Category Archives: Practice

Thoughts about putting Breslov teachings into action, written, spoken and/or video

Why I Go to Uman for Rosh HaShanah

Why do I go to Uman for Rosh HaShanah? Let me count the whys.

First of all, I go because the Rebbe said to come to him for Rosh HaShanah. This alone is sufficient reason to go. I need no other. If you have any inkling of the chassidic mind, you understand that if “the Rebbe” says to do something, the chassid does it. This is what it means to be a chassid. The Rebbe is the spiritual master and guide, and I, the chassid, am the perpetual novice.

I go for a number of personal reasons as well. Even though I live in Yerushalayim/Jerusalem, the Holy City, and regularly attend some of the local Breslov shtibels, I feel more strongly attached to Breslov as a chassidut when in Uman for Rosh HaShanah. (Thank God, I always feel connected to the Rebbe z”l, but to the chassidut most strongly when in Uman for the pilgrimage.)

I go to see my brother, who lives in New York, and my nephews and their children who also live Stateside. I go to see friends who live in California, Massachusetts, Michigan and elsewhere—including here, in Israel, whom I don’t see all year long. Catching up on each other’s lives, sharing Torah insights and struggles, offering help to newcomers and old-timers, and receiving from them as well. This, too, increases my feelings for and connection to Rebbe Nachman and Breslov chassidut.

I go to daven/pray with a minyan of 3,000-plus people, people who take their time to invest themselves in every word of prayer, screaming, shouting, swaying and singing. The nigunim/melodies alone are worth the trek. Not every prayer can be put into words. Some must be put into (or to) music.

I come to marvel at the diversity of Jews and Jewish “types” that come to Uman. I come to marvel at their self-sacrifice in making the hajj. I come to marvel at those who prepare tons of food—meals, snacks, drinks—for others, with no thought or interest in getting paid for it. I am humbled by all the volunteerism I see there.

I go to do hitbodedut in the Sofievka, an amazingly beautiful park.

I go to say the Tikkun HaKlali at the Rebbe’s grave site.

I go to speak to Rebbe Nachman z”l. Notice I write “speak,” not “pray.” We Jews pray to God and only to God. We Jews do not pray to any person, being or object whether animate, inanimate, tangible or intangible, but only to the One and Only Creator. How do I speak to a dead man? Before he passed away, Rebbe Nachman pointed out that for tzaddikim, dying is merely going from one room to another. Even though we are speaking to him from the other side of the door, he hears what we say. (In fact, he said all dead people hear what is said to them, but that not all of them are at their graves. But tzaddikim are always at theirs.) (How I hear his responses we will leave for another day.)

Returning (somewhat) to the first reason, I go because I “understand” (using the word loosely) that since Rebbe Nachman z”l uses Rosh HaShanah for tikkun haolam, my being present is a kindness for you and every member of humankind, past, present and future.

I don’t know if I recorded all the reasons I go, but these are some of them.

© Copyright 2015 148west.com/O. Bergman

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Walking Talking

I’m often asked, “Is it OK to do hitbodedut while I’m walking?”

When I’m giving a class, it’s easy to clarify what the questioner means and give an appropriate answer. In writing, it’s necessary to lay out some of the possibilities.

First, bear in mind that the essence of hitbodedut is having a relationship with God, a relationship so important that it’s on your “to-do” list everyday, a relationship so important that you shut off all your devices and lock out all distractions.

So, if you’re walking from Point A to Point B and think, “Gee, I’ll use this time for hitbodedut,” you’re losing out on giving to God some of your precious time. By all means, talk to Him! But some quality in the relationship is undeveloped.

Maybe you were late for your hitbodedut and have to go on to the next part of the day. Or you still have things you want to say but need to take care of the next thing. There’s no harm in extending your hitbodedut in this way.

