One also has to reveal, repair, and balance, any of the abilities of the soul that haven’t yet been revealed, repaired, or balanced.
But this should not be done with a perspective of a war against the evil within oneself.
Rather, it must be done with a positive perspective, from the understanding that every part of ourselves, every ability of our soul, is a gift from Hashem and a part of us.
After we have revealed, balanced, and repaired the abilities we aren’t making use of, we need to become connected with them and utilize them properly, and we will get vitality and joy from these abilities no less than how we can get vitality and joy from our strong and good abilities.
This is the inner perspective to have on all self-recognition and self-actualization, and to the extent that we view our soul and its abilities in an inner, positive way like this, our ability to recognize our soul and work with our abilities will be refined, and we will be much closer to repairing our souls and reaching self-perfection in this world.
You can find the quote within the following parsha PDF (Bechukotai 5782) at the Bilvavi site: [link will be posted – if I don't forget – when available]. For your convenience, here it is in the body of the post in case it's hard to read in the graphic (plus a bit more): For Lag B'Omer, please see last year's beautiful poem by Nechumelle Jacobs here: www.myrtlerising.com/blog/a-poem-for-lag-bomer-by-nechumelle-jacobs And please see the PDF by Bilvavi, compiled from various lectures by Rav Itamar Schwartz (who himself no connection to the website or anything else Internet-related): https://bilvavi.net/files/Bilvavi.Lag.Ba'Omer.Talks.pdf A separate PDF provides a thought-provoking & enlightening Q&A with Rav Itamar Schwartz. While it mostly concerns last year's tragedy, it also answers general existential questions regarding suffering, mussar, teshuvah, and dealing with others' needs regarding individual responses to suffering: https://bilvavi.net/qanda-weekly/eng/Bilvavi_242_Bilvavi%20Q&A_Bechukosai-Lag%20B'Omer_5782.pdf Here are some excerpts (boldface my own addition): ROCKETS & MERON TRAGEDY: IS MASHIACH COMING? LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM THE MERON TRAGEDY Let Rav Itamar Schwartz of Bilvavi help you get practically & spiritually ready for Pesach: Please click on any image above to access its PDF for free download. Please note: Rav Itamar Schwartz lovingly opposes all forms of the Internet & has no connection to the Bilvavi website. Rav Schwartz has no more connection with the Bilvavi website than Rav Kanievsky ztz"l did with all the websites that post videos & quotes of him. For more explanation, please see the Disclaimer here: https://eng.bilvavi.net/opinion/ Here is some biographical information on Rav Itamar Schwartz (copied from here: bilvavi.net/back-issues/eng/Bilvavi_234_Shemini_Taking%20Shelter_5782.pdf): The Rav attended the Pachad Yitzhak Yeshiva of Rav Yonasan David, Shlit"a and graduated from the Ponovitch Yeshiva of Rav Gershon Edelstein, Shlit"a. Before we get to women on Purim...do you ever suffer from niggling Purim questions to which you never found the answer? (Like, if Purim exemplified salvation, then why did Queen Esther need to stay intermarried to such a repulsive menuval? How much & what should I drink on Purim? And what's the deal with Haman's grandchildren learning Torah in Bnei Brak—how did THAT happen? And more...) Then please see this Purim Q&A: https://bilvavi.net/files/Bilvavi.Purim.QandA.pdf (It includes the following for women too.) Here are some practically & spiritually helpful advice & insights from Rav Itamar Schwartz, as published on the Bilvavi website (with which Rav Schwartz holds no connection), as excerpted from a lecture by Rav Schwartz (much of the following apply & benefit men too): There are a lot of aspects to Purim. The halachah of intoxication applies only to men, and the parameters of this halachah is explained by the Poskim. Because of the short-cut language we use when speaking about consistently dysfunctional people, whether we identify them as personality disordered or Erev Rav, the terminology implies an awareness on their part, which doesn't usually exist (or doesn't exist to that extreme). Psychopaths generally mean to do what they do. But most other people don't. For example, a narcissist doesn't think, "Oh-ho, I will now engage in my beloved activity of triangulation!" No, they simply feel victimized in some way, and naturally turn to others in a way that plays one person against the other. They seek to feel supported & protected. The fact that an innocent person gets badly hurt along the way doesn't register with them. After all, the narcissist considers himself the victim and, in