all of this. You desire good and do good to all, and You want us to pray and appeal to You for all the great, true and eternal benefits.", + "I come to You with an impure face to ask You to illumine me with the light of the face of the Living King, which is the light of the face of the true Tzaddikim. “Shine Your face on Your servant. Save me in Your lovingkindness.” “Shine Your face upon Your servant and teach me Your laws.”", + "May the verse be realized in me, “In the light of the face of the King is life, and His delight is like a cloud of the late rain.” “God will be gracious to us and bless us. He will cause His face to shine upon us.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who does wonders alone. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "Honor Belongs to God and to Those Whose Honor God Desires
A person should know that God’s honor fills the entire world, and that the glory of God’s sovereignty is clothed in every word, because speech is the palace of the king.
He himself should flee honor. Instead, he should give all honor to God and to those whose honor God desires.
Let Me Flee from Personal Honor
Honored King, help me truly flee honor completely. Be with me always. Give me true wisdom, understanding and knowledge. May I know Your greatness, exaltedness and sovereignty. May I know that Your honor fills the entire world, and that the glory of Your sovereignty is clothed in every word, because speech is the palace of the king.", + "May I be as nothing in my own eyes before Your honor. I do not want any honor at all, because who is so foolish as to want honor in the palace of the king? All honor is only in speech, which is the palace of the king. And what fool desires to receive honor in the presence of the king, who alone possesses all honor, greatness and governance?", + "Have compassion on me. Give me true knowledge to truly know all of this, so that I will not pursue honor at all. To the contrary, I will distance myself from and flee honor completely, and give all honor to You and to those whose honor You desire, those who truly fear You alone.", + "May the verse be realized, “Gates, lift up your heads; eternal portals, be elevated, and may the King of glory enter. Who is this King of glory? It is HaShem, strong and mighty; HaShem, mighty in war. Gates, lift up your heads; rise, eternal portals, and may the King of glory enter. Who is this King of glory? The God of hosts, He is the King of glory, selah.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who does wonders alone. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "God Gives a Person Comfort Even in the Narrow Places
A person should realize that he himself has caused all the problems he is undergoing with his own sins, evil deeds and disgraceful thoughts.
Nevertheless, God’s kindness has not left him. He should look at the benefits that God gives him and the forbearance that God shows him. He must strive to find the comfort that God gives him even in the narrow places. Without that kindness, he would have been lost.
Open Your Eyes to God’s Favors
“When I call, answer me, my righteous God. In my distress, You have relieved me. Be gracious and hear my prayer.”", + "Master of the world, You are filled with compassion. You are good and do good to all. Help me open my eyes, heart and mind to always look at the benefits You give me and the forbearance that You show me for the good, giving me comfort even within my difficulties.", + "Only because of this do I still live and exist in the midst of all my oppressions and troubles of spirit and body. They have surrounded me, encompassed me and crushed me, so that I can barely turn to the right or to the left, and I do not know where to flee to escape my own self.", + "I myself caused everything that I am undergoing with my many sins, evil deeds and disgraceful thoughts. Nevertheless, Your kindness has not left me. “The kindness of HaShem has not ceased, for Your compassion has not been exhausted.” “For Your kindness is great toward me, and You rescued my spirit from the lowest depths of Sheol.”", + "You are kind to me every day, every moment and every hour. If not for the wondrous, awesome and elevated kindness that You bestow on me at every moment, I would have been lost in my impoverishment. “If HaShem had not been my help, in an instant my soul would have dwelt in silence.”", + "In Your vast kindness and compassion, help me and save me so that at every moment, hour and minute, I will feel, see and recognize Your kindness and goodness, and I will see and find all the comfort and salvation that You give me even within the narrow places.", + "May I always rejoice in Your salvation and always take strength and pray to You, whatever the situation may be. May I always thank You for the past and cry out to You for the future.", + "Strengthening Holy Faith
May my heart not be at all twisted regarding Your good, straight and direct guidance and ways. In everything that I and all of the Jewish people undergo, may I believe with complete faith that You are righteous and just, that You guide Your world with kindness and Your creatures with compassion. “HaShem is good to all, and His compassion rests on all His works.”", + "Have compassion on me, You Who are filled with compassion and kindness at every moment. Expel and nullify every type of twistedness in my heart. May my heart not consider any thought that questions Your ways and guidance.", + "May I have the merit of gazing at Your breadth and Your wonderful kindness and goodness at every moment. Even within sorrow, You give us comfort in wondrous ways and with great salvation.", + "Besides that, at every moment I look forward to You bringing me forth and redeeming me quickly out of all my troubles entirely. Save me with a complete salvation.", + "You are our Father Who is compassionate to the poor. You save us at a time of trouble. May Your compassion be stirred for us now at this time of trouble. Answer us, HaShem, answer us, because we are in great distress. Rock of Israel, arise to help Israel. Help us and save us. Guard us and rescue us from any blemish in holy faith, during everything that we undergo in these times.", + "You know the bitterness of the multiple troubles that are now occurring to Your nation, the House of Israel. In addition to all our troubles that have reached our soul, these grow stronger and spread, until they twist the hearts of the children of Israel so that they question Your traits and compromise their holy faith in You, Heaven forbid. And there is no one to stand up on our behalf.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Look at our impoverishment, because our pains and the troubles of our heart are many. Guardian of Israel, guard the remnant of Israel, and in Your great compassion have pity on every soul of Israel, so that no one will fall away from holy faith as a result of what the Jewish people are presently undergoing.", + "To the contrary, as a result of this, let us strengthen and arouse ourselves to truly return to You with all our heart. We will appeal, pray and cry out to You until You answer us, and we will know and believe that You will not abandon us forever, Heaven forbid. “HaShem will not forsake His nation and He will not abandon His inheritance.”", + "“HaShem will not forsake His nation for the sake of His great Name, for HaShem has sworn to make you His nation.” Help us, God of our salvation, for the sake of the honor of Your Name. Rescue us and forgive our sins for the sake of Your Name.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Avoiding Gossip / Sweetening Harshness with Holy Words
A person should avoid gossiping about any Jew, even the smallest of the small. How much more should he say nothing that denigrates Tzaddikim and pious people! He should not engage in dispute. He should not fool himself into thinking that there is any obligation to speak badly about people.
Instead, a person should always speak words of Torah and prayer that express the fear of Heaven. As a result, he sweetens all kinds of strictness, from which speech is drawn.
In particular, the true Tzaddikim of the generation have the power to sweeten all harshness and turn it into a Torah of kindness that teaches people about God’s might and the glorious beauty of His sovereignty.
No Mitzvah to Speak Poorly of Others
“HaShem, all Your creatures will thank You and Your pious ones will bless You. They will tell the glory of Your sovereignty, and they will speak of Your might — to inform people of His mighty deeds, and the honor of the beauty of His sovereignty.”", + "Master of the world, great in kindness and truth, have compassion on me. Guard me and rescue me from speaking evil words — particularly from gossiping, so that I will not say anything bad about any Jew in the world, even the smallest of the small and the least of the least.", + "How much more should I say nothing that denigrates the Tzaddikim and pious (and worthy) people of the generation who are engaged in serving You! Have compassion on me, guard me and save me so that no word against their honor will come out of my mouth, Heaven forbid, whether I am in their presence or not. “My God, guard my tongue from evil and my lips from speaking falsehood. And as for those who curse me, may my spirit be silent and like dust to all.”", + "Master of the entire world, have compassion on me and do not destroy me. Rescue me from engaging in argument and dispute. Have pity on my soul and guard me so that I will not fool myself into thinking that there is any obligation to speak badly about people, because I do not want such “obligations” — neither them nor their reward.", + "Have pity and mercy on my soul. Rescue me and all Israel from gossip and dispute — particularly from joining the widespread dispute at present among the leaders of the generation and their followers, and the infighting among Torah sages and their followers.", + "Master of compassion, have compassion on us at this time of trouble. Guard us and rescue us from all types of evil and blemished words.", + "“HaShem, place a guard at my mouth and a watch upon the doorway of my lips. May my heart not turn aside to an evil matter,” so that I do not seek any blemish or imperfection in the service of those who are worthy, or in any Jew, Heaven forbid.", + "Sweetening Judgment
In Your mighty compassion and wondrous kindness, give us the power to sweeten all kinds of harshness that people — in particular, great and important people — experience.", + "Have compassion on us. Be with us always, so that we will always have the strength to speak true words of Torah, prayer and fear of Heaven, as a result of which we will sweeten all kinds of strictness, from which speech is drawn.", + "Guard us and rescue us so that all kinds of harshness will not reach us. Have compassion on the great leaders of the generation. Sweeten any harshness that comes to them, and be with them always. In Your vast compassion and kindness, give them the power to sweeten all of the harshness in the world that comes to them.", + "Guard us and the entire Jewish people — in particular, all the great leaders of the generation — when we lack the power, Heaven forbid, to sweeten the harshness that comes to us. May we guard our souls a great deal so that we will not speak badly of any Jew — particularly the Tzaddikim of the generation and those who are connected to them.", + "Give the true Tzaddikim of the generation the power to sweeten all harshness and turn it into a Torah of kindness, to teach people about Your might and the glorious beauty of Your sovereignty.", + "Master of the world, You know hidden things. You alone know everything that occurs in this regard, and how many souls have undergone harsh experiences and lacked the power to sweeten them, as a result of which they stumbled and fell and slandered the Torah and the Tzaddikim.", + "Like Orphans without a Father
As a result, they caused the death of a number of holy and awesome Tzaddikim. And now we remain like orphans without a father, “like a mast at the top of the mountain and like a banner upon the hill.” There is no one to stand up on our behalf. We have no one on whom to rely except our Father in Heaven.", + "Have compassion on us and on the entire Jewish people. Guard us and rescue us so that we will not blemish speech in any way, which comes through strictness, so that the strictness will not grow in strength, Heaven forbid, leavening our hearts so that we speak badly about any Jew.", + "In particular, guard the great and important leaders of the generation, who at times are beset by harsh strictness that comes into the world.", + "In Your vast compassion and kindness, guard and protect them so that they are not blemished by any harsh strictness, so that strictness does not overwhelm them and induce them to speak against the Tzaddikim of the generation and their followers, Heaven forbid.", + "Rather, pour onto them and onto us power from the choicest of Your awesome Tzaddikim. Help, save and protect them, us and all Israel. Give us the power to sweeten all harshness that affects every individual — even the harshness that affects the great leaders of the generation. May we sweeten all harshness completely and transform it to complete kindness by means of true words of Torah, prayer and fear of Heaven. Help us speak their words always, day and night.", + "May the following words be realized regarding all of the sages of Israel, “She opens her mouth with wisdom and the Torah of kindness is on her tongue.” May they all learn Torah in order to teach it and guide the nation of HaShem in Your ways, in truth and righteousness, in accordance with Your good will. May they sweeten all harshness, so that all harshness and judgments will no longer affect the Jewish people.", + "And always draw beneficial kindness onto us, so that we and all Israel will quickly return to You in truth. We will do Your will all the days of our lives, and we will meditate in Your Torah day and night, from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "When a Person Praises God, He Gazes upon God’s “Image”
Although no thought can grasp God, He has given us permission to label Him with names that the prophets revealed to us. Every word of praise, every description with which a person imagines and labels God, constitutes His “portrait.”
When a person prays and praises God with feeling from the depth of his heart, until he claps his hands with joy, he gazes upon the image of HaShem.
The Way We Imagine God Constitutes His “Portrait”
God, You are Unique, and You preceded all else. You are concealed and hidden from all worlds, and no thought grasps You at all. In Your vast compassion, You had mercy on us and gave us permission to imagine and label You with names and descriptions that Your holy prophets revealed to us. In that way, we draw the presence of Your honor upon us.", + "Have compassion on us. Help us so that from now on, we will truly awaken and strengthen ourselves to pray with genuine feeling, paying attention to the holy, awesome words that we pronounce in every prayer.", + "May this apply to the Morning Blessings, the recitation of the sacrifices, the Pesukey d’Zimrah, the reading of the Shema with its blessings, the prayer of Shemoneh Esrei, the prayers after it, Kedushah, the Song of the Day and all the details of prayer.", + "Every word of praise, every description with which we imagine and label You, constitutes Your “portrait.”", + "Clapping in Prayer
Help us pray and praise You with great intent, with inspiration from the depth of our heart, until we clap our hands during prayer with fervor, joy and desire. And as a result, we will gaze upon the image of HaShem. May the verse be realized in each one of us, “And he gazed upon the image of HaShem.”", + "As a result of clapping our hands, may our prayer be on the level of “the hands of a man underneath their wings.” In consequence of that, may our prayer be absorbed into the Written and Oral Torahs, which are the “hand that writes” and the “hand that seals.”", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us pray with the intent of our heart, with truly great fervor, until we will be inspired to clap our hands during prayer, so that we will gaze upon the image of HaShem and truly recognize You. We were created only for this: to truly know and recognize You.", + "For the sake of Your Name, help us so that we will not, Heaven forbid, lose any more true and eternal goodness that we are able to attain at every moment.", + "“I stretch my hands out to You. My soul turns to You like a weary land.” “Hurry, answer me, HaShem, my spirit expires. Do not hide Your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit.” “Shine Your face on Your servant. Save me in Your lovingkindness.” “HaShem, God of hosts, bring us back; illumine Your face, and we shall be saved.”", + "Help me truly connect myself to true Tzaddikim, and as a result attain the power to speak perfectly; to speak many words of Torah, words of prayer and words expressing the fear of Heaven.", + "“May my mouth be filled with Your praise, the entire day with Your glory.” “I will bless HaShem at all times; His praise is always in my mouth.” “May my mouth speak the praise of HaShem, and all flesh bless His holy Name forever and ever.” “Blessed is HaShem forever, amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "With His Divine Names, God Protects Jews from Harm
God can conceal every Jew from all harmful encounters and evils, and from all types of injurious decrees — whether before or after the decree was passed. Utilizing the power of His holy Names, he conceals them behind His compassion so that the malicious forces lying in wait have no power to grab hold of them.
Shelter Us from Pain and Illness
“You are my shelter, You guard me from the adversary. You surround me with songs of deliverance.” “You hide me from the counsel of evildoers, from the gathering of workers of sin.” “He will hide me in His booth on the day of evil. He will conceal me in the concealment of His tent. He will lift me onto the rock.” “A person who dwells in the hiding place of the Most High will lodge in the shadow of the Almighty.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on Your nation, the Jewish people — particularly on all the communities in which Jews are inundated with illness and pain, may the Compassionate One protect us. Have compassion on them for the sake of Your Name. Tell the angel, “Hold back your hand,” so that he will return his sword to its sheath.", + "Have pity and mercy on them and on the entire remnant of Your nation, the House of Israel. Do not allow the destroyer to come into their houses to strike them, or damage and weaken them, Heaven forbid.", + "Have compassion and save us, Master of compassion, Master of salvations, Creator of remedies, You Who are awesome in praises, Master of wonders.", + "Remember Your servants, our forefathers and rabbis, the true Tzaddikim in every generation, from the days of Abraham until today, for their sake and for the sake of Your vast compassion. Have compassion on us. Guard us and rescue us and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from every type of illness, pain and discomfort, so that these will not affect any Jew.", + "Quickly send complete healing from Heaven to all of those (of Israel) whom You have stricken with illness or pain. Have compassion on them. Heal them quickly and completely — with a healing of the soul and a healing of the body.", + "God, please heal them for the sake of Your Name (and in particular, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]), because You are God, King and Healer, Who is faithful and compassionate. Living and Eternal God, give us life so that we will not die. Redeem us from death and destruction.", + "Removing Evil Decrees
Master of the world, Guardian of Israel, You alone know who lies in wait against us at every moment — particularly against someone who is subject to an evil decree, Heaven forbid. You alone know how to conceal every Jew from those who surround him and lie in wait for him.", + "Have compassion on Your entire nation, the Jewish people, and on everyone against whom an evil decree has been passed, may the Compassionate One protect us. Guard them and rescue them with Your holy Names. In Your vast compassion, rescue them (and hide them) from every troublemaker, enemy, ambusher and malevolent being.", + "Have compassion on us and protect us from enemies, plague, the sword, famine and carnage. Remove Satan from before us and behind us, and hide us in the shadow of Your hand, because You are God, our Guardian and Rescuer.", + "HaShem, have pity on Your nation. Rescue us from Your wrath and remove the chastisements of plagues and harsh decrees, because You are the Guardian of Israel.", + "Master of the entire world, HaShem Who “guards the foolish,” You alone know in which way, with which Divine Name, to hide and guard all Jews from all harmful encounters and evils, and from all types of injurious decrees — whether before or after the decree was passed.", + "Have compassion on them. Guard them and rescue them with Your awesome wonders, so that the malicious forces that lie in wait will have no power to enter and grab hold of them, Heaven forbid. Conceal them behind Your compassion and kindness with Your holy, (pure) and awesome Names.", + "Bring to realization for us and for Your entire nation, the Jewish people, the verses, “You shall hide them in the concealment of Your face from bands of men, protect them in the shelter from the strife of tongues.” “Guard me like the pupil of the eye. In the shadow of Your wings, hide me.” “I will dwell in Your tent forever; I will take refuge in the concealment of Your wings.” “You are my protection and shield; I have hoped for Your word.” “Guard my soul and save me; may I not be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.”", + "There is no one on whom to rely except our Father in Heaven. “We do not know what to do, and so our eyes are turned to You.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "The Lungs Constitute the Essence of a Person’s Life / Maintaining the Moisture and Oils in the Body / Giving Charity
The lungs are the essence of a person’s vitality, maintaining his brain and intellect.
The lobes of the lungs blow upon a person’s heart to mitigate its fiery heat so that it will not inflame his body.
Their wind extinguishes the dregs and contamination of the blood, so that the blood will not burn beyond the proper measure with an excess of desires, drying up the moistness within the person.
One way for a person to aid that process is to distance himself from the desire for sexual relations. Then the moisture and oils in his body are perfectly maintained and rise to his brain in holiness and purity.
As a result, his brain and intellect will be pure and shine with great, holy light. Then he attains complete trust in God. In consequence of that, he does not worry about what tomorrow will bring but gives charity at every opportunity, supporting those who fear God, learn Torah and fulfill the commandments.
By giving charity, he perfects holy speech and turns all vocal expressions into perfected words. Thus, he rises from being like an animal to being the most perfected human being. Then his words rise to give God pleasure.
The Health of the Lungs and Atonement
Master of the world, have compassion on me. Save me, help me and rescue me from all types of disease — particularly from diseases of the lungs, which constitute the essence of a person’s vitality, maintaining his brain and intellect.", + "Help me and save me so that my lungs will always be perfect, and the lobes of my lungs will always blow upon my heart to calm and extinguish its heat and fire so that it will not burn and inflame my entire body, Heaven forbid. May the verse, “The Cherubim will have their wings spread over the Ark cover” apply to the lobes of my lungs, for the lungs are the atonement of the heart.8The Hebrew word kaporet ( ,כפרת Ark cover) is related to the word (,כפרה atonement).
Purifying the Mind", + "My compassionate Father, have mercy on me from now on. Teach me and give me counsel and ideas at every moment on how to extinguish, quiet and purify the fire of the evil and turbulent blood, so that it will not burn beyond the proper measure, so that it will not extend either to the right or to the left.", + "Filter and purify my blood of its dregs and extensive contamination, so that I will no longer have any evil thoughts and there will no longer be (and I will no longer allow) any evil fires to burn in me at all, so that they will not burn up the moisture within me with an excess of desires.", + "Instead, may I truly distance myself from all evil desires — particularly from the desire for sexual relations. May I no longer confuse my mind, but constantly draw upon the holiness of the lobes of my lungs — in physical and spiritual terms — so that they will blow upon my heart, and extinguish and quiet the flame of the heat of my heart.", + "As a result, may all the moisture and oils in my body be perfectly maintained and rise to my brain in holiness and purity.", + "Because of them, may my brain and intellect always be pure and shine with a great light, “with wisdom and with understanding and with knowledge and with all manner of work” in the realm of holiness. May it shine with an expanded light, rising ever higher, with great holiness and purity, with truth and faith.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, graciously giving man knowledge, be gracious to me. Purify me so that my intellect and mind will be perfect, so that I will attain complete trust in You. May I always trust that You will support me and sustain me, and constantly give me everything that I lack.", + "Trust in God
May I strengthen my trust in You at every moment. May I trust that Your kindness will save me from everything that I need to be saved from — materially and spiritually, in body, soul and money. May I never lose that trust.", + "May the multitude of my serious sins not upset my trust in You, Heaven forbid. Rather, at every hour, through everything that I undergo, may I always strengthen my trust in You, without end or limit. “Trust in HaShem forever, for HaShem is God, the eternal Rock.”", + "May I trust that Your mighty kindness and compassion will never cease, for You do not treat me in accordance with my transgressions, Heaven forbid, and You do not repay me in accordance with my sins.", + "Rather, You perform Your extensive and mighty wonders in accordance with Your kindness, old and new, that You generate every day, at every moment. You give me all my income and all the income of my family and of everyone who relies on me. You generously provide me with all that I need with great breadth, even before I need it.", + "You help me and save me at every moment wherever I need to be saved.", + "Giving Charity
Purify me by strengthening my trust in You so that I will give more charity at every opportunity, and I will not worry about tomorrow at all. May I distribute whatever abundance You pour upon me every day to the worthy poor that You send to me in Your compassion.", + "May I support those who truly fear You, who learn Torah and truly fulfill Your commandments, to give them everything that they lack. May no obstacle keep me from doing so. Rather, may I always encourage myself to give more charity to the worthy poor, and distribute much money for all that they need to perform mitzvot and learn Torah — particularly for everything that provides merit for the people for all generations.", + "May I be strong in trusting Your great, holy and awesome Name. May I trust that You always will complete the good for me and that You will never abandon me. May the verse be realized in me, “Blessed is the man who trusts in HaShem; HaShem will be His trust.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, help me be charitable to everyone — for the sake of their flesh and the sake of their spirit. Strengthen me to have complete trust in You at every moment, so I can give more charity to the worthy poor and so I can encourage myself to perform mitzvot and engage in actions that assist people at large, in accordance with Your will and the will of Your true Tzaddikim.", + "Perfecting Holy Speech
By means of giving charity, may I perfect holy speech and turn all vocal expressions into perfected words, and quickly rise from being like an animal to being the most perfected human being.", + "Master of the world, You Who give man a mouth, help me perfect my intellect. As a result, may I attain complete trust in You and increase my charity to the worthy poor, until I attain perfect speech and turn my vocal expressions into complete, holy and pure words.", + "May my words rise to give pleasure to You before Your throne of glory. Swiftly fulfill all the requests of my heart for good, with compassion.", + "May I realize the verses, “Trust in HaShem and do good. Dwell in the land and shepherd with faith.” “Commit your path to HaShem and trust in Him, and He will act. And He will bring your righteousness forth like light and your judgment like the noon.”", + "I will trust in HaShem and rely on my God so that I do not lack anything at all as a result of giving charity. To the contrary, because of this, HaShem our God will bless us in all our deeds and in all the work of our hands.", + "May I distribute charity freely with both hands. As the verses state, “[This man] distributed; he gave to the poor. His charity endures forever. His horn will be raised with glory.” “The God of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our fortress.” “God of hosts, fortunate is the man who trusts in You.” “HaShem, save! King, answer on the day we call.”", + "Be gracious to us, answer us and hear our prayer, because You compassionately listen to the prayer of every individual of Your nation, the Jewish people. Blessed are You, Who hears prayer." + ], + [ + "Gladdening One’s Soul with Joyful Melodies / Overcoming Melodies of Depression on the Shabbat
A person should ask God to protect him until he feels no attraction to melodies of wailing and depression that the wicked typically sing, melodies that people are often attracted to.
These melodies harm worthy Jews.
Instead, a person should gladden his soul with holiness and purity through joyful melodies that draw his heart to serve God, learn Torah and come close to the Tzaddikim.
He should draw on the power of the Tzaddikim to elevate all the melodies of the wicked by means of the holiness of the Shabbat. He should elevate these melodies and transform them to joy by singing them on the Shabbat.
The merit of the holy Shabbat can shield a person so that these melodies will have no power to elicit depression. To the contrary, when he purifies these melodies, he elevates them and transforms them from grief to joy.
A person should increase melodies, songs and praises on the Shabbat and festivals with delight.
For the holy Shabbat
Seeking Protection from Melodies of Depression
Master of the world, Guardian of Your nation, the Jewish people, forever, guard us and rescue us so that we will feel no attraction at all to melodies of wailing and depression that the wicked sing the majority of the time, melodies that people are generally attracted to.", + "Have compassion on us. Guard us and rescue us from them. You know how much damage and how many blemishes the wicked cause with their melodies, how much these melodies harm worthy Jews.", + "The Shabbat Transforms Melodies of Grief to Songs of Joy
Have compassion on us. In the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim, help us and guard us at every moment so that we will be rescued from those melodies.", + "Help us always make our souls joyful with holiness and purity, through melodies and songs of joy that draw our heart to serve You, to learn Your Torah and to be truly close to Your Tzaddikim.", + "Help us draw on the power of the true Tzaddikim to elevate all the melodies of the wicked by means of the holiness of the Shabbat. Give us the power to elevate and transform these melodies to joy by singing them on the holy Shabbat.", + "May the merit of the holy Shabbat shield us so that these melodies will have no power to draw down depression, grief and mourning, Heaven forbid. To the contrary, may we purify these melodies, elevate them and transform them from grief and mourning to joy.", + "May we come close to You and be drawn after You, and rejoice. May we race like a runner on the path to go in Your ways and learn Your Torah in order to fulfill Your commandments.", + "May we be attached to You and be connected to You and Your true Tzaddikim in truth and faith, with a firm and strong connection forever.", + "You are filled with compassion. You are the Joy of Israel. Have compassion on us. Guard us and rescue us always, at every moment, from every type of depression and from everything that leads to depression, grief and mourning, Heaven forbid.", + "In Your compassion, purify us. Bring about events so that gladness and joy, strength and delight will always be drawn onto us, for we have trusted in Your holy, mighty and awesome Name. Let us rejoice in Your salvation.", + "In particular, on the Shabbat and festivals, grant us Your vast, great mercy, graciousness and kindness, so that we will always rejoice on them, as is fitting to rejoice on such holy days.", + "“I will exult and rejoice in Your kindness, for You have seen my affliction. You have known the troubles of my soul.” “I will rejoice and be delighted in You; I will sing to Your supernal Name.”", + "May I increase songs and praises on the Shabbat and festivals with great joy and delight, with a voice of gladness and joy, with melodies of cheer and elation, without any trace of depression, worry or bitterness whatsoever.", + "“Satisfy us from Your goodness, give our soul joy in Your salvation, and purify our heart to truly serve You.”", + "May every Jew realize the verses, “My soul will exult in HaShem, rejoice in His salvation.” “I will sing to HaShem with my life; I will sing out to my God with my being. May my speech be sweet to Him; I will rejoice in HaShem.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "God Wants People to Break Through Obstacles to Come Close to the Tzaddikim / Disputes Have Grown Too Strong to Bear / Overcoming Heretics
Because God wants people to break through suffering and obstacles in order to come close to the Tzaddikim, He creates a climate of opposition against the Tzaddikim.
However, the dispute and obstacles have grown so strong that it is hard for a Jewish soul to come close to the true Tzaddikim.
Therefore, a person must ask God to alleviate dispute and silence opposition to the Tzaddikim, so that peace will enter into the world.
Related to that, a person must ask God to guard the Jews from the traps and nets that the heretics and nonbelievers now spread out for the youth of our people through their evil schools.
Alleviating Dispute
“HaShem supports all who fall, and straightens all who are bent over.”", + "Have pity, mercy and compassion on us and on all the souls of Your nation, the House of Israel, wherever they may be. Reveal to them and to us the true Tzaddikim in this generation who have the power to rectify the souls of Israel. Truly bring these souls back to You and to Your Torah. Help all of us, the House of Israel, truly come close to them.", + "You know how strong opposition is in these generations against the true Tzaddikim, their holy books, and everyone who is attached to them and is one of their followers.", + "You know everything that has occurred in this matter, and that is still occurring, since great opposition has been sown among the Torah scholars and their followers, and the dispute is strong, fiery and intensifying.", + "Certainly Your intent is for the good: so that people will come close to the true Tzaddikim out of the midst of suffering and obstacles. It is not proper for people to come close to them out of comfort. Rather, they should experience opposition, suffering and many obstacles. As You have informed us through Your holy sages, that is why we do not accept converts in the days of the Mashiach, and so forth.", + "But the dispute and the obstacles are too much. They are difficult to bear. It is very hard for a Jewish soul to come close to the true Tzaddikim and their holy ways because of the intense dispute and countless obstacles.", + "What shall we do, our Father in Heaven, Master of all, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who know secrets, You Who gaze upon what is hidden, You Who investigate the heart? Have compassion on us and on all the Jewish people. Alleviate the dispute and silence the opposition, and draw peace into the world.", + "In these difficult times, even (if there will be) a time of great peace, the obstacles that everyone faces have increased immeasurably. Certainly, during all the days of the exile, every individual must reach out to the truth in the midst of suffering and obstacles, even if there is peace in the world.", + "Recognizing the Light of the Tzaddikim
You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on us. Help us follow Your rules and fulfill Your judgments (and Your commandments). Quickly reveal the truth to the world.", + "May everyone recognize the wondrous and awesome light that You shine into the world via the true Tzaddikim in every generation, since the day that the Torah was given until (today,) this generation.", + "In particular, may everyone recognize the light of truth of the true Tzaddikim in these generations. We need to draw close to them and follow their ways in order to return to You and truly recognize You.", + "“Send Your light and Your truth to guide me; they will bring me to Your holy mountain and to Your dwelling place.” “HaShem, teach me Your ways. I will walk in Your truth. Unite my heart to fear Your Name.”", + "God, You are true and Your word is true and lasts forever, and You will certainly complete everything according to Your will.", + "The Traps of the Heretics
Have compassion on Your nation, the Jewish people, whom You chose, and quickly reveal the truth to them for the sake of rescuing and guarding Jewish souls from all that You need to rescue and guard them from.", + "In particular, guard them from the traps and nets that the heretics and nonbelievers now spread out for the youth of the House of Israel through their evil schools.", + "“Reply to them in keeping with their deeds and according to the evil of their endeavors; repay them in accordance with the acts of their hands; turn their recompense back upon them.” Save and guard the souls of Your nation, the House of Israel, so that they will not be trapped in the evildoers’ net and trap.", + "Have compassion on us in the merit of our holy forefathers and our rabbis. Quickly reveal the truth in the world so that everyone will know the truth of the holy Tzaddikim and their elevated might and greatness, and their great power to bring all people in the world to You.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name, for the sake of Your generous compassion. Act for Your sake and not for ours. Look upon our poverty and emptiness. In Your compassion, be placated. In Your graciousness, be appeased on behalf of this poor generation, because there is no one else to help.", + "See, “the [enemy’s] hand gains strength and there is no savior to strengthen [us].” You promised us that no generation would be orphaned. Certainly now as well, there are true Tzaddikim on earth who have the power to bring all (Israel) the world to You. But because of our many sins, they are hidden from our eyes.", + "In Your compassion, help us gain the strength to break all obstacles and come close to Tzaddikim, to God-fearing people, and to all those who are attached to them. May we draw from the wellsprings of their wisdom and receive the depth of their holy and true counsel, so that we will come close to You in truth, from now and forever.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, “Amen.”" + ], + [ + "The Joy of the Festivals
One must ask God to help him so that he will never compromise the joy of the festivals.
He should not be among those who disdain the festivals, those who are considered as if they engage in idol worship and thus have no portion in the World to Come.
He should ask God to grant him atonement for every instance in his past when he lacked such joy, so that he rectifies, purifies and raises all fallen joys to their root.
For a festival
Rejoicing on the Festivals
“Support my steps on Your paths, lest my footsteps fail.” Master of the world, guard me and rescue me so that I will never compromise the joy of the holy festivals.
May I rejoice greatly on all the festivals of HaShem, on the holy convocations, and fulfill the commandment, “You shall rejoice on your festival,” completely, with all of the festival’s details and particulars, and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it.", + "Guard my soul so that I will not disgrace the festivals. Have compassion on me and on all the Jewish people. Guard me and rescue me so that I will not, Heaven forbid, be among those who disdain the festivals, people who therefore have no portion in the World to Come and are considered as if they engage in idol worship.", + "Rescue me from the shame that comes from the blemish of disdaining the festivals, Heaven forbid. Be with me always. Guard me and rescue me so that my footsteps will not slip and fall, either in the physical or spiritual realms. May no one rejoice over my blunders, Heaven forbid.", + "“He sets my feet upon the rock; He firmly establishes my steps.”", + "Strengthen me and invigorate me with Your wondrous ways, so that I will always fully attain the joy of the festivals. “Shine Your face on Your servant. Save me in Your lovingkindness,” so that I will rejoice on every festival with all my might, and feel the joy of the festivals in my heart.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are the Joy of Israel, place joy in my heart — particularly on the very holy and awesome festivals. “And we will exult and rejoice in You.”", + "Atonement for Blemishing the Festivals
Have compassion on me. Forgive me and grant me atonement for all of my blemishes regarding the joy of the festivals from my birth until this day.", + "Give me hope and save me so that I will rectify everything completely, purifying and elevating all fallen joys to their place and root, to the place where their tent was initially pitched.", + "In Your compassion, accustom me to all kinds of joy so that I will always be joyful — particularly on Shabbat and festivals. Let me rejoice in Your salvation.", + "“I will rejoice and be delighted in You; I will sing to Your supernal Name.” “Give joy to the soul of Your servant — because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You.” “Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.” “Cause me to hear gladness and joy; may the bones that You crushed, exult.”", + "“Satisfy us from Your goodness, give our soul joy in Your salvation and purify our heart to truly serve You. Give us an inheritance, HaShem our God, of the joy and gladness of Your holy festivals, and may Israel, who sanctifies Your Name, rejoice in You.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Avoiding Dispute / Increasing Light
Dispute has increased in the world to such an extent that even if a person seeks peace, others fight against him.
Such a person should avoid conversations and speech that are not in accordance with God’s will, and instead relate to others in a way that increases peace and truth.
In addition, he should speak good, holy words of Torah and prayer, day and night. He should ask God to restore all the Divine Names that he blemished. And every day before prayer, he should accept the positive commandment of loving his fellow as himself.
Nullifying Every Type of Dispute
Master of the world, have compassion on me. Rescue me from arguments and disputes. You know my heart. You see that I do not want any disputes at all. Who am I that I should dispute anyone in the world, because all people are immeasurably better than I am?", + "But You know how much dispute has increased in the world, so that even if a person really wants peace, other people fight against him. “I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.”", + "You know what causes dispute, due to our many sins. But even without that, it is very difficult to bring forth the speech of prayer. And in addition to that, dispute holds back words of prayer.", + "Now, what will we do, our Father in Heaven? How will we use speech to pray to You, since dispute has increased so much that the entire world is filled with dispute? “There is no peace for those who go out and for those who come in.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. Teach me how to relate to other people so that there will not be any dispute, just (true) peace and truth.", + "Master of the world, Lord of peace, King Who possesses peace, act in Your vast compassion and awesome wonders to nullify every kind of dispute.", + "Bringing Speech Out of Exile
Draw great and wondrous peace into the world so that speech will emerge from its exile. Always open our mouths so that we will speak many good, holy words before You in Torah learning and prayer, day and night.", + "“My God, open my lips and my mouth will speak Your praise.” “May my mouth be filled with Your praise, the entire day with Your glory.” “May my mouth speak the praise of HaShem, and all flesh bless His holy Name forever and ever.”", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. May I guard my speech and conversation from this moment on, so that I will not speak any word or engage in any conversation that is not in accordance with Your will, Heaven forbid.", + "You “form mountains and create the wind, and tell man what is his speech.” At the hour of judgment, You tell a man even about a slight conversation between him and his wife. Woe to us for the day of judgment, woe to us for the day of rebuke!", + "Have compassion on me from now on, for the sake of Your Name. Guard me and rescue me from conversations and speech that are not in accordance with Your will. Forgive me and grant me atonement for all the blemishes in my speech and conversation from the day of my birth until now. Restore all the Divine Names that I blemished. “HaShem, place a guard at my mouth and a watch upon the doorway of my lips.”", + "Be with my mouth at the time of my speech, and with my hands at the time of my actions. “Guard my soul and save me; may I not be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.” Help me and save me so that I will truly fulfill the (positive) commandment of “Love your neighbor as yourself” with all my heart and soul and might, and I will truly love every Jew with my soul and might, with all my heart.", + "In particular, every day before prayer, may I truly accept this positive commandment completely, in accordance with Your good will, so that as a result, I will truly recite the words of prayer before You fully, with great intent.", + "May my prayer be pleasing and desirable before the throne of Your glory. May it rise and be elevated and crown Your head.", + "May the verses quickly be realized, “Seek the welfare of Jerusalem; may those who love you enjoy tranquility.” “May there be peace within your walls, tranquility in your palaces. For the sake of my brothers and friends, I will speak peace to you. For the sake of the House of HaShem our God, I will seek goodness for you.”", + "“May great peace come down upon those who love Your Torah, so that they will not stumble.” “All your children will be learned of HaShem, and your children’s peace will increase.” “You will see your children’s children, peace upon Israel.” “May HaShem give his nation strength, may HaShem bless His nation with peace.”", + "May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, “Amen.”" + ], + [ + "Resolving All Uncertainties / Lamenting Over the Destruction of the Temple
Many people yearn to return to God, but the ways of repentance and Torah are hidden from them, and their hearts are filled with uncertainty about how to act.
When the Mashiach comes, he will solve all the questions and doubts that remained unresolved by the greatest early Tzaddikim, so that no doubts and questions will remain.
In the meantime, a person should lament over the destruction of the Temple at every moment — particularly every night, at midnight, and every day of the Three Weeks, especially on Tisha B’Av.
For the Three Weeks
The Mashiach Will Clarify All Questions
May it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that You will have compas sion on us and make us worthy. Quickly bring us our righteous Mashiach, who will rectify this entire world, together with all worlds from beginning to end — all of which depend on this world of Asiyah.", + "Have compassion on him and on us. Bring him quickly in peace so that he will rectify everything with a wondrous and awesome rectification and cause true consciousness to shine upon us.", + "May he open our eyes and heart to Your Torah. Through him, may we understand all the words of the Torah clearly and correctly, so that no doubts and questions regarding any law or ways of the Torah will remain. Instead, everything will be crystal-clear.", + "He will even solve, clarify and answer all of the questions and doubts that remained unresolved by the greatest early Tzaddikim. This includes both doubts in general that the great leaders of Israel have regarding all the laws and ways of the Torah, and the doubts and disagreement on how to act that every Jew, from the greatest to the smallest, has.", + "A Confused Mind
Many people desire, yearn and long to return to You, but the ways of repentance and Torah are hidden from them, and their hearts are divided with doubt and uncertainty about how to act.", + "That is particularly true for me, as I am today, because of everything that I have gone through as a result of my great number of doubts and divided counsel regarding most things.", + "Now the doubts and divided counsel in my heart have increased about a number of things and a number of ways. As a result, my mind is so confused that “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "Master of the world, HaShem, God, You are true, “great in counsel and mighty in deed; Your eyes gaze upon all the ways of human beings.” You know all of this.", + "The Rectification of the Mashiach
Have compassion on all the Jewish people and on me. Send us wondrous illumination from the world of rectification that we will draw down by means of our righteous Mashiach. Then he will rectify the unresolved questions called “teiku” by adding the letter nun and turning TeIKU into a wondrous and true TIKUN (rectification).9The Talmudic term TeIKU (תיקו) is an acronym for Tishbi Yitaretz Kushyot U’ba’ayot (,תשבי יתרץ קושיות ובעיות The Tishbite will resolve the questions and difficulties). When the prophet Elijah (the Tishbite) appears to herald the arrival of the Mashiach, he will answer all the unresolved issues of Jewish law. Rebbe Nachman teaches, based on the Zohar, that TeIKU is an aspect of a lack of TiKUn rectification) — i.e., the Nun (ן) of TIKUN is missing, so that it becomes TeIKU (Likutey Moharan I, 247). Then all questions will be resolved and all doubts will be clarified, and we will always attain complete and good, true counsel regarding everything.", + "Mourning Over the Destruction of the Temple
Have compassion on us. Teach us the way of truth: how to mourn and lament over the destruction of the Temple at every moment — particularly every night, at midnight, and every day of the Three Weeks, especially on Tisha B’Av10 According to the Mishnah, Tisha B’Av was the day on which both the First and Second Temples were destroyed (Ta’anit 4:6). — to recite the Book of Lamentations and kinot (laments) with a truly broken and oppressed heart.", + "May we pour forth our hearts like water before the face of HaShem. “We will place our mouths in the dust; perhaps there is hope.”", + "We will beat our heads against the wall because of our increased and multiplied troubles, for the people as a whole and for each individual. Years have passed since our city was destroyed and our Temple laid waste, and the honor removed from the House of our Life. And every day’s trouble is greater than that of the day before.", + "Fear of Harsh Decrees
Particularly now, harsh and strange decrees have been issued against the Jewish people that are impossible to bear. Our lives hang in the balance because of our fear over rumors about other harsh decrees that are being contemplated, Heaven forbid, may the Compassionate One protect us. Woe, what has become of us?", + "You are filled with compassion. Help us feel the distress of Israel and the distress of our souls deep in our hearts. Then we will truly break our hearts before You and pour out our hearts like water before Your countenance, God of hosts, regarding our great iniquity, the multiplicity of our sins, and our stiff-neckedness, which have extended our exile and caused all of our troubles.", + "“Let us lift up our hearts with our hands to God in Heaven.” Let us take hold of our forefathers’ expertise of calling out with a great and bitter cry.", + "We will wander in the marketplaces and streets, and pray, appeal, cry out and plead to God, the supernal God, “until HaShem will gaze and look down from Heaven,” until Your compassion for us will be awakened and You will comfort us and redeem us from all of our sufferings and troubles — for the community and for each individual.", + "Now, as well, shine upon us a wondrous illumination from our righteous Mashiach that will sweeten all judgments — both general and specific. May he nullify all troubles, sufferings and harmful decrees that would affect us and all the Jewish people.", + "May he shine upon us a light of truth at every moment, rectify us always with new and wondrous rectifications, and answer and clarify all of our doubts, questions and divided counsel.", + "May we always attain complete counsel in ultimate truth, so that we will truly return to You quickly with a whole heart and learn Torah, pray, fulfill the commandments and perform good deeds all the days of our lives.", + "Guard us and rescue us always from every type of transgression, sin and iniquity. May we never turn aside from Your will, either to the right or to the left.", + "The Ultimate Rectification
Arouse Your compassion for Your children. Quickly bring us our righteous Mashiach. Redeem us with a complete, eternal redemption. Then he will rectify for us the level of teiku with the ultimate tikun, with the ultimate wholeness. Then the letter nun from the word KINOT (laments) will be drawn down to the teiku, so that TeIKU will turn into TIKUN (rectification). Then all kinot will be nullified and the letters of the word KINOT will be rearranged into the word TIKUN.", + "You are filled with compassion, Master of salvations, Master of consolations. Please console us for all our troubles. Help us in all our affairs. Spread over us the sukkah of Your peace. Rectify us with good counsel before You. Save us quickly for the sake of Your Name.", + "Bring us to ultimate truth. Rescue me and all the Jewish people from doubts and divided counsel that interfere with the ability to serve You.", + "Bring us to true, complete counsel always, so that we will truly return to You, and we will be in accordance with Your good will, from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "All Troubles are for the Good / The Darkness of Exile / Shedding Tears in the Service of God
All the troubles and misadventures that the Jews undergo — as a people and as individuals — are for the good.
But the darkness of the exile makes it impossible for people to understand that. Instead, it appears to them as though there is an entity called Nature, to which they attribute everything. As a result, they feel the bitterness of the exile — and consequently, the exile grows longer.
If people were to know that everything is under God’s supervision, they would not feel any of the suffering of the exile, and they would emerge from exile to freedom.
Until then, when a person sheds tears in his service of God, he draws providence onto himself, and God then has compassion on all Jews.
God Does Everything for the Good
God, You are Unique. You supervise and guide the world with great kindness and compassion. Everything that You do with us, in general and in every detail, is for the good. Even all the exiles, troubles and misadventures that we undergo, as a people and as individuals, are all for great good. Your holy intent is always for the good.", + "Lack of Awareness
But because of our many sins, because of the intense darkness of our exile, immersed among the gentiles, our intellect has grown confused, to the point that we lack the awareness to understand and know that everything we undergo is due to Your individual providence and for our good. As a result, we feel intense, multiplied pain due to our troubles and exile.", + "What shall we do, Master of the entire world, since each one depends on the other? Exile removes awareness, and the removal of awareness causes exile.", + "The Suffering of the Exile
The essence of the bitter exile, trouble and suffering that we experience is all due to the removal of awareness, such that we do not understand and know that everything is under Your providence for our eternal good, to put an end to the evil person and to sins, and to bring eternal righteousness.", + "If we were whole in our intellect, always knowing with complete awareness that everything is under Your supervision, we would not feel any of the suffering of the exile. Then we would return to You and hurry to emerge from exile to freedom.", + "But because of the darkness of the exile, many Jews have been trapped, and it appears to them as though there is an entity called Nature, Heaven forbid, and they attribute everything to nature. Because of this, they feel the bitterness of the exile, and consequently, the exile grows longer.", + "Now what shall we do, our Father in Heaven? The exile has grown long and caused us to be subjugated more and more. Every day we say, “What will our end be? How long, how long until the unknown end?”", + "When will You rule in Zion? When will the House of David regain its sovereignty? When will Israel return to You? When will we return to our Land and our holy Temple? How long will there be weeping in Zion and mourning in Jerusalem? When will You have compassion for all the troubles of our soul and our bitterness?", + "(And particularly now, at the time of this harsh and bitter suffering that has been decreed against us, so that Jews must go to war: Woe! Who can withstand this? Who can communicate this bitter and evil trouble that touches upon the soul?)", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, Helper of our forefathers, You exist from the beginning. You are a shield, saving them and their children in every generation. You have been their salvation forever, and their hope in every generation.", + "Have pity, mercy and compassion on us even now, at this time of great trouble. Break and nullify this harsh decree that has been passed against us, as well as all the harsh decrees that the gentiles want to pass against us, Heaven forbid.", + "Who can bear troubles such as these? May the Compassionate One protect us, because they all affect the religion of the holy Torah of Israel.", + "Woe! What shall we do? Where will we flee? To where will we run for help? Woe! Woe! Woe! Would that our head were water and our eyes a source of tears! We would weep day and night for the bitterness of our suffering that has come upon us at this end of days, when death is better than life.", + "In the morning we say, “If only it were evening,” and in the evening we say, “If only it were day,” because of the fear in our hearts. Woe! Woe! Woe, what has come of us? What shall we say? How will we speak? How will we justify ourselves? God has discovered our sin.", + "“You are righteous, HaShem, and Your judgments are straight.” But where is Your great compassion and kindness, and where is the merit and might of our forefathers and holy rabbis of earlier generations?", + "Teach us and instruct us how to draw awareness upon ourselves even now, to know and believe that everything is under Your supervision for the good (since it seems that, according to our limited intellect, the gentiles want to force so many souls to leave the religion of Israel, which is our life and all of our hope and our trust in all the troubles and sufferings that we undergo, may the Compassionate One protect us from now on).", + "The Suffering of the Russian Exile
You Who are filled with compassion, look upon our suffering. Our pains and the troubles of our heart are so many. Look and see to whom You have done this. Look and see that we lack the power and awareness even to arrange our prayers before You properly, because we are impoverished and empty, poor in awareness and good deeds, and filled with transgression and sin.", + "(Nevertheless, we are happy to die and be killed in sanctification of Your Name every day, rather than have one Jew nullify just one commandment of our holy Torah.", + "(Woe to our eyes that see how they shave a Jew’s sidelocks and beard against his will, and after that he is forced to shave himself.", + "(Woe to the mouth that must eat forbidden foods. Woe to the holy feet of a Jew that must travel beyond the permissible border on the holy Shabbat and on festivals.", + "(Woe to the holy hands of Israel that must work on the Shabbat to polish their weapons, Heaven forbid, and perform other forbidden labors and sins, Heaven forbid.", + "(And who knows if these Jews can withstand the test and remain within the holy faith, the faith of Israel, and at any rate continue to keep what they presently keep? Woe, who can withstand this?", + "(Woe to us for our souls, woe for these our days and years. Woe to us, for we have been destroyed. Woe! Woe! Woe! We will beat our heads against the walls, and sackcloth and ashes will be laid out for the masses. We will put our mouths to the dust. Perhaps there is hope. Perhaps there is hope.)", + "HaShem, Recall Your Compassion
Master of the world, Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, “Recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your lovingkindness, because they are eternal.” Remember all of Your promises to us since the days of Abraham until now.", + "Recall all of the Tzaddikim in all the earlier generations until now. Remember all of the holy martyrs who were killed in sanctification of Your Name with harsh and bitter sufferings.", + "Remember and see all of the tears that were spilled over the troubles of the Jewish people from then until now.", + "Remember Your children who are immersed in exile among the gentiles. Extend Your complete providence over us and take us out of the ways of nature entirely. And may all of us, Your nation, the House of Israel, know, understand and believe with complete faith that everything is under Your providence alone.", + "Be filled with compassion for us. Bring us out and redeem us from all troubles and exiles. Extend Your providence from the end of the world and from the final end.", + "In doing so, make a complete end and destruction of all the wicked gentiles who torment us. Break and nullify all the harsh decrees against us — those that have already been enacted and those that they still want to enact (particularly this intense suffering from the decree to draft Jews to be soldiers in their wars, Heaven forbid).", + "Have compassion on Your nation, the Jewish people, and nullify these decrees quickly, for You are great to save and no one can stop You from saving, even after the decree has been passed in Heaven and on earth.", + "Just as You had pity on us and saved us in the days of Mordechai and Esther, transforming grief to joy and mourning to celebration, have mercy on us now at this bitter time and nullify this trouble and decree.", + "Frustrate the Schemes of Our Enemies
Completely uproot, break and nullify all the troubles and decrees that the gentiles want to enact, Heaven forbid. Transform everything to good and bend (the hearts of the government, its officials and advisers,) the heart of the Kaiser, may his honor be elevated, and his officials and advisers, toward us for the good, to enact good decrees, materially and spiritually, on our behalf.", + "Master of the world, King, Guide, Ruler and Overseer, see how downtrodden is Your nation, the Jewish people. You alone know the status and situation of the Jewish people at this time.", + "Look down from Heaven and see that we are an object of mockery and scorn among the nations. “They have taken counsel with one accord; they form a pact against You.” The entire essence of their intent in all their evil decrees, may the Compassionate One protect us, is to distance Israel, Heaven forbid, from the religion of our holy Torah, as You know their hidden intent.", + "You alone know how far their evil thought and counsels reach. “God, do not be silent, do not be still. God, do not stay quiet. Your enemies roar and Your foes lift their heads. They scheme and conspire against Your nation. They plot against the people whom You protect. They say, ‘Let us go and destroy them so that they will no longer be a nation, so that the name of Israel will never be mentioned again.’”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, great in counsel and vast in action, frustrate the counsel of our enemies. Do not grant them success. As the verse states, “He eradicates the thoughts of the scheming so that their hands will not act with cunning.”", + "“HaShem has eradicated the counsel of the peoples, thwarted the thoughts of the nations.” “Fill their faces with shame, so they will seek Your Name, HaShem.” Quickly frustrate the counsel and spoil the thoughts of all who rise against us to do evil.", + "Place wisdom, understanding and knowledge in our hearts so that we will always believe that everything occurs under Your individual providence alone.", + "May we pray and plead to You always. May we partner ourselves with the sufferings of the Jewish people, and pray and appeal a great deal always, every day, over the sufferings of Israel with a broken and oppressed heart. May we pour out our hearts like water before Your countenance, HaShem, until we weep many tears before You in truth. “With crying and with pleading, I will come before You.”", + "By means of these tears, may we draw Your providence onto ourselves. In response to that, have compassion on us from Heaven. Be compassionate to us in Your providence, and nullify all the troubles and all the decrees, both those that were already enacted against us and those that the gentiles wish to enact, Heaven forbid. May such a thing not occur to the Jewish people.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name, because we have no one on whom to rely except You, our Father in Heaven. You do what is good in Your eyes with us. “We do not know what to do — our eyes are upon You alone.”", + "Inspire our hearts to return to You in truth, quickly, easily and swiftly. “God, create within me a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”", + "Hurry to redeem us completely and bring us our righteous Mashiach quickly, in our days. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "A Prayer on Behalf of the Jews Forced into the Russian Army
The forced conscription of Jewish children into the Russian army for a term of twenty-five years, with the express intent of alienating them from the Torah, constituted a tragic chapter in Jewish history.
How Shall We Cry Out Now?
“God, save me with Your Name and avenge me with Your might.” “For the sake of Your Name, HaShem, give me life; in Your righteousness, bring my soul forth from trouble.” “Not for us, HaShem, not for us, but for Your Name give honor, for Your kindness and for Your truth.” “You, God, HaShem, act with me for the sake of Your Name, because Your kindness is good; rescue me.”", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, Master of the entire world, God of all the Tzaddikim, God of [all] Israel, teach us and instruct us what to do now.", + "How shall we cry out now? How shall we pray and plead now? (after the evil decree to take Jews into the army to war has been passed and the law has been implemented, and a number of Jews have been seized and sent into the gentiles’ hands “like a wild ox in a net”? They have already shaved the corners of these Jews’ heads and beards, and they oppress these Jews with a number of torments of body and soul, and their tears and blood have been spilled, as well as that of their relatives and other Jews. Woe to the eyes that see this! Woe to the ears that hear this!)", + "Woe to us for our catastrophe and our mortal wounds. Woe! Who stands up on our behalf?", + "Woe that my heart is as hard as stone and I still want to eat and drink and fulfill my other desires.", + "Woe! What will I say? How will I speak? How will I justify myself at such a time of trouble, oppression and fear, may the Compassionate One rescue me! I am still not returning to You properly. It still seems as though I am not in control of myself, Heaven forbid.", + "Woe! Woe! Woe! Woe to me for the sufferings of my soul, woe to me for the sufferings of the Jewish people. Woe to me when my heart feels a little of the bitterness of the suffering; woe and bitterness when my heart does not feel the sufferings of the Jewish people at all.", + "I see my distance from You, the hardness of my heart, the confusion of my mind, so that I cannot feel the bitter, harsh and great sufferings of Israel — sufferings in general and in specific that affect every Jew in body, soul and money. If I truly felt the troubles in my heart, all the desires and affairs of this world would be entirely disgusting to me.", + "Woe! Woe! Where am I in the world? Woe! Woe to me! What have I experienced in my life? Woe! Woe! Woe! How do I find the voice and speech to roar, to cry out and plead over such troubles? Woe! Woe! What shall I say? How shall I speak? How shall I justify myself?", + "Compassionate Master of the world, have compassion on this poor generation. Be appeased on behalf of this poor generation, for there is no one to help.", + "See Our Poverty and Toil
See our poverty and toil, for we have no one on whom to rely except You, our Father in Heaven, and on the power and merit of our forefathers and holy rabbis of previous generations.", + "Act for their sake, and for the sake of those killed for Your holy Name — particularly for the sake of the ten martyrs killed by the government, Rabbi Akiva and his companions,11The Ten Martyrs are recalled during the kinot (laments) of Tisha B’Av and the Musaf prayer service of Yom Kippur. who were killed in sanctification of Your Name with harsh and bitter sufferings, whose torments were very great, and whose souls left in holiness and purity in sanctification of Your Name.", + "Remember all the holy martyrs who were killed in sanctification of Your Name with harsh and bitter torments, from the day of the destruction of the Temple until now. Remember every day and every moment the self-sacrifice of the true Tzaddikim who gave over their souls at every time and every day in sanctification of Your Name.", + "In particular, remember the true self-sacrifice of the great ones of the generation, the chosen Tzaddikim who sacrifice their names — their souls — in sanctification of Your Name, who nullify their honor and sacrifice their name and reputation, and who accept on themselves all the contempt of the world — shame, curses and spilling of blood.", + "They do so entirely for the sake of Your Name and for the sake of the Jewish people, Your nation, in order to gain atonement for the children of Israel and to rescue them from all decrees and sufferings.", + "Master of the world, You know that I lack the power and knowledge to arrange my prayer properly before You regarding the great and harsh sufferings of the Jewish people — especially regarding this terrible matter of the sacrifice of the name and reputation of the true Tzaddikim, which is literally self-sacrifice. These are deeply concealed matters.", + "But You know what has happened now with us in these generations regarding the Jewish people — and in particular, what happens regarding each individual Jew every day.", + "The Merit of the Tzaddikim
You know all the deeds of the true Tzaddikim who are presently involved in our rectification — all the great and awesome things that they do for our sake to sweeten all the judgments and decrees, and to rescue us from the hand of all our enemies, to save us from all our persecutors.", + "Please have mercy. Please have pity. Please have compassion and save us now with their power and in their merit at this time of great and harsh suffering. Teach us how to arrange our prayers, pleas, requests and cries before You, to nullify this evil decree and nullify all other decrees that the gentiles want to enact, Heaven forbid.", + "Woe! What has become of us in this poor generation? Woe! Woe! What shall we do? Where shall we flee? (Gevalt! Master of the world, what can we do? Gevalt! Gevalt! It is so bitter. We do not know what to do. Our heart is turned to stone.)", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, act for the sake of Your Name and not for us. See how poor and empty we are.", + "Have pity on the honor of Your Name. Look down from Heaven and see that we have been an object of mockery and scorn among the nations. The gentiles laugh at us every day and say at every moment, “Where is their God?” “With murder in my bones, my oppressors reproach me, by saying to me all day, ‘Where is your God?’”", + "Answer Us with Compassion
HaShem, You are filled with compassion. Have compassion on us and accept our pleas. Answer us, HaShem, answer us, for we are in great suffering, the likes of which never was and the likes of which never will be.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name, because we do not have the power to appease You. We come to You only with Your Name. We come in Your Name. HaShem, act for the sake of Your Name.", + "“Save us, God of our salvation, and gather us and rescue us from the nations to thank Your holy Name, to praise and honor You. Help us, God of our salvation, in the matter of the honor of Your Name. Rescue us and grant atonement for our transgressions, for the sake of Your Name.”", + "Be gracious to us, answer us and hear our prayer. For You hear the prayer of every individual of Your nation, the Jewish people, with compassion. Blessed are You, Who hears prayer." + ], + [ + "The Sukkah and Drawing from the Energy of Man / Building a House
Sometimes a person is defined not as a human being but as an animal. As such, he draws from the energy that goes to animals and that causes their premature deaths.
When a person fulfills the mitzvah of sukkah properly, he rectifies this situation, for he draws from the energy of man, which comes from the level of the sukkah.
Also, when a person receives a flow of energy of complete and true knowledge by means of the mitzvah of the holy sukkah, constructing a house will not harm him.
To the contrary, he will have generous funds for all of his building expenses. He will set up a house in holiness and purity, with wisdom, understanding and knowledge. He will draw into his house an abundance of goodness, blessing and compassion. He will use his home for the sake of HaShem — to learn Torah, to pray, and to host worthy guests, until his house will be a meeting place for the sages.
For Sukkot
The Mitzvah of Sukkah
“One thing have I asked from HaShem, that which I seek: May I sit in the House of HaShem all the days of my life, to gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visit in His palace.”", + "“He will hide me in His booth on the day of evil. He will hide me in the concealment of His tent. He will lift me upon the rock.”", + "Master of the world, in Your vast and great kindness, have compassion on me. Help me fulfill the mitzvah of sukkah in its season, with all of its details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it, with a good heart and with great joy.", + "May the holy state of mind and great, wondrous kindnesses that are drawn onto Your nation, the Jewish people, during the holy festival of Sukkot be drawn down to me as a result of my fulfilling the holy and awesome mitzvah of sukkah, when the mother hovers over her children and You stretch the booth of compassion and life over us.", + "You are filled with compassion. Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name.", + "You know my heart, how far I am from the mitzvah of sukkah.", + "Becoming a Human Being
How many times without number must I plead and pray that You will give me a holy state of mind, energies of kindness, so that I will attain true, human knowledge, so that I will quickly go from being an animal to being a human being.", + "May I have pity on myself from now on and no longer commit the acts of an animal. Rather, may I quickly attain true knowledge, which is the definition of a human being.", + "May I draw from the energy that goes to man and no longer from the energy that goes to animal. May I soon emerge from being defined as an animal and instead be defined as human.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, You are good and do good to all. You are compassionate to all Your creatures. Have pity, mercy and compassion on the animals and wild beasts. Help me and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, not to spoil the mitzvah of sukkah at all, so that we will always draw from the energy of man that comes from the level of sukkah.", + "May we not have to draw from the energy of animals, Heaven forbid. May we not take their energy to ourselves, Heaven forbid, so that we will not cause the premature deaths of animals and wild beasts, Heaven forbid.", + "May the verses be realized, “HaShem, You save man and animal.” “Blessed will be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your land and the fruit of your livestock, the offspring of your cattle and the flocks of your sheep.”", + "Building a New House
And so, You Who are filled with compassion and kindness, send us a flow of energy of complete and true knowledge by means of the holy mitzvah of sukkah — so that when we and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, need to build a house, that construction will not harm us at all.", + "May we not suffer any danger in body, soul or money by building our house. To the contrary, may we build a house in great holiness and purity, with holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge.", + "May the verse be realized, “With wisdom is a house built and with understanding it is established; with knowledge, rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant wealth.”", + "Let us build our house for the sake of HaShem, to engage in Torah and prayer in it, and to host worthy guests, until our house will be a house of Torah and prayer, a meeting place for the sages. And there we will call in the Name of HaShem, the eternal God.", + "For Simchat Torah
Rejoicing in the Torah
By means of the holy mitzvah of sukkah, help us rejoice greatly on Simchat Torah — to complete (learning) the Torah and begin it again in great joy and gladness, to be happy and delighted in the Torah, for it is our strength and light.", + "Every year, help us fulfill the mitzvah of sukkah completely, until we receive the Torah from there every year, because the Torah emerges from the sukkah.", + "As a result of our entering the sukkah, may the Torah be made from every one of us. “Torah, Israel and the Holy One, blessed be He, are all one.”", + "The Sukkot-Shavuot Connection
By means of the holy mitzvah of sukkah, draw onto us the holiness of the festival of Shavuot, the holiness of the month of Sivan, the holiness of receiving the Torah.", + "Master of the world, our needs are many and without measure, and our mind is too small to explain and express a thousandth or even a tenthousandth of them. Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name and compassionately fulfill our requests for the good.", + "Help us fulfill the mitzvah of sukkah in its time completely, so that we will attain everything that we have requested of You. May we not cause the premature death of animals and wild beasts, Heaven forbid, but may we always derive our sustenance from the energy for man that is drawn from the level of sukkah.", + "Building a House in Every Way
Spread the sukkah of Your peace over us always. Hide us in the shadow of Your wings. Then, when an individual must engage in construction, doing so will not harm him at all. Guard us and shield us with the power of the holiness of the sukkah that Your nation, the Jewish people, keeps, so that we will attain a house with true wisdom, for the sake of Your Name only.", + "May our house be one in which we increase Torah and prayer, in which we speak many words of Torah and prayer, as we were taught to do by our holy rabbis.", + "May we draw into our house an abundance of good, blessing, compassion, life and all true good forever — material and spiritual — in this world and in the World to Come.", + "In Your vast compassion, give us great abundance for all our expenses and needs connected to building our house. May we not experience any poverty or lack as a result of building our house.", + "May the construction not overwhelm us, Heaven forbid, and not distract us at all from truly serving You.", + "Send every individual the wood that is appropriate for his house. May the planks be arranged in the building in the order that they were meant to have from the Six Days of Creation. Bring everything about for the good, so that the building will be only for the good in all ways — for us, for our children and for all our descendants.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You alone know all that is involved in buildings and how many dangers are involved in constructing them. But You know how necessary it is to build a house, because it is impossible to live outdoors. In particular, a Jew needs a house to serve You: to celebrate the Shabbat and festivals, to have guests and to raise his children to learn Torah.", + "What will a creature of flesh and blood do, a creature carved from clay, with an animalistic awareness — especially as I am today — in order to intend to truly do Your will in this and in all matters?", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us always act in accordance with Your will, in truth. “HaShem will complete matters on my behalf. HaShem, Your kindness is forever. Do not abandon the works of Your hands.”", + "May the verse be realized for us, “HaShem will guard you from all evil. He will guard Your soul. HaShem will guard your going out and your coming in, now and forever.”", + "Hurry and swiftly redeem us and build our beautiful Temple. May the verse be realized in us, “I will bring them to My holy mountain and give them joy in My House of Prayer. Their burnt-offerings and sacrifices will be accepted upon My Altar, for My House shall be called a House of Prayer for all nations.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Creating Holy Lamps to Search in the King’s Treasure House / Confession of Wrongdoing
A person should seek counsel from God on how to prepare himself for the long journey from which no one is exempt.
While in this world, he should perform mitzvot in holiness, purity and joy, until they create holy candles. At the time of his death, he should use those candles to search in the King’s treasure house.
Also, during his lifetime, a person should confess his wrongdoings every day to God. Then, directly before his death, he should confess in detail, with a whole, broken and crushed heart, so that he will awaken God’s compassion on his behalf, and so that his soul will leave while he is speaking words of faith.
Preparing for the Long Journey
“Look, answer me, HaShem my God. Illumine my eyes, lest I sleep in death.” “I will not die but I will live, and I will tell the deeds of God. God has indeed made me suffer, but He has not delivered me to death.”", + "Master of the world, Master of compassion, Master of mercy and graciousness! “He revives the dead, He supports the fallen, He heals the ill and frees the imprisoned. He keeps His faithfulness to those who sleep in the dust.”", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Give me perfect counsel. May I heed it so that I will begin — from now on, at any rate — to prepare myself for the long journey that I must undoubtedly embark on, the journey on which all people must travel, from which no one is exempt.", + "That road is long and dangerous, and I have not begun to prepare myself at all. It is a long road, and I do not have even the slightest provisions.", + "Woe! What shall I do? Not only do I not have provisions for this long, terrible and dangerous road, but as I set out, I am very much in debt on that road.", + "The creditors rush after me. They are ready at any moment to make their demands of me, Heaven forbid. I will have to give an accounting for my every deed at every moment; for every act, great or small; for every thought, speech and deed.", + "Woe! What shall I do? Who will stand up for me? Who will rise on my behalf? Woe! Woe! What shall I say? How will I speak? “What will I do when God arises? And when He visits, what will I reply to Him?”", + "HaShem, You are our God and God of our fathers. You are filled with compassion. Help me and save me so that I will — from now on, at any rate — improve my deeds and truly repent completely before You, and no longer turn aside from Your will, whether to the right or to the left.", + "Help me perform more mitzvot all the days of my life in great holiness and purity, and in vast joy and gladness, until they create many holy candles, so that each mitzvah will be a holy and awesome candle. As the verse states, “A mitzvah is a candle and the Torah is light.”", + "Have mercy on me. Help me sanctify myself with great holiness to rise ever higher and come close to You in ultimate truth, in accordance with Your good will.", + "And when I reach the time of my end, my time to leave the world, may I return my soul to You with great holiness and purity, without any dross or blemish. May I rectify during my lifetime all that I blemished and devastated with my many sins and iniquities.", + "Confessing Every Day
In Your vast compassion, help me confess every day. In particular, before my death, may I confess to You in detail, with a whole, broken and crushed heart, and with intense weeping, so that I will awaken Your vast and true compassion on my behalf, so that You will forgive and grant atonement for all my transgressions, sins and iniquities that I committed before You from beginning to end, in this incarnation and in other incarnations.", + "May no impression or recollection remain of them at all. Rather, may all the sins be transformed to merits. May my death bring me atonement for all my sins. May my leaving the world be like my entry into the world: without any sin or blemish at all.", + "May I be firm and strong in Your holy faith always and forever. May I accept upon myself the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven completely before my soul leaves, to recite the Shema at that time with a mouth filled with awe and fear, with truth and complete faith, with great joy and gladness.", + "Words of Faith
May I speak many words of holy faith, saying clearly that I believe in You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, and in all the true Tzaddikim from the beginning of the world until now, and in Your holy Torah that You gave us through Moses, Your servant, in its written and oral forms.", + "May I speak many words of truth and faith with a whole heart, until my soul leaves while I am speaking words of holy faith, and my soul is incorporated immediately into holy faith and rises and sees the light of Your countenance.", + "May my soul be bound in the knot of life with HaShem my God, amid the totality of holy souls (of the Tzaddikim) of the children of Israel, Your nation. May I “gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visit in His palace.”", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. You are filled with compassion. You know hidden things; You know everything that I have gone through, everything that I have done and how I have caused blemishes, in contradiction to Your will.", + "Despite that, You are very kind to me and You continue to give me life. You strengthen me in Your compassion to seek refuge, to rescue my soul and help me escape whatever I need to escape.", + "Unique Master, filled with compassion, redeeming and strong, Redeemer of Israel, have compassion on me. Quickly redeem me completely for the sake of Your Name from all bad desires and bad thoughts, and from all transgressions and blemishes that I have grown accustomed to.", + "Woe is me! Woe is me! Woe, woe and woe! Woe! Woe! I have no idea at all what to say and how to seek counsel and advice in the depth of this swamp. There is no way for me to stand like this, so confused, with such bad habits, so weak, so stubborn.", + "Nevertheless, I still perceive Your vast kindness and mighty, infinite compassion for me, Your true and eternal kindness every day, “for Your kindness is great toward me, and You rescued my spirit from the lowest depths of Sheol.”", + "Your kindness to me is great, beyond comprehension and limit. “If I said, ‘My foot has stumbled,’ Your kindness, HaShem, supported me. With my many thoughts within me, Your consolations delighted my soul.”", + "Therefore, I will strengthen and stretch my hands out to You, until You are gracious and have compassion on me and truly save me fully.", + "Perfect Advice and Holy Candles
Send my heart perfect, true counsel every day and moment, so that — from now on, at any rate — I will truly attain complete repentance. I will turn aside from evil and always do what is good in Your eyes.", + "May I be among those who fear You and are wholehearted, who attain vast, hidden good as You give them permission to search in the treasure house of the King. Fortunate is their portion.", + "May holy candles be made of all the mitzvot that You help me perform in my lifetime. May I use these holy candles of the mitzvot at the time of my death to search in the King’s treasure house. Then I will not rise in shame before You.", + "You are filled with compassion. I am asking a great deal, but nothing is hard for You. Nothing is beyond You. I believe that I can hope to attain all this because of Your great wonders, awesome favors, multitudinous kindness and great compassion.", + "My hope is in the power and merit of the holy, true, awesome and elevated Tzaddikim, on whom I always rely, and without whom I have no excuse to ask You even for the smallest thing.", + "I rely on their great power to petition and seek Your face for all great things and favors in all worlds, because their power and merit suffices for me and all Israel to attain all true and eternal good.", + "Help me for the sake of Your Name. Save me for the sake of Your kindness. “I stretch my hands out to You. My soul turns to You like a weary land.”", + "Have mercy on me, You Who are filled with compassion. Help me and save me to leap past all the vanities of this world and to truly and completely come close to You forever.", + "May the verse be realized in me, “You have rescued my spirit from death, my feet from stumbling, so that I may walk before God in the light of life.”", + "“My soul, return to your rest, for HaShem has dealt bountifully with you. [HaShem,] You have rescued my soul from death, my eye from tears, my foot from stumbling. I shall walk before HaShem in the lands of life.”", + "“Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "A Person is Responsible for All of His Difficulties / True Words of Prayer and Torah
The principal cause of a person’s dismay is his knowledge that he himself is responsible for all of his difficulties.
He should strive at every moment to speak words of truth to God. In all his prayers, he should begin from the narrows, from his oppression.
He should draw close to true Tzaddikim whose original Torah teachings possess the light of revelation, and he himself should create Torah insights in the way of those Tzaddikim.
Crying Out
“From the straits I called to God. God answered me with a vast expanse.” “In my distress, I will call HaShem, and I will cry out to my God. He will hear my voice from His palace, and my cry will come before Him in His ears.”", + "“I called from my distress to HaShem, and He answered me. From the belly of Sheol I cried out; You heard my voice.” “I will call to HaShem with My voice and He will answer me from His holy mountain.” “To You, HaShem, do I call, and to HaShem I plead.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, help me so that I will not be confused by the thoughts and ideas that distract me and prevent me from praying, from crying out to You, and from arranging my prayer and pleas before You at every moment.", + "May no suffering or oppression in body, soul or money prevent me from calling out to You. Rather, may I call and cry out to You always, however things may be.", + "You know how difficult it is for me to open my mouth to pray to You every day and moment — particularly to speak to You in my own words — so that most of the time, I feel so oppressed and heavy that I cannot open my mouth to say a word to You.", + "“Day and night Your hand is heavy upon me; my moisture is transformed to the droughts of summer.” I have no rest from those who constantly pursue my life. I suffer so many troubles of soul and body that my mouth is closed and mute, and it is hard for me to open my mouth before You.", + "God Helps Us Pray
The principal cause of my weakness that constantly casts me down and dismays my mind is the knowledge that I myself am responsible for everything that I am undergoing.", + "But You are filled with compassion. You have already informed us that, nevertheless, You desire our prayer, You wish for our pleas, and You hear and heed our speech and groans and sighs. You have told us this many times without number, as the verse states, “He does not despise and does not abhor the cry of the poor person, and does not hide His face from him, and hears his outcry to Him.”", + "Therefore, I plead with You, I stretch my hands out before Your great and wondrous compassion, graciousness and mercy. Be with me at all times and in every hour. Help me never be distracted by any such confusions and ideas.", + "Rather, may I strengthen myself at every moment to express my speech to You out of the straits and oppression, so that “my mouth will speak in my trouble.”", + "May I always toil and strive to bend my thoughts and heart to the truth and to speak words of truth to You, even in my difficulties and oppression.", + "In Your vast compassion and kindness, You constantly broaden the narrow places. Open my mouth and fill it. Help me, save me, give me merit. Open my mouth wide to express and present all of my words before You, with pleasing words of grace and pleading. Heed my prayers and beseeching. May Your compassion be stirred up for me at every moment. Bring me close to You, to Your Torah and to Your service in truth.", + "Torah Teachings That Possess the Light of Revelation
Help me come close to true Tzaddikim, whose original Torah teachings possess the light of revelation drawn down from above. Above, their Torah is expansive and lofty, but below it grows narrow so that it may enter every individual’s heart and mind in a way that is proper for him. Keep me far from people who distort straight ways, whose Torah comes from below to above, too wide below and very abbreviated above.", + "Have mercy on me. Help me create true Torah insights in the way of the true Tzaddikim who draw down and deliver teachings from above to below.", + "In all of my prayers, pleas and requests, may I begin from the narrows, from oppression. In Your compassion, open my mouth and pour the spirit of Your holiness onto me from Heaven so that I will express all of my speech before You in truth, in accordance with Your good will. May my speech be truly pleasant before You.", + "Help me and save me at every moment, in every way that I need to be saved, so that I will quickly and truly be in accordance with Your good will.", + "Overcoming Obstacles
You alone know how a person toils and how he is oppressed in this world every day — particularly when he wishes to approach holiness and express his speech before You, Master of compassion. At such a time, many rise against him in body and soul, materially and spiritually.", + "This is particularly true of an impoverished person such as myself. “God, You have known my foolishness, and my guilty deeds have not been concealed from You.” “You know my sitting and my rising; You understand how to attach me [to You] from afar, my going about and my lying down.” “HaShem, how many are my adversaries, how many rise against me” at every moment.", + "Have compassion on me. Strengthen me. Make me firm at every moment to trust in Your vast kindness so that I will call out to You always, however things may be.", + "“Turn to me and be gracious to me. Grant Your might to Your servant; save the son of Your maidservant. Send me a sign for the good; let my enemies see it and be ashamed, for You, HaShem, help me and console me.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem forever, amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "Minimizing Work and Increasing Torah Learning
A person should do his best to minimize his work and increase his Torah learning. He should strive to be among those who sit in the study hall, learning Torah day and night.
Even when he engages in business, his Torah learning should be the permanent element in his life, and his work transitory. Only the external part of his thoughts should engage in the business, while his inner thoughts are attached to God and the Torah.
That is not to deny the value of work. God wants man to engage in business to earn a living, so that he will draw forth and elevate all the holy sparks from the depths of the “husks” and return them to their place. He does so by engaging in business with great honesty. To that end, he should never go back on his word, even for all the riches in the world.
When he elevates the sparks in this fashion, he need not elevate them via the disgrace of having to appear in a court of Jewish law.
The Portion of Those Who Sit in the Study Hall
“Turn my heart to Your testimonies and not toward monetary gain.”", + "Master of the world, help me and save me. May I be attached to Your Torah and to serving You forever.", + "Place my portion among those who sit in the study hall and not among those who sit on street corners. May Your Torah be my craft in this world, and may it remain with me in the World to Come. May I study Your Torah day and night.", + "The Inner Life of Business
Even when, in accordance with Your will, I must engage in some business to earn money — to do some labor or business, or to travel and the like — have compassion on me and save me, so that my inner thoughts will be attached to You and to Your holy Torah, clothed in that business or trade.", + "May I not place my inner mind in the business and mundane activity itself. May only the external part of my thoughts engage in the business, while in my inner thoughts, I am attached to You and to Your holy Torah.", + "May I engage in business with great honesty. May my “yes” be honest, and may I never go back on my word, even for all the riches in the world.", + "When I engage in business, may my entire intent be for the sake of Your Name and Your Torah — for the sake of learning Torah, serving You, giving a great deal of charity, and fulfilling Your holy commandments.", + "Torah is the Permanent Element
May I minimize my work and business, and increase my Torah learning for its own sake. May my Torah learning be the permanent element in my life, and my work transitory.", + "Even when I engage in work and business, may the essence of my mind and inner thoughts be planted in Torah and in truly serving You, solely for the sake of Your Name.", + "Be with me always when I am at home and when I am traveling. Strengthen me with faith and trust to truly know and believe that “not by might does a person prevail.” “For it is not from the east and not from the west and not from the mountainous desert” — because everything comes from You alone.", + "Elevating Holy Sparks
It is Your will that we engage in some business to earn a living, so that we will draw forth and elevate all of the holiness and fallen sparks from the depths of the “husks” and return them to their place.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on us. You think thoughts so that “none will be pushed away from Him.” Give us the might, strength and counsel to engage in battle whenever we must go out to engage in external work in business and the like.", + "May we do everything with great faith, holiness and purity, with awe, fear and attachment to Your Torah. May we serve You in our inner thoughts, so that with the help of holy faith, we will have the power to draw forth all of the sparks that fell into the depths of the “husks” because of our many sins and because of the sins of our forefathers, in this incarnation and in other incarnations, unintentionally or intentionally, under duress or willingly.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name, because You know that we lack the strength and knowledge to fight this war, whose purpose is to draw forth the sparks from the power of the “husks” that have conquered and imprisoned them.", + "At each moment that we are inspired to draw them out and elevate them, these “husks” react and grow stronger and stronger, Heaven forbid. As a result, the exile has grown longer and our subjugation more complete — for the nation and for each individual. We have no one who knows how to overcome these “husks” and fight them.", + "On whom can we rely but our Father in Heaven? “HaShem is a warrior, HaShem is His Name.” He will fight on our behalf. “HaShem, fight those who fight against me; battle those who battle against me. Take hold of the shield and buckler and rise to help me.” “Arm Yourself with a spear and bar the way before those who pursue me. Say to my soul, ‘I am your salvation.’”", + "Save me, Master of salvations, so that my thoughts will always be attached to You and Your Torah, even when I am engaged in external activities — in work, business and the like.", + "Holy Faith
May I always strengthen myself with complete faith. In particular, may I have the strongest faith when I leave the tent of Torah to engage in mundane affairs.", + "Give holy faith the power to draw out and elevate all holiness and fallen sparks that fell into all things in the world, from the Creation until this day.", + "Raise them up and bring them back to their original place, the place that was their tent before, more firmly than ever. May no one be driven away from You.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me engage in business honestly. May my inner thoughts be attached to and connected to the Torah even when I am engaged in business.", + "Avoiding Courts of Law
Rescue me and protect me so that I will never be subjected to the disgrace of having to appear in a court of law before judges for a Torah judgment.", + "May all of my business affairs be honest. May all of those people with whom I engage in business treat me honestly. May I know, understand and believe that the Torah is clothed in all business. May my business always be connected to the Torah so that I will not need to rectify it by having to stand before judges in a Torah court.", + "HaShem Will Act on My Behalf
Master of the world, compassionately fulfill my requests for good. Help me win the war in this world by means of learning Torah and attaining holy faith.", + "“Hear, HaShem, and be gracious to me. HaShem, help me!” Help and save me, I who am weak in might, weak in knowledge and weak in gaining counsel, so that I will win this difficult war in all ways.", + "Because I have so many blemishes, I would never have dared to ask for this. But everything that is hidden in my heart, including my assurance in and reliance on the power of the true Tzaddikim, is revealed to You. I cast my burden on them.", + "May they fight on my behalf. I will follow their holy counsel and walk in their paths, and never veer from their words, whether to the right or to the left.", + "“HaShem will act on my behalf. HaShem, Your kindness is forever; do not forsake the work of Your hands.” “Please, HaShem, save me. Please, HaShem, bring me success.” “HaShem, save! King, answer on the day we call.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Overcoming Obstacles on the Spiritual Path
A person may experience obstacles on his spiritual path from his immediate family and extended family, as well as from others, because of a multitude of outlooks and disagreements regarding the point of ultimate truth.
He must ask God to help him so that no one will have any power to keep him away from the way of truth.
He should not be intimidated by any scorn and anything else that might tend to demoralize him. Rather, he should walk on the way of truth on his level.
Overcoming Obstacles from This World
“Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am alone and poor.” “I pondered [alone] — I am like a bird alone on a roof.”", + "Master of the world, what shall I say? How shall I speak? “Gazing to the right, I see that no one knows me. My refuge is gone, no one seeks my soul. I cried out to You, HaShem. I said, ‘You are my refuge, my portion in the land of life.’ Heed my cry, for I am truly impoverished. Rescue me from my pursuers, for they have overpowered me.”", + "Master of the world, You know secret things. You are the essence of truth. You desire truth, You are close to those who call You in truth. You alone know everything that I undergo every single day, including those people who oppose me every single day, materially and spiritually, to keep me away from the path of life. “HaShem, how many are my adversaries, how many rise up against me.”", + "You know how many obstacles, hindrances, enticements, seductions and confusions overwhelm me at every moment to keep me away from the way of truth, Heaven forbid, from coming close to You and those who fear You and Your true Tzaddikim.", + "I am so low, my sins are so many, my soul so distracted and my mind so confused that obstacles and hindrances from everyone in the world overwhelm me and provoke me at every moment.", + "There are obstacles from my immediate and extended family, and from other people, because of a multitude of differences in outlook and disagreements regarding the point of ultimate truth.", + "Now, HaShem, God of truth, help me, save me, and strengthen me to truly serve You. Help me draw close to those who fear You, Your wholehearted ones who truly walk in Your ways. May no one have any power whatsoever to keep me away from the way of truth, whoever it may be, whether close to me or not.", + "The Only Person in the World
Strengthen my mind to believe in You always. May I view myself as though I am the only person in the world, as the verse states, “Abraham was one.”", + "May I not heed or contemplate any obstacle, hindrance, mockery, scorn or anything at all that might demoralize me. May no one be able to confound me so that I fail to recognize the way of truth and straightness — not even if that person is greater and more righteous than I am.", + "Rather, may I act in the way of truth, as You have taught me since my youth through our holy, true rabbis. May I always remind myself that I have no idea what is going on in anyone else’s life.", + "May I be wholehearted and walk on the way of truth on my level, as You taught me through Your choicest, true Tzaddikim, who are the core of truth in all worlds. May I take no heed of any viewpoint that opposes their will, which is in fact Your will.", + "Even when I must meet people and speak with them — whether on spiritual or earthly topics — may they not distract my mind at all from the ultimate truth.", + "May I truly realize the verse, “Whom do I have in Heaven? I have not desired anyone on the earth besides You.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Be strong." + ], + [ + "Seizing Periods of Time to Learn Torah / Touring the Torah
A person should seize periods of time to learn Torah, particularly at night. He should allow nothing, whether earning a living or fulfilling other bodily needs, to distract him.
If any external thoughts come to his mind, he should flee immediately into thoughts of Torah, which can nullify every type of mad and foolish spirit that clings to him as a result of his evil deeds.
He should strive to tour the Torah from room to room, mansion to mansion, palace to palace, house to attic, and attic to attic, and connect all of these together.
He should focus his heart on the Torah and serving God, until God opens his heart and mind’s eye, and he creates original Torah insights that will please God. Doing so is a great rectification for his soul — particularly for his bad thoughts. Even when he is sleeping, he should have original Torah thoughts in his dreams.
However, he must never deceive himself that he has reached the essence of the Torah.
Finding Torah Insights
“Uncover my eyes and I will gaze at the wonders of Your Torah.” “Blessed are You, HaShem. Teach me Your laws.” “I told of my ways, and You answered me. Teach me Your laws.” “Remove the way of falsehood from me, and favor me with Your Torah.” “Teach me the best of reason and knowledge, for I believe in Your commandments.”", + "“You are good and do good. Teach me Your laws.” “Deal with Your servant in accordance with Your kindness, and teach me Your laws. I am Your servant. Give me understanding, and I will know Your testimonies.” “Shine Your face upon Your servant, and teach me Your laws.”", + "Master of the world, You grant man knowledge. You teach Torah to Your nation, the Jewish people. You commanded us through Your true Tzaddikim to study the Torah and create original Torah thoughts.", + "In Your great mercy, You have had mercy on me so that I might understand a little of Your holy Torah, until I have the power to toil and find new Torah insights, as our sages stated, “[If a person says], ‘I have not found,’ do not believe [him].”", + "I have heard of and seen a number of people on my level, who as a result of their toil have created many original Torah insights.", + "A sincere individual is obligated to strive to create original Torah thoughts. He should not be a sterile tree, Heaven forbid, but he should yield fruits of Torah. This is a great rectification for his soul.", + "Struggling to Learn the Torah
And now, my Master, my King and my God, my Father in Heaven, what shall I say? How shall I speak? Because of my serious sins, I have grown so far from You that I do not even feel capable of seeking this.", + "Even in simply learning Torah, I am very careless — at times because of the pressure of earning a living, and because of many other factors. But principally, I myself am responsible for not learning Torah on many occasions when I could have seized the opportunity to learn many words of Torah.", + "To the extent that I fail to learn Torah, many factors come to interfere. As our sages stated, “If you have neglected Torah, many distracting factors will arise against you.”", + "Now, how can I merit to strive to seek You, to rectify all this, until I learn Torah, studying day and night, and not have recourse to false excuses, and not deceive myself?", + "In the end, what will become of me? What will I reply on the day of judgment when I am asked, “Did you engage in learning wisdom? Did you look toward the Divine Chariot?” With what sort of appearance will I rise before the King?", + "In particular, I know that I have damaged a great deal with my evil deeds, my lowly thoughts and my evil traits. And I have still not repented of my errors.", + "The depths of the sea wash over me constantly. I am immersed in the deep mire with no way of standing, to the point that I have no idea where I am in the world, and I turn back and forth, confused and torn.", + "My soul and heart cry out within me in a bitter and strong voice: “How long, foolish people, will you love foolishness?” How much longer, lazy one, will you lie down? When will you arise from your sleep? How much longer?", + "A Strong Resolve
Therefore, I have resolved that as long as my soul is within me, I will yearn, cry out, cast myself down and plead before Your great compassion and kindness. Perhaps now I will be able to speak some words of truth before You.", + "May I direct Your true compassion toward me, so that You will treat me in accordance with Your kindness and help me, save me, guide me and teach me ways and true counsel every day and every moment on how to truly return to Your Torah.", + "May I dedicate myself to Your holy Torah and study it day and night. May no distractions and business, whether earning a living or fulfilling other bodily needs, distract me.", + "May I strive with all my might to seize periods of time from all my distractions and affairs — particularly at night.", + "In Your compassion, help me learn a great deal every day. May I focus my entire heart on the Torah and on serving You, until in Your compassion You will open my heart to Your Torah, and my mind’s eye will be opened to perceive holiness and purity. Then I will create original Torah insights, true insights that will please You and give You what You desire, which I will set before Your throne of glory.", + "May such insights provide great rectification for my soul, rectifying everything that I damaged with my many sins from the beginning of my existence until this day.", + "In particular, with my thoughts of Torah, may I rectify the flaw of bad thoughts, with which I caused many blemishes.", + "From now on, at every moment, may my mind and my thoughts be attached to the Torah day and night — when I am at home and when I am traveling, when I lie down and when I arise, when I am asleep and when I am awake, when I am with people and when I am alone.", + "In Your compassion, help me so that my thoughts will always be attached to Your Torah with a firm and strong connection, to the point that even when I am with people, my inner thoughts will be attached to Your holy Torah, and I will never forget it even for a single instant.", + "May my thoughts cling so strongly to the holy Torah that even while I am sleeping, I will have true, original Torah thoughts in my dreams. As a result, I will expel and nullify all evil thoughts, ideas and musings, as well as every type of mad and foolish spirit that has clung to my heart and mind as a result of my evil deeds from my birth to this day.", + "I will achieve all this by having thoughts of Torah, and I will connect myself to the Torah with a constant, firm and strong bond, without any weakness.", + "As soon as any external thought comes to my mind — and certainly any evil musing, Heaven forbid — may I immediately flee into thoughts of Torah.", + "From the dark depths of the sea and the deep mire, I will flee to the light of life, to thoughts and musings on the holy Torah, which are our life and the length of our days, until in Your vast compassion You will open the pathways of my intellect and I will enter into the chambers of the holy Torah.", + "In All the Rooms of the Torah
May I enter and tour Your holy Torah from room to room, from mansion to mansion, from palace to palace, from house to attic, and from attic to attic, and connect, combine and blend all of the rooms and palaces firmly. As a result, may I recognize and know the truth of Your Godliness.", + "In Your kindness, give me as a complete gift all the words of Your holy Torah, with all of its rooms and palaces, so that it will literally be called my Torah. May the verse be realized in me, “In the Torah of HaShem is [a person’s] desire, and [then] he studies day and night his [own] Torah.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me and accept my plea, for I have come before You not [daring to seek Your] kindness, nor [claiming the merit of] my own good deeds, because I do not have any excuse to seek the slightest good, and certainly not such great things.", + "But it is revealed and known to You Who know secrets that I must say all these words, because, as I have heard from our holy rabbis, Your kindness “has not ceased, for Your compassion has not been exhausted.”", + "One Never Reaches the Essence of the Torah
Therefore, have compassion on me, You Who are filled with compassion, so that even when I create true, original thoughts in Your holy Torah, I will not deceive myself that I have reached its essence and entered into its inner being.", + "May I always understand and know how far I am from the truth of its inner being. “One higher than the high, watches.” There is level within level. As the verse states, “Of every finite being have I seen an end, [but] Your commandment is very broad.” Just as Your greatness has no end, so too, there is no end to the understanding of the Torah, which is Your Oneness.", + "Even when I attain true Torah insights, give me the strength to strive, seek, toil and search ever more, to analyze, infer and study Your holy Torah with a true eye, with all my heart and soul, with true dedication.", + "At every moment, please open its gates and inner rooms for me more and more, so that I will understand and attain the truth of the inner aspect of the Torah, which is in truth the level of the man of holiness. As the verse states, “This is the Torah — a man.”", + "May the image of God be drawn upon me completely. May I be absorbed into the supernal man completely, until I truly recognize and comprehend You, in accordance with Your good will and with the will of Your true Tzaddikim, because it is for this that I was created.", + "Have compassion on me, You Who are filled with compassion. Bring me back to You quickly in complete repentance, and give me my portion in Your Torah. I plead before You not because I am righteous, but because I rely on Your vast compassion.", + "In the power and merit of the great, true Tzaddikim, our holy rabbis, whose power suffices for even someone like me, as I am, liberate me and purify me of all my contamination very soon. You who are filled with compassion, help me attain all that I seek from You in this lifetime.", + "“I will constantly hope and add to all Your praise.” “My lips will express praise when You will teach me Your rules.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen." + ], + [ + "Eating Human Food / Healing from Fever / Restorative Sweating
A person should not eat more than is absolutely necessary.
He should pray that only food that has been purified until it is no longer animal food but human food will enter his mouth.
Then God will rescue him from every type of illness — particularly from the illness of fever, which comes either as a result of overeating or as a result of eating food that has not yet been purified from being animal food.
When a sick person experiences a good episode of sweating, his mind is set at rest and the energies of kindness and strictness — which are the power of fire and water within him — blend together in proper balance.
