Lazer Beams

The Lesson of Orla

Integrity and spirituality

Maybe you know people who enjoy flaunting Tibetan phrases, rolling their eyeballs, and burning lots of myrrh-scented candles and incense. Maybe you know other people who walk around quoting scripture, and then look down at you, saying, "Where were you at services last week?" Neither of these types has anything to do with genuine spirituality...

Here's a fool-proof method to find out if a person is spiritual or not: Conduct a business transaction with that person, and if he or she deals with fairness and integrity, you can bet that they're bona-fide spiritually-oriented people.

When a person's soul leaves the body at the termination of the physical life on this earth, the first question the Heavenly Court asks is, "Did you negotiate in good faith?", in other words, did you do business fairly (Talmud, tractate Shabbos, pg. 31). It's fine if a person listens to sitar music or quotes Kabbala after having dealt honestly with his/her fellow human, but without integrity, forget about spirituality.

Emuna is the key word

Why is emuna - the pure and simple faith in Hashem - so seemingly difficult to attain? Simple - all of our spiritual luminaries rom the Baal Shem Tov of blessed and saintly memory to our contemporary tzaddikim have stated unequivocally that the souls who come to earth in this current generation that paves the way for Moshiach will all have the obligation to correct the flaw in emuna (faith) from a former reincarnation. In other words, once you'ved attained emuna, you've achieved a priceless correction for your soul, and you've successfully performed your tachlit, the purpose that your soul was sent down to this earth. In other words, acquiring emuna is a mindboggling, monumental accomplishment.

There is no human imagination that can fathom the reward that awaits a person in the next world for attaining emuna. By the way, the benefits of emuna already have a wonderful effect on one's quality of life in this world.

The Yetzer (evil inclination) will fight you tooth and nail so that you don't achieve this correction, which once again, is your very mission on this earth. The souls who accomplish their tikkun emuna (soul correction of achieving faith) will be the heroes of the spiritual battle for Moshiach and redemption.

If you're in the DC, Baltimore, North Jersey or NYC areas, you're invited to hear a lot more about emuna. Take a look at our event schedule on the top right hand toolbar of this site. We'd love to see you...

Serving the Same G-d

The Baal Shem Tov worked so hard for Jewish unity, so that every Jew should love every other Jew. Although mixing in between a feud between two great tzaddikim is like standing between two Mack trucks about to collide head-on – dangerous, to say the least – it’s still painful when they fail to get along with one another.

The Melitzer Rebbe shlit'a told me the following beautiful story, passed down from father to son from his great great grandfather Rebbe Meir'l of Promiszlan; Keep it in mind before allowing yourself the "luxury" of feuding with a fellow Jew:

Rebbe Meir'l of Promiszlan and Rebbe Yitzchok of Strettin were engaged in a long, drawn-out feud. Knowing that dissension serves no purpose, Rebbe Meir'l approached Rebbe Yitzchok and attempted to make peace. The latter only turned his face to the wall. "Please, Strettinner Rebbe, allow me to tell you a tale," said Rebbe Meir'l, and told him the following story:

Continue reading "Serving the Same G-d" on this week's issue of Breslev Israel web magazine.

Also in this week's edition:

What's behind our frequent use of the phrase, G-d willing?

Rav Shalom Arush teaches us that prayers are Vessels of Divine Abundance.

Head in the clouds? Confused? Don't let The World of Fantasy fool you.

The Real Diamonds discusses what's really valuable on this physical earth of ours.

The Runaway Lamb is part 4 of David the Shepherd Boy for Breslev Kids.

This week's Torah portion is Lech Lecha. Be sure to read Stand by Your Man.

G-d bless for a wonderful week!

The vestibule and the ballroom

The following is an allegory based on a story told by our renowned beloved sage, Rabbi Yisroel Meir Kagan, better known as the "Chofetz Chaim", of blessed memory:

A wealthy dignitary purchased a lavish six-million dollar penthouse in the posh Georgetown section of Washington, DC, for the purpose of entertaining his commercial and political associates. He had all the walls torn down, and then ordered an interior-design architect to plan the spacious 3000 square-foot apartment from scratch.

"This penthouse is for the sole purpose of entertainment," he told the architect, "so all I need is a vestibule for receiving no fewer than 150 guests and a ballroom for dining and dancing."

"Superb," said the the architect, "let's begin with the vestibule. What elements would you like?"

"I want my guests to be overwhelmed when they enter; there should be two rows of Italian marble statues, and a fountain in the middle. Both walls should be lined with no fewer than ten paintings on each side, preferably a French expressionist genre; I also want the finest Turkish-wool carpets, and in addition, I'd like..."

"Excuse me, sir," interjected the architect. Such a vestibule with room for the paintings, the statues, and the fountain will require at least 2000 square feet. You'll only be left with a ballroom of 1000 square feet; barely 70 people can dine in such a space. As far as room for an orchestra and dancing, forget it..."

"Then what do I do?" asked the perplexed dignitary.

"My suggestion," answered the architect, "is that you forego the fountain and the statues, and that we plan a limited, tasteful vestibule with a few paintings on the wall and a small reception bar. Let's confine the vestibule to about 500 square feet; as it is, people won't spend much time there. Everyone is interested in entering the ballroom, where the real action is. So, if we plan a 2500 square-foot ballroom, your 150 guests can dine and dance comfortably."

**********

The moral: This world is like a vestibule, and the next world is like a ballroom. Each of us has his or her allotment of "square feet", in other words, the days and resources of our lives. If we waste them on a fancy vestibule - a place where we only spend 70, 80, or 90 years, then we'll have nothing left for our "ballroom", our world to come, where we shall spend an eternity. Since this life is a mere corridor for the next life, then we'd be wise to invest as much of our resources as possible in spirituality - whose dividends are eternal - and as little as possible in material amenities, which are here today and gone tomorrow.

Two Minds, One Heart

Today's emuna lesson shows you how to be a star in all your interpersonal relationships - it's entitled Two Minds, One Heart.

For those have been asking, all our Emuna CDs are available at a super inexpensive price here at the English CD page on Breslev Israel's online store. All our books are available on the English Book page at Breslev Israel, at a lower price than you can find them anywhere.

We recently released two new CDs that are miraculous problem-solvers: Learn to Say Thank You and No Bad in the World.

For Maryland, DC, Delaware, and Virginia, we look forward to seeing you in Baltimore.

The Perfect Husband

This is our emuna talk from this past week. Don't miss it, for it tells you what makes The Perfect Husband.