the narcissist mind, the person getting hurt either deserves it (if the narcissist feels victimized by that person) or is simply an unavoidable casualty (which again, is not the narcissist's fault in the narcissistic mind because he views it as an unavoidable casualty—and "Hey, what did you expect, that I would sacrifice myself to avoid harming such an insignificant person? Anyway, if you really cared about me, you wouldn't mind sacrificing in yourself for me."). I used the example of a narcissist, but it applies to any personality disorder. Same thing when a personality-disordered person slanders another. Again, they felt victimized in some way. They believe they are simply protecting themselves, perhaps even protecting others by warning them, or they justify their slander as emanating from irrepressible pain that must find a release. If they genuinely mean to take you down via slander, it still emanates from the perception of themselves as victim and you as persecutor. So once again, they believe you deserve it; they see it as the best & most effective way to defend themselves. They believe their slander to be true...or close enough to the truth to be true ("That's how I feel"), or they believe the lies & exaggerations popping out of their mouth because those justifications sound & feel so good...so they must be true, right? Or, even if they know they twisted the truth, they feel it advances an important agenda, so the ends justifies the means...and that's also a kind of "truth" (to the disordered mind). Those are just a couple of examples. And the above is why a PD (personality disorder) can be so shocked, hurt, outraged, and vengeful when confronted with the truth of their motivations, beliefs, and actions—and also how badly they've hurt others, plus the destruction that results from their behaviors. Most experts addressing personality disorders speak as if the PD knows and plots every step of their behavior. (I speak/write like this too sometimes. It's a short-cut to describe the behaviors. But really, I think it's a bit misleading, so I'm trying to be more careful. On the other hand, some people really do believe PDs are wholly aware of every step they take. But that's not true.) For example, they say: "This narcissist can't handle being wrong, so she engages in twisty arguments to manipulate the discussion." But the narcissist probably thinks she's right! And she doesn't consider her arguments twisty nor does she consider her methods manipulative; she thinks she's being clever and self-protective. She believes what she's saying and genuinely thinks YOU are being mean. Having said that, sometimes they do knowingly engage in hurtful argumentative tactics. And again, they do that because they think YOU deserve it. They consider you pathetic, bad, or stupid and feel justified in playing mind games during a discussion. They consider themselves cute, clever, or funny. So if you get angry or hurt, they consider you oversensitive. (Or manipulative.) Why? Because you were the whole problem in the first place! Why are you bothering them by being pathetic, bad or stupid? YOU are pathetic, bad, or stupid. THEY are cute, clever, funny...and the real victim here. So why are YOU getting upset? You have no right! That's how they honestly see things. And as long as you don't realize how sincere they are in their disordered thinking, it's hard to deal with them and also to identify them. You can also be used by them to hurt others when they rope you into "helping" them in their pain (which feels very real to them). So to sum up:
And the same is also true for the Erev Rav. Erev Rav SincerityNote: All quotes from Rav Itamar Schwartz are from here: https://bilvavi.net/files/Bilvavi.Erev.Rav.Talks.pdf Since their inception, the Erev Rav lacked a conscious intent to destroy Am Yisrael. They simply wanted the best of both worlds. And THAT leads to destruction because, at their intrinsic root, the holy world and the profane world remain at odds with each other. (The group with the conscious intent to destroy Am Yisrael both physically and at its soul-root is Amalek. And yes, Amalekite Erev Rav exist.) To oversimplify, the Erev Rav followed Am Yisrael out of Egypt because they viewed Hashem as the biggest bully on the block, and they felt more secure aligning themselves with the most powerful entity. Yet they were always looking back to see whether maybe the Egyptians would be the winners. And despite all the palpable pure spirituality around, they constantly longed for their impure spirituality and materialism. All the damage they committed (like the Golden Calf) resulted from a desire to protect their own interests. They genuinely felt fear or anxiety or distress. Their motivation wasn't manipulation; that's