Eating in a Human Fashion
Guardian of Israel, guard the remnant of Israel. Let no illness and pain come to Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me and on all the Jewish people. Guard us and rescue us at every moment, so that we will eat no more than is absolutely necessary. Rather, may we eat and drink in a measured fashion, so that we do not overindulge ourselves, which is animalistic.", + "Rescue us and guard us so that only food that has been purified until it is no longer animal food but human food will enter our mouths.", + "In Your vast compassion, have pity on us. Help us and guard us so that we will eat only human food and not animal food.", + "As a result, You will guard us and rescue us from every type of illness — particularly from the illness of fever,12The term kadachat seems to refer to glandular fever, a severe illness that was prevalent in Rebbe Nachman’s time. which comes either as a result of overeating — which corresponds to animal food — or as a result of eating food that has not yet been purified from being animal food.", + "Have compassion, You Who are filled with compassion. You know how many blemishes and stumbling blocks come about as a result of excessive eating and drinking, and how many illnesses result from this, may the Compassionate One protect us — particularly the illness of fever, which has now spread a great deal, may HaShem guard us from now on.", + "Have compassion on the entire Jewish people and on me. Guard me always so that from now on, I will carefully guard my soul by not overeating.", + "In Your compassion, shield me and guard me so I will not eat any food that has not yet been purified from being animal food. Rescue me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, from all types of illness, and from any type of blow, pain and discomfort — and particularly from the illness of fever.", + "Have compassion on all the Jewish people, on all who have had this fever, may the Compassionate One have pity and protect them (and particularly [Hebrew name], the son/ daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]). Swiftly send them a complete healing from Heaven, a healing of the soul and a healing of the body, among the other sick people of Israel.", + "A Healthy Sweat
In Your vast compassion, send them a good episode of sweating from Heaven, so that their minds will be set at rest and the energies of kindness and strictness, which are the power of fire and water within them, will blend together in proper balance,1When someone with a fever breaks out in a sweat, it is a sign that his illness is nearing its end. On the physical level, the flushing and chills of fever give way to a normal body temperature. On the Kabbalistic level, this corresponds to perfected da’at (knowledge, awareness) — which is the confluence of chesed (kindness) (associated with water and cooling) and gevurah (strictness) (associated with heat and burning). See Rebbe Nachman’s lesson in Likutey Moharan I, 263. no longer mixed and confused, so that one will no longer overcome the other.", + "In this way, rescue these individuals and all the Jewish people from too much coldness and heat, from the trembling of the limbs that comes from fever, may the Compassionate One protect us. May they recover completely and may their minds truly be set completely at ease.", + "May we, Your entire nation, the House of Israel, always learn Your Torah and serve You in truth, with complete knowledge, all the days of our lives, until we truly recognize You and serve You with a full heart and a calm mind, in holiness and purity, from now and forever.", + "You are the Guardian of Your nation, the Jewish people, forever. Guard us constantly from anything harmful, both in the material and spiritual realms. May the verse be realized in me, “HaShem will guard your going out and your coming in from now and forever.” Amen." + ], + [ + "Giving Charity to Worthy People
A person should ask God to keep him from giving charity to unworthy poor people. Instead, he should give generously to worthy poor people, with a good heart and a pleasant expression. As part of that, he should collect donations from other Jews to support poor people who engage in Torah study and prayer.
This rectifies the blemish to the covenant.
Giving Charity and Rectifying the Covenant
Elevated and holy God, You bring about mighty things, You make new things. Master of wars, You sow righteousness, You cause salvation to flower. You bring about righteous matters for all creatures of flesh and spirit.", + "Treat me with charity and kindness. Help me give a great deal of charity to worthy poor people. May this be a great rectification for me after my having infinitely blemished the covenant in contravention of Your will.", + "Master of the world, You know how much I have removed the flow of holiness from myself as a result of blemishing the covenant. I have misdirected the flow of holiness to places where it cannot be remembered, may the Compassionate One protect us. I caused blemishes impossible to imagine. The rectification for this is giving charity to worthy poor people, as a result of which the flow of abundance is again drawn to holiness.", + "Finding Worthy Recipients
But how does a person attain this? Due to the evil of my heart and my lack of trust and faith, obstacles that get in the way of performing the mitzvah of charity have increased a great deal.", + "Also, when I strengthen myself and break the cruelty in my heart and give charity, I do not know who is a truly worthy poor person through whom I will draw down the flow of the abundance of holiness in order to rectify the blemish of the covenant.", + "Therefore, I have come before You, Master of compassion, Master of charity and kindness, You Who make sure that no one will remain driven away from You, so that You will engage in my rectification at every moment. Have pity and mercy on me, and in Your vast compassion help me give a great deal of charity to truly worthy poor people who learn Torah and serve You in truth.", + "Guard me and rescue me so that I will not give charity to unworthy poor people. In Your compassion, You alone guard me against stumbling in this regard, Heaven forbid, for it is revealed and known to You that I do not have the awareness to be able to guard myself from them.", + "You alone know the hearts of all people and understand all their deeds. You know the secrets of the world and the secrets of every living being. Have pity and mercy on me and treat me in keeping with Your wondrous kindness. Bring about good at every moment by sending me truly worthy poor people through whom I may gain merit.", + "Help and strengthen my heart to give these people a great deal of charity, with a good heart and a pleasant expression. May I engage in much charity and kindness, and collect donations from Your nation, the Jewish people, to support poor people who engage in Torah study and prayer in truth.", + "Overcoming the Reluctance to Give Charity
You have informed us that no Jew is free of the obligation to give charity, not even the poor. But You know the hardness of our hearts, and how obstacles overwhelm us and confusions prevent even very wealthy people from giving charity until they leave this world, taking nothing with them.", + "How much more is this a challenge for people whose income is constricted, until many obstacles and difficulties stand in the way of their performing the mitzvah of charity, particularly to help worthy poor people.", + "I have no one on whom to rely but You, my Father in Heaven, with the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim, on whom I rely for everything. I have stretched my hands out to You. My eyes are turned to You alone.", + "You alone know how much I need to rectify the covenant that I have blemished so much, and I am very far from achieving any of this. But I trust in Your vast compassion and I believe that in Your kindness, You will help me rectify myself completely.", + "Save me so that I will give much charity to many worthy poor people. May I engage in charitable work, persuading my fellow children of Israel to always deposit a great deal of charity with me for the support of Jews who truly fear HaShem. As a result, may I attain rectification of the covenant completely and truly, and not be ashamed before You.", + "“HaShem will act on my behalf. HaShem, Your kindness is forever; do not forsake the work of Your hands.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen.", + "(I found the following in the manuscript of our Rabbi [Nachman], may his memory be for a blessing. (It is a précis on the topic of pidyon [see Likutey Moharan I, 180] with a short prayer at its conclusion, and it fits well here.)", + "Money — “and the possessions at their feet.”", + "“Justice was at his feet.”", + "“‘Justice’ is holy sovereignty.”", + "“The law (din) of the sovereignty is the law.”", + "The root of judgments (din) is [the sefirah of] Binah (Understanding). “I am understanding, mine is might (gevurah).” Judgment is sweetened only at its root.", + "There are three hands in Binah — the great hand, the strong hand, the upraised hand. Three times [the numerical value of the word] yad (hand) is the numerical value of the Forty-Two-Letter [Divine] Name. [The number] 42 in [the World of] Yetzirah is [significant as corresponding to] the [Divine] Name [formed by the acronym of the 42 words that comprise the prayer] of Ana BaKo’ach. [The number] 42 in [the World of] Beriah is [significant as having the numerical value of the Divine Name] EHeYeH doubled. [The number] 42 in [the World of] Atzilut is [significant as having the numerical value of the Divine Name] Havayah — i.e., the simple spelling, the expansion, and the expansion of the expansion.
May it be Your will that the judgments and harsh strictures against ([Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]) will be sweetened by means of the supernal wonder, which is the [entity of] great kindnesses and complete and simple compassion that has no admixture of judgment at all. Amen." + ] + ], + "Volume II": [ + [ + "Ruling Over the Angels / Rectifying the Mind on the Festivals / Rosh HaShanah: A Day Imbued with Atonement / A Baby Should Drink Spiritually Pure Milk / A Person Should Not Desire a Position of Leadership / One Should Not Consult Doctors But Draw Healing into His Food / Respecting Every Jew / Distinguishing Between True and False Leaders
God created each Jew to rule over the angels.
A person can do so when he connects himself to true Tzaddikim, who are the root of all Jewish souls. That root is higher than the angels.
Because Jews have the power to attain this goal, the angels are jealous of them.
Therefore, at times they treat Jews harshly — particularly those who are weak, impoverished and blemished, who have been enticed by the fire of passions since their youth.
*
On Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot, a person can rectify the three realms of consciousness: wisdom, understanding and knowledge. As a result, he can nullify the three cardinal evil desires, as follows: on Pesach, he nullifies the lust for money; on Shavuot, he nullifies the lust for sexual relations; and on Sukkot, he nullifies the lust for eating.
*
If a baby suckles from an unworthy nursemaid, that contaminates his blood and later on strengthens the heat of the lust for sensuality.
A person should purify his heart of that blemish and, in addition, pray that all Jewish babies have worthy nursemaids so they will not imbibe that lust with their milk.
*
A person should not desire any official position.
*
No doctor in the world can heal any disease. In fact, with their remedies, doctors kill many people every hour, whether unintentionally or intentionally. Therefore, a person should stay far away from them.
Healing results only from the word of HaShem, which comes in response to prayer — particularly the prayers of the Tzaddikim.
The word of HaShem, which is the root of all creation, comes to the Tzaddik who is called the “master of prayer.” It then passes on to the angels, and proceeds from them through the constellations to medicinal plants.
The healing powers of all these herbs should be absorbed into a person’s prayers. He should strive to draw down healing by means of the word of HaShem so that it will enter into his food and drink.
*
A person should never insult any Jew in the world. He should believe with complete faith in every Jew, even one who is base and dishonorable, for each Jew is precious in God’s eyes.
*
A person must distinguish between true Tzaddikim and false leaders, men whose status is only due to shamelessness.
In the merit of the prayers of the true Tzaddikim, that shamelessness is eradicated.
*
On Creation’s first Rosh Chodesh (New Moon) of Tishrei, God diminished the moon. That act created the dynamic that made possible all transgression. Every year on that day, God Himself seeks atonement, as it were, for having done so.
Since this day is imbued with the energy of atonement and forgiveness, God therefore chose it for Rosh HaShanah, the Day of Judgment.
Ruling Over the Angels
Lord of all, Ruler of all, You created Your nation, the Jewish people, to attain the true, eternal, ultimate goal of ruling over the angels. For the ultimate goal of each Jew, the purpose for which he was created, is to rule over the angels.", + "And now, “my Father, see; indeed, see” how far I am from reaching this goal — indeed, I am at the opposite extreme. Not only have I not attained this goal, but I have corrupted my deeds and undermined my goodness and holiness.", + "I have transgressed, sinned and been rebellious before You, and every time I have added sin to rebellion, day after day and year after year, until not one day of my entire life has passed without my committing many sins and blemishes, great and small.", + "My sins have increased so much that they are more than the sand of the sea, the dust of the earth and the drops of the ocean. They are more than the hairs of my head and beyond the breaths of my nostrils. I do not know how I can live for even a single hour because of the great bitterness that my many sins have caused me.", + "Woe! What have I done? When I remember, I am set aback. “I have become confused as a result of hearing, frightened as a result of seeing. My heart strays, fright terrifies me; He has turned the evening that I longed for into trembling.” “While the king was still at his table, my spikenard gave forth its scent.”14That is, when God’s Presence was still at Mount Sinai, I sinned with the golden calf.
What shall I say? How shall I speak? How will I justify myself? Many times, I poured forth words like these before You, God, Who investigates a person’s innards, and still I have not truly aroused myself to return to You properly.", + "In truth, I know, HaShem my God, that my complaint is not against You, Heaven forbid, but against myself and my soul. I did all of this to myself. The sin is in me, my Master. The King and His throne are blameless.", + "Still, I thought that I would place these words of mine before You. Perhaps I will now find grace and kindness in Your eyes, so that You will treat me in accordance with the greatness of Your awesome wonders, and You will dig a tunnel from under the throne of Your glory and truly bring me back to You in complete repentance, with a full heart.", + "From now on, may I truly pursue the goal for which I was created, until I will attain it.", + "Master of the world, Master of the entire world, You know all hidden things. You gaze to the end of all generations. You know the great jealousy of the angels toward us because we have the power to reach this ultimate goal and rule over them.", + "This particularly applies to weak Jews such as myself, people who are poor and impoverished, blemished and ruined, who have been enticed and inflamed by the fire of passions since their youth — “for the inclination of the heart of the man is evil from his youth.”", + "In our great foolishness, we did not have pity on our souls to be wise and overcome these lusts, and so all of these evil desires became second nature.", + "As a result, we committed a number of errors, sins and transgressions, unintentionally or intentionally, under duress or willingly — and every individual knows the pains of his heart and the pains of his soul — until our sins overwhelmed us, like a burden that is too heavy for us.", + "And now, what shall we do? How shall we act? We do not know of any way and we have no counsel on how to overcome all of these evil desires that we have grown so accustomed to.", + "Visitors in This World
HaShem, what shall we do? HaShem, where shall we flee? My Master, we are visitors in this world for a very short time, “like a passing shadow and like flying dust.” What will we reply to the One Who sent us? What will we do on the day of visitation? “What shall I do when God arises; when He visits, how shall I respond to Him?”", + "Master of the world, “Your throne is long established; You exist eternally.” “Your testimonies are very faithful to Your House, the dwelling place of holiness, HaShem, for length of days.”", + "You are filled with compassion, and You alone judge every individual positively — even the lowest and least worthy Jew.", + "You alone know the situation of every individual from beginning to end — how he was born, how he came to this world, and what place he has inhabited, physically and spiritually.", + "Overcoming the Great Heat
A great heat of desire for sexual relations has entered into a number of Jews, because when they were babies, they nursed from unworthy women. Indeed, “in sin I was formed and in transgression my mother conceived me.”", + "A deep sea of many evil musings and thoughts has engulfed us. Our hearts are overwhelmed. We stumble, and no one is there to help.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who are good and do good to everyone, bad or good — in Your vast compassion, give us the strength from this moment on to attain the true goal of ruling over the angels.", + "Give us the power to retain this rule, so that it will last forever. Help us and give us knowledge, so that we will grasp the throne of Your glory, which is composed of the roots of the souls of Israel.", + "For the Three Festivals
Honoring the Festivals
In Your vast compassion, help us keep the fear of God in our hearts. Help us celebrate the Three Festivals of Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot with great and intense joy and gladness, with fear, with love, and with the greatest holiness and purity, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May we honor the festivals with every sort of honor and delight: with eating and drinking, delicacies and fine garments, and with focused prayer, great joy and a powerful awakening.", + "Help us draw great and new awareness upon ourselves on every single one of the Three Festivals.", + "Rectification for the Three Evil Desires
By means of the Three Festivals, may we rectify and renew all three states of consciousness in the three hollows of the skull, which are wisdom, understanding and knowledge.", + "As a result, may we break and nullify all three evil desires — the lust for money, the lust for sexual relations, and the lust for eating — which have polluted us, and through which we lost what we lost and came to what we came to.", + "Please, HaShem, have pity and mercy on us, on our souls, on our children and babies, and on all those who rely on us. Have mercy on Your honor.", + "Help us from this moment on. Strengthen us and give us the joy of holiness, so that a great power of holiness and strength will be drawn onto us, until we quickly break and nullify these three desires.", + "May we draw the knowledge of holiness into our hearts through the holiness of the Three Festivals. As a result, may we rectify our hearts, nullifying these three desires, so that they leave no impression whatsoever.", + "Help us celebrate the festival of Pesach, the time of our freedom, with great holiness. As a result, may we draw energy down from our consciousness and intellect to break our lust for money.", + "And in the merit of the holiness of the festival of Shavuot, help us draw energy down from our consciousness and intellect to break our lust for sexual relations.", + "And in the merit of the holiness of the festival of Sukkot, the festival of ingathering, help us draw energy down from our consciousness and intellect to break our lust for eating.", + "Please, HaShem, have pity and mercy on us. Compassionately fulfill our requests in order to help us. In Your vast compassion, You revealed to us this good, holy counsel on how we may be rescued from all evil. You gave us good and straight advice to break all three cardinal desires by means of celebrating the Three Festivals with proper holiness.", + "But You know the evil of our hearts, the stiffness of our necks, the confusion and turbulence of our minds, and our excessive weakness, which makes this advice hard for us to keep.", + "No one knows of any way or stratagem as to how we may celebrate these Three Festivals properly — because, as is revealed before You, Lord of all, we are so far from the holiness of the Three Festivals.", + "We have blemished Your entire holy Torah — particularly the holiness and joy of the Shabbat and festivals. Moreover, we caused a great deal of harm in the Three Festivals themselves.", + "Please, HaShem, inform us of Your ways so that we may know how to find favor in Your eyes and how to act when we make requests of You, so that we will come close to You and keep all of the good, true advice that You revealed to us through Your true Tzaddikim, until we will return to You in truth and with a full heart.", + "Have pity and mercy on us. May Your compassion be stirred and moved on our behalf. Compassionate King, have compassion on us. You Who are good and do good, be receptive to us. Return to us in Your great compassion for the sake of the forefathers who did Your will.", + "In Your vast compassion, purify us and be gracious to us so that we all will celebrate all Three Festivals with great, mighty and infinite joy and gladness. Help us truly attain the joy of the festivals, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Have pity and mercy on us because we do not know any way to attain the joy of the festivals other than with Your great power alone.", + "“Sanctify us with Your commandments and give us our portion in Your Torah. Satiate us with Your goodness. Give us joy in Your salvation and purify our heart to truly serve You.”", + "HaShem our God, grant us Your holy times in joy and delight, until in the merit and power of the holiness of the Three Festivals, we break and nullify all three evil desires — the lust for money, the lust for sexual relations and the lust for eating.", + "May we be truly holy and pure. Bring us out from dimness to brightness, from darkness to a great light. May we draw holy awareness into the heart, to rectify and purify it from these three lusts.", + "May the verse be realized in me, “You shall know today and consider in your heart that HaShem is God in Heaven above and on the earth below — there is no other.”", + "Purify Our Contaminated Blood
In Your vast compassion, save us by rectifying and purifying our blood. May we subdue the blood in the left hollow of the heart.", + "Help us purify and cleanse our heart from the blemish of the poisonous contamination of the blood that is within us since infancy, because of the contaminated, bad milk that we nursed at that time. This contaminated milk strengthens the heat of the lust for sexual relations, Heaven forbid.", + "Please, HaShem, purify us so that we will rectify and purify all of this quickly, until we will break the lust for sexual relations entirely. May we merit true holiness of the covenant.", + "Have compassion on us and on our youngsters and babies, and on all the children of Your nation, the House of Israel. In Your vast compassion, see to it that all our children have worthy nursemaids whose milk is pure and worthy.", + "Guard and rescue all our children so that they will not nurse from shameless women whose milk is impure, so that they will not draw the venom of the lust for sexual relations into themselves, Heaven forbid. In truth, we do not have the knowledge to guard our children from this. In Your compassion, guard our children so that they will not nurse from milk that is not good and pure.", + "Help us and our children always so that all of us — we and our children — will truly guard the holy covenant, and rectify and purify ourselves from these three traits that we have mentioned before You.", + "In this way, may we preserve the complete fear of God in our hearts. May we soon see Jerusalem rebuilt, where we will serve You as in ancient days, fearing You always and fearing the honored and awesome Name of HaShem our God.", + "Fear and Thanks
May we serve You in awe and fear, and thank Your Name always, until as a result of the complete fear in our hearts, we will create an angel that will pour prophecy into the instruments of prophecy, and prophecy will be drawn down into the world, so that the verse will be realized, “Your sons and daughters will prophesy.”", + "Avoiding Official Positions
Guard us and rescue us from desiring any official position whatsoever, whether great or small. Do not make us responsible for any public needs.", + "May we just serve You in truth, in fear and in love, with wholehearted simplicity, for Your sake and Name only, without any ulterior motives or foreign thoughts. May we flee from honor and official positions, and remove ourselves as far as possible from official positions.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on us. Have pity and mercy on our days and our years. Send the goodness that comes from Your true good. Help us pray wholeheartedly.", + "Prayer from the Heart
May we recite all our prayers before You with all our heart and soul. May we never disdain prayer, which stands at the height of the world. May our prayer never be routine, but always a plea for compassion. And may our prayer never appear to us as a burden, Heaven forbid.", + "In Your vast compassion, help us strengthen, encourage and fortify ourselves in every way to pray to You with all our heart, truly and properly.", + "Our Father in Heaven, You know how hard it is for us open our mouths to pray. Our prayers are very flawed. In Your great compassion, have pity on us. Help us redeem our prayers from the great and bitter exile that has befallen us now because of our many sins.", + "Have pity and mercy, have pity and compassion, have pity and save us quickly for the sake of Your Name alone, for Your sake and not for our sake. Open the mouth of a mute person such as I am. “God, open my lips and my mouth will speak Your praise.” Prepare my heart. Listen to me.", + "You are filled with compassion. You are in the midst of the praises of Israel. Help us so that our prayers will always be smooth in our mouths. May the verse be realized, “He creates the speech of the lips. ‘Peace, peace to the far and to the near,’ says HaShem, ‘and I will heal him.’”", + "Healing with Bread and Water
May the power of our prayer subdue, overcome, break and nullify all the natural remedies of the doctors. May the truth be revealed that no doctor in the world knows how to cure any disease.", + "Rather, all remedies come about only due to the word of HaShem, by means of the prayers, requests and pleas of the Tzaddikim, the masters of prayer, who pray for the Jewish people and appease You, and draw remedies into the world.", + "All the medicinal herbs and drugs, and all the stars and constellations appointed over them, receive their power from the angels over them, and those angels receive their power from higher angels, and all of them receive and borrow from one another, one from the other, higher and higher.", + "They all receive power from the great lender, the master of prayer, who attains the word of HaShem, which is the root of all creation from beginning to end. As the verse states, “By the word of HaShem were the heavens made, and by the breath of His mouth all of their host.”", + "Therefore, it is only possible to draw remedies into the world by means of prayer and pleading. Help us know this in utter truth and with complete faith. In Your vast compassion, help us draw down and receive all remedies, for ourselves and for Your entire nation, the Jewish people, by means of the word of HaShem in prayer alone.", + "Help us and save us so that we will draw down all the power of all of the remedies into everything in the world: into bread and water, and into everything that You bring us to eat and drink.", + "However matters may be, may the power and effect of all herbs and drugs be drawn into us, until we will experience a complete remedy at every moment that we need it by means of bread and water alone. May the verse be realized in us, “I will bless your bread and your water, and I will remove illness from your midst.”", + "In Your compassion, heal all of our 248 limbs and 365 sinews completely, in body and soul. You alone know all of our pains and diseases — those that are revealed to us and those that are hidden from us.", + "Praying for the Children of Tzaddikim
Please, HaShem, heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed. Save us and we will be saved, for You are our praise. Send complete healing to all of our illnesses, to all of our pains and to all of our wounds (here one should pray on behalf of the children of the Tzaddikim who have had trouble raising their children, may the Compassionate One protect us), (and in particular, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [father’s Hebrew name]).", + "Please, God, please heal him completely. Give him a long and good life. May he live long days and years with goodness and pleasantness. Heal him and revive him.", + "May his father and mother raise him in ease and joy to learn Torah, get married and perform good deeds, for length of good days and years. May they see his children and grandchildren involved in the Torah and its commandments.", + "Master of the entire world, have pity and mercy on them, on us and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people, Your holy nation whom You have chosen. Put an end to their troubles, for they have suffered too much in raising their children.", + "Please, HaShem, have pity, mercy and compassion on them and on us and our remnants. Please be moved in all Your inner being and compassion for their burning blood, their suffering, groaning, sighing, and the extinguishing of [the light of] their eyes that they experience every day and at every moment.", + "Their eyes are raised to You alone. “Behold, like the eyes of servants to the hand of their master, like the eyes of the maidservant to the hand of her mistress,” so do their eyes turn to HaShem their God until You will be gracious to them. Heal, make well, help recuperate and revive this son of theirs for whom we have prayed, so that he will not experience any disease, pain or discomfort.", + "In Your vast compassion and mighty kindness, may his parents raise him in comfort, peace and tranquility for many good days and years. Have compassion on them for the sake of Your Name, for HaShem never agreed to erase the name of Israel, Heaven forbid. Your Name is partnered with our name, and You have promised to stand up and help us always.", + "Master of the world, You know that we lack the power and wisdom to beseech and appease You about this.", + "In truth, it would be fitting for us to always fall on our faces and prostrate ourselves to the dust of the earth, never resting by day or lying down at night, never falling silent or being quiet before You, but begging You always to have compassion on their holy offspring — on each and every one — to heal them completely, for all of them have borne great and terrible sufferings.", + "Who understands Your wondrous might and wondrous ways? And who will question Your traits? You are righteous, HaShem, and Your judgments are straight. But these people have received too much hardship and suffering. “May He Who says to His world, ‘Enough!’ say to their troubles, ‘Enough!’”", + "Have pity and mercy on them and on us. You Yourself pray for them, as it were. May they all live. We do not have the knowledge and wisdom to pray for them. May You alone, in Your vast compassion, always pray on their behalf and bless them, so they may live.", + "Add days to their days, years of life. May they see their children live long days of goodness and years of pleasantness. May they have children and grandchildren, generations upon generations, until the end of all generations, forever and ever.", + "Redemption from the Three Evil Enslavements
Have compassion on us, mighty Redeemer. Redeem us quickly from the three evil enslavements of idolatry, sexual immorality and bloodshed.", + "Always guard us and rescue us from the blemish of idolatry, which is a flaw in faith. May no foreign thoughts or confusion enter our hearts in any way whatsoever in matters that touch upon Your holy faith.", + "In Your great kindness, have compassion on us. Pour Your holy faith upon us. Plant and establish in our hearts complete and upright, pure and clean faith, holy and cleansed of all dross and trash, so that no blemish will affect our faith in You.", + "You are filled with compassion, kindness, beneficent will and goodness. Master of truth and faith, give us the gift of kindness and holy faith. May no challenges, confusions or inquiries in matters of holy faith enter our hearts.", + "May we truly attain complete and upright faith in accordance with Your good will. Bring us out from dimness to brightness, from darkness to a great light, from slavery to freedom, from blemished faith to complete, true faith.", + "Have compassion on us. Redeem us from the burdensome, heavy and bitter enslavement to the lust for sexual relations.", + "The exile and enslavement of this evil and bitter lust endures and overwhelms us at every moment, until it embitters our lives with harsh enslavement and makes us work with crushing labor, as You know, for You know the pains of everyone’s hearts.", + "For our many sins, “my life is worn away with grief and my years with sighing, my strength buckles under and my bones have decayed.” “He subjugated my heart with toil; I stumbled and there was none to help.”", + "You are my Father, my Master, my Maker and my Creator, my King and my Holy One, my Redeemer. You look upon the wicked person and desire that he will become righteous. You truly desire my good. You consider ways so that no one will remain driven away from You. Have compassion on me in Your great mercy, and take me out of enslavement to freedom.", + "“Be gracious to me, HaShem. See the suffering that my enemies have imposed upon me, You Who lift me up from the gates of death.” Redeem me from the pit. Redeem me from death. Take me out of the house of slavery.", + "Redeem me from these three enslavements. Rescue me from blemished faith, from the blemished covenant, and from disgrace among people.", + "Forgiveness for Insulting Others
Guard me and rescue me so that I will not insult anyone in the world, and I will obey the words of our sages, as they cautioned, “Do not disdain anyone.”", + "Save me and help me to always be careful not to spill blood, not to insult or shame any Jew in the world, and not to cause the face of my companions to grow pale, Heaven forbid.", + "Please, HaShem, guard me and rescue me from the blemishes that I have brought about in this area since my youth. I shamed the faces of my friends and teachers and made them grow pale, unintentionally or purposefully, under duress or willingly.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, help me rectify all this quickly.", + "In Your compassion, arrange the circumstances favorably so that I may I meet all the people whom I shamed or whose honor I damaged, and may I appease them. In Your compassion, inspire their hearts to truly forgive me completely, until no impression or resentment whatsoever remains in their hearts.", + "And if some of them have died, or if at times I insulted people who had already died — and how much more if, for my many sins, I insulted sages, Tzaddikim and worthy people who had already died — please, HaShem, true Compassionate One, I request their forgiveness, pardon and atonement. My transgression, sin and iniquity stand before You and before them. I damaged Your honor.", + "I sinned against the God of Israel and a number of Tzaddikim, sages and worthy people. I impugned their honor — some in their lifetime and others after their death. I spoke up against them and their holy bones. May they forgive me.", + "HaShem, please forgive me. Pardon me. Grant me atonement. Inspire all the Tzaddikim, sages, worthy people and others whose reputations I tarnished — in their lifetime or after their death, great or small — to forgive and pardon the sin of Your servant who wronged them.", + "May they return to me and be compassionate to me. May they petition You, supernal God, on my behalf, and always seek my good before Your throne of glory. May they seek compassion for me and stand at my side to redeem me and rescue me from all evil.", + "May I succeed in gaining complete repentance before You. May I stand among the true Tzaddikim forever. May my portion be with them after I leave this world.", + "Master of the world, You are filled with great compassion. Compassionate Father, fulfill my requests with compassion. Teach me what I should say. Lead me to understand what I should request. Help me and redeem me from these three enslavements.", + "Help me attain complete, holy faith and rectification of the covenant, and may I honor people and not insult anyone in the world from now on. Even in my thoughts, may I not disdain anyone in the world.", + "May I believe with complete faith in every person in the world, even the most base and dishonorable Jew. All of them are very important and precious in Your eyes, HaShem, and all of them are ready and worthy to receive all goodness, honor and greatness in the world, and are capable of attaining all levels, materially and spiritually, in this world and the World to Come.", + "When we rectify these three traits, may we attain the perfection of prayer. Help us pray before You properly, with ultimate perfection, until we draw complete healing to ourselves, to our children and to Your entire nation, the House of Israel (and in particular to [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [father’s Hebrew name]), because You are the faithful and compassionate God, King and Healer.", + "Complete Healing from God
As a result of our prayers, may all the grasses and vegetation of the field collectively pour their power into the words of our prayer, which is the word of HaShem, may He be blessed, their supernal root.", + "May all the healing powers of all the herbs and drugs in the world be absorbed into our prayers. May our prayers attain great perfection, composed as they are of all the goodness of all the powers of all the grasses and vegetation of the field.", + "May we raise all of them before You as a pleasing fragrance, to return them to their supernal root by means of our prayer, which is composed of all of them.", + "By means of that, may we draw the powers of all remedies into bread and water and into everything else that we eat and drink, until we attain complete healing for all our diseases and all our pains — by means of all things in the world, without any physicians or doctors at all.", + "Only You Yourself, in Your glory, will heal us completely, as in the verse, “I, HaShem, am your Healer.”", + "May we receive complete healing from You when a disease flowers but while it is still hidden within us so that we do not know about it at all — for You alone know all the hidden things within us.", + "In Your vast compassion, have compassion on us. Send the healing before the wound. Heal us before the disease flowers and some discomfort begins, Heaven forbid. In Your compassion, heal us from all this.", + "No one knows of any counsel, strategy or cure for any illness, wound or pain — whether the illness is hidden or revealed, Heaven forbid. We have no hope of healing from any of them in a natural way.", + "We know and believe with complete faith that none of the remedies of any of the doctors work. Indeed, they are all idolatrous physicians, worthless, acting in vain. They do not help or rescue, because they are nothing.", + "We rely on You alone. We hope for Your healing, for You are a kind and compassionate, faithful, true and generous Healer.", + "Help, save and protect us. Always keep us far from physicians and doctors. Subdue and cast down all doctors with all their remedies, for You know that they damage the world a great deal. They kill many people every day and every hour, whether unintentionally or intentionally.", + "Rescue us from them, our Father in Heaven. Guard us from them, as well as our children, our grandchildren and all the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever.", + "Help us receive all healing in the world by means of prayer alone. May the truth be revealed that the only remedies in the world come about solely through prayer.", + "May we realize the verse, “And He said, ‘If you listen to the voice of HaShem your God and do that which is upright in His eyes, and listen to His commandments and guard all His laws, then all the disease that I placed in Egypt I will not place on you, for I am HaShem your Healer.’”", + "Finding Favor
In Your vast compassion, cause the horn of David Your servant to flourish very soon. Quickly redeem us. May the spark of the Mashiach shine in the world. Awaken the heart of the Mashiach, the son of David, Your servant, to receive our prayers and raise them as a pleasing fragrance before the throne of Your glory.", + "All of the prayers, with all of the good fragrance of all the vegetation of the field included in them, are included in “the spirit of our nostrils, the Mashiach of HaShem.” May they all rise as a pleasing fragrance before You.", + "Quickly redeem us by means of our righteous Mashiach. “Come, let him come, may he not tarry.” May he redeem us with an eternal redemption, quickly and easily.", + "Have compassion on us and give us favor in the eyes of all who see us. May we find favor in the eyes of God and man, and in the eyes of all the angels and ministers, above and below. May they all have compassion on us, and may we find favor in the eyes of all.", + "Recognizing True Leaders
In Your vast compassion, save us and help us so that we will recognize all the well-known Jewish leaders in the world, and know how to distinguish between good and evil.", + "May we know who the true Tzaddikim are and who the false leaders are — men whose greatness is due only to brazenness, which is sovereignty without a crown.", + "May we attain perfected prayer on all levels. In the merit and power of the prayers of the true Tzaddikim, who are the root of all, from whom everyone receives his energy, may the brazenness of all the well-known, false leaders be eradicated and cast down.", + "May they all bow and fall before the prayer of the true Tzaddikim. May they not be able to raise their heads against them or against those who rely on them and are supported by them in truth.", + "May we always know the truth and truly connect ourselves to all the true Tzaddikim, who are the roots of the souls of all Israel, beneath whom all souls are divided, until we can truly connect ourselves to and grasp all the roots of the souls of Your nation, the House of Israel, which are carved from beneath Your throne of glory.", + "Dominion Over the Angels
In this way, may we rule over the angels and maintain our rule over them with power and strength forever and ever. May they never cast us down, for You are elevated forever, HaShem, and Your hand is forever on the ascendancy, and You help those without power. “In Your hand is power and might, and You have the power to enhance and strengthen everything.”", + "“You are He, HaShem, alone; You made the heavens, the heavens of heavens and all their host, the earth and everything on it, the seas and everything in them. You give life to them all, and the host of Heaven bows to You.” “And in Your favor, You raise our horn.”", + "Who will say to You, “What are You doing?” You alone created us so that we might reach the goal of ruling over the angels.", + "In Your vast compassion, help us fulfill Your good will and complete Your supernal intent, so that we will quickly return to You with complete penitence. May we break all evil lusts, idolatries and evil traits, until we attain perfected prayer and serve You wholeheartedly and truly, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May we arrive quickly at the goal of ruling over the angels. May our rule be established forever — because it is for this that we were created.", + "For Rosh HaShanah
The Gift of Rosh HaShanah
In Your vast compassion and mighty kindness, have compassion on us so that we will celebrate Rosh HaShanah with great holiness and purity, with fear and love, with great joy and gladness. ", + "In Your compassion, You chose us from all the nations and sanctified us with Your commandments. In doing so, You did us a great kindness. You gave us this good gift, the holy Rosh HaShanah, a holy and awesome day on which Your sovereignty is elevated and Your throne is established with kindness, and You truly sit upon it.", + "In Your vast compassion and mighty kindness, You established the great and holy Rosh HaShanah, the great and awesome Day of Judgment, on Rosh Chodesh Tishrei.", + "That is a great and wondrous kindness that You gave us, Master of kindness and compassion. You consider from afar how to ultimately bring us goodness. You are good and do good for both wicked people and good people. You created the remedy and balm before we suffered any wounds.", + "You know that we are flesh and blood, carved from clay. We were created in sin and in transgression our mothers conceived us, and “the inclination of the heart of man is evil from his youth.” “There is no righteous man in the earth who does good and does not transgress.” But we are puny in worth, lowly in stature, weak in strength, burdened in spirit, infants who have not seen the light, smeared with the sins of their youth, filled with transgression, sin and iniquity.", + "If not for Your mighty and awesome compassion and kindness, we would not have any hope at all, Heaven forbid. How will we open our mouths and how will we lift our eyes? How can we come before You with our transgressions and brazenly stiffen our necks in order to confess before You, our God and God of our fathers, and express contrition for our deeds and sins?", + "But Your kindness is vast. “HaShem, Your kindness fills the earth.” “The kindness of HaShem has not ceased, for Your compassion has not been exhausted,” even after “the mountains will depart and the hills totter.” Your kindness will never leave us, no matter what we have done.", + "Therefore, You revealed to us as from afar the mighty wonders of Your great, infinite and unlimited, intense, vast and awesome kindness.", + "You established for us the holy day of Rosh HaShanah, the great and awesome Day of Judgment, on Rosh Chodesh, a day when You Yourself seek atonement, as it were. As our sages related, You Yourself said, “Bring an atonement on My behalf, because I diminished the moon.”", + "You Yourself regret, so to speak, Your deeds, in that that You diminished the moon, from which all of our transgressions are drawn.", + "Therefore, You gave us a means to come and confess before You and regret our deeds on the great Day of Judgment, Rosh HaShanah, because at that time You Yourself express regret and seek atonement.", + "Therefore, we have come before You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, God of kindness and compassion. In Your vast compassion and mighty kindness, help us receive this great kindness on the holy Rosh HaShanah, which comes to us for the good.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us celebrate Rosh HaShanah with great holiness.", + "In these generations before the coming of the Mashiach, You know that our only hope is in the gathering together of Jews in all Jewish communities on the holy Rosh HaShanah.", + "Standing Before God Alone
You know hidden things. You investigate hearts. Master of kindness, You are filled with compassion. Teach us and instruct us how to draw Your great kindness onto ourselves, so that we will truly return to You with a full heart.", + "We transgressed, sinned and were rebellious before You a great deal. We blemished Your glory a great deal. We followed after the lusts of our hearts and drew the evil inclination onto ourselves, and spoiled that which we spoiled, until we have no one to speak on our behalf and no merit according to the law of holy judgment.", + "Thus we have come before You to petition Your countenance and prostrate ourselves before the compassion of Your throne of glory. We lift our eyes to You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, so that You will act for the sake of Your simple compassion and kindness, and sit at our judgment, “for judgment belongs to God.”", + "Do not give power or authority to any human being in the world, or to any court, Heavenly or earthly, or to any angel or seraph, or to any created being in the world, to judge us, Heaven forbid. “Far be it from You to do such a thing.”", + "Rather, judge us Yourself, in Your vast compassion and great kindness. “From before You may our judgment go forth; may Your eyes see [our] upright acts.”", + "You alone know our place, for You are the Place of the world and the world is not Your place. Only You know how to always judge all of us favorably. “Your compassion is abundant, HaShem. Give me life in accordance with Your custom.”", + "You know the place of each and every Jew: how he was born, how his soul was drawn into this world, and where he has been, materially and spiritually, from his birth to this day. You are filled with compassion, and tend toward kindness always.", + "Our Father in Heaven, You are truly compassionate and kind. Have mercy on us at this time of trouble, when “children have come to be born, but there is no strength to bring them forth.” Treat us with Your generous kindness, which is not lacking in any way. From now on, may we truly be in accordance with Your will, turning aside from evil and always doing that which is good in Your eyes.", + "In Your vast compassion, always draw the holiness of Rosh HaShanah onto us. Forgive us and pardon us for all our iniquities, transgressions and sins.", + "Fill the blemish of the moon. May it never be diminished. May the light of the moon be like the light of the sun, like the light of the seven days of Creation, as it was before it was diminished.", + "Help us grasp the throne of glory, the roots of the souls of Israel, until we have the power to make Rosh HaShanah, to always draw and illumine the holiness of Rosh HaShanah onto ourselves and onto all the Jewish people.", + "Judging People Favorably
May we always judge every person favorably and move the entire world to the side of merit, to grant merit to everyone on his level.", + "May we truly know the place of every member of Israel, Your holy, chosen nation, and draw merit, kindness and compassion onto each and every one — even the lowest and the least worthy. Open the light of knowledge for us so that we may find merit in all of them.", + "Have compassion on us. Always guard us and rescue us so that we will not speak badly about any Jew in the world, Heaven forbid.", + "In Your compassion, rescue us from the slightest trace of gossip. May we not even begin to judge any Jew negatively, Heaven forbid, but may we always judge everyone favorably.", + "May we impel ourselves with all our might to find merit, kindness and goodness in every individual — even someone on the lowest level, the basest and least worthy — and always bring everything to the side of merit.", + "God Can Elevate Us
You are filled with compassion. Compassionately fulfill our requests for the good. Fulfill all of our desires and requests for a good outcome, swiftly, easily and quickly.", + "Take pride in Your entire nation, the Jewish people, forever, from the greatest to the smallest, for they are all precious and beloved as the apple of Your eye, and everything is in Your hand.", + "“You can do everything and no design is withheld from You.” We are lowly, base, unworthy, crushed and oppressed, and far from You because of our many serious sins and transgressions.", + "Nevertheless, You can elevate us and raise us, draw holiness and purity onto us, and cause us to repent fully before You and serve You in truth, until we attain everything that we have requested from You.", + "“He raises the poor man from the dust, He lifts the impoverished man from the ash heap, to seat [him] with the princes, with the princes of His nation.” You cast down the haughty and elevate the lowly.", + "You are filled with compassion for us and for all the Jewish people, always and at every moment. You alone do great wonders, for Your kindness is forever.", + "You “do great things beyond comprehension and wonders without number.” “There is none as holy as HaShem, for there is none besides You, and there is no Rock like our God.” “HaShem kills and gives life, He brings down to Sheol and raises up. HaShem impoverishes and makes rich; He humbles, He also elevates.”", + "“He raises the poor man from the dust, He lifts the impoverished man from the ash heap, to seat [him] with the princes, and He gives them a throne of glory as an inheritance, for the pillars of the earth are HaShem’s, and He places the world upon them. He will guard the feet of His pious ones, and the wicked will be cut off in darkness, for a man will not prevail with might. Those who fight against HaShem will be broken; He will thunder upon them in Heaven. HaShem will judge the ends of the earth, and He will give might to His king and elevate the horn of His anointed one.”", + "“More than the sounds of the mighty waters, more than the mightiest breakers of the sea, is HaShem, mighty in the heights. Your testimonies are very faithful for Your house, the dwelling place of holiness, HaShem, for length of days.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen. So may it be His will." + ], + [ + "Finding a Worthy Marriage Partner / Giving Charity and Overcoming the Heart’s Cruelty / Nullifying Gentile Languages / The Joy of the Shabbat / Learning Torah Laws is the Joy of the World to Come / The Power to Change Nature
A person should ask God to help his children find worthy marriage partners. And he should ask God to help him give charity until he nullifies the cruelty in his heart so that he is no longer considered animal but human — that is to say, someone who has compassion.
More generally, a Jew should attain the perfection of the Holy Tongue, which is connected to the Shabbat — the speech of truth that comprises blessing and holiness. He should nullify the gentile tongues, as part of which he should not learn gentile languages.
On the Shabbat, no worry, depression or worry should trouble a person’s heart. He should then draw the holiness of the Shabbat into the six days of the week, until he is joyful on the weekdays and God’s simple unity is revealed.
Also, as a result of learning the laws of the Torah, a person attains the delight of the World to Come, which is the knowledge of God.
And until the Mashiach comes, a person should ask God to make the world act in accordance with His will, nullifying all the harsh decrees that non- Jews have decreed against Jews — whether before or after the decree. He should ask God to transmit His power into the hand of the Jews, so that we will possess God’s power to change nature and guide the world.
Thanking God is the Delight of the World to Come
“It is good to give thanks to HaShem and to sing to Your supernal Name.” “I will bless HaShem at all times; His praise is always in my mouth.” “I will thank HaShem with all my heart, with the counsel of the upright and in the congregation.” “May my mouth be filled with Your praise, the entire day with Your glory.” “May my mouth speak the praise of HaShem, and all flesh bless His holy Name forever and ever.” “We will bless God from now and forever; bless God.”", + "Master of the world, filled with goodness, help me thank You. Help me and save me. May I attain the true goodness of the delight of the World to Come, which consists of giving thanks to Your great and holy Name.", + "Every day, may I recite many blessings, thanksgivings, songs and praises to Your great and holy Name.", + "May I thank You and bless You for all of the kindnesses, favors, miracles and wonders that You have done with me from my birth until this day; for Your miracles [that You did] for us every day, and for Your wonders and favors every moment — evening, morning and noon.", + "“With what will I come before God, bow before the Most High God?” Who will beautify, who will glorify, who will praise, who will speak, who will exalt, who will tell a thousandth and ten-thousandth of the favors, miracles and wonders that You have done for our forefathers and for us?", + "All the rams of Nevayot15This Talmudic expression (Bava Kama 92b) is based on the verse in Isaiah 60:7. would not suffice to explain a single point, like a drop in the ocean, of the multitude of great and awesome favors, miracles and wonders that You have done for us, for each and every Jew specifically.", + "You took us out of all the contamination and pollution, and in Your compassion, You brought us close to Your great and holy Name, and brought us into the holiness of the people of Israel.", + "You perform great and awesome actions every day. You conceive thoughts so that we will be able to come close to serve You, so as to attain true and eternal life.", + "Your kindness to us is great. You rescued our souls from the lowest level of Sheol. If HaShem had not helped us, our souls would almost have dwelled in silence. What shall we say? How shall we speak? How shall we reply to HaShem for His kindness to us?", + "“If our mouths were filled with song like the sea, and our tongues with melody like the multitude of its waves, and our lips with praise like the expanse of the firmament, and if our eyes shone like the sun and like the moon, and if our hands were stretched out like the eagles of Heaven, and our feet were as swift as rams — we would not be able to stop thanking, praising, glorifying, blessing and sanctifying Your Name, our King, for a thousandth, a thousandth of a thousandth, or a ten-thousandth of a tenthousandth of the favors, miracles and wonders that You performed with our forefathers and with us,” with every individual specifically.", + "You have not recompensed me in accordance with my willfulness and the evil of my deeds, but with Your kindness alone. In accordance with Your kindness, give me life. You have considered from afar how to ultimately bring me goodness. My King, You have brought me close to Your great and holy Name.", + "What more will Your servant say before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers? You know Your servant.", + "Behold, I thank You for the past and I cry out for the future. You Who are filled with compassion, You Who do favors for the guilty, You have given me only good. You have brought me into the holiness of the Jewish people and did not make me a gentile.", + "All this was small in Your eyes. Then You added kindness and goodness for me — doubled and quadrupled goodness. My King, You brought me close to true Tzaddikim, worthy people and God-fearing people.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, filled with good, You have begun to show Your kindness to me by bringing me close to You and giving me a taste of the radiance, friendship, sweetness and holiness of the true Tzaddikim.", + "May Your inner compassion be stirred up on my behalf. Have compassion on me and save me from now on. Help me keep, perform and fulfill all the words of Your holy Torah that the true Tzaddikim have revealed to us.", + "Quickly and speedily redeem me. Deliver me from all the troubles and evils that surround me. “HaShem, how many are my adversaries, how many rise against me. How many say about me, ‘There is no salvation for him from God.’ But You, HaShem, are a shield for me and raise my head.”", + "Calling from the Straits
Many troubles have surrounded me. I called out to You, HaShem my God. “In my distress, I will call HaShem, and to my God I will cry out. He will hear from His palace my voice, and my cry comes before Him in His ears.”", + "“From the straits I called to God. God answered me with a vast expanse.” “I called out to HaShem from my troubles and He answered me.” “From the belly of Sheol I cried out, You heard my voice.” “You cast me into the depth of the heart of the seas, and a river surrounded me. All of Your breakers and waves passed over me.”", + "“I said, ‘I have been expelled from before Your eyes,’ but I will continue to gaze upon Your holy palace. Water surrounded me to the soul, the depths surrounded me, the Red Sea hung over my head. I descended to the bottom of the mountains; the bars of the earth are closed on me forever. But You raised my life from destruction, HaShem my God.”", + "“When my soul was faint upon me, I recalled HaShem, and my prayer came to You, to Your holy palace. Those who keep worthless futilities abandon their kindness. But I will sacrifice to You with a voice of thanks; that which I vowed, I will pay, for my salvation is HaShem.”", + "Learning Jewish Law
In Your vast compassion and great kindness, help me so that I will learn the laws of the Torah every day, without exception, all the days of my life. May not one day pass without my learning Jewish law.", + "By means of these laws, may I attain the delight of the World to Come, knowing and recognizing You. May You be blessed forever.", + "Help me truly clarify the law. Be with me always. Draw kindness onto me, the faithful kindnesses of David. May I derive the law properly, until I quickly come to know all the laws of all the commandments of the Torah clearly, and create novel insights into them.", + "Pour forth complete, holy knowledge upon me, until I truly know and recognize You, and be near and close to You, and thank You and bless You always, and truly attach myself to You in this world and in the World to Come, from now and forever.", + "Troubles of the Heart
Rescue me from all trouble and oppression. You know the many burdensome troubles of my heart, until “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "My situation is very constricted, my Father in Heaven. It is evil and bitter. It has touched my very soul. I have no brother or friend to turn to with my burdened and bitter speech. Heavy stones weigh upon my heart. “My heart is sick upon me.”", + "My heart knows the bitterness of my soul, more bitter than hemlock and wormwood, which no one would believe if I told it. All the blood in my limbs gathers to my heart and oppresses it sorely.", + "All my limbs, arteries and sinews, with all the blood in them, seek and search for counsel and strategy on how to escape destruction, the harsh judgment of Gehinnom and the harsh judgment of the future; and how to be rescued from all transgressions, sins and iniquities, and from all blemishes and all misadventures in the world.", + "My hope has been dashed. I have not known what to do and how to act, and where to seek healing for my mortal wound.", + "HaShem, God, You know. Have pity and mercy on me. Have compassion on the little that remains of me. From Your holy dwelling place, show me salvation and compassion. Starting at this moment, rescue me from every type of trouble and evil, for I have no one on whom to rely but You alone, my Father in Heaven.", + "“You are my shelter, You guard me from the adversary. You surround me with songs of redemption.” Save me and help me, so that the blood that pours onto my heart will return to its regular circulation.", + "Do many kindnesses for me at every moment. Help me, save me and rescue me always from every trouble and oppression. Help me thank You always for all of the kindnesses that You have done for me and that You will do for me in the future.", + "Supporting Those Who Learn Torah
Have compassion on us and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Help us support Torah study.", + "May we support those who learn Torah, who engage in Torah study and the service of HaShem in truth. May we support them, feed them, encourage them and supply them with everything they lack in an honorable fashion, and take care of all their needs and all the needs of their children and families.", + "May they be able to learn Your Torah and serve You with an expansive heart, without any interruption or distraction at all, so that they can create and innovate laws and true insights in Your holy Torah.", + "Pour forth great kindness through this. May a flow of favor, blessing, a good income, great and holy wealth, compassion, life, peace and all good be drawn down onto us and onto Your entire nation, the Jewish people.", + "Fill the blemish of the moon. May the verse be realized, “The light of the moon will be like the light of the sun.”", + "Help for Women in Childbirth
In Your vast compassion, have pity and mercy on all the birthing mothers of Your nation, the House of Israel. Rescue them from all suffering and harm. Have compassion on their difficult and burdensome suffering, which is revealed to You, Master of all.", + "Have pity on them, help them and save them in Your awesome mercy and vast kindness, so they will give birth easily, without any difficulty at all.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have mercy on them, for You know their difficult suffering and pains. Have mercy on them for Your sake. Rescue them from all suffering and harm, from every type of evil eye, and from every type of “husk” and evil force that prevents childbirth and possesses evil intent, Heaven forbid.", + "Please, HaShem, in Your vast compassion, rescue them and protect them from all evil. May they all give birth quickly and easily, without any difficulty. Bring forth the newborn to peace, without harm.", + "May Your entire nation, the Jewish people, raise their sons and daughters to live long lives of service to You and fear of You. May no woman miscarry. May Your nation, the Jewish people, increase like the grains of sand by the sea, which cannot be measured or counted because they are so many.", + "Worthy Marriage Partners
In Your vast compassion and true kindness, have compassion on us. Help us and save us so that we will be able to draw down the illumination of the truth and cause truth to shine in the word and complete the holy word.", + "Guard us and rescue us so that no false word will come out of our mouths, even by accident. Rather, may all our words always be words of truth.", + "May we draw down the illumination of the three conduits of truth, which are prayer, Torah and worthy marriage partners.", + "In Your vast compassion, help us pray before You with a whole heart and soul. May our prayer reach perfection, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Be with us always and save us, so that we will speak all the words of prayer, supplications and requests with ultimate truth, without any ulterior motives, confusion or foreign thoughts whatsoever.", + "Rather, may all the words of our prayer possess ultimate, pure truth, truth that You desire, so that You will hear our prayer always, because You desire truth alone. As the verse states, “HaShem is close to all who call out to Him, to all who call out to Him in truth.”", + "Nullifying Harsh Decrees
By means of our prayer, may we merit that the world will act in accordance with Your will, with the nullifying of all the harsh decrees that [non-Jews] have decreed against us, Heaven forbid — whether before the edict has passed or after it has been decreed.", + "Transmit Your power and Your might into our hands, so that we will possess all Your power and might to change nature and to guide the entire world.", + "May the verse be realized regarding Your nation, the Jewish people, “He will call him God, the God of Israel.” The people of Israel will be called by the name God, because they will have the Godly power to guide all the worlds in accordance with their holy will.", + "Help us truly learn Your holy Torah always for its own sake. Give us a worthy and true rabbi from whom we will receive a straight path, so that we will know the way upon which to walk and the deeds that we should perform all the days of our lives, forever. Always lead us on the way of truth, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Have compassion on us and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Prepare fitting marriage partners for our sons and daughters, destined for them from Heaven. May these partners not be exchanged on account of our sins, Heaven forbid, but may everyone find his partner destined for him from Heaven (and in particular, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]).", + "Always guide us on the true path. May we make truly good and fitting marriages in accordance with Your good will, as the verse states, “From HaShem is a wise wife.”", + "The Conduits of Truth
You Who are filled with compassion, fulfill my requests with compassion, until the three conduits of truth shine through speech and perfected, holy speech — all four parts of speech.", + "Help us always increase charity, until we attain the speech of charity, as in the verse, “I [HaShem] speak with charity, great to save.”", + "Draw compassion onto us. Nullify all the cruelty in our heart. May we no longer be considered animal but human — that is to say, someone who has compassion.", + "May we always have true compassion for others, and may we always increase charity for the worthy poor, in accordance with Your good will, until we perfect the speech of charity, as in the verse, “It is good for a person to be gracious and lend, to weigh his words with judgment.”", + "Help us attain the speech of repentance, so that we speak many words of repentance before You. May we realize the words of the verse, “Take words with you and return to HaShem.”", + "Send worthy and fitting words into our mouths, until we truly arouse our hearts before You and pour out our hearts like water before the face of HaShem, as in the verse, “Pour out your heart like water before the face of HaShem.”", + "Master of the world, bring me to complete repentance before You. Master of the world, bring me to the speech of prayer that will truly arouse my heart, until I return to You quickly and with a full heart.", + "Help me. Be compassionate and gracious to me. Bring me back to You in complete repentance.", + "“Bring me back and I will return, for You are my God.” Give me hope and I will not be lost. Give me spirit, true breadth and eternal rescue. Give me the speech of true repentance.", + "Have pity and mercy on me for the sake of Your Name. Act for Your sake and not for mine. See how poor, empty and lacking I am, how blemished, ruined and desolate, how confused and torn.", + "Rescue the ship that is tossed about at sea without any assistance or support. Rescue the persecuted from the murderers, ambushers, highwaymen and enemies whose harshness and cruelty have no equal.", + "Please rescue me in Your vast compassion. Please save me, my Father, my compassionate Father. Please give me true, eternal success.", + "May I succeed in this world from now on with an eternal success. May I enjoy the true profit of what a person can earn in this world without measure. Help me truly be in accordance with Your good will, from now and forever.", + "Transform the Hearts of Kings for Our Good
Help me perfect the speech of the wealthy who are close to the government. Help, save and shield all those who are close to kings, ministers and advisers, who stand up for the sake of the salvation and rescue of the Jewish people in truth.", + "Send words of graciousness to their lips. May they find favor in the eyes of emperors, kings, ministers and advisers, and nullify the thoughts of our enemies.", + "Give them grace, good consciousness and intelligence, so they will be able to nullify all harsh and evil decrees, and enact good decrees for the Jewish people, Your nation. And may the hearts of the emperors, kings and ministers be transformed toward us for the good.", + "You alone know the situation of Your nation, the Jewish people, at present. Many rise up against us. “They scheme and conspire against Your nation. They plot against the people whom You protect.”", + "Not one person stands against us, but many, scheming at every moment to do evil to the Jewish people, Heaven forbid. We have no one on whom to rely except our Father in Heaven. You have been with us in every generation. Have mercy on us now as well, in this poor generation before the coming of the Mashiach.", + "There is no one to stand up for us. May Your great Name stand up for us at a time of trouble.", + "Transform the hearts of the emperors, kings and ministers toward us for the good, because everything is solely in Your hand. (As the verse states,) “The heart of kings and ministers is in the hand of HaShem.” And a verse states, “Streams of water are the heart of the king in the hand of HaShem; wherever He wishes, He inclines it.”", + "Help us perfect the speech of holy sovereignty. Bring us our righteous Mashiach quickly, in our days, so that he will rule over us forever, and we will hear his holy, pure and awesome words as they come from his holy mouth.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. May the truth shine in the square — the four parts — of speech, until we attain perfected speech of holiness.", + "May we attain the perfection of the Holy Tongue, which is connected to the Shabbat, the speech of truth that comprises blessing and holiness. Nullify, subdue and break the “tongue of the stuttering,” which is the language of the gentiles, so that it will not have any control or grasp on Your nation, the Jewish people, and the Jewish people will not learn their gentile languages at all.", + "But may we and Your entire nation of Israel attain perfected speech in truth, which is perfection of the Holy Tongue, until we draw the holiness and joy of the Shabbat into the six days of the week, and we will always rejoice in Your Name and service on the weekdays.", + "For the holy Shabbat
Day of Holiness and Joy
Help us and save us so that we celebrate the Shabbat in great holiness, intense gladness, great joy and with a good heart. On the holy Shabbat, may no worry, depression or trouble arise in our hearts. Remove grief and sighing from us.", + "In Your good will, give us rest, HaShem our God, so that we will not experience any suffering, grief or sighing on the day of our rest. May we rejoice a great deal on every Shabbat with true joy, with much mirth, glad song, pleasure and love, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Help us draw the holiness of the Shabbat into the six days of the week, until even on the weekdays we are always joyful. May we be glad and rejoice in You always.", + "May we perform all the commandments, on the weekdays as well, with great joy and gladness, and be only happy always. May we be glad and rejoice in Your salvation always.", + "May we always realize the verse, “Serve HaShem with joy, come before Him with singing. Know that HaShem is God; He made us and we are His, His nation and the sheep of His flock.”", + "Help us always, at every moment, to draw the joy of the Shabbat into the six days of the week, until Your simple unity will be revealed in the world. May everyone know and believe that all changing actions are drawn from the Simple One, may He be blessed and elevated forever and ever.", + "“May every created being know that You created him, and may every formed being understand that You formed him, and may all that has breath in its nostrils say, ’HaShem, God of Israel, is King and His sovereignty rules over all!’”", + "May Your simple unity be revealed to all people through Your nation, the Jewish people, whom You chose as a unique nation among all the nations on the face of the earth. “You are One and Your Name is One, and who is like Your nation Israel, a unique nation on the earth?”", + "May Your simple unity be revealed above as well, in all the worlds, by means of the revelation of Your simple unity via the changing actions below in this world of Your holy nation, the Jewish people.", + "Nullify every kind of dispute in the world, and draw great peace into the world.", + "For Chanukah
The Joy of Chanukah
Help us fulfill the commandment of lighting the Chanukah menorah properly, with all its details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it.", + "May we fulfill all the commandments of Chanukah with great joy, thanking You and blessing You, and reciting the complete Hallel with much joy and gladness, and with great inspiration, in great holiness and purity.", + "In Your vast compassion, You established eight days of Chanukah for us to thank and praise Your great Name — days that are the delight of the World to Come.", + "In Your vast compassion, help us truly fulfill Your commandments, until we truly and continually draw upon ourselves the delight of the World to Come — which is thanksgiving to Your great and holy Name — particularly during the holy days of Chanukah, which are days of thanksgiving.", + "May we come close to You in truth, and know and recognize You, and thank You, and truly bless You forever, for it is good. As the verse states, “Give thanks to HaShem, for it is good, for His kindness is forever.”", + "May we draw the holiness of the Shabbat into the six weekdays, until we are joyful always, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Please, HaShem, compassionately fulfill our requests, and help us quickly attain everything that we have requested from You so that we will soon be in accordance with Your good will. Then “may all the nations of the land know that HaShem is God — there is no other.”", + "“A song of thanksgiving: Shout out to HaShem, all the land. Serve HaShem with joy, come before Him with singing. Know that HaShem is God; He made us and we are His, His nation and the sheep of His flock. Come to His gates in thanks, to His courtyards with praise; thank Him, bless His Name. For HaShem is good; His kindness is forever, to every generation His faithfulness.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God of Israel, from beginning and forever, amen and amen.”", + "For Difficulty in Childbirth
(A woman experiencing difficulty in child birth should recite this prayer. This should be followed by “A Song of Thanksgiving” [Psalm 100] a number of times, for the recital of “A Song of Thanksgiving” is very helpful for a woman experiencing difficulty in childbirth, so that she will be able to give birth easily. Amen.)" + ], + [ + "Avoiding Doctors / A Pidyon Brings Redemption to a Person’s Soul
A person should never go to a doctor. He should be aware that no doctor, no matter how expert, knows how to heal illness and discomfort. That is because no doctor is skilled enough to know which particular medicine heals a sick person, in accordance with the decree of God’s judgment that a sick person can be healed only by such-and-such a person, by such-andsuch a drug, and on such-and-such a day.
Worse, most doctors are not fully aware of each individual’s illness, and they lack the knowledge of medicine to heal that individual because they are not truly experts in the science of healing, such that more people die because of doctors than die naturally.
To bring about healing, one should only pray to God; furthermore, he should ask God to send the recovery before the illness, so that he will never experience any disease, discomfort or pain.
In addition, a person should give money for the redemption of his soul. Related to that, he should pray for worthy people who will have the ability to make a pidyon nefesh with the money that he gives them.
God is the True Healer
Healer of the sick of Your nation, the Jewish people, the true Healer, the faithful and compassionate Healer! Have compassion on us and on Your entire nation, the House of Israel, and protect us from physicians and doctors.", + "In Your vast compassion, always send the recovery before the disease. Guard us and rescue us so that we never experience any disease, discomfort or pain at all.", + "Even when You send us some illness or discomfort, Heaven forbid, in accordance with the decree of Your holy and true judgment, please, Compassionate One, in Your vast compassion, guard us and rescue us so that we will not err, Heaven forbid, and place ourselves in the hands of doctors and physicians, Heaven forbid, for they are all idolatrous, they are altogether vanity.", + "You know the truth: that there is no doctor, not even a skilled expert, who knows how to truly and properly heal illness and discomfort.", + "No doctor is skilled and wise enough to know which particular medicine heals a sick person in accordance with the decree of Your judgment, that a sick person can be healed only by suchand- such a person, such-and-such a drug, and on such-and-such a day.", + "It is absolutely impossible for the sick person to be healed except by means of these particular causes that were decreed for his healing. And who, no matter how wise, can know all of this?", + "And worse, most doctors lack the knowledge of individualized medicine and are not truly experts in the science of healing.", + "Medicine is a deep wisdom with many, endless divisions, so that in most cases, a person cannot truly understand it.", + "With a slight movement, doctors cause much damage and harm. At times they damage more than they rectify. They kill and murder people with their own hands. How many people have succumbed because of them! More people have died because of doctors than have died naturally, as is known to You, Master of all.", + "The honest doctors themselves admit that it is impossible to know this wisdom clearly. They admit without shame that it is better to refrain from healing procedures.", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, Creator of remedies, Master of wonders, You know that the world has sunk a great deal into the error of taking remedies for days and years, so that it is difficult to bring people out of this confused state.", + "In particular, when such people suffer greatly, may the Compassionate One protect us, they deliver themselves into the hands of doctors to seek healing and medicine for their illness.", + "But in most cases their hope is dashed, and the doctor cannot remove their pains, except when, due to Your mighty compassion and kindness, Your compassion rises to remove their pains and bandage their wounds.", + "Therefore, I have come before You, You Who are filled with compassion, the true Healer. Have compassion on us and help our hearts always understand that if we or anyone in our family needs healing, Heaven forbid, we should not go to doctors, but only seek the face of HaShem always.", + "Making a Pidyon Nefesh
Strengthen our hearts to believe and trust in You and in Your true Tzaddikim and those who fear You. Help us and save us so that we will always give money for the redemption of our souls.", + "At every moment, send us worthy people who are truly God-fearing, who will have the ability to make a pidyon nefesh16Literally, “soul redemption.” with the money that we give them, so that the judgment regarding us, our children and our families will be sweetened by the pidyon nefesh that these people will perform on our behalf.", + "Be filled with compassion for us. Heal us completely — a healing of the soul and a healing of the body.", + "Heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed, save us and we will be saved, for You are our praise. Bring complete healing to all of our wounds, pains and diseases (and in particular to the sick person, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]), for You are a faithful and compassionate God, King and Healer.", + "We do not rely on any doctor’s remedy, but on You alone.", + "God, in Your vast compassion and great kindness, please heal us, for You alone know the great suffering and pain of all of those who experience disease and pain.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on them and do not hide Your face from them. Watch them and look after them in their suffering and pain. Compassionately heal them, strengthen them and revive them, swiftly and easily.", + "May the verse be realized, “HaShem will remove from you every disease, and all the evil illnesses of Egypt that you knew, He will not place upon you; He will place them upon all your enemies.”", + "And the verse states, “You will serve HaShem your God and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will remove disease from your midst.”", + "And the verse states, “And He said, ‘If you listen to the voice of HaShem your God and do that which is straight in His eyes, and listen to His commandments and guard all His laws, all the diseases that I placed in Egypt I will not place upon you, for I am HaShem your Healer.’” Amen. So may it be His will." + ], + [ + "When a Person Gives Charity Generously, He Overcomes the Naturalistic View of the World / The Festivals Proclaim That Only God’s Will Exists / A Person Should Learn Nothing But Torah / A Person Should Have No Worries About Earning a Living
A person should transform the cruelty in his heart to compassion so that he will generously give charity beyond his natural will. In doing so, he helps eradicate the “forehead of the Serpent” — the heretical view of the natural sciences that nature’s rules are immutable.
The energy of the natural sciences diverts energy to itself when elderly people do not add holiness to every day of their lives. A person should strive to elevate the fallen days of these elders. In doing so, he helps reveal that there is no nature at all, but that everything functions only in accordance with God’s will.
Similarly, the three holy festivals of Pesach, Shavuot and Sukkot proclaim that nature does not necessitate anything at all — rather, everything functions in accordance with God’s will.
The natural philosophers, who are entangled in heresy, lie in wait to trap the souls of Jewish children.
A person should learn only the laws of the Torah and see to it that his children do not learn any non- Jewish books. He should strive to attain the nullification of natural philosophy.
Related to that, he should not gaze upon the vanities of this world. Whether or not he has money makes no difference as to how he will spend his days. He need not give a thought to earning a living. Should God will it, he will have everything he needs as his work is done by others.
Transforming Cruelty to Compassion
“My prayer comes before You, HaShem, at a time of favor. God, answer me in Your vast kindness, in the truth of Your salvation.”", + "HaShem, “hear my prayer, listen to my supplications; in Your faithfulness answer me, in Your righteousness.” “For the sake of Your Name, HaShem, give me life; in Your righteousness, bring my soul forth from trouble.” “I will gaze upon Your countenance in righteousness; I will be satisfied when I awaken with Your image.”", + "Master of the world, You are filled with compassion. Help me always give a great deal of charity every day, at every moment.", + "Give me the strength to overcome my evil inclination and hard heart, to break the cruelty in my heart and transform it to compassion, to voluntarily and generously give a great deal of charity beyond my nature and will, without any resentment at all.", + "As the verse states, “He distributed, he gave to the poor. His charity endures forever. His horn will be raised with glory.”", + "May I give charity with both hands, in great joy and with a good heart. May my heart never be upset when I give charity.", + "May my hand always be open to give to a poor person, “enough for what he lacks.” May I implement the verse, “You will surely open your hand to him, and surely lend to him enough for what he lacks.”", + "Send me worthy poor people through whom to gain merit. Guard me and rescue me from unworthy poor people.", + "Please, HaShem, help me begin to truly give a great deal of charity, in accordance with Your good will. Help me in the merit of the mitzvah of charity. Open and broaden all the doors and gates of holiness for me.", + "Let Me Begin to Serve You
Master of the world, You know my heart. You know how hard it is for me to begin to truly serve You, HaShem.", + "Every type of service that I want to begin is difficult and burdensome for me, until “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "How many birth pangs, how many groans and outcries, how many sighs and moans from the depths of my heart, how much must I bend over before I begin to perform some service!", + "This is so burdensome that I have not yet begun to truly serve You. “As a pregnant woman coming close to giving birth shudders and cries out in her birth pangs, so have we been before You, HaShem. We conceived, we shuddered as though we bore wind.”", + "Many days and years of my limited time under Your hand have already passed, and I have not yet begun to truly serve You. “The harvest passed, the summer ended,” and I have not been saved.", + "But still I hope and wait at every moment for Your true salvation. As long as my soul is within me, I truly hope for Your complete salvation.", + "Therefore, I cry out: Have mercy on a person as poor as myself, impoverished and weak, pained and moaning. “I will cry like a woman giving birth.” Save, King, “for the bed is too short for a person to stretch out.”", + "Master of the world, strengthen the weakness of my hand. Strengthen my weak hands and make my tottering knees firm.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me begin from now on to make a true, complete beginning, so that I will enter into Your service and every day increase holiness, purity, wisdom, understanding and true knowledge.", + "Every day, may greater holiness shine with more light than the day before.", + "Help me begin to give a great deal of charity every moment to the worthy poor. Beginning to give charity is very hard and burdensome for me. I do not know how to give charity properly due to the great multitude of obstacles that I experience, because giving charity is so far from me.", + "Please, HaShem, bring someone who is as far as I am close to You. Have pity on someone as undeserving of compassion as I am. Save someone who is as far from salvation as I am.", + "Please heal someone as ill and lowly as I am, both materially and spiritually, so sick that no doctor in the world can heal me except You alone in Your vast compassion, in Your mighty, awesome kindness.", + "“You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.” In every generation, “You do great things beyond comprehension, miracles and wonders without number.”", + "It is fitting for You to demonstrate Your greatness and might, and Your vast compassion. You help a person who has no strength, and have compassion on a person who does not deserve compassion for any reason.", + "Be gracious to a person who does not deserve it. As the verse states, “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. Open all the doors and gates of holiness for me. Help me truly enter them swiftly and easily. Help me always give a great deal of charity.", + "You Who are charitable to all flesh and spirit, be charitable to me. Help me fulfill the commandment of giving charity completely, with great generosity, truly in accordance with Your good will.", + "Broaden all the doors of holiness for me. “Open the gates of righteousness for me; I will enter them and praise God. This is the gate of HaShem, the righteous will enter it. Open, gates, and a righteous nation, guarding faithfulness, will enter.”", + "When the gate is locked, open it for us in the merit of the true Tzaddikim, before whom no gate is ever closed.", + "“Gates, lift up your heads; eternal portals, be elevated, and may the King of glory enter. Who is this King of glory? It is HaShem, strong and mighty; HaShem, mighty in war. Gates, lift up your heads; rise, eternal portals, and may the King of glory enter. Who is this King of glory? The God of hosts, He is the King of glory, selah.”", + "Uprooting the Power of the Natural Sciences
In the merit of holy charity and in the merit of the true Tzaddikim, the elders of holiness, may we subdue, break, uproot and eradicate the root of the energy-draining “forehead of the Serpent,” which is the root of the natural sciences.", + "May we uproot, annihilate, break and nullify the natural sciences and heresy from the world.", + "By means of the power of holy charity of the entirety of Your nation, the worthy Jewish people, help us extract the energy and life force that they diverted to themselves.", + "May we elevate and clarify all awareness, and all the fallen days of all elders in the generation who lack perfection, since they do not add holiness to every day of their lives.", + "Because of them, the forehead of the Serpent, which is the root of the natural sciences, diverts energy to itself, Heaven forbid.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, help us truly give a great deal of charity in great holiness, until we can rectify this completely and subdue, break and nullify “the old and foolish king.”", + "You know everything that we have undergone because of him. You know all the adversities that have befallen us.", + "Give us hope so that we will not be lost. Bring us out from between his teeth. Please rescue us from the hands of our enemies and persecutors. Have compassion on us. Help us and save us so that we will sanctify all our days with great holiness.", + "More Light, More Holiness, More Awareness of God
My compassionate Father in Heaven, help me begin from now on to truly enter into Your service. May I add the light of holiness and awareness every day.", + "May every day of my life shine with a great light. May every day that follows it shine with additional holiness and awareness, until I truly fill my days and years with ultimate perfection, with great holiness.", + "And on the day of death, when I come and enter before You, may all my days that I lived on the face of the earth be perfect and shining with a great light.", + "May they be fit to clothe my soul so that I rise and come before the throne of Your glory in shining garments. May I not enter before You in shame.", + "“My King and my God, I will pray to You.” You are mighty to save. Sanctify me in Your supernal holiness at every moment so that I will add holiness and purity every day, until I am counted among the elders of holiness.", + "You Who are filled with compassion for all who wish to come close to You, guard me and rescue me from the blemish of the elders who extend days but who do not possess perfection. Bring me close to the true Tzaddikim, the elders of holiness. You have begun to bring me close to You, and it is not fitting for You to abandon me.", + "Help me from now on to be truly sanctified and purified in Your holiness, until I will be truly worthy of being counted among the elders of holiness. “Do not put me to shame because of my hope.” Do not remove my hope.", + "You are Master of the world, Master of good will, Master of compassion, Will of all wills, Concealed beyond all concealment, Ancient of ancients.", + "You have informed Your true Tzaddikim of Your thirteen attributes of compassion that are composed of thirteen rectifications of the holy beard.", + "Have pity and mercy on me in Your vast, hidden compassion, which is not grasped by judgment at all. Help me return to You with complete repentance, and come truly close to serving You.", + "You know how far I am from Your true holiness, how ashamed I should be before the simplest Jews; and, how much more, before the worthy people of the generation; and, even more than that, before the true Tzaddikim of the generation.", + "But I trust that in Your vast compassion, I still have hope to rectify my many blemished days and improve my deeds, to renew like an eagle my days that have passed in darkness.", + "Therefore, I raise my eyes to You and look toward Your salvation, until You will be gracious to me and truly bring me back before You in complete repentance, quickly, easily and swiftly, until I am truly in accordance with Your good will.", + "In Your vast compassion, have pity on us. Help us in the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim, the elders of holiness, so that we will arouse, reveal and illumine the light of the “forehead of will,” which is the ultimate, Divine will.", + "May the forehead of will overcome the forehead of the Serpent. May it subdue, break, uproot and nullify the pollution of the forehead of the Serpent, which is the natural sciences. May the natural sciences and heresy be eradicated from the world.", + "May the forehead of will be revealed and shine in the world. May it reveal that there is no way of nature at all, but that everything functions solely in accordance with Your good will.", + "May holy faith spread throughout the world. May everyone believe that You created Your world in accordance with Your good will after a total vacuum, that You brought forth all of the worlds from absolute nothingness to being, that You guide Your world with Your will alone, and that there is no necessity imposed by nature at all.", + "Give us truly wise and holy men. Give them the power to connect all desires to the root of will, to the forehead of will, to the ultimate will, until the illumination of that will is revealed and shines in the world. May we all long and yearn always to truly serve You, with a very strong and powerful will.", + "For the Three Festivals
The Voice of the Festivals
Help us hear the voice of the holy festivals calling out and revealing Your will.", + "In Your vast compassion, You performed great and awesome miracles and wonders for us, wonders of wonders, on all Three Festivals, which are “appointed times of HaShem … calling out of holiness.”", + "On the holy festival of Pesach, You brought us out of Egypt with awesome signs, “with trials, with signs and with wonders, and with war and with a strong hand and with an outstretched arm,” with all that You did for us, HaShem our God, in Egypt before our eyes.", + "On the holy festival of Shavuot, You gave us Your holy Torah with great and awesome signs. You were revealed through the voice of thunder, and You appeared to us through the voice of the shofar. You spoke with us face to face, and we heard Your word out of the fire, something that had never been heard or seen in all the earth and was never experienced by any of the nations upon the face of the earth.", + "And the holy festival of Sukkot is a remembrance of the seven clouds of glory that encompassed the Jews in the Sinai desert for forty years, when You went before us in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night.", + "“How many are Your deeds, HaShem.” “Much have You done, HaShem my God; Your wonders and thoughts are for our sake. No one compares with You. I would tell and speak them, but they are too many to recount.”", + "In Your vast compassion, help us celebrate all Three Festivals with great joy, holiness and purity.", + "On all three holy and awesome festivals, which are “appointed times of HaShem … calling out of holiness,” may we hear the voice of the great calling out of that holy day, which proclaims, calls out and reveals God’s will that nature does not necessitate anything at all.", + "Rather, everything functions according to Your holy will alone. According to Your will, You exiled us among the gentiles for our good, in order “to eradicate iniquity and put an end to transgression,” and in the future, You will take us out of their midst swiftly, and take vengeance for the spilled blood of Your servants.", + "As a result, we will truly attain the joy of the festivals, as in the verse, “You shall rejoice in your festival.” We will rejoice a great deal on every festival, with endless joy. May we rejoice in Your salvation.", + "May the verse be realized, “The righteous man will rejoice, for he has seen vengeance. He will wash his steps in the blood of the wicked man. And man will say, ‘Truly, there is fruit for the righteous man; truly, there is a God that judges in the land.’”", + "Overcoming the Natural Philosophers
Uproot, break, annihilate and nullify the roaring voice of the troublemakers, the natural philosophers, who are evil, wild beasts that trample and tear apart many of our nation.", + "As a result of their evil, these natural philosophers went astray and entangled themselves in foreign wisdoms, confused views and great heresy. Now they lie in wait for the children of Your nation, the Jewish people, to trap and take their souls, Heaven forbid.", + "These natural philosophers trample and tear apart many of the children of Your nation, who have been trapped in the foolishness of the scientists’ errant wisdom, falling prey to their beliefs “like a wild ox in a net.” “Like birds caught in the snare, like them are human beings trapped” at this evil time, in these generations, trapped in the natural sciences and heresy that have spread across the world especially now, something that never existed before.", + "HaShem, what shall we do? “Tell me, you who love my soul, where do you graze, where do you lie down at noon?” This is “a time of trouble for Jacob, the likes of which never was and the likes of which never will be.”", + "This plague has spread in our days among the Jewish people, Your nation. People have composed many books promoting their evil ways in the field of philosophical wisdom and distribute them among the children of Israel, injecting the venom of their evil, foreign and bitter arrows into them, Heaven forbid. And no one feels the pain of this wound.", + "The Holy Education of the Youth
Have mercy on the young people of Your nation, the Jewish people. These natural philosophers draw this sin upon us with evanescent ropes that afterward become “a sin [thick as] cart ropes.”", + "At first they clothe themselves in deceit, saying that they want to implement reforms for the youth. They misleadingly state that they want to guide them in the straight way, to teach them the wisdom of grammar. They spend days on this wisdom, which is not so necessary.", + "They distance Your nation of Israel from the essential, necessary, holy learning, which consists of Talmud and Jewish law, which constitute the essential wine of Torah, including all of the Written Torah and Oral Torah.", + "Afterward, they add iniquity to iniquity, enticing the youth to learn gentile languages and writings.", + "Then they bring them to heretical doctrines, literally slaughtering children with their own hands, impaling them, trampling them, ripping them apart and uprooting them from both worlds.", + "Master of the world, what will we say before You Who dwell in the heights? What will we tell You Who dwell in Heaven? All hidden things are revealed to You.", + "You know their evil intentions and thoughts. Their argument is not against us, but solely against You and Your holy Torah.", + "According to their evil thoughts, they intend, Heaven forbid, to cause the world to forget Your Name and Your holy Torah, Heaven forbid.", + "Our Father in Heaven, have compassion on us and on our children and on all the children of Your nation, the House of Israel. Have pity and compassion, and save us at this time of trouble.", + "You have already rescued us from thousands of evil troubles. Have pity and mercy on us now as well, at this time before the coming of the Mashiach.", + "We are left “like a beacon at the top of the mountain and like a flag upon the hill.” There is no one to stand up on our behalf, no one to feel this pain and trouble, these wounds.", + "Have pity and mercy on us in Your compassion. Act for Your sake and not for ours. See our poverty and emptiness. May the verse be realized in us, “For My sake, for My sake, shall I act, for how will it be desecrated? And I will not give My glory to another.”", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Rescue us and our children and all the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, from all the natural sciences. May our children not learn their books or go in their ways. May no logic of their reasoning or any of their viewpoints enter into our children’s hearts.", + "Learning Nothing But Torah
May all of us always go in the way of our forefathers, the paths upon which they have walked since the giving of the Torah until this day.", + "May we learn only the laws of the holy Torah and study Your holy Torah day and night, the Written Torah and the Oral Torah. May we guard and fulfill all the words of Your Torah with love, in truth and wholeheartedness, without any cleverness at all.", + "Nullify natural philosophy from the entire world, and particularly from Your holy nation of Israel, whom You chose.", + "May the illumination of Divine will spread across the world. May everyone know that there is no necessity imposed by nature at all. Rather, everything functions solely in accordance with Your holy will.", + "May we all attain the will of holiness, so that our will is firm at every moment to serve You, fear You and obey Your Torah. Every day and every hour, may our holy will grow ever stronger.", + "The Will to Serve God
You know that we are flesh and blood, and carved of clay. And who truly has the wherewithal to serve You?", + "Neither the heavens or the heavens of heavens, or all of their host — the angels, seraphim, ophanim, holy chayot and all of the supernal host — can glorify You or claim to serve You adequately, for there is no end to Your greatness.", + "Your Name is elevated beyond all blessing and praise. But man is a worm, weary and worn out. Every day our evil inclination rises up against us and spreads nets and snares for our souls. “Wherever I walk, they hid a snare for me.”", + "In Your great compassion, have pity on us. Help us strengthen the will of holiness, so that we will accustom ourselves always to yearn, long and pine for You with a strong will, great desire and an expiration of the soul.", + "As the verse states, “My soul yearns to exhaustion for the courtyards of HaShem. My heart and flesh sing to the God of my life.” “My flesh and heart have all but expired, Rock of my heart. My portion is God forever.”", + "My compassionate Father, draw Your servant to Your will, so that my entire goal, desire and will are always strong to truly come close to You.", + "May I may never gaze at the vanities of this world at all. May my thoughts and desire not pursue money at all, because when I die, I will not take anything with me. Silver, gold, precious stones and pearls will not accompany a person when he passes away, only Torah and good deeds.", + "Whether or not I have money makes no difference as to how I will spend my days. “What is the advantage of man in all of his toil that he will toil under the sun?” “Vanity of vanities, it is all vanity.”", + "Even if I do not serve You because of my many sins, at any rate, grant that my will be strong always only to come close to You and serve You, and not interrupt the will of holiness at all.", + "I hope that You will treat me in accordance with all Your awesome wonders, and that You will begin from now on to bring me truly close to You.", + "In Your vast compassion, have compassion on me. Guard me and rescue me always so that I will never grow old, so that my service of You will never be old and infirm.", + "Rather, may I renew myself every day, every hour and every moment, renewing my youth like the eagle, beginning anew each time. Always rescue me from the old age of the Other Side. “Do not cast me away in a time of old age. When my strength is worn away, do not abandon me.”", + "May I realize the words of our sages who interpreted the verse, “This day, you have become a nation,” to mean that every day it should seem to us as though we have entered into a covenant with You, as though today we began to enter into the holiness of the Jewish people.", + "As Rashi explains the verse, “that I command you today”: “Every day should be new in your eyes.”", + "A Person’s Hope Must Be Strong
Help me, strengthen me and fortify me always, at every moment, so I will never despair. From my very lowly level, may I always look forward to true, complete salvation always.", + "May I always hope and wait to attain the ultimate perfection fitting for a Jew, because that is what I was created for. May I never slacken or abandon that holy will.", + "Rather, may I strengthen myself at every moment to renew and increase the will of holiness, to begin every time anew to yearn, long and pine for You and to serve You with a completely strong, new will.", + "With the revelation of that will of holiness, draw great fear onto us.", + "May we always fear You, tremble before You, and serve You with great fear mixed with joy, as the verse states, “Serve HaShem with fear, and rejoice in trembling.”", + "With fear and trembling, may we crown You over ourselves, Unique One, so that through this holy fear, we draw great kindness from You onto ourselves.", + "Attaining Abundance with Ease
By means of this, may we draw down great abundance, a good, comfortable income without any toil or work at all, with You alone supporting us.", + "May we not need to engage in any work, craft or business, and never have to give a thought to earning a living, as in Your great kindness You give us life and all that we need.", + "May our work be done by others, so that the verse be realized in us, “Foreigners will stand and graze your sheep, and children of foreigners will be your plowmen and your vinedressers, and you will be called the priests of HaShem, and described as the servants of our God.”", + "You know how many needs we have. Even our bare necessities are many — food and drink, clothing and a home, and necessities for mitzvot such as giving charity, engaging in kind deeds, paying school tuition and so forth — so many that that a person might spend his entire life attending to his necessities alone, Heaven forbid.", + "Please, HaShem, guard and rescue me from this. Help me always give a great deal of charity, until in that merit I draw great kindness onto myself.", + "May the verse be realized, “The world is built on kindness.” May the world be maintained in Your kindness alone, without any arousal from below, so that we will not need to engage in any work, craft or business to earn a living.", + "Just as You created Your world in Your beneficent kindness alone, without any arousal from below, pour Your kindness onto us and give us all our income and all that we need directly from You, without our having to perform any deeds at all.", + "May we be free from all work and engage only in learning Torah, praying, performing mitzvot and doing good deeds. May we not toil in vain and not give birth to confusion.", + "Everything Functions According to God’s Will
May we truly be in accordance with Your good will and reveal Your will in the world, and greatly strengthen our faith in Your will, and nullify all doubts. May the forehead of the Serpent have no power to cast any doubt on Your will, Heaven forbid.", + "May everyone, from small to great, know You. May everyone recognize the power of Your sovereignty. May everyone know, strongly and properly, without any doubt whatsoever, that everything functions only in accordance with the will of the Creator of all, may Your Name be blessed forever.", + "“According to His will, He acts with the host of Heaven and with those who dwell on the earth, and no one will come and protest and say to Him, ‘What are You doing?’”", + "In Your vast compassion, have compassion on all the souls of Your nation, the House of Israel, who have already fallen and are trapped in the evil and bitter net of the doctrine of nature. Bring them forth to peace.", + "In Your vast compassion, shine the light of Your will upon them. Whatever their situation, may they know the truth: that there is no necessary imposition of nature at all, but that everything functions according to Your holy will alone. May they escape the trap and come to peace.", + "From now on, have compassion on us and on our children, and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Guard us and rescue us all, so that not one Jew will be trapped in the doctrine of nature, Heaven forbid.", + "We have no one on whom to rely except our Father in Heaven. As the verse states, “Let Israel declare: Had HaShem not been for us, had HaShem not been for us when men arose against us, then they would have swallowed us alive in the wrath of their anger against us; then the water would have washed over us, illness would have passed over our lives; then the stormy waters would have passed over us.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, Who did not make us a prey for their teeth. Our soul escaped like a bird from the hunters’ snare. The snare broke, and we fled. Our help is in the Name of HaShem, Maker of Heaven and earth.”", + "“Help us because we have relied on You.” “We do not know what to do, and so our eyes are turned to You.”", + "Healing for All Disease
In Your vast compassion, draw complete healing for all of our diseases, for all of our pains and wounds. Heal all the wounds of Your nation, the Jewish people, with every rectification that heals them, physically and spiritually.", + "In the merit and power of our charity, have compassion on all the sick of Your nation, the Jewish people, upon whom You sent Your wounds because of our many sins.", + "Help them so that the mouth of each wound will be opened, and draw forth and remove all of the infection, the harmful suppuration and the contaminated, spoiled blood from the wounds of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "In the merit of the true Tzaddikim, the holy elders, who acquired true wisdom, and in the merit of the holiness of the Three Festivals, “appointed times of HaShem … calling out of holiness,” which proclaim and reveal Your will, may we purify and cleanse our blood so that it circulates properly with great swiftness, as is truly fitting for it, in all our 248 limbs and 365 sinews.", + "Draw Your great kindness onto us so that the mouths of all the wounds will be closed, so that all of us and all of Your nation, the House of Israel, will attain complete healing from Heaven for all our wounds.", + "We do not rely on any remedy or natural cause at all. We rely on You alone, and we hope and look to Your remedies.", + "You are the “Healer of those whose hearts are shattered, You Who bind their sorrows.” Please heal all our wounds on all levels, physical and spiritual, for You are the faithful and compassionate God, King and Healer.", + "You are filled with compassion. You plant charity, cause salvation to sprout, and create healing. Treat us charitably for the sake of Your Name, and compassionately fulfill all our requests for the good.", + "You Who perform charity with all flesh and spirit, do not recompense us in accordance with our evil. Help us and save us in the merit of the true Tzaddikim. In their merit and their power, draw down and shine onto us the illumination of Your supernal, ultimate will.", + "A Strong Will to Serve God
May we connect all wills in the world to the root of will, until all of us believe with complete, strong and proper faith that everything is in accordance with Your will alone.", + "May we always yearn, long and pine for Your great Name and always long to serve You with a truly powerful, strong and firm will, in accordance with Your good will, all the days of our lives, forever and ever.", + "May we reach great joy and intense gladness by means of our strong will and by truly yearning for Your great Name.", + "Always draw the joy of the holy festivals onto us. May we always be joyful and serve You in truth with fear, love, joy and gladness.", + "May the verse quickly be realized in us, “They rejoice in Your Name the whole day, and they are exalted in Your righteousness, because You are the glory of their strength. In accordance with Your desire, our horn is raised, because HaShem is our shield and the Holy One of Israel is our King.”", + "Please have pity and mercy on us. In Your vast compassion, help us quickly attain all that we have asked of You.", + "“With Your charity, rescue me and redeem me; extend Your ear to me and save me.” “And I will constantly hope and add to all of Your praise.” “My mouth will tell of Your righteousness, all the day Your salvation, for I do not know their number. I will come with the mighty deeds of HaShem, God, I will mention Your righteousness alone.”", + "“God, You have taught me from my youth, and until now I will tell Your wonders. Even until old age and white hair, God, do not abandon me until I will tell of Your strength, Your might, to the generation, to everyone who comes.”", + "“And Your charity, God, which is up to the heights, for You do great things — God, who is like You? You showed me many and evil troubles. You will revive me again, and from the depths of the earth You will again raise me. You will increase my greatness and console me.”", + "“I, too, will thank You with a stringed instrument for Your truth, my God. I will make music to You with a harp, Holy One of Israel. My lips will sing praises when I make music for You, and my soul which You redeemed.”", + "“Also, my tongue will utter Your righteousness all the days, because those who seek my evil have been shamed; yes, they have been disgraced.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Faith is the Foundation Stone of the Torah / One Draws Up Counsel with the Aid of Tzaddikim to Attain Faith / A Wholehearted Person Receives What He Needs in Order to be Healed / Ultimately, Everyone Will Recognize God’s Greatness / A Jew Must be Rescued from the Egotism of False Leaders / One Prevents Nocturnal Emissions By Being Joyful / When a Person Rectifies Judgment, He Rectifies Sexuality / A Person Should Not Go Beyond His Limits / Sanctifying the Power of Imagination / Proper Eating Brings Faith and Holiness into the World / A Person Should Draw the Joy of Nisan onto the Entire Year / On the Days of Repentance, a Person Seeks Everything He has Lost / A Person Must be Willing to Appear Mad to Serve God / The Lungs are Holy at Their Source
Faith is the foundation stone of the entire Torah and the basis of all worlds. If a person suffers a lack of faith, that damages everything in his life. Such damage can be repaired only by his restored faith.
To attain faith, a person must draw counsel from the depths of darkness, to which end he requires the assistance of a holy man of understanding. A person should strive to be among the students of such a Tzaddik, in whose company he should strive to gather and rectify all of the elements of faith.
In general, a person must seek the holy words of the true Tzaddikim who revive all souls, from the greatest to the smallest. These Tzaddikim have composed many holy books filled with counsel and inspiration on how to serve God.
*
God can cause plants to grow and to be picked at the proper time so that they will have the power to heal Jews’ diseases. When a person possesses a simple wholeheartedness, he receives exactly what he needs in order to be healed.
*
Some gentiles become converts in potential, others in actuality. Ultimately, all people will know of God and will yearn for true faith. Everyone will come to serve God and recognize the power of His sovereignty. Many gentiles will become Jews for the sake of God’s great Name.
However, pollution taints converts, and that causes blemishes. The righteous converts must purify themselves of that pollution, even as Jews ask God to rescue them from those blemishes.
*
Each Jew must strive to be rescued from the sword of egotism of the false leaders of the generation, who rule over the impoverished nation by usurping rabbinical authority.
*
A person must nullify his bad desires — particularly the lust for sexual wrongdoing. He must pray that he will never experience a nocturnal emission. Because such an emission comes as a result of depression and bitterness, he must strive to strengthen himself with joy.
When judges and rabbis are corrupt and pervert justice, holy types of love fall and inject sexual impropriety into the world. This results in the uncleanness of nocturnal emissions. When a person recites the description of the binding of the Chariot before going to sleep,1The binding of the Chariot refers to the “Chariot of God” which is surrounded by four angels — Michael, Gabriel, Uriel and Raphael — and upon which “rests” the Shekhinah, the Divine Presence of God. It is customary to recite the binding of the Chariot during the Bedtime Shema. he can attain a rectification of judgment.
One must strive to nullify the lust for sexual impropriety and, more generally, rectify the “seals of purity” in the merit and power of Moses, the Seven Shepherds,2The Seven Shepherds are Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Joseph and David. and all true Tzaddikim. That is related to attaining the holiness of tefilin, which constitute the seal of truth.
As a person waters his heart with holiness, he extinguishes the heat of the heart that burns for evil lusts — particularly the lust for sexual wrongdoing.
Beyond that, he should not accustom himself to indulge in sexual desire even when it is permitted, and he should sanctify himself when engaging in marital relations. He must guard the moisture and fluids in his body, not expending them through this desire, so that they can rise to strengthen and renew his mind.
