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Tikun HaKlali
"Vidui" - Prayer
[After reciting the Tehillim of the Tikun HaKlali, it is very beneficial to say this prayer, composed by Rabbi Nachman's foremost student, Rabbi Natan:]
"I will sing to the L-rd as long as I live, I will: I will sing praise to my G-d while I live. Let the outpouring of my words be sweet; I will rejoice in the L-rd" (Tehillim, 104:33).
"Praise the L-rd with a lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings" (Tehillim, 33:2).
"I will sing a new song to Thee O G-d; upon a harp of ten strings I will sing praises to Thee" (Tehillim, 144:9).
"For Thou, L-rd, hast made me glad through Thy work; I will triumph in the works of Thy hands (Tehillim, 92:4)
Master of the World, L-rd over everything, Creator of all the souls, Master of all things, Who chooses songs and music, help me and favor me with Your abundant compassion and with Your infinite loving kindness, that I merit to stir, to reveal, and to declare all of the ten types of melodies of which the Book of Tehillim (Psalms) is composed, which are: Ashrei, Bracha, Maskil, Shir, Nitzuach, Neegun, Tefillah, Hoda'ah, , Mizmor, Halleluyah.
In the merit of these songs and their verses, and in the merit of their words and their letters, vowels, and marks of pronunciation, and in the merit of the Divine Names spelled out by them, from the letters at the beginning of the words and the letters at the end of their words, and in the merit of King David, peace be upon him, along with the other ten Tzaddikim (righteous saints) who contributed to the Book of Tehillim (and in the merit of the Tzaddik, the foundation of the world, "the flowing stream, source of wisdom," our Torah master, Rebbe Nachman, the son of Faige, may his merit protect us, who revealed and ordained that we recite these ten chapters of Tehillim which have the special ability to rectify damages to the holy Covenant (Tikun HaBrit), and in the merit of all of the Tzaddikim and the true saintly Hasidim, grant me Your forgiveness that I may merit through Your abundant compassion to release all of the drops of seminal seed that were emitted from me in vain, whether unintentionally or willfully, whether under coercion (of the evil inclination) or through me own desire (if an emission of seed occurred that night, he should add: especially the drops that issued from me this night, via a wet dream, which came about because of my many sins), may I merit, through Your abundant graciousness and mercy, and through Your infinite power, to release all of the drops from the kelipot (husks of impurity) and from the Sitra Achra (realm of evil) from every place where they fell and were scattered and cast away. Let not the outcast be cast away from You. Overcome, shatter, destroy, uproot, annihilate, and cancel out of existence, all of the kelipot, and all of the evil spirits, and demons, and evil agents that were created and brought into existence and formed from the life force contained in the drops that issued from me in vain; and take away their vitality, and extract from them and plunder their holy life force and all of the holy sparks that they swallowed.
Master of the world, living and everlasting G-d, the life of all the living, full of compassion, Who always judges the world in merit, Who desires to perform kindness and is magnanimous in benevolence, my Father, my Father, my savior and redeemer, I know, Hashem, I know, that I am myself am the guilty one, the sinner, even regarding the accidental emissions, for I did not guard my thoughts at all, and I fantasized during the day until I came to pollute myself at night. In doing so, I damaged what I damaged, and caused what I caused, and destroyed what I destroyed. Oy, Oy, Oy, mercy on my soul, mercy on my soul, for I have brought evil upon myself. What can I say? What can I speak? How can I justify my deeds? What can I say? What can I speak? How can I justify my deeds? G-d discovered my sin. Behold, I stand terribly guilty before You, filled with embarrassment and shame, covered with filth and dirt, filled with abominable evils. There are no words in the world that would enable me express my pitiful condition, for it is bitter and evil, and it has penetrated my soul. My Father in heaven, my life is very bitter, very bitter indeed, to the point where I don't know how I can continue to exist due to the bitterness of my soul, which extends to the farthest reaches of heaven. I despise my life - why should I suffer such an existence, a life more bitter than death? I have drunk the cup of poison, O my soul.
