Thoughts

1. Through humility, one is saved from thoughts of idol worship.

2. When you are praying and thoughts of idol worship befall you, concentrate on the name “Elohainu” (our G-d. This should not be pronounced).

3. Good thoughts come through confession that is confessed before a Torah scholar.

4. Someone who tells stories that happened to righteous men, through this, good thoughts are drawn to him.

5. Someone who has bad thoughts, should judge everyone favorably always.

6. Through tears, all lusts become despicable.

7. Someone who does not believe in the Tzadik, as a result, his heart is not right with Hashem, may He be Blessed.

8. The belt that a Tzadik was girded with -- when you gird yourself with it, it is conducive (segulah) to nullify evil thoughts.

9. Through falsehood, the holy covenant (circumcision) becomes desecrated.

10. Someone who sanctifies himself, and pride arises in his mind, when he breaks the pride, he attains and acquires the Torah.

11. Crying out nullifies ulterior motives.

12. Learning the four [sections] of the Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law) nullifies ulterior motives.

13. Thinking about some Torah [thought] that you innovated is conducive to nullifying alien thoughts.

14. Someone who has bad thoughts should speak disgraceful words to himself.

15. Eating and drinking disturb the thought process.

16. Through anger comes thoughts of idol worship.

17. When one disparages the Festival holy days, he comes to (having) thoughts of idol worship.

18. One who sits among lewd people or in a place where there was lewdness, through this, he comes to evil thoughts.

19. The evil inclination only craves something forbidden to him.

20. Lusts -- the loving-kindness of Hashem, may He be Blessed, is clothed in them.

21. Through pardoning of sins, you merit a clean heart.

22. Through compassion, lusts will be nullified from you.

23. Through the eyes, the heart craves.

24. Through the lusts of the heart, it is impossible that something [impure] will not cling to you.

25. Regarding thoughts of promiscuity, it is conducive to drink a laxative.

26. Prayer with heartfelt concentration opens all the supernal doors.

27. Someone who has thoughts of idol worship should not carry with him any gold.

28. Through drunkenness, thoughts of idolatry come.

29. Through love for women, honor is taken away from you. Also, your wife does not grasp the seed, and miscarries, and at the time of birth, the child dies.

30. Through strife comes thoughts of idol worship. Also, a house in which there is strife will be a house of idol worship.

31. When foreign thoughts come to a person, he should raise his voice as if he were crying, and through this, the foreign thoughts will depart from him.

32. Through oaths and curses come bad thoughts.

33. Through having trust (in G-d), evil thoughts will not come to you.

34. Grinding the teeth is conducive (segulah) to nullifying evil thoughts.

35. According to the place in the prayer, so do the holy sparks clothe themselves in distractions and come to a person in order to be rectified.

36. [Learning] Tractate Yadayim (hands) is conducive (segulah) to nullifying bad thoughts.

37. Someone whose prayer is only for the sake of the Divine Presence, will not have foreign thoughts come to him.

38. Through peace, His Name, may He be Blessed, is elevated.

39. When a man or woman thinks at the time of marital relations about some non-Jewish man or woman, and the thought is with love for that non-Jewish man or woman, then the child who is born from these relations will abandon the Jewish faith.

40. The ritual fringes are a fence (safeguard) for lewdness.

41. Through visiting the sick, one is saved from the evil inclination.

42. The evil inclination does not rule except on what his eyes see.

43. (Someone who reaches) twenty years old and has not married a woman, all of his days he will have thoughts of sin.

44. Someone who commits a sin and afterwards thinks about doing more, even though he doesn't do it, is punished for the thought.

45. To push away the evil inclination, say, "The Merciful One berates the Satan (Rachamana nigahr bey baSatan)."

46. The coveting and evil thoughts which arise in the heart suddenly, which are not in a person's power to prevent, one is not punished for them, unless one repeatedly thinks about them.

47. For most bad character traits, it is good to bloodlet.

48. Through eating fish, lust is increased.

49. Someone who eats through the merit of his forefathers, thoughts of idol worship befall him.

50. Through homosexuality comes thoughts of idol worship.

51. One who thinks (desires) of a Cuthite [non-Jewish] woman, comes to thoughts of idol worship.

52. One who looks at nakedness, his hardness becomes aroused.

53. One who belittles the Festival holy days, it is as if he worships idols.

54. Someone who has faith, the Holy One, Blessed be He, protects him from coming into the grip of [bad] thoughts, and he proceeds to That World [to Come] without sin, and the Holy One, Blessed be He, helps him.