What some people mean by “walking” is pacing. Focus is a huge part of doing hitbodedut (as well as one of its goals). So if on any given day pacing helps you to focus, pace away and don’t worry about wearing down the carpet.

Some people are kinetic—they just need to be in motion. When he was younger, Rebbe Nachman was like that. He had trouble sitting in one place for any length of time. Eventually, he learned to have zitsfleish, and was able to sit for long periods of time (Rabbi Nachman’s Praises #14). If you’re that sort of kinetic type—or any sort of kinetic type— it’s AOK to be on the move as you do your hitbodedut. Stay focused!

Comments are more than welcome; they’re invited! Thank you,

© Copyright 2015 148west/com/O. Bergman

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Tell the Truth!

(In memory of Chaim Barukh Yehudah ben Dovid Tzvi zl)

 

The fourth of the Ten Commandments is, “Remember the Shabbat day” (Exodus 20:8). Its parallel is the ninth commandment, “Do not give false witness against your countryman” (v. 13). [One sense of “parallel” is that when the Ten Commandments are written in two columns of five, the fourth and the ninth align with one another.] Rebbe Yosi pointed out that Shabbat is called “testimony.” So a Jew must testify to the following, “For in six days God made the Heaven, the earth, the sea and everything in them, and He rested on the seventh day” (v.11).

Since Shabbat contains within her all the other six days, a Jew who testifies to God’s resting, testifies to God’s having created Heaven and Earth.

Rebbe Yosi also said, “Do you know what ‘Give truth to Yaakov’ (Micah 7:20) is alluding to? This: ‘The Children of Yisrael will keep the Shabbat’ (Exodus 31:16). A Jew who observes Shabbat is living proof of God’s having created the world.

“One who gives false witness testifies falsely against the honest testimony and truth of Shabbat. And one who lies about Shabbat—by desecrating it—declares the whole Torah a lie, because the two are inter-dependent.”

Zohar 2:90a

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Sukkat Shalom

(In memory of Chaim Barukh Yehudah ben Dovid Tzvi zl)

Extra Protection

[Summary: The holy Zohar tells us that as Shabbat begins the sacred Shekhinah spreads her wings over the world and settles herself in the world. As a result, the “outside,” i.e., negative, forces are forced into hiding and can exercise no authority on the world. The world has an extra measure of protection on Shabbat; even the denizens of Hell get the day off. This is why the closing of the final Maariv blessing differs from its weekday version.]

The holy Zohar says:

 

Come! Expand your vision!

As the sun sets Friday afternoon, the Sukkat Shalom (canopy of peace) settles and expands into the world. Who is Sukkat Shalom? Shabbat, the Shekhinah. All the evil demons—subtle and fierce and in-between—and every carrier of impure energy, goes into hiding. The simple presence of Shabbat sanctity weakens them; they cannot stir themselves. The impure spirit flees from the sacred.

The world has then an extra measure of protection. There is no need to pray for it as we do on weekday: “Who protects His People, Yisrael, forever.” It’s a blessing made for the weekday because on weekdays the world needs protecting!

But not Shabbat! With the Sukkat Shalom spread over the world, guarding the world from all sides—even the Hell dwellers are safe and resting—all the worlds, upper and lower, are peaceful and tranquil.

So on Shabbat the blessing closes, “Who extends the Sukkat Shalom over us, over all His people Yisrael and over Jerusalem.” Why “Jerusalem”? Because Jerusalem is where the Shekhinah resides.

And we need to invite the Sukkat-Shekhinah who has spread her wings over us, to be with us and watch over us, as a mother does for her children. Then we will have no need to fear the Sitra Achra.

Zohar 1:48a

 

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Anchors Aweigh! Away? A Way?

While I was working on a project last night, I came across this short piece from Sichot HaRan (Rabbi Nachman’s Wisdom) #121. I’ve taught it dozens of times and seen it even more than that, but it hit me with a new force. I literally felt as if the Rebbe zl  slapped me in the face. Here is the piece:

The Rebbe once lectured us to pray with concentration and energy. He emphasized that a person must exert himself to pray with all his strength. He said, “You put as much energy into your prayers as I did into pulling up the anchor.”