how they honestly felt. In other words, they believed in what they were doing. And real Jews got swept up with them...because of the Erev Rav sincerity. And it happens nowadays too. Here's Rav Itamar Schwartz (page 40): In fact, those people [who are pushing for the draft] might not even be aware that the ‘Sitra Achara’ is controlling them, and they might even be earnest in their intentions. And why are they trying to uproot the Torah? Because they honestly view it as holding themselves and others back. But WHY do they feel that way? The Torah contains such amazing inspiration, guidance, and is the only way for a human being to achieve truly great heights of holiness & morality. Why is the Erev Rav view SO distorted? Erev Rav Lack the Ability to Understand. Understand This Well!Here's the answer on page 35: They do not understand, and they can never understand, what Torah is. This is why, by the way, the charedi rabbanim responded with such uncompromising opposition to the Erev Rav when they first invented & utilized the Zionist movement. To regular Jews, the rabbanim DID explain their positions. But when dealing with the secular Leftist anti-Torah Communist Erev Rav leaders, the rabbanim went just BAM! Full-speed opposition ahead. Even nowadays, you can see there's no talking to them or explaining to them why this-and-such is important. They CANNOT understand. It's simply impossible. And that's sincere on their part! They have NO ability to comprehend or relate to:
The potential simply is NOT there. Here's an analogy: Try and describe countries and their political systems to a toddler. He can't see it! What's a country? What's a political party? What's a budget? What's debt? Yet would you allow the one-year-old to make policies? If the toddler is screaming for his toy and his lollipop, would you say, "If you stop screaming, I'll let you decide the boundary of France! And you can also decide the fiscal policy for the coming year! Wouldn't you like that, shaifeleh?" Or would you just ignore the screaming toddler (maybe just stick a lollipop in his mouth) and continue running the country to the best of your ability? The Erev Rav Leaders of TodayHere's more explanation from Rav Itamar Schwartz (page 34): The Vilna Gaon writes that in the final generations, the Erev Rav are the “heads of the Jewish people, who are the ‘leaders’, and they have control over the “sons of Leah and Rachel.” So we see from here the actual main leaders of the Erev Rav are the Amalek Erev Rav who actively plot to destroy the Torah and Am Yisrael. But the other types of Erev Rav (Nefilim, Gibburim, Refaim, Anakim) cause extreme damage because they can NEVER relate to Torah or the relationship between Hashem & His People. It doesn't mean anything to them; they cannot wrap their head around it. They have their own agendas & it genuinely bothers them when the Torah interferes. So what do WE do? Focus on 2 AspectsWe need to do 2 things:
Learing halacha and mussar help so much with turning from evil and doing good. How else can you know what is good or bad unless you learn it? Learning the halachot of how to treat people (giving the benefit of the doubt, acting with compassion, guarding one's tongue, etc.) provide you with the tools to avoid acting like a dysfunctional person. Learning halacha and mussar also helps you to differentiate between the truly dysfunctional people and others who are basically good but flawed and struggling, so you know who to avoid and who to embrace. Also, there is no need to water down Torah truths. Darchei noam—ways of pleasantness? Yes! By all means! Be pleasant! Try to avoid fights with others! Focus on the Torah's beauty! But please also realize that if you're dealing with an Erev Rav, he or she CANNOT see the beauty no matter how much you point it out or water it down. So there's no point. They're utterly sincere in their attitudes, beliefs, and agendas. And that sincerity often knocks real Jews off balance. That's why it's important to know their sincerity makes them neither redeemable nor changeable...and not convincible either. And so... Just YOU be strong within yourself. Part of doing good is davening. Davening for Erev Rav to do teshuvah (from the Komarna Rebbe) elevates the sparks, getting rid of the Erev Rav. Davening protects you & others. Davening also enhances the growth of you & others. Connect to Hashem in a deep & meaningful way for even only 1 minute a day... May Hashem please bring the Geula swiftly with rachamim. For more insights into the the workings of the Erev Rav mind & soul, plus the Amalekite influence:
If you'd like in-depth insights into:
