אונאה ג

Likutay Halachos, Choshen Mishpat. Based on Likutay Moharan I:51 ("Amar Rabbi Akiva"). Translated from the Hebrew.

But one who blemishes the b'ris [covenant] — and especially the sin of Er and Onan, who would waste their seed — through this they blemished the eyes. The eyes specifically. For shichvas zera [seminal emission] is the light of the eyes and the strength of the body, as is brought in the Shulchan Aruch. And one who emits seed in vain, chas v'shalom, separates the light of the eyes from the totality of the Creation. And on the contrary — the k'lipos and the Sitra Achara receive the drops, which are the light of the eyes. And they are the damagers of the world, and they damage the world. For these k'lipos come afterward and introduce heresies and confusions and crookedness into the heart. And they want to conceal and hide and distance the hashgachah [providence] from the world — just as he distanced the drop from a woman who fears Hashem, which is the aspect of the distancing of the light of the hashgachah from the totality of the Creation.

And therefore it is considered as if he returned the world to tohu vavohu [void and emptiness] and as if he brought a mabul [flood] upon the world, as Chazal said. And therefore it is very hard for him to return to Hashem Yisbarach — because he has become very distant from the emes [truth]. For regarding this sin it is said (Y'shayahu 57:4): "Vi'atem yildai fesha zera shaker hanechamim ba'ailim," etc. ["And you are children of transgression, a seed of falsehood, who inflame yourselves among the idols"].

And his main teshuvah [repentance] is: that which he damaged, he shall repair. For his main teshuvah is the emes — that he needs to strive to draw himself close to true tzaddikim, in order to receive from them true counsel — which is the aspect of "zera emes" ["a seed of truth"]. And he shall incline his da'as [mind] always to look only at the emes. And through the emes he will merit to know that also there — in the intensity of the concealment and hiddenness and distance from which His hashgachah, Yisbarach, has been distanced from him — also there His hashgachah, Yisbarach, is hidden. For He, Yisbarach, gives life to all. Only he does not merit to see, because of the greatness of the concealment caused by his sins.

And the principle is that the main thing is the emes. For certainly, if he looks at the emes in its truth, he will certainly strive toward Hashem Yisbarach until he returns in truth. For after all, what will be at his end? For ultimately he will be forced to be rectified through harsh and bitter punishments for thousands of years, Rachamana litzlan [may the Merciful One save us]. Is it not better for him to return immediately?

For in truth there is no despair in the world at all, as is explained among us many times. For all the fallings and despairs in the world are only because of the distance from emes — that one deceives himself to say that he is no longer able to return. As it is written: "Lo ya'amin shuv mini choshech" ["He does not believe he will return from the darkness"] (Iyov 15:22) — that he does not believe it is still possible for him to return from the darkness. And all of this is because of sheker [falsehood]. For he seeks for himself an excuse to exempt himself from the service of Hashem Yisbarach. As Rashi explains on the verse "vay'hi ha'am kismis'onnim" ["and the people were as if murmuring"] (Bamidbar 11:1) — they were seeking an excuse how to depart from the Omnipresent.

For every person, by his nature, has evil that prevents him from the service of Hashem Yisbarach. And he needs to endure pain and exertions to shatter this evil. And therefore he seeks at every opportunity to separate himself from the service of Hashem Yisbarach — because of the evil in his nature. But nevertheless — woe to him from his yetzer [inclination], woe to him from his Creator. For the dread of judgment is upon him — "what will he do on the day of reckoning," etc.

