Torah thoughts – Page 2 – New beginnings: A blog about spirituality, chaplaincy and renewal

Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 21 – Maintaining Simple Faith

As we have seen in many of my previous posts reflecting on Rebbe Nachman’s words, his approach is one of “simplicity” which is often misunderstood for lacking depth. Rather, it is an approach to faith that tries to remove all aspects of intellectualism as it pertains to harming our sense of belief. Most of us, this author included, struggle to balance the desire to investigate and reflect deeply while also maintaining a child-like innocence in how we see faith and belief. This includes the consumption of deep, intellectually stimulating works. As we see in the below piece, Rebbe Nachman clearly states that delving into philosophy is “destructive.”

מז. וְצָרִיךְ לִזָּהֵר מְאֹד שֶׁלֹּא לְהַבִּיט כְּלָל בַּסְּפָרִים הַמְדַבְּרִים מֵחֲקִירוֹת, כִּי הֵם מַזִּיקִים וּפוֹגְמִין מְאֹד אֶת הָאֱמוּנָה הַקְּדוֹשָׁה. וּכְבָר מְבֹאָר זֶה בְּכַמָּה מְקוֹמוֹת, אַךְ צָרִיךְ לִכְפֹּל כַּמָּה פְּעָמִים אַזְהָרָה זֹאת לְבַל יֹאבַד עוֹלָמוֹ כְּרֶגַע חַ”ו: (שם)

One has to greatly distance oneself even from the philosophical works. Such works are very damaging to faith. Now, it has already been explained in various places [in our teachings], yet it is necessary to repeat this again and again, to save oneself from destruction, God forbid (Ibid.).

I believe that Rebbe Nachman is categorizing philosophical works as those which are written to undermine faith, not works which offer a deeper and richer read of the beauty of Gd’s world. Further, if we take a statement like this in the context of the times he is living, there is clearly an Anti-Enlightenment polemic. And finally, we see that for Rebbe Nachman, there was a struggle. For those who have studied his Likkutei Moharan, you see a deeply thoughtful person who offers a depth to spirituality. It is not exactly a book of “simplicity.” I would even suggest that Likkutei Etzot, the book we are drawing these lessons from, was an approach to simplifying the message. Yet, there was a strong storytelling tradition, in which he taught deep ideas through the tales he crafted. His theory was that the story carried the simplicity and sophistication he wanted simultaneously.

For my purposes though, I think there is something more fundamental we can learn from this passage. We are by nature curious. Curiosity is valuable. And knowledge is important. Yet, in order to live a life of faith, there are times when we need to shift away from the intellectual exercises and the overthinking and just be. It is at this juncture that our actions, speech (prayers) and thoughts go from something in the mind to something coming from the depths of our humanity.

Yes, be a reader. Be a thinker. And be a person who continuously cultivates one’s faith in a way that it is not fractured, that it is as close to whole as possible. This is not easy. It is fraught with many potential pitfalls. And one need not go it alone. Find others who are on the same path and strength one another in this approach.

Are you struggling with your spiritual growth? Faith? Feeling lost in the midst of the journey of life? Contact New Beginnings Spiritual Coaching and Consulting LLC at 732-314-6758 ext. 100 or via email at newbeginningsspiritualcoach@gmail.com

Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 18 – What is my real motivation

Today, I am thinking about my motivations. Why do I do the things I do? Why share my thoughts with others through this medium? Why do I help others in times of crisis? Why do I live a life focused on spiritual growth? These questions, among others, are part of my daily reflections. Of course, at times one question sticks out more than the rest while other questions percolate below the surface, ready to come forth when they need time and reinforcement.

I am reminded of this because of the following idea from the thought of Rebbe Nachman.