*
Even in holiness, a person should not seek that which is beyond him. Instead, he should gaze only at what he is permitted to. He should draw onto himself the holy constriction appropriate for his mind, so that it will not be destroyed by going beyond its limits.
*
One should avoid evil musings and worthless dreams, which come about by means of a demon.
By sanctifying his power of imagination, he rises from the animal realm to the human realm. By incorporating the power of his imagination into the power of his holy awareness, then, when his mind is quiescent during sleep, the power of his imagination and the residue of the consciousness of holiness will be on the level of an angel.
He should strive to draw the image of God onto himself, until he attains dreams by means of an angel, dreams that are good and straight, holy and pure. In such a dream, he sees the light of the face of the true Tzaddikim and he hears them speak words of God without any admixture of falsehood.
Then, when he awakens, he should strive to remember everything that he saw and heard in his dream.
*
When a person eats in holiness and purity, solely for the sake of maintaining his soul as well as his body, new comprehensions are drawn onto him, until he has the power to draw up the deep water of good counsel from which holy faith grows. In addition, he strengthens the angels, which bring him abundance and good income. Such angels do not allow the Side of Evil to siphon off energy from the abundant flow that is drawn onto it. The Side of Evil can take, at most, a minimal amount to provide it with a constricted life force.
*
A person should draw the holiness and joy of the month of Nisan onto himself. He should then strive to draw that onto the entire year. This strengthens the holy angels, bringing them laughter, might and gladness.
The mitzvot and good deeds that a person engages in throughout the year are, as it were, delicacies that God tastes on Rosh HaShanah.
On that day, a person should strive to hear the shofar from a worthy shofar-blower.
In the merit of the tekiah, he should draw onto himself holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge.
In the merit of the teruah, he should draw onto himself the holiness of the true shepherd of Israel and the holiness of the covenant.
And in the merit of the shevarim, he should attain true dreams that come by means of the holy angel and attain the rectification of judgment.
During the Ten Days of Repentance, a person should continue to rectify all of the blemishes that he caused throughout the previous year — particularly those of the covenant. He must ask God to help him find everything that he lost throughout his life and help him purify and sanctify himself.
On Sukkot, he should strive in the merit of the mitzvah of sukkah to rectify and strengthen the holy angel and attain a dream by means of an angel, and to eat pure, unadulterated foods.
In the merit of the holiness of Shemini Atzeret, he should strive to rectify the judgment of holiness, and in this way be rescued from the blemish of the covenant.
For the sake of God, a person should be willing to engage in behavior that appears mad to others. He should cast himself into all kinds of trash for the sake of God’s commandments.
*
A person should draw upon himself the holiness of the lungs from their supernal root, so that they will not suffer from any blemish, whether physical or spiritual.
The Waters of Counsel That Heal Blemished Faith
“From the depths have I called to You, HaShem. HaShem, hear my voice. May Your ears be attentive to my outcry, my entreaty.” Unique and Singular Master of all, You are higher than everything. None is higher than You. “My King and my God, I will pray to You.”", + "I cry out to you, I plead with You, I prostrate myself before You. “I will prostrate myself and bow down. I will bend my knee before HaShem Who made me.”", + "“I stretch my hands out to You. My soul turns to You like a weary land.”", + "My heart cries out to HaShem. From the depths of my heart I call to You, from the deepest depths I beg for Your true compassion and graciousness. “Like a deer yearning along the channels of water, so does my soul yearn for You, God.”", + "Like doves moaning, “beating their breasts,” so does my heart moan for Your vast compassion and kindness.", + "“As a lion or young lion growls over his prey, though a band of shepherds gathers against him, he does not fear their voice and he is not subdued by their stirring.”", + "So shall I roar, cry out, moan, yearn, call, hope and wait for Your compassion and salvation. I will not be silent, but I will always call out to You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers.", + "For my spirit is oppressed, and I cannot hold back my words. “I called out Your Name, HaShem, from the lowest pit.” “You have heard my voice; do not hide Your ear from my sighing and my cry.” “HaShem, hear my voice when I call; be gracious to me and answer me.” Help me and save me so that I will truly attain full faith.", + "My Father in Heaven, please rescue me from blemishes to my faith. In Your vast compassion, guard me and rescue me from the terrible blows that come in consequence of damaged faith, Heaven forbid.", + "Nothing helps repair that — not remedies or prayer or the merit of the forefathers, or even sighs, groans and moans.", + "Everything is damaged and spoiled by a blemish in holy faith, which is the foundation of the entire Torah and the basis of all worlds, with all that is in them. All of those worlds are dependent and based on holy faith.", + "Please, awesome, holy God, filled with vast compassion, help me cry out to You from the depths of my heart, from the deepest depths, as I need to call to You now, when all of the pain of each and every person’s heart is revealed to You, Master of all.", + "Help me cry out to You from the heart with a truly profound voice, “with a still, small voice,” so that I will draw onto myself the wonders of Your awesome compassion, kindness, graciousness, salvation and rescue.", + "May I arouse and reveal true, deep counsel out of the depth of this darkness in which I am trapped because of my many sins.", + "“You do great things beyond comprehension and wonders without number.” You reveal “depths from the darkness” and illumine the shadow of death.", + "Bring me out from dimness to light. Perform wonders for me. Pour forth and reveal counsel from afar so that I will raise my holy faith. In Your vast compassion, have compassion on me. Graciously grant me holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge, so that I will dig down and reveal the waters — the “deep waters, counsel in the heart of man”— from which holy faith grows.", + "May I and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, reveal and illumine deep counsel from the depths of the darkness.", + "Rectify me with good counsel before You. In Your compassion, pour good counsel into the world.", + "Rescue me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, from doubt and confusion, so that nothing in the world will cause us to experience any doubts. Rather, may we always quickly and easily attain true, complete counsel in accordance with Your good will, regarding material and spiritual matters, and regarding body, soul and money.", + "In this transient world, may we succeed with true and eternal success to go on Your good paths, to come close to You with a full heart, and to obey Your true and proper counsel. “Guide me in Your counsel and afterward receive me with glory.”", + "Seeking a Man of Understanding
Compassionate Father, have compassion on us. Send us a man of understanding, with a holy soul, who will have the power to draw forth holy, deep counsel for us, as in the verse, “Counsel in the heart of man is deep water, and a man of understanding will draw it up.”", + "In the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim, help us draw Godly spirituality into areas of constriction.", + "Holy Areas of Constriction and Sustenance
In Your compassion, help us so that our good deeds will create such areas of constriction and holy bodies that will be fit vessels to receive Godly spirituality with great holiness, in accordance with Your good will.", + "At every moment, may we create new, holy and pure worlds and entities, and always draw Godly spirituality into these holy constrictions.", + "In Your compassion, send sustenance and income to all created, formed and made beings, which You sustain and support in Your great compassion and kindness, “from the horns of the aurochs to the eggs of lice.”", + "In Your great goodness, You give all created beings in the world constant sustenance, as it is written, “He gives bread to all flesh, for His kindness is forever.”", + "In Your vast compassion, help us and save us. Even before we need it, give us our income with great breadth, in a way that is allowed and not forbidden, with honor and not with disgrace, with ease and not with suffering.", + "Do not make us dependent on gifts or loans from flesh and blood. Rescue us forever from debts and loans. Help us quickly repay all of our loans and debts.", + "Our Father in Heaven, You know that it is very difficult for us to bear the yoke of the debts that hang around our necks, causing us to stumble and distracting us from the modest amount of Divine service that we wish to begin to engage in.", + "HaShem, in Your vast compassion and great kindness, please give us income and support us, because we do not know any way or stratagem to draw down income. We rely on You alone. We have cast our burden upon You so that You may support us.", + "Our Father in Heaven, God Who has shepherded us since we came into being, give us our income and fulfill our needs with great abundance, in great holiness and purity, before we require anything, in accordance with Your good will, without any trouble or confusion, so that we will return to You completely and always live in accordance with Your good will.", + "Eating in a Holy Manner
May we eat in great holiness and purity. May we eat solely for the sake of maintaining our body as we minimize the lusts of our nature.", + "May we be satisfied with eating little. May we be among the Tzaddikim who eat solely to satiate their holy souls, as in the verse, “The righteous man eats to satisfy his soul.”", + "Help our eating be so holy that we will satiate our souls with shining lights to take pleasure in HaShem, to be sated and take pleasure in the shining, supernal lights and “gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visit in His palace.”", + "May the verse be realized in us, “HaShem will guide you always and satisfy your soul in drought” [in which the Hebrew word for “drought” can also be read as “shining lights”], until we can always illumine our soul with a satiety of these supernal, shining lights.", + "As a result, may new comprehensions and insights always be drawn onto us, until we have the power to dig up and draw forth the deep waters of good and complete counsel from which holy faith grows.", + "May we discover and shine onto ourselves and onto the entire Jewish people good, deep and wondrous counsel that is a wonder of wonders drawn from the depths of the depths, counsel that is whole and proper, true, straight and clear — holy counsel that cannot be frustrated in any way. And with this, may we arouse and foster holy faith.", + "Master of the world, filled with compassion, You are “great in counsel and mighty in deed,” “wondrous Advisor, mighty God, everlasting Father forever,” “awesome in praises, performing wonders.”", + "You perform wonders at every moment. You have performed great and wondrous miracles and wonders for the Jewish people in every generation.", + "Have compassion on us now, in this generation, in these difficult times when, due to our many sins, holy faith has been deeply blemished and many of the children of Your nation have stumbled, as You know.", + "Do wonders on our behalf. Bring us to good, true counsel, so that we will truly attain complete faith and rectify all blemishes to faith.", + "May we examine ourselves at every moment to see the condition of our holy faith, and encourage ourselves with added faith at every moment, with a true wholeness of heart, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Perform life-giving wonders on our behalf. Bring us forth from dimness to light, from darkness to brightness, “for You light my lamp; HaShem my God lightens up my darkness,” because “even darkness will not obscure anything before You, and night will shine like day; as darkness, so is the light.”", + "May we always thank You for the wonders and favors that You have performed with us from the beginning, and for the great and awesome wonders that You perform with us at every moment.", + "“HaShem my God, You have done much, wonders and thoughts for our sake. No one compares with You. I would tell and speak them, but they are too many to recount.”", + "May the verse be realized, “HaShem, You are my God; I will exalt You. I will give thanks to Your Name because You have sent wonders, counsel from the earliest times; Your faithfulness is well-established.”", + "And a verse states, “I will thank HaShem with all my heart; I will tell all of Your wonders.” “I will thank You, because I have been formed awesomely. Wondrous are Your deeds, which my soul knows well.”", + "Being Healed
May we raise fallen faith and rectify all of its blemishes so that it will be expanded and strengthened.", + "May we all believe in You and in Your true Tzaddikim with faith that is strong and proper, whole and holy, pure, straight and clear — without any confusion, and without any foreign musings or thoughts.", + "May we draw complete healing onto all of the sick of Your nation, the House of Israel (and, in particular, onto [Hebrew name], the son/ daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]). God, please heal this person’s spirit and body. Heal all of our illnesses, all of our pains, and all of our wounds.", + "Nullify and remove all of the terrible wounds and all of the evil, clinging illnesses that affect us and Your entire nation, the House of Israel.", + "Send complete healing from Heaven to all those of Your nation, the House of Israel, who have suffered overwhelming blows, overwhelming wounds for which no remedy in the world helps, or any prayer or merit of the forefathers, or any crying out or groaning, due to the fact that their faith is blemished.", + "Please, HaShem, have compassion on them and on us for Your sake. Act for Your sake alone and not for ours, because You alone know how wretched we are.", + "Act in accordance with the greatness of Your awesome wonders. Send them complete healing from Heaven. Remove illness from our midst. For You are the faithful and compassionate God, King and Healer. Our ability rests only in the prayers of our mouth.", + "You are the Healer of the sick Who needs no reason to heal. Heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed. Save us and we will be saved, for You are our praise. Cause the rain to fall in its time for life, blessing and satiety. In Your compassion, cause the plants and herbs to grow so that they will have the power to heal the diseases of Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "In Your compassion, assure the correct, proper order of all of the seeds and plants in the world in accordance with the time and place fit for them. May no fruit or herb be plucked prematurely.", + "In Your compassion, bring about circumstances for the good so that everyone will eat and drink exactly what he needs for his true healing. May everyone possess a simple wholeheartedness and thus receive exactly what he needs in order to be healed.", + "Give me and the entire Jewish people our food in its season and its time, so that it will contain the power of all of the remedies that each person needs, materially and spiritually, in body and soul.", + "No doctor in the world knows how to attain this. Only You do, because You are the Cause of all causes and You know all hidden things.", + "May the verse be realized, “Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly blossom.”", + "Remember the covenant of our forefathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In the merit of our forefathers and the merit of all of the true Tzaddikim, show us incredible wonders. “With Your right hand, bring about Your kind, saving acts that distinguish those who take refuge [in You] from those who rise up [against them].”", + "“With awesome deeds, in [Your] charity answer us, God of our salvation, Stronghold of all the ends of the earth and the distant seas.”", + "May the verse be quickly realized in us, “Behold, I am making a covenant before all of your people. I will perform wonders that have never been brought into existence in the entire world or among any nation. Then all of the people among whom you live will see the awesomeness of God’s deeds that I am doing with you.”", + "“Just as it will be wondrous in the eyes of the remnant of this nation, so shall it be wondrous in My own eyes.” “This has come from HaShem — it is wondrous in our eyes.” “Great are You, doing wonders, You, God, alone.” “He alone does great wonders; His kindness is eternal.”", + "Increasing the Faith of Jews and Non-Jews
Help us and give us the strength to fortify and increase our holy faith with all our might, until all of the false faiths in the world will fall. And when they are subdued and fall, that will give honor to the glory of Your Name.", + "“Remove the idols from the earth. May the idols be cut away so that the world will be rectified under the sovereignty of the Almighty. May all people call upon Your Name, and in so doing, turn all the wicked of the earth to You.”", + "May many righteous converts constantly join the children of Israel, Your nation, so that many gentiles will become Jewish, converting for the sake of Your great Name. May everyone come to serve You and recognize the power of Your sovereignty.", + "May people become converts — some in potential and some in actuality. May even those who do not convert recognize the precious beauty of Your greatness and sovereignty.", + "May all people know that there is a Unique, Primal Being, may be He blessed and may His Name be elevated forever and ever. May they all yearn for Your true faith.", + "“May every created being know that You created him, and may every formed being understand that You formed him, and may all that has breath in its nostrils say, ‘HaShem, God of Israel, is King and His sovereignty rules over all.’”", + "In Your vast compassion and intense kindness, help us and guard us. Rescue us from the blemish caused by the pollution that taints converts, so that they will not harm Your nation, the Jewish people, at all.", + "Help all of the righteous converts quickly purify themselves from their uncleanness and pollution. Rescue and guard me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, so that no trace of the pollution or impurity that they had absorbed from the gentiles among whom they previously lived will cling to us.", + "Attaining Humility
Have compassion on us. Always guard us and rescue us from egotism and pride. Help us attain true humility.", + "Have pity, mercy and compassion on us. All of the hidden things of the heart are revealed before You. You are aware that we do not know any of the true ways of humility.", + "In Your vast compassion, please rescue us from all egotism, ulterior motives and coarseness, which Your heart abhors. As the verse states, “Everyone with a haughty heart is abhorrent to HaShem.”", + "Help us truly sense our lowliness. May we be much more lowly in our eyes than our actual degraded, base state warrants, until we attain true humility, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Overcoming False Leaders
Compassionate Father, have compassion on us. You are mighty and great to save. You are a shield that helps us. You are the sword of our pride. Guard us and rescue us from the sword of egotism of the false leaders of the generation, who seize greatness for themselves.", + "Their greatness was not given to them from Heaven at all. Rather, they seize control of the generation for no good reason. They rule over the impoverished nation by usurping rabbinical authority and they overwhelm Your nation, the Jewish people. They are the harmful forces of the world, as is revealed before You Who know hidden things.", + "Master of the world, You know the hearts of all people. What will we say? What will we tell You? You know everything, hidden and revealed.", + "“You rescue the poor person from the one stronger than he, the impoverished and the pauper from the person who robs him.” Rescue us from them. Guard us from them.", + "Protect us in the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim, true leaders in whom we take refuge. Guard us and rescue us from all destructive forces, the false leaders, so they will have no power to harm us, Heaven forbid, in any way whatsoever — neither in the material realm nor in the spiritual realm. May their hands not act with cunning.", + "We have no one on whom to rely except our Father in Heaven.", + "Subdue, uproot and nullify all of the power and authority of all of the false leaders. Remove the sword of pride from their hand, “and shatter the raised arm.”", + "Eradicate falsehood from the world and reveal the truth. May the verse be realized, “Because of the plunder of the poor, because of the outcry of the needy, now I will rise, says HaShem. I will grant them salvation.”", + "Eradicate the trait of egotism from the Side of Evil that is within me and within Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever.", + "HaShem our God and God of our fathers, You are filled with compassion. You are holy and awesome, holy beyond all holiness. Pour Your supernal holiness onto us.", + "Rectifying the Covenant
Help us subdue, break and overcome our evil inclination so that it will be subjugated to You. May we overcome and break our bad desires and nullify the lust for sexual wrongdoing entirely.", + "Send us “protectors of the land,” true Tzaddikim who will protect us and eradicate this evil desire, until we subdue, break and nullify the seal of the “husk” and rectify the seal of holiness.", + "Rescue us from ever experiencing a nocturnal emission. Help, save and shield us so that when we engage in marital relations, we will sanctify ourselves greatly. May we not accustom ourselves to indulge this desire even when it is permitted, Heaven forbid, but distance ourselves from it in all sorts of ways.", + "Have compassion on our remnant so that from now on we will guard the moisture and oils in our body at least somewhat, not expending it, Heaven forbid, through this desire. May we carefully guard our moisture and oils in order to raise them to the brain in great holiness and purity.", + "May we purify and elevate all of the moisture and oils from the blemish of “his flesh was sealed” to the rectification of the holy seal, which is the rectification of the brain.", + "May our mind be strengthened and renewed in great holiness and purity, with wisdom, understanding and knowledge. May our mind always shine with added wisdom and understanding, in great holiness.", + "Grant us the true holiness of tefilin, which are the seal of truth. As the verse states [referring to tefilin], “Place me as a seal upon your heart, like a seal upon your arm.”", + "Our Father, King, “Living God, our Portion, our Rock, command the rescue of the beloved soul from destruction for the sake of Your covenant that You placed in our flesh.”", + "In Your compassion, You imprinted us with the seal of the sign of the holy covenant. In Your great and awesome compassion, have compassion on us, help us, save us and guard us from now on so that we will guard this holy seal.", + "Please rescue us from the seal of the Side of Evil. “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.” “God, You are great and do wonders.” Who will tell You what to do?", + "Please have pity, mercy and compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Give us the power of the “protectors of the land” so that we will purify and elevate ourselves from the seal of the “husk” to the seal of holiness. As the verse states, “There is pride in his strong shields, closed with a narrow seal.”", + "Help us fulfill the mitzvah of tefilin properly, with all of its details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it, with a good heart and great joy, a joy that is fitting for a person who is crowned with the beauty of the holy and awesome tefilin, the crown of the King.", + "In the merit of the holiness of the seven tips of the two holy letters shin on the sides of the headtefilin, one shin with three tips and the other with four, may we draw onto ourselves the holiness of Moses-Mashiach, who is the true shepherd of Israel, composed of all Seven Shepherds.", + "In the merit and power of Moses and of all of the Seven Shepherds, and in the merit of all of the true Tzaddikim, may we break and nullify the lust for sexual wrongdoing and break the seal of the “husk,” and in every sort of way rectify the seal of holiness.", + "You are the King Who desires life. Seal us for a true life for Your sake, God of life.", + "You redeem us from death and destruction. Rescue us from the well of destruction. In Your mighty compassion, please rescue us from the lowest Sheol.", + "Redeem us from insolent, evil lusts — in particular, from the insolent, evil lust for sexual wrongdoing. Rescue Your nation from insolent people, Your sheep from the hand of shearers. Perform wonders that will bring us life.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, You alone know who stands against us at every moment, who wants to overcome us, Heaven forbid, and close and seal us into a number of seals of the Side of Evil, seal upon seal, Heaven forbid.", + "“He fenced me in so that I cannot get out, He weighed down my chains.”", + "HaShem, You are the God of truth, and Your seal is truth. We trust in You alone. We rely on Your great kindness. We place our spirit in Your hand. Rescue us, HaShem, God of truth.", + "“In Your truth, cut them off.” You will surely break all of the seals that they have placed on us. Please take us out of the seal of the “husk.” Raise us quickly, sanctify us and purify us of all impurity and contamination. Help us break the lust for sexual misbehavior truly and entirely.", + "Please seal us with the seal of holiness, seal upon seal, so that strangers will never lay their hands upon us.", + "Place the seal for a good life on all of Your Jewish children in the merit of the true Tzaddikim, who are Your seal, with whom You created and placed a seal upon Your world from beginning to end. In their merit and power, draw the power of the “protectors of the land” onto us.", + "Through them, may we raise and purify ourselves from “his flesh was sealed” to the seal of holiness. May our mind shine with great holiness and purity, with clear and pure mindfulness. May our mindfulness “grow ever brighter until the day is complete.”", + "Not Going Beyond the Proper Border
Have compassion on us. Help us constrict our mindfulness with holiness. May we guard our mind carefully so that it will not extend beyond its border, Heaven forbid.", + "Even in holiness, may our mind not cause damage by going beyond its border. May we not seek that which is beyond us, or investigate that which is concealed from us.", + "May we gaze only at what we are permitted to, with true, sharp, quick, pure mindfulness, a mindfulness that is proper, true, firm and established, straight and faithful, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Help each and every Jew draw onto himself the holy constriction appropriate for his mindfulness, so that his mind will not cause damage by going beyond its border.", + "Almighty God, Your Divinity suffices for every creature. Every creature, from the highest to the lowest, is limited in what it can take from Your Godliness, with a border around its mind beyond which it may not venture.", + "Almighty God, be compassionate to us. Pour onto us the holiness of tefilin from the root of their being. ", + "Tefilin combine the shining of holy mindfulness with the holy constriction of the mind of each and every individual on his level.", + "Rising from the Lowest Places
“You support the fallen, You revive the dead with vast compassion.” Have compassion on us. Pour onto us the holy, pure words of the true Tzaddikim who revive souls, from the greatest to the smallest. Restore, revive, heal and strengthen our terribly weak and depressed spirits.", + "Among these souls, have compassion, pity and mercy on me. Restore, strengthen and encourage my bitter soul. For my soul is bitter to me. HaShem, You Who have known Your servant, do not deliver Your servant to the “unscrupulous woman.”", + "“Please, HaShem, I am Your servant, Your servant, the son of Your maidservant. You have loosened my bands.”", + "Please help us. Save us. Revive us. Restore our feeble soul with every type of delicacy that restores the soul with “seven types of advice.” “Sustain me with flagons of wine, spread my bed with apples, for I am lovesick.”", + "Pour onto us “the words of HaShem [that] are pure words,” which are able to revive all of the fallen souls of Your nation, the Jewish people, that fell to where they have fallen, in different ways, fall after fall.", + "Sustain and support them. Elevate them step by step. Assist them and raise them up.", + "Strengthen weak hands and support stumbling knees. Strengthen the weakness of their hands. Restore them with every type of delicacy that restores the soul.", + "“Your words raise the person who stumbles, and You make buckling knees firm.”", + "May the verses be realized, “Seven times the righteous man falls and rises.” “HaShem kills and gives life, He brings down to Sheol and raises up.” “He raises the poor man from the dust, He lifts the impoverished man from the ash heap.”", + "Raise us quickly from all of the disgraceful places into which we have fallen in these generations. “I said, ‘HaShem, be gracious to me, heal my soul, for I sinned against You.’” May HaShem guard us and rescue us, and not deliver us into the hands of our enemies.", + "HaShem, sustain us on our sickbeds after You have erased our restfulness when we are ill. It is impossible to imagine anyone as sick, in pain and stricken as we, who suffer such blows to our soul in these times.", + "From the sole of our feet to our head, there is nothing whole in us. We are filled with wounds, contusions and lacerated sores.", + "These wounds have been sprinkled, bandaged and softened with oil, with remedies and drugs more expensive than gold and pearls — with which the true Tzaddikim of previous generations healed us.", + "These Tzaddikim composed many holy books, all of whose words revive the soul — books filled with wondrous and awesome counsel and great inspiration on how to truly serve You. Yet despite that, we are not healed.", + "“Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the health of the daughter of my people not been restored?” “Have You indeed rejected Judah? Has Your soul despised Zion? Why have You struck us, and we have no remedy? We hope for peace but there is no good, and for a time of healing, but behold, there is fright.”", + "You Who have mercy on the poor, have mercy on our poverty. See our lowliness and the length of our exile. “Bring me back and I will return, because You are [HaShem] my God.” In Your supernal holiness, revive us and raise us. Please restore us. Please revive us with Your Torah and with Your holy mitzvot.", + "“He restores my soul. He guides me in the paths of justice for the sake of His Name. Even when I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will not fear evil, because You are with me. Your rod and staff comfort me.”", + "Master of the world, Master of the entire world, You know the bitterness of our soul, which is literally more bitter than death. “The strength of the porter has collapsed,” and who can bear that bitterness? Woe to us, because we are shattered.", + "Teach us the way of the Tree of Life, which will sweeten the bitterness of the stormy waters that have grown so strong during this time, at the end of days. Help us expel them and remove them from our midst now and forever.", + "Sanctify us with Your mitzvot and give us our portion in Your Torah. “The Torah of HaShem is perfect, it restores the soul,” taking it from the way of death to the way of life. “Will You not return and revive us, so that Your nation will rejoice in You?”", + "Certainly You will bring everything to an end that is in accordance with Your will, as You have told us. For You are faithful, HaShem our God, and Your words are faithful. Not a single one of Your words will return empty.", + "“The way of God is perfect, the word of HaShem is refined, He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.” “The words of HaShem are pure words, silver, refined from a cauldron onto the ground, filtered seven times. You, HaShem, guard [good people], You protect [a good person] from [an evil] generation forever.”", + "Help us, for we rely on You. “HaShem, God of Hosts, bring us back; illumine Your face, and we will be saved.”", + "Holy Dreams
May it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that in Your vast compassion, You have compassion on us. Help us have holy dreams, dreams by means of the holy angel, dreams that are justified and true.", + "Do not confound me with bad ideas, bad dreams or evil musings. Rescue me from worthless and meaningless dreams, dreams that come about by means of a demon, Heaven forbid.", + "Raise me from the animal realm to the human realm. Help me sanctify and purify my power of imagination. May my power of imagination be incorporated into the power of my holy intellect, so that when my mind is quiescent during sleep, the power of my imagination and the residue of the consciousness of holiness will be great, on the level of an angel.", + "Draw the image of God onto me until I attain dreams by means of an angel, dreams that are well-established, dreams that are good and straight, holy and pure, and in accordance with Your good will.", + "Rescue me from dreams of foolishness, nonsense, vanity and falsehood. Transform all of my dreams regarding myself and all of the Jewish people for the good.", + "May my thoughts, mind and ideas always grasp, cling and bond to You, to Your holy Torah and to Your true Tzaddikim.", + "In a dream, may I see the light of the face of the true Tzaddikim and hear them speak words of the Living God — true and holy words without any admixture of nonsense, or any admixture of lies and vanities that are drawn from a detrimental place, Heaven forbid.", + "When I am awake, may I always remember clearly all of the holy, true matters that You help me see and hear in a dream. Give me the strength to always fear You and serve You in a holy way. May all of my dreams be for the good.", + "Holy Eating and Drinking
In Your vast compassion, help me and save me so that all of my food and drink will be pure, without any dross at all. May no trace of the admixture of demons be found in my food. Give me the power and might to strengthen the angel.", + "Help me always be joyous. May I have the power and might to be only joyful always.", + "May I eat in great joy, holiness and purity. May the verse be realized in me, “Go eat your bread in joy and drink your wine with a good heart, for God has approved of your deeds.”", + "By means of joy and gladness, may I strengthen the angel. May the holy angels be strengthened by means of the might of my joy.", + "May they draw onto me abundance and good income, food and drink that are purified without any trace of the Side of Evil at all.", + "May they not allow the Side of Evil and demons to siphon off any energy from the abundant flow that is drawn onto me. May the Side of Evil and the demons only serve as a conduit, and only draw a minimal amount of that flow, to provide them with a very constricted life force.", + "Attaining Joy and Holiness
In Your compassion, draw all abundance to Your holy nation, the Jewish people. May the hands of foreigners not rule over us. May we always be joyful. May no stranger participate in our joy.", + "Help us strengthen ourselves at every moment with great joy and gladness, until we are rescued from the uncleanness of a seminal emission, Heaven forbid, which comes because of depression and bitterness, Heaven forbid.", + "HaShem, You are filled with compassion. You think thoughts so that no one will remain driven away from You. Please rescue us from this grievous uncleanness. Please guard us and rescue our soul from a nocturnal emission.", + "Help us sanctify our thoughts and draw holy consciousness onto ourselves by means of the “protectors of the land,” until we completely break the lust for sexual wrongdoing.", + "May we be absorbed into the holiness of Moses, of all of the holy Seven Shepherds of holiness, and of all of the true Tzaddikim.", + "May holy consciousness and the holiness of the tefilin be drawn onto us from the supernal root of consciousness and tefilin.", + "Help us always feel joy. May we always strengthen the holy angels with the power of our joy.", + "Pour down onto us from Heaven a good income with great abundance. May all of our eating and drinking be purified, without any trace of the admixture of the power of demons and the Side of Evil.", + "May these forces have no power to heat anyone with the fire of lust, Heaven forbid. Rescue us and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, from ever experiencing a nocturnal emission.", + "Yearning to Return to God
Please, HaShem, what can we say? How will we speak? What troops will we muster to support our words? What shall we say before You Who dwell in the heights? What shall we relate before You Who reside in the Heavens? You know all things, hidden and revealed.", + "“My King and my God, I will pray to You.” I prostrate myself before You. “I have raised my eyes to You Who dwell in Heaven.”", + "I have no instruments — words, thoughts or that which is beyond thoughts — in which to clothe the narrative of the many and intense troubles of my soul.", + "I yearn for You like an animal of the field. “Like a crane and a swallow, I chatter, I have moaned like a dove. My eyes are raised to the heights. HaShem, rescue me, pledge Yourself to me ... I will cause my sleep to flee because of the bitterness of my soul.”", + "I stand before You as I am. My only hope is the prayers and pleas that You graciously allow me to pray and plead before You, until I attain complete salvation and return to You in truth — emerging from dimness to light, from grief to joy, from darkness to a great light, so that I will truly be in accordance with Your will.", + "HaShem my God and God of my fathers, You are full of compassion, salvation and rescue, mercy and graciousness, and goodness. “HaShem is good to all, and His compassion rests upon all of His works.” Help me from now on. Guard me and rescue me so that I will no longer sin.", + "Rescue me from ever experiencing a nocturnal emission. May I not fantasize by day, which leads to uncleanness at night. “Keep Your servant clear of willful sins. May they not rule over me. Then I will be whole and cleared from great iniquity.” In Your compassion, help me always be joyful.", + "For the Month of Nisan", + "The Holiness of the Month of Nisan
Help me draw the holiness of the month of Nisan, the head of the months, onto myself and onto the entire Jewish people.", + "Just as in Nisan You took Your nation, the Jewish people, out of the exile of Egypt — the “nakedness of the land,” which is the blemish of the covenant — so too, in Your vast compassion, save me and redeem every Jewish soul in every generation, every year.", + "Rescue all of us in the power of the holiness of this month, the head of the months, the first month of the year, the holy month of Nisan, the redemption and salvation of Israel.", + "By means of this, may we all truly attain the redemption of the soul. Redeem us and our souls quickly from the well of destruction, from the deep mire. Bring us out of the depths of the sea.", + "Rescue my poor soul from the blemish of a nocturnal emission, Heaven forbid. May I never stumble in this sin — I and my offspring and the offspring of Your nation, the House of Israel — from now and forever, neither unintentionally nor intentionally, neither under duress nor willingly.", + "Our Father, our King, have mercy on us. Our Father, our King, have pity and compassion on our children and infants. Help us draw the holiness and joy of Nisan onto the entire year.", + "May we always be joyful, and always bring laughter and joy, might and gladness to all of the holy angels. May they have beauty and splendor, might and gladness in their place throughout the entire year, as in the month of Nisan.", + "May our joy always strengthen the holy angels. May the holy angels always gain might and intensity.", + "May the power of the demons and the “husks” be eradicated. May they not draw any energy from the holy flow of abundance that descends to us.", + "May our food and drink be purified. As a result, may we be rescued from the uncleanness of a nocturnal emission, Heaven forbid. May we always be holy and pure.", + "In Your truth, teach us and guide us. In accordance with Your truly good will, teach us the ultimate truth of how to fast.", + "Emerging from Dimness to Light
Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Have compassion on us for the sake of Your vast and mighty kindness. Have compassion on us for Your sake alone. For You have vast and endless compassion that suffices to apply to us as well.", + "In Your compassion, You support supernal and lower beings. You have caused Your vast compassion to flow into the world. In Your world, You have helped many Tzaddikim, pious people, God-fearing people, wholehearted people, and those who are worthy and repentant. “I want to count them, but they are more numerous than the sand.”", + "In Your compassion, You have helped these people break and nullify the vanities of this world and emerge from dimness to light. In Your compassion and with Your mighty arm, You redeemed them from the exile of the soul, until they attained what they attained.", + "If not for Your compassion and kindness, they would not have the power to withstand the deep sea of the vanities of this world. As our sages have said, “Every day a person’s evil inclination overwhelms him, and if not for the fact that the Holy One, blessed be He, helps him, he would fall into its hand.”", + "You Who are deeply compassionate, help me truly return to You.", + "Because of my many sins, I was slack in the work of Heaven, and I did not serve You adequately. Never has a person of my quality succeeded in attaining complete repentance.", + "Still, every day, at every moment, You create great wonders without number. At every moment, You generate new compassion and kindness for the Jewish people.", + "In the merit of the holy Tzaddikim of past generations, show me a wondrous, new compassion that was never before revealed, so that from now on I will return to the true way of life.", + "Do not allow me to err any further in tangled and confused ways that are not in accordance with Your will. May I no longer go in the dark. May I trust in the Name of HaShem, and rely on my God.", + "HaShem, do not allow me to stray from Your ways. Do not harden my heart, which would keep me from fearing You, because everything comes from You. “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.”", + "In Your vast compassion, sanctify and purge my thoughts. Guide me to the way of ultimate truth. Give me hope, and I will no longer be lost. Help me truly live in accordance with Your will, so that I will rectify everything that I destroyed.", + "May my eating always be joyful, with great holiness and purity. May I always be joyous.", + "Overcoming Unworthy Leaders
You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. Rescue me and guard me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, from unworthy rabbis and judges whose deeds are improper.", + "You know all that they have caused us, because of our many sins. There is no one to stand up on our behalf, and we lack the power to overcome and subdue them.", + "Please, HaShem, King of judgment, in Your vast compassion, grant us holy judgment. Rescue us from unworthy judges and rabbis who corrupt judgment and damage the supernal Chariot, the thrones of judgment, where holy love rests.", + "Because of these corrupt judges and rabbis, holy types of love fall from there and inject the lust for sexual impropriety into the world. As a result of the perversion of judgment of those judges and rabbis, the uncleanness of nocturnal emission comes about, Heaven forbid.", + "Merciful, Righteous One, HaShem, You love judgment. You love Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "You know what is inside of us, how the lusts of our body pursue us at every moment, until we stumble and there is no one to help. In addition, the blemishes drawn from the totality of the world also cause us harm.", + "Master of the world, we cast our burden upon You. In Your compassion, rescue us and guard us so that no perversion of judgment will harm us at all.", + "Rescue us from fallen loves. May we raise and purify all such fallen types of love and truly return them to their holy root.", + "Help us rectify judgment in great holiness and purity, with the ultimate, complete rectification.", + "Be with us always. Guard us, help us and save us so that we do not blemish our tefilin and our mind. May no evil moisture or oils, which correspond to the drop of Esau and Ishmael, rise to the brain.", + "Master of the world, You are aware that I do not know how to pray for this. I cast my burden upon You alone. “Avenge me, God, and battle on my behalf against an impious nation; rescue me from a man of falsehood and injustice.”", + "“Judge me in accordance with Your righteousness, HaShem my God, and may others not rejoice over me.” “Righteousness and judgment are the foundation of Your throne; kindness and truth come before Your countenance.” “May our judgment go forth before You; may Your eyes see [our] upright acts.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name alone, even though we have done so much wrong that we have no righteous advocate, Heaven forbid.", + "HaShem, You alone protect us and guard us. You alone rescue us from all that we need to be rescued from, in the material and spiritual realms. You rescue us from unintentional and intentional wrongdoing and from rebelling, so that we may truly attain the rectification of the covenant.", + "“In the absence of a strong advocate to oppose the prosecutor, speak to Jacob with law and judgment, and judge in our favor, King of judgment, Who grasps in His hand the trait of judgment.”", + "In Your vast compassion, help us bind together the holy Chariot so that all of its angels will be bound together: Michael on the right, Gabriel on the left, Uriel in front and Raphael behind, who are altogether referred to by the acronym ARGaMan (purple).", + "There holy love rests. As the verse states, “King Solomon made himself a palanquin of the trees of Lebanon. He made its pillars of silver, its couch of gold, its curtain of purple, its interior inlaid with love, from the daughters of Jerusalem.”", + "Before we go to sleep, help us always recite with great feeling the description of the binding together of the Chariot: “In the Name of HaShem, God of Israel: On my right is Michael, and on my left is Gabriel, and before me is Uriel, and behind me is Raphael, and over my head is the Presence of God.”", + "In Your great power, help us bind together the holy Chariot, until we attain rectifications of judgment. May the “thrones for judgment, thrones for the house of David” be rectified.", + "May we completely rectify the blemish of the fallen loves, so that we will not experience any evil lust drawn from those fallen loves.", + "Help us attain holy love, so that we will always accept upon ourselves the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven with a great and powerful love, with great joy and gladness.", + "Guard us and rescue us always from experiencing a nocturnal emission. Help us quickly attain a true and complete rectification of the covenant, in accordance with Your good will.", + "For Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot", + "Hearing the Voice of the Shofar
In Your vast compassion, help us hear the voice of the shofar on Rosh HaShanah from a worthy shofar-blower.", + "May we fulfill the mitzvah of hearing the sound of the shofar on Rosh HaShanah perfectly, with great holiness and purity, with intense gladness and joy, fear and love.", + "Help us bring about all of the holy rectifications that need to be realized by means of the sounds of the shofar: the tekiah, shevarim and teruah.", + "In the merit of the holy tekiah, may we draw onto ourselves the holiness of wisdom, understanding and knowledge. May we scrub our soul so that it is entirely bright, supernal and holy.", + "In the merit of the holy teruah, may we draw onto ourselves the holiness of “Moses [the] shepherd,” the true shepherd of Israel. In his merit, power and holiness, may we truly attain the holiness of the covenant.", + "In the merit of the holy shevarim, may we attain correct and true dreams that come by means of the holy angel. In this way, guard us and rescue us from the blemish of the covenant and from a nocturnal emission on all levels. As a result, may we attain the rectification of judgment.", + "Help us water our hearts with great holiness, and extinguish the heat of the heart that burns for evil lusts — in particular, the lust for sexual wrongdoing.", + "Draw onto us the waters of kindness and compassion, the waters of knowledge and understanding. Draw onto us “water with joy from the wellsprings of salvation.” Pour water to extinguish the thirst and heat of the heart of the Side of Evil. May we attain a rectification of judgment.", + "May the verse be realized, “Justice will be revealed like water, and righteousness like a mighty river.”", + "Help us attain the holiness of Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret.", + "May we celebrate these awesome, holy and pure days with awesome, great holiness, with intense joy and gladness.", + "Help us keep the holy mitzvot that apply on these awesome, holy days, with great joy, fear and love, with a good heart, mighty intent and great perfection, with all of their details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on them.", + "Thus, may we bring about all of the holy rectifications that need to be realized on these holy days.", + "In Your vast compassion and kindness, help us celebrate the holy and awesome Rosh HaShanah with great holiness and purity.", + "In the merit of the holiness of Rosh HaShanah, may we truly attain complete faith. Help us and save us so that all of the sparks of holy faith will gather together as a result of the holy gathering of Your nation, the Jewish people, in all of the holy congregations on the holy days of Rosh HaShanah.", + "May the verse be realized, “The heavens will praise Your wonders, HaShem, Your faithfulness amid the holy congregation.�� By means of this, may we attain a rectification of holy consciousness.", + "Help us so that great holiness will be drawn onto us in all of the five senses that are drawn from the brain — the senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. May great holiness be drawn down from the supernal root of the five senses to the senses as they are in the brain.", + "Draw Your complete providence onto us from the beginning of the year to the entire year. Always supervise us with Your eye of mercy, as in the verse, “The eyes of HaShem your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year until the end of the year.”", + "In Your compassion, hear the voice of our prayers, pleading, outcries, groans and sighs, and the shofar-blowing of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "Draw Your great fear onto us and enliven us with the fear of HaShem. May the verse be realized for us, “He will be enlivened by the fear of HaShem.”", + "“HaShem our God, place Your fear upon all of Your creatures, and Your awe upon all that You created. May all creatures fear You and all created beings prostrate themselves before You. May they all form one group to do Your will with all their heart.”", + "May we increase mitzvot and good deeds the entire year, until on Rosh HaShanah, You taste our mitzvot and good deeds.", + "In Your compassion, help us rectify the positive commandments and make them into tasty delicacies that You love. Stretch out Your hand to receive those who return to You. Bring us back and accept us in complete repentance before You.", + "For the Ten Days of Repentance", + "The Gift of Repentance
Have compassion on us. Help us and save us so that we will return to You in true, complete repentance, especially on the Ten Days of Repentance. On the Ten Days of Repentance, may we rectify all of the blemishes that we brought about throughout the entire year — in particular, the blemish of the covenant.", + "Compassionate One, in Your vast compassion, please sanctify us with especially great and awesome sanctity on the Ten Days of Repentance, during which You are available to all who truly seek You. As the verse states, “Seek HaShem when He is to be found; call to Him when He is near.”", + "In Your great compassion and mercy, You gave us this good gift, these holy Ten Days of Repentance. You know that we are flesh and blood, and molded from clay, and that “there is no righteous man in the earth who does good and does not transgress.”", + "Therefore, You brought healing and balm prior to our wounds. From the beginning You informed us of this, and from the start You revealed this. In Your vast compassion and mighty kindness, at the beginning of the year, You give us these ten holy days, the Ten Days of Repentance, from Rosh HaShanah to Yom Kippur.", + "On these days, we have special power to return to You with complete repentance and to rectify all of our blemishes, transgressions, sins and iniquities from the entire year.", + "Therefore, please help us. Please be gracious to us so that we will not lose this good gift, Heaven forbid.", + "Because of our many sins, the Side of Evil overcomes us even on the Ten Days of Repentance. As a result, a number of years have passed by without our attaining complete repentance, even on the Ten Days of Repentance.", + "For our many sins, we have brought about a number of blemishes before You on the Ten Days of Repentance themselves, and on all of the holy days: on Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah.", + "We did not guard these holy days properly, without blemish. We blemished them a very great deal in thought, speech and deed — unintentionally and intentionally, under duress and willingly.", + "And now all that we can hope for is the King’s charity when we cry out to Him, “My sin is too great to bear.” Our transgressions are too many to count. If not for Your compassion and kindness, “I would have perished in my affliction.”", + "You Who are filled with vast compassion, help us from now on to return, and to seek and find everything that we lost from the day that we came to be upon the earth until this day.", + "Help us from now on to be purified and sanctified with great holiness during the entire year — especially on these holy days of awe, from Rosh HaShanah to Simchat Torah.", + "Bring us to true, complete repentance during the Ten Days of Repentance to rectify all that we destroyed. May we then truly and completely rectify the blemish of the covenant in order to rectify the seal of holiness.", + "May we at last attain on the holy day of fasting, on Yom Kippur — which is a great and awesome day, the Shabbat of Shabbats — forgiveness of our transgression, forgiveness of sin and atonement of iniquity, to complete the rectification of the seal of holiness.", + "Weeping Out of Joy on Yom Kippur
Help us celebrate the fast of the holy and awesome Yom Kippur in complete holiness and purity.", + "May we then repent completely and weep out of joy and gladness in Your great Name.", + "May we confess before You with every sort of confession, and detail all of our transgressions, sins and iniquities to You, and regret them greatly from the depth of our heart, with absolute truth.", + "May we abandon them absolutely, and resolve in truth and with a full heart never to commit them again under any circumstances, and never return to any foolishness. If we have acted foolishly, may we not continue do so.", + "In Your great compassion, forgive us. Grant atonement for all of our transgressions, sins and iniquities that we have committed before You.", + "In Your compassion, rectify all of the seals of holiness. Place us, Your nation, the House of Israel, “like a seal upon your heart, like the seal upon your arm.”", + "Seal us for a good, long life and peace, for true life, a life in which we will truly do Your will. Seal us in the book of true Tzaddikim.", + "The Rectifications of Sukkot
Help us celebrate the holy festival of Sukkot with great holiness and purity, and with intense joy and gladness in Your great and holy Name. May we be happy and rejoice in Your salvation.", + "May we be only joyous on the holy days of Sukkot, the season of our joy, to celebrate and rejoice with all our might.", + "Help us fulfill the mitzvah of sukkah and the Four Species with great joy, with all of its details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it.", + "In the merit of the holy mitzvah of sukkah, may we rectify and strengthen the holy angel, and attain a dream by means of an angel, and pure foods without any admixture of dross whatsoever. May food not harm us at all. And may all of our dreams be established for us for the good.", + "In the merit of the holiness of Shemini Atzeret, rectify the judgment of holiness. In this way, rescue us always from the blemish of the covenant and from a nocturnal emission, Heaven forbid. May the holy drop be received and held in great holiness, in accordance with Your good will. May it never be destroyed, Heaven forbid.", + "Students of the True Tzaddikim
Guard us and rescue us from unfit rabbis and judges. Nullify their power and governance in the world.", + "In Your vast compassion, have pity on us. May we and the entire Jewish people merit worthy rabbis and judges who will establish our religion properly, who will judge us with an ultimately true judgment, so that we will truly attain the rectification of judgment and we will truly rectify the covenant completely on all levels, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Fulfill all of our requests for the good — whether You treat us as sons or as servants.", + "“If as sons, have compassion on us as a father upon sons, and if as servants, our eyes are turned to You, until You will be gracious and bring our judgment to light, You who are awesome and holy.”", + "In Your great compassion, give us a true rabbi and leader. In Your vast compassion, help us come close to true Tzaddikim who have a worthy yeshivah with worthy students, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May I also be included in the holy yeshivot of true Tzaddikim, among their worthy students.", + "Through the holy yeshivot of the true Tzaddikim, may we gather and rectify all of the elements of holy faith. May we truly attain complete faith.", + "May the verse be realized in us, “Thus said HaShem, ‘I have recalled the kindness of your youth, the love of your nuptials, how you followed Me in the desert, in an unsown land.’”", + "May our minds be rectified by the true Tzaddikim, who will shine the holiness of their holy consciousness into us. They will teach us knowledge and understanding, and the way of judgment; they will reveal to us the ways of Your kindness, strengthen us in Your service, purify our hearts to truly serve You and gladden our feeble souls.", + "We have no one on whom to rely except the true Tzaddikim. We connect all of our prayers and our service to them.", + "HaShem, please act for the sake of the true Tzaddikim. Give us true, complete and simple faith without any crookedness at all. Never drive us away from faith, Heaven forbid, even for a moment.", + "Guarded by Faith
May I always be strong and firm in Your holy faith: during my lifetime, at the end of my life when my soul leaves my body, and after my death.", + "Wherever I am, may I be in accordance with Your will and good, straight judgments. May holy faith always guard me, so that I will never be ashamed and never stumble.", + "“Even when I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will not fear evil, because You are with me. Your rod and staff comfort me.”", + "Help me. Help me. Send me the unearned gift of holy faith. In Your great mercy, have mercy on me. Do not treat me in accordance with my transgressions. Do not repay me in accordance with my sins.", + "Have mercy and compassion on me and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people, in the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim. Guard us and rescue us from every type of heresy and perverseness of the heart, and from every type of question or challenge that should never arise in our heart or mind.", + "May we always be strong in Your holy faith, like a peg that cannot be moved.", + "Draw down faith and pour it into the world. May holy faith increase and grow stronger, and rise and stand in its place, until all false faiths and heresies fall and are eradicated from the world.", + "May they all be subdued and fall. Uproot them, break them, eliminate them, subdue them, cast them down and nullify them absolutely, from now and forever.", + "Reveal the truth in the world. May everyone in the world return to Your holy faith. May many righteous converts be added to Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "Overcoming Egotism
Give us the power to clarify and rectify the blemish of pride that is drawn down, Heaven forbid, as a result of non-Jews becoming converts. May we break and nullify all of the blemishes that they bring into the Jewish people, and clarify and raise everything to holiness.", + "Help us cast off pride and egotism, every type of which the mouth can speak and the heart think.", + "Help us attain true humility and raise all pride to You. You alone should possess pride, greatness and governance. As the verse states, “HaShem has ruled, He has garbed himself with pride, HaShem has garbed Himself, HaShem has garbed Himself with might; the world is established so that it will not totter.”", + "Holy Sleep
May we completely rectify the covenant and truly sanctify our minds and intellects with ultimate holiness.", + "May we sleep a holy sleep, a good and sweet sleep. Illumine our eyes lest we dream death.", + "May we always fall asleep in the midst of words of Torah — a sleep of life that is good, pleasant and sweet. May the verse be realized in us, “Sweet is the sleep of the worker, whether he eats a little or a great deal.” May we go to sleep with goodness and awaken with compassion.", + "Serving God with Simplicity
Have compassion on us, Father of compassion, so that we will always truly serve You with wholeness and simplicity, without any cleverness at all.", + "Help us and save us so that we will cast away all cleverness for the sake of Your holy service — both worldly wisdoms, which are truly foolishness and vanity, and holy wisdoms as well. May we cast them all away from ourselves in order to truly serve You.", + "May we cast away our entire intellect and all wisdoms. May we always truly serve You in wholeness and absolute simplicity, without any cleverness at all.", + "Mad with Devotion to God
For the sake of Your love, in order to give You pleasure, may we even engage in behavior that appears mad in the eyes of others. May we fulfill the verse, “You will always be intoxicated with her love.”", + "May we cast ourselves into all kinds of trash and mud for the sake of Your holy mitzvot. Even for the sake of something slight, if it is truly Your will, may we cast ourselves down and roll in all sorts of trash and mud in order to truly please You.", + "Help us and save us so that throughout our lives we will keep all 613 commandments, with all of their details, particulars and intentions, with all of their related rabbinic commandments and with all of the branches that extend from them.", + "May we truly do everything that is Your will with great energy and genuine self-sacrifice, and roll in all sorts of trash and mud for the sake of anything that is truly Your will, in order to please You.", + "Attaining All Rectifications
Help me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, to merit being on the level of sons to You and not on the level of servants, as in the verse, “You are sons to HaShem your God.”", + "Give us permission to seek in the treasure house of the King, like a son who goes through his father’s treasure house. Have mercy on us “as a man has mercy on his son who serves him.”", + "May we distinguish “between the righteous and the wicked, between the person who serves God and one who does not serve Him.”", + "May the verse be realized, “I will have mercy on them as a man has mercy on his son who serves him, and you will return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between the person who serves God and the one who does not serve Him.”", + "Bring us our righteous Mashiach quickly, in our days. May the light of his holy wisdom illumine us until we know Your ways, until we understand why in some cases the righteous man prospers and in other cases the righteous man suffers, and why in some cases the wicked person prospers and in other cases the wicked person suffers.", + "May we know, understand and grasp the ways of Your holy judgments, “for You are righteous, HaShem, and Your judgments are straight.”", + "May we attain the entire rectification of judgment through our righteous Mashiach, may he come quickly in our days. As the verse states, “[David’s prayer] concerning Solomon: God, give Your judgments to King [Solomon], Your righteousness to the son of King [David]. May he judge Your nation with justice and Your poor with judgment.” “May he judge the poor of the nation, save the sons of the impoverished and crush the oppressor.”", + "Help us attain the secrets of the Torah, and raise and bring forth the judgment of holiness from the lowest depths. Depth calls to depth: Pour forth your waters.", + "Raise judgment from Your depths. May the judgment of holiness return to its place. May the verse be realized, “Justice will be revealed like water and righteousness like a mighty river.”", + "May our lungs always be whole — physically and spiritually.", + "Guard us and rescue us always, so that we suffer no blemish, lack, discomfort or pain in our lungs, neither physical nor spiritual. May our lungs always be perfect and whole.", + "May we at last draw onto ourselves the holiness of the holy lungs from their supernal root above, which is composed of all of these holy rectifications that we have mentioned before You.", + "In Your vast compassion, fulfill all of our desires for the good. Draw onto us all of these rectifications and illumine us with these in the most complete way.", + "These are: the rectification of faith, the rectification of the covenant and the mind, the nullification of egotism, the rectification of dreams, the rectification of food by means of joy, the rectification of judgment, and all of the other rectifications that are incorporated into these — those that we have mentioned before You and those that we have not mentioned before You.", + "With all of these rectifications, aided by Your vast compassion, may we quickly come to serve You in truth and in complete faith, in great joy and true humility, in ultimate truth, in accordance with Your good will from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "A Good Sweat of Holiness Brings Joy
The spleen is the source of turbid blood, from which depression comes.
A person must strengthen himself to push away depression and bitterness and make himself joyful. When he performs the mitzvot and engages in holy activities until he sweats, this forces out this turbid blood and then he dominates his spleen.
In particular, the joy of the festivals is drawn onto a person by means of a good sweat of holiness.
Attaining the Joy of the Festivals
May it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that You make me joyful always.", + "Help me perform all of the mitzvot and engage in all holy matters with great power, until I sweat when I perform the mitzvah or the holy matter.", + "As a result, may all of the turbid blood with all of the evil poisons in it emerge from me. May it all go out by means of a good sweat as I engage in these holy matters.", + "As a result, may I dominate the spleen, which constitutes the turbidity of the blood from which depression comes, Heaven forbid.", + "May I always be joyful. May I drive out and destroy depression and bitterness, so that they will have no control over me and no hold on me whatsoever. May I only be joyful always.", + "Have compassion on me and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Guard us and rescue us from every type of illness, pain or weakness.", + "Have mercy on all of the sick of Your nation, the Jewish people, who are already bedridden, by quickly sending them a good sweat. May all of the evil poisons of the turbid blood emerge from them, and, as a result, may they be healed completely in Your compassion.", + "Send them and all of us truly great joy.", + "May the joy of the festival be drawn onto us by means of the good sweat of holiness. May we utilize all of our abilities when we perform every mitzvah and every action that You wish, until we experience a good sweat.", + "In this way, may we always attain the joy of the festival. May we rejoice in You always, every day of the year, over the fact that in Your vast compassion, “You chose us from all of the nations, elevated us above all of the tongues, sanctified us with Your commandments, brought us close, our King, to serve You, and called Your great and holy Name upon us.”", + "Pushing Away Depression
Master of the world, You know how terribly depression harms us, Heaven forbid. But what can we do? Depression and bitterness overcome us constantly with tremendous, limitless power, until “the strength of the porter has collapsed.” And what shall we do after the effect that our sins have had?", + "You have urged us to strengthen ourselves so that we will always be joyful. Every person, whatever he is like, must strengthen himself to push away depression and bitterness, and force himself with all his might to be joyful always.", + "Therefore, I have come to You Who are filled with compassion, to have pity, mercy and compassion on us at all times. Help us gladden our souls with every type of counsel and in every way, so that we will remove depression from ourselves at every moment and always be joyful.", + "May the joy of the holy festival be drawn onto us every day.", + "May we study and believe Your deeds and wonders, HaShem. You perform great and awesome wonders and miracles with us every day to strengthen us and grasp us [and encourage us] so that we will never fall, Heaven forbid.", + "You have already opened our minds to see a little from afar of the kindness, wonders and favors that You perform on our behalf every day, at every moment.", + "As the verse states, “This has come from HaShem — it is wondrous in our eyes. This is the day that HaShem made. We will rejoice and be happy on it.”", + "“Give joy to the soul of Your servant — because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!”", + "Strengthen me and encourage me. Help me and save me in the ways of Your kindness and awesome wonders so that I will always be truly joyful. Amen. So may it be Your will." + ], + [ + "Sin Constitutes a Jew’s Greatest Suffering / A Compassionate Torah Leader Guides Those Who are Above and Those Who are Below / Everyone Must Leave Behind a Blessing in This World / A Tzaddik’s Insights Transcend Time / A Person’s Yom Kippur Determines the Quality of His Chanukah / The Lungs Draw Physical and Spiritual Life
A Torah leader must be compassionate. Moreover, he must know how to implement his compassion properly. For instance, just as a parent must refrain from feeding an infant adult food, so too, a compassionate leader must refrain from granting wicked people inappropriate kindness.
The souls of the Jewish people originate in a sublime source. As such, they are extraordinarily spiritual and refined, and are in essence entirely removed from sin.
A Jew sins only when a spirit of foolishness enters into him. That is the most pitiable state that he can find himself. Compared to that, any other suffering is as nothing.
A Torah leader must have compassion on such a person and fill him with proper spiritual awareness. In doing so, the leader relieves him of the heavy burden of his sins.
Moses was a uniquely compassionate Torah leader, dedicating himself to helping the Jewish people even at the risk of his own well-being. He opened the light of consciousness for the Jews. In doing so, he worked to create a civilized world, because the essence of a human being is his consciousness. A person who lacks that is uncivilized — in fact, he is not even considered a human being, but an animal in human form.
*
In our world, people can be divided into two groups: those who are above (compared to a “son”) and those who are below (compared to a “student”). The Tzaddik must guide both of them.
Those people who are above are on a high spiritual level. The Tzaddik must show them that ultimately, they know nothing of God, and he must challenge them to consider, “Where is the place of His glory?”
Those who are below are on a low spiritual level. The Tzaddik must show them that they can still hope to return to God, because “the whole earth is filled with His glory.”
In addition, these two types must be combined. The “son” must partake of something of the “student,” and the “student” must partake of something of the “son.” This is necessary so that both will possess the fear of God.
If a person on a high level only experiences his distance from God, he might feel too far to fear God. Therefore, he must be given something of the awareness of the person on a low level: that God’s glory fills the earth — i.e., that God is close to him.
And if a person on a low level only experiences how the world is filled with God’s glory, he might lose all sense of self and thus be unable to fear God. Therefore, he must be given something of the awareness of the person on a high level — a measure of distance from God — so that he will continue to be self-aware and he will be capable of fearing God.
*
Everyone can be a teacher. For instance, when two people discuss religious matters and one inspires the other, he is the teacher to the other. That kind of discussion civilizes the world and fills it with true human beings.
The act of teaching also expands the awareness of the teacher. A concept just beyond a person’s comprehension hovers outside his mind. When he acts as a teacher and transfers his wisdom and awareness to someone else, he creates a space in his own mind into which that hovering awareness can enter.
Thus, as soon as a teacher reveals one concept, a new awareness enters his mind. This process can occur repeatedly. This obligates him to be careful about what he reveals, because ultimately, he may be open to receiving an awareness of transcendent concepts beyond time — meaning, concepts that time would not suffice to explain. That is something that would leave him in a state of confusion, and so it is something he must avoid.
As for the sage and rabbi of the generation, the transcendent awareness that hovers around him is on the level of “length of days and years,” the World to Come, which is “a day that is entirely long,” transcending time. All of the time of this world is nothing compared to even a single moment of the World to Come. There, time is expressed as transcendent states of awareness. Attaining these states constitutes the essential delight of the World to Come: the knowledge of the unknown, the ultimate good hidden from all eyes. When the sage speaks with his students and fills them with his awareness, these transcendent states of awareness enter into him.
There are states of transcendent awareness that cannot be put into words. These are called “hands” because, like gesturing hands, they can communicate only hints. They bring these hints down to a level where God’s sovereign providence is revealed.
Along with the influx of hints comes an influx of abundance, including monetary wealth.
Having income is related to eating, since the principal purpose of work is to obtain food. When the levels of “son” and “student” combine, when a spiritually powerful person eats, he can experience an illumination of God’s will so that he will yearn for God without even knowing what he wants.
The Temple (which combined the dynamics of the “son” and the “student”) also brought down monetary blessing. Thus, it contained a huge basin called the “Sea of Solomon,” which is associated with the revelation of God’s sovereign providence.
In the days that the Temple existed, we were free of the burden of sin. The daily morning offering atoned for sins of the previous night, and the daily afternoon offering atoned for the sins of the previous day. But now that the Temple has been destroyed, we cannot adequately cleanse ourselves of our sins.
In the days of Moses, the sin of the spies3See Numbers 13:1-14:39. foreshadowed the destruction of the Temple. In that instance, Moses begged God to “please forgive the sin of this nation.” God acceded to his request, and that constituted the eventual re-inauguration of the Temple — as commemorated by Chanukah.
Similarly, when an individual is successful in his request for forgiveness (on Yom Kippur), that leads to a spiritually successful Chanukah, which corresponds to the re-inauguration of the Temple.
It is good for a person’s soul to rise and cling to its place in the upper worlds. That is what happens when a person dies. But that does not constitute his ultimate perfection. The soul attains perfection only when it exists both above and below.
In order to achieve that, a person must leave behind a blessing in this world. He does this in the form of sharing his awareness with a son or a student, who remains here below even as this person’s soul rises upward. In that sense, the person still exists in this world.
All of the above concepts apply to the well-being of the lungs. When the lungs are in proper balance, they are composed of these levels of “son” and “student.”
Send Us a Compassionate Leader
“Your compassion is abundant, HaShem. Give me life in accordance with Your ways.” “HaShem is compassionate and gracious, longsuffering and extremely kind.” “HaShem is good to everyone; His compassion rests on all of His creatures.” “In the same way that a father has compassion on [his] children, be compassionate to us.”", + "“Do not bear in mind our initial transgressions. Send us Your compassion quickly, because we are so impoverished.”", + "“HaShem, HaShem, God Who is compassionate and gracious, You are long-suffering, very kind, and true.”", + "Our compassionate Father, show us Your vast, great and true compassion. Shelter us in Your great compassion and kindness. Do not refuse us Your abundant empathy.", + "Arouse Your compassion and graciousness for us, Your children. Look at our poverty and our exertions. Have mercy on us for Your sake, You Who are always filled with vast compassion. Send us a truly compassionate leader so that the verse will be fulfilled, “He who has compassion on [the Jews] will guide them.”", + "For the Seventh of Adar, the Hilula4A hilula is the anniversary of the date of death of a great Tzaddik or Chassidic leader. Unlike a yahrtzeit, which is marked by a solemn commemoration of the life of the deceased, a hilula is marked by joy and feasting, in recognition of the Tzaddik’s ongoing spiritual contribution to the world. of Moses
Master of the world, “Shepherd of Israel, listen! You Who guide Joseph like sheep, You Who dwell between the cherubs, appear!”", + "You have performed vast, mighty acts of kindness for us in every generation. You have given the Jewish people in every generation true leaders, who taught us the way upon which we should walk and the actions we should perform.", + "Protect us now, as well, in this generation. Send us a faithful shepherd, a true leader, a truly compassionate person who will be able to guide us with compassion and mercy like Moses, a leader who will have true compassion on us and free us of our sins.", + "Extricate Us from Our Sins
This is the core of compassion for Your nation, the Jewish people. The greatest compassion, greater than any other, is to extricate the Jewish people from their sins.", + "You know how holy the root of our soul is — how every individual soul is hewn and drawn down from an extremely high, elevated, refined and holy place.", + "We are completely removed from sin. No sin or blemish has anything to do with who we really are, because at our root, we are so refined and spiritual.", + "Therefore, we cannot bear the burden of even a single sin that we commit, and certainly not the burden of many sins, transgressions and offenses. These are harrowing. They cause us to suffer enormous, terrible blemishes, and we cannot bear it.", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You alone know how abject we are, collectively and individually. Our condition is evil and bitter because it affects the soul itself. “My sins have risen above my head. Like a heavy load, they have grown too burdensome for me.”", + "“Look down from Heaven and see.” Is there any pain comparable to that suffered by a Jew’s incredibly holy, pure, awesome, refined and spiritual soul when he sins?", + "You know that all of the sufferings of this world are like nothing compared to the suffering that a Jewish soul experiences when a person commits sins and it is blemished, Heaven forbid — and certainly when a person commits many sins, Heaven forbid.", + "Then a person is wretched. “Woe to us, for we have transgressed!”", + "Who can bear the weight of such a burden? How can a person’s refined and spiritual soul, a soul that is pure, fresh, holy and clean, a soul that was raised in the inner chamber of the King’s palace, a soul that is “the daughter of the king within,” gather its strength to bear the coarseness, murkiness, corruption, filth and pollution caused by even a single sin?", + "“How the gold, the fine gold jewelry, has grown dim! The holy stones have been spilled out at the head of every street.”", + "I am deeply distraught! How can I continue living for even a single day more? The oppressive yoke of my many harrowing sins, offenses and blemishes has worn me out.", + "How can we complain about our circumstances? What can we say? “What will we say and how can we justify ourselves? God has discovered your servant’s sin.” I am in Your hand like clay in the hand of the potter.", + "An Appeal to the Tzaddikim
Have pity on us. Have compassion on us. In Your vast compassion, deep kindness and great lovingkindness, be kind to us. Quickly send us a truly compassionate leader.", + "Send us a leader who will know how to treat every individual compassionately, who will fill all of us with holy knowledge, who will teach us the perfect way with his counsel, and who will extricate us from all transgressions, sins and offenses with his great power.", + "Expel and eradicate the spirit of foolishness that clings to us. May we never again return to that foolishness. May we never again transgress or do anything that You consider wrong. Although we have sinned, we hope never again to do so.", + "“Guard my soul and rescue me. May I never be ashamed, because I have taken refuge in You.”", + "You alone know how much compassion a person needs in this world, a world in which he wanders about in confusion and distress.", + "“All of our days have passed away in Your anger. Our years have worn away like a breath.” Although days and years have come and gone, we still have not repented of our errors.", + "Master of the world, Lord of compassion and forgiveness, in Your compassion and kindness, arouse the first true leader, Moses, together with all of the true Tzaddikim who are incorporated into him.", + "May they stand up to help us and swiftly complete what they began: to bring us close to You, our Father in Heaven, to return us to You in perfect repentance.", + "Now I will call out to them in a bitter voice. I will speak up and say, “Tzaddikim, foundations of the world, mighty shepherds, true leaders of Israel, you exist in every generation.", + "“Please arise and stand! Please awaken and stand firm! Please petition God with the most eloquent expressions!", + "“Please stand to help us during this difficult time preceding the coming of the Mashiach. Perhaps He will take pity on an impoverished and beggared nation. Perhaps He will have compassion on us!", + "“You yourselves have told us that when the soul rises upward, so that it is only above and not below, it does not gain wholeness, no matter how high it has risen.", + "“The soul becomes complete only when it is both above and below. It must shine down on the people in this low world. It must have compassion on them. It must free them of their sins and illuminate them with holy awareness so that they will know that HaShem is God — that there is a God Who rules over this world.", + "“You know that HaShem’s essential pleasure and delight exist only when a person serves Him in this low world, and that service of Him rises up.", + "“For HaShem has angels and seraphim, ophanim and holy chayot, and many worlds that serve Him always, fulfilling the will of their Maker in dread and fear.", + "“Nevertheless, He takes the greatest pleasure and delight when the worship of people from this low world rises above. As the verse states, ‘You have desired the praise of clumps of earth, of those scratched from the clay, of unfinished forms, of those who lack knowledge, of those empty of intelligence — and that is Your praise!’", + "“But now, our masters, our teachers and rabbis, our fathers, our glory, our radiance and beauty, the crown of our heads — where have you turned to? Where have you gone?", + "“To whom have you abandoned us? To whom have you forsaken us, a small flock of sheep? To hordes of bears, lions and evil beasts.", + "“Where is the remnant of leaders that you left behind to take your place guiding the Jewish people, as you truly desire?", + "“We have been left ‘like a beacon at the top of the mountain and like a flag upon the hill.’ And why ‘should the congregation of HaShem be like sheep that have no shepherd’?", + "“‘You who remind HaShem [of our merits], do not be silent.’ Do not be still and do not remain quiet, until God will send us a true savior, rabbi and leader who will quickly, swiftly and speedily save us from our sins and transgressions and from every sort of blemish, and draw us close to Him.", + "“Just as you Tzaddikim began by treating us with lovingkindness, so bring that to its completion. And then that which was, will be: in our own generation we, too, will have a true leader on the level of Moses, because the spirit of Moses exists in every generation, and we have been assured that you Tzaddikim will never abandon us.”", + "Fear of God and Holy Awareness
Master of the world, Master of compassion, Master of good will, Master of goodness and lovingkindness, Master of mercy and graciousness, have compassion on us!", + "Help us attain the true fear of Heaven, a fear that will rest upon us and prevent us from committing any further sins. May we always experience that holy fear of You: lower fear, which is the fear of punishment, and higher fear, which is a feeling of awe before Your exalted Being.", + "From now on may we truly serve You with dread, fear and love. May we never turn aside from Your will, neither right nor left. And as a result of our attaining perfected fear, may we have worthy children and students.", + "May we all — I and every member of Your nation, the House of Israel — give our children, grandchildren and worthy students holy awareness. As the verse states, “You shall make [the laws] known to your children and to your children’s children.”", + "In this world, may all of our speech be nothing other than learning Your Torah, and all of our activities nothing other than serving You. May we foster the fear of Heaven and discuss it with others every day.", + "May we receive words of Torah, knowledge of God and fear of Heaven from each other. May we all awaken, inspire and encourage each other to serve HaShem.", + "Through Your true sages, You revealed to us that this awareness is what remains of a person after he dies.", + "We Wish to Illuminate Others
All that remains of a person in this world after he passes away is his awareness and the holy words with which he illuminated his friends and children.", + "You have taught us that such words must be shared by every person — even the least of the least, because every Jew possesses some awareness and holy words that no one else does.", + "Each person must shine his awareness onto his friends, children and all of the branches of his soul. In this way, we civilize the world, so that everyone will know about You, HaShem and Your holy Torah.", + "Therefore, we have come to You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, You Who are God from beginning to end, our shield and savior in every generation.", + "In Your vast compassion, save us. Help us pass on a legacy for generations. May the holy cord of Israel never be cut off.", + "Pour onto us the true fear of Heaven so that others will always heed our words about the importance of serving You and fearing You.", + "May we speak with our friends and children every day about the fear of Heaven. May they accept our words and awareness so that our words will never leave their hearts.", + "May our words of truth enter their hearts. May they hear these words until they are established for them forever, like a firm tent peg, so that they will truly return to You.", + "May we all illuminate our souls’ branches, so that we will leave behind a legacy of many worthy children and students.", + "May these children and students produce many other children and students, onto whom they will shine the holy awareness that we learned and received from the mouths of our rabbis and sages.", + "And so may matters continue from generation to generation, forever: “Generation to generation will praise Your deeds and relate Your acts of might.” May the verse quickly be realized in us, “As for Me, this is My covenant with them, says HaShem: My spirit that rests upon you, and My words that I have placed in your mouth, will not leave your mouth and the mouths of your children and the mouths of your children’s children, says HaShem, from now and forever.”", + "Attaining the Encompassing Lights
May it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that we will attain the encompassing lights — that we will understand, comprehend and draw into the core of our minds all of the awareness and clarity that we could not grasp previously.", + "May we rise at every moment in great holiness and purity from level to level, from step to step.", + "May we constantly illuminate the holy intellect and awareness of our worthy children and students. May we constantly attain new encompassing lights and draw them into the core of our minds.", + "Our compassionate Father, give our hearts understanding so that we will lovingly understand and comprehend, hear, learn and teach, guard, perform and fulfill all of the words of Your Torah.", + "May we at last attain the supernal encompassing lights, which are the essence of the delight and pleasure of the World to Come, the length of days and years, a truly good and long life — the encompassing lights that are higher than time, that are the vast goodness hidden away and concealed for those who fear You.", + "The time span of the entirety of this world — that which was and that which will be — is totally insignificant compared to one day and even one hour of the World to Come, which is higher than time, which is a day that is entirely long and good. Fortunate is the person who attains it!", + "Boundaries for the Mind
Guide me and teach me always to rein in my mind so that I will not even begin to entertain any inquiries or challenging questions. May I know what to speak about with my friends, and erect a fence around my words so that I will remain quiet whenever it is proper that I do so.", + "May I not destroy the boundary, Heaven forbid, by posing challenging questions and inquiries that are forbidden to me.", + "Shield me, guard me and rescue me always so that the inquiries, challenging questions and answers that are higher than time — those that time does not suffice to explain — will not enter my heart or mind.", + "Master of the world, filled with compassion, guard my soul and rescue me from every sort of challenging question or inquiry. Help me believe in You with complete faith alone, without any inquiries or challenging questions whatsoever.", + "Remove from my mind, thought and heart every type of inquiry and confusion, and every type of challenging question and answer, regarding Your holy ways.", + "May I not even begin to engage in any theological inquiries. Instead, may I strengthen and sustain myself with complete faith alone, with truth and with an upright heart.", + "Master of the entire world, upright in Your deeds, sincere and dealing sincerely with the sincere, help me attain true uprightness. May I truly embody the verse, “Be wholehearted with HaShem your God.”", + "“I will direct my thoughts to the path of integrity. When will I attain it? I will proceed with the uprightness of my heart within my house ... A perverse heart will turn away from me. I will accept no evil ... My eyes are upon the faithful of the land so that they will dwell with me. A person who walks on an upright path will serve me.”", + "“I will walk in simplicity. Redeem me and be gracious to me. Sincerity and uprightness will guard me, because I have hoped in You.”", + "“Fortunate are those whose way is perfect, who walk with the Torah of HaShem.”", + "We Strive to Transcend
Shelter me and be kind to me. Help me serve You with true, great simplicity, with complete faith and total integrity, until I go beyond and transcend all wisdoms in the world.", + "May the light of Your supernal will illumine me. May I truly yearn, long and pine for You with a powerful, infinite will.", + "May I attain the life of the World to Come, a day that is entirely long and good. In our lifetime, may we see and inherit the goodness and blessing of the era of the Mashiach and the life of the World to Come.", + "In Your compassion, help me attain and experience the life of the World to Come in this world. May I see my ultimate world in my present lifetime.", + "While in this world, may I attain the “seasons of days” and “seasons of years,” which are the transcendent energies of the World to Come that are called “days” and “years.”", + "Pour onto us the abundant energies of the supernal crown of holiness. Purify us of all of our transgressions, sins and offenses, until all of our sins are transformed into merits.", + "Have compassion on us, our compassionate Father, HaShem, all-powerful God Who binds Heaven and earth.", + "Above and Below
Illuminate us with the light of the holiness of the true Tzaddikim who illuminate all universes: the upper and lower worlds, supernal beings and lower beings.", + "May these Tzaddikim illumine and teach those who dwell above that they still have no knowledge of You at all.", + "And may they arouse and awaken all those who dwell below, all those who dwell in the dust, who live upon the lowest level, on the lowest step, by illuminating them and revealing to them that the entire earth is filled with Your glory.", + "May these Tzaddikim awaken and strengthen all of the fallen souls wherever they fell. May these Tzaddikim revive, arouse and awaken those souls — even those who have fallen extremely low into sins and great wrongdoing.", + "May the compassion of these Tzaddikim reach them all. May these Tzaddikim revive and restore these people’s weak, damaged, sinning, embittered souls. May they have “pity on the poor and destitute, and save the souls of the impoverished.”", + "May these Tzaddikim arouse, strengthen and secure them, so that they will never give up in any way, knowing that the entire world is filled with Your glory and that You are everywhere.", + "Even in the depths of Sheol, people can come close to You, because no place is empty of You. Thus, there is no despair in the world at all.", + "Master of the world, You are filled with compassion at every moment. “Elevated and exalted One, dwelling forever, holy is His Name. You dwell with the uplifted and holy, and with the crushed and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the crushed.”", + "If it pleases the King, may our soul be given at our request, and our nation as we beseech.", + "Compassionate One, filled with compassion, send forth Your sovereign command. Declare, “My dead ones shall arise; you who dwell in the dust, awaken and sing!”", + "May Your goodness and vast lovingkindness, Your compassion that has never ceased and never ended, be revealed through Your true Tzaddikim. You are with us constantly.", + "You are with us, next to us, near us and close to us even now. “For the sake of His great Name, HaShem will not forsake His nation.”", + "You Who are good and do good, You Who are filled with compassion, revive us and restore us. “Sustain me with flagons of wine, spread my bed with apples, for I am lovesick.”", + "We Wish to Awaken
Please arouse me. Please awaken me. HaShem, be gracious to me and make me steady. “He sets my feet upon the rock; He firmly establishes my steps.” Please establish me and strengthen me so that I will fear You and serve You. “Do not forsake me and do not abandon me, God of my salvation.”", + "Steady and strengthen my weak hands so that I will truly return to You, quickly, swiftly and speedily. May I trust in HaShem and never stumble. May nothing in the world discourage me.", + "“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid, because God, HaShem, is my strength and song; He has saved me.” I will trust in the Name of HaShem and I will rely on my God, because You will never abandon me.", + "May we fully attain the awareness of those who dwell below: the awareness that “the whole earth is filled with His glory.” At every moment, may we feel Your Godliness resting upon us.", + "May we truly know and understand that the entire earth is filled with Your glory, that You fill all worlds and surround all worlds, and that no place is empty of You.", + "As the verse states, “Will a person hide in concealment so that I will not see him? says HaShem. Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?”", + "May we truly embody the verse, “I have placed HaShem before me always.” May we know, recognize and feel Your fearful Presence and dread upon us at every moment.", + "May we truly know with complete faith that You stand above us at every moment, that “I cannot hide from before You.” May Your fearful Presence be upon my face always, so that I will never commit any transgression.", + "May I always fear and dread Your awesomeness and Your exalted glory. May I come close to You and truly cling to You, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Help us blend together the attainments of those who dwell below with the attainments of those who dwell above, who ask, “Where is the place of His glory?”", + "May we truly know that no thought can grasp You at all, and that the ultimate knowledge is that we do not know, for no one can comprehend Your greatness.", + "Master of the world, You are hidden and revealed: “He dwells on high, He lowers His eyes to see Heaven and earth, He raises the pauper from the dust, He lifts the needy from the ash heap.”", + "Secure a poor and impoverished person such as myself. Elevate me from the dirt and trash because, “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.”", + "May the awareness of the “son” — those who dwell above — and the awareness of the “student” — those who dwell below — be integrated and shine together in us.", + "May all worlds be blended together — the higher with the lower and the lower with the higher — so that we will truly attain complete awe without being nullified, Heaven forbid. ", + "May we experience the fullness of Your Godliness in all the earth in a measured and restrained fashion that blends together the awareness that “the whole earth is filled with His glory” with the awareness that asks, “Where is the place of His glory?” In this way, we will truly attain complete fear of You always, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Similarly, when we eat, aid us, help us and save us in Your vast compassion, so that the illumination of the holy will shines upon us.", + "May We Gain Holy Strength
Share Your power, might and strength with us. May we become “men of might, fearing God; men of truth, hating dishonest gain.” You give people the strength to do great things. Help us, strengthen us and bolster us so that we will experience a holy fear of You.", + "In Your compassion, help us become truly mighty, strong people, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Give us holy dominion. “Wealth and honor are before You, and You rule over all. In Your hand are power and might, and You have the power to enhance and strengthen everything.”", + "Give us a good portion of holy sovereignty and governance, so that we will draw down a good, comfortable income for ourselves, for everyone in our family, and for every member of Your nation, the House of Israel, who is dependent on us.", + "Drawing Down an Income from HaShem
Master of the world, You know the great pressure that we are under, our toil, and the scarcity and constricted economy that have greatly diminished the income of Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "This especially affects the income of spiritual people who want to begin walking on the holy path and truly serve You. Their income is so sparse, and they suffer the burden and troubles of earning a living, to the degree that many are unable to serve You.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Send a beneficial flow of abundance and good income to us and to Your entire nation, the House of Israel, and in particular to those who fear Your Name.", + "Help us and save us so that the need to earn a living will not prevent us from truly serving You. Our eyes are raised to You alone. “The eyes of all turn to You, and You give them their food in its time.”", + "No one knows how to draw down income by means of natural cause and effect. Instead, we rely on You alone. Our eyes turn to You hopefully until You will be gracious to us, in Your vast compassion and lovingkindness, and give us our income regularly in its time, in its season.", + "Prepare all of our income for us before we need it, so that the burdens of earning a living will not divert us from serving You.", + "Arouse the power of Your sovereignty. Raise the power of holy sovereignty so that it will receive an abundant flow of good income from “the hands that are in the Sea of Wisdom” on behalf of the entirety of Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "Draw good income down to us from Your supernal will. As the verse states, “The eyes of all turn to You, and You give them their food in its time. You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of all living beings.”", + "Give, apportion and provide income for each and every individual in accordance with what he truly needs in order to serve You, so that all of us will truly serve You.", + "Provide us with everything we need in an honorable and not a disgraceful way, in a way that is permissible and not forbidden, with ease and not with suffering, coming from Your broad and full hand.", + "May we never be dependent on the gifts or loans of flesh and blood.", + "May we receive income with great holiness, and illuminate it with the light of Your supernal holy will.", + "Sanctifying Our Eating
Help us completely break the desire for eating. Sanctify our eating so that it will be very holy and we will eat only for the sake of Your Name. May we receive and draw onto ourselves the holy fear that comes to a person and rests upon him when he eats.", + "You are our Father, our King, our Mighty One, our Creator, our Redeemer, our Maker, our Holy One, the Holy One of Jacob, our Shepherd, the Shepherd of Israel.", + "You are the King Who is good and does good to all. Satiate us with Your true goodness. Guard us and rescue us so that our mind and heart will never turn to any illusory goodness.", + "Instead, may we break all illusory desires, which are the animal desires. May we attach our thoughts to the true, eternal good, and take pleasure in You and satiate our souls with purity.", + "May we eat in great holiness, fear and awe. Help us and assist us so that when we eat, the illumination of the supernal will is drawn down onto us.", + "May we truly yearn, desire, long, hunger and pine for You with an extraordinary desire, without measure or limit but with an ultimate nullification, until we do not know what we want at all.", + "May the illumination of the will that will exist in the future, in the World to Come, shine upon us. As the verse states, “At that time, it will be said to Jacob and to Israel, ‘What has God wrought?’”", + "“How vast is Your goodness that You have hidden for those who fear You, Your deeds for those who take refuge in You.” “No eye but Yours, God, has seen what You do for the person who hopes in You.”", + "For Chanukah and Yom Kippur", + "The Holiness of Chanukah
In Your vast compassion, help us attain the holiness of Chanukah. And every year, help us realize our request and our petition to attain a good outcome on the holy day of Yom Kippur: that You will forgive and excuse our sins and the sins of Your nation, the House of Israel, and remove our guilt every year.", + "“Forgive the sin of this nation in accordance with the greatness of Your kindness, as You brought this nation forth from Egypt and until now.” And then, “HaShem said, ‘I have forgiven in accordance with Your word.’”", + "Please excuse, forgive and grant atonement for all of our transgressions, sins and offenses that we committed before You from our youth until this day.", + "“Be gracious to me, God, in accordance with Your kindness. In Your great compassion, erase my transgressions. Cleanse me thoroughly of my sins and purify me of my transgressions ... Hide Your face from my transgression and erase all of my sins.”", + "As a result of the forgiveness and pardon of Yom Kippur, may we attain the sanctity of the holy days of Chanukah, which commemorate the inauguration of the Temple. During the days of Chanukah, may we draw onto ourselves the holiness of the Temple.", + "Have compassion on us and build for us our holy Temple, which is our beauty, quickly and in our days. There we will bring our obligatory sacrifices to You, to purify ourselves from our sins and gain forgiveness for our transgressions.", + "May we offer You the morning and afternoon sacrifices every day.", + "In the merit of the daily morning offering, You will forgive all of our sins of the previous night. And in the merit of the daily afternoon offering, You will forgive all of our sins of the previous day.", + "You know how terribly wretched the Jewish people are when they fall victim to committing sins, Heaven forbid. Nothing in the world is more tragic than that.", + "You know the magnitude of our holiness at our essence, the magnitude of our refinement and spirituality. We are so entirely removed from sin that no sin has any connection to us at all, and we cannot bear the burden of the weight of sins for even a single day.", + "The essence of the greatest compassion, among all types of compassion, is to deliver a person from sins, transgressions and blemishes. Only that is essential, true compassion. No other compassion compares to that.", + "Therefore, in Your compassion, You gave us the Temple to atone for all of our sins.", + "Ever since our Temple was destroyed, we have been unable to cleanse ourselves of sin, because there is nothing to atone on our behalf. That causes a suffering greater than all other suffering in the world, as is clear to You, Master of all.", + "From the day of that destruction, almost two thousand years have elapsed, during which time we have wandered about lost and in the dark, like orphans without a father.", + "Our Master, ease our yoke. Send us our salvation. Redeem us. Have pity, mercy and compassion on us. Tell our troubles, “Enough!” Swiftly and speedily redeem us with a complete physical and spiritual redemption — in body, in soul and in our monetary resources.", + "Redeem and restore our souls from all transgressions, sins and offenses, from every type of blemish, and from all lusts and evil traits.", + "Build our Temple for us, an eternal structure that will last forever. May the Kohanim return to their service, the Levites to their platform, and Israel to their stations.", + "And through the true Tzaddikim, draw down and shine onto us the sanctity of the holy awareness that integrates the consciousness of the “son” — the shining lens — and the holy “student” — the lens that does not shine. May we come to know that “HaShem is God.”", + "Rescue us from a spirit of foolishness and madness, and from every type of imbalance of the mind. Guard us and rescue us from every type of transgression and blemish in the world.", + "May we attain complete fear of You always, and a good income that comes from You. And when we eat in great holiness, illuminate us with the light of Your will.", + "Master of the world, make it possible for us to perform the mitzvah of lighting the Chanukah menorah with oil. When we do so, draw onto us great enlightenment from the 370 illuminations of the “light of the face,” which are encompassing, supernal illuminations. May the verse be realized in us, “May HaShem cause His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.” Send us our income with great breadth and holiness, so that the revelation of the encompassing lights, the level of the “light of the face,” will exist in the midst of our eating and gaining an income. May the verse be realized, “To make the face shine brighter than from oil, and may bread sustain the heart of man.”", + "Health and Life in All of Our Limbs
Heal us completely in all of our 248 limbs and 365 sinews. Guard us and rescue us from every type of illness — in particular, from illnesses of the lungs, Heaven forbid.", + "May our lungs always be whole, physically and spiritually. May they always function with the proper balance.", + "At all times and at every moment, draw a spirit of holy life into the lobes of our lungs. May our lungs cover our heart like wings, hovering and drawing down a spirit of holy physical and spiritual life into all of the limbs, sinews and blood vessels of the body.", + "Give us life in the light of Your face. In Your vast compassion, draw down and shine onto us the 370 illuminations of the supernal countenance, which are the holy encompassing lights. May we attain them soon — swiftly and quickly.", + "In Your good will, pour onto us a generous flow of abundance and good income. We trust only in You.", + "You “cause grass to grow for the animals, and vegetation for the work of man to bring forth bread from the earth and wine that rejoices the heart of man, to make the face shine brighter than from oil and bread, which sustains the heart of man.”", + "“How abundant are Your works, HaShem! You made all of them with wisdom; the world is filled with Your possessions. This is the great and broad sea; there are the creeping things and innumerable animals, small and large. There the ships proceed. You created the leviathan to play with.”", + "“All of them turn to You with hope, to give them their food in its time. You give it to them, they gather it in; You open Your hand, they are sated with good.”", + "Discussing the Torah Insights of the Sages
Master of the world, help us accustom ourselves at every moment to study and discuss the true Torah insights of Your holy sages. At every moment, may we study and discuss some insight that the true sage created. Then may great fear and awe fall upon us as a result of the arrival of Your holy sovereignty, as it were, which is the source of fear, so that we will draw down and receive income from the Sea of Wisdom that is revealed by this true sage. And as a result of all this, may the God-fearing awareness of that sage who originated this insight be aroused, due to his words being heard and realized for generations. And in consequence of all this, may great fear and awe of You fall upon us at every moment when we study and discuss these holy insights.", + "Compassion and Redemption
You Who are filled with vast and true compassion, fulfill our requests for the good. Give us a truly compassionate leader who will know how to act with compassion.", + "May he have true compassion on us. May he quickly and swiftly extricate us from all of the sins and blemishes in which we have been trapped.", + "We ourselves know how guilty we are, how we have stiffened our necks and not strengthened ourselves to truly fulfill the words of Your Torah and Your mitzvot, but have caused blemishes and damage.", + "Despite all this, may Your lovingkindness on our behalf grow stronger and awaken Your vast compassion that will extricate each one of us from all of our transgressions, sins and offenses.", + "Then we will be assured that from now on we will be saved from all evil, and we will no longer return to foolishness and no longer commit any transgression or sin at all. Moreover, we will not cause any more blemishes at all, and we will not turn aside from Your will, neither right nor left.", + "In Your vast compassion, forgive, excuse and grant atonement for all of the transgressions that we have committed. May the verse be fulfilled, “The wicked person will abandon his way and the man of iniquity his thoughts, and he will return to HaShem, Who will have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will freely pardon.”", + "Our compassionate Father, have compassion on us and do not destroy us. As the verse states, “HaShem your God is a compassionate God. He will not abandon you and will not destroy you, and He will not forget the covenant with your forefathers that He swore to them.”", + "“HaShem your God will bring back your exiles and have compassion on you. He will once again gather you from all of the nations to which HaShem your God scattered you. If your exiles will be at the end of the heavens, from there HaShem your God will gather you, and He will take you from there.” “HaShem your God will bring you to the land that your forefathers inherited, and you will inherit it, and He will do good to you and make you numerous, more than your forefathers.”", + "“HaShem, be gracious to us. We have hoped in You. Be our arm in the mornings, our salvation at a time of trouble.” “It is a time of trouble for Jacob, but from it he will be saved.”", + "“In all of their trouble, He was troubled, and the angel of His Presence saved them; with His love and with His kindness, He redeemed them, and He bore them and He carried them all the days of old.”", + "“Who is a God like You, Who forgives sin and passes over the iniquity of the remnant of His inheritance? He does not hold onto His anger forever, for He desires lovingkindness. He will again have compassion. He will hide our sins. You will cast [our] sins into the depths of the sea. You will give truth to Jacob, lovingkindness to Abraham, as You promised our fathers from ancient days.”", + "Master of the world, compassionate King, have compassion on us. You Who are good and do good, respond to us. Return to us in Your enormous compassion for the sake of our forefathers who did Your will. Build Your Temple as in the beginning and establish Your Sanctuary upon its place. Show us its construction and make us joyful in its repair.", + "Return the Kohanim to their service and the Levites to their platform, their song and their melody. And return the Jewish people to their dwelling place. There we will bring to You our obligatory sacrifices, the daily offerings according to their order and the additional offerings in accordance with their laws.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. We do not plead to You on the basis of our righteousness, but because we rely on Your great compassion.", + "We trust in Your vast compassion. We rely on Your lovingkindness. We hope in Your forgiveness, and we look forward to Your salvation.", + "Fulfill for us the verse, “And He said, ‘I will pass all of My goodness before Your face, and I will proclaim the name of HaShem before you, and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion upon whom I will have compassion.’”", + "Be filled with compassion on our behalf, because You are the Master of compassion. Compassionate God is Your Name. Gracious God is Your Name. Your Name is associated with us. HaShem, act for the sake of Your Name!", + "Pour vast, great compassion onto us. May the verse swiftly be realized in us, “He Who has compassion on them will guide them, and He will guide them along the wellsprings of water.”", + "And the verse states, “For a small moment I have forsaken you, but with great compassion I will gather you. With a little rage I hid My face from you for a moment, but with eternal lovingkindness I will have compassion on you, states your Redeemer, HaShem.”", + "“The mountains will wear away and the hills totter, but My lovingkindness will not wear away from you, and the covenant of My peace will not totter, says HaShem, Who has compassion on you.”", + "“Ephraim is a precious son to Me, a child of delights; every time I speak of him, I recall him more. Therefore, I yearn for him; I will surely have compassion on him, says HaShem.”", + "God, compassionate Father, You Who have compassion on the earth, You Who have compassion on people, have compassion on us in Your true, hidden compassion. Your compassion is so powerful that You even have compassion on me to help me return to You in complete repentance, in ultimate truth.", + "“In accordance with Your kindness, give me life, and I will guard the testimony of Your mouth.” “HaShem, Your kindness fills the earth; teach me Your rules.”", + "Pour holy awareness onto me. Expel my spirit of foolishness, madness, and every type of confused consciousness.", + "May I, my children, all those who depend on me, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, merit complete knowledge of Your Godliness, Your governance, Your greatness, Your might, Your beauty and Your universal sovereignty.", + "As the verse states, “You have been shown to know that HaShem is God. There is no other besides Him.”", + "You Who are compassionate and gracious, have compassion on me. You alone know the magnitude of the compassion that I and all of us require. I do not know what to do. I only beg, like a pauper at the door, for compassion, mercy and graciousness, and for You to treat me in whatever way appears right in Your eyes.", + "My hands are stretched out to Your compassion alone, to Your true, eternal compassion. “The kindnesses of HaShem have not ended. His compassion has not ceased.” “HaShem is good to everyone; His compassion rests upon all of His creatures.”", + "“Our soul is cast down to the dust, our belly clings to the earth. Arise to help us and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.”", + "For Your sake, fulfill the verse, “I will betroth you to Me forever; I will betroth you to Me with righteousness and with justice, with kindness and with compassion. I will betroth you to Me with faith, and you will know HaShem.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "Proper Rebuke Elicits a Person’s Spiritual Fragrance / Proper Awareness Shields a Person Against Lust / A Spiritually Powerful Person Causes the Side of Evil to Disgorge Holiness / We Must Seek a Teacher Who Possesses Something of the Power of Prophecy / Prophecy Purifies the Imagination, Making Faith Possible
Rebuke is a wonderful thing. When a Jew sees that someone else is behaving improperly, he is obligated to correct him.
