אות - רעח

Once he said to me in these words: "In az es iz shoyn gor schlecht — iz men zich gor mevatel." (And when it is already very bad — then one nullifies oneself completely.) And I asked him: How does one nullify oneself? And he replied: "Me farmacht dos moyl un di oygn — iz bitul." (One closes the mouth and the eyes — that is nullification.) And it seems to me that his meaning was: That through closing the mouth — that one should not speak any unnecessary words at all — and closing the eyes — that one should not look at forbidden sights — through this alone one nullifies oneself and attaches to Hashem Yisburach. For through this alone: closing the mouth and closing the eyes from what is forbidden — through this one merits to complete nullification of self before Hashem Yisburach.