Parshas Ki Setzei
“And with great mercy I shall gather you” (from the Haftorah, Yeshaya 54)
“The world needs great mercy, both spiritually and physically” (Likutei Moharan 105). The world needs great mercy! Both spiritually and physically, everyone needs mercy. Everyone needs salvation, miracles, shidduchim,
and healing for their families and children. Everyone asks for mercy.
Everyone is asking for mercy, but they don’t know where the mercy is.
They ask, “Why don’t I have any money? Why aren’t we healthy? Why is
this one sick and that one sick? Where is the mercy?” People don’t even
know how to ask for this great mercy. In truth, Rabbeinu says, the
mercy is within our reach—it is not so far away. The mercy is nearby.
It is for all to see, as it is written (Devarim
30:11), “It is not far away, it is not in heaven…” Everyone asks for
mercy, but they don’t know where the mercy is. The Rebbe reveals that
mercy is something which everyone can see—it is right in front of your
eyes! Hashem wants to have mercy on you. Hashem wants to help you, to
have mercy on you. Hashem loves you. Hashem wants to give you all the
mercy in the world—to give you a good income, miracles, children,
healing, Torah. He wants to give you everything! Why did Hashem create
you? He didn’t create you to suffer. He wants to give you everything!
Just be a “good boy”—listen to your Father. Hashem isn’t so far away
from you.
“There are two types of “mercy.” One is the simple mercy of Zeir Anpin, and the other is the great hidden mercy of Atika Stimaah. As it is written, “with great mercy I will gather you” (Yeshaya
54). In truth, we desperately need Hashem to have mercy on us—however,
in this generation, because of our many sins, there is no one who
is able to pray in such a way as to draw down the mercy. In fact, HaKadosh Baruch Hu
Himself has to pray about this. And what is it that is going to cause
Him to pray? Through the Torah.” The Rebbe says that we need to awaken
the mercy in the world, the great mercy of Atika Stimaah,
as it is written “with great mercy I will gather you.” And there isn’t
anyone who prays so well that he can draw down this great mercy,
because no one knows how great Hashem is, or how infinite He is, or how
good Hashem is, due to our distress and affliction. HaKadosh Baruch Hu
Himself needs to pray about this. The best thing is that Hashem Himself
should pray and draw down the great mercy, because how well are we
really able to pray? And even if we should go to the Kotel and pray
there—say the whole sefer Tehillim—that
is certainly wonderful! But this is not yet true, complete prayer. We
need that Hashem Himself will pray! But how can we cause Hashem to pray
for us? It is only by studying Torah. The Rebbe is saying here a
wondrous chiddush. If we will
only learn Torah then Hashem Himself will pray for us, and take upon
Himself to worry about us, and He Himself will give us everything:
income, healing, children, miracles, and salvation. If we want to
awaken Hashem to pray for us and to draw upon us great mercy, then we
must learn Torah, for who is able to sweeten the harsh judgments other
than Hashem Himself! Hashem wants to give us everything! Hashem only
asks that we help him to pray. Hashem wants us to give Him the strength
to pray, so to speak, as in “I will gladden them in My house of prayer”
(Yeshaya 56:7). Hashem says,
“I also pray! Help Me to pray.” The moment that a person takes upon
himself to learn Torah, then he will already receive mercy. Hashem
Himself will pray for him. A person thinks that he can run the world
without learning Torah—this is impossible! People just don’t have any
idea—they don’t really believe that by learning Torah they will draw
down mercy.
The Rebbe says that the world needs great mercy but one
cannot awaken the mercy other than by studying Torah—learning b’iyun.
Even if a person cries out, prays—if he doesn’t learn Torah then he
cannot awaken Hashem’s mercy, because Hashem asks, “What are you
shouting about? Why are you praying? Do you want to live? What are you
living for? To eat even more cholent, even more kugel,
even more pizza? Is this the reason you are alive?” You need to live to
study Hashem’s Torah, so that you can activate your mind. A person
builds himself by learning Torah. Without Torah, there is no person. If
you don’t learn Gemara, at best you are like a sheep. At worst, you are
like a snake that eats and drinks like an animal, sleeps like an
animal. You’re still not a person at all—you don’t have the Tzelem Elokim. You can only build yourself up thought the letters of the Torah, through another letter and another Rashi, and another Gemara—another Ritba.
This is how you build yourself bit by bit. This is how you build your
mind. You are actually creating yourself through the letters of the
Torah. As long as you don’t have all of Shas in your head, you are not called a human being at all.
The Rebbe says in Torah 105 that teshuva is learning Gemara. If you want to make teshuva,
then start learning Gemara. A person is full of resentment and bad
thoughts—if he will learn Gemara he won’t have any resentment or bad
thoughts. Hold a Gemara in your hand and everything will work out. Your
thoughts will fix themselves. Everything will work out fine! A person
is scatterbrained—his mind flies in every direction. This is why he
needs to bind the parts of his mind together, which, according to the
Rebbe, can only happen by learning Torah.
When a person learns Torah b’iyun,
he puts his mind into the Torah. This is how he creates new worlds.
Then he creates a new reality! Suddenly a different set of laws applies
to him! He has money to go to Uman! Suddenly, he has spiritual and
material influx! This is because he created a new world. Previously he
was in the world in which he didn’t have money, and now, he is in the
world where he does have money! Now he is in a completely new world,
because every moment a person builds new worlds. If a person learns
Torah b’iyun, then he creates new worlds every second.
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