55. At the time that they are involved in Torah and acts of kindness, their [evil] urge is placed under their control.

56. Someone who has enjoyment from something heretical, he will eventually be compelled to idol worship.

57. When someone holds himself back from sins and seeks atonement, this causes that he will not even sin in thought.

58. Someone who has relations with a Cuthean [non-Jewish] woman, draws down filth unto himself. Afterwards, when he has relations with his wife and bears a child, the child will be an apostate.

59. A sash is a remedy for [bad] thoughts.

60. Someone who has thoughts of women, the way to nullify them is by not deceiving people ...

61. ... also through charity.

1. When thoughts of idol worship come to a person, and he nullifies them by thinking of his faith in [G-d], then his thoughts become an aspect of dew of blessing. Also, through this, his mind has fortitude and does not ever become confused; even when the mind becomes tired from pondering some deep concept, then the Holy One, Blessed be He, arranges for him thoughts which relax his mind.

2. Someone who guards himself from thoughts of idol worship merits to have constant faith (confidence in G-d), to the extent that he does not worry what he will eat tomorrow, and he is on the level of "Blessed is Hashem day after day." Through this, the Holy One, Blessed be He, perceives no wrongdoing and sees no iniquity in him, and anyone who touches him, it is as if he touched the pupil of His eye.

3. Regarding thoughts of idol worship, one should rouse in one's mind and one should accept upon himself to get involved in acts of kindness, and through this, he will desist from thoughts of idol worship.

4. Through thoughts of idol worship, one's breath becomes shortened, and he derives no pleasure from good news.

5. When thoughts of idol worship come to a person, he should know that they are judging him Above.

6. Studying codifiers of Torah law nullifies thoughts of idol worship.

7. Through the establishment of unqualified judges, comes thoughts of idol worship.

8. When thoughts of idol worship come to a person, he should know that he will come to some illness or some accusation from a governing official.

9. Through thoughts of idol worship, one will ultimately need to make use of holy names.

10. Through tithing, thoughts of promiscuity are nullified.

11. Sometimes, it will arise in a person's thought that he will think about some illness. This is caused by Hashem, may He be Blessed, in order that he should remind himself to fix the evil thought which is the cause of that illness.

12. Thoughts of idol worship, thoughts of immorality, bloodshed and evil speech come to someone who is accustomed to making vows, but they become nullified by the leader of the city, who arranges the fines and taxes upon each person, according to the amount that each one can handle.

13. When a person goes out to the market and is fearful lest he come to evil thoughts from what he sees, that he might see attractive women, he should recite the verse, "Behold, their brave ones (angels) cried out … (angel of peace cried bitterly)" (Isaiah 33:7). Through this, he will be saved from seeing.

14. Someone who has thoughts of idol worship, should know that the hand of the nations of the world will reign upon him.

15. In a city that has fairs and big market days, there are many thoughts of idol worship. A segulah (auspicious for protection) for this is to toil in Torah on market days, and thoughts of idol worship will not come to him.

16. When one nullifies thoughts of idol worship, through this, all of his sins are forgiven.

17. Gazing to the east nullifies promiscuous thoughts.

18. Crying nullifies promiscuous thoughts.

19. The nullification of thoughts of idol worship comes through [holy] enthusiasm.

20. Through deception, one comes to thoughts of promiscuity with a non-Jewish woman.

21. One who has thoughts of having relations with a gentile girl, it is certain that he will experience some downfall, or his wife and children will get sick.

22. Through thoughts of idol worship, enemies come and become elevated over a person.

23. To nullify promiscuous thoughts, one should imagine the image of his father. Good advice regarding evil thoughts is to get mad about something. This is alluded to in the verse, "Rage and do not sin". [I heard from our master, of blessed memory, that the intent is to rage and get angry at oneself. This is hinted at in the words of our rabbis, of blessed memory: A person should always enrage his good inclination over his evil inclination, as it is written, "Rage ..", that is, to rage and get angry at oneself. But not to, G-d forbid, actually get angry, because the sin of anger is extremely grave, as is known.]