The Rebbe was once travelling by ship when an emergency arose. Everybody on board—crew and passengers—was pressed into service and forced to pull the rope with all his might to weigh anchor. “I went through the motions of pulling with all my strength, but really I wasn’t using any energy at all. I was actually pretending. I was being coerced, so I acted as if I was pulling with all my might. The is what your prayer ‘with energy and concentration’ is like.”

I had always taken away the obvious message: you’re not really putting in genuine effort; and obvious message #2: c’mon—you call that trying? But last night it hit me hard when I realized that the Rebbe zl was telling me why I wasn’t putting honest effort into my davening. I feel like I’m being coerced. On a subtle level, part of why I am in shul three times a day is that I have to be there.

Definitely some part of me wants to daven or I wouldn’t do it all. But since not all of my self is invested in davening, I don’t invest all of my energy into davening. I’m pretending to pull the rope to weigh anchor. I’m making all the appropriate gestures and noises that come along with it, but really I’m putting on a show. Sometimes it’s such a good show I fool even myself.

But as with anything in life that a person feels called to do, he’ll give it everything he’s got. Hearty davening!

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Don’t Say It! (Redux)

(In memory of Chaim Barukh Yehudah ben Dovid Tzvi zl) 

 

Summary: Sort of a scorecard to Gehenna. If you’ve ever read a book that describes a Holocaust concentration camp, this will sound familiar, albeit without the gory details, thank God. We will also find some guidelines about what to avoid doing—and thinking—at night.

[The scorecard]

Three ministers serve in Gehenna, under Dumah. They are Mashchit, Af and Cheimah (Destroyer, Anger and Fury). They oversee all the deputies. The deputies rush to and fro, punishing the wicked.

All the troops of thug-angels fill Gehenna with pandemonium. Their yells are heard in the sky. In Gehenna, the wicked scream, “Oy! Oy!” but no one pities them.

The verse has something to say about these three ministers and the deputies, the bands of thug-angels. “A racket sounds (kol) from the city; an uproar (kol) from the Beit HaMikdash/Temple! God’s thunder (kol) as he deals retribution to His foes” (Isaiah 66:6). Three kols, one each for the overseers who rule Gehenna during the weekdays.

Throughout the night, from the time of Maariv (the nighttime prayer), the wicked are punished for their deeds done in the dark, and for the fantasies and schemes they hatched in bed. “Oy! Those who hide their plans deep from God! Who do their work in the dark and say, ‘Who sees us? Who’s going to know it was us?’” (Isaiah 29:15). “Oy! Those who plan iniquity, designing evil while in their beds. At first light they rush to do it—because they can” (Michah 2:1).

Once they’ve started punishing, they continue into the day until every sin is accounted for. But it starts at nightfall. This is why the thug-angels are called Leilot (Nighters). As Rebbe Alexandrei commented on the verse (Song of Songs 3:8), “… because of the terror of Leilot”—from the terror of Gehenna.

This is why they established that the weeknight Maariv begin with the verse, “He [God] is compassionate. He atones crime and does not yashchit, destroy; He keeps His af, anger, securely in check and does not arouse all His cheimah, fury” (Tehillim 78:38). From the moment it becomes dark, the destroyers—Mashchit, Af and Cheimah—begin punishing the wicked. They are all referred to in this verse.

They established, but only for the weeknights, not for Shabbat. Because when Shabbat enters the world, Din, Judgment, exits. Th wicked in Gehenna have some rest. From the moment the day is sanctified, the thug-angels have no authority over them. Therefore, we don’t say the verse, “He is compassionate …”—it provokes the thug-angels.