לח. אִישׁ אֱמֶת שֶׁעוֹשֶׂה כָּל הַמִּצְווֹת בְּכָל הַדִּקְדּוּקִים בֵּינוֹ לְבֵין קוֹנוֹ כְּמוֹ בִּפְנֵי בְּנֵי אָדָם, וְאֵין חִלּוּק אֶצְלוֹ כְּלָל, כִּי אֵין בּוֹ שׁוּם צַד שֶׁקֶר לַעֲשׂוֹת חַ”ו אֵיזֶה תְּנוּעָה בַּעֲבוֹדָתוֹ בִּשְׁבִיל בְּנֵי אָדָם, הוּא מַמְשִׁיךְ לְעַצְמוֹ כֹּחַ כָּל הַצְּדָקוֹת, וְעַל־יְדֵי זֶה הוּא מְבַטֵּל מַחֲשָׁבוֹת שֶׁל כְּפִירוֹת הַנַּ”ל: (שם)

A person should be so honest that when he carries out the mitzvot and all their fine details it is for the sake of God alone. Even if he were completely alone with no one to watch him, he would still carry them all out scrupulously. Being free of the slightest hint of dishonesty, he would never do anything merely to impress others (Ibid.).

Do my motivations change if others watch me do an action? Am I consistent in private and public? Being consistent in our inner and outer selves is quite difficult. It is something that I know to be a daily struggle. Most of us tend to find elements of our motivations coming from external incentives, whether honor, glory, the hope someone will return the favor (quid pro quo), etc. This is not a negative. Yet, this cannot be seen as an ideal for us to live by. While it is part of our growth to need these external incentives for our growth, the true goal is to move beyond the reward and do it for its own sake. To me, reading these words of Rebbe Nachman, I am reminded of this statement from Pirkei Avot, Ethics of our Fathers:

אַנְטִיגְנוֹס אִישׁ סוֹכוֹ קִבֵּל מִשִּׁמְעוֹן הַצַּדִּיק. הוּא הָיָה אוֹמֵר, אַל תִּהְיוּ כַעֲבָדִים הַמְשַׁמְּשִׁין אֶת הָרַב עַל מְנָת לְקַבֵּל פְּרָס, אֶלָּא הֱווּ כַעֲבָדִים הַמְשַׁמְּשִׁין אֶת הָרַב שֶׁלֹּא עַל מְנָת לְקַבֵּל פְּרָס, וִיהִי מוֹרָא שָׁמַיִם עֲלֵיכֶם:

Antigonus a man of Socho received [the oral tradition] from Shimon the Righteous. He used to say: do not be like servants who serve the master in the expectation of receiving a reward, but be like servants who serve the master without the expectation of receiving a reward, and let the fear of Heaven be upon you.
Pirkei Avot 1:3

Our spiritual growth is a continuous process of struggle to be consistent in the motivations for all we do. Today, may we reflect on what makes us do the great things we do and begin working on aligning our real motivations with the actions we take.

Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 16 – Working towards Seeing is Believing

This week’s Torah portion, Ki Tissa, brings us to the story of Israel’s almost cataclysmic choice, the fashioning and worshipping of the Golden Calf, the Egel HaZahav. While there is a debate about whether the idol was to replace Gd or Moses or perhaps even both, there is an interesting, underlying spiritual question regarding the story. There is a famous statement, Seeing is Believing, yet how often is this statement proven false. In the story of the worshipping of the Golden Calf, this idea is proven false, for the Israelites had experienced Gd’s miracles and heard Gd’s “voice” and yet a short time later they fall into this ultimate of violations of faith.

