Rav Katz Quotes
Always astounded when any Breslover claims that Breslov was never into traditional transcendent meditation, but only talking words to G-d...
"One of the main points of the work of bitul (dissolving of ego-self) is the cessation of all bodily sensation. One should reach such a high degree of meditative stillness that he doesn’t even feel the slightest sensation or need to move, not even a movement that is normally unconscious. One should get to the point of not having to blink one’s eyes or move one’s lips. Every limb of his body is completely at rest. Rather he gets to a point wherein he has totally nullified all sensation to the maximum extent possible, through the power of his nullification to Hashem’s light, to He who is all one and all good.
When he then returns from this bitul, he must bind the reshimu (energetic impression) that remains from this bitul in his heart, his soul, and his body. He must bind it as well to all his physical sensations, for it is through these, more than anything else, that a person is fooled by the chizu d’hai alma (optical illusion of this world) that tends to make a person forget the light of the holiness of bitul. One must therefore bind one’s body well to this sense of reshimu, so that it will spread over all the powers of his body, his senses, and his limbs. It must also spread to the way he views his money and his material possessions, for again, it is here that many people get caught up in physicality. He should thus be able to nullify his attachment to all these due to the strength of his love for Hashem.
This is the essence of “Shema Yisrael Hashem Elohenu Hashem echad” (Deuteronomy 6:4). This is when we truly nullify ourselves to Hashem and merge into His unity with complete mesirus nefesh (self-sacrifice) for the sanctification of His name. This is why we close our eyes when we say Shema, in order to merge ourselves into the unity that is all one. For it is impossible to merge into that unity without closing our eyes to the chizu d’hai alma.
After this we say, “Ve’ahavta—love Hashem your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). We do this in order to bind the light of the reshimu of bitul to Ein Sof in our heart, in our soul, and in our connection to our possessions. To the extent that we nullify everything to our love for Hashem, the chizu d’hai alma no longer exerts any influence on us. We can thus remain truly bound and attached to Hashem, and to the fulfillment of His holy Torah, even in the midst of our everyday lives."
SOURCE: Otzar HaYirah, Bitul El Ohr Ein Sof, os tes; from Likutey Halachot, Hilchos Milah 5:9, 5:11, 5:12, 5:14)
After every other path is exhausted
Only then will we remember
Only then will we truly know:
There’s no one else to blame
No one else who can heal
No one else to release us
Other than Source
Himself
May it not take us till then to realize.
Amen.
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