However, not everyone is capable of delivering rebuke properly. In such cases, the rebuke will not help. To the contrary, it will be harmful. A person’s evil deeds and traits exude a foul odor, and improper rebuke intensifies that odor. That weakens the soul of the wrongdoer. Worlds depend on a person’s soul. When his soul weakens, those worlds cease to receive their sustenance.
But when a person gives rebuke in a worthy fashion, he grants the soul of the person receiving his rebuke a pleasant fragrance. That fragrance constitutes the soul’s food and sustenance. Such a rebuke corresponds to Moses’ rebuke of the Jewish people after the sin of the golden calf, which granted them a pleasant fragrance.
The voice of proper rebuke corresponds to the river that emerged from Eden to water the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:10). This garden is the realm where pleasant fragrances and the fear of God grow.
The voice of proper rebuke corresponds to the melody of messianic times, a fourfold melody that will remake the world. When a person delivers proper rebuke, he draws down threads of kindness. These threads combine to create the seventy-two strings of the musical instrument that will play this fourfold song.
A person attains that voice — the ability to deliver proper rebuke — when he prays for God’s compassion. That compassion is associated with an expanded awareness.
Until then, at times the Side of Evil diverts the energy of compassion to itself so that God’s compassion to us is diminished. Then, even the little compassion that does remain is degraded and tainted by the dynamic of cruelty.
And when proper awareness is diminished, it leads to lust. Conversely, when a person’s awareness is whole, it shields him against lust. (More specifically, there are three areas of awareness, each of which draws down a specific type of compassion and serves as a barrier against lust.)
When compassion and the mind are damaged, and the blemish of lust exists, a person cannot pray and plead for compassion. Then prayer enters into the realm of judgment, where the Side of Evil swallows it.
This situation can be rectified by a spiritually powerful person who is able to pray purposefully on the level of judgment. When he does so, the Side of Evil attempts to swallow his prayer. However, that prayer gets stuck in its throat and the Side of Evil must disgorge it along with all of the holy awareness, compassion and prayer that it had previously swallowed. Moreover, it must even disgorge its own life force.
This is the dynamic that occurs on Rosh HaShanah, the Day of Judgment, when prayer is in the realm of judgment. At that time, we extract life force from the Side of Evil. Then the holy awareness that it had swallowed up is restored to us.
Also, when prayer gets stuck in the throat of the Side of Evil, non-Jews convert to Judaism. They had been part of the Side of Evil, which now disgorges them, and they return to holiness.
The creation of converts increases God’s glory, which is the source of prophecy.
When prophecy spreads, the faculty of imagination is purified.
And when the faculty of imagination is purified, true faith is rectified. This is because faith depends on imagination. Faith operates where understanding ceases. One does not know but only imagines — and there one requires faith.
A true leader possesses something of the spirit of prophecy beyond that found in the masses. That is what makes him worthy of being a leader. We must seek such a leader, calling out to God to help us find him.
Because such a leader possesses this spirit of prophecy, the power of imagination of all those who follow him is strengthened. Thus, their holy faith is also strengthened.
Via faith, the world will be renewed in the messianic future. Then the dynamics of lovingkindness will blend together. At that time, when people’s awareness will grow, there will be no damage or cruelty, for their expanded awareness will cause compassion to spread.
At that time, the world will not function in accordance with nature, but solely in accordance with wondrous providence.
The entire world will partake of the quality of the Land of Israel. The essence of the holiness of the Land of Israel is that God’s providence is always present. In the messianic future, it will be universally clear that God created everything.
At present, there is a melody of nature. In the future, there will be a new song of wonders, of providence, of lovingkindness. And we attain that via prayer.
This corresponds to the lungs. When the lungs are in proper balance, they possess all of these qualities.
For the Seventh of Adar, the Hilula of Moses", + "A Worthy Mentor Who Can Deliver Admonishment
I will lift my voice like a shofar and call out to You, Master of the world, Lord Who is One, Ruler over all. Have pity and be gracious in Your vast compassion. Send us a good, worthy and excellent guide who is worthy of truly admonishing Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "In Your vast compassion, guard us and rescue us from mentors who are unworthy and undeserving of admonishing Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "You know that not everyone is fit to give admonishment. And mentors who are unfit and unworthy can, Heaven forbid, weaken our souls with their improper rebuke.", + "Therefore, we turn to You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, You Who love Your nation, the Jewish people. Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name and send us a worthy savior, rabbi and mentor who will admonish us with “a revealed rebuke out of hidden love.”", + "“May a righteous man strike me with kindness and rebuke me” with his positive admonishment, with the admonishment of Moses — who, with his beneficial rebuke, enhances our souls with a good fragrance, strengthening and reinforcing our souls.", + "May such a mentor strengthen, bolster and reinforce our souls with powerful holiness, until a beneficial flow of goodness and blessing will be drawn down and pour onto all of the worlds that depend on our souls.", + "Under the influence of this worthy mentor, may we truly return to You in complete repentance out of love, until all of our sins are transformed into merits.", + "Pour onto the true mentor the voice of Moses, the voice of the song that will be sung in the messianic future: the simple, double, triple, quadruple song that is incorporated into Your great and holy Name.", + "That is the song of lovingkindness that will be played in the future upon the seventy-two strings when the righteous will receive their reward. Fortunate is the ear that will hear the sound of that song.", + "In Your vast compassion, have compassion on us and send us such a mentor, someone who can admonish us with the sound of this song.", + "Regarding this true mentor, may the verse be realized, “Call out from the throat, do not restrain yourself. Raise your voice like a shofar.”", + "May he arouse the voice that waters the Garden of Eden, the voice that is the river emerging from Eden to water the garden. May that voice be revealed and drawn down onto us.", + "That is the voice of holy song that will be awakened in the future when Your good lovingkindness will renew Your world, as in the verse, “The world is built upon lovingkindness.”", + "May this voice cause all of the good fragrances and holy awe to grow.", + "Draw onto us complete, supernal awe of Your elevated Being. May I experience so much fear of You that I will always grovel and tremble before You.", + "May I always feel Your holy awesomeness upon me, in all of my 248 limbs and 365 sinews. May Your awesomeness stand before me so that I will not transgress. Help me attain true humility, until I will truly be absorbed into You.", + "Strengthen Our Soul
In Your vast compassion and great lovingkindness, help me by truly nullifying and breaking my desire to eat. May I subjugate the food that sustains the body and instead strengthen, reinforce and consolidate the sustenance of my soul with complete and intense power.", + "Master of the world, You know how terribly weak our souls are. They have become terribly weakened because of our many significant sins, so that whatever place we lie down is our sickbed, beyond reckoning and communication, to the point that “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion at every moment, have pity on all of the parts of our soul — our nefesh, ruach and neshamah. In Your holy awesomeness, strengthen them and reinforce them. Pour onto them the water that waters the Garden of Eden. Draw onto them the good fragrance of the Garden of Eden.", + "Ultimately, in Your great kindness, may all of our evil deeds be entirely transformed into merits so that they will waft a good fragrance before You. As the verse states, “My nard gave forth its scent” — regarding which our sages said, “The verse does not state released but actively gave.”", + "May the verse be realized in us, “They will be sated from the fatness of Your house, and You will give them to drink from the river of Your delights.”", + "Help us subdue, break and nullify the “heel” of the Side of Evil, the heel of the wicked Esau, who represents the desire for bodily food and drink.", + "May we overcome him with the heel of holiness, which is the holiness of Jacob, “the heel of humility that precedes the fear of HaShem,” which is the sustenance of the soul.", + "May “the voice is the voice of Jacob” increase, rise, grow stronger and prevail over “the hands are the hands of Esau.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are good to all, help us truly break and nullify the desire for eating and drinking. Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. “Guard my soul and save me; may I not be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.”", + "Without delay, help me subjugate the food of the body and augment the food of the soul. May I eat and drink only for the sake of the existence of the soul. As the verse states, “The righteous man eats to satisfy his soul.”", + "God’s Compassion and Our Compassion
Arouse Your vast compassion and intense lovingkindness on our behalf. Pour compassion, mercy and graciousness onto us.", + "Help us recite our prayers before You with all our heart and soul, with grace, kindness and compassion, like a son approaching his father. May our conversations, prayers and pleadings be sweet to You.", + "May we arouse Your true compassion toward us. Please view us as an only, precious, beloved son who comes close to his father and does his father’s will with love, kindness and compassion, with mercy and grace. May we pour forth our hearts like water before Your countenance, HaShem.", + "You know my bitter, urgent and bewildered heart, and my bitter soul.", + "Have compassion on me, my Father, have mercy on me. My Lord, my Maker, my Creator, my King and my God, do not abandon me. Do not spurn me. May my sighs and groans not be insignificant to You.", + "In truth, it is totally impossible for me to groan and cry as I really should.", + "What can I do, my Father in Heaven? Because of my many sins, I am thoroughly trapped in the vanities of this world and I do not know how to save my soul. But I lean on You, I rely on You, I am supported by You. Give me life in accordance with Your lovingkindness. Treat me in accordance with Your lovingkindness.", + "Truthfully, I myself am responsible for everything that I have undergone, including the fact that I do not express myself in utter truth but only with my mouth.", + "But You are good to everyone. You are filled with compassion at every moment. You have done me vast favors, great acts of lovingkindness and endless wonders.", + "Save me from now on, my Father in Heaven. Help me soon attain perfect prayer with true intent of the heart, so that I will always pray to You with supplications and beseeching, and increase my pleading at every moment.", + "May I at last arouse Your true compassion for me, so that I will truly return to You in complete repentance.", + "In Your vast compassion, rescue me so that the Side of Evil will not be able to derive power from holy compassion and not compromise Your holy compassion, Heaven forbid.", + "Guard me and rescue me so that I will not be cruel, angry or irritable. May I be good and truly do good for all, in accordance with Your good will. May my heart contain no trace of anger, irritation or cruelty.", + "Pour compassion onto me so that I will always have compassion on others, in accordance with Your good will. Have compassion on me from Heaven and guard my mind, brain and intellect with great holiness, and rescue me from confused awareness, foolishness and evil thoughts.", + "Purifying the Mind
May I always sanctify my mind and thoughts with great holiness. May I not allow any external or foreign thoughts whatsoever to enter my consciousness and thoughts.", + "Guard me and rescue me always from smallmindedness. Always pour forth and draw onto me breadth of mind. May my mind grow greater at every moment with great holiness and purity.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me purify, cleanse and sanctify all aspects of the mind in the three cavities of the skull: wisdom, understanding and knowledge.", + "May these three aspects of my mind constitute barriers against the universal evil desire, which is the lust for sexual wrongdoing.", + "The Prayer of the Tzaddik
In Your vast compassion, send us the true Tzaddik, the hero and man of great might who possesses the zealousness of HaShem of hosts.", + "May he pray before You on the level of judgment, with great power and holy might, and execute justice before You, as Pinchas did when he acted zealously regarding the act of Zimri. As the verse states, “Pinchas stood and executed judgment, and the plague came to an end.”", + "In the merit and power of the prayer of the Tzaddik, the master of power, help us subdue, break and nullify the lust for sexual impropriety in ourselves and in Your entire nation, the House of Israel, from now and forever.", + "In Your powerful mercy and great love, forgive Your nation of Israel. Give power and might to the prayer of the Tzaddik, the master of power, so that his prayer will be on the level of judgment, confronting the Side of Evil and the “husk” in its very throat.", + "Then the Side of Evil and the “husk” will be compelled to disgorge and expel from within itself and its belly all of the holiness that it had swallowed.", + "It will be forced to swiftly, quickly and speedily disgorge and expel from within itself and its belly all of the awareness, pleadings, prayers and various sparks of holiness that it had swallowed as a result of our many transgression and offenses — in particular, those that blemished the covenant.", + "May the verse quickly be realized, “Although it has swallowed wealth, it will vomit it up; God will cast [the wealth] out of its belly.”", + "May the Side of Evil and the “husk” be forced to disgorge a great deal at every moment, until it literally disgorges and expels the essence of its life force from within itself and its belly.", + "As the verse states, “HaShem will send the staff of Your might from Zion; you will rule in the midst of your enemies.” Then may many genuine converts become Jewish so that Your nation of Israel will grow.", + "The Power of God’s Sovereignty
May all of the nations of the world recognize the power of Your sovereignty. May they all know that “You are He, HaShem, alone,” supernal over all the earth. May Your honor expand. May it be sanctified, elevated and raised over all people, and may all creatures of flesh and blood call out in Your Name.", + "May all creatures that have a soul, the spirit of life in their nostrils, grant honor and glory to Your Name, so that the honor of HaShem will fill the entire earth.", + "May Your Godliness and Lordliness be preeminent and universally revealed. May the Name of Your glory bring about a great commotion and fanfare among all people, so that even those who are distant will hear and come and recognize the power of Your sovereignty.", + "Master of the world, “perfect in knowledge,” perform wonders with us in Your world, which You created for Your honor. “Reveal the honor of Your sovereignty to us quickly. Appear and be exalted over us in the sight of all living creatures. Bring together our dispersed people from among the nations and gather our scattered from the ends of the earth.”", + "May the voice that proclaims Your Godliness soon be heard in the entire world with a sound of great commotion, like the sound of thunder. “God thunders wondrously; He performs great things” beyond inquiry — who has gazed upon Your great, mighty thunder?", + "May the verse soon be realized, “Attribute to HaShem, families of the nations, attribute to HaShem honor and might.” “The voice of HaShem is upon the waters, the God of glory has thundered, HaShem is upon the many waters,”", + "“The earth will be filled with the knowledge of HaShem like water covers the sea.”", + "Master of the world, “You crumbled the sea with Your might, You broke the heads of the serpents upon the waters.” “Do not deliver the life of your turtledove to the troops; do not forget forever the life of Your impoverished ones.”", + "We Seek God’s Compassion
Help us and have compassion on us and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Arouse the compassion of the true Tzaddik, “a faithful agent” to those who have sent him. May he fight the wars of HaShem on our behalf and extricate us from the teeth of the Side of Evil and the “husks.”", + "In his great power and might, may he extract from the Side of Evil all of the holiness, all of the prayers, all of the compassion and awareness, and all of the holy sparks that it swallowed due to our many sins — in particular, those that blemished the covenant.", + "Please, HaShem, have compassion on us. Have pity and mercy on our few days carved out in this world, fleeting as a passing shadow, a dissipating cloud and a blowing breeze.", + "In Your vast compassion, help us and save us in the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim, the masters of great power and strength. With them, may we emerge from pollution to purity, from darkness to light, from servitude to redemption, from sadness to joy, from mourning to celebration.", + "Have pity and mercy on our nefesh, ruach and neshamah. Have pity and mercy on us and our children and infants, for there is no suffering in the world like the suffering of the rebuked soul that is far from its Father in Heaven.", + "The intensity of that suffering is impossible to measure, explain or communicate — neither with the mouth nor in writing, neither in thought nor by allusion. For the suffering of the soul is greater than all sufferings and torments in the world.", + "It is possible to squander and lose true, eternal, everlasting life, Heaven forbid, as a result of meaningless, delusory acts of this impermanent, decaying world, which quickly flits and flickers by like the shadow of a bird in flight.", + "We have already squandered and lost so much.", + "Please save us from now on, our Father in Heaven. Please redeem us, strong Redeemer, please restore us, please rescue us, our Rescuer. Our only reliance and hope is in You and in Your children, the true Tzaddikim who are incorporated into You.", + "Without You, we have no king, redeemer, savior, deliverer, rescuer or sustainer who responds and has compassion at every time of trouble and pressure. We have no king, helper or supporter but You.", + "“My eyes are raised to the heights, HaShem. I have been oppressed. Be my guarantor.” “Be a guarantor to Your servant for the good — do not let the wicked oppress me! My eyes are worn out for Your salvation and for the word of Your righteousness. Deal with Your servant in accordance with Your lovingkindness, and teach me Your laws.”", + "Treat me in accordance with Your lovingkindness. “In accordance with Your kindness, give me life, and I will guard the testimony of Your mouth.”", + "A Person is His Own Worst Enemy
Like a mute dove, I hope for Your compassion and for Your true salvation. I am like a rose amid the thorns, like a dove “in the clefts of the rock, in the hidden steps.” I have been oppressed by my enemies and persecutors from all sides and directions.", + "But of all of the foes and murderers that stand against me constantly, I have no foe and murderer equal to myself. I myself am the cruelest of the cruel, because I have had no pity on my days and years. I have had no pity on my body, nefesh, ruach and neshamah.", + "I have had no pity on my children and infants, and on all of the generations that are destined to come from me until the end of all generations. Instead, I have transgressed, sinned and rebelled before You. I have blackened my deeds from my earliest days until now.", + "Woe to me, woe to my soul, because of what I have done to myself. If not for Your compassion and kindness, I would have been lost in my privation, Heaven forbid.", + "What can I say? How can I speak? How can I justify myself? God, You have uncovered my sin. I stand before You in my full guilt. HaShem, You are righteousness, and today I am shamefaced.", + "HaShem, You are righteous. You have done me so many favors, kindnesses, miracles and wonders, wonders of wonders, each and every day, from the beginning of my life until this day.", + "I am shamefaced because of all of the transgression, sins, offenses, blemishes, evil thoughts, evil fantasies and polluted deeds that I have committed, and the blemishes that I have caused every day since I began my life upon the earth to this very day.", + "I have a request of You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, “great in counsel and mighty in deed,” “Who performs great deeds without limit, miracles and wonders without number.”", + "You perform new wonders at all times: every day, every hour and every minute. Rescue me from myself. Help me begin from now on to have true compassion on myself.", + "Help me have compassion on my few days — whose number is assessed, numbered and counted, and which are under Your hand — so that I will no longer commit any act against Your will, and no longer cause any blemishes at all before You.", + "I have sinned, but I will no longer return to my foolishness.", + "Regaining Holy Mindfulness
Give the command so that all of my holy mindfulness and consciousness that left me because of my many sins will be restored to me. Sanctify my mind and consciousness with the greatest holiness in the world.", + "Ultimately, may my consciousness spread out to form a barrier against the desire for sexual wrongdoing. May this desire have no power or force to overcome my mind and thoughts at all.", + "Instead, may I spread out the barriers of my mind and intellect to shield me against this desire, and “foreigners” will have no control over me at all. May I be truly holy and pure, with ultimate holiness and self-restraint, in true accordance with Your good will.", + "Godly Honor, Prophecy and Healing
“And so, HaShem, grant honor to Your nation, praise to those who fear You, robust hope to those who seek You and the ability to pray to those who turn to You.”", + "Through us, may Your great honor always increase. May the glory of holiness be drawn down, increased, raised high and elevated in the world until, as a result of the revelation of the glory of holiness, an outflow of prophecy will pour down into the world.", + "Restore the flow of prophecy that had left us because of our sins. May the verse soon be realized, “Your sons and daughters will prophesy.”", + "Draw onto us and onto Your entire nation, the House of Israel, wisdom, might and holy wealth, until we will all deserve to receive the flow of prophecy and Your Presence.", + "In Your vast compassion, have compassion on us. Heal us completely of all of our wounds, illnesses and pains.", + "Quickly send complete healing from Heaven to all of the sick of Your nation, the House of Israel (and in particular, to [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]; God, please heal him/her among the other sick of Your nation, the Jewish people) — a healing of the spirit and a healing of the body.", + "We have no hope or expectation of any natural healing at all. Rather, we hope in You alone, because You are the Healer of the undeserving, the true Healer. Heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed. Save us, and we will be saved — for You are our praise.", + "Ingathering of the Exiles
In Your vast compassion, bring together our dispersed people from among the nations. Gather our diaspora from the ends of the earth, and bring us together from the four corners of the world.", + "May this holy gathering of Your nation, the Jewish people, constantly increase and expand, as many companions are constantly added to it.", + "May we always recite our prayers to You with deep concentration, in the midst of a great and multitudinous gathering. As the verse states, “In the multitude of the nation is the beauty of the King.”", + "May the House of Prayer increase and expand greatly and extensively. May the true Tzaddikim build many mighty houses without measure, number or limit, constructed of the combinations of prayers of Your nation, the House of Israel, which will multiply and grow in a very great assembly.", + "May all of the “stones” — the souls — gather together. May holy combinations without end result — so many that the mouth cannot express them and the heart cannot conceive of them.", + "May many great and beautiful structures without end be built of them. May You take pride and joy in them with a great, new delight that has never arisen before You since the earliest days.", + "At last, due to the multitude of the holy houses and structures that will increase without number, may all of the oppressed nefashot and neshamot that had gone naked, scattered among the nations, all of the holy stones that had been spilled out at the heads of all of the streets, enter, be gathered together and augment the holy houses.", + "As the verse states, “The holy stones have been spilled at the head of every street.”", + "From now on have compassion on all of these souls that are oppressed by their sins and the sins of their fathers.", + "Be filled with compassion for them. For You alone know the immeasurable, unfathomable extent of their pitiable state. For Your sake, have compassion on them and on us. Gather them again into holiness.", + "Bring them in and gather them to be with You in Your house. Gather them from outside into the houses of holiness and prayer that will grow and increase beyond number and limit as a result of the gathering of Your nation of Israel, each time with many new companions.", + "May this lead You to be filled with compassion for us. Forgive, excuse and grant atonement for all of our transgressions, sins and offenses that we committed against You from our youth until this day.", + "May our prayers and pleading rise so that You will see and accept them like burnt-offerings and sacrifices that will atone for all of our sins and transform them all into merits.", + "May the verse be realized, “I will bring them to My holy mountain and give them joy in My House of Prayer. Their burnt-offerings and sacrifices will be accepted upon My Altar, for My House shall be called a House of Prayer for all nations.”", + "Draw complete healing from Heaven onto us and onto Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Erase our offenses like vapor and cloud. As the verse states, “I have wiped away your sins like vapor and your transgressions like a cloud. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.”", + "Remove all of the clouds that darken the light of the holy sun. Bring us out from dimness to brightness, from darkness to a great light.", + "As morning breaks, may the sun cause charity and healing to shine upon us. As the verse states, “May the sun of charity with healing in its wings shine upon you who fear My Name.”", + "May the verse quickly be realized, “A neighbor will not say, ‘I am sick.’ The nation that dwells in [Jerusalem] will be cleansed of sin.”", + "In Your vast compassion, enable us to grow truly close to the true Tzaddikim who possess a spirit of prophecy, which is truly Divine inspiration, so that through them, we will purify and rectify the power of our imagination.", + "Purifying Our Thoughts and Imagination
May our imagination not confuse us with deceitful illusions and evil fantasies, Heaven forbid. Instead, may we attain a power of imagination that possesses a completely perfected clarity, purity and lucidity.", + "In this way, may we attain a truly complete, straight, clear, pure, lucid and proper faith in accordance with Your good will, without any confusion at all.", + "May we believe in You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, in the fact that You created Your world, in accordance with Your good will, out of absolute nothingness with the Ten Statements.", + "In Your vast compassion, rescue us from false leaders, who are like false prophets. May they not confuse our minds at all with false imaginings, Heaven forbid.", + "Purify and cleanse us of the pollution and filth of the Serpent. Guard us and protect us so that no thought of divination or magic will ever cross our mind.", + "Attaining Holy Faith
May we distance and separate ourselves from the ways of sorcerers and magicians. May we possess no false beliefs at all. Rather, may we always be wholehearted with You, HaShem our God, acting only genuinely and faithfully with a whole heart and true simplicity, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Remove, uproot, break and destroy all of the viewpoints of the heretics, atheists and freethinkers.", + "Have compassion on Your world so that holy faith will spread throughout the world, and all people will believe in the creation of the world without any inquiry into the realm of the Void.", + "May they all believe that the world is renewed by Your will, You Who created it during the six days of Creation, bringing existence out of absolute nothing. This faith is the foundation upon which the entire world and everything in it exists. As the verse states, “All of His deeds are in [the realm of] faith.”", + "Help us all truly serve You in complete faith all the days of the world, until we will witness the good that You will do for us at the time that You renew Your world in the future, in accordance with Your good will, performing many acts of lovingkindness on our behalf.", + "May the verse be realized in us, “To tell of Your lovingkindness in the morning and of Your faithfulness at night.” And, “New each morning, vast is Your faithfulness.”", + "A Song of Wonders
Bring us quickly, swiftly, to the Land of Israel, the good and holy land. Draw Your complete providence onto the Land of Israel and onto the entire world.", + "Renew Your world so that it will possess the holiness of the Land of Israel, which is guided solely by providence. As the verse states, “It is a land that HaShem your God seeks; the eyes of HaShem your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year until the end of the year.”", + "Draw Your total providence onto the entire world. May the world and everything in it be renewed. May the entire world be guided by providence alone, without any determinism whatsoever.", + "Perform new, awesome and wondrous deeds “that were not yet created upon all the earth and among all of the nations.”", + "May a new song, a song of wonders, be aroused in the world. As the verse states, “A song: Sing a new song to HaShem, for He has performed wonders. His right hand and His holy arm have redeemed on His behalf.” Then we will thank You with a new song for our redemption and for the restoration of our souls.", + "We will sing, make melody and burst into song before You with new melodies, songs and praises, songs of wonders that transcend nature.", + "Ultimately, may we take pleasure in You as we hear the sound of the song and melody that will be awakened in the future — the song that is simple, double, triple, quadruple; that is of a piece with Your unique Name; that will be played upon the seventy-two strings, which is the same numerical value as the word chesed (lovingkindness). May the verse then be realized, “The world will be built upon lovingkindness.”", + "Master of the world, give me life so that I will live and not die. Give me a good portion in the World to Come. Give me merit! Be gracious to me! Help me and save me so that I will hear the sound of this song and melody that will be awakened in the future when Your world will be renewed.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are good and do good, help me from now on so that I will grow strong enough to close my eyes and ears to this world.", + "May I not look at the vanities of this world at all. May I not listen to the sound of this world at all, and not engage in any speech that does not relate to Your Name and Your service. May I only express song, praise and worship of Your great and holy Name.", + "May I twist my neck away from this world so that I will not leave any vain breath of the mouth in this world. May none of the vanities of this world have any hold on me at all.", + "May I subjugate the entire anatomy of my body, with my hands and feet, to You, so that I will not do anything unrelated to serving You.", + "May my eyes, ears, mouth, heart, mind, thought, hands, feet, 248 limbs and 365 sinews, and all of my senses and strength, all truly cling to You and be firmly and strongly connected to You. May they truly be subjugated to Your service forever and ever.", + "In the future, may I at last hear the sound of this holy and awesome song that will be aroused and played upon the seventy-two strings. Fortunate are the ears that will hear this. Fortunate are those who wait for this, who hope for it, who anticipate it.", + "“Fortunate is the person whom You choose and draw close.” He will peer through the cracks to see and hear the circle-dance of the Tzaddikim when this great and holy song will play before them forever.", + "Master of all, You Who raise the lowly, You Who lift up the poor and needy person from the dust and from the ash heap, You Who are good and do good for those who are wicked and those who are good, perform wonders for me during my lifetime so that I will truly attain this goodness.", + "Only You know the agreeable, pleasant, sweet and amiable yearning of this hope. The mind cannot attain or grasp the sweetness of this song at all.", + "Only You understand. As the verse states, “No eye but Yours, God, has seen what You do for the person who hopes in You.”", + "Have compassion on me, as blemished and distant as I am. Perform a wonder for life on my behalf. Help me quickly so that I will turn aside from evil and always do what is good in Your eyes, until I will truly be attuned to Your good will and see the goodness of HaShem in the land of life, “gazing upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visiting in His palace.”", + "“Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "Coming to the True Tzaddik
Help me come close to the true Tzaddik, who has already attained the sound of this song so that he is able to admonish us and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, arousing a good fragrance from the Garden of Eden by means of his beneficial rebuke.", + "May he have the power to transform our sins to merits and raise us from pollution to purity, from the mundane to the holy. May he draw onto us the fragrance of the Garden of Eden and strengthen our nefesh, ruach and neshamah with strong and proper holiness.", + "May he subdue all of our enemies and persecutors. May he break, destroy, subdue, uproot and nullify the heel of the Side of Evil, the heel of the wicked Esau, which is the sustenance of the body.", + "At last, may we all completely break the desire for eating and drinking, which is the sustenance of the body, and intensify and strengthen the sustenance of the soul, which is the good fragrance of the true fear of HaShem.", + "May the verse be realized, “HaShem is my shepherd, I will not lack.” May we eat and drink in great holiness and purity, on the level of the sustenance of the soul. As the verse states, “The righteous man eats to satisfy his soul.”", + "May the true Tzaddik wage war on our behalf against Og, king of Bashan — subduing, breaking, uprooting, destroying and nullifying from the world the “husk” of Og, king of Bashan, together with all of the “husks” and Sides of Evil in the world, which are the pollution of the Serpent that pursues the weak members of Your nation of Israel.", + "HaShem, You know that we have no power to withstand these enemies. Please have pity on a poor and needy nation, on those as weak as we are today. Arouse the heart of the true Tzaddikim to wage war on our behalf against all of our enemies and persecutors in both the physical and spiritual realms.", + "Purify us from all uncleanness — in particular, from the blemish of the covenant — so that I will not be removed and ejected, Heaven forbid, from the holy camp of Israel, from which all those who are unclean — in particular, those who damage the covenant — are sent away.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me and elevate me soon from uncleanness to purity. Purify me so that I will shield myself by means of my mind and intellect against all salacious fantasies and desires.", + "May my mind comprise the three barriers stretched out against these fantasies and this desire, until I will truly attain the holiness of the covenant.", + "Bring me into the holy camp of Israel. May we realize the verse, “Your camp should be holy.”", + "At last, may we attain the food of the soul and subdue the food of the body, so that we nullify the body to the spirit. May we truly serve You with fear, dread, awe and love, in accordance with Your good will, from now and forever.", + "Strengthen and heal the holy lungs. May our lungs and those of Your entire nation, the House of Israel, always be whole — physically and spiritually — and always function in the proper balance.", + "In Your compassion, rescue us from every type of lung disease and from all diseases in the world.", + "May the holiness of all of these matters that I have mentioned before You grow stronger and be drawn onto us by means of the holy lungs.", + "Rescue us from the vanities of this world, from its empty breath, from the futility of delusion. May we rectify all of the vanities, all of the empty breaths, of the world — purifying them, elevating them and transforming them into breaths of holiness — by speaking genuine words of Torah and prayer in great holiness and purity, in accordance with Your good will.", + "For Rosh HaShanah", + "The Ability to Celebrate Rosh HaShanah
Grant me the ability to celebrate Rosh Ha- Shanah in tremendous holiness and purity, and with great perfection.", + "During the holy days of Rosh HaShanah, may we draw onto ourselves the holiness of prayer that is on the level of judgment — which is engaged in by the true man of power — and that will bring about and be accompanied by holiness and rectifications.", + "At last, may we attain a complete rectification of the covenant and of the mind that will rectify all of the three states of mindfulness, which are the three barriers spread out against salacious desire, shielding us with true mindfulness and intellect.", + "May this desire not control us or grasp us at all from now and forever onward. Instead, may we all — I and Your entire nation, the Jewish people — be truly holy and pure, and entirely separated from this desire.", + "May we attain perfect prayer. May our prayer always consist of petitions and pleading to You.", + "Compassionately send us the inspiration to show true compassion to worthy poor people and to everyone who requires compassion, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Help us create many penitents and converts in accordance with Your good will, to order to increase Your honor and publicize Your Godliness in the world.", + "May we at last attain the spirit of true prophecy in great holiness. May we purify the power of our imagination so that it will be clear, pure, lucid and crystalline.", + "In this way, may we fashion appropriate descriptions and praise of Your great and holy Name with great sanctity. May we bless Your honored Name, which is elevated beyond all blessing and praise.", + "May our faith in the renewal of the world be intensified and strengthened, so that we will arrive at the future, messianic renewal of the universe, when the entire world will be conducted in accordance with providence and wonders alone, and not in accordance with the way of nature at all.", + "Then a new song will be awakened in the world, a song of wonders, and the mountains will burst out in song.", + "Then You will subdue the heel of the Side of Evil, which is the heel of the wicked Esau, and “the voice is the voice of Jacob” will intensify and grow stronger to overcome “the hands are the hands of Esau.” Then the verse will be realized, “His hand grasps the heel of Esau.”", + "May the river that emerges from Eden to water the garden be drawn onto us. And by means of that, may we send up a good fragrance to You.", + "May we attain a constant, true, complete fear of You.", + "During the holy days of Rosh HaShanah, which are days of awe of God, have compassion on us. Draw onto us great and powerful, holy fear, dread and apprehension. In particular, when we hear the sound of the shofar, may great awe enter our heart.", + "Pour forth that dread, apprehension and fear of You onto us, onto all of Israel and onto all people. “Then all beings will fear You and all created beings will bow down before You, and all of them will form one assembly to do Your will with all their heart.”", + "Our Father, our King, in Your compassion, help us receive and draw onto ourselves the holiness of Rosh HaShanah with ultimate perfection, with joy and happiness, with great weeping out of joy, and with pervasive holiness of thought, in great fear.", + "May we fulfill the mitzvah of hearing the sound of the shofar in great holiness, with proper wholeness, with all of its details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it — and with great apprehension and fear. As the verse states, “If a shofar blows in a city, will the people not tremble?”", + "“Fortunate is the nation that knows the joyful shout; HaShem, they walk in the light of Your face. They rejoice in Your Name the whole day, and they are exalted in Your righteousness, because You are the glory of their strength. In accordance with Your desire, our horn is raised, because HaShem is our shield and the Holy One of Israel is our King.”", + "“With trumpets and the voice of the shofar, raise your voices before the King, HaShem.” “Sound the shofar on the new moon, on the appointed time for the day of our festival, for it is a law for Israel, the judgment of the God of Jacob.”", + "May we recite before You the Musaf prayer — with its passages of Malkhuyot (Sovereignty), Zikhronot (Remembrance) and Shofarot (shofarblowing) — with great intent and with great wholeness, until we please You so that You will quickly, swiftly and speedily bring us our righteous Mashiach, who “will be animated by the fear of HaShem.”", + "Quickly and swiftly redeem us and build our holy and beautiful Temple. May we return to our Land in joy and song, and serve You there in awe, as in the early days and original years.", + "“Return us to You, HaShem, and we will return; renew our days as of old.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Torah Leaders Remove the Depression That Lies on a Person’s Heart / Unregulated Spiritual Fervor Can Cause Harm
The leaders of the generation correspond to the spirit, in that they are in tune with the spirit of every individual.
The Jewish people are the heart of the world. Wicked people — the “mixed multitude” — are like dust settling onto the heart, causing it to be depressed and preventing it from burning with a fiery zeal for God.
The leaders of the generation must breathe their spirit onto every Jew to blow off that dusty depression. When that dust is removed, the particles of fervent fire reassemble, and the Jews join together as one heart.
However, if a person attempts to force his way up to God beyond his level, his fervor becomes a destructive storm wind that stirs up too much fire.
Fervor for God
“My heart is hot within me; in my thoughts, a fire burns until I speak with my tongue.”", + "“This burns in my heart like fire...I grow worn out containing it — and I fail.”", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, only You know Who You are. No one else knows You, only You alone. No thought can grasp You at all.", + "Nevertheless, in Your immense graciousness and tremendous humility, You created Your world for Your people of Israel. They are the heart of the entire universe. You gave them a heart with which to know You, understand You, yearn for You, long for You and pine for You always.", + "In Your vast compassion, You have been gracious to us. You planted and fixed a knowledge of faith and a yearning for faith in our hearts, so that the hearts of all of Your holy people of Israel constantly burn for You like a flaming fire.", + "“Love is as strong as death; jealousy is as harsh as Sheol. Its flames are flames of fire, a flame of God. Many waters cannot extinguish the love and rivers cannot overflow it.” HaShem, You appear to us from afar, and we love You with an eternal love.", + "Save Us from the Irrational Urge to do Wrong
But due to the multitude of my many and grievous sins, I have been overwhelmed by bitterness and depression. As a result, clods of earth and heaviness have fallen upon my heart, and I cannot burn and glow for You properly.", + "On occasion, due to Your compassion, sparks of Your Godliness shine on me. But then I lack the vessels to contain their light.", + "And then my heart burns beyond its measure, Heaven forbid.", + "Therefore, at times I cannot and dare not receive these sparks and draw myself and my mind to them, because otherwise I might harm myself by rising to You, HaShem, beyond my limitations and boundaries. You have issued a decree forbidding us from breaking through to You, Heaven forbid. As the verse states, “Lest they break through to rise to HaShem.”", + "At times, my heart is entirely sealed shut as a result of my depression.", + "Master of the world, Master of the entire universe, You Who know hidden things, You know the secrets of the world and the hidden, concealed affairs of every living being. What shall I say? How shall I speak? What can I tell You? You know all hidden and revealed things. Nothing is hidden from You. Nothing is concealed from Your eyes.", + "God of the universe, Master of all, able to do anything, living forever and existing eternally, unique, primal — You are the first and You are the last. Besides You, there is no other god.", + "“Elevated and Exalted One, dwelling forever, holy is His Name. You dwell with the uplifted and holy, and with the crushed and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the crushed.”", + "“You are alive and present, awesome, elevated and holy.” The entire world and everything in it, together with all universes, is literally as nothing before You. Before You, the entire time span of the entire universe is not more than the blink of an eye.", + "You alone know how compassionate You are — how You desire our good and so teach us about Your true being, so that we may taste the radiant, pleasant eternity of Your Godliness and the awesome wondrousness and sweet, pleasant amiability of yearning to cling to You.", + "You cause us to go through various experiences, and You direct our lives via different circumstances — sometimes directly and sometimes indirectly, sometimes comfortably and sometimes with suffering, may the Compassionate One protect us. It is all for our good.", + "You do this in order to wake us up to truly serve You, so that we will repent of our evil deeds and ways, and truly return to You and cling to You. Then we will be satiated by Your goodness and sate our souls with brightness, “gazing upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visiting in His palace.” Then we will recognize the One Who spoke and brought the world into being.", + "That is the greatest success, the most tremendous salvation, the highest of all benefits, the apex of all goals.", + "And now, if the following were told, would it be believed? That a person who has these things, who was created for the sake of this good, for the sake of such a true and eternal apotheosis — delighting in HaShem and taking refuge in the shadow of His holiness — should have performed such deeds and entertained such thoughts as we have?", + "Woe! What have we done in our past? What shall we say? How shall we speak? Woe! Woe! Woe! For in truth, we have no words to say about this. We can only cry out in a bitter, crushed voice until our soul grows exhausted, until You, HaShem, gaze and look down from Heaven.", + "Nothing can prevent You, HaShem, from saving us in the blink of an eye with a complete, true and eternal salvation that lasts forever and ever.", + "Therefore, may it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim will shine on us, and through them, we will attain complete joy.", + "In their great power, may they breathe their holy spirit upon us, and shake off and remove every sort of bitterness and depression from our hearts, every sort of dust and heaviness that falls upon our hearts, until we will truly burn fervently for You.", + "In Your vast compassion, rescue us and guard us from the storm wind, so that our hearts will not burn and flame beyond their measure, Heaven forbid, and we will not break through the boundaries to rise to You, HaShem.", + "In the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim, send us the holiness of the prophet Elijah, who rode upon horses of fire in a storm wind, whose power suffices to subdue and nullify our unbridled, stormy, flaming fire.", + "Maintaining the Proper Measure of Fervor
No one knows how a person is supposed to conduct himself in this matter of sparks and flames, because we have no idea how to maintain the proper measure: at times our heart is entirely closed and blocked, and at other times it burns beyond its measure.", + "We have no one on whom to rely except You, our Father in Heaven, and on the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim, each one of whom is “a man who possesses spirit,” who knows how to align himself with the spirit of each and every individual.", + "In Your vast compassion, help us and purify us so that these Tzaddikim will breathe their holy, pure spirit upon each and every one of Your nation, the House of Israel, and we will truly attain complete joy in accordance with Your good will.", + "At last, may the heart of every individual burn and flame for You forever, with great yearning and an energetic fire, in a graduated and measured way that is truly fitting for every individual in accordance with his level.", + "You alone know all of this. No one else knows how to achieve this but You.", + "Your nation, the House of Israel, is the heart of the entire universe. May each and every member of the Jewish people, the special nation, the nation chosen from all nations, become the heart of the place where he must be.", + "Then all of us as one will truly cling to You and be aflame for You, until we will truly be absorbed into You forever, for all eternity.", + "May the verse be realized, “You who cling to HaShem your God are alive, all of you, today,” from now and forever. Amen forever, selah, forever." + ], + [ + "To Understand God’s Intent, a Person Must be Joyful / Joy is Freedom / A Person Attains Joy When He Sees the Good Within Himself
A depressed person cannot direct his mind as he wishes. Consequently, it is hard for him to attain a settled awareness regarding the purpose of life and the place of all of the lusts and aspects of this world. As a result, he remains far from God, unable to come close to Him.
Only with joy can a person control his thoughts and settle his mind. That is because joy is the world of freedom. It brings a person out of exile and sets him free.
And a person attains joy when he finds the good within himself — at the very least, the fact that he is Jewish.
Focusing on the Purpose of This World
Master of the universe, grant me the ability to settle my mind in this world, in this body, quickly, swiftly and speedily. Let me focus my mind very well on the goal and purpose of all of the desires and matters of this world.", + "May this apply both to bodily desires and to non-bodily desires such as the desire for honor and authority, hatred, jealousy, spite, and the like.", + "May I view the true goal clearly, with a truly tranquil mind, without any self-deception.", + "You know that we are very far from You because we do not settle our minds at all.", + "Who knows what might be if we were to settle our minds in regard to the bitterness of the life of this world, which is filled with anger and pain, and all of whose desires and delights are as brief as a passing shadow?", + "The world is adulterated with grief, suffering, torments, groans and sighs, which vastly outweigh its pleasures. The loss caused by this world is greater than its rewards, even at the moment that a person is fulfilling his desires — and, how much more, at the end of his life, when this world grows as bitter as wormwood.", + "This world begins with groans and sighing, and it ends in black vertigo and disorienting darkness. All of a person’s days are filled with anger and a multiplicity of pain, illness and frustration, and he gains nothing from his toil.", + "It is painfully obvious to anyone with any sort of intelligence that this entire world is vain and empty. As the verse states, “The days of our years come to seventy years — or, if a person is strong, eighty years. But their pride is toil and pain, for [that time] passes swiftly and we fly upward.”", + "And King Solomon said, “Vanity of vanities, says Kohelet; vanity of vanities, everything is vanity.”", + "He expresses this thought at length throughout the Book of Ecclesiastes. And other holy texts speak about the great disgrace, foolishness and madness of the vanities and desires of this world, “because everything is vanity and an evilness of spirit”", + "That and more grow clear to a person when he settles his mind well. As the verse states, “My son, take heed of more than [wisdom that has been written], for the making of many books [of instruction] has no end.”", + "Were we able to settle our minds very well, we would certainly return to You with ultimate sincerity, because even in this world we can see that everything is vanity and an evilness of spirit — and how much more clearly will we see this from the vantage point of the World to Come.", + "Ultimately, we must return that which we borrowed to You, its Owner. We will return to dust, to a place of maggots and worms, where we will have to give a judgment and accounting for our every deed before the King, the King of kings: the Holy One, blessed be He. Everything will be recalled at that time. Not a single detail will be overlooked.", + "What will we do on that day of visitation? What thoughts will we have about You, HaShem? Who will withstand Your wrath? Who will remain standing before Your furious anger? Where will we go with our disgrace? Where will we flee from You?", + "“Who among us will dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us will dwell with the eternal conflagrations?” O my brother, what then will we do?", + "The truth is that the only reason we are far from You is that we do not settle ourselves into the inner being of our hearts of ultimate truth, without deceiving ourselves at all.", + "Experiencing Joy
In Your holy Torah, You revealed to us that experiencing joy constitutes the basic way of settling the mind. And You know how far I am from joy.", + "Therefore, I have come to You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, Master of joy and gladness, Whose dwelling place contains joy. As the verse states, “Glory and majesty are before Him, might and gladness in His place.”", + "Please have compassion on me and on Your entire nation, the House of Israel, in Your vast, great, hidden, true and eternal compassion.", + "Pour true joy onto me from Heaven, so that I will be only joyful always. May I be happy and rejoice in Your salvation at every moment. “I will truly rejoice in HaShem. My spirit will be glad in my God.”", + "May I bind joy to my mind until I free my awareness, consciousness and thoughts, which have been imprisoned in bronze manacles of poverty in this great and bitter exile for days and years, ever since the day that I gained awareness.", + "Overcoming the Pain of Exile
Only You know the great, intense, bitter subjugation and exile that my mind suffers at every moment because of the many evil thoughts, distractions and confusions in my heart, which are vain, foolish and crooked. They come upon my mind and heart at every moment, deeply twisting and confusing them, until “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "The entire essence of the exile of our minds is due to the difficult, heavy and bitter depression that has overcome us from our beginning.", + "As a result, we cannot settle ourselves and think clearly with a tranquil mind about our ultimate, true purpose.", + "We cannot direct our minds in accordance with our will because of the profound effect of the exile on our mind, because of the bitterness and depression that overwhelm us at every moment.", + "And the fact that we do not settle our minds constitutes the essence of our distance from You, HaShem, Creator of all worlds.", + "Thus, we have come to what we have come, done what we have done, transgressed what we have transgressed, blemished what we have blemished, spoiled what we have spoiled, and become distanced as we have become distanced. Everyone knows in his soul how truly far he is from You, HaShem, from Your Torah and from serving You.", + "And these build on each other. The further we are, Heaven forbid, the greater our bitterness and depression.", + "And the more our depression and bitterness grow, the more our confusion of mind and its exile grow, until we cannot settle our minds at all. As a result, we become even more distanced, Heaven forbid.", + "And now, where will our help come from, our Father in Heaven? From where will we seek help, healing and rescue for ourselves as we are today in this generation — sick, stricken and tormented?", + "Gaze and see if there is any pain like ours. There is no pain like that of a soul that is far from You, HaShem, You Who are the Life of life, You Who are good and do good, You Who live forever and exist for all eternity. “Heavens, be astonished about this and storm,” for we have been consumed.", + "Woe to us! We have destroyed the house of wisdom, burned the palaces of the intellect, and exiled our mind to where we exiled it. Woe! What has become of us?", + "Master of the world, the sufferings of our heart have grown so extensive that we do not know what to say or how to speak. What shall we say? How shall we speak? How can we justify ourselves? God, You have discovered our sin. We have transgressed, sinned and rebelled before You from the day that we came into being until this day, sinning every day from early on.", + "The Help of the Tzaddikim
At this point, we have no idea how to speak and settle our minds in this world, which passes like a fleeting shadow, in order to consider our true, eternal purpose.", + "But in Your vast and mighty compassion, You have considered from afar how to bring us to a good end. You prepared the medicine for our mortal wound by sending us holy, true Tzaddikim in every generation.", + "In their great power, they rectified what they have rectified and done for us what they have done. They have prepared balm and bandages for us, and medicine composed of various ingredients that provide precious, true and eternal life. They have instructed us in a number of ways with wondrous and true counsel so that we, too, may gladden our souls at every moment.", + "In Your vast compassion, You have inspired them to urge us strongly to be joyful at all times, no matter what.", + "We will rejoice in You, HaShem. We will be happy and rejoice in Your salvation, in the fact that You have given us the merit to be of the seed of Israel, that You did not make us gentiles. You did not make our portion like theirs, nor our fate like that of all of their multitude.", + "In Your mighty compassion, with wondrous and awesome miracles, You have rescued us from opposing and challenging the true Tzaddikim and truly worthy people.", + "“You have done great things, HaShem my God. Your wonders and thoughts are on our behalf. No one is comparable to You. If I were to tell and speak — but they are too many to tell!” “The entire day, my mouth will be filled with the praise of Your beauty.”", + "Blessed is our God Who created us for His honor and separated us in all ways from those who err. How shall we repay HaShem for all of His kind deeds on our behalf? How shall we give anything to HaShem? We will bow down to our God in the heights.", + "Even if our mouths were filled with song like the sea and our tongues with song like the multitude of its waves, even if all of the seas were ink and all of the pools quills, and human beings were scribes and tongues that give praise —", + "They would not suffice to thank, praise and relate a thousandth, a millionth, a billionth or even a trillionth of His awesome miracles and loving deeds that have not yet been recognized in the world, but have been concealed and hidden.", + "Moses, the faithful shepherd, our holy forefathers, and all of the great, true Tzaddikim who came after them strove and tunneled in order to draw forth holy matters with their great might from the supernal Master of will, the Master of all souls, the Master of all beings.", + "From You, God, they drew forth the ability to have compassion on those who do not deserve compassion, and to be gracious to those who are unworthy of graciousness — indeed, as we are today: lowly, contemptible and vile. As the verse states, “When they are in the land of their enemies, I will not despise them and not be repulsed by them to destroy them, to break My covenant with them, for I am HaShem their God.”", + "Until now, Your compassion has aided us and Your lovingkindness has not abandoned us, HaShem our God. You have given us strength, confidence and great perseverance to flee to You always, to trust in Your salvation and take refuge in Your shadow.", + "HaShem our God, compassionate Father, have even more compassion on we who are so burdened. Send us ever more kindnesses and great compassion, which are sealed among Your treasures, concealed together with You, until we attain “the vastness of Your goodness that You have hidden for those who fear You, Your deeds for those who take refuge in You.”", + "I still stand and look to You with confidence. I remain strong in my hope and optimism that You, HaShem, will help us from this point on to attain a truly settled mind.", + "Finding the Good in Ourselves
Therefore, I have come before You. I stretch my hands out to You, so that in Your compassion and mighty lovingkindness, You will be gracious to me and I will always attain joy.", + "May I always find good points in myself easily. In Your vast compassion, You kindly gave us the opportunity to perform many mitzvot every day.", + "May we express with our mouths many blessings, prayers, pleas, requests, songs and praises every day — evening, morning and afternoon — and learn Your holy Torah and Your just laws that gladden the heart.", + "It is true that we might not perform any mitzvah perfectly and properly, or speak any holy words with proper intent.", + "All of our actions, prayers and Torah learning are compromised and adulterated by a great deal of dross. Nevertheless, they still possess a great number of good points.", + "You know what is hidden within even the least worthy and most insignificant Jew: that the inner motive driving all of his good deeds is truly a concern for Your Name alone.", + "Even willful sinners of Israel are filled with mitzvot like a pomegranate [is filled with seeds]. You take a great deal of pride and delight in every good achievement of the least important Jew.", + "Purify me, compassionate Father, so that I will go on this path, always seeking and finding many good points in myself, until I will truly attain joy.", + "May I soon truly focus my mind on the ultimate fate of all desires and things of this world, so that I will truly return to You from now and forever, and no longer fall back into foolishness.", + "If I have committed sins, I will no longer do so. May I turn away from evil entirely and always do what You approve of. “Satiate us with Your goodness, gladden us with Your salvation, and purify our hearts to truly serve You.”", + "Do not treat us in accordance with our transgressions. Do not repay us in accordance with our sins — neither them nor a part of them, whether a millionth, a billionth, or even a trillionth of them.", + "Treat us in accordance with Your lovingkindness, in accordance with Your compassion, in accordance with Your wonders. Never abandon us.", + "May You Who said to Your world, “Enough!” when You created it, now say to our troubles, “Enough!” Even if we ourselves are responsible for our suffering, Your compassion is very great, HaShem.", + "Have pity on us for the sake of Your Name. Have compassion on us in accordance with Your great compassion. “Give joy to the soul of Your servant — because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!” “Restore the joy of Your salvation to me, and may a generous spirit support me.”", + "“Do not abandon me, HaShem; my God, do not be far from me. Hurry to help me, my God, my salvation.”" + ], + [ + "The Grasses of the Field Enhance a Person’s Prayers
When a person prays in the field, all of the grasses enter into his prayer and imbue it with power.
Hitbodedut Among the Trees and Grasses
“Come, my beloved. Let us go out to the field, let us stay overnight in the villages. Let us arise to the vineyards, let us see if the grapevine has flowered, if the tiny grapes have developed, if the pomegranates have lost their flowers. There I will give you my love.”", + "Master of the world, help me always engage in a great deal of hitbodedut.5 Hitbodedut (literally, “self-seclusion”) refers to private prayer to God in one’s mother tongue. For a “how-to” guide to hitbodedut, see Where Earth and Heaven Kiss: Rebbe Nachman’s Path of Meditation, published by the Breslov Research Institute. See also Outpouring of the Soul. May I accustom myself to go out every day to the fields, among the trees, grasses and all of the vegetation of the field.", + "There, may I engage in hitbodedut and a great deal of conversation — that is, prayer — between myself and You, my Maker, expressing everything that is in my heart.", + "May all of the vegetation of the field, all of the grasses, trees and plants, be aroused to greet me, rise up and invest their strength and vitality in my words of conversation and prayer.", + "Then may my prayer and conversation reach the ultimate perfection with the aid of all of the plants of the field, so that all of them, with all of their might, vitality and spirit, reaching up to their supernal root, will be incorporated into my prayer.", + "As a result, may I open my heart and engage in a great deal of prayer, pleading and holy conversation before You Who are filled with vast compassion. May I pour forth all of my conversation before You.", + "At last, may I pour my heart out like water before Your countenance, HaShem, and lift my hands to You on behalf of my soul and the souls of my children and infants.", + "Seeking God’s Rescue
HaShem, help! Help me, HaShem! My hope is almost entirely gone, Heaven forbid. Look, my hand has no more strength, my might is gone. I murmur to You from a great distance.", + "Have mercy on me. I am guilty a thousand times over, tens of thousands of times over, to this day. Have mercy on me, I who am so far away from You. Have mercy on me, I who do not deserve mercy. Have mercy on me! Have compassion on me!", + "Be gracious to me, HaShem. Grant me a gift that is totally undeserved. Be gracious to me! Redeem me! Rescue me from transgressions, sins and offenses. Rescue me from the judgment of Gehennom.", + "Rescue me from the harsh and bitter punishments that I deserve, Heaven forbid, according to Your true judgments. Rescue me from the sword of the angel of death, from being beaten in the grave and from the judgment of Gehennom.", + "Rescue me from dishonor, shame and disgrace. May I never be ashamed or humiliated. May I never stumble, either in this world or the next.", + "Bring me back to You in complete repentance. Help me walk in Your laws and keep Your judgments. “Guard my soul and save me; may I never be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.”", + "May Your lovingkindness be wondrous. Reveal new kindnesses that have been concealed with You to bring compassion to someone like myself, someone who does not deserve compassion, for Your sake and for the sake of our forefathers and our rabbis, the true Tzaddikim, whose holiness is capable of shielding even me.", + "Save me, my Father in Heaven! Save me, my Master, the King! “I have spread my hands out to You.” “To You have I raised my eyes, You Who dwell in Heaven.” “I have stretched out my hands the entire day.” “My soul turns to You like a tired land.”", + "Help me always be in accordance with Your will. “My eyes are raised to the heights, HaShem. I have been oppressed; be my guarantor.” “Be a guarantor to Your servant for the good — do not let the wicked oppress me!”", + "“My eyes have pined for Your salvation and Your righteous word,” “until HaShem will gaze and see from Heaven.” Perhaps You will have pity! Perhaps You will have compassion!", + "“And I will always hope, and I will add to all of Your praises,” “because the Lord will not cast away forever.” “It is good for a person to hope silently for the salvation of HaShem,” “because our soul is cast down to the dust, our belly clings to the earth. Arise to help us and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "We Must Do Only That Which Enhances God’s Glory / We Must Find God’s Glory in Everything and Raise It to Its Source
When a person gives slavish allegiance to his intellectual understanding, he is liable to err in a large number of areas and commit egregious wrongs.
Judaism requires a person to proceed simply and wholeheartedly, asking himself if God is present in his every deed. He must set aside his own honor and do only that which enhances God’s glory.
God’s glory, for the sake of which He created everything, is the root of all creation. Below that root, creation is divided into parts, each of which possesses its own root, corresponding to a specific aspect of God’s glory.
This is particularly true of the Ten Statements with which God created the world. The first of these statements — “In the beginning, God created the Heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1) — is non-explicit and concealed, in that it does not state explicitly, “And God said…” It contains within itself all of the subsequent nine statements and provides them with their life force.
God’s glory exists in everything — even in a person’s sins and evil deeds. These can exist only because they receive their life force from God. They receive that force from the first of the Ten Statements, whose glory is totally concealed, since they cannot receive life force from revealed glory and the subsequent nine statements of Creation.
If a person who has fallen into spiritually polluted areas of doubt and confusion looks at himself and sees how far he is from God’s glory, he seeks, “Where is the place of His glory?”
This question rises to the supernal glory of the supernal, hidden first statement of Creation, a glory so concealed that it grants life to those spiritually polluted areas. By seeking God’s glory, he clings to it, reinvigorates himself, and rises to the highest heights.
That is the equivalent of a burnt-offering, which granted a person atonement for the wrong thoughts in his heart.
When a person goes on the spiritual path, each level of Torah that he attains has its own initial levels of doubt. That corresponds to the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, the realm in which good and evil are mixed. When a person goes beyond that to attain the Torah itself, he attains the Tree of Life.
Because of Our Wrongdoing, God is Far from Us
I will go “through the marketplaces and the streets, I will seek Him whom my soul loves. I seek Him, but I have not found Him. Now I will arise and go around the city.”", + "I will go to the mountains and raise my eyes from afar. I will seek and quest. Where, oh where, is He? “Where is the place of His glory?”", + "Where are the counsel and stratagems that will help me find You and recognize You? I wander, seeking You, HaShem, but I have not yet found You. Because of my many sins, You have slipped away from me.", + "I have traveled to the four corners of the earth without finding remedy for myself. I return to You shamefaced to implore You, God, in my time of trouble. My situation is difficult and bitter.", + "I am at a loss. Where have You gone? Where have You disappeared to? You have hidden Your face from me and caused me to melt because of my many serious sins, which are more numerous than the sand of the seas.", + "Woe! “These evils have come upon me because God is not in my midst.” Because of my many sins, my heart, consciousness and mind have been twisted. I have been cast into polluted places, far from holiness.", + "My heart has become so twisted, confused, destroyed, bent, stubborn, so crooked with every type of crookedness beyond measure, appraisal or numbering, that “the strength of the porter has collapsed.” Woe! My situation is bitter, hard, sad and wretched!", + "How pitiable I am because of all of my many sins that I have committed from the beginning of my life to this day, until “my heart is bewildered, my strength has abandoned me, and the light of my eyes — they, too, are not with me. My companions and friends stand aloof from my affliction, and those close to me stand at a distance.”", + "What can I say? How can I speak? How can I justify myself? God has found my sins: thousands and millions of them, without measure or number!", + "And now, “What right do I still have to continue crying out to the King?”", + "There is No Despair
Master of the world, You have repeatedly promised us and encouraged us that there is no despair in the world at all.", + "As long my soul is within me, I will stretch my hands out to Your compassion and graciousness. Perhaps, HaShem, You will act in accordance with all of Your wonders and bring about new wonders “that were never before created in all the world,” and restore us to You in perfect repentance, in truth and with a whole heart.", + "Help me truly seek You, look for You and search for You, until I will soon find You, until I will truly come close to You. Help me, because I rely on You.", + "Master of the entire world, “the troubles of my heart have increased; deliver me from my straits.” The troubles of my heart have spread, grown, expanded and become vast beyond telling.", + "O HaShem, O my Lord, Master of the world, Master of the world, my eyes are raised to You, my eyes turn to You, because You truly know how much endless, infinite mercy I need.", + "Look at my poverty. Many are my pains and the troubles of my heart. “See, HaShem, for I am in distress. My insides burn, my heart is turned within me, for I indeed rebelled.”", + "Give me merit. Help me truly seek and search for Your glory until I truly find You.", + "Be gracious to me, just as when Your compassion for us intensified and You taught us from afar the exalted teaching that it is possible to find You even in the deepest depths by seeking and searching, “Where…?”", + "Where are You? Where is my holiness? Where is my purity? Where are my nefesh, ruach and neshamah? Where are You, HaShem, God of our fathers, Who took us out of the land of Egypt, out of that depraved land? Where is the One Who raised us from the sea? Where is the place of Your glory, by means of which our descent will be our ultimate ascent?", + "In Your vast compassion, help us truly keep all of the words of this teaching in accordance with Your will, and in accordance with the will of Your true Tzaddikim, who revealed this hidden teaching so that we may always find You.", + "May my descent be my ultimate ascent. May I successfully emerge and rise quickly from all of the filthy places into which I have fallen because of my many sins, and rise to the ultimate height.", + "May I truly return to You in complete repentance and with a full heart, in accordance with Your good will. May I come close to Your great and holy glory.", + "For the Sake of God’s Glory
Help me so that all of my deeds will truly be for the sake of Your glory. May I make my way always, and always look at every action to see if it is in accordance with Your will and glory, HaShem. If it is, I will do it enthusiastically. But if it does not express Your honor, HaShem, I will refrain from doing it.", + "May I not consider myself and my own honor at all, nor anything in the world. In all things, may I have only Your Name and Your honor in mind.", + "In Your vast compassion and great salvation, help me expand, elevate, uplift and beautify Your great honor in the world.", + "May all of us — Your nation, the House of Israel — truly serve You with all our hearts, all of the days of our lives forever, without any cleverness at all. May we no longer follow after the hardness of our evil heart.", + "May we not be misled by our intellect or mistaken cleverness. Instead, may we turn the entirety of our mind, thoughts and heart to Your great and holy Name and honor.", + "May we guard, perform and keep all of the words of Your Torah with love — in truth, wholeheartedly and simply, following in the path that our holy forefathers always walked.", + "May we soon fulfill Your holy will, for whose sake You created Your universe. You created everything for Your honor, as the verse states, “Everything that is called in My Name and for My honor, I created it, I formed it, indeed, I made it.”", + "May all of the parts of Your holy honor coming from every single thing in the world that was created with the Ten Statements be revealed through us.", + "All of these Ten Statements with which You created the world were for the sake of Your great and holy glory, so that it may be revealed and expanded by all parts of creation. Please, HaShem, help me be among the righteous who maintain the world that was created with the Ten Statements.", + "Seek the Lost Sheep
Help me! Grant me merit! Be gracious to me so I will not be lost. “I have gone astray like a lost sheep. Seek Your servant.”", + "If I do not deserve to seek and search for You properly, please, my Father, my Lord, my King and my God, seek me in Your vast compassion and awesome lovingkindness.", + "Grant me life miraculously. Seek the lost sheep, the banished sheep that no one gathers in. Seek and search for me. I have been driven away, cast away and hated. Have mercy on a person as blemished as I am. Have pity and compassion on a person as contemptible and offensive as I am.", + "Deliver me from all lusts — in particular, from the lust for sexual relations. Rescue me from them!", + "Have mercy on me. Have compassion on me. Have pity on me and on my children and infants. “Do not deliver me into the desire of my adversaries.” Do not view me, Your servant, as being worthless.", + "“Save my spirit from the sword, my soul from the dogs.” “Rescue me from the mud so that I will not sink. May I be delivered from my enemies and from the depths of the water.” “May the waves of water not pour over me, may the depths not swallow me up, and may the wellspring not shut its mouth upon me.”", + "“Answer me, HaShem, for Your lovingkindness is good; in accordance with Your compassion, turn to me. Do not hide Your face from Your servant, for I am in distress. Answer me soon.”", + "See how powerless my hand has become. Take heed of my groans and laments. Help me! Help me! Save me, rescue me, deliver me! Treat me in accordance with Your kindness. In accordance with Your kindness, give me life and bring me back to You in complete repentance.", + "Be filled with compassion for me. Grant atonement and forgiveness for all of the transgressions, sins and offenses that I committed from my youth until this day — in particular, the blemishes that I caused to the covenant.", + "Please, HaShem, excuse me, forgive me, grant me atonement. Forgive me for all of the many evil fantasies that I engaged in all of my life until this day — whether by accident or on purpose, whether against my will or willingly.", + "May I truly seek and search for You, until all of my evil musings and all of the crookedness of my heart will be rectified and atoned for.", + "May all of my doubts about You, about Your true Tzaddikim, and about Your holy, pure and proper traits and ways gain atonement and rectification, as though I had offered You burntofferings, which come to grant atonement for the thoughts in a person’s heart.", + "Please, HaShem, strengthen me and fortify me in Your supernal holiness. “Do not abandon me, HaShem my God. Do not be far from me. Come quickly to help me, Lord of my salvation.”", + "Help me truly sanctify and purify myself from now on. May I feel Your Godliness rest upon me at every moment.", + "Be gracious to me so that I will truly know with all my heart always, at every hour, that “the whole earth is filled with Your glory” and Your sovereignty rules over all. May I experience the verse, “I have placed HaShem before me always.”", + "May I never forget You, whether by day or by night, whether awake or asleep, whether sitting at home or traveling on the road, whether lying down or getting up, whether eating or drinking, whether standing or sitting — in thought, speech and deed, in all of my movements.", + "At all times, at every hour, may I find and feel Your Godliness and Your sovereignty upon me, filling the entire world. As the verse states, “Will a person hide in concealment so that I will not see him? says HaShem. Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?”", + "You Who rule over everything, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are filled with kindness and goodness at all times, at all moments, help me truly come close to You.", + "Purify me and sanctify me of all of the filth and dirt with which I have polluted and sullied my soul as a result of the multitude of sins that I have committed throughout my entire life until this day.", + "Quickly raise me from impurity to purity, from the mundane to the holy. Extricate me from darkness to light. Quickly realize in us the verse, “I will sprinkle pure waters upon you and purify You; of all of Your contaminations and all of your idols, I will purify you.”", + "The Power of the Holy Torah
In Your vast compassion, help me always create true Torah insights.", + "May I at all times quickly leave behind and pass beyond all of the confusions, crookedness and obstacles that distract a person’s mind and consciousness from seeking You and thinking about creating insights into Your holy Torah.", + "May my mind and consciousness cling and connect at every moment to Your holy Torah with a strong and substantial connection that never fails, until I constantly find and create true Torah insights, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May the power of the holy Torah proceed before me and guide me constantly on the true and straight path to the core of ultimate truth, in accordance with Your good will, every day, at every time of the day and at every hour.", + "May the verse be realized in me, “When you go, it will guide you; when you lie down, it will guard you; and when you awaken, it will speak with you.”", + "Our Father, our King, quickly reveal Your glorious sovereignty to us. Appear and be elevated over us in view of every living being. Have pity on Your great honor that is desecrated by the nations due to our many sins.", + "Bring us back to You in complete repentance so that we will raise and elevate Your great and holy honor, and Your honor will fill the entire world.", + "Then every being that has breath, the spirit of life, in its nostrils will grant honor and glory to Your Name, and they will tell of Your Name throughout the entire land. “They will tell the glory of Your sovereignty and relate Your might.”", + "Master of the world, rule over the entire world in Your glory. Be elevated over the entire earth in Your eminence. Appear in the glorious exaltation of Your might to all of the inhabitants of the countries of Your world.", + "“May every created being know that You made Him. May every creature understand that You created him. May all that has breath in its nostrils say, ‘HaShem, the God of Israel, is King, and His sovereignty rules over everything.’”", + "“They shall bless the Name of Your glory, for it is elevated beyond all blessing and praise.” “Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "A Person Must be Glad on the Shabbat / The Shabbat is Freedom
[Both Prayers 13 and 18 are based on Rebbe Nachman’s lesson in Likutey Moharan II, 17. That lesson consists of two distinct parts; therefore, Reb Noson wrote Prayer 13 focusing on the topic of Shabbat, and Prayer 18 focusing on the topic of Divine providence.]
A person must be glad on the Shabbat out of an appreciation for its vast and precious holiness. When he is, his fear of God is enriched with enhanced awareness and is thus made whole.
On the weekdays, a person’s fear of God may be compounded with foolishness. That foolishness derives from spiritual slavishness that he is then subject to, which blemishes his mind.
But the Shabbat — particularly, the delight of the Shabbat — is freedom. With that freedom, a person’s awareness is perfected and he experiences the fear of God undiluted by foolishness. In this way, he raises his degraded, fallen fears.
On the Shabbat, a person should exhibit no signs of depression or worry, but delight in good food and drink, as well as elegant clothes. A person’s eating on the Shabbat is entirely spiritual and holy, and it rises to an entirely different spiritual realm than does his weekday eating.
Celebrating the Shabbat with Joy
May it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that in Your vast compassion, You will help us celebrate the holy Shabbat with great joy and gladness, with pleasure, song, delight and cheer.", + "Guard me and rescue me so that I will never experience any sadness, depression, melancholy, sighs or worry on the holy Shabbat.", + "May I only rejoice with all my strength on the holy Shabbat, with all my heart, all my spirit and all my might, with joy that has no end or limit.", + "That is how it is truly fitting to rejoice on the holy Shabbat, which is such a holy and awesome day, when great gladness and mighty, infinite joy in all of the worlds are aroused.", + "The holy Zohar and other works teach about the vast, mighty joy and gladness of the holy Shabbat.", + "Master of the world, what can I say? How can I express everything that I wish to express in my prayer and petitioning? I know so well how far I am from prayer.", + "Corresponding to the great level of the holy mitzvot, and corresponding to their great importance for all holy matters, so is the extent of my distance from them, an infinite distance — in particular, from experiencing joy on the holy Shabbat, on which almost everything depends and which constitutes the essence of coming close to You.", + "You know the extent of the obstacles that stand before this, and how greatly they constantly rise to pull me down and keep me from the joy of the Shabbat, Heaven forbid.", + "Have mercy on me, my compassionate Father in Heaven! Give me joy in Your salvation always. Help me. Save me. Help me rejoice greatly every Shabbat without exception — the entire day, from beginning to end.", + "May I then draw the joy of the Shabbat onto the six days of the week, until I am always truly joyful, even on the weekdays.", + "May my eyes see, my heart rejoice, and my spirit be glad in Your salvation. Through the joy of the Shabbat, help me raise my emotion of fear to holy awareness. May I attain perfect fear of You with complete awareness and without any foolishness at all.", + "You Who are the awesome, awe-inspiring Master of the world, help me and save me. May I soon attain fear of Your greatness, a holy fear with an awareness that is drawn from the joy of the holy Shabbat.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, Redeemer and Savior, Deliverer and Rescuer, deliver me and rescue me. Bring me forth from slavery to freedom, from subjugation to redemption.", + "Help me attain the joy of the holy Shabbat so that, in Your vast compassion and great kindness, I will celebrate the Shabbat with an abundance of joy, wealth and honor, and with a minimum of sins.", + "Help me honor the Shabbat with every sort of vigor, intensity, joy and gladness.", + "May I multiply the delights of the Shabbat with every type of food, delicacy and good drink. May I strive to attain beautiful clothes with which to honor the holy Shabbat.", + "Most importantly, please have compassion on me. Help me and save me so that I will rejoice with all my heart on the holy Shabbat, with truly great joy and gladness, until I will emerge from slavery to freedom, from subjugation to redemption.", + "Attaining Perfect Fear
By means of the joy and freedom of the Shabbat, may I perfect and expand my consciousness with the ultimate expansion and perfection, truly in accordance with Your good will. In this way, may I attain perfect fear, fear that is imbued with mindfulness and that contains no foolishness at all.", + "Help me and save me so that through holy consciousness, I will raise and elevate all fallen fears to You alone.", + "May I possess no fallen fears. May I not fear any being in the world: no government officer, no aristocrat, no human being, and no evil beast or criminal — nothing whatsoever.", + "Only You alone will I truly fear. May Your fear be upon my face so that I will not transgress.", + "Master of the world, give me perfect, true fear. May I fear Your honored and awesome Name, HaShem our God. May I fear You alone. May I trust in You and rely on You, and not fear anything in the world.", + "May the verse be realized in me, “HaShem is my light and salvation. Whom shall I fear? HaShem is the stronghold of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid?” “HaShem is for me, I shall not fear. What can anyone do to me?” “I have trusted in God, I shall not fear. What can flesh do to me?”", + "“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid, for God HaShem is my strength and song; He has saved me. Draw forth waters with joy from the wellsprings of salvation.”", + "True Tranquility
Master of the world, filled with compassion, You Who are good and do good to all, help me truly taste the delights of the Shabbat. Help me so that I attain the joy and freedom of the holy Shabbat, nullify all of the subjugation of the weekdays, and settle my mind perfectly, without any confusion at all.", + "On the holy Shabbat, may no thoughts of business, career or finance, or any worries or apprehensions at all, arise in my mind and thoughts. May it be as though all of my work has been completed.", + "May I attain the true tranquility, delight and joy of the holy Shabbat — “a tranquility of love and generosity, a tranquility of truth and faith, a tranquility of peace, calm, quiet and assurance, a complete tranquility that You desire.”", + "“Give joy to the soul of Your servant — because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!” In Your vast compassion, grant me joy always — in particular, on the Shabbat and festivals. “Cause me to hear joy and gladness; may the bones that You crushed, exult.”", + "No one but You can gladden my soul in Your mighty lovingkindness, in Your concealed compassion, in the merit and strength of the true Tzaddikim, who are the Shabbat of every day.", + "Sanctify us with Your mitzvot and place our portion in Your Torah. Satiate us with Your goodness, gladden our souls with Your salvation, purify our hearts to truly serve You, and give us an inheritance, HaShem our God, in love and favor, of Your holy Shabbat. May all Jews who sanctify Your Name rest on that day.", + "“Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "We Must Serve God Wholeheartedly / Only the Tzaddik May Study the Sciences / Faith and Prayer are One
The principal thing in life is to serve God wholeheartedly, without any cleverness.
According to some philosophers, the core of being, the nature of the World to Come itself, consists of the knowledge of everything as it is. They therefore dedicate their lives to reaching that deep understanding.
If the philosophers were correct, then only a tiny minority of human beings — the elite intellectuals — could attain ultimate reward and truth. But the truth is that we attain the goal of our existence when we possess faith and perform God’s commandments with absolute simplicity. Then we attain a state beyond the vision of any human eye.
Besides that, one may not engage in philosophy or study the secular sciences. This is because each of the seven wisdoms possesses its own stumbling block that can make a person fall. That stumbling block is in the realm of Amalek, who was a philosopher who denied all matters of faith. (In this context, the heretical philosophers interpret everything in the Torah non-literally, entirely denying its simple meaning.)
Only the great Tzaddik may enter into that realm and learn the seven wisdoms. Anyone else who enters into the realm of those wisdoms can fall. But the Tzaddik remains faithful.
Faith is of a piece with prayer. This is because a person’s prayer changes nature. Since the secular sciences define reality as being bounded by the laws of nature, prayer eradicates those sciences.
Our goal must be for our prayer to be absorbed into God’s Oneness. Then our prayer and God will be one, as it were.
Serving God Without Philosophical Inquiry
You Who support wholehearted people, please save us. You Who are eternally mighty, please grant us success. You Who are perfect in Your deeds, answer us on the day that we call. You Who act with simplicity with wholehearted people, make it possible for me to truly serve You wholeheartedly and with absolute simplicity, without any cleverness at all.", + "In Your vast compassion, guard me and rescue me from philosophical inquiries and from external and foreign wisdoms.", + "Have compassion on me and on all Jews. In Your mighty kindness, help us truly attain wholeheartedness, the ways of ultimately true simplicity that are known to You, in accordance with Your good will and the will of Your truly God-fearing and wholehearted Tzaddikim.", + "Master of the world, Master of the entire universe, I know and believe with complete faith that even where I am now, there is a path and straight counsel in the ways of wholeheartedness and simplicity — so that I, too, may emerge from where I need to emerge and truly return to You with a full heart.", + "Sanctifying Our Thoughts
May I no longer regress to foolishness, and no longer pursue the “animals” — sins — that I have sought so strenuously.", + "In my sinfulness, I soiled my consciousness and closed my heart, so that now it is very hard for me to find the way to be wholehearted.", + "I do not know of any path or counsel to become wholehearted, except to cry out to You constantly with whatever words come into my mouth, because “whoever is in trouble is not exacting [about what words he expresses].”", + "Perhaps I will appease You. Perhaps I will arouse such compassion in You that I, even I, will return to You with complete repentance, in truth and perfect wholeheartedness, in accordance with Your good will.", + "From this moment on, may I attain rest and quiet. May I control my mind so that I will no longer engage in any foreign thoughts — whether philosophical inquiry, crookedness in the heart, or any type of alien thinking and evil desire.", + "Instead, may I always sanctify my thoughts and turn them to the core of truth and wholeheartedness, without any this-worldly cleverness at all.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, my eyes are always turned to You so that I may attain this. “My eyes are always turned to HaShem, for He will extricate my feet from the net.”", + "I have hoped in You, HaShem. I have waited for You, HaShem. HaShem, may I still hope? Perhaps You will have pity, perhaps You will have compassion. Do what is good in Your eyes. Behold, as clay in the hand of the potter, so am I in Your hands, Master of compassion, Master of salvations, You Who are good and do good to all.", + "There is no limit to Your goodness. There is no end to Your graciousness. There is no way of evaluating Your ways of lovingkindness and the wonders that You perform in every generation with the Jewish people and with each and every individual, down to the smallest detail.", + "In Your abundance, grant me underserved lovingkindness so that I will truly return to You and come close to You wholeheartedly, with absolute simplicity, without any cleverness at all.", + "Have compassion on us, on our children, and on all of the children of Your nation, the House of Israel. Guard us and rescue us from all sorts of philosophical inquiry and foreign sophistication.", + "May we not gaze, glance or look at any book — even one that was composed by Jews — that is based on philosophical approaches which are in keeping with the ideas and logic of external wisdoms derived from and originating with non-Jews, which do not conform with the holy religion of Israel and are not the portion of Jacob.", + "Keep our feet from being bruised, Heaven forbid, by their stumbling blocks, which exist in all of the seven wisdoms. All of these contain the “husk” and pollution of Amalek, which is the stumbling block within all wisdoms.", + "Because of that stumbling block, all those who enter those wisdoms stumble and fall, until they deny God and come to complete heresy, may the Compassionate One protect us, may the Compassionate One rescue us from them and their multitudes.", + "Rescue us, please, our Father in Heaven. Help us, save us and assist us in the merit of Moses and in the merit of all of the true Tzaddikim who waged war against Amalek, so that we may receive power from them and be rescued from the “husk” of Amalek, which is philosophy and external wisdoms.", + "Arouse the hearts of the true Tzaddikim in this generation, and the hearts of all of the Tzaddikim who are lying in the dust, so that now as well they will battle on our behalf and subdue, cast down, break and uproot the “husk” of Amalek and its troops.", + "May these have no power to inject their evil and bitter ways and perspectives into the hearts of Your nation, the House of Israel, Heaven forbid.", + "Powerful Redeemer, rescue, save and extricate the remnant of Your nation, the House of Israel, from this bitter foe, this cruel, hostile enemy, this evil Haman Amalek, may his name be blotted out and his memory destroyed.", + "He is the “husk” and pollution that injects external wisdoms, heresy and atheistic philosophical inquiries into the world.", + "He wants to gain strength at present, Heaven forbid, in this time of the “footsteps of the Mashiach,” to inject denial and heresy into the Jewish people, Heaven forbid, by enticing them to learn outsiders’ books, sciences and languages.", + "Master of the world, You alone know the intensity of this trouble. You alone know that there is no one to stand up on our behalf. Therefore, may the core of Your compassion be aroused on our behalf and on behalf of Your entire nation, the House of Israel. May Your great Name stand up on our behalf at this time of trouble.", + "Have pity and be gracious to us. Have compassion on us and save us, for our eyes are turned to You. In Your vast compassion, grant us the ability to attain true, complete faith, wholeheartedly and simply, without any philosophical inquiries or foreign wisdoms at all.", + "May we truly serve You, keep Your mitzvot and learn Your Torah in deed and word, wholeheartedly and simply, all of our days, forever.", + "May we truly realize the verse, “The end of the matter, when everything has been heard: Fear God and keep His commandments, for that is the entirety of a person.”", + "May we cast aside all external wisdoms. May we be wholehearted with You, HaShem our God, until as a result of that wholeheartedness and simplicity, we attain the true, eternal goal.", + "Place our portion among the true Tzaddikim for whom You hid away Your vast goodness. As the verse states, “How vast is Your goodness that You hid away for those who fear You; You have acted on behalf of those who take refuge in You from human beings.” “No eye but Yours, God, has seen what You do for the person who hopes in You.”", + "In Your vast compassion, help us and save us so that we will pray to You always with great, marked intent, with all our heart and soul, until our prayer will be absorbed into Your Oneness forever. As the verse states, “He is your praise and He is your God.”", + "Master of the world, I am so far from this that I do not know how to pray for it. However, I completely believe that by means of true faith, wholeheartedness and simplicity, we can attain this in our lifetime.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, “HaShem, hear my words, comprehend my thought. Take heed of the voice of my outcry, my King and my God, for it is to You that I pray.”", + "Save me, my Lord and King. Please, HaShem, save me. Please, HaShem, give me success. Please, HaShem, answer us on the day that we call.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Earthly and Heavenly Foes
When a person has enemies below, that indicates that he has enemies above.
Overcoming Dispute
“Be gracious to me, God, for men have yearned to swallow me. The entire day, the warrior oppresses me. Those who look upon me yearn to swallow me the entire day; many are those who wage war against me, Exalted One. On the day that I fear, I trust in You.”", + "Master of the world, You know everything that I have undergone and experienced my entire life until this day. Were I to review the merest hint of this, if “I were to count them, [I would find] them more numerous than the sand,” and time would not suffice to recall them.", + "You know that added to the combination of my stubbornness and my intense guilt, I am condemned by the magnitude of the constantly increasing opposition against me in the physical and spiritual realms.", + "“HaShem, how many are my adversaries, how many rise up against me!” They are so many people — righteous, intermediate and wicked; learned, wealthy and intelligent — as You know, Master of all.", + "You have revealed to us that dispute can cast a person down from serving You, HaShem, Heaven forbid.", + "And now, what shall a person like me, a despicable insect, do today when people pursue me mercilessly and threaten to swallow me alive without cause, Heaven forbid? “Many are my persecutors and my enemies.” But is it true that “from Your testimonies I have not turned aside”?", + "Master of the world, You know that despite all of my great guilt and offenses, despite the fact that I am a blameworthy, willful sinner who has committed evil deeds, my entire thought and intent is solely for the good. I still knock at the doors of compassion, so that the gates of holiness will open for me and I will come close to You from where I stand.", + "The true Tzaddikim have told us that a person should never despair of Your compassion, even if a sharp sword is hanging over his neck.", + "You know how vigorously our rabbis, the true Tzaddikim, have urged us to encourage ourselves in prayer and supplications at all times, however things may be.", + "Truthfully, I know how much I need to strengthen myself in this. If only, if only, whether immediately or over time, I will exert myself to find some opening so that I may repent of my evil deeds and foul thoughts.", + "My Father in Heaven, what can I do and what can I accomplish against those who scorn, mock, accuse, dispute and persecute me — both in the physical and spiritual realms, above and below?", + "You know that just as I have troubles below, so do I have enemies above, for “many battle against me, Exalted One.” They constantly accuse me and prevent me from coming close and returning to You.", + "I admit before You Who are filled with compassion, in my shame and humiliation, that their accusations are not baseless. I am certainly unfit and unworthy to come close to You, due to the magnitude of my many offenses, sins and transgressions that I have committed against You.", + "But Your compassion is vast, HaShem. Your compassion is so vast, and I am poor and impoverished, needy and crushed. I have nowhere to flee, no one to run to, no one to escape to but You alone. “You have been my tower and a refuge on my day of trouble.” “HaShem is my might, my stronghold and my refuge on a day of trouble.”", + "Therefore, I come to You, my Father in Heaven, Who has mercy on the poor, Who seeks those who are persecuted — even when a righteous person pursues a wicked person — to act for the sake of Your Name, to help me and save me always so I can flee swiftly to You at any time.", + "I will flee to You from every type of persecution, dispute and accusation, Heaven forbid, and from every type of enemy and foe, so that I may come ever closer to You.", + "Help me overcome and subdue my enemies below, and open their eyes so they will see the truth: that all of their disputes and persecution is for naught, for I have no business with them. I truly desire peace. “I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war.”", + "Help me and save me, You Who are filled with compassion and desire truth. “Guard my soul and save me; may I not be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.” “Rescue me from my enemies; my God, lift me above those who have risen against me.”“Save me from the hand of my enemies and pursuers” in both the physical and spiritual realms.", + "I have no one to rely on except You, our Father in Heaven, and the true Tzaddikim, in whose holy, true ways I yearn to walk. Act for Your sake and for their sake — not for ours.", + "Encourage us, support us, and help us truly approach You. May no disputant, obstacle or obstruction — whether in the physical or spiritual realm — have the power to prevent us from serving You. Strengthen our weak hands and support our tottering knees.", + "Act so that I may walk in accordance with Your rules and keep Your mitzvot — I, my children, all who are dependent on me, and the entire House of Israel — from now and forever.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, “Amen.”" + ], + [ + "Tzaddikim Who Serve God with Their Mundane Deeds Speak of Themselves in Grand Terms / Charlatans Who Imitate the Tzaddikim Divert the Charity of Debauched Individuals to Themselves
The philanthropists who donate their money to support a true Tzaddik give him his power of speech.
Some great Tzaddikim serve God through everything in the world — through eating, drinking, and so forth — by means of which they sweeten Divine judgments and bring about redemptions. These Tzaddikim speak wonders about themselves. The way that these great Tzaddikim describe themselves is imitated by hypocrites, who boast falsely of being wonder-workers, as though nothing is beyond them. The principal energy of these hypocrites comes from this class of Tzaddikim who say great things about themselves.
There is also a class of simple Tzaddikim who serve HaShem without saying great things about themselves. Although there are some charlatans who take on that persona, they hardly have as much power to mislead others.
Among philanthropists who give charity to Tzaddikim are some wicked, debauched people. Their charity harms the true Tzaddik by blemishing his speech. Fortunately, these wicked philanthropists are often misled into giving their charity to these charlatans rather than to the true Tzaddik.
Guard Us from Liars and Hypocrites
Unique Lord, filled with compassion, HaShem, true God, shield me and protect me from liars and hypocrites.", + "Have compassion on me. Guard me and rescue me so that I will never taint myself by lying or speaking even the trace of a lie. May my mouth never pronounce a false or hypocritical word, Heaven forbid.", + "May it never occur to me, Heaven forbid, to take credit for attainments that are beyond me and greater than I can achieve. May I never fool myself or others.", + "Master of the world, You know the great, mighty, exalted, holy level of the true, elevated Tzaddikim and of their precious, beautiful greatness, as reflected in their attainments.", + "At times it is their practice to make truly great and wondrous, awesome statements, in all truthfulness and sincerity, about their attainments. All of their words are true and justified.", + "When we hear the great things and wonders that they say about themselves with their holy and awesome mouths, we can know and recognize Your greatness, our Creator. You have given Your wisdom to those who fear You, and have empowered Your true Tzaddikim to attain such great levels and speak the truth of their great achievements.", + "But in Your mighty wondrousness and great wisdom, You have balanced good with evil, and thus You have made error possible.", + "Therefore, there are liars and hypocrites, who — like monkeys imitating human beings — exist in opposition to the Tzaddikim and boast of their own great attainments and wonders, as though nothing is impossible for them.", + "They use expressions similar to all of the great and awesome words that come forth truthfully from the mouths of the Tzaddikim — but they tell lies and misstatements.", + "Therefore, I ask You Who are filled with compassion to have compassion on us and on Your entire nation, the House of Israel. Guard us and rescue us from the liars and hypocrites who clothe themselves in garments that are not theirs, who falsely boast of having achieved great and wondrous matters.", + "Guard us and rescue us, Guardian of Israel, so that we will not be fooled by them, desire them or listen to them. May they have no power or dominion to harm us at all in either the physical or spiritual realms.", + "Pour true awareness onto us, so that we will recognize and choose truth and come close to the true Tzaddikim and those who sincerely join them, and place our portion with them forever.", + "Giving Charity
Help us give a great deal of charity with a pleasant expression to truly worthy and decent poor people. Help us break the cruelty of our heart and transform it to compassion so that our heart will not be as hard as stone.", + "Help us transform our heart of stone to a heart as soft as water, so that we will truly have appropriate, great compassion on worthy, decent poor people and give them everything they need.", + "With our charity, make great unifications in great, elevated holiness. Empower us so that our charity will bring about unification, blessing and holiness in all of the holy worlds, to the highest apogee.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who love charity and judgment, in Your vast compassion make it possible for us to fulfill the mitzvah of charity completely, in accordance with Your good will, with all of its details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it.", + "Help us, by means of this charity, nullify and break lascivious desire. Separate us from the hypocrites and liars. Do not allow unworthy poor people to cause us to stumble.", + "In Your vast compassion, guard us so that we will not blemish the unity, blessing and holiness brought about by charity, a blemish that strengthens the desire for lasciviousness, Heaven forbid.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who desire lovingkindness, do not judge me in accordance with my deeds. Do not act with me in accordance with my transgressions. Have compassion on me in accordance with Your great compassion and great lovingkindness. Do not allow the “outside forces” to derive energy from my charity, Heaven forbid.", + "May they not have the power to damage the unification, blessing and holiness brought about when I give charity. Do not give them the power to increase my desire for lasciviousness, Heaven forbid.", + "My sole intent in giving charity — which You, in Your vast compassion, make it possible for me to give — is to fulfill the mitzvah of giving charity, in order to give You satisfaction.", + "You commanded us in Your holy Torah to give charity. You urged us regarding this a great deal, and repeatedly. My entire intent in giving charity is to rectify and not to damage, Heaven forbid. Therefore, I spread my hands out to Your compassion, so that You will guard me from unworthy poor people.", + "Be with me always. Rescue me and guard me so that the “outside forces” will have no power or dominion to draw energy from my charity, and will not be able to damage it in any way.", + "May I give all of my charity in the manner of the true Tzaddikim who are great in stature. May they raise my mitzvah of charity, and with it make and bring about great unifications at the highest levels, with truly ultimate, supernal holiness.", + "May my charity give You satisfaction and great delight. Make it possible for me to entirely break the desire for lasciviousness and truly rectify the covenant as a result of the power and merit of my charity.", + "You Who are good and do good to all, make it possible for me to increase my charity to the worthy poor with great holiness, in accordance with Your good will, so that this charity will constitute a great rectification for my nefesh, ruach and neshamah, and I will not come before You in shame.", + "Guard Your entire nation, the House of Israel, the righteous and worthy whose income derives from charity, so that they will not receive any blemished charity from salacious, wicked men whose charity damages those who receive it.", + "Rather, in Your vast compassion, bring about a positive chain of events so that all of the charity of all wicked and salacious people will go to the liars and hypocrites.", + "May the true Tzaddikim and worthy people be saved from them, from receiving their blemished charity, so that their blemished charity will not damage the speech of the holy mouth that the Tzaddikim attain as a result of receiving charity from generous people.", + "A Worthy Income
Bring us and the entire Jewish people an honorable, worthy income. May the Side of Evil have no opportunity to seize hold of our income at all.", + "Rather, may we attain good income with honor and ease, with holiness and great purity, so that we will truly be in accordance with Your good will.", + "Make it possible for me to study Your holy Torah and truly serve You with all my heart. May I not enter into matters that are greater and more wondrous than I can grasp. Rather, may “I calm and quiet my soul like a child nursing from its mother. May my soul be like my suckling child.”", + "May I engage in Torah and prayer with a full mouth so that, among all of the worthy people of Israel, I will cut off, destroy and burn away all of the thorns and brambles that surround the supernal rose.", + "May the liars and hypocrites who boast falsely have no power whatsoever to derive power from our speech. Burn away falsehood entirely and reveal the truth in the world.", + "May the verse be quickly realized, “A lip of truth shall be established forever, but a tongue of falsehood is merely for a moment.” “Kindness and truth have met, righteousness and peace have kissed.” “Truth will sprout from the earth and righteousness will gaze down from Heaven.”", + "“Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; it is for You that I have hoped all the day.” “Do not utterly separate a word of truth from my mouth, because I have hoped for Your judgments.”", + "“HaShem, may my prayer come before You at a time of favor. God, in Your vast kindness, answer me, in the truth of Your salvation.”" + ], + [ + "A Person Receives Income in a Natural Manner So He Will See Only God’s Grandeur
When a person prays for income, God does not send it to him in an immediate, miraculous manner but gradually, subject to the laws of cause and effect. The reason for this is as follows.
A Jew derives his sustenance from the King.
The King’s sovereignty and glory are commensurate with His humility: “In the place that you find His greatness, there you find His humility” (Megillah 31a).
The sustenance that the King sends down to this world is divided into various classes — animal food, food for all human beings, kosher food, and so forth. The finest foods of the King give a person the ability to express beautiful words of blessings, prayers and other expressions of serving God. These words of beauty create a crown for the King that a person can “see.”
A person should see the King only when He is in His state of beauty and grandeur, not in His state of smallness.
If a person were to receive his income immediately, he would conceivably see the King at a time of His smallness, at the time that He diminishes Himself in His humility. But since a person’s income arrives by means of natural cause and effect, it comes only at certain times, when the person sees the King in His beauty and not in His diminished state.