Master of the world, You alone know the multitude and the magnitude of the terrible and vast blemishes that I caused throughout all of the worlds through this wrongdoing. Now, how can I correct all this, and how will a servant like me rectify all that I have destroyed? Nonetheless, I know, and I believe with perfect faith, that there is no reason in the world for despair, and that I still have hope, and that I have not yet lost my hope in the L-rd, for the L-rd's loving kindness has no limit, and His compassion is without end. Therefore, I have come before You, L-rd, my G-d and the G-d of my Forefathers, the G-d of Avraham, the G-d of Yitzhak, the G-d of Yaakov, G-d of all of the true Tzaddikim and Hasidim, G-d of all Israel, G-d of the early Sages and G-d of the later Sages, to beg that You have compassion on me and cause me to walk in Your statutes and to observe Your laws. Bend my inclination to be subservient to You. Rebuke and cast away the evil inclination from me, from now and for evermore. From this time forth, guard over me and rescue me from all evil fantasies and evil thoughts, and from seeing forbidden things, and from blemishing my speech. And rescue me from this time forth from all types of blemishes to the Brit, whether through thought, or speech, or deed. Be constantly with me, guard over me and rescue me from all kinds of spilling semen in vain, whether by day or by night, from this time forth and forever more.
Our Father, King, living and everlasting G-d, powerful redeemer, I spread out my hands before You. Rescue me. Rescue me. Save me. Save me. Rescue those who are handed over for death. Save a persecuted and guilty one such as me. Save me from going down to the depths. Give me hope in that I may not be lost, Heaven forbid, "For what is the worth of my life if I descend to destruction. Will the dust praise Thee and declare Thy truth?" My eyes are raised to the heavens. L-rd, there are those who oppress me. Stand by me in steadfastness. "Be a surety for Thy servant for good; let not the arrogant oppress me." For I have no strength at all, only through the words of my mouth. Only on Your endless kindness I depend, on Your great compassion, on Your true mercy, on your unlimited pardon, and on the strength and merit of the Tzaddikim who safeguarded the Brit in the upmost wholeness, of which there is no greater perfection, on them I place my support, in their merit, and on their strength, I will trust and hope, for You will not abandon my soul to the grave, you will not allow Your saintly ones to face destruction.
Please, Hashem, save me! Please, Hashem, redeem me! See my wretched state, drowning in the depths of the sea. "Deep calls to deep at the noise of Your channels; all of Thy waves and billows have swept over me." My enemies have trapped me, they have encaged me like a bird, without justification. They have cast my life into a pit. They have cast lots over me. Waters have washed over my head. I said to myself, I am cut off. I call out Your Name, O L-rd, from the deepest fathoms of the pit. From the deepest fathoms of the pit I call out Your Name.
Master of the world! Master of the world! Full of compassion, full of gratuitous kindness, graciousness, and mercy. Full of goodness and goodwill. We accepted it upon ourselves to always call upon You, and here I am, doing what I promised. Here I am, calling out to You from my lowly place, from a place of shame. I call out to You from the depths, Hashem, from the deepest abyss. "Out of my distress I called upon the L-rd; the L-rd answered me with liberation." Because of our many sins we have descended to the place that we have fallen, and especially now at the time of the Footsteps of Mashiach, we have fallen to the lowest of lowly places, where the people of Israel never fell to before, as is written, "She fell beyond all measure; there is no one to comfort her" (Eicha, 1:9).
Nonetheless, we have not fallen into despair, Heaven forbid, not to the slightest extent, for You have already promised us to deliver us from the depths of the sea, as is written, "G-d said I will bring them back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea." And it is also written, "And yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, and I will not abhor them, to destroy them utterly, and to break My Covenant with them, for I am the L-rd their G-d" (Vayikra,26:44).
Master of the world, open Your mouth to a mute person like me, and send me eloquent words from Your holy habitation in heaven, in a way that I can conquer You, to win Your pardon and favor, that you accept, in Your great mercy and abundant loving kindness, these ten chapters of Psalms that I recited before You, as if King David himself had said them, peace be unto him.
And even though I do not know how to say them in the proper spirit with all of their many and awesome intentions (kavanot) at all, may it be Thy will, L-rd, my G-d and the G-d of my Fathers, that the simple recital of them in my mouth will be important before You, as if I achieved and intended all of the secrets and kavanot contained in them. May my words find favor before You, Master of All Creation.
