22 Meditations And Actions From The Holy Baal Shem Tov –

Uncategorized August 17, 2017 Leave a comment

Meditations And Actions From The Holy Baal Shem Tov

 

Tzavvas Harivash

 

1.

TRUTH

Be sincere

AVODA (SELF-REFINMENT)

Do not forget your Judaism.

TORAH

Every day Study Chassidus, whether a lot or a little.

AVODA (SELF-REFINEMENT)

Strive continuously to cleave to good traits and upright practices.

GOODNESS AND KINDESSS

Every day do an extra act of goodness and kindness.

1. 3.

AVODA (SELF-REFINEMENT)

No matter what happens, whether people praise or shame you, and so, too, with anything else, it should all be the same to you. This applies likewise to any food: it should be equal to you, whether you eat delicacies or other things. [With this perspective the yetzer hara is entirely removed from you.]

 

Whatever may happen, say that “it comes from [God], blessed be He, and if it is proper in His eyes…” I approve.

 

Your motives should be altogether for the sake of Heaven (Fulfilling God’s will), and as for yourself nothing else should make any difference.

AVODA (SELF-REFINEMENT)

Serving God is not on your terms – sometimes you may wish to study Torah but someone needs help – then this is the Divine service.

4.

PEACE

An important rule: “Commit your deeds to God, and your thoughts shall be established.” (Proverbs 16:3) This means, you must realize that whatever happens is from [God], blessed be He.

PRAYER

Request from God to always give you that which God knows to be for your benefit, as opposed to that which appears to be so to your human mind.  It is quite possible that what is good in your own eyes is really bad for you. So leave all your concerns and needs in God’s hands.

5.

FOCUS

Attach your thought to Above.

EATING

Do not eat or drink excessively, but only to the extent of maintaining your health.

FOCUS

Never look intently at mundane matters, nor pay any attention to them, so that you may be separated from the physical.

 

Intent viewing of the mundane brings crudity upon oneself. (This especially applies today! ED.)

 

Our sages, of blessed memory, thus said, that “sight leads to remembering and to desire;” and it is written of the Tree of Knowledge that it is “desirable to the sight and good for eating” meaning the sight of it made it desirable.

FOCUS

 

Think that you belong to the Supernal World and all the people dwelling in this world should not be important to you.

For the whole of this world is but like a granule, in relation to the Supernal World.

Be indifferent to others loving you or hating you, for their love or hatred means nothing.

Likewise, do not pay any attention to the desires of your filthy body which is a “leprous thing from the skin of the snake.”

1. 8.

EGO/HUMILITY

The Zohar (III:195a) states that one’s will is to be like that of a pauper.

Thus consider yourself like a pauper and always speak with soft and beseeching words like a pauper.

FOCUS

Your thought should always be secluded with the Shechinah, thinking only of your continuous love for Her that She may be attached to you.

Say constantly in your mind: “When will I merit that the light of the Shechinah abide with me?”

9.

FOCUS

When beset by mundane desires, remove them from your mind.

FOCUS

Scorn the desire to the point of it becoming hated and despised by you.

DESIRES

Incite the yetzer tov against the yetzer hara and your desire, and thus you will subdue them.

Do not be depressed at all from not having mundane desires.

On the contrary, rejoice exceedingly for meriting to subdue your passion for the sake of the Creator’s glory, may He be blessed.

Our sages said of this, “rejoicing in the suffering” (Shabbat 88b).

When you are not drawn after your desire, even in thought, and scorn it, you subdue the kelipot3 very much, as it is said in the Zohar (I:100b): “‘A pure heart’ (Psalms 24:4) is the one that will not let his will and heart be drawn after the sitra achara.”

10.

PEACE

Equanimity is an important principle.

This means that it should be all the same to you whether you are regarded as devoid of knowledge or learned in the whole Torah. This is brought about by constant deveikut (attachment) unto the Creator.

Preoccupation with this deveikut; being constantly busy with attaching yourself on high to [God], blessed is He, will not leave any spare time to think of those [other] matters.

11.

AVODA (SELF-REFINEMENT)

Whatever you do, have in mind to do it in order give gratification to your Creator, blessed be He, and do not think at all of your own needs.

Even the expectation of personal delight from your service [of God] is [an ulterior motive] for one’s own concerns.

12

UNITY – EGO/HUMILITY

Do not think that by worshipping with deveikut, you are greater than another.

You are like any other creature – created for the sake of His worship, blessed be He.

God gave a mind to the other, just as He gave a mind to you.

What makes you superior to a worm? The worm serves the Creator with all its mind and strength!

Man, too, is a worm and maggot, as it is written “I am a worm and no man.” (Psalms 22:7)

If God had not given you intelligence, you would not be able to worship Him, but like a worm.

So you are no better than a worm, and certainly [no better] than [other] people.

Bear in mind that you, the worm, and all other small creatures, are considered as equals in the world.

For all were created and have but the ability given to them by the blessed Creator.

Always keep this matter in mind.

13 / 14

AVODA (SELF-REFINEMENT)

When tempted to commit a sin, [Heaven forbid,] recite the [Biblical] verses pertaining to that sin. [Recite them] with their intonations and punctuation, with fear and love [of God], and [the temptation] will leave you.

