T46 (Tinyana) PNC - Mesiras Nefesh Daily; Menios as Illusion-Walls; Kashya = Shma Hashem Koli Ekra

Every Jew gives over his soul every day, every hour. Tzedakah is a mesiras nefesh: money is the soul (Devarim 24:15 — 'to it he lifts his soul'), since one risks his life with toil and danger to earn it, and then hands it over for Hashem. Tefillah, too, is mesiras nefesh, in the sense of 'for Your sake we are killed all the day' (Psalms 44:23) — because of the great battle with intrusive thoughts and confusions one must struggle through to flee them. So with anything similar.

Every person believes his obstacles are bigger than anyone else's — but Hashem only sends each person obstacles within his strength. In truth there is no real obstacle, because Hashem Himself is clothed inside the obstacle (Likutey Moharan I:115). The greatest obstacle is the obstacle of the mind — when the mind and heart are split off from Hashem or from the tzaddik. Even after one breaks the outer obstacles to travel to the true tzaddik, if his heart is twisted and full of difficulties about the tzaddik, this hidden objection blocks him more than anything else. The same in tefillah: one breaks through the outer menios to come and pray, but if his heart is crooked toward Hashem, this is the worst obstacle of all. 'My heart spins' (Psalms 38:11; Targum: saviv sechor sechor) — the heart is wrapped, twisted, and circled with crookedness, denials, and difficulties about Hashem. This is 'they embittered their lives with hard labor' (Exodus 1:14), and the Tikkunim (Tikkun 13, 28) say: 'with kashya' — the difficulties of the heart, the greatest obstacle of all. The remedy: cry out to one's Father in Heaven from the depths of the heart with a strong voice; Hashem hears and responds, and from this very crying-out the difficulties may collapse entirely. Even if not, His hearing is itself the salvation. The very letters of קֻשְׁיָא spell the acronym of 'שְׁמַע ה' קוֹלִי אֶקְרָא' (Psalms 27:7) — call to Hashem when the kushya overcomes you. The Baal Shem Tov's parable: a king hid a great treasure and surrounded it with illusory walls. People who came thought the walls were real and turned back, or broke one wall and stopped at the next. Only the king's son said: 'I know all the walls are illusions — there is really no wall here at all,' and walked safely through them all.

From this, the wise reader understands the lesson on his own about every obstacle, persuasion, and temptation: they are walls hiding the treasure of fear of Heaven, walls that are actually nothing. The main thing is a strong, courageous heart — and then there is no obstacle at all. Especially physical obstacles — money, wife, children, in-laws, parents — they all dissolve before one whose heart is firm and brave for Hashem. Even the might of the mighty in battle is only the strength and courage of the heart, the heart strong enough to run into the bonds of war.