Behold, I cast my burden upon You, and I bind myself to all of the true Tzaddikim of our generation and to all the true Tzaddikim who reside in the dust, to the holy ones in the earth (and especially to the Tzaddik, foundation of the world, a stream flowing from the source of wisdom, "Nachal Novaah Makor Chachmah," our teacher, Rebbe Nachman, the son of Faige, may his merit shield over us, Amen).
Relying on their knowledge and their understanding of the way they should be said (kavanot), I have recited these ten Psalms. In their merit and their power, I shall merit to awaken and to activate all of the ten different melodies of which the Book of Tehillim (Book of Psalms) is composed, which are: Shir Pashut, Kaful, Mishulash, Mirubah, which are contained in Your special great and Holy Name. In the merit and power of the following Divine Names: "El" and "Elohim" in their full written form (like this:) Alef, Lamed, Alef, Lamed, Hai, Yud, Mem, which have a numerical value (Gematria) of 485, the same numerical value as the word "Tehillim," (Psalms). Through the power of these two words, may I merit to extract all of the drops of wasted seed from the belly of the kelipah that swallowed them up, the numerical value of whose name with its letters also adds up to 485, this kelipah being the unholy counterforce of the holy Book of Tehillim. Through the power of these ten Psalms, may You awaken these two Holy Names, "El Elohim," and eradicate, shatter, vanquish, uproot, annihilate, and nullify out of existence this kelipah that swallowed up these drops of wasted seed, and compel it to vomit out all of the holy drops of seed from its belly and innards, and blot out its name and memory from the world, and thus actualize this verse, ""חיל בלע ויקיאנו םבטנו יורישנו אל "He has swallowed down riches, and he shall vomit them up again; G-d shall cast them out of his belly (Iyov, 20:15). Slaughter all of the kelipot that were created through these holy drops of seed, and release and seize away from them the holy life force, and all of the sparks of holiness that they engulfed on account of this sin. Release all of these drops and sparks of holiness, and restore and gather them together in a renewed holiness. May we merit to accept upon ourselves constantly the yoke of the Kingship of Heaven with love, and to be worthy to fill our lives with Torah and prayer and good deeds, in truth and with a perfect heart, in a manner that will enable us to create holy vessels and bodies for all of the naked disembodied souls that came into existence due to our many sins and due to the damage caused by the my spilling seed in vain.
Master of the world, mighty in strength, abundance in power, do what You must in Your unlimited compassion so that we will merit to rectify the blemish to the Brit (Covenant), which is a blemish to the drops of seed which originate in the brain, in whatever we damaged unintentionally, or voluntarily, or against our will, or willfully - over everything pardon and forgive me, G-d of forgiveness, gracious and abundant in pardoning. May we merit to completely rectify in our lifetime all of the blemishes that we caused, in the merit of the holy Tzaddikim who dwell in the earth,
(When this vidui is said at the gravesite of Rebbe Nachman, say: and in the merit of the Tzaddik that rests here, the Tzaddik, foundation of the world, a stream flowing from the source of wisdom, "Nachal Novaah Makor Chachmah." To get here, I travelled a long a difficult journey in order to prostrate on the grave of this true and holy Tzaddik, who promised during his holy life to always stand in our behalf whenever we come to his holy grave and give some coins to charity and recite these ten Psalms. Behold, I have done this - now do Your part.)
Pardon me and forgive me, and grant me atonement over all of the sins, transgressions, and willful wrongdoings that I committed before You with my 248 limbs and 365 sinews, whether they be wrongdoings in thought, speech, actions, in the five senses, or the other faculties of the body, especially what I transgressed against You by damaging the Brit, which encompasses all of the Torah. I have committed evil in Your eyes from the days of my youth until today. For everything, pardon, forgive, grant atonement, Master of compassion, and repair all of the damage which I have done to the Divine Names of which Your great Name is composed. "Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin...Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness, that the bones which Thou has broken may rejoice. Hide Thy face from my sins, and blot out all of my iniquities" (Tehillim, 51). Blot out my wrongdoings for Your sake, as it says, "I, it is I who blots out Your wrongdoings for My sake. I shall not remember your sins" (Yishayahu, 43:25).
