ערך דבור

All the damages, G-d forbid, come through the blemish of da'as — that is, through introducing alien thoughts and external wisdoms into one's mind and awareness [moach u'da'as]. And from there the husks of Eisav and Yishmo'el draw nourishment — they being the damagers of the world [mazikei alma] — and from them come all the damages in the world, G-d protect us, as explained in the inner teachings. The essential holiness of the speech and tongue of Israel is this: they must speak and bring forth with full mouth the kesuphim [longings] and holy yearning that they possess — that is, that they always yearn and pine for G-d — and they must bring forth these longings specifically in speech [b'peh davka]. And this is the essential holiness of the tongue of Israel — the aspect of the Holy Tongue [lashon hakodesh].

All the service [avodah] of a person of Israel throughout all the days of his life, and all that he came to this world for, is only for the attainment of na'aseh v'nishma — the acceptance and fulfillment of the Torah [literally: "we will do and we will hear"]. For only for this purpose does a person come to this world — to toil in Torah until he attains at every stage what had been hidden from him. To make from the Torah of G-d — his Torah: from what had been hidden [nishma] to become revealed [na'aseh], from the aspect of "heard" to become the aspect of "done." But this is impossible to achieve except through speech — which is the essential prayer, which must be specifically in speech [b'dibur davka]. And if every person would strive to multiply the words of prayer and to sanctify his speech as is fitting — certainly every person would at every stage attain great attainments. For G-d hears the prayer of every mouth and desires to bestow good and to reveal to every person the hidden things of the Torah — [of the Torah] — only the essential [condition] is when one merits the perfection of speech as above.

A person must guard himself very much from evil longings [kesuphim ro'im] — and he should habitually train his thoughts always to long only for good longings: to always yearn and desire and crave to draw close to G-d and His service and His holy Torah. And even when thoughts of desires and evil longings come upon him, G-d protect us — he should train himself to seize his thought and redirect it away from these longings and draw it toward good longings — which are the essential true good for all eternity and for everlasting ever. And especially he must guard his speech — not to utter any evil word, G-d forbid. And at the very least, he should not bring forth from his mouth the desires and longings for the vanities of this world that come upon his heart — but rather to reverse the matter and bring forth from his mouth good longings. For through evil words of evil longings for this world, one causes harm to others as well. For the vapors [havalos] that exit his mouth through these evil words are literally evil souls [nefoshos ro'os] — and they are the damagers of the world, G-d protect us. For they go and arouse the people of the world toward evil desires, G-d forbid — and from there come all the damages also in the physical, G-d protect us. But words of good longings are good souls — and through them all the blessings and flows are drawn into the world, and they go and arouse the entire world toward G-d and His Torah. And this is what King David, peace be upon him, said: "You have tested my heart, You visited in the night, You refined me — You found nothing" [Psalms 17:3]. That is, he said on behalf of all of Israel: "I know that I have not withstood the test as I should — for I have not yet merited to be saved in perfection from the longings of this world. But: "My mouth will not transgress" [Psalms 17:3] — for at the very least I guard myself not to bring these longings and thoughts out in speech from my mouth, G-d forbid. For I know the great power of speech of the longings — that through it literal effects are made in the world. Therefore I guard myself not to bring out evil longings through my mouth, G-d forbid — so that through them no evil effects be made in the world, G-d protect us. Rather, I train myself to always speak holy words of good longings, to call out to You always: Return us to You in truth — and through this good effects are made in the world." And this is: "For the deeds of man, by the word of Your lips" [Psalms 17:4] — that I guard myself to speak only holy words, which are the aspect of "the word of Your lips", so that through this all the deeds of man will be concluded for the good. And this is: "I, through the paths of the violent" [Psalms 17:4] — for speech has great power. And through my being guarded from speaking words of desires and evil longings — and instead training my tongue to always speak words of good longings as above — through this I merit to be saved and guarded from the paths of the violent, which are all the evil ways, G-d protect us. Rather: "support my steps in Your paths, that my feet not totter" [Psalms 17:5] — for the good words aforementioned support and sustain me to walk in Your paths, that my feet not totter from them, even though they wished to push me from them — G-d protect us. But G-d helped me through the power of the good words to support my steps in Your paths. And this concludes with: "I call You — for You will answer me, etc." [Psalms 17:6] — that is, it explains further: through what did I merit to support my steps in Your paths? — through my calling out to You every time in words of good longings. And this is the entire matter of hisbodidus [seclusion in prayer] and conversation between oneself and one's Maker — which a person must train himself in very much. That is, he should train himself in this to always long and crave good longings: when will he merit to turn from evil and do what is good in His blessed eyes always, etc. — and to bring forth the holy longings from his mouth every day. And through this he will merit to be saved from the paths of the violent — and G-d will support his steps in His paths, etc., as mentioned above.

A person must guard himself very much from evil longings [kesuphim ro'im] — and he should habitually train his thoughts always to long only for good longings: to always yearn and desire and crave to draw close to G-d and His service and His holy Torah. And even when thoughts of desires and evil longings come upon him, G-d protect us — he should train himself to seize his thought and redirect it away from these longings and draw it toward good longings — which are the essential true good for all eternity and for everlasting ever.