Letter 26 כ"ו

Peace and blessing to the honored self of my dear friend, my mighty beloved, precious to me as my soul — the dear young man who drinks living waters from Na Nach Nachma Nachman MayUman [מננמ"ח], who yearns to serve Hashem in truth and wholeness — the distinguished Torah scholar, our Master [name missing], may he live.

I received your letter and rejoiced to hear from you. It is a wonder to me that I asked of you a favor — if you can send me Likutay Halachos, Orach Chaim, part two, section three — and you do not reply to me at all about this. I ask you greatly to reply to me on this — you will have a great mitzvah, for I have nothing to study. R' Shlomo Veksler is studying that section himself and cannot lend it to me. Therefore I ask you greatly, my dear brother — just as you have abundantly provided me with Rabbainu's books — so continue henceforth to merit this, and you will have a share in the great mitzvah of enabling the many to merit, etc.

Now I will write to you about the praise you heap upon me — it does not begin at all, to my sorrow. I am very much asleep in the service of Hashem, and the baal davar pursues me from every direction — around and around — and I have not a moment's rest. And very great mental obstructions. It is bitter for me from every direction. I know no counsel against him — he wants to swallow me completely. Therefore — it is a holy obligation upon you to travel at this time to Meron, to the holy Tzion of the Foundation of the World, the Rashbi, of blessed memory. I make you my agent — lay many prayers and tears there on my behalf — ask greatly before G‑d, blessed be He: what will be my ultimate purpose? I am already being tormented in this way for almost two years with such persecutions, and I do not merit to serve Hashem, and I am very far from Rabbainu the Holy one and from G‑d, blessed be He — without measure and reckoning. What will be the ultimate purpose? Is it conceivable that I was created to waste my days in such vanity? Do not be silent, do not be still — much prayer for me.

My dear brother — tell everything to the holy Tzadik, the Rashbi, of blessed memory — and pour out the entire heart. That there finally be an end to the troubles. "A prisoner cannot free himself from prison." [אין חבוש מתיר עצמו מבית האסורים — Talmud Bavli, Brachos 5b: a person cannot extricate himself from his own spiritual imprisonment without outside help — from the Tzadik and from G‑d] On the eve of Rosh Chodesh Nissan there was a journey to Rabbainu the Holy one. You can fulfill it — to be in holy Meron and to make the Tzadik a messenger to Rabbainu the Holy and Awesome Nachman, etc. And likewise you can go to the grave of R' Yisrael of Kardin [R' Yisrael of Kardin — a Breslover associated with R' Noson], of blessed memory, and to the Tzadik R' Avraham of Kalisk [R' Avraham of Kalisk — a leading Chassidic master and companion of R' Nachman of Horodenka; buried in Tiberias], and R' Nachman of Horodenka [R' Nachman of Horodenka — grandfather of Rabbainu R' Nachman; buried in Tiberias], etc. — and make them messengers to Rabbainu the Holy one, and lay many prayers upon them on our behalf — that there finally be an end to my troubles and yours, and that we merit to serve Hashem truly in innermost truth, and to be bound to Rabbainu the Holy one with self-sacrifice, etc. — and to come soon to the Tzion of Rabbainu the Holy one — essentially.

And regarding what you write — that you are in sadness [atzavus] and falling into despair — study in the Sipuray Maasiyos, the Seven Beggars, at the beginning: where when they were already rejoicing very greatly — the king stood up and said: "Because I see in the stars — I see that you…" — "therefore see to it that you have no sadness, etc. And when you will be in joy, etc." — study it there well. And Rabbainu the Holy one cried out with a great voice and did not stop: "Oh! Do not despair! There is absolutely no despair in the world at all!" My dear faithful brother — we need to lay many prayers — for the essential weapon of a Jewish man is prayer, through which he conquers all wars. And the Daughter of the King said: only to yearn. Believe me — to my great sorrow, it is so bitter for me already for such a long time — I literally cannot utter a single word before G‑d, blessed be He. Bitter as death. But what can one do? One must trust in G‑d, blessed be He, that everything is for good. And "all that the Merciful One does, He does for good." Therefore one must renew oneself afresh in the service of Hashem — as if today I was born. And we have an elder father to rely upon — who said: "Rely on my strength!" And who said: "I have concluded and I will conclude. I have prevailed and I will prevail." And blessed be G‑d that we are in his portion. Blessed is our G‑d who created us for His glory and separated us from those who go astray — in every respect. [from the morning liturgy] Happy are we — a thousand times happy are we! [And as R' Noson, of blessed memory, said:] Joy and also awe. Believe me — the baal davar takes revenge on me for what I write to you — but Rabbainu the Holy one runs ahead of him. Have a joyful Purim!

And now — all beginnings are from Purim. "And they fulfilled and accepted" [Esther 9:27 — the verse describing Israel's acceptance of Purim; used in Breslov tradition as the model for renewal of the original Sinai acceptance — what was received at Sinai by compulsion was re-accepted freely at Purim (Shabbos 88a)] — and the days of Purim will never be nullified, etc., etc.

From me — your friend who loves you truly: Shmuel Horowitz, the Breslover.