And therefore he has no justification to separate from Hashem Yisbarach. Only through seeing that he begins many times to draw close to Hashem Yisbarach, and he is unable to stand in any easy test — then he finds for himself an excuse to say: "What shall I do? In truth I wanted to return to Hashem Yisbarach, but what shall I do, for my yetzer overpowers me every time? And what benefit and what hope do I have, since I have already been captured in a great exile, until it is impossible to return anymore?" — chas v'shalom. But in truth, all of this is the enticement of the yetzer hara and the incitement of the ba'al davar [the Adversary] — from the intensity of the evil in his nature that wants to exempt himself and separate from Hashem Yisbarach — through this rejection and error. And in truth he is deceiving himself. For ultimately, what will be at his end? For "there is no darkness and no shadow of death where the workers of iniquity can hide" (Iyov 34:22). And he will certainly be forced to give an accounting before the King of kings of kings, HaKadosh Baruch Hu. And not a single thing will be overlooked for him. And if a person has even a little wisdom, it is fitting for him not to allow himself to be deceived. For in truth there is no despair in the world at all. And however it may be, he needs to strive and search and seek rescue and refuge from the depths of the lowest depths of Sheol and from beneath them. And if he sees that even though he has been striving for days and years toward Hashem Yisbarach and he has still not returned from his error — nevertheless, he should be a very great akshan [stubborn person], and hold onto His service, Yisbarach, with stubbornness. As Rabbainu, zichrono livrachah, wrote — that one needs to be a very great akshan in the service of Hashem Yisbarach. And he should lift his eyes heavenward always — that he should merit to return to Him, Yisbarach, or to be saved from now on from what he needs to be saved from — each person according to his level. And it is fitting for the person of understanding to be satisfied — that even if he accomplishes nothing through all his service and toil and exertion, except that through this he will be saved even one time from some complete transgression, or improper thought, or desire, in all the days of his life — meaning, that through his service and tefillah and hisbodidus [personal prayer], etc., he will merit that at the end of his days he will have one less transgression deducted from the accounting of his sins than he would have had if he had not striven and prayed to be saved from them — even this alone would be worthwhile for him. For ultimately, nothing remains for a person from all his toil and exertion that he labored and toiled in this world, except what he merited at times to be saved from evil and transgressions, and to snatch at times some mitzvos. And it is impossible to elaborate on this matter, for thousands and tens of thousands of pages would not suffice to explain the extent to which a person needs to constantly strengthen himself in longing for Hashem Yisbarach, and never let go of the ratzon [desire/will]. For every single person has other obstacles and confusions every single day, without measure. And the principle is that the main thing is the emes. For emes is "one." And whoever does not want to deceive himself and looks at the emes — that he should not lose his eternal world — will certainly return to Hashem from every place that he is. For "emes Hashem li'olam" ["the truth of Hashem is eternal"] (T'hilim 117:2). Understand our words well, and they will be sweet to you forever and for all eternity. And this is: "Vayishlach es hayonah li'ais erev vihinai alai zayis taraf bifihah" ["And he sent the dove toward evening, and behold, an olive leaf was plucked in its mouth"] (B'raishis 8:11). And it is stated that this is the aspect of Chanukah — when we light candles of olive oil. Then "vayaida Noach ki kalu hamayim," etc. ["and Noach knew that the waters had subsided"]. For the Chanukah candle — which is the aspect of the light of the hashgachah [providence], the aspect of emes [truth], as above — is the tikkun [rectification] for the waters of the Mabul [Flood]. Which is the aspect of the sin mentioned above. For the main sin is that one separates the light of the hashgachah through this sin — which is the blemish of the eyes, etc., as above. And therefore through the Chanukah candle — the aspect of drawing the light of the hashgachah also below ten tefachim, to know that Hashem Yisbarach is in every place, etc., as above — through this, this sin is rectified. And "after the Creation" returns and is included in "before the Creation." And the waters of the Mabul recede, and the world returns and is sustained through His hashgachah, Yisbarach. And this is "vihinai alai zayis" ["and behold, an olive leaf"] — "this is Chanukah." Then "vayaida Noach ki kalu hamayim," etc. — for the sin mentioned above was rectified, which is the aspect of the waters of the Mabul, through the Chanukah candle, as above. And this is "vihinai alai zayis taraf bifihah" ["and behold, an olive leaf plucked in its mouth"]. And Chazal expounded that it was requesting livelihood. As Chazal said: "Let my food be bitter as the olive," etc. Meaning, as above — for the main livelihood is drawn from this aspect: from the aspect of the inclusion of "after the Creation" in "one" through the hashgachah — which is the aspect of the olive leaf, the aspect of the Chanukah candle, as above. And this is the aspect of: the Chanukah candle is mosif viholaich ["increasing and continuing," i.e., we add a candle each night]. For before the Creation everything was one. And after the Creation there were two things — "the One" and the Creation. And this is the main power of free will — from which is the hold of sheker [falsehood], whose hold is from the distance from "one," from the aspect of "rabbim" ["many"]. In the aspect of "bikshu chishbonos rabbim" ["they sought many schemes"] (Koheles 7:29), as above. And our main service is to include "after the Creation" in "one." Meaning, to include the aspect of "the many" in "one" — to know that also the aspect of "the many" are drawn from "the One." Through which the sheker is nullified, as above. And this is the aspect of the eight days of Chanukah. For the miracle was with the oil of the Kohen Gadol — which contained enough only to light for one day, and a miracle occurred and it burned