Gaining Income with Honor
“The eyes of all turn to You, and You give them their food in its time. You open your hand and satisfy the desire of all living beings.”", + "Master of the world, give me income with honor before I need it, so that I will turn aside from evil and always do that which is good in Your eyes, and always truly be in accordance with Your good will.", + "You know how much the need to earn a living diverts me, hinders me and weakens my consciousness, so that I do not strengthen myself in serving You.", + "Master of the world, I know that I am extremely far from earning a living honorably, because I have brought about so many blemishes that keep me away from You. I myself have compromised my actions and cheated myself of my income.", + "I come to You Who are filled with compassion like a poor person at the gate, like an indigent pauper begging from door to door, stretching out his hand and begging for an undeserved gift of lovingkindness.", + "Solely in Your vast compassion, solely in Your mighty lovingkindness, be gracious to me. Send me my income from Heaven. Provide me with all of my needs, and all of the needs of my family and all who depend on me and all who are connected to us, before we are in need, because our eyes are lifted to You alone. Our eyes hope in You and turn to You alone.", + "Master of the world, You transcend all cause and effect. In Your vast compassion, You can bring about a chain of events for the good so that income will come to us easily, without any distractions, difficulties, drudgery or natural series of cause and effect.", + "In Your vast compassion, send us income easily and swiftly. May our livelihood come to us for the good with great ease.", + "May we purify our income with great holiness. May our eating and drinking be so holy and pure that they will correspond to the incense-offering.", + "May our eating and drinking create beautiful words — blessings and praises to Your great and holy Name. And may these beautiful words rise and be bound with the King, and make a crown for You.", + "May we see this crown. As the verse states, “Daughters of Zion, go forth and see King Solomon in the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding and on the day of the joy of his heart.”", + "May we see the King in his beauty. As the verse states, “Your eyes will see the King in his beauty.”", + "Do not delay our income. “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.”", + "You can bring about a positive chain of cause and effect so that income will come to us with great swiftness, without any impediment at all, and without any drudgery, antecedent or difficulty at all. And with this, may we see the King in His beauty, “in the crown with which his mother crowned him,” which is composed of the beautiful words that are purified as a result of a person’s holy income and holy eating.", + "May the verse be realized in us, “May He Who redeems your life from the pit, He Who crowns You with lovingkindness and compassion, satiate your mouth with goodness so that your youth will be renewed like the eagle.”", + "Our Father in Heaven, act for Your sake. Have compassion on us and bring about a positive chain of cause and effect so that income will come to us before we need it. Send us everything we need, honorably, easily, permissibly, in great holiness and with tremendous breadth and ease.", + "Keep us from incurring debts and loans. Help us quickly pay off all of our debts and loans, and guard us from ever being in debt again.", + "You know that having debts and loans greatly distracts us from even the little bit of true Divine service that we are always preparing ourselves to begin.", + "Have compassion on me and on us, our compassionate Father, You Who sustain the entire world with Your goodness, graciousness, lovingkindness and compassion. Give us — all of our companions and all of the Jewish people — an honorable livelihood before we need it, so that we will not have to trouble our minds about income at all.", + "Do not make us dependent on the gifts and loans of flesh and blood, but on Your full, open, holy and broad hand, so that we will never be ashamed or humiliated.", + "May we purify our income with great holiness and purity, corresponding to the incenseoffering, which gives joy to the heart.", + "Bring us our righteous Mashiach quickly, in our days. May he rule over us, over all of the Jewish people, and over the entire world.", + "May the verse quickly be realized in us, “Your eyes shall see the King in His beauty; they will see from a distant land” — quickly, in our days. Amen. May it be Your will." + ], + [ + "God Looks Only at the Good in Us / Seeing the Good in Others / God Sometimes Relates to Us Through Providence and Sometimes Through Nature
[Both Prayers 13 and 18 are based on Rebbe Nachman’s lesson in Likutey Moharan II, 17. That lesson consists of two distinct parts; therefore, Reb Noson wrote Prayer 13 focusing on the topic of Shabbat, and Prayer 18 focusing on the topic of Divine providence.]
God looks at the good that we do and ignores anything untoward that it might contain. (In the same way, we, too, may not view others negatively and seek to find their flaws. To the contrary, we must look only at the good.)
That is why God created a world with both providence and nature. When a person does something good, God guides him with providence. If he does something wrong, God lets nature take its course. If only providence existed, when God would see that people aren’t acting correctly, He would grow angry and eliminate His providence — which is a sign of His care — entirely. But now, at such times, He leaves people to nature. And when they improve, God again exercises providence over them.
However, there is a paradox here that we as human beings cannot understand — which is that we cannot differentiate between nature and providence, since nature itself is God’s providence.
God’s Compassion
God, Master of the world, it is Your way to be patient with both wicked and good people — and that constitutes Your praise.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are good and do good to all, it is Your way to do good for Your creatures. You tend toward lovingkindness always.", + "You do not desire to look at and see the evil and sins that we commit, Heaven forbid. Rather, in Your mighty lovingkindness, You gaze upon and look at the little bit of good that You find within us.", + "As the verse states, “He has not gazed upon sin in Jacob and has not seen weariness in Israel; HaShem his God is with him, and the friendship of the King is with him.” And, “If I have seen sin in my heart, HaShem does not hear it. But God has heard and taken heed of the voice of my prayer.”", + "Therefore, I, Your servant, have found it possible to offer You my heartfelt prayer. And I continue to stand and hope for Your true salvation. When will it come to me so that I will truly return to You?", + "I have begged You so long regarding this, with so many expressions of prayer and pleading, but I still have not been saved. I know that the obstacle comes from within me — but I rely on Your great goodness.", + "Peer, gaze and look at the very few good points that still exist within me. Turn Your eyes from seeing and looking at the multitude and magnitude of the evil within me. Subdue and nullify that evil, which is so considerable when compared to the little amount of good within me.", + "In Your great power, empower the little amount of good within me so that it will overcome the evil. From now on may I truly return to You in complete repentance.", + "In Your lovingkindness, always send me goodness in the material and spiritual realms — not in accordance with what I and the blemished work of my hands deserve, Heaven forbid, but in accordance with Your lovingkindness, Your great goodness and Your mighty compassion, as a result of which You do not gaze at the evil in me but at the little bit of good. Do not withhold goodness from me, from now and forevermore.", + "Have compassion on me and on the entire Jewish people. Give me a perfected, holy consciousness so that I will cling to Your holy ways.", + "Seeing the Good in Others
May I not look or gaze at the evil within any Jew in the world. May I not turn my eyes to any of his deeds or traits that are not good.", + "May I judge every Jew favorably and only look at the good in him. May I not look at the evil in him at all.", + "In Your vast compassion and lovingkindness, open my mind’s eye and give me a perfected, holy consciousness so that I will seek, search for and find merit and goodness in every Jew — even in the least of the least.", + "May I see and gaze solely at the good in everyone, and not gaze or look at any evil in anyone.", + "Give me a beautiful and good eye with which to gaze at every Jew for the good. May I resolve to look only at the good in him and not the evil at all.", + "May I be good and straight in Your eyes, HaShem, and in the eyes of people. May I “find favor and good understanding in the eyes of God and man.”", + "May I meet every Jew and speak with him in ultimate truth about the true purpose, and appreciate his good points, so that I will be inspired to return to You, HaShem.", + "May I illuminate others with the good in myself and grace them with my true awareness that comes from the good within myself, sharing with them all of the good hidden in me by virtue of the fact that I possess the holiness of being a Jew.", + "Have pity and mercy on me and on the entire Jewish people for the sake of Your Name, for the sake of Your true Tzaddikim, and for the sake of Your holy Torah. Act for Your sake and for our sake. Act for Your sake and save us. Bring us back to You in complete repentance.", + "Have pity on me as long as my soul is within me. The day has waned and my years have passed, and not one year or one day has passed without my causing a great deal of blemishes.", + "Have compassion on me from now on to revive the small remnant that remains of me, so that from now on, with Your help, I will overcome the evil with good, because a little light repels a great deal of darkness.", + "“Do not forsake me and do not abandon me, God of my salvation.” “Do not gather my soul with sinners, or my life with men of blood.” “Do not abandon me, HaShem; my God, do not be far from me. Hurry to help me, God, my salvation.”" + ], + [ + "Dispute Makes a Person Prematurely Famous, Harming Him and His Cause
When a person begins serving God, he needs to wait a proper amount of time until he becomes known as a Torah leader. But dispute causes damage that results in such a person becoming prematurely known. This premature fame then harms that person or the way of serving God that he wanted to promulgate.
It may even happen that people engaged in dispute die. And even if the harm is not that bad, the dispute causes poverty.
Loving Peace and Pursuing Peace
Give us and Your entire nation, the Jewish people, peace, goodness, blessing, life, graciousness, kindness and compassion.", + "Master of peace, King Who possesses peace, bless us with peace. Grant me and everyone in my family a good life and peace. Rescue us from poverty and want.", + "Master of the world, have compassion on us and on the entire Jewish people. Guard us and deliver us from argument and dispute. You know how hateful dispute is, and how great is peace.", + "Teach me and show me how to treat all people, so that I will be at with peace with everyone in the world.", + "Show my heart a path and give it true counsel, in accordance with Your good will, so that I will know how to treat people, even those who dispute me, and so that I myself will not engage in dispute.", + "May I always truly love peace and pursue peace. As the verse states, “Turn aside from evil and do good. Seek peace and pursue it.”", + "May No Jew Become Prematurely Famous
Have compassion on us and guard us so that dispute will not cause people to gain fame before their time, Heaven forbid. In Your compassion, You have informed us of the great blemish and loss that results when that occurs, Heaven forbid.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us and Your entire nation, the House of Israel. Save us at every moment, so that every individual will go upon the straight, true way, the way of holiness, as our forefathers and holy rabbis have guided and taught us.", + "May every individual reveal the true, holy way upon which he proceeds and cause it to shine in the world.", + "May everyone constantly discover new, holy, pure, true advice and ways in which to truly come close to You, HaShem.", + "Shield us and guard us always so that no Jew will gain fame before his time.", + "Rather, may each individual go forward and enter upon the way of true holiness. May he proceed and walk upon that path for days and years, sincerely and wholeheartedly, at every moment increasing holiness, purity, new life and new, wondrous inspiration.", + "May we wait and remain there in the way of true holiness for the necessary length of time, warming ourselves with an appropriate amount of holy fervor, until the truly right time and season will come for us to reveal, teach and publicize the holy path in the world.", + "May no Jew become prematurely famous. Guard us and rescue us from all sorts of damage, suffering and adversity that come as a result of that, Heaven forbid.", + "Send us a good, long life. May no Jew die before his time. Rather, may every individual experience many good days and years in Torah, prayer and good deeds.", + "May each person at last reveal the path of holiness in the world, in accordance with his portion in the holy Torah, in accordance with the root of his soul, so that the ways of holiness will be revealed.", + "May all of the profound counsel and all of the new and wondrous paths that the Tzaddikim have drawn into the world since the giving of the Torah until this day be revealed and shine. May they all illuminate the face of the world “so that Your way will be known upon the earth, Your salvation among all of the nations.”", + "In that way, may we all — we and our offspring until the end of all generations — come close to You always in ultimate truth and walk in Your holy ways, in the ways of the great and awesome true Tzaddikim, so that we will truly come close to You quickly.", + "Send us our income with great breadth. Guard us and rescue us from poverty and want. May Your nation, the Jewish people, not be dependent on each other or on any other nation.", + "Rather, in Your vast compassion, pour forth onto each and every individual his income and all that he needs with great breadth before he needs it — with ease and not with suffering, in a manner that is permitted and not forbidden, with honor and not with disgrace.", + "Shield us always so that dispute will not destroy us, Heaven forbid.", + "May no damage or blemish affect the holy path that the Tzaddikim and worthy people must constantly reveal in the world, or affect the people who go upon that way in order to reveal it. May no woman miscarry the fruit of her womb (in particular, [Hebrew name], the daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]). And may sovereignty never leave the House of Judah.", + "God Loves Every Jew
Master of the world, compassionately fulfill our requests for the good. My needs are many and my awareness is too abbreviated to explain and elucidate what I need.", + "There are a great many things in my heart to ask You for and to pray to You about.", + "But my mind is muddled and my arguments are impeded, and I cannot express in detail everything I need and all of my requests regarding every holy matter that I am praying for.", + "But You understand all of the hidden matters of the heart, and You know our secret places.", + "You Who are gracious and compassionate, act for Your sake and save us for the sake of Your Name. Guide us in Your ways and direct our heart to truly fear Your Name.", + "Rescue us and guard us from every type of argument, dispute, hatred, jealousy and hostility, which have increased greatly in the world because of our many sins.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name, for the sake of Your Torah, for the sake of the true holiness of the true Tzaddikim. Silence dispute quickly. Bring great peace between all created beings in the world, and reveal the truth.", + "Send us true Tzaddikim in every generation who will guide us at every moment on the way that we should walk, and who will inform us of the deeds that we should perform.", + "May every individual truly return to You from all of the places and areas in which he fell and went astray. And may no one remain rejected.", + "Remember Your love and compassion for every individual Jew, even the slightest and the most unworthy. “Recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your lovingkindness, because they are eternal.”", + "Do not abandon us or spurn us in this poor generation. Send us genuine leaders who will be worthy of truly guiding us in accordance with Your good will. “May the congregation of HaShem not be like a flock of sheep that have no shepherd.”", + "Have pity and mercy on us. Have compassion, Master of compassion! “HaShem, teach me Your ways. I will walk in Your truth. Unite my heart to fear Your Name.”", + "“HaShem, teach me Your ways. Guide me on a path that is straight, despite [my enemies] who gaze upon me.” “Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; it is for You that I have hoped all the day.”", + "“HaShem, teach me the way of Your laws, and I will keep it at every step.” “Lead me upon the pathway of Your commandments, for I have desired it.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, “Amen.”" + ], + [ + "Humility Requires an Expanded State of Consciousness
Many people are mistaken about the meaning of humility.
We work very hard to overcome our smallmindedness and enter into an expanded state of consciousness. So humility cannot simply be a state of feeling small, because that is small-mindedness. Humility must involve an expanded state of consciousness.
Thus, not everyone has the wherewithal to be humble. Humility is so difficult a skill that Moses is praised for having possessed this trait, being called the humblest of all people (Numbers 12:3). As for unworthy humility, that is a species of fawning.
For the Seventh of Adar, the Hilula of Moses", + "The Ways of True Humility
“Elevated and Exalted One, dwelling forever, holy is His Name. You dwell with the uplifted and holy, and with the crushed and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the crushed.”", + "In Your vast compassion, help me realize the ways of true humility in ultimate truth, in accordance with Your good will, even though “I am more animal than man, and I lack human understanding,” and I do not know anyone who knows much of any of the ways of true humility.", + "You revealed to us that it is Your holy will that a person not remain in a state of constricted consciousness. He must exert himself with all his might in every type of worship that he engages in — particularly, prayer — to emerge from constricted consciousness to expanded consciousness.", + "You have also revealed to us the great ignominy of egotism. It is hateful in Your eyes. Ego and haughtiness are an abomination to You, HaShem, something that You hate. As the verse states, “Everyone with a haughty heart is an abomination to HaShem.” Such a person is considered like an idolater, and like an object of idolatry itself.", + "Teach me and guide me so that I will know how a person as boorish, callow and ignorant as myself may learn the way of truth in this area, how to act in this regard.", + "May I pray with a focused heart, with joy, with expanded consciousness, so that my heart will be uplifted in Your ways, HaShem, yet not possess any egotism, pride or untoward ambitions.", + "In accordance with Your good will, may I attain true humility, the humility of Moses, who was much “more humble than anyone else upon the face of the earth.”", + "Master of the world, You know how much immeasurable confusion I have experienced regarding this matter — in particular, when it comes to prayer.", + "In regard to the topic of subservience and humility, I do not know how to avoid false humility, which is sycophancy, or how to avoid growing discouraged and how to strengthen myself with all my might to attain “holy insolence” whenever I need to bolster myself.", + "May I never collapse inwardly, but always encourage myself with joy, might and gladness, so that the gladness of HaShem will be my fortress.", + "In regard to interpersonal relations, may all of us who want to enter into the ways of the true Tzaddikim be bold and strong as a leopard to overcome all obstacles, distractions and discouragement.", + "This is particularly important in this era, in these generations, in the time of the “footsteps of the Mashiach,” when disputes, denunciations and arguments among Torah sages and those who are attached to them have increased throughout the world.", + "Now some Tzaddikim and worthy people even dishearten a person who is beginning to enter into the service of HaShem — and the snares and obstacles posed by other human beings are even greater.", + "In this matter, a person may not be humble, subservient or meek before others. To the contrary, he must be as bold as a leopard so that no obstacle will thwart him and no one in the world will discourage him.", + "Although he himself knows how lowly and worthless he is, that he is inferior to those who oppose him, dispute him, laugh at him and discourage him, nevertheless, he may not nullify himself before them.", + "To the contrary, he must strengthen himself against them with all his might, and say, “Nevertheless, I, too, want to come close to HaShem, may He be blessed.", + "“The truly humble Tzaddikim, whose humility is akin to that of the humility of Moses, who was greater in stature than all of the great leaders, hold the hand of all of those who are lowly and distant. They strengthen me as well to come close to HaShem.”", + "And now, my Father in Heaven, teach me, guide me, strengthen me and fortify me on how to attain this.", + "Whatever may be, may I always know my true worthlessness and lowliness, yet nevertheless encourage myself against all who hinder me and discourage me. May I not allow myself to be subdued by them at all.", + "May I revive myself always with all of the good points that still exist within me, and with the power of the great, true Tzaddikim, who always grasp our hands and urge and strengthen us to come close to You and yearn for You always, at all times, whatever may be. May I take no heed of any obstacle, obstruction or distraction.", + "Help me, strengthen me and fortify me always, until I bring other people close to You, HaShem, and truly encourage them in Your service and in Your Torah.", + "You have taught us through all of Your true Tzaddikim that every person is obligated to engage in this.", + "My Father in Heaven, You Who know thoughts, You Who know all hidden things, You alone know how much salvation and compassion I need in order to attain all of this. For I am at the opposite extreme from true humility, which is the greatest attainment of all.", + "I am so far from You that it is simply impossible for me to adequately express myself to You concerning this. Nevertheless, nothing at all is beyond You.", + "As the verse states, “Is anything hidden from HaShem?” “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.” You can help even me attain true humility.", + "In Your true manner, teach me and guide me. Teach me how to conduct myself with all people in such a way that I will be smaller in my eyes than all of them, and truly know how lowly I am. Yet at the same time, I will be bold and strong, and I will not nullify myself before any obstacle, distraction or discouragement.", + "Help me draw onto myself the holy, true humility of Moses, who was “more humble than anyone else upon the face of the earth.” Protect me and rescue me from any type of humility or subservience that is not in accordance with Your will.", + "Graciously grant me knowledge, understanding and wisdom, so that I will never fool myself at all regarding the concept of subservience — something that people greatly misunderstand. Teach me the genuinely true path, so that I will discern Your good will in this and in everything else.", + "Grant me the ability to always pray and serve You with true, expanded holy consciousness at every moment. That is the essential goal of true humility, because “in the place of His greatness, there you find His humility.”", + "Help me! Save me! “HaShem, incline Your ear, answer me, for I am poor and needy.” “You deliver the humble nation and cast down haughty eyes.” “He will rescue a needy person who cries out, and a poor person who has no one to help him. He will have mercy on the impoverished and needy, and He will save the souls of the needy.”", + "Help me, because I rely on You. Answer me, my Father in Heaven, for I hope only in You. I call only to You. I look only to You. I await Your salvation alone.", + "The entire day, our eyes are raised and turn with yearning only to Your great compassion and hidden lovingkindness. Perhaps He will have pity! Perhaps He will be compassionate! Perhaps He will have mercy on a poor nation, and perhaps He will have compassion on the needy. “He did not despise and did not abhor the cry of the poor person, and did not hide His face from him, and heard his outcry to Him.”", + "“All of my bones will proclaim, ‘HaShem, who is like You? You rescue the poor person from the one stronger than he, and the impoverished and pauper from the person who robs him.’” You hear the wailing of the poor. You take heed of the outcry of the needy, and You save him.", + "Give me “the shield of Your salvation and support me with Your right hand, and treat me with great humility.” Compassionate One Who answers the poor, answer me. Compassionate One Who answers the brokenhearted, answer me. Compassionate One Who answers the broken of spirit, answer me.", + "“I am poor and needy. God, hasten to me. You are my help and my rescuer. HaShem, do not delay!” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "Transforming Depression into Joy
When people are happy and begin to dance, if they see a sad person standing off to the side, they pull him into the circle as he leaves his depression outside the circle.
But it is a greater accomplishment to pull depression itself into the circle and transform it into joy.
There is sadness from the Side of Evil that does not want to be a chariot for holiness. It therefore flees, and so it must be forced into holiness and joy.
Strengthening and Increasing Joy
“Give joy to the soul of Your servant — because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!” “I will exult and rejoice in Your kindness, for You have seen my affliction. You have known the troubles of my soul.”", + "“Cause me to hear joy and gladness; may the bones that You crushed, exult.” “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and may a generous spirit support me.”", + "“May all of those who take refuge in You rejoice. May they sing, and You will shelter them. And may all who love Your Name exult in You.” “I will rejoice and be delighted in You; I will sing to Your supernal Name.”", + "“Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "“My soul will praise HaShem. The humble will hear and rejoice.” “Those who desire my vindication will sing and rejoice, and they will always say, ‘May HaShem, Who desires the wellbeing of His servant, be magnified.’”", + "“May all those who seek You exult and rejoice. May those who love Your salvation always say, ‘May HaShem be made great.’”", + "“May the righteous rejoice, exult before God, and delight in joy.”", + "“Will You not return and revive us, so that Your nation will rejoice in You?” “Satiate us in the morning with Your lovingkindness, and we will sing and rejoice all of our days. Grant us joy according to the days that You pained us, the years that we saw evil.”", + "“May the heavens rejoice and the earth exult, and may they say among the nations, ‘HaShem has reigned.’” “Serve HaShem with joy, come before Him with singing.” “May my speech be sweet to Him; I will rejoice in HaShem.” “Praise His holy Name; let the heart of those who seek HaShem rejoice.”", + "“Remember me, HaShem, when You favor Your nation. Be mindful of me with Your salvation. May I see the goodness of Your chosen ones, may I rejoice in the joy of Your nation, may I boast with Your inheritance.”", + "“The upright will see and rejoice, and all injustice will shut its mouth.” “They will curse, but You will bless; they have risen and experienced shame, but Your servant will rejoice.” “Those who fear You will see me and rejoice, for I have hoped in Your word.” “Israel will rejoice in its Maker; the children of Zion will be glad in their King.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, Lord of joy and gladness, You Who have joy in Your dwelling place, there is no sadness at all before You. As the verse states, “Glory and majesty are before Him, might and gladness in His place.”", + "In Your vast compassion and intense lovingkindness, help me be joyful always.", + "As You have revealed to us through Your true Tzaddikim, joy is the Side of Holiness, whereas sadness and bitterness are the Other Side — which You, the blessed Holy One, detest.", + "The entire holiness of the Jew comes about in particular by means of joy. And all of our alienation from You and the growth of physical desires come about as a result of sadness and bitterness.", + "You know how far I am from joy, because I have damaged and destroyed a great deal.", + "Therefore, I come to You Who are filled with compassion, to help me and save me by giving me joy — and with that joy, to illuminate me and reveal to me the ways of Your true counsel, guiding and teaching me to transform every sort of groan and sigh into joy.", + "May the Side of Evil, which is expressed in groans and sighs that fill me with sadness, Heaven forbid, have no more power.", + "To the contrary, at every moment may I strengthen myself and increase my joy so much that I will transform the groans and sighs to joy, and I will not allow the sadness, groans and sighs to retain any hold on me.", + "They wish to fill me with sadness, Heaven forbid, by exploiting the many serious transgressions and sins that I have committed, and my many, immeasurable blemishes. Instead, may I transform all of these into joy.", + "Performing Mitzvot Every Day
HaShem, You have had mercy on me and kept my soul alive and not allowed my foot to slip. And You have given me the merit of being a Jew and not a gentile.", + "Every day, I perform a number of important mitzvot: I wrap myself in tzitzit, put on tefilin and recite the Shema, and I celebrate the Shabbat and festivals.", + "On Rosh HaShanah, I hear the sound of the shofar. On Yom Kippur, I fast; on Sukkot, I sit in a sukkah and wave the Four Species; and on Pesach, I eat matzah.", + "And there are all of the other holy mitzvot that we, Your holy nation — even the least of the least and the slightest of the slight — perform all the time.", + "How vast is the goodness that You have done on our behalf! “How precious is Your lovingkindness, God!” Your compassion and lovingkindness toward us have grown, increased and intensified. They are holy crowns with which You have crowned us.", + "Despite our exile and our great distance from You as a result of the multitude of our offenses against You, Your love is still connected to us, and You make it possible for me to perform a number of mitzvot every day.", + "It is certainly fitting for me to increase my joy at every moment and transform all of my groans and sighs to joy. That itself is my joy: that a person as distant from You as myself, as blemished and sinful as I am, can touch upon such holy and awesome matters.", + "This includes unifying Your Name every day, being crowned in the beautiful crown of the holy, awesome tefilin, wrapping myself in tzitzit, wearing the garments of the King when I wrap myself in this mitzvah, and other mitzvot.", + "Precisely when the multitude of my offenses and sins desires to overcome my heart and mind and fill them with sadness, Heaven forbid, may I increase my joy and tell my heart that, to the contrary, this is my joy, this is my greatest gladness: that I, who am so far from You, am able to touch such holinesses.", + "Joy Through Song
“I came to the end [of the generations], and I am still with you.” “You crushed us in a place of serpents and covered us in a deathly shadow.” Even if “we forgot the name of our God and spread out our palms to a foreign god,” “I am my Beloved’s and my Beloved is mine.” I have taken hold of You and I will not let You go.", + "Master of the entire world, Joy of Israel, “Give joy to the soul of Your servant — because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!”", + "Help me truly attain the genuine ways of joy, so that I will pull the moans and sighs into that joy and transform every type of sadness, moans and sighs into joy.", + "May I always strengthen myself and increase my joy. Help me draw the holiness of all ten types of melody, which constitute the totality of holy joy, onto myself.", + "Accustom me to gladden my soul at every moment with joyful melody. May I delight and rejoice in You, HaShem, with song, praise, music and melody. May I always experience joy.", + "As a result, may a holy spirit of life be drawn into all of the ten types of pulse within me.", + "Guard me and rescue me from every type of illness, pain and discomfort in the physical and spiritual realms — all of which result from bitterness and sadness, Heaven forbid.", + "Heal me and Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Cure me and revive me as a result of the joy and gladness that You will draw onto me always. This joy constitutes the source of all cures of every type of illness in the world, because joy is the essence of the human life force.", + "Heal us, HaShem, and we will be healed. Save us, and we will be saved, because You are our praise. Bring healing to all of our illnesses, all of our pains and all of our wounds — a healing of the spirit and a healing of the body.", + "Finding Ways to be Happy
May I strengthen myself with great joy at every moment using all sorts of ways, paths, counsels and stratagems with which a person can gladden his heart.", + "This may be accomplished by finding good points in myself or by doing foolish things — making jokes, acting unconventionally and acting foolish — in order to be happy. For happiness is the essence of holiness and the essence of a person’s life force.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, Creator of healing, Lord of wonders and the joyful salvation of the Jewish people, fill my heart with joy.", + "You know the hidden matters of the heart. You know in how many ways and with how many stratagems the Side of Evil and its troops rises up against us at every moment in order to sadden us, Heaven forbid.", + "It is cunning in its stratagems. It lies to us and clothes itself in mitzvot, so that we think that we are sad because of our sins.", + "But in truth, it is spreading a net for our feet. You have taught us that in regard to this matter, we must set aside an hour a day to break our hearts and address You, telling You everything that we have undergone.", + "But for the rest of the day, we must encourage ourselves with joy and force ourselves with all our might to attain great joy, which is the essence of the holiness of the Jewish people.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Teach us the pathways of life so that we will understand and achieve the ways, paths, trails and true counsels of attaining joy constantly.", + "Help me follow Your laws and guard Your commandments “in joy and with a goodness of heart out of an abundance of everything,” until I will attain the joy of the messianic future.", + "May I eventually see the joy of the circledance that You will make for the righteous at that future time, when everyone will point with his finger and say, “This is our God!”6 See Taanit 31a.", + "As the verse states, “They will say on that day, ‘Behold, this is our God. We hoped in Him that He would save us. This is HaShem in Whom we hoped. Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.’”", + "May the verse swiftly be realized in us, “Those redeemed of HaShem will return and come to Zion with song and with eternal joy upon their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, sorrow and sighing will flee.”", + "“In joy shall you go forth and in peace shall you be led. The mountains and the hills will burst out in song before you, and all of the trees of the field will clap their hands.” “You will draw water with joy from the wellsprings of salvation.”", + "“HaShem will console Zion. He will console all of its ruins. He will make its desert like Eden and its lowland like the garden of HaShem. Gladness and joy shall be found in it, thanksgiving and the voice of song.” “Rejoice with HaShem and exult, you righteous, and cause all those who are upright of heart to sing praises.”" + ], + [ + "Great Tzaddikim Achieved Their Greatness Through Hitbodedut / One Should Turn the Torah He Learns into Prayers
There is no greater spiritual practice than hitbodedut, in which a person sets aside at least an hour a day to be alone in a room or in a field and speak to God in his own words, employing logic and persuasion, expressing regret and repentance for the past, and pleading with God to allow him to truly serve Him and come close to Him. A person should pray to God for whatever he lacks in serving Him. Even if he cannot say anything, his preparation and his standing before God with the desire to speak are themselves good. A person can even turn his inability to pray into a prayer. And when a person engages in this practice, God will give him the inspiration to say the words that God wishes to hear. A person should accustom himself to engage in this practice every day, and then be carefree the rest of the day.
This is a great practice and a wonderful way to come close to God. A number of well-known Tzaddikim reported that they attained their greatness only because of this practice. And it is something that anyone can do.
In particular, it is an excellent practice in hitbodedut to turn a teaching of a true Tzaddik into a prayer. Turning such teachings into prayers causes great delight in Heaven.
Pouring Forth Our Speech Before God
“A prayer for the poor person, when he is wrapped [in distress] and pours forth his speech before HaShem.”", + "Master of the world, help me always express all of my speech before You, every day and at every moment. Help me and save me so that I will increase my speech from me to You, my Maker, and spend the greater part of the day and night on this, all of the days of my life.", + "Have compassion on me and open my mouth at every moment. Send me true and holy words from Your holy dwelling place in Heaven to plead, pray and beg before You on behalf of my soul with new words at every moment.", + "Help me always increase my pleading with proper words of placation and conciliation, putting forth and explaining my case with gracious and supplicating words, so that I will always arouse Your vast compassion and You will help me come close to You at every moment.", + "May I constantly rise from level to level and approach You at every moment.", + "Help me and save me, You Who are filled with compassion. Arouse Your empathy and compassion on my behalf.", + "You know that I so strongly yearn to come close to You and return from the depths of the sea in which I have been trapped because of my many sins.", + "I want to strive at every moment to engage in hitbodedut and express my speech to You, but I still have not properly done so.", + "As a result, although so many years have already passed, I still have not been saved from the many troubles of my soul. “And You, HaShem, how long?” When will You begin to save me truly and completely?", + "HaShem my God, You have performed wondrous and awesome deeds for me. You have extended great and mighty kindnesses without measure on my behalf.", + "You have given me the strength to hope for Your salvation and take refuge in the holy shade of Your truly faithful Tzaddikim.", + "Nevertheless, I am still so far away from You. The great extent of my distance from You, and the paucity of what I am and what my character is, are impossible for anyone to express or estimate. Only You know these things, HaShem my God.", + "There are no words on my tongue to express my speech before You properly and engage in a great deal of conversation and prayer to You, in accordance with everything that is hidden and concealed in my heart.", + "This can only occur if, with the aid of Your compassion and salvation, I find favor in Your eyes from now on — so that You will open for me anew the gates of prayer, the gates of supplication and request, the gates of true eloquence, the gates of hitbodedut, the gates of conversation and holy words, the gates of seeking favor and pleading.", + "May that occur in such a way that from now on I will express all of my speech to You with new words of supplication, conciliation and appeasement at every moment, pouring forth my heart like water before Your countenance at every moment, HaShem.", + "You know my heart: how much I need to begin to cry out, clamor, pray and plead to You, to weep with a bitterness of soul and pour forth my heart like water before You.", + "I must prostrate myself until my soul expires, with actual self-sacrifice, to seek my soul from You, because of the transgressions, sins and offenses that I committed so willingly before You, from my beginning until this day.", + "What shall I say? “I will cause my sleep to flee because of the bitterness of my spirit.” “Who will make my head water and my eye a source of tears? Then I would weep day and night” because of the bitterness of spirit that I inflicted upon my soul without cause.", + "For the sake of a slight desire that passes like a fleeting shadow, I rebelled against You. I came to what I came to, and I lost what I lost.", + "Woe to me and to my soul. Woe! What have I done? My heart, my heart mourns its losses! My core, my core, mourns its losses! Woe! What shall I say? How shall I speak? How can I justify myself?", + "If not for Your vast compassion and lovingkindness, who knows what would have been? Protect us, Compassionate One! “If Your Torah had not been my delight, I would have been lost in my affliction.”", + "Therefore, I come to You Who are filled with compassion, so that You will pour onto me new, true words from the source of holy speech. From now on may I express all of my speech to You at every moment with words of favor and true pleading.", + "May I please and placate You so that from now on, in Your vast compassion, You will help me follow Your laws and keep Your mitzvot.", + "From now on may I renew my days that have passed in a dark and dreary exile, and no longer return to my foolishness. Help me, You Who are filled with compassion. Save me, You Who are filled with salvation.", + "Turning Torah into Prayers
Open my mind’s eye and my consciousness to the path of truth and true wholeheartedness, so that I will clearly know the true and proper way to create lovely and true prayers out of Torah teachings, in accordance with Your will and in accordance with the will of those who fear You, the true Tzaddikim, who revealed these Torah insights to the world.", + "May I do so in such a way that great delight will rise to You, and You will arouse Your compassion completely and truly bring me back to You.", + "Help me so that I will intuit the holy intention of the true Tzaddikim in everything that I learn in their holy books.", + "May I construct lovely and holy prayers regarding all of the matters that their holy words talk about or merely hint at. May I understand them quickly.", + "May I pour forth my conversation to You using all of the teachings that the true Tzaddikim revealed to the world.", + "May I truly go on the path of serving You with all of the words of their teachings, walking upon the way of holiness in accordance with the insights of each teaching for a period of time.", + "May I implore, beg, pray and speak to You during all that time to attain the way of Divine service discussed in that teaching, and to truly perform everything mentioned in it. May all of my service of You during that time be in accordance with that teaching.", + "Afterward, may I proceed for a certain amount of time with another teaching, until I proceed in this way with all of the Torah insights that these Tzaddikim revealed to the world. May I truly be attuned to their intent and implement these teachings fully.", + "Although I am extremely far from this at present, in Your eyes, nothing is far, because nothing is beyond You. “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.” You bring about new things at every moment that were never before accomplished.", + "Teach Me What to Say
Help me! Save me! At present, I have no strength to do anything but stretch my hands out to Your compassion — and that, too, I do not truly deserve.", + "However, from my distance, I hope for and constantly look toward Your true, complete salvation. Treat me in a way that is good in Your eyes.", + "I do not know anything: how to speak, what to say, or how I will attain everything that I have asked of You.", + "I do not know how I will find the true point that touches upon my heart at every moment, such that I will constantly conduct myself in accordance with Your good will.", + "I do not know how to recite true prayers and lovely conversations before You, or how to truly connect myself to the true point that touches upon my heart at each moment, such that I may return to You and truly be in accordance with Your good will always.", + "Strong and firm Unique One, Primal One, strengthen me and fortify me in prayer and conversation before You always. “My God, open my lips and my mouth will speak Your praise.” “HaShem, please accept the offerings of my mouth and teach me Your judgments.”", + "I will hope in You, God. I will pray before Your countenance and ask You to help me speak to You clearly. As part of the congregation of the nation, I will sing of Your might, praying on my behalf and on behalf of Your purposes. “A man prepares his heart, and then HaShem provides the smoothness of his tongue.”", + "Teach me what to say. Help me understand what to ask for. Tell me how to please You. Teach me in truth the ways of hitbodedut and conversation with You, Master of compassion. May I pray to You in my own words so that I will always converse with You as a man speaks to his friend.", + "Teach me how to conquer You so that You will turn Your face back to us and help us truly return to You in complete repentance.", + "You have revealed to us that You want us to conquer You. As our sages said, “Sing to the One Who rejoices when He is conquered.”", + "Arouse Your compassion for us, Your children. Send holy words that are drawn from the ten types of melody to me and to all those who desire, yearn and strive to express their conversation before You.", + "With these ten types of melody, King David composed the Book of Psalms, which is based on the words of his holy conversations that he poured forth to You at every moment.", + "You know that we do not know of any of the ten types of melody. But we are assured of the power and merit of King David.", + "And we are assured of the power of all of the Tzaddikim who arranged songs, praises, prayers and conversations before You, until they attained all ten types of melody with the ultimate perfection.", + "I, as well as all those who wish to express their conversation before You, rely on their power alone in the hope that we, too, will speak holy, true words drawn from the ten types of melody, in accordance with Your will.", + "We wish to pray a great deal, and always express all of our conversation before You at every moment truthfully and wholeheartedly, so that we will conquer You at every moment.", + "Begin redeeming us and quickly bring us to a complete redemption that is not followed by exile — a redemption of soul, body and money, overall and in every detail.", + "May we turn away from evil entirely and always do what is good in Your eyes. May we truly set firmly in Your holiness, and always rise from level to level with great holiness, in accordance with Your good will.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "A Person Should Drink Just Enough Wine to Expand His Consciousness
In the realm of holiness, there are two complementary energies: chesed (lovingkindness) and gevurah (strictness). These energies are mirrored in the realm of impurity.
When a person engages properly in a limited amount of drinking to broaden his awareness, his mind expands and rises, and the dynamic of holy lovingkindness expands.
The spirit of Moses exists in a Jew’s every limb, reminding it to perform the mitzvah connected to it. That spirit is attuned to a measured amount of drinking, granting a person enhanced spiritual awareness clothed in the dynamic of lovingkindness.
But if a person drinks more than he can handle and grows intoxicated, then the dynamic of strictness that comes from the Side of Evil intensifies. Then he can grow angry and forget all of the mitzvot that Moses commanded the Jews.
For the Seventh of Adar, the Hilula of Moses", + "Drinking Wine to Elevate Our Mind
“Draw me, we will run after you. The king brought me into his chambers. We will rejoice and be glad in you. We will recall your love, more fragrant than wine. You have been loved sincerely.”", + "Master of the world, great in kindness and performing vast goodness, have compassion on me. Help me truly come close to You at every moment. May I always serve You with joy and with a glad heart, out of an abundance of everything.", + "In Your vast compassion, guard me. Rescue me at every moment from drinking too much wine and other intoxicating beverages, so that I will never over-drink and never get drunk.", + "You have revealed to us the great evil of intoxication, which perturbs a person and deprives him of both worlds, Heaven forbid.", + "As a result of being drunk, people forget all of the admonitions of Moses, who is contained within a Jew’s every limb, reminding and urging each limb to guard, perform and uphold every mitzvah related to it; thus, there are 248 limbs corresponding to the 248 positive commandments.", + "But when people get drunk, Heaven forbid, they forget all of these admonitions, and all roads appear straight and clear to them, may the Compassionate One protect us. As the verse states, “When a person turns his gaze to the wine cup, [his behavior] appears blameless to him.”", + "“Who cries, ‘Woe!’ Who, ‘Alas!’…Who has bloodshot eyes?” “Those who sit late over wine, those who come to search for mixed wine.” “Ultimately, it bites like a snake and stings like a viper.” “Your eyes will gaze at unsuitable women and your heart will speak in confusion.” “You will be like a person lying in the heart of the sea and like a person lying at the top of the mast.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You know how many souls have sunken into the thick mire as a result of drunkenness, may the Compassionate One protect us, losing both worlds as a result.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, rescue me. In Your vast compassion, guard me so that I will never become the least bit drunk.", + "This applies even on the Shabbat, festivals and other holy times, when it is Your will that we gladden our souls by drinking some wine.", + "In Your vast compassion, help us appraise the proper measure so that we will drink only the small amount necessary, in accordance with Your will, to elevate our mind and broaden our intellect and heart, since “wine cheers the heart of man.”", + "In that way, as a result of drinking a little, may we broaden and enhance the lovingkindness in which our mind is contained, so that as a result of a small amount of drinking, we will truly attain joy and a good heart, and truly cling to You.", + "As a result, may we recall ever more clearly all of the admonitions in every limb with which Moses admonishes us, so that we will be more inspired to uphold all of the mitzvot that are related to each limb.", + "Open my heart to Your Torah. May my spirit pursue Your mitzvot. May I come ever closer to You as a result of drinking as I truly cling to You, in accordance with Your good will.", + "When I drink wine in great holiness, may I truly be in accordance with Your good will. May breadth of consciousness and lovingkindness related to Your awareness, my Creator, be drawn onto me. May I truly honor You, HaShem, with my money and with my praise of You.", + "Drinking the Right Amount
Master of the world, You know that although drunkenness is immeasurably reprehensible, nevertheless, at times a person must drink a little in order to broaden his mind.", + "The true sages informed us that drunkenness, which is associated with the Side of Evil, is disgraceful, whereas drinking in a holy way for the sake of Your Name is exalted.", + "Our sages said, “If a person is meritorious, [drinking wine] makes him joyful. But if he is not meritorious, it destroys him…If he is meritorious, he becomes a leader. But if he is not meritorious, he becomes impoverished.”", + "We are obligated to make Kiddush and Havdalah over wine on the Shabbat and festivals, and to recite the Grace after Meals over a cup of wine, because we recite song only over wine, which “gladdens God and men.”", + "Therefore, have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. May I, all of my friends, and Your entire nation, the Jewish people — each person on his level — always know the right amount of wine to drink, so that we will be completely removed from drunkenness.", + "When it is Your will to gladden us with Your good wine, give us the strength and guard us so that we will not drink too much, but only the little amount necessary to gladden our soul, broaden our mind, and enhance the energies of lovingkindness.", + "May we never, as a result of drinking, experience any anger, judgment or harshness, Heaven forbid. To the contrary, as a result of our small amount of drinking, may we be increasingly drawn to holy lovingkindness, with true joy and a good heart, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May we truly cling to You. May we rejoice, sing and be glad in Your Name with joy and song, and speak words of Torah, saying what needs to be said and disclosed, with an expansive heart and with joy.", + "Place a muzzle to our mouths so that we will not be like someone “who goes as a talebearer revealing a secret,” and not disclose what should not be disclosed, Heaven forbid.", + "Open our mouths with song and praises to Your great and holy Name, in accordance with Your good will. May the verse be realized in us, “Your palate is like the best wine, gliding down smoothly to my beloved, making the lips of the sleeping speak.”", + "May our every action — eating, sleeping and other necessary activities — be in accordance with Your good will. May I do everything in truly the best way, truly in accordance with Your good will at that time.", + "May I never turn aside from Your will, right or left. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Fulfilling Obligations and Levying Fair Taxes Nullifies Four Evil Traits
A person must pay his obligations immediately. If he delays doing so, he brings into being the four evil traits of idolatry, sexual immorality, bloodshed and slander.
And when a principled communal leader taxes each citizen appropriately, he nullifies these four traits.
Worthy Communal Leaders
“Your sovereignty is a sovereignty of all times and Your governance is in every generation.” You are the King of kings Who appoints kings and possesses kingship.", + "“He removes kings and establishes kings.” “He does as He wishes with the host of Heaven and [the inhabitants of] earth.”", + "All elevation, leadership and command of the entire world, from the very greatest to the very smallest, come from You alone.", + "As our sages said, “Even a superintendent of wells is appointed from Heaven, as the verse states, ‘Yours, HaShem, is the sovereignty, and You are exalted as the head above all.’”", + "Therefore, have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Give us governors, officers and community leaders in every city who are sincere, reliable and worthy.", + "Give them true awareness and compassion so that they will have compassion on the poor of Your flock, and not overburden the poor and needy with the yoke of taxes.", + "Pour true awareness and compassion onto them so that they will act sincerely in their elevated station, in accordance with Your good will, and tax every individual in accordance with his ability.", + "They should tax heavily those whom it is fitting to tax heavily, be lenient with those with whom it is fitting to be lenient, and entirely exempt those whom it is fitting to exempt — in particular, people who fear HaShem, who have bent their shoulders to bear the yoke of Torah and serving You.", + "Have compassion on these God-fearing people for the sake of Your Name and Your honor. Influence the hearts of the governors and officers of every city to completely alleviate their burden and free them of the yoke of various civil obligations and the yoke of earning a living.", + "In Your vast compassion, rescue us and protect us from officers and governors who rule over the public egotistically and not for the sake of Heaven.", + "Have compassion on the members of Your nation, the Jewish people, who are scattered among the nations, which rule over us and constantly burden us with taxes, constantly demanding more and more.", + "You know how oppressed and overworked we are, and the acute constriction and diminishment of our income due to our sins — in particular, the income of those who are Godfearing and worthy, who desire to accustom themselves to truly walk in Your ways and come close to You.", + "Most if not all of these people have a very reduced income. They lack bread and clothing, and even the smallest coin in their wallet. And now the yoke of taxes may be imposed on them, so that “the strength of the porter will collapse,” Heaven forbid.", + "Woe! “How will Jacob rise, for he is small?” At this time of trouble, when no one stands up on our behalf, may Your great Name stand up on our behalf.", + "Have compassion on us in each and every community in which Your people of Israel live (and in particular, in [name of city]).", + "Give us truly new, worthy officers, community leaders and governors who will arrange and evaluate the tax burden for every individual fairly and honestly, in accordance with Your good will.", + "You revealed to us the eminent traits that people attain when they have a worthy leader. Through such a leader, people nullify their four evil traits, which are: blemishes in faith leading to heresy, sexual immorality, bloodshed, and malicious gossip — the last of which is equal to them all. These four are the chief sins in the entire Torah.", + "You know how much we need to plead with You and beg You to rescue us from the blemish of these four evil traits, in which every individual is trapped in his own particular way — whether in thought, speech or deed, whether unintentionally or intentionally.", + "You know how far these tremendous blemishes, which affect the entire Torah, reach.", + "Therefore, have compassion on us. May we have worthy officers and community leaders who will fairly arrange and evaluate the taxes that are fitting for every individual.", + "Through such leaders, may we all be rescued from the blemish of all of these four traits, so that no trace of any of them will cling to us or our children, in whole or in part — whether in thought, speech or deed, whether unintentionally or intentionally.", + "Rather, may we be holy and pure with ultimate perfection, and entirely cleansed of the blemish of all of these four traits.", + "Oaths and Vows
Have compassion on us. Guard us and rescue us from the blemish of oaths and vows. Protect us so that we will not become accustomed to making oaths and vows.", + "May all of the oaths and vows that we must make be for the sake of attaining holiness and self-restraint, in accordance with Your good will. As our sages said, “Oaths are a fence that encourage self-restraint.”", + "Guard us in Your vast compassion. Help and save us at every moment to fulfill our promises immediately and not transgress, Heaven forbid, by delaying any oath or vow.", + "May we fulfill our oaths completely and immediately, and do all that we have promised. May we keep and do that which emerges from our lips, immediately and without delay.", + "Guide us and teach us at every moment how to conduct ourselves in the realm of making oaths and vows, with the goal of attaining holiness and asceticism. Then we will truly fulfill our promises, and through them truly attain holiness and self-restraint, in accordance with Your good will.", + "“Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation. I have hoped in You all the day.”", + "Have pity and compassion on me and on the entire Jewish people. Compassionately fulfill our requests for the good. Quickly and swiftly redeem us and bring our righteous Mashiach. Restore sovereignty, dominion and supremacy to Your people of Israel, who are truly worthy and God-fearing.", + "May the verse be realized, “For kingship is HaShem’s, and He is the Ruler over the nations.”", + "“And redeemers shall go up on Mount Zion to judge the mountain of Esau, and kingship shall be HaShem’s.”", + "“And HaShem will be King over the entire earth; on that day, HaShem will be One and His Name will be One.”" + ], + [ + "A Person’s Tears Help Him Create Torah Insights That Can Overcome Anti-Semitic Decrees
When a person sheds tears, he creates new Torah insights. Those insights form the body of a new book of those insights, and also oppose and nullify the decrees of the nations.
Eradicating the Schemes of Anti-Semites
King, Helper, Savior and Shield, protect us! Eradicate and remove all harsh and evil decrees against us by all kings, ministers and advisors, and incline their hearts to us positively.", + "You know their thoughts about us at every moment. “Your enemies roar and Your foes lift their heads. They scheme and conspire against Your nation. They plot against the people whom You protect. They say, ‘Let us go and destroy them so that they will no longer be a nation, so that the name of Israel will never be mentioned again.’ They have agreed with a single heart; they have formed a pact against You.”", + "Master of the world, You alone know the position of the Jewish people at this time among the non-Jews. They consider us as thorns in their eyes, as a despised object that is undesirable, vile, rejected and forsaken.", + "Gaze down from Heaven and see how we have become an object of derision and mockery among the nations. We are considered as sheep for the slaughter, to be killed, destroyed, beaten and insulted.", + "Every day and at every moment, every country’s leaders engage in counsel and schemes against the holy religion of Israel.", + "Their criticisms are directed not against us, but against the religion of Your holy Written and Oral Torah that You gave us through Moses Your prophet, the faithful one of Your house.", + "Only because of that do they grind their teeth against us — at every moment, in every generation, in every country.", + "“Not only one has stood against us to eradicate us, but in every generation, they stand against us to eradicate us. But the Holy One, blessed be He, saves us from their hand.”", + "Our compassionate Father, have compassion on us. When no one stands up on our behalf, may Your great Name stand up for us at a time of trouble.", + "See, “the [enemies’] power is increasing, and none [of the Jews] are helped or strengthened.” No one takes to heart the intense danger facing the Jewish people in every generation.", + "Non-Jewish courts and advisors judge them, and constantly plan and take counsel on how to strip them of their religion, Heaven forbid.", + "That is the entirety of the core of their evil thoughts, as is revealed to You, Master of all, Who knows thoughts.", + "They have already enticed and lured a number of Jewish souls by means of their counsel and evil decrees. And they plan yet more evil counsel to add more decrees, Heaven forbid, in each and every country, as we have heard a number of times.", + "Woe to the ears that hear this! What shall we do to nullify and eradicate their schemes and spoil their plans?", + "“Lord, God, desist now! Who will rise with Jacob, for he is small?” Help us for the sake of Your Name, because there is no one else to stand on our behalf.", + "You Who are pleased with supplication and accept entreaties, be pleased and appeased with this impoverished generation, because there is no one else to assist us. Help us, because we depend on You.", + "HaShem our God and God of our fathers, You are filled with compassion. You love Your people of Israel.", + "The Tears of the Tzaddikim
There is power in the holy tears of the true Tzaddikim: they have wept a great deal, spilling many tears before You like water, until many Torah insights were revealed to them.", + "Ultimately, they composed perfect, holy, pure, wondrous and awesome books composed of the insights of their holy teachings that they created as a result of weeping with copious tears.", + "Have compassion on the Jewish people, Your nation, and awaken the power of these honest, holy tears so that they will oppose and nullify the decrees of the non-Jews.", + "Please, Lord, You Who are Unique, You Who are filled with compassion, Redeemer of Israel and its Holy One, You have always been the help of our forefathers, a shield and savior to them and to their children after them in every generation.", + "May You be moved and have compassion on Your chosen people of Israel at this time of trouble, during the “footsteps of the Mashiach.”", + "Awaken and arouse the merit and power of these multitudinous, holy and awesome tears that boil and burn like a flaming fire, which all of the holy Tzaddikim wept before You from the earliest days.", + "Many holy books were composed of their Torah insights that they originated as a result of the tears that they cried to You first.", + "Recall this and gaze upon it, and have compassion on Your nation, the Jewish people, whom You love, so that these holy tears of the Tzaddikim will oppose the power of the evil tears of the wicked Esau, for the Jewish people have already borne much suffering as a result of his three tears.7 According to the Midrash, Esau shed three tears when he begged his father Isaac to bless him as well as Jacob (see Genesis 27:38). Rabbi Abin taught: The Community of Israel says before HaShem, “Because of the three tears that the evil one [Esau] shed, You made him ruler over the whole world and gave him prosperity in this world. How much more, then, will You do for us when You come to see that we are humiliated and that we pour out our very souls in weeping?!” (Midrash Tehillim 80:4).", + "Our compassionate Father in Heaven, gaze from Heaven and see this. Accept the millions and billions of tears that the Jewish people have spilled before You from the day that they came into being until today.", + "This is particularly so from the day of the destruction of Your Temple until this day — and, in particular, regarding the holy tears of the true Tzaddikim, by means of which they composed their holy books.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who save us with might and power, grant power to these holy tears, so that the holy tears of the Tzaddikim will oppose the tears of the wicked Esau.", + "Nullify all of the nations’ harsh and evil decrees — those that have been passed and those that they intend to pass, Heaven forbid.", + "Uproot, break, shatter and nullify all of them with the power of these holy tears of the true Tzaddikim.", + "Holy Books
Help us and save us so that we will always learn the books of the true Tzaddikim and meditate upon them day and night. May we understand and comprehend all of the words of their holy teachings, and truly uphold their words.", + "May their books spread out throughout the world. May their wellsprings spread forth so that at every moment the power of their holy tears, through which they composed their holy books, will be aroused.", + "May all of the evil counsel and decrees of the non-Jews be nullified, broken and uprooted. Swiftly frustrate their counsel. Destroy the intent of all of those who rise up against us to harm us.", + "Act for the sake of Your Name. Act for the sake of Your right hand. Act for the sake of Your holiness. Act for the sake of Your Torah.", + "We have no one on whom to rely except You, our Father in Heaven, and on the power and merit of our forefathers, the holy Tzaddikim.", + "Our Father, our King, nullify all of the harsh and evil decrees against us. Our Father, our King, nullify the counsel of our enemies.", + "“Do not give the life of your turtledove over to the troops; do not forget forever the life of Your impoverished ones.” “Our soul is cast down to the dust, our belly clings to the earth. Arise to help us and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.”" + ], + [ + "The Union of a Holy Couple Brings About a Heavenly Union / Jealousy is a Sign of Love, But in This World It Can be Harmful / God Causes Holy Books to be Destroyed So We May Return to Him
When a husband and wife are worthy, their marital union is free of anything unseemly. Their unification in this world is so holy and pure that an upper, Heavenly unification depends on it.
But even in this relationship, the husband may experience jealousy. That is due to his love for his wife. Theoretically, that is something positive. However, since the union of this couple occurs in this lower world, his jealousy can result in argument and disharmony.
In the time of the Temple, if a husband discovered his wife secluded with another man and suspected her of infidelity, he could take her to the Temple.8 The ceremony involving the sotah, or suspected woman, is detailed in Numbers 5:11-31. There, the Kohen would write verses with God’s Name on a parchment and then immerse the parchment in water, erasing the text. The woman would then drink the water. If she had been unfaithful, she would die. If she had been faithful, the waters would bring her blessings, following which she would be restored to a repaired relationship with her husband.
Similarly, when the Jewish people act in an unseemly manner and God, as it were, suspects us of being unfaithful to Him, He subjects us to the same ceremony of the sotah. In this case, the parchment with God’s Name written on it is represented by holy books, and the erasure of God’s Name on the parchment is represented by the loss of those books.
Sometimes, the loss of such holy books occurs naturally over the course of history. Besides that, there are hidden Tzaddikim who know the inner aspects of the Torah but who do not express their insights at all, or refrain from writing them down, or write them down and then deliberately burn the manuscript.
When great Tzaddikim hide their teachings by burning and destroying them, that causes the destruction of heretical books — which, had they spread throughout the world, would have prevented people from coming close to God. Although the Tzaddikim’s teachings contain Divine Names, the destruction of these teachings is of great benefit to the world, for it makes it possible for us to come closer to God. It removes God’s spirit of jealousy so that the peace between Him and the Jewish people is restored.
The Spirit of Holiness
You chose us from all of the nations. You loved us and desired us. You elevated us above all of the tongues and sanctified us with Your commandments. You brought us close to serve You, our King, and You associated Your great and holy Name with us.", + "HaShem our God, You gave us Your holy Torah through Moses Your prophet, the faithful one of Your house. And You commanded us not to turn aside from the words that the true Tzaddikim will communicate in every generation.", + "In Your vast compassion, You favored us in every generation with a number of true Tzaddikim and sages who taught the Jewish people the straight and true way.", + "They left behind them the blessing of holy and awesome books to illuminate the face of the earth, to reveal to us the ways of Your holy Torah so that we might lovingly uphold all of the words of Your Torah.", + "May we draw upon ourselves — may every individual draw onto himself — the holiness of the spirit of our righteous Mashiach, whose spirit “hovers over the face of the waters,” which is the face of the Torah: the holy books of the holy Torah.", + "This holy spirit of the Mashiach is contained in every Jew, corresponding to his holiness and purity.", + "Guarding the Covenant
The essence of each person’s holiness is the holiness of the covenant. The spirit of the Mashiach is zealousness applied to guarding the covenant. He is zealous regarding even a trace of lust. Because of his great holiness and purity, he cannot bear even the slightest blemish of the covenant.", + "“The spirit of our nostrils, the Mashiach of HaShem” is particularly zealous regarding any blemish to the covenant. All of his hope and desire is to turn the heart of the Jewish people to You, so that we will truly guard the covenant in accordance with Your will.", + "And now, my Father in Heaven, You Who are filled with compassion at every moment, grant me proper and true advice, so that from now on I will truly guard the covenant and not cause any blemish, Heaven forbid, even with permissible behavior.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me and save me, so that in the course of my lifetime I will quickly rectify all of the blemishes that I caused to the covenant from the beginning of my life until this day — whether unintentionally or intentionally, whether under duress or willingly.", + "From this moment onward, have compassion on me and protect me from every type of blemish of the covenant — in thought, speech and deed.", + "“God, create within me a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and may a generous spirit support me.” “Do not cast me away from You, and do not take Your holy spirit away from me.”", + "Help me so that the holy spirit of the Mashiach that rests and hovers over the holy books of holy inspiration will shine upon me.", + "In its merit and power, may I renounce lustful desire entirely. May I not be vulnerable to any fantasies at all, or look at anything that has anything to do with this desire.", + "Help me close my eyes so that they will not look at evil. “Turn my eyes away from seeing vanity; with Your ways, give me life.” Rescue me from every sort of blemish of the covenant. In Your vast compassion, guard me from even a trace of lust.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who guard Your nation, the Jewish people, forever, guard me and rescue me in Your vast compassion. “Shelter me, God, for I have taken refuge in You.”", + "Erasing the Books of Heresy
In Your vast compassion, have compassion on us. Help me and save me. May all of the holy books of all of the true Tzaddikim spread throughout the world.", + "Master of the entire world, You know about the many holy and precious books of the greatest Tzaddikim — the Patriarchs, the early and later prophets, the Tannaim and Amoraim, and then the other Tzaddikim, foundations of the world, who lived in every generation.", + "Most if not all of them composed and produced many precious and holy books — which, because of our many sins, were lost and vanished from the world.", + "In Your vast compassion, have mercy on the few holy books of the Tzaddikim that have survived. In Your vast compassion, may they spread throughout the world and illuminate the face of the earth, so that all of the people of Israel will return to You and truly serve You all of their days, forever.", + "Be filled with compassion for Your entire nation, the Jewish people. Stand up and help us. Uproot, break, shatter, eradicate, subdue, crush and nullify from the world all of the books of the heretics and atheists, as well as all of the books of the philosophers that tend toward heresy and atheism, which impair the Torah and holy faith.", + "Uproot, break and nullify all of them in the merit and power of the books of the true Tzaddikim that were burned and lost from the world.", + "In Your compassion, arouse all of the supernal and earthly academies so that they will learn the logical proposition stated by our sages, “If the Torah said that such holy and awesome books — which are the Name of HaShem, His Name that is written in holiness — should be erased, that they should disappear from the world in order to institute peace between two worthy spouses [in the ceremony of the sotah] —", + "“Then how much more should the books of the heretics and atheists, which instill hatred, enmity and alienation between the Jewish people and their Father in Heaven, and uproot the one who reads them from both worlds, be destroyed, burned, uprooted, erased and nullified from the world!”", + "May they be erased from the earth. May their name and memory be abolished from the world. May their name no longer be recalled.", + "In Your compassion, establish peace between Yourself and the Jewish people, Your nation. Never remove Your love from us. Draw peace upon the entire Jewish people, Your nation.", + "May there be great and wondrous peace between neighbors and between spouses. May there be no hatred, jealousy, argument or hostility between neighbors or between spouses.", + "In particular, may this be so for a worthy couple, whose unification is very precious, upon whom the supernal unification and God’s Presence resting between them depend.", + "Help them. Have compassion so that no hatred and jealousy will exist between them, in the merit and power of the awesome, holy books that were burned and vanished from the world for the sake of this goal, as You revealed to us through Your holy sages.", + "And help us so that the books that have survived of the true Tzaddikim, a remnant of many, will spread out and emerge into the world, and their wellsprings will pour forth and perform their activity fully.", + "May the spirit of the Mashiach be drawn into the world. May it become a spirit of jealousy to purify the Jewish people from the filth of lustful desire.", + "May we and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, break and nullify this desire in ourselves entirely. May we experience no fantasies or evil thoughts, Heaven forbid.", + "Rather, may we be holy and restrained with great holiness and purity, truly in accordance with Your good will. May we need only engage in marital relations when it is necessary to maintain the world. Give us the power to uphold this mitzvah with truly great holiness and purity, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Sanctify Us with Your Commandments
Master of the world, compassionately fulfill my requests for the good. My mind is too limited to explain everything: all of my needs, my very many requests in body and soul.", + "In particular, in regard to rectifying the covenant, which is the foundation of everything, I have not yet begun to engage in the merest fraction of necessary explanation and elucidation. I cast myself down and plead with You exceedingly in regard to the past, present and future.", + "However, everything is revealed to You. Therefore, may it be in Your eyes as though I had specified them.", + "Help us and save us for the sake of Your Name, so that from now on we will be profoundly sanctified — in particular, with the sanctity of the covenant.", + "Sanctify us with Your commandments and establish our portion in Your Torah. Satisfy us with Your goodness, gladden our soul with Your salvation, and purify our heart to truly serve You.", + "“With Your right hand, set aside Your kind acts to save those who take refuge [in You] from those who rise up [against them].” “In justice, answer us with awesome wonders, God of our salvation, Stronghold of all the ends of the earth and the distant seas.”", + "Act for the sake of Your Name. Act for the sake of Your right hand. Act for the sake of Your holiness. Act for the sake of Your Torah. Hurry and quickly redeem us, and bring us our righteous Mashiach.", + "May the verse soon be realized, “He gives great salvation to His king, and He performs lovingkindness with His anointed one, David and his offspring, forever.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "A Perfect Joy Sees the Supernal Root of All Things
Usually, different people enjoy different aspects of a positive event. For instance, at a wedding, one person enjoys the food, another the music, and a third the marriage itself. But generally, no one is equally glad over all of the aspects.
Even if a person is happy because of all of these elements, his joy for them is not simultaneous, but consecutive.
However, a perfect joy is one in which a person is happy for all of the elements simultaneously.
This is only possible if one looks beyond all of these manifestations of goodness to the root from which they are derived. At that root, everything is one. Then his joy for all of the good elements is united and shines brilliantly. The more types of joy that blend together, the greater his joy, since the light increases as a result of the different types of joy shining on each other.
Joy in Body and Soul
“Let me know the way of life, the fullness of joys in Your Presence, the pleasantness in Your right hand forever.” “Cause me to hear joy and gladness; may the bones that You crushed, exult.” “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and may a generous spirit support me.”", + "Master of the world, You know how far I am from true joy in body and soul.", + "I have caused damage beyond measure, evaluation or calculation, so that the combinations of letters with which to describe my massive damage, blemishes and guilt have been exhausted.", + "My Father in Heaven, Living and Eternal God, what shall I say? How shall I speak? How can I justify myself? All of these matters make it hard for me to experience joy.", + "In Your compassion, You have recompensed me with many, immeasurable favors forever. You have given me the merit of being of the seed of Israel, and compassionately helped me perform a number of mitzvot and learn Your holy Torah — things that give every Jew hope to attain a good end.", + "Ultimately, You will certainly rectify us and do good for us in Your eternal goodness, and allow us to experience the pleasantness of Your radiance. For this, all of us — even the least of the least — must rejoice all of our days, forever.", + "Nevertheless, it is hard for me to rejoice over this with my body in such a way that the joy will be complete in my body and soul, because I know all of the blemishes and damage that I brought about.", + "Therefore, I come to You, Master of compassion, Lord of joy and gladness, to help me in Your wondrous ways and save me, so that I will truly attain complete joy in body and soul.", + "“You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.”", + "Although I am so far from You at present, and I have transgressed and blemished so much until now, “Your compassion is abundant, HaShem,” and You save with great effectiveness.", + "With Your awesome wonders, You can bring it about that even I will be truly joyful always, in body and soul.", + "My Father in Heaven, You know that I need to remove myself from sadness and depression to the ultimate degree. These have been my ruin, and because of them, I have come to what I have come to.", + "Have compassion on me, my compassionate Father. You Who are good and do good to all, You Who have mercy on the poor, You Who are filled with mercy and graciousness, You Who are filled with true and eternal deliverance and salvation — give me hope so that I will never be lost.", + "From now on may I always be truly joyful in body and soul.", + "Help me and save me so that I will always look at the ultimate purpose of creation. Give joy to my heart, so that I may be saved from every evil.", + "May I expel all evil thoughts, all evil fantasies, all confusions, all evil ideas, and all evil desires and traits.", + "May I expel, remove and nullify all of these by means of joy and gladness, which are the essential way in which a person strengthens himself against all confusion, obstacles and heaviness.", + "May I truly come close to You in joy and with a good heart, due to my having an abundance of everything.", + "Holy Joy
In Your compassion, help me so that I will always look at the supernal root of all joys and favors, the root where all joys are gathered and shine together.", + "In that way, may I truly rejoice with all of these favors and joys. May the joy in my heart then increase without end or limit.", + "Shine the light of holy joy so that it becomes a great and awesome light resulting from the combined brightness of all of these joys and favors. And by means of the multitude of illuminations as You shine all of the joys upon each other, may they illuminate and brighten each other.", + "Ultimately, may the light of holy joy shine and be bright and increase with an extremely great, pleasant and wondrous light, without end or limit.", + "As a result of that, may we truly return to You with great love and joy, in body and soul.", + "God Gives Us So Much
HaShem our God, You Who are filled with compassion, You know how much we, the Jewish people, Your holy nation, must always rejoice. In particular, how much I, who am so meager and lacking, need to rejoice for all of the favors that You have performed for me, Your servant.", + "You have given us the merit to be part of the Jewish people, Your holy nation. You chose us from all of the nations, elevated us above all of the tongues, sanctified us with Your commandments, brought us close to Your service, and associated Your great and holy Name with us.", + "You gave us a great deal of Torah and mitzvot in order to revive us, as on this day, to grant us merit forever. By making use of the great breadth of the Torah and holy mitzvot, every Jew, even the slightest of the slight, is always able to take hold of good points.", + "How much good You have performed for us! Had You done no more than give us one point of one mitzvah, it would have sufficed.", + "How much more is God’s goodness to us doubled and quadrupled. You have crowned us with the Torah and with many sweet mitzvot.", + "“Much have You done, HaShem my God, Your wonders and thoughts are for our sake. No one compares with You. I would tell and speak them, but they are too many to recount.” “How can I repay HaShem for all of His kindness to me?”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are the Joy of Israel, help me always feel this joy in my heart. May I be glad and rejoice in You, in Your true Tzaddikim, and in Your holy Torah.", + "May I emerge to freedom, from dimness to brightness. May I return from the depths of the sea in which I was trapped. May I emerge from them in peace and return to You in truth and with a full heart, from now and forever.", + "From this moment on, may I truly be in accordance with Your good will always. May I no longer do that which is evil in Your eyes and no longer return to foolishness. From now on may I abandon my evil ways and evil thoughts.", + "May I strengthen myself at every moment with boldness, gladness, happiness and joy. May the gladness of HaShem be my fortress, so that I may overcome all evil thoughts and all evil desires. At every moment, may I think only holy and pure thoughts always, without any mental distractions whatsoever.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, satiate me with Your goodness. Give me joy in Your salvation always, for I have trusted in Your great and awesome holy Name. I will be glad and rejoice in Your salvation.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "We Can Return to God Through the Godliness in Every Created Thing / A Person Who Cannot Recognize God in Every Creation Must Cling to the Tzaddikim / The World to Come Makes Our Existence Worthwhile
God created a universe filled with wonders. That is true of our physical world — how much more, then, the other cosmos.
He created all of this for the sake of the Jewish people.
As for the Jewish people, we were created for the ultimate goal of Heaven and earth: the world of souls, a world that is entirely Shabbat. In that world, people will understand God without any screens or obstacles. There will be complete unity, and, as our sages said, “Everyone will point with his finger [and say], “This is our God, in Whom we hoped” (Taanit 31a; Isaiah 25:9).
Everything created in this world contains that ultimate purpose. Every entity has a spiritual beginning and an ultimate purpose. The spiritual beginning marks the level from which it devolved until it turned into a physical entity. And it has an ultimate purpose for which sake it was created. The Jewish people can study, know and contemplate the details of creation — the form of the limbs and the structure of everything — and from that appreciate God’s greatness, and serve Him through that.
Every object has a connection to the purpose for which it was created. Through every object, we can reach God and serve Him to attain that purpose — the nexus where the object ends and touches upon the ultimate purpose.
Everyone must contemplate this, and thus know and recognize God’s greatness in everything: in every entity’s form and shape, number of limbs, structure, and so forth. We must serve God with that until we reach the ultimate purpose of that entity, which is the level of the Shabbat, the world of souls.
People who have expansive minds can do this. But how can lowly people such as ourselves, who are on the level of the feet, attain this knowledge?
The answer is that we must yearn deeply for a leader of the generation, a faithful shepherd comparable to Moses, who has the power to illuminate us so that we will reach the goal.
It is an extraordinary fact that the promulgation of this ultimate awareness depends on people in this low world. All souls must go through this world in order to attain the ultimate reality. Everything in this world is needed to attain that end.
We should yearn and beg God with many tears, asking Him to help us attain this awareness so that we may know Him through everything in this world.
In our present state, we do not have “beautiful faces” at all. Therefore, God must have compassion on us and send us a faithful shepherd who can illumine us with awareness so that we will serve Him properly and attain the ultimate goal.
We ask God to send us a king and leader, a faithful shepherd, to illumine us. This is related to the Hebrew month of Nisan, which marks the new year for kings. At that time, not only human but angelic, heavenly kings are appointed.
The six days of Creation, when God created everything, correspond to the beginning of things. And the seventh day, the Shabbat, is the culmination, the ultimate purpose.
The six days themselves are creations. They are like a circle around a central point, which is the Shabbat. Nevertheless, there are differences between these six, between that which was created first and that which was created on the sixth day, closer to the Shabbat.
In and of itself, our world is not enough. When our sages state that it would have been better had man not been created (Eruvin 13b), they are referring to this world, which has so much suffering. But in the context of the World to Come, it is better for man to have been created, because then he may attain the ultimate goal. And due to the fact that there is a World to Come, there is even something intrinsically valuable in this world as well, because, as our sages said, “One hour of repentance and good deeds in this world is better than the entire life of the World to Come” (Avot 4:17).
For the Seventh of Adar, the Hilula of Moses", + "Seeking a Leader Like Moses
“Shepherd of Israel, listen! You Who guide Joseph like sheep, You Who dwell between the cherubs, appear!”", + "Master of the world, King, Leader and Ruler, filled with compassion, You had great mercy on us and sent us a savior and teacher, a redeemer and holy man of Israel: Moses.", + "He brought us forth from dimness to brightness, from darkness to a great light. He gave us the Torah and illumined our eyes, and he taught us the truth of Your holy faithfulness.", + "With his intensely wondrous greatness, he was able to illumine the lowest of the low — as we are today — to inform everyone of Your greatness and might.", + "He opened the eyes of the blind. He illumined the eyes of all Israel, even those who are compared to the feet, so that they might delve in their minds to comprehend the true, ultimate meaning of every created entity in the world — to know and recognize You forever by means of every created entity, and to come close to You and truly cling to You.", + "Fortunate is the generation that had such a leader. Fortunate are the eyes that saw him. Fortunate are the ears that heard the words of the Living God from his holy and awesome mouth, when God’s Presence spoke from his throat.", + "“And now, HaShem our God, You are our Father.” Incline Your ear to our outcry. “Open Your eyes and see our desolation.” Have pity and compassion on us.", + "Guide us and teach us what we should do now, what we should accomplish now, to whom we should turn for help. “Tell me, you who love my soul, where do you graze, where do you lie down at noon?” Tell me, please, where we should go to seek a true leader like this.", + "In our present state of extreme lowliness and weakness, none of us have beautiful faces in the least. No one can help us but a genuine teacher and leader who is truly on the level of Moses.", + "He can illumine our holy awareness so that we will reach our true goal of knowing and recognizing You forever by means of all created beings in the world.", + "All of them were created only for this: so that a person will recognize You through them. That is the essential purpose of all created beings, collectively and individually.", + "How can we find such a leader? Where, oh where, is he? Where is the place of his glory? Where are the counsel and stratagems that will help us find him?", + "If Tzaddikim and leaders of Israel are indeed alive today, HaShem, give them a life filled with many days and years.", + "However, all of the recognized leaders, without exception, acknowledge and admit without shame that they lack this power that we have mentioned before You — the power of Moses — to illumine us with the awareness that every individual can attain his true purpose in this world by understanding all things in the world, which is the objective for which we were created.", + "What, then, shall we do? What shall we undertake? Who will stand up on our behalf? Woe! “How will Jacob rise, for he is small?”", + "Master of the entire world, You Who have compassion on the world, You who have compassion on the people, “Your nation, [whom] You guided like sheep by the hand of Moses and Aaron,” where is Your compassion for Israel, Your holy nation, at present? “With whom have You left the few sheep?” To whom have You abandoned us, we who are so weak and unworthy?", + "See our meager and desolate status. Our faces are blackened by our transgressions, and we are hunched over because of our sins.", + "To whom will we flee for help? “Have You indeed rejected Judah? Has Your soul despised Zion? Why have You struck us so that we have no remedy? We hope for peace but there is no goodness, and for a time of healing, but behold, there is terror.”", + "Have You abandoned Your nation, the Jewish people, Heaven forbid? Didn’t You promise us that even in our extreme descent into the depth of this exile in body and soul, as we are today, You will never abandon or abhor us?", + "As the verse states, “When they are in the land of their enemies, I will not despise them and I will not abhor them to destroy them, to break My covenant with them, for I am HaShem their God.”", + "“HaShem never said that He would eradicate the name of Israel from under the heavens.”", + "“For the sake of His great Name, HaShem will not forsake His nation; HaShem has sworn to make you His nation.”", + "“HaShem will not reject His nation, and He will not abandon his inheritance.”", + "You gave our forefathers many more such promises that You would help us and save us in every generation.", + "But now, where is Your compassion? Where are Your wonders? Why should “the congregation of HaShem be like a flock that has no shepherd”?", + "Have pity and mercy on us. Have pity and compassion on us. Grant us merit. Help us pray and plead with You a great deal regarding this, crying out and calling out with “a great and bitter shout,” and weeping before You every day regarding this with an abundance of tears.", + "Be gracious and answer us. Have mercy on us and give us a shepherd of Israel, a true leader, a compassionate leader like Moses, the faithful shepherd.", + "Such a leader can rectify us and truly bring us back to You. He can shine his attainments, his holy awareness, upon us, and open our mind’s eye with great holiness and purity.", + "May we, even we, attain the true, ultimate goal of all created beings in the world, which is to truly recognize You, come close to You and cling to You forever.", + "For the Holy Shabbat", + "A Day That is Entirely Shabbat
Help us and save us so that we will celebrate the Shabbat properly, with great joy and gladness and with wondrous closeness to You, in accordance with Your good will — until even as we are in this world, we will know and understand the purpose of the works of Heaven and earth.", + "May we truly know and recognize You by means of all things in the world, in accordance with Your will and in accordance with the will of those who truly fear You, until we will attain a day that is entirely Shabbat and tranquility, with eternal life.", + "HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, open our eyes so that we will see, understand and comprehend the ultimate truth, and know how to conduct ourselves at present, beseeching You until we find the true leader who will bring us in our lifetime to the true goal.", + "We have no one on whom to rely except You, our Father in Heaven. “We are the clay and You are our Maker. All of us are the work of Your hand.” “Your troops depend on You; You help the orphan.”", + "You alone know what is hidden in our heart, and how to help us at present in all areas — in particular, in this matter on which everything depends.", + "May we find the true leader, a person associated with Moses, who can bring us to our true and eternal purpose — quickly, in our lifetime.", + "May he help us in a way that is proper in Your eyes. We cast all of our burden upon You.", + "“I will constantly hope,” “until HaShem will gaze and look from Heaven” and return to us and have compassion on us like a father with his son. May You reconcile with us, return the crown to its original glory, and give us a shepherd in accordance with Your heart.", + "May the verse quickly be realized, “I will give you shepherds in accordance with My heart, and they will feed you with knowledge and understanding.”", + "Hurry, quickly redeem us and bring us our righteous Mashiach. May the verse swiftly be realized, “I will establish one shepherd over them who will shepherd them — namely, My servant David. He will shepherd them and be their shepherd. I, HaShem, will be their God, and My servant David will be a prince in their midst. I, HaShem, have spoken.”", + "“They will no longer contaminate themselves with their idols, with their detestable things and with all of their offenses. I will save them from all of their dwelling places where they transgressed. I will purify them. They will be My nation, and I will be their God. My servant David will be king over them. All of them will have one shepherd, and they will walk in My ordinances and observe My statutes and perform them.”", + "“HaShem, God of hosts, bring us back; shine Your face and we will be saved.”" + ], + [ + "When God Takes Pride in Us, He Grants Us Providence / When a Person Deserves God’s Pride, Whatever He Looks at Attains the Level of the Land of Israel / One Should be with the Tzaddik on Rosh HaShanah / A Person Who has Tasted the Land of Israel Can Know If Someone was with a Tzaddik on Rosh HaShanah
God’s pride in the souls of Israel creates a spiritual equivalent of tefilin for Him. That enters and blazes through His eyes and creates His providence, as it were.
When Jews are far from God, He cannot take pride in us, and the tefilin on His head and arm are damaged. Then God’s Presence cries out, “My head is heavy, My arm is heavy!” (Sanhedrin 46a).
But when a Jew comes close to God and he is joined by another Jew, and more and more people want to serve God and come close to Him, God’s pride in the Jewish people increases. That pride manifests itself as His tefilin and His providence. God’s providence is particularly intense and constant upon the Land of Israel. That providence makes the Land holy and gives its atmosphere the property of dispensing wisdom.
When a person sees God’s pride in the Jewish people, he attains a beautiful state of mind, which becomes his own set of spiritual tefilin. Such tefilin enter into him and break out through his eyes. Then his own eyes are on the level of the eyes of HaShem. As a result, whatever he looks at attains the level of the Land of Israel.
In order to see God’s pride, a person must see the true Tzaddik, a person who brings others to serve God. That Tzaddik himself constitutes God’s pride in His people, since it is through him that all of their closeness to God and His pride in them exist.
When Jews gather together with the Tzaddik to hear the word of HaShem — in particular, on Rosh HaShanah — God’s pride is exceptionally great. Then the loveliness of the true Tzaddik is increased, for he himself is God’s pride. Then whoever looks sincerely at him gains access to God’s pride and to the mindfulness associated with tefilin, and his eyes are on the level of the eyes of HaShem. Then whatever he looks at attains the level of the Land of Israel.
When someone else, someone who desires the Land of Israel — in particular, if he has already experienced the taste of the Land of Israel — meets an individual who was in the company of the true Tzaddik on Rosh HaShanah, he senses the taste of the Land of Israel, for that individual spreads the atmosphere of the Land of Israel.
The Land of Faith and Wisdom
“My eyes are always turned to HaShem, for He will extricate my feet from the net.” “I have lifted my eyes to You Who dwell in the heavens.”", + "“Behold, like the eyes of slaves turned to the hand of their master, like the eyes of the maidservant turned to the hand of her mistress, so are our eyes turned to HaShem our God until He will be gracious to us. Be gracious to us, HaShem. Be gracious to us, because we have suffered much contempt.”", + "My Father in Heaven, filled with compassion, vast in lovingkindness and doing much good to all, You have compassion on all of Your works — compassion on the earth and compassion on people.", + "Master of the entire world, You created Your world in accordance with Your good will for the sake of the Jewish people, Your nation, in order to take pride in them in every generation.", + "In Your great goodness, You chose the Jewish people, Your nation, from all nations, and the Holy Land from all lands as the inheritance of Your nation of Israel.", + "You know that the Land possesses the holy atmosphere that bestows wisdom. It is the place that is prepared for the holiness of the Jewish people, so that they may attain true wisdom there and recognize You with wondrous awareness and complete faith.", + "Master of the world, Lord of all the earth, God of all creatures, what shall I say? How shall I speak? You know the value of the Land of Israel and its infinite, endless holiness.", + "I am despicable and abhorrent. I have willfully sinned so much before You. I have blemished and damaged a very great deal.", + "As a result of the multitude of my acute and willful sins — in particular, as a result of all of the blemishes to the covenant that I have brought about from my beginning until this day — I have disordered my awareness and blemished my consciousness. Even the trace of an impression that remains of my consciousness is confused and murky.", + "Yet despite all that, this slight impression of my true awareness gazes at holiness from afar, peering through the cracks as it recalls the words of Your holy Torah that You graciously gave us in Your vast compassion, until I understand from a distance the extraordinary, dear holiness of the Land of Israel, beyond measure and evaluation.", + "As we have heard from the mouths of the true Tzaddikim and read in their holy books, all of a Jew’s holiness depends on the Land of Israel.", + "I have undergone many experiences from the beginning of my life until today. I have lived through many passages of cause and effect, chains of events whose purpose has been to bring me close to You and restore me to You in complete repentance.", + "But I still have not properly, completely repented. More than that, I have brought about a very great many blemishes at every moment.", + "And now, after all this, I do not know of any way — of any counsel or stratagem — to reach a house of refuge.", + "But my spirit peals within me. The voice of my Beloved still pulses within me, arousing me and urging me through His holy Torah to travel to the Land of Israel.", + "Perhaps I will return from my foolishness and blemished deeds. Perhaps I will begin to live a genuine life. Perhaps You will have pity. Perhaps You will have compassion.", + "You know the teeming multitude of immeasurable questions that I have regarding this. These constitute my principal obstacle, together with issues such as expenses, travel distance and many other challenges.", + "In truth, I admit to You Who examine the heart and the core of every person, that the basic barrier is in my mind. I have various doubts and confusions that cloud my mind and prevent me from strengthening and encouraging myself to prepare my way to travel to the Land of Israel.", + "In Your vast compassion, You hint to me at every moment to yearn to come to the Land of Israel, keeping me from growing stale and comfortable but inspiring me to yearn to go and reach the Land of Israel.", + "I know that Your compassion does not cease. Please allow me to get there in peace, and truly draw the holiness of the Land of Israel onto myself.", + "May I grow wise from now on and act intelligently. May I burn away the evil within myself, nullify my spirit of foolishness, and truly attain complete repentance.", + "This is all that my spirit yearns for. I have longed and pined so deeply to return to You.", + "You have revealed to us Your great compassion and mighty graciousness at every moment, and Your vast goodness in every generation. You hope and desire that the wicked person will make himself worthy.", + "You do not desire his death, but that he will repent and live. You wait for him until the day of his death. “You press a man down” until his spirit is crushed.", + "Master of the world, have compassion on me. I am like a mute dove. Have compassion on me, I who am so unaware, so despicable and abhorrent.", + "I am completely abhorrent (despicable and abhorrent) in my own eyes — not because I am humble, but because of the grimy, abhorrent nature of my evil deeds, my grievous sins and my innumerable blemishes.", + "Please, Unique Lord, compassionately fulfill my requests. May I reach the Land of Israel quickly. May I pass and leap over all sorts of obstacles. May I travel and arrive quickly, swiftly, in peace and without harm. And once there, may I generate holiness and purity so that I will come back to You and truly come close to You, and no longer return to my foolishness, from this moment and forever onward.", + "Master of the world, we rely on the merit of all of the Tzaddikim who revealed the holiness of the Land of Israel, and on the merit of all of the Tzaddikim and worthy people who came to the Land of Israel — after measureless and tiring obstacles, as You know — where they brought about what they brought about.", + "In their merit — in the merit of their holy Torah and in the merit of their good deeds — may I, lowly and reprehensible as I am, proceed and arrive in the Land of Israel quickly, swiftly and speedily.", + "My Father in Heaven, You recompense me with lovingkindness and many benefits at every moment. In Your compassion and lovingkindness, You have made it possible for me to pray to come to the Land of Israel.", + "Recompense me, Your servant, with more and more of Your kindness and favors. Increase Your wonders on my behalf and grant me undeserved kindness at every moment.", + "Teach me the way of Your true counsel. Guide me on the straight and true path, so that from now on I will abandon my evil ways and blemished thoughts.", + "May I connect myself to You from now on, and proceed and soon arrive in the Land of Israel — this year. May I be remade entirely so that I will begin anew in serving You, HaShem, as though I had been born today.", + "Pride in the Tzaddikim
Master of the world, please recall the pride and delight that You have received from all of the Tzaddikim in every generation, and from the totality of the Jewish people, Your holy nation.", + "Recall all of the pride and delight that You still receive from the totality of the Jewish people, Your nation, as well as from the Tzaddikim in this generation and their truly worthy followers, from which all of the holiness of the Land of Israel is drawn.", + "May I, too, possess a portion of this pride. May I return to You and truly do Your will, until Your Presence will take pride in me always, at every moment.", + "In Your vast compassion, You chose us from all of the nations. You take pride in us in every generation. This pride rises as a crown and as a diadem upon Your head, like tefilin. The holiness of the Land of Israel is drawn from that pride.", + "Because pride radiates from the eyes, the eyes of Your providence gaze upon the Land of Israel and, from that, the Land receives its great holiness.", + "Because Your holy eyes, which are the eyes of wisdom and knowledge, are drawn to the Land, its atmosphere bestows wisdom.", + "As the verse states, “It is a land that HaShem your God seeks; the eyes of HaShem your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year until the end of the year.”", + "Therefore, have compassion on me and on the entire Jewish people. May the holiness of the Land of Israel be revealed to us, until we will truly yearn, long and pine for it always. May we pray a great deal on this theme to You Who are filled with compassion, until we will come to the Land of Israel quickly, swiftly and speedily.", + "For Rosh HaShanah
Gathering with the Tzaddikim on Rosh HaShanah
And in Your vast compassion and mighty lovingkindness, help us travel every year to the true Tzaddikim for Rosh HaShanah.", + "May I be counted among the people of Your nation of Israel who are worthy and wholehearted, and who gather to be together with the true Tzaddikim on Rosh HaShanah.", + "You alone know the value of the gathering of Your nation, the Jewish people, on Rosh HaShanah together with the true Tzaddikim.", + "You alone know how much pride and great, awesome delight You receive every Rosh HaShanah from the holy gathering of Your nation, the Jewish people, together with the true Tzaddikim.", + "In Your multitudinous compassion and mighty lovingkindness, may we be included in this pride and these delights. May no obstacle obstruct us, no hindrance hinder us, and no barrier bar us.", + "May we always, every year, come together with the holy and awesome gathering of the worthy members of Your nation, the Jewish people, who join together with the true Tzaddikim every Rosh HaShanah.", + "As a result of this, may You always take pride in us and always draw onto us the holiness of the Land of Israel.", + "Help us look at the beautiful loveliness of the glory of the face of the true Tzaddikim, who are the totality of loveliness.", + "These Tzaddikim are composed of all of the pride and delights of the totality of the Jewish people, which You receive through these Tzaddikim as a result of their acting always to bring the Jewish people close to You.", + "In Your vast compassion, enable me to truly look at their faces always — in particular, during the holy days of Rosh HaShanah, which is the principal time of that pride, when their faces shine brightly with the light of the totality of the pride and delight of the entire holy gathering that converges to be with them.", + "Please, HaShem, in Your vast compassion, enable us to truly look at the pride of the glory of their holy and awesome faces, so that as a result, we will receive and draw onto ourselves a wondrous illumination from this pride.", + "May the holiness of the holy tefilin always be drawn onto us, and their beautiful holiness blaze from our eyes.", + "May every place that we look and gaze at be sanctified with the sanctity of the Land of Israel.", + "Then whoever has experienced the quality of the holy Land of Israel will feel its holiness when he meets us. He will recognize us, knowing and realizing that we have been in the company of the true Tzaddikim on Rosh HaShanah.", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on the outcry of Your Presence in this world — which, because of our evil deeds, calls out with a bitter outcry, “My head is heavy, My arm is heavy!”", + "Who can bear the sound of her bitter outcry? You alone know the anguish of this terrible and bitter outcry.", + "Have compassion! Have compassion! From this moment onward, guard me and rescue me from engaging in evil deeds and indulging in evil thoughts. In the merit and power of the true Tzaddikim, help me truly return to You.", + "May Your Presence take pride in us from this point onward, receiving great delight and much pride from every one of us at every moment.", + "Help us. Enable us to repent completely and to swiftly rectify all that we have blemished before You with our eyes, from our youth until this day.", + "We have willfully sinned in this regard a great deal, gazing with our eyes beyond the boundary of holiness. As a result, we have committed many terrible transgressions and sins, and we have incurred many blemishes. We have done that which is evil in Your eyes.", + "Woe to us, for we transgressed. We caused blemishes with our holy eyes that come from Your eyes, HaShem, with which people can look at Your pride, HaShem, and at the Tzaddikim, and draw the holiness of the Land of Israel onto every place they look at.", + "In our great foolishness, we took our holy and awesome eyes and used them to look at what we looked at, until we came to what we came to, for our many sins.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, teach us how to rectify all of this. Help us and save us so that we will beseech You, so that we will search for and find true Tzaddikim who are connected to the root of our souls, and always travel to them.", + "In particular, on the holy Rosh HaShanah, which is the principal time of the holy gathering, may we be counted among the totality of Your worthy nation of Israel who gather with the Tzaddikim. As a result, may we truly return to You in complete repentance.", + "May we look at their holy faces and, as a result, rectify all of the blemishes that we incurred with our eyes from our youth until this day. Draw onto us the light of the holy pride that is incorporated into their holy faces.", + "As a result, may we draw the holiness of the Land of Israel onto every place that we look at, until all of the places where Jews live will be sanctified with the holiness of the Land of Israel.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. In Your great compassion, have pity on us.", + "May our hearts truly be aroused to turn to You. May we clearly feel and know the awesome sweetness of the holy and wondrous taste of the Land of Israel.", + "From now on may we yearn, long, be fervent and passionate about the Land of Israel. May we engage in a great deal of prayer, and intensify our search for Your compassion.", + "As a result of our impassioned pleas to You, may we come quickly to the Land of Israel in peace and without harm.", + "God of our salvation, help us for the sake of Your Name, because our eyes are raised to You alone. Compassionately fulfill our requests for the good. Help us quickly attain all that we have requested of You.", + "Be gracious to us and answer us. Hear our prayer, because You compassionately hear the prayer of every mouth of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "A Person’s Greatest Obstacles are Those of His Mind / The Obstacles Contain God Himself
Every Jew serves God with devotion and self-sacrifice every day of his life, and even at every moment. For instance, a person’s money is related to his soul, in that he dedicates so much effort and risks so much danger to earn it. Yet, having done so, he surrenders it to God when he gives charity. That act is analogous to giving up his soul.
Prayer, too, is an act of self-sacrifice, because a person must invest so much effort in his struggle with distracting thoughts, implementing different stratagems so that he will be able to concentrate.
Every person thinks that his obstacles to serving God — such as traveling to a true Tzaddik — are greater than anyone else’s. And he thinks that they are overwhelming. But a person only has obstacles that he can deal with. In fact, there are no obstacles at all, because the obstacles themselves contain God.
A person’s greatest obstacle is that generated by his own mind, which is divided from God or from the Tzaddik.
For instance, he may overcome the practical obstacles that had kept him from traveling to the true Tzaddik. But if his mind remains unpersuaded and he entertains doubts and suspicions about the Tzaddik, that keeps him away from the Tzaddik more than anything else could.
In prayer as well a person has to overcome a number of obstacles before he can engage in the act of prayer. But if his heart is wrestling with God, if he is filled with questions and doubts about God, that is the greatest obstacle to prayer.
In such a situation, a person must cry out to his Father in Heaven from the depths of his heart. Then God listens to his voice, and that is his salvation.
The Baal Shem Tov tells of a king who had a great treasury that he surrounded with a series of concentric walls whose existence was an illusion. A few people who came to gain the treasure turned back immediately. Some broke through one wall but couldn’t breach the second. Some broke more walls but couldn’t break them all. Then the king’s son came and said, “I know that all of these walls are an illusion, that there is no wall at all.” He walked forward confidently and passed through all of them.
All of a person’s obstacles, distractions and enticements are walls around the treasury of the fear of Heaven. They are really nothing. The principal factor in overcoming them is a strong heart. Then there are no obstacles, such as concerns about money or the objections raised by one’s wife, children, parents or in-laws. All of these obstacles are nullified before a person whose heart is strong for God, just as the might of the greatest warrior is due only to his eagerness to leap into battle.
