VITALITY - Metzorah - Shabbos Hagadol 5779

VITALITY - Gates Of Emunah - Metzorah - Shabbos Hagadol 5779

People work all day, do and buy all sorts of

things just to have a bit of vitality. They go

on holiday, they sacrifice everything, just

for a bit of vitality. They worry all day…

Vitality is something we all need. What people

won’t do for a bit of vitality. They work

all day, buy all sorts of things, just to have a

bit of vitality. They go on holiday, they sacrifice

everything, just for a bit of vitality.

They spend all day worrying, without any

vitality, so that someday they’ll have some

vitality!

Rebbe Nachman tells us that the place we

get real vitality from is Tefillah - prayer.

Vitality is serving Hashem. What else is

there to do in this world? What will be left

behind from anything else? The greatest

vitality is to succeed in Torah and Tefillah

and doing teshuvah. Sins are what rob us of

our vitality. When a person hasn’t yet done

teshuvah, he loses his place, and he has no

vitality.

The true source of vitality is the Torah –

daas, true knowledge, Emunah. But where

do we get this from?

When a person can’t focus himself and do

things with the right measure, he gets confused.

He spreads himself out in all direc-

tions, wanting things that he can’t attain

right now, and that leaves him worn out

and stressed. If he would focus himself, he

would have set shiurim and do some hisbodedus

each day, and he’d feel good. He’d

have vitality. Living simply brings us vitality.

It’s very hard to change a person. You can

lecture him all day long, but it won’t change

him. “Stop sinning, stop stealing, start to

pray, start to learn.” He won’t know why he

should change, he doesn’t feel like he can

change, and he may not even be aware that

he’s doing anything wrong. But give him a

taste of vitality… and then everything

changes. “Sins – I don’t want them anymore.

Give me some more of that vitality!”

Vitality is addictive.

What’s the greatest pleasure in the world?

It’s breaking our servitude to pursuing

pleasures. This is the truth, and the truth

enlivens us. The Rebbe wants to connect us

to the truth. When we’re connected to the

truth, we know what Emunah is, we know

the value of our every thought and action.

“Hashem gets such pleasure every time I

think of Him. How much more so when I

turn to Him with my problems and speak to

Him.” When we know the truth, our learning

becomes a completely different experience.

Every mishna, every page of Gemarah

– we see how with each one, we’ve won

the Lotto. We’re as rich as can be. Why?

Because we kept Shabbos, enjoyed our chulent

and kugel, and sang songs praising Hashem.

Pharaoh enslaves us, robbing us of our vitality.

He thrives on falsehood, like lust. He

tells us that there’s lots to be worried

about, so we spend our days slaving under

the hot sun when we could be free. Even if

we’re financially settled, we can worry

about our children, or our grandchildren.

How will they get by?

It used to be the minhag to just worry

about today, but nowadays the minhag has

become to worry about at least three genera

tions time! Am I progressing in serving

Hashem, or am I regressing? I didn’t feel so

good this morning, I had a funny feeling –

perhaps I’ve come down with something

terrible?! What should I do? When Pharaoh

succeeds, we get caught up in slavery to

him instead of being subservient to Hashem.

The Rebbe wants us to have vitality now, to

be free. Pesach is just as good a time to

come back to Hashem as Rosh Hashanah

and Yom Kippur are. Serving Pharaoh is so

bitter, but nothing is so sweet as serving

Hashem. Happy Pesach!

By Rabbi Nissan Dovid Kivak shlit”a.

This Publication is a project of the Gates of Emunah Institute for the dissemination of the teachings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov in English.

Published by: Gates of Emunah
Authorized to publish this article in Jornal Mitsvá
Translation by: Gilson Sasson

Website: http://www.gatesofemunah.org