...then please go to the Bilvavi Adar/Purim booklet crafted from transcripts of Rav Itamar Schwartz's shiurim: https://bilvavi.net/files/Bilvavi.Purim.Talks.pdf Our mission in This World is to strive for Truth. This means living according to Truth (and not just conducting intellectually stimulating discussions or theses on the mere idea of Truth). In light of this, Rav Itamar Schwartz presents probing questions each person should ask him/herself. Many of you have already answered at least some of these positively. You've already made certain powerful changes for the sake of Truth. (It's clear from your decisions & actions & yearnings.) But it's rare that a person has already pondered all these questions. It's rare that a person has already made all the changes necessary to fulfill the answers to these questions. So here's an opportunity to do so if you haven't already. Needless to say, I need to grapple with these questions just as much anyone else. We're in this together—at different levels and stages, but still together. Note: Please note these questions form around the idea that you actually KNOW of a more truthful place, community, interpretation, etc. and NOT just that someone merely suggested their own "truth" according to their own subjective opinion...or that you kinda-sorta-maybe "think" so, or that you vaguely heard something was considered more truthful, or that you're still trying to figure it out (which is perfectly legit; how else can you know unless you think about it first?)...the questions are: "What if you KNOW"...what if you are in COMPLETE AGREEMENT with them"—what would you do then? Here are the 4 questions: 1) If you are told a certain interpretation in Torah that is more truthful than your current understanding, would you admit to it and say that the other way of understanding is truer than yours? To see the questions within the original transcript AND to hear the class in the original Hebrew, please go here: https://bilvavi.net/english/tefillah-055-searching-truth For the month of Shevat, we have the following from Rav Itamar Schwartz at Bilvavi: Contains in one place much of the information found in the following links. This article is of particular interest because it mentions the "rope" one needs to hang on to in order to get out of the "pit" (dark, hopeless situation), and we've discussed Rebbe Elimelech's idea of the "rope" we need to hang on to, no matter how hard it shakes—the rope of emunah (www.myrtlerising.com/blog/recognizing-the-spastic-rope-of-emunah). The Tribe of Asher corresponds to the month of Shevat. Read this to learn about how Asher corresponds to elevated eating, song, bringing the highest point into the lowest point, and more. If Tevet was about sanctifying the act of sleeping & using sleep for holy purposes, then Shevat is all about rectifying & sanctifying the act of eating. (Also contains helpful advice for different reasons why people overeat: hunger, boredom, cravings, etc., plus a fascinating Q&A at the end.) Follows the theme of the previous. A downloadable PDF collection of Rav Schwartz's talks on the subject to help access the essence of this time for most effective rectification. Most recently translated Q&As with Rav Itamar Schwartz regarding Geula, survival & teshuvah, marijuana, mussar, dealing with confusion, etc. Also, you can check out this post if you ever wondered what was going on with Hashem hardening Pharaoh's heart: Please note: Rav Itamar Schwartz lovingly opposes all forms of the Internet & has no connection to the Bilvavi site.
Rav Schwartz has no more connection with the Bilvavi website than Rav Kanievsky does with all the websites that post videos & quotes of him. For more explanation, please see the Disclaimer here: https://eng.bilvavi.net/opinion/ Utilizing the concepts from Rabbeinu Tam's Sefer HaYosher, Rav Itamar Schwartz discusses what Rabbeinu Tam's "Days of Love" & "Days of Hate" mean for us & how to deal with them. (The full transcription of the lecture is here: https://bilvavi.net/english/droshos-what-do-when-you-are-down; includes a Q&A at the end & specific applications for women.) In short, "Days of Love" are days when you feel "up," and things are going well, both spiritually and emotionally. "Days of Hate" are the opposite; they're the "down" times. Here's an excerpt of a transcription of Rav Schwartz's lecture on the subject (stylistic changes made for added clarity for onscreen reading): Failures Are Not Failures Someone asked Rav Itamar Schwartz of Bilvavi about rabbinical experts in serving Hashem. Here's how Rav Schwartz answered him: As of now I do not know one who has the comprehensive understanding on how to guide you, but I can give you some examples of names of people today who each are experts at the areas of Torah they are known in. Hope this helps! |
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