Passing by and Leaping over All Obstacles
“My soul yearns to exhaustion for the courtyards of HaShem. My heart and flesh sing to the God of my life.”", + "“My flesh and heart have all but expired, Rock of my heart. My portion is God forever.”", + "“My spirit thirsts for God, for the Living God. When will I come and see the face of God?”", + "“I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, if you find my beloved, what should you tell him? That I am lovesick.” “I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, why should you awaken and why should you arouse love before it is ripe?”", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who love Your nation, the Jewish people, You are “great in counsel and mighty in deed.” You know the myriad obstacles that keep us from the path of life.", + "These obstacles stand against every one of us like walls of iron, like rushing rivers and streams of fire. They surround us, they encompass us all around. “They surrounded me like water the entire day; they have all encircled me.”", + "Because of the multitude of these obstacles, we have been distanced from You tremendously. But in Your vast compassion, You have informed us that You are hidden in the obstacles themselves, due to Your great love for all of the children of Israel, Your nation.", + "Whoever possesses awareness can enter into the darkness of the cloud and mist — that is, into the very core of the obstacles — and find You there, HaShem, because You, HaShem, are concealed and hidden in the obstacles themselves.", + "But what shall I do? My lack of awareness is so great that I stand far away from You for so long, unable to overcome the many obstacles that stand in my way like walls and draw close to You.", + "In truth, I know to some degree and believe with complete faith that I can break and nullify these obstacles — because, in truth, they are not obstacles at all.", + "Nevertheless, they grow in strength against me and spread out before me, so that I do not know how to break them and nullify them. Therefore, I come to You Who are filled with compassion, Who grant awareness to every human being, to guide me, teach me and give me awareness, understanding, wisdom, true intelligence and true counsel at every moment.", + "May I truly come close to You from where I am now. May I pass by and leap over all of the obstacles that are spread out before me.", + "May I truly know and understand that all of these obstacles are but an illusion, a mirage, and that when a person bolsters his heart and strengthens himself against them by summoning great yearning and a powerful desire for You, HaShem, they are completely nullified before him.", + "May I nullify and break all obstacles in the world — whether those caused by others, or by the desires of my own coarse body, or any other type of obstacle — that hold a person back from the way of holiness and truth.", + "As a result of Your placing power and might in my heart to conquer my evil inclination and strengthen my heart with tremendous encouragement to withstand these obstacles, may I break, nullify and remove them all entirely. May I not be afraid of them at all. May I be victorious in the war and unharmed.", + "Overcoming Obstacles of the Mind
Have compassion on me. Save me and rescue me from the obstacles of my mind — all of the doubts and confusions in my mind that cause me to question the Tzaddikim and worthy people of the generation, or to question Your traits, Heaven forbid.", + "The obstacles of the mind are greater than any other obstacle in the world. When a person’s mind and heart possess a strong, complete faith in You, HaShem, and in the true Tzaddikim, no obstacle can stop him.", + "But when, Heaven forbid, one’s mind and heart are divided from You, HaShem, and from the Tzaddikim, and questions about them arise in his heart, these obstacles are more overwhelming than all others.", + "Therefore, I have come to cry out and call out to You, because my only hope to be saved from these questions is to call out to You. “To You, HaShem, I call, and to HaShem, I plead.” “HaShem, hear my voice when I call out; be gracious to me and answer me.”", + "Help me, save me, rescue me. Extricate me and deliver me from every type of question, doubt, confusion and obstacle in my mind, so that I will pay them no heed, and they will no longer arise and enter my heart, mind and consciousness at all.", + "May I always possess knowledge and understanding together with complete, robust and proper faith, without any doubt or confusion, and may I never go the least bit astray.", + "Relying on God Alone
May I strengthen myself to overcome the obstacles and physical barriers erected by other human beings, or those created by the desires of my own body. May I empower myself and grow stronger to withstand them all.", + "May I truly enter into Your ways, HaShem. May I come close to You, to the Tzaddikim, and to truly worthy people. May I truly serve You with fear and love, turning away from evil and doing good. May I truly begin and complete all holy matters in accordance with Your will — quickly, swiftly and speedily.", + "Should any questions or doubts about the truth enter my heart, Heaven forbid, have compassion on me. May I immediately cry out and call out to You with a strong voice from the depths of my heart. And may You, in Your vast compassion, answer me immediately.", + "I cry out, “Here I am!” For I have no one on whom to rely to withstand all obstacles — in particular, the obstacles in my mind — except You, my Father in Heaven.", + "I rely on You alone. I trust in Your great lovingkindness: that You will guide me and teach me how to prevail, how to enter the essence of the obstacles in order to come close to You — specifically, by means of those obstacles themselves.", + "HaShem, You Yourself are hidden in the obstacles. There is no end to Your greatness, and Your thoughts are extremely deep. “You are elevated forever, HaShem.”", + "All that You make a person experience — even that which appears to consist of obstacles and barriers that stand in the way of holiness — is for the good and for wondrous salvation.", + "Have compassion on us. Teach us, guide us, strengthen us and fortify us. Send me and all Jews power and might in our heart from Heaven, so that from now on I will no longer fear anything in the world.", + "Instead, at every moment may I be like a warrior ready for battle, not fearing any worldly desire, thought or confusion, and not fearing anyone or anything in the world.", + "May I be rescued and delivered from everything that I need to be rescued and delivered from. May I no longer return to my foolishness. May I not incur any blemishes at all in thought, speech or deed, in eyesight or in any of the other senses.", + "Strengthen me and support me so that I can leap over all of the barriers and break and nullify them all, and truly enter into holiness. From now on may I begin to truly come close to You, in accordance with Your good will.", + "My Father in Heaven, have compassion on me. Fulfill my requests with compassion, because my only hope is in prayer and beseeching You, and in the great power of the true Tzaddikim. Treat me in the way that is good in Your eyes.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Do not reject or abandon me. You Who are filled with compassion, help me, save me. “Bring about salvations in the midst of the earth.” Help me follow Your laws. May I guard Your commandments from now and forever.", + "Answer us, HaShem, for we are in great difficulty in the midst of this bitter exile — which is principally the exile of the soul. The desires of the body, confused consciousness, and the multitude of obstacles created by other people have all multiplied and risen to our necks, threatening to keep us from the way of life, Heaven forbid.", + "Graciously grant us wisdom, understanding and true awareness so that we will withstand all of these and pay them no mind, but truly come close to holiness.", + "May we always find You in the midst of the multiplying obstacles, because You are hidden and concealed in them in Your vast compassion and great love for us, Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "Help us always find You within the concealments and obstacles themselves. “Do not hide Your face from me on my day of trouble; incline Your ear to me; on the day that I call, quickly answer me.” “Approach my soul, redeem it against my enemies, deliver me.”", + "“And now my head will be raised over my enemies around me, and in His tent I will offer sacrifices with joyous song. I will sing and chant praises to HaShem. HaShem, hear my voice when I call out; be gracious to me and answer me.”", + "“Turn to me and be gracious to me. Grant Your might to Your servant; save the son of Your maidservant. Send me a sign for the good; let my enemies see it and be ashamed, for You, HaShem, help me and console me.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "A Person Has the Power to Direct His Thoughts as He Wishes / One Can Always Bring His Mind Back to the Right Path
A person has the power to direct his thoughts as he wishes.
For instance, since a person cannot have two thoughts at the same time, to get rid of a troublesome thought, he should focus on another thought.
Even if a person’s thoughts are out of control, he can force his mind back to the right path. His mind may be compared to a horse that has run off the road. He can grab it by the reins and pull it back against its will to where it belongs.
Sanctifying Our Thoughts
You Who think thoughts so that no one will be cast aside from You, have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Help me sanctify and purify my thoughts from this moment on. May I no longer experience any extraneous, foreign thoughts at all, and may I certainly never indulge in any evil fantasies, Heaven forbid.", + "Controlling Our Thoughts
In Your holy Torah, You revealed to us that thought is in a person’s hands and that he can direct it as he wishes. Moreover, it is completely impossible for two thoughts to exist at the same time.", + "I have been striving so long to stop my thoughts, to grasp them and seize them so that they will not turn aside from the straight path, Heaven forbid — but I have not yet succeeded.", + "And not only have I not succeeded in properly sanctifying my thoughts, but to the contrary, they have caused a great deal of damage.", + "Every day I experience a profusion of evil thoughts and fantasies. Over the days and years, I have wasted hours upon hours in a profusion of evil and foreign thoughts and ideas, and in doing so, I have tremendously unsettled and befouled my mind.", + "This has created all of my flaws and impediments, all of my transgressions, sins and offenses that I have committed before You from my beginning until this day.", + "I have floundered in all of these only because I was not careful to seize my thoughts and guard them properly. Only because of that did I come to what I came and floundered as I floundered — whether inadvertently or purposefully, whether against my will or intentionally.", + "Therefore, I have come to You Who are filled with compassion, to assist me with Your great salvation. From now on may I guard my thoughts exceptionally well, with every sort of exemplary care.", + "From now on may I be sure not to allow my thoughts to stray beyond the border in the least, Heaven forbid — not even by a hairsbreadth. Even within the realm of holiness, may I guard my thoughts from becoming disoriented.", + "Whenever and wherever I note any confusion of mind, may I quickly flee and take refuge — and, how much more, may my thoughts never stray beyond the boundary of holiness for even the slightest moment, Heaven forbid.", + "Even if sometimes, Heaven forbid, because of some inattention on my part, my thoughts should suddenly swell and stray outside — since I am so used to that from the past — always help me and remind me instantly, without any hesitation or mental indulgence at all, to immediately grasp my thoughts and bring them back to the straight path, back in from the outside, bringing them immediately from evil to good, from the mundane to the holy.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, Master of the world! Remember, have compassion and save me quickly! I have yearned for all of this so powerfully for so long, yet I have not yet attained it.", + "But I truly know and believe that the choice is mine, and that I can grasp my thoughts and at every instant turn them the right way. I am so used to letting my thoughts go where they may that this habit has become second nature, and it seems to me that I cannot escape it, Heaven forbid.", + "But that is not the case, because I always have free will. I can always grasp my thoughts at every moment and carefully guard them well from outside thoughts and always turn them to holiness.", + "Therefore, I have come to spread my hands out to You, so You will strengthen me and sustain me. In Your compassion, help me truly sanctify and purify my thoughts from now on.", + "Help me, Master of salvation, in the merit and power of the great, true Tzaddikim, whose holiness of thought You alone know. You alone know the place to which they rose in their exceedingly holy and awesome thoughts.", + "I have come to You aided by the power of the ascent of such holy thoughts — because their power and merit are sufficient to shield me as well — to extricate my thoughts and mind from all of the places into which they fell and were scattered and dispersed, and raise me from every type of evil habit to which I have grown accustomed.", + "Purify me of every type of uncleanness and pollution that has taken hold of me, Heaven forbid, as a result of the blemish of evil and confused thoughts in which I have so thoroughly engaged.", + "Sanctify me and purify me with every sort of holiness, each of which depends on the holiness of thought.", + "The holiness of thought of the Tzaddikim is greater than anything else. It has the power to descend into all of the places in which I fell as a result of the dispersal of my consciousness and thoughts beyond the boundary of holiness, and to raise me from evil to good.", + "Always teach me how to extricate my thoughts — beginning now — from straying outside, Heaven forbid, and how to purify and sanctify my thoughts with every sort of holiness.", + "Regarding this alone I have stood firm to pray to You and hope in Your salvation, so that that from now on I will begin to strengthen myself to sanctify my thoughts.", + "Help me from Heaven to begin this process and bring it to completion, until I truly attain holiness of thought, in accordance with Your good will. May my thoughts cling to You, to Your holy Torah, and to Your true Tzaddikim from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Time Exists Only Because We Lack Understanding / To the Highest Intellect, Time Does Not Exist / On the Highest Level, Spatiality Does Not Exist
God transcends time.
Time exists only because we lack understanding — that is, our intellect is so small. This may be illustrated by dreaming. When a person dreams, he possesses only the power of imagination and lacks that of intellect. Thus, a quarter-hour can seem to him like seventy years. Conversely, the more expansive a person’s intellect, the smaller time is.
Thus, to an intellect that transcends ours, that which we consider to be seventy years is no more than a quarter-hour. And so does there exist intellect upon intellect, until one reaches an intellect so elevated that it does not consider time to be anything at all.
We see this exemplified by the Mashiach. He has existed since the beginning of Creation, during which time he has suffered a great deal. Yet when the messianic era will begin, God will tell him, “Today I brought you into being” (Psalms 2:7). At that time, the Mashiach’s mind will be so vast that all of the time that had passed since Creation will literally be as nothing to him — as though he had been born today.
The same idea applies to spatiality. To a strong person, space is relatively small, as he can traverse a large expanse quickly; while for a weak person, space is considered large, as it takes him a long time to traverse it. The greater the strength, the more space contracts for him.
Similarly, the higher one rises in the upper realms, the less reality does spatiality possess — until on the highest level, it does not exist at all.
Time is Nothing
“I must proclaim: HaShem has told me, ‘You are My son. Today I brought You into being.’”", + "Master of the world, You Who live and exist forever and ever, You have remained unchanging from before You created the world and after You created it.", + "Because You transcend all time, that which was and that which will be does not even constitute the blink of an eye for You.", + "In Your vast compassion, give me the awareness and true, perfected consciousness to emerge from beneath time and know, understand and realize that all of time is nothing.", + "“It is all vanity,” and our days are like a passing shadow. In truth, there is no time at all for a person who possesses true awareness and mindfulness.", + "All of time results from the absence of consciousness. With Your awesome wonders, You remove people’s awareness so that time will exist — all for the sake of their free will. But in truth, there is no time at all in true consciousness.", + "The Tzaddikim Who Transcend Time
Help us truly attach ourselves to and be bound to the true Tzaddikim, who succeeded with their perfected consciousness to be totally subsumed into the level of existence that transcends time. They emerged from time entirely and were completely saved from all of the evil deeds performed below the sun and within time.", + "Help us follow in their footsteps, walk upon their pathways, and keep their advice not to consider anything that is below time, where all lusts and evil traits exist. May the casualties of time not bewilder me at all.", + "Instead, every day and at every moment, may we remind ourselves of the eradication of time: that, in truth, time is null and nonexistent.", + "At every moment may we connect ourselves to the level that transcends time — where all lusts, evil traits and perplexities, all of which come from the circumstances of time, cease to exist.", + "Emerging from Terrible Exile
Master of the world, Master of the world, You Who are Primal, the first and the last — You taught us these elevated matters, these awesome glimmerings, from a distance.", + "From afar, You indicated the ways of Your awesome wonders to us in order to give us life as on this day; to restore our souls in the depth of the bitterness of this long exile; to remind us of Your tremendous awesomeness; to strengthen us, bolster us and console us in all of our troubles.", + "We have borne evil sufferings without number from the day of the destruction of the Temple until now, so that it is almost the case that “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "Our exile has been so terribly long. All of the final signposts have passed, and no one knows how much longer it will be until the wondrous end arrives. Many of the people of Your nation have stumbled and fallen because of that, because of the length of this bitter exile.", + "But You plan from a distance to bring us to a good conclusion with awesome and wondrous favors that never existed before, and there is hope for our end.", + "Therefore, You indicated to us from afar, and You have informed us now as well, of the wondrous light of the level that transcends time.", + "May we may know and believe that the entire length of time of all of the exiles and sufferings that the Jewish people have endured from the day of their exiles as a nation — and everything that every individual has undergone — is considered as nothing.", + "When our righteous Mashiach will reveal perfect awareness, may all that time be entirely forgotten and nullified. May he come quickly and in our days, so that we will attain the awareness of the level that transcends time.", + "Have compassion on us now as well. Shine the light of this holy awareness — which is the light of the Mashiach — onto us so that we will subdue and nullify all of our lusts and evil traits by always recalling the nullification of time.", + "Time rushes by, gliding and soaring by swiftly. It does not hesitate or pause even for a moment. And it cannot be grasped — because, in truth, there is no such thing as time at all.", + "In Your great mercy, rescue us from the misadventures of time. May we not abandon the world that exists forever for this temporary world, Heaven forbid.", + "Grant us awareness and true mindfulness so that we will understand and experience the nullification of time. May the appearance of time not fool us at all.", + "May we serve You anew every day and at every moment. May everything that we have undergone until then not becloud us at all.", + "At all times may we truly sanctify ourselves. May we connect ourselves and bring all of time to the level that transcends time, until we will emerge from below time and space and come to a level that transcends time and space.", + "May this be in accordance with Your will and the will of Your true Tzaddikim who truly attained this in full.", + "“Return us to You, HaShem, and we will return; renew our days as of old.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "The Four Letters of God’s Name Correspond to the Eye / The Power of Sight is a Light That Corresponds to the Shabbat / The Tzaddik Also Corresponds to Sight / When the Tzaddik’s Beauty is Revealed, People’s Eyes are Opened / A Person Who Comes to a Tzaddik Can Analyze His Own Character Traits / The Light of the Shabbat Shines into the Temple / The Bright Lights of Spirituality Overcome the Fiery Lights that Can be Destructive / Weeping Removes the Light of a Person’s Eyes / When an Unworthy Person Gains Fame as a Leader, the Fiery Lights Can Cause Fires / We Must Rise at Midnight to Mourn over the Destruction of the Temple
“HaShem is One and His Name is One” (Zekhariah 14:9). God’s Name is a Simple Oneness.
The four letters of God’s Name1That is, Y-H-V-H. may be conceptualized as the sight provided by the eye, which can be seen as having four components: three colors (cornea, rim of the iris, and iris) and the black pupil. Thus, the power of sight is drawn from God’s Name.
That power of sight is a bright light that corresponds to the Shabbat. The Hebrew word ShaBbaT can be remade as the phrase Shin BaT. 2That is, ShaBbaT (שבת) can be spelled Shin BaT (ש-בת). The letter Shin has three heads (i.e., legs) corresponding to the (ש) three colors of the eye. The bat is short for bat ayin, “pupil of the eye” (i.e., the base of the shin).
The sight of the eye corresponds to a single primal element from which descend the four principal elements with which this world was created.
A true Tzaddik corresponds to that primal element. Such a Tzaddik is the beauty of the world. When his beauty is revealed, people’s eyes are opened.
After that primal element develops into the four basic elements, they go on to develop into a person’s traits. Thus, when a person comes close to such a Tzaddik, he is able to examine his traits because they are drawn from the four elements, which in turn are drawn from the primal element: that Tzaddik.
God’s Name is clothed and partnered in the name of the true Tzaddik. Thus, when the Tzaddik’s name is expanded, God’s Name is expanded.
When such a Tzaddik is revealed and a person bonds with his beauty, the person’s eyes are opened. Then he can evaluate his traits and he can see the greatness of God.
Therefore, the Tzaddikim are called the “eyes of the community,” for through them, people’s eyes are opened. *
The Torah starts with the word Bereishit (In the beginning) and ends with “in the eyes of all Israel.”
The letters of BeReiShYT (בראשית) may be rearranged to form the phrase ROSh BaYiTראש בית) head of the house). Bereishit is the landlord, the Tzaddik, the beauty of the world. Through him, the eyes of all Israel are opened.
The Shabbat is the power of sight that illuminates the Temple. The Shabbat shines its colors — the colors of higher consciousness — into the Temple. The eye itself corresponds to the Temple.
In the phrase rosh bayit (head of the house), rosh (head) corresponds to consciousness and bayit (house) is the Temple. *
There are two types of light: “bright lights,” which are beneficial, and “fiery lights,” which represent the destruction of the Temple. When the power of the bright lights increases, the fiery lights are subdued, and vice versa. *
Weeping removes the light of a person’s eyes, like the sun setting in the west.
At that time, “Rachel weeps for her children” (Jeremiah 31:14). “Rachel” represents the Divine Presence. The Divine Presence weeps, as it were, for the suffering of the Jewish people scattered among the gentiles. And the Divine Presence weeps for the destruction of the Temple at the Western Wall.
When there is weeping, there are no bright lights. The beauty of the world is concealed.
When a person who does not possess the Name of God gains fame, God’s Name is, as it were, diminished. Then unclean names come into the world. The bright lights — the light of the eyes drawn from the Name of God — are distanced and subdued. Then the fiery lights grow stronger, and that causes fires.
Our Temple was destroyed in fire. Now that God looks forward to returning to us and rebuilding our Temple, we should not delay its building but assist it.
To that end, a person must rise at midnight and mourn over the destruction of the Temple. Perhaps in a previous incarnation, he caused it to be destroyed. Even if not, he might be delaying its rebuilding now, which is also considered as though he caused its destruction. So a person must be careful to rise at midnight and mourn for the Temple. When he does so, God turns the “ashes” from the fiery lights into “beauty.”3In Hebrew, the letters of the word AiPheR (אפר, ashes) are rearranged to form the word Pe’ER (פאר, beauty).
For the Three Weeks
Lamenting the Absence of the Tzaddikim
“A voice of lamentation, of bitter weeping, is heard on high. Rachel weeps for her children; she refuses to be consoled for her children, because they are no more.”", + "“For these I weep; my eye, my eye sheds tears, because the consoler who restores my spirit is far from me. My children are desolate, because the enemy has prevailed.”", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, teach me how to compose bitter lamentations over the magnitude of our broken state, which has come as a result of our heart straying.", + "The delight of our eyes, the elevation of our strength, the crown of our heads, our splendor, our radiance, our beauty, our life, the length of our days, the root of our souls and our spirits — all have been taken away from us.", + "This refers to our masters, our teachers and rabbis. They are our light, our greatness, our holiness, our hope, our purpose, our consolation and our joy, our Torah, our prayer.", + "They have gone to their rest and left us to our grief. Woe, what has become of us? What can we say? How shall we speak?", + "Who will compose bitter, doubly-bitter lamentations that are fitting for us to lament and weep because of the bitter brokenness that affects each Jew and all worlds from beginning to end? Woe! Woe! Woe!", + "Master of the world, You know that human hands lack the power to compose proper lamentations over the death of the Tzaddikim who passed away in our generations because of our sins.", + "I weep over this, which affects me and the entire Jewish people. This is not a lament for the holy Tzaddikim themselves who passed away and rose very high, because they are ennobled and beautified in the upper worlds, and stand and serve in the heights. Fortunate are they and fortunate is their portion.", + "But on us, on us, this orphaned and poor generation, it is a very great pity, and all those who are ill grow increasingly ill.", + "“Woe to us, for we have been plundered.” HaShem, You have overcome us. Our hands have grown weak. All knees have collapsed and every heart melted like water on the day that the sun set at noon. Our heart went astray, horrors terrified us, pangs seized us like those of a woman crying out in childbirth.", + "Our Father in Heaven, our compassionate Father, “HaShem God Who is true,” where shall we go? Where shall we turn for help? Who will assist us? Who will stand up for us? Where has our Beloved gone? We will search for Him together.", + "Today our speech is bitter, our hands heavy from our sighs. “Who will make our head water and our eye a source of tears? Then we would weep day and night” because we are so broken. “Regarding this, our heart has been ill. Our eyes have grown dim for these things.”", + "Master of the world, compassionate, true Father, You know that our lives depend entirely on the Tzaddikim, our holy rabbis, may their memory be for a blessing.", + "We need to constantly speak with them and constantly receive new, holy words from them, and constantly see them.", + "And now, what shall we do? What will we do, we who are of such little worth, like vines on a wall? What will we do? How will we act?", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, only You know the bitterness of my spirit because of all of this. Due to my many sins, I cannot express my speech clearly to You Who are filled with compassion.", + "Master of the world, what has past is past. Now teach me and show me how to call out, cry and beg so that even now I will draw their mighty holiness onto myself.", + "Maintaining a Connection with the Tzaddikim
May I do so by means of the holy impression that they left behind in their holy books and precious students.", + "Now they are more accessible to the world. As it is written in the Zohar and other holy books, the soul attains its essential perfection when, even as it rises high, it also remains extremely low.", + "Such a soul can arouse, awaken and revive all souls — even those lying in the lowest Sheol and lower, arousing them and reviving them so that they will never give up in any way.", + "Master of the world, have mercy and compassion on the tears and weeping of Rachel our mother, who represents the Divine Presence and the Congregation of Israel, crying with a profusion of tears over the magnitude of our sorrow and the troubles of our soul.", + "“Rachel weeps for her children” who were exiled from their Father’s table and left their land. “She weeps at night and her tear is upon her cheek; she has no comforter among all of her friends.”", + "All of her friends — who are the Tzaddikim in every generation — died for our many sins, leaving us alone like a mast at the top of a mountain and a banner upon a hill. “We have become orphans without a father; our mothers are like widows,” with no one to console us.", + "Master of the world, who will have mercy on us? Who will have pity on us and nod graciously to us? Who will turn aside to inquire about our well-being? Who will erect a boundary and who will stand in the breach? Who will repair the roads and who will straighten the highways? Who will rectify our souls?", + "Who will bring us back to You in perfect repentance? Who will arouse us from our sleep to truly return to You?", + "Holy Lights
Woe! What has become of us in these generations? We were given such wondrous and awesome lights, such pure, polished, clean lights.", + "Words in every combination of letters are exhausted in attempting to express the praise, greatness, might, height, elevation and glory of these lights.", + "How many chains of events did You bring about and how many worlds were overturned for their sake! How many miracles and wonders without measure or scope did You perform to bring the world such lights, such holy Tzaddikim, such masters of the way, such people who taught awareness and disseminated knowledge, such masters of counsel!", + "You were with them all the days of their holy lives, and You increased Your wonders on their behalf beyond measure.", + "Many rose against them every day. You rescued them from the hand of all of their enemies and persecutors. You did what You did in Your extremely wondrous and hidden ways.", + "You sustained them in Your compassion until they acted and performed, undertook and accomplished. They engaged in wondrously new, marvelous and awesome rectifications in all of the worlds, from beginning to end. They rectified innumerable souls: the souls of the living and the dead.", + "You know all of the rectifications and delights that You received from the Tzaddikim in these generations, since the day that You revealed the hidden light: the light of Israel and its holy rabbi of rabbis, the awesome man of God, our master, Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov, may his memory be for a blessing.", + "He illumined the face of the world and established many students, holy and awesome Tzaddikim and Chassidim. He left behind him a blessing, his delightful offshoots, his holy offspring, his holy descendants, more precious than fine gold and pearls, men who had no equal.", + "He, his students and his descendants revealed Your Godliness in these generations and spread Torah among the people of Israel. They illumined our eyes, opened our hearts, and taught straight ways and wondrous advice on how to truly come close to You.", + "Fortunate is the eye that saw all of these things. But then our souls grew weak because of what our ears heard.", + "Our entire hope was that that they would live long days and years in this world, and that we would stand before their glorious holiness and hear more words of the Living God, constantly new and wondrous things from their awesome mouths, as we had heard all of the days of their holy lives.", + "But for our many sins and grave offenses, the light of our eyes and the delight of our souls was darkened.", + "Woe, for the angels have defeated the Tzaddikim and seized these holy and awesome Torah arks from us prematurely. Woe, what has become of us? “The crown of our head has fallen. Woe to us, for we have sinned.”", + "Indeed, we know that even now they are engaged in rectifying our souls. But it is bitter for us, so bitter, because we cannot see their holy faces, hear their awesome words, draw the breath of their holy mouths, look at the beauty, loveliness, radiance and glory of their holy and awesome faces, and bind ourselves to their true grace.", + "They were the beauty, loveliness and grace of the entire world. Whoever was bound to their holy grace, beauty and holy name looked at himself and was truly aroused to repent.", + "But now, due to our sins, we lost what we have lost. Woe to us for what we did to ourselves because of our sins. Woe, how much does sin cause!", + "Woe, what will we do now? What will such a persecuted people do, such a poor and impoverished people, such a tormented and tortured people, a nation as poor and impoverished as we are?", + "“Therefore, I said, ‘Leave me alone, I will weep bitterly.’” I will soften the bitterness of my spirit and my voice will moan like the sea as I speak and gain relief by talking to HaShem, the supernal God, no matter what.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, Master of the world! You are holy and Your Name is awesome. And Your Name is partnered with the name of the true Tzaddikim. Act for the sake of Your Name. Sanctify Your Name and reveal the truth to the world.", + "Seeking the True Tzaddik
In Your mighty compassion, may we truly know who the head of the house of the world is at present, as he receives power from these true Tzaddikim that I have mentioned before You.", + "In Your great mercy, help me truly come close to him. May I always be included in the true name, beauty and grace of the true Tzaddikim, and truly be attached and cling to them with a firm and strong connection that will never be shaken.", + "In this way, may we look from now on at all of our traits and desires connected to the four basic elements, so that we may refine and purify them of all evil, and engage in true, complete repentance for our past.", + "May we truly strengthen ourselves from now on with all strength and power to break and nullify all of the evil traits and evil lusts of the four basic elements, and attain all good traits. May we always truly serve You with all our might, all our heart, all our spirit and all our vigor.", + "May all of the four elements in our body truly be refined. May they all be good without any trace of evil at all, until all four elements — which correspond to the four letters of Your holy Name — will be subsumed into their supernal root.", + "May we always examine ourselves carefully on how we came to this lowly world.", + "May we look at all of our traits in order to refine, purify and sanctify them with utter perfection.", + "May we look at the greatness of the Creator and at His awesome wonders, as He performs new matters and wonders at every moment, and may we look toward the rectification of the world.", + "May holy and pure consciousness coming from the holy name of the true Tzaddikim be drawn onto us.", + "Sanctifying Our Thoughts and Sight
From now on may we sanctify our minds and awareness. May we no longer have any extraneous thoughts, and certainly not engage in any fantasies at all, Heaven forbid.", + "May we engage in many Torah thoughts, and constantly create many true Torah insights, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May I sanctify my eyes from now on so that I will no longer look at forbidden sights — and, how much more, never gaze in a way that leads to fantasizing, Heaven forbid.", + "May I always know how to act in regard to this matter. May I not experience fear that would lead me to engage in exaggerated behavior — such as shaking my head back and forth and squeezing my eyes shut, which can actually lead to more fantasizing — as all of this is revealed to You.", + "Instead, may I attain true awareness and know how to direct my eyes with true holiness and purity, in accordance with Your good will, so that I will be rescued and guarded from every evil matter.", + "In Your mighty kindness, truly sanctify my eyes from now on. May I sanctify and purify all of the four basic elements within me with great holiness.", + "May I always add holiness to holiness, until I will be entirely good and no sights in the world will ever harm my eyes again.", + "No matter what I see with my eyes, may no fantasies or extraneous thoughts enter my consciousness and mind at all. May no sight or vision confuse my mind at all. Instead, may I always cling to Your holiness.", + "Master of the entire world, refine me so that I will attain all of this quickly, even though at present I am so far from it all that even making this request of You is difficult for me.", + "Nonetheless, I trust and rely that in Your vast compassion and in the power of the true Tzaddikim, You will help me attain all of this quickly, because “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.” You perform wonders in every generation, and nothing is beyond You.", + "Have compassion on me, You Who are filled with compassion, mighty in lovingkindness and truth, performing much good, generously forgiving sinners and absolving offenders, performing righteousness for all flesh and spirit.", + "The Midnight Rectification
In Your mighty kindness, help me, save me, strengthen me and bolster me in Your wondrous ways, so that from now on I will arise every night at midnight to recite the Tikkun Chatzot, the Midnight Rectification.", + "May I mourn, lament and weep a great deal over the destruction of the Temple — our holy and beautiful Temple, the House of our life and length of our days, our beautiful Temple, our lovely adornment, our exalted strength, our splendor, our radiance, our magnificence and our holiness.", + "Woe, what happened to us? With our sins, we caused our Temple, the place of Your mighty Presence, the place of Torah and prayer, to be destroyed.", + "It was the place of the revelation of Your Godliness, where we were able to draw the comprehension of Your Godliness onto ourselves, so that we might know and recognize You even in this physical world, and cling to You forever. ", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, what has happened has happened. Our Temple was destroyed and the Tzaddikim died for our sins, and what has been has been.", + "For this I weep. “For these I weep — my eye, my eye sheds tears.” Because of my sins that are multitudinous, intense and grave in character, quantity and quality, I have delayed the rebuilding of the Temple.", + "And who knows? Perhaps in my first incarnation, I literally caused the destruction of the Temple. Woe to me for my transgressions, woe to me for my sins, woe to me for my offenses that I committed in my present and previous incarnations!", + "Woe, what have I done? A being as filthy and foul as myself caused the destruction of the Temple, and delayed its rebuilding and the redemption of the Jewish people, their restoration to their land.", + "Woe to me, that with my sins, with my evil and bitter lusts, I destroyed the Temple, burned the holy palace, exiled the children of Israel among the nations, and lengthened the exile.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, teach me how to call out to You now, how to cry out for my bitter and embittered, broken state now, how to raise my eyes to You now, how to spend each day in true goodness now.", + "Where shall I flee? Where shall I run for help? What shall I do? How should I act? How can I deserve to spend my day with true life, with true holiness?", + "How will I save my soul from destruction? How will I save my soul as a refugee from Your judgment and anger, from Your harsh and bitter punishment, may the Compassionate One protect us! How will I save myself from curses, insults and disgrace in this world and the next?", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, act for the sake of Your Name. Sanctify Your Name for the sake of its glory. May we magnify and sanctify Your great Name in the world.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, Master of all, You Who know hidden things, You know “all of the work that is performed under the sun” now, in our generations — and how, because of our many sins, the world has been disordered and disrupted beyond measure or estimate. All of the true Tzaddikim, who constitute the beauty of the generations, have passed away in our days, due to our many sins.", + "You alone know their great stature, strength and holiness. Your Name is partnered with their name, and when their name is magnified, Your Name is magnified.", + "Because of our many sins, they died prematurely. Woe! What has happened to us in these generations?", + "Because of the cloudiness of our awareness, no one realizes the hardship of this distress and adversity, how far it reaches, the effect of this great blow, these deeply concealed blows.", + "“A blow that is not written in the Torah” — our sages teach that this refers to the death of the true Tzaddikim. They died in our generations due to our sins, transgressions and offenses.", + "Woe! Woe! Woe! Woe to us for what we have lost because of our sins. Woe for what has been lost and no longer exists. “The righteous man has died and no one takes it to heart. Men of kindness are gathered in, and no one understands that the righteous man has been gathered in due to the evil.”", + "Master of the world, Master of all, we caused what we caused with our sins. We destroyed our Temple, and the true Tzaddikim died for our sins.", + "Help us — from now on, at any rate — arise every night at midnight and break our hearts as we weep profusely with many tears for our grave sins that caused all of this — so that we have been left like orphans without a father, like those who go astray with no one to seek them, like those who are far away with no one to bring them close. There is no one to stand up on our behalf.", + "Master of the world, have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. See our lowliness and disgrace. “Look from Heaven and see” that we have become an object of derision and scorn.", + "The Plague of Dispute
It is not enough that we are disgraced and lowly among the nations that every day stand against us to destroy us, and You rescue us from their hand.", + "But within Your nation of Israel itself, dispute has greatly increased. Great discord has arisen among the Torah sages, until their hearts are divided against each other and each one is disgraced and foul in the eyes of the other, until “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "Treasured Souls
Master of the world, filled with compassion, arouse Your compassion for Your children. May Your insides moan for us. Have pity, mercy and compassion for the remnant of the refugees of Your nation, the House of Israel.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, how can You refrain from having compassion on these oppressed souls, the souls of Your nation of Israel who roll in the avenues, marketplaces and streets, these exceedingly precious souls who are spilled out at the head of all of the avenues?", + "The prophet Jeremiah lamented repeatedly for every soul, as it is written, “How has the gold dimmed! How has the finest gold changed! The holy stones are spilled out at the head of every street. The precious children of Zion, comparable to fine gold — how they are regarded as earthen pitchers, the work of the potter’s hands!”", + "Master of the world, Master of the entire world, You alone know the mighty, precious, beautiful holiness of these treasured souls, these holy stones, that now are spilled out at the head of every avenue. “And no one gathers them into the house.”", + "Because of our sins, the true Tzaddikim, who are called the “head of the house,” who are the masters of the house of the world, passed away. When they were in the world and their names were magnified in the world, the world had a master of the house, and then we were all called the children of the house.", + "But from the day that they died for our sins, and their holy and awesome beauty, glory and grace were hidden away, we have wandered and been unsettled, and the precious souls of Your nation, the House of Israel, roll about at the head of every avenue.", + "For the masters of the world, the great Tzaddikim who are called the “head of the house,” have left the world.", + "Even the faint impression that remains of their fame because of their holy books and precious students is deeply hidden behind every sort of immeasurable obscurity and concealment.", + "Revealing the True Leaders
Every time that people become known and famous but their name is not at all drawn from the Name of God — and, in fact, the contrary is true — the Name of God is hidden and the names of the outside forces grow stronger, Heaven forbid.", + "Due to our many sins, the world has become deeply confused, until no one knows the truth. Who is truly following the Torah of HaShem, so that his name is drawn from the Name of God? And who is the opposite? And who confuses the two: good and evil, the “bright lights” and the “fiery lights”? “We do not know what to do, and our eyes turn to You.”", + "In Your compassion, help us rise every night, exactly at midnight, to mourn for the Temple that was destroyed for our sins.", + "As a result, may we arouse Your compassion so that You will console us and gladden us soon, and give the mourners of Zion beauty in place of ashes.", + "May we subdue the fiery lights to the bright lights. May the holy name — the Name of God, the name of the true Tzaddikim — overcome the name of uncleanness, the names of the outside forces. May falsehood be nullified before truth. May the name of the true Tzaddikim and their holy and awesome beauty, splendor and grace be revealed, magnified and known throughout the world. May we be included in their name and in their glorious, beautiful holiness.", + "May our eyes truly be opened so that we will truly look at ourselves clearly, at all of the four basic elements within us, in order to refine, purify and sanctify them. May we look at all evil lusts and evil traits that are drawn from them in order to separate them from evil and extract the good, and to attain all good traits and good deeds.", + "May the holy Tzaddikim draw holy and pure mindfulness onto us. May all of our four states of consciousness and all of our four basic elements be subsumed into the simple, holy and awesome basic element, that being the Tzaddik, the foundation of the world, the river emerging from Eden to water the garden. May everything be subsumed into Your unique, great, holy and awesome Name.", + "Quickly and swiftly redeem us and build our beautiful Temple. Our King, may Your Name be magnified, sanctified, blessed, praised, beautified, elevated and exalted in the mouth of every living being always and forever.", + "Help us keep the mitzvah of tefillin fully, with great holiness and purity, with fear and love, with joy and a good heart.", + "May the holiness of the mind be drawn onto us by means of the source of the beauty of the holy and awesome tefillin, from the head of the house, who fills the houses of the holy tefillin with holy mindfulness, wisdom, understanding, knowledge and all skillful work.", + "For the Holy Shabbat
Holy Mindfulness
Help us greet every Shabbat with great joy. May we delight in the Shabbat with all of our strength, and rejoice on every Shabbat with truly great joy.", + "By means of the holiness of the holy Shabbat, help us in Your compassion to draw the holy mindfulness of the head of the house — which is the Shabbat of every day — onto ourselves.", + "As a result, may we truly return to You and be subsumed into Your great Name that is partnered with our name, and rectify all of the blemishes with which we defaced Your great Name.", + "Eradicating Evil of Every Sort
In Your vast compassion, guard us and rescue us from every type of illness, discomfort and pain that is drawn from the names of uncleanness and the outside forces, Heaven forbid, which are called “fiery lights.”", + "Our Father in Heaven, Ruler over everything, guarding Your nation, the Jewish people, forever, guard us and rescue us from them. May Your great Name stand against them. Subdue, break, crush and nullify the fiery lights before the bright lights.", + "May the name of uncleanness, the names of the outside forces, be eradicated from the world, and may the holy Name be magnified in the world.", + "In the merit of the holiness of the Shabbat, spread the sukkah of Your peace over us. Guard us, our money and our homes from any type of damage or loss in the physical and spiritual realms that are drawn from the fiery lights. Rescue all of the houses of Your nation, the House of Israel, from burning fire. HaShem, guard them always from fires and from every type of harm.", + "We are unable to guard them, so we rely on You alone. Have compassion on us and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people, from now on. Guard our houses and all of our possessions from fire.", + "In Your compassion, help us so that the fiery lights will not have any hold or power over us, Heaven forbid — not over our bodies, not over our souls, and not over our possessions. Instead, may we always be subsumed into the bright lights that are subsumed into Your holy Name.", + "For the Etrog and the Four Species
The Beautiful Etrog
Help us keep the mitzvah of the etrog and the Four Species perfectly in its time, as is proper. May we always have a beautiful, kosher, lovely etrog that exhibits every type of beauty with ultimate perfection and loveliness.", + "Reveal the beautiful glory of the holiness of Your nation, the Jewish people — in particular, the beautiful, magnificent loveliness of the holiness of the Tzaddikim and truly worthy people.", + "May everyone in the world yearn and pine to be subsumed into them, to be subsumed into their name and beauty. May all those who have come into the world walk upon their paths to truly perform Your will all of their days, forever.", + "Master of the world, our King and our God, compassionately fulfill our requests. Help us achieve everything that we have asked of You, so that we will truly be subsumed into Your great and holy Name forever and ever.", + "May we always magnify and sanctify Your great Name. May the verse be realized, “Nations will fear the Name of HaShem, and all kings of the earth Your glory.”", + "“May the Name of HaShem be blessed from now and forever.”", + "“Help us, God of our salvation, on account of the honor of Your Name. Rescue us and grant atonement for our sins, for the sake of Your Name.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "Wisdom Resides in the Land of Israel / The Consciousness of the Rest of the World is Flawed / Those Who Reside in the King’s Palace Give the Honor They Receive to Him / Giving Charity Creates a Vessel to Receive Supernal Pleasantness / The Consciousness of the Rest of the World Receives its Rectification from Supernal Pleasantness / If the Consciousness of the World is Seriously Damaged, it Harms the Supernal Pleasantness and Brings Dispute into the Land of Israel
The essence of consciousness and wisdom resides in the Land of Israel. Because every Jew has a portion in the Land of Israel, every Jew can partake of its consciousness. The consciousness of the Land of Israel is called “pleasantness.”
There is also a flawed consciousness, associated with the rest of the world. That receives its energy from the consciousness of the Land of Israel. But it is flawed, because it is linked to a flaw in the revelation of God’s honor. As a result, people are not in alignment with each other, and disputes break out. This consciousness is called “wounding.”
That being the case, dispute should exist only in the rest of the world. Why, then, do we see dispute in the Land of Israel as well? The answer is as follows. The consciousness of the rest of the world seeks rectification. It can receive that rectification only from the supernal pleasantness associated with the Land of Israel.
God created the world in order to reveal His honor. God brought His honor into the world in ten portions. The vehicle for each portion was one of the Ten Divine Statements with which He created the world.4The Ten Statements correspond to the verses in the first chapter of Genesis that begin with the words, “And God said...” The first Statement, known as the Concealed Statement, is the first verse itself: “In the beginning, God created the Heaven and the earth.” That honor is revealed by the supernal pleasantness.
Only select people who reside in the King’s palace can experience a revelation of God’s honor. When they are given some measure of honor, they do not keep it for themselves, but raise it entirely to God so that His honor will grow. And they know which of the Ten Statements that revelation of honor is associated with.
And that rectifies the world.
More generally, the essence of God’s honor is revealed by decent human beings. The more such people exist, the more God’s honor is increased.
In order to receive God’s supernal pleasantness, which is always flowing, we need a vessel. We create that vessel when we give charity. This opens the generous pathways of the heart and makes the heart into a vessel to receive from the supernal pleasantness — in particular, to receive the “flames of love.”
When that happens and the supernal pleasantness — associated with the consciousness of the Land of Israel — finds a vessel here below in which to gather, the flawed consciousness of the rest of the world seeks its rectification by falling upon it.
However, if the consciousness of the rest of the world is seriously damaged, it cannot be rectified. Then, to the contrary, it harms the consciousness of the Land of Israel, causing discord and dispute in the Land of Israel.
Our Infinite Gratitude
“Portions have fallen to me in pleasant places. Indeed, the inheritance is pleasing to me.”", + "Master of the world, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, thank You for all of the kindness that You have shown me, and that You will show me and my entire family and all of Your people who are part of the same covenant as I.", + "“With what will I come before God? How will I bow before the most exalted God?” “What shall I say? He has spoken and acted. In the bitterness of my spirit, I cause my sleep to flee.”", + "“God, Your charity exists in the heights. You do great things. Who is like You, God? You Who have shown me many evil troubles, revive me and raise me back up from the depths of the earth.”", + "Master of the world, You Who repay those who are guilty with good, You have repaid me only with good.", + "You alone know all of the marvelous, awesome kindnesses and favors that You have done for me from my beginning until this day.", + "If all of the seas were ink and all of the pools quills, it would still be impossible to describe or relate a thousandth or even a ten-thousandth of the multitude of true and eternal favors to all generations that You have performed so wondrously for a person as lowly as I am.", + "You do so every day, every hour and every moment. You have granted me the privilege of being of the children of Israel, Your servants, who were chosen from all of the nations and elevated above all other peoples.", + "In addition to this, You compassionately rescued me so that I would not walk in the counsel of the wicked, sit in the company of scorners, or stand in the path of sinners.", + "You have increased Your compassion and graciousness to me by making me familiar with Your Torah and bringing me close to Your Tzaddikim and those God-fearing people who are attached to them — people who are straightforward and whose hearts are upright.", + "“You have done much, HaShem my God. Your wonders and thoughts are for our sake. No one compares with You. I would tell and speak them, but they are too many to relate.”", + "You have recompensed me with favors at every hour and moment. Although I have paid You back with evil, You have not deprived me of Your kindness. Instead, from a distance, You constantly think how to ultimately benefit me and bring me back.", + "Even when I have fallen and descended, Heaven forbid, because of my improper deeds, Heaven forbid, You perform wonders on my behalf — great and awesome wonders to constantly strengthen, support and revive me so that I will not fall completely, Heaven forbid.", + "You alone know everything that I have gone through since my youth until this day. “HaShem God, You have known.”", + "Now I have come to You. I raise my head, my inner consciousness and the hidden part of my heart to look hopefully toward Your compassion. You are filled with compassion. You cause the horn of salvation to blossom. You cause the horn of salvation to blossom. Who is like You, mighty Master? Who can compare with You, King Who kills and revives, and Who causes salvation to blossom?", + "You are my elevated and holy Father in Heaven. You perform mighty deeds and create new things. You are the Master of wars, planting righteousness and causing salvation to blossom.", + "Reaching the Land of Israel
In Your vast compassion, help me attain holy, refined and pure consciousness, Jewish consciousness, consciousness that is associated with the Land of Israel. Rescue me from damaged consciousness, from consciousness associated with the rest of the world. Be gracious and give me holy wisdom, understanding and knowledge. In Your vast compassion, help me and save me so that I will travel and quickly reach the Land of Israel, the land of holiness, the land of life, the site of the essence of holy consciousness, intelligence, awareness and wisdom.", + "Bring me swiftly from the Diaspora to the Land of Israel. Perform wonders for me, as is fitting for You (and as is fitting for our forefathers and holy rabbis) — not in accordance with my evil deeds, because You perform righteousness with all flesh and spirit. Do not repay me in accordance with my evil.", + "Repairing the Damage to God’s Honor
Refine me and help me so that in my lifetime, I will rectify the great damage to Your honor that I brought about with my evil lusts.", + "Because of them, I committed all of my transgressions, sins and offenses before You, from my youth until today, doing that which is evil in Your eyes.", + "As a result of my every transgression, sin and blemish, which damaged Your great and holy honor so deplorably, my consciousness was blemished so as to be on the level of the consciousness associated with the Diaspora.", + "Because of my many sins, I was deeply distanced from the holy consciousness associated with the Land of Israel.", + "Master of the world, King of glory forever, You created the entire universe with Ten Statements for the sake of Your honor, so that Your great and holy glory would be revealed, magnified, beautified, elevated and uplifted in the world.", + "That is the purpose and essence of all Creation. As the verse states, “Everything that is called in My Name and for My honor, I created it, I formed it, indeed, I made it.”", + "In Your compassion, help me rectify the damage to Your honor quickly, swiftly and speedily. Help me and save me in Your vast compassion, so that I will always flee from honor without any wiliness or guile.", + "Every time that You compassionately send me some honor in accordance with Your good will, help me and save me. Give me the might and power to muster all of my strength so that I will not claim any honor for myself.", + "May I not gain any benefit from honor. May I not use it for my needs or well-being at all, Heaven forbid. Instead, may I raise all honor to HaShem, to the King to Whom all honor is due, and thus raise honor to its root.", + "Every time that I receive some honor, may I know and understand from which Divine Statement that honor was made — that Statement being meant specifically for that honor.", + "May I not use honor for my own needs or benefit at all. Rather, may I receive honor with holiness and purity solely to magnify the honor of HaShem, in order to maintain the world that was created with the Ten Statements for the sake of that honor.", + "May great and wondrous illumination enter that Statement that was created for the sake of the honor that You pour onto me. May my honor be entirely the expression of that Statement, as in the verse, “In His palace, everything makes a statement declaring His honor.”", + "Master of the world, give me the ability to gain the strength to attain all of this. Give me the strength to stand in the King’s palace.", + "Master of the world, You know that I am so far from every holy matter that I begin to speak about that I have no way or path in my mind to open my mouth to say anything about it, or to placate and appease You as I ask You to help me reach it.", + "I have damaged and spoiled a very great deal. I am so far from You, from Your holy Torah and from all holy matters, with ultimate distance. I have descended shockingly, and there is no one to help me. He subjugated my heart with toil; I have stumbled and there is no one to assist me.", + "I am not even aware of the little strength that I still possess. My mind grows weaker with every hour and moment, and I am unable to restore my spirit.", + "My Father, my Maker, my Redeemer and my Deliverer, You gaze and look to the end of all generations. Your glory fills the entire world, and You always bring everything to completion in accordance with Your will.", + "Since the day of the creation of Adam until today, regarding all of the blemishes, transgressions, sins and offenses that Adam and his offspring have committed and all of the ways that they have angered You until today, You have always brought everything to completion in accordance with Your will — every day, every hour and every moment.", + "And this is especially true regarding my own blemishes and flaws. Even though I have offended You a great deal from my beginning until this day, I believe with complete faith that even now, You bring everything to completion in accordance with Your will.", + "Therefore, even now, from the place where I am at now, I hope and look forward to complete salvation from now on. May I cast everything away from me and travel to the Land of Israel, the Holy Land, and arrive there quickly.", + "There may I recognize the greatness of the Creator and the greatness of the true Tzaddikim through whom we know Your greatness, may You be blessed forever.", + "Therefore, I have come to seek and call out to HaShem, Eternal God. “I will call out to the supernal God, to God Who completes [what He promised] for me. He will send forth from Heaven and save me from the disgrace of the person who hopes to swallow me up forever. God will send His lovingkindness and His truth.”", + "May He help me, save me and strengthen my heart so that I will truly yearn, pine and long to come quickly to the Land of Israel.", + "May I engage in all of the actions necessary to make this journey, until I come soon to the Holy Land, the Land of Israel, the land of life, the most beautiful of all lands.", + "It is the beloved, good and expansive land that You favored and bequeathed to our forefathers, the land that You seek out always, the land that Moses prayed 515 times to reach.5Yalkut Shimoni, Devarim 940.", + "Help me, grant me merit and save me, so that over there, I will truly draw holy consciousness onto myself — the consciousness of the Land of Israel. Truly bring me back to You in complete repentance.", + "Help me and save me so that in my lifetime, I will soon rectify Your blemished honor. May all of the blemishes that I caused to Your great honor, from my beginning until this day, be rectified.", + "May I magnify Your honor in the world from now on by telling people of Your might and the glorious beauty of Your sovereignty. May I take no credit for doing so, because it is for this that I was created.", + "Giving Charity on Behalf of the Land of Israel
Have compassion on me, save me and help me give a great deal of charity — in particular, on behalf of the Land of Israel. May I always engage in charity and kind deeds — in particular, charity for the Land of Israel.", + "This may involve donating my own money beyond my means for the Land of Israel, or working assiduously to raise many donations for the Land of Israel to support the worthy poor who live there in utter poverty, lacking all things, without bread or clothing in their homes.", + "Master of the world, You know their great affliction and suffering. They are literally bloated from hunger. “Their skin is shriveled on their bones, as dry as wood.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who have mercy on the poor, have compassion on them and on us. Help us engage a great deal in charity for the Land of Israel in ultimate truth, without any ulterior motives or extraneous thoughts of self-aggrandizement at all.", + "Help us and save us so that we will strengthen the hands of the wretched poor, the worthy impoverished people who dwell in the Holy Land, the Land of Israel.", + "As a result of our doing so, may the pathways of our heart be opened to receive the flames of holy love, so that our heart will burn fervently and yearn for You with great love and intense desire.", + "As a result of this charity, may I form a vessel to receive the abundance of supernal pleasantness with great holiness and purity, until I feel the pleasantness and wondrous sweetness of Your holy Torah.", + "Eradicating Lusts
May all of my lusts be eradicated — in particular, the lust for sexual relations and the love of women. May it all be nullified by means of the love of holiness that You will grant me, in Your vast compassion, which is drawn from supernal pleasantness.", + "“May the pleasantness of HaShem our God be upon us. May He establish the work of our hands for us, and may He establish the work of our hands.”", + "“One thing have I asked of HaShem, that which I seek: May I sit in the House of HaShem all of the days of my life, to gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visit in His palace.”", + "Help me, my children, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, so that we will parent many generations. May Your nation, the Jewish people, increase “like the sand of the sea that cannot be measured or counted,” because it is so many.", + "Have compassion on us. Shield us, guard us and help us so that we will engage in marital relations with great holiness and purity. Help us and rescue us so that our impetus to engage in marital relations will not come from evil love, from fallen love, Heaven forbid.", + "Rather, may all of our impetus for marital relations be drawn from the abundant flow of supernal pleasantness, from the holy love that comes from that supernal pleasantness by means of the vessel of charity.", + "May we engage in marital relations with great holiness and modesty, with humility, awe, fear and trembling.", + "May we not consider the benefit to our body at all. Rather, may our intent be solely for Your Name and honor, in order to fulfill Your mitzvot, in order to parent healthy children who will serve You and fear You, and in so doing increase Your honor in the world.", + "May all of our children and all of our generations engage in Your Torah and Your mitzvot, and perform Your will always. May we magnify and promulgate Your honor in the world, and complete the purpose of Creation, which was solely to reveal Your great and holy honor.", + "Attaining the Consciousness of the Land of Israel
As a result of all of this, may we attain the consciousness of the Land of Israel, which is called “pleasantness,” and rectify all of the consciousness of the rest of the world, which is called “wounding.”", + "May the consciousness of the rest of the world be subsumed into the consciousness of the Land of Israel. May the consciousness of the rest of the world be rectified, until all consciousness will be on the level of the consciousness of the Land of Israel. As a result, may great peace be drawn into the world.", + "In Your vast compassion, grant peace to Your nation, the Jewish people, forever, and nullify every type of dispute from the world.", + "Raise honor from its exile. May people no longer pursue honor, but flee from it. May everyone truly honor others with love, fraternity and great peace.", + "May all of us — we, all of our companions, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel — be of one mind. Give us one heart and one path to fear You and do Your will, and return to You in ultimate truth.", + "Help, shield and save us and the entire Jewish people, so that the blemished consciousness associated with the rest of the world will not be able to damage the consciousness of the Land of Israel, Heaven forbid, by fomenting dispute in the Land of Israel, Heaven forbid.", + "To the contrary, help us and save us. May the consciousness of the Land of Israel grow mightier and stronger, and completely rectify the consciousness of the rest of the world, so that all of the consciousness outside the Land of Israel will be transformed into the consciousness of the Land of Israel.", + "World Peace
May every type of dispute be nullified. May great peace spread throughout the world. May great peace exist between friends and between husband and wife — in particular, among the community and friends who strive to fear Your Name.", + "Master of the world, Master of peace, King Who possesses peace, You know the great upswell of incitement that attempts at every moment to damage peace between friends and Torah sages — in particular, in these generations before the coming of the Mashiach.", + "You also know the harm done by the dispute and arguments that are aroused among Your nation, the Jewish people, for no reason — in particular, dispute among Tzaddikim and worthy people.", + "All secrets of the heart are revealed to You. We know of no way to repair dispute except by relying on You alone, on Your drawing down peace from the source of peace, from the Land of Israel, from the consciousness of the Land of Israel.", + "Master of the world, You Who are truly compassionate, please have compassion on the worthy and decent poor people of the Land of Israel. Help us and save us so that we will send them enough to support them honorably. May no dispute whatsoever have the power to impede or interfere with charity for the Land of Israel, Heaven forbid.", + "Have compassion on the people in the Land of Israel and on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us and save us so that we will always give charity to the Land of Israel, in order to strengthen the hand of the worthy needy and impoverished people who live there, sending them enough to cover their expenses.", + "May all of our intent and activity in this matter be solely for the sake of Heaven, without any thought for our own honor at all. Then, as a result of giving this charity, we will make a vessel to receive the flow of the supernal pleasantness with holiness and purity, so that Your honor will be increased, magnified and sanctified in the world.", + "As a result, may all of the consciousness of the rest of the world be rectified and transformed into the consciousness of the Land of Israel. May there be great peace in the world — both in the Land of Israel and the Diaspora.", + "May all consciousness and awareness come into alignment so that we will truly serve You with fear and love. Spread the sukkah of Your peace over us.", + "Bring us quickly and joyfully to our Land. There we will sing and make music to You all the days of our lives, and we will magnify You, praise You and beautify You always with praises, melodies and the songs of David Your servant, the “sweet singer of Israel.”", + "May we always magnify and sanctify Your Name and honor. May the verse be realized, “May the glory of HaShem last forever. May HaShem rejoice in His deeds.”", + "May we always sense the pleasantness and sweetness in the words of Your holy Torah, which are “more desirable than gold and fine gold, sweeter than honey and the honeycomb.”", + "And a verse states, “Words of pleasantness are a honeycomb, sweet for the spirit and healing for the bones.” And, “Her ways are ways of pleasantness and all of her paths are peace.” “Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "When One Hears Torah from the Mouth of a True Tzaddik, He Feels Humility and Shame / Even if the Tzaddik Just Looks at Him, He Attains Greatness / Humility is the Essence of Life of a Person’s Every Limb / At the Time of the Resurrection, a Person’s Humility Will be Revived / One Should Feel Ashamed When He Dares to Perform a Mitzvah or Even Put Food into His Mouth / Something of Moses’ Humility Exists in a Jew’s Every Limb
When a person hears Torah from the mouth of a true Tzaddik — an ascetic, holy leader who has separated himself from sexual lust — he feels humility and shame, comparable to the feeling that the Jews experienced when they received the Torah.
But even if he does not hear such words of Torah, when the Tzaddik just looks at him, his consciousness shines and he attains greatness in accordance with his consciousness. God’s great sovereignty is caught in the pathways of his mind and fresh Torah insights suited to his quality of awareness are drawn to him.
The essence of a person’s greatness is humility.
Humility is the essence of life of a person’s every limb. It is the delight of the World to Come. And so, at the time of the resurrection of the dead, it is a person’s humility that will be revived.
Until then, a person cannot grasp the pleasure of the World to Come, nor the pleasure of the Shabbat, which is a taste of the World to Come. But he will experience that when he fully possesses humility — which, because it is not bounded, can resonate to infinity.
When a person sees how far he is from God, he feels great shame and he returns to God.
Certainly a person who has committed a sin feels ashamed, because sinning is not fitting for a Jew. But a person should feel ashamed even while performing a mitzvah, considering that he lacks the merit to perform such an extraordinary deed. How dare he enter the King’s palace to perform that mitzvah?
In fact, a person should be ashamed even to bring food to his mouth, knowing that it is not his but a gift from God.
Each Jew has something of Moses’ humility in every limb, which we received at the giving of the Torah. But it lies dormant and hidden. However, with the repentance that will accompany the resurrection, the humility of Moses in each Jew’s every limb will return to life.
No One Will Remain Estranged from God
“God, You are mighty forever. You revive the dead and save abundantly. You support the living with kindness, You revive the dead with vast compassion, You support those who have fallen.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are truly compassionate, You revive the dead with vast compassion. You revive the dead with vast compassion!", + "You know that in essence, the greatest compassion is expressed by Your having thoughts at every moment that will prevent anyone from being estranged from You at the time of the resurrection.", + "That time will be the great and awesome Day of Judgment, in anticipation of which even all of the great, true Tzaddikim tremble and cringe. The essence of compassion, salvation, success and hope come to a person who can receive salvation and compassion that will enable him to reach that time, the time of the resurrection, when You will revive the dead with vast compassion.", + "Fortunate is the person who receives this true compassion. Fortunate is the one who waits in this world all the days of his life, all of his hours and minutes, to receive this compassion, which is in essence the purpose of all of the days of this world. Besides this, everything else is vanity and an evilness of spirit.", + "Master of the world, what shall I say? How shall I speak? How can I justify myself? How can I appear before You now to request all of this? Where will I find the words and expressions to arouse Your vast compassion on my behalf? Master of the entire world, Lord of compassion and forgiveness, HaShem, Your compassion is vast.", + "You know in ultimate truth that I am no better than I am, that I have caused a great deal of blemishes before You, that I transgressed, sinned and offended, that I did what was evil in Your eyes and ruined much.", + "Nevertheless, now as well, You think thoughts at every moment to bring me truly close to You and revive me even now, when I am so profoundly alienated.", + "In Your vast compassion, You revive me at every moment. You draw life onto me from eternal life. You know all of the vast, true and eternal kindnesses and compassionate acts that You have done for me at every moment.", + "In the end, You will certainly rectify all of us, and we will truly exist in accordance with Your good will.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, speak on behalf of a mute such as I am. Open my mouth, and let my words shine.", + "I will hope in God, I will seek His face, I will ask Him to respond. “A man prepares his heart, but HaShem provides the answer of the tongue.” “God, open my lips, and my mouth will speak Your praise.”", + "God, open my lips so I will be able to express my speech to You and tell You everything that is in my heart. I will speak and gain relief.", + "I will speak, no matter what I have gone through. I will stand firm and beseech, pray and plead before You Who are filled with compassion, You Who hear the prayer of every mouth. Perhaps God will yield to me and I will no longer suffer any losses from now on, Heaven forbid.", + "For the Seventh of Adar, the Hilula of Moses
Attaining True Humility
Our Father in Heaven, Living God and Eternal King, You Who revive the dead with vast compassion, in Your vast compassion bring me to experience the resurrection of the dead.", + "From this moment on, help me revive my true lowliness and humility that is rooted in my every limb. This is the true lowliness and humility of Moses, which is rooted in every limb of every Jew.", + "This lowliness and humility is the essence of true life: the eternal life of the World to Come.", + "But now, because of my many sins, this lowliness is all but dead to me, and I do not feel it. As a result, I am far from You.", + "Master of the world, help me attain all true counsel and techniques so I can arouse, awaken and revive this true lowliness and humility within myself.", + "You know how far I am from true lowliness and humility, which is the essence of everything. Due to my many sins, I have no concept of humility, which is the essence of the true life of my every limb.", + "You have revealed to us that You do not want us to act abased or incompetent, Heaven forbid, which is false humility. To the contrary, You have urged us numerous times to be mighty as a leopard, and the like.", + "In truth, the only way I know to attain this is to trust that in Your compassion, You will help me, save me, guide me and truly teach me the ways of humility; that You will always revive me with Your eternal life and help me attain true humility.", + "In the Presence of True Tzaddikim
Therefore, may it be Your will, You Who are filled with compassion, Unique Master, that You help me see myself with the true Tzaddikim in this generation and hear Torah from their holy mouths.", + "Even if I do not hear Torah from them, at any rate may I see them and have them see me. As a result of the true Tzaddikim seeing me and gazing at me with their holy, awesome eyes, may my mind shine with great light and with wondrous illumination.", + "Through this, may I achieve true greatness in accordance with Your good will, a greatness that is truly appropriate for me in accordance with my level of consciousness. And the essence of greatness is true lowliness and humility.", + "May I be swift in my work, the work of Heaven. May I always expand my mind and wisdom to constantly think holy thoughts in Torah, Divine service and fear of Heaven with truth and simplicity, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Fill me with “the spirit of God, with wisdom, understanding, knowledge and all work,” in the true work of holiness.", + "May I attain the spirit of God — which is holy consciousness — from the true Tzaddik, the truly universal leader and sage.", + "He is the man of the spirit, a man who knows how to resonate to the spirit of every individual, who incorporates all consciousness and the entire spirit of God, who is composed of the four spirits that are contained within every Jew.", + "Help me so that, inspired by this spirit of God, I will compose true insights in Your holy Torah, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May I please You by means of the insights that You help me constantly create in Your holy Torah.", + "May I truly know how to present my insights: whether to say them or not, and when to say them and before whom, and before how many people.", + "May everything be in accordance with Your good will, truly in accordance with the shining consciousness that You will send me via the gaze of the true leader.", + "Guarding the Holy Covenant
In Your vast compassion, may the world always be guarded by the influence of the true leader, the one who is worthy of being the leader of all Israel.", + "He will possess a covenant rectified with ultimate holiness and asceticism, comparable to the level of the holiness and asceticism of Moses.", + "May his intense holiness and asceticism be drawn onto us and onto the entire Jewish people, and onto everyone who comes close to him.", + "May we, even we, truly attain the holiness of the covenant. May we separate ourselves from lust with great holiness and purity, truly in accordance with Your good will.", + "Master of the world, Master of the entire world, You Who are filled with compassion, “recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your lovingkindness, because they are eternal.”", + "Act in accordance with Your compassion. Act in accordance with Your kindness. Act in accordance with Your wonders. Act for the sake of Your Name that is applied to us, and rescue us from now on from the lust for sexual relations.", + "Please save us from this pollution, this filth, the bitter, disgusting madness of this lust. Please guard me from evil fantasies, from evil gazing, from evil thoughts.", + "In Your mighty compassion and awesome kindness, have compassion on us. It is revealed and known to You that we want to do Your will, but the “leavening in the dough” — the lusts and vanities of this world — prevent us from doing so.", + "Because of this lust, we lost what we have lost. As the holy Zohar states, this desire is the essence of the evil inclination and of spiritual pollution.", + "In Your vast compassion, have compassion on us. Act for the sake of the true Tzaddikim who truly guard the covenant with ultimate holiness and asceticism.", + "Send us new kindnesses that never before existed. Purify our hearts of every sort of fantasy and evil desire — and from this evil lust in particular, for “what profit is there in my blood, in my descending to the grave? Will the earth acknowledge You, will it tell Your truth?”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who are holy and awesome, “You Who do great things beyond comprehension and wonders without number,” perform a life-giving wonder on our behalf and bring us back to You in complete repentance.", + "Help us come close to true Tzaddikim who possess the holiness of the covenant to the ultimate degree.", + "Through them, may the holiness and asceticism of Moses, which he drew onto the entire Jewish people when he received the Torah, always be drawn onto us.", + "As a result, may we constantly receive the Torah anew. May we receive it from now on in ultimate truth, so that we will lovingly guard, perform and fulfill all of the words of Your Torah.", + "May we meditate on Your holy Torah day and night. Illumine our eyes in Your Torah, until we will create true insights in Your holy Torah every day — in particular, on the Shabbat and festivals — which will constitute a great rectification for all of the parts of my soul: my nefesh, ruach and neshamah.", + "By means of these insights and explanations of the Torah, may great fear and awesome shame before You be drawn onto me. May I fear You with a shame that rests upon my face so that I will never sin again.", + "Holy Shame
Master of the world, grant me holy shame so that I will fear You and be ashamed before You always, and never do anything that contravenes Your will.", + "Furthermore, when I want to perform a mitzvah, may I be profoundly ashamed before You because of the great and awesome nature of the mitzvah itself.", + "How is it that someone as immature as I can have the privilege of performing a mitzvah, which possesses a deeply splendid, precious, awesome holiness? The awesome holiness of every mitzvah is profoundly lofty and great. Who would dare boast that he is worthy of performing a mitzvah before You, may You be blessed?", + "In particular, in accordance with our great distance from You as a result of our many sins and offenses, which everyone can recognize about himself, it is certainly fitting that great fear and shame should fall upon our faces when we want to perform some mitzvah.", + "Who am I that I should seize the holy and awesome tefillin, which are the crowns of the King, and place them upon my deeply blemished head and arm, and wrap myself in the mitzvah of the garments of the King, the holy and awesome tzitzit? And the same applies to the other mitzvot.", + "Each mitzvah is extremely holy and awesome. And before Whom am I performing the mitzvah? Before the King, the King of Kings, the Holy One, blessed be He — awesome, fearsome and mighty, Whose greatness has no limit. If I possessed any true knowledge, great shame would certainly fall upon my face even at the thought of performing a mitzvah.", + "And I should even experience great shame at the thought of putting food in my mouth. A person who eats someone else’s food is afraid to look at that person’s face.", + "How much more should I experience great shame and fear so as not to commit any sin or transgression, or incur any blemish, Heaven forbid.", + "A sin has no connection to a Jew at all because, at their root, the souls of all Jews are entirely far from sin, and there is no sin relevant to the soul of a Jew at all.", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, help me come close to true Tzaddikim and hear original insights and explanations of the Torah from their holy mouths.", + "In this way, may great fear and shame before You be drawn onto me. May Your fear be upon my face so that I will no longer sin at all, from now and forever.", + "May the holy fear and shame that the entire Jewish people attained at the holy convocation on Mount Sinai when they received the Torah be drawn onto me always. As the verse states, “May His fear be upon your faces so that You will not sin.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who desire repentance, You Who look hopefully to the wicked person and desire his reform, help me in Your compassion so that I will truly see my shame and guilt, until I will return to You in truly complete repentance from now on.", + "“Bring me back and I will return, for You are [HaShem] my God.” Our Father, bring us back to Your Torah. Our King, bring us close to serve You. Bring us back to You in complete repentance.", + "As a result of our repentance, may we attain true, eternal life. As the verse states, “Do I desire the death of the wicked person? says HaShem God. Is it not rather that he repent of his ways and live?”", + "And, “I do not desire the death of the person who dies, says HaShem God — rather, let them repent and live!”", + "True Humility
In Your vast compassion, in the merit of the true Tzaddikim, may we attain eternal life. May the humility of Moses, which is clothed in every limb of every Jew, live in us.", + "Due to our many sins, at present we have hidden and covered this lowliness and humility so that it is as though dead. Therefore, we do not attain true humility to sense our lowliness with ultimate truth, as would be fitting.", + "In Your vast compassion, grant us true, eternal life. Even now, may something of the resurrection of the dead be drawn onto us. May the humility and lowliness of Moses, which is clothed in a person’s every limb, be revived and arise in the resurrection.", + "Unique, truly humble Master, make it possible for us to attain humility with ultimate perfection, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Such humility is on the level of the life of the World to Come, the resurrection of the dead, the true and eternal life of every limb, true nullification to the Infinite One, blessed be He.", + "Even in this world, may we taste something of the life of the World to Come, the true level of the pleasure of the Shabbat. “I will not die but I will live, and I will relate the deeds of God.” ", + "Master of the world, because of my intense physicality and my many grave sins and offenses, there are no words on my tongue with which to compose prayers to You to attain true humility, a trait that is greater than anything else.", + "Because of my many sins, I do not know anything about the ways of true humility.", + "You have revealed to us that You do not desire false humility. You do not want a person to view himself as disgraceful and weak as part of his serving You. And how much more is it forbidden to be depressed and embittered, Heaven forbid!", + "To the contrary, everyone must constantly revive himself, gladden himself and strengthen himself with every type of encouragement not to be downhearted at all, so that he will never despair, Heaven forbid.", + "In most cases, a person must fortify himself against the entire world, so that it will not be able to place any obstacles or impediments in his way.", + "And now, how will a person as lacking in awareness as I am, truly attain the ways of humility? For pride and coarseness of spirit, as well as false humility, both of which are so harmful, have soiled me.", + "How can we be saved from these two evil, blemished ways and attain true humility, the humility of Moses and of all of the great, true Tzaddikim — a humility that is the eternal life of the World to Come, on the level of the resurrection of the dead?", + "Master of the world, our King and our God, our great, mighty and awesome God, there is no limit to Your greatness. And wherever we find Your greatness, there we find Your humility.", + "Teach us and show us how to compose prayers and requests regarding this, so that we will please and appease You, and You will grant all of us true humility, in accordance with Your good will.", + "God’s Compassion
Master of the world, You Who gaze and see to the end of all generations, You Who “tell the end from the beginning,” You know the great compassion I will require on the great and awesome Day of Judgment, when You will revive the dead.", + "Then each person will be scrutinized regarding all of his deeds, great and small, that he did in this world. At that time, everything will be recalled. “For every deed, everything that is hidden, whether good or bad, God will bring judgment.”", + "Even if from now on I attain truly complete repentance, I will also require vast compassion and great salvation on the Day of Judgment to counter the immensity of my blemishes and the offenses with which I offended You until now.", + "Since I am still far from complete repentance, what shall I do now, my Father in Heaven? Please save me, my Father, my King, my Holy One, my Maker, my Creator, my Prime Mover. Rectify me by sending me good counsel from wherever I am at present.", + "From now on may I be truly inspired, with great might, power and enthusiasm, to return to You, so that at the resurrection, I will rise to eternal life.", + "You know that all of Your intention in creating us was so that we would attain this goal — the eternal life of the World to Come.", + "Therefore, in Your great mercy, have mercy on me and on the entire Jewish people. In Your vast lovingkindness, help us attain everything that we have requested of You.", + "May we come close to true Tzaddikim, see them face to face, and be subsumed into their awesome holiness. May their holiness and asceticism be drawn onto us, until we will be as holy and pure in regard to the purity of the covenant as they are.", + "May we receive from them an illuminated consciousness with great holiness. May our mind and intellect grow in Your Torah, in serving You, and in truly perceiving Your Godliness. May we receive original insights and explanations of the Torah from them.", + "Help us and save us so that we, too, will create true insights and explanations of Your holy Torah. As a result, may we experience great shame and fear before You, and truly return to You in complete repentance.", + "May the lowliness and humility of Moses, which is clothed in every individual’s every limb, be revived in us.", + "Even in this world, may we taste the holy Shabbat, the life of the World to Come — true life, eternal life, as in the verse, “Those who taste it have acquired life.”", + "A person can receive such life only when he truly attains ultimate humility and is as nothing.", + "Master of the world, Living and Eternal God, give us life and sustain us. Compassionately fulfill our requests for the good. From now on may we live a true life, a good and long life, on the level of the eternal life of the World to Come.", + "“In accordance with Your kindness, give me life, and I will guard the testimony of Your mouth.” “May my spirit live and praise You as Your judgments help me.” “Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen, forever and ever." + ], + [ + "One Who Wishes to Repent Must Recite Psalms / God Himself Engages in Repentance, as it were
One who wishes to repent must accustom himself to recite psalms. There are fifty gates of repentance, of which a person can go through forty-nine. The fiftieth gate is the repentance of God Himself, as it were, as expressed in the verse, “Return to Me and I will return to you” (Malakhi 3:7).
Sometimes a person is not inspired to repent. Even if he is inspired, he may not reach his particular gate of repentance. And even if he does, it might be closed.
But when a person recites psalms, he is inspired to repent, he reaches his gate and he is able to open it.
These forty-nine gates of repentance correspond to the forty-nine letters that comprise the names of the twelve tribes. Their principal purification occurred in Egypt. After they were purified, they left and counted forty-nine days — corresponding to the forty-nine gates of repentance — until, on the fiftieth day, God descended to them on Mount Sinai. “I will return to you.” That was the repentance of God Himself, as it were — the fiftieth gate.
For the Days of Sefirah6The days of sefirah (counting) refer to the forty-nine-day period of the Counting of the Omer, which extends from the festival of Pesach until the festival of Shavuot. After the Exodus from Egypt on the first day of Pesach, the Jewish people underwent a fortynine- day period of preparation for the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai, which took place on the fiftieth day. Each year, we, too, count forty-nine days in preparation for our own receiving of the Torah on the fiftieth day, Shavuot.
When We Recite Psalms, We Attain Repentance
“From the outset, You created Your world for the sake of the Jewish people, Your chosen nation.", + "In Your vast compassion, You granted us Your holy Torah through Your prophet Moses, the faithful one of Your house, giving us life as on this day, so that through it we may attain the day that is entirely good and entirely long. In Your intense kindness, You granted us ever-greater kindness and favors, wonders and awesome matters through the Tzaddikim in every generation, all of whom made the Torah increasingly accessible.", + "We must recognize how much God has done for us, the vast lovingkindness and great compassion that we have attained, “the faithful kindness repaid to David.”", + "You gave us ever-greater kindness and goodness. You expanded the kindness that You performed on our behalf to revive our souls, and sent us a redeemer and teacher, “the anointed one of the God of Jacob and the sweet singer of Israel” — David, king of Israel, who lives and endures.", + "He wrote the holy, awesome Book of Psalms on our behalf, in five parts corresponding to the Five Books of the Torah. How great is the goodness that You have performed on our behalf! How shall we repay HaShem for all that He has given us?", + "In Your vast compassion, You revealed that when we recite psalms, we attain repentance. You desire kindness. You desire the repentance of the wicked and not their death.", + "Therefore, You brought us the medicine before the wound by graciously giving us this holy Book of Psalms, which opens to us all of the gates of compassion, all of the gates of repentance, which are the fifty gates of repentance, corresponding to the fifty gates of understanding.", + "Master of the world, compassionate Father, in Your vast compassion help us recite psalms all of our days.", + "Help me and everyone in my family, as part of Your nation of Israel, recite many psalms with great feeling, with a truly whole heart, every single day.", + "May I focus my heart well so that my ears will hear what my mouth is saying, so I will find every level of myself within the holy verses of psalms, which are composed of all of the souls of Israel and of all levels, from the highest to the lowest.", + "Even those who have fallen to the most distant places can find themselves in the Book of Psalms.", + "Everyone can arouse his heart to return to HaShem in complete repentance as a result of reciting psalms, and to reach his own gate of repentance, which resonates to his letter of the forty-nine letters of the names of the tribes of God.", + "These forty-nine letters correspond to the forty-nine gates of repentance, through which we return to HaShem.", + "As a result, may HaShem return to us completely, with great compassion and vast kindness.", + "May He assist and help us to constantly come close to Him from wherever we fell. May we return to Him with complete repentance — repentance upon repentance, continually.", + "Bring Me Salvation
My compassionate Father, You know how I have deeply compromised all of the ways of Your counsel that You revealed to us through Your true Tzaddikim.", + "But I know [and believe] with complete faith that it is absolutely impossible to damage Your counsel.", + "Therefore, I still await and anticipate a complete salvation at every moment. I wait for You to bring me close to You and return me to You in complete repentance by means of all of the wondrous and awesome, perfect and simple ways and counsels that You revealed to us through Your true Tzaddikim, so that from now on I will always be in accordance with Your good will.", + "Master of the world, help me regularly recite many psalms every day with great concentration, with prodigious feeling, with the true attention of my heart, until I will feel the pain of my sins and repent for them completely.", + "May I attain great joy as a result of reciting psalms. May I arouse the ten types of melody of which the Book of Psalms is composed, which heal the “King’s daughter” — the Congregation of Israel — and sing melodies all of the days of my life about the House of HaShem in a voice of joy and thanks: “HaShem is good; His kindness is forever.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, help me emerge from all exiles of soul and body, which are called the exile of Egypt.", + "Help me purify, refine and reveal all fortynine gates of repentance as a result of reciting psalms, which include all of the “names of the children of Israel coming to Egypt” that are comprised of forty-nine letters, corresponding to the forty-nine gates of repentance.", + "In this way, bring me out of the forty-nine gates of uncleanness and into the forty-nine gates of holiness. Take me out of the “narrowness of the throat,” so that my throat will not be hoarse as a result of having called out to You so much from the narrowness of the throat.", + "Bring me out to expansiveness. Raise me from the “land of Egypt,” from the “narrowness of the throat,” so that I will open my mouth and You will fill it with all true and eternal good. Then I will truly come close to You and return to You in complete and wholehearted repentance, with my body, soul and financial affairs.", + "“Bring me back and I will return, for You are [HaShem] my God.” Bring us back, our Father, to Your Torah, and bring us close, our King, to serve You. Return us to You in complete repentance. You look to the wicked person and desire his vindication. You desire repentance. “You do not desire the death of a person who dies,” “but that he will repent of his deeds and live.” You wait for him until the day of his death, and if he repents, You immediately accept him.", + "“You press a man down until his soul is crushed, and You say, ‘Return, sons of man!’” Bring us back, God of our salvation. Turn back Your anger against us. “Return us to You, HaShem, and we will return; renew our days as of old.”", + "Counting the Omer
Master of the world, “recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your kindness, which are eternal.” Please recall the wondrous and awesome kindness that You performed on our behalf when You brought us out of Egypt with great might and a strong hand.", + "You revealed to us the truth of the faith in Your Godliness with a great, wondrous and sweet light. You performed great and awesome signs and miracles in order to reveal Your Godliness, Your Oneness and Your absolute sovereignty.", + "Afterward, You brought us close to You as a holy people. You took us out of the fortynine gates of uncleanness and brought us into the forty-nine gates of holiness — which are the forty-nine gates of repentance that are associated with the forty-nine letters of the names of the tribes of God.", + "In Your vast compassion, You commanded us to count the corresponding forty-nine days of sefirah, in order to purify the polluted souls of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "Then, as a result of the mitzvah of Counting the Omer, we can emerge from uncleanness to purity, leaving the forty-nine gates of uncleanness behind and entering the forty-nine gates of holiness.", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, in Your intense kindness help me fulfill the mitzvah of Counting the Omer in a timely fashion, with great holiness and with wondrous and awesome enthusiasm.", + "As a result of the holiness of this awesome mitzvah, may we wake up and truly return to You, and emerge from all of our uncleanness. May we expunge every kind of uncleanness and pollution that clings to us as a result of our evil deeds.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, save us with every type of salvation. You know the power of every mitzvah, its great ability to extract us from the places into which we have fallen due to our many sins, and to bring us close to You.", + "This is particularly true of the mitzvah of Counting the Omer, which prepares us to receive the Torah, which marks the beginning of the Jewish people’s coming close to their Father in Heaven.", + "You gave us this holy mitzvah so that we may emerge from the forty-nine gates of uncleanness and enter the forty-nine gates of holiness. Help me keep this mitzvah from where I stand now, with the greatest perfection possible for a person like me.", + "Be filled with compassion on my behalf. Help me and save me as a result of my keeping this mitzvah, and quickly bring me out from uncleanness to purity, from the mundane to the holy, from sadness to joy, from subjugation to redemption, and from darkness to a great light.", + "On the holy festival of Shavuot, which is the fiftieth day, return to us and open the holy fiftieth gate for us. Pour great compassion and supernal kindness onto us from that gate, so that we will rectify everything and truly return to You always.", + "Emerging from This Bitter Exile
Master of the world, You Who gaze and look to the end of all generations, You Who think thoughts so that no one will remain cast away from You, You know the acute bitterness of this last exile, the level to which we have fallen and descended due to our many sins, a descent deeper than the forty-nine gates of uncleanness.", + "Because of our many sins, in this troubled time “[we] have descended shockingly, with no one to console [us].” We have sunken “into the muddy depths and cannot stand.” We have entered into the depths of the water and the waves have washed over us.", + "“Gazing to the right, I see that no one knows me. My refuge is gone; no one seeks my soul.” I have turned in every direction, but salvation is far from me. What can I say? My sins have deeply affected me.", + "“If Your Torah had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.” “Your kindness to us is great and You have rescued our soul from the lowest Sheol.” For indeed, this last exile has been taxing because we have fallen and descended further than we did in the exile of Egypt.", + "This is our consolation in our impoverished state: that Your word has revived us. For You brought the medicine before our wound, giving us Your holy Torah through Moses Your prophet. In the exile of Egypt, we had not yet attained this. We left before receiving the Torah, like a slave fleeing from his master, and that caused subsequent problems.", + "But now You have already performed wondrous kindness on our behalf. You have already given us Your holy Torah through Moses Your prophet, the faithful one of Your house.", + "And we have merited a number of great and awesome Tzaddikim in every generation, and we also attained the holy Book of Psalms from David, king of Israel.", + "However, I admit the truth, confessing before You, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that nevertheless, I remain entirely on the outside, and have not yet emerged at all from the mundane to the holy.", + "Every day I ask, “What will my end be?” “We hope for peace but there is no goodness, and for a time of healing, but behold, there is fright.” All of the signposts indicating our salvation that I looked forward to have passed by, and still I have not been saved.", + "Not only that, but I have added transgression to trespass, great and terrible offenses to my previous offenses — woe!", + "I do not know how I continue to live in such a completely bitter state, with my soul so bewildered, feeling more bitter than death, cast down, rebuffed and rejected.", + "I constantly rise to Heaven and then descend into profound depths. I am cast down from Heaven to earth thousands and tens of thousands of times without number. My soul is shot about as “in the pocket of the sling.”", + "I have run out of words and combinations of letters to relate my oppression and bitterness. Woe! Woe! At the very least, I had yearned to mitigate the bitterness of my spirit and express my speech. But even this is too difficult and onerous for me. “My hand is heavy from sighing.”", + "All of the hides of the “rams of Nebayot” would not suffice as parchment on which to write the effects of our blemishes of one day, or even of one hour.", + "Save Me with Your Holy Counsel
Master of the world, “this is my consolation in my affliction”: that the true Tzaddikim have encouraged us “more than seven men who give advice” and revealed to us that there is no despair in the world at all.", + "This alone has secured me. Relying on in their great strength, I gaze hopefully for salvation from where I am.", + "I constantly expect You Who are filled with compassion to save me with all of the holy ways of Your counsel that You revealed to us through Your true Tzaddikim. Every piece of advice has the power to help me and save me.", + "And even if I damaged them all with my many sins, I know and believe that You have more vast compassion and means of rescue, salvation and wondrous counsel that You disclosed to them alone, which they have not yet revealed to the world.", + "Through this advice, I still have hope that I will return to You and begin anew to keep all of Your holy advice with love and fear, so that I will quickly rectify everything in my life and always be in accordance with Your good will.", + "Master of the world, “besides what I see, You instruct me.” For “I am a beast and do not know, I have been an animal with You.” With my many sins, I blemished and damaged a great deal by engaging in ways that I knew to be against Your will.", + "I transgressed, sinned and offended a great deal every day, every hour and every moment, from my youth until this day. I blemished and damaged a very great deal.", + "Nevertheless, in Your vast compassion, You revealed to us through Your true Tzaddikim that “HaShem my God, You are exceedingly great.” We do not know anything at all, for there is no limit to Your greatness.", + "Despite our falls, each individual to where he fell, Your greatness is exceedingly elevated, and there is a way in which everything is totally transformed to the good.", + "None of us knows anything of this. On this alone I rely, depend and am supported still, for the kindness of HaShem has not ended and His compassion has never ceased.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, help me recite more psalms with great concentration and wondrous, wholehearted fervor, until at every moment You will pour onto me great illumination and holiness from the fiftieth gate of holiness, which comprises all of the gates of holiness.", + "Quickly bring me out from all fifty gates of uncleanness, and bring me into all fifty gates of holiness. We have no one on whom to rely except You, our Father in Heaven — for no place is empty of You.", + "Help us from now on. Save us with a complete salvation, as is fitting for You, so that I will be entirely renewed, so that I will completely abandon my evil ways and evil thoughts, and no longer return to foolishness.", + "“God, create within me a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” By reciting psalms, may I quickly arrive at the sign and gate of repentance connected to my soul, according to the root of my soul in the forty-nine letters of the names of the tribes of God.", + "In that way, may I truly return to You with all my heart, and truly serve You with fear and love, “in joy and with a goodness of heart out of an abundance of everything.”", + "“Bring me back and I will return, for You are [HaShem] my God.” “Bring us back to You, HaShem, and we will return. Renew our days as of old.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "We Read Parashat Parah Because Purim is a Preparation for Pesach
After Purim, we read Parashat Parah, the Torah portion describing the Red Heifer. This reminds us to purify ourselves in preparation for Pesach.
Originally, all beginnings were from Pesach, and so all of the commandments are a recollection of the Exodus. But now Purim marks the beginning. And so Purim itself is a preparation for Pesach, as indicated by the reading of Parashat Parah right after Purim.
