6639 —הכרה בחסדי ה' שכבר נראו כצנור לברכה, וטובה לזולת לתיקון ההשקפה על החיים

B"H, 11th of Teves, 5719
Brooklyn.

Brachah v'Shalom!

In reply to your letter of 12/13^[1], in which you describe the various circumstances that you and your husband, may he live^[2], have been through, and you sum it all up: it has always been not good, and now too it is not good, etc.; and from this your outlook on the future is understandable.

I am surprised that you arrive at such a summing-up, when you yourself write that of the whole family only a few remained, and you among them; you also write of various defects and illnesses that you went through; and about your husband, may he live, you write that things did not turn out as one had imagined, etc., and that he did work in [various] matters, etc.; and the two of you are in an apartment, etc.^[3]

So, looking at all of this, at what is happening, and not only outwardly but at what is happening in the home, how is it possible that the sum total is what you write?!

Understandably, one must ask G‑d, blessed be He, that things be better and better still, for He is, after all, the very essence of good, and it is the nature of the good to do good^[4]. But one must also not ignore the kindnesses of G‑d, blessed be He, that one has already seen, and especially since, as you write, you have seen revealed kindnesses and open miracles.

I want to stress that I do not mean by this that one need not look into what needs looking into, nor do I mean that you lack nothing in the essential matters mentioned above. I only want to emphasize the good, and good in great measure, that you and your husband have seen even with eyes of flesh^[5].

One more point in this (and one that is no less important), which is explained in our holy^[6] Torah: the measure of blessings from the Holy One, blessed be He, depends to a certain extent on how the person receives them; and conduct in keeping with this, and acknowledgment of the kindnesses, enlarge the channel and the vessels to receive His kindnesses^[7] in the near future and in the future in general.

Among the counsels given for this, when one wants to receive an increase in the blessings of G‑d, blessed be He, is to do a favor for another Jew, materially or spiritually. And just as in giving material tzedakah everyone is needed, that is^[8], everyone has an opportunity for it, so too in doing a spiritual favor. And the more one adds in this, then besides fulfilling a commandment of the Torah, "Love your fellow", of which Rabbi Akiva says that it is a great principle of the Torah^[9], and besides the fact that this adds to the blessings of G‑d, blessed be He, there also comes inner satisfaction, in seeing good fruit of one's labor; and this has a direct and indirect effect on the improvement of one's health and on one's assessment and view of all that is happening within oneself and around oneself^[10]. May it be G‑d's will that you report good news in all the above.

Your husband's tefillin should be checked, and also the mezuzos in your apartment^[11]; and you should keep the good custom of Jewish women to give tzedakah each time before lighting the candles on Erev Shabbos and Erev Yom Tov^[12].

With blessing,

In the name of the Rebbe^[13], shlita,

Secretary

Notes

1. 12/13 (12/13): That is, her letter of 13 December 1958 (2 Teves 5719), in the American order month/day.

2. May he live (שי'): שי' = שיחי', "may he live". The letter is addressed to a woman, who wrote about herself and her husband.

3. And the two of you are in an apartment, etc. (און איר געפינט זיך ביידע אין א דירה וכו'): That is, although by her own account they went through hardships and illnesses, and almost all her family was lost, she herself survived, and the two of them are together in a home of their own. The other details she gives (about her husband) the Rebbe passes over with "etc."

4. The very essence of good, and it is the nature of the good to do good (דער עצם הטוב, ומטבע הטוב להיטיב): G‑d is the very essence of good, and "it is the nature of the good to do good". In the words of the Alter Rebbe (Shaar HaYichud VehaEmunah, ch. 4): ולכן משפיע ג"כ חיות והתהוות מאין ליש, לעולמות וברואים אין קץ, שטבע הטוב להטיב, "Therefore He also bestows life and existence from nothing to something on endless worlds and creatures, for it is the nature of the good to do good." Hence it is right to pray that things be ever better.

5. With eyes of flesh (מיט די פליישיגע אויגען): That is, not only through reflection and faith, but even with physical eyes: the kindnesses are open and visible.

6. Holy (הק'): הק' = הקדושה, "holy".

7. The channel and the vessels (דעם צנור והכלים): That is, G‑d's blessings come to a person according to the "vessels" he prepares to receive them; when a person recognizes and acknowledges the kindnesses he has already received, and conducts himself accordingly, he widens the "channel" and the "vessel" through which he will receive further kindnesses.

8. That is (ד.ה.): ד.ה. = דאס הייסט, "that is to say".

9. "Love your fellow"... a great principle of the Torah (ואהבת לרעך... כלל גדול בתורה): Vayikra 19:18: ואהבת לרעך כמוך, "Love your fellow as yourself"; and Rashi there: אמר רבי עקיבא: זה כלל גדול בתורה, "Rabbi Akiva said: This is a great principle of the Torah."

10. Inner satisfaction... within oneself and around oneself (דער ספוק נפשי... אין זיך און ארום זיך): That is, beyond being a mitzvah and adding to G‑d's blessings, doing good for others benefits her own soul: the satisfaction of seeing the fruit of her effort, which directly and indirectly improves her health and the way she views all that happens within her and around her. In other words, it is the very remedy for the gloomy outlook she described at the beginning of her letter.

11. Have the tefillin... and the mezuzos checked (בודק זיין די תפילין... און אויך די מזוזות): Checking the tefillin and the mezuzos is a regular instruction in the Rebbe's letters to anyone in need of help from Above. In the passage of Vehayah im shamoa, which contains the mitzvos of tefillin and mezuzah, the Torah concludes (Devarim 11:21): "So that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied"; Rashi: "If you do so, they will be multiplied; and if not, they will not be multiplied."

12. The good custom of Jewish women (דעם גוטען מנהג פון בנות ישראל): The good custom of Jewish women and girls to set aside something for tzedakah before lighting the Shabbos and Yom Tov candles.

13. In the name of the Rebbe (בשם כ"ק אדמו"ר שליט"א): כ"ק אדמו"ר = כבוד קדושת אדוננו מורנו ורבנו, "his holiness, our master, teacher and Rebbe". That is, the letter was written and signed by the secretary in the Rebbe's name.

Summary

To a woman who summed up her life and her husband's as "always not good", the Rebbe answers that she herself describes survival, open miracles and a home of their own: one may pray for better, but must not ignore the kindnesses already seen, since acknowledging them widens the vessel for more. Doing good for others, materially or spiritually, adds blessing and also heals one's own outlook.