Advice on: Withstanding Tests

RAV BERLAND'S ADVICE ON WITHSTANDING TESTS

Continuing our translation of Etzot HaNachal, a compendium of advice from Rav Eliezer Berland, shlita, based on the teachings of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov.

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THE TEST ONLY TAKES PLACE OVER A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, BUT THEY DON’T REVEAL THIS TO A PERSON, THAT THE TEST IS ONLY GOING TO LAST FOR A SHORT TIME.

And it’s because that he thinks that it’s going to continue forever, that he doesn’t stand up in it.

SO, IF IT HAPPENS THAT YOU HAVE THE URGE TO DO AN AVEIRA, A SIN, WAIT FOR A FEW MINUTES, AND YOU’LL SEE HOW THAT URGE HAS PASSED.

* The ta’avot, the lusts, are called a ‘stormwind’.

When a lust starts burning in a person, he wants to turn the whole world upside down, in the name of his desire. But hold back, wait. The lust will pass, and be totally nullified. Don’t run to do what your lusts are telling you, don’t let them scare you!

WHEN A PERSON SEES THAT SOME LUST HAS JUMPED UPON HIM, HE RUNS TO TRY TO EXECUTE ITS WISHES.

But don’t go along with it!

* Hashem said to Sarah, ‘it’s not how you think, that a person has to beget children without any yetzarim (natural inclinations for good and bad).

A person needs to beget children with yetzarim, and then he needs to transform these gevurot (this strength). This is infinite spiritual light, this is Heavenly fire. We need this fire to return to our [spiritual] root.

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DAFKA, THE HIGHEST SOULS HAVE THE TOUGHEST KLIPOT (HUSKS OF EVIL) ATTACHED TO THEM.

When a person sees that these klipot are getting the best of him, he needs to know that he is an extremely high soul, and this is why the klipot are attached to him. The size of the [spiritual] failure depends on the size of the soul.

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A PERSON GOES TO UMAN.

This doesn’t now mean that he’s not going to experience any failures – the opposite! Now that he’s been to Uman, he should know that he’s going to experience even greater falls! This is because now, he’s arrived at a much higher level, so all the arrows are now aimed at him, and they want to bring him down.

* And so, when the Kohen HaHaGadol used to enter the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur, that’s when he was in the greatest danger, because all the klipot were focused on him.
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THOSE PEOPLE WHO MOVE TO JERUSALEM FIND THAT HE [I.E. THE SAMECH MEM] TAKES AWAY THEIR PARNASSA, HE TAKES THEIR MINDS, HE TAKES THEIR ZEST.

He dresses up as the wife, or as the children, and he does all different types of things to [the husband] here. Moving to Jerusalem is not simple. Jerusalem is the hardest place.

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THE BIGGEST SATAN IS FOUND HERE [IN JERUSALEM], AND HASHEM HIMSELF WILL NEED TO REBUKE HIM:

> “Stop, already! Stop making people crazy! Stop causing people to fail!”

Hashem Himself will tell him to stop fighting with them, and provoking them, and ruining them.

* The yetzer hara (evil inclination) doesn’t stay silent for a second.

The bigger a person’s a soul, the bigger their yetzer hara. If a child possesses a bigger soul, then he will also have a bigger yetzer hara lying in wait for him.

* If a person possesses enormous burning enthusiasm – a burning passion for holiness – then to balance this, the burning fire of the Sitra Achra (dark side) will start to encircle him from every side.

It will try to penetrate into the Holy of Holies that’s inside each person’s heart, and inside each person’s mind.

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THE TRUE SPIRITUAL WORK OF A PERSON OCCURS WHEN HE CAN’T SEE ANY [SPIRITUAL] LIGHT. THIS IS THE REAL WORK OF A HUMAN BEING.

This is what occurred at the time of the Babylonian Exile. They didn’t see any spiritual light for 70 years, not even a glimmer. They knew that the prophet had said it would last for 70 years, but they didn’t know if that meant 70,000 years. Maybe, one day is one year, maybe, the days of Hashem last for a thousand years? Who knew, what the true meaning of ’70 years’ actually was?

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WHEN A PERSON IS IN EXILE, HE DOESN’T KNOW WHEN THE REDEMPTION WILL OCCUR. HE DOESN’T KNOW ANYTHING.

So, a person’s spiritual work is something entirely different, something totally the opposite. It’s work that’s occurring when he doesn’t see any miracles or wonders. It’s like what’s written in the Midrash HaGadol, “it’s unfortunate that they didn’t see the fruits of their labors.” The Forefathers were not like the prophets. [Hashem] was revealed to Moshe Rabbenu in the midst of a burning bush, but Avraham didn’t see any burning fire – rather, they just threw him into a smoking kiln!

He didn’t see any ‘burning fire’.