It’s forbidden to say because it also insults the King. On Shabbat, He is the one Who protects the wicked. Not reciting “He is compassionate…” indicates that Din has exited the word and the destroyers may not destroy. An analogy: The officer who flogs the convicts is visited by the King, who has come to protect the convicts. If the flogger even threateningly picks up his whip, has he not insulted the King?

Shabbat is the king. He stands behind the wicked and protects them. Anyone who picks up the whip to frighten them insults the king. For the same reason, we don’t conclude Maariv’s last blessing with the weeknight ending, “The Protector of His people Yisrael.”

Zohar Chadash, Ruth 97a

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Don’t Say It!

(In memory of Chaim Barukh Yehudah ben Dovid Tzvi zl; Shabbos night, 3 of 10)

Don’t Say It!

Sometimes we honor the Shekhinah by what we don’t say. The start of Maariv Shabbos night is one of those times. Our words are powerful, more powerful than we are aware of. The sacred Zohar teaches:

The holy people may not begin honoring the Shekhinah by reciting a verse that alludes to the forces of judgment. For example, “He [God] is compassionate. He atones crime and does not destroy; He abundantly returns His wrath and does not arouse all His fury” (Tehillim 78:38). After all, the Shekhinah has detached herself from all the troublemakers and violence mongers. They have all fled from her, gone to hide in the Sinkhole.

Anyone who wakes them down here by reciting such a verse, awakes them Above. Then she who is the Holy Throne cannot wear the crown of Sacred. Whenever those violence mongers awake, though they hid before in the Sinkhole, they now venture forth, returning to their weekday venues. They crowd sacred spaces and holy places, stealing Shabbat tranquility.

But it’s not only this. We, the holy Jewish people, jumpstart what happens in Heaven. When we sanctify time in our world—we determine when the new month begins—in Heaven they open the sluice and the holiness roars forth.

So we must be careful on Shabbos! Crowned with that extra sacred soul to arouse tranquility, we must not say the wrong thing, even if it’s from the Torah. We need to be affable and loving, outside and in.

Zohar 2:135b

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Shabbos Night (2 of 10)

 (In memory of Chaim Barukh Yehudah ben Dovid Tzvi zl)

K’gavna 

(In chassidic shuls, this piece of Zohar is said right before the start of Maariv, the nighttime prayer.)

Just as the six points of the sefirot unite Above to become one, the Shekhinah, too, unites her six points, Below. The two are aligned perfectly, in harmony, face to face (as it were). The Blessed Holy One is One. Above no one sits on His Throne of Glory until she—the Shekhinah—is as One in her realm as He is in His. This needs to happen in order for them to “unite” utterly. (We have been taught elsewhere {Zohar 2:134b] that Hashem is One and that His Name, aka the Shekhinah, is One.)

The secret of Shabbos? The Shekhinah’s name is Shabbos. This name has become unified in the One so that union with the One can take place.

The secret of the Shabbos (Friday) night prayer is linked one of the Shekhinah’s secrets. She is the secret of the Throne of Glory. She becomes fully integrated so that His August Royal Majesty will sit on His Throne.

When does the Shekhinah prepare herself? As Shabbos begins she becomes one within herself, totally detaching from the Sitra Achra (the Other Side, i.e., the evil side). All judgments leave and she remains, alone in union with the Holy Light. She crowns herself with many crowns, for the Holy King Who awaits her in the higher world, Atzilut.

All the demons created by anger, by haters and complainers flee—they can’t get out of her sight fast enough—to hide in the Sinkhole of the Great Deep. With their departure, no other force holds sway in the lower worlds, Beriyah, Yeztirah and Asiyah. All people, all beings, call out, loud and clear, in Hashem’s Name.