If seeing is believing is not an absolute reality, how come this is a go to statement for so many. Sure, we often use it sarcastically, but within the sarcasm must be a modicum of believing it to be true. Perhaps, we can suggest an approach from Rebbe Nachman. I present two quotes from Likkutei Etzot about making our faith so strong that it is as if we are really seeing it (and See here (Rebbe Nachman’s advice # 10) for a parallel text and my thoughts):

עִקַּר שְׁלֵמוּת הָאֱמוּנָה הוּא, שֶׁיִּתְחַזֵּק בֶּאֱמוּנָה חֲזָקָה כָּל כָּךְ עַד שֶׁתִּהְיֶה בְרוּרָה וְזַכָּה מְאֹד, עַד שֶׁיִּהְיֶה דּוֹמֶה בְּעֵינָיו כְּאִלּוּ רוֹאֶה בְּעֵינָיו מַמָּשׁ הַדָּבָר שֶׁמַּאֲמִין בּוֹ, וְכַמְבֹאָר לְעֵיל (בְּאוֹת ל”ב [צ”ל אוֹת כ”ח]): (לק”א סי’ רל”ד)

Faith must be a complete and very clear faith, such that because of his faith it seems to him as if his eyes see the very thing he believes in
Likkutei Etzot Truth and Faith # 36

כְּשֶׁאָדָם חָזָק בֶּאֱמוּנָה מְאֹד, זוֹכֶה אַחַר כָּךְ לָבוֹא אֶל הַשֵּׂכֶל, וְכָל מַה שֶׁמַּחְזִיק אֶת עַצְמוֹ בֶּאֱמוּנָה יוֹתֵר, בָּא אֶל שֵׂכֶל יוֹתֵר. כִּי הַדָּבָר שֶׁהָיָה צָרִיךְ מִתְּחִלָּה לְהַאֲמִין מֵחֲמַת שֶׁלֹּא הֵבִין הַדָּבָר, זוֹכֶה אַחַר כָּךְ לַהֲבִינוֹ בְּשֵׂכֶל עַל־יְדֵי אֱמוּנָתוֹ הַחֲזָקָה. אַךְ אַחַר כָּךְ יֵשׁ לוֹ דְּבָרִים גְּבוֹהִים יוֹתֵר, שֶׁהֵם נִסְתָּרִים מִמֶּנּוּ וְאֵינוֹ יָכוֹל לַהֲבִינָם בְּשֵׂכֶל, וַאֲזַי צָרִיךְ לְהִתְחַזֵּק אֶת עַצְמוֹ יוֹתֵר בֶּאֱמוּנָה, לְהַאֲמִין בְּמַה שֶּׁנִּסְתָּר מִמֶּנּוּ עַתָּה וְאֵינוֹ מֵבִין בְּשֵׂכֶל, עַד שֶׁיִּזְכֶּה לְהָבִין גַּם אֵלּוּ הַדְּבָרִים בְּשֵׂכֶל, וְכֵן לְעוֹלָם. אֲבָל לָזֶה צָרִיךְ לִהְיוֹת הָאֱמוּנָה חֲזָקָה מְאֹד מְאֹד עַד שֶׁתִּתְפַּשֵּׁט הָאֱמוּנָה בְּכָל הָאֵיבָרִים, וְאָז יוּכַל לִזְכּוֹת לָבוֹא אֶל הַשֵּׂכֶל עַל־יְדֵי הָאֱמוּנָה כַּנַּ”ל: (לק”א סי’ צ”א)

If you are very strong in your faith you will eventually reach understanding of what you believe in. The stronger your faith the greater your understanding will be. At the outset you have no option but to have faith because you cannot understand the matter rationally. Through faith you will come to understand it. Except that then there will be new, more exalted levels which are still hidden from you and beyond your ability to understand rationally. Here again you will have to make the effort to believe. You must always have faith in the levels that are hidden from you. In the end you will understand them also. And so the process goes on. The main thing is that your faith must be so strong that it spreads to all your limbs. This faith will bring you to true wisdom (91).
Likkutei Etzot Truth and Faith # 32

Rebbe Nachman is suggesting that our life goal should be the constant work around strengthening our faith. We cannot just go through life and presume we will have the belief and fortitude to overcome moments that challenge us. We have to prepare, we have to work on it. We have to study and reflect on what it means when we say we believe or we have faith in… Is it just words or is it part of our essence? And, from his words, it seems like even when it is something that is seemingly well established, we must continue to work on it.

