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Teachings from “Likutei Etzot” |
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Secret of Brit Book -
Chapter 7: Rebbe Nachman's Teachings
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Written by Michael
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Tuesday, 09 May 2006 |
Rabbi Nachman’s Teachings
Rabbi Nachman of Breslev formulated the “Tikun Clalli,” a grouping of special Tehillim and prayers designed to rectify transgressions to the Brit. Throughout his writings, he stresses the importance of Shmirat HaBrit. This chapter presents are small sample of his teachings, as recorded by his foremost student, Rabbi Natan.
1. Teachings from the Book, “Likutei Etzot”
If you guard the sacred Brit in purity you will be worthy of true prayer.
The sexual desire is the source of all impurity. Confronting the sexual desire is the main test a person has to face in the world.
Sexual desire is subject to the eyes. The mitzvah of tzitzit is protection. When you wrap yourself in tzitzit, concentrate on the desire to live a life governed by the purity of the Brit and the counsel of the tzaddikim.
Have faith in the tzaddikim and don’t get involved in their disputes.
The guidance of the tzaddikim and their followers is the foundation of the Brit.
The struggle to make a living comes from sexual impurity.
A person who guards the Brit will learn to find wisdom in all things.
Having relations with one’s wife in purity is also guarding the Brit. The highest level of marital relations can be achieved only on Sabbath night. A man must conduct himself in perfect holiness. Then the secrets of the secrets will be revealed. Great yichudim (unifications) are achieved in the upper worlds through this.
A beneficial tikun for transgressions to the Brit is to help one’s friends overcome their spiritual difficulties.
Pride can bring a person to sexual immorality.
By guarding the Brit a person will find the light to lead him back to G-d.
The gentile nations are characterized by sexual impurity. G-d has separated Israel from the other nations through the Brit. More than anything, a Jew must guard himself against sexual desire. This is the foundation of the holiness of the Jewish People. Man has the power to uproot this impulse from himself completely.
A key to subduing sexual desires is to sanctify one’s speech with Torah and prayer. One should strive to master the Holy Tongue, but even when speaking one’s own language, one should always speak in a holy fashion.
Only through actually hearing the words of the tzaddik who has mastered his sexual desire can a person free himself from his passions. You must go to him yourself.
The main force of the evil inclination is directed to the area of sexual desire, as is written, “Sin couches at the door.”
Because of the desecration of the holy Brit, a sword is let loose in the world, “the sword that executes the vengeance of the Brit,” (Vayikra, 26:25.)
Crying out loud is a remedy for sexual impurity. This is why we read the Passover Haggadah out loud.
Guarding the Brit protects against the desires for materialism.
The Brit is the source of true enlightenment, called hadrat panim, the shining glory of the face.
The more you stand up to sexual temptation the greater your revelations in Torah and devotion to G-d, and your ability to draw the world closer to G-d.
Immorality leaves a blemish on the mind. This blemish blocks the true understanding of Torah.
A person who has not reached the level of sexual purity should not drink wine, since it stirs up the blood, leading a person to sin.
The Brit is the source of true freedom.
Before a person can receive a new revelation of Torah, he is tested in the crucible of sexual passion.
Once a man breaks his sexual desire, he can break all desires. This is why the tikun for sexual impurity is called the Tikun Clalli, the all-encompassing tikun.The level of spiritual perception that a person can attain depends on the degree of purity he has obtained. It is a fundamental principle that one can only comprehend the words of the tzaddik if he first purifies himself.
A person who abuses the Brit will not be able to pray with the fervor of total devotion.
One who worries about his physical attractiveness to women will fall into the futility of vanity, and will become a slave to the charm he feels he must project.
Depression and anxiety are the main causes of sexual immorality. The foundation of the Brit lies in joy.
Today publicity and fame go to false figures whose arrogance brings sexual immorality to the world and the wanton waste of semen. The remedy is to honor the tzaddikim.
The more strongly you are assailed by sexual temptations, the greater tikun you bring when you fight and break them. Holiness is released from the power of the husks. Sexual fantasies are sent to a person so that he will transform them and elevate them to holiness.
One who breaks his sexual desires will have holy dreams.
When a person is beset with sexual desire, he must remind himself of the superiority of the spiritual world.
The spirit of Mashiach cannot tolerate sexual desire.
One who obtains sexual purity is perfectly free. His whole being becomes infused with the spirit of Sabbath. He can go into the world and rescue others caught in the net of passion, leading them to a fear and love of G-d.
A person who experiences a nocturnal emission should recite the following ten Tehillim on the same day: 16, 32, 41, 42, 59, 77, 90, 105, 137, 150. One who recites these Tehillim on the same day need have no further fears about the harm such an emission can cause. Any damage will certainly be repaired through this. It is a very great tikun.
(Translations of “Likutei Etzot” based on the translations of Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan, from the book, “Advice.”)
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 27 July 2006 )
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