For Purim
The Mitzvot of Purim
HaShem our God and God of our fathers, You perform miracles and wonders in every generation. You battle on our behalf, judge our cases, avenge us, requite all of our enemies, and make reprisal on our adversaries.", + "May it be Your will that You will be kind to us in Your vast compassion, and help us in Your awesome salvation and with Your wonders, so that we will celebrate the holy days of Purim properly in their time.", + "May we perform all of the holy mitzvot that apply to Purim with great holiness and purity, “with joy and a good heart,” with great and intense cheer, liveliness, delight and felicity, with all of their details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on them.", + "Master of the Universe, You know that in the midst of our descent and fall into the valley of this bitter exile, and in the increasing spiritual pain that befalls every person from Israel, and even on me privately, and in the increasing depths of the sea that is washing over me, and is pursuing me on all sides, and in the great pain I never have any measure of relief, and I do not know at all where the opening for hope is to repair and save from all of this, for all of this I need NOW miracles and wonders and a great, awesome redemption, just like you did for all of Israel in the generations before miracles and wonders that were never like them before. In the days of Mordechai and Esther when the Evil Haman (may his name and memory be blotted out) stood against them, the miracle of the Great Purim from all the miracles that You did in the world, when You made known to us by way of Your great and holy wise teachers may their memories be blesses, and all of the appointed times that will be one day null, but the days of Purim will never be null. At the beginning of all beginnings from Pesach, for all the appointed times they remember the Exodus from Egypt. ", + "We must draw the holiness of Purim and the holiness of all of the festivals, and the illumination of the miracles and wonders that occurred on them, into every year, into every generation and, in particular, into every individual.", + "And so I have come to You Who perform miracles and wonders in every generation — every day, hour and moment. Teach me, guide me and be gracious to me, and help me truly attain the full joy of Purim.", + "May I rejoice exceedingly, with all my heart and soul, on the holy days of Purim every year, with endless joy.", + "With the joy and holiness of Purim, may I draw onto myself and onto the entire Jewish people the holiness and joy drawn from the Red Heifer that purifies us from the uncleanness of death.", + "You commanded us to recite the Torah portion of the Red Heifer following Purim. And You revealed to us that by celebrating Purim, we attain the purification of the Red Heifer, which cleanses us so that we may receive the holiness of the Pesach sacrifice in its time.", + "Master of the Universe, who causes life, Living God and Sovereign of the world: Have mercy on us, give us life and sustain us. Sanctify us and purify us from the impurity of death which is the greatest source of impurity, which is (the Granddaddy) the highest category of impurity. They are the stirrings of adultery that overpower and spread out in the world greatly, until \"we are sinking into the slimy deep, and find no foothold, we have come into the watery depths and the flood sweeps us away.\" (paraphrase Psalm 69:3). We merited in the strength of the holiness of the Mitzvah of Purim that we should merit to receive and to continue upon us the holiness and purity of the completely Red Heifer, to purify us in truth from the impurity of death in this world and the next world. And may I merit in this way to receive the Festival of the Holy Pesach, the time of our Freedom in great holiness and great and all-encompassing joy. And may we merit in Your mercy to fulfill all the mitzvot of Pesach in great holiness, happiness, and great joy. And help us, save us, and guard us in Your great compassion, from any amount of chametz or leaven, should not be found in our boundaries or property, absolutely any amount of leaven or chametz all the days of Pesach. For it is revealed and known before You, Master of all the world, that it is impossible for flesh and blood alone to be careful about a miniscule amount of chametz without Your saving grace. Be compassionate upon us with Your great compassion, redeeming strength, true mercy, guard and save us from any amount of chametz all the holy days of Pesach, and help us and cause us to merit to go from slavery to freedom, from sadness to joy, from mourning to festival, from darkness to great light. Cause us to merit to organize the Seder of Pesach with great presence, wonderous passion, and all encompassing happiness. May we merit that should come upon us and cause enlighten within us, in this wonderous enlightenment all of the expansive and small mind that cause the light of Pesach in the great, wonderous, and awesome light. ", + "An enormous extent of the depths of the sea covers me and washes over me fiercely from every direction. I suffer a great deal, beyond measure or limit, and I do not know of any doorway of hope, any way to rectify or escape from any of this.", + "To deal with all this, I need wondrous miracles and great salvation now, as You performed on behalf of the Jewish people in a way that influenced all generations: the unparalleled miracles, wonders and awesome matters in the days of Mordekhai and Esther, when the wicked Haman, may his name and memory be blotted out, opposed them.", + "The miracle of Purim is greater than any of the other miracles that You performed for us in influencing all time, as You informed us through Your holy sages, “All of the festivals will be annulled, except for the days of Purim.”", + "At first, all beginnings were from Pesach, because all of the festivals are a reminder of the Exodus from Egypt. But that is no longer the case.", + "The Essence of Miracles
Master of the world, Master of the entire world, Master of wonders, cause salvation to flourish! You know the truth regarding all of the miracles and wonders that You performed for us during the Exodus from Egypt and the wars against Amalek, in the days of Moses and in the days of Mordekhai and Esther.", + "And in all of the miracles and wonders that You performed for us during the days of Chanukah, as well as in every generation, the essence of each miracle and salvation is the salvation of the soul.", + "All of our foes — both those who pursue us physically and those who pursue us spiritually — are jealous and spiteful only because we believe in You, HaShem our God. We yearn to go in Your holy ways and keep Your awesome mitzvot, to reveal and publicize the truth of the faith in Your Godliness, providence and universal governance.", + "Because of this, “not just one alone has stood against us to destroy us, but in every generation, they stand against us to destroy us. But the Holy One, blessed be He, saves us from their hand.”", + "And so the essence of each miracle and of salvation from all of our troubles is that it is an expression of Your zealousness and of Your performing miracles and wonders to preserve the Torah and the mitzvot so that they will not be eradicated from the world, Heaven forbid. That is the desire of our enemies and the heretics, may their names be erased, all of whom are from the aspect of Haman and Amalek, may their name be blotted out.", + "And now, what will I say to You Who dwell in the heights? What will I tell You Who dwell in the heavens, if after all of these miracles and wonders, I maltreat myself even more than my enemies do?", + "I have not gained control over my lusts. I have even instigated the evil inclination and acted with my own hands to bring about these troubles, the troubles of my soul, which are more difficult and bitter than all other sufferings.", + "There is no suffering like the sufferings of the soul. And so the most compassionate act is to extract a Jewish soul from sins and blemishes.", + "Master of the entire world, Unique One, Primal One, “HaShem God is true.” You alone know where these words of mine reach.", + "In truth, I am a boor who does not appreciate the effect of the miracle of Purim on the physical and spiritual dimensions — and, in particular, I do not know how to draw the power of this miracle and salvation onto myself.", + "You alone know everything. At every moment, You hint to me from afar to come close to You, using different types of illumination and many allusions beyond measure. But due to my intense stubbornness, I still have not repented of my error.", + "But this is my consolation in my bitter impoverishment: that I am still stubborn enough to speak these words to You from the dust, and I still hope in Your compassion and salvation.", + "Master of the world, You alone know the power of the miracle that occurred in the days of Mordekhai and Esther, who won the war against Haman-Amalek, wiping out their name and memory from the world. As a result, they drew wondrous illumination and awesome salvation into every generation.", + "Now, all of our life force and our hope of emerging from our exile in body and soul come only from the power of this miracle.", + "We stand and look hopefully to Your salvation just as You helped the Jews of that time subdue and break the “husk” of Haman- Amalek. In the same way, may You uproot, eradicate and subdue his great pollution and reveal faith in Your providence to the world, so that we may again keep and receive anew Your holy Torah.", + "Please stand and help us in every generation, until You will win the war completely, entirely eradicating the memory of Amalek and removing the spirit of uncleanness from the earth. Truly bring us back to You and quickly extricate us from our bitter exile.", + "Therefore, I have come to You, Master of wonders, asking You to focus on the great sufferings of our soul and look at our hardship and toil, and not at our deeds.", + "Perform wondrous and awesome miracles for us, the miracles of Purim. Bring about a chain of events for the good so that we will return to You in our lifetime, quickly, swiftly and speedily, and no longer return to our foolishness.", + "For Pesach
From Purim to Pesach
Master of the world, You Who revive the dead, Living God and Eternal King, have compassion on us. Revive us and sustain us, sanctify us and purify us from the uncleanness of death — which is the archetype of uncleanness and is associated with lechery — which has grown and spread through the world until we have “sunken into the muddy depths and cannot stand,” entering the depths of the water as the waves wash over us.", + "With the power of the holiness of the mitzvah of Purim, may we receive and draw onto ourselves the holiness and purity of the unblemished Red Heifer to truly purify us of the uncleanness of death — both in this world and in the next.", + "In this way, may I celebrate the holy festival of Pesach, the season of our freedom, with great holiness and vast, intense joy. In Your compassion, may we keep all of the mitzvot of Pesach with great holiness and with vast joy and gladness.", + "In Your vast compassion, help us, save us and guard us from the slightest trace of leavening, so that even a trace of leavening will not be found in our borders or domains throughout the days of Pesach.", + "It is revealed and known to You, Master of the entire world, that without the help of Your salvation and compassion, a creature of flesh and blood could not avoid at least a trace of leavening.", + "In Your vast compassion, have compassion on us, powerful Redeemer, truly Compassionate One. Guard us and rescue us from any trace of leavening during all of the holy days of Pesach. Help us emerge from slavery to freedom, from sorrow to joy, from sadness to celebration, from darkness to a great light.", + "May we celebrate the Pesach Seder with great enthusiasm, wondrous fervor and vast, intense joy.", + "May all states of consciousness — both great and small — that shine on Pesach come to us and illuminate us with wondrous illumination, with a great, wondrous and awesome light.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, help us and save us so that we will keep the mitzvot of Purim with such great holiness and joy that afterward, we will truly guard against the slightest trace of leavening on Pesach, and keep all of the awesome mitzvot of Pesach with great holiness and awesome, intense joy.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Compassionately help us attain now what we have requested of You. In accordance with this teaching, help us and save us so that we will return and truly come close to You quickly.", + "Save us in the power of the holy miracle and wondrous salvation of Purim, so that from now on we will be transformed from evil to good, and emerge from sadness to joy and from darkness to a great light.", + "For the Fast of Esther
Attaining True Repentance
Help us and save us so that we will keep the Fast of Esther prior to Purim with great holiness. May we recite the selichot with great feeling, calling and crying out to You extensively. Open my heart so that I will truly feel the pain of my sins and the intense, immeasurable suffering of my spirit.", + "May I call out with a great and bitter outcry, as is fitting for me to do in keeping with the abundance of my intense sins and offenses, and my great and innumerable blemishes.", + "May Your compassion for me truly be aroused. Please hurry to save me and redeem me from myself, so that I will obey Your laws and truly guard Your mitzvot with all my heart.", + "My Father, my King, my Maker, my Creator, teach me how to begin from the holy level of Purim, as You indicated to us through Your holy sages.", + "Help me miraculously, with wondrous and awesome salvation, with wondrous and awesome renewal, so that I can truly return to You in complete repentance from now on.", + "May I start serving You anew with a complete, true beginning, with all my heart and soul. Truly direct me and teach me where to begin and how, and which advice will truly bring me back to You.", + "Master of the world, “great in counsel and mighty in deed,” rectify me with Your good counsel. Quickly save me for the sake of Your Name, so that from now on I will truly attain complete repentance all of the days of my life, and from now on I will not turn aside from Your will, right or left.", + "May I learn and teach, guard, perform and maintain all of the words of Your Torah with love. May I keep all of the mitzvot and all holy matters, and do everything in its time and season. May I perform everything well in its time with great holiness and purity. Strengthen me with joy and gladness always.", + "With the aid of the power of the true Tzaddikim, may I expel and eradicate from myself and from the entire Jewish people the “husk” of Haman-Amalek, may his name be erased, and draw onto myself the holiness of the miracle and salvation of Purim.", + "Have compassion on us in every generation and every year, so that we will rejoice greatly on the days of Purim with great happiness and vast, intense gladness.", + "May we keep the mitzvah of reading the Megillah with great holiness and purity, and with vast, intense joy. May we think deeply into the great magnitude of the wonderful miracle and the awesome, intense salvation, and publicize the miracle to every nation and populace.", + "May we keep the mitzvah of “sending gifts, each person to his neighbor, and gifts to the poor,” along with the mitzvah of the Purim feast, with great perfection and vast, intense joy.", + "And may we keep the mitzvah of getting intoxicated on Purim, as our sages instructed us. Help us and guard us so that our drinking and intoxication on Purim do not damage us at all in body or soul. May we not harm any person or anything as a result of being intoxicated.", + "Rather, by means of getting intoxicated on Purim, may we attain great joy and vast, intense gladness — the joy of Purim.", + "Then a period of wondrous and mighty illumination — the illumination of Mordekhai, which has no equal during all of the other days of the year — will shine.", + "May I be joyful with all my heart and make others joyful as well, gladdening the entire Jewish people, Your nation, with the joy of Purim, with extremely vast, intense gladness.", + "May we be glad and rejoice in Your salvation with true joy, so that You will be glad and pleased, and receive great delight from our drinking and our rejoicing on the holy Purim.", + "Every year, may we know the great miracle and wondrous salvation of Purim. May we subdue, expel, uproot and nullify within ourselves the “husk” of Haman-Amalek and his great pollution, and wipe out his name and memory from the world. May we purify ourselves of his pollution with great holiness and purity, and draw onto ourselves the holiness of Mordekhai and Esther.", + "May we draw the joy of Purim onto the entire year, so that we will always rejoice in You with truly vast joy and gladness.", + "As a result, may we truly attain the holiness and purity of the Red Heifer and the holiness of Pesach, and may we be joyful always.", + "May the verse be realized in us, “Our heart will rejoice in Him, because we have hoped in His holy Name.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "The Greater a Person’s Awareness, the Greater the Suffering He Must Undergo / Suffering is Ameliorated When One Eats in a State of Holiness and Fear of God / When a Person Eats in a State of Holiness and Fear of Heaven, God’s Presence Speaks from His Throat
Every Jew — even a great Tzaddik — must experience some suffering every day. Indeed, the greater a person’s awareness, the greater his suffering.
Some suffering comes from a person’s holy fear of God. But at times it comes from fallen fears.
This suffering is ameliorated when a person eats in a state of holiness and fear of Heaven. Eating in this way also prevents the suffering from descending to the Side of Evil and the realm of harsh judgment.
When a person does not eat in a holy fashion, his mouth is that of an animal. At that time, his fear of Heaven stands at a distance and does not enter into him. But when he eats in a holy fashion, he makes his mouth human and the fear of Heaven does enter into him. Then he is a “speaking being” — that is, a human being.
By eating in a state of holiness and by drawing holy fear onto himself while he eats, a person sweetens the suffering and judgment. The holy fear that he draws onto himself elevates and sweetens his fallen fears.
And then his mouth ascends beyond the human level to the level of “supernal man.” Then God’s Presence speaks from his throat.
Holy Eating and Drinking
May it be Your will, HaShem my God and God of my fathers, that You will help me and save me in Your vast compassion and mighty kindness, so that I will entirely break my desire for eating.", + "May I eat and drink in great holiness and purity, at the proper time, in a carefully calibrated fashion, truly in accordance with Your good will.", + "May I always draw onto myself the holy fear that comes to a person, particularly when he eats. When I sit at the table for a meal, may I always experience great dread and fear of You.", + "In consequence of that, help me in Your intense kindness to sweeten and nullify every type of hurt and suffering, and all judgments in the world that affect me, all of my family members, and all of the children of Israel, Your nation.", + "You know all of our toil and affliction, all of the types of hurt and suffering that every one of us experiences every day, and our intensely degraded state of awareness. It is hard for us to bear the pain and suffering that we experience every day.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us wake up from now on and draw Your supernal holiness onto ourselves. May we truly draw the fear of Heaven onto ourselves. And may Your fear be upon our faces so that we will not sin.", + "In particular, at mealtimes, help us and save us so that we will eat in great holiness and purity, until we will always draw onto ourselves the holy fear that comes to a person at the time of eating.", + "As a result, may we nullify and sweeten every type of suffering and pain, and all of the judgments in the world that affect us and Your entire nation, the House of Israel.", + "As a result, help us rise from the animalistic to the human level, the level of true holiness, which is associated with the unique human quality of speech. May we attain holy speech always.", + "Help us rise at every moment from level to level until we are subsumed into the level of “supernal man,” and God’s Presence speaks from our throats.", + "Nothing is Impossible
Master of the world, I have asked for something difficult — but in the context of Your great compassion and graciousness, nothing is remote.", + "In truth, I know that taking into account my lowly inadequacy, I do not have the right to speak about and request even the most insignificant thing.", + "There is nothing in the world of a holy nature that is not totally and completely beyond me, to an extent that is beyond description.", + "But we have already heard from afar of Your greatness, Your humility and Your vast, immeasurable compassion and kindness, a little of which I have seen with my own eyes.", + "Therefore, I hope, and I open my mouth to ask and request of You that I may reach even the greatest of levels, because nothing is impossible for You. Nothing is beyond You. “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.”", + "You created Your world only for this: to show Your goodness, Your compassion and Your kindness to all who desire and yearn to receive them.", + "And the more distant and guilty I am, please reveal more to me — in particular, Your great goodness, kindness and graciousness, which constitute the essence of Your greatness and for whose sake You created all worlds.", + "The fact that You grant kindness and goodness to true Tzaddikim who truly serve You all of the days of their lives with true self-sacrifice, who attain what they attain with their good deeds, does not constitute a revelation of the awesome wonders of Your goodness and kindness.", + "But the ways of Your goodness, kindness, compassion and graciousness — which are awesome, wondrous and elevated beyond all comprehension, beyond measure, limit or number — are revealed in regard to a person like me. When You draw someone as distant, blemished and guilty as myself close to You, then “because of me the righteous will crown You, because You will recompense me.”", + "Help me, You Who help the poor. Save me, Master of salvations. “Do not forsake me and do not abandon me, God of my salvation.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "The Tzaddik Sometimes Acts in a Simple Manner / A Tzaddik Who is in a State of Simplicity Draws Life from the Journey to the Land of Israel / People Who Cannot Get Life Directly from the Torah Get it from the Tzaddik When He Acts in a Simple Manner / Before the Giving of the Torah, the World Existed Solely Through God’s Kindness / The Tzaddik in His State of Simplicity Receives from the Treasury of Unearned Gifts / Jews Sanctify All Areas that They Come to / Torah is Everywhere, So There is Never Cause for a Person to Despair / A Person Never Requires Cleverness / In the Messianic Era, Dispute among the Tzaddikim Prevents People from Knowing Where the Truth Lies
The true Tzaddik acts in a simple manner. Sometimes he is literally a simple person. He does not reveal any Torah and engages in mundane conversation.
The essence of life is the Torah. Whoever is separated from the Torah is separated from life. That being the case, how can a person separate himself from Torah even briefly? Yet on the other hand, a person cannot constantly cling to the Torah day and night without pause — not even a brilliant, exalted person. He must occasionally interrupt in order to engage in some business, and so forth.
At that time, he is literally a simple person. It is true that “the nullification of Torah is ultimately its maintenance” (Sefer Chassidim 952) — but who wants to separate himself from the Torah for even a short while? This is especially true of a person who loves the Torah and clings to it, and, how much more, someone who feels sweetness in the Torah and creates original insights, and, even more, a brilliant person who attains the hidden treasures of the King. When such a person must separate himself from the Torah, from where does he draw life then?
At that time — at the time that the true Tzaddik is a simple person — he draws life from the journey to the Land of Israel.
All simple people — be they scholars who are not engaged in learning, or unlearned yet God-fearing people, or people who are even lower than that, such as non-Jews — need to receive life force from the Torah, which is the essence of life. But since they are far from Torah, they need a great, simple person through whom they can receive life force.
All of these simple people revive themselves from the concept of the world’s existence prior to the giving of the Torah.
At that time, when there was no performance of mitzvot, the world existed solely due to God’s kindness. When the Tzaddik is in his state of simplicity, he receives life from that level.
That is the level of the treasury of unearned gifts, from which a person without merits receives. This treasury is not for the wicked — for if it was, the wicked would be better off than the righteous. Rather, this treasury is for the Tzaddik at the time that he is a simple person. At that time, he receives from this treasury of unearned gifts.
Before the Torah was given, people involved themselves only in civilizing the world and attaining basic decency. “Great is basic decency, which preceded the Torah by twenty-six generations” (Vayikra Rabbah 9:1). Before the giving of the Torah, the world existed solely through unearned kindness.
Yet the Torah existed even before we received it, for it is eternal. However, it was hidden.
The entire Torah is included in the Ten Commandments. Originally, the Ten Commandments were hidden in the Ten Statements with which the world was created. Thus, the whole Torah was hidden in the civilizing of the world and in all speech, work and deeds.
When the Tzaddik is simple and separated from Torah, he receives life from this level.
That is the road to the Land of Israel. The essential power of the holiness of the Land of Israel comes via “the power of His deeds that He related to His nation, to give them an inheritance of nations” (Psalms 111:6). As Rashi explains, “God created everything; He took the Land of Israel from the nations and gave it to whomever He pleased” (Rashi on Genesis 1:1). The fundamental strength of the Land of Israel is the Ten Statements, the “power of His deeds,” via which the Jews could go and conquer the Land.
This concept can exist in the rest of the world as well. Sometimes Jews come to a place that is very far from the holiness of the Land of Israel. They conquer that place and sanctify it so as to be a Jewish place — that, too, is the level of the Land of Israel. People could accuse the Jews of being thieves, but via the “power of His deeds,” the Ten Statements, we have permission to conquer the entire world and grant it Jewish sanctity.
That is basic decency, the proper “way of the world,” the way to the Land of Israel. Basic decency civilizes the world, which was created with Ten Statements. That itself is the pathway to the Land of Israel.
And so the great Tzaddik must descend and fall into simplicity for a period of time, because in that way he revives all simple people, since he revives himself with the level of the Torah hidden in the Ten Statements that are enclothed in the world. Simple people then receive life from him.
Therefore, when Moses asked to be allowed to enter the Land of Israel, he asked for that as an undeserved gift.
It is forbidden to despair. Even a simple person who is unable to learn, or even a person on the lowest level, must strengthen himself with the fear of God and simple devotion according to his level. Then he, too, receives life from the Torah via the great, simple man — the great Tzaddik.
There is no despair in the world at all. When a person is in a state of simplicity, he must strengthen himself with the fear of Heaven. He can attain great joy via his simplicity and faith, for he does not need any cleverness. In fact, cleverness is very harmful. A person can stray from one level of cleverness to another until he is trapped in cleverness.
A person must beseech God to help him come close to the true Tzaddik. For after a person dies, it will be very hard for him to do so.
Right now the Side of Evil is generating confusion in the world, because the Jewish people are very close to the messianic era. They are yearning for God in a way that did not exist in earlier days. Therefore, the Side of Evil has created dispute among the Tzaddikim and set up false leaders, such that no one knows where the truth lies. We must ask God to be worthy of drawing close to the true Tzaddik.
God’s Unlimited Gifts
“I beseeched HaShem at that time, saying, ‘Lord God, You have begun to show Your servant Your greatness and Your mighty hand, for who is like God in Heaven and earth? Who will perform acts like Your acts and in accordance with Your might? Allow me to go forward now. Allow me to see the good Land on the other side of the Jordan — this good mountain and the Lebanon.’”", + "Master of the universe, You Who are filled with compassion, You are gracious to those who do not deserve Your graciousness. You have compassion on those who do not deserve Your compassion. You perform undeserved kindness in every generation.", + "You have performed vast kindnesses — collectively and individually — in every generation. Until now, Your compassion has helped us and Your kindness has not abandoned us. You have given even me, lowly and wretched as I am, vast kindnesses and favors without measure, limit or number.", + "If my mouth were filled with song like the sea and my tongue with melody like the multitude of its waves, I would not manage in all of my days to thank You, praise You, beautify You, and bless and sanctify Your Name.", + "I could not thank, praise or tell a thousandth, a millionth or a billionth of the many tremendous favors, miracles, wonders and acts of undeserved kindness that You have performed on my behalf from my beginning until this day.", + "What shall I say and how shall I speak? “With what will I come before God? How shall I bow before the Most High God?” Of which treasury of unearned gifts that You have given me will I speak first?", + "Every kindness that You have performed with me — a sinner and blemished person — is a treasury filled with unearned gifts. In Your vast kindness, You have strengthened me to yearn for Your faith, and You have given me the privilege of being among Your chosen servants, the people of Israel.", + "At all times You help us seize a number of good points from this transient world. In Your compassion, You help me engage in some Torah learning and prayer, fulfill a number of mitzvot, and separate myself from a number of sins every day and every moment.", + "You help me refrain from going in the counsel of the wicked, standing on the path of the sinners, and sit ting in the meeting place of the scorners. At every moment You place within me yearning, longing and pining for You and for joining those wholehearted people who fear You.", + "How vast is the goodness that You have performed on my behalf amid all Your people of Israel! You have given us good and precious gifts that were hidden in Your treasure house from the beginning.", + "Then Moses, a savior and teacher, the faithful one of Your house, brought us the beloved, hidden Torah, whose delights are daily and to which nothing can be compared — “all of your desirable things cannot equal it.”", + "“You have done much, HaShem my God,” with all of Israel, and with each individual in particular, every day. “Your wonders and thoughts are for our sake. No one compares with You. I would tell and speak them, but they are too many to recount.”", + "Regarding all of these, may Your Name be blessed, elevated and uplifted. Our King, we will always and forever thank You and recount Your praise, for our lives that are given over into Your hand and for our souls that are deposited with You.", + "We will do the same for Your miracles that are with us every day and for Your wonders and benefits at every moment — evening, morning and afternoon. You are good, and Your compassion has not ceased; You are compassionate, and Your kindness has not ended. We have always hoped in You.", + "May We Reach the Land of Israel
And now I have come to You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, You Who are always filled with kindness that we do not deserve. Graciously endow me from the treasury of unearned gifts. Help me make my way to the Land of Israel, quickly, swiftly and speedily, this year.", + "Perhaps I will receive holiness and purity from the ten types of holiness contained there, so that from now on I will truly return to You, and sanctify and purify myself from now and forever, and truly attain the fear of Heaven.", + "Attaining an Unearned Gift
Master of the world, I cannot speak or raise my face. I come like a poor person at the door, guilty, sinning and offending, requesting and begging with a confused mind and a stuttering tongue for an unearned gift alone.", + "I come to You in the might and merit of the great Tzaddikim who arrived in the Land of Israel after many obstacles, who delved and drew forth the treasury of unearned gifts for all people in the world.", + "In their merit and might alone, You have helped me come to You even now to request and seek an unearned gift, so that You will graciously grant me gifts from the treasury of unearned gifts, which stands open before the holy Tzaddikim.", + "From that treasury, graciously give me Your vast compassion and great kindness. Help me obey Your rules and guard Your mitzvot from now and forever.", + "Help me, guide me and teach me the way, path and counsel to quickly, swiftly and speedily pass by and leap over all of the impediments, controversies and commotions that prevent me from coming to the Land of Israel.", + "May I overcome obstacles due to finances or any other factor — in particular, all obstacles of the mind. May I break and nullify all of them very quickly, so that I will speedily set forth and come to the Land of Israel.", + "May I come there in peace and draw onto myself complete holiness, purity and awe from all of the ten types of holiness incorporated into the Land of Israel, which correspond to the Ten Statements with which You created Your world.", + "Those Ten Statements contain and conceal the Ten Commandments, which encapsulate the holy Torah. All of the Ten Statements are ten types of holiness, composed of the holy types of awe.", + "You are the mighty, awesome and majestic Master of the world. Grant me all of these types of holiness and awe so that I will return to You in truly complete repentance and truly serve You in fear and love — to learn and teach, to guard and do, and lovingly uphold all of the words of Your Torah.", + "God Can Do Everything
Master of the world, what shall I say? You know everything about me. But You informed us that we must pray with full expression, and that You hear the prayer of every mouth.", + "I rely on this to come to You now with prayer and pleading, Master of compassion, Master of kindness, Master of mercy and graciousness.", + "I hope to rise quickly and come to the Land of Israel from where I am. Perhaps there I will gain attainments. Perhaps there I will find a way and a path, strength and true counsel that I will keep, so that I will truly come close to You with love and fear, and truly return to You from now and forever.", + "My Father in Heaven, You Who think thoughts so that none will be cast away from You, “do not put me to shame because of my hope.” Do not disappoint my hope, and do not shut Your ears to my outcry.", + "“Do not close Your heart to Your impoverished brother.” Do not hide Your face from my yearning and longing. How I have longed and desired to truly return to You!", + "May You feel deep compassion for me. From now on, bring me truly close to You to serve You. Do not treat me in accordance with my sins. Do not recompense me in accordance with my deeds.", + "You know my inclinations. You know where I stand, from beginning to end. Everything is in Your hand — to remove my evil heart, my stiff neck, my insistent desires and my insolent body. “I have done wrong!”", + "Everything is in Your hand — might and strength, and the power to magnify and strengthen everything. I cast my burden upon You alone. I rely, depend and lean on You alone.", + "You are mighty and powerful to save. “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.” Who can question what You do?", + "“Bring me back and I will return, for You are [HaShem] my God.” “Heal me, HaShem and I will be healed” — with a healing of both soul and body. “Save me and I will be saved, because You are my praise.”", + "Graciously send me gifts from the treasury of unearned gifts, in the might and merit of the great Tzaddikim who are truly humble, who walk in true simplicity and truly make themselves entirely unsophisticated.", + "You alone know their great holiness, exaltedness and forceful might. They have the power to raise and elevate even me from where I am, to bring me close to You, to bring me quickly to the Land of Israel, and to help me repair everything that I have damaged.", + "May I not leave this world until, aided by their power, I rectify everything that I destroyed. “God, create within me a pure heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” “Restore the joy of Your salvation to me, and may a generous spirit support me.”", + "Help me! Save me! I stretch my hands out to You alone. “I stretch my hands out to You. My soul turns to You like a weary land.” “From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart faints; on the rock that is too high for me, You lead me.”", + "“My soul yearns to exhaustion for the courtyards of HaShem. My heart and flesh sing to the God of my life.” “God, You are my God — I will seek You. My spirit is thirsty for You, my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land without water. As I saw You in the Sanctuary, so may I see Your might and Your honor.”", + "Have Compassion on Us
Therefore, may it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, great in kindness and doing prodigious good, that You will have compassion on me in Your vast compassion and direct me, teach me and guide me in the ways of true simplicity and guilelessness.", + "May I be wholehearted with You, HaShem my God, and do Your will simply and directly in complete and upright faith, without any futile cleverness at all.", + "You know that our only way to come close to You is by means of total simplicity and innocence, with truth and complete faith.", + "I believe and understand, if only from a distance, that even in the depth of our present descent in this intensely bitter exile of body and soul, there exist ways of simplicity, guilelessness and faith.", + "Every person, wherever he is — even someone who has fallen low — can revive himself with this. By means of the ways of simplicity and directness, he can find a straight path and proper counsel in order to find You everywhere.", + "Everyone can rise from his fall and descent, and come close to You and cling to You. In complete truth and faith, he can please and appease You with simplicity and guilelessness, with prayer and pleas for graciousness, as You desire.", + "As the verse states, “My eyes are upon the faithful of the land to see to it that they will dwell with Me. One who walks on an upright path will serve Me.” And, “Fortunate are those whose way is perfect, who walk with the Torah of HaShem.”", + "Master of the world, You Who perform undeserved kindness in every generation, in Your undeserved compassion and kindness You created and maintained Your world twenty-six generations before the giving of the Torah. At that time, the world existed without Torah and solely due to Your undeserved kindness.", + "In Your vast compassion, have compassion on us even now. Open Your good treasury, the treasury of unearned gifts, for us, and constantly perform charity and undeserved kindness for us. Even when we are bereft of words of Torah, have compassion on us in the merit of the great, true Tzaddikim.", + "Pour all goodness onto us and sustain us with undeserved kindness, just as You maintained Your world with undeserved kindness for twentysix generations before the giving of the Torah.", + "When to Learn and When to Abstain from Learning Torah
Master of the world, have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us meditate on the words of Your Torah day and night. May I engage in much Torah learning with great constancy, with holiness and purity, truly for the sake of Your great Name.", + "Open my heart when I learn Your Torah so that I will understand and comprehend the depth, pleasantness and sweetness of Your holy, pure and perfect Torah.", + "Guide me and teach me constantly, so that I will always truly know when to abstain from learning Torah in order to later dedicate myself to it even more fully.", + "May I learn Torah day and night with great diligence. May I know and determine the amount of time necessary to set it aside, so that everything will be proper in its season and in its time.", + "It is revealed and known to You, Master of all, You Who give the Torah, that we are flesh and blood and carved out of clay, and we must necessarily set aside a little time from learning the Torah.", + "We need time to eat, drink and sleep in order to maintain our body, earn a living and engage in other bodily needs. Sometimes we need to set aside learning to keep our mind sharp, lest it become confused by an overabundance of study.", + "In truth, in accordance with the intense holiness of the sweet pleasantness of Your holy Torah, it would certainly be fitting for us never to set aside Torah learning even for a moment, because it is our life and the length of our days — and how is it possible to separate oneself from true life for even a single moment?", + "But You have revealed to us that it is totally impossible to exist in this world without setting aside Torah at all, because at times we must do so in order to attend to bodily needs.", + "The Wondrous, Simple Ways of the Tzaddikim
Therefore, in Your vast compassion, have compassion on us and help us come close to true Tzaddikim who maintain the entire world with their Torah, their holiness and their wondrous, simple ways.", + "In their might and merit, may we draw onto ourselves holiness, life and goodness at all times from the treasury of unearned gifts that stands open before them.", + "With this, they revive themselves when they are not learning Torah, and they revive all of the simple people in the world.", + "These simple people are Torah scholars at the time that they are not engaged in Torah, common people and ignoramuses — including those on the lowest level of Sheol and below, may the Compassionate One protect us — and even the nations of the world.", + "In their wondrous ways, the Tzaddikim revive all of these people when, on occasion, they make themselves like completely simple people. They draw down life and good abundance from the level of the world as it existed before the Torah was given. At that time, the world existed on the basis of undeserved kindness via the hidden Torah, which is the way to conquer the Land of Israel.", + "Please, HaShem, filled with compassion, help us come close to and always be connected to these awesome Tzaddikim who have the power to revive all people of the world even when they are far from the Torah, each in his own way.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You know that at present we possess ability, life and existence only due to the might and merit of these holy, awesome Tzaddikim.", + "Help us come close to them, fulfill their words, and truly walk on their path, acting in the ways of simplicity and innocence, with truth and complete faith, without any worldly cleverness at all.", + "The Hidden Ten Commandments
May I always revive myself and gladden my soul by means of faith alone, which is the foundation and essence of everything.", + "May I always know and believe that You created Your world with Ten Statements, in which the Ten Commandments — which encapsulate the totality of our holy Torah — are hidden.", + "All things and objects, all crafts, enterprises and business, all thoughts, speech and deeds, contain the Ten Statements with which they were all created. These Ten Statements conceal the Ten Commandments, which encapsulate the totality of the Torah.", + "In this way, may I always connect myself to and cling to HaShem and to the Torah at every moment in a truly simple and wholehearted way — even when I am forced to stop learning Torah.", + "Strengthen and bolster my heart so that nothing in the world will be able to cast it down. May the Evil One and the Side of Evil not be able to weaken my mind in any way.", + "May I always know and understand with complete, strong faith that there is no despair in the world at all, however things may be, because Your compassion never ceases.", + "You test a person at every moment. You bring about wondrous circumstances and chains of events for every individual, desiring that he will strengthen his connection to You at all times, no matter what that individual is like.", + "No good desire is ever lost. A person’s every movement to elevate himself and come close to You from wherever he is, and to strengthen himself — aided by Your helpful compassion and kindness — to hope at every moment to come close to You, is extremely precious and beloved in Your eyes.", + "By means of Your holy, true Tzaddikim, who hold on to us and strengthen our hands at every moment and proclaim that there is no despair in the world at all, You revealed to us a wondrous light coming from Your extraordinarily vast and intense kindness.", + "Overcoming Dispute
Master of the world, filled with compassion, You know the state of the Jewish people now, at the end of this bitter exile, which will soon come to an end.", + "Every day, every hour and every moment You look forward to the coming of our righteous redeemer. The souls of Your nation, the House of Israel, yearn, pine and long for You and desire to serve You with a fervor of the soul that never existed before.", + "But the Evil One has committed himself to the length and breadth to profoundly mislead the world, and has injected great dispute into the world. There has been great dissension among Torah sages, and many corrupt people of Your nation rise up “to bring about a vision — but they will fail.”", + "Even among the true Torah sages, there exists dispute and great confusion, so that no one knows where the truth lies.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. May we have no part in disputes against the Tzaddikim and truly worthy people. With the undeserved kindness that You bequeath, shine the ultimate truth on us, so that we will recognize the true Tzaddikim and worthy people in this generation and come close to them and be connected to them.", + "May we truly go in their ways with complete simplicity and faith, without any of the futile cleverness that is common in the world at present. May I constantly attain great joy by means of simplicity, wholeheartedness and complete faith in You, in Your holy Torah, and in Your true, good and simple Tzaddikim and those who fear You, people whose hearts are upright and who truly walk in Your ways.", + "Longing for the Land of Israel
Have compassion on me and strengthen my heart to truly long, yearn and pine for the Land of Israel. Let me engage in much prayer and pleading about this every day.", + "Please open the treasury of unearned gifts for me. Graciously grant me unearned kindness and quickly save me, so that I will come to the Land of Israel in peace and unharmed, and I will draw all of its abundant holiness onto myself.", + "My Father in Heaven, help me and save me in Your awesome wonders, in the ways of Your counsel known to You, in accordance with the simple and wholehearted ways of the true, great Tzaddikim.", + "May I pass and leap over every type of constriction into which I have fallen and which I have experienced more than enough times. May He Who says to His world, “Enough!” tell my troubles, “Enough!”", + "Constantly guide me and teach me wondrous, true counsel, so that I will always gladden myself, even with frivolous words and jokes. May gladness in HaShem be my strength forever.", + "In Your vast compassion and undeserved kindness, lift me on the wings of eagles and bring me quickly and swiftly to the Land of Israel, the Holy Land. Perhaps there I will come close to You and truly begin anew to serve You in fear and love, with true simplicity and wholeheartedness, and with complete faith, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Unique Master, filled with compassion, my King and my God, I pray to You. ", + "Hear my prayer. Accept the voice of my petition. Be pleased with me when I implore You.", + "If I have found favor in Your eyes, O King, and the matter is proper before You — all in the merit and might of the true Tzaddikim — then act for their sake to fulfill my request and perform my petition. Be with me and help me from now on so that I will truly turn away from evil entirely and always do what is good in Your eyes.", + "Gladden my soul at all times. May I always strengthen myself with might and gladness, and cheer myself with every kind of happiness in the world, even with frivolous matters, so that I will be joyful always.", + "May I attain complete and upright faith, and go in true simplicity and wholeheartedness, in accordance with Your good will, until I will travel quickly to the Land of Israel, arrive there in peace, and attain all true and eternal good.", + "May the physicality of my body not impede any of this. May the true Tzaddikim do as they wish with every part of my soul and with my entire body — and not as the lusts of my coarse body desire, Heaven forbid.", + "May I nullify my will before Your will and the will of the true holy Tzaddikim, may their merit protect us.", + "Receiving from the Treasury of Unearned Gifts
Master of the world, Master of the entire world, have compassion on me. Compassionately fulfill my requests for the good. Graciously grant me a gift from the treasury of unearned gifts. In absolute compassion and great mercy, bring me close to You from where I am now. Bring me quickly to the Land of Israel solely out of Your kindness that I have not earned.", + "For whom did You create the treasury of unearned gifts? The Tzaddikim do not need an unearned gift, because they earn their attainments with their good deeds. They do not eat the “bread of shame” at all.", + "Even when they are not learning Torah and they make themselves as completely simple people, reviving themselves from the treasury of unearned gifts, that, too, is a wondrous and awesome service in a very wondrous and elevated way, in which You take great delight.", + "Because of this, they receive ever more wondrous reward, doubled and quadrupled. Therefore, the Tzaddikim certainly do not need an unearned gift.", + "And if we were to think that You created the treasury of unearned gifts for the wicked, You revealed to us through Your true Tzaddikim that the wicked certainly do not deserve to receive anything from that treasury.", + "Therefore, it must be that the essence of the treasury of unearned gifts is meant to satisfy the spirit of the Tzaddikim who desire to bring close Your children who have become distanced from You. At the time that they act in a simple manner, they receive and revive themselves from that treasury in order to draw the life force of holiness and good abundance onto all those who have fallen and become distanced from You — to support them, sustain them, revive them and strengthen them despite their grievous fall and alienation.", + "The Tzaddikim bring them close to You by means of the treasury of unearned gifts. For from that treasury, the Tzaddikim are able to receive undeserved kindness that will enable them to bring all people close to You, as You revealed to us in Your holy Torah.", + "I still rely and depend on all of these things alone. I look forward from a distance to a good end with optimistic hope.", + "I brazenly raise my face to You, insolently and stubbornly, to ask You now to bring me quickly to the Land of Israel, the Land of life, the Land of holiness.", + "Bring me truly close to You with great joy by means of the ways of simplicity, wholeheartedness and truly complete faith, in accordance with everything that I have requested until now of You Who are filled with compassion.", + "“HaShem will act on my behalf; HaShem, Your kindness is forever; do not forsake the work of Your hands.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "When a Person’s Joy in Serving God Reaches All the Way to His Feet, He Dances / The Joy of Torah and Mitzvot Elevates All of the Lower Levels
When a person’s joy in learning Torah or in performing mitzvot reaches all the way down to his feet, he dances. The feet correspond to the sefirot of Netzach and Hod, representing the prophets. The joy in the heart lifts the feet up to the heart.
Then all of the supporters of Torah, the supporters of truth, are elevated.
Then the joy of Torah and mitzvot elevates all things associated with the foot — namely, all of the lower levels. A person lifts these up and connects them to the realm of righteousness, associated with the letter heh, which is the source of seed.
Faith is also called a “foot,” and everything that is called “foot” is elevated.
Teach Us How to be Spiritually Aware
You are the Master of joy and contentment. Might and gladness are in Your place, and there is no sadness in Your Presence at all. In Your vast compassion, help me and save me so that I will constantly gladden myself.", + "Teach me how to be spiritually aware. Give me advice that will help me always overcome and surmount grief, mourning and sadness, removing them from me and my environment, and not allowing them in to grasp or touch me at all, Heaven forbid.", + "May I grow so absolutely strong so that I will constantly draw joy and gladness to myself. May I rejoice and exult in You, in Your great salvation, in Your many profound wonders, and in the kindnesses that You have performed and that You will perform on my behalf.", + "In Your wondrous kindness, You made me a child of Israel, Your holy nation. You gave us a Torah of truth, and You planted eternal life in our midst. “Portions have fallen to me in pleasant places; indeed, the inheritance pleases me.”", + "In Your vast compassion, help me constantly grow stronger and strengthen myself, always drawing this great and wondrous joy onto myself.", + "May I strengthen myself with so much joy that the happiness will reach my feet, and I will dance out of joy.", + "In particular, on the Shabbat and festivals of HaShem — the “holy convocations” — and on Chanukah, Purim and other such joyful occasions, help me always gladden myself with all my might so I will dance exuberantly out of joy.", + "May I learn Torah and perform all of the mitzvot with so much joy that the happiness will reach my feet and I will lift them up.", + "A Blessing for Those Who Support Torah
As a result of my dancing, compassionately elevate and maintain all those who financially support people who learn Torah, all those supporters of truth who sponsor people who learn Torah, giving them the good gifts of their hands.", + "HaShem, please help them by showering them with everything good: wealth, honor, life, children and grandchildren. May their offspring be as many as the sand of the sea. Bless all the work of their hands, and may they succeed in everything that they do (and, in particular, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [father’s Hebrew name]).", + "Help them and constantly raise them higher and higher. Strengthen their hearts so they will always generously sustain those who truly learn Torah.", + "Fill their hands with the blessing of HaShem so they will be able to thoroughly support those who learn Torah, fulfilling all of their needs and giving them everything they lack, so that they will learn Torah and engage in the service of God for its own sake always, with ease, without any discomfiture or distraction related to income whatsoever.", + "Gaining Joy
You Who are filled with compassion, help me and save me so that I will always be joyful. Teach me the ways of Your true counsel at all times. Make me aware, strengthen me and bolster me at every moment so that I will be inspired to rejoice.", + "May I always be aware of the awesome and elevated goodness that You perform with every Jew — and, in particular, with me, at every moment, evening, morning and afternoon, from my beginning until this day.", + "May I appreciate Your limitless wonders and goodness that I know about, whether close or far away, and Your wonders and goodness that are hidden and concealed from me.", + "At every moment You alone perform awesome wonders, miracles and eternal favors on my behalf in order to give me life and sustain me with the holiness of Israel forever.", + "There is no greater goodness and joy than this: that every Jew — even the least of the least, such as myself — can attain a number of good points every day, keeping the mitzvot of the Creator which are our life and the length of our days forever and ever.", + "How fortunate are we! How good is our portion, how pleasant our destiny and how lovely our inheritance!", + "Help us recognize and believe in Your unceasing kindnesses, wonders and great goodness. May I always gladden myself in this way.", + "Open my heart and my awareness, illumine my mind’s eye, direct me and teach me at every moment all of the ways and pieces of advice with which I can gladden myself so that I will always be joyful.", + "May I dance a great deal out of joy at all times, raising all of the levels that are called “feet” to the level of the “heart of wisdom,” so that “we will acquire a heart of wisdom.”", + "As a result, may all judgments regarding us and the entire Jewish people be sweetened.", + "Joy and Dancing
By means of joy and dancing, may I rectify the blemish of evil speech with which I caused damage before You from my beginning until this day.", + "In particular, by means of joy and dancing, may I raise and rectify the blemish of evil words of gossip and slander.", + "Guard me and rescue me from now on from speaking any evil words — in particular, gossip and slander. May I sanctify my words greatly, with ultimate perfection.", + "Guard me and rescue me from any blemish in my faith. Help me raise and rectify all blemishes of faith by means of holy joy and dancing. From now on may I truly attain complete, proper faith, with ultimate perfection, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Elevate me in regard to money and wealth as well. Pour a great deal of money and wealth of holiness onto me, so that I will engage in learning Your Torah and serve You without any trouble or disruptions. May I give charity generously and support those who truly learn Torah and serve You.", + "Master of the world, You know our present scarcity of income, when “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Compassionately fulfill our requests for the good. Help us always be joyful, until we will dance in holiness and raise all of the levels of the “feet” up to supernal holiness.", + "May we draw abundance, a good income and great wealth with holiness and purity onto ourselves, our offspring, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel — and, in particular, onto all those who support the ones who learn Torah.", + "Help all of those who have no living children to serve You and fear You (and, in particular, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [father’s Hebrew name]). Draw blessing and a good life onto all of our children and offspring.", + "Raising Our Children
Rescue us, all of our generations, and the entire Jewish people from the difficulties of raising children. May we raise all of our children without any pain or difficulty.", + "Help us raise our children with ease, peace, tranquility and quiet, so that they will learn Torah, get married and engage in good deeds. May they serve You, learn Your Torah and fear You for length of good days and years.", + "May their tendrils go forth and may their glory be like the olive tree. May none of our offspring, male or female, be infertile. May our offspring and the offspring of Your nation, the House of Israel, be as many as the stars of the sky and the sand of the sea for all generations, forever.", + "May all of them learn Torah for its own sake day and night, and truly do Your will. May they not turn aside from any of the words of the Torah, right or left, even a hairsbreadth, all of their days, forever.", + "May they all truly recognize You. From their smallest to their greatest, may they all know You.", + "Master of the world, compassionately fulfill our requests for the good and help us achieve all that we have requested of You. Help us experience great joy. “I will exult and rejoice in Your kindness, for You have seen my affliction. You have known the troubles of my soul.”", + "“I will rejoice and delight in You; I will sing to Your supernal Name.” “Give joy to the soul of Your servant — because, HaShem, I lift my soul to You!”", + "“Satiate us with Your goodness, gladden us with Your salvation, and purify our hearts to truly serve You.” “Cause me to hear joy and gladness; may the bones that You crushed, exult.” “Restore the joy of Your salvation to me, and may a generous spirit support me.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "There are Two States of Being: “in Order” and “Not in Order” / When a Person is Egotistical, He Cuts Himself Off from God and His Life is “Not in Order” / When a Person Repents, is Humble and Bonds Himself to God, His Life is “in Order” / The Principal Time for Repentance is in Elul / In Elul, Moses Paved a Road upon which Every Jew Can Walk / A Jew Must Strive Not to be Blinded by God’s Light, but Always Maintain Humility
There are two states of being: “in order” and “not in order.”
“In order” corresponds to Adam, who in turn represents the male manifestation of Divinity, as it were. The word ADaM has the numerical value of 45. This corresponds to the Divine Name YHVH filled in with the letter aleph, so that it has the numerical value of 45 — in Hebrew, MaH.7According to the Kabbalah, God’s Holy Name YHVH can be “filled in” or “expanded” with the letter aleph as follows: יוד הא ואו הא (YOD HA VAV HA), which has the numerical value of 45. This is the same numerical value as that of the words אדם (ADaM)and מה (MaH, what). “In order” is also associated with wisdom and intelligence.
“Not in order,” on the other hand, corresponds to Eve, who represents the female manifestation of God — when it is separated from the male manifestation, as it were. That female manifestation is associated with malkhut (sovereignty) — in particular, to “the sovereignty of the mouth,” the Oral Torah. Sovereignty is related to speech; since “there is no king without a nation,” the people know the king’s will only when he reveals it in his speech.
Eve’s life force comes from mah — the intellect, wisdom.
When a person is haughty, he cuts himself off from God. It is as if he is a lifeless limb. Then he experiences opposition to his will, and his life becomes a battle.
Such a person has separated Eve — malkhut — from the Holy One so that she is not whole, and has taken malkhut for himself, saying, “I will establish my own sovereignty.” That creates a sickness of the heart.
A person gains wholeness only when he connects himself to God. Then he receives God’s life force, which is related to His wisdom.
In parallel, when mah (Adam) is in alignment with malkhut (Eve) — when the Holy One draws the life force of wisdom to malkhut — then she attains perfection.
If a person sees that his life is “not in order,” he should repent and humble himself. Then Eve (malkhut) returns to Adam (mah) and everything becomes “in order.”
Then all of a person’s battles and all of the forces that oppose his will are nullified.
The principal repentance occurs in the month of Elul, whose days are days of favor. In this month, Moses ascended to receive the Second Tablets and opened a path upon which all Jews could subsequently proceed. With ultimate dedication, Moses connected himself to even the least Jew. For even the lowliest Jew has Godliness. There is Godliness even on the lowest level, even in the ten crowns of uncleanness.
The higher Moses went, the more he found God. In the physical realm, a poor person tends to serve God, whereas when he acquires wealth, he tends to forget God. Such forgetting is the equivalent of a person’s eyes being blinded because he comes too close to the Divine light. But King David said that even in Heaven, with every elevation, a person must find God.
For the Month of Elul
Waging a Spiritual Battle
“HaShem is a warrior, HaShem is His Name.” “HaShem is strong and mighty, HaShem is a warrior.” Elevated and holy Master of the world, Master of wars, You bring about mighty matters and perform new deeds.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name, and battle the wars of HaShem on my behalf. “HaShem, fight against those who fight me, battle those who battle me.”", + "Because of my many sins, the battle has weighed heavily upon me. Look: “The enemy’s hand gains strength and there is no savior to strengthen us.”", + "My many severe sins, which reach the heights of Heaven and descend lower than the vast depths, have greatly weakened my mind. They mislead my lowly awareness until I am almost incapable of waging the war that I must hazard in this world of action, Heaven forbid. I am unable to withstand my enemies and foes in both the physical and spiritual realms — in particular, my evil lusts.", + "Woe! What shall I say? How shall I speak? How can I justify myself? But, at any rate, I can still speak these words of mine before You to seek Your countenance, so that You will battle on my behalf against my enemies in both the physical and spiritual realms. This is among Your profound wonders and awesome matters.", + "It is truly extraordinary in my eyes, perfect and wondrous. “I will thank You, for I was fashioned in an awesome, wondrous way. Wondrous are Your deeds, as my soul deeply knows.” “How great are Your deeds, HaShem; how very deep are Your thoughts.”", + "You continue to think thoughts of how to bring me close to You, and You continue to strengthen me so that I may express my speech before You, coming to You to pray so that You will have compassion on me and wage Your wars on my behalf.", + "From afar, I see Your kindness, miracles and wonders that You perform on my behalf always — every day, every hour and every moment.", + "Besides that, I believe in Your unbounded wonders, kindness and greatness that are entirely hidden from me, as in the verse, “He does great wonders alone; His kindness is eternal.”", + "Regarding all of these, I continue to encourage myself to look with hope to Your salvation, and to murmur from the dust to ask for Your compassion and kindness that have not ended and have never ceased.", + "Therefore, I come to You Who are filled with compassion, King of honor, “Who performs salvations in the midst of the land.”", + "Teach me how to “conquer” You so that I will gain what I request with the help of Your compassion. Battle the wars of HaShem on my behalf. Subdue, shatter and eradicate all of my enemies in both the physical and spiritual realms.", + "Nullify all of my evil lusts and evil traits. Guide me and teach me at every moment how to rescue my soul so that I will not pull them to me, Heaven forbid.", + "You know that “many are my pursuers and my tormentors.” “More than the hairs of my head are those who hate me for no reason.” “Those who would cut me off, my deceitful enemies, have increased. Shall I recompense them what I did not steal?”", + "“HaShem, how many are my adversaries, how many rise up against me!” (In particular, a person who is suffering because of enemies who prevent him from serving HaShem should express that here and pray about it.)", + "“We do not know what to do, and so our eyes are turned to You.” “Help us, God of our salvation, in regard to the honor of Your Name. Rescue us, forgive our transgressions, for the sake of Your Name.”", + "“We do not cast our plea before You for the sake of our righteousness, but we appeal to Your great compassion.” “What are we? What is our life? What is our kindness? What is our righteousness? What is our salvation? What is our might? What is our strength?”", + "“What shall I say before You, HaShem our God and God of our forefathers? All of the warriors are as nothing before You, the men of renown as if they never existed, the sages without knowledge and wise people without intelligence.”", + "How much more is this true, a million and ten million times more, infinitely more, regarding a person as blemished and corrupt, poor and needy as I am, as weak in mind and strength as I am.", + "Woe! Who will stand up on my behalf to fight such a great and terrible war against the physical and spiritual forces that constantly attack me? On whom may I rely? On my Father in Heaven.", + "Putting Things “in Order”
Master of the world, what shall I say? How shall I speak? How can I justify myself? “There is no word on my tongue, because You know everything, HaShem.” “Back and front You have hemmed me in, and placed Your hand upon me.” “It is wondrous beyond my understanding, exalted, I cannot grasp it.”", + "How can someone like myself [as immature as I am] nullify that which is “not in order” and put it “in order”? How can a person as immature as I am truly connect myself at every moment to HaShem, and constantly attach HaShem to my thoughts?", + "At every moment may I think of Him and truly cling to Him, nullifying myself, my entire being, and all of my lusts and evil traits to Him with a truly complete nullification. May I literally be as nothing and truly know how lowly I am.", + "May I truly be on the level of mah, truly connected to and incorporated into Him, until everything will be returned to “in order,” and all of those who oppose and dispute my will shall be nullified, so that everything will truly be in accordance with Your will.", + "Master of the world, teach me the ways of true humility. Teach me how to shatter and nullify the pride in my heart and mind.", + "In truth, I know a little of my lowliness: that it is not fit for me to indulge in thoughts that are proud, coarse and filled with impure motives, due to the devastating aggregation of my measureless ruination and blemishes, since I have transgressed, sinned and offended before You so much from my beginning until this day.", + "Nevertheless, I am not yet cleansed of pride and haughtiness, but I remain totally removed from true humility.", + "Because of this, I am far from the level of matters being “in order.” The dynamic of things being “not in order” constantly rises against me, Heaven forbid. Nothing goes “in order” for me; rather, everything is twisted and confused.", + "My mind is twisted and confused by turmoil and suffering that originate from a number of areas. Moreover, my income, which I earn until my eyes are exhausted, is strained and slight, and a multitude of creditors and debts harasses me.", + "I and all those who depend on me experience other types of suffering as well. All of this is due to the dynamic of things being “not in order,” which came about because I damaged my humility and stumbled into pride and egotism, may the Compassionate One protect me from now on.", + "For the Seventh of Adar, the Hilula of Moses
The Path of Repentance
And so I come to You, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, requesting that You help me and save me in the merit and power of the path of repentance that Moses and all of the true Tzaddikim drew down into the world, so that from now on I will truly return to You in complete repentance with all my heart.", + "You know the wondrous pathways of repentance that they brought into the world. They lowered themselves and connected themselves to the least of the least — even to a person as lowly as I am, on whatever level I may be.", + "And they continue to connect themselves to me on my present level, so that, as far as they are concerned, nothing will prevent them from extricating me from my exile, from raising me and truly bringing me to holiness, and elevating me higher and higher.", + "Have compassion on me and always help me connect myself to holy Tzaddikim such as they. May the pathways of holiness and repentance that they draw into the world be revealed to me.", + "From now on may I truly return to You in full repentance. May I truly connect myself with You and cling to You always, with true, complete humility and self-negation.", + "In Your compassion, guard me and save me so that no descent or ascent will have the power to distance me from You, Heaven forbid.", + "For sometimes a man is distanced, Heaven forbid, as a result of an ascent in which You have placed him — such as when You shower him with an abundance of riches, or when he experiences an abundance of awareness in knowledge of Your loftiness — because an abundance of Divine light blinds his eyes and hurts him, Heaven forbid.", + "Therefore, I have come to ask You to shield me with Your hand, to guard me, save me and protect me so that nothing will hurt me and I will never be distanced from You.", + "May I always find You even if I descend, Heaven forbid, to the lowest level, even to the ten crowns of pollution, Heaven forbid. As the verse states, “His kingdom rules over all.”", + "And when I ascend, when You have compassion on me and raise me higher and higher, with every ascent may I find You always.", + "May I always come close to You on every level, whether things are going well or poorly, Heaven forbid, whether I am descending or ascending. As the verse states, “If I rise to Heaven, You are there, and if I lie down in Sheol, there You are.” May I truly attain complete repentance from now and forever.", + "The Holy Month of Elul
In particular, may this be the case in the holy month of Elul, whose days are days of favor, when Moses ascended to receive the Second Tablets and revealed a paved path upon which to walk.", + "Have compassion on me from now on so I will prepare myself, beginning from today, to draw onto myself the holiness of the month of Elul, the holiness of the path of repentance that Moses and all of the true Tzaddikim drew into the world with their awesome, wondrous ways.", + "My only hope is in this path, which is known only to You and to Your great, true Tzaddikim. May they treat me in a way that is good in Your eyes. “I will always hope,” “until HaShem will gaze and see from Heaven.”", + "You Who have mercy on the poor, please have pity and mercy on me and on the entire Jewish people. Save us quickly for the sake of Your Name.", + "Help us from now on. In Your exceedingly vast, great and wondrous compassion and kindness, dispel all of the judgments, suffering, obstacles, cravings and turbulence that are drawn from the level of “not in order.”", + "May the level of “not in order” be nullified, subsumed and transformed into the level of “in order,” until from now on everything will be “in order” for me in the material and spiritual realms — in body, soul and financial matters.", + "Guard us from now on. Rescue us from every type of foreign thought, egotism, haughtiness, coarseness and impure motives. May we attain true humility and always connect You to our thoughts, so that our thoughts will always be attached to You and to serving You.", + "May all of the desires and battles against our will be nullified. May we always truly fulfill the desires of Heaven, in accordance with Your will and in accordance with the will of Your true Tzaddikim.", + "May no obstacle or impediment have the power to separate us from any holy matter, Heaven forbid. You help someone as powerless as I am. You “give strength to the weary.”", + "Help me truly fulfill Your will, both in what affects me in particular and in what affects others. Help me for the sake of Your Name, so that everything will be brought to completion in accordance with Your good will.", + "“May HaShem agree with me. HaShem, may Your kindness be forever. Do not let go of the work of Your hands.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” “May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, ‘Amen.’”" + ], + [ + "When a Jew Rectifies His Covenant, He Perfects His Prayer and Faith / One Who Rectifies His Covenant Attains the Holiness of the Shabbat / The Ultimate Knowledge is that We Know Nothing / On the Shabbat, We Shed Our Plague-Ridden Body and Put on a Holy Body from the Garden of Eden / When One’s Mazal Ascends, He Gains Wealth / Through the “Right Side,” One Can Elevate Those Who Have Fallen into Evil Loves and Fears / Through the “Flames of Love,” a Person’s Heart is Enflamed with Learning Torah / When the Tzaddik Experiences Shame, God Accepts His Mitzvot / Sometimes a Tzaddik Must Experience Bloodshed, Figuratively or Even Literally, to Rectify a Fallen Soul
When a person rectifies his covenant, he perfects his prayer and faith. This causes the ray of the Mashiach to shine, since MaShIaCh is the speech with which one prays, as in the verse, “He generates speech (MeiSIaCh) in the mute” (Shabbat morning liturgy).8 The words MaShIaCh (משיח Messiah) and MeiSIaCh (משיח generates speech) have the same letters.
As a result of rectifying his covenant and perfecting his prayer, a person is liberated and attains the holiness of the Shabbat, which encompasses the entire world. The holiness of the Shabbat is the ultimate knowledge: the knowledge that we know nothing.
On the Shabbat, a person sheds his plague-ridden body, the skin of the Serpent, and puts on Shabbat clothes — a holy body from the Garden of Eden.
Then his mazal, the source of his being, is elevated. He gains wealth and his good inclination is strengthened. Depression and sarcasm, which stem from “black bile,” are eradicated by the mazal of wealth and the good inclination, which correspond to the “right side.”
Through the “right side,” he can elevate those who fell into evil loves and fears, returning them to holy loves and fears. Their eyes then see wonders. It is as though such a person is creating the world.
The light of the eyes also elevates all of the requests and supplications that are prayed in the direction of the holy Temple. The light of the eyes emerges from the Temple and arouses the redemption. It also eradicates the leavening of the evil inclination of the heart, which has been there since his youth, enticing him to question and judge the Torah sages of the generation.
Through the “flames of love” — the love one has for God — a person’s heart is enflamed with learning Torah, and the “many waters” of external love and fear cannot extinguish that flame.
The Divine Presence users Her wings to cover the blood of Israel (a person’s sins) with love, so that the seed of the wicked — the floodwaters — will not rule over them.
God wants to taste the positive mitzvot of a Tzaddik. But those positive mitzvot correspond to the limb of a living animal, which is forbidden to eat until it is ritually slaughtered. The human equivalent of that is shame, which corresponds to “spilled blood,” a form of ritual slaughter. Thus, the Tzaddik must experience shame in order for God to be able to taste his mitzvot.
When the Tzaddik’s blood is spilled by shame, he must take care that outer forces will not derive energy from it. His blood needs to be covered — just as the blood of a slaughtered animal must be covered.
There are many fallen souls that can rise only when a great Jew’s blood is spilled — whether figuratively or sometimes even literally. The sins of these souls are then transformed into merits and then they are elevated.
Guarding the Holy Covenant
Master of the world, help me and save me from this moment on. In Your vast compassion and Your great kindness, treat me as You wish with Your hidden wonders and awesome ways. Help me from now on to truly guard the holy covenant.", + "May I truly and completely repent for my past. From now on may I attain a true rectification of the covenant, with the power and aid of the true Tzaddikim who attained the most perfect rectification of the covenant.", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You informed us that all rectifications, the entire Torah, and the entire rectification of all worlds depend on the rectification of the holy covenant. This is the foundation of everything, as all of the holy books explain.", + "But the evil inclination has so greatly overwhelmed and overcome us from our youth that we have blemished the covenant a great deal — each person with his own blemishes, which he himself recognizes (and, in particular, [add your own words here]). Now I have no words with which to speak about this. “I am mute and still, I am silent even in the face of goodness, and my pain is overwhelming.”", + "But the Tzaddikim have always heartened and encouraged us to cry out and call out to You, however things may be.", + "Therefore, I come to stretch my hands out to gain Your compassion and salvation. Please help me and save me so that from now on I will truly and completely rectify the covenant, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Have pity on me and be gracious to me. Have compassion on me and save me. Teach me and direct me in the ways of Your holy and wondrous counsel, whether revealed or implicit, in the books of Your true Tzaddikim. Illumine my mind’s eye at every moment, so that I will distance myself from this desire and from these fantasies, and truly rescue my soul.", + "May I expel them and eradicate them entirely, so that from now on I will truly rectify the covenant, in accordance with Your good will. ", + "Help us in the power and merit of all of the true Tzaddikim who attained a complete rectification of the covenant. May we draw forth prayer with the ultimate perfection, like drawing forth arrows from a quiver.", + "May we always pray with truly great and intense concentration, and with complete faith, tremendous vitality and holy fervor.", + "May our prayer always be smooth in our mouths, until we bring forth holy words of prayer with tremendous vitality, like arrows in the hand of a warrior.", + "May holy speech blossom from our mouths with wondrous vitality, like an arrow from the bow. May it rise ever higher, powerfully and perfectly rectifying everything that must be rectified in all worlds.", + "As a result of the prayer that will blossom for us soon, may we attain the horn of the Mashiach, son of David. May the verse quickly be realized, “There I will cause the horn of David to blossom; I have arranged a lamp for My anointed.” As a result, may we emerge from slavery to freedom.", + "For the Holy Shabbat
The Precious Holiness of the Shabbat
Send us the holiness of the Shabbat. Nullify all of our mundane deeds, so that we need not engage in any craft or work, but only in Torah, prayer and the true service of HaShem. May we all be truly liberated.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You gave us this good gift from Your treasure house — Shabbat is its name. You know the great and precious holiness of the Shabbat, which revives and sustains all worlds. And You know how far I am from the holiness and joy of the Shabbat.", + "Please, Unique Master, You Who are good and do good to all, “great in counsel and mighty in deed,” help me, save me, teach me and guide me so that I will always experience the true joy of the Shabbat.", + "May I truly rejoice a great deal every Shabbat with the joy of the Shabbat. Please give me a taste of the holy Shabbat, for You are good and do good to all.", + "Please free us, HaShem our God, with Your mitzvot — and, in particular, with the mitzvah of the seventh day, the great and holy Sabbath. For it is Your great and holy day, meant for us to rest and be tranquil in an atmosphere of love, in accordance with Your will and commandment.", + "Sanctify us with Your mitzvot and give us our portion in Your Torah. Satiate us with Your goodness, gladden us with Your salvation, purify our hearts to truly serve You, and give us an inheritance, HaShem our God, in love and favor, of Your holy Shabbat.", + "Help me rejoice on every Shabbat with great and intense joy, until I will draw the joy of the Shabbat into the six days of the week.", + "May I always remember the holy Shabbat, as the verse states, “Remember the day of the Shabbat to sanctify it.” During all six days of the week, may I always draw the holiness of the Shabbat onto myself, so that all of the weekdays will be holy and pure with the holiness of the Shabbat.", + "As a result of the holiness of the Shabbat, may we receive all blessings from the source of blessings.", + "In the merit of the holiness of the Shabbat, may we quickly attain the true goal, truly reaching the ultimate knowledge that we do not know anything. May we truly understand and realize that wisdom is far from us, as the verse states, “I said that I will be wise, yet it is far from me.”", + "May we be subsumed into the level of the “place of the world,” which is the intended destination of existence, enveloping the entire world that was created with Your wisdom.", + "We Know Nothing
Master of the world, I know this only from a distance, for “I am more animal than man, and I lack human understanding.”", + "If David and Solomon and the greatest of the early Tzaddikim — elevated men, true sages, masters of spiritual attainments and Divine inspiration, whose names I am not worthy to pronounce with my lips — used such expressions about themselves, what shall I say and how shall I speak?", + "I am filled with sins. As a result, my mind is turbulent. I have not yet been cleansed of the spirit of foolishness that comes as a result of sins, may the Compassionate One save us — and, even worse, I have no awareness or intelligence with which to understand how You conduct the world.", + "My intellect confuses me greatly, and I need to constantly force myself to remember that I do not know anything at all.", + "How many times do I forget this! And even when I remind myself, I do not realize it fully. This results in obstacles, confusions and descents not only in my awareness but in that of every individual, in accordance with the extent of his error.", + "If every individual would know the ultimate truth — that he does not know anything at all — nothing would have the power to cast him down or unsettle him. Every individual would always strengthen himself extensively and forever.", + "HaShem, You Who are “wise of heart and mighty of strength,” wisdom and understanding remain with You alone. There is no limit to Your understanding, whereas all of the sages are without knowledge — and, how much more, a person as ignorant as I am.", + "Aid me, guide me and teach me so that I will truly know that I know nothing at all. As a result, may I strengthen myself in the service of HaShem at all times and begin anew at every moment.", + "Whether I am rising or falling, Heaven forbid, however things may be, may I strengthen myself to constantly begin anew.", + "May I do everything that is truly what You want and occupy myself with it completely, in great enthusiasm, with a truly engaged heart, so that nothing in the world will distract me.", + "May my severe, multiple sins be unable to weaken my mind at all, Heaven forbid. Rather, may I appreciate, comprehend, understand and realize that I know nothing at all of what is going on in this world or what is going on with me.", + "May I perform perfectly whatever holy matters I have the ability to perform in this transient world. May I pray, strengthen myself, cry out and call out to You always, however things may be.", + "May I not be distracted from the truth by an unproductive state of mind or cleverness, Heaven forbid. Rather, may I attain true knowledge, wisdom and understanding so that I will truly understand and realize that wisdom is far from me and that I know nothing at all.", + "May I always truly rely on You alone. May I not engage in any superfluous or obsessive thoughts at all. Always treat me in accordance with Your will. On my behalf, truly realize the desires of Heaven, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Attaining a Holy Body from the Garden of Eden
In Your vast compassion, help me so that I will strip myself of my plague-ridden body, which is the skin of the Serpent, and put on the clothes of the Shabbat — that is, a holy body from the Garden of Eden.", + "Master of the world, You who know hidden things, You alone know where my corporeal body comes from. “Behold, in sin I was conceived and in transgression my mother conceived me.” “My father and my mother abandoned me, but HaShem gathered me in.”", + "And in addition to the pollution and coarseness of my body from its inception at birth, I added darkness and pollution upon pollution as a result of all of my evil and blemished deeds.", + "Due to the profound coarseness and pollution of this plague-ridden body, I cannot cleanse myself of the foolishness of my mind and the pollution of my evil deeds, and I wander about through this world confused and torn.", + "I search everywhere, seeking an escape from the polluted filth of my body and its evil desires, but I remain unredeemed.", + "I do not know how to rescue myself from myself, to such an extent that it is difficult and onerous for me even to pray and beg for this.", + "My Father in Heaven, have compassion on me. Teach me how to arrange my bitter prayer before You now, how to arouse Your true compassion for me now.", + "At least from this moment on may I abandon my evil ways and my unworthy and confused thoughts, and strip myself of my plague-ridden, coarse and polluted body.", + "May I begin to purify and sanctify myself with every type of holiness and purity, until I will be clothed in a holy body from the Garden of Eden.", + "Master of the entire world, charitable Healer, please heal my soul and body in Your vast compassion. “Heal me, HaShem, so that I will be healed. Save me and I will be saved, for You are my praise.”", + "Heal me and cure me of my plague. Quickly strip me of this plague-ridden body and kindly clothe me with a holy body from the Garden of Eden.", + "As a result, may my fortune be elevated so that I will attain wealth. Send me Your blessings and pour great wealth onto me with holiness and purity.", + "Attaining Abundance
May my good inclination be strengthened. Remove my heart of stone and give me a heart of flesh. And may the sadness and cynicism that come from the “black bile” be eradicated.", + "May our poverty and oppression end, for “the strength of the porter has collapsed” due to the poverty and oppression of Your nation, the House of Israel — in particular, the great poverty and oppression of worthy people who desire to truly enter upon the way of holiness.", + "Have compassion on us in Your wondrous kindness. Illumine us with the Heavenly blessing of wealth. May all wealth accompany the worthy people of the House of Israel, Your nation, who desire to truly serve You so that Your Name will be magnified and sanctified.", + "May every type of sadness and mockery that comes from the “black bile” be eradicated. May the mockery of all those who attack decent, Godfearing people cease.", + "Grant us strength so that “the heart of the wise man on his right” will overcome the “heart of the fool on the left,” from which all of their mockery, the laughter of the fool, comes. May the left be nullified to the right.", + "For Pesach
Recounting God’s Wonders
By means of the dynamic of the “right side,” raise up those who fell into evil types of love and fear so that they will rise to holy loves and fears.", + "May the dynamic of the “right side” remove the darkness from their eyes so they will see wonders. May the verse quickly be realized, “As in the days of your going out from the land of Egypt, I will show him wonders.”", + "Always draw the holiness of Pesach onto us. Help us always recount and tell Your wonders and speak of Your true Torah. May we always speak about and reveal the Torah of truth. May the verse be realized in us, “The Torah of truth was in his mouth.”", + "Have compassion on us. Save us and help us quickly remove the darkness covering the face of the depths. May we shine the light of truth into the world in such a way that it will be as though we created the world.", + "Master of the world, You Who give a mouth to the mute, give us a mouth to speak of Your Torah and Your true wonders always, “so that the last generation may know, children will be born and arise and tell their own children.”", + "May we tell our children, our children’s children, and all the children of Israel for all generations of the deeds of HaShem and His wonders that He performed on our behalf from the day of the Exodus from Egypt until this day, as the verse states, “You shall make them known to your children and to your children’s children.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, grant us and the entire Jewish people a true illumination of the eyes, so that we will always look and see the truth. May we gaze and always truly see the wonders of HaShem.", + "Uncover my eyes and the eyes of the entire Jewish people. May we gaze upon the wonders of Your Torah that You revealed through Your true Tzaddikim. You alone know the wonders of their teachings that they revealed to the world.", + "In consequence of the light of our eyes, may all of our requests and prayers rise to the holy Temple. As a result of that, arouse the redemption that is dependent on the heart, as the verse states, “A day of vengeance was in My heart, and the year of My redemption arrived.”", + "Nullify the leavening of the evil inclination in the heart of man, which has remained in us since our youth. This leavening in the heart entices a person to think judgmentally about the Torah sages of the generation and critique their worthiness.", + "As a result of such behavior, our heart is divided, so that the seventy-two Tzaddikim in our generation are hidden from us, and we do not know any of them clearly.", + "Have compassion on us for Your sake. Remove, destroy and eradicate the leavening in our heart until we believe in all of the Tzaddikim, and we do not think judgmentally about them at all or make any distinctions among them. Rather, we will view them all as extremely fine, beloved and precious.", + "“Love Conceals All Sins”
As a result, may our heart blaze to learn Torah with “flames of love.” Then “many waters” — which are extraneous loves and fears — “will not extinguish the love, and rivers will not overflow it.”", + "As a result of this love, may the Divine Presence cover the blood of the Jewish people with its wings, so that evildoers — the floodwaters — will not rule over them.", + "Help me so that I will be ashamed for the multitude of my great sins and wrongdoings that caused so many blemishes against You. Out of my pain and shame, may I feel that my own blood is spilled, until, with holy love, the Divine Presence will cover my spilled blood with Her wings.", + "Then my sins will be covered, because “love conceals all sins.” As a result of this holy love, forgive and pardon me for all of my transgressions, sins and offenses with truly complete forgiveness.", + "In Your vast compassion, recall all of the spilled blood of the Jewish people, collectively and individually.", + "This refers to the literal shedding of Jewish blood, so much of which has been spilled since the day of the Destruction of the Temple until now. “They spilled their blood like water around Jerusalem, and no one buries them.”", + "And it also refers to bloodshed in the sense of the shame and embarrassment that the Jewish people have suffered in every generation — particularly, the copious bloodshed of all of the holy people and Tzaddikim whose blood has been spilled like water.", + "May all of this blood serve in place of the animal offerings brought as pleasing sacrifices to You. May their limbs not be the equivalent of the limb of a living animal, but may they be permissible to eat as a result of the spilling of this blood.", + "As a result, You will taste the holiness and pleasantness of all of the positive mitzvot that all of the Tzaddikim in every generation, and the entire Jewish people overall, have rectified before You.", + "In consequence of that, arouse Your love for Your nation, the Jewish people. Never remove Your love from us, and cover all of the blood with this holy love. May all of our sins then be concealed automatically.", + "In Your compassion, elevate all of the fallen souls that can ascend only as a result of the bloodshed of a great Tzaddik.", + "Have compassion on us in the merit and power of the copious, measureless blood that was spilled by the great, awesome Tzaddikim, due to no fault of their own. In their merit, have compassion on all of those fallen souls.", + "Only You know how pitiful these fallen souls are. You raise them from their descent. You cover their sins with love, and transform all of their sins to merits.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, You Who love Your nation, the Jewish people, and choose Your nation of Israel with love, arouse Your love for us. Rise and save us. Compassionately fulfill our requests for the good.", + "Have compassion on all of the souls of Your nation, the Jewish people, whether living or dead. Inspire the hearts of the true Tzaddikim to engage in our rectification always. May they swiftly put their desire and will into action to rectify all of us quickly.", + "May we truly return to You soon. May we be in accordance with Your good will always, from now and forever. Amen, selah." + ], + [ + "Prayer is a Gate to God / When Prayer is in Exile, it Causes a Person to Become Egotistical / To Break Free of the Exile of Prayer, a Person Must Pray Forcefully
A person connects and clings to God through prayer. For prayer is the gate through which we enter into the presence of God, and from there we can know Him. The word TeFiLah (תפילה, prayer) connotes connectedness, as it is written, “”With Divine bonds (נפתולי, naFTuLei) have I been bound (נפתלתי, niFTaLti)” (Genesis 30:8).
Often, however, when a person prays, he experiences thoughts of self-importance. This is because prayer — which is associated with malkhut (sovereignty) and the “I”— is in exile within the malkhut of wickedness, which seeks to gain prominence and rule. And when his prayer wishes to leave, the kingdom of wickedness holds onto it. The antidote is for a person to pray forcefully, which empowers his prayer to rectify his ego and the “woman of valor,” malkhut. Then his prayer can leave that exile.
When malkhut is in exile, it wears black clothing When a person prays forcefully and takes it out of exile, it becomes a nest for the Holy One.
A person’s basic intent should be to rectify the Divine Presence so that She can unite with her Husband. Initially, one needs an arousal from below — the rectification of the Divine Presence — so that She will be clothed in shining garments. Then God’s vow to the Patriarchs is renewed.
Forceful Prayer
“My God, open my lips, and my mouth will speak Your praise.” Master of the world, You Who hear prayer, You compassionately choose the prayer of Your nation, the Jewish people.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me always pray a great deal. May I pray forcefully with great concentration and self-sacrifice.", + "Help me and save me so that I will bring all of my abilities into my words of prayer, strengthening that prayer — which is the sovereignty of holiness — to overcome the kingdom of wickedness.", + "As a result, may I subdue, break and nullify all egotistical ideas, impure motives and foreign thoughts that perturb my prayer, Heaven forbid.", + "You know that I can nullify them only with the aid of Your vast compassion and great love.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Save me, help me, strengthen me and bolster me with Your great power so that I will bring all of my abilities into my prayer. May I always pray to You with great forcefulness.", + "As a result, may I entirely nullify all of my egotistical ideas, impure motives and foreign thoughts, so that none of them will have the slightest power to disorient my prayer, Heaven forbid.", + "Instead, may I expel them, remove them and nullify them entirely so they will be unable to arise in my mind at all, and my prayer will be pure, well arranged, acceptable and welcome to You.", + "May I bring my prayer forth from its coverings, from the garments of the “husk.” May I separate it and clarify it, purifying it from the grasp of the “husks,” from the grasp of the kingdom of wickedness.", + "May I raise it and clothe in garments of light, the lights of the Patriarchs.", + "May my prayer attain ultimate rectification. May it have the power to arouse Your supernal love so that You will bind it to You in love, fellowship and friendship.", + "May our prayers bring about a complete, perfect unification of the Holy One and His Divine Presence.", + "Remember and maintain Your covenant that You swore to our forefathers as on this day. Renew Your vow to them as though You are making that vow today.", + "Have compassion on us. Quickly deliver us from this long, bitter exile. Redeem us with an everlasting redemption. Bind together the “tent” so that it will be unified.", + "Help Us Attain Perfect Prayer
You who are filled with compassion, Redeemer of Israel, have compassion on the Congregation of Israel, which is associated with Your mighty Divine Presence. The entire revelation of Your Godliness, the knowledge of Your exaltedness, and the yearning for Your faith comes about by means of Israel, Your nation, whom You have chosen.", + "You revealed to us that prayer brings about the essence of connecting and clinging to You. Prayer is the gate through which we come into the presence of HaShem, and from which we recognize Him.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us truly pray perfectly, with unlimited power. May we always increase our prayer, as You indicated we should do through Your holy sages, who said, “If only a person could pray the entire day.”", + "Arise to help us and save us always — in particular, when we are praying, since at that time foreign thoughts, distractions and obstacles overwhelm us to an unimaginable extent. Have compassion on us and compassionately fulfill our requests to pray with great vigor, until we break and nullify all of our foreign thoughts entirely.", + "May we always attain perfect prayer, until with its aid we will come close to You and truly recognize You, truly bonding with and clinging to You — completely, perfectly, in accordance with Your good will.", + "May we cling to You in this world and in the World to Come, forever and ever.", + "Quickly may the verse be realized in us, “You who cling to HaShem your God are alive, all of you, today.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen forever, selah forever." + ], + [ + "When a Man Rectifies the Blemish to the Covenant, if He is Unmarried He Finds His Wife, and if He is Married His Wife is in Accord with His Will / A Person Must Not Eat Unripe Fruit / Fruit that is Picked Before its Time Can Draw the Life Force of the Person Who Eats it / By Reciting the Blessing over Fruit with Concentration and Awe of God, One Can Find Lost Sparks of Holiness in it / Angels Holding Shofars Search for Lost Sparks of Holiness and Blow on Their Shofars When They Find Them / People Lose Sparks of Holiness Because of Their Desires / Even Tzaddikim Who Search for Lost Sparks of Holiness are Sometimes Lost Themselves
In Elul a person should bear in mind the intention to rectify the blemish to the covenant. That rectification illuminates a “path in the sea.”
Should a man does not achieve that rectification, if he is unmarried he may find it hard to find his wife. And even if he finds her, she may oppose him and not accept his will.
This happens because he turned away from malkhut and did not illumine her. Thus, malkhut, as embodied in the form of a physical wife, has a will that opposes his.
A man can rectify this in the month of Elul. Then he can find his wife and she will not oppose his will.
Our patriarch Abraham imparted this secret to his servant Eliezer when he sent him to find a wife for Isaac. Abraham said, “If the woman is not willing to go after you (ואם לא תאבה האשה ללכת אחריך,Ve-im Lo toveh ha’ishah Lalekhet Acharekha)” (Genesis 24:8). The initials of the first two and last two words of this verse spell ELUL (אלול) and in the middle are the words toveh ha’ishah (תאבה האשה, the woman is willing). Through the mystical intentions of Elul, the woman is willing, since this makes her want him.
A person must avoid eating fruit that is not fully ripe. Just as it is forbidden to cut down a tree before its time (Deuteronomy 20:19), one should not pick or eat a fruit before its time.
As long as the fruit is on the tree, it has a “pulling” power with which it draws its nourishment and vitality. It loses this power after it fully ripens. If it is picked before its time, that “pulling” power is still present in it, and will draw the life force of the person who eats the fruit. Then that person can lose his soul.
However, one who recites the blessing over the fruit with concentration and awe of God can be saved from this. One who is strong in his service of God can even extract more vitality from the unripe fruit and find lost sparks of holiness there.
Cooking unripe fruit does not make it suitable to eat. One should allow it to ripen on its own before eating it.
In general, a person should be careful about reciting the blessings over food and drink, and especially the blessings over fruit, because fruits contain many lost sparks of holiness that need to be extracted and elevated.
There is an angel with many appointees, all of whom hold shofars in their hands. They stand and dig constantly, searching for lost sparks of holiness. As they dig and search, they sound the tekiah-teruahtekiah on their shofars. When they find something, it generates a great noise and much joy.
People lose sparks of holiness as a result of their desires. Even the tzaddikim who search for these lost sparks of holiness are sometimes lost themselves.
The verse, “The desire of the wicked will be lost” (Psalms 112:10) hints at the activity of the angels searching for lost things. The initial letters of the Hebrew words of this verse, Ta’avat Resha’im Toveid (תאות רשעים תאבד), stand for Tekiah-teRuah-Tekiah (תקיעה תרועה תקיע).
The mystical intentions of Elul, which rectify the blemish of the covenant; the prohibition against eating unripe fruit; and the angels holding shofars and searching for lost sparks of holiness, are all one idea.
For the Month of Elul
Gather Your Scattered People
“I am my Beloved’s and my Beloved is mine, Who shepherds among the lilies.” My Father in Heaven, “my King and my God, I pray to You.”", + "“HaShem, You have investigated me and You know: You know my sitting and my rising, You understand how to attach me to You from afar. You have encompassed my walking about and my lying down, and You have seen all of my ways. There is no word on my tongue — You know everything, HaShem.”", + "“From the back and front, You formed me, placing Your hand on me. Knowledge is hidden from me. It is exalted, I cannot reach it. Where will I go away from Your spirit and where will I flee from You? If I rise to Heaven, You are there, and if I lie down in Sheol, there You are.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who think thoughts so that no one will remain cast away from You, have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Gather our scattered people from the four corners of the earth.", + "In Your compassion, seek the lost, scattered sheep that no one gathers in. Master of the world, “I have gone astray like a lost sheep. Seek Your servant.”", + "Master of the world, I suffer great poverty and travail due to the great severity of my many, immeasurable, grievous sins and misdeeds beyond reckoning.", + "And I suffer severe turmoil in my mind due to the vast amount of blemishes that I brought about with my wrongdoing from my beginning until this day. Therefore, I cannot open my mouth to speak at all. It is very hard and difficult for me to express my speech to You.", + "Additionally, I cannot express all of my speech to You regarding everything in my heart because “the sorrows of my heart have increased” so much that time would not suffice to list them, “for many are my sighs and my heart is desolate.”", + "Nevertheless, my spirit is agitated and I cannot hold back my words. I have decided to speak in order to gain relief. I will talk, no matter what.", + "Perhaps now I will truly find the good point within my heart, and in that way truly come back to You from now on.", + "Things may be however they may be. We may have fallen and descended — each person in his own bitter exile.", + "Nevertheless, we remain obligated to dig, seek and search for our many and profoundly misplaced objects, which we lost in this incarnation and in previous incarnations as a result of our evil desires.", + "Perhaps we will arouse the great compassion of the Master of compassion, Who has compassion on all those who are lost and scattered, Who decreed in His Torah that lost objects must be returned.", + "Perhaps there is hope that we will find some of the many lost objects of our soul. Perhaps we will find some of them or even all of them.", + "I myself am guilty in all respects, for I purposefully lost what I lost, committing many wrongdoings because of my evil desires. I was like a fool who loses what he has been given.", + "Nevertheless, because of Your compassion, perhaps I will find another good, true point that will be able to overcome everything that I need to overcome. From now on may I truly return to You. May I seek, search and find all of my lost objects and the lost objects of others, and return them all to their proper place, to the source from which they were carved, so that all of them will be truly and completely rectified, in accordance with Your good will.", + "Rectifying the Covenant
Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You revealed to us through Your holy sages that the main thing is the rectification of the covenant. That is the principal test and challenge of every person in this world.", + "Solely for this did man come into the world: to be administered this test. If he passes this test and this purification, on which the entire Torah depends, he will succeed in guarding the covenant, which is the foundation of everything.", + "And now what will I say and how shall I speak, after I blemished so much of the covenant (and, in particular, [add your own words here])? “Therefore my words stammer,” and I do not know where to begin.", + "But You commanded us through Your true Tzaddikim to cry out to You always, and to pray and plead before You always, whether we are ascending or descending, according to our level.", + "However things may be, we will not be silent. We will not refrain from crying out, calling out and begging You always, for Your kindness has not ended and Your compassion has not ceased.", + "HaShem our God, You are very great, and Your kindness and Your compassion are in accordance with Your greatness. Just as Your greatness has no boundary, so too, there is no boundary to Your compassion and kindness.", + "Therefore, may it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that You illumine my eyes in Your Torah, and guide me and teach me so that I will know, appreciate and understand the words of Your holy Torah. You commanded us to have in mind the mystical intentions of Elul for the sake of the rectification of the covenant.", + "But “I am more animal than man, and I lack human understanding.” I do not know any way at all to have intentions in mind.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Sanctify me with Your supernal holiness. Open my heart to learn Your Torah. Help me and aid me to learn and understand all of the mystical intentions of Elul and all of the teachings related to that. May I find in them a proper and straight path to come close to You always, at all times.", + "May I be an expert in Jewish law9In Hebrew, halakhah, which literally means “walking.” In Likutey Moharan I, 6:4, Rebbe Nachman explains that mastery of Jewish law is essential for one who wishes to return to God, so that whether he is spiritually “rising” or “falling,” nothing will throw him or distance him from his quest. This corresponds to the verse, “If I go up to Heaven, You are there, and if I lie down in Sheol, there You are” (Psalms 139:8). — an expert in running [to Heaven] and an expert in returning [to earth]; an expert in entering [Heaven] and an expert in exiting [Heaven]. May I truly and completely fulfill the verse, “If I go up to Heaven, You are there, and if I lie down in Sheol, there You are.”", + "May I always truly walk in the ways of repentance. In Your compassion, You open Your hand and stretch Your right hand out to receive penitents.", + "May we draw down all of the rectifications that come about by means of the unifications and mystical intentions of Elul, so that we will quickly attain a complete rectification of the covenant.", + "In Your vast compassion, command Your holy angels who grasp shofars in their hands, who are in charge of seeking, searching, digging and burrowing after lost objects, to strive to rectify our souls.", + "May they seek and dig for all of the objects that we lost in our privation, from the beginning of our existence to this day, as a result of our evil desires — in particular, as a result of the blemish of the covenant.", + "May they dig, seek and quickly find all that we lost in this incarnation and in previous incarnations and return those to us, so that our souls will be completely rectified, in accordance with Your good will.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, I am so vastly damaged that I cannot engage at length in this prayer.", + "All of the paper in the world would not suffice to describe the smallest fraction of the supplications, requests, confessions, pleas, appeals and prayers that I must engage in regarding this matter for my past, present and future. What can I do, for my words are blocked?", + "Finding a Spouse
Regarding this, I come to You, Master of all, You Who are merciful to the poor, You Who are good and do good to both the wicked and the deserving. Have compassion on all those of Your nation, the Jewish people, who are having difficulty finding their marriage partner.", + "Even if a man does find a woman, she thwarts him and is not positively inclined toward him, and there is no peace in their home, may the Compassionate One protect us (and, in particular, [Hebrew name], the son of [father’s Hebrew name], who has these tribulations).", + "Have compassion on such a person, as well as on all of the children of Your nation, the House of Israel, in the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim who are constantly engaged in our rectification, who have guarded the holy covenant with the ultimate perfection. Have compassion on people in turbulent marriages for the sake of these Tzaddikim, and establish peace in their home.", + "Help them and save them. May everyone quickly find the marriage partner that is truly proper for him from Heaven. May the wife not oppose her husband at all, but transform her will to his will.", + "May there be no hatred or division between them at all. May they live in love, harmony and camaraderie, in true peace and tranquility, in accordance with Your good will.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have pity, mercy and compassion on them for Your sake and for the sake of the true Tzaddikim. Do not treat the couple in accordance with their transgressions or recompense them in accordance with their wrongdoing.", + "Rather, treat them with Your compassion that goes beyond the letter of the law, just as You always treat all of Your creatures with great compassion and kindness.", + "Do so in the merit of our patriarch Abraham, who alluded to this secret — the mystical meaning of Elul — when he sent Eliezer his servant to seek a wife for his son Isaac.", + "In the merit of the Tzaddikim who revealed this awesome secret, shield people in contentious relationships, as well as us and our children. Have compassion on all the people of Israel, Your nation. Establish peace among all the people of Israel — in particular, between husband and wife (and, in particular, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [father’s Hebrew name]).", + "Quickly help all of the Jewish people who need to find their true match. May the wife be in accord with her husband’s will and not oppose him at all.", + "Rather, transform her will to his in true peace and love, without guile or deceit, without any hatred or division in her heart. And may they conduct themselves with holiness and purity. May many generations emerge from them, living and healthy sons and daughters who will truly do Your will, engage in Your Torah, and serve You all of their days, forever.", + "May they reveal, publicize and communicate Your Divinity and sovereignty in the world, as in the verse, “Generation to generation will praise Your deeds and relate Your mighty acts.”", + "Fruits and Blessings
Have compassion on us and save us, so that we will always guard ourselves from eating any fruit before it is ripe, and also from picking any fruit before its time.", + "You revealed to us the severe loss and harm that can come to a person as a result of that, because he can lose his soul, Heaven forbid. Master of the world, have compassion on us. In Your vast compassion and profound kindness, guard us and rescue us from this.", + "Always help us and save us so that we will recite “blessings of enjoyment” — in particular, the blessing over fruits — with considerable, heightened intent. May we not simply mutter the blessings, Heaven forbid.", + "Rather, may we always rise in might and strengthen ourselves robustly every time we want to eat some fruit or benefit from something of this world, and recite the blessing with powerful, proper intent, so that everything we eat, drink and otherwise benefit from will not harm our souls in the least.", + "To the contrary, may we perfect our soul and add holy vitality and great illumination to our soul as a result of everything that we eat and drink.", + "Help us and save us so that all of our eating and drinking, and everything we derive benefit from, will be in great holiness and purity, for the sake of Your Name alone, without any bodily pleasure at all. May we be included among the Tzaddikim who eat in order to satiate their holy soul.", + "Please, HaShem, You Who are filled with compassion, help us and guard us from now on so that we will not lose anything more as a result of evil desires, Heaven forbid. Instead, from now on may we break and nullify all evil desires.", + "In Your compassion, command that all of the objects that we have lost, whether in this or previous incarnations, be returned and brought back to us.", + "For Rosh HaShanah
Sound the Great Shofar for Our Freedom
In Your vast compassion, help us fulfill the mitzvah of blowing the shofar on Rosh HaShanah perfectly and properly, with all of its details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it, in great fear, awe, love, joy and delight.", + "Always send us worthy shofar-blowers on Rosh HaShanah who are noble Tzaddikim. Through the sounding of the shofar, may they have the power to arouse the sound of the supernal shofar that You will blow in the future for our freedom.", + "As a result of this, gather our dispersed and bring us back everything that we lost from our beginning until this day.", + "Our God and God of our fathers, blow a great shofar for our freedom. Raise an ensign as a signal to gather our exiles, and bring in our scattered from among the nations and our dispersed from the corners of the earth. Gather us together swiftly from the four corners of the earth to our land.", + "May the verse quickly be realized, “On that day, a great shofar will be blown, and those lost in the land of Assyria and those cast away in the land of Egypt shall come and bow to HaShem on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.”", + "And, “The Lord God will blow with a shofar and He will go forth with the whirlwinds of the south. The Lord of hosts will protect them.” “Shield Your nation Israel with the well‑being that You give them.”", + "“May He Who makes peace in His heights, in His compassion make peace upon us and upon all Israel, and say, ‘Amen.’”" + ], + [ + "All Matches are Made by the Tzaddik, Who Bridges Opposites / In Order to Find a Wife, an Unmarried Man Should Listen to a Tzaddik Teach Torah
All marriages combine two opposites. That which binds them together is a higher awareness, or knowledge. That being the case, all matches are actually made by the Tzaddik, since he is on such a high plane that he is the master of knowledge.
Sometimes a man finds it hard to find a wife since he and she are far apart, even opposites.
To rectify this situation, the man should go to a master of knowledge to hear Torah from his mouth. In this way, he will be able to find his wife.
As this Tzaddik speaks his insights, he combines sources from far-apart sections of the Torah. In doing so, he creates matches in a spiritual sense, and that creates a dynamic that allows this unmarried man to find his wife.
Getting Married
Blessed God Who is great in knowledge, in Your vast compassion and mighty kindness, reveal to us the true Tzaddik who is the great master of awareness. Help us find him, truly come close to him, and hear Torah from his holy mouth.", + "Have compassion on all Jews who have difficulty finding their marriage partners (and, in particular, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]). Help them and save them quickly, so that each one will find his true partner meant for him from Heaven — quickly, swiftly and speedily, without any obstacle, difficulty or suffering at all.", + "No one knows of any advice or stratagem for how to find a spouse for each unmarried person. You know how hard it is for a person to find his true match, because all potential couples are opposites.", + "Sometimes they are very much at odds, so much so that it is as hard to bring them together as it was to split the Red Sea. It is possible to join and couple them only by means of true awareness, which brings about all marriages.", + "Therefore, we must hear Torah from the mouth of the true man of awareness, who creates wondrous insights into the Torah by joining and uniting large letters and small letters, tying and marrying words of Torah in one place to those in other.", + "Through him, all marriages are consummated. This is expressed in the verse, “The lips of the Kohen guard knowledge; people seek Torah from his mouth” — whose initial letters in Hebrew spell ShIDdUKh (match).", + "But because of our many sins, this holy master of awareness is concealed from us, and we do not know how to find him and hear Torah from his mouth. And so, from where will our help come?", + "Therefore, our eyes are turned to You alone. You are filled with compassion, and You “sit and arrange matches.”10 Midrash Rabbah 68:4. Have mercy on all those of Your nation, the Jewish people, who need to find their match (and, in particular, [Hebrew name], the son/daughter of [mother’s Hebrew name]). Quickly send each man his marriage partner who is truly fitting for him from Heaven.", + "May she be attuned to his will. May she be helpful and useful to him. May he and all men who need to find their marriage partners realize the verse, “He who has found a wife has found good and attained HaShem’s favor.”", + "Unique Master, filled with compassion, looking out and gazing to the end of all generations, You guide Your world with kindness and Your creatures with compassion.", + "Have pity, compassion and mercy on the young people of Your nation, the House of Israel. Please tell us Your ways and how we may find true spouses for all those who are dependent on us.", + "Help us attain the power and merit of the great, true Tzaddikim who constitute the holy awareness of all of the worlds, and who draw forth and reveal truly great and awesome awareness even in this world.", + "In their might and merit, may we quickly find the marriage partner for each individual of Your nation, the House of Israel. May we marry these couples off quickly and happily for a good, long and flourishing life.", + "May each wife be in accordance with her husband’s will and not oppose him at all, Heaven forbid. Rather, may the couple dwell together in love, peace, holiness and purity, truly in accordance with Your will.", + "May the Tzaddikim help Your entire nation, the House of Israel, truly guard the holy covenant with great holiness. The entire Torah depends on this. It is the essence of every person’s test and free will, as You revealed to us through Your holy sages.", + "May every man’s wife be the mother of sons and daughters for generations and generations, forever. May they all live to serve and fear You for length of days and good years.", + "May they recognize and know You and the greatness of Your true Tzaddikim whom You have chosen. May the holy awareness that all of the Tzaddikim have left in this world be revealed to them.", + "We Rely on Your Compassion
Master of the world, You do not treat us in accordance with our transgressions. You do not recompense us in accordance with our wrongdoing. Now, as well, have pity and mercy on us. Hear our prayer. Turn Your face away from our wrongdoing, erase all of our sins, and do not look at our deeds.", + "Rather, gaze at the merit of the true Tzaddikim on whom we rely at all times. We drink from the waters of this holy awareness, and to this day we live from the words of their mouths. As a result, may every Jewish man find his true match quickly.", + "Compassionately fulfill all of our requests in accordance with all that I have requested of You, Master of compassion, Master of mercy, Master of graciousness.", + "Your compassion has not ended. You desire that even someone as lowly and worthless as I am will ask You for all good and kindness.", + "For You are good and do good to all. That is the essence of Your greatness. You perform wondrous kindness for those who are far from You — in particular, for someone who is as far away as I am. You are gracious with a person undeserving of graciousness, and You have compassion on a person undeserving of compassion.", + "In particular, at every moment I see all of the kindnesses, benefits and wonders of Your wondrous kindness that You perform on my behalf every day, every hour and every moment.", + "“Your kindness toward me is great; You have rescued my spirit from the lowest depths of Sheol.” “Your kindness to me is great” — without measure and beyond evaluation and calculation — “for His kindness has overwhelmed us and HaShem is true forever, praise God!”", + "Therefore, Your servant has found it in his heart to beg You for all of this. I do not rely on my righteousness to cast my prayer before You, but on Your vast compassion, and on the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim who gain merit and who give merit to the masses.", + "Their power and merit suffices for me as well, in order to save me, my children and my grandchildren — as well as Your entire nation, the House of Israel — forever with all of the salvations in the world.", + "We trust in the Name of Your great and awesome holiness. We will rejoice and delight in Your salvation. “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen and amen." + ], + [ + "One Should Not Divorce His Wife Even if She is Bad, for She Saves Him from the Suffering of Gehinnom / A Person Should Not Indulge His Carnal Appetites
There are two reasons for breaking a plate at the time of an engagement.