I can imagine that for the Israelites, it is this latter point which was a problem. They were witness to things that are improbable/impossible. They experienced miracles that the world has never seen. And yet, that wasn’t enough because the experiences needed constant reinforcement. Sure, one could argue that the Torah’s story presumes that they saw regular “miracles” like the manna and the protective clouds around the encampment. Nevertheless, regular “miracles” lose potency over time; they become routine. Once they become routine, the inspiration dissipates.

When life becomes routine, we lose the inspiration to grow. When we purposefully work on seeing and experiencing the simple inspirations in life, we can maintain and grow in our sense of awe at the wonders of the world. Faith is a constant goal. And if we constantly strive, perhaps we really will have seeing is believing moments. May we merit to have times when we are open to truly seeing the beauty of our path, our journey.

Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 14 – Purim – Joyfulness overcomes the harshness of life

In about 24 hours, we will be celebrating Purim. Purim is a joyous holiday, celebrating the events described in Megillat Esther. For Rebbe Nachman, the joy we put into celebrating this holiday goes much further than merely lifting our spirits. It has a deeper meaning, as we see in his words below:

א. עַל־יְדֵי שִׂמְחַת פּוּרִים בְּהַמְחָאַת כַּף וְרִקּוּדִין, עַל־יְדֵי זֶה מַמְשִׁיכִין בְּחִינַת קַבָּלַת הַתּוֹרָה בְּנִגְלֶה וְנִסְתָּר, שֶׁהוּא בְּחִינַת הֶאָרָה הַנִּפְלָאָה שֶׁל מָרְדְּכַי וְאֶסְתֵּר, וְזוֹכִין לְקַיֵּם מִצְוַת סְפִירַת הָעֹמֶר כָּרָאוּי, וּמַכְנִיעִין קְלִפּוֹת הָמָן עֲמָלֵק יִמַּח שְׁמָם. וְנִתְבַּטֵּל הַגַּאֲוָה וְהָעֲבוֹדָה זָרָה וְהַכְּפִירוֹת, וְנִמְשָׁךְ אֱמוּנָה גְּדוֹלָה וְחָכְמָה דִּקְדֻשָּׁה וְחַיִּים וַאֲרִיכוּת יָמִים, וּמַמְתִּיקִין כָּל הַדִּינִים וְנִתְבַּטְּלִין כָּל הַגְּזֵרוֹת מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל: (לק”א סי’ י’ אות ח’ ט’)

Our joy and clapping and dancing on Purim make us worthy of receiving the Torah in its two aspects, revealed and hidden. For the great revelation that came about through Mordechai and Esther was “receiving the Torah.” Through this we are able to fulfill the mitzva of counting the Omer in the proper way. The kelipah of Haman the Amalekite (may his name be blotted out) is crushed. The force of pride, idolatry and atheism is broken. Great faith, holy wisdom and true life and length of days are brought into the world. The severity of God’s harsh judgements is sweetened, and all the harsh decrees against Israel are revoked (10:8).

From my perspective, to understand Rebbe Nachman’s words, we must first look back on a passage from the Talmud in tractate Shabbat (88a) which claims the holiday of Purim as a second opportunity for the Jewish nation to accept upon itself the fulfillment of the Torah, this time out of free will.

״וַיִּתְיַצְּבוּ בְּתַחְתִּית הָהָר״, אָמַר רַב אַבְדִּימִי בַּר חָמָא בַּר חַסָּא: מְלַמֵּד שֶׁכָּפָה הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עֲלֵיהֶם אֶת הָהָר כְּגִיגִית, וְאָמַר לָהֶם: אִם אַתֶּם מְקַבְּלִים הַתּוֹרָה מוּטָב, וְאִם לָאו — שָׁם תְּהֵא קְבוּרַתְכֶם. אָמַר רַב אַחָא בַּר יַעֲקֹב: מִכָּאן מוֹדָעָא רַבָּה לְאוֹרָיְיתָא. אָמַר רָבָא: אַף עַל פִּי כֵן הֲדוּר קַבְּלוּהָ בִּימֵי אֲחַשְׁוֵרוֹשׁ, דִּכְתִיב: ״קִיְּמוּ וְקִבְּלוּ הַיְּהוּדִים״ — קִיְּימוּ מַה שֶּׁקִּיבְּלוּ כְּבָר