Shower Your mercy upon me and come to my aid at all times, in the merit and strength of the true Tzaddikim. Always guard over me and deliver me. Grant me the strength to overcome my evil inclination and to break and shatter my lust, and I will not repeat the damage that I did in the past, and I will no longer perform the same evil in Your eyes, nor return to my foolish ways. If I acted iniquitously, I will not continue, for You have already promised us, in Your true compassion, that even over this sin, prayer and fervent supplication can rescue a person from the evil inclination and its band of agents. (By the holy graveside of Rebbe Nachman, a person should say this: Especially at this holy place, help me in the merit of the righteous Jews that are buried here.) Have mercy on me, and bestow upon me strength and valor from the source of Your strength, that I be worthy to always overcome and conquer my evil inclination, to the extent that I merit, in Your compassion, to expel and remove it from within me, and obliterate it from my life completely, from now and for evermore. For my life has been spent in sorrow, and my years in sighing. My strength has waned because of my sin, my bones have withered, so much so that I no longer have the strength to suffer.
Have mercy on me, My Father, He who hears prayer, have pity on me, He who hears screams, who hears sighs and groans. Have pity, have pity! Deliver me! Deliver me! Save! Save! Don't let my blood fall to the ground before You. Don't cast my soul to destruction. Save me, G-d, from death, O G-d of my salvation. Let my tongue sing of Your righteousness. Have pity on me in the abundance of Your mercy, in the abundance of Your loving kindness. May Your graciousness be stirred to pity such a lowly, persecuted, and filth-ridden soul as I, one so lacking in wisdom and counsel, for our eyes are turned to You alone. We gaze to You alone in hope, to the heavens. Please, help! Please, save! Have pity on me and deliver me, that I may return to You in perfect repentance, in truth and with a perfect heart. May I merit to always be the way You, in Your goodness, want me to be, from this time for evermore. In accordance with Your kindness, grant me life, and I will guard the testimony of Your mouth. "Create in me a pure heart, O G-d, and renew a steadfast spirit within me" (Tehillim, 51:12).
Therefore, may it be Thy will before You, L-rd our G-d and G-d of our Fathers, L-rd of joy and happiness, before Who there is absolutely no depression at all, as is written, "Praise and beauty are before Him, strength and joy are in His place" (Tehillim, 96:6). Help me, in the sake of Your unlimited compassion, that I merit being happy all the time. Thou who grants joy to the miserable, infuse my tired, pathetic, and painfully wretched spirit with happiness, for my spirit thirsts and hungers for You terribly. Take away my sighing and groaning, and grant Your servant joy, for I lift my soul to You, Hashem. "Thou shall make known to me the path of life; in Thy presence is wholeness and joy; at Thy right hand are pleasures for evermore" (Tehillim, 16:11). "Restore to me the joy of salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit" (Tehillim, 51:14). Fill me up with Your goodness, gladden my soul with your salvation, purify my heart to serve You in truth. "Wake up, my glory, awake, the harp and the lyre; I will awake the dawn (Tehillim, 57:9).
May we be worthy of all the ten kind of holy songs, which can nullify and rectify blemishes to the Brit, as it says:
Bracha:
"I bless the L-rd who gives me counsel; my reins also admonish me in the night seasons; I have set the L-rd always before me; surely He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved" (Tehillim, 16:7).
Ashrei:
"Of David, a song to give wisdom: Happy is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered" (Tehillim, 32:1).
Maskil:
"Houses and riches are the inheritance of fathers; but a prudent wife is from the L-rd" (Mishle, 19:14).
Shir:
"The L-rd will command His steadfast love in the day time, and in the night His song shall be with me, a prayer to the G-d of my life" (Tehillim, 42:9).
Nitzuach:
"To the Chief Musician, do not destroy, an aphorism of David; when Shaul sent and they watched the house to kill him" (Tehillim, 59:1).
Nigun:
"I call to remembrance my song in the night; I meditate with my heart, and my spirit makes diligent search" (Tehillim, 77:7).
Tefillah:
"Can that which is unsavory be eaten without salt? Or is there any taste in the white of an egg?" (Iyov, 6:6).
