This Publication is
a project of the Gates Of Emunah Institute for the dissemination of the
teachings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov in English.
KEEPING THE FLAME ALIVE
Revised and
translated from the lessons of Rabbi Nissan Dovid Kivak shlit”a.
The world is constantly progressing. Our small globe is filled with
novelties; at every possible moment new innovations are being discovered. What
was considered yesterday a novelty, is today regarded an antique. Everything
around us is developing; the potential is being actualized at a dizzying pace,
and in the center of it all is none other than man himself.
Behind every innovation could be found a number of scientists who
toiled months on end to bring it to fruition. Refined materials, advanced
medications and more efficient technology appear out of nowhere, being the
result of the many stages of a living process of creation. The human
population is constantly in motion. Just taking a look out the window for a
moment will portray a picture bustling with motion – people moving about
non-stop. This one is running, that one is walking, one person is conversing
with his mouth and the other is signaling with his hands. The one thing they
all have in common is that something is beating inside them.
ENTHUSIASM IS THE
DRIVING FORCE BEHIND EVERYTHING
If something is in motion then there must be something causing it
to move. A boat gliding upon the ocean waters bears testimony to a wind blowing
through its sails, an illuminated light bulb attests to electricity flowing
through its wire and if you find a person vigorously active and energetic then
there is no doubt something excites him. People do all sorts of things,
they build and destroy, they dream and contemplate, they create and
invent. Behind all of these stands one thing – Hislahavus
(enthusiasm/liveliness).
Both man and the world itself are rooted in the element of earth
and were it not for the life force of enthusiasm that was placed inside man, he
would seem like nothing more than a mound of earth protruding from the ground.
This world is heavy, it is not easy to get things moving, and in order to give
a life-like form to a clump of dirt, one needs much hislahavus.
If this
hislahavus is fundamental to mankind so too, it must be regarding the world at
large. The world was formed with the Ten Sayings
of Creation (asarah maamaros) and it is also through them that it continues to
exist. The holy Torah preceded the world and with it, Hashem created the world.
The world revolves constantly around an axis, developing and progressing, and
the wind that blows in its sails is – the Torah.
Man in his physical essence is nothing but the dust of the earth
and at certain times he returns to this definition. When Hashem sent the soul
into partnership with the body he prepared for it much work to be done.
The world is filled with challenges – good and evil are found in
every corner and it is imperative to be awake and alert. The Torah does
not only provide us with clear definitions of good and evil, it also bestows
upon us the strength and ability to stand up to the challenge of free will
(bechirah).
THE GIVING OF THE
TORAH – THE STRENGTH TO CHOOSE GOOD OVER EVIL.
Not long ago – so the calendar claims, was the Chag of the giving
of the Torah and seemingly we received something. Yes, we received the Torah, a
completely new Torah, the likes of which has never before appeared. During the
coming yearly cycle that stands before us, we will find ourselves upon many
battlefields in which both good and evil will be found, and we will need to
always choose the good. The Torah that we now have in our hands contains all
the strength required by the soul in order to pass through the coming cycle
peacefully.
Within the words of the Torah is contained an incredible energy –
all the strengths and abilities in existence draw their life-force from the
letters of the Torah. Every Jew has a part in the Torah and this part is meant
to be the driving force of his 248 limbs and 365 sinews, to instill in them the
ability to properly navigate his way amidst the 248 positive and 365 negative
commandments.
All of us, all
the good Jews who have been living on the face of the earth in the last two
weeks, were all at Har Sinai. We stood at the foot of the mountain as Moshe brought the Torah
down from the heavens; we received it ready packed and all, set to take home.
The days after Shavuos flew by and we are still wandering around somewhere on
the pathways that leave Har Sinai, stepping from one day to the next, from
Shacharis to Minchah to Maariv, and in our hands remains a sealed package.
The precious
package that we received on the sixth of Sivan is held close to our hearts. We clasp it tightly with both hands,
careful not to lose it, G-d forbid. The Torah accompanies us wherever we go and
sometimes we even take a small peek at it through a narrow crack, nod our heads
and continue along our way.