The Gemara cites additional homiletic interpretations on the topic of the revelation at Sinai. The Torah says, “And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet God; and they stood at the lowermost part of the mount” (Exodus 19:17). Rabbi Avdimi bar Ḥama bar Ḥasa said: the Jewish people actually stood beneath the mountain, and the verse teaches that the Holy One, Blessed be He, overturned the mountain above the Jews like a tub, and said to them: If you accept the Torah, excellent, and if not, there will be your burial. Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov said: From here there is a substantial caveat to the obligation to fulfill the Torah. The Jewish people can claim that they were coerced into accepting the Torah, and it is therefore not binding. Rava said: Even so, they again accepted it willingly in the time of Ahasuerus, as it is written: “The Jews ordained, and took upon them, and upon their seed, and upon all such as joined themselves unto them” (Esther 9:27), and he taught: The Jews ordained what they had already taken upon themselves through coercion at Sinai.

Rebbe Nachman suggests one element of celebrating with joy on Purim is to reenact our recommitment to Torah out of our desire and effort, not out of a fear of negative consequences if we didn’t. This is exemplified in the mitzvah of counting the Omer, which is the counting to the celebration of the revelation of the Torah at Mount Sinai, the moment of the revealed Torah. Yet we know we cannot live with the revealed alone, with just the surface. We must work to see and accept the hidden. This is a core component of Purim, in that Gd is hidden (not mentioned in the biblical version of the story) and yet we come to reaffirm our acceptance of Torah and Gd.

When we rejoice, we break the hold of darkness that so often plagues us collectively and individually. We sweeten the harshness and find we see the world with our positive sight instead of our negative sight. When we rejoice, we reveal what is often hidden, which is the happiness, contentment and joy of our lives. The darkness easily overtakes the light and so we need to put in the effort to turn that around.

In working with people on their spiritual challenges and fostering spiritual growth, part of my role is to help bring out that which is hidden, making it into something revealed. Once we reveal the hidden, the depth of what we want, we can then begin to plan and implement the changes we want to make in our lives.

May this Purim be a time of bringing forth the hidden in our lives, bringing positive feelings to the surface and breaking the hold of the darkness which is hindering our true growth.

Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 12 – Finding Truth through removing the urge to win

Most of us have a competitive nature. This competitiveness can be positive in that pushes us to success. Yet, this same push can also have negative side effects. Often this competitiveness will lead people to push others aside, cut corners or do other things just for the sense of victory. In this piece by Rebbe Nachman, he suggests that this dark side of looking for the victory can blind us to what is sitting right in front of us:

לג. הַנַצְחָן אֵינוֹ סוֹבֵל הָאֱמֶת, וְאַף אִם יְבָרְרוּ לְעֵינָיו דְּבַר אֱמֶת יִדְחֶה אוֹתוֹ מֵחֲמַת נִצָּחוֹן. עַל־כֵּן מִי שֶׁרוֹצֶה לֵידַע הָאֱמֶת לַאֲמִתּוֹ, יְסַלֵּק מִקֹּדֶם מִדַּת הַנִּצָּחוֹן מֵעַצְמוֹ, וְאָז יָכוֹל לִרְאוֹת הָאֱמֶת אִם יִרְצֶה בֶּאֱמֶת: (לק”א סי’ קכ”ב)

One who always wants to be victorious is very intolerant of truth. The truth may be staring him in the face. But because he is determined to win at all costs he ignores it completely. If you want to find the real truth you must rid yourself of the urge to win. Then you will be able to see the truth if you wish (122).