Hodu:
"Lest you give your vigor to others, and your years to the cruel one" (Proverbs, 5:9).
Mizmor:
"Where is G-d, my Maker, who gives songs in the night?" (Iyov, 35:10).
Halleluyah:
"Grace is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the L-rd, she shall be praised." (Mishle, 31:30).
And it is written: "Halleluyah! Praise G-d in His sanctuary; praise Him in the firmament of His power. Praise him for His might acts; praise Him according to His exceeding greatness. Praise Him with the sound of the shofar; praise Him with the harp and the lyre. Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; praise him with the stringed instruments and the flute. Praise Him upon sounding cymbals; praise Him upon loud crashing cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the L-rd. Halleluyah!" (Tehillim, 150).
Master of the world! Sound the great shofar of our salvation, and raise up the banner to gather our exiled ones, and draw near our scattered ones from amongst the nations, and our distant ones gather from the far reaches of the earth, and gather our outcasts together to our Land from the four corners of the earth; and establish for us the verse, as is written, "And the L-rd thy G-d will return thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all of the nations, amongst whom the L-rd Your G-d has scattered thee. If thy outcasts be at the upmost parts of heaven, from there will the L-rd thy G-d gather thee, and from there will he fetch thee; and the L-rd thy G-d will bring thee into the Land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shall possess it; and He will do thee good, and multiply thee more than thy fathers" (Devarim, 30:3-5). And it is said, "The L-rd G-d who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, I shall further gather even others to those whom I have already gathered" (Yishayahu, 56:8). And it is said, "The L-rd builds Jerusalem, He gathers in the outcasts of Israel" (Tehillim, 147:2).
Hurry to bring about our Redemption, and bring us our righteous Mashiach, and rebuild our holy and splendid Temple, and bring us to Your city, Zion, in joy and to Jerusalem, place of Your holy Sanctuary in eternal happiness, as it is written, "And the ransomed of the L-rd shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads. They shall obtain find merriment and gladness, and sadness and sighing shall cease" (Yishayahu, 35:10). And it is written, "For you shall go out in joy, and be led forth in peace. The mountains and the hills shall break forth before you in singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands" (Yishayahu, 5:12). As it is said, "For the L-rd shall comfort Zion, He will comfort all of her ruins; he will make her deserts like Eden and her wildernesses like a garden of the L-rd. Merriment and gladness shall be found in her, thanksgiving and the voice of song." (Yishayahu, 51:3). "Be happy in the L-rd and may Tzaddikim rejoice, and may all the upright in heart take up song" (Tehillim, 32:11). "Light is sown for the Tzaddik and joy for the upright in heart. Rejoice in the L-rd, O you righteous, and give thanks to His holy Name" (Tehillim, 97:11). Amen, netzach, selah, forever.
The following prayer by Rabbi Natan
is short in length, but great in quality
Master of the world, exalted above all the exalted, and cause of all causes, You are supreme, exalted above everything. There is nothing more exalted than You. There is no thought that can conceptualize You in any manner.
Silence before You is Your praise, for You transcend all blessing and praise. It is You whom I seek, You whom I petition, that You break open a pathway leading from You, a path that transverses all the worlds until it descends, stage after stage, to my level, to the place where I am standing, as it is revealed to You, who knows all hidden mysteries. Through this path, shine Your light upon me to bring me back in perfect repentance before You, in truth, in accord with Your true will, in accord with the will of Your chosen creations, that I not contemplate in my thoughts any foreign idea, nor any thought or confusion that is against Thy will.
Rather, let me cleave to pure, clean, and holy thoughts in Your true service, under Your Providence, and in following after Your Torah. Draw my heart to Your commandments, and give me a pure heart to serve You in truth. From the depths of the sea draw me forth to a great light, swiftly and readily. The salvation of the L-rd is as fast as the blink of the eye to illumine me with the light of life, all the days that I live on the face of the earth.
May I merit to renew the days of my youth, the days that passed in darkness, to bring them back to holiness; and may my departure from the world be like my coming into it - without sin. And may I merit to gaze on the pleasantness of Hashem and to visit in His holy chamber, where everything proclaims, "Kavod - Honor." Amen, nezach, selah, forever.
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Kabbalists' Writings 
