6678 —"שויתי ה' לנגדי תמיד" – הנהגה מוכרחת ולא תפלה, ופירושו בתורת החסידות מלשון השתוות

B"H, 9 Shevat, 5719
Brooklyn.

Shalom u'Vrachah!

After a very long interruption your letter of Wednesday was received, in which you comment on what is written at the beginning of the Tur and the Shulchan Aruch^[1] concerning "I have set G‑d before me always"^[2], and ask whether a person may perhaps be deceiving himself in his thoughts about this.

Now, in my opinion, what is said in the Tur and Shulchan Aruch (and this is also the plain meaning of the verse)^[3] is not a prayer and a request, but a narration about a conduct that is good, and also indispensable; as is also understood from the Rambam's explanation of this matter, brought in the Tur and Shulchan Aruch there^[4].

I shall use this opportunity to arouse you to the explanation of the inner dimension of this matter: that "shivisi" ("I have set"), according to Chassidus, refers to the inner results that come about through "I have set G‑d before me always" in its plain sense.

The matter is explained in the Tzava'as HaRivash (the Baal Shem Tov)^[5]: when one fulfills "shivisi" in its plain sense, this is an entrance to "shivisi" in the sense of hishtavus, equanimity; and in the words of the Mishnah (Berachos, beginning of chapter 9), "for every measure that He metes out to you"^[6]. See the Tzava'as HaRivash there at length.

With respect and blessings for good news^[7].

Notes

1. The beginning of the Tur and the Shulchan Aruch (בהתחלת טור ושו"ע): שו"ע = שולחן ערוך. The Rema's gloss on Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 1:1: "'I have set G‑d before me always' is a great principle in the Torah and among the virtues of the righteous who walk before G‑d"; and in the Tur, the Darchei Moshe on the Tur there (see note 4).

2. "I have set G‑d before me always" (שויתי ה' לנגדי תמיד): Tehillim 16:8: "I have set G‑d before me always; because He is at my right hand, I shall not falter."

3. The plain meaning of the verse (פירוש הפשוט של הכתוב): Rashi there: בכל מעשי שמתי מוראו לנגד עיני, "In all my deeds I set the fear of Him before my eyes." King David is describing his conduct, not asking for anything.

4. The Rambam's explanation (ביאור הרמב"ם): ג"כ = גם כן; טוש"ע = טור ושולחן ערוך. The Rambam's explanation is in the Guide for the Perplexed III:52, and the Rema there brings it: "For a person's sitting, movements and affairs when he is alone in his house are not like his sitting, movements and affairs when he is before a great king… all the more so when a person takes to heart that the great King, the Holy One, blessed be He, whose glory fills the whole earth, stands over him and sees his deeds… immediately fear and submission come upon him, in awe of G‑d, blessed be He, and shame before Him always (Guide III:52)." The Darchei Moshe on the Tur there brings the Rambam's words and concludes: "It seems that this is what King David, peace upon him, meant when he said, 'I have set G‑d before me always.'" That is, this is a conduct by which a person must guide himself, not a prayer.

5. The Tzava'as HaRivash (צואת הריב"ש): צואת הריב"ש = the Testament of Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem (Tov); likewise below: ה"ז = הרי זה. Tzava'as HaRivash §2: "'I have set (shivisi) G‑d before me always': shivisi is a term of equanimity (hishtavus): in everything that happens, all is equal to him, whether people praise him or shame him… and whatever happens to him, he says: is this not from Him, blessed be He?" That is, one who sets G‑d before him always, in the plain sense, comes through this to the point where all events are equal to him, for he knows that everything is from Him.

6. "For every measure that He metes out to you" (בכל מדה שהוא מודד לך): רפ"ט = ריש פרק ט'. Mishnah Berachos 9:5, printed at the beginning of the chapter (Berachos 54a), on "and with all your might" (u'vechol me'odecha): ד"א: בכל מאדך – בכל מדה ומדה שהוא מודד לך, הוי מודה לו, "Another explanation: with all your me'od – for every measure that He metes out to you, thank (modeh) Him"; Rashi there: "measures meted out to you, whether a measure of good or a measure of punishment". The Rebbe cites the words in brief; the point is that one thanks G‑d for every measure, good and punishment alike – and this is the equanimity.

7. Good news (בשו"ט): בשו"ט = בשורות טובות.

Summary

A correspondent asked whether one who says "I have set G‑d before me always" may be fooling himself. The Rebbe explains that at the start of the Tur and Shulchan Aruch, as in the plain meaning of the verse and the Rambam's explanation, it describes a necessary conduct, not a prayer; and that in Chassidus, following the Baal Shem Tov, its fruit is equanimity: thanking G‑d for every measure He metes out.