This is a powerful spiritual growth principle. When we are looking to foster our drive to fulfill our goals, are we blinded by the end game? Do we constantly just look at the ends but not spend time where true growth really occurs, which is the process of striving towards a goal? Do we struggle to find that inner sense of the spiritual because we are always comparing ourselves to the images we think are the truths in front of us?

It is too easy to compare ourselves to others, to judge others based on how they appear and think that their lives are better. Too often the stumbling block to seeing the truth we know, the one in which we are making progress and succeeding in our own journey, is the urge to compete and compare lives. There are few who have fully shed this blindness to the reality right in front of us.

Yes, there are times we need to “fake it till we make it.” There are moments when the appearance is primary, dressing for the success we hope to have (attested to in the theme of this week’s Torah portion, Tetzaveh, which describes the clothing the priests and high priest must wear when in service to Gd in the Temple). We give off the positive impressions on the outside as part of the societal norms. Yet, our true path, true growth, comes from the internal, not from how I am in relation to another but how I am in relation to myself.

Today, may each of us work towards striving to see the truth that is already in front of us, inside of us. May we find the gratitude towards the self for all of our successes, seeing that Truth cannot be fostered when we are judging ourselves based on someone else.

Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 11 – All we do is to reveal the Divine in the World

One of the most famous teachings from Pirkei Avot states:

שִׁמְעוֹן הַצַּדִּיק הָיָה מִשְּׁיָרֵי כְנֶסֶת הַגְּדוֹלָה. הוּא הָיָה אוֹמֵר, עַל שְׁלשָׁה דְבָרִים הָעוֹלָם עוֹמֵד, עַל הַתּוֹרָה וְעַל הָעֲבוֹדָה וְעַל גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים:

Shimon the Righteous was one of the last of the men of the great assembly. He used to say: the world stands upon three things: the Torah, the Temple service, and the practice of acts of piety.
Pirkei Avot 1:2

The question we should ask is how are these foundations of the world? That might sound somewhat heretical, yet I think it behooves us to ask this most fundamental of questions. How do prayer, study and kindness uphold the world? Perhaps the answer can be teased out from the following passage from Rebbe Nachman:

לא. הַכְּלָל הוּא, שֶׁכָּל מַה שֶּׁאָנוּ עוֹשִׂין, הֵן תְּפִלָּה, הֵן לִמּוּד תּוֹרָה וַעֲשִׂיַּת מִצְווֹת, הַכֹּל הוּא כְּדֵי שֶׁיִּתְגַּלֶּה אֱמוּנָתוֹ וּמַלְכוּתוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ: (לק”א סי’ ע”ז)

Everything we do — praying, learning Torah, carrying out the mitzvoth — has one fundamental aim: to reveal the kingship of God (77).

The world stands on the concept of the Divine. If we break this down into the three categories of the mishnah and of Rebbe Nachman, we can see how this is foundational,

Prayer: When we pray, we are acknowledging how we cannot do it alone. We are humbling ourselves to show we are interdependent. In Rebbe Nachman’s point of view, this is our turning to Gd as we turn to a parent, asking and asking for what we need. This might be the easiest to understand for the world cannot function if we are all selfish and arrogant to think we are completely independent beings. In a way, we can define prayer as spiritual humility.

Torah study: Learning, expanding our knowledge base is also a mode of expressing our humility. I am reminded of the famous statement, the more I learn, the more I realize what I don’t know. When we can develop this intellectual humility, we also are able to make space for all who we come across in life, being open to learning from others. We become open to possibilities and hopefully can learn that there aren’t many absolutes. This expands our ability to explore the beauty of life around us.

Doing mitzvot/acts of kindness: Our activities as they relate to how we live our the final pillar. This pillar is also a cultivator of humility for when we do for others, we recognize two things. Others might need us and we need others. We also learn the importance of not presuming someone else will do it but that we must make the effort to do the actions needed.

