Igrot Kodesh · Letter 1896 — Faith & Bitachon

By the grace of Hashem,

8 Marcheshvan 5713,

Brooklyn,

Greetings and blessings,

I received with pleasure your greetings, through the intermediary of the Rav, distinguished chassid* who fears Hashem and devotes himself to communal needs, Rav Yosef HaLevi Weinberg. He also indicated to me that you were soliciting a blessing because of the troubles with which you are confronted. When I find myself at the tziyun* of my father-in-law, the Rebbe, I will mention your name, so that you obtain this blessing.

It is surely unnecessary to remind you and, even more, to explain to you at length that, when one enters into commercial relations with a certain person, the goodwill of the latter and his state of mind are determining.

All that takes place here below is the reflection of what exists above. This is the case for all men in general and for Jews in particular.

Each one of us has need of the blessings of Hashem and wishes to obtain them. For this, a judicious preparation is necessary. One must therefore adopt the state of mind which is fitting in order to bind oneself to the Holy One blessed be He. Unlike what happens here below, it is not necessary to arouse good dispositions in the "Merchant." For Hashem is always ready, desires to give blessing and success.

All therefore depends on him who receives the blessing. Sometimes one is animated by the desire to bind oneself to Hashem. Other times, for different reasons, one does not bring such a desire into evidence.

How can one bind oneself to Hashem, Who is the Creator of all the universe, when he who solicits the blessing is only a being of flesh and bone? In what manner can one create such a bond?

In fact, it is true that a man, by his own means, does not have the strength for it. Nevertheless, the Holy One blessed be He desires that one attach oneself to Him, and He therefore grants the means to succeed in it.

Logic permits one to establish that there is no relation, no common measure between the Creator and the creature. Such a bond results solely from the Will of the Creator. It results from this that it is not limited by the comprehension and the rationality of the creatures.

The Torah and the mitzvos* are emanations of Hashem, and, when man has the merit of it, he can refine his comprehension, lead it toward a higher degree of abstraction, until being able to grasp them in a satisfying manner. By contrast, he who has not yet arrived at such a stage of comprehension must not for all that be prevented from practicing the Torah and the mitzvos*. Indeed, no logical justification is necessary for this, as we have underlined.

This idea is mentioned in the Chumash and commented in the Gemara and the Midrash. By what merit did the children of Israel merit to receive the Torah? Because they said: "We will do and (then) we will understand," because they committed themselves to put into practice even before grasping the signification of it, even before knowing what would be asked of them to do and therefore being able to determine whether they understood it or not. Only such an approach permits to receive the Torah and the mitzvos*, which are the Wisdom and the Will of the Holy One blessed be He.

I hope that so long an explanation is in no way necessary for you, that you respect the Torah and the mitzvos*, in particular Shabbos, davening, kashrus*, that you give tzedakah* in the manner which is fitting. Nevertheless, there are surely, in your entourage, persons whom you can convince to put the Torah and the mitzvos* into practice. Hashem gives us the assurance that, in acting and in having the desire to accomplish, one obtains the desired result with success.

With my blessing and in awaiting your good news,