What shall I say to you, my brother? You know a little of what is
in my heart — more than this it is impossible to explain in writing.
If you desire the point of truth — if you seek
it as silver and search for it as hidden treasures — seek the truth
in the pallatin (palace) of truth,
built by men of truth, by the Master of truth — then you will
understand the fear of Hashem and find the knowledge of
G-d [cf. Mishlei 2:4–5].
And surely you know and understand to what I am hinting — for the
matter of the palace of truth is explained a little at the end of
the Sipuray Maasiyos (the stories). But in truth you know
nothing.
Awaken, my brother, from the sleep
of your foolishness — and remember your Creator
in the days of your youth
[Koheles 12:1]. And remember —
do not forget — all that has passed over you in these few days
in which you have been pursuing and pursuing after the
desire of vanity, idols of silver —
and neither this nor that has come to your hand.
You have cast off the yoke of Torah and loaded upon yourself
the yoke of worldly conduct more than is fitting. Remember now
— after whom are you pursuing? After a dead
dog — after a single flea
[cf. Shmuël I 24:15].
Please, my brother — do not hold it against me that I write to
you a little in a manner of reproach — for in truth all of this
comes from the greatness of my love for you, as you know. And
more than this you will understand from the words of the letter
I wrote to your father — may his light shine — for those words
were spoken to you as well. For the sake of Hashem, for the sake
of Hashem:
Four Obligations — Fixed Laws, Not to Be Transgressed
-
Fix for yourself times for Torah — and study each day a
shiur (set portion) in
Shulchan Aruch with its major commentaries, or
at the very least with the minor ones.
-
Study each day a shiur in the
books of our Master, of blessed memory.
-
Recite Psalms each day — a fixed law, not to be transgressed.
-
Be in Uman at least once
in every single year — for this surpasses them all.
And if it is possible for you to route your journey via here
— how good.
And beyond this it is impossible to elaborate — and please respond
to me immediately regarding my words, and explain everything at
length, clearly and fully, so as to give comfort.
The words of one who loves him in truth for eternity.
Nussun of Breslov.
Postscript — The Printing Press Permit
Also know that, praise be to G-d,
a horn of salvation has sprouted in the matter
of the printing house — for through the kindnesses of
Hashem and His wonders, a letter has already arrived from
Vilna that they will soon give me a permit for
the good, and open the press for me. And we
will merit to spread its waters outward — so that His Name, may
He be blessed, should be magnified and sanctified in the world.
Amen — so may it be His will.
The words of your friend, who awaits salvation at every time.
Nussun of Breslov.
Overview: This short but piercing letter — written
at dawn on Erev Shabbos of Parshas Vayigash — is addressed to a
young man who is drifting: chasing money and worldly success,
casting off Torah's yoke, and achieving neither. Reb Nussun
opens with the mystery of the palace of truth, pivots to a sharp
Biblical rebuke drawn from David's words to Shaul, softens
immediately with an explanation that all this comes from love —
and then delivers four precise, actionable obligations. The
postscript repeats the Vilna press permit news from Letter 19,
now apparently confirmed.
Key Themes
The Palace of Truth
The pallatin shel emes — palace of truth — is drawn
from the final story of Sipuray Maasiyos (Story 13,
The Seven Beggars). Reb Nussun uses it here as a living
teaching: truth is not abstract — it has an address. It is
built by men of truth, through the Master of truth. Go there
and you will find G-d.
A Dead Dog, A Single Flea
The phrase — from Shmuël I 24:15, David's words to Shaul when
Shaul pursues him — is devastating in its precision. Reb Nussun
does not say "you are chasing vanity." He says: you are chasing
a dead dog, a single flea. The contrast with the living palace
of truth, of eternity, of Rebbe Nachman's teachings, could not
be sharper.
This Surpasses Them All
In listing the four obligations, Reb Nussun singles out Uman
with a specific elevation: "for this surpasses them all."
Torah study, Psalms, the books of Rebbe Nachman — all essential.
But Uman, the annual pilgrimage to the Tzaddik's resting place,
is in a category of its own.
Written at Dawn
The dateline reads or l'yom shishi — "at the light of
Friday" — meaning the pre-dawn hours of Erev Shabbos. Reb Nussun
is writing before sunrise on the day the world prepares for
the Shabbos Queen. The urgency of the hour — both literal and
spiritual — permeates every line.
Note on the Press Permit
The press permit news in the postscript echoes the same announcement
in Letter 19 (written in 5585). The fact that it is repeated here
in 5586 — with similar wording but described as a letter already
arrived from Vilna — suggests this is either a later confirmation
of the same permit, or a renewed application. The phrase
"spread its waters outward" — l'hafitz ma'aynosav
chutzah — is drawn directly from the teaching of the Baal
Shem Tov about spreading the living waters of Chassidus to the
outermost reaches.