All three of these modalities of cultivating humility make way for Gd to be experienced in the world. So often we lose sight of the divine element of the world because our lives get clouded by ego and selfhood. While it is important to work on our growth and the impact we want to have in the world, this cannot come at the expense of recognizing we are cogs in the great cycle of life.

May we always be working on our spiritual, intellectual and interpersonal growth so as to strengthen the foundation of the world so that we can continue to reveal the divine in the world.

Audio – Lessons in Tanya 48

Part two of Chapter 29 – We discuss two methods of overcoming the sitra achara, the “dark” side of our soul. We learn about spiritual accounting and how to rage against this dark side. This chapter also works through being a vessel for the divine, leading to a quick thought on this week’s Torah portion, Terumah.

Episode 48

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Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 7 – Faith as the key to harnessing a New Beginning

Waking up each day, we start off on the next leg of the journey of life. Each day contains elements of that which happened in the past and many of us feel that one day blends into the next. Yet, each day is a new beginning, another opportunity to do new things or bring newer attitudes to that which might seem monotonous.

Rebbe Nachman tied in the notion of faith with waking up each morning, saying:

יט. עַל־יְדֵי אֱמוּנָה מְחַדְּשִׁין הַמֹּחַ, שֶׁהוּא הַנְּשָׁמָה, בִּשְׁעַת שֵׁנָה. וְזוֹכִין לְקַבֵּל עַל־יְדֵי הַשֵּׁנָה שֵׂכֶל חָדָשׁ וּנְשָׁמָה חֲדָשָׁה מֵאוֹר הַפָּנִים: (לק”א סי’ ל”ה אות ג’ ד’ ה’)

When a person is asleep he enters the category of “faith”, and this refreshes his intellect, which is the manifestation of his soul. The refreshment a person gains from sleeping can help him to attain new levels of religious awareness and perception of God. He can actually receive a new soul from the light of God’s countenance (35:3-5).

The epitome of faith is found in the state of sleep, the state that allows the soul to reconnect without the constraints of the physical. This opportunity affords us the chance to awaken with a new sense of perspective in life. Too often we all believe once we walk along a certain path we do not have the chance to veer off and do something new. By recognizing that each day is a fresh start, even in the midst of outwardly doing the same tasks from the day before, we can find new levels of spiritual growth.

May each of us work toward seeing all aspects of life, from the awake state to the sleep state, as opportunities for enhancing our faith and growing in our spirituality.

Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 6 – Charity and Faith go together

Faith manifests itself in many forms. Much of our approach to faith is emotional/intellectual, in that we either try to gain clarity and understanding in what we see in the world or allow experience and gut to guide us on our journey. In the below quote from Rebbe Nachman, he suggests that faith has a more pragmatic, action oriented element as well:

טז. עִקַּר חֲשִׁיבוּת הַצְּדָקָה וּשְׁלֵמוּתָהּ הִיא בֶּאֱמוּנָה. וְכָל הַבְּרָכוֹת וְהַהַשְׁפָּעוֹת הַבָּאִים עַל־יְדֵי הַצְּדָקָה, אֵין לָהֶם שְׁלֵמוּת כִּי אִם עַל־יְדֵי אֱמוּנָה, שֶׁהִיא מְקוֹר הַבְּרָכוֹת. וְעִקַּר אֱמוּנָה זוֹכִין עַל־יְדֵי שְׁמִירַת שַׁבַּת קֹדֶשׁ: (לק”א סי’ ל”א אות ב’)

Charity is only perfect when it is combined with faith. The same is true of all the blessings which flow into the world through acts of charity. They are only perfect when there is faith. Faith is the source of blessings. Keeping the holy Shabbat — which is called the “source of blessings”— is the foundation of faith (31:2).

From this passage, we are given a shift in our perspective on both charity and faith. As to faith, Rebbe Nachman gives us a clear approach to its value in that faith allows us to be a receptacle for blessing. Through faith in its ideal, we open ourselves up to a more selfless approach to life as a whole. Obviously, this takes work and effort to overcome selfish faith, one in which we claim faith only so that we can receive blessing. Rather, we have to cultivate faith in our individual and collective missions to make the world a better place. All of this leads us to charity.