Let’s be honest,
we’re not new at this. Every
year we travel this path always arriving in the vicinity of Har Sinai somewhere
around the beginning of Sivan, always receiving the Torah in some way. So what?
This is nothing new. Our family always spoke about this, our friends are
well accustomed to this luxury, we have the Torah in our hands, we don’t need
to arrange for quality-control testing. We would never suspect that Moshe would
hand us an empty package – we trust him…
Hashem does something very unusual every year. He opens the most
top-secret vault there is in existence, where the plans on which the entire
creation was created and formed, are hidden. Those G-dly codes which
Hashem used as the blueprint for the world contain within them the driving
force for all that took place in the past and all that will occur in the
future. From that G-dly framework which is called – the Torah, emerge all the
innovations that Hashem creates in His world spiritually and physically at
every moment.
Every year on the
sixth of Sivan Hashem withdraws the G-dly plans for all that will transpire in
the coming year. It is
this code that He sends down into the world and bestows upon each and every one
of us his part in the plan.
When the thundering sounds were silenced and the lightening ceased,
we took our three steps back, bowed with awe in the direction of the mountain
and began our journey home. Shavuos moved into yesterday and we continued
towards tomorrow. We move forward, yet a watchful eye follows us from behind.
He, who gave us that which we have in our hands, knows that the moment we open
the package we will begin to move with dance-like steps.
A person makes
his way along the trails of life and upon his path are heaps of tests,
difficulties and obstacles. He huffs and puffs with exertion thinking to himself: ‘how difficult
could they possibly make it for a person. Isn’t there some mistake here – this
is a trail for professional hikers, not for me…’. Not only is the terrain
extremely strenuous, but the package from Har Sinai is adding to the unbearable
burden. Then perhaps the time has come to open the package, to simply
begin to make use of what it holds inside.
The Torah is
meant to ignite us; this is exactly why we received it. The heart experiences the world as it is.
It is the heart which feels all that happens around us and it is there that the
true ability to cope must be found. Above, at the top of the spinal cord, is
the mind. It functions exactly like a power station; G-dly life-force enters
the brain and sets the cogs of thought in motion. When holy thoughts fill the
mind then it generates heat; chochmah (wisdom) is something warm and filled
with vitality. This warmth descends to the heart and ignites it. A warm and
enthusiastic heart skips easily over the pitfalls of life. When the mind is
filled with sanctity the vision of life that the eye perceives is far less
frightening.
The Rebbe speaks
about this in Likutey Moharan lesson 21, explaining that the power of the Torah
is hidden within its words – when one enunciates them vocally, they take
effect. Since the kedusha is already found within
the words, one doesn’t have to do much, as everything is hidden inside that
which we already have in our hands. All we need to do is open it and begin to
make use of what’s inside.
THE KEDUSHA OF
THE SHIVAH NEIROS (SEVEN CANDLES)
Every Jew desires to run through the course of life without
becoming stuck at confusing and unclear crossroads. When the engine is warm the
wheels manage easily on every terrain, uphill just like downhill, a sharp turn
just like a straight road. Anyone who has ever come into contact with the Torah
knows this. When one sinks for a few hours into the reservoir of life within
the letters, then when one emerges everything looks different. The problem is
that something else needs to be taken into account.
There are seven orifices in the heads: Two for the sense of sight,
another two for hearing, two more for scent and another one for speech.
These seven openings connect us with our surroundings; they absorb and also
transmit information. These seven orifices are like the seven branches of
the Menorah and when they are complete they enable the flame to burn strongly.
The world is filled with winds that threaten to extinguish the candles;
sometimes such a wind blows in one’s ears or one’s eyes and the candle of holy
intellect that burns inside flickers in a desperate attempt to stay alight.
When we guard our senses whereby candles are lit at the entrance to
these seven openings, then the evil outside is burnt and destroyed in an
instant. But when the wind extinguishes these candles then things start
becoming complicated.
We have a Torah,
it is already in our hands, we need only to remove the cover and begin to read
aloud. The words will light the wicks on fire
and if we allow the holy words to rest on our lips, it will happen on its own.
Not every wind
needs to visit our ears, our eyes, our nose and our mouth … all that remains
for us to do is to pay some attention …
Gates
Of Emunah