The Shekhinah’s face radiates the Holy Light. She is crowned by the prayers of the Jews; {Rebbe Nachman teaches* to say this next phrase with extra enthusiasm and joy} they, each and everyone, is crowned with a brand new soul, special for Shabbos. Now we can begin Maariv, to bless it joyfully, with shining faces. We can say, “Barkhu es Hashem hamevorakh”—”Hashem” means Hashem; “es” means the Shekhinah. We honor her by beginning Maariv with a blessing for her.

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* Sichot HaRan/Rabbi Nachman’s Wisdom #270

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Erev Shabbat with the Zohar (Part 2 of 2)

(In memory of Chaim Barukh Yehudah ben Dovid Tzvi zl)

Up, Up and Away!

On erev Shabbat Rav Hamnuna the Elder would immerse in the local river in order to purify himself. When he came out he would look skyward and smile. What did he see?

He said that he saw the joy of the angels on High. Some were going up [to bring neshamot from the Lower Gan Eden (Garden of eden) to the Higher Gan Eden]. Others were coming down [to distribute to each Jew his/her neshamah yeteirah for Shabbat]. {OB: Wish my eyes were as holy as Rav Hamnuna’s!}

Every erev Shabbat a Jew sits in the rarefied atmosphere of Olam HaNeshmaot, the World of Souls. Fortunate is the one who knows the secrets of his Master.

Zohar 2:136a, Parshat Terumah

 

Shir HaShirim—It Contains the Past, the Present and the Future

It is an old and well-established custom to read the entire Shir HaShirim (the Song of Songs) erev Shabbat.

Do you want to get an idea of how “awesome” Shir HaShirim is? Read this.

  • It contains the entire Torah.
  • It contains the entire workings of how Creation was made.
  • It contains all the mysteries behind everything the Patriarchs did.
  • It contains the entire story of the Egyptian Exile and the Song of the Sea (Az Yashir).
  • It contains the Ten Commandments.
  • It tells the story of the Torah-giving at Mount Sinai.
  • It tells the story of Yisrael’s 40-year journey in desert and their entering the Land of Israel.
  • It contains the building of the Beit HaMikdash (Holy Temple).
  • It is the crowning of Hashem’s Holy Name in love and joy.
  • It contains Yisrael’s exile among the nations and her redemption.
  • It contains what will happen from Techiyat HaMeitim (the Resurrection of the Dead) until the day that is Hashem’s Shabbat (the Seventh Millennium).
  • It contains everything that happened, that is happening and that will happen on the Seventh Day, Hashem’s Shabbat.
  • It is all in Shir HaShirim.

This is why we are taught (Sanhedrin 101a) that if someone sings a verse of Shir HaShirim in a bar [yes, they had bars in those days], Shir HaShirim dresses herself in a burlap sack and goes to complain to Hashem, “Your children have made fun of me—in a bar.” Yes, it definitely does this.

So be careful. Make each word of Shir HaShirim a crown on your head.

Zohar 2:144a, Parshat Terumah

The Shabbat Candles—Children Who Radiate the Torah’s Light

Jewish women were entrusted with lighting the Shabbat candles. Our dear colleagues explain that is an opportunity for her to make amends; she extinguished the light of the world and lighting the Shabbat candles corrects that (Bereishis Rabbah 17:8). (When Eve caused Adam to sin, she “extinguished” his soul—made him less spiritually sensitive and aware.)

But there is a secret to why a Jewish woman lights the Shabbat candles. The Shekhinah, the Canopy of Peace, is the World-Queen. She contains all the “candles,” every Jewish neshamah. This is why Jewish women light—every one of them is a queen, part of the Queen’s retinue. She lights the Shabbat candles; the Shekhinah illuminates Jewish souls.

Lighting the Shabbat candles is a tremendous honor for a Jewish woman, so should do it gladly and with a happy heart. It earns her a great deal of merit, making her worthy of having children who illuminate the world with Torah, awe of God and who bring great shalom to the world. She also gives her husband a longer life.

Each of these is reason enough for her to make sure she lights and lights well.

Zohar 1:48b, Parshat Bereishis

 

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