Charity is a complicated idea. Maimonides, for example, makes it clear that tzedaka, which we translate as charity, a term that implies a certain subjectivity in that we can choose how to be supportive, is not the correct translation of tzedaka. Rather tzedaka should be seen as a required form of supporting others in positions of need. Without tzedaka, the world wouldn’t stand as we would be relying only on acts of kindness, chesed, which are contingent on the goodness of one to another. Others work with the more colloquial approach to tzedaka as the equivalent of chesed, which I would argue is what Rebbe Nachman is suggesting. As such, this is where faith comes in. If we combine faith with our sense of charity, we will find it easier to give because this combination cultivates our sense of trusting our giving is not a diminishment in what we have but rather a conduit for furthering our collective mission as human beings in caring for all.

Finally, how does Shabbat fit in? Shabbat, cessation from doing, is the source of all blessing. When we allow ourselves to take a moment to witness all we have done, we can often gain a deeper perspective. We can see the bigger picture. We can have the time and space to reflect and to not be caught up in doing, allowing ourselves to strengthen our spirituality and ultimately our faith. This foundational principle is in line with the above. When we allow ourselves to stop, we are saying that we trust that even if we aren’t doing, the world can continue because we have done what we could. Faith is the sense that we do our part and believe that Gd will take care of the rest. Faith is a deep sense of trust. Resting/Shabbat and Charity both must be accompanied by this notion of faith in order for them to be done to their utmost and if they are, then we should hopefully see blessings come into this world as a result.

As we get ready to enter the Shabbat of the special reading for Parashat Shekalim, which is about the obligatory giving of a half shekel to support the tabernacle and Temple, may we see the merits of our giving shine a light on our lives.

Rebbe Nachman’s Advice # 5 – Growing our Faith beyond the intellect

As we continue to explore some key points of faith as per Rebbe Nachman, this short piece is fundamental to his thought as well as a good reflection on the ideal engagement with faith.

יד. אֲפִלּוּ מִי שֶׁזּוֹכֶה לְהַמְשִׁיךְ אֵיזֶה שֵׂכֶל דִּקְדֻשָּׁה, צָרִיךְ לְהַמְשִׁיךְ אֱמוּנָה לְתוֹךְ הַשֵּׂכֶל, כִּי אֵין לִסְמֹךְ עַל הַשֵּׂכֶל בְּעַצְמוֹ: (לק”א סי’ כ”ד אות ו’)

Even a person who attains a certain level of religious insight and understanding must take good care to ensure that the perception he has is suffused with faith. Intellect alone is not something to rely upon (24:6).

For faith to have an impact on our lives, it cannot just reside in our minds. Faith needs to find its place in our heart, in the depth of who we are. How many of us struggle with faith not because we don’t have it but because we work too hard to try to understand the world. We are educated to think, debate, hypothesize, experiment and sometimes we forget the simple beauty of just seeing what is right there in front of us. Rebbe Nachman warns that the more we learn, the more we think we know, the more we must also work to strengthen the tie to the emotional feeling that is faith. I believe it is from that feeling that is faith we draw on the strength to withstand traumas and crises.

But this is no easy task. It is hard work to get to this place. How do we do that without intellectualizing our faith? Perhaps this is the power and beauty that we can find in prayer. Through prayer, we approach the world from a place of recognizing lack and looking to Gd to show us how to fill up what is missing. Prayer as a regular practice goes beyond knowledge. While it is important to have a deep understanding of the words we are saying, the deeper investment of energy in tefillah, prayer, is in allowing each time we pray to be a new experience, leaving the intellectual to the side and approaching it from the emotional.

May each of us find and cultivate our individual reservoir of faith as we also work to learn and increase our knowledge and understanding of the world.