for eight days. Meaning, for the main revelation of the hashgachah is only in the aspect of unity — the aspect of "yom echad" ["one day"]. Which hints at Olam HaBa [the World to Come], which is called "one day." As it is written (Z'charyah 14:7,9): "Vihayah yom echad hu yivadai laHashem lo yom vilo lailah," etc. ["And it shall be one unique day known to Hashem, neither day nor night"]. For then everything will be included in "one." As it is written: "Bayom hahu yihyeh Hashem echad ush'mo echad" ["On that day Hashem shall be one and His Name one"]. For then it shall be kulo echad kulo tov ["entirely one, entirely good"]. And a miracle occurred and it burned for eight days. For this is the main aspect of the miracle — which is the revelation of the hashgachah. That one reveals that also in this world — which is the aspect of "rabbim" ["many"], the aspect of "after the Creation," which was created in the seven days of B'raishis — also there His hashgachah, Yisbarach, shines. And through this, "after the Creation" is included in "before the Creation." And this is the aspect of the eight days of Chanukah — that "yom echad" ["one day"], the aspect of Olam HaBa, shines into all the seven days of B'raishis, which are the totality of the Creation. Through which "after the Creation" is included in "one," as above. And the more one enters into the aspect of "rabbim" ["many"] — where the hold of sheker is greater, where the free will is greater — there one needs to overpower more, to shatter the free will, to believe that also there His hashgachah, Yisbarach, shines. And then one merits an even greater light. For the main thing is the free will. And the greater the free will and the test, the greater and more additional light one merits afterward. And this is the aspect of: the Chanukah candle is mosif viholaich ["increasing and continuing"] each day. For each day that comes afterward is the aspect of greater multiplicity — where is the hold of sheker. And we draw the light of the hashgachah through the Chanukah candle, until one knows that also the aspect of "the many" are drawn from Him, Yisbarach. And therefore through this, the light is increased each day more and more. For the more one merits to shatter the free will and to draw the hashgachah into the aspect of "many" more — the greater the light. And this is the aspect of the level of teshuvah [repentance] — and "the distance is the beginning of the drawing close" — in the aspect of "mairochok Hashem nirah li" ["from afar Hashem appeared to me"] (Yirmiyahu 31:2). For the more one is in the aspect of "the many" more, and has become more distant from "one" — where the hold of sheker is greater — when one merits to stand there in the test, in the greatness of the distance — then one merits an even greater light. For "lifum tza'ara agra" ["according to the suffering is the reward"] (as Chazal said, Avos Chapter 5). And therefore on each day of the days of Chanukah, which becomes more distant from "yom echad" ["one day"] — which is the aspect of "many" — then we add a candle each day. For each day one merits that the light of the hashgachah shines more — through drawing the light into the aspect of greater "many." For this is the main thing — that the aspect of "many" should be included in "one." And this is the aspect of the inclusion of the Creation in "one," as above. And this is the aspect of the level of tefillah bitzibur [prayer with a congregation], and likewise in Torah and mitzvos — "Talmud Torah dirabim adif" ["Torah study in a group is preferable"], and "it is not comparable when few perform the mitzvah to when many do," etc. For when there are "many" — where is the hold of sheker, as above — when they are included in "one" through tefillah and Torah and mitzvos, through which they are included in His unity, Yisbarach — the more "many" there are and they are included in "one," the greater the light. And "after the Creation" is more included in "before the Creation" — that it should be kulo echad kulo tov ["entirely one, entirely good"]. As it will be in the future. As it is written: "Bayom hahu yihyeh Hashem echad ush'mo echad" ["On that day Hashem shall be one and His Name one"]. Amain vi'amain. And this is the aspect of the Hallel that we say on Chanukah. For Hallel is said on account of the miracle. For in the Hallel the greatness of His hashgachah [providence], Yisbarach, over the world is explicit. As it is written (T'hilim 113:5–6): "Mi kaHashem Elokainu hamagbihi lashaves hamashpili lir'os," etc. ["Who is like Hashem our G-d, Who dwells on high, Who lowers Himself to see"]. And it is written (T'hilim 115:3): "VaiElokainu bashamayim kol asher chapaitz asah" ["And our G-d is in the heavens; whatever He desires, He does"]. And therefore we say it on Chanukah. For the main aspect of the Chanukah candle is the aspect of the drawing of His hashgachah. And this is the aspect of the Hallel, as above. And therefore the miracle of Chanukah was through the Kohanim. For the Kohen is a man of chesed [lovingkindness]. And chesed is drawn from the aspect of "before the Creation" — which is the aspect of kulo echad kulo tov ["entirely one, entirely good"]. And this is the aspect of chesed, the aspect of yamin [right]. But "after the Creation" is the aspect of s'mol [left], the aspect of din [strict judgment], the aspect of Levi. And therefore the avodah [service] in the Bais HaMikdash [Holy Temple] — the main was through the Kohanim. And the Livi'im would assist them with song and the like. For the Kohen is in the aspect of "before the Creation" — who has the power to elevate the Creation to its root, to include it in "one." And therefore the Livi'im would assist the Kohanim on their platform, etc., during the time of the avodah — in order that the Levi, who is the aspect of s'mol, the aspect of "after the Creation," should be included in the Kohen, the man of chesed, who is in the aspect of "before the Creation." Through whom everything is included in "one," as above. And therefore we give T'rumah [the priestly tithe] to the Kohen. For through T'rumah one elevates the produce and includes it in "one," as above — and for this reason they derived the din [law] of sh'lichus [agency] from T'rumah, etc., as above. And therefore the T'rumah goes to the Kohen, the man of chesed. For he is in the aspect of "before the Creation" and includes everything in "one," as above. And therefore the miracle of Chanukah was through the Kohanim, as above.