A man must be very careful not to divorce his wife. A man who has a bad wife will not see Gehinnom (Eruvin 41b) — thus, a man in such a circumstance should accept his situation with equanimity.
This is alluded to in the breaking of the plate. There was a Gate of Shards in Jerusalem, traditionally described as standing opposite the entrance to Gehinnom. The breaking of the plate hints to the man that even if she will be a bad wife, he should not be disloyal to her, but accept that situation with love, for as a result he will not see Gehinnom.
Conversely, if she is a good wife, he should remember that Gehinnom exists and not be drawn after his carnal appetites, but sanctify himself.
Rescue Us from the Judgment of Gehinnom
“To You, HaShem, I call, and to HaShem I pray.” “What profit is there in my blood, in my descending to the grave? Will the earth acknowledge You, will it tell Your truth?”", + "“Hear, HaShem, and be gracious to me. HaShem, help me!” Have compassion on me, my offspring, and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, and save us from the judgment of Gehinnom!", + "Have compassion on us — from now on, at any rate. Rescue us from the desire for intimate relations. In Your compassion, kindness and awesome wonders, guard us and save us. Help us so that we will not indulge our desire inordinately, even when it is permissible.", + "Rather, may we remember the harsh and bitter punishment of Gehinnom. May we not satiate our desires, Heaven forbid, but reduce them completely until we break them entirely.", + "May we not be accustomed to engage in marital relations at all, Heaven forbid, except in order to maintain the human race. May we do so in great holiness and purity, with dread and awe, trembling and trepidation, humility and shame, and without any insolence or arrogance of the Side of Evil at all.", + "How much more should we guard ourselves to the ultimate degree against any forbidden aspect of this desire, Heaven forbid.", + "May we succeed in protecting and guarding ourselves from all kinds of fantasies and evil thoughts, from every kind of evil gazing, and from every kind of blemish to the covenant in thought, speech and deed, in all of our senses and with all of our faculties.", + "In all of them, may we carefully guard ourselves to the ultimate degree against every kind of blemish to the covenant — whether forbidden or permitted, unintentional or purposeful, under duress or willingly — so that we will be saved from the judgment of Gehinnom.", + "In Your vast and great compassion, in Your mercy and graciousness, have compassion on us. For You know the severe, bitter suffering of Gehinnom, even if it lasts for but a single hour.", + "Have compassion on us during our lifetime. Help us and save us so that we will overcome and vanquish our evil inclination, and thus rescue ourselves entirely from the judgment of Gehinnom.", + "We have caused blemishes against You until now — in particular, blemishes of the covenant — until “our sins have risen over our head,” rising to the heights of Heaven, and growing heavier than the sand of the sea and more numerous than the dust of the earth. Regarding all of this, forgive us and grant us atonement, God of atonement, You Who are gracious and generous to forgive.", + "We do not have the power to rectify even one of these blemishes — certainly not all of them — except by praying and beseeching You to have mercy and pity on us, and to forgive our past with truly complete forgiveness.", + "Help us and save us in the future. Assist us at every moment by guarding us so that we will no longer sin and no longer cause any blemishes at all — in particular, to the holy covenant.", + "Have mercy on us, for there is nothing more pitiful than one who causes a blemish to the holy covenant. Have mercy on us, our Father in Heaven. In Your vast compassion, do what You will so that we will no longer sin and no longer cause any blemishes at all.", + "May we guard Your laws and commandments in accordance with Your good will all of the days of our lives, forever, so that we will be entirely rescued from the judgment of Gehinnom and never see the face of Gehinnom.", + "Your compassion is extremely vast. You hear the prayer of every mouth. In particular, we trust and rely on the power of the true Tzaddikim who truly guard the covenant.", + "They have encouraged and inspired us to engage in much prayer, and to plead, beg, cry out and call out to You, however things may be.", + "Therefore, our eyes are turned to Your compassion and kindness alone, like the eyes of servants turned to the hand of their masters, until You will have compassion on us from Heaven and help us — from now on, at any rate — truly rectify the covenant, in accordance with Your will and in accordance with the will of Your true Tzaddikim, may their merit protect us.", + "May We Find Our True Spouse
Have compassion on every one of Your nation, the House of Israel, who need to find a spouse, so that each one will find his spouse quickly — his true spouse, his spouse meant for him from Heaven.", + "During the engagement ceremony — the tena’im — at the time of the breaking of the plate, may everyone be inspired for Your sake to recall his goal and purpose.", + "May the man then remember the Gate of Shards that was in Jerusalem, which is the entrance to Gehinnom — so that he will not be disloyal to his worthy wife, and take care not to divorce her even if she causes him suffering, Heaven forbid.", + "He should recall the bitter punishment of Gehinnom from which a man is rescued as a result of having a bad wife. As our sages said, “A man who has a bad wife does not see the face of Gehinnom.” He must accept this with love. And he should remind himself that if she will be a good wife, acting in accordance with his will, he should be extremely careful not to overindulge his sexual desire, Heaven forbid, and truly remember that Gehinnom exists.", + "He should have pity on himself and sanctify himself with ultimate holiness when he engages in marital relations, as is fitting for a Jewish man, and recall and never forget the bitter punishment of Gehinnom that comes on account of a blemish of the covenant, Heaven forbid, may the Compassionate One protect us.", + "Have compassion on me, on my offspring and on every Jew. In Your compassion, bring about a chain of events for the good, so that we will aid and rescue our soul from Gehinnom and from every type of punishment and judgment in this world and the World to Come.", + "“What profit is there in my blood, in my descending to the grave? Will the earth acknowledge You, will it tell Your truth?” Protect us in Your great compassion and rescue us from Your wrath. “Guard my soul and rescue me. May I not be ashamed, for I have taken refuge in You.” “Save my spirit from the sword, my soul from the dogs.”", + "Have pity, compassion and mercy on us in the merit and power of the Tzaddikim who, aided by Your compassion, have brought us close to You.", + "“Rescue me from the mud so that I will not sink. May I be delivered from my enemies and from the depths of the water.” “May the waves of water not pour over me, may the depths not swallow me up, and may the wellspring not shut its mouth upon me.”", + "“Answer me, HaShem, for Your lovingkindness is good; in accordance with Your compassion, turn to me. Do not hide Your face from Your servant, for I am in distress; answer me soon.” “Bring redemption close to my spirit; despite my enemies, redeem me.” “Bring me back and I will return, for You are [HaShem] my God.”", + "“Return us to You, HaShem, and we will return; renew our days as of old.” “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "Through Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, the Jewish People Will Not Forget the Torah / In the Merit of Rabbi Shimon’s Zohar, the Jewish People Will Emerge from Exile
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai promised the Jewish people that through him, the Torah would not be forgotten. When the sages entered the yeshivah in Yavneh, they said, “The Torah will one day be forgotten by the Jews,” but Rabbi Shimon said it would not be, quoting the verse, “For it will not be forgotten from the mouth of his offspring (כי לא תשכח מפי זרעו, ki loa tisha’khach mipiy zaro)” (Deuteronomy 31:21). Moreover, it states in the Zohar, “With this Zohar, they [the Jews] will be redeemed from exile” (Zohar III, 124b).
The final letters of the words in the verse from Deuteronomy, kI loA tisha’khaCh mipiY zarO, spell YOChAI. Thus, the verse is hinting that the Torah will not be forgotten from the mouth of his offspring — namely, the offspring of Yochai: the sage Rabbi Shimon. Because of Rabbi Shimon’s Zohar, the Jews will be redeemed from exile.
The mystery of Rabbi Shimon himself is alluded to in another verse, “A wakeful, holy angel descended from Heaven (עיר וקדיש מן שמיא נחית, Ir Ve-kaddish Min Shemaya Nachit)” (Daniel 4:10), the first letters of which spell ShIMON.
The following prayer is based on the awesome secret that Rebbe Nachman revealed regarding the greatness of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, who promised the Jewish people that through him, the Torah would not be forgotten — because “with this Zohar, they will be redeemed from exile.” If a person has the privilege of being at Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s holy gravesite, it is good to recite this prayer there. However, one does well to recite it anywhere, because — as the holy Zohar states — the Tzaddik’s soul spreads throughout the entire world.", + "For Lag BaOmer, the Hilula of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai
May Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and the Other Tzaddikim Help Us
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, “a wakeful, holy angel descended from Heaven,” a holy light, an exalted light, a great light, a precious light — you promised the Jewish people that because of you, they will never forget the Torah, for “with this Zohar they will be redeemed from exile.”", + "Even in the midst of concealment within concealment, in the “footsteps of the Mashiach” at these end of days, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, you have promised that the Torah will not be forgotten from the mouths of our children.", + "As the verse states, “When I hide My face on that day … this song will speak before [the Jews] as a witness, for it will not be forgotten from the mouths of [their] children.”", + "And now, days have come from which we derive no pleasure. Our exile has grown long and our subjugation has been protracted, and every day we grow poorer and our hands are feeble.", + "“The enemy’s hand gains strength and there is no savior to strengthen us.” We are left like orphans without a father, with no one to stand up on our behalf.", + "In the denouement of this bitter exile, the spark of the Mashiach began to shine in the days of the Godly ARI,11 Acronym for Adoneinu Rabbeinu Yitzchak, Rabbi Isaac Luria (1534-1572), founder of the modern study of Kabbalah. may the memory of a Tzaddik be for a blessing, and Your nation, the House of Israel, yearn and languish profoundly for HaShem, may He be blessed.", + "Everyone desires to fear Your Name with an urgent and wondrous yearning that has not existed since the earliest days.", + "“I have reached the end, and I am still with You.” I have come to the end of all of the generations, and I continue to be with You. We continue to hold on to You, and we yearn to serve You with an outpouring of our soul.", + "Nevertheless, our great distance from You in these times is also without measure, because we are sunken into the deep mire, without a place to stand. We have entered into the depths of the waters, and the floodwaters have poured over us.", + "Look: Your nation, the Jewish people, are deeply downtrodden. It is impossible to describe or recount the tremendous temptations of the Evil One, who has enticed us so considerably and cast us down so tremendously.", + "In my poverty, who am I to tell the troubles of the Jewish people? Only you, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, know the totality of the circumstances and situation of the Jewish people at this end of days.", + "However, I have come to recount and cry out in regard to myself and my soul, in regard to my intense distance from HaShem, and in regard to my intense blemishes, my many sins and my profound iniquities.", + "“For these I weep — my eye, my eye sheds tears.” I do not know how to restore the power of holiness to myself, or how to attain complete repentance.", + "How will I begin to abandon my evil ways and despicable thoughts? How will I rectify such damage and blemishes?", + "“I have not known my soul.” “Where will I go?” Where will I bear my intense humiliation? Where will I flee? Where will I hide from my shame and self-reproach? I tell the mountains, “Cover me!” and the hills, “Fall on me!” Woe, what has become of me? Woe, what has happened to me?", + "“Therefore, I said, ‘Leave me alone; let me cry bitterly.’” Perhaps He will have pity. Perhaps He will have compassion. Nothing can keep HaShem from saving even me at this time, because He has such power to rescue.", + "As the verses state, “You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You,” and, “Who tells You, ‘What are You doing?’” Therefore, I have come like a pauper at the door — impoverished, gaunt, needy, plagued and tormented, so confused that I am driven mad, poor and pained — to cry out and call out before Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s splendid holiness.", + "My master! My master! My master! “My father, my father, chariot of Israel and its horsemen,” light of the lamp of the Torah, “awake, why do you sleep?” Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, how can you bear the sufferings of the Jewish people?", + "Arise and awaken together with all of the true Tzaddikim to look and see the bitter sufferings of our soul. “You who dwell in the dust, awake and sing!” Arise, you who sleep in the Cave of Makhpelah,12 Reb Noson refers to the Patriarchs and Matriarchs buried in the Cave of Makhpelah in Hebron — Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, and Jacob and Leah. to assist us!", + "Tzaddikim, foundations of the world, arise to help us at this time of trouble. Have pity and mercy on the entire congregation of the children of Israel — including me, the sinner and blemished person filled with transgressions from head to foot.", + "Tzaddikim, you know “all of the hardship that has befallen us” from the day of the exile from the Holy Land until now — all that has occurred to the Jewish people collectively and that has occurred to every individual.", + "In particular, the Tzaddikim know what I have undergone since the day that my soul and body were emanated, created, formed and made — all that I have experienced in every incarnation.", + "And, in particular, the Tzaddikim know what I have undergone in this body, everything that I have experienced from my beginning until this day — that which I remember and that which I have forgotten.", + "Parchment made of the hides of all of the “rams of Nebayot” would not suffice to describe or relate the slightest fraction of the blemishes that I have incurred in a single day — blemishes that reach the levels that they reach, in accordance with the level of the root of my soul.", + "And how much more is this true of the blemishes that I have incurred all of the days that I have lived, from the day that I came into being until this day (and, in particular, [add your own words here])? Who can tell, who can imagine? How can I speak? How can I complain? What will I say? How will I speak and how can I justify myself?", + "Master of the world, place me in the heart of this holy and awesome Tzaddik (if you have the privilege to be in the Land of Israel, standing at the gravesite of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, add, “who dwells here”), and in the hearts of all of the true Tzaddikim, so that they will not hide their faces from me, but stand on my behalf as my upright advocates to consider my merit, and seek and find my good points.", + "May they advocate on my behalf so that You will compassionately bring me close to You and give me a new heart and a new spirit. May I truly be inspired from now on to truly return to You with all my heart.", + "O heavens, speak up on my behalf. All masters of compassion and mercy, have mercy on me. All who sleep in the dust, plead on my behalf, for I am sunken “in the deep mud, without any place to stand.”", + "Rabbi Shimon’s Promise
Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, bear in mind and place on your heart the fact that in these generations, we have heard of the wondrous awesomeness of your greatness: how the Torah itself hints that through you, the Torah will not be forgotten.", + "Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, in the verse that you brought as a proof text, “For it will not be forgotten from the mouth of his offspring,” the final letters spell Yochai. And your own holy name, Shimon, is alluded to in the acronym formed by the verse, “A wakeful, holy angel, descended from Heaven.”13 See above, pp. 460-461.", + "Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, you alone know the secret of these words. You alone know the greatness of your promise to the Jewish people, that because of you, they will not forget the Torah — something that Moses prophesied about in his holy Torah.", + "Therefore, Tzaddikim, my holy masters, I come to remind you to please have mercy on me. Do not look upon any of the evils that I have committed from my beginning until this day in thought, speech and deed, disobeying the word of God and scorning the counsel of the Supernal One. Do not gaze at my evil deeds, do not treat me in accordance with my transgressions, and may I not be burdensome in your eyes.", + "It is so long that the Tzaddikim have been arousing me with thousands and tens of thousands of hints and types of inspiration, and with all sorts of proper advice every day and every moment to come close to HaShem. But I am stiff-necked and have damaged and blemished all of this, and I have not inclined my ear or my heart to any of this.", + "Tzaddikim, have pity on me. Do not take heed of any of this. Do not be angry at me, Heaven forbid. Instead, think thoughts from now on so that I will not be cast away from HaShem and from you, Heaven forbid, because “there is no limitation on HaShem’s ability to save” — even now.", + "My only strength at present is in my mouth. And this, too, comes from Him. He has not withheld His kindness and truth from me, but has given strength to a person as weary as I am to speak these few words now.", + "I rely on you, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, to have compassion on me and act so that I will truly return to HaShem. (And may I come to the Land of Israel quickly and in peace, and recite all this and more at your holy resting place.)", + "May HaShem, Who is good, compassionately hear your prayer, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. May He help, shield and save me and the entire Jewish people for your sake, and bring us back to Him quickly, in complete repentance.", + "May He hold on to me and never let me go, never abandon me and never desert me in any way, until I truly return to Him and am in accordance with His good will, from now and forever.", + "In this lifetime, may I rectify everything that I blemished, in the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim. I rely on them alone to arrange these words of mine before them and before HaShem, the Master of compassion, Who knows hidden things.", + "“HaShem will act on my behalf. HaShem, Your kindness is forever; do not forsake the work of Your hands.” “Bring my soul forth from imprisonment to acknowledge Your Name; because of me, the righteous will crown You, because You will recompense me.”" + ], + [ + "When a Person Commits a Sin, that Leads Him to Commit Bundles of Sins / Each Bundle of Sins Demands that a Person Feed it and Maintain it / When a Person Enacts the Thirteen Traits of Compassion, Heaven Treats Him with Those Same Traits / The Sins of Jews Come from Edom / Poor People and Those Lacking Merit Must Petition God to Arouse the Thirteen Traits of Compassion
“One sin draws along another” (Avot 4:2). When a person commits a sin, that pulls along other sins related to it. When he commits a different sort of sin, that pulls along sins related to it. These turn into bundles of sins.
Each bundle creates a group of destructive spiritual enemies that cry out to the sinner, “Give us life! Give us food!” (Tikkuney Zohar 22a). The sinner — who is the owner of these sins — must feed them and keep them alive. He is responsible for the first sin since he committed it without compulsion. As for the subsequent sins, although he was, as it were, compelled to commit them, they can argue that he should have performed a mitzvah immediately after the first sin, and doing so would have guarded him spiritually.
His rectification is to learn and observe the thirteen traits of compassion. As a result of being compassionate and kind, he will arouse Heaven’s thirteen supernal traits of compassion, and they will overcome the destructive forces. Then God will remove the first sin in each bundle, and the remaining sins will return to Him.
God gives these sins life — but from where does He give them life?
In the realm of the Side of Evil, Edom is the first of the first sins. All subsequent sins come about through it.
The Jewish people are so holy that it is not fitting for them to commit any sort of sin. But they sin because of the pressure of the exile imposed upon them by the nations with taxes and levies. Because we are in Edom’s exile, our sins derive from Edom. And so God places the responsibility for these sins upon Edom, who must give them life.
When a person has compassion, he arouses the thirteen traits of compassion. However, the poor — who are associated with the trait of judgment — lack the trait of compassion. Indeed, as we can see, poor people are cruel. They need to petition God to arouse His compassion and remove the first sin first.
And we ourselves are like these poor, since we lack merit. Therefore, the verse states, “Do not recall our first sins against us. May Your compassion come to us quickly, for we are very poor” (Psalms 79:8). We spread our hands out to God, begging that He Himself awaken the thirteen traits of compassion.
For the Day of the Selichah of the Thirteen Traits of Compassion14 This refers to the selichah recited on the eighth day of the Ten Days of Repentance, which mentions the thirteen traits of compassion.
Drawing God’s Kindness onto Ourselves
“Do not recall our first sins against us. May Your compassion come to us quickly, for we are very poor.”", + "You are the Master of the world, the Master of compassion and forgiveness. “God, King Who sits on the throne of compassion, You act kindly, forgiving Your people’s sins and setting them aside one by one. You are great in forgiving transgressors and excusing the sinful.”", + "You Who are profoundly kind, You Who vastly aid us, Your compassion and kindness never end. Teach us and direct us to truly draw Your thirteen traits of compassion onto ourselves fully.", + "May each one of us — even the lowest of the low and the least of the least, even someone such as myself — drawn onto himself Your pure compassion and kindness that contain no admixture of judgment whatsoever.", + "Please redress, forgive and grant atonement for all of our transgressions, sins and offenses that we have committed before You from our beginning until this day.", + "Remove them one by one until all of them will be entirely nullified, and we will thus gain atonement.", + "Master of the world, You Who sit in the heights, what shall I say to You? You Who dwell in the heavens, what shall I tell You? You know how many transgressions, sins and offenses I have committed from my beginning until this day, creating major, terrible blemishes, until these sins have become numerous bundles of wrongdoing.", + "You alone know how my every sin is drawn and pulled along from a previous sin connected to it, one after the other, until a bundle of wrongdoings is created.", + "In my sinfulness, I did wrong, committing a sin that became the first sin of a second bundle. That sin drew in its wake a number of other wrongdoings in an ongoing chain, may the Compassionate One save us, until a second bundle of wrongdoings was created.", + "And I acted in this way a number of times, until my sins “have become interwoven, they have risen up to my neck” in numerous bundles of sins.", + "Woe to me! Who has the strength to recall a thousandth or even a ten-thousandth of my evil deeds and maintain the ability to continue living without the aid of Your awesome miracles and wonders?", + "And now, my Father in Heaven, my compassionate Father, what shall I do? What shall I undertake? Where will I turn? Where will I go? Where will I flee?", + "How will I draw the wonders of Your simple compassion and kindness onto me so that — from now on, at any rate — I will be rescued and protected from everything that I need to be rescued and protected from?", + "Remove Our Sins
Master of the world, Master of the world! Who is like You, Master of the entire world, Who does boundless good? Who is like You, Master of compassion, Who saves and forgives so greatly?", + "Act for Your sake. Forgive us, excuse us and grant us atonement for the first sin in each bundle, and remove it.", + "Then may all of the remaining sins in each bundle return to You and no longer cast any accusations against us.", + "Have compassion on us. Load these sins upon the firstborn, Esau, who is responsible for the first sins. He is Edom, in whose exile we are now living.", + "He is the first cause of all of our sins, whether ancient or recent, due to the force of the bitter exile that overpowers us every day, an exile in which “the strength of the porter has collapsed.” Almost every day, the gentiles extract money from Your nation, the Jewish people, with a multitude of tariffs, real-estate taxes, and various levies, thievery and bribes.", + "This has disoriented us. As a result, we have engaged in a number of wrongdoings, as You informed us would be the case via Your holy sages.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, have compassion on me and on the entire Jewish people at this time of trouble, for “the children have come as far as the birth stool, and there is no strength to give birth.”", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name, so that — from now on, at any rate — I will succeed in imploring You to help me follow Your laws, keep Your commandments, and no longer return to foolishness.", + "Have compassion on me, You Who are filled with compassion, with the compassion familiar to You that has the power to extricate me from all of the places into which I fell. May I truly return to You from now on and forever.", + "In Your kindness, have mercy on me and direct me in Your ways. Help me grasp Your holy traits, Your good ways, and Your compassion composed of the thirteen traits of compassion with which You relate to Your creatures.", + "Being Kind to Others
May I, too, walk in Your ways and perform true compassion on people’s behalf — all sorts of compassion composed of the thirteen traits of compassion.", + "May I be good to everyone. May I bestow charity, goodness, kindness and compassion upon everyone who needs kindness, so that I will arouse and draw down Your thirteen traits of compassion onto myself. Please have compassion on me and on the entire Jewish people with all of Your thirteen traits.", + "Forgive, excuse and grant atonement for all of our transgressions, sins and offenses, whether long ago or recent. May no memory or impression of them remain at all.", + "Hurry! Quickly redeem us and extricate us from this bitter and long exile.", + "From now on, guard us and rescue us from every type of transgression, wrongdoing and sin, whether accidental or purposeful, compelled or willful. Bring us back to You in complete repentance.", + "May we, our children and our grandchildren always be truly in accordance with Your good will, from now and forever.", + "Help me and save me so that I will bestow merit upon others as well. May I teach sinners Your ways, so that they will all walk on Your holy paths, clinging to the ways of Your goodness and compassion. May I grant people every type of compassion and kindness composed of the thirteen traits of compassion.", + "May I fulfill the verse, “I will teach transgressors Your ways, so that the sinners will return to You.”", + "Seeking an Arousal from Above
You Who are filled with compassion, You know how far I am from granting people proper compassion, because I am poor, needy and wanting, impoverished and corrupt.", + "I lack the ability to grant compassion to people and requite them with kindness and increased charity — not even with a thousandth or a ten-thousandth of what would be fitting for me, considering the large number of my wrongdoings.", + "At times I am able to give very little charity and perform very few acts of kindness. Regarding even that, innumerable obstacles have multiplied against me because my empathy has been damaged a great deal as a result of my lack of awareness and my poverty — both material and spiritual.", + "And now, “from where will my help come?” From where will my salvation come? How will I draw Your thirteen traits of compassion onto myself?", + "Therefore, I come to You, Master of compassion. For the sake of Your Name, please arouse Your feelings of compassion on our behalf. Draw Your thirteen traits of compassion onto us for the sake of Your honor, without any initiative from below at all.", + "For in our impoverishment, we lack the power to arouse these traits of compassion from here below with our own compassion, because we are so very poor and far from compassion. Act for Your sake and not for ours. Look upon our impoverished and fruitless circumstances.", + "You Who perform kind deeds for every creature that possesses flesh and spirit, do not recompense us in accordance with our baseness. “May Your compassion come to us quickly,” of Your own initiative, to those of us “who are deeply impoverished” — those of us who lack the strength to arouse Your compassion by means of our own compassion.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, compassionately remember the covenant of the thirteen traits of compassion. Remove our sins, transgressions and wrongdoings from before Your eyes. Forgive, excuse and grant atonement for all of them.", + "May no impression of them remain whatsoever. Instead, transform all of them to good, so that all of our sins will be transformed into merits as though we had repented fully and properly, turning sins into merits.", + "We do not cast our plea before You based on our righteousness, but on Your vast compassion, and on the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim who have drawn the ways of Your goodness and compassion into the world.", + "They have revealed that we should always seek You, cry out to You and beseech You, however things may be. We have trusted solely in their great power to come and plead before You regarding all of these matters.", + "Treat us in a way that is good in Your eyes. “We are the clay and You are our Maker. All of us are the work of Your hand.” “Recall Your compassion, HaShem, and Your lovingkindness, because they are forever.” “Do not recall our first sins against us. May Your compassion come to us quickly, for we are very poor.”", + "“HaShem, do not withhold Your compassion from me. May Your kindness and truth always protect me.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "A Person Should Minimize His Physical Desires, as Though He is Already in the World to Come / Incomplete Awareness of the World to Come is Necessary for a Person to Live in This World / Out of the Basic Elements of Dispute, a Tzaddik Builds 310 Worlds that He Will Inherit / Dispute Hides a Tzaddik’s Light So the World Can Bear it / Dispute against a Tzaddik Protects Him from the Attacks of Spiritual Opponents / Dispute against a Tzaddik Conducted by Another Tzaddik Can Raise Him to Higher Levels
A person should accustom himself to be in the World to Come — that is to say, to separate himself from desires as though he is already in the World to Come, which has no eating and no drinking — no animalistic, temporal desires. Similarly, when a person is sick, he does not want to eat, drink, and so forth, since he is close to the World to Come.
One should accustom himself to this way of being even when he is well.
If a person were to be completely aware of the delights of the World to Come, of the great angels in Heaven and of his own lowly sinfulness, he could not bear the life and pleasures of this world and he could not serve God at all. So a lack of awareness is a great thing. Nevertheless, a person should not entirely ignore his real, eternal world.
In the future, God will give every Tzaddik 310 worlds. Think how many houses there will be, how many courtyards, alleys, cities and countries, stars, constellations and galaxies.
God constructs these 310 worlds for the Tzaddik from dispute. All of the letters and words of dispute are disconnected stones. The Tzaddik puts them together as houses and puts the houses together to form a city, until an entire world comes into being, and so forth until 310 worlds are brought into being.
The Tzaddik tends toward kindness and judges those who oppose him positively, viewing their intentions as good.
This opposition has various positive outcomes.
First, if the Tzaddik’s light were not concealed by opposition, the world could not bear it at all.
Second, sometimes when people judge and attack the Tzaddik, they silence spiritual judgments and spiritual opponents that otherwise would have attacked him even more vigorously.
And third, when a Tzaddik is attacked by another Tzaddik, if he demonstrates the strength to stand in the King’s palace, he is elevated to higher spiritual levels.
Living a Life of the World to Come
“One thing have I asked of HaShem, that do I seek: may I sit in the House of HaShem all the days of my life, gazing upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visiting in His palace.”", + "Master of the world, filled with compassion, have pity and mercy on me. Save me and help me. Strengthen my heart so that from now on I will start to accustom myself to be in the World to Come.", + "May I move and shift myself away from the desires and vanities of this world, and accustom myself to do without eating, drinking and marital relations as in the World to Come, where there are no this-worldly desires at all.", + "“My life has been worn out with grief.” A great many of my years have passed and I have grown old, my passing days move onward continuously, and every day I come closer to the day of my death. And everyone must go on this path, “on the way of all the earth.”", + "Help me begin to act in accordance with the customs of the place to which I am destined to go without any doubt — whether sooner or later, whether I will live a little more or much more. Either way, everything will slip away like a passing shadow, and I must go there.", + "In that place, there are no desires or evil traits, none of the characteristics of this world, no false honor or prestige.", + "That is the world of truth. There a person is not accompanied by silver, gold, precious stones or pearls, or by any desires or honors of this world.", + "To the contrary, only those who are cleansed and purified of all desires with special holiness and purity can succeed there. And I am so far from that.", + "I have experienced what I have experienced, and I have done what I have done. Purify me — at any rate, from now on — so that I will begin to have true pity and compassion on myself. May I begin to prepare my steps for the World to Come, to which I am destined to go without any doubt.", + "Even if I were to live a thousand years, that would not give me enough time to prepare provisions for that distant journey — even if during all of my days I had not incurred any blemishes.", + "How much more is it the case now that I have blemished so much, and I am filled with transgressions, sins, offenses, evil desires, extensive flaws and a great deal of damages beyond measure, evaluation or accounting!", + "Have compassion on me. From now on, at any rate, may I truly begin to have compassion on myself. You Who have compassion on me from Heaven, help me and save me at every hour and minute, so that I will no longer return to my foolishness.", + "Instead, from now on may I begin to accustom myself to be in the World to Come: to accustom myself to do without eating, drinking, marital relations or other desires.", + "Hearken to the Good in My Prayers
In Your vast compassion, have pity on me. Arouse Your compassion for me, a person as blemished, maimed and corrupt as I am, with “a broken and crushed heart,” “a base person despised in people’s eyes.”", + "Recall, do not forget, all of my outcries, clamors, sighs, prayers, pleas and requests — of which not even a single word is lost, Heaven forbid — that I have expressed before You Who test the heart and kidneys.", + "Although these prayers are adulterated with a great deal of worthless material, You look at the little bit of good, at the good points within them.", + "You look at a number of true words and good points in them, which have in truth aroused Your compassion for me a number of times, and because of which You have helped me extensively.", + "An Opening of Hope
If not for Your compassion and the tremendous kindness with which You have wondrously treated me until this day, I would have been lost in my poverty, Heaven forbid. “If HaShem had not been my help, in an instant my soul would have dwelled in silence.”", + "But still, “my heart is distraught within me.” “It is very bitter for me,” for I am still extremely far from my goal, and still I have not left behind the mundane for the holy by even a hairsbreadth.", + "What shall I say? How shall I speak? How can I justify myself? What shall I say to You Who sit in the heights? What shall I tell You Who dwell in the heavens? You know Your servant — everything that has happened to me and all that I have gone through until now.", + "Yet even after all of this, I still truly believe that there is no despair in the world at all.", + "Regarding this, I still rely on the great power of the true Tzaddikim to drill through and open up channels. Perhaps I will find an opening of hope through which to return to You — to renew my spirit, to rescue and liberate my soul from whatever I need to be rescued and liberated from.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, Master of the world! You know thoughts, You know hidden things, You investigate the heart and kidneys, You think thoughts so that no one will remain cast away from You.", + "You desire kindness. You do boundless good. You perform charity for every mortal creature. You are filled with compassion at all times. You gaze and look to the end of all generations.", + "You know all of the hidden matters in my heart to their end, even more than I do. Only You know which path and which counsel will revive my utterly shamed and feeble spirit.", + "For all of the hidden matters of my heart, the multitude of hidden matters from my beginning, and all of the many thoughts and ideas that I experience are revealed to You.", + "I experience many doubts and uncertain counsel. I constantly look for advice and stratagems to overcome my evil inclination, so that I will emerge from what I need to emerge from and truly return to You — but still I am not saved.", + "“And You, HaShem, how long will I take counsel in my soul, mourning in my heart by day? How long will my enemy rise up against me?” “Gaze, answer me, HaShem my God, illumine my eyes, lest I sleep in death.”", + "Give me hope. May I not be lost. You Who are filled with compassion, help me and save me with all kinds of salvation — as are known to You — so that from now on I will extricate myself from the vanities of this world and truly return to You.", + "Reciting Psalms
Help me recite psalms every day with great feeling, with all my heart. May I connect my awareness, thought and heart to the holy words of the psalms.", + "May I truly attach myself to the spirit of holiness that King David inserted into the holy words of psalms.", + "May my recital of psalms be considered as though King David said them himself. May I find myself every day and every moment in the verses of psalms that I recite, so that by reciting them, I will truly return to You in complete repentance — for, as You revealed to us, reciting psalms helps a person repent.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. Revive me, maintain me and help me — from now on, at any rate — truly return to You. Restore my soul — as though with “seven wise men who give advice” — with every sort of advice that restores the holy soul.", + "Have pity and mercy on my distracted, embittered soul, on my weakened awareness, on my divided counsel. May Your inner being be moved and roused. Have compassion on me, for “what profit is there in my blood if I descend to the grave?”", + "What profit is there if You torment and punish Your children with onerous and bitter punishments, may the Compassionate One protect us? What profit is there if You insult and abase my soul, Heaven forbid?", + "You desire my rectification. You and Your true Tzaddikim who engage in our rectification desire to benefit me with all good things in all worlds, so that I will be among those who fear You, among Your upright ones who desire to walk in Your ways.", + "Then why “have You rejected and despised” me? You set me aside for so many days and years in places that are so far from You.", + "And if, indeed, there is no explanation for this, nevertheless, You can find merit in me and arouse Your true compassion on my behalf. Bring me close to You from now on. Guide me in Your truth at every hour and moment, so that I will truly return to You from now and forever.", + "Among the Tzaddikim
May I attain the life of the World to Come and be accepted among all of the true Tzaddikim who inherit 310 worlds, as in the verse, “That I may give those who love Me substance (yesh), and I will fill their treasuries.”15 In this verse from Proverbs 8:21, the word YeSh (יש, substance) has the numerical value of 310. These are the 310 worlds. Thus, “That I may give those who love Me 310.” ", + "Although I am so far from inheriting even one world — even one house — nothing is beyond You.", + "Guard me and rescue me from argument and dispute. Help me so that discord will not harm me at all — neither spiritually nor physically.", + "Instead, may I connect myself to and be incorporated into the true Tzaddikim who know how to tend toward kindness and who judge all people favorably, even those who malign them.", + "They draw love and peace into the world, soften every sort of dispute, turn dispute into a peaceful home, and build wondrous and awesome houses, until 310 worlds are constructed.", + "Help us so that we will emulate these Tzaddikim, connect ourselves to them and be incorporated into them, until through them, we will attain the 310 worlds.", + "Have mercy on us and help us, so that at every moment we will recall the wonders of the sweet pleasantness of the delights and pleasures that the Tzaddikim will experience in the future, when each one will inherit 310 worlds.", + "May we delve into that with our mind and imagine the greatness of just one world: how many wondrous, awesome stars, constellations and galaxies exist in every world.", + "And every world contains many towns and cities, alleys, courtyards, houses and wondrous new things and awesome matters.", + "How much more regarding the 310 worlds that every Tzaddik has — who can imagine the greatness of the Tzaddik who attains that, and his delights and pleasures? Fortunate is he!", + "Help us so that we will not exchange such eternal worlds for this temporary world. Have mercy on us and on Your entire nation, the Jewish people, so that we all will be among the true Tzaddikim who inherit 310 worlds.", + "You desire to benefit everyone. Nothing can prevent You from saving me as well, so that I will attain all true and eternal goodness, magnifying and sanctifying Your great Name forever and for all eternity.", + "Help us so that we will always have good tidings to deliver to Your nation, the Jewish people. And then may I recite psalms with great feeling.", + "Healing from Heaven
Help us and save us so that we will completely distance ourselves from physicians. Guard us and rescue us from every sort of illness, pain or discomfort.", + "If, in Your compassion, we occasionally require some healing, have compassion on us and strengthen our heart so that we will not contemplate going to any physician.16 Rebbe Nachman often denounced the primitive medicine of Eastern Europe of his day. Yet even in our day, physicians cannot do everything, and ultimately, a person must depend on God. The title of doctor does not make one a superman, and physicians still make mistakes. Controversial and experimental treatments are still used. Modern-day followers of Breslov avoid doctors except in serious cases, and then are careful to obtain only the best possible medical care.", + "Instead, may we rely on You alone. May we recite many psalms on behalf of a sick person, and be firm and certain that as a result of the recital of psalms, You will send complete healing to all who need healing.", + "Give us strength. Help us and save us, so that we will recite psalms with such great feeling that we will arouse and awaken King David himself, who is “the spirit of our nostrils, the Mashiach of HaShem.” May it be considered as though King David recited them himself.", + "May Your nation, the Jewish people, acquire the strength to revive the dead by means of reciting psalms. May all the sick of Your nation, the House of Israel, return to their vigor. May You heal them, cure them and revive them with a truly good and long life.", + "May we all truly return to You, and be in accordance with Your will and with the will of Your true Tzaddikim all the days of our lives, forever.", + "“Bring me back and I will return, for You are [HaShem] my God.” Our Father, return us to Your Torah. Our King, bring us close to serving You. Bring us back to You in complete repentance.", + "Help me from now on accustom myself to be in the World to Come, in accordance with everything that I have asked of You, my Father, my King, my Holy One, my Rock and my Redeemer.", + "Help me hear the voice of the holy song that will be aroused in the future.", + "“Do not cast me away from You, and do not take Your holy spirit away from me.” “Do not cast me away in a time of old age. When my strength is worn away, do not abandon me.” “Do not abandon me, HaShem my God. Do not be far from me. Hasten to help me, God of my salvation.”" + ], + [ + "Spiritual Unifications Nullify Prohibited Substances and States of Being / If Some Forbidden Substance Renders a Person’s Kosher Food Unfit, it is a Sign that He Caused Damage to Some Supernal Unification
If a non-kosher substance falls into a kosher food, it makes the entire mixture non-kosher, unless it is nullified in the volume of the kosher food. If a nonkosher substance falls into someone’s kosher food and renders it non-kosher, that is a sign that he is being shown from Heaven that he caused damage to some supernal unification.
This is because all unifications are a nullification of something forbidden. One of the blessings recited at a wedding is, “He forbade us women who are engaged and allowed us women who are married [to us].” Thus, when there is a union, that which was forbidden becomes allowed.
And so, when something forbidden is not made permissible, that is a sign that a person caused damage to a supernal unification.
Making Unifications
“God settles solitary individuals in their home. He brings forth those imprisoned in chains, but those who have rebelled dwell in an arid land.”", + "“God, You are my God; in the morning I will appeal to You.” “My spirit thirsts for You; my flesh yearns for You in a land that is dry and weary, without water.” “As I saw You in the Sanctuary, so do I long to see Your might and honor.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, draw me close to You so that I will serve You. Bring me back to You in complete repentance. Unite my heart to love and fear Your Name.", + "Help me engage in holy unifications constantly. May I improve my deeds and sanctify my thoughts so they will partake of Your supernal holiness, until my thoughts will be unified [and created] in all of the worlds by means of supernal, holy and pure unifications.", + "I was created to unify and bind all of the worlds and all of the holy Names completely, so that Your Unity and Oneness will be revealed, spread and shine to all people in the world. May they all know You, from small to great.", + "Avoiding Any Mixture of Forbidden Foods
Therefore, may it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, You Who perform wonders at all times, that You will be with me always and guard me so that I will never accidentally eat any forbidden foods, Heaven forbid, and so that no mixture of forbidden food with permitted food will ever be in my home.", + "Even if at times, due to some unpreventable circumstance, a little bit of a forbidden substance is mixed into a permitted substance, may it be nullified in the permitted majority, so that the permitted amount will nullify it according to the laws of the holy Torah.", + "Guard me always so that I will not blemish any Heavenly unification. In Your compassion, rectify all of the blemishes that I have caused until now in the unifications of Your holy Names, as a result of my evil deeds.", + "May my wrongdoings be transformed into merits. May my wrongdoings be nullified in Your multitudinous goodness and wondrous kindness, which You send forth and shine onto us constantly.", + "In the might and merit of Your true Tzaddikim, who unify all of the supernal unifications with ultimate perfection, reveal and publicize Your Unity and Oneness to everyone in the world.", + "We trust that in the power and merit of the Tzaddikim, our multitudinous and grave offenses, transgressions and sins will all be nullified completely due to the intense force of their holiness and righteousness, until our wrongdoings will be transformed into merits.", + "Master of the world, Singular and Unique One, have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us truly recognize You and make Your Name known to all who come into the world. “Then all of the nations of the land will know that HaShem is God — there is no other.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "When a Person Speaks Words of Faith, that Increases His Faith / One Should Not Repeat the Words of Heretics, Even if He Means to Mock Them / One Should Not Learn Philosophy, Even of Great Jews, for that Damages Faith / A Person Should be Simple in Serving God / No One is Expected to Perfectly Fulfill His Obligations in Serving God / God Does Not Want a Person’s Thoughts, but His Heart
A person’s faith depends on the declarations of his mouth. When a person declares his faith, that itself is faith and it leads to greater faith. Conversely, a person must be careful not to speak any heretical words, even if he does not believe them and in fact means to mock them.
One should not read the works of heretics. In addition, he should not even read philosophical works written by great Jews, for doing so damages faith. It is enough that we have the faith that we received from our holy forefathers. And the foundation of faith is to serve God simply and uprightly.
A person must distance himself from overthinking in his service of God. The thoughts of those who are beginning to serve God are not wisdom but fantasy, foolishness and confusion. For instance, a person may be focusing on whether he is fulfilling his obligations — but that will cast him down from serving God, because the fact is that no creature of flesh and blood can fulfill his obligations. As the sages tell us, God does not demand the impossible and the Torah was not given to the angels.
All of those people who are inordinately strict in their religious practice have no life and are always depressed, because they are always worried that they are not fulfilling their obligations.
Even if a person is genuinely intelligent, he must cast that away and serve God with absolute simplicity. That is the greatest wisdom of all. There is no wisdom or understanding before God. God wants the heart.
We Declare Our Faith
“May my mouth speak the praise of HaShem, and all flesh bless His holy Name forever and ever.” “May my mouth be filled with Your praise, the entire day with Your glory.” “I will sing the kindness of HaShem forever; for all generations, I will make Your faithfulness known with my mouth.”", + "Master of the world, have compassion on me and on the entire Jewish people. Help me believe in You always with complete faith. May no heresy, doubt or confusion regarding Your holy faith arise in my heart.", + "May I always be accustomed to express my faith explicitly with my mouth, to declare unabashedly at all times that I believe in You, HaShem our God. You are the Primal One, without beginning and without end. With Your will, You created Your world completely ex nihilo after total nothingness.", + "You rule over all, and guide and supervise Your world in accordance with Your will. And in the future, You will renew Your world.", + "You gave us Your holy Torah — both the Written Torah and the Oral Torah — through Moses Your prophet, the faithful one of Your house, and through him, You chose us from all of the nations and sanctified us with Your commandments.", + "You gave us prophets, true Tzaddikim, Tannaim, Amoraim, and all of the holy, true sages of Israel who lived in all of the generations until this day.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Strengthen and support us in Your holy faith always. You know that our entire life force and purpose is solely our holy faith, which is the foundation of the entire Torah. As the verses state, “All of Your commandments are faithful,” and, “The Tzaddik lives by his faith.” This is a foundation of all of the worlds, as the verse states, “All of His deeds are with faith.”", + "In particular, I am blemished due to the damage that I caused with my many sins. All of my life force and hope are entirely holy faith.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. You Who think thoughts so that none will remain cast away from You, have compassion on me. Have pity and mercy on me, and bring me to possess such strong faith at every hour and minute that I will truly return to You with all my heart.", + "You know the magnitude of the true power of holy faith. It has the power to bring even me out of all of the places and problems into which I fell because of my evil deeds.", + "Master of the world, “will You not return and revive us, so that Your nation will rejoice in You?” Give me perfect counsel now, in the place where I am now, so that I will begin to truly return to You, and I will no longer return to foolishness.", + "Reviving Ourselves by Means of Holy Faith
Help me truly revive myself by means of holy faith, so that I will cling to You at every moment, relying on You and coming close to You always, in every place and on every level.", + "The whole world is filled with Your glory. Your governance exists everywhere. You revive all beings. You fill and surround all worlds, and no place is empty of You. “A faithful God without injustice, He is righteous and upright.”", + "You Who are fearsome and awesome, give me complete faith. Give me truly strong and proper faith. Give me a faith that will have the power to revive me at every moment in all that I undergo.", + "May I always come close to You and cling to You from every place in the world.", + "In accordance with everything that I have asked of You so many times, Master of compassion, may I quickly, swiftly, speedily, truly and completely repent and rectify all that I spoiled, so that I will not enter before You in shame.", + "Master of the world, my Lord, my King, my God, my Father, my Redeemer, my Deliverer, Rock of my heart, my Portion — You know how intense is Your compassion and love for me, and how many wonders, miracles and favors without measure You have done for me.", + "How can You restrain Yourself from helping and saving me with complete salvation, from redeeming me with a complete redemption that is not followed by exile, so that I will truly return to You on the level of the repentance of the Shabbat? Nothing is impossible for You. As the verse states, “Is any matter too wondrous for HaShem?”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. Never cast me away from faith. Do not treat me in accordance with my transgressions. Do not recompense me in accordance with my deeds.", + "Instead, be gracious to me in Your vast compassion and great kindness. Strengthen me and bolster me in Your holy faith always. At all times may I speak and publicize faith in You with my mouth.", + "May I truly attain the ultimate perfection of faith, so that I will truly return to You in complete repentance, in accordance with Your will and the will of Your true Tzaddikim.", + "Help me act wholeheartedly and simply, without any worldly cleverness at all. May I not be overcautious with unnecessary stringencies (ruminating) that are not in accordance with Your will, and may I not think into matters inordinately.", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, I spread my hands out to You. Help me! Help me! Save me! Save me! Save me — from now on, at any rate — since I have not merited to be truly [and completely] saved until now.", + "Have compassion on me from now on, Master of compassion, Master of salvation. “Do not cast me aside from You; do not take Your holy spirit away from me.” “Do not cast me away in a time of old age. When my strength is worn away, do not abandon me.”", + "Help me for the sake of Your Name. Save me for the sake of Your compassion, for the sake of Your mighty kindness that never ends and never ceases. As the verse states, “The kindness of HaShem has not ceased, for His compassion has not been exhausted.”", + "“Our soul is cast down to the dust, our belly clings to the earth. Arise to help us, and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”" + ], + [ + "When a Person is Close to God, Place Has No Meaning for Him / One Should Not Say that a Particular Place is Not Good for Him
When a person has Godliness in his heart, he is close to God, and just as “[God] is the Place of the world, but the world is not His place” (Rashi on Exodus 33:21), so too, place has no meaning for this person.
Thus, a person who has a Jewish heart should not say that a particular place is not good for him, since he is the place of the world, and the world is not his place.
Making Our Heart a Tabernacle for HaShem’s Glory
“Whom do I have in Heaven? Besides You, I have desired no one on earth. My flesh and my heart yearn; God is the Rock of my heart and my Portion forever.”", + "Master of the world, Master of everything, Your governance prevails everywhere, for You are the Place of the world and the world is not Your place.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Truly give me a worthy and pure heart, a true Jewish heart, to serve You and fear You.", + "May my heart be a sanctuary for Your glory. May the Presence of Your great and holy glory that dwells in the heart of every Jew, Your holy people, be drawn into my heart.", + "As the verse states, “I will dwell in their midst” — and our sages explained that this teaches that the Holy One, blessed be He, brings His Presence to rest within every Jew.", + "The essence of Godliness is in the heart. As the verse states, “God is the Rock of my heart and my Portion forever.”", + "Have compassion on me and help me so that my heart will be filled with Your Godliness, until no place in the world will be able to distract or prevent me from serving You and fearing You.", + "May I recognize You and find You in all places in the world and on every level in the world, because there is no place that is empty of You.", + "Help me truly be absorbed into You with all my heart until I, too, will be on the level of the “place of the world,” so that the world is not my place.", + "Finding God in Every Place
May every place in the world be completely nullified and eradicated. May no place have the power to distract me, Heaven forbid, from any holy matter.", + "Instead, may I truly come to You, find You and cling to You in all places in the world.", + "Constantly guide me and teach me how to act in regard to all movements and travels, so that everything will truly be in accordance with Your will. In accordance with the word of HaShem, may I camp in my house, and in accordance with the word of HaShem, may I travel on every journey.", + "May every detail of the management of each journey and encampment — overall, in detail, and in the smallest detail — all truly be in accordance with Your will.", + "May I truly find Your Godliness in every place that I come to as I camp and travel, in accordance with Your will. May I truly come close to You and cling to You.", + "May no place in the world distract me from serving You and fearing You. Rather, may I be truly near and close to You, clinging to You in every place in the world, on every level.", + "Have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name and compassionately fulfill the requests of my heart for the good, because my needs are many and my awareness is too abbreviated to explain even a thousandth or a ten-thousandth of them.", + "Compassionate One, You Who are filled with compassion, purify my heart to truly serve You. “Unite my heart to fear Your Name.” “God, create within me a pure heart, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen." + ], + [ + "When Wars and Violence Rage, the Mists Cease to Create Rain and Instead Create Bloodshed / Without Rain, Crops Do Not Grow and Inflation Results / Teaching an Unworthy Student Also Results in Lack of Rain / When a Teacher Teaches an Unworthy Student, Godliness is Imprisoned in that Student’s Mind / One Who Teaches an Unworthy Student Also Suffers Imprisonment
When wars rage throughout the world, reason tells us that there should be inflation as well.
After Cain killed Abel, God cursed him, “When you work the land, it will no longer give its strength to you” (Genesis 4:12). This curse came about because of the spilling of blood, for the earth must respond this way when blood is shed.
Normally, mists that rise from the ground create rain. But after Cain killed Abel and the ground was guilty of swallowing up Abel’s blood, God cursed the ground. Then the mists that rose from the ground did not create rain. In fact, they became spilled blood.
Similarly, when there are wars and bloodshed, and the ground swallows up the blood, the mists do not produce rain but spilled blood.
Thus, without rain, crops do not grow and inflation results.
Rainfall is also withheld when someone who teaches Torah publicly is heard by an unworthy student. This is because rain is associated with the honor of the Torah. When a person teaches an unworthy student, that is the opposite of honor, and so the rain stops.
When a person reveals Torah insights, Godliness is drawn down into the listener’s mind. There that Godliness may be said to be imprisoned to some degree. Nevertheless, God is pleased.
But if a teacher teaches an unworthy student, the Godliness is fully imprisoned in the listener’s mind. And so the teacher, too, is punished with imprisonment.
An End to War and a Season of Abundance
May it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that You eradicate war and bloodshed, and draw great and wondrous peace into the world, so that “nation will not lift sword against nation and they shall no longer learn war.”", + "Instead, may all inhabitants of the earth recognize and know the ultimate truth: that we did not come to this world for fighting and dispute, Heaven forbid, or for hatred, jealousy, hostility and bloodshed, Heaven forbid. We came to the world only to recognize and know You, may You be blessed forever.", + "Therefore, have compassion on us. Give us the rains in their time and season. Do not stop the heavens from giving rain whenever the world needs it.", + "May the verse be fulfilled, “I will give you your rains in their time and the land will give its produce, and the tree of the field shall give its fruit … I will establish peace in the land, and when you will lie down, no one will frighten you. I will remove the wild animals from the land, and the sword will not pass through your land.”", + "In Your vast compassion, see to it that all of the mists will rise from the earth for the good. May these mists always turn into rains of blessing and prosperity in their proper time and season, and not be transformed into bloodshed, Heaven forbid.", + "Extricate the earth from the curses that it received because of the sins of our forefathers and because of our own sins. Transform all of the curses to blessings, “because You can do everything; no purpose can be withheld from You.”", + "Master of the world, have compassion on us. Bless all of the work of our hands. Give us our income with great generosity, holiness and purity.", + "Give us everything we lack and everything that we need before we need it. Rescue and protect us always from debts and loans, which profoundly perturb and unsettle our awareness.", + "Have compassion on me and on us from now on. Help us and save us. In Your awesome salvation, remove all of our past debts, and rescue us from now on from taking on more debts and loans. May we not need to borrow any money from others.", + "Have compassion on us, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who feed and sustain everyone. May we not need the gifts or loans of flesh and blood.", + "Growing in Torah
Have compassion on me and save me so that I will be among the worthy students of the true Tzaddikim.", + "In Your compassion and mercy, You helped us a great deal so that we would listen to and receive a great deal of holy, awesome and elevated Torah teachings from the mouths of the true Tzaddikim, since the days of our forefathers until this day.", + "Have compassion on me and on the entire Jewish people. Help us and save us so that by means of the holy Torah, we will draw Your Godliness onto ourselves, to all of the places where we stand.", + "For in Your great love for Your nation, the Jewish people, You give permission to the true Tzaddikim to draw Your Godliness into our mind and intellect, which grasp and imprison You, as it were — as alluded to in the verses, The king is caught in the tresses,” and, “You rose to the heights, you took captives.”", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Help us and save us so that the Tzaddikim will finish what they have begun, engaging in our rectification by revealing Your Godliness to us.", + "Help our thoughts always cling to Your holy Torah day and night, with a firm and strong bond and with wondrous attachment, so that Your Godliness will be drawn into and grasped by our mind and intellect with great holiness and purity, with true faith, awe, fear, trembling and trepidation. May the verse be realized in me, “I took hold of him and I would not let him go.”", + "In Your great mercy, have mercy on me. Help me and save me so that I will learn Your holy Torah for its own sake and always contemplate it day and night.", + "May we create many true insights in Your holy Torah, in accordance with the approaches that we received from our fathers and rabbis, the holy, true Tzaddikim, may their merit protect us.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. May we always connect our thoughts to Your holy Torah, and contemplate and study it with great diligence for its own sake. May we beseech You a great deal to illumine our eyes in Your Torah.", + "Open the eyes of our intellect and awareness for the good, until we will create true insights in Your exceedingly holy, awesome and elevated Torah.", + "By means of all of the original ideas that we generate in Your Torah, may we always draw Your Godliness into our consciousness and mind. May Your glory fill the entirety of our consciousness, mind, awareness, heart, our 248 limbs and 365 sinews, and our entire anatomy.", + "May I be a chariot for Your Godly Presence. May I no longer stray even a hairsbreadth from holiness, Heaven forbid, and may I not entertain any extraneous thoughts, Heaven forbid.", + "Rather, may I always cling to You and to Your holy Torah, so that I will be able to implant in others the knowledge of the truth of Your Godliness, informing people of Your might and the glorious splendor of Your sovereignty.", + "May I draw Your Godliness into their consciousness, mind and heart by means of the words of the holy Torah that You will help me speak in their ears and heart.", + "Open their eyes, mind and heart so that they will sense the pleasantness of the Torah. Allow them to taste the pleasantness of Your radiance until we all, Your nation, the House of Israel, quickly and truly recognize You.", + "May we “gaze upon the pleasantness of HaShem and visit in His palace.” “Let me know the way of life, the satiety of joy before Your countenance, the pleasantness at Your right hand forever.”", + "Avoiding Unworthy Students
Guard us and rescue us always from unworthy students. You know that we are flesh and blood, and no one knows how to protect and guard himself from such students.", + "Have pity on the glory of the holy Torah, so that it will not come to unworthy students who are unfit to receive it.", + "And have [pity and] compassion on those unworthy students. quickly bring them back to You in complete repentance, so that with Your compassion, they will receive the true pleasantness of the holy Torah.", + "Reveal the truth to the world. May falsehood have no ability to hide or conceal the truth, Heaven forbid.", + "In Your compassion, guard and rescue us all of our days, forever, from the punishment of imprisonment and incarceration, Heaven forbid, so that we will never be imprisoned or confined.", + "Have compassion on Your entire nation, the House of Israel, who have already been imprisoned. Hurry to bring them forth in wellbeing and comfort.", + "You know their suffering and pain, and the acute pity that they deserve. Bring them out from darkness and the shadow of death, release the bound. “HaShem frees the imprisoned.” “Tell the imprisoned, ‘Go forth!’ and the darkness, ‘Show yourself!’”", + "Give us our income with great generosity, for a good life and peace, so that we will truly be in accordance with Your good will all of the days of our lives, forever.", + "“May the pleasantness of HaShem our God be upon us. May He establish the work of our hands for us, and may He establish the work of our hands.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.”", + "“HaShem, may my prayer come before You at a time of favor. God, in Your vast kindness, answer me in the truth of Your salvation.” “HaShem will give might to His nation; HaShem will bless His nation with peace.” “Blessed is HaShem forever, amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "The Tzaddik Must Repent on Behalf of the Jewish People / Punishment of Sinners Hurts the Tzaddik and Hurts God Himself, as it were / One Who Looks at the Tzaddik’s Face Can Gain Greater Insight into Himself / The Day After Yom Kippur is Called “God’s Name”
The Tzaddik must repent on behalf of the Jewish people. In other words, when people throw off the yoke of obedience of God, the Tzaddik must engage in repentance for them.
This may be compared to a horse that went wild. The owner beat the horse with his fist, but that hurt his hand. He whipped the horse, but the horse ran away. He tied the horse to a tree and whipped him, but he grew tired. And he didn’t want to shoot the horse.
The wild horse is the sinner and the owner is the Tzaddik. Punishing the sinner hurts the Tzaddik himself. In fact, it will even hurt God, as it were.
When a person is punished, he is uprooted from his life force. The name is the life force, as in the verse, “a living soul is its name” (Genesis 2:19). And God’s Name is partnered with our name, as it were. Therefore, when the Jewish people suffer some punishment, that hurts God Himself, as it were.
There is a simple element from which the four elements that compose the world derive. The Tzaddik corresponds to that simple element, and man as a whole, including his character traits, is composed of these four elements.
When a person looks at a Tzaddik’s face, he looks at the simple element from which his own character traits are derived. Thus, he can gain greater insight into himself.
On the first Yom Kippur, which followed the sin of the golden calf, God was reconciled to the Jews and told them to make the Mishkan (Tabernacle). Directly following Yom Kippur, Moses admonished the Jews to keep the Shabbat and not think that making the Mishkan overrode the prohibitions of the Shabbat.
Shabbat is the Name of God. The day after Yom Kippur, the Name of God was revealed. Thus, that day is called Shem HaShem, “God’s Name.”
We Seek God’s Mercy
Compassionate God, gracious God — that is Your Name. And Your Name is called upon us. “HaShem, act for the sake of Your Name.” “If our sins have testified against us, HaShem, act for the sake of Your Name.” “For the sake of Your Name, HaShem, forgive our sinfulness, for it is great.”", + "“May HaShem answer us on a day of trouble. May the Name of the God of Jacob elevate us.” “Do not let the poor turn back in disgrace; may the poor and needy praise Your Name.”", + "“Not to us, HaShem, not to us — but give honor to Your Name, for Your kindness, for Your truthfulness.” “For the sake of Your Name, HaShem give me life. In Your righteousness, take my soul out of trouble. “HaShem, Your Name is forever. HaShem, Your remembrance is for generations.”", + "Gaze and see “whom You have treated so.” Please see our impoverishment and battle on our behalf, because troubles have surrounded us — collectively and individually.", + "We are so very far from You, as everyone knows in his soul. In the midst of this, such harsh and bitter decrees have been promulgated against us that it is impossible to bear them, and we do not have the merit or good deeds with which to appease You.", + "Because of our many sins, our power has diminished so far that we cannot even cry out or call to You properly. How will we appease our Master, our King?", + "Therefore, at present, we cannot open our mouths and we have no way to come to You. We have no support or haven but Your Name alone. We come before You in Your Name, HaShem our God and God of our fathers. In Your great compassion, You placed Your Name upon us from the days of our forefathers.", + "Please act for the sake of Your great Name that is partnered with our Name, and for the sake of the names of all of the true Tzaddikim, who are one with Your Name.", + "Have pity, mercy and compassion on us. Soften, lighten and nullify all judgments and decrees against us and against Your nation, the House of Israel — in particular, the harsh and bitter decree that was recently passed.17 This refers to the Cantonist decree of 1827 calling for the forced conscription of twelve-year-old Jewish boys into the Czar’s army for a period of twenty-five years. If there weren’t enough twelve-year-old boys in a village, the draft officers would take boys as young as eight or nine years of age. The Cantonist decree was abolished in 1856.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. Remove that decree and eradicate it quickly, because there is no one to stand up on our behalf. Your great Name will stand on our behalf at a time of trouble.", + "You have revealed to us that You do not desire to kill us or punish us, Heaven forbid, for “in all of their suffering, He suffers,” and, “punishment for the righteous man is not good.”", + "Your Name is partnered with us. All punishments, Heaven forbid, touch upon You, as it were, and upon the true Tzaddikim — in particular, this harsh and bitter decree that fundamentally threatens our holy religion. The complaint and hatred of its creators are not against us, but against You and Your holy, pure and perfect Torah.", + "Have compassion, have compassion, You Who are filled with compassion, for Your Name is called upon us. Do not cast us aside. In Your compassion, be moved on our behalf at this time of trouble. “Rescue us from the hand of our enemy and we will serve You.”", + "The Tzaddikim Atoned for Us
Have compassion on us in the merit of the great, true Tzaddikim who bore many harsh sufferings and repented fully for the sake of all Jews.", + "The multitude of their sufferings, and the great repentance that they engaged in on behalf of the entire Jewish people, are capable and worthy of atoning for and granting forgiveness for sins and offenses committed by all Jews, from beginning to end.", + "Only You know the great, awesome and elevated power of the wondrous repentance in which they engaged for the sake of all Jews.", + "Because of our many sins at present and due to our acute weakness, we have no one on whom to rely except them and the power of their great repentance that they performed on our behalf, since their holy name is called upon us.", + "We rely solely on the merit of their holy names — which are Your Name that is called upon us — to come to You and ask You to have pity, mercy and compassion on such a poor and weak generation.", + "Hurry and swiftly uproot, shatter and nullify [the harsh decree that came out against us to take the children of Israel to the army, as well as] all of the decrees that have been issued and those that they intend to promulgate, Heaven forbid.", + "Have mercy on the remnant of Your nation, the Jewish people, for the sake of Your Name and the name of the Tzaddikim that is called upon us. For You are our King, the King of our fathers; our Redeemer, the Redeemer of our fathers; our Rock, the Rock of our salvation; our Redeemer and Rescuer. Your Name is eternal and we have no other God but You, forever.", + "For Yom Kippur
Forty Days of Divine Favor
Act for the sake of Your Name and sanctify Your Name. Be with us and help us, so that we will quickly and truly return to You with all our heart. May this be particularly so on the extremely awesome, holy and imposing days of the month of Elul, Rosh HaShanah, the Ten Days of Repentance and Yom Kippur.", + "These are forty days of Divine favor, during which You were reconciled to Moses and gave him the [Second] Tablets.", + "On the last day, You were appeased with him fully and told him joyfully, “I have forgiven in accordance with your word!” And that day was established as a day of forgiveness and absolution for generations. That is the holy, awesome, exalted and unique day of the year, Yom Kippur.", + "You did all of this for the sake of Your great and holy Name that is called upon us.", + "Have compassion on us. Help us and save us, so that we will receive these holy, awesome days with great holiness and purity.", + "May we return to You on these days in true, complete repentance, and truly and wholeheartedly resolve to walk in Your ways, fulfill Your commandments and truly engage in Your Torah all the days of our lives.", + "May we pray with complete concentration and pour out our hearts like water before the countenance of HaShem. May our eyes pour forth streams of water because of our transgressions, sins and offenses, and the multitude of our troubles.", + "May we reconcile with You and appease You, so that You will forgive, absolve and grant atonement for all of the transgressions, sins and offenses that we committed before You.", + "Uproot, shatter and nullify all evil decrees against us — both those that have already been decreed and those that they wish to decree, Heaven forbid.", + "May Your great Name be magnified and sanctified through us always.", + "Just as You joyfully told Moses on Yom Kippur, “I have forgiven!” so may You be reconciled with and appeased by Your nation, the Jewish people, on Yom Kippur and tell them with great joy and gladness, “I have forgiven!” May Your Name be magnified forever.", + "The Days Following Yom Kippur
And may the day after Yom Kippur be fit to be called “God’s Name” in ultimate truth, as a result of the Name of God having been magnified upon it forever, in consequence of the forgiveness and absolution of Yom Kippur, and in consequence of the nullification of all of the decrees and troubles against us.", + "Then, in particular, Your great Name will be whole — as You informed us through Your holy sages [may their memory be for a blessing], may their merit shield us.", + "As a result, may we receive the days of Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah with great joy and gladness, with holiness and purity, fear and love.", + "May we fulfill all of the awesome mitzvot that apply to these days with great perfection and intense joy in Your great and holy Name. “I will rejoice and exult in You. I will sing to Your supernal Name.” “They will acknowledge Your great and awesome Name, which is holy.”", + "Have compassion on us, our Father, our King, for the sake of Your Name alone. Nullify all harsh decrees against us. Bring us back to You in complete repentance.", + "Rescue us from every sort of punishment in body, soul and financial matters — in this world and the next. Give us a good and long life, children, life, sustenance, wealth, honor, and all good forever — in this world and the next. Do all of this for the sake of Your Name, for we trust only in Your holy Name. May we be glad and rejoice in Your salvation. “God, with Your Name, save me and with Your might, avenge me.”", + "“Help us, God of our salvation, for the sake of the glory of Your Name. Rescue us and atone for our transgressions for the sake of Your Name. Save us, HaShem our God, and gather us from the nations to thank Your holy Name, to rejoice in Your praise.”", + "May the verses be realized in us, “He saved them for the sake of His Name, to make His might known,” and, “You, God Lord, act with me for the sake of Your Name, for Your kindness is good; rescue me.”", + "And, “All of the nations surround me; in the Name of HaShem, I will cut them off. They surround me, indeed, they surround me; in the Name of HaShem, I will cut them off. They surround me like bees; they will be extinguished like a thorn fire. In the Name of HaShem, I will cut them off.”", + "“We will not turn back from You. Give us life and we shall call in Your Name.” “Our help is in the Name of HaShem, Maker of Heaven and earth.” “They will know that it is You alone Whose Name is HaShem, supernal over all the earth.”", + "“May the Name of HaShem be blessed from now and forever.” “Bring forth my soul from imprisonment to thank Your Name; because of me, the righteous will crown You, because You will recompense me.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "Wherever Jews Go, They Subjugate that Place to Holiness / While in Exile, the Jews Elevate the Low and Fallen Places
Wherever the Jewish people go in exile, at first they are subjugated, but afterward they become masters to their masters. For they conquer that place, insofar as they elevate the low and fallen places.
Therefore, when they are in exile, the Jewish people are called “children of the Diaspora (golah).” is an acronym for Ve-nishar Gam Hu (גולה) GOLaH then he, too, will remain ,ונשאר גם הוא לאלהנו) L’Eloheinu for our God). In other words, whatever remains from our sojourn in exile will be for God — the fallen sparks of holiness will be elevated and returned to Him.
Finding God in the Exile
“I have taken refuge in HaShem. How shall you say to my soul, ‘Flee to your mountain like a bird’?”", + "Master of the world, God of Israel, You know the profoundly intense bitterness of the exile, overall and in detail, and in the most particular details.", + "Due to our transgressions, we were exiled from our Land and distanced from our soil. We went from exile to exile and were cast from vessel to vessel — the Jewish people as a whole and every individual in particular.", + "Every Jew has experienced so many exiles and upheavals, material and spiritual. “Like a bird wandering from her nest, so a man wanders from his place.”", + "We suffer intensely in body, soul and financial matters. Even when we sit in our homes, we are in a state of upheaval, because we have no rest from our persecutors and enemies, whether material or spiritual.", + "This is particularly so at this time of bitter trouble, when everyone thinks of how to flee, protect himself and hide from these difficult troubles, when “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "Have compassion on me and on all Jews who are subjugated in the exile, so that wherever we come to in our exile and upheavals — in both the material and spiritual realms — You will be with us, and You will help us raise, lift and elevate all of these places to You, Your Torah and Your service.", + "May all of the places that are so far from holiness, in which we are subjugated in exile, return to You Who are blessed forever. In all of these places that are so far from You, may people truly learn Torah, serve You and teach Torah publicly. May the verse quickly be realized, “The remnant there will be for our God.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, please look upon our impoverishment, battle on our behalf, and hurry to redeem us with a complete redemption for the sake of Your Name. See how “the enemy’s hand gains strength, and there is no savior to strengthen us.”", + "See how Your nation is profoundly crushed — collectively and individually. Gaze to the right, and there is no one to help; to the left, and there is no one to support. “For our soul is cast down to the dust, our belly clings to the earth. Arise to help us, and redeem us for the sake of Your kindness.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” “Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "Being Connected to Tzaddikim Allows a Person to Attain Repentance / When a Person Repents, Judgments Against Him are Eradicated and Divine Unifications Occur / A Person Must Connect His Mind to the Upper Wisdom of Torah and to God / A Tzaddik Elevates and Binds Lower Wisdom with Upper Wisdom / A Tzaddik Speaks Simple Words Containing Torah to Guide Simple and Unworthy People to Repentance / God is Grieved When a Tzaddik Dies
Being connected to true Tzaddikim is of great value. It allows a person to attain complete repentance and atonement. Judgments against him are softened until they are entirely eradicated, and that brings about a unification of the Holy One and the Divine Presence. There are two types of wisdom: upper and lower, the latter derived from the former.
This is comparable to the relationship between a teacher and student. The student’s understanding comes through his heart. Thus, the teacher must say things that the student’s heart can comprehend, and the student must focus his heart and concentrate.
Upper wisdom is the holy Torah, and lower wisdom is the source of the wisdoms of this world. When worldly wisdoms are disconnected from the upper wisdom of Torah and from God, that corresponds to the diminishment of the moon and the exile of the Divine Presence.
Wherever a person is, he must connect his mind to the upper wisdom of Torah and to God. If he separates his wisdom from God, he causes a blemish in the moon.
The true Tzaddik rebuilds destroyed worlds, elevating lower wisdom in order to connect it to upper wisdom. He connects the intellect of common folk — even that of wicked people — to God. In the course of doing so, he speaks with unworthy people and non-Jews. In this way, he raises their intellect and connects it to God.
He speaks with these people with wonderful sagacity and adroitness, clothing the Torah in other modes of expression,18 Such as everyday conversations and talk about the news. because if he were to speak Torah directly with wicked people, they might grow worse. By speaking with them in this way, he leads them to repentance.
God is grieved when the Tzaddik dies, for He does not desire the death of the wicked but their good — that is, He desires that they will come to repentance.
Connecting to God Through the True Tzaddikim
“Who will rise up for me against evildoers? Who will stand firm for me against workers of violence? If HaShem had not assisted me, my soul would have dwelt in silence. If I said, ‘My foot has slipped,’ Your kindness, HaShem, supported me. In the multitude of my thoughts within me, Your consolations delighted my soul.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who desire kindness and do much to greatly benefit, You Who are good and do good for both the wicked and the good, You think thoughts so that no will remain cast away from You.", + "“Open Your eyes and see our desolation.” See: “The enemy’s hand gains strength and there is no savior to strengthen us,” because there is no one to stand up on our behalf.", + "What shall we do and how shall we act, now that the crown of our head — our mighty geniuses, beloved in our eyes, the true Tzaddikim who passed away in our generations — have been taken away from us?", + "During all of the days of their holy lives, we looked forward to salvation, hoping that their awesome words [their ways] and wonderful advice would bring all of us close to HaShem.", + "But because of our profoundly intense, numerous and grave sins, the sun has grown dark at noon and we remain like orphans without a father. What shall we do now? To which of the holy ones will we turn?", + "You Who are filled with compassion, teach us how to cry out, weep, wail and mourn over the death of the true Tzaddikim, so that we will arouse Your compassion upon us, as poor as we are today.", + "Guide us and teach us how to ask for, seek and find the true Tzaddikim in this generation, who have the power to guide us on the true path, bring us close to Your Torah, and truly bring us back to You.", + "May we truly and completely come close to them. May we truly believe in their [faithful] pleasant words, all of which require study.", + "Even their mundane conversation conceals wondrous Torah teachings, supernal secrets and many mysteries. May I bend my ear and connect my mind well to their holy conversation, until they will truly connect me to You by means of their conversation.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. Act in Your compassion and awesome wonders so that — from now on, at any rate — I will truly return to You. May I attain rest and silence from my base thoughts and my evil, blemished deeds, and may I no longer cause any blemishes at all.", + "Have compassion on me! Rescue me! Help me and save me so that I will truly connect all of my thoughts, speech, deeds, intelligence, mind and intellect to You.", + "From wherever I may be at any moment, may I truly connect my thoughts, intellect and mind to You, to Your Torah and to serving You, thus connecting lower wisdom to upper wisdom. Compassionate One, filled with compassion, help us at this time of trouble in the era known as the “footsteps of the Mashiach.” You alone know the bitterness of our spirit in these troubled times.", + "We have been greatly distanced from You. Everyone knows the issues and pains of his heart.", + "Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name. In Your vast compassion, have pity on us. Guide us in Your truth and teach us how to ask for and seek the true Tzaddikim of this generation.", + "Teach us how to truly pray and beg You for this, so that that we will truly find them and come close to them.", + "May they have compassion on us in their great compassion, and truly bring us all of us — each person from wherever he is — close to You, to Your Torah and to serving You.", + "May they extricate us entirely from all of the evil places into which we have fallen, where we have been distanced from You.", + "May they take us out of all of these places and bring us close to You. May they truly bring us back in complete and wholehearted repentance. Connect and bind lower wisdom to upper wisdom. May great and awesome unifications always come about through us.", + "Rectify the blemish of the moon. Bring forth and establish the Divine Presence from Her exile. May there always be a complete unification of the Holy One and the Divine Presence.", + "Soften and nullify all judgments in the world. Forgive, exculpate and grant atonement for all of our transgressions, sins and offenses. May all of our faces shine. May joy and freedom be found in all worlds. May the verse be realized, “The wisdom of Solomon multiplied.”", + "May all of the spiritual lights shine greatly and wondrously. May all of the worlds be completely rectified. May true awareness and mindfulness be magnified and revealed in the world.", + "May every being know that You brought him about, may every creature understand that You created him, and may everyone who has breath in his body say, “HaShem, the God of Israel, is King, and His sovereignty governs all.”", + "May we be connected to You with a firm and strong bond, always and forever. May we realize the verse, “I took hold of him and I would not let him go, until I brought him to the house of my mother and to the chamber of she who conceived me.”", + "You Who have mercy on the poor, have mercy on us in Your compassion. Quickly bring us close to the true Tzaddikim in this generation, who provide all of our hope in this world and in the World to Come.", + "They are our life and the length of our days forever. Have compassion on us for the sake of Your Name, and compassionately fulfill our requests for the good. Be gracious to us, answer us and hear our prayer, for You hear the prayer of every mouth. Blessed are You Who hears prayer." + ], + [ + "The Quality of a Person’s Days of Awe Determines the Quality of the Etrog that He Will Acquire / Jews Instinctively Appreciate the Profound Value of the Mitzvah of Etrog
The quality of a person’s experience during the Days of Awe influences the beauty of the etrog that he will have on Sukkot.
A human being cannot fully appreciate the precious nature of the mitzvah of etrog. But because the Jews are a holy and wise people who are not easily fooled, they realize its importance and thus spend more money on this than they do on other mitzvot.
For Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur
Weeping with a Full Heart
“Hear my prayer, HaShem, and take heed of my outcry. Do not be apathetic to my tears, for I am a stranger with You, a sojourner like all of my fathers.” “Turn aside from me, all you workers of sin, for HaShem has heard the voice of my weeping.”", + "Master of the world, You Who are filled with compassion, You Who hear the sound of the weeping of Your nation, the Jewish people, with compassion, help us weep a great deal every day with a truly broken and crushed heart — with a heart that is broken out of joy.", + "Help me cry before You at all times with many tears, like a son weeping before his father, because of my great distance from You. May You be deeply moved and may Your true compassion for me be aroused, so that You will quickly restore me to You in complete repentance.", + "Master of the world, Master of compassion, King Who is appeased by tears! You know how truly woeful I am and how much I need to weep before You, because I am so immeasurably distant from You, as You know.", + "Have compassion on me and open my heart, so that I will truly feel my pain and weep before You a great deal every day — and, in particular, on the awesome days of the month of Elul, Rosh HaShanah, the Ten Days of Repentance, Yom Kippur and Hoshana Rabbah, which are extremely holy and awesome days of favor and repentance.", + "In Your vast compassion, help me and save me so that I will then weep a great deal with a truly full heart. “Streams of water run down from my eyes, because they do not keep Your Torah.”", + "May I cast aside all cleverness and all thoughts that constantly interfere with, upset and inhibit simplicity [from the point of truth].", + "May I break them all. May I nullify them and cast them away from me entirely. And may I truly pray and serve You simply and wholeheartedly.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, grant me the merit, among all of the people of Israel, to be on the level of “a weeping youth” throughout the Days of Awe.", + "Have mercy, great mercy and vast compassion, so that — from now on, at any rate — I will cast aside all evil and confusions. May I abandon my evil ways and my disgraceful, agitated thoughts.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me for the sake of Your Name. Give me truly good, holy and pure Days of Awe. Help me sanctify myself from now on — in particular, on these extremely holy, elevated Days of Awe.", + "HaShem, help me always pour forth my heart like water before Your countenance — in particular, with the multitude of selichot and other prayers during the stormy and volcanic Days of Awe.", + "Who is not fearful? Who does not feel dread on these days that are filled with apprehension, terror and fear, trepidation, shivering and trembling before You? Who is not judged on these days?", + "These days are extremely awesome and fearful. On these days, the angels rush about, seized by trembling and shuddering, and they proclaim, “Behold, it is the day of judgment!”", + "Master of the world, Master of the world, You Who are fearsome and awesome, give me new words with which to appease You from where I am right now, so that I will truly return to You from now on.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, help me. You Who are filled with salvation, save me. Bring me to true wholeheartedness and simplicity. May I not indulge in any extraneous or unproductive thoughts. Instead, may I realize that I do not know anything.", + "In truth, [I do not know;] it is not known to me at all what is occurring in my life and, how much more, what is occurring in the world — because Your thoughts are extremely deep.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. Help me truly act with simplicity at every moment, so that as a result, I will truly return to You quickly.", + "Help me cry a great deal on Rosh HaShanah, Yom Kippur and Hoshana Rabbah, as well as throughout the days of Elul and the Ten Days of Repentance, so that Your compassion for me will be aroused, and You will have mercy on me and on the entire Jewish people with great mercy and immeasurable love.", + "For the Etrog and the Four Species
The Waving of the Four Species
Help us attain a handsome etrog on the holy festival of Sukkot. May we possess a truly handsome, kosher and beautiful etrog that possesses every type of beauty, and palm, myrtle and willow branches that are kosher, handsome and beautiful.", + "Help me fulfill the mitzvah of taking the Four Species in its time, with ultimate perfection, in great holiness and purity, with vast and intense love and fear, joy and gladness.", + "May I recite the complete Hallel with truly great intensity as I hold the Four Species and the hoshanot, perform all of the holy movements [of the waving of the Four Species], and engage in the circuits of the awesome hakafot.", + "May I do all of this with vast and intense love, fear and joy; with truly heartfelt intention, wondrous attachment and great fervor for Your great, holy and awesome Name; and with simplicity, in accordance with Your will and with the will of Your true Tzaddikim.", + "Through the waving of the Four Species, may I draw illumination from the awareness in the head to the six points. From there, may awareness be drawn to the level of Malkhut, and may Your sovereignty be revealed to all.19 This description alludes to the schema of the Ten Sefirot as it corresponds to the human body. Divine light devolves from the higher sefirot — representing the “head” — to the six lower sefirot — representing the “torso,” “hands” and “legs” — down to the sefirah of Malkhut, from which it devolves to our world.", + "May we inform people of Your might and the glorious splendor of Your sovereignty. May every being know that You brought him about, may every creature understand that You created him, and may everyone who has a soul of the spirit of life in his nostrils offer honor and splendor to Your sovereignty.", + "For Sukkot
The Mitzvah of Sukkah
Help us and save us so that we will fulfill the mitzvah of sukkah in its time, with all of its details, particulars, intentions and the 613 commandments that are dependent on it, with a good heart and great joy.", + "Cause us to cling to Your holy mitzvot. Embrace us in Your holy right hand with great love and mercy. Spread the sukkah of Your peace over us and conceal us in the shadow of Your wings.", + "As a result of the holy and awesome mitzvah of sukkah, may we sit in Your shade — the holy shade, the shade of faith.", + "May Your powerful love and mercy toward us be revealed and known to all. May all acknowledge, “God chose Jacob, Israel as His special nation,” “for the portion of HaShem is His people, Jacob the lot of His inheritance.” May we take pride in You, and may You take pride in us always. As the verse states, “You have selected HaShem today to be your God, and to go in His ways, guard His laws and His commandments and His judgments, and listen to His voice.", + "“And HaShem has selected you today to be His special nation, as He spoke to you, so that you will guard all of His commandments. He will make you supreme over all of the nations that He made, so that you will have praise, fame and beauty, and so you will be a nation holy to HaShem Your God, as He has spoken.”", + "May we always truly and simply serve You. May we reveal Your Godliness and Your sovereignty to all. May we bend the hearts of the king, his princes and advisors to us for the good, and nullify all harsh decrees against us.", + "May the verse be realized, “He will hide me in His sukkah on the day of evil. He will conceal me in the concealment of His tent. On the rock, He will lift me up.”", + "Master of the entire world, filled with new compassion at every moment, “I stretch my hands out to You. My soul turns to You like a weary land.”", + "Help me and save me and Your entire nation, the House of Israel, in the merit and power of the tears and weeping of all of the true Tzaddikim and of all Israel.", + "Help us so that the true Tzaddikim will complete what they want with us, rectifying all of us quickly and fully, in accordance with their good and holy will, and not in accordance with our evil deeds.", + "Help us for Your sake and for their sake. Bring us back to You in complete repentance. “Guide me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; it is for You that I have hoped all the day.”", + "Help me attain true wholeheartedness and simplicity. Act with me for the sake of Your Name. Act with me for the sake of Your Torah. “Help us, God of our salvation, regarding the honor of Your Name. Rescue us and grant atonement for our transgressions for the sake of Your Name.”", + "“Blessed is HaShem, God, God of Israel, Who alone does wonders. And blessed is the Name of His glory forever, and may His glory fill the entire earth. Amen and amen.”" + ], + [ + "The Effort One Makes to Serve God, Even if He is Frustrated, is Counted as a Sacrificial Offering / One Should Do What He Can, and God Will Do What is Best in His Eyes
There are people who wish to be worthy Jews and to begin serving God sincerely. Yet they experience great confusion and face tremendous challenges. The more they want to serve God, the more difficulty they encounter. And so, although they fervently wish to serve God and sanctify themselves, they do not know what to do.
All of the enthusiasm that people have when they are trying to do good is very precious. Even if they cannot attain the object of their yearning, their fervent striving itself constitutes a type of sacrificial offering to God, which corresponds to prayer.
One who wishes to pray also encounters many distractions. Still, he should make every effort to pray properly. Even if his prayer is not perfect, every effort that he makes is like bringing a sacrifice.
This applies to every type of Divine service. Even if one’s efforts to perfect and sanctify himself are in vain, his forceful endeavor with toil and desire, with suffering and confusion, itself constitutes a sacrificial offering.
Therefore, a person should always strive to serve God as much as he can, even if it is difficult for him and even if he imagines that Heaven is casting him away. He should do what he can, and God will do what is best in His eyes.
Extraneous Thoughts During Prayer
You Who support the fallen, answer us on the day we call. You Who support the fallen, save us. You Who support the fallen, save us from all of our troubles. Please look upon our poverty and take up our battles, because “for Your sake we are killed all the day; we are considered as sheep for the slaughter.”", + "Help us, help us, Helper of Israel! Save us, save us, Redeemer of Israel! Answer us, answer us, You Who answer Your nation, the Jewish people!", + "Master of the world, King, Helper, Savior and Shield, You know how difficult the Side of Evil has made our simple service of God, Whose ways are truly the “ways of pleasantness.”", + "Because of my many sins, I have bespattered my mind so that anything holy I wish to do is so difficult and onerous for me, to the point that “the strength of the porter has collapsed.”", + "Only You know how much heaviness and difficulty, how many obstacles and interruptions, the Side of Evil applies — making matters troublesome, setting up obstacles and impediments so that I will not engage in any of the holy matters, great or small, that I wish to undertake.", + "This is particularly hard and difficult regarding prayer, because, due to my many sins, I cannot open my mouth in prayer and I cannot gather the strength to control my thoughts. My thoughts wander into words of vanity, into evil, foreign ideas, into desires and fantasies, into so many extraneous types of thought not at all related to my words of prayer.", + "My thoughts are deeply separated from my words, so that for the most part I have no idea what I am saying. Woe to me! Woe to me! What shall I say? How shall I speak? How can I justify myself?", + "Indeed, I myself am guilty in all this. But despite that, “You, HaShem, possess the generosity” to judge me favorably even now.", + "I have been seized so strongly by extraneous thoughts that it is hard for me to resist them throughout the day — and, in particular, during prayer, when they rise against me to the length and breadth.", + "All types of confusion, foolishness and turmoil come constantly into my mind, and my heart and mind hear them particularly at the time of prayer.", + "What shall a creature as lowly as myself, as weak as I am, more confused than a drunkard, do? Woe! Woe! Woe! Woe! Woe! Woe! What shall I say? How shall I speak? How can I justify myself? God has discovered my sin.", + "Praying with Full Intent
In Your mighty compassion, have compassion on me — in the power and merit of the true Tzaddikim on whom we solely rely and in whose merit we exist [in the bitterness of the exile] in this bitter exile of body and soul.", + "Help me — from now on, at any rate — so that throughout the day and, in particular, at times of prayer, I will overcome all of the foreign thoughts that come to confuse me. May I not turn my heart to them at all.", + "Instead, may I invest all of the thoughts in my heart and mind into my words of prayer. May I connect my thoughts to the words of prayer with a firm and strong bond.", + "You Who are filled with compassion, help me so that I will invest all of my powers into the words of prayer and totally dedicate my soul and body when I pray. May my prayer not be like a burden on me, Heaven forbid.", + "May I toil with all of my strength and with every sort of true counsel to truly pray to You. In Your mighty compassion and kindness, accept my yearning, my efforts and my travails as I pray, as if I had brought You sacrifices and incense-offerings to solicit Your favor.", + "Help me and save me. Strengthen me and bolster me constantly, so that I will pray to You with the true intent of my heart, with the joy and goodness of my heart, and without any crookedness in my heart at all.", + "You who are filled with compassion, have compassion on me. May my hardships not be unimportant to You. “See my affliction and my toil, and forgive all my transgressions,” “for You crushed us in a place of serpents and covered us with the shadow of death.”", + "“If we forgot the Name of our God and spread our hands out to a foreign god, will God not investigate? He knows the secrets of the heart. For Your sake, we are killed all the day; we are considered as sheep for the slaughter.”", + "In Your vast compassion, have pity on me and accept my few difficulties, efforts and hardships as I strive to be in accordance with Your will, as though I were wearing myself out and troubling myself properly.", + "Quickly bring Your compassion to the fore on my behalf, because I am deeply impoverished. Please look at my hardships and not my transgressions. Please turn to my depressed spirit and gaze at my brokenheartedness.", + "Accept my few difficulties [and my efforts] and troubles in doing Your will as though I had offered sacrifices on Your altar to gain Your favor. For I am flesh and blood and quarried from clay, and my evil inclination pursues me from my birth “as the partridge hunts in the mountains.”", + "Woe to me because of my evil inclination! Woe to me before my Maker if You do not act for Your sake! Unless You take Your wrath and anger away from me, there is no point in my attempting any deeds.", + "I will hope in God. I will address His countenance. I will ask Him for a response that will make it possible for me to begin to pray properly, with complete focus, to control my thoughts, particularly when I pray, so that my prayer will not go astray.", + "May I not experience any extraneous thoughts that are unrelated to my words of prayer. Instead, may my thoughts be connected to my words of prayer with a firm and strong bond. And may You accept my prayer favorably.", + "“My God, open my lips and my mouth will speak Your praise.” “For You do not desire an offering, or I would give it; You do not wish a burnt-offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit. God, You will not despise a broken and crushed heart.”", + "“He has neither despised nor abhorred the cry of the poor, nor has He hidden His countenance from him; and when he cried out to Him, He listened.”", + "“May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing before You, HaShem, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Amen." + ], + [ + "When We Recite the Names of Tzaddikim, We Gain Tremendous Spiritual Resources
When we recite the names of Tzaddikim, the light of their holiness is drawn onto us and inspires us to walk in their footsteps.
Then these Tzaddikim shield us and speak well on our behalf before God’s throne of glory, so that God will have compassion on us and inspire our hearts to return to Him.
God then nullifies nature and oversees us with His providence for good and for blessing, for life and for peace. All of the rules of Heaven and earth then change for the good on our behalf.
A prayer to be said after reciting Shemot

HaTzaddikim (Names of the Tzaddikim)20Shemot HaTzaddikim (Names of the Tzaddikim) is a small book of remembrance containing the names of all of the Tzaddikim from Adam until the present day, including all of the Tzaddikim mentioned in the Bible, Mishnah, Gemara, Talmudic commentaries, Midrashim, Zohar, and Tikkuney Zohar. It also contains all of the names of the Savoraim, Geonim, and many of the Tzaddikim who came after them. Compiled by Reb Noson, these names can be recited in whole or in part for any particular need, such as shiddukhim, children, etc., or just for the sake of saying them. The full Hebrew text of Shemot HaTzaddikim can be found in Rebbe Nachman’s Tikkun, published by the Breslov Research Institute.
May the Light of the Great Tzaddikim Shine upon Us
May it be Your will, HaShem our God and God of our fathers, that in the merit of all of these Tzaddikim whom I have mentioned before You — these pious, mighty masters of Torah, these prophets and pious men — in the merit of their holy names, and in the merit of their Torah and good deeds that they performed before You, that You will have compassion on us in Your vast compassion.", + "May the light of their holiness be drawn onto us, so that we will walk in their footsteps and travel upon their paths. From now on, aided by their great power, may we truly return to You and walk before You in the ways of righteousness.", + "May all of the Tzaddikim — whether those whom I have mentioned before You, or those hidden Tzaddikim of every generation whose names I was not privileged to know — all of them, in unison, shield us and speak well on our behalf before the throne of Your glory, so that You will have pity and compassion on us, and inspire our heart to truly return to You.", + "Remove our heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh. Bring us back to You in compete repentance. May we walk in the way of the Tzaddikim. May our portion be with them in the World to Come, in the Garden of Eden. And may we not be ashamed before You.", + "In the merit of our having recited the names of the Tzaddikim, help us attain all of our requests of You regarding everything we need in both the physical and spiritual realms.", + "Nullify nature and oversee us with Your providence for the good and for blessing, for life and for peace. May an abundance of goodness, blessing, life, healing, income, physical health and everything good, completely beyond nature, be drawn onto us.", + "May all of the rules of Heaven and earth change for the good on our behalf, in the merit of the names of these awesome Tzaddikim that I have mentioned before You.", + "For You informed us by means of Your true Tzaddikim that mentioning the names of the Tzaddikim has the power to bring about a change in Creation itself, transforming nature for the good.", + "For now we have nothing on which to rely except the merit of the holy Tzaddikim who sleep in the dust — “all of the holy ones who are in the earth, and the mighty ones in whom is all of my delight.”", + "You Who are filled with compassion, remember us for the good before You. Send us salvation and compassion from the highest supernal heavens. HaShem our God, recall for us the love of the early ones, the merit of all of these Tzaddikim and pious, holy men whom I have mentioned before You.", + "In their merit, save us in every way that we need to be saved — in body, soul and financial matters, in the material and spiritual realms. Bring us back to You in complete repentance.", + "Place our portion with the Tzaddikim forever. May we never be ashamed, for we have trusted in You, and we have truly relied on Your great kindness. Blessed are You, Support and Trust of the Tzaddikim.", + "Be strong! Be strong!
Be strong and we will be strengthened!" + ] + ] + }, + "versions": [ + [ + "The Fiftieth Gate. Breslov Research Institute, Jerusalem, c1992-c2016", + "https://www.nli.org.il/he/books/NNL_ALEPH990012369090205171/NLI" + ], + [ + "Sefaria Community Translation", + "https://www.sefaria.org" + ] + ], + "heTitle": "ליקוטי תפילות", + "categories": [ + "Chasidut", + "Breslov" + ], + "schema": { + "heTitle": "ליקוטי תפילות", + "enTitle": "Likutei Tefilot", + "key": "Likutei Tefilot", + "nodes": [ + { + "heTitle": "הקדמה", + "enTitle": "Introduction" + }, + { + "heTitle": "חלק א", + "enTitle": "Volume I" + }, + { + "heTitle": "חלק ב", + "enTitle": "Volume II" + } + ] + } +} \ No newline at end of file