When tempted by an evil trait, Heaven forbid, recite with all might, with fear and love [of God], [the names of] the six nations-the Canaanite; The Chiiti, The Emori, The Prizi, The Yevusi, The Girgashi etc. And in this way it will depart from you.

 

Connect that trait unto the Holy One, blessed be He.

For example, if tempted by sinful love, Heaven forbid; channel all your love to God alone, and concentrate all your efforts in that direction.

When [tempted] by anger, which is an expression of sinful “fear,” and derives from the attribute of gevurah, overpower your yetzer [hara] and transform that trait into a chariot for God.

When you hear someone preach with fear and love [of God], attach yourself strongly to his words, to become united with the teacher.

His words will then become thoughts in your mind and [the sinful thought] will leave you.

 

15

FOCUS – EGO/HUMIILTY

First and foremost be careful that every motion in the Divine service be without ulterior motives, Heaven-forbid.

This requires profound wisdom “exceedingly deep, who can find it out?” (Ecclesiastes 7:24) So there is then no alternative but to retain constant awareness of this principle.

Do not divert your mind from it, even for a moment, for it is a matter that is flawed by distraction.

 

MIKVA

Secondly, you must also be scrupulous with [ritual] immersion, and to concentrate in the mikveh on the appropriate kavanot (devotions) for mikveh.

For the “three-fold cord is not broken quickly” (Ecclesiastes 4:12): Remove yourself from depression and let your heart rejoice in God. (So Mikvah, removing sadness and rejoicing in God, creates a permanent bond.)

16

TIKKUN CHATZOIS

One should rise to study Torah at midnight.

PRAYERS

At the very least be scrupulous to recite the [morning]-prayer before sunrise, both in summer and winter.

That is, most of the prayer, up to the reading of the Shema, should be said before sunrise.

The difference between before sunrise and after sunrise is as great as the distance from east to west; for prior [to sunrise] one can still negate [all negative judgments].

This is indicated in [the verse], “[The sun is] like a groom coming forth from his bridal chamber, rejoicing like a warrior.. and nothing is hidden from chamato (its heat)” (Psalms 19:6-7); do not read chamota (its heat) but cheimato (his wrath).

This means that once the sun has already risen over the earth, there is no more hiding from the judgments which come from the angels of wrath.

“Do not regard this matter lightly, for it is of great import.”

The Baal Shem, may his memory be for blessing, was very particular with this, to the point that when he did not have a quorum, he would pray on his own.

17

GOODNESS AND KINDNESS

Do not allow a single day to pass without performing a good deed, whether it be a “minor” or “major” mitzvah, as our sages said, “Be zahir (careful; scrupulous) with a ‘minor’ mitzvah [as with a ‘major’ one]”

This is a very significant matter, for then you know that you achieved something that day: you created an angel, and “if there be for him an angel, an intercessor…” (Job 33:23)

This is indicated [in the verse] “shomer mitzvah (he who guards the mitzvah will know no evil” (Ecclesiastes 8:5).

When you undertake the instruction stated, you should stand on guard from morning to evening for the opportunity to perform a mitzvah that may come your way.

This is the implication of the word shomer, as in “his father shamar (guarded; awaited and looked forward to) the matter” (Genesis 37:11).

[This general principle] is indicated [in the verse], “The kindness of God is kol hayom (“all day long”; or: “every day”) (Psalms 52:3); that is, one needs perform kindness with God, blessed is He, every single day.

SHABBOS

Guard the Shabbat properly, with all its details and nuances.

SHEMA

At the very least, be careful with the reading of the Shema, recited twice daily, to do so without any intrusive thought, Heaven forbid.

To do so is something inestimably great.

This is indicated [in the saying], “Whosoever reads the Shema . . . those that cause harm keep away from him.” (Berachot 5a)

“Those that cause harm” refers to all harms in the world, whether they relate to the body or the soul.

You may find it impossible to pray without intrusive thoughts; nonetheless, train yourself to commence [reading the Shema] without alien thoughts.

20

ALACRITY

Embrace the trait of zerizut (alacrity – focus) very much.

Rise from your sleep with alacrity, because you have been renewed and became a different person that is capable to beget, analogous to the attribute of the Holy One, blessed be He, begetting worlds.

Whatever you do should be done with alacrity, for you can serve God with everything.

21

TAALIS

When donning the talis, one is to see the “blue thread.”  – This means that awe should come upon him.

 

21

 

PURPOSE

Whatever you see, remember the Holy One, blessed be He.

So [when seeing an aspect of] love, remember the love of God;

and with [an aspect of] fear, remember the fear of God, as this is elaborated in various sources.

Even when going to the privy, have in mind “I am separating the bad from the good,” with the good remaining for the Divine service.

This is the concept of yichudim (unifications).

Likewise, when going to sleep, think that your mental faculties go to the Holy One, blessed be He, and will be strengthened for the Divine service.

24

FOCUS

Your thought should be [directed] to Above, the Supernal World, in service to God.

Cleave unto Him and trust in Him to attain your desire.